The Golden Fairy – Part 01
She ran across the field after it, and fortunately was just in time to see it pop down a large rabbit-hole under the hedge. In another moment, down went Alice after it, never once considering how in the world she was to get out again.
—Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland
Prologue
A huge, black shape darted past.
A dog, the child thought. A dog as black as darkness itself, blending into the twilight. A hound. Its limbs were glossy black, and its two eyes flickered like blue flames in the darkness.
The child had just made it through the dark forest and onto the village road. It was too late to be out on an errand. He couldn’t wait to get home to the warmth of the fireplace. Wanting to take a shortcut, he decided to pass through a property located on the outskirts of the village, but as soon as he stepped into the garden, he encountered the hound.
The child took a few steps back.
Splat.
There was an unpleasant sensation under his foot. He had stepped on something soft and filled with warm fluid. He looked down and saw a small lump of soggy flesh. Red flesh. Blood oozed from brown fur. Long, fluffy ears peeked out from within the mass of flesh. Round eyes like marbles, dismal and empty, reflected the darkness of the night sky.
A hare, he realized.
He lifted his head. Fresh blood trickled from the hound’s closed muzzle.
This thing ate it!
His hand went limp. The bottle of wine that he was holding tight slowly fell to the ground, shattering to pieces. A splash of reddish purple liquid landed on the hound’s head.
The dog slithered out its tongue.
Thunder rumbled overhead.
A flash of light briefly illuminated the house. Old and crumbling, it was supposed to be abandoned, but on its terrace was an unfamiliar figure.
The child’s eyes widened.
A person covered in red cloth from head to toe was sitting in a wheelchair. The cloth peeled back a little, revealing a dark cavern instead of a head. A hand was sticking out from inside the cloth, so old and thin that it looked like a withered branch. It was hard to believe that it belonged to a living person.
The hand was trembling as it gripped a golden mirror tight.
Three jars—silver, copper, and a glass one—sat on the terrace, gleaming eerily.
“A young man will soon die!” bellowed an old, hoarse voice.
The child swallowed. It was the voice of an old woman. He felt terrified, as if every ominous thing the woman had said would come true.
“That death will be the beginning of everything,” she continued. “The world will turn to stone and start to tumble!”
Voices of men came from what should have been an empty terrace. Astonished, the child strained his eyes, but darkness had blanketed the terrace once more.
“What…”
“What should we do…?”
“Madame Roxane!”
“A box,” the old woman said. “Prepare a bigger box. Bigger than this garden. Let it float on water…”
Thunder crashed.
A white flash illuminated the terrace and the garden.
The child’s knees buckled at what he saw, and he let out a squeal.
On the terrace was an old woman garbed in red, surrounded by people. Clad in white cloaks, they wandered around with outstretched hands like ghosts.
Round, brown shapes were scuttling across the garden. More than a dozen hares were frantically running around while the hound chased and gnawed them to death. A few shapes lay on the ground, creating pools of blood.
The lightning faded, and darkness enveloped the house and garden once more.
There was silence.
And then…
“And set the hares loose!” the old woman cried.
Chapter 01: The Golden Fairy
Ten years later…
The Kingdom of Sauville, a small country in Europe.
Nestled at the foot of a mountain range was St. Marguerite Academy. Behind the U-shaped, magnificient stone building, two students were eagerly engaged in a conversation.
“…And when the coast guard boarded the cruise ship, there was still warm food on the dinner plates. The fireplace was blazing, and playing cards were laid out on the table. But get this! There was no one there. The passengers, the crew, they were all gone. There were rooms with blood and signs of struggle, but not a single soul around.”
“Ahuh, ahuh.”
Leaving the small door to the courtyard open, they sat on the second step of the three-step stairs, leaning towards each other. In front of them was a flower bed, where colorful flowers were blooming and swaying in the pleasant spring breeze.
One was an earnest-looking asian boy of small build and the other was a slender, blond caucasian girl.
The boy’s name was Kazuya Kujou, a foreign student from an island country in the Orient, while the girl’s name was Avril Bradley, an exchange student from England. They had only been in the same class for a short time, but as fellow exchange students, they grew closer and were able to talk to each other without much reservation.
Avril was so absorbed in her story that her pretty face looked comical, her eyes a little crossed. Her short, blond hair bobbed in the wind.
“…And then.”
“Go on.”
“When the coast guard was examining the ship, one guy casually touched a vase, and an arrow came flying from somewhere and almost killed him.”
“How? Was there some sort of mechanism in the vase? Or maybe someone was hiding and shot the bow gun right when they touched the vase? Or…”
Avril pouted. When Kazuya rambled on, not noticing her annoyance, she covered his mouth with the palm of her white hand.
“…Hmm?!”
“Just listen, okay?” Avril chided. “I’m getting to the important part. You’re too serious, it’s boring.”
“…Sorry,” he said, not entirely sure what he was apologizing for. But since she was a girl, he reflexively gave in. “Go ahead.”
“Okay. So after calling the naval police, the coast guard tried to check the ship, but the haul was flooded. The Queen Berry sank to the bottom of the sea shortly after, before they even had time to investigate. With a huge splash and an ominous groan, it sank lower and lower into the dark depths!”
“Must have been tough.”
“But!” Undeterred by Kazuya’s flippant remark, Avril raised her voice. “That ship that was supposed to have sunk ten years ago has been reappearing ever since.”
“No way. You just said it sank.”
“Hush. Just shut up and listen.”
“…Sorry.”
“On stormy nights, the ship suddenly appears from beyond the mists, with the missing people still onboard. They lure the living into the ship and offer them as sacrifice…”
Avril lowered her voice, and Kazuya waited patiently with bated breath.
She snapped her blue eyes wide open. “Sinking the ship along with them! Kyaaaa!”
Kazuya screamed.
“Ahahaha! I got you, Kujou! You screamed. A horror story made a boy and a soldier’s son scream! Ahaha!”
“D-Darn it…” Kazuya cursed, hanging his head.
Avril stood up and dusted her bottom. Her pleated uniform skirt swayed, revealing long, white legs.
The weather was fine, the sun shining brightly on the stone stairs behind the school building. Kazuya squinted against the brightness.
“All right, let’s head back to class,” Avril said. “I must say, I didn’t expect you to be a scaredy-cat. You get good grades, and you always have this serious look on your face. You’re like the perfect example of a boy from a military family. Who would’ve thought you had this side of you?”
Teased by the triumphant Avril, Kazuya hung his head even lower.
“I won,” Avril added. “Yay!”
Watching her skip back into the school building, Kazuya swore to himself.
I’m gonna find scarier horror stories for her. And I’ll make her scream. I’ll pay her back for this. In the name of the third son of an Imperial soldier!
Feeling bitter, Kazuya followed Avril inside.
When he entered the classroom, it was filled with the usual students—caucasian children from noble families, about fifteen years old or so.
Boys with fine cuffs and tie pins and girls with well-kept hair and nails sat at lavish desks made of fine oak. Wearing straight faces, they were slim and had porcelain skin.
When with them, the serious-looking asian boy, Kazuya Kujou, stood out quite a bit. In fact, as soon as he walked into the classroom, his classmates began whispering among themselves while casting quick glances at him.
“It’s the Reaper…”
“He’s back…”
Hearing their murmurs in elegant French, Kazuya grew even more upset.
NEXT CHAPTER
RELEASE RATE
Gosick
Speed up schedule by 10 hours
Current schedule: Every 90 hours
Thank You for Translating this!!