Festival (3)
I followed Luina like a man bewitched by a will-o'-the-wisp, my feet moving before my mind could catch up. At some point she had let go of my arm and was now tugging only at my sleeve. The streets around us were loud with chatter and laughter, yet somehow the noise felt distant, as if it were coming from another world.
Was it because of how different Luina seemed today, or because my brain simply refused to process the situation? Either explanation made sense, but right now that wasn’t what mattered.
‘Don’t tell me Luina actually…?’
No matter how slow I was when it came to reading people, I wasn’t dense enough to miss the atmosphere between us. The air practically shimmered with her embarrassment, and that only made my own face burn hotter.
Still, as my scattered thoughts slowly reassembled, I lifted my head and looked around. Only then did my brain finally start working again.
‘Elia and Zenle… they’re already gone.’
We had been walking for over five minutes. Of course the two of them had disappeared long ago. All that remained in front of me now was Luina’s back—and the tips of her pointed ears, dyed a vivid crimson.
‘Does Luina really… like me?’
I had suspected it, but I still couldn’t quite believe it. I rubbed my chin, feeling the smooth skin that had remained hairless for the past fifty-five years. As I stood there lost in thought, Luina’s voice cut clearly through the muffled noise of the crowd.
“Um… Kael.”
“…Yeah?”
“If… if it’s okay with you… could we hold hands?”
“…Hands?”
Her sudden question left me speechless. I could only repeat the words in my head. The silence must have sounded like refusal, because she quickly let go of my sleeve.
“Ah… I-I’m sorry if that was too much…!”
Before she could pull away completely, I snatched her hand in a hurry.
“Hup…!”
Her fingers were cool as they slipped into mine. A small, startled sound escaped her. But after a brief moment of fidgeting, she squeezed my hand tightly. When I looked at her face, her lips were curved in a smile full of relief and joy.
Her hand gradually grew warmer as she held mine. Though her cheeks were still flushed, her expression had relaxed considerably. She met my eyes with a gentle gaze.
“You didn’t answer me earlier, so… Kael, would you spend the rest of today with just me?”
“I’ve prepared quite a lot, you know.”
She added the last part while looking straight at me. There was only one answer I could give.
“…Sure. If that’s what you want.”
By the time this day with her ended, I would probably know the truth behind the feelings I still couldn’t fully believe. That was why I nodded.
Our joined hands moved forward together.
The first place we reached after holding hands was a flower-filled street lined with street performers and puppet shows. Colorful blossoms prepared for the festival bloomed everywhere, and among them clowns and puppeteers coaxed laughter from the passing crowd.
“There used to be so few places like this. In just a few decades, cities and villages have developed so much. Don’t you think, Kael?”
“Yeah. Back then, clowns were basically just street swindlers. Now there are real talents performing.”
We strolled along the street, admiring the scenery and chatting leisurely. Perhaps because some time had passed, the awkward tension that had hovered between us earlier was gone. In its place was a natural, comfortable flutter of excitement.
With our fingers still tightly interlaced, we could feel each other’s pulse as we continued walking.
“Huh?”
“What’s wrong?”
Luina suddenly stopped, staring at something ahead. I halted beside her and followed her gaze. Dozens of mages were standing in the sky atop platforms made of mana.
It seemed that while we had been enjoying the street events and strolling together, two whole hours had flown by without us noticing.
“Looks like the festival is about to start.”
“Time really passed faster than I thought.”
“I know… I had no idea two hours had already gone by.”
We had only tried a couple of attractions and walked around, yet somehow two hours had vanished. Luina and I looked at each other, both of us dazed by how quickly the time had disappeared.
But our attention was soon drawn back to the sky. A woman standing at the center among the mages began to speak, her voice amplified by magic.
[Welcome, everyone who has come to the festival hosted by the Magic Tower. I am Nella Oracle, Master of the Magic Tower.]
Nella’s voice rang out across all of Hagen Village, loud and clear thanks to the amplification spell.
“It’s been a while since we last saw Nella, hasn’t it?”
“It really has. She’s grown up quite a bit.”
Nella Oracle, Master of the Magic Tower. Both Luina and I had deep connections with her. Luina had fought alongside her many times on the battlefield during the war. As for me… well, there was no point hiding it. She had once been my disciple, even though she was a mage.
Seeing her after so long, Luina and I whispered to each other with obvious fondness in our voices. I thought there was no way she could have noticed us in the crowd, but her gaze briefly swept in our direction.
However, her eyes didn’t linger. After scanning the streets below, she continued speaking.
[…I see a few welcome faces behind masks that I feel like I recognize. However, as the host of this festival, I cannot prioritize personal connections.]
Had she really been looking at us? Her words sounded as if she were speaking directly our way. I flinched, shoulders twitching. Should I wave at her secretly?
Before I could raise my hand, Nella lifted the slender staff in her grasp high into the air and shouted.
[I will not drag this out any longer with the fun festival right in front of us. To everyone who has come here today, I hope you create wonderful memories!!]
The moment she finished, a beam of light shot from her staff into the sky. Dozens of other mages followed suit, their own staves releasing streaks of light. The dozens of beams exploded in the air, painting the sky with brilliant fireworks.
BOOM-BOOM-BOOOOM─────!!!!!
“““Wooooow!!!”””
Cheers erupted from the streets below at the spectacular display. As the fireworks faded, the real festival finally began in earnest.
True to the Magic Tower’s style, flames, water, ice, and all kinds of other spells transformed the sky into a living canvas. Watching the magical show while enjoying snacks from the stalls was the main attraction of the festival.
Even from where I stood, I could see people thoroughly enjoying themselves. Men holding wooden mugs full of beer in one hand and glistening chicken skewers in the other, laughing heartily as they chatted and played.
I found myself smiling at the sight. I gave Luina’s hand a gentle shake—she was still staring up at the sky in awe.
“Shall we go buy something too, Luina?”
“Huh? Oh, yes! Let’s go. I already found a good spot in advance.”
She quickly straightened up at my call and took the lead, pulling me along. It seemed she had prepared thoroughly; she even remembered exactly where the stalls were. I followed behind her as we walked toward the end of this festival day.
High above, Nella—the mage who had fired the very first spell—lowered her staff and let out a long sigh.
“Haa… How did I end up taking on something like this?”
A festival hosted by the Magic Tower was an incredibly rare event, one that would never have happened in a place like Hagen Village under normal circumstances. The reason was simple: Nella Oracle, the Tower Master herself, hated organizing festivals.
Some might call that arrogance. But with the talent, knowledge, and wisdom befitting the Master of the Magic Tower, Nella had every right to feel that way.
Her dislike of festivals was equally straightforward. She simply couldn’t stand wasting time on something so frivolous. Why spend precious hours on a festival when that time could be used for research and training? Applause, laughter, happiness—none of those things held any real value to her.
That was why, in all the years she had been Tower Master, the only festivals the Magic Tower had hosted were the ones twelve and four years ago in the Shardena Kingdom, forced by royal decree.
In other words, holding one here in Hagen Village was about as fitting as putting a pearl necklace on a pig.
“Still… if Master is here, then it’s not exactly a pig’s neck anymore.”
Because in this backwater village lived none other than her own master, Kael. And with him was Luina, whose name carried just as much weight.
If Enoch hadn’t contacted her after so many years with this information, a Magic Tower festival would never have been held here. Normally she would have refused outright—the time investment was simply too wasteful. But if the festival was meant to serve as the backdrop for Luina’s confession to Kael, that changed everything.
“If I can help those two finally come together… then sparing a little time is nothing.”
No matter how little she cared for others, no matter how arrogantly she looked down on nearly everyone, Nella still possessed a minimum of human decency. She had not forgotten the debt she owed Kael, who had taken her in when she had nothing, raised her, and taught her swordsmanship. Nor had she forgotten Luina, who had saved her life on the battlefield when she had been on the verge of death.
If she could repay even a fraction of those debts by hosting a single festival, it was a cheap price to pay. For those two, she was willing to give as much time as needed.
“Ah, they’re finally moving.”
Nella murmured to herself as she watched the pair, who had finally begun to walk after standing still for so long. They stopped at one of the stalls, then headed toward the quiet hill behind Hagen Village—a hill that the knight order had cleared of people just for them.
Resting her chin on her hand, Nella watched their tightly clasped hands and let out a small chuckle.
“Looks like Master will finally have someone by his side.”
She raised her staff once more. The long-empty spot beside Kael would finally have an owner today. To celebrate that, she would decorate the end of their day with the greatest magic she could offer. That was the final task Enoch had asked of her.