Chapter 5 Chapter 3 Nightlife

When night fell, the curved dagger became more lively.The sailors from the merchant ships flocked, and the local residents immediately took their places to serve them.Regis and Wulfgar remained at the corner table, the barbarian staring curiously at his surroundings, and the halfling intently paying attention to what was going on around him. A woman strolled towards them, which troubled Regis.She was not young, and her haggard look was the most common on this pier, but her nightgown, which did not look like a lady in any part, concealed the flaws of her figure with a provocative smoke screen.She stared at Wulfgar's face, the man's cheeks as low as the tabletop; her movement confirmed Regis' fears, the halfling thought.

"Nice to meet you, tall man," the woman said sweetly, and slid comfortably into the chair next to the Savage. Wulfgar looked at Regis, and almost laughed out loud in disbelief and embarrassment. "You're not from Luskan," the woman went on, "and you don't look like a trader just sailing into port. Where are you from?" "North," Wulfgar stammered, "from the ice... Icewind Dale." Regis hadn't seen such a wild woman since leaving Calimport, and he felt he should interrupt now.There was something wrong with this woman, an uncommon depraved pleasure.Regis suddenly found himself missing Calimport.Wulfgar was probably not well suited to the animal's lure.

"We are poor travelers," Regis explained, trying to emphasize the word "poor" to protect his friend. "We don't have a penny left, but we still have a long way to go." The Wolf family looked at his friend curiously, not quite sure why he told this lie. The woman studied Wulfgar again, and smacked her lips. "What a pity," she sighed, and then asked Regis, "Not even a penny?" Regis shrugged helplessly. "What a pity," the woman repeated, getting up and leaving. Wulfgar's face turned crimson as he realized the real motive behind the conversation just now.

Regis was also a little provoked.His longing for the old days of running through the tavern-filled streets of Calimport tugged at him more than his willpower could hold.As the woman passed him, he grabbed her by the elbow. "Not even a penny," he explained to her questioning look, "but there is this." He took the Ruby Pendant out of his coat and let it start to swing.The blazing light attracted the woman's greedy eyes as the magic gem sucked her into a hypnotic trance.She sat down again, this time in the chair closest to Regis, her eyes never leaving the depths of the magical, swirling ruby.

The only thing that kept Wulfgar from being enraged by this betrayal was that he was confused.The confusion of thoughts and emotions in his mind caused him to just stare blankly and his mind went blank. Regis noticed that the barbarian was looking at him, but he just shrugged in his usual way of shrugging off negative emotions such as guilt.Let the light of tomorrow reveal what tricks he's up to.Future consequences, however, did not diminish his ability to enjoy himself tonight. "The nights are cold in Luskan," he said to the woman. She put a hand on his arm. "We'll find a warm bed, don't be afraid."

The corners of the halfling's smiling mouth almost reached his ears. Wulfgar had to fight to keep from falling under the chair. Bruenor regained his composure quickly, not wanting to insult Whisper or give her the slightest advantage by finding herself surprised to find a woman.Even so, she knew it, and her smile made Bruno even more alarmed.Selling information in an environment as dangerous as Luskan's dockside means she must react immediately to murderers and thieves, and even in the intricate back-up system, this is still a need for extreme concealment. work.Few who seek Whisper's help are not surprised to find a young and attractive woman in the business.

Yet Bruenor's respect for the informant remained undiminished, though he was surprised that Whisper's fame had traveled hundreds of miles to his ears.She was alive and well, and that alone told the dwarves that she was not easy to deal with. However, in comparison, it was obvious that Drizzt was not very surprised by this incident.In the dark cities of the drow, women generally hold higher status than men, and are often far more dangerous.Drizzt knew that in the male-dominated society of the dangerous North, Whisper would gain many benefits from her male customers' tendency to underestimate her.

The dwarf, anxious to get things done and get on his way back, stated directly why he had come. "I need a map," he said, "and I hear you're the only one who can get it." "I have many maps." The woman replied grimly. "I want something about the North," Bruno explained. "From the sea to the desert, and mark exactly what races live where!" Whisper nodded. "That's a good price, dwarf," she said, her eyes only shining with gold. Bruno dropped her a small bag of gems. "These should pay for your troubles!" he growled.He was never happy about losing money.

Whisper poured the contents of the packet into his hands, and carefully inspected the unpolished rough stones.She nodded as she emptied them back into the pouch, knowing their considerable value. "Hold on!" Bruno yelled as she began to tie the bag into her belt. "Before I see the map, you are not allowed to take any of my gems!" "Of course!" the woman replied with a disarming smile. "Wait here, I'll get the map you want in a moment." She tossed the packet back to Bruno, and turned suddenly, her cloak flapping and puffing up a puff of smoke.In a gust of wind, there was a sudden flash of light, and then she was gone.

Bruenor leaped back, gripping the handle of his ax tightly. "What kind of sorcery is this?" he shouted. Drizzt felt nothing special, and put his hand on the dwarf's shoulder. "Be quiet, strong dwarf," he said. "This is only a bluffing trick, with flashes and smoke to conceal her departure." He pointed to a small pile of boards. "To this sewer." Bruenor looked along the dark elf's arm, feeling relieved.If you look carefully, you can vaguely see a hole, and the iron bars of the hole are clinging to the wall of the warehouse a few feet ahead along the alley.

"You know more about such things than I do, Elf," declared the dwarf, flustered by his inexperience with dealing with thieves on city streets. "Does she really want a fair deal, or does she just let us sit here and wait for her thieves to come and rob us?" "Neither," Drizzt replied. "Whisper would not have survived if she had given her customers to thieves. But it's hard to expect her to do justice to us." Bruenor noticed that Drizzt had drawn one of his scimitars as he spoke. "Isn't this really a trap, huh?" the dwarf asked again, pointing to the drawn weapon. "It's not hers," Drizzt replied, "but there are many eyes hidden behind these shadows." Not just Wulfgar, many eyes were on the halfling and the woman. The ferocious thugs of Luskan's docks often make it their business to torment smaller creatures, and halflings are one of their favorite targets.On this particular night, a huge, plump man with thick eyebrows and a bristling beard who kept getting his glass full of foam dominated the conversation at the bar, boasting about impossible feats of bravery, And as soon as the wine in his glass was filled a little slower, he immediately threatened everyone around him with a violent hammer. All the men gathered around him near the bar, those who knew him or his men nodded eagerly in agreement with every word he uttered, holding him aloft on the pillar of compliments to dispel their own sympathy for him. fear.But the fat man's ego needed further expansion, a new victim to tease and intimidate, and as his eyes wandered around the interior of the tavern, they naturally fell on Regis and his tall but youthful friend.The spectacle of a halfling courting the woman with the highest price for a curved dagger seemed like an unmissable opportunity in the eyes of the fat man. "Come here, beauty," he said, spattering, spewing ale with each word. "Imagine that the hobby of a short winter melon can satisfy you to enjoy this night?" The crowd around the bar was anxious to maintain their respect for the fat man, and burst into overzealous laughter. This woman had dealt with this man before, and what she saw at that time was other people falling in front of him in pain; after she cast a concerned look at him, she continued to be firmly bound by the attraction of the ruby ​​magic pendant .But Regis immediately looked away from the fat man and turned his attention to what he thought was the most likely trouble - Wulfgar on the other side of the table. He found he was right to be worried.The proud savage's knuckles were starting to turn white from scratching the table, and the seething eyes told Regis that he was on the verge of eruption. "Let him insult!" Regis insisted. "It's not worth a second of your time!" Wulfgar did not relax at all, nor did he take his gaze away from the other.He could turn a deaf ear to the fat man's insults to himself, and even to Regis and the woman.But Wulfgar understood the motives behind these insults.Although it was an excuse to insult his incompetent friend, to Wulfgar it was a bully's provocation.How many people have become victims of this big guy?He is suspicious.Perhaps now is a good time for the fat man to learn a little about humility. The eccentric bully felt that he might find excitement, so he took a few steps closer. "Hey! Move it! Shorty melon," he said curtly, pushing Regis aside. Regis immediately began to wonder how the regular patrons of the tavern would react.There must be a lot of people here who will jump out at this fat man and his obnoxious pals for their own reasons.There's even a member of the Public City Guard here, an organization held in high esteem in every area of ​​Luskan. Regis broke off his sweep for a moment to study the soldier carefully.This person looked very uncoordinated in a place like a spittoon that had been ravaged by a dog like a curved dagger.What was even more curious was that Regis knew this man, the same Gildan who had recognized Drizzt and let them in through the gates hours before. Fatty took another step forward, and Regis didn't have time to think about the meaning behind it. The big fat man put his hands on his hips again and stared down at him.Regis felt his own heartbeat, the blood rushing through his veins, the kind of stand-offs he'd always had on the verge of conflict in Calimport.And now, as then, there was only one thought on his mind, and that was to find a way to get away. But when he thought of his partner, his confidence also disappeared without a trace. Given his inexperience, Wulfgar was not going to let the challenge go unanswered, even as Regis would hastily described him as "unintelligent!"In a long-legged leap, he jumped over the table with ease, and stood firmly between Regis and Fatty.He stared back at the fat man with the same intensity. Fatty glanced at his mates at the bar, knowing full well that this young and vain opponent, bound by a twisted sense of honor, would not strike first. "Okay, look here," he smiled, "this young man seems to have something to say." Slowly turning his head back to Wulfgar, he struck the barbarian's throat suddenly, hoping his sudden change of pace would catch Wulfgar by surprise. Wulfgar had little experience with the way things went on in the tavern, but he knew how to fight.He had been trained by Drizzt, an ever-vigilant warrior, and he had already tuned all his muscles to the best condition for fighting.Long before the fat man's hands were near his throat, Wulfgar had one of his large hands over his opponent's face, and the other reached into the fat man's crotch.His stunned opponent found himself flying into the air. For a moment, the onlookers were too startled to react at all.Only Regis, with his hand across in front of his disbelieving face, slipped under the table when no one was looking. The fat man weighed more than three normal men, but the barbarian easily lifted him over his seven-foot head, and even higher, until his arms were fully extended. In helpless rage, the fat man shouted orders for his men to strike.Wulfgar waited patiently for the first movement to come against him. The whole group seemed to jump up at the same moment.The still-calm, well-trained warrior spotted the highest density, where there were three men, and hurled a human pellet.He noticed the frightened expressions on their faces before howling, and then they were knocked back.Their combined force smashed the bar completely in half from top to base, knocking the unfortunate tavern owner away, and sending him crashing into the rack where his best wine was, smashing everything to pieces. Wulfgar's joy didn't last long, as the other villains rushed at him in no time.Standing where he was and digging with his heels, determined to secure his footing, he swung his massive fist and sent his enemies flying one by one until they all fell in the corner of the room. Fighting broke out everywhere in the tavern.People who would not have been inspired to act when a murder was in sight now leaped at each other in rage at the horrific sight of spilled spirits and a ruined bar. Even so, the few Fatty's subordinates were blocked by the main group of people who started the fight.Wave after wave they swarmed towards Wulfgar, who was still standing there because no one could delay his movement until reinforcements were advancing in front of him.What's more, this barbarian was attacked as often as he attacked others.He resolutely endured these fists and endured these pains, only because of his utter pride and persistence in fighting that he would never admit defeat. Regis hid in his new seat under the table, watching all this and sipping his ale.Even the maids joined the fray, straddling the backs of some hapless combatants, carving intricate patterns with their fingernails on the men's faces.In fact, Regis soon discovered that the only person in the tavern who wasn't engaged in the melee, unlike the others who had lost their minds, was Gildan.The soldier sat quietly in his chair, completely uninterested in all the fighting going on around him, the only thing he cared about was observing and appraising Wulfgar's martial arts. The incident troubled Regis, too, but he soon found again that he had no time to contemplate the soldier's unusual behaviour.Regis had known from the start that he could drag his giant friend out of the scene, and his wary eyes now saw what he had expected to come—a glint of steel.An Yaxin cudgel, held back from Wulfgar's eyes by his opponents, had its blade drawn. "Damn it!" Regis muttered, putting down his drink and pulling a mace from the inside of his cloak.This kind of thing always made him utter obscenities. As Wulfgar knocked his two opponents aside, he made a way for the dagger-wielding men.The man ran straight ahead, staring straight up into the eyes of the tall barbarian.He didn't even notice Regis bursting from between Wulfgar's long legs, the little mace ready to swing.It hit the man's knee with a thud, shattering his kneecap and causing the man to fall forward, his knife revealed to be pointing directly at Wulfgar. Wulfgar dodged the thrust with a last-minute dodge, hooking his hand around his attacker's.With the force of his turn, he knocked away the table beside him, and the table smashed into the wall.He pinched, and the attacker's fingers on the hilt shattered instantly, while Wulfgar threw his free hand over the man's face, lifting him from the ground.This barbarian shouts to Tempus, the god of war!Enraged by the drawn weapon, he smashed the man's head into the layers of the plank wall, leaving him dangling from it, his feet a full foot off the ground. It was an impressive move, but it took time to do it, and when Wulfgar turned back to face the bar, he was immediately surrounded by a flurry of fists and kicks from several attackers.    "Here she comes," Bruenor whispered to Drizzt when he saw Whisper return, though the elf's heightened vision had told him so long before the dwarves knew it.Whisper had only been away for about half an hour, but it seemed much longer to the two friends who remained in the alley, knowing that they were dangerously exposed to the sight of the crossbow-armed man and the murderer nearby. Whisper strolled leisurely toward them. "Here is the map you want," she told Bruno, holding a rolled parchment in her hand. "Let me see," demanded the dwarf, and began to walk forward. The woman backed away, throwing the parchment aside. "Its price is very high," she said in a flat voice, "ten times higher than what you just offered." Bruno's dangerous stare didn't bother her. "You have no other choice," she hissed. "You can't find another person who can provide you with this. Pay and be done." "Wait!" Bruno said in sudden composure. "I'll discuss it with a friend." He and Drizzt took a step back. "She knows who we are," the dark elf explained, though Bruenor had come to the same conclusion. "She also learned how much we could afford." "Is this the map?" Bruno asked. Drizzt nodded. "She has no reason to believe she is in danger, at least not here. Do you have the money?" "Yes there is!" said the dwarf. "But we've got a long way to go, and I'm afraid we'll need that money, or even more, in the future." "Then let's do it," Drizzt replied.Bruno noticed a little fire in the dark elf's lavender eyes. "When we first met this woman, we made a fair deal," he continued. "A respectable transaction." Bruno understood and had agreed.He felt the thrill of acceleration running through his blood.He turned back and noticed at once that what she was holding now was not a parchment but a dagger.It was evident that she had learned the nature of the two adventurers she was dealing with. Drizzt also noticed the flash of metal, and he took another step back from Bruenor, trying to appear nonthreatening to Whisper, despite the fact that he had long since noticed some suspicious gaps in the wall (possibly It's the gap on the edge of the secret door) He hoped to walk to a more favorable angle during the battle. Bruno approached the woman with his outstretched empty hand. "If that's the price," he murmured, "then we have nothing to do but pay obediently. But I want to see a map first!" Confident that she could thrust the dagger into the dwarf's eye before she drew her hand back to her belt for the weapon, Whisper let her guard down, moving her free hand from under the cloak to the scroll. But she underestimated her opponent. Bruenor's stubby legs jerked so that when he jumped up the height of his helmet reached the woman's face, brushing her nose and slamming her head against the wall.He ran to the map, threw the original bag of gems on Whisper's unsteady body, and whispered, "This is what we talked about." Drizzt has also jumped up and started to act.As soon as the dwarves stepped back, he used their racially gifted magic to create a dark ward over the window where the crossbowmen were hidden.No arrows were fired, only the roars of the two archers echoed in the alleyway. Then the crack in the wall cracked, as Drizzt had predicted, and Whisper's second line of protectors rushed out.The dark elves had already prepared, with two knives in hand.With a flash of light, the blunt side of the scimitar was just right and with enough precision to disarm the villain who ran out of it.Then they came again, slapping the man's cheek, and Drizzt reversed it with the same fluid motion, striking the man's temple with one hilt, then the other.At this time, Bruno had returned with the map, and the road in front of them had been cleared without hindrance. Bruno examined the dark elf's kung fu with sincere admiration. Then an arrow from a crossbow pierced the wall just an inch from his head. "Come on," Drizzt observed. "Go to the end, or I'll be a bearded dwarf!" said Bruno when they had almost reached the mouth of the alley.A roar from the building next to them, followed by a frightening scream, reassured them. "Guenhwyvar!" Drizzt said, as the two cloaked figures burst into the street ahead of them and fled without looking back. "I really completely forgot about the cat!" cried Bruno. "You should be glad that Guenhwyvar's memory is bigger than yours," Drizzt said with a smile, and Bruenor laughed with him, regardless of his own feelings about the leopard.They stopped at the mouth of the alley and surveyed the street.There didn't appear to be any signs of trouble there, although the thick fog provided good cover for a possible ambush. "Take your time," Bruno suggested. "That way we're less noticeable." Drizzt was about to agree, but a second arrow from somewhere in the alley landed on the wooden post between them. "Go!" said Drizzt more firmly, but Bruenor needed no further prodding, for his short legs slammed into the ground as he charged into the mist. They chose to go through the twisting and winding Luskan's Rat Maze, Drizzt gracefully rounding the rubble barrier while Bruenor charged straight through.Gradually, they began to believe that there were no pursuers, so they began to slow down their pace. The dwarf looked back and raised contented eyes, his white-hot smile showing through his dark red beard.But when he turned his head back to look at the road in front of him, he suddenly squatted sideways, desperate for his axe. Because he met the magic leopard face to face. Drizzt couldn't hold back his laughter. "Get that thing out of my sight!" Bruno demanded. "Be polite, good dwarf," retorted the dark elf. "Remember it was Guenhuffa who opened the way for us to escape." "Make it go away," Bruenor demanded again, his ax ready to swing. Drizzt patted the muscular neck of the mighty leopard. "Don't mind what he says, my friend," he said to the Leopard. "He's a dwarf, so he can't appreciate finer magic!" "Go!" growled Bruenor, though he was relieved that Drizzt had sent the leopard back and put the onyx statue back in his fanny pack. It wasn't long before the two men walked up Half Moon Street, stopping at the last alley to see if there was any sign of pursuit.They knew right away that something had happened because a few people had stumbled or been carried across the street by others. Now they saw Curved Sword, two familiar figures sitting ahead in the street outside the tavern. "What are you doing there?" Bruno asked as they approached. "It was as if our big friend had returned a fist to the person who insulted us," Regis said.He hadn't been touched at all in the fight.Yet Wulfgar's face was swollen and bruised, and he could barely keep one eye open.Clots of dried blood (some of his own) clotted on his fists and on his clothes. Drizzt and Bruno glanced at each other, not surprised. "Where's our room?" Bruno asked in a low voice. Regis shook his head. "I'm worried too." "Where's my money?" The halfling shook his head again. "Go!" Bruno breathed through his nostrils, and then strode vigorously towards the gate of the curved dagger. "I wouldn't..." Regis began, but he shrugged right away, leaving Bruenor to find out what had happened. When Bruno opened the door of the tavern, he was really shocked.Broken tables, cups and unconscious customers littered the floor.The tavern owner was lying on top of the shattered bar, and a maid was wrapping his profusely bleeding head in a bandage.The man Wulfgar had thrust into the wall was still hanging there limply with the back of his head stuck, moaning softly, which made Bruenor admire the martial arts of this strong barbarian.Occasionally, when a cleaning lady passed by the man, she would give him a little push to make him sway. "Good money wasted," Bruno guessed.He hurried out of the gate before the boss found out and asked the barmaid to stop him. "What a hell of a commotion!" he told Drizzt when he returned to his companions. "Did everyone in there attend?" "Except one," Regis replied. "A soldier." "A Luskan soldier here?" Drizzt asked, surprised by the fact that something was clearly wrong. Regis nodded. "And more curious," he went on, "is none other than Gildan, the man who let us into town." Drizzt and Bruno exchanged an interested look. "We have chasing soldiers behind us, and a smashed tavern in front of us, and a soldier paid too much attention to us." "Go," Drizzt replied for the third time.Wulfgar looked at him in disbelief. "How many did you kill tonight?" Drizzt asked him, trying to get Wulfgar to deduce that they were in danger. "And how many of them would salivate at the chance to stick a knife in your back?" "Besides," Regis added, before Wulfgar could reply, "I don't want to sleep in an alleyway with a horde of rats!" "Let's go to the city gate then!" Bruno said. Drizzt shook his head. "Don't go through a place where the guards are so interested in us. Let's go over the wall and don't let anyone know we're gone." An hour later, they were scurrying easily across the open grass, feeling the breeze again through the breaks in Luskan's walls. Regis summed up their thinking: "This was the first night of our journey in the first city we encountered. We betrayed the murderer, brought down a gang of villains, and attracted Attention of the gatekeepers. What a good start!" "Yes, but we got this!" Bruno shouted, the vision of finding home clearly coming to mind, because the first task they had to do, to get the map, had already been completed. Unbeknownst to him and his friends, however, the map he is clutching marks several dangerous and deadly areas, one of which will specifically test the four friends to their limits, and beyond.