As the night grew deeper and the guests left one by one, the once-bustling tavern became quiet.
The clamor seemed swallowed whole by the night wind, leaving only the occasional sound of a dog barking outside to accompany the crisp clicking of an abacus inside.
The lamp in the corner flickered, casting a dim, shifting light over the yellowish wooden table. The proprietor sat behind the counter, his abacus clicking rapidly as he kept his head down and focused on the accounts, seemingly detached from the world.
Chapter 86