It would be easy to think she was drawing near him for an embrace, but Lawrence was sure that if he suggested as much, he’d be hurled from the window.
“The vixen – ah, you mean Eve. And the profit–”
“We must get it back! She swindled you and made off with the coin! We must get our due!”
“As in the gold before?” said Lawrence, at which Holo nodded.
After nodding, she looked down, no doubt because her mask of anger was slipping and needed to be replaced.
Previously Lawrence had been completely and utterly betrayed.
But this time things were not so clear.
True, Eve had lured Lawrence into a trap, but part of the blame for that lay with Lawrence for not realizing it sooner.
Moreover, that Holo stood right there in front of him meant that his deal with Eve was fully resolved.
In reality, Lawrence had backed out of Eve’s suicidally dangerous plan.
She was going up against the town’s church, and Lawrence highly doubted that the church would choose to overlook the offense – though at the moment, Lenos’ church surely had its hands full, trying to gain control over a more violent uprising than it could ever have expected.
And Eve would not be the only one taking furs downriver for her own profit. The briefest glance at the port made that much obvious.
Things had not gone as the church had planned, and it could not easily do as it pleased with Eve. The church was no doubt thinking to leave her be, instead dealing with the affair in Lenos.
Thus it was hard to imagine that it would try to capture her or her accomplice in fur trading – that is to say, Lawrence.
All this meant that Eve’s gamble had paid off. She had won.
Lawrence now wondered if he had the right to claim a share of the profit.
He’d pulled out his support and reclaimed Holo. It didn’t make any sense for him to then go and demand a cut of the gain.
The ever-wise Holo must have also long since realized this – yet she still spoke of reclaiming their share.
Moreover, Holo was angry at herself – angry at her own selfishness.
Whence came that selfishness? Lawrence asked himself.
The answer was obvious, and it made Lawrence very happy.
“I-I mean, are you not frustrated? She’s gotten away from us!” Holo said quickly to change the subject, knowing full well that if pressed, she would be at a loss for words.
Lawrence turned his head askance and nodded.
He tried his best to make it look as though he was giving in to Holo’s insistence.
“That is true, yes. But in terms of practical problems that face us, there is a significant one.”
“… What do you mean?”
He couldn’t voice his true thoughts, but drawing a veil of lies over the exchange wouldn’t help either of them trust each other, either.
Both of them were stubborn, so this would have to do: “Eve surely constructed her plan with care. Mere happenstance would never have let her find a ship so quickly. She must have made arrangements in advance. Given that, I highly doubt we can immediately set off after her. Even if we wanted to follow her on horseback, the stables will be as chaotic as the rest of the town is.”
“What of your horse, then?”
“Him? He’s strong, to be sure, but there’s no telling how well he’d do if we made him run over a long distance. Horses bred for speed are nothing like draft horses,” said Lawrence. Holo looked down, evidently deep in thought.
Lawrence, of course, did not point out the obvious – which was that just as Holo had suggested back at the Delink Company, if she assumed her wolf form, they could travel faster than anything else.
“What’s more, Eve spoke as though she had already arranged a buyer downriver in Kerube. Eve was discussing plans with the assumption that the church would give chase, so she no doubt already has an escape plan prepared.”
None of this was exaggeration.
Plausible escape paths could be divided into transoceanic routes and overland routes. If she fled by sea rather than land, there would be no way to catch her.
Depending on the destination and given favorable weather, sea travel could be as much as five times faster than land.
It would be difficult to catch her, even for Holo.
“P-perhaps that is so, but I still cannot accept it. I’ll not be satisfied unless we give chase,” insisted Holo, despite her flagging enthusiasm.
Even if half of Holo’s fixation on following Eve was based on a grudge she carried, the other half was certainly not.
And that was why she was so angry with herself.
Holo had said she wanted to end her travels with Lawrence.
Her reasoning was that they got along too well, that she was afraid of the joy they shared weathering and crumbling away.
In opposition, Lawrence admitted that he understood it would be impossible for their travels to continue forever but insisted that when they did go their separate ways, it should be with smiles upon their faces.
Naturally there was always that temptation to keep prolonging their travels, even knowing it would come to naught in the end – just as Lawrence sometimes drank too much, despite knowing he would regret it the next morning. And in such a case, he found himself unable to deny the possibility that Holo’s fears would come true.
But at the very least, he wanted to go with Holo as far as her homeland – so he had gone back to the Delink Company to fetch her.
And now, having said all that, despite what they might wish, there was one obvious thing that remained unsaid between them.
This was a detour that would extend their time together.
“I understand why you wouldn’t be satisfied by that…”
“I’m right, am I not?” Holo’s face was at once angry and pleased.
Lawrence found himself impressed that such an expression existed.
“And it’s true that this is a net loss so far…”
When Eve decided she had to terminate her agreement with Lawrence, she’d left behind the deed to the inn in which he and Holo now stood. When Lawrence had used Holo as collateral to borrow money, the amount he borrowed was very nearly equivalent to the value of the inn.
But it had come a little short.
The Delink Company’s original goal had been to strengthen their relationship with the noble Eve, and having accomplished that, Lawrence doubted they would quibble over the minor discrepancy – and he was right.
Yet when would that lingering debt be called in – and where and how? It made doing business frightening.
Even if it took some time, Lawrence wanted to repay what debt remained.
Which meant he was right now in the red.
Of course, the debt was not outside the realm of what could be forgiven, and when Holo heard this, she perked up, agreeing wholeheartedly. “Aye. And she drew blood from you, do not forget! I’ll make her understand that when one harms my companion, they harm me!”
It was only with effort that Lawrence restrained himself from asking her just who it was who had struck him hard in the face in a fit of passion earlier.
“So it’s pursuit, is it?”
“Aye. My first hunt in quite some time,” Holo said with a grin. Her smile lacked its usual grim quality, perhaps because both of them were trying their best to smooth things over so they could extend their travels with a detour.
After the affair in the wheat village of Tereo, both Holo and Lawrence had confessed to wishing their journey would continue.
Now that he thought about it, it was a rather naive wish – but that was all in the past now.
People’s hearts change.
The only thing that didn’t change was the ever-dishonest repartee he shared with Holo.
“Don’t forget, though–” began Lawrence, at which Holo looked up at him, her expression serious. “I-I am a merchant. I have my pride and my honor, but I’m not some knight who earns money only to bring hi
mself fame. If it seems as though this will only worsen my losses, we’ll pursue her no further. Do you understand?”
If it would lengthen his travels with Holo, Lawrence would put off doing business until the summer of next year, but if it took any longer than that, problems would start popping up. Business was conducted in the service of mutual gain between parties, so if Lawrence alone was the only one ready to deal, nothing would come of it.
Of course, it would be a different story if only Holo would say that she wanted to travel with him forever.
“I do this only for you,” said Holo. “So long as you are satisfied… aye. It cannot be helped.”
Her words were strange, but Lawrence nodded. “I appreciate it,” he said by way of thanks to an oddly considerate Holo.
Holo’s ears flicked up beneath her hood, either because of the ridiculousness of the exchange or out of happiness at having fought the good fight in service of drawing out their travels a little longer.
Actually it was probably both.
“Well then, how shall we go about this pursuit?” said Lawrence.
“How? Will we not go by wagon?” asked Holo.
Lawrence scratched the tip of his nose as he answered. “It will take perhaps five days by wagon. Do you think you can endure that?”
When they’d finally arrived in this town, Holo had been so tired from travel that it made her unpleasant to be around.
Embarking again on a long, frigid journey would be exhausting, and Lawrence himself did not find the prospect appealing.
Unsurprisingly, Holo’s face immediately darkened. “Ugh… five days on the wagon…”
“There are a scattering of villages between here and there – and inns, too, but they’re far from luxurious.”
Churches would have made the most attractive places to stay on a trip like this, but unfortunately this was one region where churches were hard to find.
The only options would be meager inns or homes and shops that took boarders as a sideline.
Lawrence did not relish the prospect of sleeping in a dusty, grimy inn next to a man that might well be a brigand or bandit.
“W-well, if that’s so, then what of the river?”
“The river?”
“Aye. If that vixen escaped by the river, we ought follow her. ’Tis the most obvious course.”
That meant taking a ship. Lawrence cocked his head as he remembered the state of the docks as Holo had dragged him past them.
Would it be possible for a couple of travelers to easily board a ship heading downriver?
“Well, that depends on whether there’s a ship–” began Lawrence honestly, but Holo waved her hand (which still held Lawrence’s) impatiently.
“Not ‘whether’! We will find one!”
Lawrence stared at Holo as if to say, “Don’t be unreasonable,” but her eyes only glittered strangely.
He had a bad feeling about this.
Lawrence tried to escape.
But Holo only cornered him again. “Or is my plan… too much trouble?”
This time she really was looking up at him imploringly.
“If ’tis too much of a bother, do please say so. ’Tis only for your sake that I wish to track down that vixen, but… I know that from time to time, I do act a bit rashly. Come now,” said Holo, taking Lawrence’s hand and clasping it to her breast.
He was glad she was back to her usual self, but it made her all the more formidable.
After all, she had acquired a new weapon.
“I was so happy, you see,” said Holo, her tone suddenly soft and her eyes now downcast.
Alas! thought Lawrence to himself as he gazed at her terrifying mien.
“I was so happy, yes – happy that you said you loved me. So please–”
“Fine, fine! We’ll find a boat and head downriver! Will that be enough?”
Holo wore an expression of exaggerated surprise, then smiled broadly.
She brought his hand from her breast to her lips, as if to kiss it, but then her sharp teeth glinted from behind those lips.
Lawrence had lost this contest, it was safe to say.
It was no exaggeration to call this an unavoidably desperate strategy, but there is always a reward for those willing to put such a desperate strategy into action.
And so it was.
He had spoken plainly to Holo.
It was precisely because he had been so honest that opposing her was now impossible.
It was as though he had handed her a completely unsecured contract sealed in blood.
With that in hand as she grinned, all she needed to do was pretend at using it to defeat him, and Lawrence could only flinch away.
After all, what was written on that contract was the truth.
“Well then, shall we hurry and pack our things?” Holo asked, lowering her hand.
“… What?” Lawrence asked back.
“We are going to the trouble of traveling by ship,” replied Holo, her face serious. “Do you not wish to eat some wheaten bread first?”
Lawrence flatly rejected the notion.
Holo protested violently, but Lawrence was unmoved.
She might have a grip upon his reins, but his purse strings were still his own. “Did I not just explain that we’ve taken a loss?”
“All the more reason, then! If we’re already in the red, we may as well drive the figure up!”
“What sort of reasoning is that?!” said Lawrence.
Holo’s lip curled as she sneered. “I thought you loved me.”
Even the strongest weapon, if overused, could be defended against.
“Aye, that’s true. But I also love money,” replied Lawrence seriously.
Immediately Holo’s expression went flat, and she stomped on Lawrence’s foot with all her might.
Chapter One
“Ahoy there, you fool! Pull in that prow! I’m carrying silver from Imidra!”
“What’s that? We were here first! You pull in your prow!”
Angry shouts echoed constantly across the water as hulls collided and sent sprays of water into the air.
Lenos’ harbor buzzed like an angry beehive. Lawrence heard a shout that might have been a war cry or might have been a death howl, followed by the sound of something splashing into the water.
The normally calm surface of the water was constantly disturbed by waves.
And there amid the angry cries of horses and men, ships fought to leave the harbor ahead of one another, each no doubt loaded heavy with furs. Any boat that could normally take a single rower was being hired out as a special express.
It was easy to understand, though – in any business, the biggest profits were always realized by the first to arrive.
But Lawrence regarded their struggles with cold eyes.
The first to arrive would be a certain fallen noblewoman bearing thousands of silver pieces’ worth of furs.
“Come, do not stand there gawping – we must find a ship!”
“I suppose it’s a bit late to ask, but are you quite all right aboard a ship?”
Given the situation, it would take some luck to find a vessel that was willing to take on a couple of casual passengers. The line of ships waiting to exit the harbor was like an ant trail.
“You were the one who said the wagon would take too much time and be too much trouble.”
“Well, yes, but…”
Lawrence couldn’t see anything, but loud voices seemed to be coming from the place where the harbor exited to the river.
It seemed likely that those who wanted to stop the flow of furs from the town were trying to seal off the port.
“…”
“What?” Lawrence asked.
“You’re in no hurry to board.”
“No, that’s not it.”
Even a child could tell he was lying. Holo raised one eyebrow as she glared at him. “Well, then let us find a vessel.”
Since it had been quickly apparent that finding a craft that could take
a horse downriver would be difficult, Lawrence had left his horse at a vacant stable whose beasts had all been rented out. The wagon he rented out at the docks through a connection of the stable master’s.
Like it or not, they would no longer be traveling by wagon.
And as the port town of Kerube would be crawling with merchants passing the winter there, he might well be able to do some business there.
Oh well, Lawrence murmured inwardly. “Fine, fine. I’ll go find a boat. You go pick up some food from that stall over there. Three days’ worth should be enough. And wine – the stronger the better.”
He handed Holo two glimmering silver pieces from his coin purse.
“And what of wheat bread?”
Holo had a good grasp of the market and knew that the amount she’d been given wouldn’t buy wheat bread.
“Bread needs yeast to make it rise. So, too, does money to buy that bread.”
“…”
Wheat bread had been out of the question after the conversation in the inn.
Though Holo gave a frustrated nod, her frustration was not especially deep.
She quickly looked up again. “Why then the strong liquor?”
Evidently she had figured out that Lawrence generally preferred wine that was easy to drink. It made him happy that she was remembering his likes and dislikes and not only at the tailors’ and cobblers’ shops.
His reply, though, was brief; he did not let his pleasure show. “You’ll understand soon enough.”
Holo stared at him blankly for a moment, then seemed pleased as she smacked his arm. Surely she had misunderstood. “I’ll haggle them down and be sure to load up on the good stuff, then, eh?”
“We don’t need it in volume.”
“Aye. Shall we meet back up somewhere around there?”
“Yes… ouch–!” Lawrence nodded, but the movement caused the swelling where Eve had struck him to suddenly throb with pain.
He was just agonizing over whether he should have a medicine or salve mixed for it when he noticed Holo’s expression and thought better of it.
She was worried about him – perhaps it was better that way.
“… Your thoughts are quite obvious,” Holo said.
“I was taught as a child that honesty is a virtue.”
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