Chapter 138: Chapter 1
Maxi hastily ducked into a curtsy. Her stomach churned. To think that this young man was the commander of the Temple Knights!
She clutched the letter inside her pocket. No matter how much she thought about it, it did not seem proper to ask a commander of a knightly order to convey a letter on her behalf. Too afraid to ask, Maxi began to backtrack.
“F-Forgive me... for interrupting.”
“It is perfectly all right. Please, do not hesitate to ask for whatever you might need,” said the duke with a broad smile.
After pausing for a long while, Maxi told herself she had nothing to lose. “I-If it is not too much trouble... I wished to ask you t-to... pass a letter to my husband.”
“A letter?” the duke said quizzically.
Maxi tentatively withdrew the parchment from her pocket. The letter she had written with such care had become a crumpled mess in little over an hour. Her cheeks flushing, Maxi hastily tried to smooth out the creases.
“Could you give this l-letter to my husband? I-It does not contain... anything important. I merely... w-wished to send him my regards...”
“You are making this request to me?” the Temple Knight asked in a monotone voice.
Unnerved by his indifferent gaze, Maxi began to babble, “O-Only if it is not too much trouble... Y-You could hold onto it... and... g-give it to my husband... when you chance upon him in Louivell...”
Maxi found herself faltering in front of the knight’s blank mask. Her back prickled with cold sweat.
“Lady Calypse,” the duke interjected with a troubled expression. “The Temple Knights will be heading east of Louivell, while the Remdragon Knights are camped in the west. They will not be crossing paths anytime soon.”
“I-I see. I was not aware.”
Clutching her letter, Maxi looked devastated.
The Temple Knight had been studying her face. He abruptly said, “I’m sure I will encounter him at least once when we start our joint attack.”
Maxi’s head jerked up.
The knight took the letter with a bland smile gracing his inscrutably calm face. “It would take some time... but I shall convey it to your husband when I see him. I have a debt I need to repay, you see.”
Her joy was fleeting. Anxiety filled her as she sensed something veiled in his words.
She looked up at him doubtfully. “Then... I shall rely on you.”
Her tone was firm, almost as though she were instructing him.
The knight’s eyes narrowed imperceptibly. He tucked the letter inside his cloak and said softly, “I assure you, I will make sure that he gets it.”
“Well, then. We should get going. I think we are all set.”
At the duke’s prompt, Kuahel Leon nodded at Maxi and gracefully descended the stairs.
Maxi watched as he strode between files of knights. Rows of soldiers held banners that fluttered violently in the wind as if heralding the start of a bloody battle.
“I shall have to excuse myself as well.”
“Oh... I-I apologize for taking your time.”
The duke gave her a reassuring smile, then made his way down after the Temple Knight. Maxi watched them make their preparations for a while before heading back inside the basilica.
Her heart pounded unpleasantly. She clasped her hands together and closed her eyes. All she could do now was to pray.
***
Ten days later, news came that the coalition army had succeeded in reclaiming Louivell. The cheers that broke out throughout the streets did not last long as wagons carrying the bodies of the fallen rolled into the city.
They formed a long queue in front of the basilica’s square. People peered into each to check if their loved ones were among the dead.
Maxi joined the Livadonian noblewomen in the square to verify the dead, dreading the discovery of a familiar face.
The bodies were unspeakably mangled. Although they had been cleaned as best as possible and given prosthetics for their funeral, nothing could hide their gruesome ends. It was rare to find a corpse with all its limbs intact, and some had black cloths draped over their faces to conceal horrible disfigurements.
Ashen, Maxi watched the clerics as they gingerly moved the bodies into coffins.
Some of the noblewomen fainted on the spot. Although Maxi also felt lightheaded, she remained upright by telling herself that she could not succumb before making sure Riftan and the others were not among the dead.
Suppressing the urge to hurl, Maxi peered at the bodies from behind the clerics. She simply could not bring herself to look at their faces.
A wave of dizziness washed over her. She staggered to the edge of the square, where she crouched under a tree.
A worried noblewoman saw her and rushed over. “Are you all right?”
Maxi looked up, her eyes unfocused. It was Idsilla Calima, the girl she had shared introductions with a few days ago.
The girl’s dark brown eyes were full of concern. “Shall I call a cleric for you? You don’t look well.”
“N-No. I-I was... only a little dizzy. How about you, Lady Idsilla? Are you all right?”
“Yes. I come from a family of knights. I’m used to such things.”
Idsilla raised her chin as she spoke, looking fearless, but her face was as pale as Maxi’s. She turned her head toward the long row of coffins as if to conceal her expression.
“Fortunately, my brother was not among them. When I asked the soldiers who brought the bodies in, they told me that most of those trapped in Louivell Castle made it out safely.”
“I-Is that true?”
Although the word “most” was concerning, Maxi’s face lit up with hope as she thought of Ruth and the Remdragon Knights.
After anxiously darting glances at the dozens of dead bodies, Maxi steeled herself and rose to her feet. She walked over to the clerics sorting through the corpses.
Joy and anguish mingled in the square as the clerics confirmed the names of the fallen through their identification tags. Wails echoed throughout the square, intermingled with sighs of relief.
It was only after the clerics had read out the last of the names that Maxi, drenched in a cold sweat, shakily sank onto the steps.
Her whole body began to shake. Though she was flooded with relief, she felt chilled to the bone. She clasped her icy hands together.
Seeing Maxi’s reaction, Idsilla rushed over to her once more. “Lady Calypse, you should return to the monastery. Here, let me help you.”
“Th-Thank you.”
Idsilla was a head taller. Leaning against her, Maxi staggered up the stairs. She suddenly felt ashamed. Idsilla was only eighteen, and it embarrassed Maxi that a girl four years her junior was so much more collected.
...
Trying her best to steady herself, Maxi tottered into the basilica. “I-I am all right now. I think... I can manage on my own now.”
“Please, let me help you. It would be better than having to carry you on my back if you were to collapse.”
Maxi frowned at her arched tone. “Y-You will not see me swoon.”
The girl carefully studied Maxi for a moment before slowly nodding her head.
“I can see that. To be honest, I was surprised. I had thought that you would be the first to faint.”
“A-Are you... mocking me?” Maxi asked, her face flushing.
She glared at the girl, and Idsilla let out a sigh.
“I did not mean it as an insult. I apologize if I offended you. Alyssa always says that I am too frank.”
“I think that sh-she is right,” Maxi said after a pause.
Idsilla’s lips curled into a faint smile. “You look so delicate on the surface, but that isn’t really the case, is it?”
“I-I will ask you to stop teasing me now. It is... upsetting.”
...
“I mean it as a compliment. Alyssa has returned to her room saying how she can’t bear to look at all the dead bodies in a sober state of mind.” Her eyes suddenly grew dark. “It’s not that I fault her. Alyssa is too tenderhearted, and she loves Elba too much. She was probably beyond terrified that she might find him among the dead.”
“E-Elba?” Maxi asked, curious.
She thought that she might be able to collect herself better if she focused on Idsilla’s story rather than the pallid faces of the dead soldiers.
“Elba is my second eldest brother’s nickname. Elbarto Calima. He and Alyssa were engaged when they were twelve, and he pledged his geas to her right after his knighting ceremony.”
“How rare... for a knight to pledge his g-geas to his betrothed.”
A knight’s geas was usually pledged to a member of the royal family or the wife or daughters of the lord he served. As if to affirm that this was also the case in Livadon, Idsilla bobbed her head.
“They share a very special bond. My cousin will be happy once I tell her my brother is safe. Come, let us sit over here and rest for a bit. I think my feet are aching as well,” Idsilla said, stopping in front of a pavilion inside the garden.
Maxi sat down and let out a shaky breath. Idsilla took the seat across from her and silently smoothed the creases of her dress. Though they were not well-acquainted, it was consoling to have someone next to her. If she had been alone in her room, she would have tortured herself with images of the scene at the square.
All of a sudden, Maxi knew the reason Idsilla was helping her. The girl needed Maxi to help shake off the shock as well.
Idsilla smile stiffly and interlaced her fingers on her lap. “The clerics will be busy holding funerals over the next few days.”
“True, but... won’t the knights be back soon now that the battle is over?”
“Have you not heard?” said Idsilla, growing wide-eyed. “The coalition army has decided to continue marching north. It seems that after recapturing Louivell, they chased the retreating monster army to the Pamela Plateau. I think they intend to reclaim the remaining castles that were taken.”
“Th-Then...” Maxi willed her bluish lips apart. “Then when... w-will they be able to return?”
It was a foolish question. She knew that Idsilla would not be able to answer it. The girl pressed her lips together, and Maxi, feeling dizzy once more, limply leaned her head against the post of the pavilion. Despite the sweltering summer heat, Maxi felt chilled to her bones.
The battle at Louivell was just the beginning. Soldiers came to the city every three or four days with carts laden with the dead.
True to Idsilla’s words, the clerics were up to their ears in funeral preparations, and requiems played in the basilica every day. The fallen were victims of monster attacks. If not given a proper funeral, they were likely to turn into the undead – ghouls or liches. For this reason, the soldiers were only buried after they had been purified.
Hundreds of bodies were laid in the basilica, and the line of bereaved family members stretched on and on. The monastery was calmer compared to the wailing filling the halls of the main church.
Perhaps concerned by the gloomy atmosphere, Duke Aren came to see Maxi one day and offered to accommodate her in his castle. Maxi firmly refused. She knew that reports regarding the coalition army always arrived at the basilica first.
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