Stardew Valley of Gensokyo

Of course, since it is a festival, there will be many delicious food stalls on the day. These include food stalls that are usually found in the morning market, stalls that only appear during festivals, and special stalls that are prepared all year round and only appear on the day of the Flower Dance Festival.

These stalls were undoubtedly very popular, enjoyed by both humans and monsters.

Some monstrous customers may have been buying snacks from the same stall for countless years, from childhood to old age, and then the business will be taken over by the next generation.

The customers are still the same customers, but the stall owners have changed countless times.

This is just an ordinary thing in this Flower Dance Festival; facing the festival with laughter is enough.

Of course, the festival has stalls run not only by humans, but also by yokai (supernatural beings).

Starting a few years ago, a stall run by a night sparrow yokai appeared at this festival. It is believed that in a few years, this night sparrow yokai's stall will also become integrated with the flower festival and become a part of it.

Of course, neither the confession, the marriage, nor the stall matter has anything to do with Akina Sawa.

He's currently walking down the street with a troubled expression, leading the completely silent Nikua.

Akina Zeya and Nikua also changed into clothes that they would only wear on holidays.

This cost Akina Ze a lot of money, and his wallet was empty once again.

In order to get Nikua to agree to go to the festival with him, Akina Zeya specially commissioned these beautiful clothes.

Although Nikua stopped talking to him, she was, after all, a fairy and would definitely like beautiful things. So he placed the beautiful and gorgeous dress in front of her and said that he would give her the dress if she went to the Flower Dance Festival with him.

Finally, Nikua nodded and agreed to go to the Flower Dance Festival with Akina Sawa as well.

So spending this large sum of money was worthwhile.

But... reality is different from what I imagined.

Nikua did indeed follow Akina Sawa to the bustling streets of the Human Village, but... things deviated slightly from the plan.

Contrary to expectations, Nikua didn't cower in fear in front of so many people. Instead, she calmly held hands and followed Akina Sawaya forward, showing no fear of the crowd at all.

This is what troubles Akina Sawa. The very beginning of the plan is already off. All the plans were arranged after Nikua hid in his arms, but the first step failed. How can the rest of the plan be discussed?

"How can it be repaired?"

Although he was holding Nikua's hand, Akina Ze also felt a deep sense of helplessness.

Being mischievous isn't scary; being withdrawn is the scariest thing.

Just then, Nikua moved slightly closer to Akina Sawa, and gripped his hand even tighter.

"Hey, Akina, you're here too."

A clear, crisp voice, carrying a touch of nonchalance, cut through the crowd and reached Akina Zeya's ears.

Before Akina Sawa could even guess who it was...

Mokou appeared in Akina Sawaya's line of sight, dressed in an exquisite men's kimono.

Fujiwara no Mokou, already possessing a heroic air, wore an outfit that further accentuated her charisma, making her look incredibly dashing and spirited.

Before he could even react, a beautiful woman, also dressed in a kimono, appeared behind Mokou, who was holding her hand.

Simple yet not shabby, with few colors yet not monotonous, the kimono, matching Mokou's, exudes an intellectual and elegant aura.

She is a rare beauty who exudes intellectual charm.

Akina Sawa, who was initially a little anxious because of Nikua, gradually calmed down when she saw this older sister-like figure.

"Hey, Akina Zeya, you probably don't know her, right? Let me introduce you."

Fujiwara no Mokou pulled Kamishirasawa Keine in front of her and said to Akina Sawaya, "This is Kamishirasawa Keine, the teacher at the Human Village Private School."

"Mokou, really, can't I just say it myself...?"

Kamishirasawa Keine, who had been pulled over, complained to Fujiwara no Mokou with a helpless expression.

"You must be Professor Kamishira Takumi! I've heard so much about you. It's a pleasure to meet you. My name is Akina Sawaya."

In front of this intellectual beauty, in order not to lose face, Akina Ze squeezed out this sentence from the few words he had left in his brain.

"Hmm, nice to meet you. I've often heard Mokou talk about you, huh?"

At that moment, Kamishirasawa Keine noticed Niqua next to Akina Zeya.

Although Nikua was wearing a beautiful kimono, Kamishirasawa Keine still recognized her as a fairy.

"I don't think I've seen this child before. Mr. Akina, are you considering sending her to my temple school to study?"

"Huh? Is that okay? She's a fairy!"

Akina Ze also said in surprise.

"Don't~"

Nikua, who had been silent for a long time, finally spoke, though her voice was so weak it was almost inaudible.

"Hmm? Mr. Akina, don't you know that my terakoya (temple school) is attended by both humans and fairies?"

"Oh? I'm sorry, I really didn't know. I apologize."

Akina Sawa scratched his head and said with a wry smile.

"Hmm~ I feel like I've seen this guy before?"

Fujiwara no Mokou, who was standing nearby, was also observing Niqua as if she had discovered something.

After realizing that she was being watched by Fujiwara no Mokou, Niqua moved a few steps closer to Akina Sawaya and gripped his hand even tighter.

"Mokou? You know Nikua?"

Noticing Nikua's reaction, Akina Sawa turned to Fujiwara no Mokou and asked.

"Niquya? Niquya? That's it! I've got it!"

Fujiwara no Mokou, who was deep in thought, suddenly had a flash of inspiration and pointed at Niqua, saying...

"I threw this guy out of the Human Village last time he came here."

"Hey! Mokou, how could you do this?"

Before Akina Ze could say anything, Kamishirasawa Keine spoke first.

"You should have brought her to the temple school!"

"Ahaha, I'm so sorry, Huiyin. I received a report from a villager that something strange was hiding in his water tank. He was startled when he went to use the water, so when I went over, I thought she was just causing trouble and threw her out. I'm so sorry!"

Fujiwara no Mokou kept clasping her hands together and apologizing to Shirasawa Keine.

To be honest, Akina Sawa had never seen Captain Mokou like this before, it seems that the two of them really have a good relationship.

Thinking of this, Akina Ze couldn't help but look down at Niqua, who had been withdrawn for a long time, and sighed softly.

"By the way, what's going on between you and this fairy? Some things are forbidden in Gensokyo, you know. As the captain of the Human Village Guard, these kinds of things are under my jurisdiction."

After comforting Kamishirasawa Keine, Fujiwara no Mokou turned to Akina Sawaya and asked.

"Hey~"

Hearing Fujiwara no Mokou's words, Akina Sawa shook his head helplessly and said, "That's a long story..."

Chapter 88 The Ceremony is Underway

As the sun gradually rises in the early morning, the tranquility of the night is swept away by the sunlight, and a small mansion in the magic forest awakens.

If pedestrians were to pass by at this time, they could see through the glass windows of the small Western-style building that many dolls were flying around inside.

The tiny, adorable dolls, with their exquisite craftsmanship, flutter around the mansion. But they aren't just flying around randomly. If you look closely, you'll find that these dolls are actually doing housework.

A day in the little house begins with the dolls doing chores.

After the dolls swept away the dust that had accumulated overnight, the owner of the mansion came down the stairs.

A beautiful girl with short, light blonde hair that looked incredibly smooth in the sunlight, wearing a sleeveless blue top, and light blonde eyes that matched her hair color.

This is the owner of this mansion, Alice Margotroved, the Seven-Colored Doll Master.

Today is the Village of Humanity, a day called the Flower Dance Festival.

However, since it was a festival, Alice couldn't possibly be absent.

So she is currently preparing to go to the human village. Although it is called preparation, it is actually just controlling the dolls to complete these tasks.

"Shanghai, Shanghai!"

A small doll, clearly more exquisitely crafted than most of the other dolls, flew over, carrying a cup of lightly steaming tea in her hand.

Thank you, Shanghai.

Alice smiled and accepted the tea from the doll named Shanghai.

If Marisa were to see this scene, she would definitely jump out and question whether all of these dolls were actually manipulative as Alice claimed.

"Penglai! Penglai!"

Before the puppet named Shanghai could leave, another puppet flew over and pushed it aside. This puppet was just as exquisite as the Shanghai puppet, and in its hand it was holding a plate with a golden-yellow, generously filled small sweet cake on it.

Similarly, Alice thanked Penglai and accepted the small sweet cake he sent.

Alice's day begins with a cup of light tea and a sweet dessert.

Whether these things were made by the dolls or by Alice controlling them remains unknown...

"Very good, let's set off now."

With all the preparations for the morning completed, Alice set off with her dolls. Most of the dolls were put away, except for two small dolls named Shanghai and Penglai, which flew alongside Alice and traveled with her.

Soon, Alice brought the dolls to the human world.

Looking at the lively and joyful crowd, Alice couldn't help but smile.

Because Alice was a human who cultivated herself into a magician, she can also feel human joy.

When Alice appeared, a large group of children gathered around her.

"Sister Alice, what happened after the last story?"

A little girl with a runny nose reached out and tugged at Alice's blue dress, asking curiously about the story.

"Well, you'll have to see for yourself~"

Surrounded by children, Alice always wore a smile and answered their questions in a gentle voice, without the slightest impatience.

The usually aloof doll user also has a gentle side when facing innocent children.

And so, surrounded by the children, Alice arrived at her usual performance venue.

The manager of the Human Village specially reserved a space for Alice, so that she wouldn't have to move props around, and there would be someone specifically looking after these props.

Today, all the props have been set up and are ready for the person in charge to arrive.

Alice smiled and nodded at the staff who were setting up the props, then walked backstage at the small stage.

Wow, so beautiful~~~

Despite being used to Alice's smile, the staff still couldn't help but succumb to it.

And so, the puppet show is about to begin...

"Wow~~~"

A commotion arose from the crowd in the distance.

"This is?"

Akina Sawa, who had originally planned to keep things brief, was also drawn to the conversation and asked a question.

"It's Alice's puppet theater; she performs there every year during the festival."

Kamishirasawa Keine answered Akina Sawaya's question.

"Oh, it's Alice."

Alice, this exquisitely beautiful girl who looked like a doll, left a deep impression on Akina Zeya's memory.

"Maybe watching those puppet shows that kids like to see will be helpful for Nikua."

"Sorry, I need to go see Alice now. We can talk about those things later."

With that, Akina Ze led Nikua through the crowd toward Alice.

Before Fujiwara no Mokou could speak, Akina Sawa disappeared into the crowd.