After a shocking completion of negotiations and a yearlong engagement, we were finally married.
The original plan was to hold the ceremony six months after the engagement, but about two months prior to the ceremony, an incident occurred in the country to the south that resulted in a minor conflict at the national border, so the duke was occupied with serving in the armed forces there. The Kingdom of Flür was blessed with warm weather, the flatlands yielded a good harvest, and our mountains produced a wide variety of minerals. Our resources were plentiful and the mood across the country was peaceful.
On the other hand, the country to the south was cursed with a hot, harsh climate that made the soil infertile, so most people sustained themselves by hunting. It seemed that they had set their sights on our calm, fertile soil. If one was to describe this general character of this hot-blooded nation, well... to put it nicely, they were passionate. To put it bluntly, they were easily whipped into a frenzy and were always quarreling with neighboring countries. Thus far, for reasons I can’t explain, we generally avoided conflict. This time, however, we were unable to avoid it, and a skirmish broke out. And naturally, when the armed forces were dispatched, so was the duke.
The fighting went on for several months and ended with a tentative victory for the Flür Kingdom. When life both inside and out of the country returned to normal afterwards, we held the wedding.
A whole year had passed since finalizing our contract... er, announcing our engagement by the time the wedding was held. I was on the verge of pummeling this man, whose engagement and face had nearly been erased from my mind. All the while, of course, I had kept the contract a secret from my family. They might have fainted at the sight of the roguish clauses it contained. I was probably the only one capable of enduring its contents.
And so we return to the beginning of my story, the day of the wedding.
Our wedding was held at the head sanctuary, the highest ranking sanctuary within the state church, located within the royal palace. To be allowed to get married in the palace sanctuary is a privilege granted only to royalty and a handful of notable, wealthy people. Rich brats—I mean... aristocrats—like the duke were at the top of the list of these notable people.
Hmm, once I’m somebody, I’ll get special treatment, too!
I wore a glamorous wedding dress provided for me by the duke’s family, made of the highest quality silk and liberally studded with beautiful, sparkling jewels. We were quite the pair, me in my dress heavily embellished with dainty, dazzling gems, standing next to the duke who radiated the air of a handsome prince. I felt like a walking treasure chest that day. The dress and jewels alone must have been worth a fortune.
And I, on the other hand, well... not so much. For me to be standing there next to this radiant, handsome duke... there must have been some mistake.
I see you over there. Could you not glare at me, ladies?
They were burning up inside, glaring jealous daggers at me. But somehow, I managed to avoid being stabbed to death by their fury, as I stood there on the altar next to him.
“Cercis Tinensis Fisalis, do you take Viola Mangelica Euphorbia to be your wife, to love until the end of your days?” The priest’s solemn yet beautiful voice echoed through the now hushed sanctuary.
“I do,” pledged the duke, his voice strong and unfaltering, his expression humble.
What a liar, I scoffed internally.
Oh no. If I can’t give a flawless performance like him, I’m done for!
“Do you, Viola Mangelica Euphorbia, take Cercis Tinensis Fisalis to be your husband, to love until the end of your days?” the priest turned to me and asked.
The duke briefly glanced down at me and I... delivered my line flawlessly!
“I do.”
I put on an excellent performance, albeit with some blushing. I’m quite the capable girl, you know!
The duke nodded in satisfaction, while the priest smiled and did the same. The show was a success.
After we mutually said our vows, there was the ritual of kissing the back of each other’s hands. The moment the duke took my gloved hand and reverently kissed it, sighs of awe escaped here and there throughout the congregation—or maybe I was just hallucinating. When I took the duke’s masculine hand and kissed it, I swear I heard someone tutting, but that could have been a hallucination, too. Our vows were a pack of lies, and easy ones to see through, at that.
Once the ceremony was over, all that was left was to sign the marriage certificate. For something that could so easily make our marriage official with a simple signature, it was an extremely daunting piece of paper. Normally, one says their vows in front of the priest and one’s beloved, and then signs the certificate which the priest then completes on behalf of the head sanctuary. This goes for weddings at other sanctuaries, too. Wedding certificates are completed by the priests in the head sanctuary, no matter one’s rank.
On a related note, suppose one takes the time to pull one’s wedding certificate from storage to get a divorce. The priests will be irked because the process for destroying the certificate is very bothersome for them as well—the certificate has to be torn to pieces and burned. Thus, I have heard that the priests will gently try to persuade couples to not get divorced. And since the priests are so stubborn, many people drop their plans for divorce, which is why it rarely happens in our kingdom.
Oh, I went off on a tangent, again. That’s why, when it came to the two of us, who seemed likely to divorce, I wonder if I was meant to hear the priests whispering afterwards that “it doesn’t matter if people put it away in storage when the contract is simple.” I must have been mistaken.
As I mulled over all these things, the duke was beside me signing the certificate, without hesitation, where it was laid out on the table on the altar. Then he passed the feather pen to me. He even had an exaggerated smile plastered on his face. Excellent performance, bravo. Please forgive my less than stellar performance, but I could only manage a sardonic smile.
I took the pen from him and signed. The moment I did, the duke and I ‘legally’ became husband and wife. Deep down, though, it all felt less like a wedding ceremony and more like a very flamboyant execution and signing of a treaty. The reception that followed was sheer agony for me.
If getting our debts repaid was some sort of game, I certainly feel like the loser here.
Yes, I’m sorry. That’s right—I should be grateful he even offered.
We moved from the sanctuary to a vast banquet hall—or rather, a reception hall—in the palace for the reception. The magnificent room was decorated with chandeliers positively dripping in crystals. I was dazzled. This was the most luxurious place in the kingdom for entertaining guests, where parties sponsored by the monarchs were thrown.
The duke’s family sure went all out, holding the reception in such an awe-inspiring location! They really know how to impress!
The duke and I were sandwiched between the king and the princess, sitting at the very front of the reception hall. We were looking right at everyone. Under normal circumstances, it was a position reserved for a brilliant leader, so I could not help but feel like I was being put on display.
The king rose and made some congratulatory address, but it was so long that everyone seemed to be falling asleep. While they weren’t paying attention, I took a quick look around. Lines of tables were covered in scrumptious-looking food and sweets. That reminds me—I haven’t eaten anything since breakfast. I’m starving. I had better pray that my stomach doesn’t growl. All things considered, there were a great many people in attendance. I had no clue who anyone was, but I’m sure all the nobility was there.
I spotted my family. It looked like seats had been reserved for them, with Father, Mother, and my siblings all at a table. This was the first time my brother and sister had ever been anywhere this fancy, and they looked frozen in fear. Poor guys.