CH 177.6

“What? Are we allowed to go too?”

“Yeah, I’m not the homeroom teacher this year, but you guys are the ones who brought me to Verna. The madam also took care of us in Luitzar Country, so what do you think? “

The teacher who was no longer our homeroom teacher in the second year, Tigre-sensei, came to our house and bowed to our family. It’s been almost a year since we welcomed Sarge into our home.

It was an announcement that Tigre-sensei and Verna-sensei’s wedding was finally going to take place. They had moved out of the school’s faculty dormitory and moved into that house in the mountains.

I sometimes go there to visit them, but I find it strange that it seems like a different space when Tigre-sensei is there. Not in a bad way, of course. I feel like I’ve grown so much that I miss the intense training.

I was deeply moved, and my mom and dad smilingly agreed.

“I’m happy too, because Verna-sensei has been taking care of my boys for quite some time now. We’d love to join you.”

“So it’s finally happening! Congratulations! The Irving family will definitely be there …… I mean, where will it be?”

When Mom asked, Tigre-sensei turned away with a confused look on his face and scratched his head.

“…… Well, Verna is a princess, after all. Her father, the king, won’t let us do it unless we do it in his castle.”

“Haha, you can’t blame him, Tigre-sensei. We know each other, so we don’t mind.”

“That’s true. Say hello to him for me! Of course, Sarge will be there.”

With that, Tigre-sensei headed off to go to the rest of my classmates. It’s a vacation, so everyone will be at home. The guild club is basically closed on dark and light days because they need a teacher to lead them.

“Marriage, huh, I think I’m going to marry a Dedite, so I’ll watch closely.”

“You’re right. Aina’s one year old now, so she should be fine.”

“Even though she’s mine and Lars’ sister, Aina doesn’t cry. The only time she cries is when she wakes up and Sarge is not there or when Lars doesn’t take care of her.”

Brother smiles sadly and strokes Aina, who is sleeping on Sarge’s back. Brother’s been hugged a lot, too, so it’s not like she doesn’t like him. 

…… Well, when will he realize that Aina is just hard to get close to because he’s with Nora most of the time? I don’t dare say that because Aina is cute. And Sarge too.

Anyway, I’m looking forward to the wedding. It’s a castle wedding, so I’m sure it’ll be gorgeous. It’s been six years since I met Verna-sensei. I remember how surprised I was when she was first called a “witch” because of her battered appearance, and we talked about what we should do for presents.

◆ 　 ◇ 　 ◆

“…… Verna, what …… did you say just now……?”

“Yes♪, I said the wedding would be fine in Luitzar Country, but not too extravagant.”

“That’s ridiculous …… You can’t make a princess’ wedding simple! The whole country did it for Shiina’s, you know.”

“Fuh~, well, I don’t want to do that. It’s okay to do it in the castle, but only for family members.”

“T-That’s ridiculous ……”

The king, Frederick, sank into a deep reverie as Verna delivered a blunt statement. The tailors, cooks, and other wedding professionals who were listening to the conversation laughed.

“Save it for Sister Grace, Father.”

“But when will Grace marry–“

“Shut up, father!?”

When Frederick shook his head, an angry voice sounded from the door of the reception room, and Frederick hurriedly turned around.

“O-Ohhh, so you’re here, Grace!?”

“…… Seriously, I can’t let my guard down at all …… Never mind that, you’re finally getting married.”

As she approached Verna, glaring at her father, Grace took Verna’s hand and smiled softly. Verna nodded with narrowed eyes, and Grace continued.

“This Tigre guy, the salary is not so great, but I found him to be serious and kind, and he is a good match for Verna.”

“Ehhh …… you often came to visit, but did you come to check that?”

“Uh …… n-no, there’s nothing wrong with visiting your sister, right!”

Grace began to show her face often about six months after that incident. Until then, she hadn’t moved because she was nursing her mother, Lucera, until her condition recovered.

But now that she’s free, Grace has been taking her knights to the town of Gust every now and then for fun.

“…… I don’t think it’s a good idea to set foot in another country, though, Grace.”

“Oh, Mother.”

Then, Verna’s mother-in-law, the queen Lucera, came into the reception room. Grace replied without a hint of concern, and Verna opened her mouth with a puzzled look. It was the first time they had seen each other since the incident.

“…… It’s been a long time, My queen. Is your body okay already?”

“…… Yes, you look well. Anyway, marriage, right? Are you okay? Does he have a good face? Is he making money? Do you have any savings?”

“Um, my queen ……?”

When Verna tried to speak to Lucera, Grace spoke up instead.

“Mother! That’s not what you want to say, is it?”

“Uh …… B-But even if the case that a princess were to marry a man from who knows where, it would be a shame!?”

“Ahaha ……”

As soon as Verna thought that they were mother and daughter, Lucera looked down for a moment and then bowed her head to Verna.

“…… I’m sorry, Verna.”

“Fue!? P-Please raise your head!”

“Your mother, Clary, because he took advantage of my jealous heart, and the ancient emperor took over and did terrible things to me. No, it was a long time ago …… I’ve been messing with you since you were a kid ……”

“…… That was because the previous king hated me and my mother so much that you had to do that, right?”

When Verna puts her hand on Lucera’s shoulder and says this, she looks up with a smile on her face. 

“You knew about it?”

“I only found out about it recently, though. I found a letter in my mother’s belongings and she had written it.”

“…… I see.”

Then Lucera exhaled a sigh with a gentle smile on her mouth.

“When Clary was a maid, she was my friend. We were very close …… but, when I heard that she had fallen in love with him, I felt betrayed. So I…”

“Then it’s father’s fault, after all. I don’t mind polygamy, but he shouldn’t leave out legal wife, right?”

“What, the talk turns to me there!? Ahem, tailor, let’s talk about dresses and suits. Yes, it’s a beautiful day in the garden, isn’t it?”

With that, Frederick hurriedly left the reception room. Grace looked after him with a snort.

“Seriously, father. I don’t know how he can be the king.”

“He’s very decisive in times of crisis, but basically he needs to be supported by someone. I’m sorry I’ve been a bit rude to you, Verna. Also, congratulations on your wedding. Clary entrusted you to me, and I couldn’t do anything for you.”

“It’s okay. I’ve found out since I’ve gotten older that I’ve had a lot of complicated feelings. So please raise your head, my queen.”

Lucera looked up and said to Verna.

“…… You don’t have to call me queen, okay? You can call me your mother-in-law.”

“No, it’s difficult to do that suddenly ……”

“?”

They’re mother and daughter, she thought. and Verna smiled as she looked at Grace, and Grace tilted her head. It was the moment when the long pause was broken.

A few more days passed–

◇ 　 ◆ 　 ◇

“Here comes the bride and groom!”

Tigre-sensei and Verna-sensei, dressed in white tuxedo and white dress, came in to a round of applause. As I was thinking this, Ryuuze, who was standing next to me, whispered in my ear.

“…… Why of all people is Basleigh-sensei the host ……?”

“I don’t know even if you ask me that …… I don’t know if it’s because she’ Tigre-sensei’s assistant homeroom teacher or because she worked with Verna-sensei in last year’s tournament?”

“I wish that she don’t do anything ……!”

Makina says a prayer, and the A-Class seats chuckle inaudibly. I don’t think they’d risk their lives to do something like that, though.

Despite the atmosphere, the ceremony went on as planned, and the eldest daughter, Shiina-sama, was addressing the audience as the representative of the bride’s side.

“…… that’s why, I’m really glad that I was able to reconcile with my sister after being separated from her for so long and that they were able to have their wedding like this …… I’m really …… sniff …… glad. This is the end of my greeting.”

“Really, Sister Shiina ……”

Verna-sensei muttered to herself in tears.

“Thank you very much! It’s nice to see the bond between sisters …… and I would like to get married too …… no, it’s nothing? Then the groom’s side of the family will be greeted by …… Tigre-sensei?”

Normally, the father, mother, or other family members would give the speech, but Tigre-sensei doesn’t have any relatives. So he says it himself, including the groom’s speech.

“…… I’d like to thank you all for coming here today. To be honest, I never thought that a guy like me could get married. I, who was called a hero, ran away from my country, and couldn’t accomplish anything.”

“Teacher ……”

Speaking about the Berias Country, Tigre-sensei continued.

“I am a lucky man. I’m so happy to have Verna by my side, and the children who adore me, and the king who approved our marriage. I couldn’t be happier to be surrounded by everyone. I’m not very smart, but I’m going to continue to train myself and the guys in my class hard, so please take care of me. Verna, let’s live together from now on. Thank you …… for visiting today!”

“Tigre ……”

“Nice! You’re so cool, teacher!”

“Be happy!”

“Uhh, that’s nice ……”

We clapped and shouted, and Mom and Nina clapped too, shedding tears of joy. The king was crying, and the queen was smiling and nodding as if she had been possessed.

Then the headmaster stood up, bowed to the king and the others, and stood beside Basleigh-sensei, the host.

“Headmaster ……?”

We were wondering when the headmaster stepped forward, and Tigre-sensei looked at him with a troubled smile and lowered his shoulders. After a cough, he opened his mouth.

“I apologize for the abrupt change of pace. As some of you may know, my name is Libra, and I am the headmaster of Oblivion Academy in the Reflexion Country. Thank you for inviting me to this auspicious occasion today.”

He bowed her head once more, looked up, and continued speaking. Slowly, with a calm expression.

“He has no relatives. He was forced to fight in a war when he was very young, and it was a very painful experience for him. However, he never became corrupt or resentful. He studied hard and became a teacher so that his children would not make the same mistakes he did. When I heard this, I was astonished that there could be such a generous and kind man. I called him to my academy, and now I am proud to say that he has become a great teacher who is loved by the students here. I’m sure he will live up to the king’s expectations and make Verna-san happy.”

“Mhm.”

The king nodded and added a final word.

“I’ve been watching him grow up. We are not related by blood, but now, as his father, I would like to congratulate him …… Congratulations on your marriage, Tigre and Verna-san!”

“…… Headmaster. Heh~ …… I was wondering what you were going to say …… I would like to say thank you too ……”

“Guh ……Thank you, very much ……”

Tigre-sensei seemed to know what the headmaster was going to say, and sniffed with tears in his eyes. He winked at us and then sat down.

I’ve heard that he met him after he became a teacher, but maybe he had a lot going on then. The headmaster is also kind, after all. I’d like to hear about that someday.

“Now that our boss has told us a good story, the cake is ready! There’s also the drink you’ve been waiting for, hehehe!”

The cake, toast, and meal were enjoyed, with occasional words from the King and Queen, and Grace-sama giving the King a talking-to. In the midst of all this, I was truly happy to see Verna-sensei surrounded by her family, including the queen.

“Basleigh, you just stole a shrimp from my plate, didn’t you!?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about-“

(T/N: She’s speaking with her mouth full in this part.)

“Senpai, that’s bad manners, you know ……?”

“Hiiii!? I-I’m sorry!”

…… Yeah, I’m really glad.

While Basleigh-sensei pretends not to have seen it and goes back to eating, Urka walks up to Verna-sensei. Sarge is with him.

“? Urka-kun, what’s wrong?”

“Well, Verna’s mother wanted to say goodbye for the last time, she said.”

“Eh!?”

Everyone in the room gulped and watched Urka. The moment he put some kind of magic into it, a woman who looks very similar to Verna-sensei will appeared faintly.

“Mother ……!?”

“Clary ……!?”

When Verna-sensei and the king raise their voices, Verna-sensei’s mother smiles and moves her mouth.

“–“

“…… What’s she saying?”

“Long time no see, I guess ……? It depends largely on the mental capacity of the person, and if time has passed, the existence of the person becomes diluted. It’s the type of person who can go to heaven without becoming an evil spirit.”

Urka says regretfully, but Verna-sensei cries like I’ve never seen her cry before.

“You know, …… I’ve made it to this day, thanks to my mother …… and thank you for giving birth to me …… I-I’m so glad that you showed up at my wedding ……!”

“–“

She smiled and reached for Verna-sensei’s head, but I still couldn’t understand what she was saying.

Then Tigre-sensei stood in front of her mother and bowed his head.

“…… My name is Tigre. I’m a humble teacher, but I have married Verna today. In place of mother, who passed away at a young age, I will make sure that Verna is happy ……. Please don’t worry.”

“–“

The mother still smiled and bowed her head to Tigre-sensei.

And that the end–

“Be happy, Verna.”

She said this and went up to the sky.

“What?”

When Sarge opened his mouth, Raina-san and Teiga-san who should have returned to heaven, smiled and waved near the ceiling.

When Sarge asked, Raina-san put her fist in front of her and winked. Teiga-san smiled and nodded. 

“Sarge …….”

“Auu?”

Aina hugs Sarge from behind as if to comfort him. Then the three of them laughed, and this time they really disappeared with the light.

“Mom …… Thank you ……”

“……”

Tigre-sensei, holding the shoulder of the crying Verna-sensei, looked forever at the place where the three disappeared.

…… The mother left Verna-sensei in the care of Tigre-sensei and went to the other side peacefully. I died once too, but there was no one to worry about or to be worried about. I honestly envied Verna-sensei for being able to worry about her even after her death.

I sincerely hope that when I get married, I can be someone that my Mom and Dad can be proud of.

But I’m not the star of the show today. So I’ll just say one thing.

“Congratulations on your wedding! Tigre-sensei, Verna-sensei!”

When I said that, Tigre-sensei turned his head and smiled at me with a grin–

And that’s the end of the intermission!

I’ll be starting a new chapter next time!

Thank you for reading!

[Afterword Theater]

“It’s sad, isn’t it? But I think the end was good.”

I had already decided to get my mom out. Urka is too awesome.

“Huh? But if it’s visualized, then it can’t be …….”

Well, next time, a new chapter! Look forward to it!