CHAPTER 11
We reached Lantern Lake well before noon. Of all the times I’d been there, never had I seen such an extravaganza.
Large pitched tents, lean-tos, blankets, and small fires peppered the area along the shoreline. Vendors created a long, single thoroughfare where they were open for business selling produce, meats, ale, and wine. Well over a hundred people, milled about, talking in excited voices, and laughing. It reminded me of the marketplace back inside the keep.
A group of people joyfully danced in front of a band of musicians who performed on a small, crudely-constructed stage. The sound of strummed mandolins, shaken tambourines, and singing resounded as if they were in an amphitheater.
“What is all of this?” I asked, my eyes did their best taking everything in.
There were
