The auspicious time was about an hour away, a lot of carriages were arriving one by one. The carriage of Christina and Elysia was also waiting for their turn.
They were not late but fairly at the last of the line. In front of theirs was Mike's family's carriage.
Mike did not stop from whining and complaining about Eric in front of her throughout yesterday. Good thing his wife suggested separating the carriages.
At first, Mike was full of dismay, but his wife was visibly skilled at handling him. From that moment, Christina's appreciation towards Liliana reached another height.
"Nana…"
It's been an hour, but they had yet to arrive at the drop-off. Of course, Elysia would whine as she's a real kid that's full of energy and easy to get tired of.
'Unlike a certain someone…'
"Ms. Christina and Elysia Ends!"
"End…s?"
Elysia looked at Christina but she plainly smiled back at her without explaining anything. Although curious, Elysia was more excited to get out of the carriage than to get an answer.
With that, Christina offered Elysia a hand and asked.
"Let's go?"
"Un!"
The moment Christina got off the carriage, all eyes were on her. Her dress alone was simple and humble. But she was able to pull it off impeccably, getting the envy of everyone around.
This made Christina doubt her decision. Originally, she wanted to look humble and elegant not to make Eric lose his face. But more importantly, she wanted to minimize the attention she would get one way or another.
Yet, for some reason, it backed fire. It was useless to do anything at this point. She then slowly receded her presence using magic.
"Na~na~"
The clueless child, Elysia, was eager to come down but she couldn't. Christina noticed so and turned around to help her.
"Wiii~"
Her giggles attracted a lot more attention than Christina. Therefore, it was safe to say that her natural charm was the one that pointed everyone's eyes on her way. Nothing was wrong with that but we need to mention her 'unique' taste of dressing.
As a prospective future protagonist, Elysia truly exceeded Christina's expectations. Despite the young age, she could attract everyone without exception. Although proud, her intention to minimize her presence seemed all for naught with Elysia by her side.
Christina then opened her umbrella to hide from the eyes of the crowd.
"Nana~"
Elysia asked her hand to be held and so Christina did so. Only to be ruined by a certain childish adult who came running towards them right after getting down their carriage.
"Christina!"
Like a dog proudly waiting for his master, Mike came ahead of his wife towards their direction. Elysia hid behind Christina's dress and quietly observed Mike.
"Aiyaa~ I didn't get to take a closer look earlier but…"
Mike looked at Christina from head to toe. Then, he looked at the people around before saying.
"… That really suits you, ah~"
He intended to tease Christina and make her fluster for a bit. But all she gave him was a death stare.
Ugh.
"Uncle…"
Hearing Mike compliment Christina, Elysia had the urge to ask for a compliment too. After all, they were mother and daughter. One should praise them together.
"Aiyaya~ Little one, what a lovely dress you have~ I'm sure when you get older a lot of boys would flock around you."
Mike ruffled Elysia's head while praising her. Elysia was pleased in return but Christina slapped Mike's hand to stop.
"You'll ruin her hair."
"Tsk."
Annoyed, Mike went back to his wife and enjoyed her company.
In the long line of carriages, a family gallantly walked down their humble carriage. A butler was about to ask their identities to announce. But he was stunned in place when he saw the beautiful set of family.
Their introduction letter in the invitation made him panic even more. The most important figures had arrived. He cleared his throat and shouted louder than ever before.
"His Majesty the King, Enares Lefite Edwards I"
"Her Majesty the Queen, Leticia Grande Edwards."
"And His Highness, Crown Prince Helios Bechira Grande Edwards"
That marked the entrance of the royal family.
From afar, Christina heard of the announcement and discreetly observed the royals from the corner of her eyes. She made her presence with Elysia thin so that no one would notice their rude behavior.
Christina clenched her knuckles and gritted her molars. She stood up tall and straight, unwilling to bow down as everyone did.
He's just like him.
"You can rise."
At the King's orders, everyone stood up on their feet. Christina feared that her murderous intent would be noticed and thus further concealed their presence with thick layers of magic.
With everyone on their feet and comfort, King Edwards I stepped forward and spoke amicably.
"For this special day, I, the King, would be just like everyone. Blessing and wishing for the eternal happiness and strong bond of the couple. Thus, you may be at ease."
Everyone who had yet to meet the King personally was relieved. After all, the King meant that small mistakes would be pardoned. Therefore they could enjoy the event without worry.
What a show-off!
Unknowingly, Christina's hand that held Elysia's tightened.
"Unyuu…"
Elysia couldn't hide the pain from the grip and whine. Although it wasn't that loud, Christina was able to hear her cry, immediately letting go of the child's hand.
"Sorry...I'm sorry…"
Christina couldn't apologize enough that she crouched down to eye level for Elysia. She cast a low tier [Heal] preventing any further infection of bruises from the incident. Christina ensured that the light from the magic wasn't that visible to catch the attention of nearby guests. Good thing, all of the attention was pointed to the King that she managed to thoroughly conceal the usage of magic.
Seeing the tiny drops of sweat from Christina's forehead over something small, Elysia knew there was something wrong. But being a child had its disadvantages, she knew that even if she asked, that didn't mean that Christina would answer her truthfully.
Her mature understanding failed in comparison to a normal person. Helpless, Elysia rested her small hand on Christina's head. Slightly moving it up and down, patting Christina.
Haa… I'm truly a pathetic adult, aren't I? Making a child this small comforts an old woman such as myself.
Bitterly smiling in self-pity, Christina couldn't help but shed a bit of tear on the rim of her eyes. Her eyes were a bit reddish as a result. It made Mike, who sneaked out of the commotion to check on them, panicked.
"What's wrong?"
Mike worriedly whispered to Christina while checking on her at the same time. When Liliana arrived, she became anxious too.
"Nothing."
Christina created a bit of distance from the group to collect herself. She patted the worried Elysia holding the hem of her dress.
When finished, she straightened out the furrowed eyebrows on the temples of Elysia. She smiled and patted her reassuringly as if nothing happened or rather made her waver earlier.
"There's nothing really. You guys just grew up too quickly. I got too emotional"
Mike blinked several times and took it at face value. He even laughed at Christina's silly drama.
"Aiyaa~ Aren't you used to it yet? You've lived--"
Pak!
Like a routine, Mike was hit again by the paper fan Christina. He held his stinging head in indignation.
Just as Mike was about to mention age, he got hit hard by Christina's paper fan. He held his stinging head in indignation. Truth to be told his misgivings were more than reasonable.
The paper fan, owned and created by Christina, wasn't a normal one. It could damage the person hit by the strength of a normal paper fan but wouldn't leave any traces to the victim's body. Christina could torture and hit any time she wanted without leaving a single evidence of abuse.
"Why do you have to do that?! Can't you spare me just for a day?!"
Liliana knew that it wasn't that simple as she was a woman too. Women had a sixth sense in their blood. They knew each other too well like how men knew each other. But she could only facepalm at her stupidly chatty husband.
"Ehem Ehem"
From the front, a young man was seen trying to attract everyone's attention.
From afar, a young man used magic to call out to every guest's attention. It was Eric in his groom's suit.
"Greetings, I'm Eric Nollan, the groom for today's wedding. First and foremost, I'd like to thank you all for joining us for our special day."
Eric took a moment to pause and look at every one. As the person who trained him, Christina was proud to see his successful delivery of the speech.
"I knew many of you had your concerns for today. But as you can see, on my back, a custom barrier was set up just for this special day. I am not holding the event here to brag about my abilities but to give us a unique once-in-a-lifetime memory. May we know if everyone brought their rose brooch?"
Eric scanned the surroundings to see if someone would say that they didn't bring their brooch. Everyone looked confused so Eric had to explain it furthermore.
"Actually, the rose brooch was the key to enter the barrier without repercussions. The owner of the garden wanted to make sure that no uninvited nor unintended guests would enter and ruin the day. If there's someone added or forgot their brooch, you can look for this man beside me and will be given by one."
All the families who brought their children unmentioned through the letter came to the side to get their brooch. Eric intentionally didn't mention that the Evil Witch owned the venue to avoid any unnecessary panic or discussion to those who haven't realized the gravity of the situation.