Spice & Wolf XIV (DWT) Read online

  “Don’t apologize to me, apologize to your companion! I’ll bet you just bumbled in here without even thinking about finding her a room first, didn’t ’cha?”

  Flynn really did seem to have a good heart deep down. Elsa maintained her poker face, but Lou nodded.

  “Yeah, you’re right. It’s been a tough trip, I just figured we’d stop in since it was on our way.”

  Just then, Lawrence detected a cloud of worry pass over Flynn’s face. And for good reason. If you aren’t close with a shop owner, you wouldn’t just stop in because it was on the way.. unless you were in trouble. And Lou looked every bit like the kind of guy trouble stalked on a daily basis.

  “..You mind if we stay here for a couple days?”

  Flynn heaved a great sigh, no longer able to conceal his vast irritation. Despite that, he seemed to be sighing deeply to buy time to choose his next words carefully.

  “Definitely not.”

  He had no intent to cater to someone who was so rude, no matter how cruel that made him.

  “Wait.. what? Don’t be that way, Flynn! Even a small room is fine! We’ve been turned away by every inn! I’ll sleep outside with my goods if I have to, but..”

  He grabbed Elsa and pushed her forward like he was placing his last chip on the table.

  “Don’t ask her to do that!”

  Elsa seemed just as irritated as Flynn. Clearly, Lou was just that kind of wily bastard. If he did this, refusing him wasn’t an option. He knew just how unreasonable and rude he was, so he stooped to this kind of self-deprecating act. No one could turn the tired Elsa away to sleep outside; nothing less than a bed would do. She was clearly of the cloth, and had an air of respectability. Lou knew just how to take advantage of that. If Holo was a middle-aged man instead of a Wisewolf, she might end up just like him.

  “I’m afraid my goods have spilled out of my storage rooms and are filling up every room in my place. I’ve even been forced to ask my employees to rest among the goods, and they’re strapping young lads.”

  Flynn squinted and stared at Elsa.

  “I wouldn’t dare tempt fate by sending one of God’s lambs to sleep among those guys.”

  It wasn’t a threat, but Elsa noticeably shivered at the sound of it. Lou realized the jig was up, but he still put himself between them like he was defending her from a starving beast.

  “I’ll do what I must, but she-”

  “I’m not kidding. This is for her own good.”

  “Oh, Lord.. can you ever forgive such a callous man?”

  Lou now shouted impetuously, acting like he’d forgotten that he’d just damned God mere minutes ago. Flynn sighed again, and even Cole was standing there in shock. Holo was the only one who seemed thrilled by the spectacle of it all. Lawrence felt cornered; he had no choice but to jump in and offer his help.

  “If you don’t mind the room where we’re staying..”

  “What?!”

  Holo instinctively shouted, suddenly just as upset as everyone else. But she quickly calmed herself, realizing just how badly it reflected on her. She covered her mouth hastily, but still stared at Lawrence with spite, obviously blaming him for everything. In contrast, Flynn sighed in great relief. He was off the hook. Cole, of course, was grinning happily, just glad they were going to help others. And Lou.. well, he looked at Lawrence like he was staring at his savior.

  “Oh! Oh.. you’re a saint! May God bless you-”

  He stopped short, however. Maybe he wasn’t quite sure how to properly praise Lawrence, but one way or the other it didn’t matter. He still ended up furiously shaking Lawrence’s hands until Elsa jumped in, having finally lost her temper.

  “We have no means of paying you.”

  She looked just as hostile as the first time she had met Lawrence. But Lawrence now knew just how hard her life was, and just how much she must feel she owed them already for their help in Tereo. She truly had no means to pay them - no money or valuables at all. And yet, that only made Lawrence want to help her more.

  “But I’ll only be able to enter heaven by being kind now, won’t I?”

  His challenge confused her for a moment, making her reply instinctively.

  “Indeed, it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a merchant to enter the gates of heaven.”

  “Then what choice do I have but to shrink myself down, in preparation?”

  Elsa cringed and glared at him uneasily. Living with a devout priestess like her was going to be a burden on him. He wouldn’t even be able to bring himself to eat normally with a frugal guest like her to entertain. She knew this. And she knew that Lawrence had already thought about it and still made his offer in good will. All she could do was morosely accept his kindness. She didn’t realize, however, that Lawrence felt the same way about having Holo help him all the time.

  “Of course, God made me this way, so I can’t help but seek to profit, even if it’s in the next life.”

  He knew Elsa wasn’t going to miss his joke, and sure enough she quickly took his meaning and chuckled to herself softly.

  “Then I have no choice but to accept your supposed kindness.”

  She clapped her hands together and raised them above her lowered head like a proper believer would. Someone else was heard clapping the same way, but no one had to look to know that it was Lou, acting as ecstatic as the master of ceremonies at a wedding.

  “Whew, it looks like I can finally relax. Thank goodness.”

  “Then it looks like I’ve got no choice as well but to match such kindness. I should be able to spare room enough for you right here, Lou Loah.”

  Flynn pointed at his desk, clearly with the intent that Lou would sleep on it tonight.

  “Of course, there’ll be others in here as well, coming back drunk from the pub.. but I’m sure you’ll be fine with that, won’t you?”

  “Of course I will! What a blessing! God be with you, Flynn..”

  Even before he could finish, Flynn waved him away like he was shooing an annoying dog. But Lou didn’t seem to mind. He just reminded Elsa that her luggage was still on a mule outside, and asked her to join him in fetching it. Lawrence and his companions also joined them after bidding Flynn a fleeting farewell. Holo’s poker face hadn’t changed for one second the entire time.

  “Are you angry?”

  It was clearly a loaded question.

  “Of course not.”

  As anticipated, he received a loaded answer in response. Lawrence smiled at their familiar exchange, remembering having the same conversation when he asked Holo if they could travel with a certain shepherdess.

  Back then, he mistook her anger as meaning that she wanted to travel with him alone, and when she divined the truth she mocked him for it. So why was she really angry this time? He couldn’t help but look her in the eyes as they walked down the stairs, and felt compelled to ask again to make sure.

  “Truly?”

  Holo suddenly stopped on the last step, such that Cole plowed into her from behind before he could stop. She backed up into him to push him away, then took another step. Her eyes were on Lawrence the entire time.

  “Look, I’m sorry.. eh?”

  She forcefully took Cole’s hand, even as she continued staring into Lawrence’s eyes. She made sure to make a big show of holding Cole’s hand tightly.

  “Truly. I am not angry at all.”

  Of course, the words she emphasized told the truth of the matter. She walked off with Cole, and Lou noticed them leaving. He looked up at Lawrence quizzically.

  “They want to head back to our room and tidy up before we get there.”

  It seemed that excuse was good enough. Lou nodded, seemingly impressed with their courtesy.

  “How very kind of them.”

  Elsa overheard them, and paused as she unloaded her luggage off the mule. Her eyes narrowed as she peeked at Lawrence.

  “Really?”

  Lawrence’s heart skipped a beat, not expecting Elsa to have seen throug
h them. She almost seemed amused by this. Just like how Fran had changed Cole, leading to his current deliberations, it seemed that Lawrence had changed Elsa as well. Then again, maybe she was finally just showing him the same kind of face she had always shown Evan, her own companion. But she cut off Lawrence’s train of thought before he could arrive at a decision.

  “I am ready.”

  There was now a pile of her belongings beside the mule. It was so large that Lawrence wondered if he could handle it all. Elsa only lifted a small pack which probably contained her most treasured items; perhaps the letters of recommendation from regional nobles that ensured her position in the Church. Those could not be damaged under any circumstance. This was how a real woman of the cloth acted. He couldn’t decide how different it was from the pretend nun that Holo played.

  “Shall we go, then?”

  “Please.”

  Elsa replied with her usual look of cold indifference.

  Chapter 2

  Cole’s clothes were pathetically haggard. Their seams were torn. His coat had been re-stitched too many times to count. His pants barely covered his ankles. His shoes were thinner than slices of meat from the most miserly butcher. Not only that, but Cole himself was thin and frail-looking.. and not even by the Churches’ standards of “honorable poverty.”

  Elsa was clearly exhausted. Yet despite her own clothes being no more luxurious than Cole’s, somehow all she needed was to sit down to regain her energy. It seemed to be a by-product of her upbringing. Even so, she wouldn’t abide sitting on the bed; a regular chair would do. Lawrence handed her a cup of milk with ginger and honey instead of wine.

  She thanked Lawrence, of course, and didn’t behave pompously in any way, but she still somehow managed to exude an air of dignity that separated her from the rest of them. Seeing her recover that air as she drank her milk made Lawrence breath a sigh of relief.

  “So will you tell us why you left Tereo?”

  Elsa wouldn’t be bribed with offerings of food, but at least they served to soften her mood a little.

  “I mean, I just can’t figure it out.”

  He added this sentence as he poured himself some more wine, wanting to make it clear that his intent wasn’t to pry. He was only curious, and making polite conversation.

  “I’m looking for someone.”

  Her answer took him by surprise.

  “Some.. one?”

  “Not any specific person, mind you.”

  She closed her eyes as she sipped her milk, then sighed. Lawrence was used to watching Holo and Cole eat, so her eating manner seemed downright noble to his eyes.

  “Someone.. who can enter the priesthood.”

  “But why?”

  Before he could get any further, Elsa’s eyes opened with a gentle smile.

  “Because you have lit the fires of faith in Tereo. You even crushed Enberch’s evil plan with such amazing force that some of them are coming all the way to Tereo to buy cookies.”

  She looked at Holo while saying “amazing force,” but Holo ignored her and chewed on jerky while looking out the window. She clearly knew Elsa was looking at her with gratitude, given how her ears subtly reacted. There was no need to conceal those ears from Elsa, of course.

  “But the people from Enberch cannot understand why I am the only one in the church in Tereo. The Bishop’s lips are sealed thanks to us, but even he will have no choice but to talk eventually.”

  The Church was a male-dominated institution, even if women participated in abbeys as nuns. But they weren’t priests. Elsa continued sipping her milk, trying to swallow her distaste of this fact, but she ended up choking on it.

  “Ugh.. excuse me. In the end, I have to search for someone to become our priest. After all, I can hardly ask the Church to deal with this, can I?”

  “So now you have to somehow find someone who’s a match for you, huh?”

  Elsa smiled at the kind joke.

  “Of course. My father, Father Franz, left the church to me. I cannot give it to just anyone.”

  Father Franz was an impressive figure. He had raised Elsa on his own, and compiled many volumes about pagan beliefs and competing religions. His faith was always questioned, but he survived every attack. He even managed to somehow build a church in a village of pagans. It was sad that Elsa couldn’t succeed her father, but at least she could joke about it. She had a goal that was more important than her own feelings on the matter.

  “That said.. it is not the only reason that I am traveling..”

  Elsa’s eyes again turned to Holo, who met her gaze in confusion. Elsa smiled back at her gently, surprising Lawrence in turn.

  “After that incident I realized how uneducated I truly am. I felt I needed to experience more of the real world.”

  “Ah.”

  That attitude was good enough for Holo, who was traveling with a similar motive, having dallied in wheat fields for centuries. She even had the luxury of being Elsa’s bona-fide “senior” in that regard, if she wanted to see it that way. Lawrence smiled with that thought as he looked back at Elsa.

  “That’s never an easy thing to decide.”

  Lawrence was a traveling merchant; he knew just how judgemental small villages were about the outside world. Some of the most remote villages even thought they were the last surviving people on the planet. Moreover, Elsa was a girl. God’s blessings couldn’t protect her against every ill she would face on the road.

  As she contemplated Lawrence’s words, he noticed she was now wearing the Church’s emblem on a pendant around her neck. She hadn’t bothered doing so the last time they saw her in Tereo. It didn’t take much to guess that Evan, the brave miller in Tereo, had insisted that she wear it as she traveled.

  “Of course, it hasn’t been easy. I’ve come close to giving up several times, but God has always seen me through it.”

  Holo had grown to hate being praised as a God, but that didn’t mean she wanted to hear people talking about “God” in front of her. One of her ears turned when she heard that.

  “You mean he led you to that book dealer?”

  Elsa nodded.

  “Yes.”

  “What a strange fellow for you to come across.”

  When he realized he had openly spoken his mind, Lawrence recoiled nervously, and Elsa laughed at the sight. She covered her mouth and apologized quietly before continuing.

  “It’s hardly a big deal. I may have only met him once, but he knew Father Franz for a long time. Father’s letters recommended that I find him if I ran into trouble. If he trusted him that much, then I should also look past his greed and buffoonery.”

  Lawrence had realized that Elsa wouldn’t be following Lou without reason, and her words confirmed that, but she spoke the words as though she really meant them for Lawrence instead of herself. He scratched his head, and she took a deep breath in preparation for a sermon.

  “He does in fact worry me sometimes, but he is what he seems. Greedy, yes, but perhaps that is why he can also be so true to himself.”

  It was quite an insightful observation, and helped lay Lawrence’s fears to rest.

  “Should I assume he’s after Father Franz’s books, then?”

  Elsa smiled.

  “His kind doesn’t exist in the village, so when I first met him I was shocked. I simply couldn’t believe anyone would be that self-serving. He’s like the most devout of believers, in his own way. He’s tried every angle he can to get me to tell him about the books, but I have already experienced worse.”

  She of course meant the time Holo and Lawrence had tricked Elsa into revealing the books to find Holo’s homeland. They had been far from noble, in fact, and took advantage of Elsa’s inability to lie in front of God. True to her faith, she tried her best to defy them, even when backed into a corner from which there was no escape. Lawrence still felt guilty about employing such trickery, and sheepishly glanced over at Holo.. but his co-conspirator showed no signs of caring.

  “But the moment I to
ld him I wanted to travel to Lenos, he happily agreed. It hasn’t been an easy trip. Any longer, and I might have broken and told him about the books, in fact.”

  One’s first trip was full of things they had never encountered in their lives. Having someone to depend on just turned them into a mewling baby reaching out for their foster parent’s help. They would come to trust their guide implicitly, and even someone like Lou Loah might legitimately deserve that sort of privilege. He was an experienced merchant, after all.

  “All great saints have left their homes and traveled into dark forests or deserts, and now I feel I can understand why. After traveling I see just how weak we humans truly are.”

  That was a very common sentiment from members of the clergy. Lawrence smiled and nodded, and so did Cole.

  “Now, I also understand something that I couldn’t wrap my mind around after you two left Tereo.”

  That piqued Lawrence’s interest, and Holo along with him.

  “What do you mean?”

  “Well, I mean why someone so powerful would humbly settle for traveling on a wagon.”

  Lawrence had thought about this quite a few times as well. There was no doubt in his mind that he could be rich by now if he took advantage of Holo’s help. It would be trivial, in fact. But he never did. Even when danger surrounded him, he still tried to solve it without her special powers. Even she would get anxious sometimes. But he had his reasons, not the least of which was wanting to prove he was strong enough to be with her. That, and something a bit more personal.

  “I see just how weak I am now, but if I just ask my friends for help, I will always be weak. I need to make an effort to solve my own problems.”

  It was embarrassing enough to have this topic raised that Lawrence glanced over at Holo for a moment before answering.

  “All I have to do is ask, and she will willingly help me. But I shouldn’t take a bottle larger than I can carry. Not biting off more than you can chew is a rule that all merchants abide by.”

  He thought for a second before finishing his speech.

  “I know that when I break that rule, I’ll lose everything.”