Anagin Chronicles

Chapter 93

Ponytail.A petty thief Anagin had met in the Ruin Village created by the Monster Merchant.

The bastard suddenly appeared.

Just as Anagin was wondering why he was here, Ponytail recognized him as well.

“Huh?!”

With his characteristic flippant attitude, Ponytail greeted Anagin like an old acquaintance and asked what in the world had happened.

Anagin briefly considered ignoring him and leaving, but since they had worked together before, he decided to tell him.

He had received help in the Ruin Village, after all, and might as well stay the night.

And after some time passed.......

“Puhahahahahaha!!”

Ponytail burst into manic laughter.

His laughter was so loud the inside of the inn practically echoed.

Anagin stared at him with an expression that suggested he was debating whether to hit him or not.

How to put it—the way he laughed was strangely irritating. Irritating enough to make one want to punch him.

One shouldn’t hit someone for such a reason, of course, but even so, Ponytail's laughter was so aggravating that hitting him was a very tempting consideration.

The kind of laughter that naturally summoned a fist.

Apparently, Anagin wasn’t the only one who felt that way, as Sanchonius, Makon, and the innkeeper all looked at Ponytail with stiff expressions.

Ah, right. Sphinx too.

Especially Sphinx, who had just explained on Anagin’s behalf what had happened in the village—her expression was even worse.

As if he were laughing at her explanation.

Unable to bear it any longer, Sphinx asked.

“Was my story that amusing?”

“Ah, sorry. Sorry. If it offended you, I apologize. It just reminded me of something I said before.”

“And what was that?”

“I said this guy would cause countless incidents and accidents. Feels good to see my prediction hit the mark.”

Ponytail pointed at Anagin with his index finger.

Anagin looked at the finger and warned him.

“That finger’s going to break.”

Ponytail immediately curled his finger down at the warning.

He knew Anagin was the type who would actually break it.

Listening absentmindedly, Anagin tilted his head.

“...Did you ever say something like that?”

“Didn’t I? Then maybe I said it somewhere else. But I must have, right? You were a madman who looked like you’d beat Periphetes to death the first time you saw him. No, wait—you actually did beat him to death. So not just a madman, but a complete lunatic?”

Ponytail casually mentioned that Anagin had beaten Periphetes to death.

He knew. That Anagin had taken down Periphetes, an executive of the Forest Brotherhood.

Perhaps it wasn’t that strange.

After all, it had already appeared in the newspaper.

But anyone who had read the article would know that wasn’t the case.

The article in Talaria Weekly had only reported that Anagin protected practitioners from Erysichthon; there had been no mention of Periphetes.

That was how heavy the name Erysichthon was.

Yet he knew about Periphetes?

“Excuse me.......”

“You can call me Ponytail. Using nicknames helps people get close faster. In return, may I call you Pinku Pinku?”

“No, call me Sphinx.”

At Sphinx’s firm answer, Ponytail showed visible disappointment.

“What a shame.”

“More importantly, Mr. Ponytail. What brings you to this village?”

Sphinx finally asked the question she should have asked from the start.

Between exchanging greetings and explaining what had happened in the village, more time had passed than expected.

Why had he come all the way out to this remote place? The Ruin?

“Ah, didn’t I say? I came for work.”

“What kind of work?”

“Reporting.”

Ponytail pulled out a notebook bearing the winged shoes logo—Talaria Weekly—and answered.

Seeing the notebook, Sphinx’s eyes widened, and her complexion paled slightly.

It was only natural...

“Are you a reporter from Talaria Weekly?”

“What?”

Even Anagin, who had been listening quietly, asked in surprise.

Sphinx looked incredulous.

“You didn’t know, Brother?”

“Of course not. I thought he was just a petty thief.”

“Why would you think that?!”

At the insult that slipped out naturally, Ponytail protested.

“You got caught trying to pick my pocket.”

“Pickpocketing is my side job. My main job is a reporter!”

“Wait a moment. I have a headache.”

Because of Ponytail’s nonsense spoken so casually, Sphinx complained of a headache.

A reporter proudly declaring that pickpocketing was his side job.

Was this truly how normal people conversed?

Regardless, Ponytail continued.

“Honestly, I admit it! I focused more on my side job of pickpocketing than my main job as a reporter. But that’s the past. I’ve been reborn!”

“Aren’t guys like that the ones who cause even bigger trouble?”

Anagin asked Sanchonius, but Sanchonius avoided answering with a stiff smile.

He clearly didn’t want to be involved in this conversation.

“I’m serious, why won’t you believe me? As proof, I personally came all the way to this backwater village. Just to do some reporting.”

“The way you talk so arrogantly really makes me want to beat you.”

“I don't want to hear that from you of all people!”

Ponytail snapped back at Anagin’s remark.

If it were a contest of arrogance, Anagin was worse than him.

As if her headache had subsided, Sphinx resumed her original question.

“So, Mr. Ponytail, you’re a reporter, and you came here to cover this village?”

“I heard news that a war might break out here.”

Ponytail said something terrifying with a smile.

War was a tragedy—but for reporters, it was good material.

If Anagin hadn’t appeared, it likely would have happened.

Many practitioners and mages had already been locked in a standoff over the Ruin.

Honestly, it wouldn’t have been strange if war had broken out at any moment.

But Anagin had resolved that explosive situation.

By the extreme method of collapsing the dam and washing everything away.

“You must be disappointed.”

“Disappointed? Quite the opposite, it’s an even bigger hit. Maybe you don’t know, but these days it sells better when one standout figure takes the spotlight, rather than a bunch of nobodies clashing.”

Saying that, Ponytail opened his notebook.

Then he began writing down what Sphinx had said.

Scratch. Scratch. Scratch. Scratch.......

He wrote so quickly it seemed the notebook might catch fire.

After writing more, Ponytail asked as if concluding.

“So you’re heading back? To Chiron Tower.”

“Yeah.”

“Perfect. I’ll go with you.”

“Nope.”

Anagin rejected Ponytail’s request without even a second of hesitation.

Without asking why he wanted to go to Chiron Tower.

There was no particular reason. He just had no reason to accept.

Ponytail had a peculiar charm that made one want to refuse whatever he asked.

“If you’re going to refuse, shouldn’t you at least ask why?”

“Nope.”

When it came to refusing, Anagin was as firm as a steel rod.

Sanchonius, who had remained silent, stepped in and asked the reason. He was curious why Ponytail wanted to go to Chiron Tower.

Ponytail let out a long sigh.

“Haa~ I’m going to apologize.”

“Apologize... you say?”

“Yes!”

“Is there something you need to apologize for, Mr. Reporter?”

“I wrote an article recently, and because of that. The higher-ups told me to go apologize. Said it was my personal deviation.”

Even after hearing the explanation, Sanchonius frowned.

It was rare for a reporter to come apologize to Chiron Tower over something trivial.

To begin with, Talaria Weekly and Chiron Tower were both massive organizations and tended to respect each other.

Both carried out divine missions, and if they clashed, both could be harmed.

That was why situations that made them turn red in the face rarely occurred.

Unless some lunatic acted on his own.......

Wait. A lunatic?

“May I ask your name, Mr. Reporter?”

“Ah, didn’t I say? It’s Klephthys. I recently wrote the article 「The Practitioner Killer Who Protected Practitioners from Erysichthon! Turns Out He’s a Practitioner Protector?!」Have you seen it?”

* * *

Ponytail revealed his name, Klephthys, and confessed that he was the one who had written the article that had recently stirred Chiron Tower.

The one who had asked the question, Sanchonius, could not help but be shocked.

That article had caused not only the practitioners of Chiron Tower but even their attendants to murmur among themselves.... Was it not an article that had tarnished Chiron Tower’s reputation?

In contrast, Sphinx was not particularly surprised.

From the moment he mentioned Periphetes, she had already guessed that Ponytail was involved with that article to some extent.

Of course, she wasn’t completely unsurprised. She was curious how a junior reporter had managed to fill an entire newspaper page by himself.

That was not something that usually happened.

‘There are a few likely scenarios, though.......’

But compared to Sphinx and Sanchonius, Anagin was not surprised at all.

In fact, he wasn’t surprised in the slightest. Because he didn’t care.

“Don’t you have anything to say to me?”

Seeing Anagin’s indifferent expression, Klephthys asked.

He had expected a dull reaction, but this was too dull.

“Should I? ...How did you find out? That I fought Erysichthon.”

“There are plenty of methods. From the classic way of asking people around, to special methods known only to Talaria Weekly reporters.”

“I see.”

“Not curious what they are?”

“If I ask, will you tell me?”

“No.”

“Then why would I ask?”

“I just wanted to refuse something for once!”

The back-and-forth banter flowed so smoothly that those around them could only watch in silence.

They seemed mismatched, yet oddly in sync.

Then Klephthys made his request once more.

“Anyway, let me come with you.”

“Why? You know the way, don’t you?”

“It’s boring going alone. I’m not asking for a free ride, so don’t be stingy.”

Not free, huh.... When Anagin asked what he could offer, Klephthys replied.

“I heard you got that Interspatial Cloak from Miscellaneous Doll Neiron. I’ll appraise the items inside it for you.”

“Deal.”

Just like when he had refused earlier, Anagin accepted without even a second’s hesitation.

He had already verified Klephthys’ skills back in the Ruin Village.

After defeating Deodia, who had occupied the Ruin, along with the Monster Merchant backing him, and visiting their hideout—

‘That’s where I met Periphetes. Come to think of it, that guy grabbed some kind of book.......’

Well, that wasn’t important.

What mattered was that, with Klephthys’ help back then, he had secured several decent items.

The most notable ones were the Infinite-Length Magic Rope, a cloak that repaired itself by absorbing its owner’s vitality, and a tent that unfolded and folded itself automatically.

Each had clear drawbacks, but also clear advantages, and Anagin had made good use of them.

The Infinite-Length Magic Rope had been useful whenever the opportunity arose, the self-repairing cloak had played a major role in defeating the Harpy Witch, and the self-folding tent was used every time they camped.

Who knew if Neiron’s Interspatial Cloak might contain something similar?

He had intended to rummage through it anyway—might as well do it now.

Anagin took out Neiron’s Interspatial Cloak.

The cloak moved on its own and wrapped around Anagin’s arm.

“Whoa, what the hell? An Interspatial Cloak with a consciousness? This is incredible..."

Klephthys exclaimed, and Sanchonius felt the same.

All magical tools possessed some degree of will, but one with this strong consciousness was rare.

Magical tools with strong egos were usually of excellent quality, but they often had the problem of being selective about their owners.

Yet this Interspatial Cloak seemed free of that flaw. It was, quite literally, a jackpot.

Though Anagin himself didn’t seem to realize it.

“Quit clinging and spit out the stuff. The stuff that belonged to Neiron.”

Even though Anagin spoke bluntly, the Interspatial Cloak didn’t seem offended. Through its inner lining, it poured out all sorts of items.

Clatter! Thud-! Thud-!

Miscellaneous tools seemingly used for doll-making, a pouch of coins, and various magical tools.

“This one’s a consumable—looks like it’s all used up, maybe it can be recharged? This is just a compass, this is paralytic poison, and this ring’s gemstone is fake.......”

As if proving his earlier claim wasn’t a bluff, Klephthys skillfully picked up and examined the magical tools as they fell.

His movements seemed casual yet expert.

In the end, the only item worth keeping was a magical tool called ‘Tanglevine Leaf.’

A consumable magical tool that erased one’s presence.

“Looks like it’s been fully used, but you could probably recharge it through a mage who uses that spell. Keep it if you want.”

Anagin did as Klephthys suggested.

It seemed likely that Neiron had used this to trail him.

The crossbowman had hidden with invisibility magic, but the others hadn’t—so they must have used this magical tool.

If it was good enough that Anagin hadn’t noticed, it was surely worth keeping.

Thud!

The Interspatial Cloak, still expelling items, brought out something else.

It was a human corpse—more precisely, a doll made from a human.

“Looks like a thief? Probably made as a doll for picking locks.”

Klephthys assessed after seeing it.

There were three more such dolls inside Neiron’s Interspatial Cloak.

“These are worth keeping, too. Magic created by a doll mage sells for a reasonable price. If you can prove Neiron made them, you might get even more.”

Sanchonius looked uncomfortable, while Sphinx watched to see what Anagin would decide.

Anagin made his choice.

"Tell the people outside to bury them."

“What?”

Klephthys reacted as if it were a waste, but Sanchonius immediately moved.

He went with the inn staff to bury the bodies.

“You sure about this? It’s a waste.”

“I’m not so broke that I’d sell human flesh. Actually, I'm pretty damn rich."

Most practitioners were wealthy, but even considering that, Anagin had more than most.

Just what he had gained from Neiron’s Interspatial Cloak was already quite substantial.

Klephthys didn’t argue further.

With the inspection roughly complete, Anagin began organizing the spilled items.

Not into the Interspatial Cloak, but into his own Interspatial Bag.

“Thought there’d be something that really stands out.”

Though the haul was profitable, he felt slightly disappointed that nothing truly caught his eye.

Then Klephthys spotted something.

“...Oh, wait!”

It was a worn-out scroll, shoved between coin pouches.

At a glance, it looked shabby. Curious, Anagin asked.

“What’s that?”

“......Freedom’s Thread.”