Bookish

"So what do you think? Port, Prison, or Poison?" Michael asks after laying out his ideas for Tiffania.

...

Tiffania just sits there for a moment before eventually vocalising her thoughts, "Michael, who are these distractions for? Who are you targeting?" she asks, and Michael pauses.

Yeah, that was a good question... He hadn't yet found his tormentors, so deciding a distraction around an unknown variable was kinda stupid when he thought about it... He sheepishly coughs into his fist, "Er, I haven't really thought about that bit yet. But still, what would be the most effective tactic in your opinion?"

She lets out a sigh and rests her Magic Theory Book on her lap, "Either the prison or the barracks. I think we've burned enough with our attack on Cendri." she states, still slightly sore on how that'd all turned out. "Ah, I do remember hearing that the palace had its own dungeon when I was younger. Prince Wales is probably kept there, maybe with any captured loyalists." she adds, but is not entirely sure if the palace dungeons would still be in use.

Tiffania continues however, "I was thinking though, why do you only have to pick one? Can't you poison the barracks a day before Prince Wales execution and attack the prison on the day?" she asks, wondering if she'd missed something.

She hadn't of course, Michael was just too focussed on singular objectives instead of the whole picture. That said, for such a plan to work he'd need to find someone to sell a slow-acting poison, find the location of his targets, and plot out the prison escape, all within three days. Plus, he'd need to do everything without getting discovered.

Just thinking about everything that needed to be done made Michae's brain start to ache... Still, Tiffania's advice had opened some avenues for him, but he still had two more people to get their opinions from.

He leaves Tiffania to continue with her studies as he enters the 'toilet', If it could be called that. It was essentially just a wooden box with a hole in it, that allowed waste to drop into pipes leading to the sewer. Used water from the aqueducts would flow and take anything within the pipes to the sewers beneath the city.

Michael sits on the box and opens the Book of Commoners, turning to see Rhasta. "Master Rhasta, do you have any knowledge of military tactics, espionage or anything like that?" he greets before asking, wondering if the Shaman had ever learned anything about such things in his long life.

The troll just shrugs dumbly however, "Nope! I made sure to stay far enough away from any wars that broke out. Someone like me wouldn't last long if I got caught up in it. I don't what things are like in your world, but back in mine, getting conscripted was almost as scary as actually fighting! Hm, I guess it depended on who was doing the conscription I suppose... Don't get me started on the Dirge and that Dead God!" the troll shivers as he shakes his head, "Did I ever tell you of the time I ran into the 'So-called' Almighty Dirge? Aha! Made a mess of my clothes when I saw that great undead beast! I would've died there and then if the Spirits hadn't rescued me!"

Michael chews his lip, unsure what the 'Almighty Dirge' was, but knowing that they were getting off-topic. "Rhasta, I was asking this because I need your thoughts." he says before going on to explain his situation and potential plans.

Rhasta crosses his arms and nods sagely... Or at least, that's what Michael thought, until the troll opened his mouth. "I hear you... And I still have no idea. Most of my fights involved firing magic until the screaming stopped, ahahahaoohahua!" he jokes and Michael palms his face.

Alright, let's try Slark then, that guy might actually know something about potential poisons. Plus tips on starting a prison riot, though, Michael wasn't sure if underwater prisons were anywhere near comparable to regular ones.

He flips the page and focuses on the empty beach, "Slark! I need your advice on prison breaks and poisoning folks! Surely you'd be interested in that!?" he exclaims with his nose almost touching the page, trying to keep his voice from reaching Tiffania or the other residents of the inn.

...

After a moment of waiting, Slark comes splashing out of the water and landing on the beach, "Prisons breaks and poison? I'd say you've got the right chap, but I still don't want anythin' to do with ya'!... Unless there's somethin' in it for me?" he asks, causing Michael's brows to furrow.

"You want something? I doubt it's possible for me to give you anything, Slark..."

Slark shakes his head, "Nah! I see you, you see me, just drop what I want into this prison and that'll be that! Got it!?" he retorts, gesturing upwards presumably where his face manifested in the sky.

...

Michael squints in thought, wondering if such a thing was possible... Well, it couldn't hurt to try, right? He reaches retrieves some Beef Jerky from his inventory and drops it onto the picture depicting Slark and the beach, his eyes widening when it disappears and lands not a minute later on the same beach.

Unfortunately, Slark just looks down at the meat and scowls, "What am I? A fish in a tank!? If this is the best rot you got, I'll just jump back into the sea." he says, beginning to munch on the meat despite his words.

"Ah, just me testing if I could send you things." Michael says, poking the picture with his finger to see if he could enter the book. His finger doesn't enter it, but he feels something try to exit his body... He prods it again, with a little more force, and his world temporarily goes black.