Riftan’s POV (Under the Oak Tree Side Story)

Chapter 33 – Riftan’s POV

Ruth’s shoulders sank as he gazed at the white pigeon flying vigorously to the north. Although Riftan felt a little sorry at the sight, he quickly brushed it off. Perhaps because he did not want to empty the castle either.

He immediately called for the butler to prepare his things and informed the knights of the king’s orders to summon him. After the discussions, he decided to leave Anatol as discreetly as possible with Sir Lombardo and Sir Elliot Caron. He had no idea why he was being summoned, but rumors spreading in Whedon that he had been summoned by the king in a rush would not bear any good.

“Please send a messenger as soon as you encounter any grave matter.”

Uslin Rikaido said as he wore a firm expression, seeing them off the next morning. Not only him but all the other knights also wore a wary face.

“Something grave must have occurred for him to summon the commander so hurriedly at a time like this. Perhaps, His Majesty is in need of a knight who can naturally patrol outside the royal capital.” Uslin added in a serious manner. “That would also require a really skilled knight.”

Riftan mounted on his horse, his mind running through the possible matters that would have the king summoning him so urgently. He thought of defamatory tasks that ordinary knights couldn’t usually perform… Nothing came to his mind but such things as digging into the filthiness or assassination of prominent aristocrats. He swallowed the cynical thoughts and turned towards the gate’s direction.

“I’ll look first into the situation and then contact you. In the meantime, take good care of Anatol.”

“Leave that to us, there will be nothing to worry about.”

He then departed the castle with Caron and Lombardo trailing after him, leaving the other knights behind. As they passed through the villages across golden fields, a red mountain valley filled with fallen leaves stretched in front of them. Riftan traversed the mountains in great speed, wary of monsters attacking them. Leaving the territory of Anatol took him two days despite being in a hurry, as they were attacked by werewolves five times.

After crossing the plains, they stopped by to rest at Count Robern’s territory for one night and then rode north for ten full days. Upon arriving at the capital, he appeared almost like a vagrant from the several monster attacks he had to fight through. He was in no way looking decent enough to enter the Palace, but went straight to Drakium still, not causing any delay. Upon showing his identification at the gates, a servant ran out through the gardens to assist them.

“You arrived earlier than we expected.”

Riftan jumped off his horse and looked down at him under his hood that was soaked in rain. The heavy rain started pouring at dawn, it fell heavily on the servants’ narrow shoulders. The man, who appeared to be quite old-looking, gave the stable keeper a stern look, as if questioning why he still didn’t take the reins then turned around.

“Kindly follow me. His Majesty is waiting.”

The servant led them to a separate castle fortress located near the eastern hunting ground and not to the main castle and Riftan frowned as they followed after him. Usually, he would be required to take time to dress and appear decently before meeting the king. It made him wonder why the hell the king was acting in such a hurry, making his worries gradually expand.

“Only Sir Calypse can enter the room. We will guide the other two guests to another place so they can rest.”

The man, who had been silently climbing the stairs for a long time, announced as they stopped in front of a room’s door at the end of the third floor’s hallway. Riftan looked at the knights lightly and proceeded to enter the room. The room’s warm heat gently touched his face which was cold due to the rain.

He stood by the doorway, scanning the room slowly. King Ruben was sitting in front of the fireplace, reading a book. Riftan narrowed his eyes at the scene, as the man looked more comfortable than ever. It was too leisurely of a sight for a person who rushed him for an urgent matter. The monarch was dressed in a dark maroon tunic and wide satin pants, his golden hair flowed pleasantly like a lion’s mane.

“You look like a feral hound in the rain, Calypse.”

He slowly lifted his head after turning two pages of the book. Riftan boldly stepped forward, dripping with rainwater in front of him.

“His Majesty asked me to come as soon as possible upon receiving the message. I ran through the rain and fast as the wind as you have ordered.”

“I appreciate your display of loyalty.” The king spat out sarcastically and gestured with a nod to the chair across from him. “First, take off your cloak and have a seat. Better warm yourself by the fire.”

Riftan took off his water-soaked cloak and hung it against the wall, then sat down in the chair. A servant, who was leaning against the wall in the shadows, brought them a bottle of wine and poured it into a glass. Riftan merely glanced at it but didn’t touch the drink. There was an ironic rule not to drink anything in the palace, since it was difficult to distinguish the smell when mixed with drugs.

“Please don’t refrain from telling me what the matter is. What is the reason for summoning me?”

“You still have the same short temper.”

King Reuben leaned back on his chair, the corner of his eyes wrinkling. The look on his face could not be distinguished, it was something between being on the verge of laughter and being offended. Then, as if he decided for the earlier option, the corner of his lips went up and he gestured for the servant to step away.

“Fine. I also do not fancy long pretentions, so I will get straight to the point.” When the servant left after placing bottles of liquors and fruit on the table, the king opened his lips again to speak. “There was a meeting held in Osyria regarding the Peace Treaty among the Seven Kingdoms a few months ago. It is usually a ceremonial gathering, but this time, there was a serious matter at hand that was discussed.”

Riftan waited for him to continue, wearing a serious expression. Ruben, who took a sip from his glass of wine to moisten his lips, resumed with a calm voice. “According to the high priests’ reports, there is a high chance of the evil king of monsters awakening in the Lexos Mountains.”

Riftan did not immediately grasped his words and arched an eyebrow. After a moment of reasoning, a freezing chill ran down his spine as he understood. “Are you saying that the Red Dragon will wake up?”

“To be precise, it is currently waking up.” The king corrected himself in a calm tone and picked up a wine bottle, filling his glass. “As you are aware, the Lexos Mountains have been the dragon’s domain for a long time. No one has been able to set foot on the mountain of fire and break through the barriers placed by that monster for over two hundred years. But a few months ago, strange happenings began to take place near the Lexos Mountains.”

“By strange happenings, you mean…”

“Monsters started coming down from the mountains and attacked humans. This could only mean that there’s something brewing within the barriers. And that’s not all of it, there were fissures forming all over the mountain ranges. The priests claimed that these are all signs leading to the dragon’s awakening.”

The king’s voice took a lower and gloomier tone. “Secto will rise and sow evil in the coming years. We need to come up with a counteract before that happens.”

Riftan’s face darkened. He had never seen a dragon in person, but just reading records about it gave him a clear picture of how terrifying of a monster it was. Merely imagining it before his eyes, the immense monster with near-infinite life, magical powers, and spewing breaths of fire over the world, made him shiver.

“…is that the reason why you have summoned me?”

The king lightly waved his hand upon reading the tension written on Riftan’s face.

“Relax, I’m not asking you to defeat the Red Dragon at once. I summoned you as I needed someone who can traverse the south east’s geography, has most knowledge about monsters, and can keep his lips sealed. I need someone to gather information about the Lexos Mountains before forming an expedition team. It’s difficult to find a knight in Whedon who has much experience as you have. Aside from that, having the Royal Knights do this task has a high probability of attracting the public’s attention.”

The king rubbed his bushy beard with a serious expression. “There will be a huge clamor if news about the dragon awakening spreads. As much as possible, I want to keep this a secret until the expedition team has been formed. Can you be the one who will secretly gather that information?”

Riftan gazed thoughtfully down at the carpet that was stained with rain drops and nodded slowly. “When do you plan to start the expedition?”

“The expedition shall embark less than half a year from now. Secto’s magical power will fully recover in about two or three years. We need to find and destroy the dragon before that happens.”

The Lexos Mountains was a place unknown and untouched by humans for nearly two hundred years. Layers of barriers were built by the dragon and all kinds of ferocious monsters inhabited the area. Breaking through those barriers and beating the monsters would be out of the ordinary.

“How many are you expecting to gather for the expedition?”

“Around 40,000 people. It will probably be the largest punitive force in Whedon and Dristan.”

King Ruben slowly rose from his seat and walked towards the window. He stared quietly at the glass window dripping from the pouring rain and gazed at the gray surroundings for a long time. Then, he turned around and declared.

“I’m intending to entrust this expedition to the Duke’s hands.”

Riftan’s eyes widened at the king’s absurd declaration. He bursts into laughter, picturing the noble man carrying a narrow, bejeweled sword around his waist.

“It’s not going to be easy.”

“I am not disregarding his influence; he is still my vassal. He will need a reasonable excuse to openly disobey my commands.” The king smiled viciously, swirling the glass of wine in his hand.

“However, he won’t be able to find any excuse this time. The Lexos Mountains sit right next to the Duke’s territories. No one can neglect the duty of protecting his land while claiming ownership over it. If the Duke of Croix rejects my command to lead the expedition, a lot of nobles will ridicule him. His current dispute with Dristan will also bring him at a disadvantage.”

“…Will it be his honor, or his life. Which option will it be?”

“He will choose his life.” Ruben stated, certain of his words. “I know him well. He puts his honor first and foremost, but he will never put his life at risk. It won’t be easy sending troops given his current circumstance with Dristan.”

Note – Nymeria: And ladies and gentlemen, this is when sh*t went down