Krile and Krita were walking past the store in the middle quarter, and several people rushed all around them as the afternoon sun was slowly setting and turning the sky darker. Suddenly, Krile gasped and collapsed to her knees from heat exhaustion. Krita caught her in time and felt her forehead to check her temperature.

"Oh no! You've got a really bad heat stroke!" she exclaimed.

"I'm... I'm okay..."

"No, you're not! We can't make it to the fountain like this! Plus it's starting to get dark, so maybe it'd be better if we got a room at the inn for tonight," Krita insisted, helping her sister to her feet. "We have lots of money, so let's just relax here for tonight, then tomorrow we can go to Halure to find work. Gosh, I don't know how you got this hot so quickly."

"Maybe because I was chasing that thief... and then talking with Captain Stanson for a while..."

"Damn those knights and their self-absorbed protocols. If it was that important to get your testimony, they could have at least done it inside their headquarters instead of forcing you to stand in this horrible heat without water. Come on, we're almost there. You'll get to lie down in a nice room soon enough!"

Krita guided Krile through the inn's doors, and the harried innkeeper managed to reserve one of his last rooms for them before those coming to the festival would book up every room. It wasn't particularly impressive compared to the suites reserved for more well-to-do travelers, but at least Krita could lie Krile down and tend to her needs throughout the evening. Krile laid in bed with a cloth and ice cubes on her forehead as Krita brought supper for them. The crowds were growing steadily more rowdy as the early evening slowly turned into night.

"Damn, I'm never going to get any sleep like this," Krita swore, slamming the window shut furiously. It didn't do much to drown out the cacophony occurring in Zaphias' streets. "Remind me again why the hell this is going on?"

"Something about the knights killing a huge monster that had been threatening Zaphias..." Krile huffed.

"Oh yes, the Empire being a huge braggart, as always. What a joke. Maybe I should get some earplugs from the innkeeper before we turn in."