Brave Story - Miyuki Miyabe [294]
And that was all.
When the time comes. Kutz said it as though she were talking about going shopping for groceries or making an appointment. After that, she made not a mention of Halnera or the sacrifice—which Wataru took to be her way of showing that she cared.
Wataru had climbed the watchtower because he wanted to see the Blood Star from as close as possible. I’m not scared—which was a lie, but he had made his peace with what was to come. He wanted to let the Blood Star know. Maybe it is a lie. Maybe I really am frightened. He wasn’t sure himself. That’s why he felt he had to say it. If he stood up there, looked the Blood Star in the eye, and was able to say it, it would become true. A least, he hoped it would.
It had already been eight days since their encounter with Mitsuru in Sono. He was probably already in the north by now. Try as he might, there was no way Wataru could hope to catch up. Two minus one was one. That’s all he could think about. In fact, he made himself think about it. There was nothing else for him to do.
Above his head, the Blood Star winked and sparkled. Its rhythm seemed steady, no alteration in the pattern. When would Halnera end? It sure is taking her a long time to choose her other sacrifice.
“Oh?” The tower guard grunted suddenly, walking over to put a hand on the top of the ladder. “To what do we owe this unexpected honor?”
It was Kutz. She had three steps left to climb on the ladder, but instead of taking the guard’s outstretched hand, she jumped up, springing over the railing to land on top of the platform. The black leather whip hanging at her waist shone with a lustrous gleam in the twilight. For those who didn’t know the considerable skill with which she wielded it, the weapon might have looked like nothing more than a curious fashion statement, so well did it match her leather attire.
“I came to watch the sunset. I get romantic sometimes too, you know.”
Kutz had changed the style of her hair while Wataru was away from Gasara. Previously cut short, her hair now came down over her neck. She looked good. Her right shinguard and the firewyrm band on her left wrist served as crimson accents to her otherwise black leather garb.
“What’s with you? You look shocked,” Kutz chided, with her hand at her waist and her head tilted. “Stunned by my beauty, is that it? I should think you’d be used to it by now.”
Wataru blushed. He had been stunned, it was true. Kutz was beautiful, there was no denying it. If he hadn’t come to Vision, Wataru was sure he never would have met a woman as gorgeous, and as capable, as she was.
She turned to the guard who stood chuckling at the edge of the platform. “I’d like to have a few words with the boy here. Can I borrow your post awhile?”
“Of course,” the guard nodded. Picking up his copper megaphone, he passed it to Wataru. “Then I’ll let you hold on to this while you’re here.”
“Right. I’ll let you know if I see anything.”
“That’ll do just fine,” the guard said, disappearing down the ladder.
Kutz walked over and leaned her elbows on the railing. She looked out over the grasslands in the fading light. “This your first time up here?”
“Yes.”
“Great view, isn’t it? I think this is my favorite spot in town.”
“I like it too.”
“You should see the sunrise. Even when it’s raining, or there’s a mist, the view from here never disappoints.”
Kutz shook her head, brushing the hair out of her eyes, and looked up at the night sky. “I was born in a small frontier town in the mountains. Nothing but fields cut into the mountainside and a few simple huts in the middle of a little forest. I remember when I first came out to Gasara and saw the grasslands. What a shock that was. I never imagined the world could be so vast.”
This was the first time Kutz had ever spoken of her home. Wataru wondered if she had left by herself. How old had she been? Did she have some reason for leaving?
Kutz didn’t say anything else. She and Wataru stood side by side in comfortable silence. After some time had passed, Kutz suddenly spoke. “Got a lot of nerve, don’t you.”
Wataru spun around.