Chapter 242
“Usually, the man proposes first. Doesn’t matter who’s more in love.”
“What? Really? But I just wanted to get married as soon as possible!”
“I didn’t pick up on that, I’m sorry.”
“Don’t apologize. I’m happy I was the one to propose!”
Of course she was. She was sweet, a bit of a fool, and a hopeless romantic.
“W-wait. Payne, so… does that mean you’ll say yes?”
“…”
For a moment, Payne didn’t say anything.
The sun was shining, the lake was calm and beautiful, and not even a breeze stirred—a perfect day. The fact that the two of them were standing there stark naked made it all feel slightly surreal… but that was fine. In fact, maybe it was even better this way.
“Yes.”
He accepted the ring Ashtel offered. Staring at the mysterious gem that matched the color of her eyes. He repeated himself, this time a little more surely.
“Yes. I will, Ashtel.”
But there was still one thing that bothered him.
“Sue, where’s the ring for you?”
“…Huh?”
“Don’t tell me you only have this one?”
“Is that a problem?”
Payne let out a helpless little laugh and shook his head. What was he going to do with this adorable (former) succubus?
Side Story 3. The Cruel Life of a Son-in-Law
Four months passed in a flash, and they had a spectacular, dazzling wedding.
There was a little abandoned temple in the village; with a few of Carmen’s magical tools, they swept, scrubbed, tidied, and decorated it for the ceremony.
Of course, it wasn’t just Ashtel and Payne doing all the work. They had a handy wizard and Ashtel’s formidable sisters, who’d do just about anything for her.
The officiant was the headman of the quiet little village.
It would have been nice to have a priest, but with the temple long abandoned, no devout clergy were to be found.
Still, Payne didn’t mind. Ever since that morning when Ashtel told him, “Payne, you’re already loved,” his whole world felt a little brighter.
“Remember when you said, ‘I think I could learn to love you’?”
“Why do you remember that?”
“Because that was the first time you ever said you might love me!”
“Saying I might love you and actually loving you aren’t the same thing.”
“So, does that mean you don’t love me now?”
“…”
They held the wedding with the village chief as officiant. Nine of Ashtel’s eleven sisters came down to the human world for the event—only Sermedes and Juvia were missing.
Nluie and Chacha bawled their eyes out, Carmen and Beatrice tried to hide their tears, and Hela and Jo struggled valiantly not to cry.
Matys’s booming laughter nearly disrupted everything, but honestly, it was Moablen and Liz’s icy stares that made things awkward.
‘Should I just declare my objection to this marriage right now?’
‘I’m all for it.’
‘You two, knock it off.’
Thanks to Hela’s intervention, disaster was averted.
But those two troublemakers—no, those two demons—ended up getting a stern talking-to after Hela tattled on every little thing they’d done to Ashtel.
She didn’t beg them to cherish Payne or accept him as family; she simply and seriously asked them to wish for her happiness.
Finally, they seemed to understand Ashtel’s sincerity.
And so, the wedding ended peacefully. Afterward, instead of a honeymoon, they spent a few days at a nearby seaside.
And then Payne was kidnapped.
“…Ha.”
To the demon realm.
“Fascinating rocks. Oh, that one looks like a beast!”
“That’s a monster. Stay away from it.”
“Ah, I see.”
With Roman, of course.
Ashtel was there too, but she was so delighted to be reunited with her sisters that she didn’t notice Payne’s suffering at all.
He lifted his hollow gaze to the strange, shifting sky of the demon realm, wishing he could just close his eyes and block it all out.
How did it come to this?
For that, we need to rewind to a week before.
* * *
During the wedding, Duvalkan and Van arrived to announce that Payne had finally been cleared of all charges.
‘You’re no longer a criminal.’
Duvalkan’s expression looked strangely pained—not that being found innocent was a bad thing, so why the sadness?
Van, standing beside him, looked just as uncomfortable. Maybe it was because, after being ‘trained’ by one of Ashtel’s sisters (just thinking of that word made Payne uneasy), they’d been continually harassed ever since.
‘Sir Duvalkan, are you alright?’
‘…Haha, no, it’s nothing like that.’
‘Well, then, we’ll be off.’
Payne wanted to ask more, but the two of them made a quick escape.
It nagged at him, so he asked Ashtel about it.
‘Duval and Van? Oh, Sis Moa still dotes on them, I think?’
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