Chapter 108: First Wedding III - Oath
"Eeek! Can you not bring up those days? But thank you for your wishes, Eva." Garnt said, as his face showed a complex look, but soon he went back to his normal happy grin.
As they reached the stage, Ayra was the first to ascend the steps, her eyes locked onto Garnt\'s. She held a bouquet of wildflowers in her hands, a symbol of their untamed love. With a graceful yet determined stride, she made her way up to stand beside Garnt, who took her hand and gave it a loving squeeze.
"You look beautiful, Ayra," Garnt whispered, his voice filled with affection. Ayra blushed, her heart racing as she gazed into his eyes and without saying anything, she gave a slight nod and let others climb onto the stage.
Rona followed, her gaze steady and unwavering as she ascended the steps. She radiated confidence and strength, a warrior in love. Garnt welcomed her with a warm smile, and as she took her place next to him, she intertwined her fingers with his, a silent promise of their unbreakable bond.
"Garnt, I didn\'t expect this big of a crowd, this is nerve-racking. But-" She paused and kissed his hand like a prince from a fairy tale. "I\'m glad to be here with you and my other sisters,"
Garnt knew Rona had a personality that wasn\'t like anyone else, but even then he was still impressed with her ability to stay confident and prideful.
[Sister? It looks like these girls are accepting this harem better than I expected. I shouldn\'t have pushed monogamy in the first place, so I should not make mistakes like that again.]
Eva thought and made sure, that her decision won\'t affect Garnt negatively.
Unami, blushing and radiant, was the last to reach the stage. She ascended the steps with a delicate grace, her eyes sparkling with affection. Garnt extended his hand, and she took it with a shy but genuine smile. The crowd erupted in cheers, celebrating not just the love between these three, but also the extraordinary display of their individual personalities.
"Let\'s begin now," Gundo shouted, and the crowd went dead silent because of how authoritative her voice was. For some reason, she acted like a priestess for this event, because she was the most suitable woman for the job, after all her behaviour and figure screamed motherly.
At the same time, she speaks out loud for everyone to hear. "Today, we are making an offering to the Nature Spirits to get her blessings to Garnt and his new wives."
She continued to make several drawings on the floor, which aroused the curiosity of some people in the village. However, Garnt knew that all of these traditions were designed by him to increase belief in a natural spirit, which he had no idea whether existed, but he considered Eva to be this spirit.
"We are able to live peacefully because these nature spirits chose my son as their messenger to lead our people in a proper direction, so it is our responsibility to respect them in return." Gundo continued with a smile. "And, of course, he is our everlasting leader and protector alongside his beloved new wives, as well as being my dear son."
The crowd started to cheer and some of them started to chant Garnt\'s name like a religious cult. But then the proper ceremony started as Gundo asked the relatives of the brides to come forward.
"Today, on this precious day, we witness the union of our patriarch Garnt with Ayra, Rona and Unami. Garnt, who carries the wisdom and strength of a thousand men, now takes these three extraordinary women, Unami, Ayra and Rona, as his life partners. It is a day of celebration, not just for them, but for our entire community."
"Unami," Gundo continued, turning her attention to the blushing bride, "you bring grace and radiance into Garnt\'s life, and your affection shines brightly. Keep it up and show how a good wife should be."
She then looked at Rona. "You are a force of nature, unyielding and fierce. Garnt had found in you a partner whose strength matches his own, and together, you form a powerful union. May your strength and determination continue to lead Garnt to victory in all his endeavours."
Gundo\'s words were genuine, and none of them stemmed from her duty; instead, they all emanated from her authentic feelings. She then looked at her own sister, who was eagerly waiting for Gundo\'s blessing.
"Ayra," She paused for a second, and genuinely touched Ayra\'s head and gave her a slight kiss on the forehead. "I\'m sorry for opposing when you first wanted to love my son, I hope you forgive me."
Ayra just smiled at her words and tried to hug Gundo, but she asked her not to because the bride\'s first hug should be with her husband. These were not existing traditions; rather, Garnt and some of the women made them because they wanted people to follow them and carry these traditions to future generations.
"Sister, thank you for giving birth to Garnt. I\'m forever grateful to you and him. After all, if you two didn\'t find me that day, I would die like an empty woman,"
Gundo just pinched her nose. "Don\'t talk about dying in a happy moment like this, go and show my son what happiness is, we will soon meet,"
Ayra didn\'t understand what Gundo meant by her last words, but she still nodded her head and then Gundo invited Baktou and Rona\'s parents to come onto the stage with the rings.
First Baktou came and looked at Garnt and his sister, who was still blushing. "Sister, I\'m really glad you managed to win Garnt\'s heart. I always dreamed about this day. I want to see your kids soon, I prepared a gift, but right now take this ring."
Garnt took the ring and patted Baktou\'s head. "I will take care of your sister, don\'t worry. I assure you, the next wedding is going to be your own one."
Hearing Garnt\'s words, Unami also nodded her head while her eyes automatically travelled to Telvi, who was looking rather grumpy. But it wasn\'t just her, instead, there were a whole lot of girls, who looked like they were on the verge of crying, after all, their idol and their crush were being stolen by another group of women.
\'I wonder about that,\'
Unami thought, but she didn\'t want to ruin the mood, so she kept her feelings bottled up inside her.
After giving the ring to Garnt, Baktou left the stage, and then it was Rona\'s turn to take the next ring. Her parents came forward with the biggest smiles on their faces.
They approached Garnt and Ayra, extending their congratulations to their daughter and expressing their delight that she had fallen for Garnt.
"Garnt, my boy, you\'ve made our daughter incredibly happy, and for that, we\'re truly grateful. We couldn\'t have asked for a better man to take care of our little Rona." Rona\'s father expressed his happiness.
"Yes, indeed, leader. We\'ve watched your love story unfold, and we\'ve seen the depth of your feelings for each other. It\'s a joy to see you two embark on this journey together. Our little girl is yours now." Her mother also added her own thoughts with a smile. "She is just too addicted to you boy, even when she visits us, all she talks about is you. Garnt is that, Garnt is this. This girl\'s whole life is you now,"
Rona wanted to ask her parent to not reveal all those embarrassing details, but she was too late and Garnt slightly grinned at her which made her feel genuinely embarrassed for the first time.
\'Damn it, mother. Do you really have to say those things to him?\'
She questioned inside her mind.
Garnt, touched by their kind words, nodded with a smile. "Thank you both. Rona means the world to me, and I promise to cherish her and make her happy for the rest of our lives."
With that, Rona\'s parents handed over the ring, a symbol of their trust in Garnt and their acceptance of him as a member of their family. After a brief exchange of heartfelt words, they left the stage, leaving Garnt and Ayra to continue their special moment.
It was none other than Gundo who brought the last ring, so she had nothing else to add to the context. She simply gave the ring and prepared for the auspicious event of placing the rings on the brides.
"Now we enter the last oath of these new couples. They will promise in front of this large audience that they will act as proper husband and wives to make sure our village prosper and their own lives,"