Meanwhile, outside the castle: people, people, people, as far as the eye could see!
The outdoor festival had drawn a massive crowd of commoners, and spirits were high. Food stands were in rows packed tight as sardines and illuminated by paper lanterns. Everywhere you looked, visitors were singing and dancing and eating and drinking to their hearts’ content.
One stand in particular was decorated with two big signs that read: Everybody’s Favorite, The Little Vixen! and Lilium-Approved!
“Here we go! Time to rake in the cash or whatever!” Katherine declared, hands on her hips.
She was wearing a white button-down shirt with a black tie and a waist apron, her polished leather shoes gleaming in the lantern light. It was a simple, classy look that won murmurs of approval from everyone who passed by. Beside her, Nadine stood wearing the exact same uniform; their athletic physiques only served to further enhance the overall aesthetic.
“Wow! You look so awesome!”
“Heh heh heh! Darn right I do! But... thanks. Fried chicken bites! Get your fried chicken bites!”
With the help of their speedy, efficient service, the chicken bites and potato wedges (not to mention that ice-cold beer) sold like crazy. As Katherine ran the register, Nadine deftly plated each order.
“Hey, you’re pretty good at this! Seems like you know exactly how much to serve, and you’ve got all the prep work covered, too. You sure you’ve never cooked before?” Katherine asked.
“Honest, I haven’t. You see, um... my fingers...”
“Huh?”
“This was a long, long time ago, but... back when I used to help with the family business, I worked with a lot of poisonous plants every day.”
“Making poison tinctures, or what?”
“Yes, that sort of thing. Because of that, my hands were... tainted. Try as I might, I could never completely eliminate the toxic chemicals from my fingertips, so... if I tried to cook something, I would inevitably poison whatever food I made.”
Slowly, hesitantly, Nadine laid bare a tiny fragment of her past.
“Oh, gotcha. So that’s why you’ve always avoided cooking.”
“Yes, exactly... Sorry for being such a downer.”
“Nah, it’s fine. So what if you’re inexperienced? You can just learn as you go!”
“...Huh?”
“Like I said, your prep work’s really good! And we need to start frying up a new batch, so... wanna give it a try?”
“B-But—”
“Don’t worry. I’m right here to help you. Besides, you remember what my best spell is?”
“Oh, um... The special Fireball?”
“Yep, Fox-Fireball! And the key to good cooking is heat control!”
As she spoke, Katherine slid the raw chicken into the oil, where it began to crackle and pop—proof that it was heated to the perfect temperature.
Just then, a scream rang out in the crowd. Nadine looked over and spotted a young girl sitting on the ground like she’d been knocked backwards. Next to her stood a man with a large build.
“He... He touched my butt!” the girl shouted in a quavering voice.
“Whoops! Sorry! My hand slipped!” the man replied without a hint of remorse.
“What?”
“These crowds are really cramped, you feel me? It was bound to happen! If you don’t want people touching you, you’d better learn to protect yourself!” he laughed.
“Wh... Wha...” The young girl was so baffled, she could scarcely speak. All the color had drained from her face.
“Poor thing,” Nadine whispered, biting her lip.
The man’s size was intimidating, and no one dared to pick a fight with him...
“Sorry, Katherine, but we’ll have to put this cooking lesson on the back-burner!”
And with that, Nadine dashed over to the girl.
“Are you alright, miss?”
“Th-Thank you... I’m sorry for... being a buzzkill...”
“You have nothing to apologize for. You did nothing wrong.”
But then Nadine heard whispering from the crowd around them:
“Why would she come here when she knew the place would be packed?”
“If she hates crowds that much, she could’ve just waited until later.”
“I mean, if her personal bubble’s so big, then what’s she doing at a festival, anyway?”
“She’s probably lying for attention. I feel bad for that guy!”
It was awful. She’d only come here to enjoy the festival like everyone else... and now they’d decided this meant she was to blame? Nadine glared around at the individuals who had voiced their “concerns.”
“Eeek!” one of them shrieked. Intimidated by her “I will end you” vibes, they all fell silent.
Then she put a protective arm around the young girl’s shoulders and helped her to her feet. Meanwhile, the large man seemed to ignore all this. Instead, he strolled over to a nearby food stall—the Little Vixen, to be specific.
“Hey you! Gimme a beer! And what’s with that getup, fox lady? If you’re selling beer, you gotta wear a swimsuit! Where’s the bikini?” he demanded, as though it were the most obvious thing in the world.
“Excuse me? What’s your problem, old man?” Katherine snapped back.
But the man didn’t seem to care about her reaction. Because of his intimidating stature, no one ever criticized him and he didn’t have to worry about other people’s feelings.
“Who says I gotta wear a bikini, huh? What’s wrong with my apron?”
“Beer and swimsuits go together! If you wanna sell beer, you need a bikini, babe!”
“No, we don’t, actually!”
“Now, now, Katherine,” Nadine scolded as she returned to the stand, young girl in tow. The girl in question was biting her lip and refusing to look in the man’s direction; Nadine moved in front of her, shielding her. “One beer, coming right up,” she declared in a cold, emotionless voice. Then she turned back to the girl. “As for you, young lady, why don’t you sit here in our food stand and take a minute to collect yourself?”
Why’s she just going along with this? Katherine wondered. Then she looked down into the fryer. Her chicken bites had exceeded foxy orange and were now turning a deep brown. Any longer and they’d burn.
Turning away from the man, she quickly lifted the chicken out of the oil. And the moment her back was turned—
“Aagh!”
—the man let out a yelp.
She whirled around to find Nadine standing beside him, holding the beer he’d ordered. But as for the man himself, his clothes—save for his underpants—were now lying in shreds at his ankles.
This explained why Nadine was quietly tucking a dagger back into her pocket.
“Beer and swimsuits go together, correct?”
“You bitch! You think you can do this to me?!”
“Maybe you’d better learn to protect yourself,” Nadine whispered coldly, her voice soft but unwavering. Somehow, it seemed to echo across the entire castle grounds.
There was a moment of silence. The young girl held her breath. And then—
“...Pfft...”
Someone in the crowd let out a tiny snicker... and this sparked a wave of laughter all around them, particularly from the women in the vicinity who had witnessed the man’s domineering attitude.
All at once, a line had formed at the Little Vixen. And so, ignoring the man’s furious yapping, the two ladies of Lilium went back to work. In the end, their food stand was a complete success.