ICM Chapter 134

Ashika pulled her hand away from the mirror and barely managed to take a step. At her unsteady gait, Drushia stopped laughing and moved toward Ashika.

“My lady, you can’t. You must stay like that until it’s finished.”

“Can’t I rest for just a moment?”

Uncharacteristically, a whimpering sound escaped from Ashika’s lips. Even when she had spent an entire morning preparing to attend imperial banquets, it hadn’t been this exhausting.

However, Marilyn held onto Ashika’s dress hem and wouldn’t let go.

“We’re almost done. Just a little more.”

“Excuse me…”

Someone knocked carefully on the door from beyond the open doorway.

The person wearing white robes was a priest who had accompanied the high priest to assist with the ceremony. A maid hurriedly stood blocking the door.

“Father? What brings you here?”

“I’ve come to collect the token to be placed on the altar of vows.”

The altar of vows. It was the place in the wedding ceremony where the bride and groom would share prepared tokens and promise to be together for life. Ashika tilted her head and spoke.

“But we already sent the ring earlier?”

“I was told there’s one more.”

“What else is there… Ah!” Only then did she remember. The ceremonial token that noble ladies preparing for aristocratic weddings would prepare in advance. However, Ashika had something real, not just ceremonial.

“The handkerchief.”

The handkerchief Drushia had given as an engagement gift. It was a precious item with both their full names embroidered on it.

‘What did I do with that?’

Her mind went completely blank. She had been so busy these past few days that she couldn’t remember where she had put it.

‘I definitely brought it separately from the capital.’

She had personally packed it as a personal belonging, worried she might lose it. Of all times to lose the engagement gift, and in front of Drushia no less. Ashika’s face turned pale.

“Marilyn. When we came from the capital, I entrusted the jewelry box to you, didn’t I?”

“Yes. I put everything in the safe in your dressing room, my lady.”

“Was there by any chance a handkerchief in there?”

“You packed that separately yourself, my lady.”

Marilyn answered cautiously, glancing between Drushia and Ashika.

That’s right. She had kept it in her own hands the entire time because she didn’t want anyone else to handle it.

“Hold my dress for a moment. I need to find it. It must be in my bedroom. Definitely…”

“Oh no, my lady! You can’t! If you handle your dress like that…”

Ashika lifted up her voluminous dress, ready to leave immediately. Drushia, who had been watching quietly, blocked Ashika’s path.

“Ashika, calm down. The bride can’t go wandering around anywhere.”

“It’s not anywhere—it’s my bedroom.”

“You can’t go anywhere alone in that dress.”

“I need to find it. It’s definitely there.”

At her more intense reaction than expected, Drushia’s expression became peculiar.

Ashika wasn’t normally someone who got easily agitated. That was her nature, and how she had always lived. But lately, her emotional ups and downs had become much more severe.

“Ah, I was just trying to tease you for a moment.”

Drushia pulled out a handkerchief wrapped in white cloth from inside his uniform pocket.

“Rushia!”

“Sorry, sorry.”

“My goodness, when did you take this?”

Ashika received the handkerchief and checked the signature. She had been so startled that beads of sweat appeared on her forehead.

“Mm, yesterday when I went to your bedroom, I saw it there.”

At Drushia’s answer, Ashika hurriedly closed her mouth and Marilyn discreetly looked away, pretending not to hear. Ashika kept fanning herself with her hand to cool her sweating face.

“Oh, this is… your pranks are really too much.”

“Why are you so surprised? It’s not like the wedding would be ruined over one missing handkerchief.”

Even as he said this, the corners of his mouth lifted high. Drushia chuckled softly and placed his hand on Ashika’s waist. He carefully caressed her waist while being mindful not to disturb the shape of the dress.

When Ashika regained her composure, blue eyes had come right up to her nose. When she tried to step back, the arm around her waist tightened. Unable to pull away, Ashika tilted her head back as far as she could. Drushia’s upper body leaned with her.

“Rushia, my makeup…”

“It looks like it’ll need to be touched up anyway?”

Hot breath escaped from the slowly approaching lips. The blue eyes, even deeper than before, rippled as they met Ashika’s black eyes.

“You’re too beautiful.”

Too beautiful. The spell-like whisper wrapped around Ashika’s ears. Her faint resistance melted away in the sweet spell, disappearing without a trace.

Kiss, kiss. The lightly touching lips couldn’t overcome their longing and clung together deeply.

“…mmm…”

Their saliva intertwined with wet sounds, and sighs like moans escaped. The thought of her makeup being ruined was erased from Ashika’s mind. Drushia’s arms pulled her closer with more strength, embracing their bodies together.

The flustered maids turned their gazes away, and even the unobtrusive priest turned his back to avoid the embarrassing scene. The two knights waiting outside glanced inside the room at the sudden silence, then quickly turned their heads away.

It was a bride shining like the sun and a groom embracing her as if to swallow that sun. As if it had always been so, the two were one.

****

The clamorous voices of people quieted down. As she walked through the now-silent banquet hall, Ashika’s mind became distant. She couldn’t even see the faces of the hundreds of nobles sitting side by side, looking at her.

And suddenly a memory came to mind. Ashika wasn’t walking this path for the first time.

‘Father…’

Without realizing it, her gaze wandered. She had thought it was a painful memory, but even in that memory, precious moments she didn’t want to forget were hidden.

Looking for the figure of her father, who wasn’t in this place but who she believed had once been there, she unconsciously shifted her gaze around.

‘Father was there.’

Instead of her father’s image aging peacefully, what was in that place was her grandfather Weive.

A memory that felt like her own, yet a reality similar but different. As she knelt before the altar, Ashika’s face lost its color.

‘Ashika.’

Lips moving without sound called to her. Ashika somehow understood that call and raised her head. Right across from her, kneeling together with her, was Drushia. His blue eyes, deeper than usual, looked at her with an affectionate gaze.

‘Rushia.’

Ashika’s lips also moved slightly.

‘It’s okay.’

Drushia whispered softly again. His gentle face, quietly comforting, smiled beautifully. The light coming through the large windows of the banquet hall seemed to rest only on Drushia’s face. Like a promise that everything would truly get better.

The soundless comfort was heard even louder, so the high priest’s vows presiding over the marriage couldn’t even be heard. Instead of answering, Ashika smiled with her eyes.

Following the order of the ceremony, they exchanged rings and their right hands touched as they were placed on the altar of vows. They wrapped their joined hands with the handkerchief, the token of their vows, and placed their left hands on top to recite the oath of promise.

“You are my heaven, my sun, and my life. I welcome you as my companion and promise that we will be together until the day my time ends.”

Drushia’s deep bass voice recited the vow in a solemn tone. The same vow flowed from Ashika’s lips as well.

“You are my heaven, my sun, and my life. I welcome you as my companion and promise that until the day my time ends, we will…”

While everyone held their breath, clatter, the door in the very center of the banquet hall opened. Ashika’s gaze unconsciously turned toward the door of the hall.

Someone had burst through the open door gap, breathing heavily. It was a messenger armed in armor bearing Talion’s crest.

He seemed to have tried to be as careful as possible, but all eyes in the solemn ceremony hall were drawn to the knight. He was someone who had been granted permission to enter the ceremony hall in case of emergency. The fact that even the inner castle guards hadn’t stopped him meant it was that urgent.

Ashika’s heart beat rapidly.

‘So this was why.’

Before the ceremony began, Drushia had come to tell her something. That an emergency situation might occur.

“Ahem, please continue with your vows, bride.”

Only then did Ashika shift her gaze back to Drushia.

“…until the day my time ends, we promise to be together.”

Her voice trembled faintly as she recited the promise. The vow flowing from her lips flowed back into her heart.

Ashika and Drushia had kept this vow. Until the very end, until the final moment approached, even in unavoidable death, the two had been together.

And once again they recite the oath. The vow renewed while carrying all those memories was more precious than her life.

Drushia gripped Ashika’s trembling hands tightly. He was still whispering the same words.

‘I love you.’

The magical words calmed her anxiety. Ashika exhaled deeply and steadied her trembling breath.

People’s gazes went back and forth between the two people in the middle of the wedding ceremony and the knight who had unexpectedly arrived. An uneasy atmosphere pervaded as something had happened but they couldn’t tell what it was.

“I hereby declare that these two are husband and wife, recognized by the authority of God and the authority of His Imperial Majesty, the Sun of the Empire.”

At the same moment the high priest made his declaration, the doors of the banquet hall opened again. Two more Talion knights had entered further inside. Their expressions looked just as urgent as the knight who had entered first.

Ashika gestured to the priest who was waiting to assist with the ceremony.

“Please untie this. Tell the messenger knights to come over.”

“Ashika.”

“Don’t look so sorry. This is what we expected, isn’t it?”

There was no time to worry about the murmuring guests. The messenger who received the signal approached the two with the waiting knights. Drushia spoke to the approaching messenger.

“Report the situation.”

“Yes. Combat has broken out at the territory border. The enemy forces are larger than expected.”

“What about the villagers?”

“They’ve already evacuated.”

“Are the waiting troops moving?”

“Yes. They should encounter the enemy within two days.”

Aegonite was there offering a sword, having arrived at some point. Drushia strapped the sword directly over his wedding attire and looked back at Ashika. His face clearly showed apologetic and anxious emotions.

“I’m fine. Go and come back.”

A large hand grasped Ashika’s hand as she urged him to go quickly. Drushia held her hand and somewhat hastily, yet carefully, kissed Ashika’s forehead.

Kiss—a soft, warm sensation remained on her forehead. Drushia also lightly kissed her lips and stepped back.

“I’ll return quickly. Sorry for leaving you alone again.”

Drushia turned around, leaving behind a bright smile like sunshine. His steps toward the impatiently waiting knights were hurried.

Ashika stared blankly at Drushia’s retreating figure.

“…Again?”

An intense shock followed, like being hit on the head. After the shock came pain that seemed to pierce her heart.

Her vision blurred hazily. Drushia’s figure disappearing into the brilliant sunlight also became blurred.

“Yes, again…”

The beautiful bride was laughing while crying. She had thought all of this was her fight alone, but apparently it wasn’t. From the beginning, Drushia had been with her. And he would continue to be so forever.

That’s why she laughed. Because the loss in her memory was painful, she swallowed the flowing tears with piercing laughter. The anxiety that had coiled like a snake in her heart was transforming into hope.