Chapter 1251 – #291_Wedding

#1245

1.
The hallways were decorated with vibrant orange flowers to match the wedding atmosphere, the ballroom was filled with hosts dispatched from Rose Glass serving on silver platters, and the glass garden was opened for the outdoor reception.

Hessed Academy was bustling from lunchtime in anticipation of the wedding.

Witches packed in so tightly that there wasn’t even room to step, exchanging greetings with acquaintances or casting subtle glances of rivalry at each other’s attire. Carriages filled with wedding gifts lined up at the wide-open main gate. The scale of the wedding was so grand that everything was extraordinary.

“Goodness… a joint wedding with nine people.”
“I never dreamed I’d see such a sight in my lifetime.”
“You never know what might happen in this world. There’s even a male witch who became a Grand Duke of Gehenna.”
“Indeed, who would have imagined it?”

The witches who received invitations and rushed over, thinking, ‘I can’t miss such a rare spectacle!’

As their reactions show, this joint wedding, decided upon by the couples, was unexpectedly well-received. It was so different from the reaction when Siwoo’s dating rumors first surfaced that it was almost bewildering.

Well, there are several reasons for this.

“They say heroes are fond of beauty.”
“Well… the favors he’s done for us are too great for us to criticize him for this.”
“The upright Duke Tiferet has given his approval, so it can’t be a purely licentious relationship.”

First of all, the groom, Shin Siwoo, was hailed as the savior of Gehenna and was given the special title of Grand Duke, not just ‘Duke’.
His brides were all meritorious individuals who made remarkable contributions in this war.

In Gehenna, where the principle of ‘respect for those who are qualified’ is prevalent, this joint wedding was surprisingly within the realm of acceptance.

It’s similar to how no one would have said much if Duke Erelim had suddenly taken three wives and four concubines and held a wedding.

Siwoo’s current status and influence are by no means inferior to Duke Erelim’s at his peak.

Of course, not everyone accepts it that way.
Even in the witch society, jealousy is bound to be directed at those who are successful.

“Honestly, I’m not sure if this is right… Isn’t there a limit to how much a hero can indulge in beauty? Even with three wives and four concubines, it’s only seven, right?”
“Hey, can’t you see the Hessed Duke’s guards over there?”
“Gasp!”

One witch, who tried to gossip, couldn’t break her old habit and quickly shut her mouth.
At the end of her gaze were witches with cold and icy auras, stationed everywhere like security guards.

They were the ‘Daughters’ of Duke Shin Siwoo.

In fact, even in Gehenna, many people who weren’t high-ranking officials didn’t know about the Daughters.
The only thing that was certain was that they were Duke Shin Siwoo’s daggers, and their loyalty to him was absolute.

There were even ominous rumors that if you gossiped about them, you would be dragged away somewhere like an anti-establishment figure caught by the secret police.

“I advise you to be careful with your tongue from now on. The Daughters aren’t the only ones who revere Duke Shin Siwoo. Can’t you see the members of the Basic Studies Department over there?”

As she said, it was true.

“Our department head is getting married… Is this how it feels to send off a child to marriage?”
“Lady Linne is finally getting married… Ah, I’m at peace…”

The researchers of the Basic Studies Department were wiping away tears with handkerchiefs, experiencing the ending scene of a vicarious romance.
They were also known to be a group of zealous followers who filled their inhuman workload with loyalty to their department head.

“There are also the witches in the ‘box’.”

The witches of Arca, who usually stayed in one mansion and didn’t go out, also attended the wedding today.

“Eek! T-there are too many people… I can’t breathe… I think I’m going to have a panic attack… I need a narrow, secluded, and deserted place…”
“Where would you find such a place… After holding me so tightly. After acting like you’d take responsibility for me for the rest of my life…”
“It’s a joyous occasion. Cheer up.”
“So what if he’s married? He already has nine wives, right? Let’s aim for the second wedding.”
“That’s right, that’s right.”

The witches from Arca, wearing white veils and sticking together, were moving as one.
If you overheard their conversation, you might think they were a bunch of goofballs, but they exuded an aura of intimidation.

It was already a well-known rumor in Gehenna that they would be joining the Basic Studies Department led by Duke Shin Siwoo.

These were just the major followers, and if you included his connections, there was no need to even mention it.

“It’s been a while, Department Head. How have you been?”
“I’ve been well. And I’m not the department head anymore.”
“Ah… There’s something I wanted to ask for advice about regarding the department’s operation…”
“I’ll tell Count Kohab about it, so shall we talk again later? Since it’s a joyous occasion, I want to focus on today’s events.”
“Yes, then…”

Former Duke Erelim, who had made her first official appearance since her retirement, was still surrounded by the heads of the Truth and Enlightenment Academic Conference.

And former Duke Blanche Erelim was the secretary of the current Hessed Academy Head.

Considering Gehenna’s political structure, where personal relationships are more influential than official power, it was safe to say that the Truth and Enlightenment Academic Conference, which had previously opposed Shin Siwoo, had completely sided with the Hessed Academy.

And that’s not all.

“Oh my, you’re here too?”
“Of course, it’s the department head’s wedding.”
“I’m glad that Duke Tiferet has also found a good match.”

Since Shin Siwoo had begun to exert a tremendous influence on the current world’s location points, even the branch managers of location points from all over the world gathered to offer their congratulations and make their presence known.

It was unprecedented in witch history for so many prominent figures to appear and present congratulatory money and gifts.

“Anyway, it’s best to be careful. There’s nothing good that can come from being disliked by a duke in Gehenna.”

The witches who had been subtly trying to criticize him while showing their ugly jealousy zipped their mouths and huddled in the corner.

2.
The number of brides was quite large.
The bride’s waiting room, where they were preparing for the highlight of their lives, was crowded with witches.

Since it was a joint wedding, the bride’s waiting room was also combined into one.

“Oh my, look at my beautiful babies…”
“Odile, Odette, come here. Let me hug you.”

Albiereo and Deneb were teary-eyed.
Odile and Odette, who had been wrapped in white cloths and crying, were now wearing pure white wedding dresses…

Albiereo and Deneb, who were unusually dressed up today, carefully wiped away their tears so as not to smudge their makeup.

“Master, why are you like this?”
“We’re not kids anymore…”

Odile and Odette also trailed off, looking embarrassed, but their eyes were also strangely red.

“Don’t be too nervous. Is there anything uncomfortable?”
“Do your shoes fit well? Do your feet hurt?”
“Everything’s fine, Master.”
“Master, you shouldn’t wail during the bride’s entrance, okay?”
“You little rascals…”

Attending the wedding of their apprentice witches as mothers.
What witch in the world would have such a precious experience?

Even Albiereo, who didn’t like everything about her son-in-law, and Deneb, who was secretly tormented by her affection for him, were grateful today.

“Dorothy, you look beautiful.”
“Oh my, oh my~ I’m being a nuisance. It was so hard to get the dress made, you know? How is it? It doesn’t look too puffy, does it?”
“No, of course not.”
“It’s really hard when it’s too big~”

In Dorothy’s case, Arin Tiandra, the ‘Witch of Faith’ who had a past with Dorothy, came and did her makeup herself.

It might seem like a soap opera, but Arin had cleanly settled her past, and since there was friendship between the two, it should be okay, right?

“Boss! Congratulations on your wedding!”
“I told you, I’m not the boss anymore~ Ah, can you put the wreath over there?”
“Once a boss, always a boss!”

There were quite a few other people who came to visit.

Recently, a large number of exiled and public witches had flowed into Gehenna, and it might sound strange, but Dorothy was a popular arms dealer in the past.

As Dorothy exchanged greetings and congratulations with her old acquaintances, she looked around and spoke to Linne, who was sitting quietly alone.

Linne had no friends, so Dorothy felt it was her mission to befriend her.
Well, she wouldn’t care at all, though.

“Linne, you look pretty today?”
“……”
“Especially your figure is so slim that it must have been easy to choose a dress.”
“Shut up.”

Linne ignored Dorothy, who was teasing her.

She could roughly guess what her intention was.
She probably felt sorry for Linne, who had no attendants or guests, but it was meddling.

Right now, she was just trying to control her overwhelming emotions.
She was also embarrassed by the frilly clothes she was wearing for the first time in her life.

“Linne, congratulations on your wedding.”
“Oh my! Oh my! You’re so beautiful!”

But contrary to expectations, there were guests who came to visit.
Miya and Cocoa, the ‘Twin Flowers of the Archipelago’, who had tried to kidnap Siwoo before and were kidnapped instead, were claiming to be Linne’s disciples.

“What are you doing here?”
“Of course, we came to congratulate you!”
“As disciples, we can’t ignore our master’s joyous occasion, can we? Anyway, congratulations!”

If anything, the only thing they remembered about her teachings was being beaten up.
But perhaps because it was such a happy day, Linne smiled slightly at their shamelessness.

“Thank you for coming. Eat a lot before you go.”
“Yes! Hehe.”

Miya and Cocoa smiled brightly at the honest well wishes from their fierce master.

“Y-Your Majesty… C-congratulations…”
“To the Kingdom of Nukella… Glory… Glory… Glory…”
“Oh, you’ve come a long way!”

Ruelle also had guests who came to visit.

The elite crew members who had been with her in Akula for a long time came in droves, wearing suits instead of their usual military uniforms.

It was commonly known that the ego of familiars was suppressed, but Ruelle’s crew members had a steadfast loyalty to Ruelle.
They had to be invited to this joyous occasion.

“Laken… Laken… The Foreign Minister… has also come…”

They also brought a framed picture of Lakenlaken in his lifetime.

“Hmm… Is that so…?”

Ruelle was a little uncomfortable.

Her relationship with Siwoo began when Siwoo killed Foreign Minister Lakenlaken, so bringing a picture of Lakenlaken to her wedding with Siwoo seemed like a high-level insult to the deceased.

To be honest, she didn’t miss the Foreign Minister as much as she used to…

Lakenlaken had also destroyed the whale graveyard that Ruelle had cherished in the past, hadn’t he?
He had also collapsed the torpedo room.
But there was no need to show it since they had made the effort to bring it.

“U-um… Anyway…! Since you’ve come all this way, enjoy yourselves!”
“Your grace… is boundless…”

The merman familiars bowed their heads in unison.
If you looked closely, they seemed to be shedding tears of emotion.

“Ugh! Seriously! This is infuriating!”

Kibele was lucky.

The chances of her tripping and falling or having her makeup smudged by a minor mistake were as slim as the chances of a meteorite colliding with Earth and causing the end of the world.

The problem was that the necklace around her neck was restricting those good fortunes.

For Kibele, who had always been able to get by ‘luckily’ even when she moved carelessly, this inconvenience was even more noticeable.

She had to be careful with her steps when wearing heels.
It was a thought she had never had in her life.

Thus, Kibele had fallen flat on her face three times today.
If she hadn’t been a spirit, she would have had to limp into the wedding hall.

Sharon, who had helped the stumbling Periwinkle up several times, asked her casually.

“Periwinkle, is it because of that? The necklace.”
“Huh? That’s right. I never knew heels could be so uncomfortable in my life.”

Kibele grumbled.
Of course, it was her choice.
It wasn’t just about being played by the whims of fate, but the starting point for controlling it.

Conversely, it also meant that it was an inconvenience she had to endure for her magic to advance.
‘Completely blocking’ the unconscious manifestation of luck was also the starting point of control.

But for Sharon, who had a lot of ups and downs in her life and was suspiciously unlucky in investments, it was a very privileged concern.

“Just in case, I’m just saying, but instead of restricting that luck with a necklace, can’t you pass it on to someone else? Just a little, just a little bit.”
“Someone else?”
“There’s an unfortunate witch here who needs some leftover luck.”

Sharon smiled slyly and pointed to her chin.
Even though it was full of self-interest, it was such a cute gesture that even the picky Kibele couldn’t help but chuckle.

“See, you look good when you smile, right? Don’t be too nervous, stay calm, stay calm.”
“Nervous? Me?”

Kibele’s usual style was, to borrow Siwoo’s expression, a red carpet actress look.
She had been wearing dizzying stilettos for over a hundred years, so how could she fall so easily just because she lost a little luck?
That’s how nervous she was.

“You’re always so kind.”
“Oh, what do you mean? I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Sharon had seen through that and was comforting her indirectly with a joke.
Kibele, who realized that she was nervous, paradoxically became a little less nervous.

“Aren’t you nervous?”
“Nervous, hmm… um… I am nervous. It’s Siwoo’s and my once-in-a-lifetime wedding. But honestly, I’m so tired and exhausted from preparing that I just want to finish it quickly and go on a trip. Give me back my romance…”

Indeed, she had been busy since dawn, preparing makeup and dresses, and greeting the members and researchers of the Elemental Department who had come to visit.
Contrary to Sharon’s flowery imagination, the wedding was a grueling event that sucked up all her energy.
Nevertheless, the deep dimples on Sharon’s cheeks showed that she was happily accepting even that hardship.

“Didn’t you know that when you go on your honeymoon, you’re so exhausted on the first night that you can’t do anything?”
“Really? No way. Siwoo seems like he’ll be fine…”
“Well, he’ll probably be fine for three days and nights.”
“He’s going to have a hard time tonight.”

Before they knew it, Sharon and Kibele were whispering and giggling, exchanging naughty jokes.

“Amelia, let’s see. Our baby.”
“Sophia, I told you I’m fine now? I’m not crying. And I’m not a baby either.”
“Sob sob sob, our shut-in Amelia is getting married…”

It was the same when she had her first child, but Amelia’s wedding was also a touching event that made Sophia’s heart ache.

“She would run away if I just tried to talk to her, and if I asked her to go out, she would say, ‘Ha, do you have nothing better to do? I have to do research, so go alone,’ and when I tried to give her relationship advice, she would just repeat, ‘Shin Siwoo is mine!’ and now she’s getting married…!”
“Sophia, other people can hear you! I’m going to get angry, okay?”
“We all know that’s what the associate professor was like, though?”
“That’s right.”

Amelia was embarrassed, and the twins were chiming in with little comments.

“Just once! Let me hug you just one more time!”

Amelia, who had been like a doll, rejecting all interaction with others.
Amelia, who was wearing a white wedding dress and smiling wryly.

Sophia, who couldn’t believe that they were the same person, made exaggerated sound effects and hugged Amelia tightly.

“Oh dear… Sophia, don’t cry.”
“I can’t help it, the tears keep coming… sob sob…”

“Thank you, Sophia. For being my friend.”
“Waaah! Saying that at this moment is a foul! A foul!”

Amelia patted the back of her precious friend, who had been by her side for a long time, as if she were comforting a child, and smiled faintly.

“Lady Eloa. You look so beautiful.”
“Teacher Sua. It seems you’re having fun teasing me today.”
“How could a girl tease her noble lord? I never speak empty words.”

Many people came to congratulate Eloa as well.
Everyone made way for Branch Manager Sua, who came last.

Teacher Sua, who always looked stern and serious, smiled so much that her white teeth were visible, looking at Eloa, who was embarrassed today.

The joy of seeing her friend, who had been suffering from the pain of loss and long self-reproach, finally find a place to settle down.
What could compare to this joy?

“Teacher Sua.”
“Yes.”
“If I ever have a child, would you be willing to be their godmother?”
“Of course.”

Just as Teacher Sua was feeling a heart-wrenching emotion and hugging Eloa tightly,

“Brides, please prepare for the final preparations.”

The wedding was about to begin.

3.
“Wow, look at all the people…”
“It looks like it’s starting.”

The witches who were packed into the wedding hall became quiet.

“Thank you to all the guests who have taken the precious time to come and bless the precious couples who are getting married today. I am Mimaya Takasho, and I will be the master of ceremonies today. I’m so honored to be invited to such a precious occasion and to be the master of ceremonies, my heart is fluttering.”

Takasho, who had gladly accepted Siwoo’s request to be the master of ceremonies, continued the proceedings.

Takasho, who had now become a respectable businesswoman beyond just being a hostess bar madam, was proceeding with skillful ease.
Every time she heard laughter or applause, her heart pounded wildly.

“Now, let me introduce the first protagonist of today. Everyone knows her. She is our Pink Duke, who established the location points and contributed to the stability of Gehenna. Duke Eloa Tiferet.”

According to the original order, the groom would enter first, followed by the bride, but because there were so many brides, it was slightly reversed.
That meant that Siwoo would be the last one after all the brides had entered.

Thunderous applause could be heard from beyond the large door.

Some were mixed with loud whistles and cheers.

“Ah, I’m curious.”

Now that all the introductions were over, when this door opened, nine beautiful brides would be waiting for Siwoo.

Because they had insisted on keeping it a secret, he hadn’t seen them in their wedding dresses even during the rehearsal.
He had heard that Flora’s Dress Shop had taken on the job, so they must have put a lot of effort into their outfits.

How beautiful would they be?

One by one, the lovely brides entered with introductions, and the sound of time passing could be heard amidst anticipation and tension.

There was a slight hesitation mixed in with the anticipation and tension.

Suddenly.
He felt that this door, which would soon open with Takasho’s cry of ‘Groom, enter!’, was the last page of a large book.

If this journey was a novel, then now was the moment when Shin Siwoo, a former slave from Gehenna, became the strongest in the world, brilliantly overcame an unprecedented crisis, became the de facto leader of Gehenna, and entered a splendid wedding.

Many things he had experienced so far became faint memories, fluttering before his eyes.

The time when he struggled as a slave, got involved with Odile and Odette, and filmed a chaotic escape from slavery.
The time when he spent a peaceful growth period with Amelia, and after a long conflict, they understood each other and finally had a precious child.
The sweet urban romance fantasy he spent with Sharon in Sinchon after falling into the present world without knowing anything.
The time when he defeated the Red Knight with his master, who was suffering from the loss of Lapi, and went through the master-disciple, lover, and married couple tech tree.
The time when he was suddenly kidnapped by Ruelle and made all sorts of memories together in a submarine.
The time when he met Dorothy, a public enemy who was ambiguous about whether she was good or evil, and almost lost her, but barely got her back.
The time when he was kidnapped by Linne again and suffered all sorts of hardships in Hexennacht.
The time when he ended up with his older sister Kibele, with whom he had only been close as a younger brother and older sister.

Memories of the villains he had once fought to the death, the people he had briefly met, and the people who were no longer in this world also left their traces in the middle of the pages of memories.

Looking back on this long journey, this question remained.

Could he have done better? Could he have had a more wonderful ending? A small regret.
Choices I couldn’t make back then, and regrets like, ‘What if I had done this back then?’
Past stories that can only be looked back on, not changed.

In the end, things have turned out well, but even so, not everything was the best choice.

Perhaps there was a future where more people could have smiled brighter with less pain.

“Now, for the final protagonist of today… I’m sure you’ve all been waiting!”

Takasho’s introduction announcing the groom’s entrance began, and Siwoo grabbed the doorknob. The hesitation also faded with the cold sensation of the doorknob on his fingertips.

“The head of the Hesed Society, the Grand Duke who saved the crisis of Gehenna, the one and only male witch, and the wild stallion of the century who shakes women’s hearts with just a glance…”

There’s a long life ahead to just keep running while looking back.
Because there are people waiting ahead that he will have to take responsibility for for the rest of his life.

Still, I did well enough, right? It’s enough to laugh it off with a sense of relief mixed with regret.

“The groom! Shin Siwoo! Please welcome him with applause!!!”

Along with the cheerful music of the orchestra, Siwoo opened the tightly closed door.

Amelia, Odile, Odette, Sharon, Eloa, R’lyeh, Dorothy, Linne, Cybele.

Amidst the pouring lights and the confetti bursting and fluttering, at the end of the lavishly extended aisle, his beloved lovers were waiting.

With shy smiles and the hems of their white dresses fluttering.

-Fin-