Even though
The designs were strange — well, not exactly strange, just unfamiliar to me — but the garments had generous amounts of fabric with lots of draping, and there was not a trace of dirt or patching anywhere. In my world, where every bit of fabric and thread was saved with painstaking thrift, clothes like these were an extreme rarity.
Judging by their outfits, Otto's friend must be a pretty wealthy merchant. His clothing, his mannerisms, the way he looked at us — everything about him was completely different from the Market merchants I'd seen before.
When I say wealthy merchant, though, he didn't have the vibe of a comfortable old-timer sitting atop an established business. He had the intensity of a venture CEO climbing fast — someone who looked like he'd devour his competition. His curly hair was a pale color, almost like milk tea, and his features were gentle-looking, but his reddish-brown eyes burned with confidence and flashed with a fierce, almost predatory sharpness.
"Hey, Mine. And that must be Lutz?"
"Good morning, Otto. This is my friend Lutz. Thank you so much for taking the time today."
Not knowing the proper way to greet them, I went with my usual two-fist salute to the chest. Otto returned the same gesture, so I figured I hadn't messed up too badly.
"I'm Lutz. It's a pleasure to meet you."
Lutz was nervous too, but he held his ground against the intimidating gazes and condescending aura the two men projected. He didn't stammer, his voice didn't waver, and he managed the unfamiliar greeting just fine.
First hurdle cleared.
"
"It's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Mine."
In a place where bowing your head wasn't the custom, I was careful not to bow — at least, I tried to remember that. I made sure to smile.
"How very polite. I'm Benno. Pleased to meet you. ...She's quite well-mannered for such a small girl."
"She's not as young as she looks. She's six."
Otto added that in for Benno's benefit, since I probably looked about three or four.
Benno furrowed his brow slightly, then looked at Otto with amusement and curled the corner of his lip.
"...A pre-baptism child as your assistant?"
"Ah, well, yes. I've been teaching her to read and write so she can assist me."
"The way you talk, it sounds like she's already hard at work."
"...Don't say unnecessary things."
Their back-and-forth, reading between each other's words, sent a chill down my spine. Could Lutz and I even put on an interview convincing enough for these two?
Somehow, I got the distinct feeling that they would show absolutely no mercy just because we were pre-baptism children.
Benno opened his mouth while squinting intently at a point slightly above my eye level.
"There's something that's bugging me, so I'd like to ask first. Mind?"
"Yes, what is it?"
"What's that stick stuck in your head?"
Ah, right. It's hard to ask a casual question after you've been handing out rejections left and right, isn't it?
Could it be that you're fully prepared to fail us?
Keeping a pleasant smile plastered on my face, I watched Benno's every move, trying to pick up as much information as I could. Then I smoothly pulled the hairpin from my hair and held it out to him.
"This is a 'hairpin.' It's used to hold my hair in place."
Otto must have been curious about it too, because he and Benno examined the hairpin together, turning it over and over, flipping it around, staring at it from every angle.
It's just a stick. No tricks, no hidden mechanisms.
"...It really is just a stick."
"Yes. My father made it for me. He just carved it from a piece of wood."
"And you can tie your hair with just this?"
"Yes."
I took the hairpin back and styled my hair the way I always do.
I scooped up the section for a half-up style, twisted it around the hairpin, coiled it around once, then stuck it firmly in place. I did this every day, so it was second nature.
"Hoh... That's impressive."
Since they'd never seen me tie my hair before, both Lutz and Otto watched with wide eyes.
Benno reached out and touched my hair, furrowing his brow.
"Hey, kid. This hair is something else too. What are you putting in it?"
His fingers were surprisingly gentle as they examined my hair, but his gaze was sharp enough to take my breath away.
Between the greedy gleam in Benno's eyes as he recognized value, and how eagerly the ladies at the
"It's just a rather ordinary combination of ingredients, but the details are a secret."
"The boy uses the same stuff?"
"Mine asked me to put it on yesterday so it would look nice, so I did..."
Oh, Benno. Did you just click your tongue just now? Were you hoping that because we were kids, you could get us to talk easily? Too bad.
Lutz's interview hadn't even started yet, and I wasn't about to let the most promising cards in my hand get played in some preliminary skirmish.
As I exchanged strained smiles back and forth with Benno, Otto let out a soft sigh and ran his hand through his hair.
"So, Lutz wants to become a traveling merchant, is that right?"
Here was the main event.
I heard Lutz swallow hard beside me.
I hoped my support would come across, so I quietly squeezed Lutz's hand and gave it a firm grip. You've been thinking hard about this since yesterday, right? Now's the time to push through! List off your reasons and earn that pass!
"Oh, yes. I—"
"Drop it."
"Huh?"
He was stopped before he could even state his motivation.
Inside, I was screaming, Let him talk! He worked so hard to prepare! But Otto looked down at Lutz with a pained expression, like he'd bitten into something bitter.
"Giving up your Citizenship is something only a fool would do."
"...Otto, what exactly is Citizenship?"
The question just slipped out before I could stop myself.
I'd never heard the term before. Since it was called Citizenship, I understood it had something to do with the rights of people living in this city. But just like how I enjoyed the rights guaranteed by the Japanese Constitution without ever having to study them, I had no idea what rights the residents of this city supposedly held — or what they even entailed.
"It's the right to live in this city. It also serves as proof of your identity. At the age of seven, during the Baptism Ceremony, you're registered at the
"Did you... pay that much too, Otto?"
"Yeah."
Otto nodded, his face going bitter as if recalling those days.
Benno pointed at him with a wry grin.
"This guy spent his entire fortune to marry Corina."
"I wanted to open a shop and run my business here, but just buying Citizenship took every last coin I had."
I had no idea how much money a traveling merchant managed to save, but between Citizenship, wedding expenses, and startup funds for a shop — no matter how much it was, it wouldn't be enough.
"Besides, city life and life on the road are completely different. Hey, Lutz. Do you have any idea what it means to spend most of your life on a horse-drawn carriage?"
"...No."
Lutz shook his head.
The entire city could be walked end to end in about two hours, so for a city kid, pretty much all transportation was on foot. Even if you counted carts, Lutz had never even ridden in a horse-drawn carriage, let alone traveled in one. There was no way he could understand.
"Water, for example. What do you do when you need some?"
"Draw it from a well."
"Right. But on the road, there aren't designated wells. Everything starts with searching for a water source."
"If there's a river..."
The river he'd used during his trips to the forest immediately came to Lutz's mind.
But when you're traveling, you can't always stay near a river. And with paper being so expensive and hard to come by, how many traveling merchants actually carried maps?
"The first time I went out as a traveling merchant, I probably wouldn't have known where that river was either, Lutz. It's not like you can follow a river the whole way..."
"She's right. You end up following roughly the same route year after year. As you get older, you build connections and exchange information about usable water sources and safe roads. You pass that knowledge down to your children, who inherit the route. There's no room for outsiders inside a cramped carriage. ...And the most important thing of all — the ultimate goal of a traveling merchant. Do you know what it is?"
"..."
"Citizenship."
"What!?"
"End the harsh life on the road and one day live in a city. Own a shop in a city and run a business safely. Save money for that. That's the dream of a traveling merchant. You already have Citizenship, so no traveling merchant would ever accept you into their group. If you really want to do it, you'll have to start on your own. There's no apprentice system for traveling merchants."
If Citizenship was the dream of a traveling merchant, then Otto had already achieved his dream.
He'd apparently wanted to own a shop in this city all along, but I still didn't understand why a merchant had become a Soldier.
"Why did you decide to become a Soldier, Otto?"
"Wait, let me—urk!"
Benno started to say something, but Otto clamped a hand over his mouth and declared with perfect composure: "To marry Corina."
"I want to hear the details!"
"I don't want to hear them, kid."
Benno tried to stop him in a panic, but Otto's eyes lit up and he launched into his story.
"That's right. It was not long after I'd come of age. The first time I came to this city, I saw Corina and fell in love at first sight. It was like being pierced through the heart, like a bolt of divine revelation — all I could see was her. If I was going to marry anyone, it had to be her, and so I immediately made my move."
"...Otto, you were actually pretty passionate, weren't you?"
Behind that fresh, gentle smile lurked a calculating ex-former merchant with a dark side, and apparently, he was also the type to charge headlong into love.
With his brown hair and brown eyes — such calm, muted colors — and an honest-looking face, I never would have imagined him pouring his heart into romance.
"That's just how charming Corina was. Well, I went for it boldly enough, but she turned me down at first. She was a famous tailor with excellent skills, and she valued her local connections for her work. She said she couldn't just give up a stable life for life on the road."
Right, customers were important, and if she was skilled enough to be famous, she was probably making decent money. Giving up that stable life for the uncertain existence of a traveling merchant was a hard sell.
And from Corina's perspective, a traveling merchant who suddenly showed up out of nowhere and started hitting on her? Pretty suspicious, right? She was probably thinking he could be trying to scam her.
As I nodded along, the story of Otto's romance just kept accelerating and heating up. His voice grew more forceful, and his gestures became larger and larger.
"When Corina told me she intended to marry someone from this city, I was shocked. It felt like lightning had struck. I couldn't bear the thought of Corina marrying someone else, so in desperation I went straight to the Temple and obtained my Citizenship."
"Wait, hold on. Isn't your romantic obsession spiraling a little out of control?"
Not sure if Otto's behavior was considered normal in this world, I looked up at Benno. He was pressing his temples with a thoroughly exhausted expression.
"...Even a kid like you can see that's messed up? And the money Otto dumped into Citizenship for this city — that was supposed to be used as startup funds at the city where his parents already had Citizenship."
"What!?"
Benno explained that if your parents already held Citizenship in a city, you could get yours for about half price, and the rest was supposed to be saved for a shop.
All those years of grueling work as a traveling merchant, saving up precious startup money — and he'd thrown it all away on a love-at-first-sight impulse. He wasn't a calculating merchant at all. He was just a wild horse who couldn't see anyone but the person he was in love with.
"I wanted to open a shop in this city, but it cost money to get a shop, and I didn't have the connections to get financial help back then. Becoming a Soldier was a job that would show Corina I was serious about staying in this city, so every time I came to town, I asked my squad leader friend to hire me as a Soldier focused mostly on administrative work. ...Now that I think about it, when I bought my Citizenship, became a Soldier, and then proposed, Corina was pretty shocked."
Well, yeah. Of course she was shocked. She'd told him she couldn't handle life on the road, and then he went and spent his entire fortune on Citizenship and became a Soldier? I doubt any young lady would have heard that without being stunned.
Did Corina think, I'd better keep him on a tight leash? Or did she swoon, thinking, He cares about me that much? I wanted to hear Corina's side of the story — it would probably be completely different from Otto's.
"Over the course of many days, I kept pursuing her, and we ended up getting married with me essentially moving into her family's place. You should have seen how cute Corina was when she laughed and said I was hopeless! And then, from there..."
From that point on, he launched into an endless monologue about how adorable his wife was. Otto's mouth wouldn't stop. Please don't use that first-rate salesmanship and presentation skill you honed as a merchant to brag about your wife.
Lutz, overwhelmed by the relentless torrent of wife-bragging, just sat there slack-jawed.
I'd heard he was a devoted family man who saw only his wife, but I'd assumed my father was exaggerating. Turns out it was no exaggeration at all.
What was I going to do? I had no idea Otto was like this.
I looked to Benno for help, and the moment our eyes met, he gave a practiced-looking shrug and sighed.
"Otto, you're not talking about being a traveling merchant anymore. That's enough about your wife. Get back to the point."
"Ahem! Sorry. So, in conclusion — give up on being a traveling merchant."
I wanted to retort, What do you mean, "in conclusion"?, but I managed to hold back.
It had gone off on quite a tangent, but I now understood clearly: there was no apprentice system for traveling merchants, the hardships of becoming one, how precious Citizenship was, and how dangerous it could be to be blinded by love.
Told point-blank to give up, Lutz hung his head and looked pitifully dejected.
He'd gone to all the trouble of preparing his reasons for wanting the job, only to be told it was impossible before he could even open his mouth. And on top of that, he'd been bombarded with the harsh realities of a traveling merchant's life and an endless stream of wife-bragging. It was no wonder he was crushed.
"...Lutz, this is just a suggestion from me, but what about becoming a merchant's apprentice instead? If it's just leaving town on buying trips, that's something you could learn to do."
"Mine!?"
Lutz's head shot up and he looked at me.
His green eyes, blazing with indignation, eloquently conveyed, Did you already know I couldn't be a traveling merchant?!
"I thought it would be better for you to hear about traveling merchants from someone who's actually done it. You'd be more willing to listen than if it came from me, who's grown up in the same city as you."
"...Oh."
Lutz looked like he'd been hit with a direct shot and glanced away awkwardly.
"When I heard Otto's story, it seemed like being a traveling merchant was really tough, so I started thinking about whether there might be a way to leave the city for work without my parents objecting. And, well, even I didn't know until today, but I think giving up your Citizenship to become a traveling merchant is something you shouldn't do."
"...Yeah."
Hearing Otto's story, it seemed Lutz had been thinking about it too. There was a world of difference between hearing secondhand tales from outsiders and listening to someone describe the reality of it.
"I heard from my father that Otto also has connections with merchants in this city, so I just wanted to ask if he could introduce you to someone if you were interested. It's your choice to say no, Lutz."
"...Thanks. You really thought about all this, huh."
Lutz let out a breath and looked up at Benno.
I looked up at Benno too. If Lutz wanted to become a merchant's apprentice, the person he had to get past wasn't Otto — it was Benno.
"So, I've been recommended to you, but... do you actually want to be a merchant?"
"Yes."
Lutz nodded, and Benno's reddish-brown eyes narrowed sharply.
The relaxed atmosphere from when he'd been listening to Otto's wife-bragging was gone without a trace. With eyes as cold and merciless as a predator who'd found its prey, he looked down at Lutz.
"Hmph. So, what can you sell? If you become a merchant, what do you want to sell?"
"Huh?"
Asking about motivation was perfectly standard for a job interview, but Lutz had spent yesterday thinking about reasons to become a traveling merchant. Asking him to suddenly produce reasons for wanting to be a merchant's apprentice wasn't something you could just whip up on the spot.
"I'm asking what you want to do as a merchant and whether you can do it."
"That's..."
Yikes! This was a full-on high-pressure interview, and we were pre-baptism children!
I wanted to tell him not to be so mean, but for a merchant, taking on one more apprentice meant a significant increase in expenses. Being introduced as Otto's assistant's friend didn't create the kind of obligation that would make Benno take on a loss.
Without exceptional grit, motivation, or information about something sellable — something of value to Benno — we couldn't complain even if he cut us off immediately. In fact, we should have been grateful just to have been given this meeting.
"If you don't, then this conversation is over."
I could tell from Benno's words that Lutz had lowered his head and was biting his lip.
Whether the words he was about to say would be a lifeline or the first step toward a struggle he didn't need to endure — I didn't know. It was Lutz's choice.
In a voice so quiet only Lutz could hear, I whispered: "...Would you make my paper, Lutz?"
"I'll do it."
"Hm?"
Lutz's head shot up. His grip on my hand tightened. It was trembling, but he raised one eyebrow and glared straight at Benno, whose eyes were as fierce as ever.
"There are things I want to do too! Everything that Mine comes up with, I'm the one who makes it!"
"Yeah. That's how it's always been."
"Mine is always getting herself into trouble, so I'll be the one to do it."
Good job, Lutz. You said it. Benno's eyes are going wide.
I wasn't sure if I'd dragged Lutz into this or if he'd dragged me into it, but either way — if Lutz could take on the things I couldn't do, then I could take on the things he couldn't.
Unlike Lutz, I'd experienced both college entrance interviews and job interviews.
I looked up at Benno with a smile, took a slow breath in, and let it out gently before opening my mouth.
"We want to make and sell paper that isn't made from animal hides. The production cost can be kept lower than Parchment, so we believe it could become a profitable product."
At my words, Benno's face twisted as though he'd bitten into something bitter. His eyes, which had already been sharp enough directed at Lutz, took on an even more ferocious gleam, and he spoke in a low, growling voice.
"...So, you want to be a merchant too, kid?"
"Yes. It's my second choice."
I nodded with my smile still in place, and Otto, who was sitting beside Benno, tilted his head.
"Your first choice is desk work at the Gate?"
"No. 'Librarian.'"
At my words, all three of them looked equally baffled. Clearly, the word hadn't landed.
"...Never heard of it."
"I'd like to work somewhere with a lot of books, managing them."
When I broke down and explained what a librarian did, Benno burst out laughing.
"Pfft — hahaha, that's a job only nobility can do."
"...So that's how it is, huh."
Nobles. As expected.
If the people who primarily owned books were the Nobility, then it made sense that the librarian in charge of them would be too. I'd half-expected as much, but the class divide still grated.
"Setting that aside — paper that isn't Parchment, you say... Do you have a sample?"
A flicker of wariness crossed his eyes as they darted toward me. No doubt, Benno's mind was already calculating the potential impact and profits of introducing paper beyond Parchment.
"We don't have one right now."
"Then this is pointless."
He said it was pointless, but there was no mistaking the interest in his voice. One more line should bring it to a landing.
I widened my smile.
"If having a sample is what it takes, we'll make one. Our Baptism Ceremony is next summer, so we'll have a prototype of the paper ready by spring. Please judge whether it's usable or not based on that."
"...Very well."
I'd wrung a deadline out of Benno, who had been planning to fail us outright.
That was a decisive victory.
"Thank you, Benno."
"Nothing's been decided yet."
"Even so, you gave us a chance to try."
Now it was up to Lutz to deliver. His own future was at stake — he'd give it everything he had.
I couldn't help but smile at the sudden, unexpected turn of events that might actually put paper within our reach.
"Lutz, let's do our best."
"Yeah."
I also wanted to express my gratitude to Otto, who had watched our exchange with an amused grin.
Thanks to Otto, Lutz had given up on being a traveling merchant and taken his first step toward becoming a merchant's apprentice. This was the best outcome I could have imagined.
"Otto, thank you so much for introducing us to Benno."
"It was a pretty entertaining day off. I'm looking forward to the next time you come by the Gate."
"Okay."
It seemed I'd earned Otto's approval too.
Relieved, I let out a long breath. I noticed Otto's parting words seemed to signal the end of the meeting, so I took a step to leave with Lutz.
...Oh. I forgot something.
I stopped and turned back, calling out to Otto and Benno, who had also started to walk away.
"Oh! I wanted to ask you two something."
"Sure, what is it?"
"Have either of you heard of an illness where the heat inside you suddenly expands or shrinks?"
Otto, who had connections everywhere, or Benno, who seemed to have ties to all sorts of places — one of them might know about the heat inside me.
"Sometimes it feels like the heat is about to consume me, and when I desperately try to push it back, it shrinks. I know it's only from my own perspective, and I'm sorry, but..."
"No, I haven't heard of anything like that."
Otto shook his head loosely.
I turned to Benno. He looked down for a moment, then slowly shook his head.
"...Nope. Never heard of it."
If neither of these two knew anything about it, then I could safely assume nobody in my current social circle did.
My illness seemed to be something remarkably rare.
...Could it be something seriously dangerous?
With a sliver of unease, the meeting came to a close.
We'd earned a conditional pass, just barely.
Starting now, I would begin working on making paper to become a merchant's apprentice.
Next time is a side story from Otto's perspective.