Knights and Magic Wand
Chapter 512 - 512 242 Marriage_2

512: Chapter 242 Marriage_2 512: Chapter 242 Marriage_2 Ever since she confirmed her relationship with the one she loved, she had been very meticulous about the details of such a major life event, taking the time to consult her elderly father.

Leon raised his brows…

so simple?

It almost felt like registering a marriage at the civil office in his past life.

From what he gathered from the original owner’s memories, at least in the Seryan Kingdom, a marriage had to include a wedding ceremony, officiated and blessed by a Priest from the Holy Sun Church, in order to be legally recognized…

Thinking of this, Leon suddenly realized—since the Orland Kingdom didn’t follow the Holy Sun faith, it naturally didn’t include the Church’s witnessing in its process.

In the Northern Kingdom, weddings seemed to function more like traditional celebratory customs.

Though also indispensable, they didn’t seem to be the decisive step in determining the legality of a marriage.

“So in Orland, it doesn’t matter whether we hold the wedding first and then submit the contract, or submit the contract first and then hold the wedding, right?” Leon quickly asked.

Olivia nodded, “That seems to be the case.”

…A once-troublesome question was immediately resolved.

Leon still wanted to give his lover a perfect wedding—a grand ceremony blessed by everyone.

But before that, it seemed they could go ahead and handle the noble marriage procedures with Count Eriv first.

…

Early the next morning, Leon specifically sought out Filipo and a few other knights who were training in the barracks.

He asked these local noble-born sirs about the Orland noble marriage traditions and standards.

It was indeed not much different from what Olivia described.

While noble marriages naturally required a wedding, the true determining factor of legal recognition under the kingdom’s laws was still the contract held by both parties and their Lord.

And these marriage contracts created two distinct forms of marriage.

The so-called “Absolute Husband-Dominant Contract” was relatively rare in noble marriages but was more prevalent among the wealthier civilian classes of the kingdom.

Under this type of contract, the wife’s status was entirely subservient to the husband.

To put it nicely, she was practically like the husband’s “daughter”; to be blunt…

the husband held absolute and unrestricted paternal authority.

Of course, among the social lower classes, actual marriage contracts were rare—after all, most commoners couldn’t even read—but in practice, a majority of such unions still reflected this form of marriage.

The lower status of women was an undeniable reality of the era.

However, among Orland nobles, most marriages adopted the “Non-Husband-Dominant Contract.”

This contract, while still granting the husband a superior position of authority, required the couple to explicitly negotiate terms on matters such as property division, inheritance rights, and post-marital conditions.

This was not because nobles were particularly more ethical; rather, it was rooted in practical considerations.

Noble marriages often represented alliances between two families.

The wife symbolized her family’s political and military strength, and the husband naturally had to grant her a corresponding status and respect.

In the Northern Kingdom, in most cases, a Lord’s wife was simultaneously his ally.

The status of this ally depended heavily on the strength of the family behind the wife…

Having developed a keen interest in learning the marriage traditions of Orland nobles, Leon expressed his gratitude to the various noble heirs, then quickly pulled Olivia to the study, planning to attempt drafting a marriage contract right away.

According to Filipo, this step in noble marriages was no less ceremonial than the wedding itself.

Typically, it was done after the betrothal ceremony, with both families and their parents sitting together to discuss and negotiate terms.

But since all of Leon’s kin were back on Earth, and the original Leon’s parents had long passed, and Olivia only had Brian as her sole “relative,” the process became much simpler.

The two of them could simply finalize their decisions and have Brian review them.

If there were no issues, they could send the contract to Count Eriv for registration.

Neither Leon nor Olivia had any experience drafting such a document, but fortunately, for the two of them, it was more a symbolic gesture.

They didn’t need the clauses in the contract to solidify their relationship, so even if there were oversights, it didn’t matter.

Besides, the only clause that Leon truly needed was the legal provision to designate Olivia as the heir to his title, lands, and properties…

As for the rest, as long as it vaguely adhered to kingdom customs, that was good enough.

Olivia sat to his left, helping him hold down the paper.

But as she watched the quill leave words on the draft, with clauses becoming more poetic by the line, her cheeks flushed.

She raised her hand to poke Leon in the back.

“This contract…

Count Eriv might review it, you know.”

“So what?

There’s no rule saying how it has to be written, is there?”

Leon paused for a moment, raised his head to look at the girl with a confused expression, then glanced down again.

Hmm…

it was a bit cheesy, but since there weren’t any strict templates, and given that it was the token of their union, how could he not pour his love into it?

Just as Leon began to draft more verses onto the paper, Olivia quickly snatched the quill and ink away.

“No way!

If you write so many embarrassing lines, and Lord Eriv sees them, I’m afraid we’d die of laughter.

Let me do it.”

Seeing her seriously rewriting the draft one line at a time, Leon shrugged and let her take over.

Suddenly, the study door swung open, and Azeryan entered.

Leon looked up at him, about to speak, but Azeryan beat him to it: “I talked it over with Raya, and we’d like to hold the wedding earlier, no need to wait until Ascension Day.

If possible, I’m planning to start the preparations in the next few days.”

Olivia raised her head, looking over with slight surprise.

Leon couldn’t help but marvel—what a kindred spirit.

After returning to Avalon for one night, both he and his brother were discussing the exact same thing with their partners.

“I don’t have any objections.

Actually, I think Avalon could use a celebration,” Leon nodded.

Whether it was to mark the conclusion of the Southern Expedition or to relieve tension before impending turmoil, now seemed like the perfect time to unwind and loosen the string-tight nerves.

As for why Azeryan and Miss Raya’s decision differed from his and Olivia’s, Leon could more or less understand the reasons.

The delicate Miss Raya was, after all, unlike Olivia, who could follow Azeryan onto the battlefield.

And waiting anxiously on the home front for news of a loved one heading into battle was a torment even the steadfast Golden Lion Knight struggled to bear, let alone the painterly Miss Raya.

Azeryan, who knew the truth about the looming crisis in the East, couldn’t guarantee what shifts and upheavals might come to the Continent in a month’s time.

Their eagerness to complete the marriage was entirely understandable.