Anagin Chronicles

Chapter 042. The Boar (1)

“Is today some kind of special day? How can good things keep happening one after another!”

Among the gathered bandits, someone spoke in amazement.

Anagin felt much the same.

Because really, what were the chances of running into familiar faces in a bandit hideout?

“Let go of me!! I said let go!!”

“.....!”

The familiar faces Anagin recognized were none other than the grandchildren of the old carriage driver.

The same old man he had met right after he was sent flying out of the village by his master’s hand.

That old man, who had gladly let a complete stranger like Anagin ride on his carriage, the shy granddaughter who had handed him a towel, and the energetic grandson who had followed Anagin around asking all sorts of questions.

But the way they looked now was completely different.

‘Has it been a little over half a month...?’

First of all, the old man was nowhere to be seen. And despite living on the road, the children, who had been clean then, were now filthy from head to toe.

The bandits had tied the children up with rope and were dragging them around like dogs.

Even while being dragged, the grandson yelled at the top of his lungs, and his older sister hugged him tightly, shielding him—as if bracing for the disaster that was soon to come.

The bandits of the hideout gathered around them, snickering.

“They hid like little rats, yet got caught in the end. Hey brat, how long did it take to catch you? Been a week? Pay up!”

“Hold on, let me calculate. How long has it been since they slipped us?”

“Where’d you catch them?”

“At Crossroads Village. They were begging for help there. Bad luck, really. They went to the one place that cooperates with us.”

“Wow...! Still, it was a close call. If they had gone a little further from there, they might have escaped if they reached the City?”

“What does it matter? It's meaningless now.”

Anagin didn’t know the full story yet, but the brother and sister were apparently quite well-known.

He slung an arm around the rookie bandit next to him and asked what was going on.

“What’d they do to end up getting caught here?”

“Huh? Ah, didn’t you hear? Some fearless old man picked a fight with us. These are that old man’s kids.”

Because Anagin had put an arm around him, the rookie bandit answered with a smile.

It seemed that, just like in Pond Village, they were going around demanding cooperation from villages. One of those villages must have refused, and while the bandits were taking revenge, the old man stepped in.

It wasn’t a hard guess. However...

“Why would he do that?”

Anagin murmured without realizing it, unable to contain his curiosity.

He’d only known the old man for a day, but his personality was clear enough.

He was kind and good-hearted, but not the sort to deliberately invite danger. Especially, not with his precious grandchildren around.

Just from the way he had taught Anagin how to handle Energy and warned him not to go near the children, that much was obvious.

So why would that kind of man help a village? Taking that kind of risk? It didn’t make sense.

His confusion showed on his face, and the rookie bandit immediately picked up on it. He called over a nearby bandit.

“Brother! Brother!”

“Hm? What?”

“You said you saw that old man yourself, right?”

“Yeah. I went out with the boss.”

“Could you explain in detail?”

The rookie bandit gestured at Anagin, the one with his arm around him.

The other bandit looked confused by the sudden request, but began talking anyway.

“There's not much to tell, really. We were giving them a lesson because they couldn't understand what we were saying, and suddenly, the old man appeared and stopped us. Said he was staying in that village or something.”

“What kind of ‘lesson’ exactly?”

Anagin cut in and asked.

The bandit narrowed his eyes at Anagin, finding his persistence a little suspicious.

Anagin made a request.

“Once I get curious about something, I need to know everything about it. Please.”

His unexpectedly polite tone surprised not only the rookie bandit but even Sphinx.

It was the kind of expression that said, 'So he can talk this way, too...!'

The bandit, feeling rather pleased by the respect, cracked a faint smile. Considering he was speaking to the important guest their boss had brought, it made sense.

“Hmph.... It wasn’t much. Snapped the neck of the stubborn village chief, killed a few of the men who fought back, grabbed some of the women... Ah! The brats were crying too damn loudly, so we were about to shut them up. That’s when the old man appeared.”

He let out a slow, stupid laugh, as if only now remembering it.

Then he continued explaining.

“Yeah, he was an idiot. A complete idiot... but a pretty impressive idiot. I’ll give him that.”

"Why do you say that, Brother?"

“He held out against the boss and even managed to run off. After evacuating the villagers first.”

“Seriously? I thought he got taken down in one hit.”

The rookie bandit clearly hadn’t known that and looked shocked.

“Yeah. For an old man, he had a decent amount of Energy. But the boss eventually caught up and took him down.”

It seemed the old carriage driver was already dead. Anagin had expected as much, but still...

“The others from the village were rounded up again, too. That’s when we realized the old man had grandkids. The boss was pissed and put a bounty on them, and as you can see, we caught them.”

The bandit pointed to the old man’s grandchildren, tied up with a rope and being dragged toward the center of the hideout.

Once they reached the center, the children were forcibly separated and tied to separate stakes.

“Boss! We brought them!”

At the shout directed toward the largest hut in the camp, the heavy door creaked open, and Paia emerged.

With heavy steps on his thick legs, Paia walked up to the children, bent down, and inspected them.

“So you’re the damn geezer’s grandkids?”

“......”

They were still just children. The grandson, who had been screaming earlier, frowned in indignation but was too scared to answer right away. The granddaughter was similarly silent.

“Pahahah! Look at that brat’s eyes! They’re exactly like that old bastard’s! The same mangy bastard who kicked me in the face out of nowhere!!”

So Paia had been kicked in the face. He seemed deeply humiliated by it.

‘He really holds a grudge.’

Straightening his back, Paia shouted,

“Alright! Everyone, give me your ideas! How should we deal with these little brats! Whoever gives the best idea gets a reward!”

"What's there to think about? Beat the boy until he begs for forgiveness, and sell the girl off somewhere, perhaps?"

“No, you idiot! This time, we need an example! An example!!”

‘An example?’

Anagin didn’t understand what that meant. Paia soon clarified.

"When that damn geezer evacuated the villagers and ran away, a rumor spread for a short while, didn't it? That a hero was standing up against us! Did they eat crow meat or something!?”

“I, I remember....”

“But you bastards!”

Paia roared, clearly furious about that rumor.

"Because of that, even the surrounding villages wavered, and we wasted time!"

"We thought it was okay since things have calmed down now."

“It might’ve been fine until now, but not anymore! Because we’re going to build a country here in Anapik! That means we need to be more meticulous and thorough!!”

A few bandits nodded in agreement.

"More than anything, I cannot tolerate the fact that someone dared to challenge us! Everything on the road, excluding the city, is our property! Is that right or not?!"

“Right! It belongs to us, the Forest Brotherhood!”

“Exactly! We are the rightful owners! And someone dared to challenge us? That means they tried to steal what’s ours! So we need an example! A clear example showing what happens if you oppose us! ...Do you understand now?”

The sheer pressure from Paia’s massive frame, his booming voice, and his—admittedly twisted—logic silenced the entire camp.

Everyone was convinced.

After that, the bandits began discussing how to kill the grandchildren to make the best example.

Hang them from a tree, starve them, gouge out their eyes, skin them alive—countless gruesome suggestions poured out.

The old man’s grandchildren heard everything. Their bodies began trembling little by little.

As the atmosphere grew more feverish, Anagin raised his hand.

“How about just letting them go?”

The air turned icy at his shameless interruption, and everyone stared at him at once.

The rookie bandit he’d had an arm around froze in a bizarre posture, and Sphinx vanished like the wind.

Regardless, Anagin continued speaking.

“Can’t you just let them go?”

“Why do you say that?”

To Anagin’s surprise, Paia didn’t shout. Instead, he calmly asked for a reason.

With his arm still slung over the rookie bandit, Anagin pushed through the crowd and walked to the front.

“Uh...?”

As he stepped forward, the tied-up grandson and granddaughter spotted him.

Their previously clouded, terrified eyes regained a faint glimmer.

"Because I know them. Those kids.”

Standing before Paia, Anagin honestly explained why he had suggested letting them go.

Paia turned his head to check the children’s reactions.

“It’s true? How do you know them?”

“It’s a long story, but I owe them a bit.”

“The geezer helped you?”

"Yeah. He gave me a ride in his carriage, and that little girl gave me a towel. That kid... he annoyingly asked me a bunch of questions."

“So you want me to let them go?”

“That’s right.”

At Paia’s sarcastic remark, Anagin nodded firmly.

The atmosphere around them grew harsher.

A guest suddenly meddling in their internal affairs—it was natural they’d be upset.

But Paia didn’t lose his cool.

He was brutal and violent, like any bandit—but cold and rational, as befitted a boss.

“Let me ask you something, because I’m genuinely curious.... Does that sound like a request anyone could grant?”

“Depends on who’s making the request.”

“Oho...! Overflowing with confidence, are we?”

“The person above you told you to recruit me, right?”

Paia stepped forward and jabbed a thick finger into Anagin’s chest.

“No. Periphetes isn’t above me. There’s only one person above me.”

It had nothing to do with the current conversation, but Anagin couldn’t help being curious about who that one person was.

Paia—just from looking at him—seemed like someone with a massive ego. For someone like that to willingly acknowledge someone above him meant that “one person” wasn’t ordinary.

He considered asking, but chose to stay focused on the situation.

“Fine, I apologize. I’m sorry. I misspoke. Please forgive me.”

Anagin apologized without hesitation.

Paia withdrew his hand, surprised by how easily he had done it.

“Did you just apologize?”

“Why? Is that weird?”

“Of course it is. I thought you were the type who’d rather die than apologize.”

“Why do you see me like that?”

Anagin acted offended. After all, unlike other children, he had been raised by the village chief and considered himself a perfectly reasonable, normal person.

If he needed to apologize, he could apologize as much as necessary.

But Paia didn’t seem to think that way; he interpreted it differently.

“Those little brats... must be pretty precious to you, huh?”

“Not that much. We just know each other.”

“And yet you’re doing this for them?”

“It leaves a bad taste in my mouth when someone I know dies.”

It was such a normal statement that Paia didn’t argue.

But not arguing didn’t mean Paia was willing to give in.

“I can’t grant that request.”

“Even if I consider your offer to recruit me?”

“That’s that, and this is this.”

Paia warned him with a murderous gleam, clearly telling him not to play games.

“If we don’t set a proper example here, that old geezer will die a hero. His family must suffer a terrible fate for him to die a loser who didn’t know his place. This concerns the reputation of our organization.”

“Speaking of which, where is that old man’s corpse? Is it here?”

“Don’t change the subject.”

Paia frowned and refused to answer.

“......”

The body was clearly not here, and Paia had no intention of telling him where it was.

After thinking for a moment, Anagin nodded.

“Alright, I get it. As long as that old man doesn’t die a hero, right?”

"? ...That's right."

After confirming the answer, Anagin released the rookie bandit’s shoulder and walked past Paia toward the grandchildren.

He crouched in front of the granddaughter, meeting her eyes. She was older, so he spoke to her first.

“...Just say one thing for me.”

“.....?”

“Say your grandfather was a clueless idiot who didn’t know his place.”

Shock and betrayal rippled through the girl’s eyes. The boy was the same.

“As you can see, I’m not in a position to help you. I have something to get from them, you see.”

Anagin pointed his thumb toward Paia behind him.

He still hadn’t learned the method of Jacheon yet.

“I can’t actively help you, but letting you just die sits wrong with me too. So let’s settle it with you insulting your grandfather. Say he was an idiot who stuck his nose where it didn’t belong and died like a fool.”

Paia didn’t know what was going on, but he found it amusing and laughed. In contrast, the granddaughter’s expression twisted into something indescribable.

“If the grandson and granddaughter disown their grandfather, there’s no reason for them to harm you, either. Right?”

“Well....”

“You heard him? So let’s take the easy—”

–Ptu!

The granddaughter spat straight into Anagin’s face.

He didn’t dodge it.

“...Our grandfather..... was a hero.”

“And you two are about to die.”

“......”

When Anagin stated the undeniable truth, the girl trembled violently and fell silent.

But her eyes still held strength, along with hatred and contempt toward Anagin.

Seeing that, Anagin spoke quietly.

“You’re better than me.”

“...?”

Paia approached Anagin.

“If you’re done playing around, move.”

“Yeah. I should stop playing. With you.”

“Yeah, yeah. With me... wait, what did you say?”

The moment Paia questioned him, the crouching Anagin used the spring of his body to leap up and kick Paia straight in the stomach.

“I said I should stop playing with you.”