He stayed still, eyes closed as he trusted the stranger beside him. Other than the occasional and uncontrollable tremor of his muscles, he seemed to trust the man enough. What other choice did he have, and what grounds had he to turn away such aid?<br/><br/>He could feel it work. The metal was heating under the blade enough for him to be able to trace where it was. His shoulders slouched only slightly more, but this time it was out of sheer relief. He swallowed back the emotion that seemed to cause a lump in his throat. Just the promise of having it off was enough to stir his heart. And something else. He felt that warm writhe in his chest but chose to ignore it<br/><br/>Even as Wyl moved to begin cutting the second line, he did nothing but give a soft nod of his head. He'd do nothing to impede the progress they were making.<br/><br/>As one side sagged at being severed, the metal pulled against his skin and forced him to lean a little further down. The weight had been bad enough, but now it was unevenly distributed and the man's exhausted body was having a great difficulty at holding it up. He moved to prop his hands against the ground, now shaking slightly at the effort. The dagger came close to his skin once and he couldn't help the wince it caused, but he didn't protest. His gaze fixed on the ground now, and he did what he could to steady his breath.<br/><br/>As the Alverstone bit through that thick slab, the collar seemed to groan against its own weight. Under the iron was a soft layer of inner silver, which was apt to bend but there was something unusual about how the iron seemed to be giving way- the enchantment on it had also been used to cause the thing's weight to triple what it would have been normally. Apparently whoever had wanted him to suffer, was very very creative as well.<br/><br/>It came, finally, to the cut that released it. It fell from him like a bolder that had come aside. One part, severed clean, slammed into the dirt until it indented into the ground. The other dropped forwards but stopped to dangle an inch above the dirt. There was that chain it was still attached to that ran below his rags. The motion caused him to jerk forwards slightly, but he seemed to catch himself enough to lean to the side. Thankfully, it wasn't the largest of the pieces by far, though it still held a good bit of heft to it.<br/><br/>The line of his face was evident, where dirt had gathered and where the irritation from the silver beneath had started. There was a wounded line in his skin around his neck where it had bit and sank it that looked angry enough. Part of it had started to fester on the backside.<br/><br/>He took in a gasping breath. It was the first time he'd tasted fresh air. A hand came up, instantly running over gaunt cheeks. He couldn't believe it was gone and that he was free from it. The emotion that welled in his eyes bit at his soul, moistening what would have been tears of joy had his body enough to give. The trembling hand dropped back to the ground as he stared forwards, dazed with emotion. In his current state, it wasn't hard to be overwhelmed.<br/><br/>Despite the hollowing of being starved and ragged, there was a noble structure beneath. The endeavor had aged him, but the man didn't look as old as one might have expected for someone with that deep gray hair that had found its way out of the rags here and there. A strong jaw clenched as he sucked in breath through a finely sculpted nose. The amber eyes, somewhat revived in their intensity, turned instantly in Wyl's direction.<br/><br/>"Thank you. With all the favors of the good and the righteous saints of men, bless you." His voice still cracked, but there was more life to it now, and the muffle kept the deep tone from being concealed.  "Bless you," he repeated again, gaze stalking back around before it fell on the plate of food. He instantly reached for the pie on it, tearing off a chunk before stuffing it into his mouth.<br/><br/>It took every bit of restraint he had to chew it slowly. To not suck it down. He was smart enough to know what damage that would do after having gone this long. He nearly wept as he began to slowly work into the bite, eyes closing and every part of him looking as thought it was the best thing he'd ever tasted. The only food he'd ever known.