Biblia Koshodou no Jiken Techou:Volume 1 Prologue

On that day six years ago, I was walking downhill along the slopes of Kita-Kamakura, stumbling my way through the narrow alley by the railway.

My white shirt was soaked in sweat, which made it stick tightly against my back. The irritating sounds of cicadas rang endlessly by my ears. Hydrangeas could be seen everywhere, but before they had withered, it was already summer following the end to the rainy season.

For the locals who do not enjoy surfing, summer is not a season for them to be happy about. Though the beaches of Yuigahama and Enoshima were already opened to the public, the middle and high-school students here does not really like to play and swim at the beaches around here — reasons are the large number of tourists as well as the strange dirty colour found in the waters during the rising tide.

I was a second-year high-school student of the prefectural high school located halfway up a mountain. It was a Sunday, but I was in school to retrieve a textbook which I had forgotten there. I had just left the school and was about to make my way home. Since I missed the bus which had a waiting period of an hour between each bus, I was forced to make my way to the JR station despite the fact that I travel to and fro the school by bus. Kamakura's surrounded by mountains and the roads here are narrow. There are just places where the transportation network is incredibly inconvenient.

I could see the platform of Kita-Kamakura Station to my right. The platform is really long, and combining that with the fact that the ticketing gates are located at only one of the sides, what you get is the need for you to take a long walk before you can get into the station.

And to my left were rows of old buildings. The trees planted in the courtyards of the various families were huge, resulting in a lush greenery.

Not many people may know this; or perhaps they won't really take note even if they do — there's a second-hand bookstore located at this alley.

This wooden building which has been around for many years did not even put up the name of their store. The only thing they did was to place an old signboard that rotates to the wind at the entrance of their store, and on it were the words "Acquisition of old books, providing honest valuation" written in a flamboyant handwriting. The signboard couldn't really turn much due to its rust.

Just as I was about to pass by the bookstore whose name I did not know of......

Something unexpected happened. The timber framed sliding door rattled open, and a young woman stepped out of the door.

She was wearing a set of plain attire — white sleeveless blouse with a long blue skirt; her long hair was braided and wound up loosely behind her neck. Her pale skin complimented her shiny black eye, making them look even brighter. Beneath her straight nose is a pair of thin lips.

She should be slightly older than me. She looks different from anyone whom I knew, a beautiful girl who will cause passer-bys to stop and take a second look. Even so, she does not seem to be the type of beauty who is difficult to approach. Her lips were pursed like a small bird, and she was giving off a strange, hoarse sound.

"Su— Susu— Su—"

It took me a while to realize that she was whistling. She might actually be a klutz.

She pulled out a small cart from the old wooden building. Seems like she's a employee of the second-hand bookstore who was preparing for its opening.

Her attention was focused on pushing the cart to its destined area; she did not once look at me, who was standing motionlessly by the side, through the corner of her eyes. On the cart was a wooden plank with the words "Hundred yen for each" written sloppily on it. Seems like the cart is used to display books that are on sale.

Just as she was about to head back into the store, she suddenly set her eyes on the signboard and gave a soft "Eh?". She gave the metal plate a push, and it began to spin with a creaking sound. It stopped when it turned to the back of the "Acquisition of old books, providing honest valuation" side.

<Biblia Koshodou (ビブリア古書堂)>

I thought for a moment and realized — that should be the name of the store! So it's not a nameless store after all. She walked back into the store with a springy step, and all these while she did not realize my existence.

(Who is she?)

The store should be ran by a middle-aged man with greyish hair all by himself. Did he hire a college student?

I could not help but to make my way towards <Biblia Koshodou> and peeked through the glass panel of the sliding door into the dimly-lit store. Opposite to the bookshelves was a counter filled with books. I saw the girl through the valleys of the mountain of books.

It looked just as though she was buried within the books. She was reading a very large book, and those round eyes behind her glasses were wide opened and sparkling with brilliance — I could see that clearly even from the place I was. There were times where she smiles, others where she nods her head hard; she was never still.

(She really loves to read.)

I guess that is what you mean by losing yourself. Her actions may look a little strange, but that was the first time I saw someone whose expressions were that lively while being engrossed in a book. I was incredibly envious. What was she reading? What's so interesting about its contents?

I placed my hand on the sliding door, but pulled it away and gave up in the end. What's the point of asking her those questions? Reading is something that has little to do with me — reason is the 'constitution' of my body. I left the entrance of the bookstore with a depressed mood and slowly made my way towards the station.

Her silhouette which I saw in the dim bookstore was burned deep into my memory like a painting. As I made my way past the ticketing gates and onto the platform, there were several times where I wanted to turn around and make my way back to that store so that I can chat with that girl. That did not happen.

And with that, I took the Yokosuka line back home.

I did not find it strange that I let the chance slip past me without even doing anything. It takes an exceptionally talented person to grab hold and fully utilize the opportunity he encounters. An ordinary person will most likely pass by it quietly — and since I am an ordinary person, what I did was to take the ordinary course of action.

But even up till now, there will be times where I think to myself — what will happen if I enter the store and familiarize myself with her? Perhaps my life will take a different turn if I did that.

Whatever, such presumptions are pointless. There will be of no end to things if I continue to dwell on it any longer.

Aside from the stories that are written in them, the second-hand books that circulate among the hands of people do have their very own story as well. I am quoting this from someone else, but I do find it to be true. Just, if I can add something to that, it will be that not all 'stories' are beautiful. There are some ugly contents that will cause one to turn his head away — just like everything else that exists in this world.

My name's Goura Daisuke, and I'm twenty-three this year. The old books that are related to me is none other than <The Complete Works of Soseki (漱石全集)>.

Well then, let me begin with this story.