The Shadow Thief was different from the two Anomalies Benjamin had encountered before.
Salty Finger had no fixed physical form. It only temporarily created a finger when killing someone, then vanished once the task was complete.
Though the Graffiti Anomaly had a compressible core, its main body was merged into the rules most of the time, only revealing itself when forced to its limit.
The Shadow Thief was different from both.
It possessed a shadow-like true body at all times.
That flattened humanoid shadow was itself.
In theory, this made tracking it far easier. As long as one could keep up with its speed and constantly distinguish that abruptly appearing shadow, one could track it.
But in practice, it was harder than scaling the heavens.
After all, trying to track a shadow in the darkness was nothing more than a fool's dream.
Yet Benjamin could keep up.
The Glimmer Eye clung to the surface of the Shadow Thief's dark membrane, following it through Mist City's underground sewers, abandoned buildings, and nighttime streets and alleys.
Benjamin followed behind without making a move to capture it. After all, this was a perfect opportunity to collect data.
After carefully observing the Shadow Thief, Benjamin discovered a pattern.
This Anomaly had a "preference" for certain locations.
The Shadow Thief's instincts resembled those of a living creature. It would repeatedly wander through places it had passed before, places that met its "hunting" conditions—for example, dim alleys, long stretches beneath walls, open spaces with a single light source that cast clear shadows.
Seeing this, Benjamin chose an alley.
This alley lay between Seventh Street and Eighth Street in the Old District, a narrow north-south passage.
It was less than three meters wide, flanked by towering gable walls. The walls were mottled and covered in dead, withered