Now that Sansui had returned home, the members of the Wynne family gathered together to hold a proper discussion about the wedding. The plan was for the Shirokuro family and Blois’s parents and siblings to meet and work out the concrete details. Once everyone was assembled in the mansion’s grand hall, Sansui began by sharing the conclusion he and his wife had reached.
“We’d like to keep the ceremony as small as possible, limited to close family. From my side, I’ll invite only Master Suiboku and my sword students. If you could keep it to about the same number on your side...”
“What? Blois, are you really fine with that?”
It was Chette who cried out in surprise. Being, in many ways, a typical woman, she seemed startled that Sansui wanted such a modest wedding.
“It’s a once-in-a-lifetime ceremony, isn’t it? And you have the budget for it—why not do it in style?”
“U-Uh...”
It was such a reasonable and cheerful suggestion that Blois found herself at a loss for words. Truthfully, she didn’t dislike the idea of a grand wedding either.
“Um... Master Sansui, I hesitate to say this, but you’re not pressuring my sister into this, are you?”
Seeing her sister’s hesitant reaction, Chette cautiously admonished Sansui. A groom who completely ignored the bride’s wishes hardly seemed proper. As an older sister, it was only natural for her to speak up.
“That’s not it, sister... I do long for a beautiful ceremony too, but...after what happened at the last wedding, I just think it would be inappropriate for us, who are under Sepaeda’s banner, to hold something so extravagant...”
Blois’s words were deliberately roundabout, but they conveyed the couple’s underlying concern.
“I don’t think Lord Sepaeda would object to you two having a happy wedding, though,” Chette replied.
That’s...true, actually.
To that, Sansui, Blois, and even Lain silently agreed. If they tried to make it even larger than the previous joint wedding, Sepaeda’s lord would surely tell them they were out of their minds, but within the bounds of a normal ceremony, he likely wouldn’t complain. Especially since this marriage had the lord’s official blessing; if they didn’t do it properly, they might even get scolded for it.
“Chette’s right,” said Hetter, the heir to the Wynne family headship. “And it’s quite rude not to invite people you’re normally close to. If you cut down the guest list too much, it could sour future relations.”
That was a reasonable point. If a family you were close to held a wedding and didn’t invite you, you’d certainly feel slighted. Even if the bride and groom weren’t close to certain households—or perhaps especially if they weren’t—those people would expect an invitation. Not being invited could be interpreted as an unspoken signal that the hosts had no wish to maintain friendly relations. And “we didn’t mean it that way” wouldn’t fix the insult.
“You understand that too, don’t you, Blois? You’d feel bad if a close friend didn’t invite you to her wedding.”
“Brother, I don’t have any close friends.”
Blois’s flat response instantly dampened the mood.
“Ah...I’m sorry. I don’t have anyone to invite either...”
Sansui spoke up as if to preempt any pity they might direct at her. He and Blois shared nearly the same circle of acquaintances—meaning none at all in ordinary society—and so they suffered equally when such topics arose.
It wasn’t that they knew no one, but most of the people they did know were nobles or high-ranking officials who couldn’t realistically be invited. Their social circles were narrow and skewed toward authority. It had never really bothered them—until now.
“Excuse me...?”
“What?”
Hetter and Chette exchanged baffled looks.
If the two had been living as recluses deep in the woods, like Sansui once had, it might make sense—but as functioning members of society, how could they have no friends?
“Wait, seriously? Normally, you meet people at parties, get to know them, find common interests, and before long you’re complaining about the same things together—that’s what friends are.”
“Exactly! Surely you have at least someone like that. Someone of similar birth and upbringing, maybe a little different, and you compare those tiny differences and—well, that’s friendship!”
They weren’t talking about dramatic, oath-bound friendships, but the kind of ordinary adult relationships that mixed a little sincerity with a little pettiness.
“No... There’s really only Sansui.”
“And for me, it’s basically Blois.”
After all, the two of them had served together as Princess Douve’s bodyguards for years—just the two of them. Their isolation from normal social life had been unavoidable.
“Oh, Blois... You’ve really been through so much...”
“All this time, working for the family, never even having the chance to make friends...”
Her parents looked at her with sympathetic eyes. And in truth, they weren’t wrong.
“Come on, Chette, Hetter, stop saying silly things.”
At that point, the youngest sister, Lyra, could no longer stand it.
“You’ve completely ruined the atmosphere! How are we supposed to talk about the wedding when the bride and groom are depressed and our parents are crying?”
“Sorry.”
“My apologies.”
Lyra hadn’t wanted to take charge—after all, the newlyweds were supposed to be the stars of the discussion—but her elder siblings had been so tactless that the mood was beyond repair. She decided she had to take matters into her own hands and quickly steered the meeting back on track.
“Anyway, if Blois and Master Sansui want to limit the guest list, then let’s do it that way. You can still have a gorgeous ceremony even with fewer people.”
She began by addressing Chette’s earlier point. Even with a small guest list, they could still make the setting elegant with lavish decorations or a high-class venue.
“And as for not slighting close acquaintances, you can visit them beforehand or invite them to something like a party before the wedding. People might complain if you do it after, but if you do it before, they’ll probably let it slide.”
That addressed Hetter’s concern as well. If not inviting them to the ceremony was the best option, then greeting them in advance was the next best thing. It might be troublesome, and some might still grumble a bit, but not enough to cause a fuss.
“Then just invite the Wynne family, Chette’s in-laws, and Hetter’s wife’s relatives—and that’s it! That should be enough.”
“Oh... That’s so simple.”
“Lyra, you’re brilliant.”
The bride and groom applauded the youngest sister’s quick thinking. It would take some extra effort, but it was a practical compromise—minimizing risk while keeping up appearances. Perhaps there were other possible plans, but this one was more than sufficient.
“Though there’s one thing I’m still confused about,” Lyra added. “Master Sansui, how many people are you actually planning to invite?”
“Eh? Oh, just a few close students, I suppose...”
“But aren’t you the Grand Instructor of Warfare? Doesn’t that mean all the instructors under the Sepaeda family are technically your students?”
“I...had better double-check that.”
The title Grand Instructor of Warfare was something Sansui held in name, but he had yet to start the actual duties. He was supposed to oversee the instructors who trained the nobles and provide them with advanced lessons to further improve their skills. Exactly how that was meant to work, however, he still didn’t know. Would he summon each instructor to his home? Travel to their estates? Or do both? Would he only train those who requested it personally—or those whose lords requested it?
I may have accepted this job a little too lightly...
It was only then that Sansui realized—his new position was basically a management role. And as that fact sank in, he found himself quietly regretting it.