Kino no Tabi:Volume3 Chapter1

Chapter One "A Land Without Borders" -Designated Area-

Across a grassy field ran a single motorad (note- two wheeled vehicle, simply denotes that it cannot fly).

There, you could see nothing but the moderately wet earth, the grass across which winter was slowly beginning to spread, the sky and the clouds, and the sun. There were no mountains in the distance, and grass circled around from all sides. Ninety percent of one's vision would be occupied by the sky.

The motorad was packed full of travel luggage. On top of the back pipe carrier sat a large briefcase, on top of which several containers of water and fuel were aligned. As if cutting through it, on each side of the back wheel was a box. A rolled-up sleeping bag was tied to the headlight.

"This is so boring...." said the motorad.

"That's the one hundred eighty fourth time," the rider said.

"..."

"..."

And then they both fell silent.

The rider wore a brown coat, whose long cuffs were wrapped around her waist. Along with her weapons, she wore a hat with long flaps that covered her ears and a pair of goggles. The face behind those goggles was young; the girl seemed to be in her teens. She had large eyes, and wore an intrepid expression across her face.

There wasn't anything like a path along the grassy field, so while running across the grass, avoiding the occasional bump, the motorad unmindfully continued along.

Eventually, the sun rose so high that the motorad's shadow extended completely horizontal to it.

"Are we taking a break anytime soon, Kino?" the motorad asked.

"It seems alright," the rider named Kino said. "We'll stop early today, and we can take it easy this evening."

"Got it... but even so, this is boring." said the motorad.

"One hundred eighty fifth time." said Kino. Then, with a carefree tone she asked, "I thought about asking you this yesterday, but do you get bored even when we're moving?"

The motorad called Hermes replied, "That's right, especially like this, where the land is all flat and we're going at the same speed, it's as if I'm on a factory roller, and it feels as though only my wheels are moving. Or rather, I feel like a mouse inside a cage."

"I see..."

"What about you, Kino? Just like this, when the scenery doesn't change a bit, doesn't it get tiring?" Hermes asked.

Kino answered, "whether it's tiring or not, I think about other things while riding, so that notion passed me by a long time ago."

"Eh? What kinds of things? Tell me a bit about it," Hermes requested.

"It probably won't interest you," Kino said.

"That's alright," Hermes urged.

"Earlier today, I was thinking, if I were having a knife thrust at me from the right, do I drop the weapon in that hand and bear the burden of having thrown it away, or do I pin the hand down and immobilize it? Then, taking a step back, do I fling the hand up? Or is it better to dodge with the half of my body being stabbed at while going for an elbow strike?"

"..."

"Those sorts of things."

"... That's not interesting."

"I told you."

The motorad ran across the grassy field.

"So boring..." Hermes sighed.

"One hundred eighty six..."

Kino stopped in the middle of her utterance. She stood up while Hermes was still running.

"What's wrong?" asked Hermes.

"That‘s strange..."

"Hm?"

At first, from their location, Kino and Hermes could see things that seemed like specks of trash. When they advanced further, there were several black dots in the green space below the horizon. Coming closer, they found that some were big while others were tiny.

Before long, they found something else. The larger things were dome-shaped tents, several of which were constructed close together. The smaller things around them were groups of livestock, and the people next to them.

Hermes made a whistling noise and said, "that is strange. There are people here. And cows and horses and sheep too. And houses."

"This isn't a country, is it... They're nomads..."

"There are actually people living here. That's amazing, huh?"

Kino slowed Hermes down a little. A person on a horse turned to Kino and rode over to them. It was a young man in his prime wearing peculiarly made clothing.

"What do you think, Kino?" Hermes asked.

"If they don't welcome us, we'll take a detour. I'll talk to him first."

Kino stopped Hermes. The man came over. He didn't have anything in his hands. With a smile, he said, "Hello, miss traveler. All of us living here are one family."

Kino returned the greeting. The man asked Kino where she came from.

"It's a country in the south. Anyways, I won't get in the way of your lifestyle. I'll leave immediately."

To this, the man shook his head.

"There's no need for that, and that's not what we want. It has been our tradition to welcome the travelers we occasionally meet for generations. We’ll give you the same food as us, and we can give you a roof and your own bed. By all means, please become our guest. I’ll take you to our family’s head.”

“I see…” Kino sighed. “What should I do?” she asked Hermes.

“It’s fine so long as you’re alright with it.”

After pondering a moment, Kino said to the man, “I understand. I’ll accept your offer.”

The man had a truly happy expression on his face.

“Then let’s go ahead!”

Saying this, he ran his horse to the settlement. Kino, departing with Hermes, slowly followed.

In the settlement, there stood approximately twenty portable tents. Heavy cloth covered the large, dome-shaped objects. The sides were covered as well.

An uncountable number of cows and sheep casually chewed on grass in the area near the settlement. Men riding on horses were shepherding the flocks around.

A group of about twenty people awaited Kino and Hermes. Various ages were apparent in the group, from young people under twenty to middle-aged women. About half of them were smoking. Kino cut Hermes’s engine when she arrived in front of the group. She then removed her hat and goggles.

“Hello, everyone. My name is Kino, and this is my companion, Hermes.”

“Nice to meet you!” From the middle of the group, a voice arose from what seemed like the oldest-looking man among them. Like the others, he was smoking.

“Mister Kino. Mister Hermes. Welcome. I am the head of this family. For people like us, who are constantly relocating, it is not rare to meet a traveler. Please, do heal your fatigue with us.”

After Kino thanked him, a kind-looking middle-aged woman led her to one of the tents. Along the way, from several tents, children could be seen peering out timidly.

Inside of the tent, it was so spacious that it seemed several people could sleep inside it at once. Radiating outward from the central tree trunk, linearly separated tree remains supported beds. Soft felt was laid out underfoot.

The entrance was made larger for Hermes so he could enter. The woman explained to Kino how this tent was used by the family like normal until it was eventually dedicated solely for the use of guests. Hearing this, Kino voiced her thanks once more.

After the woman left, Kino removed her coat. Kino was wearing a black jacket underneath, with a belt strapped around her waist. On the belt were attached several pockets, and on her right hip hung a revolver type hand persuader (note - a persuader is a gun, in this case a pistol). Behind her hung another weapon, a twenty-two caliber automatic. Kino called the revolver “Cannon” and the other “Woodsman.”

Removing “Woodsman” from its holster after “Cannon,” Kino looked up at the center of the tent, and then toppled over.

“This is comfortable,” she sighed without thinking.

“It is,” said Hermes as well. “If you think about it, this tent seems like it would be warm in the Winter while being cool in the Summer. The cuffs are open. It also seems like it could be put together or taken down quickly.”

“In order to search for pasture, they must have to relocate plenty of times every year. For us to have met like this, the chances of such are maybe miraculous. Have they been living in harmony with the earth their whole lives? And with no high protective wall surrounding them…” Kino said this with profound emotion.

“Are you jealous? I bet they’ll be your friends if you ask.”

Kino rose with a start.

“No way, that’s off limits. I doubt I’d fit in either.”

“Well, where would you fit in?” Hermes asked.

“Is that something,” Kino started, “I should even search for?”

In the evening, Kino was invited to supper.

While Hermes remained asleep, Kino was introduced to everyone in front of the large family head tent. The entire family consisted of a little less than fifty people. There were about ten children who were no more than twelve years old. After that, they were treated to a meal in the family head’s tent. Aligned on the head’s low table was a simple meal for a simple lifestyle, with dairy products being the bulk of the meal. When Kino was asked if the food was palatable, she honestly replied, “It’s delicious.” However, because of the incessant smoking of their pipes, the inside of the tent was considerably filled with smoke. Kino’s eyes began to sting, and she asked for permission to leave. She went outside in search of fresh air.

Outside the tent, while she was looking at the evening sky, someone suddenly spoke from her side.

“You.”

Kino, startled, turned toward the voice’s origin. Before her eyes, with the completely red sky set as the background, a man who appeared to be in his thirties stood. He had a prepared look on his face, and it may have been because of this that he seemed so emotionless. The man’s face changed slightly when Kino looked at him. Though he was wearing the same clothes as all of the others, his eyes were a different color too, a light, ashen gray. The color of his skin was also somewhat different, and he was taller than the others.

“Don’t be afraid,” he said to Kino, who was looking at him dubiously. He continued to stare fixedly at her with his gray eyes and flatly asked, “you are, the traveler who came today, no?”

“That’s right,” Kino nodded.

“Everyone thinks that you’re a man. Am I wrong?”

“…What about it?” Kino returned.

The man, without changing his expression, said, “nothing.”

After a while, he turned away from the tent and left.

The next day, Kino woke with the dawn as usual. The weather was fine.

When she went outside, everyone was already awake and milling about with their daily activities. A woman was milking the sheep. A young fellow was grooming a horse. There were children helping each other to light a fire. Occasionally, and adult with a pipe would come over to the fire.

“It’s okay if you sleep a little longer,” said a woman who happened by Kino.

“This is when I usually wake up, thank you,” replied Kino.

The woman who had spoken to her smiled and said, “that is a very good thing.”

Back inside her tent, Kino practiced drawing “Cannon” and “Woodsman.” After giving them a quick tune-up, she returned them to their holsters.

After everyone had finished their tasks, they gathered in small groups in various places and began their breakfast. The meal consisted of what seemed like bread and a topping of melted cheese.

“It’s very delicious,” Kino said. Contrary to this, however, she offered to everyone that they try some of the clay-like portable food she had with her. To this, they made a complex expression, and ended up only eating a little bit of what she gave them.

After the meal, the men mounted their horses and left for the animals’ pasture. The remaining women were left to clean up afterwards and go about mending the tents, with the help of the children. They occasionally took a break and, under the blue sky, smoked a pipe.

While she was examining Hermes, Kino noticed that the children were looking on from afar.

“If you want a closer look, go ahead. He doesn’t bite.”

“How rude! … But yeah, that’s right.”

The frightened children inched closer. The youngest among them were mere toddlers, while the oldest were about eleven or twelve years old. Since it was rare that they ever see something like Hermes, they approached him with deep interest.

“Woah, it’s stiff!”

“Amazing… it’s an iron horse.”

“His name is Hermes.” The moment she said it, cries arose from the children.

“What a weird name!” “How strange!” “That’s a funny name!”

“Hurr-meez?” one of them asked.

“No, no, it’s Her-mes. Not ‘heh,’ but ‘eh.’ ‘Hermes?’ Come on! That sounds so stupid.”

“Hermeeees!”

“’Eh!’ ‘Err-mess!’”

While the innocent children and the shameless Hermes let loose on each other, Kino noticed that a few of the children had small pipes in their mouths. Looking closer, she saw that there was no grass in them.

“What are those pipes? Do you all smoke too?” Kino asked the oldest-looking boy.

“Nah, we just have them around. Only the adults can smoke them. Because the adults work for the sake of everyone’s lives, they get to smoke these as a reward. When we’re recognized as adults, we get to smoke for the first time.”

“I see…”

“In order to be recognized as an adult, the boys have to ride horses. But we not only have to ride them, we need to be able to order around the flocks of animals too.”

“What about you?” Kino asked.

“I’m still in training…” the boy replied in a small voice. He then pulled out a sickle from behind his back and said, “b-but! The grass I harvest is the most delicious! If my mom helps, yeah, it’s the best…” He seemed proud of himself, but a girl behind him who looked about twelve said, “Harvesting the grass is the women’s work. A boy who can’t ride a horse is pretty uncool.”

“…”

The boy was silent. The girl turned to Kino and said,

“I’m going to bear his children. He’s going to be my husband.”

“Huh…? It’s already decided?” Kino asked.

“Yup. From the time I was born. That’s why he has to become cool. He can’t be like this!” The girl nodded heavily, as if she was enjoying it.

“Pfft, whatever. You’re just a tomboy,” the boy sourly responded. The girl paid no heed.

“It’s quite sad, actually. I’m better at horse-riding than him.” Kino made a wry smile.

“If that’s the case, then can’t you guys just exchange jobs once you’re living together?”

The girl looked at her for a moment, dumbfounded.

“Okay. Alright then, I’ll ride the horses when I grown up!”

“You can’t do that. You’d look so dumb.”

“It’s fine! I’ve already decided. I’ll go tell my father now.”

“You can’t.”

“Can too!”

Kino, in high spirits, followed the pair with her eyes as they chased each other. When she turned around, Hermes was still chatting with the kids surrounding him.

“I! Told! You! It’s not ‘heh,’ it’s ‘eh!’”

When the men returned at noon, everyone had their lunch and took a nap.

Afterward, Kino was invited to try riding a horse. The clansmen instructed Kino, who had never ridden a horse before. She started off riding slowly, and when she became used to that, she became able to ride at a faster pace. Kino was brilliant at the reins, and the adults looked on her with admiration. The family head, with his pipe smoking in his mouth, curtly said, “It’s decided.”

The adults surrounding Kino nodded in silence. They looked on the state of affairs from atop their horses, staring fixedly with their gray eyes.

It was the evening, after the usual meal in the smoky tent.

In front of her own tent, Kino, who was sitting on Hermes with his center stand out, looked up at the sky. Clouds were gathering over the Western horizon, and the sunset was almost pitch black. “So, did they ever end up getting your name right, Hermes?”

“No… all those children still think that you told them ‘Err-mess.’”

Kino stifled a laugh.

“… You know, when we leave tomorrow, you won’t have another chance to correct them.”

“Yeah, I know…” Hermes sighed. “It looks like bad weather tomorrow, Kino.”

“You’re right… even so, we can only stay for three days.”

“…I understand.” said Hermes. Kino dismounted Hermes. Right then,

“You.”

“Wah!”

The ashen-eyed man from the previous night had suddenly spoken up from behind them. Hermes had let out a yelp, and Kino glared at him for a moment before turning to face him. The man took several steps toward them. The man, who stood as if looking down on Kino and Hermes, asked,

“Where are you from?”

Kino, without breaking her gaze on the man, jilted her neck.

The man asked again.

“Don‘t you even know the name of your own home?”

Kino spoke slowly, “I… I’ve been traveling a long time…”

The man made several small nods. In his continued emotionless voice, he said, “I see. You’re able to accustom yourself to this destitution you call freedom? That’s quite something.”

“…”

“What’s wrong?” the man aske Kino, who was silently looking at herself.

And then Kino asked, “I’m sorry, but… long ago, were your people travelers?”

“Never.” The man replied immediately.

“That’s a lie, isn’t it?”

“Yes. It’s a lie.” The man replied immediately again. As if seeking confirmation, Kino asked,

“You… you weren’t born with these people, were you?”

“… What about it?” the man responded, turning around. Kino followed his back with her eyes. Since he couldn’t see anything, Hermes asked,

“Is it the same inquisitive guy as yesterday? Who’s out there, Kino?”

Kino responded truthfully.

“I don’t know.”

It was the next day, the third day since Kino had met the family. The sky was covered with low, heavy clouds. Though the sun had risen, it wasn’t much brighter out.

After breakfast, Kino explained to the family head that she had the intention of leaving that day. The family head made a surprised face.

“Is there something we haven’t attended to?” he asked.

“No. It’s just, I stay for only three days in each country I visit… I’m enormously grateful for your help.”

The head, taken by surprise for a moment, immediately said,

“The truth is, since we were unable to do a welcome reception for you, we had planned to hold our first dinner party in a long time tonight instead. All members of the family will judge a cow to be slaughtered, and everyone will have a great time. The weather is bad as well, so please, how about staying one night longer?”

“… I, I’m very grateful for all your hard work, but…” The woman who had originally showed Kino her tent noticed her distress.

“Sir, we can start the preparations now. If we do that, then we’ll be able to hold the party a little past noon. That way, Kino could take part as well.”

“Ooh, how about that?” the family head asked. Kino nodded in assent.

The family head, joyful, alerted everyone to the plan.

“--and that way, we can leave after having the feast.” she told Hermes, while piling her luggage on him.

“Got it. Sounds like fun.”

After she had finished her preparations for departure, Kino put on her jacket and turned toward the family head’s tent, leaving Hermes behind.

The sky was still covered, and there was barely any light out.

“Well, this is boring…”

Kino had left as soon as she was finished with Hermes, leaving him in the tent to entertain himself.

Right then, the cuff on the opposite side entrance was raised soundlessly. With a smooth, unhindered motion, a human figure entered.

“Who’s there? Kino’s not here right now.”

“I see,” returned a voice, its owner approaching.

“You’re the guy with the gray eyes…” Hermes said, somewhat nervous. The man grabbed Hermes’ handlebars and kicked up his kickstand, which had been leaning forward.

“Well, let’s go.”

“Where to?” Hermes asked.

“To put it one way,” the man replied, “Hell.”

In the tent of the family head, several long tables had been lined up, with about thirty people in all sitting at them. As usual, everyone was smoking their pipes, and the inside of the tent was awash with the stench of burning weed. In the center of it all sat a well-done chunk of cow meat. Kino was offered a seat near the center of the tent, and with that, the party began. The man in charge cut up the meat into sections with a large cutting knife. Salt was spread adequately across the cuts, with dehydrated garlic inserted into the meat.

“Where are the children and the rest of the family?” Kino asked the man next to her.

“We couldn’t fit everyone in this tent, so they’re in a different one. They’re also out helping the children with guarding the animals. They’re taking turns doing it, you see? Since it’s been a long time since we’ve had meat. The children can’t participate, so they have to do that. They must feel so bad, not being able to be in the tent like this. I’ll bet they want to become adults real quick.” The man whiffed a puff of smoke from his pipe and took a sip of liquid from a flask fashioned out of intestines. “Want some? It’s alcohol made from sheep’s milk.”

Kino politely declined.

“Traveler, how about some of this?” A woman passed a wooden cup to Kino. It had tea in it. Kino thanked her and accepted it. She noticed something funny about the way it smelled. “It has an interesting aroma. What kind of tea is this?”

“Huh? Um, uh… well, you see, it doesn’t have a name, but…” the woman, taken slightly aback, gave a smile and said, “well, it doesn’t matter!”

Kino stared at the tea for a few moments. And then,

“I think this tea might be a bit too intense for me. I apologize, but I won’t be having any.” She placed the cup on the table. The man next to her gave Kino a dubious look. Kino slowly stood up. “Everyone. I very grateful for everything you’ve done for me, but I have to leave soon.” Every member of the family simultaneously looked at her with an astonished expression.

“Is that so? Well then, we’ll see you off outside,” said the woman who had given Kino the tea. She led Kino toward the exit, with Kino following slowly from behind.

Suddenly, the woman twisted her body around turning to face her. The woman brought down a club, missing the back of Kino’s head and sweeping her shoulder. Kino, as if flying, shifted back in one step. She kicked up the table behind her, scattering food all around. Everyone in the tent stood up at once. The young men guarded the exit, the rest crowding around Kino.

“What… what is this?” Kino asked. The family head appeared behind her.

“Kino. Why didn’t you just shut up and drink the tea? Don’t force me to be subjected to those painful eyes. We won’t take your life. Just calm down for a little while.” Kino slowly turned to face the head.

“What if I refuse?”

The family head didn’t answer, waving his hand lightly. The surrounding adults could be heard brandishing clubs in their hands. Kino swiftly pulled “Cannon” out of the holster on her right hip. The adults all winced, all but the family head, who immediately took a step toward Kino.

“Hoho! Are you planning to use that? When was the last time you had to use it? However many you’ve felled before, that number caps here!”

“Yes, you’re absolutely right.”

Kino slowly returned “Cannon” to its holster. Kino made a break for the exit on the opposite end, grabbing the cutting knife still stuck in the meat. She grabbed the nearest person--the family head--and brought him in close. She stood grasping his hair with her left hand and poking at his throat with the cutting knife with her right.

“Nobody move!” Kino barked. Everyone’s movements came to a complete halt.

“Y-you bastard…” said the family head, forced to stare upward.

“I won’t take your lives, everyone, just calm down.”

“It’s useless! There’s no way you’ll get out of here. Your motorad’s already been destroyed by now.”

“Then… it’s like that time…” Kino whispered absent-mindedly. At the same time, she grabbed the head’s hair more fiercely, pushing the knife’s blade against his neck.

In the midst of his distress, the head shouted,

“… Everyone! Even if I die, don’t let him leave the tent! Don’t let him take a single step outside!”

“Fine.”

Kino tossed away the knife, pushing down the family head at the same time. But before she threw the knife, she pulled out “Cannon,” firing three shots in succession.

A thunderous roar could be heard from inside the tent, from a low place near the central pole. All three bullets had been aimed there, hollowing the inside out. Watching the men springing about, Kino gave the pole a violent kick, toppling it over.

The roof of the tent fell.

Kino crawled out from under the cuff of the tent. Under the dark sky, not a single human figure could be seen. Only the other similar tents, not making a sound, were visible.

Behind her, the adults squirmed under the flattened tent. Somebody screamed.

“Damn! Search for him! Chase him! Bring him back alive! Blood! Precious blood!”

Kino began to run to her own tent. However, when she passed through one side, a man jumped out at her.

“You’re not going anywh--”

Kino shot the man’s foot. He tumbled over, shrieking in anguish.

“There he is! Over there!”

Hearing someone someone’s voice from behind her, Kino clicked her tongue.

She took a roundabout path behind a nearby tent, hiding herself. At that moment, a violent force grabbed her mouth from behind her head.

“!!”

Kino flailed at her right side, grabbing “Cannon” and aiming it at the chin of the person behind her.

She pulled the trigger. No bullet came out. Kino’s face froze.

“Don’t speak. It will only add to the danger you’re in.”

She heard an emotionless voice speak into her ear from behind her. The force around her head was loosened, allowing her to turn her neck.

Ashen eyes stared back at her. He gripped “Cannon” in his right hand, his thumb interposing the hammer. The man gently released his hand from “Cannon.” Kino was freed.

“Don’t use your persuader. It’ll give out your location.”

Kino looked up at the man.

“Aren’t you going to strike me?”

“No. I won’t strike you.”

Right when he said this, a different man’s voice became audible.

“There he is! Rauher’s got him!”

Three men with clubs ran up to them.

“Use this. I’ll take these two guys,” said the ashen-eyed man called Rauher.

He handed Kino a club similar to their’s. The three men had come unprepared, and Kino and Rauher struck them down, confusing them. Right as Kino had knocked out one of the men, Rauher had knocked down the other two. Rauher pulled a knife from a sheath on his waist, and swiftly cut through their windpipes. Struggling from the loss of blood, they died quickly. He then did the same with the man Kino took on.

“Why? Why are you alright with me escaping?”

Rauher lowered his gaze slightly.

“I’m doing this for their sake. They’ve been living in suffering for a long time.”

“What do you mean?”

“Come over here.”

Rauher forcefully pulled Kino to a nearby tent.

“This is my tent.”

Right when Kino entered,

“Kino! You’re safe!”

“Hermes?”

Kino raised her voice without thinking. Inside the tent was Hermes, propped up on his kickstand and piled with luggage.

“I persuaded him to come with me earlier. If we’re in here, they won’t find us for a while.” Saying this, Rauher put a pipe in his mouth.

“Thanks for doing that. Things turned out just as you said, huh?”

“Yeah. Things just happened pretty fast. As expected of you, Kino. I figured you’d start running, since you didn’t take the drink,” said Rauher, as he lit his pipe. He was using a match from Kino’s luggage. “I’m just borrowing it,” he said shortly. He began to smoke; he seemed to find it relaxing.

“Is it alright if I ask a question?” said Kino, as she changed the cylinder in “Cannon.”

“Go ahead.”

“Why are they hunting me down? Furthermore, why are you helping us?”

Rauher stared at Kino for a moment.

“They want to make you one of them. A member of the clan. They do this so that they can bring in new blood from the outside. They’ve been doing it for hundreds of years, they give passing travelers a warm reception, show their appreciation for them, and pull them into the family. If they’re short, they kill them. You were brought in with heavy spirits in that respect. Do you get it so far?”

“Yes… but how? It didn’t look like they were begging me to lower my head.”

“With this.”

Rauher held out his pipe in front of Kino’s eyes.

“You saw how all the adults were smoking these, right? There’s a strong poison in these pipes. Smoke one once and it becomes a habit. It reaches the point where you can’t live without it. If you stop smoking for half a day, your head begins to hurt. Three days, and your hands start trembling. Five days, and you start seeing hallucinations. If you hold out for ten days, you die slobbering all over yourself. That tea you refused, there was an extract of this grass mixed into it.”

“If it’s as you say… what would happen if I drank it?”

“You would lose your mind in an instant, moaning nonstop for days on end, even in your sleep. In that time, Hermes would be taken apart and scattered under the ground, and the clan would relocate.”

“…”

“Wow, I would have never thought of that,” said Hermes.

“You would be smoked even through your moans, so when you woke up, you’d be as fine as ever. You can’t live at all without this. The grass doesn’t grow anywhere but in this field, and the only time it can’t be harvested is during a short period in autumn. You can either spend your life doing your compulsory duties as part of the clan, or you can die of withdrawal symptoms. It’s your choice either way.”

“I see. I understand very well now.” Kino nodded several times. She then asked Rauher, “How long for you?”

“Five years, about.”

“How… has it been?”

Rauher gave a sad smile, and put out his pipe.

“Aah… When I first woke up, I wondered what on earth had happened. I spat curses out, and to make things worse, the negative response from the poison was gut-wrenching. I began to familiarize myself with death. I thought for sure I was going to die.”

Rauher lit his pipe and put it back in his mouth, which had curled into a smile.

“But, the woman who was attending to me, well, she was more of a young girl back then, but anyways, she said this to me: ‘It’s no good if you die. You can’t die!’ She said this to me through a sea of tears, ‘if you live, good things will surely happen!’ Heh. That’s right.”

“…”

“So I chose to live like this. I memorized my duties quickly, and I was accepted by everyone. From there… I became married to that woman. Well, it was actually decided the moment I had been “evaluated,” but whatever.”

“Were you happy?” Hermes asked.

“You could say that, I guess.” He continued. “That was, perhaps, the happiest time of my life.”

“What happened to your wife…?” Kino asked.

“Last year, around this time, she was killed.” Rauher responded, emotion absent from his voice.

“Why was that?”

Rauher breathed a puff of smoke. Voices could be heard outside the tent.

“They’re not in here either!” someone shouted as they passed by.

“It’s because she couldn’t bear children.” Rauher answered the question.

“Huh?”

“She bore my child, but it was miscarried. She was never able to bear another child her whole life. Since she could not produce children, she was valueless. She was a waste of precious food and grass, a waste that they could not tolerate. Not here. Kino… don’t glare at me like that.”

“… Excuse me.”

“So it was immediately decided, at the order of the family head, that she had to die. She accepted that, was killed, and later buried. I’m not sure where, though.”

“What were you doing all that time, mister?” Hermes asked. Rauher took another huff of smoke.

“The last thing I said to her… was the same exact thing she first said to me.”

“…”

“…”

“And that’s how it is.”

Rauher took his last puff of smoke, tossed the ashes, and threw away the pipe. And then he sighed.

“They should be here soon.”

“What?” Rauher didn’t answer. He moved silently toward the entrance of the tent. A clansman poked his head into the tent and saw Kino.

“There she is! As we thought, she’s in here!” The moment after he yelled this, great splashes of blood spewed from his throat. Rauher went over to the man’s corpse and kicked it outside.

“Well, let’s go outside… it’s safe.” Rauher opened the entrance wide. Kino unfastened Hermes’ kickstand, handling it carefully. Outside, the adults had the tent surrounded. When they saw Kino, along with Rauher, step outside the tent, a commotion spread across the crowd. The sky was darker than it had previously been.

“I wonder if it’ll rain…” sighed Hermes.

“What’s going on here?” asked the family head, scowling at them.

“There’s nothing to be said about it. I seem to have simply gone off and done as I wanted, head.”

“Hand over the traveler. I’ll consider your punishment later.”

Rauher pulled out his pipe, and casually, politely, filled it with grass.

“It would be better if you didn’t. Your time is over.”

“Fool!” shouted the family head, irritated. He gave orders to a few men holding long clubs. “Get them all at once! Don’t allow them to escape! I don’t care if you have to give them a few injuries!” Rauher struck a match. He moved the flame slowly toward his pipe--

BAM--!

A muffled explosion could be heard from the settlement. The adults whirled around, and a pained scream was emitted from the one who found its origin.

“F… Fire! The grass tent is burning!”

“Whaaat?!”

From a single tent, copious amounts of smoke were rising out of a hole in the roof.

“It’s as I said. If you don’t do something fast, everyone is going to burn up.”

The faces of all the family members changed. Completely forgetting about Kino and Rauher, they rushed toward the burning tent.

The smoke from the tent began to rise with increased vigor, and flames could be seen intermittently flickering from inside.

“The grass! The graaass!”

“The grass of life!”

“Put out the fire! Put it out somehow!”

Rauher, Kino, and Hermes watched on from behind as the people screamed maddeningly. They hit the fire with their clubs and whacked it with their clothes, but their desperate attempts to put out the fire were entirely ineffective. The fire, unrestrained, grew more furious.

“That’s all the grass that they’ve saved from last year. I rigged it earlier. I asked Hermes if I could use a little bit of oil and gunpowder. Without that grass, everyone’s got ten days left to live,” said Rauher. Kino turned to face him. “Including me.”

Rauher breathed a puff of smoke.

The fire grew more and more, and the flames pranced distinctly across the figures of the people surrounding them. One man moved closer to the fire, resolving to salvage some grass. The sleeves of his clothes and his hair were singed, and soon, his whole body was awash in flame. The man danced, engulfed by fire, screaming an otherworldly scream all the while. No one helped him, and he eventually danced his last and fell down. There were several more people whose bodies caught on fire. The faces of numerous people desperately trying to put out the fire turned a ghastly pale, and they collapsed from suffocation. As people were tossed out of the way or stepped upon, the futile fire-dousing operation continued.

The roof of the tent fell. As the flames engulfed the entirety of the grass, the smoke grew more tempestuous. White smoke signals flared upward.

Kino gazed at the depressing situation before her as she watched person after person collapse. Others desperately breathed in all the smoke they could, their faces deep into the cloud. White foam began to appear from their mouths as they staggered, making strange shrieks before fainting.

Finally, the tent and the grass had burned down entirely. Several people had fallen around the burned wreckage. They remained there, motionless.

The people who could move ended themselves.

Suddenly, a man grabbed the neck of a nearby woman and pinned her to the ground, choking her to death. Then, he began to bludgeon the people cowering around him to death. As the sound of heads splitting open could be heard, the number of motionless people increased. There remained people trying to set themselves on fire, and others that were burning.

One man staggered toward Kino. Both of his hands had been turned into charcoal.

“Heheheh…”

He closed his empty eyes, slashing at Rauher’s throat.

And then, Rauher moved closer the charred ruin, setting the other people at ease. The sunken people, the crying people, the laughing people, the embracing people, the people spewing foam from their mouths, the people who were bludgeoned to death, and the half burnt people.

Gently, he took the knife and stabbed it into the assailant’s neck. The number of the living decreased.

“Y-you… what are you…”

The last remaining person, the one once called the family head, spoke to Rauher, who was standing before his eyes.

“One year ago, if you hadn’t done that, maybe there would have been another way…”

The man with the bloodstained knife looked back at him with his ashen eyes.

The head held his head in his hands, sighing as he tore at his hair.

“Ooh… it’s the end… it’s the end of everything…”

Rauher turned his head sideways.

“No. That is not everything. Goodbye, father.”

The knife remaining in the neck of the family head, Rauher turned around. Kino and Hermes watched on as he came over to them.

“Hell has ended. You can go now.”

“Let’s go together. Gather up as much of the remaining grass as you can, and go to some country near here. Maybe somehow, the poison will be released from you. If you stay here, you’ll just die, there aren’t many possibilities besides that.”

The man looked at Kino and sighed.

“Maybe that’s what would be good…” But then, he clearly said, “but I’m staying here.”

“Why? … When no one’s even here.”

Rauher smiled.

“Have you forgotten?”

“Hm?”

“The children.”

“Oh!”

“Not everything has ended.”

“…”

“I’ll explain to them what the adults did, what they were smoking, and why they’re like this. I’ll teach them to live with just as they are, until I die of madness. No, I have to show them that death as well. The have to use the remaining animals and live. They need to be able to make a new future, one without smoke. That’s why I’m… staying here.”

“… I understand.” Kino gave a small nod. And then she asked, “Where are you from? If it’s a place I pass by…”

Rauher turned his head.

“There’s no need to tell you, and you really shouldn’t go there. The country I was born in was a murderer.”

“…”

“What did it do? Since this is the last time I hear from you,” said Hermes, putting stress on “since this is the last time.” Rauher gave a sad smile.

“Since this is the last time, huh…? I was a soldier then. Ever since I was a little kid, I received special training. When times of war came, I assassinated lots of enemies. I thought I had killed for the country's sake, for everyone's sake. But, after the war, I became a nuisance. For a country that won a fight in the name of justice, it couldn't be said publicly that an assassin took lives in its place. As a broken-down, murderous demon whose usefulness had expired, I was expelled from the country. I didn't want to go on a journey or anything like that. I wanted to spend my whole life in the place I was born in. I wanted to build my family and live a normal life there. When I came upon these people, I wondered if I should start from scratch."

"... I see. Thank you so much," said Hermes.

"Don't mention it," replied Rauher.

Kino remained silent, putting on her coat, pulling her hat and goggles on.

"You look a lot like her," Rauher said suddenly.

"Huh?"

"You asked me why I helped you earlier, right? I still haven't answered you. It's because you reminded me so much of her. No... not your face, but your eyes... Your eyes are so much like hers. They're exactly the same." Rauher's ashen eyes slowly grew thin.

"Your... Your wife?" Kino asked. Rauher nodded.

"Yes. Even now, it's like a dream."

"... By any chance, if I was taken into the family, would I have been made your wife?"

"That's right."

"..."

"Goodbye, then. It was a delight to meet you." Saying this, Rauher turned his back to Kino.

"I won't ever forget how you saved me... goodbye," Kino said to the man walking away from her.

The man didn't turn around; he simply, lightly, waved his hand.

The sound of a motorad's engine could be heard in the settlement, and then it was gone.

In a single tent, the children shivered. Finally, the entrance opened, and an ashen-eyed man entered. He said to them that he had something to tell them. He said it was something very important, something he wanted all of them to hear.

The children slowly gathered around the man in a circle. The man surveyed each of the children. He opened his mouth, but in that instant, a sickle was stabbed into his throat, and not a sound came out of it.

"I saw you! You're the enemy of everyone!" someone said. The man tried to say something, desperately moving his mouth, but no voice came out, and he finally died.

The children went outside of the tent. And then they cried. When they grew tired of crying, someone spoke up.

"From now on, we have to live on our own." Everyone nodded.

"From now on, we have to do everything that the adults did." Everyone nodded.

In the tent of the family head, the children searched for anything useful. Someone found a suitcase with lots of "strange things" in it, and everyone looked.

It was grass. Nobody recognized it, but it was the grass that the family head had stored up for use in times of emergency, a grass that held a certain amount of importance.

Someone realized that this must be what all the adults were smoking, and he told the others.

"That's only for the adults!" someone scolded.

"We are now the adults," someone said. "And so, these are our rewards."

This view became accepted, and every one of them put a pipe in their mouth and began to smoke. At first, there were people who had bad feelings about it, but in order to become adults, they endured.

Half a month later, this family--

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