After having a nice rest evening in the Tavern, manticore stretched herself sweetly and went out. Outside was calm and beautiful; snow was falling and softly covering the earth. The noise of full hall had been left behind the door of the Tavern and lady was enjoying silence. Somewhere over there a big clock struck the midnight.
A little part of snow fell down the tree directly onto the manticore's back, she shook herself and went on her walk, stepping accurately among the trees. Suddenly, she heard strange noise, which was coming from the Magistrate's side. As lady had that evening free and it was rather early to go to bed, she decided to have a walk to the Magistrate and see, what could make noise so late evening.
But the sight she saw made manticore just more astonished. Few dozens of monsters were carrying out the Magistrate strange boxes and loading them on vehicles. The vehicles were leaving one by one but soon returned, being already empty.
At that moment manticore felt the fear was feeling her mind. What was happening? What were magisters removing in the middle of the night? And so many! Was it possible, that in the Lands something terrible and irretrievable had happened? Lady began to panic. But after a short time she pulled herself together and settled down. Magisters wouldn't hide problems from citizens, especially big and serious problems. But it was necessary for her to know what was happening!
Keeping rounding the trees (because it's so unpleasant, when snow falls onto your back and then thaws and becomes water, fr-r-r), manticore came nearer to the Magistrate. For a few minutes she was watching a strange loading and then ventured to ask a skeleton, which was passing her and carrying a box: “Excuse me, but what is in your box?” But his answer didn't make the problem clearer: “I think, even magisters don't know about it, it was intended in such way!”
Surprised manticore sat into snow. Does in the Lands exist something magisters don't know about? The recent case (with the sir, who was sitting alone near the bar stand and speaking in impermissible way, and then was punished) shows, it doesn't. And here...
Manticore even started to fidget so curiously it was. How to know what was in those boxes?
And snow was falling and falling, and lady started to get cold. So she sighed, decided to go home and even did few steps, but suddenly...
One of the trolls carrying boxes slipped, fell down and the box he was carrying came unwrapped.
So that it was! Lady understood everything. So familiar, with a red ribbon, trunk lay almost near her feet. New Year presents! What was removing from the Magistrate! The most of citizens hadn't opened them' and lady forgot, that that night the time for opening was out, and her own present she had opened at New Year night. And really the only thing magisters didn't know about was content of each box. Because it was a lottery!
“Wasting of good things”- manticore thought, turned around and went back to the trees. The evening lasted...
