Flower Spelling - Chapter 29.2
Chapter 29 – Inn of Spring Rain Part 2
It was a while before Heita disappeared into the hut.
Perhaps he assumed it was because Sogetsu had resigned herself to her fate as she had fallen silent, so the man continued to chatter on and on even without being asked. According to him, this gambling den was the territory of a great figure called Boss Kyojiro, who had dozens of men at his beck and call. If anyone were to cause a stir here, regardless of whether they were from a samurai family, the consequences would be severe.
“It was bad luck. If you’d left the brat alone, none of this would have happened.”
While listening to the man’s deafening words from right to left, Sogetsu simply stared at the hut.
Her right palm had a warm sensation still lingering over it. On his way off, Heita gripped Sogetsu’s hand. It was as if he was saying, “It’s okay, don’t worry.”
Eventually, the door of the hut opened and Heita emerged from within, holding a lamp.
He was followed by a man.
In the shadows, his face was obscured, but there was??
“…Oh, the brat’s back at last. Hey, bro, over here!”
The man leaned forward and waved his hand at the figure. Sogetsu did not overlook the fact that the man’s attention was diverted from her. Twisting his arm out of her grasp, she kicked him in the leg, hitting him where it hurts.
The man let out a shriek and jerked up.
“Ah, you have been babbling on so long, you’re so annoying! You know, I never took on the bad guys as many times as I should have! I’ve at least learned some self-defense!”
“You bitch…!”
Pain, wrath, or both? By the time the red-faced man reached for Sogetsu, she was already far in the distance.
Then the guy came rushing with Heita??Takasugi exchanged amused glances between them.
“What, when I heard that Sogetsu was in danger, I dropped the game and came. Well, there was no need for me to lend any help.”
“What are you on about, I can barely hold on alone, let alone get away!”
“That’s not how it seems to me.”
Looking at the man, who still had one hand on his knee unable to move, he chuckled.
“That’s quite effective.”
Well, a pity he can’t enjoy a woman’s company for a while. Takasugi, who was laughing in an unsympathetic manner, was brushed aside for the moment, while Sogetsu crouched down in front of Heita, whose eyes were rolled back and stuck in a frozen state.
“Thank you, Heita. For bringing Mr. Takasugi with you. I was certain you would come.”
“No, no, I should be saying sorry for all of this happening.”
“… Heita, you dare to betray me!” The man was sweating profusely. “You don’t care what happens to your mother?”
Heita remained unfazed by the cowardly threat. Stepping firmly on both feet, he declared to the man.
“Shut up! I have had enough. I don’t want to do any more bad things! I will work hard to pay for my mother’s medicine.”
“Well said, lad! Keep up the good work and I’ll see you out there.”
“Huh?”
Sogetsu and Heita both turned to regard Takasugi’s words, and saw that a group of men was coming out of the hut, each armed with a wooden sword and a long sword.
The first of these was Shido, who was running towards them at once.
“Oh, wait a minute, brothers, trying to outrun the odds is not going to work.”
“??Did you win!? Even though you were cheating?”
Shido, upon joining them, tilted his chin in a proud manner.
“I have played far too much with these poor tricks that I could see through them easily. On the contrary, I’ve made a lot of money by cheating.”
“More than that, what are we supposed to do now! What are the odds!?”
“Mr. Shido, you have become boastful!”
Disregarding the fact that they were surrounded by a group of 20 armed men, they plunged in.
“What! What are you saying? It’s only getting interesting, isn’t it? A game with a guaranteed outcome is no fun. I’m getting bored with this monotonous journey. For the first in a long time, I’m going to go all out.”
“In other words, it’s a big game with no chance of winning!”
It was a tense moment.
A brawl was about to break out.
“Stop it!”
Sounded a roar that seemed to pierce through the sky.
The crowd split and an elderly man in his sixties slowly emerged. He was small in stature for a man. Yet, the spirit that emanated from his body nearly overwhelmed her.
The sharp eyes beneath the thick eyebrows glanced at the men.
“What’s all this noise?”
“B-Boss Kyojiro!”
The man, who had recovered from the acute agony, hurried up to him and explained the situation in brief. Kyojiro listened in silence, but as soon as he had finished, his eyes snapped open.
“… You big idiot!”
With a bellow, the man’s body was blown off.
This unexpected turn of events stunned not only his minions but also Sogetsu and the other four.
“Are you all still one of my men! I knew you were using that brat to sneak a little money out of travellers, but for you to try and get your hands on an honest girl and even get her hooked on gambling is shameful!”
He turned to Sogetsu and the others. “I’m sorry, travellers, for the impertinence of my young men. If the world knew that Kyojiro’s men had been done in by women and children, our business would be ruined. So, samurai, in exchange for overlooking the brat, can you please let bygones be bygones for today?”
Then he bowed deeply. It’s a good thing he’s called the boss because he’s got a nice grace about him. Of course, the intention here too was not to set up a conflict, so they accepted gladly.
“Heita? What’s wrong?”
When the men left, Heita remained motionless, keeping his eyes downcast, and Sogetsu called out to him, Heita looked at Sogetsu and the others as if he had made up his mind, and then bowed his head vigorously.
“I’m sorry! I… I caused this mess…”
“Heita, don’t worry about that??”
“Well, you are in trouble. You must pay for this.”
Shido interrupted Sogetsu’s words with a vicious look on his face, reaching out his hand to Heita.
“Mr. Shido!”
Takasugi silently restrained Sogetsu who was about to lean forward.
Shido’s hand snatched the side of the cowering Heita and grabbed the drawstring hanging from his waist. From within, he pulled out a thick, egg-colored stone and scrutinized it as if he were trying to make it look good.
“You didn’t seem to realize it, but this is quite a piece of work. Well, five ryo may not be much, but I’m not so devilish as to take it for free. Give it to me for two ryo.”
“Eh, but this is nothing more than a stone…”
“Monta has a good eye for detail.”
Takasugi also extended his hand from the side. “I think I’ll have this.”
“… Then this is mine.”
Chuckling, Sogetsu joined in the fun.
The smooth young grass-colored stone and the slightly pale peach-colored stone were given to Takasugi and Sogetsu, while five or six pieces of Nishukin were placed in the palm of Heita’s hand.
Perplexed eyes alternated between the three faces and the money. Shido stroked Heita’s still-fringed head roughly.
“Just take it. Your parents will take good care of you.”
“… Yes. Thank you. Big brothers, thank you so much.”
Under the palm of Shido’s hand, Heita’s tears trickled down.
“I hope your mother recovers soon,” Sogetsu said softly.
Before long, the rain had stopped.