2. Anari

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.

~

~ Anari ~

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.

When a bored-looking feline spirit came to take her order, she just asked for hot tea and to be left alone. Now all Anari needed was a distraction for when the trolls inevitably showed up. That and a way off the giant. She had precious cargo hidden in the city, but it would have to wait until things calmed down.

Anari scanned the space with all six of her eyes, thinking of the best way to cause a commotion if and when the trolls arrived. One hour later and all she had to work with was a greedy manager who stole tips from his sun clone employee.

Anari sighed. This whole time she had managed to avoid sun clones. In fact, she hadn’t seen a single one until tonight. The one that worked here – a waiter – looked pretty low in rank and kind of clueless. Still, even without all of the decorations that came with the Immortal State, there was no mistaking that he was a Sun.

A sun clone was not Anari’s first choice in a situation like this because, well, it was complicated. Suns could be unpredictable and reckless. Whenever they have access to holy peaches, they became unbelievably powerful. One minute they could be loyal and trustworthy, and the next, they might sell you out for something bright and shiny.

Anari had met her fair share of Suns. She had even loved one once. And she wasn’t sure if the risk was really worth the reward.

The she-spider was still in the middle of making her decision when one of her eyes caught him pretending to wipe down a table nearby. It was now or never.

“Sun. Over here.”

The clone turned. Up close, he was cute, she had to admit. Most of his simian features were suppressed under his glamour. But the sideburns were a dead giveaway. High cheekbones. Eyes the color of unfiltered honey. Anari made sure to keep her glamoured eyes on her teacup while her spider sight scanned him for more details.

When she told him that his boss had been cheating him out of his earnings, she didn’t get the reaction she had hoped for. Adding that she needed his help didn’t seem to improve her situation either. Anari kept up a cool exterior, but she was beginning to panic. What kind of sun clone would be content with working in a dump like this? Monkey spirits were known for their obsession with increasing their rank, no matter the cost.

Anari reminded herself that this particular Sun could simply be baiting her to offer more of an incentive.

But I’m broke.

“Look,” the sun clone said, “I don’t have any holy peaches, okay?”

So that’s what he wanted. Of course. The clone was probably stuck working at the noodle house in the first place because he couldn’t get his hands on an energy source.

This was Anari’s last chance. She stretched one of her limbs and secured it around the clone’s wrist. She readied her glands just in case she would have to seduce him. She hadn’t fully recovered from binding up her victims, but at the moment, she didn’t really have a choice.

The Sun’s golden brown eyes widened at her audacity and his arm tensed. Too quickly, Anari gave up her name and explained her situation, making sure to add, “I’m not a bad person.”

Why did she say that? She wasn’t on trial before the clone.

Anari caught his eyes and added, “I know where to find the peaches. Lots of them.”

This was at least half true. The peaches were a long way from here and her access to them depended entirely on the director – her boss.

The sun clone stared at her, deciding. Relieved, she relaxed her glands when he pulled her to her feet. She didn’t expect him to be so much taller than her. Most clones only acquired a boastful height when they entered the Immortal State.

The sun clone and the she-spider went unnoticed as he led her through the noisy noodle house to a door near the kitchen. They slipped inside a pantry and the clone cracked the door so that a thin column of light broke up the darkness.

“Now what?” He asked.

The vein of light on his face was enough to reveal the hopeful desperation there.

Good. Let him think that I’m his only ticket out of here.

Anari opened her mouth, but her words were drowned by a ruckus coming from the restaurant’s interior. Five trolls trundled inside, issuing threats and death glares. Anari’s description rolled off their pimpled tongues.

The sun clone inhaled sharply. “Sweet Immortal Peaches.” He looked back at her. “What the hidden lotus did you do to piss off the Yingchi Bastards?”

Not on trial, Anari reminded herself.

“I’ll tell you later. Help me find a way out of here.”

“Not so fast, lovebirds!”

Anari and the clone turned away from the door, letting the light shine on a lump against the far wall. At first Anari thought it was one of the many sacks of rice. Then her eyes registered a pinkish, bristly surface and a single dirty tooth.

“It’s just a pig. Let’s go.”

The lump gave another alarming squeal.

“One that will scream loud enough to draw those graceless trolls in here. So show a little more respect and untie me.”

~

What’s the matter, Dear Traveler? Too much action and suspense for you? I wasn’t even going that fast.

Fine. Rest a while. Next time we’ll see what this swine spirit is all about.