“I assure you…I shall do my best,” Maxi replied, hunching her shoulders at the heavy expectation. “But there c-could always be a situation…that I won’t be able to handle by myself. Don’t you think we should hire another h-healer…before you leave?”
“I would have already done so if that were possible, my lady,” Ruth said, crossing his arms with a sigh. “With the current crisis in Livadon, it seems every mage is set on leaving to join the campaign. Their value has increased several times over. And since everyone wants to hire their own mage, none would be willing to remain in Anatol unless we offer them sizable compensation.”
Maxi’s face clouded with worry. It seemed the world was in bigger turmoil than she had realized.
“Which is why you must strive to improve your abilities as much as possible before I go,” Ruth said, his expression equally grim. “That is the only way I can leave with peace of mind.”
“I shall…try,” Maxi answered weakly as she looked over the intricate, web-like rune.
Ruth patted her shoulder in a show of encouragement,then began to explain the principles behind every complex shape he’d drawn in the dirt.
—
Ten days later, theorder from the king arrived just as Ruth had predicted. After reading the decree brought to him by the king’s messenger, Riftan immediately convened a meeting with the knights.
Maxi paced impatiently around her bedchambers as she waited for him to return.
Although he had told her that he intended to assign another knight to take command, the contents of the king’s message could have changed his mind. King Reuben might have explicitly called on Riftan to lead his knights, making it difficult to defy his orders. Maxi clasped her hands together as if in prayer. The mere thought of him leaving frayed her nerves.
She had been waiting with bated breath for quite a while when she heard the door rattle open. Riftan entered the room, exhaustion clearly etched across his face, and she rushed over to him.
“What have you d-decided to do? What did the d-decree say? Y-You are not planning on leaving Anatol, are you?”
Looking surprised, Riftan laid a warm hand on her shoulder. “Maxi, calm down.”
Maxi clutched his forearm and impatiently pressed him again. “Will you be l-leaving for Livadon?”
“I already told you that I have no intention of doing so.”
A faint smile flitted across his lips. He pulled away slightly to remove the sword strapped to his waist and propped itnext to the armor stand. Maxi trailed behind him and continued to ask questions.
“Then…wh-who will be going?”
“It was decided that Ursuline Ricaydo would go in my stead,” Riftan replied, slumping into a chair and massaging his stiff neck. “The meeting lasted this long because Nirtha and Ricaydo wouldn’t stop snarling at each other over who would be the one to leave. Listening to two grown men squabbling for three hours is enough to make anyone’s ears bleed.”
Recalling how the two knights usually clashed like sworn enemies whenever they saw each other, Maxi gave Riftan a sympathetic smile. If the two had gotten into a serious argument, their bellows would have rung out like thunder.
“I suppose…S-Sir Ursuline was able to win this round.”
“It was a fight where Nirtha was at a disadvantage from the start. Since it will be a coalition of knights from each kingdom, a commander with a mercenary background could easily spark a backlash. It would look better for someone from a”—his tone took on a strange hint of mockery—“distinguished lineage like Ursuline to lead the knights.”
He clicked his tongue and added, “Nirtha protested, but he eventually agreed when we told him that it would do us no good to create unnecessary friction. He can be surprisingly rational for someone so otherwise bear-like.”
Maxi nodded as she thought of the brash knight. “Wh-Who else will be going?”
“Elliot Charon and Remus Baldo will be assisting Ricaydo. They will be joined by ten knights, twenty junior knights, thirty cavalrymen, and one sorcerer…for a total of sixty-four men.”
“Is there…anything f-for me to prepare?”
Riftan frowned at her question. “There is no need for you to concern yourself with preparations. Those leaving for the campaign will pack everything themselves. Such a thing is second nature for all of them.”
“Still, I shall h-help with anything the men might need. They will be leaving on a long journey…s-so I must assist….”
“Then you could tell the servants to make an extravagant supper,” Riftan said, his lips suddenly twisting into a bitter smile. “They will finish making preparations for the campaign tomorrow, then will depart at dawn the following day. Tomorrow evening will be the only time we can hold a send-off banquet for them.”
Maxi cautiously studied his face. He did not seem happy about sending his men on this perilous journey, which was understandable considering they were comrades who had been with him through thick and thin. She made a mental note to tell the cook not to spare any quality spices or wine for tomorrow’s supper.
“I shall tell the c-cook…to make only the best.”
