Msaka reached the inn without incident, though he noted that the streets still seemed inexplicably empty, a fact which continued to perplex him. Still, it was of little real consequence, and he pushed it from his mind as he opened the inn's front door and stepped inside.

Glancing around, Msaka saw only a few people in the common room, most of whom looked as fatigued as he'd felt earlier. Fortunately, this also meant that most of the tables were free, so he quickly strode over to one of the tables that was partially hidden within a booth along the back wall. Sinking down onto the cushion, he stretched and looked over the room again, unsure as to whether there would be anyone coming to serve.

His worries were soon put aside, however, as a young woman approached, her face shrouded by a veil which failed to hide the glittering green eyes that peeked out above it. Msaka arched one eyebrow at this turn of events, as he couldn't recall seeing her here before. He quickly concluded that she must be a relative of the owner, who was most likely in bed by now.

Reaching the table, she inquired politely as to his needs. Having neglected to eat earlier, Msaka was quite hungry, and requested a double serving of whatever might be at hand. Nodding, she breezed away to the back, disappearing into the kitchen.

Msaka watched her depart, but his thoughts were already turning to other matters. There had been no questions about the caravan trip or the events in Raseir from any quarters so far, which bothered him. Surely someone should have been wanting to speak with him on the subject by now... or perhaps they were simply waiting for tomorrow to do so. He sighed and leaned slightly back, stretching again and letting his thoughts wander further.

Suddenly, he started and sat up straight, having sensed something at the edge of his awareness. He quickly cast his gaze across the room, but nothing had visibly changed, nor were there any unexpected sounds or scents that he was able to detect. "There actually is something here," he concluded. "But what is it..."

He closed his eyes and allowed his thoughts to wander again, hoping he would be able to detect whatever he'd felt previously. It had almost certainly been the cause of his trouble sleeping earlier; whether something more menacing than that could result was an immediate concern.

There it was again, at the edge of his perception - something magical, and bearing a slight familiarity, yet alien at the same time. Try as he might, he just couldn't pin down what sort of power it was, but it wasn't very far away - almost certainly it lay somewhere in the inn.

He heard someone approaching, and abandoned his task, looking in the direction of the sound. The serving girl was approaching, bearing a tray heaped with food. She set it down smoothly on the table and started to leave, but Msaka spoke up, a hunch coming to him as to the source of the disturbance. "Is there anyone staying here that has come from the southern lands?" he queried the young woman, who turned back to face him.

"There is a trader recently arrived from Fricana who is staying at our inn," she repled. "He is abed now, but I will tell him you wish to speak with him tomorrow morning, if that is your wish."

Msaka suppressed a scowl. "No, that is fine. I was merely curious." Turning his attention to his food, he picked up the utensils and began to eat, stabbing at the viands with rather more force than was required. The girl bowed and backed away, moving back to her place along one side of the room.

Msaka paid no attention to her departure. A thing of magic was in the inn somewhere, and given the feel to it, it was almost certainly something from his homeland. Powerful enough that he could sense its presence from a distance and without being able to observe it directly, yet not so powerful that he could tell it was there unless his mind was free to do so.

A thing like that wouldn't have easily come into the possession of some northern merchant. While it was possible that whatever the artifact was had been legitimately acquired, it seemed more likely that it had been obtained by dishonest means. There was enough of a chance that it was something of significance to his tribe that he could not afford to ignore its presence; he would have to find the thing and examine it, regardless of its present owner's desires.

That decision made, Msaka resolved to wait until the rest of the people in the common room had departed or retired for the night. Then it would be time to employ the stealthy skill and magic his tribe was known for.