Chapter Fourteen #3
Thoroughly winded, Maxi tried to catch her breath as she trailed behind him. The music and excited voices now sounded distant.
With his hand caressing her waist, Riftan glanced around to check that they were hidden from view.
Maxi could feel the pressing need that was radiating off of him, and her own body grew hot and sensitive in response.
The feeling was overwhelming in a way she had never experienced.
Even her anger from earlier seemed to fan her desire.
“R-Riftan…”
“Come.”
He drew her to a secluded spot and kissed her roughly like a man possessed. When they parted for air, his hot breath felt tantalizing as it brushed against her swollen lips. It was not enough. Instead, it only intensified her thirst, as if she had just gulped down saltwater.
With a strangled moan, Riftan pushed her against a large tree.
The rough bark pressed against her back as Maxi wound her arms around Riftan’s neck.
Their wet lips melded again, and his hot, soft tongue explored her mouth teasingly.
She moaned in pleasure as she stroked the smooth, flushed sides of his neck.
He pushed his tongue deeper and she did not want to be separated from him ever again, not even to breathe.
“R-Riftan…”
Her lungs burned as they parted, and she panted as she stared up at him. Riftan cupped her buttocks over her thin dress and pulled her closer, and Maxi shivered as his hips ground against hers. She could not believe they were doing such a thing in broad daylight.
Perhaps she had lost her mind, too, because instead of stopping him, she found herself tugging at his tunic and caressing the sturdy muscles of his chest.
Like a frenzied hound, Riftan peppered her neck with kisses as he pulled down the top of her dress. He slid his hand beneath the fabric, and a feverish moan escaped her lips when she felt his hot, callused fingers kneading her breast.
Burning with desire, Maxi buried her face in his shoulder.
Riftan pressed his hardness against her stomach and continued to tease her, and as lightning coursed through her body, she felt a primal urge flare up within her.
Moaning, Maxi hooked a leg around his hip.
Her body ached with the need to have him inside her.
When she frantically pulled at his belt, demanding more, he shuddered and lifted up the hem of her skirt.
At that precise moment, a loud blast rang out.
—
Startled, Maxi looked up to see fireworks shoot from the festival tents, lighting up the whole sky. She watched the magnificent sight in a daze before she heard Riftan groan next to her.
“Goddammit, Agnes…”
It seemed that the colorful display was the work of Her Royal Highness.
Maxi pushed him away. “S-Something must have happened…. We should go….”
“She’s just trying to liven up the festival. The woman has a fondness for loud amusements.”
Riftan let out a shaky breath and ran his hand over his flushed face, his desire not yet sated.
“Why the hell didn’t Elliot stop her?”
“I think it w-would be best to go back….”
Another round of fireworks erupted into the sky.
Riftan swore again in frustration and dropped his forehead against the tree.
With his burning body pinning her in place, Maxi did not know what to do.
Reason returned once she heard the loud cheers coming from afar, and a wave of embarrassment washed over her.
Heavens, Sir Elliot surely must have seen us slip away….
What must the knight have thought at the sight of them frantically weaving through the crowd? Maxi suddenly felt hot. When Riftan noticed her face, crimson and close to tears, he sighed and reluctantly stepped away from her.
“Damn…Give me a moment to cool down.”
Like a dejected boy, he slumped onto the ground and rested his head against one bent knee.
Maxi crouched next to him. The flesh between her legs throbbed with unfulfilled desire, and her mouth was parched.
She was so mortified that she could not bring herself to look up, so instead she buried her face in her own knees while once again fireworks exploded above them.
Riftan gritted his teeth. “That woman…I’m going to toss her out of the castle.”
Maxi looked up quickly, aghast, and said, “Y-You mustn’t. We can’t treat a royal guest so poorly….”
“Guest? More like nuisance,” Riftan said brusquely. Throwing a furtive glance at Maxi, he added, “Though you two seem to have gotten close.”
Maxi grew uncertain at the question in his tone. Swept up in the festive atmosphere, she had admittedly enjoyed her time with the princess, but she still did not know what to make of Agnes. There was still something stopping Maxi from describing their relationship as familiar.
Maxi gave him an awkward smile. “I think she is a spirited person, and…she’s been very kind to me.”
“Aren’t you tired from being dragged around all day?”
“I’m all right. In fact…I feel more energetic than usual.”
She had meant it to be reassuring, but a flush crept to the tips of her ears when she realized her words might be mistaken for taking the princess’s side.
Riftan simply looked down at her and tucked a few loose strands of hair behind her ear. The new leaves sprouting from the tree above cast green shadows across his chiseled face. Maxi tentatively met his gaze.
He silently regarded her for a long while before muttering, “I’ve never seen you enjoying yourself so much.”
“Th-That’s because this is the first time…I’ve been to a village festival,” Maxi stammered, flustered by his intense gaze.
“Would you like me to hold it year-round?” Riftan asked, his face serious.
“Th-That would be impossible.”
“I’ll give you the gold to hold as many festivals as you wish.”
Maxi blanched and hastily waved him off. “Th-That will not be necessary. I…would be happy…if you b-bring me here next year.”
Riftan’s eyes intensified, and he slowly closed them, savoring her words. “Then next year, let’s enjoy the festival, just the two of u—”
Suddenly, a blast louder than any they had heard so far boomed across the sky. A crease formed on Riftan’s forehead as he rose, clearly exasperated.
“Let’s head back. I should stop that woman before she burns everything down.”
Maxi’s dress was wrinkled when she staggered up after him, and Riftan bent down to straighten the hem. They walked out from the trees holding hands, the warm spring breeze caressing her skin and making her feel as though she were walking on clouds.
—
Maxi could not recall how they made their way back to the fields, but when they arrived, they discovered that Agnes had been using her magic to blast fireworks into the sky from a stage set up on the hill.
At Riftan’s harsh reprimand, she sulkily stepped down while Sir Elliot hung his head and mumbled an apology for failing to stop her.
Riftan only glowered at them before descending the hill in order to escape the throng of people. Agnes trailed behind him and said, “I do not see why you’re so angry. Everyone liked the fireworks.”
“Someone could have recognized you. The fact that you are a young sorceress with golden hair and blue eyes could easily give away your identity!” He turned to the princess, an edge of a threat in his voice as he said, “Remember your station. You are King Reuben’s favorite child.
People may approach you with ill intentions. ”
“You are much too bull-headed, Riftan. If I did encounter such people, I would—”
The princess’s words died on her lips at the cold look in Riftan’s eyes. She meekly glanced to the side, admitting, “I suppose I might have gone a little overboard in my excitement.”
“You suppose?” Riftan said through clenched teeth, before lowering his voice. Although his hood covered his face, there could still be villagers who recognized him. “You clearly took it too far.”
Agnes’s colorful fireworks had been on display for everyone to see, and foreign visitors were glancing at them as they whispered harshly at each other.
Gossip about the lord attending the festival with a sorceress was going to spread like wildfire.
Fearing a commotion, they immediately made their way back to the road that led to the village square.
“Please wait here for a moment. I shall fetch the coachman,” Sir Elliot said, promptly setting off toward the nearby tents.
Agnes looked dejected. “I feel bad that our celebration was cut short because of me. I was only trying to make things more exciting….”
“P-Please don’t say that. I was a bit surprised…but…it was beautiful. I did not know such magic existed.”
Agnes’s mood brightened immediately. “It’s something I learned at the Mage Tower. It might be loud, but it’s safe enough to touch, and it burns away too quickly for it to cause any harm to the surrounding area. We use it at home all the time during our annual festivals.”
“So it’s a magic solely created for p-people’s amusement.”
Maxi knitted her brow. It seemed like a waste to squander precious mana simply for entertainment. Still, Agnes looked perfectly fine even after casting so many fireworks. Clearly, such mana use meant little to the princess.
Riftan went to check on the carriage, leaving Maxi alone to stew in the painful realization of how wide the gap was between herself and the princess. Before she could spiral further, Agnes whispered in her ear, “By the way, that was legendary earlier.”
“Pardon?”
“You know, when Riftan whisked you away into the forest during the dance.” Maxi’s face burned like coal, but the princess did not stop there, her voice lascivious as she said, “What did the two of you do out there, I wonder?”
“P-Princess Agnes!” Maxi cried, nearly screaming.
The princess giggled and darted away toward the carriage.
Riftan, who was making sure the coachman was not too inebriated, turned to Maxi with an eyebrow raised in question.
Maxi shook her head to tell him it was nothing and quickly climbed in after Agnes, who was already leaning against the coach wall.
She burst into laughter when she saw Maxi.
“Your face is as red as a ripe plum. Are you not a tad too bashful for a married woman?”
“Please do not tease me.”
“What a difficult request,” Agnes said, her blue eyes shining with mirth.
“Teasing you is simply too amusing.” Maxi broke out in a cold sweat, not knowing how to react to her playful ribbing.
The princess laid a calming hand on Maxi’s, giving her a gentle, kind smile.
“Thank you for coming with me. I’m glad that I was able to make such a fun memory before I left. ”
Maxi’s eyes widened. “W-Will you be…leaving soon?”
“It’s about time I returned to the capital, now that it is obvious he cannot be persuaded to come,” said the princess, pointing at Riftan, who was still outside talking to Sir Elliot.
Agnes’s eyes softened as she gazed at him through the window.
“I have confirmed that he is doing well. I must simply be content with that.”
Maxi’s heart faltered when she heard the fondness in the princess’s voice, the suspicion that Princess Agnes did, in fact, have feelings for Riftan clawing its way to the surface.
But then the princess turned and playfully winked at her, saying, “Still, if you ever find the time, you should visit Drachium Palace at least once. I would happily give you a tour of the capital.”
“Th-Thank you.”
“I mean it. I am officially extending an invitation,” said Agnes, raising her index finger to emphasize her point.
Flustered, Maxi could only nod her head in resignation. Seeing the princess’s face light up, Maxi shook off her creeping anxiety. How could the princess be so kind to her if she had feelings for Riftan?
A while later, Riftan and Sir Elliot climbed into the carriage.
They took their respective seats and knocked on the panel connected to the driver’s box, signaling for the coach to roll away from the village.
Maxi looked out the window at the green fields of Anatol brimming with the new life of spring.
The delicate leaves rustling in the wind sounded like a dryad’s song.
She felt lighthearted and lonely at the same time.