Still unnerved from his encounter with the goddess statue, Crow stayed put in the alley for a while longer before he finally climbed to his feet again. Having chosen not to run from his responsibility, he couldn’t waste any more time panicking about the possibility of divine intervention. It wasn’t like he could do anything about it anyway. If Aeklora was going to try and stop him from stealing the staff, there was no way that he, a mortal man, could do anything to prevent her from doing so. It was out of his hands.

Feeling a bit more resigned to his fate, whatever it may be, he walked back to the market to finish what he had gone there to do. He lingered by the edge of the swarms of servants, circling predatorily in search of someone wearing the blue and white colors of Younis or a royal crest or anything else that would signify a high position in the castle.

After a while of waiting and searching, he spotted a potential target, a young woman wearing a blue and white band around her left arm. She was browsing a row of merchants selling what looked like expensive fabrics for clothing. By that he guessed she was the personal attendant of one of the members of the royal family, although whether she served the queen or a woman of lesser status was difficult to say. Either way, she would have valuable information that would help him locate the king’s chambers more quickly if he could only get her to share it with him.

He watched her from across the street, trying to decide the best approach to get her to tell him what he wanted to know about the palace. He didn’t want to use force, since there were so many local guards around, yet he also doubted she would voluntarily tell a stranger risky information about the castle. He had to find a way to make her lower her guard enough to share with him the details he needed.

Having decided on a plan, Crow slipped into the crowd and made his way across the street towards the royal servant. When he reached her side, he pretended to look over the merchant’s wares, as if they were what had caught his attention. He glanced at her from the corner of his eye, but it seemed like she was too busy examining a red silk cloth to have noticed him approach. Well, that was fine. He would just have to get her attention a little more directly.

“That’s a beautiful color,” he said, causing the girl to jump slightly at the sound of this voice.

She turned to look at him, seeming ready to chide him for startling her, but then paused. Her dark eyes swept over him and her cheeks turned rosy. She dropped her gaze and fiddled with the cloth square in her hands, “I-I’m trying to choose a fabric to make the queen’s new ball gown.”

“The queen?” Crow echoed, raising a brow. What luck! This attendant did work for the queen after all. He bit his tongue to stop the victorious grin that threatened to take over his lips. He didn’t want to give away his excitement that he had found the servant he had been looking for. Instead he allowed a friendly smile to soften his features as he went on, “I’m sure she would love the fabric you’ve chosen for her. You have great taste, love.”

“T-thank you,” the attendant blinked in surprise at his compliment, the blush on her cheeks deepening. She turned to the merchant and purchased a large roll of the red silk. However, when the man handed it to her across the table, Crow intervened and picked it up instead.

She looked up at him with a questioning expression, and he smiled at her again, “Allow me. I have some free time, so there’s no reason for you to carry this all the way to the castle when I can do it for you.”

“Oh, a-are you sure?” the girl asked politely, although he could see a hint of a smile tugging at the corner of her mouth.

“Of course,” he said with a laugh. “It’s not every day I find myself in the company of a woman as beautiful as you. I’d like to make this time last.”

The attendant’s cheeks burned scarlet and she averted her gaze, nodding silently at his words.

He took the lead as they walked towards the palace so she wouldn’t see the pleased look on his face. She was buying everything he was saying to her. It was almost too easy. He slowed his pace slightly to walk next to the girl, “So, what’s your name?”

“Lily,” she answered with a small smile and looked up at him again. “What’s yours?”

“Dante,” Crow supplied the name he remembered Hartley had used while they stayed with Malcolm. He turned the conversation back to her once again, intending to keep her flustered, “You have a lovely name. It’s quite fitting.”

“Thank you,” Lily bit her lip and looked away again.

They continued talking idly, with Crow throwing in compliments every once in a while, until they reached the castle gates. Unable to go farther, he handed off the roll of fabric to her, subtly allowing his hand to brush against hers during the exchange. He offered her one more charming smile before she moved to part ways with him, and then called after her, “Lily, wait.”

“Yes?” she turned back to him.

“Would you like to get dinner with me at a tavern this evening?” he scratched the back of his neck with mock bashfulness.

The girl hesitated for a moment, seeming caught off guard by his proposal, before she broke out in a grin, “I’d love to.”

“Really?” Crow beamed back at her, as if he was pleasantly surprised by her answer. “Where would you like to go?”

“How about the Running Bear tavern?” Lily suggested. “They have good food, and it’s not far from the market.”

“Great,” Crow smiled. “I’ll see you there, love.”

“See you, Dante,” she waved at him and then turned to walk through the gate with a slight skip in her step.

Once she had gone, Crow headed back toward the other side of the citadel, feeling pleased with himself. He had fully convinced the queen’s attendant that he was interested in her, and he had even persuaded her to meet with him again. All he had to do now was get her drunk at the tavern so she would tell him about the castle. It wouldn’t be long before he learned everything he needed to conduct the heist. The game was in motion.