Chapter 83

Azuki caught her breath. There was so much going on! Living in the country, she wasn't used to crowds, and traffic was something that happened when Blackie met two walkers in the middle of the village's main street. Here, there were horses pulling carriages that looked like a sedan chair crossed with a passenger oxcart. The beautiful horses seemed proud and held their heads high, some displaying a kind of feathered bonnet atop their heads. Azuki couldn't tell what kind of feathers.

Unlike a sedan chair, most of the carriages were open, with fan-like covers that could be pulled forward to provide shelter in the rain. It was rather an exposed way of travel, Azuki considered. As a girl, she herself rode or walked, either one exposed to the gazes of strangers, but the people in the carriages looked quite grand, like those who lived above the clouds, shielded from common eyes.