Editing City Series:Volume5b Chapter16 (section)

===Beretta’s Write Bring: Entry in Heavy Barrel Sourire’s Memory Bank===

I am Write Bringing while still tired from all the waiting last night and from the general lack of sleep.

Some trees more than 15 yards long rolled from the lumber yard and onto the mountain road during yesterday’s earthquake. There are about 30 of them in all and none of the vehicles can head up the mountain to work with them in the way.

It would take a week to move them out of the way with simple manpower. And since Sourire is being taken to the Resistance at the foot of the mountain anyway, I decided to use it to move the trees out of the way while loading it onto the truck.

I mean, the Heavy Barrel can complete that week’s worth of labor in just three hours.

“Sight Devices: Sign.”

<My vision is situated fairly high despite being down on one knee. It must be more than 9 yards up.>

It would be even higher if I was in the secondary seat on the back.

I see the gentle midday sunlight and…

<All the villagers are looking up at me. I can see Rosetta as well.>

There are only about 100 villagers. I hadn’t woken Rosetta because she looked tired this morning, but it looks like she actually got up. Good for her. Now, time to stand up.

“Hearing Devices: Sign.”

I focus on my knees to stand up.

<My vision rises up and I can hear the villagers cheering.

The crowd parts and the mayor’s truck drives up while facing the mountain road. The mayor says something to Rosetta and she awkwardly climbs into the back of the truck. She will apparently act as the Heavy Barrel’s navigator. She looks up at me and speaks.

“Can you hear me?”>

I can, I can.

<“If you walk in a weird direction, I will tell you. Is that good enough?”>

It is, it is. The powerful cry of her warnings will become a Point and smack some sense into my careless Signing. That mayor knows what he’s doing. Doing it this way is much safer when you’re using an unfamiliar Barrel and aren’t very enthusiastic about the job. I probably should have had her climb into the secondary seat, but whatever.

<Rosetta is trying to tell me something.

“Lady Beretta! I was not able to tell you last night, but you know that cup?”>

That cup? Oh, the one we retrieved yesterday? Did she break it after going to all that trouble or something?

<“Yesterday, when I checked the things we brought back-”

The truck starts to move and Rosetta’s body shakes.

She holds a hand over her mouth in a shocked way. She must have bitten her tongue.>

Ah ha ha. I’m not sure if that’s extremely Rosetta-like or not Rosetta-like at all, but we can discuss whatever it is later. We need to get this work done first, okay?

I need to walk forward.

<The truck drives forward.>

This is the same road we drove the truck along yesterday. Today I have to walk.

<Once on the mountain road, the villagers have stopped following us.

Both sides of the road are covered in forest. Sourire’s elevated vision is just above the canopy of trees and it rises and falls a little as I walk. I can hear Rosetta’s voice.

“Lady Beretta! Please watch where you are going!!”>

Eh?

<nowiki><I</nowiki> see a family of foxes cut across the mountain road. The parent fox is more concerned by the truck than the Heavy Barrel, but the children are playing with each other as they walk along.>

Come to think of it, how are those three-tailed fox children doing back in Paris? I hope they’re doing well. …Am I starting to feel homesick? I’m glad I already got the tickets to Paris for the 28th.

<The fox children somehow manage to cross the road.>

Once we arrive in Paris on the night of the 28th, I want to head straight to Phillip’s place.

I so want to get back to Paris. One more week, huh? All this Attesor Project stuff-

<“Lady Beretta!! Almost there!!” shouts Rosetta.>

She has a really loud voice. Is that a sign of how much she cares for me?

<Lumber is spread out, scattered across, and piled up on the 6-yard width of the mountain road.>

That Point was expressed kind of repetitively. Maybe I need to work on my vocabulary.

Well, whatever. For now, I have to lift them up one by one.

<nowiki><I</nowiki> hear a low metallic groan from the other side of the scattered lumber.>

Hm? What’s that? I activate my omnidirectional vision to get a better look.

<In my wide-open vision, I see something walking this way on the narrow mountain road. Narrow for a Heavy Barrel, anyway. It is a somewhat small Middle Barrel and a Heavy Barrel accompanied by a truck.

The Heavy Barrel has a pitch black body and a torn armored uniform.

The shoulders of that uniform bear the insignia of a German Heavy Barrel Platoon and a red lion crest.

That is Rot Löwe, Heavy Barrel of Germany’s greatest Panzer Kavalier.>

Wait, what is he doing up here!? History says he should be headed for Nevers!