Clufton Kline
Clufton Kline
The genial and kind-hearted Clufton Kline is proprietor of the Learned Pig, the most prestigious tavern in the Wise Quarter. Unlike many of his competitors, Kline plays no favorites in the sea of local rivalries that pit students of one school over another, instead welcoming patrons affiliated with all of Absalom’s academies. Kline never engaged in formal education himself, but he’s been collecting books longer than he’s been tending bar, and over the decades donated volumes from local students have swelled the shelves along every wall of the Learned Pig to bursting. Despite the chaotic nature of the collection, Kline maintains a preternatural sense of which volume has been stashed where, and he can always be relied upon to locate a specific tome should a patron want something particular to peruse while patronizing the Pig. Kline has a soft spot for the often-destitute students who make up the bulk of his clientele, and frequently picks up the tab for down-on-their-luck scholars who are willing to entertain other patrons with impromptu lectures. Kline himself pays keen attention to these presentations, considering tales told by visitors and the books they leave behind the only formal education he will ever need. Endlessly curious, Kline frequently becomes obsessed with a piece of trivia gleaned from these presentations, offering free food and drinks to patrons willing to track down specific related books to add to the volumes lining his stacks.
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