Under the Oak Tree

Chapter 167

“...give me one more towel.”

The bass that came with his deep voice sent shivers down her spine and made all the hair in her body stand. Max picked up a towel and handed it to him, struggling to keep her gaze lowered.

Riftan took it in slow motion, soaked the cloth in a basin, and began to lightly wipe his sticky legs. Max turned her back, avoiding his figure, and touched the hem of her dress awkwardly. However, all her nerves screamed for him. Max licked her dry lips.

Her fingertips tingled with the desire to look at him and touch him with all her heart. After moments of pushing down embarrassing fantasies and holding herself back, she thought of how it would feel to touch her husband.

Didn’t Riftan say that it’s natural for couples to long for each other?

Max impulsively approached behind him and gently placed her hands against his smooth, hard back. Riftan stiffened at the touch and roughly pulled her away.

“...don’t be like this.”

His growling voice frightened Max, making her take a step back. Thinking that he rejected her, her face almost turned purple.

“S-Sorry...”

As her eyes dropped to the floor, not knowing what to do, Riftan groaned weakly and embraced her in his arms.

“Yesterday, you used up your mana to save a knight. What if you overwork yourself and drop to the ground like before?”

As if he was trying to sooth her, he stroked her hair with his wet palm. Max exhaled with a trembling sigh at the feeling of his hot skin against her thin clothes. A feeling of ecstasy flooded her. His body smelled like fish blood, musk, and horses that couldn’t be washed away. It was an odor that would never be associated with being fragrant, but to her, Riftan’s smell was fascinating.

“I-I am fine. I didn’t consume...that much mana...I had e-enough rest...I’ve completely recovered now.”

Riftan nodded and made a sore sound whilst rubbing his nose against her chest. He muttered impatiently, his fingers fiddling with her braided hair.

“...I have been holding back for a long time, I don’t think I can do it gently.”

Max tilted her head. Has he ever been gentle? She didn’t remember well. At first, he would carefully and slowly pleasure her, but once he connected with her, he would pick up pace like a lunatic. Reminiscing how insanely pleasurable those moments were, Max looked up at him teasingly.

“...you don’t have to do it g-gently...it’s okay.”

At those words, Riftan’s self-control was shattered. He hugged her tightly and, in a flash, ravenously devoured her lips. Max wrapped her fingers in his wet, slippery, black hair. His lips tasted like fresh water. She pressed her wet tongue against his mouth and locked it together with his, pulling his head closer. Riftan groaned weakly, wrapping his hand around her breasts, rubbing the flesh beneath the smooth silk.

At once, a tingling heat rose from her belly. She unconsciously pushed her chest further against his palm. Then, against their gasping, a sigh came out from Riftan’s lips which was close to hers.

“Damn it... you are seriously so pretty. I can hardly hold back.”

Max looked up at him with confusion, like he just said that the moon was green. Riftan caressed her cheeks with his lips, pulling down the neckline of her dress and slipped his hand inside her dress. As his rough palm softly rubbed her tender flesh, a thrilling excitement washed over her. She groaned weakly, her lips trembling. As Riftan looked down at her, he muttered ecstatically.

“Every time I touch you, I go crazy. How can someone’s body be like this? It’s so soft, like it would melt... from your fingertips to your toes nothing’s not pretty.”

“I-I’m not...”

Her thoughts ran astray as he pulled her bodice, revealing one of her breasts. He stroked her mound with his cheek and then caressed her rosy breast with his mouth, flicking her nipples with his hot, damp tongue. She clung desperately to his neck, shuddering in pure pleasure. Riftan groped her ass and positioned her perfectly against his extremely thrilled body. Max, who was shivering to his naked touch, glanced anxiously at the door.

“Ri...Riftan...slowly...the water for the b-bath...it might come...”

“You should have thought of that before seducing me.”

“I-I did not seduce...ah...I did not. I-it wasn’t a temptation...”

“You pleaded for me to hug you and stole me as if you wanted to swallow me. If that’s not temptation, then what is?”

He loosened the straps of her dress and lowered it down to her waist. Max looked down with a flushed face as he sprinkled tiny kisses all over her flat stomach. Her legs melted away as if the bones in them disappeared. Riftan pulled the dress down to her knees, spread her legs, and buried his head in between. She stumbled, lustfully mewling, and collapsed on his shoulders. Her knees shook and her hamstrings tingled.

He gently rubbed the sensitive area and sucked in the tender flesh inside her thighs. Max’s toes curled and she wept like a baby. Her whole body flushed red and pink, and her reasoning was completely burned away by pleasure. She shook her head like crazy and her body trembled helplessly.

He skillfully intensified her pleasure even without pushing his fingers and tongue deep into her. By the time she was about to reach the climax, a sudden knock was heard.

“Master, the bath water is prepared.”

Riftan raised his head. Max grabbed him as he tried to get up and smacked him, he shouldn’t stop leaving her in that state. Just a bit more and he would relieve her from this tension, but he mercilessly stopped his ministrations and pushed her onto the bed.

“Endure it for a bit, hm?”

“N-no.”

“It’s been a long time. I don’t want to do it hastily just to get the job done.”

As if he were soothing her, he gently patted her stomach and brushed his lips against her temple. Max looked up at him with damp eyes, trembling pathetically like a newborn doe. Riftan looked down at her, held his breath, and then kissed her fiercely. Then, as if barely finding the will, he covered her body with a blanket and swiftly put on a nightgown himself.

“Do it quickly.”

As he opened the door, the servants came in with a steaming bathtub. Max hid beneath the sheets, her palms against her burning breasts. It felt like hours as the maids adjusted the water’s temperature, put extra water by the fireplace, and placed clothes, soap, and towels on top of the cabinet. Riftan also shouted ferociously as if he was as impatient as she was.

“Done, hurry and get out.”

“W-we’re sorry.”

The servants left the room with confused faces, holding empty basins. As soon as she heard the door close, Max rushed to Riftan’s side. He grabbed and clung to her, placing her between his knees. Max flipped his nightgown and wrapped her legs around his bare waist. A hard flesh pushed smoothly inside her and filled her tightly to the brim.

“Uh...”

Her spine tingled. She looked at him with hazy eyes, thrilled by the heat. The man’s face, overwhelmed with passion, looked terrifyingly fierce yet fragile at the same time. He embraced her tightly and trembled like a man who endured terrible suffering. But Max couldn’t wait any longer. She moved her waist and tinkered with his body. Riftan puffed and inhaled heavily, holding her pelvis tightly with both hands, deep creases forming in his forehead.

“W-wait! W-wait a second! Maxi...”

“R-Riftan”

“If you don’t wait...” As he tried to calm her down, he swept her slick back with his palms. “I want to be as gentle as possible. If... If you get hurt...”

Max stared at him irritably. She was sick of him saying that. She bit his lips and lustfully moved her body against him aggressively. Riftan’s body hardened, and soon began to lie down on the bed, thrusting and digging her from the bottom. She sobbed as she clung to his body like a snake, his fiery desire quickly overwhelming her heat. He lowered her head and sucked her chest, moving vigorously.

Max felt like she was riding a stallion on full power, and she couldn’t handle it. Unable to keep up with his speed, a convulsion arose in her thighs, and between her legs, as if they were burning on fire. She completely lost control over her body, twisting and weeping. The moment she thought that it was coming to an end, he would push her up to a higher level of pleasure. Unable to endure the intense pleasure surging through her body, she instinctively struggled to get out of his arms. Then, Riftan bit her earlobe and groaned fiercely.

“No. You drove me this far. You have to deal with it until the very end.”

“W-wait... Wait... I-I can’t.”

“You can.”

He gasped rapidly between his teeth and moved like crazy. For a moment, her eyes rolled back, and her whole body bent like a taut bow. She screamed and her body jerked. Riftan’s back also hardened, and he shivered in pleasure. They embraced each other like one body and waited for the perfect climax to subside, then he muttered with a haft-lost voice.

“Oh, heavens... I don’t even know where I am...”

Max raised her sweaty face with an anxious look. “Did it feel...bad?”

“There’s no way it was bad. I’d go and catch another dragon to experience again what I just experienced.”

He smiled and gently kissed her on the shoulder. Max reassuringly hugged his head and pressed her face against the nape of his neck. Riftan rose from the bed and laughed as if he were being tickled.

“We can’t waste the bath water they prepared.”

He then strode over and soaked in the bathtub. Max sighed at the contact of lukewarm water against her scorching skin. He scooped up some water and poured it over her neck and shoulders, then gently sucked her wet skin with his lips.

“Your skin is always soft and moist; it feels good.”

“I have a lot of f-freckles...I don’t want you to see...”

“It looks as if you’re sprinkled with sugar, it’s appetizing.” As if to prove his claim, Riftan licked the faint brown freckles on her shoulder. Max’s throat tightened and her face blushed. He giggled and kissed her cheeks as well. “I like it when you turn red so quickly like a peach.”

Max rolled her eyes. As she listened to his words, she really wondered if she somehow managed to look good. Riftan’s taste must have deviated from what was generally deemed as beautiful.

“Are you uncomfortable anywhere?”

“N-no. As I said, I’m okay.”

He looked carefully, sweeping the hair away from her face. Max sighed as he continued to worry.

“R-really, it’s nothing. Back then... I healed a lot of seriously injured people... t-that’s why I depleted my mana and fainted. If I do not do as much as back then... It’s alright.”

Riftan gave her a thoughtful look as she spoke. “Ruth said you did so well that there was nothing left for him to do. The young knight told me that he was so blessed and asked to thank you.”

This was the first time that Riftan acknowledged her magic abilities. Max looked up at him with fluttering eyes full of joy.

“I’m glad... that I was of h-help.”

“...Yeah, it was a big help.”

While responding so gently, Riftan had a complex expression. Max’s mood subsided quickly at the ambiguous face he had. Would it be okay to tell him that she was learning magic again from Ruth? Max looked at his face and firmly closed her lips. It was useless to bring that up, and she didn’t want to break the intimate air for the time being.

In fact, he didn’t exactly tell her to stop learning magic, so it should be okay as long as she didn’t do anything reckless. As Max rationalized her actions, she set the unpleasant feeling aside. For now, she just wanted to fully enjoy that pleasant time.

Note – Nymeria: Just chef kiss. Both spouses longing for each other without any embarrassment and being comfortable about it, Maxi finally expressing her desire for her husband and Riftan acknowledging her merit with the healing magic. Such a big yes from me.

Announcement: From now on we’ll use Sakura-chan’s spanish translation as raw alongside the original korean to speed up the translation process. We’re grateful to them for letting us use their work! ????