Despite everything that had happened, the festive atmosphere accompanied by the laughter of the crowd had not subsided at all and was actually getting stronger as time went on since the main event was not far away.
Blake was still on his own search, but it didn't take long for him to identify the person in the main area of the square and quickly approached him.
"Good morning, Mayor." Blake gave a quick wave to get Wells's attention once he was sure it was really him.
"I see you are full of energy. I hope you use it for something good!" Wells' serious look made Blake freeze for a moment, but he was already quite used to Shara's grandfather's attitude. "Haha, I'm just playing with you, it's good to see you're here."
It had left Blake at a loss for what to say, but Wells wouldn't let him think about that.
"Anyway, I guess you're here to sign up for the main event, right?" Blake nodded at his question since that was his objective. "Okay, then I need to register the weapon you are going to use."
"Weapon?" Blake remembered Wells's explanation but didn't understand what he would use a weapon for.
"I know I said weapon, but these weapons are not to do damage, they are the tools that you will use to cut the wool of the wooly. You can see them back there." And directing his gaze toward where Wells was pointing, Blake could see everything quite clearly.
There were a few stands where you could see some objects that looked like weapons... But at the same time, they were quite distinctive. There were a couple of spoons that Blake could compare their sizes with the same as his short sword; not far away was a huge blue fish with yellow fins, and Blake told himself that he would need to use both hands to try to lift it. It had the shape of a fish, but it was not a living one.
There were also several spears, but their tip had been replaced by a small sphere that looked quite soft as if it were a pillow, and that was the most normal thing in the place. Blake also saw a huge trowel, a couple of soup ladles, and many other things until he thought it was enough, he also saw that Gaius was sitting nearby as if his job was to take care of all those tools.
"So, which one do you decide on?" Wells's voice reached Blake's ears again, but he didn't know what to say.
He wanted to find a moderately acceptable logic for what he was seeing, but deep down, very deep down, he knew that there was no point in really looking for it.
"I'll take a spoon..." Blake approached the area, and after giving Gaius a quick wave, he took one of the spoons that seemed to rest in the shade of the tree in the square.
"That's a good choice, plus it looks like you're the last to register for the event, you'd better head to the center so we can get started." Blake nodded at Wells's words as he began to do exactly that.
As Blake entered the crowd again, he could see how several people carried the peculiar weapons he had seen before, so he assumed they were all the participants. Both the music and the hubbub had died down quite a bit as everyone seemed to know what was coming, and once Wells was seen climbing onto a high platform, adults and children alike were as quiet as possible.
"Sigh... I'm someone who enjoys silence, it's always perfect to drink a cup of coffee and reminisce... But isn't this a festival?" Wells's words were heard quite strongly, and that very question made the previous silence vanish in the instant that all those present raised their voices shouting with emotion.
It was a sight that would make anyone smile as they all enjoyed the occasion, but then again, everyone fell silent at a simple nod from Wells. He started with his routine, thanking all the participants and people who made the festival possible, as well as explaining a bit about the main event that would follow, but before it all started, Wells caught the public's attention once more.
"And lastly, there is someone important that makes this festival go smoothly, so I hope you can give us a few words." Wells turned so that his gaze fell on the person he was referring to. "Come on, go up."
No one really knew whom he was saying those words to, but it wasn't long before a somewhat trembling figure appeared next to Wells giving everyone a good look… But Blake was the most surprised.
"H-Hello, e-everyone..." After those words, a deep silence was present again, but Blake was sure he had not made a mistake. "M-My name is Nana, maybe you don't know me, but surely many of you know the Alana store."
A few light murmurs began to rise from the crowd after that, and Blake could hear a few of them.
"Is she coming as a representative of the Alana store? She looks quite young."
"Don't think too much about it, that just means she's quite talented."
"Maybe, but it could also mean that she lacks experience, maybe it's not a good idea to participate this year."
"Yes, but... She's quite cute..."
There were some comments that Blake chose to ignore, but he concentrated on the ones that seemed important, now he was curious about what Nana was up to, and it seemed that it would only grow as he heard her speak one more time.
"I… I wanted to thank the Sainte-Coquille family for entrusting our services once again, and I will make sure to do a quality job… I swear on my honor as an instructor!"
[Progress… Saved.]