by SOW
“Why in the world would you waste money like this? Even though we already have dinner?!”
Sven’s magic didn’t affect the wives. They resented and blamed her. However, food is innocent, and that night they ate Lud’s bread with their dinner.
“Oh my...”
“This is...”
“Delicious!”
Since there was no other bakery, everyone had always baked their own bread. They didn’t even want to touch the nasty, preserved bread that the peddler came to sell. But, there was no comparison between their bread and that baked by Lud, who day and night perfected his recipes and technique.
Those women now remembered that bread could be delicious. Their desire to eat and savor properly-baked, fresh bread was suddenly rekindled. And Tockerbrot had many different baked treats on its shelves, priced low enough for all the townspeople to afford.
Hungry for the small donuts covered in nuts and chocolate, the children came to the shop, copper coins held firmly in hand. And, not only did Sven’s smiling face capture the hearts of the men, it gave a sense of security to the women and children.
“Thank you very much. Here is one of our newest items, free of charge. Please visit us again soon!”
For the women, Sven wore a smile of warm friendliness and respect.
“Thank you, here you go. They were just fried so be careful when you eat them.”
For the children, her smile conveyed good humor and kindness.
“I don’t believe it...”
Lud trembled as he eyed the bakery overflowing with customers. This had always been his dream. He had longed to have a crowd of people eating his bread. He was so happy that he was on the verge of tears.
Sniff, sniff.
Or rather, he was already in tears.
“You understand now, right? The girl was the key that opened the door to the treasure room. Inside are the treasures that you’ve polished and shined, all lined up. Everyone is here for that!”
No matter how much a beautiful girl improves sales, if the product being sold is unappetizing, the sales won’t last. The reason Jacob had advised Lud to hire a waitress was because he knew that as soon as the villagers tasted the bread baked by this dour-faced man, it would capture their hearts and never let go.
“Master! The pumpernickel has sold out! Please provide more as soon as possible.” Sven’s voice came from the storefront.
“C’mon, what do you think you’re doing! If you show your face in the bakery, the customers will run away. Keep quiet and bake the bread!” Jacob jabbed Lud with his elbow as he spoke. But despite his words, tears of sympathy welled in Jacob’s eyes.
“Yeah, that’s right... I’d better get baking! I’ll bake until this body burns out!”
“I don’t think you have to go that far...”
Since he had been discharged from the military two years earlier, and since he had opened the bakery a year ago, this was the first day that Lud had truly been happy.
It was time to close up the shop—
“Thank you very much, please come again.”
With a big smile on her face, Sven sent off the last customer.
“Phew...”
“Thank you for all your hard work, Master!”
Sven showed Lud a different face than the one she showed customers. This was the face of someone gazing at the most precious person in the entire world.
“Please, have a drink.”
Sven carried a silver steel tray with a cup of piping hot coffee.
“Thanks, Sven.”
Lud was happy. A lot of customers had come today, too. He heard the woman who managed the general store on the corner say, “It was very delicious!”
When Lud had first come to town, she had trembled and averted her eyes. Now that same person ate his bread and said that it was delicious.
“Seriously, thank you Sven. This is all thanks to you.”
Thinking back, Lud thought that Sven had planned to attract the male customers from the beginning. In that case, it would make sense for her to go out in the evening when the men were on their way home from work, rather than at lunch time.
“T-That’s... I haven’t done anything. All of this is because of the taste of your bread, Master. I am only trying to be as helpful as possible.” Sven furiously shook her head, as if she did not deserve such praise.
Suddenly, Lud began to have a strange feeling. Sven said, just as Jacob had said earlier, that it was Lud’s skill at baking that was responsible for bringing in customers. But, while Jacob knew this because he had visited the bakery so often, why did Sven believe so strongly in his abilities when they had only just met? And why did Sven treat a fierce-looking person like him with such kindness and goodwill?
Sven didn’t know Lud. She was such a beautiful girl that he was sure if they had met before, even in passing, he would have remembered for decades to come. But somehow Lud didn’t feel like he was meeting her for the first time.
She would suddenly look at him with a big, broad, smile that would put him at a loss for words, and he would feel a mysterious sense of nostalgia. Just having her at his side put him at ease, and changed his chronic worry into peace of mind. He hadn’t experienced this since leaving the military.
“Hey Sven... um... Have I met you somewhere before?”
Sven’s face stiffened in surprise.
“Huh?”
“This doesn’t feel like the first time we’ve met. I feel like I knew you before... somewhere...”
“Master... um...” Sven’s voice, which had been so bright and clear while chatting with customers, became flustered, and her eyes clouded as if she had suddenly come down with a fever.
Snap!
“Ouch!”
“Huh?”
“Ahh!”
The metal tray snapped in two, like a wafer. It was a cheap tray, so it might have been cracked, but it was unusual for it to split so cleanly in two.
“I, I-I-I’m so so-so-sorry! I’ve destroyed a precious piece of equipment for this store... I apologize for this...”
“Forget it, are you okay? Are there any cuts on your hands, or your fingers?”
Lud put the panicking Sven’s hands in his and studied them for any cuts. The distance between the two of them narrowed, and their faces were close enough to feel each other’s breath.
“Um, aaaaahhhh...”
Sven became even more flustered. She untangled her hands from Lud’s and hid them behind her back as she recoiled.
“Um, I-I’m... I’m fine so... u-um, uh... Master, I am finished with work for today!” Sven said this and ran off to the storeroom.
“Well then...”
Left behind, Lud stood confounded for a moment.
“Maybe... she thought that I was trying to make a move on her?”
Realizing that his question about meeting her before could be interpreted as a clumsy pick-up line, he shook his head in embarrassment.
Berun, the two hundred year old capital of Wiltia, took the shape of a circle, radiating out from the royal palace at its center.
Of course, the security forces closely guarded the royal palace, but there was another building that required even stronger guards around it. That facility was the Royal Weapons Development Bureau, where the weapon that had completely redefined the battlefield—the Hunter Unit—originated.
Inside the Development Bureau, Sophia Von Rundstadt stormed down the hall with a furious look on her face, her combat boots echoing after her. The room she was headed for was the office of the Director of the Weapons Development Bureau.
“Major Sophia Von Rundstadt, sir!”
Practically breaking down the door with her knock, Sophia charged into the room without awaiting a reply. Inside was a grinning man who only annoyed her further.
“My, my, Miss Sophia. Why are you in such an uproar? If I had known you had a problem, I would have come to see you myself.”
Sophia met his amused gaze with a glare.
“I
heard that the prototype is missing. What is the meaning of this? I demand an explanation.”
Sophia was the commander of the security force stationed at the Development Bureau. However, her rank did not place her under the command of the director. She had been deployed to the Bureau’s security by military headquarters, and even though he was a colonel, she had no obligation to follow his orders. Further, if the director took actions that were deemed inadvisable by headquarters, she had the authority and the responsibility to stop him.
“And why would you know about that? That’s strange... I am positive that I made sure no one would reveal that...”
“What?!”
Sophia felt blood rush to her head. New weapons were currently being developed to prepare for the next war. More than a month ago, the most valuable and highly classified of those weapons suddenly disappeared. The loss of this experimental and expensive prototype was extremely serious, and concealing that fact was close to high treason.
“Do you... do you understand what you are saying? Our valuable prototype has been seized!”
Sophia had the authority to arrest the director right there and then, depending on his answer.
The frightening eyes of the Devil’s Black Spear gleamed sharply.
“Our valuable prototype has been seized by another country! How dare you sit there making such a face!”
Sophia took a step forward and tried to grab the director by his collar when he thrust his palms out like a magician and stopped Sophia in her tracks.
“It wasn’t seized by anyone, Major Rundstadt.”
“Excuse me?”
The clownish man in front of her definitely had his own ideas and perhaps his own agenda.
“Think about it for a second, Major. On the outside of this facility we have your military security force. Inside, the most elite members of the Development Bureau’s team are spread throughout the facility. In any case, Wiltia’s ultra-top secret ‘gate’—”
“Director!” Sophia raised her voice to try and cut him off.
“That information is not something to speak of so lightly!”
“Hmph... My apologies.”
While Sophia angrily faced the director, he momentarily hid his grin, and assumed an expression of seriousness.
Although the Great War had ended—or precisely because it had ended—and in order to prepare for the next war, the intelligence agencies of every country were trying to steal the secrets behind the Hunter Units, so vital to the strategy of the Principality of Wiltia. The director had started to talk about the very core of those secrets, the most important classified information. Even in a private office inside the Bureau itself, it wasn’t to be discussed casually.
“Without exaggeration, this facility is locked so tightly that not even an ant could slip through our security, and despite this, over a month passed before you became aware of this situation.”
“...............?!”
Sophia finally realized what the director was trying to say. The security at the Development Bureau was even tighter than the security at the royal palace. If someone was going to steal the top secret Hunter Unit prototype, it could only be achieved by taking control of several divisions of troops and capturing the facility. This had not happened. The daily logs kept by Sophia’s security forces reported nothing unusual.
“T-That would mean... it can’t be... it left on its own?”
“As expected, you’re very intelligent, Miss Sophia. That’s right. The prototype actually broke out and escaped the Bureau of its own volition. No matter how much you barricade the outside from invaders, you can’t do the same on the inside. Moreover, that was how she was built. It’s her specialty, after all.”
“I didn’t think... it could be true...”
Sophia put her hands on her forehead with a horrified expression, as if she was in a terrible nightmare.
And yet, looking at the situation from a purely results-based perspective, the new weapon—a project that had seemed to be the product of a wild fantasy—was successful.
“We have already sent out a search party. No matter how it happened, it appears that our prototype passed the activation tests. The follow-up testing is the Bureau’s job. Your job is just to keep the Development Bureau building secure, am I correct?”
A spiteful smile appeared on the director’s face.
Damn! thought Sophia.
Sophia’s expression revealed her extreme frustration.
The fact that an entirely separate security force had been deliberately stationed at the Development Bureau was just one sign of its importance. Despite the military’s attempts to cut postwar spending, the additional security force also displayed the increasing budget that was funneled into the Bureau year after year.
It was the same as the mice belling the cat. Since Sophia’s security forces had no authority outside the Bureau’s grounds, there was no need for the Development Bureau to inform them that the prototype was gone.
“Please... excuse me.”
Sophia turned her back to exit the room.
“See you later, Miss Sophia! We should talk over lunch next time!”
“.........!!”
Without glancing back at Daian Fortuner, the Bureau director, Sophia left the room and slammed the door behind her.
Chapter 2: The Three Women
A week had passed since Sven had started work at Tockerbrot. After the bakery closed, Sven briskly tidied up inside the shop.
“Master, I brought in the sign from out front. Later, I’ll clean the display trays and baskets.”
Again, today, there had been plenty of customers, but there were still several pieces of bread left on the display shelves.
“We had so many customers today, yet we still didn’t sell all the bread.”
“Yeah, but that’s bound to happen.”
Sven looked distressed so Lud explained.
“There is a balance between supply and demand. In order to have a selection that will satisfy all our customers, we have to increase the supply so there will be unsold items left at the end of the day. But it’s the perfect amount to use as a gift. Sorry Sven, but can you cram all the leftover bread into a bag for me?”
“Hm? Certainly, Master.”
Lud brought in a large carrying case and put the leftover bread inside.
“I’m going to head out for a bit. You’re pretty tired right? You can go ahead and—”
Before Lud could finish, Sven drew close to him as though she was biting off the rest of his sentence.
“I will accompany you! I would journey to the ends of the earth and back with you, Master!”
A spontaneous cold sweat broke out on Lud’s back.
“I mean, I’m just going up the hill right there... Do you want to come, too?”
“Yes!”
Lud had a truck he used to carry wheat, and while he loaded the bread, Sven sat down in the passenger’s seat.
“Going on a drive with Master... My heart can’t handle it!”
It was difficult to call the truck romantic, but Sven’s eyes were full of sparkles. Lud felt a little guilty at how excited Sven was about a routine trip.
Sven was leaning forward in the passenger’s seat and muttering something.
“Hold on, you. If you stall out or blow a tire, I will tear you to pieces, one bolt at a time!”
It was as if she was intimidating the truck.
“What are you doing?” Lud asked.
“Oh, nothing, nothing at all, I’m just talking to myself.”
Sven sat upright in a panicked fluster.
The truck was very battered and on the verge of breaking down, but today it was driving very obediently, almost as if someone had grabbed the engine by its collar and forced it to listen and behave.
They made their way up the hill that overlooked Organbaelz to the small church at the top. The church was very simple and looked desolate and dilapidated.
“Truck ran well today. I guess it’s still
got some good days left in it.”
“Ummm, Master? Why exactly... What is our business in coming here?”
“Hm... Alms, I suppose?”
“What?”
Lud considered how best to explain, when a woman emerged from the church.
“Oh, it’s you, Mr. Lud.”
“Good evening, Marlene.”
Marlene was a sister of the church. Lud greeted her with the friendliest face he could make. As Jacob had told him, a smiling face was very important in communication, and since then, he had made as much effort as possible to have a smile on his face. It didn’t always work...
“Has something happened? Your expression is quite frightening.” Marlene looked worried.
Lud realized how much farther he had to go when he saw the look Marlene gave him.
“Um... Master? Who is this person?”
“Mr. Lud, who is this young girl?”
Sven and Marlene spoke at the same time. But while Marlene just looked inquisitive, there was an almost imperceptible note of animosity and caution in Sven’s voice.
“Sven, this is Marlene, she’s a sister at this church. Marlene, Sven is helping out as a waitress at the bakery.”
“So, this must be the waitress that everyone in town has been talking about.”
Sven looked puzzled.
“Yes, you’re the very cute girl who is working at Tockerbrot, right?”
It seemed that the stories about Sven had spread as far as the church on the outskirts of town.
“Cute... I’m...”
Sven had felt a little suspicious of Marlene but she suddenly changed her mind and shook Marlene’s hand with both of hers.
“You’re a good person!”
“Huh? U-uhm... Thank you.”
Inviting the two of them into the church, Marlene smiled but was perplexed at Sven’s abrupt change in attitude. It was as if a switch had been flicked as Sven decided Marlene was a friend rather than a foe.
“We don’t need to stand here chatting. Please come in.”
The inside of the church looked even more desolate than the outside. Suffering from the remnants of clumsy repairs over the years, if it wasn’t for the sacred crest decorating the altar—dingy as it was—it was difficult to see that it was a church at all.