The Spirit of Inquiry

Professor Weblen supervised the final fitting of his life's work, his most sophisticated and useful device. His assistants mounted the wheels on the axle and placed the rune-covered axle caps with as much caution as they would any other delicate thaumaturgical construct. The carriage received an alarmingly intricate array of instruments and etheric controls before being covered by a shield-generating parasol. As to the yoke-like section, it had nothing to do with horses but rather ended up attached to a shell of one of those great time-defying turtles said to live forever, unless someone hunted them for technological reasons. The shell hovered, unusual behavior for turtles but expected if one looked under it and saw the pan-elemental animation engine, the finest available, occupying the space.
The assistants, each of whom might have been welcomed in any number of courts or merchant houses but stayed with the professor to learn even more, backed away so the great man could inspect their work.
"Mhm. Mmmhm. Mm. Yep." Professor Welben nodded, tilted his head, nodded, and tilted it the other way. "Yes, that's it. The Time Chariot is completed. I'm going to go back and ask the legendary hero why he sealed the nightmare king instead of just killing him. So inefficient!"
The assistants gasped when they saw the professor enter the carriage, and gasped again when he started adjusting levers and turning dials. "Sir! It hasn't been tested!"
He blinked at them. "Of course it hasn't. This is the test drive. Be back immediately if not sooner!" The chariot jerked forward, reared back, and dashed straight into nowhere they could see. The Time Chariot may not have worked, but it did something.

"Here we are. Hey! Are you the legendary hero?" The professor leaned over the side and addressed an almost man-shaped endless swirl of chaotic energy. "I suppose not. You must be the lord of horror. Hello! Hero! Are you there? I want to ask you a question! Why seal this entity for a thousand years?"
"You dare predict that fate for me?" Words that chilled as they entered the ear came from the embodiment of wickedness.
"Well, sure. It happens, you know. You get sealed."
"Nooooooooo!" The thing wailed as the eldritch forces that composed it slowed, stopped, and dissipated. The darkness ended, and light flooded the world.
"You have performed a brave deed that will be remembered for a thousand thousand years," the envoy of light that descended from heaven told Professor Welben. "By reciting the sacred formula, 'You, get sealed,' you have removed this malevolent influence from the world, for a time. The victory is not final, yet it is a victory."
"Oh. That explains that." The legendary hero fiddled with the controls again. "Thanks for telling me. We have to share information if we want to get anywhere. Bye!" The Time Chariot departed on another curiosity-satisfying adventure.
Finis

Live Demonstration

Hey you! You'd better get in here. The streets are blocked for a reason, you know. That's why you came, isn't it? You wanted to see the Cobblers' little show. They don't want non-members looking. That's what they pretend, anyway, but we all know how it really is.
Back when our grandfathers were barely fathers, the Cobblers had a hard time because Flatfen got itself a reputation for superior shoemanship. Fashion followers took up the narrative that our Cranburst footwear only looked good under our superb Cranburst clothes, and that you were better off getting your shoes elsewhere.
Leave the blinds alone. It doesn't do to be seen watching, even if you want to see. Just peek through. Anyway, the Cobblers decided to prove their shoes were worth wearing on their own by running up and down the streets as naked as they day they were born. The whole thing was a big stunt. It didn't help at all with the fashion followers, but the camaraderie they got out of it was really something, so it's turned into a tradition.
See something you like out there? Back then the Cobblers were all humans of course, and there's nothing special about a human in the buff. That's not a dare, if you thought it was. You came to see the newer members, right? Looking at a minotaur maybe, flapping all the way? Frogarchs hopping along? What a gargoyle needs with shoes I'll never know, but the Cobblers always say they're suited for the work.
Nowadays you could name the days by what guild is trying something or other, but this is the only one anybody falls for. I don't know that they sell too many shoes out of it, though. See these? Flatfen work. Tomorrow us Potters will waste everybody's time. Don't bother watching, but take a look at our pots and vases if you've got a want. Hope you have a nice stay in Cranburst, stranger.