At Yuri's under-the-breath remark, Aina responded at once.
"What kind of joke is that supposed to be?"
Answered so flatly, Yuri flinched for a moment and could only give an awkward smile.
In an ordinary marriage between nobles, all it took was petitioning the Crown and receiving permission. This time, though, it was not that simple.
Celine had been one of the late king's consorts, and more than that, she had held the post of the Virtuous Consort of the Senior Second Rank. Formally speaking, that meant the Marriage-Down Ceremony had to be performed.
The Senior Second Rank was one of the high ranks within the Kingdom of Oltania's harem, and each office came with its own duties and responsibilities.
The Queen Consort held the Senior First Rank and bore ultimate responsibility for overseeing the harem as a whole and receiving foreign dignitaries.
Within the Senior Second Rank, there were five offices.
"The Noble Consort": responsible for personnel within the harem, overseeing the placement of maids and court ladies.
"The Virtuous Consort": responsible for directing festivals and ceremonies, preserving the dignity of the royal house.
"The Benevolent Consort": responsible for the harem's finances, handling budget allocations and adjusting expenditures.
"The Sword Consort": responsible for security and protection within the harem, commanding its guard corps.
"The Wise Consort": placed in charge of magical instruments, managing and maintaining the harem's hidden treasures and arcane tools.
Ordinarily, Celine herself, as the Virtuous Consort, should have served as the chief overseer. But since this was her own wedding, a court lady of the Senior Third Rank bearing the title Shugi was acting in her stead.
The ceremony began with the Bride-Fetching Ceremony and continued through seven rites, ending with the Morning-Gift Ceremony on the following day.
To review the order of events:
"The Bride-Fetching Ceremony": The groom rides in a lavishly decorated carriage to escort the princess being married down.
"The Vows Ceremony": The wedding vows are exchanged in the Star-Knot Chamber within the royal palace.
"The Presentation Ceremony": For three days, the couple receives greetings and gifts from the invited nobility.
"The Entry Ceremony": After the Presentation Ceremony, the couple processes through the royal capital before heading to their new residence.
"The Wedding-Night Ceremony": The bride and groom exchange ceremonial cups in the antechamber of the bedchamber.
"The Bedding Ceremony": Witnesses watch them enter the bed, then report it to the royal family.
"The Morning-Gift Ceremony": After the maids have made their confirmation, the bride offers greetings to her family.
That made seven ceremonies in all.
The Wedding-Night Ceremony, the Bedding Ceremony... this is basically public humiliation.
Yuri writhed inwardly, the sheer scale of it all weighing on him. During the Marriage-Down Ceremony, there would apparently be music, plays, dancing, and other entertainments for the people of the kingdom, and Yuri, as the man receiving the bride, was expected to bear the cost.
He had no money for anything like that. In the end, the expense had been advanced by Her Majesty the Grand Queen Dowager as debt taken on by the Baroness Regnant of Reberk.
"I mean... going into debt just to do this..."
The words slipped out before he could stop them. Aina tipped her head slightly and gazed at him for a long moment, then let out a sigh. There was the faintest trace of worry in her expression.
After a brief silence, Aina steadied her breath and spoke.
"A noble is someone who must preserve their pride at all times and give hope to the people.
To do that, it is important to maintain appearances even at personal cost.
Please do not forget that holding splendid ceremonies can lead to the prosperity of the territory, and to the people's future."
Aina's eyes were utterly serious, as though she had poured all her feelings into those words. Yuri was left speechless and could only return her gaze.
Once the other maids had left the room and only Aina remained, Kokuyou, who had been lounging in a patch of sunlight, narrowed his eyes and began to speak.
"You really are a hopeless noble, my master, nyah. Don't you have any pride or dignity at all, nyah?"
Yuri gave a wry smile, but Aina's words would not leave his head.
"I know Aina has a point.
Authority helps reassure the people, and nobles have to project that too...
But pride and dignity don't put food on the table..."
Yuri muttered the words under his breath. Kokuyou flicked his ears in exasperation, and his tail swayed lazily, as though mocking the shallowness of Yuri's thinking.
"What are you talking about, nyah?"
The chill in Kokuyou's voice made Yuri recoil for an instant, and then Aina spoke again.
"Exactly. A noble's job is to turn pride and dignity into money.
And your job, my lord husband, is to maintain and expand the harem.
The harder you work, my lord husband, the more connections you will build with other nobles, and that will lead to stability for the territory.
And if that happens, we will be able to enjoy even better food and sweets as well."
Aina clenched a fist as she declared it, and Yuri was a little overwhelmed by the force of it.
She might well be right. And yet... would it really be enough if things were that simple?
"W-Well... when you put it like that..."
Lacking any real answer, Yuri somehow managed to respond, but the weight of Aina's earnest gaze pressed heavily on his chest.
A knock came at the door, and one of the maids peered inside.
"It is nearly time for the Bride-Fetching Ceremony. Please come to the carriage."
At that, Yuri let out a breath of obvious relief. Seeing him like that, Kokuyou sighed.
"Whew. The real thing only starts now, nyah. Are you really going to be all right?"
"I-I'm getting nervous. Let me pet all that fluff one last time!"
Yuri scooped Kokuyou up.
"Nyah. Don't manhandle me like that!"
"My lord husband, stop fooling around and hurry up and get ready."
Aina stepped in at once and neatly plucked Kokuyou from Yuri's arms.
"Honestly, look at you. You're covered in fur."
As she spoke, Aina lifted her skirt for only the briefest instant and, with the speed of an assassin drawing a knife, pulled the lint brush tucked against her thigh free.
Then she briskly brushed Kokuyou's fur from Yuri's chest.
"S-Sorry..."
"There, that should do it.
You are the man Lady Celine accepted with all her heart, my lord husband.
Please have a little more confidence in yourself."
Aina's words made Yuri's throat tighten.
"They may call you the hapless noble all they like, my lord husband, but we know better.
Delicious meals, fine sweets, fragrant soap, and shampoo that leaves our hair glossy... all of that came from your Gift.
And even so, you still cannot have confidence in yourself?"
Aina's words sank deep into Yuri's chest.
I only meant to make life a little better, but to Aina and the others... it had been something special.
Then, all at once, his father's cold voice replayed in his mind.
"You have no right to bear the name of the illustrious House Leonidas..."
In that moment, his efforts, his very existence, all of it had been denied simply because he had received a Merchant Gift.
Yuri had convinced himself that he was worthless.
But Aina and the others had seen him differently.
The little things Yuri had done casually, and mostly for his own convenience, were what they had called special.
The very Gift his father had dismissed as worthless was bringing joy to Celine and the others.
That fact lit a quiet little flame in Yuri's heart.
"We will never meet again as family, but do find happiness with your new family."
That was right.
Yuri had a new family now.
Celine, Lieselotte, and Aina needed him as he was now.
The consorts who might join them in the future, the attendants who supported their lives, and the people of the Reberk Barony—they were all his new family.
Nothing would change if he kept letting the past hold him in place.
The past, in which his father had refused to acknowledge him, would never disappear.
But now there was something he could do for the women before him.
The thought made the words rise naturally to his lips.
"Thank you, Aina."
He had not accomplished anything with his own strength yet, and yet it felt as though a hard knot lodged deep in his heart like an old scab had finally peeled away.
His chest felt lighter.
A smile came to him naturally.
"Yes, you do seem better now."
"Haha, I really can never get the better of you, Aina. Thank you."
"In that case, I will settle for cookies and sweet tea."
"Deal. When I get back, let's all have tea together."
With that, Yuri and the others headed for the carriage.
When he stepped out through the front entrance, a lavish carriage was waiting below the stairs. Soon he would ride it to the harem to fetch Celine.
"Then please, be off.
I shall have the bed prepared and await your return."
Aina said it with a radiant smile.
"...I was just starting to forget about that!"
The protest burst out of Yuri before he could stop it, and he felt his stomach tighten all over again.
But Aina's smile drew him in, and he gave up on complaining any further.
Thinking that it was such a very Aina way to see him off gave him a little courage.
Yuri drew in a deep breath, gathered a small measure of resolve in his chest, and climbed into the carriage.