Leviathan:Volume 5 Chapter 2
Chapter 2 - Road of Salem
Part 1
Going to the American East Coast required a long-haul flight over twelve hours long.
The time of arrival was around 9am on the morning of August 5. Hal looked up at the North American sky that he had not seen for quite some time. It was so blue that it compelled the viewer to relax in leisure.
Were this the West Coast, perhaps he would be able to use the description of "sunny and refreshing."
However, as soon as he stepped out of the airport into the outdoors, he was instantly greeted by the humid and stuffy atmosphere. Unlike the West Coast's dry climate, the East Coast was quite wet.
Hal and his group had landed at Logan Airport in Boston.
Immediately, they suffered from a hot and stuffy environment similar to Japan's.
"Hazumi!? You are looking very pale. Are you alright!?"
"Y-Yes, I feel very uncomfortable, but if I rest somewhere cool and shaded, I probably..."
Orihime hurried over to look after Hazumi who had suddenly crouched down.
One could hardly blame her. After being locked in an airplane for more than half a day then encountering this sort of summer heat immediately after disembarking. Not only that, but there was also a thirteen-hour time difference between Boston and Tokyo New Town.
"This humidity and heat, combined with the mental strain caused by jet lag..."
"Even for me and Haruomi, this is tough..."
Hal grumbled and Asya murmured irritably too.
This was an air journey from the islands of Japan to the United States. Compared to flying west to places such as Europe or the Middle East, eastbound flights produced more severe symptoms of jet lag, since it involved moving opposite to the Earth's rotation, after all.
If even Hal and Asya, who were used to traveling, were suffering, it went without saying for Hazumi with her weaker constitution.
As a side note, the junior witch, who was susceptible to feeling unwell from overexposure to both direct sunlight and air-conditioning, was dressed in a summer dress with floral markings with a cardigan on top as well as sunglasses and a straw hat.
"That being said, Orihime-san seems to be doing well..."
"Me? I guess it's because I slept well on the plane?"
With Asya staring at her, Orihime answered matter-of-factly.
Dressed in a tank top and an open-shoulder cutsew paired with a white miniskirt, she was the only one lively and energetic, despite claiming beforehand that her overseas traveling experience only consisted of Hawaii, Tahiti and Korea. Hal felt drained yet impressed.
"It's probably due to a fundamental difference in physical endurance too..."
In terms of vitality in a broad sense, Asya should be unparalleled.
But in the case of pure physical endurance, there was probably no one who could surpass the athletic girl whose past feats included national kendo champion... However, it was at this moment that Hal realized.
He was supposed to hold a clear advantage in the form of the suspicious power of dragonbane.
In spite of that, he was still suffering from jet lag. This was most likely proof that he was "still human." If there ever came a day when not only time zones but even the presence of air no longer mattered to him—
Ending this unpleasant thought, Hal spoke up.
"I'm going to rent a car. You girls take care of Shirasaka."
Leaving on his own, he walked towards a bus parked in front of the airport.
The bus was imprinted with a rental company's logo. Since the actual parking lot of the rental cars was some distance away, one had to go there via the free shuttle service.
Hal and ten-odd other travelers boarded the bus.
Thirty minutes after making his way to the rental company he had booked ahead of time, Hal drove a Japanese-made light sedan back to the airport to meet up with his friends.
After occupying the front passenger seat, Asya said, "A corrected routine will help eliminate the fatigue from jet lag! Anyway, Haruomi, let's go for breakfast first!"
"Come on, weren't you eating donuts at the airport just now?"
That being said, it would be a good idea to take a break before embarking on a long-distance drive.
Hal drove the car and stopped in front of a nearby burger shop. Since Boston was a city he had visited a number of times before, he knew his way around somewhat.
"Isn't Manhattan our destination? That would be in New York, right?"
They were at a hamburger chain quite famous domestically in America.
After finding seats inside the shop, Orihime asked in puzzlement.
"But isn't Boston in the state of Massachusetts?"
"Yes. The institute of technology bearing the state's name is also very famous. This is the state's capital."
"It sort of counts as being to the right of New York State, right? But the two states are really big, so Boston and Old Manhattan have no connection at all."
After listening to Hal and Asya's explanations, Orihime tilted her head.
"In that case, why did we come to Boston?"
"I wanted to make a detour—to visit Salem."
"Salem huh...?"
Hearing the name of the place Hal had spoken quietly, Hazumi reacted.
Although she had collapsed for a while, it looked like her condition improved with the help of cold orange juice and air-conditioning indoors and within the car. Timidly, she said, "I've heard of it before. I remember it was during a periodic training session on witch knowledge."
"I figured. This city of Salem was the stage for witch hunts during the seventeenth century, you know?"
" "Witch hunts!?" "
"I decided after discussing with Asya. It would be good experience if you two could visit that place once, Juujouji and Shirasaka."
"We have a tea party scheduled with the 'Grandmas' this afternoon."
Hearing the unsettling subject of witch hunts, the two Japanese witches were rendered speechless.
A meeting with their "seniors" had been arranged for Orihime and Hazumi without giving them advance notice or time for mental preparation. Hal and Asya had intentionally not told them.
"It's not like they'll eat you alive. Relax."
Saying that, Asya immediately reached for the paper box before her.
What she picked up was a king-size bacon burger. After ripping open the aluminum foil for keeping it warm, she took a great bite. The 100% beef patties were stacked in three layers and topped with thick grilled bacon. It looked plenty impressive.
As a side note, this burger chain's selling point was that it did not use any frozen meat whatsoever.
In addition, there was a king-size cheeseburger and fries (extra large) in front of Asya.
"S-Such impressive quantities."
Hazumi's eyes were round while she stared at the outrageous amount of fries.
Carrying a small mountain of french fries, the container should be called a "paper bucket." The amount was so great that it would be more than enough to feed a Japanese family of four.
"This is a chain whose expansion is centered around the East Coast. In addition to abundant quantities, they also offer great flavor."
"Well, I can't believe you're free to choose this kind of size at a shop that doesn't cater to big eaters in particular. Land of the free indeed."
"So this amount isn't a meal combo meant for a whole family to share?" Orihime asked the emphatically muttering Hal in a whisper while Asya was heartily enjoying the fulfilling nature of American portion sizes.
"No no no, their main target demographic should be active guys in high school and college. I happened to see someone order this meal earlier, but gave up on finishing it in the end. Powerful contenders capable of finishing it only show up once in a while, apparently... like Asya."
Apart from Asya, the remaining three had ordered a regular-size fries to share, paired with cold drinks to soothe their parched throats, thus enjoying a short break.
After spending forty minutes in the burger shop's cool environment, Hal's group got in their car and drove to Salem.
The drive from Boston took less than an hour.
With only a population of forty thousand, Salem was a quiet port city. Brick buildings could be seen everywhere. Overall, the streets seemed quite old. Compared to Boston with its abundant skyscrapers, the contrast was striking.
"There are quite a lot of cute buildings with nice atmospheres."
"It feels a bit like a drama set."
"This area consists of relatively old buildings or houses. They were mostly built during the seventeenth century."
While Orihime and Hazumi were looking out the car window happily, Hal nodded and explained.
"I don't know if he used the scenery here for inspiration, but during the 1920s, a guy called Lovecraft wrote a horror novel featuring a city very similar to Salem. For fans of that genre, this place is like a pilgrimage site."
"Haruomi and I used to play 'The window! The window!' and 'Sneaking into Innsmouth' at an old mansion in this city. We had so much fun."
"? Was there something at the window?"
"Although I have no idea how it was played, I can imagine it being mischief without a fear of God..."
Next to the puzzled Hazumi, Orihime smiled wryly in exasperation.
But she immediately changed the subject.
"By the way, Haruga-kun, you mentioned witch hunts earlier..."
"Simply put, they happened back when America was still a British colony. At the time, girls living in Salem would play a game imitating a seance."
"I presume it was something quite similar to divination games in Japan like Kokkuri-san or Angel-san," Asya added from the front passenger seat.
"Girls in puberty trying out occult games with a playful mindset."
"However, preachers and officials raised an uproar when they found out and arrested all the girls, locking them in prison to carry out witch trials, finally executing them."
" "......" "
"From there, things unfolded like medieval witch hunts. Only five or six people were arrested in the beginning but suspicions of women being witches kept spreading throughout the city. In the end, the number of people arrested reached as high as three digits. Only after dozens of people had lost their lives did the government finally step in to bring the whole incident under control."
Facing the speechless Orihime and Hazumi, Asya shrugged and said, "This incident stands as an important historical lesson about the cruelties of mass hysteria, passed down to the current day. However, I believe that the current Salem is just a simple and friendly town."
With casual conversation going on during the drive, they soon reached the destination.
It was a house located in the countryside of Salem. Within the premises enclosed by a perimeter of high walls was a beautiful, carefully maintained garden. After going through the gate, they had to proceed—another twenty minutes. Of course, it was by car.
At the entrance to the house was an oval plaza resembling a bus terminal.
Hal parked the car on the side. There were several vehicles apart from theirs, including luxury German cars, old American cars and even a half truck.
Thanks to that, the Hal's Japanese car was not particularly conspicuous.
Also, the solemn and majestic mansion in front of them was built in a oblong shape with three floors.
This was the "country house" style that English nobles liked to use for their rural palatial residences. The "old mansion" setting used in novels and movies mostly followed this type too.
"Umm... Senpai." Perhaps due to her piqued curiosity, Hazumi asked from the back seat.
"What kind of place is this? A museum... or sorts?"
"No, it's just a personal residence. A certain old lady's estate."
"Really? It took a long time getting here from the main gate, you know?"
Adjacent to Hazumi, Orihime was also staring wide-eyed. As a side note, this garden was four times as big as the Tokyo Dome in area.
Asya shrugged and said, "Rich people in America often build houses on unnecessarily big plots of land. Not only swimming pools, but they even put golf courses into their gardens too. Well, this place is actually pretty low-key for a wealthy family in that range."
"If I remember correctly, Miss Erick's family made their fortune through the futures market, right?"
"Yes. She secretly used her powers as a witch to predict wheat and soy production the following year, thereby profiting in the process."
"A witch?"
Orihime asked Asya and Hal about the word that had appeared in the conversation.
"Yeah. Rather than the magi known as witches nowadays, a real witch."
"Today, we are going to meet the matriarch of this household and her friends, a couple of old ladies. They are all witches—they use traditional spells and concoct potions, etc... In other words, they are a group of old ladies who use magic."
"They were the benefactors back when SAURU first started as a research organization, providing magical knowledge as the brains and funding operations as sponsors."
"All of us, members of SAURU, call them the 'Grandmas.'"
Part 2
Yesterday, Hal and his friends had left the grand mansion in the Salem countryside around evening time then drove to their hotel in Boston City, thus giving themselves a good rest after the lengthy traveling.
Deciding it would be a good idea to go sightseeing in leisure the next day, the group made their way to the seaside early in the day.
Boston was the state capital of Massachusetts, a port city with a long history dating back to the British colonial era.
Hal and friends embarked on a staple of sightseeing in this ancient city, a whale watching cruise. It was a gigantic tourist ship with a capacity of over two hundred passengers.
"But yesterday, I was honestly surprised."
Drinking iced coffee from a paper cup, Orihime grumbled.
She had just bought it from a vendor on the ship. The group had out to the deck. Although there was no air-conditioning, the sea breeze's refreshing coolness served as a substitute. The sight of splashing waves was dazzling.
"Although they were a group of friendly old ladies, the atmosphere there was too unique... Don't tell me you took us there without telling us because you wanted to surprise us?"
"Hahahahaha, don't be upset."
"We believed that things would go well even without explaining beforehand, given your communication skills, Orihime-san and Hazumi-san. As expected of you two, you were able to play along with us flawlessly."
Seeing Hal dismiss his friends' misgivings with a laugh, Asya provided additional explanation.
Hal thought back to the "tea party" the day before.
Led by a middle-aged butler, the group arrived at the tearoom in the house.
There were seven or eight old ladies chatting happily away while savoring black tea or coffee in leisure. The refreshments on the table included muffins, scones, kidney pie, raspberry pie, etc. As a side note, all of them were hand made.
"Dear Grandmas, allow me to introduce these two magi from Tokyo New Town."
Asya extended her hand towards Orihime and Hazumi to introduce them first.
"Oh my, is that so?" "Visitors from such a faraway land." "Wow, you are still so young." "Would you like some delicious snacks? Please help yourselves."
Smiling cordially, they greeted the guests from Tokyo and even called the youngest, Hazumi, over to their side and handed muffins and scones to her one after another.
Meanwhile, Hal the interpreter was completely ignored.
As a dragonslaying rune holder, Haruga Haruomi's fame had risen like a helicopter within SAURU.
However, the Grandmas were completely uninterested in news of that sort. Without showing any surprise or reaction at the sight of Hal, they probably pegged him as merely "the one looking after the girls from Tokyo."
The Grandmas enjoyed their tea and conversed as they pleased.
Soon, they started sharing their "insight as witches" with the girls from Tokyo New Town.
"We witches" "must conceal our true identities." "As serpent users, you must take particular care." "Enough people have suffered at the hands of trumped up charges." "Yes, the populace can sometimes turn into demons even more terrifying than dragons."
In a laid back tone paired with the style of gentle old ladies, they murmured about the distrust of mankind.
Hal and Asya translated every sentence while Orihime and Hazumi listened quietly with slightly troubled smiles.
Regarding the fearsome ferocity of dragonkind, what the Grandmas had to say was—
"Although the serpents and the little magi girls are working very hard—" "they are still no match" "against the dragons." "We witches of old" "are able to read the flow of the future." "Darkness lies ahead."
Despite a tone that was not somber, they spoke after one another to predict a bleak future.
The conversation kept continuing with such topics to accompany the tea. Orihime and Hazumi maintained their lovely smiles while concurring repeatedly as many as a hundred times.
In the end, the tea party dragged on from noon all the way until 4pm.
It was all because the Grandmas talked nonstop.
As a side note, while Hal was calmly focused on interpreting, Asya spent the whole time quietly munching on pie and muffins except when helping Hal out every now and then...
"If the girls contracted with leviathans are magi, then those old ladies would be sorceresses."
The whale watching cruise sailed smoothly.
After Asya spoke on the deck, enjoying the sea breeze, Hal added an explanation.
"If you trace back the foundation SAURU's magical knowledge back to the source, most of it was provided by the Grandmas. Due to this, their word is quite influential."
"Although only about twenty of them are still alive, the Grandmas live quietly, gathered together in places like Salem and Budapest. It also their wish that information about witches and leviathans be kept out of public knowledge."
As a side note, for unknown reasons, the Grandmas chose to live secluded in cities with a history of witch persecution.
It was probably meant as a lesson to junior witches to never forget the mistakes of the past, but—
Asya sighed lightly.
"Those with special powers should keep the truth hidden. This is to prevent the tragedies and persecutions of the past from repeating... Sigh, I understand there are advantages to doing things this way, but it's too conservative. There are many aspects that make it unsuitable for the twenty-first century..."
"Partly because of the presence of dragonkind, definitely, but it's also because they're not part of the gaming generation."
Seeing Hal remark poignantly, Orihime asked, "Is there a relationship between gaming and witches?"
"Well, I believe that the popularization of home consoles and the resulting spread of RPG knowledge has made the concept of 'magic' permeate greatly through ordinary society."
"In recent years, the term MP has entered common usage in many countries."
"When explaining the usage restriction on pseudo-divinity, people get it straight away when you say 'out of magic points.'"
"Nowadays, even if a young thirteen-year-old witch were to start a home delivery service, people will only watch over her with gentle eyes."
Hal and Asya explained in alternation to the baffled Orihime. Hearing this, the well-bred Japanese young lady could not help but smile wryly. Then she suddenly asked, "Speaking of which, where did Hazumi run off to?"
At that moment, Hal noticed it too. There were no signs of Hazumi on the deck.
The youngest of the group, the middle school student, not only had a reliable personality but was also resourceful. However, this was still her first time traveling abroad, no matter what. Worried, Hal, Asya and Orihime looked inside the ship.
Then they immediately found Hazumi.
Since this was a large ship, the interior was very spacious, even enough to hold a basketball match.
There were sofas placed next to the windows on the left and right so that tourists could enjoy the sea view in leisure. Hazumi was standing before one of these sofas.
However, a haughty prepubescent girl, dressed in a scarlet kimono, was sitting in the sofa.
Hinokagutsuchi indeed. She had apparently materialized without them noticing. Facing the proud former dragon queen, Hazumi handed over a paper cup filled with some kind of beverage.
"...I-I bought you the orange juice you wanted!"
"Mm-hmm, thank you. As a reward, I permit you to sit next to me."
"Y-Yes. Uh... Umm, excuse me."
Hazumi sat down on the sofa rather apprehensively.
Since a young girl in a kimono was too conspicuous a sight, the surrounding passengers' gazes gathered upon them. However, Hinokagutsuchi sipped her juice through a straw, completely unfazed by those gazes. She must have ordered Hazumi to buy it for her as an errand.
Hal and company walked over to the girl and the ghost in their party.
"You sure know how to enjoy yourself..."
"Nonsense. I am simply taking a break. Besides, ultimately—"
Hinokagutsuchi replied instantly to Hal's opening line with a tone of derision.
"This is a journey specifically by ship to watch whales, isn't it? Be that as it may, aren't the little serpents summoned frequently by you even more exotic creatures?"
"Summoning magically crafted creatures and observing wildlife have completely different meanings."
"Is that so? True, ancient humans would regard gigantic beasts as 'substitutes for gods' and decide on their own to establish worship."
"That's right. Besides, speaking of whales, they were considered 'sea gods' in standing by Japanese people in the past."
Hal nodded in agreement with what Hinokagutsuchi said.
Ever since antiquity, humans had treated animals as divine messengers or even worshiped them as deities themselves.
In the present day, the precepts of Hinduism still promote cattle as sacred beasts and extend preferential treatment to them. Totem worship where wild animals were worshiped as tribal ancestors or guardian deities existed all over the world. Even in Japan, there were shrines that regarded animals—birds, monkeys, boards, wolves, snakes, etc—as divine messengers.
In Japan, the whale was not only a hunted prey but also a sacred beast at the same time.
"Speaking of which, this has bothered me for a while now."
Asya interjected.
"The True Genbu that showed up at Tokyo New Town a little while ago... I remember it being mentioned as a composite creature similar to leviathans, right? In other words, are our 'serpents' able to acquire 'goddess power' like True Genbu?"
"It is not impossible—Or rather, I should say it is 'theoretically possible.'"
Hinokagutsuchi kept the straw in her mouth while answering.
After moistening her throat with the juice, she tossed the empty cup to one side. Hazumi hastily reached out to catch it.
"Having become a great expert on the path of unorthodoxy, Solomon took the creatures originally regarded as 'substitutes for gods,' processed them using synthesis magic, enlarged their bodies, and modified their savage nature, thus making them reborn as 'imitation dragons.' Hence, that was how your serpents arose."
With the obedient Hazumi waiting on her like a maidservant, Hinokagutsuchi seemed to be in a good mood.
Hal did not know if that was the reason, but she was now talking freely about topics she used to refrain from giving details.
"Consequently, what you lot need to do is reawaken the sacred visage that dwells in the depths of serpent souls to begin with—"
"Specifically, how do we do that?"
Hinokagutsuchi scoffed "hmph" at Asya's question.
"Do not bother asking clever little questions of that sort. There is no such technique."
"No such technique!?"
"I have mentioned this before. Despite being fakes, they are ultimately connected to the lineage of the gods. Trying to exert wanton control over them would be an act of disrespect. The likes of you ought to respect human bounds and go no further than to offer sincere prayers. Should your prayer reach the goddess within the serpent, naturally, she would grant you an act of charity or two."
"..."
"Well, out of you lot, the one who is capable of accomplishing this—"
Having said that, Hinokagutsuchi suddenly vanished.
An instant before disappearing, she had glanced at the girl beside her. This was probably not coincidence. After all, Hazumi always listened to Hinokagutsuchi's every word attentively with a serious expression.
—At that moment, an announcement was broadcast in English.
"Oh, I think it's saying that whales can be seen port side."
"Really!?"
Hazumi's eyes glowed after she heard Hal's report. The sofa they were at right now happened to be port side. The group all focused their attention and looked out the window.
Stretching endlessly outside the sightseeing ship was the view of Massachusetts Bay's blue waves.
Soon after, Hal and the girls witnessed a gigantic black body surrounded by flowing seawater. It was probably fourteen or fifteen meters high, reaching the same standards as leviathans.
"Hazumi! Go outside and look through a telescope!"
"Yes, Nee-sama!"
Orihime suggested in excitement and her younger cousin replied immediately.
Part 3
(placeholder)
Part 4
(placeholder)
| Back to Chapter 1 | Return to Main Page | Forward to Chapter 3 |
