"That too, but that's still not - about which of us is stronger, or who can win over more allies, or whether either of us could theoretically annoy the other one and how much and whether we care. Let alone whether I'm going to give you my little brother to be part of your family or something."

"This is true. Anyway, if you're up for it could you figure out how you want to evaluate Bar's free drink offer and more generally her offer to sell safe food? I'm enjoying interacting with you, but if you won't eat or drink anything here you'll have to leave sooner than later."

"I know how to. I just don't know how I'll pay the person I bring in to do that and I want to spend some time figuring out how to take some kind of advantage of this place first before I get someone else racing me to take over my world."

"Bar does currency conversion, give me a price estimate on that service? Also, I can step out into your world while you hold the door if you'd like verification to occur without bringing new people in the bar and think we could implement that."

"On the order of a couple dozen rings, possibly more. Once I had them on hand I'd ask for more divinations about you specifically, and your water with goodness quintessence. And... I'm not sure if we could implement it? Practically, I think yes if I'm willing to strand you in my world if it comes to it, and legally I'm not sure."

"I think as long as I'm intending to return to my world eventually it'll be paused in the meantime, and I'm told Suaal is unusually non-conducive to Milliways doors so I should hopefully have better chances elsewhere at finding one? Would it help with non-interruption if I presented as, say, a trained mundane animal carrying a note and some coin on your behalf, and what are the legal issues?"

"That would absolutely not help. If we had an illusion mage who could make you look like a caralendar - but we don't, they're on the wrong side of the door. Hm."

"We could see who's working Security and Infirmary shifts right now, maybe they look less strange than I do and we could hire one of them to run an errand for you after their shift?"

"Not a bad idea. I still need to decide who to send them after, and I guess they'll have to take a note so I'll have to write the note..."

"Has anyone published any documents advertising services in your town, or a list of service providers and their usual locations? If so, Bar's got a copy."

"Even if it's magic? One of the big noticeboards, maybe the one two streets east of here... not sure that's really better than trying to guess who'd be in the building now, though, lots of people who aren't normally working mages would want to get involved in this and I don't want to pick someone far enough away that anyone else comes by while the door's open..."

"…this is getting really convoluted. There are mundane ways to test food for poisonousness and if you trust me I can un-poison you if you get poisoned."

"But that's circular, trusting this place would make its evidence about you more trustworthy and I want a knowledge mage to help me figure out whether to trust you. Ugh. Maybe people working Security or Infirmary shifts will have ideas."

"That is an irritating circularity. Sure, you or we can go talk to them."

"Yeah, let's. Might as well both go together. Are they over that way?"

"Security is, infirmary is actually more to the left."

She heads for the infirmary first. Maybe it'll be the person Griffie knows?

The person in the infirmary appears to be a male human in a black robe, who sets aside a doorstopper novel he seems to be in the middle of when he notices the door open.

"Hey. Need anything?"

"We're both doing fine medically, but we'd like to ask you some questions if that's alright with you."

"Sure."

"Well, it's convenient that you're a human, because I need someone to go find someone in my world and give them a note and humans are kind of eye-catching but there are some there."

Human. Well. Not really but he can do a great job of looking like one.

"I'm at work right now but afterward, maybe. I don't know as I'll speak any of your world's languages but I take it that's why the note."

Does he in fact want to help them? Well, he wants to see another world, and - will summoning work there? Can he teach anyone and sic his friends on them? Does he want to do that when he could instead leave them all paused and come back ready to take over the world?

Eh. He could help out just to help out. Maybe? Is that a good idea? He's used to the exact amount he needs to deliberately lean into thoughts like that at home to continue to be able to care about anything whatsoever besides maximizing suffering, but he keeps doing something like overbalancing now that he's in Milliways and it's disorienting and terrible so maybe he should fuck with them on purpose. That'd suck for his reputation, but he can just change his face, and it'd suck for social trust in general, which is neat.

This cannot possibly be the optimal amount of thinking this through. Whatever. He'll do the thing.

"Yeah, that's why. Also, do you have... never mind, I'd trust divinations from someone from my world more."

...And if he's off to meet a diviner they might notice. "What kind of divinations, anyway?" And how can he unsuspiciously figure out whether the diviner is going to try to kill him, and whether, if they're going to do that, they're going to actually inconvenience him at all.

"How much you want for the information?"