A Dreamlike Wedding
A certain royal’s Point of View
The prelude had been so overwhelming that I almost lost sight of why I had come here in the first place… No, I had completely lost sight of it until just now. Finally, the main event, the wedding ceremony, began.
The bride was more beautiful than I had ever seen before, adorned in a dress that shimmered like a water surface, changing colors with the light. Though a veil partially obscured her features, her beauty remained undiminished. Even through the veil, her exquisite face was clearly visible. She possessed the perfect proportions of a goddess of beauty, or perhaps a masterfully crafted statue.
Escorted by her father, the bride walked slowly toward the altar. With each step, soft rainbows fluttered from her dress. Both she and the mysteriously glowing, ethereal rainbow dress seemed like works of art—no, they were so fantastical and breathtaking that they hardly seemed of this world.
Who could have imagined that the wild child of the Rosarin incident would grow into such a beautiful and graceful woman?
Then, the radiant bride took the groom’s hand from her father’s. At that moment, small spirits showered them with flowers.
"This is…?"
Flowers? No, they weren’t flowers. It was the 'Blessing of the Spirits,' magic compressed into a tangible form. Such an enormous-scale blessing—I had never seen anything like it!
"Rosarin, congratulations!"
"Scary Rosarin, congrats!"
"Haku’s Rosarin, congratulations!"
"Songstress, congratulations!"
"Such a joyous occasion~!"
"Oneechan, congratulations!"
"… Congratulations."
"Rosarin, congrats!"
"Rosarin, be happy!"
"Oneechan, you look beautiful!"
"Oneechan, you did great!"
"Whooo!"
That radish-like creature… was it also a spirit? And that dragon over there… too? But that was just the beginning.
That massive, winged serpent—was it a monster? It was sobbing uncontrollably… The bride gently stroked its head. Next to the snake stood a beastman in an unusual outfit, looking exasperated. They seemed to be communicating. So was it a monster, after all? Strange flowers danced and twisted about, and even goldfish… Wait, were goldfish supposed to be able to fly?
The magic beasts, not to be outdone, performed their own display. They must have been celebrating their master.
"""Awaiteeeeed Oneeee!! Congratulationssss!!!"""
A colossal spirit descended from the sky.
The bride shouted something, and in an instant, the giant spirits shrank down. They scattered countless blessings and thrust gifts into her hands. Save that for later! A quick-witted girl was already collecting them.
"Rosarin-chan, congratulations!"
"Congratss!!"
"We came to celebrate!"
"The venue’s going to collapse! Please shrink down!!"
A gigantic fish, a red dragon, and a multi-headed dragon… weren’t those Bahamut, the Flame Dragon, and the Yamata no Orochi!? She even had connections with calamity-class monsters—just how was that even possible!? Was this really safe?! Yet, despite my worries, the monsters were merely here to celebrate. In fact, they were getting scolded by the bride.
Could this be a true utopia? Humans, beastmen, spirits, monsters, dragons… All races were gathered here, united in celebrating this wedding. A place where everyone smiled and spoke with one another. It was a sight I had once dreamed of… but long since given up on.
My country holds humans in special regard and considers beastmen to be an inferior race. But I knew the truth. When I was young, a beastman saved me. I knew that we were not so different. I had seen a happy human-beastman couple before. That was why I wanted to change these prejudices. But I lacked the power to do so… I could clearly feel my own jealousy and longing.
At the heart of this celebration stood Rosarin Burton, today’s bride. I wanted to speak with her. Rumor had it she was dedicated to fostering peace with beastmen. Christia, much like my own country, held humans in high regard, but I had heard reports that their policies had improved considerably. She had navigated these relationships masterfully. Whether for her husband’s sake or some other goal, it was hard to believe a girl her age had accomplished so much.
Then came the vows at the altar—but why were there so many priests?
Huh? One, two, three… There were four of them.
I tilted my head in confusion. Come to think of it, weddings usually had a symbol representing the deity being worshiped, but I didn’t see any here. Wait a moment—weren’t all four of them Popes!? Just how vast was her network!?
But I would soon realize that even this was just the beginning.
What do you think about this chapter?
