Wolf & Parchment, Volume 2 Read online

  Copyright

  WOLF & PARCHMENT, Volume 2

  ISUNA HASEKURA

  Translation by Jasmine Bernhardt

  Cover art by Jyuu Ayakura

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.

  WOLF & PARCHMENT

  © ISUNA HASEKURA 2017

  Edited by ASCII MEDIA WORKS

  First published in Japan in 2017 by KADOKAWA CORPORATION, Tokyo.

  English translation rights arranged with KADOKAWA CORPORATION, Tokyo, through TUTTLE-MORI AGENCY, INC., Tokyo.

  English translation © 2018 by Yen Press, LLC

  Yen Press, LLC supports the right to free expression and the value of copyright. The purpose of copyright is to encourage writers and artists to produce the creative works that enrich our culture.

  The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book without permission is a theft of the author’s intellectual property. If you would like permission to use material from the book (other than for review purposes), please contact the publisher. Thank you for your support of the author’s rights.

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  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

  Names: Hasekura, Isuna, 1982– author. | Bernhardt, Jasmine, translator. | Ayakura, Jyuu, 1981– artist.

  Title: Wolf & Parchment : new theory Spice & Wolf / Isuna Hasekura ; translation by Jasmine Bernhardt ; cover art by Jyuu Ayakura.

  Other titles: Shinsetsu ookami to koshinryo: ookami to youhishi. English

  Description: First Yen On edition. | New York, NY : Yen On, 2017–

  Identifiers: LCCN 2017035577 | ISBN 9780316473453 (v. 1 : paperback) | ISBN 9781975326203 (v. 2 : paperback)

  Subjects: CYAC: Adventure and adventurers—Fiction. | Fantasy. | BISAC: FICTION / Fantasy / Historical.

  Classification: LCC PZ7.H2687 Wo 2017 | DDC [Fic]—dc23

  LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2017035577

  ISBNs: 978-1-9753-2620-3 (paperback)

  978-1-9753-2709-5 (ebook)

  E3-20180323-JV-PC

  PROLOGUE

  Dawn had yet to break as he felt his way through the darkness to the well in the courtyard. He had been bedridden the past few days, so quite a while had passed since he last woke up this early. Even in the trading house he was staying at, now filled with rich merchants, he was still the first one here.

  Using the pole that rested against the side of the well, he broke the thick ice that had formed. The water that bubbled up was painfully icy, and washing his face felt like a knife chiseling away his drowsiness. Wiping his face, he breathed in a lungful of cool air, then gazed up toward the starry sky, feeling so refreshed that he smiled.

  Then he kneeled onto the frozen ground. There was no need for a woolen mat or anything of the sort. Enduring pain and the cold meant his prayers to God would be filled with passion.

  The tranquil atmosphere always gave him the urge to pray, but as the sky grew brighter, early risers among the merchants began to appear. If he took his time here, there would no doubt be a line of people asking him to pray for the prosperity of their business. It would have all been for naught if he fell ill again from that.

  After reaching an appropriate stopping point, he returned to his room, then prepared paper and ink on the desk. He had to write a letter, though it was rather late for that.

  He was writing to the couple who had taken care of him since he was a child. Including various details of his travels, he wrote about the trouble he and his companion had gotten caught up in during their stay at a port town. The couple was sharp eared, and news of such a large commotion would reach them before long. He considered that writing in detail would be more calming than not.

  Still, he carefully chose the words in his letter, cautiously laying out the truth. The reason was simple: He was currently caring for the only daughter of his benefactors, and he could easily imagine the look on her father’s face, filled with worry for her safety.

  He wrote that their daughter, practically of marrying age, was unharmed. There was emphasis on how she had shown a girlie side for once when he collapsed from overwork, leading her to take care of him. He added that though she was still a big eater, selfish, and a prankster to boot, she had been a great help with her courage as well as her intellect. Then…He began to write, but his hand suddenly stopped.

  During the commotion several days before, he discovered the secret that their daughter had been hiding for several years. Her mother also knew already; the oblivious ones were the men. Her father should probably hear this, but there was a serious reason why the pen did not move. That was because there was a young man his daughter fancied, and he was that very boy, the one on a journey with her now.

  From her father’s perspective, it was as though she was traveling with a wolf. The young man in question had no undue intentions, of course, but confident as he was that a misunderstanding was unlikely, he still thought that writing about the matter would perhaps cause unnecessary anxiety. He hesitated for a moment, and in the end, he chose to not include it.

  It seems we will be safely able to continue our travels. May God watch over you.

  After writing that, he signed his name: Tote Col.

  He really should have their daughter, Myuri, sign as well, but there was no doubt she would attempt to change the contents if she saw the letter. Simply thinking about it seemed like quite the hassle, which he wanted to avoid.

  When he sealed the letter, he could not help but feel a twinge of guilt, as though he was sealing away a secret.

  CHAPTER ONE

  As the sun rose, the church bell rang loudly.

  It was the sound that signaled the opening of the market and an announcement that another day had begun.

  Of course, working artisans and merchants had been going about their business long beforehand, but they seemed a bit hesitant prior to the bell chime. Afterward, there was no need to keep voices low or mind footsteps. Though it was the middle of winter, all the windows in every house were open, and even the children of noble families who drank too much the night before would be chased from their beds.

  Once the echoing of the bell faded away, Col closed the scripture and inhaled deeply.

  “Myuri!”

  He called her name, and for just a brief moment, the mound of blanket atop the bed wavered in protest. He thought for a second that she would awaken, but she immediately fell silent again.

  He sighed and stood up from the chair, then pulled back the blanket that covered the sleepyhead staying with him.

  “Ugh…”

  With the bright morning light pouring over her, the silver ball of fur curled up even tighter. It was a young girl, her hair a curious hue, like flecks of silver mixed with ash, and she hugged a warm-looking ball of fur that ran with the same color.

  Myuri had stowed away in Col’s luggage when he left the bathhouse that had cared for him for ten years in the hot spring village of Nyohhira. Now she was shivering while covering her head with her arms to block out the bright mo
rning sun. It was a sight he often saw back at the bathhouse.

  “…It’s cold…”

  He could hear a reproachful voice from the face pressed against the bed. He could also see animal ears poking out from between her arm and her head, which someone else could have easily mistaken for a sort of fur hat.

  “You will quickly warm up once you get up and eat breakfast.”

  “…”

  Myuri fell silent in protest, but he suddenly heard a quiet rumble. It seemed her body reacted on its own upon hearing the word “breakfast.” Col had known Myuri since she was a baby, and he knew how to handle her. He cleared his throat once and spoke as he folded the blanket.

  “I’ll start by putting some rye bread on the stove.”

  “…”

  The animal ears poking out from behind Myuri’s arm twitched.

  “At the same time, I’ll sprinkle rock salt onto some fatty bacon and fry it with onions. Perhaps I should add a clove or two of the leftover garlic from last night?”

  Her tail shivered in her own grip, and she squirmed in her curled position.

  “Once the smell of garlic fills the air and enough fat drips from the bacon, I’ll add a fresh egg. Fshhh…”

  He could hear her gulp.

  “After scrambling the egg a bit, once it sticks to the juicy bacon, I’ll remove it from the heat and place it on the warm bread before the yolk hardens completely. And once the soft-scrambled egg and the salty fat from the bacon soak into the bitter yet slightly sour rye bread…Yum.”

  “Aaaghh!”

  Myuri gave up and released herself from her ball, sitting up.

  “Brother, you bully! You don’t even have any food like that!”

  “Breakfast itself is a luxury. We still have pork sausage from last night.”

  He placed the folded blanket onto the bed, and he could tell that she was tempted to fall back asleep, but she was now completely focused on breakfast. She glumly slipped off the bed and sneezed loudly.

  “Here, fix your hair and your clothes.”

  “…Hachoo! …Sniffle. It’s too much work. I want to eat breakfast here…”

  “This is not the bathhouse, and we are not patrons. Go to the kitchen yourself.”

  He spoke calmly, and Myuri pouted, reluctantly changing out of her clothes. Though Col treated her like his actual sister, having cared for her since she was a baby, Myuri was getting to be that age. He turned his back to her as she changed.

  “Okay, Brother, I’m ready!” she called out to him grumpily, and he looked back over his shoulder.

  She had a rabbit fur cape wrapped around her shoulders, bear fur wrapped around the waist where her trousers cut off at the hips, and linens on her legs that emphasized the lines of her body.

  It was a look that stood out even in a busy port town.

  Col could still see something in particular that would draw the gazes of others, so he quietly pointed it out.

  “Your ears and tail.”

  Then Myuri patted the animal ears and tails before they disappeared. They were not fake, but actually a part of her. It was a characteristic of what would be called demonic possession in human society, and it was because her mother was the embodiment of a wolf who resided within wheat.

  Though Myuri was an incorrigible tomboyish prankster that he could do nothing about, he could say with conviction that God had not cursed her. Moreover, since she could voluntarily hide her ears and tail, it wasn’t too much trouble for her to live alongside humans. However, if she became angry, surprised, or experienced other large swings in emotion, it wasn’t uncommon for her ears and tail to pop out on their own.

  “Is this okay?”

  He shrugged, and Myuri copied him.

  “Aw, I’m hungry. I’ll do my hair later…”

  She placed her small hands onto her stomach, and the ends of her eyebrows drooped. If her tail was out, it would have definitely been sagging lifelessly. She passed in front of him, and just as he considered seeing her off, she suddenly grabbed his sleeve and pulled him forward.

  “What? Wh-what are you doing?”

  Just as he was about to fall over, Myuri turned back to him in exasperation.

  “What do you mean, what? It’s my turn.”

  “…Your ‘turn’?”

  Col was perplexed as Myuri gracefully hugged his arm. She beamed a cloudless smile at him from below his shoulders.

  “This is a contest, and it has to be fair. No hogging allowed.”

  Myuri smiled at him innocently, but he did not know what she was talking about.

  Contest? Hogging?

  His efforts to try and piece those words together went unnoticed as she intertwined her fingers with his.

  The reddish-amber eyes she inherited from her mother glinted, ready.

  “Did you forget? The contest between me and God. Who are you going to fall in love with first—me or God?”

  “…”

  Myuri was around twelve years old, and her smile was still filled with innocence.

  Just like a real sister, he had cared for her since she was a baby, but he had just learned a few days ago that she had, at some point, begun to see him as a member of the opposite sex.

  For ages, she professed her love for him, and he knew that she admired him, of course. He never doubted his relationship with Myuri. However, it was a different story when it came to her liking him in that way.

  Above all, he was someone who aspired to be a priest, and he had sworn vows of abstinence. Therefore, it was not possible to answer Myuri’s feelings. He had explained this to her clearly.

  She was smart, understanding the logic completely. It was pointless to indulge her feelings and throw temper tantrums. The problem was that Myuri was also too clever, and she would continue on the path of what she considered right without any hesitation.

  “It’s not like we’re related by blood. There’s no problem if we like each other, so I just have to get you to like me more than God, right?”

  She explained her rationale calmly. When he voiced his rejection, Myuri had not been sad or upset, nor did she begin to doubt their relationship and act awkwardly. As always, she would slip into his covers during the night, cling to him at every opportunity, and her ears and tail, wagging happily, would be out whenever she could manage. Rather, it was as though she stopped holding back once she made her feelings known. Her displays of affection were even more intense than they had been back in Nyohhira as she practically threw herself at him.

  In the face of this, a priest’s vows of abstinence seemed like nothing more than sheltering in the shade of a tree to escape the intense midsummer sun bearing down on him. To top it all off, Myuri was even planning to cut down that tree. With the intelligence she inherited from her parents, she had come to one conclusion after reading the scripture from top to bottom.

  Though priests were not supposed to give in to bodily desires, laypersons were not forbidden from loving priests. In short, as long as the priest himself did not try anything, there was no problem. What’s more, Col had indeed sworn vows of abstinence, but he was still not a full-fledged priest!

  Col did not have anything in his arsenal to fight back against such an argument.

  The logic was sound after all.

  “Come on, let’s go have breakfast! It’ll be way more fun than talking to a God who won’t ever listen to a single prayer of yours!”

  Though she spoke confidently in such a faithless manner, she was generally correct, and it made his head hurt. He looked down at her smiling face out of the corner of his eye and spoke wearily.

  “If we want to discuss who listens to me less, then you may be winning in that regard.”

  “But as long as you can touch me, I haven’t lost.”

  Her tail, which should have been put away, was swishing happily, and her head was pressed against his chest, not minding if her animal ears bent.

  There was not a single hint of sexual attraction in her actions; a child’s crush wa
s exactly what it was.

  However, he remembered how hard she worked to take care of him after he collapsed from exhaustion these past few days. In his hazy bouts of consciousness, he occasionally saw her praying expression, and he could not imagine that was insincere. He could also take her onslaught of affection as an indicator of how much she had worried about him. When he thought about that, it was even more difficult to act indifferent.

  “Right, Brother?”

  “…Very well.”

  She pressured him, and he responded with a sigh.

  “However…”

  He changed the tone of his voice, and Myuri quickly loosened her grip on his arm. She knew that he would get angry with her, and she did not want to do anything that upset him.

  There was no doubt that she was a good girl.

  “Your ears and tail are still out.”

  “Oh.”

  She hurriedly patted her head while retracting her ears, then tapped her tail, making it disappear.

  As she did so, Col walked to the door, reaching for the knob.

  “And one more thing,” he said as he opened the door, Myuri jogging up to him. “Don’t eat too much.”

  She widened her eyes blankly at him, then grinned, baring her fangs.

  “Okay.”

  That was most certainly a hollow promise.

  He did not feel like being cross with her; she really did have him in the palm of her hand.

  They exited into the hallway, and as the door closed behind them, Myuri’s small hand naturally slipped into his.

  He sighed, and she beamed a cheerful smile.

  It was another lively day for the Debau Company trading house they were staying at.

  There were many jobs that had to be done in such a large company, and it was rather flexible when it came to taking breaks. Anyone who sat at one of the tall, worn-out tables by the wall in the kitchen could watch the errand boys and experienced merchants stream in when they managed to find a free moment and eat while standing before heading to their next job.

  Among all the hustle and bustle, whenever the errand boys came in, their eyes would widen as they saw Myuri leisurely dipping bread into her soup.

  Rather than being captivated by her elegance or extravagance, they were surprised because Myuri had worked as an errand boy for the trading house for a short while. It seemed they were surprised that one of the friends they worked together with was actually a girl.