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iridesenescenceChapter 6
With the villagers' help, we quickly assembled a collection of materials that could be made into lanterns, from misshapen pumpkins to overgrown gourds.
Heathcliff: You said that first we have to use a knife to hollow the inside out, right?
Akira: Yes, you turn the pumpkin over like this...
Holding the pumpkin in one hand, I cut into the bottom of it with a knife.
Nero: Pumpkin skin is pretty tough, so be careful with how much strength you're usin', yeah?
Akira: R-right.
Once I had successfully cut an opening in the bottom of the pumpkin, I used a spoon from the villagers to scoop out the meat inside.
Akira: After you hollow it out, you carve your design onto the pumpkin's surface.
First, I sketched out a face on the pumpkin's surface, then used the knife to carve along the lines I had drawn.
Akira: (This is actually harder than I thought it would be...)
Heathcliff: Master Sage, you can leave the rest to me. I'm good at things like this, and we wouldn't want you to hurt yourself.
Akira: Oh, thank you, Heath. Wow, you're fast!
Heathcliff took the pumpkin from me and deftly carved the face into its surface.
In a flash, we had our first pumpkin lantern.
Villager: Oho! Not bad, it's cute!
Villager: That looks simple enough, we can all make that!
Shylock: My, who would have thought that an ordinary pumpkin could be transformed into something so adorable with just a little work?
Akira: All you have to do now is place a light inside it, and you have a pretty lantern! In my world, we called these Jack-o-lanterns.
Cain: Heh, that's a cool name!
Shino: It sounds strong.
Nero: By what metric...?
Heathcliff: If that's all there is to it, I think we can carve things other than faces too.
Akira: Yes, of course! As long as the pumpkin can be illuminated by a candle from the inside, I think anything works.
Chloe: Ooh, we can carve whatever we want? Sounds fun!
Akira: Chloe, you're back! Did you already finish mending the outfits?
Chloe: Yup! We finished, and everyone's changed into the ceremonial clothes.
We're hollowing out vegetables to make lanterns now, right? I heard the villagers say it was your idea, Master Sage! It sounds super fun!
I wanna try making one too! Can you teach me how?
Akira: Of course, I'd be happy to!
Everyone picked out their vegetables and began to work on making lanterns.
The village children were tasked with drawing faces on the pumpkins and hollowing them out, while the adults handled the actual carving.
It was mundane work, but everyone ended up fully absorbed in crafting their lanterns.
Nero: ... I guess this'll do. Workin' on these little ones is pretty time consumin'.
Cain: Man, you're really good with your hands, Nero. Though I guess that's a given since you're always cooking for us.
Nero: Hah, this is nothin'. Look over there; now that's what you call bein' good with your hands.
Chloe: Wow, Heath's lantern looks amazing...! He carved a whole castle?!
Shylock: Incredible... What an intricately carved castle— this is a fine work of art you've produced.
Heathcliff: Ahaha, I ended up getting a little carried away... It's simple work, but really fun.
Shino: Alright, I'm done. Check this out, Sage.
Akira: Ooh, what a cute face! It looks a little dopey...
Shino: It's you.
Akira: Wait, me?!
Shino: Yeah, it looks just like you. Right, Faust?
Faust: ... Heh.
Akira: (He laughed...!)
Oz: ......
Oz had also joined everyone, and was quietly carving into a pumpkin. It was quite a cute sight to behold.
Akira: Oh, you're good at this, Oz. Your pumpkin has a very kind smile.
Oz: ... I once made a mask for Arthur. He said he wanted it to be cool...
This was the expression that he liked the most.
Child: Mom, look!
Villager: Oh, well done!
Villager: Hey, let's make matching lanterns!
Villager: Sure! What do you wanna carve?
Whether they were good at it or not, everyone seemed to be having fun.
I was reminded that even the time spent just preparing for an event that you were eagerly anticipating could be filled with joy and excitement.
Heathcliff: Ah... I've run out of vegetables to use. I'll have to go get some more...
Black dog: Worf.
Heathcliff: Wow, you brought them to me? Thank you! You're a clever dog.
Even as he was busy making lanterns, the black dog did not leave Heathcliff's side.
It was doing its best to serve Heathcliff and help him out, bringing him vegetables or fetching tools for him.
Every so often, Shino would watch the dog's actions in silence.
Shino: ......
Heathcliff: ... Is something wrong, Shino?
Shino: Nope.
Their curt interaction left me feeling anxious, but they quickly turned away from each other once again.
Though they were both concerned about each other, they wouldn't close the distance between them. It seemed they weren't able to go back to normal just yet.
Despite the awkwardness, preparations for the ritual proceeded smoothly.
——
Cain: So with this, we're all set on lanterns?
Chloe: Yup! Now we just gotta place them all around the village!
We worked with the villagers to fill the village with all of our unique lanterns, hanging them from trees, displaying them on chairs and more.
And when night fell like a blanket over the village, we spread out to light the lanterns that had been scattered all around.
Akira: Wow, what a sight...!
Chloe: Yeah, the village looks so pretty...! All our efforts really paid off!
Thick clouds hung in the sky, so the stars and the moon couldn't be seen. In exchange, the countless warm lights from the lanterns glowed that much brighter in the darkness.
Cain: Right, we're all set. The last thing to do is light the altar; once that's done, everything will be ready for the ritual.
The villagers, clad in matching outfits and with heavy, flashy makeup on their faces, began to gather at the square in the center of the village.
In the middle of that square was a stone altar, and wood for a bonfire was laid on top of it.
Shino: Huh, this was pretty simple. So who's gonna light it?
Akira: Well, uh... The village chief said he would like to ask one of the sage's wizards to do the honours...
Cain: Wha?! Is he sure? It's gotta be an important ritual to them...
Akira: Apparently it's usually done by the chief, but he's having back problems.
And he said that this year, they're only able to perform the ritual thanks to the sage's wizards' help. Apparently the villagers are all fine with it too.
Shino: That so. Then I guess we gotta decide who our chief is.
Shylock: Our chief... If we take that to mean our leader, then I suppose that would be Master Sage.
Shino: No, the chief should be whoever's strongest. Oz is out since he can't use magic at night.
Oz: ......
Faust: It's not always a given that the strongest one is the leader. You should pick whoever is fit for the role.
Shino: Then how about deciding by youthfulness?
Nero: I dunno, I don't think runnin' a village is somethin' a kid could handle. There's a lotta responsibility that comes with that role...
Akira: (Does Shino perhaps...)
Heathcliff: ......
It seemed that Shino wanted to be the one to light the bonfire.
Heathcliff's gaze darted here and there as he watched Shino. He opened his mouth hesitantly, then closed it without saying anything.
Akira: Um...
Black dog: Woof!
Heathcliff: Ah.
Chapter 5 || Chapter 7
With the villagers' help, we quickly assembled a collection of materials that could be made into lanterns, from misshapen pumpkins to overgrown gourds.
Heathcliff: You said that first we have to use a knife to hollow the inside out, right?
Akira: Yes, you turn the pumpkin over like this...
Holding the pumpkin in one hand, I cut into the bottom of it with a knife.
Nero: Pumpkin skin is pretty tough, so be careful with how much strength you're usin', yeah?
Akira: R-right.
Once I had successfully cut an opening in the bottom of the pumpkin, I used a spoon from the villagers to scoop out the meat inside.
Akira: After you hollow it out, you carve your design onto the pumpkin's surface.
First, I sketched out a face on the pumpkin's surface, then used the knife to carve along the lines I had drawn.
Akira: (This is actually harder than I thought it would be...)
Heathcliff: Master Sage, you can leave the rest to me. I'm good at things like this, and we wouldn't want you to hurt yourself.
Akira: Oh, thank you, Heath. Wow, you're fast!
Heathcliff took the pumpkin from me and deftly carved the face into its surface.
In a flash, we had our first pumpkin lantern.
Villager: Oho! Not bad, it's cute!
Villager: That looks simple enough, we can all make that!
Shylock: My, who would have thought that an ordinary pumpkin could be transformed into something so adorable with just a little work?
Akira: All you have to do now is place a light inside it, and you have a pretty lantern! In my world, we called these Jack-o-lanterns.
Cain: Heh, that's a cool name!
Shino: It sounds strong.
Nero: By what metric...?
Heathcliff: If that's all there is to it, I think we can carve things other than faces too.
Akira: Yes, of course! As long as the pumpkin can be illuminated by a candle from the inside, I think anything works.
Chloe: Ooh, we can carve whatever we want? Sounds fun!
Akira: Chloe, you're back! Did you already finish mending the outfits?
Chloe: Yup! We finished, and everyone's changed into the ceremonial clothes.
We're hollowing out vegetables to make lanterns now, right? I heard the villagers say it was your idea, Master Sage! It sounds super fun!
I wanna try making one too! Can you teach me how?
Akira: Of course, I'd be happy to!
Everyone picked out their vegetables and began to work on making lanterns.
The village children were tasked with drawing faces on the pumpkins and hollowing them out, while the adults handled the actual carving.
It was mundane work, but everyone ended up fully absorbed in crafting their lanterns.
Nero: ... I guess this'll do. Workin' on these little ones is pretty time consumin'.
Cain: Man, you're really good with your hands, Nero. Though I guess that's a given since you're always cooking for us.
Nero: Hah, this is nothin'. Look over there; now that's what you call bein' good with your hands.
Chloe: Wow, Heath's lantern looks amazing...! He carved a whole castle?!
Shylock: Incredible... What an intricately carved castle— this is a fine work of art you've produced.
Heathcliff: Ahaha, I ended up getting a little carried away... It's simple work, but really fun.
Shino: Alright, I'm done. Check this out, Sage.
Akira: Ooh, what a cute face! It looks a little dopey...
Shino: It's you.
Akira: Wait, me?!
Shino: Yeah, it looks just like you. Right, Faust?
Faust: ... Heh.
Akira: (He laughed...!)
Oz: ......
Oz had also joined everyone, and was quietly carving into a pumpkin. It was quite a cute sight to behold.
Akira: Oh, you're good at this, Oz. Your pumpkin has a very kind smile.
Oz: ... I once made a mask for Arthur. He said he wanted it to be cool...
This was the expression that he liked the most.
Child: Mom, look!
Villager: Oh, well done!
Villager: Hey, let's make matching lanterns!
Villager: Sure! What do you wanna carve?
Whether they were good at it or not, everyone seemed to be having fun.
I was reminded that even the time spent just preparing for an event that you were eagerly anticipating could be filled with joy and excitement.
Heathcliff: Ah... I've run out of vegetables to use. I'll have to go get some more...
Black dog: Worf.
Heathcliff: Wow, you brought them to me? Thank you! You're a clever dog.
Even as he was busy making lanterns, the black dog did not leave Heathcliff's side.
It was doing its best to serve Heathcliff and help him out, bringing him vegetables or fetching tools for him.
Every so often, Shino would watch the dog's actions in silence.
Shino: ......
Heathcliff: ... Is something wrong, Shino?
Shino: Nope.
Their curt interaction left me feeling anxious, but they quickly turned away from each other once again.
Though they were both concerned about each other, they wouldn't close the distance between them. It seemed they weren't able to go back to normal just yet.
Despite the awkwardness, preparations for the ritual proceeded smoothly.
——
Cain: So with this, we're all set on lanterns?
Chloe: Yup! Now we just gotta place them all around the village!
We worked with the villagers to fill the village with all of our unique lanterns, hanging them from trees, displaying them on chairs and more.
And when night fell like a blanket over the village, we spread out to light the lanterns that had been scattered all around.
Akira: Wow, what a sight...!
Chloe: Yeah, the village looks so pretty...! All our efforts really paid off!
Thick clouds hung in the sky, so the stars and the moon couldn't be seen. In exchange, the countless warm lights from the lanterns glowed that much brighter in the darkness.
Cain: Right, we're all set. The last thing to do is light the altar; once that's done, everything will be ready for the ritual.
The villagers, clad in matching outfits and with heavy, flashy makeup on their faces, began to gather at the square in the center of the village.
In the middle of that square was a stone altar, and wood for a bonfire was laid on top of it.
Shino: Huh, this was pretty simple. So who's gonna light it?
Akira: Well, uh... The village chief said he would like to ask one of the sage's wizards to do the honours...
Cain: Wha?! Is he sure? It's gotta be an important ritual to them...
Akira: Apparently it's usually done by the chief, but he's having back problems.
And he said that this year, they're only able to perform the ritual thanks to the sage's wizards' help. Apparently the villagers are all fine with it too.
Shino: That so. Then I guess we gotta decide who our chief is.
Shylock: Our chief... If we take that to mean our leader, then I suppose that would be Master Sage.
Shino: No, the chief should be whoever's strongest. Oz is out since he can't use magic at night.
Oz: ......
Faust: It's not always a given that the strongest one is the leader. You should pick whoever is fit for the role.
Shino: Then how about deciding by youthfulness?
Nero: I dunno, I don't think runnin' a village is somethin' a kid could handle. There's a lotta responsibility that comes with that role...
Akira: (Does Shino perhaps...)
Heathcliff: ......
It seemed that Shino wanted to be the one to light the bonfire.
Heathcliff's gaze darted here and there as he watched Shino. He opened his mouth hesitantly, then closed it without saying anything.
Akira: Um...
Black dog: Woof!
Heathcliff: Ah.
Chapter 5 || Chapter 7
