Nigoru Hitomi de Nani wo Negau

After bidding farewell to the farmers who had been on the short journey together, Walm bought daily necessities and food items at the store he had been told and headed for the port. The scent of the sea he felt when he stepped into the port city intensified. It was a scent that not everyone liked, but Walm, like a girl in love, had his heart pounding fast and his steps naturally quickening.

Walm’s eardrums were shaken by the loud voices of the busy sailors who had disembarked temporarily. Avoiding the old wooden boxes and the stained barrels of the store, and passing through the row of warehouses, the scene that Walm was looking for spread out.

The everlasting vast sea.

The surface of the sea reflected the sunlight and extended beyond the horizon, and the waves rushed to the pier without interruption.

“Oh, it’s the sea. I’m glad that it’s not red, black, or yellow.”

It was a world where even two moons illuminated the night. Who could guarantee that the ocean would remain the same as in the previous world? The color, viscosity, and even smell might be different. Walm had such fears, but he was relieved to find that it was the same as what he knew.

The hoarse voices accompanying the unloading and loading of goods were exchanged around the dock. The sea breeze clung to the skin, the nostrils were filled with the scent of the ocean, and the eyes stared dumbfoundedly at the bubbly surface. At some place, many seabirds were busily moving back and forth between the sky and the sea.

“Seem, I can get good feathers. Sure, it can be used to make arrows, but it doesn’t seem to have much meat.”

Walm held his head while casually spilling such words. He saw seabirds entirely as a resource. Before he was born into this world, he would never have such thoughts. Calling it adaptation might sound too good, but in any case, a part of what was the basis of Walm had changed, and that caused him to feel unpleasant.

The cultivated morality and virtue, had no meaning on the battlefield. Walm had killed so many people and committed crimes. To act as if nothing changed, would be too much hypocrisy. Even if the color of the sea didn’t change, the color of Walm’s eyes had changed to be dark and muddy. His hands were horrifyingly stained with blood. He knew he couldn’t act like he did before he killed someone. Still, he was too weak to throw what he had cultivated away. He was an unacceptable fool human who was suffering between dream and reality.

“Huh…really, I don’t like myself.”

Walm’s murmurs were washed away by small waves.

Walm took a pipe out of his waist bag and purple smoke came out as he sucked it, to abandon further thought, but nevertheless, his initial excitement never returned.

◆

Oh, it’s such a mess.

Walm, who peered into the tavern, was even impressed by the frenzy inside. Randomly knocked down chairs, leftover food scattered all over the desks and floors, and liquor bottles were tumbling around.

Walm was told about the tavern where sailors would gather, but he might have gone to the wrong place. So, he kept a distance from the store, but no matter how many times he checked the exterior and the directions, there was no mistake that it was the place. The sailors inside cheered on the men who were enjoying the wrestling contest. He glanced at the victim, the keeper, but he looked as if the scene was something normal, and didn’t panic at all.

“Haa, ah, haaah, aaーah!”

Walm decided that it was just such a place. The men took off their torn clothes, let out wild voices, and wrestled half-naked.

Walm entered the store with a glance at them and sat down after finding a safe spot. Then he called out to the storekeeper in front of him.

“It’s thriving.”

“Sure, I could even make chairs and desks that were loose brand new.”

“That’s good. I want some alcohol and food.”

The storekeeper turned around and presented a bottle of liquor. There was no fashionable thing such as a cup.

Tipped the bottle without hesitation and a sweet scent mixed with bitterness, something like burnt caramel, came to the nostril.

“Is it, Rum?”

Walm spoke the name. It was the liquor that sailors loved so much.

Rum, a distilled liquor made from sugarcane, was made from leftover sugarcane juice and blackstrap molasses produced during the process of refining sugar. Sugarcane was one of the pillars of wealth in the Archipelago. Sailors could enjoy a part of its benefits in the form of drinks every day. So, it was the most appropriate to be served as liquor in a port city.

While Walm was preoccupied with the drink, rum, a plate of food was delivered.

“That’s pretty fast.”

“Let me tell you, it’s not premade. Just that, it’s a waste to feed them this.”

Walm grasped the situation from the storekeeper’s words. The guy who ordered it was rolling around on the floor. Well, there was no reason for Walm to hold back. After all, it had been a long time since he had a warm meal. Also, it was the deep-fried food that he had been wanting to eat.

Cut it with a knife, and the fat oozed out. Something white could be seen inside a heavy golden-colored robe. Brought the sliced fried meat to mouth. The deep-fried layer had a good texture and was mixed well with the light white meat. Was it cod or halibut? Anyway, unlike river fish, it didn’t have much of an odor, and it seemed like a lot of it would fit in the stomach.

The storekeeper raised a teasing voice at Walm, who was silently enjoying his meal.

“You eat in a pretty elegant way.”

“I don’t know about that. Would it be better to kick the chair, hold the food in hand as you bit it, and scatter the food crumbs while eating it?”

“No, please continue as it is.”

The storekeeper shrugged his shoulders as if he had surrendered.

Enjoyed the fried potatoes that came with it. The party that was unfolding behind seemed to come to an end as one of the men stood up.

Finished the meal, then asked the storekeeper.

“Let’s change the topic. You see, I’m looking for a ship.”

“Three silver coins, including drink and food.”

The storekeeper tapped the counter. Walm could understand what he was asking.

Took out a coin bag from the pocket and presented the storekeeper with three silver coins.

“Destination and time?”

“Labyrinth City, the sooner the better”

The storekeeper who put away two of the silver coins offered, immersed himself in thought as he put his finger on the remaining one.

“Egin, seems still having fun. Telum, is going in the opposite direction. Ah, right, Saachef still here. If that’s the case, guess Belim Beggar’s ship would be good.”

As if trying to remember, the storekeeper poked the counter with the silver coin.

“Saachef, it’s a customer!! He’d like a sea trip to the Labyrinth City.”

A man emerged from the hustle and bustle in response to the storekeeper’s call. His perfectly tanned skin and strong limbs must have been refined through intense work. And above all, given the wide and curved weapon, the cutlass hanging on the waist, Walm guessed that he might be a person good at ‘rough work’ even if he was mostly in the ship.

“Here, it’s your referral fee.”

The storekeeper threw the remaining silver coin to a man called Saachef.

“Oh, thanks. A mercenary huh? Anyway, looks like you’re making a lot of money.”

Saachef didn’t hesitate to observe Walm’s whole body.

“Soldiers can’t get on the ship?”

“Nah, whether a human or a fish, anyone’s welcome. A customer is a customer.”

Saachef, who smiled with his teeth showing, hit the liquor bottle as if to show how bright it was to Walm.

“Departure will be one hour later, the fare is three small gold coins and six silver coins. Could you pay?”

“Somehow.”

“Great. Is this your first time on a sea trip?”

“Yeah”

In the world Walm used to live in, he had been on a fishing boat or houseboat, but he always came back to land in less than half a day. This would be his first time on a full-fledged voyage.

“Because I’m kind, I’ll give you some guides. There aren’t many rules. No knives were allowed in a fight, and a little bit of brawl may happen depending on the time and circumstances. Never steal or light a fire. You may be living at the bottom of the ship surrounded by dirty water. Don’t worry, rats will there to entertain you. Bring some food and water. It’s better to have enough for ten days. In the worst case, you could buy both with money, but their price may be four times higher than buying those on land. If you want to buy it, do it through me. I’ll give you a better price much as I can. You’ll sleep together in a huddle. So, look at your luggage carefully. You could go out on the deck as long as you don’t interfere with our work, like standing in the corner to get some fresh air. That’s about it.”

Considering Saachef finished saying it without biting his tongue even once, it seemed to be a completely familiar line. It was good that the guide to the ship wasn’t a drunken sailor who had suspicious behavior and was incoherent.

Since it was quite impressive, Walm wanted to give Saachef a round of applause.

“Looks like, that’s all your luggage. Then, are you ready?”

“Yeah, seems like it’s going to be a comfortable sea trip.”

Walm grabbed the hand that was offered to him and left the bar with the sailor Saachef.