Ch. 20: First Blood

“Good morning,” the tailor greeted them both warmly. “Princess Elissiana... and... who might you be kind, sir? You don’t look as though you are from around these parts...” he was an older man with shoulder length white hair and overgrown eyebrows. He wore a pair of spectacles and had an uncommonly rosy hint to his cheeks. “What might I assist you with this fine day?”

Hayward put the concern for her out of his mind and focused on the tailor instead. “Good morning, sir. I am Prince Hayward of Aasleagh.” The tailor gave him a bow, and he waved his hand. “No need. Just—stating I am not from around here and am too accustomed to the heat of the desert. As I’m planning to spend some time in your lovely country, I could do with something warmer. Perhaps a cloak or a long coat?”

He made a show of perusing the tailor’s wares, but he mostly focused his eyes on the room, the doors, and the windows. Was this a safe place to be? How easily could they escape out the back if his men came through the