Under the Oak Tree

Chapter 304: Chapter 65

Maxi strode to the tent where the mages were hard at work. She sat down and immediately began packing alongside them.

“Could I have a moment, my lady?” Hebaron’s voice called from behind. He dramatically feigned terror when Maxi eyed him warily. “I’ve yet to say a word.”

“I already know... what you are going to say, Sir Hebaron,” she replied, her tone prickly. “If I were to hazard a guess... you want me to join the returning party instead of staying behind to potential danger. I am used... t-to such treatment from you and the others. All you knights see me as a helpless damsel and a nuisance. But have you considered this? I’ve always done my part, and I once made a significant contribution. Yet... you men continue to push me to rear. Well, I refuse! I have already obtained Master Calto’s permission to remain, and there is nothing you can do to stop me, Sir Heba—”

‘Whoa, whoa. Please, my lady.” He appeared genuinely flustered. Taking a step back, he continued, “Hear me out before you judge.”

Maxi squinted at him and raised her chin in a haughty tilt, daring him to speak openly. Hebaron scratched the back of his head with a sigh.

“As far as the commander is concerned, your safety matters above all else. I don’t think he could bear it if anything were to happen to you.’

“Th-That goes for me as well,” Maxi replied, her voice quivering. “If I were in danger... Riftan would risk everything to come to my rescue. S-So why... would you think I’d be any different? If something happened to him... l..

Her voice began to crack. It would not do to collapse into a pitiful puddle of tears in front of these knights. She whirled away, bringing an end to the conversation, and pretended to tie the straps of her bag.

A low groan issued behind her. “I understand. ‘

When Maxi turned back to look at Hebaron, her eyes full of suspicion, the knight shrugged and added, “As you pointed out, I have no authority to stop you. But I still had to try.”

His lips curled into a mischievous grin.

“I endeavored to dissuade you, my lady, so you must come to my defense when the commander tries to murder me. I’m confident your temper will have even

Riftan Calypse cowering in fear.”

“I-I am in no mood for jests,” Maxi said coldly before looking away.

Despite her curt reply, his teasing manner did lift her spirits somewhat. She found comfort in his conviction that Riftan was safe.

Before long, Hebaron and Kuahel Leon’s deliberation reached a conclusion.

About thirty knights would remain while the rest would leave for Eth Lene Castle. When the time came to decide who would go to the monster base, Maxi emphatically put herself forward for the position. To her relief, Hebaron merely heaved a resigned sigh with no further objections.

Calto spoke as they were making their selection among the mages. “I would like to go this time.”

A snort came from the corner.

“So we can bury your corpse on the way?” jeered Ruth. “Consider your age, you old— Ow!’

The elder’s long cane came down on his nephew’s head. Afterward, he turned to Kuahel and spoke with firm resolve.

“My stamina may not compare to the younger ones, but you cannot deny that I am the most powerful mage here. My presence will be indispensable in times of crisis.’

Kuahel regarded the elder carefully before nodding. Soon, Calto, Ruth, Maxi, and two senior mages of Kabala mounted their horses. Though others had insisted on going, their limited resources could only allow so many members.

‘Why am I always passed up while a weakling like Maximilian is selected twice?’ Miriam complained, scuffing her boot in frustration.

“Because you’re dispensable,” Nevin teased. “Why take you when there are senior mages from Kabala who know what you know and more?”

Miriam flashed Nevin a burning glare before storming out of the tent. Under normal circumstances, Maxi would have been delighted to see Miriam put in her place, but she was currently incapable of feeling pleasure.

Instead, she anxiously watched the knights as they saddled their mounts.

Further along, others were making preparations to depart for Eth Lene Castle. Thanks to the discovery of a stairway that led up to the ruins within the temple, the knights could travel up and down the cliff without needing levitation. They had already brought down most of their luggage through this passage.

A Temple Knight called Vinther approached Kuahel. ‘We shall return with a supply party from Eth Lene as soon as possible.”

Maxi glanced at them in surprise. She had assumed Kuahel would be leading the returning party.

She walked up behind Hebaron, who was securing a quiver to his saddle, and tapped him on the back. “Is he staying back too?”

Hebaron glanced in the direction of her finger questioningly and nodded. “He knows the way to the monster base better than anyone.”

Maxi scowled. She found it difficult to trust the man, but she could not quite put her finger on why.

“I don’t believe he will lead the search in earnest,” she said stiffly. ‘Il-I’m sure...

he will feign effort, then simply call it off.”

“I see you’ve lost all confidence in him,” Hebaron remarked, his lips twisting into an amused smile. “He is not that sly of a man. His priorities are simply different. He never does anything halfheartedly if he deems it important, so rest assured, there is no reason to be mistrustful.”

Maxi snorted in response. Finding her animosity entertaining, Hebaron chuckled as he leaped onto his horse. He then rode over to Kyle Hager, the knight elected to lead the returning party, to give his instructions. Garrow stood beside Hager with a wooden expression. The young knight seemed disgruntled that he had not been chosen for the rescue mission. As Hebaron tried to appease him, Kuahel called for their departure.

Maxi turned Rem around. Though she desperately wanted to gallop across the snowfield as fast as possible, she had to consider the horses’ pace. She was impatiently pulling on the reins when she heard Anette’s voice.

“Be careful, and don’t do anything reckless!”

“Y-You must... look after yourself as well, Anette,” Maxi shouted over her shoulder before urging Rem on to catch up with the knights who had already galloped away.

Kuahel and Hebaron rode at the head, followed by three Temple and three Remdragon Knights. Though they were hardly a large group, this was as many as their scant resources allowed.

If the supply party doesn’t arrive in time, even we will be in danger.

Maxi quickly dispelled the thought, not wanting to dwell on anything at that moment. She continued to ride on through the knifelike wind that lashed at them from all sides.

The mages of Undaim had cast restorative magic over the horses before their departure, and the animals were in excellent condition. This, combined with the weather — finally sunny after days of snow — made for a smooth first day.

None of this mattered to Maxi, who was anxious to keep going. She was reluctant to stop even for rest or sleep. If Riftan’s party had failed to meet up with Elliot, they would have gone without food for at least four days. The possibility plagued her with worry.

When they eventually did stop to water the horses, she spent the time pacing restlessly.

“We must ride faster, o-or we might be too late.”

“We are already moving as fast as we can,” Ruth grumbled.

Calto, who was slumped on the ground, was too busy trying to catch his breath to say anything.

After flicking a glance at his uncle, Ruth whispered in Maxi’s ear, “The old man might actually die ifwe push him any further. I’ve been worried we’ll wake to find him dead one day, so I hold a finger to his nose at least once a night to check that he’s still breathing. By God, why did he insist on coming? Does he not know what a great burden he is on the rest of us?”

Calto’s ears were longer and pointier than Ruth’s, and they evidently had better hearing. The elder shot to his feet, grabbed Ruth by the hair, and began to shake his head. Tired of yet another family squabble, Maxi walked away to where Rem was tethered. It made her angry that she seemed to be the only one worrying.

Hebaron looked up at her from the map he had been studying.

“Let us set out again,” he called out to the others.

Relieved, Maxi hopped on Rem and trotted to the ravine. Now familiar with the path, the party traveled much faster than the first time around. Still, it felt too slow.

They had been riding for a while when Hebaron abruptly stopped his horse to sniff the air.

“I smell blood.”

Reining his mount in, Kuahel furrowed his brow, his eyes sweeping the area. “A monster?”

“With a stench like this? Most likely,” Hebaron replied, reaching for the hilt of the claymore slung across his back.

Hunching her shoulders, Maxi nervously peered ahead through the ravine.

Ruth was in the middle of a search spell, his hands raised in the air. “I do sense life not far from here,” he said, “but I can’t be certain if it’s human or monster.’ “We should go check,” said Kuahel.

Ruth nodded and led the way. Maxi nervously wet her lips. Her head was a jumble of nerves, fear, hope, and anxiety. If Riftan’s party were on their way back after meeting up with Elliot, there was a chance they would come upon them. After all, they would surely opt for the fastest route as well.

“They might need help,” Lucain, a mage of Kabala, muttered out of nowhere.

The mage carefully studied a rock, a grave expression etched across his thin, serious face. When Maxi followed his gaze, she quickly grasped the reason for his comment. The surface of the rock was visibly scorched.

“There was a skirmish here, and quite recently at that.”

Hebaron’s face twisted slightly at Lucain’s observation. The knight spurred his horse and galloped through the ravine. Soon, they came upon a steep slope made of stacked rocks, and Maxi maneuvered Rem over the uneven path with surprising prowess.

They had gone quite far along when they spotted a thick, elongated scaly tail. Maxi drew a sharp breath. Squashed beneath a pile of rocks was a worm, dark blood spilling from its mouth.

“A fresh kill,” Kuahel commented, looking down at the monster grimly. ‘The fact that they left without disposing of the corpse means they were unable to use divine magic. We must hurry.”

“Allow me to search the area,” said Calto, stepping forward on his horse.

Maxi scrambled to slide off Rem first. “L-Let me help you!”

She placed both hands on the ground and allowed her mana to flow into the earth. Her senses felt nothing in return.

As she was anxiously gnawing her lip, Hebaron called out from near the worm carcass, “There’s no need for that. They went this way.”

Maxi leaped to her feet and rushed over. There was a narrow path strewn with rocks, along with blood spatters and hoof marks. Hebaron cussed under his breath.

“It’s not like the commander to leave such a trail.’

‘Which means they couldn’t stop to cover their tracks,” surmised Kuahel.

After staring at their faces in horror, Maxi hastily mounted her horse. Hebaron started down the trail, and she frantically galloped after him, gasping for air. She stopped breathing altogether when she spotted riderless horses gathered next to a jagged boulder up ahead.

Talon was among the exhausted steeds slumped on the ground. For a brief moment, her head spun with relief. Before anyone could stop her, Maxi leaped off Rem and beelined to the boulder.

As she got close, she saw a cave concealed behind it. Whiffs of smoke spiraled out of the shadowed entrance. Without hesitating, she sprinted inside.

Something pounced on her in the dark. She gasped as she hit the ground. Something large and heavy pinned her down, and the cool touch of steel pressed against the back of her neck.

Maxi looked up in terror, vaguely making out the chiseled features of her attacker. His face went bone-white, so much so that it was stark against the gloom.

Eyes wide in disbelief, Riftan withdrew his dagger..

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