Under the Oak Tree

Maxi felt as though she had been tossed about by stormy waves, only to find herself miraculously washed ashore. She stared up at the ceiling with hazy eyes.

"Did I...make a sound near the end?" she said in a constricted voice.

Riftan froze. She felt his chest shake with soft laughter. "I couldn't say. I was lost in the moment too."

Gently, he swept her disheveled hair from her face and peppered feathery kisses on her damp forehead, cheeks, and eyelids. Despite the tender intimacy, Maxi's anxiety lingered.

She listened intently to the sounds beyond their room. The distant, cheerful melody of a mandolin intertwined with the raucous, drunken laughter of the men. It appeared everyone was reveling in a grand fest.

Breathing a small sigh of relief, Maxi pushed Riftan, who was playfully nipping her shoulder, aside and sat up. "We are setting out early tomorrow…We should rest."

"Just a little more."

He brought her palm to his wet lips to kiss it. His member, which still filled her tightly, had grown bigger. As he slowly rocked his hips again, a tingling heat began to build in her stomach.

Maxi was clinging to his shoulders when footsteps jolted her back into rational thought.

"R-Riftan...we really must stop now."

With a groan, Riftan slowly withdrew. Maxi closed her legs as she felt lukewarm fluid trickle down her groin. Rising from the bed, Rftan walked over to a rack to light a candle, then returned to bed with a small basin of water and a clean towel.

"Are you hurting anywhere?" he asked while he wiped between her legs.

As Maxi shook her head, her eyes darted nervously toward the tent's entrance. Much to her relief, the footsteps were fading. It was likely soldiers heading to the river to fetch more water.

Feeling more at ease, she watched Riftan as he wiped himself with a fresh towel. The soft candlelight cast a golden glow over his bronze skin. She twirled a lock of hair resting on his broad neck around her finger, then lightly traced his sinewy forearm. There was a faint scar on the inner part of his right arm that she had never seen before.

She brushed it with her fingers and mumbled disapprovingly, "Why didn't you have that healed with magic right away?"

"What?" Riftan looked down at her in puzzlement before his gaze landed on the faint scar. Furrowing his brow, he said, "It was a minor injury."

"You mustn't ignore even minor ones. You know wounds inflicted by monsters are more likely to get infected."

"I did clean and dress it," Riftan replied as if discussing a trivial matter, tucking her into the covers. "Magic is hampered in the Lexos Mountains. And while the barrier strengthened divine magic, the clerics had to conserve their powers for battle. I couldn't demand that they heal a scratch."

At a loss for words, Maxi pressed her lips shut. She might not have witnessed the events in the mountains, but it was clear that a terrible battle had taken place.

Recalling snippets of conversation she had overheard from the soldiers, she asked somberly, "I heard that…you faced the dragon head-on again. That you cut it open to extract the stone-"

"Those who call me a hero are exaggerating my deeds," Riftan said flatly. "I hate to admit it, but it was the Temple Knights who played the central role this time. If they hadn't bound the dragon so thoroughly at the front, we would not have defeated it so swiftly. The dragon stone will likely go to them."

Maxi looked confused. She had always assumed the stone would be returned to the Temple Knights anyway, even if Richard Breston had questioned the church's claim to it. However, Riftan was implying that the only reason the Temple Knights were taking the stone was because they had made the greatest contribution to the campaign.

Sensing her unspoken question, Riftan explained calmly, "'The bravest claims the heart' is the rule when hunting the dragon subspecies. It awards the right to the most valuable spoil to the person who played a decisive role in battle."

After a brief pause, Riftan picked up his trousers from the floor. Pulling them on, he continued matter-of-factly, "Originally, Sektor's stone should have been mine. But the Temple Knights offered half their share of the treasures in the dragon lair, which I gladly agreed to as I have no use for the stone."

He signed while fastening the straps of his trousers. "But now they no longer need to make a deal with me. Everyone knows they bore the heaviest losses."

Maxi's brow furrowed slightly. Had any other army suffered the greatest blow, the condemnation against the church would have likely intensified. The Temple Knights had accomplished both the pope's directive to retrieve the dragon stone and lessened public criticism toward the church. Had Kuahel Leon calculated all this?

She was thinking about the riddle of a man when Riftan returned to bed. As he pulled her into his arms, she snuggled into his smooth, muscular chest. He exhaled a sigh, perhaps of unfulfilled desire, but held her close with evident contentment. In this happy state, Maxi soon fell asleep.

The following day, the coalition resumed their march at dawn. The lengthy procession of soldiers moved tirelessly from the west to the north and then back west. In this way, the coalition reached Igredin, a fortress in southern Arex, in just one week. There, they were joined by armies from Rutigern, Midna, and Ennismon, and together they set off for the Osiriyan border.

After what seemed like an eternity, the army reached a countryside dotted with small and large villages. Perched on Rem, Maxi gazed down the hill. Hundreds of farmers were busy in the field, catching up on months of farm work, while fishermen cast their nets from small boats along the river. Maxi was taking in the tranquil scene when Ulyseon walked up to her.

"Try these, my lady."

Without much thought, Maxi accepted what the young knight handed her - a small reed basket filled with fresh blackberries.

"Where on earth...did you find these?"

"That woman over there gave them to me. Wasn't that kind?" Ulyseon replied with a bright smile, pointing to one of the young women gathered by the road.

The woman, looking visibly shocked, glanced back and forth between Ulyseon and the basket in Maxi's hand. Soon, her face flushed deeply, and she quickly walked away.

Ulyseon watched her leave with a puzzled expression. "She must have some urgent business to attend to."

Maxi swallowed a sigh, suddenly genuinely concerned for the handsome young knight's future. "I think...you should keep these, Ulyseon. They were given to you, after all."

Clearly not grasping her point, Ulyseon cocked his head. "But I want to give them to you, my lady. If they were gifted to me, can't I share them as I please?"

At a loss for words, Maxi stared at his guileless face.

Sidina, who had been riding beside Maxi, shook his head. "Appearances can be so deceiving."

Ulyseon glanced sharply at Sidina. However, he soon returned to his position without uttering a word, seemingly unable to be rude to a lady.

Maxi regarded the basket with a troubled expression. The blackberries seemed inviting, but she felt a pang of guilt for accepting what was obviously intended for someone else. After much consideration, she shared the berries with Sidina and Anette, not wanting the rare treat to go to waste.

As Sidina happily popped some of the blackberries into her mouth, she turned to the silent Garrow beside her. "How long until our destination?"

"We should reach Balbourne in three days," Garrow replied calmly.

"So soon?" Maxi asked in surprise.

"Yes, our return journey is shorter since we no longer have to liberate cities on our way. We can take the most direct route."

The long, dirt road that stretched ahead was marked with deep ruts. In a few days, they would stand before the Council of the Seven Kingdoms. Maxi's stomach suddenly tensed. Although both Ruth and Calto had assured her that the golem rune would not get her in trouble, she still felt worried.

There was also the matter of the Council's internal strife. They had prevented a war between the kingdoms this time by dividing Balto's nobles, but Maxi doubted that the armistice's opponents would give up so easily. Concern etched on her face, Maxi watched Balto's banners fluttering at the rear.

Richard Breston, who had been a source of discord throughout the campaign, was now curiously obedient to Riftan's commands. To Maxi, his compliance reminded her of a beast biding its time before pouncing on its prey. Balto would lie low for the time being, having nothing to gain from challenging the Council, but she feared they would seize the first chance to break the armistice. The peace was balanced on seven scales at present - it would not take much to upset it.

"We will camp there for the night."

Riftan's deep voice cut through her brooding. Lifting her head, Maxi saw the rebuilt walled city of Darund at the foot of the hill.

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