Under the Oak Tree



Chapter 64: Chapter 64

Maxi gaped at Riftan in surprise. Without missing a beat, Riftan pressed his lips to hers and pushed his tongue into her mouth. Maxi gripped his thick arms. The sensation of his soft tongue stroking and teasing her mouth made the hairs on her nape stand up.

He tasted of something untamed and exhilarating that Maxi could not name. As he pushed his tongue in deeper to taste every corner of her mouth, her chest tingled. She nearly forgot to breathe as she clung to him.

“Ahh…”

His feverish moan sent shivers through her body, the sharp surge of pleasure igniting a fire in her body. Just as she was wrapping her arms around his neck, her eyes landed on the wide-eyed maidservants standing behind Riftan. Her heart stopped.

She stared at them dumbly. The maidservants were evidently in the middle of preparing their meal, for they had frozen mid-action while setting the table and lighting the candles. Stifling a scream, Maxi pounded on Riftan’s back.

“R-R-Riftan!”

Riftan detached his face from her neck and glanced over his shoulder. Still holding her up with one arm, he stepped away from the door calmly.

“You may leave if you are done.”

The maidservants’ eyes oscillated between their mistress’s plum-red face and the impassive face of their lord before coming to their senses with a jolt. Maxi was certain that she would die of embarrassment.

“H-Have a pleasant evening, my lord, my lady.”

After politely making their obeisance, they scurried out of the door, taking the basket of sleeping kittens lest the creatures disturb them. Riftan perfunctorily thanked the maidservants, whose faces had turned as red as Maxi’s. After shutting the door, he resumed lavishing her with kisses. Maxi pushed his face away, her eyes brimming with tears.

“H-How am I to f-face them again?”

“They’re only servants. No need to care what they think.”

Riftan swatted her hand away and began peppering her neck with kisses. Astounded that he would persist after the humiliation she had just experienced, she blocked him with her hand and pulled her head away.

“Y-You’re hardly a-around so you don’t s-see them much, b-but I spend a-all day with them!”

“But you spend most of your time with Ruth.”

Maxi stiffened at his restrained tone. Riftan leaned in so that his face was just inches away, an unnervingly soft smile on his lips. His dark, impassive eyes reminded her of a beast, and the glint in them made her shudder.

“Th-That isn’t t-true. I-I spend far more t-time with the m-maidservants.”

“Is that so?”

“Y-Yes.”

“I am your husband. Shouldn’t I be the one that you spend the most time with?”

“Th-That’s h-hardly my fault.”

It was Riftan, after all, who was always away from the castle. Though Maxi knew that he had many responsibilities as a knight and as the lord of Anatol, she had inadvertently assumed an accusatory tone. She studied his face for signs of displeasure, but he merely sighed. He strode to the table and lowered her.

“I know. What I mean to say is that since we don’t have much time to spend together, I’d like you to focus on me and me alone when I’m here.”

Riftan pulled his seat close to hers, then took her hands and kissed them. Whenever he gazed at her with such intensity, she found it difficult to think.

Rosy-cheeked, she nodded. With his lips still touching her fingers, she could feel them slowly spreading into a smile. She could endure any humiliation if she could see him happy, she thought. She smiled back in spite of herself.

***

As the weather grew colder, Riftan spent more time at the castle. He trained the sentries at the training grounds each dawn and made regular rounds of the castle walls with his knights to vanquish monsters, but he always returned at dusk to join Maxi for supper.

Maxi was able to spend far more leisure time with him than she had in the fall. During the day, she read the books that Ruth had given her or practiced cultivating mana with the magic stone. When evening came, she would adorn herself with the help of the maidservants before enjoying a pleasant evening with Riftan at the dining table.

As they spent more time together, Maxi naturally began to learn more about Riftan. One of the first things she observed was that he had no appetite for luxury. When he was not clad in armor, he wore plain, monochromatic clothes, and he never wore jewel-studded belts.

Next, she realized that his aversion to luxury was not merely a consequence of unfamiliarity. He seemed to find tight silk trousers, extravagant floor-length tunics, shoulder pads, pointed shoes, and feathered hats – in other words, attire commonly worn by noblemen – absurd.

Once, Maxi had offered him a feathered hat made by the dressmaker and his wife. His face had hardened, and he had informed her stiffly that he would wear it only for her sake. He had regarded the hat with such disdain that Maxi had secretly hidden it away.

Riftan valued practicality to such a degree that he was averse to embellishments designed only to impress. He favored durable clothes that allowed him to move unencumbered. And though he had a penchant for drinking liquor and eating greasy food, he never demanded rare delicacies or complained about the food like other nobles did. Similarly, he only gave the servants orders that he deemed absolutely necessary. Years of knighthood seemed to have ingrained a love for efficiency in him.

His inclination to lead an austere life stopped at Maxi, however. He liked to see her clad in lavish dresses and adorned with the jewels he had bought for her, and he wished for her to live a life of comfort where servants waited on her hand and foot.

Riftan’s thoughts were more difficult to decipher than she had initially thought. He despised the vanity and empty formalities of the nobility, yet it seemed to be of utmost importance to him that she lead the exquisite life of an aristocrat. She concluded that his contradictory behavior was the result of his desire to prove that he could satisfy the needs of a duke’s daughter.

He seemed to both envy and loathe the nobility. Maxi could not quite understand it, but she tried her best to play the part of a refined noblewoman so she would not disappoint him. It was simply a poor imitation of her sister’s prim, elegant manners, but Riftan did not seem to notice that anything was amiss. Still, it seemed only a matter of time before he discovered the truth.

Maxi frowned as she studied the basics of geometry. Once spring arrived, other nobles would visit Anatol, and Riftan would soon discover the difference between his wife and proper noblewomen.

She tapped the desk anxiously with her fingertips. She had never attended a grand ball, and if she were instructed to host one, she was bound to fail miserably. She wondered whether she should prepare by studying the virtues and etiquette required of a lady.

“Please focus,” Ruth said sternly.

He frowned in irritation at her tapping. Ludis, who had been placing a tea kettle over the brazier, turned around to shoot him a sharp look, but he paid her no attention.

“Once you finish this book, you’ll have learned all the basics, so please try to focus. You must master the basic theories before moving on to runes.”

“I-I’m t-trying my best… I-I was just a-a little t-tired…”

Ludis placed a cup of honey ginger tea in front of her.

“Please have some tea, my lady.”

“Th-Thank you.”

Ludis gave her a soft smile before placing another cup in front of Ruth with a stony expression. Maxi rolled her eyes.

Ever since she had learned that Riftan disliked her spending time alone with Ruth, she had made sure to have Ludis present whenever she was in the library. Ludis, however, clearly disapproved of the sorcerer, frowning at his brash manners as she had done just moments prior. And true to character, Ruth always ignored her.

“How is your mana cultivation going?”

“I-I’m afraid th-there hasn’t been m-much progress.”

Maxi shook her head, clutching her cup with both hands. After blowing on his steaming cup and taking a sip, Ruth knitted his brows in contemplation.

“I am surprised, I must admit. You seem to have an innate ability to absorb mana, so I’d assumed that you’d be able to grasp it quickly.”

“D-Do you mean t-to say that m-my body is r-receptive to m-mana?”

“Do you not recall your hands absorbing my magic? Your body seems to be primed for mana absorption. Usually, building up one’s mana pathway to such a level requires training from a very young age.”

Maxi frowned, trying to remember what she had learned. The mana pathway referred to the narrow passageway in the body that allowed mana to be absorbed.

“H-How do you develop y-your mana p-pathway?

“A high-ranking mage must periodically infuse their apprentice with magic. Being exposed to magic from a young age will naturally help the apprentice develop his or her mana pathway, priming their bodies for better mana absorption.”

Maxi nodded silently. Then, a sudden thought occurred to her, and her face hardened. Could her mana affinity be the product of years of magical healing? She stared at her palms. The thought that her remarkable ability might be the result of her father’s harsh discipline left an unpleasant taste in her mouth.

Seeing her face grow dark, Ruth said, “There’s no rush, my lady. I am sure you will improve with practice.”

Maxi forced a smile. Perhaps it did not matter how she had acquired her ability. The question now was of how she would use it. Pulling herself together, she resumed her study of magical theory for a few more hours until the sound of the library door being flung open made her look up.