While I myself am not much of a speedrunner, I think I have found a (very) small timesaver that could be used to save a couple seconds per run. Yes, it really is that minor and I have taken to calling it "The Oops Boost"
I am certain we all have wondered at one point or another if Clive might actually be getting a small speed boost from that animation where he bumps shoulders with someone in a town. Well, thanks to spending close to an hour timing sprints from the "Analect" at the front of Boklad to the "Trader's Gate" at its back, I can say with some level of certainty that that bump animation does indeed give Clive a bit of a boost. How much of a boost? Well, it seems to save about half a second on average. Not much, but it is something.
Thanks to these admittedly silly tests of mine, I have come to the rather obvious conclusion that - when running through towns - Clive should bump into as many people as possible whilst maintaining a fairly consistent line. In other words: Don't go out of your way to bump into people but do not avoid shoulder bumps either.
Anyway, that's just what I have found by testing the paths through Boklad; which is the town I found is best set up for Oops Boosting. Feel free to try it out yourself as well, as I am pretty certain this boost will save time... But it is in very small margins.
Probably will return when I find more interesting routes, glitches, and whatnot. I have been playing the game quite a lot since its release and have a few ideas on how to break some stuff. Ciao~