Chapter 181: Wedding Ceremony I (2/2)

A story that anyone from this world has likely heard at least once. The story of how this world came to be.

As the acting priest told that story, eventually the story came to an end, and the ceremony finally got to the interesting part.

“—The groom to be wed, Hyuzu. Do you take Rurunez as your lawful wife, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and cherish until death do you part? …Do you swear this in the presence of the gods” [Acting Priest]

“I do.” [Hyuzu]

“—The bride to be wed, Rurunez. Do you take Hyuzu as your lawful husband, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and cherish until death do you part? …Do you swear this in the presence of the gods?” [Acting Priest]

“I do swear it.” [Rurunez]

“Very well. I, Arafral, stand witness to your oaths, and the permission of the gods to a newly formed husband and wife, I—” [Arafral]

…?　Hmm? What is it all of the sudden?　For some reason, the priest, Mr. Arafral, suddenly stiffened up.

According to the order of ceremony, by this point in time, a new entry should appear under the ‘Titles’ section of the status board, stating their ‘married’ status and the name of their partner. So, something like ‘husband of ___’ and ‘wife of ___’ should appear there. This is the proof that the gods have accepted their marriage, and it is only upon confirming the presence of such titles on the status board that the marriage will then be declared to be complete. Or, at least, that’s how it’s supposed to go anyway, but…

A few seconds passed, but Arafral was completely stiff, not moving an inch.

To be more precise, his body had gone stiff and only his eyes were moving. He seemed to be staring at Hyuzu- and Rurunez-san’s status board.

…I have a bad feeling about this.

“What’s going on?” [Ryouma]

“Did the title not appear?　Have the gods not acknowledged their marriage?” [Camil]

“That’s impossible. It’s true that there have been weddings where the titles didn’t appear and sham marriage scammers were arrested, but those are rare incidents. No, in the first place, there’s no way Hyuzu would get in trouble for something like that.” [Jill]

Jill-san was really agitated.

Did the titles really not appear?　Or maybe something bad popped up instead?

Since Mr. Arafral keeps staring at the status board, then maybe it’s the latter?

Or maybe he just can’t read it because his eyes are bad.

Whatever it is, can he just say something already!?

“………………Mu?” [Arafral]

I don’t know if it’s because my feelings got across or because he was taking so long that the murmuring guests have gotten loud enough for him to hear, but either way, Mr. Arafral raised his head at long last and realized the situation at hand.

“Umu. Please excuse me… Umm… You can all be at ease, for the gods have indeed acknowledged their marriage!” [Arafral]

When he said that, everyone heaved a breath of relief. But in that case, just what was he staring at so badly?

“But there’s more!” [Arafral]

Hmm?

“The groom and the bride have each received a blessing from three gods. This is indeed one of the rarest things I’ve seen in all the years of my life. I truly pray from the bottom of my heart that this pair of husband and wife never forget the oath they’ve sworn today, be thankful to the gods, and work together from here on out to build a wonderful family.” [Arafral]

Mr. Arafral quickly explained why he went stiff a while ago, and then proceeded to bring the ceremony back on track.

Unfortunately, the only one who could keep up with this sudden turn of events was apparently just me. Most probably because I was already – for various reasons – used to their antics.

Hmm. Given the timing, though, the three gods Mr. Arafral was referring to are probably Kufo, Rurutia and Willieris-sama since it was their idols that I sculpted for this wedding.

“…But whoever it is, they probably did something after watching the ceremony unfold…” [Ryouma]

For a moment, everyone went blank, but then gradually, that blank turned into joy, and then very quickly, into a boisterous dance.

The guests cried out blessings at the newly married couple as loud as they could, while Hyuzu-san and Rurunez-san hugged each other even though they didn’t really understand what was going on.

Unfortunately because of this, the banquet, which in a sense, could be said to be the real main event of the wedding, will probably have a hard time impressing the guests more than this.

No, not probably. Definitely.

“Can you believe this?　The gods are blessing us!” [Hyuzu]

“I knew I was right to choose you. Yes. I’m sure that must be it.” [Rurunez]

Hyuzu-san and Rurunez-san were so elated that they looked like they were about to cry.

That was an unexpected surprise, but I’m sure this will be an unforgettable ceremony to many.

I’m really happy for them… I really am.

I have a feeling that things might get a little scary after this, but that’s probably just my imagination. Or at least, I hope it is.