May’s morning dew soaked the grass along the embankment . The surface of Dragon God’s Lake was still half asleep, and even the light reflecting Kopo’s pose looked dull.
“Hnngh… like this, step forward first, then spread your arms wide! See, this is Kopo-sama’s true form!”
Judging by his own upside-down reflection in the pond, the pose with his arms spread wide looked more like a scarecrow than anything heroic.
A little way off by the flowerbed, Keromi was crouched down. With a dipper , she was slowly watering flowers that had wilted in the previous night’s cold. Not making a sound — a quiet, steady task.
“Keromi, isn’t that kind of boring? Nobody’s even watching.”
Without turning around, Keromi answered.
“They still bloom, even if no one’s watching.”
Kopo let the reply slide right past him and moved on to his next pose. But before long, Sonchō, seated at the edge of the embankment, pulled out his pipe, and, exhaling a thin trail of smoke, said:
“Long ago, there was a woman who walked through dark rooms all night, carrying a lamp. Those who couldn’t sleep, those crying in pain — they all found comfort just seeing that light.”
“Even I know about her. She’s famous, right?”
“Many know of her. But listen, Kopo. Her patients didn’t want to see her face. They were simply saved by the fact that the light had come.”
Kopo thought about it for a while. Then, without quite meaning to, he shifted his gaze back to the flowerbed. Keromi’s dipper tilted quietly again. Only the sound of falling water scattered softly through the May morning.
Kopo stopped his practice halfway through and crouched down beside Keromi, on the other side of the flowerbed.
“…Should I water some too?”
“Sure.”
Keromi said only that, and handed him another dipper.
Margin note: That night, there was one thing Kopo told no one — that, for a while, he had been a hero.
【Today’s Motif】
- International Nurses Day (May 12th): Established in honor of Florence Nightingale’s birthday. Known as “The Lady with the Lamp” for walking the night wards carrying a light.
- The 79th Cannes Film Festival: Opening today, May 12th. Japanese cinema draws attention as this year’s Country of Honor.
This is an English translation of “夜を照らす者”, part of Tales of Amencho Town (蛙鳴町奇譚).