Preparations for Amie's wedding were long in the works. Every day, more guards were stationed in the Krain manor by the king and one needed an invitation to enter the premises. It was the royal wedding of the year many wanted to call it, but soon recalled that Queen Mother Raine had also married that year. The wedding will close the year, ushering in the New Year and a new era; it was symbolic. So, many called it the cold wedding; A fitting name, given that it will be held on the coldest day of the year.
High-ranking martial artists convened and informed the king that the day would be so cold; that the new ceremonies would not be fitting.
Yes, how could one forget new ceremonies that had been confirmed by the King's council? As His Majesty was crowned under the old laws of Thriergor, his wedding must follow that trend. Many had heard of this change but did not know what they were. This caused a lot of buzz in the capital. Those from foreign territories who did not have the opportunity to witness King Adrian's coronation were rushing to make it before the wedding. Making it to the wedding will be too late.
It was common knowledge that many were dissatisfied with the king's choice of his bride-to-be. For the first time since the first king, The Religion had crowned a ruler for all of Thriergor. Before they could get the chance to form a connection through marriage, some unknown character had stolen it.
In the eyes of other lands, they did not quite see Thriergor as a threat, but The Religion was one. They may not care about this new king of the root of the broken tree, but they care about The Religion. The Religion had taken a side and they had to respect it.
Many were rushing over to have the chance to introduce better options to the king; as to them, being in a small place like Juhntt has limited his view of the world. Those from Other-side were allowed entrance to this unusual wedding. Many with enough influence hired martial arts experts to tear across the lands with great power to get them there before the wedding day.
The bride-to-be on the other hand seemed to keep herself busy with work. She was barely ever at home. She spent her time stabilizing the Steinhouse properties, filling in the gap left by the sudden departure of her brother and his wife. She barely put thought into the planning of her wedding. She had heard that her cousins had come around again, but thankfully she had not been there to deal with them.
Looking out into the pale sky, she made her way back home. The moment she walked in, she knew something was wrong with the sour look on her mother's face, her cousins in the corner and Madam D'huile seated with her assistants.
"Mother?" she seemed to ask about the situation with her eyes.
"Cousin, you have returned," One of her cousins, the eldest of the two girls approached before any other.
"You are?" Amie asked politely, pretending she did not know her and the girl froze in her steps. She looked completely embarrassed, but only for a second.
"We met the other day...," she started to explain.
"Amie, come in. Madam D'huile has been waiting for quite a while. Amie nodded and moved towards her, completely ignoring the one who had been talking before. She could see the younger cousin was looking at Madam D'huile with worshipping eyes. Without paying much attention to the others, she nodded to the ever-fashionable Madam D'huile.
"Come and try your dress," Madam D'huile said waving for her assistants to take a large package up to Amie's room and Amie's brows came together in confusion.
"Have you been so busy to even forget you are getting married?" Madam D'huile asked. Before Amie could answer, a voice came from the door.
"Only you would forget your own wedding. Careful, you may hurt my feelings," Everyone turned to see the one who spoke. It was King Adrian. Amie struggled to keep her face soft with a smile when she saw him. Everyone around immediately bowed. The Grueviers did not know who he was but followed as others did. Only Amie remained in place.
"You came?" she asked, but he knew what she really wanted to ask was, 'Why did you come?' To this, he only chuckled.
"Father-in-law invited me for a drink," he said and everyone turned to see Mr. Krain's stern face as he walked in through the side door.