Hargeon
The sounds of laughter, cheers, small talk and the cries of those who lost faded away as Tristan moved to a different, less populated area of the establishment. Even before the bard had pulled the little mouse from his pocket Renard instantly knew where they were. No smell so penetrating as that of a restroom. However the reason why Tristan was taking this detour was all too clear for the young wizard. He could feel his companions hearth pounding, the heavy breathing and the muscle tension increasing. Even before the bard placed him on the basin and started to talk Renard knew that the strange sensations had taken hold of the bard as well.
For a moment Renard just observed his companion with a bit of a worry on his little mouse face. It was clear that Tristan wasn’t as accustomed to being under weird spells as he was. The fear on the bard’s face wasn’t as enjoyable as the red blush from back in the alleyway. Speaking of red, the young wizard should totally put his money on red during roulette. Just having this constant urge to gamble was not nearly as bad as that time that Renard was transformed into a worm, put in a jar and Sadao had to bail him out. Constantly walking from one side of the basin to the other Renard tried as hard as he could to analyze the situation but his mind was constantly getting back to gambling. With a bit of frustration in his voice Renard finally spoke out
“This is so annoying! I can’t stop thinking of gambling. I bet this is some kind of magic.”And suddenly Renard’s mind became more clear. That last sentence seemed to be the most clearest thing coming from his mind since entering the establishment. Suddenly it dawned into the young wizard how he could use the rules for their advantage. His expression of frustration slowly changed to a big smile as Renard had found a way to work around his gambling thoughts.
“Cheer up Tristan, we’ve got to play with the hand we’ve been dealt. Time to look at what cards we can put on the table. Better not go all in when betting on my magic to negate the negative effects of other persons their spells” Renard paused as he gave his companion a curious glare, wondering if Tristan would catch on to his rephrasing his thoughts into sentences that had something to do with gambling.
The mouse closed his eyes and imagined himself sitting at a poker table. Next to him he placed the bard and started to fill in the seats with the other actors in this rather awkward comedy. The bouncer at the door, the lady who pointed Tristan to the cans, several dealers and even the unlucky crowd that got themselves into this fine gambling mess. The real important question was; ‘who casted the spell?’ The bouncer at the door? No, his cards sucked because there was no trace of any magic power coming from him. Maybe 1 of the dealers at the table? Most likely not, they are way too busy with their little tricks and scams to constantly take notice who entered and left the establishment. It was unlikely for the cans lady to have an ace either. Renard could not sense any magic power from her either.
“What person did I miss…… what….what. That’s it! It’s not who but what!” shouted Renard in rejoice.
“I am going all in on a magic device. It must be. This is Hargeon, unlikely to find a wizard this…..”Renard could not finish his sentence before the door to the restroom opened and two men walked in. In a reflex the mouse jumped back into Tristan’s jacket, just hoping that both men did not have noticed him or heard Tristan talking. From inside the dark, confined space he could hear that both men were busy conversation with each other as they passed the bard and positioned themselves in front of the toilets. Although the men lowered their voice Renard could still hear their conversation with his sensitive mouse ears.
“Boss, a message has come that the Abyss Chasers will be here shortly. The boys have gathered 35 ‘volunteers’ for them. All people eager to work off their gambling debts if you know what I mean” The other man sighed in annoyance.
“Of course I know what you mean fool. None of them will ever return. God knows what those dark wizards do to them. And frankly I don’t care and I am not going to ask them either. We don’t want to get on the bad side with them. That would be the end of the octopuss gang”