New Year's Day arrived before long.
Perhaps to add to the festivities, snow began to drift down from the sky that day, flakes as large as goose feathers fluttering thickly to the ground.
Yet in the eyes of the people of this world, snow on New Year's meant a tremendous omen of good fortune. Though the heavy snow made the weather abruptly several degrees colder, people's enthusiasm for the holiday only grew.
The children playing in the streets had all changed into new clothes, bundled up until they looked rosy and round, bright red and adorable.
They held snacks in their hands, laughing and frolicking in the snow, making the place lively beyond measure!
On New Year's Day, ordinary citizens brought out the holiday provisions they had saved up beforehand and prepared a fine table of food and wine. The whole family sat together in a close circle and enjoyed a hearty meal—not merely for the taste, but for the feeling of family reunion and a fresh beginning to the new year.
The nobles, meanwhile, celebrated in far more elaborate fashion.
They attended banquets among the nobility, not only to celebrate the New Year, but also to use the occasion to strengthen ties with other nobles and with their subordinates.
Tatshaw Territory's New Year banquet this year was especially grand!
Invitations had been sent out many days in advance. Those able to attend had replied, while nobles who were not on particularly good terms with Tatshaw Territory politely found excuses to decline.
At New Year's, everyone followed the principle that being kind to others was making things easier for oneself. No one lightly stirred up trouble. On the surface, harmony reigned everywhere, as though all the nobles of the entire county stood on the same side, with no distinction between