A Special Garden Wedding
In rewriting this story once more, before learning swordsmanship in earnest I focused on building the most basic foundation—enough to at least swing a sword as part of a general education—through stamina training. During those sessions I sincerely reflected on all the times I had mocked Arlan while he trained with the knights. Of course, not everything. Only a few occasions, leaving out most of the moments when laughing had been perfectly justified.
“Ugh… If I can’t sleep now, I’ll be suffering again tomorrow.”
[You should have taken it easy, you know.]
“I wanted to take it easy too.”
At night the growing pains kept me awake, and during the day I struggled with muscle aches and drowsiness. Only after the growing pains began to ease did I start training in earnest, and I swallowed my belated regrets. Still, each day I could feel myself growing stronger. In those alternating moments of regret and satisfaction, as I searched for my own small merits, the marriage talks with Lady Shelton—suddenly brought up by Arlan right before the academy graduation—began to take concrete shape.
Yet because tales of the spirits of Lorelan Lake had already taken deep root throughout the region, the vast territory (excluding the lake itself) had no temple or grand church capable of officiating a noble wedding.
“There is one church that also serves as an orphanage…”
“That won’t do.”
No matter the circumstances, a noble wedding simply could not be held in a church that doubled as an orphanage. We inquired at churches and temples in nearby domains, but every single one was fully booked with prior engagements. It looked impossible to hold the ceremony within the year, and everyone was growing flustered when Rene offered a sensible solution.
“What if we held the wedding in the garden, like those parties I attended as a child?”
Perhaps because Alraune had taken up residence beside us, the garden had grown far more splendid than before. Both Arlan and Lady Shelton turned their attention to it and immediately declared it an excellent idea. They truly loved the suggestion.
“A once-in-a-lifetime wedding held in the garden…”
“Mother. Precisely because it is a once-in-a-lifetime wedding, I believe it would be even more wonderful.”
To Mother, who voiced her concern, Lady Shelton chattered brightly. A special garden wedding—unlike the ordinary ceremonies everyone else had—would create unforgettable memories. How happy she would be, she said, seeing the garden every day and recalling them. It sounded truly wonderful.
“She’s right, Mother. I think it’s perfect.”
“Sigh… If that is what both of you wish…”
With Arlan quickly adding his support, Mother finally respected their decision. The wedding would take place in early summer, before the height of the summer heat, in the mansion’s garden. From the very next day the number of servants tending the grounds doubled. Seeing that, I asked Alraune if she might lend us a little help for the occasion.
[Okay. I’ll help!]
“Thank you.”
[In exchange, give me every single sweet in that jar.]
She refused to work for free. The sweets were so delicious that I had not even shared them with Rene, secretly nibbling one at a time. After long deliberation I attempted to bargain.
“All of them is too much. So…”
[If it’s not all of them, then no deal.]
“Ugh…”
Her resolute tone made it clear she had no intention of yielding even an inch. My resolve collapsed completely.
“Fine. But you must do the work properly.”
[Don’t worry. I promise I’ll do my very best.]
For Arlan, who had been family all this time, and for Lady Shelton, whom I knew to be a truly good person, I handed over every last sweet. Alraune declared she would not disappoint us and munched away with a blissful expression. Watching her would only make my stomach ache with envy, so that day I headed to the training grounds early. I swept away my swirling emotions with rigorous physical training.
“Ow, ow, ow…”
[That’s what I—]
“Quiet. This is your fault.”
The next morning the muscle pain arrived twice as fierce. I groaned, then cut Alraune off mid-sentence and snapped at her. She blinked at my sharp glare, then trudged away only to return with one of the sweets I had given her the day before.
[Eating something tasty will cheer you up.]
“…Well, that’s true.”
I had been saving them and felt lingering regret for not eating more. Claiming I was simply acknowledging Alraune’s kindness, I quickly accepted the sweet and popped it into my mouth.
“René, you seem to be in a good mood already this morning.”
“Do I look it?”
“Yes. You’re smiling.”
I made an embarrassed face at Rene’s comment as I left the room and walked toward the dining hall. After that, the rest of spring flew by in a busy blur of wedding preparations for early summer.
Compared to Arlan, the star of the ceremony, and our parents who had countless details to oversee, we sisters felt we had little to worry about. We devoted ourselves to tending the fruit trees expected to bear fruit around early summer. Then Lady Shelton asked us to serve as the flower girls.
“Aren’t we a little old for that role?”
“Hehe, this isn’t an ordinary wedding, is it?”
I tried to convey indirectly that flower girls at our age might be inappropriate, but whether Lady Shelton failed to notice or was pretending not to, she kept asking us to accept. When I showed clear reluctance, she smiled bitterly, apologized for being greedy and rude, and withdrew the request. Her obvious disappointment pricked my conscience so sharply that I eventually agreed.
“Wow! Thank you, René!”
Her instant bright smile made me wonder if I had been played, but since I had already surrendered all the sweets I had been hoarding to Alraune for the wedding, I renewed my determination: if I was going to help, I would make sure it became a truly proper ceremony.
“I really, really don’t want to do this…”
“What? The dress is beautiful.”
“That’s exactly why I don’t like it…”
My hard-won resolve wavered like a reed in a gale at the sight of the flower-girl dress, yet with both Mother’s and Lady Shelton’s earnest requests I somehow steadied myself again. I cooperated fully with the wedding preparations, lending a hand wherever needed.
“How is it? The taste… is it all right?”
“Perhaps because our Rene and René tended them with such care. They’re truly delicious.”
“Hehe, I’m so glad.”
A few days before the wedding we washed the first harvest from the fruit trees in fresh running water and presented it to Mother. Hearing her say they were wonderfully sweet, we looked at each other and beamed.
“Ah! Thief!”
“Huh? A thief? Where?”
“Big brother Aran is the thief!”
“Calling me a thief for eating just one!”
During the bustling garden preparations, Aran was caught sneaking one of the apples from the trees we had cultivated. When we glared at him and called him a thief, he turned the accusation around, claiming we were being stingy over a single piece of fruit.
“I’m telling Father!”
“Hmph. Father will just say boys will be boys and let it slide.”
“And I’ll ask him to make the physical training even harsher.”
“I’m sorry. I have truly committed a grave wrong against you both.”
At Rene’s threat to tell Father, Aran had snorted, but the moment I mentioned increasing the training intensity he flipped faster than a coin and apologized. Knowing that alone was insufficient, he brought us fruit candies filled with southern-style jam that evening. We agreed to pretend the incident had never happened.
[René.]
“No. You can’t have any. These are mine.”
Whether it was because I had become a girl or because sweets were rare in this world, I welcomed the familiar sweetness. When Alraune approached with expectant eyes I drew a firm line. She jumped up and down, calling me mean, which was so adorable that I gave her one anyway. Instantly her face lit up with pure happiness as she savored the candy, as if the earlier complaint had never occurred.
“The wedding is almost here. Are the preparations going well?”
[Of course. I promised, didn’t I?]
She claimed the flowers still blooming vibrantly even after spring proved it. I tilted my head.
“That’s only because we spread so much fertilizer and everything else to keep them blooming longer.”
When I mentioned Mother’s big decision and the servants’ hard work, Alraune puffed out her cheeks, insisting it wasn’t the same. She clearly disliked having her difficult efforts dismissed so casually. Realizing I had misspoken, I apologized sincerely. She forgave me at once.
[Then since you were wrong, just one more…]
“Nice try, but no.”
I cut her off in a businesslike tone, refusing her shameless scheme. Alraune said nothing further.
The following days passed in the blink of an eye, and Arlan’s wedding day arrived. For the past several days I had limited myself to light training that would not overtire me, so I woke refreshed and free of muscle pain. The moment I sat up, however, I let out a deep sigh at what greeted me.
It was the extravagant dress Mother had chosen for greeting the guests who had taken time to attend. I calmed my complicated feelings by reminding myself it was all for the wedding.
“Brother, your face looks strange.”
“W-where exactly is it strange…”
“Blood will tell. It’s exactly the same as yours on your own wedding day.”
“Ahem. It wasn’t quite this bad.”
At breakfast we teased Arlan, who had grown tense and was making odd faces. Laughing together with the family, I felt the swirl of new emotions was strange yet not at all unpleasant, and I smiled.