Yarra’s Adventure Notes
Chapter 383 - 9: The Eve of Early Spring_1

Chapter 383: Chapter 9: The Eve of Early Spring_1

Continental Calendar Year 3692, March 10th, clear skies.

For the residents of the Neutral Land, the Early Spring Festival is a very important holiday, especially for urban dwellers. As early as March 7th, the streets and alleys in the City of Knowledge began to prepare for this festival. Most stores placed two models of pink fruit trees, made of synthetic materials, at their entrances. Walls and showcases were plastered with posters depicting seas of pink fruit flowers, with large bunches of wind chimes shaped like pink fruit flowers hanging on both sides of the doors. As the early spring breeze blew, the pink fruit wind chimes swayed, constantly making pleasant crisp sounds.

The bakeries started selling bread shaped like pink fruit. Food stores began selling vegetable balls and pink fruit wine, essential for an outing to see the flowers. Toy stores displayed windmill toys and whistle toys that children enjoy during picnic trips, as well as expensive magic dolls. Whether placed on the ground or held in the palm of your hand, once the magic doll was switched on, it would dance under the pink fruit flowers, magnificent against the flurry of petals.

On March 8th, the city’s population began to decrease, especially among the professionals. The City of Knowledge had so many people that any scenic place in the suburbs became a place everyone wanted to be. Many set off early to travel to their favorite spots, intending to occupy a suitable terrain before the Early Spring Festival began, allowing themselves and their families to enjoy a perfect Early Spring Festival. As powerful professionals, they weren’t suppose to fight with ordinary people for safe areas close to the city. Therefore, they had to set off two days or even earlier, going to the outskirts or even wilderness outside the city jurisdiction. The wilderness was not too dangerous for them. On the contrary, it is much quieter than the city’s vicinity and could even be more comfortable.

On March 9th, there were even fewer people in the city. Most shops had even stopped doing business, and the once bustling city became extraordinarily quiet. Even the air seemed fresher. Occasionally, a rental carriage would pass through the streets, carrying passengers who were heading to the woods in the outskirts in advance. Inbetween the carriage intervals, you could occasionally spot some pedestrians carrying large and small packages. These people, while reluctant to hire carriages for travel, would rather walk to the neighboring areas of the city to appreciate the flowers and relax, unwilling to let this Early Spring Festival pass by in vain. Some others, who had no means or time to travel, could still enjoy the festival at the small pink fruit forests in the city. Under each thick pink fruit tree, there was enough space to accommodate a small family, allowing them to fully enjoy the fun of the festival.

By the evening of March 9th, what should have been a brightly lit street was dim and unlit, and those still in the city had gone to bed early to save energy for the next day’s journey.

"Flower sightseeing, spring outings." Vivian, unable to suppress her smile, packed her luggage while humming an unknown tune in the mansion. Her excitement seemed almost physically tangible. Catherine and Lena sat aside, watching Vivian pack a bunch of things carelessly, then regretfully take them out one by one, and then stuff another pile of items in. They both understood Vivian’s excitement. She had been bedridden for over a decade and hadn’t participated in any festive events since she was a child. To her, every festival felt novel and exciting. Indeed, considering the harsh truth that these festivals could be depleting for her, who knows whether there would be a next time? Under such pressure, she naturally cherished every festival.

Actually, for Vivian, the meaning of the festival was not about playing or shopping like other people; what truly excited her, besides the meaning of the word ’festival’ itself, was the happiness and joy of being together with her family and friends. That was the most important thing.

"Has Pannis not returned yet, Sister?" Vivian, immersed in excitement, suddenly asked, "Where did he go?"

"He went to book the carriage." Catherine glanced at the timer and commented, "It might be difficult for him to book a carriage at this time of the day."

"If that doesn’t work, we can rent a few horses," Vivian suggested. "We don’t have much luggage."

"If it comes to that, that’s what we’ll have to do," Catherine reluctantly replied. "However, if we have to travel overnight tonight, are you really okay with riding a horse?"

"Of course I am." Vivian patted her flat chest, proudly saying, "To prepare for tonight’s journey, I did nothing during the day and slept all day."

"That’s nothing to be proud of," Lena snapped a book closed and commented with a displeased face. "But Sister, you don’t need to worry. This fool wouldn’t be able to sleep tonight out of excitement. It’s better to use that time for travel."

"Ding dong." The door to the living room was knocked, and Pansy and Mimosa walked in with hands down, "Three mistresses, did you call us?"

"Can you ride horses?" Catherine asked, "You don’t need to be good at it, just knowing how to ride is enough."

"Yes, simple horse riding for travel is okay." Pansy nodded, "Is there something you want us to do?"

"No, no, not at all. Knowing how to ride makes things much simpler. We won’t necessarily have to hire a carriage." Catherine said, "You two are going with us tomorrow. Have you participated in the Early Spring Festival before?"

Both maids twitched at the corners of their mouths and lowered their heads without answering.

"I understand, but you don’t need to be afraid." Catherine smiled and reassured the two girls, "No one here will harm you, even if there are any problems, we will take them on. You just need to prepare yourselves to enjoy this festival."

"Really?" The two girls looked at each other, they were tempted yet somewhat fearful, "Otherwise, we should stay home and take care of the house. We can go next time."

"Well, there’s nothing to be afraid of. If you don’t take the first step, you can only hope for next time forever." Catherine gently nudges the two girls, "Now go pack up your stuff. Actually, there isn’t much to pack, we’ve pretty much brought everything we need. You two just look for any snacks you love and bring it along. We have to sort out lunch and dinner on our own tomorrow."

"Thank you, mistress." The two maids blushed and looked grateful. They had wanted to go anyway, so they willingly agreed and opened the door to their quarters as Catherine nudged them, "We will go pack now, it won’t take long."

Outside the living room door, in the dark at the end of the corridor, six large eyes blinked, pitifully peering into the living room. Catherine waves her hand helplessly, "Alright, come over, we are done packing."

A cheer emerges from the shadows, twin sisters and a little banshee, three ’people’ rush into the living room together. While everyone was packing, these three made a mess, so they were chased out of the living room by Lina. They were ordered not to come back in until everything was packed, their ban finally lifted.

"Sister Catherine, where is the kite? Do we bring the kite?" Michelle eagerly asked as soon as she entered the room, "We want to fly the kite."

"Fly a kite?" Lina replied in frustration, "Who has ever seen a kite flown in the woods? There’s no chance to get it off the ground."

"Uh." Michelle was disappointed and bowed her head, "I wanted to fly a kite for little sister Annie. She has never flown a kite."

"There will be chances." Lina beckons, and the twin sisters rush into her arms all at once, "We may have to ride horses at night. Your Sister Catherine and I will take care of you, but remember it will be dark, and no crying or fussing."

"We are not children anymore." The twins puffed out their chests and lifted their heads, speaking discontentedly, "We are not afraid of the dark at all, and we won’t cry or fuss. You’re underestimating us, Sister Lina."

"Thump, thump, thump, bang, thump, thump, thump." The sound of a door being pushed and heavy footsteps rang out. With each thump, the ground seemed to tremble along. The footstep suddenly stopped, and the living room door was pushed open. Freya’s massive figure stood in the doorway, she gave a thumbs-up and smugly said, "Mission accomplished. Near Rabbit Foot Village, a hundred kilometers from Holy City. There’s a huge Bubble Fruit forest. And the most important thing is, there are hardly any people there."

"Are you sure?" Catherine asked excitedly, "Such a good place and no people? It won’t be a false report, right?"

"Absolutely not." Freya spoke with a touch of mystery, "I took privileges for private gain to get the information. There are still guild scouts keeping an eye on it. Hehe, a lot of guild employees are preparing to rush over there overnight. If it is indeed a false report, that scout will probably get beaten to death by a large group of angry guild members. So don’t worry, it should be true, it’s not likely to be wrong."

All three girls in the adventure team give Freya a thumbs-down in unison. Catherine says irritably, "You’re quite the character. I was wondering why you voluntarily took on the task of finding a location. Turns out you had this in mind. Didn’t you promise your father that you’d live independently? How did you use the guild’s resources with his status just a few days after making that promise?"

"I didn’t use my father’s power. It was Uncle Ayrland from the City Guard who voluntarily told me." Freya brushed her hair back from her temple, caressed her fair cheek, blissfully saying, "Even though I’ve gained weight, I’m still so adorable in everyone’s eyes, so they just can’t help spilling secrets to me."

"You..." Lina covers her eyes, moaning, "You’d better go on a diet first, and then talk about this stuff."

"Ding dong." A knocking sound was heard from the window of the living room. They pull back the curtain to see Pannis laying flat on the window like a lizard, "The carriage is ready, let’s get going."

"That’s great news." Lina is the first to stand up and grab her backpack. Her excitement for the festival is no less than Vivian’s, "I didn’t expect you to be quite reliable. How did you find this carriage?"

"Very simple." Pannis leaps in through the window, "You stand in the middle of the road, see a carriage, knock out the people in it, and then drive the carriage back here. See, isn’t it very simple?"

"Hey!" Lina raised her fist, "Be serious or else."

"Okay, I actually found it. It’s an old freight carriage." Pannis truthfully admitted, "But it’s in good condition, totally usable."

"Well, that’s enough. Let’s go, Spring Festival." (To be continued. If you like this story, please vote and recommend at qidian.com. Your support is my biggest motivation. Mobile users can go to m.qidian.com for reading.)