"Wait!"

"Wait!" Hilda yells out suddenly, startling the little goblin.

"If you untie me, I can give you something even better!" Hilda says, not really sure of how she'll make good on that promise. After all, she's in the middle of who-knows-where without any gold, armor, or even a weapon.

The goblin looks back at her, her eyes narrowing. "Like what?"

Crap!

"Um... well, I've got plenty of gold back at my keep. If you untied me I could go back there and get it for you," it's the best thing Hilda could think up on the spot.

The goblin puffs out her cheeks and scoffs at the human. "Pfft, yeah, like I haven't heard THAT one before." She starts moving her knife back towards the pants.

"Wait!" Hilda cries again. "If you untie me, I'll... I'll give them to you. They'll be a lot more valuable if you don't cut them up."

Hilda's heart sinks in despair at the humiliating thought of giving up her pants, but it looks like she's going to lose them either way, so she might as well get the goblins to untie her in exchange for them.

The goblin seems to be mulling the idea over in her head and casually taps the dull end of the knife's blade against her cheek.

"I want the shirt too. Gimme the pants and the shirt and I'll think about letting you go."

Hilda's despair deepens and she feels her cheeks getting warm.