A grand festival was about to be held in the town on the fifth floor of Amamiya Tower.
Coincidentally, it has been exactly one year since the first adventurers settled on this fifth floor.
This festival is being held to commemorate that occasion.
It has been announced that this will not be a one-time event, but will continue in the following years.
In the first place, this festival itself was not conceived by the executive branch.
It was originally a proposal from the town’s residents to the executive branch, which the executive branch then approved.
Since the proposal was submitted close to the first anniversary, the executive branch granted permission to coincide with it.
After the permission was granted, the residents, seeing this as a great opportunity, rushed to prepare.
Initially, a small group made the proposal, but as soon as permission was granted, more and more groups came forward, and eventually, the entire town became involved in the festival.
It was a good thing for the town, in many ways, to have a town with a population exceeding one hundred thousand people united through a festival.
Perhaps because it was hinted that any disturbance during preparations would lead to the cancellation of the festival itself, disturbances that would have troubled the guards were resolved before they could even do so, and this was observed in many places.
This is likely why, for better or worse, this is an adventurer’s town.
Despite all that, the festival preparations by the residents proceeded steadily without any major disturbances.
Although the town’s scale changes almost daily, there had never been a festival like this before.
If anything, there was the consecration ceremony at the town’s only temple, but only a select few were invited, and it was not something that involved the town’s residents.
In that sense, this is the first major festival.
It is unlikely that such a festival would end in just one day, and before they knew it, it had become a three-day festival.
The effort involved in its preparation was considerable, yet the residents were enthusiastically engaged in the festival preparations.
***
The first day of the festival.
As the festival was about to begin, not only the residents of the town but also people from outside the tower had gathered to enjoy the festivities.
Festival stalls were set up everywhere in town.
The restaurant owners, who normally run their establishments, gathered in one place and showcased their culinary skills.
Naturally, Crown’s Merchant Division would not miss out on this event.
Merchants from all sorts of fields eagerly set up stalls to liven up the festival.
For these three days, most of the shops, except for the inns, were operating in festival mode, suspending their normal business.
Of course, it wasn’t just the regular shop owners working hard; unique festival events were also being held.
The most popular attraction was the tournament held in the arena built on the outskirts of town.
The facility, normally used by Crown’s adventurers for training, had been opened for the festival’s martial arts tournament.
For three days, adventurers skilled in combat would engage in heated battles.
On this first day, which was still in the preliminary rounds, the audience seats were packed with people, overflowing.
Many of them were participants in betting, as this kind of betting was also a significant part of the enjoyment.
With the entire town buzzing with excitement for the festival, even those walking around town were dressed in festival attire.
Specifically, there were people wearing masks all over the place.
This was because, to enjoy the festival, wearing masks to hide one’s usual self was encouraged.
Although there were concerns that some might take advantage of the anonymity to commit reckless acts, any such troublemakers who would ruin the festival were quickly dealt with.
Initially, the guards were hesitant, but their efforts during the festival preparation phase were recognized, and in the end, permission was granted.
Rumor has it that permission was granted due to an order from above, but the truth remains unknown to all but a few.
A few individuals who knew the truth of those rumors were walking through the bustling town during the festival.
The group, numbering ten in total, were all wearing masks.
Although there were quite a number of them, they did not particularly stand out, as there were also adventurers enjoying the festival in multiple parties.
Their faces were hidden, but their clothing and demeanor indicated that only one was male, and the rest were female.
The group also included a wolf familiar, so they were perceived by those around them as an adventurer group.
Of course, the true identity of the group was Kousuke, who manages this Amamiya Tower, and his members.
The idea of wearing masks was not proposed by Kousuke and his group.
It was purely proposed by the group preparing the festival.
However, it was at risk of being rejected due to concerns about security, and Kousuke, who knew about the matter, intervened.
The information source for this was provided by the Defreya Clan.
Alec seemed to be inwardly troubled, wondering where such information could have been obtained, but in any case, the masked festival, not to be confused with a masquerade ball, was to be executed.
Since it was a festival, they wanted to participate while hiding their identities.
Kousuke had only shown his face once before, at the temple’s consecration ceremony, but with the festival drawing people of considerable status from both inside and outside, it was unknown where he might be recognized. Therefore, this mask idea was a godsend.
There was also the matter of Kousuke being able to completely suppress his Divine Power.
Kousuke was currently feeding some grilled skewers, bought from a stall, to his familiar.
Of course, the familiar was Nana, in her miniaturized form.
He did not give it to her with the skewer, of course, but carefully removed the meat.
However, knowing Nana, she would probably have removed it from the skewer and eaten it even if given it whole.
“It’s only the first day, yet it’s already so lively.”
“It is indeed. I heard that there will be more visitors from outside the tower on the second and third days, but today seems to be mostly the town’s residents.”
“I see. So, that’s why it’s so lively.”
As Peach said, it was expected that more visitors from outside the tower would arrive on the second and third days.
This was natural, as more events were planned for the final day, but the fact that the first day was so lively could be attributed to the residents who were busy with festival duties enjoying themselves in the meantime.
“Father, what is that?”
Haku asked Kousuke, pointing to something displayed at one of the stalls.
Looking at what Haku’s gaze was directed at, Kousuke’s eyes narrowed with pleasure.
“Oh. So they have that here too. Wait here, I’ll go buy some.”
If it was what Kousuke expected, it would be a sweet treat.
Approaching the stall and confirming with its appearance and smell that it was indeed what he thought, Kousuke spoke to the stall owner.
“Mister, is this cotton candy?”
“Yup. Wanna buy some?”
“One, please. But I didn’t know such a magic tool existed.”
“Ah, it might be rare in this town. Well, it’s the first festival, so it can’t be helped. But it’s a must-have for a festival, so I made sure to get it.”
“Haha. Thanks to you, we can enjoy it too.”
“Yep. Enjoy it to your heart’s content.”
While conversing, the shopkeeper skillfully spun white floss.
Haku watched him with wide eyes.
“Haha. Little lady, is this your first time having cotton candy? Here you go.”
Saying that, he handed it directly to Haku.
Kousuke thanked him and completed the payment.
To Haku, who was holding the cotton candy in bewilderment, Kousuke offered advice.
“Try eating the white part.”
Surprised for a moment at being told to eat it, Haku did as he was told and put it in his mouth.
“So sweeeet!”
Upon taking a bite, Haku exclaimed in surprise.
Hearing this, Wanri, piqued with interest, asked Haku for a taste.
Watching them, Silvia quietly asked Kousuke.
“Cotton candy existed in your original world too, didn’t it?”
“Ah. I was surprised. It wasn’t supposed to have such a long history in my previous world. I was surprised to find it here, actually.”
Sweets, in particular, were supposed to be quite expensive in this world, but he hadn’t expected them to be so widely available as to be sold at a festival.
“Magic tools and the raw materials themselves are not cheap when bought normally. However, it seems they have made provisions for festival use.”
Floria answered Kousuke’s question.
“Is that so?”
“Ah, like the adults, it’s primarily something that children enjoy eating. The production areas have secured supplies for the festival. The country was also supporting it.”
She explained that this was how they raised the country’s reputation.
“I see. Well, I guess it’s happier for us to be grateful for it, isn’t it?”
As long as there were no adverse effects, he had no intention of complaining about the country’s policies.
After all, thanks to them, they could enjoy the festival.
Kousuke, while understanding this unexpected situation with cotton candy in this world, continued to enjoy the festival.
The part about cotton candy feels a bit forced since I added it at the last minute.
I searched for cotton candy when I thought of including it, and although its history turned out to be shorter than I expected, I decided to include it anyway.
Long live magic tools!
Although it feels like a conclusion, the festival story is not over yet.
