It was written in the book that the bear spirit was truly gigantic, well worthy of the epithet “moon hunter.” It was said to be so vast that even the highest mountain was but a cushion for the bear spirit to lie upon.
The white-furred beast had a savage disposition and was said to be a harbinger of death. It killed without mercy all who opposed it. The bear spirit traveled from region to region, challenging any being that was worshiped as a god. Once it had killed, it devoured all the food in the region and moved on. The tales in the book were all thus.
Aside from the section marked by the sheet of parchment, the stories were much the same.
Among them, the longest tale concerned the bear spirit’s battle against the sea serpent of Teuperovan, a creature so vast that a continent and countless islands were carried on its back. There was even a song written about the great conflict, the lyrics of which contained a reference to an island in the region of Radoon, which had been created when earth fell from the serpent’s back in the course of the battle. The fight between the bear and serpent had been fierce, and many pages were devoted to recording its extent.
The other tales, while not quite so epic, were still spectacular, and all served to confirm both the bear’s invincible savagery and the number of lesser spirits it had felled.
It was easy to understand why Father Franz had wanted to judge the tales without bias.
If these stories were to be believed, it would mean that the spirits in this area had already been ravaged before the Church moved in from the south.
Once Lawrence read the section that dealt with Yoitsu, his feelings became rather complicated.
Though Yoitsu was indeed mentioned, it seemed the spirits of the region had all tucked their tails between their legs and run, and Yoitsu itself had been torn apart in less time than it takes for fruit to drop from a tree’s branch to the ground. That was all that had been written. If one were flipping quickly through the pages, that section would be easy to miss.
The spirits of the region were no doubt Holo’s old friends. If they had truly fled, that meant they were safe, but it also made them look unavoidably pathetic.
Lawrence now knew what Holo had meant by half wishing she had not read it and being half glad that she had.
Yoitsu’s story had not even been very interesting – it was but a brief, unexciting section. Holo could not have enjoyed it.
All that said, the fact that Yoitsu had not been destroyed after a bitter, desperate struggle was good fortune within bad. If this was all true, then perhaps the spirits who knew the name Yoitsu had just moved elsewhere.
Just as Holo was unable to be genuinely happy at this news, Lawrence did not know what to say to her. If her companions were alive, it was because they were cowards.
He closed the book and glanced surreptitiously at Holo’s back.
The time when the world revolved around the gods had passed. Even the Church with all its great influence in the south felt the effects.
But there were many gods who had never held particularly strong influence, even in the distant past.
In the face of this truth – that the world of the gods was not so very different from that of the humans – Holo’s form seemed smaller than usual.
She had even been subjected to scorn in her own village.
Lawrence felt as though he understood the source of her loneliness.
She was no different from a person – in some ways, she was every bit the young girl she appeared to be. Just as it occurred to him–
“Perhaps it is just my imagination, but I feel as though someone is looking at me in a truly infuriating way.”
Holo turned around and gave Lawrence an overpowering glare.
The monarch of a small country was a monarch nonetheless.
“No, no, I’m not… No, I suppose I am. I am sorry. Don’t be so angry.”
Normally Holo would have turned away. Lawrence had no choice but to capitulate under her withering gaze.
He was surely correct about her.
“Hmph. I am satisfied knowing my friends are safe. That is all there is.”
No doubt she wanted to add, “So ask me no further,” but her pride as a wisewolf would not let her make such a pitiful request.
Lawrence could not help but feel some amusement at her faintly childish manner.
He coughed to conceal the smile that unavoidably rose to his lips, then spoke. “That is indeed good news, but we still have no more information about Yoitsu’s location.”
He nipped through the pages once again.
While information on Yoitsu itself was sparse, it seemed all of the tales of the bear spirit were very old, most of them taking place in towns or villages that Lawrence had never heard of and in nations with unfamiliar names.
He had heard a few of the tales before – notably, the tale of the sea serpent – and though he knew of the Radoon region, there was nothing that helped him narrow down the whereabouts of Yoitsu.
Yet of all the stories of massive destruction wrought by the bear spirit, what strange coincidence was it that Lawrence had heard of Yoitsu?
It was pointless to consider, yet Lawrence could not help thinking about this.
“The world does not go as one would wish,” he said, closing the book.
Holo chewed on the tip of her tail. “Quite.” She sighed. “So what of those in this village for which the world goes not as they would wish? If you would escape, do decide quickly. It would be best to leave in the dark of night.”
“Elsa and I are of one mind on our fates should we remain. We’ll need to make sure we’re correct, but in that case, I think discretion will be the better part of valor.”
“A poor idea is worse than none,” she said with a yawn, standing. “Still, if it comes to that, you stand to take quite a loss.”
“It can’t be helped. It’s not as though we can bring the wheat with us.”
“Still, you don’t seem too upset about it.”
“Don’t I?” asked Lawrence, stroking his chin. It was not the first time he had been caught up in this kind of dispute. Sometimes losses were unavoidable.
It was true that his profit in Kumersun had far exceeded his expectations, but even given that, Lawrence was still surprised at his own calm.
And in any case, a traveler’s life was a cheap thing in an isolated village. Knowing his own life was not actually in danger was profit enough.
“Still, even with things as they are, there are some expensive things we can probably save,” said Lawrence.
“The pepper, right?”
Any merchant would have thought the same thing. Pepper and other spices were expensive because they were scarce. Though if they couldn’t stock up on any, there was no point in talking about transporting it.
Something occurred to Lawrence as he was mulling this over. “There’s a high-value product even lighter than spices that we can bring with us.”
“Oh?”
“It’s trust.”
Holo gave Lawrence a rare look of admiration, then smiled maliciously. “I’ll wait to sell off your trust in me until it’s a bit more valuable.”
“Do you have any idea just how paranoid I’ve become since being teased so mercilessly by you?”
Holo chuckled, then slipped her arm around Lawrence’s. “I suppose I will have to make it up to you.”
“This is exactly the sort of thing I’ve learned to be suspicious of.”
Holo was unmoved; she narrowed her eyes. “Lies will only lower the value of your trust.”
She never played fair.
“Still, you’ve never once blamed me for this trouble we’re in, and for that I am properly grateful.”
“Huh?”
“If I had not insisted upon coming here, you would not be suffering this loss.”
So she was playing this card now, Lawrence mused.
Yet they were probably her true feelings.
“Well, what say you moderate your eating and drinking for a whi
le to make up for the loss, hm?”
Holo groaned. “You’ve certainly become less restrained.”
“Feel free to take the reins and–” began Lawrence as he slipped the sheet of parchment back between the pages of the book. Their eyes met.
The statue of the Holy Mother looked down on the two, her head drooping as though at a loss at the foolish conversation taking place below her.
The sound that now echoed through the sanctuary loud enough for Lawrence to hear it was certainly not a blessing from the Holy Mother. Someone was banging on the door of the Church.
“I have a bad feeling about this,” said Lawrence.
“Bad feelings are usually correct,” said Holo, letting go of Lawrence’s arm. The two scampered down the hallway.
Lawrence heard the sound of knocking again, along with Iima shouting something in response.
It was obvious to both of them that the villagers were demanding that Iima hand over Lawrence and Holo.
“No, not this way!” said Iima. “To the back of the church – go!”
“But–”
“They’re babbling on about if they hand you over to Enberch, Enberch will forgive all this! They were never planning to do anything themselves. Even wheat just grows up out of the ground on its own – they’re happy to harvest it so long as it’s convenient. So long as things are easy, they’ll do anything to keep it that way!”
As Iima was talking, there were more heavy knocks on the door.
It was a church in a pagan area and as such had a heavy wooden bolt on the door.
It seemed unlikely that the villagers would be able to break through the main door, but there was a flimsy wooden window in the living room. If they got serious, they could easily break it and get inside the church.
It was now a fight against time.
Just then, Evan appeared with Elsa in tow.
“I’ll go and persuade them to–” Elsa began.
“Don’t be ridiculous,” said Iima.
“But–!”
Iima gave the door a hard thump from the inside, then turned to face Elsa. “You going out to face them would be like throwing fuel on a fire. You think you’ve done a good job hiding it, but everyone knows you and Evan are close. In the worst case, they would call you a heretic just to be able to turn you over to Enberch.”
Iima had a good grasp of the situation.
Lawrence could easily picture it. Forced to choose between Elsa and the village, even Sem, who had been Elsa and Evan’s last ray of hope, would probably side with the village.
No one wanted to throw away their life, their position, their name, and their home.
“Listen well, now. You can’t stay here. Look at these two strange travelers, and you’ll understand – the world is vast. The villagers cannot comprehend it. You should at least try to begin your new life with companions you can trust,” said Iima.
There was much Elsa and Evan had to abandon, but there was much they would gain.
Elsa turned to look at Evan, and then both of them looked down.
Lawrence took this in and realized that the two needed to exchange no words to convey their thoughts at the moment. Just then, Holo tugged at his sleeve.
Though she had never said it, she must have given up many things in leaving the village she’d inhabited for so many centuries.
“No matter the journey, when you come to a fork in the road, you must decide in an instant which path to take,” said Holo.
“You’re quite right,” agreed Lawrence.
Elsa squeezed her eyes shut and openly grabbed Evan’s hand.
She opened her eyes. “I want to run.”
Iima looked back at Lawrence, who looked at Holo.
“Leave it to me,” said Holo. “I have one condition,” she continued, pulling back her hood and ignoring Iima and Evan’s surprise. “Think of everything that happens from now ’til dawn as a dream.”
When it came to decisiveness, perhaps women were better than men.
Elsa nodded, and only after seeing her agree did Evan also nod.
“What am I but a fairy that brews ale in the forest? Drunkards remember nothing,” said Iima.
Holo smiled. “Then leave this all to me. Now, if the lot outside have spears, I can jump past them easily enough, but they could still trouble you.”
“Does the church have a back door?” Lawrence asked.
For a moment Elsa began to shake her head, but stopped. “Perhaps – Father Franz told me about the cellar only once, but when he did, he said there was an underground passage accessible from its rear.”
If the construction of churches was the same the world over, then so were the actions of the people within them.
Any church with as many enemies as this one had would have secret passages for escape – it was a well-known fact among the kind of people that needed to know.
“Well, let’s use that,” said Lawrence.
Elsa nodded and looked at Iima.
“Things should be all right for a bit longer. They haven’t decided exactly what they want to do out there yet.”
It was true – once Iima had banged on the door from the inside, the hubbub seemed to have quieted.
“We’ll go down to the basement, then,” said Lawrence.
“We’re relying on you,” said Elsa, her tone firm, though uncertainty colored her features.
Anyone would feel trepidation upon suddenly hearing they had to leave their birthplace forever, unless they’d spent their days dreaming of doing exactly that.
“You’ve got it easy,” said Iima. “At least you can do a bit of preparation before you leave.” Iima’s own hometown had been razed by pirates, and she’d had to flee for her life.
“Indeed,” agreed Holo. “It is not as though your home will have disappeared tomorrow. Be glad it will still exist.”
“Oh, ho, Miss Fairy has lost her home as well?”
“Don’t lump me in with those weaklings.”
Knowledge of others’ suffering did not lessen one’s own suffering, after all.
It could be used for a bit of encouragement, though.
Elsa recovered her resolve. “We’ll make ready right way,” she said.
“Do you have traveling money?” Iima asked.
“Evan,” Lawrence said. Evan remembered the coin purse Lawrence had entrusted him with and produced it for Lawrence. “This should be enough for the four of us, provided we’re frugal,” said Lawrence.
“Good. Right, off with you!”
At Iima’s words, everyone sprang into action.
She was the image of a heroic woman, mused Lawrence as he ran. Once they arrived at the statue of the Holy Mother, Holo spoke up as if having read Lawrence’s thoughts.
“Even I cannot match her presence.”
Lawrence opened his mouth to speak, then thought better of it.
This did not, of course, go unnoticed.
“Worry not – this is the only form I can assume,” she said with a laugh.
Lawrence harrumphed, partially out of embarrassment, and replied, “It’s a shame. I prefer a more generous figure.”
Holo cocked her head and smiled, then smacked Lawrence in the face with her closed fist. “Just open the cellar.”
Lawrence decided not to think too much about what had angered Holo lest it bring still more anger.
Chapter Five
Lawrence had been concerned that Elsa and Evan would have trouble getting their things together quickly, but perhaps thanks to Evan’s long-standing desire to leave, they were prepared in short order.
The supplies they had prepared contained nothing unnecessary, save perhaps for a battered book of scriptures. It was a passing grade.
“The passage?”
“I’ve found it,” said Lawrence. “It’s blocked by a wall.”
Directly opposite the foot of the staircase leading down to the cellar, there was a section of bare wall where no bookshelves had been set.
Once he knew that
there was a passage out of the cellar, that was the first place Lawrence looked. After knocking a few times upon the wall, it was clear that beyond it was a hollow space. He kicked at it, causing cracks to form in the mortar between stones and eventually breaking through.
Beyond the wall was a perfectly round tunnel – so round it was eerie.
It was less a passageway and more of a cave or den of sorts.
“Shall we?” said Lawrence.
Under the watchful gaze of the Holy Mother, Evan and Elsa nodded.
Iima was probably still above them at the church door, keeping the villagers from doing anything reckless.
Lawrence took a deep breath and, candle in hand, headed into the tunnel. Holo followed immediately behind him with Elsa and Evan bringing up the rear.
There were still many unread books in the cellar. In one of them may well have been tales of Holo’s old companions.
And from a strictly mercantile point of view, the magnificently bound volumes were worth a fortune.
Lawrence very badly wished to bring one with him in order to add to their meager travel funds, but he didn’t have the nerve to try and bring a book chock-full of pagan stories along on such a trip.
In case of trouble, a book was silent and unhelpful, whereas the strange girl with her ears and tail could muster eloquence that no merchant could match.
And so Lawrence stepped farther into the tunnel.
His body was immediately surrounded by a strange chill. The tunnel was not high enough for him to stand up straight; he had to duck his head slightly to pass. It was narrow enough that he could touch both sides simultaneously with his outstretched hands. Fortunately, the air did not seem stale or moldy.
Candle in hand, Lawrence saw that the tunnel was as strangely circular as it had first appeared to be with large stones here and there deliberately and cleanly chiseled into the proper shape.
And yet the tunnel was not straight; it wound to and fro.
If the builders had not intended for the tunnel to be perfectly straight, then why go to all the trouble of deliberately carving it into these contortions? It made no sense to Lawrence.
The passage also had a raw, animalistic smell, which conveyed a sense of unease wholly different from the smells that filled the sewers of Pazzio.
Spice & Wolf Omnibus Page 78