You express your intentions to your secretary, who's taken to hanging about the gloomier corners of the mead-hall. He scurries off to explain things to the merchants: a few minutes later, you make your triumphant appearance!
4
Things go better this time!
After some trepidation on the merchants' part, you manage to convince them that you're nothing like the dragons
they know... if you're to believe their claims, southern dragons are rather brutish creatures. The merchants express surprise that no knights-errant have attempted to slay you yet.
(You quickly change the subject.)
The next couple hours are mostly small talk, but you're able to glean a few things. The merchants trickle by here year-round to purchase cod and local craftsmanship, but the summer is an especially busy time here for them-- fresh mackerel is a hot commodity! They typically pass by the neighboring hamlets to peddle a couple things, then hasten back to sell at the city of Hamefast before the mackerel can spoil.
...turns out, the old Baron technically held sway over a couple of those hamlets. You might have some nearby territory to claim.
Besides that, you garner a bit of extra gossip about the surrounding regions. The local wood bandits are brash lately. The rain is heavy this year. There's more knights-errant around than usual. Old Hamish took in a blood-stained castle guard the other week-- the poor man couldn't speak a word.
Interesting stuff! The merchants seem pleased by your interest... if a bit nervous.
1250 AD, MidsummerAs the merchants file out of the city gates, you coil restless on your HOARD. The mead-hall roof is fixed, the doors are nice and wide, and you're feeling a rare craving for
movement.
A) Time to start digging that tunnel down!
B) Let's go take a proper hold of those hamlets!
C) There's gotta be some ships you can go raid, right?!