Not this time

"Lady Trina, allow me to be blunt," you say to her. "I also wish to proceed without the Kingsguard."

She is silent for a long moment, and then says, "Sire, I follow your command, but I am sworn to protect you. I ask, with all humility, that you do not order me to neglect my duties."

"Look around, Trina; this place is, as you say, peaceful and secure. If I cannot walk as a commoner among the visitors to our Kingdom, then I am a very poor King indeed for having allowed such deterioration. I will be able to mingle with the people quite safely, I assure you. It is important to me not just to be able to enjoy the festival in this manner, but to see with my own eyes upon their level that the people are also enjoying themselves. I respect and value the service of the Kingsguard, but you must realize that a happy and contented populace is the best protection I could have."

Lady Trina still looks concerned. "Are you sure that you will not be recognized, Sire?"

You chuckle at this. "I think you sometimes forget my roots, Lady Trina. I am not some royal brat who was raised by servants in a gilded castle, ignorant of the ways of the peasants! To be a King requires me to play a role, but being a commoner comes quite naturally to me, I assure you. Furthermore, if things should go badly, I do carry my own sword - and thanks to you and the Kingsguard, I know how to use it."

"As you command, of course," Trina resigns. "May I at least ask that we set a time and place to meet, so that I will know whether there is cause for alarm if you do not appear?"

"Certainly; I cannot forget, after all, that I must return to the castle for the opening ceremonies! We shall meet back at the River Mill shortly after the ten o'clock bell."

You merge into the crowd with a thrill of excitement, reveling in an anonymity which you have not been able to enjoy since before you were King. It almost feels like you are a young man of eighteen years once again, only with a much heavier coin purse than you ever could have imagined! Of course, you only have an hour or two; you will need to go and prepare for the opening ceremonies of the festival before long, and it really would be a great unkindness to Trina and Magnus to make them spend all afternoon frantically searching for you. Still, that's an hour or two of freedom, something which a King has surprisingly little of.

Your ceremonial breastplate has been left behind (much to your relief!), as well as your elegant riding cape and a few other accoutrements which identify you as royalty, or exceedingly wealthy. The only item you keep which reveals you as a King is your sword, the ornate hilt and scabbard wrapped in rough cloth both to disguise it and to send the message that you do not intend to draw it (though of course, you still can if you must!).

As much as you might want to take in all the sights of the visitor's camps, there's really only time to indulge in one given pleasure. You hop off to one side of the path to where a tree grows up out of a small mound, giving yourself enough height to look out over the great crowd. Everything you saw on your way in is still there, but it all looks so different now that you can see it as a man and not a King! In the distance are the great sandstones which rise up out of a clearing by the woods, forming something of a natural amphitheater where a stage has been constructed for visiting minstrels and bards. Closer than that is the wrestling pit, and though it probably wouldn't be a good idea to indulge in a match yourself, it might be entertaining to watch others go at it. A good-sized path leading from the river into the woods is lined with the tents and awnings of visiting merchants and traders, offering all manner of wares... including, of course, the women who offer themselves for coin. To hire a whore is unbecoming to a King, of course; still, it is undeniably tempting, especially since you can certainly afford the best of them. Then, of course, there is the grassy field at the bend in the river which has been set aside for the young unmarried men and women to meet others like themselves; and, after all, you are one of them!