Chapter 4
Rain Furnace

I travel down a gloomy, unmarked path. My clothes feel twice as heavy as usual. A natural result of this drizzle, of course.

Be it sunlight or pouring rain, this forest's leaves will dissipate it completely. Whether it's sunny or rainy doesn't make much of a difference in this forest. Not knowing if it's day or night...I really like this feeling of borderlessness a lot.

But even so, it's hard to walk when your skirt is so heavy. I put my hands inside my skirt's pocket, feeling the rough object I was carrying, and I look up. Thinking of which, wasn't that a day with this same rain and mist...? The day I got this...?

He's run a shop in this place for as long as I can remember. I don't really think about the past often, but, well, I remember lots of stuff, like the pleasant dimness inside the shop. Yes, there was no such thing as day or night, human or youkai there. It's that kind of place. It certainly feels nice there, but there's just one thing I can't stand.

It probably has to do with my family, but he's so stiff toward me. Well, of course, he was an apprentice to the Kirisame family since before I was born. In the end, it seems he said that by dealing with our everyday merchandise and human customers, he couldn't make the most of his ability, and so went independent. This ability of his, though...just a half-baked "ability" that can neither kill nor revive. Just a while ago he was saying stuff like "this is a heater," and showing me how he uses it in a really weird way. In any case, since long ago, he's been reserved when it comes to me, even though I did already tell him I've got no intention of moving back in with my family.

At that time I saw a fairy sitting on some huge mushrooms. This type of mushroom makes people feel more cheerful, so I'll take some to recover fatigue. He's always being anti-social and listless, so maybe I should give some to him as a gift.

The forest's mushrooms grow in a blink, and they always grow in different places. They practically pop out of nowhere, and vanish just as fast. The forest is growing, and it's always changing. But there are things that change even faster than the forest. Like humans. It's really humans that pop out of nowhere and vanish just as fast.

But even if I say that, this guy hasn't changed in any way at all since long ago - neither on the outside, nor on the inside. For as long as I can remember, he was already running this shop, so I don't really know when this apprenticeship story of his happened. Just how long is he planning to live, anyway?

There are humans who defy gravity, and there are humans who can stop time, too. But humans who don't change both on the outside and the inside...that may very well be the one thing no human can imitate. I'm so jealous.

That's when I realized I'd picked too many mushrooms; the fairy looked unhappy. It didn't look like I could carry that many, but it seemed like it'd be a waste to leave them behind, so I just stuffed them inside my hat. They were wet, so they felt a little gross. Man, I just can't seem to bring myself to throw stuff away. I'm amazed at this myself.

I'm just like I was when I was living with my parents. During one of his rare visits to my house, he was carrying some scrap of metal, and got in an argument with my father for some reason. I was very young, and even though I tried desperately to eavesdrop, stuff like "hihi'irokane" and "rare metal" was all I could hear. And after that, I got curious and started to gather everything from iron tools to old iron rods and iron scraps, anything that was metal. In the end, it was pointless, but even now that I've left my parents' home, all the iron scraps I gathered at that time - well, trash, really - I still have them at my new house. Even if I would throw away my home, I still wouldn't be able to throw away those scraps of metal. I sure amaze myself.

While I was remembering these unnecessary things, I saw my destination. Close by the Forest of Magic, with this rainy spell joining the drizzly rain and the forest. Yes, this is a shop with an owner who would name it in such an obvious manner. The incense relates to "gods," basically meaning "shrine." Geez, this guy really likes this stuff.

The Forest of Magic (where my house is)...the human village...and then the shrine; Kourindou is at the center of their borders. In other words, is this place supposed to be the heart of Gensokyo?

There's a drizzle falling today, and on these rainy days, the only thing to do is light a lamp and read a book.

*Knock-knock-BAM!*

"Hey, Heart of Gensokyo! I know it's kinda sudden, but give me something to dry myself."

What I saw was a black and wet lump. Sure enough, the one destroying my enjoyable reading time was the same troublesome person as always.

"What do you mean by 'heart,' Marisa? Oh...you are pretty wet, aren't you? Take this towel and dry yourself."

"Oh, thanks for that. And by the way, why are you readin' a book, Kourin? It's rainin' today, huh? Didn't ya always say that 'the only days for reading books are sunny days'?"

"I said that sunny days are the only ones in which you can read a book with the lights out."

"Ah, that's right, I brought you this; eat as much as you like and cheer up some."

Marisa handed out her hat to me, while wiping down her body. It was full of mushrooms inside.

"Are you telling me to eat these suspicious-looking things? Well...if they are yours, then I think it's fine..."

"Just make mushroom soup with them. Here's the towel back."

"Hey, dry yourself properly! It'll be bad for my merchandise if you sit around it in those wet clothes."

"This is the part where you're supposed ta be worryin' about me gettin' a cold. Anyway, today I have a job for ya. Betcha weren't expectin' that, huh?"

When you yourself say that your being a customer is unusual, I have nothing cynical left to say.

Marisa said "I came to ask ya to fix this," and pulled something resembling an octagon-shaped incense burner from inside her skirt pocket. Though it was generally worn out, the rust stood out the most.

"Ahh, this sure is nostalgic. Are you still using this mini-hakkero?"

"I abuse it every day. Full-on use. It's just that...it got rusty." This mini-hakkero is a magical item I made for Marisa when she left her parents' home. Even though it's small, it has extraordinary heating power: it could reduce a mountain to ashes. It can be used for heating, experiments, combat, and more. "Gee, I can't even think of makin' a livin' without it."

"I see. Hearing such things is one of the benefits of being an item-maker."

"That's why I want you to repair it so it never rusts again. Yep, I want you to make the whole reactor out of hihi'irokane."

Even though it was a strange word to come up all of a sudden, as if an illusion that my interlocutor wasn't Marisa anymore, my conditioned response was to use a business tone.

"Unfortunately, I don't deal in such material."

"What ya lack, Kourin, is the ability to lie. Ya lack a lotta other things too."

"Hmph. Since it's such a bother, I have quit lying. But I wouldn't think you would know about hihi'irokane."

"I sure do. It's good stuff, right?"

"Hmm...hihi'irokane is an incredibly rare metal. However, I do have a little of it; I guess I could use it."

"If ya please."

Hihi'irokane is, indeed, a rust-proof metal. Since its properties basically won't change under any environment, I guess you could make the strongest magical items with it. But even if I say that, if I do so, I would run out of this precious metal...what should I do?

While I was hesitating, I noticed that there was a strange point to what Marisa had said. This would be my first chance to do business in a while.

"Alright. Since this item is a proud work of mine, I might as well do it."

"Really? That would help me out a lot!"

"However, I do have something to ask in return."

As I said, when you accept a job, it's only natural to ask for something in return. But for Marisa, the terms I proposed to her could be considered easier than paying in money or mushrooms.

"If I remember correctly, you were gathering some iron scraps a while ago. I have no idea what for, though."

"That's my iron scrap treasure."

"Anyway, you were - as always - gathering them just because, right? So, my terms this time are for doing this job in exchange for that pile of scraps. How's that? Getting rid of bothersome stuff as payment is really good, isn't it?"

"Didn't I say that was treasure? But I guess hihi'irokane is pretty valuable..."

"Well, for starters, those iron scraps don't really have much value to them, so this job is almost a free bonus. As you know, this mini-hakkero--"

"Whoa, I don't need an in-depth explanation right now."

I know all about Marisa's character. That's because I've been watching her since she was little. She's the type that can't throw things away. And the things she gathers would just stay unnarranged and piled up...that would only serve to reduce their value. Although she seems terribly hesitant about my terms, deep inside she must want to make a decision quickly. But there's a chance that she would agree, since it seems she can't live without the mini-hakkero.

"Do you have any idea how much trouble I went through to gather all those iron scraps?"

"So if you're just going to keep them, then all these troubles were for nothing."

"Just gatherin' stuff was my goal. Never thought about usin' 'em."

"Then haven't you already achieved your goal? Just let these iron scraps rest in peace with me."

"Somethin's fishy here. Wasn't hihi'irokane a very rare metal?"

"There's also a good reason for you to agree. If you let such an opportunity pass, aren't you afraid of what's going to happen later?"

"Y'know, you don't have to hold back."

When I said "the repairs will take four days," Marisa in turn said "I'll be readin' this book until then," and grabbed one of my books for sale on her way out. This isn't a library, you know...

Well then, this is the first big job I've had in a long time. Lately, I haven't had almost any work or customers. If it keeps up like this, my "ability" will end up rusting. Yes, the ability to know the name and purpose of any unknown item. Since I thought that I couldn't make the most of this ability at a normal shop, I opened up a shop dealing with curiosities and rare articles, but...curiosities only attract eccentrics. And this ability, too, has a small problem: the truth is that, even though I can know the name and purpose of something, that doesn't necessarily mean I'll know exactly how to use it. ...Well, if I can at least know an item's utility, I can find some way to use it.

The mushroom soup's suspiciously good smell was drifting about the room. While preparing dinner, I thought about the mini-hakkero. This mini-hakkero wasn't just a normal hakkero; it was made with a lot of improvements and special qualities. Wind blows from one of the reactor's corners, so you can also use it to cool yourself during the summer. And just by having it, it works as an amulet for protection and good fortune (...I think). Anyway, it combines many of the "utilities" of outside world items. That is my hobby. Alright, I'll start on it as soon as I finish dinner.


***


Three days later is a sunny day. One for reading a book with the lights out; that kind of day.

*Knock-knock.*

"Done, Kourin?"

"Marisa? Yes, it's done."

Marisa was carrying the metal scraps in her arms. And even though I said it would take 4 days, she came back in 3. Oh well, she's always like that. That's why I always say it will take a day longer.

"Ahh, OK then. I'm putting these here. If you weren't done, I would've had to take all this back."

"You shouldn't make such unreasonable complaints when you come a day early. Besides, I don't see why you would have to take them back."

"Because the promise was to give 'em to ya for the finished product."

"Well, whatever. This is the hihi'irokane mini-hakkero. Probably the only one in the world."

Marisa became so excited and was all "this is hihi'irokane, then?" She was so pleased that she wouldn't calm down, and unusually went back home soon after.


***


Several days later, Marisa's happy mood continued.

"I feel so good when I wake up! The air feels so great!" she said happily.

Oh my. I thought then, that if using my precious hihi'irokane made her this happy, then it would've been alright even if I hadn't asked for anything in exchange.

As a matter of fact, this time I secretly mixed in the power of an "item that makes the air cleaner." This mysterious charm had "minus ion" or something like that written on it, and I couldn't quite fathom its manner of use. At least it seemed to be functioning. Knowing the name and purpose of an item, I can manage the rest later some way or another.

"Hey, Kourin. Is it really okay? For it to work so well, this metal must be really precious..."

"Hihi'irokane is indeed rare, but it's not as efficient as you say. Metal is something that, if you just pile it up without ever using it to make a tool, is nothing but a bunch of scraps. This is something you don't seem to understand."

"But my goal is just gatherin' stuff. Usin' it or whatever is secondary."

"Being useful or whatever is not the point. It's important to put it to some kind of use."

"So, are you goin' to use the iron scraps I brought ya? Even though they're in that junky condition?"

I have a reason to be indebted to Marisa. It's nothing more than the fact that I always end up obtaining garbage that she obsessively collects. Anyway, it's not like Marisa would understand things like the small differences in the properties of materials. These iron scraps, the exchange wasn't a made-up-at-the-last-minute condition.

It's just that as Marisa grew up, I was afraind that she would end up finding out...Marisa hasn't changed even a bit; she's still collecting stuff even today. A human that doesn't change even this much is a rare sight.

"Don't just stare at my face like that. Are ya gonna use it, or aren't'cha?"

"That's it. I'll take them and keep them untouched as a memento."

"That's not what ya said before..."

From the middle of the iron scraps, I pulled out an old sword. There's no way Marisa could actually know about hihi'irokane, because this sword is made of hihi'irokane. Marisa always had a sword made of hihi'irokane in her possession since a long time ago. This sword's name is "The Sword of Kusanagi," and it's a very precious item. One that could change the outside world, at least. Marisa had had a very precious thing on her hands without even realizing it. Since I have no idea what would happen if I let Marisa hold on to it, I wanted to keep it in my custody. Even if I say so myself, I believe this is the right decision.

"Whattza matter? You're just holdin' that dirty sword and smirkin'. ...It's kinda creepy."

"Ah...hmm. I just think it's a nice sword."

"A junk sword like that? I bet it can't cut anything."

"We can't keep this sword nameless, can we? It was one of your garbage treasures, so what if I name it 'The Sword of Kirisame'?"

"What? You bein' sarcastic?"

"I'm telling you it's a nice sword."

"I think your ability to know names might be gettin' dull, too, Kourin. Oh well, whatever. But you don't have to be so stiff with me. Can't you just call it 'The Sword of Kourin' or somethin'? I'm not goin' back to live with my parents, y'know."

"I'n not...being stiff."

It's just that since I just fooled Marisa and am afraid of what may happen later, I'm putting my guard up. So that even if she finds out she has been fooled when she grows up, she doesn't come asking for it back. And besides, if I don't give it a short-lived name, then there's no point to it.

But then...Kourindou's collection of items that are not for sale has just increased by one. If the shop becomes full of these, I won't be able to speak up against Marisa's collecting obsession. It appears that collecting for the sake of collecting is becoming my objective too.

...That worries me.