Spice & Wolf XV (DWT)

  “You see, with our reputation..”

  Myuri scratched his head.

  “For our flag, we’ll face any battle, no matter how hopeless. We would fight until our last drop of blood was shed.”

  He spoke excitedly, almost like he was singing. In fact he might be hoping others would hear him, like the eavesdropping staff officer and teenager. But when he stared at Lawrence, it was clear what he was working towards.

  “So if Holo and I were to ask, the Myuri mercenaries band would fight to their last.”

  “Correct.”

  It seemed they fought for their principles, either out of stubbornness or a desire to defend their honor. Lawrence could see himself partnering with Myuri.

  “Holo is very much the same. But life teaches us many things, and we’ve learned a great deal on our journey. Like how hard it is to find old friends.”

  Lawrence wasn’t asking anything, but Myuri took a breath when he realized what he was saying. He just shook his head silently. He didn’t know where her old friend was, and the look on his face made that abundantly clear.

  “And so.. I only really have one question I want to ask on her behalf.. is Yoitsu still alright?”

  Before he met Holo, Yoitsu was just a name he’d heard at some inn. He didn’t know if it still existed. But now he was staring down a stranger in the hopes of getting a serious response. It felt like a dream come true to be with Holo, passing so many obstacles and walking forward with her while holding her hand. These things really did just happen.

  “In fact, it’s fine.”

  Myuri looked up and repeated himself.

  “In fact, it’s fine.”

  Maybe he thought Holo was eavesdropping as well.

  “Don’t worry, the Wisewolf could hear a whisper miles away. She’s just not in the best of shape right now.”

  Myuri smiled, looking younger than he really was. There was no laughter, just a wild grin.

  “Then you haven’t been to Yoitsu yet, have you?”

  “Right. We’ve got a map to it.. but we felt it would be better to meet the Myuri mercenary band first.”

  “Ah, now I see. Everyone has their priorities, I guess. Shame that I’m just named after Myuri. Sorry about that.”

  Lawrence nervously wanted to say “don’t worry about it,” but Myuri’s smile made it clear that he was just joking.

  “Yoitsu is fine. It’s now a part of the Tolchin region. People don’t usually travel there, since it’s a wild forest.”

  Holo’s ears would surely be perked up high right now. She might even be curled up and gripping the bed sheets in delight.

  “It’s just that we heard a lot of rumors about the Diva company, all of them bad. That’s why we wanted to ask someone in your position for help.”

  “You can call me Myuri.”

  The young captain jumped in as Lawrence spoke.

  “We just kept hearing about Diva company conquering the north, Diva company opening mines everywhere, Diva company this, Diva company that..”

  “I see.”

  Myuri nodded and sighed.

  “And when you finally arrived here, you saw that it was nothing like that at all. Just a lively city with merchants busily making money.”

  Lawrence began talking again after Myuri spoke as if talking to the window.

  “Exactly, and-”

  “I’d wager everyone would see it that way when they just arrive here.”

  The interruption surprised Lawrence, but he didn’t stop Myuri.

  “In fact, war is coming, and dangerous trades are going on all the time, according to those in the know. That hated region has finally been conquered. Ever since last autumn, dangerous rumors have been spreading among dangerous people like us. Others began gathering here, whether they believe the rumors or not. And then.. the northern expedition was suddenly cancelled. We all lost our jobs and our goals. We all came here only to end up in this strange situation.”

  Mercenaries were always realistic people, so if Myuri said something was strange, it had to be strange.

  “Diva’s company is paying for room and board for all these foreign groups.”

  “What?!”

  Lawrence looked around, regretting his outburst. He eventually calmed down and nodded for Myuri to continue.

  “The other mercenaries all feel the same way we do. We’re all nervous. We all think the rumors are true because of this.”

  Merchants wouldn’t be willing to make a bad investment like this. They only spent this kind of money if they expected a substantial profit in the end. Even a child would realize they were gearing up for war if they were spending so lavishly. After all, mercenaries were hardly the sort that people wanted to have around all the time.

  “It’s been like this for several weeks, some groups have even been here almost a month. Can you believe it? They’re spending twenty Lumione a day to keep foreign soldiers fed. However-”

  Myuri took a scroll off the shelf. Lawrence had no idea what it was at first, but it seemed to be a contract of some sort.

  “We have an oath we usually swear to employers: by your protection, we shall be your sword and shield, etc etc. It’s the one we usually take in exchange for money so they can have our loyalty. We take the money to enjoy our lives, but we fight as we’ve sworn to fight. Yet they wouldn’t accept it.”

  “No?”

  Lawrence was confused. Planning too carefully and taking too long was even worse than a quick and reckless plan. You could miss your chance entirely, and waste your investment. Soldiers would grow restless and tired, and all those soldiers would attract an undesirable crowd. You’d end up with lots of soldiers, but no ability to unify them.

  Myuri sighed and looked out the window again. Lawrence could tell he was sad because he was just sitting around in such a peaceful place.

  “From what I’ve heard, the northern landowners still haven’t made a move. And Diva won’t move until they do. It makes sense. It would be suicide to work without any powerful supporters, and the landowners haven’t been willing to shelter any soldiers just yet. So people say they’re just holding off on making the decision, which checks out given that we’re just sitting around here eating and getting restless. That, and Diva hasn’t even given us any strategic information on troop deployments or anything, so all we have to do around here is wonder what to eat every night.”

  His long-winded explanation made it clear just how resentful Myuri was. He was used to a life of fighting with weapons, not sitting around and waiting.

  “So you see, all we can really tell you is that Yoitsu is safe for now.”

  “I see..”

  “However.”

  Myuri’s eyes closed, probably making sure he chose the best phrasing for what he was about to say. When he finally spoke those words, it was after clearing his throat and carefully controlling his volume.

  “Diva company is definitely being wise. Everyone in Lesco right now is from the north. So like you two, all of us here treasure those lands.”

  He walked up to a map on one wall as he spoke, clearly a map of the northern lands. It looked like an extended version of the map Fran had drawn for Lawrence and Holo. At the very least, it was confirmation that her map was accurate in the end, even if this one was better. Myuri pointed at a spot on the map, the spot in Tolchin formerly known as Yoitsu.

  “We were thinking of deploying here. Of course, no one would be stupid enough to start a fight on their home soil, especially now that we know Holo the Wisewolf is real.”

  He was only half-joking. Myuri did know legends about Holo, so he knew better than to challenge her.

  “..so, you mean you were planning on defending it?”

  Myuri nodded. He must be seriously expecting the war would extend that far, given that captains of mercenary bands were even more grounded in reality than merchants.

  “Yes, to a certain extent. From Tolchin to Sovereign in the northeast, there are several roads used by hunters and miners. On
ce war breaks out, Sovereign will be important, both geographically and politically. So there is no doubt that there will be hard fighting there. Anyone running from there will pass through Tolchin, and that’s where we’ll catch them.”

  “..And sell them to Delink company as slaves.”

  Myuri nodded as Lawrence spoke to himself.

  “Indeed. Every village is at risk now. We can take more than just wounded soldiers, we can also take fleeing refugees. After all, they’ll just threaten other villages if we don’t. Delink is known for taking care of their merchandise, and even the slaves end up more educated and wealthy when all is said and done, so it all ends up pretty tidy.”

  Lawrence had no way of knowing how much truth was behind those words, but at least Myuri was thinking in terms a merchant could appreciate.

  “Diva’s company agrees with our ideas.”

  “Meaning?”

  “People who want to keep their homes safe will be deployed where they can do just that.”

  “So everyone will be defending.”

  Myuri looked at Lawrence and pouted like a teacher seeing a sharp student miss a point.

  “Diva’s is, actually, rather good at mining. They don’t generally destroy everything where they mine.”

  “Oh.”

  “See, they dig for silver and copper and such, and there are those who want to turn their villages into towns no matter how important the land might be. Diva wisely treats it case by case.. they wait for those poor villages who want help to come to them. That way they won’t be held in much contempt, and can deal with those who complain more smoothly. All these knights and mercenaries are here because they’re serious about things going smoothly.”

  Mercenaries were usually used to supplement an army, but Diva was actually hoping to transfer all the people’s hatred onto them. They were being very careful in how they listened to everyone involved. There were people who were forced to become mercenaries out of poverty, and who were worried about whether they would be able to survive on a daily basis. All of them could be deployed strategically according to their wishes, but was it really for their sake? Lawrence doubted it, and Myuri did as well.

  “Anyway, it’s still just a rumor. We have time to think it over.”

  He clapped his hands to signal the end of their conversation, but as Lawrence reflected on it he realized that most of their chat had been monopolized by Myuri. He wasn’t trying to force his ideas onto Lawrence, but just telling him everything he knew. Was it out of fear of Holo? Lawrence was worried that he’d abused her power again in the end, but at least he didn’t have to feel bad about asking Myuri for his help. He stood and reached his hand out to Myuri.

  “Holo will surely thank you as well.”

  Myuri took Lawrence’s hand.

  “Solving problems feels good, so I’d like to solve all the ones I can.”

  If everyone existed solely to help Lawrence and Holo, then that might be possible in the end. But Lawrence knew better than to think that way.

  “Yet if you could solve every problem that easily, you’d probably have lived too long.”

  “Hmm.. heh. True.”

  Myuri filled Lawrence’s cup with wine again.

  “At any rate, I’m glad I saw the day where I could fulfill our ancestor’s promise to the wolf. I hope the two of you will at least relax and recover from your trip. After all, Diva’s paying.”

  In response, Lawrence drank all the wine in his cup.

  * * *

  The next day, Holo kept staring at the ceiling. She had cried herself to sleep before sunset, then woke up around midnight and just stared off into space. She was probably awake the entire night after that.

  It turned out that Myuri’s life wasn’t as relaxed as he let on yesterday. He wouldn’t even let Lawrence leave their room now. A luxurious dinner was sent up to their room, including white bread, roasted chicken and venison, quail soup, boiled beef, and even carp with vegetables. Later, they were sent oranges, raisins and dried raspberries. And if that wasn’t enough, they were also given whatever alcohol they wanted. Beer, wine, even liquor.

  Lawrence strongly suspected that Diva wasn’t going to shoulder the cost. Myuri was probably paying for it out of his own pocket, in deference to Holo. Lawrence suspected Holo would devour all of that delicious food and snap back into a better mood, but sadly that wasn’t the case at all. She waited for Lawrence to wake up, casually greeted him, and then nibbled on some bread and took a few sips of wine.

  In the end, Lawrence couldn’t bring himself to waste the food. He ate until his stomach was about to burst. They put what could be stored in with their luggage, and even left a plate out for the teenager who was sent up to tidy things up afterward. Thankfully, at least Holo smiled when she saw how much Lawrence was struggling to eat the food.

  Whenever Holo couldn’t take it anymore, she would automatically come to him. All Lawrence had to do was be there for her, which was good because he didn’t really know how to comfort her. If he dared to say anything, he knew it would just backfire and turn her against him.

  He’d just never really lost someone that important to him. The only way he could learn how it felt would be to lose Holo. But then who would be there to comfort him if that happened? Who would want to be there? By the time his thoughts reached this stage, he couldn’t bear to continue. Holo was the most important thing to him right now, and would continue to be in the future.

  She was resting her head on his shoulder as she stared at the sky outside their window. He held her hand in his, and ran his fingers over her nails. They were smooth, but also cold from the dry winter air. Neither he nor Holo actually felt cold, because they were under a blanket, but as his fingers touched her nails her ears scratched up against his face.

  Having a companion to travel with was amazing. They depended on you, and could be depended-on. But when Holo pulled her hand back and put her face on his shoulder, he realized that he wouldn’t be able to keep her from crying and reflexively held her more tightly.

  “Hey, let’s go out!”

  Her nose just kept wiggling, as if she couldn’t hold her tears back any longer. Perhaps just sitting there on Myuri’s dime was good enough, but Lawrence was a merchant. He needed to keep moving to earn money. So even if Holo disagreed with him, he wanted to insist that they go outside for a while. Every time she was hurt or sad she just sat there, stuck like she had been in Pasloe’s wheat fields. Now that he was in the picture, he felt that he had to encourage her. Otherwise their entire time together would feel meaningless.

  “But wear another layer, it might get cold.”

  There was no medicine to cure her wounds, but he didn’t want her to get any colder. She could always just take off an extra layer if she felt too warm. She looked at him flatly through her tears, but eventually nodded. He forced himself to say “great!” and began getting ready.

  He was treating her like a princess, like he did when she was drunk. He helped put on her belt, shoes, and fur coat. He tidied her hair, concealed her ears, and wrapped her fox scarf around her. She fidgeted at first, but soon gave up and let him do it. Of course, he held her hand to help her stand up from the bed. She was still an emotional wreck, so he wanted to find a way to make her feel better. Even a forced smile was better than nothing at this point.

  He took her hand and pulled her outside with him. Maybe she’d cried too much, or was simply too tired, but she turned her eyes away from the sun as though it was blinding her. Everyone, even travelers, liked sunny days in the winter. Everyone except Holo.

  His very first thought was to ask her what she wanted to eat, but that only made him feel worse about not knowing how else to cheer her up, so he didn’t. He figured he’d just bring it up when he got hungry enough, rather than asking. Instead, he just pulled her into the crowd along the road.

  He’d asked the teenager serving them to take them to the back door to avoid the mercenaries on the first floor. Really, it was a loading dock rather th
an a back door, but that hardly mattered. It wasn’t as bad here as it was on the main street, but it was still quite crowded. Many people had to carry their goods on their heads to make it through.

  Foods like chicken, pork, duck, and fresh vegetables were rare in the winter, so the odds were good that they were being taken to captains of mercenary bands like Myuri. One wagon Lawrence peeked into was even carrying honeycombs. He could tell even through the small gaps in the crate just how high-grade the honey must be. The trees here in the north were mighty indeed, if bears and dogs hadn’t already eaten the honey.

  Holo wouldn’t have any trouble eating honeycomb, especially with her human hands, but she wasn’t in the mood. She was too lost in the fact that she wouldn’t see Myuri again, and that wasn’t something that just going outside for honeycomb would help.

  Things might have been easier for her if his story had been a grander one, but all she knew was that he’d sacrificed his claw, it had been broken into halves, and the only message for her was little more than a friendly joke. It was simply not in the realm of possibility that Myuri was still alive. If he was, he would have left a different message for her.

  “Ow..”

  Hearing that, Lawrence finally realized that he was overdoing it.

  “..sorry.”

  He unconsciously let her hand go, but soon took it again. Even if he was overdoing it, he figured too much was better than too little. He never wanted to regret looking back on his time with Holo while thinking “it would have been nice if I did that.”

  “Hey, check out the town square! It’s so crowded this morning.”

  He said that as his eyes scanned the shops on the main intersection. There was a building with a storefront on the first floor, and likely studios and living quarters on the second. On the opposite corner was a domed building beside the square. He heard the sound of musical instruments among the noisy crowds, and so he held her hand and took her there.