Pushing on to hurry back

You make much better time on the trip back, so much so that the almost 2 full days trip out looks like it will take a little more than a day in this direction. By the time you notice the sky beginning to darken, you realize that you definitely won't make it back to town before dark.

"When should we make camp?" you ask up to Jon.

"We're not stopping," Jon calls back to you. "It's not that much farther, and the night watch is usually more lenient when letting people through." When saying this, he gestures back towards you.

You don't quite get what he means right away, but the looks that your party members keep giving you help you figure it out soon enough. You don't have any sort of backup outfit, and a strict town guard probably wouldn't let you through with just the blanket draped over you. The town gate will also be way less busy in the middle of the night so there will be less attention drawn to you as you reenter town.

The last hour or so back in to town begins to drag on as the four of you get visibly tired and your march slows down. Just as you wonder if you will actually be able to make it back before morning, however, you can finally see your destination in the distance. The lights of civilization stand out against the dark landscape, a beacon to guide the last leg of your journey. This gives you all a second wind and you cover the last few miles at record speed.

When you finally arrive at the gate you are a bit relieved to see only two guards and nobody else waiting to enter, though you still are not sure how the guards will treat you.