33 The Engagement Feast

Mello and Erin follow Klan to her home, where they meet Klan's adopted son, Barty, and his youngest grandson, Nick, who are surprised and amused by Klan's adoptive son, who looks older than them, but of course they don't show it out of politeness.

The servant served a sumptuous meal to fill the stomachs of the two of them, in reality, they just didn't eat lunch, but the real suffering experience and feelings of the more than ten days in the dream still made the two think that the food was delicious.

"Big brother, big sister, thank you for helping to prepare the wedding feast, I'll take you to the city." Little Nick said cheerfully to Milo and Erin, carrying a small toolbox in his hand.

Kelan also said, "You go first, Barty and I will pack some goods and pass." ”

"Wait a minute, Nick," Barty called for a bouquet of flowers, "drop by for a trip to the Dream Hill and put this in ......" Nick nodded, "Yes, grandfather." Then he led Milo and Erin out of the manor.

"What does your family crest look like?" Erin asked Nick Jr.

"Our family is a merchant, not a nobleman, sister, so there is no family crest." Nick is young, but sensible.

The three of them chatted as they hurried. "That tree was planted by my father, that tree was planted by my mother, that mushroom only grows in Komet, but don't eat it, grandfather said it was poisonous......" Little Nick said all sorts of interesting things to the two of them, and they slowly began to forget the experiences in their dreams. As they passed by the Dream Hill, Nick walked straight under the cedar tree and respectfully placed the bouquet in his hand on the lawn monument.

Melo and Irene leaned down and saw the inscription on the tablet: Carl Dutved is buried here

"Kran's husband," said Erin, "the tree can't be 'the tree.'" She remembered the Girl in the Treetops.

"Seems so." Melo said, looking out at the town not far away, and there was no longer a shadow of the steamship in the harbor.

Little Nick pulled the corner of Irene's coat and said, "Big sister, big brother, my grandfather's father slept under this stone slab. A few years ago, those big black monsters disturbed him, and I heard that my grandfather's mother drove them all away by herself......"

"Really, she's amazing!" Erin chimed in, guessing that this was Kran's experience, and that the big black monsters were, of course, djinn. It was only later that Milo and Erin learned the truth: during the Djinn crisis, ten Djinn occupied the high ground of Dream Hill and kept throwing stones at the people below, and Koran attacked Dream Hill with one person to kill all these Djinn, and cooperated with the army and the Green Dragon Mercenary to sweep away the Djinn in the entire territory of Komet.

As the church rang for the afternoon, the trio arrived at Cormet City, and as expected, Milo and Erin quickly found Parrett. Because of the dream, Milo and Erin had a long-awaited feeling for Parrett, and each stepped forward to give him a big hug, while the latter was confused and didn't know what was going on.

Parrett was surprised and asked, "What, what's going on?" You look like you haven't seen me in a long time! What's going on? ”

Milo responded humorously: "How can I not see you for a long time?" Because you're so fragrant, we can't help but smell it! ”

"Yes!" Erin replied that Parrett quickly sniffed herself, and the antics made the two of them laugh.

Later, Melo also learns from Parrett that Splaint's steamship was a carrier of diplomats and has departed, much to Milo's gratitude - Parrett is his loyal companion.

The city of Komet, which is only two streets, is in a state of hustle and bustle, and because it is the engagement banquet of the wealthy Dutvelde family, almost the whole city is mobilized, and the shops and streets are decorated with lights, no matter where they are luxuriously decorated, there are all kinds of styles, so it is not lively.

Little Nick commanded Milo and Erin, "Big brother, the shelves and tables over there need to be set up and covered with red cloths, please." Thank you. Then he asked Erin to follow him to a shelf where the basket of flowers was to be nailed, and then handed the small tool box to Erin, "Please, big sister, hand me any tool I want." ”

"Okay, no problem!" Erin leaned down to open the toolbox.

"Hammer No. 1...... Well, thanks...... Now, the number three pliers ...... Yes! It's this...... It's going to be done right away, huh...... Sister, file No. 2, thank you, thank you...... Finally, the number one lollipop. ”

"Huh?" Erin thought she had misheard, but upon closer inspection, she found that on the second floor of the toolbox, there were really neatly numbered "lollipops", and she took out the number one lollipop and handed it to Nick. Nick took the candy, tore open the candy wrapper, and held it in his mouth, a happy expression on his face - as if he were treating himself.

"Thank you, big sister, the number five lollipop will be rewarded to you." Nick said innocently. Erin took the cherry-sized lollipop five, smiled helplessly and shook her head, thanked her and put it in her pocket.

Parrett also joined the ranks of labor, and he was as powerful as an ox, erecting several decorative flower columns one after another, leaving an excellent impression on the locals.

Koran and Barty soon arrived, and they drove the carriage with the two good horses from Aube. The cars were loaded with fine wine, food, honorariums and gifts for the workers. People poured in, not caring at all about the gratuities and food, but praising the two good horses, and it took a long time for the crowd to disperse.

The evening bell rings, and the engagement feast begins. Koran was sitting in an unobtrusive position because she had long since withdrawn from the family affairs - which she had hoped for, where the rest of the family knew her identity and no one knew her. Milo, Erin, and Parrett sat in a loose seat with the locals, unconcerned about the engagement ceremony, quietly eating and drinking, and soaking up the warmth and pleasure.

At the end of the feast, the master of ceremonies announced: the folk dance party begins, everyone gets up in unison, packs up the venue, and the dancers form dance partners with each other - it may be traditional or tacit, all men and women work in pairs. The band is also ready to play music in the style of Komet:

The melodious sound of the shepherd's flute sounded, and people began to walk slowly, as if going down to the field, picking the fruits of crops, or sowing seeds of hope; The sound of the violin sounded, and the broad and soothing strings depicted the scenery of the fields and mountains of Komet, and the people's dance steps became brisk, as if they were riding on horses, galloping in the wind, and dancing with streamers; The sound of recorders and bagpipes followed, like a river and a breeze, flowing the beautiful melody into people's hearts, and the rhythm continued to increase, and people shook their clothes and skirts, as if expressing the joy of harvest......

This folk dance is derived from the most common farming life, and even if you haven't deliberately learned it, it is easy to imitate and integrate into it. Melo watched the people dance, and he spotted Klan among them, and she put her white cane aside and danced with little Nick; Barty and his family are also jumping, and the movements are so dashing; Parrett was nowhere to be seen, and he didn't like the tasteful activity...... What about Irene? On the other side of the dancing crowd, clapping hands to the rhythm and watching the happy people with great interest.

"Why are you so lonely?" Melo thought to herself.

Passing through the crowd, Milo approached Erin and made an elegant gesture of invitation - Erin's eyes widened and she waved her hand in surprise, "I'm not very good at dancing......" The words did not convince Milo, and he continued to hold out his hand and wait for a response. Erin smiled helplessly and put her hand on the other's. In the envious eyes of everyone, Milo successfully invited Erin to be his dance partner.

"I just said I can't jump...... Haha......" Irene's movements were clumsy, and even the pace was not well coordinated, which made Milo very embarrassed, but fortunately, the two of them still reluctantly jumped down, and the scene was not embarrassing.

"Erin—" Milo said suddenly.

"What? Am I tripping over you again? Erin moved slowly.

"I love you—"

"Huh?"

In the face of Milo's sudden confession, Erin was completely unprepared, and when she was distracted, she stumbled on her feet - almost fell, but fortunately, Milo stepped forward in time to support her, and the two were almost face to face.

"I ...... I'm ......" Erin's face was flushed and her body seemed to be limp, but the people around her didn't notice their embarrassment. Erin nodded and whispered, "I love you too—" and then she closed her eyes......

Milo understood what this meant, and he suppressed his heart, which was about to jump out, blinked his eyes, closed them slightly, and slowly pressed his face forward......

Maybe you don't believe it, but this is really the first time the two have kissed.

The ball went on, and no one noticed the two of them, but even if they did, it was a normal part of the ball, after all, it was one of the ways for young men and women to bond with each other.

When the two separated, they were both red-faced and shy......

The ball was soon over, and the people returned to their quarters after wishing the bride-to-be - the engagement feast was over.

Although Parrett had booked a single room for Milo and Erin at the inn, they were both in Milo's room at this time—the two of them who returned to the room holding hands together realized how awkward the situation was, and the heartbeats of the two could be heard clearly in the quiet room.

"Next...... How? Erin asked with a blush on her face, fiddling with the corners of her clothes with both hands.

Milo smiled honestly, as if trying to ease the tense and awkward atmosphere: "If you ...... If you agree, I'll ......" His Adam's apple quivered up and down, and what he wanted to say was swallowed back.

Erin's gaze wandered, her expressions of embarrassment and distress alternated, but she still gently squeezed out a few words: "I, I...... I would like to ......"

Milo stepped forward and took Erin's hand, and the girl was so nervous that she almost pulled back, the crimson color floating on her cheeks, and she looked even more pretty in the light of the oil lamp. He gently stroked the hair on the girl's forehead, as gentle as a father cares for his children and a brother cares for his sister. Erin also gradually relaxed under this caressing, and finally raised her head...... Unconsciously, the faces of the two were close again.

"Is that okay?" "Hmm...... Well. ”

His hand was placed on her shoulder, and with a little force, the two of them were pressed together again......

That's when —

"Bang! Bang! Bang! A huge knock on the door sounded, causing both of them to tremble at the same time, followed by Parrett's loud voice: "Milo! Are you there? Kelan told us to go to her now, saying that we were going to leave immediately. Feed! Are you in there? I'm in—"

The door was then quickly pushed open......

Then the door slammed shut again......

After that, the door was slowly opened...... "I'm sorry! ”

After that, the door snapped shut again.

"Poof, poof...... Puff hahaha...... "After watching Parrett's repeated opening and closing of the door, the two finally couldn't help laughing, whether it was embarrassing, sweet, or beautiful...... The atmosphere in the room turned into happy laughter.

Milo said helplessly: "Alas, later." ”

Erin squinted, straightened her hair, and "hummed": "What nonsense?" What's next, right? Hum! …… Pack up your things and leave, Kelan is still waiting for us to come over. Then he ran out of the room.

"I'm so sorry!" Parrett reappeared in the doorway, apologizing to the embarrassed-looking Milo in the room.