6

The wedding day had finally arrived.

Since morning, the Harrison family residence had been filled with servants busy preparing everything. However, when Aeris opened the box containing the wedding dress sent by the Castilano family, her gaze immediately fell on the dress that had already been damaged in several places.

The fabric was torn here and there.

Aeris simply stared at it for a few moments. She knew who had done all of it. She did not need to ask anyone.

However, she did not care. If Cyntia thought that ruining the dress would make Aeris call off the wedding, then she was terribly mistaken.

Aeris closed the box again, then walked toward her wardrobe. From there, she took out the red dress that had always been her favorite dress. She put it on without hesitation.

When Aeris came downstairs, Jenny, who had already been waiting for her, immediately changed expression. “What dress are you wearing?”

Aeris stopped on the stairs and looked at her mother calmly. “My favorite dress.”

“You’re marrying into the Castilano family, Aeris!” Jenny said angrily. “How can you come to the wedding in a dress like that?”

Daniel, who was standing nearby, also frowned. “Change your dress. The Castilano family already sent a special wedding dress for you.”

Aeris looked at them for a moment, then shifted her gaze away. “That dress was already damaged.”

“How could it have been damaged?” Jenny asked impatiently. She immediately approached Aeris and almost dragged her to the room to change her clothes.

“You can ask who damaged it.” Aeris stopped her mother’s hand before she could grab her. “There’s no way I would ruin my own wedding dress, Mrs. Harrison.”

“You!” Jenny growled through clenched teeth.

“I don’t care about that dress,” Aeris continued as she brushed her mother’s hand away. “The wedding still has to go on, right?”

“But this is your wedding!” Jenny grew even angrier. “At the very least, you should show some respect to the Castilano family.”

Aeris smiled faintly. “Precisely because I respect both families through this marriage, I have to show up no matter what happens. Or ... do you want me to wear the dress they sent after it has already been ruined?”

No one could answer.

Aeris did not want to argue any further. To her, a dress was no longer something important. She had already lost too many things over the past three years. A torn dress would not make her feel any worse.

There was only one thing she wanted. For her wedding to take place today, and for her to leave the Harrison family home forever.

A short while later, Aeris left for the wedding venue.

Many invited guests had already arrived. People from the Harrison family, their extended family, business associates, and several important guests filled the venue. The sound of conversations could be heard in various corners of the room, while many people’s attention gradually turned toward the bride who had just arrived.

Aeris did not care. She walked calmly, without showing the slightest nervousness.

Today, she would marry a man she had never even met.

Andreas Castilano.

That name no longer mattered to her. She did not even know what the man looked like, what kind of person he was, or why he was willing to marry her.

According to the rumors, Andreas Castilano was an arrogant, stubborn old man who did not hesitate to act harshly. He had two troublesome children.

To Aeris, nothing was more troublesome than having to return to exile. As long as this marriage was legally valid, she would have a new life and would no longer need to return to the Harrison family home. That alone was enough for her.

Aeris stood before the altar while the priest and the guests were already waiting. However, one person had yet to arrive. Andreas.

Time continued to pass—fifteen minutes, thirty minutes.

The lights from the large lamps inside the wedding hall remained bright, but the atmosphere that had initially been filled with joy gradually became awkward. Some of the guests began whispering to one another. Some glanced at their watches, while others occasionally turned toward the main entrance with impatient expressions.

“It’s been this long, but there’s still no word from the Castilano family.”

“It seems like something happened.”

“Shouldn’t the groom have been here by now?”

“I heard Andreas Castilano is extremely busy. Maybe an event like this simply isn’t a priority for him.”

“If that’s the case, then why are they still holding the wedding ceremony?”

Several people stifled small laughs after hearing that comment. Aeris heard them, but she didn’t care. She remained at the altar, waiting for the man who would soon become her husband to arrive.

There was none of the embarrassment or disappointment that the people around her might have expected.

On the other hand, Cyntia occasionally glanced at Aeris with a faint smile. She seemed to be enjoying the increasingly awkward situation. “I really feel sorry for Aeris.”

Donna leaned back against her chair and whispered to David, “It seems like the Castilano family doesn’t even consider this marriage very important.”

David merely shrugged. “A family as powerful as the Castilano family must have their own reasons.”

“Do you think Mr. Andreas will come?”

“I don’t know.”

Almost all of the invited guests had begun to doubt this wedding ceremony. Jenni and Daniel were becoming increasingly anxious because Andreas still hadn’t arrived. The priest standing at the altar was no different. Every now and then, he nervously glanced at his watch.

Almost an hour.

Until finally ... The main door opened, and footsteps could be heard coming from the entrance.

A man entered the room. In an instant, the atmosphere that had previously been filled with whispers fell silent. Every eye turned toward him.

The man walked with calm, steady steps. He was tall and well-built, dressed in a black suit that fit his body perfectly. His face was extremely handsome, with a defined jawline, a straight nose, and a pair of dark eyes that looked cold and unreadable. There was no smile on his face, nor did he greet any of the guests.

His expression was stiff and cold, as though the presence of hundreds of people in the room did not attract his attention at all. Yet it was precisely that attitude that made him even more captivating. Several women who had been chatting moments earlier immediately fell silent.

Some unconsciously followed his steps with their eyes, while several men also turned to look at him curiously. His presence was simply too striking to ignore.

“Who is that man?”

“Don’t tell me...”

“No way.”

Whispers began to fill the room again, but this time they were not about the wedding that had been delayed. It seemed everyone had just realized one thing.

Is this Andreas Castilano? Really?

The man whose name they had heard all this time. The man known for being cold, rigid, difficult to approach, and possessing immense power. They had heard many stories about him, but had never actually seen him in person.

The rumor was that Andreas Castilano was merely an old man who held a great deal of business power.

Who would have thought that the man himself would be standing before them? Handsome, extremely handsome. With a cold aura that made him look even more distinguished and untouchable. Some of the guests even seemed unable to believe that a man like him would truly be the groom today.

Cyntia, who had been sitting there all this time, immediately straightened up.

Her eyes widened and the smile on her face vanished just like that. She stared at Andreas as he walked closer, as though hoping she was seeing things wrong.

How was this possible? How could a man that handsome become Aeris’s husband?

Her hands slowly clenched in her lap. The closer Andreas walked toward the altar, the harder it became for Cyntia to hide her dislike.

Andreas Castilano was not an old or unattractive man as the rumors that had circulated all this time claimed. He was a man who could make the entire room fall silent simply with his appearance.

On the other side, Giovani also froze.

His eyes remained fixed on Andreas, his hands slowly clenching. All this time, he had regarded Aeris’s marriage as nothing more than a transaction to save Harrison’s business, but seeing Andreas in person made him realize that the man was not someone who could be underestimated at all.

What made it hardest for him to accept was one thing. The man had come to marry Aeris. Giovani clenched his hands even tighter, never expecting everything to end like this.

Meanwhile, Andreas continued walking without paying any attention to the gazes of the hundreds of people following him. As though none of that attention meant anything to him. Until finally, his steps stopped right in front of the altar.

“Sorry to keep you waiting.”

The low voice made Aeris, who had been standing expressionlessly all this time, finally raise her face. But before she could say anything, Andreas had already taken her hand and gently kissed the back of it.

That touch brought Aeris fully back to her senses.

She stared at the man in front of her for several seconds.

Her gaze shifted from Andreas’s face to the hand that was still held in his grasp, then back to his face. For a moment, there was a hint of tension in her eyes.

Whether because she had been waiting for too long or because the appearance of this man was truly beyond her expectations, the question that came from Aeris’s lips sounded incredibly innocent. “Who are you?”

Andreas fell silent for a moment.

Then the corner of his lips lifted. A soft laugh escaped his lips, so light that several people who saw it were startled as well. Perhaps this was the first time they had ever seen Andreas show an expression like that.

The man slowly released her hand, then turned his gaze toward the priest. “Priest, please continue the ceremony.”

The priest, who had been waiting all this time, finally came to his senses and quickly nodded. “Yes, Mr. Castilano.”

Aeris continued to look at Andreas with slight confusion.

So this was Andreas Castilano? The man who had almost made her stand alone at the altar for an entire hour?

The priest then began to continue the wedding ceremony. The atmosphere in the hall became calm again, although the guests’ attention remained fixed on the bride and groom. A few moments later, it was time for Andreas and Aeris to exchange their sacred vows.

However, before the priest could continue, a voice suddenly came from among the guests.

“Wait!”

Everyone immediately turned their heads.

Cyntia stood up from her seat. Her face looked tense, but her eyes remained fixed on Andreas. All this time, she still could not accept the fact that a man so handsome and charismatic would actually become Aeris’s husband.

She stepped forward without paying any attention to the gazes of the people around her.

“Are you really Andreas Castilano?”

Andreas looked at her expressionlessly.

Cyntia continued walking until she stood not far from the altar. “If you really are Andreas Castilano, then there is something you need to know.”

She pointed at herself. “I’m actually your bride-to-be.”

Several guests immediately began whispering. Aeris simply stood there silently, staring at Cyntia without showing any reaction. Cyntia moved even closer, almost pushing Aeris out of her place.

But before she could go any further, Andreas’s voice sounded cold. “If you really are my bride-to-be, then why weren’t you standing here waiting for me?”

Cyntia fell silent.

Andreas looked at her for several seconds before turning his gaze to the priest.

“What did you say earlier, Priest?”

The priest looked slightly nervous, but immediately answered, “I asked whether, do you accept Aeris Harrison as your wife.”

Andreas looked at Aeris for a moment. “Of course I do.”

The low voice echoed clearly throughout the room.

Without giving anyone a chance to interrupt, Andreas took a small box from his pocket. He opened it, then took out an elegantly designed ring that made several guests immediately hold their breath.

Andreas took Aeris’s hand and slipped the ring onto her finger. “This is the Castilano family ring, Miss Aeris.”

Aeris lowered her gaze to the ring on her finger.

“As my wife, you have the right to wear it.”

Andreas’s voice sounded again, calm but firm, and every word echoed throughout the room. Then his gaze shifted to the guests.

“If there is even one person who does not respect her, they will have to answer to me.”