Quote Originally Posted by Psyren View Post
I'm assuming the protagonist has a brain and thus articulates their need to the character withholding said need.
You added the Villain. You added that the Villain is going to kill everyone including the merchant. And you added that the merchant knows all this. I can write 100 stories about a hero who needs a sword without those elements.

You seem to be saying that every character in a story is either a protagonist or antagonist which simply isn't true. The vast majority of characters in almost anything I can think of are neither. Unless it's a story with two people in it. What is the definition of antagonist you are using? Because it doesn't align with the definitions I know.