21st Century Necromancer

As a god who oversees marriage and protects matrimony to actually not believe in fate predestined by destiny?

It might sound ironic, but to one who has grown accustomed to the joys and sorrows, reunions and separations of the human world, to having seen humans abandon the vows to stand by each other for a lifetime for various reasons, even deities charged with guarding matrimonial bonds might lose faith in so-called destiny.

But for the Matchmaking God, although She no longer had faith in fate, She still wished to protect each beautiful matrimonial connection.

No matter who tied the knot, whether they were young or old, beautiful or ugly, wealthy or impoverished... in the eyes of the Matchmaking God, everyone should have the right to enter into matrimony, and each successfully formed matrimonial bond deserved Her protection.

Even when these Red Strings of Fate broke and caused Her to lose Divine Power, the Matchmaking God still devotedly protected every matrimonial bond She deemed worthy.

However, when observing the faint, almost imperceptible Red String of Fate between Minami and Inomata Naoki, the Matchmaking God found Herself in a quandary, for even deities did not know whether a dead person should enter into a matrimonial bond with a living one.

The boundary between life and death is insurmountable; this is known to all deities. Even the Creator Gods of the Japanese Deity system, Izanagi and Izanami, were separated by life and death, despite Izanagi once descending into the Yellow Springs to bring back his wife.

"Suzuhime, do you think the living can love the dead?" the Matchmaking God felt troubled and thus asked Suzuhime, who stood beside Her.

"How can the living love the dead? Matchmaking God, don't be reckless!" Upon hearing the question, Suzuhime understood what She was asking and immediately admonished Her: "Though there have been romances that transcend life and death, they are all a break of taboo! If you stir up trouble, even Lord Miketsu won't be able to protect you!"

Seeing Suzuhime's anxious reaction, the Matchmaking God sulked displeasingly, "I know that! I'm just asking!"

Yet even so, Her gaze toward Minami remained full of sympathy.

She likely never experienced the taste of love in life, did She? How pitiable it is, to only meet Her fateful match after death.

Although fate never fails to arrive, this time it truly was late.

This filled the Matchmaking God with profound regret; if only this fate had arrived a little sooner, perhaps it might have become another wonderful matrimonial bond?

Is there some way to help them, or should She simply watch and not intervene? The Matchmaking God pondered, uncertain of the best course of action.

As a deity who guards matrimonial bonds, seeing someone able to form a matrimonial bond naturally calls for intervention, yet the barrier between life and death cannot be broken, which left Her in quite a dilemma.

While the Matchmaking God was troubled, Jounouchi Hiromi was about to throw the bouquet.

It's a very Western custom, but now it has become popular all over the world.

Due to his single status, Inomata Naoki naturally joined the contenders vying for the bouquet. Although it's said that only women should compete for it, Japan doesn't have such a taboo.

And Minami, naturally, under Inomata Naoki's urging, also stood among those vying for the bridal bouquet.

"If I catch it, I'll give it to you," Inomata Naoki joked with Minami. And as soon as he finished speaking, the Matchmaking God, who had been watching them, noticed that the Red String of Fate between them had become even more tightly bound.

But faced with Inomata Naoki's half-joking words, Minami felt happy inside yet also filled with regret. How wonderful it would have been if she were still alive!

As Minami was immersed in regret, Jounouchi Hiromi's bridal bouquet was finally tossed.

Everyone tried to jump up to grab it, but in the fray, someone touched the bouquet, causing it to tumble. It then headed straight for Inomata Naoki.

Before the others could even reach out, Inomata Naoki had already leaped up to firmly catch the bouquet in his hands.

"Here, I promised I would give it to you if I caught it," Inomata Naoki said, handing the bouquet over to Minami.

In that moment, the Matchmaking God felt the formation of a new Red String of Fate.

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"What did you say? You want to stay in Tokyo?" Suzuhime looked at the Matchmaking God, unsure of what she was up to. Usually reluctant to leave the Divine domain of the Inari God, she now strangely wished to stay in Tokyo, arousing Suzuhime's suspicion of her motives, "Matchmaking God, you're not planning to interfere in the matter between that dead person and the living one, are you?"

"They've already tied the Red String of Fate. I must ascertain what exactly has transpired," said the Matchmaking God with an expression of utmost seriousness, devoid of any hint of jest.

"Are you suggesting they have broken the taboo of life and death?" Suzuhime's face also changed, knowing far better than the Matchmaking God the taboo of breaking the boundaries between life and death.

The Matchmaking God nodded gravely, "Yes, during the wedding just now, their once faint Red String of Fate has already connected. The marital bond is formed, so I must find out what this will become, especially before they cause irreversible consequences, and prevent it all from happening."

Protecting marital connections was the Matchmaking God's duty, but such a bond that broke life and death taboos was absolutely not permitted, even if she was the Matchmaking God, such a connection could not be allowed to exist.

However, as the deity who guarded marital bonds, she was unable to take proactive measures to destroy them herself, so the Matchmaking God could only stay in Tokyo, to observe how things would unfold further.

"Alright, but can you manage on your own in Tokyo? Why don't I speak to Mr. Chen Yu for you? Those two are his friends, after all; it would be good to let him know about this, he might be able to help you," Suzuhime considered for a moment and agreed with the Matchmaking God's decision, yet she still felt uneasy leaving the Matchmaking God in Tokyo alone, since She had not ventured out in a long time.

The Matchmaking God knew She had stayed in the Divine domain of the Inari God for over two hundred years and was somewhat unfamiliar with modern society, so She nodded in agreement with Suzuhime's plan.

Having reached a decision, Suzuhime led the Matchmaking God to find Chen Yu. As she pondered how to explain the situation to him, she also thought about how to discuss it with the Inari God. Breaching the boundary between life and death was no small matter.

"Mr. Chen Yu, may I take a few minutes of your time?" Suzuhime found Chen Yu and explained the situation to him, "The Matchmaking God has uncovered some matters and needs to stay in Tokyo for a period. May we ask for your assistance in looking after Her?"