Rhone
It was the morning of the last day of some world.
We stood in a translucent blue realm, just before the chaos to come. As we waited on deck for the passage to the next world, an unusually noisy ship pulled up beside us, and I could see fire rising within it.
And then my eyes met those of the man holding a heart in his hand. That was the beginning.
Quite literally, that was where I began. All memories before that were blown away. Or rather, they ceased to matter.
That man, of course, was your Harvester of Hearts.
“—What are you doing?”
It took all I had just to force the words out.
What a beautiful man he was. Was the heart he held his own? I had never seen a red so vivid, before or since.
Standing in the center of the deck, that Harvester did not even seem to notice me, his eyes cast downward.
“Are you all right? I’ll help you—no, I can’t… I can’t go.”
If the passage to the next world began while I was away from my ship, it would be disastrous.
The passengers I had brought this far would be crushed within this world. We Harvesters are the will of our ships. Amid the rough seas toward the next world, passengers without the ship’s will are easily cast into the ocean.
The Harvester holding the heart glanced at me, and in his eyes I could read the words, “Are you stupid?” It shocked me. To be despised in an instant by someone so beautiful.
As I wavered, staring at the fire-belching ship, a human stumbled out, breath ragged. I blinked several times, unable to believe my eyes. Wait—two of them? No, there were clearly two.
That Harvester couldn’t possibly be ignorant of the rules.
I dared not say anything further—if I angered him I would regret it—but I could not look away. I had never seen a ship reach this final moment without its passengers narrowed down to one.
“Hey…”
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What emerged were a middle-aged man and woman. And then, the woman tried to leap into the sea.
What startled me was not her attempt to jump. In truth, I almost felt relief: at last, had he chosen one?
What shocked me was that the Harvester caught her arm, stopping her from plunging into the waves.
And then, unthinkably, he pressed the heart he had been holding into her mouth.
I should explain something about our hearts. Unlike yours, ours can divide. We can even change their size at will. That was why the Harvester could hold one casually in his hand, and why the woman could swallow it so easily.
With the Harvester’s blood dripping from her lips as she swallowed the heart, she looked strangely alluring.
The man, stunned, rushed to her side.
The beautiful Harvester drew them both into his arms. I saw his lips move, ever so slightly: It’s all right. And from the depths of me, a searing jealousy rose, my first taste of such a thing, so fierce I could not control it.
I wanted to stand in that place, to hear those words—It’s all right—from him. No, not “I too,” but I alone. If I am honest, what I wanted was to be the only one.
Overcome, I was about to leap across to his ship—when it happened.
From the depths of the sea came the last sound of thunder.
I clicked my tongue—for the first time in my memory—and returned inside my ship.
Soon, a giant tree would rise from the sea, stretching into the sky.
To your eyes, thunder may look like blades of light falling from the heavens. But in the end, you will learn the truth.
What you think is thunder becomes a colossal tree of light, reaching upward from the sea into the sky.
You will see it yourself in a few hours, so I will not go into detail. Only remember: you must not miss your chance to climb that tree.
Even the ship itself had begun to change shape in answer to the thunder.
I had to hurry. Reluctantly, I turned for one last glance at the Harvester’s profile. He looked back. Our eyes met.
Ah… I must never forget this. The color of that heart, its scent.
I swore then: I will find you again.
♢♢
“That’s the main story you wanted to tell us? And that’s why you rammed into our ship this time too?”
Oze-kun looked troubled.
“Ah, well… yes. But the collision was an accident. I had actually been trying to slip a ladder across. But I brought the ship too close, he caught me, and scolded me, and I thought it was all over. And then he scolded me again for not stopping my passengers from falling asleep. Oomi-kun—who stayed on your ship—put down the ladder for me, and I was so grateful.”
Only Oze-kun still looked bewildered, though Kaori-san and Mamoru-kun seemed to understand.
How much does Oze-kun remember? I have to be cautious.
“In any case, I’ve been chasing him all this time, and now, for the first time, my ship has been joined to his. He can’t escape me now. In the next world, and the one after that, he will never be apart from me.”
…And on Oze-kun’s face, in bold letters, was written: Disgusting.
Why? Why must the brightest, most beautiful emotion within me be seen that way? It hurt.
“I—I’m sorry…”
“Don’t apologize. That only makes me feel miserable. Is it really just a nuisance to him? He’s strong—he doesn’t need anyone. If that’s so, then I’ll just stay close by and watch.”
Oze-kun smiled. It was so natural I was moved, as if I’d never seen him smile that way before.
“No one’s fine on their own.”
“I think he’ll be glad, inside.”
Kaori-san spoke kindly, with a smile.
“Cheer up, mister.”
It did sting, being called “mister” by Mamoru-kun.
But now everything was ready. I would need Oze-kun’s help from here.
“So, there’s something I’d like to ask you—”