THE two laughed and cried for some time, but once they eventually calmed down, Chris began to wipe Sonia’s eyes.
Oh, he’s wiping away my tears. It struck home they were lovers, making Sonia’s toes curl with embarrassment. But it nonetheless made her happy, so she let him continue.
Chris suddenly drew his face up close. Knowing what was to come next, Sonia lightly closed her eyes. But!
“...Let’s save the rest for later. I can feel several pairs of eyes glued to my back,” Chris said.
Sonia opened her eyes and peered over Chris’ back into the darkness. There, she found several masked men and women watching them, grinning from ear to ear... They were the King and Queen. Plus, the Crown Prince and the Crown Princess. Even Severin was there.
“...What is the Royal Family doing out here spying on us...?” Chris whispered resentfully.
✦ ✦ ✦
THE wedding was magnificent and grand. Seeing as the Central Church, Royal Family, and Clares collaborated on the arrangements, that was the natural outcome.
Chris’ own family, the Cortots, couldn’t dismiss the sense they were being shown up but knew there was nothing they could do about it. As the third-born son, Chris wouldn’t inherit any of the Cortot fortune. In other words, all he inherited from his parents was their surname. That notwithstanding, his family provided as much assistance as they could for the wedding, seeing as their son was marrying into the most prominent affluent nobility, the Clare family.
“If you were going to marry up the social line, I wish you’d kept it in reason,” his oldest brother complained with a sigh.
Chris had personally saved some of his stipend working as a knight, supplemented by the King’s secret assistance, allowing him to keep up appearances.
But I never expected it to be this extravagant... Chris thought to himself. The parade sprawled as far as the eye could see, down the long road bound for Clare Castle. Who knows how long it’s going to take to reach the castle so I can finally relax...
Chris had to fight for Sonia not to notice him stifle a yawn as she smiled happily next to him while waving at the masses.
Meanwhile, Sonia was of a similar mind. I-I’m exhausted... Jostled around in the open carriage, she waved to the masses and tried to live up to their expectant stares—she would endure this!
...Gah.... Lame jokes keep popping up in my head because I have nothing better to do...
Sonia regretted that she had underestimated just how massive of an undertaking the preparations for today’s wedding ceremony would be. In truth, the ceremony they had imagined was an old-fashioned wedding held reverently at her main residence of Clare Castle, with only a handful of attendees and the priest. Then they’d hold a reception in celebration for a few days. At least, that had been what she planned with Chris.
But then the Royal Family and Central Church had to butt in, claiming, “The two heroes of the century can’t have such a quiet, little wedding!”
Not like they’re providing any funding or assistance... I’m going to pawn this open carriage off on His Majesty. Behind her smile, Sonia was already calculating the Clare budget as the head of the household.
The carriage progressed slowly, and by the time they finally pulled out of the castle town, both Sonia and Chris seemed to release all of the tension in their bodies as they sighed, “Phew...” Having done it in unison, the two turned to look at each other and burst out laughing.
✦ ✦ ✦
“You felt the same, Sir Chris?”
“You too, Duchess Sonia? I’m already nervous enough as it is. On top of that, having to sit on display in this carriage is just plain exhausting,” Chris said. As he spoke, a dissatisfied expression formed across Sonia’s face. Chris tilted his head, finding this strange. “Is something bothering you?”
“You realize we’re husband and wife now, don’t you? It sounds distant when you call me ‘Duchess.’ Please don’t do that anymore.”
“Right you are!” Chris agreed with a lighthearted chuckle. He took Sonia’s hands and looked her in the eye as he said, “Sonia.”
There was something sexy about the masculine, low whisper used for her ears alone, making Sonia’s face burn red.
“...Say, um, what, pray tell, would you like me to call you?” she asked, still rattled.
Chris thought she was cute as he answered with a smile, “Whatever you want.”
“Ummm... ‘Sir Chris’ isn’t any different from what I’ve been calling you, but it’d feel a bit brash to simply say your name... What do you think of ‘Darling’?”
“That’s fine, if that’s what you’d like, Sonia.”
“Jeez! That doesn’t help me know what you’d like to go by, Sir Chris—Oops... I called you ‘Sir Chris’...”
Seeing Sonia grow flustered over her slip of the tongue, Chris laughed happily as he said, “There’s no rush. We can adjust gradually. We have a long future ahead of us.”
“You’re right. We don’t need to—”
Sonia’s mouth was covered—covered by Chris’ warm lips.
“Mmm,” Sonia moaned. After she made that stifled moan, his lips pulled away.
“The same goes for this. We’ve only kissed twice now,” he said with a wink. Something about him resembled a mischievous little boy. But even so, there was no hiding the confidence of a mature adult.
Chris was the strongest knight in Pharrell as the Diamant Knight in the Order of the Birthstones. Strong and resilient yet also cheerful and kind. Above all else, he loved Sonia. Thanks to him, her curse had been broken.
“Perhaps I’m ‘lucky’ for getting to marry such a wonderful man,” Sonia whispered, too quietly for her words to reach Chris’ ears.
“Did you say something?” he asked, looking at her intently.
“There aren’t any spectators around right now, so I was saying we should raise the folding head and enjoy some alone time,” Sonia answered.
“I fully agree.”
The footman overheard them and was considerate enough to take it upon himself to crank the lever attached to the carriage body. The folded cover spread open to form a roof. The moment the top fully closed, the footman noticed the two draw close together.
He jumped down from the slowly progressing carriage’s groom’s seat to join the coachman with reins in hand. It was best to give the couple some privacy for a while. They had plenty of time before the parade, where they would have to put on another show. The carriage rocked and creaked as it pushed ever onward. They rocked it enough that the coachman driving their carriage had to stay on his toes as he took them to Clare Castle.
What became of them after that? Much the same as any good story, but nonetheless, an ending everyone wished for more than all else. It was as simple as that.