Chương 72: Chapter 73: Wedding, Finally

Day 212 Tachweld 12th (November 12th) The morning of my wedding dawned sunny, but cold. The temperature was hovering just above freezing. Thankfully, it wasn't windy. Cold wasn't fun, but cold and wind was just miserable. We had a ride back to the homestead the next day, and the almanac predicted it would be closer to 55 by noon, when we planned to leave. Luckily, it hadn't snowed too much the previous two days. Our journey back wouldn't be a slog for the horses. I still hadn't even named my horse.

Emily and Colin wanted me to come up with something better than Red, which was my first attempt. I thought Chessie would work. That was still color-based, but not so basic. Emily had named her Madge, short for Majestic. Colin had gone with Char, short for Charcoal. I'd argued that was a pretty awful name too, but he went with it. Emily told him that since I had Spot and Buck, he could have one bad name of his own. I'd slept in the barracks, which had their own washroom facilities. Colin stayed with me.

We were wearing the outfits we'd been wearing for the original wedding day. We'd packed them in our bags once the siege began. No sense dirtying up our finery! I wore black knee-high riding boots, forest green finely woven woolen pants, a wool shirt that matched the color of my pants, and a black vest that matched my boots. I also had a black coat with grey leather elbow patches and shoulder strips that mimicked pauldrons. I also had my Bowie knife still strapped to my belt.

Colin wasn't armed, but his outfit was almost identical to mine. With the cool weather, I was appreciating the layers. This outfit, which was similar to what the mayor wore every day, would be stiflingly hot in the summer. I was nervous on Samhain. I had known that Emily was at least fond of me. But she'd never outright said she loved me at that point. I'd never said it to her either because I didn't want to make things weird. It seemed pretty ridiculous to think about, honestly.

Why would it be weird to tell your betrothed that you loved her? But, with the way marriages worked in this world, most people barely knew their spouses before they were married. Our conversation during the siege had alleviated a lot of my nerves. Now that I knew she cared for me the same way I had grown to care for her, I was genuinely looking forward to our wedding. The superstition that you shouldn't see your spouse the morning of your wedding existed on Talamh.

So, someone else brought me a plate of food in the barracks. Emily wasn't helping with breakfast today, but she was still based out of the inn. When noon finally arrived, Colin and I took the short walk to the temple and arrived to find Priest Lewys waiting for us at the doors to the temple. He was all beaming smiles.

"Are you ready to finally be an honest man in the eyes of the System?" I laughed out loud at both his words and his enthusiasm.

"Sure am!"

"Good," he said.

"Then follow me. The wedding will take place at the System stone." He opened the doors, and I was taken aback. Inside the temple, almost every important person in the area was in attendance. The mayor and his family, the bishop, all the Wall Captains and Militia Captain Castell. All five of the wizards in the town were present. Thankfully, so was the entire Newton clan, Hari and Glenn, and Ben Collins. Janet would be walking Emily to the church once Pries Lewys came back out to give the signal.

Of course, Ben and Janice were secretly important people in the town. But having them in the family set of benches made me feel better. Colin went and sat down next to Aiden once I was inside the railing that surrounded the System Stone. Once I was in position, Lewys went back outside the temple to signal it was time for Emily to enter. While I was waiting, I looked around. Most of the people in attendance smiled when I made eye contact, but the bishop maintained a neutral expression as he met my eyes.

It did feel strange that he wasn't performing the ceremony. It was his right as the highest-ranking church official, but Priest Lewys was the one really ramrodding the show, and the bishop still didn't exactly like me. I was too important to disappear but that didn't mean he was suddenly my best friend. All five of the Wizards were wearing their red robes, trimmed in gold. Four of the five were clearly in some way distantly related based on general appearance.

Two had blonde hair and three had black hair, but aside from that, they all looked like cousins. At least today, Wizard Rupert was fully groomed. That made me smile. He saw me looking at him and gave me a double thumbs up. I looked at Brendan and Ginny. Brendan gave me a smile and a nod, and Ginny was leaned up against him. She gave me a huge smile and a wink. I was truly glad they were here. They didn't plan to stay for the feast, but they were here to support us for this.

When I let them know their animals were safe, fed, and watered, Ginny gave me a big hug. But they were still anxious to get home. Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more. They knew that something big was up, but they hadn't been brought into the fold fully yet. Hari and Glenn would accompany the soldiers who would be coming with us back to the homestead, and in a day or two the two men would go with Emily and I to speak with them.

When I finally heard the door open, after what felt like an hour, but which was actually only about five minutes, my relief was palpable. I turned to face the entryway and saw Emily, Janice, and Priest Lewys walking towards us. Emily looked beautiful. She had her long, black hair loose today. She had curled a strand on either side of her face, but it was otherwise straight. She wore the barest hint of makeup. Just a little blush on her cheeks and some mascara to highlight her lashes.

She was wearing a sky blue fine woolen, sleeveless dress that came to her shins with a long-sleeved white linen shift that covered her arms. The shift also showed below the dress and came to just before her ankles. She was wearing a pair of reddish brown riding boots. She was also wearing earrings and a necklace. The earrings were silver teardrops with a small ruby set in each teardrop. The necklace was also silver with a slightly larger ruby set in the teardrop at the center of her necklace.

I'd bought the matching set of jewelry from a jeweler in Riverton who I'd contacted through the guild store. Emily hadn't known about the purchase until this morning. The sight of her as she smiled at me while walking towards me brought a tear, I swear no more than two… to my eyes. When Lewys and Emily got to the rails, Janice broke off to sit with Ben. Lewys opened the rail and ushered Emily in. Lewys positioned Emily and me on either side of the System Stone, facing each other.

Then he grabbed a long piece of crimson ribbon and a goblet that had been sitting on a small table just outside the railing surrounding the stone. He took a deep breath, nodded at the two of us, and began speaking.

"Today, we are gathered here to witness the union of John Jacobson, and Emily Lloyd. The two have agreed upon, and signed, their prenuptial agreements. I have entered the signed agreements into the System, and they are now set in stone." With that, he placed his hand on the System Stone. I knew it was symbolic since once Emily and I had agreed to the contract and hit accept in our UIs, the System said it had registered it.

Next, he grabbed the crimson ribbon and said, "This ribbon, in the colors of the Albion Empire, symbolises the binding of two people in the eyes of the System, and the Empire. Please put forth your left hands and clasp them together." Emily and I clasped hands and Lewys loosely tied them together. Once that was done, he grabbed the goblet, which was a simple bronze cup with a thick stem and base, and said, "This goblet will be the symbol of your marriage. You should keep it in a place of prominence.

When you first welcome new guests to your home, you should perform the welcome ceremony using this goblet. Emily, as the host, please take the goblet and offer it to your new husband." She took the goblet from Lewys and offered it to me. I could see it was about half full of water. I took a sip, then Lewys said, "Now John, offer the cup to Emily so that she may sip." I did as asked, and Emily took her sip. She handed the goblet back to Lewys, who set it down.

"Now," he said.

"Place your right hands on the stone." Once we had complied, he asked one simple question.

"Emily, John, do the two of you wish to be married in the eyes of the System, and the Albion Empire?" We both said, "I do," in unison. At that, Lewys looked out at the assembled guests and said, "I now pronounce John, and Emily Jacobson, married in the eyes of the System and the Albion Empire." With that, and in a ceremony that took about five minutes, we were actually married! Most of the guests stood up and politely clapped. Ginny gave a sharp whistle, and Ben a booming congratulations.

I smiled and felt both warmth and relief. It had only been a little over seven months, but it also felt like a lifetime. This year contained stress, healing, and a new life that was totally cut off from my old one. But I was truly happy. With time to heal some of the hurt and anger I'd felt when I found out I would not be a part of the family farm, I missed my Earth family at times. I wish my parents and grandparents had witnessed this wedding. I hoped they were coping with my loss at home.

But this was truly where I wanted to be now. Once the ceremony was done, we were whisked to the town square where a table had been set up on the same elevated platform that had been set up for festivals. We were given a place just to the left of Bishop Smythe, who had the place of prominence at the center of the table. The mayor and his family were to the right, and Priest Lewys sat to Colin's left. The Newtons came up and gave us all hugs, then they grabbed some food to take back to their homestead.

What followed next was a grueling several hours of greeting every single person in Weston as they shuffled past to wish us well, then grab their food. By the time we were free, it was 7 p. m. Emily and I were exhausted. We went back to the inn, where the guest suite had been prepared for us, and we were greeted by Ben and Janice, Hari, and Glenn, as well as the three outside Wizards, and Priest Lewys and Wizard Johnstone. Janice had made a sweet berry cake with a sugar frosting that we all shared.

I had a couple of beers, and Emily had a glass of wine. We hung out and talked for a couple of hours before it was time to go up to our room. This suite was normally where important visiting guests would stay, so it had a tub with a heat enchantment. Janice had filled the tub sometime while we were upstairs. I put my hand in the water, and it was a perfect temperature. As I turned around, Emily was looking at me with a mischievous smile.

She said, "John, my dear husband, would you like to help me out of this dress so we can take a relaxing bath together?" I didn't need to be asked twice. Once we'd undressed and got in the tub, Emily leaned up against me, and said, "I did not expect this twist in my life, but by the System, I am grateful." I kissed her on the top of her head and said, "I think I have you beat on being surprised by this twist, but I am equally grateful." She laughed and playfully splashed some water back at my face.

We relaxed in the bathtub, talking very little, before Emily said, "Shall we move this to the bed?" My stomach was a ball of nerves, but once again, I didn't need to be told twice.