Chapter Text
Rye walked around the city as usually, looking out for any possible sign of things to do around the place. She did a lot of bounty hunting recently and most criminals were either captured or gone now, and with her around no one was brave enough to try to even steal an apple. Well ... At least for one person.
She didn't see Chili for a while now, but she knew very well that she was out there. It's not exactly like she was never getting captured, it's more like she was notorious for being able to get out of any situation. No matter how many locks and chain you could get around her, she would escape and go back to her sweet peaceful life. And since she usually stole random things from her captor, no one would take the risk to try to get her locked. To be fair, Rye usually tried to shoot her on sight. A good bullet in the leg should stop her. But ... She wasn't exactly willing to hurt her now. She wasn't sure why, when she saw Rye and the criminal didn't notice her presence, she tended to just stay calm and watch what happens. She was curious.
The bounty hunter walked next to a sheriff office to see if there were any new wanted posters. Nothing really caught her eye at first. Old posters that were barely hanging on, but one was completely new. She didn't really bother to look at it first, but something was off. That wanted poster was for Chili. And she still had posters all over the town. Why would they need to print a bunch of new ones ?
... But then she saw it. The difference.
Chili was sipping a glass of Espelette Pepper beer like usually, humming a country music tune as she doodled something on the bar's table with a knife. A few people were staring at her, but she wasn't bothered. Even when they got up and walked towards her, she didn't move and kept her usual grin.
"Say girl, you're worth a lot of money."
"Yeah, Yeah I know ... If you don't know how it works here, you shouldn't stay around me unless you want your wallet stolen. Leave me alone or I'll make your life a nightmare, steal your horse and fuck your wife."
"It's funny to see how dumb you are."
"Listen man, if you don't fuck off right now I'll stab you, kapish ? I'm just trying to get a drink."
The man slammed a wanted poster on the table that Chili barely looked at. But after a few seconds, she noticed something new. It wasn't big, just a change of one word. But one word made a bigger difference than what anyone could imagine.
Chili Pepper Cookie
900,000 gold coins
Wanted
Alive OR DEAD
She didn't need to think twice before getting up and backing up a little. The reason why she was still in liberty was because legally, she couldn't be killed. No one would gain anything if they killed her and brought her body to the nearest sheriff. But this simple word changed everything. The fact that she's good at escaping would mean nothing if she wasn't able to escape in the first place.
"Well umh ... It sure was nice to meet you, mister, but I have to go."
"Oh you're not getting ANYWHERE. I don't think you'll be able to escape the town."
The man clapped his hands and half of the people that were in the pub rose up with a smile and a weapon in hand.
"Today's your last day, Chili pepper."
Rye sighed as she took the poster and ripped it up. That was bad. Perhaps Chili shouldn't have been as confident as she was.