Conquering the Emperor

Chapter 146: Separation

“That’s to be expected. This festival was designed to bring in food, clothes, art, performance and various other things from many cities across the empire. So, it’s normal if you don’t know them all,” Ren replied casually.

“Do you know them all?” I asked curiously.

“No...but I do know most of them,” Ren replied with a grin.

“Tell me...please...” I pleaded as I smiled sweetly at him.

We walked around hand in hand and Ren pointed out and explained the various dishes to me. For a while, we forgot about buying anything to eat. Ren was busy explaining things to me, and I was busy listening to him. We walked around like that for a while until we almost reached the end of the first row of food stalls. Seeing that it would take forever for Ren to explain everything to me, I suggested that he recommend some food to me instead so that we could buy some and start eating. freewёbnoνel.com

“This is so good. The flavor of these spices is so unique, I’ve never eaten anything like this before,” I complimented as I stared at the chicken on the stick that I had just eaten.

“That’s from the south so they use a lot of spices. I like it too, but the smell could be quite strong,” Ren said as he ate his share.

“This one also looks delicious,” I said as I pointed to another stall.

“Let’s get some then,” Ren said before ordering for us.

It didn’t take long for me to feel full. Automatically, my attention refocused on other types of stalls instead. I wanted to go see the clothing stalls but then I also wanted to go see the performance over there. There was a big crowd of people gathered around where the performers were performing.

“I wonder what they’re looking at over there,” I said as I pointed to the crowd.

“Why don’t we go and see? I’m sure they have some interesting performances going on,” Ren replied as he led the way towards the crowd of audiences.

I watched his back in front of me as I thought of how relaxed it felt to be out from the palace grounds. Here in the town and in our disguise, I felt like we a normal couple just spending time together on a date. There were no duties, rules or expectations holding us back. It was a pleasant feeling indeed. I wondered if Ren felt the same way. As far as I could tell, he seemed to be enjoying the festival very much too. ƒrēewebnovel.com

“Look, Rin!” Ren called to me as he turned to face me.

My eyes followed his finger to where he was pointing, and I could see a stage with many beautiful dancers. The band played some traditional music that I did not recognize while the dancers danced fluidly to the music. There were a lot of people in front of the stage and around us. The crowd was massive.

“Wow! The dancers all look so pretty. Their outfits are so colorful!” I exclaimed in amazement as I clapped my hands together.

We watched the performance for a while until the dance ended and another set of performers took the stage to put on a comedy play. The jokes they told weren’t half bad and I found myself laughing along with them. Suddenly, a loud cry pierced and disturbed the joyous atmosphere. I turned my head to the right and saw that something was happening to the crowd. People were pushing each other and seemed to be in a panic as they screamed louder and louder.

From where I was standing, I couldn’t see what was happening and suddenly, I felt my body being pushed roughly to the side. It all happened so fast that I didn’t know what had just happened and how someone had pushed me but I was falling to the ground in the crowd.

“Ren!” I called out his name in a panic.

By that time, the whole crowd was in a panic. I struggled to try to get back to my feet before I would get trampled on. The whole crowd started pushing each other and many people started running away. It wasn’t long after that I figured out the cause of the whole ruckus. I could finally see it, a horse attached to a carriage had gone berserk right here in the middle of the festival.

I didn’t see it happen, but there was no rider on the horse so he must have fallen off already. The horse charged further into the crowd, and I somehow got out of it’s way on time. My heart was beating so fast from the panic, and I was panting hard. Then, I was being swept along by the people in the crowd. I didn’t even have to move my own feet; it was like I was being swept away by a current made of people. Turning my head from side to side, I tried to look for Ren, but I couldn’t find him.

How can this be? He was just standing right next to me. We were even holding hands! I called out his name but he didn’t answer. The voice of the crowd was too loud, and it probably drowned out all of my cries. Without a choice, I was forced to go along with the crowd to wherever they would lead me. The horse was still charging into the crowd and so far, no one was stopping it.

After a while, I was taken so far from where I was originally and ultimately, I got lost in the crowd and ended up in an alley that I had never been to before...

...

“Rin!” Ren called out Rin’s name again and again as he tried to push against the other people in the maddening crowd.

When he saw the crowd going wild, he knew that they needed to get out as fast as possible, but it had been too late. By that time, Rin was caught up in the panicked crowd and was pushed somewhere far from his reach. He felt Rin’s hand slipping from his hold and then it was like the crowd swallowed her up right in front of his eyes.

In between struggling with the other people in the crowd as they pushed and shoved against him and trying to find Rin, Ren had lost sight of her completely. The worst scenario that he had feared had just occurred: they were now separated, and he had no idea where Rin was.

--To be continued...