Never had the sky above the Flower Capital been so steeped in hope and myth.
The enormous Okuchi no Makami, elegant and majestic, stretched her long, fluffy tail, which seemed formed from ice crystals, and slowly circled beneath the clear spring sky. Sunlight passed through her translucent fur, refracting into rainbow halos like a moving rainbow bridge. Yet what made the countless people below hold their breath and gaze upward was the slender figure seated on the divine beast's neck.
Kozuki Hiyori.
She wore a pure white shiromuku wedding robe, supremely simple yet incomparably gorgeous, with no excessive ornamentation. Only the hem and cuffs bore delicate cherry blossoms and ice crystals embroidered in silver thread-symbols of the union between Kozuki and Yamato. Fierce winds stirred her bridal veil, worn without the traditional tsunokakushi, and her dark blue-green hair streamed through the air alongside the white fabric. She hugged Yamato's warm, solid neck tightly, her cheeks flushed from excitement and the chill at this altitude. Those eyes, so often filled with melancholy, now reflected the blue sky and the dense sea of people below, shining with startling brightness.
"Hold on tight, Hiyori!" Yamato's voice emerged through her Okuchi no Makami form with a humming resonance, yet reached Hiyori's ears clearly. Hiyori lowered her head and looked at the cargo in her arms, wrapped in a huge silk cloth and giving off the savory scents of salt and meat.
Below them, Boer hovered at a slightly lower altitude, both hands raised as though supporting something. An invisible magnetic field delicately enveloped the space around the Okuchi no Makami, forming a stable force field that blocked the strong winds while making the scattering possible.
"Begin, Your Highnesses." Boer's voice reached their minds directly.
Hiyori drew a deep breath and pulled hard at one