Thornwatch's streets were a tangled web of stone and timber that seemed to shift depending on who you asked for directions.
The city had grown organically over centuries, starting as a frontier outpost and swelling into a hub for every kind of opportunist imaginable, merchants hawking glowing crystals from the depths, adventurers nursing tankards of frothy ale while swapping tales of narrow escapes, and nobles in silk finery pretending they weren't here to buy the same illicit goods as everyone else.
Kai led Eliza and Sera through the eastern gate, their hoods pulled low to blend into the crowd of travelers and locals.
The air filled with activity: street vendors calling out prices for spiced meats on sticks, children darting between legs with baskets of fresh bread, and the distant clang of blacksmith hammers shaping weapons for the next foolhardy expedition.
"First stop, the Adventurer Guild," Kai said, weaving through a group of rowdy dwarves arguing over a map.
