Ruth regarded Maxi with a mystified expression, then requested in a formal tone, “It seems I have a lot to learn, then. Please, allow me to briefly consult with you.”
Maxi paused. “Very well,” she finally replied.
Maxi’s patient winced from the prickling sensation of the freshly applied salve. After asking him to excuse her, she rose to her feet. Ruth promptly guided her out of the tent and sought an isolated area.
Sensing his somber mood, Maxi nervously looked about. Ruth led her through the thick trees for quite some time. Just before he stopped, he glanced around to make sure they were alone.
He whirled around to face her. “You succeed in surprising me more every time, my lady. I never took you to be this fearless when we first met.”
Flushing like a reprimanded child, Maxi began rambling her excuses. “A-After I heard that the war would drag on…I-I simply could not sit by and wait. I th-thought I could gain better insight on…wh-what was going on if I were c-closer to the battlefield.”
“Is that why you secretly joined the campaign party dressed in such rags?” Ruth asked as he blandly eyed the burned holes in her clothes. They were from sparking embers while lighting fires to boil herbs and cook meals for the soldiers.
Though it made her ears burn with shame to have him see her in such an unseemly state, Maxi deliberately tried to look calm as she brushed dust off her clothes.
“Wh-What is wrong with my attire?” she snapped. “I am not ashamed…of what I’m wearing. It only shows that I am w-working hard!”
“I had no intention of criticizing you, my lady,” said Ruth, letting out a long sigh. “You are a skilled healer, and you’ve come this far to take on the heavy burden of looking after the injured. If anything, you deserve praise.”
The relief Maxi felt at his unexpected words did not last long. “However, I can’t praise you for hiding your identity and secretly joining the campaign party,” Ruth stiffly added. “The basilica must be turning itself upside down as we speak searching for you.”
“I-I have made arrangements!” Maxi interjected. “The basilica thinks that I’m c-currently visiting…the home of a friend I made at the m-monastery, so do not worry.”
Even with her confident reassurance, the frown on Ruth’s face did not soften. “There will be hell to pay if your deception is ever discovered,” he said grimly. “Duke Aren will surely be embarrassed, and do you realize how incensed Sir Riftan will be when he finds out?”
“I-I intend…to formally offer the duke my apologies after all this is over,” Maxi mumbled, hunching her shoulders. Ruth had managed to point out the very thing that had been weighing most heavily on her conscience.
He shook his head and heaved a sigh. “I doubt the duke ever thought that you would do something so reckless.”
Maxi swallowed hard at his biting tone. “D-Do you…intend to send me back to Levan?”
Ruth clenched his jaw, and Maxi anxiously looked up at him, feeling like a criminal awaiting her sentence. He furiously scratched his messy hair with both hands before letting out a long, pained groan.
“Had that been my intention, I would have immediately informed the duke,” he grunted.
Maxi’s face lit up in relief.
Seeing this, Ruth grew irritated. “Do not smile at me. If Sir Riftan were to know of this, he would have me flayed.”
“H-He will not find out,” Maxi said. “Even you were unable to r-recognize me right away, remember? Besides, how could he find out…wh-when we are so far apart?”
Ruth sighed again. “It’s not that simple, my lady. The army is planning to move the support unit to Eth Lene Castle within the week!”
Maxi’s eyes grew wide. “D-Does that mean…the army has managed to recapture Eth Lene?”
“Yes, and they intend to use it as a base to prepare for the final battle,” Ruth said. “We’re expecting all-out warfare, and the army wants to have all our manpower, equipment, and provisions near the front line.”
Maxi frowned with worry. “B-But…many of the men have yet to recover from their injuries. Their conditions might worsen if we f-force them to march.”
“I and one other mage have agreed to remain here to help tend to the wounded so that they will be fit for travel by then,” Ruth explained. “I’ve checked on the men, and none seem to be in critical condition. In three to four days, they should have recovered enough to withstand the journey to Eth Lene.”
Maxi’s face grew conflicted. Although the thought that she might be able to see Riftan again made her heart flutter with excitement, the knowledge that the wounded men she had tended to with such care would be forced back into battle so soon deeply troubled her.
She was lost in her thoughts when Ruth rapidly continued.
“Frankly, I do wish to have you escorted back to Levan immediately, but I’m afraid we lack the means to do so at the moment. And it may in fact be safer for you to remainnear the coalition army.” Ruth gave her an uneasy look. “Please, donotlet Sir Riftan see you. Just thinking about the uproar that would ensue if he did is enough to give me a headache.”
Maxi tried to look confident. “Don’t worry. I will only look at him f-from afar.”
