"Hey, let me go at least!" Runa shouted as the headless body of Tres carried her on his shoulder, her hands and legs tied.
He exited the catacombs with her and entered another city in the distance called Oersia, the City of Merchants. Tres had stolen a hood with a ball attached, which he used to cover his body so no one could tell he was headless. He untied her and wrote on a paper he had bought: You will talk for me.
Runa looked at it and said, "Why should I do that? You are my enemy!"
Tres looked at her, then wrote on the paper: Then leave.
She was surprised as she looked at him. They were in an alleyway where no one could see them. She got up and said, "Thanks then! I'll leave," before running out into the light.
The body watched her leave. He followed outside but didn't chase her. Soon, he reached a blacksmith shop. I need to prepare the headless body thought before reaching a blacksmith.
The blacksmith saw him grab a sword and noticed his clothes—green shirt and normal peasant wear.
Seeing the hood, the blacksmith smirked. This guy is a traveller. I'll squeeze him dr—
The sword in Tres' hand suddenly broke into several pieces. The blacksmith's eyes widened.
"YOU BUFFOON! PAY UP! THAT SWORD WAS EXPENSIVE!" he shouted as he looked at Tres, thinking, I have no idea how the hell he broke it, but that's it—I can take more from him.
He continued, "I spent days making that sword! It had rare materials! You better pay up fifty silver!"
The body looked at him. The blacksmith suddenly felt a chill and said, "U-uh, well… it's alright. You can pay for it with forty-five silver."
The body stared at him. The blacksmith looked at the hood—he couldn't see the head, only darkness inside. It scared him. As he tried to look at Tres' face, the blacksmith squinted.
He couldn't fully see inside, but he felt as if there was no face. No eyes. No nose. Nothing.
Just darkness beneath the hood.
That's… strange, he thought. Is the light not reaching in there?
The blacksmith swallowed. "Ah—thirty-five silver is fine," he said quickly. "No need to make a fuss."
The silence stretched as even the passersby in the distance noticed the commotion. Sweat formed on the blacksmith's brow.
"T-twenty silver," he blurted out. "Honestly, the blade wasn't that great to begin with."
The hood tilted as Tres stepped forward.
The blacksmith's heart skipped. "Fifteen!" he said, nearly begging. "Take it or—or just forget it! No charge!"
The headless body remained motionless for a second before turning and walking away.
The blacksmith exhaled shakily. As Tres walked away, the blacksmith collapsed against his workbench.
"…What in the hell was that thing?"
It seems like I can't take any weapon… Tres remembered that when he had held the sword, he had received a system message telling him he couldn't hold any weapon other than the Executioner's Sword and the Chains of Binding.
It seems like I need to find a roundabout way for now…
Tres felt a gaze on him. Normally, he could see in a 360-degree view, but the hood blocked his sight. When he turned, he saw Runa walking at a distance. The second she noticed Tres turning, she hid in the crowd, blending in.
He ignored her and walked on. I'll need the Executioner's Sword…
"Hey, I know you saw me!" Runa said as she pushed past the crowd. "Why did you ignore me, you headless lump?"
Tres ignored her and moved on. Runa grabbed his hand and said, "Why are you ignoring me?"
Tres turned and quickly scribbled on the paper he had. You wanted to leave. Then go. Why are you bothering me?
Runa looked nervous and said, "Well, yeah, I said that… but there's an issue. I'm on a hit list, apparently."
She sighed. "They think I'm cooperating with you and have sent someone to take us both out."
Tres wrote Who? on the paper.
Runa replied, "I wouldn't know, but they send powerful people after traitors." As she was explaining, Tres suddenly looked up at the sky as he felt something approaching.
He jumped onto a nearby roof. Runa stared up before jumping after him. She tried to look in the direction he was staring, but the second she saw it, her eyes widened.
"A djinn?! No… we need to run!"
Runa grabbed his hand, trying to pull him away. "That thing is too powerful! We need to run—we will die if we don't!"
Tres didn't care. A chain emerged from his neck as he grabbed it and stepped forward, pulling his hood back. The ball fell from where his head should have been as he took a battle-ready stance.