We wove our way through a space overflowing with a chaotic symphony of sounds.
"Wow, what a massive crowd. You seemed worried earlier, but it’s a total success, isn't it?"
"Yeah, Birgitte-neesan really pulled it off," I replied.
The turnout was incredible, seemingly even more lively than the previous Holy King’s Welcome Festival.
Since the dense crowd was becoming a nuisance, I deployed the Wind System Magic, Breeze Barrier. I created a thin wall of air around us to keep people from getting too close while circulating fresh air inside the sphere, making the walk quite comfortable.
"Don’t push! Please walk slowly! You there, no running!"
Ren was perched on a makeshift podium, shouting herself hoarse as she directed the flow of people. In fact, maids were stationed at various points throughout the area. It looked like they had all been drafted for traffic control. That explained why I hadn't run into a single maid when leaving the castle.
"Master Lloyd!"
Just then, Sylpha’s voice echoed from a distance. She leaped down from her podium and came charging through the crowd with a series of agile bounds.
"Good morning, Master Lloyd. Oh, look at this bedhead... pardon me while I fix it with my hands."
She produced a spray bottle from heaven knows where and began deftly grooming my hair. I wondered for a moment where she could have possibly been hiding such a thing on her person, but since it was Sylpha, I decided it was better not to ask.
"Straighten the collar, polish the shoes... yes, that should do it."
"Ah—right, thanks."
I felt myself being snapped into a proper posture. As always, when Sylpha groomed me, I ended up looking sharp. Satisfied with my appearance, she gave a contented smile.
"Still, I’m impressed you found me in this sea of people."
"What are you saying? I, Sylpha, can distinguish Master Lloyd’s silhouette from a kilometer away. Your hair was in such a state of disarray that I came running with all haste."
"I-I see..."
I had to wonder what kind of superhuman vision she actually possessed. The worst part was that she definitely wasn't joking.
"Oh, but I really should have remained by your side. I simply couldn't leave the command of the other maids to anyone else... My deepest apologies. When Lady Birgitte gives an order, even I cannot talk back..."
Sylpha looked genuinely regretful. However, the traffic control provided by the maids was clearly effective; the male customers, in particular, were following their directions with silly grins on their faces.
"Don’t worry about it."
"Thank you for your kind words. You're heading to the others, I assume? Allow me to guide you."
"I’d appreciate it, but... is it okay? Leaving your post, I mean. Won't Birgitte be angry?"
"Think nothing of it. Guiding a lost child is also part of my duties."
Sylpha said this with a serene smile. If she put it that way, I suppose there was no problem with her stepping away. Guided by her, we made our way backstage to where the performers were waiting.
"I have brought Master Lloyd."
"Oh, Maid. Good work-aru."
When we opened the tent, Tao was waiting inside.
"Lloyd—you're here-aru! Nuzzle, nuzzle!"
"Tao... what are you doing here?"
"We won the preliminaries-aru! Just a moment ago. Did you see us-aru?"
Tao was drenched in sweat and breathing heavily. It really did look like she had just stepped off the stage. Unfortunately, I hadn't seen a bit of it. I had heard that the groups who won the preliminaries were allowed to perform on the grand stage as opening acts. Once they had sufficiently pumped up the crowd, Isha and the others would take over. It was a flawless schedule.
"Stop that. How dare you touch Master Lloyd with a dirty body covered in sweat? It's disrespectful—and you smell."
Sylpha snatched me out of Tao's embrace.
"What?! I-I don't smell-aru! This is a very floral scent!"
It seemed their usual bickering had started up again, so I left them to it and went to greet the Holy King and the others.
"Hey there, Lloyd-kun. Haven't seen you since yesterday. Wait, were you sleeping?"
"Yeah, until just a bit ago."
"Ahaha, I thought so. I can see the traces of where your bedhead was just fixed."
The Holy King laughed amusedly, pointing at the spot Sylpha had just tidied. Isha, who had been standing a short distance away, noticed me and hurried over.
"You came, Lloyd-kun."
"Hey, Isha. How's your throat?"
"It’s in perfect condition. ...Though it’s a bit of a shame Saria couldn't be here with us."
Isha lowered her eyes sadly for a moment before forcing a smile.
"But it's okay! It is also an immense honor to perform alongside Lord Holy King."
"Yeah, do your best. ...By the way, Saria-neesan isn't coming?"
"No... it seems she's still not feeling well..."
So Saria was still bedridden. I was worried about her, but the success of the Live Fest took priority right now.
"Master Lloyd, you say that, but you can’t hide how excited you are."
"He has a face that says he couldn't care less about Saria-tan."
...That wasn't true. Well, maybe her priority was just a little lower than the magic research.
"Anyway, I want you two to take a look at this."
"Is this... a new score?"
"A revised version of the one I gave you the other day. To make changes this late in the game is quite bold... wait, what?!"
The Holy King and Isha’s eyes both widened. Yes, this was one of the things I had stayed up late working on. I had brought a version that was even more refined than the one I'd handed them previously.
"This...! It's essentially the same piece with some arrangements added, but the quality is night and day! This is magnificent, Lloyd-kun!"
"And the burden on us is practically zero. Honestly, even if it were difficult, we’d have no choice but to use this after seeing it. But wait, doesn't this arrangement require three people?"
"Of course. I’m participating too."
In fact, you could say I had rearranged the piece for that exact purpose. Initially, I was going to leave it to the two of them, but if the Holy King was taking Saria's place, I wanted to experience his melody from the best possible vantage point. It might be the key to unraveling the secrets of the Magical Song.
"In other words, joining the performance is the most efficient way to observe."
"To change the entire tone of the piece just for that... your obsession is as impressive as ever."
For the record, my instrument was the castanets, so it required almost no effort to play. This would allow me to observe everything at my leisure. Everything was going perfectly.
"Oh, Lloyd, you're here too?"
Albert stepped down from the back of the stage. He was dressed in a tailcoat and holding a microphone. I had heard a voice over the speakers earlier; it seemed he was the one acting as the announcer.
"Yes, Albert-niisan. I'll be participating in the performance as well."
"Heh, sounds good! Give it your all out there."
Albert patted my head encouragingly. As he did, the group that had just finished their set returned backstage.
"Good work. Go get some rest over there," Albert said, praising them as they headed toward the break area.
It looked like we were up next.
"We can take a short break first, what do you want to do?"
"I'm fine. I can go right now. Right, you two?"
Isha and the Holy King both nodded in response to my question.
"Yes!"
"I wonder why you're the one taking charge when you just got here... well, I suppose it doesn't matter."
With Isha and the Holy King following my lead as if they were my own subordinates, I stepped out onto the stage.