#lasersight

TEXT BELOW IS AN UNEDITED COPY OF THE TRANSLATION VERSION ACCESSED ON JUNE 11, 2021, AS PROVIDED IN LASERSIGHT’S DOC

Baccano! 193X Cherry Blossom Circus

By Ryohgo Narita Illustration: Katsumi Enami

Night had well and truly fallen on the Washington riverside.

Gazing upwards from a street lined by many trees, a group of women were engaged in conversation.

“Ehh? They were blooming last time I came…” pouted a dejected Miria Harvent. 

Beside her, Nice Holystone interjected.

“Looks like they’ve already fallen, hey?”

The flowers must have been in full bloom just a few days ago, but now, they were almost completely gone. On the barren branches, only a few green buds remained.

“It’s because the wind was super strong yesterday. We should have gotten here 107,200 seconds earlier.”

“Hyaha!”

Nice’s friends Melody and Chaini were also staring up at the trees, muttering words that may or may not have made any sense.

“Last time, when I heard about these cherry blossoms from Mr. Yaguruma... I came to see them and they were so beautiful… I just wanted to show you all…”

“Oh, I’ve heard about these too. Apparently twenty years ago, 2000 cherry blossom trees were sent over from Japan…”

“Even before then! Way, way before then, people spent years and years trying to plant them, you know! The very first 2000 trees the Japanese sent over caught diseases on the ship and had to be burned….”

At Miria’s despondent words, Nice smiled quietly and returned her gaze to the trees that surrounded them.

“These trees have some real history…”

In order to deal with certain business matters, the group had arrived in Washington D.C. Having set off on a different path from Jacuzzi and Isaac due to various circumstances, it was only the women who were now gazing at the row of cherry blossom trees.

“Isaac told me that people gather under these trees, because cherry blossom pollen can be used as medicine!”

“Pollen as medicine? I wonder if that’s some sort of Chinese herbal remedy…”

As Nice tilted her head, pondering this over, Melody stepped in.

“It’s what’s inside the pollen. It’s called ephedrine. It works wonders on your bronchial tube, and some people say it also acts as a stimulant. Well, the amount of ephedrine in cherry blossom pollen is less than significant, but still,” she spoke, casually.

Spurred on by the long-winded explanation, Miria once again recalled a conversation she had with Isaac.

“And! Listen, listen - the leaves are poisonous! That’s why people come to look at the flowers, but no one ever comes to look at the leaves!”

“Ah, that would be the coumarin. It’s been said that once dissolved in rain, this substance can make other plants wither, but as for humans, as long as you don’t consume too much of it, you’ll be fine. If you do, it’ll have negative effects on your liver and kidney.”

“You sure know a lot about some weird things, Melody. Miria, so do you…” Nice mused, marvelling at the strangeness of her friends.

Taking little notice of Nice’s bewilderment, Miria continued with her spiel.

“But! If you use it in a certain way, that poison can become medicine, too! Ain’t that incredible? Reborn, like a phoenix! It’s the circle of life!”

Despite her bout of dejection at the fallen flowers just minutes earlier, Miria seemed to be back to her cheerful self.

Relieved, Nice turned towards the other woman they were travelling with.

“Chané. Is something wrong? You look serious.”

“......”

Having been listening to their conversation in silence, the woman in the black dress - Chané Laforet - was staring at the darkness that enveloped the opposite side of the riverbank.

Suddenly, from that darkness, a group of what could only be described as street scoundrels emerged, marching towards them with weapons in hand as if ready to start a fight.

“...Ah. Our location’s been exposed, has it? I hope Jacuzzi and the others got away safely…” Nice sighed.

If one were to describe the women’s current situation in a string of words, “About To Be Killed By A Local Gang In The Middle Of Their Business Operations” would likely suffice.

In any case, it was a situation they were all too familiar with, and as always, Nice snapped into action.

“I wouldn’t want to damage the trees… ‘bout this much should do it. Alright.”

Having promptly lit the fuse on a handmade firecracker she’d pulled out from who knows where, Nice lobbed it at the approaching rascals with no hesitation. Their cries rang out from the blast that followed. And then---

“Ah…!”

Miria let out a cry of surprise, leading Melody and the others to turn towards where she was looking.

Upon doing so, the group laid eyes upon the river beside them, which the rays of the blast had put into full view. It was draped in a stunning pink carpet - one made of the very petals that had fallen just before they’d arrived.

“Wow, Nice! We got to see the flowers, after all, thanks to you!” Miria rejoiced innocently, impassive to the sound of the reverberating blast. “I wanna show Isaac and Jacuzzi!” 

Beside her, Nice wore an enraptured smile.

“That ephedrine’s got me all worked up, too.”

“Oh, that’s definitely not the ephedrine. If you’re all worked up, it’s probably because of the bomb you threw 28 seconds ago.”

Ignoring Melody’s words, Nice started throwing even more bombs at their enemies.

“We’ve gotta come back and see the flowers properly next year, so make sure you all stay alive, okay!” she shouted, the cheerful smile on her face illuminated by the blast.

The women began running, as the petals on the ground drifted through the dust and smoke. In that moment, it was as if they themselves were petals dancing in the breeze. 

But unlike the flowers, their spirits would never fall.