The Devil’s Day comes each year, as the sun reaches its peak in the sky. ‘Tis a day of prayer and remembrance, and a time of family togetherness.

  —From The Ancestor’s Precepts, engraved within the Ochros Monastery

  After two weeks, Lycoris’s brief vacation felt as though it were coming to a close. At least, the fact she was getting dressed up and headed off to the teleport was giving her the feeling that it had come to a close. There were still two more weeks, and she was going to be returning home either that night or the next morning—fortunately Athena was on campus to look after her if she had to stay late—and she wasn’t bringing any sort of luggage with her.

  In that sense, even though she had only gone through the teleportation terminals on two round trips before, Lycoris was filled with a strange sense of loss, like she was forgetting something. It was just because she didn’t have a suitcase packed full of clothes with her, but it felt just as bad as when she would have to forgo armor and sword.

  She did make a mental note to grab her dagger while she was on campus. It was probably a bad idea to leave something that valuable just sitting beside her bed. Considering there had at one point been an attempt on her life while she was in “relative security” in the hotel she was staying at, Lycoris couldn’t rule out the possibility that someone would be stupid enough to break into her little spire while she was away.

  Maybe Tatyana had woven another plot and was going to plant a bomb in her home or something while she was gone…

  Maybe I should have the Academy perform an investigation first? Or would that make me seem too paranoid? Or, would it make me look weak for not being able to protect my own assets, or whatever… Nnnggh, maybe I’ll just ask Athena for her opinion.

  Something made Lycoris believe that the maid would wholeheartedly jump belly-first onto any potential explosive if she so much as implied it would be necessary for her peace of mind, much less safety…

  Wearing a simple and light sleeveless one piece, and a somewhat floppy wide-brimmed faux-straw hat that could just as easily have served her as a farmer as it did a fashion statement with her current “summer-themed” attire, Lycoris stepped out of the teleport in the city of Pandosia. She took her phone out of the small handbag slung across her shoulder and glanced at the time.

  A moment later, she heard someone call out her name, and thankfully it was the person she was expecting rather than anyone else. The redheaded young Vampire was wearing a large-sleeved and baggy pale pink tunic that tightened at the shoulders along with a somewhat narrow navy-colored skirt that stretched down to his ankles and was pleated in the middle. It certainly looked… exotic, at least by Lycoris’s standards. Especially with all the gold threadwork depicting flowers and fuzzy little orb-shaped bats on the sleeves.

  “Salutations, Your Highness! I pray your trip was uneventful and that the day finds you hale.”

  Lycoris glanced up at the usual clouded city skies, then back down at Arnen Mano.

  “I don’t see any hail. Regardless, I hope you did not wait overlong for my arrival. Or have to rush any preparations on my behalf.”

  About half a week prior, she realized that she hadn’t actually given any response to the poor boy. Fortunately, her mother had Margrave Danon on speed dial and was able to get her in touch with his son in short order to arrange their “festival date” as everyone but Lycoris was putting it.

  Aside from Raine, Goddess bless her soul—if She heard such prayers, at least.

  I guess it’d be ‘Ancestors bless her soul’ wouldn’t it…

  “Nay, not at all, Princess! ‘Twas but a triviality to—”

  “Are you feeling nervous again, Arnen? You needn’t worry for my sake, I’m sure today shall be enjoyable no matter what lies in store for us. More important, that is quite a unique outfit. I don’t recall you wearing such a thing during Moonsend…”

  “This? ‘Tis nothing more than breathable summer clothing. I thought something more subdued would pair nicely at Your Highness’s side, for the festival.”

  Arnen bowed graciously as Lycoris approached and looked up at him. It made sense, many farmers opted for loose fitting clothes to beat the heat. Though that probably wouldn’t be smart when using tools that could snag…

  “I feel somewhat underdressed in comparison,” Lycoris chuckled.

  “Not at all! Your very presence is… erhh, you have enough natural beauty that anything looks elegant on you, Your Highness.” He offered a warm smile and his hand to Lycoris after smothering his flamboyance.

  “The fact you’re speaking that honestly somehow only makes it more embarrassing. But I suppose Mother did approve of my choice of attire for this, so I couldn’t have made an error.”

  She accepted the proffered hand graciously, letting him walk her toward the nearby idling car whereupon Lycoris felt a pang of anxiety, and understood what had caused Arnen to fumble over himself with nerves. The driver was a Mano servant, but the part that caused Lycoris’s heart to nearly jump out of her throat was the man sitting in the back seat with a severe expression.

  It was the third time they had meet each other, but unlike the faux-politeness in passing or the distant glances during court, Margrave Danon Mano sat directly across from the entrance to the car. And, with a gaze much like when her mother was ready to pass harsh judgment, the Margrave sat with his legs spread and arms crossed, staring at the two of them as Arnen helped Lycoris up into the vehicle and saw her seated across from his father. Once she was situated, he sat down politely beside her and the door slid shut on its own as they headed off toward the campus grounds.

  The silence inside the vehicle was oppressive.

  Lycoris wasn’t sure what to talk about. She didn’t want to say anything that would make Arnen’s father upset or disappointed in him, and also didn’t want to do anything that might embarrass herself, obviously.

  There was some amount of humor to it. Her mother was arguably far more terrifying than the Margrave, but Lycoris was far more concerned with how she carried herself around him than her.

  I guess she is my mom, after all… She’s supposed to see my slightly shameful side, right?

  But then, why would Arnen be worried about his father… assuming he even was. He certainly seemed tense.

  Though Lycoris could understand. She worried about how she came across in public when accompanying her mother as well. Behaving poorly would reflect poorly on Lilianna too.

  The silence in the car was getting to her too, though. She debated speaking up, but didn’t want to come across as bored, as that might reflect poorly on Arnen too…

  After a few more minutes of awkwardness, she looked at Danon directly. He was a surprisingly slender man, for how he carried himself, and his red hair was quite similar to Arnen’s in coloration, though he kept it shorter and parted at one side, where it fell just above his brow. He had cloudy gray eyes, reminiscent of a certain repulsive someone—though not nearly as eerily shimmering. And he wore an outfit similar to his son’s, though patterned and colored differently.

  Apparently it really was seasonal attire, for the Mano family at least.

  “While it has not been so long since our last meeting, both in person and in court, I pray to our Ancestors that you are doing well, Lord Mano.”

  He slowly turned his cloudy eyes toward her, half-tilting his head as his expression remained steady. “Well as can be, given recent developments.”

  It’s a good thing Raine isn’t here… Even I can’t tell whether he’s annoyed or not.

  Lycoris attempted to mask her concern with a placid smile. “I would have thought such things would be beneficial to the Mano.”

  “We lost one of the largest buyers of our produce, the general market is in disarray, and it will be many years before assets are fully distributed and things settle. There is much more to the world than just reaching out for the closest piece of pie, or separating someone’s head from shoulder for being a fool.”

  Fighting back the urge to purse her lips and recoil, Lycoris simply nodded in agreement, “The world of adults is always larger than that of children, but it’s important to not fixate only on the negative, lest one find themself detached from reality.”

  Rather than lie and play up her own ignorance, Lycoris sidestepped the issue as she thought back to the words of a young priest who had dragged a certain drunkard out of his spiraling depression. Both to demonstrate her worldliness and the "magnanimity of a ruler,” and to passively share some genuine advice in a way that would hopefully not be taken as insult.

  It seemed as though it worked, as the man relaxed his shoulders slightly and his terse expression took on a few soft wrinkles as his lip quirked.

  “Right. My apologies for bringing the mood down, Your Highness.” He waited for a moment before changing topics, “I’m aware you met at Moonsend initially, but how did you two…”

  He gestured toward them, and only then did Lycoris realize she was still squeezing Arnen’s hand, as the boy scratched his cheek and kept his head turned away. She slowly let go, rather than wrench her hand away, and set them in her lap.

  “We share many of the same classes, and he was both polite and respectful, and the only one brave enough to ask a princess to accompany him to the Solstice Festival.”

  “And what do you think of him?”

  Lycoris chuckled affably as she felt Arnen tense up beside her, “As I said, he is replete with both respect and politeness. He understands boundaries, and I would like to learn more of his hobbies and lifestyle. It would be no exaggeration to say I have been anticipating this holiday since he first suggested I accompany him.”

  “And yet Her Majesty only contacted me this week.” Danon’s lips wrinkled slightly after he spoke.

  Smoothing over any potential frustration, Lycoris replied with an answer she had already prepared, “Hmhm, surely there is no need for me to explain how busy my mother is, or how such an outing like this would require her meticulous approval.”

  “Of course,” the Margrave nodded understandingly, before briefly looking toward Arnen with a familiar soft smile. The same sort that Lycoris saw Lilianna use privately.

  Though they didn’t talk about much else, the rest of the car ride felt far less oppressive.

  ＊　＊　＊

  The moment Lycoris set foot on campus once more, she immediately realized why students were heavily encouraged to leave. The entire campus grounds had undergone a radical transformation, to such an extent that even the horizon beyond the front building had shifted.

  A large slowly rotating wheel poked out from behind the bell steeple, accompanied by other metallic structures. Illuminated signs had been hung up that advertised the Solstice Festival, and Vampires wearing mostly “dress-casual” clothing were walking in and out.

  It was already the early afternoon, and as Lycoris had heard, there were plenty of adults as well as teenagers in the crowd. What was more startling than the general age disparity was that Arnen’s father got out of the car behind the two of them, but when Lycoris thought that he might have intended to chaperone them the entire time—which admittedly wouldn’t be unreasonable, they were children after all—he instead brushed past them and walked up to a familiar pink-haired woman.

  Lycoris blinked in surprise when she saw her, though remembered after a moment that it was her mother’s twin. Then was surprised all over again when Margrave Mano walked up to her and took her hand before the two of them turned around and entered campus grounds.

  “Your Highness?” Arnen spoke from beside her, drawing Lycoris back to her senses.

  “Huh… Ah, right, um. *ahem* Shall we see what the campus looks like? I admit, I’m a little… troubled.”

  Her eyes wandered up to the looming structures in the distance.

  “Then allow me to reassure you, Your Highness!”

  “Please, just call me Lycoris. For today, at least. It would feel stranger any other way.”

  “Very well then, Your… Lycoris.”

  The two of them held hands, and though she was nervous, Lycoris allowed herself to be led forward by Arnen.

  ＊　＊　＊

  Beyond the front building, the sprawling space beyond was a labyrinth of booths, filled with either attractions or vendors, which spilled into the buildings themselves even. It wasn’t just similar to, but was nearly exactly identical to the soap harvesting festival in the Kingdom… only people didn’t leave out buckets on their roofs or stalls to gather the droppings left behind by the Skyjellies.

  And of course, the crowd was filled with pastel-haired and pointy-eared people, all wearing far more refined outfits than anything a Human would. Aside from perhaps a noble who had a personal tailor at their service.

  The first place they visited was a shooting gallery.

  One of the classrooms had been converted into a multi-layered arena of sorts, with the contestants standing on the stage the professor normally lectured from, and a large counter set up along its length separating them from the rows of seating in the lecture hall. Atop the benches that ran behind the lengthy desks were devices that would pop up a 3D projection of a playful target dummy. The rifles on the counter were all harmless illusory magic projectors, rather than actual firearms, meaning it was a very “clean” form of entertainment.

  Lycoris allowed Arnen to take the first play when it was their turn—though several people in front of them allowed them to cut ahead in line rather graciously. Lycoris wasn’t sure if she should accept their offers or not, as she was unable to judge the character of the unfamiliar alumni or teenagers… but Arnen reassured her that they probably just wanted to watch Princess Aphtangloa in action.

  Not that she was particularly confident with a rifle. She had aimed a crossbow before, and there was obviously her stint in Kranes… but that had been a much smaller weapon, and the crossbow felt like a more accurate comparison, despite it being a whole different beast.

  Arnen performed… adequately. It was clear that he wasn’t a trained marksman either; he missed some of the targets near the back, which of course were worth the most points. But his performance was still adequate enough to earn a “medium-sized” prize, so he naturally picked out a small spherical fluffball with a pair of wings poking out of its sides and a small string on top to gift to Lycoris. It was rather soft and adorable, and fit in the palms of her hands. The shagginess of it sort of reminded her of Elham, or those Bolles that had charged her at the zoo…

  Of course, she couldn’t mask her smile at receiving something so cute. “Thank you, Arnen! It looks like Mini-Mira is going to have a new friend soon.”

  “Mini-Mira…?”

  She ignored him and took up position on the stall, leaning forward and sighting the faux-gun with her right eye as she pressed the stock into her shoulder. It was the same type of iron (or plastic) sights as the crossbows she’d used, and while it was much lighter weight, that didn’t matter nearly as much compared to the knowledge of how to aim and knowing she was cross-dominant.

  Whether the crowd actually fell into a hush and the lighting dimmed, or if it was simply her focus intensifying as she waited for signs of movement, Lycoris didn’t care. Immediately as the first projection popped up, she snapped to it and pulled the trigger. A small blue-white spark shot out and struck it square in the center bullseye on its head. There was no “tug” on her like with the handgun she’d fired before; whatever source of mana this tool drew upon was probably being supplied by the attraction itself.

  Two more popped up, and she fired off two quick ones. Both perfect strikes. Everything was almost laughably slow to move when she was behind the sights as opposed to when she had watched Arnen’s performance. Lycoris almost wondered if whoever was manning the booth had specifically set it to go easy on her.

  With every target that appeared, she snapped to it with precision and confidence, only missing the highest-scoring region three times in total. When the metaphorical dust had settled, she had landed a shot on every single target that appeared, her score appearing at the top of the for-fun leaderboard near the entrance.

  As she stood back up and put her hands on her lower back to reflexively stretch, she turned to see a stunned Arnen and a silent crowd behind him. Several of the teen couples were staring at the scoreboard, others at the target range. Even the servant who handled the firing range and prizes forgot herself as she blinked down at Lycoris.

  Arnen was the first to break the silence, with a single clap that quickly turned into a waterfall of applause as everyone else joined in.

  Feeling awkward, Lycoris offered a polite bow and turned away from the audience to look at the prizes, picking out a modest pair of phone straps and cases from the prize pool instead of anything larger, then rushed off with Arnen as she handed one set over to him.

  ＊　＊　＊

  Next they visited a jam making booth, though rather than actually participate in making anything, the two of them simply sampled some of the different types of fruit jam available on small wafer crackers.

  Lycoris wasn’t terribly pleased by the names on the different types of jam, as in addition to the different types of fruit, they each also listed one of the five different blood types. As much as she didn’t want to think about it, she couldn’t help but realize that they also each had a different taste profile that she could distinctly pick out. Anything with Eligor on it was a little too heavy and creamy, at least for jam, while Orays had a notable smooth texture to them and a sweetness separate from just the fruit.

  “Hmhmhm,” Arnen giggled as he watched Lycoris relish a piled-up cracker.

  She pouted, covering her mouth defensively as she chewed. “…What is it?”

  “I was simply thinking about how adorable it is that Princess Lycoris has such an active sweetfang.”

  “Should I… not?”

  “I think having a slightly immature side is a good thing, Lycoris.”

  “That only makes my feelings on the matter even more complicated.”

  “‘Tis perfectly natural, neither of us are anywhere near a hundred years young yet.”

  “And yet my whole future has already been set in stone.”

  Arnen took her hand, walking her away from the sample booth. “That is no reason not to savor the journey through it.”

  ＊　＊　＊

  There were several varieties of fishing game available. In all of them, the goal was to get both as many and/or as large of fish as possible. One involved little plastic toys and magnets. Another involved scooping live glitterminnows with a paper paddle.

  And the most dramatic… was an actual temporary wharf that had been erected poking out onto the campus lake, where apparently colossus koi had been relocated for hunting.

  Hunting was in fact the correct term, as rather than a fishing rod, the “booth” manager handed Lycoris a jagged harpoon, and gave her a small emergency relocation beacon. When she asked why, the servant offered a fangy grin and said, “In case you get swallowed whole, of course.”

  And then hastily added in a polite, “Your Highness.”

  She laughed it off as a joke until she saw just how big a colossus koi actually was. When one jumped out of the water and soared over the wharf as she stood on it, Lycoris was completely eclipsed by its shadow. When the spotted whale of a fish plunged back into the lake on the other side, it forced her away from the water to avoid getting soaked by the tidal wave-esque splash.

  “What on earth are they feeding these things?!” She shouted as the water began to churn.

  Although, rather than annoyed or upset or afraid, Lycoris was excited. Something about this lit a fire inside her, and she eagerly raised the harpoon as she waited for her next chance to strike.

  As soon as the water began to churn, she leaned back and hurled the harpoon like a spear, waiting for it to snag against the beastly fish before gripping onto the attached length of rope. With a righteous snarl, she pulled… and found that the rope was taut. She wasn’t reeling the beast back. Her strength, as an Aphtangloa, was… matched by this fish?

  Lycoris dug her heels and pulled with all her strength, though the line barely had any give at all.

  “What’s… with this fish?!”

  “Lycoris!”

  In the middle of her tug of war, she heard Arnen call out from behind her. In the next moment, she felt the line pull behind her as someone came up right beside her. With the two of them together, they slowly began to reel in the monster of the lake.

  And a monster it was, for when the two of them finally pulled it in, they had to drag it to the shoreline beside the wharf. The creature was quite literally the size of a whale, as the one that had jumped Lycoris’s head before was apparently on the smaller end.

  After the two of them got their picture taken in front of the massive flopping fish—with a strange somewhat bulky camera Lycoris was unfamiliar with, which made a loud pinging noise and produced a plasticky piece of paper—the servant carefully removed the harpoon from its flank, gently rubbed some healing salve onto it, and then pushed the behemoth back into the lake.

  Or at least, he tried to, but ended up needing to ask Lycoris and Arnen for a hand, as it was quite literally too big for him to move on his own.

  “I must say, I wasn’t expecting that.” Lycoris looked down at the photo of herself standing next to Arnen, both smiling somewhat awkwardly in front of the creature that filled the entire rest of the frame. She couldn’t even see the lake or wharf…

  “Your Highness is truly something else, to go after the lord of the lake as your very first target…” Arnen still sounded somewhat winded, or perhaps exasperated was a more accurate descriptor.

  “It wasn’t my intention to! I just… threw at the first sign of movement I saw. How are you feeling, by the way?”

  She looked up from the picture to Arnen, an apologetic wrinkle in her brow and smile. It’d been a couple of hours since they first arrived, and they had yet to take a proper break. Lycoris didn’t want to admit it, but after experiencing a genuine struggle at her limits, she was feeling somewhat tired.

  “Me? I’m just fine! I could go for another round with him!”

  “Ahaha… no I mean, would you like to find somewhere to sit and take a break? …Maybe dry off a little, too.”

  They had inevitably ended up soaked as a result of their lakeside battle. Fortunately it was a sunny day out so they… Oh, right. I suppose a projection won’t do much to actually dry us off, Lycoris mused as she looked up at the “sky.” Though it’s still awfully warm either way.

  “But of course, Princess,” Arnen bowed graciously, or apologetically perhaps, and offered his hand to her, “Allow me to find us a good venue to sit down and stretch our legs.

  She looked at the photo once more, before tucking it into her small handbag beside her phone and accepted his offer. She noticed he was taking care not to move too quickly as he wove through the crowd with her, perhaps out of fatigue or consideration for her own tiredness.

  Eventually they reached a large outdoor stage with picnic tables set up around the perimeter and some concession stands around the perimeter. Atop it was a large projected display for the crowd to view some sort of battle between two figures; below them, fidgeting with odd switchboard-like devices while intensely watching smaller screens, were an upperclassman Lycoris had seen wandering campus before, and…

  “Dahlia?!”