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Chapter 276: Welcome to the Tavern

The room wasn\'t dusty per say, but a feeling of not being clean seemed to sneak out and cower in the corners. Almost as if it was hiding from the gaze of the bartender sitting behind the large counter wiping a glass. Still looking around, everything SEEMED clean, Kat just couldn\'t shake the feeling that it wasn\'t, and she was unsure how to reconcile the feeling.

Distracting herself, she looked at the tables and chairs. The room was large and held space for plenty of different sets of tables and chairs, however it was mostly bare at the moment. There were exactly four sets of tables, two on either side, with an unbelievable amount of space in between them all. Kat was sure she could fit her entire bathroom from Vivian\'s in between the tables and still have room for a few couches.

The missing space, was clearly for the extra tables and chairs that lined the walls, somehow stacked in such a way to not obstruct any of the windows. The chairs had been stacked up and around them, while standing on top of a few tables, making it so that the chairs ringed the windows letting in a bunch of light on both sides.

Xiang continued, forward eyes on the bartender, and Kat followed his gaze. The counter was large and sturdy. It was made from the same stone as the walls with a large chunk of wood rested on top. It was split in half, with an exposed flat area coated in varnish. Behind the counter was one large barrel, about Kat\'s own height in diameter, with a set of shelving on either side.

The shelves were actually rather bare. Only maybe every second space had anything in it, and a large number of the glasses that were present were close to completely empty. Kat could see labels stuck onto them, but she didn\'t recognise any of the names. Aside from that, there was the bartender himself.

He was a strange fellow. A mix of unassuming yet bizarre. Kat could almost feel her gaze slowly sliding off his figure to the more interesting background, but he had plenty strange things going for him. His hair was slicked back, and puffed out at the front. Kat wouldn\'t recognise the style, but it was a pompadour cut, more tame than standard, with the hair only slightly raised at the front, but just enough to classify.

His robes were standard. A dusty grey, which was likely only \'dusty\' in colour because of the years of real dust that had built up on the garment. It was only the fact that the grey was so evenly coloured across the whole thing that convinced her it was intended to be that colour.

His face was plain, largely symmetrical, with a slightly prominent chin. The strangest thing Kat saw on him though, was his eyes. They were sharp, and even though she was meeting his gaze, there was an intensity to them she rarely saw. Well, that and they were completely crazy.

His eyes had what looked to be a long scar running across the both of them. However, it seemed too natural to be a later wound to truly believe that. A jagged line ran across his pupils, splitting them in half and held a faint tinge of purple that bled into the white part of the \'scar\' which joined up extremely neatly when looking at both eyes, as if there wasn\'t anything in between.

"Welcome to outpost 72 My name is Gaston. How may I be of assistance" said Gaston.

"We have come seeking a room and information" said Xiang and Kat felt like slapping him. *We don\'t just announce that dammit. My whole spying knowledge comes from the two times Lily spent a week researching it then offloaded onto me and I still know that.*

Gaston carefully put down the glass he was cleaning and turned fully to face Xiang. Despite that, Kat felt his eyes on her instead. "Do you possess the coin for accommodation? If so, I can provide you with a room. What would you be looking for in terms of size?" asked Gaston

"Single room, single bed" said Xiang without hesitation. Gaston\'s eyes flicked to Kat, but this just reaffirmed to her he was watching her instead of Xiang, even with the motion of his eyes she never felt his gaze waver.

"I am not one to question customers, but what about your companion?" asked Gaston slowly turning his eyes back to Xiang as he spoke.

"What about her?" asked Xiang, as if he genuinely couldn\'t see the problem.

Gaston furrowed his brows and said "I suppose I can allow you both to stay in a single room, but that will cost you extra"

Xiang shook his head grimacing as he said "Of course not. Why would I want that? The room is for me alone"

Gaston paused. Body stopping almost completely, Kat could still see the minute twitches every person went through, and with her gaze so focused on him, she missed nothing. "Highly unusual… does your companion have anything to say about that?"

Now, in that moment, Kat knew she could answer first. Xiang couldn\'t stop her. She had better reaction time, more time to just think. Hell, she could prep an entire set of answers, but she felt like he could put his own foot in his mouth without her help.

"She\'s just a demon. I don\'t see why it matters." Said Xiang like it was a universal truth.

Gaston flinched at that, "I see. Would you like to be shown to your room now in that case?" asked Gaston, though Kat could hear it wasn\'t really a question, but a polite command.

Xiang however, didn\'t know the word subtle, or polite, and said "No, I\'d like some information first"

Gaston\'s eyes narrowed. "What would you like to know?"

"The Shattered Flame Sect. I\'d like everything you know" said Xiang.

Gaston got a strange look about him. The silence stretched. Xiang started to tap his sword at the ten second mark. It didn\'t seem aggressive, but Kat wasn\'t sure how polite it was. *I mean really. Are you trying to threaten the guy? I sure hope not because I\'m more than willing to stop you.*

"I can\'t really tell you anything" said Gaston, the picture of honesty. "I am but a humble bartender of this small outpost. I was assigned here when my family had some issues, and I\'ve never left since. I don\'t get a lot of information"

*Well, if that isn\'t a lie, I don\'t know what is. However, he says it so well, I\'d almost believe him if it made even a shred of sense. He must have caravans come through. Probably a whole bunch of Shattered Flame Sect members as well.*

"Sorry for your trouble" said Xiang, unaware he\'d just be lied to. "I guess I should rest then. Do you have water for washing?"

Gaston nodded "Yes, we have water seals. It\'s all cold of course, so I hope that is no concern"

Xiang shrugged "That\'s fine"

Gaston nodded, and got out from behind the counter gesturing for Xiang to follow him towards the side where a door lay. As he left, Gaston gave Kat a subtle gesture to take a seat, and Kat nodded.

*Well, if that wasn\'t an indication Gaston would rather talk to me than the kid, I don\'t know what else would be.* Taking the seat that she\'d be gestured towards Kat took a moment to turn on her meditation. When she did, she could see the two ripples, likely made by Xiang and Gaston.

This however, confused Kat. *I thought this was based on my hearing. I wasn\'t paying attention but I know there are people in the other building nearby and I could hear them. Is my range limited? Or is this not a way to sense sound at all. I mean… after the wolves I suspected but this is still strange.*

Kat casually watched the ripples move around the pond of her mind until she saw one of the ripples start making its way back. She waited until it was back down on her level, before opening her eyes.

As Gaston walked out of the door, he looked over at Kat and made his way to her table. Taking a seat across from her he said. "How restrained are you? I am aware of demons and their contracts. He is a fool, and while you seem more in control, if he orders you into idiocy I want to know if it can be prevented" asked Gaston.

Kat nodded "The terms are more than loose enough to prevent me needing to follow his commands"

Gaston relaxed into the chair but still kept his intense gaze. "Good. Then we can speak, not as a fool and a bartender, but as an information broker and a demon" said Gaston, with a smile that made Kat wonder who the real demon was in this situation.