Spice & Wolf X (DWT)

  “Is she hurt?”

  Marco shamelessly uttered those pretentious words in an attempt to appear considerate, but Lawrence wasn’t so far gone that he snapped at him.

  “She’s fine.”

  He lifted her up as he spoke, while she kept her eyes closed and pretended to be out. Cole had been the one to come up behind them a moment ago, and he helped Lawrence lift Holo back up.

  “Help her into the next room.”

  The two of them carried Holo to the adjacent room and lay her down on the bed. Marco kept his eyes on them the entire time, leaving Lawrence with no chance to pull the letter out and hide it. Lawrence’s heart raced as he struggled to find a solution, feeling as though his stomach was on fire.

  “Can we continue our search now?”

  Lawrence could only accede to Marco’s uncompromising request like an obedient lamb.

  “Then, please take off your coat.”

  Lawrence slowly removed his coat and handed it to Marco, who shook it a few times and then checked the pockets and between the layers of fabric for any concealed items. It was apparent from his method that he wasn’t new to this.

  “Your shirt!”

  Oh God! Lawrence’s heart cried out as he removed his shirt with the letters in it, fighting to stay composed. And then-

  “..nothing here.”

  Marco handed Lawrence back his shirt after another methodical search.

  “God has shown us the truth.”

  With only those words, Marco turned to report the results to the elder monk. The only reason Lawrence didn’t collapse limply to the floor was that he caught sight of Holo’s lips; they were turned up in a proud smile as she lay face-up on the bed.

  “Our apologies for the trouble we’ve put you through. God will surely respond to the faith you have shown in coming here on pilgrimage.”

  The two monks left, sparing nothing more than those obviously-insincere words. Huskins eyed them from the hallway as they left, then joined Lawrence and the others in their room. As Cole closed the door behind him, the three of them simultaneously let out a long breath.

  “I didn’t even notice that you took them..”

  Lawrence spoke to Holo, watching her smile mischievously as she leaned against the door jamb.

  “You thought I was only crying the whole time? Really..”

  She pulled the various letters out from under her robe as she approached him and fanned him with them.

  “I thought you noticed right away.”

  It had been her plan from the very start, and the reason she clutched the pouch of wheat as though praying. The fact that he hadn’t realized made him wonder how bad things would have turn out if their eyes hadn’t met in that critical moment. The thought made a wave of fear wash over his heart, and brought an anxious smile to his face.

  “Regardless, we overcame that hurdle so I suppose it matters not. Especially since I was able to see you acting so foolishly.”

  She nudged his chest as she spoke, at which point Huskins unexpectedly burst out into soft laughter. After a while he seemed to cough himself back out of the laughter and sat down in front of the stove.

  “Pardon my rudeness.”

  His brief apology only made things more awkward. Though Holo feigned indifference, Lawrence’s face instinctively turned a deep red.

  “But under these circumstances, the monastery will probably send people out to find the messengers..”

  Lawrence finally regained his composure when Huskins cut to the chase.

  “Will they be able to make it back by tomorrow?”

  “It is quite far, and the sun will soon set, so they will probably return tomorrow evening, or the day after.. how is our situation? Have we any chance for success?”

  “I can’t guarantee everything will go smoothly, but I’ve enlisted the help of someone very reliable.”

  “I see.. no..”

  “?”

  Lawrence was about to ask what Huskins meant, but stopped when Huskins shook his head and lowered it slightly.

  “I’m sorry to have doubted you. Humans are extremely intelligent. I don’t know if I have too much pride or am simply jealous, but I’ve wanted to admit that.”

  He said this rather cheerfully, just before Lawrence heard the sound of quick, powerful footsteps heading their way. In the past he’d had many chances to hold his breath and discriminate between footsteps to detect bandits and wolves, so he recognized that these were friendly. When knocks were heard at the door, Cole opened it to reveal Pisky.

  “Mr. Lawrence.”

  He was apple-cheeked. Lawrence exchanged glances with Holo and Cole, then watched Huskins as he stood. But when Huskins pointed at the shepherd’s staff beside him and shook his head, Lawrence realized he meant to say, “I have asked for your help, so I trust you enough to handle it from here.” Lawrence nodded and addressed Pisky.

  “Would it too much trouble if my companions join us?”

  “No, it wouldn’t. In fact I’d prefer if they joined us. Those monks already came here, didn’t they?”

  “Yeah, and I can’t say they were pleasant.”

  Pisky wore a smile of childlike innocence.

  “That bad, huh? Still, the fact you can say that means it turned out alright, didn’t it? Hearing that they were here already kind of eases my mind, though it probably shouldn’t.”

  Once they’d all left the room, he continued.

  “If we’re going to do this, we’ll have to do it now.”

  The sun was getting ready to set, and the snow had almost stopped entirely.

  * * *

  The reference room was packed with merchants when they arrived, all of whom seemed to possess unusual habits. It didn’t look like their businesses were on hiatus, yet these youths let their facial hair grow untamed and kept their hair long like knights.

  As they followed Pisky into the room, someone whistled softly in welcome.

  “Those two monks who visited you are despised by those at our inn.”

  Pisky rested a hand on the desk in the innermost corner of the room, then turned to Lawrence and focused the conversation.

  “‘Did the messengers arrive?’ ‘Are you hiding any letters?’ They kept asking so stubbornly, and rifling through our things.. I suppose it just goes to show how anxious they really are. Maybe they were also worried that the King was serious about a new tax, and that he’d issue a decree soon.”

  “I see. Then they’re aware that danger’s lurking right around the corner.”

  Pisky briefly closed his eyes in agreement. It was the type of seemingly-spiritual gesture used in darkly lit places where sound was forbidden.

  “Then, what has your investigation concluded?

  “Since we knew what to look for this time, it didn‘t take us long to find something. After all, when someone buys something expensive they can only hide it in with other expensive things. But we‘re presupposing that we found what we‘re looking for, and obviously can‘t know for sure.”

  Confirming that it was would require Lawrence’s help.

  “They also tossed it into their lists of regular expenditures to make it less conspicuous than their other one-time purchases, which would have been too obvious. Their regular expenditures are for robes and monk’s accessories, building materials, stonemason’s fees, and money for banquet spices for special guests.”

  As he spoke he handed Lawrence the section of their financial records he was talking about. Lawrence glanced at it and had to admit that it wouldn’t have appeared odd without closer inspection - it was just another account book.

  “We merchants have the advantage of numbers, of many pairs of eyes and ears and the collective information of many distant regions. This particular spice, this saffron delivered through two towns, was the key.”

  “How so?”

  “Because it just so happens that at the time they bought this shipment of saffron, it was the only item that wasn’t actually available at the town. It happened to b
e on a ship delayed by a storm. So the imperial merchants specializing in goods import must have known what the monastery was up to and used this to their advantage. After all, they’d hardly spend money to ship empty crates - they’d probably ship big-ticket items. Of course, this ended up pointing us in the right direction.”

  Once one lie was discovered, the whole house of lies would come crashing down. Once it was discovered that a secret item might be shipped, those would-be empty crates were easier to spot and the mystery could be unraveled.

  ”They paid more than the market value for that shipment. Who knows, maybe the crates really were empty, and there are goods that are even beyond our combined knowledge. However..”

  “However, finding this is already enough.”

  Lawrence continued as he handed the page back to Pisky.

  “Then the earliest they might come back is sometime tonight?”

  “Yes, after all the main monastery has sent out their monks so the situation is probably desperate. In fact they probably even sent shepherds out to find the messengers.”

  That corroborated with what Huskins told them. Pisky’s expression became serious.

  “If it’s alright with you, the higher-ups are already gathered for a meeting.”

  Lawrence looked at Holo and Cole on either side of him. They slowly nodded their heads.

  “No problem.”

  “Then..”

  Pisky shifted his body off the desk he was leaning against.

  “Let’s go.”

  * * *

  When they arrived, Lawrence noticed that the atmosphere in the alliance’s inn was unusual. The place was wrapped in a strange heat, like a fire with too much fuel. It might be an aftereffect of the monks’ visit. When two arrogant monks acted so brashly, a merchant who wasn’t half-asleep would instantly smell blood, like a wolf.

  The merchants here had to know that the monks were acting so imprudently because they were at the end of their ropes. All of those gathered here were the kind who would pounce at the monastery’s weakness, or rubberneckers here to watch the inevitable assault. It was only natural for a place filled with such people to feel intensely hot.

  That’s why all eyes were on Lawrence and his companions as Pisky led them inside. In came an outsider merchant, a nun-like girl, and a servant-like boy, all being led deep into their den - even up the stairs! - by none other than Pisky himself. Of course there was a question mark above every head watching them.

  Did those three uncover something? Jealous and envious gazes shot in their direction, one after the other, as if to burn holes through them. Setting Holo aside, even Lawrence felt pricked by those stares. It was no wonder that Cole didn’t dare to lift his face the entire time.

  “Here we are.”

  Pisky stopped in front of a door in the middle of the third floor. The young merchant then straightened his clothes before knocking on that door.

  “Please pardon our intrusion.”

  The moment they entered, the odors of spices mixed in honeyed milk washed over them. It was the type of scent that surrounded men that felt food wasn’t fit for human consumption if it wasn’t richly spiced.

  Four middle-aged merchants were seated at a large round table in the center of this cavernous room. Given the air they gave off, it wouldn’t be surprising for them to be the owners of large companies. In fact they probably were. It was obvious that life at this snowy monastery was taking its toll on them. However, the fact that only one of the four glanced towards them likely had little to do with fatigue.

  “I, your humblest servant Lago Pisky, have come to visit.”

  “Spare us the pleasantries. We haven’t the time.”

  The man who spoke and gestured for Pisky to stop was a stocky man whose hair curled up at his ears. His long, narrow eyes then turned to Lawrence.

  “So I hear you’re affiliated with Rowen?”

  “Yes.”

  “Hmm..”

  He simply asked the question he wanted answered, giving neither any response nor an opportunity for Lawrence to introduce himself. The other men at the table remained still, not even reaching for their drinks.

  “May we explain ourselves?”

  Pisky spoke as if unwilling to let the heavy atmosphere daunt him. The man with the curled hair raised his hand in response, thus ordering them to begin.

  ”Our thanks for sparing some of your precious time to hear us. First of all, please direct your attention to these documents.”

  Pisky produced the stack of parchments that had been tucked under his arm, at which point the servant standing against the wall immediately retrieved them from him. He placed the documents in the middle of the round table. The four men then lazily reached out for them, their eyes narrowing as they scanned the them.

  “Copies of their financial records, huh? What’s wrong with their accounts?”

  This time, another of the men spoke. He was practically skin and bones, and seemed to be the paranoid type. He spoke as if he was already tired of their accounts. His depressing eyes were deeply wrinkled, to the point where they looked scaly. The other men seemed just as tired, and merely gave the documents a cursory glance before casting them back on the table.

  “We’ve discovered a payment made for an empty shipment of crates, and a number of purchases for items at higher than market value.”

  The men didn’t even look at each other before one of them spoke to Pisky on their behalf.

  “Such things are hardly out of the ordinary for organizations unable to escape the shackles of tax.”

  “Yes, that is indeed true.”

  “Then what do you seek to prove in showing this to us now?”

  Pisky inhaled sharply at the man’s piercing glance. It was Lawrence’s turn to talk.

  “We suspect the monastery’s using their expenditures to cover things up, not their income.”

  All four of the men focused their eyes on the outsider who was talking. Lawrence wasn’t quite sure if they did so out of interest or anger.

  “Expenditures?”

  “Correct.”

  One of the other men interjected.

  “Just now, you said you belong to Rowen.. do you speak on Sir Kodens’ behalf?”

  Kodens was the man who controlled the Rowen Trading Guild at his own round table. He was an existence far beyond Lawrence’s reach. His round table might even be on par with the table these four men were sitting around.

  “No I do not.”

  “Then, is this someone else’s idea?”

  The eyes and attitudes of the four turned quite severe; it was the type of response one might expect when another guild’s intervention was suspected. Their banner wore the moon and shield. No man would wander alone under another banner without the backing of his own guild.

  “Please allow me to correct what I’ve just said: I am but a lone wandering merchant.”

  “Talk is cheap.”

  That was a fair response. Lawrence apologized as he lifted the small knife buckled at his waist. He unhesitatingly unsheathed it and jabbed it into his palm.

  “I’m willing to sign and leave my blood print on a statement.”

  The very instant that a traveling merchant abandoned his guild, he would have nowhere left to go. The four of them turned away in disgust.

  “You!”

  One of them gestured at the servant up against the wall with his chin, who then immediately left the room. Lawrence guessed he had been sent to fetch a bandage or cloth for his wound.

  “One indeed needs to remember the importance of taking some risks while they are young. I shall overlook the name of Rowen this time, and pay my respects to your name instead by listening to your explanation.”

  It would be a lie to say that Lawrence didn’t laugh upon hearing that.

  “I am Kraft Lawrence.”

  The servant quickly returned with a bandage, at which point Holo snatched it and began dressing Lawrence’s wound. Based on her demeanor, Lawrence knew his performa
nce had been acceptable.

  ”Kraft Lawrence, what have you and Lago Pisky from our alliance deduced? You claim the monastery is covering something up with its expenditures? If we take the King‘s taxes into account, then their buying empty crates or paying over market values is not unusual enough to warrant our attention.”

  “That would indeed be so, if they were only doing it to cover up for tax evasion.”

  “And what other reason would they have for doing so?”

  Holo finished dressing his wound and patted his hand softly to cheer him on. Encouraged, he replied.

  “For the sake of buying something expensive, which no one could know was in their possession.”

  The four of them instantly gazed at one another.

  “’Something? What kind of something?”

  They were finally showing interest. Lawrence couldn’t help but clench his right hand, now that it was wrapped in bandages.

  “The bones of a wolf. Essentially, a relic serving as evidence of the passing of a so-called god of the northern regions rampant with paganism.”

  Those were the key words. He breathed in, telling himself that his words would be taken as a joke if he didn’t press on and follow up on his argument immediately.

  “And it’s not just some baseless rumor. Across the strait lies the port town of Gerube, and its D’Jean Company. By now I’m sure you’re all aware of the Narwhale incident that took place there a few days ago. Fifteen hundred of D’Jean’s Lumiones were sucked into that whirlpool.”

  The four of them kept silent. Lawrence drew another breath and continued.

  “Up the Roef River lies the town of Lisco, which is the home of one Diva Company - the company that funded D’Jean. Their purpose was to purchase these wolf’s bones.”

  Lawrence felt he was doing well so far. At worst the words he spoke might be coming out a little too quickly, but he was confident in those words. He was convinced that the upper echelons in the Ruvik Alliance would have heard of the bones as well as Diva Company, which controlled the mines in that region. Even if he didn’t immediately win their trust, they would at least know how much care and effort had been put into this deduction. He was deeply convinced of this.