After the wedding ceremony, which involved actual barrels for mugs, a reception awaited outside the church. In Pars, a reception was practically synonymous with a banquet. It was said to be a hearty affair, with lively chatter akin to any tavern, drinking contests, and even the occasional fight, ending with people collapsing from drink. Incidentally, many adventurers from Pars were participating in today’s ceremony for me and Rion. This meant the future developments were easy to imagine.
“To Kel and Rion’s future—cheers!”
“Cheers!”
How many toasts had there been today? These recurring celebratory toasts also served as signals for “Let’s drink!” and each time, a chugging contest ensued. And, as the main cast today, Rion and I were forcibly participating—No, this is just like the Spirit Song Inn’s drinking party. Eat, drink, and get knocked out freely, then sleep. It’s exactly an adventurer’s banquet. Well, since we’re drinking outside, there’ll be a need to carry us to the bedroom before our stomachs get cold… I suppose our maids and golems will manage that somehow. I’m sorry to make them work so hard.
“But Kel, you really showed us what you were made of earlier! I never expected you to drink all that alcohol!”
“No no, I couldn’t get married if I didn’t drink it, could I? More importantly, if you thought that, you should have gone a little easier on me, Uldo-san!”
“Hahaha, well, good job for managing to drink it all!”
“Yeah, yeah, you were cool, Older Kel!”
Uldo-san clapped me on the back, and Rion gave me the highest praise. As usual, I had borrowed the ‘Alcoholic’ skill from Gerard, so no matter how much I drank, I wouldn’t get a terrible hangover. That’s why I worried more about Rion…
*Gulp gulp♪*
…Rion, you’re more of a heavy drinker than I expected. I-I mean, you always ate little, so you don’t drink that much, but you don’t seem drunk at all. Could it be that you’re decomposing alcohol too with ‘Absolute Purification’? I was in the midst of such suspicions.
“Also, even if you couldn’t manage it, it doesn’t mean you wouldn’t have been able to get married.”
“Huh? Is that so?”
“Yeah, in fact, about half of the ceremonies held in Pars end in failure on the spot. In those cases, the wife drinks a cup of alcohol on behalf of the husband, and that’s how it’s resolved.”
“Oh, so there was such a relief measure. …Huh? Then, I didn’t need to push myself that much?”
“No no, it’s not entirely meaningless, you know? There’s a superstition that if you can’t drink it, you’re more likely to be henpecked by your wife in your married life.”
“That’s a remarkably specific superstition. …Um, out of curiosity, what happened during your wedding ceremony, Uldo-san and Claire-san?”
“My ceremony? Hmm, I can’t exactly say it out loud, but well, it was like this… Perhaps because it was a relatively high-level ceremony in Pars, I failed spectacularly! I mean, it wasn’t as bad as Kel’s, but they poured a ridiculously large mug of alcohol, more than I had ever seen, and what with the extreme tension, I ended up spitting it all over Claire’s face partway through!”
“What!?”
“Claire punched me right after, and even recalling it now, it was a disastrous ceremony! Hahaha!”
“H-ha ha…”
Uldo-san’s magnanimity in being able to laugh about it is amazing. And considering he’s currently henpecked by Claire-san, perhaps it’s not just a superstition…?
“Ah, come to think of it, I failed too.”
“Me too!”
“Seriously, wasn’t it your first success in a long time? Well, I failed too.”
Other adventurers began sharing their failure stories one after another. What a coincidence, they were all currently henpecked by their wives—Yeah, I’m convinced. This seems to be a very strong jinx. Is it a blessing, or a curse? I think it’s some kind of hidden status. My, if I had failed back then, would I have ended up with Rion henpecking me in the future? …That might not be so bad, though? Hmm, it’s a difficult question.
“Older Kel, why the grim face?”
“Hm? Ah, no, it’s nothing. Regardless of superstitions, I’m just now realizing it was good that I could show my resolve. Well, even if I had failed, it wouldn’t have been so bad!”
“Hehe, what’s that? You’re being strange, Older Kel.”
As Rion and I laughed like that, a loud cheer erupted from a corner of the venue. “What’s going on?” I turned my gaze in that direction and saw Mel and Yellow Mudo striking triumphant poses with all their might. “What are those two doing…?”
“It’s… it’s huge…”
“Eh, no way? Is that real?”
“Wh-what do you think? In some places, they apparently bring out fakes, but the smell is already so delicious…”
“Whoa, how many meters is that thing?”
“Amaaaazing!”
Following them, various voices could be heard from others. At the same time, something incredibly large, about the size of a house, appeared in the venue—Ah, that’s right. I see. So that’s what’s arrived.
“Make way, make way! The special wedding cake is coming through!”
“Master! Rion-sama! Please come this way!”
Along with Claire-san’s spirited voice and Efil’s voice that captivated everyone, what entered my field of vision was a massive, house-sized special wedding cake. Needless to say, it was a joint creation by the strongest master and disciple duo. I knew about the project beforehand, but… Hmm, it’s huge. And it looks delicious. It’s understandable why Mel and Mudo’s eyes are sparkling.
“Come on, Older Kel! This is our joint task from now on!”
“Ah, it’s a classic. Let’s put our all into it.”
Of course, cutting this cake together would be our very first joint task. After saying goodbye to Uldo-san and the others, I headed toward the bottom of the cake—Whoa, it’s even bigger up close. The details are meticulously decorated, and the effort put into making it is evident just by looking. Thank you both so much…!
“Sure, cutting the cake is classic, but isn’t the size of the cake and the knife disproportionate…?”
“We’re not cutting it all at once, are we? It’s just a symbolic cut, right? The actual cutting is afterward, surely.”
“Hey, maybe only the part where we cut is real, and the rest is fake?”
Everyone was saying various things, but no, absolutely not. The cake is entirely real, and we intend to cut the whole thing with this one cut. With all the gratitude I feel, I intend to cut it responsibly.
“We apologize for the wait. We shall now begin the cake cutting. Before that, has everyone received a plate and fork? If not, please inform a staff member nearby.”
“Plates and forks? Why do we need those for a cake cutting?”
“Are they going to cut and distribute it immediately after the cutting?”
There will likely be many questions, but for now, please hold your plates horizontally. We’ll talk after that.
“…Yes, it seems everyone has one. Now then, Master.”
“Ah, leave it to us from here. Rion, are you ready?”
“I’m always ready!”
Standing close to Rion, we both gripped the cake knife. Up to this point, it’s probably no different from a normal cake-cutting posture. But from here on, it’s different. I activated ‘Earth’s Polishing,’ and Rion activated ‘Lightning Superconduction.’ We crouched low like a lioness stalking its prey. Now, point the sword tip at the cake… Alright, let’s carve it up!
