“Th-this is a military carriage, isn’t it?” I asked in astonishment.
The coachman confirmed I was right with a smile on his face. I turned to Mio in a panic and saw she had a grim expression on her face.
“His Highness Luifon is the master of the royal knights,” she said. “Since the commander of the knights summoned you, it’s not that strange for a military vehicle to come, but…”
“But he summoned me as a prince, not as the commander of the knights, right?!”
“That’s what I also assumed. Sire coachman,” Mio called out, “where have you been instructed to take us? I doubt we’re headed to the royal palace in this carriage.”
The coachman kept smiling and answered, “I’ve been tasked with taking you to the royal knights’ fortress. It is located next to the palace.”
I knew it…
All the strength left my body, but Mio didn’t back down. “That means our lord, Count Kyros Granado, won’t be in attendance, correct? Has he even been informed that Lady Marie was summoned? And what is this event His Highness has prepared?”
The coachman shrugged and replied that he hadn’t been told the details, but that he was informed it’d be a delightful time, “like a festival.”
I couldn’t say I’d changed my mind and didn’t want to go, so, despite Mio being on edge and my trembling like a leaf, we climbed aboard the black steel carriage.
Despite its stern exterior, the carriage was comfortable, and our bodies sank into its soft cushions as it rattled along the road.
Not long after midday, the black carriage arrived at a gigantic stronghold.
“Whoa… It’s so big,” I whispered. I felt like a child with unrestrained wonder.
This was the fortress of the royal knights. I looked up at the stone wall that was several times taller than me, and I felt the blood drain from my face. Military installations were as impressive as they were frightening. Even so, our surroundings were unexpectedly peaceful. The gate was open, and civilians seemed to be coming and going as they pleased. I saw foreign travelers who appeared to be in the middle of a journey, women with children, elderly people, and more. All of them were walking past the fortress’s wall while chatting leisurely.
They…seem to be having fun. And I can smell something delicious in the air… What’s happening inside?
After stopping the carriage in front of the gate, the coachman told us he’d wait for us here. I was a little surprised, as I’d assumed he’d be going in with us.
“Where is His Highness?” Mio asked.
The man didn’t answer her question and simply said, “Please enjoy yourselves.”
Mio and I passed through the gate. The general layout of the fortress resembled that of Granado Castle—a former fortress itself—and beyond the sturdy wall was a large garden. The difference was that there were neither flowers nor vegetable fields here, only a vast stretch of lawn. Alongside the inner side of the wall were stalls lined up neatly next to one another.
There was a crowd next to the fountain, and I wondered why so many people had gathered there until I caught a glimpse of the beautiful dancer in a very revealing costume at the center. Next to her, another entertainer was showing off magic tricks, and I could hear musicians playing somewhere.
“It really does seem to be a festival,” Mio said.
“It’s amazing!” I said excitedly. “There are even more people here than at the harvest festival in the Chandelan territory! And everyone seems to be having such fun!”
“In the fifty years since the war ended, the kingdom has been at peace. These sorts of extraordinary events bring some spice to the lives of the people of the capital, so they’re very fond of them. A couple of notices in the street is all it takes to attract a crowd,” Mio explained.
I let out a deep, relieved sigh. “I’m so glad this doesn’t seem to be my public execution.”
“You still believed you might die?” Mio asked, munching on a chicken skewer. She held more of them in her other hand.
When in the world did she buy all that?!
She caught me looking at her food and gave me a skewer. That wasn’t why I’d been staring, though…
I looked around with my skewer in hand. “I should first greet His Highness and thank him for the invitation, shouldn’t I? Where do you think he might be?” I asked.
“Forget about him,” she replied flatly.
“I can’t do that!”
“He summoned you here, but he didn’t tell you where he was. That can only mean he doesn’t want to be greeted. He might not even be here at all, for all we know.”
“Does he mean for us to enjoy the festival and go home? Just like that?”
“Probably. I don’t know.”
Was that truly all right? Somehow, I got the impression Mio was less than enthused whenever she talked about Prince Luifon. Well, she was always less than enthused, but I thought she might at least behave differently when mentioning a prince. Was he so friendly that he allowed her disrespect? Or did Mio hate him?
I still had no idea what to do. I turned to Mio, but she was munching on a steamed bun, stone-faced as ever.
Huh? Wasn’t she eating chicken skewers a second ago? When did this bun appear?
Mio divided it in two and gave one half to me—and once again, that wasn’t why I was staring…
I now had a chicken skewer in my right hand and half a steamed bun in my left.
“A-are you sure we should be eating here? We’re outside! And there are so many people around.”
“Eating outside is the whole appeal of coming to a festival. Come on, Lady Marie, have a bite.”
Are you sure? All right, then! I’ll eat too! I thought while biting into the chicken. Mmm! It’s delicious! There was a little too much salt, but for some reason, I felt like that only made it better. Maybe it was because we were outside.
The second I felt thirsty, Mio held out an orange to me. I wondered what was up and if she wanted me to eat it with the skin still on when I noticed a little hole. It seemed like the insides had been emptied out and filled with juice instead.
Mio stabbed a straw into my orange and into the coconut she’d somehow procured for herself. “This festival really does seem to just be a fun event. That’s one worry out of the way,” Mio said.