Herald of Steel



Alexander approached the stairs leading down to the outer hall with Cambyses's right arm locked with his, the girl wearing a full-sleeved, high-collared smoking red gown, a gold banded tiara jeweled with rubies of all shapes and sizes, garnet ear-rings and crimson-colored high heels.

And as she looked down through her translucent veil on the gathered maids and staff arranged in two neat rows standing opposite to one another, she looked with a fairy gracing them with her glance, her powdered white face garnished by a vermillion blush on her beautiful chin and her bright lips decorated with claret lip-stick.

Cambyses had always had a preference for red, as even in her time in the mercenary, she wore a bright red armor.

And her dress on the most important day of her life also reflected that preference.

Alexander escorted Cambyses down the large carpet to the attention of all the dressed and in attention maids and servants, both of having a light smile hanging off their faces.

And trailing behind Cambyses's long, slashing gown adorned with pearls and rubies were Alexnder's three women, Ophenia, Gelene, and Mean, all wearing the same outfit with different colors.

Ophenia and Gelene had already shown Alexander their wedding dress, while Mean too wore that exact same design but one of pink color with blue sapphires as jewels.

Behind them came the royal and noble guests.

There was the Queen mother who wore an emerald green gown with strings of emeralds sewn in concentric circles, her crimson hair coiled into ringlets and dressed up with golden chains.

And as the mature woman walked forward swaying her hips, the bountiful breasts jiggling seductively, all the servants quickly lowered their heads with a tinge of blush on their faces at the heavenly woman.

Beside Seelima was her daughter Hellma, who wore the exact same outfit as her mother, and looked almost the spitting image of a younger version of her mother, even down to the cold, haughty attitude that the Queen mother conveyed to everyone around her.

The young princess matched her mother's footsteps, her tiny, cute feet placing their steps with power and authority, giving the little princess a cold, unviolable feeling, while her perfect countenance gave no one any doubt that though she was currently unripe, she would too grow up to be a head turner of a woman.

Accompanying the two stunning women was the Matrak princess and arguably the most beautiful woman of the group, Mikaya.

This was a tall title to claim as the mother-daughter duo were a deadly combination, but Mikaya did have the asset to content with them and as well as having the aid of two of her cousins cum maids.

All three women wore the same jet-black gown decorated with golden pearls that glittered and sparkled, the layer dress perfectly contrasting with their long, flowing silver hair styled with golden butterfly-styled hairpins.

And when winter sunlight gently caressed their pale white skin, all three of them seemed to shine a diamond pink. making the three sisters appear pure and clear, as if like the very angels had come to grace Alexander's wedding.

All three of them appeared unattainable to all but the most blessed and powerful men and the sacred and divine aura emanating out of them as they crossed the carpet would make no man suspect their true nature.

Even if Alexnder told them, no one could have believed that these very women had just the night before enjoyed a 10-man feast and that their lower halves were still full of their gifts, their warmth still comforting them.

After the royal and high-level dignitaries was Takfiz and his grandson, the heads of the various workshops, and lastly followed by some staff member and other unimportant folks, people whose main job was to tend to the needs and wants of the guests.

But among these guests, observant people might have noticed Azira and Azura missing from the list.

And this was because they were already at the wedding venue, as was customary for the head priest or priestess of the Temple of Ramuh to wait there for their lord's arrival.

Speaking of customs, Alexander had already broken a great deal many during this short time already.

For example, when Alexander took Cambyses's hand and led her out of her home, this was actually supposed to be the job of Cambyses's guardian- whether it be her father, her brother, or as she did not have any, a legal guardian appointed by the authorities.

This guardian was a formal position and all girls of Adhania had one, and he held life and death over the woman or women under him.

And under the laws of Adhania, no marriage would be ever considered valid without the express endorsement of the girl's guardian, especially in the upper class.

In such classes, women were so sheltered that many would never leave their house before their marriage, and marriages were usually arranged by their guardians meeting their counterpart, or the boy himself, and then discussing the potential union.

And the main point of discussion was rarely about the boys or the girls themselves or their compatibility, but rather about the economic and political benefits such mergers would bring for the two families.

Trade treaties, defensive pacts, loans, land development plans, etc. all these agreements were thought to be binding not because of a contract or signing some other legal documents, but because of marriage.

Because in this time period, it was thought that marriages were the one and true of cementing one's alliance with another, as the act was seen as something witnessed by the gods themselves and considered sacred and unviolable.

So, after a marriage occurred the two families who were formerly strangers would now be related, and Adhanians were firm believers in the saying, "Blood is thicker than water."

And generally considered it taboo to harm family members.

But this custom also had also strange and unintended consequences.

For instance, no alliance was eternal, and so when an agreement fell through or alliances changed, it was very common for there to be a sudden divorce, and an almost shotgun remarriage with another person to cement that new alliance.

Of course, it had to be noted such practices were primarily between the upper classes, with the peasants having their own rules.

And perhaps it was due to such frequent marriage breakups that Adhanian nobility had developed such perverse practices.

On the point of marriage endorsement, legally there were two exceptions that a guardian's endorsement was not needed.

One was if he was declared legally insane.

And two if he had been a war prisoner for at least a year.

None of these applied to Cambyses.

But since Alexander was the authorities, he used a legal loophole to name himself as Cambyses's guardian and then naturally endorsed himself to marry Cambyses.

This was slightly unusual, but not unheard of.

Adhanian nobility had lesser reluctance with marrying close to their family, such as between first cousins, and even union between immediate family members was not unheard.

And this type of marriage was not unique of this world, as even in Alexander's previous life, incest among royalty and nobility was a common thing, fueled by the ideology of a 'pure bloodline'.

The Habsburgs family was perhaps the most famous example, followed by Cleopatra who married her brother to obtain legitimacy to rule over Egypt.

But why did Alexander go through all the legal processes of getting himself named Cambyses's guardian?

It was because he did not want to give anyone or any faction the excuse of saying Cambyses's marriage with him was not valid in the eyes of Adhanian law and so their progeny was not the rightful successor to Alexander.

Alexander led Cambyses out of the long outer hall, and out of the front door, where a red carpet guided them to an open roof carriage.

This carriage was painted ivory white, his expensive oak body embroidered with intricate gold artwork, opulently decorated with fresh colorful flowers and gemmed with various precious stones.

It was something Alexander had commissioned made, and under the golden sunlight, the carriage seemed to glitter and shine like one a fairy godmother would conjure up to take a princess to the palace.

"My lord, congratulations!" Hemicus, immaculately dressed in ceremonial armor over his actual one greeted Alexander stepping forward.

There were two entire cohorts (1,000 men) outside Alexander's manor, ready to escort their lord and his guests to the wedding venue.

"Haha, Hemicus, it's a good thing it's cold today. I'm sweating just seeing you," Alexander chuckled seeing the many layers his head guard had adorned himself with.

And Hemicus too replied with a light smile, "Yes, praise the goddess."

Alexander was then led to his carriage, a fully armored guard opening the door for his lord, as Alexander first helped Cambyses get up and afterward the couple made themselves comfortable on the velvet cushions.

"This is nice," Cambyses commented as riding a carriage without the top half, and being able to have a 360-degree vision was a novelty for her.

She caressed the solid silver railings and felt the golden handle of the doors, studied the rubies and sapphires studded in and around the exterior and interior of the vehicle, and then turned her head excitedly around to record all the hustle and bustle going on around her.

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