Ch.146Wedding Ceremony (6)

Perhaps, I’ll never forget this moment for the rest of my life. Chris quietly swallowed.

Evan looking at him, Rofena waving her hand while holding children in her arms from afar, and the lady waiting to enter at the end of the garden.

Was it right for him to officiate Evan’s wedding? Despite this doubt, Chris couldn’t bring himself to say it aloud. Evan must have had a reason to ask this of him. Chris found some comfort in that thought.

The darkened sky looked like night.

Under this magically darkened sky, the only light came from the delicately burning candles. Chris, watching that small light in the center, slowly moved his lips. Having completely forgotten the officiant’s speech he had memorized, his expression was somewhat relieved.

“I am a blessed person. More precisely, I am a lucky person.”

Luck always comes without warning. Even if the first meeting seems ominous, even if it becomes troublesome at times and causes discomfort. In the end, the culmination of that luck often ends beautifully.

Chris met Evan’s eyes and smiled. That guy who once had no life in his eyes was now the main character of a wedding. He saved a life, and now he’s even gained a daughter… he’s living quite well. Chris believed most of this was due to the day he first met Evan.

That day, still vividly etched in a corner of his memory, might have seemed insignificant to others. Perhaps that day was also autumn.

“If I hadn’t met the two protagonists of today, I probably wouldn’t be standing here in one piece. I would have been just another common knight who retired in disgrace, whose name wouldn’t even be remembered.”

And he probably wouldn’t have met Rofena either. Chris shrugged and continued speaking.

“Since I’m not good with words, some of you might not understand what I’m saying, but the point is this: Meeting today’s wedding couple was my good fortune, and that’s why I’ve lived happily.”

After briefly looking at the magically darkened sky, he slowly concluded his opening remarks.

Somehow his eyes felt stinging. Maybe it was just age making him emotional, but Chris felt moved just by standing here.

“All I wish is for the two of you to live happily. You already look happy, but a bit more… even happier than what someone like me would define as happiness. And I sincerely hope that this wedding today marks the beginning of that.”

Whoosh-

A flame shot up in the large candlestick at the front.

As the white flame, like Evan’s mana, flickered, a white moon rose in the sky that had been darkened by the magicians’ touch. And as stars spread like paint beside it, Evan quietly rose from his seat and began walking forward.

“The groom will now enter.”

Clap clap-

Evan felt his face grow hot at the growing applause. As he made eye contact with each person clapping for him, he slightly frowned at Kaisel who was playfully smiling at his nervousness.

People chanting his name, his shoulders twitching at the playful voices calling him. Yet he didn’t dislike it, and his lips twitched into a smile. Sometimes he heard someone’s voice saying “Evan is a god!” but in his current mood, he could laugh even that off.

He still wasn’t immune to praise. That’s why he had refused titles like “hero,” and truthfully, even the title of viscount didn’t quite suit him. The status of knight had been most comfortable, but as Evan listened to his name being called by countless people, he laughed helplessly and looked ahead.

“What are you doing, not coming quickly?”

It reminded him of the day he first met Airin. Back then, when he was sitting on the bed looking around blankly, hadn’t Chris opened the door and asked what he was doing? Recalling his childhood memories, Evan, walking with a somewhat stiff posture, finally reached Chris.

“Nervous?”

“A little… very nervous.”

“It’ll be over soon anyway. Besides, isn’t the most important part after the wedding?”

After their private, frivolous conversation ended, a loud trumpet sound erupted around Evan. Knights, each holding a large trumpet, blew in rhythm, and the imperial military band appeared on both sides, maintaining their ranks.

Ba-baba-babam!

There was supposed to be someone else to sing the wedding song, so what was this about? As Evan stared blankly, Chris leaned in and whispered to him.

“They said it would be strange if it was quiet, so they came personally to provide music for your entrance. Just ignore them. They were worried about how you’d look standing there blankly.”

“…I understand.”

Whew, Evan quietly exhaled heavily and turned to face the seated guests. Making eye contact with each one, he bowed sincerely to express his gratitude.

As applause poured down again, he smiled awkwardly for a moment, then everyone’s gaze, including Evan’s, turned to the end of the garden. After the groom’s entrance, there was only one person who should follow.

His heart showed no signs of calming, so Evan pressed his chest and quietly gazed ahead.

His heartbeat began to quicken. When that door opened, Evan couldn’t possibly imagine what Airin would look like coming through. Unless he had seen her face before the entrance, but he too was seeing her for the first time since the wedding began.

After what felt like an eternity, Chris slowly opened his mouth in the quiet garden.

“The bride will now enter.”

In that moment, the woman in pure white who appeared in the distance was enough to leave everyone in the space speechless. Neither the trumpet sounds nor the applause that had filled the space could be heard. The sight of Airin Yuris, walking forward with the duke’s hand lightly held, seemed as beautiful as an elf in this moment.

The flowers lost their color. The stars and moon lost their light, as if all of it was concentrated on one person. Hadn’t he seen a similar scene in this garden before? Evan opened his mouth slightly, and Airin quietly smiled.

Snow-white hair, followed by a snow-white veil, snow-white gloves and dress. Everything was pure white without exception. Yet amidst all that whiteness, her blue eyes still sparkled.

While staring blankly at Airin, Evan felt a gaze directed at him. The old man, the duke, who was lightly holding Airin’s fingertips beside her, had his eyes on him. Evan realized this and slightly bowed his head.

His gaze was much gentler than before. When Airin first told him she was pregnant, how fierce his eyes had been. But as time passed, now familiar with the title of father-in-law, he merely smiled slightly at Evan.

As Airin, brushing aside the fluttering flower petals, stood before Evan, the duke stepped back, and Evan quietly opened his mouth.

“…So that’s why you told me not to come early.”

“I thought Evan might find it hard to bear, so I’m glad I said that.”

That languid voice made him smile again. Indeed, if he had seen this sight in the bride’s waiting room, it would have been hard to bear in many ways. Even in this situation, he was experiencing a clash between reason and instinct. Evan closed his eyes tightly, then smiled faintly as he looked at Airin.

“You’re beautiful. As always.”

“Evan is handsome too. As always.”

“You’ll need to get used to it now. After today, it’s a face you’ll see every day.”

“I like that.”

Airin turned her head toward where Chris was standing, and eventually murmured in a voice only Evan could hear.

“It’s what I’ve always wanted.”

#

It was a face they always saw. A face they saw when waking up, before going to bed, while eating. Yet why did their faces feel so unfamiliar to each other today? It felt like the first time they realized their feelings.

The memory of when they first recognized their affection, touching their cheeks whenever their eyes met due to the heat rising in their chests. It was just a year ago, but at this long-forgotten excitement, Evan and Airin slightly bowed their heads to hide their flushed cheeks.

Yet their gazes didn’t falter.

Like the diamond in the ring reflecting each other’s image, those jewel-like eyes held each other’s gaze despite the passing time. If there was one thing that hadn’t changed since they first met, it was those eyes. Recalling the time that had passed, the two shrugged their shoulders as if planned and stared at the bouquet in hand.

Airin felt a strange sentiment about that bouquet.

She never imagined she would be holding it herself, standing in front of Evan like this with such a thing in her hands. She had thought if she ever held one, it would only be catching one thrown by someone else. The wedding that hadn’t felt real even when she entered wearing a dress was now starting to feel a bit more tangible.

“Now, we have someone who has prepared a congratulatory song for the bride and groom.”

Hearing the mention of a congratulatory song, Airin quietly looked toward the guest seats. Only one person was quietly rising from that place: the imperial crown prince, Kaisel. As he stood up, people closed their mouths tightly and began to widen their eyes at the situation.

Even the military band that had been blowing trumpets dropped their instruments, and even the duke stood up from his seat and watched the scene blankly. As everyone was shocked by the fact that only Evan and Airin knew at this gathering, Kaisel, being poked in the side by Scarlet, cleared his throat and opened his mouth.

“Um, I said I would do it. Do you mind?”

Who could object to that? As Kaisel stood in an empty corner of the garden to sing the congratulatory song, everyone focused on him with wide eyes.

In that situation, the only people who could genuinely smile were, of course, Evan and Airin.

…While recalling Kaisel’s singing ability, which they already knew well.