Vol. 3, Chapter 40: Marriage

Three days have passed since we sent Six, Cecilia, and Stella to the northern frontlines. Having received the message that Toto's new project, the basket that we will be putting all of our eggs in, will soon complete its assembly, we moved to the Holy Beast's dwelling.

"So, it seems I'll be getting married."

"Um... Congratulations?"

As Toto and I are observing the finishing touches being performed on the new vessel, I thought I'd inform her about recent events.

"It's not really something to be celebratory about. It's a marriage of convenience."

"I see. So, who are you marrying?"

"The princess."

"Princess Aurelia? Does that mean you're going to be a king?"

"That's the convenient part of the marriage, I suppose. This way, we will still retain the freedom we have right now even if something should happen to the princess. The princess allowed us a choice whether to fight or not, but those that comes after may not offer us the same."

"Are you thinking about Six?"

"There's Six, or whoever we'll join up with later. Only those willing to fight will fight. That's something I won't give up on, even if I have to turn against this very kingdom."

"I see..."

Then, for a lengthy amount of time, Toto remained silent, to the point that it got somewhat awkward for me to just stand beside her. By the time I could bear it not longer, I decided to start up a conversation on my side.

"Things seems to be going smoothly aren't they, despite this being the first time they're putting this together."

"Well, for the most part we just used magic to fix whatever's not working. For example, you see that section, the pieces aren't fitting properly so we simply used healing magic to meld them together."

Looking at where Toto is pointing, at the bow of the vessel, I take note of the fact that the wooden pieces have certain places that look more organic than the rest, with root like protrusions growing on the surface. Is that the work of healing magic? I didn't even know they could do that? Then again, I never really saw healing magic as more than something to be used on wounds and sickness, that is to say, to restore Hp and cure status ailments. My thinking, it seems, still remains to be too inflexible.

"Aurelius."

"Yeah?"

"I'm sorry."

"You're confusing me, Toto. Did I miss something?"

"What I'm trying to say is... When I congratulated you, I didn't really mean it."

What, was it sarcastic? I couldn't tell at all. Her delivery was so flat I could hardly tell it apart from how she usually speaks.

"Okay, but why exactly?"

"Well, I thought you were messing around. Having fun and getting married at a time like this. I didn't realize that you were thinking about us all the while, even though I should know better than to think of you that way."

"Honestly, I would have thought the same thing, so it's fine."

Toto shakes her head.

"I didn't realize it before, even though I really should have, but you're always thinking about us, aren't you, Aurelius? About Cecilia, Six, and me, and the rest of the guild who aren't here with us at the moment. That part of you is just like Cecilia, I think."

"Okay..."

"What I'm trying to say is: I'm sorry for getting mad at you, even though you didn't deserve it."

All of a sudden, I feel like petting her, and I would do just that if her pointy witch's hat isn't getting in the way. How should I put it? Toto is a rather straightforward person isn't she. That honesty of hers is almost that of a child's. Makes me wonder about how young she really is. Should I even be letting her fight?

"Toto, I hope you don't mind me asking, but..."

"What?"

She looks up at me, with what are appearing to me to be precocious little eyes. I am hesitant to ask, it's no good to ask someone their personal information in-game, and while this isn't in the game anymore, I don't know. I mean, I wouldn't want people to know I'm actually an old man inside unless I absolutely have to, such as using it as an excuse to decline a marriage proposal. But, on the other hand, this is important, very important, so I'll have to ask.

"Toto, how old are you actually."

She looks at me, wide eyed and surprised. I wonder if I offended her by asking. She's not going to be mad, is she?

"I- I... I'm twenty... twenty-six, actually."

"Is that so?"

She appears to be flustered. Is she embarrassed? Or perhaps, dare I say, she has something to hide.

"Yes! I mean, I might not act like it, but I'm an adult."

"I see. Alright then."

I can't say I believe her completely, but I doubt anything other than animosity would come from interrogating her. Pushing too far will only have negative effects, and so I'll have to leave it at that for now.

***

By nightfall, the vessel has been completely assembled. Over fifteen meters long and five meters wide, with the height of about ten meters, it's quite a titan. Toto, when asked for a name for this vessel, appropriately named it "The Basket".

As for what it is, well, essentially, it's supposed to be a hot air balloon, but the shape of it is closer to a ship, so I guess it's more of a blimp? Well, either way, one thing is for sure, it can't fly on its own. The materials are too heavy and we don't have any special lighter-than-air gasses to lift it. What we do have, is magic, more specifically, the [Feather Weight] spell. With the spell combined with hot air generated by fire magic, the airship should float. The other problem is steering, as in, we have none. Not that it could not be implemented, but with its weight reduced by the [Feather Weight] spell and its wide surface area, the ship would be at the mercy of the winds even more so than the planes we had. For this issue, however, Toto already had an idea in mind before she detailed it to the craftsmen. The answer to our problem is the same thing that caused it in the first place: Wind.

From the sudden assault and retreat of the Bestial Champion, Toto observed her movements even while threatened, and the way the Bestial Champion combined the [Feather Weight] spell and some kind of air manipulation to make her swift exit gave Toto the idea. For the airship, the same will be applied, which is why the airship came with "fins" that will catch the winds from the back. With the [Feather Weight] spell combined with air manipulation, we will transport an entire platoon right into the heart of Faefolk territory and launch a surprise assault at the very core of the [World Devourer Woods], where the [Demonic Tree] lies. As for the source of these two magic, we too, have made arrangement. The one who will be casting the spells is the one who taught the princess and the priestesses the [Feather Weight] spell in the first place, the Holy Beast herself. She will be the one to enchant nigh-weightlessness onto our airship and call forth the winds that will carry us all the way to the [Demonic Tree].

Honestly, I'm a bit worried. Our plan relies so much on the Holy Beast, too much, I fear. When I came here to make this arrangement, to request her for her aid, while she readily agreed, she also confessed to me that lately, she felt weaker, likely due to using her powers to shield the western frontlines from the constant smog coming from the ever burning forest. Hearing that, I can't help but be afraid that something might go wrong. She asked me to keep it a secret though, since it would accomplish nothing but cause panic. Regardless, this plan is our only shot. If we don't do it now, we'll probably not have the resources and strength to do it later. Let's hope everything holds together till the end.

"Looks like we'll be able to set off right now if we want to."

"We could, yes, but it'll be far too dark to navigate. Better wait till morning before setting off. Besides, don't you have something important to attend to, Aurelius?"

"Yeah..."

"Getting cold feet?"

"I guess."

"Is it too late to back out?"

"I've already agreed to everything and most of everybody has already heard about it. If I back out now, it'll affect morale, and I'd be doing a terrible thing to the princess. But, really, I wish I hadn't agreed in the first place."

"But you have no choice, right? If anything happens to the princess, you want our freedom protected, right?"

"It's only necessary because the princess wants to come to battle with us, if only she'd stay behind, there's no need for all the hassle. If I wanted to, I guess I could have just forced her to stay."

"You say that, but you agreed to it anyways."

"Yeah, I did..."

"Why is that? Is there something more? Or could it be? That you're actually interested in the marriage but were just playing hard-to-get?"

And she said all that without even blinking. I can't tell at all if she's joking or not.

"Toto, I'll smack you, you know."

I stare the girl down with my most menacing gaze. That wasn't something to joke about. Not at all. I certainly don't think so.

"Sorry... I mean, Cecilia does it to you all the time, so I thought that maybe I can cheer you up the same way."

"No, you have to understand that if I smack her, she'll return the favor five times as hard. I wouldn't have enough Hp to survive that."

"I don't think she's hit you that hard..."

"I wouldn't dare to find out either way... Wait, what were we talking about again?"

Whatever it was, it seems that have slipped my mind. And as I scratch my chin, trying to recall, Toto is chuckling beside me, making it that much harder to gather my thoughts and remember.

"Aurelius, it's time for you to get ready."

Calling for me is Merida. Here to make sure I don't run away I suppose? I have no intention to, none. I've made many promises that I have no way of knowing if I'll ever keep, but those that I can keep, I'm not going to break.

"I'll see you later then, Toto."

"Yes, well, good luck, I suppose."

As I wave at Toto, I proceed towards Merida, who then leads me into a tent set up nearby. There, several maidservants await me, apparently they were sent for after it was decided that the princess would be wedded tonight. I think I even recognize some of them from the palace. Together, they prepare me for the ceremony, tidying up my hair and dressing me up in a thick white robe. It's cozy, but I wouldn't want to wear this during summer time. It's surprising though, I didn't think that the Beastkin would be holding wedding ceremonies like this. It's not exactly... beast-like? Then again, I can't exactly tell where the beast ends and where the human begins with them. It's all very intriguing. I hope one day I get to slow down and learn more about this world without having to worry about fighting.

Once prepared, they lead me towards the field where the airship was being constructed, in the time it took for me to get prepared, they turned the grounds into a place of celebration. Braziers were put up, numerous enough to light the grounds but far apart enough to not be stuffy. Food of all sorts were brought out and placed upon large leaves on the ground in neat rows, and beside them, the soldiers are gathered and seated, awaiting the main event while occasionally stealing glances and whiffs at the food but never touching, the feast only begins after the ceremony. A dais has also been set up, and before the dais, stands the [Holy Guardian Beast] in all her dignity.

I am led to the dais, and as I arrive, so does the princess, wearing a similar robe to mine. The two of us climb the single step up the dais, and as we do so, the soldiers cheer loudly, their collective voices sending tremor through my very being. I can see that they are ecstatic for this, for the union between their princess and their Champion. What auspicious occasion. Seeing them like this, I try putting on a smile despite feeling rather troubled deep down. That's right, I remember now, I was trying to tell Toto why I felt that I needed to do this in spite of other, less favorable but altogether viable, options. The answer is quite simple, actually.

The truth is: I'm scared. This is the true reason why I am marrying the princess today. Toto said I'm playing hard-to-get and she's not entirely wrong. While it's true that Merida had debated me into submission, making it so that I am basically admitting that marrying the princess would be my best option, I could just be stubborn and unreasonable and refuse her regardless. My reason for ultimately accepting lies deeper. As I debated back and forth with Merida, and both she and I brought it up, the memories resurfaced, the memories of the times I almost lost my life. How many times would I have died now had it not been for the princess? Three times? Or maybe four? How many other times have I come close to dying were it not for someone else's intervention? Once? Twice? Honestly, altogether that's six times too many. When I think about the upcoming battle, I can see it in my mind, my body, this avatar, lying on the ground, bleeding out or torn apart, feeling cold as everything turns dark, my consciousness fading away into a black uncaring void. I'm terrified of it, to the point where I would see it in my dreams and never be able to go back to sleep. This fear, is what ended up driving me to accept the offer, because despite putting up a front and making it seem like I am reluctantly allowing the princess onto the battlefield, the truth is, I am probably the one who wishes her there the most.

"Aurelius?"

The princess looks at me with concerned gaze. Looks like I've spaced out for too long.

"Nothing... it's just... what am I supposed to do here again?"

Looking at the nervous wreck I am, the princess laughs shyly before wrapping her arms around my neck and leaning in for a peck upon my cheek, and as her soft lips part from my skin, she whispers lightly to me.

"A gesture of affection. The female kisses upon the cheek, and the male kisses upon the forehead."

With that, she backs away and waits for me to return her gesture with a bright flush on her face.

Slowly, I lean in, my hand reaching around to the back of her head, brushing through her soft golden hair as I press my lips against her forehead.

Together, we turn towards the Holy Beast, who then calls upon a soft breeze to surround us. As the breeze brushes us by and gentle lights shower upon us, and in my vision, a message pops up, telling me that a [Soul Bond] has been formed with none other than the princess. This special effect is present within Elysium Online as well, it came when they introduced marriage into the game. It allows the two characters who are married to one another full view the other's stats without the need for a [Insight] skill, as well as their equipment and inventory, something [Insight] cannot do. On top of that, so long as the two characters are in the same party, they'll obtain a slight boost in their stats as well. It's neat, but not something that will provide too much of an edge against regular players.

With that, the princess and I are now married, and the troops gather here starts cheering wildly as the ceremony concludes, even the usually serious and stoic garrison commander is getting rowdy for once. Still, how should I put it? Things don't feel all that different from before. I guess I'm just marrying for convenience after all, so there's not much meaning in this. Still, I am kind of disappointed, convenience or not, getting married is sort of an important event in one's life isn't it? Not that I'd know much about it.

Then night ends with a joyous and festive air and the troops head on to bed with satisfied smiles on their drunken faces. All things considered, I'm glad everyone enjoyed themselves. After all, this may be the last time we'll get to do something like this.

***

End of Chapter 40