As the drinks were served, the group settled in, and the conversation naturally shifted to introductions and small talk. But soon enough, curiosity got the better of Geralt's group.
"So," Vesemir began, nursing his whiskey, "you three are… what's the word again? Lawyers?"
"That's right," Matt confirmed, taking a sip of his own drink. He was very weary of this group as he felt they were very dangerous, especially the two men, but for some reason since Liam was here, he didn't just leave.
But he had too many questions.
"And what exactly does a lawyer do?" Geralt asked. The table went silent for a second. Foggy nearly choked on his beer, while Karen's lips twitched, trying to hold back a laugh.
"You're joking, right?" Foggy finally asked.
"No. I know how to track a beast, read its habits, and determine how to take it down. I know how to deal with monsters, contracts, and even royal politics, though I try to avoid that when I can. But this… 'law' work? Not something I've come across." Geralt replied. Foggy and the others were dumbfounded.
What kind of medieval magical fantasy did they come out of? What kind of joke was this and Matt 'looked' at Liam, trying to understand who these friends came from. And what the hell was going on? But Liam was silent sipping on a beer calmly, as if what this group had just spoken wasn't outrageous at all.
"Well, uh," Foggy said, rubbing the back of his neck. He knew that it would be very rude to not answer a genuine question and just maybe these people had come from a remote village, like the the Amish society. "A lawyer's job is to represent people in legal matters. You know, defend them in court, argue their case, make sure they don't get unfairly punished—"
"So you're paid swordsmen, but for arguments?" Vesemir interrupted. He seemed to have been a bit drunk by now, thus was speaking more.
"That is… not the worst way to put it, actually." Foggy admitted.
"Wait, wait," Ciri leaned forward. "You mean to say people will come to you, and instead of fighting, you just… talk until someone wins?"
"It's more complicated than that." Matt knew that
"Is it? Because from what I'm hearing, you're highly paid debaters who fight with words instead of steel." This was how their night would go on now and he could see Foggy was having fun.
"That's… wow." Foggy turned to Matt. "Do we sound that useless?"
"We are definitely not useless," Karen defended.
"So," Triss tilted her head, "what happens if you lose? Do they execute you?"
"Uh, no," Karen replied quickly, horrified at the thought.
"But if you lose, your client could be executed," Geralt pointed out.
"Well… yeah, sometimes. But we try our best to prevent that." Foggy replied.
"So, you're telling me, if someone commits a crime, instead of being thrown into the stocks or executed on the spot, you have this whole… process?" Geralt said.
What is up with these people?
"Yes," Matt confirmed.
"Sounds tedious." Geralt shook his head.
"Oh, it is," Foggy said. "But it pays the bills."
"Speaking of which," Vesemir interjected, "how much are you paid for this work?"
"Ah, now that's the best part! A good lawyer can make—" Foggy brightened.
"Not as much as we are supposed to, this man here can here multiple of us and still won't put a dent in his wallet," Karen cut in.
"What's a wallet?" Yennefer whispered to Liam as she didn't know the term.
"A purse." Liam replied while smiling at the jab of Karen. Matt heard that it confirmed for him that these people had really arrived from a very remote place.
"Way to ruin the moment, Karen." Foggy said.
"So you're not paid like kings?" Triss asked, amused.
"Oh, no. Definitely not," Foggy admitted.
"Then you should've been monster hunters instead." Geralt said.
"Oh yeah, because I look like the type to swing a sword at a lion or a cheetah. But wait, I can kill them with guns." Foggy said.
"No. You'd still be dead within minutes even with a gun." Geralt replied while sipping. He knew by now what a gun was but he felt that this man might not be able to hand the recoil either.
"So, do you ever… bend the law?" Ciri was curious.
"No." Matt straightened up immediately. Liam let out a quiet chuckle.
"What?" Matt asked.
"Nothing," Liam replied. Matt didn't push further as he felt that Liam might know something. But why would he know. And then again, he was very rich. He regretted a bit now joining in with them.
"And you? You're also a lawyer?" Keira, still fascinated, turned to Karen.
"No," Karen said, taking a sip of her drink. "I'm a journalist."
"What's a journalist?" Ciri finally asked.
"Do you want to explain, or should I?" Karen looked at Foggy.
"Oh, you go ahead. They'll love this one." Foggy already lost once, and he wanted to see what these people would come up with. What would be the new joke.
"A journalist is someone who investigates and reports on events. We uncover the truth, expose corruption, inform the public—"
"So you're a bard?" Keira said.
"What?" Karen blinked.
"A bard," Vesemir repeated. "You tell stories and inform people."
"Oh, no, no," Karen shook her head. "Bards sing and tell tales for entertainment. Journalists deal with facts."
"So… you're a serious bard?" Ciri asked, smirking.
"I walked right into that one." Karen gave up.
"Welcome to our life." Foggy replied.
The night continued, with more drinks, laughter, and plenty of confusion about the modern world. Geralt and Vesemir concluded that lawyers were essentially well-paid talkers, journalists were bards, and the whole justice system was an overly complicated mess.
Finally, it was time to leave for the whole group as it was late. Liam had offered to take Matt to his apartment while Foggy and Karen could walk back as their homes were closer. Matt thought for a minute, before accepting the offer.