We Will Get Divorced: The Perfect Divorce Plan of the Sacrificial Daughter and the Cold-Blooded Soldier - Chapter 21

“Step right up, step right up! How about some skewered meat? Skewered meat here!”

“Step right up, step right up! Come try our fresh fruits! Fruits here!”

“Step right up, step right up! Miss over there, how about a lottery ticket? Try your luck!”

When we stepped down from the carriage onto the riverbank, the festival music grew even louder, and mixed with the cheers, we could now hear the voices of vendors.

“Um, my lord. Is this really…”

“It’s a picnic. I understand how you feel, but don’t ask again.”

“Y-yes, sir.”

Even as I answered, I felt like I might ask the same question again if I let my guard down. That’s how filled with heat and vitality the river was.

“Nadine is probably over there.”

Julian pointed to an exceptionally flashy boat rocking its particularly large hull in the middle of the river. Indeed, the Vraogone flag was flying too, so that must be the one.

“What’s wrong, Sierra? Let’s go.”

“Y-yes. Sorry.”

I realized Julian and Zach were waving at me from several steps ahead. I must have been so astonished that I forgot to walk.

No, no, this won’t do. This is where my work begins.

Persuade Nadine and bring her to our side. From what I could see, Nadine loves festivals and enjoys fun things—there’s no way she’d willingly start a rebellion. Besides, we’re both women; we should be able to understand each other.

“Let’s go. We just need to pass through in a small boat, right?”

It’ll surely work out fine. Filled with vigorous determination, I moved to overtake them.

“Wait, Sierra.”

I was immediately pulled back by the hand and stopped.

“W-what is it, my lord?”

“Don’t board a boat carelessly. At Nadine’s picnic, you must buy something from any boat you set foot on.”

“Th-there’s such a rule?”

That was close. Incidentally, the stall boat I was about to step onto was…

“Step right up, step right up! Deep-fried river lizard hearts on a stick here—!”

That was really close. What kind of thing are they skewering and frying?

“Whoa there. No, no, miss. Even if you just set foot on the boat, you have to buy something at Lady Nadine’s picnic. Here you go, thank you for your patronage.”

You’ve got to be kidding me. Clutching the skewer handed to me, I looked back at Julian with a tearful expression.

“Can’t be helped. You there? Zach?”

“…With pleasure.”

I’m sorry, Zach. I’ll be more careful from now on. Well, what about the stall boat next to it?

“Step right up, step right up! Deep-fried crow hearts on a stick here!”

And the one next to that?

“Step right up, step right up! Deep-fried cow hearts on a stick here!”

And next to that?

“Step right up, step right up! Deep-fried Burfrock hearts on a stick here!”

“My lord, I don’t think I can ever cross.”

These people only seem to fry hearts.

“Don’t worry. I’ll pick a peaceful boat for us.”

“Ah, also, my lord. I have one more request…”

“What is it, Sierra?”

“Ah… never mind, it’s fine now.”

“What was that? What about your request?”

“Well, it’s already been granted.”

“…Is that so?”

Julian looked puzzled for a moment, furrowing his brow, but soon recomposed himself and moved on to selecting a safe stall boat.

“That one looks dangerous. That one too, and we’d better avoid that one as well.”

Julian stared intently at the river surface with a serious gaze, his fingers rubbing his chin—the same fingers that had just been holding my left hand. He probably didn’t even notice. The sensation lingering on my left hand was much larger than mine and made my heart skip a beat.

“Alright, let’s go. Sierra, Zach.”

After a moment of silent contemplation, the boat chosen by Julian, the Undying King, was…

“Here, step right up! Candied fruits here!”

“Here, step right up! You’re buying some crafted candy, right?”

“Here, step right up! One pancake, thank you!”

“Here, step right up! Fig custard pie, thank you!”

It was brilliantly filled with stalls selling nothing but sweet treats.

“Wow, this fig pie is incredibly delicious. Do you like sweet things too, my lord?”

“…I don’t. I just avoided the weird stuff.”

Saying that, Julian bit into the candied fruit. Of all things, the one that looked the sweetest. If he was just avoiding weird stuff, it seems like he didn’t need to force himself to eat it. Perhaps I’d found the sixth common trait between us, a case of “like husband, like wife.”

Thinking such thoughts, I nibbled on the pie. The syrup oozing from the sticky fruit pulp tasted just a little sweeter than the first bite.

“Watch your step.”

Guided by Julian and Zach, I finally set foot on the deck of our target boat.

“Kill ’em!”

Suddenly, a sword-like word flew into my ears, making me instinctively pull back my foot.

“Go on, Greg! Don’t chicken out!”

“That’s it, Greg! Charge in! Finish ’em off!”

What is this place? The atmosphere was clearly different from the peaceful boats before. At least relieved that the flying shouts weren’t directed at me, I stepped onto the deck.

“Show some guts! Kill ’em!”

I could feel the quality of the fervor shift.

Was it frenzy or uproar? How should I describe this atmosphere? The air on the ship was burning so intensely it made my skin tingle. The drunken spectators were staring intently at the circular stage built at the front of the deck, where two warriors were slamming wooden swords into each other with all their might. Every time the swords clashed, the spectators’ frenzy grew.

“Is this a gladiator arena?”