Ch.31Coming of Age and Wedding Ceremonies (3)

“Congratulations, Your Highness.”

“This will make Burgon even more stable.”

The coming-of-age ceremony and wedding have more attendees compared to the coronation.

Back then, the war had just ended and the great uncle was still causing trouble, but now the political situation is quite stable, and there was no need to rush the ceremonies.

The northern vassals who couldn’t attend the coronation due to the great uncle’s interference are naturally present this time, and many minor nobles from the Bar region, which has become part of Burgon’s territory, are also in attendance.

Of course, there are many nobles from abroad as well as domestic ones. Among them, two can be singled out as the most important.

“Presenting the Count of Lorel.”

“Pleased to meet you, Count Lorel.”

First is Count Lorel, the man who will take the position when the current Duke of Lorel dies.

The Duchy of Lorel has a custom of granting the title of count to the heir apparent.

This tradition began because the Duchy of Lorel, located on the border between the Kingdom of Caroling and the Holy Empire, had many diplomatic affairs to handle, so they often assigned diplomatic duties to the heir. To match the rank of their counterparts, they started giving the heir the title of count.

“How is Ines doing?”

“Yes, she seems to like the Burgon Palace. She takes walks every night, saying how fascinating it is.”

“Haha, that’s just like her. Very quiet during the day… but becomes quite active once night falls.”

As Lorel’s heir and Ines’s older brother, he seems both delighted and somewhat unsettled about his sister getting married.

His face maintains a bright expression and his mouth continuously offers praise… but there’s a slight hesitation in his eyes.

There seems to be a conflict between the pride of seeing his sister grow into a proper woman and the complicated feelings about the child leaving the family’s embrace.

“I will take good care of her.”

“Thank… you.”

Count Lorel wipes the corner of his eye with his sleeve before continuing.

“She’s been listless ever since losing Father. Please help heal that wound so it can be washed away.”

“…Yes, of course I will.”

His sudden mention of the deceased father made me hesitate to answer, suspecting some ulterior motive, but looking at the atmosphere, there doesn’t seem to be any hidden agenda. He’s genuinely concerned about Ines.

Hmm… even so, mentioning the deceased so abruptly in this setting—it seems that losing a father at a young age was quite traumatic even for medieval male nobles with strong machismo.

“Uh… ah, ahaha… ahem, by the way, where is Ines?”

He seems to realize he just said something strange.

Realizing his slip of tongue, Count Lorel makes an awkward gesture, clears his throat a few times, and hastily changes the subject.

It’s an obvious attempt to change the topic, but there’s no need to point it out. I wanted to move away from this uncomfortable subject quickly too.

“She’s either in the dressing room or waiting for the right moment to make her entrance.”

“Hmm… but as the main character of this occasion, wouldn’t it have been better for her to come out early and converse with the others…”

“Ines told me she wants to surprise me, so she’ll appear when the time is ripe to show the best scene. That’s why I haven’t seen her in her new dress even once.”

“Indeed, Ines seems to like Your Grace very much. That’s truly fortunate.”

“Haha. Yes, it is.”

The vast majority of nobles have arranged marriages. If you’re going to marry anyway, it’s obviously better to do so with someone compatible.

From that perspective, Ines and I are quite lucky. Count Lorel is acknowledging that point as well.

Shhhhh—

“…?”

At that moment, the slightly noisy surroundings suddenly became quiet.

This scene feels very familiar. Certainly, during the coronation too—

“Master.”

“Ah, Chloe… is it?”

Once again, Chloe is wearing a dress that far transcends medieval style.

It’s a dress with the same black base and yellow decorations as before, but the atmosphere is completely different.

The previous dress was splendid and bold, but this one has an elegant and dignified atmosphere.

The non-reflective black dress gives a calm and mysterious feeling, while the yellow fabric and threads reflect light, shining like gold.

Unlike before, the skirt reaches down to her ankles but flares out toward the bottom, emphasizing her slender waist. The sleeves cling tightly to her arms, revealing beautiful lines without any exposure, creating a curious effect.

“You said… nothing flashy… how does it look…?”

“It’s very… pretty. Yes.”

Chloe asks for my opinion with a shy smile.

As I said before, it’s neither flashy nor bold. However… the problem is that it’s so beautiful it draws attention.

The fact that all the nobles who were chatting suddenly fell silent shows exactly how others feel about Chloe.

As a brother, I’m very pleased that Chloe is receiving such positive attention… but that shouldn’t be happening right now. Ines is the main character here.

Sigh… I hope Ines comes wearing a dress that draws even more attention…

“Chloe, where did you get that dress—”

“Oh… Duke of Burgon, might I be introduced to her?”

“Who— Ah… it’s you.”

Just then, a slightly oily voice interrupts my words.

I mentioned earlier that there were two important people among those who came from abroad.

One is Count Lorel, and the other is this person who’s now asking me to introduce him to Chloe.

“Pleased to meet you, Louis Dauphin.”

Louis Dauphin, the heir to the Kingdom of Caroling.

He’s a special envoy sent by the Caroling King to congratulate me on my wedding and to apologize for waging war over the succession issue of the Duchy of Burgon, aiming to restore diplomatic relations.

“This is Baronet Chloe, my lady-in-waiting.”

“Pleased to meet you, Prince Louis.”

“Lady Chloe, you are truly beautiful.”

“Thank you.”

Louis doesn’t acknowledge Chloe’s greeting and immediately starts complimenting her appearance.

Chloe responds with what can only be described as a professional smile, but Louis doesn’t seem to notice that her smile is merely ceremonial.

“May I ask… how old you are…?”

“…Twenty-one.”

“Twenty-one! Such a wonderful age, full of vigor!”

Louis is gradually moving closer to Chloe while pretending to just be talking.

Moreover, I can clearly see him desperately trying to suppress the corners of his mouth from curling up.

…You’re in your forties, I heard. Act your age, mister.

Chloe seems to have noticed Louis gradually approaching her, as cracks are starting to appear in her professional smile.

“Haha, she is young, isn’t she? Lady Chloe has been serving me as my lady-in-waiting since childhood, so I cherish her greatly.”

If he had brought up the topic of Chloe’s position first, it would have been quite troublesome, but I preemptively struck.

How dare you, already married yet eyeing Chloe?

“…Ah, is that so? You must be very attached to her.”

Chloe, who received my help, expresses her gratitude with a glance, and Louis, who was just flirting, returns to his original business with great disappointment.

That is, improving relations between Caroling and Burgon.

“Ahem… His Majesty from my country has sent many gifts to congratulate Your Grace on your marriage.”

“Oh… thank you, I will also prepare return gifts, so please convey my gratitude to King Charles.”

“Of course.”

Honestly, the spoils from the last war should be enough for gifts… but mentioning that would be like asking for a fight, wouldn’t it? I’d better just stay quiet.

“By the way… where is your spouse at the moment…?”

He’s asking the same question as Count Lorel.

Well, in this world, it’s common sense for the main character to appear before the ceremony reaches its peak to socialize.

Ines’s behavior would seem not just unconventional but strange to others—

Swish—

“…Huh?”

At that moment, all the lights in the banquet hall suddenly went out.

Only the sunlight coming through the windows remains as the sole source of light.

‘Is this… Ines’s doing?’

When we decided to hold the wedding right after the coming-of-age ceremony, Ines, upon hearing this, asked if she could direct the coming-of-age ceremony herself, which I gladly permitted.

Since I, as the Duke of Burgon, am also a protagonist of the wedding, Ines couldn’t decide everything on her own for that, but there was no problem leaving the coming-of-age ceremony entirely in her hands.

Flash—

Sunlight transforms into beams shining down on the platform, and the dust floating in the banquet hall reveals the path of light.

Following the path of light, I can see mirrors installed outside the windows precisely focusing sunlight onto the platform inside the hall. Since they’re flat mirrors rather than concave ones, the intensity of the sunlight isn’t too strong.

“…Ah.”

And there, in the spot where the sunlight converges, appears Ines in a pure white dress. Unlike her previous dress, this one has no ornaments, and she wears a sheer white cape that covers her shoulders in the front.

Ines’s already white dress becomes even more brilliantly white in the sunlight, and the sunlight creates what looks like a halo, making her appearance similar to that of an angel.

The darkened banquet hall and the sunlit platform create a stark contrast, further highlighting Ines’s attire and appearance.

…Beautiful, extremely so.

I’m not the only one with this impression—all the nobles here are gazing at Ines in a trance.

“Hehe, what do you think, Claude?”

“…Pretty.”

Though it’s just a simple and plain compliment, Ines seems very satisfied with my answer.

Her smile, illuminated by the sunlight, shines even brighter.