“Is that so?” she said, crossing her arms and leaning on the table. She deliberated his offer carefully.

Every bounty hunter Densha had met previously had no interest in working with others – after all, the more you have to split the profits, the less you get for yourself – and she was no different. She had never doubted her own ability to find Y on her own, but now that she thought about it, she had no experience in an actual battle. Sure, she hunted [i]animals[/i] before, but not people. How did she know Y would be easy to kill? In fact, how did she know he didn’t have cronies – or even an [i]army[/i] – on his side?

It’s not as though Densha hadn’t considered this before; she was traveling for a month before reaching Blackwater, alone with her thoughts. But she was so preoccupied with thinking about the reward – the gold, the fame, the honor – that she had fooled herself into thinking she was more capable than in reality.

“Loras, was it?” she said after a few seconds. She looked over his armor, his battle-worn cape, and his peculiar sword. He seemed adept at handling himself in a fight. “I’d be interested in splitting the bounty – assuming we’re after the same mark. Why don’t you tell me who [i]you’re[/i] looking for, first?”

Densha doubted that he was looking for Y, too. As far as she knew, news of the Eastwind governor’s death were spread around many countries, but the suspected assassin’s profile was kept strictly within Eastwind itself. She could be mistaken, however; leaks happen all too often, and for a prize of 50,000 gold, she was certain many bounty hunters would be interested.