Chapter 1241 – #290_Proposal(2)
#1235
1.
The marriage culture of Gehenna is practically defunct.
There’s little recognition that people who love each other should marry, and hardly anyone views the institution of marriage with a romantic eye.
The reason is simple, no need to overthink it.
Because they don’t do it.
When a witch meets a human, the time they spend together is fleeting, and even when a witch meets another witch, one of them usually leaves behind an apprentice witch and departs first.
If humans pledge eternal love even knowing it’s impossible, then witches are the ones who harbor skepticism because they know it’s impossible.
Every apprentice witch begins her life as a witch after losing someone dear to her.
So, a witch’s perception of marriage can be summed up as, ‘Oh, that romantic thing humans do?’ My great-aunt had been telling me to have a wedding since before the war, which was probably a roundabout way of saying, ‘Stop adding to your harem and settle down, okay?’
“Marriage, huh.”
Siwoo, who was suddenly kicked in the shin, felt a bit wronged.
The witches in the Box – Arca, the goddaughters of Las Werpanas, and even Duke Erelim weren’t exactly harem candidates. It wasn’t like I had some sinister motive for not immediately preparing for the wedding that had been talked about since before the war.
Moreover, Siwoo was a modern person.
He wanted to have a wedding and thought he should someday.
But wasn’t all of Gehenna too busy?
If it was such a big occasion, I wanted to do it in a calm, yet lively and cheerful atmosphere, which is why I had been putting it off.
“What should I do…”
The problem was, I had no idea where to even begin.
I’ve done a lot of monster hunting and magic research, but this was my first time dealing with a wedding.
In times like these, you need the help of someone with experience.
2.
“A proposal?”
“Yeah, of course, it starts with a proposal, right? See this? This.”
“Oho.”
Takasho, in a nonchalant pose, took a drink and showed off the wedding ring on his left ring finger.
Takasho started as a Gehenna public slave, became a hostess bar madam, and then married Count Adonai, a feat unprecedented in Gehenna’s history.
He was forced into a support role, overshadowed by Siwoo’s spectacular achievement of having a nine-great-witch harem, but he was still a senior when it came to marriage issues.
“Isn’t a proposal just a formality these days, since everything’s already decided? Especially for you. Just give them a ring, and it’s over.”
Siwoo and his lovers were already deeply connected.
I didn’t have to worry about being rejected even if I proposed out of the blue.
Plus, I had the ability to support them all, and I had no worries about reality.
That’s why I wanted something more.
“I want to create a touching event. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime thing, so I want it to be a precious memory that we’ll cherish forever.”
“Isn’t the bigger problem how to proceed with the ceremony? Is it going to be a joint wedding for nine people?”
“I don’t know yet. More importantly, you must have proposed too. How did you do it?”
Takasho, who had been teasing me with a grin for a while, said.
“It probably won’t be much help.”
“You never know.”
“I put her in a chastity belt, teased her with outdoor exposure walks, and said I’d give her the key to the chastity belt if she married me.”
“……”
“I put the wedding ring inside beforehand while putting on the chastity belt.”
What did I just hear? What did he put where?
Siwoo’s head spun.
“Thanks. But doesn’t the Count mind you saying this to me?”
“My wife’s a pervert, so it’s okay.”
“Ah.”
Siwoo was sometimes scared of Takasho’s couple.
Anyway, as if to say the jokes were over, Takasho gave me some sincere advice.
“But hey, you’re planning a grand event, but isn’t sincerity more important than formality?
“Are you going to say something weird again?”
“No, honestly, all your lovers are good people. They only look at you. They’d be more touched by a sincere and heartwarming event from Duke Shin Siwoo than by expensive gifts or fancy events. Just looking at Sharon, I can tell.”
Surprisingly, he wasn’t wrong.
Siwoo found his own answer in Takasho’s response.
If sincerity could be conveyed, then the superficial things didn’t matter, right?
“Thanks. You’re going to be the emcee, right?”
“Of course. I’m really moved. Is this really the same Shin Siwoo who was a pathetic, cowardly Joseon guy digging ditches while whimpering?”
“That was a long time ago.”
The two men chuckled and continued to drink and reminisce until late at night.
“Today’s agenda is the wedding, and who goes first.”
Amelia, Odile, Odette, Sharon, Eloa, Rinne, Kybele, R’lyeh, and Dorothy.
Among the lovers gathered in one place, an agenda that could easily escalate into a brutal knife fight was unfolding.
There was an unspoken rule in Siwoo’s harem.
‘Compete for love, but get along well together’ was it.
In other words, fierce competition could occur at any time as long as it didn’t cause any hard feelings.
Especially if the issue was as important as marriage, no one would give an inch and would engage in fierce bidding competition.
A fierce battle of wits, a deep calculation to present the most plausible justification, and a high degree of political thinking were intertwined like a tangled thread, creating intense friction.
Odile and Odette predicted that a meticulous political battle was about to begin.
“……”
In this battle of wits, taking the first step was like throwing oneself into an unknown current without any clues, so no one readily spoke first.
Of course, there was someone who didn’t read the atmosphere at all.
“Shouldn’t I be the first, of course?”
“Tch, I don’t like you these days.”
Our sea queen, the one and only R’lyeh.
These days, R’lyeh’s pride had reached the stratosphere, if not the moon.
And for good reason. She was one of the people whose reputation had changed the most in this war.
Not long after joining Gehenna, she led the right-wing forces to stop the Eastern Corps and forced the Time Witch, the enemy’s leader, to surrender.
As a result, R’lyeh’s reputation was soaring daily.
The strange ridicule that a grown witch was strutting around in the Young Ladies Club instead of the salon had completely disappeared with this achievement.
R’lyeh, who had always claimed to be the best even when no one acknowledged it, was now receiving public recognition?
It was the birth of a terrifying confidence monster.
“I am the queen of the entire ocean, praised even by the arrogant scholars of Gehenna. It is only natural that I should be the first to have a wedding. You should be grateful that I have not taken you all as concubines, and you should pay me three generations of respect.”
“Absolutely not!”
“Hmph, no matter how much you little ones object, my decision will not be reversed. The queen’s word is heavier than gold.”
R’lyeh struck her signature pose, raising her pointed nose and placing her hand on her hip.
Odile and Odette looked at Dorothy with urgent expressions.
Dorothy, R’lyeh’s aunt, was always the brake that restrained R’lyeh when she went on a rampage.
If she gently soothed her, saying, ‘Now, now, Your Majesty, please don’t do that. We should all get along,’ R’lyeh would give in and say, ‘Is that so? It can’t be helped.’
However.
“Dorothy, could you please…?”
“Huh~? Why~? What~? Ah~ that’s right. Where should we go for our honeymoon~?”
Dorothy had broken down!
Ever since hearing the news of the wedding, Dorothy had been emitting a fluffy field around her.
She was twisting her body and twirling her hair with her fingertips.
A field of the happiest bride in the world, completely isolating herself from reality and burying herself in her own flower garden.
A wedding.
Could there be a sweeter word in the world?
Darling becomes honey, honey becomes darling.
The other lovers, seeing Dorothy swaying and humming as if pleasantly drunk, realized there was no hope.
Then there was Sharon, the backup brake.
R’lyeh, who liked people who listened to her, followed Sharon, a wise listener, quite well.
But.
“Ehehe… A wedding? Me? With Siwoo? Really?”
Unfortunately, Sharon was also broken.
Ever since hearing R’lyeh’s news, Sharon had been unable to escape her rosy future plans.
As someone who was well-versed in modern culture, Sharon had a strong romantic view of marriage, just like Dorothy.
“Ugh! Sharon, snap out of it!”
“I’m so happy… my reason keeps getting blurry…”
“Get a grip!”
“Sis! She’s a lost cause! Then how about the Duke!”
Duke Tiferet was quite fond of Odile, Odette, and R’lyeh.
It was somewhat like the kindness of a teacher towards her students.
Even the unruly R’lyeh tended not to resist that warmth.
But again…
“……”
“Duke?”
“……”
“Ah…”
Eloa was also staring blankly into space.
It wasn’t a blankness caused by shock or horror.
It was a state where happiness, having reached its limit, was actually impairing her perception.
Only then could Odile and Odette look around.
Rinne was similar to Eloa.
She was always expressionless, so Odile and Odette couldn’t easily guess her feelings, but…
“Rinne, can you hear us?”
“We can’t hear you?”
“I can’t hear you.”
Something was strange.
It seemed like her eyes were unfocused.
“Vice-Professor, Amelia?”
“……”
Even Amelia, who had started to become less scary these days.
“Kybele, hey! Kid! Can’t you hear us?”
“……”
Kybele Periwinkle, who had joined the harem last, also had no reaction.
It was a chilling sight, like being the only one sane in a group under mass hypnosis.
The only ones who were still in their right minds were Odile, Odette, and R’lyeh.
“Hahaha! Look at this! Except for you little ones, everyone else is obeying my decision, isn’t that right?”
“Whatever.”
“Oh, well, it’s a lost cause today.”
It seemed like the meeting would have to be rescheduled.
That is, a day when everyone had prepared their minds.
