Lady Dhampir
Chapter 131

The Place wasn't just filled with people. It was absolutely crowded.

As far as her eyes can see, Milena witnessed hundreds and hundreds of faces turned towards them. The cheers and applause were deafening as the Royal Officer struggled to finish his sentence. No one cared. All the eyes were on the new couple as the new Princess appeared at the break of the day. Milena felt a bit dizzy, seeing all these people from above. She had never realized how high the balcony was, yet let them see the people from up close. She could see the expressions of awe on their faces, the smiles as the hands waved at them. There were a lot of red eyes, but a lot more human eyes. Young people, middle-aged and old people. All genders, ages, and races. Some faces even felt familiar to Milena, people she had seen in the streets, some merchants, soldiers or their families, and folks from the Crescent or Vermillion Lands who had made the trip to the Capital.

Rayan put an arm around her waist, and boldly kissed her temple, triggering a new wave of reactions downstairs.

"...Still worried about being popular, my dear Princess?" "How... how come..."

"Because you don't appear everywhere doesn't mean your name doesn't, Milena. The people know who they work for, who has an influence on their businesses, on their lives. A lot of those people are probably under your family's jurisdiction or benefited from your influence in some way. Your name goes further than your eyes see."

Milena slowly nodded, even if the information was struggling to get to her brain.

Somehow, she had so often compared her popularity to that of Philomenie, she had never been able to see where she stood in people's eyes. She always felt like she was not enough, but... How could this not be enough? There were thousands of people here to see her, to congratulate her on her wedding! It suddenly hit Milena that she had always put her action in a tight, thin line of vision that included Philomenie at the other end. However, if she took a step back and watched what she had really done all this time as a whole. Could she really say it wasn't enough? She was obviously wrong!

Once again that day, the new Princess had to repress her tears. Rayan was right, and once again, she had underestimated herself. It wasn't about her rivalry with Philomenie anymore. She didn't win, but she was standing beyond that. Milena felt like a winner like a young Queen. She put a hand on Rayan's and nodded.

Then, she turned to their people and finally smiled back at them.

The reaction was immediate. The people loudly congratulated the new couple, shouting their names, asking them to look this way or that way. Seeing so many smiles towards her was a unique, thrilling experience. As if Milena was receiving hundreds of warm hugs at the same time. She could see the sparkles in the young girl's eyes, amazed by her beauty in her pretty red and white dress, with her gorgeous raven hair. She recognized some of the orphan girls in one corner and smiled back at them. Bandit was probably not there, but it looked like some of the children hadn't resisted the urge to come and see her. As Milena kept looking, she had a little thought that people could easily get addicted to this. People's passion, all those gazes gratifying their egos. At the same time though, she realized how terrifying it could be if those admiring glances turned into glares. She had never understood the need for those public appearances before, she had always seen it as a conceited way to boost one's ego.

However, now she thought she could understand. It wasn't about their ego, but the pressure of so many people looking up to them. It was a powerful reminder of their position, their power and their responsibilities. It was a double-edged sword, but Milena was understanding it a lot better now.

"Alright, your Highnesses, if you would please proceed to the exchange of rings..."

With all that, Milena had almost forgotten about the rest of the Ceremony. Although not everyone could attend the wedding ceremony, it was custom that the new couple would exchange rings in front of the people. It allowed them to feel as if they were official witnesses of this ceremony. Moreover, the vows had been said and pledged, there would be nothing changing now. It was really for the formality of it, but it still held a deep meaning overall.

The little boxes containing the rings were brought forward. Once again, Milena wondered what had been prepared for her. She already wore the large ruby that had been gifted to her for her engagement, and she was curious to see what would come next on her finger. Another ruby, perhaps?

However, her husband smiled and gently opened the velvet box.

There was no ruby this time. Instead, a shiny, heart-shaped diamond was sitting at its center, surrounded by an infinity shaped band. The ring was surprisingly modest, but the delicacy of the intertwined bands and the gorgeous heart diamond were even more eye- catching than the ruby ring. As her eyes lingered on it longer, Milena was fascinated by how shiny that diamond was, and surprisingly, how the two bands were of a different color. One was rose gold, the other platinum, and both were filled with little diamonds near the center. It was a very feminine, delicate and yet precious ring.

"... Is my Princess satisfied?" Whispered Rayan, taking the ring off its cushion.

"I love it."

The Prince smiled and placed it on her finger. It fit surprisingly well with her other ring. The ruby was making the rose gold stand out a little more. She observed it on her finger, feeling the weight of that diamond, and nodded. "Thank you," she said with a little smile.

One thing Rayan also probably knew was that her mother's ring also had a heart-shaped gem at its center. The overall design was different, and her band was made of gold, but it definitely reminded her of her mother's ring.

After that, Milena took out Rayan's ring. As it was for a man, the design was of course much simpler but it was still obviously paired with Milena's. It had two bands, one of silver, the other of a black metal she couldn't recognize, shaped in a thicker infinity symbol with a single, tiny diamond in its center. She gently put it on his finger. The only other ring the prince wore was his signet ring on his middle finger, which contained his seal as a Royal Prince. Milena would get a similar one in a couple of days. "Congratulations, Your Highnesses," said the Royal Proclaimer next to them.

The two exchanged a glance then smiled, and Rayan leaned down to come and kiss her ring, making the Princess blush. She knew he was doing it for show, and to embarrass her too, but it still worked. Moreover, the people downstairs were clearly over-excited by this sweet interaction between them, so she let it go.

They stayed there a few minutes longer to greet the people, but once the rings had been exchanged and their new status and titles announced, that was pretty much it. The night was slowly falling too, so it made sense people would leave soon. As the temperature got lower they too returned inside.

Once again, there was a new whirlwind of clothes, makeup and hairdo for Milena. Her current dress was made for the ceremony, but not to dance. However, of course, Yasina had already planned everything. She didn't have to remove the red top, only her white skirt had to change a bit. Just like the sun had set to let the moon shine, the Princess traded her white long mermaid skirt for a gorgeous gown. Yasina and her assistants' fingers worked to make the magic happen in less than an hour. The new bottom had been waiting, much more imposing than the modest one for the ceremony. The overall skirt was white, but instead of letting it be plain white, Yasina had decided to have hundreds of beads running from the waist to the bottom. It was an obvious reference to her previous dress, but the proportions were bigger. Instead of a few dozen petals, hundreds of shiny red pearls were scattered, mostly around the waistline and going down. There were so many around Milena's waist, that from the hip down it looked like even the fabric was red. "It's a bit heavy," she sighed, moving her legs around.

She could already predict the back and leg aches she would have the next day. Yasina sighed.

"Well, I did my best, but it's still your wedding reception, Lady Milena. You have to act the part."

"I know.."

"It's just one evening. Moreover, you were the one to insist we use glass beads, it is heavy indeed, but think long-term, your business is going to flourish once all the ladies get jealous of the effect!"

Milena nodded. Until then, many noble ladies had tried to sew gemstones or strass on their dresses to make it that pretty and shiny, but the first option was extremely expensive and the second looked rather cheap. Her glass beads were definitely going to be a huge hit as soon as people would see the gorgeous effect of it. Not only did it send back a shiny reflection, but the mirror effect sent colored reflections every time the lights hit her beads, making it look like her dress was shimmering more and more at each of her movements. Even she acknowledged the weight was a fair price to pay to get such a gorgeous effect.

Moreover, she had a small victory on her overall outfit, the shoes! Once again, they would be hidden even more under the gigantic dress, so Yasina had settled on the shortest heels possible and made the platforms large enough that Milena's feet could suffer a bit less. She waited for the end of her transformation to be over, feeling a bit sorry she couldn't pet Blanche at that moment. Her companion had probably felt all of the ceremony to be extremely boring, she was back into her corner and dozing off again, only keeping a golden eye slightly open.

Finally, the new princess was ready in record time. Milena was a bit impatient to make her grand entrance in her gorgeous dress, to reunite with Rayan, and maybe get to eat a little at the wedding reception. She was starting to get really hungry. As she stepped out of her dressing room, she was surprised to replace her Prince waiting right behind the door. Unlike her, he had no need to change, and to her surprise, he was waiting for her with a cup of blood and a couple of snacks on a plate. Milena raised an eyebrow, taken by surprise.

"I figured my Lady would be starving," he said with a little wink. "And we need strength before a big battle."

Milena squinted her eyes, a little suspicious.

"My prince wouldn't do this and expect something in return, right?"

Rayan smiled, his eyes going down her dress.

"Well, like the gentleman I am, of course, I wouldn't have dared to ask, but seeing my Princess wearing such a ravishing attire, I must admit the temptation is... painful."

Milena rolled her eyes, but still took the cup.

"My Lady, your makeup!" Screeched Yasina behind her.

"It's only the lipstick, Lady Yasina, I can re-apply some later."

"....I suggest my Lady keeps the whole stick on her," whispered Rayan.

Milena blushed, trying to ignore him while eating quickly. This is exactly what a perfect partner was like, she thought. Able to see to her needs before she could herself, and care for her well-being before their responsibilities took over. She hadn't realized how hungry she really was before she took the first bite. Ignoring Yasina's recommendations, she had dieted before her wedding, but now, she realized how stupid that was. It would have all amounted for nothing if she passed out upon her entrance! She ate it all, although it was only two little snacks, they were filling enough for now. She sure hoped to replace a minute to get some more later...

"Ready?" Asked Rayan with a little smile.

Watching his bride eat seemed to have made him happy, but it only embarrassed Milena a bit more. She nodded, and once her make-up had been checked by her grumpy friend, she put her arm around her husband's.

Unlike their wedding ceremony, there wasn't exactly a due time at which the newlywed couple was supposed to make an appearance. First, because it was expected for the new bride to change, and that alone could take time. Moreover, all the guests were already partying inside and their arrival ought to be the highlight of the party. There were just about as many expectations as to when she had walked into the wedding hall or the Royal Balcony.

They positioned themselves at the entrance, signaling for the Royal attendants to signal their arrival. They were supposed to appear through a special door, on the floor's level that was only used for the Royal Family members; Everyone else had used the main entrance and were probably chatting happily inside.

Milena felt once again a bit nervous, waiting on the other side of the door. They were almost in the dark, listening to the announcement of their arrival. She glanced towards Rayan but his red eyes were fixated towards the door. Just then, the doors opened into the reception room.

It was a familiar place for Milena, but all the eyes on them made it more intimidating than usual. Once again, waves of applause welcomed them as they walked in, smiles stuck on their faces, taking a few steps in. Milena glanced toward the little platform where the Royal thrones stood but the King's Throne was empty, as expected. His Majesty hadn't made it to the reception after all. Milena could only hope he would get some rest. Hence, Ellias and his fiancé were alone there. The Prince was standing in front of his throne, but since he had yet to be wed, Philomenie could only stand to the side. However, Milena's seat was ready. She had almost forgotten that, from then on, she would have her own little throne, as a Royal Princess, between Rayan and the Prince. The custom had it that they should alternate between a man and a woman if possible, and the King was probably happy with such an arrangement too. "Congratulations, your Highnesses!"

Milena quickly had to refocus on all the people congratulating them, as if it hadn't already been done dozens of times a few hours ago. Although she enjoyed her wedding day, she was also glad it would be a once in a lifetime event...

For a while, it was more smiles, greetings, polite conversations and formal exchanges. Milena didn't even catch a glimpse of her family due to the wave of nobles who came to her. Some hadn't been able to attend the official ceremony, and were eager to correct their mistake now and be noticed by the newlyweds. Although she had insisted for the ceremony to be held with a minimal number of people, she felt a bit apologetic to the Royal Butlers and the organizers of their wedding ball, as the number had most likely deflected on the guests of the party with about three or four times more people.

Finally, she was able to catch a break as Rayan pushed his wife towards their seats. A long table had been installed in front of them, with drinks and food so they could rest, that's if they could make their way to their seats. However, it was way too early to dine. Ignoring Ellias who was there and hadn't come to them, the two of them stood next to each other, greeting their guests as a whole but putting a clear end to the flow of private greetings.

"Thank you all, Dear Guests, for attending our wedding ceremony, as well as this ball," said Rayan, raising his cup. "I want first, to thank the family of my amazing wife, who has raised her and have taken the best care of her. I don't have an ounce of doubt that the House De Crescent will continue to support us in the future."

Milena smiled, as her father raised his cup back, showing his agreement to that statement. Rayan was showing that one of the Duchy houses was indeed supporting him if anyone doubted this.

"I wish they were here but, regardless of our family's status, I am grateful to my parents as well. Finally, the one I want to thank most in all this, is no other than my magnificent wife herself, Lady Milena De Crescent, First Princess of the Solar Kingdom." Milena was surprised....First Princess? The twin brothers' order of birth had never been used before! If Rayan said this now, it meant he was claiming his title as firstborn, not for himself, but to say his wife would be one step higher than Philomenie, who was engaged to the Second Prince! The title of First Princess was always handed to the eldest daughter of the Royal Family, or the woman married to the oldest brother if there wasn't one. Although Milena was a few months younger than Philomenie, it wouldn't have mattered much. However, now that the twins' order of birth had been mentioned, Milena would be recognized as First Princess, Philomenie as Second Princess. It was a unique situation, where the twins' status quo remained per the deceased Queen's wish, but not for their wives. She glanced very briefly towards Ellias and Philomenie. To her surprise, Ellias looked shocked, but not his fiancée. Maybe she hadn't caught on what that meant yet.

"Dear?"

Milena was brought back to reality as Rayan called her with his hand extended. She grabbed it and immediately put on her most charming smile.

"Well now, my wife and I will spare you any more long and boring speeches that there have been today. We have the pleasure to welcome you to our wedding reception. Have a great evening."

Many people applauded, but Milena could see that the use of her new title had definitely triggered some reactions. However, Rayan left her no time to think about it. Gently, he took her to the middle of the dance floor, and they put themselves in position. Milena was happy to hear amazed reactions anytime her skirt moved and sent red sparkles in the ladies' eyes.

"Ready for a dance, my Lady?" He asked, putting his hand on her lower back.

"With you, always, my Prince."