My Happy Marriage (LN) - Volume 1 - Chapter Ep

  EPILOGUE  

The official engagement between Kiyoka Kudou and Miyo Saimori was a simple matter that required only a couple of signatures on an official document. It wasn’t a big step like marriage. Besides denoting the beginning of the waiting period before they’d marry, it didn’t really change anything between them. The situation between their families being as it was, there was no exchange of engagement gifts.

As for Kiyoka’s family, in his own words, they were leading a quiet life in retirement and didn’t need to be involved. Kiyoka and Miyo would probably need to see them at least once before they got married, as etiquette required, but they wouldn’t require their permission to tie the knot. As the head of the family, Kiyoka could make that decision for himself. He did contact his father, though, to tell him to stop looking for marriage offers for him. That was when Miyo learned his father had brought them together.

“He’s the one who coordinated the propositions. Whenever he would hear of a lady of a suitable age who matched his requirements, he would send a go-between to make the arrangements.”

Based on his weary visage, Miyo imagined that he’d had a rough time with the previous candidates. On what basis had Kiyoka’s father selected the prospective brides? She didn’t know the details, but if one of the criteria was being of marriageable age, then the only girl who fit that description at the Saimori house was Kaya, not her. Her family’s high rank was a remnant of their past achievements, so no one paid them that much attention. Definitely not enough to learn that their eldest daughter was living among the servants. Her father, Shinichi, must have decided to offer her instead because he was so loath to send Kaya away. Miyo wondered if Kiyoka’s father would be disappointed and angry when he discovered he hadn’t gotten his son the woman he’d bargained for. She expressed this worry to Kiyoka, who snorted dismissively.

“If he complains, I’ll turn him into a pile of ashes.”

Rather than reassure her, his savage remark made her worry for his father instead.

“…Regardless, that ship has sailed,” he added as they leisurely strolled the city after completing the paperwork.

“True.”

That day, Miyo’s parents had left the city for their new home in the countryside, and her sister had departed for the house where she’d be working. Miyo could have gone to see them off, but she hadn’t. She didn’t have anything to say to them anymore and didn’t feel she owed them a good-bye.

“I really made a mess of things,” said Kiyoka.

“Mr. Kudou…”

“I feel partially responsible for the incident.”

Kiyoka had told her earlier about his first visit to the Saimori residence, when he’d demanded that her family apologize to her if they wanted him to pay them the bride price. In Miyo’s opinion, that wasn’t an unreasonable thing to ask. She needed some form of closure. To Miyo, being ordered to leave her home to marry was almost synonymous with cutting ties with her family, but her family had soon shown her that they hadn’t seen it that way. Without a definitive end to their relationship, they would continue to mock and abuse her whenever they accidentally met in the city, and she would never overcome the feeling of inferiority they’d instilled in her. If they still had the opportunity to make her break down into tears and shiver in fear, she would never heal. She’d absolutely needed to sever the ties that bound them to her, to her past.

“Everything you did for me was necessary.”

“Miyo…”

“And I’m delighted you went to such lengths on my behalf.”

Having someone who cared about her, who was willing to do something—anything—for her, was a blessing. She’d forgotten that joyous feeling until recently. It was Kiyoka, Yurie, and everything that happened since she’d met him that had allowed her to experience that feeling again.

“Miyo.”

“Yes?”

They stopped, and he faced her, earnest and a bit tense. He took her hands in his.

“The future certainly won’t be all roses. I will do my utmost to protect you from any hardship, but I am a soldier. There will be times when I will need to leave you to fight, and the battles I take part in are extremely dangerous. Then there’s the matter of my personality… I’m a bit of a bore, but I’d still like to be by your side.”

“…”

“Would you marry me, difficult as I am?”

They’d met through a marriage proposition neither of them had asked for, but now Kiyoka wanted to set things right by formally proposing to her. Miyo smiled.

“You’re not difficult at all. If anything, it’s me who’s going to be more trouble. Are you sure you won’t regret having me as your wife?”

“Certainly. I chose you myself.”

“Well then, if you’d have me despite my many shortcomings, then I’d be happy to marry you.”

No one was there to witness the vows of the couple standing in the middle of a busy street, but they didn’t mind. They both preferred modesty to ostentation.

“Thank you, Miyo.”

Smiling at each other, they set off toward their small, warm home.