Majo no Tabitabi - Volume 2 - Chapter 9

CHAPTER 9

Regarding the Bomb

There was a forest full of tall, thin trees.

On my broom, I glided over the winding path that seemed to force its way through the gaps between the trees. Piles of dry leaves rustled and stirred as I passed.

The air was cool, and the wind was gentle.

Wow, this feels great!

This would definitely be a wonderful place to just lie down and take a nap.

“……”

I proceeded through the forest for a while until I caught sight of a carriage. To everyone’s inconvenience, it had stopped dead in the middle of the narrow path, luggage piled high.

I could only see the back of the carriage from where I was, which meant I couldn’t see the coachman. He must be enjoying a nap of his own. Or maybe he’s the self-appointed gatekeeper, holding up anyone trying to pass.

“…Hyah.”

There was no way around it, so I tilted my broom upward a little, lifting higher off the ground.

High enough to fly over the obstacle.

When I was directly over the carriage, I looked down.

There I saw the carriage roof and a horse munching on some grass—and also the silhouette of a man lying on the side of the road.

With a single glance, I understood the reason why the carriage had stopped in the middle of the road. The man wasn’t taking a nap or slacking off, and he certainly hadn’t meant to block anyone’s way.

“……”

The man was covered in wounds and smeared with blood.

He had collapsed limply by the side of the carriage.

What on earth happened here?

I had no way of figuring out what transpired, but what I did know was that the life of the coachman was in danger.

I felt it would be too heartless of me to fly away and let him be, so I landed my broom right away, pulled out my wand, and healed him using a magic spell. A warm white mist enveloped the man, caressing the bloody cuts and bruises all over his body and erasing them.

He was on the younger side, although he looked older than me. Around his midtwenties, I guessed. His disheveled black hair was dull and full of dirt.

“…Unh.”

As the man’s wounds finally faded, he cracked open his eyes. He stared vacantly up at the forest canopy before noticing my existence.

“Are you all right?” I spoke to him from above.

“……”

There was no response.

“Um. Are you all right?” I tried passing a hand over his face.

“……” And then, after that, he blinked his eyes, opening and closing his mouth a few times before finally pushing himself up into an upright position. “Ah, um…! I don’t know who you are, but how long was I out?”

He must not be fully awake yet. His inquiry seemed hurried and hysterical.

“I just happened to be passing by, so I don’t know—but it couldn’t have been that long.”

Because the blood hadn’t dried yet.

“Th-thank goodness! In that case, I can still make it…! Um, I don’t know who you are, but—”

“Elaina. That’s my name.”

“Elaina! Would you be so kind as to listen to my request?” He reached out to grab my hand, but I deftly pulled away.

“I’m very sorry, but I’m in a hurry.”

“I u-understand, but please just lend me an ear!”

“…Uh-huh.” I sighed. I could already sense a big old headache coming on.

Ignoring my growing exasperation, the man desperately tried to string together an explanation. “I fully get that this request is outrageous, especially after you’ve already helped me once. But if we don’t do anything, the unthinkable will happen! Please, I’m begging you! Lend me your strength!”

He knelt on the ground and bowed over and over again. “Please, please,” he repeated as he bowed.

…Somehow, I feel like I’ve had this exact same exchange somewhere before.

Giving it some thought, I realized this was just like an earlier turn of events, when I got roped into a strange situation after healing some other person. It was starting to feel like this was my inescapable fate. I guess I’m just the type of character who gets roped into things after helping those in need.

With my finger, I felt around to confirm that the star-shaped brooch was on my breast where it belonged. “Well, I suppose I can just listen to your story.”

When he heard that, without a moment’s delay, the man shouted, “If we don’t do anything, lots of people will die!”

I was more confused than intrigued.

Eventually, I got him to slow down and backtrack.

According to him, he was the driver of the coach and a merchant, and he had been in the middle of hauling a certain package to the next country over. However, the carriage ran into some trouble along the way.

Long story short, it was attacked by a gang of thieves.

One horse and one feeble man against a gang of ten brawny outlaws. He never stood a chance. The man had very quickly been yanked from the carriage, and then the thieves beat the living daylights out of him and stole anything of monetary value.

“That sounds awful.”

“Yes. It was very painful. It’s a small mercy that I didn’t die.”

“So how is this connected to the deaths of lots of people?”

Are you royalty disguised as a merchant? Is there a twist, where you’re going to kill a bunch of thieves in retaliation?

The man took a deep breath. “Well…the thing I was carrying in the back of my carriage was made at the behest of the country down the road… It was a bomb.”

“A bomb?”

“Yes. They said it was for making a tunnel or something. I don’t really understand it. They spent an unfathomable amount of money to have someone else make it for them.”

“Oh-ho. How much?”

“About ten thousand gold pieces.”

My head started to hurt. That was an insane price to pay for a tunneling bomb. Are they stupid?

But now I understood.

Somehow, the plot was coming together in my mind.

“In other words, you handed over an incredibly expensive bomb to a bunch of thieves, giving them the ability to use it for their own evil purposes—Is that what you’re saying?”

“That’s right. It’s a very grave matter. If the thieves carry the bomb into our country, many of our people may die.”

“That does sound serious.”

From the way he spoke, it sounded like he wouldn’t be nearly as concerned if the thieves had carried the bomb off toward the country down the road.

Why is that? Are they on bad terms? Why even make this bomb in the first place?

“Yes… Also, most importantly, the bomb is extremely volatile. If there’s even the slightest error in calibration, it will instantly explode.”

“What the heck…?”

“I’m one of the people who was involved in its development, so I know how to handle it, but the bomb has an extremely complicated structure. And of course, the customer paid for power, so it’s got plenty of that, obviously.”

“You helped make it?”

“Yes. I designed it, and I wrote the manual.”

“……”

That’s not exactly what I would call helping. You’re no simple merchant; you’re the lead developer! Why did you lie, I wonder?

“We made it easy to operate, but even so, I can’t say it would be impossible to make a mistake.”

“In other words, even thieves could easily handle it.”

“That’s exactly the case. And since they can use it, I don’t know what they’re going to do with it.”

“……”

So this man must want to keep the gang of thieves from going to his country and using the bomb for evil.

I see. Now I get why he’s so flustered. There would be nothing sadder than having your own country destroyed by a bomb you had a hand in making.

“If we do nothing, then something bad is going to happen. We have to take the bomb back from the thieves by any means necessary.”

Obviously, we couldn’t let this sit. Sooner or later, this situation was bound to get even more troublesome. It made me feel like we didn’t have time to hesitate. If no one did anything, people would die.

I realized I was getting flustered when I noticed I had unconsciously picked up my broom.

“I’ll try to pick up the thieves’ trail from the air. You go warn the people in the country down the road that the bomb has been stolen.”

“…” His eyes darted around for a second. “Ah y-yes. Understood.” And he dashed off on his horse.

And then—

“All right, let’s go.”

I got on my broom.

But the moment I did, the dreadful sound of an explosion blasted through the entire forest.

The shock wave ripped through the trees, and animals cried out in confusion. Looking up at the sky, I could see birds flying away, screeching.

The man and I looked at each other.

His complicated expression revealed a jumble of emotion.

This time, I felt a little bit of regret for dawdling about, making casual conversation.

In a confused panic, the man had said “Wait, I’ll go with you!” but I shook him loose and headed in the direction of the blast alone.

In case the worst had happened, I didn’t want the man who made the bomb to see whatever I found there.

…That was my outward reason, but I imagine I was also panicking a little. The explosive sound that reverberated through the forest had been terrifying.

When I had risen above the treetops on my broom, I could see sandy-colored smoke curling thinly through the air to the south. I headed toward the smoke and saw that there was a small settlement there. Emphasis on was.

“……”

The people who had been living there no longer existed.

Blood and sinew and scraps from their settlement were scattered all over the place.

The humans and their flimsy wooden houses had been completely obliterated. Anything and everything that had been there was in pieces, as if it had been sliced clean through with a sharp sword.

In the center of the settlement was a gaping crater, as if the ground had been punctured by something huge. A cloud of dust was billowing out from it, rising into the air like smoke.

“……”

It was there, on the site of the blast, that I picked up two ragged scraps of paper.

One appeared to be the instructions for the bomb.

The other was a letter.

I read it.

“…So that’s what happened.”

After pocketing both pieces of paper, I went back and told the man of my findings, omitting the detail of the notes.

He had only one thing to say in response.

“Is that so…? That’s too bad.”

And that was all he said.

“Are you all right, Mr. Merchant?! We heard a loud noise from the forest…” When we arrived at the country farther down the forest road, we were greeted not by the gate guards, but by the head vizier, who came out to meet us personally. And just like us, he was in a panic.

“Milord, I cannot possibly apologize enough.”

Then the man told him a simple version of the story that had led us here.

After he finished listening to the whole story of the terrible explosion, the vizier appeared struck with grief.

“What on earth…? How could such a thing…? And you weren’t injured, Mr. Merchant?”

“I was healed by this passing witch… Anyway, my wounds aren’t important. What matters is that I lost the bomb for the tunnel. I feel morally responsible for the incident. There is no question that this is my responsibility.”

“No, no! Please don’t put this on yourself! This was an unfortunate accident. Tragically, people’s lives were lost, but…”

Mm-hmm.

“But you were up against a bunch of thieves, right?” I interjected from the side, against my better judgment. “I suppose they got what was coming to them.”

The vizier glared at me. “Madam Witch. I cannot condone such a statement. Even if they were bad people, they were still people. It is always sad when lives are lost.”

“……”

What was that?

I placed a hand to the pocket that contained the letter and didn’t say anything further.

The conversation continued without me, and the man launched into an explanation, completely ignoring my comment.

“But still, it was really unforgivable… Do you think you could find it in yourself to give me another chance?”

“Hmm? Another chance?”

“Could you possibly allow us to build another bomb? I won’t ask for any payment. And I will refund you for the first bomb as well. As an apology for the delayed delivery, please allow us to build you a new bomb for free, under my authority.”

The vizier was clearly very surprised at the man’s proposal.

“Never…! I could never allow that! In fact, we were prepared to offer you some compensation for your…difficulties.”

“Please, don’t even think about it. I want to see my project through. Would you be so kind as to allow me to bring another bomb to your country?”

“No, you mustn’t.”

“No, no, I insist.”

……

Their unauthentic exchange continued for a while after that before reaching the compromise that the man would make a new bomb, and the vizier would pay him for his trouble.

The amount to be paid was one hundred gold pieces. It was a greatly reduced sum compared to the original amount. I wasn’t sure if the bomb maker and the people of the other country seemed satisfied with the new agreement.

“……” I remained completely silent as they spoke.

“All right, let’s meet here again in one week’s time.”

I stared at the bomb maker as he waved good-bye.

I met him again one week later, in the middle of the forest road.

“Oh, hello there. What a coincidence to meet again.”

I stood in front of the carriage blocking the way, waving my arms in the air.

The man looked down at me from atop the carriage. “Oh, Miss Witch. Thank you again for your help last week. I am truly grateful to you for healing my wounds.”

“Don’t mention it.”

“Why don’t you take a ride in my carriage? I’ll get you a bite to eat as an expression of gratitude.”

“No, thanks. I’m in a hurry.”

“That’s too bad. Well then, I’ll take my leave.”

Then he cracked his whip and set the carriage rolling again.

But it soon stopped. The horse stomped its hooves, snorting in irritation.

I was the one who blocked it. I stroked the horse’s head and exerted considerable force to thwart its movements.

“…? Just what could you be trying to do?” Anger flashed across the man’s face as he stared down at me.

I stood in front of the carriage, obstructing his way.

“Nothing. I just have something I need to talk to you about.”

“…? What?”

“The truth is…,” I started. “It’s about that bomb. The other country has canceled their order.”

“…Excuse me?”

“Oh my. You couldn’t hear me at this distance?”

“I meant that I don’t understand what you’re saying. Why would they withdraw their request for our bomb? And why are you acting as their messenger?”

“I wonder? Maybe they realized what kind of bomb you were intending to make.”

“……”

“Looks like your country tried to play a very clever trick.”

“……”

I took a step toward the carriage.

“There’s a bomb loaded up in the carriage right now, isn’t there? Would it happen to be made the same way as the last one?”

I opened the carriage to reveal a bomb.

…No, it was the scattered pieces of a bomb.

When the thieves’ camp had been destroyed, I’d gotten a look at the instructions for the thing—including the steps to assemble it. In the manual were suspicious warnings: “The bomb is extremely volatile. Even the slightest error in calibration will cause it to explode without warning.” and “Please assemble on site before placement.”

“From the very beginning, you all meant for the bomb to malfunction, didn’t you?”

“No. That was, without a doubt, an unfortunate accident.”

“Yes. It was an unfortunate accident that the people who died were the thieves—and not the people of that country, right?”

“…Just what are you trying to say?”

It was simple.

The bomb to be delivered was riddled with design flaws. It was far too powerful to be useful as an excavator, and on top of that, it was incredibly prone to malfunction.

To make matters worse—and this was just my own hypothesis—there was the undeniable possibility that the usage manual itself was inaccurate and following it would cause even more malfunctions. In short, this man’s country had set the whole thing up from the start, for the very purpose of snatching away people’s lives. They intended for an accident to happen as the recipients assembled the bomb, causing a pandemonium.

“I’m holding onto a message from the vizier of that country, you know. Will you listen to it?”

“……”

Taking his silence as an affirmative, I lied to him, as he had lied to me.

“They decided not to order a second bomb from your country. In fact, they’d like to ask you not to have any further dealings with their country at all… So please take the bomb home, as is.”

“…Quit messing around. Just how much money do you think we’ve sunk into the development of this bomb—?”

“Ah, now that you mention it, this is from that other country for your troubles. It’s not much, but please take it—Hup!”

I cut him off and loaded the hundred gold pieces onto the carriage.

It was extremely heavy. Ridiculously heavy, actually.

“This should be sufficient,” I said, stretching my sore shoulders. “You’re good to head home now, right?”

Then I said, “Since you went to all the trouble, how about trying to use that bomb to excavate your own mining tunnel?”

It was about a week earlier, before I met the man a second time and immediately after his incredibly insincere exchange with the vizier.

I took a certain letter out of my pocket.

“Your Honor, do you remember this?”

It was the letter I had recovered from the thieves’ hideout.

“…! That’s…” Staring at the piece of paper, the vizier went pale.

“So you do remember it.”

I mean, there’s no way you wouldn’t.

After all, the vizier’s signature adorned the bottom of the letter.

I had read its contents very carefully, trying to imagine exactly what use the vizier of an entire country might have for a gang of bandits and thieves. The more I read, the more questions I had.

I want you to steal the explosives for the tunnel construction. If you are successful, I will give you one hundred gold pieces, promised the letter.

It’s enough to make you wonder.

“It seems that the thieves’ attack was not a mere coincidence.”

I’d go as far as to say it was premeditated. Rather than paying ten thousand gold pieces to a country you’re on bad terms with, I guess you thought it would be to your advantage to get the bomb from thieves with no strings attached.

That’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard.

“…What do you want, Madam Witch?”

Is this the part where you try to buy my silence?

“Do you have something for me?”

“If you keep quiet about this, yes.”

“Is that so?” Then I spit out the lie. “But in that case, I think it’s better to offer something to the merchant, rather than to me. After all, he was with me when I saw the corpses of the thieves, and he knows about the letter.”

“What did you say…? But he just promised to make a new bomb…”

“Oh my. But haven’t you considered that the new bomb is meant to retaliate against you? I would strongly suggest that no one here have anything to do with items brought over from that other country.”

“……”

The vizier fell silent, deep in thought, and I said to him, “Oh, that’s right. By the way, regarding the fee for my silence…” I clapped a hand down on his shoulder. “How about one hundred gold pieces?”

That’s quite cheap for protecting your people from that country that you hate, isn’t it?

It was always sad when people lost their lives, so I had tried to ensure that there wouldn’t be any more grief piled on top of what had already transpired.

As for the relations of two feuding countries after I left, that wasn’t for me to know as a traveler. If I had to guess, I’d say that their animosity continued.

One country hired thieves to cause trouble for its rival.

The other country tried to deliver a faulty bomb to deal a blow to their opponent.

How stupid.

I’d say having an aloof relationship was probably a little bit better than attempting to blow up one another. Maybe someday, in time, both the bombs and their rivalry would fizzle out.

That was why I was never going to stop hoping for the two countries to keep biding their time, staying rooted right where they were.

Until the day their bitter relationship ceased to exist.