Temple Fair Wishes

Fangting City, Sandalwood Mountain, White Elder Temple. This is a temple located in Fangting City that has always been a popular place of worship.

Sandalwood Mountain is hardly a proper mountain; its elevation is only a few dozen meters, and strictly speaking, it's just a slightly higher mound. However, for convenience, the Fangting City in the past still called it a mountain, and the name stuck in word of mouth.

Legend has it that the temple enshrines a renowned physician named Bai from ancient times in Fangting City. He was highly respected by the people for his superb medical skills and kind nature, often waiving medical fees for poor patients. After his death, grateful people built a temple in his honor to commemorate his merits.

Later, with the expansion and development of the city, White Elder Temple was renovated several times and eventually became one of the most famous local attractions. Every year at the end of January, as the end of the "New Year" festival, Fangting City holds a temple fair open to all citizens at White Elder Temple.

Lantern displays, riddles, dragon dances, fireworks, and many other traditional folk activities are all part of the temple fair. In addition, there are also food stalls, games, and more. In short, it is a grand event.

"Therefore, I hereby declare that the joint trip of the Fangting City and Bai'an City Magical Girl Squad, and the Bai'an City Squad's farewell party, shall now begin!"

Not far from the temple fair, a group of girls dressed in different clothes were gathered together, all looking in the same direction.

In their sight, the pink cat-shaped Fairy Moko was holding a roll of sandalwood incense that appeared out of nowhere, and was shouting loudly to herself.

"So why is it the one responsible for making the announcement?" Lin Xiaolu, who was wearing a thick cotton coat and wrapped in a long scarf, almost turning herself into a ball, turned her head and asked Xia Liang beside her.

"Well, strictly speaking, Moko, the Seeder for our team, so it should indeed be in charge of joint activities with other city teams."

Exhaling white mist, Xia Liang rubbed her gloved hands, which were red from the cold, and said, "Besides, no one wants to take this job from it. It's not a bad thing to make it happy for once."

"So, do we really have to go out and play in this kind of weather?"

Wood Lily, standing to the side, squinted and asked, "Didn't you check the weather forecast before you came? Do you even know what the temperature is today? It's minus ten degrees! Why do you insist on coming to a temple fair at this time? Is the person who came up with this idea out of their mind?"

Lin Xiaolu glared at him angrily.

"Don't say that. It is a bit cold, but there are quite a lot of people here, which means that quite a few people are willing to come out and have fun in this weather."

Before the two could start arguing, Asō Madoka, who was standing next to Wood Lily, suddenly reached out, pressed down on her head, and shook it. "Besides, wasn't it out of kindness that they invited you out to play? Don't be so absolute, kids."

"... You just want to play around, don't you?" Wood Lily muttered, her head being pressed down.

"How could that be? I'm just acting as your guardian to ensure your safety when you travel."

Asō Madoka's smile remained unchanged as she turned her gaze to Lin Xiaolu: "So, what's next, our little tour guide? What's the first activity?"

"Ah? Oh, let me think."

Diverted by the question, Lin Xiaolu began to recall the itinerary she had specifically researched for today's temple fair, "Hmm... we should go to the Mountain-Ring Walkway first, because the dragon dance troupe will start from there. We can follow the troupe and then go to the lantern riddle guessing area."

Adhering to the principle of "whoever proposes it is responsible for it," Lin Xiaolu formulated the entire itinerary for this temple fair, with the senior members essentially relinquishing their responsibilities and leaving Lin Xiaolu in charge of leading the way. Lin Xiaolu herself cooperated, spending considerable time researching online guides to ultimately create a plan. It is precisely because of this significant effort that Lin Xiaolu felt dissatisfied that Moko had taken away some of her hosting duties.

Following Lin Xiaolu's instructions, the group headed towards the Mountain-Ring Walkway. This group, consisting entirely of young women, certainly attracted attention, with passersby frequently glancing in their direction. Some even mistook them for a performing arts troupe due to their pretty looks and would step aside to make way for them.

The group of nine walked along the road for more than ten minutes before finally arriving at the location Lin Xiaolu had mentioned. Sure enough, a large crowd of tourists had already gathered there. In the center of the crowd, gongs and drums were beating loudly, and exciting and festive music was playing all the way along the road, clearly indicating a dragon dance performance.

Lin Xiaolu tried to squeeze into the crowd, but quickly realized that it was impossible to get through the dense throng. So she settled for second best and led the group forward to the sides of the road ahead, where they waited for the dragon dance team to arrive.

Before long, a group of people dressed in red and yellow training uniforms, wearing red headscarves, and carrying dragon lanterns walked along the road to the sound of gongs and drums.

The dragon lantern, dozens of meters long, danced in the hands of the performers, its head raised high, whiskers swaying, and its body, covered in colorful scales, shimmering in the setting sun.

The performers' steps were neat and rhythmic. Each of them held a section of bamboo pole and made movements such as bending over, raising their heads, or twisting in rhythm with the beat. With their coordination, the dragon's body seemed to come alive, tumbling, undulating, coiling, and leaping in the air to the rhythm of drums and gongs.

The crowd gathered around, raising their phones to take photos and videos in droves. Occasionally, passersby would applaud and cheer, and at other times, the sounds of parents and children playing and laughing could be heard. The once quiet sidewalk had become a river flowing with a festive atmosphere.

The Larkspur stood by the roadside, watching quietly and occasionally clapping softly along with the crowd.

What? Not interested?

Suddenly, Asō Madoka, who had somehow appeared behind her, spoke up and asked, "The performance troupe that came this time is quite good. Why don't we take this opportunity to record a couple of clips?"

"It's not that they weren't interested; in fact, they danced quite well."

Larkspur shook her head. "It's just that it happens every year, and we've seen it too many times and recorded it too many times, so naturally, we've lost that passion."

"... That's true, you've been at Fangting all these years, you're probably getting tired of it by now."

Asō Madoka chuckled, "Unlike those girls, it's their first time seeing this."

As she spoke, she pointed to several girls from Bai'an City. They had already squeezed to the front of the crowd, their expressions showing obvious surprise. Wood Lily had been the most passive when she arrived, was even more enthusiastic, her outstretched hand almost touching the dragon lantern.

Perhaps it was her enthusiasm that infected the dragon dance team, for several young men and women suddenly shouted a few times, and the tumbling dragon suddenly turned around, passing behind Wood Lily. The shining dragon body made the girl's pale yellow hair shine brightly.

This sudden, impromptu performance drew cheers from some of the surrounding audience members.

"That child, surprisingly, quite likes this kind of traditional cultural stuff?" Larkspur asked, seeing this scene.

Which one are you referring to?

"Wood Lily. I thought she was going through a rebellious phase, looking down on adults and traditional things."

"Oh, that child."

Asō Madoka nodded knowingly. "Indeed, as you said, she's quite rebellious. But this child still has some preference for things like music and dance, which is why she's interested in dragon dancing."

"Oh, I see. I see."

"What, aren't you going to ask more about the story behind this?" Asō Madoka, somewhat surprised.

"I don't intend to."

Larkspur remained expressionless. "Anyway, most magical girls don't have pleasant backgrounds, and besides, she's now part of your team, so I think you should be able to handle these issues."

"How indifferent," sighed Asō Madoka.

"It's better than a magical girl who can abandon her squad and not be stationed in the city for half the year, right?" Larkspur glanced at her.

"Haha, you're right."

With a chuckle, Asō Madoka's lips curled slightly. "In short, you've been to Bai'an City before, so you've also been to our team's magical girl base, right?"

"That music store?"

"Yes, Bright Note Music Store. The original owners, a husband and wife, were acquaintances of mine. However, they retired early due to health issues and handed the store over to their daughter, the magical girl 'Lantern'."

Asō Madoka's tone was slightly wistful. "As for Wood Lily, that child's parents were also acquaintances of the old music store manager. Both parents were in a band, but they were never married, and their relationship later broke down, leaving her with only her father raising her."

"Later, her father also felt that he couldn't continue pursuing his musical dreams with a child in tow, so one day he suddenly abandoned the child at the music store and disappeared."

"It's funny, he left behind a letter of repentance that was several thousand words long, along with his guitar. In the letter, he tearfully described the psychological struggle he went through in abandoning his child, and even claimed that he would pawn the guitar as child support. But in reality, he bought the guitar from Bright Note Music Store, and even bought it on credit, which he never paid back."

Having said that, the two of them didn't continue for a moment, because the dragon dance team was still moving forward, and they had to follow the crowd.

"Is this what you meant by the child's interest in music and dance?" Larkspur asked.

"Yeah, because when her scumbag father was still alive, he made a living by performing at various venues, and occasionally he would even have to sing on the street, but he would always take her with him." Asō Madoka smiled, "How should I put it, interests and hobbies are indeed cultivated from a young age?"

"If possible, I would prefer you not to describe the life of such a scumbag to me in such detail."

After a moment's thought, Larkspur shared her opinion on the story told by Asō Madoka: "To be honest, after hearing it, besides feeling sympathy for the child, I was also quite annoyed."

"Who can argue with that? Fortunately, the owners of the music store are kind-hearted people. After realizing there was no way to turn things around, they adopted the child. So, nominally speaking, Wood Lily is actually Lantern's younger sister."

As Asō Madoka shrugged as she walked. "However, although there's no doubt that Wood Lily's father is a scumbag, no one at the music school has told her the truth. She still thinks she's just being fostered here and that her father will come back for her someday. So remember not to say anything bad about her father in front of her, or she'll get upset."

"Is it necessary to fabricate such a lie that will eventually be exposed?" Larkspur wondered.

"Yes, is it necessary to fabricate such a lie that will be exposed one day?" Asō Madoka paused, looked back at her, and repeated it word for word with a mocking expression.

The Larkspur was speechless.

"... After going through all this trouble, you just wanted to tell me this?"

After a long pause, she said with a hint of helplessness, "You knew I would ask this question?"

"Who knows? Maybe it's just a spur-of-the-moment thing for me to share some of my experiences over the years with you."

Asō Madoka said ambiguously, "In the end, I'm not telling you this story to express anything. I just think it's more appropriate to tell it now. You can just treat it as hearing a story; there's no need to delve into it."

"That's certainly not a pleasant story," Larkspur sighed.

"I'm really sorry," Asō Madoka said with a grin, clearly showing no remorse.

The dragon dance troupe continued along the road, gradually arriving at the temple fair venue amidst jubilation.

At that moment, the sun was setting and darkness was falling, and the colorful lanterns hanging throughout the temple fair became the main attraction for everyone.

The noisy drumming and the dragon dance team blended into the venue and headed towards the huge stage that had been set up in advance. Meanwhile, the magical girls, guided by Lin Xiaolu, left the group ahead of time and went to another, slightly quieter part of the venue.

It's described as "slightly" because the deafening drumbeats have finally disappeared, but it's only "slightly" because it's still incredibly crowded.

This place should have been a large courtyard in the temple, but it has now been transformed into a lantern riddle area. Several rows of lanterns hang from wooden frames, which, like a ceiling, cover the night sky. Each lantern has a piece of red paper with something written on it in ink.

In a corner of the courtyard, a middle-aged man dressed in scholar's robes was writing something at a table. Next to the table were many lanterns without paper pasted on them, indicating that he was still writing riddles. His handwriting was vigorous and powerful, attracting many passersby to stop and watch.

Further away is the exit of the courtyard, where several staff members are standing guard over a large pile of prizes. The items are quite varied, ranging from small pieces of furniture to toothbrushes and tissues, as well as discount Coupon for the temple fair.

Larkspur was actually quite interested in this kind of word game. After wandering around the courtyard twice with great interest, he picked out a lantern whose answer he could guess.

A red-clad woman climbs a high tower, her heart aches, and tears flow—guess the object.

The riddle wasn't too difficult; after a moment's thought, the Larkspur realized the answer was a candle.

Thinking this, she subconsciously reached out to tear the red paper off the lantern, but she quickly realized a problem—even though she reached out her hand, the distance between her fingertips and the lantern was still just as far.

She looked around and found that the other magical girls were also focused on solving the puzzle, so no one was next to her. She could only turn around and try her best to stand on tiptoe.

--Still can't find it.

The Larkspur couldn't help but lower its eyelids.

She glanced around again, making sure no one was paying attention to her, then pursed her lips slightly, and with a push from her calves, jumped up without using too much physical strength.

--Fingertips could still only brush past the bottom of the red paper.

Her jumping movements were quite exaggerated, attracting the attention of some surrounding tourists. Under their gaze, Larkspur was really unwilling to continue competing with the riddle, so she turned to leave. However, before she had taken more than a few steps, she heard a voice behind her:

"Little sister, do you want this riddle?"

She turned around and saw a young staff member tearing the red paper off the lantern and handing it to her.

Staring at the red paper in front of him, the Larkspur remained motionless for a long time.

"Oh, isn't that right? Perhaps I've made a mistake? I'm so sorry..."

Seeing that Larkspur didn't react, the staff member scratched his neck awkwardly. Before he could take back the red paper, Larkspur had already snatched it from his hand with lightning speed and left behind a hasty "thank you".

"Keep it up! Win lots of prizes to show your parents!"

The staff's encouragement from behind spurred Lark to quicken Larkspur pace. She expressionlessly held the red paper, located the other magical girls, and then simply stood by with her arms crossed, watching silently, seemingly unwilling to continue solving the mystery.

About ten minutes later, Wood Lily was the slowest, finally managed to find a riddle that she thought she could guess. Everyone then headed to the prize redemption area with their red papers and answers.

Every visitor who guesses the answer correctly can participate in a prize draw at the prize redemption area. The prizes are the ones piled up in the courtyard. Most of the Magical Girl Squad answered correctly, except for Moko and Asō Madoka, whose answers were wrong.

"That doesn't make sense. Shouldn't 'almost turned black' be gray? Why would it be a bird?" This was Moko's question about the correct answer.

"Haha, the riddles in your Donghua Prefecture dialect are too hard to understand, we Eastern Isles people can't understand them." This was Asō Madoka's defense of her slacking off.

When it came to the final lucky draw, it started with Lin Xiaolu, then the younger generation drew first, followed by the older generation, and Larkspur was the last to draw a prize.

Larkspur slowly unfolded a slip of paper from the lottery box, revealing the words "50% off coupon for all Tangyuan (sweet rice balls)" written in black.

To say it wasn't surprising, it is true that I won the lottery; but to say it was a surprise, it doesn't seem like something particularly exciting.

Amidst these somewhat complicated feelings, and hearing the staff shout "Congratulations, third prize!", Larkspur accepted the so-called Coupon with a subtle expression. Lin Xiaolu and Bai Jingxuan, on the other hand, probably because they preferred sweets, immediately cheered with joy.

That's why the group's dinner was decided to be glutinous rice balls.

Leaving the lantern riddle venue, the magical girls mingled with the crowd and entered the food plaza. Here, numerous food stalls lined the plaza, along with vendors offering ring toss and spinning wheel games to entice children. The so-called "glutinous Coupon" was only valid there; any stall selling glutinous rice balls, regardless of flavor or quantity, offered a 50% discount.

With mixed feelings, Larkspur paid at the glutinous rice ball vendor's stall and, adhering to very traditional values, ordered a bowl of black sesame-filled glutinous rice balls, which was almost excessively simple compared to the other magical girls. As for the others, while Xia Liang Hong Siyu's peanut filling were somewhat normal, Lin Xiaolu's strawberry filling and Asō Madoka's coffee filling were rather perplexing.

These days, glutinous rice balls have become such fancy and elaborate foods?

Taking bites of the black sesame glutinous rice balls in her spoon, Larkspur pondered as if questioning her own worldview. If she remembered correctly, when she was young, when she came to the temple fair with Anya, Su Shengzi, and others, glutinous rice balls were still a very traditional snack, weren't they?

Just as her thoughts began to wander and she was about to sigh at realizing that she was out of touch with the times, Bai Jingxuan had already sat down next to Larkspur, holding her own bowl in her hands.

"Mom, try the glutinous rice balls I ordered."

She very naturally pushed her bowl towards the Larkspur and said crisply.

"You ordered it?"

Larkspur glanced at Bai Jingxuan, thought for a moment, and then didn't refuse. Instead, she gently scooped a glutinous rice ball from Bai Jingxuan's bowl with her spoon.

After taking a bite and savoring it briefly, she realized the filling was custard.

While custard filling is certainly innovative compared to traditional fillings like black sesame, it's almost too normal compared to unconventional fillings like coffee.

Thinking this through, the Larkspur swallowed the glutinous rice ball in its mouth.

"It's delicious." Then she gave her own assessment.

"Really? Thank you!" For some reason, Bai Jingxuan was happy because of the compliment. She happily took her bowl back and then nudged Larkspur towards her, saying, "Mommy, I want a bite of yours too."

"Hmm... that's fine, but it's just a very ordinary black sesame flavor, not much different from what you buy in supermarkets."

The Larkspur blinked, slightly puzzled. "Are you really going to eat it?"

"Yes!" Bai Jingxuan nodded.

"Alright then," Larkspur thought to herself, pushing her own bowl out as well.

No sooner had she made that gesture than Bai Jingxuan pushed the bowl back.

"What's wrong? Don't you want to eat anymore?" Larkspur, slightly puzzled.

Bai Jingxuan shook her head and gave a negative "hmm".

"And then there's..."

Before Larkspur could finish her questioning words, Bai Jingxuan adjusted her blindfold on one side, then leaned forward slightly and opened her mouth.

"Ah," the girl said softly.

Larkspur felt her wrist tremble.

She looked around, then at Bai Jingxuan. After a brief hesitation, she reluctantly lowered her spoon and used Bai Jingxuan's spoon to scoop a dark white glutinous rice ball from her bowl.

"Ah."

As she said this, she first blew on the glutinous rice ball in the spoon to cool it down, and then, with a slightly embarrassed expression, put the glutinous rice ball into Bai Jingxuan's mouth.

Bai Jingxuan took a big bite, chewed it several times, and then swallowed it like a cow chewing on a peony. "Delicious!"

"... As long as it tastes good." Larkspur could only awkwardly reply, glancing around to make sure not too many people were witnessing this somewhat embarrassing scene.

Unfortunately, she had barely turned her gaze ninety degrees when she saw another person on the other side of her.

"Bang"!

Lin Xiaolu slammed her bowl down on the table, glared at Bai Jingxuan, then her expression changed, and she looked at Larkspur with an incredibly obedient and docile gaze:

"Larkspur, I want to eat it too!"

"No!"

Bai Jingxuan immediately objected. "I was here first!"

"You've already eaten, it's my turn!" Lin Xiaolu immediately retorted.

"I was here first!"

"My turn!"

The two of them exchanged glances and spoke back and forth, like elementary school students arguing, repeatedly saying the same thing, and their voices seemed to be getting louder and louder.

Seeing that things were not going well, Larkspur quickly stopped the two girls, then numbly scooped a glutinous rice ball from her own bowl and held it to Lin Xiaolu's lips.

Then, watching Lin Xiaolu happily swallow the glutinous rice ball.

She felt like a bird in nature feeding its chicks. Although she had brought food, all the chicks in the nest were crying for it, scrambling for it and trying to steal each other's share. She had to feed them while trying to maintain a balance.

After feeding Lin Xiaolu a bite, she went back to feed Bai Jingxuan, and after feeding Bai Jingxuan a bite, she had to feed Lin Xiaolu again. Unbeknownst to them, the other magical girls had also brought their bowls to the same table, and the group gathered around to watch how Larkspur fed the other two glutinous rice balls.

Apart from Larkspur herself, both Bai Jingxuan and Lin Xiaolu seemed to have completely abandoned any semblance of shame, simply enjoying the process of eating tangyuan (sweet rice balls). Moreover, if the seats hadn't been taken, judging from Hong Siyu's expression, she probably would have joined in too.

This incredibly agonizing process for the Larkspur lasted for more than ten minutes. Only after she had finished all the glutinous rice balls in her bowl did she finally breathe a long sigh of relief.

However, before she could make her next move, she saw Lin Xiaolu and Bai Jingxuan push their bowls almost simultaneously, bringing the other two bowls of glutinous rice balls in front of them.

"Try mine too!"

"You can eat mine!" Then, almost in unison, they said it again.

The Larkspur's already numb expression remained unchanged.

She glanced at Asō Madoka sitting directly opposite her, who gave her a thumbs-up with a grin; then she looked at Hong Siyu, who pushed her bowl forward as well; finally, she looked at Xia Liang, but Xia Liang only looked at her with a slightly resentful gaze and mouthed two words.

"Serves him right."

As the girl grumbled silently, fireworks slowly rose into the night sky not far away. After several streaks of silver light streaked across the night, they amazed the entire night sky like blooming flowers.

"Boom!" "Thump!"

The dazzling, noisy, sparkling, and magnificent fireworks captivated everyone's attention, marking the climax of the temple fair. The atmosphere at the scene reached its peak.

People gathered together, eating snacks while gazing up at the distant fireworks and night view, with a spectacular performance taking place on a stage not far away. Despite the sub-zero temperature, the overly enthusiastic atmosphere was enough to make people forget the cold and even feel a warmth emanating from within.

Ultimately, it was thanks to the fireworks that everyone's attention was drawn away that Larkspur was able to leave the table by saying "I'm full," thus avoiding an even more awkward situation.

Then, as if to distract herself, she unusually suggested that they go play a ring toss game together.

No one would disagree with this suggestion, and since Lin Xiaolu's original plan included games for everyone, the two parties quickly reached an agreement.

Lin Xiaolu and Bai Jingxuan were both working with great enthusiasm, seemingly intending to resolve their conflict from the dinner table through the game; Larkspur, on the other hand, seemed to be trying to change her mood, simply maintaining a blank expression and focusing intently. Soon, the magical girls, having tricked the opponents so accurately, almost won all the most valuable prizes in just a few rounds, and were asked to leave the scene by the boss with a wry smile.

The group walked along the pre-planned route through the square, the stage, and the lantern display, exploring almost the entire temple fair. They even reached a point where even a magical girl would feel a little tired before finally arriving at the last part of the day.

--Praying for blessings.

Rather, this is the function that White Elder Temple should inherently possess.

Only at this moment did the bundle of sandalwood that Moko carrying finally come in handy. The magical girls followed the worshippers, lit the sandalwood incense in their hands, and stepped into the temple amidst the rising smoke.

The air was thick with the scent of burning incense. Before the main hall, the massive bronze incense burner gleamed in the candlelight, its three sturdy legs supporting a mountain of ash that billowed white smoke. Worshippers held burning sandalwood sticks, some in bundles of three, others in bunches of nine, forming a long line as they slowly moved forward. Upon reaching the burner, they solemnly inserted the sticks into the ash, clasped their hands together, and whispered prayers.

The crowds were dense; some worshipped alone, while others brought their families. Couples held hands, and friends gathered in small groups. Among the diverse crowd, the magical girls still stood out the most.

Fortunately, after being subjected to their gazes all night, everyone is almost used to it.

For the magical girl group, the most appropriate request for their trip here to pray for blessings was for the upcoming Kingdom Assessment.

--Hopefully, the rest of the trip to the Kingdom goes smoothly; at worst, it will be a safe and uneventful journey.

Placing the incense in her hand into the incense burner, Cui Que gazed at the bronze statue symbolizing "White Old" in the main hall from afar, lowered her Larkspur slightly, and silently recited in her heart.

Following her example, the younger generation all did the same, then clasped their hands together and silently made their wishes.

No one speaks their wishes aloud, because it's believed that if they are, they won't come true. This is an unspoken rule in Eastern Hua Prefecture.

"I hope I can be promoted directly to Flower Rank this year..." The only one who spoke, Wood Lily, shut up after Asō Madoka tapped her head.

Lin Xiaolu, Bai Jingxuan, Xia Liang, Hong Siyu... even the usually unserious Asō Madoka, and Moko who had no idea what was going on, all lowered their heads and prayed quietly.

After a long while, the Larkspur raised its head and opened its eyes.

She never believed in ghosts or gods, nor in so-called prayers, but even so, she couldn't help feeling nervous about everything that was about to happen before heading to the Kingdom.

Forging an identity, infiltrating Kingdom, healing injuries, even regaining power... will everything really go so smoothly?

She didn't know, and she had no way of knowing, but now, the die was cast, and there was no turning back.

"The Queen Year..." she murmured, the heaviness in her heart growing stronger, but the light in her eyes never dimmed.

She was ready.

Part 1 of Volume 2 is finally finished, and it's stopped at chapter 100, which is just right. The entire plan for Volume 2 extends to Part 3, where many things will be resolved all at once, without dragging it into Volume 3.

The next chapter will begin with the Kingdom arc.