Vermillion

Editor: ShinonomeResearchLabs, Proofer: Hakou

“Oi, Holland! Hold up a second!”

Upon turning around, Holland and group could see a mercenary on a horse galloping towards them while loudly hailing and wildly waving all the while .

“Oh, Dagmar . What’s up?”

“Don’t be so jovial about it, there’s trouble . ”

The mercenary approached them and shrugged his shoulders . He was a middle-aged man, well tanned, with thick eyebrows that covered his deep, inset eyes .

Everyone called the man Dagmar, and he was the head mercenary for the caravan, making him the direct boss of Kei . He and Holland seemed to be childhood friends, for they could often be seen in the early hours of the morning conversing in casual tones by means of what was probably a close friendship .

“What happened?”

“Pierre and Borris’s carriage is a mess . Heck, the cart’s stuck and the d.a.m.n axles won’t move . Everyone back there’s working on it, but it’s gonna take a while . So, I’d like you to stop for the time being . ”

「…それは仕方ない。が、ピエールはいい加減、新しい馬車を買うべきだな」

“… It can’t be helped I guess, but seriously, Pierre needs to buy a new carriage already . ” 

“That’s true, but money makes the world go round y’ know . ”

Dagmar sighed, but quickly recovered and turned his attention to Kei .

“That’s why, Kei, you said you were pretty confident in your strength didn’t you? Mind goin’ back with me to help with them repairs? We need all the manpower we can . ”

“Sure, no problem . ”

“Ah, I’m saved . Thanks a lot man . I’ll let the other guys know that we’ll be arriving at the village late . ”

　再び小さく肩をすくめ、ダグマルは慌ただしく前方へと駆けていく。それを見送りながら、ケイはアイリーンに”竜鱗通しドラゴンスティンガー”を手渡した。

Shrugging his shoulders, Dagmar rushed off to inform the remainder of the caravan . After seeing him ride off, Kay deftly tossed the Dragon Stinger to Irene .

「というわけで、俺は後ろに行くが……。邪魔になりそうだから、預かってくれ」

“So, it looks like I’ll be going back to help… Could you hold onto it for me while I’m gone as it’ll get in the way otherwise?”

“Alright . ” 

“Thanks . ”

Leaving the bow with Aileen, Kei turned his horse around rode towards the back of the caravan .

It would seem that the last carriage, two behind Holland’s, was the one having trouble . A merchant and several apprentices were busy unloading the heavy cargo from the hold and repairing the carriage with spare timber pieces, swarming around the rear wheels like a nest of bees .

“I heard from Dagmar, you guys need some help?”

“Ah, yes that’s correct . Thank you . ”

The merchant, red-faced from physical exertion, was supporting the carriage when he turned to Kei, whom he looked upon as though he were some holy savior . However, at this point, his arms suddenly lost power, and another man who was under the carriage let out a cry .

“I-I’m sorry, but could you lend a hand!? I don’t think I can hold up much longer . ”

“Oh, yes, of course . ”

Hearing the merchant’s strained voice, Kei immediately jumped off Sasuke to help support the carriage platform . If one puts their weight at the right angle with the correct technique using one’s arms and hips, it was not excessively difficult to lift even something as heavy as the carriage despite the fact that there was still a great deal of cargo remaining .

“Oh, it’s lighter!”

The young man with short hair who was supporting the carriage from the bottom remarked out of relief . If one looked closely, man did not appear to be one of the merchant’s apprentices . In addition to wearing hardened leather armor reinforced with sheet metal, a dagger can also been seen attached to his waist by the scabbard . This body suggest too that he was not a man of commerce, but a warrior who had been through rigorous training .

“Is he an escort? But this is the first time I’ve seen him… ” (ED Note: Italics to be used to denote internal dialogue . )

While maintaining the strength in his arms, Kei racked his memory . Before leaving Satyna this morning, Kei and the other escorts had introduced themselves to each other at a meeting, but somehow, he had no recollection of the young man with light, blue eyes and short, blond hair .

Was he not an escort for the caravan, but more like a personal bodyguard?

Or just a traveler that was tagging along for safety in numbers?

　ケイが考えを巡らせていると、ふと、その青年と目が合った。’

Just as Kei was thinking, his eyes coincidentally met with those of the young man .

“You’re quite strong, aren’t cha?

For some reason, Kei found the light in the man’s eyes to be challenging, almost warlike in nature .

「……そいつはどうも」

“… I suppose . ”

Shrugging his shoulders, Kei gave a curt, disinterested reply .

“Alrighty, slap on a board here!”

“Nail! Someone gimme a nail!”

“Help me turn this thing over here!”

Ignoring the noisy racket generated by the surrounding men, Kei once again focused his attention on supporting the carriage . However, even as Kei looked away, the blonde youth still stared Kei with wild, impa.s.sioned eyes .

†††

Eventually, the caravan at last arrived at the next village a few hours later .  

Needless to say, the cause for the delay was the last carriage . In fact, even with Kei’s help speeding up the repairs, the axle remained damaged and unwieldy, and could only move at a pace best compared to a snail’s crawl .

This undoubtedly irked the other merchants to no end . However, as long as Pierre was a member of the same caravan, they couldn’t just leave him behind .  

As a result, the group had to match the handicapped carriage’s pace .  

Originally, they had planned to arrive at the village just after noon, and after a late lunch at the settlement, the caravan would leave again . However, by the time the carriage actually arrived, the next day was already practically beckoning . Kei, Aileen, and Edda had sandwiches from Kiska before leaving, but the rest of the group, being on the move, could only grab something light to pad their stomachs . When they arrived at the village, they were famished .  

It goes without saying that Pierre, who had caused the delay, was the subject of many a dirty look from his fellow merchants, Holland included .  

On a clearing near the outskirts of the village, the caravan had oriented its carriages in a circle, and was setting up camp .

「ふぇっふぇっふぇっふぇ……」

“Fufufufu… ”

An old woman stirred a large pot propped above a bonfire in the center of the circle . Everyone else was busy constructing tents and organizing their luggage .  

「さぁて……ここに、コレを……」

“And now… let’s put this in too… ” 

Taking out some powder from one of the many pockets in her robe, the woman poured the contents into the pot, along with additional medicinal herbs, with intermittent cackling resounding the whole time .

「……オレなんかより、あの婆様の方がよっぽど魔女っぽいだろ」

“… That old woman looks more like a witch than even me . ” 

Aileen remarked while holding up the tent, sneaking glances at the old woman while she was at it .

“How strange, I was thinking the exact same thing . ”

Kei replied as he drove a stake into the hard ground across from Aileen . Putting his hammer down, he tied the rope extending the tent onto the stake, checked that it was taut, and look with satisfaction at their newfound shelter .  

The suspicious old woman continued, obliviously, to stir her pot . Of course, she was not a witch, but a relative of Holland, the pharmacist of the caravan . Apparently, her name was Heidimary, but everyone in the caravan addressed her as “granny Marie,” or simply “bā-sama . ” Because she was over seventy, she could be considered ancient by the standards of this world . (ED Note: 『婆様』(bā-sama) means grandmother . )

“Hey, bsama, is it ready yet?”

A merchant emerging from one of the tents called out to the old woman .

「ふぇっふぇっふぇ、焦るでない、もう少しで完成じゃ……」

“Fuwehehe, don’t be impatient . It’s almost done… ”

Hearing Heidimary’s response put the starving merchants in a fervor, the reason being that she was not brewing some kind of potion, but in fact, making risottos for everyone’s supper .

An enticing aroma from the a.s.sorted herbs gradually began to waft from the stewing pot .  

「ふぇっふぇ、よし、ここにキノコを入れれば、出来あがりじゃよ……！」

“Fu~, okay! It’ll be done as soon as I put in the mushrooms… ” 

Heidimary took out some dried mushrooms from another one of her robe’s pockets ― Kei and Irene worried silently to themselves about how sanitary that was ― and was just about to put them in the pot when Holland cried out .

“Wait! Wait! Wait! Stop! What are you doing!? Don’t put in any mushrooms!”

Holland flew over like and arrow and s.n.a.t.c.hed the mushrooms out of the old woman’s hands .

“Oi! What do you think you’re doing?”

“That’s my line! How many times do I have to say it? Don’t use mushrooms when you’re cooking!”

“I’ll keep using it as I please! If you don’t like it, you can just pick it out when you eat it!

“That’s ridiculous! As soon as you put one in, the whole pot’s contaminated! There’s no way I can eat that!”

“For shame! Holland, you’re not a child anymore! You should be embarra.s.sed, doing this as an adult!”

「だ・か・ら！　これには深いワケが……って、勘弁してくれよ、この説明ももう何回目か分からんぞ！　耄碌したか婆さん！」

“So ― what!? There’s a legitimate reason behind this! I’ve already told you one too many times before! Judging from this, haven’t you gone senile?” 

“Just who are you calling senile!?”

Heidimary whacked Holland on the crown of his head with a ladle, and the two resumed their heated quarrel . Meanwhile, the surrounding spectators looked on dispiritedly, unconsciously rubbing their empty stomachs .

“Is Holland bad with mushrooms?”

“Apparently . ”

「……あー、これな、ちょっとワケがあるんだわ」

“… Ah, about that, there’s a reason for it, actually . ”

Kei and Aileen were surprised when Dagmar spoke with a bitter expression .

“And that is?”

「いやな。俺とホランドが幼馴染なのは知ってるだろ。アイツも小さい時は、普通にキノコ食えてたんだよ。だけど俺がガキのとき、ホランドと森に出かけてよ、一緒にキノコ狩りをしたんだが……、」

“You see, Holland and I have known each other since we were kids . When we were small, we ate plenty of mushrooms . In fact, Holland and I used to go to the forest to pick them ourselves, but one time… ” 

Dagmar timidly scratched his cheeks .

「俺が間違えて、毒キノコを採っちまってな。それをホランドが食べちまったんだ。三日三晩、熱にうなされて、何とか一命は取り留めたが……それ以来キノコというもんがダメになっちまったらしい」

“I made a mistake and picked a poisonous mushroom, which Holland was unfortunate enough to eat . He was feverish for a full three days and nights afterwards, but he managed to survive somehow… Though, that experience seems to have ruined mushrooms for him . ”

「それは……」

“Ah… ” 

Kei and the rest of the mercenaries felt quite sorry for Holland after hearing Dagmar’s account .  

“Is it trauma?”

「TRAUMA？何だそれは」

“Tor-au-ma? What’s that?” (ED Joke: “Is it delicious?”)

「肉体的・精神的なショックで、心に負わされる傷のことさ。戦場で死にかけた兵士が戦えなくなったり、食あたりで旦那みたいにキノコが食えなくなったり……そういうのを『トラウマ』っていうんだ」

“It’s an injury of the mind that results from physical or mental shock . Things like soldiers who’ve seen death on the battlefield being not able to fight and people who’ve been poisoned by mushrooms not being able to eat them anymore: that all counts as trauma . ”

“Hey, I didn’t know that . ”

Dagmar seemed impressed with Aileen’s explanation .

While Kei and them were talking, Holland and Heidimary seemed to have settled on not putting in mushrooms this time . Tonight’s main dish, the risotto, was finally complete .