Kino no Tabi:Volume14 Chapter2

“Land of Mutterings” — My Daily Life —

[Is this okay? Let’s try it.]

[I wonder if it’s all right? Testing.]

[It seems to be working somehow. The characters I wrote appeared on the screen.]

[To the one who is looking at… well, reading this—I am a person living in a certain country.]

[Four days ago, a traveler entered our country. Unfortunately, this person died soon after his arrival.]

[He was rather old, and to top it off, seriously ill. Expecting that he will be saved, he probably loosened his guard upon finally reaching this place. It’s really sad.]

[We mourned the passing of our guest, and found this device among his belongings. And I am now using it.]

[We do not know this traveler’s name or his country of origin. And so we cannot tell his family of his passing. But it doesn’t mean I wanted to do that in particular.]

[I was only a bit interested in this device.]

[The manual that came with it says this: “This device enables you to type text within the character limit, and show it to many people all over the world.”]

[I was surprised, as it’s the first time I’ve seen a device like this. Our country has not yet advanced far enough to achieve this kind of technology.]

[I have no idea just how many people are reading this right now. That’s because there is nothing indicated in this device except for the characters that I have typed myself. It appears that something else is needed to be able to see what other people have written. And I don’t know what that is.]

[That’s fine. I’ll just use it as my diary.]

[But if there’s somebody who can see this someone, spending each day like this somewhere in this world… that would be nice.]

[My daily life is probably not particularly interesting.]

[It’s simply how each day passes by in our country.]

[But I feel rather strange when I imagine that someone gets to know it.]

[I guess that’s enough for today.]

—

[It’s morning. Today’s a day off. It has been a long time since we got to rest for an entire day. From tomorrow onwards, things will get busy again.]

[Noon. My buddies brought down a cow. It probably escaped from a farm. Since they used to be farmers, they handled the meat splendidly.]

[Now, we’re surrounding a campfire, feasting on the great meat. We are singing, making merry, laughing. I am having a fun time with my comrades.]

[Today was such a great day.]

—

[It’s noon.]

[I have killed twenty-eight people throughout the morning.]

[Those foolish Sgelokultz were completely unprepared. Walking in a file along a narrow road in the middle of a ravine? Unthinkable.]

[My buddies set off the bombs that we laid there in advance. I haven’t seen such perfect timing before.]

[The piles of nails that we prepared flied from both sides of the path, boring holes into their bodies.]

[Then we did the usual. We finished off those who wailed from their wounds. There was no need to use bullets. We just swung axes one after another on the lower halves of their bodies.]

[Then we scattered their corpses on the ground. The wild animals will come soon and probably have them for dinner.]

[After that, we took everything that can still be used—their weapons, ammunition and equipment. I was lucky to get one of those automatic assault rifles that are still pretty rare in these parts. It’s still in perfect condition, and I’d be able to use it after wiping the blood and the bits of brains off it.]

[We returned to the camp in high spirits. Our lunch was beef again. There’s still a lot left.]

[We took four Sgelokultz with us alive, but my buddies are killing them right now, maybe because they couldn’t get any useful intel from them.]

[There’s a sawmill beside the campgrounds with an electric saw for cutting wood inside. We use that to cut the Sgelokultz lengthwise because it makes splitting bodies into half a breeze.]

[Here’s a trick to make someone suffer for as long and as painful as possible. Cut a little, then leave it for a while. I could hear some pleasant screams since a while ago. Looks like our dogs will have full stomachs for two days in a row.]

—

[I was adjusting the sniping rifle since morning. It came with a 400-meter scope. It even has bullets left inside.]

[This was used by one of those Sgelokultz, which means it was a rifle used to kill one of my comrades. But I can’t fight this war if I worry about such things. I just have to kill more people than they have.]

[It’s now noon. With orders from headquarters, I am to go to town starting from tomorrow. It seems that they don’t have enough snipers out there.]

[I wonder if I can use this thing even if I’m in town.]

—

[It’s evening.]

[I arrived in town.]

[Seems like I can still use it here.]

[“What’s with that toy?” My buddies teased me. I told them that it’s my lucky charm.]

[I was told about our comrades who died in battle. They were all great people.]

—

[It’s morning. A morning greeted with a refreshing blue sky. I’m about to go out to kill.]

[This town’s in the front lines. We have taken control of primarily three-fifths of the western side, and the Sgelokultz are in hiding on the remaining areas.]

[It hasn’t been too easy for us to overcome the enemy here, and it’s one of the areas where we remain to be at a stalemate with them.]

[The Sgelokultz soldiers who are on the defensive can’t be seen around, but some elderly and children who had nowhere else to go are still in town. We shoot them on sight.]

[Earlier, an old man came to fetch water. I shot his leg and waited for a bit, but no one came to help him. However, he tried to crawl away when his bleeding stopped after a while so I shot him dead in the chest.]

[This evening, I found a child with his mother. I shot his head, which was cleanly cut off from the rest of his body. His mother turned around, and I could hear her screams clearly even from afar.]

[My fellow sniper told me to spare the mother and let her go home to their house carrying the headless body of the child.]

[I told him that I don’t want to have my kill count reduced and shot her anyway.]

[The guy was quite offended, and told me that a sniper should listen to his observer.]

[But when I tossed him an apple during dinner, his mood lifted in an instant. It’s a mere twelve-year old after all. I used to be like that too.]

[Evening. Since the power station was under our control, no one dared operate it. The town was completely dark.]

[It was raining. I like rain. That’s because sniping becomes less dangerous when it rains.]

—

[Today I killed four. There was a clash in town.]

[One of them was a Sgelokultz sniper. This guy killed a lot of my comrades over the past few days.]

[He had been hiding with a large-caliber rifle within a tall building from afar. It was the perfect place for sniping. Perhaps because of the weight of the rifle, or because he made a tiny change to his aiming angle, the tip of his rifle was exposed a wee bit from the window. That’s when I noticed him.]

[I got the help of my comrades to show him a decoy, while I sent a bullet straight to his face.]

[It was a tiny mistake. But mistakes like that can cost your life in the battlefield.]

—

[It’s evening. It was a long and harrowing day.]

[The Sgelokultz dug a tunnel in the underground canal and set up bombs. It exploded underneath the building that served as our headquarters.]

[The building was destroyed. We couldn’t find twenty-one of our comrades. Everyone was underneath the rubble, including the twelve-year old boy yesterday. At that time I was by chance fetching my luggage from the depot, so I was saved.]

[As a result, we had no choice but to surrender a territory we fought so hard to gain.]

[It’s regrettable, but this is part of war. From now on, I will continue to kill those bastards. In the end, we will win.]

[I was reassigned again. This time, I am to join up with the unit defending the gates.]

[I left my automatic rifle in town. Someone might be able to use it. To stain the ground with the stinky blood of those Sgelokultz.]

—

[I will be writing two days’ worth.]

[We were on the move the whole time in a truck.]

[On the way, we found some surviving Sgelokultz.]

[They were caught by local vigilantes from a village under our control.]

[We liberated this town two months ago. But that time, some of the Sgelokultz were able hide in the mountains. As they could no longer stand hunger, they came down in search of food, and were caught.]

[There were eight survivors. Of course they were a bunch of old or injured persons and children who couldn’t fight.]

[That’s because all of those who could were already killed by us.]

[The leader of the vigilantes, a nine-year-old child, asked me what to do. I told him that if he wanted to become an adult, he should come up with an answer on his own.]

[And so the vigilantes beat them up with wooden mallets until they’re dead. That’s good. We can’t let them live. It’s best to make them suffer as much as possible.]

[Among the group, there was a five-year-old child who hesitated and couldn’t bring himself to kill. He said he couldn’t kill a child much younger than himself.]

[I spoke to this child.]

[I told him this: “If you can’t do it right now, that old man or child will eventually take up arms. And then they would kill you or your friends. And out of revenge they would even go after your baby. Are you okay with that?”]

[The child killed, crying and screaming the whole time. He beat the head many times until it was turned into a shapeless pulp.]

[That’s fine. Right now we are in war, and this is a battlefield.]

[You can show human compassion when the war is over. As much as you want.]

[And this war can only end with our side’s victory. Otherwise, the Sgelokultz will kill or turn us into slaves.]

[They never showed us affection, and never considered us as humans. There’s no way we can live together with such people.]

[If we want absolute peace, we have no other choice but to fight. Even if it cost us tens of thousands of lives, we will do everything to win. We have no other choice but to kill, be it infants or the elderly.]

[To anyone reading this. You’re free to think of me as nothing but a blood-thirsty beast.]

[But there’s only one thing I want you to know. It is wrong to think that a murderer in the battlefield is no different from a person who kills in times of peace.]

[After that, the group tried to throw the corpses in the river, so I stopped them. I told them that we might drink the water in that river someday. We wouldn’t want to pollute it.]

—

[Morning. Starting today, I will be looking after the defense of the third eastern gate. I was made in charge of a platoon guarding the gates.]

[To be honest, I did not wish to become a captain. Because this area is already under our control, there’s almost no fighting at all. Killing Sgelokultz every day suits me better.]

[But since I can’t go against headquarters, I obeyed.]

[Our country has many gates; three in each direction. The largest is the one facing the eastern city, which has become our side’s capital.]

[The third eastern gate where I was assigned is the farthest north and is also the most distant from the frontlines. It is the first gate that meets the main road, and in the past, served as the gateway to the country.]

[Our job is to deal with foreigners, that is, travelers and merchants, who come to the gates.]

[Of particular importance are the merchants who come to trade weapons and ammunition. Without them, this war can’t go on.]

[If the Sgelokultz were here instead, the merchants would have sold them their products as well. In fact, that’s what’s happening at the western side.]

[It is likely that these merchants who sell us weapons go next to the west, and offer the Sgelokultz the same weapons that will be used against me and my comrades.]

[Both our side and the Sgelokultz use foreign-made weapons. That means the wealth that our country has accumulated through the years flow into other countries.]

[But it doesn’t mean that we hold disdain towards the merchants. They are only doing their jobs after all.]

[Meanwhile, there are travelers who come, unaware that the country is currently engaged in a war.]

[Usually, they give up on entering once we explain the circumstances. Then we ask them to come again after we have killed all of the Sgelokultz and the country has turned into a peaceful and wonderful place once more.]

—

[My after-dinner tea was really hot. My tongue got scalded.]

[My subordinates laughed at and teased their invincible captain who couldn’t even win against hot water. But it’s really great, their smiles. These smiles will bring about our victory.]

[Soon it was evening. Having supervised the tasks and training of my subordinates, a day ended without me having to fire a single shot.]

[I wrote such things during the morning, but the truth is I was lonely. I couldn’t settle down without seeing the blood of the Sgelokultz, without hearing their death throes ringing in my ears. I couldn’t sleep.]

—

[A tedious morning has gone by. Now it’s already past noon.]

[No merchants came.]

[Come evening, a young traveler riding an old motorrad called Hermes arrived. His name is Kino. Right now, he’s talking with my buddies.]

[Kino can’t go sightseeing even if he entered the country, but we welcomed him nevertheless. When we told him that, Kino gave us a strange reply.]

[He would like to stay for three days, that is, until the day after tomorrow, even if it’s only out here. Perhaps it is to rest, but I have no idea why he was so particular about three days.]

[But we don’t have any reason to refuse. And so Kino and Hermes entered the country.]

[All of the buildings that once stood in front of the gates were destroyed. The Sgelokultz burned them down before we subjugated this territory.]

[The barracks and warehouse tents stood in an open area surrounded by forest, roughly two-hundred meters in both length and width. Kino set up his own tent right beside the forest a bit ways off the barracks.

[Evening. I was having a chat with Kino up until a moment ago.]

[To be exact, I was talking with both Kino and Hermes.]

[As I have some to spare, I invited them for dinner. And while we ate, Kino and Hermes asked why we were fighting the Sgelokultz.]

[The answer was simple—because we can’t get along with them.]

[I told Kino and Hermes everything.]

[It’s a rather long story, but I’ll write it here.]

—

[It is true that we lived in this country with the Sgelokultz for as long as we can remember. We once inhabited the same villages, walked the same streets, and shared the same tables in the same restaurants.]

[However, that did not bring about unity among us.]

[We never shared the same lifestyle, and could never completely comprehend each other’s ways.]

[History is our witness. The Sgelokultz believed we can be handled conveniently as slaves, and made us work as such. There’s countless of evidence to support this.]

[But we are nothing like slaves, and nowhere near inferior to them.]

[In fact, we are much closer to being perfect human beings. They probably won’t admit it to their deaths, but they are an inferior people who aren’t capable of civilized living without our support.]

[Eighty percent of the heinous crimes in this country were committed by the Sgelokultz. Majority of the prisoners and death convicts were also among them.]

[The only thing they have an edge in is that they have ‘better physiques’ than most—but that’s it.]

[In terms of intellect, reasoning, endurance, wisdom, and everything else—they are considerably inferior to us. To put it simply, the Sgelokultz are foolish and pathetic creatures.]

[And right now, we are the superior force. One year since the war began, we have gained control of over seventy percent of the country.]

[Those unquestionably inferior Sgelokultz have oppressed us for a long time, and acted as if they were the masters of this country.]

[The Sgelokultz had a monopoly on the most important positions in the government, and created laws to their own convenience. The police and the army also persecuted us in any way they pleased.]

[The ones who hold power are not always in the right. The Sgelokultz reigned over this country like tyrants.]

[And we endured.]

[There are some disgraceful ones who butter up to the Sgelokultz. But they are only a handful. We have always lived proudly.]

[We bore with it, year after year. But those days of suffering have finally come to an end.]

[One year ago, we acquired weapons from foreigners and rebelled. To put an end to the Sgelokultz’ oppressive rule. To rewrite our history.]

[It is true that we were the first to make a violent move. And some foreigners would probably criticize us for it.]

[But this is a battle for our continued existence. If we did not shed blood, we will be killed slowly as slaves. No one can renounce a war for survival.]

[At first, the Sgelokultz were caught off guard. But soon they demonstrated their sly nature and began their counterattack. And like this, the war continued without rest.]

[We still have plenty of comrades within the areas under Sgelokultz rule. Our ultimate goal is to save our suffering kin and peacefully govern a country where everyone can live equally.]

[Of course, people will die over the course of this war. Enemies and allies alike.]

[Our population which numbered 600,000 one year ago is now down to 200,000.]

[Even so, the corpses of the Sgelokultz are the glorious fruits of our battle while the deaths of our allies are valuable sacrifices. We don’t need a peaceful life as slaves.]

[We will seize victory. And then, we will rebuild this country anew.]

[We will leave behind a few Sgelokultz as slaves, and kill the rest. We can’t let the root of evil remain.]

—

[If there is anyone reading this, let me clarify one thing.]

[If in case you have the same attributes as the Sgelokultz, I won’t think badly of you. I will neither despise you nor kill you.]

[I reserve that for the Sgelokultz who are living in this country.]

[There exist among the merchants people who are like the Sgelokultz, but we don’t harm them. Besides, there are probably countries where human beings with varied traits live together as equals.]

[I hope you don’t misunderstand.]

—

[After hearing my explanation, Kino and Hermes said, “We understand very well. Thank you very much,” and didn’t pry any further.]

[I don’t know whether they really understood or not.]

[But I feel that this traveler who looked no more than fifteen shared the same scent as me.]

[That is, the scent of blood.]

[I’m not saying that this person has killed many people.]

[It was the kind of scent of having witnessed death firsthand.]

[And so I took a liking to this traveler, who had eyes that do not turn away from death.]

—

[Morning. I returned to my duties.]

[It’s already evening. I’ll write down the things that happened today.]

[I took half of my platoon and patrolled the part of the forest-covered mountains. This area was completely under our control. It was only to make sure, and to train my subordinates.]

[They let their guards down because we were far from the front lines. But the truth is, my comrades here are in need of more training. After all, most of them don’t have any actual combat experience, and many of them are old.]

[That’s why they were assigned at the rear in the first place. Moreover, we have very few automatic rifles like the ones used in the front lines. Almost all of our weapons are old-style bolt-action types that need to be reloaded manually for each shot.]

[In the evening, I had dinner once more with Kino and Hermes.]

[Kino spent time with my subordinates the whole day. I asked for his opinion about their combat skills.]

[Kino answered a little bit too honestly. “At this rate, they won’t be useful in the front lines. If there was actual fighting, all of them would get killed,” he said.]

[Unfortunately, I have the exact same thoughts.]

[I hardened my resolve.]

[From now on, I would increase my kill count even by just one, so that the number of people killed among my comrades would get reduced, even if only a little.]

[From tomorrow onwards, I will be strict in training them. So that all of them survive to see the new country.]

[Someone once said, “The sweat you shed in training will reduce the blood shed during battle.”]

[Early morning tomorrow, Kino and Hermes will be leaving the country. Once I see them off, I will begin the training.]

[I am writing this just before going to bed. It’s a peaceful night.]

——

[It’s evening right now.]

[I am the only one remaining here.]

[My subordinates, who were well and alive just last night, were all killed. By the Sgelokultz.]

[I was the only one who survived.]

[Thanks to Kino.]

—

[From here on, I will write everything that happened on this day. If I were to get killed someday, I would like someone to remember.]

[About what happened today, and about Kino.]

—

[Everything began in the morning.]

[The sky quickly grew brighter. When I awoke, Kino was already up beside his tent, trying to wake Hermes up by beating his tank.]

[It was a clear and terribly chilly morning, as was typical of the cold season.]

[I put on my winter coat on top of my combat uniform and utility belt. As there was still time until the sun rises, I thought I could take it off later if I begin my training immediately. It was a casual deed that would save my life later on.]

[I joined up with the guards on the gates and received no reports of any irregularities. While drinking tea and talking about today’s plans, I received a report from the guards of the arrival of the merchants.]

[There are no detailed arrangements of when the merchants would come. The guards outside checked their belongings and confirmed that they only contained food. Then after making sure that there were no Sgelokultz or foreign soldiers around, we opened the gates, as was usually done.]

[But this was a terrible mistake.]

[Three trucks entered the gates. There were three persons in the cab of each truck. As soon as the trucks are inside, the gates were closed. And then everyone lined up to unload the trucks. The faster they finish unloading, the earlier the merchants can be sent home.]

[At that time, the only ones who weren’t near the trucks were me, who went to my tent to get the transaction documents, the people on night duty who were sleeping in the barracks…]

[And lastly, Kino, who has already given up on waking Hermes and proceeded on folding his tent.]

[The merchants looked like merchants at first glance. They wore different clothing. They carried themselves differently from our countrymen. This was another mistake.]

[I was looking at them. The nine merchants held tiny boxes with one hand. Those boxes looked like pouches from afar. Not I or my comrades who were unloading the goods would think that those boxes could turn into deadly weapons.]

[As I casually turned around, I saw it with my own two eyes. How the merchants simultaneously transformed those boxes.]

[With one hand, they split the boxes into two pieces, and rotated the lower portion backwards. This part became a shoulder stock, while the grip and the magazine protruded from below. An innocent-looking box turned into a persuader in a moment.]

[The merchants began firing with these weapons. Directed towards my comrades, whose hands were busy with their work.]

[There was no way for them to fight back. It’s as if being shot by someone close enough to tap your shoulder. Like being executed by a firing squad from behind.]

[Bang. Bang. For each faint shot I hear, one comrade would hit the ground. The movements of the merchants were precise. They worked in pairs, angled in a way so that they wouldn’t hit each other. And one by one, they shoot my comrades to death.]

[My comrades who were lined up to unload the trucks were like targets for shooting practice.]

[Some of them had rifles slung on their backs. But faster than they could put down the goods and grab their rifles, they were shot point blank to their faces, and fell.]

[Of course these people are not merchants. They are Sgelokultz.]

[I heard that they formed a special force from former soldiers, who performed covert operations in small groups. That must be it.]

[They dared kill or restrain the merchants that served as their lifeline. Then they took their clothing and trucks loaded with merchandise, and attacked our gate.]

[Their ultimate goal must be to gain control of this area, and attack us from behind by dispatching soldiers from outside the gates. It was, most certainly, a surprise attack.]

[I dropped down the minute I heard the first shot. That time, I only had the automatic hand persuader on my hip, and had no rifle with me. But even if I had one, I wouldn’t be able to aim at the Sgelokultz taking cover at the other side of the truck.]

[I lay on the ground and grit my teeth, while the number of people standing ten meters ahead of me was reduced one by one. My comrades were being shot down. Some of them bravely flung their burden at their attackers. But they were seized, kicked down to the ground, and shot on the head.]

[In the past the Sgelokultz would take along some of our allies alive to make into slaves. At the frontlines, there are plenty of cases where we couldn’t find the bodies of our comrades. But this time, they intend to wipe us out.]

[Not a minute has passed.]

[All of my comrades around the truck were gone. All dead. The Sgelokultz robbed the corpses of their rifles. Four of them watched the surroundings from the shelter of the truck, while five proceeded to the barracks.]

[To kill my comrades in their sleep most likely. As shooting practice is not uncommon in the morning, it was not surprising that the sleeping ones did not notice the attack. Again and again, I heard muffled shots from within the tent.]

[But this was my only chance. I got up and raced to my tent only ten meters away. There a rifle is waiting.]

[And I was immediately shot down. There was no way that I couldn’t be seen in such an open area.]

[A searing pain raced through my shoulder and leg, and all sound vanished from my ears. I collapsed forward and lost consciousness.]

—

[When I came to, I was already inside the forest.]

[I was lying face up on my spread out coat beside a big tree, looking up at the sky and the treetops.]

[At that instant, I felt a terrible pain on my back and leg. It was as if a branding iron was being pressed on my back or a finger being stabbed into an open wound. I groaned, and heard a voice from nearby telling me to hush.]

[I moved my head towards the voice. It was Kino.]

[A black-jacketed Kino was hiding, bent down next to a tree. He approached me, maintaining a crouching position.]

[Kino quickly told me everything in a whisper.]

[That we were currently ten meters into the forest roughly two hundred meters away from the gates.]

[That Kino carried me to this place. That I was shot at the back, behind my hip, and at my leg all at the same time. And that there was a huge bump on my forehead]

[I heard about my own circumstances from someone else.]

[My hip was hit by a bullet from a powerful rifle.]

[My utility belt included a pouch with spare bullets inside. The rifle bullet hit this pouch and sent the spare bullets flying while it changed course, and tore a long gash of skin on my flank.]

[But because of that, it didn’t enter my body. Only three centimeters more, and the bullet would have pierced me through, rupture my internal organs, the shock from which killing me in an instant.]

[The wounds on my shoulder and leg were caused by 9-mm rounds used for hand persuaders. These bullets are much less powerful than a rifle’s.]

[They probably came from those strange folding persuaders. My left shoulder was shot, leaving my left arm unable to move. Another bullet carved itself at the back of my thigh.]

[But both wounds did not turn fatal. The pressure bandages Kino applied on the wounds helped immensely in stopping the bleeding.]

[Meanwhile, the bump on my forehead was something I got when I collapsed after being shot. I hit my head on a stone and the impact made me lose consciousness.]

—

[The moment the slaughter began, Kino dove into the forest.]

[Then he observed everything until the ruckus settled down. Including the part where my comrades are being killed, as well as my getting up and running, and being shot from behind.]

[The ones who fired at me did not come to confirm their kill, that is whether I’m still alive or not. It seems that they heard shots coming from the guard post. They must have exchanged fire with my comrades outside the gates.]

[It was only a moment that the Sgelokultz focused somewhere else. But Kino used it as an opportunity to carry me into the forest.]

[As I listened to this story, I realized how terrifyingly lucky I have been.]

[That the rifle bullet was deflected by my pouch.]

[That my attackers did not notice that because I was wearing a thick coat.]

[That I lost consciousness from hitting my head, and looked as if I died in an instant.]

[And finally… that I was saved by a brave human called Kino.]

[It was one luck on top of another that made me survive.]

[I asked Kino to read my wristwatch for me. All sensation was gone from my left arm, and I couldn’t move it.]

[A mere twenty minutes has passed since everything began. The sky became cloudy in an instant, and the sun that should have risen already was nowhere to be seen.]

[When I asked Kino about the situation, he told me that the gate was still open. The three trucks were transferred outside the country, and that there was nothing else visible in front of the gates other than the tents, the cargo, and corpses.]

[The Sgelokultz must be outside. They’re probably waiting for the arrival of reinforcements. Those reinforcements must have stayed somewhere not visible from the gates, and must now be hastily heading towards it.]

[Nine is too small a force. If by off chance my comrades retaliate with more people, they probably plan to close the gates and escape.]

[If that happens, no evidence will remain of what they did here and how they managed to break in. They’ll probably use the same strategy again, when they see an opportunity.]

[I desperately thought about what I should do.]

[There are no remaining options for counterattack. I’m alone, with a body that isn’t even capable of walking, and only has a functioning right arm.]

[To make matters worse, my only weapon is the hand persuader on my hip and the two spare magazines in my pouch. That is, forty-five 9-mm rounds are all that I have to fight with.]

[The longest range for a hand persuader is around 50 meters. And even if it reaches that, getting a hit is a deed next to impossible. It simply stands no chance against the 300-meter range rifles that those nine soldiers have.]

[Our rail cars, trucks, and four-wheel drives were still parked beside the barracks. They probably didn’t destroy or set on fire on them for fear of alarming our side with smoke. We have a supply depot two mountains ahead, and the smoke can be seen from that place.]

[But as I am now, there’s no way for me to drive these vehicles to escape there. I’ll probably be shot once I approach the cars. Those Sgelokultz must be keeping a close eye to what’s happening within the gates.]

[My only hope is Kino, who can still move. If he goes through the forest, he can contact my allies in under an hour.]

[But will there be enough time for that? If the Sgelokultz reinforcements enter the gates, it will be hard to recapture this area. And then, this place will become an infiltration point, and my comrades will be attacked from behind.]

[Up to this point, both sides have engaged in combat only within the confines of the walls. That’s because if the war extended beyond them, neither of us could cope too well. But taking control of gates is a different matter entirely.]

—

[To tell the truth, at that moment, I was contemplating of facing the Sgelokultz single-handedly, and die in action.]

[But even if I satisfy myself that way, my allies will be the ones to suffer later on. It’s not something a soldier should think about. I can’t give up until the end.]

[To attain complete victory, I need to annihilate or chase away the Sgelokultz, and close the gates. But I don’t have the power to do that as I am now.]

[At this point, Kino was looking at my face. He had a calm, almost peaceful expression.]

[He asked me what I had in mind. But I did not have an answer to that. “I knew it,” Kino said.]

[And I finally realized why Kino did not escape on his own. There was only one reason why he didn’t leave me behind even though he could. His motorrad.]

[What about Hermes? I asked. And Kino answered with a carefree voice.]

[“Still asleep, probably,” he said.]

[Just before Kino escaped to the forest, he covered Hermes with a tent and ran away with only his bag in hand.]

[Hermes, who had been concealed with a dirty cover, would look something that belongs to a storehouse from afar. The Sgelokultz would overlook him because they don’t have the luxury of time to care about such things.]

[And so Hermes is still parked in one corner of that open area before the gates. But then again, retrieving him is no easy task.]

[Even if he were a mere traveller, if he revealed himself in this kind of situation, it is unlikely that they would just let him escape. There is a high chance that he would be killed to seal his mouth.]

[And so inside this forest, Kino and I ended up in the exact same boat, albeit for completely different motives.]

—

[Kino offered me some portable rations. I was told before that this clay-like food is well-known among travelers for its nutrient-rich, but at the same time disgusting flavor.]

[I devoured it greedily. I have yet to eat anything for the day, and I had lost a great deal of blood. After eating, my body felt warmer little by little, and my resolve seemed to have been renewed.]

[I did not cease thinking. What can I possibly do to fight back? That’s all that ran through my head.]

[In hindsight, Kino was staring at me all throughout. And noticed it the moment I was burning with the desire to fight.]

[“There’s only one way,” Kino said.]

[There’s only one way to bring down the nine attackers and protect the gates and Hermes without any of us dying.]

[But of course, it will be dangerous. And all the more for me.]

[I immediately answered: Tell me. I’ll do anything.]

—

[As I remained lying down, Kino showed me a rifle.]

[It was a rifle I have never seen before. It was slim, with a wooden stock, a detachable magazine and a sniper scope.]

[There was a cylinder attached at the tip of its barrel. It was a silencer (a device that suppresses the sound of the shot). It considerably weakens the sound of the fire, and helps conceal the location of the sniper.]

[It belonged to Kino. It fit into the bag because it can be disassembled into two parts.]

[This rifle was hence added to our weaponry. With this, we can fight from 300 meters away. However, this is still not enough to fight against nine men. Kino should know that very well.]

[And so Kino continued.]

[“Be my decoy,” he said.]

—

[After I heard Kino’s plan, I quickly answered.]

[Fine, I’ll do it.]

[I might die. But that’s much better than not trying.]

[I stretched out my right hand, and Kino gripped it back.]

—

[“Your timing will be one hundred seconds.” Leaving me those words, Kino ran into the forest with the rifle in hand.]

[While slowly counting, I began to crawl with my right arm and left leg.]

[My left arm couldn’t feel a thing, while my shoulder and right thigh burned in pain. Even so, my heart leaped at the thought of killing the Sgelokultz.]

[I prudently proceeded on a quiet crawl towards the end of the forest, and concealed myself behind the trunk of the thickest tree nearby.]

[The view opened before my eyes. Two hundred meters in front, I could see the gates, still open. I could see the corpses of my comrades and the barracks tent beside them.]

[One hundred seconds passed.]

[I drew my automatic hand persuader from my hip. I put it down for a moment, took the spare ammunition from the pouch on my waist and placed them on the grass in front of me.]

[Three magazines, that is, forty-five rounds, are all that I have. But these shall be my fangs. Fangs that will sink into the throats of the Sgelokultz.]

[I raised my persuader with my right hand and held it out from the right side of the tree trunk. With just one hand, my aim was rather rough.]

[If I press the persuader against the tree, the slide’s motion will be obstructed, causing the bullets to jam. And with just one useful hand, I cannot afford to have that.]

[I aimed at the gates and slowly raised the persuader. The bullet will trace a mountain-like trajectory, and hopefully, reach the gates.]

[It’s not a distance that a human can realistically aim from, but there’s no need for that.]

[I have already begun my operation. I fired.]

—

[There was a shrill shot. I fired three times in succession, and three empty cartridges danced in the air.]

[The bullets hit the walls.]

[I glared at the walls with my right eye. The shots should have been audible, and it should be easy to realize that the bullets hit the walls.]

[And as expected, the Sgelokultz appeared.]

[Four of them first crossed the gates while stooping down with utmost care. In their hands were the rifles that they stole from my comrades. While providing support to each other, they quickly came out of the gates and ran at full speed towards the nearby tent.]

[The remaining five followed in a similar manner. Now that’s all of them. It’s just as we anticipated. In their desire to preserve the strength in numbers, every single one of them would deal with me.]

[I fired once more. The shots hit nothing, but I fired anyway. Five shots in a row.]

[The Sgelokultz were beside the tent. I couldn’t see them from my position, but I let loose seven more bullets. There’s no need to aim.]

[When the last round was released, the slide of the persuader locked back. As soon as I drew my hand away, bullets came towards me along with their deafening roar.]

[The rifle bullets flew at a speed faster than sound, and struck with a shockwave like that of a whiplash. The noise could be heard from both sides, while grass and earth danced about. Several bullets hit the trunk of the tree that served as my shield, sending chips of wood in the air.]

[Still bent down, I changed my magazine. The next fifteen rounds. I have thirty rounds left in all.]

[I can no longer move from this place. The moment I show myself from behind this trunk, I would probably be instantly turned into a honeycomb. I can only expose my hand and fire without aiming.]

[As soon as the firing paused, I returned two rounds. Twenty-eight left.]

[It was a tempest right beside me. Over ten shots came without rest, shaking the ground where I lay. The bullets that go back and forth within thirty centimeters from my head gave me a terrible headache.]

[But I fired, making sure that only the tip of the persuader was showing from the tree. I fired back amidst the violent barrage. I spent thirteen rounds in a manner that can’t be described as anything other than a waste of bullets.]

[As I didn’t have earplugs, my own firing hurt my ears without mercy. I soon lost hearing from my right ear, and a piercing buzz resonated in my left ear, accompanied by pain.]

[My body ached, and the wounds on my shoulder and thigh began to bleed once more. I could feel my body getting wet with blood.]

[The onslaught intensified.]

[The bullets attacked, as if possessing a will to end my life. It felt like each shake of the thick tree chipped away at my life.]

[But I managed to change the magazine one last time, and pounded away with only my hand exposed from the tree. Fifteen left. I fired away, no longer keeping count.]

[As the final bullet flew away, the slide locked. This persuader is now useless, except for throwing at or for clobbering the enemy.]

[At almost the same time, the shootout between me and the nine came to an abrupt end.]

[The stormy echo from the volleys ceased, and silence was restored.]

[Only the flute-like ringing in my ears remained.]

[I have no idea how things turned out.]

[I waited, bearing the pain. Quite some time had passed when my hearing began to come back, and my ears caught the sound of footsteps.]

[I no longer moved. To be exact, I could no longer move.]

[The owner of those footsteps spoke to me in a loud voice.]

[“It’s over,” it said.]

[It was Kino.]

—

[I walked, borrowing Kino’s shoulder.]

[We approached the walls where the corpses of my comrades, and of the Sgelokultz, lay.]

[Behind the tent, in front of the gates, lay all nine of the Sgelokultz, dead from a shot at the side of their heads. Of course, it was all Kino’s doing.]

[Kino’s plan worked perfectly.]

[I acted as bait. While the intense exchange was going on between me and the Sgelokultz, Kino hid by the side of the forest and sniped at them using his rifle equipped with a silencer. That was all.]

[The Sgelokultz mistook me for the one sniping at them. And they desperately fired back, failing to notice Kino even more. As they deliriously fired at me, they were slaughtered from behind.]

[They panicked, believing that a single person was taking them down so easily. According to Kino, the last person was shot as he tried to escape towards the gates.]

[Kino told me everything without any hint of excitement. “It went well,” he said.]

[When I asked how many bullets he spent, Kino’s answer was ‘nine’.]

[In short, even though faced with the danger of being exposed, Kino was able to send one sure-kill bullet to each of their heads. I’m truly impressed.]

[We walked together up to the gates.]

[Then I asked Kino to move the trucks inside the gates. This will be the undeniable proof of this barbaric act of the Sgelokultz. If we just leave them outside the gates, they will probably be taken away.]

[Kino told me that he had not driven a car for a long time. And so I taught him how to do it, and Kino agreed to try.]

[And even though it was rather shaky, the three trucks managed to cross into the gates. Then I operated the device that controlled the gates, and closed them.]

[After that, Kino ascertained my condition. Using the medical supplies from the tent, he disinfected and bandaged my wounds. He removed the bullets from a rifle and made me use it as a crutch.]

[I asked Kino to look for survivors, or check if the wireless radio was still working, but Kino shook his head.]

[And asked, “Will you open the gates for me?”]

[When I asked Kino if he has to leave already, he nodded. I would have liked him to stay longer, but I can’t involve him any further than this.]

[I requested Kino two things. First, for him to get some gasoline from the trucks and set aflame some old tires and scraps of wood to serve as a beacon for my allies.]

[Second, I asked permission to write about him in this device.]

[Kino seemed puzzled for a moment, but eventually replied indifferently, “Well, it doesn’t matter.” Then he added,]

[“Can that device really send your message across to others?”]

[I didn’t know.]

—

[Kino left the country with Hermes.]

[But before they departed, Hermes managed to jest. “That was some trouble you’ve got yourself into,” he said, as if praising someone for shoveling snow on a winter day.]

[And Kino retorted that he wouldn’t have been involved if only Hermes woke up early as scheduled.]

[I was astounded. Indeed, if that were the case, they would have left before the Sgelokultz had come, and Kino wouldn’t have been involved in this fight.]

[It was incredible. I and my comrades were saved because this motorrad slept late!]

[When I told them I would like to give them a medal at least, Hermes insisted to stay like a spoiled child, but was only ignored by Kino.]

[And instead of a medal, Kino asked for a few things.]

[Fuel and food. Fortunately, we have plenty. I answered they could help themselves to as much as the motorrad could carry. I hope that was more than enough for all that trouble.]

[Kino deftly transferred gasoline from the trucks and obtained food.]

[Kino and Hermes said their goodbyes.]

[I thanked them one last time, and operated the device that shut the gates. Beyond the closing gates, watched as Kino’s back became smaller.]

[And I thought, I’ll probably never have the chance to meet Kino again for the rest of my life.]

—

[After that, I set my back on the walls, and waited for my allies while gazing at the rising flames from the beacon. I was determined to stay awake, but before my allies arrived, I fell into a swoon, and had no memory of what came to pass.]

[When I regained consciousness, I was already in a bed surrounded by my comrades. That’s where I am right now.]

[It was already evening.]

[The bullets from my shoulder and leg were extracted, and my hip was sewn. I was counted among the injured, and was given orders to rest. However, before I could explain everything that happened, my comrades congratulated me.]

[They were completely mistaken. They thought that I had single-handedly sniped at the nine cowards who attacked us, in defiance of the wounds that I have sustained.]

[I tried to tell them that they had it wrong. But I wasn’t able to say it. I couldn’t say it. That’s because I was told soon after that our leader felt that this story could be put to good use.]

[To boost the morale of our troops, they spread around the news about me, the hero who thwarted the cowardly scheme of the Sgelokultz.]

[It’s nothing more than a farce. But if it’s for the sake of victory, I don’t care. I’ll play the part of a clown no matter how many times it takes. Besides, I won’t be able to fight for over a month, and there’s no guarantee that my left arm will be the same as before. This is the least I could do.]

[However, if there’s anyone reading this, I want you to remember.]

[About the traveler called Kino and his motorrad Hermes.]

—

[That was everything that happened today.]

[I ended up writing it all at once. There might be lapses in my memory, but my account should be more or less accurate.]

[It’s already midnight. As I passed out at noon, the remaining pain left me unable to sleep. My right hand also feels rather tired.]

[From now on, the war with the Sgelokultz will continue. It will probably intensify even more. But we will not lose. And I will continue killing them.]

[I have lived twenty years.]

[And one out of those twenty years was spent in desperate struggle, in the killing of Sgelokultz day after day.]

[When this war is over, and when the Sgelokultz have been wiped out from this country, will my kin pass by twenty years of their lives without conflict? Will they spend their youth without killing or getting killed?]

[The answers to those questions will hinge on our battle from here on.]

—

[Oh I almost forgot. It’s about Kino and the Sgelokultz.]

[When I first met him, I thought Kino and the Sgelokultz were the same. But I heard the story from Hermes. Kino is in fact, the same as us.]

[If Kino were born in this country, he would be one of us.]

[Perhaps, we would be fighting on the same side. And with that amazing skill, he would take down plenty of the Sgelokultz.]

[I am sure we would become great comrades-in-arms.]

[I just have a feeling it would have been like that.]

Translator’s Notes

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