Kino no Tabi:Volume15 Frontispiece
"Land of Accidental Discoveries" — Eureka! —[edit]
Once, in a region with several neighboring countries—
There was a country through which a white river flowed and emptied into a white lake.
There arrived in a small, rundown vehicle a pair of travelers—a woman and a man— who upon setting eyes on this scenery, were surprised, and so asked the country’s inhabitants how the place came to be this way.
The citizens answered.
Because of the hot, white water spouting from the ground beneath the country, no fish could thrive in the lake, and no crops could grow in their fields. As a result, their people could only make scanty livelihood from their side jobs, and live off food imported from their neighboring countries.
The woman touched the water from where it sprung out of the ground.
Then she spoke.
“This is a hot spring. If you use the water for baths, I’m sure many tourists will come and visit.”
The citizens were not readily convinced by the woman’s words, so she ordered her fellow traveler to soak himself in the water.
The man reluctantly stripped down and submerged himself in the hot water up to his shoulders. And after a while,
“Aah~ This feels great…”
There was a country through which a white river flowed and emptied into a white lake.
The lake was surrounded with rows of buildings, and its shores were brimming with people. It was the very picture of prosperity.
There arrived in a buggy a group of travelers—a man, a dog, and a little girl— who upon setting eyes on this scenery, were surprised, and so asked the country’s inhabitants how the place came to be this way.
The citizens answered.
Because of the hot, white water spouting from the ground beneath the country, it became known for its hot spring baths, and turned into a popular tourist destination among its neighboring countries. They were making so much money, and were giddy with joy over it.
Soon they became even wealthier, and began to employ citizens from their neighbors, continuing to earn money even without having to do anything themselves.
Seeing the citizens rave about their good fortune,
“How regretful.”
The young man only said this, and after their whole group have had their baths (Note: not in a mixed bath), they left the country.
There was a country through which a normal river flowed and emptied into a normal lake.
The lake was surrounded with rows of abandoned buildings. There were very few people that the place can aptly be called a ghost town.
There arrived in a motorrad (Note: a motorcycle, only denotes that it cannot fly) a traveler wearing a brown coat, who upon setting eyes on this scenery, was surprised and so asked the country’s inhabitants how the place came to be this way.
The citizens answered.
The hot, white water that spouted from the ground beneath the country made it a popular tourist spot best known for its hot spring baths. This was what was left of it. Not too long ago, changes in the earth’s crust caused the underground water to dry up. Naturally, the tourists left, and everything they earned were used up to pay off expenses and the loans for the construction of the buildings around the lake. It has gone back to the poor country that it was in the past.
“But it was a good thing. We were once crazed. To think we could earn so much without lifting a finger…”
The traveler and the motorrad relaxed in the now deserted shores of the lake.
Then the motorrad asked the traveler to dig up the sand of the lake. The traveler dipped her legs in the water and dug as she was told, then saw amidst the white sand tiny grains that occasionally glittered.
“That’s gold dust. It was carried away by the river and deposited in this lake. No one seems to have noticed yet. I think there’s quite a lot of it.”
“…”
“What will you do Kino? Will you tell them about this?”
While looking at the glittering gold dust on her palm, the traveler answered.
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