Reincarnated as the Chosen One in My All-Time Favorite Fantasy Novel: III - This Dark and Lonely Land

Once the wagons were loaded, Kenichi found Marumi. She was standing beside freshly dug a hole and was holding a shovel. Sweat glistened across her forehead and her face was flush.

“Do you need any help?” Kenichi said.

“No,” said Marumi. “I found what I've been looking for.” She set the shovel down and leaned into the hole to pull up a crate. Several glass bottles jangled against each other as she pulled it from the dirt. Kenichi hurried over to help her carry it.

“What's in here?” he said, as he stepped backwards toward the wagon.

“Every expensive and rare bottle of wine, ale, and spirits I had saved away for a future celebration. It's all I have left of the Hopping Hare.”

“So you're coming with us?” Kenichi said.

“I don't think I have much of a choice. At least the canvas on top of the wagon will keep the rain out.”

“I'm glad to hear that,” Kenichi said. He helped her set the crate into the back of the wagon.

“Don't think I've forgiven you,” she said. “I just think my fortune will fare better if I don’t have to serve drinks from a pile of ashes.”

“I promise, I'll make it up to you,” Kenichi said.

She made a noncommittal noise.

Momiji peeked his head out from the back of the other wagon. “Oh, Kenichi,” he said. “We're almost ready to go. Pukku, Oren, Korrael and I will ride in this wagon, while Ash, Kofi, Tivareth, and the two of you will ride in that wagon.” He gave a glimpse to the night sky and the field of stars scattered across its canvas. “Are you sure we can make it to the Angelus before dawn? I would not wish to be so far from anything of note with two horseless wagons.”

“I'm sure,” Kenichi said. “Once, I saw a video showing how fast a Night Stallion could travel across the world. It'll be a piece of cake.”

“Video? Cake?” Momiji mouthed before pulling his head back into the wagon.

“You speak strangely, Kenichi,” Marumi said. “And you have a certain familiarity with me that sometimes feels unsettling.”

Kenichi laughed. “I don't understand it myself, but there's a girl exactly like you back in my world. She looks just like you, has the same name, and even has the same distinctly blue earrings as yours, though I think the stones are cut differently in my world.”

Marumi nodded. “When you speak of her, I hear a fondness in your voice. Was she your...” she struggled to find the right word.

Kenichi started to blush. “I was working toward that,” he said.

Marumi nodded. “She must be quite patient, then,” she said. “One way in which I differ from her.” This she said with a wink and a grin.

By the light of the moon and the stars, they rode. Ash and Momiji drove their respective wagons. Somebody had packed a lute, and so Kenichi, after familiarizing himself with the subtle differences between a lute and a guitar, started to play it. As he played, he sang.

Kofi and Tivareth sat on opposite sides of the wagon. They obviously disliked each other, but as they both listened to Kenichi's song, they both gently rocked their heads to the rhythm.

“It reminds me of a song I once heard echoed in the heart of the mountains,” Kofi said.

“It reminds me of a song I once heard blowing through the leaves of the ancient forest,” said Tivareth.

Kenichi set the lute down. “It's just something I made up one day while walking.”

Marumi brushed the lute with her fingers. “I used to play, as a child,” she said. “But I have let the skill languish.” She lifted the instrument and held it in her lap. Then, hesitantly, she began to strum it. Her picked song was choppy and uneven at first, but as she warmed up, she started to be more confident in her notes, and they soon flowed freely like water from a spring. She played a bittersweet ballad about a girl who had lost her memories, and did not recognize anyone in her family, or even the man to whom she was betrothed.

Both Kofi and Ti had tears in their eyes as they listened to her play.

Marumi hummed the words as she went along, not quite remembering them, but then when she got to the chorus, she sang with the gentle voice of a songbird, “Tell me good sir, why do you hold my hand? Will you lead me away from this dark and lonely land?” Then she looked at Kenichi, and her voice broke. She stopped playing, setting the lute down.

“See?” she said in a quiet mumble. “I suppose I've been too busy to keep up the skill.”

“Nonsense,” said Kenichi. “That was a beautiful song. You're an excellent musician.” He smiled. “Almost as good as me.”

She scowled.

“Say”, Kenichi said. “You know what I've always wanted to try?”

“What?” Marumi said. The single syllable chopped the air like an axe.

“Some Verdigris. Whenever I'd read about it, I'd always picture the flavor in my head. But I'd like to try the real thing.”

Marumi kicked the crate at her feet. “I have a bottle,” she said.

This got both Kofi and Tivareth's attention. “I have my own tankard,” they said in unison.

It was a short task to convince Marumi to uncork the bottle and pour them each a glass. They offered one to Ash, but he declined, wishing not to dull his senses while driving such hellish beasts.

Ever since he was a kid, Kenichi had speculated about the flavor of Verdigris, the local speciality of the Hopping Hare. Never having had a drink of alcohol in his life, he always imagined that it tasted like a subtly sweet beverage, like a carbonated tea or a soda, maybe with a hint of apple or lime.

He sniffed the glass. The fizz of the bubbles tickled his nose. He swirled it around in the cup, letting the aroma rise from the glass. Then, he took a sip, small at first, but then more. He swished it around in his mouth, letting the taste linger on his tongue.

After swallowing it, then coughing, he met the expectant looks of the others in the wagon. “It wasn't quite what I was imagining,” he said, the back of his throat still burning. “But I'm glad I tried it.”

Kofi and Ti both raised their tankards in a show of approval. Then, as one, they drained them. Marumi looked out through the back of the wagon, watching the stars go by. Kenichi set his cup down, leaving figuring out how to dispose of the remaining contents secretly for another time.

“Oh, Marumi,” he said. “I have something for you.”

She turned to face him. “What is it?”

He reached under the bench seat and pulled out something wrapped in a cloth. It was about the size of a cheese board. He pulled off the cloth to reveal it to be the slightly charred sign of the Hopping Hare, complete with a carving of the eponymous hare hopping over a sleeping, or perhaps drunk, Pokkurin.

“Oh,” she said, taking the sign. “Thank you.” She looked at the sign, dented, singed, and even a bit nicked. Kenichi took the opportunity during her distraction to discretely empty his cup into Tivareth's.

“You can use it when you open up the inn again,” He said after pretending to drink the rest of his Verdigris. He set his mug down within sight of the others so they all could notice that it was empty.

“Thank you,” Marumi said, a little more meaning when she said it this time. She traced her hands down the worn sign, feeling the carving marks and the rough edges on her fingertips..

“I thought I had finished this,” remarked Tivareth before consuming the rest of the contents of his drink.

“Silly elf can't hold his drink,” said Kofi, helping himself to the rest of the bottle.