The ceremony started at noon and went on until sunset.
Now it was time for the forest creatures to return to their nests. Belinda sat near the burning bonfire, watching the sparks flickered under the sunset glow.
A pretty colored necklace assembled from mountain birdsâ feathers was hung around Belindaâs neck, but it was too large for her as it meant to fit a leopardâs physique.
âUm. I think itâs more like a cape than a necklace.â
The necklace, which easily hung around a leopardâs neck, turned into a huge ornament that draped over her entire shoulders. Belinda leaned back in a chair made of plaited grass and squirmed her shoulders languidly.
It was good that they made a comfy chair out of consideration of her, who was pregnant, but she couldnât help but squirm.
Growl! Groowl!
In the meantime, there was an ongoing fight between the Shinsu in the nearest empty ground. On one side, a Shinsu who turned into its human form was beating the drum, and on the other side, the leopards bared their fangs before colliding with each other.
Belinda leaned to one side and spoke to the black leopard next to her.
âBy the way, Aymon. Why are those Shinsu fighting at our wedding ceremony?â
Only now she asked after holding in for a while.
The fight lasted from noon until now. Perhaps it was a tournament where they fought to decide the winning team, and that team advanced to fight another team.
Itâs definitely my wedding, but why are they fighting?
Why did Aymon watch them fight from this honorable seat?
Why are the Shinsu eagerly beating drums and wagging their tails when their folks are fighting?
âOf course, leopards with their ears pricked up and tails wagging are pretty cuteâŠâ
But this was Aymon and Belindaâs wedding ceremony.
The ceremony, which did not conform to a human standard but based upon the Shinsuâs custom, was held in a forest instead of the imperial palace.
There were not many attendants.
The Shinsu. The star of the wedding, Belinda and Aymon. Emperor Lart and his lover, Lucy.
Lastly, the Grand Emperor, Belindaâs father.
And as one would expect, her stepmother, the Grand Empress, did not attend.
The forest rumbled every time the Shinsu fought violently and roared at each other. It shook the leaves and scared off wild animals.
It was a festival for Shinsu and a rather frightening event for humans.
The Grand Emperor sat quietly behind Belinda, pretending to be calm, but his hands were clenching the cane quite strongly. Lucy was clearly trembling, and Lart watched the leopards getting knocked down with a look of terror.
âI mean, they fought in the Imperial Palace because of war, but isnât this a weddingâŠ.?â
Lartâs perplexed murmurs got buried by the Shinsuâs growls. It was a wedding that was beyond human comprehension.
Aymon rubbed his cheek on Belindaâs head, finding her question âWhy are those Shinsu fighting?â super cute, and replied solemnly.
[I donât know either.]
His voice displayed too much confidence for someone who just revealed his ignorance.
âWhat do we do if the head of Shinsu doesnât know?â
ăI heard itâs always like this everytime a Shinsu gets married, but honestly itâs also my first time seeing this since iâve never been married before]
âHmm.â
Seeing as her question turned out fruitless, Belinda shrugged.
Indeed, Aymon is not even that old, and most Shinsu have long life spans, so it was possible for him to have never seen it before. Still, isnât it weird that he doesnât know about his own history?
âWellâŠ.Itâs fine as long as Aymon doesnât fight.â
But soon she nodded, paying no heed to it.
Aymon, who playfully nibbled her hair, suddenly flinched.
âWhatâs wrong?â
As she glanced up at him, Aymon began to pour out his belated worries with a troubled face.
ăAre you okay, Breedee?ă
Come to think of it, isnât Belinda a human?
Since Aymon himself was a Shinsu, he didnât care whether the Shinsu fights or not, but it might be different for his precious and vulnerable Belinda. There was even a cute little life in her belly.
How could I be this stupid? I canât believe I was unaware of such a simple thing!
Aymon, who blamed himself, sat up. Then he buried her in her arms, treating her like a baby duck.
âDonât look at those stupid beasts. You should only look at pretty and lovely things.â
Thatâs basically what his actions mean.
Belinda chuckled and stroked his fur slowly.
âMy cat, Iâm Lapyan.â
Aymon was frozen. Indeed, no matter how powerful he was, he was only a big cat in front of God.
Of course, that fact didnât change even if Lapyan had lost her power since then, while he got stronger.
âWell, even though Iâve lost all of my divine power nowâŠâ
Belinda blurted out lightly as she fiddled with the black fur in front of her.
Even though her glory and power were all long gone, it didnât upset her that much.
Didnât she want to put everything down and lived happily with the black leopard when she was Lapyan, anyway?
Even though she took a long way back due to Barahanâs interference, she had achieved her simple yet difficult wish at last. She was more than happy and satisfied to have a child, even held a wedding like this.
âIn any case, such a childish fight doesnât scare me at all. Iâm fine.â
Aymon purred as if feeling thankful, and he pulled Belinda into a tight hug again as she tried to pull away.
ăStill, let me hold you like this. I like this.]
As if he had found a way to break out of boredom, he licked her cheeks, rubbed his face against her nape, and exhaled a long breath.
He tried to remain seated in a dignified manner, and only stole a glance at her all day long, so this was rather good.
Belinda chuckled lightly. It felt as if she was a kitten who got spoiled so much. Just like the child that was going to be Aymonâs kitten in her belly.
Belinda lowered her hand to rub her stomach slowly. The bump was now visible to the eye.
âAre you alright, baby?â
A child between a mother who was once a God, and a father who was still incredibly strong despite losing his divine power, must be strong as well. She thought the baby wouldnât be shocked by this kind of commotion, so she asked the baby.
Thump.
Whether it was an answer or just a coincidence, she could feel the baby kick.
Belinda clenched her hand, same goes for Aymon.
Both of them looked down at Belindaâs belly at the same time, jokingly saying âseems like the baby is quick to understandâ and burst into laughter.
Aymon was very surprised when he first discovered the womb movement.
He, who was very anxious, raised his trembling paw and placed it over her belly before retreating in shock.
Then with a nervous gulp, he put his paw over her belly ever so carefully. He rubbed his snout on her belly and placed his cheeks lightly, treating it like a very precious thing.
As carefully as if he touched a brittle sugar candy, with a face that looked unable to hold back the amazement and affection.
As the child in her stomach grew, Belinda also clearly felt a change in her body. It wasnât the pregnancy alone that brought change to her. Along with the child, the divine power that roamed around her body gradually placated.
She hadnât told Aymon because the power hadnât fully established yet, but Aymon probably noticed already.
âBy the way, how long are those Shinsu gonna fight?â
ăUntil the winner comes out.]
âWhat happens if thereâs a winner? Is the wedding over?â
ăYeah. The winner will announce our wedding to the whole forest. They would howl into the forest a few times.]
Did they fight to death just to announce the wedding?
She wondered if it was necessary to go that far, but how can a human understand about beasts, anyway?
Who knows if they celebrate the marriage this way because they were the Shinsu who always wanted to display their âpowerâ?
From the Shinsuâs perspective, they might not understand why humans held a festival just for harvesting a lot of wheat.
The sun had sunk below the field, leaving only the glow on its edge. The fight was also coming to an end.
The winner title belonged to Elder Aisha. It was a neck-to-neck battle against the hot-blooded Shanti, but eventually years of experience brought victory to him.
After the beast howled for a really long time, Aymon and Belindaâs marriage announcement spread throughout the forest.
âCongratulations on your wedding!â
âCongratulations on your wedding, princess!â
âCongratulations, my daughter.â
While humans offer their congratulations with happy tears, the beastsâ roar shook the forest.
The sunset light diminished, replaced by the night. The darkness became the start of the serene festivity.
Laughter spread out under the translucent moonlight.
Originally, the Shinsuâ wedding festival ended with the earlier fight, but that was insufficient as long as humans were invited as guests. So a simple wedding reception tailored to humans was held.
A white table was set up above the green bushes, and a human appetizer was served above it.
Shanti offered to give his hunting prey to humans, but he abandoned that idea after Belinda and Aymon disuadded him. It was truly a relief.
Aymon tried to appear dignified, but as soon as they were declared as a true mate, he took a huge leap and pounced on Belinda.
Of course, he didnât pounce on her wildly in consideration of the tiny creature in her belly.
However, he couldnât calm down easily as he kept circling around her chair, rubbing his cheek against her neck, and even licking her foot for no reason.
Was our leader not a leopard, but a dog all alongâŠ..?
Shanti muttered to himself.
The other Shinsu also watched blankly as they followed Aymonâs restless movement. As expected, Belinda smiled quietly as she looked at him.
âYou already have a child, so how can you be this happyâŠ.?â
When Aymon curled up at her feet and rubbed his cheek against her calf, she lowered her hand to stroke the leopardâs head.
It melted her heart softly. A ceaseless warmth could be felt right under her palm. The leopard who will be with her forever was surprisingly lovely.
After a while, Belinda, who barely got the clingy Aymon off her, slowly took a step. She walked up to the man sitting tall under the shadow of a three.
A man who was her father and the former emperor.
He became the Grand Emperor after leaving the throne to Lart, but he seemed a little different from when he was still an emperor. His expression and behavior were still as dignified as ever, but it felt like he was much more free.
He chose to live in seclusion after Adelaiâs death. He gave up his position as an emperor and moved away from power.
Adelaiâs death was linked to her terrible lust for power. After getting disillusioned by power and honor, he handed them all over to Lart.
Still as youthful and beautiful as ever, the man was talking to Shanti with a pair of sunken gaze.
âYour MajestyâŠâŠFather.â
Belinda called him carefully. He turned his head to see Belinda and rose up from his seat quietly. He spread his arms with eyes full of warmth.
âCome here.â
She trudged awkwardly into his arms.
She hesitated a little, but she no longer felt uncomfortable toward her father like in the past. Because he still thought of her as his daughter, sincerely expressing the love he couldnât give before in his own way.
âCongratulations, my daughter.â
A low voice rang over her head.
âThank you.â
Belinda also replied quietly. An extra warmth flooded in as she listened to the sound of burning firewood. Worried about Belindaâs physical condition, the Grand Emperor released the arms that held her.
He lowered his head, trying to match her gaze as he stroked Belindaâs head affectionately. It was a gesture that he never did to her when she was little.
âLily must be happy.â
ââŠâŠ.â
Lily.
The name of Belindaâs mother and his past lover.
âThe blood of Ateez in your stomach will surely lead a happy life. Because they have such a gentle mother and kind father.â
After saying that, he paused for a while and let out a nervous laugh. A bitter sense of guilt crossed his smile.
âIâm sorry I ruined your childhood.â
He turned over his deeply buried feelings with an honest apology.
He abandoned Belinda, as a result, she had to endure a difficult time alone after her motherâs death. She was thrown into a violent and harsh world and struggled alone.
It was still vivid in his memory, when he first met Belinda as the owner of the palace. She wore dirty clothes and her forearms were so thin.
He wasnât even worthy to ask forgiveness from his daughter, nor was he hoping to get forgiveness from her. But he could only hope that Belinda would be truly happy.
Belinda laughed lightly.
âItâs alright. Iâm going to be happy now.â
She was confident that she could truly be happy.
With Aymon, who crouched behind the emperor and watched us with a disgruntled expression.
With the beast, who childishly got jealous of a father and daughter interaction.