Gerard's face lit up at the gnarly but still vaguely understandable English...even if all the group of merchants did was ask if he could speak Japanese. Flexing his jaw a bit to loosen up his facial muscles, the hulking inquisitor nodded. [b]"I speak Japanese,"[/b] he replied, careful to manage each inflection of the vowel, [b]"But bad. Where am I? I go to Oita."[/b]

Alas, maybe his European accent slew any chance of communication after all, because after that stint of talking, the trio shifted to waving their hands around in vague gesticulations. At the end of it all, Gerard was fairly certain that he was more confused than ever before, but at least they were pointing him towards an establishment in which he could sleep. With a nod of his head and a perplexed smile, the man didn't really feel like he had any other paths to pursue, and strode into the inn, his gait as casual and controlled as ever.