(Walson)

On the bustling street, I boarded a public boat holding the little beast-eared girl, Nita.

Today is the [Autumn Harvest Festival]!

Since this morning, various related items have been on sale, and many vendors are selling so-called Autumn Festival Cakes and Pig Milk Cakes.

What are Autumn Festival Cakes? This food is made by pounding cooked rice in a large pot, soaking it in special spices, and then letting it dry before forming it into small dumplings.

The choice of spices depends on personal preference and is not strictly regulated.

The filling is traditionally made from Tuka Beans, which is a local term in this world.

The exterior is earth-colored, and after tasting it, the flavor is quite similar to red beans.

You could consider it an earth-colored red bean. Legend has it that the Goddess of Water used this food to relieve famine in autumn, hence it’s called the Autumn Festival Cake.

As for the Pig Milk Cake, it is a yogurt-like food made from the milk of a special milk-producing pig.

It is also one of the foods brought by the Goddess of Water.

I bought a pack from a merchant rowing by and placed it in Nita’s hands.

On this festival day, I promised Uncle Paul that I would take her around since Paul was very busy.

Since the little girl is so cute, it’s no problem taking her around!

Barella, Melon, and Grace have already gone to the contestant preparation room as participants for the Opening Ceremony this afternoon.

The venue for this year’s competition is different from previous years; this time, it’s a labyrinth.

Not just any labyrinth, but the Labyrinth of Water!!!

There are no paths in the labyrinth; movement is done by boat. This labyrinth is called The Underground Water City of Teigitan.

It’s located directly beneath the city we’re in.

That’s right, directly below. Teigitan is actually a water capital built on top of a labyrinth!

The water labyrinth naturally has a water city built above it.

Normally, this labyrinth is closed to the public due to its danger. Its exact depth is unknown, but it is said to be at least fifty levels deep.

Only the first level is used as the competition venue this time, and the first level is already a very large competition venue, at least the size of an amusement park. It’s super huge.

The first level is inhabited by various special low-level aquatic monsters. Though not very strong, their elusive movements make them good training targets for novice students.

However…a water labyrinth…is very disadvantageous terrain for Grace.

In a humid environment, the cooldown time for her  spatial jumps is greatly extended.

And water is Grace’s weakness…will she be okay?

She probably looks very worried right now.

“Watson big brother, where are we going?” Nita looked up at me with her bright, shining eyes, her mouth full of rice grains.

Too powerful!!! A little girl looking up!!!

“We’re going to watch the Opening Ceremony.”

After taking her for a round on the boat, we are now about to enter the academy to watch the Opening Ceremony.

Looking up from the boat, the bridge is already crowded with people waiting to enter.

The boat passed under the bridge and entered the waterway entrance of the academy.

At this point, the boat stopped.

“Are you here to watch the Opening Ceremony? Do you need to buy a ticket, sir?” A guard in armor walked up to the boat and spoke to me, sitting at the front.

“Oh, I already have one, here.” I showed the contestant family ticket Melon gave me.

This ticket allows me to sit in the VIP seat!

“Oh, so you’re family. You can disembark and head this way.”

“Thank you, you’ve worked hard.” I took Nita’s hand and disembarked.

Working on a festival day is tough.

Holding Nita’s hand, we were led by another soldier into a room.

Inside the room were nine soft chairs, and a projection crystal floated above.

Oh, I see, each contestant’s family has a separate room.

Of course, they must be separated; otherwise, fights might break out.

But we don’t have many family members here.

And I know three of the contestants, so I’m considered their shared family…

After Nita and I sat down, it wasn’t long before the four members of the Night Cat’s Eye came in.

…I gave them the extra tickets.

“Hey, Watson bro, how’s it going?”

“It’s my first time sitting in the family seats…”

“When will Melon deal with those guys?”

“Good morning, little Watson.”

“You guys seem to be doing well.” I don’t know what they’ve been up to lately, but it’s related to Melon.

I’ll look into it later.

“Ladies and gentlemen!!!”

“Good morning everyone!!! Louder, oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh——”

“Today is the [Autumn Harvest Festival]!!!”

The projection crystal displayed an image, and a three-dimensional projection appeared in front of us.

Wow, so clear!? It looks like the host is standing right in front of us.

This is a kind of broadcast television-like device in this world, the projection crystal.

The projection crystal must be used with the imaging crystal, and whatever the imaging crystal captures is projected three-dimensionally in front of the audience. We are now watching the broadcast in the family seats.

Why aren’t we watching it live?

Because it’s a labyrinth! How can ordinary spectators go in to watch!?

The only way for us to see it is through the imaging crystal, which is the safest way.

“I’m today’s host——Jejejejeje——Sen!!!”

“But I’m not the focus, first let me introduce, contestant number one, Chachachacha——Li!!!”

The three-dimensional projection switched to an image of a young man with a big sword on his back.

“It’s going to be a peace of cake.”

“Oh oh oh oh oh, Charlie the contestant made a bold declaration——!!!”

……

This host is so noisy.

Let me extend the timeline a bit and summarize for you.

After introducing all the contestants, he explained the rules of the competition.

The rules are simple.

Many treasure chests have been placed in advance within the labyrinth.

Then, the contestants row small boats, find four hidden keys in the labyrinth, and then go to the central labyrinth altar to open the treasure chest and obtain the Festival Torch.

They are allowed to snatch keys from each other, capsize each other’s boats, and even attack each other.

As for death? No need to worry.

Each contestant is equipped with a special magical device that negates any injuries or death within the labyrinth once they leave.

This device only works in the Labyrinth of Water and only on the day of the Opening Ceremony.

It’s quite miraculous. When I read about this in a book, I found it fascinating.

It seems to be a device blessed by the Goddess of Water. This goddess seems distant from people, but she’s actually very close.

Thus, the [Autumn Harvest Festival] has become one of the most important festivals in Teigitan.

The royal capital has also set up a special magic circle on the first level of the labyrinth. Upon death, contestants are teleported outside, and combined with the special magical device, death is nullified.

By the way, removing this magical device counts as forfeiting, and you will be forcibly teleported out. This festival is truly amazing.

Oh, and with that special magical device equipped, contestants cannot receive telepathic messages from their team to prevent cheating.

“So——the Opening Ceremony begins!!”

With the host’s shout, the whole room’s scene changed.

Wow!!! This is…third-person perspective!!! It’s like observation mode!!! I can see all of the contestant in 3D!  What kind of futuristic technology is this!?

What we’re seeing now is like controlling Melon in a game, a third-person perspective of Melon!!!! And it’s ultra-immersive; it’s like we are floating behind Melon, watching her.

And right now, Melon is sitting in a small boat!

I looked at the small remote control on the seat.

Does this mean I can switch the observed character by pressing the remote contro buttonl!?

The family seats are awesome!