“And why would that be your fault?” Riftan replied brusquely. “If anyone’s to blame, it’s Richard Breston. That scoundrel has been causing problems even before you arrived at Eth Lene. I’m sure you’ve noticed, but the vice commander bears me nothing but enmity. Even if you weren’there, he would have used whatever opportunity he could to get on my nerves.”
Maxi’s face hardened. Anger surged in her chest once more as she recalled the despicable words the barbaric man had flung at Riftan. “To think he would mock you…wh-when you’ve done him no wrong…. What a vile man.”
For a moment, Riftan regarded her with a strange expression before shrugging as if he was used to such hostility. “Richard Breston is a scion of a prestigious family that has been around since the Roem Empire, and his father is a knight hailed as Rosem Wigrew’s reincarnation in Balto. It probably affronts him that a man like me is given the same honor as his father.” A cruel smile twisted his lips. “I’ve been ignoring him because he was just a pest, but I cannot overlook this. I will hammer it into his head never to approach you again.”
Maxi fidgeted uneasily. “But…we are at war. If there w-were to be internal strife…”
“I don’t intend to clash swords with him this instant,” Riftan said dryly. “I’m just going to give him a warning to ensure that he won’t cause any more problems.”
Hearing the ruthlessness in his voice only inflamed Maxi’s worries. Though she did not know what he intended to do, even a child would have been able to guess that it would involve violence.
Each flash of lightning lit up his sharp features, making him appear colder and more unrelenting than usual. As if sensing her apprehension, Riftan’s face softened. He knelt on one knee before her and stroked her leg with a gloved hand. “How are you feeling? Are you in pain anywhere?”
Blushing, Maxi shook her head. “I’m…all right.”
“What about your injury?” Riftan eyed her bruised wrist.
“I wouldn’t call it…a-an injury.”
The swelling in her wrist had gone down. Riftan lowered her hand after carefully assessingit.
“I will send for Garrow and Ulyseon. I want you to remain in the tent until the storm has passed.”
Maxi nodded, and Riftan pecked her on the lips before he left the tent. She watched him disappear into the raging storm. It upset her that he would probably spend the whole day out in the rain and gale.
Plagued by the guilt of being the only person sitting idle in a cozy tent, Maxi paced aimlessly back and forth. As dawn broke, a rain-soaked Ulyseon and Garrow entered the tent. Maxi rushed over to them with a handful of towels.
Garrow grinned at her. “Thank you, my lady.”
The two squires dried their hair and peeled off their dripping robes to hang near the entrance. When they strode into the halo of lamplight, Maxi saw Ulyseon’s despondent expression and drooping shoulders.
He regarded her with crestfallen eyes. “You must have been quite frightened yesterday, my lady. Please accept my sincerest apology. I should not have allowed those animals to insult you so….”
“N-No! As I said yesterday…you are not to blame, Ulyseon,” Maxi interjected. “You bravely defended me. If anything…I am grateful.”
“My lady…” Ulyseon choked out, looking close to tears.
Maxi gave an awkward chuckle when she recalled how the squire had snarled like an angry hound at the men who towered a head above him. As he gazed at her with his guileless,puppy-dog eyes, she wondered whether he was really the same person as the gallant knight-in-training from before.
Garrow studied her as he draped his wet towel over a chair. “Are you hurt anywhere, my lady?”
Maxi shook her head. “N-No, I am perfectly fine. I was just…a little shocked.”
“We will make sure nothing of the sort ever happens again,” Garrow said firmly.
Giving them a grateful smile, Maxi led the two young men to the table. After lighting another candle on the table, the three of them ate breakfast while listening to the cacophony outside. They ate their fill of bread and wine, then began the work of covering the gaps in the tent with a tar-coated sheet to prevent the rain from seepingin.
The squires tried vehemently to dissuade her, but Maxi insisted on helping. She simply could not idly sit by while the two of them did all the work. Time flew as they laid the fabric on the floor and hauled items that were in danger of getting soaked to the middle of the tent.
Half a day passed before the rain began to ease and the thunder finally withdrew. Maxi peered through the tent flap and saw that the dark clouds were gone. Faint rays of light streamed down from the gray sky. Rain still fell in white sheets over the barracks, but the fierce gusts of wind had died down.
Maxi threw on her robe and drew the hood over her head. Ulyseon noticed her and stopped in the middle of polishing Riftan’s armor.
He darted over to her. “Do you wish to visit the infirmary, my lady?”
Maxi hesitated. “I want to make sure…the men are all right. Do you think I can?”
“Security was heightened after yesterday’s incident, so it should be fine, my lady.” The squire surveyed the vicinity to check for anyone suspicious, then nodded. “And everyone, including the Baltonian knights, is currently in an emergency meeting in the central barracks. I don’t think anyone will try anything with us.”
