Tafel stood in front of a mirror with her arms out to the sides. Prim stood behind her, fussing over the white wedding dress that clung to Tafel’s body. She smoothed out the cloth on Tafel’s torso before she stood up straight and smiled.

“You look beautiful,” Prim said as she circled around the demon lord. “I always knew I would help you wear a wedding dress, but I never would’ve thought that you’d be the demon lord. Your mother must be proud.”

“You think so?” Tafel asked as she twisted from side to side, observing the dress ripple in the mirror.

“I know so,” Prim said with a nod as she reached for the veil hanging on the rack next to her. “I bet your father would be proud too if he was still around.”

Tafel snorted. “Yeah, if he wasn’t busy torturing people,” Tafel said and rolled her eyes.

“Don’t snort. It’s not ladylike,” Prim said and combed Tafel’s hair before setting the veil on her head. “I watched your father grow up; In fact, I was his etiquette teacher. He wasn’t always evil or maybe he was, but just really good at hiding it.” She sighed.

Tafel frowned as Prim slapped away her hand when she tried to adjust the veil in front of her face. “Can we not talk about him?” Tafel asked. “I hardly even remember him.”

“Of course.” The two fell silent as Prim adjusted the white veil.

“Wear these,” Prim said and placed a pair of light-purple heels in front of Tafel. She nodded as Tafel followed her orders. “You look great.”

“Thanks, Prim,” Tafel said as she took a few steps, “for everything.”

Prim chuckled. “Just doing my job,” she said with a smile. “I’ll teach your children too when the time comes. I bet you two would make cute babies.”

Tafel’s face flushed. “You don’t care that he’s a human?” she asked, avoiding Prim’s eyes.

“Ah,” Prim said with an exhale. “I’ve seen too many things to be shocked by a human marrying a demon.”

“Honestly, I thought you’d be more against this marriage,” Tafel said and lowered her head.

“Why? Because I’m an etiquette teacher?”

“Well, yes. But you’re also kind of old,” Tafel said. Prim glared at her. “Old-fashioned, old-fashioned. Not old.” Tafel fidgeted and clasped her hands.

“Cheeky brat,” Prim said and sighed. “Haa. Time really does fly. It seems like only yesterday when I was helping your mother change your diapers.”

###################################################################

“Are you sure this is right?” Vur asked as he tilted his head and looked in the mirror. Rella and Bella hovered in the air behind him. They were grinning from ear to ear with red faces.

“Of course! Of course!” Bella said while gasping. “Trust us! There’s no way we’d make a fool out of our king, right?”

Rella burst out laughing as tears streamed down her cheeks. “You look beautiful, Vur. Absolutely stunning,” she said as she rolled around in the air.

Vur frowned. “I’m pretty sure the bride is the one that’s supposed to wear the dress,” Vur said with a frown. He glanced at the frilly, white dress adorning his body.

“No, no,” Bella said and shook her head. “That’s for olden times only! We’re entering a new era. Everyone knows that the groom also wears a dress. The books you’ve been reading are way toooo old.”

“Right,” Rella said and nodded. Her body shook as she gasped for air. “Now you just have to wear this wig and everything will be perfect!” She held up a bright-red wig with shoulder-length hair.

“I refuse,” Vur said and crossed his arms over his chest. “I think my hair is an appropriate length.”

Rella let out a sigh as she dropped the wig. “Well, I’ll take what I can get,” she said and grinned. “Let me trim some edges and apply some hairpins.”

“And this dress won’t be complete until you have breasts,” Bella said with a nod. “I can illusion those up for you. And here, these heels totally match your outfit.”

Vur frowned as he stared at the pink heels in front of his feet. Bella tugged on his dress. “What are you waiting for? Tafel’s going to be wearing heels too, you know? What if she ends up taller then you?”

“Makes sense,” Vur said and slipped on the shoes as flecks of his hair drifted in the air.

“How about some earrings?” Rella said as she put away her scissors. “I think a tiny diamond stud would suit you perfectly. Actually”—Rella hid a needle behind her back as Vur glared at her—“we probably shouldn’t poke any holes in you.”

Rella and Bella flew in a circle around Vur. “I’m almost jealous of how pretty he looks,” Bella said and frowned.

“He’s still missing something,” Rella said and rubbed her chin. “I know! Get the primer. He needs some blush.” Rella nodded and picked up a bottle of foundation.

“What are you going to do now?” Vur asked as he eyed the bottle in Rella’s hand.

“Some wizardry,” Rella said and giggled. “Just trust us and don’t ask any more questions. Close your eyes too. Everyone’s going to be speechless with awe by the time we’re done with you.”

“You’re sure he’s not going to kill us, right?” Bella mouthed as she applied the primer to Vur’s face.

“It’s okay,” Rella mouthed back as she waited for Bella to finish. “No one’s going to say anything because they’ll be too scared to criticize him. Remember that donkey tale about the king who went around naked that Mom used to tell us?”

Bella nodded as she placed the primer back on the table. “I think it’s best if we stay away from him for at least a hundred years afterwards though,” she mouthed as she got the blush ready.

“Are you done yet?” Vur asked.

“No!” Rella said. “Stop talking. I almost smeared your face.”

###################################################################

Gale sat in his room with his feet propped up on his desk. His robes were discarded on the bed behind him and a mug of ale sat on the stool next to him. Gale scratched his naked belly and sighed as he closed his eyes with a smile.

“Ahem.”

Gale’s eyes shot open as he scrambled to get his feet off the desk. His head whipped around as he tried to find the source of the noise.

“Up here.”

Gale looked up and saw a golden spirit’s face floating just below the ceiling.

“Weren’t you going to attend the wedding?” Gale asked as he covered his crotch with his hands.

“Yes, but we wanted to make a final round through the temple to make sure everything was in order before we went,” the spirit said in a monotone voice. “So far, we only found one thing that was out of place. You.”

Gale’s face turned red as he lowered his head. “I’m not good with skeletons,” he mumbled. “I can’t attend the wedding. It’s just not possible.”

“That’s fine,” the spirit said. “Carry on with what you’re doing. We’ll be going now. If any problems arise, call us back right away with a crystal. The capital is surprisingly void of any humans except for you.”

“I understand,” Gale said, still not looking up.

“Good,” the spirit said as it dispersed. Gale let out a sigh and propped his legs back on the desk. He grabbed the mug next to him and took a swig.

“Nothing’s going to happen,” he said as he burped. He shook his head as his body shivered. “Damned skeletons.”

Below him, in the temple’s basement, a crack formed on one of the runes in the sealing formation.

 

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