양지의 아니에스/10권

Chapter 10 - Path of the High Priestess

The grandfather clock in the parlor struck twice, and Agnès quietly left her room. By the light of the moon, she passed through the cafe and unlocked the front door, slipping out into the chilly night.

The day before, she had wound up drawing one final card to determine when she should make her move. It was the High Priestess, the second arcana, which to her, meant 2AM.

'Ed is still okay,' Agnès assured herself. 'I just know it.' Surely, leaving at two in the morning would get her there in time to save him. She looked down and noticed that her hands were shaking.

'I can't get ahead of myself, though. Ed could die if I'm not careful. I just need to follow the cards and wait until 2AM before doing anything.'

'Meow!' Kagemaru roosted upon Agnès' head. He was heavier than he looked. Agnès wondered if his laziness was making him fat. Still, it brought a certain sense of comfort having his weight over her head. She took a deep breath to center herself beneath the glow of the full moon above.

'Let's get going.'

Now in better condition, Agnès closed her eyes and felt out the septium veins beneath the earth, searching for where they grew stagnant. She then walked down the dimly lit streets, guided by her instincts toward the darkness beyond.

Anchorville nights were cold, even at the height of summer. Agnès wore a light sweater, her cream-colored hair complemented by the pale moonlight. The esmelas necklace she wore jostled in time with her every step.

The tiny stone was all Agnès had left of her mother. The memories were so distant that she couldn't even remember her face. When Agnès was just a child, her mother left without a trace after using her powers in public. Such were the laws of her clan, and although Agnès couldn't recall how she learned that, she knew exactly why it was so. 'We carry dangerous potential within us,' she recounted. 'We must keep it hidden and live amongst the others.'

Before long, the road led out of the city and ended at the base of a large hill. 'A cemetery...' Agnès whispered. At the top of the hill were rows of black tombstones. Among them, she spotted something moving about.

'Edwin! He's here!' Agnès exclaimed. There was no mistaking it. She recognized him by the coat he was wearing; it was still charred from the traffic accident several weeks back. 'I've told him so many times to get rid of it, but he's still wearing that ratty thing!' she thought.

Agnès removed Kagemaru from her head and held him in her arms, crouching behind a gravestone. She berated herself for wearing such a conspicuous outfit. Regardless of her lack of foresight, however, she knew Edwin was in mortal danger. After steadying her breath and carefully gauging the distance between the two of them, Agnès crept quietly into the shadows.

第10回　女教皇の道

大時計が２回鳴るのを待って、アニエスはそっと部屋を抜け出した。外から差し込む月明かりを頼りに薄暗いカウンターを抜け、ドアへ向かう。内鍵を外して深夜の冷気の中へと滑り出た。

あの後、もう１度だけタロットを引いた。占う内容は「自分がいつ行動を起こせばいいか」。──答えは女教皇、つまり午前２時だ。大丈夫、エドはきっとまだ無事だとアニエスは思った。午前２時に出かければきっと救う事ができるだろう。アニエスはふと、自分の手が震えているのに気がついた。

今動いてはダメだ、きっとその間違いでエドは死んでしまう。今は何もしちゃいけない。午前の２時まで何もしないで耐えなくちゃ──

「ブニャッ」カゲマルが頭の上に飛び乗った。カゲマルは見た目よりずっと重くて──たぶん怠け者だから太ったんだと思う──、でもその重さが我に返らせてくれる。アニエスは輝く満月を見上げて、一つ短く深呼吸をした。「……行こう」

調子は悪くない。目をつむって街を流れる七耀の淀みを感じ取ったあと、アニエスは仄かな夜道を歩き始めた。……この先にきっと『闇』がある。

アンカーヴィルの街は、真夏でも夜は冷え込む。おまけに時間が時間だから、アニエスは薄手の白いセーターを着込んできた。クリーム色の髪が月光に透き通り、歩調にあわせて首から下げた翠耀石(エスメラス)がちゃりちゃりと小さな音を立てる。

母が自分に残してくれたのは、このちっぽけな石だけだった。アニエスはもう母の顔を覚えていない。まだ小さい頃、母は人前で力を使ってしまって、どこかへ姿を消したのだ。それが自分たちの一族の掟……。教わった覚えは無くても、なぜだかはっきりと知っている。自分たちはとても危険な可能性を秘めていて、……だからひっそりと息を殺して、誰にも気付かれないように生きていくしかないのだ──。

やがて道は市街を抜け、大きな丘へとやってきた。墓地みたいだ、とアニエスは思った。丘の上へ向かって墓碑が黒々と立ち並んでいる。そしてその中に、ヒラヒラと舞う何かが見えた。

……いた、エドウィンだ！間違えるはずがない、あれは例の交通事故のときにあちこち焦げてしまったエドのコートだ。あれほど買い換えなさいって言ったのに、まだあんなのを着て！

ともかくアニエスは身を伏せて、カゲマルを頭上から外して腕に抱いた。どうしよう、もっと地味な格好をしてきた方がよかったかもしれない……

でも、きっとこの先でエドは殺される。アニエスは呼吸を整えて、慎重にエドとの距離を測り、そっと闇の中へと滑り込んだ。