<div class="floatright">(https://i.imgur.com/8E2iIui.jpg)</div>"Needless to say, he was trussed up and tossed in the back of a wagon headed for the Allblight."<br/><br/>The voice of Vanya, the manager of the Chocolate Star, is easily heard even above the constant sound of Rosehip Street, one of the thin muddy roads that cross through your home territory. The striking woman is every bit as calm and confident giving this information as she was discussing sales numbers and taxes mere moments ago. She holds a small notebook in her hand scribbled with an unknowable scrawl leading the five leaders of the gang through on a quick scan of their slice of Crowntree. Her eyes raise up from her notebook and she adds coldly, "Won't be the last time that a silly little Lordling thinks we're easy pickings, but perhaps he'll at least think twice about it."<br/><br/>The walk is a pleasant one and an important tradition;  the small gathering of the most important people on the street out in the middle of everything reminds the people of the territory that the territory is safe. Of course, the four Chocolate Star workers turned guard help as well and the leaders themselves are well able to protect themselves, but the imagery is important.<br/><br/>Rosehip Street holds it's familiar bustle, small time merchants calling out their wares and haggling visible out front of stores, representatives from the Chocolate Star out to show themselves off, and even during the day dangling red lamps to mark who exactly this space belongs to.<br/><br/>The manager continues in her same even voice, "The Anchor Lane Boys have been running up against The Flock, nobody connected has been killed yet, but a couple of carts of alchemical ingredients were stolen. The Flock hasn't asked for assistance yet, but the Anchor Lane Boys are... persistent." Her lip curls a bit at this, a brief moment of disgust on her face before she checks off that item as delivered.<br/><br/>"Then of course, there's the usual troubles. A Lord Vensure has been asking quite a few questions about who exactly owns which buildings in the territory. It seems that he believes he has some right to the block south of Berryvine and he may be right. We can expect more guard activity along Berryvine. And more guards means more fights and more trouble. I've given explicit instructions not to fight the guards unless we truly must, but, of course, that needn't stay in place."<br/><br/>She begins to speed up slightly, her steps getting clipped and closer, clearly a bit nervous to deliver the next bit of news, "The last... It... It may be foolishness. If I hadn't heard it from several different places, I wouldn't even bring it to you. But there are rumors of a creature or creatures in the sewers. The reports say that there's a dizzying ocean smell and some claim to have seen a humanoid monster with tentacles. That is, of course, insane. We have solid protections preventing something from floating in from the rest of Crowntree's sewer. Just people getting scared over nothing, I'm sure."<br/><br/>As the party comes back to the entrance of the Chocolate Star, the manager slides her pen into her notebook, takes off a pair of fine glasses, and looks between the territory leaders. "Is there anything else you would like an update on, Mistresses?"