By the Grace of the Gods (LN) - Volume 8 - Chapter 31

Chapter 5 Episode 31: The Wedding, Part 1

The next day...

“Hey! Are the bride and groom ready?!”

“They’re standing by, all ready to go!”

“We don’t have enough bags of petals!”

“We moved them yesterday! Go check!”

“Eighty percent of the meals are plated!”

“Most of the morning guests are already here!”

“We’ve got less than twenty minutes! Move, move, move!”

People were running all through the manor right from the wee small hours, and the chaos only intensified as the beginning of the ceremony drew nearer.

Meanwhile, I was walking out to the venue in my suit. Luckily, the sun was out in the clear sky, beaming rays warmer than the season warranted. Coming through the woods along its path, I could see a large congregation at the venue. As I approached the structure we’d all built together, I felt a presence of magic, and the change in the temperature. I had been told that volunteers were putting up magical barriers against rain and cold for the outdoor reception.

When I say “volunteers,” I mean members of the duke’s guards; they specialized in setting up defensive barriers around the manor, so they knew what they were doing. Naturally, their barriers were high-caliber and covered a large area. I could use some barrier magic myself, but experiencing the effect up close made me realize how much more effective the magic was when cast by a group rather than an individual.

“Ten minutes, people!”

Looked like I was running out of time to admire magic spells. I weaved through the moving crowd towards the altar.

“Ryoma!”

“Phew, you made it.”

“We were worried something might have happened to you.”

Camil, Jill, and Zeph were waiting for me there, along with the duke and duchess, Araune the housekeeper and Bahtz the head chef. The eight of us, four on each side of the altar, served as the wedding party. I was quite shocked to hear that I was included in said wedding party just that morning. Good thing I had a proper suit to wear... And a cleaner slime handy.

“Hm...” Jill muttered. “The ceremony’s starting.”

The bell situated across the venue from us let out a singular toll, causing the guests to quiet down, and part down the middle to form the aisle. The bell tolled again. An elderly man emerged from the woods, clad in a white robe and leaning on a cane. He was the officiant for the ceremony, the eldest gentleman in the duke’s manor.

Wedding ceremonies in this world were served to seek the approval of the gods, where the bride and groom stood before a witness and declared their sincere love and commitment for each other. Said witness did not need to be a clergyman; it could be anyone with high status in the community, like the village leader, a prominent blacksmith, or simply a respected elder.

The officiant for this ceremony was apparently an elf, and a spry 198 years young. He was also the duke’s medicinal technician, as well as a well-learned scholar in many fields of academia, serving as advisor to various departments.

He made his way up to the altar, accompanied by an assistant who looked ready to catch him if he should fall. We exchanged polite nods as he passed us and situated in the center of the altar.

Once he was presented with the bride and groom’s status boards, he announced, “We shall now commence the matrimony between Hughes and Lulunese.” Although he didn’t speak loudly, the elf’s deep voice carried across the venue. “The bride and groom will approach, with the blessing of those in attendance.”

The ceremony began with the bride and groom’s procession.

Jill chuckled. “What is he doing...?”

“Hughes is terribly nervous, isn’t he?”

“He’s so stiff.”

“The guests see it too. They’re trying not to laugh.”

Hughes had entered first, greeted by applause and petal tosses from the crowd. He was wearing a tailored tuxedo-like garment I’d never seen before. As he approached the altar alone, he continued to resemble a robot that needed some oil in its joints. Was he getting...stage fright? Hughes eventually stopped just short of the steps to the altar, and turned around.

Then, Lulunese came out of the woods, step by step, her pearl-white wedding dress fluttering in the wind. She too looked nervous as she walked towards her soon-to-be husband. They took each other’s hands and climbed up to the altar, their arms linked.

I heard a sniffle, and turned to see that Araune had begun to tear up, supported by Bahtz who seemed to be fighting back tears himself.

“Many years ago, there was nothingness in the world... Then, the gods created the heavens and the earth, the sun and the moon, the light and the darkness.”

The officiant began telling the story of creation, a part of the church’s teaching and a tale that everyone in this world must have heard at some point. Eventually, he transitioned to the main event of the ceremony.

“Hughes, do you take Lulunese to be your wife, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do you part, and pledge your heart to her...? Do you swear it before the gods?”

“I do.”

“Lulunese, do you take Hughes to be your husband, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do you part, and pledge your heart to him...? Do you swear it before the gods?”

“I do.”

“Very well. I, Araflal, stand witness to your pledges. The gods have approved the union of...”

Wait, what?

Araflal the officiant was standing there, frozen. At this point in the ceremony, the couple should have gained new titles on their status boards: “Married” and “Wife/Husband of (Insert Name Here).” These titles served as proof that the gods approved of the wedding, legitimizing the entire union.

The seconds ticked by, but Araflal remained immobile, save for his eyes which kept darting back and forth between the two status boards... This didn’t look good.

“I wonder what’s happened?”

“The titles didn’t appear? That can’t be... Could it be that the gods didn’t approve...?”

“That’s ridiculous. I’ve heard of a story where a fake groom was apprehended when the title on his status board betrayed him, but that was a rare fluke. And come on, this is Hughes we’re talking about...” Jill rambled, clearly unnerved.

Could it be that the titles hadn’t appeared? Had some more worrying titles appeared in their place? Seeing how Araflal kept staring at the boards, I was starting to become convinced of the latter. At the very least, it didn’t seem like his vision had weakened from his age.

Just say something already!

“Hm?” As if my silent plea (or the increasing whispers of the guests) had been heard, Araflal finally looked up. “Um. Excuse me, everyone... No need to worry. The gods do approve of their marriage!” Relief spread through the venue, and I was left wondering what he had been staring at.

“In fact...” he declared, “they have both received a blessing from the trinity of the gods. This is an occurrence I have not witnessed often in my many, many years of life. I sincerely hope that the bride and groom remain faithful to their pledges and the gods, and that they will build a wonderful family together.” Araflal made quite the smooth transition from explaining the delay to the usual course of the wedding.

It seemed that I was the only one who clued in to the gravity of what he had said, since I was familiar with those gods. The “Trinity” in this scenario might have been Kufo, Lulutia, and Wilieris, to whom I had dedicated those statues.

“Whoever it was, they were watching...”

The guests slowly thawed out of their shock, beginning to boil with cheers that soon culminated in an eruption of exuberance. The happy couple embraced, albeit a bit taken aback by the roaring congratulations from the crowd before them. At this rate, the reception was going to be a party to remember.

“Hey, can you believe that? The gods have blessed us, he said,” Hughes said.

“Yes... I suppose we were meant to be together.”

The bride and the groom whispered to each other, almost crying tears of joy. The blessing was a surprise, but it helped make the ceremony a memorable one. I was incredibly happy for them... And only slightly concerned about the reception later on.