#461 Closing Ceremony

And so, the wedding ended without a hitch.

There was a lot of backlash from the ladies because of the bouquet toss, but we managed to contain the situation by promising we would make up for it.

Our guests return to their respective homes by teleporting.

“Please take this home with you, ladies and gentlemen,” I say to each guest and hand them a gift.

We give guests gifts as thanks for coming to the wedding.

What makes a standard gift?

After much thought, I concluded that it was a plate.

A plate large enough to hold all sorts of food.

I had Aileron and her team make it for us. The recipients would surely be delighted because it was made by elves whose works are all the rage in the capital.

But that’s not all.

We want to add a sense of originality to the gifts, something that would not otherwise be given on any other occasion.

Yes—a portrait of us as a married couple!

Elves and students with an artistic sense were given brushes to paint on the rapidly-baked plates.

Platy and I face each other and smile.

The painting is glazed, so it can still be used well as tableware. You put food on it, and when you finish eating, you see a portrait of us beneath.

It’s a typical example of an awkward gift you’re bound to receive.

One would think, ‘If you already know that, why bother doing it in the first place?’ But the agony that arises from receiving such an embarrassing gift is one of the true charms of a wedding.

I want everyone to experience the bittersweet feeling of a wedding in a way!

That’s why we’re giving them one! It’s the number one item on the list of the most annoying gifts!

A giant plate with the couple’s portrait!

***

At this time, I was oblivious.

For example, some plates weren’t used as tableware but were displayed as decoration in my world’s medieval Europe.

Such a custom also seems to exist in this world, and the gift I gave as a joke was understood to be for decoration and appreciation.

The guests were so happy they displayed it in their reception rooms and showed it off to their visitors.

When the visitors saw it, they were so impressed that they asked the host to reproduce the painting.

They made a facsimile of it and displayed it in their mansions and other public places.

Why though?

But that means the existence of the saint, who lives in seclusion, is now widely known and revered as an all-powerful person similar to a god.

His definitive image is sacred and has spread throughout the world as an object of idolatrous worship.

Thus, the images of the saint and his wife became famous as the subject of paintings.

Of course, I had no way of knowing that such a big deal would be made when I was preparing the gifts with a hint of mischief.

***

Thus, my special day with Platy has ended.

The guests were seen off, the venue was cleaned up, and we returned to our peaceful, uneventful lives.

We take off our wedding attire and go back to our everyday clothes.

Although the occasional dress-up is nice, I feel more at home in something I’m used to wearing regularly.

“Sorry we were away for so long, Junior. Granny’s arms must’ve felt different, huh?

Platy is happy to have Junior back after having Lady Mahi babysit him.

She was thrilled to feel like a bride, but her mind was still occupied with her motherly duties.

Junior, who had been content in his mother’s arms, reaches out to me next.

I take Junior from Platy and lift him in my arms.

We just had a ceremony that seemed like a milestone, but I didn’t feel anything significant changed.

But I guess that’s how it’d be.

We’ve been each other’s husband and wife for a long time, after all.

“...We did make some wonderful memories.”

“Yeah. We had a delicious cake, and I got to tease the other girls with the bouquet.”

That’s what’s memorable to you?

No matter, as long as Platy also had fun.

If there was one different thing, it was the ring on Platy’s finger.

It’s a simple ring, but it is proof that she is now a married woman.

A little change after all that buzz.

People change day by day through the accumulation of such things.

Now that our wedding is over, our farm is going through another period of change.

P.S.: Even days after our wedding, Platy was in high spirits.

***

On another note, the bouquet came back.

“I’m back!”

“Oh.”

You flew away into the sky, so we weren’t expecting you to come back.

“I need to ask Lady Platy to replenish me with her potion so I can keep flying.”

“Is there even any need for you to keep flying?”

The audience was disappointed because you just up and flew away.

Besides, the wedding’s over already, so why do you still want to keep flying?

Are you the type who feels a sense of mission in doing so?

“Oh, wait a sec. I’ll give it to you now.”

“You’re just going along, Platy?!”

You’re replenishing it with a potion to keep it flying?!

I’m having a hard time understanding what she’s doing.

Why don’t you just let it fall to the ground when it’s used up all of its power?

“But that’s not the way it works. It’s more beneficial to keep it flying.”

What good would come of it?!

As I was completely at a loss to understand what was going on...

“Look! It’s the bouquet!”

“Really?! Now’s our chance! Catch it!”

A girl passing by spontaneously jumps on the bouquet.

“Not so fast! Now that Lady Platy has replenished me, I’m good to go! You can’t catch me!”

And the bouquet flies again at lightning-fast speed, sweeping past the girls without difficulty.

“Ugh! It got away again!”

“Just you wait! We’ll get you next time!”

Why do they sound like cops...?

“No one could catch the bouquet on the day of the ceremony, right? So, the promise is still alive.”

“Huh?”

The bouquet isn’t meant to be ‘caught’ in the first place.

I think we need to reconcile our values here.

“The bouquet shows up on the farm from time to time, and the hopeful bachelorettes compete to catch it. But the bouquet is so fast that no one has succeeded yet.”

The bouquet has somehow been treated like a Liquid Metal Slime from Drgon Qust.

If you could beat (catch) it, you would gain a lot of experience (marriage experience).

However, the difficulty level wasn’t taken into consideration, as is the case with Metal Slimes; instead, it was a bouquet from Platy, who is famous for setting up a broken difficulty level.

Moreover, the reward for catching the bouquet is superstitious at most.

Nevertheless, the maidens still try hard to catch the bouquet, dreaming of the day when they themselves will wear wedding dresses.