CHAPTER 57………………………………
‘The inn where Sir Sieren is staying is… ah, this way.’
And she stopped right in front of the inn.
Come to think of it, there was no guarantee that Irenes would be inside.
‘Sir Sieren usually comes to see me first, so I never even thought about it.’
Still, she couldn’t just barge into the inn without warning.
As she stood there, lost in thought, a familiar voice spoke up from beside her.
“Um… excuse me, are you worried about something?”
“Yes, I was wondering when Sir Sieren would— Sir Sieren?”
Only then did Raseil recognize the owner of the voice and turn her head.
“Aren’t you staying at the inn?”
“It’s about time for lunch.”
Irenes gestured to the sandwich in her hand.
Just from the way it was neatly wrapped in paper, Raseil could tell which restaurant it was from.
“But… were sandwiches always such a strong-smelling dish?”
“That’s… there were some circumstances.”
The ghost problem had been solved, but the restaurant’s food still contained herbs.
Thanks to that, once in a while a truly bizarre-tasting dish would appear.
At least this time the herbs hadn’t been mixed in the wrong way.
Still, if your luck was bad, it was hard to tell whether you were eating a sandwich or an entire herb garden.
“By the way, there seem to be a lot more people around today. Is something going on?”
Irenes asked again, her face showing that she had somehow accepted Raseil’s brief explanation.
Compared to usual, there were noticeably more outsiders in the territory.
“Or is there some kind of event?”
“There’s a festival this evening.”
“A festival?”
Judging by her expression, she seemed to know absolutely nothing about it.
“Didn’t you hear?”
“Everyone I could ask was busy.”
Irenes laughed awkwardly.
That made sense—by now, the residents would all be busy preparing stalls for the festival,
or getting ready to attend it themselves.
“But they hold the festival starting in the evening?”
“Yes. I heard it’s been that way since the festival was first created.”
The territory’s unusually short daylight hours probably had something to do with it.
By the time people finished their work and finally had free time, it was already dark.
“There are some precautions, so be careful. Would you like a copy?”
“Yes, thank you.”
When Irenes took the paper from Raseil, her complexion looked a little worse than before.
“Sir Sieren? Are you all right?”
“I… have some unpleasant memories related to rulebooks.”
She smiled stiffly.
Hearing that, Raseil fell into thought.
‘Then maybe I should find someone else?’
There didn’t seem to be any reason to drag someone with bad memories into a place overflowing with rules.
“By the way, was there a reason you were looking for me?”
While Raseil was still deep in thought, Irenes spoke up.
Only then did Raseil remember her original purpose.
“Well, actually, I came to ask if you’d go to the festival with me… but if it’s difficult, you don’t have to.”
“I’ll go!”
Irenes shouted before Raseil could even finish her sentence.
“I’ll definitely go.”
“You don’t need to force yourself—”
“No, I really like— I mean, I like festivals! Festivals!”
‘She likes festivals?’
Raseil hesitated for a moment.
As far as she remembered, Irenes usually avoided crowded places.
Still, people’s tastes could change at any time.
“You must really like them.”
“Huh?”
She’d spoken without thinking, but Irenes’ reaction was strange.
Her eyes, filled with something between anticipation and anxiety, met Raseil’s.
“Festivals.”
“Yes… festivals. I really… like them….”
After that, her face looked as though she had given up on something.
She quickly returned to her usual bright expression, though.
“Then when should we meet?”
“The festival starts after sunset, so…”
Raseil glanced up at the sky.
Before she realized it, the sun was already setting, dyeing the sky red.
“…If we want to walk around while it’s less crowded, we might need to change clothes and come out.”
“I’m fine with that!”
Irenes replied brightly, in much the same tone as before.
“Then shall we meet in a bit?”
“Yes!”
Irenes answered cheerfully once more, then thought to herself,
‘Did festivals originally require a partner?’
For some reason, she felt that this might be different from the kind of festival she was imagining.
Still, as long as she could walk around with Raseil, she didn’t really mind.
‘Sir Jaen will be with me!’
That mattered far more than the possibility of ghosts appearing at the festival.
As soon as the sky grew completely dark, the streets became noisy.
Stalls went up one by one, and all kinds of decorations brightly illuminated the night.
People dressed far more elaborately than usual were easy to spot as well.
“Sir Jaen!”
Compared to that, Raseil’s outfit was fairly simple.
Aside from slightly ornate embroidery, there were no special accessories.
“I’m sorry, it was hard to find where my clothes were!”
And her partner, Irenes, didn’t seem to care about that at all.
Just being able to look at Raseil’s face was enough to satisfy her.
If anything, she was more concerned about how she herself looked to Raseil.
“Where should we go?”
“This way is the entrance.”
Now that she looked, there was a sign standing nearby.
It hadn’t been there yesterday, so it must have been newly made for the festival.
“…Um, that tree in the center…”
Irenes asked in a trembling voice as she looked around.
She remembered what Raseil had explained when she first arrived in the territory.
Something about a hanged person, if she recalled correctly.
“Is that what the shadow is supposed to look like?”
Setting aside the shadow that clearly resembled a hanging person…
she couldn’t even understand why there was a shadow at all, when everything around was dark.
There were light sources, yes, but not enough to cast such a distinct shadow.
“The tree? Ah.”
Raseil looked at the tree briefly, then turned her gaze back to Irenes.
“It’s better not to pay attention to it.”
That was her answer.
Normally, she would have already launched into an excited explanation by now.
“Not… pay attention… yes….”
Irenes couldn’t bring herself to ask how that was even possible.
Instead, she nodded vigorously.
She had a strong feeling that she shouldn’t ask any further questions.
“As long as you don’t stare at it for too long, you’ll be fine. Shall we go?”
“…Yes….”
The worry that had been threatening to grow disappeared the moment she saw Raseil’s face.
She’d noticed the subtle excitement showing there.
‘Did Sir Jaen like festivals?’
It was an expression she had never seen before.
Her eyes were practically sparkling.
That alone made coming to this festival worthwhile.
“Where should we start?”
On top of that, Raseil’s voice sounded a little brighter than usual.
It was the first time her excitement had been this obvious.
“Do you like festivals?”
“When I was young, I always wanted to go to one.”
Raseil replied with a smile.
‘I’ve never seen Sir Jaen smile like this.’
Irenes thought hazily, her mind blank from that smile.
Today, she kept seeing new sides of Raseil.
“I always just watched them from outside the window. …What are they selling over there?”
Following Raseil’s gaze, she saw a stall lined with all kinds of goods.
From lamps with flashy designs to accessories, there was no real sense of unity.
“Planning to buy something? We’ve got everything here—except what we don’t!”
It seemed the stall owner had overheard Raseil; he spoke up with a hearty grin.
“Just come take a look—you won’t regret it!”
Irenes stepped closer and examined the items one by one.
They looked a bit crude, but that gave them a certain charm in its own way.
One item in particular caught her eye: a finely crafted comb.
“Ah, that comb! It was a pain to make. Just one stroke and your hair will be as smooth as silk.”
“What material is it made from?”
“Wood, of course.”
The comb in her hand was so smooth and glossy that it was hard to believe it was made of wood.
Even the tassel tied to it showed careful, meticulous knotting.
