Decades ago in the James Village, the distinction between the main bloodline and the extended family was fiercely upheld!
"Well, it's fine. It's good to have dreams. The bolder, the better," Claire said.
Barrett looked slightly embarrassed, wondering if the Clan Successor was actually making fun of them.
Gemma, however, felt no real sense of awe or intimidation toward a title like Clan Successor.
Before Claire could walk away, Gemma called out to her, "Clan Successor, if we decide to host our wedding in the village, could you officiate for us in the chapel too?"
"And would I be allowed to bring in a professional photography team to document it?"
Gemma was a moderately successful social media influencer. She hadn't dared to live-stream anything today out of fear of breaking a taboo.
But if it were her own wedding, as long as she had the leader's permission, streaming shouldn't be an issue, right?
She used to brainstorm all sorts of ideas for her dream wedding, but after witnessing the ceremony in the James Village, everything else had been wiped from her mind.
Claire wasn't entirely sure if live-streaming was permitted in the family chapel.
"I'll have to ask my grandmother first."
Claire didn't agree right away.
After checking with Pandora and confirming she had the authority to make the call, Claire finally gave her consent.
"If you and Barrett come back to the village for your wedding, you can live-stream it."
"I can also lead the ceremony honoring the ancestors for you. Are you absolutely sure you want me to do it?"
Usually, the role of the officiant was reserved for the elder members of the clan.
"Yes, I want you to do it!"
Gemma was absolutely thrilled.
She was already calculating how many new followers she would gain from broadcasting a wedding like this.
"I do have a condition, though," Claire said, making sure to bring her back down to earth before she got too carried away.
"Name it," Gemma replied, still excited but keeping a level head.
"You cannot reveal the exact location of the James Village to the public."
"This village is a perfect place for a retreat, but the locals aren't exactly eager to welcome outside tourists."
"If you host your wedding here and your fans want to visit after seeing the footage, I need you to do your best to discourage them."
It wasn't an unreasonable request by any means.
"Is the James Village really entirely closed to tourists?"
She had honestly been hoping to invite a few lucky followers to attend the ceremony.
"We don't host outsiders. If you want
to invite your fans to the wedding e
you'll need to make that very clear to them beforehand
"My grandmother prefers peace and quiet. The villagers are incredibly friendly but if someone manages to upset my grandmother, that friendliness will disappear very quickly."
Gemma hadn't experienced that side of things, as she had only ever been met with
the utmost kindness from the locals.
Barrett, however, nodded solemnly at Gemma. "Babe, the Clan Successor is completely serious."
"If anyone angers Pandora, the entire village will turn against them."
"Got it. Understood."
Gemma promised to keep her followers in check.
If they were going to hold the wedding in his hometown, there was one more thing.
"Could we also get ceremonial attire like the ones Edison and his bride wore?"
Gemma wasn't trying to be greedy; she just genuinely wanted the outfits.
Those ceremonial garments were infinitely more stunning than anything she could buy in a store.
"Absolutely." This time, it wasn't Claire who answered, but Barrett.
"We can have some of the locals make them for us."
"A few of the older women in the James Village used to be professional tailors. They're incredible at it!"
"Are you sure you want to skip the white dress and wear the traditional gowns, right?"
Barrett was visibly thrilled.
His own grandmother was one of those skilled tailors.
Just like Edison's grandmother.
His grandmother had often
set
mentioned how much she hoped her
grandson Wolf wear something
she had made on his wedding day
Barrett hadn't made any promises, though.
Ultimately, it had to be up to the bride.