SIDE STORY 23
Terms used in this side story:
Spirit tablet – a tablet inscribed with the name of a deceased ancestor or relative, and could be found in houses where living relatives place food offerings for the deceased.
The marriage of Duke Jude August Bayer and d.u.c.h.ess Cordelia August Chase, the guardian G.o.ds of Pleiades and the guardians of the Sälen Kingdom, became a national event.
It was not an exaggeration to say that guests from all over the world gathered, and not only residents of the capital of the Sälen Kingdom, but also numerous people from the northern and southern regions of the kingdom headed to the royal capital to attend the wedding.
The wedding of King Henry II and First Queen Justina was not like this.
Tens of thousands of people filled the plaza, or perhaps it was hundreds of thousands of people.
Thousands to tens of thousands of tents were spread out outside the royal capital because of the sea of people.
Naturally, the wedding ceremony also proceeded differently from the usual procedure.
There was no touching officiant speeches, and the position of the bride and groom was different too.
Jude and Cordelia held hands together and went out in front of people to receive the cheers and blessings of everyone.
But there was one thing that did not change.
No matter how large the event was, or how different its format was, it was still the wedding of Jude and Cordelia in the end.
It was still a place that blessed the union of the two.
Count Chase stood still and watched Jude and Cordelia.
At the balcony of the palace overlooking the plaza.
Two people kissed in front of the crowd.
Jude was smiling.
Cordelia grinned.
The two kissed and brightly smiled as they exchanged rings.
Count Chase silently watched everything.
The congratulatory speech and declaration of Henry II were over.
White doves flew to the sky throughout the royal capital, and loud cheers that seemed to shake the entire royal capital erupted.
Cordelia cheerfully smiled again with a red face, perhaps because of embarra.s.sment or joy.
And the wedding was over.
It was a very happy day.
***
Count Chase, the father of Cordelia, was one of the more than ten people who were a.s.signed the best guest rooms in the royal palace.
But Count Chase did not immediately return to his room after the wedding.
There were many people who wanted to talk to him, but instead of meeting them, he quietly left the palace and headed for a certain place.
Count Bayer knew where Count Chase was headed.
So instead of scolding Count Chase for escaping alone, he helped his friend escape.
He drew the attention of people to him, and dealt with those who wanted to meet Count Chase.
The footsteps of Count Chase continued.
Having escaped the crowded royal capital, he stopped on a small hill.
It was a place where one could fully view the royal capital.
But that was not the reason he came here.
This place had a different meaning for Count Chase.
“Aerith.”
The mother of Cordelia.
The only woman Count Chase loved.
Countess Chase who no longer lived in this world.
Her tomb and spirit tablet was in the mansion of Count Chase.
This was the place where he first met Aerith Eloa, the daughter of Viscount Eloa.
***
For the n.o.bility, marriage was a kind of business.
A mutual transaction to get what they wanted.
Therefore, marriages of love like those of commoners rarely occurred to them.
In the first place, Jude and Cordelia had been engaged since birth.
There were only a handful of mutual love marriages like that of Adelia and Gaël.
It was a union between two families.
So in the central region where there were fewer lower-ranked n.o.bles than in the northern or southern regions, there were many extreme cases where they only saw the face of the other person for the first time on their wedding day.
Since the purpose of the marriage was a union between families, it was not uncommon for the age difference between the bride and groom to be large.
Young grooms and brides were sold like commodities.
The atmosphere had somewhat eased since Henry II, the current king, had inherited the throne, but when Count Chase was young – that is, before the reign of Henry II, marriages of love between n.o.bles were nothing more than a luxury and only found in romance stories.
That kind of era.
Having just obtained the qualifications as a wizard, Count Chase encountered the carriage of Viscount Eloa, whose carriage wheels were stuck in a pit on a hill leading to the royal capital.
And he fell in love with Aerith Eloa whom he first met there.
***
A fated love.
Mutual love at first sight.
It was not like that.
Count Chase fell in love the moment he saw Aerith, but not for Aerith.
She was two years older than Count Chase, and above all, she was already scheduled to be married.
Her partner was Viscount Xanadu who was twenty years older than her, and for him, Aerith was his third marriage partner.
“I want to visit the royal capital just once.”
That was why she, who lived in the Eloa Viscounty located at the edge of the northern part of the central region, came to the royal capital.
She wanted to visit the royal capital just once.
Viscount Eloa could not bear to refuse the request of his daughter who would soon be sold for her family and younger siblings to a man the age of her father.
Moreover, Viscount Xanadu was a n.o.ble from the southern region.
Considering the case wherein the two wives of the viscount had died early, Aerith was highly likely not going to become Viscountess Xanadu for the rest of her life.
Or rather, she did not know if she could even step out of the mansion alive.
“Have a safe trip.”
“Thank you, father.”
Her trip required a lot of money.
However, this was the first wish Aerith had made since she grew up.
Viscount Eloa sold one of the belongings of his wife which he cherished to make money for the trip.
The duration of the trip was one month.
Considering the location of the Eloa Viscounty, she could only stay in the royal capital for two to three days, and this was the limit.
To begin with, her wedding with Viscount Xanadu was only two months away.
***
Aerith had a strong sense of responsibility.
That was the reason she decided to marry Viscount Xanadu who was 20 years older than her and whom she did not know the face.
Because she had a lot of younger siblings.
She at least hoped that her young siblings would marry whom they wanted and get married in a good place with a lot of dowry.
Viscount Eloa was not incompetent.
But he owed too much money because of his terminally ill wife, and when his wife, the mother of Aerith, eventually pa.s.sed away, the financial situation of Viscount Eloa had already reached an irreversible situation.
So Aerith thought that she should marry a rich man.
Although Viscount Xanadu was old and had an unsociable personality, he was rich enough to support the survival of Viscount Eloa.
That was why she accepted the proposal of Viscount Xanadu at a party.
***
As mentioned earlier, Aerith had a strong sense of responsibility.
So she tried to not pay as much attention as possible to the handsome, good-looking, and very tall young man looking at her with a mesmerized expression.
But she could not do that when the knight-like young man used magic to lift the carriage instead of his strength or the horse he was riding on.
It was a surprise that the young man who looked like a knight was a wizard, so she had to express her grat.i.tude.
Aerith raised her head to face the young man.
Arthur Chase.
His young self before he inherited the Count Chase position.
“Thank you. Because of your help, I was able to get out of this difficult situation.”
As Aerith spoke her words of thanks, she thought.
What would he ask in return?
He helped her, so it was natural to return the favor, but her travel expenses were tight.
It was a trivial thought, but a realistic concern, and the fact once again made the heart of Aerith feel stuffy.
And at that very moment, Arthur spoke.
“You’re magical.”
“Excuse me?”
When Aerith unknowingly asked, Arthur Chase was completely fl.u.s.tered instead of continuing his words.
He was surprised by what he had just said.
“I mean, t-that is…”
The appearance of a handsome young man struggling with a red face was enough to spread a smile on the face of the young maiden.
Aerith knew that it was rude, but could not resist smiling, and Arthur Chase fell in love again at her bright expression.
***
“In the end, you’re saying that she has a good-looking face.”
“No, it’s not just her face that looks good.”
Alex Bayer.
Arthur replied very seriously to the point of Alex.
As a result, Alex became curious again and asked.
“Then which part of her do you like better?”
“I like all of her.”
“Okay, if that’s what you insist, so be it.”
Normally, the other would have retorted, but there was nothing this time.
Alex had a wry smile at the face of his friend who was still mesmerized, and soon changed his expression.
“Arthur.”
“Yes, Alex.”
“You said that she was married.”
“Not yet. She’s only engaged.”
“Are you going to play with fire?”
“It’s not like that. I am serious.”
“Arthur, it’s only been a day since you met her. In fact, you only met her for around an hour, from fixing her carriage to accompanying her to the royal capital.”
“I know.”
“You know and are still saying it?”
“Because she’s magical.”
There was no other answer.
Therefore, Alex decided to help his friend first.
It was funny for a young man to say such a thing, but a story that was like a midsummer night’s dream was one of the luxuries that only young people could enjoy.
But Alex Bayer found out before the day pa.s.sed.
Arthur Chase was as serious as he said.
Very much serious too.
***
‘Maybe fated love really exists.’
Arthur and Aerith fell in love.
In fact, he did not even know if it was natural.
The Chase family was one of the 12 northern families, and as wizards, their wealth was not small.
Moreover, Arthur Chase was a handsome young man.
No one could deny that he was better than her fiancé, Viscount Xanadu.
But Alex Bayer thought of fated love.
Because the Aerith his friend had met was not rude enough to ignore the marriage agreement that had already been made according to a profit and loss calculation.
‘But it won’t be easy.’
He was not necessarily higher or more powerful than a viscount just because he came from a count family.
It was definitely a different story if one considered that they were one of the 12 northern families, but that did not mean they could do what they want and pressure Viscount Xanadu.
In addition, Arthur Chase was from a northern family while Viscount Xanadu was from a southern family.
Even if he offered Viscount Xanadu a justification, it would not be easy to annul the upcoming marriage.
Or rather, perhaps it could not be nullified at all.
Arthur Chase was well aware of that.
So he decided to do something reckless.
He eloped at night with Aerith.
‘He’s crazy, crazy.’
They eloped because of love?
They run away together?
Does this make sense?
I can’t believe that my friend, Arthur Chase, did such a reckless thing that only happens in romance stories.
There was obviously an uproar.
The social circles were taken aback, and Viscount Xanadu took this opportunity to pressure the Chase family with the support of the southern region who wanted to criticize the northern region to their heart’s content.
He even requested for a duel, accusing the other of defaming his reputation.
Viscount Xanadu clearly did not come forward in person.
Enrico Luculia, the Sword of Heavy Pressure and one of the Ten Great Swordmasters, sent his nephew and disciple, Matteo Luculia, as the representative of Viscount Xanadu.
Matteo was strong.
He stood out at the Banquet of Swords and was even called a future member of the Ten Great Swordmasters.
He applied for a duel with Arthur Chase.
If Arthur refused the duel, his honor that was already in jeopardy would have been thrown to the ground, and if accepted, Arthur Chase was a wizard and not a swordsman, so it would be difficult for him to remain unharmed.
There was definitely a way to accept a duel against the representative of the viscount.
But who in the world was prepared to fight against great swordmaster, and a person said to become one of the Ten Great Swordmasters in the future?
In a duel wherein Arthur Chase was the one in the wrong in the first place, it would not be honorable to even stand up for Arthur.
“It’s always my task to settle things.”
Alex Bayer had a bitter smile as he drew his sword.
He did not listen to the words of his family.
He drew his sword for Arthur Chase and was called shameless for covering for his friend, but he did not care.
“Because the way of the wind is free.”
The young Alex Bayer did not know that his future self would kick his blanket several times in his sleep at those words he had uttered.
***
The wedding did not take place in a grand manner.
The marriage of Arthur Chase and Aerith Eloa was quietly announced by Count Chase, with only his family and acquaintances attending.
Count Chase raised his head.
He said to the person behind him.
“Your mother was a very lively and cheerful person.”
“Yes, father. I remember.”
Edward Chase took a few more steps and stood next to his father.
His mother died sometime after giving birth to his youngest sister, Cordelia.
The age difference between Edward and Cordelia was close to ten, which enabled Edward to remember their mother much more than his younger sisters.
“In a way, she was a bit extreme.”
“Indeed.”
Aerith often gave gifts to those around her.
It did not mean that she wasted her money just because she suddenly got married to a rich man.
Most of the gifts Aerith gave around were simple and cheap.
“She always carried candy or sweets in her small pocket.”
It was not just the young Edward and Adelia.
Aerith would hand out small gifts to the many people around her, including those who worked for Count Chase.
Count Chase also remembered that time.
So he whispered with a face full of longing.
“One day, I asked her. Why do you like to give gifts like that? Then Aerith replied: The precious time we can spend together is not forever. Maybe this moment is the last one.”
So when she could, she wanted to express her feelings even a little more.
Count Chase could not immediately reply to her unexpectedly heavy words.
And a few years later, Aerith died of the same illness as her mother.
He cried and cried until his tears dried up.
Count Chase became aware that his time without Aerith would last forever.
“Your mother, Aerith, was always right. Always.”
Count Chase walked forward. He hid his face from Edward as he slowly breathed to calm his emotions.
Perhaps Aerith had known at that time.
That her time was not very long.
“Edward.”
“Yes, father.”
“Do not hold back in expressing your affection to your loved ones. A single sentence of I love you and a small smile are worth more than a million flowers offered after the person is gone forever.”
“I understand, father.”
When did Count Chase began to give too many gifts to those around him?
Even though he spoke harsh words in his obvious shyness as he gave gifts.
Edward did not bother to attack his father.
But Count Chase attacked his son without hesitation.
“Of course, you have to find a person you love first.”
Edward flinched for a moment at the words that pierced him, but then said with a wry smile.
“It would have been great if Count Bayer had a girl.”
“Don’t speak nonsense and look around carefully this time. Almost all the n.o.bles of the kingdom have gathered in one place now.”
“I will try my best.”
“Don’t just try. Come up with results.”
What exactly was he supposed to answer here?
Edward viewed the royal capital instead of giving an answer in the end, and Count Chase stared at the ring in his finger that he had not removed even after nearly twenty years had pa.s.sed since she died.
He remembered the smile of Aerith and clumsily smiled.