“You...do?” Belmordo seemed utterly baffled. “Why not merely accept my proposal, Lord Adam? We both stand to gain from it.”

The man was far too naive. He thinks it’s that easy, huh? That I’ll either go along with his plan, accept the curse and render myself harmless, or walk away and let him get Vasco’s daughter killed?

Adam could see why Belmordo had assumed all that. The would-be lord was making his offer from an advantageous position. Penumbria needed Gama, and due to the Hangman’s imminent arrival, Adam’s options were limited. Gama may have technically been Vasco’s city, but Belmordo wouldn’t be attempting this ploy if he didn’t have support in both high and low places. Even if Adam decided to assassinate Belmordo right here and now, the guards would turn on him, then retreat home and raise the alarm about a ‘traitorous’ lord coming to assail them.

It would be different if there was more time. If the Hangman wasn’t coming so soon, Adam would pull back and contact Vasco. He still could, technically, but that wouldn’t save Vasco’s daughter and earn Penumbria the financial support it sorely required. Belmordo was well-aware of this. He wouldn’t have proposed his deal at this point in time otherwise.

So yes, Adam understood Belmordo’s assumptions – and he was more than fine with them. They would make things much easier.

So easy that it almost felt unsportsmanlike.

“Not long ago,” Adam began, “I used to play a game of strategy, on occasion.” He was referring to chess – and by ‘play’, he mostly meant that he listened to chess streams in the background while working or studying. “Whenever I played against someone better than me, they’d give me warnings. Before I lost like an idiot, they’d say: ‘Are you sure?’ and ask me if I wanted to take that move back. So I’m asking you, Belmordo...do you want to take that move back?”

“Have you been reduced to desperate bluffing, Lord Adam?” Belmordo laughed. “My terms are plain. Accept them or not.”

“It’s not bluffing. I just think that I’d rather avoid killing someone. Never done it before.”

“You...you turned Lord Aspreay into an unmoving husk.”

“With a painting. Not quite the same as sticking a blade in someone’s heart and watching the light of life fade from their eyes.” Adam fixed his gaze on the man, the Stained Ink twisting under his clothes. “Although, if someone had to be my first, you wouldn’t be the worst choice.”

There was a silence.

“If you kill me, you will be unable to save–”

“Yes, yes, I heard your spiel the first time. But if you insist on being blunt, I will too – even if I accept your curse, I’ll kill you by tomorrow morning.”

Belmordo gasped for a moment, then laughed it off again. His nervousness couldn’t have lasted for longer than a second. “Again, my lord; I am not one to be cowed by bluffs.”

“In that case, I’ll be happy to accept the curse...if you agree to add one condition.”

“A condition?” Belmordo asked.

“You can add curses that trigger upon death, right? Like you did to the guards?”

At this, Belmordo appeared a little suspicious. “Yes, but only if the effect is immediate – nothing that can trigger many days after, for example.”

“Good. Then I’ll agree to your cursed terms, so long as you add one item to that list.” Adam leaned forward. “If you die within a day of our arrival in Gama, I want to have your Orbs. Every single one of them.”

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

Belmordo studied Adam for a moment. There was some sweat on his forehead now, but although the atmosphere was tense, the man himself didn’t appear overly nervous. “What manner of bluff is this, Lord Adam?”

“No bluff. We’ve established our terms. You think I’m helpless, and I think I’m not. So, come. Let’s dance.”

“My lord, if you’ll only agree to my proposal–”

“Quite frankly, Belmordo, I think you’re rather repugnant, and I reject any idea of siding with you,” Adam snapped. “You want me to be a dog on a leash? I refuse. Or maybe you’d prefer me to just turn around right now and make matters easy for you? I refuse that too. In truth, the only decision that makes sense to me right now is to kill you.”

“If you kill me, my soldiers will place the city on high alert – you won’t be able to save Vasco’s daughter. At that point, you’ll lose out on establishing a deal that will help Penumbria–”

Adam stepped closer to him. “Haven’t you been listening? That’s why we’re going to handle things a little differently. Let me tell you how this is going to go: I’m going to agree to your curse, save Vasco’s daughter, then have you killed. I’m telling you this, to your face. But you’re still going to go along with it, because you’re an arrogant idiot who thinks I’m bluffing, when in fact you’re simply too stupid to figure out your mistake.”

Belmordo’s face tightened. He was furious, but even when speaking of murder, it seemed that people had to follow a certain etiquette here. With a motion that almost felt like an attack, he withdrew a piece of parchment, hastily writing on it with the same quill he’d used on the vending machine earlier, and turned it around to show Adam.

–You cannot kill Belmordo.

–You cannot take away Belmordo’s soul.

–You cannot wound Belmordo.

–You cannot take his soul, abilities, belongings, social status, or items that belong to him.

–You cannot inform anyone about the contents of this conversation with anyone who does not bear a similar enough curse. As of this writing, only Lady Solara applies.

–You cannot order anyone to kill Belmordo.

–If Belmordo dies within twenty-four hours of Adam’s arrival in Gama, Adam will gain all of Belmordo’s Orbs. This cannot be undone, and if this item was somehow removed, the rest of the curse will also come undone.

“Did you think I wouldn’t have the guts, boy – my lord?” Belmordo said, with a wicked grin on his face. “Did you think your bluff would make me back down and allow you to enter the city without a curse? Think again!”

“I thought nothing of the sort.” Adam didn’t so much as blink. “The only thing I thought was that no outcome sounded favorable to me. Killing you would put me at risk and lose the deal with Gama. Walking away would lose it too. Working with you would disgust me to my core. So this is what I choose instead; I’ll play your game, win it, take your Orbs, and secure Vasco's deal. There's no need to compromise when I can have everything I desire.”

And my mind will be at peace. I did warn you, after all.

Belmordo took his quill to the parchment with a sneer, signing his name in flowing letters.

Adam took his quill to the parchment with a smile, signing his name in unembellished print. “Enjoy your last day, Belmordo.”