Volume 1 Chapter 1 Part3 (1/2)

title: shi+ro no Kanata e [白の彼方へ]

Chapter: 1-3, To The Whiteness Far Beyond

Page: 034 – 059

Author: Masaki Hikaru [真崎ひかる]

Illustrator: Takamine Akira [高峰顕]

Publisher: Charade Bunko

Year of Release: 2007

Disclaimer:

Masaki Hikaru is the original author of this work, and this is a fan translation Feel free to re-post this elsewhere if you like but please credit this site I did buy the original copy of this book, along with the rest of the series, so it'll be great if you can support her by buying her books

By the way, this work contains BL, or homo-eroticism This chapter also contains a copulation scene Children, please stay away

Note:

As I have no for in translation theory nor alish, for the uarantee the quality of this translation work, but I promise I did my best Furthermore, I’m not terribly confident of this translation… Masaki-sensei’s prose can be a little fragmented, and dueis captured without twisting or adding too e

Do give the BLCD a listen (Nakamura Yuuichi x Midorikawa Hikaru, Inoue Kazuhiko) if you can

Chapter 1 Part 3: The Whiteness Far Beyond

They sat in the living roo at their plates of curry with chopsticks

Even though Asahi was also busy and had no ti better, he felt sorry that he could only offer the dinner in return for their help Even the rice had been froht that he should at least serve them some shōchū, so he took some out of his stockpile

Asada was fond of drinking, so he poured soht and lifted it to his lips Shōchū was so that puts him in an excellent mood

”…shi+omi-san, would you like some more?” Asahi asked, quietly

shi+oht he was si on ceremony

Don't be too conscious of him, he told himself, yet it was rather difficult for him to look shi+o his eyes as well, so he didn't notice that Asahi was acting strangely around him

”No, I… can't hold my drink very well Thank you very much all the same”

In that case, he had no reason to make him drink more than he would like to Asahi tilted the bottle of shochu in his hands towards Asada's , instead

”Since the party is beginning to liven up, let rin at shi+oreat time

Every tie, he would tell everyone one of his scary stories Asahi was fairly used to this habit of his, so he went yea, yea, and paid Asada no heed He was about to continue with his food, but he paused when shi+omi said nervously:

”Eh… I'host stories, so no thank you”

It was strange hearing so like that, and Asahi thought about how people eren't good with ghost stories would usually be thoroughly spooked by thehost stories usually hid that weakness of theirs under a façade of strength instead of outright ad it like shi+omi did

Mountains cliroups of university students, would usually start telling ghost stories aroup had any female novice climbers in it It seehost stories to attract uy exterior

While Asahi felt sorry for shi+oht that shi+oht shi+o He wondered if he was inclined to think this way because shi+oer than him

It would appear that not only Asahi found shi+ohtly tipsy, and his eyes glittered with mirth

”Then I shan't tell a ghost story I shall just tell you a strange tale that I've heard before That'll be okay, won't it?” Asada pressed, and shi+omi reluctantly nodded

Looking at hiht that shi+omi shouldn't have carelessly said yes, as he lifted his own cup to his lips Nevertheless, though he kneas being mean, he was very interested to see how shi+omi would react

”Since you're going to be part of the Mountain Rescue Squad, you should have heard many stories from your seniors in the force… but I'll tell you a harmless one Have you ever attempted a solo expedition up a mountain in winter?”

”No…” said shi+oan his tale

”A friend ofthree days and two nights with Mount Kita-Hodaka as his starting point He got on a trail on Mount Karasawa, intending to go from deep within the h Nishi+-Hodaka The weather was good at first, but not long after he passed the es of Mount Hodaka a snowstoronised over whether he should to go back to that s, but decided to proceed on his route as planned as he plowed through the snohich was now as high as his waist Then he dug a hole in the snow, and just as he ondering if he should bivouac in it, he saw a beaht from someone else's torch Relieved to find that he was not alone, he called out to that man, and that man immediately responded in kind That man was also a solo trekker, and when he spoke to him the man assured that he had not strayed off his path He also told my friend if he continued on this path he would reach the next shelter faster than if he backtracked to the e at Mount Hodaka My friend trusted hiside with him”

shi+omi sed hard, but continued to be all ears This was the first tiain his chopsticks stilled as he listened Asada continued, in a tone that was almost disinterested:

”It would have been tiring to converse as they walked, so they ht in the distance He then started running towards it, coht that it was the shelter the man had spoken of, but his crampons started to slip underneath his boot so he bent over and tightened the band of the crahtened hione When he looked behind, he found that his coht before hiht; it was the bus terminal in Kamikōchi”

Asaba paused, and shi+omi had a inscrutable expression on his face, like he was pondering over so After a short while, he asked timidly:

”Erm… what does this all mean? Did he walk all the way from Kita-Hodaka to Kamikōchi all by himself, after all?”

Asada senuine pleasure at shi+omi's question Asahi also turned the story over in his head, and began to feel goose bu at his skin

”According to his watch, only three hours had passed since he started off This would h a snowstorh mountains, or how much stamina he had, it would have been humanly impossible”

Ah… orously ”Uwa, allnow”

Asada chuckled contentedly, like he had gotten the reaction he'd sought fro to look nonchalant and unaffected, and his smile widened

”There is another catch to this story… when he arrived at the Kamikōchi bus tere co to the report that was submitted to the police, he was due to return froht that only three hours had passed since he set off, in reality an entire week had gone by Even his food supplies, all five days' worth of it including reserves, were untouched… it sounded so unreal at that time that only those involved knew about this incident”

This tihtly creeped out shi+oreen, and offered no words in reply

Asada had been in and out mountains as a member of the Mountain Rescue Squad for more than ten years, and this made his story seem oddly credible Further like this

In the silence that ensued, Asada helped himself to the bottle of shōchū and happily poured the contents of hisdown his throat

”Well… there were s we couldn't explain, but it wasn't uncommon to find cli a blizzard My friend drank as he laughed, telling me that it felt as if he had been hoodwinked by a raccoon dog spirit or a fox spirit in the mountains”

If it was si that he saw in thetricks on hi part of the story was that it could not be explained by logical means

This was not a 'strange tale' like Asada had claiht Asahi shi+ohost stories, remained silent He also had a very stiff expression on his face

”Asahi, don't you have any stories too?” asked Asada

No, was Asahi's short reply Truth was, he had heard many tales froe, but he wasn't very good at telling them

”You should have at least one Sakata-san has been e for close to fifty years, so hehere”

Don't pretend you have nothing to tell, said Asada as he pressed Asahi for a story Men ere drunk were persistent, and it seemed that Asada would not back down unless he appeased hi to say

”You ht not exactly consider this scary, but when Sakata-san ca there was a dead body in it… this was thirty years ago, and itthat ever happened to Sakata-san when he orking here”

Asahi noticed that shi+o paler and paler by the second and decided not to continue He thought it was best not to add that the clie had looked like he was running away fro He had used cloth to cover theof the hut, and was found dead with his eyes still watching the door He also had a field knife firrasped in one hand and a shovel in the other, and a line from a Buddhist sutra was found carved into the corner of one of the floorboards

Perhaps Asada had his fill of frightening the new recruit, for no other stories fell from his lips thereafter

When Asahi was tidying up the living rooi curled up in a ball as he slept on an old blanket in his bed, and smiled to himself Afterwards, he retired to the caretaker's rooe

Although it was called a caretaker's rooe as four and a half tataainst one wall, and a clothing rack in place of a wardrobe on the other When he laid his bedding in the middle of the room, there would be no place to walk

Frobook he used to record all daily happenings in the e while it was open He then picked up a pen and wrote today's date, the weather, how Asada and shi+oe in order ahead of schedule, and hoas noell-poised to receive the large nu the busiest period of the year, the Golden Week holiday

He sighed, and the tiny desk la on blinked off and then ca, and power-transmission can become unstable at times However, if he were to complain about the inter off from Sakata, ould remind him that he should be thankful that they had any electricity up in the mountain in the first place

After all, the only reason why they could use electricity at a place that was more than 2000 metres above sea-level was because of the transmission cables that the power company so kindly laid for them

When Sakata first opened the Masago Mountain Lodge, there was no power and no running water

Presently, all Asahi needed to do was turn the handle of a tap and a pipe draater froe He could use electricity and the phone, too He could take showers as well, even if he couldn't do so every day A sewerage systerowing number of climbers

Asahi was thankful for all these, but he thought he shouldn't get used to all these conveniences

There was a sound in the hallway, and Asahi turned to look at the door The knob slowly turned, and the door quietly swung open Asada's face peered at him from the hallway

”You're awake Good, that saveshi invited in

Perhaps he had intended to stay the night fro a T-shi+rt that was thin enough to be worn as an undershi+rt inside hisjacket, and a pair of fleece trousers Even if they were inside achilly in that T-shi+rt… but Asada seemed unfazed by the cold

”… You always do whatever suits you anyway, even if you found me asleep” Asahi let slip that sarcastic retort, but Asada chucked easily ”I guess you are right,” he said

And like it was thethat was laid out on the floor and wrapped his ar him towards himself

”Hey… wait Givethat,” said Asahi in annoyance He had dropped the pen he was holding in his surprise at the sudden embrace, and it disappeared somewhere under the low table

”My bad,” said Asada, and held hie hand cupped Asahi's jaw in a possessive hold and turned his face towards him, and Asada sealed Asahi's lips with his own

”Nn…” Asahi frowned at the sudden onslaught, but tension gradually left his shoulders, and he placed his hands on Asada's arms

Asada exhaled a long, deep sigh of contentment as his lips left Asahi's ”Winter in Banbajiht now,” he said, with his arms still wound around Asahi

The Banbajima police outpost here Asada had to spend the entire of last winter The Murodou police outpost will close at the same time the Alpine Route shuts for the winter, and the police operations in both outposts would descend the mountain Thereafter, they will only be mobilised if an accident occurred in mountains

A separate force of five men picked from the Mountain Rescue Squad will move themselves to the Banbajima police outpost, where they will be permanently stationed for the winter from December to April The Banbajima outpost was located at the foot of the route up Mount Tsurugi along the Hayatsuki ridge line Thisspace and would have no one else but each other to talk to for close to fiveto do but suffer in uish

If Asahi had to face the same people twenty-four hours a day forfor miles all around… he wouldn't have lasted three days On the other hand, Asada was assigned to that duty the year he turned thirty He had spent every winter in Banbaji able to do so like that

”I'as… allow ainst the nape of Asahi's neck, and Asahi's shoulders heaved sharply

”The new recruit is here… is he not?” A hallway stood between his roo that he was, nevertheless, under the same roof He tried to twist hirew tighter

”It'll be fine He's had shōchū so he's fast asleep Even during the cli, once he's had alcohol he would sleep better than any of us”

”But…”

A large hand snaked into the sweatshi+rt he earing as pyjaainst his bare skin Asada ainst his His teeth gently grazed Asahi's earlobe, and Asahi lost all strength to fight back

He knows every single one of e of mortification

”Asahi… you are as sensitive as ever Even your nipples are hard” The pads of his fingers caressed his chest, and Asahi could feel Asada's breath against his ear In spite of hi he could do about it now

”That's… that's what an old an Asahi, but a kiss descended on his lips once again, as if to prevent hiue slipped in, tickling the inside of hislike a cold chill ran up Asahi's spine

His head grew foggy, and his gaze beca hiood With his lids half-closed, Asahi gently put his ar his hands on the hard muscles on Asada's broad back Asada's body was that of a veteransessions, and it was more solidly built than it looked

Depending on the situation at hand, Asadaover his shoulder The load on his back added up to about a hundred kilograht of his own equipment, so it was natural that his back would be powerfully muscled

Asada broke the kiss and ran his tongue along Asahi's moist lips ”… Did you miss me? Even just a little?” he asked, and then squinted at Asahi's face

”No?” offered Asahi with no particular emotion in his voice