Under the Oak Tree: Volume 1 (The Novel)

Most fairytales end with a wedding and a happily-ever-after--but this is no fairytale. The updated and official translation of Lady Maximilian is the daughter of the powerful Duke Croyso, but she is rarely allowed outside her family’s sprawling castle for fear that her stutter will tarnish their noble name. When she is forced to marry Sir Riftan, a lowborn knight caught in one of her father’s schemes, Maxi doesn’t dare hope for happiness, let alone love. Her stumbling communication and his gruff manner sour their relationship before it can begin, and Riftan leaves without a word the morning after their vows are exchanged. Now, three years after their disastrous wedding night, Riftan has returned as a war hero. To Maxi’s surprise, despite rumors that he was offered marriage to Princess Agnes, a beautiful and renowned sorceress, Riftan still wants Maxi for his wife. And when he comes to claim her, his longing becomes a desire that bewilders Maxi, even as she is overcome by the scorching heat that Riftan’s presence ignites within her. As she learns to navigate the intricacies of her new life, Maxi will find herself and her courage, and discover that she is anything but powerless. This volume collects chapters 1-76 of the original webnovel by Suji Kim.

Autorentext

Suji Kim

Klappentext

**NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • Most fairytales end with a wedding and a happily-ever-after—but this is no fairytale. The updated and official translation of Under the Oak Tree, the #1 webnovel on MANTA.

“Currently the most popular romantasy webnovel . . . Under the Oak Tree is a Korean romantasy with intense emotional depth, weaving trauma and love in a medieval setting. [It] explores the internal and external struggles of Lady Maximillian and Sir Riftan in a fraught, evolving marriage.”—Bleeding Cool, in praise of Under the Oak Tree (The Comic)**

Lady Maximilian is the daughter of the powerful Duke Croyso, but she is rarely allowed outside her family’s sprawling castle for fear that her stutter will tarnish their noble name. When she is forced to marry Sir Riftan, a lowborn knight caught in one of her father’s schemes, Maxi doesn’t dare hope for happiness, let alone love. Her stumbling communication and his gruff manner sour their relationship before it can begin, and Riftan leaves without a word the morning after their vows are exchanged.

Now, three years after their disastrous wedding night, Riftan has returned as a war hero. To Maxi’s surprise, despite rumors that he was offered marriage to Princess Agnes, a beautiful and renowned sorceress, Riftan still wants Maxi for his wife. And when he comes to claim her, his longing becomes a desire that bewilders Maxi, even as she is overcome by the scorching heat that Riftan’s presence ignites within her. As she learns to navigate the intricacies of her new life, Maxi will find herself and her courage, and discover that she is anything but powerless.

This volume collects chapters 1-76 of the original webnovel by Suji Kim.

Leseprobe
Chapter 1

Maximilian Calypse paced around the drawing room.

She was so nervous that she did not realize she was biting her fingernails—not until the Duke of Croyso entered the room. The clack of his heavy cane shattered the silence, and she rushed to hide her hands behind her back.

“Have I not told you time and again to cease that revolting habit of yours?”

The duke’s words were like a biting chill, and Maxi fixed her eyes on her feet.

“F-Forgive me, Father . . .”

The duke clicked his tongue disapprovingly. “You’d best not embarrass me, girl. You have been far more fortunate than you deserve. Should your repulsive behavior besmirch our family name, know that I will not forgive you.”

A cold sweat formed on Maxi’s back, and an icy bead trickled down her skin. She opened her mouth to try and form a smooth reply, but her spine stiffened with fear, choking her words.

“I-I w-w-w—I shall . . . ​I shall d-d-do as you c-command, F-Father. W-When he c-c-c-comes, I w-w-w . . .”

Maxi did not have to raise her head to know that her father was grimacing at her. Disgust shadowed his face whenever he heard her speak. She tried to remain calm, even as she scrambled for words.

“I-I . . . ​I w-will p-persuade him t-t-t . . . ​t-to stay i-in this m-m-marriage . . .”

“Enough!” The duke rapped his cane on the floor. “Is it too much to ask that you speak normally for a day? For even just an hour? Can you think of any man who would want a stuttering wife?!”

“I . . . ​I . . .”

“As you are well aware, Riftan Calypse is no longer just a lowborn knight! He is now revered as one of the best swordmasters on the entire continent, as the hero who defeated the Red Dragon, Sektor! He need only ask, and the church would rush to annul this marriage!”

The duke paused to catch his breath. He pressed a palm to his temple, as if the mere thought of divorce scandalized him.

“I will not allow the eldest Croyso daughter to be divorced by a lowborn knight! I will not stand idly by while my halfwit daughter ruins the reputation of this house!”

Maxi bit her lip, unspoken words burning her throat like bile. It’s not my fault, she wanted to say. Neither she nor Riftan had ever expressed a desire to be wed. It was her father and her father alone who had willed the marriage to happen.

The duke continued his tirade, lips snarled in rebuke. “If only you were half as beautiful as Rosetta . . . ​No, if only you were normal! Then I would not have to grovel at that lowborn’s feet, to humor his every whim!”

Maxi’s half-sister, Rosetta, was like a rose in full bloom. At the mention of her, what little defiance Maxi had mustered slipped from her grasp like water through her fingers. She had turned deathly pale, but her father was relentless.

“King Reuben may wish to make Riftan Calypse his son-in-law, but there is nothing he can do if Calypse refuses! If only you had managed to win your husband’s affection, you would not be facing a divorce! You have no one to blame but yourself!”

“B-But he . . . ​he left for the c-campaign the day after . . . ​after the w-wedding. . . .”

Maxi had hardly had a chance to talk to Riftan, let alone win his affection! But just as she was about to give voice to that protest, her vision flashed white as her father slammed his cane into her side. The pain was so severe that she curled over, gasping for breath and unable to scream.

“How dare you talk back to me?!” the duke demanded. “Just thinking about your wretched impediment is enough to infuriate me!”

Maxi nodded in desperate submission, lest he strike her again. The duke’s lips twitched, as if he were readying himself to spew forth another stream of vitriol.

A knock at the door saved Maxi. The duke spun to face the sound, and he was addressed by the meek voice of a maidservant.

“Your Grace,” she said. “The Remdragon Knights have arrived.”

“Show them in!”

Maxi’s face flushed with terror, and she finally raised her gaze to meet her father’s. The duke hissed through gritted teeth.

“Make it very, very clear to Calypse that the marriage will not be annulled. And a reminder, should you have forgotten—if you bring shame upon our house, you will have a price to pay.”

The duke stormed out of the room. When she was sure he was gone, Maxi slumped against a window. She tried to slow her breathing as she waited for the throbbing pain to subside. …