Ah, wait. Hadn’t I intended to travel with Alice after all?
As this thought crossed his mind, Yan’s gaze drifted to Alice’s exquisite face beside him. His eyes met her bright, attentive ones, fixed on the wedding ceremony, a gentle smile playing on her lips.
‘Still, it wouldn’t hurt to listen.’
‘After all, experiencing different customs and local flavors is an integral part of any journey.’
Observing Alice, who seemed utterly captivated by such affairs, he couldn’t help but smile wistfully to himself.
‘One might wonder who had initially shown little enthusiasm for travel.’
“I’m finished.”
Chishan spread his hands, a gesture signaling the conclusion of his address.
The short-haired emcee, a young woman, once again stepped to the forefront, enthusiastically raising an arm to rally the assembled guests.
“Now, let us extend our heartfelt blessings to the esteemed couple!”
“Happy wedding!”
“Congratulations! May you enjoy a hundred years of harmony!”
“May you grow old together and be blessed with many children soon!”
“…”
From the audience, a chorus of players erupted in cheers, their fervent wishes washing over the beaming couple on stage like a surging tide.
“No, no, no, even for a blessing, ‘be blessed with many children soon’ is a bit too much… This game isn’t entirely identical to reality…”
Potts scratched his head, offering an embarrassed laugh, while Lilith beside him flushed, a shy smile gracing her features.
“Hahaha.”
A wave of laughter rippled through the crowd.
“And now, for the final segment: the distribution of red packets~”
The emcee announced with a cheerful smile, and the assembled guests below couldn’t help but reveal eager expressions, as if they had been anticipating this moment for quite some time.
Indeed, the wedding ceremonies within Companion God Realm ultimately diverged from those in reality, with the most significant difference being…
…that instead of guests contributing monetary gifts to the newlyweds, it was the marrying couple who distributed red packets to the attending players.
This custom originally stemmed from the desire for a grand wedding to be a lively affair. Should too few people attend, it would be a considerable loss of face for the couple. Hence, a moderately sized red packet was given to every participating player, ensuring their attendance wasn’t in vain.
‘In a sense, it served as a disguised wedding banquet, allowing every guest to partake in the joyous occasion.’
Consequently, this segment held considerable importance. The groom, Potts, descended from the stone platform and wove through the throng, graciously handing red packets to player after player.
“Happy wedding, Potts.”
As Potts approached him, Yan’s face broke into a sincere smile as he offered his congratulations.
“Haha, thank you for honoring my wedding with your presence.”
Potts was mildly surprised to find Yan still there, though his face was mostly alight with the joy of his recent marriage. With a smile, he extended the red packet in his hand to Yan.
“Here, your red packet.”
“Oh? Am I to receive one too?”
Yan, genuinely surprised, shrugged his shoulders and accepted Potts’ red packet with a smile. It was, after all, a gift personally bestowed by the groom, and refusing it would be an affront to his good intentions.
“Thank you.”
“Haha, they’re merely trifling trinkets, nothing valuable, I’m afraid I’ve made you laugh.”
Potts scratched his head with a wry, slightly embarrassed laugh.
“Since everyone in our guild is so well-acquainted, the red packets we prepared aren’t substantial; it’s more about the gesture of giving.”
“Ah, I understand.”
Yan nodded, a smile playing on his lips.
‘Indeed, when surrounded by friends who know one another intimately through shared adventures, no one would truly appreciate a grand, ostentatious display of wealth in the form of lavish red packets at a wedding. It’s far better to simply offer a few thoughtful and interesting trinkets.’
“In that case, I’ll gratefully accept. May you and your beloved enjoy a long and prosperous life together, growing old side by side.”
Yan said with a smile, tucking the red packet into his inventory.
“Oh? What’s the matter, groom? Is this an acquaintance of yours?”
Chishan, noticing Potts’ pause, approached with a curious smile.
“I’m merely a passing player, haha, rather shamelessly snagging a red packet.”
Yan responded to Chishan with a lighthearted chuckle.
“Nonsense! Your presence at the wedding honors Potts and our [Love Island] guild. Receiving a red packet is simply a matter of course.”
Chishan, with a grand sweep of his hand, laughed heartily. As he slowly approached Yan and Potts, he finally got a clear look at Yan’s face…
“Hmm? I can’t shake the feeling that I’ve seen you somewhere before.”
Chishan scrutinized Yan, his chin thoughtfully cupped in his hand.
“Eh? Now that you mention it, he does look rather familiar, doesn’t he?”
Potts, too, finally seemed to grasp something, joining Chishan in a bewildered, head-to-toe appraisal of Yan.
Yan simply smiled, shrugging helplessly as he watched their reactions.
“Ah! You, you, you! Aren’t you the [Spearmaster]!?”
Chishan was the first to react, gasping in astonishment as if he’d just seen a ghost.
“Ah… yes, that’s right.”
Yan nodded with a wry smile.
“Holy heavens! Is a figure of such renown actually gracing my wedding!?”
Potts, finally realizing the identity of the [Spearmaster], exclaimed with a mixture of awe and flattered disbelief.
“What ‘figure of renown’? I’m merely an ordinary player who happened to win a competition by sheer luck.”
Yan scratched his head, a hint of bashfulness in his smile as he spoke.
“Guild Leader Yan, your modesty is truly excessive. Any player who has witnessed your matches will understand that the title of [Spearmaster] is by no means an empty boast.”
Chishan, reassuming his role as guild leader, offered a slight bow to Yan, his praise delivered with a friendly smile.
“Guild Leader Chishan, your guild is remarkably cohesive. Such a harmonious community makes me feel a touch envious.”
Yan returned the smile, initiating the customary exchange of polite compliments.
“Speaking of which, our [Love Island] guild actually has a connection to your [White Cloud Snow], Guild Leader Yan.”
“Eh?”
Yan voiced his confusion.
“In fact, we acquired our guild’s [Guild Certificate] from Lian, the [Divine Eye Archer]. It essentially fulfilled the wish of us guild members, who came together from a previous game, to re-establish a guild.”
Chishan’s gentle gaze swept over the familiar players standing nearby, and his words to Yan carried a subtle note of gratitude.
“And now, Guild Leader Yan, you’ve serendipitously arrived at Potts’ wedding. It truly feels like fate.”
“Haha, that’s certainly true.”
Yan nodded with a smile.
‘That Lian also sold her golden [Guild Certificate], just like Little Green.’
‘Although Yan was curious about the price Lian sold it for, given the current atmosphere, it was probably best not to casually inquire about Chishan’s expense.’
“Speaking of which, [Love Island] is quite a lovely and romantic name. Is that its full designation?”
Yan asked, looking at Chishan with curiosity.
“Ah, actually, the full name is [Nameless Island of the Aegean Sea], but for convenience, we simply shorten it to [Love Island].”
A faint blush crept onto Chishan’s resolute face, as if he felt a touch embarrassed by his guild’s name. He chuckled awkwardly as he explained.
“Oh, I see, [Nameless Island of the Aegean Sea]… that’s truly…”
Yan intended to offer a compliment but found himself momentarily at a loss for suitable words. The corners of his mouth twitched stiffly twice before he managed to salvage his statement with a smile.
“…a truly unique and artistic name. It perfectly complements the romantic atmosphere of a newlywed couple getting married so soon after your guild’s establishment.”
“Haha, while I can’t boast about much else, our guild’s ‘marriage rate’ is remarkably high.”
At this, Chishan’s expression shifted, revealing a triumphant smile.
“Because we previously played a fully immersive ancient-style RPG game together, and after the name change, our guild’s name became quite… well, artistic… so the proportion of female players in our guild is considerably high.”
He extended his hands, bending his fingers as he counted meticulously.
“Counting the five couples who ‘married’ in the previous game, Potts and his wife who just got married, plus three couples in the guild who have already announced their relationship but haven’t ‘married’ yet… Hmm, our guild officially boasts nine couples already.”
“Did you count yourself and Lily of the Valley, Guild Leader?”
Potts, standing nearby, couldn’t resist a teasing remark, which caused his guild leader’s seasoned face to flush crimson. He angrily clapped Potts on the back.
“Counted! They’re counted!”
“Pfft~”
Alice, standing beside him, couldn’t help but let out a soft chuckle as she watched the scene unfold before them.
Yan, too, found himself curling his lips in a helpless smile. In a certain sense, the [Love Island] guild was quite impressive indeed…
‘Are you the village matchmakers and blind date committee…’
Yan complained helplessly in his mind, yet the smile on his lips refused to fade.
‘Well, this can be considered their guild’s unique characteristic, and it certainly lives up to the name [Love Island].’
‘But then again, they actually spent a large sum of money to buy the [Guild Certificate] from Lian, just so their companions from the previous game could continue playing in the same guild.’
‘Truly impressive.’
Yan glanced at Chishan, who was playfully bickering with Potts, and a smile of admiration touched his lips.
‘In this way, four of the five golden [Guild Certificates] initially made available have already been used to establish guilds.’
‘[White Cloud Snow], [Three-Chi Ming], [Queen’s Royal Guard], [Nameless Island of the Aegean Sea]…’
‘I wonder who Little Green sold her [Guild Certificate] to?’
A faint trace of curiosity arose in Yan’s heart, though it was merely a fleeting thought. He had been so engrossed with his own guild lately that he could barely keep up, and had no spare energy to concern himself with the affairs of other guilds.
‘Ah? Busy yet still here traveling with Alice? Hmm… a proper bit of relaxation is necessary~’
‘However, it’s also time to go back…’
Yan glanced at the time displayed on his system interface, this thought forming in his mind.
So, after conversing with Chishan and Potts for a while longer, Yan waved goodbye to the two of them and, accompanied by Alice, departed from the wedding venue.
****
“How was it? The trip?”
Yan curled his lips, smiling as he looked at Alice beside him.
“Can something like this truly be called a trip?”
Alice playfully retorted, her bright, sparkling eyes looking at him mischievously.
“Well… probably… I guess so…”
Yan was also a bit uncertain.
“Hmm, it was largely interesting.”
Alice didn’t look at Yan, but simply turned her delicate face away, lowering her gaze to the ground, and nodded gently.
“Oh, is that so…”
Yan’s gaze fell upon the smooth blue long hair behind Alice’s fair ear, following the light blue curve downwards to Alice’s pale neck.
Yan inexplicably blushed, and he quickly averted his gaze.
“Is that so… that’s good then.”