By the time most of the preparations were complete, the members of the Margrave’s household arrived by carriage. Today, the carriage was tightly surrounded by a heavy escort of soldiers. Security had clearly been reinforced far beyond the usual level.
“““Ohhh, those outfits are incredible!”””
Perhaps because it was the Harvest Festival, both the former margrave and the current margrave were dressed in lavish noble attire, while Emilia-san wore an equally elegant dress befitting a lady of high standing.
“Wow, it’s a festival!”
“Hehe, yes. Today and tomorrow are the Harvest Festival.”
“I see!”
Kent-chan, too, was dressed in a very dignified outfit, while Maria-san—who was carrying him—wore a slightly more refined attendant’s uniform than usual.
Kent-chan had helped a little in the plaza earlier, but this was his first time seeing everything fully prepared. His eyes sparkled with excitement, overflowing with energy.
“Shun, everything is ready, I presume?”
“Yes. We’re good to go at any time.”
“I see. You’ve done well.”
The margrave nodded in satisfaction, acknowledging the effort that had gone into bringing everything together. With the offerings prepared perfectly, the former margrave looked around the plaza with clear satisfaction.
Incidentally, Ao had already made several full patrols of the area to ensure there were no suspicious objects. Everything was thoroughly checked.
Then, a group from the church arrived as well—priests and sisters dressed in ceremonial vestments.
“Everyone, we apologize for making you wait.”
“No, we’ve only just arrived ourselves.”
“I see. In that case, we shall proceed with the preparations for the Harvest Festival at once.”
After exchanging greetings with the Margrave, the priest headed toward the altar and began preparations. In response, more and more townspeople gathered in the plaza. When making offerings to the god and reporting the harvest, the townspeople participated together as well.
“Now then… where are we supposed to sit?”
It was about time for us to take our seats, but what caught my attention was that chairs had somehow been arranged behind the margrave’s seating area. Without hesitation, Shiro and the others naturally went and sat there.
“…Could it be that we’re supposed to sit here?”
“Uhm, I think there’s no doubt about it….”
Sue and the others had also come over near me, but they were clearly unsure as they looked at the rather conspicuous seating arrangement.
Just then, Toria-san spoke up.
“Shun-sama, you are also requested to take your place with the Margrave’s household. Please, be seated.”
“For real…?”
Even Toria spoke to me as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
With a slight sense of resignation, we made our way to the seats behind the margrave’s family.
“Shun-oniichan, what’s going to happen now?”
“The priest is going to report to the gods and give thanks, saying that we were blessed with a good harvest this year.”
““““I see!””””
For some reason, not only Shiro and the others but even Kent-chan was listening intently to my explanation. Watching them, Emilia-san smiled softly, clearly amused and pleased by the scene unfolding before her.
This is translated by Yume Neiji. Kindly read at yumeneijiworks.com
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