21st Century Necromancer

As Chen Yu was having dinner, Jounouchi Hiromi, who had already returned to her family home in Yamagata, was also eating dinner with her mother.

"I never thought you, Hiromi, would be getting married. In high school, I thought you'd end up with that little girl from the Shiina family! Back then, you two were always together, and everyone was saying you were a couple," said Hiromi's mother sitting at the dinner table, bringing up the girlfriend from Hiromi's high school days as she looked at her daughter who was about to get married.

When her mother mentioned Yuiko Tsuina, Jounouchi Hiromi couldn't help feeling a bit embarrassed. The events of high school were just memories for her, perhaps important ones, but she was clearly no longer able to go back to those times, nor could her relationship with Yuiko Tsuina return to what it was.

However, faced with her mother's words, Jounouchi Hiromi still replied somewhat shyly, "Back then, I did like Yuuko, who could resist? She was such a good girl! It started out as a joke when I kissed her, and then she just stuck to me."

"Look at you, bragging! You were a flirt in high school, acting like a tomboy!" Her mother looked at her daughter disapprovingly, knowing all too well that Yuuko wasn't the only girl Hiromi had charmed in her high school days; there were several who had come knocking at their door.

With her mother's remarks, Jounouchi Hiromi couldn't help but reminisce about the past, touching her now ponytailed long hair, and sighed, "Speaking of which, I haven't cut my hair short since high school! Back then, I really tried to imitate boys because I didn't want to be seen as just another girl."

"Yes, you even had your uncle buy you trousers and a leather jacket, always dressing like a boy." Hearing her daughter say this, Jounouchi Hiromi's mother couldn't help but laugh, "But truth be told, my daughter was quite the heartthrob! Back then, all the young girls were smitten with you. Quite a few came by, wanting me to become their mother-in-law! I remember one was from the class next to yours, what was her name, the one with the round face, who said she'd do anything for you..."

"Mom!" Jounouchi Hiromi finally lost her temper and interrupted her mother's walk down memory lane.

Stopped by her daughter, Jounouchi Hiromi's mother didn't continue, but with a somewhat wistful expression and earnest tone she said to Hiromi, "No matter the past, now that you're marrying Doctor Chen Yu, you should act like a wife and fulfill a wife's responsibilities, understand? I can tell Doctor Chen Yu is a very good man, and he is truly sincere about you. You didn't inherit my eyesight when choosing men, what a stroke of luck! If I had been clearer-sighted back in the day, your wedding wouldn't be missing someone to walk you down the aisle."

"Mom..." Hiromi's face grew complicated upon hearing her mother speak, knowing her mother was thinking about the man she should have been able to call father.

"Let's not talk about that anymore! Look at me, turning a happy occasion into a downer," Jounouchi Hiromi's mother wiped the corner of her eyes and smiled anew. "Anyway, have you chosen your wedding dress, Hiromi? With your figure, you'll look stunning in a bridal gown! But it would be even better if there was a Shinto ceremony, I've always wanted to see you in a Shiromuku."

"We've planned for both. Mr. Chen Yu and I plan to have the Shinto ceremony first at Kamakura's Tsuruoka Hachimangu Shrine, then we'll return to Tokyo for a Western-style wedding," Jounouchi Hiromi quickly explained to her mother, sensing her sentimentality.

Overjoyed by her daughter's words, Jounouchi Hiromi's mother said happily, "That's just wonderful! The Shiromuku and the wedding dress are clothes a woman gets to wear only once in her lifetime, symbolizing the most beautiful moment in a woman's life!"

Although not every woman wears a wedding dress only once in her life, Jounouchi Hiromi knew that she and Chen Yu could never be separated, so she genuinely agreed with her mother's words.

After finishing the meal, Jounouchi Hiromi took all the bowls to the kitchen and was about to wash them when her mother chased her out, "Get out of here! The person about to get married should take care of herself. What if you roughen your hands?"

Having been driven out of the kitchen by her own mother, Jounouchi Hiromi looked at her mother starting to wash the dishes with a laugh and a cry. Memories flooded back like a stream; she recalled being a little girl watching her mother busy in the kitchen. However, she had now grown even taller than her mother.

As Jounouchi Hiromi was immersed in the warmth of these past memories, her mother, who was washing the dishes, suddenly asked her, "Who do you plan to have as your bridesmaids? I've heard that in the big cities, it's popular to have a whole group of bridesmaids. Have you decided on your candidates?"

"I came back to deal with these things. You can relax, mom. If it comes to it, I can just pull in all my ex-girlfriends, right?" Jounouchi Hiromi said in a light-hearted manner.

"Well, that's true! After all, my daughter gets along well with women; she won't have trouble finding bridesmaids," Jounouchi Hiromi's mother laughed along with her, agreeing with what her daughter said. Indeed, Jounouchi Hiromi wasn't worried about finding bridesmaids.

However, as much as she said that, she obviously couldn't actually invite all her ex-girlfriends to be her bridesmaids.

Especially regarding Yuiko Tsuina, Jounouchi Hiromi always felt that in a way, she had wronged her for life. The last time she saw her, Yuiko was still in love with her, and there was no need to hurt her again in this manner.

Still, she should send a wedding invitation to Yuiko, regardless of whether she would come. The news of her getting married needed to be shared with Yuiko Tsuina, as a conclusion to avoid any unwarranted expectations from her.

With this in mind, Jounouchi Hiromi asked her mother, "Mom, do you know how Yuuko has been recently? The last time she came to Tokyo, she said she had cancer. I don't know how she's doing now, and I forgot to visit her when I came back for the New Year."

"The Shiina family's girl has cancer? She looked fine the last time I saw her!" Jounouchi Hiromi's mother was obviously unaware of Yuiko Tsuina's cancer diagnosis. Upon hearing Jounouchi Hiromi mention it, she said, "Then you should go and see her tomorrow. She's your classmate after all."

"Yeah, I know," Jounouchi Hiromi nodded, having made up her mind, and decided to visit Yuiko Tsuina the next day to ask about her recent situation and to give her the wedding invitation.