Anagin Chronicles

Chapter 040. The Forest Brotherhood (1)

Early morning.

“Everyone, come out and look at this!”

Anagin and the robed woman, preparing to depart, were met with a grating shout.

When they stepped outside, many villagers had already gathered.

“Now, you are free!”

At the center, a young man was holding a woman’s head aloft, shouting at the top of his lungs.

“Th-That… isn’t that the Io Family…?”

Some of the older villagers squinted, trying to identify the head.

The Io Family.

The very family Anagin had planned to visit today.

Doubt quickly turned into certainty. The man holding the head made it unmistakably clear.

“That’s right! Sharp eyes, old man. This woman is Ausi of the Io Family! That insolent girl thought she could act up, so our great Forest Brotherhood Leader personally taught her a lesson. Look!”

The young man, speaking as if boasting about his own deeds, tossed the severed head before the villagers.

Thud! Roll, roll, roll….

The head, which had once belonged to a beautiful woman, fell tragically and rolled on the ground.

The villagers examined it closely.

The head had been torn off by sheer force.

“Ugh…!”

The woman’s face bore such a horrifying expression that even the people of Pond Village recoiled. Pure agony… etched into every feature.

Riding the momentum, the young man shouted again.

“The Io Family that oppressed you has been defeated by our Forest Brotherhood. So now, you can safely cooperate freely with the Forest Brotherhood, just like the other villages!”

No one in Pond Village could speak.

When the Forest Brotherhood had visited before and requested cooperation, the villagers had refused, fearing the Io practitioner family would punish them.

If they allied with the bandit Forest Brotherhood, the practitioner family Io would not leave them alone. Though in truth, they had mainly feared the Brotherhood’s exploitation and demands.

But now that justification was gone. With the disappearance of the Io Family.

They could no longer refuse the Brotherhood’s demands—whether by reason or by force.

Refusal would mean everyone in the village would end up like the head on the ground.

Sensing this, the young bandit smirked triumphantly and asked, already expecting the answer.

“Anything more to say?”

“Did you kill the entire Io Family?”

Amid the frozen villagers, Anagin stepped forward, trudging slowly.

He picked up the fallen head and examined it.

Judging by the rough cross-section of the neck, it hadn’t been cleanly beheaded—it seemed torn off with brute force. Anagin knew, having done similar things himself.

‘Though it’s a beast, not a human.’

Standing there, exuding a different aura from the villagers, Anagin drew the young bandit’s suspicion.

“Who are you?”

“Anagin.”

“Ana…gin?”

The young bandit furrowed his brow further. The name sounded familiar, and the face seemed oddly recognizable.

“You haven’t answered my question. Did you kill the entire Io Family?”

“…Yes. Any complaints?”

“No, none. Actually, that’s good.”

“What do you mean?”

“I came to request the bounty be released.”

A bounty…!

The young bandit finally realized who Anagin was.

“You…! It’s you, isn’t it? The Practitioner Killer!”

* * *

“Phahahaha! I knew I was lucky! And meeting me is your luck too!”

Paia of the Forest Brotherhood.

The young bandit, under Paia, a member of The Forest Brotherhood, immediately suggested taking Anagin to his leader once he recognized him.

Anagin accepted the offer. The reason was…

“Why does your leader want to see me?”

“Orders came down. You were nominated as a recruit. Well, with a flashy nickname like Practitioner Killer, I can understand… Tell me, how many practitioners have you killed? And how exactly did you kill them?”

The young bandit tapped Anagin on the shoulder like he was urging a fun story from the past.

But Anagin had no story to tell and remained silent.

“Hmm… Did you also take this beauty from a practitioner? I heard some practitioners keep pretty girls as servants.”

When Anagin didn’t react, the bandit switched his target and mentioned Sphinx.

Even under the deep robes, Sphinx’s beauty was evident, and the bandit smirked.

“Hey.”

“Oh, are you reacting now?”

“If you’re a lackey, act like one and just guide the way. Don’t get cocky.”

“Lackey? Hey, who are you—”

“—The one running around the village carrying a severed head is a lackey. Or should I cut off your head and take it to your leader? Do you think he'll take revenge for you, or give me a warm welcome?”

“……”

Faced with Anagin’s fearless threat, the young bandit fell silent.

He already knew the answer.

The fame of the Practitioner Killer, the order to recruit.

The Forest Brotherhood clearly valued Anagin highly. What was his own value compared to Anagin? It was a question that didn't even require deep thought.

From the start, he had been pestering Anagin to assert dominance early.

If Anagin joined the Forest Brotherhood, even that chance would be gone.

Satisfied enough, the young bandit, with a displeased expression, stopped speaking and guided Anagin.

After climbing for a while, they reached a group of five armed men stationed in the middle of the path.

A bald axe warrior, a one-eyed archer, a scarred swordsman, a pale man in a cloak, and…

“Is the youngest here?”

A giant wearing a red boar hide.

“Hehe… Leader.”

True to his youthful appearance, the young bandit ran up to the boar-hide giant with a smile.

Then he whispered something in his ear.

“Can you hear what he’s blabbing about?”

“He says he brought the Practitioner Killer. And he's mentioning that he was threatened.”

“Hmm…”

When the whispering ended, Paia stood up.

That’s when his true size became apparent. Even sitting, he was clearly huge, but standing up, he was much bigger.

He was easily over two meters tall, his shoulders were broad, and his belly was thick with fat. Moreover, his sideburns were extremely bushy, giving him a beastly feel.

“Did you threaten our cute youngest?”

“He kept being bothersome. I’m a bit surprised he ran off to tattle.”

Anagin glanced at the young bandit, who blushed and averted his gaze, showing a hint of pride.

Paia, however, brazenly stepped forward.

“We brothers get along like a real family. You asked if I would take revenge or welcome you if you brought my youngest’s severed head, didn't you?”

Crunch.

Paia flexed. Muscles and fat shifted with an ominous sound.

“What do you think, in your opinion? Do you still think I’d welcome you?”

“No. I think you’d give me a damn good welcome.”

“…….”

“If not, you would have thrown a punch right away.”

“…Hahaha!! Everyone, look! This one’s not your average fool, huh?!”

Paia pointed at Anagin, and his subordinates immediately joined the laughter.

The path was suddenly filled with laughter, everyone but the young bandit.

“Hah… This is why you can only trust half of what newspapers say. Thought the Practitioner Killer was a mindless lunatic, but he actually thinks things through.”

“You called me here to test that?”

Paia grinned. Amusingly, even the boar hide over his head seemed to smile.

“No. But before we get to the main topic, explain why you came. Seems like you have business of your own.”

Paia’s guess was correct.

Anagin hadn’t followed him blindly; he had his own purpose.

Two reasons.

The first…

“Did you really kill everyone in the Io Family?”

Instead of answering, Paia pulled a bundle of severed heads from under his boar hide.

Four women appearing in their 30s to early 40s, five women in their teens to 20s. All bore marks of forcibly torn necks.

Horrifying to look at, yet Anagin counted the heads, including the one held by the young bandit.

“One is missing. As far as I know, the Io Family totaled 11, but here are only 10.”

“Oh? You know that?”

“Answer only what I ask.”

“Hmph.... She ran away.”

“So it’s a lie that they were all killed?”

“One might have gotten away. Practically, the Io Family has fallen. Don’t quibble over small details.”

Not untrue. Anagin had no reason to fuss over that.

“Is that all the reason you came to us?”

“For now.”

“For now? …Alright. Then I’ll tell you why I called you. Join our Forest Brotherhood.”

“No thanks.”

Anagin refused without hesitation.

Having already heard the reason he was recruited, his answer was predetermined. He hadn’t come here just to play bandit.

Naturally, some frowns twisted at his blunt refusal after tracking him down this far.

“Relax, everyone! I’m not particularly disappointed.”

Paia shouted at his frowning subordinates.

He genuinely wasn’t troubled by Anagin’s refusal.

“First, let’s get this clear. I don’t care whether you accept our offer or not. Honestly, I’m not that interested in you.”

“That’s a relief.”

“But the problem is, there’s someone who wants to recruit you.”

“That’s unfortunate. Who?”

“Periphetes.”

“Longbald?”

Anagin recalled the Long-legged Baldy he had briefly met in Ruin Village. The guy was 2.3 meters tall and bald. The fixer for The Forest Brotherhood, was it?

Paia asked, “Longbald, what’s that?”

“Long-legged Baldy.”

“This guy’s crazy, isn't he?”

“Why does he like me?”

“I don’t know... Ah! He did say it’s been a while since he saw someone as fearless as you. Though, in my eyes, you still come off like a total rookie who can’t even handle the basics.”

“Cut the chatter. Get to the point.”

“Hah, I’m being tested for patience for the first time in a while.... He told me to recruit you if possible. Even if it means presenting the best possible conditions.”

Good conditions, huh.... Anagin felt nothing.

The best conditions these bandit bastards could offer were obvious. At best, gold and jewels. Or perhaps protection. They would protect Anagin, who was falsely accused of being the Practitioner Killer.

It was entirely unappealing to Anagin—

“—He said he’d teach you Jacheon’s method of cultivation.”

“…What?”

“Seems you’re interested. Don’t pretend you didn’t hear. They called it Jacheon’s method for those who obtain their rank themselves.”

“How do you know? That I’m searching for a method. And specifically, Jacheon’s.”

“Because someone as half-baked as you has no other choice. That’s the only way you’d survive.”

Not only Anagin himself but even Sphinx, who was listening beside him, found that ridiculous.

She felt this way even more, having witnessed Anagin's actions firsthand. Paia clearly didn't know how crazy this lunatic Anagin was.

“You’re neither a hero who saves people, nor are you someone who is faithfully devoted to his own desires....”

Paia judged Anagin based on all the rumors: the Hero of the Outskirts who defeated Bender, Deodia, and the Monster Merchant, and the Practitioner Killer who destroyed the Dolos Family.

“You can never become a proper practitioner that way. You need firm values and consistency.”

Values and consistency, huh.... Anagin showed interest.

“What exactly are those?”

Paia grinned.

“You’ll find out if you follow us.”