章 257: Toll
The next day after the group had conquered the Draugr crypt, the group made their way to Riften, the large walled, lakeside city that housed thriving fishing businesses, meaderies, smithies... Not to mention the rather public secret that the Thieves Guild was housed there.
Michael spots the dark stone walls after an hour or two more of riding, the entrance was sparse, aside from a few visitors and the two guards that stood on either side of the open gate. The buildings of the town looked far better constructed than Falkreath, indeed, everything did.
Despite its reputation as an utter cesspool, it seems that the city wasn't losing out on gold because of it. If anything, it made Falkreath look like a homeless hovel... It made him wonder just how Solitude would look.
"Okay, just let me do the talking so we can get through the gates in one piece." Medresi states.
"Is it really so bad? Surely they wouldn't do anything to guests of the city?" Tiffania asks, pulling her hood tighter over her head to avoid her ears being seen.
Medresi nods, "It is, you see, it doesn't matter what side of the law you're on in this place. Guard, thief, Jarl, all of them are criminals to some degree."
Michael sends a sideways glance at her, "Does that include you as well?"
The Dark Elf shrugs her shoulders, "Let's just say that the gold I used to pay the miners wasn't earned." she says before hopping off of the cart and walking towards the guards.
"Halt, carts and carriages require licences to move through the city. There is also a toll for any visitor who doesn't own any property." Michael hears one of the guards says.
Medresi just crosses her arms and glares at the armoured man, "Oh? Well that's good then, considering I live here and own a business. It should be under my name, Dresi Mrad. Check it."
...
The guard pulls out some parchments and goes through them, eventually nodding, "You're on it." he says but nods his head in the group's direction, "But they're not, they have to pay the toll."
Medresi lets out a sigh, "I see, I suppose I'll have to let my friend, Naven know that I've been obstructed." she drawls, causing the men to freeze up.
"S-sorry, did you say Maven?" one stutters out in a barely audible whisper.
Medresi smiles innocently, "Oh? Did I?" she says, not elaborating any further.
...
The guards look at one another and quickly nod, making way and having the gates open. Medresi smirks and hops back onto the cart as Michael has the horses move, a confused and slightly wary look on his face. "You know Maven Black-Briar?" he questions. He had cause to be worried too, even in Falkreath the reach of Maven could be felt, her family having deep ties to both Skyrim Nobility and the Empire. This was the case both through legal means and illegal. He'd even heard that the Black-Briars had tied with the Dark Brotherhood, a rumour that started when an upcoming rival business was steadily wiped out over two weeks, the entire family that owned it disappearing.
There was also Maven's ties with the Thieves Guild to keep in mind, he remembered that from the game. The woman basically owned the guild through her patronage of it, along with Mercer Fray stealing from the guild and putting it in such deep debt that they'd never shake Maven's control.
Medresi shakes her head, "I've never met Maven, nor have I any dealings with her... I just... Mislead the guards slightly."
"Isn't that... You know. Very, dangerous? And very stupid?" he asks, knowing thing using the Black-Briar name without permission was basically a death sentence.
Again the Dark Elf shakes her head, "Did I say Maven? I was only talking about my friend Naven, they must've misheard." she smiles coyly, "Besides, the guards are not supposed to be collecting 'tolls' anyway, they won't say a word of this to anyone, fearing retaliation from Maven's goons... Anyway, shall we go to my property and drop off my part of the treasure?"
Michael just nods, following the directions of the woman while observing the town itself. The main streets looked fine, clean even. But it only took a peek into the alleyways and sidepaths to see the real Riften. Gangs, thieves, thugs, and every other criminal you could name inhabited the place.
There was a distinct lack of homeless present as well, though, whether this was because of Riften's policies or because of the many criminals, he didn't know. The city's security isn't the best either, with guards either sleeping at their posts or literally assisting those who they were supposed to capture.
The fact that half of the city was built atop docks that sat over the lake was also a factor... All it would take is an ember in the wrong place and bam, the whole place would burn. The wooden docks were ill-maintained, with much of them rotting or lazily patched over with another plank of wood nailed into it.
Eventually, they stop the cart in front of an average-sized building on the east side of town. Medresi gets out after glaring at the few watches who was greedily looking at the contents of the cart, the woman throwing a couple rocks at the more persistent ones.
With that done, she enters the building to check if anything had moved before getting Michael and the others to help her move her shit inside... Unfortunately, this endeavour would not be as peaceful as they hoped.
As Michael retrieved the last sack of Medresi's gold, a group of five quickly approaches him as he's about to walk through the doors.
"You there. it seems you've got something of ours. We'd like it back!" the leader demands, a dagger already in his hand.
Michael groans and pinches the bridge of his nose, "Can you mooks and nobodies just piss off and mind your own business for once?"
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