The spirit world is broken and in desperate need of a restoration. True heroes and ancient beasts that once walked are now a thing of the past. Between the empty spaces of forgotten treasure halls there are whispers of one who has returned. One lege...
How are you liking the story so far, Dear Traveler? See any similarities between you and our simple-minded hero? Would you have fallen for the spider maiden's double-edged plea for help?
Speaking of which, would you care to have some more insight on our mysterious fugitive? She didn't know it then, but her and Sun Ritsu's paths were linked. For now, all the she-spider wanted was a place to hide so she could plan her next move.
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Anari was too exhausted to keep running to and fro along the giant's spine. She had been inside too many bars and boarded at too many inns. Though this city wasn't small, most of its business owners knew her face by now. There was a lot of work for her here, so keeping a low profile wasn't really an option.
Which was why it pained Anari to admit that it was definitely time to get the hell out there.
It was no secret that a local brotherhood of trolls controlled more than half the city. And they didn't appreciate a foreign she-spider taking out city officials and businessmen who kept their names and records clean as long as the brotherhood kept their pockets fat and healthy.
Usually Anari wouldn't stick her fangs in the business of petty crime lords, but when the enslavement and distribution of Ninefold spirits is the backbone of their profits, something had to be done.
How Anari's director had learned of this spirit world slime, she had not yet figured out. The giant she currently occupied was remote and couldn't be found on most maps of the Horse Province. It was a pain trying to book a ticket here. After her budget had taken such a blow, she'd had a hard time recovering. Especially when most of her money went to bribing storefront owners in exchange for intel on the gang's activity. She wouldn't be surprised if it was one of them who tipped off the trolls. From what she had observed over the past few weeks, the community on this little giant was tight and the brotherhood's methods were ruthless. Someone was bound to crack.
Now every ounce of muscle the gang had to spare was chasing her around the giant. Anari's only hope was to disappear into the outskirts of town. She hated stealing, but she had to sneak a boat off of someone's property just so she could make it to the giant's knuckles. The fare to rent a boat was too high and she needed what little money she had left to haggle a ticket off this giant eventually.
If that didn't work, there was always Luck. But Anari didn't have a knack for calculating her personal reserves and she didn't like relying on it. It seemed that every customs office counted Luck differently. No, it was better to rely on money when traveling.
When she had gotten off the boat, the first building she came across was a noodle house. It was a dump, but it made the perfect hideout because it was large and crowded with loud, diverse customers.
Anari picked a booth that was elevated above most of the drinking and gambling. It was positioned in a way that gave her a direct view of the entrance without easily being seen by newcomers.
