Taming The Villainesses

Chapter 416: Royal Wedding Feast (3)

I spoke.

That is, I suggested we sneak out of the wedding ceremony.

Perhaps no one expected I’d bring up something like that—everyone just blinked in surprise.

Myrna in particular looked especially flustered.

“You’re saying we should leave the wedding midway? You know the last day of the banquet is the most important.”

Myrna’s point was entirely valid. After all, in Angmar, wedding ceremonies lasted several days.

And on the final night, guests and the bride and groom alike were said to gather around blazing flames to dance in a great noisy celebration.

Then, around midnight, as the night deepened—

The bride and groom were to stand before everyone and declare: “We will live happily ever after!”, thus bringing the long banquet and wedding to an official end.

That night would be their first wedding night.

And the following morning, the newlywed couple would either set off on their honeymoon or visit one another’s family homes.

That, too, was part of the tradition.

If you skipped that final stage, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say the couple hadn’t truly married at all.

So of course it wasn’t strange that Myrna and the other ladies were taken aback when I said, “Let’s call off the rest of the ceremony and escape on a magic carpet.”

Narmee spoke up.

“I think it sounds fun. But wow, I really didn’t expect you, Teo, to say something so reckless. People are gonna freak out if we disappear!”

And they would, no doubt about it.

If the bride and groom—the main characters of the entire ceremony—suddenly vanished, chaos would erupt. I was sure of it. It’d be a full-blown disaster.

Stella added her thoughts.

“I haven’t known you that long, Teo. But I’ve never heard you say something meaningless. So I’m guessing... this plan has a purpose, right?”

“Well...”

Stella was nearly spot-on.

People might think I was just running away because I was tired of all these wedding events—but this little escape had its own very good reason.

Aira answered in my place.

“No bride or groom would ever disappear in the middle of their wedding. No one would see it coming. If we strike like this, no one will be prepared—not even the ones watching us.”

Elga narrowed her brow.

“So we were being watched after all. It’s those Church people, isn’t it? I noticed the priests from Gracia keeping tabs on us—watching everything we do.”

Elga had sharp instincts. Sure, with all eyes naturally focused on the bride and groom, it made sense that we were the center of attention during the three-day celebration...

But the priests dispatched from Gracia seemed... overly reactive. No matter where we went or what we did, there was always a sense of scrutiny. It did feel like we were under surveillance.

Of course, they probably thought they were being subtle. But neither my sensitive half-fairy senses nor Elga’s sharp intuition could be fooled.

Elga asked, “Why are they watching us?”

Myrna answered that question with a quiet sigh.

“I think... they’re making sure we don’t cross the barrier. The Saintess was very worried that we might try to get through it.”

And she was probably right. I nodded and said, “I think so too.”

The Saintess Friga must have sent people to make sure I didn’t break my verbal promise and approach the Gate beyond the barrier.

Even after this wedding ends, the surveillance won’t stop. In fact, it might only intensify.

Then Narmee clapped her hands—clap!

“Oh, I get it! This is the perfect chance because everyone’s guards are down, right? Nobody would ever think the bride and groom would ditch the ceremony. It’s our chance to slip through the net!”

“Exactly. Right now is probably the best time to cross the barrier without being noticed. Of course... we’ll have to abandon the # Nоvеlight # wedding ceremony.”

It might be a once-in-a-lifetime event.

Everyone naturally wants their wedding to begin and end perfectly. I was well aware that what I was asking of them could seem unreasonable—or even disrespectful.

The ladies exchanged glances.

***

A wedding banquet like no other, held in Angmar.

One groom. Five brides.

If you had to name the happiest man in such an unusual celebration, naturally, it’d be the groom: Teo Gospel.

Each one of his wives was beautiful enough to be famous across the entire kingdom. Just for today, he might feel like he owned the whole world.

And in that sense, there would be no argument—Angmar’s Teo Gospel was undoubtedly the happiest man alive today.

But then...

Who would be the second happiest man at this wedding?

Opinions might vary.

Prince Kasim of Turki, who was flooded with attention from Angmar’s beauties? Or perhaps the great archmage Highnax, who used the occasion to debut a new magical theory?

No—this man here had no doubt in his mind that he was the second happiest man on earth. His name—

“Lord Reinhardt, congratulations on your daughter’s wedding.”

“My cousin Leopold, it’s been a while. Your daughter is due to marry soon as well, isn’t she?”

“Yes, in two months—she’s to marry a noble from the southern provinces...”

“That’s splendid.”

Even as he exchanged greetings with dozens of relatives, Reinhardt maintained his usual dignity. And yet—he looked like he was having a blast.

A rare smile kept tugging at the corners of his otherwise stern lips—so much so that he had to consciously hold it back.

The daughter who had been his greatest worry, the daughter who always shouted that she had no interest in marriage, had now married the greatest man in the kingdom.

Even Reinhardt couldn’t help but smile. Maybe that’s why... the whole world looked like a beautiful fairytale today.

At this moment, he felt like he could grant anyone anything they asked for.

And maybe others sensed it too. Ministers and nobles who had always been too intimidated to speak to him now hurried over to bow before him.

“Lord Reinhardt, about the emergency budget request for the Nymph Relief Foundation... there’s been some shortfall, and we’d need to increase funds by twenty percent—”

“Approved.”

“I’m from the Nymph Dinosaur Research Foundation. If you’d sponsor the excavation of these dinosaur bones... we’d donate them to the Angmar National Museum...”

“Sounds intriguing. Proceed.”

“I am Suganoi from the Nymph Sugar Intake Foundation...! I’m here to petition for a policy to provide one sugar cube a day for healthy nymph growth—”

“I’m from the Nymph Appreciation Committee—”

Seriously, just how many nymph-related foundations were there? Even Reinhardt, despite his good mood, started to think this was getting out of hand.

That was when—

“L-Lord Reinhardt!”

Someone came rushing in, out of breath. It was Count Pantera of Orléans—Reinhardt’s cousin, and lord of the great western city of Orléans.

With his slicked-back golden hair and sharply styled beard, he looked like a sly tactician—but he’d once fought alongside Reinhardt on many battlefields. A man’s man.

“Pantera. What is it?”

Even as he asked, Reinhardt had a hunch. There was only one thing that could make a man like Pantera panic.

His daughter must have done something.

Had Aslan caused a scene? She was of marriageable age and notoriously wild.

Having raised a daughter like Elga himself, Reinhardt could sympathize with the internal struggles of his cousin.

Reinhardt spoke.

“Pantera, your daughter will find a good match soon, I’m sure.”

“No, Reinhardt! It’s not my daughter. It’s Elga—no, not just Elga. This is bad. They’re all gone!”

The moment Reinhardt heard those words, the blood drained from his face.

Still, Reinhardt wasn’t the kind of man to jump to conclusions without verifying the facts.

“You must be mistaken,” he said, patting his cousin’s shoulder. “Let me see for myself.”

And then—

They’re really gone...!

Not only did the color drain from his face, it felt like the blood reversed course and shot up into his skull. Neither the groom nor the brides were anywhere to be found.

Those brats ran off...

He couldn’t believe it.

This was reality? No matter how wild those kids were, who the hell ditches their wedding in secret midway through?

You little...!

Rage surged through him.

The man who had just moments ago been the second happiest person in the world—Reinhardt—was now the most furious and miserable.

But he was still a father. And a statesman.

—“Hey, don’t you think the bride and groom have been missing a while?”

—“Did they already sneak off early? Kids these days move fast.”

—“I mean... they’ve been gone too long. You think something happened?”

The whispers were starting. And Reinhardt knew better than anyone just how quickly panic could spread.

He had no choice but to act.

He had to distract the crowd, then launch a quiet investigation behind the scenes.

So he leaned over to the small imp nearby—probably one named Tartare—and whispered softly.

Whisper, whisper...

The red-haired imp suddenly brightened and shouted:

“Everyone! Lord Reinhardt von Leones, Chancellor of Angmar, will now... perform a saxophone solo for our honored guests!”

The murmurs grew louder.

—“Wait, Reinhardt is gonna play the saxophone?”

—“What? Now? That doesn’t suit him at all.”

—“Still... kinda wanna see it.”

The chatter about the missing couple was buried beneath a growing buzz of anticipation. Reinhardt, embarrassed but resolute, accepted the saxophone passed to him by the band.

“By the way, little imp, it’s ‘saxophone’, not ‘sexophone’. I’m... sensitive to that kind of distinction. Anyway. This isn’t exactly something I brag about, but...”

No, he hadn’t practiced this performance for today. But every now and then, he’d spend hours playing—just to kill time.

And now, he would show off those secret skills to draw everyone’s attention.

He took a deep breath, brought the cold brass to his lips, and breathed life into the instrument.

Booooo─────.

A rich, stately tone spread across the venue—a sound well-suited to a dashing middle-aged gentleman.

The sight of the Iron Chancellor playing the saxophone brought a hush to the crowd. Everyone paused mid-bite, jaws slightly agape.

—“He’s... actually really good?”

—“No, like, really good.”

—“That song... that’s Flight of the Bumblebee! As a royal court musician, I’d know that tune anywhere! I can’t believe he’s playing it live!”

—“Waaaahhh! What is this beautiful sound piercing my ears!? This PUNCHINOI’S eyes won’t stop leaking warmth...!”

—“Session, session! Fill the space with backup instruments...!”

In later years—

This moment would be remembered as the legendary debut of Reinhardt the Great Court Musician.

But that was a story for the distant future.

For now, Reinhardt was just a father and a chancellor, wishing for the safety and happiness of his runaway daughter.

“Wherever you are, whatever you're doing—if you're happy, that's enough for me.”