15 views
Kino's Journey Volume 1 Chapter 2 Part 1
Kino's Journey - Volume 1, Chapter 2
The Country of Majority Rule -Ourselfish-
The carpet of grass stretched as far as the eye could see. Layers of the green, lightly undulated land overlapped each other as they disappear toward the horizon.
The vast sky was in clear blue, strewn with drifting white clouds, so vivid to the point of dazzling. In the distance, above the horizon, a cumulonimbus cloud rose like a white-walled sanctuary. The incessant cry of cicadas filled the air.
The meadow had but a single road.
The road could barely be acknowledged as one, being so narrow that its earth surface was hardly visible. It ran straight, with occasional iterations of sudden curves, as if they were avoiding the masses of trees. It headed due west.
A single motorrad (Note: Two-wheeled vehicle. Refers to only ones that cannot fly) was running down the road. The motorrad cleared the curves at a considerable speed. It accelerated upon entering a long, straight path, its rear wheel scattering dirt.
The motorrad's rider wore a long, black vest. The collar was opened wide, so as to let air in. A thick belt wrapped around the hips, and on its backside was a hand persuader holster (Note: Persuaders are firearms. In this case, a handgun). Inside it was a thin-framed hand persuader, grip pointed upwards. Another one could be seen on its wielder's right thigh.
Worn under the vest was a white shirt. To keep both sleeves from flapping in the wind, several elastic bands were wrapped around them.
The rider's short, black hair was blown into disarray by the wind. On top of the slender, tough-looking face was a pair of silver-framed goggles with chipped-off plating; under it, the rider's eyes glared straight ahead.
Approaching a curve, the rider decelerated and leaned the motorrad down. Its rear wheel slid along slightly before they made it through the curve safely.
The motorrad was one without a back seat, but rather a pipe-framed carrier. Bound on it was a large bag and a rolled-up, light brown coat. The topmost part was fastened tightly, albeit crudely, by the sleeves cut off from the rider's vest, which was formerly a jacket. Under the carrier were boxes for storing additional luggage, installed to both sides of the rear wheel.
As if it was gliding, the motorrad kept on running through the meadow.
Suddenly, the rider's chin lifted up slightly. Letting go of the left handle, the hand tapped twice on the motorrad's gas tank, then pointed forward.
"I can see it now."
The rider spoke to the motorrad.
"At long last."
The motorrad replied.
Beyond their course, the blurry outline of white city walls started coming in to view.
The rider opened up the throttle.
===
"Is anyone there?"
The motorrad's rider shouted. The goggles were removed and hung around the neck. An attempt was made to rake the windblown hair into order, which resulted in no significant change.
Before the rider's eyes was an arched gate in the high walls. However, the thick doors, which should have been tightly shut, was wide open. Squinting beyond the dark gate, several stone houses could be seen. The guardhouse, which should have been stationed with persuader-armed guards, showed no sign of human presence.
The rider waited there for a few moments, arm raised only once to wipe off sweat on the brows.
"Looks like no one's there, Kino."
Instead, the motorrad, leaning on the kickstand, was the one that answered.
"Strange."
The rider, who was referred to as Kino, shouted out once more.
Only the sound of the calmly drifting wind could be heard.
"No answer."
The motorrad made a minimal remark.
"How about we just go in? The gate's already open, after all."
"That'd be unwise, Hermes. If you go into someone's house without permission, you won't be able to complain even if they shot you dead."
'Sure...' muttered the motorrad, referred to as Hermes,
"But you can't get shot if there's no one there. Besides,"
"...Besides?"
Kino turned to Hermes, face painted with expectations.
"It's not like there's that many people who could kill you, Kino. Even if someone pulled a persuader on you from behind, you'd be able to turn and shoot first if it's the average deal. I guarantee it."
"...Thanks for that."
Smiling wryly, Kino tapped on the right thigh persuader holster, which contained a revolver-type hand persuader.
"Well, no way around it. We can't afford to stay here forever. How about we just barge in?"
"Let's go with that. We're in agreement now, then."
"But no fighting back. If it looks like something's up, we run."
"Whatever you prefer."
Kino went through the gate, pushing Hermes along.
"Kino. I'm sure there'd be someone if we go to the center of town. We can just ask for entrance and staying clearance when that time comes. Mm-hmm."
Hermes cracked a joke.
Leaving the shadow of the gate, Kino and Hermes made their way into the town in which the walls encompassed.
===
"Camping out in the streets, huh."
Feeding kindling to the...
The Country of Majority Rule -Ourselfish-
The carpet of grass stretched as far as the eye could see. Layers of the green, lightly undulated land overlapped each other as they disappear toward the horizon.
The vast sky was in clear blue, strewn with drifting white clouds, so vivid to the point of dazzling. In the distance, above the horizon, a cumulonimbus cloud rose like a white-walled sanctuary. The incessant cry of cicadas filled the air.
The meadow had but a single road.
The road could barely be acknowledged as one, being so narrow that its earth surface was hardly visible. It ran straight, with occasional iterations of sudden curves, as if they were avoiding the masses of trees. It headed due west.
A single motorrad (Note: Two-wheeled vehicle. Refers to only ones that cannot fly) was running down the road. The motorrad cleared the curves at a considerable speed. It accelerated upon entering a long, straight path, its rear wheel scattering dirt.
The motorrad's rider wore a long, black vest. The collar was opened wide, so as to let air in. A thick belt wrapped around the hips, and on its backside was a hand persuader holster (Note: Persuaders are firearms. In this case, a handgun). Inside it was a thin-framed hand persuader, grip pointed upwards. Another one could be seen on its wielder's right thigh.
Worn under the vest was a white shirt. To keep both sleeves from flapping in the wind, several elastic bands were wrapped around them.
The rider's short, black hair was blown into disarray by the wind. On top of the slender, tough-looking face was a pair of silver-framed goggles with chipped-off plating; under it, the rider's eyes glared straight ahead.
Approaching a curve, the rider decelerated and leaned the motorrad down. Its rear wheel slid along slightly before they made it through the curve safely.
The motorrad was one without a back seat, but rather a pipe-framed carrier. Bound on it was a large bag and a rolled-up, light brown coat. The topmost part was fastened tightly, albeit crudely, by the sleeves cut off from the rider's vest, which was formerly a jacket. Under the carrier were boxes for storing additional luggage, installed to both sides of the rear wheel.
As if it was gliding, the motorrad kept on running through the meadow.
Suddenly, the rider's chin lifted up slightly. Letting go of the left handle, the hand tapped twice on the motorrad's gas tank, then pointed forward.
"I can see it now."
The rider spoke to the motorrad.
"At long last."
The motorrad replied.
Beyond their course, the blurry outline of white city walls started coming in to view.
The rider opened up the throttle.
===
"Is anyone there?"
The motorrad's rider shouted. The goggles were removed and hung around the neck. An attempt was made to rake the windblown hair into order, which resulted in no significant change.
Before the rider's eyes was an arched gate in the high walls. However, the thick doors, which should have been tightly shut, was wide open. Squinting beyond the dark gate, several stone houses could be seen. The guardhouse, which should have been stationed with persuader-armed guards, showed no sign of human presence.
The rider waited there for a few moments, arm raised only once to wipe off sweat on the brows.
"Looks like no one's there, Kino."
Instead, the motorrad, leaning on the kickstand, was the one that answered.
"Strange."
The rider, who was referred to as Kino, shouted out once more.
Only the sound of the calmly drifting wind could be heard.
"No answer."
The motorrad made a minimal remark.
"How about we just go in? The gate's already open, after all."
"That'd be unwise, Hermes. If you go into someone's house without permission, you won't be able to complain even if they shot you dead."
'Sure...' muttered the motorrad, referred to as Hermes,
"But you can't get shot if there's no one there. Besides,"
"...Besides?"
Kino turned to Hermes, face painted with expectations.
"It's not like there's that many people who could kill you, Kino. Even if someone pulled a persuader on you from behind, you'd be able to turn and shoot first if it's the average deal. I guarantee it."
"...Thanks for that."
Smiling wryly, Kino tapped on the right thigh persuader holster, which contained a revolver-type hand persuader.
"Well, no way around it. We can't afford to stay here forever. How about we just barge in?"
"Let's go with that. We're in agreement now, then."
"But no fighting back. If it looks like something's up, we run."
"Whatever you prefer."
Kino went through the gate, pushing Hermes along.
"Kino. I'm sure there'd be someone if we go to the center of town. We can just ask for entrance and staying clearance when that time comes. Mm-hmm."
Hermes cracked a joke.
Leaving the shadow of the gate, Kino and Hermes made their way into the town in which the walls encompassed.
===
"Camping out in the streets, huh."
Feeding kindling to the...
