Spice and Wolf, Vol. 3

by Isuna Hasekura

  This amount was approximately eighty times the original price.

  The price could only be described as ridiculous. Yet, just as it was almost impossible to pacify a horse gone berserk, trying to check the rising price was no easy task.

  Faced with the opportunity to make an easy profit, human reason became no different than a rope made from mud, completely incapable of harnessing a horse.

  Although the sounding of the bell signaling the opening of the marketplace was still some time away, there was a tacit agreement among the people to deal ahead of time. Consequently, every now and then after Lawrence had arrived before the stand, he would still see merchants approaching the stand and whispering in the owner's ear. Once a certain number had been reached, the owner would slowly replace the wooden plates on the price board one by one.

  The reason why the owner did not replace the wooden price plates immediately was most likely in order to prevent others from knowing who had purchased what type of pyrite with how much money.

  Whatever the owner's intention, the number of people waiting to purchase only continued to increase.

  Just as Lawrence began to silently calculate the total sum going into purchasing, a figure flashed across the corner of his vision.

  Looking in that direction, he discovered the form of Amati.

  Although Lawrence had discovered Amati first the previous night, Amati, being likewise a merchant who never failed to recognize an opportunity to make money, seemed to have an eye that was as sharp as Lawrence's. As Lawrence looked toward him, as if he could hear the sound of a shifting gaze, he looked toward Lawrence as well.

  Considering the two's relationship, a warm greeting was unnecessary.

  Although, since the two had arranged for Lawrence to collect the cash from Amati after the sounding of the bell signalling the opening of the marketplace, Lawrence could not behave too coldly either.

  Just as these thoughts suddenly began to surface in Lawrence's mind, Amati was first to reveal a smile, nodding his head lightly.

  Before Lawrence even had a chance to feel surprised, he discovered the reason behind Amati's behavior. Because Horo was right beside him.

  For some reason, Horo was not dressed as a city girl, but was attired in nun's garments. To her long robe she had attached three large feathers of pure white, which were clearly visible even at a distance.

  Horo kept her gaze directed toward the vending stand, showing no intention of looking at Lawrence. Watching Amati's smiling face, Lawrence could not help feeling a hotness growing deep within his abdomen.

  Yet, as Lawrence watched Amati whisper something in Horo's ear before making his way toward him, passing through a group of merchants seated side-by-side, the serene appearance Lawrence feigned made it seem as if those inner emotions did not exist at all.

  As long as the other person was not Horo, Lawrence was confident that his act would not easily be seen through.

  "Good morning, Mr. Lawrence.” “Good morning.”

  Before a smilingly-greeting Amati, Lawrence spent a lot of effort in order to maintain a perfectly calm appearance.

  "Since the crowds will swarm this place the moment the market bell tolls, I thought it best to hand this to you ahead of time.”

  Having said this, Amati took out a gunnysack from within his bosom. The gunnysack was as compact as a waist pouch.

  "This is?”

  Lawrence, who was fully convinced that Amati had come to pay the silver coins, could not help asking. The gunnysack was way too small to contain three hundred silver coins, Lawrence thought.

  "This is what I promised to give you.”

  Yet, Amati still said so. Although Lawrence felt somewhat suspicious, he could only accept the gunnysack Amati handed him.

  Then, after untying the gunnysack and peering inside, Lawrence could not help widening his eyes in astonishment.

  "Perhaps this was not quite called for, but I figured it would be inconvenient for you to walk around carrying three hundred silver coins, so I decided to pay you in Lima (note: pronounced "lee-ma") gold coins," said Amati.

  The gunnysack was in fact filled with gold coins. Just where and how did Amati manage to obtain a supply of gold coins?

  Although the value of the Lima gold coin was less than that of the Rumione, within Proania, the country to which Kumerson belonged, the Lima was a gold coin widely circulated among the regions along the western shore, and was about equivalent to twenty Trenni silver coins.

  Come to think of it, the fact that Amati was able to obtain gold coins in this era where cash currency was so scarce most likely meant that he had paid a considerable service charge.

  His doing so intentionally was probably in order to indicate to Lawrence that he had plenty of money on hand, so as to shake Lawrence's resolve.

  The fact that Amati was moving around with Horo was surely to redirect Lawrence's attention toward these matters.

  Because Lawrence had inadvertently widened his eyes into a stare, there was no way for him to conceal the wavering in his heart.

  "I prepared the amount using the latest market value. The total is fourteen Lima gold coins," said Amati. "….Understood, received indeed.”

  "Don't you need to count the number of coins?”

  The way Lawrence saw it, the most appropriate thing to do at that moment was to utter a "No need" in a casual manner. Yet, after squeezing out these two words with much effort, it only gave the impression of acting tough.

  "Then, would you kindly hand me the contract for the three hundred silver coins?" Lawrence had to be reminded even of this step before taking out the contract. Amati was completely ahead of Lawrence.

  As the exchanging of cash and the partial contract was completed, it was also Amati who was first to utter the necessary line: "received indeed.”

  Watching the form of Amati's back as he departed, a sense of foreboding flashed repeatedly through Lawrence's mind.

  During the signing of the contract on the previous day, Amati's using insufficient cash as an excuse to fill the necessary sum with three horses was perhaps a part of his strategy.

  Always having a bit of cash on hand was common sense shared by all merchants.

  Moreover, before daybreak, Amati had probably also searched for and purchased pyrite using the same method as that of Lawrence and others.

  With a sufficient supply of pyrite, all that would be required was a very slight increase in the price.

  Thinking back on the way Amati had bowed gracefully and turned around after having received the contract, Lawrence simply could not convince himself that Amati had been pretending.

  Just how large a stock did Amati possess?

  Lawrence pretended to rub his nose, and bit the nail of his thumb.

  According to Lawrence's original plan, as soon as it was past noon, he would be able to proceed as planned, selling off select quantities of pyrite at timely moments in order to slow down the rise in price.

  Should he take action ahead of time? Such an idea flashed through Lawrence's mind. Yet, Deanna's subordinate had still not shown up.

  Before becoming sure of whether or not he would be able to obtain a large stock, it would be difficult for Lawrence to take action even if he wished to.

  Although Lawrence could purchase additional pyrite on the side using the gold coins Amati had paid him before knowing the results of the negotiation, if Deanna's negotiation were indeed to succeed so that Lawrence received an additional four hundred silver coins' worth of pyrite, that would also be problematic.

  Though having sufficient funds on hand was not a problem since Lawrence had already allotted another portion of silver coins to be paid to Deanna, he would end up having too large a supply of pyrite.

  Even though Lawrence had been purchasing pyrite with the intention of causing a drop in its price, he had at the same time been controlling the amount he bought, in order to prevent the loss resulting from the price drop from causing his own bankruptcy.

  If Lawre
nce held the resolve even to go bankrupt in order to defeat Amati's plan for the sake of Horo, perhaps Horo would be willing to accept his sincerity.

  Yet, an acceptance of his sincerity was not enough to bring about a perfect ending, because Lawrence still needed to make a living after that.

  The restriction known as reality weighed heavier than the gold coins in his hand. The mineral shop's price board was renewed once more.

  Apparently, someone had just purchased a large quantity of pyrite; the prices on the board and the number waiting in line to purchase went up dramatically.

  How much would the pyrite Amati had on hand be worth after this increase? Thinking up to this point, Lawrence could not help feeling restless.

  Yet, being unable to keep a cool mind meant defeat.

  Lawrence closed his eyes, lowered the hand he had been biting on, and slowly took a deep breath. All the thoughts he had been possessed with a moment ago were the result of Amati's intentional misguidance, and part of his trap, Lawrence thought to himself.

  Whatever the case, Amati was being backed by Horo after all. Therefore, if he could just discover the plan behind the plan behind the plan, he should not be able to go wrong (note: wow, good luck with that, Lawrence…).

  At that moment, the sound of the bell swept over Lawrence's head. That was the signal for the opening of the marketplace.

  The battle had officially begun.

  In a state of unusual excitement, it seemed that people were somehow more willing to behave themselves. Although everyone had been waiting in front the vending stand long before the sounding of the bell, they all nevertheless waited until the bell tolled before making their move.

  Moreover, upon closer examination, one would discover people who looked like travelers or farmers selling off pyrite furtively, as if they were engaging in some treacherous act.

  However, small-quantity selling only served to stimulate further rising in the price.

  In a deal that involved absolutely no selling, only those who already possessed a stock stood to gain a profit. It was precisely because there was a number of small-quantity selling, along with people who were willing to buy back this quantity that everyone stubbornly remained before the stand, unwilling to leave.

  Because each individual knew that he had the opportunity to make a profit, everyone was unwilling to leave. Judging from such a chain reaction, one needed to prepare a considerably-large amount of pyrite in order to cause a drop in the price after all.

  The price board, which kept disappearing and reappearing due to the crowd blocking Lawrence's line of sight, was like a marketing thermometer that was being continually heated, the indicated temperature rising higher and higher.

  Deanna's subordinate still had not shown up.

  In the case that the negotiation was a failure, if Lawrence did not manage to take action soon, he would miss his chance.

  As he watched the price board in a panicking mood, the form of Amati standing before the vending stand appeared to his eyes.

  In that instant, Lawrence felt a wave of terror sweep over him, causing him to want to run forward immediately clutching tightly to the pyrite in his bosom.

  Yet, if this were Amati's strategy for swaying his heart, it would bring about catastrophic consequences. If Lawrence sold an insufficient amount, it would only increase everyone else's expectation of being able to purchase pyrite as long as he continued to wait his turn, and the more people waiting in line to purchase, the higher the price would rise.

  With much effort, Lawrence managed to control the urge to sell off his pyrite, praying that this was just Amati's strategy for causing him to waver.

  At that moment, he suddenly realized something. Horo had disappeared.

  Lawrence surveyed the surrounding area, and discovered that Horo had at some unknown time moved to the outside of the wall of people wrapped within this unusual heat, and was looking directly at him.

  As Lawrence's gaze met Horo's, she narrowed her eyes with a look of displeasure before turning around and walking off slowly.

  Watching Horo moving off into the distance, Lawrence could feel a large amount of perspiration pour forth from his back.

  This must be a trap Horo had set up on the sidelines.

  If Horo had learned the market situation with pyrite through Amati, it was of course possible that she had come up with a trap for Lawrence. Someone as clever as Horo would probably easily be able to discover something that even Amati, who was responsible for explaining the situation, would miss.

  Moreover, Horo was skilled at seeing through people's hearts. Under such circumstances, no existence was more powerful than Horo.

  The moment his chain of thought reached such a point, Lawrence inadvertently sank into the illusion that everything before his eyes was made of mud.

  He felt as if he would sink deeply into the mud no matter where he stepped, and that no matter whose movements he followed, the movements would end up being illusions.

  Everything was probably part of Horo's plan, Lawrence thought suspiciously.

  The feeling of terror that came with having a cunning wolf as an enemy struck at Lawrence's entire body bit by bit.

  Even so, Lawrence was still unable to give up on the hope that Horo was doing this out of a rash passion. The poison of presumption and suspiciousness began to invade Lawrence's mind little by little.

  Lawrence was not purposely gazing at the price board without any expression; that was all he was able to do.

  The price of pyrite continued to increase little by little.

  The only fortunate thing was that, since the price of pyrite had already grown by an exaggeratingly-high amount, the present rate of increase was quite low.

  Even so, if it were to go on increasing like this, the amount of increase would no doubt easily approach twenty percent by noon.

  As far as Lawrence knew, Amati possessed a stock of pyrite worth eight hundred silver coins. If the price were to rise an additional twenty percent, and forty coins were added to that, the target of one thousand coins would be reached.

  If all that was needed was about forty coins, Amati would certainly not have trouble coming up with the sum.

  When that time came, Amati would no doubt bring out all his fortunes and complete the contract on the spot. Under such a circumstance, the selling on credit that Lawrence had been depending on would probably lose its effect.

  "Why hasn't Deanna's subordinate shown up yet?”

  A sense of panic that seemed on the verge of melting everything turned over and over within Lawrence's belly, and he could not help muttering out loud.

  Even if he were to begin searching everywhere for pyrite to buy now, how much could he possibly obtain? Unlike during the previous night when the marketplace was already closed and no one knew whether the price would increase or decrease following daybreak, at the present moment, everyone could see immediately and clearly that the trend was an upward one.

  Under such circumstances, Lawrence did not feel that any person would be willing to sell the money tree he possessed to him.

  Thinking up to this point, it became apparent that Lawrence's plan absolutely required the pyrite from Deanna if there was to be any chance of success after all.

  Yet, if this continued for much longer, Lawrence could also receive a huge blow as a result of the selling on credit contract he had signed with Amati.

  Lawrence rubbed the corner of his eye and sank into contemplation. He had believed that he was proceeding straight toward the goal of his plan while keeping a cool head, but now he felt as if he had run into a dead end.

  "No." Lawrence changed his way of thinking.

  He understood why the plan was not running smoothly.

  The rise and fall of the price of pyrite was not the biggest problem. Behind this problem lay the fact that Lawrence had lost his faith in Horo.

  Taking for instance the fact that Horo had been moving around with Amati early in the morning, it was possible that they had no
t waited till day to meet up, but had spent the night together.

  It would not be surprising even if Horo had invited Amati back to the inn after he and Lawrence had completed the selling on credit deal.

  Depending on the circumstances, perhaps Horo had even revealed her ears and tail and told Amati her true identity.

  Although Lawrence wanted to tell himself that this was impossible, he also remembered that Horo had revealed her true identity to him without hesitation back when they had first met. It would be simply self-flattery to think that the reason Horo had done so was because she recognized Lawrence as a particularly open-minded person.

  After all, Amati was madly in love with Horo. Surely Horo could make an appropriate judgment concerning whether or not to reveal her true identity to him.

  Then, supposing that Amati had accepted Horo's true identityThe smile Amati had revealed moments ago surfaced clearly within Lawrence's mind. Horo was afraid of becoming alone.

  Yet, Lawrence was not sure whether Horo only wanted to be with him.

  The instant Lawrence realized that he should not be thinking about this problem, his legs lost balance and faltered.

  That Lawrence did not trip and fall right there was sheer luck.

  The sounding of the bell in the next second pulled Lawrence back to reality. "Oh oh…”

  Lawrence looked toward the source of the sound, and discovered that the price marking the value of the most expensive piece of pyrite was renewed by a large degree.

  Someone had placed a large bid.

  Others were sure to be influenced by this and follow suit one after another.

  Perhaps it was already impossible for Lawrence to prevent Amati from completing the contract.

  Lawrence had still not received any news from Deanna at this point, which meant that the other party was being hesitant about whether or not to sell; if the price of pyrite displayed an upward trend, the possibility of the other party being willing to sell would be even lower.

  From the looks of it, the smart thing to do would be to give up on this possibility and quickly take action. That being the case, Lawrence wishing his plan to succeed would be equivalent to asking for a miracle from above.