At the beginning of the "the pardoners tale" what are the three rioters doing?

At the beginning of The Pardoner's Tale from Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, the three rioters can be found in a tavern drinking. The narrator of the tale, the Pardoner, condemns these three young men for leading such disgraceful lives, spending them drinking, gambling, swearing, etc.

When they hear their friend has been killed, they decide to go out and find Death, and have their revenge. That is the basic plot of this tale. The tale is quite ironic, given that the narrator is as vile as these three characters, yet fails to see the resemblance.

drinking

Explanation:

bec they were