“Jin. Sorry to keep you waiting.”
It was almost nine o’clock when Saki appeared after finishing preparations.
Ehr and Reiko were with her.
“Thank you for sending Reiko to me. She really helped.”
Saki had brushed her messed up hair and was now dressed in a lavender, no, bluish-purple dress.
She was perhaps too skinny, but the simple A-line dress looked very nice on her.
She had a hair ornament with a single flower on it in her hair. And of course, she wore her glasses.
“Oh, I almost didn’t recognize you.”
“Heh. It’s embarrassing to have someone say that to your face.”
Saki blushed, which was quite unusual.
Just then, Reinhart’s butler, Claude, arrived.
“Lord Jin, Lady Saki. I have come to pick you up.”
Claude bowed to him in his black butler uniform.
“I’ll ride in my own carriage if that is alright?”
“Yes, of course it is. Now Lady Saki, please come this way.”
Jin took his own carriage and Saki went with Claude to the Randol house.
Claude didn’t say anything about the fact that Jin’s carriage was pulling another cart. He probably had an idea of what it was.
“So this is your present, Master Jin.”
When they arrived at the Randol house, Jin gave Claude the bed and mattress. Claude ordered one of the servants to take it into the house.
The Randol house had wide doors, so it was not difficult to carry it inside, but Jin thought that he would bring one that could be taken apart next time(if there was a next time).
“And this is from me.”
Saki said as she offered the small box she was holding.
“Thank you, Lady Saki.”
Claude accepted that as well. Like that, all of the presents were gathered together in one room so that the newlyweds would be able to inspect them later at their leisure.
“…And this was entrusted to me by a certain person.”
Jin then offered the package that he had received from Elsa.
“A certain person?”
Claude asked as he took it.
“Yes. Someone that Reinhart knows, but who cannot come here.”
“I see.”
Claude seemed to have realized who it was, and so he took the package and placed it into the room.
After this, Claude and the other servants would open that packages and check to see what they were. This was a precaution in case there was anything dangerous in any of them.
“Lord Jin, Lady Saki. Please wait over here.”
The two of them were led to a drawing room. Many other guests were waiting there, and some of the faces were familiar.
It was now clear that the wedding date had been decided a long time ago and many preparations had been made.
“Oh, Jin. It had been a while.”
The person who greeted him now was Reinhart’s friend and the older brother of the bride. His name was Matheus Geist von Realgar.
And the person next to him was…
“Saki, is that you? I didn’t recognize you at first!”
It was Fritz Randol von Grosch. Elsa’s older brother and Reinhart’s cousin.
“Ah, Fritz. It’s been a while. I thought you were abroad.”
“Yes. I am here to represent the family.”
Fritz smiled, and there was none of the seriousness that was there before.
“You are Jin, right? Please forgive me for being rude.”
Fritz said as he turned to Jin. Indeed, he seemed like a different person now. They had not met since Seduce had been removed, and so Jin was surprised at how much he had changed.
“…I wish that Elsa had been here too.”
“Fritz… This is not the right place to talk about such things.”
Saki had been about to ask him something, but she seemed to remember where she was and stopped. Instead, she spoke to Matheus.
“I haven’t seen you in a while either. How is your wife?”
“She is well, thank you. However, Saki, you look so different. I still remember how you used to look like when we played together as children.”
As Saki was childhood friends with Reinhart, she was also old friends with Matheus.
“Hehe. Woman can apparently change a lot with some makeup. It was my younger sister who taught me how to use it in the first place.”
“Belche did? I see. And what is that you have on your face now?”
“Yes, yes, I have been curious about it as well.”
Fritz joined the conversation.
“This? These are called ‘glasses.’ Jin made them for me. They improve your eyesight. Thanks to these, I can see many things clearly now.”
Matheus heard this and turned to Jin.
“Jin, are these similar to the microscope?”
It was just as Jin nodded and was about to say something.
“Everyone, the bride and groom are now ready. Please follow me.”
Randol, the butler entered and announced that the ceremony was about to begin.
＊ ＊ ＊
Weddings in the Shouro Empire did not take place before god.
Religion had declined after the Great Magic War. The church was gone and there was no longer a god to worship. There were several different paths people could take when this happened, but the Shouro Empire had decided to worship their ancestors.
In other words, they would announce the marriage to their ancestors.
And as a representation of these ancestors, nobles prepared portraits and sculptures or stones with their crest engraved into them. Commoners used wood carvings or dolls.
The Randol house used a stone slab with their family crest on it. It stood in a quiet room near the back of the mansion.
It was three meters tall and two meters wide. A white marble stone with two lions who stared at each other engraved on it(or so they appeared to Jin).
The names of their ancestors were carved on the other side.
“I am here to report the marriage of Reinhart Randol von Adamas, fourth son of House Randol, and Belche Gaist von Scarlet, oldest daughter of House Geist.”
There, both Reinhart and Belch made a report with their parents. Both of them were in white clothes.
“From today, I Belche Gaist von Scarlet swear to become Belche Randol von Geist.”
“And I Christoph Barde von Tarnet stand here as a witness.”
Jin had thought that he looked like a priest, but he was a witness. Every marriage between nobles required a witness to stand by and watch.
They were usually representatives from some superior noble, but it seemed that Christoph had been sent by the Emperor. This was quite a great honor.
Jin stood in the back and asked Saki about such things.
“This really is impressive.”
He whispered so that no one else could hear them.
“I think Reinhart was very smart to pick Lady Belche. She will surely be able to support him in the future.”
There was a little sadness in her voice. Jin did not know what he should say to her. But he opened his mouth anyway.
“Saki, you…”
“Shh. The bride and groom are about to pass.”
After saying their vows, the two of them, accompanied by their parents, began to walk by the other guests.
Here the guests showered them with applause and words of blessing.
“Reinhart, congratulations. I hope you two are very happy.”
“Belche, congratulations. I hope that your lives are filled with happiness.”
Jin and Saki also clapped and sent them their blessing.
Then the bride and groom left the room in order to be alone. During this time, the guests moved to the party hall where the wedding reception would take place.
They were now in the great hall, and Reinhart’s father, Wolfgang, made a speech before the newlyweds arrival.
“Everyone, thank you so much for attending the wedding ceremony between Reinhart and Belche.”
Then Reinhart’s mother, Isolde, continued.
“My son Reinhart is now an adult. Please continue to be good friends to him.”
She said, and they both bowed.
Belche’s parents also made similar speeches and when they were finished, the bride and groom entered the room in different clothes.
This time they were not in white, but in more formal uniforms that would be worn during official events or ceremonies.
“They say that helping each other get dressed is the first thing a couple does together.”
Saki whispered to Jin.
When the couple took their seats, Count Randal approached them.
“Reinhart, Belche. Congratulations. I have a gift for both of you. I shall give you the village of Kaltz, just west of here.”
Kaltz was a small village that existed between Exi, which was owned by George Randal, and their current location, Vanne.
There was applause. Now Reinhart was the lord of a little bit of land.
“I humbly accept it.”
“We will do our best.”
Reinhart and Belch bowed deeply.
And then the hall was filled with the sound of applause once again.