The Shining Star Above The Heaven-Chapter 931: Before the Marriage
For the past two weeks, the entire Barisan Continent has become festive with preparations for a marriage that many considered to be the grandest wedding that would ever take place on the continent.
Aldrian, their emperor, would finally marry his fiancée, Sylphia Evergreen, and officially make her the empress of the empire. For many, especially the elves of the Ivory Kingdom, they had already been waiting for this moment.
The situation in the capital city of the Ivory Kingdom was the most festive, as this place would become the wedding venue. Many suggested that Aldrian could hold the wedding in the main church, just like his parents, or in his palace.
However, Aldrian decided to hold it in Sylphia’s birthplace in the Ivory Kingdom as their wedding venue.
This was also Aldrian’s way of continuing the elven tradition of marrying under the shade of the World Tree. This act was considered a declaration of a couple’s oath and love for each other in the presence of the branches of the heavenly tree of the world.
Evergreen City at this moment was truly a complete contrast to its past. In the past, this city still maintained most of its conservatism by limiting visits from other races. But since the continent opened to the world, the capital city had slowly become much more open to visitors from various races.
In fact, many cities of the kingdom changed just like the capital city. The elves knew that they would hinder their development if they did not change and continued to remain old-fashioned. That was why, since the past two years, the situation of the kingdom had truly changed, with many races able to stay in cities across the kingdom.
Those who stayed in the kingdom also did not create any trouble and even tried to live in harmony with the elves. Even if trouble arose, it would be quickly resolved, as they did not want even the smallest problem to reach the ears of the emperor. They did not want to drag Aldrian into their problems, as they knew his punishment was truly harsh.
As tomorrow was the date of the emperor’s wedding, Evergreen City was already packed with many visitors from various origins. Many of them were leaders of various forces across the Ancient Blue Gate World and other worlds. They had already been staying in the city for the past week, so they would not be left without a place to stay.
They knew that this wedding would attract numerous people, and it would be difficult to reserve rooms, as many people would be staying in the city. They needed to act fast, as it was first come, first served.
The streets across the capital were already decorated with a green and red theme. Green represented the elves, who favored nature, while red was more common in human marriages, symbolizing good luck and happiness.
It also symbolized the red thread of fate that connected two people, who could finally unite under the umbrella of love as husband and wife.
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In the royal palace, a platform was already being built in the front garden of the palace. This would become the platform where Aldrian and Sylphia would declare their oath tomorrow. The garden had also been modified so it could accommodate thousands of guests who wanted to watch the procession directly.
Many people were still busy working to prepare the venue, with many elves and even dwarves taking part in the work.
As for King Ladwin, he was inside the palace, receiving many guests who came to congratulate him. His expression truly could not be hidden, showing just how joyous he was at this moment. His smile was bright and wide, making it clear to those who knew him that this was the most joyous expression he had shown in his entire life.
Beside him was his wife, Queen Elaria, who was also showing her happiness. Although not as openly as her husband, she still maintained her gracefulness.
While the king and queen conversed with the visitors, all of their children were gathered in a deeper part of the palace. All six of their children sat around a table surrounded by an indoor garden full of flowers.
Arvan, the first prince; Ravion, the second prince; Herlan, the third prince; Arion, the fourth prince; Aran, the fifth prince; and finally Sylphia, the princess.
The atmosphere was truly amicable and relaxing, with Sylphia occasionally giggling as she listened to her older brothers telling stories.
For the royal siblings, this was a rare time when they could spend time gathering together like this. Usually, they were separated by their own busyness.
They never truly had the time to gather completely like this.
"To think that our little sister will be the first one to marry instead of her big brothers. I suddenly feel a bit sad," Ravion said with a sigh. Then he looked at Sylphia with a smile.
"So, should I call you Your Majesty in the future, even in private?" he asked with a teasing expression.
"Stop it, Brother Ravion. All of you don’t have to act formal in front of me even after I marry Aldrian. I would just feel bad if you suddenly changed how you act toward me after all the years we have spent together," Sylphia said with a slightly bashful expression.
"But still, I cannot believe that you will marry someone like His Majesty, a man unlike any other, and that we will finally become one family with him," Arion said, then sighed. "Sometimes I remember the time a few years back when His Majesty still stayed in the palace, when we could still interact casually like normal friends. Truly, time passes quickly."
"Yes, I can still remember when we trained in archery together and simply talked about many things. Now he is already beyond our reach and has become the ruler of this land," Aran said.
"Sometimes, I hope we could go back to that time, when we could act like normal friends," he added, which made Herlan smile.
"Well, you could act friendly toward His Majesty just like in the past. Are you not the one who chose to act formal toward him? If you meet him tomorrow, you could put your arm around his shoulder without many words, just like how close friends should be," he said, which made Aran show an irritated expression.
"Are you for real?" Aran asked, which made the others chuckle.
"Little sister, I know that His Majesty will take good care of you, but in the future, if you ever miss your family here, you can come back anytime. Do not hold your longing too tightly in your heart," suddenly, the oldest among them, the first prince, Arvan, said, which made all of them look at him in surprise.
Their eldest brother was the strictest and most stern among them. However, they knew that as the eldest, he bore many responsibilities, and he had already been prepared by their father to be the successor to the throne.
Their eldest brother was simply showing his love for his younger siblings in his own way, making sure that they could live in harmony and that nothing would go wrong in their lives.
They rarely saw him show any expression other than calmness or sternness. Yet at this moment, he was showing worry and even a touched expression. It seemed like he was trying not to show his sadness, which astonished them.
To think that their eldest brother could show such an expression.
But then Sylphia showed a warm smile.
"I will, Eldest Brother. You don’t have to worry about me. If I miss all of you, I will not keep my longing inside, not for all of you, nor for Father and Mother," she said, then slightly pouted.
"And you don’t have to feel like I am going somewhere far away. I still live on the same continent, you know? If I feel like I miss you all, I can just use teleportation portal. So why feel sad?"
The others chuckled and laughed, while Arvan finally showed a smile. They continued their conversation, full of happiness and jokes, wanting to make use of their remaining time together until Sylphia had to prepare for her wedding.
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While Sylphia was gathered with her family, Aldrian was also gathered with his own.
At this moment, in the beautiful garden of Aldrian’s palace, he was together with his father and mother, while Celestina was in his mother’s arms, playing with her doll. She swung the doll a few times, as if imagining that it could move on its own.
Eleine was also standing right behind Irene. Although she was not truly Aldrian’s blood family, with how close she was to Irene and the other members of the family, she was already considered part of it. She was involved in their conversation, or at least able to listen to them closely.
"Aha, ahaha," Celestina happily swung her doll, which made the others smile at her adorable expression and actions. 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖
After observing her play for a few seconds, Aldrey looked at Aldrian with a smile.
"How are you feeling, son?"
