It was a foolish question. She knew that Idsilla would not be able to answer it. The girl pressed her lips together and avoided her gaze. Feeling dizzy once more, Maxi slumped against the post of the pavilion. Despite the sweltering summer heat, she felt chilled to her bones.
The battle at Louivell was just the beginning. Soldiers came to the city every three or four days bringing carts laden with the dead.
True to Idsilla’s words, the clerics were up to their ears in funeral preparations, and somber 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 ghouls or liches. For this reason, the soldiers were only buried after their bodies had been purified.
Hundreds of corpses were laid in the basilica, and the line of bereaved family members stretched on and on. The monastery was calmer compared with the halls of the main church, which were filled with the anguished wails of mourners.
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.
The duke looked troubled. “Do reconsider. The clericsare too busy attending to the dead. They will no longer have the time to look after you and the other noblewomen. If you come to Aren Castle, I will make sure that you have everything you need.”
Despite Duke Aren’s persistence, Maxi resolutely shook her head.
“I…truly am content to remain here. I have grown quite accustomed to life here…. B-Besides, no matter where I am…I-I could never be at ease.”
The duke opened his mouth to reply but let out a sigh of resignation when he saw Maxi’s determined expression.
“If that is your decision, then I cannot force you,” he said. “But if you ever change your mind, ask the clerics to send word to me.”
After imploring her to let him honor his promise to Riftan, the duke left the monastery.
Just as the duke had warned, the clerics in the basilica were too busy to look after the women staying at the monastery. Of the three maidservants who had been assigned to serve Maxi, only one remained, and even she could only be spared to collect laundry and bring a basin of water in the morning and evening. Everything else, Maxi had to do by herself.
She was not alone in this situation; some of the noblewomen gathered at the basilica to voice their complaints. Had Maxi not experienced the hardships of travel during the campaign, she would have undoubtedly felt uncomfortable as well. Now that she had already grown used to doing things on her own, however, she quickly adapted to the new conditions.
Every morning, she would personally clean her room andmake her bed, then dress herself to attend the service in the prayer hall. If her laundry was late in returning, she washed her own undergarments and socks. Though she had never had to clean or do laundry in her life, she was less averse to the work than she expected.
It was comforting having something to do. Previously, all she had ever done at the monastery was eat, sleep, and attend prayers twice a day. Such a monotonous routine only filled her head with endless worries. Maxi had desperately needed a distraction from her thoughts.
She even went as far as committing herself to grooming Rem at the stables. She spent so much time brushing the mare that her wiry white mane turned sleek silver.
Maxi was stepping out of the stables when she heard Idsilla’s voice behind her.
“Lady Calypse! There you are. We were just thinking about visiting you in your room.”
It was Idsilla, Alyssa, and three other noblewomen with whom Maxi sometimes exchanged nods in the prayer hall. They were all dressed for an outing.
When Maxi gave them an inquiring look, Alyssa offered a faint smile and said, “We are on our way to the local shelter. Would you like to come with us?”
Maxi paused, her eyes growing round at the unexpected invitation. “Do you mean…right now?” she finally asked.
Alyssa smiled politely. “Please feel free to refuse if you are busy.”
“N-Not at all. I was merely…dropping by the stables…and was about to return to my room,” said Maxi, lightly shaking her skirt in an attempt to rid the smell of horse from herclothes.
Ignoring the stench, Idsilla genially pulled Maxi by her arm. “Then you must come with us. Being trapped inside a monastery listening to requiems all day will stifle us to death.”
Although she frowned at her cousin’s ill-mannered remarks, Alyssa agreed. “We were talking about doing something meaningful. We have heard that many of the bereaved families are going through hard times and are staying at the shelter. I know that the shelter is sorely lacking in supplies, so we’ve collected donations from the ladies to help in any way we can.”
Alyssa proudly held up a large leather bag. From the shape of it, Maxi surmised that they had collected jewelry to sell. She tried to recall if she had anything valuable in her possession. Since she had packed as lightly as possible to avoid weighing down the campaign party, she did not think she would find anything worth donating.
Maxi flushed with embarrassment. “I’m afraid…I won’t be of much help. I-I did not bring much from Anatol.”
“Goodness, please do not worry about that. Simply having Sir Riftan’s wife visit would offer many of them much solace, I’m sure,” Alyssa said. “No matter what anyone says, Sir Riftan is the greatest hero of the Western Continent, after all.”
Maxi could not help smiling with delight at the woman’s praise of Riftan. She nodded. “V-Very well. I shall come with you.” She mused that it would be a hundred times better for her to accompany them on their excursion than to languish in her room, sighing the day away.
Maxi excused herself and hastened to her chambers,where she changed into the cleanest clothes she had. Afterward, she scoured through her belongings to see if there was anything worth selling.
