Adventure of Luna

The officer’s boots, scuffed black leather with mud-darkened soles, sound beyond the swinging service door, measured and unhurried. He has not entered their room, leaving Luna and Lisa a narrow moment to change unseen.

Behind the stacked containers, they find coarse baker’s shirts, aprons, caps, and loose trousers folded in a wooden chest. The garments smell of flour, smoke, and old sweat.

Lisa turns her back while they exchange their outer garments. The rough clothes hang awkwardly over Luna’s finer layers, but flour dust and plain aprons soften the difference.

They slip from behind the containers into the broader kitchen, moving toward the ovens and preparation tables. Warmth presses against their faces as workers’ tools and bowls surround them.

The service door swings again, and the officer’s boots pause just beyond it. Lisa reaches for a bowl of flour, waiting to see whether Luna follows her lead.

Luna keeps one hand moving through the flour, her baker's cap low and her apron plainly tied. Her greeting is warmly respectful, perhaps more courteous than a hurried kitchen worker would manage, but the disguise makes the performance convincing.

Edric steps inside, a middle-aged man of lean build with a weathered, narrow face, graying brown hair, and a dark wool tunic beneath a belted leather jerkin, glancing over the boards and ovens rather than studying faces. Luna's flour-streaked sleeves, borrowed cap, and occupied hands place her naturally among the kitchen staff.

The officer gives a brief nod and moves toward the far ovens, satisfied by the answer. Lisa lowers her eyes to the flour, while Luna's disguise and polished greeting leave their presence unquestioned.