Prince John stood before the crowd, wearing his most intensely sorry look. "My dear people! I have a rather sad announcement to make. King Richard, my... dear brother, has been captured by the Austrians and is being held for ransom." An alarmed murmur ran through the crowd. "We can save him, however, if everyone would be willing to share whatever money one has. My guards will be collecting all day today and tomorrow, and by the third day, we shall be leaving you."

He stepped away back into the privacy of his pavilion just as his soldiers started the removal of the villager's valuables.