This year’s summer festival was a relay race.
It wasn't a competition between species, but rather a mixed-species event. The course was divided into six main sections, with each leg of the race restricted to specific species.
The First Section consisted of a course circling the West Side Reservoir. Participants were limited to the Centaur Race, horses, and unicorns.
The Second Section was an obstacle course that cut across the Fruit Tree Area. This leg was reserved for Zabuton's children.
The Third Section was a grueling, long-distance course running along the eastern side of the village from the northern tip to the southern edge. This section was for Kuro's children.
The Fourth Section started in the southeast of the village and headed toward the dungeon entrance. The participants were the Giant Race, the Minotaur Race, the Lamia Race, and the Dragon Race in their dragon forms, though flying was strictly prohibited.
The Fifth Section was an athletic course that wound through the interior of the dungeon. This leg featured the High Elves, the High Ogre Race, Lizardmen, the Beastman Race, Dwarves, Mountain Elves, the Dragon Race in human form, the Demon Race, and the residents of Village One.
The Sixth Section was a flight course starting from the dungeon and ending at the South Residential Area, which served as the festival venue. Eligible participants included Vampires, the Angel Race, the Harpy Race, the Devil Race, and Dream Demons.
The Nyunyu-daphne mentioned that they weren't particularly fond of running, so they volunteered to handle the event's management instead. As for the Fairy Queen, Yoko, the bees, the turtles, the Death Knights, and the Lion Family, we held a meeting to discuss which sections they might fit into, and I made the final decision.
That was the general setup. Each heat featured about ten teams competing at once. It felt a lot like a school Sports Day.
Registration took place before the start of each race, and those assigned to the second section and beyond were transported to their starting marks all at once via the Universal Ship. Because of this, those who weren't currently running could stay at the festival grounds to eat and drink while watching the race progress.
You might wonder how they could see what was happening out on the course. I wondered the same thing.
As it turned out, the race was broadcast. Footage captured by cameras was transmitted in real-time to large screens set up around the venue. It was a testament to the staggering technological prowess of Village Four—the Sun Castle. Come to think of it, they had projected images when the Sun Castle first arrived at the village. They apparently couldn't record the footage, but the live feed was impressive enough.
The technology had been brought in by Ire Fougma, one of the Mercury Race. Lu was currently investigating the equipment, her eyes burning with the flames of academic jealousy. I really thought Lu should focus on doting on Lupumirina and Aurora before diving into that. Tia was scheduled to run in the next race, so it was a perfect opportunity for her to bond with the children.
The Nyunyu-daphne were stationed at various points along the route, acting as camera operators to film the race. Ire was in charge of the control board, switching between the various feeds to keep the broadcast engaging. Beside him, the Civil Official Girls provided passionate, blow-by-blow live commentary.
This "broadcasting department" had been established inside the Universal Ship, as it allowed them to monitor the entire race in real-time. Bell and Gou were there as well, working hard to support the operation.
Still, those cameras were incredibly convenient. I imagined they would make communication between the various villages much easier. I wondered if we could even use them to contact the Demon King’s castle.
"Unfortunately, long-distance transmission is impossible," Ire explained. "There are also many restrictions on their use."
"To put it simply?" I asked.
"Essentially, they are useless unless the Sun Castle or the Universal Ship is nearby."
Apparently, the maximum distance between a camera and the processing unit was about three kilometers—five if they really pushed it. Furthermore, the range dropped drastically if there were obstacles in the way. Without the Sun Castle or the Universal Ship acting as an aerial relay, they couldn't cover much ground.
Even so, I thought they might be useful for things like home security. We had a decent number of cameras and screens, but mass-producing them was apparently out of the question. There was no such thing as a perfect solution.
"By the way," I said, "when we investigated the Sun Castle, we didn't find any cameras, screens, or broadcasting equipment. Where were they?"
"I had them hidden in my private quarters," Ire Fougma replied.
Ire was a slender man in his thirties who wore a wide-brimmed hat and pitch-black clothing. He looked exactly like a wizard, but his current role was more akin to a broadcast director—or perhaps an engineer. He seemed quite capable, and the cameras were bound to be useful. I made a mental note to keep working well with him.
"Village Head, it's almost time for the next race," someone called out.
"Understood."
I was staying on the Universal Ship to offer encouragement to the participants. I had been on board for hours. The ride was comfortable enough, but playing the role of the motivational leader was exhausting. If I spoke with too much passion, the participants took it a bit too far.
"I will definitely win to prove myself worthy of the Village Head's trust!"
Every single team said something to that effect. But only one team could win. If ten teams competed, it meant nine of them were going to end up in tears. Striking the right balance of encouragement was truly difficult.
Most of the festival executive committee was also stationed on the Universal Ship.
"Camera Number Twenty-three, what are you doing? You can't see the course? Find it! Use your willpower! Your entire reason for existing is to film these athletes!"
"We have trouble in the Second Section! The sheep have gotten overexcited and are starting to riot!"
"Is the picture really this clear? Wait, wait! I need to put on some makeup!"
"And we're off for today's third race! The leader is approaching the Third Section... I have visual! The baton is being passed to the third runner!"
"Contact the Fourth Section! They'll be there any second!"
"About the next race—the children really want to join in, so we need to reorganize the team compositions."
"Gyaaah! The new crepes at the festival grounds are sold out! I just saw the 'Sold Out' sign flash on the monitor for a split second!"
Looking at them, it occurred to me that the festival executive committee might be the ones working the hardest of all. I’d have to find a way to reward them later.
Despite the various minor struggles, the festival concluded safely without any major accidents. I had successfully crossed one major peak of work. However, looking ahead at the course of my life, I could already see at least two more mountains looming on the horizon.