Despite discomfort in his back, Ren did his best not to show anything as he and Mirai ventured through the Noroi clan district of Hikarimura. The clan members, who noticed him, bowed politely, acknowledging his status as a candidate. In such a manner, he and his soon-to-be wife arrived in front of the temple. Like many times before, Ren approached the familiar archway, rang the bell before taking off his shoes, and climbed up the stairs to the door. Mirai followed him.

The door slid open a moment later, and the familiar face of the young miko showed up. She immediately recognized him and bowed deeply.

"How can I assist you, candidate?" she asked.

"We are looking for a saiin to discuss our marriage ceremony," Mirai answered her question.

"Please come in and wait. I'll bring a saiin to you," the teenage girl responded, taking a few steps back before she darted into the corridor and vanished.

They entered, closing the door behind, and waited for a moment. Ren actually got anxious about how Reiko would react to the information of him getting married since the two of them clearly got close after the incident in the cemetery.

When he noticed a much older woman, slightly hunched over, dressed in a dark kimono who was approaching, he felt a bit of relief.

The shinshoku bowed deeply. "Welcome candidate. You and the bride, please follow me," she said, then turned around, still in the corridor, and started to head back.

They followed her, letting her guide them through several corridors until they arrived in a cozy chamber.

It had a table in the middle, surrounded by four cushions to sit on. On the side was a closed cabinet, on top of which lay a tray with a kettle and drinking bowls. On the opposite side was a small stove, covered by brown tiles, which matched well the wooden construction of the whole temple. There was a chimney at the back, directing the smoke beyond the only wooden wall, as the rest were constructed of frames and paper.

"Sit down, please," she instructed.

While they did follow her directions, she focused on preparing tea. It took quite a moment, but it appeared that she was not willing to talk with them before finishing this task, so they waited in silence until she finally sat with them and poured the brew into the bowls, which she placed on the tabletop before the water was ready.

She took her bowl, drank from it, and then finally spoke. "Have your families exchanged the letters?" She asked.

Ren was surprised, as he had no idea how such a ceremony could look in this strange world, but Mirai appeared to be aware of how everything should transpire.

"I don't have a family, so there was nobody to exchange letters with," she responded.

"I understand," the shinshoku replied. "We can skip that part… When do you want to get married?"

"As soon as possible," Mirai stated.

The older woman nodded slowly before taking another sip from her bowl. Ren did the same, feeling awkward because his lack of knowledge made him decide to stay silent.

"The temple could be prepared for tomorrow, depending on the number of people. How many guests are you expecting?" she asked.

"From my side, there won't be anybody," Mirai informed, before looking at her soon-to-be husband.

Ren cleared his throat, finally ready to speak. "From my side... Three... No, four people."

"So, a small ceremony... Very well. We can be prepared for tomorrow. Do you have everything? The kimono, tsunokakushi, haori, hakama?" She enumerated. "If not, the temple can provide, as long as both of you are of the clan," she said.

"We're both Noroi," Mirai informed. "And I have my white kimono prepared, as well as the red undergarments and tsunokakushi. But Ren... He might need haori and hakama."

"Then I will include the price of the clothes in the bill for the ceremony," said the old lady. "The ceremony costs twenty-five gin, and another twenty-five for the clothes."

Mirai opened her mouth as if she wanted to bargain, but then her gaze briefly shifted to Ren, causing her to abandon her initial intent. He responded by pulling out a pouch with the coins and counting out the required number.

The old lady collected the money and hid it. "The temple will be prepared for the afternoon," she assured, bowing deeply to the point that she almost touched the table with her forehead.

"Thank you," Mirai responded.

"I'll escort you to the exit," the shinshoku added, getting up.

As soon as they got outside, and the saiin vanished back into the temple, Ren couldn’t help himself and asked: „Could you tell me how a marriage ceremony looks? I know it might sound silly, but I have no idea,” an awkward chuckle escaped his mouth.

She giggled while she was putting her shoes on. „Usually it starts with an exchange of letters. The groom’s family writes to the family of the bride with an offer. Then the bride's family responds. If they accept, the temple is booked for the ceremony. The groom and the bride exchange vows, drink sake and then are taken by the shinshoku to their house with the family members following them in a procession. They sometimes throw rice at the husband and wife as they leave for their house where they spend the night together. On the next day, the groom has to pay for the restaurant of the guests' choosing, and they all have a fest.”

„Thank you,” he said trying to put it all together inside his head.

From the temple, the two of them headed straight to Satoru's house. Mirai added a bit more about ceremonial clothing and other little details. Upon reaching their destination they met the old man sitting on the stairs leading to his porch and smoking.

"What a lovely view," said Satoru, pulling the pipe from his mouth and smiling. The smoke that escaped through his nostrils briefly completely covered his face. "What brings you here? Don't tell me... Marriage! Hehehe…"

"Yes," Ren admitted.

Mirai bowed deeply at the same moment. "I apologize for how sudden this might be, but I don't have family, so we decided to skip the letter exchange and booked the ceremony for tomorrow," she said.

"Tomorrow... That is sudden," Satoru agreed, nodding. "Do you need anything? Clothes?"

"We took care of that," Ren said.

"Good..." The old man nodded. "Then we will come tomorrow to the temple... Ayako!" He got up and headed for the door. "Ayako, come here!"

The sound of hurried steps reached them, becoming only stronger when Satoru slid the door to the house open. They could see his wife walking quickly through the corridor. She stopped at the entrance, smiling, as she already understood what was going on.

"We are getting married," Ren informed while Mirai bowed again.

"Good... He is a good boy. Make him happy," she said to the soon-to-be bride. "Do you want to come in for some tea?"

"We have to go," Ren shook his head. "I want to invite Hiroshi and Kazuki... After all, without his help, I wouldn't be getting married now."

"Good. Go," she encouraged.

This concluded the meeting and resumed their journey. The rest concluded in a similar manner, and the two of them eventually returned home for lunch.

The atmosphere was awkward as both of them were unable to look each other in the face, and they would blush each time. Ren simply couldn't wait to finally embrace Mirai, and she also appeared to be looking forward to their union. They both went to sleep early.

The next day, during breakfast, prepared by Mirai, they agreed that after lunch, she would go and change into the clothes that remained in her old house, and then take care of her hair. Ren would head straight to the temple, where they would later meet.

That's exactly what happened.

As he rang the bell by the archway, then climbed the stairs to the temple, the teenage miko appeared once again, but much quicker, as if she was waiting for him. She immediately escorted Ren to a proper chamber within the building. It was completely empty but had plenty of light coming through a proper glass window in the ceiling placed in the very middle.

The old shinshoku appeared there moments later, carrying the clothes for him. A black kimono with the embroidered symbol of the clan – the side view of a tiger's head, which had a katana blade instead of a tongue. She also brought haori – a jacket, carrying the same symbols – and hakama – matching trousers with the same decorations. During the process, he was instructed on how the ceremony would look like.

Dressed in the ceremonial attire, with his Maken by his side, Ren's hair was properly combed as a finishing touch, and then he was ready to proceed further.

The shinshoku guided him away to a different part of the temple. A spacious chamber illuminated by paper lamps hanging from the ceiling, and with an altar at the end. It was simple with many incense sticks already burning, there around a wooden figure, which immediately brought to Ren's mind familiar imagery of death. It was an individual in black robes, with a hood on the head, and a scythe in hand. The wood was painted black. Except that there were also three drinking bowls of different sizes and a bottle of sake present.

The guests – Satoru and Ayako, dressed in the colors of the Noroi clan, Hiroshi in an elegant, long, white lab coat, and Kazuki wearing a brown kimono without the strange device on his back – were already present. As well as the bride.

Mirai wore a white kimono with red undergarments and a white hood called tsunokakushi on her head. Her hair was styled nicely in a complex bun called marumage.

As he approached her, and the old saiin took her spot in front of the altar, the ceremony began.

"We gathered here, in front of our god Shinu, for a marriage ceremony between these two, officiated by me, a saiin of the temple," the shinshoku announced. "Exchange your vows."

"I, Mirai, daughter of Daichi and Kiyomi, of the Noroi clan, pledge myself to you, Ren, son of Satoru and Ayako, of the Noroi clan, as your lawful wife. I vow to honor and respect you, your parents, and your ancestors. I vow to be faithful and loyal to you, and to support you in good times and bad. I vow to bear you children and raise them with love and wisdom. I vow to follow you wherever you go, and to share your joys and sorrows," she recited, looking him straight in the eyes. Tears began to slowly gather in them, but her voice didn’t break.

"I, Ren, son of Satoru and Ayako, of the Noroi clan, pledge myself to you, Mirai, daughter of Daichi and Kiyomi, of the Noroi clan, as your lawful husband. I vow to honor and respect you, your parents, and your ancestors. I vow to be faithful and loyal to you, and to protect you from harm. I vow to provide for you and our children, and to lead our household with courage and wisdom. I vow to follow the way of the warrior, and to serve our city with honor and loyalty," he responded.

"I am the witness of your vows," said the saiin before she turned around to pour the sake into three different bowls. She took the smallest one and gave it to Mirai, who drank three times from it before returning the bowl. Then the shinshoku put it away, in exchange for grabbing the middle-sized one, which she gave to Ren, who also drank three times from it before returning it to the woman. She then turned around for the third time, grabbing the biggest bowl, which she gave to Mirai. She drank three times from it, then gave it to her husband, who did the same, before returning the last bowl, which then ended up back on the altar.

"You are now husband and wife," said the old saiin and went right between them.

Both followed her with the guests behind. They all headed through the corridors of the temple to a special exit where a black wooden palanquin awaited them, surrounded by twelve teenage miko. They both got inside and then the young shinshoku began carrying them to their house with a lot of effort.

Old man Satoru offered them a bit of guidance. As they arrived, the girls appeared to be exhausted but tried their best to pretend otherwise. The groom and the bride went out of the vehicle, and the guests threw rice from small pouches at them.

"Congratulations! Congratulations!" They repeated as they did so.

Laughing, Ren and Mirai rushed through the gate to vanish within their house, while the guests stood there for a moment, watching the shinshoku gather the palanquin and embark on a journey back, then they also left for their houses, chatting until they went their separate ways.

The groom and the bride, on the other hand, ended up in their bedroom. The shutters of the window were partially closed, so there was enough light inside. They both stopped almost as soon as they entered, looking deeply into each other's eyes. She was smiling, while he could barely contain himself. His body was burning.

She grabbed his hands and raised them to the belt keeping her kimono together. Ren immediately untied it, then one by one began removing her clothing until she stood in front of him completely naked. Her pale skin reminded him of silk. Her breasts, not too big, and not too small, were like ripe nectarines handing on a low branch. The pink nipples stood like soldiers on guards, saluting, but also showing how excited she felt.

Her belly was flat, with feint outlines of abs, and below them, a single stripe of hair led to her womanhood. The pink lips lured his gaze, and he found himself breathing heavily.

Mirai wasted no time, immediately rushing to untie his obi, and then take away his clothes – piece by piece. The sword ended up falling to the floor with a dull clang.

They stood there, in front of each other for a short moment, naked. Panting heavily. She took the first step, putting her hands on his chest, and tracing her fingers along the scars covering his body, before she stood on her toes to kiss him.

Ren was unable to endure this anymore. He embraced her, kissing her deeply with passion. For a moment they remained in this tight entanglement of two bodies, before they pulled themselves from one another, gasping for air.

„Take me,” she whispered.

Wasting no time, he picked her up, and placed her gently on the futon, then guided his throbbing member into the embrace of her womanhood. She gasped, stretching her back. There was a bit of resistance, but Ren was already aware that it would be the case, as she was a virgin. She pushed further, slowly and a little bit of blood appeared, then she relaxed slightly.

„Are you fine?” he whispered.

She nodded, prompting him to begin moving slowly. At first, it was obvious that she felt some discomfort, so Ren leaned forward over her, placing his lip on hers. His hands reached for her arms, and stretched them, eventually making their fingers entangle together, as he kept kissing her passionately while still moving his hips.

It lasted only a moment, as he simply, was unable to endure the pleasure, and released his seed inside her just a moment later. Her legs wrapped tightly around his hips, as she clearly also reached her climax.

Then they both relaxed, but it was only the first round of a night-long fun.