Corita and Razvan had beaten the rest of their group back to the Rusty Dragon and met with Aldern, who had just finished his breakfast. Although he was surprised at the early visit, Aldern didn't mind and invited them to sit with him. When the group reunited, Razvan asked about their reward for saving Aldern as the man had promised, he paused for a second. Draul wondered if he had changed his mind but quickly realized that he had something else in mind.

"As it so happens, I was hoping to go on a hunt in Tickwood Forest before I returned to Magnimar," Aldern explained. "I would be happy to have you join me and will happily pay for your horses. We can take what we hunt back here for a nice meal. Afterwards, I'll pay you for your efforts in saving my life."

"I'm not too sure about this offer," Razvan noted with a frown. "I might just want the gold."

"But imagine where we could ride off with a horse!" Corita told Razvan. "I think we should take the offer as it is."
"I agree," Draul said with a nod. "Thank you, Sir Foxglove."

"It's no problem at all for brave adventurers such as yourself," Aldern told the group and stood up. "No time like the present! Let's hunt!"

The group left the Rusty Dragon along with Aldern, who led the way to the stables next door. The Goblin Squash Stables had the proper name with a sign showing such a creature trampled underneath the hooves of a mighty horse. On the wooden beams throughout the stable were goblin ears, and while some had dried out, others appeared to be more recent and fresh. The stable keeper must have killed his share of goblins during the raid but Draul wasn't too keen on the trophies. If the dozen horses around cared, they didn't show.

The stable keeper greeted the group and gave a nod of acknowledgement to Kennick, who worked at the stables. The man was middle-aged and wasn't the best looking. It certainly didn't help that he had a piece of cloth tied over where his left eye was. Draul frowned to see that the cloth had some stains of blood but it appeared as though the man wasn't in pain. He left one of the horses that had been stabled and approached the group.

"Kennick," the stable keeper greeted with a chuckle. "You've been enjoying the day off? I know you didn't ask for it."

"Sorry, Daviren," Kennick bowed his head. "Sheriff Hemlock wanted help."

Daviren waved his hand dismissively. "Don't worry about it. Ameiko told me about how you handled the goblins. You didn't kill as many as I did but it looks like you're in better shape than I am. One of those damn monsters took my eye out with a horsechopper. I take it these are the adventurers you worked with."

"That's right," Draul said then glanced toward Aldern. "Most of us, at least. I'm sorry about your eye."

"Don't worry about me," Daviren looked at Aldern. "Here to take your horses?"

"Not only mine and those of my servants, but I am here to purchase five of your best horses for my new friends so that we can go hunting," Aldern explained.

"Friends might be pushing it but I'll take the horse," Mariel said with a shrug and stayed behind the group.

"It'll be four horses since Kennick has Donner," Daviren noted. "I'll see which horses would be best for hunting."

"I wasn't aware that you had a horse, Kennick," Corita said.

Draul nodded in agreement. "Do all employees at the stable get a horse?"

"Darren was a gift," Kennick answered.

"A gift?" Draul asked.

"Kennick isn't much for words," Daviren said as he brushed the mane of a brown horse. "His father, Rufus, was the same. Rufus came down from Wolf's Ear when Kennick wasn't even old enough to walk. The two of us fought against several goblin raids. Rufus fought unlike any man I've ever seen with his mighty axe and emerged from fights unscathed. He was a hero to the town."

"Like father, like son," Aldern said with a smile. "I can't wait to meet this brave hero."

Kennick frowned at Aldern. "He's dead."

Aldern looked away in embarrassment while Daviren nodded grimly. "It wasn't a pretty sight. With no one else to look out for him, Kennick went to live at the orphanage. I took him on as a stablehand about three years ago when he got into trouble with the guard since I figured that I should have done more."

"It's alright," Kennick muttered and went deeper into the stables. "I'll prepare Donner to ride."

"How about you pick your horses?" Daviren offered, changing the subject.

Corita jumped at the chance to pick her own horse and judged each one individually. While Razvan and Mariel simply settled on the first horse that stuck out to them, Draul glanced towards Kennick, who tended to a horse that looked more sturdy than anything else in the stables. The paladin wondered what was on his new friend's mind and was sorry that he had lost his father. Still, based on what Daviren told the group, Draul was sure that Rufus would be proud of what his son did to defend Sandpoint.

An hour went by as the group rode on toward Tickwood Forest. Aldern paid for the group's horses and summoned three of his servants to ride alongside the group. Although he initially wanted to ride alongside Corita, she pushed her horse on, challenging everyone to a race. Only Razvan accepted and Aldern sulked in disappointment since he wasn't a good enough rider to keep up. He tried to talk to Kennick but the stablehand was dismissive and thought that he wasn't a hero, putting an end to the conversation as quickly as it started.

Although Aldern frowned when Kennick didn't share any stories of his battle, he knew that there were two other adventurers who rode nearby. It came as no surprise to Draul when Aldern rode up next to Mariel. Although the paladin thought that their new friend was a good man at heart and genuinely thankful for their deeds, he wasn't without flaw. Aside from being overly eager to try to learn more about the heroes, his attention was focused on the two female adventurers. Corita had briefly flirted with Aldern in a teasing way, likely flirting simply because he had started it.

Draul wasn't sure if Aldern would have much luck with his attempts to woo Mariel. The elf remained silent for most of the ride and didn't want to bother with conversation. The paladin knew that she thought she had better things to do than to hunt but came along because the others insisted. Draul kept his ear open, curious as to whether he would be able to learn more about Mariel.

"And how do you enjoy the ride, fair lady?" Aldern asked Mariel.

Mariel made no attempt to hide her displeasure. "I'd much rather be inside reading a book than to go on some hunt that is bound to end in disaster."

"I take it that you've studied magic then rather than some other sort of sorceress then," Aldern noted. "The way that you burned those goblins was magnificent and I must say that your intelligence rivals that of your beauty."

"Sure it does," Mariel said and rolled her eyes.

"You must have studied at one of the finest academies in Varisia," Aldern said, missing the obvious signs that Mariel was uninterested. "You must tell me where you learned your magic."

"No, I don't think I will," Mariel said and shook her head.

"You won't?" Aldern gasped.

"I won't," Mariel said. "You have no talent for the arcane. It would be a waste of time to tell you."

"I simply wanted to learn more about you and where you came from," Aldern defended himself.

"And I do not care enough to entertain you with your foolish notions."

Draul, realizing how the conversation was going, leaned forward on his horse. "I see two dots on the horizon. We might have caught up with Corita and Razvan. Aldern, would you like to ride ahead and check on them?"

"Certainly," Aldern said with a smile.

Aldern motioned for his horse to gallop forward, leaving Draul and Mariel behind. The elf visibly relaxed when he left and sighed in relief. The paladin chuckled lightly. Although he wasn't much for lying, he knew that it would be best to distract Aldern. He figured that Mariel was above casting spells to deal with distractions but wanted to make this trip as enjoyable as it could be for her.

"Did you need to be so harsh to Aldern?" Draul asked, glancing to his side. "He means well."

"He means to try to bed me," Mariel stated matter-of-factly. "My harshness is to tell him that I sincerely want nothing to do with him. I wouldn't have come this far if it weren't for what he promised and I doubt he has much gold left to pay us anyways."

"At least we have horses," Draul said and patted the mane of his mount with a smile. "Although I am now curious as to where you're from. You were very insistent about not telling Aldern."

"You mean I didn't want to tell Aldern where I studied," Mariel corrected him.

"I believe that you lived in the same settlement as where you studied," Draul said. "Am I wrong?"

Mariel remained silent for a few seconds before answering. "No, you're not. How did you know?"

"Sandpoint doesn't have a place to study magic, and as far as I can tell, you're not a rugged explorer," Draul noted. "I mean no disrespect with that. You've certainly proved yourself in combat already. I think that you're someone who would be content staying in one place, so it makes sense you studied where you were originally from."

"You're more insightful than I thought you would be," Mariel said with a nod.

"It's because you think of me as a naive fool," Draul chuckled.

"You were the one who wanted to take a goblin and try to redeem it," Mariel pointed out. "I thought it was best to assume you were a fool."

"I'm more than a warrior who fights with a big stick," Draul told Mariel and patted his holstered greatclub. "Being a paladin means studying religion and honing your skills. Since I took an oath revolving around redemption, it's important that I am able to read someone to get an idea of who they really are within."

"Two can play at that game though," Mariel said and looked over Draul in an assessing manner. "Unlike me, you look like someone comfortable on the road. Based on your logic, it would be likely that you traveled somewhere to train as a paladin."

"You would be correct," Draul said and held up a finger as he remembered his journey. "I grew up in Magnimar but what followers of Sarenrae the city had weren't capable of training me as a paladin. Instead, I traveled to Korvosa and spent three years at the Temple of Sarenrae. After my training was finished and I took my oath, I returned to Magnimar, and then, I was sent to Sandpoint to help however I can."

Mariel remained silent in thought for several seconds. Draul turned forward to focus on the ride ahead. He was content to let the conversation end there if the elf wanted to since he knew that she wasn't one for socializing. The paladin was simply glad to have learned what he could from his new companion. It came as a surprise when Mariel spoke up again.

"Mierani Forest."

Draul looked back at Mariel with a raised eyebrow. "Huh?"

"That's where I'm from," Mariel said. "I trained under a wizard from the Twilight Academy who made his home in the forest as well."

"I see," Draul nodded along with the conversation. "And what brought you out to Sandpoint?"

"It's not just magic I've studied," Mariel smirked. "What do you know about Thassilon?"

"Not much," Draul answered. "That was some ancient empire?"

"One that died out close between seven and eight thousand years ago," Mariel noted. "Despite being an empire, Thassilon was ruled by seven runelords, wizards of great power that were tyrants. Most, if not all, of Varisia belonged to the empire."

"I see," Draul said.

"However, that is mostly all what I and many other scholars know about Thassilon," Mariel said. "I hope that coming to the frontier of Varisia would help me find out more."

"I wish you the best of luck," Draul told Mariel. "I'd offer to help but I'm not one for studying. Why else do you think it took me three years to finish my studies as a paladin?"

Mariel turned away to hide the amused smile on her face out of politeness. Draul didn't mind if she laughed at his sake. It was true that he wasn't as studious as others when it came to studying tomes of knowledge and religious matters but he pressed on trying. Of course, there were other reasons why training in Korvosa took so long but he didn't want to bother his friend with the details of his training. They were coming closer to Tickwood Forest and it would be time to start the hunt.

Thanks to the horses Aldern bought for the group, the mile-and-a-half journey to Tickwood Forest breezed by quickly. They traveled north of Devil's Platter, a name given by the locals to a long steep slope of limestone that was southeast of Sandpoint. The rest of the group caught up with Corita and Razvan (with the bard having won their race) at the edge of the forest. Although Draul was worried about what threats there were, Razvan assured him that there were no goblins or dangerous monsters that dwelled in Tickwood Forest. It was mostly occupied by wildlife, making it a perfect hunting ground.

It didn't take too long for the hunting party to find a boar. Hunting the beast down proved to be another and more difficult matter. The group was able to keep up with their prey on horseback but kept missing with their hunting bows provided by Aldern's servants. Although Draul trained with bows, he never considered himself to be a proficient archer. Although it was Aldern's idea to hunt, his shots went wide the most while Corita fired rapidly with her arrows falling short of the boar. Mariel didn't bother with her bow and rode alongside the group to see how the hunt turned out.

Of the group, Razvan proved to be the most effective with the bow. Although Kennick did score a few glancing blows against the boar, Razvan's arrows always found their mark and injured the boar. Draul had been surprised when a simple cook fought alongside the goblins and was further surprised by the way he wielded a bow. Although the squealing boar kept trying to escape, its injuries proved to be too much. Razvan fired one last arrow that sunk into the boar's throat, ending the hunt.

"Nice shot!" Corita shouted out a compliment with a smile.

"Thanks," Razvan said with an approving nod.

"We should prepare to bring the boar back to Sandpoint," Draul told the group as they slowed their horses to stop.

"My men can take care of that," Aldern said and gestured for his servants to dismount.

"I'll help," Kennick grunted and dismounted his horse as well.

While his servants and Kennick took care of the boar, Aldern turned to Razvan. "I am curious as to where you learned how to handle a bow like that."

"I'm really not that great of a shot, honestly," Razvan said with a shrug. "I just pick up a few tricks here and there during my life. When I left Riddleport two years ago, I had to learn how to hunt to stay alive."

"Riddleport?" Aldern questioned. "I heard that it is a rather dangerous city due to the criminals that live within. I don't blame you for leaving although I do question if you really picked up your talents like that."

"Are you implying something about me?" Razvan glared at Aldern.

"I'm just curious as to how life was growing up in Riddleport," Aldern quickly said.

"I stayed clear of the gangs as best as I could, and when they tried to give me trouble, I ran," Razvan told Aldern. "I'm just a cook at the Fatman's Feedbag now."

"For what it's worth, Razvan has proven his character by defending Sandpoint from the goblins," Draul said to defend his friend. "He had no formal training but stuck around to fight. That's why he's with us."

"Even though he fought with us because he thought that he would be safer with us than by himself," Corita said and winked towards Razvan. "Not that I mind protecting a helpless cook."

"I wasn't helpless," Razvan said in amusement. "At least I didn't try to hide. I fought."

"I guess you thought that barrel you threw your dagger into was a misshaped goblin," Corita laughed.

"I killed the same amount of goblins that you did," Razvan pointed out with a grin.

"For what it's worth, I believe that Draul is right," Mariel said with a nod. "Riddleport isn't just a criminal haven. The Cyphermages are well respected within the city and they pursue knowledge instead of following a life of crime."

"You do have a point," Aldern admitted. "Although now I am more curious. During my brief stay in Sandpoint, I heard rumors that the Fatman's Feedbag was just a front for the Sczarni. You wouldn't happen to be Varisian, would you?"

"And I'm ending this conversation," Razvan said and pulled on his horse's reins. "See you back at Sandpoint. This time, I'm beating you there Corita."

"You're on!"

Aldern sighed as Razvan and Corita rode off together toward the way they came. Draul couldn't help but feel that Aldern was trying to turn the group against Razvan for some reason. The paladin thought that it must have been jealousy. He might have seen Corita's compliment as more than that and wanted to drive a wedge between the two. It was also possible that Aldern was jealous that Razvan was a hero and wanted to bring him down.

Although it was also possible that Aldern was right. Even with what little he revealed of himself, Razvan didn't offer an explanation for what he did in Riddleport. Draul had been suspicious of the cook when Kennick pointed out his daggers and the conversation only fueled his suspicions. Yet, Razvan helped to defend Sandpoint, and regardless of reason, that took courage. He may be a criminal, but as far as Draul knew, he was a good man.

With the boar secured on the back of Kennick's horse, the rest of the group set out to return to Sandpoint.

It was the middle of the afternoon when the group returned to Sandpoint. After arranging for their horses to stay at the Goblin Squash Stables, they left the stables with the servants bringing the boar to the Rusty Dragon so that it can be cooked per Aldern's request. The group lingered around outside the stables for a few minutes, stretching their legs and walking around after remaining seated on saddleback for a period of time.

With Corita's races finished, Aldern was able to finally talk with her. Draul watched on from the sidelines next to Mariel with an amused expression.

"I did not take you as a skilled rider," Aldern said and bowed his head. "You continue to find ways to amaze me."

"I had a lot of practice back home," Corita smiled. "There's not a whole lot to do back home in Turtleback Ferry. So, I rode horses whenever I could. I even took some of my younger brothers and sisters with me when they got older."

"You truly are a lady who cares for people," Aldern complimented. "Perhaps I could visit your home with you one day."

Corita shook her head and laughed. "I'd rather not head back home so soon. Again, it's rather boring. I'd rather live an exciting life of adventure!"

"And you're sure to find it in Sandpoint!" Aldern nodded. "I hope to see more tales and was glad to be there when you faced the goblins."

Draul missed Corita's response when Mariel whispered to him. "He does know that you killed more goblins than Corita in that fight, right? I wouldn't be surprised if he didn't know based on what I've seen of his intelligence."

"There's a difference between knowing and caring," Draul said. "Kennick killed their leader, the one who butchered Aldern's dog, and Aldern doesn't seem to recognize that."

"Poor Corita doesn't know what she's getting herself into," Mariel sighed. "She's hardly an experienced adventurer so she sees Aldern only for what he says."

"She has to have some experience," Draul told Mariel. "She fought the goblins alongside us."

"With a sword which is about the only adventuring equipment she has," Mariel said and shook her head in disapproval. "If she is going to learn to be an adventurer, she has a long way to go, and she'll more likely end up dead before achieving the greatness she desires."

Draul did note that despite her enthusiasm in the battle against the goblins, Corita was rather inexperienced. The other two young members of the group were in a similar boat. Razvan lacked formal training, and while Kennick made up for his inexperience with his strength, he didn't think much for himself and was willing to lose a fair cut the day before. If they were going to continue to help Sandpoint, they would need help.

Although Draul never considered himself to be an adventurer, he had been on the road longer than he thought he would and seen his fair share of fights. He already did his part in guiding Kennick and realized that the others were looking up to him as a leader of their small band. Even though the paladin had his duties to attend to, from what he heard from Father Zantus, there wasn't a lot for a paladin to do in Sandpoint. He also needed to build trust with the sheriff and the rest of the town so that they would be more willing to let him reform wicked villains.

With a small nod, Draul decided that it was going to be up to him to train Corita, Kennick, and Razvan.

A/N: I'm back with Burnt Offerings. With Edge of Anarchy finished, Burnt Offerings, and in turn, Rise of the Runelords, will become my main focus for Pathfinder. Be on the lookout for more updates in the near future.

Until next time.