Chapter 28: At the Pinnacle of Happiness

“Master, um…”
“What is it, Saeed?”
“‘That person’ has arrived.”
“That person?”
“Lady Electra.
The one who has been staying with us.”
“What?
Wasn’t that woman supposed to be staying behind in the territory?”

Harid and Livia’s wedding was to be held at the church in the royal capital.

It was because so many guests had gathered for the marriage of the ‘Hero’ and the ‘Saint.’

“It seems this was Lady Livia’s wish.
She said that the request of the future Viscountess Carlson could hardly be refused.”
“What on earth is she thinking…”

She was not the real Electra.

And yet, what if Livia were to mention the name ‘Electra’ in a public place?

Someone might deny it, and Livia could find out the truth.

No, even if she were the real one, for a divorced man’s former wife to attend his wedding…

“What is Livia thinking…!”
“Fortunately—or perhaps I should say inevitably—she is not the ‘real one.’
She likely harbors no particular feelings toward your marriage.
There should be no further trouble.
Over the past six months, she has remained quiet and caused no issues.”
“That may be so, but…!”

Still, Harid agonized over how to cover this up.

“Can you arrange for me to meet her without Livia finding out?”
“…As you wish.”

After a while, the fake Electra was brought before Harid.

He was taken aback by her attire.

“That outfit…”
“Does it suit me?
Hehe.”

A black dress.

And even a deep black veil that concealed her face.

There were no decorations, and it was utterly inappropriate for a celebratory occasion.

“…What are you planning?”
“Of course, I came to celebrate your wedding.
It was the bride’s earnest request.”
“If you came to celebrate, then what is that outfit supposed to be!?”
“I imagined Lady Electra’s feelings and coordinated this accordingly.
After all, on this day, this is how it should be, don’t you think?
Former husband…”
“Ghk…!
Electra would never do something so pointed!”
“Oh my.”

At Harid’s mention of Electra, the fake Electra showed a look of surprise.

“What do you actually know about her?
Former husband who spent only a single day with her.”
“That’s—!”
“Hehe, but isn’t it fine?
Today, you are to have a happy marriage.
You will let her taste the greatest happiness of all.
And for that to happen, surely it’s necessary to see the ‘former wife’ living in the shadows, right?
Because that’s the kind of person she is.”
“Livia is—!”

Harid could not finish the sentence.

Because he had already begun to realize what kind of person Livia was.

“And with that, my role also ends today…”
“…What?”

Harid doubted his ears.

“You’re getting married, after all.
It would be strange for a ‘former wife’ to remain by your side, wouldn’t it?
Until now, I have been handing over the duties of the viscountess to her.
That was still something society could accept.
But after the marriage, if ‘I’ were to remain with you, it would become a scandal.”
“T-That may be so, but—”
“Have you forgotten?
I am merely someone you hired.
And surely you think so as well, don’t you?”
“Think what?”
“That it’s better to separate Livia from ‘me.’”
“That is—”

Harid’s eyes darted about in confusion.

Everything she said was correct.

“Hehe.
Ah, and one more thing.
As someone formally invited by the bride, I would like to invite a friend to the ceremony.
Would that be acceptable?”
“What?
A friend?
You?”
“Yes.
I do have friends, you know.
Wouldn’t it be strange if I didn’t?”
“…But—”
“Don’t worry.
Just a friend.
You’d only be mocking yourself if you looked down on ‘me’ as being all alone.
After all, you know I am not ‘her,’ right?”

This woman could see straight through his heart.

That was how Harid felt.

“…Do as you like.
But do not disrupt the wedding.”
“Hehe.
You know very well that I have no reason to interfere with your happiness.
I couldn’t care less if you two get along.”
“I suppose so…”

Because she was not Electra.

“Oh, and one more thing.”
“Is there something else…”

Harid replied with a weary tone.

“It seems a duke… wishes to meet you.”
“Huh…?”

A duke?

Harid’s thoughts descended into utter confusion.

“It is an honor to meet you, Hero Harid Carlson.”
“Ah… um…”
“I am Duke Pharmason, Jack Pharmason.
I have a request—no, a proposal—for you today.”
“…A proposal?”

A duke.

One of only two houses at the very top of the nobility in this kingdom.

A special lineage that carried royal blood and would stand in should anything happen to the royal family.

Why was such a man standing before him?

“I hear that ‘Saint’ Livia is an orphan.”
“That is… yes.
That is correct.”
“Then you must be having trouble finding someone to escort her down the aisle.”
“Eh?
That would be—”
“Had you planned to have someone do it?”
“Y-Yes.
We intended to have my house’s chief steward do so…”
“A servant, you say.
That would tarnish the honor of the ‘Saint.’
Don’t you think so, Viscount Carlson?”
“W-What…?”

No matter how much he was called a hero, Harid was still a mere viscount.

Before a duke, he could only shrink back.

“So.
I shall escort the saint and walk the aisle with her.”
“Y-You will, Your Grace!?”
“Yes.
She is a saint, after all.
It will better preserve her honor.
Those who look down on her for being an orphan will surely diminish.”
“T-That is a generous proposal, but… why?”
“The saint is… the hope of this kingdom, is she not?
Then it is only natural for a royal noble to act accordingly.”
“I-Is that so…?”
“Yes.
You have no objections, Viscount?”
“N-No.
Please… take care of my wife.”

Harid could not comprehend it at all.

But thinking back, there had been many unusual developments.

The wedding being held in the capital.
The sheer number of guests.

Given that, perhaps this too was simply natural.

Because they were a ‘Hero’ and a ‘Saint.’

That was how he forcibly convinced himself.

And so.

After overcoming many unexpected events, Harid and Livia dressed for the ceremony, and the wedding began.

The guests entered first.

Harid waited nervously for his moment.

Once everyone was seated, the groom Harid entered and advanced to the altar.

(The bride’s guests… that woman, and the person seated beside her—is that the friend she mentioned?)

The fake Electra, unbelievably, was seated in the very front row.

In that black dress and black veil.

She stood out terribly.

Harid belatedly thought he should have made her change outfits.

What caught his eye even more was the person seated beside her.

Well-dressed, adorned with jewelry, clearly someone of high nobility… a woman.

He had assumed the friend would be someone around the fake Electra’s age, but that did not seem to be the case.

(Is that woman… her mother or something?
So she really was from a noble family?)

The woman looked old enough to be her mother.

She carried an air of refinement.

By sitting beside the fake Electra dressed in black, she seemed to suppress any criticism from those around them.

(…Who is she?)

Harid had no idea.

He didn’t even know who the fake Electra truly was.

How could he know her friends or family?

As he pondered this, Livia finally entered the hall.

Escorted by Duke Pharmason, wearing a white wedding dress.

(Ah… Livia.)

At that sight, all of Harid’s lingering anxieties and regrets were washed away.

This was right.

They would be happy now.

Choosing Livia had never been a mistake.

He could see her looking happy beneath her veil.

Seeing that, joy welled up within him as well.

They were now at the pinnacle of happiness.

Harid felt deeply moved by the premonition of bliss.

Livia had apparently been overjoyed to hear that the duke himself would escort her.

Duke Pharmason, too, wore a fulfilled smile, as though he were escorting his own daughter.

(Hm…?)

At that moment, Harid noticed something strange.

Livia had blonde hair and ruby-like red eyes.

And those eyes… were exactly the same color as Duke Pharmason’s.

(It’s… probably nothing.)

The way they walked together down the aisle looked so much like a true father and daughter.

That was why the resemblance unsettled him.

Just that.

(There’s no problem.
Today, we are going to be happy.)

“Harid, hehe!
Do I look pretty?”

Livia asked, breaking the solemn atmosphere of the ceremony.

Harid flinched at her behavior, but quickly recovered.

“Yes, you’re beautiful.
The most beautiful in the world, Livia.”
“Hehe, I’m so happy!”

Then Livia stood before Harid and turned her gaze toward the fake Electra.

Because of the veil, her expression was unclear.

What did she feel, deliberately directing her attention toward the fake Electra as if to show off?

Drawn by Livia’s movement, Duke Pharmason also turned his gaze toward the bride’s guests.

“…Huh?”

At that instant.

The gentle, fulfilled, happy expression on Duke Pharmason’s face froze solid.

“W-Why…?”

Shock.

Or perhaps fear.

The duke stared at a single point.

Harid tilted his head at the sight.

(Does he know her?
The fake Electra?)

But could he really recognize her beneath that black veil?

Thinking that, Harid followed his gaze toward the guests.

“…Heh.”

The one smiling there was the noblewoman seated beside the fake Electra.

It was immediately clear that she was the one Duke Pharmason had been looking at.

“──How long do you intend to stand there dazed, Jack?
Come, sit beside me.
You are my husband… after all.”

Yes.

The Duchess Pharmason spoke to the duke.