There was a traveler who goes by the name of Kino.

Kino was a considerably young person, but she's a master in using persuaders (Note: a gun), and has almost never lost to anyone.

Kino’s traveling companion was Hermes, a motorrad (Note: A two-wheeled vehicle. Only to note that it cannot fly). The motorrad’s rear seat which was converted into a carrier was heavily loaded with luggage. It was because as a traveler, Kino goes all over the world to see various countries.


—

One time, Kino and Hermes were taking a noontime break in the forest.

From inside the dense forest penetrated by very little light, the tremendous sound of trees being mowed down was heard. The birds took flight amidst the commotion.

“What was that?” Kino was surprised. She raised herself from the fallen log she was sitting on.

“Ah, it’s a tank, Kino." Hermes who was parked on the narrow road said in reply. The sound of falling trees became increasingly louder and was eventually followed by tremors.

And a single tank came floating by.

It appeared in front of Kino and Hermes while it was making a road as wide as itself through the forest. The tank stopped as the last tree conspicuously snapped and collapsed. It was floating at a height about as tall as Kino. Its enormous body was surrounded by armor, and on its top was a revolving turret covered with broken branches and grass.

“Yo, mister motorrad and miss driver over there,” said the tank.

“Hello, mister tank. How is your lifter doing?” asked Hermes.

“Yup, it’s not bad. That's because I wasn't flying very high recently." The tank answered, and then asked, “What are you two doing?”

“We are on a journey. ——What about you?” Kino asked, looking up at the tank’s gigantic frame. The tank answered after remarking that it was a good question.

“I had been looking for a tank.”

“A tank?”

“Yeah.”

“What will you do once you find it?” Hermes asked.

“Of course, I’m going to destroy it.”

Kino glanced over Hermes. “Destroy? You mean you’re going to shoot it down with your cannon?”

"Yes. As you can see, this is a very powerful weapon. It’s a 200mm smoothbore tank cannon." [2]

In reply to Kino's question, the tank shook the protruding turret to the front. It was a long barrel with a thick portion in the middle. A number of thin white lines were painted from one end to the other, that it almost looked like a zebra's stripes.

“Then, why?”

“Because those were my orders.”

"Orders?"

“Yes,” the tank shook the barrel up and down. Hermes asked.

“Whose orders?”

“The tank commander's. The one who was riding me before, a sole human.”

“Before? Where is he now?”

“A long time ago, while sitting perfectly on his seat, he would hand me out various orders, and then perform my maintenance. We fought many times and defeated a lot of enemies. Look at the marks of destruction on my barrel. The truth is, because I have destroyed a lot of enemies, there’s no more space to draw another line. Isn’t that amazing? ——However, my commander died in a battle half a year ago. A stray bullet came in through the slightly opened hatch and bounced around inside. He suffered only a little before dying, and soon his flesh rotted, and now, only his clothes, helmet, and white bones are left. Do you want to see it?”

“No, thank you,” Kino politely refused.

“And then, what about the order?”

“Yes. You see, my commander gave me the order right before he died. He told me to destroy a tank. A black tank, with three red vertical stripes drawn on the right and a tapir drawn on left side of its turret. The orders I received were to absolutely make sure that this tank is destroyed. I’ve been searching for it forever. Day and night, rain or fog, I search out this enemy. I was equipped with an excellent optical sensor, yet I still can’t find it even after such a long time. I did not find it in the battlefields, and now I’m trying to look from place to place. Hey, miss traveler, do you know? Have you seen such a tank?"

"No,” answered Kino, shaking her head.

“I see.... But, I shall go on looking for it from here on. I’m definitely going to find it. No matter what. ——Because it’s something that I have to do. Because it’s something that has to be done.” The tank said, as though convincing itself.

“Is that so.... We will be resting here a while longer before we set off," said Kino.

“I see. Then I’ll go ahead. I have to search for it all over the place. Goodbye, mister motorrad and miss traveler.”

The tank started to advance once again. While floating, it advanced forward, mowing down the trees in its path without reserve. It advanced perfectly straight ahead.

“......”

Kino stared at the back of the floating tank.

From her side, Hermes asked.

“So it was something like that, huh?”

“Yeah. But——”

Kino stared at the back of the floating tank.

She stared at the back of the tank until it can no longer be seen; a black tank, with three, red vertical stripes on the right side of its turret, and a picture of a tapir drawn on the left.