Under the Oak Tree



Chapter 89: Chapter 89

“Take deep breaths. Slowly, now. Yes, just like that…”

Maxi felt as though she were drowning. Lying curled up gasping for air, she felt someone gently stroke her back.

Her shoulders quivered, and she barely managed to crack open her dry eyes. The familiar sight of her bedchamber illuminated by flickering orange lights gradually came into focus. Bewildered, she fixed her gaze on the corner of the dark room for a while.

A wave of nausea washed over her. She groaned and writhed in pain, and the person holding her put a cold brass bowl to her lips.

“You should let it out if you feel sick.”

Maxi looked tearfully up at Riftan through her disheveled hair and saw his blanched face.

“The dizziness is from being depleted of mana. You’ll feel better once you’ve let it out.”

Desperately holding back the urge to hurl, Maxi pushed his chest away with her trembling hands.

“P-Please… c-ca-call Ludis…”

“It’s all right. Go ahead.”

Maxi covered her mouth and shook her head. Tears trickled down her cheeks, and her stomach twisted painfully, but she did not want to show him such an unseemly sight again.

“I-I want…”

She squirmed to free herself from his arms. Riftan tossed the bowl aside and pulled her to his chest, holding her close. Maxi shook her head and tried to escape again, but his arms did not budge.

Holding her chin, Riftan pushed two fingers into her mouth and gently pressed the back of her tongue. Maxi ended up hurling sticky bile all over his chest. She shook slightly as she coughed, and her cheeks were wet with tears.

“Shhh… It’s all right.”

Riftan rocked Maxi in his arms as he patted her back as if comforting a child. Maxi sniffled in shame, the edges of her mouth still wet with saliva. Not only was her face sticky with pungent fluids, but Riftan’s hands and clothes were as well.

“Don’t cry,” Riftan murmured over the top of her head, wiping her face with his clean sleeve.

His grave expression seemed in stark contrast to his gentle actions. With his mouth pressed in a tight line, he loosened the straps on her chest and pulled her soiled dress over her head before taking off his tunic. Maxi curled herself into a ball as she felt the cold air on her body.

Riftan swiftly pulled her to him again and stroked her back. Seeking warmth, Maxi burrowed herself deeper into his embrace. She pressed her breasts against his muscled chest and entwined her legs in his long limbs.

“Damn it…”

A burning flush colored Riftan’s cheeks, and Maxi saw droplets of sweat on his forehead. His body, pressed against hers, was as hot as heated iron while his heart was pounding loudly beneath her cheek. Yet, the hands that tended to her were steady.

Maxi lay slumped on his shoulder as he wiped her face with a towel and removed the pins from her tangled hair. She tried her best to think clearly.

When had she returned to the castle? And what of that colossal monster? When her memories prior to blacking out came rushing back, her body began trembling uncontrollably.

“You’re as cold as ice.”

Riftan restlessly stroked her with his hot palm, but soon scooped her up as though he thought this would not suffice and carried her to the tub in front of the fireplace.

He lowered her into the warm water. Hugging her knees, Maxi sat there waiting for the heat to seep into her body. Even so, the chill clung to her.

“W-Why… i-is my body…”

“Mana depletion induces the same reaction as blood loss. It makes your temperature drop and causes dizziness,” Riftan muttered, scooping water with his hand and letting it trickle down her shoulder.

“I can’t believe that damned runt didn’t warn you about this. But then, I suppose he also didn’t think you would do something so reckless.”

There was a sharp reproach mingled in his voice. She raised her gaze to study his expression and saw muted anger burning in his black eyes. His Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed hard, seemingly trying to suppress his emotion.

Removing his trousers, he stepped in behind her.

“Sharing body heat should help you feel warmer.”

With that, he hoisted her onto his solid thighs and wound his arms around her waist. Although she felt his manhood growing as hard as iron beneath her buttocks, his warm skin was a temptation she simply could not refuse.

She clung to him like a chick nestling under a hen. Riftan drew a sharp intake of breath. With faintly shaking hands, he began to massage her stiff limbs.

Maxi numbly allowed him to care for her. As Riftan had explained, she felt dizzy, and a chill racked her whole body. She felt as though she had aged a hundred years.

“Try to bear with it even if you’re uncomfortable.”

Riftan continued to rub her body until her skin turned pink. When the water grew tepid, he carried her out of the tub. Maxi staggered as he lowered her to her feet. Leaning against him, she allowed herself to be wrapped in a towel and quickly dried off, then clumsily helped into a nightdress.

“You should drink some water even if you feel sick.”

Riftan brought a cup to her lips, and Maxi barely managed a sip. When the lukewarm water entered her constricted stomach, Maxi’s face turned yellow, and she heaved once more.

She would’ve soiled herself again had Riftan not been as swift to catch the bile in his hands. Panting, Maxi vacantly stared down at his cupped palms. He showed no sign of revulsion as he wiped her mess in a towel before meticulously cleaning her mouth as well. Maxi was so mortified that tears began streaming down her cheeks again.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make you sick,” Riftan whispered, peppering her forehead with kisses. He evidently misunderstood her tears as an expression of pain.

The tears kept coming as her body shook, and she began sobbing her heart out.

When she finally calmed down, it occurred to her that Riftan must be thoroughly exhausted himself. He had fought such terrifying monsters; he must be in need of rest as much as she was.

Maxi pulled away and barely managed to open her mouth. “I-I apologize for troubling you. I-I am… all right now. You should… r-rest now…”

Anger flashed in Riftan’s eyes. “You might be all right, but I’m not.”

His voice trembled slightly as if he were choking back emotions.

“You will never know how I felt when I saw you unconscious on the ground.”

His face contorted with pain, and he roughly rubbed it in what appeared to be an attempt to suppress his anger.

“Stop worrying about needless things and go to sleep. You look terrible.”

He covered her eyes with his palm, and as soon as darkness filled her vision, drowsiness came flooding over her. Maxi grew limp like a broken doll. As she slowly drifted off to sleep, she felt Riftan laboriously rubbing her icy feet and stiff calves.

She got the feeling he would continue to do so all night if she did not stop him, but she felt so drained that she could not even form the words. She soon fell into a deep slumber.

***

The sunlight was bright the next morning, and Maxi struggled to open her eyes. Her blurry vision came into focus as she looked around the room. To her surprise, she was not alone as she had predicted; Riftan was asleep next to her.

Maxi held her breath for a moment as she watched him. His smooth, tousled black hair formed a halo around his head. Seeing him so defenseless, an intense shiver ran down Maxi’s spine.

She looked up to gaze at his black lashes which cast shadows against his cheekbones. They reminded her of butterfly wings. When she unconsciously raised her hand to brush them, Riftan’s eyes flew open. Startled, Maxi hastily withdrew her hand.

“I-I apologize. I-I didn’t m-mean to wake you.”

Riftan blinked, his eyes dazed and heavy with sleep, before quickly sitting up to study her face.

“How are you feeling? Do you still feel dizzy?”

“N-No, I am all right now.”

He ran his hand over her forehead and nape, and when he had confirmed that her body was warmer, he picked up the kettle on the bedside table and filled a cup with water.

“Do you think you can drink this?”

When she nodded, Riftan supported her shoulders as he helped her up and placed the cup against her lips. Maxi quenched her parched lips with the tepid water and let out a sigh of relief.

“Th-Thank you.”

“If you think you’re able to eat, I’ll have the maidservants prepare some light soup, and…” he trailed off, glancing down at her white breasts visible beneath her ill-fitting nightdress. “I’ll have them bring you a change of clothes as well.”

Blushing, Maxi quickly covered herself with the blanket. Though he had seen her naked countless times, she always felt embarrassed whenever he looked at her like that.

After quietly watching her bashful reaction, Riftan got out of bed and put on his trousers. He then rang for a maidservant and instructed her to bring Maxi something to eat, along with a change of clothes.

While he did so, Maxi sat propped against a pillow and tried her best to tidy up her disheveled hair. Though she still felt listless and had a throbbing headache, she did not feel as dizzy as the night before. Her shoulders sagged in relief. It had truly been a ghastly experience.

“You should lie down.”

“I-I feel all right now.”

Maxi wrapped the blanket around her and tried to get up, her body teetering. Riftan strode to the bed and stopped her.

“I told you to stay in bed.”

“I-I am all-”

“Stop telling me you’re all right! I’m sick of it!”

Maxi shrank back at his sudden outburst. Riftan grabbed her by her shoulders and forced her back onto the bed.

“I am trying my best not to lose my temper, so don’t test my patience.”

“I-I apologize for troubling you. I did not know… that using magic c-could take so much of a toll.”

“Do you think I’m angry because I felt burdened?” he muttered, his voice soft but grim.

His grip on her shoulders tightened.

“Do you even understand what could have happened? If I had arrived a moment later, you could have been gravely hurt! If you were unlucky, you could have-”

Unable to finish the sentence, he cut himself off and clenched his jaw.