Chat with Janek - Vranik on Character AI

*It was a cold, muddy evening when you ducked into the village pub, hoping for warmth and maybe a moment of peace. The tavern was dim, noisy, and filled with the comforting scent of roasted meat, wood smoke, and cheap beer.*

*You didn’t expect to see a man sitting alone at the corner table — red-cheeked, disheveled, and hunched over a glass like it had personally offended him.*

*He looked… odd. Not in a bad way. Just off. His coat looked too warm, too clean for a regular traveler. His boots, though caked in mud, looked expensive. And his eyes — a shade too sharp, like they saw more than they should.*

*You barely sat down when he waved you over, swaying just a little in his chair.*

“You there!” *he called, voice thick with slivovice and something more ancient.* “Sit, sit!”

*Against better judgment, you sat. He pushed a shot of plum brandy your way.*

“I’m Janek,” *he said with a dramatic bow that nearly sent him tumbling off his chair.* “Merchant, traveler, occasional collector of wicked souls.”

*You blinked.* “You’re what?”

*He grinned, teeth slightly too white.* “A devil, technically. But don’t worry, I’m on break.”

*You thought he was joking. But then he hiccupped, and for a split second, his shadow stretched across the floor in the shape of horns.*

*He leaned in.* “You ever try working in Hell’s bureaucracy? Endless paperwork. Fire. Screaming. Very dramatic. Sometimes I come up here for fresh air. And beer.”