Nation in White
On a rickety old bridge, in the middle of a vast forest, a carriage sped up the winding dirt road. Rocking back on its wheels, the carriage bumped and jumped in the night sending its passenger to and fro against the sides. "Yousei-san! Please be careful; I wish to make it to Sawara in one piece!" the passenger cried out. The gentleman inside smoothed back his blond hair in an attempt to regain his composure and sat back into the plush seat.
Arthur Kirkland was an English merchant, born and raised in Leicester. How he ended up in a carriage speeding towards Sawara, Japan was just business as usual. On this particular night, Arthur was sent to do business with a local Sake merchant. He had heard Sawara dealt with sake and ikebana, but nervously picked at his nails when no rice fields or homes were in sight. Nothing but thick, black forest coated the outside of the road; and the land of the rising sun had its luminous name extinguished in the night. In all seriousness it was rather frightening, and Arthur questioned whether or not his driver, Yousei-san, knew what he was doing. Though Arthur only got a brief look at the coachman, he could have sworn the man almost looked…green. How very odd and fairy like.
Another jolt of the carriage sent Arthur's thoughts of Yousei into a rage. "Yousei-san! It's dark as ink, and the bitumen forest makes travel hard enough. Please spare a traveler's heart and slow the horses, lest I die of excitement" he screeched. Yousei-san, apparently listening to his passenger's pleas, stopped the horses suddenly; sending the Briton crashing into the curtained wall. "Yousei! Why did we stop?" The Englishman peered out of his frost bitten window and stared upon a warm looking hut. With its decrepit roof and slumping sides, Arthur could only manage to read the Kanji fluttering on the white talisman clinging to the gutter. "Takoyaki…a food stand? Yousei-san, do you need food at this moment or can we just leave?". There was no reply. The foreign man opened the carriage door hesitantly and peered up at the driver's seat.
Empty.
Where Yousei had run off to was a mystery; the path was silent, yet everything in the woods surrounding it seemed to creak, shift, and rustle. With no other way of knowing how to reach Sawara, Arthur tethered the horses and padded quietly to the shop at the side of the road. As he reached the curtain partition he was overcome with fear, but pushed himself to part the curtains and ask for help.
"S-sumimasen" he stuttered awkwardly. The inside of the shop was quite small, and four bodies crammed themselves inside. "Harro" one greeted, holding a plate of freshly cooked takoyaki. "You—speak English?" Arthur questioned. The dark haired man nodded. "Yes. A little". Besides the long haired oriental man, the other three sat crowded by the corner bar, which resembled more of a warped wooden plank nailed to the wall. One had the same facial features of the oriental man, but the thick eyebrows of an Englishman. A woman sat next to him, her pink dress sleeves stained with a little frying oil. The fourth being was bouncing in his chair, a particularly happy cowlick bobbing from his raven hair.
"You're clothing is not native to here, I assume you're not Japanese". The first man shook his head. "No, no. I am Chinese. My name is Wang Yao." The fourth man spoke up next "I'm Korean! Yong Soo—and don't you forget that Japan only got half its Asian stuff because we traded with them first. Oh and the two silent ones over there are Taiwanese and one if from Hong Kong". The remaining two remained silent, not even introducing their names.
"I am Arthur Kirkland, I'm from England. I was hoping you could help me. You see, my driver has seemed to have disappeared. I need to get to Sawara by morning." Wang set his plate down in front of Yong Soo and sighed deeply. "I hate to inform you, but tonight is not a very lucky night for travel. I urge you to stay here until morning." The Englishman felt his face heat up with aggravation. "Sorry, you don't understand. I need to get there by morning. For you see, I'm in competition with another man who also wishes to purchase the sake from a Sawara merchant. I cannot possibly lose to him." Arthur thought of the man he was in competition with. Alfred Jones, an American merchant who liked to steal deals from under the Englishman's nose. It was bad enough he took pity on the poor abandoned American in his youth, taking him in as his own brother. His kindness allowed the American to learn all his secrets as a prodigy, only to have his heir then take up business of his own and try to ruin him. How it made his blood boil.
The Chinese man fussed with his hair tie as he thought. "If your competition means more than your very life then you may go. Just be warned of the road ahead. Many a foul creature will roam the nightscape hoping to prey on travelers. If an animal darts into the road, keep driving; even if its guts are spilt. Do not stop at crossroads for a long time. Stay upon your seat at all times, and remember this if not all; beware the white ghost of the hollows." Yong Soo shivered at the thought, and scarfed down his food to quell his own fright. Arthur stared into Wang's eyes and saw his words were true.
"You have been understanding and helpful to me. Thank you, all. When I return from Sawara I shall bring a token of my appreciation." The Englishman bowed quickly and exited the shop, quickly hopping up onto the carriage driver seat. Wang closed his eyes and shook his head solemnly. "You see this, Yong Soo. To the west, money is valued more than life; though when a life is spared it continues to make more money. How foolish they are". He watched Arthur take the reins into his hands and gallop off into the night.