127. Festival

127. Festival

Trying to ignore Claire’s lewd smile, we continued to move forward. As befitting the word ‘festival’, the academy streets were filled with energy.

“Where did my graduation project go?”

“The one that was here? Someone threw it in the trash earlier.”

“What the hell!”

… I think it’s filled with energy.

People chattering noisily, people eating snacks, students diligently demonstrating their projects. It made me realize anew how little I had explored the academy. I never knew there were so many things here.

Priscilla tugged on my tail.

“They’re putting on a play over there. Shall we go watch it together?”

“A play?”

I wonder what the story is.

We approached the place where they were performing a street play. The prepared seats were already full, so we had to stand and watch. Upon closer inspection, a small booklet for explanation was prepared next to it. I picked it up and started reading it carefully.

“Hmm.”

A Grand Duchess who is a wolf beastman and a commoner girl, sharing forbidden love beyond the insurmountable gap in their social status…

“Priscilla.”

“Yes!”

“Does the Empire not have portrait rights?”

“What is that?”

Priscilla replied, looking at me while placing a scarf made of my tail fur on her head. That fluffy scarf is really bothering me.

“… No.”

“By the way, the play is really fun! I guess there’s a reason so many people are here to watch it.”

“Is that so?”

The content itself was ordinary. A typical romance fantasy development, perhaps. Except that both the protagonist and the heroine were women.

However, I couldn’t shake the feeling that the actress playing the Grand Duchess, wearing a wolf ear headband, was clearly modeled after me. Even the color was white.

As I couldn’t focus on the play due to my thoughts, the play had already reached its climax. The Grand Duchess, who had a happy night with the commoner girl, is eventually discovered by her family, and the enraged Duke, ignoring his daughter’s pleas, sends his army to attack the commoner girl.

“The plot is amazing!”

“No… do you really need to send an army to catch a commoner? Isn’t that a declaration of war?”

“Skadi, you don’t need to think logically here. A play is good as long as it’s goated.”

Where did you learn to say ‘goated’ like that?

Anyway, the play continued, and the memories the Grand Duchess had shared with the commoner girl passed by like a midsummer night’s dream. But reality was a mess. The Grand Duchess was confined to her room, and the commoner girl, unable to even see her beloved’s face, knelt before the executioner’s block.

The audience held their breath. The girl pleaded to be allowed to see the Grand Duchess’s face, but only received cold stares. Voices calling for the Duke to carry out the execution echoed, and finally, a curtain fell over the stage.

In the situation where nothing could be seen from the audience, only screams and thuds were heard, and thus the play came to an end.

After a brief silence, thunderous applause erupted.

“It was a well-made tragedy!”

“… I feel strange.”

If I weren’t the Grand Duchess, I might have enjoyed it immensely, but it was hard to focus since I was the one involved. I turned around and said.

“Claire, how was it?”

“… Skadi, does your father dislike same-sex marriage?”

“Huh?”

Worry was etched on Claire’s face. It was probably due to the play’s content, but I raised my hand and stroked Claire’s head.

“That’s just a play, Claire. It wasn’t even approved by me. As for whether Father dislikes same-sex marriage… I don’t really know.”

“Hmm….”

I had never asked my father about such things, nor was there any reason to. For that matter, I had never even considered same-sex marriage itself. I had just vaguely assumed things would work out somehow.

But why is she asking about that?

“No, it’s nothing.”

“Really?”

Well, if that’s the case.

Leaving the theater troupe, which was starting to receive its next customers, we began walking down the street again.

Next, we saw a line of food stalls, seemingly operated by students. The wafting aroma made me hungry. My mouth watered so much that I felt like I would constantly wet my uniform, so I ran at light speed and bought ten chicken skewers.

Including the humanoid Ur, Priscilla, and Claire all received skewers. Naturally, the remaining seven were all mine.

Claire examined her skewer from side to side and said.

“They don’t look very high quality?”

“It’s because commoners usually eat here. Nobles eat at restaurants, not places like this.”

“Is that so… But, Skadi, these seasonings all seem different, what are they?”

The skewers I bought were of various types. I had bought them all, from the usual sweet chicken skewers to those with slightly unusual sauces. Naturally, the colors of the skewers we were holding were all different.

However, there was a problem: I had bought them randomly without remembering exactly what sauces I had bought. In response to my answer, Claire made a disgusted face and sighed.

I held up a skewer and suggested.

“Then, since we don’t know, shall we just try eating them all at once?”

“At once?”

“Yeah.”

The so-called “lucky draw” chicken skewer eating.

Well, it’s not like they would sell inedible skewers at a street stall like this, so it’s probably not much of a lucky draw. It’s just to liven up the atmosphere.

I held seven chicken skewers, and Ur, Claire, and Priscilla each held their own, and we all took a big bite at the same time.

Claire and Priscilla said.

“This one just tastes normal.”

“Mine tastes like orange.”

What is an orange-flavored chicken skewer?

Anyway, my skewer had seven flavors mixed together, making it difficult to identify the sauce. The only thing I could recognize was the mint chocolate sauce, which was asserting its presence even in this chaos.

Then, what flavor did Ur eat?

“It’s too spicy!!! Hek!! Master!!”

As soon as I looked back, Ur writhed and cried out in pain, twisting her body in all directions. If this were a comic, there might have been an effect of fire coming out of her mouth.

Come to think of it, I think I saw a name tag flash past my eyes that said “Super Nuclear Fire Chicken Skewer (Free if you finish it)”.

Wait a minute, free if you finish it?

“Ah.”

I just grabbed this skewer seeing the word “free” without paying. It wasn’t that, it was free if you finished it.

I felt sorry for the stall owner whose chicken skewer was suddenly stolen, so I decided to eat it all as an apology. After all, it’s free if you finish it, right?

“Ur, eat all of that.”

“What?!”

Despite her wide eyes, Ur’s body immediately began to act. The moment a bright red chicken skewer entered her mouth, Ur’s tail puffed up with a BANG!

Cute.

… After filling our hungry stomachs like that, we started walking again. As I looked around at various things, my eyes suddenly caught sight of a place where many people were gathered.

“There are a lot of people over there. What are they doing?”

“Let’s go see!”

Yes, there’s no need to guess from afar what it is. We just need to go and see for ourselves.

We moved our feet. Up close, it was a place that had been temporarily converted from a training ground where students trained. A large dirt field had a stadium-like area drawn with white lines, and tents were set up around the perimeter to receive people. Naturally, we headed for the tents.

Reading the text on the introductory booklet carefully, it said something like ‘tournament’.

“Tou… rna… ment?”

“Tournament.”

“Aha.”

Why use such a difficult word?

The content was simple. It was a kind of martial arts competition where 8 participants were accepted, fought in a tournament format, and the winner was decided in the final match. I only learned about it today, but it’s a traditional event that has been held without fail since the academy was founded…

There was no special prize for winning. When I asked the person next to me for an explanation, they said that although there was no prize, the act of competing itself provided an opportunity for talented commoners to gain the attention of nobles and advance their careers, and for nobles, it was a meaningful event as a way to show off their strength.

No wonder the lines were divided into two. One was for commoners, and the other was for nobles.

Just as the previous match ended and the players were coming out of the training ground. At the same time, it seemed they were accepting new players at the tent, which caught my attention.

I haven’t exerted myself much lately.

It seems like it would be fun to fight there. I turned around and asked my friends.

“Claire, Priscilla, shall we enter there too?”

“Why? It doesn’t seem very meaningful and like a waste of time…”

Priscilla was still engrossed in her scarf, sniffing it, while Claire showed a lukewarm reaction. But I want to go there. I want to fight.

“Then, guys.”

“Yeah?”

“How about we go to the finals, and the loser has to grant one wish of the winner?”

“… A wish?”

Priscilla was still preoccupied with her scarf, but Claire showed interest. I think I can persuade her a little more.

“Yes, the loser has to do whatever the winner wants.”

“… Whatever?”

“Of course.”

“Really? Really anything?”

“Yeah, yeah.”

Considering Claire’s combat prowess, there would be no early elimination, and the same applies to me. I’m a little worried about Priscilla since I’ve never seen her fight, but it should be okay.

The wish I’m offering as a reward, well, what else could my friends wish for? At best, it would be to not resist during sex. Besides, I don’t think I’ll lose.

Hearing my affirmation, Claire thought about something in her mind, and then actively led me forward.

“Quickly.”

“Okay.”

We submitted our applications.