Jolly Good Festival

They left first thing in the morning. Even though the sun was just rising, several people already crowded the streets. The town stood ready, bursting with vibrant colors. Decorations adorned every corner.

Charlotte climbed a tall house, 3 stories high. The clay-tiled roof made it difficult to keep her balance. She could see much of the town. Up there, a strong wind ruffled her clothes.

The day had arrived.

Suri had divided them into zones. Charlotte had been assigned to the east. According to Lief, that house had a secret underground path. It was also close to the main streets.

Charlotte walked back and forth on top of that roof. She almost slipped a couple of times, but she didn’t stop. She would regularly glance out at the alleys and streets, each time filling up more and more.

Time passed.

The streaked horizon and the soft violet sky gradually took on their usual blue hue. The sun began to bathe the town in a warm light.

Charlotte stayed on that rooftop, keeping an eye on every detail. Suddenly, the town turned into a sea of people. It was as if millions of voices were forming a roar that reached Charlotte’s ears.

From that vantage point, she saw people with huge smiles, close-knit families, couples, children, innocent people, all unaware of anything. That brought a lump to her throat.

Time passed.

The sun reached its zenith. People and Magica creatures from other parts of the kingdom arrived. Charlotte was captivated by those magical creatures she had never seen before. Some had animal features, some were really small, and others had butterflies.

Where will they come from?

A thunderous crash brought her back to reality. It came from the middle of the town. Charlotte stood on her tiptoes, but other houses blocked her view of what happened.

She was about to run over there, but she stopped short when she remembered Suri’s instructions.

Don’t move unless it’s near your area of responsibility.

Charlotte hesitated.

In the distance, at that very spot, shouts of joy erupted, followed by applause. Music began to play on classical instruments such as the harp and lute. A minstrel began to recite epic poems.

Although Charlotte didn’t understand everything, she realized they were talking about the hero.

Time passed.

Charlotte fanned herself with her own uniform. The sun was beating down, and the aroma from the food stalls wafted straight into her nose. Nothing had changed.

Time passed again.

The audience broke into applause for a play that told the hero’s story.

Again and Again.

The heat had dropped considerably, as the sun settled in the west. Charlotte tried not to yawn, but it was inevitable. Her area became increasingly deserted. Many people were already heading to the northern part of the town, where the hero was supposed to be.

It’s almost time.

Charlotte was about to run off across the rooftops when, out of the corner of her eye, she saw two children running in the opposite direction from everyone else.

“I saw the hero walking around here!”

“What? I don’t believe you!”

Charlotte hesitated. She knew Suri's instructions, but she had a bad feeling about it. Clenching her fists, she decided to disobey Suri and followed those children.

She ran and ran across those rooftops. She fixed her gaze on those children, but lost sight of them in an instant. From that high angle, she looked in every direction, looking for them among the alleys.

Suddenly, she heard those children’s voices again. They were coming from the most hidden alleys between the houses, where the sunlight barely reached.

Charlotte carefully made her way down until she touched solid ground. Feeling a little tired, she approached cautiously.

Some sturdy wooden boxes flew through the air, breaking their locks.

Charlotte came to a sudden stop.

The children.

Worried, she forced her body to move. She stood in front of that dead-end alley.

“Are you alright?”

Inside, a hunched figure panted rapidly and muttered curses under its breath.

Charlotte squeezed her eyes shut.

“Miss Alysia?”

Alysia mercilessly kicked an abandoned wooden steamer trunk. She smashed it to pieces.

She turned to look at Charlotte. Her eyes didn’t blink for a single second, and her jaw was tense from clenching her teeth too hard.

“What are you doing here?”

Alysia didn’t answer.

“We weren’t supposed to leave our spots!”

“Then why are you here?”

“W-we’ll… I…”

She left Charlotte speechless.

“That’s not important. We have instructions!”

“So, again. Why are you here?”

Alysia held her gaze.

“I… I heard some kids saying that they saw the hero…”

“So did I.”

“What?”

Alysia began to approach her.

“From where I was, I saw some merchants saying that the hero needed help, and they ran over here.”

Charlotte peeked out into the alley. It was empty.

“I wanted to take the chance to kill him, but as you can see, it was an illusion.”

“So he used Lure Magica again?”

“Probably.”

“And he tricked us?”

Alysia nodded.

“Wait… So he is playing with us!”

Charlotte grabbed Alysia by the arm and pulled her along. She was running as fast as she could.

“We have to return to our areas!”

“We have to go to the main square in the north of the town.”

“But there are still people in our areas, and besides, if the hero tricked us away, it must have been for a reason!”

“Yes, but it’s almost time for the hero to come out.”

Alysia stopped short and let go of Charlotte's hand.

“We don’t have time!”

“But, Miss Alysia, we need to save everyone.”

Alysia fell silent.

“Please…”

“That’s why we’ll go where Suri told us to go.”

Alysia began running north.

Charlotte stood there. All alone.

She saw people walking nearby, smiling. She bit her own lip and followed Alysia.

Charlotte and Alysia ran at full speed through the town streets. In the distance, the count’s voice echoed, and the audience cheered. The closer they got, the clearer his words became.

“We are proud of our hero…”

The audience erupted.

“In his last mission…”

The town screamed again.

“He’s here with us today…”

The town was bustling.

“We’re not going to make it on time!”

The sun shone toward the west, but it was still fully visible.

Summoning all her strength, Charlotte quickened her pace. Thousands of scenarios flashed through her mind, and in every one of them, she was to blame for disobeying Suri's instructions.

A few tears rolled down her face as she ran.

“Please, let’s receive the hero…”

The town screamed one last time.

There was a deafening silence.

“What happened?”

“Don’t think about it, just run!”

They finally arrived.

There was a huge crowd. They stood at the back. The venue had an open layout, allowing the echo to bounce all the way to the people in the back. Charlotte looked up at the roofs of the surrounding houses. Her friends were already there.

“The hero…couldn't be with us today... but he left a letter.”

Charlotte leaned back on her knees, trying to catch her breath.

A collective sigh of disappointment sounded.

The count read a letter. “To my people, I apologize for not seeing you all, but I want to thank you for everything. I will always be proud to have been born in this town. I promise you that we’ll see each other again soon in a new world with a better future.”

The crowd went wild and chanted his name.

“I would have liked to see my son, too, but I know his mission is important and that he will always protect us. With that said, I hereby declare the festival closed.”

Little by little, the huge crowd began to disperse. The sun was setting, and its last rays of light illuminated the city.

Her teammates came down from the rooftops and joined them.

“Where were you, Charlotte?”

“I’m sorry, Zoe… I almost messed up.”

Alysia struck a nearby wall with her hand.

“He’s playing with us again!”

“The important thing is everyone is fine, Miss Alysia,” the prince said.

“We must not let our guard down,” Gerald suggested.

“Again, we have no clue what he’s going to do!” Alysia complained. “I’m done with this!”

“We should go and inform Miss Suri.”

“I agree with the prince.”

Charlotte scanned the group.

“Wait, Miss Suri wasn’t with you?”

“No, she stayed in the tower, the highest point,” the prince informed them.

They walked back through town. Even though the festival was over, the atmosphere was still lively, and people were still celebrating.

Charlotte was walking slowly, a little behind the group. Zoe was the only one who kept pace with her.

“Are you alright, Charlotte?”

“I… almost messed everything up today.”

“Calm down, everyone is fine.”

“I know… But if the hero had shown up... I wasn't in my position... many would have died.”

“But that wasn’t the case… don’t chastise yourself for something that didn’t happen.”

Their conversation was interrupted by a small dog that approached Charlotte. Charlotte petted it, and the little dog seemed thrilled.

“Hey, little one.”

Suddenly, the dog adopted an aggressive stance, growled, and walked away.

“What was that?”

Sybil came over and hugged Charlotte from behind, almost knocking her over.

“Sybil? You shouldn’t be here. It's not safe yet!”

Sybil pointed toward the sky. The full moon was already above them. It gave off a strange green glow.

“What?”

“The Buried Tree… As the name suggests, it does everything in reverse…”

“What do you mean?”

“That it doesn’t grow or sprout roots with the sun… but with—”
From the houses with hidden rooms, enormous branches and roots emerged from the ground.

They grew and soared into the sky.

The houses began to crumble.

People screamed.

Charlotte turned around, but it was too late.

A shower of debris rained down on them.