“Now, once again, let us report to God the marriage of the bride and groom here. Exchange rings and share a kiss of vows.”
““““Uooooh!””””
The priest proceeded quickly, and the mass wedding ceremony was over in no time. The people gathered in the square erupted in thunderous applause.
“Mother, I’m so glad…”
“Uo-oh, (sniffle, sniffle )uuoo.”
Toria-san was moved to tears by the sight of her mother beside the previous head of the family, and the Margrave was sobbing again.
Sue and Shiro were also applauding loudly.
“Now, while we prepare for the parade, it’s time for the much-anticipated bouquet toss. This time, it’s a precious bouquet that has overcome many difficulties.”
“I’ll catch it!”
Uoh… this is bad.
An army of unmarried women surged into the square, each on their frenzied state.
Considering everything that had happened today—the explosion in the square, the destroyed stage decorations, the attack in the middle of the ceremony—and yet the joint wedding had still reached a happy conclusion… It wasn’t hard to believe everyone thought these bouquets would be incredibly lucky.
And after the surprise announcement that Maria-san was expecting, the bouquets had probably gained a reputation for blessing their catcher with children as well.
“Sue… Toria-san…”
I watched the crowd of eager women and swallowed.
“Doesn’t this bouquet toss look like it’s guaranteed to leave someone injured?”
“Their frenzied state is absolutely terrifying. I have a very bad feeling about this…”
“The determination they’re showing is nothing like last year’s bouquet toss. The atmosphere is completely different.”
“““Scary..”””
Shiro, the others, and even Ao instinctively shrank back in fear. Sue and Toria-san weren’t looking much better, their faces visibly tense.
Ignoring all of our growing anxiety, the ceremony marched relentlessly onward.
“Now then, which six lucky ladies will catch today’s bouquets?”
The announcer raised her voice dramatically.
“Here they come!”
“““Ready… throw!”””
Six brides tossed their bouquets high into the air.
The six bouquets sailed into the air at the announcer’s signal, arcing toward the sea of eager women below.
And just as I’d feared…
Chaos erupted.
“I’m getting that one!”
“No, it’s mine!”
“Hey! Who told you to shove your way in?!”
“Ow! Stop pushing!”
“That bouquet belongs to me!”
It wasn’t just shoving and grappling anymore. People were yelling at one another. Some had even started throwing punches. This had gone far beyond a “slightly intense” bouquet toss. It had become an all-out battlefield.
“““Uwaaah…”””
“““(Trembling in fear)”””
Sue, Toria-san, and I could only stare in horrified disbelief at the chaos unfolding across the square. Shiro and the others had already huddled together in fright. Even Ao, who normally stayed calm no matter what happened, quietly slipped behind us and hid in our shadows, trembling along with everyone else.
“E-Emilia-sama… isn’t this getting a little out of hand?”
“It’ll settle down soon enough. It’s an annual tradition. No one can stop it once it starts.”
She gave a small shrug.
“We’ve already arranged for healers to be on standby, so everything will be fine.”
Since Emilia-sama herself looked completely unconcerned, the rest of us had no choice but to hold our tongues.
“I got it!”
**Clap! Clap! Clap!**
A few minutes later, the brutal bouquet battle finally came to an end.
The victorious woman triumphantly held the thoroughly battered bouquet high above her head as the crowd applauded.
Honestly…
She looked less like someone who had caught a wedding bouquet and more like a battle-hardened warrior returning from the front lines. Her makeup was in ruins. Her dress was torn and disheveled. Yet somehow, there was an almost sacred dignity about her after surviving such a fierce struggle.
To be perfectly honest, the men who had watched the bouquet toss from a safe distance were staring in stunned silence.
But in a frontier territory where beastmen made up much of the population, perhaps it was only natural for women this strong to take the lead.
Looking at the Margrave’s own household, that certainly seemed to be the case.
This is translated by Yume Neiji. Kindly read at yumeneijiworks.com
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