Leaving the girls in the care of Dorothy, I headed over to the entrance to Argal Street to drop off my wagon. It's been almost twenty years since I last stepped foot in Ebonhearth city, that was when I chose to be an adventurer. I'd just received my blessing and formed a pact with Aria, my first creature. The hours I spent trying to learn the spells, the nights in the wilderness, the days spent hunting and the gliff and pix I spent weeks to earn. Those days were fun, though the pay was horrible. It took me two years to earn enough money to get my second pact and tame Fleur.

"*sigh* I still miss you, Aria."

"O's Aria?"

I jumped, startled at the voice that broke my trance. I looked over to see it was that idiot, Oliver. I was waiting by the stables I would leave my wagon in, as the guides would send both Oliver and Archie here to leave their wagons, too.

"Aria was my first pact creature." I told him.

"Wha' 'appened to 'em, I nevah 'eard ya talk 'bout 'em before."

"That's cos she's dead, you dimwit!" Archie interrupted, arriving with his wagon. "I'm done helping the boys unpack, should we lock our wagons up then?"

Thankfully, Archie turned up. Now I won't have to mention my adventuring days. I could try to lie through it, but Oliver is surprisingly perceptive when it comes to lies, it's the only reason he became a half decent merchant.

We locked up our wagons in a combined storage area, receiving a key to the lock after showing our citizens cards. I pocketed the key and mounted Fleur. With nothing else to do, the three of us trotted towards the public office.

"Halt," I heard a man call.

I turned myself to look in the direction I heard the voice to see a man in full plate staring back at me. The knight, with a crest I didn't recognise on his chest, started to approach us, so I stopped Fleur, raising my hand for Archie and Oliver to stop. When the knight reached us, I saw that he was riding a warno, a black rhino with a sharp blade-like horn.

"Are the three of you aware that riding your tamed creatures through the streets is prohibited during the blessing festival?" He asked us in a harsh tone. Probably judging out reactions, the knight shook his head, muttering something under his breath. "I can see you don't have permits either, where are you heading?"

"The public office to get passes for the blessing ceremony." I answered, it should be fine, and needing a pass to go get a pass would be ludicrous, though his sigh at my response is indeed worrying.

"When you entered the city, you should have been told about the regulations during the festival," he stated. "In order to prevent the streets from becoming overcrowded, you will be allotted a time you can explore the city when you visit the public office. To visit the public office, we knights are guiding people from gathering points. Since it seems you are unaware of this, I will just need to see your identity cards and you will just need to visit the courts tomorrow for a verdict."

With that, we were showed the knight our cards, then we followed him to the public office. He stopped by several different gathering points on the way, though there was a bit of a fuss from a few of the points. It was due to the three of us riding our fironares, but the knight straightened it out quickly, saying that we are to visit the courts later. By the time we reached the public office, there were thirty-seven people following the knight, having picked up twenty along the way. After we dismounted, the knight said he'll keep an eye on the Fleur and the other while we were in the office before guiding us back to Argal Street.

Upon entering, I could see a few dozen people stood in a line, moving along every ten seconds, give or take. Seeing there was a sign to line up there when you entered, the three of us walked to the back of the line, after the other thirty-odd people who entered before us. Waiting for roughly four minutes, we finally reached the front.

"Here is your number, please wait for it to be called and you will be able to speak with one of our clerks." A woman said in a dull emotionless tone, handing me a copper plate with '307' engraved on it. "Do you have any questions?"

"Yes, is it possible to have my two fellow merchants to see the person at the same time?" I asked, things should sorted out faster that way

"That is perfectly alright sir. The three of you can simply head to the desk when your number, three hundred and seven, is called. If there are no further questions, the three of you can go and take a seat," she politely informed me, still in that emotionless tone.

"Can I get information such as a map of the city, or perhaps where to buy one?" This should be the last thing I need to know.

"There are maps available from the clerks," she politely answered. "Please direct further questions related to your business here to the clerk who will be dealing with your requests."

"Thank you," I say, bowing my head slightly before leaving.

That last part was quite embarrassing, the person behind the three of us, some pompous, wealthy merchant, even started to loudly berate us, saying something about wasting his precious time. If anything, the three of us going together saved him on time. The three of us sat down in some available seats, keeping to ourselves like most of the other people around us. That pompous man, thankfully, didn't bother us, headed to a group of other wealthy-looking merchants on the other side of the waiting area.

It was such an uneventful thirty minute wait, we managed to triple check all the information we needed for our stay here. When the number was finally called, we walked over to the clerk that called our number. He led the way to a private room where we sat down in the three seats on one side of the desk.

"Good afternoon, my name is Alfred." He politely introduced himself. "What is it I may help you with on your visit today?"

"We need permits for the three of us and seventeen children," I answered, showing my citizen card.

"We would like to have a permit for us three and seventeen children." I told Alfred, handing over my, Archie and Oliver's citizen cards.

"Will this be for one outing or will you be going around at different times?" Alfred asked us.

"It will be at the same time, the children will be at the blessing ceremony between one and three tomorrow. We would also like some time after the ceremony to buy the children their first familiar," it's fine if a few of them don't get one on this outing, we can go out with them another time.

"I can give you a five hour permit between the times of noon and four, is that time alright?"

"That would be fine, is it possible to obtain a map of the city?"

"Of course," he responded. "A papyrus map will cost four gliff, a parchment map will cost one drey. We also have a list of current familiar contract shops, familiar ware shops, familiar care shops and familiar growth shops. Each of those will cost three drey for the changes within the last year or seven drey for the full set of information, which will include each shops specialty, the price range of their stock and the reputation"

Guess it's a good thing we came together, we might have bought the same information multiple times. We should have enough to buy the map and the information on the familiar contract shop and the food shop from what the hamlets gave us to send their children here. Now I know why it costs one to two drey per hamlet, the food cost is one thing, but the price of information is ridiculous. And this information will change almost every year, especially the reputation of the store. There are also new stores that open or close down, possible expansions to a store or changes in specialties. Honestly, if it wasn't for the fact that

"*sigh*, I'd like a parchment map, three papyrus maps and the full information on the familiar contract and care shops."

"That will be sixteen drey," Alfred said, taking out three papyrus maps from his desk. "Is there anything else you need before I have someone bring your permits and the information you asked for?"

"We have to visit the courts tomorrow, will we need permits for that?" I asked, it's best to ask this now. If I did so at the start, he may have marked up the prices thinking we're some sort of small time crook. Though I can't be sure he would, it's better to be safe than sorry.

"No, just ask a knight tomorrow to guide you to the courts. It's best if you get it done first thing in the morning at around four or three before noon, otherwise you may be late for the blessing ceremony."

"Thanks, I believe that is everything. Is there anything you think we will need for the children?" I hope that there isn't, but we could have overlook something important.

"Other than information on tamer academy's which will be exhibitioning on the third day of the blessing, there is just the ware and growth shops information. Though, I wouldn't recommend buying the information for academies. It tends to be the wealthy who buy the information several months early in preparation for their child’s education. Getting the information now is unnecessary, unless one of the children in your care receives a valuable blessing in either their soul affinity or their elemental aptitude. Even then, you can look at the academies on the day if one of the priests grants the child an emblem of the church." He told me, without any change in his demeanour.

"What about information on guilds?" Archie abruptly asked, though I can see Alfred's brow furrowing.

"Due to the near constant changes in the guilds themselves, the public office has stopped selling information on guilds themselves. If you want information, the adventurer's guild branch offers a list of guild names and a brief summary of each guild for one gliff." Alfred stated in a much less friendly manner than before. "There will also be a guild recruitment going on three days after the blessing ceremony is over. There will be no need for permits, though your lodgings may ask for payment after the ceremony is over."

"Thank you, that should be everything." I said, if there is more information we need, we can just.

"Okay then, I shall send off for your information now," Arthur then waved his hand over a crystal ball imbedded into the desk. He then vacantly stared at the air, a clear sign that he was using the blessing, before focusing back on us. "It will take a few minutes before the documents come, would you like me to explain how the permits work in the meantime?"

"Please," I requested.

"Each permit is represented by a blue card the same size as your citizen cards." Arthur recited, no doubt having repeated this explanation countless time. "The card will turn purple when your allotted time arrives, which will be noon for you. When you are in the city during the blessing ceremony, you are to show your permits to anyone you are buying items from or to any knights who speak to you. You will receive a total of twenty permits, one for each and every one of you. You don't have to stay in the same group, however it is advised that you don't let the children wander the city alone."

That should be obvious. Especially since this is the blessing ceremony, there will be numerous people who would take an unsupervised or naive child.

"When your allotted time in the city is over, your permits will turn from purple to red. At that time, if you are found to be still exploring the city, you will be arrested. It is perfectly fine to head to a gathering point and wait for a knight to guide you back to your district."

*knock* *knock*

A knock on the door interrupted Arthur, I bet it's the permits and information.

"Come in," Arthur called, loudly yet still polite.

"Here are the documents and permits you requested," a short lady said, entering the room in a slight rush.

She seemed to only be sixteen years old, with short curly brown hair. I wonder how such a youth managed to get a job here. She can't be a commoner, so she must have been the child of an influential person. She won't be the child of a noble, she's too timid to be one. She could be the child of a knight or a high ranking administrator. But even then, she must have had a poor blessing or met with some serious trouble to end up running errands in the public office.

"Thank you, Katie," Arthur said, a slight smile on his face. "Here are your documents, please return the permits when you have finished with them. You can hand them over at the city gates or here at the public office. Thank you for your time and have a pleasant stay in Ebonhearth."

With that, we were guided to the door with our new permits, maps and information in hand. When we arrived outside, the knight was still there, waiting with our fironares. We were guided back to the gathering point near Argal Street. We then headed back to our lodgings, leaving Fleur and the others in the stables on the way.

"I'm back," I called as I opened the front door.