Chapter 22

While there were several inns in this town, a lot of them were fully booked. They happened to arrive during a local festival, and a lot of people from outside town came to celebrate the festivities.

They couldn't find one inn that had five rooms available, so Four and Astill shared a room, Syorin and Neila shared one, and Kakashi had his own room. Kakashi proposed sleeping at the carriage like they did before, but it was rejected, as sleeping in an open carriage was much riskier now that they have enemies actively seeking them.

“We really are rich…” Kakashi murmured, looking around the room. The inn room was luxurious and large. It even offered complimentary food like locally-made chocolate.

Kakashi took a bite. It tasted bitter. He took a look at the packaging.

“... Dark chocolate.”

It had gotten dark, but he noticed a faint light peeking through the window curtains. Moving those curtains revealed a stunning sight of lanterns and cheers outside. Curious, Kakashi decided to go take a look. He changed into one of his thicker clothes and left his room.

“Kakashi?”

Kakashi turned, finding Neila sitting at the end of the hallway. She was wearing long sleeved pink clothes. It looked similar to a kimono, but with a frilly bottom end and two belts around her waist. Her hair had been tied up in a bun with a golden ornament.

“I was thinking about calling you after Syorin's finished, since they say boys don't take long to change.”

“... You look stunning.”

Neila's eyes widened at the sudden compliment. She averted her gaze, her cheeks a faint shade of red. “Thanks.”

The door creaked open, revealing Syorin's similar clothing, but in yellow. Her hair was tied in a ponytail, making her look youthful.

“You look pretty as well, Syorin.”

Syorin grinned. “My my, a compliment right after I go out?” she grinned mischievously, then noticed Neila blushing.

“... You really are smooth, aren't you?”

“Me? By the way, where's Four and Astill?”

“You look for other girls despite having two beauties in front of you.” She exaggeratedly shook her head, then went to Astill's and Four's room and knocked on the door. “You two ready?”

A muffled reply came from inside. “Be patient!”

Not long after, the two girls came out. Unlike Syorin and Neila, neither of them was dressed for the occasion. They did wear a more casual set of clothes.

“Alright, let's get going.”

The group left the inn. Outside, festivities could be felt all around. Kakashi took a breath in, enjoying the atmosphere. While festivals did exist near him, he didn't have many chances to go and enjoy them, and certainly not with such a large group.

“Anything you want to try?” Neila asked.

“Oh, oh, let's try that!” Syorin pointed toward one of the stalls. It was a ring-throwing game, where contestants must throw a ring into a horizontal set of bars without the ring falling off. The bars were tilted slightly downward, making it difficult. The more rings that landed and stayed on the bars, the higher the rewards.

“Are you planning to cheat this time?” Kakashi said.

“Come on! It's just that one time!”

“Cheater.”

“Waaa!”

“Games, huh?” Four stopped in front of the stall.

“Young lady, would you like to try?” The stall attendant came offering rings.

“What are the rules of this activity?”

“Rules…? Oh, rules, yeah. No magic, that's about it.”

Four used her adventurer card to pay for it, then took all five rings and threw them at the same time. Unsurprisingly, all five of them landed.

The attendant broke into a cold sweat. “Umm… Sorry, one by one.”

“You didn't say that earlier?”

“I completely forgot about it.”

He returned the rings to Four. It's obvious he's hoping it was just a fluke. Four, however, proved otherwise. She threw it one by one, and all five of them hit.

“Here's your prize! Thank you for playing!” The attendant rushed and gave her a stuffed toy in the shape of a cat, before softly shooing her away.

“I shall do it again-”

“One prize per customer, sorry.”

“That's also not in the rule.”

“Well, it's- it's extra. Extra rules.”

“I also want to try!” Syorin said. The attendant tried to use her as a way out and gave her the rings. What he wasn't aware of was that while Syorin sucked at brain games, she had great hand-eye coordination, and she, too, got all five.

“How did you cheat this time?”

“I did not cheat!”

The attendant was forced to give away another stuffed toy.

Kakashi looked at Neila and Astill, and the two shook their heads.

“I'm not good at these kinds of things.”

“It's a waste of money.”

“Astill, here.” Four handed over her toy, half pushing. “This is for you.”

“Ah- eh…?”

“You like cats, do you not?”

“I- I do not like cats! But… since you've won it for me…”

“Tsundere.”

“Tsundere.”

This, Kakashi and Syorin agreed on.

“I'm not a tsundere!” Astill shouted. Luckily for her, none of the people there understood what they meant.

They moved on.

“Anyone interested in cotton candy?” Neila asked, looking at a stall selling them.

“Are they delicious?” Four asked.

“Oh, they're great. They're sweet and fluffy,” Syorin said.

“I see. Then I would not mind trying them.”

They headed to the stall.

“Five, please.” This time, Neila paid with her card. The clerk handed five cotton candies, and the group walked to a tree away from the crowd to take a bite.

“I see. Indeed, it is delicious,” Four said. Her expression remained flat, but Kakashi could tell she was pleased. “One would have loved this. He always has a fondness for sweets.”

Kakashi and Neila exchanged glances, not sure if they should say anything.

Syorin, on the other hand, asked, “What was his favorite?”

Astill looked uncomfortable discussing their past, but Four simply gazed at the sky, nostalgia in her eyes.

“Occasionally, one of the scientists would sneak in some sweets. One's favorite was milk chocolate. Astill here loves macarons.”

“I- you don't have to tell them that!” Astill said, exasperated.

“Tsundere.”

“Tsundere.”

“Shut up, meatheads!”

“They sell some more sweets over there.” Neila pointed at a different stall. “There are macarons as well.”

“I… ugh, whatever.” Astill stomped away, heading straight for the sweets stall. She glanced back at the group, and they all, except for Four, pretended not to be paying any attention to her. She secretly bought some macarons and ate them alone in a corner somewhere.

•••

As time grew late, the group headed to the town's plaza, where the main show of the festival took place. A magic work show. Based on the pictures drawn on the posters, the magic work looked similar to fireworks.

They managed to find a good spot in between the crowd. At the center of the town stood some mages with their wands. Other than that, there was no tool used that Kakashi could see.

“Is it all going to be magic?” Kakashi asked.

“It's called magic works,” Astill said.

“I guess…” Kakashi replied.

Just then, a white streak of light flew high into the sky, before bursting into small lights. They floated down back to the ground before fading away. A second streak took flight before exploding like the first one. Kakashi watched as the dark skies were decorated by several continuous streaks of light.

Is that it? He thought, but he thought too soon. Red, green, blue, and yellow burst to the sky from the town’s four gates. They flew high into the sky, flying in an arc toward the center of the town, where they met each other and burst into a spectacular array of colors.

They floated back down, but while some of the sparks disappeared into the night sky, some took the form of various animals. Dragons, bears, dolphins, and even tigers. They roam the night sky, dancing between the numerous pillars of lights rising from the ground.

“Whoa…”

They danced with each other. Some circled around the pillars, while others mimicked ballroom dancing at the center. Seeing a bear with a dolphin was quite an interesting pair.

White pillars rose up from the walls, forming an arena that covered the town. The animals mimicked confused movements, and their dance turned into attacks. Their skins were dyed with a shade of black as their light faded into the darkness. The fight turned into a brawl, every animal for themselves.

The fight ended with the dragon claiming victory, but it was weakened, its light fading. But, from the darkness, outlines reappeared, forming the outlines of the various animals the dragon defeated. Their light grew brighter, and their colors began blending in the night sky. Kakashi could barely differentiate one from the other.

They approached the dragon, slowly and carefully. The dragon took a step back, but bursts of fireworks from around it caused it to panic. It couldn’t run away. Its light was not even half as bright as before; it stared at its adversaries, ready for a final fight. But the bear reached out its hand, a smile on its face.

The dragon looked stunned. Slowly, it reached out and took the bear’s hand. The animals began dancing once more. One by one, the pillars of light that came out from the wall faded, revealing an open sky once more. The dance ended with the group of animals flying together into the distance.