Kino no Tabi:Volume6 Chapter1

"Her Journey" ~Chances~

In a lush, deep green forest, where a lake reflects the blue sky in its clear water, there was one country.

Inside this vast country, buildings are lined up, and roads of various sizes are laid out like spider webs.

At the western part of the country, by the walls, there’s a gate. Beside the gate, a room was provided to deal with emigration procedures.

A little distance from the room, in a place designated as a rotary square, a single Motorad (Note: A motorcycle. Only to mean that it cannot fly in the sky) is parked. The sides and top of the motorcycle’s rear wheel were loaded with traveling luggage.

A person was leaning on the motorad. It was the driver, wearing a black jacket, a belt tightened on the waist and a hand persuader (Note: A Persuader is a gun. In this case, a pistol) suspended from the right thigh. Age is around mid-teens. With short black hair, big eyes and an intrepid face. Wearing a brimmed hat with goggles strapped around it.

There was nobody else in the square. The birds jump around, littering the ground with lots of feathers as they search for food. The sun just above the eastern wall warms the driver’s back and only her long shadow falls inside the gate.

“Not yet? Kino,” asked the motorad.

“Not yet. It wasn’t so long ago when you asked that, Hermes,” the driver called Kino answered.

A cleaning vehicle came noisily rattling by the road.

The cleaning vehicle drove off the birds, dampened the wide road beside the square, and went away.

When the shadow became a little shorter,

“Not yet?” Once again, the motorad called Hermes asked,

“Not yet,” was Kino’s short response. Immediately after answering, the door of the room beside the gates opened.

“Hmm? I wonder if it’s finished?” Hermes said, as a man came out of the room.

The man was about in his mid-thirties. For easy movement outdoors, he was wearing clothes which look sturdy but easy to move in and a vest with several pockets for carrying various things. A rifle-type persuader is slung on his back.

The military rifle has a body made of plastic with built-in night-vision equipment and laser sight, and a sniper’s scope attached.

The man noticed Kino and Hermes, walked a few steps closer and gave them a morning greeting. Kino stood up from Hermes and returned the greeting.

“Are you lined up for departure procedures? I’m sorry but there’s one more person inside. It will take a little more time. The document screening is so cumbersome,” said the man. Hermes asked.

“A citizen of this country? Going out on a journey?”

“Yeah……, that’s right” The man answered, frowning a little.

Hermes did not refrain a bit,

“But then, not a single person came to say goodbye? People here sure are cold.”

“That was harsh……” The man answered with a sour expression, and turned once to the room where he came out. The door is still closed.

“Must be some complicated matter, huh” said Kino, and the man nodded in reply.

“I haven’t told anyone but……, if it’s outsiders like you, then it should be fine. I think just about one person knows this story. It’s good for passing time while waiting. Would you like to listen? ―― As to why I would go out on a journey?” The man asked, looking straight at Kino,

Kino raised the brim of her hat a little, “Sure. Go ahead”

The man’s expression darkened a little, and then laughed lightly. He then began his introduction, “It’s to obtain forgiveness. For life”

“To obtain forgiveness, is it?” “What’s that?” Kino and Hermes asked.

The man’s mouth changed from a smile to one full of bitterness. “I myself, think that it’s a strange reason……. But, it’s important……. To me it’s important……”

There was silence for a few seconds, and then Hermes asked. “That’s it?”

“Ah, no ―. Where should I begin? The one who will go with me in this journey is the woman who is undergoing emigration procedures right now.

“A partner?”

“Yeah, sort of……. That person invited me to this journey……. She wanted me to become her bodyguard, in case she gets into trouble. And……, as to why………”

The man spoke in a quiet tone. “A long time ago, I killed her lover”

“…………” “Huh?”

“It was seven years ago. I did not know her at all that time. I made a mistake……. It was illegal to drive a car after drinking alcohol, but I insisted; my attention and cognition have dropped……. I was driving too fast, and I wasn’t able to cut the intersection……”

“Uh-huh, and then?”

“And then……, I hit a house……. That was not all. A person who was walking down the sidewalk got caught between the car and the house. In any case, I killed a person……” The man looked up at the dazzling morning sun, and breathed thin air.

“Then, I was arrested and taken into court……. At that time, the woman I told you about, that man’s lover, confronted me face to face, ‘Murderer! Give him back!’ she said. Naturally……. That’s the only thing she can do……. That was when I first met her……” The man dropped his shoulders slightly, and Hermes spoke.

“This story to kill time turned out to be quite a baby talk, huh?”

“……heavy talk?”

“Yeah, that,” Hermes said and went quiet.

Kino asked. “I see. And then, what did you do?”

“It was decided that I will serve 10 years in prison, and I was transported and admitted into jail. I lost my work, my life, everything. Well, both of my parents were dead, and I’m not married, so only a few people will be sad for me.”

“I don’t quite get it. Did you escape from prison?” Hermes said happily, and the man shook his head with a smile.

“I’m not finished yet. In prison, I truly repented for what I did. And then, I sent a letter to her. It only contains my sincerest apologies. I wrote my honest feelings; that I wanted to atone for my crime for the rest of my life.

“Uh-huh, uh-huh. And then?”

“And then, there was no reply at all. Even then, I continued to send out a letter every month. Even if only a little, I wanted her to know my sympathy for her loss, and my willingness to atone for my sins. I always send it together with a small amount of money that I receive from the prison,” the man looked back one more time. The door of the room, illuminated by the bright morning sun, is still closed.

“Six years passed. I was already quite accustomed with life in prison, and I have forgotten how a normal and free life feels like. At that time, all of a sudden, she came to visit me for the first time. I was surprised. Very surprised……. I looked at her through the glass, looked at the mountain of opened letters she was holding…… I apologized to her in tears. Just knowing that she actually read the letters made me very happy. But that’s not all. She asked me to lift up my face, and made a proposal that I would never have expected.

“To get out of the country, right,” Kino said in confirmation.

“Yes. ―― She said she wanted to get out of this country. She said it’s because there are painful memories here. She will go to a different country and start a new life. She said she wanted me to come with her because she needs a bodyguard. I only have less than 5 years to serve in prison, so it’s possible for me to leave the country in one condition – that I am forever banned to enter it again.

“So?” “And then?”

“She then said this. ‘My grudge and hate for you is not gone. However, you said in your letter that you are willing to pay for your sins your whole life. So,’ she said ――”

“What did you do?”

“I suffered. I suffered so much. After four years, I can finally get out of jail. However, it never crossed my mind that I had to go on a journey and leave my beloved homeland for eternity. This country, where I was born and raised, and where my dead parents rest, I wished to be buried with them here. I thought, after I got released from prison, that I’ll do my best to start my life over again. But ――”

“But?”

“Atoning for my sins my whole life……, I also thought that this is the only way to do it. Above all, she herself wanted to do it this way. I worried for about a year before I decided at last to accept her proposal. To never again return to this country, to become her escort to a journey that may continue for who knows how long. I told her this the next time she came to visit. I cannot describe how I felt when she said ‘Thank you’ to me with a quiet smile”

The man then held back the tears which suddenly came to his eyes. He excused himself for a while and turned away from Kino.

“I suppose this will be the last time I get to cry in this country,” said the man in a low voice.

The door to the room is still closed. After some time has passed, the man looked up at the sky once more.

The man turned to Kino and Hermes.

“I don’t think they’re done yet,” said the man.

“I’m sure she hasn’t forgiven me yet. That’s why I’m willing to atone for the rest of my life. I don’t know what sort of places we will go to, but I’m sure it will be a long journey. But this is not my journey, it’s hers. And I’d like to think of this as my life’s journey. It starts from here on,”

“I see. I understand it very well,” Kino said to the man who seemed like he’s going to cry once more.

“Well, each person’s life is different from another’s. Yup, it’s quite interesting,” said Hermes.

The man laughed a bit and faced Kino, “Thank you for listening. As my senior in traveling, is it alright if I ask you a question?”

“What would that be?”

“In a journey, what’s the thing that I should be most careful of?”

“That’s simple. It’s the same as what you should do if you were living a normal life in your country,” answered Kino immediately.

“What?”

“To not lose your life. Or, to not get killed. In other words, to do everything that you can to protect your own life. ―― If you want to be more specific, to kill before you get killed.”

“…………. I understand……”

The door of the room opened.

The person was about the same age and wearing similar clothes as the man, with a small hand persuader hanging by the waist. The woman smiled happily as the man introduced Kino to her.

She then asked if Kino was going in the same direction, in case she wanted to come together, but a little disappointed (when Kino refused).

“But I have a very reliable escort,” the woman said with a smile. And then, as she saw the slightly sad expression of the man, she faced him and smiled.

“Hey, Kino-san. If you finish with the procedures and catch up with us, let’s eat lunch together. I think it’s great to rest by the lake.”

Upon hearing this, “That would be nice” Kino said sincerely.

She went to the horse laden with luggage waiting outside, “Well, let’s go,” she said, and the other person slowly nodded.

The two passed through the gates.

“Grab what you can, if you can. I’ll try to catch up by noon,” Kino said, while holding down Hermes to the room by the gate.

“Kino is so greedy,” said Hermes

“Whatever,” said Kino.

It was before lunch when Kino and Hermes finished the procedures.

In the forest, there’s a road. The road is wide enough for a car to run in comfortably.

Kino was riding Hermes at a considerable speed.

Both sides of the road were continuously walled with trees; the beautiful blue hue of the lake occasionally appears in and out of view. The sun is high up in the sky, spilling light between the gaps in the leaves and branches.

“Let’s exit through that curve ahead,” said Hermes, and Kino released the gas pedal.

As they exited through the not so visible curve ahead, they came upon the sandy shore of the lake on the left side of the road. Over there, two horses were tethered together, and two persons are sitting by taking a rest.

Kino dropped the gear and approached, waving to the man carrying a rifle.

Kino stopped Hermes some distance away from the two, and pushed down the stand. While walking, she removed her goggles and hung it around her neck.

“Hello. I caught up.”

The man raised the cup in his hand, “As expected, motorads are really fast. We just settled down here for tea.”

The woman turned behind; she was two steps away from Kino.

The woman pulled out the small hand persuader from her waist and stood up slowly. She held the persuader in both hands and aimed the gun towards the back of the man beside her.

Bang.

And fired. The empty cartridge flew and the bullet opened a hole in the man’s shoulder. Kino backed away in one jump.

“Guh!” The man raised a cry, his body bent.

Bang.

A second bullet was fired, hitting the man’s right thigh,

Bang.

A third bullet hit the left thigh.

The man soon lost his balance, trapping the rifle on his back beneath his fallen body.

The woman approached the barrel of the rifle and stepped on it. Then she fired at the man below, one bullet to the right arm, one bullet to the left arm,

Bang bang.

Fired in quick succession.

And for each shot, “Gyaa!” The man cried in reflex.

The woman pulled out and picked up the man’s rifle, and slung it on her back.

The man, who has been shot in several places, drenched with a large amount of blood, and fell on his back at the ground, gave a surprised and foolish expression,

“A……, Why……? What……?” He asked the woman who stood by his side, looking down at him.

The woman spoke calmly, without batting an eyelid. “Of course I fired at you. Does it hurt?”

The man gave a small nod.

The woman nodded once, and asked Kino, who backed away to Hermes’ side a while ago, “Kino-san. Why didn’t you shoot me to save him?”

Kino, whose hand is still outstretched towards ‘Cannon’ on her right thigh, quietly shook her head.

The woman returned her gaze to the man.

“W……, why……?”

Greasy sweat surfaced on the man’s face, along with pain, doubt and fear.

“Why I fired at you ――, is it?”

The man nodded, his eyes still wide open.

“Of course, it’s to kill you”

“W……, why?”

“Because I can’t forgive you. Because you killed the most important person to me. I can’t forgive you”

“…………”

“That’s not all. Those letters you sent every month. You wrote so many words of apology, ‘I hope you somehow forgive me. I truly pray for his happiness in the afterlife’. You didn’t even realize that to me, those words communicate nothing but selfishness. ―― No, probably, in this world, there are people willing to forgive. Receiving a letter of repentance from a sinner, ‘Ah, this person also suffered. He was also a victim like me’ –- probably, there are people who think like this. Probably, these people think ‘what’s done is done, there’s nothing else we can do’. These people suffice for an ‘I was mistaken’. Well, I am different. The grief it caused me, when you stole him away, just got bigger over time. It got worse every time I receive one of your letters. Each time I see them, I am reminded that his killer is still living a carefree life. It made me suffer, I wasn’t able to forgive……, and it hardened my resolve to take my revenge on you”

Blood slowly drained away from the man’s face, and he can no longer move, “Hey ――”

The woman’s face did not change color or expression, and continued to speak.

“This is what I think. You say ‘I have reflected on my sins’ to the family of the victim who sued you, when all you have in your mind is ‘that’s a good thing, so please save me’. You are pleasing no one but yourself! Above all, what were you doing while I was suffering and in despair? You were safe in prison, living an orderly life, without having to fear starving or shivering. And after ten years, you will be able to live openly as a free man again, and have nothing to worry about anymore! You, a murderer, laughing and walking the streets with your lover--! You think something like that can be forgiven? I won’t allow it.”

“B, but……” The man opened his mouth,

Bang.

The woman fired at the man’s ears. His earlobes were torn, but the amount of blood which began to flow is nothing compared to his other wounds.

“Listen until I finish my story. ―― so I decided to take my revenge. I will lure you out of the country, to a place where the country’s law cannot be enforced. I will kill you with my own hands, on behalf of that man. That was my plan. For that, I prepared for everything I need. So that I can appear before you with a calm demeanor, I trained with the purpose of killing my emotions. I also practiced how to smile quietly. ―― And then, I worked desperately to be able to earn money for a journey. Even though I hate it, and I never thought of touching a persuader my whole life, I bought one. I used the money you gave me to buy this. After a while, I also trained my shooting skills to make sure that I can kill you when the time comes. I learned how to shoot in a way that will hurt the most. So? Do you have a question? Are you listening?”

The woman peered over the face of the man.

The man is still lying on his back. Tears from his unblinking eyes are flowing down his temples.

“No……” He muttered in a small voice.

“No……. not like this…….No……. I don’t want to die……. in a place like this……. No…… I want to go back to my country……. I don’t want to die……”

“I’m sure he thought the same,” said the woman. And then she secured the safety of the hand persuader and returned it to its holster. She raised the man’s rifle behind her. She skillfully released the safety, and stood by the feet of the man sprawled on the ground.

She poised the rifle by her waist, switched on the laser sight beside the scope, and aimed the tiny red dot of light at the man’s jaw.

“Please……forgive me……” The man murmured, moving his pale lips a little.

The woman, with a very satisfied expression, nodded several times, and smiled quietly.

“Yes. The truth is I really wanted to forgive you. Very much. You wrote, ‘I want to atone for the rest of my life’. That’s why I’m ending your life. ――The earlier I end your suffering, the better, right?”

She fired.

Each shot pushes back the woman’s body in recoil. She continued to shoot.

--

In a lush, deep green forest, where a lake reflects the blue sky in its clear water, there stood two humans.

Beside two horses tethered together, there’s a motorad, ―― and just behind, a human was lying on his back.

The woman crouched slowly, placing the empty rifle on the ground.

Her expression is now as clear as the sky. Her face looked happy.

“Yes……” The woman said to the man.

“I can finally forgive you at last. Listen well. I forgive you. That’s what you want right? That’s what you wish from the bottom of your heart, isn’t it? That wish, I now grant it to you. You are forgiven. Hey, listen, ―― I forgive you.”

--

A fresh mound can be seen by the shore. A rifle was pierced on it as a grave marker.

The woman was kneeling in front of the mound, her hands clasped in front of her face in prayer.

Soon she stood up, turned, and asked the person behind her.

“Kino-san. You could have shot me if you wanted. Why?”

“Because I’m not a god. That’s all.”

“Yup. Kino is Kino,” said Hermes.

“I see. ―― Thank you for helping me make a grave.”

“You’re welcome.”

The woman approached the man’s horse, unfastened all of its harnesses, and gently spoke to it. “Now you can go to a place you like. Living freely in the forest would be nice; living for someone back in the gates is also good.”

Then she tapped the horse lightly. The surprised horse moved forward a little, looked back once, and then disappeared into the forest.

“So then, what will you do?” Kino asked the woman.

“My journey is already over, so I will go back to the country. I intend to live with his memories until I die.”

“I see. Take care.”

“Thank you. Ah, sorry I couldn’t join you for lunch.”

“It’s okay.”

The woman collected her luggage and fastened them to her horse. Then she lightly straddled,“Goodbye,” and waved with a smile.

She rode her horse, disappearing beyond the woods by the curve.

“Phew……” Kino breathed.

“What Kino said really did come true. I was a little surprised, but I’m quite impressed,” said Hermes happily.

“That’s right……. Now, let’s grab what we can, while we can.”

“Kino is so greedy,” said Hermes.

“Whatever……” said Kino.

There was a fresh mound along the lakeside where the motorad ran.

There, a rifle was pierced as a grave marker.

The military rifle has a body made of plastic, but the scope is no longer attached.

Translator's Notes

Those who have seen the anime must have recognized this story as the one in episode 11, Her Journey ~Love and Bullets~. As usual, the anime is toned down a bit. The ending and the 'moral' of the story are also different.

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