Under the Oak Tree

Chapter 5

“I may be a man of low birth, but I hold the vows of marriage sacred,” Riftan snapped at a perplexed Maxi. “It astounds me that the daughter of a duke would show such utter contempt for our vows.”

“C-Contempt?”

“If not contempt, then what is it? You married me, yet you’ve disregarded my existence all this time. Do not expect that I will tolerate any more of it!”

Dismayed, Maxi could only stare at him. How could he accuse her of such a thing? He had left the morning after the wedding without a word!

“I-I’ve never disregarded y-you! You’re th-the one wh-who…”

“Enough! As Lady Calypse, you should have left for my estate after the wedding night. Yet for three years, you have chosen to remain in your father’s opulent castle!”

Riftan gave a loud snort.

“Then again, how can I expect the daughter of a duke to give up her standing for the life of a half widow, waiting for the return of her husband’s corpse?”

Taken aback, Maxi could not think of a retort to his accusations. The words he was uttering were incomprehensible to her.

“H-How c-could I have left f-for your e-estate? I d-didn’t kn-know w-where it was. Y-you d-didn’t t-tell me a-anything…!”

“Enough with the lies! I made every preparation for you to come and live on my land before I left for the campaign. In the event of my death, you would have inherited the estate! A duke’s daughter may not care for a paltry piece of land, but it is a place I hold dear. And it was your duty to be there, yet you left it neglected.”

His eyes blazed with anger. He did not seem to be lying — there was no reason for him to invent tales. Maxi gulped.

“I-I didn’t kn-know… Y-You d-didn’t say a w-word…”

“My men told me you refused to leave,” he said, his voice bitter. “Spare me the excuses. For three years, I have known precisely what you think of me. And why are you trembling, damn it? Are you afraid I’ll give you a beating?”

“I-I’m s-sorry. T-truly, I kn-knew n-nothing of it. I awoke th-that morning to f-find you g-gone… N-No one ever t-told me.”

He narrowed his eyes as if to assess whether she was telling the truth. Like a prisoner awaiting judgment, she waited for his next words. A few moments later, he spoke in a softer tone.

“Even if that were true, you should have left for my land. A wife’s duty is to take care of her husband’s house. If that didn’t occur to you, I can only take it to mean that this marriage is worthless to you.”

Again, she could think of no reply. Their marriage was not as meaningless to her as Riftan imagined. Still, it was true that she had not wholeheartedly accepted the arrangement. She had simply thought that they were victims of her father, and their marriage, an unavoidable sacrifice. Had Riftan been sincere about their marriage all along?

“What were you going to do if you were pregnant?”

“P-P-Pregnant?”

Hearing the unexpected word, Maxi looked up with a start. The corners of Riftan’s mouth twisted.

“It was possible that you were. I performed my duties to the fullest that night, did I not?”

His sardonic tone drained her face of blood. The events of that night remained a harrowing and shameful memory in her mind. She was now aware that every marriage required consummation, but still, her whole body shook when she recalled the acts of that night.

Riftan, however, spoke of their wedding night as if it had been a trivial affair. Maxi trembled with renewed dread. Seeing this, Riftan’s face contorted into a scowl, and he slammed his fist into the wall of the carriage.

“Don’t make that face! As if the thought of having my child sickens you!”

But his fierce growl was cut short as he leaped out of the carriage, one hand on the hilt of his sword. Maxi screamed.

“Commander! Ogres!”

“I know! Cast a shield around the carriage!”

After shouting orders, Riftan turned to Maxi.

“Whatever happens, do not come out!”

He slammed the door shut without waiting for an answer. A thunderous roar shook the ground. Maxi clapped her hands to her ears.

Thud, thud.

With every tremor of the earth, the carriage shook.

She curled up into a ball on the floor, not daring to look out of the window. She had heard rumors that monstrous creatures had been spotted near the dukedom of late, but she had not expected to encounter one within an hour of leaving Croyso Castle. Her entire body shook.

“Stop the ogre at once!”

Hearing urgent shouts coming from outside, she swallowed her sobs. The carriage shook violently. The knights’ cries mixed with the eerie shrieks of something inhuman, creating terrifying echoes. Maxi buried her face in her skirt.

Thump, thump. The dull sound of something striking the carriage. Maxi looked up, fearful that the ceiling would come crashing down. Then she started in shock — an enormous eye, green and bloodshot, was staring at her through the window.

She screamed and leaped to the other side of the carriage, pushing her back against the wall. The world turned upside down, and her body fell backward. She reached for the wall to steady herself, but her fingers found the doorknob instead. The door flung open. She tumbled out of the carriage and crashed to the ground.

Pale with terror, Maxi scrambled to get back to the safety of the carriage. But her legs were paralyzed with fear. She desperately looked around for help, but the others were busy fighting the ash-skinned giants. She would have to find her own way to safety.

She began crawling toward the carriage when she saw an ogre lumbering toward her, stomping its enormous feet. She shrieked at the top of her lungs. Suddenly, there was a flash of bright light, and the ogre fell flat on its back.

“My lady! You must get inside at once! There’s a shield protecting the carriage. It’s safer in there!”

A hand tugging at her shoulder snapped Maxi out of her daze. Startled, she turned around to find a lean man staring her down.

“Mountain ogres, my lady. Fortune frowns on us, but with Sir Riftan here, we have nothing to worry about. Please go back in!”

“I-I didn’t m-mean to come out. I-I was th-thrown…”

Stammering, Maxi tried to explain. Riftan’s stern order forbidding her to come out echoed in her ears. She had not intended to get in their way.

“Th-the c-carriage w-was sh-shaking, and…!”

“My lady! Get inside!”

The man cut her off impatiently. She stopped speaking, wincing at his irritation. He was right — this was no time for making excuses. After collecting herself, she had begun climbing back into the carriage with unsteady steps when she heard another thud.

She turned around to see blood spurting like a fountain out of the cloven torso of an ogre. Maxi clapped a hand over her mouth. Her stomach had become tense with anxiety over the past few days, and it now twisted painfully. Something sour rose in her throat.

She attempted to push the liquid back down but to no avail. Watery bile splattered on the floor, and her throat burned.

“My lady!”

Alarmed, the man wound an arm around her heaving shoulders. Maxi panted and clutched her stomach, hot tears prickling her eyes. It felt as if something was tearing her guts out.

“Heavens… Are you all right, my lady?”

Maxi gasped for air. She thought that the pats on her back might calm her, but her nausea would not subside.

“What happened?!”

Hearing Riftan’s concerned voice, she managed to look up. He was standing in front of the ogre’s cloven corpse. Without realizing what she was doing, she began backing away from him. He stepped toward her. With each stride, he left a dark red footprint on the ground. The long, sharp blade of his sword gleamed blue, blood trickling down from its edge. His armor, silver-white mottled with dark blood, gave him a ghastly appearance.

In her retreat, Maxi lost her balance and stumbled. She put a hand on the carriage to steady herself. Riftan’s face went hazy, warping like smoke before her. The world spun. Her vision dimmed, and sounds became indistinct as she sank into the dark depths of unconsciousness.