Spice & Wolf I by Hasekura Isuna Read Free Book Online Page B

he’d better not be careless.
    Nonetheless, he himself had struck up conversations just like this one when he was starting out, so he held a spark of empathy for the man.
    “That’s nothing—when I was starting out, all the established merchants seemed like monsters to me. Half of them still do. But I’m still eating. You just have to keep at it.”
    “Heh-heh, it’s a relief to hear you say so, sir. Oh, by the way, I’m Zheren—and you’ve probably figured it out, but I’m just starting out as a merchant. Begging your indulgence, sir!”
    “I’m Lawrence.”
    Lawrence remembered that when he himself had just started out, he’d also tried to strike up conversations like this one and gotten frustrated by the cold responses. Now on the receiving end of a solicitous young merchant’s conversation, he understood those cold responses.
    A young merchant just starting out had nothing to share and could only receive.
    “So, then...is this your companion?”
    It was unclear whether Zheren broached the subject because he truly had nothing to share or if he’d committed the common beginner’s mistake of trying to gain without offering anything in return. If this had been a conversation between veterans, they would already have traded information on two or three locations by this point.
    “My wife, Holo.” For a moment Lawrence hesitated, wondering if he should use a false name, but ultimately decided there was no need.
    Holo bowed slightly in greeting as her name was mentioned.
    “My, a wife and a merchant both?”
    “She is an eccentric and prefers the wagon to the village home.”
    “Still, covering your wife in a cloak this way, she must be very precious to you.”
    Lawrence had some grudging respect for the man’s charisma; perhaps he’d been the town rogue. For his part, Lawrence had been taught by his relatives that it was best not to say such things.
    “Heh-heh, but it is a man’s instinct to want to see hidden things.
    God has led us together here. Surely you can let me have a look at her.”
    What shamelessness! thought Lawrence in spite of the knowledge that Holo was not actually his wife.
    But before Lawrence could take the man to task, Holo spoke.
    “The traveler is happiest before the journey; the dogs bark fiercer than the dog itself, and a woman most beautiful from behind. To show my face in public would dash many dreams, and thus ’tis something I cannot do,” she said, smiling softly underneath the veil.
    Zheren could only grin, chastened. Even Lawrence was impressed with her lilting eloquence.
    “Heh-heh...your wife is something else, master.”
    “It’s all I can do to avoid being quite henpecked.”
    Lawrence was more than half-serious.
    “Yes, well...it’s certainly providential that I’ve met the both of you. Can you spare a moment to hear my tale?” said Zheren. Silence descended as he flashed his grin that was one tooth short and moved closer to the pair.
     
    Unlike typical inns, churches only provided lodging—not food. However, the hearth could be used for cooking, provided one gave the proper donation. Lawrence did so and placed five potatoes into a pot to boil. Naturally the firewood for cooking had to be purchased as well.
    It would take time for the water to boil, so Lawrence threshed the wheat that housed Holo and found an unused leather pouch to keep it in.
    Remembering that she’d said she wanted to keep it around her neck, Lawrence took a leather strap and attended to the hearth. Altogether the potatoes, firewood, pouch, and strap came to a significant cost, so he mused over how much to charge her as he brought the potatoes back to the room.
    Because his hands were full, Lawrence couldn’t knock on the door—but Holo’s sensitive wolf ears could identify his footfalls. When he entered the room, however, her back was turned to him as she sat on the bed, combing her tail fur.
    “Hm? Something smells good,” she said, raising her head. Evidently her nose was as