Chapter 406: Wedding
"Can anyone tell me what exactly is going on here?" Charles asked in confusion while applauding along with his crew members.
They were in the spacious backyard of Dipp's house, and the backyard was decorated beautifully with red and white flowers. There was even a huge arch made out of flowers just above the newlywed couple.
If it hadn't been for Bandages' help, they wouldn't have been able to gather so many flesh flowers on such short notice for this wedding. Yes, wedding. Charles was attending his boatswain, Dipp's wedding.
The other crew members sitting on both sides of Charles looked as confused as Charles himself. They stared blankly as Dipp and Aliya kissed each other beneath the flower arch.
"Didn't Dipp summon us earlier in the morning to consult us about how he should convey his feelings? How come he's already married on the night of the same day? Isn't that a bit too fast? What exactly did he do?" Feuerbach asked in disbelief.
"I knew there was something going on between those two. I have been asking Dipp about it, but he has been denying that there's something going on between the two of them," James said.
Aliya looked incredibly beautiful today as she sported a white wedding dress. She was in the middle of her wedding, but she wasn't showing the shyness of a newlywed. Instead, she was laughing boisterously and joyfully.
"Ah, I'm so jealous of them, honey. Don't you think there's something missing in our relationship?" Elizabeth asked, whispering into Charles' ears.
Tonight, Elizabeth was wearing a low-cut dress, and her curly, bright white hair cascaded seductively over her snow-white cleavage; she was particularly eye-catching among the guests.
"Do you even care about weddings? Did you even hold a wedding with those wives of yours?"
Charles had just finished speaking when Elizabeth swung the sharp toebox of her high heels toward Charles' knee. Fortunately, Charles was quick enough to dodge it, and his reflexes spared him from the physical pain.
"Stop playing around. Dipp and the others are coming," Charles said. Then, he raised the wine glass in his hand as a gesture to the oncoming newlyweds.
Elizabeth wrapped an arm around Charles' arm and smiled as she made the same gesture to the newlyweds.
"Captain, I'm not dreaming, am I? Did I really just get married?" Dipp said, sounding both excited and bewildered at the same time. Clearly, he was still a bit overwhelmed by today's events.
Charles' expression was complicated as he stared at the fishman before him. He could still remember the first time he met Dipp on the streets. At the time, Dipp was just a dirty and skinny young lad. Charles had never imagined that he would one day attend Dipp's wedding.
Regardless, a crew member of the Narwhale had just gotten married, and as the Captain, Charles still had to say a few words for formality's sake.
"I congratulate you for finding your soulmate in this lifetime. The river of love is both ambiguous and endless, but I hope that you two will keep loving each other despite the inevitable hardships. Finally, I hope that this marriage will make you just a bit more conscientious," Charles said. Then, he took a sip of his wine.
"Thank you for your blessing, Governor," Aliya bent gracefully while holding up her wedding dress.
With a hint of excitement in her gaze, Aliya turned to her groom before turning back to Charles and said, "Governor, I heard that you consider Dipp as your right-hand man. Today is the wedding of your right-hand man, so can you let us choose his wedding gift?"
Charles was astonished by Aliya's remark, but it was true that they didn't have enough time to prepare any wedding gifts, as Dipp and Aliya's wedding was a bit too rushed.
"Sure, what do you want as a wedding gift?" Charles asked.
"James is the current Chief of Hope Island's Police Department, but it was a position once held by Dipp before his disappearance. He has already returned, but you've yet to reinstate him, so how about you let Dipp be the police chief once again?" Aliya replied.
Aliya's request was so shocking that even Dipp was caught off guard.
"There's no need for you to do that, CaptainAh! Let go of my scales!" Dipp hurriedly explained but was interrupted by Aliya giving his scale a fierce tug.
Charles didn't immediately agree to Aliya's request and explained, "You don't have to worry about me shortchanging him. We've been together ever since I started exploring islands, after all."
However, Aliya didn't seem like she was going to back down. She calmly met Charles' gaze and said, "I'm his wife, Governor, and I want to advocate for my husband because I feel like you're treating him unfairly.
"He went through many life-and-death situations with you, so I think he should be a part of Hope Island's upper echelon, even though he's a Deep Dweller now."
Charles stared deeply at Aliya before turning to look at Dipp with a smile. "You got yourself a great wife, boy. All right, you got married, so it's only right for me to give you a wedding gift.
"I can't reinstate you as Chief of Hope Island's Police Department, as it's just too important of a position to change hands so frequently. How about this instead? The Relic Research Institute of Hope Island still lacks a deputy director, so how about you give it a try?"
Charles had no plans of making the semi-illiterate Dipp do research on relics.
The Relic Research Institute of Hope Island was a massive money sink, and the massive amount of resources it was receiving meant that its waters would inevitably become too murky.
However, Charles felt at ease, knowing that the Relic Research Institute wouldn't become a blood-sucking tumor under Dipp and Linda's management.
Aliya was overjoyed upon hearing Charles' offer.
She was well aware of the Relic Research Institute's importance to Hope Island, and the fact that Charles had decided to give such a high position to Dipp meant that Dipp was incredibly important to Charles.
The wedding reception soon began, and it was a buffet dinner. The men and women quickly divided into several groups, chatting and eating with each other. Of course, the majority of the guests were teasing Dipp and his wife.
The wedding was intimate, having only a few guests; most of the guests were the crew members of the Narwhale as well, which was the reason they managed to hold a wedding on such short notice.
Charles was in a good mood. Deep inside, he still couldn't quite figure out why Dipp suddenly got married, and he seriously doubted that such a hasty marriage could last. However, even the worst wedding was better than a funeral. A wedding was great, and it was better to have more weddings than funerals.
A warm atmosphere enveloped the wedding reception as everyone ate and chatted with each other. Charles and Elizabeth were also enjoying a great meal of salt-baked crabs.
Charles frowned just then, noticing something amiss. He looked up and saw a bald man in yellow robes walking toward them. Charles recognized the bald man as one of the Pope's twelve bald men.
"Governor, His Holiness has returned, and he has asked me to invite you over," Wright said respectfully.
He's back? Does that mean that he managed to open that colossal door?! Charles' heart rate sped up at the news.
Wright's arrival attracted the attention of the other crew members; they didn't speak, but their gazes contained more than enough words for Charles to deduce their thoughts.
"It's fine. Keep eating, everyone. I'll be right back," Charles said and wiped his mouth clean with a napkin before standing up and following Wright into a car.
The car sped toward the docks, leaving behind a trail of black smoke. Soon, Charles saw a large number of airships just outside Hope Island's canopy, as well as the glimmering golden sheen of the Divine Light Order's fleet at sea.
The idle laborers of the docks were no longer idle, and they were sweating profusely while carrying boxes of varying sizes containing supplies.
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