The Capital had transformed itself within the span of a single day. To wash away the lingering terror of the beast attack, the King had ordered the continuation of the Starlight Festival, and the city had responded with a defiant, glittering brilliance.
Thousands of paper lanterns with its soft golden light, drifted into the evening sky like embers from a giant's hearth. The main roads were packed with people, but the atmosphere was festive rather than frantic, the air sweet with the scent of roasted chestnuts and spun honey.
Moving through this sea of humans was a group that, under normal circumstances, would have commanded a royal escort of at least twenty knights. Tonight, however, they looked like a particularly well-off family of merchants.
