The kingdom of Orlos, one of the five powers of Arbooria, has earned it the nickname of the Divine Cornucopia because of its vast, fertile fields. Every year, the citizens of this kingdom gather in their cities and villages to celebrate the blessings that the gods have given them with an annual harvest festival.
A whole day dedicated to festivities filled with music, drinks, food, and dance. For an entire month, preparations for this event consumed the resources of all the nobles and even the royal family. With all the security planned and trade routes free of bandits or monsters, the day of the festival has finally arrived.
The village of Maruum was in celebration. The festival brought an exotic air and many opportunities for the residents, the trade sold more than the sum of the entire year, and the main day of the festival had not even begun. The taverns and inns were full of people from other kingdoms to experience this unique experience. The sun had just appeared on the horizon, and many were already organizing their stalls and shops for the large flow of customers. Guards and soldiers sent by the Felnatus family patrolled the streets to ensure peace and order.
Strolling, Julienne, Manila, and Vivienne walk through the streets, with an unusual smile and stretching their arms as wide as they can. Vivienne seems to be in a good mood.
"Aaaaaaah! How wonderful! Nothing like having a day off in the middle of all this expedition!"
"Yes, and the best of all is to be in this festival from the beginning." Julienne added humming to a calm melody, Manila remained quiet, maintaining her usual expression, slightly irritating Vivienne.
"I know you're not much of a smiler, but you could at least appreciate our goodwill in accompanying you."
"Yes, I really appreciate your company. I'm sure being around me is unpleasant for you. I apologize for Elzen asking something so terrible." Manila's emotionless voice irritates Vivielle, but before she can answer, Julienne intervenes.
"She's just joking, Manila, you don't have to take it seriously..."
"You don't have to lie to me, I know she doesn't like me since the moment I became part of the battalion thanks to the commander, and I know you're afraid of me and that you'd like to be as far away from here as possible, so let's just do what you want to do and leave."
Vivienne stands in front of Manila and places a hand on her chest.
"Look here, I take responsibility for my actions, acting like an idiot when the commander introduced you, but it wasn't because of you or...well maybe a little...I admit, a lot of it was because you were a maid at the mansion." Manila shows surprise at what she said; the fact that she recognizes that it was a mistake in her behavior is already a big surprise.
"But you said a lot of bad things to me, too. I'm a noble's daughter, but I'm not the favorite, I'm not the heir, I'm just another one trying to prove that I deserve a title or be worthy of my family's name. I worked hard to get invited by the commander to join the regiment, so yes, I was upset when you said that I had never worked." Her face is flushed as if she were putting all her uncertainties out there.
"What I mean is that I understand why the commander invited you. You are skilled and have always helped the squadron by risking your safety, so ..." Her eyes stare at the floor, not daring to look at Manila. "How about we use this occasion to start from scratch? I won't change much, but I will do my best to be less annoying with you. I apologize in advance if I offend you with the way I speak."
Vivienne's effort and common sense seem to break the barrier that Manila had against her, with a small smile, she holds her hand on her chest.
"I accept that we start from scratch, I will try not to be rude either, and I apologize for anything I said in the past that hurt you."
Julienne happily hugs her two colleagues and suggests that they continue with their plans, after all, Elzen organized this, and they want to help him. The first stop is a store known in the village for having clothes for special occasions, the Amelie Boutique.
In this small village, this famous boutique has established a franchise seeking customers in this remote area to offer high-quality clothes. Once a month, the store opens, usually on an important date for the village or the entire kingdom. The place is not as big as the main store in the capital, but it is completely different from the common architecture of the village.
Inside the store, four attendants wearing clothes available in the window become living mannequins and enchant those who see them for the first time. The other clothes are lined up and hung on mobile hangers made of pure copper. Vivienne and Julienne can barely contain their amazement at so many luxuries on display, Manila, however, watches the two without any interest.
For hours, they made Manila try on several dresses; however, frustrated with her lack of emotion, they sat on the hardwood benches with suede cushions.
"You have to choose a Manila, there has to be something here in this store that you like." Vivienne said, frustrated, that there were already more than twenty dresses that she considered good and that had been rejected.
"M-maybe if we let her choose, something will possibly catch her attention." Julienne had chosen twelve dresses and got the same reaction from Manila.
"That's it, go ahead, choose something, please, I'm hungry and we have to be ready for the next part of today's agenda."
Since she was a child, Manila had never chosen her clothes. She always wore the uniforms of other maids and a single nightgown that she always took great care of. Normally, any young lady would be ecstatic to see so many magnificent dresses at her disposal, but Manila looked at them without interest.
There were different dresses, colors, and models, but nothing seemed to please her until one caught her attention. A dark indigo dress, made of cotton with knitted flowers on the shoulders. She then took the dress and went to one of the fitting rooms. Vivienne and Julienne approached her curiously. When Manila came out, they were shocked.
The dress's color highlighted her tan, and the flowers on her shoulders created an air of grace and luxury. Julienne, happy with her choice, approached her.
"Did you like this dress?"
"Yes, it is very pretty and reminded me of someone I liked."
"Excuse my curiosity, but who is this person?"
"She took care of me for a while; she was the only one who treated me well in that place. I remember her wearing a dress of that color, a week before she disappeared, she brought me several foods that were very different from what I was used to that day, she told me that they were the leftovers from the banquet she had to attend, I thought it was the first time she had eaten so well." She smiles and hugs herself affectionately. "Even if it's silly of me, I feel like she's close to me thanks to this dress."
Both young women look at Manila with a mixture of emotion and pity. The fact that they knew so little about their colleague created a feeling of guilt, breaking the moment of silence. Vivienne claps her hands and smiles.
"Perfect! Now you will follow us to other places after we pay for the dress, we still need a pair of shoes, and a perfume that will make Elzen..." She pauses for a moment. "Ready and prepared, let's say." Her cheeks flush completely, Julienne laughs awkwardly, and Manila looks at her without understanding.
"Come on, come on, we don't have time to waste! We're already late!" They pay for the dress and continue through the streets.
Three shoe stores later, they bought a pair of very comfortable black shoes made of fabric and leather. At the stalls, they managed with great difficulty to convince Manila to wear a pair of silver earrings and a chain necklace with a silver pendant in the shape of a star.
Little by little, with the company of her colleagues, Manila opens up a little more, smiling and laughing at things she would never have reacted to before. The last stop will be at a small perfumery near the center of the village. During her rounds, Julienne came across this store and was enchanted by the variety of herbal oils and perfumes it offered.
"I hope you like this place. I'm sure you'll find something you like, but if you don't, we can look for it at the festival." Julienne said excitedly.
As she enters, various aromas and smells permeate the entire interior softly and harmoniously. A woman in her twenties or more approaches with a serene smile.
"Welcome to my little shop, how can I help you ladies?" Upon recognizing Julienne, the attendant addresses her. "Good morning, Miss Julienne, I hope you liked our product."
"Hello, I L O V E D I T, it made me sleep like a baby, the aroma is so delicate, so soft, ahhh I have no words to describe how good it made me."
"I'm glad about that. Is there anything special you're looking for today?"
"We want something special for our colleague here, she's meeting her boyfriend later, if you know what we mean by that." Vivienne steps forward and speaks to the attendant.
"Ooooooh..." She laughs shyly.
"I have some fragrances and oils that might help with that, please, ladies, come with me." The attendant guided the three girls to a shelf with several bottles of different shapes and colors.
The fruity and floral aroma was incredible and seemed to awaken something inside them. One bottle at a time, they tested each possibility offered by the attendant. After a few pleasant minutes, they left the store with two bottles, one pinkish with a wonderful floral perfume and another amber in color with an herbal aroma oil.
"What did you think of our little shopping route, Manila?" Vivienne asked excitedly.
"I'm impressed and happy. I've never done anything like this. Thank you both for accompanying me." Her pure smile made them happy.
"Perfect then! Now we will meet Woltur at the entrance of the Village, we will have everything ready for you so that when you need to use all of this, just enjoy the various foods they offer at the festival." Julienne holds Manila's hand, and together with Vivienne, they leave her near the entrance where Woltur was waiting for them.
"You took a while, ladies." He said seriously.
"Sorry, but we needed to make everything go perfectly."
"Is everything perfect now?"
"Yes! Now you two have fun!" She waves goodbye to the two and heads to the camp. Woltur offers one of his arms to Manila to hold.
"Ready to try flavors that you may never have tasted?"
"Yes." Manila smiles, holding his arm, then heads together to the festival.