Inn at the Rook

A well-built inn painted in cheerful colors is tucked beneath the eaves of the forest. A stable stands nearby. A hitching post at the front of the inn has several mounts, and more than one farm wagon sits in the yard. A large red sign above the door proclaims in gilt letters, “Inn at the Rook.” Above this sign and stretching across the front of the building is a banner with artistic lettering stating “The Traveling Exhibition of Doctor Phineus Krane, Professor of Antiquities and Master of Shroud Artistry.” A number of colorful tents have been set up at the rear of the inn yard, apparently for this exhibition.
Business is brisk as the long shadows of evening slant through the taproom’s open windows. A bald, red-faced man wearing an apron works behind the bar and several young girls carry platters of food and drinks to various tables. Most of the crowd seems to be local farmers and traveling merchants, although clustered around one table sits a rough-looking group of mercenaries, one of whom is a short, black-cloaked figure who might be a goblin. They huddle over their drinks in quiet conversation, occasionally raising a head to eye the crowd. At a table nearby, a bespectacled scholarly looking fellow discusses a piece of decorated linen spread across the tabletop with a small group of onlookers.