Tyranny of Steel

The day had finally arrived for Berengar to marry one of his two lovers and officially make her his lawfully wedded bride. As Linde was the second wife in the harem's hierarchy, she would be the first to be married.

After this day was over, Berengar would have a week to spend with his new bride before sailing off to Constantinople where he would marry Honoria within the halls of the legendary Hagia Sophia. If it weren't for the importance that the Byzantines placed on Honoria's wedding, Berengar likely would have married both Linde and Honoria at the same time.

However, because of the Byzantine Emperor's request for his daughter's wedding to be held within the land of her birth, Berengar had placed Linde's marriage first and Honoria's shortly after. With this in mind, he would have today revolve entirely around Linde.

The guests had arrived for both brides, and unfortunately for Linde, her parents were long deceased; as such, she indeed had nobody to walk her down the aisle. Thus Berengar had arranged for her brother Liutbert to handle that part of the ceremony.

Once more, Berengar was garbed in his luxurious white military uniform, fully decorated in the various army accolades he had awarded himself for his courageous efforts on the battlefield as he stood at the altar for the second time in as many months. Standing beside him was none other than Ludolf, who was in a not-so-pleasant mood.

He was not a fan of Berengar's new polygamy law, but Berengar had cited solid biblical justification for such a thing, mainly quoting the old testament. As such, he had resolved himself to endure Austria's new laws and wed Berengar to his other wives.

If Adela's wedding gown was considered modest in design, then Linde's wedding dress was revealing to say the least. Linde had explicitly worked with the tailors to design her dress in a manner that showed off her upper assets.

As such, there were no sleeves on the dress. Instead, its bodice was cut in a v neck style that heavily emphasized her unique bust and the impressive degree of cleavage she was showing off. The lower half of the dress was a pleated hoopskirt. Her alabaster skin practically glowed as the sunlight entered through the stained glass windows and showed down upon her entrance.

Linde had spent a great deal of effort on her hair; it was not in its usual style. Instead, her long strawberry-blonde locks were artificially curled and swept off to one side like that of an early 20th-century starlet from Berengar's past life.

Berengar gazed at her in silence, struggling to keep his jaw intact as he fawned upon the elegant beauty of his long-term lover. He had never expected that a simple change in hairstyle would so thoroughly change the image of the woman who had taken his virginity.

Typically Linde was beautiful, but in a far less glamorous way than she appeared today. It was as if Berengar's sight had been wholly stolen, and the only thing he could see was his gorgeous bride walking down the aisle.

This time Eckhard was granted a reprieve from his duties in Bohemia and was allowed to return to Kufstein to take part in the ceremony as Berengar's best man. The General stood in the standard black, white, and gold dress uniform that the Austrian Generals now wore for formal occasions.

He wore many of the same medals that Berengar had awarded himself for his actions in combat, and as such, aside from the color differences, the Uniforms were quite similar. After all King Berengar, and Marshal Eckhard had done more for the Austrian war efforts than any other officers in the entire Military.

As for Linde's bridesmaids, they included Adela and Honoria as well as Linde's half-sister Adelheid, who had been working as a field agent in Austrian Royal Intelligence. She specialized in counter-espionage, and thus she spent most of her time within the borders of Austria, hunting other nations' spies.

Berengar's father and mother were sitting in the front row gazing upon their son having a second wedding, to a second wife, nearly two months after marrying the first one. There was a glimpse of pride in his father's eyes while his mother was glaring at him with an otherwise happy expression plastered on her face.

If it weren't for the vindictive nature of her stare, Berengar would think she was wholly accepting of his polygamous lifestyle; funnily enough, his parent's sentiments in this life mirrored what he believed those of his past life would have at this moment.

Berengar and Linde's two children Hans and Helga, were seated in the front row as they watched their father marry their mother with pride. Helga was too young to know what was going on and did not have the superior intellect of her elder brother; as such, she was smiling while remaining quiet.

Eventually, Linde reached the altar standing across from Berengar, where Ludolf once more began the speech nearly identical to what he had said within this very Cathedral almost two months prior.

"Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to join this man and women in holy matrimony.

King Berengar von Kufstein, do you take this woman to be your wife, to live together in holy matrimony, to love her, to honor her, to comfort her, and to keep her in sickness and in health? for as long as you both shall live?"

Berengar smiled and nodded his head in response to this before saying the words on his mind.

"I do."

Ludolf then shifted his gaze over to Linde as he began to address her in a similar manner that he had just done to Berengar.

"Linde von Habsburg, do you take this man to be your husband, to live together in holy matrimony, to love him, to honor him, to comfort him, and to keep him in sickness and in health, forsaking all others, as long as you both shall live?"

Just as Berengar had done, Linde smiled warmly and nodded her head before responding to the question.

"I do."

Ludolf then began to speak once more as he first addressed the groom.

"Repeat after me

I, Berengar von Kufstein, take you, Linde von Habsburg, to be my lawfully wedded wife, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do us part."

Berengar immediately repeated the words with perfect articulation before Ludolf repeated a similar phrase to Linde, where she quickly responded with the following vows.

"I, Linde von Habsburg, take you, Berengar von Kufstein, to be my lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do us part."

The rings were brought forward, where Ludolf immediately asked Berengar to place one of them on Linde's finger while repeating the following.

"I give you this ring as a token and pledge of our constant faith and abiding love."

After doing this, Linde followed the same process and repeated the exact phrase. Berengar and Linde then joined hands with broad smiles on their faces. After seeing this, Ludolf grinned before declaring for the entire audience to hear.

"By the power vested in me under the laws of the Kingdom of Austria, I now pronounce you husband and wife! You may kiss the bride."

After hearing this, Berengar grabbed ahold of Linde's flawless face and buried his lips into her own, sliding his tongue into her mouth and twirling it around hers as he did so. After a passionate kiss, he broke away from her while holding her hand, the young couple smiling emphatically as they basked in the audience's overwhelming applause.

After the ceremony was over, Berengar and his second wife returned to the palace and his guests, where they once more participated in a massive reception. As the primary wife and now High Queen of Austria, Adela was present throughout the whole wedding.

Surprisingly enough to the many spectators, the High Queen seemed accepting of the whole occasion; even though Berengar was paying more attention to Linde than herself. Nonetheless, he still paid heed to his first wife, in doing so creating an atmosphere that polygamy was quite wholesome, despite what the naysayers might preach.

Berengar had skipped the dance with the parents at the reception for Linde's sake. After all, both of her parents were deceased; instead, he waltzed with her for the entire duration. After prancing around for some time, Berengar and Linde sat at the head of the table where the meal was prepared. On his right side was Adela, while Linde sat on his left.

It was quite a peculiar sight to the guests who were gathered, as polygamy had not been legal in the German-speaking regions for centuries. Despite this, Berengar had shown to all the traditionalists among his guests that there was indeed nothing wicked or sinful about the occasion.

The traditionalist's biggest complaint about the whole occasion would be Linde's rather revealing dress, as it was the only thing they could remotely find fault with. Aside from that, the wedding reception went as smoothly as the previous one, and before long, Berengar and Linde found themselves alone in bed with one another, where they spent the remainder of their waking hours making love once more. A perfect conclusion to an otherwise perfect day.

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