When A Ghoul Falls In Love

I didn't dream this time.

Sighing, I sit up on the bed. I feel tired even after I had slept for a long time. 

It feels like a long sleep. There is no day or night here. The window is always closed. I can't tell if I had slept for ten days or one night. 

Where is Devil? 

The room is empty. There is no sign of Eli either.

Did I sleep through the third day?

"Hmm." I look at the door. Where did Eli go? Did someone win among Carmine, Andre, and Rian? Is he going to marry one of them?

I can't believe it. In the human world, he was popular among the doctors and the nurses. Why didn't I expect him to be popular in his country? 

It's a good thing if he is interested in someone else.

Is he going to eat me now?

I am not ready to be eaten. I need to remember and find out who killed Baek Joon-Woo and my friends. 

Someone knocks on the door.

My heart palpitates uneasily. Who is it? Eli or someone else?

Eli will listen to me, right? If I tell him to postpone his plans about eating me, would he agree?

"Lady, are you awake?"

That's Madame Rogue's voice. Why is she here? "I am awake."

She walks into the room, sweating profusely. "Lady, we don't have time. Please forgive me for my rudeness."

"Rudeness?" What was she rude about?

In the next instant, more women rush into the room. Each one is carrying a red box.

Madame Rogue claps her hands. "No tardiness. This is the first engagement ceremony after Duke Sanguine's last marriage. Get to work!"

"..." 

At least, it's not a wedding ceremony. 

***

In his study, Duke Balthier Sanguine glances at the letter of claim. The claim is made by the new fae king. They don't know much about this king.

Even darkness isn't the same for everyone. For some people, it's pure evil. For others, it's peace. Perception of the darkness changes with people's hearts. There is a strong bias that darkness must be evil and light must always be good. 

Power is only power. Whether it's evil or good, it's decided by the wielder. 

"Nilora, what is our son doing?" Duke Balthier Sanguine whispers. What would his wife have done if she was alive? Would she let Eli chase darkness? 

His wife gave up her life for their son. 

"I should have been a better father." 

It's too late to regret. 

"Our son is getting engaged today." Duke Balthier Sanguine smiles at the ring on his third finger. "If you were here…"

Demons are not allowed to go to the afterlife. His wife must have been reborn. But he doesn't know whether she is reborn in this world or another world. The affairs of the afterlife are kept a secret from the creatures of the dark world.

After a knock, Eli Sanguine steps into his Father's study. He finds his father gazing at the yellow topaz ring on his finger. It's not the first time he has seen him doing this. 

It's hard to remain unscathed in the war. Maybe he shouldn't have signed up for it. But Judith told him that his father wanted him to go to the war and die there. But he didn't expect Siouxsie to follow him. He had to protect his sister. 

They still have the same father. How could he watch her being tortured by the devils? 

Duke Balthier Sanguine realizes that his son is watching him. He clears his throat as he looks up at his son. But nobody has prepared him for what he is seeing.

His son is wearing a bridal robe. 

It's a traditional black bridal robe with intricate gold embroidery of the moon that is partially hidden behind the clouds. 

His son's dark hair is tied up into a traditional bridal hairstyle with a gold hairpin. His lips are red and glossy. Even if the colour of the hair is black as the night, Eli looks a lot like Nilora.

"Were you mistakenly born as a male?" Duke Balthier Sanguine questions his son indignantly. He knows that his son has inherited his wife's charm. But still, Eli is a male. Why does his son look beautiful in the bridal robe? 

Eli shrugs, not in the mood of the jokes. "Did you get a copy of the letter?"

"I got the original." His father places the letter on the desk. "The copy is with the king."

Why did his father make a scene when he was going to bring the original? Eli picks up the letter. "Does the king know about it?"

"He has already sent a reply to the claim." Duke Balthier Sanguine tells him, "Nell Solomon is from the human world. Everything related to the claim should be handled by the Council."

A tactful answer. Eli puts the letter in the pocket inside his sleeve without a word. 

"Why are you wearing a bridal robe when it's only an engagement ceremony?" Duke Balthier asks his son awkwardly. He can't tell Eli that he looks beautiful. What should he say? Eli is a beautiful bride or a groom? It would have been better if Eli was a female. 

"The engagement ceremony will be conducted by the head priest." Usually, Eli won't bother to explain it to his father. But his father got him the original letter. Today, he can act a little polite. Besides, Nell might get upset if his father doesn't attend the ceremony. "We will follow all the traditions."

Duke Balthier realizes what's going on. An engagement ceremony by the head priest would be a wedding. In the past, children were often engaged like this. The traditional engagement ceremony consists of ninety-nine percent of wedding rituals. The final one is done after the children reach a.d.u.l.thood. In tradition, the union is usually approved by the goddess herself.

Since the practice is archaic and troublesome, it faded away with time. These days, the engagement ceremony is simply done in front of a priest. The groom and the bride would sign an agreement. The wedding would be held later where simple wedding rituals would be performed. Usually, the goddess' approval is not sought anymore unless the groom and the bride want it. It's nearly impossible to get divorced or separated if the goddess approves the union. It's seen as an insult to the goddess. 

Having an engagement ceremony approved by the goddess… Duke Balthier Sanguine's head hurts. Why does Eli seek problems so much? "A simple engagement ceremony is enough."

"It's not." Eli grins at his father. "I can't have a wedding, but I can have an engagement that is like a wedding. I have realized that Nell and I need some time before we become fully husband and wife. I also want to have many romantic moments with her before we acknowledge each other as husband and wife."

"..." If ninety-nine percent of the rituals are performed during the engagement ceremony and goddess' approval is granted, the only thing that is left is consummating the marriage after they have acknowledged each other as husband and wife. It can be done at anytime after the engagement.

If one of them wants to break the engagement, they must seek the goddess' approval again. Usually, the goddess doesn't give permission to break off the engagement if the bride or the husband doesn't want to end the relationship, especially if the bride and the groom have had s.e.x after the engagement ceremony. 

And the goddess gets annoyed if someone rejects her blessing. Because of this, divorce rates are extremely low in their kingdom. The wives or husbands would rather separate and remarry than seek approval of divorce from the goddess. Polygamy isn't illegal. Equal rights are given to women and men unless the man is noble. 

What Carmine said was true. However, Eli would have been able to marry Nell if Nell had married a commoner and Eli had married Carmine. For a man of noble birth, marrying a married woman from common origins is easier than marrying a single woman from common origins.

This law was added after many noblemen protested for their rights. Though it gives a certain freedom to the noblemen, it is extremely messy. 

"Does that human know about this?" Duke Balthier asks him. 

Eli clasps his hands together and lets out a low laugh. "I will tell her after I seduce her."

Duke Balthier gawks at Eli. Even he's not shameless enough to fool a woman into marrying him. Nilora gave birth to an evil boy.