Legend of the Gold
We crossed the hall again on our way to the entrance.
As we did, we once again saw that witch's portrait.
However, the word "saw" is probably not the best word to describe that experience. ...It was more like our eyes were drawn to it. That woman's eyes, with their sage-like glamor, definitely had the power to make those who viewed it stand rooted to the spot.
Battler: ...So this is the witch, Beatrice. ...Is it true?
Maria: Uu-? Battler doesn't believe...?
Back when he had asked what this picture was, the first person to tell him it was Beatrice had been Maria.
Therefore, when Battler showed signs of doubt, Maria must have felt that Battler didn't have faith in her. ...Of course, that's not what Battler meant.
Maria ran up to the portrait and began banging on a plate hanging below it. Maybe the title of the portrait was written there. Maria, trying to prove that she wasn't lying, obstinately continued to hit the plate.
Battler: Ah-, sorry about that, it's not like I doubt anything you said, Maria.
Maria: Uu-! Battler believe it! Uu-!
When he patted Maria's head and apologized, she seemed to accept it, sticking out her chest and proudly uu-uu-ing.
Battler: ...What's this? "My most beloved witch Beatrice". ...My beloved hometown... what's with this weird, long epitaph?
The plate did have the tittle of the portrait written on it, but it was much too big to contain only that. Beneath the tittle, what looked like an long epitaph was also written. If you just skimmed over it, several unnerving words would jump out at you.
Jessica: Incredible, isn't it? Grandfather had that written. ...Pretty deep, huh?
Maria: Uu-! Maria knows! The place where the gold is hidden!
Battler: ...Wait, is it that story about the Ushiromiya family's hidden gold? There's another thing that I remember from long ago... Wait, Aniki... is that for real?
George: Grandfather had this written, but he never said anything about this picture or the epitaph. ...Even so, amongst the family, it is often whispered that it points to the location of Grandfather's hidden gold, and that he will relinquish the inheritance and the gold to the person who solves the riddle.
Maria: Uu-! Maria heard tthat too, Maria heard that too! Lots and lots of gold!
Jessica: ...Well, something like that. Something like 10 tons of gold bars. I think it's a fake, though.
Battler: Still, if you read this all the way through, it almost seems real.
...I think I already explained Grandfather's upbringing, but let me also mention the Ushiromiya family's "Legend of the Gold".
Grandfather succeeded the Ushiromiya family after it had been destroyed in the Great Kanto Earthquake and, by successfully riding the stormy seas after the way, managed to accumulate great wealth. ...That much of the story everyone knows.
However, from here on, the strange part of the story begins.
...Part of it is closely tied to Grandfather's black magic hobby, so its credibility is extremely low, but... Well, wait until the end before you doubt or make fun of it.
After the war, Grandfather correctly predicted what the future would hold and won in a huge gamble, accumulating a vast store of wealth... but there is a mysterious legend about how he gained the funds in the first place.
Grandfather came from the branch family and had no connections in the business world or the financial world. Even though he later built connections with the occupying forces, in the beginning he was supposedly a nameless person who had not yet gained anyone's trust.
Money can only be gathered based on trust. There's no way anyone would lend money to an untrustworthy person.
...How did Grandfather, whose trustworthiness was zero, manage to obtain the large amount of funds in the first place? It is said that, when asked that question, Grandfather answered like this...
"On a certain day, I encountered the Gold Witch Beatrice."
Grandfather then went on and on about how he continued to research alchemy and techniques for summoning demons in order to become a great magician.
...And the entity summoned as the result of the demon-calling ceremony was the Gold Witch Beatrice.
He then said that he made a contract where, in exchange for his own sould, he would receive fortune and honor.
The witch then granted Grandfather 10 tons of gold. Grandfather used this gold as collateral to prepare a vast quantity of funds, and then used that to multiply his wealth by several times and revive the Ushiromiya family...
It seems that this story was so old that our parents had already been told it when they were still children.
Therefore, while our parents were still young, they explored this island in various ways, believing that the gold that Grandfather had received from the witch might be hidden somewhere.
However, since there was the danger of them getting lost in the abandones forest, Grandmother began to spread the story that the witch lived in the forest and that approaching it was forbidden.
Battler: ...I remember that old story. When we were little, our parents told us about it and we went all over the island searching for treasure. ...Didn't we get lost in the forest and start crying until some of the servants found us? Our parents were so mad at us. ...How nostalgic.
Jessica: We sure were idiots, weren't we? After all, Grandfather ued that to build up the funds that he finally bought this island with, right? That means he must have had the gold before coming to this island. There's no reason the gold itself should be on the island.
George: That's not necessarily so. Maybe the gold was hidden on the island from the beginning and he bought the whole island just to make sure it was all his. There was a whole 10 tons of it, right? It seems more realistic that he would try to secure the place where it was hidden rather than try to move it all.
Battler: This epitaph was written two years ago. And since Grandfather wrote it himself... I see, this does make the Legend of the Gold more believable. The funds that revived the Ushiromiya family which he calls the witch's gold weighed 10 tons. ...And that's sleeping somewhere, ready to be turned over to whoever can solve Grandfather's riddle. Maybe that's why he did it? ...Haa, I guess that sounds like Grandfather's style or something... Ihihi! If it's true, that's pretty incredible.
The epitaph carved into the plate was very mysterious, with something like a poem or a song written on it.
That paragraph was incredibly disturbing, filled with the signs of Grandfather's black magic hobby, and its contets were in bad taste, but it could definitely be viewed as a puzzle which, if solved, could lead to the place where the gold was hidden.
George: Whether that's what he intended or not, I can't even imagine what his true motive was. ...All I can say is, this shady epitaph was displayed here so that everyone in the family could see it. By doing so, he could hint at the existence of the gold while still avoiding telling where the hiding place is. ...That caused our parents' imagination to run wild and call it equal to Grandfather's level of genius...
Jessica: ...Sounds just like my dad, so greedy that he takes something like this so seriously. Even though he laughs at Grandfather's black magic hobby, he'll still believe this story about the hidden gold. It just sounds so good.
George: ...Well, it's certainly not a realistic story. At that time, when Grandfather was still nameless without any connections, there was no way anyone would just lend him a massive quantitu of gold bars for free. ...Because of that, it's not unthinkable that Grandfather would call his sponsor a witch.
Battler: Yeah, but, it's 10 tons. 10 tons! If you traded that for money, how much would that come to? Anyway, it'd have to be a ridiculous amount, right!?
George: ...It would be a ridiculous amount. They say that the total amount of gold mined by humankind since the dawn of history is at most 100.000 tons. That 1/10.000 of all of the gold humankind has obtained throughout history should belong to just one person is just insane. ...And that all of that was collected in one place and that there was a witch who could just "poof" lend it to Grandfather. That would be no ordinary person.
Jessica: As for me, I think that that number "10 tons" sounds totally fake. In the first place, has anyone other than Grandfather ever even seen it? And even if some generous witch lent him some actual gold, couldn't that 10 be right but actually be mistaken from 10 kilograms? Even 10 kilograms would be a pretty incredible sum, right?
Maria: Uu-. ...10 kilograms of gold is how much?
Maria, who wasn't following the story and felt like she was being spoken to in riddles, finally found a place where she could ask us a question. A question which I also wanted to know right then.
Whether I hear 10 kilograms or 10 tons, I know that it's an incredible amount, but I couldn't guess exactly how incredible oeach one ir. George-aniki folded his arms and tried to remember the market price of gold.
George: ...Well. Gold is also affected by speculation. Its price can also change depending on its purity and the trustworthiness of the foundry. You would also need to pay a commision to turn it into money. Still, it is definitely a precious metal, and some people estimate that if gold mining continues at its current rate, within half of a century, humankind will have mined all of it. ...Just guessing haphazardly... For one kilogram, I think maybe a price of 2 million yen.
Jessica: Wha...! I know I just randomly said that 10 kilograms would be a humble amount... but even that would be worth 20 million yen, wouldn't it!?
Maria: Uu-? Maria weighs 28 kilograms.
George: ...Which means that if we had Maria-chan's weight in gold, we could estimate its worth at over 50 million yen.
Battler: That's just unbelievable... How much would 10 tons be then? 10 kilograms is 20.000.000 times 1000, so... umm... That's it! 20 billion yen?! What the hell!
How much is 20 billion yen actually worth? ...We can only measure it relative to our own pocketbooks.
Anyway, let's say that wages over a lifetime are about 200 million yen. ...You grow up and work like crazy, sacrificing your life for your company, and as you approach old age are finally freed.
Everything including retirement money could be about 200 million yen. ...In other words, that is the amount of money for a human's life. You could even call it the price of a life.
...So 100 times this sum is an unbelievable amount of money. ...If you work from age 20 to age 60, that's 40 years of work... so it's equal to 4000 years of work wages.
It's like you worked every day starting from the Jomon period and finally accumulated this much money.
Maria: ...Uu-. Is 20 billion yen huge...?
Battler: Yeah, it's huge. Maria, you could buy more of that shhortcake you love that you could eat in a lifetime.
George: ...However, while that might be possible with 20 billion yen in cash, I don't think it would be very realistic to have that much in gold bars all in one place. Just as I said, gold is extremely heavy, and it is not very convenient for purchasing assets. With higly valued stocks and bonds or really expensive precious gems, it wouldn't be unthinkable though. ...You often hear of people who, in the period of confusing during the war, often traded their wealth for precious gems so that they could carry it around with them. ...But you don't usually hear stories of people exchanging their wealth for gold.
Jessica: Of course it's heavy, but internationally it's the most trusted and stable. Doesn't that mean something? With bonds, for example, if the country is destroyed they're just scraps of paper.
George: You can also look at it that way... but even one 10 kilogram ingot is pretty heavy to carry around. Haven't you heard? A 50 kilogram person can't carry a 50 kilogram bag over their shoulder. With that many gold bars, the amount of labor and risk for one person would be hard to calculate.
Battler: So what you're saying is, while a stack of banknotes worth 20 billion yen would be annoying, 20 billion yen in gold would be such a bg mountain that practically it would be kinda pointless.
George: That's right. ...Although the Legend of the Gold does have a pretty interesting ring to it, just the part about the 10 tons of gold makes it pretty much impossible...
Jessica: If you think about it logically like that, it sounds obviously fake. Haha, kind of brings you back down to reality.
George: Anyway, that's Grandfather for you. Spreading exaggerated rumors about financing from some kind rich person by calling it 10 tons of gold received from a witch, probably figuratively. Even the number "10 tons" feels pretty symbolic.
Battler: You mean like his gratitude for the money he borrowed was worth 10 tons of gold, or something?
Jessica: Hehehe, maybe some rich man's leisured wife generously granted it to Grandfather. And maybe then he started calling this person a witch?
I see. Jessica's example isn't bad. ...Someone who would generously lend a huge sum of money to Grandfather when his trustworthiness was still zero could be called a witch.
...Furthermore, Grandfather lated used that money to build a vast amount of wealth. ...Someone with such a great ability to judge people might also fittingly be called a witch.
Also, since she went to the trouble of lending all that money, she might also enthusiastically guided how it was spent.
The decision to unexpectedly get involved with the occupying forces and profit from the Korean War demands might have been inspired in Grandfather by the witch.
If you put those together, saying that he received wealth and honor from the witch might actually make sense.
Battler: I see. ...So, in other words, this witch granted the funds necessary to receive the Ushiromiya family and Grandfather owed her big time. ...If that's the case, Grandfather, with his feelings of gratitude, had that huge painting drawn and displayed... I get it. It's not that strange a story.
Jessica: What if this person looked like an old witch-like granny? If that's true, I can definitely understand why Grandfather tried to pretty her up when he had the painting drawn. Hahaha, I'll bet if we ever did meet this person, she wouldn't be nearly this pretty!
George: Hahaha, that's possible. The name Beatrice sounds pretty western, and if you think about how everyone in our family has wester-style names, maybe even the name Beatrice is the result of Grandfather trying to rearrang some Japanese person's name to make it sound western.
Battler: I get it, I get it. That means that this pretty girl doesn't exist outside the picture. Guess that means I won't be able to rub those elegant breasts~, ihihi! In the first place, isn't a witch a little weird? Like you could find something like that anywhere on earth.
As I made fun of the witch, laughing, I was trying to separate myself from the kid I was six years ago who was afraid of the witch of the forest. At that time, Maria tugged on my sleeve.
...The strength with which she did was filled with a little unhappiness.
Battler: Hmm? What is it, Maria?
Maria: Uu-! Uu-! Beatrice e-xi-sts!
Maria stared up at me. She had on her usual sour look, but I could tell she was angry because of the color of her eyes.
Maria: Witches exist! Witches exist! Uu-uu-uu-!
Battler: Well sure, they do exist... if you turn the TV on and watch anume or something.
Maria: Exi-st! Witches exi-st! Uu-uu-uu-!
I started getting impatient, not knowing why Maria was jumping on me like this.
Then, Jessica tapped me on the shoulder and told me in a small voice.
Jessica: Dumbass, you're smashing a kid's dream. Maria really believes that things like witches and Beatrice exist.
George: Come to think of it, Maria-chan, in social studies at your school, when you were asked to write what you wanted to be when you grew up, you wrote "a witch", didn't you?
Maria nodded seriously. Tears started to run from the corners of her eyes.
...I see. To a girl who wants to become a witch in the future, the existence of Beatrice was proof that witches do exist in this world, and was therefore an image that she yearned after and admired.
Maria: Exi-st! Exi-st! Witches exi-st! But Battler still doesn't believe! Uu-uu-uu-!
George: It's alright. They exist witches. Onii-san believes it.
George-aniki kneeled down and held Maria's head. ...Watching this, Jessica poked my side.
...So that's what it is. It's like, on Christmas Eve, shouting that Santa Claus couldn't exist in front of a child who believes in him. ...I'm not the kind of guy who likes to shatter kids' dreams.
Battler: ...Oh, I'm sorry. I wasn't trying to make fun of your dreams. I apologize. Beatrice does exist. Even now she's living in the forest, and comes every night to the mansion to peek in and see what everyone's doing. ...So you shouldn't go into the forest. At night, you mustn't stare into the dark forest. You might be seen by the witch of the forest, Beatrice. ...After all, Grandmother said so.
Maria: Uu-... Really? Battler really believes?
Battler: Yep. I believe. Sorry for doubting it. ...C'mon, let's make up.
I stuck out my hadn and Maria grabbed it with her tiny hand, and we made up. Maria didn't grumble any more than that, so George-aniki and Jessica were relieved.
Shannon: ...Oh. So this is where all of you were. I was sure you had just left to go to the beach.
Shannon-chan, carrying a basket, was surprised to find us gathered in front of the portrait.
Jessica: Ah, Shannon. Well, this is the first time Battler has seen Beatrice's portrait. He was just fascinated by it.
Shannon: That's right, it is fascinating. ...Beatrice-sama is truly beautiful. I am sure that she captivated the Master.
George: Ahahaha. In addiction to the patron theory, there's also a theory that she was Grandfather's first love. ...Either way, although it's been several decades since he met her, even now she holds a special place in his heart. ...Which must mean that he is still captivated by her.
Battler: Sheesh. That must have made Grandmother pretty jealous, right?
Jessica: I'm not really sure, but that might actually be true. Apparently Grandmother believed that he was cheating on her with some blonde-haired person.
Maria: ...Uu-? Good smell! Good smell coming from Shannon!
Maria, sniffing, approached the basket Shannon-chan was holding with interest. After hearing that, I noticed a fragrant scent with the essence of vanilla.
Shannon: Ah, I apologize. I was told by Kumasawa-san to bring them to everyone.
George: What is it, I wonder? ...Ooh, excellent! Cookies.
Maria: Uu-! Want to eat cookies! Want to eat cookies! Uu-!
Shannon: Please, eat as much as you would like. ...But, umm...
After all, it's not like you can just serve cookies in a place like this, in front of the portrait. Shannon-chan sent us a glance which seemed to ask want we wanted to do about it. ...Well, normally that would be considered impolite.
Jessica: Maria, why don't we eat someplace other than here? Let's put the cookies in a bento and have a picnic.
Maria: Uu-! Have a picnic, have a picnic! If we can eat cookies, let's go!
Battler: That's right, let's go get some fresh air. We shouldn't grab food right in front of the witch.
Jessica: That's right, didn't we say that we wanted to go down to the beach in the first place? Let's go, let's go.
George: Shannon-chan. Sorry, but could I ask you to get us a blanket to sit on and some flasks of tea.
Shannon: Right...! Certainly.
Shannon-chan received her instructions and gracefully bowed before retracing her steps. We headed for the beach on our own.
Everyone headed for the entrance in a group.
...Feeling as though tahat witcj was staring down at our backs, I turned around once more.
Maria: ...Uu-. ...Battler, you still don't believe...?
Battler: Nope, I believe. ...That way is more imaginative! The Golden Witch Beatrice gave Grandfather 10 tons of gold! And that gold might be sleeping around somewhere. And besides, didn't Grandfather write that strange epitaph as though challenging us to find it if we can? I think that kind of romantic story is way better.
Jessica: 20 billion yen worth of gold! Hehe, even if we split it up between the four of us, that's still a ridiculous amount of money!
George: 5 billion yen for each of us... Incredible! With that kind of money, any business would prosper. No wait, we could live ur whole lives fabulously without working at all.
Maria: Uu-uu-! Not 5 billion yen, cookie, cookie!
Battler: Wahaha, Maria would take cookies over money. Still, 5 billion yen, that's like a dream!
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