Monica entered the church's Prayer Hall and found that it had already been decorated for a wedding. Flowers stood beside the large, bright windows, the solemn iron-black candleholders had been replaced with new brass ones, and even the candles lending atmosphere to the occasion had been newly purchased.
The pews, which had originally faced the altar and sacred emblem with only a narrow aisle between them, had been moved to either side, leaving a broad central walkway covered with a red carpet. Quite a few people were already seated, including locals from Yarnam City and curious visitors from elsewhere. There were men and women of all ages, all formally dressed.
Monica looked around and was about to find an empty seat when she spotted someone she had only recently met. After a moment's hesitation, she walked over and sat beside the thin young man with strangely white hair, greeting him:
"Good morning, Mr. Alesu."
He turned toward her in delighted surprise. Just as he was about to call out, he remembered where he was and lowered his voice.
"Miss Monica, I didn't expect you to attend this wedding too."
"I'm here to gather material. How could I miss an occasion like this?"
She waved the notebook in her hand as she answered.
"So am I," Alesu replied with a smile. "I've wanted to use a wedding as a turning point and climax in the adventure novel I'm preparing to publish for some time. Unfortunately, no one in the city has gotten married these past few months, so I couldn't find suitable material. Who would have thought there would suddenly be a mass wedding..."
Material for a novel... Monica froze.
She had met Mr. Alesu in a bar three days earlier. At the time, she had been chatting with several locals,