by CHIROLU
When she set the plate of baked goods with their flower-shaped cream decorations down, it was like the table had been adorned with a bouquet of flowers.
Feeling like it would be a shame to see that beauty crumble, she shoved one into her mouth whole, puffing her cheeks up. It was even fluffier and more delicious than she had imagined.
“Ah, it’s delicious.”
“They must use the sort of butter that only high-class shops have...”
They also drank tea while chewing away.
Latina couldn’t help but smile when she saw her best friend’s outfit, which was now rather far along.
“You’ll be done soon, won’t you?”
“I suppose.”
“Um, Chloe, about Dale...”
Latina then explained Dale’s proposal to Chloe, only for an extremely doubtful look to cross her friend’s face.
“Hey, Latina...”
“Hmm?”
“What would you do if you were in my place?”
“Yeah...”
“I want to have a modest wedding fitting to my status as a commoner.”
“Right.”
“If a world-famous big shot hero showed up, and then performed the ceremony... Just how do you think it would turn out?”
“I don’t think I’d want him to do it,” Latina immediately replied.
He had been her fiance, and before that her guardian for many years, but still, considering her commoner mindset that reaction was quite natural.
“That’s how it is.”
“I see.”
Becoming too famous was a problem in its own way.
“I think it’s best to just do things normally,” Chloe said with a nod, a pretty typical attitude.
“Um, is it alright if I attend along with Dale?”
“Well, he is your fiance, so I have no reason to refuse, but... I’d certainly appreciate it if you could get him to restrain himself.”
“Yeah...”
In that way, Dale’s proposal ended up getting turned down.
The two didn’t bring up how much anxiety the priest who had to perform the ceremony in front of him would face. After all, Dale’s face and status were well known amongst Quirmizi priests. It would only become obvious on the day of that the priest in charge was even more nervous than the bride and groom, having to perform while being observed by a champion who was also a higher ranking priest than he was.
Let us pray for him.
A day in which it was a little cloudy, but not altogether bad weather... That was the sort of day on which Chloe’s wedding was held.
The wedding ceremonies in Kreuz were a little different than the one Latina had once attended in Tislow. As a priest, Dale had taught her that.
“This is the norm for Laband as a whole. I think it’s the same in different countries too, but it really does vary by region. But still, Tislow really is unique.”
“I see.”
Dale gave that simple lecture while walking alongside Latina, dressed in his usual outdoor attire. It wasn’t the sort of formal outfit he needed to wear when making an appearance in high society. Dale had gotten used to being called “deplorable,” but even so, he knew that if he dressed too nicely, it would make him stand out a bit too much.
“It wasn’t a mistake to attend, was it? It’s Chloe’s wedding, but it would be a problem if we screwed it up...”
“You shouldn’t worry so much about it. What matters most is your desire to celebrate their union.”
Latina had a worried look on her face, and was clad in a bright green dress. She had ultimately decided on that cute favorite of hers after all of her worrying about the matter. Part of her reasoning was that she wanted to wear something different from Chloe, who was today’s big star.
As far as accessories went, she just had on a golden hairpin and her engagement bracelet from Dale. Even so, that was enough to make her cuteness seriously stand out. Her greatest accessory of all, though, was the gentle smile that crept across her face when she prayed for her precious best friend’s happiness.
A certain faithful pup stood by Latina’s side, his tail wagging.
It was Chloe’s big day, so Vint’s usual poncho was brand new. Of course, it had been handmade by Latina.
“You’re always adorable, but it really is something special when you’re all dressed up, Latina. You’ll end up standing out even more than the bride!” Dale exclaimed, his usual sort of deplorable nonsense. He had said something similar back when his younger brother was getting married, which really called into question his “unshakeable” restraint.
“You said something like that before, but still... That sort of stuff’s really not okay, at least not for today.”
Because she strongly felt that the star of today needed to be her friend, Latina actually firmly shot Dale down for once. She even gave Dale a stern look while making an x with her two index fingers.
Still, though it was the norm, even if Latina tried to intimidate someone, the other person would completely fail to feel threatened. She was just far too much like a small animal.
“Woof,” Vint let slip rather listlessly. It was hard to judge under the circumstances if that was him agreeing with Latina, or him regretting how soft she was.
They were walking the same path towards the crafting district that she had traveled many times since she was a child.
She had made countless visits to her friend’s house over a long stretch of time. She had so many memories there it was hard to recall them all, from frivolous conversations to youthful discussions about love.
Chloe was going to move into a new home with her husband, so starting tomorrow, she wouldn’t live here anymore. Latina would no longer be paying the place frequent visits like she used to.
When she realized how much her everyday life would be changing, Latina’s eyes started to grow damp. But she just shook her head gently and drove the thought from her mind. If she were to start crying before the wedding even started, Chloe wouldn’t just be astounded, she would full on scold Latina. Latina somehow managed to get her thoughts back in order, with the image of her friend’s angry face in the back of her mind.
After being welcomed by Chloe’s parents (who were in even more formal attire than usual), Latina headed on inside.
There she was greeted by Chloe in her now complete outfit. Her friend was just the same as usual, not betraying a hint of nervousness.
“Welcome.”
“Yeah.”
Chloe’s clothing had a simple and refined look, lacking any frills or anything of the sort, making for what was perhaps an overly stylish wedding outfit. But still, it suited Chloe well. At first glance it appeared to be a simple unornamented dress, but when she moved a second skirt came into view, with a large red floral pattern on it. It had turned out to be a rather exquisite design, overall.
Latina held out a box containing a piece of jewelry, offering it to her friend.
“Here, it’s the broach I promised.”
“Thanks.”
Chloe nonchalantly accepted the box and opened it, only to freeze in place. You could almost hear the creeeeeak as she slowly turned to face Latina.
“Gah... Latina... I really can’t help but be scared of this getting stolen or something...”
Inside the box was a beautiful brooch, made up of a large ruby surrounded by elaborate golden ornamentation. The shining jewel alone would be so expensive that a commoner could normally never possibly lay hands on it. It made sense, though, seeing as it was meant to be a sample presented to the ruler of a nation. And there was no way Tislow wouldn’t go all out, considering the circumstances.
“About that, I thought up a bit of a good luck charm.”
Chloe’s timidness was only natural, but even so, Latina plucked a single one of her own hairs.
“It may not be all that pleasant, but here, I’ll entwine my hair like this.”
As she said that, Latina wrapped her plucked hair around the metal fittings o
n the back of the brooch. Her hair was so lightly colored that you would likely never notice it if you didn’t know it was there, at least when it was just the one strand.
“Right. And?”
“If I do this, he says he’ll be able to find it as long as it’s in Kreuz, at least for the next few days.”
A silence fell over the room.
Latina’s statement caused an awkward expression to flash over not just Chloe’s face, but Dale’s as well.
Apparently Latina was having the pup accompany her even to her friend’s wedding in order to guard, and if necessary track down, the expensive brooch. On the off chance someone was struck by a sudden urge to steal it, they would quickly be faced by a mythical beast’s hunting skills.
Vint was ready and raring to go with a triumphant look on his face as his tail wagged happily along. After all, it was only natural for this loyal hound to get fired up when Latina made a personal request to him. There really was no guarantee in the least that any potential thieves would be able to walk away unharmed.
“Well, it’s an auspicious occasion, so I can’t imagine anyone like that showing up anyway...”
“Yeah, that’s true.”
“Right. I don’t think you need to worry about it.”
While Chloe and Dale had more or less turned away from the reality of the situation, Latina wore a carefree smile on her face.
Neither Chloe nor Dale knew that Latina had thought her pup was just there in case it was misplaced. She hadn’t even considered the possibility of a thief.
Having regained her composure, Chloe affixed the borrowed brooch to her chest.
In an instant, her simple outfit suddenly became quite brilliant. Naturally the crimson gemstone played the main role there, but the tasteful outfit as a whole also served perfectly to help it stand out so well.
“Wah... You look amazing,” Latina immediately uttered, and Chloe was far from dissatisfied, herself.
She could set aside any manner of reservations for the chance to wear such a brilliant ruby, and honestly, she was overjoyed.
“It really is impressive.”
“Yeah. It really suits you, Chloe.”
It had always been hard to deal with the way she could say such things with an innocent smile, even when they were children.
Unable to handle such sudden praise from her friend, Chloe averted her gaze. Latina just tilted her head in confusion, but Dale noticed Chloe’s ears clearly turning red.
“Chloe?”
“You don’t really have time to be wasting right now, do you?” Dale interjected, extending a helping hand.
“That’s true!”
When Chloe suddenly stood up there was still some red to her cheeks, but Latina didn’t seem to notice. Dale, meanwhile, managed to stifle an awkward smile.
With that, they headed for the temple of Quirmizi, accompanied by Chloe’s family.
It was a commoner wedding, so it wasn’t exactly some splendid, complex ceremony. In fact, it was the bare minimum of a ritual, held before the altar. For that reason, it was the norm for the bride, groom, and attendees to simply gather at the temple of Quirmizi on their own.
Chloe’s wedding was no exception, and they chatted away casually on the way to the temple in the central district. The groom and his family were already waiting there. After a brief greeting, the group crowded into the temple.
As one would expect, Latina was looking curiously around the inside of the temple, which she wasn’t very familiar with. Fitting to being part of a temple to the god of the earth, the large space being used as a waiting room was decorated here and there throughout with reliefs of flowers and harvests. The wooden chairs lined up there had been polished until they were an amber color, with the wood grain showing beautifully. And the marble flooring somehow felt similar to the style used in Vassilios, which evoked a strange feeling in her.
The temple of Quirmizi had a rather relaxed atmosphere compared to those of other gods, so they didn’t question the pup accompanying the group. And perhaps because Latina had made sure to explain things properly in advance, Vint was behaving far more like an obedient hound than he normally would, simply standing by the Fairy Princess’s side and wagging his tail.
Dale was particularly surprised to see Vint like that, realizing that the pup really could get his act together if he tried.
The bride, groom, and their families headed further into the temple to offer donations.
Not long afterwards, the guests were lead into the room of worship by a priest. It was a wide-open space, filled with dazzling light.
The blue sky was clearly visible through the massive windows in the room. The bottom halves of the windows were stained glass, and the brilliant floral designs cast colorful shadows across the room as light passed through them.
The chairs had a rustic, simple feel, but when the shining light from the stained glass fell upon them, it created an otherworldly sort of space.
There was a stained glass window behind the altar, too. It had a harvest design on it, and the brilliant glass colored in the orange of the god almost seemed to give off light of its own to illuminate the room.
“Wah...” Latina let slip, seemingly unintentionally.
This was a room of worship meant for weddings, so she would normally never see it. This room meant for special occasions possessed a different sort of beauty than the noble manors and the imperial palace that she saw in the capital, a gentle one extolling the temple’s god. It really was no surprise that Latina ended up feeling such admiration.
Latina turned to look at Dale by her side, and then tilted her head a bit.
“Dale, you’ve got a sort of serious look on your face.”
“I guess you could call it an occupational disease...? I just get nervous when everything seems to be going as planned, I guess...”
“It’s not like I don’t understand, but please don’t go saying anything that will cause trouble, alright?”
The two whispered as they talked. Each of them held a single flower in their hand.
Each of the attendees present had one, and they were meant to be presented before Quirmizi. Just like in Tislow, in the Quirmizi temples across Laband, flowers were considered crucial for religious ceremonies. That meant there were many nearby florists contracted with it, in addition to business from passing flower merchants.
The families of the bride and groom were already seated in the front row, waiting for the ceremony to begin.
Before long, the doors to the room opened, and two priests came into view. They each gave a deep bow to the attendees, and then the guests started quietly whispering amongst themselves.
The priests then opened the doors wide. The first to enter the room of worship was a lone third priest dressed in formal attire. He had decorative orange cloth over both shoulders, which displayed rather abstract flower and harvest designs. The priest headed straight for the altar, then turned so that he was facing the attendees with his back to the window.
It was then that the bride and groom appeared, as if they had been awaiting that signal.
“Waaah...” Latina let slip, overcome with emotion at the sight of her best friend wearing the sort of gorgeous headdress considered the symbol of a bride. It was made using silk blessed by the temple, serving as a sort of protective amulet. Such headdresses, made of numerous trailing layers of silk and gorgeously decorated with flowers, were only ever prepared for weddings. The flowers were the orange of Quirmizi, and the headdress went perfectly with her dark hair and subdued outfit. It was impossible to see her as anything but a bride.
“She’s really getting married...”
The reality of the event hit Latina hard. She had been trying desperately to ignore it, but her ability to hold her tears back seemed at its limit, as her vision was starting to grow blurry.
When Chloe noticed her friend, she gave a strained smile that was very much like her.
“Why are you crying, Latina?”
“I don�
��t know... But I wish you happiness, Chloe.”
As she gave her blessing, Latina held out the single flower she had been holding close to her chest.
“...Right.”
Patrick was the one to accept it, but he turned and handed it to Chloe.
With a formal smile on his face, Dale also handed the groom a flower.
As they approached the priest waiting at the altar, the number of flowers held by the bride and groom continued to grow. Those bundles of flowers were then to be offered up to Quirmizi, as proof of how much the couple had been blessed by those around them.
The priest began a prayer. It was in neither Western Continental nor the language of spells, so only priests could understand what was being said. Still, the grace carried by the words was lost on none present. The guests naturally sat up straight, and their hearts were filled with thanks towards the god and prayers that the couple would be blessed in their new life together.
As the ceremony reached its climax, Latina was overcome with emotion and tears finally burst down her face.
Dale held her hand tightly as he recited the incredibly familiar prayer from memory.
By the time the ceremony was over, the handkerchief Latina had been holding was completely drenched.
There was no way that Latina could possibly hide how much she had been crying, so when Chloe saw her best friend like that, she gave a rather awkward smile.
“Seriously, why did you cry like that, Latina?”
“I don’t know... I’m not sure, I just kind of ended up crying...”
“Well, I guess that’s just like you.”
“I wanted Sylvia to see it too...”
When Latina mentioned the name of their other friend in Vassilios, Chloe broke out in a slight awkward smile.
“Sylvia... Well, what matters most is that she seems to be enjoying her work more than anyone, right?”
“That may be so, but still...”
It had been Sylvia’s dream since they were children to visit that unknown neighboring country, and now she was over there greedily gathering up all sorts of information about its climate and culture and the like. Latina may have been born there, but having been raised in secret in the depths of the shrine she didn’t even know basic Vassilios customs, so it was only a matter of time before her friend knew more about the nation than she did.
