Chapter 137
Alter kept going in and out of the changing room, only switching into different suits.
He himself thought any of them seemed fine, but it was actually Brillie who couldn't make a decision.
Since she was having her own wedding, she seemed to be much more meticulous than usual.
"That one makes your shoulders look narrow. The color is a bit dull too..."
"Uh... Lady Brillie."
"Yes?"
"I understand what you're thinking, but aren't you being a bit too thorough?"
"But I can't just gloss over it, can I? If we prepare our appearance properly, the wedding will go well too."
"Shouldn't we also choose your dress?"
"I'll probably take a long time with that. So we should finish with you first, Lord Alter."
"......"
Alter hesitated for a moment, then soon agreed.
There was quite a difference in time required to dress in a suit and a dress.
Besides, when it came to wedding attire, the bride's dress involved far more inconveniences.
Including accessories and shoes, it was inevitable that things would be much trickier for the bride's side.
"Um... For now, why don't you just try on everything that's been laid out? At least one should feel right."
"Yes, that sounds best."
Alter entered the changing room again with the butler.
Though it was a bit tedious, it was a process they had to endure to prepare for the wedding.
Brillie surely didn't want to ruin a once-in-a-lifetime wedding either, so she intended to pick a suit that would suit him as much as possible.
"That one looks quite nice. The color seems to be finally matching."
"Does it? I'm not sure, but... I suppose there's a reason."
"If you add a brooch and tie up your hair well, it'll look even better."
Brillie examined him closely with a serious gaze.
Alter's build was smaller than most adult men, but his looks more than made up for that shortcoming.
Most of all, since he was both a member of the grand duke's house and the next great mage, an air of mystery and elegance naturally emanated from him.
'As I thought... he's handsome. If he just dressed up a little more...'
Brillie had sometimes had doubts about Alter.
With such delicate and noble features, it was to the point that one could almost forget he was a man.
If she put makeup on him and dressed him in a gown, he could easily pass for a beautiful woman.
'No, stop thinking weird things. I shouldn't think that way about the man who'll be my husband.'
Brillie tried to shake off her stray thoughts and looked Alter in the eyes.
Those indigo-blue eyes held a gloom for a time.
Now, however, they shimmered with vitality, moving her heart.
'I wonder if I'll be able to keep seeing that look in his eyes, even after we're married...'
"Lady Brillie, I heard the Emperor is selecting a royal marriage partner... have you heard about it?"
"I did hear. It's a bit late, but there probably wasn't anything she could do before now."
"She must have had many things to deal with."
Alter accurately read the Emperor's circumstances.
From the beginning, the Emperor had seized the throne without a marriage arrangement with anyone.
She had tried to clean things up in haste, but then the dragons invaded one after another.
On top of that, the Emperor's only sibling even staged a rebellion, so she must not have even had the thought or opportunity to marry.
"Having a child soon would be best. Then there won't be trouble later, right?"
"In order to protect the imperial household, the bloodline of pure direct royals must be continued."
"That's true, but won't that take time?"
"Since conditions must be considered, it won't be easy to select the right candidate. They'll probably try to choose a suitable noble below the rank of count."
"They'll have to consider the noble house first, and can't ignore the prestige or even appearance of the person to wed... Some political hassle may be unavoidable."
Brillie calmly spoke and deduced the Emperor's position.
Having become Emperor as a woman, there were inevitably going to be difficulties.
If she were to become pregnant, managing state affairs would become even more challenging.
"This should have been resolved before ascending the throne, but it seems things got a bit tangled."
"If I were to inherit the title of Duke and then get married... My head would probably hurt quite a bit."
"There'd be so much more to consider. It would take a significant amount of time before the marriage settled down, so things would get tough."
"If I look at it that way, maybe a political marriage isn't so bad. At least there's no need to worry about finding a marriage partner."
"You just have to do as instructed. But... even that isn't an easy thing."
"True. Didn't you and I also have a tough time at first?"
"I was the one who brought up breaking off the engagement first. Even so, you treated me kindly, I believe."
"R–really?"
Brillie became flustered and reflexively asked back.
She had never thought she had shown kindness before they became used to each other.
She just believed she was behaving with the proper courtesy as his fiancé and a noble.
"It may have sounded like nagging, but you gave me advice, didn't you?"
"Um... I think I recall. I did say a few things."
"You took my hand when I was cold, and you held me in dangerous situations."
"Yes, that's true."
"Weren't you always by my side when I collapsed?"
"That's right... I was."
"You always protected me, so I'm always grateful."
"No... It's not enough to deserve hearing that from you..."
Brillie looked down, feeling embarrassed inside.
To her, it was just something she had to do.
Yet Alter remembered everything and even respected her wishes.
'This person has always been watching over me.'
Brillie suddenly realized Alter's sincerity.
Even when he was waiting for their engagement to be broken off, when she admonished him, when he'd come close to death.
No matter the adversity, hadn't he tried to hold on to her?
'After all, I do need this person... It has to be Alter Radiant.'
Brillie let a faint smile appear on her face, relieved.
Even if it was only a political marriage, even if they did not love each other, at the very least they could trust in each other.
Maybe because of that, hope for happiness seemed to outweigh fear of misfortune.
'If we can just go on like this, it'll be enough. Perhaps this is the life I'd always hoped for.'
* * *
Alraune finished his basic duties and then began investigating Radiance in earnest.
Though much was still unknown, evidence had been secured separately through Sword Flower.
If he could uncover its secrets, perhaps he might face mana on the path to the ultimate.
"There aren't many documents from before the founding of the nation. If we're talking about former kingdoms, most of them would have been lost."
"I am aware of the circumstances. Nevertheless, I must find them."
"... Understood. With my authority, I should be able to check the ancient texts."
Ronit stood up immediately and guided him to the archives.
The great mage had never once refused a cooperation request from the Semerune Holy Order.
That was likely the reason even the subjugation proposal for the Frost Witch passed without difficulty.
This time, it was only a matter of consulting the grand cathedral's texts, so permission could be granted without any trouble.
"Is there a particular book you are looking for?"
"Hm... are you versed in Radiance?"
"If you mean Radiance... isn't that a type of mana the magic society treats as a separate attribute?"
"You know very well. I am currently investigating Radiance."
"Weren't previous great mages already done with their investigation?"
"They probably visited the grand cathedral before me. But hearing about it and seeing it for oneself are different, are they not?"
"You're absolutely right. Please check as you wish."
Ronit brought Alraune into the archives and briefly explained things to the librarian.
Most likely, he wouldn't get the results he wanted in a short time.
He might well end up spending days at the grand cathedral, buried in books.
'Radiance is the light that drives out darkness. This connects to the doctrine of the Semerune Holy Order.'
Alraune browsed the shelves, looking for keywords related to Radiance.
The Semerune Holy Order follows the Goddess's radiance, with the salvation of all as its doctrine.
That is, they seek to sever beings threatening all life with radiance, thus matching the principle behind Radiance.
'If so, the Semerune Holy Order would have discovered some trace of Radiance...'
Alraune tried to approach Radiance from a new perspective.
Radiance is closely intertwined with darkness, but inherently seeks to exclude it in extremity.
It is dual-natured, so contradictions are inevitable at its core.
However, if bloodline succession is the basis, even that contradiction can be made into an accepted concept.
'This time is different. There is the evidence called the Lihines Knight Order.'
This was a secret even previous great mages had not discovered.
Radiance originated from the Lihines Knight Order, and was a power passed down to only a tiny handful of humans.
If it was the Semerune Holy Order, it's possible they had contact with the Lihines Knight Order at the time.
'I must find Lihines. There must be some record somewhere.'
Alraune read through the books calmly and quickly.
Even if it was a knight order from a fallen country, the honor they had accumulated couldn't disappear.
If the order had saved the world, surely some people would remember it.
'I do not hope for much. If I can just discover the origins of Radiance... hm?'
Alraune unconsciously flipped pages and suddenly found the word "Lihines".
It was in the form of a diary or memoir, and the author seemed to be a previous holy apostle.
A holy apostle following the first Holy King might have met the Lihines Knight Order, given the time frame.
'He urged the survivors of the Lihines Knight Order to become followers, but none of them accepted...'
Alraune, full of curiosity, searched for more.
Although this book mentioned the Lihines Knight Order, it did not have anything written about Radiance or Darkness.
Perhaps the Semerune Holy Order had not even recognized the existence of Radiance itself.
'The Lihines Knight Order may disappear, but they will not be erased from history. The Goddess of Semerune bestowed her blessing long ago, and from that the radiance was created... Hmm...'
Alraune quickly moved his hands, not fully understanding.
At this point, it was less an essay and more like myth or legend.
Why were the Lihines Knight Order and the Goddess of Semerune so closely tied together?
'Something's off. Isn't it almost as if the Goddess of Semerune herself is being depicted as a member of the Lihines Knight Order?'
Alraune pondered until he came to the final paragraph.
After checking several times, he finally closed the book.
It seemed he would only be satisfied by supplementing this information with other sources.
The Goddess of Semerune descended from light and reincarnated as a human.
Thus, she joined power with the leader of the Lihines Knight Order and repelled the end of the world.
May the radiance of Semerune guide the Lihines Knight Order.