"Alright, alright," he put his hands up. "I yield." Not that Ace's comment intimidated him, but rather he knew he'd need to solidify himself as the agreeable partner among them. It was going to tough to be a peace keeper between two very strong personality and he'd done enough testing his bounds for now. He'd always like coming on strong. A big presence was hard to forget, or so he'd found out, and it was a tried and true method for ensuring he made quite the impression. Still, he wasn't going to push Ace anymore with his formal jesting. He'd made his impression enough for now.<br/><br/>Smile widening the moment he realized that he was being studied, he made no attempt to hide his grin. It was painfully obvious that he enjoyed being the center of attention be it of an entire room or just one person. Sliding into the seat where Dane had been brooding, he leaned back with one elbow on the bar.<br/><br/>"It just so happens that knowing things that others might not know is also one of my specialties- of which you'll find I have many." Modesty, however, wasn't one of them. "What everyone knows seems to have gotten a little worse, or at least it's been vastly more active for the last year or so." He reached back down into one of the pouches built onto his armor, a long cut into the leather that ran along his outer thigh. From it he extracted a long rolled and slightly flattened flap of leather and laid it on the table before rolling it out.<br/><br/>It was a map made across the smooth service with a combination of burn marks and ink. The ink lines were far clearer and fine, the searing a bit more slap dash which showed a combination of both careful planning and notes made while on the road. The top left corner showed were the two paths veered from one another, the V in the path with the hatched and finely drawn bridge that marked the start of the treacherous pass through what was a wild and unkempt forest. The winding middle path was all one continuous line from start to finish where it exited the other side of the rectangular map, the bent and swaying marks near it standing over the title 'The Plains'.<br/><br/>That much everyone knew. King's road had been an ambitious endeavor to cut a path clear through the known territories all the way to open up a route to the plains and beyond. What was less known were the thinner lines that writhed out from it, the life veins of both creatures and humans who had tried their hand to live there. They were at odd intervals and they wound over small icons of rocks, trees, and ruins.<br/><br/>"You see, I like to do my research and I had quite a journey this way. A few drinks here, a bit of shared food there, and you get to hear some very impressive stories. You wouldn't believe what a walking wealth of knowledge even a simple farmer can be." He seemed proud of the map which bore smaller marks here and there, runic little scripts that made no sense in any modern language. It was his version of short hand.<br/><br/>"I know there's a few smaller ways in and out. Paths that cut past some of the more unsavory bits of terrain. Mostly smuggler's paths, though some of these are quite old and out of use from what I've heard. Still, might come in handy."<br/><br/>There were other marks sparsely peppered along the main trail. Star looking emblems each with their own set of scrips to them. He didn't touch on these but, instead, continued to watch Ace as he had been the entire time. He knew well what was on the map and was far more interested in the man's reaction to it.<br/><br/>"But this, my brother-in-arms, isn't the most important known of things other than what everyone knows. Those knowns don't have anything to do with markers on a map." He kept him waiting for a moment, that smile charmingly curled. "Ohh, no. They have to do with a few little wisps I heard here and there. A few riders of nondescript origin. Drunken sell swords that spoke different dialects. Even a few haughty types our friend would no doubt like, throwing around the royal seal like their badge of honor." Caine let that sink in for a moment more before he added, "Seems like there's a lot of interest on King's Road these days. Foreign interests at that. Maybe our employer has an eye for opportunity that all but the most cultured of us would miss. The way I see it, if there's no open contracts going out, it means that the interested parties want to avoid bringing attention to it."<br/><br/>Readjusting how he was sitting, he leaned heavily back on those elbows as his icy eyes scanned the room. "Let's just say I got  a bit suspicious when the pay was so utterly reasonable. No merchant in their right mind gives such an open price, vetting process or not." Once done with the look over, he looked back to Ace. "And the only reason I'm telling you this instead of hogging the knowledge for myself is that it's rather important that we keep a low profile on this. I don't like airing my business when there's royals poking about."<br/><br/>Though the kingdom of Urr had been in peace with the other six kingdoms it shared borders with, there was always a level of tense intrigue between the interested parties. Every few years or so there would be a new scandal or gossip, and it wasn't always as benevolent as the nobles liked everyone else to believe. No matter what their standing doctrine, it was well known that bodies found in the border rivers weren't always there because they drowned.<br/><br/>"Best not to let that soil our mood, though. Plenty of hunting to be done and more than enough glory to go around. Just last month there was a farmer who heard about sightings of a Cockatrice. Can't think of a mercenary who wouldn't want to wear one of those feathers in his hat. And I'm no exception to that. What about you? I don't see any prizes hanging gaudily about which means you either savor smaller mementos or you're not looking to impress anyone but yourself."  Caine's knowledge on Ace was greatly larger than he let on but, for the sake of conversation, he goaded him with flawless execution. Those bright eyes were playful but welcoming, a warm quality that made him disarming despite his thorough approach to their situation.