It was a story with a few changes. Annan had woven the experiences of the two Valencias together into one noble figure: a man who loved his family and the Church, and who had willingly devoted the last of his strength to Strange Tales City.
"So you not only slandered the Princess's sacrifice, you also sullied Valencia's loyalty to her..."
Annan drew a guard's sword.
Rainer made no move to dodge inside the cell. Instead, he closed his eyes and raised his head. "This is the punishment I deserve..."
The sword cut through the air—
Thud!
A heavy blow struck Rainer's skull, nearly knocking him to the ground.
A searing pain spread through his head. There was no doubt it was swelling.
Rainer sucked in a sharp breath and looked up to see Annan hand the sword back to the guard, looking thoroughly satisfied.
"That was for what you did to me."
Annan couldn't keep pitching his idea yet. First, he had to find the False Princess...
Dozens of minutes later, Annan took portraits of the Princess and the Red Witch to the inn to look for the Mousehole Oddity. Sure enough, he found the group hiding in a Cellar in the Slum.
Finding the Princess was his stated goal, but Annan was thinking about how to lure the Mousehole Oddity back to the City Lord's Mansion as he reached the edge of the Slum.
Filthy water ran through the Slum, which looked drab and decayed. Outside, bright flowers grew in clusters. It was like looking at two different worlds.
Annan was about to summon Mr. Swaro from the Flower Capital for help when, to his surprise, he spotted him a short distance ahead, approaching with flowers in his arms.
But Annan had already activated the Talisman. Mr. Swaro