Maxi’s eyes roved about the road lit with torches. Taverns lined the main road, and through their wide-open doors, Maxi could see drunken sailors and red-nosed mercenaries surrounded by women flaunting their bare, pale breasts. Some of the women stuck their heads out the window and whistled loudly at the knights. Startled by their drunken cackles, Maxi hunched her shoulders.
Gabel rode up to her and cautioned, “There are many unsavory people near the ports, my lady. Try not to look around, or you might see something unsightly.”
Maxi took the advice and kept her eyes forward. Riftan rode through the square toward the pier with the confidence of someone who had been to the city before. Maxi followed him down the wide road, and soon large ships came into view. The campaign party came to a stop in front of a building near the dock.
“Edon, let them know we are here, and get the servants.”
Sir Edon dismounted and entered the building. In a few minutes, servants bearing lamps rushed outside to greet them.
As Maxi dismounted, she glanced up curiously at the three-story building. Riftan, who had approached without her noticing, placed his arm around her shoulder protectively and led her to the entrance.
“We will be sleeping here tonight.”
As she stepped inside, Maxi’s eyes passed over the smooth stone floor, the carpeted stairs, and the neatly plastered walls. Compared to the dingy inns she had seen so far, this place was luxurious.
“Wh-What…is this place?”
“It’s an inn owned by the Verden Merchants’ Guild,” Riftan explained as they climbed the stairs. “It’s a prominent guild that manages several of the crown’s trading ships. The head of the guild, Lord Verden, is a cousin of King Reuben’s on his maternal side, so he often offers funds for large campaigns like this. He is who is supplying us with a ship tomorrow.”
While the servants ushered the knights to their respective rooms, Maxi and Riftan were presented with a lavish suite furnished with a large bed. As the door closed behind the servants, Riftan pulled off his heavy armor piece by piece.
Maxi went straight to the open window and watched the sea as it swallowed the sun. The briny smell pierced her nose, and she listened to the crashing waves. An odd sense of wonder filled her heart as she gazed out at the seemingly endless horizon. The sea was far more beautiful than she could ever have imagined just from reading stories.
“I’ve asked them to prepare a bath. Do you have anything to change into?” Having cast off his heavy armor, Riftan walked over to her with light steps and brushed away a lock of hair sticking to her face. Turning to him, Maxi shook herhead. “Then I guess you will have to sleep with nothing on tonight.”
The anticipation in his eyes made Maxi’s cheeks flush. He cupped her face with his callused hands and gently planted a kiss on her lips.
“Are you tired?”
“I-I am all right.”
In truth, she was exhausted, but she knew he would leave the room and not return until late if she told him so. Maxi wrapped her arms around his waist and leaned her face against his sturdy chest. Riftan blinked, taken aback by her boldness, before a pleased smile pulled at his lips. He hoisted her onto the windowsill and carefully loosened her tight braids.
Maxi relished the feeling of his long fingers painstakingly unraveling her tangled locks. Riftan combed them through her hair for a long time, then massaged her stiff shoulders with great care. By the time his touch was turning to gentle caresses, servants entered the room with towels and water for the bath.
Riftan and Maxi managed to wedge themselves into the cramped tub and began to wash each other. She lathered his hair with soap while he gently wiped her back and shoulders with a towel. Once they were clean, they dried themselves and lay side by side on the bed, their lips locked in a lingering kiss.
Perhaps it was because their march had ended safely, but Riftan was more relaxed and gentler than ever before. He took his time caressing her before he entered her carefully and began to move as slowly as a gentle wave. Maxi lost herself in his embrace. Touch after touch only heightened herpleasure. She relished the feeling of his weight pressing onto her, the sensation of his hot lips on her skin, and his burning length quivering inside her as it stretched her to her limit.
They made love until they were spent. Then, lying on their fronts, they devoured the food a maidservant had left for them outside the door. After their stomachs were full of fresh fruit and richly seasoned dishes, the first time they had tasted spices in a while, they began to feel drowsy.
They fell asleep with their limbs tangled together like vines, as if they were of one body. It was the first sweet and languid moment they had shared in weeks.
—
The next day, thetranquility ended as soon as the sun rose. Riftan’s grave expression returned as he donned his armor, and it was as if the tension on his face had never eased. Maxi put on the clothes the servants had washed for her the night before and carefully packed her things.
It was hard to believe that the real journey had only just begun. It would take them seven to ten days to reach Levan, the capital of Livadon, by ship. After that, a long battle with the troll army awaited. Maxi’s mood darkened as she thought about the party that had left before them. There was no time for relief, not when they had only reached the port and a far more arduous journey still lay between them and their comrades.
After breakfast on the first floor, the party set out for the pier, where large ships were docked in an orderly line. Suntanned sailors tirelessly loaded cargo onto the vessels. Maxi also noted a few of them hanging precariously on to the masts, checking the condition of the ropes and sails. Maxifelt she might harm her neck as she craned it around to take in all the hustle and bustle of the port.
Riftan spoke with the captain of a ship anchored at the very end of the dock. Hebaron had explained to her on the ride that nothing mattered more in a sea voyage than a competent captain. It was why they had to make sure that whoever took charge of the vessel was trustworthy. Riftan was certainly grilling the man, but the seaman seemed to take it in stride, calmly answering the barrage of questions without any sign of displeasure.
“We finished all the preparations a few days ago. Before she left for Livadon, Her Royal Highness Princess Agnes specifically instructed that we must be set to depart as soon as you arrived.”
Maxi was taken aback at overhearing mention of the princess. Had Princess Agnes also traveled to Livadon? Riftan, on the other hand, did not seem surprised at all.
“When did the royal knights depart?”
