Anagin Chronicles

Chapter 049. Stas Polis (2)

“Anagin, huh…”

The inspector murmured quietly as he wrote the name on the paper.

Scratch. Scratch. Scratch.

For a moment, Sphinx felt her stomach drop as she thought to herself: has Anagin’s wanted notice not reached this city?

It was entirely possible.

The influence of the practitioner families wasn’t as large as people assumed, and there was a good chance the news hadn’t spread this far to the border between Hellas and Anapik.

Even the article about Anagin only appeared in a local newspaper.

“And you?”

The inspector looked at Sphinx.

“Ah, I’m—”

“Pinku-Pinku.”

Before Sphinx could answer, Anagin answered for her, using the ridiculous name “Pinku-Pinku.”

The inspector narrowed his eyes.

“…That’s supposed to be a person’s name?”

“Surprisingly, yes.”

Sphinx widened her golden eyes and glared at Anagin.

Her expression said, ‘What kind of idiot are you?’

The guard looked between them with the same expression, but eventually wrote it down.

‘He’s just writing it like that?’

Sphinx stared in shock as the inspector accepted the name without question. Was he the type of person who handled work carelessly?

“The kids are Kori and Pais. Anything else you need to ask?”

Anagin placed a hand on the heads of Kori and Pais as he introduced them.

The inspector shook his head.

“No. Welcome to Stas Polis. Keep quiet and stay out of trouble.”

Anagin answered with a slight nod, and the inspector called for the next visitor.

Anagin led Sphinx, Kori, and Pais into the city.

“Welcome, sir! Right this way!”

“This is so pretty!”

“Mister, could you buy just one flower, please?”

The inside of the city was more vibrant than it looked from the outside.

In fact, upon entering the city, they could feel its prosperity. The streets were mixed with a variety of people: outsiders, residents, the poor, and the well-off. New buildings were being constructed everywhere.

Thanks to this, there were many laborers, and many merchants were doing business targeting those laborers.

“Hey, be careful.”

Sphinx grabbed Pais, who had almost wandered off while looking at the surroundings.

Even if losing him for a moment wouldn’t mean losing him entirely, you could never be too careful.

“Sorry, sis.”

Sphinx accepted Pais’s apology without complaint.

Honestly, she understood why he’d been distracted.

Cities had a way of enchanting people.

The unique chaos, vitality, wealth, and desires created by countless people mingling together had the power to literally enchant people, not just figuratively.

It was a kind of magical phenomenon, perhaps? That's why bizarre incidents sometimes occurred in cities.

“Alright, I’ve decided.”

Anagin suddenly announced another decision.

Sphinx shivered with dread.

“Mister, can’t you please ask for our opinion before deciding things?”

“It’s a decision you’ll all like.”

“I don’t believe it, but out of courtesy, I’ll ask. What is it?”

“Let’s eat first.”

* * *

Food.

It was one of the things Anagin considered most important in life.

After all, you couldn’t exert strength without eating something first.

And for Anagin, it was also a personal hobby.

Every time he visited a city, he made it a rule to eat every item on the menu of that city’s best restaurant.

A kind of self-reward for being dragged into a journey he never wanted.

In any case, that’s why Anagin suggested they eat first.

Of course, not everyone welcomed that idea.

“Food is nice, but shouldn’t we find an inn first?”

Kori and Pais didn’t show it openly, but their silence clearly signaled agreement with Sphinx.

Naturally so. The two kids wanted sleep far more than food.

Walking all the way here in a child’s body was already exhausting, and doing at least a hundred slingshot shots every day along the way had drained them completely.

Their shoulders hurt, their legs hurt…

At this point, even exaggeration wasn’t necessary—they felt like they would fall asleep just by lying down.

But their opponent was Anagin… mercy was not an option!

“The order doesn’t matter. What matters is the one paying.”

“Aren’t you ashamed of using money to control the kids?”

“Not at all. I’m proud of it.”

Anagin declared it with absurd confidence.

Kori and Pais didn’t know what kind of expression to make. They had never seen an adult like this.

Meanwhile, Anagin sniffed the air and walked toward a restaurant.

The place with the best smell.

As Anagin sat at an empty table, a waiter approached with a menu.

“Welcome, sir! We have a wide variety of dishes, so please order whatever suits your taste.”

As the waiter said, the menu was extensive.

From cheap barley porridge to boiled eggs, cheese made with goat’s milk, fried fish, honey-soaked almonds, meat stew simmered with onions and leeks, rice sautéed in oil, grilled beef, long-stewed pork trotters, eel skewers glazed with sweet sauce—plenty of pricey dishes as well.

It seemed designed to attract both poor and wealthy customers.

As a result, the large dining hall was filled with people eating completely different meals.

“Pick whatever you want.”

“Hmm, I want…”

Pais looked through the menu with Sphinx. The fact that he could read meant the old man had taught him early on.

“Big brother, can I get meat—”

Kori gently covered her brother’s mouth and whispered quietly.

“We ate plenty of meat on the way here. Overeating isn’t good for you.”

Outwardly, she said it was about overeating, but in truth, she was trying to be considerate of Anagin.

They had seen how much money he’d thrown earlier…

Even without that, the siblings already owed Anagin a great deal. They wanted to at least help him spend less.

Pais seemed to understand his sister’s intentions too, so he switched to barley porridge with garlic—the cheapest option.

“I’ll take this too.”

“Really? What about you, Sphinx?”

“…I’ll have the same.”

She wasn’t necessarily watching Anagin’s wallet, but she decided to respect the children’s choice and ordered barley porridge as well.

Hearing their decisions, Anagin nodded and raised his hand.

“Order.”

“Ah, yes! Go ahead.”

Anagin placed his finger on the first item on the menu, then slowly slid down the list.

Then he moved to the next section, went all the way down, and stopped at the final item.

“One of everything.”

“E–everything?!”

The waiter was so surprised that he shouted involuntarily. Anagin corrected himself with a look of realization.

“Oh, give me four barley porridges too. These kids say they only want porridge.”

“…….”

Sphinx, Kori, and Pais all stared at him with the exact same look: ‘This bastard, seriously?’

“Wait!”

Sphinx grabbed Anagin’s hand as he tried to finalize the order.

“I… I want to change mine. This one, this one, and this.”

She pointed at the grilled beef, roasted whole chicken, and eel. All expensive dishes.

Immediately after, Pais and Kori grabbed Anagin’s hand too.

“M–me too! I want to change!”

“Can I change mine as well?” Kori asked shyly, embarrassed.

Anagin answered like they were the ridiculous ones.

“Do whatever you want. I told you to pick what you want.”

Hearing that, Kori and Pais ordered the dishes they really wanted.

“Then I’ll take this and this.”

* * *

Pais and Kori added a few meat dishes to their barley porridge.

Anagin relayed the combined order to the waiter.

At first, the waiter panicked.

“Are you really ordering all this?”

No matter how large the customer’s stomach or how fat his coin pouch, no one had ever ordered the entire menu before.

As mentioned earlier, the place offered a huge variety of dishes—with expensive ones mixed in among the cheap—so the waiter couldn’t help but suspect they might be planning to dine and run.

In a city filled with every sort of person, there were always people attempting to eat without paying…

Of course, the restaurant had ways to deal with such customers, but if the bill was too large, the restaurant would take a loss even with those measures.

“Ah, don’t worry about the money.”

Anagin pulled out yet another coin pouch from his Interspatial Bag.

Seeing the heavy pouch bulging with coins, the waiter scolded himself for doubting and hurried off to place the order.

“So this is why everyone loves money so much.”

Anagin remarked after seeing how quickly the waiter’s attitude flipped.

“If I’d known, I would’ve saved up more aggressively.”

He recalled the Bender Caravan’s goods and the monster corpses he’d obtained in the Ruin Village.

He hadn’t cared much back then and just let them go, but looking back, it felt like a mistake. Maybe he should return now and ask to take them back?

“Big brother! You’re so cool…!”

Pais’s eyes sparkled brightly as he watched Anagin’s money-throwing antics.

Being a young boy, a man who spent money freely looked like a true hero in his eyes.

Anagin nodded.

“I’ve always been cool.”

“Big brother, aren’t you embarrassed saying that out loud?”

“I can’t lie. It was officially recognized back in the village that I was the coolest.”

“How?”

“I beat up everyone who said otherwise.”

(T/N): LOL

“…….”

Sphinx stared at him with a mixture of disgust and resignation, while Kori flinched. The answer was far from what they had expected.

Meanwhile, the food began arriving.

Starting with the barley porridge listed at the top of the menu, then boiled eggs, cheese made from goat’s milk, grilled beef, long-stewed pork trotters, eel skewers glazed with sauce, and more.

Countless dishes filled the table one by one.

There was so much food that they eventually had to bring another empty table and attach it to theirs.

It was a painful expense from the restaurant’s perspective—since table count meant revenue—but Anagin’s massive order more than justified it, so they happily complied.

“Eat only what you ordered.”

Anagin warned them as he stuffed the barley porridge and grilled beef into his mouth.

It would be petty to complain, as they had ordered quite a bit themselves, so Sphinx and the kid could only say yes.

“Whoa……”

“Is this real…?”

With so much food that it resembled a feast, not only people inside the restaurant but also those outside watched Anagin’s party as if they were watching circus animals.

It wasn't a common sight to see only four people ordering dozens of dishes.

Regardless, Anagin focused on his meal. He didn't like being distracted while eating. And soon, Sphinx, Kori, and Pais were also focused on their meal.

At first, they’d been so tired they wanted to lie down rather than eat, but once the delicious food hit their mouths, their appetite awakened.

“B-big brother! Can I try just one of those?”

Pais pointed to the fried egg.

He hadn’t ordered one because he chose meat instead, but seeing it now, he wanted it.

Anagin shook his head, as if unwilling to share. Instead, he ordered another serving of fried eggs.

“If there’s something you want, order more. I’ll order more too if I feel like it.”

Sphinx chuckled and ordered more as he suggested. She also asked Kori if she wanted anything else.

Kori hesitated briefly, then, after a little encouragement from Sphinx, asked for another plate of grilled meat.

The plates stacked up like layers. It turned out not only Anagin, but also Sphinx, Kori, and Pais all had hearty appetites.

When the mini-feast was nearly over, the owner himself approached with a wide smile.

“Hoho! Did the food suit your taste?”

Anagin nodded without a word. He had noticed back in Dysis Polis and the Ruin Village that the food here was undeniably better than in his hometown.

“I’m glad to hear that. The bill is……”

When the owner stated the food price, even Sphinx and Kori, who had been eating deliciously, instantly widened their eyes. The cost was far beyond what they’d expected.

But Anagin didn’t mind at all and paid the total.

“Here.”

“Hahaha! Oh my, you are generous!”

The owner laughed loudly as Anagin paid without hesitation. Then he leaned in and lowered his voice.

“Um… you seem to be carrying a lot of money. Please be careful. There are people in this city who target clueless first-time visitors. Ah—! Not that I’m calling you clueless, sir!”

When Anagin looked at him, the owner quickly corrected himself.

“Really?”

“Y-yes. Please watch out for thieves in the streets or at inns.”

“Hm. Can you recommend an inn?”

“An inn?”

“Yes. An inn.”

“Ah, well…”

The owner looked around cautiously, choosing his words.

Just then, Pais, who had gone outside, called for Anagin.

“Big brother, come out!”

“I’m coming.”

Anagin said that and walked out without waiting for the owner’s recommendation.

The owner tried to say something, but Anagin waved it off as if it didn’t matter.

“I heard enough.”

* * *

“What were you talking about?”

Pais asked Anagin, who came out a little later than the others.

“He told me to be careful because there are lots of guys who target clueless newbies like me.”

“Eeeh?”

Pais frowned.

Hearing someone call the man he admired an amateur made him upset.

“Well, what does it matter? This is my first time in a city like this.”

“Even so…”

“More importantly, this is a problem. I’m full and want to sleep, but we need to find a place to stay first.”

“Can’t we just go into any inn? There are inns everywhere, aren’t there?”

As Kori said, inns were indeed everywhere.

Anagin wiggled his finger.

“The place I’m talking about is a clean and safe inn. We don’t know who might actually be after our money.”

“…Mister, are you serious?”

Sphinx asked if he really thought he would get robbed. Anagin nodded.

“I have a sense of caution, too.”

“Um....”

Just then, someone approached.

A young man. His clothing was simple but clean, and he held a sack of groceries as if he had just finished shopping.

“Are you travelers, by any chance? Looking for a place to stay?”

He introduced himself as an employee of “Bed Inn” and suggested they stay at his establishment if they didn’t yet have a room.

The price might be a little high, he said, but when it came to hygiene, they took pride in being the best in the city.

“Let’s go.”

Anagin accepted immediately.

“Haha, an excellent choice! Please, follow me!”

Perhaps happy to have successfully brought in customers, the young man joyfully led the group.

Not far from the restaurant, they arrived at a medium-sized inn. And indeed, as the young man claimed, the interior was clean.

“Master, I’ve brought you customers. I did!”

When he proudly announced his success, the innkeeper—presumably the owner—came out.

A man with dark sun-tanned skin, thick curly hair, and a striking beard. His build was too robust for someone you’d expect to run an inn.

“You brat, shouting in front of the customers!”

The innkeeper smacked the young man on the head, then apologized to Anagin.

“I’m sorry, sir. I hope he hasn’t offended you.”

“He didn’t. We needed a place to sleep, so his timing was perfect.”

“That’s a relief. How many of you are there?”

“Four.”

“Ah, then I’ll show you to the large room. It’ll be cheaper than booking two rooms.”

“Sounds good.”

“However… there’s one problem. The room is large, but it only has three beds.”

Four people, but only three beds.

Anagin casually placed a hand on Sphinx’s shoulder.

“She likes sleeping on the floor, so it’s fine.”

Sphinx asked,

“I like sleeping on the floor? Since when?”

“You can start liking it from now on.”

Sphinx shot him a silent profanity with her eyes.

The innkeeper nodded as if that explained everything.

“If that’s fine with you, I’ll take you upstairs. This way.”

The innkeeper guided the group to the third floor, to the biggest room at the very top.

Just as the young man had said, the inn was clean, and though there were only three beds, the cushions looked incredibly soft.

The beds are fixed to the floor with screws....

“Please rest well.”

After the brief explanation, the innkeeper left without hesitation.

“Choose where you want to sleep.”

“Really? Then I want this one!”

Pais happily threw himself onto the bed by the window.

He bounced up and down to test how soft it was. Kori also claimed the bed in the far corner.

Naturally, the middle bed remained.

Anagin took it without a trace of hesitation.

“So I’m really sleeping on the floor?”

“You like sleeping on the floor.”

“Mister, I—”

Clack.

A sudden locking sound.

Anagin and Sphinx turned toward the noise.

It came from the inn’s entrance door.

Before they could even figure out what was happening, smoke burst out from the cracks in the walls.

“Huh?”

“Ana...,ngh.”

Pais and Kori, who had been delighted at the thought of finally sleeping on a bed, collapsed as if falling asleep instantly.

Only Sphinx and Anagin, who quickly covered their noses with their robes, remained conscious enough to exchange a short comment.

“Looks like we came to the right place.”

“Indeed.”