She Has Her Suspicions

"Ah, well.... About that. Aren't they supposed to find us, instead?" Keith asked. "If we stick around the Arrows Arbor Inn, here in town, they'll have their own way of showing up, I'm sure."

"Meaning, we can either rest until they arrive...or we can find out from the survivor who the assailants of that carriage were." Robin realized. She reached up to check that her mask was firmly on her face. Good thing it was.

"Ah, to be honest, I'm rather curious about that too." Christian admitted. "And why would they attack the merchant's carriage, but not ours?"

"About that...while I have my suspicions, it's best not to make a decision until we get a clear picture of exactly what happened." Robin decided, keeping her suspicions to herself.

Jasmine suddenly puffed out a laugh. When everyone looked at her, curiously, Jasmine looked up from the novel in her hand. "Ah, it's nothing! I was just a bit curious about Auntie Em's novel. Robin..."

Jasmine paused, then smiled brilliantly. "I think you're going to love reading it later." This perked up Robin's curiosity.

"Oh? What's it about?" Robin asked.

"It's about-" Jasmine was cut off by Chelsea's hand covering her mouth.

"Don't spoil it for me! I wanted to read that after Robin does!" Chelsea pouted. She had no intention of letting Robin have even an inkling before she read it.

"All right, all right, I guess I can just read it later." Robin gave in with a shrug. Jasmine was already halfway through the book, so it wouldn't be long before it was Robin's turn.

It didn't take long to find Arrows Arbor Inn. Even more surprising was when they entered, they heard a very loud voice from the common room, telling how fierce the bandits had been. Robin glanced at the loudmouth briefly, and paused.

The man bore a striking resemblance to her cowardly uncle. But it was not her uncle. Her uncle did not have naturally teal hair. he also wasn't obese. It took an extra moment to calm down the misplaced rage, before she turned to the front desk to book a room.

But, it was at that moment that the man discovered his new audience, and raised his already loud voice.

"I tell you, it was the most perilous moment in my life! There were arrows shooting left and right all about me. If I hadn't been behind someone, I would have died right there!"

Robin's anger flared again in annoyance. She usually gave people the benefit of the doubt, but this man...He acted just like her uncle, who had only ever moved for benefits.

She then had an idea. Why not test him? If he were indeed like her uncle, then exposing his wickedness would help save a lot of folks from being fooled by his antics. She turned about and began walking towards the common room.

"Oh? so your the survivor from the carriage wreck we found on our way into town?" Robin asked.

"Indeed I am!" The man affirmed.

"Did you manage to catch a glimpse of the ones who assaulted you? How many people would you estimate were a part of that bandit group?" Robin asked.

"I could not see much at the time, but judging by the rain of arrows there were probably around thirty-no forty people!" The merchant nodded, convinced. "But it wasn't normal bandits that could overwhelm my guards. I'm near certain that these were elves!"

"Elves you say?" Robin looked like she had paused for a moment in surprise, but a sharp glint flashed through her eyes. when she lowered her head.

"Is that true?" Christian asked, breaking into the conversation.

"It's true! I saw one of them as I was fleeing. He definitely had pointy ears." The merchant insisted. "If it weren't for the fact that they were more interested in taking away my merchandise, then I wouldn't have escaped with my life!"

"Oh? And what is your merchandise, might I ask?" Robin asked innocently. "For it to be something that even the elves would kill to rob, it must have been incredibly precious."

"I'm not entirely sure." The merchant said, his eyes flickering about the room. "I deal in...rare specialties of each region. But they're mostly toys for entertainment. I really can't understand what caught their eyes."

"Huh. Now that is odd. A law-abiding creature like an elf going rogue for a bunch of toys?" Robin pondered, thinking about Dirk. Had he managed to arrive there safely yet? But, more importantly...

"What is going on in the elves' territory?" She wondered aloud.

"I haven't a single clue." The merchant shook his head, morosely. "But, great Hero, if you should happen to find them, could you please help me see about retrieving my merchandise?"

"Well...At the very least, we can have a look about the area. But, how did you know I was the hero?" Robin asked.

"Why, you're wearing the hero's mask, after all! I saw the magic recording of you saving the Peg Leg City at the adventurers guild here. So I can be sure that it's Hero Robin!" The merchant chortled.

"I see." Robin bade the merchant farewell and returned to the front desk to get a room. Everyone took a few hours to rest from the tense day's travel. But that evening, as they were gathered around the table, Robin was somewhat distracted.

"What's eating at you, Robin?" Christian asked. "You haven't seemed yourself since earlier today."

"...Hmm?" Robin looked up after she noticed the table fell silent. She grimaced, knowing that she hadn't been paying attention. "I'm sorry, what was the question?" She said, feeling bad that she hadn't heard it the first time.

"A penny for your thoughts, Robin." Keith said. "We can all see that your mind is not at the table, and we were wondering where it went."

Robin sighed, and glanced at Jasmine, who nodded her head. Soon enough, the sound from the surrounding table dropped to nothing. This meant that the sound barrier about the table had been set up. As a lagi, Jasmine had mastered the art of masking her mana signature so that it wasn't obvious that magic was at play here.

"Well, if you must know, it's about what that merchant said this afternoon." Robin admitted. "I'm not sure why the elves would assault a caravan, but I don't think they'd do it over mere toys. That merchant was not being entirely honest. I'm worried."

"Worried about what?" Christian asked.

"There are many ways to start a war, and not all of them are above ground." Robin pointed out. "One of the ways is by swaying public opinion against a targeted group or country. Rumors can be a powerful weapon. Take this incident, for example."

"Oh, the attack? It was tragic, to be sure, but what does that have to do with public opinion?" Sir Earl asked.

Robin eyed her drink. It was beer again. She pushed it Christian's way, before explaining. "For a merchant's caravan to be attacked once is an oddity. But if it keeps happening, then the people's opinion of the fairness and laws of elves will drop. If people don't think well of someone, then they won't treat them well. If they don't treat them well, then negotiations might break down before they can even start."

"But what if they're not trying to start a war?" Gerard asked.

"Then that's even more suspicious." Robin sighed. "If it's not a war that they're after, then they are trying to start a quarrel for some form of benefit to them. Whether it's the increased ease of moving underground or the higher chances of pinning their attacks on someone else, whatever it is, it can't be good." Robin explained.

"Ah. that makes sense." Sir Raymond nodded.

"I am also wondering what it was that forced the elves to attack that caravan." Robin tapped the table. "It might not have been toys that they were trying to steal, but something important that they were trying to recover. This area has become a somewhat lawless zone, so it's much easier for dark dealings to go unnoticed here."

"You mean you're suspecting that man is a dark merchant?" Christian asked.

"That's a higher likelihood than the elves suddenly going mad over a bunch of toys." Robin frowned. "But, in order to get a clearer picture of what really happened, I'll need to get the elves' side of the story."

"So that is why you didn't promise to recover the merchandise." Christian realized.

"If it's stolen goods, then the owner has the right to recover it." Robin nodded. "But we're here to meet the gnomes right now. So I'm worried we might miss them if we go out."