Spice & Wolf IX (DWT) Read online

  “One man in a landowner’s family is attracted to the leader of the Boland family; we must make use of this. It would be optimal for us and her if she doesn’t betray us, but we cannot be certain of that.”

  Lawrence also knew Eve had a complicated situation that was beyond his full understanding.. it was as complicated as the recipes used by alchemists.

  “The messenger could be on our side at a given time, then change to her side depending on the situation. We need that sort of mediator, otherwise that wolf would be too wary to deal with us. Of course, we have to make certain we’ll ultimately win, so we wanted a truly secure plan.. but to our despair the goods we are dealing with could spoil at any moment.”

  He was talking about the Narwhale, which was still alive.

  “Then what exactly am I to do?”

  Keeman coughed, and closed his eyes. He was likely going over the whole plan in his mind.

  “It’s simple: send messages for us. We don’t trust her, nor does she trust us. However, we do trust you, Mr. Lawrence.. and so does she. Thus you just need to bring our offer to them. Our conditions, our price, the means of transaction, specific date, and specific procedures for escaping with the Narwhale that you need to tell her in person. Of course, we’ll need her reply.”

  “And my compensation?”

  Keeman put on a proud smile revealing his canine teeth.

  “After this I imagine the Rowen Guild will become the top-dogs among the southern companies. We’d kick aside Jeeda, the current owner, who just sits back and watches everything. I would replace him, and the profits-”

  He paused for dramatic effect like an actor.

  “I’ll leave them to your imagination.”

  To not haul goods on his own, or sell them in person, but rather use others to sell goods carried by others and just record profits in ledgers as an accountant. A totally different existence, going from a merchant to something almost alien. The profits would be so vast that Lawrence could barely see their edge.

  “However, this is just a verbal contract. That way, the wolf still has a chance to sway you to her side, Mr. Lawrence.”

  “Right, and she could well offer me realistic profits.”

  If Eve could truly cheat everyone involved to get the Narwhale, being a fallen noble, she could then sell it to the highest bidder straight away. She could very well offer him a sea of gold coins to swim in.

  “I don’t really wish to give her such leeway, but it’s the only way to get a chance at this deal in the first place. People just aren’t that powerful.”

  Keeman’s words carried a lot of weight. They had already found out that the landowner’s son who had asked for Eve’s hand in marriage wouldn’t betray his family for himself. But things were different when his reason became Eve. When people had excuses, they became stronger and tougher. In the game of love, it was even quite common for the small potato to defeat the towering dragon.

  “Very well, I understand my responsibility.”

  Lawrence smiled, and Keeman smiled back. When dealing under the table, a smile signified the conclusion of a deal. That was because after a secret deal, in stories that were full of secrets and tension, bearded merchants would gloat in the candlelight.

  “Good, however..”

  “However?”

  Hearing his question returned so straightforwardly, Keeman smiled like a naďve child.

  “However, I suspected that I had you completely under my control. How.. hmm.. how is it that you recovered so quickly?”

  Lawrence stared at the ground with a smile. Keeman was correct, Lawrence had been completely under his spell in the branch office on the delta. Like a puppet, and to such a degree that even the puppet-master would feel embarrassed. So for the puppet to snatch back his soul so rapidly.. of course that should come as a surprise. But surely Keeman knew why, so seeing Lawrence just smile in silence, he continued.

  “I’m sorry I asked you a stupid question.”

  “Be it a merchant, knight, king or anyone else, they wouldn’t be able to finish such a job on their own. Not even a priest.”

  Merchants, knights and kings.. that was easy enough to understand. But why priests? Every great merchant, knight or king had an equally great wife or lover at his side. But a priest?

  “They have their god.”

  Lawrence kept smiling as he murmured. Just what could he accomplish with Holo at his side?

  “We both walk a surface weaved from lies, so let’s set out together.”

  Keeman reached out his hand, and Lawrence accepted it. They shook hands.

  “I can’t just sit here idly doing nothing. Just tell the innkeeper when you wish to see me. We shan’t eavesdrop, in the hopes that you’ll also be honest.”

  “Mhm.. since unfortunate incidents spring from suspicion and misunderstanding.”

  Keeman nodded and rose. Unlike their first meeting in his office, he left the room together with Lawrence.

  “Things should be settled by the day after tomorrow.”

  He hid the word “frantically” beneath a smile.

  “Then even if we can’t find the nerve to sleep, we should be able to last to the end.”

  Hearing Lawrence’s reply, Keeman walked out smiling, with relaxed footsteps. No-one passing by would suspect that the two of them even knew each other. Lawrence stood alone in the corridor and muttered through a bitter smile.

  “He never mentioned what the consequence for failure would be.”

  This wasn’t something vastly different from what Lawrence had done in the Church city of Ruvinheigen, taking advantage of a shepherdess by emphasizing potential profits. Back then he had nearly collapsed with guilt, but what about now? Keeman acted as if it was the most natural thing in the world. Lawrence wasn’t confident that he could act that way at all.

  With Holo he had support; when things became untenable, she could force a fresh start. But that was only meant as reassurance, and furthermore he was required to earn a profit for himself in this situation - not merely to safely complete tasks.

  Should he attack when they didn’t suspect it? He had no choice.. at this point, he actually wanted to try it. Scratching his head, he walked down the hall into the darkness, his bitter smile spreading across his face to reveal his teeth.

  Right now, he felt like reading a heroic epic.

  Chapter 7

  That night, despite his declaration, he found himself unable to sleep. It was likely that Keeman, being the central figure of the scheme, would spend the night planning proposals and laying groundwork, but Lawrence had to worry about being on their receiving end.

  He knew he wasn’t that skilled. In that situation, most merchants would seek information in order to take the lead.. but this time, Lawrence had no choice but to let himself be outclassed. In this case, outwitting his opponent would require a great deal of skill. He had limited time to come up with a plan, and only a vague understanding of things. He wasn’t sure if there could be a positive outcome this time.

  If it wasn’t for Holo, he would have opted for self-preservation and become Keeman’s pawn.. led by the nose, and ultimately abandoned. He laughed at himself and turned over. His bed was cold, being near the window, and when he lifted his head he could see the pale-blue moonlight seeping in through the window seams.

  He had to tip his hat to Eve, now that he realized how great the gap was between them as merchants. Even someone like Keeman was challenging her, and Lawrence had jumped right in between them. He rolled over again and sighed.

  There was no desire within him to turn back, but he was still nervous. The more he tried to sleep, the more awake he became. It seemed he was unsuited for these kinds of things. He laughed bitterly and decided to quench his thirst, then went outside to breathe the night air. The copper water-jug was ice-cold in the night air, but he took it with him as he walked through the silent inn.

  The inn was constructed to encircle a garden, and in that garden was a well. He had seen many such buildin
gs in the south during his travels. Although he could of course tell which company or guild a building belonged to, their basic construction never differed much. That wasn’t because everyone had decided on a common architecture, but rather because carpenters and stonemasons worked everywhere. Before his travels took him to distant lands, he had even assumed these styles to be used the world over.

  He would never forget the surprise he felt when he first learned that wasn’t true. Journeying helped broaden his perspective, but he always had to keep in mind just how narrow that perspective was. After experiencing this over the years, he’d come to realize just how miniscule he was in this vast world. There were an infinite number of people above him, and an infinite number below him.

  There was always another able to do what he could do, and no matter what he realized there had already been someone who had realized it before him. He let the well’s water-bucket drop down, far into the opening that lay open to the sky beneath the pale blue moonlight. It was rare for things to go one’s way, and most of the time they were being influenced by surrounding pressure.

  This situation may have been caused by asking Eve about the wolf-god’s bones, but it’s root cause was meeting her in Lenos.. and Holo was the reason they were in Lenos in the first place. Lawrence was indeed swimming toward his destination, but not through a lake; it was a fast-flowing river.

  Upon retrieving the bucket, he stared at the moon’s beautiful reflection within. It might be that he was recalling his troubled youth because, in this complex and overbearing situation, he disliked being a minor character. If he were a historian, he couldn’t write himself as the lead.. that was probably Keeman or Eve. As his face distorted with a bitter smile, so too did the moon’s reflection. Having concluded that this train of thought was stupid, he looked up and there, as expected, stood Holo.

  ”A fine night, is it not?”

  She held her hands behind her back, smiling brightly as a town girl on a sunny day. He returned that smile, and gave a simple ”yes”.

  ”Just as the moon waxes and wanes, so does my mood.”

  She sighed as she poked her finger at the moon’s reflection in the bucket.

  ”You left the room with a languished appearance, so I followed.”

  ”Did I look like I needed someone to talk to?”

  Rather than replying, she grinned.

  ”..perhaps”

  It might be a sign of progress that she was letting him lead the conversation like this. She lifted the water jug he had left beside the well and fidgeted with it in her hands.

  ”I wished to speak with you about something.”

  ”With me?”

  ”Is it time to reveal another secret technique for understanding human nature?”

  She laughed silently at his joke, and sat on the edge of the well while clutching the cold jug.

  ”There is no need to say that out loud.. after all, with me grasping your heart all the time, you surely know it by now?”

  ”I’ll just go with ’perhaps’.”

  ”A fine attitude.”

  She laughed, revealing her fangs, which then slowly receded like the tide as her smile vanished. She was a wolf of many expressions; like a stormy sea that, when viewed from afar, concealed many sharp rocks. When the tides drew back and revealed her true feelings, they likewise tended to be in the most unexpected places. How many times had Lawrence nearly been sunk, he wondered, as he roughly stroked her head.

  ”I..”

  “Hmm?”

  ”I regret having spurred you on.”

  He sat beside her as she clutched the copper jug - which was probably ice cold - as though it warmed her.

  ”Well I’m actually thankful for that.. it’s let me fight back against Keeman.”

  He wasn’t lying, but her eyes wandered as if trying to discern whether his words were true. She finally looked down, and nodded.

  ”That is what I regret.”

  ”Oh? Well.. if you hadn’t let me, I suppose things might have gone over better..”

  “That is not what I mean.”

  She shook her head and inhaled, then looked directly at him and spoke clearly.

  ”One as clever as you can do most anything, if they clearly see what is taking place around them. But all have their strengths and weaknesses, and I spurred you on despite knowing that this was something you are not suited for. I even knew you did not wish for this.”

  Lawrence was indeed heading straight into a conflict between town merchants, all skilled in the devious arts. However, it was a scenario he needed to prepare for if he was ever to become one of those town merchants himself. It wasn’t something Holo needed to fret over. But as he opened his mouth to say so, she continued.

  ”In any event, if you truly had a spirit strong enough to argue with this lot, you would have used my abilities to their fullest.”

  In his place Eve or Keeman would have done exactly that.. used Holo at the outset to gain whatever lead they could. After all, viewing the situation logically, she was the strongest weapon available.

  ”You seem to prefer a flow that is.. er.. reliable. Steady and slow. And I also feel that suits you better. Yet from my actions, what lies ahead of you is the exact opposite. Am I not correct?”

  She was correct. He only had to consider his earnings before he met her. They steadily rose, and there was a part of him that was content with this gradual rate of increase. It wouldn’t do to forget why he wanted to have a shop in the first place: it wasn’t for something as overwrought as gripping the very world in his hands, but simply to be a part of a small town where he could feel he belonged.

  ”But it wounds me to know that you didn’t consider me suited for these kinds of things.”

  Her ears twitched under her hood. She slowly raised her head.

  ”Yet you are not suited to them, are you?”

  ”When you look at me that way, there’s just no way I can get upset.”

  He was smiling bitterly, but as he watched his breath drift upward to the moon, that white mist seemed to take the bitterness with it.

  “But, I’m not going to back down.”

  While he made his declaration, she watched him as if she had inhaled some of the bitterness he just released.

  “Because you make those faces.”

  “Ugh...”

  She didn’t hide her anxiety even while he poked her forehead. By all rights, she seemed to genuinely regret pushing him into this. Every time he was in trouble, she joked that she’d be troubled if he was a weak merchant, yet in spite of that she genuinely did seem to worry for him. But there seemed to be reasons other than the fact that he was unsuited for such situations.

  ”The fact that you’re in this much regret must mean that you’re expecting greatness from me, correct?”

  Her anger over him fretting and coming to his conclusions was a flaw that she herself shared. But it seemed with the Wisewolf, being quiet was even more effective than spelling it out in words. After a time, she seemed to have given up.

  ”It appears that you plan on writing about our journey together..”

  ”Huh?”

  He remembered having said something to that effect, but failed to see a connection. She glared at him angrily; she must have wanted him to understand her already. But she ultimately seemed to acknowledge the limits of his brain and continued with a sulk.

  ”But that makes you the protagonist, does it not? I want the lead character to act like one. Because I.. I only play a supporting role.. or so it feels, at least..”

  In the ancient myth about the Moon-Hunting Bear that had destroyed her home, not only did Holo play a supporting role, but she was off-stage entirely. Her manner as she dangled her legs, seated on the well, appeared entirely childish.

  ”But.. that is entirely my ego. If you rush into danger, or wander to the garden at night with a lonely look, I will be hurt.”

  She placed her hand on her chest and and winced as though she was in pain. He gave her rig
ht cheek a light pinch.

  ”Well I do take your meaning, but..”

  He had no choice but to use a forceful tone with her as she angrily rubbed her cheek.

  ”When you put it that way, it’s just more reason for me to not back down.”

  Because that meant she had expectations of him. If that was true there was no way he could back down.

  ”That is why I did not wish to tell you..”

  ”Because I’d become even more stubborn?”

  When he laughed she punched his side and looked at him with such serious eyes that it was clear she wasn’t joking.

  ”You do realize how costly it will be to ignore my care?”

  “..”

  He was aware of her reasons and how they indirectly revealed her expectations. He paused for quite some time before nodding. He was clearly not fooling around, but was still on the receiving end of an interrogative stare.

  ”Do you truly understand?”

  ”I believe so.”

  ”Truly?”

  It was her persistence that finally helped him understand. What role did a character play in a story where they wished for another to be the lead? To fulfil that role, they simply had to wish and worry, and in that sense it was a comfortable role. Unfortunately for Lawrence, through the ages men had always been weak against that kind of character.

  “Of course.”

  After confirming his reply he hugged her warm body in the moonlight. Her tail wagged happily beneath her robes. This world was, in a sense, a stage where everyone wanted to be the lead actor. But things didn’t go according to any one person’s whims, so becoming the lead was no small task. However, it was easier to try when someone put their faith in you. Holo stood in his arms, looking as though a weight had been lifted off her shoulders. Just that alone was enough to convince him that he had no regrets.

  ”Come, let’s fill the jug and head back. It’s cold outside.”

  He realized that saying so was tantamount to trying to conceal his embarrassment. As he took the jug from her with his right hand and filled it with water, she held his left hand and giggled as if she had been tickled. He might be being spurred on, but it was clearly because this situation was related to the problem of the wolf-god’s bones, making this her wish.