Night had already fallen on the country of Angleland. Many good folks had already gone to sleep but there were a select few that were still awake, many were going about their own business while others were performing unfavourable activities. There was one place where there were still a lot of people who were still awake but rather than doing anything productive they were having fun with drink and gambling.

One particular person who was still awake was a young man named Charles. At one point in his life he had a bright future as he had enjoyed his books and had hoped to get work in a library in Royal City. Unfortunately, this never came to be as he now found himself working at the Brown Horse Inn on the outskirts of Blanc. Thanks to its position by the River White it tended to see a lot of different people come and go. Most of the time things were good natured inside of the inn but there were times when things would go very wrong.

Charles was a fairly short man who was around five foot seven inches tall. It was obvious to many that he had some ties to distant lands as his skin was a slightly darker tone than of those who lived in Angleland. He was far from a physically strong man but he made up for it in intelligence. He was a man who was very eager to learn all he could and would enjoy a book almost as much as someone would enjoy watching a fight.

Unfortunately for Charles he didn't own the inn. He had gone there one night and accidentally spent more money there than he actually owned. Rather than getting any of the authorities involved he agreed to work for the Innkeeper in order to pay off his debt. That was over six months ago and he was more than certain that he had already paid of his debt many times over. However, the Innkeeper assured him that there was still more that needed to be paid which forced Charles to remain there. He didn't particularly want to be there but there didn't seem to be any chance of him leaving any time soon.

On this particular night things inside of the Inn were going down as usual. There were many people drinking away and laughing amongst one another as they told tales of their own feats. Many of these tales were too tall and fantastical to be true but they acted like it had just happened yesterday. There were others who were gambling with various games and it was obvious to see who was winning and who was losing their bets. It wouldn't be long before a man would have his entire life savings completely wiped away.

Charles found himself working behind the counter of the inn and he would serve drinks to those that were willing to pay. It was quite easy as they were only really serving one brand of ale or simply water from the nearby river. No one had ordered the water yet so he was constantly having to serve the ale. He didn't think that it tasted particularly nice but it was still selling like crazy.

Suddenly Charles noticed the door to the inn open and he looked as he expected to see another man walking in. Indeed, he did see someone walk in, however he was like no man that he had ever seen before. He was a knight who was glad head to toe in thick armour and was armed with a two-handed sword that was thankfully still sheathed. That wasn't the most distinctive thing about this knight. What caught Charles by surprise the most was the fact that this knight was by far the largest human being that he had ever seen. The knight had to duck quite far to get his head under the doorframe and when he stood to his full height he was too tall for the room as his head almost struck the ceiling. He had to bend down a little so that his head didn't impact the ceiling. The two-handed sword that he possessed seemed to be like a single-handed sword to a normal person and he most likely wielded like one as well. The helmet he wore made it impossible to see his face, there was no part of his skin that was on display.

The knight began to walk toward Charles. The clanking of his armour and the thud of his heavy footsteps could be heard by everyone in the inn but none really took any notice as they were more concerned with what they were doing. Charles couldn't help but feel intimidated by the knight who seemed to become even larger with each step he took. He was not physically growing as he was simply stepping closer to the relatively small man. Even though from Charles's perspective he might as well be growing.

The knight began to say something to Charles when he reached him. However, thanks to the helmet Charles couldn't hear what the Knight was saying. He gestured that he couldn't hear and this caused the Knight to grunt loudly. He lifted his hands up to his helmet and began to remove it. It was only then that Charles could see the Knight's face and that was what got him the biggest shock of the night. Rather than seeing the face of a huge man instead it was that of a woman. Her hair long and red with eyes that were a sapphire blue. He thought that she was quite pretty and he was taken aback by her overall size. If it were a man than he could understand but since she was a woman it more or less blew his mind completely. She had a face that he expected from a high-born noble rather than a knight.

"Can you hear me now?" asked the Knight. Her tone was somewhat annoyed and this snapped Charles out of his trance.

"Y-Yes" replied Charles. These were the only words that he could muster as he continued to look straight up at the towering, armour clad woman before him.

"Give me a barrel of your strongest ale." Her tone didn't change as it seemed like she wanted the conversation to finish as soon as possible.

"Err." He began to stutter a little as he felt very intimidated by her. "W-We only have one type of ale."

"Then give me that!" Her hand then reached into a small compartment just underneath her armour. She took out a small pouch that was filled with gold coins. "This should more than cover the cost."

"I-I'll be right back." With that he dashed toward the back of the inn but not so that he could get away from her. It was so that he could fulfil her request, he was going to where they kept their barrels of ale. Inside a small room there were numerous barrels of ale in there, there were some barrels that were huge. However, there were some that were smaller and were more suited for around three people who would share it. He felt that it would only be enough to satisfy her. Quickly he picked up the barrel and brought it back to where the knight was standing. She seemed to be impatiently waiting as her arms were crossed and her metallic fingers were tapping on her armour. "There you go ma'am."

"Finally." She picked up the barrel without any effort. When Charles had carried the barrel, he had felt it's weight in his arms. He couldn't imagine just how strong she was. "Are there any tables that are free?"

"Err." He began to look around and he spotted one that had no one sitting at it. Quite nervously he pointed his finger toward it. "There's one over there ma'am, just by the backdoor."

"Thank you." Even though she was thanking him she still sounded terrifying. One thing that was for sure was that he didn't want to invoke her wrath.

With that she walked toward the free table and sat down at it. There was a long bench that allowed people to sit down at it. When the Knight sat down Charles could hear the bench groaning as it had to withstand her weight. He thought that it was going to break but much to his amazement it was able to hold. He gave a sigh of relief as it meant that she wasn't going to fall and most likely get angry at him about it.

The Knight seemed to ignore everyone around her as she opened up the small barrel and began to drink out of it as if it contained water. Each gulp brought down a surprisingly large amount of ale and it seemed like it wouldn't last long. One thing that Charles was dead set on and that was not bothering her.

Time began to pass as Charles got on with his duties. He was beginning to get tired as it was getting late and he had been working for most of the day. He would love nothing more than to go to bed and enjoy a much-needed rest. Unfortunately, he couldn't do such a thing just yet, there was too much work for him to do.

The innkeeper who was a particularly round man was watching his every move. He did enjoy seeing Charles work since it meant that he didn't have to work himself. He was barely paying the poor man for his services and he wanted to keep this going for as long as he could. He did chuckle to himself as he watched him struggle with his tasks. He didn't want to interfere as he was having some much-needed relaxation.

Eventually Charles did have to take a tray that was filled with four containers of ale and take it out to a particular table. He was in a hurry since they had been waiting for a long time for their drinks. He was panting as he was getting tired but one of the patrons at the table stuck his foot out to intentionally trip him over. This caused him to fall forwards and the ale fell down along with him. Some of it fell on him but the majority of ale went on one of the particular patrons.

Charles quickly tried to pick himself up but he saw the patron getting up to his feet. He was at least a foot taller than Charles and had a very large build. He had long hair and a beard that were now completely covered in ale. Almost instantly Charles became terrified as he felt the patron grab him by the back of his collar and lift him off his feet. The entire inn went silent besides the sniggers of others at the table.

"I'm sorry," said Charles who was trying everything he could to not seem like a complete coward. However, he knew that he could be killed or at the very least receive a serious injury. "It was an accident."

"I don't care if it was an accident," replied the Patron. He then lifted his fist as if he was about to punch the poor man.

"No wait, if you hit me then you'll be banned from here." He didn't know if it was true but he thought that it would at least make a decent bluff.

"Wouldn't be the first time." He clenched his fist and Charles seemed to wait for the punch to come. All he could hope was that it would all be over soon.

"Wait right there," said a female voice. Everyone including Charles and the Patron looked over and saw the knight still sitting at the table. She was looking over at them but she didn't have a too serious look on her face. "He said it was an accident and he apologised, let's leave it at that."

"This has nothing to do with you. Stay out of my business or else you'll get what this guy is going to get." The expression of the Knight changed to that of displeasure as she slowly rose up to her feet. For most of the other patrons they gasped as they saw that she was too tall to stand up inside of the inn. Despite this she moved over to the where the incident was taking place. He looked up at her and was surprised to see just how tall she was, he didn't see many people taller than him too often but the fact that this was a woman who made him look so small almost blew his mind. He did let go of Charles who quickly hurried away from the confrontation.

"Are you threatening me?" Her voice didn't seem too thrilled with what he had just said to her and she looked to be annoyed.

"Yes I am." He didn't know anything about her but he knew that he would look weak if he backed down from her. A man of his calibre being intimidated by a woman was beyond humiliating in his mind. Even though she was almost two and a half feet taller than he was. "Now get back to your drink you, overgrown bitch."

The knight became infuriated but she didn't say a word. Instead one of her large armour-clad hands grabbed onto the Patron's forearm. With one quick but strong movement she twisted it and everyone heard a loud cracking sound. Suddenly the Patron began to cry out in agony and he went down to his knees. His forearm had been broken but the knight continued to loom over him much like a parent would to a crying child.

"That was for the insult," said the Knight. She seemed to show no remorse for what she had done. "Now I believe it is you who has to apologise."

"You broke my arm you bitch!" screamed the Patron who was still in a lot of pain. He couldn't only look up as she bent down and grabbed his other forearm. Once again with one quick movement she snapped that as well causing him to cry out in agony again. It hurt him so much that it almost brought him to tears.

"That insult cost you your other arm. Are you willing to make the same mistake again?" She watched as he shook his head which made her chuckle. "I see that you have some intelligence after all."

Just then one of the Patron's friends got up from his seat and tried to punch the Knight. Since her head was too high for him to reach he instead tried to strike her back. However, when he punched it he only damaged his hand as it began to bleed. He gave a cry of pain and this made the knight turn around to look at him.

"Are you stupid or something?" asked the Knight. "I am wearing thick armour and yet you still try to attack me without a weapon?" She chuckled to herself a little. "I guess the ale robbed you of your wits."

Another man tried to attack the Knight from behind but his attack was as fruitless as the other. All he got for his efforts was a firm grasp around his neck. He feared that she would snap his neck much like she had done with the Patron's arms. Instead she quickly lifted him up as if he was made out of nothing. She lifted him very high and at such a fast pace that it caused his head to go through the ceiling. The impact was more than enough to knock him out and she looked at his unconscious body for a few moments before dropping him to the ground.

The entire inn was still in silence as they had just seen the knight take down three largely built men with minimum effort. Two had suffered broken bones while the other likely had a concussion, she didn't even have to break a sweat. She turned to look at Charles for a moment who was still standing there and was terrified. He feared that she would attack him next but instead she returned to her table with some haste.

Rather than sitting down the knight simply picked up the barrel and her helmet and walked outside of the inn. Charles didn't know how to react to this and he knew that he was going to be punished for what had happened. One thing was for sure was that he couldn't stay there any longer. In his mind he was trying to piece together the chaos that had just taken place and with exactly what he had just seen.

Almost as soon as he had made his decision he quickly made his way out of the inn and began to look around. It wasn't difficult for him to spot the knight who now seemed even taller thanks to the fact that she could stand up straight. Even in the darkness of night he could still see her clearly as she was walking away from the Inn. He had to quickly run in order to catch up with her.

When Charles eventually reach the towering figure, he felt truly small in comparison to her. Her legs were almost as long as his entire body and underneath her armour he thought that she would likely have a very muscular body. He seemed to be below her notice as she didn't look at him at first until he cleared his throat.

"What do you want?" asked the Knight with an annoyed grunt. She looked at him as if he was a being of great annoyance to her. She barely even recognised that he was the same man that she had saved from the patrons.

"I just want to thank you for saving my skin back there," replied Charles. He noticed that she had stopped walking at this moment in time. "If you weren't there I don't know what would have happened."

"Don't mention it, now that you've said your thanks you may leave me in peace." She wanted to walk on but as she did she could see that he was still following her. This only added to her annoyance.

"My thanks aren't enough." He quickly moved in front of the knight and went down to his one knee. He bowed his head to her and she did stop walking. "I owe you a debt that I might never be able to repay, I offer you my services to you like any knight who needs a decent squire."

"First of all, stand up!" Her voice was sharp and somewhat annoyed. This did cause Charles to get back to his feet just like he was told. "Second is that I am not a knight and third is that I don't need a squire!"

"I beg to differ." He couldn't help but feel intimidated as she was more than three and a half feet taller than him and looked like she could snap him like a twig. "Your armour does look nice but it looks as though it hasn't been cleaned for some time." This got an annoyed grunt from her. "Plus, I bet it is difficult for you to keep track of everything like the sharpness of your sword and how much gold you got going in and going out. I could take all that away from you, you concentrate on the hacking and slashing part of whatever you do. I worry about the boring stuff."

"And what would you want for these services?" Her arms were folded and she seemed to be somewhat interested in what he was saying.

"As I said, I owe you my life so I offer my services for nothing. I will remain by your side until you decide to release me from your presence."

"How do I know I can trust you? For all I know you might just be a conman wanting at my gold."

"Well let's put it simply, if I did do such and thing and you found out what would likely happen? Would I stand a chance against you or would you just slice me in two with minimum effort? Besides I am a man with practically nothing but this." He went into his pocket and took out a locket on a necklace. He held it up to her and this caused her to raise an eyebrow. "This locket belonged to my mother and is the only thing I have left of her, take it as a deposit so to speak and a statement of my good intentions."

There were a few moments as she decided on whether she should go through with this or not. He did seem to be genuine but she was also hesitant at the same time. There were many factors in her head that was going for and against taking Charles on. In the end she grabbed the locket out of his hand and placed in her compartment with her gold. She did have a good look at it and the locket did seem to be the real deal and most likely worth a large amount of money.

"If that is what you wish then so be it," said the Knight. "But there will be a set of ground rules. First is that you do exactly what I tell you without hesitation. If I say jump you ask me how high, got it?"

"Y-Yes ma'am," replied Charles who could see that his life was likely going to change forever.

"Second is that if you fail in any task that I set you then you will be released from your services and this locket stays with me. Third is that you will not be unrewarded for good work, you will be well fed and enjoy the same comforts that I will experience. Before we go any further you still have not told me your name."

"Me apologises." He took a bow as a sign of respect. "My name is Charles Ingram, I am happy to offer you my services."

"And I am Maxine Theresia Martel, first born daughter of Sir Tucker Martel." The name of Sir Tucker Martel sounded familiar to Charles but for the moment he couldn't put his finger on where he had heard it before. "I might be of low birth but my skills with a blade is second to none."

"I believe you, I don't want to find out the hard way." He was still a little intimidated by her but at least now she was accepting his offer. "As your squire so to speak what is the first thing that you want me to do?"

"For now, I want you to do nothing but walk with me. If you can't keep up that's your problem."

Maxine began to walk and Charles as he was told tried to keep up. However, it was more difficult than he expected. Because of her long legs her strides were much larger than his own. For every one step she made he would have to make two but this was something that he would be able to keep up for a while.

There was one thing that he could hear while they were walking and that was the constant clanking sound of Maxine's armour. It seemed that whatever movement she made it would cause the plates of her armour to strike one another in a continuous fashion. She didn't seem to notice this as she had grown so used to it that not hearing it would likely to cause her some confusion.

One thing that he didn't want to imagine was just how much Maxine weighed. Not only was her nine-foot frame most likely very heavy but the armour that she was wearing also added a lot to her weight. If he had to guess he thought that the armour alone would weigh more than him thanks to its size and thickness.

For Maxine although she didn't want to say it she was feeling tired. She had been planning to stay at the inn for the night but after the ruckus that had taken place she had decided that it was best to move on. But now she was getting very tired and she needed to find a place to rest for the night. She briefly looked down at Charles who was doing his best to keep up. She thought that he wouldn't be around her for much longer as he would likely do something that would force her to release him. But having a squire did make her feel more like an actually knight, just like her father.

For the next half an hour Charles followed Maxine closely. His pace was quicker than he would normal walk as he had to keep up with her. She didn't slow her own pace down for his benefit at all and even barely looked down at him at all. Her eyes had been forward at all time and the only sound that she made was the thuds of her footsteps and the clanking of her armour.

Charles would look at the armour and he could see the thickness of it as well. He didn't think any sword or arrow would be able to penetrate it. Not only did it look incredibly strong but it also looked heavy. He didn't think anyone would be able to move let alone walk in the armour. Maxine moved as if there was nothing weighing her down besides a slight breeze. This both impressed and terrified him at the same time.

Eventually Maxine stopped dead in her tracks and Charles walked forward a few steps before he realised that she had stopped. He turned to look at her for a moment and she began to sit down on the ground. There was a loud thud as she fully sat down on the ground, she placed her sword on the ground beside her as well as her helmet that she had not put on since she had stepped into the inn.

"We're sleeping here tonight," announced Maxine. She looked at Charles who was a few feet away. Even sitting down, she still looked extremely tall. "Find some firewood and make sure it's not wet." Her voice had a commanding tone to it which was a clear indication that her instructions were not a request."

"Yes ma'am," replied Charles. He thought that it was best to show her respect as he had seen what happened when she was annoyed.

Quickly he made his way to a small wooded area that was close by. Maxine had specifically picked this spot because of this wooded area and the fact that a stream flowed close by. Their need for wood and water would be within reach. This was one lesson that she had learned some time ago, before she had left home.

With a small amount of haste Charles broke some branches off of a few trees. Even though it was dark his eyes had accustomed themselves to it which allowed him to see better than if they had adjusted to light. This let him see the outlines of the branches and snapped each one with ease. There were a few that he tried snap but they were just out of his reach. He thought that Maxine would easily reach them if she was standing next to him. He didn't want to ask for her help as he feared her more than anything else.

One thing that he was constantly looking out for was animals. A squirrel or rabbit wouldn't be a problem for him but if he were confronted by a wolf or a bear he would stand little chance against them. He had seen the results of a bear mauling on more than one occasion and it wasn't something that he wanted to experience himself.

Eventually he had collected enough firewood for him to be satisfied. Unfortunately, he struggled to carry them in his arms. It wasn't the weight that was the issue but instead with the amount. Every now and again he would drop one and he would struggle to bend down and pick it up. He began to regret obtaining so many but he wanted to be sure that Maxine was satisfied.

After a couple of minutes Charles did reach Maxine who was still sitting down. She hadn't moved from her spot and instead just looked at him. He was a little out of breath from his activities but other than that he still had a lot of energy. He allowed them to fall to the ground before he waited to hear some kind of approval from her.

"Took you a little longer than I expected," said Maxine. "But this should do." She then moved forward slightly and got moved the wood together so that it was in a neat pile. "Do you know how to start a fire?"

"Y-Yes but I'm a little out of practice," replied Charles. He hadn't expected a question like that to be thrown his way straight away.

"Then get back in practice. Eating meat raw isn't the best idea."

Charles didn't say much in response as he remembered how to create fire. He began by getting a couple of sticks and he began to rub them together like he had been shown some years ago. He didn't notice at first but Maxine had gotten up to her feet and walked away for the moment. Instead he just concentrated on getting the fire started and every time he would get smoke he would blow on it a little in order to try and get the fire started. He would put grass there as well to help fuel the flames.

After several minutes and a lot of elbow grease Charles was able to get the fire started. It was only a small flame at first but it soon ignited the rest of the firewood. He felt happy with himself as he hadn't been sure whether he would be able to do it. Now that he had he couldn't help but crack a smile.

No sooner had he gotten the fire up and running he saw Maxine return to him. He was surprised to see something over her shoulder. It looked like something fairly large and when she put it down to the ground he was surprised to see that it was a deer. He couldn't tell the gender straight away as she had chopped off its head. It looked a little gruesome but he was glad that she had done it rather than him.

"Good you've got the fire started," said Maxine. She then pointed toward the headless deer. "Do you know how to skin an animal?"

"I can't say that I've ever done it before," replied Charles. It was a thought that he didn't particularly like, it made him a little sick.

"If you're going to be my squire you're going to have to learn to skin an animal." She then reached down to her thigh and pulled out a knife. The handle was longer than normal and the blade looked to be sharp. It had been specially made for her and she looked down at the deer. "Now watch and learn, I am only showing you how to do this once." Her voice was still very commanding and Charles dared not go against her instructions.

Over the course of the next several minutes Maxine used her knife to skin the deer. Every now and again Charles would almost throw up but she still remained fixed on the task and showed no queasiness over it. To her it was just another task that needed to be done and she wanted to get it out of the way as soon as possible.

One unfortunate thing to take place was that her armour was beginning to be covered by blood. This annoyed her but the redness of the blood matched her hair but it didn't seem to bother her all that much. She did throw the skin to one side as she had no real need for it, she did consider selling it on.

"There the task is done," said Maxine. "I expect you to do it yourself next time." She placed the skinned deer over the fire so that it could begin to cook.

"Yes ma'am," replied Charles. There was the slightest hint of fear in his voice, he wasn't sure if she noticed but he wouldn't be surprised if she did.

"Unfortunately, my armour is now dirty." She remained seated as she knew that the next task would be extremely difficult for him if she were standing up. "Help me take it off so that you can clean it."

"Y-Yes ma'am."

Charles quickly got behind Maxine and began to untie the leather straps that was keeping her armour in place. He still couldn't believe how tall she seemed, even when she was sitting down. Every now and again he would think that he had been shrunk in size but he kept reminding himself that it was her who was extremely tall.

After a few moments Charles was able to remove the first piece of armour but as he held it in his hands the weight of it surprised him greatly. It was so heavy that he almost dropped it but he dared not do such a thing as he feared that this would anger her. If that were to happen he thought that she would likely hurt him and keep the locket that he had given her as insurance.

Using all of his strength he picked each piece of armour from her body and carefully placed it on the ground beside him. The chest plates were the heaviest but rather than helping him she simply remained where she was and simply waited for him. She could hear him grunting and yet she still didn't move a muscle.

Eventually Maxine's armour had been taken off and for a moment he thought tat she would be naked but this wasn't the case. She wore a simple white shirt that was short sleeved and blue trousers that as custom made to fit her near five-foot-long legs. Her shoes were also fairly simple as they were made simply to cover her feet and have a small amount of comfort. They looked to be cheaply made, even at the size that it was.

When Maxine wore her armour if one didn't see her head they would assume that she was a man. However, with it off her breasts could be seen quite clearly, they were large in sheer size in comparison to most women but in proportion to her body they looked to be average if not on the slightly larger size. Rather than being someone who was stretched to nine feet in height she looked like a relatively tall woman who had been enlarged to her current height. This made her wider than a normal person but perfectly proportioned.

One last thing that Charles noticed about her was that she had some muscles on her arms. They were not obvious when he first saw them but as he looked he could definitely see that they were there. He wasn't surprised to see that she had muscles thanks to the weight of her armour, without it he wondered how strong she actually was. He wouldn't be surprised if she was strong enough to lift up a fully-grown horse.

With her armour now off Maxine began to move her arms and neck as which began to crack. She was relieved to have to be free of her armour although she had been wearing and training with it for so long it almost felt like a second skin. A strong and very heavy skin so to speak.

"That's better," said Maxine. She continued to rotated her arm with her free hand on her shoulder. "Now clean the armour until it is absolutely spotless, if there's one piece of dirt no matter how small it is, you won't be eating tonight."

"Yes ma'am," replied Charles. He was feeling very hungry and the smell of the cooking deer only increased his hunger. He wanted to say something back to her but his fear of her was still too great for him to do this.

With some effort he picked up each piece of armour and took it to the nearby stream. He would place it down and using a rag that he had been given he would wet it and then try and scrub the armour with it. Even in the darkness of night he was still able to see what he was doing.

Carefully Charles wiped the armour thoroughly. The fresh blood began to wash off and he would dry the armour with a second rag. He knew that the armour was likely made of iron and would rust if exposed to too much water over a long period of time. Anything that he could do to prevent this from happening would likely make Maxine happy with him over the long term.

The woman herself remained near the fire as she continued to cook deer. She would glance over to Charles every now and again to make sure that he was still there. Not only did she worry about his safety but her armour was also of great value to her. Not only was it custom made she also felt that it was the most valuable thing she owned. She didn't know what she would do if she lost it.

One thing she kept close to her was her sword. Although it was sheathed she could unsheathe it and take down an enemy quicker than one would expect for a person of her size. She had spent many years training until she was happy that she would be able to survive on the road by herself. Taking Charles as a squire was unexpected but something that she could get used to. She also kept the locket that he had given her close to her. She didn't want to give him the chance to steal it and run away. She doubted that he would do this since he had given it to her willingly but she still felt that there was a small chance.

Each time Charles would bring a piece back to her she would examine it. When she said that she wanted it spotless she meant every word. In her mind if a squire couldn't follow the instructions of a knight then it was pointless them being around. She was impressed to see that all the blood and any other dirt was cleaned away from the armour completely. This surprised her as she was sure that he would have left something on there.

Maxine only had to wait a few more minutes until Charles had brought all of her armour back to her. It didn't shine as it would still need polish but all the dirt and blood were completely gone. He was panting as he was tired after carrying all of armour from the campfire to the stream. He thought that he had been worked hard before but now he could see that his situation hadn't gotten any better.

"I have done what you've asked ma'am," said Charles. He was still panting for breath and he thought that she was going to verbally assault him for some kind of failure. Instead she continued to sit there and look at him. Every moment that passed felt like an hour to him as he awaited her reaction.

"You've done well Charles," replied Maxine. Her voice was still stern but it didn't feel threatening either. "Please sit down, the deer is almost finished."

He was glad to hear this and he gave a sigh of relief since it meant that he would be eating that night and that the locket wasn't forfeited. He did quickly sit down but he made sure to stay some distance away from Maxine. Not just because he was still intimidated by her but because he thought that she would want her own space. Sitting too close to her would likely have caused trouble in his mind.

By the time that Charles had sat himself down the deer had indeed finished cooking. He watched as Maxine took it off of the fire and began to cut the cooked flesh off of it. She examined it for a few moments and then tasted it, just to be sure that it was fine. When she knew that the meat was cooked properly she cut a very large chunk off of it and began to eat it.

Charles could only watch as Maxine ate the large slab of meat within a few seconds. It was obvious to him that she was hungry but he wasn't too surprised. He knew that because of her size it was likely that she would need a lot of food in order to keep going. He didn't think it was too out there if she ate the entire deer by herself.

A small chunk of meat was cut off for him as well and although it was tiny in comparison to the piece that Maxine was eating it was still more than enough to satisfy him. He had eaten deer meat before but never in this manner. He couldn't help but have some sympathy toward it as he had watched her skin in and he would be expected to do the same after the next dinner.

"If it is alright with you ma'am I'd like to ask you a question," said Charles. There was a small amount of hesitation in his voice as he thought that she would shoot him down at any moment.

"If it's about my height I get it from my mother," replied Maxine between bites of her meat. She didn't seem to be too thrilled with giving the answer.

"No, it's not that ma'am." He paused for a moment as he thought about the best way to put his question. "I was wondering where we were going." He watched as she glared at him for a moment. "But if you don't want to answer that's fine."

"You have a right to know." She paused as she took another bite from her meat and then began to carve off some more. "We're heading to a small village just outside of Grey Town." She then took out a piece of paper from her satchel and unrolled it. Charles could see that it had the drawing of a man and a value of numbers underneath. He knew that it was a wanted poster but he still remained quiet. "I'm looking for this man, he's wanted in Willenhall and I intend to take him back and get the reward." As he looked at the picture he could see that the wanted man was mostly bald but had a small scar on his cheek that looked distinctive. Underneath he could see the name 'William Bellamy.'

"So, you're a bounty hunter?"

"Only when I need to be, I do what I can to get by. If that means bounty hunting from time to time then so be it."

"And what exactly is he wanted for?" He thought that it was best that this be his last question as he didn't want to anger her.

"Before you think about it, no he's not some kind of heroic figure fighting against a corrupt lord. No, he's a highwayman whose been terrorising people for years, he's stolen a good deal of gold from their rightful owners and even killed a few on the way. The sooner I take him in the sooner his filth will be taken off the land." From the tone of her voice she didn't think much of this William Bellamy.

"I see."

"That's the thing. Some people like to romanticise that highwayman are somehow folk heroes. Believe me they're not, they're nothing more than thieves who are likely to kill you if you don't give them what they want. I once ran into a highwayman not too long ago. The fool actually thought that he'd stand a chance against me."

"What happened?" He knew that this was another question but by now he knew that she was simply telling him a story.

"He attacked me from behind, tried to take my knee in order to cut me down. It didn't work, I punched him so hard that it almost knocked out all of his teeth. His mouth was a bloody mess and I was tempted to end his life there and then. Instead I took him to the local authorities and got a small reward. Turned out he was a wanted man in the end so it worked out better for me anyway." She took another bite out of the deer meat and quickly swallowed it after chewing.

"I'm surprised that you didn't simply kill him. With a sword like yours I doubt he would have stood a chance." Maxine then looked at him with a small amount of anger which quickly put him in his place.

"It's simple really, I am the eldest daughter of Sir Tucker Martel and there are certain things that are expected of me. My father taught me that I should never strike down an unarmed or surrendered opponent. If I were to do that then I would be no better than they are, the day that I take a life unwarranted is the day I will quit trying to become a knight."

"If I may ask, have you taken the lives of anyone? That is of course if you want to answer, I understand if you don't."

"No, it's fine. I once was hired by a small town to execute one of their criminals. He had been convicted of rape and murder and was sentenced to death. I just happened to be passing through when they I heard that they needed an executioner so they paid me a fair amount of gold in order for me to cut off his head." She paused for a moment as she took another bite of the deer meat. "You might think that this broke the vow I just mentioned but it actually doesn't. He was a man who had been convicted in a court of his peers and sentenced to death, I had law and justice on my side when I removed his head from his shoulders. My strike was quick and strong so at least his death was much faster than hanging, although I don't think he deserved that courtesy."

"But you haven't killed anyone in combat?"

"No, right now I haven't had any need. I've beaten them to the point where they were no longer a threat to me. Broken bones, lost teeth, internal bleeding. Those kind of things, not pretty sights but for them it was better than the alternative. Quite a lot of the time I can win the fight without throwing a punch."

"How do you do that?"

"Simple, I don't think I need to explain that I look different to most people. I can use that to my advantage, I was taught that only part of the battle is fought with swords. A good deal of it is fought with the mind as well, if you win that round then the battle is more or less won the entire thing. Because of this intimidation is a very important factor, get inside the mind of your opponent and you become a terror even greater than they could imagine."

Charles fell silent as he thought about what she was saying. He couldn't help but think that her last statement was the truest that she had spoken. When he saw her standing up and in her armour, she looked like she was powerful enough to take on an entire legion of soldiers. Because of this he would never wish to fight her, the same would be said for most other people who came across her. If a sword wielding opponent fought her and they were already terrified of her they wouldn't fight at their best, the intimidation factor would be too great and they would simply fall.

"Anyway, enough questions," said Maxine. She took another bite out of the meat. "Finish what you're eating and get some sleep, we've still got a long walk ahead of us and I don't want you falling behind."

"As you wish ma'am," replied Charles.

With that he continued to eat what he had been given and when he was finished he lay down on the ground. It wasn't too comfortable for him but he did enjoy the heat of the fire that was still burning close by. Maxine looked at him for a few moments as she continued to eat her food. She wondered if he would be a good squire for her or if she would be releasing him of his services soon. She didn't know enough about him for the time being but she did know that he didn't seem like the usual tough guys that she met. Instead she thought that his strengths lay in other areas that would be a great help to her.

The next morning Charles began to feel something strike him, at first, he tried to ignore it as he wanted more time to sleep. Eventually it became too much for him and he began to open his eyes. Standing above him was Maxine who was glaring down at him and prodding him with her very large foot. She had her arms crossed and she was not wearing her armour, the size difference between them made him think for a moment that he was a child and that she was his parent.

He did look into the sky and from the colour of the sky he could see that it was very early morning. Too early for most people to be up and about, they were all still comfortable in their beds and nothing would wake them up too early. Especially a nine-foot woman who was probably one of the most intimidating people in the land.

"Wake up Charles," said Maxine with a sternness to her voice. "It's time to get moving again."

"Five more minutes," replied Charles who would have loved nothing more than to fall asleep again. He then began to shut his eyes again but the next thing he felt was a large hand grab onto his right ankle. Then he felt himself get lifted up by his ankle as if he didn't weigh anything at all. This caused him to open his eyes and he could see the mid-section of Maxine who was none too happy.

"When I tell you it's time to wake up you better wake up." Her voice was annoyed and if he could see her eyes he would have seen how they would angered she truly was. "You got it?" She continued to hold onto his ankle and if she closed her hand tightly she could break it with ease.

"Y-Yeah, I got it." He was in too much shock to argue against her. Instead could do nothing but agree with her.

"Good." With that she released him and he fell to the ground. The impact wasn't enough to cause him any harm but there was a loud thud that could be heard. "Now help me put my armour back on and we'll be on our way."

Charles said nothing as he scrambled up to his feet. With some reluctance he began to pick up pieces of Maxine's nearby armour and place them onto her body. For the legs she stood up for but when it came to her torso she needed to sit down. She knew how tall she was and that he wouldn't reach her if she stood up.

It took several minutes for Charles to finish the task but by the end of it all the armour was secured on properly. Even Maxine was impressed as she expected him to get at least one thing on it wrong. He had observed it last night and with taking it off he also learned how to put it back on.

The last thing that was attached to Maxine was her sword, Charles had been able to feel it in his hand and like her armour it too felt incredibly heavy. Any normal man would require two hands to wield it but not Maxine. To her it was like a standard sword and she could swing it around with ease.

She also strapped her helmet to her waist as she felt like she didn't need it at that moment in time. It was also the only way that she could still look like a woman while wearing her armour, if one did not see her head they would assume that she was a man. The armour hid all her other feminine features. This didn't bother her too much as she preferred to have the right protection over being seen as a woman.

With Maxine's armour back on they stripped whatever meat was left on the deer and left the rest to the wolves who were no doubt creeping nearby. Charles placed the meat in a bag that he had picked up before leaving the inn. He wanted to use it to carry important things that would serve them both over their time together.

One thing that was also in the bag was a journal that he planned to use to record everything down in. Despite his relative low birth, he was able to read and write which would be more use to Maxine than she realised. He wanted to record practically everything down in there no matter how insignificant it might be.

With them both ready Maxine decided that it was time to move. She began to walk forward and Charles had to quickly catch up and walk at a steady speed. Each movement that she made the sound of her armour plates striking against each other was constant. She would not be able to sneak up on someone but then again, she was too big to be doing something like that.

As they walked her expression continued forward and every now and again they would walk by other people. They would all look at her in absolute astonishment but she ignored them, she had more than gotten used to such stares so it was no difference to her. There were some people who thought that she was a man despite her feminine facial features.

One thing that Maxine did have to look out for was low branches. They weren't an issue for Charles or normal people but for her it was a completely different story. She had to steer clear of trees as she didn't want to strike her head. Not only could they cause injury to her but they were also a source of great annoyance for her.

Eventually they found themselves walking down a path that stretched for as far as the eye could see. There were some trees on either side but nothing that was too close for Maxine to have to take note of. Charles was getting tired as they had walked for some miles without stopping. He was struggling to keep up with her and he focused on his fatigue. One thing he did decide to do was to try and take his mind off of it so that he wouldn't feel so tired. Walking right next to was a nine-foot distraction that he was more than hoping would serve his immediate needs.

"Ms Martel may I ask you something?" asked Charles. He looked up at her and he could see that she was still focusing her vision on the path ahead. She didn't look down at him at all or slow down her pace.

"What is it?" replied Maxine.

"I was just wondering how far it is to our destination."

"If we keep going at this pace we should be there by day's end. We'll rest and then track down Bellamy starting in the morning."

"Oh, I see and what do you plan to do with the reward morning?"

"Why would you want to know that?"

"Well as your squire so to speak handling your money is one of my responsibilities. I'm going to record down any money that comes in and out. Just so you know exactly how much you have to spend. If I have some idea what you're going to be paying out it'll give me a better idea on how to save and spread the money."

"Very well, there will be essentials such as food, inns and some left over for more pleasurable activities."

"Like what?"

"Like none of your business. Just know that I need some gold point to one side for certain activities. I'll tell you how much I'll need in some advance, for now that's all you need to know."

"As you wish ma'am and if I need to buy food is there anything that you don't particularly like?"

"I'll eat more or less anything. Except for onions, I despise onion in every shape or form. If I had the choice of starving to death or eating an onion I'd rather starve. So, take this as a warning, never eat onion in my presence and never buy any onion with my gold. The consequences of such an act will not be to your liking."

"I can imagine ma'am." He didn't mind onion that much but knowing now that Maxine hated them he would be willing to cut them out of his diet. It wouldn't be too big of a sacrifice for him, especially if it meant that he didn't get on her bad side. This was something he wanted to avoid at all costs.

The walk continued on for a couple of hours more and fatigue was setting in for Charles. He wanted to ask to stop for a rest but he dared not request such a thing from Maxine. Her stern demeanour had more or less put him off asking her for anything that she might disagree about.

One thing that he still couldn't get over was just how much taller he was in comparison to her. He was average height but in comparison to her he felt like a child. If she was six feet tall he still would have noticed, seven-foot people would stare in awe, eight foot and she would have been in a league of her own. Nine feet however seemed to defy his comprehension, if he wasn't seeing it now he would have thought that it would be impossible for a human to reach such heights.

Charles had seen particularly tall people before and one distinctive factor about them was that most had very deep voices. However, whenever Maxine spoke her voice was the usual pitch for a woman, whenever she spoke there was no doubt that she was a woman although her tone did intimidate him.

Eventually they did come across a tavern that seemed to be located on the path that they were travelling. Charles hadn't realised that there was even one there but Maxine had planned for them to come across it. She knew that it would make an excellent place to stop for a much-needed rest. Her stomach was also growling as it demanded food and she wasn't going to ignore it any longer.

The tavern itself looked like it had seen better days but more than fit to host weary travellers. Charles couldn't see the name but he watched as Maxine stepped toward it, as usual she needed to duck the door in order to get through and when she was inside she didn't fully stand up.

This was not the first time that inside of this inn and she remembered from last time that the inn's ceiling was too low for her to stand up properly. She still had a bruise where it happened the previous time and she didn't want to repeat the experience. She was annoyed by the low ceiling but now had grown accustomed to such a thing.

When Charles looked inside he could see that the tavern was about half full. There were people eating and drinking while there were a few who were singing along to someone who just happened to be playing a fiddle. Everyone seemed to be in good spirits so he hoped that there wouldn't be any other fights.

There was a wave of silence that suddenly hung over as everyone noticed Maxine. Like Charles before them, none had seen a woman of her sheer size. Some even began to think that it was some kind of joke. Underneath her armour it was simply a person sitting on the shoulders of someone else. Some knew that this wasn't the case as the length of her arm was to be expected of someone of her height. Unless the person sitting on top of the shoulders just happened to have arms long enough that they almost dragged onto the ground.

Charles felt nervous as he knew that everyone was looking at them. He thought that this was a bad sign as it meant that there was a greater chance of trouble. But he knew that if he stayed beside Maxine that no one would hurt him. If he purposely provoked someone he thought that she might leave him to his fate but if it was unwarranted she might step in.

Behind the counter of the inn was a woman who looked to be in her early fifties. She was a short but round woman and she looked up directly at Maxine when she approached the counter. Unlike the other patrons of the tavern she didn't seem to be too bothered by the size of the woman before her.

"Ms Martel," said the Tavern Owner. "It's been a while since you last came in here." Her voice was a little croaky as she was suffering from a cold.

"That it has," replied Maxine. "Have you begun serving warm food yet?" Her tone was somewhat different to what it had been before. It was less commanding and instead felt more like she was talking to an acquaintance.

"I see that you've picked up a travelling companion there, I didn't think that you would be the kind to have a companion."

"Oh him." She looked down at Charles for a moment before looking back at the Tavern Owner. "He's my temporary squire who is indebted to me, as soon as he has worked off what he owes me he's free to go wherever he pleases."

"Very well then, may I ask if you want to have anything to eat or drink?"

"That you may, I want to have a barrel of your best ale and three of your streak pies. My squire can have what he desires."

This caught Charles by surprise as he had expected Maxine to simply order something for him. The fact that she was allowing him to order what he wanted was a positive sign in his mind. However, he didn't think it was best to waste any time just in case she changed her mind.

"I-I'll just have some water and a chicken pie if you have one."

"Very well," replied the Tavern Owner. "That will be fifty gold coins in total." She didn't have to wait long until Maxine placed the gold down onto the counter. The owner then took the coins before filling a cup of water for Charles. She then brought a small barrel of ale and put it on the side. "Take a seat and I'll bring it over to you when it's done."

"You have my thanks." She then looked down at Charles who looked back up at her. "Come along now."

"Yes ma'am," replied Charles.

Without any question he followed her to a table that was completely unoccupied. There were two benches at the table and Maxine sat down on one of them. There was a loud creaking sound as it struggled to support her weight. For a moment or two she thought that it might break but thankfully its strength held.

Charles sat down on the other side of the table and took a sip of his water. He then took out his diary and wrote a couple of things into the back of it. Maxine continued to sit there with her small barrel of ale which she opened and began to drink. She swallowed the ale with mighty gulps and Charles didn't want to calculate just how much she was drinking per gulp. Instead he continued with what he was writing and this peaked Maxine's interest. She looked at him and placed the barrel onto the table.

"Squire what are you doing?" asked Maxine. Her tone suggested that she wanted an immediate answer but it wasn't aggressive.

"Well I'm just writing down how much has been spent," replied Charles. "I want to buy a book in he near future so that I can write it all down but for now my diary is all that I have. I must admit that this little stop is costing us a fair amount of gold that we have. We only have around thirty gold coins left after this."

"That's fine, when we capture William Bellamy we'll have enough gold to last us for a fair while. It's only a matter of time, besides I wasn't going to walk by this place and not have anything to eat."

Charles wanted to say something that might annoy her but for now he wanted to keep it to himself. The last thing he wanted was for a nine-foot armour clad woman to be angry with him. He thought that her way of thinking was flawed but he did admit that it was nice having someone make his food for him for a change.

The pair had to wait a relatively long time before the food was finally brought out to them. Charles' chicken pie was placed in front of him and he thought that it smelled really nice. He looked over to Maxine and saw the three pies that were brought to her. Each was larger than his and he was surprised if she could eat it all. He did notice that when the pies were placed in front of her that she broke a small smile.

Before he could do anything else he watched as she cut large chunks of the pie and ate them quickly. The smile on her face remained and he could see that was thoroughly enjoying what she was doing. More than her body were currently showing, he made this observation quiet for the time being and he began to eat his own pie.

Charles' chicken pie was a relatively nice tasting pie although it wasn't the best that he had ever eaten. It would still get him by as a source of nutrition, he would glance toward Maxine every now and again. Each time he did more and more of her pies disappeared. She was eating them at a rate that was faster than he thought was possible.

By the time that he had eaten half of his pie she had eaten all three of her own. Not a single crumb was left behind and she even gave out a small belch although she tried her best to mask it. She gave a sigh as she seemed disappointed that her pies were gone. But she was satisfied by what she had eaten.

One thing that did cross Charles' mind was the question of whether Maxine was still growing. If she was it would go some way in explaining why she ate so much as she had done just. The thought of her growing was somewhat terrifying to him as she was tall enough already. If there was the possibility that she could grow even taller only meant that she was going to become stronger and more intimidating. She was already nine feet tall, he thought there was a possibility that she could reach ten.

"Are you going to finish that?" asked Maxine. She had noticed that he hadn't eaten his pie and had barely touched it for the last several minutes.

"N-Nah I'm good thanks," replied Charles. He could see what she wanted and he began to push the pie toward her. "Did you want it?"

"If you don't mind." Her armour-clad hands quickly grabbed onto the pie and then dragged it the rest of the way toward her. As soon as it was close enough she used the nearby knife and fork to cut it up and then eat it. This one last no longer than the other pies, it was only a couple of minutes before it too was completely devoured. "That was delicious, well worth the coin we spent."

"Yes, I can see that you've eaten your fill."

"No there is room for more. But since you've stated that we don't have too much coin with us I'm going to have to reluctantly allow what is left of my hunger to continue. But if we had the coin then those fantasy pies would be as good as devoured." The small smile returned and this got Charles' interest.

"What's our plan for after we leave?"

"We continue onto our destination, find who we're looking for and then bring him to the closest law office. Collect our reward and then onto the next job."

That was somewhat of a relief for Charles. He knew that a wanted man could be taken to any of the law offices in the land. There he would be held until he could be transferred to where they needed to be prosecuted. It meant that they wouldn't have to take him there themselves which would waste a lot of time. They would still get their reward although if law office didn't have it at the time they would have to return a few days later in order to collect their gold.

"Oh, I see," said Charles. "As soon as we've gotten the reward I can buy that book I mentioned earlier and then I can keep a close eye on the finances."

"Of course, as my squire you will be entitled to a chunk of the reward money, not as large as my take of course but enough for your efforts. I don't care what you do with your gold as long as you don't go crawling to me for more. But from what I've seen of you so far I doubt that'll happen."

"Yes, well it all depends on how much gold I earn, hopefully it'll be enough to keep me going for a while."

"Maxine Martel!" said a rather loud and slightly aggressive voice. This instantly caught the attention of the extremely tall woman as she turned her head toward where the voice was coming from.

This also drew the attention of Charles who could see a man wearing full armour much like Maxine. He didn't wear his helmet and he could see that he had somewhat long black hair with a short beard. He stood around six and a half feet tall and was an intimidating sight. His expression looked to be aggressive and this got Maxine to stand up from her bench and bow her head a little so that it didn't hit the ceiling.

"Gregory Helms," replied Maxine in a tone she took a couple of steps towards the man and he did the same to her. They squared off as he had to look right up at her, Charles was nervous as he had seen her in action before. He thought that she would easily win the fight but there was always that chance that he could get a lucky blow. "I didn't expect to see your ugly face here."

"And I thought you'd remember what I told you the last time we met."

"Oh, I didn't forget you frog man."

"Overgrown bitch."

The pair glared at each other and Charles thought that the fight was going to begin at any moment. He wanted to be sure that he didn't get into the middle of it. However, what happened next surprised him. Rather than the two combatants lifting their fists or drawing their swords they both began to laugh.

This confused Charles more than anything as he was sure that they were mortal enemies but it began to dawn on him that this wasn't the case. Maxine and Gregory weren't enemies, they were friends. He watched as they both shook hands, it was also the first time that he had ever heard her laugh. It was a pleasant laugh but he thought it could quickly turn to violence if needed.

Both Maxine and Gregory continued to laugh for a few moments longer before they began to talk to one another. They were asking what the other had been doing and Charles learned that Gregory had recently been hired by a Lord to ensure his heir got from Flea Bay to his home.

The conversation soon moved to the table where Maxine took her seat back on the bench and Gregory also sat down. However rather than sitting next to her he sat down on Charles' bench. The larger man looked at him for a few moments before looking back at Maxine who was now completely sat down.

"There's a strange man sitting at your table Maxine," said Gregory with a small amount of laughter in his voice.

"He's not a strange man, he's my temporary squire," replied Maxine. Her gaze didn't shift from Gregory. "His name is Charles and he owes me a debt that he is currently paying me with his services."

"Ah it's like that and how long until his debt is paid."

"Whenever I see fit." She then glanced at Charles who for now had remained quiet. "Charles, can you please show Gregory at least some curtsey. It would be unwise to disrespect him."

"Of course, ma'am," replied Charles who then turned to look at Gregory. The man looked a little unwashed and he could smell is body odour. It was not pleasant to say the least but if he wanted to stay in her good books then he would do as he was told. "My apologises if I caused offense." He held his hand out to the armoured man as a gesture of friendship. "May I shake your hand?"

"Yes, you may," answered Gregory as he grabbed onto the hand of Charles and shook it. His grip was much stronger than Charles had expected and it caused him some pain. Also, the pace that he shook the hand also caused some discomfort. But he didn't say anything while Maxine was watching. "Pleasure to meet you boy." He gave another laugh but she could see the pain in her squire's face.

"Ok Gregory that's enough of that. You're hurting him and he's no use to me if you break his hand."

"Very well, just showing him some manly kindness." With that he released his grip and Charles quickly took his hand away. He nursed it as much as he could without making it look obvious. "Now my dear there's something that I want to discuss with you. I've been offered a job by a lesser lord. It shouldn't be too difficult but it's a little too much for me to do alone, I was wondering if you would lend me a hand."

"Oh, and where is this job taking place?"

"In a small township not too far from here. They've been having a problem with bandits recently and the lord who owns those lands have been hiring knights and the sort to help deal with them. I'm a tough bastard as you know but I have my limits, with your help the bandits would be shitting their pants. Would you mind coming along with me? I assure you that the pay would be more than worth it."

"I would but not right now." She took a drink out of her small barrel of ale before she spoke again. "I'm on the trail of a particularly nasty guy with a sizeable bounty on his head. Right now, for me that takes priority, but I should capture him within the next few days. After that I should be free to help you."

"That'll do for me, let's say we meet back here in three days' time? If you're here then we can go do this job and earn ourselves some coin. But if you're not then I'll just have to do the job by myself. I prefer not to of course but I can't really wait much longer after that, you understand, don't you?"

"Of course, time is money and neither should be wasted. I will do my best to be back here in that time but I cannot make promises."

"As you know I'd prefer to go if I had you watching my back. Those bandits would flee in your presence."

Charles continued to sit there and say nothing as Maxine and Gregory continued to talk. It began to move away from the topic of the job. Instead it began to divert to about what they had been doing shortly before they had arrived at the tavern. She told him about how she had met Charles the night previous and had given a couple of drunks broken bones to remind them of their foolishness.

Gregory responded by telling them that he had stopped at a brothel and had been able to satisfy himself with three fine women. He chuckled saying that the three of them combined would probably still be smaller than Maxine. She found this to be quite funny and just reminded him not to waste too much coin in such a place.

Eventually she felt that it was best her and Charles to move on now. She knew that they wouldn't catch William Bellamy if they remained there and chatted. Gregory understood but he was planning to stay there for a little longer as he bought himself a large cup of ale. Before the two friends did depart they shook hands again. Charles was given a strong pat on the back from the larger man, he used such force that it almost caused Charles to stumble over. This had not been his intent and for now he would remain quiet about it.

Within minutes they were both walking down the pathway again but there was something different about the day. When Charles looked up to the sky he could see plenty of dark clouds that stretched as far as the eye could see. He didn't need to do much guessing when he figured out that it was going to rain soon.

"Ms Martel, I believe that it's going to rain soon," said Charles as he walked at a quickened pace.

"So, you can predict the weather now?" replied Maxine with some sarcasm in her voice. "Don't tell me things I already know."

"I was just thinking that it's best to try and find some shelter before we're caught in a downpour. I don't particularly want to get wet and catch a cold. I believe that you don't want to have the same thing happen to you."

"Only chumps get colds and if we keep going like this we'll reach our destination before it begins to rain. Now shut up and keep going or I'll clout you around the ear." This was something that he didn't want to happen. A strike from a normal person would hurt enough but one from someone of her stature and with her hand encased in thick armour he only thought that it would be a death blow.

One thing that particularly worried Charles was the fact that it would likely take them a few hours to reach their destination. From the looks of the clouds it seemed like it could rain at any second. This worried him as he didn't want to get wet, but rather than saying anything he remained quiet. The thought of Maxine striking him was a good enough deterrent to prevent him from speaking for the time being.

For several more minutes they walked until Charles felt something strike his head. It was not Maxine's hand but something that felt much, much smaller. It was also wet and he knew that it was a raindrop. As he looked up he felt another come down onto his face followed by several more.

This had not gone unnoticed by the extremely tall woman who felt the raindrops strike her head. She hoped that they would be the only ones but before they could think of anything else they heard the rumble of thunder and then the rain came down hard. The sound of it striking Maxine's armour was fairly loud and the wind blew the raindrops into the faces of both travellers. Charles used his arm to protect his eyes while Maxine remained as she was and simply endured it. To her this wasn't anything more than a minor annoyance on her grand journey to knighthood.

As they continued to walk it was becoming harder and harder for Maxine to move. The path beneath her was turning into mud and the combination of her size and armour made her very heavy. Her feet were sinking in the mud with each step that she took, it made it harder for her to place one foot in front of the other.

Despite her difficulties she tried to keep going despite the rain. She would sometimes glance down at Charles to see how he was doing. Since he was smaller and unarmoured he was able to move across the path with relative ease. Normally he would have to be quickening his pace to keep up with her but now he was having to slow down a little just so that she could keep up with him.

The rain continued to come down hard on them but at that moment the path was covered by a canopy of trees. It made it harder for the rainwater to reach the ground below and gave both of a small respite from the rain. It was still coming down but not as much as it had been before.

Both of their feet were covered in mud and this caused a small amount of annoyance for Maxine as she thought that it made her look less respectable than she should. But she thought that as soon as they stopped for the night that Charles could clean them for her. As her squire it was part of his duties.

Unfortunately, the tree canopy above them eventually ended and they found themselves out in the rain once again. This time however there was some hope for them, just on the horizon they could see a village. It didn't look to be particularly large but it caused Maxine to crack a small smile. She wanted nothing more than to be inside and sitting next to a warm fire, she felt that another barrel of ale would make her feel better and maybe another warm meal. She had eaten recently but she was already feeling hungry again.

Charles barely noticed the village over the horizon but he was completely soaked through. He had never gotten this wet in his life while still wearing his clothes. It was causing him to shiver and he feared that he might have caught a cold. He didn't know how Maxine could endure this but again he didn't say anything about it. He just kept walking alongside her and made sure that he didn't fall behind.

With the village in sight Maxine was more determined than ever to reach it. Her pace quickened slightly but the mud on her feet still caused her some problems. She struggled as best as she could but the path was becoming covered with stones as they got closer to the village. This was something that she greatly appreciated as it was becoming more like a cobbled path.

Eventually it got to the point where the path was completely cobbled so sinking in the mud was no longer an issue for her. Her iron clad boots did make a metallic sound every time that she took a footstep. For her it was just nice to be back onto solid ground, the mud had been more than an annoyance for her.

After some more time of walking the pair finally found themselves just outside of the village. It was coming to evening and it was around this time that the rains finally stopped. This would have been a relief for them but the damage by the rain had already been done. Charles was shivering and water was dripping from his clothing. He thought that he was on the verge of collapse. At one point he almost did but he felt the large hand of Maxine grab onto the back of his collar and lift him back to his feet. She didn't say a word but he knew that she wanted him to keep going.

Their journey halted for a moment when they eventually came to a gate which blocked immediate access to the village. It was a wooden gate that seemed like it wouldn't be able to withstand a moderate attack. Despite the fact that she could break through Maxine instead knocked on it much like a rational human being would. A small wooden flap opened and they could see the face of a man who looked to be in his fifties.

The man immediately saw Charles but when he looked at Maxine he saw that he wasn't looking up far enough. He began to look up further until he finally saw the face of Maxine who looked down at him. Charles expected her to squat down a little so that he could see her better but this was something that she refused to do. She wasn't going to hide her height no matter what.

"State your business," said the Man. His voice was somewhat gruff and a little intimidating. The tall woman was unmoved and instead easily kept her composure.

"We're here because a price has been placed on the head on a man named William Bellamy," said Maxine who didn't miss a beat. "I need to have a discussion with your highest ranking official."

"You've actually come to take out that bastard? Good luck with that." The flap suddenly closed but it was soon followed by the sound the gate being unbolted. Mere moments later it was opened wide enough for both Maxine and Charles to comfortably walk through. The man looked up at her and although he was in disbelief over what he was seeing he remained composed. "You'll be wanting to see Mr. Alberts, he answers to his lordship. You'll find him in the house right next to the village hall. Very hard to miss, if you want I can have someone escort you."

"No thank you, we will be fine finding it ourselves. Thank you for your help, it has been very much appreciated."

Charles was hoping that he would be able to rest a little longer but it seemed like he wasn't going to get the opportunity much to his disappointment. Like before he simply followed Maxine as she walked and she was able to see the village hall from her vantage point. It wasn't far from their location and she simply kept walking.

Within minutes they found themselves just outside of the hall and next door to it lay a house that seemed to be fairly moderate. It was not the kind to be held by a particularly rich man but it seemed larger and grander than a normal house. Neither of them had to do much guess work when they realised that this was the house that they had been looking for. It was getting late and they didn't want to wait around much longer.

With one of her armour-clad fists Maxine carefully knocked on the door of the house. She wanted to make sure that it didn't sound too aggressive as she didn't want to give the occupants the wrong idea.

They didn't have to wait long until a woman answered the door. She was a young woman and was barely taller than Maxine's leg. Unlike the man before she didn't hide her shock over the towering woman that she was seeing before her. She took a step back in fear but Maxine remained the same as before. It was far from the worst reaction that she had gotten from a person seeing her for the first time. Instead she looked down at the woman who was wearing a black dress and a white apron. It was obvious to her that she was simply a maid and they needed to speak with her employer.

"When you've finished gawking I'd like to speak to Mr Alberts," said Maxine who seemed a little frustrated by her reaction. "Tell him that we're here because of William Bellamy."

"W-We've been expecting someone to show up for that job," replied the Maid. "Please come inside, Mr Alberts would be most eager to see you, but please leave any weapon you might have just here."

Both Charles and Maxine entered the building and as usual she was too tall to stand up straight. However, she did draw her sword and leave it near the front door and leaning against a wall. Her hunting knife was also left on a table but she noticed that the maid wasn't the only person there.

An armoured man stood there as well and she knew that he was a guard. He would remained armed while Maxine had to give up any arms that she currently had. She hated to part with her sword but if it meant that she could get what she needed for the job then she would be happy to, temporarily.

Eventually they came to a room which looked more like an office of sorts. They saw a middle-aged man sitting at a table and he had a piece of paper and quill in his hands. There was another armoured man standing next to him and he had quickly received word about his two guests. When he saw them he almost fell off of his chair in shock. For a moment he thought that she was two people together in the armour but when he saw her proportions he realised that she was actually one very large person. He didn't know whether to marvel over what he was seeing or be terrified.

Mr Adams was a thin man with a moustache and full head of black hair. Although he was sitting down he still looked quite short, he chose not to stand since he was embarrassed with how short he would see in comparison to Maxine. Instead he remained where he was seated and simply wanted to get down to business.

"Greetings," said Maxine who felt like she should be the first to speak. She bowed her head to show respect to him although she was already bowing thanks to the low ceiling. "My name is Maxine Martel, eldest daughter of Sir Tucker Martel and this is my temporary squire Charles Ingram." Charles too bowed his head but he was surprised that she had remembered his surname although he had only told her once. "We're tracking down the highwayman William Bellamy and we have heard that he was last seen near these parts."

"Your information is true," replied Mr Adams. Although he was a little intimidated his voice still commanded respect. "But if you haven't heard that it is no longer him, he's recruited a few ne'er-do-wells from these parts to help him with his crimes. You are no longer simply dealing with one man."

"Do these other men have prices on their heads too?" She raised an eyebrow as the chance for honestly making more gold always interested her.

"Yes, but as you can imagine they're not as high as William Bellamy himself. The reward will also come from myself personally but only if you bring them in alive. I believe they can be rehabilitated and become fully functioning members of society. As far as I know the only crime they've committed is robbery, not enough to get them executed of course. I'll make it worth your while."

"How much are we talking about exactly?"

"One hundred and fifty gold coins for each man. That is of course if they're still alive, if not then I'm afraid that you won't get any money for them."

"I understand, but I take it that you won't take Bellamy off my hands when I capture him?" She seemed confident in her success even though it hadn't happened yet.

"No, we don't have the means or the funds for someone like him. No, you'd have to take him to Grey Town. The authorities there should be able to take him from there and give you your larger reward."

"Do you know how many are accompanying Bellamy?"

"Last I heard there were three of them that had joined him but there could possibly be more. I cannot tell you for absolute certainty."

"In that case I'll bring you all of his gang back besides the man himself. But I'm going to need a few things from you in order to complete this task."

"Oh, and what would that be?"

"I require a couple of horses with a merchant's cart, some rope and a breast plate. When I receive my reward for the capture of these men you can deduct what you feel is necessary for these items. Your horses and cart I plan to return upon the completion of my job. The others I plan to keep."

"Something can be arranged but do you believe that you're up to the task? You're not the first to come to me thinking that they could take Bellamy and his gang down?"

"I wouldn't be here if I didn't believe that I could."

There were a few more minutes of talking before Maxine and Charles stepped outside once again. He didn't want to go out as he was still cold from the rain and the last thing he wanted to do was to get wet again. The rain had stopped but he feared that it could begin again at any moment.

Before they had left the house, they had given their remaining gold coins to Mr Adams for insurance of the safe return of the horses and cart. Maxine had been unwilling to give them up but since she knew that she would be getting it back she didn't mind. One thing that she kept was the necklace and locket that Charles had given her. It was something that she wouldn't part with and still kept it on her person.

All the pair could do for the time being was wait for the items to be brought to them. Charles was nervous about this and a part of him thought that he was going to remain behind but as Maxine's squire he would have to be by her side. If that meant being in danger then he would have to endure.

"Charles I'm going to need your assistance with this job," said Maxine as she looked down at him. Her voice was still stern which helped indicated that she meant business. "Listen carefully as I'm not in the mood to repeat myself."

Charles didn't answer but he still listened. As he heard Maxine's plan he could see that it was dangerous. There was a chance that he might not survive it but she assured his safety. He wanted more than anything to say no to her but he still feared what would happen if she did. At this point all he could do was agree to go along with her plan and hope that he came out of it alive.

A short time later a very nervous Charles rode onto the cart that had been loaned from Mr. Adams. He knew how to control the horses but it had been some time since he had last done such a thing and he was struggling to remember how to perform the task correctly. He had tried to talk Maxine out of making him do it but she had been stern with her words and he had been forced to go along with it.

It was now night but there was the light of the moon that helped guide him through the darkness but he was constantly looking around. His heart was racing and he was nervous, probably more nervous than he had ever been in his life.

In the cart lay something that was underneath a cloth, purposely so that it couldn't be seen by anyone else. It was still but the contents seemed metallic as well, likely gold which could bring a person fortune or even iron that could be easily traded. Either way that a person could look at it the haul would be valuable.

Charles was not alone as there was someone watching him. The sound of hooves along the ground had caught the attention of someone, a man who quickly climbed up a nearby tree. He made sure that the leaves obscured any view of him which made him invisible to whoever he was watching.

The man watched as Charles and the cart went by him and he began to mimic some animal sounds. The sounds were not random but a code that was being picked up by his colleagues that were a short distance away. They each quickly got into position and used the bushes to keep out of sight.

They planned for another heist which would likely be their last in the area before they moved onto somewhere different. They already felt like they had stayed longer than they should but they hoped by that time the next night that they would be far away from there. There was also hope that they would be richer by that point and not have to steal again for some time.

Oblivious to what was happening Charles continued to ride the cart. He suspected that there might be something wrong and he heard the bushes around him beginning to rustle. He stopped for a moment to look but no sooner did he do this he suddenly saw three men standing in front of the cart. They were a short distance away but for the time being he didn't notice that the fourth man who had watched him came up from behind the cart.

If Charles hadn't felt nervous before he certainly did now. He was doing everything he could to try and keep his composure but as he looked to the man directly ahead of him he recognised the man as William Bellamy. The drawing of him on the wanted poster was a little off but it looked enough like him to be recognised.

It wasn't so much William that was causing him to be nervous but the two men standing beside him. One was armed with a sword that looked to be fairly cheap but still enough to slash at someone. The other was holding a crossbow that was pointed directly toward Charles. If it was released it seemed like he would have little defence against it, death would be almost a certainty.

"Greetings friend," said William in what seemed to be a friendly tone. "Tonight, is your lucky night."

"In what way exactly?" replied Charles. He was still nervous but was doing everything he could to hide it. He had taken some deep breaths before he had spoken and this had helped calm his mind.

"You get to leave here with your life." He smiled at Charles as he could see that he didn't seem to have any chance of fighting back. "I'll give you two simple options, the first is that you give up whatever you've got in that cart there and you walk away without any harm coming to you."

"I can guess what the second option is. You don't need to tell me what it is." He gave a sigh as he knew what he had to do. "But I'm afraid I can't. My load here is too valuable to give up without a fight."

"Can't argue with that." He nodded to the man with the crossbow and an arrow was quickly fired at Charles. He didn't have a hope of getting out of the way in time and it struck him in the chest. The force was enough to send him off the cart and he fell to the ground below. There was a loud thud when he struck the ground and it was almost certain that he was dead. "No matter how valuable something is it isn't worth your life." He then looked over at the man who was standing behind the cart. "Gordon, check what's in there."

Gordon quickly moved toward the cart and he was eager to see what was inside. If it was something like jewellery or weapons they could easily sell it off. If it was food and hopefully some wine then they would be having a good night shortly. He began to move the cloth and his eyes widened by what he was seeing.

The other three highwaymen seemed to be happy with what had happened and they began to laugh and joke with one another until they heard Gordon give a loud cry of pain after a metallic sound. They watched as he fell to the ground and didn't move, they had no idea if he was dead or simply unconscious.

They had no idea what had just happened but suddenly they began to see a large figure rise out from the back of the cart and place their feet on the ground. As the figure stood up all the three men could see was the tallest person that they could imagine. From head to toe the figure was in thick armour and not a single ounce of flesh could be seen at all. It almost looked like a giant metal man with a large sword in his hand.

The highwaymen had no idea that what they were seeing was actually Maxine underneath all the armour. Her size and sudden appearance had caught them off guard and she began to walk toward them. The crossbowman quickly fired off another arrow at her but it simply bounced off her thick armour and didn't even leave a dent.

Maxine didn't waste any time as she saw him reloading. He was done within a few seconds and he pointed the crossbow at her but by then she was too close. One quick slash of her sword cut the crossbow completely in half. If he hadn't of moved his hand out of the way in the nick of time then it was likely that he would have lost his hand at the same time.

The distance between them was too small for the crossbowman to think of another strategy. Instead he felt a strong kick to his chest that sent him flying into the trunk of a nearby tree. A couple of his rips had been broken and he coughed up a small amount of blood. But he would ultimately survive the encounter.

Now there were only two highwaymen left which included William Bellamy himself. They were both shocked by what they had just seen and they thought that she was some kind of monster. They couldn't believe that someone of such size and strength actually existed, she also moved faster than what was expected for someone of her stature and she was using it to great effect.

The highwaymen still had numbers on their side and William did pull a small dagger that had been attached to his leg. He thought about fighting for a moment before he realised that it was hopeless. Instead he did what any man would do in this kind of situation, he turned around and ran away.

This had not gone unnoticed by Maxine who would have given chase but she found her path blocked by the final Highwayman. He had yet to fully realise that William had ran away and tried to stand his ground. He trusted his sword at the towering armoured foe but he saw his attack get blocked by her sword. This left him open to attack and he thought that she was going to cut him down with her sword.

The next thing he knew was a sharp pain in his gut region. However, if it had of been a sword it would have been a more piercing pain. Instead the pain was more spread out and felt blunt. He didn't fully realise that she had punched him with enough force to lift him off of his feet. He did soon land back on the ground but all he could do was clutch his stomach and try to recover. But before he could another fist struck him in the back of his head and this knocked the fight right out of him.

With the three highwaymen down, it was time for Maxine to focus on the main reason why she was there. She knew that William had run but she knew that he couldn't have gotten far, with confidence she began to jog in the direction that he had ran but she eventually came to large tree that was blocking the way. There were smaller trees besides it and the gap was too small for her to get through but she thought that it would difficult if not impossible for a normal person to get through as well. In her mind this meant that he was hiding close by and she began to look around. She couldn't see anything immediately but she was more than confident that she was right.

"William Bellamy!" shouted Maxine in an intimidating voice. "I know that you're here, there's no point in hiding from me. I will find you soon enough and when that happens I will take you in."

As Maxine looked for him she was searching in the bushes below but she didn't realise that she was looking too low. William had climbed up a nearby tree and could see her below. Her voice had sounded deeper than usual and he still believed that he was dealing with a man rather than a woman. But he was still getting himself ready, in his hand he had a knife that had never failed him before.

Just when he judged Maxine was in the right position he leapt onto her from the tree and landed on her back. This of course took her by surprise but before she could react she felt his knife against her throat. In quick time he had found where her armour ended and her helmet began. The small gap in-between them where he was able to get down to her flesh, she paused as she realised that for now he had the advantage.

"Unless you want me to slice your throat from ear to ear I suggest you don't do anything stupid," said William. He was holding onto her but as long as he kept the knife to her throat that she couldn't do anything. "That's good, now you're going to give me everything of value that you have and then you're going to let me walk away."

"I suggest that you give up now," replied Maxine. Her voice sounded different now and it was much like her normal voice. This caught him by surprise as this was the first time he realised that he was dealing with a woman. "You're worth more to me alive but I will kill you if you don't behave."

"You're in no position to make demands to me." He dug his knife a little deeper to cut the very top of her skin. It would cause any serious damage but it was just an indication that he wasn't joking around. "Now don't do anything stupid, or I'll cut you open like a stuffed pig." He was more than willing to kill her but now he knew that he would have to go alone. His accomplices were dead as far as he was concerned.

Maxine didn't say anything as she was weighing her options. She thought about grabbing onto his wrist and crushing it. However, she thought that she might not have the time as if she moved he would just slice her throat. She was embarrassed that he had been able to get close to her like this and get into this position. If eldest sister saw her now then she would likely laugh at her.

Suddenly William felt a sharp pain in his back after hearing a metallic sound. It was enough for him to let go of Maxine and he fell down onto his back. He didn't know where the impact was coming from but when he looked up he saw Charles standing beside him. He had struck William in the back using a shovel that he just happened to find in the cart.

Despite being struck by an arrow the man didn't seem to be injured from what had happened. Instead he seemed to be perfectly fine but he saw Maxine looming over him. He wanted to protect himself but an armour-clad boot to the face ended any kind of resistance. He didn't realise exactly what had just happened but the darkness of unconsciousness overtook him.

Maxine looked at her squire who still had the shovel in his hand. He held it with both hands and he looked up at her. He was surprised to see her in a position that was a disadvantage to her. He did wonder what would have happened if he hadn't been there but he knew better than to say anything about it to the towering woman before him.

"Are the others tied up?" asked Maxine. She didn't acknowledge that he had practically saved her life just moments before.

"Yes ma'am," replied Charles. He was hoping to get a thank you but none seemed to be coming.

"And did your breast plate serve you well?"

"Yes ma'am." He then knocked his knuckle a couple of times on his chest. Rather than hearing a fleshy sound instead there was the clang of metal. "Although I think that it might be dented after that arrow shot."

"Be thankful that they didn't aim for the head." She then bent down and picked up the unconscious William Bellamy. He was a little on the heavy side for a man thanks to some of the muscle he had packed on. Despite this she lifted him as if he barely weighted anything. "Now come along, we need to collect our reward before anything else happens. I don't want to be caught off guard."

With that she began to walk toward the horses and cart that they had used during their plan. When Maxine arrived, she could see that Charles had indeed tied them up with the rope that they had been given. She was impressed but she did see that they were outside of the cart. Despite his usefulness with the rope he didn't have the strength to pick up any of the men and he had simply left them there until her return.

One by one Maxine picked up each of the men effortlessly and placed them inside of the cart. She did wait for Charles to tie up William before he too was placed in the cart. One when this was done did she take off her helmet and tie it to her waist. It was then that Charles spotted some trickles of blood coming from her neck. Almost instantly he feared the worst had happened. He quickly looked up at her neck and he had a look of worry on his face, he thought that if she were to die he would be stuck out there with four bandits. Each one was capable of killing him.

"Ma'am you're hurt," said Charles with worry in his voice. "You should go and see a healer immediately."

"I'm fine," replied Maxine. She used her hand to wipe away some of the blood and the wound definitely didn't look to be very deep. Not deep enough to cause her any problems. "It's barely a scratch. Now take the reins and let's get back before any of them decide to wake up."

"As you wish ma'am." He then climbed onto the cart and took the reins. He looked over Maxine as he expected her to sit beside him. Instead she stayed where she was. "Aren't you climbing on as well?"

"No, my additional weight will only slow the cart down. I'm more than capable of walking alongside." He nodded his head and was about to manoeuvre the horses but she got his attention once again. "You did good back there."

"Thank you, ma'am."

With that the horses began to turn the cart around and the pair began the journey back the way that they had come. Although didn't want to admit it they were both tired and couldn't wait to get some much-needed sleep when they got back to the village. An inn would be nice but they knew that they would likely sleep outside.

Maxine felt some discomfort in her legs after all of the walking she had done. She wanted nothing more than to sit down and have a well-deserved rest. Instead she was walking back to the village, she hid her fatigue well but there was only so much she could take. She spoke nothing of this to Charles and simply kept walking.

A short while later they pair eventually reached the village with their still unconscious captures. The first place they were going was nearby jail which was manned even at this late hour. William's accomplices were dropped off and the man himself was even placed in his own cell. The guards at the jail already knew what was happening and they had even prepared for the arrival of the pair.

William's cell was only small as he was only going to be there until the morning. The other three were placed in a larger cell where they would most likely remain for some time. When it came to the money for their capture it would be paid to them the following day as Mr. Adams was already in bed. Maxine was more than willing to wait as she just wanted to go to sleep.

Their spot was just outside of the village under a large tree. By now even Charles was finding it difficult to stay awake and he was close to collapsing. Maxine was the one who kept him from falling asleep straight away until she had found what she considered to be the perfect spot. Her armour clanked against one another as she lay down on the ground and she saw her squire lying down not too far away from her. Almost as soon as his head lay down on the ground he was asleep. She watched him for a few moments and her own eyes began to close.

When Maxine's sapphire eyes opened again she was greeted by the light of morning. Slowly she sat up and began to stretch herself. There was a small pain in her back but it wasn't anything that she was too uncomfortable with. When she glanced over to Charles she saw that he was still asleep. Rather than waking him up straight away she allowed him to rest for another half an hour as she too lay down and let herself come around properly.

Eventually the time came and she got up to her feet. Looming over the normal size man she began to nudge him with her foot. At first, he was mostly unresponsive but he began to wake up after she had to tell him that it was time to get up. He was coming to but his eyes were closed as he still wanted to sleep.

"Five more minutes," said Charles as he wanted to have a few extra minutes of rest. Rather than allowing him to sleep she grabbed him by the ankle and lifted him up. This quickly woke him up as he felt himself dangling in the air. As he looked up he could see that she didn't have a very happy expression on her face.

"When I tell you that it's time to get up I mean it," replied Maxine in a commanding voice. "Do I make myself clear?"

"Good," replied Maxine. She then let go of his ankle and he fell to the ground. It wasn't high enough for him to receive any injuries. He quickly got back up to his feet and looked up at her. "We're going to collect our reward for Bellamy's gang, then we get something to eat and then after that we'll collect him from the local jail. After that we take him to Grey Town so that he can be taken off of our hands."

"Out of curiosity how far is it from here to Grey Town?"

"Not very far, a few hours of walking and we'll be there. On the way we need to make sure that he doesn't escape. I don't like going through all this effort only for him to slip away, that would make me angry and believe me you don't want to see me angry."

"I can only imagine." In his head an image of her tearing down a building in her rage, he knew that he was likely exaggerating a little but something inside of him felt that she could possibly achieve that. She was definitely the strongest person that he had ever seen and it somewhat scared him.

With their conversation over the pair returned to the humble abode of Mr. Adams. He had woken up fairly early that morning and he was more than happy to pay Maxine and Charles for their efforts. He paid them gold for the capture of William's gang but there was some deducted thanks to what they had used for the trap. It was still enough to get them by for a short while and Charles recorded it down in his book.

Before the pair could leave the village, they returned to the jail. The gang had regained consciousness from the night before. They were not very happy to see Maxine and if they were outside of their cells they would likely gang up on her in order to try and murder her. It was unlikely that this would be successful but it didn't mean that they weren't going to try at least.

With the help of a couple of the guards at the jail William was successfully tied up and he was shouting and cursing the entire time. In the end it was so bad that Maxine tied a piece of cloth around his mouth in order to shut him up. One thing that she made sure of was that his nose wasn't covered, she didn't want him suffocating as she would lose money if he were to die.

With their prize now secure Maxine threw William over her shoulder almost as if he was a deer that she had killed. He struggled as much as he could but the rope prevented him from doing anything. More than once she was tempted just to end him there and then but the additional gold that she would get for him being alive was too great for her to even properly consider killing him.

Once everything else was sorted both Maxine and Charles began the relatively short walk to Grey Town. Both of them just wanted to get their gold and enjoy themselves somewhat until she moved onto her next job. As promised she had given him some gold for his efforts and although it wasn't as much as she had received it was still enough for him. He was tempted to spend it but he decided that for now it was best to save it, he didn't know when he was going to need it again.

With each step that Maxine took toward Grey Town, William Bellamy resisted in every way he could. One thing that he couldn't believe that he was being carried around by a woman of her stature. Even with the threats of injury he still struggled as much as he could since he knew what was ahead for him.

Most likely once he was sent back toward the east he would be having an appointment with the hangman. This appointment was one that he wanted to miss more than anything in the world. He did all that he could to try and free himself but the ropes around his wrists and ankles were too tight for him to escape. He also tried to remove the cloth on his mouth but once again he was unable to, if his hands were free then the task would have been easy, but alas this was not the case.

For Maxine and Charles, they simply continued their walk and they could see Grey Town in the distance but it was still some distance away. Charles was also looking at his book as he had a better look at the numbers he had written down. He was figuring out how much free gold they had with them and how much should be set aside for things like food and possibly staying at an inn.

He walked close by to Maxine who kept walking forward. Her gaze was fixed onto Grey Town which came closer and closer with each step she took. For the time being she took little notice of what Charles was doing and was also doing what she could to stop William from escaping.

"Ma'am I was wondering if I can have a moment of your time," said Charles who looked up at her for a moment. She continued to loom over him but her face turned to look down at him and she didn't show too much emotion.

"What is it?" asked Maxine. Her tone of voice suggested to him that she didn't want to have her time wasted.

"Well I've been going over the numbers and I've figured that after we've received the reward we will be in the black for a good long while if we manage it properly. I know that you've mentioned about having some for a personal activity but after that I have a few suggestions for how to manage our gold."

"Like?"

"Like restricting ourselves to how much we spend a day unless something comes along that needs to be addressed." He saw William really struggling but Maxine more or less ignored him and just focused on Charles. "Like if we have to pay a toll to cross a bridge or one of us becomes sick and we have to see a healer."

"I don't get sick. My body's too big for anything to affect me in that way. I suggest that you keep my appetite in mind when you're making your limitations."

"Of course, I know that because of your great size you will eat much more than I could possibly hope to, no offense."

"None taken."

"We'll also need to buy some supplies while we're in Grey Town as well before we can make our way anywhere else. But we can still have a nice warm meal before we leave, it does us both the world of good."

"Anything else?"

"Yes, I might buy a sharpening stone in order to help maintain your sword. Since I'm your squire I guess one of my duties is to make sure that your sword is properly maintained for use."

"That is one thing that you can buy but I must warn you, never touch my sword without first asking for permission. Touch it with a single finger and you'll lose that finger, do I make myself clear?"

"Crystal clear."

The pair continued to walk on in relative silence for the rest of the trip. William's efforts to free himself was for naught as he saw himself approaching to Grey Town. He had been there on a few occasions but he knew that as soon as he was taken to the authorities his life was practically over.

He doubled his efforts for freedom but all this got him was a tooth knocked out by Maxine. He was still conscious but it dazed him enough for him to not resist. This was just what she had wanted but she had also pulled her punch. She didn't want to accidentally kill him or she would lose some of her hard-earned gold.

Upon arriving in Grey Town some of the people that the pair walked by looked up in amazement at Maxine. Not only because of her height but the fact that she was carrying a fully-grown man over her shoulder as if he were a child. Some of them would ask her how tall she was when she walked by, she always replied with the sarcastic answer, 'Taller than you.'

Grey Town itself was a place that needed to be upgraded as the buildings were all very old and needed to be replaced. For now, this wasn't an option but a few buildings had been torn down in order to be replaced. The process was slow but it was carrying on at its own steady place.

Like William both Maxine and Charles had been there before. For Maxine she had been there more often then she would try and remember. She more than knew her way around and quickly she made her way to the building run by town's police force. They often wore plain clothing so that they wouldn't be spotted very easily but some donned the armour and sword that was expected of them.

The building itself was located near one of the many inns located inside of Grey Town. It was a relatively large building and there was a guard standing outside of it. He wore heavy armour and his sword looked sharp enough to cut a man in two. Nothing of skin could be seen and he was an intimidating figure. Charles was cautious but Maxine remained how she was.

The guard looked up at Maxine and from his body language didn't seem to be bothered about her height. His facial expression might have given something away but under his helmet this was impossible to tell. She did look down at him and she waited for him to speak first. He was standing in front of the door and unless he moved on his own free will it would have to be by force.

"What brings you here on this day?" asked the Guard. His voice sounded like he was repeating a phrase that he would say numerous times every day. "Do you have someone else for us Maxine?"

"Yes, I do," replied Maxine. She turned slightly so that the guard could see the face of the still gazed William. "I have the highwayman William Bellamy, he's wanted in Willenhall and I am dropping him off here." She didn't react over the fact that he knew her name, Charles was surprised but he didn't say anything.

"Hmm, I am aware that he is a wanted man." His armour began to clang against itself as he began to step aside. "Enter and claim your reward, best to get scum like him off of the streets."

"Thank you and you perform your duties well."

With that Maxine ducked in order to get through the door and be inside of the building. She was able to stand up to her full height in there as the ceiling was high enough for her to do so. Charles walked closely by and he could see many of the town's police force at work as they were processing people who had been arrested. Most of them were for more minor crimes and would likely be out with a fine by the end of the day. A few of them who had more serious crimes wouldn't be seeing freedom for a fair while.

Maxine knew exactly where she was going as she walked through and eventually placed the still dazed body of Charles onto a seat by a desk. Sitting at the desk was an educated man with a quill and piece of paper. He was a fairly old man who seemed to be a few short years away from retiring. This wasn't the first time that he had seen her so he didn't have the same reaction as many of the others.

"So, you've bought someone else," said the man. He barely got up from his seat as he spoke. "Who is it this time?"

"William Bellamy," replied Maxine. "A highwayman who's wanted in the east. Are you prepared to take him off my hands?"

"Indeed I am." He watched as Maxine showed him the face of William. He was still unconscious. "Is he dead?"

"No, he's just taking a nap although I was tempted to end his life a few times."

"For some scum that's the best thing to do." He then turned to two other men who were standing nearby. They quickly approached her and grabbed onto William. She didn't resist as they took him away from her and she could see the man at the desk writing something down on a piece of paper. It took him a few moments to write it but he then held it up to her. "Take this to desk round back and take your reward."

"Thank you." She took the slip of paper out of his hand. "I hope to see you again soon." There was much of a genuine tone in her voice and sounded more like a curtesy rather than really meaning it.

"And so, do I although if it were under the right circumstances of course. Don't think you want to be behind those bars."

With that Maxine left the desk with Charles began to make her way toward the back of the building. She walked by several people who were locked up in cells. She ignored them as she heard them throwing insults about her height and the fact that she was a woman wearing knight like armour. Charles remained by her side but also walked away from the cells as much as he could. He didn't want to think about what would happen if any of them got their hands on him.

Eventually the pair did reach the desk near the back where they had been told to take the slip of paper. The item itself was given to another man who then gave it Maxine. Rather than counting it she checked its weight to see whether it was correct. To her it weighed about right so she thanked the person who gave it to them and then left with her temporary squire following closely behind.

A few minutes later Charles found himself sitting in a private room at a nearby inn. It was available for those who wanted to perform an activity in private. This ranged from various different activities and this one was simply counting the gold. Maxine sat on the table and watched as he counted. She saw him counting a few coins before writing it down in his book. This continued on for a few minutes until he felt that it was all accounted for. She had been drinking out of a large cup of ale and she looked at him just as he was finishing off writing on the page.

"Ma'am I have some good news," said Charles. "All the gold that was promised in the reward is accounted for. Ten thousand gold to be precise, should be enough to last us for a while. Might I ask how you want to divide it up?"

"Yes," replied Maxine as she took another sip of her ale. "One thousand will go to you for your efforts, that's more than fair. Five hundred of them I need before we move out back to meet Gregory."

"Thank you for your generosity." He wanted to ask her what her five hundred gold was going to be for. He knew that she wouldn't tell him and most likely would act negatively toward him. "Might I make another suggestion?"

"And what would that be?"

"Well, have you heard of something that's recently come along called a bank?"

"I've heard something but I'm not sure about what it is."

"It's a place where you place your money where it would be safe. You deposit your money at once branch here and let's just say you're in Flea Bay you can withdraw it from a branch there. Your money will be safe from thieves and you don't have to worry about misplacing it."

"But how would I get my money back out? I take it that I can't just walk in and demand my money."

"They give you a little book in order to record down how much is put in and taken out. That way they know who you are and how much you have with them. I would recommend using it myself, now that I have some money now I'm restarting my own account. Would you want to start your own account?"

"Hmm, I'm not sure." To her what he was telling her sounded too good to be true. In her mind there had to be some kind of drawback to all of this. She couldn't see it at that moment in time but she had a gut feeling. "Give me a bit of time to think about it, then I'll give you an answer. But for now, take the money up to our room, do what you please with your part but ensure that it remains safe."

"If that is what you want ma'am then so be it." He wanted to try and convince her about putting the money into a bank but he felt that it was best that he didn't. There was a small chance that she would react negatively to this and he didn't want to be at the centre of her rage.

The pair continued to speak for a few more minutes before Maxine took a small portion of the gold and left the inn. The remaining gold stayed with Charles and although she didn't fully trust him she still allowed him to take it up to the room that they were hiring for the night.

Once Charles had gotten into the room he could see that there were two separate beds. Both of them were normal sized and he couldn't imagine Maxine fitting onto either of them. Each bed was a little over six feet long but her nine-foot frame wouldn't fit on such a small area. Images of her trying to sleep on it appeared in his head. He couldn't help but chuckle and in his mind, it would be like an adult in the bed of a baby or small child.

Charles decided to put the gold underneath one of the beds and he put a couple of items over the bag in order to try and disguise it. It wasn't viewable very easily and for now it seemed to be the best hiding spot. He did take some of the gold out for himself and with him confident that the gold was safe he left the room and made sure that it was locked behind him. He wanted if he could find anything of use for their journey, he was sure that he would find a few things.

Meanwhile Maxine continued to walk through the streets of Grey Town. Heads turned at the sight of her but her vision was squarely focused on a building not too far away from her. It was a relatively large building that did have a man walk into and another one walk out of. She didn't move her gaze from it and kept walking until she reached the main entrance to the building.

As usual she had to bed down in order to get through the door and she couldn't fully stand up to her full height immediately. At this part of the building the ceiling was too low for her to do so. She did see that the room was lit by candles and had a scent from a distant land. There was also a small desk close by with a man with a goatee like beard stand behind it. He was quite well dressed in clothing that some people would consider to be exotic.

The sudden appearance of the super tall Maxine did catch him by surprise but he kept his composure and simply looked up at her. She was definitely the tallest human being that he had ever laid eyes on and he could see that she was armed with a sword. However, he knew that she wasn't here to cause any trouble. Instead he knew that she came for the services that he offered.

"May I help you on this fine day?" asked the Man. His skin was a different shade to what was the norm in Angleland. He also spoke in an accent that was also foreign to these lands, she knew that his people came from a land to far to the east.

"Yes," replied Maxine. Her expression didn't change and she placed some of the gold that she had on the table. "I would like to purchase the premium services and I'm going to need one extra as well."

"Hmm." He looked at the gold that she had placed on the counter. It wasn't enough to cover what she was asking but he watched as she placed more on. Within a few seconds she had placed more than enough on the counter. A few she kept to herself as she planned on using them later on. "Of course, ma'am, we'll get to it right away." He then took the gold off of the counter and placed it within a safe behind him.

No sooner had this been done three beautiful women stepped out from a room that was very close by. All three of them wore dresses that both looked beautiful and were very revealing. Maxine doubted that they were wearing anything underneath. Each of them approached the towering woman but none of them could possibly hope to match her height.

One of the women was only just over five feet tall and was barely taller than one of Maxine's legs. Another of the women held out her hand to her and she didn't hesitate in grabbing it and she was led into another room. She heard the man tell her to have fun as she was led away.

Within moments Maxine found herself in a room with a large bath that was designed for multiple people. Thankfully there was only her there and the three women waited around her as she began to take her armour off. They were supposed to do that but she knew that they would struggle with this so she decided to do it herself. She also didn't want any of it to get damaged.

After she was done removing her armour she went down to one knee so that it was much easier for the women to reach her. They began to remove her underclothing and over the next several seconds more and more of her skin was being revealed. Even on her one knee the women still struggled to take off her clothes but after a short while they were capable of completing the task.

Maxine's naked body was now revealed for the three women to see. She had some muscle on her and even seemed to have a six-pack developing. Muscles could be seen in her arms and her breasts were surprisingly small for her body. They still seemed quite large in comparison to a normal woman but for her body they looked to be undersized.

There were also a small number of scars on the upper part of her body from where she had been cut in the past. The cuts had since healed over but when one of the women touched her skin they could feel that it was warm and soft. One of them even placed the side of her face on the skin just to feel it's softness.

With Maxine now completely naked she stepped into the bath and sat down inside of it. For a normal person it would go up to their shoulders. For her it only went down to just above her bellybutton and her breasts were still quite far above the waterline. It looked a little funny if anyone was watching but the women began to prepare for what they had to do next.

One of them stepped to one side so that they could acquire some soaps and primitive shampoo which they quickly took to the others. Once they were all ready they began to bathe the tall woman where she sat.

Out of the three women there one concentrated on Maxine's hair. Another focused-on cleaning her upper part while one had lifted her dress and had stepped into the warm water. She was cleaning Maxine's lower parts and it seemed be struggling a little with it. The wannabe knight herself did help as she would lift each leg whenever the time came. But she felt relaxed in this place.

There was a small amount of giggling amongst the women and one even brought Maxine a glass of wine which she quickly drank. She could feel the women soaking and cleaning every part of her body, she was ready for what was to come but she knew that now wasn't the time. She hadn't yet been fully cleaned and she wanted to get her money's worth.

She could feel the fingers of the women on her skin and one of them was even touching her breasts. It gave her a warm sensation inside which was becoming difficult for her to contain. It was obvious to her that the women who were bathing her were the mistresses of their trade, she couldn't hope to have such service from anyone.

After several minutes of bathing the cleaning was finally done and Maxine stepped out of the pool. The women grabbed a few towels and began to dry off the towering woman. To reach the high points the tallest one had to stand on a chair but even then, the red-haired woman towered above her.

The women were careful with how they dried Maxine, one of the women was particularly drying around Maxine's vagina. Every touch around that area sent shockwaves throughout the tall woman and it made her knees go a little weak. She still kept her composure and her stance as the drying continued.

There was a sudden screech as the woman standing on the chair began to fall off. It was likely she would have hurt herself if Maxine hadn't acted quickly and grabbed onto her. The chair struck the ground but the woman found herself in Maxine's strong arms. To her it was like she was a child being carried by an adult. The normally armour-clad woman barely felt the others weight in her arms.

Rather than putting her down Maxine kept the woman close to her and kept her in place using only one hand. The other hand was being gently pulled by one of the other women as the drying had been finished. The bath had just been a starter for them and what was to happen next would be the main course.

With the bath now over Maxine was led away by one of the women followed by the other two. She didn't really like leaving her clothes, weapons and armour behind but for the next part this was something that she would have to do. She needed to duck to get through a couple of doorways and the path that they took allowed them to travel without her naked body being seen.

Their short trip eventually took them to a room where there was already a large bed and wine prepared. It wasn't anywhere near long enough for someone like Maxine but it was much wider than a normal bed. It was even wider than a double bed and looked to be able to fit at least three people in.

The room itself was relatively small and the ceiling was still too low for her to stand up straight in. Only candles lit the room as there were no windows and only one door that led in and out of the room. The scent that could be smelt at the front entrance was still there and it made her feel more relaxed.

Maxine sat down on the bed and she could hear it groaning underneath her weight. She positioned herself so that she could see all of the women standing before her. She watched as they slipped off their dresses to reveal that they were now naked as well. She gave a small smile before she was truly ready.

"So," said Maxine with a stern tone to her. "Who's going first?"

Meanwhile Charles was completely oblivious to what was happening Charles was walking in the streets of Grey Town. He had made sure that the inn room was locked and that the gold was sufficiently hidden. He kept his own gold with him and he was seeing whether he could find anything that he thought would be useful for himself or Maxine. The rest he wanted to deposit in a bank when he found the branch in the town.

One particular store he went into was selling items that were useful to blacksmiths and others in metal work. On one of the shelves he could see a bottle with a liquid inside which was poisonous to anyone who wanted to drink it. However, for what he wanted it was perfect as he picked it up. As he examined the bottle he opened it for a moment and began to sniff at it. It had an odd odour to it that tickled his mind in the wrong way. This was his last indication that it was the thing that he was after.

After paying for the bottle he placed it in his bag strapped onto his back and walked outside. The bottle contained a powerful polish that he was sure would make Maxine's armour and sword shin as if they were brand new. He thought that she would be very appreciative of this and make her a little less stern with him.

However, his movements had not gone unnoticed. A young man had been inside of the store as well and had seen Charles going by his business. What drew the young man to Charles was the fact that he seemed to have plenty of gold on his person. This caused an idea to pop into his head and discreetly he began to follow the squire.

From what he could see of Charles he could tell that he was trying to find where he was going. Charles would stop every now and again to try and spot something, it didn't seem to be a person he was trying to spot but instead a place. This seemed to exactly what the man was hoping for.

Rather than keeping himself hidden the young man began to approach Charles. He wasn't trying to make his presence hidden any longer and even had a small smile on his face. He hoped that things would go his way this time as he was sure that he would be successful in the near future.

"Greetings friend," said the Young Man. He put on a pleasant voice so that he was as least threatening as possible. "You seem to be lost, maybe I can help."

"Well actually I'm looking for the local bank," replied Charles who didn't think anything negative. "But I don't seem to see it anywhere near here."

"As it just happens to be I'm on my way to the bank as well. You can follow me if you want to."

"Thanks, that would be very helpful."

The young man began to walk away and Charles followed closely behind him. He felt lucky that he had found someone who was willing to help him. He thought that he would be taking all of his gold to the bank and depositing it safely. Then he thought that it couldn't be stolen and he could withdraw it whenever he wanted.

For the first few minutes he felt very confident but as they continued to walk he found himself puzzled. The walk was taking longer than he expected and it was taking him away from the main streets. Whenever he asked his newfound friend if they were going the right way he just responded with that he knew a short cut.

This continued on for several more minutes as he was going through the backstreets of Grey Town. It was a dirty place and Charles could see rats scurrying around as they tried to find whatever food they could. He could hear them squeaking and this sent a chill down his spine. He wasn't very fond of the creatures and he preferred to be away from them.

Their walk came to a sudden halt when they went down an alleyway that led to a dead end. When Charles saw this his heart began to beat faster with fear. He realised what was happening and began to step away as the young man turned to him with an evil smile on his face.

He went to turn around and run but he found four individuals blocking his way. He felt very foolish for allowing himself to fall for such a trap but he could do nothing about it for the time being. Instead he just felt afraid for his life as he saw the four men behind him approaching him.

"You know how this works," said the young man. "Give us your gold and your valuables and we'll let you go on your merry way."

"S-Sure," replied Charles who was terrified. Quickly he took his pouch of gold out from his pocket and gave it to the young man. He knew better than to resist and just wanted to get out of there with his life intact. "That's all I have, I swear."

"I want to believe you but then I think that you're holding out on us." He nodded to the men behind Charles and they quickly began to punch and kick him repeatedly. Charles wanted to defend himself but he couldn't do such a thing, he was outnumbered and outmuscled. There was no scenario that would end well for him.

After beating him down for a couple of minutes the beating suddenly stopped. By now Charles was battered and bruised, his eye was beginning to swell and his nose was bleeding. He thought that one of his teeth had been dislodged but right now this was the least of his worries. He was wheezing as he was struggling to breathe, never had he received a beating like this before.

Charles could do nothing as they took the bag off from him and began to look through it. Inside all they found was a book, a couple of pencils, some food and the polish that he had bought minutes earlier. None of these were of any particular value and instead they took the gold that he had earned.

For the next several minutes he remained where he was as he was afraid that the group was still around. When he was sure that they were gone he slowly began to rise back to his feet but this caused him a lot of pain. Each movement he made was like agony to him but he was able to pick up his bag.

The book that was still there was more valuable to him then the gold but this didn't matter too much for him right now. Instead he just staggered back toward the inn as best as he could, he felt light-headed after such a beating. This only caused him to walk more abnormally as he tried his best to go from point A to point B.

Several minutes later Maxine was lying on the bed inside of the private building. Lying beside her were the three women who had bathed her a short time earlier. All three of them were extremely tired after what had just happened between them. They were professionals in their trade and yet they had struggled to keep up with the needs of this nine-foot woman.

All three of them had gone again and again and again. Now they were in no position to do anything but rest as much as they could. They were all out of breath after their herculean efforts and none of them barely had the energy to even stay awake. All three of them could only just keep their eyes open.

Maxine sat up from the bed and although she was slightly tired still had enough energy to want to go for another round. However, the women were in no position to do this so she simply got up to her feet and began to put clothing and armour back on that had been placed nearby. She had sweated a little during their activities but it wasn't enough for her to consider bathing again.

Over the course of the next couple of minutes Maxine continued to put her armour on. When she had completed her task, she put a few extra gold coins on a table close by. The women didn't thank her as they were still too tired and she simply ducked under the doorframe and stepped out of room.

A minute later she found herself standing by the front desk again where she saw the foreign man standing. He had been dealing with a few different things before she had arrived but he seemed happy to see her again. He looked up with a smile as he remembered to be polite to all customers.

"Greetings ma'am," said the Man. "I hope that you enjoyed your experience with us today." His smile didn't fade. "Was everything to your liking."

"I would have liked to have gone on longer but your workers couldn't keep up unfortunately," replied Maxine. There was a small amount of satisfaction in her voice. "I don't think they'll be working again today."

"That is a shame. I apologise that you we're fully satisfied with your experience. I'll be sure that it will improve next time."

"Yes, and please don't punish them. It is not their fault that they couldn't keep up."

She spoke to him for another few seconds before stepping out of the building. The world around her was darker than she had expected. She had been occupied for hours and now it was close to evening. She didn't waste any time in heading back to the inn where she was stopping for the night.

Maxine planned to start out again the next morning to join up with her friend Gregory. She even considered going back to Morgan for a brief time to see her family but for now she saw no need as she simply needed to keep working in order to make money and make a name for herself.

Eventually Maxine did reach the inn and when she stepped inside she could see that there were a lot of people already there. Most were eating and drinking to their heart's desire while one man even had a fiddle. He was playing music for the patrons and they would give him some money if they liked what he was playing. His music was quite cheerful and it seemed to be going down well with the men who were still drinking. It was likely that they would drink themselves into a state.

Rather than stopping for a drink Maxine made her way up the stairs with some difficulty. She opened the door to the room that she was sharing with Charles and she expected to see him there. Not too surprising to her she did see him but her eyes widened when she actually saw him.

Charles was lying on the bed and Maxine could clearly see the cuts and bruises that he had received during his beatdown. It had caused him great discomfort trying to get back there, when he had completed the journey all that he could do was climb onto the bed and try and nurse his wounds.

Quickly she knelt down by the bed and looked at Charles as she was trying to see any serious injuries. For now, she could see none but she knew that there was a chance that there was internal bleeding. She watched as he weakly turned his head toward her and she could see that he was in pain.

"I'm sorry ma'am," said Charles with pain in his voice. He was hurting in places that most people didn't even know the name of. "But I seem to have gotten myself hurt." He coughed for a moment and this only added to his pain.

"What happened to you?" asked Maxine. There was a slight hint of concern in her voice as she continued to look at him.

"I-I was on my way to depositing my gold at a bank. Got tricked into an alleyway and robbed, they decided to beat me down as well. A-All my gold that I earned is gone and now I'm no help to you."

Maxine was silent for a moment as she didn't know exactly how to respond. She wasn't annoyed with Charles for allowing himself to be hurt. She thought that she should have done something to prevent this from happening. It was a knight's duty to make sure that their squire wasn't harmed. An injury to a squire reflected badly on a knight unless it was said knight responsible. Even then it was only if the squire had done something to deserve it, this was not the case.

With her mind made up Maxine stood back up to her full height but had to duck her head as she was still too tall to stand up straight in the room. She looked at Charles who looked up at her with a small amount of fear. He was sure that she was going to scold him for what had happened.

"Stay where you are," said Maxine. "I'll find you a healer, they'll patch you up quickly. I'm sorry this happened to you, I should have been watching out for you."

"I-It is alright ma'am," replied Charles who was astonished. This was the first time that she had apologised to him. He didn't know how to properly react to what had just happened. It was a bigger shock than being beaten up.

"Don't worry about a thing, you'll be fine shortly."

Maxine then stepped out of the room but not before ordering an ale from the innkeeper. This was not for herself but she wanted to have it sent up to her room. She wanted Charles to have it so that it would dull the pain that he was feeling to a certain degree. She then stepped outside of the inn and started to make her way to the Healer's abode.

She had been to Grey Town enough to know where to find a healer. She had visited a couple of times in the past, once was to help treat her growing pains but now was the first time that she was going for someone else besides herself.

Maxine didn't waste any time in her journey as she quickly walked from the inn to the Healer's abode without much incident. It was a relatively small building with a red cross painted on a sign. She knew what it meant and quickly knocked on the door of the building. She had to stand there and wait for a few moments before it opened. There she saw a relatively old man standing there. He was wearing all white and he looked up to at her, unlike most people he wasn't too shocked by what he was seeing.

"Maxine is it?" asked the Healer. It took him a moment to remember her name. It was not the first time that they had met and she was certainly someone that he wasn't going to forget any time soon.

"Yes, it is and I need your help," replied Maxine. "My squire has been injured by a gang of thieves. Would you please help him?"

"I wish I could but I can't I'm afraid. There are pressing things here that need my attention but don't worry." He then turned his head away from the door. "Daphne come here please." They had to wait until a young woman approached the door as well. She was young, couldn't be more than sixteen with short black hair and green eyes. She wore the same outfit that he did and she was shocked to see Maxine. Unlike others she didn't hide it as well as they could and she was gobsmacked by what she was seeing. "This is my apprentice Maria. She is more than skilled enough to treat your squire."

"Very well, we must hurry though as I don't know the extent of his injuries."

Another few words were exchanged between the two before Maxine moved away with Maria following close behind. She was intimidated by the much larger woman and she kept quiet. She just couldn't get over how large Maxine was, she didn't think it was possible for a woman to grow that tall and still be so mobile.

Just as they were walking by an alleyway Maxine began to hear something. It was feint at first but when she stopped and listened more carefully she could hear it clearer. As she focused on her hearing she began to get annoyed. Maria noticed what was happening and she stopped as well. She was almost too afraid to speak but eventually she felt that she had to in order to discover the problem.

"I-Is there a problem ma'am?" asked Maria who spoke in a quiet and reserved voice. She looked up at the towering woman who was looking down the alleyway.

"Continue on to the White Horse Inn," replied Maxine. Her focus didn't shift away from the alleyway. "My squire is in room three, I will join you shortly."

"But what about you?"

"I have business to attend to."

Maria could do nothing but walk away as Maxine began to walk down the alleyway. She could hear the joyous voices of a few men and she could hear them boasting about what they had achieved that day. They were drinking as well and enjoying the gold that they had recently acquired.

They were too into their conversation and joy to notice the nine-foot armoured woman approaching them. It wasn't until she was closer that they noticed her. They quickly got up to their feet and she could see that there were five of them. One thing that she noticed was that one of them was carrying a pouch of gold. The pouch had a red C written on it and she recognised it as the one that Charles owned. This made her even more annoyed as she knew for certainty that these were the ones responsible for harming him.

"Who the fuck are you?" asked the Young Man. He was the same man that had led Charles down the alleyway and set up the trap.

"My name is Maxine Martel, eldest daughter of Sir Tucker Martel," replied Maxine. She was annoyed by these men and she could see a few of them going for knives that were on their person. "You harmed and stole from my squire earlier, a slight against my squire is a slight against me." She then drew out her sword and this made the group of thieves step back a little and let out a small gasp. "I am here for retribution."

"You really think that you stand a chance? There are five of us and one of you, even if you are a giant freak you don't stand a chance."

"Funny, I was about to say the same to you."

"Kill her!"

The men darted forward and Maxine slashed her sword. This kept them at a distance for a moment but she darted forward herself and brought her sword down toward one of the thieves. There was a cry of pain and a dash of red from the attack, the victim of this was still alive but he found himself missing his right hand. He looked at the opening that was left behind and he screamed in agony. As he looked down he could see his hand on the ground and still clutching the knife.

This only added to the fear that the other men could feel and they were unsure how to continue on. They did consider running but ironically for them this particular alleyway was also a dead end. They couldn't escape from behind and the only way out was to face the angry iron-clad giantess.

Two of them ran toward her in hopes that they could take her down with a double team attack. Maxine barely flinched at this and allowed them to try and stab her. With all of their strength they tried to stab through her armour. Unfortunately, their blades were not large or strong enough to complete such a task.

Instead the knives simply rebounded off when they had tried to stab her. She didn't give them any time to recover as one felt her armoured fist come into contact square with their face. The blow was with such power that it sent him flying across the alley and he impacted the wall behind them. Several teeth were knocked out and it was likely that he had also fractured his skull during the impact.

The second man wasn't as fortunate as like his colleague he felt a sharp pain in his wrist. When he looked he could see that Maxine had removed his hand with a quick slash of her blade. He screamed and dropped to the ground as he tried to stop the bleeding as best as he could.

There were still two thieves left and they were both absolutely terrified. They could see that fighting her was a foolish thought and they wanted to escape. The wall behind them made this practically impossible and they looked on in fear as she walked closer and closer toward them.

The sound of her armour-clad feet impacting the ground was a terrifying sound that they would never forget for the rest of their days. They could see the sapphire eyes of Maxine burning with pure rage as she walked closer and closer toward them. One of them even began to wet himself out of pure fear.

"P-Please have mercy?" asked the young Man.

If anything, his pleas only angered her even more. He could see her clenching her sword even tighter as her frustration continued to grow. It was only a matter of time before it all came out.

Continued to step closer to the two terrified men. To them she was the devil incarnate who was there to take their souls to hell. Her face told it all as it had uncontrollable rage behind it, she was also walking at a slower pace than normal just to increase the fear that they were experiencing. They wanted to escape but with the towering woman blocking the only exit it seemed like their fates were sealed.

One of the men screamed and darted forward toward her in a last-ditch effort to stop her. This of course had no effect as a huge iron clad foot came into contact with his chest. It completely knocked the wind out of him. He went down to the ground in agony and as she continued to walk forward she stepped onto his ankle. There was a loud cracking sound as she intentionally broke the ankle. He then began to scream in agony but now her focus was entirely on the man ahead.

He had been the one who had led Charles just a few hours before. She didn't know that it was him but he still pinned himself against the wall. The next thing he felt was her huge hand grab him around the neck.

With very little effort Maxine lifted the man off his feet and into the air. He couldn't breathe as he was kicking his legs and gasping for air. She just glared at him for several moments as she was trying to decide what to do with him. The thoughts of her injured squire were fresh in her mind and she knew how easy it would be to simply snap his neck. He and the others were nothing more than common thieves and had likely done the same to others over the years. She thought that killing them would be justice.

However, these thoughts were counteracted by the words of her father. He had told her that killing an unarmed or surrendered opponent made her no better than they were. She took in everything he said and vowed that she would only kill when absolutely necessary, this wasn't the case as the man had dropped his knife and was now completely at her mercy. He continued to remain with his feet more than two feet above the ground.

"P-Please have mercy," said the Man. This was all he could say with his body continuing to be choked out.

"Mercy?" replied Maxine. "Mercy!" Her voice was almost like she was shouting and this only terrified him further. "Did you show my squire mercy when you robbed him, beat him within an inch of his life? Mercy is wasted on the likes of you, I should end your life right here, right now! I would be doing the world a favour by ridding it of scum like you!" She then let go and this caused him to fall to the ground. He landed on his backside and he was looking up at her. From his lower vantage point she looked even bigger than she did before. "Enjoy your last moments of being whole, take it as the only mercy that you'll find from me."

With that Maxine kicked him in the head, she was purposely careful to only knock him out and not actually kill him. All five men were unconscious but she wasn't done yet, she thought that they should still be punished, not just because of what happened to Charles but for the other victims that they very likely had.

One by one she chopped off the right hands of the men, this caused them to bleed somewhat but she was able to quickly cover them up with ripped parts of their clothing. She wanted to ensure that not only did they live but they would have a constant reminder that their actions have led to these consequences.

When the deed was done she simply threw the severed hands to one side so that the rats could have them. She began to walk out of the alleyway but she was sure to pick up Charles's pouch of gold on the way. She didn't know if all of the gold was accounted for but she knew that justice at least had been served.

With some care Maxine stepped out of the alleyway with blood on her armour and sword. None had reached her face but it was still a sight to see. Some people even saw her as she walked by and looked. She took no notice of them and simply kept on walking as if nothing had happened.

A few minutes later she found herself back inside of the room that she was sharing with Charles. The man himself was being treated by Maria who was bandaging up some of his wounds. She looked at the towering woman as she stepped in, it boggled her mind that Maxine was too tall to stand up inside of the room. This only made her think that her size was even more impossible.

"How is he?" asked Maxine. There was a slight hint of concern in her voice but she was still mainly the stern tone. This intimidated the much smaller woman but she knew that she wasn't in any danger.

"H-He should be fine," replied Maria. "His injuries will heal in time and there is no internal bleeding. He should make a full recovery before long." She then looked at Maxine's armour and could see the blood. "Are you hurt?"

"It's not my blood and its origin is none of your concern. Is there anything else that you need to do for him?"

"No, I've done what I can for now. I'll leave him a small amount of Tonsolan to help deal with the pain but for now all we can do is wait for his body to heal."

"Very well then." She took a bit of gold out from the pouch that she had been carrying. There wasn't much left after her time at the bathhouse/brothel but it would be enough to compensate Maria's efforts. "Thank you for helping my squire." She then placed the gold into Maria's seemingly tiny hand. The size different between them was close to being insane. "I very much appreciate it."

"Y-You're welcome. If you need my services again please visit our clinic."

"Do you need to escorted back?"

"No, I should be fine thank you." She then began to step toward the door. She looked at Maxine again and said goodbye to her before stepping out of the room and making her way back to the clinic.

With them now alone Maxine moved over to the bed that Charles was resting on. She knelt down to him and he slowly turned his head toward her. One of his eyes was bandaged up and he had some dressing on his cheek. It looked like he had been in the middle of a warzone but she was glad to know that he would be alright. She still felt bad for what had happened, it was something that she didn't want to have repeated.

"M-Ma'am," said Charles who seemed to be speaking with a slightly giddy tone of voice. She knew that it was the Tonsolan that was causing this. Not only was it dulling the pain but it was also making him go a little loopy.

"It's alright I'm here now. I'm sorry that I couldn't be while you were being treated. There was some business that needed to be taken care of."

"What did you hunt down and take out the people who robbed and attacked me?" This seemed to catch Maxine by surprise and her eyes widened.

"H-How do you know?"

"Well you were a little bit of time and your armour is all bloodied up. Don't worry, I'll clean it when I can."

"That won't be necessary, just rest as much as you can. I'll clean my own armour tonight, you just lie there and recover."

"I hope that you gave them hell ma'am."

"Don't worry, they won't be stealing from anyone else again."

Charles didn't say anything about this, from the amount of blood on her armour he thought that she had killed them. He wanted to feel sorry for them but he found himself unable to. Such a thing was beyond him at that moment in time as he was still nursing his injuries. He was just glad that she was back and that she had been able to bring his gold back to him. Now he didn't feel so bad.

As he lay there he remembered something that he had forgotten with all the excitement. He looked over to his bag that was a short distance away. Maxine was still kneeling by the bed but she made it seem like it was a normal person standing up. She saw his eyes wonder over in that direction.

"What is it?" asked Maxine.

"I-I bought something that I hope will help ma'am," replied Charles. "Please bring my bag over to me." He watched as the large woman carefully moved over to his bag and picked it up. She soon brought it back to him. He quickly began to go through it until he picked out the bottle of polish that he had bought earlier. He was thankful to see that the bottle hadn't been damaged during the attack.

"What's that?" She looked at the bottle that was in his hand.

"I-It's polish ma'am. It should make your armour shine as if it had just come out of the forgery. I was hoping to use it myself to clean up your armour but until I can you can use it if you want."

"You bought this for me?" She gently took the bottle out of his hand and looked at it. It looked quite small in her large hand but it seemed to be exactly what he said.

"O-of course." He coughed a little which did cause him a small amount of pain. "A knight should always look respectable." He then yawned for a moment. "My apologises ma'am but I really need to rest."

"Don't worry, take as long as you need." She placed the bottle down for a moment and even took off one of her armoured clothes. With her bare hand she placed it on his uninjured cheek. "You'll be no good to anyone injured."

"R-Right you are ma'am."

A few minutes later Charles did eventually drift off to sleep. Maxine watched over him for a short time and she was still annoyed that the attack had happened. She felt that she should have been there to protect him rather than bathing and having sex with three women at once. It didn't look very good on her as a knight and even though he had been tended to she still feared about long-term injuries.

As a way to try and quell her fears she took off her armour and began to clean it up. A task that she would give Charles but in his current condition it was impossible for him to do this. Instead she wiped off the blood as best as she could. She noticed that there was more there than she expected and she began to think that she might have gone a little overboard. She had maimed each one of Charles's attackers.

When Maxine looked over to her sleeping squire she knew that she had done the right thing. It was likely that the thieves had done this, numerous times before and would do it again given the chance. If they were to die she wouldn't shed a tear for them, to her they were scum and she was simply cleaning up the mess.

Within several minutes most of the blood was wiped off but there was still some redness left over. This was when she picked up the bottle of polish that had been bought by Charles. She looked at it for a few moments and then opened the top. The first thing that greeted her was the smell that made her feel a little sick. It took her a few seconds to get over it and she poured some of its contents onto a rag.

Carefully Maxine began to rub the rag over a patch of her armour that had been covered in blood. She put some effort into it and when she took the cloth away she could see that it was working better than she expected. The armour was coming out very shiny and she looked at the bottle of polish. What she was holding in her hand was the greatest cleaning product that she had ever seen in her opinion.

As the hours went by more and more of the armour was polished and it shone as if it was brand new. She seemed happy with this but fatigue was beginning to set in for her and she looked over to the bed. Charles was still fast asleep and originally, she had planned to be the only one sleeping there.

Instead Maxine began to make herself comfortable on the floor. It was annoying for her and it wasn't going to be the best sleep but she still went through with it anyway. She didn't want to wake her wounded squire and instead just slowly drifted off to sleep. She hoped that he would have recovered enough to travel the next morning.

Just as she finally drifted off to sleep the door to the room slowly opened. Whoever was opening it took great care in order to not cause any kind of sound. He was well hidden in the darkness and he crept inside with only one intent in his mind. Something that wasn't going to bold well for the pair.

The man could see better in the dark as his eyes had adjusted and he could see Maxine sleeping on the ground. At first, he thought that it was two people sleeping on the ground but as he took a better look he realised it was one very large person. This gave him second thoughts but he continued on nonetheless.

Quickly but quietly he began to go through the room as he was looking for anything valuable. He did notice Maxine's armour but when he went to pick it up he found it to be heavier than he expected. He thought that he might be able to sell it on for scrap but he did think that it was more trouble than it was worth.

However, when he looked under the bed he found exactly what he was looking for. He pulled out the bag that contained the gold that the pair had earned from William Bellamy's bounty. Even in the darkness he could see that there was plenty of gold inside, this made him grin for a few moments before he started to make his way out of the room with the bag in hand. Slowly he closed the door behind him and made his way out as if nothing had happened.

The hours flowed by and eventually the light of dawn woke up Maxine who sat up from where she was sleeping and yawned. Her back ached a little from sleeping on the floor but this was something that would likely fade away over the course of the day. She was just glad that it was morning and her stomach began to growl. She realised that it had been a while since she had last eaten and she was more than ready to have a few pies to go along with her breakfast.

Just as she was getting up she noticed that Charles to was beginning to wake up. He let out a loud yawn which would have likely woken her up regardless. He was moving around a little and although he was still in some pain it wasn't as bad as it was the night before. His wounds were still bandaged up and for the time being it was best that they stayed that way. He didn't want to cause an infection.

As Charles turned his head he saw Maxine sitting on the floor and putting her armour back on. It was difficult for her to do but she had been doing it for some time now so she knew what needed to be done. She looked over to Charles but didn't go over to him, instead she remained where she was and continued to look.

"Good morning ma'am," said Charles. He felt a little light headed after the Tonsolan that he had taken the night before. "Y-You're up early today."

"A knight gets up whenever he or she feels that it is right," replied Maxine. She put on one of her gauntlets and then moved her fingers. "How are you feeling today?"

"A-A little better thank you." He moved in the bed a little and sat up. He could still feel some pain around his rib area but it wasn't as bad as it had been the night before. Maria had done her job well.

"Will you be able to travel today?"

"I believe so although I don't think that I'll be able to go as fast as I used to." He chuckled a little although she didn't chuckle back.

"If you feel like you can we can go downstairs for some breakfast. I know that we're both hungry after what happened yesterday."

"Some food is in order, if you need any more gold I hid it under the bed."

Maxine nodded and moved toward the bed. When she was close enough she lowered herself and expected to see the bag of gold that they had earned the previous day. Much to her surprise she could see nothing. At first, she didn't panic or anything as she just continued to search but there was still nothing.

From his bed Charles didn't realise that anything was wrong at first until he saw Maxine's hurried movements. He began to see that something was wrong and he looked over at her as she continued to search under the bed.

"Charles you put it under this bed, right?" asked Maxine. She had lifted her head in order to look at him.

"Yes ma'am," replied Charles. "I put it there last night before I left."

"Get off of the bed."

"Ma'am?"

"You heard what I said." There was some anger in her voice as she spoke. She didn't like saying the same instruction twice.

Without question Charles got off of the bed and he was a little dizzy as he went to his feet. He couldn't fully recover however before he saw Maxine place her large hands on either side of the bed. Then without much effort she was able to pick it up and lift it into the air. This surprised him as he knew roughly how much a bed weighed and the fact that she had lifted it so easily.

Both of them looked at the space that the bed had occupied and although there were a few items underneath there was nothing that even resembled a bag of gold. This annoyed Maxine greatly and she looked over to Charles who couldn't help but be a little scared. He watched as she placed the bed down on the ground and then glared at him. He knew that he was in for a bad time.

"Where is it?" asked Maxine in a harsh tone. She started to move toward him and he backed up against the wall.

"It was right their ma'am," replied Charles. "I swear that's where I left it."

"It's not here now so where did it go?" She grabbed him by his shirt and almost lifted him off of his feet. "It would be unwise for you to steal from me, after everything I've done for you."

"No ma'am, I swear I didn't steal it." He was panicking as he thought that his life was about to come to an end. "I would never do such a thing like that to you, I have served you faithfully so far, please don't hurt me." He thought that she was about to punch him as she moved her arm. However, she punched the wall behind him causing it to crack around the impact area.

"Damn it!" She let go of him and he fell to the ground. He could see her clenching her fist and she looked down to the ground. "All that hard work for nothing!"

"I'm sorry ma'am."

"Right now, I don't want to hear your voice. From now on you only speak when you're spoken, understood?" She watched as her squire shook his head with fear.

He feared that she would be taking his mother's locket and just like they had agreed if he had failed her. For now, she said nothing about it and he didn't want to remind her. The last thing he wanted was for her to remember and take his most prized possession. He also thought that she already remembered and simply hadn't decided to keep it yet, he hoped that she wouldn't change her mind.

For the next several minutes both Maxine and Charles began to get their belongings together. They still had his share of their gold left which meant that they hadn't lost everything, just the vast majority of the gold that they earned. He could see the frustrated look on her face. She looked as though she would crush the skull of anyone who just looked at her the wrong way.

Maxine knew that Charles wasn't responsible for the loss of the gold, at first, she thought that it was Marie but she knew that it wasn't her. She would have noticed Marie carrying the gold when she had left the room earlier. Since there had been nothing then she figured that someone had snuck into the room while she was asleep and taken her well deserved earnings much to her frustration.

A part of her really wanted to try and track down the person responsible but she knew that it was a fool's errand. When she had found the gang responsible for stealing from and injuring Charles it had been through pure luck. This time she knew that whoever had stolen her gold was likely long gone. He was probably laughing as he spent her gold on whatever he wanted. This thought annoyed her greatly and she glanced down at Charles who was walking by her as they left the inn.

On more than one occasion Maxine considered striking him. This was to punish him and to vent her frustration. It was the teachings of her father that prevented her from doing this, a knight who mistreated their squire had no claim to call themselves a knight. She hadn't been knighted yet but it would still look bad on her if her squire was injured by her hand.

Slowly the pair left the inn and began to make their way out of Grey Town. Rather than buying a full warm breakfast like they had originally planned they simply picked up some bread from a baker who they stopped off at on the way. It didn't cost them too much and allowed them to preserve the precious gold that they had.

It was a bit of a sight for the baker seeing a nine-foot woman clad entirely in thick armour and a relatively small man who was wearing bandages. It looked very odd for him indeed but he said nothing as he could see Maxine's frustration. Instead of commenting he simply gave them what they wanted and took the money that was required. He watched as they walked away and it was likely something that he'd never forget.

They ate the bread as they walked and by the time they had finished they were on the outskirts of Grey Town. They were walking along the path that they had travelled the previous day, Charles didn't need to ask to know where they were going. He remembered Maxine's friend Gregory who had asked for their assistance in a recent job. With the loss of their gold it was the most likely place that they were going.

He wanted to ask Maxine for certainty but he was still too afraid to ask her. He feared that if he spoke she would strike him, he had seen how she had taken down three large men at the Brown Horse Inn. She had barely put any effort into it and she hadn't even used her sword. He thought that if she was able to defeat three men like that, he wouldn't stand a chance of withstanding her punch.

Maxine also purposely walked at a faster pace than normal which meant that Charles had to pick up his own pace to keep up with her. With his injuries this only made the task more painful and difficult for him. He didn't like it one bit but he couldn't say anything due to his fear of the giant woman. He thought that it was best to simply endure rather than trying to say anything.

Eventually it got to the point that Charles couldn't go on any further without having to sit down and have a decent rest. He was close to collapsing and Maxine seemed to be walking on. She did notice that he had stopped and she turned around to look at him. She had an annoyed look on her face, he was scared but he was too tired to try and catch up with the armour-clad giant.

"I didn't tell you to stop," said Maxine. Her voice was somewhat emotionless as if she didn't care.

"I'm sorry ma'am but I can't go on," replied Charles. "I'm on the verge of collapsing right now."

"We can't stop, not until I decide that we do."

"Please ma'am, I'm trying the best that I can but I simply can't keep walking right now. I need to rest."

"You rest when I tell you to rest." She looked at him and she could see how much he was struggling. Her frustration was getting the better of her and she it was negatively affecting her squire. "Fine we'll stop for now."

"Thank you, ma'am."

Charles wanted to say something else but he felt that it was best if he said something. He simply sat down on the ground and nursed his aching legs. Maxine sat down as well but she wasn't as tired as him. She was still extremely annoyed that the gold that she had earned had been stolen from her.

She began to imagine the thief in front of her. She didn't know what he looked like so she imagined a stereotypical thief. She placed her hands around his head and then squeezed until it exploded like a tomato. This was only going on in her head but it still meant that she could enjoy it.

  Maxine allowed her squire to rest for around half an hour so that he could regain his strength. After that she decided that they would continue their journey back to the inn. She knew that her friend Gregory would be there waiting for her, another assignment that paid well was just what she needed. She was still frustrated about losing her previous gold and was ready to cut anyone in half who so much as looked at her in the wrong way.

  Charles was reluctant to get back up but he knew better than to defy her. He was still tired but he still got back up to his feet and continued walking. One thing that he was thankful for was the fact that she hadn’t decided that his mother’s locket now belonged to her. She knew how much it meant to him and it showed him that there was still a lot of honour within her despite her anger.

  They walked in silence for about an hour and a half. Charles was once again walking at a quicker pace so that he could keep up with the much taller woman. The clanging of her armour could be heard with every movement that she made. She still had her helmet tied to her side but for now she didn’t feel the need to wear it. Instead she just kept it there but she would place it on her head when she needed it.

  “I’m sorry ma’am but we need to stop again,” said Charles. There was a small amount of nervousness in his voice. He knew that she had said that he was only allowed to speak to her when he was spoken to but he felt that he needed to do it this time.

  “You need to rest again?” replied Maxine with an annoyed tone. “Surely you can’t be serious.”

  “No, it’s not that ma’am, I really need to…” He was about to say but he saw her put her hand up and give a sigh. She knew exactly what he was about to say and she knew it was something that couldn’t be helped.

  “Go and be quick about it.”

  Charles thanked her before quickly moving into a wooden area that was close by. He wanted to be sure that she couldn’t see him and he even found himself a nice spot for what he needed to do. He looked back for a moment to check that she couldn’t see him, as soon as he was sure he began to urinate on a nearby tree.

  He gave a small sigh of relief as he had been holding it in for the last half an hour but had been too scared to ask Maxine to stop. During their short time together, he respected her and couldn’t help but admire her goals and desires. Above all he feared her though, he feared her strength and temper. He thought that if he angered her too much that she might kill him or at least seriously injure him. It was something that he didn’t want to experience at all.

  Just as Charles was finishing off what he needed to do he began to hear a sound. It sounded a little like footsteps and for a moment he thought that it was merely Maxine. However, his mind was telling him otherwise, the footsteps sounded lighter than if they were a nine-foot woman wearing heavy armour. He also couldn’t hear the clinging of the armour along with the footsteps.

  Just as he turned around he could see something that terrified him. Standing no more than ten feet away from him was a wolf. It had silver like fur and stood there growling at him, he froze in place and hoped that if he stayed still that the wolf might walk away. Instead the creature remained where it was and continued to growl at him. He dared not move for the time being and he didn’t even call out for help.

  Charles’s mind was trying to figure out exactly what he was going to do in order to get out of this situation. He could see the teeth of the animal as it continued to growl, he didn’t know if he had just wandered into the wolf’s territory or what. He just waited as he figured out his next move.

  This decision was taken away from him as the wolf quickly began to move forward. This caused Charles to turn and run as fast as his legs could carry him. He needed to dodge trees as he ran but he could hear the wolf behind him. He knew that if he reached Maxine that he would be safe. She was upset with him but he didn’t think that she’d let him die, she was too honourable as a person.

  The next thing he saw was Maxine standing in the road waiting for him. She had no idea what he was doing but almost as soon as he ran out of the wooded area she saw the wolf chasing after him. Quicker than what was thought possible for a woman of her stature she unsheathed her large sword and then stabbed it down in the wolf with a strong and quick motion.

  The creature gave a howl of pain before it fell to the ground. It was bleeding heavily and it could do nothing to stop itself from slipping away to the next plain of existence. The large woman looked over on it as she sheathed her sword. Charles had been running and he was a little out of breath from what had just happened. She had said nothing to him and bent down so that she could pick up the wolf. She didn’t think that there was much point in wasting good meat.

  “Thank you, ma’am,” said Charles. He was catching his breath and he looked up at her. He was beginning to get used to being around a woman who was more than three feet taller than him.

  “That’s another life debt that you owe,” replied Maxine. Her voice was still serious and she turned her head to look down to him. “Am I correct?”

  “Y-Yes ma’am, but…” Before he could say another word, he saw Maxine turn away. She had the dead wolf over her shoulder.

  “Come along Charles, we still have a few miles to go.”

  “A-As you wish ma’am.” He watched as she walked away and he could do nothing but follow her. He was still curious about a few things and he wanted to ask, however he was still somewhat fearful about doing so. “If I may be so bold might I ask you a question?” He expected her to ignore him or even give him some kind of insult. She did remain looking forward but she didn’t ignore him at all.

  “And what may that be?” Her voice still sounded intimidating even though it was much closer to her normal speaking voice.

  “Why are you carrying the wolf? Do you plan on making it into a trophy of some kind?” He watched her look at him for a moment with an annoyed look before looking back to the path ahead.

  “I’m a knight not a hunter. Such trophies mean nothing to me, it is a waste of good meat to allow it to remain where it was. I plan on having a wolf pie out of this so it is a type of pie I can cross off my list.” It was a mental list that she was keeping as she couldn’t read or write very well. “Besides this is nothing in comparison to a wolf that my father has killed in the past. Are you familiar with Great Wolves?”

  “Yes, they’re a much larger species of wolf. They were thought to be extinct until some popped up near Featherstone.”

  “You’re right, some had made their way into the mines and my father along with a few other knights were sent down there to get rid of them. He personally killed at least two but didn’t keep any as trophies. That’s his integrity as a knight, a lesser man would have taken something of those wolves to prove that they had killed it. My father decided that such things were unnecessary for a knight. Those who go out of their way to take trophies are vain and unworthy to be knighted.”

  “I-I understand ma’am.” He began to imagine Maxine fighting against a pack of Great Wolves. Although they would be larger than her he would have still wagered that she would come out on top. He was that confident of her strength and skills that a part of him even thought that she was invincible.

  “Good, let that be a lesson to you.”

  Charles could see that the answer had come to an end and for the time being he had nothing else to ask. He just watched as Maxine continued to walk with the dead wolf over her shoulder, a part of him did wonder what a wolf pie would taste like. He didn’t think it would be very nice but up until a few minutes ago he hadn’t considered eating one. Now he was a little curious.

  More time passed as the pair continued to walk and once again Charles was beginning to get tired. He still didn’t dare ask her for another rest but he soon realised that he didn’t have to, a short distance away from them was the inn that was their destination. This was a huge relief for him and he was more than eager to follow her inside.

  Once inside Maxine scanned the inn but she couldn’t see her friend Gregory, she figured that he would be there soon and so she stepped toward the bar and placed the wolf down. The Innkeeper looked at it and then looked up at her, the tall woman had a serious look on her face as she instructed the Innkeeper to make a few pies out of the dead animal.

  Also, she ordered some drinks before picking them up and bringing them over the table where Charles was sitting. He was writing down some financial information in his book and he had to write away the majority of the gold that they had earned earlier. It was annoying that such a thing had happened but he was sure that they would earn some more in the near future.

  The gold that he had been given for his help in capturing William Bellamy had gone back into the pool along with whatever gold Maxine had left. It wasn’t all that much but it would be enough to last them until they were paid for the next job. He saw her place a cup by him, as she knew he wanted it was simply water as he didn’t want to get drunk at that moment in time. Her own large cup was filled with strong ale that she drank as if she were drinking milk or water.

  “What’s our situation?” asked Maxine after she had finished her ale. He had watched her take large gulps until the entirety of the ale had gone.

  “W-We should be alright if we’re wise with our money,” replied Charles. He was looking over the notes that he had written down. “One thing that we’ll have to sacrifice staying at inns overnight.”

  “That’s fine by me, the beds are too small and the ceiling too low.” Ever since she had left home in order to seek her own path to knighthood she had never slept in a bed that was large enough for her. The majority of the buildings that she had stayed also had ceilings that were comfortable for normal people but not a nine-foot woman.

  “I’m also guessing that you got a discount on your pies since you provided the meat for the establishment?”

  “Indeed, the Innkeeper plans on selling the skin off so she’s making the pies for me for free as a show of gratitude. I only hope that it tastes as good as I imagine, but one thing I do find a little odd was that it was alone.”

  “You’re partially right there. Most wolves do hunt in packs but there are also some that prefer to live on their own. I believe that is where the term Lone Wolf comes from ma’am.” He did have another idea about how to get onto her good side, this involved him asking her about her favourite man in the world. “So, your father, how many men has he bested in battle?”

  “Many men have fallen to my father’s skill with a blade but very few lost their lives. He is an honourable man and he taught me everything he knew. He even taught me how to forge my own sword, a Martel does not buy his or her sword, they make it with their own blood, sweat and tears. A blade crafted by the knight is more effective than a blade bought or given.”

  “I see.” He thought that it was interesting that it seemed like her family forged their swords. Most knights were from upper class families and the idea of forging their own sword was alien to them. It was one reason why the Martels had been looked down upon as they were thought of nothing more than commoners. “Did you have to craft your own armour as well or was that bought?”

  “I did mainly forge this armour but I had help from my uncle and cousins. The material was the most time consuming but I saved and even recycled some old armour in order to create this one. As you saw it’s thick enough to deflect a crossbow bolt and sword swipes can’t penetrate it.”

  “It looks incredibly heavy ma’am.”

  “It is, but thankfully I’m strong enough to carry it day in, day out. Armour does slow you down, but it keeps you alive.”

  Before anything else could be said a couple of large pies were brought to Maxine by the innkeeper. They had arrived faster than she had expected and she looked forward to eating the wolf pies. Some bread and cheese had been brought to Charles as he too needed food, to conserve their funds he chose something that was cheap until he felt that he could splash out again.

  Maxine quickly dug into the pie as she cut it open and began to eat the meat and pastry. She took a moment to fully taste it and she was savouring the flavour. In comparison to other pies that she had eaten she didn’t think too much to it. If she had been eating wolf meat by itself she wouldn’t think too much of it. But since it was baked into a pie she instantly thought that it was better than it could have been.

  Charles could only watch as the tall woman sitting before him continued to eat the pies as if she hadn’t been fed for a week. He wasn’t too surprised as he knew that a woman of her stature would require a lot of food in order to properly function. The fact that she was carrying such heavy armour all day.

  Within a few minutes both pies were gone and Maxine wiped any crumbs that were around her face. For the time being she was satisfied but if there was more she could easily make room for it. Charles had only eaten roughly half of his own food by the time she was done and she downed it with another cup of strong ale.

  There were a few people who were looking at her but most of them knew better than to look for too long. They feared that doing such a thing would result in them losing an eye or another vital part of their body. It was true that Maxine would not do such a thing unless provoked to.

  Just then the door to the inn opened but no one seemed to take any real notice as many people came and went but there was the sound of heavy footsteps of armoured soldiers. Around half a dozen quickly came in and this attracted the attention of everyone in the inn who quickly turned to look at them.

  Each soldier wore shiny armour and was armed with a sword and shield. They wore cloaks that were white with a red symbol stitched onto them. The symbol was that of a bear’s head and there was silence amongst each of them. They stood alongside the door as if they were preparing for a ceremony of some sort.

  Suddenly another man stepped in but he was unlike the soldiers who had come in. They were dressed head to toe in armour but this man was in normal clothing. He was a lanky man with dark black hair and his clothing probably cost more than a person’s house. It was a green outfit that was made from the finest materials. Like the cloaks of the soldiers there was also the red head of a bear stitched onto the chest. This time it was much smaller and placed over his heart.

  The man walked forward and quickly stopped at the bar where the Innkeeper was waiting. She was a little intimidated by the man as she could see that he was a very important person. The kind of people she was used to dealing with were common folks and even those who were down on their luck. A rich man like this one was a very rare sight in these parts, most would not want to be caught dead in such an establishment.

  “C-Can I help you sir?” asked the Innkeeper. She looked up at the man and saw him smile at her. His teeth were in very good condition in comparison to most of her patrons. This only seemed to make her more worried.

  “Yes, indeed you can,” replied the Man. “My name is Laurence of House Brees.” It was a name that many of the patrons had heard before. They hadn’t particularly heard of Laurence but they had heard of his family. They were a wealthy family who owned some ports on the west coast of Angleland. They brought in a fair amount of money which had added to their wealth over many, many years. “And I’m here looking for a particular man.” He took a parchment out of his pocket and unrolled it showing a wanted poster. “This man is guilty of crimes against my family and my father has instructed me to bring him back. My sources have informed me that he was travelling east, he isn’t someone that you’ve spotted here, recently have you?”

  The Innkeeper took a better look at the poster. Like many others she had difficulty reading but she could see the drawing of the wanted man in question. She could see that he had short light hair and a bite mark on his cheek. The man in question had been bitten by a dog as a child and it had left a permanent mark on his face. This made him recognisable but it still didn’t look like someone that she had seen.

  “No sir, I can’t say that I have,” said the Innkeeper. She thought that she might get into some trouble for this. She knew that a high born such as Laurence normally didn’t pay too much mind to common folks and often used them as tools. There was a chance that he would be angered by her answer and damage her source of income.

  “Oh, that’s too bad,” replied Laurence. His smile didn’t fade away and the Innkeeper expected some kind of retaliation for her uselessness. “Then you wouldn’t mind if I ask your loyal customers?”

  “N-No not at all.” She could hardly say no to him but she knew that it could lead to trouble if any of them decided to try anything funny.

  Laurence stepped away from the counter and began to go around to each of the patrons and asked whether they had seen the man in question. One by one they gave him a no and there were a couple who considered kidnapping the rich man and ransoming him back to his family. This was not the best idea as the guards followed him around everywhere and ensured that no one kidnapped him.

  Each of the guards were highly trained and were more than a match for practically everyone inside of the inn. There were a few who could take them on but not without the likelihood of receiving a terrible injury. Because of this no one dared try anything.

  Eventually Laurence reached Charles who quickly told him that he hadn’t seen the man that he was looking for. This was when Laurence turned his attention to Maxine and he marvelled over her size. He had thought that she was a man with long hair but when he saw her face he could see that she was a woman. Even sitting down, he could see how extremely tall she was and he couldn’t help but feel impressed. He was confused about why a woman would be wearing armour like a knight.

  “You there,” said Laurence. He stood by Maxine who seemed to be minding her own business. Her head turned toward him and she could see his smile, she remembered how her father told her that high born people were normally more trouble than they were worth. “You are by far the largest woman I have ever seen, if not the largest person. If you would be so kind could you stand up for me? I would like to see just how large you are.”

  Maxine fell silent for a few moments as she decided whether she should fulfil his request or not. A part of her didn’t want to feel like some kind of freak but she also knew that it was unwise to decline the request of a high born. It would lead to much more trouble down the line and that was something that she didn’t want to experience.

  In silence she slowly rose from the table that she was sitting at and Laurence, the guards and some of the patrons gasped at how tall she was. A couple of the guards even tightened their grip on their weapons as they thought that there was a chance that they’d run into trouble. As she rose she truly dwarfed all the people standing beside her. Laurence seemed to be intimidated at first but then he couldn’t help but smile. She loomed over him like a true giant and she was thankful for the inn’s high ceiling.

  “My you are a big one,” said Laurence. “You make my men look like disobedient young children, if I live until I’m a hundred I’ll never forget this moment. But how rude of me, I’ve been asking you all these things without even asking your name.”

  “My name is Maxine Theresia Martel, eldest daughter of Sir Tucker Martel,” replied Maxine with some pride in her voice. Her voice wasn’t as deep or booming as he had expected. To him her voice sounded like that of any maiden although he could sense a hint of aggression behind it.

  “Martel, now where have I heard that name before?” He fell silent as he continued to think and then he eventually put two and two together. “Oh yes, your family are the blacksmiths from Morgan. My family occasionally purchases weapons and ironwork from your forgery. I have to admit that the craftmanship is quite elegant. Now, what is the daughter of a blacksmith doing pretending to be a knight?”

  “My father was a knight before and I wish to take the same path that he did. I wish to bring pride to the Martel name.”

  “If I were you I’d quit right now.” He looked at her again more thoroughly. He thought that she might have been using something to boost her height but he could see her armour-clad feet on the ground and her proportions seemed accurate for a very large person. “I do remember hearing about your father and that he was knighted. If you ask me that was more out of luck than anything else, besides you shouldn’t be going around playing knight. You’re a maiden and should get back to maiden activities. Even though you are by far the largest maiden in the land.”

  These words were angering Maxine but she could do nothing to show for it. If he had of been a normal person there was a good chance that he would have lost most of his teeth. However, if she had done this to Laurence she would find herself in irons very quickly and most likely have an appointment with the Hangman. For now, all she could do was to bite her tongue and allow the insult to go unpunished.

  “Besides what are you going to call yourself? Sir Maxine?” asked Laurence. “How absurd must that be.” He chuckled for a few moments before he realised that he had wasted enough time there. “Anyway, I have places to be and a certain man to capture, I’ll definitely remember you Miss Martel but now I bid you farewell.”

  With that Laurence and the other guards quickly moved out of the inn. There were a few horses waiting for them outside. A white horse in particular was waiting for Laurence who quickly climbed onto it. When he was sure that they were all ready he ordered them to continue on Eastwards. He wanted to capture this man as soon as possible and for the time being they had few leads.

  With them gone Maxine clenched her fist in anger and quickly sat back down at the table. Charles had remained silent as he too recognised the name of Brees. They were a fairly wealthy family and getting on their bad side would never end well for himself or Maxine. He could see the annoyed look on her face as she sat down and he knew that Laurence’s comments had hit her harder than any sword could.

  “Are you alright ma’am?” asked Charles who looked at the larger armoured woman. He could see that her fists were still clenched. It was likely she was about to explode with rage at any moment.

  “Get me another ale,” replied Maxine.

  “But ma’am, the budget.” His words were suddenly halted when he saw her armour-clad fist slam down onto the table. The fact that the table hadn’t broken in half was nothing short of a miracle in his mind.

  “I said get me another ale!” Her words fairly loud and very angry. It sent fear through the body of Charles who quickly got up and did what he was told. He didn’t want to imagine what would happen if he refused.

  Maxine continued to sit there and in her head, she imagined having Laurence’s head in her hands and then squeezing it until it exploded. The truth was that she would probably never do such a thing in real life but in her mind, anything was possible. It also made her wonder what would have happened if she had been born a boy rather than a girl. She thought that her quest to become a knight would be taken more seriously by others. Judging from the rest of her family there was one key thing to her that would be lost if she had been born the other gender to what she was.

  These thoughts were interrupted when she saw a large cup of ale being placed down in front of her. She didn’t waste any time in picking it up and drinking the contents, to most people it would be enough to satisfy them for a while but to her it was nothing more than a taster as she quickly demanded that Charles bring her another. She didn’t care about how much gold they had at that moment in time. She was angry and drinking was the only thing she could do to calm herself.

For the next couple of hours Maxine continued to drink the ale, one cup after another. Each time she finished one she demanded Charles to buy her another. It was draining the precious gold that they had left and he was close to refusing her. Not because he had the courage to but simply because they were out of gold.

One thing that he was surprised with was simply how much she was drinking. He was sure that she had drunk enough to kill a man or at the very least make them pass out. She had drunk all that and was not only conscious but showed little signs that she was even drinking. Her words were still stable and to the point and she didn't even stagger about at all. He would have thought that she was simply throwing it away if he had of seen her actually drink the ale himself.

Charles guessed that Maxine's large body allowed her to tolerate alcohol much more than an average person. He wanted to ask about it but he knew better than to say anything to her, she was still extremely annoyed by both being the victim of robbery the night before and the high-born insulting her size, family and gender. It was more than she could handle and, in her mind, drinking was the best option she had.

"Get me another," said Maxine as she placed her large cup down. She looked at her squire who sat across from her. For the last couple of hours, he had gotten up and bought her ale every time she had asked for more. But this time he remained seated. "Why are you still here? I told you to get me another ale."

"But ma'am I can't," replied Charles. He was afraid about what she was going to do to him but he knew that it needed to be said. "We just spent the last of our gold, we don't even have enough for any supper."

"Damn it!" She slammed her hand on the table so hard that it drew the attention of almost everyone in the inn. They looked at her for several moments but she didn't care. She just sat there and most of the patrons simply went back to what they had been doing. "Why didn't you stop me?" Her voice was quieter and somewhat calmer than it had been a few seconds before.

"I didn't think it was good for my health to tell you no." He felt like he had done wrong. "Please forgive me ma'am."

"No." She then gave a sigh. "It's my fault, I should have known better. High borns are nothing but trouble and yet I need one."

"Why would you say that ma'am?"

"Because only a member of the royal family or a Lord can knight someone. My father was knighted by Lord Tyrone Howlet."

"Isn't he a little young to have knighted your father? He would have only been around your age now."

"No not him that one, his father before him. But right now, more importantly I want you to write down the name of Laurence Brees."

"Why would you want me to do that?" He thought that it was an odd request but he also thought that he might be asking too many questions.

"Because of his insults. I don't care that he insulted my size and gender, but he also insulted my family. That's not just me or my father but also my mother, brothers, sisters and anyone with the Martel name. That is something that I can't forgive, I don't care if it takes me twenty years I'm going to ensure that he pays for those insults one way or another."

"A-As you wish ma'am." He knew now more than ever that truly bringing out Maxine's wrath was to insult her family. It didn't take much wisdom for him to know that doing so would likely end in a bloodbath for him.

Just then the door to the inn opened and for a moment they thought that Laurence was returning. Instead they saw the familiar face of Gregory entering the inn, this was a relief for them both as they had been waiting a good while for him to come. He had a smile on his face as he spotted the large woman sitting at the table with her squire. He didn't waste any time in walking toward them. The other patrons had not really noticed him as he sat down right next to Maxine.

He did feel small in comparison to her and it was something that he would likely never get used to but he knew that if he wanted to complete his next job that he would need her assistance. He could see that she had a slightly annoyed look on her face so he knew not to do anything that would make her angry.

"Hey there Maxine," said Gregory. "I take it that you're here to take up my offer?" There was a small amount of happiness in his voice. He hoped that it would be enough to lift her spirits.

"I am here aren't I," replied Maxine who didn't seem to have any time for his games. He wasn't close enough for her to consider him as a friend but they were more than simply colleagues.

"Indeed, you are, you're pretty hard woman to miss." He chuckled a little but all he saw was her scowl. He knew to stop laughing at that moment and to get down to business. "Moving on, like I mentioned before there's a job that I've been hired for that I need your help with. A nearby town has a bandit problem, the mayor is hiring myself and other would be knights to rid them of said bandits. The pay is good and with enough of us the bandits shouldn't be too much of a problem."

"If you don't think that it's that much of a problem then it's not worth my time." She would have taken another sip of ale if she had any left over. This still annoyed her as she felt that she hadn't had enough.

"Ok, so maybe I was telling a lie there. The situation is more dangerous than I originally stated. These bandits are crafty bastards to say the least, they rob from you blind and then lurk back into the shadows before you can even get a clear view of them. Several people have already tried to stop them but they normally end up buried in the ground. Local militias, law enforcement. So far nothing has worked, hiring people like us is their last resort."

"And how many people like us are on the job already?" She didn't like his word use all that much but she wouldn't correct him.

"If I'm able to recruit you we'll have five. If your squire there plans to fight then it'll be six." Charles began to listen more intensely when he realised that he had been mentioned, the thought of fighting bandits did scare him.

"My squire will do no such thing. His responsibility is to assist me in whatever way I see fit. Put him in a battlefield and he wouldn't last thirty seconds."

"I'm right here," replied Charles. He didn't particular like the fact that they were talking about him without acknowledging that he was even there.

"I'm well aware of that." Her look was nothing more of a glance and the tone of her voice indicated that she wanted him to stay quiet. She genuinely scared her squire when she was like this and he began to wonder if asking to become her squire was the biggest mistake of his life.

"That's too bad," said Gregory. He mostly ignored the brief conversation between Maxine and Charles. Instead he focused on the job and nothing else. "An extra pair of hands would be some help, but if they aren't trained then they will only be a hindrance than anything else. Less people to worry about."

"Indeed, and how many bandits are we dealing with here?"

"We're not one hundred percent sure. Estimates are at around fifteen but it is likely that there are more. We've never been able to keep them all in one place long enough for us to count them."

"That's not good, there could be a thousand of them for all we know. But still would we be paid per bandit or as a lump sum?"

"Unfortunately, it's as a lump sum, prevents any greedy knights from just lopping off someone's head and then claiming them to be a bandit."

"Out how much exactly would I be getting for this job?"

"Around five thousand gold each person who participates. It would be more with less people but then again the chances of success would be cut."

"Very well, I will help but we will move in the morning. It is too late to start travelling right now."

"Wise as ever I see. I take it that you've booked yourself a room in this lovely establishment?"

"No, we're out of gold and will be sleeping outside tonight. Most likely underneath a bush of some kind."

"Hmm, I thought that you were going to make plenty of gold after the last job that you did." He could see the scowl on her face and he quickly backtracked his words. "But of course, whatever you do with your gold is fine by me. I on the other hand will be enjoying a warm bed tonight, I would invite you as well but you understand why I can't."

"Unfortunately, I do."

She knew that quite a lot of inns had small rooms and her overall size made things difficult, especially if there was someone else inside as well. It was something that she had become use to with her size, it had many benefits when it came to combat and intimidation but it also had many drawbacks.

Maxine and Gregory continued to talk about the job for a bit longer while Charles sat there and simply listened. He was writing a few things down which he felt was important to the job, this was going beyond the notice of both armour-clad figures. One thing that he noticed was that she hadn't told Gregory about Laurence and what had happened shortly before his arrival. He simply figured that it was information that didn't need to be said, he certainly wasn't going to tell Gregory.

Eventually night did set in and both Maxine and her friend decided that it was best to head off to bed as they had a lot of travelling to do in the morning. Gregory headed toward a room that he had booked during his stay while Maxine ducked out of the inn with her squire walking behind her.

The pair walked for around a minute while they tried to spot a decent place in order to get some sleep. Eventually they did find one underneath a large tree that would give them a small amount of shelter if it decided to rain. Charles didn't particularly like sleeping on the hard ground but in this circumstance, he had no other option. He was somewhat afraid of being attacked while he slept but he did feel some safety while he was with Maxine. Despite the fact that she was annoyed with him he knew that she wouldn't allow any harm to come to him.

Maxine remained quiet throughout and she felt alone with her thoughts. Her mind began to wander as she contemplated what had happened that day. It was definitely one that she would prefer to forget as she had lost all of her gold either due to theft or her own alcoholism. She and her family had also been insulted and she hadn't been able to correct this person of her mistake.

A part of her thought that she was being a little too harsh on her squire. But she had her pride to consider and it had been hurt that day. She just slowly closed her eyes and hoped that the next day would be better. She felt a little hungry as she hadn't eaten any supper that night, her body needed more food than a normal person and if she went without eating for too long she would run into trouble. A normal person could survive a few weeks without food, she could barely survive a few days.

Even though Charles was still intimidated by Maxine he still slept close to her. He couldn't help but feel safe around her as memories flooded of when they first met. She had taken down three capable men as if they were disobedient children it was the most surreal thing that he had ever seen and it had changed his life forever.

Eventually both of them were asleep but come dawn Maxine was awoken by something wet that struck her forehead. She tried to ignore it but then she felt another, then another and another. Slowly she opened her eyes and when she looked up she felt another wet drop strike her eye. This caused her to sit up and she rubbed her eyes, thankfully it was just water so there was no danger of permanent damage.

As her vision returned she could see that although it was light the clouds above were grey. Rain was falling down on the world below and it was likely going to last for the entire day. This made her grunt as she wasn't a fan of rain, she knew that it was necessary but it didn't mean that she couldn't dislike it.

Maxine allowed Charles to sleep for a little longer while she just sat there and watched the rain. The tree above had absorbed some of the water but there was still enough falling down to prevent her from going back to sleep. Her stomach growled for food but as she had spent their remaining gold on ale the night before there was nothing that she could do for the time being to satisfy herself.

Her thoughts even drifted to her home in Morgan where her family were living. She imagined that her brothers and sisters were still likely in bed. She thought about the food that was there as well, right now she would eat it. Even if the food was cooked by her mother she would still eat it. She knew that one day she would return to them and she hoped that she would have made her father proud by that time.

"Charles wake up," said Maxine as she shoved him a little with her hand. This didn't seem to get anything out of him and he remained asleep. She shoved him a little harder and this got a small reaction but still not enough to wake him up. She resorted to striking him in the forehead but it wasn't to hurt him, just to awaken him.

"Five more minutes," replied Charles sleeplessly. He didn't remember exactly where he was as he had been awoken from a dream. The dream was still fading from his mind as reality set in.

"Now Charles!" Her voice was a little sterner but it didn't sound threatening at all. She slowly stood up and stretched herself a little. Her back was in a small amount of discomfort since she had slept in her armour.

When he realised who he was talking to he quickly woke up properly and slowly got back to his feet. He felt like he could have slept for longer but he didn't think it was best to go against what she said. Like her he too was hungry but he said nothing about it, instead he simply looked up at her as he expected her to command him to do something. He also noticed the weather and it seemed bleak.

One thing that Charles did consider doing was trying to find some edible mushrooms. He remembered reading a guide a few months back about which mushrooms were edible and which ones were not. There was one in particular that he had read about that caused hallucinations. He had wondered what they were like but he had yet to find any in order to experiment with them.

"Is there anything you require ma'am?" asked Charles. He didn't want to go off and do anything by himself just in case there was a particular task that she wanted him to do. The last thing he wanted to do was anger her.

"We're going back to the inn, at this time in the morning there will be someone there operating it," replied Maxine. She did look down at him and her look didn't seem threatening. She still looked tired but she was too awake to attempt to get back to sleep. "There might be some wolf meat left for us to eat something."

"As you wish ma'am."

At a slower pace than usual the pair made their way back toward the inn, it was obvious to anyone who looked on that they weren't fully rested. Charles staggered a little and even placed his hand on Maxine to steady himself. This was noticed by the tall woman but she did nothing to react to this, instead she just kept walking forward. Her armour felt unusually heavy and she would have liked nothing more than to take it off. But she couldn't do such a thing as her armour showed that she wasn't just some maiden but instead a warrior.

Eventually they reached the inn and went inside where they saw someone else running it who wasn't the regular innkeeper. This man was her nephew and often ran the inn during the early hours so that his aunt could have a decent rest. Unlike her he had never seen Maxine before so seeing this gigantic, armoured woman made him very nervous as she walked toward the counter. Charles had sat himself down at a nearby table and was doing all he could to prevent himself from going back to sleep.

"Last night I bought a wolf here and he was made into pies," said Maxine. Her voice sounded intimidating even though it was not her intent. "Do you still have any of that meat left?"

"I-I'm afraid not sir," replied the Man. He saw her eye twitch for a moment and he realised that he had just basically called her a man. She said nothing and he feared that she would strike him down.

"Then do you at least have some water? We spent our last coin here last night so maybe some complimentary water would be acceptable?"

"I-I'll go get you that now."

"And one for my squire as well."

"Very well, please take a seat."

Maxine was sure to thank him before she sat down at the same table as Charles. They could hear the rain outside becoming worse and they found it daunting. They knew that they would be walking in it soon so they wanted to enjoy being dry for as long as they could. Even if it was a short while.

They weren't the only ones present as a few other travellers had stopped and most were having a drink and some breakfast. Maxine could smell the bacon and eggs and it made her mouth water. She was seriously regretting drinking all of the ale that she had the night before and leaving them both in this predicament. Her hunger only caused her stomach to growl even louder and for anyone close by it would sound like some kind of creature from a nightmare.

After around an hour they watched Gregory slowly walk down the stairs that led to the rooms. He yawned loudly and stretched his arms and was still wearing his armour, he spotted the pair sitting at the table and he didn't waste any time in going toward them. He seemed happy that they were up and ready, he didn't realise that they were still tired and hungry. He gave them a smile as he sat himself next to Charles this time.

"Nice to see you up bright and early," said Gregory. "I was thinking that I might have to go out and find you both." He chuckled to himself. "But now I don't have to, so what do you say about some breakfast before we go?"
"We would but we lack the gold," replied Maxine. "We will have to pass on it this time around." She seemed disappointed by this and despite her hunger she was going to have to deal with it for now.

"Oh, don't worry about it, I'll tell you what. I'll loan you the gold for the time being and then you simply pay it back when we've been paid for the job. That way you don't go hungry and we can all enjoy some breakfast."

Maxine wanted to turn down the offer again but the loud growling of her stomach prevented her from doing this. She accepted and Gregory ordered a cooked breakfast for the large armour-clad woman. He was sure to buy one for Charles as well, it would increase the debt but they wouldn't be leaving him out. He too was hungry but had mainly kept quiet about it for the time being.

It was a short wait before the breakfast was finally brought to them. As expected Maxine's was much larger than her squires but they both wolfed it down in almost record time. The breakfast consisted of sausages, eggs, bacon and a few other items. Even Gregory sat and watched in a small amount of amazement. He knew that she could put a lot of food away but it was always a sight to behold when it happened.

As expected she finished her breakfast before the others, her hunger had been satisfied for now but it was likely not to last. She would be fine for a while but eventually she would become hungry again and the entire cycle would repeat itself. Not a single crumb was left but there was no food around her mouth either. It was almost like it had simply disappeared.

"You never cease to amaze me Maxine," said Gregory as he saw the empty plate that was once stacked with food. "I think it would have taken two, or maybe even three men to eat as much as you just did."

"I've heard that more than once," replied Maxine. "But it's quite simple when you stop to think about it, big people need more food. Now if you don't mind as soon as we're done here we can be on our way."

Charles continued to eat and he couldn't help but feel nervous about the job that they were going to. He knew that Maxine was more than capable of looking after herself but there was always that chance that she would meet a skilled opponent or someone who just got a lucky strike. Her strength and armour made her a difficult opponent but she was far from being invincible.

When all the breakfasts had been eaten and everyone was prepared the trio stepped out of the inn and they weren't sure if they'd ever see it again. One important thing that they did stock up on was water as it would be important on their journey. The innkeeper had given it to them for free and this was something that Charles was particularly thankful for, it meant that he didn't have to worry about another finance. One thing that they had noticed was that the rain had subsided for now. They knew that they couldn't count on it being gone for very long.

Gregory made his way toward the stables that were located just outside of inn and it held the horses that belonged to the patrons. His horse was a somewhat majestic looking creature that was about average size and had a brown coat. There was a small white streak on its head and this made stand out a little. He had named the horse; Thunder and they had been together for a few years now.

It was common for knights and other armoured such folks to ride on horseback. This had been something that was simply impossible for someone like Maxine. She was simply too large for any horse. If she had sat on it without her armour it might just be able to carry her but with the armour she was likely to break its back.

Since Charles was a relatively small man Gregory offered to having him ride Thunder alongside him. Charles accepted the offer only after he had the approval of Maxine. He thought that she might refuse but she was more than willing to allow him to along with it all. With him on Thunder it would mean that she wouldn't have to slow down her pace at all. Thunder might need to slow down a little himself but it would likely be faster travelling in general.

Charles wasn't sure about how to climb onto a horse as it was something that he had never done before. This problem was soon solved as he felt Maxine's large, iron-clad hands wrap onto his sides and she effortlessly picked him up as if he were a child. She then carefully placed him down onto Thunder's back and made sure that he was on properly. He did place his hands around Gregory which the knight like man found to be fairly humorous. He could tell that Charles had never ridden a horse before.

With everything now sorted they began their journey which would likely take a full day. It was to a small town that was called Teasel. Gregory knew the way and he took the reins of Thunder and directed the horse in the right direction. Maxine followed close by but even on horseback he was still shorter than her. It was something that he had seen more than once but he always found it a little funny.

"Is there anything else that we need to know?" asked Maxine although she thought that it was a little late to ask.

"Well the people of Teasel are a little on edge," replied Gregory. "If they see someone with a sword they might think that you're a bandit. They've been causing a lot of trouble and to tell you the truth I'm surprised that they haven't moved on yet. Would make more sense for them to travel around."

"But if they think they'll have an easy target they'll simply keep striking again and again. What's the point in finding a new source when you already have one that's low risk and high reward?"

"You do have a point there. But there is one other catch to this, we need to ensure that they don't come back. It's all good fending off an attack but if they simply return when we're gone then the town will be back to where they were before."

"So, I'm guessing that they want us to kill and maim the bandits. So that they're incapable of causing more trouble."

"That's about the gist of it. I know that you have standards when it comes to killing. The whole no killing of defeated or unarmed enemies." To some knights such a thing was a little silly but to Maxine it was a set of rules that she would unlikely break unless it was the most extreme of circumstances.

"It is not merely a standard but something that should be a rule. How can you call yourself a knight if you lack mercy or honour?"

"I guess you're right there." He turned his head to Charles who was still holding onto him. "Are you alright back there?"

"Y-Yeah," replied Charles. "It's just my first-time riding on a horse." He was a little nervous as he thought that he be thrown off at any moment. He kept a good grip on Gregory but made sure that it wasn't too tight.

"Well there's a first time for everything. Like last week was the first time I've ever been with one of those foreign women. You know, the kind that have been popping up on the East Coast? Our women know how to give a man a good time, but them, they're in a completely different league."

Charles was familiar with the people that Gregory was talking about. They were from a land far to the East of Angleland. Those spoke an odd language and many of the locals were distrustful of them. Their culture and looks were alien to the locals and they were finding it hard to adjust.

There were several rumours about why the foreigners had come to Angleland. Some said that it was because they wanted to take over the land or at least take its natural resources. Charles knew better than to believe such rumours. There were more accurate rumours that they had fled some kind of natural disaster or civil war.

Some people did fear these foreigners and because of this some establishments banned them from entering the premises. The work that they were able to get were normally dangerous or degrading jobs. The kind that the locals didn't want to do themselves, instead allowing the foreigners to do them instead.

Charles wasn't the only one to think about them. When Gregory had spoken about them Maxine had been thinking as well. She had met a handful of them and like the locals she had found them to be a little odd. A part of her didn't really care why they had come to Angleland in the first place. To her they were simply there and nothing more to it than that.

The hours of the journey went by with little to nothing of any real interest. They took a couple of breaks to rest and eat. Gregory made sure that Thunder was well fed and looked after. He knew that if he mistreated his horse that it would likely fail him when he needed it the most.

Looking upon the horse Maxine couldn't help but think back to the farm that her family lived. There were horses there that helped out with the work but none of them were really for riding. They were to help plough the fields and were treated with great care, one of her sisters in particular loved looking after the horses.

Maxine even removed one of her gauntlets so that she could stroke Thunder and give him a small smile. Gregory took note as it was one of the few times that he saw any part of her body that wasn't covered in thick armour. He thought that although it was large that her hand still looked quite feminine. Through his time with her he did imagine what she was like without her armour.

An image did creep into her mind of her being a bulky woman as her armour made it look like she had a thick body. But he knew that she was likely slimmer as her armour just made her look larger than she actual was. Her height was not in question but every time she took off her armour she had made sure that he wasn't present.

Unbeknownst to him Charles had seen her without her armour but it hadn't been for too long and even then, she had quickly put it back on once he had finished cleaning. Gregory was aware that some knights refused to be seen without their armour. He took an educated guess and thought that Maxine was one of these people.

By the time evening came around the sight of Teasel slowly began to creep over the horizon. For everyone it was a welcome relief as it meant that they could have a decent rest and hopefully earn some gold as well. They were also a little hungry after their long journey and continued on as quickly as they could.

Much like some of the towns that they had previously been to there was a gate blocking their way with a man standing behind it. He was safe as the gate was completely covered but there was a slot that he could see through. With all the bandit attacks that had been taking place he was particularly on edge against those he didn't know of.

"Who goes there?" asked the Man. He could not completely see Maxine as they were standing too close to the gate but he could see both Gregory and Charles relatively well. "State your business."

"My name is Gregory Helms and my friend standing next to me here is Maxine Martel," replied Gregory. "We are part of the task force that your mayor has been hiring, you know against the bandits."

"Oh, I thought I recognised your face. Who is the boy on your horse?" Charles was about to state that he wasn't a boy but Gregory quickly spoke up before he had the chance to do so. It was likely for the best.

"He is my friend's squire. He will be of some help toward myself and my friend here so can you please allow us to enter?"

"Very well, you know where you need to go."

The slot then closed and a few seconds later gate opened. When it did Thunder began to trot through with Maxine following close by. This was the first time that the man was able to see her completely. He was taken aback by her sheer size and he stared at her with his mouth open. This caused her to give him an annoyed glance which was enough to cause him to step back with intimidation.

For the man there were a few reasons that he was so taken aback by her, the first was her sheer size, the fact that she was a woman and the third was that she was all armoured up. To him she was the most unusual knight that he had ever seen. Although he knew that she wasn't a true knight as she hadn't been knighted yet.

With the gate problem now resolved the trio continued their now much shortened journey. They were slowly making their way to a building which was being used as a base of operation for the task force. As they approached they could see another few horses that had already been strapped outside. It was a small looking building and one thing that Maxine disliked was small buildings.

Unlike her male companions she had difficulty getting her large body and thick armour through the door. But when she was inside she could see three other armoured men sitting at a table. They were drinking ale and seemingly laughing amongst one another. Their heads turned toward the trio when they heard someone enter. They instantly recognised Gregory but Maxine and Charles were alien to them.

One other thing that caused her some annoyance was the fact that the room had a low ceiling. If she stood up straight her head would likely go right through it so because of it she had to bend down a little in order to do be able to fit. This had not gone unnoticed by the others who were quiet for a moment. Gregory walked forward and smiled as he knew that he had to cut some of the tension.

"Greetings friends," said Gregory. "As you can see I have returned just as I promised and I brought my friend that I told you about."

"Your friend?" replied one of the armoured figures. He was a relatively young man who wore light armour. It made him quicker but not too much additional protection. "You mean the big one?"

"Yes, this is my friend who I told you about." He slightly gestured his hand toward Maxine who continued to stand there. "Why don't you introduce yourself."

"My name is Maxine Martel, eldest daughter of Sir Tucker Martel," answered Maxine. There was some seriousness in her voice as she wanted to let these three men know that she wasn't joking around.

"Are you serious?" replied another of the armoured men. "You say that you're going to bring a powerhouse and you bring a woman? I think you've been drinking too much ale there Greg."

"Did you want to try me? If it's a test of strength that you're after then I would be more than happy to demonstrate." She considered grabbing him around the neck lifting him off of his feet. This would be a good way to show off her strength and put this fool in his place. However, she decided against it as she knew that she would have to work alongside these people.

"Now, now let's not do anything that any of us might regret," said Gregory. He stood in front of Maxine even though he didn't think that he could stop her if she wanted to move. "We're all friends here, so why don't we all sit down and have a nice drink before we go out on patrol."

There was a small groan from everyone as they prepared to do some more drinking. Gregory sat down at the table where the others were drinking. There was no space for Maxine so she had to sit her large body on the ground but she was glad to be given ale. As her squire Charles also sat down beside her but rather than drinking ale he was perfectly happy with water. This caused a couple of the men to laugh at him but a strong glance from Maxine soon put this laughter to rest.

As they were drinking and talking the pair discovered the names of the other men. The one that had insulted Maxine was called Arthur Wright, he was supposed to be tough as he had ranked quite highly in a couple of tournaments. The second was Sir Darren Locke who had received a knighthood from a lord simply by giving him enough gold. To Maxine this was the worst way to earn a knighthood as it was not truly earned. The third man was named Scott Barry who looked to be a large man. He had lifted the faceplate of his helmet so that he could drink his ale.

Charles began to write a few things down in his book. He was taking information of these men and even made small drawings of them so that he could remember who they are. This also was for in case Maxine decided that she owed them a favour or if they had slighted her enough to incur her rage.

They relaxed and drank for about half an hour before the door to the building opened up again. Charles expected to see other knights who had arrived for the same assignment. Instead she saw a well-dressed man accompanied by two guards. He was an elderly gentleman who looked like he was close to retirement. He wore a pin on his clothes that indicated that he was a high ranking official, if the squire had to guess he would say that this man was the mayor of this town.

"The time for drinking has come to an end," said the Mayor. "Night is upon us and it is time for you to fulfil your duties." He noticed Maxine sitting there and at first, he thought that she was a short knight. However, when he realised that she was sitting down and that she was a woman he was a little lost for words.

"What needs to be done then?" asked Sir Darren. He wanted to have his money and then be done with the place. He had already been there for two weeks and he wanted to move onto somewhere else. The free ale did make him want to stay longer but even that wasn't all that great. The ale was far from the best and to him he thought that he was simply drinking flavoured water.

"I don't know how but bandits are still getting into the town. You will all go on patrol tonight and if you find anyone outside without this badge...." He took a small badge out of his pocket which was a simple green triangle. There was nothing of any real note about it. "You will consider them to be bandits and you can either bring them to the cells or outright kill them. That might seem a little extreme but with everything that's happened extreme measures are needed." He then looked at Maxine again and there was some confusion. "And who are you? I don't remember hiring you."

"This is my friend that we talked about," replied Gregory. "The one that I said would be a big help, allow me to introduce to you Maxine Martel." She didn't like the fact that Gregory was speaking for her but at that moment in time she kept quiet and simply bowed her head at him.

"And the other bloke, don't tell me that you expect him to fight?" He was referring to Charles who had simply been sitting there and mostly minding his own business. He looked up when he thought that he was being referenced to.

"Of course not, he is simply the squire of my friend. He's not expected to go patrolling at all."

Like Maxine before him Charles remained silent. From what he could tell the Mayor wasn't the most pleasant man in the world. He was someone that Charles would normally not like to interact with but for the sake of the job he was willing to put this to one side, he could only imagine what Maxine was thinking.

"Good because he doesn't look like the intimidating kind of person," said the Mayor. He hoped that fear would also help keep the bandits away and Maxine seemed to fit that job. He could tell that she was the largest human being that he had ever met, even when she was sitting down.

For the next several minutes the group began to go over a map of the town. The Mayor was going through where the bandits had been spotted and where crimes had taken place. It was a fairly large area and although there were night patrols by normal citizens there was still no curbing of crime. This had forced the Mayor to hire knights to try and achieve the task that his people had failed to do.

Maxine was instructed that she would be patrolling the north section of the town. Basically, all she needed to do was walk in a continual circle and stop anyone that she felt was suspicious. It seemed like an easy task but something inside of her told her that it would be something more than that.

As expected Charles was going to remain behind but this was something that he didn't mind. He was tired and a decent amount of sleep was exactly what he needed, it did seem odd to him that Maxine would be going out on an errand without him but he knew that he would only get in the way. Staying in the building was not only the right thing to do but also the most sensible.

Before disembarking each of the knights took another drink of ale before one by one they left the building. Maxine instructed Charles to stay put and carry out whatever duties he saw fit. She didn't know how long she would be but she wanted to be sure that he was occupied while she was gone.

Once outside the building each of the men unhooked their horses and began to ride away. A couple of them looked on at Maxine and sniggered a little to themselves over the fact that she didn't have a horse. They thought that possessing a horse was essential to a knight and that one without a horse was subpar. They didn't really take into account the fact that she was simply too big to ride one. There was a good chance that if she did she would most likely cause the poor animal a lot of harm.

Ignoring the sniggers Maxine simply walked to where she was going on patrol. She placed her helmet on her head and with it on none of her skin could be seen at all. To anyone watching she looked like a towering metallic figure who moved fairly quickly for someone of her size. If she hadn't looked intimidating before she would definitely look intimidating now.

For the next hour she continued her patrol and she did stop a couple of people who were on the streets. They had the badges that the Mayor had showed her before, this meant that they had permission to be out this late so she allowed them to go along with their business. They were shocked to see her and when she was completely in her armour they couldn't even tell that she was a woman.

Her heavy footsteps could be hurt on the cobble paths and she found it hard to see. Her helmet did restrict some of her vision and the darkness of night didn't help her in the slightest. She thought that if there were bandits they would be most likely too well hidden for her to spot them. She thought that even if they were only six feet away that she still might not see them.

This annoyed Maxine as she almost tripped over a small rock. Thankfully there wasn't anyone around to see the extremely tall woman almost fall over. It was an embarrassment that she would most likely not live down. But thankfully it had not happened and she simply went on her way.

Just when she thought that she was in for an uneventful night she noticed something in the corner of her field of vision. At first, she ignored it but when she saw it move it peeked her interest. Slowly she turned toward it and walked, she could see a shadowy figure and at first, she thought that it was some kind of bandit. But instead she could see that the figure was much smaller than she expected. Even for her size the figure looked small and when she came closer she realised that it was a child.

The child was a little girl who didn't look any more than eight. Her hair was blonde and curly and her clothing didn't look like rags of a homeless person. Instead she seemed quite scared when she saw Maxine who loomed over her. She watched as the giantess squatted down so that she didn't seem so big.

"What are you doing out here at this time of night?" asked Maxine. She didn't bother looking for any kind of badge as she knew that the Mayor wouldn't issue such a thing to children.

"You're scary," replied the Girl. She seemed genuinely terrified of her and the girl watched as Maxine took off her helmet to reveal her face.

"See I'm not scary, I'm just trying to help. Now please tell me where your parents are."

"I don't know, I was with them a minute ago and now they're gone. Please you have to help me find them." The girl seemed to be on the verge of crying and Maxine thought that she didn't have time for this. But she still couldn't allow a child to roam the streets at night, she would never forgive herself if something happened to the girl.

"Ok, I'll try and find your parents." She heard something behind her, it was like a couple of boxes were falling. "What was that?"

"Oh, that was just a cat. But you have to help me, I don't know where my parents went and I'm all scared and alone." There was something about this that didn't sit right with Maxine, there was something off that she couldn't put her finger on.

"I will help but you need to tell me where you live and your parents' name." She heard another sound behind her. This time it was louder and she knew that it couldn't have been a cat this time. She turned her head and she was able to see two men carrying what seemed to be a large crate. There were a few seconds of silence as they both looked at each other. They were waiting for the other to make the first move. "What are you doing?" Her voice was fairly loud and intimidating. She quickly turned her attention away from the girl and stood up to her full height.

The two men didn't answer and this only caused the standoff to continue. Maxine even drew her sword which did intimidate the two men. They could see that it was a sword that normally needed two hands to wield but this intimidating figure was large enough to use it with only one.

"Don't stand there like idiots!" shouted the Little Girl. "Get the fuck out of here." This caused Maxine to turn her head toward the little girl and the distraction was enough for the two bandits to attempt their escape.

They quickly dropped what they were carrying and ran as fast as they could. Maxine gave chase but her armour did slow her down. It wasn't particularly designed for running and she found herself weighed down. Her father had told her that light armour would suffice but she had chosen heavy armour instead. She was beginning to regret it but she didn't have time to think about it as she continued to run.

One thing that also surprised her was the fact the little girl that she had come across was seemingly working with the bandits. From the tone that she had taken it even sounded like she was the one in charge. Unfortunately, she couldn't do much but watch as the two bandits ahead of her continued to gain more and more ground. It wasn't long before they were able to slip into an alleyway/

Maxine stopped dead in her tracks and began to look around. She was very frustrated with herself as she felt like she had failed. But one thing that she did think was that the bandits hadn't gone too far. She was sure that if she looked around the local area that she would find them.

The situation had been more confusing than anything else but there was one thing that's he was almost certain of. This was the fact that she was going to be in for one long and eventful night.

Maxine continued her search she was becoming more annoyed with herself. She felt that she should have been able to capture them but she had been too slow. The little girl who distracted her also gave her reason to think. It was odd that a girl of her age would be working alongside such bandits. But even so it was something that she would have to give a little more time thinking about.

Suddenly she heard someone behind her and instinctively she drew her sword and quickly turned around. There she saw her friend Gregory who quickly lifted up his hands, he had also taken a few steps back as he didn't want to be struck. He had seen what happened when she took a swing at someone and he didn't want to experience it first-hand.

"Wow there Maxine it's me," said Gregory. He did have a slightly joking tone in his voice to try and hide his nervousness. He could see her breathing quite heavily. "What's got you into a state like this anyway?"

"I spotted some bandits heading this way," replied Maxine. There was some annoyance in her voice and she tightened her grip on her sword out of frustration. "I was too slow to stop them."

"What they came this way?" He was quite surprised as he had not seen any signs of bandits yet. "Are you sure?"

"Am I the kind of woman who would say things that she wasn't sure of?" She gave him an intimidating look and this made him realise that he had asked her a stupid question. He smiled at her a little in hopes that it would calm her down a little.

"Of course not, we'll search the area and see what we can find."

Working together Maxine and Gregory began to search the alleyways. They didn't think that the bandits had fled out of the town just yet, they were likely still in the area and she was determined to find them. But as they continued to search they couldn't find anything at first, this annoyed her but she tried to remain calm. She had been taught that being annoyed at a situation was never good for getting it resolved.

"I can't find any trace of them," said Gregory who walked beside his very tall friend. "You either imagined them or they're long gone. I would go for the latter if I was a betting man." He paused for a moment. "Wait, I am a betting man."

"This doesn't make sense," replied Maxine who didn't respond to the joke. "There's no way they could have disappeared without us noticing."

"Maybe they climbed above our heads." Suddenly they heard something metallic that did not come from their armour. They looked down at Maxine's foot and they saw a metal cover that led down into the tunnels below the town. It was mainly used for waste water and both of the armoured figures looked down at it. "Or most likely they went below us."

Maxine knelt down and with little effort was able to remove the metal cover. It would be difficult for most people to pick up but she did it with ease and placed it to one side. There was something that she immediately noticed, this was the fact that she was too big to get through the hole.

Even if she took off her armour she would still be too large to squeeze through and she was not prepared to leave something so precious behind. It was one of the few times that her size was a hindrance to her job. She could do nothing but look at Gregory who even with his armour could just about slip through.

"Ladies first as they say," said Gregory as he hadn't realised that she couldn't fit through just yet.

"This is one adventure that I'm going to have to step away from," replied Maxine. "Giant women and small manholes don't mix well."

Gregory tried to think of what he could say to try and convince her to go down into the tunnels below but if she was simply too big then there was nothing that could be done about it. It was times like this he wished that his oversized friend was a more average height that she was now.

Slowly he began to make his way down into the tunnels but it was a bit of a squeeze for him as well, his armour made it difficult but eventually he was able to slip his body through to the tunnel below. One immediate problem that he ran into was that it was pitch black in the tunnels. It was so dark that he couldn't even see his hand which was only a few inches away from his face.

Almost immediately Gregory decided that it was pointless trying to chase the bandits in these conditions so he climbed back up through the manhole. If the bandits travelled down there they would need some kind of source of light. This was something that both armoured figures lacked and thus it would be impossible to follow them in the tunnels.

Instead it was decided that every exit from the tunnels be guarded in case they decided to pop back up. There was another problem though, even with the help of the other knights they didn't have enough bodies to guard each exit. They only had enough for half of them which made the plan relatively ineffective.

Even though they were short on the manpower that they needed the group still guarded whatever manholes that they could find. Maxine was told about one exit that led out of the town, she thought that this was the most likely way that they were getting in and out so easily.

She took it on herself to assign herself this exit. A couple of the other knights protested as they didn't think that she had the skill for such a task. However, none of them were able to show her that she was incorrect in her theory, they were mostly too intimidated by her to stop her from doing what she wanted. One knight in particular thought that it was best to state that she wasn't capable because she was a woman. This was quickly responded by a strike from her thick iron clad hand.

After that no one went against her wishes as each of them stood by their assigned manholes. It was unlikely that they would catch the bandits now but they were still doing as they were told. None of them wanted to say no to her, especially Gregory who had seen the large woman in action.

After a few minutes Maxine reached the exit to the tunnels that was outside of the town. The exit was rather large and a little obvious, she was surprised that this wasn't guarded as well like the main entrance. There was a small amount of water which streamed out of the tunnel and into a small nearby river.

Once again, she placed her helmet back on her head and she truly looked like an intimidating figure. Rather than moving around she stood there still and simply waited, she was feeling tired but she refused to rest. Not until the job was done, only then would she allow herself the luxury of sleep.

"You dumb fucks," said a childish voice. This caught the attention of Maxine but rather than moving she remained where she was and simply listened. The voice was child like and heavily echoed. It was obvious that it was coming from the tunnel ahead. She could also see a small light and this caused her to tighten her grip on her sword. "You had one simple job and you fucked it up!"

"Sorry boss," replied a male voice. It sounded a little funny to heat the voice of a man apologising to someone who acted like a child in this manner. Normally it would be the other way around.

"Do you know what you cost us tonight?" The voice gave a sigh. "Do I have to do all the thinking around here?" She was about to berate again when they suddenly saw Maxine blocking the exit. They stopped dead in their tracks and there was nothing but silence for several moments. They watched as she took a couple of steps toward them and the clanging of her armour could be heard very clearly.

"Stop where you are right now," commanded Maxine in a somewhat intimidating tone. She wanted to make it seem like she was in control of the situation. The truth was that she didn't entirely but it was a good place to start the confrontation.

"You're the big one, aren't you?" replied the Little Girl. Maxine looked at this girl who was barely half her height and looked rather cute. However, the towering knight could see that there was much more too her than she seemed. "I'm not going to beat around the bush here but I'm willing to make you an offer."

"What kind of offer?"

"I've got a nice little business venture going on here and I'm willing to let you be a part of it. A body like yours is too much of a waste to go to something like what you're doing now. Join with me and you'll be rich beyond your wildest desires." It almost seemed funny that such words were coming from such a little girl. Maxine would have chuckled to herself if the situation wasn't so serious.

"So, you're offering me untold wealth for my services?" There seemed to be a tone of curiosity in her voice. The made the Little Girl smile as she thought that she was going to gain another employee of sorts.

"Yes, everything that you want can be yours. All you have to do is join us and you'll get exactly what's coming to you."

"Hmm." A small smile appeared on the face of the extremely tall woman and her decision was made. "Sorry but vast amounts of wealth hold no interest to me, I'm here to do a job and that's what I intend to do. There's nothing that you can say or do that can change my mind. Now come with me." She drew her sword and allowed a moment for them to realise fully what was going to happen. "I will not ask again."

"How predictable." She then looked up at the two men standing beside her. "Go get her boys." The two men stood there with some fear. They didn't want to take the chance of going up against her as they knew that they stood little chance. "You cowards." She then placed a couple of her fingers in her mouth and whistled loudly.

No sooner had she done this Maxine felt something strike her back. There was a metallic sound of metal on metal that could be heard for a moment before subsiding. It was enough for her to turn around and look at what had struck her. She realised that it was an arrow but before she could react she felt another similar impact. This time it was on her head, another arrow had struck and if she hadn't been wearing her helmet she would have been killed instantly. She remained standing but she soon realised that these three bandits weren't the only ones that she was dealing with.

"As you see you're not alone here," said the Little Girl. She walked closer to Maxine with some confidence but she made sure to stay out of range of the sword. "I have archers in the trees above us. Your armour might protect you from the arrows but it won't be long until they hit a weak spot. Not every part of your body is so well armoured, even a well-placed arrow is able to fall a giant like you. So, let us be on our way and you can walk away from this situation with your life."

"I could but there's just one problem with your plan," replied Maxine. She took a step forward which caused the little girl and her two colleagues to take a step back. "If that were true I'd be dealing with a flurry of arrows right now. Instead I only have two and from how they struck me I'm guessing they're from the same direction." She took another step and she felt another arrow. This one struck her back but once again her thick armour was more than enough to protect her. Once again to her it felt like it had the same point of origin. "Which means that you're either foolish enough to have all of your archers huddled in the same place or you only have one."

By now the Little Girl and the two Bandits were back in the tunnel and Maxine was entering as well. She had to duck to get it and she couldn't stand up straight. This didn't seem to bother her too much as it added to her intimidation tactic. Plus, she was now out of sight from the archer. Her eyes had adjusted more to the darkness and she could still see, even with the light of the fiery torch that the bandits were using.

"I'm not paying you idiots to stand around, get her!" shouted the Little Girl with an angry voice.

The two Bandits stepped toward Maxine with fear. They knew that they stood little chance against her but the Little Girl was able to run under her long legs and toward the exit. This distracted Maxine but before she could give chance she felt an impact on her legs. The bandits had struck her legs but her armour still protected her.

Before she could chase the girl, Maxine had to deal with these two. She turned back to them and slashed her sword down right in front of them. The strike would be strong enough to slice a man in half if it had struck. She intentionally missed but it was enough to scare them both witless. Before one of them could properly react, he felt her metal fist strike his face with such force that it the momentum lifted off his feet and went flying toward a nearby wall. He struck it hard and was instantly knocked out. He also lost several teeth in the process as well and blood trickled from his mouth.

The second bandit was in absolute fear of this metallic juggernaut. He stepped back and turned to run but he felt a large hand grab the back of his collar. With little effort she lifted him off of his feet and he kicked his legs in a vein attempt to free himself. He felt the back of his neck get grabbed by her and he was brought closer to her. He was lifted to the point where his head was close to her helmet. He was in absolute fear as he knew that she could end his life whenever she saw fit.

"Your leader isn't what I expected," said Maxine. "Who is she?" Her voice sounded more intimidating.

"She's Violet Bucket," replied the Bandit. He was still afraid and it was more than enough to make him talk. "She's not what she seems."

"I can tell that, what exactly is she?"

"I-I don't know. I was only hired today, she said that she could bring me wealth. I've been living on the streets for three years. I just wanted something to go my way."

"You're lying to me."

"No, I'm not. I swear I'm telling you the truth. Please don't hurt me, I never intended to hurt anyone."

Maxine gave a sigh as she knew that she wasn't going to get any answers. Instead she slammed him against the nearby wall and knocked him out. She was annoyed as she knew that the Little Girl would most likely be long gone. Even before she had tried to interrogate the bandit she knew that her enemy would have gotten away.

Instead of giving chase she picked up the two unconscious bandits and walked out of the tunnel. She expected to have another arrow fired at her but nothing happened this time. It seemed like the archer had also fled with the Little Girl and this was a small relief. She didn't want to admit to herself that although she was fully armoured that she was still somewhat vulnerable.

There would be a small reward for the bandits that she was bringing in but she knew that there would have been more money if she had been able to catch the Little Girl as well. It seemed funny that someone who looked so young was actually in charge. Her speaking and mannerism were much like an adult. It sent a shiver down her very long spine as she thought that someone like her was in charge of a group of bandits.

For now, there wasn't much that she could do and she picked up the two unconscious bandits and began to take them back to Teasel. They were still completely knocked out and it was unlikely that they would be waking up soon. To Maxine they were dead weight but she still lifted them with little effort. She might not have gotten the big fish just yet but she thought that a small reward would be coming their way for their capture.

As she left the tunnel she did notice that things were a little brighter than they were a few minutes ago. She realised that it was getting closer to dawn and as she yawned fatigue set in. She had been up for close to a full day and even her large body required rest, she knew that she wouldn't be capturing any more bandits that night so she made her way back to Teasel with haste.

Within a few minutes she was back and dropped the two bandits off at a local law enforcement office. Rather than giving her a reward they gave her a slip of paper that she would need to take back to the Mayor. She didn't bother looking at it properly as she simply made her way back to where she had met up with the other knights the night before.

She could see that they were resting and she thought that they had finished their patrols early and had retired here. This annoyed her as she felt that she had put in a lot more effort than they had. But she kept this anger to herself as she saw Charles lying on the hard floor and fast asleep.

One thing that Maxine did wonder would be how the events of that night would have played out if he had been by her side. It was likely that he would have just gotten in the way and she looked at him for a few moments. Rather than waking him up she allowed him to sleep for another half an hour. She passed the time by drinking a little bit of ale that had not been consumed the night before and even eating a small amount of bread.

Eventually she nudged him with her food and this caused him to begin to open his eyes. He yawned and as his vision returned he could see Maxine looming over him. At first, he was confused but when he realised who she was he slowly sat up and began to yawn once more. He saw that her arms were crossed and how her red half flowed down her head. It was a sight for him to behold.

"M-Morning ma'am," said Charles. He was sitting up but didn't think that it was the best time to stand up just yet. "How was last night?"

"It had its ups and downs," replied Maxine. "But I have some tasks for you while I'm resting. My armour has become dirty thanks to my efforts last night, you are to clean it and sharpen my sword. Also, I have been given this parchment to give to the Mayor for a reward." She lowered the parchment to him. He carefully grabbed it and had a quick look at it. "When you receive the reward, I want you to record it down immediately and then give Gregory what we owed him last night."

"As you wish ma'am, but am I allowed to spend a little of the reward on essentials such as food?" He was a little blown back by these tasks that he was given as soon as he woke up but he knew that he should have expected something like that when he became her squire.

"Only if you record it down and keep a good amount of gold left over. Oh, and one more thing, if you disturb my slumber you will feel my full wrath, got it?"

"Crystal clear ma'am."

Maxine began to move herself toward a door that led to a small room. It didn't have that much space for her but it was somewhere where she could sleep without the others seeing her. She left the door open slightly so that air could come back inside and she began to take off her armour and leave them outside for Charles to pick up and clean. When all of this was done she placed her large head on the ground and fairly quickly she fell asleep, she was even more tired than she thought as she was completely knocked out.

This left the somewhat confused Charles to fulfil the duties that she had just set out for him. Although he was still tired he got to work cleaning up her armour. He still had the polish that he had bought previously, with it and an old rag he cleaned up the armour as best as he could. There was some difficulty with him lifting the pieces so that they could be cleaned. A part of him couldn't believe that someone was able move let alone walk around and fight in such heavy armour. This was just another indicator to him about just how strong Maxine actually was.

One thing he did notice were a few small dents in the armour and one in the helmet. One of them he recognised as where she had been struck by an arrow during their arrest of William Bellamy and his gang. He guessed the others came from similar arrows, since one was on the helmet it made him thankful that she was wearing it. She was big and very strong but even he didn't think that she could survive an arrow to the head. It was something that every person would be vulnerable against.

It took Charles almost two hours to fully polish the armour and it tired him out. But when he looked at it the armour looked shiny and clean. He knew that she would be happy with it but he could hear something. To most they would think that a monster was approaching him and that he should find somewhere to hide.

Thankfully this was something that he didn't have to do as this beast was nothing more than Maxine snoring. Charles had been careful not wake her but the truth was that it was unlikely that he could. She was so tired that barely anything could wake her up, she was dreaming as well. Her squire would think that she was dreaming about taking down other knights and achieving honour. Instead she was actually dreaming about a mountain made out of every pie known to man. Not only was she climbing the mountain but eating the pies as well until she eventually reached the top.

With his job now finished with the armour Charles moved onto sharpening Maxine's sword. He was a little worried about waking her up due to the sound but he could hear her snoring and it was very loud. He didn't think that sharpening a sword would wake her up so he quickly got to work. He had a sharpening stone in his bag and he was using it for its intended purpose.

There was one thing that he did find odd about the sword. It was not the size of the sword as it was one that required two hands to wield. This was not terribly uncommon as many knights would equip themselves with such swords. It just happened to be that Maxine was large enough to wield it with one.

What made the sword stand out was that there seemed to be a pattern on the blade. It didn't seem like any pattern that a sword maker would intentionally place within the sword. Instead it looked like the pattern was created due to the metals that were used to make it. He found it intriguing and he wanted to ask her about it once she woke up.

For the next half an hour Charles sharpened the sword until he felt like he had done enough. With his word done he carefully placed the sword down by Maxine's polished armour. He knew that likely the first thing that she would do when she woke up was to put her armour back on.

There was still one more task that she had given him before getting her much needed slumber. This was to cash in a small reward that she had been given for capturing the two bandits. He had been told that he needed to go to the Mayor in order to receive the reward, from what he could see on the parchment the reward wasn't too bad but it was nowhere near what they had gotten for William Bellamy.

With a small amount of caution Charles left the building and began to make his way toward the town hall. He noticed that it was another cloudy day but something was telling him that it wasn't going to rain. The clouds looked like they were just going to sit where they were all day and do nothing more. The streets were also a little busier than he expected as people were waking up and beginning the routine of their daily lives.

Such a thing was something that he too had once had. But that was now in the past since he was the squire for Maxine Martel. A part of him did wonder what would have happened if he had remained at the Inn where she had found him. Although he thought that he would leave there soon enough he knew better than to think that. With how the owner of the inn treated him it was unlikely that he would have been able to leave otherwise.

Rather than dwelling on these thoughts Charles continued his way toward the Town Hall and he could see some market stalls being built up. They were selling mostly food and he was sure to look at them better once he had received the reward. He wanted to buy some food and surprise her when she woke up. He hoped to have an entire breakfast ready for her but by the time she would wake up it would likely be passed lunch,

The town hall wasn't too difficult to find as it was the largest building in Teasel. It had only recently been finished so there was still the smell of wet paint that could be smelt upon approaching it. Charles didn't pay too much mind to it as he simply walked inside and was directed to the mayor's office.

There he found the Mayor sitting behind a desk in what seemed to be a basic office. There weren't any real items of value scattered around but since his office had only just been installed there he hadn't had time to move all of his things. Instead he sat behind his desk and was signing some paperwork before he looked up at Charles.

"What do you want?" asked the Mayor in an annoyed tone. "Can't you see that I'm busy right now?"

"Well actually I'm here because I need to cash this in," replied Charles who placed the parchment onto the desk. He watched as the Mayor picked it up and began to look over it. He grunted a little before looking at Charles once again.

"So, she was able to capture two of them." He was surprised at this as he thought that it might be something beyond them. "But from what I've just read they're the small fry, I want the big fish."

"I don't know what to tell you sir." He chuckled to himself as he was a little nervous. "She didn't say anything about it to me."

"Then go and ask her about it and report back to me. I wish to know what she knows as soon as possible."

"Actually, there's a problem with that, she's asleep and already told me that she doesn't want to be woken up."

"And I need you to wake her up. If you don't bring her to me within the next half an hour her reward will be forfeited."

Charles wanted to say something in protest but he knew that it would be pointless. All he could do was quickly make his way out of the town hall and make his way back to where Maxine was sleeping. He walked at a quickened pace and within a few minutes he arrived back at the small building. It was empty besides the sleeping tall woman in the smaller room, he could still hear her snoring.

At first, he tried to wake her by calling to her. But she continued to sleep as if he were silent. He resorted to nudging her with his foot but this still didn't do anything. He took a deep breath before he kicked her arm as hard as he could. Instantly he felt pain as he felt how solid her flesh had seemed to be. He was in equal measures impressed and in agony.

Charles tried to subside the pain that he was feeling but he also heard Maxine snoring suddenly stop. This caused his heart to skip a beat as he saw her beginning to move and her eyes suddenly open. He gave her a quick greeting as he felt nervous, this nervousness increased further as he watched her stand up in silence. He could see the anger in her face and he could only watch as her head lifted higher and higher as she stood up.

Eventually her head struck the ceiling of the room and she blocked his path to the door. He could see that she was very irritated and she seemed to be on the verge of grabbing him by the neck and squeezing the life out of him. If he could he would want the ground to suddenly swallow him up. But that was just wishful thinking.

"I told you not to wake me up!" stated Maxine in a loud and very angry voice. Seeing her in a rage was almost common for him but it still terrified him nonetheless. "You better have a good reason for this!"

"I'm sorry ma'am," replied Charles. He was terrified and he took a couple of steps back. He looked up at her and it seemed that his apology did nothing to quell her anger. "But the Mayor needs to see you urgently and if I didn't bring you now you would have lost your reward."

"He wouldn't dare do such a thing!" Her anger seemed to be re-directing itself away from Charles and this helped calm him down.

"He seemed very serious ma'am. I didn't want to take the risk." He watched her clench her fist and quickly move it. He closed his eyes as he thought that she was going to strike him, he heard a loud thumping sound. He felt no pain however and slowly he opened his eyes, much to his surprise he saw some additional light inside of the room.

When Charles fully opened his eyes, he saw that Maxine had punched her fist right through the wooden wall beside him. It was now sticking outside and she could feel the breeze outside. This was something that she didn't care about though as she was still enraged but rather than striking him she had chosen to strike the wall instead. He was amazed by what he was seeing and he wondered just how strong she was.

"Get me my armour!" demanded Maxine. Her fist was still through the wall and she seemed to be leaving it there for a few moments. Her voice was still annoyed but quieter than it had been shortly before.

"Y-Yes ma'am," replied Charles.

He was able to get by the towering woman in order to get to the door. He was still terrified but he picked up each piece of her armour and passed it to her inside of the small room. She quickly took it off him and began to put them back on. There were a couple of times where he would have to tighten a few laces for her but other than that she was capable of putting it on by herself.

Within a couple of minutes Maxine had completed her task in putting her armour on. She left her helmet on but she attached it to her waist. Her sword was also secure to her waist and she wanted to ensure that she kept it with her at all times. In Charles's mind he didn't think that she really needed one. He saw how strong she was, it would be easy for her to defeat a sword wielding foe with her bare hands. She hadn't noticed the job that he had done on her armour, it seemed to sparkle with the light but this had escaped her notice.

"Where is the Mayor?" asked Maxine. She was still annoyed but at least she seemed a little calmer now.

"He's in the town hall ma'am," replied Charles. "He's waiting for you there and if we don't get there soon you'll lose your reward."

"You already told me that." She began to walk toward the door with her head bending down so that it didn't strike the ceiling. "Keep up or else you'll regret it."

Charles didn't say a word as he simply hurried toward Maxine. He wanted to keep up with her as he knew if he fell behind that she would be unhappy with him. That would lead to something else that he didn't really want to imagine. Instead he simply kept up with her as best as he could. He had to keep his pace up so that he could walk besides the towering, armoured woman.

As they walked through the streets her height did attract some attention. A couple of people couldn't help but look up at her, one even followed her for a moment before she glared at him. This was more than enough to cause him to step away and go about his business. There was one child who even threw a rock at her. It harmlessly bounced off her armour but it still caught her attention. It caused her to stop her trek for a moment and turn to the child, he looked incredibly small in comparison and he was very afraid of her. She took a few steps toward the child who seemed to be too scared to move. Charles feared what she might do to him but he hoped that she wouldn't hurt him.

"May I ask why you through a rock at me," said Maxine. Her tone was calmer than everyone had expected but that only seemed to make the situation terrifying for the little down.

"I-I don't know," replied the Boy. He thought that he was going to be punished and he couldn't help but look up at her. She was by far the tallest person that he had ever seen and it scared him.

"You best not do such a thing. Provoking the actions of others, especially those who are much larger than you is not wise. There are those who wouldn't give a second thought for striking you for your actions. You're lucky that you did it to me and not someone else like that, there are plenty of other games that you can play. Throwing rocks at strangers should not be one of them. Do you understand?"

"Y-Yes."

"Good, now run along and do something safer."

The boy didn't say anything as he dropped the rock that he had been carrying and quickly ran away. He knew that he had been fortunate that she simply hadn't struck him for what he had been doing. Now he had to find a new game that would not provoke others, it had been a one that would not bring the attention of a nine-foot woman.

Only a few minutes later Maxine arrived at the town hall but rather than having a member of staff there point out where the Mayor's office was she simply walked inside. She was expected so no one tried to stop her but it was unlikely that they would have succeeded anyway. Charles just told her where she needed to go and shortly thereafter she opened the door to the office and stepped inside.

There she could see the Mayor sitting at his desk. He was looking at something in his hand, she couldn't tell exactly what it was but he saw him look up at her. There was also a pouch of gold on the desk as well which she thought was her reward money. Rather than staying inside Charles thought that it was best to step away for the time being since he was sure that she was going to explode with rage.

"Ah you're here and according to my calculations you had two minutes to spare," said the Mayor.

"This better be important," replied Maxine. "I was asleep and I don't like to be woken up before I'm ready."

"It's funny how someone like you can think that they can speak to an official like me. But I'm going to let it slide this time as I do need information from you. When you tell me everything that you know then I'll give you your reward."

"Fine." She gave a sigh. This mayor wasn't a high born but he had the means of making her life a little more difficult. "What do you want to know?"

"Last night you captured a couple of bandits responsible for so much trouble in my town. Since it would take more than two people to make the impact that they have I'm assuming that there are more of them. Did you see any other bandits and did you get any information from them?"

"I was able to extract some information out of one of them but he knew very little. But the there was a little girl with them."

"A little girl?" This peaked his interest as this was something that he had not expected to hear. "Tell me more about this girl."

"She looked cute and innocent but believe me she's anything but. How she spoke to the other two made it sound like she was in charge. Her speech and mannerisms didn't come across as that of a child. But instead an adult trapped in the body of a child. It is one of the oddest things that I have ever seen."

"Hmm so it seems like the rumours are true." He scratched his chin for a moment as he thought. "I had heard of whispers about a woman who had somehow turned herself into a little girl again. I don't know how it happened but from what you're saying to me it must be true. There is still some magic in this world and it seems like we've come across another case of it.

Maxime stayed quiet about it as she knew too well about there being magic in the world. If it hadn't been for magic her mother would have died as a baby and would never have reached the heights that she did. It was magic that had given Maxine her great size along with her that of her sisters. If there was magic that could do that then she was certain that there was magic that allowed someone to become younger.

"I've told you all that I know," said Maxine. Her voice was calm despite her fatigue. "Can I have my reward now?"

"But you didn't say the magic word," replied the Mayor. He could see this bubbling underneath Maxine's skin.

"Please." He then passed her the pouch which she quickly picked up. She felt its weight and it was less than she expected.

"Seems a little too light if you ask me."

"You only got the small fish, catch me the big fish and you'll get what was promised. Now go on and do whatever you normally do when you're not working. Just as long as you don't cause any trouble."

Maxine didn't really respond as she was still in a bad mood. Instead she just turned around and walked out of the office. She saw Charles who had remained outside for the time being, he had felt that it was best to not be in her way during this conversation. But he did begin to walk beside her when she had stepped out. As any good squire he kept up with her as best as he could. He could see that she was still annoyed so he knew better than to try and speak to her. Instead he just followed in silence and awaited her to give him some kind of command. As her squire he would do practically anything that she wanted him to do.

Just then she stopped for a moment and went into the pouch of gold that she had been given. The bag was a lot emptier than she would have liked but she took a few of the coins out and passed them to Charles. He was a little confused at first but he had noticed that they had stopped outside of a tavern.

"Go and buy yourself something to eat," said Maxine. "Then wait for me here until I'm done."

"Ma'am are you going to be buying ale again?" replied Charles who almost instantly began to regret asking this question.

"And what if I am?" Her words were sharp and angry. "I earned this money while you were sleeping peacefully. Besides it is not the duty of a squire to question a knight." She seemed very annoyed by what he was saying and she was definitely not in the mood to be dealing with such things.

"But is it wise ma'am? Saving some of that money will work wonders, don't forget that we still owe your friend some money and you still need food yourself. I'm just suggesting that with this money that you have to only spend a small amount on ale. Then feed yourself and give back what you owe. In my opinion it is the wisest thing to do." He expected her to berate him again but instead she took a few more coins from the pouch. Rather than keeping the pouch she gave it to him which did confuse him a little.

"Keep that safe and don't you dare spend anything in there." She wasn't admitting that he was right but she was doing the next best thing. "I know how much is supposed to be in there and if even one coin is missing I'll cut your hand off for being a thief. Got it?"

"Yes ma'am." He felt happier but he didn't want to seem overconfident. What he was dealing with was some good fortune but he didn't want to spoil things by being smug about it.

With that Maxine lowered her head so that she could get through the tavern door while Charles went to buy himself so food. He had not been given all that much but it would be enough for him to get something that would fill him up. He was also vigilant as he thought that the bandits might be in town. However, stealing in broad daylight was always a bad idea and he still had some of his injuries from the last time he was held up.

One thing that he did consider buying when he had enough money was a small dagger. This wasn't so that he could rob people or pick a fight. It was for his own protection as with times like these he didn't have Maxine's protection. His smaller than average stature did him no favours either.

He did eventually come across a baker who sold him a couple of bread rolls which he devoured relatively quickly. From another he bought himself a small glass of wine, just so that he had something slightly enjoyable. He imagined that Maxine was probably drinking ale by the barrel load. She would likely be drinking it as if it was water and still not even act the slightest bit drunk.

Just as Charles was thinking about returning to the tavern he felt a raindrop on his head and then suddenly the rain had come crashing down. The day had been threatening to do this for a while and now it was happening. He wasn't too surprised as it rained almost every day in Angleland so people had gotten used to it by now.

He did run fairly quickly so that he could enter another shop. This one was one that he hadn't been expecting to see. This was filled with supposed magic potions; the place was filled from floor to ceiling with bottles of odd coloured liquids. He knew that magic was a real thing but these kinds of shops were quite infamous.

The potions that were offered could help people in almost every way possible. Like a man who was balding could drink a potion and have a full head of hair again. Normally it wouldn't work and people would experience what was cooled a mind trick. If a person believed that it would work then they would see some positive results. However, this was all in the mind.

"Ah a customer," said a voice. This caused Charles to turn around and he saw a man standing not too far away from him. He was wearing somewhat fancy clothes and had short brown hair. "Welcome, do you see anything that you like?"

"Actually, I'm just taking shelter," replied Charles. "I'm not really interested in anything right now."

"My man you're mistaken. Everything here has some interest with someone. All I need to do with you is figure out what exactly it is that you desire." He stayed quiet and began to think. "I know, you're not the tallest character I've seen around here. I have a potion that will make you taller."

"Not interested in that."

"You don't look all that strong, how about a potion that will make you stronger? Might even make you more popular with the ladies."

Almost instantly he regretted entering this shop. One thing he did find a little funny was the thought of Maxine drinking one of these potions. He had already seen how tall and strong she was, if these potions were real (which he highly doubted) he could only imagine what would happen to her.

Meanwhile in the tavern Maxine was continuing to drink through the ale that she was buying. She knew that there were some people who were watching her as none had ever seen a woman as large as her. This was something that she was used to as she was from a family of giants.

Due to Charles having most of the money she hadn't been able to drink as much ale as she would have wanted but instead she just savoured the small amount that she could afford. The ale itself tasted pretty average and there was nothing that really blew her away with it.

Most people were keeping their distance away, they could see the sword that she was carrying and the fact that every part of her body besides her head was completely armoured up. She didn't mind the intimidation factor as it was a great deterrent and also made sure that unnecessary combat didn't take place.

This was something that her father had taught her. From a very early age he could see that Maxine was going to be much bigger than a normal person. He saw that she could use her size to win battles without the need to lift a finger. He had taught her that intimidating an opponent was useless enough to win a battle but even if a sword was needed they would probably be too intimidated to fight properly. It had helped her several times in the past and it would do the same in the future.

She continued to drink until she heard some footsteps approaching her. At first, she chose to ignore it but she could hear them continuing on. This caused her to lower her glass and she saw a man standing next to her. He was a large man but she made him look like a child she didn't pay too much attention to him at first but he remained there. This annoyed her and she looked at him, she was not in the mood to be at the centre of attention like this.

"Is there something that you want?" asked Maxine in a tone that indicated that her patience was short.

"I couldn't help but notice you from across the room," replied the Man. There was the smell of alcohol on him but he didn't seem too drunk.

"Yeah, I've been told that I stand out."

"You might not know this but I'm considered to be the strongest guy in town."

"Congratulations, now leave me be." It was obvious that she didn't care about what he was saying and just wanted to carry on with her drink.

"Actually, about that, you look to be strong. All that armour weighing you down means that you're pretty strong to be carrying it. How about this, you beat me in a test of strength and I'll buy you a drink."

"A drink?" Maxine wasn't the kind of woman who turned down the opportunity for a free ale but she was still cautious. "You really want to go against me?"

"Yes, you might call it a need to prove myself. But then again, I don't see many people like you walk in here. What do you say?"

"Fine." She gave a sigh as she hoped by doing what he wanted it would mean that she would leave him alone. "What kind of test were you thinking of?"

"Follow me outside and I'll show you." There was a small smile on his face. A couple of his teeth were missing and he wasn't someone that she considered to be handsome in the slightest.

One thing that Maxine could say about him was the fact that this strong guy did look like someone who could back up his claims. She didn't think he had a chance of beating her in a contest of strength but in comparison to normal people he would likely wipe the floor with them.

There was no chance of him seeing the muscles under her armour. They were fairly large for a woman and she had her life as a farmer and carrying around her armour to thank for her muscles. Some didn't think it was very womanly to have muscles such as hers but she didn't care about what people thought as being womanly. She had grown up with a particular person who was into being womanly and appealing to men and she didn't like that person very much.

Maxine drank the what was left inside of her glass. One thing she hadn't noticed was that some other people were following them outside. They had seen this person challenge strangers to tests of strength in the past. It was normally something that was entertaining to watch and they didn't want to miss it.

Eventually the man stopped right outside of a small hut outside of tavern. She watched as he began to get some items out of it and put them together. This included a large board with hooks attached to them. There were two of them in total and several metallic canisters were placed beside them. It seemed obvious that they were to hook onto the board and the strong man looked at Maxine who stood there with her arms crossed.

"The rules of the competition are simple," said the Man. "We each lift these weights, with each lift we add more weights and the first to fail loses the competition."

"Sounds simple enough," replied Maxine. There was something inside of her that thought that there might be more to this but she remained quiet as she simply surveyed the situation. There were more people there than she realised but this did nothing to make her nervous about the contest.

"Normally I'd say ladies first but this time I'll go first. Just to demonstrate of course." He chuckled a little as he stepped toward the board that he had set up for himself. One metal canister was hooked onto each side and he lifted it slightly so that he could get it behind his neck. The canisters themselves had not been lifted and he tensed up his face as he prepared to lift. He gave a small groan as he lifted up the board and the canisters by a few feet off the ground. He was standing to his full height with the board resting on his shoulders. He stayed like that for a couple of seconds before lowering them back down and giving a small sigh. "There you go, now your turn."

Maxine didn't say anything as she went to her own board. Like his there were two canisters attached to it. She placed the board behind her head and using her great strength she lifted them up just like the strong man had done. She stayed there for a few seconds before lowering them back down.

This made the strong man chuckle as he could see that Maxine was no pushover. This was the exact competition that he wanted. He attached another two canisters to his board and then lifted that up as well. The people who were watching cheered here when he completed this feat but Maxine wasn't impressed. She simply attached another two canisters and completed the feat herself.

For the next several minutes the contest continued with more canisters added. Eventually there were twelve canisters attached to each board. The strong man lifted his up with relative ease. Maxine on the other hand was having some difficulty. She could feel the weight that was pulling her down and she grunted as she tried to lift it. She knew that if she hadn't been wearing her armour then she would be able to lift the board and canisters with some ease. Unfortunately, this was something that she couldn't really do so she just made due.

With a tremendous amount of force Maxine was able to lift the canisters and everyone was shocked to see this. The strong man was also really taken aback by what he was seeing, she could see a cold sweat on his brow and he chuckled nervously. This made her think that there was something not right here. This man was significantly smaller than her but he was lifting weights that she was struggling with. There was something inside of her that was telling her that there was something wrong.

"I must admit that I under estimated your strength fair maiden," said the Strong Man. "But now we need to add even more canisters until one of us finally admits defeat."

"Actually, I have a better idea," replied Maxine. "Why don't we swap our weights for this one."

"Swap them?" He seemed confused and there was some nervousness in his voice. "Why would you want to do that?"

"Because I don't know about you but I smell a rat here." She then stepped toward the board that the strong man had been using. He wanted to stop her but she forced him to one side as she grabbed onto the board. With little effort she lifted up the board and she discovered that it weighed significantly less than her board. "Just as I suspected, you were trying to cheat your way to victory."

"Hey, cheating is a pretty strong word to be throwing around." He was still nervous about what was happening but he saw her glaring at him. Her hand was closing around the board and the sound of splintering wood could be heard.

"Do not take me for a fool unless you want me to cut out that lying tongue of yours!" She was close to drawing out her sword. But since he was unarmed this was something that she didn't think was necessary for the situation.

"There's no need for violence." He was very nervous and he could clearly see that he had lost the contest. He could also see that the crowd was beginning to turn on him and he looked up at her again. "Ok I admit you win; now why don't I buy you that drink I promised and we'll forget this whole thing ever happened."

"Make it a barrel for trying to deceive me."

"A barrel?" He was taken a little by surprise but seeing the situation he was in he really couldn't refuse her. "Fine a barrel, whatever you want."

Minutes later Maxine found herself standing outside the tavern waiting for the return of her squire. Besides her was a large barrel of ale that the strong man had bought for her, it turned out that he had a bit of a fanbase in this town and that he would often take part in rigged contests with other strong people he saw. Once he defeated them he would sell some merchandise and sign autographs for a price. Maxine didn't care too much about what he was doing, all she cared about was that she had her ale.

Just then she noticed Charles approaching her, the rain had more than subsided by now and glorious sunshine filled the sky. There was even a rainbow that could be seen in the distance but neither of them was paying attention to it. Instead he just wanted up to her and she loomed above him almost like an adult above a child. With everything that had happened she was a little happy to see him.

"Hello ma'am," said Charles. "Did you drink what you wanted?"

"Not everything but I do have this to take back with us," replied Maxine. She patted her armoured foot on the barrel and gave a small chuckle.

"H-How were you able to afford that?" He knew that she hadn't remained with enough money to buy such a thing and this confused him greatly. He did consider that she had stolen it but by now he had learned that she wasn't that kind of woman. She would also become incredibly offended if he said such a thing so he decided that it was best to keep the thought to himself.

"Just won a little friendly wager." Her stomach began to growl for a few moments. In the excitement of everything she remembered that she hadn't eaten. This was not something that she carry on with as her body needed calories much more than the average person. "You didn't happen to pick up any food, did you?"

"Well actually." He took off his bag and took something out of it. Maxine couldn't see it at first but as she focused on it her eyes began to light up as she realised what it was. "I returned to a local baker and he was selling this pie for really cheap." He began to pass it up to the tall woman standing before him. "It might be cold now but I thought that you might like to have it ma'am."

"Your assumptions are true my squire." She wanted nothing more than to rip the pie out but she kept her composure. "Did you make sure that there were no onions inside?"

"Yes, I've been assured that there are no onions inside of this pie and none have even touched it."

"Very good Charles." She didn't know what kind of pie it was and she didn't really want to know. She preferred it to be a surprise but she did take it off him when he lifted it up to her. "Thank you, my Squire, you have done well."

Normally she would use some kind of utensil to eat this pie but since she didn't have any at hand she just ate it using her hand. She began to eat it quickly and Charles could only stand there and watch. It was the largest pie that he could find at a decent price but she made it look small.

That was one thing that he had begun to get used to by being around Maxine. She made things look much smaller than they should do. He had heard her mention her family and he couldn't help but imagine that they were all as large as her. It was a somewhat scary thought to think that there were a few others like Maxine walking around.

Charles took his eyes off of her for a few moments as something close by drew his attention. But when he turned back he saw that she had finished the entire pie. He didn't think that it was humanly possible for someone to eat a pie so quickly but then again there were a lot of things that she did that weren't normally possible.

"That hit the spot," said Maxine. She couldn't help but pat her stomach a little even though it was beneath her armour. She could tell that it was a meat pie but which meat exactly was beyond her for the time being. It was delicious although it was a cold, the pastry had gone a little stale but it had still been completely edible. "Was there anything else that you need to tell me?"

"Well there is one more thing," replied Charles. From his bag he took out something else. At first, she couldn't see what it was but when she got a better view of it she could see that it was a small glass bottle with a green liquid inside of it. He lifted it up to her and she took it out of his hand. She was confused as her eyes began to examine it, she had no idea what it was or even why he would buy it.

"W-What is this?"

"That ma'am is something that will hopefully get you out of a tight spot. While I was exploring this town, I came across a potion shop. The owner claimed to have potions that had a wide range of effects. Of course, I didn't believe that any of them actually worked but there was one I thought could be useful. When you find yourself in a tight situation where you need to make a hasty retreat, simply throw this on the ground and then run as fast as you can. Well that's what the owner told me anyway."

Maxine looked at the potion for a few more moments. She felt a little offended that her squire would even mention that she might need to retreat. However, she wasn't a stupid woman either, she knew that there was likely going to be a time where she would need to retreat rather than engaging in a fight.

"Thank you, Charles," said Maxine. "This may come in use one day." She placed it in her own pouch that was attached to her. "But right now, we need to prepare for another patrol, this time however I'm going to try and find their base of operation. Cut off the head and the rest of the body will die."

"That could be dangerous ma'am. There are likely many bandits and only you there. Even if the others went with you would still likely be vastly outnumbered."

"Are you doubting my skills and strength?" She glared at him a little and this caused him to experience a small wave of fear.

"Of course, not ma'am. I'm just saying that even you can only take on so many people at once. You're powerful, there's no doubt about that but you're not invincible."

"You're right there. If I am to teach you anything on this trip it's that overconfidence can be the biggest hill a knight can face. Now come along, we have to meet up with the others for tonight's patrol."

Charles didn't argue with her on this point and he merely followed her back toward the building where they had been staying. They could hear the chatter inside that belonged to the other knights who having a drink and something to eat. Amongst them was Gregory who was taking a bite out of some bread when they arrived.

He was the only one to welcome the pair back and before they forgot Charles ensured that they gave him the money back for the breakfast from the previous morning. He was initially going to allow the debt to slide but he wasn't going to turn them down if they were offering to pay.

The other knights felt like their time the previous night had been wasted. They had stood by the manholes like they had been instructed but nothing had happened. This annoyed them greatly and they also didn't like the fact that Maxine was the one who had instructed them to do it.

In their eyes she wasn't worthy to be commanding them. She had not proven herself in combat, they also thought of her more as a child due to her young age and the fact that she was a woman had not escaped them. If their peers found out about this they would probably be the laughing stock. They barely looked at her as she walked and she wasn't fussed about giving them the time of day.

A few minutes later Maxine sat on the floor besides where the others were drinking. She had her own ale with her and she drank it straight from the barrel. She sat closest to Gregory while Charles sat in the corner. He had not been forced to go there but he was writing something inside of his book. None of the other knights paid much attention to him, Maxine would often glance over to him to see if he was alright.

"So, I've been told that you had a run-in with someone," said Gregory. "That is after we last saw each other last night."

"Yeah," replied Maxine as she lifted the barrel to her lips and drank some more of the subpar ale inside. "I ran into those bandits again and the person who seems to be calling the shots. I take it that you've been informed."

"I believe so but I don't entirely think that it's true. You stated that their leader is some kind of little girl?"

"That's right."

"Well I don't know about you but I'm not in the business of hurting little kids. That's just not my style."

"She's more than a mere child, underestimating her could be the biggest and possibly last mistake you ever make."

"If it were from the mouth of anyone else, even my own mother I'd be calling out bullshit. But since it's from you I can't take it as anything else but the truth. If you say that they're being led by a little girl who am I to disagree?"

"A girl?" replied Arthur. He laughed for a moment but was careful to not choke on the food that he was eating. "Ha, you've been drinking too much of that piss there. A little girl being in charge of a league of bandits? Until I see it myself I have to call bullshit on what you're saying." There was a small discussion that seemed to be agreeing with what Arthur was saying between the other knights.

"You can believe whatever you want but when it boils down to it you know that I'm telling you the truth," answered Maxine. Charles had taken note of what was being said and he was surprised with how calm she was.

"I think you better sit this one out tonight, you've been drinking too much and your mind is beginning to wander."

"My wits are still as sharp as ever. My hand is steady and my mind is focused on the task at hand." She gave him a glare but he didn't seem to be too intimidated. "This is the last time that you will ever doubt me."

"Now let's not fight shall we," replied Gregory who felt that he had to step in just so that Maxine didn't do anything that she would regret. "Just remember that when this job is done we can be on our merry way."

Maxine didn't answer as she was still annoyed. Instead she continued to drink her ale and every so often she would glance back at Charles. She didn't know what he was doing but since he was minding his own business she didn't pry into his affairs. Instead she simply left her squire be.

The group continued to eat and drink for another hour until they decided that it was time for them begin their patrol. Since they knew now how the bandits were getting into the town it seemed like things would be easier for them. Already Gregory had been able to obtain a map of the town and several heavy barrels. He planned to have them covering the manholes around the town so that they were useless to the bandits. Unfortunately, they were not very useful since they were heavy and needed to be carried around. This was where Maxine would come in. She was more than strong enough to lift the barrels and put them into place. It would take a horse and cart to transfer them around the town but he had already gotten all that sorted with the mayor.

Just as she was getting ready to leave Maxine looked at her helmet. Although it was in great shape she could still see a couple of small dents from where the arrow had struck her. It crossed her mind that without this helmet she would have died but she was still disappointed by fact that it was damaged. One thing that she prided herself on was the fact that her armour was completely undamaged and not because it was new.

For a moment she did consider returning home in order to repair the damage. However, she didn't think that it was worth the trip for such minor damage. There were other much more local blacksmiths but she didn't think that any of them were as skilled as her uncles who ran the forgery.

One by one the horse and cart would go to each manhole and Maxine would place a heavy barrel onto each of them. There was nothing too particularly valuable inside of the barrels. Most were filled with water or sand, it didn't matter too much what was inside of them. Just that they were heavy enough to keep the manhole covers in place.

Gregory would steer the horse where it needed to be while Maxine would place the barrels down. The others were keeping an eye on the entrance to the underground tunnels just outside of Teasel. They were waiting to see whether anyone would try to enter or leave. They were an ambush of sorts and all they had to do was wait.

Like the night before Charles remained behind and was writing a few more things into his book before he attempted to get some sleep. Maxine was still tired from the previous night as she hadn't slept enough to re-energise herself. This caused her to soldier on as best as she could but she wouldn't mind getting a little shut eye.

"How many of these do we have left?" asked Maxine as she placed another barrel down onto the manhole. Gregory watched on and he could see how easily she was able to move them. He knew that with their size it would take at least two men to move them while she made them look light.

"That should be the last one," replied Gregory. "Now they can't use these manholes to slip into Teasel."

"You make it sound like we've already succeeded. But to tell you the truth I don't think that we have. Call me crazy but I think that what we're doing is redundant."

"And why would you say that?"

"We know how they're getting in and out of the town. If I was a strategist I wouldn't continue using this method. Instead I would try and come up with another tactic. If the enemy knows your moves then you make new moves if you know what I mean."

"That is a point there." He was still riding in the cart with Maxine walking alongside it. "What strategy would you come up with?"

"I'm not sure. Would definitely be something discreet." She did think that this was something that sounded absurd coming from her. She was a nine-foot woman wearing heavy armour, discretion was something that was completely alien to her. A person could see her coming from a mile away.

"Until we spot them for now we can only go with what we know. If we try stabbing in the dark then we could be wasting our time over nothing. Until we have more evidence we'll just carry on with our current strategy."

Meanwhile just outside of the town the three knights continued their vigil. They were hiding in the bushes and with the help of the darkness they seemed to be completely invisible. This seemed to be the best for them as they completely blended in. Two of them were located in a bush on the one side while the final one was located on the other.

The two in the bush were Arthur and Sir Darren, they were keeping their eyes open but they didn't like the situation at hand. It had still mainly been Maxine who had told them to do this and they didn't believe that she had the right to do so. Despite this her intimidating presence made them unable to speak up against her. Instead they just went along with what she said and now they found themselves out there.

"By the gods we'll be out here for hours before anything happens," said Arthur. He gave a grunt as he wasn't that happy with the situation. He did take some solace in the thought that when the ambush was sprung that they would finally get some action.

"Sometimes good things come to those who wait," replied Sir Darren. He seemed to be a little more relaxed about the situation than his colleague. "Besides we're basically being paid to sit here and do nothing."

"I guess you're right there. But still a little action wouldn't hurt. I missed it all last night." He stopped as he suddenly noticed someone walking by. Both he and Sir Darren ducked a little more and began to watch. They expected to see one of the bandits trying to enter the nearby tunnel.

Before Arthur could do anything, he felt a sharp pain in his neck. This was coupled with the sensation of not being able to breathe. With some fear he raised his hand to his neck and he felt something, something that was not supposed to be there. It was long and made out of wood, it also had a metallic tip and it only took him a few moments to realise that this was an arrow.

The next thing he felt was blood oozing out of his mouth before he finally fell to the ground. His life was at an end and for a few confusing moments Sir Darren didn't know what was happening. This all changed when he felt a similar pain in his neck, he too began to fall to the ground as he had been fatally wounded. It seemed a little funny to him, after everything that he had achieved in his life he was dying in a bush outside of a town that was hard to find on a map.

Up in the trees there were three archers looking down on the men that they had just killed. All three of the knights who had been positioned there now lay with arrows in their necks and whatever remained of their lives completely broken. The archers carefully climbed to the ground and made their way toward the town. Rather than going through the tunnel they went beside it and started to make their way toward the main entrance.

Like every other night the entrance was gated and manned. For them it seemed to be just like any other night but when the gate keeper opened the slot to see through he was met with an arrow right between his eyes. This caused him to fall down and his end came quickly and relatively painless.

One minor problem that the trio faced was the fact that with the gatekeeper dead the gate to the town remained locked. This was quickly solved as with the help of his colleagues one of the archers was able to climb over the gate. When he landed on the other side he quickly unlocked it and opened it up so that the others could enter. Before they moved on they perched the dead gatekeeper on his stool to make it seem like he was still performing his duty and not immediately raising suspicion.

Each of the men wore hoods and moved quickly in relative silence. They used hand movements to signal to communicate with one another. It seemed like none of their motions were wasted, they had a particular task that they needed to complete and it seemed like nothing could stop them.

Despite this they were still cautious, they didn't know exactly how many knights were patrolling and they hadn't run into the one that they had been warned about. They had been told about the one who was supposedly taller than a house with the strength of ten men. They knew this to be an exaggeration but it didn't mean that they could take them lightly. Two of their colleagues had been taken the night before. Although their colleagues were low ranking it still gave them reason to be cautious.

They stayed mainly to the shadows and were heading toward one of the largest houses in town. This house wasn't being targeted by random, there was something inside incredibly valuable, something that they had killed for and were not going to leave before they had taken it.

Mere moments later the trio arrived just outside of the house in question. They remained low and prepared themselves. Each one was at a different of the house, one even peered inside and saw someone who they were expecting. This was the Mayor sitting in the on a cushioned seat and reading a book. Even though the house belonged to him he was not the target of this attack.

The option of going in loud and fast was an option but one of the archers was able to open up one of the windows with a small amount of force. It was large enough for him to be able slip through without causing a sound. He landed inside and he landed on the ground without making a single sound.

Quickly he made his way through the house with each step he took taken with great care. He slowly made his way through the house and he purposely left out the room that the Mayor was sitting in. For now, it seemed like the official didn't realise what was going on and just continued to read.

Carefully they were able to enter a room that was their primary target. Rather than having anything of great wealth the room contained a lot of toys that were thrown around the place. There were drawings that were plastered on the walls and lying in the bed was the prize that they had come to take.

Lying in the bed was a little girl who was fast asleep. She had a small, stuffed bear in her arms and she looked to be very peaceful. Most likely she was experiencing pleasant dreams and had no idea about the danger that she was in. This was all soon changed when she felt a hand over her mouth. This quickly woke her up but she was in too much of a daze to fully realise what was happening.

With little effort the kidnapper picked up the little girl and began to hurry his way out of the house. There was a note that had been left on the bed but as he made his way out the girl was kicking and screaming as much as she could. Her voice was muffled by the hand that was covering her mouth but she could still kick as much as she could. Her foot caught an object that created a large amount of sound.

Almost instantly the sound alerted the Mayor in the other room who quickly got up from his chair and went to check on his daughter. That was when he saw the kidnapper taking his most prized possession away from him. He was silent for a moment but before he could do anything to save her he felt a strong kick to the gut. It was enough to send him back a few feet and he slammed against a nearby wall.

Rather than finishing the job the kidnapper just quickly went out the window that he had gotten through. The other two kidnappers were already there waiting for him as they had seen what happened inside. They had their prize and quickly made their way back toward the gate that they had used to enter the town. The streets were empty and there seemed to be no sign of either Maxine or Gregory at all.

This was a blessing that they didn't fully realise that they had. Despite this they still carried on their way. They moved faster than they had before and the little girl was still kicking and screaming as much as she could. It was no use as she was simply too small to prevent what was happening. She could do nothing as the kidnappers ran out through the opened gate and into the woods that surrounded Teasel.

On the other side of town Maxine and Gregory were oblivious to what had just taken place. They were still going through their normal rounds and Gregory was even still on the horse, he was planning on returning it back very shortly but he found himself walking alongside Maxine. She was walking forward but she was keeping an eye out for any activity, so far, she had seen nothing that peaked her interest.

"How long are you going to keep that squire of yours around anyway?" asked Gregory as he continued to trot along in the cart. The horse wasn't as reliable as his own but it had been able to get the job done.

"Until his debt to me is repaid," replied Maxine. Her voice was a little sterner than it was before but she didn't sound too aggressive.

"And when will that be exactly?"

"Whenever I decide that he has, but still I might keep him around for a while. He's proving himself quite useful. I could never get my armour as clean as Charles has, plus it is a little nice to have some company."

"Yeah I know the feeling, having someone to travel with you can make those long journeys feel a little shorter."

"Are you going to train him to be a knight as well?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well most times when a knight takes on a squire it isn't just so that they can do all the unfavourable tasks. It is also to build them up to becoming a knight themselves, but to tell you the truth your squire doesn't look like a fighter."

"Charles can't fight to save his life." Her words were a little stern but she didn't truly believe what she was saying. "But I will likely teach him some basics so that he can defend himself. Besides I am not a knight myself so I can't train him to become one."
"That is true, but you know if you give some minor lord enough gold they would knight you there and then."

"A knighthood should be earned, not bought. If one is bought it becomes hollow and meaningless."

"Yeah you're right there." Suddenly they began to hear a noise which immediately brought the attention of them both. It sounded like the ringing of a bell but it wasn't like a large bell that would be heard in a town. Instead it sounded like a smaller bell that could be held in a person's hand. "What's that?"

"I'm not sure but it could be a trap. Take that horse back to where you found it, I'll go and investigate."

"As you wish Maxine, but be careful."

For the moment the pair parted ways as Maxine walked closer to where the ringing was coming from. She did walk with some pace but wasn't outright running, this was something that was difficult to do in her armour. Thankfully the padding underneath prevented the armour from rubbing onto her skin and causing her discomfort.

After a few minutes of walking and following the sound Maxine eventually began to approach the home of the Mayor. She could see him standing outside with some tears in his eyes. She didn't know what was happening at that moment in time but she could see that something was seriously wrong. Over the last few times that she had seen the Mayor he had always seemed stern and possessed a large amount of authority. Now he seemed to be a shell of a man with tears rolling down his face and an uncomfortable shaking.

After the insults and trouble that he had caused her a small part of her did enjoy seeing him like this but she knew that something was very wrong. She stepped towards him and looked down, her face was obscured by the helmet that she wore but he knew that it was her based on her sheer size.

"Thank the gods that you're here," said the Mayor. "Please you have to help, they took her away."

"Took who?" replied Maxine with a small amount of confusion in her voice.

"My daughter Alexa, they broke into my house and took her away from me. Please you have to help me, she's the most precious thing in the world to me." Maxine continued to look over him and the mean-spirited mayor seemed to disappear and instead replaced with a desperate father. As much as she had disliked how he had treated him she couldn't let this innocent girl be taken away.

"You have my word, before dawn your daughter will be returned to you." She didn't know how she was going to do it but she still made her vow.

"Thank you." He held onto her hand and lowered his head. Tears continued to roll down his face. "Thank you."

There was one thing that the kidnappers had left behind which was a ransom note. Originally Maxine was going to step inside of the home but the tight door and low ceiling made the activity very undesirable. Instead she chose to wait outside as he brought the note to her. At first the very large woman tried to read it herself but her reading skills were not up to task so she passed it back to the Mayor.

The note was little more than a ransom note as it stated that the little girl would be returned to the Mayor for a hefty sum. It was more than the Mayor had and the only way that they could afford it was dip into the taxpayer's money. This was something that he was extremely reluctant to do but with the prospect of losing his daughter forever he would resort to doing what had to be done.

Upon hearing what had been stated Maxine became enraged, she was angry that they would drag a child into this. She thought it was the lowest a person could go in order to make money and made her blood begin to boil. On the outside she still looked to be calm but under her helmet the Mayor couldn't see her face.

"Please ma'am," said the Mayor. Tears were rolling down his face, for the first time since she came here Maxine actually pitied him. "You have to help me get my precious daughter back, she means the world to me."

"You have my word," replied Maxine. She placed her large, armour clad hand on the seemingly small shoulder of the Mayor and she looked directly at him. "By dawn your daughter will be safely returned to you."

"Thank you, thank you." This was all that he could say as he was overcome with emotion. The concept of losing his daughter was very real to him.

"Those bandits that I captured last night, are they still incarcerated?"

"Y-Yes."

"Then I'll pay them a visit. With your permission of course." The Mayor said nothing and simply nodded. But he did quickly write something down on a piece of paper and handed it to the tall woman. She didn't know what it said but she had a good idea what the parchment was all about.

Quickly Maxine began to walk away from the Mayor's house with a task in her mind. She had promised to return the Mayor's daughter to him and she didn't intend to let him down. Her father would have done the same thing and now she was going to do it as well. But there was something else that she had in mind as well. She had made sure that the three knights that been posted to guarding the tunnel should have stopped the kidnappers. She didn't know that all three of them had been slain.

After a few minutes walking she eventually found herself standing outside of the town's jail. As it was late the place was lightly manned but it was open as the jail never technically closed. Maxine was able to squeeze her body through the front door and she was quickly met with a jailer sitting behind a desk.

The Jailer hadn't expected any kind of visit and the utter size of the woman standing before him also caught him off guard. Since she was wearing her full armour along with her helmet it was difficult for him to see that she was indeed a woman. He was confused at first but she placed the parchment down onto the desk. He picked it up and took a look it at. With that he understood what needed to be done.

Quickly the Jailer got up from his chair and picked up some keys that were sitting close by. The giant woman followed him as he walked by a series of cells, some were occupied but it was the one at the end that was of the most interest to her. Sitting there were the two bandits that had been captured the night before.

They both saw that Maxine was there and they cowered in fear from her. This was a good thing in her mind and the man simply stood by as he opened the door. Neither of the bandits attempted to escape as there was a tower of flesh and metal standing in their way. They could do nothing but watch as she stepped inside of the cell. She was too tall to stand upright inside and she glared down at the bandits. They couldn't see her face which made her seem even more terrifying than she already did.

"I'm only going to ask you this once without any consequences," said Maxine in a stern voice that demanded respect. "Where is your base of operations?"

"Y-You asked me last night," replied one of the Bandits. It was the same one that she had questioned almost twenty-four hours before and had not gotten a satisfying answer from. "I told you that I don't know." He was still afraid as he had felt first had just how strong this woman was and how powerless he had been in comparison to her.

"It is not you who I'm asking." She turned her attention to the second bandit. The previous night she had knocked him out before she could ask him any questions, tonight was different however as he was still fully conscious and was in no position to refuse her questions. It's you that I want."

"M-Me?" replied the Second Bandit. He too was afraid and he watched as the tower of armour stepped toward him.

"Do not make me ask you again." Her voice was intimidating to him and he heard the clanging sound of her armoured plates knocking into one another.

"Please don't make me say, they'll kill me otherwise."

"And I won't kill you now?" She took another step toward him, at this moment in time she was right next to him and he could almost touch her armour. How towering height and large physique made her the most terrifying human being that he had ever seen. "In your body you have bones that are both essential and non-essential to your survival. Guess which kind I will start breaking until I get answers,"

"Please don't, I'm begging you." He was beginning to see that there was a threat of him dying if he told Maxine what she wanted to know. But there was also the current threat of not telling her. She was there right now and capable of going through with everything that she said while the distant threat was far away from him.

"Then tell me what I want to know and no harm will come to you."

"T-There's an abandoned mine a couple of miles away from this town. W-We're using that as our hideout."

"Where exactly is it?" Her voice was still loud and intimidating. Even the other bandit became scared and they both just wanted this nightmare to be over.

"Go down the main road and then veer north once you reach a great oak tree." There was a lot of fear in his voice and he thought that he was moments away from dying. "You can't miss it, please don't hurt me." The next thing he felt was one of her large hands come down onto his shoulder, he was sure that she was going to break his shoulder or a part of his arm, instead she just looked at him. He couldn't see her expression thanks to her helmet and he feared what she would do next.

"There, now that wasn't too hard." Her voice was much less intimidating than it had been mere moments ago. It sounded like its normal tone and very womanly. "Thank you for your help."

"Y-You're not going to hurt me?" He was surprised by this and he was relieved at the same time.

"Of course not, you told me what I wanted to know and I can't really ask for anything more." Her grip tightened on his shoulder, it wasn't enough to cause him any pain but simply to send him a message. "But if it turns out you've been lying to me, well then that would be a different story now wouldn't it?"

The bandit remained quiet, he couldn't move from where he was standing thanks to Maxine's hand. He had never felt such a strong grip in his life but he was able to step back when she finally let go. With her business now done with the bandits she began to step out of the cell. As soon as she was out of the cell the Jailer made sure that it was securely locked behind her. The bandits still had a trial before they were properly punished for their crimes but the aspect of a lengthy jail time or worse was very real to the both of them. There was even a chance that they would be booking an appointment with a man named Terry Roman, the local hangman.

Within a minute or so Maxine stepped outside of the town's jail. Suddenly she saw someone approaching her and in the low light it made it difficult for her to make out who it was. But as they stepped closer he could see that the figure was armoured up and not just that, she recognised him. Her fear of being attacked quickly faded away as she saw that it was her friend Gregory.

"I thought that I'd run into you here," said Gregory. "I've been informed about what's happening, did you find the information that you needed?"

"Yes," replied Maxine. "I know exactly where I need to go, it would also be best if you or one of the others came as back-up."

"That's the thing, the others are dead."

"Dead?" This took her by surprise and she needed a moment to fully process what had been said. "How?"

"From what I saw they were killed by arrows through the neck. Didn't seem like they had much of a chance."

"Damn." Despite the fact that they had not taken her seriously and often looked down at her she was still somewhat saddened to hear about their passing. It was something that she would have liked to have avoided but it also gave her even more motivation to find the bandits and make them pay for what they had done. "Then you will come alongside me, we would have more chance of success that way."

"Will we be bringing your squire along as well?"

"No, there is little that he could do to help us. Let him rest, come morning the bandit threat in this town will come to a sudden and abrupt end."

Gregory nodded in agreeance with her. He was also trying to devise a plan, going in fast and strong was an option but stealth was also something that he considered. The only problem was that Maxine was so big that being stealthy was something that she physically was unable to do.

With their objectives in mind both Maxine and Gregory made their way out of Teasel through the main gate. One thing they noticed was that the deceased gatekeeper was being tended to by a couple of women. They were preparing to take the man to a place where he could be prepared for a proper burial. Gregory had seen this a few minutes before and he walked over to the women.

For the moment Maxine stayed where she was as she didn't know what he was telling them. A part of her thought that he might be attempting to flirt with them but she knew better. This was neither the time or place to be doing such things and she waited for him to return to her. She could only hear him thanking the two women before he stepped back toward the towering, armoured figure. They carried on walking as they knew that time was short but she did turn her head to look down at him.

"What were you talking to those women about?" asked Maxine. Her voice was not stern but this time it was merely curious.

"I informed them about our former colleagues," replied Gregory. "They might not have been the most polite people in the world but they still deserve to be tended to. Hopefully their passage will be peaceful."

"The more reason why these animals should pay for what they have done." She became annoyed but did not vent her frustration on her friend. "Four men lie dead and one child has been taken captive. I knew bandits could be dangerous but this is something that I thought was beyond them."

"Well don't you worry, after they're captured they'll surely swing."

"That's not if I get to them first."

"Hmm, I thought that you didn't kill." He was not against her killing them, as a knight it came with the job sometimes.

"I never said that I had a no killing at all rule. Just no killing under certain circumstances, but right now I am seriously considering rescinding that rule. Even if they were not the ones who performed the deed they are still just as guilty."

"We'll at least bring some of them back with us. Let the mayor hang a few of them at least. With everything that's happened he will probably appreciate that."

"Only if they surrender, if not then I'll make them a head shorter."

Gregory could tell that Maxine wasn't joking around, this sent a shiver down his spine. He was glad that she was on his side as he wouldn't want to be against her. One thing that did cross his mind was what they would find in the abandoned mines when they arrived. Traps were something that seemed obvious and they would also likely be outnumbered. If it was indeed their base of operations then every bandit in the group would be present and the numbers would still be against them.

In his mind he thought that Maxine would count for several men but even he knew that she had her limits. His own value was not diminished either, his skill with a blade was amongst the greatest of those in the land. Even so if there were enough numbers against them it didn't matter how skilled they were. They would both eventually fall.

For almost an hour the pair continued down the road that they had been informed about. They kept a lookout for any abandoned mines but in the darkness, it was difficult for them to make anything out. One thing that they didn't miss was a very large oak tree that stood near the path.

The tree itself was a few hundred years old and the tallest tree present. Maxine looked up at it and she didn't seem to be too impressed. She had seen living beings that were taller than this but it was something that she hadn't spoken to Gregory about. But it was a good sign, it meant that they were very close to their destination and they began to look around for the mine in question.

In the darkness they could just about make out a large hill. One odd thing that they noticed was a light that could just about be seen at the bottom of the hill. This was enough that they needed to investigate further. It did seem a little too obvious but it did mean that they were one step closer to finding the Mayor's Daughter.

Carefully they crept toward the light and as they got closer they could see it clearer. It was coming from an entrance to the hill which they figured was the abandoned mine that they had been told about. Rather than simply entering the mine straight away they held back as they observed the area.

Voices of several people could be heard although they seemed to be distant. There was also someone sitting outside of the entrance as well. It seemed obvious that he had been placed there to guard the entrance but there was something odd about him that Maxine picked up in an instant. His movements were slow and somewhat erratic, she could also hear him hiccupping.

It seemed obvious to both of them that the man keeping guard was drunk. This would make it easy for them to incapacitate him and simply walk inside. This was something that they didn't want to do just yet. They needed to formulate a plan first before they could take any action.

Gregory was more on the side of caution while Maxine thought that hitting them fast and hard was the best course of action. In her mind, by going down this route it wouldn't give the bandits time to react and produce a decent counterattack. One thing that Gregory was worried about was that the bandits would harm the young girl if they didn't reach her in time. They had no idea where she inside.

Taking the bandit guarding the entrance was an option as they could question him. But one problem that they would have that he wouldn't be very useful in this intoxicated state. Another problem that they had that when it came to tight passageways, stealth wasn't that much of an option. There would be nowhere to hide and enemies could come from the front or behind.

Another problem that Gregory didn't want to say out loud was the fact that Maxine's size would likely be a hindrance. If the passageways were as small as he thought that they'd be then it would be difficult for the nine-foot woman to move around in such a cramped space. Normally her size would be her biggest asset but in a place like that it would likely be her biggest weakness.

The pair were behind a large bush and watching on. They saw a couple of people arriving on a horse and cart. It was not one that either of them recognised but there was a chance that it had come from another town close by. They watched as the two bandits that had been using it simply parked it by the entrance and went inside. The bandit on guard didn't seem to bat an eyelid. They thought that they could use this to their advantage as he was in too bad of a state to properly react to the situation.

Maxine was the one who stepped out of the bush first and walked toward the mine. As expected she was quickly spotted by the drunk bandit. In his intoxicated state he couldn't properly tell what he was seeing. He thought that it was a bear walking on his hindlegs. Rather than reacting in fear he looked on with curiosity as the towering woman stepped toward him.

"W-Who are you?" asked the Drunk Bandit as he saw her walking toward the entrance of the mine.

"Nothing for you to be concerned about," replied Maxine. She could see that he was no threat and thus she didn't draw her sword. "You've had a lot to drink tonight, it's best that you sleep it off."

"C-Can't argue with that."

With that the drunk bandit leaned back on his chair and quickly began to drift off to sleep. It happened faster than Maxine had expected as within moments he was completely out. She could probably slap him with her large iron clad hand and he would still be asleep. This was perfect for now and she knew that she would have to keep him in mind. She planned to take him back to Teasel to face justice as well.

Gregory watched what had happened and he couldn't believe the good fortune that they just had. Rather than looking in amazement he quickly made his way over to Maxine. She waited there for him and when he arrived they looked at the entrance. The mine looked to be very deep and they could hear the echoed voices of several people inside.

One thing that Maxine did notice was that the ceiling looked quite low. Too low for her to be able to stand up straight. This would limit her manoeuvrability but she still thought that she could still put up a decent fight. The passageway looked to be too narrow for them both to walk in side by side so they had to go in single-file.

Gregory went ahead of his much large ally and as they entered they could see numerous torches along the walls which lit up the route ahead of them. Almost as soon as they entered they began to hear a metallic scrapping sound. He thought at first that it was something that he should be worried about. It took a few moments to realise that it was the top of Maxine's helmet scrapping along the ceiling. With all the echoed voices that were going on it was difficult, if not impossible for anyone to hear them.

As they continued to carefully walk through the passageway they were surprised with how little resistance they had faced so far. They expected to meet up against a few bandits at least but so far there had been nothing. This surprised them but they also took it as good fortune, however they knew that it was something that couldn't last long so they continued to move on as quickly as they could.

An immediate problem did appear before them when they saw that the passage way split two ways. This was something that they hadn't entirely expected and the problem had a simple yet potentially dangerous solution. It was quickly decided amongst themselves that they would split up. Gregory would take the passageway to the right while Maxine would take the one on the left.

Splitting themselves up was quite dangerous as it meant that they would be vulnerable. But with the safety of the young girl at stake it was a risk that they were willing to take. They nodded at one another and said a few brief words to one another before they split up. Both were somewhat worried about the other but came to the conclusion that they were more than capable of looking out for themselves.

Maxine moved as quickly as her large body would allow in the passageway. One thing that she did find somewhat relieving was the fact that the ceiling was getting higher as she walked. Eventually she was able to stand up straight without her head touching the ceiling, but that was when she spotted someone. A particular bandit was walking down the passageway with some food in his hand. Almost immediately he stopped when he saw her, since he had just walked around a bend he hadn't seen her until she was within arm's reach of her.

"Who are y..." said the Bandit but before he could finish his question he felt Maxine's grab him by his mouth. She put a lot of force into her grip and it caused him enough pain to drop the food that he was carrying.

It took Maxine a few moments to decide what to do with him. She had struck so fast that he hadn't had time to draw out any weapon. Her mind was telling her to kill him but a small voice told her not to. Instead she struck him with enough force to knock him into the wall on his right side. It was enough to knock him out and she simply stepped over him when she was done. This had been too easy at this time and she knew that it was going to become very difficult, very quickly.

As fast as her large body could move she made her way through the passageway. Her hand was constantly on the handle of her sword. She was ready to draw it out at a moment's notice in order to strike down anyone that got in her way. She could barely notice that she walked by a doorway and instead just kept walking.

Maxine did spot one bandit ahead of her, like the other on the outside he looked to be a little drunk but he was still aware of what was happening. When he saw her there he knew instantly that something was wrong. He watched as she drew her large sword and walked toward him. In response he too drew out a sword that he had been carrying and went to attack his much larger opponent.

This didn't work very well for him as Maxine swung her sword at his with such force that it knocked his sword out of his hand. It fell to the ground and the bandit could only fall to the ground in fear. He then felt her iron clad foot step onto his chest, she placed enough force down on him to cause him discomfort but not pain just yet. She needed answers from him and she couldn't do that if he was dead.

"Where is the girl?" asked Maxine. Her voice was sharp and to the point. She looked down at him and if he could see through her helmet he would have been able to see the glare that she was giving him.

"I don't know what you're talking about," replied the Bandit. One thing that he did notice was that there was another bandit behind her. He was approaching her with his sword and seemed like he was ready to strike. But then Maxine increased the weight on the bandit's chest causing him some pain.

"I won't ask again."

Maxine seemed to be completely focused on the man in front of her and she didn't seem to notice the bandit behind her. This bandit lifted his sword in a stabbing action but his foot hit the floor a little harder than he had expected. This allowed her to hear him and in one quickly swing of her sword the confrontation between the pair was over. The sword wielding bandit dropped his sword and then fell to the ground. The wasn't the only part of him that struck the ground as both of his hands had also been cut off. The shock of it all left him unconscious and bleeding heavily.

The bandit underneath Maxine's foot saw what had happened and his fear of her increased dramatically. He saw her looking down at him again, he thought that he too would suffer a similar fate if he didn't tell her where he kidnapped girl was. He was in pain as she momentarily increased weight being forced down onto her foot and thus onto his unprotected chest.

"S-She's at the end of this tunnel," said the Bandit. "But she's being guarded by our strongest members. You won't get to her very easily."

"I didn't expect it to be easy," replied Maxine. "How many of them are there?" This time she didn't increase any of her force as she felt that there was no need to do that. She was getting the answers that she needed.

"Only two but they're the McGrath brothers. Even you don't stand a chance against both of them."

"Maybe, maybe not." She then took her foot off of his chest and continued to look down at him. "Your friend here is going to die of blood loss unless you help him. Just be sure that you're both not here when I come back."

Maxine didn't wait to hear an answer and instead simply stepped over him and continued to walk. She kept in mind about what she had been told, the McGrath brothers was not a name that she had heard before. She wasn't too surprised by this and simply kept walking but she stayed vigilante.

Her sword was still in her hands but there was also blood on it. She looked at it for a moment and then thought that she would have Charles clean it for her when she returned to Teasel.

With seemingly nothing standing in her way Maxine continued to walk down the tunnel with authority. If she were to have her way it would be impossible for anyone to stop her but she still stayed cautious. Her father Sir Tucker had taught her that the biggest mistake a knight could make was being overconfident. It was easy to think that because of her size and strength that she was unbeatable. This kind of thinking would likely lead her to biting more than she could chew.

Eventually she came to a large cavern inside of the mine where it seemed obvious to her that much of the mining had taken place there. It was a mostly large and empty space but she did see a bandit sitting down and eating some food. He didn't seem to notice her at first but when he began to hear the distinct metal clinking sound of her armour he turned his head toward her and saw her stepping toward him.

The Bandit instinctive ran toward her with his sword and she simply stood still. She waited for him to strike which he did by slashing the sword onto her chest. He hoped that this would cause some damage but thanks to her thick armour the sword couldn't cut through. This surprised him but the next thing he felt was her hand grabbing his neck.

Without much effort Maxine picked up the bandit by his neck and threw him over her head and he landed on the ground behind her. It was enough to stun him for now and she simply walked away. One thing she did was kick his sword to one side and left him there. He was no threat to her so she simply left him be.

This had not gone unnoticed as there had been others on the far end of the cavern that had seen the brief encounter take place. This had fallen under her notice at first but when she saw half a dozen more bandits draw out their swords and quickly make their way toward her. She quickly made sure that she had a tight grip on her own sword but there was one thing that she noticed.

One of the group, hadn't stopped to fight, instead he had run down a passageway that was on the far end of the cavern. She suspected that he had gone to warn the others but there was nothing that she could do to stop him. Not with the bandits ahead of her but as she stepped closer they began to see just how big she was. She was by far the largest human being that they had ever seen and this terrified them. They took a couple of steps back and their fear was obvious for her to see. These were not trained soldiers but rather a group of ne'er-do-wells who had barely been trained with a sword. Taking them out would be effortless for her and she just calmly kept walking.

"This is your one and only warning," said Maxine in a commanding tone. She had also begun to truly master the art of intimidation. If she could win this battle with words she wouldn't have to bloody her sword anymore than she needed to. "Stay out of my way and you will not be harmed." There were a few seconds of silence before one of the bandits screamed and charged at her. The others did not follow and his efforts were met with a strong kick to the chest that sent him flying back several feet. There was a loud cracking sound that was a strong indication that at least a couple of his ribs had been broken by the impact. He landed on the ground and quickly started coughing and wheezing in pain. Maxine looked at him for a few moments before looking at the group again. "Would anyone else like to fill his shoes?" Not a word was spoken but each of them shook their heads at her and dropped their weapons. "Good." She then began to walk by them and they did nothing to stop her. "If you're still here when I come back you'll be heading to the gallows."

The bandits could do nothing but watch as she continued to walk toward the other passageway. They wanted to stop her but they knew that they were incapable of doing so. They had only joined this group so that they could get some easy money, now they were facing a threat that they were woefully unprepared for.

One of the bandits went to try and strike Maxine when she walked him. However, one of the other bandits stopped him, he knew what would happen if the attempt had been a success. It would only annoy the towering woman and would probably do little to hurt her. At least this way he was able to walk away with his body still intact.

She didn't seem to notice this and simply kept walking. She knew that she was close to reaching her goal, she imagined that in a few short minutes that she would be taking the little girl away from the mines and bringing her back to her father. Everything seemed to be going well, a little too well for her liking.

Maxine soon found herself in another small passageway. This one wasn't lit up as well as the other one had been and she was finding it difficult to see where she was going. There still didn't seem to be anything that could slow her down. Instead she just kept walking but she suddenly heard something.

There was a loud metallic smashing sound that met the ears of the nine-foot woman. This was quickly accompanied by a terrible sensation of pain in the chest of Maxine. It was enough to make her stagger back a few steps and gasp for air. She could tell that she had been struck with a hammer but not a tool hammer. From its size and impact it felt much more like a Warhammer.

Maxine continued to stagger back and she even went down to one knee. Her thick armour was dented and when she looked ahead she could see the outline of a large built man. She couldn't see what he looked like exactly but she knew that she was in a lot of trouble, maybe more than she could deal with.

Maxine could still feel the pain from the impact of the war hammer. She didn't think that she had any broken bones but the wind was definitely knocked out of her. It caused her to stagger back several feet and attempt to catch her breath. This was something that she was finding incredibly difficult and she even went down to one knee. It had been some years since she had felt pain like this.

From the shadows she could see a man stepping into the light, he was a large man but even when she was on her knee Maxine was still a little taller than him. His muscles were obvious to see and he carried a large war hammer as if it barely weighed anything. This did impress her but she could see that he had a smile on his face. His thick beard did hide some of his mouth but she could still tell it was there.

The pain that Maxine was experiencing was still enough for her to not speak. She knew that if it were not for her armour and her size that she would have likely died from the impact. Slowly she began to stand up and she still gasped for air as she did. This made the large man in front of her chuckle.

"I was told that you were big, but my you're the biggest man that I've ever seen," said the Large Man. He felt that the end for her was nearing.

"I-I am no man," replied Maxine. She was just able to say these words but she gave a huge cry of pain when she felt the war hammer strike her left leg. Almost immediately she went down again and she could feel nothing but pain.

"In that case I might just let you live, I do need someone to warm up my sheets and I've never been with a maiden larger than myself. It'll be an experience that I'll never truly forget."

"I-I'm not done yet." She tried to get back to her feet but the pain was too much for her. Once again, the impact had dented her armour and she truly felt helpless. Her sword was in her hand but it seemed like it wasn't much use to her. She also figured that he was one of the McGrath brothers.

"But then again I do have my orders to kill you and I don't want to disappoint the boss lady." He took another few steps toward Maxine and raised his hammer up into the air. "But still, a man's gotta do his job."

"N-Not tonight."

Despite the pain that she was experience Maxine used her strength to quickly lift her sword up in a slashing moving. With his hammer raised into the air the large man's lower parts such as his chest were unprotected. This was the opening that she needed in order to strike him down as her sword pierced his flesh. The strike cut him from the top of his chest to the bottom in a diagonal line. It was deep enough to strike many of his vital organs and no sooner had she done this he dropped his hammer and fell to the ground.

With her enemy defeated the towering woman slowly got back up to her feet. She was still in pain but it was beginning to subside a little. She took a couple of steps forward but she had an obvious limp thanks to the injury to her leg. Her armour had saved her life once again and she looked down at the man that she had struck. She could see the life leaving his eyes but rather than just stepping over him she stopped for a moment. This wasn't her first kill but it was still something that she didn't take lightly.

"I took no pleasure in ending your life," said Maxine to the fallen man. "Your actions led to this demise, for better or for worse. Know that all your troubles are now at an end. May you find peace in the next world."

With that Maxine carried on but she was much slower than she was before. She could still feel the pain but she carried on anyway. She knew the life of a little girl was at stake and she couldn't allow her to die. It also increased her determination as finding the mayor's daughter and bringing her back would bring great joy to many.

Thanks to her limp she was forced to place her hand onto a nearby wall in order to help support herself. She felt both annoyed and somewhat embarrassed by what had happened and she continued to walk forward. A small part of her hoped that she would be able to walk off her limp but it didn't seem to be working. It was obvious that she had sustained some kind of injury.

For the next few minutes Maxine continued to walk forward but her and she eventually saw another large man standing in front of her. He was blocking her way and as she looked at him she saw that he had a striking resemblance to the man that she had just killed. It didn't take a genius level intellect to figure out that he was the brother of the dead man but there was something different about him. Rather than having a large war hammer this one was armed with two axes. Each could be held in a single hand and she stopped and looked at him for a moment.

"Halt," said the Man, "You will go no further." His voice had a commanding tone to it and he was surprised to be looking up at Maxine. This still didn't stop him from taking his threatening tone.

"Let me guess, you're the other McGrath Brother," replied Maxine. She took her hand off the wall and stood up straight. She wanted to make it seem like she wasn't backing down from a fight.

"That I am. Barry McGrath and I'm guessing that you killed my brother."

"Yes, he put up a good fight." She then lifted her sword toward him. "And if you don't stand out of my way you'll be joining him." She hoped that he would back down as she didn't know how well she was going to fight.

"It is as I feared." His voice had seemed to be calm but then he gripped onto his axes and his body filled with rage. "You will pay for what you have done!"

Faster than what Maxine thought possible Barry ran forward and went to strike her with his axes. Thankfully she was just able to get her sword up in time to block it. She felt the power behind the blows and it caused her to take a step back. She grunted as they pressed their weapons against one another.

Barry seemed to be stronger than she anticipated and she was using her own great strength to keep him at bay. It was difficult for her as she was still suffering from the hammer blows from a few minutes earlier. But she didn't anticipate him backing off for a moment and then lunging forward to strike again. She blocked his one axe strike but missed the second one which struck her side.

Once again, her armour had saved Maxine from being seriously hurt as the axe found itself stuck in the metal for a few moments. It hadn't been able to cut down to Maxine's flesh but it was enough to damage the armour itself. And she had felt the impact and it caused her some pain, she couldn't help but shriek as it struck and Barry seemed to enjoy this. She was the woman that killed his brother and he wanted to ensure that he had his vengeance upon her. She was bigger than he expected but he still thought that he could win.

Maxine backed away again as she nursed the new injury that she had. She as she backed it had forced Barry to let go of the axe that was still stuck in her armour. Using her free hand, she quickly ripped it out and threw it behind her. She wanted to make sure that he couldn't use it against her again.

There was still a tense atmosphere in the air as the two combatants stared each other down. Maxine was currently the one who was in the worst shape. Her side was likely bruised, her limp had not improved and she still had some difficulty breathing after being struck in the chest. Barry on the other hand looked fresh and if he could go for another hour while his opponent looked as if she could fall within minutes.

"Your end is near murderer," said Barry. "Then my brother's death will be avenged." He took a couple of steps closer toward her. He could see that she was struggling to breathe but despite this she stood tall.

"Says the man who is protecting someone who has kidnapped a child," replied Maxine. "The only mercy you will get from me is a quick death."

Barry screamed at the top of his lungs as he raced toward Maxine with his axe. He was ready to strike her, this is what she wanted as she used her sword to try and slice off his head. This is exactly what he expected as he ducked down below the blade and struck her right where her armour had been dented by the first hammer blow.

Once again, the axe had not been able to penetrate her armour but it was enough to cause her pain and to stagger back. She even dropped her sword and went down to one knee. She could hear Barry chuckling as he walked up to her. He had a smile on his face as he looked down at his seemingly defeated opponent.

"See you in hell," said Barry with some anger in her voice. He went to strike her right between the top of her armour and her helmet so that he could reach her neck. However, he quickly stopped when he felt something around his own neck.

A large armour-clad hand had grabbed his neck and was choking him. It was Maxine who slowly rose back to her feet and lifted Barry up with a single hand. He could see her eyes through her helmet and he could see the pure rage behind them. The grip around his neck was tightening and he was doing all he could to try and stop her. He had dropped the axe and was trying to pry her hand away from his neck but she was simply too strong for him.

Suddenly there was a large cracking sound and Barry's body immediately went limp. The life completely drained from his body as death embraced him. As soon as the deed was done Maxine through his lifeless body to one side and tried to nurse the injuries that she had sustained.

She had taken more damage than she had originally anticipated and she winced in pain a little. She also looked at the body of Barry and she felt a little guilty, it was the first time she had killed a man with her bare hands but given the situation she would have likely been killed if she had done nothing.

Despite all the injuries that Maxine had suffered she carried on walking forward. Before she did so she told Barry the same message that she had given to his brother after she had killed him as well. After she was done she continued to walk forward, she didn't forget to pick up her sword but she knew that she was close.

After walking for a few more minutes she eventually came to a door. It was the only one that she had seen so far and she tried to open it normally. She wasn't surprised to discover that it was locked. Using her good leg, she kicked the door off of its hinges and walked through.

There she saw a little girl who was tied to a chair. Standing next to her was another familiar girl, it was Violet Bucket but that wasn't what caught Maxine's attention. There was a cannon pointing right at her and a man kneeling down beside it. It was the same bandit that she had seen run down the tunnel earlier and she could do nothing as she watched him light the fuse.

Almost instantly the cannon fired and Maxine was too big and slow to get out of the way. It struck her square in the chest and sent her flying several feet back. It was the hardest that she had ever been struck and she didn't even have a chance to cry out in pain as she fell to the ground and was seemingly dead. There had been a scream from the Mayor's daughter as the cannon blast had startled her.

The cannonball that had struck the towering woman had been quite small but was still shot with enough force to cause her a lot of damage. It would be enough to kill a normal person or cause them to lose a limb if struck in the right place.

Violet began to laugh and walk over to her defeated enemy. She still had a child like laugh but it sounded evil. She kicked Maxine where the cannonball had struck her and she even spat on her for good measure. It almost seemed completely surreal to see a little girl do such a thing but the truth was that Violet was no real little girl.

"You think that you could get the better of me?" asked Violet in an angry tone. She kicked a small part of Maxine's armour out of annoyance. "And look where it got you, you should have minded your own business you giant freak!"

Suddenly Maxine began to move again which caused Violet to take several steps back. She was more than surprised to see that Maxine had survived the cannon blast. Her moves were a lot slower though, her arms moved but it wasn't toward Violet. Instead it was toward her own helmet which she quickly took off.

Suddenly she began to cough and there was some blood that shot out from her mouth and onto the ground. It was obvious to her that she had suffered some kind of internal bleeding. She was in worse shape than she had expected but she was thankful. If it had been a full-size cannonball she would have killed.

Despite all of her injuries Maxine slowly began to rise up to her feet much to the surprise of everyone there. It was a relatively slow process as she was struggling to breathe, but she seemed to rise taller as the giant of a woman stood closer to her full height. Violet was still in disbelief that someone could take a cannon shot from point blank range and yet still be getting up to their feet. She looked at the bandit who was still remaining and she gave him an angry expression.

"Don't just stand there you idiot!" stated Violet. "Reload and fire at her again!" These words were heard by Maxine and this caused her act faster. Surviving the first cannon shot had been a combination of luck and her own durability along with her armour. Taking a second shot would likely kill her and this was something that she couldn't allow to happen.

The bandit quickly began to reload the cannon but with everything that was happening his nerves were completely shot. He was shaking a little and it made him difficult to reload the cannon.

This was all that Maxine needed as she finally stood up to her full height she staggered forward and had to bend down to get through the door that she had just kicked open. Blood was still trickling from her mouth and she saw that he had placed the cannonball into the cannon itself.

Before it could be fired Maxine used what little strength she had to kick the cannon. It wasn't intended to damage the weapon but instead move it so that it wasn't pointing at her anymore. The bandit who was about to light the fuse again fell over as he was knocked by the weapon. It caused him to fall and before he could get himself up to his feet he felt an armour-clad foot strike him in the head. It was enough to knock him out and this left Violet alone in the room with her hostage and a very angry giant woman.

"Don't come any closer," said Violet who was trying to think of a way that she could turn the situation to her advantage. There seemed to be nothing of any value as her own body was too small and weak to do any life-threatening damage to the hostage. She just backed away as Maxine stepped closer to her. "I-I mean it!"

Unfortunately, within a few moments Maxine had been able to stagger close enough to her. She was able to reach down and grab the evil girl and lifted her off her feet as if she weighed nothing. Seeing Maxine's angry expression was scarier than anything that Violet had ever seen, especially knowing that she could easily kill her without much effort. She was more than certain that her life had come to an end.

"It's over," said Maxine. "Everything that you've worked for ends tonight!" She had a very angry tone of voice. Even so it also sounded a little like she was struggling to talk. Even so she stood strong and made herself seem bigger than she was.

"If you're going to kill me then do it," replied Violet who didn't seem to be phased that much by what was happening. "Don't just stand there and talk about it."

"Do not tempt me little one!" A lot of thoughts were going through her mind, she imagined just how many people's lives Violet had destroyed. But looking at her she could also see a little girl and this weighed on her heavily. Even though she knew that Violet wasn't a normal girl she couldn't bring herself to kill her. If she were to become a knight then killing children would be something that she couldn't do. "No, your life does not end here. The courts will decide your fate."

There was some rope close by that had been used to tie up the Mayor's daughter. Maxine picked it up and used it to tie up Violet to prevent her from escaping, the bandit leader didn't allow this to happen quietly. She kicked and struggled as much as she could but there was nothing she could do to stop it.

Within a couple of minutes Violet was completely tied up and unable to move. She was still shouting at Maxine who simply ignored her. The larger woman instead turned her focus on the Mayor's Daughter who remained quiet. She was still terrified and she became even more scared when she saw Maxine draw out a large hunting knife. Rather than using it to harm the girl she used it to cut the rope that had tied her to the chair.

"You don't need to be scared now," said Maxine. Her tone had changed, rather than being angry it sounded more like she was caring. Despite the injuries that she had suffered she still wanted to seem warm and comforting. She held out her hand toward the girl so that she could grab onto it. "Shall we go back home now?" The girl didn't answer with words, instead she nodded and grabbed onto Maxine's large hand.

Before they left she was sure to pick up Violet and she staggered out as best as she could. She still kept her a slight grip on the hand of the Mayor's daughter. She wanted to make sure the little girl was safe. As long as they were together nothing would be able to harm her, not while a nine-foot woman was with her. She was also sure to pick up her helmet and anything else that she might have left. The last thing she wanted to do was to leave such precious things behind.

As they traversed their way through the passageways they had to step over the dead bodies of the McGrath brothers and the unconscious bodies of several other bandits. Violet was being carried under Maxine's arm and even she was surprised with what she was seeing. She found it hard to believe that one person had been able to do all of this. It was almost insane for her to think but she could see the evidence before her.

After several minutes Maxine was able to reach the entrance and just as she did she saw someone else approaching her. It was the figure of a man and at first, she thought that she might need to put up another fight. Instead as he approached her she could recognise his face, much to her relief it was Gregory. There was a small amount of blood on his armour as well but other than that he looked like he had gotten through unscathed.

The first thing that he noticed about his large friend was that not only did she have the Mayor's daughter but she also had Violet. It looked as they it was a win all around until he could see how damaged her armour was. He could only guess what had happened for the time being and was just happy to see that she was alive.

"Greetings Maxine," said Gregory. "I see that you've found what we came here looking for." He gave her a small smile. "Although it does look like you've been through hell to get there."

"Y-You're telling me," replied Maxine. She could see that the Mayor's Daughter seemed to be afraid of Gregory. This caused Maxine to look at her and she smiled. "Don't worry, he's my friend. Your father also sent him to rescue you." She still didn't say a word but she just nodded. It was obvious that she was traumatized after what she had just been through. "You'll be home soon enough."

"From the looks of it you took down most of the gang. The way I went there were a few but I took care of them. Even took out one of the guys who said that he killed our colleagues. As you can imagine I wasn't too impressed."

"There are a few unconscious bandits where I went. If you can tie them up and bring them back to town. I can imagine that the Mayor would wants to exact justice onto them." She looked over to the horse and cart that was there. "We can use this to transport them back to town."

"I hear you and maybe we'll get an extra reward for bringing them back alive." She could feel Violet still struggling under her arm. This made her annoyed and she glared at the tied-up bandit leader. "If you don't behave I'll crush your skull with my bare hands." This did nothing as Violet continued to struggle, this led to her being roughly placed into the cart. She was still unable to escape and so could do nothing but lie there.

Before venturing back into the abandoned mine Maxine did place the Mayor's daughter on the passenger part of the cart. She instructed her to stay there and that they would be back in Teasel before long. This seemed to get a positive response from her and the two warriors went inside in order to do what they needed to do.

One by one each of the unconscious bandits were tied up and then taken back to the cart. The ones who were dead were simply left as neither of them had the time to give them a proper burial. It took several minutes for them to get all of them and when they were done there was a dozen of them.

Something that Gregory had noticed almost straight away was the fact that Maxine was limping. Throughout the time that he had known her he had never seen her in such a bad shape. It made him wonder what she had been through in order for her to end up like this, he was sure to ask her eventually but right now all he cared about was her health. She had limits just like everyone else and it seemed like she was very close to reaching her own. It would not take much for her to fall.

When the last bandit had been loaded into the cart Gregory climbed into the driver's seat and took the reins. The Mayor's Daughter was next to him and she felt better now that they were definitely on their way back. He offered a place in the cart for Maxine but she turned it down. She knew that she was too big and with the weight of the bandits inside she knew that the horse might struggle with the load. She would help where need be but, in her shape, she probably wouldn't be able to do much.

With that Gregory forced the horse to move forward, it took the animal a little effort but eventually it did begin to move. Maxine walked alongside them and they also noticed that it was beginning to become light thanks to the upcoming dawn. They walked in relative silence for the trip, the main sounds that could be heard was the trotting of the horse and the wheezing of Maxine. This caused Gregory some concern but he kept going anyway as he knew that it would be what she would tell him to do.

Eventually the sight of Teasel greeted them as they walked closer and closer to the town gates. They could see several people there already and at first, they thought that they were going to cause them trouble. But suddenly one of them began to wave at Maxine and Gregory and this was when they realised that they were town officials. One person in particular that they saw was the Mayor himself, he had been pacing back and forth but the sight of his daughter brought a much-relieved smile on his face.

When the cart stopped at the gates the Mayor called for his daughter who quickly climbed down and ran into her father's arms. Both had tears rolling down their face while Maxine and Gregory simply watched. He looked over to them and thanked them both for what they had done for him.

The Mayor also turned to look at the bandits that had been captured and he was none too pleased to see them at all. He wanted to hang them all there and then but this was something he couldn't do without a fair trial, but he was sure to set one up as soon as he could. He was just glad that his daughter had been returned to him and that the threat of the bandits had been wiped away.

Maxine was happy to see the reunion of father and daughter, it reminded her of her own father and she did miss seeing him. These thoughts were dashed away when she felt her body becoming heavier and she went down to one knee. Her fatigue and injuries were getting the better of her and she was in a bad state which was obvious for everyone to see. The Mayor quickly commanded her to be taken to a bed and have a Healer look over her. In her weakened state she could hardly move and she needed the help of six men in order to go where she needed to be.

Several hours later Maxine found herself sitting up in a bed. Because she was so tall a second bed and been placed at the end of the first in order to accommodate her height. Her armour had been removed and her wounds had been bandaged up. She was still in some pain but she had been able to have some sleep and so she did feel refreshed.

She was alone in the room and she struggled to move thanks to her chest still being in agony after what she had been through. It had been treated and was now completely bandaged up. Her shirt that she had been wearing had also been removed but her bare breasts were not on view as they were covered by the bandages. She was staying in a room at one of the inns and her loneliness is just about to come to an end.

"Charles come in here!" said Maxine in a somewhat loud and demanding voice. She lay there and waited as her squire Charles quickly came into the room. He knew better than to keep her waiting as he quickly walked in and stood by the beds. He had been worried about her as he had seen how hurt she was. He was just glad to see that she was alright had responded well to treatment.

"Y-You called for me ma'am," replied Charles. He stood there waiting for any command that she might give. He had already given her some ale which she had drunk quickly and he suspected that she might be hungry. A large pie was already being made for her in the inn's kitchen and it would be ready before long.

"Yes, I take it that you have been able to speak with the Mayor?"

"Yes ma'am, he thanks you again for freeing his daughter and bringing her back to him safely. He also states that whatever reward you want for your actions will be yours. That is if it's within his powers of course."

"Inform him that the original agreed reward will be sufficient for my services. That is what we agreed on and that is what I shall have."

"Very well ma'am, he did also state that the fees for your stay here, food and drink along with the Healer will be nullified by him. He wishes for you to take as long as you need to recover from your injuries."

"That's very kind of him, reply that I thank him for his hospitality and I will leave as soon as my body is fit and able again."

"I will tell him as soon as possible. There is one last thing that he offers to you, since your armour was damaged he has offered to pay for it to be repaired or completely replaced. The local blacksmith will be capable of the job or so he says."

"Tell him that won't be necessary. My uncles own a forgery in Morgan, when I have recovered we will travel there and have my armour repaired. I have been away from home for too long, it is about time I paid them a visit."

Charles didn't respond to this straight away as the thought of meeting Maxine's family was something that had caught him by surprise. He began to imagine what her family would be like, the thought of them all being abnormally tall and very demanding people did creep into his mind. One thing he was sure of, it was likely to be a trip that he would never forget.

For the next few days Charles tended to the very large Maxine as she still recovered from her encounter with the bandits. He was sure to bring her food and water and tend to her needs whenever she wanted. At one point he did have to rub some lotion on her chest where the small cannonball had struck.

That area of the chest was badly bruised and he could see her wince in pain as he applied the lotion. It was supposed to make the healing process move a little faster but he could feel the skin and flesh around her chest. Although she was fairly muscular it did feel warm and soft but he didn't really get much opportunity to look at it.

Under Maxine's command Charles had to look up at her face as he applied the lotion. She could feel the coldness of her hand and the lotion but she didn't want him to feel like this was some kind of sexual act. He was merely helping her and that was that, there was nothing more to the task in her mind.

On the evening Maxine remained in the room by herself, she needed to only wait a few minutes before he did eventually return. In his hands he was carrying a small barrel of ale. Thankfully he had not paid for it as the Mayor had given it to them as another gift for saving his daughter. Since her armour wasn't going to be repaired through his coin, he felt that it was a small substitute.

"Your ale as you requested ma'am," said Charles as he passed her the barrel. One thing that he noticed was that when she took it off him, she only needed one hand. He had required two to carry it but she was more than capable of performing the same task with one hand. It was hard for him to believe that such a person like this existed in Angleland and the fact that she was a woman as well.

"Thank you, Charles," replied Maxine as she cracked open barrel. She watched as he went to pick up a nearby cup but she shook her head. This caused him to stop what he was doing and he watched as she placed the barrel to her lips and began to drink. He watched in amazement as she continued to swallow the contents of the barrel. Within less than a minute the ale inside of the barrel was completely gone. It was soon placed on the ground and she unleashed the loudest belch that Charles had ever heard. It was loud, deep and lasted for several seconds before subsiding. "That hit the spot."

"D-Do you require more ma'am?" He was sure that she had just drunk enough to make a normal man heavily intoxicated at the very least.

"No, I'm fine. Besides, we need to have an early night tonight."

"Why do we need that ma'am?" He was confused but he did think of one reason. In his mind it was ludicrous.

"Because we leave at dawn in order to travel to Morgan. If we make good pace we should be there in a couple of days."

"You want to leave tomorrow?" This surprised him enough to make him almost at a loss for words. "B-But you should rest, you still haven't fully recovered from your injuries ma'am." He was concerned for her but he realised that he might have made a mistake, he thought that she would probably get angry at him for questioning her. It was not the place of a squire to question but perform his duty.

"I appreciate the concern but I assure you that I'm fine." Her voice still remained calm and this was a relief for Charles. "I'm made of stronger stuff than the average person, I've taken all the time that I need to recover." She cleared her throat as she wanted to change the subject. "And how are we doing with our gold count?"

"Let me just check ma'am." Quickly he went to his own satchel that was close by and pulled out his note book. He turned a few pages until he eventually came to the information that he required. "We have a healthy sum, the payment for bringing the bandits to justice has given us a decent windfall. Plus, the fact that we're not currently paying for anything has also helped us greatly."

"Exactly how much do we have?"

"According to my count we have around four thousand gold ma'am. A decent amount if you ask me."

"Yes, that money should last us a while."

"And might I add that it is more than a replacement for the money that we had stolen after your last job."

"Don't remind me." She lifted her hands in front of her and gave out an annoyed grunt. "If I find the bastard who stole our money, I'll crush his skull with my bare hands." Charles watched on in some fear as he thought that Maxine was simply exaggerating. But as he stopped and looked at her, he realised that she might just be able to do it. There was more strength in her one arm than his entire body and this scared him. "But enough about that, there are a few things that I need to go through with you when we reach Morgan and eventually meet my family."

"And what is that ma'am?" He wanted to be sure that he didn't do anything that could insult Maxine's family as he feared the consequences.

"First of my mother is a bit of a sensitive woman. Plus, like me she is very tall so try not to be intimidated. If she tries to give you a hug don't back away, allow it to happen and everything will be alright. My oldest sister Carrie thinks that some lord will take her away to his castle and make her his lady. She will probably try and make you comment on her beauty, do not do this." Charles was about to question this but he kept his mouth shut as he knew that it was for the best. My next sister Denise is like you, more interested in her books than anything else."

"Do you mind if I write this down ma'am?"

"If you wish to." She waited for a moment while he got his book and pencil. "Do not insult her intelligence and you'll be fine. My eldest brother Adam like me wants to be a knight and he might be jealous of you for being my squire. Tell him that you have a life debt to me and he should be fine. Jane is my next sister, she's got more heart than brains and looks like she was placed on a rack. Be kind to her or else you might very well regret it."

Charles gave a nervous chuckle as he continued to write these down. From what he could see Maxine had a very large family. It was not terribly uncommon for large families with numerous siblings. Maxine's seemed to be no different but he listened on and continued to write down.

"My youngest sister Alison spends all of her time drawing," continued Maxine. "She'll likely want to draw you when we arrive, let her do this and compliment her no matter how bad said drawing is. Then you have my youngest brother Jaime will likely run rings around you and shout to get your attention. Be calm with him and he will eventually calm down himself and whatever you do don't give him anything with sugar."

"As you wish ma'am," replied Charles. He began to count through the siblings that she had spoken about. "So, you have six brothers and sisters?"

"Yes, but I wouldn't be surprised if my mother has pushed out another one. It has been a year since I last visited home, there is a good chance that she has either had another child or is having another one." She gave a sigh. "She always wanted a large family."

"Is that everything now ma'am?"

"No, there is the most important detail." She gave him a stern look and he could see just how serious she was. "My father is one of the greatest and most respected swordsmen in Angleland and you will treat him with the respect that he deserves. Any disrespect will lead to a harsh punishment." From what Charles had seen it didn't seem like her father was all that respected but he didn't want to point this out. "And I mean it, I once shattered the arm of a man for the slightest disrespect against him."

"I understand ma'am."

He did remember how the high born had insulted Sir Tucker while they had been in the tavern. However, since he was of more noble birth than her, she had not been able to lift a finger to avenge the insult. For someone like Charles he knew that he wouldn't be so lucky so he was sure to be as careful as he could.

The rest of the day was mostly uneventful and both Maxine and her squire went to sleep quite early. Come dawn both of them were awake and getting ready to leave town. As usual Charles helped Maxine put her armour on but the chest piece was more difficult than usual as there was large dent right in the centre. Because of this it rubbed on Maxine's chest and right on the area where her bruise was located. Although this caused her some discomfort she simply endured and hardly said a word about it.

With all that done Maxine and Charles went to begin their long journey to Morgan but before they could leave, they spotted the Mayor and his Daughter standing at the main gate for them. It was unusual to see them up this early but they were not alone, a few guards were there as well but they weren't stood in the way. Instead they were to the side of the gate and were eagerly awaiting their arrival.

"Miss Martel," said the Mayor. "I'm surprised that you are leaving so early. Would you not prefer to stay for a few more days and rest up?"

"I would like that very much but I need to return home and have my armour repaired," replied Maxine. She didn't seem to be as intimidating as she had seemed before to the Mayor. She actually seemed quite pleasant. "I thank you for your hospitality but I can not take advantage of it anymore."

"You took advantage of no one, you saved the most important thing in the world to me and for that I owe you a debt that can never be repaid. I am disappointed that you are leaving but it is understandable."

"If you are in need of my services again, summon me and I will come." She then knelt down to the Mayor's Daughter who was standing close by. Even doing this she seemed absolutely enormous in comparison to the little girl. "And take care, remember to always stay vigilant." The little girl had her hands behind her back, moments later she brought them around and Maxine could see that she was holding a piece of paper. There seemed to be some kind of picture drawn onto it along with some writing.

"I-I drew you a picture," replied the Mayor's Daughter. Maxine gently took the picture out of her hand and looked at it. She could see a very large figure that looked to be herself and another smaller figure that he thought was the little girl. There were flowers along with some writing above which she couldn't read. "That's me and you running through a field of flowers."

"Thank you, I will treasure it forever."

With that Maxine stood back up to her full height and loomed over everyone. They couldn't help but feel a little intimidated but after a few more words she and Charles finally disembarked. The Mayor's Daughter was sure to wave at them while they walked away and Maxine did turn her head and wave back.

It wasn't long before the town was completely out of view and the pair were on the road that led west. The usual morning sounds were interrupted by the clanking of Maxine's armour as she continued to walk. It was damaged in a few places and she wanted nothing more than to go to her family's forgery and have it repaired. She thought that people would think less of her if she went around wearing damaged armour. That was why she wanted it to be fixed as quickly as possible.

The picture that had been given to Maxine was placed in Charles's satchel and he was instructed to keep it in as good of condition as he could. The man did what he was told and for the next couple of days they travelled without much incident. They rested when they needed to and they ate at a few taverns.

At one of these taverns there had been a man there who had been secretly competing with Maxine as he was matching her drink for drink. However, it eventually got to a point where he couldn't keep going anymore and fell into unconsciousness. Maxine on the other hand had no idea what was going on and showed no ill effects of consuming enough alcohol to knock out a normal person.

Throughout all this Charles continued to keep a record of how much money was being spent. The last thing he wanted was for her to overspend and not have the money when she needed it. He had been instructed to tell her if he thought that she was spending too much. Normally this was something that he wouldn't dare do in fear of being berated by her. However, as it was her that had instructed him to do it, he didn't think that she would mind too much.

Eventually after more travelling Maxine's eyes began to witness something that seemed very familiar to her. Charles could see it as well and from what he could see there was a farm not too far away from where they were standing. It looked to be quite large but there didn't seem to be anything spectacular about it. He stood there right next to the very tall woman and he looked up at her.

"So, this is your home?" asked Charles. He tried to sound somewhat impressed without going over the top.

"Yes," replied Maxine. "I was born and raised here. It has been in my family for generations."

"So, your father owns this farm?" He thought that it was a little odd for a knight to own a farm but he didn't say that out loud.

"Actually, my mother owns it as it technically belongs to the Snapes."

"And your mother is a Snape?"

"Yes, that is her maiden name until she married my father." She then gave him a little bit of a stern look to indicate that she was being serious. "Remember what I told you, be respectful and everything will be fine."

"I understand ma'am." Suddenly a shadow appeared above them, just as he was about to look up, he felt a strong push from Maxine. This sent him flying and he watched as the giant armoured figure darted away as well.

No sooner had she done this a large stack of hay fell down right where they were standing. It had been flying through the air and it would have unlikely seriously harmed Maxine there was a good chance it would have injured Charles. It took the man a few moments to sit up from where he was lying and he saw the haystack on the ground.

"What the hell was that?" asked Charles as he looked at the haystack. He wasn't a farmer but even he knew that something like that wasn't supposed to happen.

"That is someone who is about to get into trouble," replied Maxine who seemed annoyed by what had happened.

"I think it landed over here," said a female voice. They also began to feel the ground beginning to shake. This caught Charles by surprise as he got up to his feet, that wasn't the only thing that had surprised him. Quickly moving toward, them he could see a young woman approaching them. She looked to be fairly pretty with long brown hair and a dark blue dress. At first, she would seem ordinary but Charles noticed something about her that completely gobsmacked him.

The young woman approaching them was enormous, in his mind he figured that she must be around forty feet tall if not taller and this instantly caused him to experience fear. He looked and could see that she was still approaching them. At first it seemed like the giantess hadn't noticed them but when she saw Maxine standing there, she quickly stopped in her tracks. She even began to shrink in size which once again caught Charles by surprise.

"Oh Maxine, you're home," said the Giantess. She had stopped shrinking but even then, she was still well over seven feet in height, she was just an inch off being eight feet. There was some nervousness in her voice as she slowly approached them. "I-I wasn't expecting you back."

"What the hell are doing throwing haystacks like this!" replied Maxine in an angry tone. He thought that Maxine might be afraid of someone who could grow bigger than they could but it was obvious that this wasn't the case. "You could have hurt someone doing that? You of all people should know that."

"I'm sorry, but it was Jane who threw it."

"I don't care who threw it. I don't want to hear about anything like that happening again." She took a few steps towards the near eight-foot girl and then pointed toward the hay. "Now take that back and hope that mom and dad don't hear about this."

"Y-Yes Maxine." With that she began to grow again and the process made Charles stand back in astonishment. He was watching something that he thought was impossible as she continued to grow until she was about forty feet tall once again. Now she was large enough to grab onto the haystack.

She then began to walk back to the farmhouse while Charles continued to stand there completely dumbfounded. He didn't know exactly how to react to the situation at hand and simply stood there with his mouth open. Maxine on the other hand seemed to be watching her giant sister walking. She still seemed a little annoyed with what had happened but didn't seem to bat an eyelid about the fact that her sister had just grown before her eyes. It was like it was something that she had seen before.

"Let's keep moving Charles," said Maxine as he felt her slightly push his back in order to get him to move. However, this didn't work as he was still completely taken aback by what he had seen.

"S-She was huge," replied Charles as his mind was beginning to piece together the events that had just taken place. "Y-You never told me that your sister could become a giant like that."

"Because you didn't ask." She acted like he had just asked her a stupid question, he could also sense a hint of embarrassment in her voice but he said nothing about it. "I also told you to keep moving, I don't want to repeat myself."

"Y-Yes ma'am."

Although he was still confused, he did follow Maxine as she continued to walk toward the farmhouse. For the time being he was going to remain quiet and simply do as he was told. He wanted to ask more questions but he felt that it was for the best that he kept them to himself for the time being. There was something more that she wasn't telling him but he was sure that he was going to find out in a moment.

A few minutes went by before the pair eventually arrived at the farmhouse. No sooner had they arrived they saw a little boy quickly run out of the house and straight toward Maxine. Like the giantess he too had brown hair and he seemed to be running quicker than Charles thought a boy like him should run. Unlike the giantess he seemed to be average size but went he reached Maxine he began to hug her leg. The size comparison between them was very large but he saw the boy look up at her and smile.

"I missed you," said the Little Boy. Maxine began to squat down and she embraced him in a small hug. It was strange for Charles to see her hugging someone but since he was obviously her little brother.

"And I've missed you too Jaime," replied Maxine as she carefully brushed his hair with her armour-clad hand. "My you've grown since I was last here, one day you'll be as tall as your big sister." This made the boy laugh and as she looked up, she could see other people stepping outside of the house.

Charles noticed them as well and besides one boy who was older than the Jaime the rest of them were girls. The thing that he noticed most about them was the fact that all the girls were taller than him. Even the youngest amongst them were a couple of inches taller than him while the tallest was roughly half a foot shorter than Maxine. This made them all giants in his eyes and he couldn't help but be intimidated.

Only the boy who were amongst them was shorter than Charles and he seemed to be average in comparison to his sisters. He knew that Maxine's family would likely be tall but even he was taken aback by what he was seeing. It was as if he had entered a land where giant women lived.

The siblings seemed to be talking amongst themselves but it seemed like the tallest of Maxine's sisters was the only one who didn't seem to be glad that she was back. This was something that Charles noticed but he was still wrapping his head around everything. He had some warning from Maxine but he was still struggling to comprehend exactly what was happening.

"Is that your boyfriend that you've got with you there?" asked the Eldest of Maxine's sisters. There seemed to be a small amount of mockery in her voice which seemed to annoy Maxine.

"This is Charles and he is my squire," replied Maxine. In her tone she made it sound like a matter of fact. She then looked over to her siblings. "Charles these are my brothers and sisters. My eldest sister Carrie." He saw the eldest sister cross her arms, she had long following brown hair and hazel eyes. She was probably one of the most beautiful women that he had ever seen but the most striking thing about her was the fact that she was eight and a half feet tall. If it wasn't for Maxine, she would be the tallest woman that he had ever seen. Her dress looked quite elegant and it was obvious that she took great care in her appearance. "This is my next sister Denise." Charles recognised her as the giantess that he had seen just a few minutes ago. Now she was much smaller than when he had first set eyes on her but she was still much taller than him. She did greet them before Maxine continued on. "My oldest brother Adam." The boy had black hair and brown eyes, he nodded at them but what seemed to be odd for Charles was the fact that he looked average in comparison to his much, much taller sisters. "Then my sister Jane." A very tall girl waved at them, she was over six and a half feet tall but it almost looked like she had been stretched on a rack. Her limbs looked elongated but her head looked to be normal size for a person. It was definitely an odd view for him. Her hair was black and fairly long and she gave Charles a pleasant smile. "My youngest sister Alison." The girl giggled for a moment, she had brown hair as well and was a few inches taller than Charles. However due to her age it was obvious that she was going to be much taller. "And you've met the youngest, Jaime." They could hear Jaime giggling as well and this confused Maxine for a moment. "What's so funny?"

"He's not the youngest anymore Maxine," replied Denise who still stood by the rest of her siblings.

Just then they saw the door to the farmhouse open once again and Charles saw another very tall woman stepping out. Her long brown hair flowed down her back and her hazel eyes looked at Maxine. Her dress was a beautiful cream colour and he noticed that she looked to be much older than the woman he was squiring. The tall woman looked to be nearing her forties and like the other girls she was very tall. She was practically as tall as Carrie at around eight and a half feet in height.

The older woman had a huge smile on her face as she saw Maxine but that wasn't what drew the attention of the wannabe knight. In the older woman's arms was a baby who to Charles looked particularly large. However due to the size of the older woman the baby looked to be normal but for the moment Maxine stood there in silence. She suspected something like this would happen but she wasn't entirely expecting it. The baby was wrapped in a blanket to keep it warm and for the time being was relatively quiet.

"Maxine," said the Older Woman. The smile was still on her face as it was obvious that she was happy to see her.

"Hello mother," replied Maxine who took a step towards her mother Jessica. She too broke a small smile. "It's good to see you again."

"And it's great to see you too sweetie." She paused for a moment as Maxine was one of the few people that she had to look up at. "Have you grown since you left?"

"I might have grown a couple of inches but I think I'm done now." She then looked at the baby who was making a few gargling noises. "And I see that you and father are still being very busy."

"Well you know us, I always told you that there's always room for more." She chuckled for a moment. With that she held the baby over to Maxine who looked at it for a moment. "Would you like to hold your baby sister?"

"But I'm still in my armour."

"That's alright sweetie, just as long as you're careful." With that the baby was handed over Maxine who held her as carefully as she could. She was more used to swinging swords knocking out teeth than holding onto babies. She did think that her baby sister was cute although it didn't like the cold metal of the armour. "Isn't she just the most adorable thing in the world?"

"Yes, mother she is pretty cute." She rocked her gently as a way of not upsetting the baby. "What did you and Father call her?"

"Oh, silly me, here I go handing you your sister without telling you her name." This made Jessica chuckle for a moment. "Her name is Rina."

Maxine continued to look down at her baby sister in her arms. It caused many thoughts to run through her mind, this included whether she would ever become a mother herself at some point in the future. However, she thought that if she did then she wouldn't be able to continue trying to become a knight.

This was something that she couldn't allow happen and yet having a baby in her arms gave her a feeling that she would never experience as a knight. It eventually became too much to her and she passed Rina back to her mother. Jessica was more than happy to have her newest baby back in her arms.

This was when she noticed the large dent in Maxine's armour, immediately she became worried about her eldest daughter as she looked at the dent closer. Maxine continued to stand there as if nothing was really amiss. She could see the worried look on her mother's face as she was able to free one of her hands and place it on the dent.

"Sweetie your armour," said Jessica with a concerned tone. "It's all beaten up, are you alright?"

"Yes, I'm fine mother," replied Maxine. "I took a small cannonball to the chest, still feeling the effects though. But that's why I'm here, my armour needs repairing."

"What, you didn't come to see us?"

"Of course, I did, I promised that I would visit regularly. Unfortunately, times have been difficult and I haven't been able to come sooner."

"You took a cannonball to the chest?" asked Adam who was still standing close by. Maxine's brothers and sisters were still where they were although some wanted to walk away and do their own thing. "And you survived?"

"Of course." She smiled over to her brother and for Charles this was probably one of the few times that he had ever seen her smile. "It would take much more than a cannonball to take me down."

"No, it would take a slap in the face from me," added Carrie.

This quickly caught the attention of Maxine who glared over at her eldest sister. Carrie responded back with her own glare and it was obvious to Charles that there was tension between the two. Whatever it was he was sure not to get in the middle of it, the chances of him coming out with all of his limbs intact was small.

"Now, now," said Jessica. "Let's not ruin the homecoming." It was then that Jessica properly noticed Charles. He had been standing by Maxine but since she was so tall, she hadn't noticed the squire standing next to her. This caused Jessica to smile as her mind jumped to a conclusion. "You finally did its sweetie, you've brought home my first son-in-law." She would have loved nothing more than to hug Charles on the spot but thanks to Rina still being in her arms this was something that she couldn't do.

"What? No mother, he's my squire."

"Sure, he is." She gave Maxine a wink which embarrassed her but she said nothing about it. Maxine did quickly try and think of something to try and change the conversation away from this topic.

"Where is Father?" There was a slight hint of worry that something terrible might have happened to him while she was gone. If her father had passed while she had been away, she would never forgive herself for not being at her side.

"He's just gone to Flea Bay to deliver some of our crops, he should be back in a few hours' time. I told him to take one of the kids with him but he said that it was a simple enough task to do by himself."

"Yeah, that sounds like him." Charles continued to watch on and he knew just how much Maxine respected her father. The fact that he wasn't there did let her down a little but with the knowledge that he was returning shortly did make her feel happier about the situation at hand.

"You must both be really hungry after such a long journey." Jessica smiled at Charles before looking at her oldest daughter again. "Why don't you take off your armour and I'll make you something to eat."

"That would be great thanks," replied Charles before he felt Maxine's arm brush up against him. It wasn't to hurt him or anything like that, more to make him realise that it was best to stay quiet.

"We're fine mother," added Maxine. "I can make something for us instead." She had forgotten to give Charles an important warning about her mother. It was a warning that she felt foolish for not telling him. She also had to think of a way to let her mother down without upsetting her. "I wouldn't want you to do something like that when you're looking after Rina, just try and relax and don't worry about a thing."

"If that's what you want then that's fine," replied Jessica. She felt Rina moving in her arms and she couldn't help but make a few noises and faces at the baby girl.

With that the Martel family began to go back inside and for the first time Charles was able to see what the inside of the farmhouse looked like. One thing he noticed was that the doors were too low for Maxine and most of her other sisters to walk through without ducking. The ceiling though was high enough for them to stand up. Maxine's head was only an inch away from the ceiling so although she didn't duck, she did have to worry about moving her arms around.

For a farmhouse the inside looked pretty average. One thing he did notice was that there was a lot of bedrooms in this farmhouse. He wasn't too surprised as if he had counted right at its peak there would be ten people living in this house if he took away himself. This meant that they would need their room, especially since the women of the family were much, much taller than the average person.

It was not long before Charles found himself in Maxine's old room with the woman herself standing there with him. Like before he began to help take her armour off which was a little difficult in a place with such a low ceiling in comparison to her. But one by one the pieces of Maxine's armour were being taken off and placed on the ground besides her. She did wince a little in pain when it came to the chest plate.

Even though she had plenty of time to recover from the cannon shot Maxine could still feel some pain from the impact. This was probably the most that she had been injured by another person and she was just glad that those responsible were likely getting the punishment that they deserved.

"May I ask something ma'am?" asked Charles as he continued to help take off Maxine's armour. The pieces were heavy for him and it made it hard for him to believe sometimes that she could move around with it all on. However, these thoughts were dispelled whenever he saw the muscles on her body. If he was as tall as her and had the same muscular physique that she had he thought that he would be able to lift anything.

"You may," replied Maxine as it was only really the lower half of the armour that needed to be removed now.

"Why did you turn your mother down when she offered to make us something to eat? I don't know about you but I'm starving."

"Believe me I did you a favour, my mother is capable of achieving many great tasks. Cooking is not one of them."

"It can't be that bad ma'am." He then heard her stomach beginning to grumble. To him it was obvious that she was just as hungry as him. "Then what do you suggest we do about our hunger?"

"Unlike my mother Carrie is a great cook, she'll make us something to eat later." As she was saying that the last of her armour finally came off. For her squire it was one of the few times that he saw her without her armour. It was still a little surreal for him to see but he couldn't help but look for a moment.

Her armour helped hide the muscle that was inside and from looking at them he knew more than ever how strong she was. The feats of strength that he had seen her performed now looked like the least of her abilities. It did also make her seem more intimidating than when she didn't wear her armour. With her muscles hidden away it would seem that her bulkiness was just the armour, without it they would see that most of it stemmed from her muscles. In his mind he thought that she could throw him around like a ragdoll if she chose to and he couldn't stop her. It was possible that she possessed more strength in her one arm than he did in his entire body.

"So, what exactly is the plan during our stay ma'am?" asked Charles. He was sure to place all the armour to one side so that it took up less room.

"First thing in the morning we are taking my damaged armour to my Uncle's forgery," replied Maxine. She sat down on her bed and for her it felt nice to take the weight off of her feet. She was more fatigued than she had originally thought. "But during our stay we will be here in this farmhouse and possibly helping out with the farm work if need be. We might have to run a few more errands as well."

"The thing is ma'am that I've never worked on a farm before so I wouldn't know what to do." Even sitting down on the bed, she was a little taller than her squire. It was only a reminder for him just how small he was compared to her.

"It's quite simple but might take a lot of effort. Besides I don't think you'll be given any of the real dirty work. Also remember to be thankful for what you are given, you are a guest in this house so certain things are expected of you."

"I understand ma'am. But there is one thing I've been wondering, I didn't want to say anything while we were outside but your family." He paused for a moment as he considered what he was going to say next. "T-They're huge."

"Yes, now that we have baby Rina there are ten members of the immediate Martel Family." To her this was nothing special as she knew that large families were something that weren't uncommon in Angleland.

"No, I mean huge in the physical sense. We saw one of your sisters become a true giant and the rest of the girls were all very tall. Can they all grow like that?"

"Only my mother and sisters can grow in size. My father and brothers can't, it seems that the gigantism is only present in the female side of the family. That is one reason why I'm so tall myself."

"B-But people can't grow like they did. How is that even possible, people can't just turn into giants."

"This all stems from my mother." She did consider what she was going to say but since it wasn't all that big of a secret, she didn't mind telling him. "She is naturally a giant, much larger than when you saw her. If it wasn't for the dress that she is wearing she'd be enormous all the time. The dress thankfully shrinks her to a more manageable height. But the magic that fuelled her size was passed down to myself and all my sisters. That's why we're all so much taller than everyone else."

"So, they can all grow into giants as well. If I may ask, why don't you grow like they do. It would make traversing long distances much easier." There was a pause from Maxine as she didn't answer the question straight away. He saw a glare from her which sent a shiver of fear down Charles's spine.

"I have my reasons." Her voice was very stern and it was obvious that she didn't want this conversation to continue on any further. "Now go outside and help with the farming work while I have a word with my mother."

"A-As you wish ma'am."

With that both of them left the room and while Charles went outside Maxine instead moved through the rest of the house. Like before she had to duck to get through each doorway but this was something that she was used to already. Being here did bring back memories but she knew that she wasn't going to earn her knighthood by simply staying around at home. This was why she wanted to be back on the road as soon as her armour was repaired. The next time she returned she wanted to have the title and respect that she wanted, the name Martel would finally be taken seriously.

When Charles reached the outside, he could see Maxine's brother Adam working in the fields. There were some animals that he was tending to and at first, he didn't notice his sister's squire approaching him. It wasn't until Charles cleared his voice that the boy turned and looked at him.

What he didn't expect to see was a look of some anger from Adam. The boy didn't seem to be furious at him but it was obvious that there was some anger toward Charles. There were a few moments of silence between them before Adam muttered the first words.

"What do you want?" asked Adam in a slightly annoyed tone. It was almost like Charles had interrupted something important.

"Your sister asked me to help with some of the farm work," replied Charles. He wasn't as intimidated with Adam as he would with the girls of the household as he wasn't as tall as they were.

"Have you ever done farm work in your life?" The tone hadn't changed and Charles could sense that Adam was mocking him in some way. Charles didn't rise to it though as he knew Maxine wouldn't be happy if he started some kind of confrontation with her brother. It would result in him most likely fearing for his safety.

"No, I haven't, but I am still willing to do the work."

"In that case you're no help to me, I can't waste my time showing you what to do. Best go back to my sister's side like a good squire."

Charles stood there for a few moments as she wasn't sure what he should do in this situation. He wanted to try and ask further but he knew that it wouldn't really get him anywhere. It seemed that Adam was angry at him for some reason and he couldn't explain why. He had only just met the boy so he couldn't have done anything that had angered him. There was a thought that the jealousy that Maxine had mentioned might be reeling its ugly head.

With that he began to make his way back to the house but before he could go any further, he was suddenly stopped by Jane. The tall girl had accidentally run in front of Charles as he was walking by and this caused them both to collide with one another. It eventually led to them both falling over with Jane landing on top of Charles.

The impact left them dazed for a moment before Jane finally began to get up to her feet. One thing that Charles had noticed was that she wasn't too particularly heavy when she had been on top of him. She did have a concerned look on her face as she began to help him back up to his feet.

"I'm sorry about that," said Jane. She had to look down at him as there was more than a foot height difference between them. It was odd in Charles's mind to see a girl as young as her be so tall.

"No, it should be me who should apologise," replied Charles as he was trying to be courteous to her. "I should have watched where I was going."

"You're Maxine's squire, aren't you? Chuck was it?"

"Actually, it's Charles and yes I am your sister's squire. Although to tell you the truth it is more of a life debt than an actual service."

"Oh, she saved your life?" She seemed genuinely interested in what Charles was saying and for him it was nice. He could see that she was carrying something as well and he thought to ask her about it later.

"Yeah, I was in a hairy situation but your sister stepped in and saved me. If she hadn't of been there, I'm not sure what would have happened. Well one thing's for sure, I wouldn't be meeting your family today."

"I hope she isn't too hard on you, she can be a little overbearing. Especially when she's in a mood." Suddenly she stopped talking and quickly looked around, she couldn't see anyone close to her and she gave a sigh. She had been looking out for Maxine and thankfully hadn't seen or heard her.

"Nah she's been fine, although there have been a few times that I've seen her temper flare up." He still remembered the time when the money had been stolen from them and when he had been forced to wake her up when she had been asleep. Both times he had been terrified and most would say that the fear was justified. "So, what are you doing out here anyway? Do you need help with some farm work?"

"No, I wanted to pick some flowers for Maxine. I know she's not into that but I thought it would be nice. You can help me if you want."

"That would be nice." He didn't know what Maxine would do with such flowers but if Jane wanted him to help her, he couldn't turn her down. Instead he just walked alongside the very tall girl and it still seemed odd seeing them next to one another. She was much younger than him but she was at least a foot taller.

Meanwhile inside of the farmhouse Maxine found herself in one of the main rooms. The only people in there besides herself was her mother Jessica and baby sister Rina. Her other siblings were doing their own thing including Alison drawing with her little brother Jaime. There was a door open so that Jessica could listen out if any of her children called out for her but at this moment in time Rina was taking all of her attention.

She was sitting down on a specially made chair and was rocking the baby in her arms. She had been fed and changed and she hoped that she could get her to sleep soon. Her head had turned when she saw Maxine entering the room, as usual she was always happy to see her eldest daughter and she smiled over to her.

"Hello there Sugar Plum Fairy," said Jessica when she saw Maxine enter. It was a pet name that she had given when she had been a young girl and although its embarrassed Maxine, she still used it. "I'm so glad that you're home, I always worry about you when you're on the road."

"And I'm glad to be home too." She took a few steps towards Jessica but stopped a few feet short. "It's just that I've been meaning to talk to you about something."

"Oh, and what is that?"

"I was just wondering if father is still alright. He wasn't entirely in the best of health when I left and I've been afraid that he has gotten worse. On my journeys I've been thinking about him and worrying. The fact that he wasn't here when I returned made me fear the worst, has he gotten any better?"

"Well he hasn't gotten any better per say but he hasn't gotten worse either. But still I don't know how much longer he can go until he has to give all of this up."

"I told him that before I left, he has people like Carrie and Adam who can help him but he still refuses." She gave a sigh, she respected her father greatly but like her he could be stubborn from time to time.

"Hopefully he'll learn one day and not before it is too later. But still maybe I should sit him down and tell him face to face, but then again I'm not sure if it'll make that much of a difference." She winced as her chest suddenly began to feel painful, this only lasted for a few seconds before it subsided. She could see the concern on the face of her mother who would have gotten up for her if she still hadn't been holding onto Rina.

"Are you alright Sweetie?" asked Jessica with genuine concern in her voice. She didn't like seeing any of her children in pain, even those who were nine feet tall and possessed a muscular frame.

"Y-Yeah I'm alright, it's just that I'm still recovering from a cannonball to the chest. It took more out of me than I originally thought."

"You're just as bad as your father. Pushing yourself further than you should," She gave a sigh. "But if I told you that you were to stop all this knight business, I know you'll just walk out that door and I wouldn't see you for another year or two. I know better than to try and stop you achieving your dreams so I'm not going to. But for my sake please be more careful, you're much bigger and stronger than anyone else but it doesn't mean that you're invincible. Even an arrow in the right place could cause you more harm than you could possibly imagine."

"Thanks mother and I promise that I'll be more careful." It seemed odd in her mind that despite her size that her mother still worried about her. Then again, she thought it was the duty of all mothers to worry about their children. No matter how many opponents she may defeat or titles that she might earn it was unlikely that Jessica would stop worrying about her. It was something that Maxine did appreciate and she wondered if she had her own children if she would feel the same way.

Unseen by the Martel family a horse and cart was approaching the farmhouse from the west. It carried some unsold wheat and meat but it did hold the most valuable cargo for the Martel Family.

Outside Charles found himself walking alongside the super tall Jane. He still couldn't get over the fact that she was so young and yet so tall. But considering that her oldest sister was nine feet in height, he wouldn't think that it was too outlandish to have a younger sister who was over six and a half feet tall. She seemed to be smiling and humming to herself with Charles walking beside her.

As he had agreed he was going to help her pick some flowers for Maxine to help celebrate her return. He didn't think that she was the kind of woman who would like a bouquet of flowers but he still helped Jane out nonetheless. One thing that he did wonder was what would happen when she received them, he imagined that she would put them to one side and simply disregard them.

Eventually the pair reached a small meadow where they spotted numerous flowers growing everywhere. There were many different species and Charles had to admit to himself that they all looked very beautiful. It was the type of scenery that he would expect to see in some kind of painting. If he had the skill, he would paint it himself but unfortunately this is a talent that he lacked.

"Here we are," said Jane with a small amount of happiness in her voice. "Which flowers do you think Maxine will like?"

"I'm not too sure," replied Charles as he continued to look around. "During my time with your sister I've learned a great many things about her. Her favourite type of flower is unfortunately not one of them."

"Then that means we can grab a few different ones and then make a bouquet out of them. Hopefully she'll like that."

"Maybe she will." He wanted to voice his doubts but he didn't want to upset her so he kept these thoughts to himself. "Why don't you try some of those over there?" He pointed toward some daffodils that were growing close by. This caused the extremely tall girl to walk toward them and examine them. She rubbed her chin for a few moments as she thought about it before she smiled again.

"These are perfect." With that she stretched down and grabbed onto a couple of them. With a small amount of effort, she pulled them out and she knew more than ever that these were the right flowers. "Ok, how about three more?"

"If that is what you think is best, but should we be here for too long? What if they notice that you're gone?"

"Oh, you don't have to worry." She smiled at him again as she looked down. Even though Charles was practically twice her age she was still more than a foot taller than him. "They know that I'll be back soon. And if anyone tries to hurt me Maxine will just crush their skulls."

Charles nervously chuckled as he wanted to think that she was simply exaggerating but he knew deep down that it was true. He had seen demonstrations of Maxine's strength like how she could effortlessly pick up and throw around fully grown men. Her armour was so heavy that a normal man would be stuck in place while wearing it but she could still move around fairly normally. These and her other feats of strength only showed him just how strong she was and that angering her wasn't the best idea.

For the next several minutes Charles and Jane continued to examine the flowers around them to see which ones would be the best to put in a bouquet. A few times he would point out a few that he thought would go well with the bouquet but she would decide otherwise. Once or twice he did pick some out that she liked so she would add them to what they had. It seemed like she appreciated his company and he was just happy to help her out as much as he could.

By the end of it the pair had enough flowers for what they considered to be a nice bouquet of flowers. Charles was holding it in his hands but it didn't feel quite right though. There was no paper wrapping around it so for the time being it was just him holding the actual stems of the flowers.

The particular flowers that they had chosen were of several different colours, it made it seem very beautiful. Although Charles knew that most women would enjoy it, he wasn't sure if Maxine would. She was more comfortable swinging a sword and downing a barrel of ale rather than admiring some flowers. This was something that he didn't want to tell Jane as it seemed like she had enjoyed what they were doing.

"Doesn't that look really pretty?" asked Jane as she saw the bouquet in Charles' hands. In her mind they looked to be perfect and nothing could be added or taken away to make them look any better.

"Yeah it does," replied Charles as he continued to look up at her. "Is there anything else we need from here?" He wanted to return to the farmhouse just so Maxine knew where he was. If she needed him and he wasn't there he thought that she might become very upset with him. This was something that he didn't want to happen.

"No, we can go home..." Before she could finish her sentence, she began to hear a sound. It seemed to be coming from a tree that was close by and as she looked up, she could see a small brown cat on one of the branches. It looked like it was stuck and it was calling out for someone to help it. "Oh Buttons, have you gotten yourself stuck again?"

Charles could see Jane smiling up to the cat as she took a few steps closer towards the tree. She then began to concentrate and the squire was taken aback as he saw the tall girl begin to grow even taller. However, she was growing differently from what he was expecting, like her other sister he expected Jane to grow in proportion.

Instead however the tall girl seemed to grow by stretching her body upwards. This made her incredibly tall but not very wide, almost like if a person would naturally grow to that tall. He said nothing as he watched her grow taller and taller, within a few seconds she was tall enough to easily reach the cat. The creature itself didn't really respond to Jane with fear, it was almost like it was used to seeing this elongated girl.

With some care she grabbed onto the cat and then began to lower it back down to the ground. She couldn't help but giggle as she did this and she patted it on the head, no sooner had she done this the cat quickly moved away as it travelled back to its owner. It seemed to have had a lucky escape, if the tall girl wasn't there to rescue it there was a good chance it would have spent many more hours trapped.

Charles couldn't help but continue to look up at Jane who was at least three times taller than she had been before. In his mind thanks to her growth she almost looked like a stick insect as each of her body parts looked incredibly stretched. All except her head which seemed to be the only part of her that looked to be normal.

As incredible as her height was, he could also begin to see that it was decreasing. The elongated girl was beginning to shrink and to her it seemed to be as normal as someone merely walking out of the house or looking into the sky. It only took her a few seconds to return to her former height, it wasn't as impressive as it had been a few moments ago but was still breath taking.

"There we go," said Jane with a smile on her face. "Now, shall we take those flowers back to Maxine. I'm sure that she would love them."

"Y-Yeah sure," replied Charles as he didn't fully know how to react to what had just happened. All he knew was that he watched a tall girl become even taller and then shrink back down to a smaller but still very tall height.

Despite what had happened Charles still followed Jane back to the farmhouse with the flowers in hand. But seeing what the girl had just done made him think. If Maxine was like her sisters and was able to make herself even bigger than she already was then she would become truly terrifying.

A walking colossus of muscle and armour would be terrifying for anyone to encounter and he thought that it would take an army to stop her. In a way he was glad that Maxine couldn't grow into a true giantess but then again, she was still large and very scary at her current height.

Meanwhile inside of the farmhouse Maxine herself was still in the sitting room with her mother and baby Rina. The baby had been placed in a small crib like bed that was nearby. She was sleeping and the crib itself had once been used by Maxine when she was the same age. More or less every child of the Martel household had once used this crib as a bed but it did seem like Rina was going to be its last occupant.

Both women were sitting on a very large sofa like chair that had been specially designed to handle the weight of these two extraordinary women. There was a small groan as they sat down on it but it held. Once again Jessica did give her eldest daughter a hug as she was still happy to see her. But she saw Maxine wince in pain a little and she knew that something was truly wrong.

"Open your shirt," said Jessica. There was a small amount of sternness in her voice to show that she wasn't joking. Maxine didn't answer but slowly she did begin to unbutton the shirt, she didn't do it all the way down but only to where it needed to be.

With that Maxine opened up her shirt around her chest and although Jessica could see some of Maxine's breasts that wasn't what she was focused on. Instead it was the large bruise where the cannonball had struck her. It was still a deep purple colour and was painful to the touch. Maxine didn't waste any time in buttoning her shirt back up to hide the injury but for now she didn't mention that there was a bruise on her side as well.

"Maxine why do you do this to me?" asked Jessica as some tears rolled down her cheek. This did catch the larger woman a little by surprise who for the moment wasn't sure how to react.

"I'm sorry mother," replied Maxine. "Things like this happen in my line of work. If it makes you feel any better the person who did this is behind bars right now."

"No, it doesn't make me feel any better. Maxine, everyday while you were away, I've been worried about you. You may tell me that you can handle yourself but when you return home with dented armour and a large bruise it just makes me feel that my worries are justified. You're not like your sisters nor I, you can't grow to match a challenge like they can." This seemed to make Maxine angry for a moment but she didn't show it at all, instead she chose to remain calm and collective.

"I don't need such abilities!" Her words were fairly blunt as she was making what she considered to be a solid point. "I am larger and stronger than any man in Angleland and I have never lost against an opponent. The fact that you worry about me is touching but completely unfounded."

"But it isn't, without such abilities you don't have an ace up your sleeve so to speak. Plus, you're not invincible, what if you were struck in the head instead of your chest? Carrie always called you hard headed but even you probably wouldn't survive such a blow. It's a mother's worst nightmare to have to bury one of their children."

"You never tried to stop father when he was doing what I did. He took part in activities that was just as dangerous as what I have been doing and yet you never took him back here. You let him keep going no matter what danger he might have come across. What makes it different this time?"

"Because I was there to make sure he didn't get himself seriously hurt. But with you I can't do that, I know it sounds selfish but that's just the way I feel. You're not a little girl anymore, I know that but that doesn't mean that I can't worry about you. It's tempting to simply ban you from continuing on this path but I know that if I did that, you'd hate me for the rest of your life. All I can ask you is to take care and not anger the high borns, they're more trouble than they're worth."

"Oh, I know." She remembered when she was in the tavern and a high-born named Laurence Brees had entered looking for a particular person. Although he couldn't find who he was looking for he did notice Maxine and more or less insulted her because of her gender and great size. If he had been common folk, she would have given him a strong strike with the back of her hand. However, because of his status she was forced to bite her tongue and take the insult on the chin. "You needn't worry about me, father taught me all the skills I need to defeat any opponent."

"And have you killed anyone?" There were a few moments of silence as Maxine didn't answer the question straight away. This caused Jessica to cross her arms and somewhat glare at her. "Tell me the truth."

"I have indeed killed a few people but I took none of it lightly." She heard her mother give out a sigh. "They were situations where I didn't have much of a choice, if it makes you feel any better, they were thieves and kidnappers of children. Most would not have any sympathy for them."

"But that still doesn't make it any easier. I would be foolish to say that no knight took the life of another but I raised you to be a protector, not a killer."

"And that is exactly what I am. Everyone who has fallen at my sword intended to hurt others in more ways than you'd like to imagine. Their removal from this world has made the lives of others that little bit better."

Jessica tried to think about what to say but she couldn't think of a single word. She knew that her daughter wasn't a cold-blooded murderer or some kind of assassin for hire. Of all people she knew what kind of people were out there and the trouble that they could cause. During her journey with Sir Tucker there were a few people that she would wish to simply crush but she never did.

By her own words Maxine had admitted to her mother that she had taken the lives of a few people. Although Jessica did believe that the people that Maxine had killed most likely deserved it, she still didn't think it made it any easier. Instead she got up from her chair and grabbed onto her daughter's hand. She looked into the eyes of her offspring and put on a serious face.

"Maxine Theresia Martel," said Jessica in a somewhat stern voice. "Promise me that you will never take the life of another."

"Mother but..." replied Maxine. Her words were quickly cut off by her mother who seemed to grow a little while holding her hand.

"I mean it Maxine, promise me."

Maxine didn't say a word but she could see just how serious her mother actually was. She knew that when her mother was like this that nothing could change her mind. This was when Maxine gave in and looked at her mother in the eyes. Although they seemed completely different personality wise there was still a strong connection between them that could never be broken.

"Ok mother," said Maxine. "I promise that I will never take the life of another person again." She could see a smile beginning to develop on the face of Jessica as she was happy with what she was hearing.

"Good." She then embraced her daughter in a one-sided hug. But as she held onto her, she increased her size to the point where she felt that she was hugging Maxine as a child again. This had caught the muscular woman by surprised but she couldn't do anything about it as she knew that her mother would stop when she was ready. "I love you Maxine."

"I love you too." She did embrace her mother in a hug as well. Although she wouldn't be caught in a tavern doing something like this but since she was in her own home she didn't have to worry about such things.

Jessica continued to hug Maxine until she felt something in her mind. It was a familiar feeling that she felt when her husband was close by. Because of this she began to shrink back down to her normal size and break off the hug. She looked towards one of the windows and began to smile. This was something that Maxine had seen on more than one occasion and she knew exactly what it meant.

A wave of joy did overtake Maxine but she kept herself calm as she simply got up to her feet and began to walk towards the door along with her mother. The still sleeping Rina was left in her crib as she was still asleep. Since her mother would only be away for a few minutes she didn't think that she would have to worry about the baby waking up.

It only took a few moments for both women to make their way out of the house as they saw a familiar horse and cart ride up towards the house. There they could see a middle-aged man approaching. His hair was still mostly the colour of his youth but a few grey hairs had begun to shine through as well. He was a little hunched over as he pulled on the reins to stop the horse.

Rather than wearing the armour that was expected of a knight he wore simple clothing that made him seem more like he was just a common person. He had also put on a little bit of weight since his days of adventuring but a warm smile had appeared on his face. Not only did he see his beautiful wife but his eldest daughter that he had not seen for a year.

However, when the horse and cart had come to a stop, he had a slight bit of difficulty as he could feel a pain in his back. It was not the first time he had experienced such a thing as he had been suffering from it for the last few years. Sometime ago he had fallen off a horse and had injured his back, although he had recovered to the point where he could walk about and still work it had never been the same.

When he was off his horse, he went over to Jessica who bent down and gave him a kiss. He had missed his wife but then he stood over to Maxine who was standing there firmly. It almost seemed insane for a normal person to see a man who had a daughter who was three feet taller than him and probably able to snap him in two if she wished.

"Hello Maxine," said Sir Tucker as he looked up at his daughter. He was surprised that she wasn't wearing her armour but since she was not on the road, he didn't think that she needed to.

"Hello Father," replied Maxine. They both stood there for a few moments as if they were in the military. But suddenly Sir Tucker began to chuckle and it spread to Maxine as well. She quickly went down to one knee and embraced him in a hug. He was more than happy to hug her back even though she was a lot bigger than he was. "I've missed you this past year." She soon broke the hug off but stayed down to one knee so that she could speak with him eye to eye.

"And I've missed you sugarplum fairy." He smiled at her and then he did feel some of the muscle in her arm. "Is it me or have you grown since you left here?"

"I might have grown a little over the past year." But she had a disappointed look on her face. "I'm sorry but I still haven't gained a knighthood yet, but I promise that when you next see me, I will have earned one."

"That's alright Maxine, these kinds of things can't be rushed. Sometimes it can take a little longer than we expect to achieve our goals."

"Daddy," said a female voice. This made all of them look in the direction that the voice came from. There they saw Charles and Jane approaching them, Jane in particular seemed happy to see her father and it was around this time that Maxine stood back up and took a step away. "You're back!" As soon as she approached him, she wrapped her long arms around him and gave him a hug.

"Thank you, Jane, I do always appreciate your hugs." He then noticed Charles standing not too far away from where Jane had been. He had the flowers in his hands and this seemed to give Sir Tucker the wrong idea. "And who is he?" There was a slight hint of anger in his voice as he saw that the age difference between Charles and his daughter was inappropriate. This was when he saw Maxine stepping toward him as she knew what he was thinking and wanted to put a stop to it.

"Father this is my squire Charles," said Maxine. She gestured her hand towards Charles. "He has just arrived with me." She then looked over to Charles who remained where he was. "Charles this is my father Sir Tucker Martel."

"Hello Tucker," replied Charles as he showed his respect but the next think, he felt was a sharp impact to the back of his head. It wasn't enough to cause any real damage but it still hurt and it made him drop the flowers immediately. He could see that it was Maxine who had struck him. There was an annoyed look on her face as she looked down at him with her hand still raised.

"His name is Sir Tucker and you will address him as such." Her voice was stern and angry. "Make such a mistake again and I swear the next one will fracture your skull."

"Maxine please, there's no need," said Sir Tucker. He knew that his daughter meant well but he didn't think that she should have struck her squire in the manner that she did. However, he wasn't surprised. It wasn't the first time he had seen her strike someone for showing him disrespect.

Charles continued to hold onto the back of his head as he was still feeling the pain from Maxine's strike. It had hurt him more than he'd like to admit and it even brought him close to shedding a tear or two. However, he kept this in as he didn't want to embarrass himself in front of her and her father. It was just another reminder to him just how strong she was and how she could seriously hurt him if she wanted to.

Nothing was said for a moment before Jane knelt down and picked up the flowers that had been dropped onto the ground. These weren't damaged at all but she brushed off any dirt that was on them and then passed them up to Maxine. She was a little confused as she took the flowers off of her sister.

"Your squire and I picked these for you to welcome you back home," said Jane. "I hope that you like them." She smiled up to her older sister and Maxine couldn't help but be touched by this. It was one of the few times that she smiled back at anyone as she looked at the flowers. She admitted to herself that they were pretty.

"Thank you, Jane," replied Maxine. She placed her hand on the shoulder of her younger sister. "You always know what the best gifts are."

"If you don't mind, I've had a long journey and I'm starving," said Sir Tucker. "Why don't we sit down for dinner?"

"Of course," replied Jessica. "Carrie should be cooking up something as we speak." She held out her hand to her husband and he didn't hesitate in holding it. They had truly missed each other even though Jessica had grown somewhat accustomed to Sir Tucker being away for long periods of time.

No more than half an hour later Charles found himself sitting at the table along with the other members of the Martel family. Sir Tucker, Jessica, Maxine and all of the other siblings were sitting at the table. They had plates of food in front of them with the women and girls in particular having large plates. Most of them were eating meat with some vegetables on the side.

Maxine wasn't eating this as Carrie had specially made her a pie. This was something that she found unusual as she didn't think that her sister would do something like that for her. They had never seen eye to eye as Carrie believed that what Maxine was doing wasn't right. As a woman she thought that Maxine should be more focused on more lady like qualities such as cooking and becoming a mother. Not only that but her own dream of being whisked away by a prince and living in a castle was just a silly fantasy in Maxine's mind. She wanted Carrie to have a more realistic dream.

The pain that Charles had experienced from Maxine's strike had subsided and like the other members of the family he had meat and vegetables on his plate. There was some talking amongst the siblings but one thing he did notice was the fact that she hadn't tucked into her pie yet. He would have thought that she would have devoured the entire thing by then and be asking for another one.

"Sir Tucker," said Charles after he had taken a sip of the water that was in front of him. "I was just wondering how you became a knight." He remembered to call him Sir Tucker or else another strong strike from Maxine would have come into contact with the back of his head. "If you don't mind answering."

"Oh, not at all," replied Sir Tucker. There were a few sighs from some of the children who had heard the story more times than they could count. Maxine was one of those who had heard the story many times but she always loved hearing it. "You see, I was taking part in a tournament at Indigon and in the second round I faced the now Lord Tyrone Howlett. We had a good scrap and he eventually got the better of me. Despite my defeat his late father decided to knight me for my skills and he even did it at the post tournament banquet. Since then I have been Sir Tucker Martel although these days, I don't really perform that many knightly duties."

"You've earned your rest," added Jessica who put her large hand onto the hand of her normal size husband. She smiled at him and he turned and smiled right back at her, although they had been married for some years, they were still in love with one another. "At least I don't have to worry about you trying to take on bandits or perform at any other tournaments. You're much more needed here."

"Yeah, although it would be fun to go on another quest." He saw his wife glare at him and he laughed. "I'm only joking, I can't do that when I have all these kids here wanting my attention."

This got a chuckle from Maxine who cut open her pie and ate some of it. She thought that it was unusual for her sister Carrie to go out of her way for her. For as long as she could remember she had always been at odds with her younger sister but unlike people she met on the road she couldn't simply overpower her. Instead she would have to just take things a little easy and relax at home.

As she took a bite out of the pie, she suddenly realised that something tasted off about it. At first, she couldn't put her finger on it but as she looked inside of the pie and she saw something that horrified her. It was something that was long, thin and a greenish white colour. Her eyes widened as she realised that this was something that she absolutely despised, it was onion.

Almost immediately she spat out the piece of pie in her mouth but she had turned her head away from the table when she had done this. Her actions quickly got the notice of everyone at the table and Maxine quickly glared over at Carrie who was sitting at her seat and just eating the food in front of her.

"You did that on purpose!" said Maxine in an angry voice as she continued to look over to Carrie. Her sister was acting innocent as she merely glanced over at her.

"I did what on purpose?" replied Carrie as if she had no idea what Maxine was so angry about.

"Don't play coy with me! You purposely put onions in my pie!" The others did have a look at the pie and although they couldn't see the onions, they definitely knew that this was going to lead to another sisterly argument.

"Did I?" She still acted as if she had no idea what her older sister was talking about. "It must have gotten in there by mistake."

"Mistake my giant ass!"

"Maxine!" stated Jessica with her own annoyed tone. "We do not use such words at the dinner table. Now settle down and get something else to eat from the kitchen, there's bound to be something in there."

"But mother."

"Now Maxine." There was an annoyed grunt as Maxine picked up her pie and took it away. Jessica glanced over to Carrie who seemed to have a smile on her face and she knew what had happened. "Don't think that you're getting off with this as well, we'll talk about this later."

Throughout all of this Charles had sat at his seat and said nothing as he just watched what was taking place. He had never seen anyone shut down Maxine the way that Jessica had done. The matriarch of the household had been able to stop what seemed to be a sure-fire shouting match between Maxine and Carrie. He didn't think that such a thing was possible but after giving birth and raising a number of children she was more than capable of ending a dispute.

"Is it always like this?" asked Charles quietly to Jane who was sitting next to him at the table. Even sitting down the height difference between them was obvious for anyone to see. He watched as she nodded her head at him.

Charles continued to sit there and eat as Maxine returned with a plate that had some vegetables and a small scrap of leftover meat. She was still annoyed with what had happened but she couldn't do anything about it. Although she wanted to break every bone in the face of Carrie she simply had to sit there and take it. Going against the will of her parents would not look good on her and would be a bad influence on her younger siblings.

"So, Charles, when are we expecting wedding bells?" asked Sir Tucker as he took a bite out of his meat.

"What?" replied Maxine and Charles in shocked unison. Neither of them had expected such a question and they watched as Sir Tucker began to laugh.

"I'm only pulling your leg, but tell me Charles. How did you first meet my daughter? She's not really the type to take a travelling companion."

"Well sir," replied Charles. He could see that Maxine was happy that he had called her father Sir. Just like he was supposed to. "I was working in a tavern when unfortunately, I ran into a bit of trouble with some of the patrons. If Maxine hadn't been there to put them in their place, I'd hate to think what would have happened to me. Since then I knew that I had to serve her as her squire, we have helped each other a great deal during our time together and I hope to serve her for some time to come."

"Oh, so it's like a life debt of some kind. I'm not too surprised with that, just don't let her be too harsh on you. She might have a rough exterior but she still has a good heart, isn't that right Sugarplum Fairy?"

"Yes father," replied Maxine who blushed a little in embarrassment. He had been calling her that for as long as she could remember. She felt a little embarrassed with him using it in front of Charles. But she wouldn't stop Sir Tucker from saying it. Even though she was anything remotely like a fairy.

Eventually dinner was over and with night falling upon them each of the Martel family members began to make their way to bed. The younger ones were getting the most attention, particularly Jaime who got a bedtime story from Jessica. Baby Rina slept in the crib inside her parents' room and was more than happy to remain asleep for the entire night. Jessica did enjoy having her husband back and cuddled him while they were in bed together. She was even tempted to ask if they should have another child but she thought that it was best to let him rest for the night.

Inside Maxine's room the tall woman herself had gotten changed into some of her old bedclothes although now they were a bit of a tighter fit than they had been before. Charles was given some of Sir Tucker's bedclothing as he was going to be sleeping in the same room as her. He had been given a pillow and blanket to keep him comfortable but he was used to sleeping on the ground.

Even though Maxine's bed was much larger than an average bed her feet still dangled at the end. This was something that she hadn't forgotten but she sat on her bed and for a moment she looked at her armour that was in the corner. She had yet taken it to be repaired but she this was what she had expected.

"Charles," said Maxine as she saw her squire about to lie down on the floor. His pillow was in position and he was preparing to put the blanket over himself. "First thing in the morning we are going to my Uncle's forgery and having my armour repaired. I am going to need you to help me carry it all."

"Yes ma'am," replied Charles. He was preparing to lie down onto the pillow but he did watch as she still looked at him.

"And Charles, I'm sorry that I struck you earlier. I should not have done that and I apologise. A knight should lead by example, not strike their squires."

"It's alright ma'am, I should have addressed your father with the correct title. You don't need to apologise."

"I will not accept that. I let my anger get the better of me and it never should have happened." She gave a sigh as she truly regretted what had happened. She thought that she would have to make it up to him and an idea did pop into her head but they would have to do it once they had left the Martel farm. "Now best for us to get our rest, we have a busy day tomorrow."

"As you wish ma'am."

With that Maxine blew out the candle that was lighting up the room and over the course of several minutes both of them fell asleep. Both also began to dream but they didn't make too much sense. In their eyes their dreams made sense while they were sleeping but if they stopped to think about it, they would realise how insane the scenarios would be. It didn't really matter much to them as they would likely forget their dreams come the morning. Unless they were particularly memorable.

Not everyone in the Martel Farmhouse was asleep though. Baby Rina was constantly waking up during the night and either Jessica or Sir Tucker would tend to her. This was something that they had gotten used to after having so many children. They were annoyed of course as they wanted to sleep but as parents, they knew that they had to do what needed to be done.

Between them both Jessica and Sir Tucker were only getting a few hours of sleep each. Come morning they were still mostly tired although they could still function for most of the day. Although a short nap was probably in store for them. They were just happy that they were back together as Sir Tucker had thought about his very tall wife throughout his time on the road.

One thing that he had seen while in Flea Bay was several women but they were all of average height. After marrying Jessica and producing several children he was now used to being surrounded by women who towered above him. Being around women who were not as tall seemed abnormal to him. This only showed him the unique household that he lived in and how his family were not like others.

Charles was still fast asleep until he heard a voice. It seemed to be quite sharp and it seemed to register to him on level that he could understand. Even when he was asleep, it was Maxine's voice calling his name. When he heard this, he began to wake up and he could see her sitting up in her bed. He considered asking to let him sleep for a little longer but he knew better than to ask such a question.

"Is it morning already?" asked Charles began to get his wits back to him. He yawned loudly as he still felt a couple more hours would do the world of good for him. "It seems like I've only just gotten to sleep."

"Yes, it's morning," replied Maxine who ignored his second statement. "My Uncle's forgery is opening soon, we need to be up and ready for then."

"Can we have breakfast first?" His stomach was growling, although the dinner they had the previous evening had been very large he was hungry once again.

"Very well, but try and be quiet as well. The other members of my family might not be awake just yet."

With that Charles slowly began to get up from the spot where he had been sleeping. He didn't notice that Maxine had yet to get out of her bed and slowly he wandered through the door. It was only then when she fully got out of bed and walked behind him. The size difference between them was incredible for anyone to look at. The fact that she was more than three feet taller than him and had a much more muscular frame only made their pairing seem even more abnormal.

This was something that for the time being no one else would see as they made their way to the forgery. It was only a short walk away from the farmhouse and as they approached, they could already see that it was up and running. Smoke was bellowing out from the chimney and they could already hear the sound of hammers coming down on hot metal. It was a sound that Maxine had heard often when she was living here and she couldn't help but get nostalgic while she heard this.

In her arms she was carrying the majority of her armour while Charles carried whatever was left over. They didn't think that they'd need it all but they thought it was for the best that they took them. He in particular found the armour to be heavy and it made him wonder how she was able to move around while wearing it. In his mind it was just another indication of how strong she was.

Eventually they reached the door to the forgery and rather than going inside straight away Maxine knocked on the door and only had to wait a few moments for it to open. It looked more like a barn door rather than a regular door and when it did open, they both saw a man standing there. He was around average height but was quite muscular. He wore a rubber apron and what looked to be goggles around his eyes. His beard was a thick black and his hair was fairly long. He seemed happy to see the super tall woman standing there and he smiled up at her.

"Good morning Maxine," said the Man. He took a step out of the door and it seemed like he hadn't noticed Charles standing beside her.

"Good morning Uncle Mike," replied Maxine. "My armour has been damaged during my travels. I was wondering if you could repair it."

"Of course, I can, if I can't fix it then it can't be fixed." He then began to look down and he saw Charles standing there with some of Maxine's armour still in his hands. "And is he your helper or something?"

"My squire to be precise. His name is Charles and Charles this is my Uncle Mike." Charles was sure to greet him and he expected another strike to the back of his head but none came. This was when he knew that everything was alright.

With this out of the way the pair entered the forgery where they could see other people at work. Another of Maxine's uncles were also working along with a couple of her cousins who were all hammering away at some metal. None of them really noticed them enter as they were too engrossed in the work that they were doing.

Eventually the armour was placed on the ground and the first thing that Mike saw was the huge dent in the chest plate. He picked it up and gave a small whistle since he was surprised with what happened. He couldn't help but pick it up and begin to examine it, to him it was quite heavy as well but his years as a blacksmith had given him above average strength. It took him a few moments to examine it while Maxine stood there with her arms crossed as she simply watched him.

"Hmm," said Mike as he thought to himself. He then looked over to his large niece with a look of curiosity. "How exactly did this happen?"

"I took a cannonball to the chest at point blank range," replied Maxine. She didn't feel like it was anything to boast about. Especially since she was still feeling the effects of the impact. "It was only a small one though."

"But still I'm surprised that you're still standing after that. This of course will take the longest for me to repair. There are some other spots on your armour that need tending to as well. Unfortunately, I can't focus all of my effort on this as I recently had a large order come through. But I should be able to have it done by the end of the day tomorrow, can you wait that long?"

"If that's what it takes, I'll be more than happy to wait. I'd rather you do a good job rather than a quick one."

"Couldn't have put it better myself. If you ever decide that trying to be a knight is not for you then you can always work here. You have the physique which would be perfect for blacksmithing."

"Thanks, I'll keep that in mind."

"Now when it comes to payment as you know since your family, we do the work for free. However, we still need to charge you for the materials though, unfortunately that is simply something that we can't get around."

"That is fine Uncle Mike. Do you still have any tungsten still lying around at all? It could be useful."

"Sorry but you used it all on your sword. But if you bring some more here, we could possibly use it on something else for you."

The conversation between them continued on for another couple of minutes before Maxine decided that it was best for her Uncle to get back to his work. She left the forgery with Charles as she knew that her armour was in good hands. In her mind there were no finer blacksmiths in the land than her Uncles and their offspring. They were the ones who had forged her swords and armour.

When she was deciding what type of armour to have, she had considered light armour much like her father had. However, she considered defence to be more important than speed and thus had gone for the heavy armour option. Her decision seemed to have worked out for the best as her armour had saved her life on a few occasions.

As they walked towards the farmhouse there was some more activity taking place there as the family were beginning to wake up. One thing in particular that Maxine could see was her brother Adam who was seemingly swinging a sword at a couple of men who were made out of straw. These dummies were perfect for practice and from what Charles could see he was doing what Maxine likely did when she was younger.

The boy stabbed and slashed at the dummies with what seemed to be a practice sword and for the time being it would do. They watched as he practiced and for the moment it seemed like he didn't notice them. Charles was impressed by what he was seeing while Maxine was not as impressed as him. She could see her brother performing many mistakes, one noticeably was the fact that he hadn't noticed her.

Rather than shouting over to him instead the nine-foot woman picked up another practice sword that was sitting close by and approached her brother. Even then Adam didn't notice her arrival, that was until she used her practice sword to strike his legs and cause him to fall to the ground. He was confused but he soon felt her large foot step onto his chest and her practice sword against his throat.

The sword itself looked comically small in the hands of Maxine but it was more than capable of getting the job done. The impact and fall had not hurt Adam but he was a little dumbfounded by what had happened. Just moments ago, he had been practicing by himself and now he was on the ground and looking up to his nine-foot older sister who seemed to be somewhat unhappy with him.

Charles said nothing and just observed what was happening. He even decided to get his book out and his pencil. He thought that what he was going to see what worth documenting for future reference.

"What have I told you Adam?" asked Maxine. Her voice had a slight edge to it and it almost seemed like she was annoyed.

"T-To always keep my eye on my surroundings," replied Adam who didn't seem to upset with what had happened. Instead he was more startled than anything and was still gathering his bearings.

"Exactly, I was able to sneak up on you and knock you to the ground. It's not like I can sneak around easily which means you're getting sloppy. If I was an enemy right now, you'd be dead right now."

"I know Maxine, I'm sorry." He still seemed a little nervous but his sister did remove her foot from his chest and took her sword away. Her oversized hand came down towards him and was held out for him to grab. With minimal effort he was helped up onto his feet and he brushed the dirt off of his clothing. "I've been training everyday and I've gotten a lot better than when you were last here."

"If that's the case then why don't you have a sparring match with me? That way I can see of myself if you've improved."

"O-Ok." He was a little nervous to have such a match with his oldest sister. But he knew that if he wanted to train to be a knight, he would have to go through with it. "Since Dad injured his back, he can't spar with me anymore."

"One day, hopefully he can properly train you again. But while I'm here I will help you the best way that I can." She then looked over to Charles who was standing a short distance away. "Charles I might be here for a few minutes, go back into the house and see if my mother needs help around the house."

"Yes ma'am," replied Charles. He would have liked to have seen Maxine sparring with Adam but he dared not disobey her instructions. Because of this he simply went into the house while she remained outside.

Maxine took a few steps away from Adam who looked a little nervous with facing off with her. The size difference between them was great, it was something that he was used to as his mother and sisters were all extremely tall as well. None of them were as muscular as Maxine but since she couldn't grow in size like the others, he didn't have to worry about her suddenly growing even bigger. It wouldn't be the first time that such a thing had happened but all he saw was the figure of his sister suddenly darting toward him at speeds he didn't think were capable for someone of her size.

Adam was only able to lift his sword up in time to block Maxine's oncoming attack. It would have struck close to his chest but with his sword in the right position the attack was successfully blocked. Rather than being annoyed that her attack didn't work Maxine seemed to smile as she unleashed a barrage of strikes.

Each of these strikes were being blocked by Adam but just barely. He was struggling but he could also tell that his oldest sister wasn't entirely trying to strike him. Instead she was more testing him than anything else. It wasn't until he felt a strong kick to his chest that sent him down to the ground. Like before he felt a sword come down near his throat and Maxine looming above him.

The impact of the kick had winded him but he didn't seem to notice too much as he could still see her staring down at him. She barely seemed to move for a moment before she removed her sword and helped him back to his feet. His weight wasn't much of a challenge for her.

"Your blocking has improved but you still leave yourself open," said Maxine. She could see that Adam was still catching his breath. "This time you're going to be the one attacking me, when you're ready of course."

"Y-Yes Maxine," replied Adam. He knew that if their mother was watching that she would have scolded Maxine for strike him in the manner that she did. However, he understood that it was all going towards his training. If she held back on him then he wasn't gaining the experience that he needed.

"If you lay a single successful blow on me then you win." She took several steps away from him and then turned to his direction. She still had the training sword in her hand but it had been lowered, seemingly leaving herself open. "Now come at me."

Adam darted forward and he considered trying some kind of quick attack but he knew that his sister was too good to be defeated by such a tactic. Instead he considered her weak point which right now was her chest. He knew all about the injury that she sustained there and that right now it was Achilles Heel.

With a small amount of care and some grace Adam tried to strike Maxine's chest but he soon discovered that her sword had come up in time to block it. This somewhat surprised him as he attacked several more times in the hopes of hitting his mark. Unfortunately, each time she was able to successfully block the strikes.

That was until she was able to parry one of his strikes which left him open for an attack. With little hesitation she used her sword to strike him in the arm, the impact was enough to leave a small bruise but did not serious harm him. It did cause him to give out a small sigh of pain before backing away.

"You lost your arm there," said Maxine. She took a few steps towards him but since this sparring round was over, he was in no danger of being struck by her. "Do you know what you did wrong there?"

"I was too slow with my attacks?" replied Adam. He had placed his sword down and was rubbing his arm where he had been struck. It was painful but the pain was something that would likely subside in a few minutes.

"That wasn't why you lost this round. You must adjust your tactics based on your opponent. Normally hitting somewhere high is the options when you wish to strike a vital area. However, against large opponents such as myself it is better to strike low. Striking high made it very easy for me to block but striking low would have made things a lot more difficult for me. Now once you're ready we'll try again and this time it will be standard sparring so don't expect to be on the offense all the time."

"R-Right." He knew that what she was saying was true but it still made him feel that he wasn't doing as well as he should. This annoyed him but he simply picked up his sword and indicated that he was ready.

As the sparring match began Maxine darted toward Adam and he quickly lifted his sword to block but no attack came. The attack seemed to be a dummy as she quickly went to strike near his chest. This caused him to lower his sword enough to block the attack, this seemed to impress her as she had not expected him to block. She smiled a little and she went for another attack but he was able to roll underneath it.

Adam thought that he had the advantage as he quickly got up to his feet and went to strike her leg. He didn't think that Maxine would block his strike and in a manner of speaking he was right. Instead he saw her move her large leg towards him as she kicked him so hard that it lifted him off the ground and sent him flying. He landed a few metres away and he was winded but he still had his sword in his hand.

Before he could fully recover, he saw her looming over him again and it looked like she was preparing to strike him once more. However, he still had enough bearing to be able to block the strike and get up to his feet. He was still out of breath and he thought that he had a chance but suddenly he felt her enormous hand around his neck.

With almost no effort Maxine lifted her older brother off the ground and held him up high. He was being choked and it was enough for him to drop his sword, as soon as this happened, he was put back down onto the ground so that he could properly try and regain his breath.

"W-Why did you do that?" asked Adam as he knew that he had lost the encounter once he had dropped his sword.

"Do what?" replied Maxine who stood there and looked at her brother. It was hard to imagine that there were only a few years age difference between them. It almost looked like an adult and toddler thanks to their size difference.

"You chocked me, how is that possibly going to help with my training?"

"Do you think your opponent will give you such benefits? Your opponent will likely use every tactic they can to win and that includes fighting dirty if need be. I only used what I had to my advantage."

"But it's not fair, you're huge and there's no way that I'll ever be as big or strong." He could see a flash of anger in his sister's eyes and for a moment he seemed to regret his comment.

"And what difference does that make?" Her voice was stern but it didn't sound entirely angry. She still seemed intimidating and it caused Adam to take a step back from her. "Father wasn't particularly tall or strong but he still became a knight through pure skill alone. And if you ever hope to do the same you need to keep practicing. Now don't let me hear you say anything otherwise."

"Y-Yes Maxine." Out of all of his sisters Maxine was the one that he feared the most, even though she was the one who couldn't change her size. Her intimidating presence was enough and whenever she made a point, she made sure to drill it in.

"Good, now go and get some breakfast, you can't train on an empty stomach." She too was hungry and did fancy having some breakfast herself. But this became a small dilemma for her, if she had breakfast prepared by her mother it would most likely taste awful. If she had it done by Carrie, she would likely taint it in some manner. In her mind it was going to be the lesser of two evils.

Meanwhile inside the house Charles had done what he was told and he found himself standing before Jessica. If it had not been the fact that he had seen Maxine he would have said that Jessica was the tallest woman that he had ever seen. From looking at her he could see where Maxine got her height from but he also thought that she was a very beautiful woman as well. Even though she was around forty her looks hadn't decreased in the slightest although she had gained a little weight since her years travelling with Sir Tucker. But she was sure that she would burn off the weight soon enough.

She was surprised when she saw Charles approach her, he had been inside of the kitchen when she came across him. For the moment she didn't know what he wanted but she also had her focus on something else. In her arms was baby Rina who had just been fed and now seemed to be happy. In her mind her baby was adorable but she was also a little sad as she knew that Rina was likely to be her last child.

"Excuse me ma'am," said Charles who was a little nervous. He knew that Jessica was calmer than Maxine but he feared that if he said anything wrong that he might get another clout on the back of his head.

"Please call me Jessica," replied Jessica with a warm smile on her face. This did make him feel more at ease with everything.

"Ok Jessica, Ms Maxine has asked me to help you out in anyway that I can. Is there something I can do for you?"

"Hmm, I'm not sure." She stood there in silence for a few moments until an idea did eventually pop into her head. "Actually, there is something that you could do for me if you wouldn't mind?"

"And what would that be?"

"Maxine told me that you were great at crunching numbers. Well we need to balance a few things financially and I was hoping that you'd be able to help us."

"S-Sure, I can take a look."

Within a couple of minutes Charles found himself sitting down at a table, he expected it to be some kind of giant table with elevated chairs but instead it was all normal. This meant that when Jessica or any of the women of the household stood by it, they made it look really small. He was also given a book with all the family's finances along with a pile of paperwork which showed money coming and out of the household.

For Charles it was a little overwhelming as he had to sort through the mountain of information and writing down what was necessary. When it came to combat, he would always be on the side lines but when it came to anything like this, he was more than capable of holding his own.

As he was working away, he seemed to be lost in his own little world and he didn't seem to notice the passage of time. He only stopped his work initially because when he saw a figure looming over him. At first, he thought that it was either Maxine or Jessica, however when he looked, he could see that it was neither.

The figure standing over him was Carrie who Charles remembered purposely put onions in Maxine's pie. Although she claimed to be innocent Maxine knew that it had been done deliberately. He wasn't sure why Carrie was here but he was sure to find out soon enough. He watched as she pulled up one of the chairs and sat down at it. Thanks to her extreme height she couldn't pull herself in properly. But she still looked at him and even gave him a smile, this was something that he hadn't expected.

"Charles isn't it?" asked Carrie. Her voice sounded calm and it also seemed like she was trying to be friendly.

"Yes, it is and if I'm not mistaken your name is Karen, right?"

"Actually, it's Carrie."

"Oh, I'm sorry." He felt embarrassed by this as he even had the name written down in his note book but he still said it wrong.

"It's alright, so you're Maxine's squire, aren't you?" She chuckled to herself. "She's not even a knight and yet she still thinks that she can have a squire." Charles didn't say anything to this as he knew that there was animosity between Maxine and Carrie and he preferred not to get in the middle of it.

"Yes, I am her squire, although she hasn't taught me any combat yet." He knew that traditionally squires were like apprentices to the knight but in his case, he was a servant more than anything else. "I just do what I can to help her out and make sure her finances are in order."

"So, she basically gives you the work that she is too lazy to do." She chuckled a moment to herself. "That's just like her. Anyway, I just wanted to know a little more about you, since not many people stop here."

"There's not much to say about myself recently. My family is nothing special and if it wasn't for your sister, I'd probably be missing a few teeth right now. But your family is like nothing I've ever seen before."

"Well the Martels are a unique family. It's just a shame that we couldn't be higher in the social standings." She gave a sigh. "If I'm ever going to marry a lord I'd have to be known as more than the daughter of some farmers."

"Sometimes it can be best to remember where you came from. But there is something I am wondering if you don't mind me asking. You can grow like your sisters, can't you? I saw your sister Jane stretch up tall enough to reach a cat in the tree. Can you do something like that?"

"Of course." She seemed quite proud of herself as she spoke. "In fact, out of all of my sisters I can grow the tallest. If you were impressed by Jane then you'll be completely blown away by me."

"I wouldn't be too surprised." He went to go back to his work but he saw Carrie shift her chair closer towards him.

"I've also been told that you're in some kind of relationship with Maxine. Funny though since I was sure that she was gay."

"Oh, we're in no kind of romantic relationship at all." He began to become a little nervous as the tall woman seemed to be insinuating something that a few had done before. "Our relationship is a business one so to speak."

"You don't have to lie to me, I can see why some men would go for her. Even though in my mind it is freaky, but then again I can't really speak in that area." She shifted closer towards him and she seemed uncomfortably close to him. Like Maxine, Carrie's extreme height made Charles look small in comparison. "You know there's a perfectly good woman waiting here, maybe later we can..."

"What are you doing?" asked a relatively loud and angry voice. This was when both of them looked over and saw Maxine standing a short distance away. She seemed to be annoyed as she glared down at Charles being uncomfortably close to her sister.

"Ms Maxine," replied Charles who was surprised. He could see what the situation looked like and this made him very scared. "It's not what it looks like."

"Carrie, you have work that you need to do. I suggest that you go and do it." She watched as Carrie got up from her chair and she seemed to be happy with what had happened. There was a small smile on her face as she walked out of the room. She walked by Maxine and although there was a six-inch height difference between the two it didn't seem to be that much in comparison.

With Carrie gone Maxine's focus was completely on Charles. He felt very intimidated as he knew that the situation looked bad on his part. Her annoyed expression didn't seem to change and he was sure that she was going to do something to him.

"Ms Maxine I..." said Charles before he was interrupted by the giant woman standing before him.

"We need to have a little talk in private," replied Maxine. Her tone hadn't changed and for Charles it almost reminded him of when he was in trouble as a child. He did feel her large hand come down on the back on his neck. This made his heart skip a beat but he still got up from his chair.

Maxine led Charles away from the table that he had had been working at and led him to the room where they had slept in together. When they arrived, she made sure that the door was closed behind them and she looked down at her normal sized squire. He couldn't help but feel some fear from her. She was also positioned right in front of the door so that he had no escape route as well.

"Just what the hell were you doing back there?" asked Maxine in a very annoyed tone. She did make sure to keep her voice down so that she couldn't be heard by anyone else. Her glare cut right through him.

"Ms Maxine," replied Charles with genuine fear in her voice. "I can explain."

"Then you better get explaining. I didn't bring you to my family home so that you could try and fuck my sister." He thought that she was going to strike him and with how strong she was he knew that there was a chance that it could kill him.

"I-I was just doing some paperwork like your mother had asked me to. Then your sister came over to me and started talking like she wanted to sleep with me. Ms Maxine, you have to believe me, I would never do such a thing to you." He was still afraid and he backed away, but with each step he took she would take a step closer to him. "Just don't hurt me ma'am, I'm begging you."

Charles could see Maxine's hand coming down towards him and he thought that she was going to strike him. However, it was merely her hand being placed on his shoulder. This caused him to look up to her and she gave out a sigh as she began to shake her head. He didn't know whether he should be relieved or worried.

"That doing it again," said Maxine. Her voice seemed calmer but it was still annoyed. Charles watched as she took a few steps away from him and then punched one of the walls nearby. A small crack did develop where she had punched and she felt some pain from her fist, it was obvious that she had hurt it but the injury didn't seem to be serious.

"A-Are you alright ma'am?" asked Charles who did show some concern for her. Even though he had been terrified just a few moments ago.

"I'm fine." She held onto her hand in an attempt to soothe the pain. She looked at her squire and gave another sigh. "Did Carrie ask you whether we were in some kind of romantic relationship at all?"

"She thought that we were but I told her that we weren't. But then she started coming onto me and that's when you turned up. I'm sorry ma'am, please don't think I was going to do anything to her."

"I know, I believe you. Shortly before I left here to become a knight, I began having a relationship with a local man. We had known each other for some years and after some time I'd worked the courage to begin a romantic relationship with him. Much to my surprise he actually said yes, even though I'm like..." She gave another sigh as she gestured towards herself. "This, anyway we had been seeing each other for a few weeks until I caught Carrie seducing him. What was worse was the fact that he was accepting her seductions. It was one of the reasons why I left here."

"What happened to this man that you were dating?"

"It was simple, I broke up with him right after I broke his hand." Charles chuckled as he thought that she was joking about the last part. From the look on her face she was being very serious. "And because Carrie can enlarge herself and I can't she sees this as the ultimate defence against me. But I swear that one of these days I'm going to knock all of those pretty teeth out of her mouth!"

"If you don't mind me asking, why does she do these things to you? I noticed how she spoke to you and purposely placed some onion into your pie. It seems like there is something between you two."

"As long as I can remember we've been at each other's throats. For years I had the advantage since I was the bigger sister but when she began being able to grow in size then she thought that she was in charge. Since then things like this have been happening, you could say that she's trying to show her dominance. In a manner of speaking she has gotten what she wants since I haven't been around."

"So, it is a form of sibling rivalry? I can understand that but from what I can see between you and your sister it is more extreme than that."

"It is, but you don't need to worry about it. If you see Carrie again do acknowledge her if need be but don't accept her advances at all. If she throws a hissy fit then I'd suggest that you make yourself scare."

"Yes ma'am."

With the conversation done for the time being Charles was allowed to return to the paperwork that Jessica had asked him to sort through. Maxine chose to help out in the fields as for the time being it was the best place for her talents. Other members of her family were already at work including her father Sir Tucker who was tending to some of the animals. He seemed to be alright but his family knew that wasn't entirely the case.

Around three years before he had fallen off a horse and injured his back. Although he had more or less healed from the injury it was not like it was before. Over the years it was slowly getting worse and his family feared that eventually he wouldn't be able to walk. Despite this he still tried to help around the farm and raise his children right.

Sir Tucker's duties as a knight were more or less non-existent as his injury prevented him from entering into combat. With some reluctance he accepted the fact that his days of being a true knight were over, but he still had his title and memories of his deeds when he truly felt like a knight.

One thing that he did take some pride in was the fact that Maxine was carrying on his legacy and most likely so would Adam when he came of age. He knew that both would do well in the field and he thought that it was only a matter of time before both of them were knighted. Even though knighting a woman was practically unheard of in Angleland.

For the time being Maxine's job was to milk some of the cows that the family owned. It had been a while since she had last done this task but she didn't forget how to as she began to squeeze the milk into a bucket. She also remembered not to use too much of her strength so that she didn't accidentally harm the cow.

The cow in question remained calm throughout all of this as she was more than used to this happening. She had been born on this farm and she knew nothing about the world outside of it. She had also known Maxine for a number of years and felt calm around her as she knew that this giant woman meant her no harm.

Just as Maxine continued to work, she felt something strike her back. It wasn't anything hard but instead it almost felt like a very small person was trying to hug her. She had been sitting down and milking the cow when she felt the impact and when she turned to look, she saw her youngest brother Jaime who was hugging her. This had caught her by surprise but she turned and looked at him. He had a smile on his face and she couldn't help but crack a smile as well, she always had time for her baby brother.

"Jaime what are you doing out here?" asked Maxine who knew that this wasn't really a place for him to be running around.

"I wanted to see you," replied Jaime. His speech was a little quicker than she could fully understand. "And mommy is asleep and won't play with me."

"Oh, I see, unfortunately I can't play with you right now. But when I'm finished then I'll play with you alright?"

"But I wanna play with you now." It looked like Jaime was about to get upset, normally she wouldn't have time for such things and simply force him away. But since he was her younger brother, she knew that she couldn't just do that. There was also the fact that their mother would be unhappy with them if she upset him.

"I'll tell you what, why don't I teach you how to milk a cow? Would you like me to show you how it's done?"

Jaime nodded his head at her and she moved herself so that she could bring him closer to the cow. For the next several minutes she showed her little brother how to milk a cow. Although he was only small, she kept her hands around his so that it seemed like he was doing the work. In actual fact it was who was applying the pressure and ensuring that the milk was being poured out.

This didn't matter to Jaime as he thought that it was him that was doing this. It made him happy and Maxine could hear his chuckles. The age difference between them almost made them like mother and son rather than brother and sister.

"Yay, I'm milking a cow," said Jaime with joy in his voice.

"You sure are Jaime," replied Maxine. "Now we have to do this for a little longer until we have all the milk that we need."

"Can't we keep going until we have a hundred buckets of milk?" This caused Maxine to chuckle.

"That would be nice but cows can't make that much milk at one time. Maybe if it was a really, really big cow then we could."

"Like mommy?"

Maxine paused for a moment and she couldn't help but laugh at what Jaime had said. She knew that he didn't really know what he meant with that last statement but the most important thing was that he was happy. And he was learning something that would likely help him in life.

While all this was happening, Charles remained inside and going through all the paperwork that the Martel family had. He could see all the money coming in and out of the household and it surprised him. He could see several places where they could save some money and help towards other things that the family needed.

He was beginning to see how Maxine's finances were in such a bad way before she had met him. It seemed to be something that ran in the family, being huge and strong was one thing but counting the coins was something beyond them. It seemed like a good thing that he was there to do this work for them.

Charles continued on for another half an hour or so before everyone came back into the house. Most had been working away in the fields while some of the younger members of the household had been simply playing around. All of them were hungry and thankfully for them it was lunchtime.

Rather than having a full feast like they did the previous night it was just sandwiches that were in order for lunch. Each member of the family stated what kind of sandwich that they wanted. Like before it was Carrie who mainly made the sandwiches and she would give each of them what they had asked for. When it came to the women of the family, they ate a lot more due to the fact that they were so tall and most were still growing. Even Maxine thought that she hadn't quite stopped growing yet and that she might still have a couple of inches to go.

One thing that Maxine did do when she was given her sandwich was to open it up and check that Carrie hadn't placed anything unwanted inside. From what she could see there was nothing that looked unusual and because of this she cautiously took a bite. From what she tasted, everything was fine. But it didn't mean that she had to stop being vigilant, whenever Carrie was involved Maxine would always have to keep her guard up.

Charles mostly ate his lunch at the table where he had been working at. For his sandwich he had requested a simple cheese sandwich which he had received. He was eating away while some of the other family members were eating theirs outside. Since it was a warm and sunny day, they wanted to take advantage of the weather.

One solid rule that had been placed on the girls was that they were not allowed to change size while they ate. This was because it took so much food to feed them that eating at any enlarged size would be a waste of food. Because of this they would ensure that their sizes were kept to a minimum at all times.

Like before an unexpected arrival came to the table that Charles had been working at. His first thought was that Carrie had returned in order to cause some trouble but much to his surprise he discovered that it was Sir Tucker. This made him nervous as he was remembering that he had to treat this man with the greatest respect. If he didn't, he feared that Maxine would show up and strike him again, although she had apologised before it didn't mean that she wouldn't do it again.

Sir Tucker sat down on a chair that was opposite to where Charles was sitting. Like Jessica he was a man approaching his forties and his black hair was beginning to show a minute amount of grey. It was somewhat hard to believe that Maxine looked up to him so much when he looked to be just a normal person.

"Hello there Charles," said Sir Tucker. "We really haven't had the time to sit down and have a chat, have we?"

"N-No Sir Tucker," replied Charles. He stopped and quickly looked around. He could see no sign of Maxine so he didn't know whether what he had said was right or not. "What would you like to talk about?"

"Well mostly about my daughter of course, would you mind enlightening me on how you two first met?"

For the next couple of minutes Charles explained to Sir Tucker the circumstances of how he met Maxine. This seemed to impress the knight and Charles also mentioned some of the events that they had been through together. He didn't mention every detail but enough to give him a picture of what had been happening.

"So rather than getting her armour repaired while we were there, she decided to have it done here as well," said Charles as he finished what he was saying.

"I can understand why," replied Sir Tucker. "I love my daughter dearly but sometimes I have to admit that she can be quite stubborn. And you say that it was damaged due to a cannonball?"

"Yes, although I wasn't there to witness it myself. From what I was told the cannonball wasn't all that large but it was still enough to damage her armour and even cause her some damage. While she was recovering, I had to tend to her, she was thankful of course but I feared what could have happened. If the cannonball had struck her in the head she would have surely perished."

"But thankfully she didn't." During Charles's explanation he had told Sir Tucker about the Mayor's Daughter and how she had been kidnapped by the group of bandits. He was more than impressed that his daughter had been able to rescue the poor girl and return her to her father. "And what about you, what do you plan on doing?"

"Not much really, for the time being my only goal is to serve Ms Maxine until my debt has been paid. After that I'm not entirely sure what will happen, either I remain by her side or we go our separate ways."

"I see, may I give you a small piece of advice."

"If you want to sir." He remembered this little curtesy not only because of the fact that Sir Tucker was a knight but also his host.

"I'd advise you to stay with her, not entirely for your benefit but for hers as well. If I know anything about my daughter, she is a woman filled with a lot of pride. Unfortunately, that pride can get one into trouble from time to time. I can't be there to make sure that she doesn't make any mistakes but you can. You're an intelligent man, it's plain for me to see. I need you to be the voice of reason to Maxine when she begins to allow her pride to cloud her judgement. Is that something that you can do?"

"Well..." He thought for a moment and he imagined a very angry Maxine standing over him. This did make him fearful of what would happen if he tried to tell her something otherwise. But with Sir Tucker sitting there and showed genuine concern for his daughter he couldn't say no to him. "I will do as you ask sir."

"Good, with you watching her back I won't have to worry about Maxine getting over her head."

They talked for a few more minutes, the conversation eventually moved onto the paperwork that Charles had been going through. He was pointing out where the family was overspending their money and by implementing a few things they could save up to a quarter. This was something that Sir Tucker wasn't expecting as he thought that his expenses were high due to his very large family. The fact that they could save so much money also helped them out considerably.

Meanwhile outside, Maxine was keeping her promise with Jaime. Since she had finished milking the cow and a couple of other jobs, she had found time to play with him. This mainly involved him riding on her shoulders, thanks to the size difference between the two she could hardly feel the weight of her brother. He also seemed to be enjoying being so high up, he still held onto his sister and would chuckle every now and again.

At one point she even took him to an apple tree where he could pick an apple from it. He had been lifted high enough to grab it but Maxine made sure that he didn't try and eat it. The apple was likely to not be safe to eat at that moment in time. But he did throw it down to the ground, he was hoping that it would grow into another tree.

"Maxine are you staying now?" asked Jaime as he hoped that his eldest sister wouldn't be going anywhere. While she had been gone, he had missed her and he felt very happy seeing her again.

"Unfortunately, no," replied Maxine. She looked up at Jaime who was still on her shoulders. "As soon as Uncle Mike as finished with my armour I need to leave."

"But I don't want you to go." He hugged her head and lay his own head on top of it. "I want you to stay here."

"I can't sweet Jaime." She took him off her shoulders and then placed him down onto the ground. She then squatted down to him so that she didn't seem so tall. "You know how daddy was able to have his adventures?" Jaime nodded but for the moment didn't say a word. "Well I'm having my own adventures, when I'm done, I can come back here and tell you all about them. Like when I fought a dragon and recused a princess from a tower, you'd like to hear them, wouldn't you?"

"Y-Yeah." The thought of his sister leaving again did make him sad but he did like the idea of her slaying dragons and carrying princesses away from towers.

"And when I come back, I'll tell you all about them."

"Yay, I can't wait for that."

He chuckled for a moment and they saw someone approaching them. As Maxine turned her head to look at the person, she could see that it was Alison who until recently had been the youngest girl in the Martel household. Now thanks to baby Rina she had lost this title but she seemed glad to see them there. Jaime also seemed to be excited to see his sister as well but for the moment Maxine wasn't sure what was happening.

"Maxine," said Alison. She seemed to be a little nervous and she watched as her sister stood up to her full height. "There's something that I need your help with."

"And what would that be?" replied Maxine. She was curious as normally if it was something physical that Alison would have just gone to one of other sisters. In fact, Alison would likely be able to deal with the situation herself as unlike Maxine she could grow in size whenever she wanted.

"Mommy said that I needed to bring Sebastian into the stable but he's stuck in the mud. Can you help me?" Sebastian was one of the horses on the farm and was quite important in some of the tasks.

"Can you not just grow and pull him out yourself?"

"I-I haven't gotten the hang of that yet." She felt a little embarrassed for saying this but she knew that Maxine would understand.

"Fine, where is he?"

Alison led both Maxine and Jaime to the spot where Sebastian was stuck. The house had found a patch of ground that was very muddy and he had gotten himself stuck in it. The creature was struggling to get out but all of his efforts seemed to be for naught as the more he struggled the more he seemed to get stuck. He began to fear that if he didn't get out soon, he would die.

Carefully the nine-foot, muscular woman stepped towards the trapped horse and even stepped into the same mud as well. Thankfully unlike Sebastian she wasn't stuck and at first, she tried to pull him out using the reins that he was wearing. Unfortunately, this was no good as his feet were just too stuck for him to be able to move.

This was when Maxine knew what she needed to do. Carefully she positioned her shoulder underneath the horse and began to lift. Using all of her strength she slowly began to stand up more. She could feel the weight of the horse and it made the task very difficult, her face was beginning to turn red from the effort that her body was going through.

As she continued her effort she began to grunt loudly as she tried to lift Sebastian out. Both Alison and Jaime continued to watch what was happening and with one final grunt she felt the horse's hooves pull upwards from the mud.

It was a sight to behold seeing Maxine lifting a fully-grown horse out of the mud. The body of Sebastian was on her shoulder and she took several deep breaths as she felt that she had demonstrated her brute strength. Her injured chest didn't help with matters but in her mind, nothing would take away this moment.

Before Maxine could decide what to do with Sebastian, she saw herself get engulfed by a huge shadow. Then a giant hand came down and effortlessly picked up the horse from Maxine's grip. She looked up and could see the gigantic figure of Carrie who made what for Maxine was a very difficult task look incredibly easy.

The towering giantess chuckled down at what to her was the very small but muscular woman as she lifted Sebastian up into the air. To her it had been a very simple task while to her older sister it had taken a great amount of effort. That fact wasn't lost on either woman as Maxine glared up at her sister.

The younger sister looked to be at least a hundred feet tall, even though she was squatting down. This made her gigantic but she was also not at her limit as she could make herself even taller if she wished.

"You know Maxine you could have just grown and picked Sebastian up like this," said Carrie who knew full well that this was something that her older sister was incapable of doing. "It would have been so much easier."

"Do not mock me in my moment of triumph," replied Maxine with an annoyed tone. Their two younger siblings watched on. Jaime didn't really remember what their arguments were like but Alison did. That was why she stayed close to her little brother, to ensure she could move him away if things got a little hairy. "There was no need for you to do that, I had completed the task by myself."

"And what a great job you did. Even from my vantage point I can see how red your face is, it's the same colour as your hair."

Since Maxine was the only one of the Martel children to have red hair Carrie had suggested on more than one occasion that she was not actually a Martel. Having a red-haired child was something not too far out of the ordinary as Jessica had a deceased aunt who also had red hair so this gene was in the Snape genome. It didn't stop Carrie claiming that Sir Tucker was not Maxine's biological father, this was something that even her parents were annoyed by. But it was more to mock her than anything else.

"Why didn't you just grow and pick him up?" asked Carrie. She could see Maxine getting more annoyed with each passing moment. "Oh wait, you can't do that can you? I forget these things sometimes."

"You haven't forgotten," replied Maxine who pointed her finger up at her giant sister and gave her a very angry look. "You're just reminding me in order to mock me. I swear that you'll regret every word that you just muttered and for taking away my sense of triumph." Her body was filled with a lot of anger but no means of channelling it.

"I highly doubt that, you might be big." She then lowered her hand and flicked Maxine so hard that it made the muscular woman fall back into the mud. A normal man would have been sent flying. "But to me you're nothing more than a mouse."

Carrie began to laugh as she stood up and walked away. Maxine found herself in the mud but unlike Sebastian was able to get herself up and out of it. But by now she was covered in mud and extremely angry about what had happened. She also felt great shame for what had happened, when she was on her journey, she would be the largest person in any given area. Here she was smaller and weaker than she would have liked.

Slowly she began to stand up and she could still see Alison and Jaime standing there. They were just watching what had happened, they had not tried to get in-between their oldest sisters but they could see that Maxine was very upset. They watched as she turned around and began to walk away.

Rather than walking back towards house she instead walked away from the farm completely. She didn't mutter a single word and instead just kept walking, Jaime called out to her but she simply ignored him. Her body was completely filled with both rage and shame over what had happened. The fact that she didn't try to clean herself up after being knocked into the mud only showed her thought process.

Inside Charles had no idea what was going on and instead he was still showing Sir Tucker some of the ways that he was going to save money for the entire family. The knight seemed to be intrigued with everything that was being said as he knew that saving any kind of money in this household would be a big help. His family could eat enough to feed a small village so saving money was always a good thing.

"And if you look here if you can save yourself a small fortune simply by switching from regular to economy," said Charles as he began pointing to a few things written down on a piece of paper.

"I see," replied Sir Tucker. "But doesn't that mean that it won't last as long?"

"Yes, but for the money that you're spending it is worth it. It lasts roughly fifty percent longer but costs you twice as much. Over a long period of time you are paying more than you should."

"That does make sense." Before they could continue on with their talk, they noticed both Alison and Jaime entering the room. This was something that they didn't expect, he could see the look on Alison's face and he soon realised that something had happened. "What's going on?"

"Daddy," replied Alison. She had Jaime with him but he didn't say anything as he let his sister do all the talking. "Maxine got really upset and she stormed off."

"Upset? What was she upset about?" Like Jaime for the time being Charles wasn't going to say anything but he was very interested. Anything to do with Maxine would be a concern for him.

"She had another argument with Carrie and was knocked over into the mud. After that she just walked off without saying a word. Daddy, I'm worried about her."

"Not this again." He gave a sigh as this was something that he had dealt with too many times for him to remember. "It's always something between them pair." He then looked over at Charles who had been sitting there and listening. "I need to discuss something with my wife for a moment, would you kindly go and bring my daughter back here please?" His voice was calmer than Charles had expected.

"B-But I don't know where she's gone sir," replied Charles.

"There's a tavern called the Spindler's Wheel, she'll likely be in there drinking again. I need you to bring her back here, there's something that we need to sort out here. Would you be able to do that?"

"I-I guess I can." He was surprised that Sir Tucker wasn't going to the tavern himself or sent another member of the Martel family. In his mind there were others who were probably more suited for the task.

"Good, thank you for everything that you've done but this is something of great importance. You'll find the tavern just west of here, follow the path towards Flea Bay and you'll find it without a problem."

For the moment Charles said nothing as he knew that this was a serious situation. He remembered when Maxine had been insulted by Laurence Brees. Since she had not been able to correct his arrogance due to his status, she had drunk heavily to nurse her pride. A similar situation was taking place in his mind and this meant that she was likely drinking heavily once again.

Charles did not leave the house immediately. He still picked up a couple of things, this included some of his hard-earned gold as he suspected that Maxine didn't take any with her when she stormed off. He made sure to take a fair amount as the tab for her would most likely be very high. It went hand in hand simply due to the fact that the wannabe knight was such a large woman.

However, before he could walk out of the door to leave, he was approached by Adam. He still had a couple of bruises from his sparring match with his sister but he too wanted to go along with Charles. At first, he didn't think that it was a very good and he was willing to bring him, that was until Jessica caught wind and immediately forbade her eldest son going. Even though he was only a few years away from becoming a man she still didn't want him putting himself into unnecessary danger.

With that out of the way Charles began his walk towards the tavern. He wasn't sure what was going to happen when he arrived but he knew that he would have to be careful with his words. When Maxine was in such a mood, she was likely to vent her anger and frustration onto him. He would just have to remain calm and deal with her the best that he could. Or else he might end up losing everything.

As he had been informed, Charles walked along the path that led away from Morgan and towards Flea Bay that was still some distance away. He was glad that he was only going to walk a fraction of the distance to that coastal town as he only needed to get to the tavern that was close by.
Along the way he couldn't help but think, from what he had been told Maxine was not in the happiest of states. Because of this he would have to be very careful with what he did or said. The wrong word might lead him to losing a few teeth although he didn't think that she would do such a thing to him. But in her angered state it was likely that she wasn't going to be thinking straight.

Before long Charles began to approach a building that stood besides the path. It was just a single building, sitting by itself but it looked a little too large to be someone's home. As he stepped closer, he looked at it and he could see the words 'The Spinster's Wheel' placed above the door. It was the name of the tavern that he had been looking for and wasting no time he entered the building.

When he walked inside, he could see that the tavern itself looked similar to the one that he had worked at. This brought back some less than pleasant memories for him but right now that wasn't important. He could see many patrons sitting at tables and drinking. Most were having a laugh with one another while they enjoyed their ale.

For a moment it was difficult for Charles to notice Maxine which he thought was odd. He didn't think it would be difficult to pick out a woman who was nine feet tall. That was until he looked close to the bar where the tavern keeper was standing. Sitting at the bar was a familiar looking tall and muscular woman with long red hair. Not only that but she was drinking from a small barrel of ale.

It seemed like Maxine hadn't noticed him at first but as he walked toward her. One thing that he did notice was that she was lacking her sword, it seemed that in her frustration she had simply forgot to bring it along with her. To her it didn't matter as she was continuing to down the ale that she had gotten.

In a way she was a little jealous of the other patrons, it took significantly less ale for them to feel the effects. For her she would need to down enough to kill a man, just to feel the slightest bit tipsy. That was one disadvantage to her large size and body's metabolism, something that she just had to deal with.

One thing that Charles did notice was that Maxine was still muddy. She had not bothered to clean herself up before she had come here and, in a way, it showed him how annoyed she was. He knew that if she had been in a calm state of mind that she would have cleaned herself up, the fact that she hadn't only added more worry to his mind

"M-Ms Maxine," said Charles as he finally approached her. He stood next to her rather than sitting down and he watched as her eyes looked at him. He could see the frustration behind them and it made him almost back away.

"Why are you here Charles?" replied Maxine. Her voice was unusually calm and he didn't know if he should be glad or afraid of this. He also watched as she placed the barrel to her lips and knocked it back in order to drink more of it. She still needed both of her hands to lift it but even for her it was large.

"Your father sent for me, he is worried about you ma'am."

"His worry is misplaced, I'm fine." She placed the barrel down and looked over to the tavern keeper. "Another!"

"With all due respect ma'am but you're not." This brought her attention fully back onto him and she looked very angry. He thought about stepping back but he thought that he had to do what needed to be done.

"You dare talk back to me like that! I should have your tongue for such a thing!" He was glad that he had her attention but he thought that he might have made a mistake. Despite this he knew that backing away wasn't going to help.

"I'm just saying that you can't just drink your problems away with ale. You need to confront your problems and work through them ma'am. Isn't that something that a knight would do?" This seemed to get her blood boiled a little as she glared at him, she could see that he was trying to use her wants and dreams to make her think like he was.

"I don't have any problems." She said this more in the lines of that she didn't want to talk about it, rather denying it to herself.

"That isn't true." He took a step closer to her but he made sure not to do anything that might cause her to strike him. "You have a problem with your sister, you've even admitted it yourself. You can stay here and drink all of the ale that you want but it won't solve anything."

"I will do as I please. Remember your place, you are my squire and are required to do anything and everything that I tell you to do without question. Right now, I'm not going to ask you, I'm telling you to go back to the farmhouse and await my return. Now go before I decide to force you."

"No ma'am." He almost couldn't believe that he had said this himself. Almost instantly he thought that he had made a mistake as he watched Maxine stand up from her seat and tower above him. All of her rage and frustration seemed to be focused on him and she looked as though she was going to kill him.

"You dare defy my orders!" Her voice was so loud that everyone in the tavern could hear her. This caused everyone who had been enjoying their drinks to suddenly fall silent and their attention turned to the nine-foot woman. "I should knock every tooth out of your mouth for such defiance!"

"Please ma'am, calm down." He put his hands up a little to try and calm her down but he realised that this was probably one of the worst things he could have done.

"You do not tell me what to do!" Her hand raised up as if she was going to strike him. This time it didn't look like a slap around the head but something that would cause a lot of damage.

"Ma'am, you can strike me if you want but it won't change anything." The fact that he wasn't backing down did surprise Maxine. "If it'll make you feel better than do what you need to do. I won't resist."

Charles stood there as he expected Maxine to strike him, in his mind a few lost teeth and a broken bone or two would be what he expected. He even closed his eyes as he didn't want to see the blow coming. Next, he heard a loud slamming sound but he was surprised to feel no pain whatsoever. This caused him to begin to open his eyes and he could see that she had struck her fist into the bar where her barrel of ale was located. The wood had cracked around where her fist had impacted the bar and he could see the frustration in her face.

Not only that but as she lifted her fist from the bar, they could both see blood dripping from it. This caused everyone in the tavern to become shocked and a few of the patrons even began to make their way outside. They saw the damage that she had been able to do and they didn't want to get on the wrong end of her punch.

Maxine lifted her injured hand in front of her face and looked at it. She seemed to be annoyed by what had happened and she looked down at Charles. Despite what she had done he hadn't backed away from her. She wanted to believe that what he had said to her was nothing but lies and misconceptions. However deep down he knew that everything that he said was true. She was just too proud to admit it herself and wanted to believe that nothing could truly bother her.

"Do you need medical attention Ms Maxine?" asked Charles who was quite concerned about her. From the look of her hand it looked as though she had only cut it but he knew that there was a good chance of it being a serious injury.

"I'm fine," replied Maxine. Her voice was quieter than it was before but there was still a lot of anger behind it. "Just order me another drink and we'll talk."

"Yes ma'am." This was a big step forward for him. It meant that Maxine wanted to talk about her problems. This was the most he could have hoped for and meant that his words had gotten through to her.

The Tavern Keeper was not too far away. He wasn't too happy with the damage that had been done to his bar but he was not prepared to argue over it with the giant woman. Instead he picked up another small barrel of ale and brought it over to her. Charles was sure to pay the money that was needed. In his mind everything was going well, one thing he hadn't fully noticed was that there weren't many people left inside. Most had gone to a safe distance when they could see her rage peaking.

As Maxine drank the barrel of ale she seemed to be calming down. This was always a good thing in Charles's mind it was much easier to talk to someone who was calm than if they were enraged. He could still see the anger in her eyes but at least he was making a small amount of progress.

"Maxine Martel!" said a loud and angry voice. This seemed to catch the attention of both of them and as they looked toward the entrance of the tavern, they could see three men standing there.

Each of the men were larger than Charles and wore light armour. Each had a sword in their possession, one thing that was odd about them was that the men looked similar to one another. Each had the same black hair and brown eyes, the largest of the men was over six feet tall and had a fairly large frame.

Their sudden appearance caused any other patrons to make a fairly hasty escape while even the Tavern Keeper decided to duck down behind the bar. All he could do was hope that this confrontation wouldn't cause too much damage to his establishment. He was still paying off for what happened the last time his tavern was the centre of a brawl.

"Don't say anything and keep your head down," said Maxine quietly to Charles. This was one of the times that he wasn't going to argue as he knew that he would only get in the way if he tried to help her.

"Fancy you coming back to a place like this," stated the armoured Man in the middle. Maxine knew exactly who he was. His name was Kenneth Strong and standing beside him were his two younger brothers Roger and Edward. "I was beginning to think that we wouldn't have the chance to catch up with you again."

"I'm not in the mood to deal with you." Her focus was squarely on the three brothers. All three of them were at least ten years older than her but she was far larger. "Just say what you want and leave me alone."

"The problem is with that is that last time we met you broke Edward's hand and he didn't particularly like that." He pointed his thumb to the largest of his brothers who only grumbled and didn't say a word. "Even though that was a year ago he's still pretty sore about the whole event."

"He mocked my father, he's lucky that I didn't break his spine." She took a drink from her barrel. Not only did she do this to quench her thirst but to also keep an eye on where Charles was. Like she had told him he was ducking behind the bar where he was currently keeping his head down. If he remained there then she wouldn't have to worry about protecting him in things went downhill.

"Even so it wouldn't be proper if we let something like that just slide by. We Strong Brothers have a reputation to keep."

"You'd need a reputation first to be able to keep."

"Ha, very funny but let's cut the shit, shall we?" All three of the brothers drew out their swords and pointed them at the very large woman. "We're here to fuck up your day, clean and simple."

"My day is already fucked." She began to step towards the three brothers. Much to their surprise Maxine showed no fear toward them, even though she was unarmed. "Putting the three of you in your place will make me feel a lot better."

Edward was the first to try his luck as he stormed toward Maxine with his blade in his hand and the intention of harming her however, he could. This didn't get very far as he felt a very large foot come into contact with chest and it sent him tumbling back. Not only had her kick stopped his attack but also severely winded him. It would take a good minute or so before he could even consider continuing the fight.

Seeing their brother go down fairly easily caused them to dart towards her quickly. They knew that attacking her one at a time was pointless. A co-ordinated attack was the only way that they had a chance of taking this giant woman down. They knew all about her family and how her sisters could grow in size. But they also knew about Maxine's pride, she wouldn't go to them for help as she would be steadfast on dealing with something like this herself.

Kenneth and Roger both swung their swords at Maxine at the same time. One swung high and the other swung low as they hoped to at least strike her but she simply jumped back in order to dodge the attack. This continued on as the two brothers tried to strike her with their sword but she continually dodged them. A few strikes came close but none of them actually struck her body.

Normally thanks to her heavy armour Maxine would be forced to block more times than dodging. Her armour would weigh her down and make it more difficult to move, the fact that she wasn't wearing it now made her much lighter on her feet. She was moving much faster than one would expect for her size.

However, Edward did recover from the previous attack and he too joined his brothers. This made things more difficult for Maxine as she knew that the numbers were against her. If she didn't end this quickly, she could begin to tire and run into trouble. She couldn't afford an injury and so she wanted to end this encounter quickly.

An opening presented itself as Roger stepped too close to Maxine. Before he knew it, he felt her large hand around his neck and he was effortlessly lifted off the ground. The next thing he knew he was sent flying into Edward like a cannonball. Neither brother could move out of the way of the other as they slammed into each other hard. It was enough to knock them both out and completely take them out of the fight.

Kenneth was the only one of the Strong Brothers left. He knew that he was in trouble and the thought of fleeing did overtake him. But before he could turn and run, he felt a strong punch to the face take him down to the ground. To him it felt like he had been struck by a battering ram as he watched Maxine squat down to him.

Soon Kenneth felt another punch to the face, then another, then another, then another. Punches were raining down on him and even when he fell unconscious the punches didn't stop. Despite the fact that Maxine and won the encounter she still didn't end the attack; her frustration was being focused on him and in her mind punching him was the same as punching Carrie.

The attack only stopped when she felt something grab onto her wrist as she was about to punch again. She turned her head and could see Charles who had ventured out of his safe place. He had a look of concern on his face as he saw the raw anger that was radiating from her body.

"Ms Maxine," said Charles in a respectful tone. "Please, no more."

Maxine looked at the face of Kenneth and she could see that it was a complete mess. It was heavily bruised and was even beginning to swell. His nose was broken and he had several teeth missing. There was a wheezing sound coming from him as he was struggling to breathe and it seemed that he would never fully recover from his injuries.

As she thought about what had happened, she couldn't help but feel ashamed. She had allowed her pride and anger get the better of her and it resulted in this current event. One thing that she could take some comfort in was the fact that taking on the Strong Brothers had allowed her to vent some of her frustration. But in the end in changed nothing and if anything, the brothers now had more reason to hate her.

Fairy quickly Maxine stood up to her full height and Charles let go of her arm. He didn't know what she was going to do and he could only wait and see. If anything came his way, he wasn't sure if he would be able to protect himself. But something inside him told him that he wouldn't have to worry about this.

"Pay the Tavern Keeper for my drinks and any damage," said Maxine who had noticed the gold that was being carried by her squire. "We're done here." Her voice was surprisingly calm after everything that had happened.

"Yes ma'am," replied Charles who just wanted to get out of there before anyone else showed up who wanted to harm her.

Within a couple of minutes both Maxine and Charles began to make their way back towards the farmhouse. There was nothing but silence as they walked, on more than one occasion he wanted to ask her something but he kept his mouth shut instead. He could only imagine what was going through her mind.

For Maxine with everything that had just happened there was only one emotion that she was truly experiencing. That was shame, she felt that she had done things that a knight would never do. It was experiences like this that made her believe that she wasn't ready to be declared a knight yet. Her problem was that she didn't know whether she would be able to work her way passed her shortcomings. If she couldn't then she didn't believe that she deserved such a title.

"Thank you, Charles," said Maxine who had stated this more or less out of the blue. This caught her squire by surprise who quickly looked up at her. His neck had gotten a strain at first with looking up at her. Now he was more used to it and it didn't bother him like it had before.

"For what ma'am," replied Charles who was somewhat confused.

"For making me see sense, if you hadn't of been there, I'd either still be drinking myself silly or killing that bastard. I tried to intimidate you and that is something that I shouldn't have done. You are my squire and I should be one of the last people you should fear and for that I'm sorry."

"It's alright ma'am, you had a lot on your mind. I just wanted just carrying out your father's wishes. Besides, I can never truly be afraid of you since we're friends."

"What?" This caught her by surprise as she didn't expect him to say that. "You think of me as a friend?"

"Of course, we travel together, dine together, sleep together. We've been through a lot on our travels and I've helped you just as much as you've helped me. If that's not what a friend is then I don't know what is."

Maxine looked at him for a moment and he could see him smiling up at her. She wasn't sure exactly what to do but she was surprised to hear him consider her as a friend. In her life she hadn't had too many friends, even when it came to Gregory, they had more of a working relationship rather than a true friendship.

She couldn't help but feel a little touched by what Charles had said. He might still be in her debt but it was like it didn't entirely matter anymore. But all these thoughts were dashed when she saw that they were approaching the farmhouse. The memories of what happened a short while ago were still there. A small amount of fear was felt within her body but she carried on walking anyway.

It was also beginning to get late as evening approached and both of them knew that it would be dark shortly. Despite Maxine's great size it was always best to not be on the roads during the night. There were many undesirables out at that time and it was best to avoid them if they could.

Eventually the pair were just outside of the farm. Maxine could feel her heart beating inside of her chest. She refused to be afraid of her sister but she knew that something needed to be done as soon as she went inside. Since her father was the one who had asked Charles to retrieve her from the tavern it meant that he was doing something more important. She felt that she was going to find out once she ventured inside.

Charles could pick up that there was something not quite right with Maxine as they approached the door. He looked up to her and he could sense the slightest hint of fear from her. If she was afraid, he thought that it would be something that he would have to worry about.

"Is everything alright ma'am?" asked Charles. He watched as she opened the door and gave a large sigh. The door itself was relatively small in comparison to her but she looked through it and ducked down to get inside.

"Let's get this over with," stated Maxine as she prepared for whatever happened next.

As Maxine stepped into the farmhouse, she heard nothing but silence. Normally she could hear the sound of one of her siblings but this time there was nothing. Charles entered closely behind her but, in this situation, he didn't really know what to do. But one thing he was sure of was that something would likely go down.

"Maxine," said the voice of Sir Tucker. His voice was loud enough for her to hear and it caused her to stop dead in her tracks. "In here please."

"Charles this is a family matter," stated Maxine to her squire.

"I understand ma'am," replied Charles. "I'll be in your room when you need me." He began to move away from her as she gave a sigh.

In front of Maxine was another closed door. Her father's voice had come from behind this door and she didn't particularly want to face him at that moment in time. Despite her reluctance she knew that it was something that needed to be done. All she could do was sigh again and enter the room.

Inside she could see a large table and she could see both her father and mother sitting at it. They were sitting together and sitting on a chair at the opposite end of the table was Carrie who was back down to her regular but still very tall height. Maxine was none too pleased to see her and worse still was that there was an empty chair next to her. She knew that this chair was meant for herself and she didn't particular want to sit next to Carrie.

All eyes were on her for the time being and she pulled out the chair but rather than sitting down immediately she moved it further away from Carrie before sitting down on it. Like a lot of the furniture in this house it was scaled up to be more comfortable for her. But with her now seated her parents felt that they could begin.

"Ok this has gone on long enough," said Sir Tucker in a stern voice. He couldn't help but be annoyed about the situation. "I had expected you to both behave like adults and yet you act like children. We're putting an end to it here and now."

"I am acting like an adult," replied Maxine. She pointed towards Carrie who sat there with confidence. "She's the one who has been causing all the trouble! It should be her who you get mad with, not me."

"We'll be the judge of that!" Despite his age and the fact that he was a lot smaller than the other women in the room he still commanded respect. "I thought that your time away Maxine would cool things down but that was obviously not the case."

"I don't know why you have to be like this towards each other," stated Jessica who seemed to be more upset than anything to see her eldest two daughters not getting along. "Can't you just get along."

"Not while she's here," said Carrie. She pointed at Maxine just like her sister had done to her a few moments before. "She's always walks around as if she owns the place and she's a bitch as well!"

"I'm a bitch?" asked Maxine in an angry tone. She was beginning to see red and if not for her parents being there, she would have struck Carrie. "You're the one whose been a bitch to me every since I came back! Being around you reminds me of why I was so eager to get away from this place. Besides, you're the one who's trying to be a slut!"

"Better a slut than an ugly beast like you."

Maxine was on the verge of grabbing her chair and striking Carrie with it. Her patience and tolerance of her was at its peak.

"ENOUGH!" shouted Sir Tucker which quickly caught the attention of both of the warring sisters. It even startled Jessica who didn't expect him to shout in this manner. She wouldn't be surprised if everyone in the house could hear.

One thing that they didn't know was that most of the children were in the next room and listening in. They were staying as quiet as they could so that their parents couldn't hear them. The silence was broken however when the sound of a baby crying could be heard. Sir Tucker's shout had woken up baby Rina.

This had not gone unnoticed by Jessica who with a small amount of disappointment got up from her seat and left the room. She didn't say anything to her eldest daughters as she felt some shame towards how they were acting. And there was also the fact that she had to deal with their youngest sister.

This just left Sir Tucker in the room with the two sisters, even though he was much smaller than them he was the most intimidating person in the room right now. He had enough of this bickering and he was beginning to think that this discussion was going nowhere. An idea did pop into his mind, at first, he thought that it wasn't the most intelligent of plans. However, he began to consider that it might just work.

"There's only one way that we can settle this," said Sir Tucker as he looked at them both. His voice was quieter than it had been before, it still had the same anger behind it like it had just a few moments ago. "Tomorrow you'll be chained together until I'm convinced that you've put your differences behind you."

"Father, that's absurd!" replied Maxine in shock as she couldn't believe what she was hearing. "I need to go and continue with my work."

"And I can't be chained to her," added Carrie who chipped in with her own protests. Although all this did was make Sir Tucker shake his head.

"You will be until you learn to get along," stated their father. "I don't care how long it takes and don't try to break your way out of them. The consequences for such actions will make it undesirable."

"B-But."

"No buts, now leave this room and enjoy your last night of separation. Until both your mother and I are convinced that you've put this petty rivalry behind you, you'll be spending a lot more time together. Now go."

The two sisters couldn't say anything and all they could do was get up and walk out of the room. Neither said a word to the other and they couldn't believe what was happening. If they were any other man they would have protested much more. Flat out refusing would have been an obvious option, but he wasn't any simple man. Sir Tucker was their father and they needed to obey his every word no matter how much they might disagree with it.

Maxine imagined the humiliation she was going to experience with being chained to Carrie. It was going to be something that she was unlikely to live down if anyone saw her. It also meant that her quest to become a knight would-be put-on hold as she knew that she wouldn't be able to get her armour on with the chain.

Rather than speaking to each other Maxine and Carrie just moved to their own rooms. Charles was waiting for Maxine when she entered her room. He was just going over a few things in his book and like the others he had heard Sir Tucker's shout a few minutes earlier. He guessed that things had not gone well and he didn't bother asking. The last thing he wanted was to be the focus of her frustration. Instead he gave her a moment to herself as she sat down on her bed and just sighed.

"Ms Maxine," said Charles after a few minutes. His voice was cautious as he was ready suspend the conversation if need be.

"What is it Charles," replied Maxine. Her voice was more disappointed than anything else.

"I was just thinking, after your armour is repaired and returned that we could make our way back out east. There are still more opportunities out there, plus I hear that there is a tournament taking place soon. Maybe it can be a way to show off your skills and maybe even earn your knighthood."

"That unfortunately something that we'll have to put on hold." She gave a sigh of disappointment as she continued to speak. "My father has demanded that Carrie and I be chained to each other until we can put our differences aside." This caused Charles to chuckle which in turn made her glare at him. "Did I say something funny?"

"Yeah, you're joking aren't you ma'am?" He could see the stern look on her face and it was beginning to dawn on him that she was being serious.

"Let me ask you one question, in all the time that you've known me have you ever heard me tell a joke?"

"N-No ma'am." He began to feel a little foolish for chuckling when he did and he fully realised that she was telling the truth. "But why would your father demand such a thing? It doesn't sound all that reasonable to me."

"It is my father's wishes and even if I don't agree with it, I have to respect them." There was disappointment in her voice as she didn't want to go through with what Sir Tucker had commanded of her. Only her respect for him prevented her from simply ignoring them all together.

"And how long will you be chained together?"

"He says until Carrie and I learn to get along. If the past decade and a half has shown me anything we're going to be chained up for a long time."

"What about your desire to be knighted?"

"On hold until I've gotten through this. After that I'm free to go and do whatever I want within reason."

"But what about me? Will you still require my services if you're chained to your sister?" If he was released, he didn't know what he would do. Maxine was the only true protection he had while travelling and he also didn't know where to go.

"For now, you will remain by my side, but if Carrie and I are chained up together for too long I might have to release you from your services. If that were to happen then your necklace and locket will be returned to you."

Charles was completely speechless about what he was being told. The idea of Maxine being chained to Carrie was absurd to say the least. But the fact that it was going to happen seemed even more absurd to him. There was even a small part of him that thought that it was a little funny as well.

The size difference between Maxine and her father Sir Tucker was huge. Not only was she at least three feet taller than him but she was also much more muscular than he was. If she wanted to, she could more than easily snap him in half. Despite this she obeyed his every word and didn't consider raising a hand against him. This showed the respect that Maxine had for her father.

The next morning was a misty one with a slight breeze and chill in the air. The entire Martel family were outside of the house along with Charles. All eyes were on Sir Tucker as he stepped towards his eldest two daughters. He only had to command them once to lower their arms to him.

Without a single word being muttered Sir Tucker placed a large cuff around Carrie's left wrist. He soon locked it into place and soon after he placed the corresponding metal cuff onto Maxine's right wrist. Connecting the two cuffs was a seven-foot-long chain which would seem long for a normal person but to these two giant women was quite short. One annoying thing for Maxine was the fact that the cuff had been attached to her sword hand, this prevented her from trying to cut the chain off at some point in the future.

The cuffs and chain had been made by Sir Tucker's brothers at the family forge. Because of this they were specially made for the size of the giant women and they were also extra strong as well. This was simply so that they couldn't break their way out. It also prevented Carrie from simply growing her way out of her cuff as her wrist was far too tightened before she was large enough to break free.

Alison did chuckle a little about what was happening but a quick glare from Maxine ensured her silence. Charles in turn could only look on as she could see her chained to her sister, he didn't think that he would be able wrap his head around it. The situation sounded like something from a fairy tale rather than real life.

"It's done," said Sir Tucker as he took a step back from them both. He placed the key to the cuffs in his pocket. "You two will be spending a lot more time together. Hopefully this will make you learn to get along."

"This is still ridiculous," replied Carrie. She was about to cross her arms but felt some resistance as Maxine slightly pulled on the chain. "You can't keep us like this forever." Although she was annoyed, she made sure not to speak too harshly towards her father, like Maxine she had some respect for him.

"And I don't intend to, now after you've put your differences aside, you'll both be as free as a bird. Until then, well we'll have to see what happens."

"What do we do now?" asked Maxine who looked at the cuff on her wrist. To her it was an eyesore.

"Whatever you want, I'm going to clean around the house a little now. Maybe you should decide amongst yourselves."

With that Sir Tucker walked away from the two tall women. Despite what was happening he didn't back down from the decision that he had made. Even Jessica had tried to talk him out of it but he had put his foot down on the matter and she respected his decision. She also couldn't help but find his decisiveness to be somewhat sexy. It probably would have led to other things if baby Rina wasn't taking up all of her time.

Each one of the family members also walked away as most had something else that they needed to do. This included working around the farm or for some of the younger members, even playing. Only Charles remained where he was as he saw the sisters looking at the chain for a moment before they looked at each other. There was a lot of tension between them and he took a few steps towards them.

"You know this is all your fault," said Carrie as she glared at Maxine. In her mind she was the reason that this had happened and that there was no one else to blame.

"Of course, I am, because I'm the one who humiliated myself at every possible moment," replied Maxine with a sarcastic tone. "And I'm also the one who pushed myself into the mud. Grow up Carrie."

"I can grow more than you! In fact, we all can grow more than you can, even Rina can." This caused tensions to increase between the two as their glares continued. Maxine knew that not everything that Carrie said was true but was just another opportunity to try and wound her pride.

"Ma'ams please," said Charles as he stepped in-between them. Due to the height of the two women it almost looked like a child trying to get in-between a fight amongst adults. Even he knew that both of them could throw him to one side without much effort. "Attitudes like that won't get you free anytime soon."

"Keep your squire on a leash Maxine."

"You do not tell me what to do with my squire!" added Maxine with rage in her voice. The situation was beginning to boil over.

Charles could only take a step back as he could do nothing more than watch the two sisters arguing amongst themselves for an hour. He thought that it was best for them to get it all out of their systems.

The fact that neither had struck the other was nothing short of a miracle at that moment in time. But the heated argument carried on for another half an hour as neither of the sisters backed down. In their mind it would be a sign of weakness to the other if they were to do such a thing.

Their faces were only a few inches away from each other but at Carrie's current height she was at a half a foot disadvantage to her sister. If looks could kill both of them would have been massacred several times over. However, it wasn't just Charles who was watching them both.

Through one of the windows Jessica was also watching her two eldest daughters. In her arms she was cradling baby Rina and simply watching what was happening. It saddened her to see that Maxine and Carrie were at each other's throats like this. She had always taught her children to get along with one another. To a certain degree it had worked but with her eldest two it had fallen on deaf ears.

Eventually Sir Tucker approached his wife and he could see what was happening outside. It wasn't the most encouraging thing that he had ever seen but like Jessica he watched them in silence for a good minute or two. He too was disappointed to see both Maxine and Carrie still arguing in this manner. If it kept up then neither of them would be free for a very, very long time.

"Have they been like this since I put the chain on?" asked Sir Tucker. He didn't look up to his wife as he was just staring at his daughters.

"Yes," replied Jessica with disappointment in her voice. "I still don't get how they can be like this."

"I can, no offense to you but you were an only child. Me I had my brothers and sister. There were times when we were at each other's throats like this. This lasted for some years but eventually we grew passed it. Unfortunately, this is something that Maxine and Carrie haven't seemed to have done yet."

"But do you think this chain business was a good idea? There had to be something better than simply chaining them up together."

"If there was, I would have done it. But you have to admit that you want this arguing amongst themselves to stop. This was the best idea I could come up with, both of them are practically adults but they act like children to each other. So, we're going to have to deal with them like they are."

"What if this just makes things worse?"

"I doubt it could get any worse than it already is." Their conversation was interrupted by the moans of baby Rina who seemed to be wanting something. From the smell that both parents could smell they had a good idea what was wrong.

Because of this both of them moved away from the window and went to do what needed to be done. For Jessica seeing her eldest daughters like this was too upsetting for her, at least caring for Rina would take her mind off of things somewhat.

Outside the argument still continued and there seemed to be no end in sight. Charles just remained standing there and although he tried to interject several times, he didn't see an opportunity to do so. Having one angry tall woman focusing on him would be scary enough but two was more than he could handle.

He thought that they would have run out of energy by now but he was clearly wrong as they both still kept arguing. He wasn't sure what was the best thing to do but he simply watched and waited to see how things would turn out. From what he could see he didn't think that it would turn out well.

"Charles," said Maxine which caught her squire by surprise. He looked over to her and he could still see the annoyed expression on her face.

"Y-Yes ma'am," replied Charles who was still surprised by his name had been called out. It was the first that she had spoken to him for the past half an hour.

"Fetch me my sword so I can cut her hand off!"

"You dare do that and I'll crush you like an ant!" answered Carrie as she easily heard her sister's command.

"Please can you just stop," replied Charles. He was beginning to get at his wits end with all of this. He was beginning to see why Sir Tucker had gone with the decision that he had. This got the decision of both Maxine and Carrie. "All this bickering between you two isn't getting you anywhere. You're not going to be free any time soon if you carry on like this."

"It's her fault," answered both of the sisters as they pointed towards one another. This resulted to a glare between them and the shaking of Charles's head.

"As far as I can see it is both of your faults. You only have yourselves to blame for this situation. But if you're willing, I do have an idea for something that might help. Are you willing to give my idea a chance?" Neither of them answered but slowly nodded their head at him. "Great, now just give me a few minutes."

Quickly Charles went back to the house and a few moments later he struggled to get one of the large chairs out. He wasn't alone however as Jane was with him, she too was also carrying another chair and they left it on the ground not too far away from the warring sisters. He thanked Jane for her help and as soon as the chair was placed down, he went over to a nearby tree and picked up what seemed to be a plain stick.

Jane wasn't done though as she went inside of the house again and brought out a normal size chair which to the women of the Martel family was quite small. She placed it not too far away from where the other chairs were but this time it was facing towards the others. In Charles's mind everything was set up for what he needed. He did consider keeping Jane around since things went downhill but he wasn't sure if she could help. Unlike Carrie and few of her other sisters Jane could only make herself taller and not larger. Because of this she was sent back inside so she could help her mother wherever she could.

"Now that we're ready why don't you ladies take a seat," said Charles. He gestured his free hand towards the chairs. There was a small amount of grumbling from the two sisters as they walked towards the chairs and sat down. They were still not talking to one another properly but with them now sitting down Charles sat down on the regular size chair. He was still holding the stick in his hand and he looked up at the two sisters. Despite the fact that they were both sitting down they still looked absolutely enormous in his mind. "Ok, here's something I want to try." He then lifted up the stick slightly so that they could see it better. "This is what I call a talking stick, out of you two whoever holds the stick can talk while the other has to remain silent. That way one can say whatever they need to say without the other butting in."

"What is the point of this?" asked Maxine.

"Now Maxine you don't have the stick so you can't talk." Maxine bit her tongue as she was annoyed that she had basically been told to shut up by her squire. However, in the context of what he was trying to do she would let it slide. "This technique has proven to work quite well and I think it's just what we need here. I'll be acting as a neutral party in all of this so that way it can be fair. Are you both willing to give this a chance?" Both were annoyed by this but nodded as they weren't allowed to speak without the stick. "Now Carrie, why don't you start things off?" With that he leaned forward and handed the stick over to Carrie. She looked at it for a moment and then looked at Charles.

"What am I supposed to do now?" asked Carrie with a small amount of confusion. To her it seemed odd that a man who was seemingly as small as Charles was telling her what to do. Only her father had been able to do that.

"Just say whatever is on your mind."

"I'm angry that I'm chained up like a dog to the one person that I can't stand the most. It makes me want to stab my eyes out with a fork."

"I can arrange that," replied Maxine.

"Maxine please," stated Charles as she was speaking without holding the stick. "You will get your opportunity soon."

"As I was saying, this whole situation is just so frustrated," said Carrie as she continued on. "Now I have to take this big dumb bitch with me everywhere I go, I won't even be able to take a shit alone!"

"Yes, that is frustrating, now can you pass the stick to Maxine so that she can say what is on her mind."

Before Carrie could even move, she felt the stick get snatched out of her hand. Maxine was now holding it and she glared at her sister for a moment before looking at her squire. It seemed odd to her that he was basically controlling the situation where normally it was herself.

"Where to begin?" asked Maxine. "None of this would be happening if she didn't act all high and mighty around me." She was looking at Carrie as she continued to speak. "You prance around as if you're some kind of lady or princess but you're not. You live on a farm and are barely able to read! That's not lady qualities and no lord will ever want you!"

"Now Maxine let's not go with that for the time being," replied Charles. "Just state how you feel about this situation."

"You want to know how I feel?" Her glance turned towards Charles and it was easy to see her mood. "I feel unbridled rage, I feel like I could place my hands on someone's head and then crush their skull. I feel like I'm going to explode at any moment, all because I'm having to deal someone who is stuck her own ass and humiliates me at every opportunity that she gets."

Charles for the moment stayed silent as he listened to what was being said. He could see that there were a lot of problems that needed to be ironed out. These said problems might take a while and he wasn't sure if this little idea of therapy would actually help them out or just make things worse.

Maxine continued to hold the stick as she sat right next to Carrie and in front of her squire Charles. She was very annoyed with everything that was happening and under normal circumstances she wouldn't have time to deal with her current situation. Sitting down on a chair and only talking when she held a stick was something that she considered to be absolutely absurd. And yet despite this she was still going through with it as it was her best chance to get unchained.

Carrie too was annoyed by this, she thought that she should have made herself taller than Maxine before the cuff had been placed on her wrist. It was tight enough to prevent her from growing but not tight enough to cause her any problems. All she could do was endure thing and hopefully move on soon enough.

"Is there anything else that you'd like to say Maxine before you pass the stick over?" asked Charles. He was wise enough to keep a small distance away from the women but not too far as to seem like he was afraid of them. He couldn't help but feel a little scared of them as he had seen what they were both capable of. This sibling rivalry was something that was far from normal.

"Yes," answered Maxine as she continued to hold onto the stick. She was using her left hand as her right was the one that was chained to Carrie. "Yes, she's delusional if she thinks that she's going to marry some lord. For starters she's like almost three feet taller than a lord and also a lord isn't going to bother with some girl who was raised on a farm."

"Shut up Maxine!" shouted Carrie with rage. She would have probably grown by this point but the cuff around her wrist prevented her from doing so.

"Carrie," stated Charles. He had his arms crossed and he looked at her with a slight scowl. "You can talk when you have the stick."

"As I was saying," replied Maxine as she was continuing on. "The only lord who would be interested in her is that weird one from July. I keep telling her that the high borns are more trouble than they're worth but she doesn't listen to me. She thinks that everything is going to work out like it does in a fairy tale. I'm going to tell her the truth now, it doesn't. If it did our parents would be super rich and we'd be living in some kind of mansion. Instead we live on a farm and barely get by. She needs to get rid of these delusions of grandeur and think about something that is truly attainable."

"I see, now have you finished for the time being?"

"Y-Yes." There was likely more that she wanted to say but she was willing to wait and hear what Carrie had to say.

"Good, now pass the stick to Carrie and we can listen to what she has to say."

Charles watched as Maxine slowly handed the stick over to Carrie who like Maxine thought that this situation was absurd. But since there was nothing better that could be done for the time being, she felt like she could tolerate this session. Plus, it meant that she could talk badly about her sister and that was always a plus to her.

"At least my goals fall into the realms of reality unlike yours Maxine," said Carrie. "You're trying to be a knight like father well let me tell you the truth. That's not going to happen, men become knights, women become maidens. They become wives and mothers, do you really think that anyone in their right mind would knight you. They would see it as an embarrassment to the title."

Maxine got out of her chair and lifted her left fist into the air as if she was going to punch Carrie. However, Charles quickly got out of his chair and stood in her way, he knew that she could just throw him out of the way easily if she wanted to. However, he did this anyway, just to ensure that no one was harmed during this experiment of his.

"Ms Maxine please don't do something that you're going to regret later on," said Charles "Can you please sit down and continue this session? It would be for the best and you can speak your mind when it is your turn."

There were several moments where Maxine grumbled before she finally sat back down on her chair and grunted again. Charles too gave out a sigh as he knew that he had just defused a potentially dangerous situation. He was just happy that she had shown some restraint which did surprise him.

"As I was saying Maxine would be an embarrassment to the title," said Carrie as she continued on. "I know that people laugh at her as she tries to achieve something that is impossible. I'm just the one who tells her to her face." Before she could say anything else the stick was snatched out of her hand and found its way to Maxine.

"I admit I get laughed at for my goals but those people who laugh find themselves with broken jaws and missing teeth. Father faced the same when was on his journey to become a knight, he succeeded where everyone stated he would fail. I aim to do the same thing, no matter the cost to my body."

"Hmm," said Charles as he took in everything that had been said and an idea did pop into his mind. It was something that he thought might help them both out. "There is something I am wondering, do you both remember the first time you had any kind of argument? Something deep from your past."

"It's been too long and we've had more arguments than I can count. Besides it's not very important." Just then she felt the stick get snatched out of her own hand and she looked to see Carrie now holding onto it.

"I remember," replied Carrie with some sternness in her voice. "I had a doll that I called Serena, father bought it for me on one of his trips to Flea Bay. She was my favourite toy but one day Maxine came up to me and asked she could play with it. I said no so she tried to take it off of me. We both pulled on Serena and then..." She began to look a little sad as she spoke. "And then she broke in half, I remember crying and mother have a stern talk with us. Father did buy me a new doll but it just wasn't the same."

"You were five at the time," replied Maxine even though she wasn't holding onto the stick. This broke what had been set out by Charles but he did nothing to stop it. He felt that this breakthrough was too important to interrupt. "You're still holding onto that?"

"Yes, I loved Serena and because of you she was broken. What's worse is that you didn't even apologise for what you did." There were a couple of tears rolling down her cheek as she was sad with the memories that she was experiencing. "You just went about your business as if nothing had happened."

"Do you think that this was the beginning of the rift between the both of you?" asked Charles as he thought that they were making some real progress.

"I don't know, maybe."

"Hmm, I think I'm beginning to see the bigger picture here. This event that transpired between the both of you is what started this animosity between the both of you. You might think that this event is only minor but that's what happens with things like this. Small events, no matter how insignificant can snowball into bigger and sometimes even tragic events. That day where you had your first argument over Serena eventually led to where we are today. To the point where neither are you want to be in the same room as the other. It has impacted your relationship on a level that neither of you can fully comprehend. But I believe that it is possible to mend these bridges between you both and have a functioning relationship as sisters. I think the first bridge that needs to be mended is that you Maxine need to apologise to Carrie about Serena."

"You want me to apologise about breaking a toy well over ten years ago?" replied Maxine with surprise in her voice.

"Yes, and make sure that you actually mean what you say. It's important as the first step towards building a sisterly bond."

"And what if I refuse?"

"Then you'll likely be chained up to your sister for the rest of your life and unable to become a knight." He knew that this would get her to do what needed to be done. She could see sense in what he was saying as well as she gave a small sigh. She turned to look at Carrie who too was looking back at her.

"Carrie, I'm sorry that I broke your doll." There was some serenity in her voice as she knew that if she faked it that no progress would have been made. In her mind she just wanted this cuff off her as soon as possible.

"T-Thank you," replied Carrie who was in some disbelief over what she was hearing. She never thought that she would hear her sister apologise for anything. Especially against any kind of sleight against her.

"Now Carrie," said Charles. "I've been told that you pushed Maxine into the mud yesterday. Now that she has apologised to you can you please apologise to her for your actions? It would be in your best interest."

"Fine." There was a slight hint of annoyance in her voice and although she was reluctant to do this she did so nonetheless. "Maxine I'm sorry that I pushed you into the mud, I shouldn't have done that."

This was still being watched by Jessica from the farmhouse who was rocking baby Rina in her arms. The small baby seemed to be calm as there was nothing that she wanted and was most likely going to have a sleep soon. Jessica had seen her two daughters arguing a lot but this was nothing new to her. What did surprise her was the fact that they were now seemingly talking to one another normally.

In her mind she thought that this was something that would never happen. She stood there in some disbelief as she couldn't believe what she was seeing. It looked like the first civilised conversation that Maxine and Carrie had in a very long time. It was almost more than her mind could fully comprehend.

It was around that time that Sir Tucker walked by and he could see his very tall wife still standing by the window. He had been working out in the fields and had merely gone inside to get some water. There were a few moments of silence as he saw that she hadn't noticed her presence. Slowly he walked toward the window and looked outside. Like Jessica he could see what was happening and he stood there with some shock.

"What are they doing?" asked Sir Tucker who continued to look out of the window and he didn't even look up to his wife.

"From the looks of it our girls are having a normal conversation," replied Jessica. "I thought that I'd never see the day."

"I have a feeling that Maxine's squire is somehow behind this, I don't care what he's doing but it looks like it's working."

"It'll be nice to have them act like their sisters rather than bitter enemies." She gave a sigh. "When I was young, I would have killed to have had a brother or sister."

"They're not all they're cracked up to be. Besides you didn't need a sibling, you had me instead."

"That is true, but then again if I had a brother or sister, I might not have helped you out on your quest."

"Guess we'll never know, did you need help with any of the housework anyway?"

"No, let's just see how this goes. I do truly wonder if Maxine's squire will actually get through to them both. Something that even you haven't been able to do."

"Yeah, in my time I've faced countless challenges, but two warring daughters is something that Sir Thomas never taught me anything about that."

Both Maxine and Carrie were still unaware that their parents were watching what was taking place. Charles remained where he was sitting and he was happy that he was making some real progress. When this experiment of his began he thought that it was going downhill fast but the fact that he had gotten the sisters to talk to one another in this manner was a big step forward in his view. He just needed to ensure that they didn't do anything to ruin what was taking place.

He could still sense some animosity between the two sisters but the fact that Maxine wasn't trying to choke Carrie to death was something that he felt was positive. But now he needed to build on this to try and help them move passed the rivalry that they had between one another. Seeing a permanent change would be the most difficult part.

"Ok I think we've made some real progress here," said Charles. "For the time being let's just put the talking stick to one side and carry on with what we have now. Next I want to ask you is if there is anything you completely agree on? Something you can both relate to in a way, like your family?"

"There's not much to talk about in that regard," replied Carrie. "I've been here all the time while she's been gone doing her own things for a year."

"I've been earning a living and making my way in the world," stated Maxine as she didn't really like what her sister was saying. "I dread to think about the things that you've done in that time."

"Please no bickering," said Charles as he quickly wanted to ensure that all the progress they had made wasn't wasted. "Ok how about your height? This is something that you share since no offense, you're both amongst the tallest people in Angleland. In fact I'm confident in saying that you're probably the tallest people that has ever lived."

"Yeah and I'm the tallest between us." Maxine seemed proud about this and it got a glare from Carrie.

"But when I use my powers you're the size of a mouse in comparison to me," replied Carrie as she felt that she was getting one over on her older sister.

"That's only when you use your powers, without them you might be tall but compared to me you come up short." The glaring between them continued and Charles had to quickly do something in order for the session not to break down into a shouting contest.

"Ok let's move on from that," stated Charles who was seriously considering reintroducing the rules of the talking stick. But an idea did come to mind and he paused for a moment before he spoke. "How about your father? Rather than speaking about your family in general let's just speak about the patriarch. How do you feel about him?"

"He always treats me like a princess," replied Carrie. "No matter what he does he always has time for me. He doesn't call my dreams stupid or even tell me to reconsider. He supports me whenever he can and for that I love him. In my mind I imagine the day that he walks me down the aisle to hand me to my future husband."

"Good, now Maxine tell me your views of him?" He knew what she was going to say anyway but he felt that it was still best to allow her to speak.

"Our father is a strong and honourable man," answered Maxine. "He is the greatest knight that this land has ever seen and he always did what was right. When I told him that I wanted to be a knight like him he didn't laugh at me. Instead he taught me everything I knew, not just skills with a blade but also the pillars that make a knight. If it wasn't for his guidance I wouldn't be on the road that I am now."

"So you both agree that you love and respect your father?"

"Yes," replied both sisters.

This was another good step forward in his mind as there was common ground between them both. He thought that they would say similar things about their mother as well if he were to ask but for the time being he felt that he didn't need to. Instead he felt that this was enough for them.

"Great," said Charles. "Now I think this is where we'll end our discussion. I think we've made a lot of progress here today. Of course you're both still chained up so I want you to talk to each other in positive ways. Shouting at each other won't do and maybe, just maybe Sir Tucker will decide that you can be separated again."

Both women didn't say anything and Maxine looked at her sister for a moment. This was around the time that she realised that if she really wanted to she could throw her sister around. Since the cuff on Claire's wrist prevented her from growing it meant that Maxine was once again the largest and strongest of the two. Her growth abilities had been completely neutralised but despite this something inside of her told her not to do it. She didn't know whether it was her conscience or common sense but she knew that it would likely lead to more trouble.

For Charles he felt like he had achieved something great, he had been able to make the two warring sisters to at least stop bickering for the time being. That was a victory for him but now he hoped that it could last. He didn't think that he could step in the way if they truly began to fight one another. From the muscle difference between the two sisters he was sure that Maxine would easily be able to overpower Carrie and likely do a lot of damage before it could be broken up.

Before Charles walked away he informed Maxine that Sir Tucker had given him some more paperwork that he needed to look through. He also instructed them to try and considerate to the other while they were still chained up. He did hope for the best but he also knew there was a high chance of some kind of argument.

For the next hour not a peep was heard from the sisters. Things in the Martel household seemed to be going normally as the kids mostly helped out around the farm while Jessica tended to baby Rina. Jaime was running around a lot and eventually he came up to Maxine and Carrie who were outside and still chained up to one another. They were both trying to do some farm work but it was difficult since they were pulling against one another almost constantly.

For Maxine it didn't help that the cuff had been placed on her stronger hand as she would reach to grab something, only for her hand to be pulled to the right as Carrie was doing something similar. This led to a few words between them but both tried to take what Charles had said to heart and try to move past it.

It took a moment for the sisters to notice their youngest brother there, their first indication was the sound of him giggling. They weren't sure what it was all about and they looked toward him. Maxine had a block of hay in her hands while Carrie had nothing for the moment. The mud was beginning to dirty the bottom of her dress and she hadn't realised that getting changed would now be very difficult with the chain.

"What's so funny?" asked Carrie as she looked at her brother. She normally cared for him when Jessica was busy with other motherly duties. In a way it was good practice for her for when she became an actual mother.

"You two are still tied up," replied Jaime as he continued giggling. It almost seemed like he was going to burst out laughing at any moment.

"Hey, it's not funny!" Her tone was louder and angrier as the situation that she had found herself in was annoying for her. "How would you like it if you were chained up to someone like Jane?"

"Carrie!" stated Maxine as she saw that Carrie's tone had upset her little brother. This caused Maxine to squat down so that she seemed shorter to him. The block of hay had been placed on the floor for the time being. "Now Jaime it is not nice to laugh at us like that." Unlike Carrie her tone of voice was much calmer and gentler on Jaime's ears. "Your sister and I have found ourselves in a less than desirable situation. It would not be nice if we laughed at you if you were in a similar situation to us. I think it's best that you don't do something like that again."

"O-Ok Maxine," replied Jaime who was a little upset with Carrie's reaction but Maxine had prevented him from running off and crying. He ran into her arms and embraced her in a hug, carefully she hugged him back as she knew that her great strength could hurt him if she was careless. "I love you Maxine."

"I love you too Jaime."

Carrie just stood there and watched what was taking place. She would hug and kiss Jaime as well but seeing him with Maxine was something that she hadn't entirely expected. She thought that her sister would be sword wielding warrior who wanted to destroy every enemy in sight. The fact that she was tending to her little brother did surprise her, she thought that her sister was incapable of doing such a thing.

Before long Jaime ran off again so that he could find his mother and new baby sister. Now that he had a younger sibling he thought that he could protect her like a big brother. When he was gone Maxine did stand up again and watch him run off. She turned to look Carrie who stood close by and simply watched.

"And that is how you deal with a child without making them cry," said Maxine. "Father might have taught me how to fight but mother taught me a thing or two as well. If you plan on marrying some lord and starting a family with him, I suggest you learn how to care for children."

Carrie didn't say a word as she didn't want to admit that Maxine was right. All she could do was look at her older sister and take some of her words of wisdom. She might be right here but she was sure that she was going to be a great mother one day and have a large family with the man of her dreams.

Being chained together was still difficult for Maxine and Carrie. Not only did they have to spend all their time together but it was also making certain activities nearly impossible. Not only that but it also made a few things very unpleasant for the other. More and more they wanted the chains to be removed but they didn't ask their father Sir Tucker to do so.

They knew that if they asked him, he would say no and most likely decide to keep the chain on them for even longer. It was only when he was convinced that they were getting along that he would allow the chain to be removed.

For Maxine this was taking far too long as she wanted to leave the next day and continue on with her work. She couldn't do that if she was still chained to Carrie and she couldn't even put on her armour. All she could do was try and remember what her squire had taught her and convince her father that they had changed.

It wasn't long before the family was sitting at the dinner table and eating their lunches. Charles was once again sitting with them as he was a guest and thus was treated with respect by the Martels. Maxine and Carrie were forced to have to sit next to each other thanks to the chain while the other members of the family sat accordingly. The only member of the family who wasn't at the table was baby Rina who was currently asleep in another room. She had been well fed and now just needed to take a nap.

Sir Tucker took a few mouthfuls of his food before he looked over to his eldest daughters. The fact that they weren't trying to choke each other out was a big step forward in his mind but not enough to convince that they had changed yet. It had been Carrie who made the lunch but moving around in the kitchen had been difficult. Maxine had tried to help her but like their mother her cooking skills were lacklustre at best.

It had been a great chore to get the lunch ready and now that it was it seemed that things were beginning to improve slightly. For this meal Charles was not sitting with Maxine as he had instead been sat between Jane and Denise who seemed to enjoy having him sitting next to them. One thing that he was not overly surprised with was how much the girls were eating. They were easily eating double if not triple what he was eating but, in a way, it made sense to him. Both of them were extremely tall and if they were going to reach the same height as their older sister, they needed to eat a lot more in order to grow.

"I see that neither of you are bickering," said Sir Tucker as he looked over to Maxine and Carrie. "That's good, have you learned anything yet?"

"A few things," replied Carrie. "Our guest sat us down and tried to make us talk through our issues."

"And was it successful?" He could already see that there was some success in what they had done. The fact that Charles had been able to get through to them was impressive in his mind. But he still wanted to hear it from them.

"Not really," answered Maxine. "We're still chained up so I'd say that not much has changed."

"Oh, I wouldn't be so certain. And I know what you're thinking, when will I release you from your chains?"

"You make it sound like you're keeping us prisoner. It's true that we are thinking about the chain but we're not going to ask you. We already know what you're going to say."

"That you can only be released once the lesson is learned. Very good, I can see that my teachings haven't been ignored. I have to say that I am impressed with what I'm seeing right now. You might not think it but I can definitely see an improvement has been made and I admit that I'm proud of the both of you. I just wish that it didn't have to come to this."

"I still think that this is too cruel," said Jessica who for now had been silent at the dinner table. She hadn't agreed to what he had done and she didn't like seeing her eldest daughters chained together.

"You know that we were left with no choice. But it seems that we're getting results so it looks like it was the best course of action." He then took a quick look at Charles. "And thanks to Maxine's squire Charles we've been able to save some money. Money that we could maybe use for a short family holiday."

This made the kids somewhat excited, it was rare for any family of their level to be able to go on a holiday. It was unlikely to be too far away from Morgan but it would still be nice for them. A trip to the west coast that wasn't related to business would be something that they could look forward to.

For Maxine the news didn't mean all that much to her. She didn't plan on stopping much longer so a holiday so a holiday didn't really mean anything to her. But the idea of having one when she had saved a little bit of money was something that she would reserve. Taking some much-needed rest and relaxation rather than taking jobs would be a nice change of pace for her.

These thoughts were interrupted when she heard the rattle of the chain. She looked at it for a moment and she would have loved to have snapped it off. Unfortunately, she lacked the strength to do so which meant that she would just have to endure for the time being. Like her father said they had made a lot of progress.

Charles continued to eat his food as he was happy that he had been able to help the family. He wasn't too sure if he had earned enough trust with Maxine for her to return his deceased mother's locket to him. On a couple of occasions, he was worried that she would sell it in order to gain some much-needed money. This was a thought that he would quickly dispel as he knew that she would never do such a thing. Even though he had done a lot for her he still didn't think that he had done enough to fully repay his debt. Maxine had saved his life after all and there was nothing that he could do to make up for that.

"Charles," said the voice of a girl. This caught the attention of the squire and he looked up to Jane sitting next to him. He still couldn't get over her appearance as she still looked very stretched. "I've been meaning to ask; how long will you be a squire for my sister?" In the time that he had been there she felt that she had struck a friendship with the normal size man. Also, she was just genuinely curious.

"I'm not sure Jane," replied Charles. "When your sister decides that my debt is paid then I might not be her squire anymore. That is unless she sees value of me being around and right now, I'd say she'd be completely hopeless without me."
"What was that?" asked Maxine in a slightly annoyed tone as she had caught the last part of what he had said.

"Nothing ma'am." He was a little nervous as he didn't want to incur her wrath but since he had mainly been joking, he didn't think too much of it.

"Because from what I hear you're saying that I'd be useless without you." She seemed to be more humoured by what was happening rather than being angry. A small smile appeared on her face. "Adam, would you like to do the honours?"

Charles was confused but she watched as Maxine's oldest brother got out of his chair and quickly made his way to Charles. He was able to reach down and grab the squire in a headlock.

The headlock itself wasn't enough to hurt him but just to hold him in place. Adam then rubbed his knuckles on Charles's head which caused him a small amount of pain but was more irritating than anything else. The punishment that he was receiving was not for anything too bad but more seemed like a joke. It did last for a few seconds before Adam broke it off and allowed Charles to regain some composure. His hair was a little messy now but he was perfectly fine.

This caused the family to laugh a little and Charles couldn't help but laugh as well. He could see what it was, it wasn't primarily to humiliate him but rather as a joke. He couldn't help but laugh along with them as he could see the funny side to it. If it taught him anything it was that he shouldn't make comments like that of Maxine while she was in ear shot. It would be bad for his health.

Jessica did feel a little bad for what had happened and as a small apology she gave him a piece of cake which he was more than happy to eat. Sir Tucker did sit where he was at the table and looked over to Charles. There were a few things that he was wondering and knew that Maxine's squire was the only one who could answer it.

"Now Charles there are a couple of things I'd like to ask you," said Sir Tucker after he had eaten what was in his mouth.

"Yes Mr," replied Charles before he quickly realised that he had made a mistake. "I mean Sir Tucker."

"You told us about how you met my daughter but you haven't said too much about yourself. I can tell that your line comes from outside of Angleland. Would you mind telling us about it or would you rather keep it to yourself?"

"N-No not at all Sir." He thought that Maxine might be angry with him if he declined so he decided to speak what he knew. "My father is from Angleland but my mother wasn't, she was from the lands to the East and she raised me by herself. Unfortunately, she was taken from me too soon and until I met your daughter I have been more or less alone ever since."

"Oh, I am sorry to hear that. Losing a parent is always difficult, but now at least you're a part of this family. That is of course when you decide to marry Maxine."

"What?" This was spoken by both Charles and Maxine who looked at Sir Tucker with surprise on their faces. Sir Tucker then began to laugh very loudly and it took a slight nudge from his very large wife to calm him down.

"I'm only pulling your leg." He laughed for a few moments before it finally subsided. "But anyway, you've helped this family a great deal and because of that you're always welcome here."

"Thank you, Sir Tucker." He knew that this was a great honour that had been given to him and he wanted to make sure that he was grateful. "But it does look like I will be here for longer than I originally planned as Ms Maxine cannot go anywhere with that chain still around her wrist."

"Oh that, I can see that there has been some progress since this morning." He looked over to his eldest two daughters. "This is the first time that they've sat together like this and not tried to tear each other's throats out."

"Is it progress enough for us to get these damn chains removed?" asked Carrie with a sense of hope in her voice.

"Nope, but it certainly is a start." Jessica looked at him with a disappointed look on her face. She wanted to say something but the cries of baby Rina drew her attention. This caused her to get up from the table and go to her latest daughter. She just hoped that her husband would decide to unchain both Maxine and Carrie. She had already decided that they wouldn't have intercourse until this happened.

The rest of the meal was relatively uneventful, some of the other children did speak about other things. This included Alison who said that she wanted to have a puppy which her parents stated that they would take it into consideration. After that everyone helped to clean up the table. The task was more difficult for Maxine and Carrie as they were still chained together. A few times they wanted to go in opposite directions but they were always pulled them back towards one another. This was annoying for the both of them and it even led to a stare off between them.

Thankfully no one had to stand between them to ensure that they didn't bite each other's head off. This was observed by Sir Tucker who couldn't help but be impressed by what he had seen. The fact that they hadn't tried to rip each other's head off was a big step forward in his mind. He also wasn't an unrealistic man, he didn't think that they could put all of their differences behind them in a single day but it was certainly a start.

He wasn't the only one who noticed the difference as well. Jessica had noticed that her daughters weren't bickering as much. This did make her fell happier as it always upset her watching them fight and argue. She had always raised them to love each and the fact that Maxine and Carrie didn't get along made her feel that she had somehow failed as a mother. But now she was seeing that things might not be as bad as she thought.

Not long after lunch almost the entire family went back out to do farm work while Jessica mostly tended to the younger members of the family. Normally she wouldn't be alone as Carrie would sometimes help her. This was because they both knew that it wouldn't be too long before Carrie began her own family and would bring Jessica many beautiful grandchildren.

With Carrie chained up to Maxine it meant that this wasn't entirely possible. There was still work that needed to be done outside but for the time being the eldest of the Martel children sat down with Carrie as they watched Jessica tend to their youngest siblings. At one-point Maxine even had to hold onto baby Rina.

To her this was a bit of an odd sensation. All of her focus was on becoming a knight so settling down and starting a family was a thought that was alien to her. Holding onto baby Rina was probably one of the few times that she would ever hold a baby. She doubted that she would ever have any of her own.

"Can we just be done here now?" asked Maxine. She was sitting on a chair in the room where Jessica was tending to Rina and Jaime. She wanted to cross her arms but the chain on her right wrist prevented her from doing so.

"What?" replied Carrie. "Can't you stand being around children?" This was mocking her a little but it wasn't too much.

"It's not that, it's that there are more important things to do than this."

"Oh, come on this is important, one day you're going to have children of your own." To Carrie it was her dream to have children with a lord and live in his castle. That dream was on hold due to these chains.

"I doubt it."

"What?" asked Jessica who was close by. She turned to her eldest daughter and looked at her with some shock. "You don't want to have children?"

"No, I don't have time for such things. Having children will only slow me down and in my profession that could be fatal."

"But having children is one of the most important things one can do in their lives. Besides you say that now but I guarantee you that when you find that special someone that you'll put all that to one side. Being a mother is one of the greatest and most rewarding jobs in the world, it might not seem so desirable but believe me, having a small bundle of joy in your arms like this means more than gold or any titles."

Maxine wanted to completely dismiss everything her mother had just said. But she couldn't help but sense a small amount of truth behind it. One thing that she knew was that there was only a very small selection of men who she would allow herself to have children with. They had to meet several different qualities which included bravery, honour and in general be a good person. There were others on the list but she thought that they were important nonetheless. Thankfully height wasn't an issue as she would likely never find a man who measured up to her in that department.

There was also the thought of anyone calling her mother was something that she would never be able to wrap her head around. Something else that put her off children was the idea of going through child birth, she had seen her own mother go through it on more than one occasion and it had never been a painless experience for her. Even when it came to the boys Jessica had shown a lot of discomfort while she was in labour with them and it was an experience that she didn't want to repeat herself.

"Maxine," said a small voice. She looked down and she could see Jaime standing near her. Even though she was sitting down on a chair she still looked absolutely huge in comparison to him. "Jane says that when you're not chained to Carrie you're going to be going away again." He looked a little sad at her. "I don't want you to go away, I like having you here." The next thing he felt was Maxine's left-hand brush against his hair. It was a gentler touch than most would expect for a woman of her size.

"Yes, I do Jaime," replied Maxine. "But I won't be gone forever, I will come back like I am now but unfortunately I can't stay. I'm going on a grand adventure and when I return, I can tell you all about them. Like how recently someone fired a cannon right into my chest, thankfully your big sister is made of stronger stuff than a cannonball." She didn't want to admit how close the cannonball had come to killing her. She still had a large bruise on her chest which was painful whenever she touched it. "One day I might even slay a dragon and bring you his tooth."

"A dragon tooth?" His excitement began to increase as the thought of owning a dragon tooth was very cool in his mind. "I want a dragon tooth."

"And I'll make sure you have one when I come back."

This was a little white lie that Maxine had spoken. There had been legends of dragons roaming Angleland years earlier but none had been seen in recent years. Even if there were she didn't know if she could slay one. If the legends were true their scales were the strongest material on Earth, their fire could melt a knight in their armour and their claws were sharp enough to cut through rock. Even someone as big and strong as Maxine would likely not stand much of a chance against such a beast.

Carrie just sat there and listened, she took in a little of what Maxine was doing as she could see that although her sister didn't really want children she was still capable of looking after them to some degree. It was unlikely that someone like Jaime would be able to become a knight but he did seem like a boy with a bright future.

"I'm sorry that your father decided to chain you up like this," said Jessica just after she had finished feeding Rina. The baby seemed to be quiet and it was likely that she was going to drift off to sleep soon. "I've tried to convince him to release you but unfortunately he's having none of it."

"It's a cruel and unusual punishment," replied Carrie. She wanted to blame Maxine for it but she kept it to herself for the time being. She knew if they began arguing that it would make the chances of being released even more remote. "And if we don't take this off by tonight we'll have to sleep in the same room as each other." This was a thought that sent a shiver down her long spine.

"It won't be a pleasant experience for me either," added Maxine who for a moment imagined herself sleeping in the same bed as Carrie. This as a thought that she didn't particularly enjoy. But it did mean that her squire would likely be sleeping in a room alone. This was something that she didn't mind too much but she still wanted to keep an eye on him. He had a tendency to get himself into trouble, the fact that he was perfectly safe in this household had not completely dawned on her. In her mind there was still a small need to protect him.

It wasn't like Charles went out to find trouble, if it was up to him he would be safe all the time. But it seemed that trouble would find him more often than not, this was most likely because he was a little smaller than the average man and he didn't look to be that strong. When compared to Maxine he was more or less like a small child, but then again she had that effect on almost everyone. Most ne'er-do-wells would see him as an easy target but if they knew that he had a nine foot, muscle bound, armoured woman looking after him they would keep their distance.

"Then what do you suggest that we do?" asked Carrie who didn't seem to be too impressed with what her sister had said.

"I don't know," replied Maxine. She then looked over to their mother. "Mother can you grow and break these chains?"

"I could but your father would be very unhappy with me if I did that," replied Jessica. She knew that she had a very good relationship with Sir Tucker. They had argued over a couple of things during their time as husband and wife but their marriage had been a happy one. One thing that they had promised at their wedding was to trust each other. If Sir Tucker thought that this punishment was just then she would have no choice but to go along with his decision.

"Then it looks like we don't have much of a choice. We'll have to push two beds together and sleep on there."

"You're joking aren't you?" asked Carrie who seemed to be far from impressed with what she was hearing.

Maxine gave her a look that indicated that she was indeed being serious. This caused Carrie to sigh as she didn't like the idea. The only other idea that Maxine did come up with was cutting off Carrie's hand and freeing each other through that. Of course she knew that this was an idea that was completely off the table.

By that night Maxine found herself lying in bed. Unfortunately for her, her right arm was sticking out of the bed as she was still chained to Carrie. They had pushed two beds relatively close to one another but completely together. These beds were also especially large in order to be comfortable for the two giant sisters but they also ran into another problem.

Neither of them could move around much in their bed without pulling on the other. Because of this every time one of them wanted to turn over it would pull against the chain and move the other sister. It was much harder for Carrie to do this since Maxine was currently taller and much stronger than her. To her moving Maxine was almost like moving a dead weight. This was annoying for her.

Something else that greatly annoyed Carrie was the fact that Maxine had also begun to snore. At first it wasn't much but as the night went along the snoring only got worse. She wasn't sure whether Maxine was doing this on purpose just to annoy her or if it was something that couldn't be helped. One thing that she was sure of was that it was going to be a very long night.

Someone else who was having an odd night was Charles who found himself sleeping in a room all by himself. By now he was used to having Maxine sleeping close by him but tonight was very different. There was no one in this room with him and in his mind, it was a nice chance of pace.

On previous nights he had always been careful not to wake up his giant friend or else he would likely regret it. Tonight, he didn't have to worry about this but he also knew not to be too loud. There was still a family sleeping in the same house and although they had showed him much kindness, he didn't want to give them a rude awakening. He still remembered when he had been forced to wake Maxine up before, she was ready. She was less than happy and he was almost sure that she would strike him. Thankfully such a strike never came but it was something that he would always remember.

Most of the family had gone to bed early that night as they were used to waking up close to dawn in order to start with their usual farm work. Because of this most of the people in the house were sound asleep and dreaming away. Charles was also dreaming and, in his dream, he was a hero who saved maidens and took down evil wherever he saw it. He would always conquer his foes and win the girl.

He would always be a little disappointed when he woke up but at least he knew that his situation now was better than it had been before. Back then he was more or less on his own but now he had Maxine watching his back and ensuring that he was safe. Although their partnership was more or less a life debt situation, he was beginning to think that it was more than that now. He knew that one day that they might be together more over willingness rather than having such a debt hang over them.

Maxine too was dreaming but hers was one that some people would consider to be a little silly. It once again involved her eating pies but this one was different, in her dream she was the size of a doll and standing before what to her was the largest pie that she had ever seen. Rather than being terrified by what she was seeing she was instead very excited as she dived into the pie as if she was diving into a lake.

Her head popped up through the pastry and she was eating the wonderful filling inside. She could taste every bite and it caused her to smile. As the dream progressed, she ate more and more of the pie until there was no more left. By then her belly had become huge and she rubbed it with satisfaction. She belched loudly as well as for the moment she felt full. That was until she saw another equally large pie close by. She thought it was rude to allow that pie to sit all by itself so she got up from where she was lying and begun the process all over again.

When Maxine finally opened her eyes, daylight had taken over the room and she yawned loudly. It was one of the best sleeps she had for a long while and when she looked over to Carrie, she could see that her younger sister was still asleep. It had taken her much longer to fall asleep thanks to Maxine's snoring and for now she seemed pretty peaceful.

For a moment Maxine was tempted to wake Carrie up but she thought that she'd let her sister sleep for a little longer. Eventually she decided that it was getting too late in the morning so she woke her up by at first pulling on the chain. This didn't work so in the end she had to remove the covers from Carrie's bed.

This action forced Carrie to begin to wake up and she groaned as she was less than happy. Her first instinct was to increase her size and show Maxine just how annoyed she was. However, when she tried this, she felt a small amount of pain as the metal cuff on her arm didn't grow with her. Because of this she was forced to stop and then shrink back down to her normal size.

This had not gone unnoticed by Maxine but she was glad to see that it hadn't worked. Even so there would be no room for Carrie to grow in this room as things were cramped enough as it was. Having two women who were both between eight and a half and nine feet in height made this modest room look very small.

"You bitch," said Carrie in a very annoyed tone. "You couldn't just let me sleep, could you?" She wanted to strike Maxine but she knew that while she was like this, she didn't have the size or strength advantage that she needed. She wasn't forgetting how her sister lifted up a full-size horse by herself.

"It's late enough as it is," replied Maxine. "We need to be up and ready to get back to work. You wouldn't want father to be upset with us."

Carrie didn't answer and simply grumbled as Maxine pulled on the chain to force her out of the bed. She felt that she could have slept for another few hours, if it hadn't been her sister's snoring the previous night, she would have gotten all the sleep that she needed. Now she would be tired for the rest of the day.

They weren't the only people in the house who were up as most of the other members of the Martel family were already up. Some breakfast was being prepared which would normally be helped by Carrie. However due to her current situation this would be difficult so it was the matriarch of the house that made the breakfast.

This was something that everyone took caution with since they knew how terrible her cooking skills were. Even though she tried her best and practiced over the years her skills when it came to cooking were subpar at best. Because of this, other members of the family would help her.

Carrie had been the main one who was helping her mother as she was quite good at cooking and in her mind it helped train her for later life. With her current situation she wouldn't be that much of a help. Instead they would just have to endure and get through with the breakfast as smoothly as they could.

There were a couple of things that Maxine was remembering as well. The first was that her armour should be ready and that she would have to pick it up when she could. Until she was released from her punishment, she wouldn't be able to pick up anything. The other thing that she remembered was the fact that her squire Charles was still asleep.

With some reluctance from Carrie, Maxine was able to move toward the door that Charles was sleeping behind. She knocked on it fairly loudly in order to wake him up. He had still been in the middle of his dream and when he had been suddenly awakened it was a bit of a shock for him. It caused him to become afraid for a moment before he realised that it was safe and simply Maxine waking him up.

"It's getting late into the day," said Maxine from the other side of the door. "Get up and help around the house."

"Y-Yes ma'am," replied Charles who was still not fully awake. Slowly he rose out of his bed and had to take a moment to regain his balance. He had wanted to stay in bed for a little longer but he knew better than to go against the word of Maxine.

There was someone who noticed that Maxine and Carrie were getting along fairly well and that was Sir Tucker. He was glad to see that his idea seemed to be working but his wife was still more than unhappy with what he had done. Shortly after they went to bed, he wanted to have a little bit of fun with her but she refused until he removed the chains that were keeping their eldest daughters together.

He had tried to convince her that it was for the best but it had fallen onto deaf ears. He wouldn't hurry the process just so he could have the intimacy that he wanted from his wife but it certainly was a thought. But a part of him thought that he wouldn't have to do this for very long. There was a chance that he would remove the chains before then because he felt that his daughters had learned their lesson.

Not too long after breakfast both Maxine and Carrie sat down on seats in front of Charles. He wanted to have another talk with them like he did the previous day. However, this time he wasn't going to use the talking stick since this time he felt that it wasn't needed. He could see that Maxine looked well-rested while Carrie looked like she had been awake all night. There were a few theories in his head but for the time being he kept quiet about them.

"Good morning to you both," said Charles. "I am more than impressed with the progress that we made today and I hope that we make more today. Now before we begin did you both sleep well?"

"No," replied Carrie in a snap of the tongue. "Because of this walrus here I didn't get any sleep last night."

"Call me that again and I will cut your tongue out and feed it to the pigs!" snapped Maxine in response. This caused them to glare at each other while Charles was quickly trying to figure out a way to lower the tension.

"Ladies please," stated Charles while he waved his hands a little. "Let's be civil about this, you didn't have a good night's sleep Carrie. That is something that everyone experiences every now and again. Tell me how Maxine was keeping you up all night?"

"She was snoring her head off and most likely dreaming about stuffing her fat face with pies again."

"Only because pies are a gift from the gods and should be eaten accordingly," replied Maxine who didn't like what she was hearing.

"Now Carrie do you think that Maxine intended to snore like she did?" asked Charles as he looked at the younger sister.

"I'm sure that she did somehow," answered Carrie. "I don't know how she did it but I'm certain that she did."

"Are you? Because last time I checked a person couldn't control how much they snored. Isn't that right?"

"Y-Yeah." She didn't want to admit this but she knew that Charles was right. It was almost as bad as admitting that she was wrong.

"So, in that case Maxine couldn't help herself and because of that you were kept awake all night. I know there was no intention of this so could you find it in that big heart of yours to forgive her for that?"

"I-I suppose that I can."

"Good, now back to where we left off. We made a lot of progress yesterday and I hope that we can keep it up. Carrie you said that you remembered Maxine's first slight against you. The question is now reversed, Maxine, do you remember when Carrie first did anything to cross you?"

"I'm not sure," replied Maxine. "It was so long ago that I can't really remember it all that well." The truth was that she did remember it very well but she didn't really want to talk about it.

"Hmm, I don't believe that's true. I can tell that you're not being honest and if you can't be honest then we can't make any progress."

"Fine!" She spoke with an annoyed tone, it was obvious that she didn't really want to be there anymore but if she wanted to be free, she would sit through it. "While I was young my training to be a knight began with a wooden sword. I practiced with it every day but then Carrie got her hands on it. Even at that age she had learned how to grow in size and she used her new ability to snap my sword like a twig. From then on I knew that things between us would never be the same again."

"I only broke that stupid thing because you broke my doll first," snapped Carrie. "Besides you treated that sword and acted like it was a boyfriend or something creepy like that." This caused both women to glare at each other again.

"You actually think I was in love with that sword. You're even more delusional than I thought."

"Now ladies," said Charles as he waved his hands a little. "We've made so much progress so let's not throw it away."

The two sisters continued to glare at each other but the hatred between them didn't seem to be as strong as it was the previous day. In Charles's mind this was a positive sign of progress but he wanted to see if he could get them free that day. It would be a difficult task to say the least but he thought that it was possible.

"You know most knights would have struck their squire for speaking to them in such a manner," said Maxine. "You're lucky that I'm not like most knights."

"You're not even a knight so you can't go around saying that anyway," replied Carrie as a way to hit Maxine where it hurt.

"Before we go any further there's something that I want to say," said Charles as he thought that what he said next might get him into a lot of trouble but he was going to say it anyway. "Right now, I think that you're both being very selfish."

"How dare you say that to me!" stated Maxine with rage in her voice. It was good in a way that her focus was on him rather than Carrie but it was taking a lot of willpower for her to remain seated.

"Hear me out first, this rivalry isn't just effecting you both. It is also affecting your family as well. I've seen how your brothers and sisters react when you both start arguing. Your father sees this as very shameful and then there is your mother. I've seen on more than one occasion how upset she looks when you both are fighting. She's at her wits end with you both and even though she's saddened by what is happening you both haven't cared to notice. You've been so caught up with each other that you don't even consider how it might be affecting others. I've only known your mother for a few short days but I can tell that she's a woman with a very big heart who loves you both dearly. I'm asking you, for her sake can you please put this all behind you. Be good sisters and actually look out for one another? I know that this would make her very happy."

There were a few moments of silence as both sisters began to comprehend what Charles had said. They didn't realise just how much their rivalry was affecting their mother and they both loved her dearly. Maxine's anger towards her squire had ebbed away as she now felt shame for what she had done. It wasn't his fault about all of this, the blame fell squarely on her larger shoulders and that of her sister.

"Mother always did the best she could for us," said Carrie. "Even if we didn't fully appreciate it."

"As do all mothers but the best that you can do for your mother is to put your rivalry aside and love each other like good sisters," said Charles. On the outside he seemed as cool and collective as ever but, on the inside, he was very happy and jumping with joy.

There were a few moments as Maxine and Carrie looked at each other. They weren't glaring like they had done during previous stare downs. Instead they were looking at each other with a small amount of love and only a few seconds later they embraced themselves in a hug. They might not have gotten everything behind them yet but this was certainly a huge step forward for the both of them.

If Jessica had been there to see it, she would probably have begun crying tears of joy. Instead she was tending to baby Rina but there was someone who was witnessing what was taking place. This was none other than Sir Tucker who had already began to make his way to where this session was taking place. Even as he approached, he began to clap his hands at the pair who quickly noticed him and they broke off the hug. There was a small amount of embarrassment from the both of them but they could see the smile on the knight's face as he seemed genuinely happy.

"Now this is what I wanted to see," said Sir Tucker. "You pair finally stopped acting like your mortal enemies and loving each other as family. I'm a fool to believe right now that everything between you has been resolved but it seems that enough has been done to make me rethink a few things."

"Does that include freeing us from this damn chain?" replied Maxine with a small amount of hope in her voice.

"Oh, gods no, you've still got a very, very long way to go before I do something crazy like that."

"What?" replied both sisters in both shock and horror. The idea that they weren't even close to being free was harrowing for them. They even began to imagine them both as old women and still chained up. This was followed by a very loud laughter from their father who seemed to enjoy what had just happened.

"I'm only having a laugh with you. You've proved that you can tolerate the other and you've earned your freedom." He went into his pocket and expected to find something. Much to his surprise he couldn't find it and so he quickly checked his other pocket, only to get the same result. "I-I can't find the key." There was some nervousness in his voice as he continued to look for the key in his pockets.

"That's enough joking around father," answered Carrie who thought that their father was simply having fun with them again.

"No seriously, I can't find the bloody key." This was when it dawned on the two larger women that their father was not pulling another trick on them and that he was being serious. A small amount of panic appeared on the face of everyone there as even Charles knew what this meant.

"I-It's got to be somewhere in the house, you haven't left the property since you received it. You did receive a key, didn't you?"

"Of course, what kind of mad man would chain their daughters together without the means of freeing them?"

"What kind of mad man would chain up their daughters in the first place?" asked Charles in a quiet voice so that he couldn't be heard. This was picked up by Maxine who glared over at him and it almost looked like she was going to strike him.

"Charles!" stated Maxine in a relatively loud voice. "I need you to go back inside and look for the key. I don't care if you need to the house upside down. FIND THAT KEY!"

"Y-Yes ma'am."

With that Charles rushed back towards the house as fast as his legs could carry him. The chained sisters weren't going to stand around and do nothing while he was gone. They knew that there was a small chance that the key might be somewhere outside where their father had been working.

Because of this they quickly went to where Sir Tucker had been recently and started to search on the ground for it. The grass didn't help which was particularly long and if anything, they were just wanted this nightmare to be over. There was a good chance that even if they couldn't find the key that their uncle would simply use his tools to break the chains and free them through that. But it would be a lot easier if they could simply find the key, a task that was easier said than done.

Inside the house Charles was doing what he had been told and was looking for the key as best as he could. Unfortunately, he was having just as much luck as Maxine and Carrie as his search was turning up empty. His actions had been spotted by Jessica who looked at him with confusion. When he explained the situation to her the matriarch of the house experienced a combination of feelings.

The first was joy as she was told that her eldest daughters had put their rivalry aside for the time being and had begun to love each other again. This moved her almost to tears but when Charles told her about the missing key her joy turned to panic as she too began the search for the key. She was the one who checked the bedroom and she even grew until she was large enough to literally flip the bed.

There was still no key in sight and with each passing minute their situation seemed to become more desperate. But one thing that Charles had to do was to be quiet as he continued his search. Baby Rina was asleep and Jessica would be very upset with him if he woke her up. He knew better than to upset a mother, especially one as large as Jessica and who could increase her size many times over.

Eventually Charles found himself crawling on the ground near the kitchen and it wasn't long before he ran into a pair of very large feet. As he looked up, he could see the face of Jane that was high above him. The lanky girl looked down at the relatively short man with a small amount of confusion on her face. For the time being she didn't know about what was happening.

"What are you doing?" asked Jane. She noticed that he wasn't getting up which was something else that she felt was odd.

"Jane," replied Charles. "This is very important, have you seen a key lying around here at all? Your father lost the key to Maxine and Carrie's chains. If we don't find it then it's going to cause us a lot of problems."

"Do you mean this key?" The very tall girl stuck her hand into her pocket and pulled out a key that looked like it would fit into the lock of the cuffs. This caused Charles to quickly stand up. He looked at her in amazement as she held the key just above him.

"T-That's it, where did you find it?"

"I found it outside near the pig pen yesterday. I was going to give it back to father but I forgot until you just mentioned it."

"Jane you're a life saver." He then embraced the lanky girl in a hug. He didn't mind that it felt weird to hug someone who was so much taller than him but it seemed like she enjoyed it as well. It was one of the few times that she had been hugged by anyone who wasn't a member of her family. "Your sister is going to be very happy when she sees this." He broke off the hug and continued to look up at her. "Jane, may I please have the key?"

"I don't know, if I give you this key that means that Maxine will be free and she'll go away again. I don't want to see her go."

"Unfortunately, that is something that you don't have any control over." He knew the situation but still chose to remain calm as he knew that he would have to use his skills again. "Your sister isn't a child anymore, she's an adult and is making her own way in life. Just because she's leaving here doesn't mean that she doesn't love you. She's just spent all the time that she can in this house and needs to spread her wings. Do you understand what I'm saying?" Jane didn't answer but instead nodded her head a little. "Good, now may I have the key please Jane."

Jane was silent for a few moments and at first Charles didn't think that she would give up her prize. However, before he could say anything else, he watched as the tall girl handed him the key much to his delight. He was sure to thank her but before he could leave, he felt her embrace him in a hug. There were a few tears rolling down her face and he did feel some sympathy towards her. But more importantly he knew that Maxine would be very happy with his success.

Once the hug was over Charles quickly made his way outside where he held the key up for everyone to see. This made them all give out a sigh of relief as they thought that they had prevented a crisis. Maxine in particular was happy as it meant that she was only a few moments away from being separated from Carrie.

It was not too long later that Charles was given the honour of unlocking the cuffs. Much to his pleasure he pulled out the key that Jane had given to him but when he put it towards the lock, he quickly realised something. The key in his hand looked too large for the lock in the cuffs.

This was confirmed when he placed the key towards the lock and indeed discovered that there was a large size discrepancy between the two. It suddenly dawned on everyone there that this was the wrong key. This caused Charles to nervously chuckle up at Maxine and Carrie who were both horrified over what had happened. The only thing the giant sisters could do was scream in frustration.

The next morning Maxine found herself walking away from the family farm with her squire Charles walking alongside her. She was now free of the cuffs that had bound her with her oldest sister Carrie. Unfortunately, they had not been able to find the keys to the cuffs so in the end they were forced to visit the forgery that was owned by her uncles.

There the cuffs had been removed successfully and while Maxine was there, she even had her armour returned to her. Not only had it been repaired but also adjusted since she had grown a little since she had first worn it. In her mind it was nice to have the armour on again as it felt like a part of her had been returned.

It was certain that Charles would never forget what had happened during his stay at the Martel farm. They were definitely the most unique family in the world but also a loving one. When he had first met Maxine, due to her sternness he thought that her family would have a military like demeanour. Instead they were like more or less any family, the matriarch Jessica had been nothing but kind to him since his arrival and if not for their size he wouldn't believe that she was Maxine's mother.

Before they had left the farm, they had picked up some money and supplies before leaving. There was also a farewell moment between them and the rest of the Martel family. Maxine's siblings were going to miss her again and it seemed like she had also grown closer to Carrie. Before her return the sisters hadn't been able to stand one another. Now they could tolerate each other, they might not be the best of friends but their relationship had improved to the point that their parents were happy.

For Maxine's father Sir Tucker, she showed a great amount of respect towards him. He did hug his very large daughter and it was a little comical to look at. Sir Tucker was much smaller than Maxine and yet she treated him as if he was a lord or something of that level. Charles remembered to show the same amount of respect or else he might feel another sharp blow to the back of his head.

When it came to Jessica things were a little different. She had enlarged herself to the point where she was head and shoulders taller than the nine-foot Maxine. She then embraced her eldest daughter in a hug that she enjoyed very much. Maxine on the other hand simply stood there and took it, she did respect her mother but things such as hugs weren't as appealing to her. She wasn't the only one who got a hug as Charles too got a hug for his troubles. However, Jessica hadn't shrunk herself before hugging the squire which made it quite comical since she was at least twice his height at this point.

With all the farewells out of the way Maxine and Charles found themselves heading west towards the coast. If there was any work to be found it was possible that Flea Bay was a good call. The town was known for being a haven for traders and in recent years thieves and pirating had become a problem. Someone like her would be good security for such a place as any merchant who stayed by her would be off limits to any thieves.

There was something that was now on her mind as she walked with Charles remaining by her side. This was the promise to that she had made to her mother. Now she wasn't going to kill any of her opponents. This would make things more difficult for her as she would have to aim to wound or knock out rather than outright killing.

As they walked all they could really hear was a few birds singing and the clanking of Maxine's armour. Charles kept an eye out for anything that was interesting, this included things that could benefit them or even be dangerous. Bears did live out in this part of Angleland and although attacks on humans were rare, they did happen.

"Ms Maxine," said Charles as they continued to walk. He was having to walk faster than he usually would so that he could keep up with his much taller friend. By now he was used to walking faster than he normally would and, in a way, it was good exercise for him. "There's something that I just want to ask you."

"And what would that be?" Since he had helped her mend a few fences between herself and Carrie she was more willing to answer his questions. Even those that she was a little reluctant to answer before.

"What do you plan on doing when we reach Flea Bay?" He was very curious as he wanted to know what to expect. Nasty surprises were something that he didn't like.

"I'm not exactly sure yet." The clanking of her armour was fairly loud but her voice could be clearly heard over it. "Maybe there could be a rich merchant who wants us to protect his wares, or maybe there's a ship that needs a few extra knights."

"I see and have you been to Flea Bay before?"

"Yes, I used to help my Uncle drop off orders here. I'd earn a little money for whatever I wanted." She gave a small grunt as she began to remember a few things. "Had a few sailors try to flirt with me. At the time they mistook me for an adult."

"Oh." He then began to realise what she was saying. In his mind he imagined that even as a child Maxine was still bigger and stronger than most other people. "They didn't hurt you, did they?"

"Of course not, even back then I knew how to take care of myself. But I must warn you that Flea Bay can be a dangerous place. With so much money and merchandise going through it, there has been those with nefarious motives who come as well. As long as you stick with me you have nothing to worry about."

"Right you are ma'am." He knew about this in general. Since travelling with Maxine, he did feel safer than he had before, most likely he would have been stopped by a few different people with the intention to rob him. However, with a nine foot, heavily armoured woman who wielded a sword was more than enough to deter would be thieves.

The hours began to tick by as the pair continued to travel. Occasionally they would stop to rest and get a bite to eat. Jessica had prepared them some food for when they left, since it wasn't anything cooked, they knew that it was safe to eat. Maxine had already warned Charles about her mother's cooking, if he ate it then he might be putting his various taste buds at serious risk.

However, the sun began to disappear over the horizon as night began to approach. Maxine would have liked nothing more than to continually walk to Flea Bay without stopping at all to rest. Unfortunately for her it was something that she knew was simply impossible and when she looked at Charles, she could see that her squire was getting very tired. She could go much further than him but she refused to allow him to walk to the point where he was collapsing. He would try his best but his limits would come much quicker than her own.

Just as Maxine thought that they could stop for the night they could see a few lights down the road that they were travelling. This was a road that she had travelled upon a few times but she had not done so in many years. One thing that she did remember was that there was an old inn that was down there.

Whenever she had gone by it during her youth the inn in question had been abandoned and was practically falling apart. It wouldn't be too farfetched for someone to have bought the building and renovated it. If this was true then it meant that they had a place where they could sleep for the night.

This was something that they both were looking forward to. Shortly before it got too dark to see them properly both Maxine and Charles had noticed some dark clouds in the sky. The scent of rain was in the air and neither of them wanted to be caught out in it. There was also a chilly wind which in combination with any rain would make sleeping difficult and would likely lead to one of them picking up an illness.

If Maxine wanted to protect merchants then she couldn't come down with something like a cold as it would make her movements slower and thanks to her great height her sneezes would likely be magnified. Even her large body wasn't immune to diseases and infections so she had to be careful nonetheless.

With a small amount of haste both Maxine and Charles made their way to the source of the lights. They didn't run but walked at a quicker pace than they had before. During this time both of them barely spoke to one another. Instead they simply walked as the threat of rain loomed over them. There was no doubt that they would be caught in it if they didn't hurry to their destination.

After a few minutes they found themselves standing outside of a relatively large building. Although there was some writing on the wall there was also a post which had a couple of pictures on the top. The first was a pint of ale and the other picture was of a bed. Although there was writing on the wall that could be read there was still a large percentage of the population who were illiterate. Because of this most establishments had pictured signs which helped those who couldn't read know what the place was.

With there being both a picture of ale and a bed it meant that this establishment was indeed an inn. This was a relief for Maxine but when she saw the door, she noticed that it was smaller than average. Although Charles could fit through with some ease it when it came to Maxine it was a completely different story.

Not only was her body very tall but it was also quite buff as well. This made things such as fitting through this door difficult. She had to duck down and position her body so that she could try and fit her body through the door. This was a task that was much easier said than done, in a way because of this she was also felt jealous of Charles a little. These kinds of things he didn't have to worry about. He took for granted the fact that he could walk through practically any door without issue. Maxine on the other hand couldn't remember the last time she had been able to step through a door without the need to at least duck.

After around a minute of struggling she was finally able to get her large body through the door and with some care she stood up to her full height. One thing that she did like was the fact that she could stand up in this place without her head striking the ceiling. There were a few obstacles though as she noticed that some of the beams hung a little low.

The first sight that greeted the pair were a few people sitting down and drinking ale. It didn't look to be as busy as they had expected but everyone seemed to be having a good time. There was no doubt that the atmosphere was very positive. Also no one seemed to notice Maxine as she walked through, normally people would be staring at her or there would be a dead silence that filled the tavern.

Instead there was nothing as people simply carried on with their drinks as if there was nothing amiss. This was some relief for them and with a few strides they made their way to the bar of the tavern. The Tavern Keeper stood behind it, he was a man of average height with short black hair and what looked to be yellow eyes. This was unusual to say the least and his skin was a pale colour. There was a chance that he was suffering from some kind of ailment but neither of them wanted to mention it.

"Good evening," said the Tavern Keeper. His voice was more polite than both of them had expected. Most tavern keepers normally wanted interactions to be relatively short. This one seemed to enjoy the fact that they were there. "May I help you in anyway?"

"Yes," replied Maxine. "My squire and I require a room for the night, do you have any available?"

"Indeed, we do my dear. Would you like one with a double bed or two singles?" He seemed to be testing the pair to see what kind of relationship that they had.

"If possible, a double and a single. As you can see, I am ill fit for a single bed, if you would be so kind."

"Ah, an unusual request. But I can see what we can do." He smiled at Maxine and it caused a shiver to run through the spine of Charles. There was something about the Tavern Keeper that he couldn't help but feel creeped out about. He didn't want to say anything at that moment in time but it was on his mind.

"Thank you, also we require food and ale. Does your establishment supply those?"

"That it does, please order what you like. You will find our prices to be very reasonable." He then handed over a sheet of paper which looked to be some kind of menu.

Like before there were plenty of words written on it but there were also pictures that represented what they were. There were also numbers right next to them that represented the prices that they were selling for. This was ideal once again and when Maxine took a better look, she saw a few things that she liked.

The first thing that she noticed was that they did sell a pie although at that moment in time she didn't know exactly what kind it was. But what surprised her more was the price of the pie itself; it was only a fraction of the price that she spent at other taverns. Even when looking at the price as well it was also unusually cheap.

This too was noticed by Charles as he looked at the menu as well. Like Maxine he was shocked by the low prices but he couldn't help but feel that it was odd. He had once worked in a tavern and he knew how much such items cost to produce or purchase from the supplier. It seemed almost impossible to sell such items at low prices, he doubted that the Tavern Keeper would break even on these prices and most likely was actually selling them at a loss. This was something that no one would be able to do and keep a tavern like this running at the same time.

Even when he checked the prices for the rooms, they were also unusually low as well. To Maxine this was a good thing, it meant that she would be able to enjoy the food and comforts of the tavern for a much lower price than she expected. She wasn't the type of woman to turn down such good fortune.

It wasn't long before the pair found themselves sitting down at a table. Although it seemed to be too small for the tall, armoured woman it would do for the time being. In her hand she held the largest cup of ale that was available and simply drank it like it was going out of fashion. Charles instead sat there with a cup of water and was looking over a few things in his book. There were a few things that he was writing down but there were too many distractions for him to properly concentrate. This included a group of men singing at a few tables across, neither of them had particularly nice singing voices.

"Are we still in a good place financially?" asked Maxine as she looked over at Charles. She did take another large sip of her ale before placing the cup on the table. To her it almost seemed like she was sitting at a table for a small child.

"Yes, we are ma'am," replied Charles. "In fact, due to the low prices of this tavern we're saving a lot of money."

"That's good, I say that we got lucky coming here. This place is cheaper than any other tavern I've stayed in."

"Yes, I wouldn't be surprised. But still that is something that is confusing me a little." There seemed to be a small amount of worry in his voice.

"Why are you confused? We're getting good ale and at a fraction of the price you pay anywhere else, what's so confusing about that?"

"That's the thing ma'am, I can't see how any tavern could stay afloat when charging these prices. Don't forget that I used to work in a tavern myself and with the prices that we were charging we only made a small profit. That was on what we were charging there, we've these prices I can't see them turning any profit at all. In fact, they would be losing money every single day."

"Or maybe it's being financed by someone else and they're just donating money to us common folks. I've heard that there are some lords that like to sponsor taverns such as this, it's their way of helping people like us out."

"I guess, but I'm still not sure." He was a little worried about this as he saw Maxine continuing to drink the ale. It only took her a few seconds to finish off the cup that she had and she was more than happy to get a refill. "Do you think that maybe you shouldn't drink that much." This got a glare from Maxine which put some amount of fear into the body of her squire.

"What did you say?" Her voice was firm and almost like a parent who was about to tell off a disobedient child.

"Nothing ma'am, I was just talking to myself." He knew that he had to back out of this conversation as he didn't want her to be upset with him. He had seen what she was capable of and although he knew that she wouldn't seriously hurt him he still feared a strong strike from her.

"Good because as you know I am capable of drinking more than any man in Angleland. Besides, while the ale is so cheap, I'm having as many as I can." With that she quickly drank another cup and this would be her third so far. When she was finished, she lifted up her cup and looked over to the Tavern Keeper. "Tavern Keeper, another one please."

It was not too long after that when the food that had been ordered finally arrived as well. It was brought over by a woman who Charles could only describe as stunningly beautiful. Like the Tavern Keeper her skin was pale and her hair was jet black. She looked like the type of woman that would be the centre of attention for men who wanted to find a wife or even just a fling. Her blue eyes met with his eyes and he could help but feel some form of attraction to her. Words couldn't explain what he was feeling and for a few moments it seemed like nothing else mattered to him.

"Charles!" stated Maxine as she slammed her hand on the table with a small amount of force. It wasn't to show aggression or anything like that, it was more to draw his attention to her.

"W-What?" replied Charles with some confusion. He glanced over to Maxine who was still sitting on the far side of the table. She had a few pies in front of her and her focus was entirely on him.

"Your food is going cold, eat it up before I get my hands on it." This was when Charles looked down and did see a plate of food in front of him. He also noticed that the woman who was serving him was gone.

"W-What happened?"

"You've been staring into space for about five minutes, I was beginning to worry that you had lost your senses or something."

"I-I'm sorry ma'am, I don't know what came over me." He was still confused more than anything. He was sure that the woman had been right next to him and that she had been placing their food in front of them. The fact that it had taken place several minutes ago did worry him.

"Don't worry about it, just eat your food and have a drink." She took another drink of her ale but this time she didn't finish it.

"How many have you had ma'am?"

"This is my fifth and if you think I'm drinking too much I advise that you seriously reconsider that line of thinking."

"Of course not, I was just wondering so that I could keep track of how much this visit is costing us. Just so that we don't find ourselves in a difficult financial position by overspending."

"Very well." This was one of the reasons that she was glad that she had Charles around. When she was on her own keeping track of her money turned out to be difficult for her. With him around this was something that she didn't have to worry about. He might not have been as big or physically strong as her but he was just as useful. "Will we still have enough to last us for a while in Flea Bay if I have another pie?"

"Yes, there's room in the budget." He did need to look over what he had written down first before he gave a concrete answer.

"Great, there's also something that I wanted to ask you." By then she had put down her now empty cup.

"And what would that be ma'am?" He was worried that he might have done something wrong and that she was going to berate him.

"I can see that you want to stop me spending money but you're too afraid to tell me. That's why I'm giving you permission to stop me from making any purchases that you think are truly bad ones. If you think I'm making a bad decision and you're too afraid to say then there's no point in you being here."

"Y-Yes ma'am." It was true that there were a few times where he wanted to stop her from making a particular purchase but was too afraid to say anything about it. There was no doubt that Maxine was a very large and intimidating woman, if she wanted to, she could throw him across a room with ease or even crush his skull with her bare hands. Since their time together the trust that they had been one another had increased dramatically but there were still times when he was terrified of Maxine. Now at least he had permission to withhold money from her if he thought that it was necessary.

All the while that they were talking they didn't fully realise that they were being watched. None of the other patrons of the tavern were taking any particular notice of them, they were all singing and dancing with one another quite merrily as like Maxine they too were enjoying the low prices. Many of them didn't even realise that they were quite tipsy after drinking what to them was a relatively small amount.

An additional hour went by and Maxine continued to drink more and more of the ale that was on sale. The Tavern Keeper was more than happy to continually give her more and more ale as long as she paid for them. He was simply amazed with how much she was able to drink, even though she was a very large woman she had drunk enough to kill a man several times over.

On a couple of occasions, he even considered that he might accidentally filled the cups up with water instead of ale. This was a foolish thought as he knew that it was actually ale that had filled the cups and because of this all he could do was continue to watch in amazement as she continued to drink more and more.

There was one thing that Charles did notice and that was the fact that Maxine was beginning to sway a little as she continued to drink. This would be normal for anyone as alcohol did have that effect on people but there was something odd about it all. He had seen her down more alcohol than he thought was humanly possible and still be perfectly fine. Now she was swaying a little and he was sure if he spoke to her that she would probably not be able to speak all that well.

One thing that he didn't notice was that several of the patrons around had fallen unconscious. They were sitting in their seats or slumped across the table, there were even a few who were lying on the ground.

Regardless of this Charles tried to make sense of what was happening to Maxine. He couldn't help but be worried as she continued to drink more and become even more incoherent as she drank even more. This would be normal for any regular person but that was something that just wasn't true for her.

"Ma'am," said Charles. He could see Maxine struggling to keep her balance where she was. It also seemed like she hadn't heard what he had said. "Ma'am." Again, she didn't register what he had said and simply seemed to stagger a little, even though she was sitting down. "Ms Maxine!" This seemed to catch her attention as she looked over to him, even though she had a look in her eye that she was going to fall asleep.

"Oh, there you are Chuck," replied Maxine. She had a smile on her face which was unusual for her to show. "I didn't see you there."

"Chuck?" He had to pause for a moment as he needed to fully register what she had just said. "Did you just call me Chuck?"

"Yeah, I thought that it would be a better name than Charles. What do you think? Maybe I should start calling you that from now on."

"If it's all the same to you I'd prefer the name Charles." He didn't like the name Chuck and the fact that she had called him this only made him feel like she had more than enough ale for one night. "Ma'am, you're looking tired. I think it's best that we call it a day, don't you think so?"

"Bed, but I'm not even that tired." She chuckled for a moment and it seemed like she was acting a little like a child.

"Now, now ma'am. You said yourself that we need to make an early start tonight and I believe that a larger bed has been found out for you."

"Come on, just one more drink?"

"Best not to." He then stood up from his seat and went over to her. He then placed his head underneath her arm and tried to help her stand up. It was only now he realised how fruitless this was as she was much too heavy for him to move by himself. No matter how much he tried he couldn't force the tall, armoured woman to move at all. Rather than being angry at this Maxine simple chuckled again and even smiled down at him.

"Am I too heavy for you?"

"I-I wouldn't say that ma'am." He chuckled but he soon felt her beginning to get up by her own power. Not only that but her large arm was able lift around him and with ease she was able to lift him off his feet. "What are you doing?"

"Well you tried to carry me so I'm going to carry you instead. You're lighter than I thought you'd be. I can't even feel your weight." She found all of this hilarious as Charles struggled a little to escape her grasp. Unfortunately for him this was a fruitless task as she was simply too strong for him.

It was around this time that the Tavern Keeper finally showed up. However rather than instructing Maxine to put her squire down he instead was merely there to take them to their room. Although she didn't like hearing the news, he wasn't able to prepare them a room with a large and small bed. Instead it was merely a large bed but to Maxine this wasn't too important.

The journey to the room was a little embarrassing for Charles as he was carried almost like he was a piece of luggage. But as soon as he was inside of the room he was placed back down onto the ground. He was able to look up at the drunk tall woman who was still staggering, he had never seen her in this state before. Even when she had drunk the same amount of ale that she had done tonight.

Charles wanted to berate her for what she had done but ultimately decided not to risk it. From his time working in a tavern he knew that when it came to interacting with intoxicated people that he would need to tread carefully. They could be cheerful and happy one moment but in the blink of an eye they could turn violent. With the state that she was in Maxine was simply too unpredictable to truly do anything with besides putting her to bed and allowing her to sleep off the effects of the alcohol.

To start this Charles began to help her take her armour off which was a much greater task than it had been before. She wasn't being very helpful and with the sheer weight of the armour it made things difficult for the squire to complete. Each part came off individually and a task that should have only taken close to five minutes now took around half an hour. By then Maxine was down to her normal clothing that she wore beneath the armour. Most of this had to come off as well if she was going to bed.

Normally this was another task that would have been done by Maxine herself. In her state she was unfit to do so which meant that Charles needed to do this as well. Carefully he took off each part of her clothing and a couple of times he accidentally felt the muscle on her body. There was something about it that he couldn't help but notice, although they felt firm there was also a softness to them. They also felt warm and the sheer size of them took his breath away. Even without her height she was still the most muscular woman that he had ever seen. He even doubted that there were any other women in Angleland who had the same amount of muscle as her.

"There we go ma'am," said Charles after the task was finished. By then Maxine was down to her undergarments and was ready for bed.

"Thank you, Chuck," replied the still drunk Maxine. She chuckled again as she lay on the bed. Although it was a double bed it still seemed to be too small for her. Her legs were over the edge of the bed. It was to the point where she could bend her knees and the soles of her feet touched the floor. The bed had also groaned under her weight.

"Now if you don't mind, I'm going to see if the Tavern Keeper can give me some blankets to make my own bed on the floor." He went to walk away but suddenly felt a large hand grab onto his wrist.

"Why do that when you've got a perfectly good bed here." With little effort she was able to pull him towards her and he was pulled into the bed with her. "There we go, you can sleep with Mommy Maxine tonight."

"Ma'am, I'd strongly advise against this." Like before he tried to get out of his predicament but he couldn't escape from her grip.

"Oh don't, let me keep you warm tonight." She giggled again which was completely unlike her. During their time together he had never known her giggle like she had done tonight. "You're safe with me little man."

"Maxine can you please let me go?"

This time Charles didn't get any kind of response from Maxine. Instead all he could hear was loud snoring and when he looked up at her he could see that she was fast asleep. This caught him a little by surprise but he knew that it was best for her to sleep off all the alcohol that she had consumed.

Even so he couldn't help but think that this was all odd. He had seen her consume a huge amount of alcohol in the past and she had never acted like this. If she had been sober, she would most likely be very embarrassed with the way that she acted. Her stern demeanour would view her actions as a complete betrayal of herself.

One thing that Charles did have going for him was the fact that now Maxine was asleep that her grip around him had loosened. But he did have to admit that lying with her like this was very nice, he felt warm in his arms and if he placed his ear on her chest, he would have been able to hear her heartbeat.

With some care Charles began to lift the arms off of him and slowly he moved out of the bed. He did fear that he might wake her up but as he looked at her, he thought that this was likely impossible. Maxine was completely knocked out and she was snoring very loudly, he thought that two knights could have a sword fight right next to her and she would sleep through it.

There was some fear that she might not wake up so he decided to gently grab her wrist and then check her pulse. It seemed a little weaker than normal but still strong enough to make his worry slip away. But as he stepped out of the bed he was faced with a new problem. He could feel nature calling to him and he quickly slipped out of the room so that he could find a suitable toilet.

It didn't take him long before he found what he was looking for and did what needed to be done. It was a relief for him but before he stepped out, he couldn't help but hear a few footsteps coming from outside the door. He thought that it would be fine to simply walk out but something inside of him told him that he should wait for a few minutes as something just didn't seem right.

"They're all asleep," said a voice. Charles recognised this as the voice of the Tavern Keeper. "Good, I was beginning to worry that I hadn't done my job properly."

"It took longer than we expected but it'll do," replied another voice. This one was unfamiliar to Charles but he still listened on. "But shouldn't we keep our voices down, someone could hear."

"Let them, with how much they drank they won't be hearing anything for a good long while. Especially that giant woman, I knew that I had been putting enough stuff in her drink to put her to sleep. But even I'm surprised with how much it took, I swear I must have put enough in her drinks to kill a horse."

"Don't fret about it, it's done now and with everyone asleep it's time to start with what's important. Gather the family and meet me in the basement in half an hour. We'll start gathering our patrons and take them down."

"As you wish."

With that the pair had stepped down a flight of stairs and out of the sight from Charles. Carefully he stepped out of where he was hiding and quickly, he moved towards the room that he was sharing with Maxine. Even though he was moving with haste he also needed to make sure that he didn't make a sound. If his location was discovered then he feared that it might very well cost him his life.

Upon entering the room, he wasn't surprised to see the very tall and muscular woman to still be asleep in bed. Her snores were still very loud and even shook the room a little each time she breathed in. Quickly he went over to her and began to shake her body as much as he could in an attempt to wake her up.

"Maxine," said Charles with some haste in his voice. He did make sure that his voice wasn't too loud as he didn't want anyone outside of the room hearing him. Unfortunately for him his efforts seemed to be for naught as Maxine remained asleep. If anything, she had only begun to snore even louder. "I don't want to do this but..." After taking a deep breath he raised his hand and then slapped her across the face as hard as he could. He knew that if he did this to her normally that he would most likely lose a hand because of it. This effort was a fruitless as the previous one as Maxine remained asleep. "Damn, no good."

It was around this time that Charles realised that he was going to deal with the situation himself. Maxine was down for the count and it seemed like she wasn't going to wake up until she was good and ready. This was very bad for him as whatever nefarious plans that the people running the tavern were would have likely been crushed by her sheer might. With her taken out of the picture he felt like his chances of survival were close to none.

One idea that did pop into his mind was using Maxine's sword as a weapon. These thoughts were dashed when he thought through a few things. On more than one occasion she has tasked him with maintaining her sword and whenever he handled it, he had noticed how heavy it was. Although he didn't want to admit it, he was weaker than the average man but even then, it was extremely difficult to wield. He had seen her use it as if it was just any normal sword, in his mind this was just another indication about just how strong the woman lying in the bed truly was.

Charles knew that until he discovered exactly what was happening, he could decide on his next course of action. This meant leaving the room and Maxine to continue to sleep off the combination of alcohol and sedatives that she had drank. A part of him feared that neither of them would survive the night, this was something that he couldn't dwell on as he stepped out of the room.

Nervousness did begin to overcome him as he knew that his safety net had been taken away. This wasn't the first dangerous situation that he had found himself in since he met Maxine but it would be the first that he would have to deal with all by himself. In the past he knew that whatever trouble came his way that she would be able stop it from harming him. Tonight, wasn't the case as she was completely knocked out. It was likely that she wouldn't wake up until the following morning.

With some care he did step out into the hallway of the tavern and he stood on his tiptoes. This was so that the sound that he made while walking around was minimum but he was also making sure that no one saw him. Thankfully his eyes had adjusted to the darkness, he could see better than he had a few minutes before but he didn't think that it would be too much of a help.

Whatever was happening in this tavern seemed to be taking place mostly in the basement. Right now, that was his best way of finding answers but he also knew that it was the riskiest as well. That was where the people running the tavern were meeting up and whatever unspeakable horrors might happen.

Despite the danger Charles still pushed forward as he made sure to make himself as quiet and hidden as possible. It seemed that his smaller frame was actually an advantage to him, for someone larger than him, moving around quietly and undetected would be difficult if not close to impossible. For him, it was much easier but he did feel like he was still risky. For one was the fact that he didn't have any kind of weapon with him. Even something such as a knife would be better than being completely unarmed. This was something else that he would have to look out for.

Carefully he made his way towards the stairs that went down to the ground floor. There was still some light as he could see some people moving around. That was something that he was expecting but for the entire time he remained quiet and he was able to get himself into a position where he could see what was going on but it was difficult to actually be seen by anyone else.

As he looked down, he could see two men picking up the unconscious bodies of the other patrons that had been drinking there that night. None of them had the same tolerance level as Maxine did to the drug that was used. Because of this it was much easier to knock them out then it was with her.

The men who were carrying the unconscious patrons were not being gentle with them. Not much care was being taken which gave Charles a sense of dread, in his mind it meant that it was unlikely that they would survive the night. If their survival was intended then some care would be taken into their wellbeing. Since there wasn't, it likely meant that their survival was not the intention of these men.

Not only that but the men in question were not speaking to one another at all, they were just picking up the patrons one by one and then taking them through a door. This was where Charles figured the way to the basement was located but to get down there would be dangerous.

He would have wanted nothing more than to simply flee the place and forget all about it. However, he couldn't bring himself to abandon Maxine. She was completely defenceless right now and it would be simple for someone to plunge a dagger into her heart and kill her with ease. This was something that he couldn't allow to happen and he also thought that if the situation was reversed that she would not abandon him either.

Just then one of the men accidentally kicked the leg of one of the tables and stubbed his toe. This caused him to give a shriek of pain and even jump around a little on one leg. Charles could see this right now and if not for the seriousness of the situation he would have likely laughed at this.

"Oh, bloody hell!" shouted the Man who had just stubbed his toe. He was a relatively short man, probably only a little taller than Charles. He did look to be quite muscular as well which helped him to pick up people larger than himself.

"What is it?" replied the Other Man. This man was taller but not as muscular, he looked to be over six feet tall and was having a harder time moving the unconscious patrons from the floor and their seats.

"I stubbed by bloody toe!" His voice was loud and it was obvious that he was still in some pain.

"That's it, grow a pair why don't you?"

"Hey, it bloody hurts! I'd like to see you stay quiet after stubbing your toe you lanky bastard."

"Shut up alright, tonight's a busy night and we need to get our friends downstairs before anything else happens."

"Fine, whatever."

With that the pair continued what they were doing. They were completely unaware that Charles was watching every movement that they made. There was something about this that to him was just odd in many ways. Although this was likely to be a life and death situation there was a bit of a funny side to it as well. In a way it made things seem more normal than they actually were.

On the ground floor Charles did notice some large barrels that he thought were perfect to hide behind. All he did was wait for the two men to go through the door before he quickly moved down the stairs completely and hid behind them. Although he moved quickly, he also made sure that he was as quiet as possible.

Just as he reached them, one of the two men returned but by then he was already out of sight. For both of the men who were picking up the patrons they had yet to spot Charles at all. He would wait until they were gone before getting closer to the door and finding somewhere else to hide. This was difficult for him but he did creep closer and closer towards his destination.

It wasn't long before all of patrons that were unconscious had been taken down into the basement. For both the men they knew that this wasn't all of them, there were a few more upstairs who were asleep. This led them to quickly make their way up the stairs and begin the process all over again.

For Charles this was the opportunity that he had been waiting for. With both of them out of the way for a short time he quickly made his way towards the door. It only took him a few moments to reach it and with some care he began to make his way down the stairs. Even though he was in a small hurry he still wanted to remain as quiet as possible. If he was discovered he'd likely be dead.

The first thing that greeted him as he walked down the stairs was a strong odour that caught him by surprise. It was a foul stench that made him want to throw up anything that was left in his stomach.

It was definitely one of the foulest smells that he had ever experienced and it was enough to even make his eyes water. It also added to his fear about what he was going to find down there. His heartbeat increased with each step that he took and without Maxine watching his back he knew that he was all alone. His fear kept him alert and the hairs on the back of his neck were standing on end. There was no doubt in his mind that something truly horrific was taking place down there.

Step by step Charles walked down the stairs into the basement of the tavern. The smell that had greeted him was not dissipating in the slightest. If anything, the stomach-turning stench was getting stronger with each step that he took. It became so bad that he had to cover his nose and mouth with his hand. It was the only way that he could block the smell and prevent himself from throwing up.

The smell that Charles was encountering was one that he had experienced in the past. It was the smell of rotting flesh and he this would happen if a freshly killed animal such as a cow was left to rot where it was. It was certainly something that was hard for him to forget and he simply kept going down.

Darkness mostly greeted him as he walked down the stairs but he began to see a light as he approached the bottom. This was something that he was going to have to take great care with. There was a good chance that he would be spotted and there was practically nothing that he could do to prevent this from happening. If he went back up it was likely that he would be spotted by the two men who had been bringing the unconscious patrons downstairs. If he kept going down, he would likely be spotted by whoever was down in the basement. With both options being undesirable he was forced to make what to him was the most logical decision. This was to make his way back up the stairs.

Unfortunately for Charles before he could make it back to the top, he could hear the men coming back. The only way for him to make sure that he wasn't caught by them was to quickly make his way down the stairs and into the basement itself. It was the most dangerous place in the entire tavern in his mind but it was the only place where he was likely not to get immediately caught.

More or less as soon as he reached the basement, he dived behind a couple of barrels that were on the ground just a couple of metres away. He didn't even give himself an opportunity to see the basement itself as he knew that he needed to hide. Quickly ducking down it was very difficult to see him in his hiding spot.

As soon as Charles reached his place of relative safety, he felt something on the ground. It had brushed against his foot and at first, he thought that it was simply a box or something. However, much to his horror he saw that it was a human hand, as he looked, he could see that the arm was still attached to it but that was all. There was also the fact that it was a dark brown colour with black splodges all over it. This indicated that the limb was in an advancing state of decomposition.

Charles wanted to do nothing more than to scream in horror but he continued to cover his mouth in order to prevent himself from screaming. If he had done this then he would most likely would have been caught and given the same fate as the unfortunate soul that the arm had belonged to.

It was only then that he began to look at the wall that was just behind him. On the ground were many more discarded body parts in various stages of decomposition. The horror that he was witnessing was more than he could imagine and he was almost too afraid to look over the barrels and see what was taking place. From the sheer number of parts that he was seeing he knew that there were many, many people down there.

Before he could even decide what to do next Charles heard the two men walking down the stairs and they were both carrying more unconscious patrons. This was a dozen that they had brought down now. He couldn't see what was going on but he definitely knew that something very macabre was taking place here.

"Is that all of them?" asked a voice. Charles recognised it as the Tavern Keeper who had served them a short time before.

"Upstairs there is the big one," replied another voice. This time it belonged to the tall man that he had seen before. "Me and Phil tried to bring her down here but she was just too bloody heavy."

"No matter, we can bring her down here. For now, we're with what we have. Is everything else ready?"

"Yes, shall we begin?"

"Of course, we can't keep our lord waiting, bring the first lamb here."

Charles remained where he was and he couldn't help but pop his head up from his hiding spot in order to try and see what was taking place. The first thing that he noticed that there were half a dozen people standing there. For of them he had seen before as they were the Tavern Keeper, the young woman who had brought him his food and the two men that he had seen bringing the taverns down into the basement. The other two people he had not seen before, both of them were women. The first stood right next to the Tavern Keeper and seemed to be close to the same age. If Charles had to guess he would have thought that she was the Tavern Keeper's wife. The other woman was much older, she had to be in her sixties or seventies, she probably a parent of either the husband or wife. From the looks of it this seemed to be a family affair.

Something else that he noticed was the fact that they were all wearing robes. The robes were white in colour with a yellow like symbol on the back. For the moment he couldn't make out exactly what the symbol was but as he focused on it, he could see what it is. It seemed to be some kind of sun symbol. It was not one that he particularly recognised but the entire situation did send a shiver down his spine.

This wasn't the only thing that he noticed as he could see the same symbol on a large piece of cloth that was draped over a nearby wall. The six people were standing before it and there seemed to be a table of some kind on it. The table was made out of wood like any other but there was something odd about it. This was the fact that it was mostly red in colour but it was not paint that had given it it's colour. Instead it was something much more sinister.

Sitting on the table was also a human skull along with several candles that surrounded it. It looked like some kind of religious altar and Charles could piece together what its purpose actually was.

Just then the Tavern Keeper began to speak but the language that he used was one that Charles didn't recognise, nor understand. He had heard a few languages from religion and from around the world but this one was not familiar to him. Instead all he could do was pay attention and see what happened.

For the next few minutes the Tavern Keeper continued to speak in this strange language and every now and again the others would repeat something in that same language. But soon enough they did more than merely mutter. One of the patrons that they had brought down there was suddenly placed on the altar. That was when the Tavern Keeper took out a dagger of some kind.

This didn't seem to be a normal dagger though, its golden hilt gleamed in the candlelight and Charles could see the reflection of the gems that were encrusted on it. It was not a dagger that was meant to be used for combat but instead for ceremonies or show of someone's wealth.

The Tavern Keeper continued to speak in the strange language as the others began to remove the clothing on the patron's upper body. In a few moments his chest was bare but it was around this time that his eyes began to open. The sedatives that he had taken were not substantial enough to keep him out for too long. In his new awoken state, he was at first confused.

"W-Where am I?" asked the Patron. "What's going on?" This was something that the others had not been expecting but it was not an event that was unfamiliar to them. Almost instinctively they began to hold down his arms and legs so that he couldn't move. The unluck Patron tried to force his way out but with his limbs being held down there was nothing that he could do to free himself. He was beginning to panic and this began to peak when he saw the dagger in the hand of the Tavern Keeper. "N-No please! If it's money that you want take everything I have!" His voice was filled with absolute desperation as he knew that he was going to die at any moment. "I'll do anything you want! Please, just don't kill me."

His words were simply ignored as the Tavern Keeper spoke a few more words in the strange language before plunging the dagger right into the heart of the patron. He screamed in pain and agony as blood began to pour out of the wound. These screams were heard by Charles who could do nothing but duck down and turn away from what he had just seen. Although he couldn't see what was happening, he could still hear it.

The Patron's screams of agony lasted for a few moments before he fell silent, never to be heard again. With his death the others continued their chants while Charles remained where he was in absolute fear. Without a shadow of a doubt now he knew that if he was found out that he too would be sacrificed. The fact that he had not been discovered already was a small miracle, if he survived to see another sunrise, he would deem himself to be fortunate.

This was not the only thing on his mind as he could still hear the screams of the patron in his mind. It was a sound that he would never forget for the rest of his days, even after the images of his mother's face had faded away, he would still remember the scream. The horror that he was experiencing was almost more than his mind could process.

Rather than trying to stop what was happening or even trying to escape Charles found himself just sitting behind these barrels and simply waiting. He was too scared to even move as he thought that he would be spotted. Without Maxine to protect him he would stand little chance against the group and he imagined himself being the one sacrificed. It was unlikely that anyone would know what happened to him and his name would fade away from history without much of a presence.

Over the next few minutes each patron was placed on the altar and then ritually sacrificed. None of them woke up during the ritual and thus there were no screams of agony, no resistance and no realisation to what was going on. Instead to them it was simply like they had fallen asleep and were to never wake up.

All this time Charles remained where he was. Even though he was afraid he knew that he had to do something to save his own skin and the life of Maxine. He felt ashamed over the fact that he had let the other patrons die while he had sat there and done nothing. But the truth was that there was nothing that he could have done. If he attempted anything, he would have suffered the same fate. He was currently unarmed and he didn't have a nine-foot woman protecting him.

There was even a small thought in his head about simply fleeing this place and leaving Maxine to her fate. However, the more that he thought about it the more that he realised that he couldn't do that. She would risk her own life to save his and if he wasn't willing to do the same, he couldn't call himself her squire or even her friend.

With all this death surrounding him he knew that he couldn't remain where he was, he needed to make his way back upstairs and to Maxine. She was likely still asleep but he still thought that she was his best chance of survival. He wasn't sure how but he knew that he needed to somehow wake her up.

In his mind he imagined her being able to defeat the group with only her bare hands. However, this was only a fantasy as he was also using it to try and distract himself from the horror that he had seen and what was going on around him. There was even the slightest hope that everything that he was experiencing was simply a bad dream and that he was moments away from waking up.

No matter how much he wished this to happen he knew that this was all real and no amount of wishful thinking would make the situation any better. He knew that he had to make his way back to Maxine. But at this moment in time he couldn't see an opportunity to do so. All he could see was horror and it shook him to his very core.

"Is that the last of them?" asked the Old Woman. By then they had sacrificed the last of the victims that had been taken.

"No," replied the Tavern Keeper. "That giant woman is still upstairs; we need to bring her down here so that she can be freed of her vessel." The way that he said this made Charles's blood run cold. He knew exactly who they were taking about and he knew that she was defenceless.

"Wait father," stated the Younger Woman. "There is another as well, remember she had someone else with her."

"That's right." He scratched his chin for a moment as he couldn't believe that he had forgotten someone. "She had someone else with her as well." He then looked over to the taller man who had been brought the patrons down. "Lenny, did you see a young man with the giant woman?"

"No," replied Lenny. He was in a small state of panic as he realised what this could mean. "She was alone up there, no one else was in the room."

"Then find him before he escapes! If he alerts anyone then we'll all be swinging before long. You made sure that doors were locked, didn't you?"

"Yes, they're all locked up."

"Then he couldn't have gotten out. We need to find him now!"

All five of them knew what it would mean if word had gotten out about what they were doing. In their minds their actions had been completely justified and should go unpunished. However, they knew that the wider population didn't see this and that they would be executed for the countless sacrifices that they had made. Because of this they needed to find Charles as soon as they could.

They didn't realise that he was actually closer than they realised as he was still hiding away in the basement. His heart rate had increased when he realised that they were now looking for him. This would make things more difficult but he knew that he had to do something. From the sounds of it he was unfortunately trapped inside the tavern so he wouldn't be able to escape.

One by one he saw the group leaving the basement. They had all been assigned different parts of the tavern to search. None of them had considered that he was inside of the basement, although he just wanted to get out of there. No sooner had they all gone he quickly made his way up the stairs again.

This went quite well as there was nothing opposing him. But as soon as he reached the tavern itself, he quickly ducked underneath a table as he saw someone approaching. They had not spotted him but he watched as their feet walked by him. He was sure not to make a single sound as anything like that could give away his location. Instead he remained where he was for as long as he could until he thought that it was safe to move on.

This took a few minutes as he could see the person walking around. They were looking around a lot and it was obvious that he would eventually look underneath the table and spot Charles. Because of this he knew that he needed to move, but there was another problem that he was facing.

Even if he tried to move away, he knew that he would eventually get spotted. There was no choice in the matter, he needed to incapacitate whoever it was that was trying to find him. Unfortunately, he possessed no weapons and didn't have the strength or skill to take down anyone with his bare hands. He needed a weapon of some kind and when he looked over to his left, he noticed something that he thought would be helpful.

Just a short distance away was a stool that had been used earlier by a now deceased patron. In his mind he knew what he needed to do but there was much doubt that overtook him. Never had he forcefully tried to harm someone in such a way but in this situation, it was either that or be killed himself. A great sense of self-preservation overtook him as he looked over to the person that was trying to find him.

When Charles was able to take a good look, he could spot the shorter man that had carried the patrons down to the basement a short while ago. For the moment he had his back to where Charles was hiding. Quickly he got out of his hiding spot and picked up the stool that was sitting close by. With haste he darted towards the man and before he even had a chance to turn around and see what was happening, he was struck on the head with enough force to send him down to the ground.

Charles stood there for a moment as he couldn't believe what he had just done. The short man was lying on the ground and wasn't moving. Blood began to spill onto the ground and he wasn't sure whether the man was still alive or dead. One thing that he was sure about was the fact that the man was seriously injured and he was the one who was responsible for this.

Before he could consider more about what had happened, he heard a small commotion as it seemed that the sound of his attack had been heard. Because of this Charles knew that he needed to make himself scarce. Without too much of a thought he quickly darted up the second set of stairs that led up to where the guest rooms were and where Maxine was most likely still asleep.

Through some luck he didn't run into anybody who was trying to pursue him. However, one thing that he kept in mind was that his adversaries had dwindled. Before he had to worry about five of them, now there were only four. One of them included an old woman that he didn't think would be too great of a threat.

It only took him a few moments to find the room that he and Maxine had been sharing and without much surprise he found the giant woman still sleeping in the bed. One thing that had changed was the fact that the quilt that had been covering most of her body had been removed. Charles figured that this was when their hosts had tried to move her but failed. A small part of him did want to try and wake her once again but he knew that this wouldn't work. Instead all he could do put the quilt on her so that at least she wasn't cold while she was sleeping.

Charles did look over to Maxine's sword and once again he thought that it would be ideal as an offensive weapon. He knew just how sharp it as and how easily it could cut through a person, however the same problem remained. This was the fact that it was much too heavy for him to wield and it was longer than he was tall.

This seemed like a problem that he simply couldn't overcome but as he looked over to her armour, he noticed something. There was a second blade attached to it and quickly Charles moved over to it. He grabbed onto it and took it out of its holder, as he looked at it, he could see that there was some dried blood on the blade.

It took him a moment to realise that this was Maxine's hunting knife. Rather than using this blade as a weapon it had been instead used to skin animals that she had killed before she had cooked them. The blade itself was relatively large in comparison to Charles but it was still small enough for him to wield. It was also sharp enough to cause problems to anyone who found themselves on the wrong end of it. He realised that he had found the perfect weapon to protect himself until Maxine finally woke up. Unfortunately, in her current state it was unlikely that she would be waking up any time soon.

Just as Charles was thinking that things were going his way, he suddenly heard something that caused him to quickly pause. There were the sound of footsteps in the corridor just on the other side of the door. He had ensured not to make a sound but he knew that this was an obvious place for his pursuers to look.

The footsteps were coming closer towards the door and panic began to overtake him. The blade was still in his hand and he was shaking with fear. Eventually he heard the footsteps suddenly stop right in front of the door. The handle began to turn and Charles knew what he had to do.

With his eyes closed he began to run towards whoever was opening the door. He gave a shout as he ran and within moments, he felt the knife break its way through bone and into the flesh that it was protecting. This was around the time that he opened his eyes and he saw the old woman who he had seen down in the basement.

Her face was that of terror as she felt the blood pouring out of her wound and she fell to the ground. Charles could only look on in horror over what he had done, never in his wildest dreams did he ever think that he was going to take another life. However, it was happening right now and the knowledge of what he had done was almost too much for his mind to take. He backed away as the Old Woman continued to bleed out until finally her life had disappeared from her body.

In his mind Charles was trying to come to terms with what he had done. He kept trying to convince himself that he did the right thing. If she had spotted him and alerted the others he would be taken down to the basement and sacrificed just like their other victims. There was no doubt in his mind that she was responsible for the deaths of many people.

Despite these thoughts Charles felt nothing but pity for her and sorrow over what he had done. Her blood was still on his hands when he looked down on them and this only made him realise that there was no turning back from what had happened. Now he was a killer and it was something that would last with him for the rest of his life.

Even as he looked down at the now lifeless body of the old woman, he knew that he still needed the knife in order to defend himself. With a small amount of haste, he grabbed onto the knife and pulled it from the wound that had ultimately killed his enemy. The odds were still stacked against him, but whether he survived or not there was one thing that was certain, he would never be the same again.

Despite the fact that Charles had just taken the life of another it was something that he couldn't dwell on for too long. He still needed to ensure that he and Maxine both survived this ordeal. Thanks to the alcohol laced with sedatives she was out for the count and it was highly doubtful that she would be able to help him. He did feel a great amount of fear as he held the still bloodied knife in his hands.

As he looked at it, he couldn't help but see it shaking. His hand couldn't be steady as fear had completely taken over his body. If not for the fact that he needed to stay quiet he was sure that he would have screamed out in anguish.

Charles couldn't help but turn and look at the sleeping Maxine. She was completely oblivious to what was taking place and she seemed to be sleeping quite peacefully. He knew that if she was awake, she would be able to take down these people down with ease. Even without her sword she would still be more than a match for them. Unfortunately, she was still sound asleep and thus would be no help to him whatsoever. He was on his own and he didn't like it.

Just then Charles began to hear a couple of voices. It seemed that the commotion that had taken place had attracted some attention. He knew that he couldn't stay there and needed to find somewhere else to hide. There was the thought about Maxine being safe where she was, she was completely defenceless and if they wanted to sacrifice her then she could do little to stop this.

One thought that did appear in Charles's head was the fact that he thought it was unlikely that they would kill her. Since it was obvious that this was a ritual sacrifice then simply killing her in her bed like this wouldn't suffice. Like the other patrons they would be taken down to the basement and sacrificed at the altar. Because of this he thought that she was relatively safe, as he had heard earlier, she was too big for them to carry down there and with only three remaining it was becoming less likely.

Even though he was still scared he had to quickly move out of the room before anyone came up to him. Instead he found his way into another room that was just across the corridor. Every movement and action that he did was done in silence as he knew that he couldn't give his position away at all.

No sooner had he closed the door of the room he heard two people arriving. Charles couldn't see them at all since he had closed the door but he could hear them. The first thing he heard was a gasp of shock and he knew what had happened, guilt did overtake him but he still knew that what he did had to be done.

"M-Mother," said a Voice. Charles recognised it as the voice of the Tavern Keeper. "Mother, get up." Although he couldn't see what was happening, he imagined that the Tavern Keeper was cradling the dead body of his mother in his arms.

"I'm sorry Cornelius but she's gone," replied another voice. This one belonged to the Tall Man and Charles imagined him placing his hand on Cornelius's shoulder in an attempt to comfort him.

"There has to be something that we can do! We have supplies downstairs, we can still help her."

"There's nothing that we can do for her, she is now with Lord Xinus." This name did ring a couple of bells in Charles's mind. He remembered hearing stories of this being in what seemed to be fairy tale like. It was supposed to be a being of unbelievable power and destruction. It was the kind of being that parents would tell their children about in order to make them behave. He had heard there was an entire religion based on this being but he thought that it was simply a story shared between people who had drank too much ale. Unfortunately, it seemed like it was true.

"I'm going to find that bastard and sacrifice him!" There was a sharpness to his words and it was quite unsettling for Charles to hear.

"Don't worry, we'll find him. The more we search the less places that he has to hide."

A few more words were exchanged between the pair but they continued their search. They had wanted to take the Old Woman's body away but they wanted to find Charles more than ever now. He was in a room that he had never been in before and because of this he didn't know exactly where he was going to hide.

To stay there and simply hope that he wouldn't be spotted was nothing more than fool's dream. Because of this he began to make his way underneath the nearby bed with his eyes facing the door. It was a pretty obvious hiding space but it was one that at least allowed to see anyone coming through the door.

It was only a few minutes after he made his way underneath the bed that he saw the door suddenly swing open. The room was then bathed in candle light as the two men entered, Charles couldn't see them properly but he could see their feet. They were looking in the room but for the moment were not looking underneath the bed.

Although he was terrified, he still made sure that he remained as quiet as he possibly could. If they caught him now it would be the end of his life. Maxine would likely be next and no one would even know what happened to them.

They were looking all around the room and even checked inside of a cupboard that was close by. For now, they found no sign of Charles and they were about to move onto the next room. However, one of them realised that they hadn't checked underneath the bed yet. This was mentioned and when Charles heard it, he knew that he was more than certain going to be caught.

Before they could check they heard heavy footsteps and some creaking noises. These were too great for them to ignore and they quickly turned and investigate the source of the noise. They even thought that it was Charles walking around but when they discovered the source of the sound, they realised it was someone much bigger.

Much to their surprise and horror they could see that Maxine had gotten out of bed and was walking around. She had been able to squeeze her large body through the door and when the two men saw her, they froze in fear. Standing at her full height her head was pressing against the ceiling and her muscular frame made her seem like an immovable object. They even thought that she was going to put an end to their current plans.

Although she was looking directly at them, she didn't register that they were there. She had even stepped over the dead body of the Old Woman and hadn't noticed her either. This made Cornelius think for a moment and he lifted the candle up that they had been using as a light source. His arm needed to stretch up a fair amount but as he waved it in Maxine's face, he saw no reaction from her whatsoever. The only thing that he could conclude was the fact that she was sleepwalking.

"What the hell is happening here?" asked Cornelius. He wasn't sure if this was something to be worried about or to be counted as a blessing.

"She seems to be sleepwalking," replied the Tall Man. Although he was quite tall in comparison to Maxine, he was small and frail. She was still only wearing her underwear and was even walking around barefoot.

"I can see that but why is she sleepwalking?"

"Well, you know the sedative that we use to knock the sacrifices out? Well there is also a small chance that it can cause sleepwalking. Normally we've sacrificed them before this has happened."

"Damn, of all the things to happen..." He was about to get angry but then he realised that this was actually a good thing. A small smile appeared on his face as an idea popped into his head. "Wait a minute, if she's sleepwalking it means we can take her down to the basement without needing to carry her."

"Oh, that's good then, she weighs a literal ton."

"I'll take her down to the basement, you continue looking for that bastard. If you see Amanda tell her to come down to the basement as well. When you find him, maybe break a few bones but I want him alive. He needs to see his friend here getting sacrificed. He'll see what it's like to lose someone he cares about."

"What about your mother? We shouldn't leave her there."

"For now, she can remain where she is. She knew how important our work is here. At least now she is with our lord." He then extended his hand and gently grabbed onto the much larger hand of Maxine. He couldn't help but feel quite small in comparison to her, if he wasn't looking at her right now, he wouldn't believe that anyone could get as large as her. Especially a woman. "Come along now, you need to come with me."

Normally Maxine would have resisted this and likely even lifted him up and threw him to one side. However, in her restricted mind she couldn't help but go along with what he wanted. It only took one small tug from his hand for her to start following him. She didn't even register that she wasn't wearing her armour or carrying a sword. These were two things that she would never do without while on the road but now she found herself being led to a place of horror by a man who didn't intend for her to walk out alive.

All of this had been heard by Charles who was still hiding underneath the bed of the room. He hadn't been able to see what was going on but he could hear it clearly, it caused his fear to skyrocket as now he knew that there was a lot on the line now. Beforehand he had taken comfort in the knowledge that Maxine would be safely asleep in her bed. Now she was being taken down to the basement and he knew what lay down there. The thought of going back into that hellscape terrified him more than he thought was possible. It was taking a lot of willpower to prevent himself from accidentally urinating.

There was at least one good thing going for him, this was the fact that Cornelius was giving up the search for him for the time being at least. This meant that he only had to worry about the tall man for now, there was another name that he had heard as well. This was Amanda and assuming based on the people he had seen he thought that she was the young woman who had served him earlier that night.

From what Charles could remember, she was a stunningly beautiful woman. It was hard for him to imagine at that time that she was part of some kind of cult that encouraged human sacrifices. It was likely that she would use her beauty to lead unsuspecting men to their doom. If there was a woman as beautiful as her hitting on him, he would likely react the same as many other men would.

Now he had another problem as he knew that he had to save Maxine but with everything that was happening he had to ensure his own safety as well. He would be no good to her if he was killed as well. Carefully he crawled out from underneath the bed and continued to hold a firm grip on the knife. There was still blood on the blade from where he had stabbed the old woman only a few minutes before.

The door to the room was wide open but there was a decent space between the wall and the door. This allowed Charles to be able to stand behind it and as silently as he could he moved into position. There were two things in particular that he could hear, the first was the beating on his own heart in his chest and the second was the footsteps of the Tall Man.

Fear had more or less overtook his body but in his mind, this was a good thing. It caused his senses to increase and he took notice of every small detail around him. If he was going to survive then he would need every small advantage that he had. These people knew this tavern better than he ever could, this was one thing that was going against him. He had to use his own intelligence to ensure that he saw another sunrise.

Just then he heard the footsteps of the Tall Man beginning to enter into the room that he was hiding inside. This caused him to take a few silent deep breaths before he waited for the best time to strike. Several scenarios were going over in his mind and none of them ended particularly well. A few did involve him surviving but at a cost that he didn't really want to think about.

With a quick motion Charles pushed the door as hard as he could and it quickly swung and struck the Tall Man who was entering the room. The suddenness of it had caught him by surprise as the door struck him square in the face and caused him to stagger back by several feet.

It was around this time that Charles quickly came out of hiding and attempted to attack while his enemy was dazed. He didn't lunge with the knife but still kept it in hand, after what had happened, he preferred not kill anyone else. The memories of what had happened a few minutes before were still fresh in his mind.

Much to his horror however he felt the Tall Man's large hand grab onto his wrist before he could land a proper strike. In an instant it seemed like his plans of surviving had completely disappeared as he saw the smile on the Tall Man's face. It seemed like he was glad that he was happy with what was happening. Also, he was surprisingly strong for his lanky frame, his grip was too strong for Charles to break free from.

"There you are you bastard," stated the Tall Man with a small amount of glee in his voice. His grip around Charles's wrist grew tighter to the point where it was causing the smaller man some pain.

"Hey!" replied Charles with some determination. "Let me go!" He was still holding the knife but before he could use it, he felt his other wrist get grabbed onto as well. This left him more or less helpless.

"You're going to pay for killing Mary-Ann. Your soul will be sent to our lord to suffer from now until the end of time!"

Charles knew that if he didn't do something here and now, he was going to die just like the other patrons had done a short time before. The images of them being sacrificed replayed in his mind over and over again. Their death cries would likely haunt him for the rest of his days and he tried to think of a way out of the situation. There was one idea that did pop into his head and although there was a low chance of success it was still better than no chance whatsoever.

Quickly Charles leapt up into the air while his wrists were still being held onto. His feet placed onto the wall that was behind him and using all of his strength he pushed himself forward. His complete bodyweight was pushed forward into the Tall Man's body. Once again this caught him by surprise and he fell back with Charles landing on top of him.

The Tall Man began to cry out in pain as he impacted the ground. It seemed that the pain that he was experiencing was greater than the impact had warranted. Charles looked down and saw the source of the Tall Man's pain and this was the sight of Maxine's hunting knife that was now sticking into the Tall Man's chest.

It had gone into his chest so far that it was close to impossible to see the blade. Instead all that could be seen was the handle of the knife. Blood was seeping out of the wound and almost through instinct the Tall Man began to pull it out. Charles attempted to stop him as he knew what was about to happen next. Unfortunately, he was too slow and the blade was pulled out of the Tall Man's chest.

This caused the bleeding to suddenly speed up as the now gaping wound was exposed. Charles pressed down onto the wound but it was too late, it was too much for the Tall Man's body to take and he felt his own life fading away. He had been responsible for the deaths of a lot of people, now that it was his turn all he could think about was his own childhood and how happy he had been back then. The last thing he thought about was the face of his own mother before the life inside of his body disappeared and his time in this world came to a screeching halt.

In horror Charles quickly got back up to his feet and stepped back as he saw the lifeless body of the Tall Man lying in front of him. With no words spoken he covered his mouth as he realised that he was responsible for the death of another person. This was the second that he was completely sure about but there was one that was a possibility. Despite this he was still horrified by what had happened.

Over and over again he replayed the memories in his mind and he thought that things would have gone differently. Unfortunately for him it had played out more or less like before and this upset him greatly. He knew that Maxine had killed before as he had washed blood off of her sword on more than one occasion. In his mind he couldn't believe that she showed no guilt towards those that she had killed. It was the same with practically every other knight, the vast majority of them had killed at least one person.

Rather than giving him a sense of power or pride it instead made Charles feel dirty inside. More and more he wanted to throw away the hunting knife and continue on without it. However, he knew that if he wanted to get out of this place with Maxine and their lives then he would need to take it with him. With some reluctance he squatted down and picked up the knife that had fallen onto the ground after the Tall Man had foolishly taken it out of his wound. It was covered by blood and as Charles touched it, he could feel that the blood was still warm, much to his horror.

"So, this is where you've been hiding," said a female voice. This was spoken right after Charles had picked up the knife. As he turned, he could see the young woman who had served him earlier. She smiled at him and she stepped closer he could see her pearly white teeth and beautiful features. It was hard to believe that someone with her beauty could be involved with something like this.

"Stay back!" replied Charles in what he thought would be an intimidating voice. However, it was laughably off. "I'm warning you!"

"Now calm down, I'm not going to hurt you." Her voice was warm and soothing. It seemed strike certain parts of his mind that made him feel calmer. He was still very much on edge but he couldn't help but feel a little calmer with everything.

"I said stay back!" He lifted the knife in an attempt to make her back away. Instead she continued to walk towards him with the smile still on his face. He looked into her stunning eyes and when she reached him her hand came into contact with his arm. The softness of her skin was evident and with a gentle pull she was able to force him to lower his hand but he still kept a hold of the knife.

"It's alright, you're in no danger." Her smile continued and she looked down at the body of the Tall Man. Rather than looking at him with hear she instead chuckled for a moment before looking back at him. "You actually killed Mickey; I must admit that's quite impressive for someone like you."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Well, when I first saw you, I thought that you were some kind of hopeless wimp who would hide under the skirt of that giant woman. But now I see that I was wrong, you actually have backbone after all. Mickey threatened your life and you killed him, that takes more guts than some men would have."

"I-I guess it does." Although he was still on edge, he couldn't help but feel more and more relaxed. He knew that he was in a life or death situation but he couldn't help but feel like things were not as bad as they seemed. The young woman's appearance and demeanour had a soothing effect on him. But when he thought about Maxine, he couldn't help but step back for a moment. "I-I have to help Maxine, she's in danger."

"Oh, forget about her, she's a big girl. She can look after herself. But me, there's something that I need from you." Her voice was very seductive and Charles could see what she was trying to do. However, a part of him didn't seem to mind, he was beginning to feel relaxed and almost trustworthy towards her.

"No!" He took a firm step back as he thought about Maxine. It seemed to snap him out of any trance that he was under. He was still afraid but now he was more determined than he was before. "You're trying to seduce me."

"Now why would I do something like that?" She smiled again and he could see that her teeth were not only pearly white but also completely straight. "I mean, if anything you're the one seducing me." She chuckled gleefully for a moment and Charles would admit that it sounded cute if it was under any other circumstance.

"I sincerely doubt that." He then began to walk forwards but it seemed like the young woman was blocking his way. "Now step aside, I need to help my friend."

"Oh, you're not going anywhere." She then placed her hand on his shoulder and pushed him back with more force than he was expecting. It caused him to take several steps back and he was more surprised than anything else.

Somewhat dumbfounded by what had happened Charles did try to step forward again but this time he felt a sudden blunt pain in his midsection. It caused him to step back even further and even drop the hunting knife that he was carrying. The wind had been knocked out of him and he wheezed as he attempted to get his breath back.

It took him a moment to realise that the woman had just struck him in the midsection with both speed and power. He had been unable to defend himself against her and he watched as she stepped towards him. Her smile was still there but somehow it had a different meaning, like it was a sinister smile. This was when Charles began to truly realise that this wasn't some ordinary woman that he was dealing with. There was something abnormal about her and he felt that this was going to be a difficult battle.

Charles found his back against the wall as he could see the young woman standing before him. Although her smile looked to be pleasant, he knew that there was something much more sinister behind it. For anyone else watching it would difficult to believe that she was a part of a cult that willingly sacrificed the lives of others to appease their god.

It was also obvious to him that this woman was not the delicate being that she appeared to be. On a couple of occasions, he had tried to move away from her but each time she was able to get in front of him and even strike him to keep him where he was. The strikes had not been too painful and were more intended to keep him in place. She could seriously hurt him if she wished but for now that didn't seem to be the case.

"What are you?" asked Charles as he looked in some terror. He was still wielding the hunting knife that he had borrowed from Maxine but somehow, he didn't think that it would help in this situation.

"I'm just someone who is doing what they must for Lord Xinus," replied the young woman. Her voice was seductive but there was something else underneath it, something that many would consider to be evil.

"But why, what's the point in killing so many innocent people. Surely no god could call for such sacrifice." He could still feel his heartbeat and it seemed to be increasing, a cold sweat ran down his brow as he thought about his options. There didn't seem to be too many in front of him that would lead to a truly positive end.

"It is not my place to question the wishes of Lord Xinus, only to serve." She took a few steps forward and Charles discovered that he could step back no further. His back was already against the wall. "Father wants you downstairs with the others so that you can watch that big bitch of yours be sacrificed first. I must say that she is bigger than I thought any maiden could get. But then again, that just means that there is more of her to sacrifice. It would probably be the most useful thing that she could do."

Charles remained quiet as he continued to weigh his options. All routes of escape seemed to be blocked off to him. The only way that he was going to get out of there alive was to go through the Young Woman but already he knew that this was much harder than it actually looked.

His grip on the knife tightened as he contemplated about his next move. There was an idea to use the knife against her but unfortunately that meant that he would likely kill her. He had already taken at least two lives and some would think that taking another in this situation wasn't going to make a different. This was not how he thought though, more and more he hoped that he would never have to take another life again. Unfortunately, it seemed that no matter which way he looked it was something that was likely to happen.

Instead of resorting to the knife Charles instead attempted what for him was a powerful kick that was targeted squarely at the chest of the Young Woman. However, much to his horror he saw her easily block the kick and with a sick smile on her face she twisted his leg. It was not quick enough to break his leg but instead did send him crashing down to the ground below. There was some pain from his leg but not enough to cause him any serious harm.

In the fall Charles also dropped his knife but this didn't seem to matter as he saw the foot of the Young Woman come crashing down towards him. Thinking quickly, he was able to roll out of the way and get up to his feet. Rather than being angry about this she seemed to chuckle as she enjoyed what was taking place.

Now that he was up to his feet Charles attempted a combination of punches but he was surprised to see that the Young Woman either dodged or blocked every single one of his blows. This surprised him greatly but nothing more than a sudden impact into his midsection as he felt himself getting punched again. He had only just caught his breath after last time but now it had been knocked out all over again.

"H-How are you so strong?" asked Charles as he couldn't believe what was taking place. He was struggling to catch his breath and he could see the Young Woman standing over him with the same smile on her face.

"Well a gal has to know how to look out for herself," replied the Young Woman. "When you have several men trying to touch you in, let's say uncomfortable parts, you have to show them your disapproval. And it's also helpful with dealing with sacrifices who are unwilling to do what needs to be done."

"I-I'm not going to die," replied Charles who slowly stood up to his feet. He knew that the Young Woman could easily finish him off in his weakened state but she seemed to be enjoying the pain that she was causing. He couldn't help but feel a little hopeless as his mind tried to think of a way out of the situation. "I'm only going to die when I'm a hundred and surrounded by my loved ones."

"We all have dreams, unfortunately not many of them come true." She watched as Charles attempted to dart forward, this time it wasn't to attack but instead to get away from her. His actions only led to a strong kick and an uppercut that once again sent him flying to the ground. "Why don't you just accept your fate? No matter how many times you get back up, I'll just knock you down again. If you come quietly, maybe father will allow your sacrifice to be quick and painless."

"I-I'm not done yet." He held onto his side where he could feel some pain. With everything that was on the line he knew that he couldn't give up. His hands were on the ground and when he looked a little to his left, he could see hunting knife that he had dropped. For the moment it seemed like she hadn't noticed this either.

"Oh, give up already, out of all the men I've put down I can say without a shadow of a doubt that you are the weakest and most pathetic out of all of them. Seriously if I was you, I'd give up, you're only making this worse for yourself. I don't want to start breaking any bones, but I might have to. Or I might do it just for the fun of it."

By then she had taken a few steps towards Charles and from what he could see she looked to be very confident. This did make him nervous but it was also something that he was hoping to happen. She seemed overconfident and this often led to mistakes. Subtly he reached for the knife and was able to grab onto it.

Just as the Young Woman stepped close enough to Charles, he closed his eyes and with as much speed as could muster, he slashed the knife up. He expected the knife to be knocked out of his hand but instead he felt it strike something. Mere moments after that he heard her screaming in agony.

When he opened his eyes, he could see that the Young Woman was screaming and staggering back. Her hands were on her face and she continued to scream, when he looked at his blade, he could see that there was fresh blood on it.

"My face!" shouted the Young Woman in both agony and anger. "You've destroyed my beautiful face!"

Charles could see blood coming through the fingers of the Young Woman but as she continued to stagger back, she was stepping perilously close to the top of the stairs. Knowing that this was now or never he quickly got up to his feet and darted forward. She was still in agony and could do nothing to stop him as he tackled her.

This sent them both flying down the stairs as Charles could feel pain every time that he struck the stairs. The fall only lasted for a few seconds but to him it was like he was falling down a mountain. He felt the impact of each step and he even heard a couple of relatively quiet cracking sounds. This was soon followed by a much louder crack which sounded like a bone snapping.

With a loud thud both Charles and the Young Woman landed at the bottom of the stairs. The first thing that he felt was pain in his side and as he moved his hand down there to investigate, he felt an even greater pain. It seemed obvious to him now that he had broken one of his ribs and it made it difficult for him to breathe. There was other pain around his body that he could feel but there didn't seem to be any broken bones.

As he turned his head, he saw the Young Woman looking directly at her. This caused him to shunt his body quickly as he feared that she would get up and strike him again. However, she didn't move at all, this caused him some confusion as he looked at her, it was the first time that he could see the damage that had been caused by his slash earlier. There was a large cut on the right side of her face that had even sliced her eye. It looked quite disgusting but he also saw that the way that she lay her head was in an unusual angle. It seemed like the fall had broken her neck and subsequently killed her.

Charles realised that this was another death on his conscience but for the time being he pushed it to the back on his mind. Instead he slowly rose back up to his feet and began to stagger forwards. He had picked up a minor injury to his leg and although it would likely heal quickly for the time being it made it difficult for him to walk. Normally he would have stopped so that he could give his body the time that it needed to heal.

Instead he began to step forward with the hunting knife in his hand. He had fallen into the main tavern where he and so many others were enjoying the food and drink on offer. It was hard for him to believe that almost everyone there was dead.

This wasn't the only thing that was on Charles's mind, he was making his way to the other set of stairs that led down to the basement. He clearly remembered the horrors that were down there and he stumbled along as best as he could. His common sense was telling him to turn around and leave this place and never think about it again. However, he knew that was where Maxine was being kept and that she was at the mercy of Cornelius.

More than ever he hoped that the drugs that were keeping her in the state that she was in would wear out and she would come to her senses. Then she would be more than capable of looking after herself, until then she was defenceless.

It took Charles much longer than he would have liked to reach the staircase that led down into the basement. He had to grab onto the banister in order to walk down them. Each step that he took caused him great discomfort. Adding to his broken rib it was obvious that he was in a bad way.

His descent had not gone unnoticed as this time he couldn't stay quiet. It was picked up by Cornelius who saw the relatively small man reach the bottom of the stairs. Along the way his nose had been greeted with the scent of death and decay. But what he saw next did shock him a fair amount. He saw the still mentally incapacitated Maxine sitting down on the ground with Cornelius standing over her.

The sacrificial dagger that he had used to murder countless people was right onto the neck of the large muscular woman. If she had been standing up, he didn't have a hope of reaching the neck of a nine-foot woman, instead by sitting on the ground he was more than capable of reaching her neck. A smile was on his face as he saw Charles approaching and from the looks of his injuries, he didn't think that he would be a great threat.

"Stop right there!" demanded Cornelius. He made sure that the blade of the dagger was right on Maxine's neck. He didn't place enough pressure onto the dagger to slice her but enough to prove that he was willing to do so. "Take another step and I'll make sure this big bitch bleeds like a pig."

"This madness ends here," replied Charles. After everything that had happened, he knew that he couldn't shrink away like he had before. Instead he knew that in order to save Maxine he had to stand his ground.

"What madness? All I see are sacrifices to a higher being, you're just too narrow minded to see it. Everything that we've done is for our Lord Xinus, he will greatly reward us for our deeds."

"You've killed countless people for some made up god?"

"HE'S NOT MADE UP!!!!" Cornelius's voice was loud and Charles for a moment thought that the madman would slit Maxine's throat. Thankfully he did no such thing, at least for the time being. "Lord Xinus cares deeply about his followers and needs all the sacrifices that he can to enter our world. When he arrives, all will bow to him and those that follow him will become a god amongst insects."

"Is that what you've been told?" He lowered the volume of his voice and tried to sound understanding. Although he was afraid, he knew that he had to do what he could to ensure the safety of Maxine.

"It's what I know, everything that I have done has been to further the return of Lord Xinus. Every sacrifice, every ale that I've poured has been to his benefit. But sacrificing you will be a pleasure. You killed my friend and my mother. Since you haven't captured, I'm assuming that you killed my other friend and daughter." Even though he was supposed to feel very angry and upset about this, for the moment he couldn't help but feel calm. Although he was sure that they were all dead, he knew that they were with their god and thus much happier than they were on this mortal plain.

"I-I." Charles didn't know what to say. He thought that if he confirmed this fact that it would lead to Maxine losing her life. This was something that he couldn't allow but he knew that he had to give some kind of answer. He looked at Maxine as well and he couldn't help but find her expression unnerving. Her eyes were wide open and she was barely blinking, there was no emotion on her face and it was obvious that although she was seemingly awake that there wasn't much brain activity going on.

"Don't answer that. Instead I'm giving you an option. It's obvious to me that you're more than you seem. Your silence has confirmed that you've killed four of my closest associates, if I were to kill your friend here then you'd likely kill me shortly after." In his mind Charles was some kind of stone-cold killer, he didn't realise that this was further from the truth. "So, I have a proposition for you, if you let me sacrifice you then I'll let your friend here live. Once the drugs in her system have worn off, she can be on her merry way."

"If I let you sacrifice me, how am I to know that you'll actually keep your end of the bargain?" He wanted to step forward but he still didn't want to risk it. With what was at stake he knew that it could turn ugly very quickly. An idea did pop into his head and although it was risky, he still thought that it could work.

"You don't, but some chance is better than no chance. Wouldn't you agree?" An evil smile appeared on his face which sent a shiver down Charles's spine. There was truth to what Cornelius was saying but Charles was no fool. He knew that if he didn't do something about it, neither he nor Maxine would be leaving this place alive. If he remembered what he heard earlier then his plan just might work.

"Maxine, there's ale and pies upstairs. Go an enjoy yourself."

This seemed to connect a few dots in Maxine's head and almost instantly the nine-foot woman stood up to her full height. Although the knife was right next to her throat the suddenness of her stand up made her escape from the grip of Cornelius. It was not enough to force him to drop the knife but enough to catch him off guard.

The ceiling in the basement was just about high enough for her to stand up without knocking her head on it. Acting on instinct she began to walk out of the basement and up the stairs. While doing this Charles tried to dart forwards as quickly as he could but with the injury to his leg this was something that was extremely difficult for him to do. Instead he saw an angry Cornelius dart towards him instead.

The sacrificial dagger that was used to murder countless people was coming directly at Charles. Thankfully his own pace was slow enough so that he could drop to the floor before the blade could come into contact. Cornelius was quite surprised to miss him but he was more than able to turn himself around.

This caused more problems for Charles who was struggling to get up. He was able to turn onto his back just as Cornelius came over him with the dagger still in his hand. It was aimed directly at his heart but using his good leg he was able to kick at him. At first it did little but as the kicks continued, he could see that it caused the murderer to stagger back a little.

Charles quickly got up to his feet and he had a firm grip on Maxine's hunting knife as darted forward. His pace was slower than he would have liked and in this situation. He knew that the only way he could leave this place alive was to kill Cornelius. Every other option before him was no longer available. He was too injured to try and escape and if he did try, he would be quickly killed along with Maxine.

Instead he gave a lout grunt of effort as he plunged the knife into the staggered Cornelius's chest. There was a loud scream of pain from the Tavern Keeper as he went down to the ground. Charles fell with him but something primal unlocked inside of him, a do or die mentality which forced him to take the knife out and then plunge it into the chest again. This happened several times.

It took around a minute before Charles finally stopped as he looked into the dead eyes of Cornelius. It was only then that he snapped back to reality and was horrified by what he had done. The knife was still in his hand and he quickly dropped it with absolute disgust. There were so many stab wounds to the chest of Cornelius that he couldn't count them, all he could see was a sea of red and he felt a sick feeling in the pit of his stomach.

Despite all the death and carnage around him he couldn't help but cry. He cried more than he had ever done before, even when he was a young child and learned that his father would never be returning home. He was relieved to be alive but more than anything he felt that he was no better than the family that ran this place. They had killed for religious reasons and he had killed as well. In his mind it didn't matter the reason, it was all the same to him and he couldn't help but pity himself. As he looked at his hands he could see that they were covered in blood and to him it was an image that he would never forget.

His own sorrow was distracted when he heard a loud crashing sound coming from upstairs. That was when he realised that Maxine was still up there, despite his feeling and injuries he moved up there as soon as he could. He was worried that in her mentally vulnerable state that she might accidentally hurt herself.

It took him longer than he would have liked to travel up the stairs and enter the main tavern. There he saw that the door to the tavern had been ripped off of its hinges and thrown to one side. He slowly staggered towards it and when he looked inside he could see the still sleep walking Maxine gorging herself on the food that it contained. She was too tall to stand up straight in it so she bent down and ate whatever she could get her hands on.

Despite the fact that she was still drugged she seemed to be perfectly fine. This gave Charles something to be happy about and he stepped inside. There was some water located just outside which he quickly washed his hands in. As he did he saw it turn a red colour and he couldn't bear to look at it.

Instead when he felt that enough of the blood was washed off he gently grabbed onto Maxine's large hand. He expected her to hit him or at least pull away, instead she turned and looked at him with a carrot sticking out of her mouth. The sight would have been comical to him if not for what had taken place earlier.

"Ms Maxine," said Charles. "It's time for you to go to bed." The muscular giantess didn't respond with words. Instead she gave him a small nod and allowed him to lead her out of pantry.

With some care he made his way back up the stairs with the giant woman walking just behind him. More than anything he wanted to get away from this place but he knew that in her state it was best for Maxine not to go anywhere. She needed to sleep the effects of the drugs off and she would be less than happy if they left without her armour.

Before long they did return to the room where they had been resting before. They even had to step over the body of the old woman in order to get inside. This caused Charles to feel a wave of shame while Maxine didn't react in the slightest. Instead under his instruction she lay down in the bed and closed her eyes.

Not long after this Charles looked over her and he couldn't help but feel happy to see that she was uninjured. Now that the killer family were dead he knew that for tonight no one would harm them. But with everything that had happened he didn't think that the would be able to sleep.

Instead he sat on a nearby chair and simply sat there for hours with the events of the night replaying in his mind over and over again. He wanted to believe that it was all some kind of bad dream but he knew that wasn't the case. There was still blood on his clothing and he felt dirty inside. More than anything else he felt a great deal of shame.

Eventually dawn did come and not too long after that Maxine's eyes began to open. However rather than sleepwalking again she was simply awake. She yawned before groaning with some discomfort. It was obvious that she was feeling the after effects of the alcohol and sedatives that she had consumed. She did look over to where Charles was sitting and she was surprised to see him there.

"C-Charles," said Maxine. She was feeling off but she tried to act as if there was nothing wrong. "What are you doing over there?" As he focused more on him she could see the blood on his clothing and she also began to smell something off. This forced her to look over to the door and she could see the body of the old woman lying there. This caused her some concern as she went to get out of bed.

"Don't bother trying to help her," replied Charles. His voice was filled with sorrow and regret. "She's already dead."

"How do you know?" By now she was getting back up to her feet but she felt herself become lightheaded and she needed to place her hand on a nearby wall in order to steady herself.

"Because I..." He knew that he needed to say about what had happened but he found himself becoming tongue tied. "I-I killed her."

"You did what?" This caused her to look over to him with some anger on her face. She was also afraid of the consequences that might come of this. "Why would you do something like that?"

"T-There's something that you need to see ma'am."

He knew that his words would not sway her completely and he got up out of the chair. He began to walk out of the room and Maxine followed behind him. She was ready to grab onto him if she felt like she had to. She feared that after murdering the old woman that her squire would become a wanted man. Never did she think that he was capable of doing such a thing but as they walked she began to see the bodies of the other members of the family. Each time Charles would stat that he killed them as well.

One thing that she did notice was that the tavern seemed completely empty. This was one thing that she found odd as it had been very lively the night before. Even most had fled because of Charles murdering the owners there would have still been people around. The more she walked through the tavern the more that she felt that there was something not right with it.

She did notice a couple of more dead bodies along the way, they were still those that belonged to the people who ran the tavern. She was surprised that Charles was able to kill them, it did give her the thought of stopping her squire here and now but her uneasiness with the forced her to keep going.

It was only when Maxine followed him down the stairs to the basement that she began to realise what had taken place there. Her nose was greeted with the same stench of death that Charles had experienced the night prior. When she finally entered the basement she could see the horror that was inside. All the blood and body parts that were around the room was almost too much for her to take. Thanks to a combination of what she was experiencing and the after effects of drugs she couldn't help but throw up. One thing that she did notice was that her hunting knife was on the ground and she quickly picked it up.

She knew that there was more going on there than what it first seemed and rather than saying a word she instead turned around and made her way back up the stairs. Like her squire she would never forget what she saw. He too was incredibly quiet but he was instructed to remain in the main tavern for the time being.

With that Maxine returned to the room but she returned to Charles only a couple of minutes later. This time she was wearing her full armour and had her sword by her side. She had also picked up Charles's belongings and gave them to him. It was only then that she gave him one simple instruction.

"Burn it down!"

A few minutes later the tavern had started to burn after Maxine and Charles had started a few fires in various places inside. It didn't take long for the entire wooden structure to be completely engulfed in flames. The pair watched from a safe distance and they hoped that the horror that had taken place there would too be burned away.

Charles couldn't help but think about what he had experienced the night before and he couldn't help but cry. Like a scared child he wrapped his hands around Maxine and buried his face in her armour. Normally he would not attempt such a thing as he feared that she would simply throw him off. She had more than enough strength to do so and could possibly hurt him. Instead her armour-clad hand came down towards him and stroked his hair gently. This caused him to look up at her, tears were still rolling down his cheeks and he thought that he must have looked quite dishevelled.

"It's alright Charles," said Maxine. Her voice was uncharacteristically soft, almost like a mother's voice. By now she fully understood what had happened and what her squire had gone through. He was in a very delicate frame of mind. "You're safe now."

Charles looked up at Maxine for another few moments before he continued crying and once again buried his head into her armour. The structure before them was an inferno and the column of smoke could be seen for miles. Burning away this place could never erase what had happened, For the rest of their lives they would never forget these events or how close they were to death.

It was an obvious choice for both Maxine and Charles to leave the burning inn. She didn't know everything that had happened but with what she had seen she began to piece together the events in her head. More and more she wished that she had been fully aware so that she could have protected Charles and maybe even some of the patrons.

Instead they were the only survivors and the inn was completely destroyed. The bodies of the Innkeeper and his family were also burnt away with what was hoped to be any evidence of what had taken place. In Maxine's mind, no one should know what happened there nor what the Innkeeper and his family had been doing.

Her main concern wasn't about whether anyone would discover this place. It was what was happening to her squire Charles. Ever since they had left and continued their journey to Flea Bay, he had been particularly quiet. Normally he would want to talk to her about something but this time he was extremely quiet. On the odd occasion he would sniffle as if he had been crying but other than that he didn't mutter a single word.

A short time after leaving the inn a bush close to him began to shake and this startled Charles. It was enough for him to quickly dart toward Maxine and grab onto her for protection. The action had come suddenly but it wasn't enough to knock her off of her balance. But mere moments later they saw a rabbit run out of the bush, it stopped and looked at the small man and giant woman before running away.

Even when it was gone Charles still held onto the armoured body of Maxine and she just stood there as she waited for him to let go. However, it didn't seem like he was and under this circumstance her annoyance would get the better of her and she would angrily tell him to get off of her. This time was different as she knew that he had just dealt with a very traumatic event and that he was in a delicate place right now.

"It's gone now Charles," said Maxine. Her voice was unusually calm and gentle. In a way it sounded very similar to the voice of her mother. "T-There's nothing for you to be scared about."

"I-I'm sorry ma'am," replied Charles. It took him a few moments before he spoke and slowly, he began to let go of her.

"It's alright, just stay close to me and I'll make sure that nothing will hurt you." She was even able to break a smile that was something that uncharacteristic of her. It caused a small amount of confusion from her squire as he looked at her.

"O-Ok ma'am." Even though he tried to think of more positive things his mind couldn't help but remember the events of the night before. He had killed five people and although they had been in self-defence it was still something that weighed heavily on him. Not just that but the horror that he saw also weighed on him.

Right now, to him the nine-foot Maxine was more than just his companion. She was his main form of protection and he didn't want to be more than six feet away from him. Before he did have a small amount of fear for him, but now all he wanted to do was to be close to her at all times.

With that minor event out of the way the pair continued on with their journey. Maxine wanted to reach Flea Bay before nightfall so that they could get a decent place to sleep. She knew that finding a similar inn to the previous one was extremely unlikely. That one had been in the middle of practically nowhere and a good location for a religious cult to act out their rituals. But in the middle of a vibrant town or city would be extremely foolish as law enforcement could keep an eye on them with ease. Not just that but their actions would be noticed much easier by general onlookers.

Unfortunately, due to Charles's mind being concerned with other things he was walking at a slower pace than he normally would. This did annoy Maxine a little and every now and again she would have to tell him to keep up. For a while it would work but then he would begin to lose track again.

At one point he didn't realise that Maxine had actually stopped and when he walked into her the force of collision caused him to fall back. It was more of a shock for him than anything as he was mostly uninjured from it all. She had decided that they had walked enough for the time being and would take a much-needed rest.

They found a dry patch of grass to sit down upon and they took out some food that they had brought with them. Maxine didn't waste any time in beginning to eat her own food but when she looked over to Charles, she could see that he wasn't eating anything. Instead he was simply sitting there and looking at it. His facial expression showed her that his mind was still focused on the night before. For the moment all she could do was sigh as she knew that this wasn't going end any time soon.

"You need to eat Charles," said Maxine. Her voice softer than usual as she tried not to show any rage toward him. If not for him then she would likely be dead right now. "You're not helping yourself by starving."

"I-I know ma'am," replied Charles. "I-I just don't feel hungry." His meal wasn't very appetising but to a starving man it was a feast fit for a king.

"Don't be like that. I know what happened to you was horrible but starving yourself isn't going to make you feel any better. Now eat up, we'll be moving off soon and I don't want you falling even further behind."

"As you wish." With that he picked up a small piece of his bread and took the smallest of bites out of it. Maxine watched on and for a moment she thought that he was doing this out of sarcasm. But she realised that he was simply eating as much as he could. It wasn't much but with how he was feeling he simply couldn't stomach any more.

It took Charles over ten minutes to eat a single slice of bread and the entire time Maxine was watching on. Unless she addressed him, it was unlikely that he would speak to her as the events of the previous night repeated itself over and over again in his mind. He couldn't help but shake a little as he sat there and his gaze was diverted for a moment when he saw something familiar dangling in front of him.

When he looked, he could see that it was his mother's locket, the very same one that he had given to Maxine. It had been a token of his promise to serve her for when she saved his life the first time that they had met. When he looked up, he could see her crouching down and holding it over him. Even crouching, it was likely that she was as tall as he was when he was standing up.

"W-What are you doing ma'am?" asked Charles as he grabbed onto it. As soon as he did, she released it without any kind of fuss.

"Returning what is yours," replied Maxine. "You gave me this after I saved your life, last night you saved mine so the life debt that you owe me has been settled. I'm not going to lie to you, I actually regret accepting your servitude. Not from any actions from yourself, far from it. You've been a great help to me and a very acceptable companion and friend. However, what I do regret is putting you into danger. If you were not traveling with me you would not have experienced what you did last night. For that I can only apologise but now I am giving you two options. The first is that we part ways, I can continue on my goal of earning a knighthood and you can do whatever it is that you please. Our paths might cross again at some point in the future but most likely this will be the last time that we'll ever see each other."

"A-And the second option?" He had some idea what it could be but he wanted to hear it from her.

"You remain by my side through my travels as a willing companion and a full equal. I can't promise you that you'll be safe but I promise that I will do everything that I can to ensure that no harm will come to you. You will reap the rewards that come along with this and it would be something that I would greatly appreciate."

For a moment Charles didn't know what to say to the towering woman right in front of him. He hadn't even considered the fact that his debt to her had been repaid and he simply looked at her for several moments. The idea of stepping away from Maxine and trying to live a regular life did seem enticing. However, one thing that was likely to him was that he would be in a similar predicament to the one that he had been in before he met her. It was not something that he wanted but he also realised that there was danger with staying with her. Despite this she was the only person that he could truly consider a friend.

"I-I'm not sure ma'am," answered Charles.

"You may take your time and there's no need to call me ma'am anymore," replied Maxine. "You may call me Maxine."

"Ok Maxine. Is it alright if I have a little time to think about it?" This would at least be something to distract him from his troubles.

"As you wish, we can continue on to Flea Bay if you want and then after that you can decide what you want to do. Now eat up, we still have some distance to go."

Slowly Charles did as he was told as he ate the food that was in front of him. It did take him much longer than it normally did and when they were done, he found himself walking alongside Maxine again. It was difficult to hear the sound of nature thanks to the clanking of her armour as she walked.

After picking up parts of her armour he found it incredible to think that someone could move around in the manner that she could with all the weight she was carrying. Once again this was merely a distraction for him as he thought about the proposition that he had been given. A couple of different scenarios went through his head.

The first was that he did leave Maxine and tried to make his way in the world alone like he had done before he had met her. He was sure that his skills would allow him to gain some kind of meaningful employment and if he was lucky, he might be able to meet the right woman. After that he could start his own family and live a mundane and uneventful life. It was one that seemed appealing to him but it would also be difficult to attain if things didn't go the way that he wanted.

On the other hand, the option of staying with Maxine was also one that was on his mind. He would see and experience things that very few people ever could. There was definitely adventure with staying with her but as he knew there was much danger as well. What had taken place the night before but it also meant that he would simply be with her. During their time together he had gained a great amount of respect for her. It was not her size, strength or even skill with the blade that had earned this respect. Instead it was her hard work and determination. She was trying to do something that was practically unheard of in Angleland and no matter how many people told her that she couldn't do it she continued with her goal regardless.

Something else that he knew was that she wouldn't harm anyone that she felt didn't deserve it. The one time that she did strike him was when he accidentally didn't address her father with the correct title and even then, she apologised to it shortly afterwards. If he remained with her, he knew that she would never harm him and always use every skill that she possessed to keep him safe.

His thoughts were still distracted and it was only when he noticed a bush nearby move that he suddenly took notice. This startled him and it seemed that Maxine hadn't noticed beforehand.

There was some fear from Charles as he was still anxious. There was still a good chance that it was just another rabbit or small woodland creature. However, his reaction had been noticed by Maxine who stopped where she was and suddenly looked down at him. She could see him looking over at the bush that had moved.

"What is it?" asked Maxine. Her voice was somewhat softer but there was still a serious tone in it.

"I-I saw something over there," replied Charles as he pointed towards the bush. His fear was increasing and a small part of him even considered running. However, he knew that he was safer with her rather than being away from her.

"Stay here, I'll check it out." With that she began to step toward the bush and it was fairly large, much larger than Charles. In comparison to her it looked quite small but she placed her hand on her hilt just in case anything was to happen.

Once again, the sound of her armour impacting itself as she moved did prevent her from hearing whatever could be lurking in the bush. She thought that either Charles was imagining things or it would be something that wouldn't be a threat. As far as she thought, there was no one physically stronger than herself outside of her family.

Carefully she moved some of the leaves of the bush and she could see that there was indeed something inside. Quickly she grabbed onto whatever it was inside and pulled it out so that she and Charles could take a good look at it. They were surprised to see that rather than seeing some kind of animal it instead was merely a boy.

His messy brown hair shook quite violently as he was kicking at Maxine in order to try and force her to break her grip on the back of his collar. This was a futile gesture as there was no chance of him even touching her. Even if he could his attack would do no damage to the armoured giantess.

The boy's clothes seemed to be quite messy as well and somewhat simple looking. It was obvious to both of them that this boy came from no wealth and was merely a peasant much like they had. He didn't even seem to be intimidated by Maxine's size and continued to kick at her.

"What are you doing hiding in bushes like that?" asked Maxine. Her voice was sharp and fairly loud like it had been before. It was a voice that Charles recognised, she would use it when she was making herself sound important or making a point.

"What's it to you?" replied the Boy disrespectfully. He continued to try and escape her grip but once again he was having little luck. However, from his struggling on thing did happen. This was a small pocket knife fell to the ground and had to drop some distance before hitting the ground. This caused both Maxine and Charles to look down at it before they looked at the boy. Carefully Charles did step toward it and picked it off the ground, it was no mere toy and instead an actual knife. However, it didn't seem to be particularly sharp, it could likely cut a person if they weren't careful but it couldn't actually do that much damage. There was some dread from Charles as seeing the knife made him think about what had happened the night before. If it had been a more intimidating looking knife, he would have had a full-blown panic attack. Instead he was still relatively calm.

"Children shouldn't be carrying around weapons." Her voice wasn't changing and if anything, it seemed like her patience was running thin. "Now tell me, what are you doing in the bushes!"

"Why should I tell an overgrown freak like you?" He had noticed her size and how easily she was able to lift him. Even so it seemed to not have deterred him, this meant that he was either incredibly brave or stupid.

"You really try my patience boy! Any more of that and you'll be receiving the back of my hand!" She could see that the boy seemed to be around the same age as one of her younger sisters. It seemed that his actions were also beginning to tire him out as his kicks were coming less frequently.

"M-Ma'am," stated Charles as he stepped forward. It seemed that for the moment he forgot that he didn't have to call her ma'am anymore but right now it wasn't important. "Maybe I can try something."

"If you want to Charles, but don't let him out of our sight. I know that he's doing something that he shouldn't."

"Well first I think that you should put him down." With that Maxine did as she was asked as she lowered the boy back down to the ground. He was still struggling and when his feet touched the ground he did consider running. But he did notice that she kept a hold of the back of his collar. There was no chance of him breaking out of her grip so for the time being he was stuck there.

"I'm keeping an eye on you." Her voice was still stern and she didn't seem to be letting up at all. In response the boy simply bobbed his tongue out at her in a form of mockery towards her. Rather than reacting she kept herself calm enough to not strike him for is absolute rudeness.

"Hello there," said Charles in a somewhat friendly voice. He wanted to see none threatening to the boy. This was far from what Maxine was as she simply watched over. "We seem to have gotten off on the wrong foot. My name is Charles and I see that you've met my friend Maxine."

"You mean the giant bitch that won't let me go," replied the Boy. There was a loud and annoyed grunt from Maxine as it took all of her willpower not to strike him.

"What are you doing out here all by yourself? Where are your parents?"

"Wouldn't you like to know."

"Answer the question!" shouted Maxine in a loud and very intimidating voice. Not only did the boy flinch but so did Charles as neither of them had entirely expected it.

"I-I don't have any parents. They've been dead for years."

"I'm terribly sorry to hear that," replied Charles. This was something that hit home to him as well as he too had lost his parents at a young age. It was also the calmest that he had been all day and it seemed like giving his mind something to focus on was helping him in some way. "But still, what are you doing out here all by yourself?"

"I-I'm taking care of myself, like I always have done and no one can stop me!" It seemed that he was more defiant than anything else and Charles could see the look in the boy's eyes that he was going to be trouble.

"And how exactly are you taking care of yourself?" He looked at the boy again and could see that he was very muddy. His hair was a mess and he was even looking a little thin. "You don't look to be doing very well to me."

"I can get by alright by myself. Now let go of me!"

"You couldn't have been living in this forest for so long before we found you. If your parents have died so long ago then that means that someone else has been taking care of you. Who has been doing that?"

"I lived in an orphanage but I ran away and doing fine by myself." He struggled again but Maxine's iron like grip on his collar wasn't budging in the slightest. Instead she simply watched over him. She did feel some sympathy towards her but not enough to prevent her from striking him if she felt like he deserved it.

"Then they're most likely worried sick about you. If I was you, I'd go back to them and apologise for running away."

"I'd rather die than apologise to them." Before he could say anything, he felt himself get lifted up into the air again. "Hey what are you doing?"

"If you're from an orphanage then I'm taking you back there," replied Maxine who sounded like her patience was running thin. She placed the boy under her arm as if he was a pile of sticks or a hunted animal rather than a boy. "We're not leaving you in a forest to look after yourself."

"Put me down!" He continued to punch and kick as much as he could but this did little to stop Maxine. She just held him there and he was completely helpless. Charles knew not to get too close as he didn't want to get hit.

"I've been by this way a few times and I remember there being an orphanage just a few miles away. If we hurry, we can take this brat back there and make it to Flea Bay before it gets dark. Are you coming along as well?"

"Y-Yeah I'll come ma'am," replied Charles. He still called her ma'am even though he didn't have to. The idea of going to an orphanage didn't seem to be that dangerous. But he had thought the same when they went to stay at the tavern.

"Alright then. It shouldn't be too difficult to find." She could still hear the boy kicking and complaining but the armoured giantess simply chose to ignore it. His actions were also beginning to tire him out.

With their minds set Maxine began the walk towards the nearby orphanage. She had suspected that the boy had come from there but she hadn't wanted to take him there if he actually had parents. The fact that he didn't only added to her need to take him back to where he came from.

Neither she nor Charles were taking the boy back to be cruel. It was obvious to both of them that he wasn't doing particularly well while he was living by himself. Taking him back was the best way to ensure that he got the care that he needed. Charles did still keep a short distance away from them.

He didn't stay too far away however as he didn't want to be without Maxine's protection. As long as she was around and wasn't in a drugged-up state, she would protect him against any threat. He also wasn't sure what was going to happen with taking the boy to the orphanage, with how things had gone for the both of them there was a chance that they would have some kind of interesting experience. Or more likely it would simply be mundane and uneventful.

Throughout the entire time that Maxine carried the boy he had been trying to escape by punching and kicking. The only thing that he was achieving was tiring himself out and it wasn't long before he no longer had the energy to fight back. This was exactly what the armoured giantess had wanted. At least now he would stop fighting and she didn't have to strike him at all.

There was still some nervousness from Charles as he followed close by. He was still keeping his eye out for danger which as far as he was concerned was from every direction. A couple of times he did notice a rabbit and even a couple of squirrels. Despite all of this he still couldn't move too far away from his friend. The last thing he wanted right now was to be separated from her.

He wasn't the only one who was concerned. Maxine had a small amount of her own as she was hoping that her memory wasn't betraying her. If she had been mistaken with the location of the orphanage then it meant that they would be walking in the wrong direction. The last thing she wanted was to have to take care of this boy in the long term. If it wasn't a member of her family, she normally wasn't very good with children.

"Boy," stated Maxine in a commanding tone. At first Charles thought that she was referring to him but he soon realised that she was actually talking to the boy that she was still carrying under her arm.

"What do you want now?" replied the Boy. His tone was indifferent as it seemed like he was accepting his fate. Almost like a condemned man being taken to the gallows.

"You still haven't told us your name."

"Does it make any difference?" It seemed obvious that he didn't want to say but he couldn't help but look up at her. She was still the largest human being that he had ever seen and it was unlikely that he would meet anyone larger for the rest of his life.

"Yes, it does, unless you want me to keep referring to you as boy."

"Fine." He gave a sigh as he didn't think that it made too much of a difference at that moment in time. "My name is Theodore but I go by Ted."

"Hmm, Ted. I once knew a man named Ted, he told me that my place was in the house cleaning and making my husband happy. After he said that he found himself with a few less teeth." She chuckled to herself for a moment as she still got some satisfaction from putting that man in his place. "My name is Maxine Martel, eldest daughter of Sir Tucker Martel and soon to be knight."

"Is your father supposed to be someone important because I've never heard of him." His voice seemed disinterested and this got Charles's attention. He knew that the quickest way to anger Maxine was to speak badly about her father.

"He is a great man and one finest knight in Angleland. I intend to carry on his legacy for as long as I can. My companion here is named Charles."

"Is he not important enough for you to mention his last name?" It seemed like the boy was trying to annoy Maxine in whatever way he could. It seemed to be his last chance of trying to stop what was happening. It was a futile gesture but right now he didn't have that much of a choice.

"M-My surname is Ingram," answered Charles. He wanted to answer himself since he knew that if Maxine did that it would likely just annoy her further.

"Sounds like a dumb name." He felt a small amount of pain as Maxine squeezed tighter for a moment. He gave one small yelp of pain and it was an obvious indicator that she was telling him to behave himself.

"We don't choose our names but we stick by them regardless," answered Maxine. "Although I admit that some are just awful."

Just as the group continued to walk, they began to see a building that was close by. It was surprisingly large and seemed to be out of the way somewhat. It took them a few moments to step close enough to it before they realised what it was. Just outside there was a sign that read 'Sunny Valley Orphanage.' This was something that Charles had to read out since Maxine's reading skills were not up to scratch.

As they looked upon the building itself, they could see that at one point it had been something grand. Now it looked to be in a state of disrepair as it clearly had better days. It had a few floors and a solid roof although it did look like a few tiles had fallen off over the years.

There were sounds that indicated that the building was occupied by a lot of people. The main sound that could be heard was that of children and the occasion voice of an adult. It seemed that there was chaos taking place inside and this made Charles in particular nervous to step toward it.

Maxine had no problems with this though as she stepped toward the main door and knocked it with her fist. The door itself was quite large but she was still more than a head taller than it. Charles quickly stepped over to her after she had knocked the door and they stood there and waited until the door slowly began to open.

There they saw an old woman stepping out, she wore mostly black and had a necklace around her neck. It contained a symbol that looked to be a sun with a series of lightning bolts around it. The only part of her body that wasn't covered up was her face and her hands and it was obvious to Maxine and Charles what kind of woman that this was.

She was someone who had devoted herself to the religion that dominated Angleland. Even Maxine and Charles followed this religion although they were not as devoted as some people were. One thing they knew was that they needed to show respect to this kind of woman and that was exactly what they intended.

"Hello, how may I..." stated the Old Woman. She was looking up slightly but then she realised that she wasn't look up far enough. She craned her head further and further up until she locked onto eyes with Maxine. "Help you." There was a small amount of disbelief in her words as she couldn't believe the gargantuan woman standing before her. She had seen plenty of tall people in her life but none as tall as her.

"We found someone who I think that you might have lost," replied Maxine. This was when the Old Woman looked at Maxine's arm and she could see Ted being held there. By now he had stopped trying to escape and was practically ready to accept his fate.

"Oh Ted, we've been looking for you for two weeks." Ted didn't respond with words and simply gave an annoyed grunt.

"Ah so he did come from here." She then placed him down to the ground but she still kept a grip on his collar so that he couldn't escape. "You may take him off my hands and also I suggest teaching him more manners."

"I apologise and thank you for bringing him back to us. But please do not leave yet, we have to thank you for bringing this unfortunate child back. It is near supper time so why don't you stay and have some food. It is the least that we can do for you."

Maxine fell silent for a moment as she considered what to do next. She knew that Charles was still not in the best place mentally but in a way, she thought that this place could help him. These religious women were known as Priestesses but went more by the title of Shepherds. This time seemed even more so since they helped tend to unfortunate children. Not just that but when people were in times of crisis, they would speak to a Shepherd in the hopes of them giving the comfort.

This seemed like an ideal place for Charles to be as the Shepherds would be able to help him process his trauma and lead him to the road of recovery. The fact that they could get some free food also was enticing for them. On her travels, one thing that Maxine was sure to remember was to not turn down free food. It seriously helped with their budget as feeding a nine-foot woman with larger muscles than the majority of men wasn't cheap. There was also the minor fact that turning down a Shepherd was considered to be an offense not just to them but also the gods.

"We graciously accept your offer," said Maxine after her mind was made up. She knew that she hadn't consulted Charles about it but she thought that it was for the best. "And we thank you for your generosity."

"Not a problem at all," replied the Shepherd. She then opened the door wider. "Please come in, I think that the other children would be thrilled to meet you as well."

Ted was the first to step through the door although he was reluctant to do so. He wanted to go and live out on his own again but his escape had been thwarted for the time being. In his head he was already thinking of other ways that he could escape. These were all being forced to one side however as he knew that the Shepherds there would be keeping a close eye on him.

After he had stepped through Charles did the same. He had been quiet the entire time and he was a little nervous with entering the orphanage. He still thought that it was relatively harmless but he thought that about the inn as well. The truth was that he simply wasn't sure what he was going to do with himself. He did take some solace with the thought that Maxine would be with him to protect him. However, inside this orphanage he would only have to worry about children and Shepherds who were practically harmless.

As expected, when Maxine stepped through the door, she had more difficulties than her squire. The door was far too short for her to walk through comfortably and she had to bend down in order to get through. However, when she was able to step through, she stood back up to her full height and she felt a thud as her head struck the ceiling. This made her grunt slightly in pain as she realised the ceiling was just a little too low for her. If she had been a couple of inches shorter, she would have just made it.

The first actual view inside of the orphanage made it look unremarkable. For the moment they were merely some kind of small entrance hall and as they stepped through another door, they found themselves in a large dining hall. Thankfully there the ceiling was more than high enough for Maxine to stand up straight.

There were several long tables with benches which were for the children when they came to eat. For the time being it was mostly empty although they could definitely smell some food being cooked. It didn't smell like the most appetizing of meals but it would be one that Maxine and Charles would be happy to have.

"If you don't mind, it is best that you wait in here," said Shepherd. "I need to take Ted back to his room and I will make sure that one of my Shepherds tends to you as soon as possible." She then grabbed onto the hand of Ted and began to lead him away. "Come along you, I need to have a word with you."

With that the Shepherd stepped out of the dining hall while Maxine and Charles simply stood there and watched. It was somewhat surreal but after their long walk they were more than happy to simply sit down on one of the benches and take the weight off of their feet. It was a somewhat nice feeling for them.

One thing that did take Charles by surprise was the fact that Maxine was beginning to take off her armour. It was somewhat difficult for her to do by herself and she looked towards him. He didn't need to be told as he quickly got back up to his feet and began to help the large woman with her task.

"Ma'am," said Charles. His voice sounded timid as he was somewhat afraid that he might be berated for his next question. "Why are you taking off your armour?"

"Simple," replied Maxine. "We are perfectly safe here and if we are going to be dining with children then I'll seem less intimidating with my armour off." She said this as the armour on her left arm was removed which exposed the large, muscular arm underneath. In Charles's mind it did make some sense with what she was saying but he still thought it was best to be on their guard. Danger could come from any direction.

It took a minute or two before Maxine's armour was completely removed and it was somewhat of a relief. Her body felt much lighter and she found it less difficult to move around competently. Although she had pride with her armour it was nice to take it off every now and again.

Only moments after she had finished taking off her armour they were approached by another Shepherd. This one looked different to the one that they had met earlier, she was a much younger woman and she looked up at her with some wonder. Like the other Shepherd, only her face could be seen and she was noticed quickly by Maxine and Charles. Her eyes widened at the sight of the giant, muscular woman and she couldn't help but take a couple of steps back.

"Is there something the matter?" asked Maxine. She had seen this kind of reaction before and it was one that annoyed her. However, since the woman in question was a Shepherd, she would tolerate it a little more.

"N-No," replied the Young Woman. There was something about her face that Maxine found to be familiar but she couldn't put her finger on it. "My name is Shepherd Riley and I have been tasked with assuring that you are comfortable here before the children come for supper. Is there anything that I can assist you with?"

"There is something, I need a place to store my armour while we eat. Do you know somewhere where the children won't be able to mess around with it?"

"We do have a storage cupboard not far from here, would you like me to take them there for you?" Her voice sounded quite timid, almost like she was afraid of the woman standing before her.

"My friend and I will take them there ourselves. Just lead the way and we can do the rest." This was not because she didn't trust the Shepherd, but merely because she knew that this quite small woman would greatly struggle with carrying such heavy armour to any location. Even if it was one that was close by.

As Shepherd Riley was instructed to, she led Maxine and Charles to a storage cupboard that was just outside of the dining room. It was only just large enough to store all of the armour and the sword too was placed there. Maxine was a little reluctant to put that away as she felt that a knight should never be too far away from their sword. However, she couldn't have a sword on her person in the presence of children.

After they were done, they were led back to the dining hall and quickly sat themselves down on the bench. Thankfully since it was bolted to the ground, they didn't have to worry about the weight of Maxine's body tipping it up. Shepherd Riley stood by the table with her hands together and she looked at the two visitors.

"Would you like me to get you some water?" asked Shepherd Riley. She sounded like she was becoming a little more confident around them and she watched as Maxine turned her head towards her.

"That would be nice thank you," replied Maxine. Her tone was quite pleasant and it put both people present at ease. "Although I doubt that an orphanage doesn't stock ale." It had been a while since she had last drunk ale. It was the night before and she knew what happened after she had drank it.

"Unfortunately, not, but I'll get you some water. But I must warn you, the children are coming in a minute so things might be a little hectic."

With that Shepherd Riley began to walk away leaving Maxine and Charles there to simply wait for the water and eventually their food. They weren't expecting a great feast or anything to have particular flavour. It wasn't too difficult to remember that whatever food was coming was mass produced so taste was not particularly a priority.

While the Shepherd was gone however Maxine did begin to think about her. She was sure that she had seen this woman's face from somewhere before but she couldn't remember where. This was beginning to annoy her but not to the point where she became angry, just annoyed at herself for not remembering.

It didn't take long for Shepherd Riley to bring the cups of water for the weary travellers. She placed it in front of them and they began to drink it. She stood there with a smile on her face as she was happy to help them. But then she noticed Maxine's head turn towards her with a look of determination.

"What did you say your name was?" asked Maxine as she looked directly at Shepherd Riley. This sent a shiver down her spine as she wasn't sure what was going to happen next. Because of Maxine's size and obvious strength, she was a little afraid of the giant woman even though she wouldn't harm her.

"Shepherd Riley," replied the Shepherd with the slightest hint of nervousness in her voice. She wanted to step away but she knew that she was duty bound to remain where she was. "Why do you ask?"

"Because I'm sure that I've met you some place before, are you sure that this is the first time we've met?" Her curiosity seemed to be getting the better of her as she seemed to be convinced of her memory.

"You must be mistaken; we've never met before. I have been here ever since I was a shepherd and if you don't mind me saying... I would have remembered meeting a woman such as yourself."

Maxine didn't really respond to this; she was a little offended by her words but did nothing about it. She knew that the Shepherd meant no offense by what she had said but more than anything she was convinced that she had seen her before. Her voice also sounded familiar and this only added to her frustration.

Before she could ask anything, else there was the loud call of several children entering the dining hall. They were fairly loud and somewhat excitable as they quickly made their way to their seats. Boys and girls were mixed and there was a large age range between them. For the moment none of them had noticed that they had guests joining them and instead simply went where they needed to go.

One of the children that Maxine noticed was Ted who was much slower entering the dining hall in comparison to his peers. He seemed to be a little upset after what to him was his stretch of freedom had come to a crashing end. Not only that but he found himself here again which was the last place that he wanted to be.

Charles had noticed this and he felt some sympathy towards him. But his thoughts were distracted when he was noticed by one of the children. She was a little girl who stared up at both him and Maxine with big brown eyes and a smile on her face. She seemed genuinely happy to see them there.

"Hi," said the Little Girl with a smile on her face. "You're having supper with us tonight and that makes very happy."

"W-Well we're happy to be having supper with you as well," replied Charles who despite what he was feeling still knew to be nice. He heard the little girl giggle and then she took a better look at Maxine who was sitting right next to him.

"Wow you look very tall." She giggled. "How did you get so tall? Did you drink a lot of milk?"

"My mother is a very tall woman," replied Maxine as she took a sip of her water. Normally she would be angered by these kinds of questions but because it was coming from a child, she didn't mind answering them.

These words also made Charles think about the time they spent at the Martel farm. He easily remembered Maxine's mother Jessica and her sisters as well. If the kids could meet them and also witness them using their size manipulation abilities then it would likely put Maxine to shame. Although he knew by now not to mention to her about the fact that her mother and sisters could increase in size but she couldn't. It was still something that was a bit of a sore spot.

As the moments went by more children curiously huddled around where Maxine and Charles were sitting. They all looked at them in wonder as it wasn't often that they got visitors. There were even some children who hoped that they were there to adopt them, only to realise that this wasn't the case.

Her muscles were also something that brought some attention to her. At one point two of the children were able to grab onto her biceps and she was able to lift them off the ground with practically no effort. This amazed the children and they couldn't help but think that she was the strongest woman that they'd ever met.

Unfortunately for them, their fun came to an end when Shepherd Riley stepped over and instructed the children to take their seats. There were a few sighs of disappointment as they began to disperse and sit down where they had been allocated. It was mere moments after that when the food was finally brought out.

What was placed in front of Maxine and Charles didn't look particularly nice. It almost seemed like something had crawled onto their plates and died. She even thought that the cooking of her mother looked better than this. Even so they knew that they couldn't turn down the food simply because it was free and from a Shepherd. But as she looked over to Shepherd Riley some gears started to turn in her head and she began to realise where she had seen the religious woman before.

There was a small amount of commotion while Maxine and Charles were trying to enjoy the free food that was placed in front of them. Some of the children were talking loudly to one another and another couple pushed each other while they were trying to eat. This was quickly broken up by one of the Shepherds who had no time or patience for whatever shenanigans that they might be up to.

The sheer size of Maxine was still a point of interest for the children who couldn't help but glance over to her on a regular basis. The fact that they hadn't seen her stand up yet was something that intrigued them. A few of them even imagined that when she did her head would go through the ceiling of the hall. Even though it was far too high for anything like that to remotely happen.

As usual she didn't take much notice of these stares and instead just concentrated on her thoughts and Shepherd Riley. More and more she realised where she had seen the Shepherd before. It was also in a place which it was practically unheard of to see such a person such as her. But it was a place that Maxine would frequent almost every opportunity that she had, unless money was an issue.

The look on her face was noticed by Charles who was barely eating the food in front of him. This was a combination of how he was feeling and the fact that it wasn't all that nice to begin with. He looked at her with some curiosity and for the moment it didn't seem like she noticed. This did cause him some worry as he thought that she might have detected something that was beyond.

"W-What is it ma'am?" asked Charles in a quiet tone. He wanted to make sure that if something was amiss that no one else could hear him. Just in case it was intended to bring them ill will.

"It's Shepherd Riley," replied Maxine. Her tone was equally quiet but not for the exact reasons that he was. Instead she wanted to keep this between them and not let anyone else hear it. "I know where I've seen her before."

"What? Where was it?" He was surprised to hear this but also a little afraid to hear the answer. He knew that over her time attempting to become a knight that she had made some enemies. If Sister Riley was one of these enemies it was likely that they would be in trouble. However, as he thought about this, he found it absurd, even if they were enemies Shepherds were well known for their forgiveness. It was one of the traits that they were known for so he found it unlikely.

"Remember the first town that we visited together? When we were collecting the bounty for William Bellamy."

"Yeah..." He was curious to hear where this went. The name was one that he would likely never forget, when they had apprehended the bandit Charles had found an arrow shot right at his chest. If not for the chest plate that he was wearing at the time the blow would have likely killed him.

"Well after we collected the bounty and before it was stolen from us." This did still bring some anger inside of her. She never did find the person responsible for the theft but if she did find them, she was sure to rip their arms out of their sockets with her bare hands. "I visited a brothel and she was one of the women that I had the pleasure of their services."

"Wait, she's a sex worker?" This was something that did catch him by surprise but he also thought that it was very unlikely. One aspect of becoming a Shepherd was the fact that they were married to the gods and never had a family. This included also never having sex at all, this was what caught him by surprise him the most. "Are you sure ma'am?" He expected her to give him a scowl for second guessing her. However, this wasn't the case as she simply looked at him.

"I'm sure of it, when you've been that close to someone's face in that manner it's hard to forget." It reminded her that she hadn't been to a brothel in some time and she thought that it was long overdue.

"Hmm, I'm not sure that you're right." He didn't think second guessing her was the best option but, in this case, it was probably worth it. "How can you go from sex worker to shepherd in such a short amount of time. It's only been a few weeks since you last saw her, now I'm no expert when it comes to becoming a shepherd but it probably takes more time than a few weeks to become one."

"I know but I'm sure that it's the same woman." She was more determined than ever to find out whether Shepard Riley was the same person that Maxine had spent some intimate time with. She knew that she would get to the bottom of it before they left the orphanage but for now, they just focused on eating.

It took a small amount of willpower to be able to eat everything that was in front of them. They did drink water to help wash it down but it didn't help too much with the taste. It was something that would probably stay with them for a while and they were definitely looking forward to the next time that they could eat something that actually had some flavour to it. For Maxine this was in the form of her favourite food in general, pies.

Just as he finished eating Charles did glance over to where Ted was sitting. He still seemed to be quiet where he was and even looked to be sad. For a moment this made him think that they were wrong to bring him back there. But he soon remembered that it was in Ted's best interest to be there.

A young boy living in the forest all by himself was unlikely to last very long, even if he was prepared for it. The elements were one thing and then there was the danger of attack from another person or forest creature. Bears and wolves were known to call the forest home and a boy like that wouldn't stand a chance against them. The last danger was not getting enough food and water, this was something that was very likely since it was difficult to live such a life. Even for an adult it was a struggle.

By this time most of the children too had eaten their suppers and some of them had even gone back to Maxine. They just couldn't get over how tall and strong she was, normally she would tell them that she wanted to be alone but she didn't mind humouring them. In a way they also reminded her of her youngest brother and how he was very excitable about things that were pretty mundane.

Once again, the children wanted to see her show off her strength. She did this by grabbing a nearby apple and crushing it in her one hand. This amazed the children and they wanted to see more. However, she could see some of the Shepherds looking on and because of this she decided that it wasn't the best idea.

One of the women watching on was Shepherd Riley who like the children was also in disbelief over what she was seeing. If it was a nine-foot muscular man she would still think it was abnormal but still plausible. The fact that Maxine was a woman completely took her aback. She wouldn't think that such a thing was possible and yet it was right there where she could see it.

None of the children paid much attention to Charles and as far as he was concerned, he was fine with it. Right now, he thought that it was best to keep himself to himself, he still couldn't help but feel like they were in danger, even though they were in a place that in all likelihood was completely safe.

He constantly watched out for anything that was remotely a threat. With everything that had happened to him he was on edge. At least this time he did have Maxine by her side and although she was unarmoured, he knew that she could repel any threat. Even though right now all he needed to worry about were religious women and orphaned children. Nothing that seemed like a danger.

Like before a couple of the Shepherds had to step over in order to hurry the children away from Maxine and Charles. They didn't think that the pair would want to be bothered by so many children. But when the large woman noticed that Shepherd Riley was amongst them, she knew that she wanted to speak with her immediately.

However how to do this was another matter as she knew that it would likely be a sensitive subject. A Shepherd wouldn't want to be shouting about being a former sex worker. So at least Maxine had the foresight to do this. Instead she waited until the children had been ushered away and it was only Shepherd Riley who remained. She had a smile on her face and she placed her hands together as she looked over at the pair.

She noticed that there was still quite a bit of food on Charles's plate but when it came to Maxine there was nothing left. There wasn't much of a surprise about this as she knew that Maxine would need to eat a lot more than a normal person if she was going to maintain her body. Instead she bowed somewhat to them both as she was showing them both respect, she knew to always be kind to visitors.

"I hope that you enjoyed your suppers," said Shepherd Riley as she ended her small bow. "Is there anything that I can help you with before you leave?"

"Actually, I'd like you to tell me the truth," replied Maxine. She had made sure that there was no one else around before she had spoken. She did see a nervous look upon the face of the Shepherd. Just like the sex worker before they satisfied her.

"What do you mean?" Her voice was definitely more nervous than it had been just a few moments before. "I've been honest with you since we met."

"You told me that we haven't met before, but I know that we have. You were working at a brothel in Grey Town and I paid for your services and you along with two other women helped scratch that itch if you know what I mean."

"I've neither stepped foot into a brothel or Grey Town!" This time her voice sounded angrier than it had before. This made Charles worried and he gently grabbed onto the arm of Maxine.

"Ma'am," stated Charles. His voice sounded timid as he was still afraid that she might react negatively to this. "Maybe she isn't who you're thinking of."

"I know what I saw and I know for a fact it was you," answered Maxine. It seemed like she didn't fully register what Charles had said. Instead she was determined to prove that she was right. "Now stop lying to me and tell me the truth!"

"I am, I've been at this orphanage for ten years and I haven't even been fifteen miles away from it in that time. Unless..." She then gave a sigh as she realised what was happening, her anger subsided. "The woman that you're thinking of, did she have blonde hair?"

"Yes, she did." This confused her a little but she watched as Shepherd Riley removed her headwear to reveal that she had long black hair that looked like silk. It did make her very beautiful and even Charles was taken aback by this. They thought that it was a shame that such lovely hair should be hidden away. "B-But how? You had blonde hair when I was with you, why is it black now?"

"That's because the woman that you spent time with wasn't me but instead my twin sister. It was only through our hair colour that people were able to tell us apart when we were younger." She gave another sigh as she thought about her sister. "Back then we were practically inseparable but as the years went on, we drifted apart. She went on to try and have a career while I gave my life to the gods. I hadn't heard from her in some time and I was hoping that she succeeded. But your words have deeply saddened me, all I can do is hope and pray that she is able to turn her life around."

"I-I..." Maxine felt a wave of embarrassment come over her as she had just made herself look foolish. Not just that but she had done it to a Shepherd which in her mind made things even worse. "I apologise for my actions. I should not have assumed that you were your sister." This did get noticed by Charles who knew that she didn't apologise very often. "Please forgive me."

"There is nothing to forgive. I admit that in the face I look just like my sister so the confusion is understandable. I'm just sorry about my outburst just then. A Shepherd is not supposed to lose their temper." Her voice was pleasant and it was obvious that she meant every word that she spoke. "But there is something that I must ask you, when you saw my sister, was she well?"

"I saw no visible injuries on her body and her beauty took my breath away. That should bring you some comfort at least. And now there is something I need to ask you as well, that boy we found. Why did he run away from here and try to live in the forest by himself? Is there something happening here that I should be concerned about?"

"Oh no, nothing like that." She gave another sigh as she prepared for what she was about to say next. "Theodore is unfortunately a troubled child. He has been here for three years after his mother's supposed passing. He claims that he is the bastard child of a lord and wishes to find his father and be by his side. Even if this is true, we know that high borns are unlikely to recognise illegitimate offspring."

"Yeah, I can understand that." She couldn't help but feel a little angry as she knew how much trouble high borns could be. One thing that her father had warned her about when she had gone on her quest for a knighthood to not get mixed in with lords and ladies. She had taken these words to heart although she knew that she would need a lord to knight her. "When he last escaped, did anyone attempt to find him?"

"Of course, we would not allow a child to wander in the forest by themselves without us trying to locate them. Unfortunately, he had already gotten too far by the time that we realised that he was gone and we searched for days without any luck. Until you and your companion returned him, we had feared that he had died. But I fear that Ted will simply try again the next opportunity that he gets. We keep telling him that he is best to stay here and yet he does not heed our words. It is both frustrating and upsetting."

"And his mother, who was she?" She was curious about this as she did feel some sympathy towards Ted. But she also remembered how he had acted and how tempted she was to strike him.

"According to him she was a young woman named Donna. He also claims that she told him that she would return to the house. Unfortunately, she never did and her disappearance was noticed by a neighbour. Eventually he was brought here and has stayed ever since, well besides his break out attempts. No one knows what happened to his mother, he states that someone murdered her while she was away from him. But alas I fear that something else more tragic for him could have happened."

"And what was that?" By now even Charles was listening intensely as he too was invested by what was being said. Although by now fatigue was getting the better of him, he had not slept for more than a full day and by this point in time he was struggling to keep his eyes open.

"That she simply abandoned him. On more occasions than I would like to admit a child is sent to us, not because a parent has either died or couldn't care for them any longer. It is simply because they don't want the child anymore. I have a feeling that this might have happened to him. He likely realises it too but simply refuses to believe that his mother had abandoned him."

"I see." It was something that she did feel was a shame for him. She didn't want to think about how she would feel if her parents had abandoned her as a child. But she knew that her parents had been very loving and wouldn't do that to any of their children. In a way she knew that she was lucky.

By this point Maxine did glance over to Charles and she could see that he was beginning to fall asleep. The truth was that he was struggling to stay awake and although his mind was troubled by what he had experienced it still needed rest. At one point he was even beginning to lean his head against her arm. It felt warm and safe but he could also feel the muscles that were beneath her skin.

"It is best that we be on our way," said Maxine. She was about to stand up but she had to gently lifted Charles's head off of her arm before she could do this. "We are on our way to Flea Bay and do not wish to use up any more of your resources."

"It's perfectly fine," replied Shepherd Riley. "But I think it's a little late to start travelling anywhere right now. Why don't you stop here for the night and then proceed in the morning? That way you can be well rested and not have to worry about travelling in darkness."

"Well..." She then looked over to Charles who was still looking very sleepy and she knew that the only way that he would make it to Flea Bay was if she had carried him. This was something that she didn't think would be wise and she could only agree with what the holy woman standing next to her was saying. "Alright then, we'll stay for one night, thank you very much for your offer."

"You're welcome, we do have a guest room which should hopefully be accommodating for you." She then paused for a moment. "Although now that I think about it, it does have a pretty low ceiling."

"It's alright, I'm used to that by now."

Another several minutes went by as Maxine and Shepherd Riley spoke. She too was interesting to learn about how Maxine had become so tall and muscular. She had heard the reason that was given to the children but she didn't believe it fully. It wasn't unknown for people to become much bigger than they were supposed to, but what she was seeing before her seemed to be simply impossible.

Shepherd Riley believed that somehow that Maxine's physique was caused by magic which was something that was very rare indeed. Many people would live their entire lives without seeing a single instant of magic. Everything about Maxine seemed to scream magic, but if she was a magic user Shepherd Riley thought that she would have used it for more useful endeavours than just making herself freakishly tall and strong. To her it didn't make too much sense but then again, she knew all about people doing odd things that didn't make sense to the masses.

A short time later Maxine and Charles were led away to a small room that was close by. At this point in time Charles was so tired that he could barely walked and he had to be helped to the room. He wasn't carried as Maxine thought that he might find it demeaning so instead she let him walk under his own power. She just had to make sure that he didn't fall and he moved at a reasonable pace.

They were eventually led to a small room which had two single bed. As was expected, the ceiling was too low for Maxine to be able to stand up straight and the bed too was quite small. Despite what looked to be cramped conditions, it was still acceptable for them but there was one thing that the tall woman did demand. This was that her armour and sword were retrieved from the storage cupboard that they had been placed in.

The reason for this was that Maxine had been taught that especially while sleeping that a knight's armour and sword was always close by. They never knew when they would need it and would also help keep an eye on them. Because of this she was the one who retrieved the armour and sword while Charles lay down on one of the beds.

He couldn't help but feel afraid as he now felt unprotected without his nine-foot guardian with him. His fear however was being overridden by his fatigue as he simply lay on the bed and sleep was coming to him. Even he couldn't keep his eyes open as he slowly fell asleep and that would be the end of his day.

Maxine was still getting herself ready for bed but as she glanced over to Charles, she could see that he was asleep already. This did put a small smile on her face as she thought that it was the best for him at this moment in time. It might not cause his recovery from his trauma but at least for now it was the best course of action. He wouldn't be doing himself any favours by not sleeping.

The demons that he was currently fighting were not going to be defeated so easily. It would take time and if he chose it, she would be there with him every step of the way. All of this had also happened under her watch so she felt somewhat responsible for what had taken place. It was a knight's duty to ensure that no harm came to their squire and she thought that she had failed this miserably.

Eventually fatigue also got the better of Maxine and she lay down onto the small bed. There was a huge groan as it seemed that the bed was struggling to support her weight. This was something that she tried to ignore but what she couldn't ignore was that the bottom of the bed only reached up to her knees. Her shins and feet were all dangling over the edge of the bed and it was just another reminder to her that she was simply too big. This was something that she had gotten used to however.

The last thing that was on her mind before she finally fell asleep was that they still needed to go to Flea Bay. She just hoped that the stay in the orphanage was a short one and that she wouldn't have to suffer a long delay. If that were to happen then she felt like she would be wasting her time and not achieving her goal to become a knight. It was something that would annoy her if it happened. But for the time being she could do nothing but lie there and begin to dream.

The rays of the sun woke Charles up as they shone through the window and he groaned a little while he woke up. His sleep had not been a restful one as he had dreamed about what had happened during his stay at the previous inn. He could see the bodies of the family that he was forced to kill and the bodies of their victims that lay in the basement rotting. He had hoped that sleep would give him some comfort as he could escape from what was causing him grief. Unfortunately, this had not been the case and this only added to the woe that he was currently experiencing.

The next thing he did was to glance over to the bed on his right and at first, he thought that it was empty. He had expected to see Maxine sleeping there with her huge body barely being able to fit on the single bed. At first, he simply thought that she had woken up earlier and had gone to get something to drink or even relieve herself.

Suddenly Charles did see someone moving in the bed and it caused him to quickly wake up even more than he was before. He thought that one of the children had gotten into the bed while Maxine was away. He knew that she wouldn't like it so he got himself out of the bed and quietly stepped towards the bed.

All he could see was the back of the head of someone with long red hair and from what he could see under the covers he could tell that they had a quite small body. More than ever he thought that it was a child or at the most one of the Shepherds. Even so he was surprised that this was the case.

The only explanation to that was that Maxine would had spent the night with one of the Shepherds but then again, he struggled to believe that this was true. Not only was sex strictly prohibited for Shepherds but he was sure that if she had been with someone, he would have surely heard it. The additional fact that there was no chance that a bed of that size could accommodate two people. Especially one on Maxine's scale so it only added to the idea that someone had crawled into her bed.

Quickly Charles grabbed onto the covers and pulled it off with one swift motion. He expected to see the child but he began to take a couple of steps back when he could see what he was looking at. The person who was lying there was definitely short, even for a woman and oddly she was also wearing clothing that looked to be much too big for her. They were identical to the underclothing that Maxine had worn when going to bed and this caused him to begin to put two and two together. Her head turned and he could see what looked to be a familiar face. Just one that was on a smaller scale than he was used to.

No words came out of his mouth as he realised that something had happened, something that he couldn't explain and it was almost too great for him to comprehend. All he could do was watch as the woman slowly opened her eyes and looked over to him. The same brown eyes that he had seen before looked back at him as this small woman was none other than his friend Maxine.

"C-Charles," said Maxine as she woke up. Her voice sounded different than it usually did, it was at a higher pitch and sounded less commanding that it had before. She could see the covers in his hands and she realised that he had pulled them off of her. "What is the meaning of this?" She sat up in her bed and there was some anger in her voice as she was not particularly fond of waking up before she was ready.

"M-Ma'am," replied Charles as he pointed at her with a shaking hand. He was trying to think about what to say but nothing came to his lips as he continued to stare in absolute disbelief." He could only watch as Maxine began to climb out of the bed and her annoyed expression remained.

"I asked you a..." By then she had finally stood on the ground and this was when she realised that her clothing was slipping off of her. She also looked at Charles and she could see that for the first time ever that she had to look up at him. "Question." Her tone had completely changed as now she was beginning to see that there was something very wrong taking place.

"Y-You shrank!" His voice was filled with panic, everything that he had gone through was forgotten for the moment as he realised what was happening. His mind couldn't comprehend the situation right before him and he was sure.

For what seemed to be an eternity Maxine didn't say a word as she looked at her hands and eventually the rest of her body. Not only was she not too much above half her former height but she also noticed that her impressive muscles were gone. Her arms were skinny and any evidence of muscle could not be found whatsoever. Also, she noticed that her breasts were now much smaller than they were before, they were still there but they barely had a presence. Also, her hair was shorter than it had been before. The night before it had been long enough to reach the top of her chest. Now it was only long enough to reach her shoulders.

When Charles was trying to make sense of what he was seeing he thought at first that Maxine had somehow become a child again. However, he could tell from her body that this wasn't the case. She was still an adult but a much smaller one than she had been before. If he had to guess he would say that she was below five feet in height and looked as non-threatening as a puppy.

"W-What happened to me?" asked Maxine with panic in her voice. It was one of the very few times that Charles ever heard any kind of distress in voice, this only showed him how serious the situation at hand was. "How did I get so puny?" She wanted to believe that this was some kind of dream but she knew better than to think that.

"I-I don't know ma'am." He stepped towards her and he had to look down at her, this was something that he didn't think that he would ever have to do but it was happening right now. "M-Maybe it was something that you ate."

"No, it wouldn't be. You ate the same food as me and yet you're still the same as you were before. No something's different has happened to me." She then clenched her fist as a wave of anger overtook her. "But I know who'll be able to tell me." With that she began to walk towards the door. There was much determination with every single that she took, almost like the fact that she was now so small that she didn't seem like she could hurt anyone.

"Ma'am where are you going?"

"I'm going to speak to Shepherd Riley!" Her tone was angry and sounded similar to how she had been before. But the pitch was still off and because of this, it didn't seem as threatening as it previously had. Also, at the same time Maxine had quickly darted to her sword in order to pick it up. However, this was a task much easier said than done, it was longer than she was tall and also incredibly heavy. Normally she could wield it with one hand and she wouldn't feel the weight too much. Now, even using both hands she could barely move it let alone lift it off the ground. She grunted as she tried to lift her sword but she simply didn't have the strength to do so. Not just that but her clothing was still slipping off of her.

She was still wearing the undergarments that she wore underneath her normal clothing and armour. Now it could barely fit on her much smaller body and it was likely that she would be walking around practically naked which was something that would not go down well in a place like this.

It was Charles who ultimately stopped her and it was something that he found to be incredibly easy. The day before it would have been impossible for him to stop her from doing practically whatever she wanted. Now he only had to grab onto her shoulders and use a small amount of strength and she would be stuck in place. It wasn't confronting Shepherd Riley that he wanted to stop, instead it was to prevent her from leaving in her current attire. The only quick solution that they had was to tear off a bedsheet and wrap it around her as if it was a toga. It still wasn't ideal for her but it was better than what she was wearing previously.

With her attire now somewhat more appropriate Maxine stormed out of the room and began to walk down the hallway. There were a couple of Shepherds and a few children who walked by and they looked at her with some confusion. They didn't know who she was but they did notice Charles following behind her.

Normally when she was like this, he would struggle to keep up with her but now it was much easier. Her body was much smaller and thus this made her legs much shorter than they were. This all added up to him not having to walk at such a fast pace. In a way it was something that he was glad about, he just wished that the circumstances were much different.

One thing that he did know what that Maxine had a lot of enemies and if any of them found out that she had become so small that they might take advantage. There was no chance of her defending herself against a well-armed opponent. This made him fearful and he also didn't think that he had ever seen her so angry. One thing that he was glad about was the fact that he wasn't the focus of her rage.

Eventually Maxine did reach the dining hall again where she happened to notice Shepherd Riley pouring herself a cup of water. She did hear footsteps coming from behind her and she turned around and expected to see either a fellow shepherd or a child. Instead she looked down and could see Maxine but for the moment she didn't realise who it was. Instead she smiled at her and placed her hands together.

"Good morning," said Shepherd Riley. Her voice was very respectful and it seemed obvious that she had stated this many times before. "Is there something that I can help you with." It was then that she saw the look of rage on Maxine's face and she couldn't help but be a little fearful, even though she was a head taller than her now.

"What the fuck did you do to me!" replied Maxine in a loud and very agitated voice. But even with this it didn't seem like Shepherd Riley recognised her. It was hard for anyone to see that this short woman was once the nine-foot powerhouse from the previous day.

"I'm sorry but I don't understand. I don't think we've met before." She looked back at her with a combination of confusion and fear as she continued to look at Maxine, this only made the shrunken giant even angrier.

"Don't play dumb with me, you did something to me last night and now because of you I'm like this!" She held out her arms and for a moment Shepherd Riley was still quiet but the gears inside of her head began to turn as the pieces fell together.

"M-Maxine, is that you?" As the full realisation struck her, she took a step forward and looked at Maxine even more. She couldn't believe that she was now looking down at a woman who before had been so tall that her head would strike the ceiling in most rooms that she stood in. "W-What happened to you?"

"You know full well what you did..." Maxine was about to berate the confused woman even more when Charles felt that he had to step in. Normally he wouldn't think about doing such a thing if he thought that she would hurt him. Not only did he think that she wouldn't due to the friendship that they had built but also, she likely physically couldn't. He didn't want to take the opportunity to mock her but instead prevent the terrible situation from getting any worse.

"M-Ma'am please calm yourself," stated Charles. He had already stepped in front of her and tried to make sure that she didn't do anything that they would later regret. "You're not thinking straight."

"Get out of my way Charles!" She grabbed onto him and attempted to push him out of the way but she found that she was unable to. It was almost like he was completely fixed onto the spot where he was. Before she could have achieved the task with little effort but now, she tried with all of her might and yet ended with failure. It was another reminder to her that she was much weaker than she should be.

"No ma'am." He knew that he had to step up more as things were escalating faster than he was comfortable with. Although he didn't think that she was much of a threat in her smaller and much weaker body he knew not to underestimate her. Just because she had lost her size and strength didn't mean that she was harmless. "You're letting your anger control you again, step back and take a deep breath. Think, what would Shepherd Riley achieve by making you like this?"

"Well..." Her voice was still angry but now she was thinking more than she was a few moments ago. She knew that he was telling the truth as there was nothing that she could think that actually made sense. It made it more and more unlikely that the Shepherd was the cause of what had happened.

"Believe me I'm just as surprised as you to see you so small," added Shepherd Riley. She too was trying to comprehend the fact that Maxine had gone from being nine-feet tall with muscles attached to practically every part of her body to the less than five-foot weak looking woman she was now. "Maybe Shepherd Morgan knows what has happened."

Maxine didn't answer as she continued to breathe deeply. This was allowing more oxygen to enter her brain and thus gave her more time and energy to think. She was still in disbelief over what had happened but one thing that she knew was that she wanted to be back to normal as soon as possible.

She couldn't become a knight like her father if she was too weak to even lift up her sword. The thought of trying to wear her armour was laughable at best to her. Not only would it not fit but likely even if she had a small percentage of it on, she wouldn't be able. This would be very embarrassing to her as well.

Not just that but Maxine began to think about how her family would react to see her so small and scrawny. Carrie would likely find it hilarious and probably mock her even more than now. Although they had mended a lot of bridges it didn't mean that the sibling rivalry was gone completely. She thought that her father would be disappointed in her and she was sure that her mother would cry and hug her.

However, there was a small side of her that felt differently to this. It was the part of her that desired to be normal, it was one that she supressed but deep down the feeling was always. The fact that she constantly felt that the world was too small for her as her head struck most ceilings and normal furniture felt child size to her didn't make her feel welcome. At least while she was like this no one would bat an eyelid at her or think that she was a freak. Instead they would just think that she was just some normal woman.

As she looked up at Charles, she couldn't help but respect him for his actions. If he hadn't of stepped in when he did, she didn't know what she would have done and his rational thinking had helped greatly in this situation. It was easy for her to forget that he was dealing with his own issues that would likely take a long time to get by.

"May I ask who Shepherd Morgan is," stated Charles as he looked over to Shepherd Riley. The somewhat startled woman still stood there as she was trying to normalise what was happening.

"She is probably the wisest Shepherd here," replied Shepherd Riley. Her voice was respectful but she didn't fear Maxine. Her temper seemed to have subsided for the time being at least. "When fairly abnormal things happen, she normally has an explanation for it. Although this time it might be beyond her understanding."

"Speak to her as soon as possible," demanded Maxine. She tried to make her voice sound commanding but it didn't work very well.

"A-As you wish but I think for the time being that we need to find you some appropriate clothing. Walking around wearing a bedsheet might not go down very well with everyone around here."

Several minutes later Charles found himself standing outside of a small room. He was worried about the situation but he tried to remain as brave as he could. Right now, Maxine didn't need him to be a bag of worries. However, there was a small amount of annoyance that he could feel.

There were a couple of children who walked by, rumours of Maxine becoming small had spread and a lot of the children were talking about it. He had no idea when she would become big again but with the Shepherds catching wind of it, he was sure that they would discover the problem after a while.

Charles had only expected to be standing there for a couple of minutes, instead it had been seven and, in his mind,, it should not have been this long. Quickly he began to knock the door, it was only a small door and it shook somewhat after he had knocked it. The first thing that he could hear was an annoyed grunt coming from the other side.

"Come on Maxine," said Charles just after he had knocked the door. "It doesn't take that long to put on an outfit."

"I don't care!" replied a very annoyed Maxine. "I'm not coming out!" Her words made it seem that she adamant about what she was saying.

"You won't be able to find a way to return to normal if you stay in there. Please come out, everything will be alright."

There were a few moments of silence before the knob of the door turned. Soon after the door itself opened and the much shorter Maxine stepped out into the open. Rather than her body being covered by the bedsheet from before she was now wearing a relatively simple dress. It was brown in colour and was long enough to reach her feet which now wore simple black shoes.

This was the first time that Charles had ever seen her wearing a dress and he had to admit that she did look very pretty. It was odd seeing her wearing such feminine attire, he was used to seeing her in either her armour or her underclothing to it. Either way it was clothing that were more expected on a man rather than a woman. She didn't look like a fairy tale princess or anything like that, but she definitely looked like a woman without a shadow of a doubt. Although the annoyed look was still on her face.

"Not a single word Charles!" stated Maxine in a very annoyed tone. He had been on the verge of saying something but she had cut him off before he could mutter a word. She had even lifted her hand up and showed him her palm. "Say anything about how I look and I swear that when I'm big again I will break your arm."

"W-Wouldn't think of its ma'am," replied Charles. He knew that he had to use his next words carefully. He wasn't sure if she would actually follow through with her threat at all. After everything that they had been through together he doubted that she was serious, but there was always a chance that she would make good on her threat.

"Wow the giant woman got smaller," said what seemed to be a random voice. It was then that Maxine and Charles looked at they could see one of the orphans. It had been one that had marvelled over Maxine's size and strength the previous day. She was a little girl and she was still much shorter than Maxine but she looked up at her with wonder again. This time it was due to the difference from what she had been previously. "And she looks so pretty in her dress too."

Charles could see the anger flaring up within Maxine and he thought that he needed to step in again before she said anything to upset the girl. He knew that his friend was on an extremely short fuse right now and he feared what she might do if she truly lost her temper. He smiled down at the little girl and tried to make it seem like everything was alright despite Maxine's lost height.

"Indeed, she does, but my friend here needs to go now," said Charles. His voice was calm and he did try to hurry Maxine away by grabbing onto her arm and leading her away. This was a task that he discovered to be much easier than he expected. The shrunken woman could do nothing but follow.

As they stepped away, they were noticed by more of the orphans and a few of the other Shepherds. One of the orphans who did notice her was Ted who like many of the others couldn't believe the change that had taken place. He was also the one who found it the funniest as he laughed when he walked past her. Seeing a woman who was nine feet tall suddenly become less than five feet and losing all of her muscle. In his mind it meant that karma was true.

Charles and Maxine didn't stop walking until they came across Shepherd Riley who had actually been walking towards them. She had been intending to take them to Shepherd Morgan. This was the first time that she had seen Maxine in the dress and like others she did think that she looked quite pretty and ladylike. These were all words that she didn't want to hear as it gave her great annoyance.

Maxine even asked why they had only given her this dress rather than clothing that she would be more comfortable in. Unfortunately, this was the only thing that they had that would fit her properly. This was something that she also found annoying and simply walking in a dress was awkward for her.

The last time that she had worn a dress was back when she was a little girl and that was purely to make her mother happy. Since then she had never wanted to wear a dress again but now it seemed that she was doing something that she hated. She knew that she couldn't become a knight while wearing a dress and any claim to her goal that she made would not be taken seriously while she was dressed like this.

For now, all she could do was follow Shepherd Riley and Charles to this elder Shepherd who she hoped could help her in this situation. More than anything she wanted her size back although simply having a normal life had not escaped her.

Maxine walked with determination with every step that she took as she wanted to see Shepherd Morgan as quickly as she could. She was being led by Shepherd Riley who knew the severity of the situation so she too walked with a small amount of haste. She was still finding it hard to believe that the previous day Maxine had been a giant of a woman. Now she very short and quite frail.

They were not alone as Charles too followed closely behind. He too was in some disbelief but he was sure that his friend would become big again before long. If she couldn't then she would have to kiss her dreams of being a knight. She had found it difficult enough before when the fact that she was a woman was holding her back. Now that she had lost her size and strength it meant that becoming a knight was practically impossible. She was too weak to wield her sword and putting her armour on was something that would be equally as futile. Also, he had lost his greatest protection which would make travelling the roads particularly dangerous.

"How much further?" asked Maxine with a hint of annoyance in her voice. She was hating every moment that she was small. Seeing the world from so low was simply abnormal to her, she had always been used to towering over everyone and almost everything. Now she was having to look up constantly at people which to her was practically an alien concept. She did watch as Shepherd Riley turned her head and looked at her with a smile on her face. She thought that a smile would make the situation a little better.

"Not far now Ms Martel," replied Shepherd Riley. "It is just down this corridor and then we'll be there. Shepherd Morgan has been informed of the situation so at least you won't need to explain things."

Maxine fell silent as she continued to walk. Something else that was abnormal to her was how many strides she was taking in comparison to before. In comparison to when she was big it took her one stride for every two that she did now. It made travelling from one place to another more taxing on her and she had to contend with the fact that her smaller body didn't have the stamina that she was used to.

Eventually the trio came to a relatively small door which was at the far end of a corridor. Carefully Shepherd Riley stepped towards the door and knocked on it. There were several moments of what seemed to be silence before Shepherd Riley opened the door and all three of them stepped inside.

The first thing that Charles was able to notice was a musty smell but as he looked into the room, he could see that there were no windows. Instead it was candle light that lit up the room and there was a single bed right in the corner. Sitting on a nearby chair was a woman who looked to be close to a hundred years old. Her eyes were mostly closed and what hair she had left was long and completely white. Her face had more wrinkles than any of them would care to count and only a few teeth remained in her mouth.

The Old Woman was wearing a very similar outfit to Shepherd Riley and as the trio entered, she turned her head towards them but other than that she didn't really acknowledge that they were even there.

"Shepherd Morgan," said Shepherd Riley in a very respectful tone. She even bowed to her as she spoke. "I want to thank you for seeing us on such short notice." It seemed that the elderly Shepherd grumbled, at first Charles thought that it was just a noise but he soon realised that she had spoken. "I have brought Ms Maxine Martel to you in the hopes that your wisdom can help her." She then looked towards Maxine who had been a few feet back. "Come on step forward."

Maxine did as she was told as she stepped forward. In a way the Shepherd looked similar to her grandmother before she had died. She thought that the old woman was nearing the time to meet the gods themselves.

"Ah I see that you are different from what I've been told," said Shepherd Morgan. Her voice sounded warm and loving, almost like a grandmotherly voice. It did make Maxine feel a little easier with the situation. But she was still determined to get back to her normal self as soon as she could.

"Do you know what happened at all?" replied Maxine. Her own voice was respectful as she knew better than to insult someone who was trying to help her. "I was huge when I went to bed last night and now, I'm like this." She gestured her hand toward herself and to Charles looking on it still seemed unreal. A part was telling him that the woman standing before him was someone different to his friend. He had to keep reminding himself that they were one in the same.

"If I had to guess I'd say that there is magic involved in all of this. Please tell me, how you became so large in the first place? I might be old but even I know that people don't normally grow as tall as you were. Or so I've heard at least." There was a small chuckle which Maxine didn't appreciate but she didn't lash out because of it.

"My size came from my mother. She is around eight and a half feet tall and has the ability to enlarge herself further." She then paused for a moment before as she knew that technically she was incorrect. "Actually, I'm mistaken, my mother is a giant in every sense of the word, taller than most castles in the land but she possesses a dress which allows her to shrink down to around eight and a half feet. She became like that after being given a special elixir when she was a baby which cured her of an illness that would have taken her life in infancy. Because of her, myself and my sisters are all greatly above average height."

"I see, very interesting. It seems that you inherited a small amount of magic from your mother. That is why you were able to grow so large, looking at you big is the last word that I would describe you." She chuckled again and it seemed that despite her appearance that she still had enough know how in order to get by and be considered the wisest amongst the Shepherds in this orphanage.

"But what happened to my size? It couldn't have disappeared like that." The fact that she had lost height wasn't too unreasonable in her mind as she had seen her mother and sisters shrink from giant size to a more manageable height. It was her muscles that were the biggest concern as losing muscle mass like this was something that she didn't think was very likely. Deep down she was also scared of being so weak, especially after everything that she had experienced and the enemies that she'd created.

"Hmm, now that is the question but I'm guessing that you've been big for your entire life, so it isn't like your size was a temporary form of magic. Instead it was magic within your body maintaining your impressive stature but it has been removed."

"Removed?" This came to her as a shock as she had never heard of such a thing taking place. "What do you mean?"

"Like I said, your body contained magic which allowed you to maintain your size. But since it has been removed your body has reverted to that. I know that you're going to say that you've never been like this before, well if it hadn't been the magic passed on from your mother this is how you would have likely turned out."

"What?" She then looked at her hands and there was still some disbelief in what she was hearing. Her mind couldn't wrap itself around the fact that naturally she would have become this. The truth was that without magic she wouldn't be born as her mother would have died when she was a young baby. But to think that she could have been this was still something that had blown her mind.

"I-I guess that makes sense," stated Charles as he looked at Maxine. Normally she would have looked at him with a stink eye but with her mind blown in the manner that it had she didn't even register his comment. He could see that she didn't seem to be in any real state to ask anything. "But how was the magic removed from her body? I didn't think that such a thing was possible."

"Now that is what brings me some trouble," answered Shepherd Morgan. Although it looked as though she could fall asleep at any moment, she was still aware enough to carry on the conversation. "There are only two ways that magic can be removed from someone's body. The first is that they remove it themselves and from your friend's reaction I doubt this is the case. The only other way is that someone else removed it which seems like the most likely case."

"Someone removed the magic inside of Maxine?" He looked over to his shrunken friend and it still seemed like she hadn't fully registered what had been said. "But who could have done something like that?"

"It is evident that it took place at some point last night. So far, I haven't been given any news of a break-in so it means it was someone who was already inside of this very orphanage. But I assure you that none of the Shepherds would do such a thing. We know of magic of course, but we are prohibited from practicing any. It would be something that would go against our very creed."

"But the only other explanation would be that it was one of the orphans who took the magic from Maxine. Surely that couldn't be possible." Even though he knew that there was a small possibility he still thought that it was astronomically small. He knew that children shouldn't be underestimated. He still remembered the leader of the bandits that Maxine had faced not too long after they had first met. Although this child had looked sweet and innocent, she had been the leader all along and been completely ruthless.

"This is certainly troubling. The only other explanation is that there was an intruder who has been here for a while and since there has been no reports of a break out it would mean that they were still here."

This was something else that Charles found to be unlikely. A thief would most likely not stick around after stealing something. They would make themselves scarce as soon as possible in order to minimalize the chances of being captured. All this meant that things were not as clear cut as he would have liked.

"Enough of this!" stated Maxine in a loud and angry voice. It seemed that she had snapped out of her current mindset and it had been replaced by rage. She clenched her fist as she looked over to Shepherd Morgan. Not far away Shepherd Riley was becoming concerned, she was thinking many of the same things as Charles but she also feared for the safety of the elderly Shepherd. "I don't want to stand here and simply talk about what happened. I want my size back, if it is just some thief who stole it then point me in the right direction and I will hunt them myself. Through sun and snow, I will find them and I will make them regret ever taking away what is rightfully mine!"

Her voice did have a commanding tone but its pitch and the smallness of her body made anyone watching not take Maxine very seriously. If she were her normal self, her words and tone would strike terror to anyone within earshot. Like this some would probably laugh at her, Charles knew better than to do anything like that.

"It isn't as easy as that Ms Martel," said Shepherd Riley. She wanted to try and ensure that Maxine didn't completely lose her temper but this was something that was unlikely going to happen. "There are still too many things that we're not sure about, please be patient and we'll find who's responsible."

Maxine didn't really say anything to this as she looked over to Shepherd Riley. A small part wanted to simply storm out and begin her own investigation. But even she knew that this was a bad idea and wouldn't end well for any of them. Instead for the moment she would swallow her pride and simply do what was needed. When she got her hands on the person responsible for this, she would break every bone in their body. First starting off with the inessentials and eventually onto the more the more essential bones.

"Then what am I supposed to do?" asked Maxine. Her voice was still angry as she seemed to be more desperate than before. "Just stand around and do nothing as I'm stuck in this pathetic body?"

"For the time being yes, you're in no position to be going anywhere right now. You could be walking into danger and unlike before I doubt that you'd be able to find your way out of it. Stay here in the orphanage, you'll be safe and who knows. Maybe you might even turn back to normal. The fact that your magic has been stolen right now is only a theory, it could possibly come back."

Maxine was still silent as she didn't think that this was the case. If the magic inside of her could switch off like this it would have happened long ago in the past. The fact that it had never happened to her or her sisters only supported the thief theory even more. But she still didn't like the idea of simply doing nothing while she allowed others to try and find out what happened for her.

If there was one thing that she disliked it was the feeling of being helpless. For as long as she remembered she had never been helpless as she had always been bigger and stronger than almost everyone else. It was only her mother and sisters who had been in the same league as her but being like this simply wouldn't do for her. Despite her lack of size, she still wanted to fight until her last breath. This was the way of a knight and she felt like she could never truly become one if she simply gave up.

"Begin inside the room where our guests slept," stated Shepherd Morgan who had been sitting there and listening to what was being said. With her words a silence fell over the others. "It is likely there that we will find the first clue to what had happened and who is responsible. Shepherd Riley, I am placing this in your hands. I know that you will make everything right again."

"I shall try my best," replied Shepherd Riley. She was nervous about this as this was something that she didn't think would be her best suit. But she didn't want to turn down Shepherd Morgan, she respected the old woman too much and it would be seen poorly by the others.

"Very good, please report to me the outcome of this incident. I would like to know exactly what happened myself."

With that Shepherd Morgan was thanked for her contribution before Shepherd Riley led both Maxine and Charles out of the room. They did feel somewhat enlightened by their visit but also some worry. It wouldn't be the first time that Maxine had something stolen from her while she slept but it was something that was more precious to her than gold.

She was still finding it odd to see Charles so tall, she was so used to him being only a head taller than her hips that seeing him tower above her seemed alien. Then again Shepherd Riley too towered over the former tall woman. This only gave her more motivation to return to normal as she simply didn't want to be small and weak for the rest of her days.

As instructed the trio returned to the room where Maxine and Charles had slept the night before. One of the first things that was examined was the door to the room, there were no signs of a forced entry but since the door itself had been unlocked during the night this was to be expected.

Charles did begin to examine some of the other belongings that they had with them. All of their gold and more valuable belongings were still present. None of Maxine's armour was gone either, it might have been too big for any normal person to wear but it still could have been sold off for the metal itself.

They especially noticed that the gold that they had was still there as well. This included the money and the locket that had only recently been given back to Charles. These were items that would be very popular amongst thieves but the fact that it they were still here meant that the perpetrator wasn't just some common thief.

One thing that Maxine didn't really feel comfortable about was moving around in a dress. To her it was below her and, in a way, she also thought that people wouldn't take her as seriously. She already had problems with people taking her goal to become a knight seriously in the first place. Now that she was so short and wearing a dress would make people laugh at her if she told them that she wanted to become a knight.

As the trio continued to search the room there didn't seem to be anything that immediately pointed to the person responsible. It would be a difficult for them if they found nothing and it only made the situation much direr for them. There was something about all of this that Maxine had yet to mention.

This was the fact that her father Sir Tucker had once mentioned that something similar had happened to her mother. It was something that she had placed in the back of her mind and was now beginning to remember. It was when her parents had gone on their own quest together and during one of the trials, the magic within Jessica's body had been blocked. This did cause her to shrink down much like Maxine had but she also began to suffer the illness that had almost taken her as a baby. If not for Sir Tucker completing the trial it was likely that Jessica would have been killed.

Maxine feared that something similar would happen to her. It seemed somewhat unlikely but the chance was always there. It wasn't like she was immune to all diseases when she had been big. Over her life she had suffered from some minor illnesses such as the common cold and even had chicken pox when she was younger. But she had never suffered from an illness that put her life at risk. If she had somehow picked up the same illness from her mother it could mean that if she didn't return to normal soon, she could die.

"Hey," said Charles. This got the attention of both Maxine and Shepherd Riley who looked over to him. They found him crouching by the bed that Maxine had been sleeping in the night before. It had yet to be made since she had woken up and it seemed like he had noticed something. "I think I've found a clue."

"What is it?" replied Maxine as she quickly stepped towards him. Shepherd Riley too was very curious but didn't move as fast as the shorter woman.

"To tell you the truth, I'm not entirely sure." He pointed to something that was on the ground. The blanket from the bed had been covering it but when he had lifted it up, he could see it better. It was a black powder that looked similar to soot. It was something that he hadn't noticed the night before, then again, he had not been particularly looking out for it in the first place.

"You found some dirt Charles, but I'm not sure how this is important." She had considered using sarcasm but with everything that was happening she knew better than to do such a thing.

"I don't think that it's simple dirt," answered Shepherd Riley as she crouched down to take a look at it. There were sometimes some ashes that could be found in the orphanage thanks to a fire that they would sometimes burn. But that was in one of the much larger rooms and not simply a guest room like this one.

"Then what is it? Ash or something?"

"Not in a room like this, we try not to start any fires in the smaller rooms like this. No this shouldn't be here."

Maxine realised that this was likely the first clue that they had and although it seemed confusing at first it was likely that it could be important later on. She did turn her head to see Charles writing down something in his journal. At first, she wasn't sure what he was doing as this didn't involve any kind of money or supplies.

What she didn't realise was the fact that he was documenting the clue that they had found and even picked up a small sample of it. This he stored in a small bag that he would normally use to store money. It wasn't the only one that he had and he thought that it could be important later on. Exactly how, he wasn't sure. But he would rather have it and not need it rather than needing it and not having it.

One thing that they didn't realise was the fact that they were being watched. Not too far from the door Ted was poking his head through when the trio weren't looking and he could see what happened inside. In his mind the situation was incredibly funny, it was taking a lot for him to not burst out laughing.

He had seen how confident Maxine had been when she was big. But now that she was small and weak, he thought that it was poetic justice. This was payback for taking him back to the orphanage, even though he hadn't wanted to go. He could also overhear what was being said and this did make him remember something.

The previous night he had gotten out of bed as he was thinking about another escape attempt. It was far too soon for him to try as he knew that the Shepherds would be on guard but he had noticed something odd that night. He had seen a figure with something bright in their hand but it wasn't a torch.

Something about them had given him a bad vibe and this caused him to go back to his bed and further plan out his escape later. Ted wasn't sure exactly what he had seen or even what the light had been. All he knew was that it wasn't normal as it had been a blew glow rather than the orange that he was used to when it came to fire. This didn't add up in his mind but now he was considering that the events were linked.

Rather than stepping into the room and explaining what he had seen the night before Ted decided to keep this information to himself. He still remembered how when he had first met Maxine and Charles and what had happened during that time. Although he had been a little afraid of Maxine, he had been more annoyed of her after everything and because of this he didn't feel like helping her right now.

It was taking all of his willpower to prevent himself from bursting out with laughter over the change that she had gone through. He remembered that the night before she was around nine feet in height with muscles that most men would be jealous of. Now she was less than five feet tall and looked like she couldn't even lift a basket of carrots. Because of this he simply slipped back into the room that he shared with several other children and left it at that. He didn't really care too much about what happened to her right now, all that he was concerned with was getting some breakfast.

Inside the room Maxine was beginning to get frustrated. The soot like material that they had found was one thing but it still didn't point them in the right direction of who had taken the magic from her and where they had gone. Because of this she couldn't help but slam her fist against a wall.

Almost instantly the small woman felt something crack in her hand and a wave of pain overtook her. She looked at her hand and she could see that it was beginning to bleed, rather than screaming out she simply took a deep breath and endured the pain. But her injury was noticed by Charles who quickly went over to her. He was concerned for her health as he knew that she wasn't as powerful as she used to be.

"Ma'am are you alright?" asked Charles as he arrived at her. He could see that there was some pain in her face but he could also see that she was being stubborn again. She looked away from him for a moment.

"I'm fine," replied Maxine in a defiant voice. She didn't want to admit just how much pain that she was in. She did wince when Charles touched her hand and this was the only indication that he needed.

"No, you're not ma'am, I think you broke your hand." He then turned his head to Shepherd Riley who was standing close by. "Shepherd Riley, is there anyone here with medical training?"

"Of course, there are a few Shepherds that can treat her. I'll go and get one of them right away."

"I said I'm fine damn it!" shouted Maxine. Her frustration was beginning to get the better of her. She couldn't help but feel hopeless about the situation, this was one of the few times that she couldn't use her size and strength to power her way through.

Her comment was ignored however as Shepherd Riley quickly left the room. Maxine stood where she was and could do nothing but wait for the Shepherd's return with another of her colleagues. This Shepherd was an older woman, probably around her fifties and quite tall. She was nowhere near the height of Maxine was or any of the women in her immediate family. But she was still tall in her own right.

Almost immediately the Shepherd did begin to treat Maxine's broken hand. This included wiping away the blood and trying to set it right before bandaging it up. It would likely take weeks for the wound to properly heal and worse still for her was the fact that it was her sword hand. Even if she was able to acquire a sword that she was able wield in her current state she now couldn't use her stronger hand. This only added to the problems that she was facing and made a bad situation even worse.

It didn't take long for the Shepherd to treat Maxine who then stepped away so that she could carry out her other duties. This left the trio in the room again by themselves but this time there was a wave of hopelessness in the air. They had searched the entire room and besides the soot like substance they couldn't find anything else.

The sense of frustration that Maxine could feel was becoming almost too much for her to contain. Practically the smallest thing would now set her off on an angry tirade. Right now, it was taking all of her willpower to simply stay calm. She knew that Charles and Shepherd Riley were trying to help but the lack of results was really getting to her.

"Can't we find anything else?" asked Maxine as she stood near the door. She had her hand gently rubbing her bandaged hand. The pain was still there and she remained as calm as she could despite the circumstances.

"I-I'm afraid not ma'am," replied Charles. Even though she was so small, he still found Maxine to be somewhat intimidating. If he really wanted to, he could likely push her over with ease. "We've searched this room several times over and besides this soot that we found we've found nothing."

"Then keep looking, there has to be something!" Her voice had a demanding tone to it, just like the tone that she took when she was bigger and wanted to be intimidating or in control of the situation.

"That would be futile," replied Shepherd Riley. "As much as I would hope that there is something here, there simply isn't. Maybe we should start searching beyond for now, maybe we can find evidence elsewhere."

Maxine wanted to explode with anger but in the end decided that it wasn't the best course of action. She knew that simply shouting and throwing a tantrum would not make the evidence appear like magic. It would not be appreciated by the two people who were trying to help and it would likely make them think less of her. Because of this she simply stayed quiet and allowed her anger to stay inside until she discovered a way to vent it in a more positive and helpful manner.
"I do have an idea ma'am," said Charles. He wasn't sure about how this would be taken but he still wanted to try. "Why don't you go back home and see if your mother or sisters can make you bigger. They all have the magic inside of them too."

"No!" shouted Maxine. Her voice was loud and sharp and it somewhat took her squire by surprise. She needed a moment to stop and get a hold of her emotions. "I mean it wouldn't work." This time her voice was calmer after she had taken a few breaths. "They can only change the size of their own bodies, not anyone else's. Besides I'm not letting them see me like this." In her mind she imagined her oldest sister Carrie laughing at her and possibly even mocking her, even though their relationship had been repaired. Her mother would probably cry and hug her as she always worried about her while she was out on this so-called quest. "I would never live it down."

"A-Alright."

"Maybe we can ask around," said Shepherd Riley. "There's bound to be someone who saw something." This seemed like their best option right now and Maxine knew it, all she could do was quietly agree with her.

Over the course of the next few minutes the trio began to track down and speak with every Shepherd that they could find. Each of them stated that during the night they had been asleep and seen nothing. This was disheartening as it seemed that they were just going from one dead end to another.

Many of the orphans were still noticing Maxine and they still couldn't believe that she was the same woman from the day before. Back then she had been so impressive but now she looked like any run of the mill woman. The only thing that they would say was abnormal about her was the fact that she was shorter than the average woman. This was something that she didn't need reminding of.

When they walked down a particular corridor to find another of the Shepherds, they were spotted by Ted who looked over at Maxine. So far this was the closest that he had ever seen her since she had shrunk and almost instantly he burst out laughing. It was almost uncontrollable for him and his laughter was quickly picked up by the shrunken woman who turned to him with a frown on her face.

Charles became nervous for a moment as he watched she stepped towards him. If she had been big, he would have thought that she could seriously hurt him. Even though he was only a child. He doubted that she would have harmed him but, in this state, he didn't know exactly how she was going to react.

By the time that she reached him she could see that she was only a little taller than him. If she remained like this for another couple of years it was likely that she would have to look up at him which would almost seem absurd. Her anger was getting the better of her and even she didn't know what she was going to do. The situation wasn't getting any better thanks to the fact that Ted was still laughing.

"And what is so funny?" asked Maxine. Her voice was angry and there was an attempt of intimidation. Unfortunately, with its pitch and her lack of size it didn't work in the slightest, all it did was make him laugh even more.

"You," replied Ted as he continued to laugh. To him it was probably the funniest thing that he had ever seen. "You're so small now."

"I'm still bigger than you!" Her anger was getting the better of her again but she still didn't want to cause him any harm. Hurting a child was not something that a knight would do and even if she was in a difficult situation.

"Probably not for long, you're not so high and mighty anymore." He only had to remember to yesterday when she had been able to lift him up into the air without any real effort. Now she looked like she could do it, even if she used every muscle in her body.

"Listen here you little shit! You have no right to laugh at the misfortune of others, such actions lead down a dark path."

"Nah it won't, it just makes it funny. Guess that woman is going to be laughing as well." He continued to laugh for a moment but his words rang through Maxine's mind as she fully realised what he had said.

"What was that boy?" Her voice was still angry but also had some curiosity to it as well. "What woman?"

"What do you mean?" He tried to go back on his words but it seemed like the cat was out of the bag.

"I heard what you said. You mentioned a woman who would be laughing as well. Who is that woman?" Her anger was getting the better of her and Shepherd Riley stepped forward as she knew that she needed to do something to prevent things from escalating. Plus, she thought that it needed a more delicate touch.

"Ted, please do not be like this," said Shepherd Riley. Unlike Maxine before her, her voice was softer and much calmer. "If you know something about what happened to Maxine you have to tell us. The gods are watching over us all and they would greatly appreciate if you helped us. Just like she helped you."

"How did she help me?" replied Ted. This time it was him who had the anger in his voice. "She kidnapped me and brought me back to this hellhole. If anything, she destroyed my chances of freedom."

"She was concerned about your health and time being as a child of your age shouldn't be living by themselves. If she hadn't of found you and brought you back, what do you think would have happened to you?"

"I-I would have been fine." This time he did experience some doubt as he didn't believe all the words leaving his mouth.

"Would you really?" She then gave a sigh. "I don't know why you feel the need to leave the orphanage and try to live by yourself. You're too young for such a thing, I know that things haven't been easy for you but there are people here who genuinely want to help you. Maxine helped you not because she felt like she was being cruel, she did it because she genuinely cared about your health and wellbeing. Think about it, would your mother want to see you trying to survive in a harsh world all by yourself? No, she would have wanted you here, you're safe here and there are people who love you. Please, help us find who stole what was important to her."

Shepherd Riley's words seemed to resonate in Ted as he fell silent for several moments. Even though Maxine was desperate for answers she remained quiet as she looked at the orphaned boy. She could see some tears welling up in his eyes and mere moments later he began to cry. The Shepherd quickly began to hug him as she knew that he seemed to finally be getting the message.

The hugging and crying lasted for around a minute as he let his emotions get out. It was something that Maxine had not entirely expected but she could understand his point of view. Since she had come from a big family, she didn't fully understand what it was like to be truly alone. Because of that she couldn't really comment on how he felt, instead she simply remained quiet and waited, even though time was short.

Eventually the crying did stop and Shepherd Riley did kneel down somewhat so that she was more on level with him. She knew how important that she was down to his level rather than bending over. It was a way to make children feel safer and not like she was standing over him.

"Ok, Ted can you look at me?" asked Shepherd Riley. Her voice was comforting and Ted looked at her. There were still some tears in his eyes but he was able to do this at the very least. "Tell me, last night, what did you see?" This was something that both Maxine and Charles were curious in hearing.

"I-I was trying to find another way out. I knew that you would all be keeping an eye on me and blocked my other escape routes. I was trying to find somewhere new and that's when I spotted someone going into the room. They were in there for a few seconds but they left with something bright in their hands. But it wasn't a torch, it was something else."

"What was it and who did you see?" There was some concern in her voice as she spoke and it added to the seriousness of the situation.

"It glowed but it wasn't made of fire. Instead it was blue and like a ball, I had never seen it before."

"Did you recognise who took it?" This seemed to be the most important question of all. If he didn't know then it meant that all of this hope and planning would have been for nothing at all.

"I-I'm not sure, it was dark but the glowing thing in her hand shone in her face for a moment. It looked like Shepherd Crawley."

"Shepherd Crawley?" This brought on a great wave of confusion within her. It was enough to make her stand up and take a few steps back. The name meant something to her but it didn't mean anything to Maxine and Charles. It was enough for him to step towards her, even though she was still in a confused state.

"Who is Shepherd Crawley?" asked Charles. It was the first time that he was hearing the name and from what he could see it was a name of some significance to the woman who was helping them.

"There's no time to explain." It then seemed like the confusion had ebbed away and instead was replaced by a stern demeanour. "Ted, thank you for your help. Go and have some breakfast with everyone else, I'll speak to you later."

Ted barely said anything but did as he was told as he walked away from the trio. There seemed to be a wave of silence that overtook them for around a minute as they fully processed what had just happened. They definitely had a lead but now there were more questions than answers.

Out of all of them it was Shepherd Riley who was the most shocked. She had heard what Ted had said and still couldn't believe what she had heard. Deep down she wanted to believe that he was simply lying as he did have a tendency of doing that. But she knew that every word that he had spoken was the truth. Because of this she quickly looked over to Maxine and even had to look down a little. This was something that she hadn't been used to but was simply happening.

"How could she do something like this?" asked Shepherd Riley. For a moment it seemed like she was talking to herself. "Come on, I know where she is. Follow me and whatever you do, just let me do the talking. Hopefully if this all goes well; you'll have what was taken from you."

The sound of this did make Maxine happy but she could hear the sternness behind Shepherd Riley's voice and this did give her a small sense of fear. It was going to be an unnerving event that was going to take place as both she and Charles followed the religious woman. All Maxine knew was that they had a name to the person who had stolen her size and she was more determined than ever to get it back.

A few minutes later they arrived at a door that seemed like most other doors in the orphanage. It was of average size and made of wood, this made it blend in but it soon rattled as Shepherd Riley knocked it. There was some force behind her fists and just by hearing it, anyone close by would tell that she meant business.

She was not alone as Maxine and Charles were standing alongside her. The former didn't feel too happy about this situation as she felt powerless. She was used to being the one calling the shots and having her own destiny in her hands. This time it was different as she was depending on someone else to help achieve her goals. In her mind she never wanted to feel like this again.

Eventually the door opened and the pair saw another Shepherd answer it. Like Shepherd Riley she was wearing identical clothing and the only skin they could see was her hands and her face. Her eyes were blue and she was a fairly tall woman. It seemed like the knocking had caught her by surprise but when she saw who it was, she smiled as she thought that this was merely a friendly visit.

"Hello there Riley," said Shepherd Crawley. Her voice sounded pleasant and very comforting. "I wasn't expecting a visit from you, how are you?"

"Crawley, we need to talk," replied Shepherd Riley. Once again there was some determination in her voice. It was a tone that Maxine took when she particularly wanted to be taken seriously.

"About what?" There was a hint of nervousness in her voice. Something that was picked by Charles. It was like she had something to hide and now it was all just a matter of getting it out in the open.

"I've just spoken to one of the children and they told me that they saw you last night. You were performing an activity that goes against our vows and our religion." This seemed to only add to the other woman's nervousness but she tried to keep her head even though Charles did spot a small drop of sweat roll down her face.

"Whatever could you be talking about? I didn't do anything last night besides helping some of the children to bed and then going to bed myself. I really don't have anything to hide and such accusations are not becoming of you. Now I would like to ask you to leave, I have a lot of work that I need to do."

She was about to close the door when Maxine noticed something on the hand of the Shepherd. It wasn't much but she was just able to make out something that was black and not something that would normally be there. Without any hesitation she grabbed onto the Shepherd's wrist and was able to look at her with some haste.

From the looks of it, the black substance looked to be soot. It seemed to be similar to the one that they had found on the ground by the bed but there wasn't any real certainty to this. It was still enough to begin to ask questions as Maxine looked up at her with an angry expression on her face.

"Where did you get this from?" asked Maxine as she insinuated on the black mark. She didn't have to say exactly what she was talking about for the taller woman to understand what she was talking about.

"Take your hands off of me!" replied Shepherd Crawley with some determination in her voice.

"Answer the question," demanded Shepherd Riley. She could see that her colleague was trying to dodge the question and as long as she was there, she was determined to get them answers.

"It was you!" stated Maxine. Her voice seemed as angry and almost as threatening as before. She squeezed the wrist as hard as she could and although it wouldn't harm the Shepherd, it would send a message. "You took my size, you're the one who made me like this! Give me back what belongs to me!"

Shepherd Crawley stuttered for a moment as she tried to say something in her defence but she found herself unable to. She was completely tongue-tied and she simply wanted to try and get herself out of the situation. Unfortunately, this seemed to be something that she couldn't do as the short woman standing before her continued to hold onto her wrist. If it had been the previous day the wrist most likely would have been snapped. But now it seemed like the truth was about to come out.

With each passing moment the panic within climbed as she could see the small but still determined Maxine looking up at her and with her hand gripped around her wrist. It would be easy for the taller woman to simply break free but it wouldn't resolve the colossal problem that was in front of her.

The one in the most disbelief was Shepherd Riley who never thought that one of her colleagues would do something such as this. But with her actions and the evidence presented it seemed that the guilty party was right there in front of them. It was a very tense moment as no one was completely aware about what was going to happen next. If it was up to one person in particular, she would be back to being big in a few moments.

"Do I need to repeat myself?" asked Maxine in a very angry and demanding tone. "Give back to me what you stole!"

"I-I..." replied Shepherd Crawley. The fear was evident in her voice and it was almost funny to see such a short woman like Maxine striking fear into the quite tall Shepherd. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Don't lie Crawley," stated Shepherd Riley. "You're only making things worse for yourself." Her usually soft tone seemed to be replaced with some determination. It was very different to what they were all expecting to hear.

At this time Charles remained quiet as he simply watched as events unfolded before him. He chose to say and do nothing for the time being as he didn't think that there was anything that he could do to change things. He still had a lot on his mind and he thought that it was best to observe and only act if he truly needed to.

"I-I don't have it," said Shepherd Crawley. The fear was still in her voice and it seemed her words were just making the already irate Maxine even angrier.

"What do you mean you don't have it?" replied Maxine. If she was her full size, she would have most likely broken a bone at this point in time. Fortunately for the wayward shepherd, the short woman lacked the strength to do so.

"I-It's gone!"

Several minutes later Shepherd Crawley found herself standing in a large room. She wasn't alone in this room as Maxine and Charles stood near one of the walls while sitting on a chair was the elderly Shepherd Morgan. There were several other shepherds standing around and this included Shepherd Riley. Not all the shepherds were there as there were still some who were tending to the children.

The room was relatively plain although there was a painting on the wall. Everyone besides Shepherd Morgan was standing up and there was a lot of electricity in the air. A lot of the other Shepherds were in disbelief over what was happening, there was a short amount of chatter amongst themselves but this quickly subsided when their elderly mentor raised her hand. The room suddenly fell into silence which was particularly nerve-racking for the woman at the centre of all of this. Now everyone just eagerly waited for the elderly woman to speak.

"Shepherd Crawley," stated Shepherd Morgan. She might be old but she could certainly bellow her voice if she needed to. "You stand here accused of stealing the magic within our quest. Do you admit your crimes to the gods above?"

"Y-Yes I do," replied Shepherd Crawley. She was close to tears and she knew that although she could hide her crimes from her fellow shepherds she couldn't do the same from the gods. They were constantly looking down at her and judging her actions much like they did with everyone else in the world.

"And what would drive a woman who has pledged her life to the gods to perform such acts?" This was where the silent seemed to last the longest as everyone was eager to hear what she had to say. The tension could be cut with a knife and it seemed like things might not go as expected.

"W-We're in a bad way, so many children with mouths to feed but the money that we need doesn't come from thin air. We pray to the gods everyday but that doesn't bring anything to the table. Nothing that we could use to truly help these children, I-I had no choice in what I did."

"What did you do?" Maxine was remaining quiet throughout this but she wanted Shepherd Crawley to get to the point of where the magic that had been inside of her had gone. The sooner it was returned to her, the sooner she could become like she was before. "Tell us this instant!"

"The mysterious donations that we've been receiving, it is because of me. I-I've been helping a team of bandits obtain and distribute stolen items." Normally she wouldn't openly admit such things but since she knew that the gods were watching her she knew that they and the other Shepherds would see through any lie she told. "When our guest came yesterday, I suspected that her great size was due to magic. I once knew a man who was eight feet tall and his quality of life was mediocre at best. But her, she was even taller and could still move around without much issue. Only though magic could something like that happen, so I extracted the magic from her as she slept."

"And how did you achieve this? Such a thing shouldn't be possible." It seemed like Shepherd Morgan was in as much disbelief as everyone else. They had not thought that such a thing could even happen and yet Maxine was living evidence.

"I was given a special tool which allowed me to extract the magic from our guest. Unfortunately the process left black marks which was something that I hadn't really expected."

"Enough of this!" stated Maxine in an angry voice. She took a few steps forward and it was obvious to everyone there that the rage that she felt was great. "Where is it?" There was no subtly behind her words, the bluntness of her question hadn't gone unnoticed and it was still a very unusual event. Non-Shepherds were not normally permitted to speak in an assembly like this but it seemed like the shrunken woman didn't care about it. "Give me back what was taken from me!"

"I-I don't have it anymore." Normally Shepherd Crawley would have been more terrified of the situation thanks to the thought of an angry nine-foot, muscle bound woman was not appealing. Now it didn't seem as scary but this was still a situation that she hadn't wanted to find herself in.

"You what!" Maxine took another few steps forward and a couple of Shepherds had to step forward and hold onto her so that she didn't do something that they would all likely regret later on. All of the Shepherds' words to try and calm her down didn't seem to work, if anything they only added to her rage. "Let go of me!" This was still a situation that was alien to her, normally she would be able to break free from their grip without much effort. Now she was being overpowered and there was nothing that she could do to stop them.

"It has already been taken away," continued Shepherd Crawley. "The night that I took it, I gave it to the bandits. They have most likely taken it to Flea Bay so that it can be sold. After that it could end up anywhere."

Although Charles had remained silent he understood the severity of the situation. Flea Bay was well known for it's thriving market where a man could buy and sell practically anything. If the magic that had been taken from Maxine was taken there and sold it would be incredibly difficult to track down, maybe even impossible. There was even a chance that it could be taken somewhere overseas. If that were to happen then Maxine would have to be used to being small forever.

"Your heart might have been in the right place Shepherd Crawley," said Shepherd Morgan as she could see exactly what was going on. "But your actions have disgraced our order, take her away from here. We will deal with her later." With that the disgraced Shepherd was led away by two other Shepherds. This wasn't what Maxine had wanted but she still remained quiet as she watched the events play out in front of her. "It seems that events have not played out as we foresaw." She was looking over to the shrunken Maxine who stood there, her anger was still evident but she had it under better control than she did a few moments earlier. "All I can do is apologise to you for what has happened but now I must ask, what are you going to do next?"

"That's a simple one," replied Maxine. To her it was a stupid question but she didn't show this as she wanted to show no disrespect to the elderly Shepherd who had been nothing but helpful since the crisis began. "My squire and I are going to travel to Flea Bay and take back what rightfully belongs to me."

"But that will be dangerous. Don't forget that you aren't as powerful as you were before." There was concern in her voice and it reminded Maxine of her own mother. It seemed somewhat laughable that someone could be concerned for the safety of a nine-foot woman with large muscles. But then again it was always natural for a parent to worry about their child, no matter the situation.

"I am well aware of the risk involved and I don't care." Her stance changed as it showed just how serious she was. "With my blood, sweat and tears I will take back what was stolen from me!"

"An honourable task although the danger is there. If there is anything within our power to help you, just name it and it will be done." This caused Maxine to fall silent for a few moments as she thought. She didn't think that these holy women nor the orphans that were in their care could do anything that could truly help her. But there were a couple of things that did spring to mind.

"There are two things that I will require. First is to speak to Shepherd Crawley, there is some information that I would like to obtain from her. The second is that I wish for my sword and armour to be sent to my family's farm. That way I know that it is safe and I can retrieve it once I have finished retrieving my size."

"Very well, but you will need to be supervised when speaking to Shepherd Crawley. Do you find this acceptable?"

"Yes I do, thank you for your help."

With that the court so to speak was dismissed as Maxine and Charles began to prepare for what was going to be a dangerous journey. It would be a relatively short trip to Flea Bay but finding the magic and getting it back was going to be incredible. One thing that they knew was that time was of the essence, the person who currently had it in their possession already had a half a day head start. If they were to lose anymore ground then it would make their difficult task nigh on impossible.

As they prepared they were given some food for their travels and some of the children even took a good look at Maxine. Many of them still couldn't believe the change that had happened to her. Many even thought that they were two completely different people and not the same woman but smaller.

It was only a few minutes later that Maxine found herself stepping into a small room. It was so small that if she had been her larger self she wouldn't have been able to fit inside comfortably. Charles was not by her side this time as she had instructed him to write a letter to her family to go along with the armour and sword that she was sending to them. The letter would only state that she would return to retrieve it in the near future, it didn't mention anything about her becoming smaller and weaker. This was so that she didn't worry her mother or give her sisters any motivation to mock her.

Inside the room she could see Shepherd Crawley sitting there and this filled her fill of rage. More than anything she wanted to drive her sword into her chest but it took a great amount of willpower to stop herself from performing this act. Instead she simply stared at her but close by was a table. There she saw a tool that she didn't recognise, this was unusual since tools were something that were often made at the Martel forgery. It looked like a claw of some kind, if she had to guess she would have thought that it was the tool that had been used to take the magic out of her body. For now she thought that ignorance was bliss, to her it wasn't the most important reason for her being here.

"I've got a few questions to ask before I leave," said Maxine. The seriousness of her voice was quickly picked up by the disgraced Shepherd who sat there and simply listened. "The thief that you gave my size to, who is he?"

"I-I don't know his real name," replied Shepherd Crawley. She couldn't help but feel intimidated by the small woman standing before her and she knew better than to say something that would upset her. "But he went by the nickname 'The Weasel'. That's all I know."

"What does he look like?"

"Short black hair, fairly skinny and a brown eyes." This news didn't seem to impress Maxine very much and she gave a small grunt to show her dissatisfaction.

"So he basically looks a common man in Angleland, you have to give me more than that." Her anger was at bay for now but she could unleash it at a moment's notice if she thought that it would help the situation.

"Well there is one thing that makes him stand out." It was unusual for Maxine to see someone so forthcoming with information. Normally it would take a lot more threatening or maybe even torture. But Shepherd Crawley was speaking as if there was already a dagger being pointed into her back.

"And what is that?" She thought that she might be getting somewhere but now she might be learning something essential.

"On his right hand he is missing his ring finger. I don't know how he lost it, but it is one thing I particularly remember about his appearance." There were a few moments of silence as Maxine thought about what she was going to do next. More and more she thought about striking the disgraced Shepherd, but instead she simply turned around and began to make her way to the door behind her.

"Thank you for your help." When she reached the door, she stopped for a moment and turned her head towards Shepherd Crawley. "Just a little information, for your sake, I hope that our paths never cross again. If they do, I will not hesitate in breaking every single bone in your body. I'd start with the unessential bones such as your fingers and toes, then move up to your limbs, your ribs and then eventually I will snap your neck like a twig."

With that she continued to walk out of the room and she knew that she had made her point. She had no idea if she would see Shepherd Crawley again but she knew that if she did, it would be a day to remember.

Maxine didn't like the idea of going anywhere without her sword on her person. However, carrying it in her current state was nigh impossible and using it for it's intended purpose would be even more difficult. It annoyed her that she had to send it to her home for the time being but she more than intended to return and pick it up.

Eventually the shrunken woman found herself standing in a room where she could see a couple of the orphans being tended to by Shepherd Riley. They had gotten into a fight over something that was considered to be trivial. But the young holy woman had been able to stop them from fighting and try to show them the errors of their actions. In a way it reminded Maxine of when her own mother would step in-between fights involving herself and Carrie. In a way it showed that even though the Martel family were a unusual family they still did things that were considered normal.

It took a moment or two for the Shepherd to realise that she was there and she sent the two orphans away. She hoped that they had learned their lesson but she knew that it was likely that she would be having this same conversation with them before long. There was a smile on her face as she looked at Maxine and she still found it odd. Just the day before she was looking up at her, now she was looking down and it was something that she would never forget.

"Is there something that I can help you with?" asked Shepherd Riley. She showed her great respect as she still felt guilty over what had happened. Even though it hadn't been her who had stole from Maxine, she still felt that she was guilty by association.

"I wanted to thank you for everything that you've done for my squire and I," replied Maxine. She too sounded respectful as well and she even bowed her head slightly to the taller woman. "And I must apologise for jumping to conclusions earlier, I should not have done that."

"It's alright, you were not in the right state of mind. But now that the cause of your change has been revealed we can move forward." She had even placed her hands together as she spoke.

"There is something else that I'm wondering, will you be coming with us to Flea Bay. I'm sure that you will be of great help to us."

"I would love to but I'm afraid I cannot. My place is here with the children. I can't leave them." It sounded like there was some regret in her voice but there was also some determination. She had made her vow some time ago and was keeping it no matter what came her way.

"That is a shame, but I respect your decision and commitment to your role." In a way it made Maxine slightly jealous. Shepherd Riley knew her place in the world and what her duties were. The fact that she wasn't breaking them just showed the kind of woman that she was. One that deserved all the respect that she got.

"And from here all I can do is pray to the gods that your quest is successful and you become what you were like before."

Maxine was sure to thank Shepherd Riley for her words and once again gave her a small bow. She then turned around and stepped out of the room, she wasn't sure if after today that she would see Shepherd Riley or this orphanage ever again.

In a way it did make her a little sad, this would certainly be a visit that she would never forget but with each step she took she knew that she was one step closer to getting back what had been taken from her. Although she didn't have her sword, she wasn't completely unarmed.

On her person Maxine still carried her hunting knife although it was much larger than she remembered. Before, it had almost seemed weightless to her but now it was more difficult to use properly. Not just that but there was still some dried blood on the blade, she knew that it wasn't animal blood but instead the blood of the cult that had almost killed her. Charles was far from fully recovering from the incident.

With everything that had happened she hadn't had the time to help him with his needs. Things had happened so quickly that she was surprised that he was still holding it together. She thought that he would have been crying in the corner as the events of that night would replay in his mind over and over again. But he was still with it mostly and seemingly willing to help her. Because of that she respected him greatly and she knew that she would have to reward him once she was back to being big again. Even though his debt to her had been repaid, she knew that she still needed him.

Eventually Maxine and Charles did have everything that they needed to start their journey and she began to take a few steps out of the orphanage. Maxine took the lead like she normally did with Charles following close behind. To him it still seemed odd for him not just seeing her so small, but also without her armour. He knew how important it was to her and the fact that she wasn't wearing it just made him think that the situation was worse than he had thought.

There was also some fear from him as his main protection was gone. Before he had taken comfort in the case that Maxine would be able to take down any threat that came their way. He even thought that she was powerful enough to kill a bear without the need for a weapon. Now even a single bandit would likely get the better of her and because of this he was worried, but he didn't speak of his fear as he thought that his friend would not want to hear such a thing.

Although now it was afternoon, they were confident that they would reach Flea Bay by nightfall but just reaching it wasn't the issue. Finding this thief known as The Weasel was going to be a Herculean task. Flea Bay was probably the largest port in Angleland and finding a single person there was close to impossible. Even so it didn't deter Maxine from her mission.

The sooner that she was restored, the sooner that she could get out of this dress and wear attire that she was more comfortable with. To her it was embarrassing to wear a dress in this manner and she even considered buying some temporary clothing while she was like this. But it would cost them precious money. At least she didn't have to worry about clothes being too small for her which was a common problem. Instead she had to worry about never having the problem from now on. Although it was something that she had hoped some time ago she didn't want it in this manner.

As the duo walked along the road to Flea Bay it turned out that the journey was more difficult than they had originally anticipated. Not only had the weather turned, when they had started it had been relatively sunny. Now it was pouring down with rain and they had nothing to protect themselves from it.

Not just that but their journey was taking longer than they had expected. Maxine's body was much smaller than she remembered and with the magic removed from her she also lost a lot of the energy that she once had. Beforehand she could walk for miles and miles while wearing heavy armour without too much of a problem. Now she was barely above half her height before and the long walk was taxing on her.

Charles remained close by but like he, he was getting drenched from the weather and he wasn't enjoying it one bit. However, he wasn't too concerned about his own wellbeing but rather Maxine's. He could see that she was struggling, reaching Flea Bay by nightfall seemed to be a pipedream. They were still too far away and it was likely that even if they did keep walking throughout the night, they might not reach it until daybreak. There was also the fact that they were both very tired and he looked towards his now smaller companion. He could see the look of determination on her face. That look was not unfamiliar to him, he knew that when she was like this, nothing could stop her.

"Ma'am," said Charles. There was some caution in his voice as he spoke and he saw as she turned her head to him. "I think that it would be best for the both of us that we stayed somewhere for the night." The glare that he saw would have sent a shiver down his spine but instead he thought that it looked somewhat adorable. It was true that without her height and muscles, that Maxine actually looked cute.

"What did you say?" replied Maxine. She was trying to make herself sound commanding but with her new higher pitch it didn't have the same ring to it.

"I'm saying that it is best for us to stay in an inn for the night and then continue onto Flea Bay in the morning."

"No, we'll keep going. The sooner we get my size back the sooner I can carry on my quest to become a knight." She tried to pick up her pace but her legs were tired and she didn't want to admit that she was hungry.

"I don't think that it is the best idea ma'am. Look at us, we're soaked through and through and this rain isn't letting up. If we carry on like this then we'll catch a cold and that won't do good for either of us. I suspect a cold for you would be far more damaging than it was before, so please ma'am, try and see reason."

Maxine fell silent as she thought about what her companion was saying. She wanted to say that he was wrong and that they should keep going. However, she saw a lot of sense in what he was saying and she had to admit that she wanted to get out of the rain and be sat in front of a nice warm fire with a cup of ale in her hand.

"Fine," said Maxine as she admitted defeat. She gave a small sigh as she continued to walk, she had to shield her eyes from the rain as it was blowing right into her face. "We'll find somewhere to rest for the night."

"Thank you, ma'am," replied Charles. He smiled to her and she didn't look away from this either.

One problem that the former tall woman had was the fact that she was walking around in a dress. At first glance this would be the norm but in Maxine's mind this wasn't the case. She was far more used to walking around in heavy armour or at the least a shirt, trousers and boots rather than what she was wearing now.

For as long as she could remember, Maxine hated wearing dresses. She remembered when she had been a little girl and her mother had put her in a dress, in her mind it was impractical to move around in and even fight. It was also very strange for her to walk around without a sword on her person.

In her mind this made her feel very vulnerable. She feared that at any moment someone might jump out and try to attack them. Although she was still armed with her hunting knife, against a sword she didn't think that it would be of much use. Especially in her smaller and weaker body, she wasn't sure if she could protect herself or Charles. Right now, he was the largest and strongest out of the two and it was very strange to her.

After around another half an hour of walking the pair did see an inn just down the road. It looked to be a relatively small but to them it didn't really matter, as long as there was a room available it didn't matter the size of the building. Upon seeing the inn, the pair picked up their pace and it almost went to the point that they were running.

It only took a few seconds of running for Maxine to begin to become tired. This was embarrassing and by the time that they walked through the front door, the short woman was completely out of breath. She took several deep breaths as she tried to recover and she looked over to Charles. Although he too was tired, he was still in better shape than Maxine was. It was something that she did notice and refused to fully admit to herself.

Normally when she stepped into an inn all eyes would be on her as none of the patrons would have seen any human being as large as her. Instead there was a quick glance towards them once they had entered and then the patrons went back to what they had been doing before. There was no chatter, no glares and no chuckles amongst them, if anything it was Charles who drew more attention than her.

Thanks to his skin colour, he was a rare sight in Angleland. There were a couple of words between the patrons and then they went silent as they simply went back to talking amongst themselves and drinking.

The inside of the inn was more or less what the pair had expected but one thing that they had noticed was that in the corner was a warm fire that was burning. It made them feel more comfortable but they still felt cold as their clothes were soaking wet. If they were to try and feel warmer, they would have to dry off their clothes.

Maxine stepped towards the counter where she could see an innkeeper behind it. He was a relatively young man but still had no hair whatsoever on his body. He didn't even have any eyebrows at all and to the short woman it was a little odd. But in comparison to some of the other events that it wasn't too surprising for her.

"Can I help you?" asked the Innkeeper. His tone of voice sounded curious but there was a slight hint of annoyance behind it.

"My companion and I would like a room for the night," replied Maxine. Like before, she tried to make her voice sound commanding but unfortunately, she was unsuccessful. "Preferably one with two beds."

"I'm sorry to tell you but we're out of that kind of room." He was wiping a cup that had been filled with ale just a few minutes ago. "I only have one room left and it has a double bed."

"You have no others?" Normally a double bed would be ideal for her as her larger body struggled to fit in a normal bed. Length would still be a problem but width was not too much of an issue for her then.

"If there was, I would have mentioned it, now will you take it or leave it?"

"Fine." She grumbled as she didn't like this but had no choice in the matter. "How much for the room?"

"You're looking at around sixty gold."

"Sixty gold!" Her anger began to flare up but it wasn't as big of a scene as she had expected. "That's outrageous."

"Well you could always go back out there in the rain." He smiled as he knew that he had Maxine exactly where he wanted her. Her arm was basically twisted around her back and she would have no choice but to admit defeat.

Maxine could only grumble as she knew that she had no choice but to pay. She was far from happy about this but with the circumstances as they were, she knew that it was either this or walking in the rain again. Not only did she not want that for herself but also for Charles, neither of them would particularly finish off well if it came to that.

"Fine," said Maxine as she saw Charles putting the money down in a small pouch. The Innkeeper took it without any hesitation whatsoever and a small smile appeared on his face. As far as she was concerned, she preferred that this was where their interaction would end but her stomach began to grumble. Thanks to all the excitement of what had happened over the day, she had forgotten to eat. "Do you sell any pies?"

"We have some game pie cooking right now," replied the Innkeeper. He could see that he was going to extort some more money out of her. "Shall I prepare two for you?"

"Yes, you may, and some ale as well." Despite her smaller size she was still wanting to drink some sweet ale. Her gaze did turn to Charles who was still standing close by. "Do you want some ale as well?"

"Water will do for me thank you," replied Charles. He was quiet and more reserved than his companion and he couldn't help but feel a little nervous.

"And a water for my friend thank you."

After the order was done, the pair were instructed to sit at a nearby table and wait for their food and drinks to come. Maxine still walked with pretty much the same confidence that she had before she had been cut down to size. As she sat down on the bench, she noticed that her feet only barely touched the ground. Just another reminder of her new size, there was also the fact that there was no creaking sound. Normally when she sat down on something like a bench there would be a creaking sound due to her sheer weight. This time it didn't happen and it would take a little getting used to.

For the next several minutes the pair simply sat at the table and waited. They also spoke about what was going to happen once they had arrived at Flea Bay. If the magic that had been stolen from Maxine was still there, then they would have to track it down. It was likely going to be a difficult task but they still thought that it was possible. Asking around might be risky but it was considered their best option at that time.

After a short while they did notice someone approaching their table. At first, they thought that it was simply the Innkeeper bringing their food over to them. However, when Maxine looked up, she could see that it was a large man with a thick beard and short hair. He had quite a gut and they also noticed that he had a sword attached to his belt. Despite this Maxine seemed to remain calm as his focus seemed to be on her.

"Hey there," said the Man. There was a slight slur to his voice which indicated that he had likely been drinking. As he smiled at her she could see that he had lost a few of his teeth and the ones that he had left were yellow. It wasn't the most pleasant sight that she had seen but she tried to ignore him at first. "I couldn't help but notice you as you walked in and it got me thinking. What's a little cutie like you doing walking into a place like this with a bloke like that by her side." He gestured over to Charles who seemed to nervous, however he thought that he might have to say something in a moment.

"That is none of your business," replied Maxine. She barely looked at him as not only did his appearance repulse her. "Now leave us be and go back to whatever you were doing before."

"I don't think so. You don't realise that this is your lucky day, it's not every day that I take a shine to a woman like you."

"Leave now, I'm not going to tell you again." This time there was more anger in her voice and she glared up to him.

"Oh, you're a feisty one, I like them feisty." He then grabbed onto her wrist and seemed to want to pull her up to her feet. This caused Charles to get out of his seat but he also noticed Maxine punching the man in the stomach. He was surprised to see this bravery from her but it didn't do her much good as she soon felt a strong strike to her face. Her would be wooer had struck her with such force that she had been knocked over and for one of the few times in her life, she felt fear. "You stupid whore!"

"Hey, get away from her!" shouted Charles. He quickly darted forward and tried to defend Maxine.

Before he could strike the man, he saw as a few of the man's friends stepped up and grabbed him from behind. They had seen what their friend had done and they knew that it could spell trouble so they wanted him to get away as soon as possible. Charles could hear them telling him that they needed to go.

This was good news for Maxine's companion as if they were staying to fight, he would stand little chance against them. All he could do for the moment was watch as they left and thanked his luck. Immediately afterwards he went down to Maxine's side as she was slumped over the bench and seemed to be in some pain.

"Ma'am are you alright?" asked Charles. There was great concern in his voice. His hand reached down to her and the next thing he knew, he could feel it getting slapped away by her smaller hand.

"Of course, I am, I'm fine!" replied Maxine in a defiant voice. Slowly she sat up and she had her hand on the part of her face that had been struck. He could see that she was fighting back the tears but it seemed that her pride prevented her from admitting that anything was wrong. "I don't need your help."

"Is that..."

"I said I'm fine!" Her voice was sharp and angry. If she were her normal size, he would likely be afraid. "Now sit down!"

Charles did as he was told although he wanted nothing more than to treat her for the injury that he was sure that she had suffered. Her hand was still on her face and when she lowered it for a moment, he could see that there was a bruise developing on her cheek and a cut on her lip. There were also some tears that were developing in her eyes but she did everything she could to stop herself from crying.

A part of him couldn't help but respect her pride and resolve but there was another part of him that thought the opposite. It was obvious that she was in some discomfort and yet she purposely prevented herself from being helped by him. He knew that it wasn't anything personal to him.

One thing that he could understand was that her world had been turned upside down. Twenty-four hours previously she had been nine feet tall with more muscles than most men and was amongst if not the strongest person in Angleland. Now she was small and weak, even in comparison to an average woman. If they were successful in this quest of theirs, then she would be back to being big in no time. If not then she would likely remain like this for the rest of her days.

It wasn't long after that when the food and drinks were finally brought to their table. Maxine was annoyed to have had to wait that long but she said nothing as she was still nursing her pride. The Innkeeper had seen what had happened and yet chose to say nothing about it. It was as if he was so used to seeing what had taken place that he no longer saw too much issue with it.

More or less as soon as the ale was placed down onto the table, Maxine picked it up and began to drink it. It was odd for her that the cup that contained the ale was far larger than she remembered. It was a little awkward for her to pick up but she was able to do it confidently within a few moments.

Something else that the small woman noticed was that the ale tasted much stronger than she remembered. It caused her to stop drinking it for a moment before she began to drink it again. Normally she was used to drinking the entire thing in one go. This time however she simply couldn't, not just because it tasted stronger than she had expected but it just felt bigger in general.

A part of her considered putting the cup down but through the pain and embarrassment that she had experienced she needed something to wash it all away. Because of this she continued to drink it and she began to feel the effects of the alcohol. In the past the only time when she had been affected by a drink was when it had been drugged. This time however, there was no drug in the drink besides the alcohol that was there already.

The next thing that Maxine knew she was sitting on the bed in the room with Charles sitting beside her. He seemed to be touching her lip and as her mind began to make sense of things, she thought that he was taking advantage of her. However, she noticed that what he was using was a small cloth and the only part of her lip that he was touching was the area that had been split open when she had been struck. Rather than saying any real words the short woman simply grumbled.

"Ma'am, are you alright?" asked Charles. He watched as she backed her head a little and he lowered his hand. He knew that she wanted to speak and he was concerned about her. The bruise on her face was more evident than it was before and he had treated her lip as well as he could.

"W-Where am I?" replied Maxine with some confusion. The last few hours were a blur to her and she couldn't make heads or tails about what had happened. One particular sound that she could hear was the heavy rain from outside.

"You're in the room." He moved himself a short distance away from her as he thought that she would want space. "You were acting very drunk so I brought you up here. Also, it gave me a chance to treat your injuries."

"D-Drunk?" This only filled her with even more confusion. For as long as she had been drinking, she had never gotten drunk. "How many cups of ale did I drink?"

"One." This seemed to strike Maxine with more force than she had expected. She had suspected that with her new smaller body that she would struggle to hold her drink. If it had been three or four cups of ale that had defeated her in this manner then it would have been more understandable. But going down after just one wasn't just shocking but also embarrassing. "D-Did I do anything embarrassing?"

"If you mean standing on a table and singling about a little duckling, then yes you did." This got an annoyed expression from the short woman, if she had been her true size then he would worry for his own wellbeing.

"If I was making an ass of myself then why didn't you stop me?"

"I did, but you also looked like you were having fun and the other patrons seemed to enjoy your song and dance."

"I danced as well?" The rage inside of her was only building, but this time her anger was targeted more towards herself rather than Charles. "Not a word of any of this to my sisters, or my mother."

"What about your father?"

"Especially my Father!" The tone of her voice was a clear indication that she wasn't playing around. Charles heeded her words and simply nodded, when it came to matters involving her father, she never joked around.

"And furthermore..."

Maxine was about to say something else but then she felt an unpleasant sensation in her stomach. Almost immediately she knew what was about to happen as she got up from the bed and ran towards a nearby bucket. She ran faster than Charles had expected and he watched as she placed her head over the bucket and began to empty the contents of her stomach inside of it.

The smell wasn't very pleasant but Charles simply stepped over to her and rubbed her back. He knew that this wouldn't help too much but with everything that had happened it was all that could be done. It was still a surreal time for him and he wasn't even sure if they would succeed in their little quest.

"It's alright ma'am," said Charles as he gently patted her on the back. Her head was still hovering over the bucket. She thought that she had gotten most of it out of her system but there was a chance that there was more left. "You'll feel better once it's all out."

Maxine wanted to say something to him but she stopped herself, just in case she threw up again. A part of her thought about berating him for trying to help her when she felt like she didn't need it. However, she couldn't bring herself to do it, she simply appreciated what he was doing for her and for that she couldn't be upset.

There was around a fifteen-minute wait before Maxine decided that she wasn't going to be sick anymore. In turn Charles took the bucket out while she washed her mouth out. It was far from a pleasant experience for her and she was just glad that none of her family had been able to see her.

However, now that that she had gotten most of the alcohol out of her system like that, she began to notice something else. Since she was still wearing the same clothing that had been soaked through, she began to feel very cold. It got to the point that she began to shiver and she rubbed her body in an attempt to warm herself up.

This eventually led to her taking the dress off and placing it to one side. She hoped that it would dry overnight and carefully she crawled into bed. Even with the quilt over her, she still felt very cold but it was still better than if she had gone without. Cold was something that she had experienced more than once. Just because she had been very large didn't make her immune to the cold.

Something else that Maxine did notice was just how large the bed seemed. Normally when she lay in bed, her feet would be well over the end of the bed. There had been a good few times when not even her knees would make it inside. Not just that but the width would be a problem as she wasn't just taller than an average person but also wider. It was a reminder to her that she had been larger than a normal person, not taller.

This time the bed seemed so enormous that it threatened to consume her. Her feet were nowhere near the edge and she had plenty of room to move around. This was unusual for her but in a way, it was something that she didn't mind too much. In a way it was an advantage of being a short woman.

It was around this time that Charles returned to the room. The bucket had been emptied and he also made sure that it had been cleaned as well. He hadn't wanted the smell to linger for longer than it needed to be. He could see that Maxine was already in bed and he grabbed a pillow and a spare blanket that was close by.

"What are you doing Charles?" asked Maxine with some confusion.

"Just making my bed ma'am," replied Charles. He knew that he wasn't going to have a comfortable sleep, but it was what he was expecting.

"T-There's no need to do that. There's more than enough room in here for the both of us." This caught him by surprise as he looked over to her.

"A-Are you sure? I can sleep on the floor here if you want."

"No, you're fine. You've earned a good night's rest as much as me."

"As you wish."

Charles was still a little nervous as he climbed into the other side of the bed. In a way it felt nice to be sleeping in an actual bed. One thing that he had already decided on in his head was the fact that he wasn't sleeping with her because of romance. Instead it was for practical reasons as it was simply to keep himself warm and sleep in some comfort.

When he turned to look at Maxine, he noticed that she was already asleep. It seemed like the walk had tired her out more than he had expected but that wasn't the only thing that he had noticed. She seemed to be shivering under the quilt and he felt some sympathy towards her. Everything in her life had been turned upside down.

Just as Charles was about to go to sleep, he suddenly felt something wrap around his body. It felt cold and for a moment a shiver ran down his spine. When he turned around, he could see that it was Maxine who was still fast asleep. Her body was cold and it seemed that she had subconsciously wrapped her arms and legs around him in order to try and warm herself back up.

For the first few moments he did try and break free from her grip. At first, he was successful but no sooner had he released himself from her clutches she simply did it again and pressed the side of her face on his back. By this point he knew that there was no chance of him being able to break free for long unless he stepped out of the bed.

When Charles looked at Maxine, he could see a smile on her face and it seemed that she was happy. One thing that he was sure of was that he would not tell anyone else about what had happened. He knew that she would be very embarrassed by such a thing and thus he wanted to ensure that she kept her dignity. But there was something else that he couldn't help but think as well.

This was the fact that when they had first met, he had mainly stayed with her due to a life debt and he had actually been afraid of her. Although he knew that she had a temper he also knew that she was a just and honest person. His feelings towards her had changed, no longer was he afraid for her and now he considered her to be his only friend in the world. It wouldn't be too big of a stretch in his mind that she felt the same.

The next morning it was Maxine who was the first to wake up. The first thing that she noticed was that she was still clinging onto Charles's back. Almost immediately she broke free and something else that she noticed was how big he looked now in comparison to herself.

For a moment she was confused but she soon remembered that it wasn't him that was bigger, it was her that was smaller. This caused her to sigh in annoyance as she slowly climbed out of bed and when her feet touched the cold floor it sent a shiver down her spine. It was an uncomfortable feeling for her and she didn't particularly like it. One thing that she did notice was that the rain from the previous night had stopped. It was still a murky day and the ground was likely to still be very wet, but at least it was no longer raining.

For an instant she did touch her face and she could still feel some pain from where she had been struck the previous night. She remembered the man who had attempted to flirt with her but had failed. It made her angry that a man had struck a woman in this regard. If she was still at her full size and strength, she would have broken every single bone in his hand. But when she was like this, she was too small and weak to do anything about it.

Maxine did look over to Charles and she could he was still fast asleep. More than anything she wanted to wake him up so that they could carry on to Flea Bay and regain her lost size. There was a small amount of fear around this as she remembered when her father told her about something similar happening to her mother. It had almost killed her since losing the magic within her also caused her to be afflicted by the same illness that had almost killed her as a baby.

For now, Maxine had not been afflicted by such a thing as it had been around twenty-four hours since she had been shrunk down in the manner that she had been. If she was going to suffer from some kind of illness, it most likely would have happened by now like it had with her mother.

One reason why she didn't wake up Charles immediately was because she couldn't help but think he looked pretty cute sleeping there. She also remembered how much he had helped her the previous night and in general, how much he had put himself at risk in order to ensure her safety. Even though a lot of the time she felt that she didn't need it.

Maxine would allow him to sleep for a little longer and she stepped towards the dress that was drying off in the corner of the room. With some care, she picked it off the rack that it had been hanging over and she could see that it was still a little damp. This was something that she didn't like but as she felt a cool breeze it caused her to shiver. With little choice she put the dress back on.

"M-Maxine," said Charles. It seemed like he was still waking up and he was beginning to sit up in the bed. "I-Is everything alright."

"Besides still being tiny, yes I'm alright," replied Maxine. By then she had put the dress on and she still wasn't used to wearing such clothing. She didn't know how her mother and sisters could wear such an outfit every day.

"T-That's good." He saw an annoyed look on her face which made him realise that he had said something wrong. "I mean, it's good that you're alright, not that you're still like you are right now." He had almost called her short or small but he stopped himself from doing so, any comment about her lack of height as likely to lead to him getting an earful.

"That's better. Now get yourself up, we still have to go to Flea Bay and find the magic that was stolen from me. If we stay here any longer it might get sold off if it hasn't happened already."

"Y-Yes ma'am." He wanted to ask for a little longer in bed but he knew that in this situation it was best to do what he was told. Like her, he wanted her size to be returned to her as soon as possible.

Because time was of the essence the pair skipped breakfast and quickly left the inn as soon as they could. One thing that they did make sure was that they had picked up everything. If they had left anything behind, no matter how important it might be, they were unlikely to ever see it again.

The day was still murky and there were many puddles in the road along with wet mud thanks to the rain that had taken place the night before. Normally such things wouldn't particularly bother Maxine but with everything that had happened she was being more cautious than usual.

One thing that the duo did notice was that there were other people on the road travelling to Flea Bay. A few of them were just people travelling by themselves and others were using a horse and cart as they were going to sell their wares. Seeing people like Maxine and Charles walking to Flea Bay wasn't anything unusual. If she had been her true size then she would have certainly turned heads. As she was now, no one paid any attention to them,

The rest of the journey went without much incident. As they had expected, they hadn't been that far from Flea Bay when they had stopped for the night. It was roughly a couple of hours walking before they finally arrived at their destination. A short time before this, they had been able to see the vastness of the ocean just over the horizon.

For Charles it was a sight to behold, he had seen the ocean once when he was a young boy but seeing it again took his breath away. Over the years he had seen drawings of the ocean but it didn't compare to seeing it in person. He couldn't get over its pure vastness, it truly took his breath away.

Maxine had no time to marvel over such sights as all that was on her mind was regaining her size and then carrying on her quest to become a knight. If she failed then it meant that she would have to drastically change her life. If the night at the inn taught her anything, it was that in her current state she was weak. Normally a man such as the one that had struck her would not have been any kind of issue for her. Now she had a swollen cheek and she thought that she might have a loose tooth. Such a thing she couldn't accept and it only gave her more motivation to carry on with her intentions.

The town of Flea Bay itself was a bustling market town with much merchandise entering and leaving through the port. Even though it was merely a town, many considered it to be a city as it was wealthier than some of the cities in Angleland. Markets were on almost every street and practically anything could be bought or sold there. Even Lords and royalty would come here in order to obtain objects of great value and rarity. It was said that no matter what an item might be, it can be bought or sold in Flea Bay.

As Maxine and Charles entered the streets were packed with merchants and customers, this made it hard to navigate at times and it could be easy to get lost within the mass of people. One thing that she had warned him about were pickpockets that took advantage of such busy streets as they could pick the pocket of an unaware victim and then escape before they even realised that anything was missing.

They also ensured that they stayed close together. It would have been easy for them to get separated in the sea of people. Before Maxine would have been a very easy person to spot in such a crowd, now she was being pushed around and she could barely see where she was going.

Eventually they had to squeeze their way into a side street that was much quieter and it allowed them a moment to catch their breath and collect themselves. Maxine brushed off some dirt that was on her dress while Charles took a sip from the water that they had brought with them.

"T-That was more than I could handle," said Charles after he had finished drinking the water. It might have had a bland taste but right now it was exactly what he needed at that moment in time.

"Keep your head and you'll be alright," replied Maxine. She was speaking from experience but it was the first time that she had been here while she had been such a size. "But in a crowd like that, it's easy for us to get split up."

"Ok ma'am but what do we do now? Do we go to each merchant and ask them one by one?" It was his only idea for the time being but he knew that it was going to take a long time to go through every single one of them.

"No, that would be too time consuming and it isn't the kind of thing that they would freely sell on the street. No, it would be sold in the black market."

"Actually, that isn't too surprising." He chuckled nervously for a moment before he spoke again. "But how do we find it? I'm guessing that it isn't a physical market that you can simply visit."

"You're right there. It is something that we have to tread lightly with. People who deal within the black market are not the kind that you can simply invite around for tea. Even if I was my old size, I would still be careful. Before we go any further, do you remember the name of the man that we're looking for?"

"I-I think it is the Weasel and correct me if I'm wrong but he was missing a finger on his left hand."

"It was his right hand but at least you paid attention. Such a man should hopefully be not too difficult to find. There are some seedier establishments not far from here, I suggest we start our search there."

"You know your way around here?" He was surprised at this but then again there was still aspects of Maxine's history that he didn't know about.

"I used to come here with my Father and Uncles to drop off products from the forgery." Even at a young age she had been bigger and stronger than most men and would help her family with heavy lifting. It was a way for her to earn a little coin and also see the world outside of Morgan.

Maxine did begin to walk through the backstreet with Charles walking alongside her. He followed her as he had no idea where he was going and he couldn't help but feel nervous while he walked. For some reason, he had a fear that someone would suddenly jump out of nowhere and attempt to stab him. He knew that it was something that was unlikely to happen, but it still made him worry.

He wasn't the only one who was keeping their eye out as Maxine did the same. She was looking out for something similar but it wasn't for someone to stab them in particular. Instead it was anyone who was considering trying to mug them. Before, this would have been something that she didn't have to be afraid of. Now it was a concern and this time she didn't have the strength to repel them.

Instead she kept a hand on the handle of the hunting knife that was attached to her belt. Right now, it was the closest thing she had to a sword, it might not have been as useful but right now it was the only weapon she had. She hoped that her own sword and armour had returned to her home by now. If not, then it would be another problem that she'd have to face head on.

On the way through these backstreets Maxine and Charles did notice a few people. However, rather than becoming a threat towards them, they were simply sitting with their backs against the wall and seemed to be in a state. It was likely that they had either been drinking too much ale or were on some kind of substance.

More importantly to the pair was that these people seemed to be keeping to themselves. This was ideal for them as they didn't want to have to deal with drunks and instead simply walked by them. Most of these people didn't even notice them walking by although a few of them did give a wolf whistle to Maxine. She simply ignored them as she carried on walking, not for one moment did she put her guard down. It was likely to lead to trouble and that was the last thing they wanted.

In particular Charles did panic a little as he couldn't help but think about the night at the other inn where he had to fight for not just his own life but also Maxine's. In his own way he had been trying to deal with his trauma but it was difficult. On more than one occasion he just wanted to break out and cry, however he stopped himself as he didn't want to think of himself as weak. Not just that but he also thought that Maxine would not want him to accompany her anymore. It was something that he wasn't going to recover from in the near future and instead it was likely going to be a long road.

Eventually the pair came up to a tavern in one of the backstreets of Flea Bay. This was a small section of the town that was rarely visited by merchants or tourists. It was the kind of place that one would expect to find an operative from the black market. The tavern itself looked pretty run down from the outside and definitely not as pleasing to the eye as the other taverns that they had visited.

"Stay close to me and don't give people unnecessary eye contact," said Maxine. She took a deep breath as she looked at the tavern. There were a few steps that went up to the door but she felt that there was something else that she needed to say to her companion. "At no point are you to refer to me as Maxine Martel. For now, my name is Alexandra Smith."

Charles didn't respond with words and merely nodded at her. He had seen previously that she had made some enemies during her time attempting to become a knight. It would be an obvious opportunity for them to take revenge on her while she was much smaller and weaker than before.

With that the pair walked up the steps and they entered the tavern. If they thought that it looked derelict from the outside, the inside made it much clearer. There were a few people sitting at tables and drinking cheap ale. Some of them were playing cards while there was another few who were talking about business.

There was nothing fancy on the walls at all and it looked like they needed some kind of decoration. There was a beam in the ceiling that looked like it was about to fall and there was broken glass on the floor. Even though the pair were wearing shoes, they were sure that they wouldn't step on it.

Behind the counter of the tavern was a man who had tattoos covered on his arms. This was unusual to see in Angleland but was fairly common amongst sailors. His grey hair and thick beard were clear to see and it was likely that he was retired. Like before no one really gave them much notice as they walked in and they simply walked up to the counter. In her mind, Maxine was thinking of the best thing to say. This time she didn't have her size or strength to back her up. She did feel like she could look out for herself and she did have Charles by her side, even so the odds would not be in their favour.

"So, what will it be little missy," said the Tavern Owner. He was cleaning out one of the cups that was used for ale. The rag that he was using looked to be far from clean and Maxine wouldn't be too thrilled to drink from that particular cup.

"Information if you would be so kind," replied Maxine. Her tone was serious and it showed that she wasn't fooling around.

"Now, now little missy. Information is amongst the most expensive commodity in Flea Bay. You better have good coin if you want such a thing."

"Of course, I would not expect anything less." Although this was something that she was reluctant to do, she did take her hunting knife off her belt and placed it on the counter. It was not an act of aggression but instead an offer. "This knife was created at the Martel forgery in Morgan. It is of excellent quality and should suffice for the information I need."

"Let me take a look." He then picked up the knife and began to examine it. He rubbed his beard as he did so before placing the knife back down. "Doesn't seem like much to me, then again, those Martels don't make very good weapons."

Maxine wanted to strike the man for insulting the work of her family or at least give him a few harsh words. However, for now she would swallow her pride and allow him to say such a thing unpunished. If she didn't then it was likely that she would lose any chance of tracking down the Weasel and eventually her size.

"Be that as it may that is still a good quality blade," said Maxine. "It will be suffice payment for your information."

"I'll be the judge of that little missy." He continued to look over the blade and he didn't seem to be the only one. Charles too was looking at it. In his mind there were mixed feelings about getting rid of the hunting knife. Without it they would be more vulnerable than ever but it was also the same knife that he had used during that eventful night. Getting rid of it was one way that would help him recover from what had happened. "Hmm, it isn't too bad of a blade, I could probably use it for something. Alright, what do you want to know?"

"I'm looking for a man."

"There are plenty of men around here, I suspect some of them would want to be with you. Why not the one that is standing beside you?"

"Not in that way!" She did her best to quell her anger and her fist quivered out of view. "I'm looking for a specific man. He stole something extremely valuable to me and I intend to get it back. He goes by the name, the Weasel."

"So, you're looking for the Weasel?" He began to laugh and from the sound of it, it seemed to be coming from the belly. "Good luck with that, that man's slippery than a watered-down deck."
"But you know how to find him?" There was more hope in her voice than anything else as she had the feeling that she might have wasted a perfectly good knife.

"Oh, you don't find him, he finds you if you have something that he wants. Whatever he stole from you, I suggest that you forget about it and move on. You'll save yourself a lot of pain and trouble."

"That is not an option for me. I must retrieve what was stolen, even at the cost of my life I will take back what is mine."

"You're a braver person than I." He chuckled to himself for a moment. "Your best place is to start down near the pier. Near the far end is a part where not many ships dock. If you want to start looking for him, there is your best bet."

"Thank you for your help. May peace be with you."

Maxine then grabbed onto Charles's wrist and turned around to walk out. She was disappointed to be leaving the knife behind but at least she had gained some useful information. It hadn't been a complete failure but at least she had been pointed in the right direction.

Like before, no one really took notice of them as they stepped out of the tavern and found themselves in the streets again. Charles felt like he hadn't been too much use but then again, he had done exactly what he had been told to do. But he was still nervous over everything that had taken place.

"So, what do we do now?" asked Charles as he looked at the short woman. In a way he still couldn't believe that he was having to look down at her rather than looking way up.

"We keep going, we only stop when my size is returned to me."

"But you said that you were willing to risk your life to get it back. I can't help but ask, but are you serious with that?" His question was met with a glare from the short woman and for a moment he regretted asking.

"Have I once ever joked to you Charles?"

"No ma'am but..."

"Then there's your answer. Don't ask such a stupid question again."

Charles was about to say something but he felt it was best that he didn't say a thing. He could see how annoyed Maxine was and stating anything could increase her anger. The events in the tavern had not gone entirely as planned for her and in a way, he could tell that she was losing hope. To her, the worst fate that she could imagine was remaining small and weak for the rest of her life.

There were some people who watched as they went by. For now, all they could do was ignore them and keep walking. One thing that did save them in a way was their overall appearance. The pair didn't look threatening or intimidating in the slightest but with Maxine's donated dress and Charles's general appearance they didn't look to have much money in particular.

Charles was still carrying his satchel which had important items in it such as the journal and the polish that he had bought for Maxine's armour. These wouldn't be particularly valuable to a thief but his still had his mother's locket that Maxine had given back to him once she felt that his life debt had been repaid. If said thief were able steal it, not only would they be taking something of great value but they would also be taking the last thing that he had of his mother.

Thanks to their appearance, any would be thieves left them alone as they thought that they didn't really have anything of value. Instead Maxine simply led her companion through the streets as she made her way to the pier that had been mentioned to her. In the past she remembered being told about such a place where illegally obtained goods were either imported or exported from. It was a place that pirates generally frequented and it was unwise to deal with such people.

With their options running out the pair had no choice but to keep going. A person with common sense would simply accept their loss and move on with their lives. This was something that Maxine simply couldn't contemplate and thus she carried on with what many would call a fool's errand.

Thankfully she also mostly knew her way around the town so making their way to the correct pier wasn't too much of an issue. She hadn't directly been there in her past but she knew of the location and simply carried on regardless. Even if she was at risk of being stabbed in the heart, she was still willing to go through that to regain her lost size and punish those that she deemed responsible.

Eventually the sight of the pier could be clearly seen. It was funny for them to think that such a bustling town such as Flea Bay could have sections where there were hardly any people. The buildings around the pier didn't look as run down as expected. If anything, they looked as though they had been well looked after and even normal in a way. It made it seem less likely that any illegal activity would be taking place there. This was exactly what someone dealing with illegally obtained goods would want.

Just as the pair stepped closer to the pier, they did notice two men watching them. Neither of them was small and they had muscle to them as well. Both were at least six and a half feet tall and as they saw the pair stepping towards the pier, they quickly got up and walked over to them. Maxine was the first to notice them and she figured that they were acting as guard dogs in a way. Not just anyone was allowed to come here but the men also knew that it was unlikely that the small woman and man were law enforcement. The gangs and pirates who operated there regularly paid off officials to look the other way. It was a system that had been in place long before anyone operating there was born and so far, nothing had rocked that particular boat.

"Hey there," said one of the Men. He had long blonde hair and a short beard. He and his comrade quickly stepped in front of Maxine and Charles. It was clear that they wouldn't simply step aside and let them pass. "Now what are a couple of love birds like you doing in a place like this?"

"We're interested in purchasing something," replied Maxine. She remained cool and collective despite the situation at hand. "My name is Alexandra Smith of House Smith from the Pryde Islands and this is my servant whose name is not important to mention." Charles felt a little insulted through this but he still trusted Maxine. He knew that she wouldn't insult him directly and that this was all part of some kind of trick.

"The Pryde Islands? You're a long way from home little lady." He and the other large man chuckled to one another. It seemed that they had never seen the actual Alexandra Smith before and it worked in her favour. "You don't look like a high born to me."

"You expect me to walk around in a lavish dress and jewels adorning my person?" She chuckled to herself. "A quick and easy way for me to be robbed blind while I make my way here."

"And what's to say that you don't get robbed right now?"

"Because my servant here isn't just here to serve me but he's also my bodyguard. Don't let his appearance fool you, he has trained in a form of hand to hand combat not seen in these lands. If you were to fight him, you'd find yourself on the ground with a fractured skull before you even realised what had hit you. Plus, if harm did come to me, my father would put a price on your head so high that you wouldn't be able to enter a populated area again."

Once again Charles stayed quiet and simply listened. All he could do was hope that these two men bought Maxine's bluff. If they were to fight, they wouldn't stand a chance in the slightest. She knew this but with her calm demeanour and demanding tone made her seem much more important than she actually was.

But what was important was what would happen in the next few seconds. If these men bought the bluff, then they could be on their way and attempt to find the Weasel. On the other hand, if they didn't buy the bluff, the both of them would be in very big trouble.

The two men stood there and looked at each other as they began to decide whether to allow Maxine and Charles to enter the dock. It was unusual to have a high born arrive there as they would likely send an underling of some kind to go in their stead. They had no idea that she was actually the daughter of a farmer and blacksmith and couldn't be of more common birth when it came to bloodline.

If she had been her full size this wouldn't be too much of a problem but her appearance in Flea Bay would have likely been noticed. The fact that she was short now, meant that she could pass off as a normal person much easier. Now she was a little nervous since if they failed here, she could kiss whatever chances she had of regaining her size goodbye.

"Very well Miss Smith," said the Large Man.

"That's Lady Smith," replied Maxine. She wanted to keep the illusion that she was some stuck up high born.

"Ok, Lady Smith, you may enter." He didn't really like her tone, but if what she had said was true. Going against her was likely to be more trouble than it was worth. "But remember to keep yourself to yourself. Some people who operate here don't care if your family are lords or clean up pig shit. One wrong move and you might leave here a head shorter, my lady."

"I will keep that in mind." Her tone was still arrogant but she knew that she had to heed their words. Each move that she made was with great care. Any mistake would be catastrophic for her. She did turn to look at Charles who was standing close by. "Come along Tyler, we're going."

Charles was confused for a moment before he realised that Tyler was a name that she was giving him. Quickly he nodded to her and walked towards her as she walked away. The two men looked at them for a moment but soon their attention was drawn to a person who like Maxine and Charles before had wanted to enter the dock.

Now that they had gotten by, the pair continued to walk. Even though Charles was following Maxine, he wasn't sure if he knew exactly where she was going. The truth was that she had never been there before but her determination drove her on. No matter what it took, she wanted to get her size and strength back.

"M-Ma'am," said Charles. His voice was quiet and he made sure that she was the only one who could hear him. "Do you even know where you're going?"

"Not exactly," replied Maxine. This didn't fill him with too much confidence but her tone did put him at some ease. "But if we ask around, we'll find the Weasel and then my size. That I can promise you."

"Please just be careful, I don't want you to."

"I'd be more worried about the Weasel when I get my hands on him. I'm going to wrap my hands around his head and squeeze until it pops like a tomato." At that time, she was gesturing her hands with actually doing the deed. She remembered that she had promised her mother that she wouldn't kill anyone else. But right now, she was very tempted.

For the next couple of minutes, they continued to walk forward until they reached what looked to be a small building. There were a couple of people outside and they couldn't help but observe as people walked inside and mentioned what it was in particular that they wanted. After that, they would be directed to the merchant that they needed to see for the product or service they needed.

Seeing that this was their best chance to find what they were looking for; they also began to queue up. There weren't too many people in front of them as they waited and it seemed quite convenient that it was there. However, since it was there for people who didn't know their way around. Even though the merchants were selling stolen or illegal material, they still wanted to make sure that their customers could find them. Some of their products could only be sold in a short amount of time.

In a way to Charles, this made it seem a little more mundane than he was expecting. He thought that there would be more secrecy when it came to something like this, but instead it seemed more normal than he could have imagined. Instead he remained silent as he and Maxine remained in line. It wasn't a particularly long line but each person normally took several minutes before they could be seen to. It was a little annoying for the now short woman as she felt that she was close, but now simply had to wait her turn before she could go any further.

Eventually the time did come for them to be seen to. They could see a relatively old woman sitting behind a desk with a couple of muscular men standing either side of it. They were not too dissimilar to the men that had originally stopped the pair once they had wanted to enter the pier.

It was obvious to both of them that these men were acting as security and because of this, Maxine knew that it was best to keep her cool and simply go through whatever protocol was needed. She had witnessed the people ahead of her and seen how they had acted, she decided that it was for the best that she acted in the same manner.

The woman sitting behind the desk didn't look particularly abnormal. If anything, Maxine and Charles would have expected to see such a person in any normal setting. Her hair was pretty grey and she had what looked to be a book in front of her that she wrote down in. It was quite rare to find someone who could read and write. Charles was one of the few that could and it seemed that this woman had some form of education.

"Name?" asked the Woman sitting behind the desk. Her question was quick and to the point, she also expected some kind of pseudo name as many customers here didn't like to use their real names.

"Lady Alexandra Smith," replied Maxine without missing a beat. Even though she was lying it wasn't obvious to anyone watching on.

"Unusual to have a high born here and still using their name." She found this a little suspicious but nothing that was worth raising the alarm about.

"I have nothing to hide."

"Very well and what is your reason for coming to this part of Flea Bay?"

"The gods were cruel enough to not bless me with great height that I would have liked. I am here to rectify that."

"Hmm, so you want to obtain magic? That is something that is rare and incredibly expensive." Normally people came here for something ill-gotten or that would be impossible to obtain through legal means.

"Money is not an issue for me. Does this place have anything that could help me?"

"Well you could always buy some heels. Something like that would be much easier and cheaper for you."

"It is not the same to me. I want to be so tall that I have to look down at everyone like my status should."

"Ah so you're like that, not satisfied with any alternatives. I can respect that, well today is a lucky day for you. As it so happens, a merchant in these parts has recently obtained something that could make your desires come true. But first, you have to pay me for my services before we continue."

"Of course." She then nodded to Charles who stepped forward and placed a pouch with money inside of it. This was the last of the money that they had but they hoped that it would be enough to get them to where they needed to go. They watched as the woman opened the pouch and peered inside of it. She grunted a little before passing it over to one of the men standing guard.

"The merchant that you want to speak to is located in the old fish market around half a mile from here. It's a large building that is hard to miss." She then pointed towards a street that was easily viewed from where they were standing. "Just walk that way and you'll find it eventually. Once you arrive, knock on the door and the key word is Tulips. Now be on your way, I have more people to see."

Maxine could do nothing more than give a quick thanks to the woman before she and Charles stepped away and down towards the street that they had been told to travel down. One thing that she had noticed was that there were no names given at all. She had been considering asking about the Weasel but she thought better against it. If she had done, it might have been seen as suspicious. Instead she would simply keep it to herself and ask when she felt that it was needed.

Charles was still nervous about everything. They were practically defenceless and he knew that Maxine's persona could only go so far before someone figured out exactly who she was and it would be trouble for the both of them. This time he didn't think that they would survive as dealing with a criminal underworld of any kind never ends well. It caused him to take a small gulp.

Although it seemed to be quite a sunny day there were several clouds above and, in a way, it mirrored the feelings of Maxine. She was optimistic about regaining her size but although she didn't want to admit it, she did have her doubts. A part of her even considered that it was for the best that she remained the way that she was and lived a simpler life. But then another part of her refused to believe this, she had worked too hard for everything that she had gained and she refused to throw it instead. This only added to her determination as she was willing to go any length to get back what was stolen from her.

"A-Alexandra, may I ask you a question?" asked Charles. There was some nervousness in his voice. It wasn't due to fear towards her, instead it was because of the environment that he had found himself in.

"What is it?" replied Maxine. She did like the fact that he had remembered to call her by her alias rather than her real name.

"I was just wondering, when we do get to this fish market and find the people who have your size. What do you plan on doing? You don't have the money to buy it, in fact after that last little exchange, we don't have any money at all."

"It's simple, we grab onto it after we distract them and then allow my size to re-enter my body. That way I will return to my former self and fight off anyone that comes my way. Even if I'm unarmed, I should still be able to do it."

"I-I see." This plan seemed flimsier than he was comfortable with. After just a few moments of thinking he was able to come up with at least a dozen ways that the plan would fail and would likely lead to their deaths. He knew that she wasn't stupid enough to not figure that out herself. But with everything that had happened she was on the verge of desperation. In a way he felt very sorry to her.

Eventually their walk came to an end when they saw a large building just ahead of them. On the side of it they were able to see the word 'Fish' written on it although the lettering had begun to fade. There was also a picture of a fish right next to it as it helped those who were unable to read.

It was obvious to both of them that this was the place that they were looking for. Rather than running towards their destination, Maxine remained calm and simply walked with Charles by her side. It was easy for them to find the door that led into the building, carefully they knocked on the door and for a few moments nothing seemed to happen. However, someone did eventually answer it. A small slot in the door above them opened up and a pair of eyes looked down at them. They didn't seem to be impressed with what they could see but business was still business.

"What's the Keyword?" asked the Man standing behind the door. He had strict orders to not allow anyone in unless they had the right keyword. He was even ordered to use deadly force if necessary.

"Tulip," replied Maxine. "Now let us."

Without saying a word, the man closed the slot of the door and there was the clanking sound as the door was being unlocked. After a few moments the door eventually opened and they could see the man who had been standing there. He was surprisingly short and even needed a stool to properly reach up to the door. He still had quite a muscular frame but despite this his appearance did surprise them. Despite his lack of height, he was still several inches taller than Maxine.

"Walk to the large area through those doors," said the Man. He pointed to a couple of doors just ahead of them. "No funny business or else you and your companion there will be leaving here without a head."

"You dare threaten a member of House Smith of the Pryde Islands?" replied Maxine. She glared at him as she didn't really like being threatened in this manner. Not just that but she was still using the façade of her actually being a high born.

"I wouldn't go declaring that around these parts. You might not leave Flea Bay in one piece if you do that."

Maxine simply walked through with Charles walking alongside her. The man who had opened the door simply shook his head as he shut the door, ensuring that there were no unauthorised entrants came in.

With their goal clear in hand the pair stepped through the double doors like they had been instructed and it wasn't long before they found themselves in a large open area that was once used to house fish that were caught nearby or shipped in from overseas. Now it was used for illegal activities. Even though there hadn't been fish inside for many years the stench of the former tenants could still be smelt.

Charles was still incredibly nervous. They didn't have much of a plan and he didn't need to be a genius to know that they were outmanned and outmuscled in this situation. If things truly went south then he wouldn't have Maxine to protect him as she too was in the same predicament as him. Now more than ever he missed her in her larger and more muscular form. At least then, he felt safe.

For a moment there was nothing but silence. Just as they were thinking that something was wrong, they eventually saw a man walking into view. He had been standing in the shadows beforehand and now that he had walked out of it, the pair could see him quite clearly. It was somewhat strange how they were meeting in this manner but it was still wasn't enough to put Maxine on edge.

The man standing before them didn't look intimidating in the slightest. He was of average height and had a skinny frame. His hair was short and black and as he looked at the pair standing a short distance away from him. He was far from impressed and he kept his hands in his pockets.

"So, you're the ones who have come here on this day to see yours truly," said the Merchant. A smile appeared on his face and his teeth looked particularly white. This was particularly unusual in Angleland.

"Indeed," replied Maxine. "I am Lady Alexandra Smith of the Pryde Islands." Her voice sounded somewhat regal and it seemed like she believed every single word that she spoke. "I am here to obtain something from you that can be bought in no other market."

"As many others do. Now what is it that you want? I have many things that could be of some value to a woman of your status."

"I have been informed that you've come into the possession of an item that could make me taller. As you can see, I wasn't blessed with great height like a good many people that I know."

"A woman who knows what she wants, I like that. Your sources are correct, I do happen to have such an item." He then cleared his throat and mere moments later a guard walked up to him with what looked to be a small container. With that the Merchant opened up the container and Maxine could see what seemed to a glowing sphere of energy. It was beautiful as her eyes widened but there was something else that drew her attention. The Merchant was missing a finger on his right hand. This was all the indication that she needed to know that he was the Weasel. This raised her anger slightly but she seemed to keep her cool in order to try get out of this in one piece. "As you can see, this little thing here can make big changes to your life. I take it that this is what you're looking for."

"Indeed, it is." There was a slight hint of excitement in her voice as she spoke. At that moment in time she wanted to dart forward and simply take it. However, she had to be more cautious when it came to this. She somewhat regretted not having a proper plan before she had come but she was sure of a one thing... She was going to leave here with her size or would die trying. "And this'll make me taller?"

"Yes, it will." He chuckled for a moment. "In fact, it might even make you the tallest woman in Angleland. If that is a little much, I'm sure that we can figure out some way of downplaying the effects."

"No, that will do nicely." Even though she was excited as she thought that she could get her size back at any moment but she still didn't want to jump ahead. In this situation she was still at a disadvantage. "Now let's talk business."

"Indeed, we shall, this little ball of miracles doesn't come cheap. A common man would have to work five lifetimes in order to afford this. But for someone like you it's probably not much more than pocket change."

"Whatever amount you want I can ensure that you get paid." She took a couple of steps forward; she knew that it would be risky but she thought that she could get away with it if she was a little on the sly side. "May I see it?" She held out her hand and she hoped that her small size would make her seem harmless.

"I wouldn't if I was you." The Weasel quickly took a step back and a couple of the guards in the shadows stepped forward as it seemed that tensions had suddenly increased. "I wouldn't be so eager if I was you. I didn't get to where I am today because I'm some kind of sap, you get this when I get my money."

"That seems fair." She played it cool and was merely waiting for the opportunity that she needed to try and take what was rightfully hers. "Now how much exactly do you want for that?"

"Hmm, to tell you the truth, I haven't fully thought through the actual price. I did have a sum in mind but after that little move that you just pulled; I've decided to add a little more to it."

"Outrageous." Her anger slightly flared up for a moment and she clenched her fist in fury. "But I guess I have no choice in the matter."

"No, you don't, now little girl I suggest that you cough up some gold or else this discussion is finished."

Maxine remained quiet for a moment as she knew that neither she nor Charles had any money with them whatsoever. Their bluff had gotten them this far but it was likely that it could get them no further. With everything she had she darted forward, her pace was quicker than the Weasel had expected and just for a moment she was able to knock the container that held the sphere. It was something that he hadn't entirely expected but her sudden movement did cause the guards to go into action.

The guards did quickly move towards Maxine as she dived to the ground in order to try and grab onto the sphere. She knew that she had to get to it before she was captured, if that were to happen it was likely that she and Charles wouldn't leave this warehouse alive. Her squire looked on and he too darted forward, but this was more out of panic rather than actually trying to grab the sphere.

As Maxine tried to reach the sphere as it rolled on the ground her hand was just a mere inch off reaching it immediately. This was heart breaking for her, in her mind she was thinking that if she was just a little taller, she would have been able to reach it. But before she could get up to try and grab it again, she felt someone grab her arm and then hold it into her back. This caused her some pain and then she was effortlessly picked up off the ground.

Charles wanted to help her but he too found himself grabbed by one of the guards and held in place. He didn't have the strength to break free and the Weasel did go for the sphere as well. However, he used great care when doing it as he took out the same tool that Maxine and Charles had seen before. It was the same one that they had led to believe had removed the magic from her in the first place.

Using this tool, he was able to grab the sphere and put it back in the container. The last thing he wanted to do was actually touch it. There would be a good chance that he would have absorbed it and then become as tall and muscular as Maxine had been before it had been removed from her.

The woman herself struggled as best as she could but without the magic inside of her, she had no hope of breaking free of this guard's grip. Instead she was simply held there as the Weasel properly secured the sphere and looked over to her. She regretted not having a serious plan but with time not being on her side she had needed to act quickly. It hadn't worked out well for them.

"Wow, that was close," said the Weasel. There was some mockery in his voice, almost as if he was making fun of their attempt to steal the orb. "Just for a moment, I thought that you were actually going to get your hands on this."

"Give me that!" shouted Maxine as she was desperate at this point in this time. She was kicking her feet but there was nothing that she could do.

"Now why would a high born such as yourself resort to stealing from a merchant like myself." Again, it was like he was mocking her for her attempt. "Unless you aren't actually a high born. No, you're some kind of short common woman who wants to gain a few inches but is unwilling to pay."

"That is something that rightfully belongs to me. You stole it!" By this time, she was shouting at the top of her lungs. This caused a little confusion from the Weasel but after a moment he did begin to figure it out.

"Stole it from you? Oh wait, you must have been the large woman where this had come from. You know that makes me curious, I wonder what you looked like when you had this within you. I bet you were a fine specimen back then."

"If you let me have the magic back then you can see for yourself."

"Now why would I do that? I admit that I have been tempted to use this on myself. But the value is simply too great to throw away like that."

"What do you want us to do with them?" asked the Guard who was holding onto Maxine. The question was one that the other guard was thinking as he held onto Charles. Unlike Maxine, he wasn't struggling at all.

"Do what you want and then dump them in the ocean. No one will miss them."

With that the two guards began to move away with Maxine and Charles still in their grasp. The Weasel was disappointed that he hadn't been able to sell the sphere and get the mountain of money that he had wanted. But he still had it and it would only be a matter of time before someone took it off him for the right price. Such an event like this wasn't common but it had taken place from time to time.

The guards barely said a word as they took both Maxine and Charles away. Maxine in particular was trying to fight back as she struggled and kicked as much as she could. Unfortunately, in her smaller body she simply didn't have the strength that she needed to help herself or her squire. This was both annoying and dangerous for her and she began to feel some worry.

Charles was likely even more worried than her but he didn't seem to be showing it. Instead on the inside he was utterly panicking as once again he felt like he was in a winless situation. It somewhat reminded him of the inn that he had stayed in and how he had killed a family of cultists. Ever since it happened, the events had been replaying in his head over and over again.

It didn't seem to matter how much the pair struggled; they couldn't break out of the grip that they had found themselves in. Instead they were taken away from the main area in this warehouse and neither of them knew what was going to happen to them. It was likely that they wouldn't leave there alive.

This was something that Maxine simply wouldn't accept. She might have been quite small and frail but she refused to allow it to be the death of her. She was more than determined that by the end of the day, not only would she and Charles still be alive and in good health but she would also have her size back.

At this point in time she didn't know exactly how she was going to do this but she was sure that an opportunity would present itself eventually. It might have been close to impossible but she remembered the stories that her father told her about some of the impossible situations that he had found himself in and how he had gotten out of them. She knew that the same would happen to her, it was only a matter of time as she waited for her time to strike back.

Maxine and Charles were taken out of the warehouse and very close to the shoreline. Although it was still daylight, the two men didn't seem to have any problems with moving around out. If anyone did see them, they did nothing to help and instead just went on with their own business without giving the group a second thought.

For most of the time Maxine had been struggling as best as she could but it was of little use. She couldn't help but fantasise about being her normal size and throwing the two men in whatever direction she wanted and then crushing the skull of the Weasel. But right now, this wasn't possible but something else began to creep into her mind.

This was a lesson that her father had taught her some years ago when he had been training her. Even then she was around eight feet tall and strong enough to overpower practically any man. Sir Tucker knew that Maxine's size and strength would allow her to get out of almost any situation that she found herself in... but not all of them. Size and strength only went so far and a knight had to use strategy as well to win a fight or a situation where they were at a disadvantage.

This was such a situation and rather than kicking or screaming Maxine instead calmed herself and took some deep breaths. Although she was very angry with everything that had taken place, she still knew that she couldn't allow her anger to guide her hand this time. Instead it would take brains rather than brawn.

As she tried to think, the first thing that she thought about was exactly what she had on her person. Immediately there wasn't anything that came to mind that she thought would be useful. She would have liked her hunting knife but she had given that away when she had gotten the information that she needed. Now, she somewhat regretted doing that but she didn't think that it entirely mattered.

Instead Maxine also looked over to Charles and she could see that he was scared. In a way he was having a panic attack as not only was the situation getting the better of him but the trauma of the night at the cultist inn. Her biggest regret wasn't losing her size or her dagger, instead it was putting him in this scenario in the first place.

With everything that Charles had done for her, putting him in harm's way was the last thing that she had wanted. He was the only man that she truly considered a friend and if he were to get hurt or worse than she would blame herself for the rest of her days. She wasn't just thinking of a plan for her own benefit, it was also because she wanted to save him and not because she could gain a life debt over him.

One thing that she did notice was that the guard carrying her did have a knife on his belt. It wasn't much but to her, it did give her an idea. However, before she could make any decisions, she had to wait to see how events played out.

"So, what do you want to do with them?" asked One of the Guards as they both continued to carry Maxine and Charles. They had noticed that they were barely struggling but this was something that wasn't unexpected. Sometimes they captured people, they would struggle at first and then accept their fate. It seemed like Maxine and Charles had done the same thing. "The boss said that we could do whatever we want with them."

"I say we dump him and have a little fun with her," replied the Other Guard. He was a little shorter than his colleague and he was the one who was holding onto Maxine and a smile appeared in his face. "That sound good to you?"

"Yeah, I'll see you in a minute." This was when Maxine realised that she was about to be separated from Charles, this was something that she couldn't allow to happen as he would likely be killed before she could help him.

"Wait, you don't want to do that," said Maxine. She had a few moments to think before but now she was going to have to be cautious.

"Why not?" replied the shorter Guard. He still had a firm grip on her and she could only imagine what was running through his mind.

"It wouldn't be wise I can tell you that."

"Oh, I'm all ears."

Although her arms were short, they were still long enough to reach the knife that was on the Shorter Guard's belt. Before he even knew what was happening Maxine grabbed onto the knife and stabbed him in the arm with it. She had put some power into it and the pain that he experienced was enough to cause him to release his grip on her. Rather than trying to recapture her, his attention was instead drawn to the wound on his arm and he held onto it as he could still feel the pain.

The Taller Guard was taken by surprise by all of this as he didn't know exactly what was happening. All he could see was that Maxine was free and his colleague had blood running down his arm. Before he could think about what he should do he felt a sharp stabbing pain in his leg. Like the shorter guard, he fell over in pain and in turn let go of Charles who seemed to be just as confused as him.

Out of all of them, it was Maxine who was standing tall. She held the bloody knife in her hand and looked down at the two men who had wanted to kill both her and her squire. This angered her a great deal and normally she would have gone for a killing blow, instead she thought that the wounds that they had were non-life threatening. She remembered the promise that she had made to her mother and despite the situation she was determined to keep this promise.

"Your wounds are serious but will not take your lives if you see a Healer quickly," said Maxine. Both of them seemed to be losing quite a lot of blood and she just glared at them. "I suggest you make a move before you bleed out."

The two men remained quiet for a moment; they knew that they had a job to do but they also realised that there was a chance that they could die from blood loss. Because of this they valued their lives more than their jobs as they quickly moved away from the pair. The guards needed each other to move themselves along but all they could do was glance back at Maxine before they went for emergency medical attention.

Maxine couldn't help but give a sigh as her heart had been beating very quickly. She had been nervous as she wasn't sure if she could have fought off the guards if they decided to stand and fight. Now that they were alone for the moment, she went down to Charles who was still on the ground. She still had the knife in her hand and although she knew that he would be nervous around it, she needed to keep it for protection.

"Are you alright Charles?" asked Maxine as she held out her free hand. He didn't really say anything as he simply nodded his head and took her hand. Helping him to his feet was a much more difficult task than she remembered. Despite her lack of size and strength, she was able to achieve the task. "Good, I'm sorry that it came to that but now we're at a disadvantage. The Weasel knows who we are and pretending to be high borns isn't going to work now."

"What are we going to do?" replied Charles. He was scared but he knew that being afraid wasn't going to help in this situation. Not just that but he also made sure that he couldn't properly see the knife in her hand.

"Simple, we go back inside and take what is rightfully mine. You're at risk, I don't need to explain why. If you want, you can wait for me just outside of town, if I'm not back by dawn tomorrow, leave without me."

"No ma'am, if you're risking your life, I am willing to do the same." These were brave words although he wasn't sure if he could properly back them up when the time came. "We're in this together."

"I appreciate your loyalty and I promise that said loyalty will be rewarded in time. However, we can't go in without a plan."

"Are we going to leave for now and then come back sometime later" This was something that he was hoping but he knew that it was very unlikely.

"No, we can't leave. I can't risk it being sold while we're sitting around and twiddling our fingers. If I don't leave here without my size and strength then I'm not leaving here at all." Charles wanted to believe that her words were simply pride but by now, he knew that she was serious.

"I think I have an idea. If you're willing to listen."

"Right now, I'm interested in any plan that is thrown my way.

Meanwhile, inside of the warehouse the Weasel was still disappointed about the fact that he hadn't sold the magical sphere. But he still had it in his possession and that was something, but he was also feeling cautious. Although he was sure that Maxine and Charles had been dealt with, he couldn't help but feel that there was a small chance that they had somehow survived and escaped.

Because of this he was sure that they would return at some point to try and take the sphere back. He had seen the look in Maxine's eyes, her look and determination were all he needed to know that this wouldn't be her only attempt if she was still alive. Because of this he was sure to send words to the other merchants and hired muscle in the area to keep a look out for the pair. He didn't think it was too important as he was sure that his men had dealt with them, but he hadn't gotten to where he had without being cautious.

One thing that the Weasel did was to make his way to a room that was inside of the warehouse. In comparison to the large area where he made his deals, this one was much smaller and more secure than that one. It had been locked up with a large padlock that looked to be too big and strong for anyone to break. There was only one key in existence belonged to the Weasel himself and there was always someone stationed outside of the door.

Not a single word was spoken as he walked up to the door and carefully unlocked the door. Once it had been unlocked, he removed the padlock and chain before opening the door and entering. It was quite dark inside but once a small torch was lit on the wall, he could see the contents that were inside.

Many people would call this a treasure room as the vast majority of the items inside were worth more than any normal person could hope to earn in a lifetime. All of them were gotten through less than legal means and it was likely that quite a lot of it, he would sell it for less than it was actually worth. Then again it would still be much more than he paid for it and this was what allowed him to stay in business like this.

There was one thing that the Weasel was curious about. He had been told that the sphere of magic that he had obtained allowed someone to become bigger and stronger than they had been before. When he had seen Maxine, all he could see was the small and weak woman that she had become. He couldn't help but be curious to think about how big she was when she had the magic inside of her. He imagined that she would probably be head ducking through doorways tall. If he fully realised just how big she was when she had the magic inside of her. It would terrify him to no end.

Just outside of the warehouse Maxine and Charles had hidden themselves but they could see the entrance. It wasn't the main entrance that they had used before but instead seemed to be a side entrance. It too was guarded and for a moment they simply observed what was happening rather than actually going to it straight away. The man standing there didn't look particularly strong but if he was on the Weasel's payroll there was a chance that he was more capable than he seemed.

The situation did seem a little hopeless but if they stuck to Charles's plan there was a small chance that they would be able to succeed. At this moment in time, Maxine was more or less willing to try anything in the hopes of becoming her former self.

Charles did grab a small metal object that he had found nearby. Without saying a word, he gave Maxine a couple of hand signals and quietly she moved into position. During that time, they made sure that they couldn't be seen whatsoever. It was one of the few times where her lack of size.

After a few moments she was able to get a decent distance from him but not far enough away. She took a glance over to him and he gave her the ok sign. In response she nodded and then began to cough quite loudly. Almost immediately the man standing at the door heard the coughing and moved to investigate.

With the guard distracted Charles quickly moved behind him and then struck him in the head with the metal object that he had found. Although he struck the guard with all the strength that she had, it wasn't enough to kill him. Thankfully this was what Charles had expected and the guard fell down to the ground. He was mostly unconscious and he was groaning why he lay on the ground.

Maxine did come out of hiding and she looked down at him. She was still armed with the knife but rather than stabbing him she just looked at the guard. For a moment she looked over to Charles and she felt impressed with him. It was likely that the guard would wake up with a severe headache but hopefully nothing more than that.

"You really took him out," said Maxine as she looked down at the guard again. She nudged his arm with her foot and he barely responded.

"Yeah but he won't be down for long," replied Charles. "We should move him away before anyone notices."

Normally this would be a task that Maxine could achieve by herself with minimum effort. However, now she didn't have a chance so she grabbed onto the Guard's wrists while Charles grabbed his ankles. It took some effort for them to pick him up and move him away, it was somewhat embarrassing for them but after a few minutes they placed him down in a pile of waste that was close by. His body was mostly covered with objects such as wood, some metal and even some food.

One thing that the pair did before they left the guard was to take the set of keys that he had on his person. They didn't know whether they would need them but it was best to have them and not need them, rather than need them and not have them. It was Charles who decided to have them on his person since Maxine still carried the knife.

With their task complete for the time being, Maxine and Charles stepped through the door that had been guarded. Neither of them knew exactly how many people the Weasel had hired in order to protect the warehouse. They didn't know exactly where he was as well but it was likely that he would know where the magical sphere was.

Their plan seemed to be, finding the Weasel and then forcing him to give Maxine her size back. She seemed to be willing to remove more of his fingers if that was what it took. However, Charles knew that such a plan would be foolish and with the lack of information that they had, there was still more that he needed to discover before he could fully decide on the true course of action.

Almost immediately as soon as they stepped inside, they found themselves in low light. It made it difficult for them to properly see where they were going but it was partially due to the fact that they had been used to being in sunlight. It would take a minute for their eyes to adjust before they could begin to look clearer again.

Maxine was the one who wanted to go in like a bull but even she knew that this was unwise. They were quite lucky to escape the last time with their lives intact. It was unlikely that luck would smile on them in such a manner again. Also, the Weasel was unlikely to take any chances with their demise. All in all, it didn't paint a very good picture for them if they were to fail.

As Charles had instructed, neither of them spoke a single word. Instead they would communicate with some hand signals. Each message would be relatively simple and also, they would listen out for anyone. Carefully they made their way through one of the small corridors in mostly darkness. This would work to their advantage as it made them harder to spot, not just that but because of their below average height. It would take just that moment longer for them to be spotted and it could be the difference between life and death.

Just as they went through the corridor, they eventually came across a door which for the moment seemed to be unlocked. Charles hid to the side of the doorway and he still held the metal object that he had picked up earlier. Maxine was the one who opened the door and she had a firm grip on her knife just in case she needed it.

The door was opened carefully and Maxine was ready to go into action if she needed to. Thankfully for the both of them, there didn't seem to be anyone on the other side. The only sound that the pair made was a small sigh of relief. Since the coast was clear they began to make their way down this hallway. It seemed to have been used years ago when it came to transporting fish from one area to another. The smell of fish was still evident, even though it had been some years since a fish last graced this place.

Just as they continued to walk down the hallway, they suddenly began to hear some footsteps. It caused them to quickly stop where they were and for a moment neither of them moved. They observed for a moment but when they realised that the footsteps were coming closer, they quickly tried to find a place to hide.

By the wall there was a barrel that looked to be large enough to hide Maxine. She didn't know exactly what was inside but with her limited options she quickly made her way inside. One thing she did find some difficulty with was her dress. Even though she had been wearing it for a couple of days, she was far from used to wearing it and because of it there were a few times that she struggled with.

Once Maxine was inside it was Charles who had to quickly find a place to hide. This was more difficult for him as there didn't seem to be any obvious hiding places at that moment in time. There was still the barrel but he couldn't hide inside of it, instead he was forced to crouch down by the side of it and hope that he wasn't spotted. When he sat down beside it, he tucked his legs as best as he could. He also lowered his head and tried to make sure that the barrel completely blocked the view of his body. It was hopeful that he wouldn't be spotted but by now it was all down to luck.

"You going down to the brothel after this?" said a Male Voice. The sound of footsteps continued to be heard. By now Maxine and Charles realised that it was two different set of footsteps that they could hear.

"Yeah, it's been a while and I have a hole in my pocket," replied another Male Voice. "You wanna come?"

"Nah, I'm knackered after all of this. Besides I think we'll be working overtime. Dan and Robert haven't come back from their little job. I can imagine that the boss is going to get jumpy. Wouldn't be surprised if he wants us to work extra today."

"Hey, as long as he pays us, I don't mind." Just then they reached the barrel and where the pair was hiding. For a moment it seemed like they didn't notice them. However, when he saw a glance of Charles it caused him to quickly stop and look down at him. "Hey, who the hell are you?"

Charles didn't answer but instead Maxine leapt out of the barrel with the knife in her hand and landed on the second man that had been walking alongside him. This confused the first man who could help but turn to look at what was happening. This was when Charles got up to his feet and struck him with the metal object in his hand.

With all the force that he could muster he struck the second man in the head as hard as he could. For a moment he thought that his attack didn't work but he saw the man fall to the ground and barely move. This caused him to sigh in relief but when he looked over to Maxine, he could see that she was struggling.

Although she had taken him by surprise, she didn't have the strength to take him down straight away. After getting over the shock of the attack, the man was able to grab onto Maxine's wrists and squeeze them to the point where she was forced to drop the knife that she was carrying.

Charles was forced to strike the man in the head with the metal object. It wasn't enough to knock him down but there was some damage that was done. It also gave Maxine the opportunity that she needed to attack. Although she didn't have her knife anymore, she was still able to use all of her bodyweight to knock him down to the ground. He was still conscious but she struck him as many times as she could with her fists.

As Charles looked down at her as she continued to strike the man, he could see the same rage that he had seen at the tavern just outside of Morgan. However, since she was much smaller this time than she was last time the damage was not a severe but with everything that had happened it was still enough to knock him out. Even so, she continued to punch him as she vented her frustration. Her own fists were becoming injured from the impact and yet she fought through the pain. It wasn't until she felt a hand on her shoulder that she finally stopped her attack.

"That's enough," said Charles as he felt he did what he needed to do. Not just to save Maxine from injury, but also so that they could move on before someone happened to spot them. "We have to keep moving."

"Fine," replied Maxine. Her voice was sharp and to the point as she stopped her attack. She also picked up the knife that was close by and she looked at the man as well. Although he was knocked out, he didn't seem as injured as she expected from such an attack. It was just a reminder to her that she wasn't as powerful as she had been before. "Don't wait around and come along!"

Charles didn't argue with her although it was basically the same instruction that he had given to her. Instead they continued to search for the sphere, this included going into several different rooms. Before going into any of the rooms they would look through the keyhole to try and spot anyone inside.

For the next several minutes the pair explored around half a dozen different rooms. All were mostly empty, a few of them did contain something that resembled general rubbish and so it was ignored. All of this only added to Maxine's annoyance as she simply wanted to get her size back as soon as possible.

Eventually they did reach quite close to the door where the valuable items were located. This was something that the pair didn't know but they did see someone standing outside, guarding the room. Charles was the one who figured out that if there was something valuable inside if it were to warrant a guard.

He was also expecting Maxine wanting to approach the guard like some kind of raging bull. Instead he was surprised to see that she seemed relatively calm. Not just that but he could still see the condition of her hands. There were cuts on the knuckles from the punching, although she was likely to be in some pain, she still seemed to be in a calm mood.

For a moment they stopped to observe the guard and they made sure to stay out of his field of vision. Not just that but they both ensured that they couldn't be heard at all. An idea did pop into Charles's head, this was the idea of interrogating this guard since there was a chance that he would know where the sphere was. Little did they know how close they were to it and yet still so far.

In his pocket Charles had a small stone that he had picked up earlier. With some effort he threw it towards the opposite direction from where they were. He made sure that the stone was too low for the guard to see it go flying passed him but not too low that it struck the ground before he wanted it to.

When the stone hit the ground, it did get the attention of the guard who seemed to be taken by surprise. He grunted for a moment and looked down towards where the sound had come from. For a moment he turned around and this was the chance that the pair needed. With all their might they ran forward and were able to tackle him down to the ground. Normally it would be difficult for either of them to achieve this task by themselves but together they were successful.

This time, Charles didn't try to knock the guard out. Instead they were able to turn him onto his back and Maxine sat on his chest. Without much hesitation she stabbed the knife into his hand. As the guard screamed Charles covered his mouth and muffled any sound that could be heard. He was sure not to cover the Guard's nose as they still needed a lot of information out of him.

"You're going to do exactly what I tell you," said Maxine. The tone of her voice showed that she wasn't joking around. Charles didn't think that he had ever heard her with such a serious tone before. "My knife is currently sticking in your hand, if you don't tell me what we want I'll start taking off your fingers one by one. Then I'll begin to focus on more vital body parts."

Charles watched on and he thought that she was beginning to go too far. However, a part of him couldn't blame her for her actions. She had something very important to her taken away and she was willing to go to practically any length in order to get it back. If he was in her shoes, he might do the same thing. But now he could only observe but also keep his eye out for unwanted visitors.

The guard felt great pain in his hand as Maxine slightly twisted the knife. Charles was still covering his mouth so that he couldn't scream. As he looked into the face of the short woman, he could see the look of determination on it, it was scary even though normally he wouldn't find her intimidating at all. However, at that moment in time she was the scariest person on the planet.

"Tell me what I want to know and you'll be fine," said Maxine. "Tell me where my size has gone!"

"Help!" shouted the Guard. He screamed as loud as he could once Charles had moved his hand off of his mouth. "Somebod..." Before he could finish what, he was saying, his mouth was covered again. He looked up at Maxine and he could see that she looked even angrier than she did before.

"Wrong answer!" With that she twisted the knife more and the guard screamed in agony. His screams were muffled and Charles couldn't help but feel some guilt about what was happening. He knew that Maxine needed to get her size back but he was beginning to feel uncomfortable with how they were doing things. "Now tell me what I want to know before I start slicing your fingers off and don't think I won't."

"I-I don't even know what you're talking about!" By now he knew that screaming for help wouldn't do him any good. He thought that Maxine would stab him to death before anyone could find him.

"The Weasel had something in the form of a sphere, it gave off an uncanny light. Before you say anything, you better not lie again or else I might cut off more than just your fingers." It was obvious to the Guard what she was referring to and he couldn't help but be worried about what she might do.

"It's in there!" He gestured as best as he could towards the door that he had been guarding. "But you can't get inside."

"Why not?" She felt that she was close to her goal and this guard was the only one standing in her way.

"It's locked, you're going to need the key." There was some panic in his voice as he didn't know what she was going to do next.

"Then give me the damn key!"

"I-I don't have it. Only the boss has it, please you have to believe me."

Maxine looked at the Guard and she could see the panic in his face. She had seen it before and she knew that he was broken and thus would tell her anything that she wanted to know. The fact that he was telling her something that he knew would annoy her only led her to believe that he was indeed telling the truth.

Without saying a word Maxine took the metal object from Charles and then struck the Guard. He was knocked out and with that she quickly got up to her feet, although she was annoyed by what had happened at least now she knew for certain where her size was located. She could see Charles ripping some fabric off the shirt of the guard and using it to treat his hand.

"What are you doing?" asked Maxine. She didn't seem to be too impressed with what she was seeing.

"Treating him ma'am," replied Charles. He wasn't too fond of seeing the blood and he even tried to look away. "We can't let him bleed to death."

"Fine, whatever." She would normally have told him not to bother but she still remembered the promise that she made to her mother. Although it was wasting time in her mind, she allowed it to happen.

Not just that but they also dragged him away so that they could hide him away and not be located straight away. Once again this took both of them to do and they took care not to harm the guard any further. Their hiding space for him wasn't ideal but it would keep him hidden away for long enough, at least they hoped.

Rather than moving along straight away they had to stop so that they could plan for a moment. Maxine did step towards the door with the large padlock, she knocked it for a moment and she knew that there was no chance that she could break it. Even if she had her real size and strength it would be an impossible, instead she would have likely broken the door itself. Right now, that wasn't an option for her either and thus, the only solution to the problem was to steal the key.

"So, what do we do now?" asked Charles. He was still formulating a plan in his mind but he wanted to hear what she had to say first.

"Simple," replied Maxine as she turned towards him. "We find the Weasel and then make him give us the key." Her tone made it sound like it was going to be a simple task, even though it was going to be anything but.

"I don't think he'll give it up that easily."

"Then we take it by force, or die trying." You can still walk away from this if you want to, I can see that you're not entirely comfortable around here. I can continue on from here by myself and we can meet up later.

"I appreciate the offer ma'am but I respectfully decline, I've come this far with you. I have to see it to the end." Not just that but he wanted to try and ensure her safety. She might have still been confident but said confidence could only get her so far.

"Thank you. Now we go and steal the key, unless you have a secret lockpicking skill that you have forgotten to mention." She watched as Charles shook his head. "I thought so." She gave a small sigh before carrying on. "Now we'll stick together, it'll be safer for the both of us."

The idea of splitting up and covering more ground had come to mind but she also thought that it was more dangerous. As they had seen, by working together they could overcome one, maybe two guards if the circumstances were on their side. If not then they would likely be easily overpowered and defeated.

One thing that Maxine did regret was not asking the guard where the Weasel was before she had knocked him out. However, as she thought about it, she didn't think that he would know for certainty. For now, all they could do was hope that he was still in the building. If he had gone elsewhere then it was unlikely that they would find him again.

At that moment in time the Weasel was in a somewhat large room eating some food with some of the men that were working for him. These were not just hired muscle but also some who helped obtain and distribute their ill-gotten products. Normally the large deals that were suspected to be worth a lot of money was sold by the Weasel himself, such as the sphere that contained Maxine's size. Other less pricey items were sold by subordinates, the entire value of the items wouldn't go directly to him. Of course, he would get the biggest slice but the others would all get their share. It was easily enough to live off and quite a few of them were living comfortably.

There were around six of them and they all sat at a large table that contained a lot of food. It wasn't necessarily the best quality but it would be enough to feed them for a while. There was chicken along with vegetables and another couple of game animals. Ironically for them there was also some fish although the Weasel wasn't really eating it. He was sick of the smell of fish and the only reason that he had bought this place was that it was going for quite cheap and could house all his needs.

"I heard a commotion earlier," said One of the Men who was sitting at the table. He had been working for the Weasel for around five years and earned some respect from his employer.

"That is nothing to be concerned about," replied the Weasel. He chuckled for a moment before taking another bite from the chicken that he had been eating. "Just another customer who thought that they could pull a fast one."

"I see, I'm guessing that you sent them for a swim?"

"In a manner of speaking yes. Those who try to pull a fast one over me normally end up dead." With that he took a drink from his cup before continuing to speak. "Now, we need to talk some business. We're doing quite well right now but there are murmurs of a new mayor that could cause us problems. From what I've been told, if this one wins the election, they won't accept bribes."

"So, do you want us and some of the boys to teach them a lesson?"

"Not straight away, it is only a rumour for the time being anyway. If this new mayor comes to power, we'll let them make the first move. If it is something that we don't like, then we can deal with them accordingly. But there's something else that we need to discuss, one of you isn't bringing in the money that they should." This caused everyone at the table to quickly stop what they were doing and really take notice. "Now the only question is, which of you is it?"

The men at the table all fell silent as none of them knew what was going to happen next. Most of them didn't even know what the Weasel was talking about. One in particular felt nervous as he tried to remain calm.

"What are you talking about boss?" asked One of the Men. This one was a relatively new member of the team. He had only been working for the Weasel for around a year and so far, had done exactly what he was told.

"I'm saying that one of you is keeping a bigger cut than what was agreed on. I'm giving you one chance to admit to it before anything else happens." He fell quiet as he waited to see the person who had been cheating him stood up. This lasted for several seconds but no one got up from their chairs. "So, you don't have the balls to admit it? Very well."

The Weasel then nodded his head and suddenly out of the shadows a larger man did step out. He was close to being seven feet tall with large muscles and without much effort he was able to grab one of the men at the table and pick him up out of his chair. There was a small commotion and the man that he had grabbed was much smaller and weaker than him. He struggled as best as he could but he had no chance of breaking free from the larger man's iron like grip.

"W-What are you doing?" asked the Trapped Man. None of the others attempted to help him whatsoever. Instead they simply stayed where they were as they didn't want the same thing to happen to them.

"Thank you, Bernardo," replied the Weasel as he looked to the muscular man. He then looked at the man that Bernardo had in a choke hold. "Now before I decide to do what needs to be done, I just want to ask you. Why? Why would you try and cheat me when I've given you so much?"

"I-I have a wife and children, I needed to support them. My cut was too low, it wasn't enough to support them. I'm sorry boss, please don't kill me!"

"Oh, my poor Richard, I told you from the moment that I hired you that if you ever tried to cheat me that I would show you no mercy. If I am anything, I am a man of my word." He nodded his head again and Bernardo increased the pressure around Richard's neck. He choked and spluttered as he tried to catch his breath.

The rest looked on with an unnerved gaze as they still didn't lift a finger to help their colleague. Instead they could see the life being choked out of him and his gasps for air would remain with them for the rest of their lives. They watched as Richard's body went limp as his eyes closed. Even though he looked to be dead Bernardo kept the hold for another several seconds just to make sure that the deed was done.

Now that the former employee had his life taken from him, his lifeless body was taken away. The others said nothing and a couple of them had lost their appetite. The Weasel too didn't really say anything as he knew that the others had gotten the message. None of them would ever consider trying to cheat him now. Little did he know the trouble that was coming his way.

Meanwhile Maxine and Charles were still looking for the Weasel. Sticking together was their best option and one thing that they noticed was that there didn't seem to be anyone around. The Weasel wasn't the only thing that they were looking out for, Maxine in particular was looking for any object that she thought would break the lock.

If she could get her hands on the sphere without confronting the Weasel then she would take it. If she was back to her full size then she was confident that almost nothing would stand in her way, even though she wouldn't have her sword or armour. But the safety of Charles was on her mind as well. There was a chance that there would be a decision between getting her size and saving his life. At that moment in time she wasn't sure exactly which one she would actually choose.

The pair did find themselves in the large area where they had originally met the Weasel to make a deal. They had hoped that he would be there but they weren't surprised when it turned out that there was nothing there. Maxine couldn't help but feel a little disappointed about this and gave a small sigh as she took a quick look around. She was still annoyed at herself for failing to regain her size in the first place.

Under her breath she had cursed her current lack of height. If she had been just a little taller, she could have succeeded, instead her short arms had just been unable to reach the sphere when she had the chance. This angered her more than anything as she felt like a failure to herself and her goals.

But as the pair were about to leave, they began to hear something. Neither of them made a single sound but this time it wasn't footsteps they were hearing. Instead it seemed to be voices that they could hear through the walls. There were a couple of voices but there was one in particular that they picked up. It was quite clear that it belonged to the Weasel and for a moment Maxine felt a huge wave of anger overcome her as she clenched her fist in pure rage.

Charles could see this and he placed a hand on her shoulder. He shook his head at her and she gave a small sigh to try and vent her anger. It did do her some good and she gave him a quick nod and slowly they made their way towards where the voices were coming from. A full-frontal assault would be unwise as they could clearly hear more than one voice. They knew better as they thought that going up against so many people would end poorly for them. If Maxine had been her normal size then they would stand a chance, but with their current status it was suicide.

Instead they slowly moved towards where the voices were coming from. This eventually led to a door and Charles placed his ear onto it. He could clearly hear the small dinner party that was taking place inside. There were around four different voices that he could hear so this told him that there were at least four people inside. At no point did he assume that was all that were there as he knew that some were simply not speaking.

It was difficult to decide straight away what their plan of action was. Maxine was getting impatient but even she knew the risk of going forward without thinking things through. Instead they decided that they would have to wait for a short while until the people left the room.

If the Weasel left separately, they could ambush him and take the key. It was a risky idea but one that they thought might work. A distraction technique was also possible but that did come with its own perils. For the time being it was best to play it safe as one false move could lead to disaster.

The pair remained where they were for several minutes when they heard a voice say that they were going to the toilet. For a moment they weren't sure whether it was the Weasel who had said this or rather one of his underlings. This did cause them to move away from the door and find a hiding spot where they could view who stepped out. They also made sure that it was difficult for them to be spotted.

This included hiding just around a corner and just as they got into position the door to the room opened. Just as Maxine was going to make her move, she quickly noticed that the man she was looking at wasn't the Weasel. This disappointed her and she wanted to make some kind of grunt but dared do nothing as she didn't want to make any kind of noise.

Rather than moving back to where they were before, the pair simply remained where they were as they saw the man return to the room and close the door. It seemed that luck was not going to be on their side until the door opened once again.

Both waited with some impatience as they saw someone step out. With how things had gone for them they thought that it was just another person just leaving the room. But as Maxine took a better luck her heart almost skipped a beat when she realised who she was looking at. A small wave of excitement overtook her as she also saw that he was alone but she still made sure that she was silent.

Charles too realised who he was looking and waited patiently for a few moments as he wanted to see what the Weasel would do next or if anyone was going to accompany him. It was potentially a tense moment as there were many factors that could go against them in this scenario.

Just then they noticed that the Weasel was beginning to walk away from them. This was not entirely ideal for them but it wasn't the worst thing that could happen. Especially when they noticed that he was alone. This caused them to come out of their hiding spot and quietly make their way towards him.

Unfortunately, they couldn't move as fast as they wanted to as they still needed to be quiet. They did watch as he made his way to the spot where he could relieve himself, this consisted of a bucket that he could urinate in and then discard later. He suspected nothing as he began to relieve himself.

The next thing he knew he could feel an arm grab him around the neck and something pointing into his back. He recognised it as a knife and for a moment he considered it to be one of his underlings. Rather than acting scared, he seemed to remain calm, even though he was in a difficult situation.

"You thought that you could get away from me that easily?" asked Maxine. Her voice was quiet enough so that he could hear her but anyone who happened to be nearby couldn't. Despite the rage that she was experiencing, she remained unusually calm.

"Hmm, I thought it would have been a little too easy to discard you the way that I did," replied the Weasel. "I could see the determination in your face, you'd stop at nothing to get what you wanted."

"Then you know that if you don't give me back what I want then you're as good as dead." Her tone showed him that she wasn't joking around in the slightest.

"Of course, I wouldn't expect anything less from a woman of your calibre. Now shall I lead the way?"

"If you would be so kind."

"Well this is a little embarrassing, my dick still seems to be sticking out. Am I alright to just put it away before we go anywhere?"

"Fine, but no funny business. The moment I suspect that you're up to something, I'm going to plunge this knife into your back."

"I wouldn't dream of it."

At no point was the Weasel allowed to turn his head and look at Maxine or Charles. He was surprised that they were able to survive his guards but he didn't mention anything about it at all. Instead he simply walked towards the room where all the valuable items were kept. However just as they were passing the room where the subordinates had been eating, he was able to subtly knock the wall.

This action had gone unnoticed by Maxine and Charles as he was still forced to walk. Charles in particular still didn't like the situation at hand. He couldn't help but feel that what they were doing was wrong somehow. It also added to his own worries as he could still remember the inn and how he had barely survived that.

This was a thought that was not shared with Maxine as she was more determined than ever. Although she had promised her mother that she wouldn't kill anyone, it didn't mean that she couldn't maim them if she thought that they deserved it. Not just that but the Weasel had stolen something very dear to her and she was going to make sure that he paid for the insult towards her.

The walk towards the room was longer than both of them remembered and they kept their eyes out for anything. Charles in particular was a little jumpy but if anything, this made him more cautious. They simply continued to walk until they saw the door that led into the room with the valuables.

One thing that the Weasel did notice was that his guard was lying unconscious on the ground. He was impressed that they had been able to take his hired goon down but he knew that he was going to have to make a movement. Not just that but he was also becoming slightly worried at that moment in time.

"Ok so this is the place," said the Weasel. He was stalling a little as he hoped that it would be enough time. "Now I need to move my arms so that I can grab my keys. Just don't go stabbing me for that."

"Whatever," replied Maxine. She still kept the knife close to his back. If she even suspected anything was off, she wouldn't hesitate in plunging it into his body. She did watch as he went to his pocket and pulled out a set of keys. With some care he placed the right key into the padlock and tried to turn, however it seemed like he was struggling much to the annoyance of his captor. "What's the hold up?"

"The lock is a little stiff, it normally takes me a few seconds for me to do it properly." Even by this point in time the Weasel was becoming a little worried. He did unlock the padlock and once it was done, he opened the door.

The moment that it was opened he was pushed inside and this was the first time that Maxine and Charles were able to see what was inside. They could see the treasures that lay inside and Charles marvelled over what he could see. In his mind he was thinking about how much the items were worth, there was enough objects made out of precious metals for a lord to be jealous over.

Although the room was small it was filled with more treasure than anything a common person could ever hope to see. Near one wall there was even a painting of a dog running through a field of grass. If they had time the pair could have even admired it.

None of these concerned Maxine as her prize lay just ahead of her. Sitting on the table she could see the container that held the glowing sphere. It was more beautiful than she remembered and it was also enough for her to let go of the Weasel but she wouldn't allow herself to just yet.

"Charles, go and get it," said Maxine. Her squire did he was told without question as he walked over and picked up the container. He too was fascinated by its glow, but there was something else that he noticed. The sphere itself was beginning to move, from what he could tell it seemed to be trying to make its way to Maxine. If it wasn't for the container that it was in, there would be nothing that could stop it.

"You have your prize," replied the Weasel. "Now will you let me go and we can forget that this all happened?"

"I'll be the judge of that. Charles, open it if you would be so kind."

Charles nodded and attempted to open the container he wasn't sure exactly what was going on but before he could succeed, he suddenly felt something. It was a strong hand being placed on his shoulder. Before he could process what was happening, he felt himself get pulled back, the force was enough for him to drop the container. He went flying towards a nearby wall and the impact sounded painful.

Maxine called out his name as she looked over to him but she too felt herself get grabbed and lifted off her feet. The Weasel brushed some of the dust off his body and turned around as he liked what he could see. Just in front of him he could see the large man who had previously killed Richard. He had a strong grip around the small woman who seemed to be struggling.

"You cut it a little close there," said the Weasel as he looked at the large man. "I was beginning to think that you hadn't gotten the message." He then looked at Maxine who was close to tears as she realised that her latest plan had failed. "Now what to do with you? Of course, you're going to be killed, there's no doubt about that. In fact, take her away and make sure that she's dead." The large man nodded and went to walk away. "Actually, I have a better idea, kill her right here. I want to see it."

Maxine's eyes widened as she felt the grip on her neck suddenly tighten. During the confusion she had dropped her knife and she tried to kick her way out of her situation. But at that moment in time nothing was working, her options had run out.

Maxine continued to struggle as she tried to break free from the grip of Bernardo. Even with all of her might and skill she couldn't break free, his grip was simply too strong to overcome. She could feel the air leaving her body as she was incapable of breathing in anymore. In a way she began to accept her fate.

At that moment in time she began to think about her family. They would have no idea what had happened to her as she was sure that when she was killed that they would just dump her body in the sea and never be seen again. She thought about the disappointment that her father would feel knowing that his daughter failed in her quest to become a knight.

These were all things on Maxine's mind but as she looked at the Weasel another emotion overtook her. She could see him looking at her with some glee as he could see the life being choked out of her by her subordinate. This caused her to experience a flash of rage and determination as she wanted nothing more than to crush his skull and see the terror in his face as she did this.

What the three of them didn't realise was that Charles was still on the ground. The impact that he felt had not knocked him out but he felt a pain near his chest area. He thought that one of his ribs might be broken but his focus shifted to Bernardo who was still choking Maxine, he knew that she didn't have long left before she finally died.

That was when he looked to the ground and saw the container that was still on the ground. He also noticed that the others didn't realise that he was there. With a small amount of haste, he dragged himself to the container, normally he would take more care but with time being against him, he couldn't afford it. Thankfully Maxine's kicking and attempted punches were keeping her captors distracted. However, her movement was slowing down and it was likely that she didn't have long left.

Charles stretched his arm as he dragged himself and was within touching distance of the container. One thing that he noticed was the sphere of energy inside was pushing itself towards Maxine. As far as he was concerned, this was a good thing as it would make things slightly easier as his fingers grasped the container.

With some effort he was able to drag it back to him without anyone noticing him. He could see that Maxine's movements were now so slow that he knew that she didn't have long left. Thankfully for him it seemed that the container had a simple design as he was able to lift the top off of it. He then pointed it towards his nearly dead friend and this was when he was noticed by their enemies.

Charles had stayed low but no sooner had he pointed the opening of the container towards Maxine, it flew out faster than anyone had expected. There was no stopping it as it struck her body and seemed to be absorbed by her. The whole process only lasted a handful of seconds but it was enough.

Just then Maxine's eyes widened as she felt a surge of energy run through her almost lifeless body. By this point the Weasel had turned to Charles and kicked him in his chest, thanks to his injury this caused the squire an intense amount of pain.

For the moment Maxine could do nothing to stop what had happened to him but she felt something else. The dress that she was wearing was becoming tighter, it was a sensation that she had never felt before as she felt herself stretching and expanding. Her muscles were beginning to swell and push against the fabric of her dress.

Bernardo felt Maxine getting heavier and also her neck expanding underneath his arm. Eventually it all became too much for him and he was forced to let her go as he could hear the sound of clothing tearing. He and the Weasel could only stand there and watch as the small woman grew right in front of him. She was bending over as she was catching her breath but she was also crying out.

With every passing second, she could feel herself expanding as the sound of her ripping dress increased. Not just that but she could feel her feet growing in her simple shoes and it didn't take long for them burst under the pressure. Shreds of her clothing landed on the ground beside her feet.

Charles was blown away by what he was seeing. He had begun to get used to seeing the smaller Maxine but watching her grow was something else entirely. It wasn't the first time that he had seen a growing woman as he had seen a few members of Maxine's family do it before her. But seeing the woman that he had grown to respect do the same thing was another matter. A part of him was afraid but it didn't reach the fear that the other two men could feel at that moment in time.

Using some of his intelligence, the Weasel turned and ran while Bernardo was in too much shock to fully react to the situation. Instead he simply looked in horror as he could see her muscles bulge and her height increasing. She was still bending over as she was continuing to grow and her groans also increased. In a way it sounded like she was enjoying it as the process slowed to its end.

Bernardo could only watch as Maxine stood up to her full height and turned to look at him. He was a very tall man but he felt tiny in comparison to the woman standing before him, her muscles were also larger than his own. The fact that she was completely naked as the last shreds of her dress fell to the ground had been ignored by him. Instead all he saw was the incredibly angry expression on her face. It was the kind that could scare any man down to his very core.

Before he could do anything to try and save himself, he felt a strong kick to his chest that sent him flying out through the door. It felt like he had been struck by a charging bull and before he knew it, he had struck the wall on the other side of the door. His vision only lasted for a few moments before he coughed up blood and finally passed out.

Now that Bernardo was incapacitated Maxine turned her attention to Charles who was still on the ground. He was holding onto his ribs and showed some obvious pain. He watched as the large muscular woman knelt down to him. Her expression was changing as well, no longer did she look angry. Instead she seemed to be concerned.

"Are you alright Charles?" asked Maxine as she held her hand down to him. "Can you get up?"

"I-I think so ma'am," replied Charles as he grabbed onto her hand. With no effort she was able to lift him to his feet. There was some pain as he moved and it caused him to wince. "But I think I broke a rib."

"Then I'll get you to a healer and have you patched up. But first I have some unfinished business to take care of." With that she turned to step out of the door and Charles followed closely behind her. Normally he would simply want to get out of there but he knew that he was far safer staying with his now gigantic friend. Even though there was still a chance that he would run into danger.

The moment that Maxine stepped through the door she needed to stop for a moment as she felt her body suddenly grow by a couple of inches. She took a few seconds for it to sink in and rather than feeling worried, she just thought that it was her body returning to normal. The previous process had given her the vast majority of her size back. This little spurt was just getting the last of it back.

Meanwhile the Weasel had run back into the room where he had been eating with his subordinates. They had been worried about him when he hadn't returned from relieving himself and from the moment, he stepped into the room they could see that something was wrong.

Without much hesitation he commanded them to blockade the door. They were more confused than anything else but they did as they were told as they moved the table and chairs in order to block the entrance. They could see the fear in the eyes of the Weasel and the fact that Bernardo was also missing only made them see that something was seriously wrong. It was enough to worry them as well.

Maxine walked towards the door with determination in her eyes. Charles did follow fairly close behind her and he still couldn't believe that through all of this that she still hadn't attempted to get any form of clothing. It seemed that her anger and frustration had gotten the better of her.

It was pretty obvious in her mind with where the Weasel was hiding. With his subordinates with him he would have some protection from her. This didn't stop her from placing her hand on the handle and attempting to open the door. Thanks to the clutter in front of it, it wouldn't open immediately.

"Stand back!" said Maxine as she prepared to kick the door. Charles did as he was told as he watched the large muscular woman kick open the door with one kick. Most of the table and chairs that had blocking it went flying across the room. Everyone inside was terrified as they watched her duck to get through the door and then glare towards them. By this point in time they had their backs against a wall on the opposite side of the room. "The Weasel is mine! The rest of you may leave with your lives, I have no issues with you."

There were a few moments of silence as the subordinates simply stood there and assessed their options. It didn't take them long to make their decision as they quickly moved away, allowing themselves to leave their employer to their fate. They quickly ran through the door that Maxine had been standing next to, as she promised, she didn't attempt to stop any of them.

This left the Weasel by himself as he watched the nine-foot woman walking towards him. The rage on her face was more than enough to scare him completely, each step she took was followed by a low thud sound and even the fact that she was naked didn't make the situation any better for him.

Instead he felt himself get grabbed around the neck with a single hand and then lifted up. One thing that terrified him was the fact that she had been able to do this without any effort whatsoever. However, there was no pressure around his neck, she wasn't trying to choke him but instead keep him in place. It was struggling to breath somewhat but it wasn't as bad as he had expected.

"L-Let's talk about this," said the Weasel with panic in his voice. "We can make some kind of deal."

"Nothing you can do or say now will change your fate," replied Maxine. "You stole from me, tried to have me killed twice and worse still you tried to kill my best friend. That is something that I cannot forgive." Charles was in earshot and he heard her call him her best friend. This was something that he did like but with the situation at hand he didn't have time to really think about it.

"P-Please, you're choking me." He was struggling as he felt her grip tighten but suddenly, she let go which caused him to fall down to the ground,

"You're right, I was choking you. I didn't want to do that." For a moment the Weasel was on his feet but suddenly he felt a strong kick to his stomach which caused him to fall down to his knees. Before he knew what was happening, he felt her enormous hands grab onto his head. "I'm going to crush your skull like I promised."

The Weasel began to scream in pain as he felt the pressure around his head. Maxine simply stood there and continued to increase the pressure. She had every intention of carrying out her threat, however she felt a slight tug on her arm and when she turned to look, she could see that it was Charles with a concerned look on his face.

"Ma'am," said Charles with a worried tone. "Remember the promise that you made." The screams of the Weasel made it difficult for her to hear him but she turned her head and looked at him without loosening her grip.

"Of course, I remember," replied Maxine. Her tone still sounded angry but her anger was not focused at him. "But she would understand why this scum should be wiped off the Earth." She slightly increased her grip around the skull of the Weasel which caused him scream out even more.

"You know that's not true Maxine. How can you possibly consider becoming a knight if you were to go back on your word?"

"Don't try me!" This time her anger was more geared towards him after his words. However, she knew that what he was saying was true.

"But I must before you do something that you'll regret later on." There was a growl from Maxine who looked at her squire with a very annoyed expression. For a brief moment he feared for his own safety before he watched her throw the Weasel over to one side. Her anger was great as she looked over to Charles.

Many thoughts were rushing through the mind of Maxine. She was still angry over everything that had happened, a part of her even felt angry towards Charles for his words. However, she couldn't bring herself to hate him for what he had done as she knew that he was thinking of her when he had spoken. The promise that she had made to her mother was binding and she couldn't simply break it without losing her honour.

Before she could do anything else, she felt a small amount of pain in her body, it lasted for a moment before passing. At first, she thought nothing of it, but suddenly it returned but at an elevated level. It was enough for her to go down to her knees and cry out in pain which caught Charles completely by surprise. He didn't know what was wrong with her as he had not seen her get struck after regaining her size. There was a chance that she had suffered some kind of injury while she had been small and it was taking effect now.

"Ma'am what's wrong?" asked Charles. He even placed his hand on her arm but the moment he did he felt something push him off. However, it wasn't Maxine who had pushed him away, instead he could see that the muscle that he had touched had suddenly expanded even bigger. He was completely shocked by this and he couldn't help but take a step back from her.

"S-Something's wrong!" replied Maxine with pain in her voice. She was able to look at her hand and saw it suddenly grow right in front of her eyes. This caused some panic to run through her body as she realised what was happening. "Get of here now!"

"But ma'am what's happening?" Just as he said this, he saw her body shunt up by a few feet as it was obvious to him that she was growing even bigger. Before he knew that she had been nine feet tall, even though she was still on her knees, he guessed that she was around twelve feet tall if she stood up.

"NOW!"

No sooner had she said this she felt her body beginning to grow bigger again. In a way this was something that she had wanted to happen, but under these circumstances it was not something that she was enjoying. Her growth was increasing in speed and she found herself turning over and sitting down as she grew larger. Not only that but her muscles too were growing as they continued to bulge under her skin. This caused her great pain and she couldn't help but scream.

Charles did as he was told as he ran out of the room. However, he didn't run out of the building, instead he quickly made his way back to the room that contained all the valuable items. The run had been difficult as he was still in pain from his broken ribs. There was something inside that he had noticed and wanted to pick it up before the worst were to happen.

Once he reached the room it wasn't a valuable that he was searching for, instead it was something much more useful to the current situation. He could hear cracking and crashing sounds as he arrived and, in his haste, he was looking around. His actions had panic behind them as he knew that he didn't have time.

Much to Charles's relief he was able to see what he had come for. It was a tool that he had seen near where the container had been. It looked very similar to the tool that had been used to remove Maxine's size before. Without much thought he grabbed onto it and began to run back to where his friend was. Ever step he took caused him pain and every now and again he couldn't help but wince from it. If not for the situation at hand he would have taken more care with what he was doing.

Just as he arrived at the door to the large room, he saw that it was being blocked by a gigantic foot. Even though it was very awkward for him to do, he was able to climb over the foot and successful land inside. But that was when he got a huge shock, Maxine was absolutely enormous.

Even though she was sitting down her head was pushing against the ceiling and the rest of her body was filling up the room. Her muscles were still bulging as they too were growing as she was becoming a hulking giantess. At first, she didn't notice him but when she looked down near her leg, she could see him standing there, she felt a combination of concern and annoyance towards him.

"What are you doing here?" asked the growing woman. She grunted as she felt her head continuing to push up against the ceiling. "I told you to get out of here."

"I-I couldn't just leave you like this," replied Charles as he placed the tool near her leg. With every passing moment it was growing bigger and he hoped that his plan would work. However, the tong like tools didn't seem to be doing anything and this was disheartening for him. It was that moment in time that he realised something, when he had seen the sphere going back into her, it had gone through her chest. In his mind this meant that to extract the sphere again he was going to have to do it from her chest.

This was going to be a mountain of a task because it meant that he was going to have to climb up her in order to get to her chest. He was giving it thought for a moment before he noticed debris beginning to rain down as Maxine's head went through the ceiling. Quickly he ran towards her body in order to try and shield himself. It was around this time that he realised that he was standing right next to her vagina. This was a little embarrassing for him but like the rest of her, he could see that it was growing.

Knowing that he didn't have much time he began his climb which started on with her pubic hair. This didn't go unnoticed by the growing giantess who felt something odd and looked down. However, before she could properly see what was happening, she felt her foot crash through one of the walls in the warehouse.

Outside many had noticed the giantess growing before them and they had fled. It was Maxine groaned as she felt her body continuing to growing, she saw that her biceps were roughly the size of her head and this caused her some shock. Feeling the muscles expanding under her skin did give her a sense of both fear and pleasure. She was so engrossed by it that she didn't notice Charles still climbing up her.

He had been able to move from her vagina had made it up to her mid-section. He felt the six pack that was there and as he climbed up it, he could feel it moving as it was growing beneath his hands. There was one point where his right hand was pushed off for a moment as the flesh that it was holding onto suddenly grew. Thankfully he had been able to keep his other hand on or else he would have fallen. The tool was barely fitting in his pocket and normally he would have carried it, however, he knew that the climb would take two hands and so he had been forced to put it there.

The crashing sound was growing louder as the warehouse collapsed all around Maxine as it could no longer contain her growing body. She groaned as she could feel the growth continue and she could hardly feel Charles who was still climbing up her body. His task was very difficult for him, not only was his goal constantly getting further away but holding onto her was difficult.

His next challenge was getting passed her breasts so that he could reach the part of the chest that he needed to get to. This was very difficult as he needed to squeeze his way through the gap between them. At first, he thought that it was going to be the hardest part of the journey but there was something that he noticed which would make things easier.

The gap between Maxine's breasts was actually larger than he had expected. With some effort he did begin to squeeze himself through but there was something that he did think about. This was the fact that the breasts felt warm and soft, if not for the situation at hand he would have enjoyed the experience.

Instead Charles continued to climb as fast as he could and he could feel Maxine continuing to grow bigger and bigger. He couldn't see that her muscles were now truly gigantic. It was to the point that she could hardly move. The screams from around the area continued as the giantess continued to grow bigger and bigger.

It was around this time that Charles did pop his head up out of Maxine's breasts. This did catch her attention as she looked down at him. Normally she would be angry about what he was doing but under the circumstances she was more confused than anything else. There was also a few moments where neither of them said anything.

"CHARLES, WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" asked Maxine. In her panic she didn't realise just how loud her voice was.

"I'm trying to save you!" replied Charles. He had to shout in order to be heard and he positioned himself so that he was sitting on the breast. With a great amount of effort, he was able get the tool out of his pocket and place it in the position that he thought was correct. After that all he could do was hope for the best.

With that Charles placed the top of the tool onto Maxine's skin on her upper chest. With her current growth it was a very small area. Almost too small to make it seem possible and at first nothing seemed to happen. That was until he felt something that was pulling at the tong like tools.

With all of his strength he pulled with the tools and he could feel some kind force pulling against him. This caused him to double his efforts as he continued to pull, Maxine could only stop and watch as she couldn't even lift her arms to try and help him. The muscles on them had so large that she couldn't move them.

After several moments they both began to notice something. At the end of the tool they could see something that was glowing and it only took them a moment or two to realised what it was. It gave Charles even more motivation to pull and he did with all of his might, it got to the point that he almost fell backwards.

If this were to happen he would expect a long fall and hopefully a quick death. Instead he kept his balance and continued to pull as hard as he could. More and more of the sphere was being pulled out of Maxine and she could do nothing but watch as she continued to grow bigger with every passing moment,.

Just then Charles was able to complete his task as he was able to pull the sphere completely into the open. He couldn't help but lift the tool with the sphere being held in it, into the air as a sign of accomplishment. But no sooner had he done this he noticed that Maxine's incredible growth had ended.

There were a few seconds of silence and inactivity before Maxine's body shook for a few moments and then began to shrink. She shrank much faster than she had grown and because of this Charles panicked a little as he tried to get back down before he fell. Even at the rapid pace that she was shrinking he still seemed to have time to climb down. Thankfully for him it was much easier than climbing up the growing giantess.

Not only was Maxine losing height but her great muscles were also receding back into her body. She groaned as she felt the process continuing with every passing moment. It was an odd feeling for her but also it made her feel like her panic was subsiding. She still had no idea exactly what had happened but she was glad that it seemed to be over.

Only moments after Charles's feet touched the ground, Maxine finally stopped shrinking. They both had hoped that she would be back down to her usual nine foot height but they knew better than to expect this. Instead she was back down to below five feet and her meek appearance had returned. Rather than getting back to her feet she simply lay there as she was trying to process exactly what had happened. The fact that she was still completely naked was lost on her.

"Maxine are you alright?" asked Charles. He had placed the tool with the sphere still attached to it down on the ground as he made his way to his friend. She was still lying on the ground and he quickly tried to tend to her. "Say something." By this point in time he had been able to sit her up somewhat but she still had a far off look on her face.

"T-That was intense," replied Maxine in a distant tone.

Charles couldn't help but smile for a moment as he was glad to see that she was more or less unharmed from what had happened. However, he still felt worried about everything that had taken place. Also, he didn't really know what had happened entirely, like her, he had expected her to simply return to normal. Instead she had grown much larger than she was used to and he wasn't sure what had gone wrong.

But now this was going to be a problem in Charles's mind. If Maxine didn't have the sphere placed back into her, she would remain the small and meek looking woman that he could see now. If she had the sphere then she wouldn't stop growing and that would be a problem for everyone.

Even though Charles was still in some pain thanks to his ribs, he still tried to help Maxine up to her feet. However, her legs were simply too weak to support her weight at that moment in time. She needed to hold onto him in order to support herself, it was a situation that she felt was a little embarrassing but given what had happened to her, she wasn't too surprised with this.

All that was left of the warehouse that had been the base of operation for the Weasel was some debris and an open space where a building had once been. It was hard to believe that this small woman that Charles was helping to her feet was the cause of all of this. He was still wrapping his head around everything that had happened. But one thing that he knew for certain was the fact that they couldn't stay there.

With some care he was able to pick up the tongs that held the sphere, for the third and hopefully final time he quickly stepped into what was left of the room with the valuable objects in. Although there were objects in there that were worth more than his weight in gold, they were not his concern. Instead, it was the container that had held the sphere before the incident had taken place.

Much to his relief the container was still intact as he used it to place the sphere back inside. A small part of him felt like he was betraying Maxine. She had fought so hard to get it back and putting back in there felt like they were going back on themselves. However, under the circumstances she more than understood.

There was a small amount of gold that was in the room as well and he couldn't help but pick some up and place it in his pocket. Normally he wouldn't steal but they had no money at that moment in time and he knew that he would need it in the near future. Once again, he knew that Maxine would understand.

Now that he had everything that he needed, Charles returned to Maxine and since she was too weak to walk, he had to carry her on his back. One thing that he was surprised with was how little she weighed. The container and tool were placed in the satchel that would normally be on his back. However, since he was carrying her, he had turned it around so that he was carrying on his chest. It looked like a little odd but at that moment in time he didn't care how he looked.

The moment that he was ready Charles quickly moved away although he didn't know where he was going. His first thought was going back to Morgan so that they could see the Martel family. However, it was too far for him as he needed to go somewhere short term. Normally it would be Maxine who would be making these kinds of decisions but she was mostly out of it, as if all the energy had been taken out of her body.

Thankfully, the streets were empty as Maxine's growth spurt had scared them away. This meant that he was able to move around in the streets without anyone really trying to stop him. This was a relief as there was nothing that he would be able to do to stop them from harming himself or his best friend. Instead he just ran through the backstreets in the hopes of finding somewhere where they could hide out and rest.

"C-Charles," said Maxine weakly. The fact that she was still naked seemed to be lost on her. Thankfully no one could see her frontal regions as they were pressed against Charles's back. Even so she could see that he was trying to help her as best as he could.

"You don't have to say anything ma'am," replied Charles. He took a look at her face and he could see that could barely keep her eyes open. "Just go to sleep and I'll worry about everything else."

"T-Thank you." By this time her eyes closed as she couldn't help but fall asleep. The process that she had gone through her tired her out more than she had expected. Rest was all that she could do for the time being as her squire continued to run through the streets of Flea Bay.

The next thing that Maxine knew she was waking up in a room that she didn't recognise. She groaned a little as she began to stir and she was looking around with a small amount of worry. She had no idea how she got there and this sent her into a small panic but when she turned her head, she could see Charles sitting at a table and writing something in his notebook. She groaned as she sat up in the bed and this caught his attention, she also noticed that she was still naked and she used the covers of the bed to cover up her body.

The room itself was something that she was used to as there was nothing remarkable about it. There was a couple of beds, a table and a few chars but that was about it. No high born would be caught dead in a place like this but for commoners like Maxine and Charles it seemed to be ideal.

"Ma'am you're awake," said Charles as he quickly got up from where he was sitting and stepped over to her. "I was getting worried."

"W-Where am I?" replied Maxine with confusion. She remembered growing huge and hyper muscular and then shrinking back down but after that it was all a blur. "How did I get here?"

"I brought you here after you passed out the other day."

"The other day?" In her mind she was putting two and two together. "Wait, how long have I been out for?"

"Two days, I was actually thinking about fetching a Healer but you've just woke up so of course there's no need now. You must be hungry; I can go and get you a pie if you want." He knew that this would get her to eat as he feared that she might not be in the best of moods after what had happened.

"In a minute, I'm still a little confused." One thing she noticed as she looked towards the end of her bed was a small pile of clothes that had been neatly folded. Her view was noticed by her squire.

"I took the liberty of buying you some clothes. They might be a little big but they should do for the time being." He watched as Maxine moved towards the clothes but she still kept her body covered up so that he couldn't see her naked body. With a free hand she was able to pick up a piece of clothing and she could see that it was a pair of trousers. "I knew that you didn't like wearing dresses so I bought you something that you would feel comfortable in." She couldn't help but smile as knew that he had put a lot of thought into what he was buying, even if it was quite cheap.

A few minutes later Maxine had gotten herself changed. It was an outfit that was somewhat similar to what she normally wore underneath her armour. This consisted of sleeveless shirt and trousers. Both were a little too big for her but when it came to the trousers, she had to turn them up and wear a makeshift belt. She was also wearing a pair of boots which left enough room for her feet to move around a little. In a way she found it ironic, normally she would struggle to find clothes because she was too big. Now she was struggling because she was too small.

It wasn't long before she sat herself down at the table and began to eat a pie that had been brought to her by Charles. She didn't care what kind of pie it was, just as long as it didn't contain any onions. She was very hungry and she was eating away at the pie while her squire watched on. He was glad to see her up and eating again, he had been worried about the fact that she might not wake up.

"Are you enjoying the pie ma'am?" asked Charles as he watched on. He wasn't eating as he had already eaten a short time before.

"Yes, thank you," replied Maxine. It felt good to be able to eat a pie again and thanks to her lack of height it went much further than it normally did before. "But what happens now, do you still have my size?"

"Indeed, I do, it is safe for the time being but I think it is risky placing it back into you again." He did pull the container out of his satchel and placed it onto the table. Maxine looked at it for several moments and she was glad to see it. However, she did remember what happened the last time that it was inside of her. "I thought that you'd like seeing that. We did go through a lot to get it back."

"More than I could have imagined. Thank you for your help, I don't think I'd even be alive right now if it wasn't for you."

"Don't mention it." He then groaned and placed his hand onto his ribs. This was quickly picked up by Maxine who did show some concern for him. She knew that it had been serving her that he had picked up this injury.

"Are you alright?" She didn't get out of her chair as she thought that there was no need for it.

"Y-Yeah I'm fine, just got a broken rib. I've been told to rest up and it'll heal before I know it. Unfortunately, that's a little longer than I'm happy with."

"You got that injury because of me; I don't know how to thank you for everything that you've done." She couldn't help but chuckle which did catch Charles by surprise as this was one of the last things he expected.

"What's so funny?" He looked at her with some curiosity. His voice was confused rather than annoyed by her laughter.

"Our partnership started because you owed me a life debt. Now it is beginning to feel like I owe you a life debt now. Seems a little ironic for me."

"Don't worry about it, ma'am. I don't think it's worth counting."

"I think it does...." She was just about to continue with what she was saying until she noticed something behind Charles. It caught her attention when she saw it as it seemed vaguely familiar to her. "What is that?"

""What is what?" He turned around and looked behind himself. There he saw the painting of the puppy that had been in the Weasel's room of valuables. "Oh that, well after your little growth spurt the warehouse was completely exposed. A lot of people came to loot the place and I was able to get this before it was gone."

"But of everything that was left, why that?" She looked at the painting which depicted a golden retriever puppy running through a field. To her there wasn't much about it that she would have wanted.

"Well it was one of the few things remaining and I thought it looked pretty good. Plus look how happy he is." Maxine didn't really comment on this as she thought it was absurd speaking about a painting in this manner.

"What are you planning on doing with it anyway? It's not something that can be easily carried around."

"I know, most likely I'll just leave it here. I just wanted to be able to look at it for a little longer. Anyway, I think it's important to discuss our next move. While you've been asleep, I've been trying to think of exactly what we should do. My first thought is that we go back to your family and figure things out there."

"No." Her voice was stern and it was obvious that nothing would convince her otherwise. "I am not letting them see me like this. Most likely Carrie would mock me and my mother would worry about me to no end." She couldn't help but think about her mother coddling her and crying while she just remained there with a blank look on her face. "Have you thought of anything else?"

"Well I have been told that there is a woman who lives close by who has some understanding of magic. Her talents might be a little vague but to me it is better than having nothing."

"Where is this woman?"

"She lives on the edge of town or so I've been told. But I have mixed thoughts about going to see her."

"What makes you say that?" She knew that Charles was cautious for the most part but even she was curious about this.

"I'm not sure if this woman is legit. There's a good chance that she would know what she claims to know, or she could just be a fraud. To tell you the truth, I'm leaning more towards the latter."

"It's still worth our time, besides you said it yourself. It is better than nothing."

There were another few minutes of discussion between them. As they spoke, Maxine found herself to be filled up with what she was eating. In a way she thought that it was funny, in the past the amount that she was eating would only be an appetiser. Now it was more than she could stomach in one sitting.

She also couldn't help but appreciate what Charles had done for her, when she had first taken him as a squire, she thought that she had made a mistake. Now she could see that it was one of the best decisions that she had ever made in her life. Without him by her side, she thought that she would have been killed. Even at the very least, he had been able to help her manage money and ensure that she wasn't overspending.

They didn't leave immediately as they had to go through a few things. The first was how much gold they had, at first Maxine thought that they didn't have any since they had used the last of it to buy information. However, she was surprised to find that he did have some money with him. She learned that it had originally belonged to the Weasel, normally she would be annoyed with him for stealing but under the circumstances, she didn't mind.

Something else that Maxine couldn't help but do was look at the painting that Charles had also placed there. She did admit to herself that the puppy in it was pretty cute, she remembered her younger siblings wanting a dog but their parents had said no. They had enough animals to take care of and a dog would only add to the burden.

Eventually it was time for them to leave the room and this was when Maxine fully realised that they had been stopping at an inn. Because she had slept for so long, they had stayed longer than had expected but this was something that the innkeeper didn't mind too much. As long as they continued paying for the room, they could stop for as long as they wanted.

The moment that they stepped outside they found themselves in the middle of a busy market as people were trying to sell objects of almost everything imaginable. One particular store that they saw was selling carvings made out of whale teeth. Another was selling jewellery that had come from the lands to the east.

Although what they were selling did look nice, it wasn't anything that either Maxine or Charles would have wanted. One seller even commented how lovely Maxine would look if she wore some of the jewellery that they were selling. Rather than responding with words she instead simply glared at them. Without her extra four plus feet of height, it didn't have the same effect as it had before. In a way it was almost laughable seeing a woman so short try to be intimidating.

It was also fairly difficult for them to move through the streets as there were so many people walking by as they were trying to buy whatever they could. One of them even almost knocked Maxine over and if not for Charles grabbing onto her, she would have fallen flat on her face. She wanted to confront the careless person over what they had done but a word in her ear convinced her that it wasn't worth it.

Instead for the time being she had to swallow her frustration and let it go. If she had been her normal size then there would be no chance that she would have been knocked over in any manner. But that was for the time being simply a pipe dream, until she had regained what she had lost and with stability she would find herself being a small woman in a world much bigger than she was used to.

Throughout the entire time Maxine stayed close to Charles and even held onto his arm. This was so that he didn't lose him in the crowd but a few of the people who walked by them thought that they were a romantic couple. If she fully realised, she wouldn't even know what to think about it.

Right now, Charles was like her knight in shining armour, he didn't have to physically protect her like many would consider in a situation. Instead he was helping her out in her time of need, that was all that anyone would ask for. She knew that he wouldn't abandon her, even though there were several opportunities where it would have been best for him to simply leave, he had chosen against this. It seemed that her debt to him was more than she could ever hope to repay.

Eventually the pair seemed to come out of the other side of the crowd of people and were in a much quieter part of Flea Bay. Both were a little stressed by what they had just been through and Maxine's hair in particular was a mess. A few times, Charles had grunted in pain as people had accidentally bumped into him and this caused him to experience more pain in his ribs.

It wasn't long before they found themselves standing in front of a small building that had some plants growing alongside it. It did look like something out of a painting but neither of them really had the time to look over it and appreciate the beauty. Instead Maxine in particular looked at the single storey building and she could see some writing just above the door. Unfortunately, since her reading skills were poor, she couldn't figure out exactly what it said.

"Is this the right place?" asked Maxine with a small hint of impatience in her voice. She wanted this nightmare to be over and then try to get back to her quest to become a knight like her father before her.

"I believe so," replied Charles. He looked up at the writing and it looked the same as the other before it. "I'm just thankful that there is someone who can help us who happened to be close by." He chuckled for a moment. "Imagine if we were on the other side of the country and we had to come here."

"Don't remind me."

In the end it was Charles who stepped up and knocked on the door. The door was made out of strong oak and there was a small rattle once it had been knocked. They waited there for a good minute before the door finally opened. There they could see a relatively short woman standing there. She looked to be around forty years old with shoulder length blonde hair and blue eyes. Her outfit was quite common and didn't really stand out in the environment that they had found herself in.

"Can I help you?" asked the Woman. She looked at them with some curiosity and she wasn't sure exactly what she was seeing.

"Yes," replied Charles who felt like he should do the talking in this situation. "I've been informed that you have knowledge on things that many would consider to be unnatural." There was a pause for a moment as he waited to see the reaction from the woman standing before him.

"Who told you that?" There seemed to be a small amount of nervousness in her voice and seemed to want to shut the door on them.

"Please we need your help, my friend here is in dire need of your talents. Will you be able to her us??"

"Only if the coin is right." Her tone had changed, now she sounded like a business woman who was eager for their cash.

"We have this." He had a small pouch of money and handed it over to her. She seemed to weigh it in her hand and she didn't seem to be too pleased with what she could feel. To her it was too light.

"Not enough I'm afraid. This pays for opening my door for you, if you want my help, you're going to have to give me a lot more than this."

"This is all the money that we have."

"Then I guess our business together is done." She went to close the door but before she could, Charles had put his foot there so that the deed couldn't be done.

"Wait!" He then placed his hand in his pocket and rummaged around for a moment before he finally pulled something out. Maxine looked on and she was horrified with what she could see. It was none other than the locket and necklace that belonged to his deceased mother and that he had originally given Maxine as insurance for his services. Now it seemed like he was doing something that he was reluctant to do but was willing to go through for her sake. "This should more than cover whatever your fee is."

"Charles!" stated Maxine with shock as he watched him hand the locket over to the woman who quickly examined it. Never did she think that he would give up something so precious to him just so that she could regain her size again without issue. It wasn't the actual value of the locket that made it prized to him but more its sentimental value.

"Hmm this is actually good quality," said the Woman. She smiled a little as she looked at it before she placed it in her pocket. "Ok I'll help you, come in and I can see what I can do for you."

Charles was relieved that his locket had sealed the deal and although he knew that he was going to miss it, for Maxine it was worth it. If his mother were alive, she would understand why he had done it but the only one who was unsure about it was Maxine herself. She didn't think that she was worth him giving up his most prized possession and yet he had done it without a second thought.

Maxine and Charles were allowed inside of the building and they did so with some hurry. Not just because they wanted to make Maxine like she was before but also because they had felt some raindrops. The sky above them was a murky colour and the threat of a downpour was constantly present. Although getting wet from the rain was the least of their problems, it was still something that they didn't really want to deal with.

Once they had gotten inside, they could see that there were numerous jars all around which had liquids of almost any colour that they could imagine. There were also several old books on a nearby shelf along with a couple of them located on a desk. In a way it looked like the abode of a witch that they would hear in stories when they were younger. On the ceiling seemed to be small objects hanging by strings. One of them looked to be the arm of a small animal but right now neither of them knew one it was.

The woman didn't really look like a witch as far as the pair were concerned but they hoped that she would be able to help them. Maxine was a little impatient with getting her size back but after the sacrifice that Charles had made, she was quieter and more willing to wait rather than try and push things forward.

Maxine was forced to sit down on an old wooden chair that groaned a little under her weight. This caused some concern to her as if it was struggling while she was this size, she thought that it would break if even an average person sat down on it. Charles stood beside her as they watched the woman leaning against the desk and looking at them. It seemed like she was a little impatient.

"So, what's the problem?" asked the Woman. She had crossed her arms and was looking at Charles in particular. "If you're looking for body improvements then I can't help you. No matter what you pay me."

"Actually, it's not me that is the problem," replied Charles. "It is my friend here, a few days ago she was nine feet tall and packed more muscle than you thought was possible for a woman. And now she's like this."

"Hmm, so the magic has been removed from her and she became like this?" Both Maxine and Charles were surprised that she was able to guess that without them needing to tell her. "Well unless you have the magic that was removed from her there isn't really much, I can do for her."

"That's the thing, we do have the magic. But the problem is that when we placed it back inside of her, she couldn't stop growing bigger and more muscular. She burst out of a building and if I hadn't of removed it again, she probably wouldn't have stopped."

"Hmm, so that is a problem. That one I might be able to help you with." She now had a hand on her chin as she seemed to be thinking. "I have a few theories of what had happened but still, before we go any further, do you have the magic in question?"

"Of course."

With that Charles went back into his satchel and pulled out the container that held the sphere. The glow from it was beautiful for those gazing on and even the woman looked at it with some amazement. If she thought that they had been lying before, she was certain that they weren't now. She knew better than to touch it as she would absorb it and likely go through the same process as Maxine had.

"That is what was extracted from me," said Maxine. They could see that since she was close, the sphere was pushing against the container as if it was trying to return to her. This was something that they couldn't allow for the time being. "I need it back inside of me like I was before."

"That is possible," replied the Woman. "May I ask how you were able to obtain it in the first place?"

"I was born with it. My mother was given the magic at a young age and some of it was passed down to me and my sisters."

"Hmm that does make sense." She then held the container and she could see the sphere inside pushing itself towards Maxine. "That's why this thing is so desperate to get back inside of you." This got her to think for a moment before she decided to ask another question. "So, your mother, was she very tall like you were?"

"Yes, she was, she was over eight feet tall, well actually she's about one hundred and fifty feet tall but she wears a dress that allows her to shrink smaller."

"Oh really?" It seemed like she was beginning to figure something out. "I think I might know this woman. Is your father a man named Sir Tucker Martel?"

"Yes, he is." Maxine became curious as she knew that stories about her father were out there but not many people spoke of them. "How did you know that?"

"I met them once towards the East. Your mother's abilities completely took my breath away. It's nice to know that they settled down together and started a family." She paused as she thought for a moment. "I have an idea of what happened and what needs to be done. But you need to do exactly what I tell you. However, for me to have to do this your friend here is going to have to wait outside."

"What?" This caught her by surprise as this was a request that she hadn't expected at all. "Why does he need to leave?"

"The magic and techniques I'm going to be using will be too great for most people to comprehend. It is best for his own sanity that he waits outside and for us to do what needs to be done."

"That man is both my squire and my best friend." There was some sternness in her voice that did seem a little funny coming from someone who was so short. But she still needed to be taken seriously as far as she was concerned. "If I am welcome somewhere then so is, he, no ifs no buts."

"It's alright ma'am," said Charles who felt like he needed to step in. He did appreciate her calling him her best friend but he knew that there was more at stake here than what was worth the trouble. "If she needs me to step out, then I'll do it."

"That is the right decision," said the Woman. Her tone of voice did make it seem like it was a matter of fact. "Now you go and wait and I'll be more than happy to do what needs to be done. In the next few minutes, your friend will be back to the way that she was before. You have my word."

Charles once again thanked the woman and stepped outside of the door and back onto the street. Even though he had stepped out willingly, there was still something within him that was telling him that there was something not right there.

This was something that Maxine didn't feel at that moment in time as she was led to a table and instructed to lie down on top of it. This was something that she did expect but soon enough she found her wrists and ankles shackled to it. The table itself was incredibly uncomfortable as there was a small piece of wood that was sticking into her back. However, this was the least of her worries.

"What is the meaning of this?" asked Maxine as she struggled in the shackles. If she had been her full size, she might have been able to break free. But at her current size this was an impossibility.

"This is for your own safety," replied the Woman. "The process that we're doing is going to be painful for you. This is just so that you don't thrash around and injure either yourself or me."

Maxine did find it odd but it did make some sense. Although she was still a little reluctant about all of this, she was still willing to go through with it if it meant that she could be like she was before. She turns her head and watched as the container was placed on a small table nearby and a book was placed right next to it. From the wear and tear on the book, it seemed like it was much older than she likely realised.

The woman also picked up a couple of jars with liquid inside of it. Maxine merely thought that it was some kind of magic that was inside of them. Beforehand she didn't believe in magic too much despite the fact that magic fuelled her mother's size. Now she was a firm believer that it existed but she still didn't want to have to have to deal with it though. In her mind, magic couldn't solve every problem.

"Now let's see," said the Woman as she looked into the book. A smile appeared on her face as she continued to read. "Hmm, this shouldn't be too difficult. All I need to do is this, then it'll be done."

"Oh good," replied Maxine as she thought that the woman was talking to her. "Can you please put it back into me?" She watched as the Woman opened the container and she stared at the glowing orb for a few moments. However, it tried to fly out of the container towards Maxine like it had before, but this time the Woman caught onto it with her hand. This was something that Maxine thought was very risky. However, much to her horror, the Woman didn't move the orb towards Maxine, instead she began to chant some words in a language that couldn't be understood by a common person. She then thrust the sphere into her own chest with quite a lot of force. "What are you doing?"

The Woman didn't answer as she groaned while the magic took effect. Her muscles began to bulge underneath her skin and her height increased much to Maxine's horror. She attempted to break free of her restraints but nothing seemed to be happening. She was powerless but to watch the Woman continuing to grow bigger as her muscles were bursting up through her clothing and she was laughing as the process continued.

The sound of stretching and tearing clothing was loud within the room. The Woman had an evil smile on her face as she continued to grow taller right before Maxine. Within moments she was six feet tall, then seven, then eight and eventually nine. Even then she continued to grow taller until she was a little over nine and a half feet in height. Her muscles did seem to be the same size that Maxine's had been before and even though she was standing there completely naked it didn't seem to bother her at all. Instead she began to laugh somewhat maniacally as she looked at her larger body.

"Finally!" said the Woman in a triumphant tone. "I've done it!"

"What is the meaning of this?" replied Maxine who although was scared still had a demanding tone in her voice. "Explain yourself!"

"I thank you Ms Martel." Her tone had changed somewhat and she looked at the much smaller woman who was still shackled to the table. "Like you I'm only taking back something that was stolen from me."

"What do you mean? I never took anything from you."

"No, you didn't." She then stepped towards Maxine and placed her hand on her neck. The pressure she applied was almost enough to start choking Maxine out. But the pressure was intentional to keep her focused on her. "But it is so much fun seeing the look on your when you saw me grow. Makes my vengeance even sweeter."

"Vengeance? What are you talking about? I've never met you before in my life." Maxine was more confused than anything else. She did consider calling out Charles but she didn't think that it would be a good idea. Not only would the woman be able to kill her before he could reach her, but he would not stand a chance against her. If he were to rush inside then it was likely he could be seriously injured or worse.

"You haven't but like I said, I did meet your mother and father. It's because of them, I lost much more than you did. I might not be able to have my revenge on them straight away but starting with their daughter is a good start."

"What did they do to you to warrant such hatred?" She was confused but she was also becoming angry. She had her size stolen already and she was unwilling to have it happen again.

"Oh, I forgot." The Woman chuckled for a moment as if she had just forgotten to do something important. "In all this excitement I forgot to tell you my name, manners are so hard to come by today. My name is Gwendolyn but I like to be called Gwen for short." This caused her the short woman an evil smirk.

This caused Maxine to fall to complete silence as she had heard the name before. On more than one occasion when Sir Tucker was telling her tales of his adventures, he had mentioned the name Gwen. There wasn't much that he had said but one thing that he was certain of was the fact that she was trouble. Probably more than she could deal with, especially with the fact that she was now taller and as muscular as Maxine had been.

"Y-You're Gwen?" asked Maxine with a small amount of confusion in her voice. "I thought that you'd be taller." Even though she was in this situation she still had her confidence which only seemed to annoy the large muscular woman.

"Oh, you really think that you act so cocky right now. Not when I can snap your neck like a twig?" She still had her hand on Maxine's neck and slightly increased the pressure which did cause her some pain. "I was a demi-goddess before your parents ruined it, now I'm a mere mortal like everyone else. Mortals cowered before me and for decades I've been trying to regain my lost power. This isn't exactly what I want but it's a good start if you ask me. But it is the first step towards becoming a god once again. Maybe soon I'll pay those parents of yours a visit and show them the error of their ways. Then I can prove to them that I am no mere mortal anymore."

"Soo you planned to kill me from the beginning?" She didn't seem all that worried and was instead trying to keep her confidence up.

"No, I did plan on helping you for the money. I have to put food on the table anyway, but when I learned who you actually were, that all went out of the window."

"You're going to be growing even bigger soon like I did the other night. Then you won't be able to move."

"Oh, I'm well aware of that. It's why I placed the sphere inside of me, you on the other hand must have allowed it to simply flying in there. That's what caused you to grow so uncontrollably last time. But to you it doesn't matter because now I am taking back what is mine."

"At least what I had was actually mine." Even though her life could be ended at any moment she was still confident. "Better than stealing something because you're too much of an ass to earn it yourself." This statement caused Gwen's blood to boil.

"I hope that you enjoyed that last statement because it was your last." With that she increased the pressure around Maxine's neck. This caused her to be unable to breathe and she knew that she had to do something in order to try and escape.

One thing that Gwen hadn't realised was that while she had been focused on Maxine's face that she hadn't looked up to her hands. If she had, she would have noticed that Maxine had been slipping her right hand through the shackle that was keeping it bolted down. It was one of the few times that being small actually had its advantages. A slightly larger person would have no hope of slipping through, but for her it was possible.

Just as Maxine's hand and wrist were able to slip through the shackle, she immediately thrust her two fingers right into the eyes of Gwen. Her body might be unbelievably strong but her eyes were just as vulnerable as everyone else's. The sudden shock and pain from it caused her to quickly release her grip and stagger back. She screamed out in pain and covered her eyes as she tried to regain her composure.

With the time that she had Maxine quickly began to release herself from her other shackles. Right now, attack was not an option as she knew that she needed to escape. She was in no position to fight Gwen and needed to escape in order to make some kind of plan. But one thing she did hear was the door the building she quickly turned and looked. There, she wasn't sure whether to be relieved or afraid to see that it was Charles. The scream that he had heard had made him spring into action.

Even though he was inside he was shocked with what he was seeing. He thought that he would be seeing Maxine back at nine feet but instead it was Gwen who was large and he could see his friend getting off the table. He was more confused than anything else and an idea did pop into the head of Maxine.

"What is going on?" asked Charles. He took a step back in fear and confusion.

"Charles," replied Maxine. "Pass me that damn tool!" For several moments Charles stood there in complete disbelief and this forced her to prompt him again. "Now!"

This time Charles did as he was told and grabbed onto the tool that he had stored in his satchel. It was the same pair of tongs that he had used to extract the sphere from Maxine the other night. He did pass it over to her and she quickly darted forward towards the still staggering Gwen.

The larger woman was still waving her arms and staggering as she recovered from being poked in both of her eyes. One arm did come close to striking Maxine as she approached but she was able to duck underneath it. However, when she was close enough, she realised another problem. She was too short to reach Gwen's chest in order to extract the size from her. It was too late when she realised this and the next thing, she felt was a strong backhand to her cheek which sent her flying across the room.

Thankfully she didn't fly into anything but the tool was knocked out of her hand and she seemed to be mostly unconscious. By now Gwen had recovered from being poked in the eye and she looked over to Charles who was still standing there in disbelief. He could see that Gwen was larger than Maxine was, his mind could probably come up with an explanation but right now that was the last thing on, he could think of.

"You should have stayed outside," said Gwen as she stepped towards him. For a moment he wasn't sure what to do, everything was telling him to run but he doubted that it would do him any good. Not just that but it would also lead to Maxine most likely being killed and that was something that he couldn't allow to happen.

Gwen did dart towards him but she didn't notice a low beam just above her. This oversight caused her head to strike the ceiling and it caused her some discomfort. The distraction was enough for him to pick up the tool that had fallen onto the ground and make his way towards her.

His concern for Maxine was great but he knew that he couldn't check on her while Gwen was still around. However, he too had the same problem as Maxine as he was too short to reach her chest. Thankfully this was something that he had realised as he quickly moved towards a nearby table. It was the same one that Maxine had been shackled to around a minute earlier but it gave him the extra height that he needed.

Thankfully for him Gwen was close enough to him for him to use the tool in order to try and extract the sphere from her. He quickly raised it up in order to touch her chest which he was able to do. One odd thing that he noticed was that when he did that it seemed like she was being pulled towards him.

Charles continued to pull at the tool and slowly he could see the sphere being pulled out of Gwen's chest. But by this time, she had also recovered and placed her hands on his skull. Using all of her might she began to squeeze on it in an attempt to crush it. This caused him a great amount of pain. Even so he continued to pull at the tools as he knew that the situation was dire.

Maxine didn't stand around and do nothing as she picked up a nearby chair and with all of her might struck Gwen in the back with it. She had expected the chair to completely fall apart once she had used it but instead it remained intact. This went against some things that she had heard in stories but then again there was a lot stated in stories that weren't actually true in real life.

Worse still the strike didn't seem to have harmed Gwen as she continued the pressure around Charles's skull. He knew that he was only moments away from having his skull crushed in completely. With all his might he continued to pull, more and more they could see the glow of the sphere as it appeared from the chest.

Desperate Maxine picked up a bottle of liquid that was close by and smashed it against Gwen's back. She didn't expect much but suddenly the large muscular woman began to scream out in agony and smoke seemed to be rising from her back. It was enough for her to let go of Charles's skull and he groaned in relief as the pressure around his head had been taken away.

As Maxine looked at Gwen's back, she could see that the liquid was causing it to burn as it turned a deep red colour and looked extremely painful. Gwen would have gone down to the ground but Charles pulling out the sphere was keeping her upright and with all of his might he pulled. He even shouted out due to the effort and within moments the sphere was completely out in the open.

Almost immediately Gwen's body began to revert back to the way that it was before. She could feel the sensation of both being squashed and in severe pain. The process only took a few moments before she was on the ground and in tears. Not just because she was in pain but also because she had been bigger and now was back to being her small self once again.

"Charles!" stated Maxine as she rushed towards him. He still a good hold of the tools which in turn held onto the sphere. His head was aching from almost being squashed but it seemed that there wasn't any permanent damage. "Are you alright?"

"I'm alright ma'am," replied Charles. Carefully he did climb down from the table and it seemed to be a little unsteady on his feet. He could feel the sphere pulling itself towards Maxine. He watched as she grabbed the sphere with both hands. "What are you doing? Is it safe?"

"Hopefully I will, if what she said was true then this should work." With that she slowly brought the sphere towards her chest and began to push it inside. However, she still kept a hold of it since if it went inside of her too quickly then she would have the growing problem again.

Charles could only watch as Maxine placed the sphere inside of herself through the chest. The whole process took several seconds unlike how it had been instantaneous previously. Once the sphere had been completely absorbed, she felt the same rush through her body that she had done before as she felt her body begin to grow taller and her muscles to swell. Her companion could only step back and watch as the process continued.

There was a small amount of fear from him as he was worried that she would continue growing like she had done before. He could hear her groaning as her body continued to stretch and bulge. Like before the clothes that she was wearing couldn't contain her body anymore.

Her clothes tore away from her body as her mighty size continued to return to her. It was a fantastic feeling for her as she could feel herself continuing to grow. She did wonder if this was the same feeling that her mother and sisters would experience whenever they grew in size. She felt stronger and almost all of the fears that she had been feeling before was now being swept away.

Charles could only watch as Maxine continued to grow bigger right before his eyes. He was being cautious as he still had his hands on the tool, just in case he needed to extract her size once again. It didn't take much for him to remember what happened last time but these thoughts were in the back of his mind as he continued to crane his head higher and higher to look at her face.

With one more groan from Maxine, her growth spurt ended and she looked as tall and muscular as she had before. The clothing that she had been wearing was now in shreds all over the ground around her. For Charles it was a little upsetting seeing clothing that he had spent money rip apart like this, a small part of him did hope that he could have a refund for his purchase.

"Are you alright ma'am?" asked Charles as he looked up at Maxine. He was looking at her body but not because she was naked, instead he was trying to spot any signs that she could grow even bigger.

"Y-Yeah I'm fine," replied Maxine. She moved her arms a little and looked at her hands. "It is nice being big again."

"Oh good, let's hope that you don't grow any further." He then looked down at Gwen who was still on the ground. Despite everything that she had gone through, she was still conscious. "What do you want to do with her?"

"Leave her. She means nothing to us."

Charles wasn't sure if this was the best course of action but there were a few things that he did before they left the building. The first thing was that he had found a large sheet that Maxine used in order to cover herself up. Their next destination was to return to Morgan so that she could retrieve her proper clothing as well as her armour and sword. It seemed like her nightmare was finally over.

He wasn't the only one who had picked something up as Maxine in turn picked up the money that they had originally given to Gwen. Not just that but he ensured that the locket was picked up as well, there was no chance that she would leave it behind but before she stepped out of the door, she did turn to look at Gwen who was still on the ground. Rather than tending to her she simply spat at her before turning around and ducking out of the door.

  The trip back to Morgan was a fairly quick one for Maxine and Charles. With some of the money that they had left over, they were able to buy some clothing for her so that she wasn’t walking around completely naked. Since she was so large, all that they could really buy was a large piece of cloth that she wrapped around her body. Unfortunately, they weren’t able to buy any shoes so for the time being, she would have to walk barefoot.

  For Charles, he was glad to see that Maxine was back to her old size again and that her muscles had returned. While she was small, he couldn’t help but feel vulnerable but now she was big again, he thought that she would able to fend off most threats that came their way. Even though she was still without her armour and sword.

  Even so, anyone who walked by them would keep their distance. Beforehand, her armour covered up her muscles, now that she was without it, they were on view for everyone. Most of the people who walked by were quickly intimidated by her even though all she was doing was simply walking.

  There was one stop that the pair did and this was at the inn where they had stayed when they were on their way to Flea Bay. It was partially due to their fatigue but also so that Maxine could exact some revenge. She hadn’t forgotten the patron at this inn who had struck her when she had spurred his advances.

  Maxine was thankful to see that he happened to be there. He was more than shocked to discover that the small woman that he had been able to strike down with one blow. Now she was nine feet tall with muscles bigger than his head. The look on her face was something that he would never forget.

  Only one strike was needed in order for the large woman to be satisfied, but in turn several of the patron’s teeth had been knocked out and he had been flying to the floor. He had feared that she would kill him or if he was lucky, just strike him one more time. Instead she simply sat down and drank an ale while glaring at him. In her mind, her debt to him was repaid and it was unlikely that he would ever strike a woman again. The memory of what happened that day would leave his mind.

  It was around late morning when the town of Morgan could be seen by the two travellers. More importantly, the Martel farm was in full view and Maxine took a deep breath before she stepped towards it. She remembered what happened the last time that she was there and what had happened between herself and her sister Carrie. They had made progress in their relationship but it was quite easy for them to simply go back to what they had been before their last visit.

  For Charles, in a way he was glad to be going back to the Martel farm. There had been times when he had been somewhat fearful while he had been there but he had felt welcomed. He also found it funny that personality wise, Maxine wasn’t very much like the rest of her family. He didn’t mind having a hug from her mother again as she was a warm and loving woman.

  Once they made their final approach to the Martel Farm, both of them prepared for what might happen. There was even a fear from Maxine that her clothing, armour and sword had not arrived. Either the Shepherds at the orphanage had not sent them, or something had happened in transit. Such a thing was a possibility and if her armour and sword in particular was lost, she would be at a loss.

  Something that Charles did have to remember was that he had refer to Maxine’s father as Sir Tucker. He remembered when he had last forgot the Sir part and it led to a strong strike to the back of the head from her. Plus, he would have to remind himself that he hadn’t shrunk and that he was just in a house of giants.

  The first thing that they noticed as they arrived at the farm was the fact that there didn’t seem to be too much activity. This was something that Maxine found to be odd as there was normally one of her brothers or sisters outside doing some kind of activity. Like Adam practicing his sword skills or Jane picking fruit out of the trees. This caused her some concern as she stepped towards the door.

  “Be on your guard,” said Maxine as she stood by the door. Charles was close by and he was more than willing to listen to her. “And whatever you do, don’t tell my family about what has happened since we last came here.” This wasn’t just about her losing her size and their encounter with Gwen. It also included when they were trapped at the inn and almost killed by a family of cultists. This was still a memory that was traumatising for him so he was very reluctant to bring it up in conversation.

  “As you wish ma’am,” replied Charles. He knew that he didn’t really have to call her ma’am anymore but he couldn’t help but say it. It rolled off the tongue and he wanted to be respectful to her.

  With that Maxine knocked on the door and she waited for some kind of response. Suddenly she could hear large, heavy footsteps approaching the door and mere moments later it opened. Standing there was the familiar figure of Maxine’s mother Jessica who recognised them the moment she saw them.

  Almost immediately the large woman leaned forward and hugged her eldest daughter. Maxine had to take a step back as she felt herself being pushed back for a moment. Not just that but Jessica was increasing her own size until she was around twelve feet tall. Thankfully by the time she reached this height, she was outside so there was no danger of her striking the ceiling.

  “Maxine baby!” stated Jessica with some tears rolling down her face. “I was so worried about you!”

  “Hello Mother,” replied Maxine in a monotone voice. It was obvious that she didn’t want to go through with the hug but did so simply for the benefit of her mother. She was very respectful towards her, just like she was to her father.

  Charles couldn’t help but find the situation funny, Maxine was a nine-foot woman with more muscles than most people could dream of. It looked as though she could take down a large group of people without hardly break a sweat. Yet there was someone who worried about her as if she was a small child.

  The hug didn’t finish until Jessica decided to and she even gave Charles a hug as well. Although she had to shrink to her smallest size in order to hug him. Even so, when he was hugged, he couldn’t help but feel a sense of warmth and safety while in her arms. It was a wonderful feeling and a part of him hoped that it would never end.

  Unfortunately, all things must come to an end and so did the hug. As soon as it was over both Maxine and Charles were invited into the house. Maxine did notice that it seemed empty and quiet, this was still unusual since with all her brothers and sisters there was normally some kind of commotion.

  “Where is father and the others?” asked Maxine as she looked around. She couldn’t help but feel a little worried about them, yet if there was some kind of problem, Jessica would have told them.

  “Oh, he’s had to go to Barret to run some errands and most of the kids went with him,” replied Jessica.

  “So, you’re here by yourself?” This was unlike her mother as there was normally at least one of her offspring around.

  “Of course not, Jaime just tired himself out a little earlier so he’s taking a nap and little Rina is just in here.” By now they had reached the main room and they could see the baby lying on the ground with a blanket around her. She was also lying on a soft object so that she wasn’t directly lying on the ground. Jessica quickly picked her up and cradled her in her arms, she then sat down on one of the large chairs while Maxine and Charles sat themselves down on a large sofa like chair. “Come on little baby, it’s time for your feeding.” Without any hesitation Jessica undid her dress top and exposed one of her breasts which both visitors were able to see. Charles did find her breast size impressive while Maxine couldn’t help but blush. With the breast exposed, Jessica brought Rina’s mouth to her nipple and the baby soon began to feed off it. “There you go little Rina, drink up and one day you’re going to grow up into a big strong girl.”

  “Mother!” There was some distress in Maxine’s voice as she spoke. She was very embarrassed about what was happening. “Do you have to do that here and now?”

  “Of course, I make sure that none of my babies ever miss one of their feedings.” She chuckled for a moment. “I still remember when I used to do this for you, you would almost suck me dry most of the time.” Maxine didn’t respond and her face simply turned as red as her hair. Charles couldn’t help but chuckle himself although a glare from Maxine stopped his fun.

  “Anyway, has my clothing and equipment arrived yet?”

  “Y-Yes they did yesterday.” She looked over to Maxine but still carefully held onto Rina as the feeding continued. “I was wondering why you sent them back here. I thought that you might have given up trying to be a knight and settled down with your friend there.” This only caused Maxine to feel even more embarrassed. She wasn’t sure if her mother was doing this on purpose or she was completely unaware.

  “No, I just needed them to be here while I sorted out an issue. I’m here to retrieve them and then continue on.”

  “Oh, I see.” She gave a sigh of disappointment before continuing on. “You haven’t taken the life of anyone else have you.”

  “I promised you that I wouldn’t and I’ve kept to my word. Although there were a few instances where I was very tempted to do so. Do you mind if Charles and I stay for the night and then be on our way tomorrow?”

  “Of course, it’s alright. I’ll never turn my back on any of my children. Especially my sweet widdle Maxine.” Maxine began to feel embarrassed again and she was sure that Jessica was doing it on purpose. “So how is your adventure going? Are you any closer to becoming a knight?”

  “I am closer than when we last visited.” She didn’t want to tell her about what had happened since their previous visit. Not just that but she also felt that she was no closer to becoming a knight than she had before.

  “Oh, that’s great sweetie.” She then felt Rina continuing to suck on her nipple and she couldn’t help but chuckle. “You must be pretty hungry today. Well drink up so that you can become big and strong like your sister.”

  Maxine once again blushed in embarrassment. Charles on the other hand couldn’t help but find the situation sweet. He could see that Jessica was a caring mother who seemed to want the best for her children, this included someone like Maxine. He was just sure to not chuckle at anything that happened as he didn’t want to annoy his friend.

  Eventually the breastfeeding was over and Jessica wiped any additional milk from the mouth of baby Rina. She didn’t react too much as she was just happy being in her mother’s arms and she also seemed to be a little sleepy. This was stopped for the moment however as she was patted on the back to expel any excess gas. When a burp came, she found it adorable and continued to cradle Rina in her arms.

  “You know Maxine,” said Jessica as she looked towards her eldest daughter again. “Maybe I should teach you how to care for a baby. It probably won’t be long before you start having them yourself.”

  “There is no need mother, I don’t plan on settling down any time soon,” replied Maxine in a determined tone. She could hardly imagine herself as a mother as to her, the main goal of her life was to become a knight. Being a mother would likely hamper this goal so it was something that she didn’t want to go through any time soon.

  “Sure, you don’t. Who knows, maybe you’ll be popping out some grandkids for me before long.”

  “Mother!” It seemed that with every passing moment, Maxine’s face continued to become redder. At this point in time her face looked a little like a tomato and Charles watched on. It was taking a lot of willpower for him to not burst out laughing.

  “Maxine!” stated a childlike voice. Almost immediately the trio saw a dash and then Maxine felt something grab onto her. When she looked down, she could see that it was Jaime. He had awoken from his nap and had seen his eldest sister. Any idea of remaining calm was completely out of the window. “You’re back!”

  “Hello little brother.” This seemed to make her embarrassment subside for the time being as she focused on her brother. Carefully she picked him up and sat him on her lap. “Have you been behaving yourself?”

  “Oh yes, Mom says that I’m her little prince. Isn’t that right Mom?” Jessica responded that he had and then he looked at Maxine again. He thought that the clothing that she was wearing was very odd. “Maxine, why are you wearing weird clothes?”

  “Err…” She had to think of something quickly as she still didn’t want to tell the truth to her family. If she did, she knew that her mother would become overprotective of her and worry herself to no end. Keeping them in the dark was a small mercy as far as she was concerned and she wanted it to stay that way. “My clothes were a little damaged during a battle, so I had someone mend them and then send them back here. I’ve just come to take them back and also my armour and sword.”

  “I hope you won.”

  “I most certainly did because you know that no one can beat your big sister.” She smiled at him and when she posed her arm, he cheered for her. This made Charles watch on and he couldn’t help but find the meeting between them cute. On more than one occasion he couldn’t imagine Maxine being a mother. Seeing the interaction between herself and her little brother made him think that motherhood might be something that she was capable of.

  “Hi Chuckie.” He waved at Charles when he said this and his words did catch Maxine’s squire by surprise.

  “W-What?” replied Charles as he was caught off guard. The next thing he heard was Jessica beginning to chuckle.

  “That’s what he’s been calling you since you last came here,” answered Jessica as she continued to cradle baby Rina. “Carrie tried to tell him otherwise but that name seems to have stuck now.”

 “Yep that’s your name alright,” said Jaime as he continued to speak. “And Carrie also said that you were kissing Maxine and making her feel happy.”

  “Jaime!” stated Maxine with a combination of shock and embarrassment. She couldn’t help but feel annoyed, it seemed that although her relationship with her oldest sister had been repaired. There were still a few things she could do to get under her skin. “I told you that Chuckie and I aren’t like that.” Charles too had been taken by surprise with this and now he noticed that Maxine too had called him Chuckie. “He is my good friend and squire.” She didn’t want to admit that she could take things further with Charles, she had definitely been closer to him than any other man she didn’t have a blood relationship with.

  After a few more words Maxine got up from her seat and made her way towards her room. She wanted to get out of this bed sheet as soon as she could and put on something resembling normal clothing. This left Charles alone with her mother and youngest siblings. He couldn’t help but watch as Jessica looked over to Charles and smiled at him. Her warm expression did make him feel easier, even though he was still nervous with being inside of Maxine’s home. It was easy to forget that someone like her had family and a place that she called home.

  “Has there been any problems since you left here?” asked Jessica. There was some determination in her voice. “Maxine might have said that nothing happened but I know otherwise. She wouldn’t have sent her armour and sword back here if something hadn’t of happened. So, would you be so kind as to tell me.”

  “I-I don’t think that I should,” replied Charles with some nervousness. “Maxine wouldn’t really want me to.”

  “Hmm, so something did happen then. I’ll make sure that Maxine doesn’t get angry with you. The best way to calm her is through her stomach. So please, can you let me know what happened so that it can sooth my nerves.”

  Charles felt like he could tell Jessica and over the course of a minute or so, he told her about how she had her size stolen from her and became small. Jessica’s reaction to this was a worried one but she didn’t seem to over react like they had feared. He still didn’t mention Gwen or the inn that they had stayed at. Those were things he thought that she didn’t need to know.

  After hearing what he had said, Jessica definitely thought that Maxine sending the armour and sword back home did make a lot of a sense. Plus, she couldn’t help but imagine seeing her daughter small and weak. It was something that she wouldn’t wish upon her as she remembered when she too lost the magic that gave her the size changing abilities that she had been accustomed to. It had been a very scary situation, especially when the illness that almost killed her as a baby almost took her life once more.

  Mere moments after Charles had finished telling her about what had happened, Maxine stepped back into the room. No longer was she wearing the bed sheet that they had hastily bought but instead the normal clothing that she wore below her armour. This consisted of a sleeveless shirt, trousers and knee-high boots. It was still unusual to see her big and in such normal clothing. He was used to seeing her wearing her armour rather than the clothing that she wore now.

  Jessica looked over to her eldest daughter and was tempted to hug and mother her after hearing what had taken place since her last visit. However, she stopped herself from doing so that she didn’t let on that Charles had told her of her previous misadventure. Instead she simply got up from where she was sitting and stepped over to Maxine. The larger woman wasn’t sure exactly what was going on.

  “Maxine, I just need to do something in the kitchen,” said Jessica with a cheerful tone. “You don’t mind just holding onto your sister for me?”

  “Well…” replied Maxine but before she could answer she felt Rina be placed in her arms. Her mother was smiling at her while the latter was confused.

  “Thanks, I’ll be right back.”

  With that Jessica quickly moved to the kitchen while Maxine remained standing there with Rina in her arms. She looked down with some confusion as she didn’t know how to react to the situation in hand. She was used to swinging a sword and punching her problems, looking after a baby was alien to her.

  Baby Rina seemed to be on the verge of crying and even though Maxine tried her best, she couldn’t stop her sister from bawling. She looked over to Charles with a worried look on her face and some desperation. In this situation she was completely out of her depth and struggling to come up with answers.

  “Charles what am I supposed to do here?” asked Maxine with some confusion. Her voice was had a higher volume so that she could be heard above the crying of her sister.

  “Let me have her for a minute,” replied Charles. He held out his arms and Maxine quickly but carefully placed Rina in his arms. The baby was still crying but gently he began to rock her. This seemed to be doing the trick as Rina began to calm down and eventually stop crying.

  “How did you do that?” She was amazed with what she was seeing.

  “It wasn’t too difficult. You just to make sure that there’s nothing bothering her and rock her gently. Of course, it varies from baby to baby but your sister does seem to be a good-natured baby.” One thing that he noticed was that Rina was quite heavy, it was unusual for a baby of that age to weigh so much but when looking at her family it was understandable. Jessica was right about Rina, when she grew up, she was going to be a big girl.

  Before Maxine could take another step, she felt Jaime run towards her and then grab onto her leg. She looked down and could see him down there, since he was of average size and she was so large, he was barely taller than her knee. It was something that he liked about his big sister, plus the fact that she had muscles bigger than everyone else that she met.

  “Pick me up Maxine!” asked Jaime in an excited tone. “Pick me up, pick me up!” By how he had let go of her leg and was jumping up and down on the spot.  The next thing that he knew he could see big sister leaning down and grab onto him. With no effort she was able to lift him off his feet. He cheered as he was lifted into the air and could see Maxine on an eye to eye level.

  “Is this what you wanted little brother?” replied Maxine.

  “Make me fly like a bird!” He didn’t say please or anything like that as he simply wanted to fly like he had requested. Carrie had done it for him in the past and she had even grown in size while doing this. But she didn’t do it like Maxine did and he held his arms as she began to move him in the air. He cheered while she did this as he was thoroughly enjoying what was taking place.

  Charles watched on and still found it funny. Maxine didn’t know what to do when holding a baby, yet she was able to play with her brother without a problem. He guessed that she was just more capable of looking after older children in comparison to babies. For the moment all he could do was keep a hold of Rina and gently rock her.

  Eventually, much to Jaime’s disappointment Maxine did put him back down to the ground. She was feeling a little dizzy from spinning him around but she was easily able to regain her composure. It was around this time that she looked towards the door where her mother had stepped through. There she could see Jessica standing there with a smile on her face, it was as if she had seen something adorable.

  According to her, she had just seen such a thing. In her mind she always thought that Maxine one day would make a great mother although on more than one occasion she denied it. But seeing Maxine playing with her brother only reinforced Jessica’s notion that one day that she too would become a mother. To Maxine, earning her knighthood was her greatest prize but Jessica knew otherwise.

  There were many accomplishments that one could achieve in their life. Jessica’s husband Sir Tucker was a knight and had earned that honour. However, she knew that if he had to choose a greater accomplishment, becoming a father far outweighed becoming a knight. She was sure that Maxine would feel the same way, but then again Jessica had always wanted to be a mother. People did change over time though, she thought that her eldest daughter would soften up as the years went by but she wasn’t sure.

 Around an hour after arriving at the Martel farm, both Maxine and Charles found themselves walking towards the forgery that was owned by the other side of the Martel family. Charles was somewhat confused about why they were doing it as Maxine was leaving her armour behind. He would have assumed that they were going so that she could have work on her sword or armour.

  There was also the possibility that she simply wanted to see her uncles. It had been a while since she last visited so it wouldn’t be too far out of the realm of reason that she just wanted to say hello to them. However, she hadn’t come across as the sentimental type so as they walked, he looked up to her. There was some reassurance, seeing her big again after everything that they had been through.

  “Maxine,” said Charles with a small amount of caution in his voice. He still wasn’t sure exactly what was going to happen but he knew that it couldn’t be anything bad. “May I ask why we’re going to the forgery?”

  “Of course, we’re going to obtain a sword for you,” replied Maxine as if it was the most normal thing that they had done.

  “Oh, I see.” He fell silent for a few moments before his mind made the connections. “Wait what? Y-You want me to have a sword?”

  “Yes, because during our time together I’ve realised something. It’s not safe and if you were to get hurt, I would never be able to forgive myself. Plus, as my squire it is my duty to teach you how to wield a sword and the ways of a knight.”

  “B-But I can’t wield a sword.” He couldn’t help but think back to the inn and how he had killed the murderous family. He vowed to never kill again or even use a weapon. “Maybe we could just forget about it.”

  “No. we will not Charles.” She looked down at him with a somewhat annoyed tone. In a way, she considered this a form of insubordination. “As you saw during our last outing, I might not always be there or able to protect you. So, you’re going to have to look out for yourself and that starts with learning to wield a sword.”

  Before Charles could say anything else in response to this, the pair had arrived at the forgery. They could hear the hammering as the work for the day was underway. The tall woman had to duck a fair amount to get through the small door and even when she stepped inside, she couldn’t stand up straight as the ceiling was too low.

  Inside she could see her Uncle Mike working away as well as a couple of her cousins. They were all of average height since they were from Sir Tucker’s side of the family. Her sudden appearance hadn’t gone unnoticed as they stopped for a moment from their work and looked up to her. Mike in particular put down his tools and took a couple of steps towards his giant niece. He had always found her to be quite intimidating but he knew that she would never harm him or any of his offspring. They were family after all.

  “Ah you’re back Maxine,” said Mike as he lifted up the goggles that he had been using to protect his eyes. “Does your armour need adjusting again?”

  “Not this time Uncle,” replied Maxine. She then gestured down to Charles who stood by her. “My squire needs a sword; do you have any available that would be suitable for him?” It was at this point in time that Mike looked at Charles, he could see a small man and this got him rubbing his chin as he began to think.

  “Hmm, there are a few options that he could go for. The first is a dagger, but then again it might not be suitable for close combat. There’s always a light sword, I think that might be the best option for your squire.”

  “Then may we trial a light sword and see if it is right for the job.” Charles remained quiet and felt like he didn’t really have much of a say in the matter. He knew that Maxine was only thinking about his safety but he was still unsure about all of this.

  “If that is what you want Maxine. Let me know if it’s the right sword for him and if not, you can try another.”

  “Thank you, Uncle.”

  With that Mike turned around and picked up a sword that had been recently made. As was requested, it was a light sword that looked nothing more than a dagger to Maxine. To Charles however it seemed like a standard sword. The hilt was standard and was designed to be used with one hand. The blade itself wasn’t particularly long and was relatively thin. It wasn’t too dissimilar to a sword that Maxine used to practice with when she was a young child.

  With the sword in hand, the pair stepped out into an open area that was between the farm and the forgery. The area wasn’t empty however as there were some straw dummies that were used for training and testing purposes. There were around half a dozen of them and Charles looked at them as he wasn’t sure what he was going to have to do. For the time being, he hadn’t even handled his sword yet.

  If he had been an experienced knight, Maxine would have thrown the sword at him in a manner where he would be able to catch the hilt. She knew better than to try this and simply handed him the sword and as he held onto it, he could feel some weight to it. When she had carried it, she had made it seem like it was as light as a feather. It was only a reminder to him just how strong she was.

  “Ok, we need to see if this blade is the best one for you,” said Maxine. She then pointed towards one of the straw dummies which were only a couple of metres away from them. “Attack this dummy and we’ll see what happens.”

  “D-Do I really have to ma’am?” replied Charles. He was getting nervous and began to revert to addressing her as ma’am rather than her actual name.

  “Yes, you do, now do as I command!” She placed her hands on her hips and gave him a small glare. It wasn’t something that she particularly wanted to do, but she thought that it was for his own good.

  Charles knew that there was no arguing with Maxine when she was like this so he closed his eyes and stepped towards the dummy. Using the sword, he began to slash at the dummy while she watched on. She was far from impressed as she could see his head leaning away from the dummy and his strikes were not precise. Instead it was like he was just waving his sword and striking points at random.

  This lasted for around a minute and Maxine could see that there was going to be a lot of work that would be needed. Even her brother when he first picked up a sword, wasn’t this manner. Then again, he had witnessed both his eldest sister and father practicing so he did have a tiny amount of experience. Charles had witnessed Maxine in combat but it was obvious that he hadn’t really taken anything in.

  “Stop!” stated Maxine after she had seen enough. Charles did as he was asked and looked up to her. From his point of view, she seemed to be a disappointed parent looking at a young child.

  “I-I’m sorry ma’am,” replied Charles. He knew that he had done pathetically and that she was not pleased with him.

 “Are you able to wield that sword easily?” To her it was more important that they had gotten the sword right, it was pointless trying to practice if it was the wrong one.

  “I-I think so ma’am.”

  “I told you that you no longer need to call me ma’am. You owe nothing to me now so we’re working together as equals rather than you serving under me. Do I make myself clear on this point?”

  “Y-Yes M…” He was about to call her ma’am again but stopped himself as he had just been told not to call her that. “Maxine.”

  “Now does the sword feel fine to you, yes or no?”

  “Well…” Charles seemed to be a little unsure about how to respond. Since he had never properly wielded a sword before he didn’t know whether it felt right or didn’t. For all he knew, he could be wielding a sword that was completely ill fit for him and yet he would say that it was alright. He just had to go with his gut feeling and simply state what he thought. “I think it’s alright.”

  “Good, then we move on from there.” She then drew her own sword and stood next to Charles. She took a stance before looking down at him, it seemed like he was receiving his first lesson. “Now to begin with, your stance is vitally important. If you’re stance is incorrect then your opponent could knock you off your feet before you even have a chance to swing your sword. Now stand as I do and remember it.

  Charles looked at the manner that Maxine was standing. She had her sword gripped tightly and she looked as though she was ready to cut an opponent in half. He couldn’t help but admire how strong she looked as she was definitely not an opponent that he wanted to face any time soon.

  There was one aspect of sword fighting that Maxine wanted to teach Charles but she decided against it. This was the intimidation factor which she used quite often, it helped weaken an opponent’s resolve or even prevented them from fighting in the first place. It was easy for someone like her to intimidate an opponent but not Charles. He wasn’t nine feet tall or had an impressive physique.

  Already she was seeing that power wouldn’t be his best option and instead speed would be his ally. Like she had been taught herself, there was no point in having powerful attacks if your opponent was too fast to be struck. Charles’s below average stature would make him capable of dodging many attacks. One downside was that his reach wouldn’t be as long as many other sword fighters.

  “Ok onto the next lesson,” said Maxine when she was sure that he had gotten the stance right. “You can’t just swing a sword like a stick and expect to win a fight, you need to be precise with your attacks. If you want to send your opponent off with a warning, you slash him but not too deeply that you strike any vital organs. Like this…” Maxine then stepped forward and slashed at the straw dummy. Her strike looked to be strong but when all was said and done, her sword only pierced the dummy slightly. The slash itself was also relatively small as it wasn’t over the entirety of the chest but instead a small one in the upper right-hand corner. “However, actually striking your opponent in this manner is more of a last resort. Instead your main goal is to disarm your opponent. If they don’t have their sword then they can’t defend themselves.”

  “I-I see.” He was taking in everything that she was saying although he did feel nervous about all of this.

  “Also, if you’re confronting someone one on one, never draw your sword against an unarmed opponent. Only a coward would perform such an act, unless the situation called for it.”

 “If I may ask, what situation would call for me to draw my sword on an unarmed opponent?” This was something that he really wanted to know as he didn’t want to do anything that angered her.

  “The first is if you’re in a situation where you feel like your life is in genuine danger. Like if you’ve been beaten to a bloody pulp and your opponent intends to kill you. The other is if you’re heavily outnumbered. Even then your sword should be more used to defuse the situation rather than to attack your enemies. Also defending yourself against a wild animal is acceptable. Like if you were to come across a bear and are unable to escape. Then you can draw your sword and defend yourself.”

  “I-I see.” He was still very nervous but he didn’t want to disappoint the woman standing before him.

  “Now I want you to slash the dummy like I showed you. Make your strike swift and fast but also don’t cut too deeply if you only want to send a warning.”

  Charles did step forward and he lifted his sword as he went to strike the dummy like he had intended. However, he found his balance to be unfavourable and when he slashed against the dummy it went deeper than he had wanted. Not just that but he got it stuck within the dummy and for the moment he couldn’t pull it back out.

  There were several seconds where he attempted to pull his sword out with not as much success as he would have liked immediately. All the while Maxine continued to stand there and watch. She did contemplate stepping in and helping but she thought that it was best to hang back and wait for the time being. Instead, she simply observed what was taking place and remained silent. It was only when he was able to free his sword that she stepped over and he knew that she probably wasn’t happy with him.

  “What was that just then?” asked Maxine. There was a hint of disappointment in her voice although it remained stern. “You looked more like you were falling over then than actually trying to attack it.”

  “I-I’m sorry, I lost my balance,” replied Charles. He didn’t think that she would take this as an excuse but he still said it anyway.

  “Do that in a real fight and you’ll be dead before you’ve even hit the ground. It’s not that difficult.”

  “That’s easy for you to say.” His fear was making him lash out a little at her. “I’m not as big as you.”

  “Neither is my father and yet he is one of the greatest warriors in the country, if he can do all that then you can do this.”

  Charles didn’t respond to this and instead simply held his sword. He began to think that Maxine was probably pushing him too much as this was his first lesson. Even so he attacked the dummy once again and this time kept his balance. His slash was still a little too deep but it was still better than the one he had tried before.

  For the next several minutes Charles continued to slash at the dummy while Maxine simply watched on. Her arms were folded as she more or less glared at what she was seeing. She was taking in everything that was happening and analysing it in her mind. To her, Charles’s attacks were too weak as any opponent with skill could block his attack with ease and then most likely take off his head.

  This was something that she thought was disappointing but, in the end, she simply lifted up her hand. Quickly he stopped and looked over to her as she continued to stand there. Her views had not changed in particular but she could see where they could build on things and hopefully move forwards.

  “I think that’s enough practicing for now,” said Maxine. “From what I can see, you’ve got a long way to go before I feel that you’re competent enough to wield that sword effectively. We’ll pick up where we left off tomorrow. But for now, let’s head back to the farmhouse, there’s probably some kind of errand that my mother could need some help with.”

  Charles was more than glad that the lesson was over and although he did feel like he had learned some important points, he didn’t feel very confident. In a way, he felt like he was letting her down.

  Something else that was on his mind was that as he swung the sword, he couldn’t help but think back to the inn and what had happened there. Nothing in the world would make him happier than forgetting what had taken place there. But alas he couldn’t simply erase it from his mind and would have to live with it for the rest of his days.

  Upon finishing the training for that day, Maxine and Charles made their way back to the farmhouse where they knew that Jessica was waiting for them. However, this time as they walked in, they could see the matriarch of the household but she quickly shushed them upon their entry.

  As it turned out both Jaime and Rina were napping and the last thing, she wanted was for them to wake up before they were ready. Because of this, everyone inside of the house had to be as quiet as they could. It was easy for Charles as he was quite small so his movements didn’t generate much noise.

  When it came to mother and daughter it was a different story. Since they were both at least eight and a half feet tall it meant that they were significantly heavier than a normal person. Each step they took had the risk of generating sound through creaking floors and the sound of them carrying their weight.

  Both Charles and Maxine found themselves sitting on the large sofa like bench where they had been before with Jessica sitting on a chair that was close by. She was curious about what they were going to do next and thought about how to ask her daughter for a few moments before the question came out of her lips.

  “So where are you planning on going after this?” asked Jessica. Her voice was quieter than it normally was. This was so that she didn’t wake the sleeping children. “Maybe somewhere to settle down and start a family?”

  “We’re not…” replied Maxine. At first her voice was quite loud but she suddenly stopped herself when her mother shushed her. “We’re not in a relationship.” Her voice this time was much quieter than it had been before. “I’m not sure where we’ll be going, maybe we’ll travel east again and see if we can find any work for my skills. I’m sure that there’s someone evading the law who needs capturing. Or there could be a wealthy merchant that needs protecting.”

  “Or you could enter the grand tournament that is going to be taking place soon.” She spoke with a whisper but it was quite nonchalant. This seemed to catch Maxine by surprise as she looked over to her mother with a confused look.

  “Tournament? What tournament?”

  “Oh, there’s some kind of tournament that will take place in Royal City. The winner gets any request from the King within reason and a kiss from the Princess. Your father was considering entering for a moment but you know how he did his back in. Maybe you can enter and try and get far in it.”

  “Any request from the King?” She paused for a moment as she thought about the possibilities that could take place from this. She saw it as her opportunity to earn her knighthood that they most desperately needed. “So, what do we do? Just go to Royal City near when the tournament starts?”

  “From what your father told me that’s not the case. He said that there were qualification rounds before you get there since it is a national tournament rather than a local one. I believe that the qualifiers are starting near Lake Town in a few days but I’m not entirely sure. Wait here just a second.” With that she stood up and walked away before returning a few minutes later with a slip of paper in her hands. She handed it to Maxine who began to look at it. “Everything about it is on here.”

  Maxine looked at the paper but her reading skills were subpar. Unlike her mother who was incapable of reading, Maxine was able to make out a few words but not enough to fully comprehend what was written. Instead she passed it over to Charles who began to look through it for her.

  Thankfully he was able to read and understand everything that was written down. From what he could see, it would be one of the biggest tournaments that Angleland had ever seen. It was expected that many knights and warriors would participate but only the best would be able to qualify for the main tournament in Royal City.

  Although Maxine remained stoic and calm, inside she was very excited as she imagined herself defeating every opponent in front of her and then being crowned the champion. Then she could prove all of her doubters to shame as she would earn the knighthood that she felt that she deserved.

  From Charles’s point of view, it was actually a promising as there was a cash prizes for finishing at certain levels of the tournament. Even if Maxine didn’t win, she would likely finish high enough for her to earn a sizeable prize. Although he doubted that anyone could defeat her. He had never seen her truly her struggle against an opponent while she was in her normal form. When she had been smaller, he had thought that a gust of wind would have defeated her.

  “Any idea about where I have to sign up?” asked Maxine as she looked over to Charles. He was still reading the letter and he quickly went back to the part that his very large friend wanted to hear.

  “From the looks of it, the you need to register in Lake Town and the qualifying rounds are taking place at the same time everywhere,” replied Charles. “I guess that they’re doing that to try and prevent someone from trying to re-enter the tournament.”

  “That does make sense. If someone were to lose, then they can’t just go to the next town or city over and try again. But still this is my chance for glory and of course you’re going to be by my side the entire way.”

  “What?” He was confused for a moment and he became worried about exactly what she meant. This was something that she was able to pick up pretty quickly and she placed her hand on his shoulder.

  “Don’t worry, I’m not expecting you to enter or anything like that. Instead I want you to be there to help and support me.” She couldn’t help but give him an uncharacteristic smile. “I don’t think I can do it without you.”

 “Thanks, I appreciate that.”

  Jessica watched on and she couldn’t help but feel happy about what she was seeing. She had feared that Maxine would never meet someone special to her thanks to her quest for knighthood. However, now she could see that Charles did mean a lot to her, even though she likely wouldn’t fully admit it.

  Although her thoughts were very happy about the situation, she couldn’t help but feel worried as well about Maxine entering the tournament. Although her daughter was incredibly large and strong, she knew that she wasn’t invincible. There was likely someone out there who could exploit her weaknesses and defeat her. A loss of that manner would likely devastate her and maybe even hinder her goal of becoming a knight.

  Any other thoughts that Jessica might have had were put to one side as she heard crying coming from one of the other rooms. Baby Rina had woken up and needed tending to, because of this, her maternal instincts kicked in and she made her way to her youngest and most likely final daughter.

  Maxine on the other hand had her mind on glory and she thought that the qualifiers would be a cakewalk for her. Now she would have to go to Lake Town and sign up before anything else happened. The sign-up period ended in four days so this gave them plenty of time to reach their destination and then sign up. As far as she was concerned, her quest was only a few stepping stones away from being completed.

One thing in particular that did disappoint Maxine was the fact that she wouldn't be able to see her father or other siblings as they wouldn't be back in time before they would have to leave. She had already decided that she was going to leave the next day so that she could make her way to Lake Town and compete in the qualifying round. There was a chance that she could spend a little more time at the Martel farm but she wanted to be sure that everything was in order beforehand. She was sure that her father would understand and she did hope that when she reached the finals in Royal City, he along with the rest of her family would be there to cheer her on.

For the rest of the day both Maxine and Charles made preparations for the upcoming tournament. This included making sure that her sword and armour were up to scratch. Charles made sure that her sword was sharpened and she would practice with to make sure that it still felt right. To some this would seem somewhat pointless as she had been using the sword for years by now so if it hadn't of felt right, she would have had it replaced some time ago.

Even so, she didn't want to leave anything to chance. As far as she was concerned, it would be the most important moment of her life, so she needed to ensure that it happened and that nothing could go wrong. Also, she had Charles read the letter to her several times to make sure that there were no details that were missed. One thing that she had noticed was that there was not a gender restriction. Even so, it would be difficult to state that as a woman she would have a disadvantage in the tournament.

There was one detail that Charles did find worrisome and this was the fact that there was a fee to sign up. For some knights it was a fee that was barely anything, however to him and Maxine it would be considered quite an investment. Not just that but if she were to lose, she would also lose the money that she paid to enter.

Already he was going over his book and looking at the money that had come in and out of their pockets. They had saved some money after the incident with Gwen as they had taken their money back after she had been defeated. Even so, they had not been able to take part in a job for some time and because of this she their finances didn't look as healthy as they would have liked.

While all of this was taking place, Jessica was keeping her eye on things and she too couldn't help but feel worried. The idea of her eldest daughter stepping into duels and going up against skilled knights was one that she felt was daunting. Her size and strength would only take her so far and Jessica thought that it might not be enough. She remembered the tournament that Sir Tucker had entered and won his knighthood, however he had not won the tournament itself. That time he was defeated in the second round, if not for the kindness of a Lord, he would have walked away with nothing.

Jessica feared that the same would happen to Maxine, but this time, no one would give her the kindness of knighting her. She felt that her daughter was building herself up to disappointment. This was something that she didn't want at all and yet she felt like it was coming to that.

After a few hours of practicing and preparation Maxine did eventually sit down at the main table of the house where she, Charles and her brother Jaime were all waiting for their dinner. Jessica was in the kitchen putting the finishing touches to it. Maxine wasn't particularly looking forward to this as it was her sister Carrie who would normally cook within the household.

They all knew that Jessica's cooking was subpar at best but she did still try her best to provide for her family. Even if it meant that she would have to cook up something that she knew that they wouldn't like she would still do it. She knew that she wasn't the best cook in the world, but she still did her best in this regard.

Eventually the plates of food were placed down in front of each person at the table. Maxine looked at it and she could see a slab of meat with some vegetables placed on the side. She wasn't particularly keen on eating it as she was well aware of her mother's cooking skills. However, there wasn't anything else that could be eaten at that moment in time and thus she took a deep breath and took a bite out of her meal.

Although it wasn't up to the standards that she would normally eat, she admitted that it tasted alright. It was obvious to her that her mother had put in a lot of effort into making it and her love was evident in it. She looked over to Charles who too was eating it, he didn't show any signs of discomfort in eating the meal. Instead he was just happy to have someone cook for him.

"So, you're really planning on entering this tournament?" asked Jessica after she had taken a bite out of her own meal. She knew that it wasn't the best but she still ate it regardless. It was the one aspect of motherhood that she was disappointed in herself for.

"Of course," replied Maxine. "It's my chance to earn my knighthood. Just like father did before me. You were there when he dropped down to his knee and the Lord of Indigon knighted him."

"I know that's what you want sweetie but I'm just saying that it's best not to get your expectations too high."

"What? Do you think I'll fail?" This was something that she couldn't believe was coming out of the mouth of her mother.

"Of course not, but I'm just saying that there is a chance that things might not go the way that you want. We all have dreams and expectations in life but not everyone will achieve said goals. I know that you want to be a knight, you've wanted that ever since you were five. But your quest to become one is much harder than the one that your father did. It's just that there are people who aren't exactly ready to see someone like you become a knight."

"Do you mean because I'm a woman?" Normally such a statement would greatly anger Maxine but because it was coming from her own mother. She bit her tongue and listened although she wasn't too happy about it.

"Yes, it is. I know that you're bigger and stronger than the majority of people, but I don't think that would be enough for you to win them over. Maybe you can find a Lord who is willing to knight you like your father did. But there are certain expectations in this land and one is that a woman stays at home and bears children. Not become a knight, I'm not saying that you should quit, far from it. I'm supporting you every step of the way; I'm just saying that there are some battles that you can't win."

"Thank you for your concern mother but they are unfounded. Once I win the tournament at Royal City, I will request that the King himself will knight me and then I can become Sir Maxine Martel."

"That's the thing, I remember what Charles read to you when you asked him. The winner would get a request from the King within reason. I wouldn't doubt that he would put knighting a woman as an unreasonable request."

This was something Maxine hadn't thought about and for the first time since hearing about the tournament, she couldn't help but feel a small amount of doubt. Even if she were to win the tournament, there was a small chance that her request would be unfulfilled. The cash prize would make the tournament worth it, but without the knighthood it would be a hallow victory at best.

Charles for his part stayed silent as he could see that this was more of a discussion between mother and daughter. He had his own words that he wanted to say, but he thought that it was best to wait to tell her in private. Instead he simply concentrated on what he was eating, although it was a little difficult to stomach it all.

"If the King is an honourable man then he will have no choice but to knight me," said Maxine as if she was trying to convince herself more than her mother.

Jessica wanted to think the same but she couldn't really know for sure. When she had been put on trial some time ago, she had met the King himself but that king had died recently and now it was his son who sat on the throne. This king, she knew absolutely nothing about so she couldn't determine whether he would knight Maxine if she won the tournament or simply laugh in her face.

"Of course, Maxine is going to be a knight," said Jaime. He didn't really understand what was being said but he wanted to help support his eldest sister as much as he could. "She has sword and armour just like Dad."

"It takes more than just a suit of armour and a sword to become a knight little brother," replied Maxine. Her voice was quite stern but she reached over and rubbed the head of Jaime. "But with you supporting me, I'll become a knight in no time." This time her voice was a little softer and she smiled at him.

The rest of the meal went without much incident and Maxine played with her youngest brother for a while as well. It was a little hard to keep up with him as he seemed to be filled with enough energy to power an army. However, as time went by his energy levels began to deplete.

After a while, he couldn't even keep his eyes open anymore and thus it was decided that he should go to bed. At first Jaime was very resistant about the idea of going to sleep but after a few short minutes he was almost fast asleep.

Rather than Jessica taking him to bed, it was Maxine who took her brother. This was because she was planning on departing the following day so he wouldn't be able to see her again for a good while. Not just that, but Rina was causing some problems that Jessica had to tend to. This way she could concentrate on dealing with Baby Rina while Maxine tucked her brother into bed.

Before Jaime went to sleep, Maxine told him a story involving a knight taking on a dragon to save a princess. It was a story that he had heard several times but he enjoyed listening to it every time. It brought a smile to his face every time that either his father or Maxine told him the story.

"So, the knight was able to defeat the dragon?" asked Jaime as he lay in his bed. He looked up at Maxine who sat on a large chair close by.

"Yes, he did," replied Maxine. "Because for how strong the dragon was, the knight was able to exploit his weakness and save the princess."

"One day, I'm going to fight a dragon and save my own princess." If he had the energy he would have jumped up in bed while stating this but instead he remained lying down and simply looked over to his sister.

"I'm sure you will little brother. But now it's time for you to go to sleep."

"Please, one more story? I want to hear about the one with the giant who was able to throw a mountain."

"Maybe next time, besides you can barely stay awake."

With that Maxine got out of her chair and gave her brother a kiss on the forehead. After picking up the chair, she wished him a good night before stepping out of the room and quietly closing the door. She couldn't help but give a small sigh before she moved the chair back to where she had found it.

Once she returned to the main room of the house, she could see Jessica sitting on a large seat with baby Rina in her arms. It looked as though she was going to sleep as well but wasn't quite there yet. Jessica wanted her baby to sleep, not just because she needed to but also so that she could have a little time to herself before she had to go to bed. Then the entire process would take pace once again the following day.

Charles too was sitting there as he was going over a lot of things in his book. There were many things that he was thinking through and writing them down was the best way for him to decide on what should be done. Money was still a big concern for him and since she was back to her normal size, the price to feed her had gone up accordingly. At least she could earn them money now through jobs, that is unless she spent it on pleasurable company.

It was around this time that Jessica looked over to him as he was writing a few things down. There was something that she wanted to talk to him about, but for the moment she waited as he continued to write in the book. Only when he put his pencil down and closed it did she know when the best time was to ask what she wanted.

"I couldn't help but notice earlier that Maxine was helping you train, am I correct?" asked Jessica. She did slowly rock Rina in her arms and it seemed like the baby was very close to falling asleep.

"Yeah, she did but I don't think that I did a very good job," replied Charles. He gave her a nervous smile. "It seems like my talents lie elsewhere." He also gave a sigh before he spoke. "I can't help but feel like I disappointed her."

"Oh, don't feel like that, I know that my daughter might have some difficulty expressing her more delicate emotions but I assure you that you did nothing of the sort. If she's pushing you it means that she cares."

"I know, but I sometimes feel that I'm simply holding her back. Nothing would make me happier than being able to fight alongside her and hold my own. But unfortunately, I lack neither the size nor skill to do such a thing. Instead all I can do try and stay out of the way and hopefully not get hurt in the process. Sometimes I feel like a coward doing something like that."

"It's alright, don't feel like that. Standing and fighting is all and good in some situations, but there are many where stepping aside or hiding yourself is the best course of action. If you know that you're going to be in danger then what you're doing is the right thing. I know that Maxine wouldn't want to see you get hurt. I can tell that you mean a lot to her. She doesn't work alongside many men for this long."

"I-It was because I owed her a life debt, but she states now that I don't owe her anything anymore."

"Even more reason to show that she cares. I know my daughter very well and if she didn't want you around, she would have left you in some tavern in the middle of nowhere. The fact that you're still by her side and she's brought you here twice means that she truly cares about you. Maxine might act tough and a bit of an ass at times but deep down she's a loving person. Although she doesn't want to admit it, she inherited more from me than just her height. If she berates you over something, it is because she doesn't want to see anything bad happen to you."

"T-Thanks Mrs. Martel."

"Please call me Jessica." She smiled at him again. "Mrs. Martel makes me feel old." She chuckled and Charles couldn't help but chuckle as well.

He also couldn't help but think back to the night at the murderous inn that he and Maxine had stayed at. However, rather than the life and death situation that they had found themselves in, instead it was when she had been under the influence of whatever drug that they had slipped into her ale. Then she was much more loving than she normally was and was more than willing to give him a hug.

To Charles, her behaviour then was stranger than he had expected. But in a way, he did like this more affectionate Maxine. Even though he did have a small fear that she might hug hum too tightly and break a bone. It didn't take much to remind him just how strong she was and how easily she could hurt him if she truly wanted to.

Just then, they heard the door open and when they looked over, they could see Maxine stepping inside of the room. She could see that her squire and mother had been talking to one another but right now she didn't know what they had been talking about. It didn't take much for her to assume that they had been talking about her.

It wouldn't surprise Maxine if Jessica had been talking to Charles as if he was some kind of future son-in-law. As long as she could remember, she remembered her mother saying that she wanted all of her children to grow up to be happy and not alone. This included her, even though the life she was choosing seemed to prevent her from building a real relationship like what was expected.

"Did he go down easily this time?" asked Jessica as she saw Maxine stepping into the room. "It was quiet so I'm assuming that he didn't throw a tantrum."

"Thankfully not as he knows that I don't have the patience for that," replied Maxine. She sat down on an empty chair close by, she thought that she would give her squire a little breathing room.

"Let's hope his days of throwing tantrums are behind him. Now did you say that you were planning on leaving tomorrow?"

"Indeed, we are, I want to sign up in Lake Town as soon as possible. Then I can sign up and maybe have another day or two of preparation. I'll mostly spend that time training Charles with the sword." Her squire didn't answer as he was still nervous about going through with such training.

"That's nice but don't be too hard on him, swordplay doesn't come naturally to him as it does you and your father."

"I will not sugar coat things if that is what you're referring to. That kind of thinking is likely to get you killed."

"Maybe, maybe not. But still, do you want to be in separate rooms. With the others gone for a little while, there's more than a couple of beds free."

"Well Charles?" asked Maxine as she looked over to her squire. He had been sitting in his seat and had been caught by surprise when the conversation had drifted his way. "Would you like to sleep in one of the other beds?"

"Y-Yes I would," answered Charles although he wasn't sure if he was sounding disrespectful or not. "T-That is if you don't mind."

"It's no problem at all," replied Jessica with a smile on her face. Charles couldn't help but feel happy as her expression and tone made him feel more welcoming. He was surprised that Maxine was more like her mother in this regard. "I'm sure that Carrie won't mind you sleeping in her bed."

"Thank you, I appreciate that Jessica." This got the attention from Maxine as she knew that her squire normally referred to her mother as Mrs. Martel. The only reason she could think of why he would be calling her by her first name now was because she had suggested it to him. "Your hospitality is very much appreciated."

"And it is a pleasure having someone like you in the house. I was always hoping that there would be a man who could reel Maxine in." Maxine didn't respond as she felt a little embarrassed and was afraid that she would berate her mother for such words. "If you make these visits a regular occurrence, maybe I can even look into getting your own bed here for when you stay."

"T-That won't be necessary mother," replied Maxine who kept her arms crossed and tried to hide the embarrassment that she could feel. "This visit is the last in a good long while that we're planning. After that I wouldn't be surprised if it's months, maybe even years before we return here."

"Oh, that is disappointing to hear. But at least I'll know that there's someone looking out for you." She chuckled for a moment and her daughter knew full well what she was talking about. This once again embarrassed Maxine a little but she said nothing about it, instead she just stayed quiet and dealt with it.

A few more hours went by and eventually, it became time for even the adults to go to bed. It was a point in time that Jessica didn't particularly look forward to as she didn't like having the bed to herself. She was used to having her husband lying next to her, but with him still on his trip, she would be sleeping alone. However, when he returned, she would be overjoyed and it would make their reunion that much more special.

Baby Rina slept in a crib that wasn't too far away from her parents' bed. She was already fast asleep and the crib that she was sleeping in had first been purchased when her eldest sister had been born. It had been used by each of the Martel children during their first year or so and in the mind of Jessica, it was a bit of a shame that none of her own children would use it after Rina.

Such things were not on the mind of Maxine as she climbed into her own bed in her bedroom. It was a little small for her but would do for the time being. It still felt strange to be back in her old room, it was even more surprising that it was still there. However, she knew that most likely that when Rina was old enough, she would move into this room and it would be converted into one for her.

Even so, she still found herself getting comfortable in her own bed and in a setting that was familiar to her. She had slept in the beds of many taverns and had even shared beds with others for pleasurable means. But there was nothing like sleeping in her own bed and just relaxing there in general.

Charles on the other hand was having a bit of a problem. The bed that he was lying in was much bigger than he had expected. Then again, he shouldn't have been too surprised as it was designed for a young woman who was eight and a half feet tall. Carrie might have lacked her older sister's muscles, but she still had her height and she could make herself even bigger if she wished.

One thing that he did notice was that Carrie's room was more feminine looking than Maxine's. Once again, this wasn't too surprising as Carrie was much more lady like than Maxine. She had been the one who regularly wore dresses and was waiting for a handsome prince to sweep her off of her feet and marry her. Even though her older sister had told her on more than one occasion that it wouldn't happen, simply due to the fact that someone like that wouldn't want a wife who was more than two feet taller than them.

Even so, Charles slowly started to drift to sleep in the giant bed although he was worried about this upcoming tournament. It wasn't his fear over whether Maxine would win or not, he was fairly confident that she had what she needed for victory. What worried him was that she wouldn't gain the knighthood that she wanted and would be severely disappointed by it. He didn't want to see that happen as he wasn't sure what she would do in that situation. He especially didn't want to find out.

Not too long afterwards, he and everyone else in the household were asleep and things seemed to be peaceful. However, near the crack of dawn there was the sound of Jaime running through the house. He had woken up early and was so filled up with energy that he couldn't help but run. He made no attempt to be quiet and this eventually woke up everyone else in the house.

This had been something that Jessica had gotten used to so she wasn't angry at her son for this, instead she just made him some breakfast and tended to Rina who too had been awoken quite early. For Maxine however it was a rude awakening, for close to an hour she tossed and turned in an attempt to fall back to sleep but it didn't work. Instead she was annoyed over the fact that her sleep had been disturbed.

Even so, her morning started with a large breakfast that she prepared for herself. After that she stepped outside and began to perform some stretches. This exercise was done without her armour and this gave her more movement. It was a peaceful time of day as there were still a lot of people who hadn't woken up yet or were still stirring. The birds were singing and the sun was up, although there were some clouds in the sky that did bring the threat of rain to the land.

Stretching wasn't the only exercise that she performed as she also did some press ups as well. She remembered doing these before she left to become a knight and she would have one of her younger siblings stand on her back while she did this. However, this time she didn't have any of them around.

Instead to make the press ups more challenging, she only used one arm and even so, it almost seemed too easy for her. Her muscular frame gave her more strength than she needed for this task. Maxine even contemplating putting her armour on and then attempting again as it would be more difficult for her.

Despite this, she continued her push ups and counted as she did them. She wouldn't stop until she had done at least a hundred, then she would swap arms and do it all over again. As far as she was concerned, her muscles mostly came natural to her, but if she didn't exercise and maintain them, then there would be no point in having them. They would likely turn into fat and that was no physique for a knight.

  By late morning Maxine found herself standing in front of her childhood home with Charles who stood by her side. Standing in front of them was Jessica with baby Rina in her arms, the baby was mostly quiet although she would gurgle every now and again. They weren’t alone as Jaime was standing next to his giant mother and he was only a little taller than her knee. It was obvious that he was going to be as tall as his father when he grew up rather than his giant mother.

  “You sure you don’t want to stay for a little longer?” asked Jessica. There was a small amount of sorrow in her voice.

  “I’m afraid not mother,” replied Maxine in a respectful tone. “We need to go to Lake Town in order to sign up for the tournament. Thank you for everything that you’ve done for us.”

  “Well what kind of mother would I be if I had just turned my back on you and your friend.” She smiled at both of them.

  “I-I don’t want you to go Maxine,” cried Jaime with tears in his eyes. He looked up to his giant eldest sister and wiped his nose. He watched as she crouched down and rubbed him on the head. “I want you to stay here so that you can tell me cool bedtime stories and be my big sister.”

  “I know you do Jaime but I cannot stay,” replied Maxine. She knew to be considerate to her brother and make things seem to be not as bad as he thought they were. “I need to earn my knighthood just like Father did before me. But while I’m gone, you need to look after Mother and our baby sister. They’re counting on you to be brave; can you do that for me?” Jaime nodded his head at her but quickly he did give her a hug. However, rather than feeling the warmth of her body, he felt the coldness of her metallic armour and there was something about it that he didn’t think was right.

  “It has been a pleasure having you both here,” said Jessica as she looked in particular at Charles. “Make sure that Maxine doesn’t get herself into too much trouble. She might be a little rough on the edges but deep down she’s a good girl.” Maxine’s face began to turn red thanks to the words of her mother and she would have liked to have said something, but she thought it was best to stay silent.

  “I-I will Jessica,” replied Charles who remembered not to call her Mrs. Martel by her request.

  Normally she would hug the both of them but since she had Rina in her arms, this was something that she simply couldn’t do. Instead their farewell was simply with words before Maxine turned around and began to walk away, she didn’t want to admit how much she had enjoyed visiting her home. It brought back memories of a simpler time in her life but now she was hopefully stepping towards her ultimate goal.

  Charles remained by her side as they both walked further and further away from the farm. Both Jessica and Jaime stood there and continued to wave for around another minute or so before they stepped back into the house. They knew it wouldn’t be too long before Sir Tucker and the other Martel children to return.

  If Maxine remembered correctly, Lake Town was a couple of days walk from Morgan so they had a long way to go. Before leaving she had ensured that they had plenty of food and water as well as a little coin. Her sword and armour were checked over and she even made sure that Charles had his sword.

  So far, he had only used it for training and if he could have his way, it would stay like that. He remained close to Maxine’s side as he knew that she wouldn’t let anything harm him. Although he feared that if danger did reel its ugly head that she would tell him to deal with it himself.

 The first half of the trip was mostly uneventful, the only thing that was really of note was that it began to rain hard. Because of this, they took shelter for a few minutes while the worst of it subsided. It was the kind of rain that could completely a soak a person after merely standing in it.

  Their shelter came in the form of a large tree which mostly shielded them from the rain. A few drops were able to make it through the leaves and drop onto their heads. Maxine’s help gave her further protection but this was something that Charles lacked so he had to put his hands on his head for the time being.

  Thankfully the downpour wasn’t a particularly long one as it soon subsided. The sun even came out and because of this, a rainbow appeared in the sky. For a moment Charles was able to enjoy it until he had to once again focus on the journey ahead of him. They mainly stuck to the roads as walking through open ground was unwise. The rain had turned it into mud and there was a chance that Maxine would get stuck.

  Even though she was very strong, it wasn’t always easy moving around in her armour and getting stuck in the mud wasn’t ideal. It was a problem that many knights faced on the battlefield and quite often it cost them their lives.

  A couple of times during the day, they did stop in order to rest. Rather than sitting on the drenched ground, Maxine was able to sit on a large rock. It was far from the most comfortable place to sit but it was better than being in the mud. Thankfully close by, there was another rock that Charles could sit on. It was smaller than the one being used by Maxine but for him it was ideal.

  One activity that the pair did engage in was more training, much to his sorrow. Since there were no dummies for him to try and cut through. Instead Maxine thought that it was best to teach him how to block. After giving him some information, she began to try and strike him with her sword.

  Her swings were much slower than they normally were so that it was much easier for him to block. Even so, he struggled and a few times he even dodged them so that he wouldn’t get struck. This was something that did annoy Maxine a little as it wasn’t the exercise for that just yet.

  At one-point Charles was able to block the attack, but it still struck with enough force to knock the sword out of his hand. In the mind of the large woman, it wasn’t because she had struck it too hard, it was because he hadn’t kept a strong enough grip on it. This was an error that could kill hm if he was not careful.

  After a while they decided that it was best to move on. Charles’s arms ached from the training and he felt quite low. In his mind, he was still disappointing her with his lack of progress. Maxine barely spoke of it as she knew that there was still a lot of work that needed to be done but she remembered the words from her mother. She had to be patient and remember that he wasn’t a natural warrior.

  Eventually they came across an inn which Maxine decided would be the best place for them to rest for the night. By then dusk had settled and it was dangerous to travel at night. There were still bandits who patrolled the area and there was also the threat of wild animals that could ambush them.

  After an entire day of travelling, the pair were thankful to find somewhere to rest for the night. Like usual Maxine’s size did draw some attention towards them as many patrons turned their heads and looked at them while they walked by.

  There were some whispers between them and Maxine did hear her name mentioned. She wasn’t sure if she should be worried about this but it seemed like her name was beginning to spread. It would make others wise enough to not try and insult her while others would probably face her as a challenge. Either way, she stayed vigilant as she wasn’t sure exactly what such notoriety would bring to her.

  Once they had gotten some food and drinks from the Innkeeper, the pair found themselves a table and sat themselves down on it. As usual, Maxine’s portion was much bigger than Charles’s and she quickly began to devour her food. All that walking had made her hungry and her large body burnt more calories than a normal person. It was a fact that she had dealt with for her entire life.

  “We seem to be making good progress Maxine,” said Charles. His arms were still aching from the sword training that he had taken part in earlier in the day. “We should be in Lake Town by late tomorrow at this rate.”

  “Good,” replied Maxine after she had taken another drink of ale. She enjoyed the fact that she wasn’t becoming extremely drunk after drinking a small amount like she had done while she was normal. “The sooner we get there, the better. I can sign up and make preparations as soon as we arrive. If we have time, I can even continue your lessons.”

  “R-Right.” He was nervous about this as he didn’t like the idea of him swinging a sword once again.

  Before Maxine could respond to this, she heard something from behind her. It wasn’t anything that was close enough to be a threat to her. Instead it was a thud followed by some cheering. This drew her attention to a table that was in the corner of the room, there she saw a large muscular man raising his arms and cheering. The people around him were exchanging money between them.

  There was a second fairly muscular man who was getting out of his chair and walking away with an annoyed look on his face. From what she could gather, they were having some kind of arm wrestle and there was money involved in it. The victor was still sitting down and was counting the money that he had just won. He was quite joyous and had a few too many drinks this night.

  “If any of your sorry sods thinks they can beat me, then come on over and I’ll prove you wrong!” stated the Muscular Man. He had long hair but was clean shaven. Even though he was sitting down, he looked to be around six and a half feet tall.

  “I will take that challenge,” replied Maxine. She had finished what she was eating but she had yet to stand up.

  “Then prepare to lose your money.”

  “Oh, I don’t think so.” By this point in time she had stood up to her full height. Her opponent’s confidence quickly subsided as he saw her for the first time. He hadn’t noticed her walking in earlier so her sheer size completely took him by surprise. As she stepped forward a smile appeared on her face and she had a small pouch of money with her. She placed it down on the table once she arrived and then sat down. “I take it that this is enough to buy me in?” The Muscular Man didn’t answer with words and simply nodded his head slowly. “Good.” She then placed her right arm on the table as she was ready for the arm wrestle. “Shall we get started?”

  With some reluctance, the Muscular Man did place his arm on the table and grabbed onto Maxine’s hand. The size difference between their hands was greater than he could have expected. Only on very few occasions did he ever come across someone larger than himself, never had it been a woman.

  More than anything he wanted to not go through with the arm wrestle but he could see people around him taking bets. If he were to back down now, he thought that he would be branded a coward. Plus, Maxine had paid up what she was supposed to in order to compete against him.

  Since she was wearing her armour, he thought that her large frame was also due to the padding inside. He thought that she was likely to be very skinny as he didn’t think that she was that muscular. However, when he felt her grip once she grabbed his hand, he realised that he was in trouble.

  The match itself barely lasted any time at all as the Muscular Man tried to win through traditional means. Maxine could feel his effort but without too much effort she was able to use her strength to win the contest. His hand was slammed to the table without too much force.

  Now that she had won the game, Maxine went to pick up the money that she had won but the Muscular Man looked at her for a moment. At first, she thought that he was going to cause some trouble but quickly he began to laugh. For the moment she did nothing as she was waiting to see what he did.

  “Ha that was a good match,” said the Muscular Man. He continued to laugh but it wasn’t in a mocking manner. “Never did I think that I’d lose on this night. But when it is against one such as you, well I shouldn’t have been surprised.”

  “Hmm it is nice that there is someone who takes their defeat with honour,” replied Maxine with a small smile on her face. “That is something that is hard to find in this day and age.” She still remembered when she defeated others in such competitions or sword fights and how they would react to it.

  “Well, there’s no shame in losing to a superior opponent. Why don’t you have a drink with me, just so I can say that I drank with the strongest woman in Angleland?” He continued to chuckle and it put Maxine at ease.

  “Very well, but my companion must join us.”

  “If you wish.” With that Maxine got up from her seat and walked over to Charles who had remained where he was during the arm wrestle. As she wished, he went over to where the Muscular Man was and he was surprised to see someone such as Charles. “This weakling is your companion?”

  “Is there a problem with that?” Maxine glared at him and crossed her arms as she spoke. Charles had seen this expression before and he knew what it meant. He was just glad that it wasn’t aimed at him.

  “N-No ma’am.” The Muscular Man was quite terrified by this and knew better than to question her in such matters again.

  Only moments later the trio found themselves sitting at the table. Those who had been there to witness the match had since dispersed leaving the three of them alone. Both Maxine and the Muscular Man drank ale while Charles simply drank water. Normally the Muscular Man would have said something to somewhat mock him for this but with Maxine being there he thought that it was best to stay silent on the subject.

  One other contest the Muscular Man thought of was some kind of drinking contest with Maxine. However, that too would have been a bad idea on his part as he thought there was no chance of him winning. Little did he know about just how much she could drink in one sitting. It was easily enough to kill most men.

  Charles didn’t really say much as he sat there and enjoyed his drink of water. He couldn’t help but think that the Muscular Man was planning something as many people that they had come across had some kind of ulterior motive. Because of this he remained vigilant while Maxine seemed to just be drinking away. He knew that he might have to remind her not to spend all of their money on booze.

 The truth was that she knew full well about how much they had and how much she could spend. They were still within the limit that they had agreed to before they had set out and she had plans for the money that she had just won. It was something that she was going to share with Charles in a way that he couldn’t predict.

  “Wherever you’re from they grow them big,” said the Muscular Man as he took a drink from his own ale. “Where do you hail from anyway?”

  “Morgan,” replied Maxine. Even though she could see that he was being friendly, she still stayed vigilant and even remained close to Charles. If things were to go downhill, she was sure to protect him.

  “Ah Morgan, that would explain your size. There was a rumour that there was a family of giants living there. I’m assuming that those rumours are true.”

  “Indeed, they are, my mother and sisters are all giants in their own right. Unfortunately, the gigantism doesn’t seem to affect the male part of my family.”

  “Ah I see, I’d say that’s odd but then again genes can be weird. My father is a short, skinny weakling and look at me.” He laughed at this and took another drink from his ale. “So where are you off to anyway? I’ve never seen you around here before so you must just be travelling through.”

  “We’re on our way to Lake Town, you hear about the tournament that’s going to be taking place?”

  “I read something about it and was somewhat tempted to enter myself. But unfortunately, my skills with a blade isn’t up to snuff if you know what I mean. But someone like you, I’d say that you’d be unstoppable.”

  “Hmm, I guess you’re right.” Although on the outside she remained quite stern but inside her ego was being stroked. Like the Muscular Man, she too thought that she was going to be able to win the tournament.

  “So, what’s your story anyway?” asked the Muscular Man as he looked over to Charles.  This caught him by surprise as he hadn’t really been expecting to be asked such a thing. In fact, he thought that he wouldn’t be noticed that much.

  “W-Well…” replied Charles as he was trying to think of what he should say. This made him nervous but he felt Maxine’s hand come down onto his shoulder. As he looked up, he could see a reassuring look on her face. This gave him some confidence and he felt like he could answer. “I travel with my friend here and fulfil the duties that she needs of me. She saved me from a beat down near Blanc and we’ve been companions ever since.”

  “Ah I see, let me guess. She does most of the grunt work and you do the more intellectual side of things. He then looked up at Maxine as he realised that he might have said something that would annoy her. “No offense of course.”

  “Y-Yeah that’s pretty much right.” Charles too became a little worried about what she would think upon hearing this. “Not that she couldn’t do it herself. Just so that she can focus on the more important things while I concentrate on the more menial side of things.”

  “Hmm, you both don’t need to worry,” said Maxine with a smile on her face. She had seen how the two men had not wanted to anger her. “It is wise to acknowledge one’s flaws, I accept that there are things that I wish I could do but can’t. Charles fulfils certain duties that are beyond me and for that I appreciate his efforts.”

  Charles looked up at Maxine and he couldn’t help but smile at her. Her words made him feel like she truly needed him. At times he thought that she would have been better off without him. This just reassured him that despite her size and strength that he did truly benefit her by being by her side. Plus, she was the only person in the world that he truly considered to be his friend.

  They continued to drink and chat with the Muscular Man for several more minutes. Eventually he did step away as it was getting late and he had to work the following money. He was still somewhat upset for losing his money but he was glad to have met someone like Maxine. At no point did he think of using some kind of underhanded technique against her. All he did was finish off his ale and go on his way. One thing he couldn’t help but imagine was if he were to have children with her what they would be like. Size and muscle were something that they were certain to have on their side. This was all just a fantasy of course as he went on his way to live the rest of his life.

  It was beginning to become late so both Maxine and Charles decided that it was best to retire for the night. They made their way up to the room that they had rented and as they entered the first thing that they noticed was that the ceiling was a little too low for the nine-foot woman.

  When she stood to her full height, her head touched the ceiling. Rather than standing up too fast, she had done so slowly so that she didn’t feel any pain. It was still annoying for her as it was just another reminder that everything in the world was just a little too small for her. Although it was something that she was used to, it didn’t mean that she didn’t find it annoying every now and again.

  Once they had entered the room, Charles helped Maxine remove her armour and he struggled to carefully put it down onto the ground. The last thing he wanted to do was to simply drop the pieces as he knew that this armour meant a lot to her. Not just that but it was close to impossible to find armour in her size. Because of this he was very careful and it seemed that his very tall friend appreciated this.

  It took a few minutes to remove all of the armour and it revealed her body that was underneath. This was something that not too many people saw and he couldn’t help but admire it. He knew that some of her physique was through magic while most of it was through hard work and determination.

  There was one thing in particular that they noticed and that was the fact that there was only one double bed in the room. Charles gave a sigh as he knew that this meant that he was going to have to sleep on the floor. He gave a sigh about this and this was noticed by Maxine who stood in a somewhat crouched position as she couldn’t stand to her full height.

  “What are you doing?” asked Maxine as she saw him beginning to get some nearby blankets and placing them on the ground near the bed.

  “I-I’m just getting ready to go to sleep,” replied Charles as he looked up at her. “It’s late so I was hoping that I could get some sleep soon.”

  “There is no need to sleep on the floor Charles. There is enough room in the bed for the both of us.” Charles doubted that as there was barely enough room for her thanks to her large body.

  “Y-You want me to sleep in the bed with you?” There was a small amount of confusion in his voice.

  “Of course, it’s better than you sleeping on the floor. Plus, it might get cold tonight, if you sleep in the bed, at least you’ll stay warm.”

  “A-As you wish.”

  With some care Charles did climb into the bed once he had stripped off the clothes that he didn’t want to sleep in. Maxine did the same as she was down to her undergarments. There, he could see all of her muscles and he couldn’t help but be impressed. Her physique was unlike any other in Angleland as he could see her six pack.

  It was still a little hard for him to believe that a short while ago, she had been small and weak. If he hadn’t of known that they were both the same woman then he wouldn’t have believed it. Then again, when magic was involved, almost anything could take place as far as he was concerned.

  Charles climbed into the bed and Maxine did so just a few moments later. They heard the bed groan as it seemed to struggle to support her weight. For a moment, he was concerned that it was going to break but much to his relief, it seemed to be holding.

  Under normal circumstances, people would think that this was some kind of sexual interactions between them. However, Charles knew better than this as it was merely a means of going to sleep with comfort. One thing he noticed was that Maxine had already gone to sleep. She was snoring softly and he thought that she looked quite cute while she was asleep, even though she was powerful to crush a man’s skull with her bare hands.

  Before he could properly get to sleep, he suddenly felt Maxine grab onto him and bring him close to her body. For a moment he thought that she was awake while she did this but as he looked at her face, he could see that she was still fast asleep. Despite this, her strength was still too great for him to break free.

  Charles felt the warmth of Maxine’s body on his and the softness of her skin. Even though he was in a position that he wasn’t expecting, he couldn’t help but feel warm and safe. As long as he remained with her, no one would harm him and he was sure that he wouldn’t be in any real danger.

  Something else that he felt was her face come down onto his head and a smile appeared on her face. Subconsciously she seemed to be enjoying what was taking place and it would take a lot for her to break out of her grip. Even some of her long red hair fell onto his face and he couldn’t really free his arms to remove it.

  Instead Charles had accepted that he wouldn’t be going anywhere until Maxine woke up and released him. He also thought that she probably wouldn’t want to admit to what was happening right now and he wouldn’t really speak about it unless she was the one who brought it up.

  Slowly he too fell asleep as the warmth and comfort that he felt was unlike anything that he had felt before. He wasn’t sure about what was going to happen in the tournament, he thought that it was best to start preparing to travel to Royal City after Maxine had competed in the qualifiers.

  But Charles couldn’t help but think that he might be thinking too far ahead. She still had to qualify and there was always the chance that she could fail, even though it seemed extremely unlikely. Even so, there was always the possibility and he had seen more unrealistic events take place.

Charles was the first to wake up and once again he found himself still stuck in the arms of Maxine. The large and muscular woman was still asleep and she still had the same expression on her face. In a way, he didn't want to wake her up as she looked peaceful and happy. However, they had a lot to do and he knew that she would likely be annoyed with him if she was to oversleep.

Carefully he began to poke her in the arm in the hopes that it would wake her up. She did react to this by groaning and at one point she did seem to be on the verge of waking up, only for her to fall back asleep again. Now it was his turn to be annoyed as although he felt safe in her embrace, he couldn't stay like that forever.

"Maxine," said Charles. His voice was soft but it did seem to resonate with her as he did get a reaction. "It's time to wake up now."

"Five more minutes Mom," replied Maxine almost subconsciously. It seemed like she still thought that she was at home and that Charles as her own mother. He decided to play along with this but he also felt the arms around him grow tighter.

"But you're not going to become a knight if you sleep all day. There's a nice, warm apple pie when you wake up."

"Apple pie?" This instantly made her open her eyes and she sat up with Charles still in her arms. The sudden movement caused him some surprise as he had been lying down but now, he was upright and with his face still looking at the chest of the large woman. "Where is it? Where is it?" She began to look around in the hopes of spotting the promised apple pie, only to see nothing of note.

"C-Can you please release me?" Immediately Maxine relaxed her arms and he was able to free himself quickly. He had a relieved look on his face but when he looked up at her, he could see a glare. It was one that sent a shiver down his spine as he could see that she was far from happy.

"Mr. Ingram." Her voice was flat and very matter of fact. "You stated that there was an apple pie here, you would not be foolish enough as to promise something that you don't have now do you?"

"O-Of course not." He realised that mentioning the apple pie was a big mistake on his part and he quickly got out of the bed and began to back towards the door. "I'll go downstairs and get you one right now."

He didn't care that he was simply in his undergarments. All Charles knew was that he needed to get that pie as soon as possible. He didn't even know whether there was any downstairs but he couldn't say no right now. He was sure that she wasn't going to hurt him, but it didn't mean that she couldn't take some manner of revenge in another way. This only motivated him to find what he was looking for.

A few minutes went by and Maxine found herself sitting in bed and eating a large apple pie to herself. Thankfully for Charles, he was able to find one downstairs and the Innkeeper allowed him to buy it. Under normal circumstances, it would be sold by the slice but he knew better than to get a mere slice. Instead he bought the entire pie and it had cost him more than he had expected. Then again, it was an important lesson, this was to never tempt Maxine with pie without backing it up.

Once the pie was consumed Maxine finally stepped out of bed and began to stretch herself. It seemed like she had a good rest but it was likely that she could have consumed more pies if they had been given to her. She looked over to Charles who had taken a moment just to write a couple of more things in his book. Odds were that he was recording the money that he had spent on the pie.

"A whole apple pie is the best way to start a morning," said Maxine as she finished stretching herself. She could only do this sitting down as it would have been impossible for her with such a low ceiling. "Although it would have been better if it had been warmed up beforehand."

"My apologies Maxine," replied Charles. He was just glad that her mood had picked up after eating her pie. "I'll remember that for next time." He hoped that there wouldn't be a next time but he still said it nonetheless. "Do you mind if I go over what we have planned for today?"

"Go on." By now she was getting up to her feet but was careful with how she did so. The last thing that she wanted to do was to hit her head on the ceiling.

"If we leave soon, we should be able to reach Lake Town at some point in the afternoon. Then you can sign up for the tournament and take part in the qualifiers the following day. You could always try to complete some kind of job in order to get yourself some extra money before signing up."

"Extra money, hmm that sounds pretty good for what I've had in mind. I haven't had a good time for a while, so if we earn some extra money then maybe we can visit the brothel." She gave a small sigh as she realised just how long since this itch had been scratched. "Maybe you can enjoy yourself there as well."

"I think I'll be alright."

"Oh, come on Charles, it's a good way to have a little fun. Those girls will know how to take care of you and they can cater to many tastes."

"Thank you for the offer but I'll still be alright, thank you." He was getting a little uncomfortable and this didn't seem to be picked up by Maxine all that much as she moved around a little in the room. She would have still preferred to be somewhere where she could stand up to her full height.

"Suit yourself." She couldn't help but think about spending time in the brothel and the numerous women that had satisfied her during her time away from her home. They satisfied certain needs for her and she would feel refreshed once she had visited one. Such a refreshment was needed in her mind before she entered the tournament. It would be like a pre-tournament session and she would likely go back again once she had qualified for the main rounds in Royal City. "Is there any place in this inn where I can bathe myself at all?" She couldn't help but push against the ceiling as she wanted to stand up straight but found herself unable to.

"I noticed a tub earlier, but I highly doubt that you'll be able to fit inside." He paused for a moment as he realised that he might have made a mistake. "No offense of course."

"None taken, I'm big and this world is too small for me. That's something I've been used to for a very long time. I'll just have to bathe in one of the lakes on the way. The only problem is that it's going to be cold. But I'm going to the brothel later, I'm going to have make sure I'm clean."

"To tell you the truth, I'd be more concerned about whether they're clean or not. They do say that they carry diseases and that you shouldn't trust them."

"Every brothel worker that I've met so far have been good and clean people. I think one of them even fell in love with me."

"I think she was paid to say that." This didn't get the reaction he expected as she didn't become angry and instead chuckled.

"You'd be quite surprised; I seem to have that effect on people after I've had my way with them so to speak. Anyway, have you eaten your breakfast yet?"

"I did pick up a little something while I was downstairs so I should be fine for a while." He had finished writing in his book and had now closed it as he had a good inkling about what was going to happen next.

"Then we shall go on our way now. Like you said, it shouldn't take us long to get to Lake Town. You wouldn't mind helping me put my armour back on, it's easier when you give me a hand."

"As you wish."

With that Charles got up to his feet and he watched as Maxine began to put the pieces of her armour on the bed. Before she fitted her armour onto her body, she changed back into her normal clothing and then with some care they got to work. Most of it she was able to do herself but there were some parts of placing the armour onto her that she found quite difficult. This included placing and securing it onto her back. Even though her arms were long, it was awkward to still reach that part of her back just like everyone else.

Thanks to Charles's help, Maxine was able to put her armour on in just a few minutes and this was the sight that he was used to seeing. Seeing her unarmoured was simply something that seemed abnormal to him. However, he still heard a small thud as her head struck the ceiling as she stood up. Since there wasn't much force behind it, there was no pain and she had been expecting it. But still she thought that if she were standing at her full height that her head would go right through the ceiling and only her shoulders and below would be able to be seen.

Once she stepped outside Maxine didn't have to worry about any ceilings. To her it was nice to be able to stand up straight for the first time since waking up. Now there was another problem that both she and Charles had to face.

Something that they hadn't noticed earlier was that there had been some black clouds in the sky and it seemed like as soon as they stepped outside, it began to rain heavily. The sound of the rain impacting on her armour could be heard and both of them were soaked through and through within minutes.

Normally they would consider going back into the inn and waiting until the rain subsided. However, this was something that they didn't particularly want to do as they needed to get to Lake Town. Not just that but they weren't sure exactly how long the rain was going to last so they could be waiting for hours. By the time the rain ended, it could be too dark to travel and their day would have been completely wasted.

Even so, trekking to Lake Town became more challenging as the road beneath them began to turn to mud in certain place. A nine-foot, heavily armoured woman was likely to get herself stuck or slip if she wasn't careful so she was sure to stay vigilant. If she were to fall and not be able to get back up to her feet, Charles wouldn't be able to help as she would simply be too heavy for him.

Charles was doing his best to stay dry and he noticed that the rain was pouring in a slightly crooked direction thanks to the wind. He used this to his advantage as he tried to manoeuvre himself around Maxine so that her large body would block most of the rain that was coming his way. He was still getting wet but it was better than what nothing.

This hadn't gone unnoticed by Maxine but she did nothing to stop it as there wasn't really much that she could do about it. The rain was more annoying than anything else for her and it did make her feel cold. The water was finding the spaces between her armour and going onto her actual body. Whenever she looked up, all she could see was grey and black clouds with raindrops falling into her eyes.

Eventually it got to the point where she felt that there was no choice but to stop and wait for the rain to subside. This was under a large oak tree that was right next to road, it looked as if it had been standing there for over a hundred years. The branches and leaves blocked most of the rain although a few drops were able to get by.

"Not exactly the weather for travelling is it?" stated Charles as he looked out across the road. The rain was still coming down hard and he felt cold. His clothes were completely soaked and he just wanted to have a hot bath.

"This is frustrating," replied Maxine with an annoyed tone. "If I knew that it was going to be this bad, I wouldn't have stopped at the inn last night."

"Well that's hindsight for you, there are many previous decisions I would have changed, if I knew what was going to happen. Like going after you and making a life debt to you." This got a glare from Maxine as she turned to look at him. It was somewhat intimidating but he still didn't fear her entirely.

"What was that Charles?" Her tone sounded like she was less than impressed with what he had just said.

"I'm only joking, don't worry." He chuckled quite nervously as he couldn't help but feel a little scared of the nine-foot woman.

"I'm in no mood for jokes." Even if she had been stuck at the inn, she would have been able to have a drink. Underneath this oak tree there was nothing that she could do but stand there and wait. For a moment, she did consider training Charles further but thought that it was unwise. The ground beneath them was too slippy and she didn't want either of them to suffer some kind of injury. A twisted ankle would be devastating if she wanted to enter into the tournament.

"Sorry, just trying to lighten up the mood. Lake Town still isn't far so it won't take us long to get there when the rain subsides."

"Even so, I still don't like just standing here and doing nothing. Plus, this rain just doesn't want to end." She then sneezed as it seemed the weather was getting the better of her. For someone of her size, Charles had expected a thunderous sneeze, but instead was fair quiet, high pitch and dare he say girly. There was a pause for a moment as he didn't know how to react to what he had just heard.

"W-Was that you just sneezing then?"

"Of course, it was, who else do you think it would be?" It seemed like her face was turning a little red with embarrassment.

"I have to admit that was probably the cutest sneeze I've ever heard." He chuckled to himself for a moment and this only seemed to make her more embarrassed.

"There are many words that describe things that I do, but cute is not one of them. Remember that next time you…" Before she could finish off her sentence, she sneezed again and like before it sounded quite girly and unbefitting of a woman of her stature. Her face began to turn redder than it had before.

"Next time I what?" He smiled up to her as he knew that he had gotten the better of her when it came to this matter.

"Never mind, just forget that you heard it and…" Suddenly there was another sneeze that was identical to the previous two. Both of them continued to stand there without either saying a word.

It was around half an hour later when the weather had subsided to the point where they thought that they could carry on their journey. The rain hadn't gone away completely but rather than the torrential downpour, it was much more like a light drizzle. It wasn't ideal for travelling but it was far better than it had been just a few moments ago.

All of this time, Maxine had continued to sneeze every now and again. They still had the same pitch and tone as her previous ones. Neither of them spoke about this although Charles couldn't help but chuckle once or twice. This always got a glare from her as she knew exactly why he was chuckling.

She couldn't help but remember when her mother told her that her sneezes were cute. This often led to a hug of some kind which only led to further embarrassment. It was similar to the one that she was experiencing right now and more than anything she simply wanted to forget about it.

Along the way, the pair were able to see other travellers make their way up or down the waterlogged road. Surprisingly enough, not many of them looked over to Maxine and instead just simply kept going towards their destination. They had been through the same weather as her and Charles also like them, they were soaked through. Some of them were even carrying wheat and barley and it was likely that by now that the water had gotten to them. All they could do was hope that it was still useable.

More hours passed by as they walked by one of the numerous lakes that gave Lake Town its name. Not just that but they could see the outskirts of Lake Town just over the horizon. It was only a short walk for them and this was something that they were both glad about. As they wanted to get there before the weather turned again, they had not stopped walking since leaving the safety of the oak tree. They hadn't even stopped to eat and because of that both hunger and fatigue was beginning to get the better of them.

The sight of Lake Town was a great relief for them and it even made them pick up the pace somewhat. The idea of bathing in one of the lakes or taking some kind of extra jobs to get more money was thrown out of the window for the time being. All they wanted at that moment in time was to find shelter and dry themselves off.

Rumbles could be heard from both the sky and the bellies of the two travellers. Charles was the one who was carrying his food in his satchel but he feared that the rainwater might have spoiled it. Even so, they would probably still eat it as when someone was truly hungry, they didn't normally care about the taste or quality of the food that they were given. As long as it was still safe to eat, that was all that really mattered.

With every step that they took, the entrance to Lake Town grew closer and closer. Maxine couldn't help but think about sitting down and eating a warm meat pie with a couple of barrels of ale by her side. There would be a fireplace right next to her and Charles would be sitting at the table just along where she was sitting. It was a nice little fantasy that she had in her mind for now.

Not just that but both of them would have taken their clothes off and would be wrapped in towels as their clothes would be hanging over the fire in order to dry off. Such a thing was only a dream at that moment in time as they continued to walk closer to their destination. Another of Maxine's sneezes could be heard but by now, Charles didn't even notice as he was tired, hungry and wet.

Much to their relief, they were able to reach the entrance to Lake Town which was guarded but many people were still coming and going as they pleased. At first, they thought that these guards would give them trouble but thankfully when they walked by them, neither of the guards moved and simply let them be on their way.

This made things a lot less complicated for the pair and they stepped into the closest tavern that they could find. After everything that they had been through, a rest and some food was just what they needed. Thankfully warm food and a decent drink was only a small price away and after everything that they had been through, they were more than willing to pay for such a comfort.

From the looks of it, Maxine wasn't the only armoured person who was enjoying the services of this tavern as there were at least half a dozen more who were present. As expected, all of them were men and only a couple of them were sitting together. The rest were all separate and if she had to guess, they were here too for the tournament.

None of them had noticed her as she was sitting down but since there were no pies available at the time, she instead was eating some fish. It was something that she normally would eat but with her limited options, she was more than happy to devour her food. Charles was in the same boat as her but he didn't mind eating the fish. Before he had met her, he was eating fish on a fairly regular basis.

There was one thing that he did notice and it made him chuckle for a moment. This was the fact that rather than having an ungodly amount of ale, she instead was drinking what was basically a large cup of tea. It seemed that even though she would have loved a drink of ale, after everything that she had been through, a drink of tea was actually more satisfying for her at this point in time.

Something else that they had noticed just across the street from the inn was a bathhouse. When they had first arrived, they hadn't really had an opportunity to be able to check out the prices but it was something that they were very tempted with. Charles was familiar with such bathhouses and they were normally consisted of two large baths. One would be allocated to men and the other for women. A large wall divided the two baths and ensured that the occupants of one side couldn't spy on the other.

Once both Charles and Maxine had eaten their fill at the inn, they quickly made their way over to the bathhouse. Much to their delight, the prices were reasonable and they would still have enough money for the entry to the tournament and for a bed along with food.

The person who was at the front desk of the bathhouse was more than surprised to see someone like Maxine walk through the door. Like some before them, they assumed that she was a man but once she took her helmet off, they could see clearly that she was a woman much to their shock.

This shock was quickly thrown to one side as Maxine and Charles both paid in order to use the baths inside. Unfortunately for them, they had to be separated at this moment in time as both made their way to the changing rooms. This would likely be the last that they saw each other until they had finished bathing.

Charles was a little nervous with going off by himself and upon entering the changing room, he was glad to see that he was the only person there for now. There were clothes and other personal effects so it was obvious that he wouldn't be alone in the bath itself. This he did find disappointing but not unexpected.

In her changing room, Maxine faced a similar situation as she too was alone. However, she had some more difficulties than him as she had to take her armour off by herself. It was a task that wasn't impossible but rather annoying for her. She wished that she had Charles with her but they were still divided up.

For the next several minutes, Maxine continued to take off her armour and once she had finished this task, she took off her normal clothing which thankfully was a much easier task. Once this had been done, she calmly walked out of the changing room and towards the bath itself.

The bath was pretty empty as there were only two other women there. They were sitting near the corner and talking to one another. Neither of them noticed Maxine entering and so gave her no fuss as she stepped into the water and the first thing that she noticed was just how warm the water was.

Since she normally bathed in bodies of water such as lakes and streams which typically had very cold water. Feeing warm water on her skin gave her a relaxing feeling, even though it seemed quite shallow to her. Once she sat down, an average woman would be up to their shoulders but when Maxine did this, it didn't even come up to her chest. Because of this, she leaned back so that more of her body could be submerged within the warm water.

The large woman couldn't help but groan as she felt completely relaxed within the water. Most her of body was submerged and only her head could really be seen. A part of her wanted to go to sleep but she kept herself away as she knew how dangerous it could be to do such a thing.

Instead she simply stayed awake and relaxed within the water. A part of her wished that she had done this sooner but she also thought about Charles. She hoped that he would be alright during his bathing session. She was somewhat worried but she also remained calm as she knew that he was an adult and that he could look after himself. Even though she might want to protect him all the time, she knew that this was impossible and there would be some situations that he where he would have to fend for himself.

In the other pool, Charles was experiencing pretty much the same as Maxine. He was enjoying the warm water and couldn't help but feel relaxed. After being stuck out in the rain earlier, having a warm bath like this was just what he needed. Although he couldn't help but feel a little nervous.

As he had expected, he wasn't the only one enjoying the bathing pool as there were other men inside as well. Most of them kept to themselves and were simply bathing but there were a couple who had noticed him enter the pool. They had found it odd that a man such as Charles would come and bathe by himself, plus his darker skin tone did make him seem more unusual around this part of the world.

For now, Charles was left to himself as he continued to bathe himself, not just that but he also went to sit down onto the bottom of the pool. His head was just above the water line and he was glad that he wasn't any shorter than he was. He could see the steam from the water rising up and it made him feel a warm feeling inside.

He couldn't help but imagine that he was in a hot spring set in mountainous terrain with snow and cold winds blowing around him. He had read about such places in books and wouldn't mind going to visit them himself. Unfortunately, they were all a very long distance away from Angleland. Although this country did have some mountains, none of them had hot springs and thus for now the experience was limited to his imagination.

"Hey you!" stated a voice. At first Charles simply ignored it as he didn't think that they were speaking to him. He was sure that they were referring to someone else as there were many other people in the pool. "The bloke with the black hair." Charles turned his head and saw a couple of men sitting near the edge of the pool. They were looking directly at him and he realised that they were speaking to him. "Come over here, we wanna ask you something important."

The man who was calling him had a long red beard and a bald head. He was very largely built and even though he was sitting down, Charles could tell that he was a very tall man, maybe a foot taller than himself. The man who was sitting next to him was a large man himself. His thick beard was black and he had a full head of hair. Like the other man, he had a large build but looked to be slightly shorter than his companion.

"Y-Yeah what is it?" asked Charles. He had moved towards them and he had made sure that his private parts were below the waterline as he didn't really want to expose himself in front of them.

"You here for the qualifiers?" replied the Red Bearded Man. His voice was quite gruff but also welcoming. If he wanted to, he could likely beat Charles to within an inch of his life if he so pleased.

"Yeah."

"I take it that you're a spectator because no offense, I can't see someone like you entering with a reasonable expectation of victory." He was still smiling at him and it did make him feel easier.

"I-I'm actually here as a squire. The person I've been squiring for is going to be entering the tournament. I'll just be there to help her out."

"What was that last part again?" replied the Black-haired man.

"I'm helping her out." He then realised what they had noticed and he was sure that he was going to get ridiculed in a few moments.

"You're a squire for a woman?"

"Y-Yeah I am." Suddenly both men began to laugh loudly while Charles simply remained where he was and watched. There wasn't doing anything that could offend the men as this was the last thing he wanted to do. Without Maxine's protection, he was in a place where he was vulnerable.

Before Charles could say another word, he heard both of the men laughing their heads off. To them it had been like hearing the world's funniest joke as they couldn't get over what they had just heard. Charles himself just remained where he was and didn't really react to it as he didn't want to do something that led to a direct confrontation.

The laughter lasted for around a minute and seemed to be dying down for a moment, only for it to pick up once again. All through this time, Charles couldn't help but feel embarrassed by this, he knew that they wouldn't be laughing if Maxine was there but right now, he was on his own and had to fend for himself.

"Oh, I haven't had a good laugh like that in a very long time," said the Red Bearded Man. By then the laughter had become nothing more than a chuckle as they had gotten it mostly out of their system.

"To think a woman entering the tournament," replied the Black-Haired Man. "I thought that I'd heard of everything but I guess I was wrong."

"And she has him for a squire, I don't know what's more unbelievable."

"If you're quite done, I think I'll be on my way," replied Charles who simply wanted to get away and enjoy the rest of his bath although he wasn't sure if that was going to be a possibility now.

"Hey wait one moment, we just want to know. This woman that you're squiring for is she hot? Is she someone that I could easily mount?"

"I doubt it, now I bid you good day."

Charles went to move away but felt a large hand come down onto his shoulder. This caused him to stop where he was and he was almost too afraid to turn around. Instead he turned back around and could see the Black-Haired Man standing there. He had stood up and moved towards him which meant that Charles could now see a part of him that he preferred not to see.

"Hey there now," said the Black-Haired Man with a smile on her face. Charles could see some of his teeth, they were mostly yellow and those were the ones that he had. There was a fair amount that were missing. "We still haven't asked you the important question yet, we were going to ask you about taking a bet but instead we have a better idea. Both my friend and I are entering the tournament and if we happen to go up against your lady friend. Well, how about this, she takes a dive for us and we'll make sure that she gets properly compensated since that's the name of the game, money."

"I-I don't think you can give her what she wants," replied Charles. He knew that more than anything that Maxine wanted a knighthood and no amount of bribery could prevent her from trying to achieve this goal.

"I'm sure that I can." From his mannerisms and tone, Charles could tell exactly what he was talking about. It made him feel uncomfortable and he was sure that Maxine would be none too pleased if she could hear him now. It would have been likely that he'd lose the rest of his teeth.

"I-I'll ask her for you when I see her next."

"Oh good, if she wants to make a deal, then meet us just outside of the registration office at around four today. Maybe if she's looking for a good time as well, we can accommodate that as well."

"I-I'll let her know."

With that Charles was able to move away as it seemed like the men had said what they had wanted. He did intend to tell Maxine about them, but it was greatly unlikely that she would take them up on their offer. Although a price hadn't been set, he knew that even if they promised her a castle, she would still turn them down. Her goal was too important to her to give away for such a thing.

In the other pool, Maxine was still enjoying the warm water and the relaxing feeling that it gave her. A part of her just wanted to bathe in there forever, however she knew that she simply couldn't do that. Instead she knew that if she wanted to earn her knighthood that she couldn't indulge in such pleasurable things.

Instead she slowly rose out of the water and began to make her way towards the exit. Once she stood up, she could hear the whispers of some of the other women inside of the bathhouse. These were the ones who hadn't noticed her before and now they were taken by surprise.

A couple of them were thinking of complaining since due to her muscles they thought that she was a man. However, when they saw her breasts and the fact that she lacked a penis, they soon realised that she was a woman. None of them knew how a woman could get as large as her and none of them dared to confront her. They feared that she would tear them in half if they said the wrong thing to her.

Either way, Maxine simply ignored them and made her way into the changing rooms. It took her longer than she would have liked to dry herself off as the towels available were simply too small for someone of her stature. This was something that she found very annoying but she carried on regardless as there was nothing else, she could do in this situation.

Once she had finished, she stepped out of the changing rooms and simply waited for Charles to return. The wait was around fifteen minutes before her squire stepped out from the changing rooms. He was mostly quiet and he was glad that he had gotten away from the situation previously without getting hurt.

Now that he could see Maxine again, his fears were set aside and he smiled up to her. He would have loved nothing more than happy to have run up to her and hugged her. But he stopped himself from doing so as he thought that she might find it embarrassing. Plus, they were in a public place so he didn't want to do such a thing.

"Hello Charles," said Maxine as she watched him approach her. "Did you have a nice bath?" There was a warmness to her voice that he wasn't used to and he quickly nodded to her.

"Y-Yes I did," replied Charles. "But there's something that I need to discuss with you, somewhere more private."

"Very well." She could see that he was somewhat worried about it and thus thought that she should take notice of what he said.

A couple of minutes later the pair found themselves just outside of the bathhouse in a sheltered spot as it was still raining heavily. There Charles told Maxine about what had taken place in the bathhouse and the two men who wanted to make her an offer. He also told them how they had laughed about the fact that he was squiring for a woman. This was something that she found very annoying and she wished that she had been there to put them in their place.

However, she thought that if they were indeed entering the tournament that her opportunity to face them would come. Even though she hadn't been present, she felt that her honour had been tarnished and that Charles had gone through an embarrassing event that was simply unjust.

Now that they had bathed, both of them made their way towards the registration office for the tournament. Both kept their eye on the time as four o'clock was when the two men wanted to meet up with Maxine to try and make a deal. Since they had not seen her in the flesh or even realised who she was, it was unlikely that they even realised just how big and powerful she was.

The search took slightly longer than they would have liked as they needed to stop for directions in order to find what they were looking for. It was a relatively small building and thankfully there was no one queuing outside of it so it was only a matter of going inside and doing what needed to be done.

For a moment, Maxine didn't know whether they were in the right place but Charles was able to read a sign that was close by. This was the clear indication to him that they were indeed in the right place. There they could see someone sitting behind a desk with a couple of other people standing close by as security.

Neither Maxine nor Charles intended to cause any trouble as they began to go through the process of signing her to the tournament. There were a few minutes of confusion as the Register began to look through some of the paperwork and small print as he wasn't sure whether a woman could enter the tournament. There had been an age restriction but this wasn't a problem for her as she was beyond the youngest allowed age.

Once it was determined that her gender couldn't prevent her from signing up, they went through the process of filling out the paperwork and paying the entry fee. Unfortunately, it was a little more money than Maxine was hoping to pay. She could afford it, but it also meant that she wouldn't be able to visit the brothel. This would have been something that she could have done if she hadn't been alongside Charles but casting him off so that she could have some intimate time with a sex worker never crossed her mind. Not only did she see him as her friend but she also could see how valuable he was to her.

When it came to Charles there was further confusion but thankfully it only lasted for a moment. Since he too was armed with a sword the Register assumed that he too was signing into the tournament. He soon realised that Charles was there as a squire and thus he was allowed to sign in under Maxine. Each competitor was allowed to have a squire or some kind of helper sign in alongside them, but they were not allowed to compete. This was something that wasn't a problem as he didn't have any desire to compete.

Once everything was in order both of them made their way out of the building as the qualifiers didn't begin until the following day. This gave them a little opportunity to go around and enjoy some of the scenery of Lake Town. Maxine remembered her parents telling them about when they had arrived here, it had been near the start of their quest and there had been a couple of incidences.

One included Sir Tucker getting into a heated disagreement with another man and leading to a duel in the street. It would have likely ended with someone getting at least a cut, but Jessica had stepped in and took her future husband away. It had led to a disagreement between them later on and a story to tell their children.

Suddenly, Charles realised that it was getting close to four o'clock and he remembered that he was supposed to meet the two men that he had met in the bathhouse. Maxine knew all about it and already they had thought of a plan. She had been informed about what they had said and she was far from impressed.

At around the right time and place, Charles found himself standing there and waiting for the men to arrive. Maxine was also present but she had hidden herself out of sight, this was no easy feat for a woman of her size but she had been able to find the right hiding spot. For now, she was completely out of sight.

For the next few minutes, they simply waited. There was a short time that Charles thought that the pair would not turn up. However, just as he was going to say that they weren't coming, he saw them approaching. Both of them looked very large and bulky as they were glad in armour. The only part of their skin that he could see was their heads as the rest was completely covered up with armour.

They both seemed quite happy to see him as like him, they thought that he wouldn't turn up. They were somewhat surprised to see that he was alone as they had assumed that Maxine would arrive shortly. Charles was still nervous but he kept his composure and waited to hear what they were about to say.

"Oh, you're actually here," said the Red Bearded Man. "Looks like I owe him a drink." He pointed towards his friend while he said this before focusing back on Charles. There was a smile on his face as he thought that they were both in charge of the situation. "Since your lady friend is entering the tournament, we can pay her a little money in order to ensure that we progress. If she were to face either of us, she can take a dive so to speak and then we can compensate her financially. If she wants, maybe we can compensate her in a different way as well." It didn't need much for Charles to realise what he was talking about and he knew that Maxine could hear them.

"Where is she anyway?" replied the Black-Haired Man. He began to look around a little in the hopes of seeing the woman who Charles was squiring for. However, neither of them bothered to turn around and look behind them.

"She's behind you," answered Charles as he pointed behind them.

The two men turned around and saw what they had hoped would be a stunning woman. However, when they did turn around, the first thing that they saw was the armour-clad chest of Maxine. Slowly they began to crane their head up until the could see the face of the giantess. Neither of them could have guessed that she was so large and when they looked at her expression, they could see that she was far from pleased. Both of them were around six and a half feet tall, but they felt very small in comparison to her.

"Are you suggesting that I take a fall so that you can win these qualifiers easily?" asked Maxine in an annoyed tone. She wanted to hammer in the fear to them and it seemed like she was successful. "You truly are pathetic if you have to resort to such tactics to ensure victory. What kind of men are you?"

Neither of them could really answer this as they were both in awe and fear of her. Never had they seen a person so large in their entire lives and since they were used to being the larger people in a situation. This was a major change for them as they hadn't felt this small since they were children.

"I heard about what you said the bathhouse," stated Maxine as she continued on with what she was saying. "Not only do you insult me but you also embarrass my squire! Do you have something to say to him?" Slowly both of the men turned around and apologised to Charles for what they had said earlier and laughing at him. He in turn was amazed to see this taking place, he was just glad that Maxine was on his side. "Normally I would show you just how unhappy I am but today is your lucky day. Since we're all competitors in the qualifiers, that means I'd be disqualified if I were to attack you here and now. So, because of that, I'm letting you go unharmed."

"T-That sounds good to me," replied the Red Bearded Man who was more than worried about the situation. He was glad to hear that she was going to let them go. On more than one occasion he had thought that she was some kind of performer on stilts and that the armour made her looks so large. But when he saw the manner of how she moved and simply how big her head was, he realised that she was indeed that large.

"Oh, and one more thing before you leave." She smiled for a moment before her expression turned into a glare. "You better pray that we don't meet in the tournament or else I would gladly crush your skulls in my hand. Do I make myself clear?" Both men took a nervous gulp before nodding to her. "Now get out of my sight before I change my mind. Hope that you don't see me again."

"R-Right ma'am," replied both of the men before they both began to move away from Charles and Maxine.

Although they were panicking, they didn't run completely as they wanted to save some face. Instead their movement was more like a powered walk and Maxine watched them with every step that she took. Once they were out of sight she looked over to Charles and her expression changed. Rather than glaring she did look somewhat concerned as she stepped closer to him and showed some concern.

"Are you alright Charles?" asked Maxine as she showed genuine concern for him. She watched as he nodded to her.

"Y-Yeah I'm fine," replied Charles with a small smile on her face. "To tell you the truth, I'm surprised that you didn't just punch them. That is your normal route when somebody insults you."

"As I said, if I did that then I would be disqualified. Plus, punching people isn't the solution to every problem. Just the majority of them."

Charles looked up to her with some surprise as he thought that Maxine was showing more maturity than she had before. In a way, he had almost forgotten that she was actually quite young. With her personality and the way that she presented herself, it made her seem older than she actually was.

It took a moment a for him to remember that she wasn't even twenty years old yet. If he were to guess, he would have thought that she was getting close to thirty thanks to her appearance and demeanour. One thing that he was glad about was the fact that she wanted to keep him safe.

"So, what do we do now?" asked Charles. "The qualifiers aren't until tomorrow and there aren't any other errands that we can do. You could possibly find a quick job if you want but I've been thinking that it is best not to do that right now. You don't want to be fatigued before tomorrow and any kind of injury could be a problem."

"Hmm that's true," replied Maxine. Although she was practically convinced that such a thing was of little concern, she still gave it thought. If she were to injury her leg, it would make her even less manoeuvrable. Such a thing would make even the most minor of threats a serious issue. "Let's find an inn and rent a room. I need to rest up so that I'm ready for tomorrow."

"As you wish. I think the one that we visited earlier was full so that one won't be an option."

"Don't worry, there are plenty more inns around Lake Town. We'll find another one and while we're there I need you to promise something to me."

"And what would that be?" He was curious but at the same time, he couldn't help but feel worried as well.

"If you think I'm indulging too much later, put a stop to it. Even if I threaten to snap your neck, you'll still do what I've asked. Can you do that for me?"

"I-I can do." He didn't like to hear being threatened to have his neck broken but he knew that she wouldn't harm him. Such a threat towards him would be an empty one but there was also the promise that she had made to her mother.

With that, they began to look through the town in order to try and find a room for the night. However, this was a task that was more difficult than they had expected as each one they visited were filled to capacity. It began to get on Maxine's nerves as normally there wouldn't be much of an issue finding a room. But the fact that the qualifiers were taking place, there were some people who were coming to town in order to watch it.

Because of this, it seemed like almost every inn in Lake Town. They found themselves still searching as darkness began to fall. The temperature was dropping and there was the treat of rain once again. After what they had experienced earlier that day, being caught in another downpour was something that they didn't want again.

It seemed like they were travelling in circles as quite often, they would walk near inns that they had visited before and discovered that they were full. It looked as though they would have to sleep outside for the night. This was a far from wise choice given the circumstances but as time seemed to go by, there wasn't much of a choice.

Eventually, both Maxine and Charles found themselves standing outside of an inn that was right on the edge of the town limits. The temperature was dropping and there were some rumbles in the sky as they feared that it would rain at any moment. Without much hesitation they made their way inside and the first thing they saw was a tavern filled with patrons who were having a drink.

This made them feel like their chances of finding a room was minimal. If even half of the people inside of the tavern had rented a room, there would be no chance that the large woman and below average size man would find the accommodation that they needed. However, despite this, Maxine still stepped towards the counter of the tavern and she could see the innkeeper who was standing on the other side.

The first thing that she noticed was that the Innkeeper was a woman which was unusual in this profession but not unheard of. Plus, she was a fairly tall woman in her own right as she was around as tall as an average man. This still made her seem very small in comparison to Maxine but right now that wasn't important. Instead it was finding a room for the night and getting sufficient rest.

Even so, the Innkeeper couldn't help but feel intimidated as the giant woman loomed over her. From the expression on Maxine's face, it was obvious that she wasn't in any kind of mood to joke around. But before she could speak there was a flash of light that filled the inn for a moment before there was a loud rumbling sound a few seconds later. This only seemed to add to the intimidation of Maxine, even though for the time being, all she had done was stand there and look at the Innkeeper.

Several moments went by Maxine stood there, the sound of the rain that was now pouring down outside. If she hadn't seemed terrifying before to a normal person, she certainly did now. There was also a look of annoyance on her face as she and Charles had been to several inns that day and each told them that they were full.

"C-Can I help you?" asked the Innkeeper. She always considered herself a tall woman but next to Maxine's she felt tiny.

"My squire and I require a room," replied Maxine who didn't realise that she had just rhymed. To her it wasn't important as she simply wanted to find somewhere to rest for the night. "Do you have any spare?"

"I-I think that we do have a room but..."

"That'll do." Maxine quickly interrupted the Innkeeper before she could explain anything about their room. To the large woman it didn't matter, the only thing that was important was that it was unoccupied."

After paying the fee for the room, both Maxine and Charles followed the Innkeeper and it wasn't long before they came to their room. However, it wasn't what they expected as they looked into the room that they had just rented. The first thing that they noticed was just how small it was. The ceiling was relatively low and the walls were quite close to one another, it seemed like there was no room to really move.

Worse still, there were no windows inside the room so the only light came when the door was open and that was barely any to begin with. As Maxine made her way into the room, she could feel the walls on either side and her head striking the ceiling. She was too big for the room, as far as she was concerned, any average sized adult would be too big for the room in question.

There was also no bed to speak of and if Charles had to guess, this was a room that was used for storage more than anything else. But all the objects had been cleared out so that it could be used to house people who were desperate for a room, such as themselves. They couldn't didn't have a choice but to stay inside as there were no other rooms left in any of the other inns that they had visited.

"Well, I guess this is where we're staying for the night," said Charles as he tried to find the bright side of their situation. Unfortunately, there wasn't really much that he could see that could make things better. "I think I'll take this side of the room and you can take the other, what do you say?"

"I say you help me out of my armour and we can go to sleep," replied Maxine who was far from pleased with the situation. The room made her feel somewhat claustrophobic as her body was simply too big for the room.

"A-As you wish."

The task of removing Maxine's armour was incredibly difficult in such a small space. Not just that but they had to keep the door open so that they could get as much light into the room as they could. A task that normally only took a few minutes, inside here it took over half an hour to complete the job.

Even then, there was a problem with where to put the armour after it had been removed. There was so little space that when Maxine lay down, she could feel her armour pressing against her feet. Not just that but Charles had to lay down beside her again, the ground was hard and cold but it was still better than lying out in the rain.

Even though the floor was cold, he still felt warm as Maxine's body heat helped with this greatly. Like the night before, she couldn't help but wrap her arms around him as she drifted off to sleep. With everything that had happened that day, she really needed a good rest to make sure that she was ready for the morning.

A sleeping arrangement such as this wasn't ideal as what she really needed was a comfortable bed and enough room to move around. Her feet were pressing against her armour and her head was very close to the door. Even when she tried to curled up, she still felt quite compressed and to her it was annoying.

However, Maxine still enjoyed having her friend in her arms and it did help her to sleep. To her she had a lot to look forward to as she thought that getting through the qualifiers would be her first step towards knighthood. Because of this she began to sleep with a smile on her face, as far as she was concerned. Everything was going to go well.

Hours passed and eventually Charles was woken up but he still found himself in darkness. With no windows in the room and the door shut, it was close to impossible to determine what time of day it actually was. Because of this, he slowly got up to his feet and this time he noticed that he was able to get out of Maxine's grip. It hadn't been as strong as it had been the previous night so that was a good reason for it.

Carefully he stepped over the sleeping giantess and opened the door. He had to shield his eyes from the bright light that suddenly came flooding in. For several moments he couldn't see a thing but after almost a minute, his eyes adjusted and he could finally see clearly in the light.

From what he could see, it was morning and there were also some people who were up and moving around. Charles was able to ask the time from one particular patron, this was when he realised that they didn't have too much time before they had to arrive at the qualifiers. There was still some time but he thought that if Maxine slept for much longer, they might not get there in time.

Quickly, he went over to the sleeping giantess and attempted to wake her up. Like the day before, this was a very difficult task as nothing he did seemed to do the trick. He even resorted to slapping her cheeks but this still didn't work either. She was sleeping like a log and it seemed like she would only wake up when she wanted to.

Suddenly an idea did appear in Charles's head as he quickly picked up some money and then made his way downstairs to the main area of the inn. Around a couple of minutes later, he returned with what looked to be a cherry pie. Carefully he placed it not too far away from her face, it was similar to the technique that he used the previous day but he had learned his lesson from it.

"Maxine," said Charles. He could see her nose beginning to twitch as she was beginning to pick the smell of the pie. "I have a nice piece of cherry pie for you here, but you're going to have to wake up."

"Cherry pie?" replied Maxine as her eyes quickly opened. Before Charles knew it, the muscular giantess had sat up and taken the pie out of his hands. He looked and he could see that it was gone within a couple of bites. It wasn't enough to satisfy her but it had done the job that it needed. She was awake and she quickly looked towards him with some anticipation. "Is there any more?"

"That's not important right now." There was a small amount of distress in his voice. "You have the qualifiers to participate in and if you're not there in forty-five minutes, you're going to get disqualified."

"Forty-five minutes?" This made her even more alert than she had been before. "Then what are we doing? We have to go, right now!"

Quickly Maxine got up to her feet but in her haste, she forgot just how low the ceiling was. Because of this, there was a loud thud as her head struck the ceiling. There was a grunt of annoyance from her as she was far from pleased with this. But she faced a further problem of putting on her armour.

Of course, Charles was there to help her but even so, in the limited space it was a very difficult task. This activity took around fifteen minutes off of their time so when they were finally ready to leave the inn, they only had half an hour in order to get to where the qualifiers were taking place.

Originally, they had planned on eating some breakfast before leaving but now it was an impossibility as they rushed as fast as they could. Maxine however was having difficulties moving at such speeds. Her armour still restricted her movement but taking it off wasn't an option. Instead she would have to endure and hope for the best while she could hear her armour constantly striking itself.

Missing breakfast could prove to be a costly mistake and for Maxine in particular she hadn't drunk her ale that often helped her get up in the morning. Plus, she did need food to keep herself going as her large body needed energy. She had eaten a piece of pie earlier but for someone of her stature, that was nothing more than a sweet snack.

Running was also somewhat difficult for Charles as although he was able to keep up with the armoured giantess, he was still getting use to moving around with his sword. Feeling it moving around somewhat awkward for him and he was afraid that it would strike him as he ran and cause some kind of injury to himself. However, since it was sheathed, this was something that wouldn't happen. Even so it was still a worry but like her, he couldn't stop in order to make himself more comfortable.

Several people did look at them as they ran by as they thought that it was interesting and also quite comical. There were a few chuckles that could be heard and normally Maxine would give them a glare or some kind of harsh words but this time she couldn't do a thing. She feared that if she stopped then she would end up being late.

Unfortunately, the closer that they came to their destination which was close to the centre of Lake Town, the busier the streets became. Not only were there the qualifiers taking place that day but also a market that was held there twice a week. There were merchants selling their wares in almost every direction that the pair looked. There was even a chance that some of the weapons and armour that the Martel family had forged in Morgan.

Thankfully, it wasn't difficult for Charles to keep track of Maxine as she towered above everyone else in the crowd. There were a few moments where he thought that there was too much distance between them and quickly, he picked up the pace. He had been able to catch up with her relatively quickly. So that she didn't lose him again, she grabbed onto his hand and in her haste accidentally held on too tightly. This caused him some pain and when she glanced back to him, she could see the discomfort in his face. Seeing that her grip was too strong, she carefully loosened it so that he wasn't in pain anymore.

One other advantage to Maxine's size was that she was able to force her way through any crowd. This one of merchants and the general public was no different as many got out of the way of the nine-foot woman and her squire as they came by. A couple of people who didn't get out of the way in time did feel her armour push against them but they didn't fall over. They had been able to move just enough away so that the force of her body didn't knock them down. Even if she had, it was unlikely that she would have stopped to help as she was simply in too much of a hurry.

After several minutes, Maxine was able to see the building that they needed to attend. It was a large, stadium like building which was the largest in town. It was used for other events rather than just duels between knights. Quite often, it was used to hold livestock as people would come from quite far around to buy and sell such creatures. There were also some people who were entering so that they could watch the qualifiers take place. Rather than requiring tickets, they simply paid to go inside and find their own seat somewhere in the spectator area.

Despite her haste, she couldn't help but be blocked by a horse and cart that happened to be walking right in the way. Unfortunately, her momentum was too great for her to stop and she slammed into the side of the creature. Normally the horse would remain standing but due to the sheer size of Maxine, it found itself falling to the ground.

The person who had been steering the horse found himself thrown to the ground as well as the cart toppled as well. Never had he thought that a single person would be able to knock over his horse singlehandedly. Even though, it wasn't intentional, the act had still been done and people who were there already seen it.

Maxine didn't fall to the ground but she was a little unsteady on her feet for a few moments but she was able to recover relatively quickly. It was only then that she realised what had happened and she groaned as she had suffered an impact injury from the collision. The injury still stung but it would likely not last for too long.

"What the hell are you doing?" asked the Driver as he was able to get up to his feet. The cart that he had been steering was thankfully empty so that there was nothing that fell to the ground and could be damaged or stolen. He was a relatively short man and even though he realised just how big Maxine was, he didn't seem to be afraid of her. "You could have killed me!"

"You're the one who drove a horse right in my way," replied Maxine who was far from pleased with the situation that she had found herself in. "You're lucky that you haven't broken a bone."

It was quite a surreal sight for Charles to see. This man who was only around as tall as him was practically squaring up to a nine-foot armoured woman who had a relatively short temper. He didn't think that it would end well and he knew that he had to make sure that the situation didn't become any worse.

"You hurt my horse!" stated the Man with an angry tone. "I'll make sure that you pay for that!"

"Lower your tone to me little man," replied Maxine who was allowing her temper to get the better of her. "Or else it won't only be your horse's health that you'll have to be worrying about."

"Let's all calm, down shall we?" asked Charles as he stepped forward. He made sure that he stood between them so that he could create some space between them. "We don't want to be losing our heads."

"Tell your woman to know her place!" answered the Man and Charles knew that this would light a fire right under Maxine. Before he could say another word, he could see a giant, armour clad hand reach down and grab him by the throat. Without any hesitation and with little effort, she was able to lift him off his feet and bring him up to her level.

"Say that to me again!" demanded Maxine as she was seeing red. She knew how easy it would be to simply snap his neck right there and then. To her it would be as easy as simply moving her wrist. "I dare you!"

The Man was struggling to break out of Maxine's grip and it was an impossible task for him. The only way that he would be free is if she released him. At that moment in time it seemed like something that was unlikely to happen.

Charles could see that his worst fears were about to take place and he knew that he needed to do something quickly. He doubted that Maxine would kill this man but he could see the pure rage on her face and there was always the possibility that there could be an accident which resulted in something that couldn't be taken back.

"Maxine!" stated Charles with some anxiety in his voice. "Please, you have to stop!" He held his arms up to her and he watched as she looked down to him.

There were several moments where Maxine turned her head and looked down at her squire. She could see the worry on his face and because of this she did release her grip around the Man's neck. Unfortunately for him, she hadn't lowered him when she did this so he fell down to the ground.

A thud could be heard when the man struck the ground and Maxine took a few steps away. She then looked down at the horse that had been knocked over, from what she could see, it didn't look injured. It just couldn't get back up to its feet thanks to the harnesses that attached it to the cart.

With some effort she was able to help it up to its feet and also turn the cart back to its right position. Such a task would normally be impossible for a normal person but for someone like Maxine, it was very much possible. Even though it wasn't a simple task, she had the strength to succeed.

"Come along Charles," said Maxine once she had completed her task. As she looked at the horse and cart, it looked as though it could just walk away if it wanted. "We're running late, leave him be."

Charles didn't waste any time in running over to her and following her towards the stadium like building. The Man was sitting on the floor and he had a hand around his neck as he could feel some discomfort. He couldn't see that there was a red mark on it where her hand had been. It was likely that this bruise would last for some time but eventually he would recover from such injuries.

One thing that he did notice was that his horse and cart were now upright and slowly he stepped towards it and climbed into the driver's seat. He looked over to Maxine as it was easy to spot her from a distance. He was still far from happy with everything that had happened but rather than pursue any further he decided to cut his losses and simply go on with his day and try to forget what happened. It seemed that his stance of always standing up for himself had not worked out well for him this day.

Maxine gave him no more mind as she quickly continued to make her way towards the building with Charles close by her. Thankfully there were no more distractions for them and they soon arrived at one of the entrances. Unfortunately for them it wasn't the entrance that they were looking for. Instead it was one of the spectator's entrances but there was someone there who could point them in the right direction.

It was a few minutes later before Maxine finally arrived and at first, she wasn't allowed to enter. This was something that she had expected as there were a couple of people standing at the competitor entrance where they made sure that only those who had registered could go inside. They had to make sure that she had actually registered and when they looked up her name, they could see it in black and white.

However, there was a slight problem when it came to Charles entering. At first, he wasn't allowed entry and one of the guards on duty even laughed at him a little as they couldn't believe that someone like him was entering the tournament. However, Maxine ensured that no real abuse came to him. She threatened those who even considered insulting her squire and she was more than willing to back up her words. Even if it meant being disqualified from the tournament. She was sure of one thing, no one disrespected her friend.

Once the confusion was cleared up, Charles was allowed to enter as they realised that he was not entering as a competitor but rather a squire. Even though some still found it funny that a man was the squire of a woman. Even though she was nine-feet tall woman with muscles bigger than most people's head, it was still a humorous for them to see.

Such words did take a knock on his confidence but to her she simply ignored it. As far as she was concerned, they were just words and actions spoke far louder than they did. Plus, if she did anything like that, she would most likely be disqualified from the entire tournament. This was something that she couldn't allow to happen.

Now that she had been fully registered and had arrived in time, Maxine and Charles was led into a relatively large hall where there were other people there waiting. Her arrival did bring some attention as she was by far the largest person there. It also gave her a few moments to eye up the competition.

The first couple of people that she noticed were the two men from the Bathhouse the previous day. She gave them a glare and they quickly turned away as they were still terrified of her. Some of the others that she could see did interest her, there were competitors of all different shapes and sizes. From what she could see, her mind could tell which competitors would be focused on strength and which would lean more towards speed.

There was one competitor that did catch her eye. He leaned against the wall of the hall and his armour was shining in a manner that Maxine didn't think was possible. It looked as though it was brand new but from the way that he presented himself, it didn't seem like he was some kind of rookie.

She couldn't put her finger on it but there was something about him that seemed strange to her. Something that she thought would be worth keeping her eye on as he didn't seem to be like the other people in the hall. One thing that she had noticed was that he was one of the few people to not really take notice of her.

There wasn't much that Maxine could tell of the armoured man in terms of appearance. His body and face were covered in the armour, to the point that she could only see a small part of his brown beard underneath his helmet. He was around average height and although she couldn't see his body due to his armour, she thought that his build was also average.

It seemed somewhat confusing for why a man who seemed to be so average besides his armour would decide to enter such a tournament. Even though it was just the qualifiers, it was unlikely that he would be here if it wasn't for some kind of skill behind his blade. There was something about him that reminded her of her father, she knew that it wasn't him as a back injury that he had suffered a few years ago would prevent him from such a competition. Not just that but her mother wouldn't allow it, she would likely grow to giant size and pin him to the ground in order to prevent him from doing such a thing.

Her notice hadn't gone unnoticed by Charles who also looked over to this mysterious competitor. He could see her looking over to him with some determination on her face. He had seen this look before when she took a person or threat seriously. Because of this, he wasn't sure what to make of this and simply stood there with some confusion and muteness.

"Excuse me, can I have everyone's attention?" asked a Voice. This drew everyone's gaze to a man who was standing next to a blackboard. He was a portly man with a balding head and a black moustache. It was obvious to anyone there that he wasn't a competitor of any kind and looked to be some kind of official. "Before we begin, thank you to everyone who has decided to enter today. "Unfortunately, there are an odd number of competitors this time around so it does mean that some of you will be fighting more matches than the others in order reach the finals in Royal City. Now to go over the rules, the only weapons that are allowed to be used are the ones that a contestant has registered. Any additional weapons used will be a violation and thus said contestant will be disqualified."

Maxine listened to this and she didn't have to worry about this. She had registered her sword and armour already. There was her hunting knife but she didn't plan on using that and it was likely that Charles would be the one in possession of it when she would be battling. That way she wasn't tempted to use it.

"Killing will be permitted in this tournament unless it is seen as unnecessary force," said the Official. "For an example, if a competitor kills another competitor who has already been defeated then they will be disqualified on the spot and likely face some criminal charges." He looked over at the competitors and he couldn't help but feel intimidated by them somewhat but he still kept his composure. "Now we shall begin the draw to see who will be facing who in the tournament. Whichever place you are put is set and it is impossible to change it once it is official."

One by one each of the competitors stepped up so that they could draw numbers and then they would know where they would rank. It was a difficult draw to predict and some of the competitors were pleased with what they drew while others were disappointed. None of them wanted to battle in the extra matches and were hoping to get a bye.

Eventually the time came for Maxine to step forward and draw a number. All eyes were on her as she stepped forward and picked out a number out of the box that had been placed there. It took a moment for her to get her hand inside as her armoured hand was initially too big to fit through the hole that had been made. It took some effort but she was able to complete the task as she pulled out a piece of paper.

Quickly she opened it up and saw the number seventeen written onto it. Even though she wasn't able to read very well, she understood numbers. Because of this she looked to the board and could see her name being written down under the number seventeen. Much to her annoyance, she could see that she had an additional round in comparison to a fair few of the other competitors.

In the end, she decided that it didn't matter as it was only an additional opportunity to show off her skills and hopefully impress those in attendance. Now she had something to look forward to as if everything went to plan, by the end of the day, she would qualify for the main tournament and be on her way to glory.

Once Maxine had picked her number and her name had been written down, she stood next to Charles again and simply waited to see who would pick number eighteen. A small, confident smile appeared on her face as she had taken a moment to glance around the room and she couldn't see anyone who would be too much of a challenge for her. She was at least two-and-a-half-feet taller than the second tallest person competing and she thought that she would reach the finals in Royal City with ease.

More and more the numbers were selected and each competitor was glad to see that they were not facing off against Maxine in the first round. The majority of them had not seen her fight, but they were sure that she would steamroll them if she were to battle them. As far as they were concerned, this time around it wasn't thirteen that was the unlucky number. Rather, it was the number eighteen.

"Reginald McGarden," said the Official. He had his eye on many of the competitors this year and he thought that the competition this time around would be fierce. "Do I have a Reginald McGarden here?"

"That would be me," replied The Mysterious Man as he walked forward. This did catch Maxine's attention as she had been wondering when he would be called up to take his number. She had also just learned his name and she watched him place his hand in the box and picked out a slip of paper. Upon opening it, he revealed that it was the number eighteen that had been drawn.

To the remaining competitors, they gave a sigh of relief as this meant that they wouldn't have to face off against Maxine. The towering woman did take a lot of notice in what had just happened as she looked over to Reginald. She wanted to say that she would be able to defeat him with ease but there was something about him that she couldn't put her finger on. Instead, she saw him begin to make his way towards her and for a moment she expected there to be trouble. Because of this, she stayed on guard, although there were rules against opponents battling outside of the tournament.

"So, I guess we'll be fighting in the first round," said Reginald after he approached Maxine. His demeanour seemed to be friendly although his voice was somewhat muffled by the helmet that he was wearing. "I look forward testing my skills out against the daughter of Sir Tucker Martel."

"You know my father?" replied Maxine with some confusion. This caused her to lower her guard somewhat as she realised that he wasn't there to harm her.

"Of course, I was but a boy when I saw him take part in the tournament at Indigon. I've also heard some of his exploits since then and it will be an honour to face off against his daughter. I can see that he married that very tall woman that I saw him with all those years ago."

"Indeed, they did and I am their oldest daughter. I am Maxine Martel and this is my squire Charles Ingram." Charles looked over to Reginald and simply said hello to him. He wasn't sure what else he should say in this situation.

"A pleasure to meet you both, I am Reginald McGarden. I would like to say that I have some fancy titles, but the truth is that I don't. Hopefully, that'll be remedied when I win this tournament. Although I suspect that you won't make it easy for me."

"Not in the slightest. We both have the same goal but only one of us can achieve it." Although she could see that this was a relatively friendly encounter, there was still some sternness in her words.

"Then I guess our skills with the blade that will determine who will achieve their goal and who will go home disappointed. With all due respect, I will do everything within my power to ensure that it isn't me."

"You can try all you want, but I will not make it an easy task for you."

There were a few more words exchanged between the two competitors before Reginald stepped away. He was sure to bid farewell to the pair before he had moved away and he commented that he was looking forward to his match against Maxine. The towering woman was surprised with how courteous he was. She had expected him to think less of her because she was a woman, but it seemed that he had more common sense than that.

It was only a short time later when all the numbers had been drawn and each competitor had written down. Due to the number that Maxine had drawn, she was going to have to wait a while for her first match and because of this, she was allowed to sit down while the time passed.

There seemed to be a lot on her mind as Charles was polishing her armour while she was still wearing it. Since she was sitting down, it meant that he could reach the higher spots that would have been impossible if she were standing up. He was taking some care while he did this and he could see a stern look on her face. This did worry him somewhat and he hoped that he hadn't done anything to anger her. He didn't think he had but he knew that it was quite easy to frustrate her.

"Are you alright Maxine?" asked Charles. He was just about to call her ma'am, but she had told him not to call her that anymore since he no longer had a life debt to her. "Is everything alright? You seem nervous."

"I'm not nervous," replied Maxine. She tried not to snap at him as she thought that being nervous for a competition such as this was absurd. "Rather, I was just thinking about that Reginald fellow I'm going to be facing."

"He did seem quite nice, then again it could just be a show."

"Indeed, but I feel that this isn't the case. He knew about my father and seemed to have some respect towards him. I don't know if he was completely genuine or if was simply trying to lower my guard. Even so, there's still something about him that feels a little off to me." She gave a small sigh. "Something is telling me that this isn't going to be the simple match that I am expecting."

"Hmm, then I advise you to be careful. He could have some kind of trick that he's going to pull, like a secret weapon or something like that."

"I doubt it, if he tries to use a weapon that hasn't been registered then he will be disqualified. No, I think it's best thing I can do is to try and defeat him quickly, using brute force to knock him off his feet."

"If you think that will work." He knew when it came to strength and brute force, there was no one better than her. But like Sir Tucker before him, he thought that brute force could only take someone so far. Eventually there would be a day where it didn't work for her and he hoped that today wouldn't be the day.

For the next several minutes, Maxine simply sat and waited for when she was called up. There were eight matches that had to take place before her own. A couple of them were over quickly as there was a gulf in skill between some competitors. But the ones who were more evenly matched would last loner and even then, would finish due to the time limit. Then the judges would make the decision who they thought was the winner.

It was unlikely that any of Maxine's matches would take that long. But there was always the chance that this would take place. Any thoughts of this were dashed when she heard her name called out by an official. Fairly quickly, the towering armoured woman stood up to her full height and made her way to where she needed to go. This was to an entranceway where she could see Reginald standing there and waiting for her. He was still completely covered up by his armour so, she couldn't see his face or any of his skin for that matter.

The pair glanced at one another before both were instructed to make their way into the arena. With some care, both of them did so and they could see a fairly large crowd that had gathered to witness this qualifying tournament. It almost seemed like a full house and although witnessed eight matches before, they were still eager to see how the pair would battle one another.

A few moments after Maxine had stepped out, Charles did the same but rather than properly entering the arena. He instead remained on the side lines as that was what was expected of a squire. There were certain rules that dictated what a squire could and couldn't do. Directly attacking an opponent was banned but they could pass their knight a weapon if need be. Just as long as it was already registered.

Out of everyone who had entered, Maxine was only one of two people who did have a squire but no one really took notice of him. Instead, those in the crowd could see how large Maxine was but some were too surprised. A few of them had heard of the Martel family and some had even seen her in town before the tournament had started. She was a hard woman to miss as she was normally around three feet taller than any man she met.

The grounds that they would be battling on was merely just a patch of grass in a relatively small space. It looked to have been somewhat damaged by the battles that had already taken place that day. It would see many more battles before the day was done as there was expected to be a winner of the tournament.

The noise of the crowd didn't really bother Maxine as she looked at Reginald with an intense look on her face. This was somewhat hard to tell as she had put her helmet back which obscured her face from view.

Maxine could see Reginald raise his sword and from the position that it was at, she could tell that he was putting up a decent guard. It left few openings for her as she was trying to see if she could spot a way to end the match quickly. Striking against an unguarded point didn't seem to be an option at that moment in time, but it didn't mean that she couldn't find one. It would just take a little more effort.

Upon hearing the command to begin, she decided to dash forward towards Reginald as she prepared to attack. With strength and accuracy, she went to strike him with her sword but at the last possible moment, he was able to dodge out of the way. This was something that had caught her by surprise as she didn't think that he could move so quickly with all of the armour that he was wearing.

Although this frustrated Maxine, she attempted to attack again, but each strike was unsuccessful. Each one was successfully dodged by her opponent who for the moment hadn't taken any damage at all. To her this was almost unthinkable as he was beginning to make her look like a novice.

"Hey!" stated Maxine in a frustrated tone. "Stand still!" She had stated this right after he had dodged another of her attacks. This only added to her frustration as she thought that she should be doing better.

"If that is what you wish then so be it," replied Reginald. Although he had been moving with some speed, he didn't sound like he was out of breath at all. He watched as Maxine went for another attack.

"I thank you but it will be the mistake that wins me this..." She went to slash with all of her power. However, much to her surprise, he was able to lift his blade in time and block it. She was sure that the amount of power she used behind the blow would be enough to knock his sword out of his hand. Much to her surprise, he still had it comfortably in his hand and he was still preventing her from lowering her sword further towards him. "Match?"

"You have strength, I'm not surprised to see that. But I have to admit that I'm a little disappointed. I expected more from the daughter of Sir Tucker Martel."

"I have more than enough skill to make my father proud!" This only seemed to spur her on as she backed away for a moment and then tried to strike again. Once again Reginald was able to block her sword strikes. This caught the giantess by surprise as she didn't think that it was possible. "How are you blocking all of my attacks?"

"It's simple really, your attacks are too slow to catch me. But now let's see how you're able to cope when you're on the backfoot."

Suddenly Reginald was able to break off her attack and begin to launch his own sword strikes. Unlike him, Maxine was unable to dodge out of the way, mostly due to her size and the fact that her armour weighed her down. Because of this, she was left with no choice but to block all the attacks that came her way.

Like Reginald before her, she was able to block the attacks that came her way but only just. On a couple of occasions, she was only able to block by a fraction of a second. His attacks were relentless and she could feel herself becoming fatigued as she struggled to block all of the attacks.

"Y-Your better than I thought," said Reginald. "Then again I wouldn't have expected less from someone of your lineage."

"Don't mock me!" replied Maxine who was annoyed by what was happening. She had expected to simply get past him with ease but the fact that she was at a disadvantage was something that she didn't enjoy in the slightest.

"I'm not mocking you my dear. You're big and strong, there's no doubt about that. But there's still much you need to learn." He attempted to strike her leg and was surprised to find that she was able to block it. It was obvious to him that she had received a lot of training in this regard as it was an obvious weak spot. One obvious plan to defeat a larger opponent was to cut them down to size by attacking the legs. "Hmm, you saw that one coming, I can see that this still won't be an easy victory."

"You're not winning anything today!" It seemed like her anger and frustration was getting the better of her and she attempted one more attack as she tried to strike him with her sword. However now, anger fuelled her strikes and this was used to Reginald's advantage.

He was able to duck under the attack and using his superior speed was able to get behind the giant armoured woman. Before she had any chance to defend herself. She was able to strike the back of her legs with his sword. If not for her heavy armour, she would have likely have received a terrible injury. Instead, the blow simply knocked her to the ground as she felt her leg get taken from underneath her.

There was a loud thud and a roar from the crowd as Maxine struck the ground and seemed to defeated. This wasn't the case as she attempted to get up to her feet but Reginald prevented her from doing this and brought his sword close to her throat. As far as anyone could see, the mighty giantess had been defeated.

"Yield," said Reginald. "You've fought valiantly, but our match is over."

"Never!" replied Maxine with defiance. "As long as I breathe, I will never yield!" She went to grab onto his ankle and Reginald knew that this was something that he simply couldn't allow to happen.

At no point did he doubt Maxine's strength and he knew that if she was able to grab a hold of him, that she would have the advantage. He could also see the determination in her eyes and he knew that he had defeat her as soon as possible. But he could see that she was fatigued and that she wouldn't be battling at her peak. One of the most important things right now was to make sure that she didn't get up.

Reginald struck her helmet with his sword with such force that he was able to knock it off. This exposed her head and one of the last things she saw before everything went black was his armoured knee coming her way. There was no time for her to react as the armoured knee struck her and she became unconscious.

When Maxine finally came to, she found herself still lying on the ground. But rather than being inside the arena like she had before, now she was in a fairly large, enclosed area. She groaned for a moment but it didn't take her long to remember what she had been doing. Because of this, she quickly sat up and was quite groggy, despite this she still wanted to fight as she went to grab her sword. Only to find that it wasn't in her grasp.

"M-My sword," said Maxine as she was still in a state of confusion. "Where is my sword?" There was a hint of frustration in her voice and the next thing that she saw was Charles quickly moving towards her. This made her angry as she thought that he was making a huge mistake. "Charles what are you doing? You can't come onto the field; you're going to get me disqualified!"

"Ma'am," said Charles as he could see that his friend was still in a state of confusion. "I mean Maxine, we're not on the field. You've been taken back inside."

"What?" By this point in time, she began to look around and she realised that this was the case. She could see a couple of other people lying on the ground as well. Like her, they had been competitors in the tournament. All of them had received some kind of injury that needed treatment. Quickly she began to start getting up from where she was sitting as she more than intended to continue the match. But she was still in some confusion over what had taken place. "What happened?"

"Y-You were battling Reginald and he was able to knock you unconscious. The officials were worried about you so they brought you back here for treatment."

"Knocked unconscious?" She began to realise what it meant but she simply didn't want to admit it to herself. "But I can still fight."

"I'm sorry but Reginald has been declared the winner, you've been eliminated from the tournament." The words that he said cut her deeper than any sword ever had and within herself, Maxine's very soul was being crushed.

"No, this can't be!" There was some rage in her voice as she stood up to her full height. She went to step forward but she felt Charles grab onto the highest part of her body that he could reach. Due to their almost three-and-a-half-foot height difference, it wasn't very far that he could reach. "I-I need this to earn my knighthood!"

"Please, you need to stop." He looked up at her and he felt great sympathy for her. He knew how much winning these qualifiers and going onto the main tournament meant to her. Being defeated in the first round of the qualifiers had shook her to her very core. He then felt something wet strike his forehead and for a moment he was confused. Only to notice that it was from a tear that was rolling down Maxine's face. This was the first time that he had ever seen her cry, this was something that he thought was impossible for her.

"You fought valiantly," replied a familiar voice. This was when Maxine looked to her right and she could see Reginald standing there. He was leaning against the wall and it seemed like the match that they had just gone through hadn't tired him out at all. "But there is still much that you need to learn."

"Don't patronise me!" Her voice was stern and angry as she thought that he was trying to mock her. It wasn't just the fact that he had defeated her that had gotten her so angry but also that he had done it so easily. Even if they were to fight ten times, she felt that she would have lost every encounter.

"I'm not trying to mock you Ms Martel. You have enormous potential; I have no doubt about that. However, you're not there yet, you're young so you have plenty of time to improve your skills." Just then he heard his name called out and he knew that it meant that he needed to leave as his next match was about to start. "I look forward to the day when we meet again and test each other's skills. I'm more than confident that you will have improved by leaps and bounds by then."

Maxine didn't know what to say as she was filled with many emotions. The two that mostly came to mind was sorrow and anger. She watched as Reginald gave her a small bow and then walked away. From her point of view, he was still mocking her over how easily he had defeated her.

Clenching her fists, the armoured giantess did consider taking her frustration out on Reginald but she quickly threw away this thought. Not only would she bring shame to herself, but she thought that it would bring shame to her family as well. How could she genuinely state that she intended to become a knight if she were to attack an opponent when their back was turned.

"Maxine," said Charles. He couldn't help but feel a little nervous as he could see that she was not in the best of moods. Because of this, he knew that he had to be careful with what he said. "D-Did you want to watch the remaining matches?"

"No, I don't!" Her voice was quiet but the disappointment was clear to be heard. She then began to step forward, although she was still a little groggy. Because of this, she was slightly uneven on her feet. "There's no reason for us to stay here, we're done."

"A-As you wish."

The truth was that Charles wouldn't have minded staying to watch the rest of the qualifiers, but he knew that it was best to not go against Maxine at this moment in time. He didn't think that she would harm him, but he could see that she wasn't in the mood to be argued with. Instead, he thought that it was best to simply go along with what she wanted. Just so that things would become less complicated.

Mere minutes later, Maxine found herself sitting inside of a tavern that wasn't too far away from where the qualifiers had taken place. In her hand was the largest container of ale that she could buy and she was drinking it as if it was water. Many of the patrons inside of the tavern did notice her, mostly due to her absolutely enormous size.

There was also the fact that she was being very quiet. Thoughts about her loss had rocked her to her core and thus she was drinking to try and make herself feel better. All this time, Charles was sitting next to her and recording a few notes into his book. They did possess some gold but he feared that it would be gone soon if Maxine continued to drink the way that she was. He knew that she could drink enough to kill a fully grown man several times over and feel little to no effect.

More than an hour passed with Maxine drinking more and more ale. The only times she stopped was so that she could go and relieve herself. Then she would simply sit back down and continue drinking. It was like at that moment in time, all that was important was simply drinking her problems away.

"M-Maxine," said Charles with a small hint of nervousness. He knew that this wasn't going to end well, but he went through with it anyway. All he could do was hope for the best. "I don't think you should be drinking that quickly."

"You think a lot of things," replied Maxine in a nonchalant manner. She then places the container to her lips again and drank the remaining ale that was inside. This only took a few moments before she placed it back down on the counter and looked at the man who was working behind it. "Tavern Keeper, another!"

The Tavern Keeper did as he was told as he filled up another ale for Maxine and placed it in front of her. To a normal person, they would have somewhat struggled to lift it with one arm. If they did, it would cause their wrist to ache. Not Maxine however, as it looked like nothing more than a simple cup in her hand. The cold hat was required to pay for it was given over, but it once again chipped away at the funds that they had.

"Seriously," said Charles as he knew that he needed to put his foot down. "If you keep drinking at this rate, we're going to run out of money before the end of the day. And we still need to find food and accommodations."

"We'll earn more money." Her response was quick and to the point as she continued to drink. It seemed like she didn't care about how much it cost. Just as long as she received her precious ale.

"Not if all you're going to do is sit here and drink. With all due respect, it's not like a job is just going to fall into your lap and with the rate that you're going through those. We're going to run out of money before sunset."

"You do not tell me what to do!" By this point in time Maxine's frustration was peaking as she still getting over the disappointment of losing her match. She stood up from where she was sitting and grabbed onto his collar. With little effort, she was able to lift him off her feet and bring him up to her level. "I am the one in charge, not you! So, if you want to keep all of your teeth, I suggest you shut up and do what I tell you to do!"

Her voice was loud and it drew the attention of everyone inside of the tavern. They all looked over to the nine-foot woman who had her squire by the scruff of his neck and could throw him to one side like a ragdoll. Her eyes were filled with pure rage and as she looked at him, she could see just how terrified he was.

Charles didn't do much to try and break free as he had known at this point in time that there was no chance of him overpowering her. She likely had more strength in her one arm than he did in his entire body and he knew that he was at her mercy. All he could hope for was that she wouldn't harm him.

Just as her anger was beginning to peak, Maxine began to make a realisation. The man that she was currently threatening wasn't some drunk who had insulted her or a criminal that had wronged someone. Instead, she was holding the only man that she truly considered to be a friend who had only been trying to make her see reason. This made her realise that what she was doing was wrong.

As her senses seemed to be returning to her, Maxine could see what she was doing was wrong. She could see some fear in the face of the only person that she truly considered a friend and it was through no fault of his own. All he had done was show concern for her and this was how she repaid his kindness.

Almost immediately, she lowered Charles back down onto the ground and he was still too dumbfounded to speak. There were a few moments when he genuinely thought that she was going to harm him. He didn't want to admit about just how scared he was and for the moment he stayed quiet.

"C-Charles," said Maxine with sorrow in her voice. He had never heard her like this before and he could see just how much this had affected her. "I'm so sorry. I..." She wanted to elaborate further but she couldn't find the words to say. In her mind, she had just done something that she could never take back. She had seen the fear in his face and an incredible amount of guilt had overtaken her body.

Before either of them could say another word, Maxine did grab onto Charles's hand and began to lead him out of the tavern. What was happening between them was much better discussed in private rather than in front of other patrons. Once they had stepped outside, everyone inside of the tavern simply went back to their drinks and didn't really pay much mind into what had happened.

Maxine and Charles's walk only lasted for a couple of minutes before she was somewhere where she thought that she could talk to him privately. This was in a back alley between two buildings and although it wasn't the most ideal place to talk, at least they didn't have to really worry about people watching.

"C-Charles," said Maxine. She had taken a few moments to think about what she was going to say and so far, this was the best that she could come up with. "I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have done that to you."

"Y-You're right," replied Charles. He knew that she was in a delicate state but also that he had to stand up for himself. "You shouldn't have done that, you let your rage and frustration get the better of you. Just like you did in the match, like Reginald said. You still have a lot to learn." He was hitting his stride and to most people, it would seem like suicide speaking this way to someone so much larger than himself. But he knew that these were all things that she needed to hear. "I know how upset you are, but you can't go around threatening people or throwing your weight around when things aren't going your way. There are better ways to deal with situations. How can you ever hope to be a knight if you let your anger get the better of you time and time again?"

"I-I..." Even though she didn't want to admit it, she knew that everything he was saying was right. Her anger had led her to trouble on more than one occasion. Everything was getting a little too much for her and she thought that she was going to cry. But she did everything that she could to prevent this from happening. "I know but it's just so difficult. It's like I can't control myself when I'm angry, it's almost like I'm a puppet and there's someone else pulling the strings."

"There is no other person, it's only you. You're the only one who can control your anger and until you do that, I can't see you becoming a knight."

These words wounded Maxine a great deal, but she knew that what he was saying was right and she couldn't fault him for it in any way. Her emotions were getting the better of her and he saw some tears begin to roll down her cheeks. Crying was something that she hated as she thought that it would make her look weak. But now she couldn't help herself as she placed her head into her hands and simply began to cry.

Charles had never seen Maxine like this, he knew that she had just been through a crushing disappointment. There were also the events that had taken place a few minutes ago and he knew were weighing heavily on her. The words that he said had been quite hurtful to her but they were true nonetheless.

"Please don't cry Maxine," said Charles as he could see how upset he was. Within himself, he did feel a small amount of guilt but he also knew that his words were only a minor factor in this. He did step towards her and he gave her a hug in order to try and make her feel better. "You'll overcome your anger; I know you will. One day, you're going to look back on this day and laugh at yourself."

Before Charles could say another word, he felt Maxine lean down and grab onto him. Then she effortlessly lifted him off his feet and gave him a hug at her level. Her grip was a little tighter than he had expected but in her emotional state, he couldn't help but not be surprised by this.

The tears began to roll down her cheeks as she simply held her friend in place. He was able to move his arms and properly give her a hug back and to him it was a little unusual being able to reach so high. That was one of the perks of being lifted up, but he did find it a little odd having his feet off the ground.

On a couple of occasions, Charles did want to suggest breaking off the hug as it didn't seem to be ending. He knew that he shouldn't for the time being as Maxine was in a delicate state and that she was letting her frustrations out. Rather than drinking her problems away, this was a better alternative for the time being.

Only when she was ready did Maxine finally place her friend back onto the ground. He felt like he could breathe again and he could see that she still had a fairly upset look on her face. But she was definitely happier than she had been a few minutes prior. It didn't get rid of her crushing disappointment, but it was a start.

"I'm sorry Charles," said Maxine as looked down at him. Her hands began to fidget and she seemed to be blushing. "T-That lasted a little longer than I originally thought."

"I-It's alright," replied Charles. He knew that his lecture for the day was over and that beginning another one could have negative effects. "I have no broken bones so overall; it was a successful." He heard her begin to chuckle for a moment and it seemed to brighten things up overall.

"Starting from today I promise that I'll try and control my anger. Also, I'm going to seriously train again, like Reginald said. I still have a lot to learn."

"Well, the truth is that you never stop learning. Even when you're eighty years old, you're still learning. But if I might make a suggestion, can you begin learning all of that tomorrow? It's a little late to start that today."

"O-Oh right." When she looked towards the sky, she could see that it was beginning to go dark. She felt a little embarrassed by this as she didn't realise how late in the day it was. Most of that time was likely spent in the tavern simply trying to drink her problems away. "We should find somewhere for the night."

At first, the pair were going to return to the tavern that they had just been to but Maxine was too embarrassed to show up there again so soon after making a scene. Instead they went to stay at another inn that was close by and when they inquired, there was still a room that was available.

After the room was paid for, Charles could see that they didn't have too much money left. Maxine's drinking binge that had taken place earlier that day had seriously eaten into their budget. If they weren't able to find a job soon, they would run out of funds in the next couple of days.

This was something that he didn't want to bring up with her just yet as he could see that she was in a good mood. Anything to spoil this would likely be another punch in the gut for her so he thought that it was best to keep the information to himself. Only when they were desperate for money would he actually speak up about it.

Maxine was the first to arrive in the room as Charles was having to sort a few things out with the innkeeper. The first thing that she noticed was the fact that there was only one double bed in the room along with a chair and a table. The ceiling was quite low and she couldn't stand up straight while inside. Normally, this would really annoy her but with everything that had happened today. This was the least of her worries.

With some difficulties, she did begin to take off her armour and place it down on the ground. This was a task which was much easier when she had Charles assisting her. But she thought that it was best to do it herself for now. There was still a huge amount of guilt that she felt for threatening him in the manner that she did. A part of her even thought that it was worse than her crushing defeat in the tournament.

It took several minutes for Maxine to completely take off her armour and when she was done, she couldn't help but feel like her body was very light. The truth was that she was probably one of the heaviest people in the land. But when she was wearing her armour, her overall weight increased quite dramatically. Without it, she was still heavy thanks to her height and muscles. But not to the level that it had been before.

The next thing she heard was a knock on the door and she told whoever was on the other side to enter. Much to her delight, she could see that it was Charles who was entering but he wasn't emptyhanded. He could see that he was carrying something and it wasn't the sight of it that she noticed at first. It was the smell that put her in a very good mood and she suddenly became hungry as she realised what it was. The object was a very large pie.

"Y-You bought a pie?" asked Maxine with a small amount of disbelief in her voice. This was something that she hadn't expected.

"Yeah, I realised that you had been drinking a lot today but hadn't eaten anything," replied Charles. The pie was so large that he needed two hands to properly carry it. "So I thought it was best that you should have something to eat."

"Charles..." She didn't know how to react, even though she had threatened him earlier, he was still thinking about her wellbeing. "Thank you very much."

"No problem." He didn't want to mention that it had cost him a little more money than he had expected but he thought it was worth it. He placed the warm pie on her lap and it was still in its container. She was also given a knife and fork for her to use and she was just about to dig in, when she looked over to him. "Did you want anyway?"

"Nah I'm alright. I ate a little something while I was downstairs, so eat in. It's all yours." He smiled over to her as she continued to sit on the bed and she looked at the large pie for a few additional moments.

"What kind of pie is it?" She had some preferences although she wasn't too fussy about what was in the pie. Just as long as it didn't have one particular edible ingredient.

"I thought that it was best to keep it as a surprise. But don't worry, I made sure that there were no onions inside."

This was all Maxine had to hear as she began to dig into the pie that was right in front of her. Once she cut off her first slice, she could see that there was chicken and gravy inside which only put a smile on her face. Charles simply stood there and watched as his friend continued to eat the pie.

She was hungrier than he thought as the monstrous pie was gone within a few minutes. All that was left was of it were a few crumbs in the container and a couple around her mouth. A normal person wouldn't have been able to do such a thing but to Maxine, it was incredibly simple. The truth was that she probably had room to fit another inside if she really wanted to but she was satisfied for the time being.

"That was delicious," said Maxine as she patted onto her stomach. Rather than a bulge that was underneath her hand she could feel her muscles. "It really hit the spot."

"Well, I'm glad that you enjoyed that because unless we can get some more money soon," said Charles who thought that this was something worth bringing up. "We won't be able to afford many more of those."

"We'll find something, I'm sure of it. I bet there are a fair few people who are looking for a nine-foot woman whose strong enough to lift a horse." She lifted her arm slightly and tensed her muscles. This showed how large her bicep was and he could see that they were clearly very big. Even if it was on a man they would still be considered impressive.

In a way, it was nice for Charles to see Maxine in a better mood as it was a stark contrast to how she had been earlier. He could see that she was taking the first steps to improving herself, but he wasn't sure exactly how long it would last. There was a chance that by the morning, she would have changed her mind.

"Well one reason that I was downstairs for so long was because I was talking to someone," said Charles. He sat himself down on the chair that was close by and he looked straight over to his friend. "Someone who is willing to give you a job."

"Oh?" She was a little confused and also slightly annoyed. She wasn't pleased with the fact that he had offered her services like that without consulting her first. But she also knew that he wouldn't agree to make her do anything that he thought would be demeaning to her or anything that was beyond her skills.

"Yes, there are a three people who need safe passage to the east coast. So they simply want you to act as escort for them so that they can reach their destination safely. I thought it would be the ideal kind of job for you."

"But getting to the east coast isn't going to take a couple of days. Even if they have horses, it's still going to take at least a week to get there. Most likely more if we run into complications."

"That is why they're willing to pay you handsomely. They're worried that they're going to be targeted by others while they're travelling."

"And why would they be worried about that?" She seemed curious and one obvious answer was that they were well off. If they looked to be rich then they would likely be targeted by bandits.

"There is that, but also because they're from the lands to the east. Because of this they stand out amongst most people in Angleland." This was something that Charles had experienced himself over his life. His own skin was a darker tone what was the norm in Angleland and because of that, he had suffered some abuse.

"Ah I see. I can see why they would need protection then."

Near the east coast of Angleland there was a relatively high population of people from the lands to the east. Many of them had arrived in order to escape wars that were taking place at home. Unfortunately, for most it seemed like their lives in Angleland were not much better as they were seen as second-class citizens by many people within the country. Because of this, the people from the east found their lives in Angleland very difficult but to many it was still better than being in the middle of a war.

"This won't change your mind about the matter does it?" asked Charles who thought that there was a chance that Maxine might decline the job.

"I don't really care where they're from," replied Maxine who crossed her arms. "As long as they can pay, they can be from the moon for all I care."

"Oh good, I didn't think that it was a problem." He thought that this would be the case as if such a thing did bother her, she wouldn't have taken him as a squire. "They want us to meet them just outside of the tavern at sunrise tomorrow. So I suggest that we get some sleep now so that we can be up early enough."

"Alright fine."

"Would you want me to sleep on the floor again?" It was something that he wasn't fond of doing but he would if that was what she wanted.

"No, you can sleep in the bed with me tonight. There should be enough room for the both of us." The truth was that Charles doubted that there'd be enough room for her let alone both of them.

Before either of them climbed into bed, both took off most of their clothes until they were left with only their undergarments. When Maxine lay down on the bed and stretched herself, as expected her feet were well over the edge. In fact, her entire shins were over the edge of the bed and she could place her feet flat on the floor at the end. Because of this, she found herself curling up on the bed so that she could fit into it.

Thanks to all the alcohol that she had consumed, the muscular giantess was able to get to sleep relatively quickly while Charles remained awake for a short while longer. His worries seemed to be true as he felt a little cramped inside of the bed. But some of these thoughts went away when he felt Maxine wrap her arms around him and bring her close to her body. For a moment he thought that she was doing this on purpose but when he looked up to her face, she was still fast asleep.

Charles couldn't help but feel comfortable as the warmth of her body was soothing and he could feel the softness of her skin. He thought that it was a little strange that someone who was so muscular could have such soft skin. This was probably a trait that she wouldn't want to admit, just like how adorable her sneezes were.

With the comfort that he was in, Charles couldn't help but fall asleep and he didn't realise that there was a smile on the face of his companion. As she held him, it was like she was holding something precious to her. She wouldn't allow anything to take it away from her without a fight.

To both, morning came to them too soon as they had to wake up and prepare themselves for the job that they had agreed to do. Soon enough, Maxine stepped out of the tavern and was equipped with her armour. Charles stepped out just before her and neither of them had spoken about the fact that he had found himself in her arms when they had woken up.

It took only a few moments for him to notice two of the people that he had been talking to the night before. As he looked over to them, he could see that they looked different to what was expected in Angleland. Both of them had long black hair that was tied up into ponytails. Their garbs were basically robes of bright colours and stitched with the symbol of a rainbow coloured carb.

Their skin was a slightly different colour to what was the norm in Angleland and their facial features too looked unusual in this part of the world. Both of these men were shocked when they coul see how large Maxine actually was. Charles had told them beforehand that she was nine feet tall but they had simply thought that he was exaggerating. Now they could see that this wasn't the case and most shocking of all that it was a woman that they were seeing. If it had been a man, then they wouldn't be too surprised but the fact that Maxine was a woman only made their jaws drop. It made them think that there were other people in Angleland who were this tall.

Charles was the one who properly approached the two men and he remembered that these were the exact same men that he had spoken to the night before. They had ironed out a few things between them the previous night and now they were going to carry out the deal that they had made.

This was also the first time that he had seen the men standing up and he could see that they were quite short. Both were slightly taller than him, but they were quite short in comparison to the average man from Angleland. In a way, this made them seem like they were in less of a position to negotiate than they would have been.

"Good morning to you," said Charles as he greeted the two foreign men. "I hope that you rested well enough for the journey today."

"That we have but is this the warrior that you were referring to?" replied One of the Men who pointed towards Maxine. His robe was purple and he was clean shaven, from the tone of his voice he didn't seem to be too impressed. Even though, Maxine was by far the largest human being that he had ever seen.

"Indeed she is." He cleared his voice and gestured his hands towards her. "This is my good friend Maxine Martel. Eldest daughter of Sir Tucker Martel of Morgan."

"Hmm, I saw her tournament yesterday and I watched as she fell in the first round. Can't say that it was the most impressive performance I've seen." He didn't notice that Maxine's anger was beginning to rise and she clenched her fist in frustration. It was taking some self control for her to not lose her temper.

"I assure you that was an isolated incident. My friend is more than capable of protecting both you and your companion. You needn't worry about predators or bandits." Maxine also thought that she could speak for herself but thought that it was best to allow him to do the talking for a short time.

"I'm beginning to doubt that," replied the second man. His robe was red and he had a short beard. "Can we really entrust our safety in her?" Maxine seemed to be becoming more and more annoyed with every passing moment. These men were insulting her and she was doing her best to hold her tongue. If she were to lose her temper now, then the promise that she made to Charles the day before would be worth absolutely nothing.

"Jinshu, Taiyun!" stated a female voice. This brought the attention of everyone there as they saw a woman walking towards them. Much like the two men, she also looked to be foreign as she had long black hair that was in a platted and she wore a dress that was dark blue in colour. Her shoes were flat and she was quite short. It was likely that she was five feet tall, if not an inch shy of it. She looked to be in her early twenties and she was a very beautiful woman. Charles in particular was taken aback by her beauty and it was like she had stepped out of the stories that he was told about in his youth. "This warrior is willing to protect us and the first thing that you do is insult her? Apologise immediately!"

There was some reluctance from the two men for a few moments before they did apologise to Maxine for their comments. The woman then walked towards her and Charles who stood there with a small amount of confusion. It was obvious that this woman was the one who called the shots in this group and they did appreciate her intervention.

"I too apologise for their actions," said the Woman. As she looked up at Maxine, she could see just how huge she was. She was only roughly as tall as Maxine's leg and although she was in shock, she kept herself cool and calm the entire time. "My name is Asla and I more than appreciate you agreeing to help protect us on our journey. You and your companion are most kind.

"I-It's no problem," replied Maxine who spoke for the first time. The three of them expected her to have a very deep voice. Although, her voice was slightly deeper than was average for a woman, it still sounded very feminine. "Of course, we're being well compensated for our help."

"Indeed, you will be paid handsomely for your services. We are ready to depart now, but if you have some business to attend to here, we are willing to wait for you." Her tone was very respectful to Maxine and Charles but like the men before her, she had an accent to it that made it obvious that she was not of this land.

"I am perfectly fine, I can depart as soon as possible." She looked down at Charles who stood close to her. She didn't want to speak for him on this matter. "Charles, do you need to do anything before we leave?"

"No, there is nothing I need to do," replied Charles. "If anything, I want to get out of here as soon as possible."

"Then let us be on our way," answered Asla. Her tone was still respectful and it was a tone that he wasn't used to someone using towards him. Maxine did talk to him with respect but many others didn't.

The two foreign men thought that this was still not the best course of action going with someone like Maxine. But they knew that it was Asla who had the final say in the matter and since she had approved it, they could only accept her word. They had also been hoping to get more than one warrior to help give them safe passage. Even though she was the largest person that they had ever seen, they still didn't think that she was capable of properly protecting them.

To anyone, it was odd for them to see such a group of people together. Although it did attract some attention, they simply kept to themselves as none wanted to catch the ire of a giant, armoured woman. Instead, they simply left them be as the group made their way out of Lake town and heading east. The journey to the coastline would be a very long one, but one that would likely be eventful and life changing for everyone involved.

The first day of their journey was mostly uneventful as the group simply walked for as far as they could. They had rested every now and again but eventually they did have to stop for the night. A couple of them would have loved nothing more than to carry on with their journey. Their minds were more than ready but their bodies simply needed the rest and they had no choice but to rest.

The group set up camp just off a path that they had been travelling on and soon discovered an open patch where it seemed like people had camped before. In the centre was a ring of stones which were placed there so that a fire could be built within. Charles quickly collected some firewood while Maxine started the fire itself.

It was a clear night with no threat of rain but there was still a cool breeze that would be enough to make them feel a little cold. The heat of the fire would hopefully put an end to that and they could use it to cook some food. A boar had been killed by one of Alsa's men and after it was skinned, it was placed above the fire so that it could cook. Waiting for it to cook was something else that was almost torturous as all of them were hungry.

While the meat was cooking Asla decided to sit herself down next to Maxine. Even sitting down, the size difference between these two women was truly breath-taking. Both women were around the same age but both couldn't have been more different to one another. It was somewhat noticed by the men in the group but at that moment in time, Jinshu and Taiyun tending to the meat. Charles sat close by and was writing in his book and seemed to be lost in her own world.

"Ms Martel is it?" asked Asla. This got the attention of the very tall woman as she looked down at her much smaller companion.

"Yes, is there something that you want?" replied Maxine with a curious tone. They hadn't really spoken to each other that much since the journey had begun. She didn't even know why Asla wanted to go to the east coast. It didn't matter just as long as she was paid for her services.

"I-If you don't mind me asking and I know that it might be a little rude but my curiosity is getting the better of me."

"Let me guess, you wanna know how I'm so big?" This was a question that she was very much used to answering. Even when she was younger, she was still much taller than the average man so the question came very often.

"Y-Yes, that's it. If you wish not to answer then I respect your decision."

"It's fine, I get the question a lot. My father is an average man but my mother is a very, very tall woman. I and my sisters inherit our height from her and there's nothing too much to it than that." She could have explained more about the magic that had fuelled her mother's height and the growth abilities of her sisters. But she knew that she had a small amount of magic within herself which allowed her to be so big.

"I see, that does make sense and if you don't mind me asking as well. Are you still growing?"

"To tell you the truth, I'm not sure. There's still the possibility that I can grow a few inches but I'm mostly done growing." She then lifted up her left arm and began to tap on her bicep. The muscle itself couldn't be seen under the armour but Asla was getting the point. "If any part of me is going to grow, it would be my muscles. Carrying around such heavy armour all the time might slow me down but it's built up my strength considerably." She gave the smaller woman a smile. "You should see them when I take my armour off."

"I already look forward to seeing them. I must admit that it is odd seeing a woman of your stature. Forgive my bluntness but where I'm from, people simply don't grow as tall as you. It's true or just a tall. There was a tale of a giant woman from the land that I am from. But not sure if it's just a tall tale."

"I wouldn't be too surprised about that. But many tall tales have some element of truth to it. You say that it was a giant woman but most likely, it's just someone of above average height with some exaggeration. Why tell the boring truth when you can add a touch of fantasy and make it infinitely more interesting?"

"Hmm, you make a good point there."

Maxine and Asla chuckled for a moment but the former couldn't help but be curious about whether what the latter had stated was true. If there really was a giant woman who lived in the land where Asla was from, she wondered how tall she actually was and if she was taller than her. Even if this mysterious giantess was, she doubted that she would be as tall or taller than Maxine's mother or sisters when they used their powers. But still, it did make her curious to see if the tales were true or not.

"Maxine!" stated Charles. From the tone of his voice, she could tell that there wasn't anything wrong. He was only calling her name relatively loudly so that he could get her attention. "The boar is ready!"

Thankfully Jinshu had packed some plates before they had left and they quickly used them in order place the chunks of cooked pork onto. Of course, Maxine had the most out of all of them, while the others had portions that was still large enough to satisfy their hunger. For the foreign trio, it was far from the best food that they had ever eaten but it would do for the time being.

Thankfully the boar that they had caught was relatively small so there was no meat that was left over. Such a thing would likely attract other predators such as wolves and bears. Maxine would most likely be able to defend them against such threats if they came. But there was still a chance that a member of the group would be harmed before she would be able to fend them off properly.

Some water was shared amongst them and although Maxine would have loved for it to be ale. She simply had to accept that they didn't have any for the time being. After the amount that she had drunk the day before, many would say that she had more than enough for a good long while.

Both Jinshu and Taiyun were still a little nervous of the entire situation. They both had a small fear that Maxine and Charles were betray them and take whatever valuables that they had. So far, they had given them no reason to seriously consider this outcome, but from the reception that they had received from others, it wouldn't be too far out of the realm of fantasy for such a thing to take place.

When speaking to one another and even to Asla, they spoke in a language which was unknown to the Maxine and Charles. To them, they were speaking gibberish and yet the trio could understand every word that the other was saying. They were also speaking at a speed which made it difficult to pick up what they were saying, even if they did understand the language.

This developed some distrust into Maxine, since they were speaking in a different language, she thought that they were saying something that they didn't want her or Charles to hear. This made her suspicious of them and if not for the money that she was going to be paid. She would have thought that all of this would not have been worth it.

"T-That was very nice," said Asla after she had finished the last of her pork. It was pleasant for her to have warm food in her belly as she knew that it was relatively hard to come by at this moment in time. "Hits the spot."

"Indeed," replied Taiyun as he agreed with her. "Reminds me of when I used to help my father hunt for boars. At least this time, I didn't have to worry about hunting the boars themselves."

"But I must make a suggestion," answered Jinshu. He had finished what he was eating and although he was full, he felt that there was something that he still needed to mention. Something of importance was on his mind. "I think that there should be someone who remains awake while the rest of us sleep. Take it in shifts to stay awake and keep an eye out of any threats."

"That shouldn't be necessary," replied Maxine who took another bite out of the pork that she was eating. "Unless you have people actively looking for you, you don't really have anything to worry about while you're asleep." She did look over to Asla for a moment with a curious look on her face. "There isn't anyone trying to find you, are there?"

"No," replied Asla. She smiled up to her in an attempt to reassure her that there was nothing amiss. "My companions are just a little overly cautious. They are simply concerned that we might be ambushed while we slumber. There might not be anyone trying to find us, but there are still opportunists who could attack. If you believe that this is unnecessary, then we shall forego the notion."

"We will be fine, plus no one would be foolish enough to try and steal from us while I'm around."

This was somewhat reassuring for the group but they still had a small amount of fear amongst them. The only one who truly wasn't afraid was Charles who looked over to his friend and looked at her. He had his own concerns that he thought needed to be addressed but for now he remained silent. Throughout the entire day, he had been keeping his eye on Maxine as he wanted to see how she was.

Although she seemed to be alright, he was sure that she was still recovering from the disappointment that had taken place the day before. The truth was that she hadn't spoken of it but he was sure that she was still upset about it. He didn't want to mention anything to her about it though as he didn't want to get a negative reaction from her. It was something that he knew that she and she alone could fully recover from.

Something else that Charles had noticed was that Maxine had not shown much anger today. One reason for it was the fact that she hadn't been in a situation to get angry. Besides being mildly insulted when they had first met the group, there hadn't be anything that he thought that she would have gotten angry about. This was still a good sign though as he thought that she was trying to keep her promise and control her anger. But this was merely a first step on a long journey.

The group did go to sleep soon after and there were no incidents during the night. It was shortly after dawn when they had continued on with their journey. Some fruit was shared amongst them during for breakfast and they continued to walk on. There were still hundreds of miles that needed to be travelled and they weren't going to get anywhere if they simply stayed where they were.

The sky above seemed to be overcast and the threat of rain held over everyone. The temperature was also lower than it had been the previous day and there was definitely a chill amongst them. If events played out in a particular way, Maxine would likely sneeze once again and everyone would hear what they sounded like. Definitely not the kind of sneeze that someone would expect from someone like her.

As he walked, Charles was in his own world as he was thinking about a few things. Some were about the journey and situation at hand while others were about things that weren't very important. He didn't notice that Asla was walking alongside him and it was obvious that she wanted to speak with him.

"Hello there Charli," said Asla. She smiled up to him and he quickly looked back at her. He was a fairly short man but thanks to Asla's height, he was taller than her. This was quite unusual for him as he had gotten used to being around a woman who was around three and a half feet taller than him. Even so, due to his height, it was quite common for him to meet women who were taller than him.

"Hello there Asla," replied Charles. He wanted to correct her on his name but he didn't want to be rude. "Is there something that you need?"

"Well, I just wanted to chat, if that's alright with you."

"Of course, what would you like to talk about?" He was curious about a few things about her and her companions so a chat would be nice for them.

"I couldn't help but be curious about you and your friend. Forgive me for being rude, but it is very unusual to see a relationship between people like you and Maxine."

"Well, you could say that the way that we met was unusual as well. I was working in a tavern and a patron was threatening me. Maxine stood up for me and after a scuffle she saved my life. Well, saving my life might be a stretch but I still felt like I owed her a life debt. At first, she was reluctant, but she accepted and I became her squire. Now she has stated that I've repaid that debt but we have developed a strong friendship over our time together and see it as beneficial that we continue to work together."

"Ah I see, I couldn't help but think that you pair were lovers."

"Lovers?" If he had been eating or drinking anything, he would have likely choked on it. "W-We're not lovers, we're just very good friends."

"Have you met her family?" She gave him a bit of a sly look as if she knew what was actually going on.

"W-Well yes I have, they're very nice people... Well, most of them."

"Ah I see." She looked over to Charles and then Maxine, even though she had only been around them for a short amount of time. She knew that the small man meant a lot to the armoured giantess. She found it a little funny since it was like she was seeing something that they weren't.

"And if you don't mind me asking, how do you know your companions? I've seen how the three of you are together and I can tell that you're the one calling the shots. Even in a place like this, that's unusual."

"Well, you see..." She paused for a moment as she thought about what she was going to say. There were several things that she would have liked to have said to him but felt that it was best to simply stretch the truth. "They are simply my friends who wish to travel with me. Both are very respectful and you could say that they're extra protection as well."

"Hmm, that's interesting." He was no idiot as he knew that Asla was hiding something from him. But he thought that it was best to not pry further. If he did, then she might decide that their services were no longer needed and simply cast them off. This of course would lead to them not being paid and would only add to their woes.

"And I see that you have your own sword as well. Are you training to be a knight like your friend?"

"My sword." He placed his hand on the sword that he was carrying. It was still a little odd for him to think about the fact that now he possessed one. Just a few years ago, he could never imagine himself actual wielding one. He also hadn't imagined himself being the squire for a nine-foot woman either. "Not exactly, we have been in a few tense situations together and Maxine believes that it's best for me to be able to defend myself. She is training me on how to wield a sword properly. I don't expect to be taking part in any tournaments but I hope that I'll be able to defend myself from anyone who wishes me harm."

"That is a good way to look at it. Diplomacy should always be your first weapon against an attacker, but you must always have the means to defend yourself if need be."

Charles saw sense in what she was saying but as he looked at her, he could see that she was unarmed. There was a chance that she carried some kind of concealed weapon that was native to her own land. But he didn't want to pry further and simply take her word for it. He could tell that there was more to this woman than he had originally thought.

While they were walking, both Jinshu and Taiyun couldn't help but look at Maxine. When they had first seen her, they thought that she was a man and maybe even using some kind of cheat within her armour to make herself look bigger than she actually was. They were amazed when she actually took off her armour and they could see her body and muscles. It was true that she did look bigger while wearing her armour, but not to the extent that she looked much bigger than she already was.

Any attention that was brought towards Maxine was swept away when both men felt the rain begin to come down. They weren't the only ones as the rest of the group too could feel the weather changing and it made them begin to pick up their pace. Unfortunately, the falling rain only continued and the path in front of them began to get muddy. It made traversing through it very difficult and Taiyun at one point almost slipped over but Jinshu was able to prevent him from falling.

Travelling in this weather was difficult and Maxine knew that it would be best for them to find some kind of shelter as soon as possible. Salvation seemed to come in the form of an inn that was only a short distance away from where they were. She decided that they should stay inside of the inn during the rain and then continue their journey once the rain had subsided. The mud would still be there of course, but they wouldn't have to worry about the rain in their faces.

Something that the armoured giantess did notice was that her latest three companions seemed to be somewhat reluctant to go to the inn. To her, this was a little odd but she led them towards it anyway as the rain began to get heavier. The sound of the raindrops striking her armour could be heard clearly and splodge like sound as their feet came down onto the mud on the ground.

After a couple of minutes of walking, the group did reach the inn and made their way inside. Asla and her companions were still reluctant to go inside, but neither did they want to be stuck out in the rain. All of them were soaked from the weather and all of them just wanted to sit down and relax for a short time.

There were only around half a dozen people inside of the inn and when the group had made their presence known. This drew a lot of attention and the patrons looked towards them. There was a look of distain on most of their faces once they saw them and there was a lot of tension in the air.

Nearby was an empty table and all except for Maxine sat down at it. Instead, she was going to go to the counter so that she could order drinks. She thought that it was best to buy some water as it was something that they could all drink. Money was something that she didn't particularly have since she had spent most of it in the previous inn. It was something that she now regretted.

Behind the counter, she could see the Innkeeper standing there and looking at her with his arms crossed. He didn't really seem to notice her height and instead simply glanced over to the group at the table and then looked up to her. His stance hadn't changed and it seemed like he was not ready to serve her.

"Excuse me," said Maxine. She spoke with a respectful tone as she was trying to come across as being friendly. "My companions and I would like to order some water and food if you can."

"Your companions can take a hike, I don't serve their kind here," replied the Innkeeper. For a moment, Maxine thought that he was joking but from his stance and tone, she could tell that he was serious.

"Is there a problem here?" Her tone began to change as she began to realise that there was going to be trouble.

"Yeah, there is. People like them aren't welcome in my establishment. So, I suggest that you all get out of here and not darken my inn again."

Maxine began to see red as she imagined herself grabbing the Innkeeper by his neck and effortlessly lifting him up. She would likely choke him until he decided to allow the group to stay for a while longer. However, she remembered the promise that she had made to Charles and she had to try and control her anger. Strongarming people wasn't always the best solution in a situation.

The others too had noticed what was happening and Charles himself took particular interest. He was worried as he knew what happened to people who insulted his friend. On more than one occasion, he had seen the rage get the better of her and he just hoped that things wouldn't go too far south.

"Then we'll leave as soon as the rain lets up," said Maxine. She had done her best to quell her anger but it was evident to her that she was still annoyed.

"No, I want you lot gone now," replied the Innkeeper. His arms were crossed and it was evident that he wasn't joking around. "You bought those things into my inn; I want you and them out of here right now!"

Maxine could see that she was likely to get what she wanted unless she resorted to violence. The thought of going back out into the rain wasn't a very tantalising but it seemed like that was what was going to happen if she wanted to keep her promise. With every passing moment, she was finding it more and more difficult as the rage within her continued to build up.

What she didn't notice was that one of the patrons had gotten up from his table and was walking over to her. He was a tall, well-built man who was still smaller than her but was still pretty confident. He also had a couple of companions sitting at the table where he had been. One striking aspect of his appearance was that he had no hair on his head at all, not even eyebrows which did make him look a little odd. But it was obvious that the nine-foot woman stood out even more.

"He's told you to get out of here," said the Patron as he approached Maxine. "I suggest that you take his word for it. Or else my companions here and I will just have to forcefully throw you out."

"Is that a threat?" replied Maxine who was far from happy with the words that she was hearing.

"No, that's a promise." He then reached up and poked her armour. Normally, he wouldn't be so bold but as he had two other companions to back him up, his confidence was through the roof. He could see that they too had gotten up from where they were sitting and had stepped over in order to back them up. "So, what are you going to do?"

"Do you enjoy that hand?" Maxine began to glare down at him as to show that she was clearly not happy with the situation. "Touch me again and I will swiftly separate it from your wrist!" This was when the three men all drew the swords that they were carrying and each seemed intended to use them.

Charles couldn't help but rush over and try to get in-between them. It seemed that what he was fearing was coming to be as the situation was spiralling out of control. He was happy to see Maxine showing restraint but he thought that if he didn't do anything quickly, then something would happen which everyone would regret.

"Now, now," said Charles as he stepped between them and tried to defuse the situation. "Let's all calm down and try and think this through. No one needs to get hurt here, so put your weapons away and let's talk about this like adults."

"Out of the way runt!" Without much effort, the Patron was able to push Charles to one side and he fell to the ground. Instantly, Maxine looked down to him and quickly knelt down so that she could tend to him. She was glad to see that he was uninjured but this didn't lessen what had been done.

With rage radiating from her body, the giant woman stood up to her full height and the three men who were standing there and the Innkeeper realised that they had just made a huge mistake. Before, they could see that Maxine had been annoyed but now she was on the verge of exploding with pure rage.

"You can insult me all you want but you never, EVER hurt my friend!" stated Maxine as she began to step forward. The three men began to step back and no one knew how they were going to get out of the situation.

Even Charles looked up from where he was as he got up to his feet and he was worried about what was going to happen. She had promised him that she would try and control her anger but it seemed that the situation had already deteriorated to the point that she couldn't hold it back any further. Now all he could hope for was that no one got serious injured in the next few minutes.

From their table, Asla, Jinshu and Taiyun could see what was happening and they felt a small amount of guilt as they knew that it was because of their presence that had caused the situation to happen. Asla in particular felt guilty and she wanted to go and try to defuse the situation like Charles had done before. But she also knew that her mission was too important and that her interference might make things even worse.

The situation was very intense as an incredibly angry nine-foot woman was looking down at three men who were currently standing in her way. One of them had just attempted to harm her best friend and had insulted her other companions. The Innkeeper who had started this entire situation found himself beginning to cower back as he realised that he had poked the bear and was now likely going to get mauled.

Maxine's hand went to reach her sword but she felt something grab onto it. When she looked down, she could see that it was Charles who had grabbed onto her hand. There was still a look of anger on her face but when she looked at him, she could see that he was shaking his head at her. This was a clear sign that he didn't want her to engage and this was something that she found to be very difficult.

More than anything, she wanted to pick up these bigots and throw them around as if they were toys. But she remembered the promise that she had made to Charles and how she was trying to curb her anger. Situations like this didn't make her promise easier to keep but she also knew that it would be better for everyone, if she were to just remove herself from here. Even though she would feel like it was a dent against her pride.

Without saying a word Maxine simply began to make her way towards the door of the inn. It was closed and rather than simply opening and stepping through, the armoured giantess kicked open. The force of the kick was enough to knock it off of its hinges and she simply continued to walk out. Charles stood there for a moment and looked before he began to follow her. The others did see that it was time for them to leave and quickly got up from where they were sitting and stepped out of the inn.

This left the instigators to stand there and simply look at what had taken place. They knew that it would take a huge amount of force to knock the door off its hinges in the way that it did and this just showed them how strong Maxine was. They were glad that she had decided to walk away rather than fight. If she had stayed, then there was a good chance that they would have suffered several broken bones.

Outside, Maxine continued to walk in the rain with the others following closely behind her. Asla did step forward somewhat so that she could catch up with the larger woman. She couldn't help but feel guilty as she knew that when it boiled down to it, the whole situation was her and her companions' fault. If they had not been there, it was likely that there wouldn't have been an issue. Because of this, she felt like she owed her an apology but wasn't too sure how to come across to her.

"M-Maxine," said Asla. As she continued to walk up to the much taller woman. "My apologises for that. It wasn't my intention to cause any trouble for you. But unfortunately, it is a reaction that I and my people do seem to receive when we step into such an establishment. I was hoping that this time it would go differently, unfortunately it seems I was mistaken." Maxine didn't respond as she simply continued to walk forward and the rain continued to pelt her armour.

"It's best to leave her be," replied Charles as he caught up with Asla. His voice was quiet so that Maxine couldn't hear him. "She needs time to calm herself down, just stay back for now and talk to her later."

"Hmm, I see." This did disappoint Asla but she did as she was told as she stepped back and allowed Maxine to be by herself.

Although the situation had been far from ideal, Charles did feel some pride towards Maxine. He knew that she would have likely just exploded with anger and laid waste to the Innkeeper and those men. None of them would have likely gotten out of there in one piece but she had decided to simply walk away. This showed him that she was serious about trying to control her anger and she had taken a very important step forward.

For the armoured giantess herself, there were still a fair few thing going through her mind. There was the fair few thing incident that had just taken place, the journey that she was on and disappointment of losing in the tournament. All of this was really weighing on her mind and she remained quiet. The others seemed to be taking notice of Charles's advice and simply left her be.

The rain continued to pelt down on them and they had to lift their hands in order to shield their faces from the rain. Unfortunately, since the area that they were walking through was surrounded by fields, there wasn't any trees for them to shield themselves from. Because of this, all they could do for the time being was endure.

Everyone in the group was getting soaked through and yet they continued to walk as they simply searched for a new place to find shelter. This was more difficult than they had expected as there seemed to be nothing all around them. From as far as they could see, all they could see was open fields.

Eventually, the rain did ease up and the sun began to shine. It made it hard to believe that it had been raining just a short time ago. Jinshu in particular noticed that there was a rainbow in the sky. In the culture that he shared with Asla and Taiyun, a rainbow was a sigh of good luck. This caused him to look up at it and smile.

"Look there's a rainbow up there," said Jinshu as he pointed up to the rainbow above them. This quickly got the attention of his immediate companions and Charles who all looked up towards it.

"That's a good sign," replied Taiyun. "Our journey should have some good fortune in the very near future." The three of them seemed to agree with him and although Charles didn't think too much of it. He still admitted that the sight did look quite pleasant. Seeing a rainbow wasn't the worth thing to happen in the world.

"You actual believe that a rainbow will make everything better again?" answered Maxine. Water was dripping from her hair and she felt that some of the rainwater had gotten through the gaps of her armour.

"W-Well no, but it still promises that our situation will improve."

"I've never heard anything so ridiculous. You can't just wish away your problems because of some stupid rainbow. The only way that..."

"M-Miss Martel," stated Charles. This time he didn't call her ma'am or Maxine as he was trying to be as respectful as he could. He quickly stepped towards her so that he didn't have to speak so loudly. "I think it's best that you stop there, I know that you're angry but you shouldn't take it out on your employers."

"Then how am I supposed to vent it!" Her voice was quiet but the frustration behind it could be clearly heard. He wasn't worried about being harmed or berated as he thought that she simply needed a little help.

"I-I'm not sure, but it's better than taking it out on them. I'm proud that you were able to hold your temper back there, I really am. But there are still better ways of venting your anger rather than belittling the beliefs of your employers."

Maxine fell silent for a few moments as she knew that her friend was right. What she had been doing wasn't right and she did turn her head towards the other three. She tried to calm herself down as much as she could before she spoke. There was a look of curiosity on the face of the others as they saw the giant armoured woman looking at them.

"My apologises for that outburst," said Maxine. She took a moment to look up at the rainbow. She remembered seeing one along with her father many years ago and it was a very fond memory that she had of him. "It is not my place to question your beliefs."

"We humbly accept your apology Miss Martel," replied Asla who spoke for both herself and her companions. "Sometimes we forget that our cultures are vastly different to one another." She smiled up to her in an attempt to make her feel better. Maxine didn't really react to this that much as she was still getting over what had happened. She was also trying not to sneeze as she didn't want to embarrass herself with her quite cute sounding sneezes.

"Indeed, and I'm also sorry for how you were treated by my countrymen. You didn't have to experience that."

"You needn't apologise over that. You were not the one who said those words or forced us to leave. I would like to say that was the first time that my companions and I have experienced such a reaction. But then we both know that I'd be lying."

Maxine could only sigh as she could imagine some of the abuse and reactions that she had gotten from people during her time in Angleland. It was likely that not everyone that Asla Jinshu and Taiyun had any ill will towards them due to their race. But there had definitely been a few and this had been enough to make them wary. It had been a reason why they thought that they would struggle to find someone who would agree to protect them on their journey.

"There has been one thing that I have been wondering," said Maxine as she continued to walk. She found that talking to Asla made her slowly begin to forget her anger and eventually calm her down.

"And what is that?" replied Asla. She looked up to the giant woman with some curiosity. She didn't want to admit that she was beginning to get a neck strain from constantly having to look up at her.

"Your friends there. Why are they travelling with you? Are they your husbands or something like that?" In Angleland it was illegal for a person to have multiple marriages going at the same time. Since Asla was from a completely different country, she thought that it was possible that the laws there were different so multiple marriages might be legal. If it wasn't that, then it was known that sometimes, people could be in relationships with multiple people. Everyone involved would be aware and accepting to the relationship, but this was indeed quite rare.

"Oh no, Jinshu and Taiyun are not my romantic partners. They're accompanying me out of duty."

"Duty?" This was an interesting use of words that did attract the attention of Maxine. She knew that Asla was most likely to have some riches as she was paying good money for this job. But now she was thinking that there might be more to her than she had originally contemplated.

"Yes, they are to remain by my side until we reach our final destination. That is something that you needn't worry about. As soon as we reach the east coast, then you won't have to accompany us any further."

"I see." Maxine wanted to pry further but for the moment decided not to. She might not have been the most intelligent person in the world, but she could tell that Asla was hiding something. Her curiosity was beginning to peak but she felt it was best not to ask further questions.

Many times, in jobs like this, the clients preferred to keep certain aspects of their motives secret. Maxine assumed that this job was the same so she decided to leave it at that. Just as long as she was paid for her services, the reason for their trip could be anything for all that she cared.

Before she could say anything else, Maxine couldn't help but let out a sneeze and it caught everyone but Charles by surprise. Asla and her companions looked up to the armoured giantess as they realised that the sneeze had come from her. Its cuteness hadn't been lost on them and they could see her face beginning to turn red with embarrassment.

Charles couldn't help but smile a little as he did enjoy hearing Maxine's sneeze although he knew her opinions about it. This was just a little something that he found interesting about her, despite the fact that she was so large and intimidating. The fact that she had a sneeze that many would consider to be adorable always seemed to put a smile on his face.

Eventually the legs of the group were too tired to walk and they were forced to rest up on the side of the road. They sat down on the ground that was still wet from being on the rain that had come a short time earlier. The warm sun was beginning to dry things up but it was still a slow process.

Some food that they had was shared amongst them, rather than being a proper meal. They were more like snacks, this included fruits, some bread and even a cake that they had been able to buy. Maxine still hardly spoke after what had taken place as she was still annoyed and lost in her own thoughts.

She was distracted when she heard her three foreign companions. They were speaking in their language once again and because of this, she had no idea what they were saying. As far as she knew, they could be talking about assassinating her and Charles while they slept, or merely talking about the weather.

Her suspicions were growing but the fact that they were talking to themselves in their native language did make sense. It was simply much easier for them to talk to one another rather than using a language that they might have been fluent in, but could still confuse them from time to time.

One thing that Maxine did notice was Charles slowly making his way towards the group. He was simply curious about their language and it seemed to be getting the better of him as he continued to walk towards them. Eventually he was close enough as far as he was concerned and made his presence known.

"E-Excuse me," said Charles. "I'm not interrupting you, am I?" Quickly Jinshu and Taiyun looked towards him with some surprise on their faces. Asla too looked up to him, but she seemed to be much more welcoming.

"Of course not," replied Asla. She smiled up to him and this seemed to calm down her two male companions. "What can I help you with?"

"Well, I couldn't help but overhear your conversation and I must say. Your language is fascinating, of course I didn't understand a word that you were saying but still... I can't help be curious."

"I see. I admit that it is very different to your language. It took us a while to learn your language and there are some terms that I still can't wrap my head around. For some of your countrymen, they speak your language and yet I still can't understand a word that they're saying."

"Yeah, accents can't do that. Those from the Prime Islands have accents so thick that even I have a hard time understanding them." He chuckled for a moment. "If it isn't too much trouble, I wouldn't mind learning a thing or two about your language. Since we're going to be travelling companions for a while, you wouldn't mind teaching me?"

"It would be my pleasure." She then held out her hand to him and smiled again. She then spoke a phrase in her native language. "That means, Hello, it is nice to meet you." She took his hand and then shook it. "Now you try." Charles repeated the phrase as best as he could and he knew that he had made a mistake or two. All he could hear was Asla chuckle for a moment. "Your punctuation is a little off but not bad for a first attempt."

"Thanks, I guess I didn't embarrass myself too much."

Maxine continued to watch on and she was overtaken by a different emotion. It wasn't anger or disappointment in herself, no it was something entirely different. Rather, she could see how friendly her friend and squire were getting with Asla and she didn't like it. It was around this time that she realised that she was feeling jealous.

It was one of the few times that she had felt this feeling in her life and the first towards another woman. She tried to deny it as much as she could, but it was there and for the time being, it was likely going to remain whenever she saw her squire speaking with Asla. Especially when it was with something like this.

Maxine continued to watch as Charles repeated back a few simple phrases in Asla's native language. Neither of them was sure exactly what he was saying but Asla did seem to be quite impressed with how he was stating them. She thought that there was a chance that if he studied the language for a few years that he might even be fluent in it. This would be something that would be very rare in Angleland.

Throughout their lesson, Maxine wasn't the only one who was keeping her eye on Charles and Asla. Both Jinshu and Taiyun also kept their eye on the pair as they were curious to see what his motives actually were. At no point did they fully trust him and they had been the reluctant to hire him and Maxine. But Asla had still thought it was best to have some kind of protection, even if it was from a fairly small man and a nine-foot heavily armoured woman who was more than capable of swinging a sword.

Their lesson came to an end when Maxine cleared her throat. This quickly caught the attention of Charles who turned to look at her. She was still sitting on the ground and looking over to them. Her arms were crossed and she looked to be unhappy. Charles simply assumed that it was because of the events that had taken place at the inn and the fact that she had lost the tournament.

Everyone watched as the towering woman stood up to her full height and stated that they should keep going. Jinshu was still feeling a little tired but he didn't want to say anything as he was still somewhat scared of her. Like others before him, he knew better than to go against what she said and everyone did rise up to their feet.

Although the group had rested, the rest wasn't long enough for any of them to fully recover from their journey so far. Of course, they knew that they weren't going to reach the east coast if they were simply going to sit around. Because of this, although there was some reluctance, they did carry on with their journey.

Along the way they did pass a couple of people who were riding on a horse and cart. Rather than being people of wealth, they seemed like simple farmers who were making their way from one place to another. However, they did look over to the odd-looking party who were passing by.

They could see the giantess who was leading the way but their attention drew more towards the other companions. Like many in Angleland, they had heard about the people from the Kingdom to the East but they had never actually seen them. To them, it was like they were looking at exotic animals rather than people. To them, Charles was the most normal looking member of the party, but his slightly darkened skin did make him stand out as well.

Their glares were noticed by Maxine who simply glared back at them. This struck some fear into the farmers who simply carried on their way and tried to forget what they had just seen. Although it was likely that they wouldn't forget this party in a hurry and would be mentioning them to their friends at the local tavern.

The main fear of Asla and her countrymen had been the threat of bandits. So far, they hadn't seen anyone who even resembled a bandit which to them was either sheer luck or that Maxine was actually doing her job. Bandits were known to mainly focus on people who were travelling alone, if they were in a party such as this, it was likely that they would search for easier prey. The sheer presence of Maxine would deter any bandit as she was far from an easy target.

Several more hours of walking went by until the group had to rest for the night. There was an inn nearby but none of them wanted to risk a repeat of the events that had taken place earlier that day. Because of this, they had to sleep on the ground again but not before cooking some much-needed food.

This time it was Taiyun who was the main person who was cooking the food. The ingredients that he used were somewhat unusual as it involved using spices that weren't found in Angleland and had been brought from his own kingdom. Because of this, while it was cooking, both Maxine and Charles were greeted by smells that they had never smelled before. To the large woman, it smelled very unusual and there was something about it that she didn't like.

There was another sensation that she could feel and this was one that she had felt on many different occasions. This one was hunger as she sat there with a slight look of discomfort on her face. The last thing that she wanted to do was go hungry for the night and even this strange smelling meal that was being prepared did seem appetising.

Eventually the food was ready and it was quickly dished up onto the plates. One was given to each of them with Maxine getting the largest portion. There she looked down at her meal and could see things that she had never seen before. This included what looked to be small chunks of meat that were covered with something orange that she could only describe as some kind of topping. There was some rice included along with a couple of different vegetables that she didn't think that she had ever seen before. Such things she would have been used to due to the fact that she had grown up on a farm. But this was like nothing that she had seen before.

"W-What is this?" asked Maxine as she looked down at the dish that was currently on her lap. She then glanced over to Asla as she felt that the small woman was the most likely one who would give her a straight answer.

"This is a traditional dish from our kingdom," replied Asla as she took a bite out of her meal. "It is supposed to give all the calories and taste that a traveller needs for their journey." She noticed Charles take a bite out of his meal and he smiled.

"Yum, this is delicious," stated Charles after he had swallowed what was in his mouth. "I've never tasted anything like this before."

"I guess it is something that the people of Angleland have never really eaten before. Hopefully you'll enjoy the rest.

After witnessing Charles eating some of his meal, Maxine did scoop up some of the meat and placed it in her mouth. That was when she felt something that caught her completely by surprise. This was the sensation of something hot within her mouth but it wasn't necessarily the temperature of the food that was hot. It was around the temperature that she was expecting but it was something else. Something that caused her to somewhat panic as she tried to fan her mouth. This caught the attention of everyone in the group who looked up to her and simply watched.

"Hot! Hot!" stated Maxine in a somewhat panicked tone. She couldn't help but feel that there was something terribly wrong. This got a small chuckle from Jinshu and thankfully she couldn't hear him.

"Yeah, the dish is a little spicy," replied Asla as she thought that she should have warned her new companions about it. She had forgotten that the people of Angleland didn't really use any kind of spices in their cooking so such a taste like this was completely alien to them. "Don't worry, it'll go down."

Charles sat there and watched as Maxine picked up a cup of water that she had been drinking from and quickly drank some of it. This made her feel better and worse in a way as it washed the food down but didn't really get rid of any of the spicey sensation that she had. Her face had turned a little red as the others simply watched on and wondered what her reaction would be.

"A-Are you alright Maxine?" asked Charles with some concern in his voice. He had felt the same thing but had enjoyed it more than she had. There was a part of him that was worried that she would react negatively to what had just taken place.

"Y-Yeah I'm alright," replied Maxine. It was obvious that what had taken place had been a worse experience for her than she was letting on. "I-It's just that I've never eaten anything like this before."

"It does pack a punch. Guess it's not like any of the pies that you've eaten before." This did make her think for a moment after she had heard Charles mention this as she looked towards Asla.

"You do have pies in your kingdom, don't you?" There was genuine curiosity in her voice as she asked this.

"We do know what pies are," answered Asla. "But we only came across it once we came to Angleland. There are no pies in our kingdom."

"No pies in your kingdom?" There was shock in her voice as she couldn't imagine any place that didn't have pies. "How can there possibly be a kingdom without pies? Such a thing should be impossible!"

This was more shocking to her than anything else that she had ever comprehended in her life. Even Charles could see how flustered she was getting over the entire thing and he couldn't help but find it a little funny. After everything that she had been through, the fact that there was a country without pies was the most surprising to her. One thing that he knew for certain was that she wouldn't want to visit Asla's kingdom if there were no pies there whatsoever.

That night, Charles slept close to Maxine who had fallen asleep sometime earlier. The ground wasn't very comfortable but it was likely that they wouldn't be able to stay at an inn. This was due to their other companions as he didn't think there would be many inns that would accommodate them.

Sleeping in a warm bed was something that he would love and he hoped to be able to do so on a regular basis in the near future. Since his time travelling with Maxine, he had slept out in the elements more times than he could count. He hoped that once she earned her knighthood that she would settle down somewhere so that they didn't have to travel so much.

As he slept, Charles found himself in a place that he wanted to forget. He was in the basement of an inn that still caused him a lot of grief as he could see the dead bodies all around and the altar that struck fear throughout him. Slowly he began to back away as he knew where he was and he began to run up the stairs.

Much to his horror, the stairs were much further than he remembered as it seemed that no matter how many he ran up, he wasn't making any progress. As he looked back down, he could see the faces of the family that he would never be able to forget. Each one he had killed in one way or another and all of them stared directly at him. The young woman had her neck in an unnatural angle and the older man had blood on his chest. There were several stab wounds on his chest and when Charles looked at his hands, he could see that there was blood dripping from them.

Something else that he began to notice was that even though he was running up the stairs, the top of them seemed to be drifting further and further away. Not only that but he was also slowly drifting closer towards the family and this caused him to panic. More and more he tried to run up the stairs but no matter what he did, they only seemed to be getting closer to him.

As he unwillingly approached them, he could hear his name being called. It sounded distant but he didn't seem to notice it all that much as he was too focused on trying to escape. All of the family had sadistic smiles on their faces and this only added to the absolute fear that he could feel. His pleas for them to stay away were being ignored as they reached to grab onto him and he screamed as he felt a hand get placed on his shoulder.

The next thing that Charles could see was someone looming over him. As he began to come to, he realised that it was Maxine and he had jolted away. The very large woman was kneeling towards him and looking down at him. Her armoured hand was on his shoulder and there was a look of concern on her face. It was around this time that he realised that what he had experienced was an horrific dream.

"Charles are you alright?" asked Maxine. It was obvious that she was worried about him. "Can you hear me?"

For the moment, Charles couldn't really answer as he began to tear up and he hugged onto Maxine. This wasn't something that she had been expecting but she did hug him back as she could guess what had just happened. She had witnessed him murmuring and turning in his sleep. To her, this was a clear indication that he was having a nightmare.

"Don't worry," said Maxine as she continued to hug him. "I'm here, I'm here."

These words meant more to Charles than he could describe. In a way, he felt a little embarrassed that he was reacting in such a way to a dream. But the fact that it was based on a past trauma had made it truly horrific for him. The knowledge that she was there for him did put him at ease but it was obvious that he still had some issues from the past experience that he needed to work out.

His reactions had not gone unnoticed by Asla and her companions who looked over to him. They could see his reaction to her and they do begin to wonder a few things. For now, it was best for them to not pry further but it was obvious that something had bothered Charles a great deal.

After a quick breakfast, the group carried on with their journey but Charles remained quite quiet. It was obvious that the nightmare that he had the previous night had really rattled him. Although some time and other events had taken place between now and when they had stayed at the cultist inn, he was still very anxious. Because of this, he stayed quite close to Maxine as he knew that she would do whatever she could to protect him.

There was one point in time where they did have to stop so that the men could relieve themselves. They stepped off the path and made their way to some bushes that were close by. The women stood there and waited and none of them looked towards the men as they knew that they wanted privacy.

This made it the first time that the two women were alone without the men present. The size and cultural differences between the two were staggering as Asla looked up to the much taller Maxine. She didn't really take much notice of her for the moment as she simply stood there and waited.

It took a couple of moments for Asla to think of what she wanted to say. She had seen how angry Maxine had been at the tavern the previous day and had been surprised that she hadn't let her rage explode. But this wasn't going to be the subject of her line of questioning. Instead, it was something else entirely.

"Is Charles alright?" asked Asla with some concern in her voice. Her accent did make it a little hard for Maxine to understand but she was able to piece together what the smaller woman was asking. "I saw him wake up in a cold sweat and in a panicked state. Is there something bothering him."

"He just had a bad dream," replied Maxine. She wasn't dismissive or thought that what Charles had experienced wasn't anything of note. She just wanted to make it seem like it wasn't too big of a deal so that Asla wouldn't become worried about him. "Nothing more than that."

"It's more than just a bad dream, I've seen people toss and turn like that and it isn't a mere dream that causes such a thing. If you don't mind me asking, did your friend suffer some kind of past trauma."

"I do mind you asking." Her tone was only slightly harsher than it had been before and it was obvious that she wanted Asla to drop the subject. "Charles will be fine, don't worry about a thing."

"A-As you wish."

Despite Maxine's words, Asla couldn't help but worry about Charles. Out of the vast majority of the people that she had met in Angleland, he had treated her and her companions with a great amount of respect. She didn't want anything bad to happen with him and she had seen people who had suffered such night terrors. They were all suffering from some kind of past trauma that they hadn't been able to recover from.

From the way that Charles had hugged Maxine and she had done the same back; it was obvious to Asla that the large woman knew exactly what it was. She could also see how much they meant to each other. It was obvious that they both needed one another and the fact that they were only friends was very surprising to say the least.

Before Asla could think about it more, the men returned to them after they had done what they needed to do. It was only a few moments after that when they carried on with their journey. So far, their progress had been satisfactory but they still had at least a couple of hundred miles to go before they reached the east coast.

To them it was still a daunting task and there had been some talk amongst the foreigners to hire some horses. The main problem with that was Maxine was simply too big to ride a horse. When she had been younger, she had been able to ride horses much like everyone else. But as she grew taller and bulkier, she simply became too heavy for a horse to comfortably carry her. Ever since that day she had walked everywhere that she needed to go.

Eventually, the group came up to a crossroads with a signpost that was located right next to it. This caused the group to stop as they needed to decide which way was the best for them. There was one problem that they did come across though. This was the fact that the majority of them couldn't read the signpost.

Maxine's reading skills were subpar much like many, many people in Angleland. There had been a possibility for her to be sent to school but the price had simply been too much for her family to afford. Sir Tucker had tried his best to educate her, but there was only so much he could do. Because of this, she had been living her entire life without the ability to properly read or write.

When it came to Asla, Jinshu and Taiyun the reason for why they couldn't read the sign was simple. Although they could read and write, it was only in their native language. The lettering in the language of Angleland was completely different to their own language and thus they had yet to learn how to understand them.

Out of all of them, it was only Charles who could competently read the signpost. However, the lettering was degrading and it made it a little too hard for him to read. The only problem with that was that the sign was too high up for him to get a closer look and so he had to ask Maxine to lift him up so that he could take a closer look. His friend was more than happy to oblige as she gently grabbed onto him and then lifted him up so that he could properly see what was written on the signpost.

"So, what does it say?" asked Maxine. She was being patient but like the others, she was curious about where they were.

"A-According to this," replied Charles as he read the signpost. It was still a little hard to make out as some moss had grown onto it and he had to remove it with his hands so that he could comfortably read it. "That way leads to Bridgeton and the other leads to Redford." He pointed towards each direction as he spoke this to give a clear indication to everyone there what he was talking about.

"Have you ever been to either place?"

"I can't say that I have, sorry." In a way, he felt like he was letting her and everyone else down by not being able to give the information that was needed.

"That's alright, there's nothing for you to be sorry about." Carefully she placed him back down on the ground and then turned to the others. Since they were the ones paying for her and Charles to accompany them, the decision was ultimately up to them. "So, what'll be, do you want to go through Bridgeton or Redford?"

"It makes little difference to us," answered Asla in a respectful tone. "Just like you, we are unfamiliar with these places so picking either of them wouldn't really change things. If we have to choose, we would go for Bridgeton. Bridges build friendships between people and are strong."

Maxine didn't fully understand the logic behind what Asla had just said but if that was her decision, then that was what they would do. She hadn't heard much about either location so she couldn't judge whether it was a good decision or not.

Since the decision had been made, the group began to follow the path that would take them to Bridgeton. This took them further south and they hoped that they would be able to continue travelling east from there. It would also give them an opportunity to buy some supplies as they were beginning to run a little low. But there was one thing that did concern them about this.

They feared that they would be rejected like they had done at the inn the day before. This was something that was squarely on their minds but they also had to be somewhat optimistic. If they weren't able to find anyone who was willing to sell them supplies, then they would struggle. Even if it did mean that they would have to likely buy them at an inflated price in comparison to others.

It was around mid-afternoon when the group could spot Bridgeton in the distance. It looked to be a relatively small town and seemed like the ideal place where they could rest up for the night if they found anywhere that would take them in. Charles seemed to have cheered up a little over the walk but he was still feeling depressed after the dream. He had stuck close to Maxine the entire time; she didn't mind this as she knew what he was going through and felt that it was best to stay with him.

Once again, all of them seemed tired as they entered into Bridgeton. At first glance, there didn't seem to be too much to really see in this town. It looked like numerous other towns littered all across Angleland where nothing of real importance ever happened. It was the kind of place that people would occasionally see on a map and not really give it too much thought. It was simply that unremarkable.

As expected, the townspeople began to take notice of the group when they entered the town. Many of them just went by their business and didn't really look while other stared at them as if they were intruders. Like most people in Angleland, they had never seen people from the East before and their expression was that of wonder and confusion. This stemmed from the fact that they looked very different to the people of Angleland and their outfits too were very colourful. To the people of Bridgeton, Asla and her companions were like people from a completely different world.

They also didn't ignore the fact that they were accompanied by a nine-foot woman who could strike fear into any of them by giving them a simple glance. A few people had heard about her but none of them knew her by name. They had heard rumours about such a large woman actually existing. They had just assumed that these were stories to entertain people in taverns, none of them had even considered that they were real.

The only member of the group to not really be noticed was Charles who kept himself quick. Since he was quite a short man, he was able to somewhat blend and due to the way that he was feeling, he thought that it was for the best. Also, he kept his eye out for any kind of shop where they could get some supplies or an inn where they would be able to stop for the night. He just hoped that it would go better than the last time.

Eventually, Charles did spot what looked to be a shop that sold general items. This seemed to be perfect as it meant that they would be able to buy the supplies that they needed. It didn't take him long to point it out to the others who quickly looked towards it. Like, him they thought that it was ideal but they too had some fear amongst them as they simply thought that they would be refused service.

This was when he did come up with an idea that he quickly explained to the others. Since it was less likely to cause trouble, he thought that it was best that either he or Maxine went inside to buy the supplies. If Asla, Jinshu and Taiyun stayed away, then it was likely that they would be served without issue.

The idea was a sound one but it did make Charles feel guilty as he felt like he was treating the others like they had been treated by many others in Angleland. There was a simple reason why he had suggested it but now that he had, his guilt began to get the better of him over the issue.

This was something that was not shared by Asla who although wasn't too pleased about the situation, did admit that it was probably the best thing to do. She knew full well that the presence of herself and her companions did tend to cause problems. It was simply the way that things were and she didn't think that it would change any time soon. Not without a change to the society of Angleland itself.

With some care and gold in his pocket, Charles entered the store and had a quick look around. From what he could see, the prices were more than he expected but he still had more than enough funds to cover it. In particular he was looking out for food products that didn't spoil particularly quickly. He was tempted to buy some meat but without the means to properly store it, it would likely go bad before they had a chance to properly eat it. Worse still, eating bad meat could lead to the group becoming very sick or worse.

Instead, he purchased mostly fruits and vegetables along with some water. The store did sell some ale as well but he thought that it was best not to for the time being. Although Maxine, hadn't drunk any for a few days, he didn't think that they needed to carry any. There was also the fact that she would likely drink some when they arrived at an inn.

The entire time Charles was inside, he couldn't help but feel on edge. This made him jumpier than he normally was as it seemed that he still hadn't gotten over the dream that he had. The main problem with this was that his problem was much worse than simply a bad dream that couldn't be cured just like that. He wouldn't truly feel safe again once he was back by the side of Maxine.

The large woman stood outside close to Asla, Jinshu and Taiyun. All of them were getting a lot of attention and Maxine in particular didn't like it. She was doing her best to curb her anger so rather than glaring at them or giving them a snide comment, she simply tried to ignore them.

She thought that the others too would be uncomfortable with this situation but as she looked at them, she could see normal reactions from them. They even heard one man say to them that they didn't belong there as he walked by them. If they had said that to her, she would have ensured that they regretted those words. But Asla and her companions barely batted an eyelid at them. It was as if they had gotten used to this and as far as she was concerned, that was simply wrong.

"How can you stand there and let someone talk to you in that manner?" asked Maxine as she looked down at her companions. She was eagerly awaiting the return of her squire and if he didn't come back soon, she would begin to worry. "You should defend yourself more, then people will treat you with respect."

"That may be true but it wouldn't be the wisest course of action," replied Asla. Her tone was still respectful, even though she didn't agree with what Maxine was saying. "There are some wars that are worth fighting and others that are not. If we were to fight everyone who made some kind of ill comment towards us, then we would be fighting practically everyone that we came across. They do mean their words but they bring us no physical harm so no actions are needed."

"But if you let people walk all over you then how are you going to change things? Don't you want to be able to go into a tavern or a shop and be treated just like everyone else?" Her words were making her a little flustered but she still kept her composure.

"Of course, we do, but we are just three people and there is nothing that I would be able to do or say that can change the entirety of a society's mindset. We can educate people on a person-by-person basis but changing everything. That is something that is simply beyond you or myself."

"So, you're going to just stand there and take it?

"For now, yes because there is nothing else that can be done. Plus, by simply letting it go, it brings less trouble to us. We are already disliked enough, violently correcting people on their trespasses, then we will bring more trouble down upon us than even someone like you could handle."

Maxine did fall silent as she did think about what Asla had said. She could see a lot of sense in her words and she did wonder what would have happened if she had let similar insults slide. Situations would have gone very different and it was likely that some of the confrontations that she had engaged with wouldn't have taken place.

These thoughts were interrupted when she noticed Charles returning to them. In his arms were the supplies that he had been sent to buy and since he was buying for five people, there was a lot for him to carry. It was more like feeding six or seven people when Maxine was included. When the supplies were distributed then it would be much easier to carry and he seemed to have gotten everything that they needed. But from carrying everything he did seem to be out to breath.

"You return Charles," said Jinshu. It was odd to see him happy to see Charles. It was obvious that Jinshu and Taiyun didn't fully trust their two new companions. But he was glad that they had gotten the supplies that they needed.

"I-I got everything," replied Charles. His arms were trembling under the weight of everything that he was carrying. Thankfully this was soon relieved as Maxine grabbed the majority of it and lifted it up. To her, she barely showed any effort when picking it up and this showed the pure strength difference between the two.

"You've done great," stated Maxine once she had picked up the objects. She had felt some sympathy towards him as she knew that she should have been there to help him. "Good job Charles."

"Y-You're welcome." He couldn't help but blush a little as he did enjoy being complimented by her. Out of everything that he had done for her, this was only minor but it was nice nonetheless.

The group began to go through the supplies that had been picked up and distribute it amongst themselves. All of them were hungry and they were tempted to just eat some of the food that they had acquired. However, they knew better than this as it needed to last them for a good while. Plus, it was better to have a hot meal in their bellies rather some uncooked vegetables and snacks.

This was going to be another problem for them as finding an inn would be their next port of call. From where they were standing, they could see a relatively large inn that was close by. Already they had seen around three or four people walk in and out. The memories of the day before were in their minds and they greatly worried about what would happen if they were rejected again.

Last time it had been at a tavern that was practically in the middle of nowhere. This time, they were in the middle of a town and if trouble were to arise then there was a good chance that a lot more people would get involved. More than even, Maxine would be able to handle by herself.

There was some caution as the group made their way towards the inn. All of them were prepared for the worst possible outcome. If anyone tried to attack them, Jinshu and Taiyun were prepared to defend themselves, but they too feared about being overwhelmed. Also, there would be a chance that law enforcement would get involved and that would only get them into even more trouble.

The first problem that the group came across was the main entrance. The door was smaller than average as it was only a few inches above six feet in height. For four members of the group, this wasn't a problem but when it came to Maxine, it was another matter entirely. She glared at it for a few moments as she realised that she was going to have to really duck down this time to get through it.

Out of all of them, she was the last to step through as she really ducked down and slowly made her way through. Thankfully, it was wide enough for her as her muscles and armour made her body very bulky. But there wasn't too much clearance on either side as they were only an inch or so of space left.

Almost all eyes were on her when she entered as it was hard to miss such a large woman entering the inn. Some glanced over with curiosity before going back to their drinks or whatever food that they had been eating. The appearance of the others was surprising but not enough for them to stop drinking.

It took a few moments for Maxine to be able to fit through the door and slowly her head began to rise as she began to stand up to her full height. Before she had done this, she had glanced up to the ceiling and noticed that it did look quite low. Because of this, before she could stand up straight, her head did strike the ceiling. Thankfully because she had been doing this slowly, she didn't feel too much of an impact.

For Asla and the others, it was still amazing to see a woman so tall that she her head would touch the ceiling in a normal size room. At the previous tavern, the ceiling had been more than high enough for her to stand up to her full height. This inn wasn't the same and this did annoy Maxine slightly, although by now she was used to such places. The world simply wasn't built for a person of her size.

Now that she inside, she and the others began to make their way towards the counter. There they could see a short man standing there. He had a somewhat worried look on his face as he could see the odd group approaching. His focus was completely on Maxine as she was definitely the biggest figure amongst them.

Charles could sense some tension and all he could do was hope that this interaction went better than the last one. His heart was beating very quickly and he made sure to stay close to the towering armoured woman. Not just for protection but also so that he could step in if he needed to.

Maxine continued to step towards the counter at the inn and she expected things to go poorly. So far no one had confronted them and to her, this was a good sign. However, this could change in an instant and she quickly glanced back to look at Charles and the others. They too looked a little worried and she knew that she would have to defend them if need be. She just hoped that it wouldn't come to that.

"Excuse me," said Maxine when she had reached the counter. The innkeeper standing behind it was having to look practically all the way up so that he could see her face. "My companions and I require a couple of rooms for the night. Do you have any available for us to stay in?"

"D-Do you have the coin to pay for it?" replied the Innkeeper. His response was definitely a lot more positive than the last one that they had visited but there was still a chance that things could take a turn for the worst.

"Of course." It was Asla who stepped forward and placed some coins onto the counter. What she placed down was more than enough to rent out a couple of rooms for the night. "Is this sufficient?"

"Indeed, it is, allow me to show you to your rooms."

For the group, this had gone far better than any of them could have hoped. None of them thought that things would go this smoothly. Although there was always a chance that things could take a turn for the worst.

As they had been asked, the group did begin to follow the Innkeeper as he took them upstairs. There they were taken to a couple of rooms that were unoccupied. One could house two people while the other could house three. This was ideal for their arrangements and the Innkeeper stood near the group as they examined their rooms. They were a little small but they were certainly better than sleeping out in the elements.

"Are these rooms to your liking?" asked the Innkeeper. He was somewhat nervous but he seemed to hide it well. Over his time as an innkeeper, he had seen many people come and go. Some of them, he thought most likely had prices on their heads. But as long as they paid, he didn't mind who stayed in these rooms.

"They are thank you," replied Maxine. She was disappointed with the low ceiling but it wasn't anything that she hadn't been expecting.

"That's good, but there is a request that I'm going to ask you. I don't want any trouble downstairs so can your companions there stay up here?" He then pointed to Charles. "You and he are fine but those three, it's best for them to not be seen. Do we have an agreement on the matter?"

Maxine could feel some rage within her as this was similar to the previous tavern that they had tried to stay at. But she tried her best to not allow her anger to get the better of her and she glanced over to Asla who stood close by. The short woman gave her a nod and she knew what this meant.

"Yes, we have an agreement," answered Maxine although she wasn't pleased with the situation.

"Good," replied the Innkeeper. "One of you pair may come down to buy some food or drinks, but it's best for you to eat it up here. I have nothing against you or your friends personally. But I just don't want any trouble taking place downstairs."

"We understand, thank you for allowing us to stay."

With that the Innkeeper went back downstairs as they went to their rooms. There was a brief discussion about who should stay in which rooms. There was some talk of them be split up by gender but in the end, it was decided that they should stay within their initial groups. This was something that Maxine didn't mind. As far as she was concerned, it was just as long as Charles wasn't sleeping in the same room as Asla.

She didn't want him to be spending too much alone time with Asla. In her mind, she said to herself that it was because she didn't fully trust the foreign woman. Although at this moment in time, Asla had done nothing to make Maxine feel like she shouldn't trust her. Instead, there was something else that was causing it. Something that she didn't fully want to admit to herself.

Once the arrangements had been made, both sets of travellers went to their respected rooms and sat down on the beds. After sleeping on the ground and out in the elements for the last few days, being in a warm bed was something that they all looked forward to. It was still too early in the day to go to sleep as it wasn't quite evening just yet. Instead, they merely became comfortable in their rooms and they could afford to relax for a while.

Maxine in particular was able to take off her armour and she felt like a great weight had been taken off her body. She knew the importance of her armour and she did wear it practically every waking hour. But she felt like she could be a little more laidback now and she made sure that her armour was in the corner of the room, right where she could see it clearly.

One thing that she was sure to do was to keep her sword within reach. The situation might be calming, but there was always the chance that danger would rear its ugly head within a moment's notice. Because of that, she wanted to be sure that she was prepared to defend both herself and Charles. Being inside of a room like this didn't mean that she could drop her guard.

When Maxine glanced over to Charles, she could see that he was writing something down in his book. It was beginning to look a little more tattered than when she had originally seen it. This was an obvious thanks to their journey so far together, but then again, she didn't think it was brand new when they started.

"What are you writing down?" asked Maxine as she looked over to Charles. He was sitting on his own bed while she sat on hers. She felt like stepping over to him, but with the low ceiling, she felt that it was best to stay where she was for the moment.

"Just a couple of financial stuff," replied Charles. "I'm still making sure that we don't overspend." He looked towards her while he was sitting there. "Probably nothing that you'll be too interested in unfortunately."

"I see." She gave a small sigh. "It still amazes me that you're able to read and write. Normally it's those stuck up high borns or officials who can do that. It's nice to be able to find someone who can do that and doesn't have their heads shoved up their ass."

"Well, such a skill is extremely valuable in this world. As you've seen, it definitely has its uses." An idea appeared in his head as he began to write something down on a blank page that he was able to find. Once he was done, he looked over to Maxine again. "Maxine, do you mind if I sit next to you for a moment?"

"Y-Yeah sure." This caught Maxine by surprise but she didn't mind him coming to sit next to her. She watched as he got up from where he was sitting and then sat down right next to her. She was surprised once more when she noticed how close he was sitting next to her but she didn't mind this. Instead, she watched as he opened up the book and then placed in on her lap. She looked down at it with confusion as she had no idea why he would be doing such a thing. "What are you doing?"

"I'm thinking of helping you with your reading skills." He pointed down to the page and when Maxine looked at it, she could see several letters but she didn't really know what they meant. "You might have been through this before, but I think it's best to begin with the basics. This is the alphabet; every single word is made up of these letters. Put them together in order to make up words and phrases." On the page was every letter in the alphabet and he made sure that they were large letters so that it was easier for Maxine to see and understand. He pointed towards the letter A and used the shortened punctuation for it. She looked at him for a moment before she repeated the letter after him.

With that they began to go over each letter of the alphabet and there were a couple of things that confused her. Like how the shortened punctuations of C and K sounded identical to one another. Even so, she did try her best as they went through the alphabet numerous times. But from what Charles could see, she was simply repeating what he said and he wasn't sure if she was truly learning.

It was around the tenth go through when he decided that he wouldn't say the letters. Instead, he would simply point at a letter and wanted her to read it back to him. As expected, this was much more difficult for her. For the first few letters, she didn't do too badly but when it came to some of the others, she really struggled.

"Come on Maxine, I know that you can do it," said Charles as he gave her words of encouragement.

"W-Was it T?" replied Maxine as she was trying to remember what the letter sounded like when they went through it. She couldn't help but feel a little stupid during this time but she knew that Charles was trying to help her. The fact that it was only them in the room did make her feel a little better about the situation.

"No, that one is S but you were close. You're not doing bad considering that this is your first lesson."

"Thanks." She looked at him and began to smile a little. He was being patient with her and she did appreciate what he was trying to do for her. The ability to read was likely going to be a skill that was more valuable than any kind of fighting technique or even a title. Being able read would open more doors to her than she could likely think of. "I'm just finding it a little difficult."

"Well, I didn't expect you be able to fully read and write after just a few minutes. It is going to take time, but don't worry. I'll be here to help you with it every step of the way."

"Charles." She wasn't sure what she was about to say. More than anything she appreciated what he was doing for her and the fact that he still remained by her side. She was sure that once his life debt had been paid to her that he would go on his way and they would never see each other again. Instead, he had remained with her and she was sure that he had saved her more times that she had saved him. In all of her years, she never thought that she would meet a man who was actually willing to spend time with her who wasn't a member of her family. She wasn't sure what she was going to do but she felt her arm lower towards him.

Suddenly there was a knock on the door and this quickly got the attention of Maxine and Charles. He went to get up to answer it, but she placed her hand on his shoulder and she got up instead. A part of her was expecting trouble so she thought that it was best for her to check it out.

Quickly, the towering woman opened the door and she thought that she was going to see someone who wanted to cause trouble. Instead, she could see that it was Jinshu but she couldn't remember his name. She did recognise him immediately and quickly relaxed but she couldn't help but feel a little annoyed. She had been enjoying the lesson that she was having with Charles and he had interrupted it.

"My apologises for disturbing you," said Jinshu. Although he had been travelling with Maxine, he was still quite intimidated by her. Seeing her without her armour was certainly different but he could see how muscular she was and the fact that she was too tall to stand up straight in this room.

"What do you want?" replied Maxine in a tone that showed him that she didn't really want to be bothered.

"M-My companions and I are hungry and we do not wish to use the supplies that we've obtained. Do one of you mind going downstairs and buying some warm food. Asla has ensured that you'll be properly compensated."

"Fine whatever, we'll pick something up for you." He still sounded like she didn't have much patience and she didn't even ask him what they wanted.

"Thank you, anything will do. We are not fussy."

"Yeah, yeah. We'll go down in a minute."

With that Maxine closed the door on him and began to step back towards the bed. She was still stooping down so that her head didn't strike the ceiling. Charles watched as she did this and sat back down where she had been before. There was a groan from the bed as it seemed to be struggling to support her weight.

"Ok, shall we continue?" asked Maxine as she was eager to return to the lesson that she was being given, even though she was struggling with it.

"Actually, now that Jinshu said, I'm actually pretty hungry as well." This was not the answer that Maxine wanted to hear but she had to admit to herself that she too could do with some food in her belly. "Why don't we have something to eat and then we can get back to this? What do you say?"

"S-Sure." She was still disappointed but she knew that she couldn't force him to continue on with the lesson. If he wanted to stop for now, then she could only accept it and wait for him to be ready again.

It was also Charles who went downstairs to the main area of the inn so that he could order the food. He had to wait for several minutes until it was ready and it did take him a couple of trips for him to take them all upstairs. Asla and the others were very thankful to him for retrieving the food for them. They would have much preferred to have gone themselves but they had been told to stay where they were.

To the Innkeeper, he didn't really care too much about where a person came from. As long as they could pay for what they needed from him, then he would accept them. This was somewhat positive but money was the main factor in this but they were just glad that they could stay in the inn.

Eventually Charles did return to the room with a chicken dinner in his hands. He was also able to carry in a very large pie that Maxine instantly knew was for her. Although she was very excited to eat it, she was able to contain herself and when she was given the pie along with a knife and fork. She simply thanked Charles for it and then began to dig in as quickly as she could.

Maxine didn't really care what kind of pie it was, as long as it didn't have onions in it, she would eat it. There were other ingredients that she would likely not eat either, but onions were the main one. As she dug in, she could find chunks of meat and when she ate them, she couldn't help but smile.

For as long as she remembered, she had always enjoyed eating pies. Her first recollection of eating a pie was when she had gone to a tavern with her father. She had gone with him as he ran an errand and they had gone to a tavern on the way back. She had been quite hungry so he had bought her a pie.

When she had first seen it, she didn't really know what to make of it as she had never seen anything like it before. Sir Tucker cut a piece of it for her and when she tried it, she was completely taken aback by it. A feeling of bliss had completely overtaken her and she still felt the same whenever she ate a pie.

Now she was eating it with Charles by her side who sat on the other bed as he thought that she would want a bit of space while she ate. He just concentrated on eating his own food as he wanted to finish it before it went cold. The fact that they didn't have to pay for this was something that was nice as far as he was concerned. Although a small part of him did feel a guilty about it.

The next time he looked over to Charles, he could see that she had completely devoured her pie. For a pie of that size, it would normally have been impossible for a person to eat it so quickly. The fact that Maxine was no ordinary woman was the reason why she had been able to eat it at such a speed. There was barely a crumb left when she was done and she gave a small sigh once she was done.

"That was lovely," said Maxine. She patted on her stomach once she had finished and gave a small smile. "But I think that pie could have been bigger."

"Have you ever eaten a pie that you thought was big enough?" replied Charles as he was genuinely curious about this question.

"I think you already know the answer to that."

Charles did think that it was a somewhat stupid question that he had just asked. He didn't feel foolish about it and just carried on with his own food. It was several minutes later until he had finally finished his own. It was a nice feeling to have food in his belly but he did feel like he had overeaten a bit. Because of this, he began to feel bloated and a little sick but he didn't feel like he was going to throw up.

For the moment, he didn't want to get up and do anything as he wanted his food to go down a little before he would do anything. Instead, he looked over to Maxine who was taking a small drink of water. She would have much preferred it to have been drinking ale but she didn't mind this right now.

It didn't take much for her to remember what happened the last time that she had been drinking ale. She had been very disappointed about being knocked out of the tournament at such an early stage. Charles had tried to talk sense to her and in response she had grabbed hold of him and almost caused him serious harm.

This was a moment that Maxine still felt very guilty of. This man was her friend and she had almost hurt him simply because she was angry. Although it seemed that Charles had forgiven her over this, she had yet to forgive herself. It would take time and she knew that she still had plenty to learn.

"T-That was nice," said Charles as he did get up to his feet. He still felt bloated but he wanted to pick up the plates so he could take the plates back downstairs. "Do you want me to get you some ale when I go downstairs."

"Hmm..." replied Maxine. She was going to say yes without giving a second thought. But then she thought about the incident and found herself unable to say yes. "Actually, I think I'll be alright. I'll just stick to water for now."

"Ok, if that's what you want." He was very surprised by this as she hadn't drunk any ale for several days. He would have thought that she would have some kind of withdrawal symptoms. Instead, she seemed to be the same as she was before. She just didn't want any ale. "I'll go and see if Asla and the others have finished yet, I'll be back in a minute."

Once Charles had picked up the plates, he stepped out of the room leaving the nine-foot woman inside by herself. She picked up his book that had been sitting next to her and she turned back to the page that had the alphabet written onto it. She tried to continue on the lesson by herself as she attempted to go through it by herself.

The first few letter she could do quite easily thanks to memory but the following ones after the first half a dozen were more difficult. Despite this, she tried her best but without Charles there to tell her whether she was right or wrong, she could only guess whether she was correct or not.

Outside, Charles made his way to the other room and knocked on the door. He wasn't rude enough to simply burst in as he thought that they could be doing something that he thought was strange. This wasn't truly because they were doing anything wrong, it would likely just be a simply a difference in culture.

A small amount of terror overtook him as he thought about this. He couldn't help but think about the inn that he had a nightmare about the night before. Because of this, he imagined that they were doing some kind of ritual that he had witnessed in that inn which would likely haunt him for the rest of his days.

With some care, Charles did knock on the door and he wasn't sure what he was going to see once it opened. He didn't need to wait long before the door was answered and he saw Taiyun standing there. The door wasn't opened wide enough for him to see what was taking place inside the room but he was sure that it wasn't really any of his business. Instead, the man from the East seemed to have a somewhat annoyed look on as if he had interrupted him from doing something important.

"Is there something that you want?" asked Taiyun. Due to his thick accent, it was difficult for Charles to fully understand what he was saying.

"I-I was just wondering if you've finished with your plates," replied Charles. He gestured the plates that were in his hand so he was sure that Taiyun could understand the reason for him being there.

"Is that Charles?" asked Asla who had been able to tell the voice of Charles from where she had been sitting.

"Yes my..." It seemed like Taiyun was about to say something in addition to his statement but had quickly stopped himself from doing so. "You are correct, it is our companion." The fact that they were speaking to each other in a language that Charles could understand did surprise him somewhat.

"Then invite him inside, don't let him stand out there by himself."

"As you wish."

With that the door opened fully and Charles was allowed to step inside. There he could see Jinshu sitting on a nearby bed and just finishing off what he was eating. Asla instead was simply standing there and looking over to the door. It almost seemed like she had been standing there the entire time, most likely she had only gotten herself up to her feet when she had realised that Charles was at the door.

He had expected to see something that he would consider odd but instead everything looked to be normal. This was somewhat surprising for him but he was just glad that he hadn't seen anything that would give him the wrong idea about the situation. But she did seem genuinely happy to see him.

"I'm glad to see that you've come here," said Asla as she took a couple of steps towards the door. By this point in time, Taiyun had stepped aside as both he and Jinshu watched what was taking place.

"I-It is nice to see you again as well," replied Charles. He still had the plates in his hands and a part of him thought that he wouldn't be going downstairs for a while. "And thank you very much for paying for the room and food. Miss Martel and I greatly appreciated the food that we had."

"Don't worry about it. Call it a bonus for your services. Now why don't you have a sit down for a minute?" By this time, she had sat herself down on a bed and patted down onto it to indicate where she wanted him to sit. It was a short distance from her where Charles didn't feel like he was being too close.

He did as he was asked as he stepped forward and sat down on the bed. For the time being, he places the used plates on the ground as he knew that he was likely not going anywhere in the near future. He couldn't help but feel a little uneasy with what was taking place but so far, he didn't feel like he was in any danger.

As he was requested, Charles did sit down on the bed relatively close to where Asla was sitting. A part of him couldn't help but feel like he was intruding on the group, even though they had invited him in. He watched as Asla looked towards him and he couldn't help but be a little nervous.

"I'd just like to thank you again for agreeing to accompany and my companions over such a long distance," said Asla as she looked over to Charles. "Did I mention that we had requested the services of four others before you agreed to help us?"

"N-No you didn't," replied Charles. He could think of a reason why others would have turned it down. It was the reason why they had been worried to come to this inn and was something that he didn't want to admit was common.

"I was beginning to think that no one was willing to help us and then you came along. I'm sure that the money that we promised did entice you, but it still takes a man of some honour to accept. You can also imagine my surprise when the companion that you mentioned turned out to be a woman of such stature."

"Y-Yeah, Maxine is a pretty tall woman." This was probably the understatement of the century as the only women that he had seen larger than her was members of her own family. But that was only when they were using their own size changing abilities. If they weren't using them, then Maxine would most likely still be the tallest amongst them by around half a foot.

"Maybe I should do something else to show my appreciation for your actions."

This was when Charles began to realise what was happening, this caught him completely by surprise and he was trying to think of a way that he could get out of it. But he thought that if he did then it could cause a negative reaction from Jinshu and Taiyun. Not just that but they could also decide that his and Maxine's services were no longer needed. One thing that he did know was that right now he was between a rock and a hard place.

Charles still wasn't sure what he should do in this situation. Asla wanted to show her appreciation for his and Maxine's assistance and he could only imagine what it could be. There was something that he was worried about, but he thought that it could be something else entirely. Since they were from different cultures, she could attempt to do something that was unexpected.

Both Jinshu and Taiyun were present and watching what was taking place. This also made Charles feel nervous, but he wasn't scared. In recent times, he always seemed to feel more on edge when Maxine wasn't around. When he was with her, he knew that he would have someone to protect him, without her, not only was he without his friend but also someone who could stop anyone from causing him harm.

Charles felt Asla place her hand on his shoulder as he thought that his first thoughts were going to happen. He wanted to move away but he knew that he couldn't. All he could do was hope for the best and he did wonder what would happen if Maxine realised what was happening. They weren't a romantic couple, but he thought that she wouldn't enjoy what was taking place.

Suddenly Asla stated something in her native language and then it was repeated by the two men who were still standing there. Her hand was then removed from his shoulder, and he looked at her with some confusion on his face. He wasn't attempting to be rude but what had taken place was confusing him.

"Forgive my ignorance but what did you just do?" asked Charles as he looked at the foreign woman. A part of him expected Maxine to come through the door at any moment, although he didn't think she had a reason to.

"That is what is considered in my culture to be a Cisentce," replied Asla. Her voice was calm and collective which did put him at ease. "My apologies but it has no translation into your tongue. It is one way of how one shows appreciation to someone else for their actions. I realise that it might seem unusual to you, but I still wanted to show you anyway."

"Ah I see, very interesting. It is always interesting to learn more about different cultures. I thank you for this demonstration and your appreciation."

The pair continued to talk for a few minutes and Charles felt more at ease with the situation. However, he did eventually make his way back to his room. Already, he had been longer than he had expected, and he knocked on the door before entering. He heard Maxine's voice tell him that he could come in and he could see her sitting on the bed and was trying to read the pages that he had written down earlier.

The very large woman was still trying to make sense of the letters and actually making out the words was impossible for her at that moment in time. To Charles it was a demonstration that she was genuinely trying to learn and that she was taking what he was teaching very seriously.

For many years, Maxine had seen something like reading to be pointless. Rather she wanted to learn how to swing her sword and learn how to work around a farm. It was only after she had met Charles did, she think that reading was a skill worth earning. However, when he entered the room, she quickly turned to him and placed the book down.

In her hands it had looked very small but now that her companion was back, she thought that her practice should come to an end, and she couldn't help but smile at him. Smiling was something that she didn't do all that often, but she felt that he was someone worth smiling for.

"Ah you're back," said Maxine as she continued to sit there. Standing up was something that was impossible for her to do as her head would strike the ceiling. "How were our foreign friends?"

"They were fine," replied Charles. "Asla just told me a little more about their culture. Makes me wonder what would happen if we were in their country right now. I guess we would stick out like a sore thumb."

"I stick out anywhere I go." She gave a sigh about this as she continued to look towards him. "But that's really to be expected if you ask me. I've also been trying to read these letters that you've been teaching me." She then pointed to a particular letter. "This one is an S, right?"

"Let me take a look." He got closer to the seated giantess and looked at the letter that she was pointing to. He had been hoping that it was the letter S but instead the letter R. "Close that's an R, but you're only one letter off where an S would be so at least you weren't too far off."

"Oh." There was a sigh of disappointment that escaped her lips as she thought that she had gotten it right. But his words had been reassuring that she hadn't completely failed. "Guess there's still a lot for me to learn."

"Don't worry about it, you're making great progress. Before you know it, you'll be able to read an entire novel."

This did make Maxine smile as she liked the thought that she was making progress. Reading might not have been something that she had expected but it was definitely a skill that she would thoroughly enjoy possessing.

After a short time, it became too late to do activities such as reading as fatigue got the better of them. However, when it came into getting into the bed, Maxine ran into some unexpected complications. The obvious one was that her body was simply too big to fit into the bed properly.

When she lay down in the bed, her legs were over the edge and her feet were planted down on the ground. Although the bed was practically a double size bed, thanks to her large muscular frame, she took up almost the entire space within. This didn't leave much room for Charles who thought that he was going to have to sleep on the ground again.

This wasn't the case as he had expected as he found himself lying in the bed with Maxine holding onto him. Already, the large woman had fallen asleep, but she had made sure that her companion was somewhere that was comfortable. Now all she had to look forward to for the rest of the night was dreaming about pies.

For Charles, it was actually quite nice for him. At no point did he attempt to escape from her hold as even while she was asleep, her grip was too strong to break. He could feel the warmth and softness of her skin and it almost seemed impossible for a woman with such a muscular frame.

If anything, this only gave him a sense of safety as he felt that whenever he was with her, he had nothing to fear. If anything attempted to harm him, he thought that she would be there to protect him, no matter what. Already, she was the strongest person that he had ever met, that was if he didn't include Maxine's sisters. But he wouldn't be free until she woke up and let him go.

Eventually morning did come, and Charles was the first of the pair to wake up. However, he still found himself in Maxine's arms and she was still fast asleep. When he looked up to her face, he couldn't help but think that she was smiling. He did move a little in order to try and wake her up gently, but it didn't seem to work.

If anything, the muscular giantess only seemed to increase her grip around him, and she moaned for a moment. It was as if she was enjoying what was happening and refused to wake up. This was slightly annoying for him as he needed to relieve himself and needed to be free from her iron like grip.

"Maxine," said Charles with a soft tone in his voice. His plan was to wake her up slowly so that she wouldn't be too shocked and disorientated. "It's time to wake up now." He saw her head move slightly upon hearing this.

"Five more minutes," replied Maxine. She was still half asleep as she didn't open her eyes and continued to hold onto Charles. Thanks to their size difference, even in bed his head had been leaning on her chest.

"Come on now, you're wasting the morning. Plus, I'm pretty sure that I can get you some kind of pie for breakfast."

"Hmm, I like pie." She was still half asleep but finally she did release her grip on Charles which allowed him to roll out of bed. As he got up to his feet, he could see the muscular giantess still lying there. However, her arms were more spread out than anything else and he watched as she sat up. She was only wearing her undergarments so her muscular body was on show. "Make sure that you get a few." She yawned for several moments, it was a long and drawn-out yawn which caused him to yawn as well. "I'm feeling really hungry this morning." She did stretch her arms and the length and muscle tone was obvious for Charles to see from where he was standing.

"As you wish."

Charles did quickly throw on some clothes as he went to retrieve the pies that Maxine had asked for. He thought that he might regret telling her that he would pick some up for her. If he returned empty handed, he didn't think that she was going to be too happy. Plus, he knew that he was going to need a fair amount to satisfy her. Probably more money than he was willing to spend.

Shortly after stepping out of the room, he saw the door that led to where Asla and her companions had been sleeping. He did consider going inside and saying good morning to them. Quietly he stepped towards the door and went to knock it, but he began to hear voices on the other side.

The voices were fairly aggressive as if the people inside were arguing. This did peak Charles's curiosity and he wanted to listen so that he could understand what the argument was about. Unfortunately for him, they were speaking in their native language. Asla had told him a few random words, but he had no chance of understanding exactly what was being spoken between them.

To him, he couldn't help but feel slightly suspicious. However, there wasn't much he could do in this situation but it did make him think that everything was not completely rosy between Asla and her companions. He wondered if he should ask later or simply ignore it and leave it be.

Several minutes later, Charles did return to the room with almost too many pieces for him to carry. He didn't know what flavours they were, but he did make sure that there was no onion inside. As far as he was concerned, it didn't matter since Maxine would be satisfied with whatever she had.

Charles also tried to hear whether the argument was still taking place in Asla's room. As he listened, the voices had become calmer but they were still speaking in their native language so he still couldn't understand them. This did get him thinking but he still went back to his own room so that he could give the pies to Maxine.

The muscular giantess was now wearing her normal clothing that she would wear underneath her armour. She was still sitting on her bed and was very happy to see the pies that her friend was carrying. Her stomach growled loudly with anticipation as she was more than looking forward to eating them.

"Ah you're back Charles," said Maxine. For the time being, she hadn't attempted to put on her armour which was sitting in the corner of the room. "I see that you got all the pies that I wanted."

"Y-Yes," replied Charles. What had been Asla's room was still in his mind, but he still did step towards the woman that he now considered to be his best friend. "I don't know what flavours they are, but I thought that you'd enjoy them nonetheless. Guessing the flavours is going to be a treat for you."

"It is always fun." There was another growl from her stomach as it was clear that she was starving.

Due to this, Charles didn't waste any time in placing the pies in front of the muscular giantess. One by one, Maxine picked up each pie and ate them. Each bite she needed a moment as she simply sat there and smiled as she was truly enjoying what she was eating. It was something that others who saw her would be surprised to see. They saw her as some kind of towering monster who had a heart of ice. Seeing her acting like this would allow them to see a softer side to her.

Charles simply stood there and watched as each pie was being devoured by his friend. There was too much there for a normal person to eat but she was putting them away as if she hadn't been fed for a week. Watching her eating huge amounts of food was becoming a regular occurrence and yet he wasn't too surprised.

Maxine's large stature and muscles meant that she needed to eat much more than a regular person in order to maintain herself. He wasn't sure what flavours the pies were, but it was obvious that she was enjoying herself and she continued to smile and there was even a moment where it seemed as if she was blushing.

Within a few minutes all the pies were gone, and Maxine sat on the bed and patted her stomach. She could feel the muscles that were underneath, and she still had the smile on her face. There wasn't even a crumb of the pies remaining and even Charles was surprised to see how much she had eaten. He thought that it might have been a little much for her but instead she had devoured the entire lot.

"That was lovely," said Maxine as she still continued to blush slightly. "The perfect breakfast to get me up and ready for the day."

"I think you just ate enough to feed a man for an entire week," replied Charles. He knew that he was exaggerating but he wasn't too far from the truth. "I don't know where you even put it all."

"Well, the women are the Martel family aren't just known for their great sizes but also their bottomless stomachs. You were there when we had dinner, we can probably eat enough to feed a small village."

"I don't doubt that, but I might see if our companions need any food before we go. I was thinking about getting them something earlier, but your food was a little much for me to carry."

"Sorry about that, maybe I should come with you and help." With that, she began to get up to her feet but stopped herself just before she stood to her full height. She was still too tall to stand up in the room properly and she did loom over her friend.

"As you wish but you needn't worry yourself. If I were you, I'd let your breakfast go down before doing anything? The last thing we need is for you to feel sick."

"Ok fine." In the past, Charles thought that she would have ignored his advice and done what she had wanted. The fact that she was taking his advice and planned to act on it like this showed a change in her since their first meeting. "But if you need my help, you'll know where I'll be."

Charles simply nodded at Maxine as he made his way outside of the room. Once again, he made his way to the room that was occupied with Asla and her companions. Before he knocked on the door, he made sure to listen to see if the argument was still ongoing. He could hear the voices speaking in a foreign language, but they seemed calmer than they had been before.

This still made him cautious as he wasn't sure exactly what was going on, but he was still unsure what had happened. He did find himself knocking the door to the room and waited to see who would answer. He could hear the voices suddenly stop and footsteps approaching the door.

When the door did open, Charles had been hoping to see Asla but instead it was Jinshu who somewhat glared at him as if he was some kind of intruder. This did make him nervous, but he didn't fear for his wellbeing. He remembered that they were paying him and Maxine for safe passage so harming him would be counterproductive.

"My apologises, am I interrupting anything?" asked Charles who was attempting to be as polite as possible.

"No, what do you want?" replied Jinshu. His tone was somewhat annoyed, and it made Charles feel like he had made some kind of mistake.

"I was wondering if you, Asla or Taiyun wanted me to pick you up any food from downstairs."

"We're fine thank you very much. Asla wants us to leave in the next half an hour so can you relay that to the knight?" Charles knew that he was referring to Maxine, however she wasn't a knight yet and he didn't want to correct him on this.

"Very well, I will inform Ms Martel and have her ready to depart."

With that Charles did leave the room and step back into his own. He expected to see Maxine still sitting on her bed and letting the several pies that she had just eaten go down. Instead, he saw her doing push-ups on the ground. Her pace was very impressive given the size of her body, but he didn't expect anything less due to the size of her muscles.

After a few moments, she went from pushing up with both arms to only using her left. If anything, she was actually pushing up faster than she had been before and in a way, it was amazing to see. He still didn't think that it was the best thing that she should be doing after she had eaten such a large amount of food.

"Maxine what are you doing?" asked Charles as he looked down at the muscular giantess on the ground.

"I thought that I'd do some exercising before we started out," replied Maxine. Quickly she swapped arms as she began to push up with her right arm. "Do you mind giving me a hand? I could do with some extra weight so can you stand on my back please?"

"Actually, I think we better get ready to go. I've been informed that we're carrying on in half an hour so it's best that you get yourself ready."

"Ok fine." She gave a small sigh of disappointment. However, she continued her push-ups for a few more moments before she finally stopped. When she did, she stood back up and made sure that her head didn't hit the ceiling. "Mind helping me put my armour on? It's always easier when you assist me."

"As you wish."

For the next several minutes, Charles did as he was asked as he helped Maxine put her armour on. Several pieces of it were so heavy that he struggled to pick them up and it was still somewhat surprising that someone could actually walk around with it all on. Then again, she wasn't like any other people.

He thought that if she were to ever give up the pursuit of becoming a knight, she could sell off the armour and make a lot of money. The metal that it contained could probably make at least two or three armours for an average sized man. However, he thought that this was something that would be impossible.

If Charles had learned anything about Maxine, it was that when she was determined to do something, she would go to practically any lengths to achieve it. That was why he thought that she would never give up trying to become a knight, even after all the setbacks that she had endured. In a way, he found this admirable that she had set a goal and was trying her best to achieve it.

Before the pair were ready to leave, both of them had a drink of water. For Maxine, she was disappointed that it wasn't ale, but she had been trying to cut down on how much alcohol she had been drinking. As part of her attempts to improve herself she was drinking less but wasn't cutting it out entirely.

This was something that was more than acceptable for Charles. He knew that having alcohol completely cut out from her diet was something that was not only unreasonable, but he considered to be counterproductive. Maxine did enjoy having a drink, but he just didn't want her to drink in excess. By making sure she drank in moderation, she could still enjoy the taste of ale but not let it control her so to speak.

Before long, Maxine was completely covered in armour and every movement was causing a clanking sound as her plates of armour were striking one another. The only part of her body that wasn't armoured was her head and that was only because she wasn't wearing her helmet. To Charles, it did seem odd to see her without her armour, although he did see her unarmoured every day.

It seemed that the same was felt by the giantess who felt the familiar weight of her armour on her body. Not just that but she had sword by her side, and she was capable of wielding it at a moment's notice. Even though it was large enough that an average man would need to use two hands to effectively use it.

"There we go," said Maxine as she looked at herself. However, she could notice something on the armour that did spoil the moment slightly. "Do you have any of that polish left? I think I can see a mark."

"I can take a look at it the next time you take your armour off," replied Charles. Although they were seeing each other more as equals recently, he still had his duties to her and maintaining her armour was amongst them. "Do you want me to grab your helmet for you ma'am?"

"Charles!" Her voice was stern for a moment, and he thought that he might have made a serious error. However, he felt her arm come down onto his shoulder and she looked at him. Rather than being annoyed she gave him a smile. "You needn't call me ma'am anymore. I appreciate the gesture but you're my partner now, not my underling."

"T-Thank you Maxine." He did appreciate these words and he could definitely see a change in her from when they first met. Back then she would have commanded him to call her ma'am but now it was no longer necessary. Although technically speaking, he was still her squire, and it was best that he followed her words. However, this did give him a lot more say in matters than he had before.

"And yes, I would like my helmet thank you."

Charles nodded and picked up Maxine's helmet that was sitting close by. It was very large and if he were to try and put it on, not only would it cover his head but most likely his entire shoulders as well. It was hard to believe that anyone could have a head so big that such a helmet was necessary. Yet, when he was around someone like her, such things were more than believable.

As her helmet was passed up to her, Maxine gently took it off of Charles before placing it on her head. It was hard to see her face when she was wearing it and even harder to tell that she was a woman. One indication was that her long red hair flowed beneath the helmet, and she even had some consideration in cutting it slightly.

"Are we all set to leave now?" asked Maxine as she looked down at her squire. He looked back up to her and most would feel some intimidation about being in the presence of such a large and armoured being. He didn't feel any fear as he knew the woman behind the armour to well to be afraid.

"Well, we are set and our companions wish to leave as soon as possible," replied Charles. "It's best to not keep them waiting."

"Very well, you go and retrieve them while I wait for you outside. I prefer to be somewhere where I can stand up properly."

Charles nodded as both of them stepped out of the room. It was a little more difficult for Maxine to get through the door due to her height and her armour, but she was able to do so after a few moments. She then began to make her way out of the inn while he stepped over to the other door.

Quickly he knocked on said door and waited for it to open. This time it was Asla who opened the door, and she was genuinely happy to see him. If there was any argument that had taken place inside of the room, there wasn't any evidence of one taking place. Now he was just letting her, and her companions know that it was time to move on.

Before long, all five of them found themselves outside of the inn and waiting to move on. From the look of the sky, it was still relatively early in the morning and there were others who were starting their day. Even a few people inside of the inn looked on the group and found them to be odd. Not just for the giant woman but also for the man with darker skin than usual and the trio from a foreign land. They were definitely one of the most unusual groups in Angleland and they had one interesting journey ahead of them.

The morning was a relatively cool one but there was a mist in the air that limited visibility. It was something that was quite often seen in Angleland and was more or less a typical morning in this part of the country. They were still many miles away from the coastline and there were vast open fields in every direction they looked.

There was a threat of rain as the sky was overcast but it didn't look as though there would be a downpour. Even so, the group would stay vigilante over this and with any change in the weather. The last thing they wanted was to be caught in a storm, not only could they get soaked but there was a decent chance of them being harmed.

Now that they had everything ready, the group continued on with their journey with Maxine mostly leading the way. Charles remained close to her and had now gotten used to walking at a quicker pace in order to keep up with her. She was considerate for him as she slowed her pace slightly, but she still walked at a greater pace than a regular person.

A couple of metres behind them, Asla, Jinshu and Taiyun followed, and they stayed close to one another. Charles would glance behind every now and again as he still thought about what he had heard earlier that morning. He was sure that they had been arguing but had no idea what it had been about. The language barrier meant that he hadn't been able to understand what they had been saying and he couldn't help but be curious.

There was a relatively simple way of him finding out was to simply ask Asla. However, he thought that it was best not to since it wasn't really anything to do with him. If they were hiding something however, then it could be something that he and Maxine would have to worry about.

From her vantage point, Maxine was able to glance down at Charles and she could see a look of concern on his face. At first, she thought that it was best not to ask but as they continued to walk, he expression didn't really change.

"Charles is everything alright?" asked Maxine as she looked at her squire. This was when she watched him turn his head up to her. The voice she used was quiet and calm as she was genuinely concerned for him.

"It's nothing really," replied Charles. His voice too was quiet in the hopes that Asla and her companions couldn't hear him.

"It can't be nothing if you have that expression on your face for so long. If there's something on your mind, I'd like to know."

"Well, maybe I can tell you a little later when it's just the two of us."

"Oh?" She glanced back towards their three companions before looking down at him. "Fine, I can wait. Just know if there's anything bothering you in the future, just come to me. I'm always willing to listen."

"Thank you, Maxine." He did watch a smile appear within the opening of her helmet and he was about to smile back at her. But they suddenly heard their names called out from behind. The voice was that of Asla and this caused them to look towards them again. "Is there something that you need?"

"Yes, my companion is having a difficult time keeping up," answered Asla. She was walking between the two men and both of them seemed to be walking at the same pace and the exact same distance from her. "Do you mind if we stop for a rest for a short while? Just so that he can catch his breath."

"If that is what you wish then so be it."

Charles hadn't asked Maxine what she had thought about this but since they were being paid to help transport the trio, they were ultimately at their whims. Off the side of the road that they had been walking down, they found a small patch of ground where they could sit down and take a rest.

It was true that they had been planning on walking some distance further before they stopped to rest. Rather than properly waiting, Maxine did take the opportunity to give Charles another lesson on how to use his sword. He was still unsure about it all, but he tried his best as he attempted to attack the woman that he now respected a great deal.

As expected, she was more than capable of deflecting the attacks, but she could definitely see an improvement over his technique. However, she did notice that his footwork needed to be improved as his stance would make it easy for many swordsman to knock him down. She wasn't expecting him to become the world's greatest swordsman, but she could see that he was at an upwards curve.

After the lesson was done, Charles did need a little time to rest as his arm ached after swinging the sword so much and he was glad that Maxine had not tried to attack him. He seriously doubted that he could have blocked but it was just a sign that there was still plenty more training to go.

Asla and her companions watched on during the training session and they were surprised with the swordplay that was on offer. It looked to be different to the style that they were used to seeing in their own country. There was also the fact that the weapons that were used were also different. The swords seen in their country was normally either straight but thin or thicker and curved.

They were also surprised with how quickly Maxine could move her sword as if she were attacking an invisible enemy. It was a feat that they thought would be impossible, but she had been able to do so with relative ease. It made them imagine just how much force was behind each strike and they thought that it would be enough to cut an unarmoured man in half with little effort.

"You did well there Charles," said Maxine as she stood in front of her squire. He was taking some deep breaths as he was recovering his stamina. "Keep this up and you'll be a competent sword fighter before long."

"Thank you," replied Charles. His arm was still aching, and he couldn't imagine how anyone could swing a sword for an extended period of time and not suffer some kind of injury. "It still seems odd that I'm actually using a sword."

"You'll get used to it, it's only a matter of practice. Next time, I think we'll move onto defence. It's all good knowing having a decent attack, but it's pointless if you can't defend from an enemy attack."

"I understand."

With that, he sat himself down on the ground and began to sufficiently rest as Maxine remained standing for the time being. She glanced over to Asla and her companions who were still sitting and talking to themselves. Their voices were quiet, and they were a short distance away so their conversation couldn't be heard. Even if they could, it was likely that they would be speaking in their native language.

With some care, she sat herself down next to Charles but even when she did this, she still towered above him by a great deal. Because of this, she needed to lean down to him until her lips were close to his ear. He had noticed what she was doing and simply waited until she could speak.

"Charles," said Maxine. Her voice was no more than a whisper and it was clear that Asla and her companions couldn't hear what was being said. "You wanted to talk to me about something, what is it?"

"This morning I heard Asla and her friends having a heated discussion," replied Charles. His voice too was a whisper and there was some concern in his voice as well. "Not so much a heated discussion but more like a full-blown argument."

"Hmm, interesting. Were you able to hear what they were arguing about?" This did concern the armoured giantess since it meant that there was some tension between their companions. It could spell trouble for them and something that she was concerned about was their payment. They were being paid a decent amount to help this trio reach their destination, but if there was trouble between them then that could be jeopardised.

"Unfortunately, no, they were speaking in their own language. Asla has been teaching me but of course, I only know a few words and they're very basic. No chance of me comprehending their argument."

"I see." She gave a small sigh as she was slightly disappointed by this. However, she knew that she shouldn't have expected Charles to understand them when Asla and her companions were talking to each other. "Keep an eye on them and if you learn anything, let me know immediately."

"Y-Yeah, I can do that."

Charles knew that Maxine had the best intentions, but he also thought that keeping too close of an eye on their fellow companions might be troublesome. Whatever they were arguing about, it was obvious that they didn't want either him or Maxine to know. A part of him did want to respect their privacy but he could also see how it could also cause some complications for their journey.

The group continued to rest for a short while longer as Jinshu attempted to recover. Every now and again, he would be checked by Charles who was concerned about his condition. He did consider that Jinshu's supposed injury was actually fake. However, this was something that he couldn't prove so he kept it quiet for now.

Not far away from where they were sitting, there was a large series of bushes that sat relatively undisturbed. They had been there for many, many years and over that time, countless travellers had walked by them. It was rare that anyone would really notice them as they would go on their way.

On this day, the bushes were being disturbed as a pair of eyes watched the party as they continued to rest. Their body was completely hidden away in the bushes and it impossible for anyone to see them. The focus of their gaze was the group and had always intended to be. Rather than planning some form of attack or a way to confront them. Rather, they just remained where they were and watched.

After a short while, Maxine decided that it was best to keep going. No one could really argue with the muscular giantess, but her tone made it seem as if they had a choice in the matter. However, it was clear that she didn't want to rest any further and that she really wanted for their journey to continue. None of them really wanted to argue with her and had to admit that she was right.

The group continued on with their journey and there were a few people who would walk by them as they travelled the opposite direction. All of them couldn't help but stare at them as they walked past them. As far as they were concerned, it was the most unusual group of travellers that they had ever seen.

A few of them even thought that they were some kinds of entertainment group that travelled all across Angleland and performed in order to make money. However, none of them could see the appropriate equipment that they would need for such a career. Even so, they still thought it was likely although none of them wanted to say that to Maxine. Although thanks to her armour and the fact that she was wearing her helmet, they didn't even realise that she was a woman.

At one point in time, Maxine did glare at one of the passers-by who quickly looked away and increased their pace. Being stared at was something that she had gotten used to over the years but having others stare at Charles was something that she didn't particularly like. To her, he was far more normal than she was and didn't deserve to be gawked at. The same went to Asla and her companions.

Her actions hadn't gone unnoticed by the foreigners, and they felt lucky that they had found someone who had been willing to help them. She and Charles were definitely not the type of people that they had expected to take them up on their offer. They had already asked around half a dozen others previously with all of them turning them down.

The trio weren't under any illusions that they were welcome in Angleland. Although they had met a few nicer folks during their time in this country, many people had shunned them. A few of them had even saw them as being subhuman. It was something that Asla did think that if a person from Angleland arrived in her country that they would likely be treated in a similar manner.

"Madam," said a voice. It took Maxine a few moments for them to realise that they were referring to her. She also thought that it was Charles who was attempting to catch her attention and she was going to remind him that he no longer needed to be so formal with her. However, she realised that it was actually Taiyun who was trying to get attention. Because of this she glanced behind her and looked towards him.

"Yes, what is it?" replied Maxine. She was continuing to walk and at first wasn't particularly looking in the direction that she was supposed to.

"We wish to know what to expect ahead. We are strangers in your land and are not aware of the local geography."

"Hmm, very well… There are numerous hills that we need to traverse and there should be a small lake a few miles from here. We'll rest there and resupply our water. Then continue moving towards an inn called the Beggar's Corner. I know the people who run it, they'll give us shelter for the night, for a price of course."

"You can guarantee that?" He had become wary of inns as he and his companions had been rejected from a good number of them.

"I can, you have my word." She wasn't too sure herself but she was still thought that it was likely. The owner of that particular inn probably didn't think too highly of foreigners but as long as they had the coin, then they didn't have anything to worry about.

"Very well, I thank you for that."

"If we keep going at this pace we should be…" Her words were cut off when she suddenly felt something strike her head. At first she thought that she could have had someone try to strike her but as she turned her head forward to see what it had been. Not too surprisingly, she could see a tree branch that was hanging over into the path. For practically every person in Angleland, it wasn't a problem. Everyone except for her.

"Maxine are you alright?" asked Charles with concern. He had seen what had happened and he feared that she might have hurt herself.

"Y-Yeah I'm fine." She used her knuckles to gently tap the helmet that she was wearing. "Thankfully my helmet took the brunt of it.

"I-I guess for you it has multiple uses. Protecting from enemy attacks and low tree branches." He chuckled for a moment.

In the past, Maxine probably would have berated him for such a comment but she couldn't help but chuckle. She knew that what he was saying was right and she even gave him a small pat for this little joke.

The first hill they came across was much higher than Asla and her companions had expected. Although their country did have mountains, the majority of the land was relatively flat and was ideal for growing crops and establishing townships. A hill wasn't an alien concept for them but they didn't look forward the climb up it. They did think about travelling around it but the quickest way of traversing it was to simply climb it and then ascend on the other side.

This time around, it was Charles who mostly led the way up the hill and did find it somewhat difficult to climb up the hill. On his back he still carrying a bag which contained a lot of food and his journal. Out of everything that he was carrying, the journal was definitely the most important thing. Not only had he written down his thoughts from time to time but it was also what he used to check their finances. Without it, he wouldn't know exactly how much was coming in and out.

It was something that he took some pride in as he knew that Maxine would struggle with such a thing if she were to do it herself. When they had first paired up, it was his talents that was able to balance the books for her. Although she had been a little short with him in the past, she now more than appreciated everything that he did for her.

It took a good few minutes or so before the group arrived at the top of the hill. Rather than walking down straight away, the group stayed there for a couple of minutes so that they could see the view. They could see the roaming fields in almost every direction and in the distance they could see a town.

The same happened when they looked towards the south and the north. To them, these towns looked to be quite close, even though they were many miles away. For all of them, it was rare for them to be so high up and see such a view. Maxine did think about her mother and sisters who could increase their size further.

She couldn't help but wonder if this was what they could see on a regular basis. In a way, it was something that she was jealous of. Besides her baby sister Rina, Maxine's other sisters could grow in size. Although she was the eldest amongst them, she was still the only one who couldn't increase her size further. The only time when she had been truly gigantic was when she had the magic first returned in her, she had found herself uncontrollably growing in both height and muscles.

Never had Maxine had controlled growth where she had become a true giantess but in a way, it did make things better for her. On a few occasions, she was glad that she didn't have the same abilities as her mother and sisters since she felt that she would use it as a crutch. If she could simply grow bigger and overpower an enemy, it would make her victory seem hollow and she preferred to use her own skills rather than cheating. Also being able to grow would make her quest to become a knight would be too easy as far as she was concerned.

After taking in the sights that were around them, the group began their descent down the hill. Unfortunately it was steeper than they expected and they had to do everything they could to prevent themselves from falling. However, this was too much for Asla who accidentally tripped over a small rock that had been below her view. Normally, it wouldn't be an issue as she would have staggered forward a few steps before regaining her balance.

Since they were on a hill, it caused her to uncontrollably launch forward. Both Jinshu and Taiyun called out to her as they tried to grab her but she had already fallen too far forward for them to reach her. They feared that she was going to hurt herself and even feared that she be killed.

Before Asla could fall too far forward, Charles was able to turn around and grab onto her. He grew had been somewhat taken by surprise but he was able to stand his ground and stopped her from falling any further forward. Thanks to her small size, she hadn't forced him to fall like she had been and was able to stop her.

"Are you alright?" asked Charles with some concern in his voice. "You didn't hurt yourself did you?"

"No, I'm fine," replied Asla. She looked up at him and smiled at him. "Thanks to you of course."

Charles couldn't help but chuckle to himself for a moment and he couldn't see Maxine's face. She was staring towards them and although she was glad that Asla wasn't harmed, she couldn't help but feel a sense of jealousy. A small grunt escaped her lips as she chose not to properly react to what had happened. However, Charles could still sense her feelings, almost as if there was an aura around her that he was picking up.

"Madam you must be more careful," said Taiyun as he picked up his pace and made his way towards Asla.

"I know," replied Asla who let go of Charles. She was able to stand up properly and brush any dirt that might have attached itself to her dress. "Thank you for your concern." She then looked up to Maxine and thanks to her helmet, her facial expression couldn't be seen. "My apologises Miss Maxine. I did not mean to cause such a scene."

"It's fine," replied Maxine who was a little short with them. "Let's keep going before the weather decides to change. Travelling in the rain isn't fun."

The group continued their descent down the hill and this time were much more careful than they had been before. Maxine did make sure that Charles remained close to her and every now and again she would glance down to him. There were many thoughts going through her head and she did imagine that he had done something similar to her.

But if that were to happen it would likely end poorly as he didn't have the strength to be able to hold her body. It was one of the downsides of being nine feet tall and having a very muscular frame. In a way, she did wish she was smaller but found too many advantages to her large size. This was just something that led her to believe that there were pros and cons to practically anything.

After reaching the bottom of the hill they needed to make their way up another hill. Thankfully this one was much smaller and the trek up and down it was far quicker and less eventful than the previous had been. Both Taiyun and Jinshu stayed close to Asla as they hadn't wanted for her to fall again. Having Charles be the one who rescued her made her seem like they had not be fulfilling their duties properly. There was still a lot of distance that they needed to travel until they reached the coast.

Suddenly Jinshu felt a small pain in his neck which seemingly came out of nowhere. Rather than it feeling like an issue with his neck, it was as if he had just been stung there by a bee. He gave a cry of pain and had to stop for a moment as he placed his hand over where he had just been stung. This got the attention of everyone who quickly stopped and turned towards him.

Maxine was getting a little annoyed by all the distractions that were taking place but she was still patient with them. Asla was the one who mostly tended to her companion but Charles did show some concern. The whole thing had caught everyone by surprise as they thought that they might be under attack.

"Are you alright?" asked Charles with concern. "What happened?"

"I think something decided to try and make a snack out of me," replied Jinshu. "You needn't worry about me, it's nothing."

"Maybe it was a bee or a wasp that decided to sting you. Then again, I can't see why since I don't think you were doing anything to aggravate them."

"Wasps don't need a reason to sting someone," added Maxine who seemed to be safe from such things thanks to her thick armour. "They're just generally dicks."

"I-I guess you're right there." He chuckled for a moment as he couldn't help but think that this was funny. Although he probably would have used a different phrase, ultimately the giantess was correct in her statement.

"Now let's keep going, we've already lost time as it is."

The group agreed and continued on with their journey. However Jinshu couldn't help but feel off. He could still feel some pain from where he was stung but he still attempted to walk. However, he could feel the temperature beginning to increase and sweat was running down his brow. His walk was turning into a stagger as the world around him was beginning to spin around him.

At first his condition wasn't noticed by the others but after less than a minute the effects that he could feel was becoming too great for him and he couldn't stop himself from collapsing onto the ground. The fall was quite sudden and caught everyone by surprise. Instantly they all turned to him and it was Asla who was the first to tend to him.

Immediately she noticed that his temperature was close to feverish and he was beginning to shake. She started calling out to him and speaking in their native language. However, rather than doing so in order to hide their conversation, it was simply because she had been caught by surprise.

Maxine did look down from where she was standing and she too was concerned. Even from her vantage point, she could see that Jinshu was not in a good way. Just a few minutes ago, he was perfectly fine and now he was on the ground and was in a lot of discomfort. The cause of his sudden illness was mysterious to say the least.

Asla continued to do what she could for Jinshu as he was beginning to shake uncontrollably. Charles also knelt down to him in an attempt to help. However, both were unable to do anything to help as the fallen man began to spit out blood. Neither of them knew what was happening and were powerless to do anything.

Unfortunately, after a few moments, Jinshu stopped moving as his body became motionless. Asla began to call out to him in her native language and Taiyan did the same. Charles reached down and placed his index and middle fingers onto the lower side of Jinshu's neck. He hoped to feel some kind of pulse but unfortunately there was nothing.

Maxine too looked down, but she didn't go down to one knee like the others had. It wasn't that she didn't care but she couldn't help but feel like they were in danger. She watched as Charles looked up at her and shook his head. A clear indication to her that Jinshu had indeed passed on.

"I'm sorry Asla, but he's gone," said Charles as she looked at the weeping woman who was right next to him.

"He can't be can't!" replied Asla who was still in denial. "He's just lost consciousness that's all. We can take him to someone who can help him."

"I'm sorry but it's too late. He doesn't have a pulse. As much as I hate to admit it, he's beyond the help of anyone right now."

"No, you're lying!" Suddenly Charles felt a strong slap on his cheek from the upset woman. "How dare you lie to me about him. He's not dead!" He did place his hand over where he had been slapped and looked at her.

"I-I'm not lying to you. I know it's a difficult time for you but there's nothing we can do for him." He glanced down and could see that Jinshu's eyes were still open but there was no movement within them. It was clear to him and everyone else that Jinshu was dead.

"Stop lying!" She raised her hand to slap him again in her grief but before she could, she felt a gigantic hand grab onto her forearm. The hand itself was almost as big as the forearm and she looked behind her to see Maxine who didn't seem to be too pleased with what had happened.

"I seriously suggest that you don't do that again!" stated Maxine with a tone in her voice that made everyone take notice. "Charles is many things, but a liar is not one of them. I know what he is saying is something that you don't want to hear but sadly it's the truth. Your friend is gone and there's nothing that can be done to change that. We are very sorry for your loss but striking my squire isn't going to bring your friend back."

Asla looked up at the giantess and she couldn't help but break down as she quickly wrapped her arms around Maxine's armoured body. She could do nothing but bring her own arms down and try to comfort her. It looked quite comical seeing a woman as small as Asla hugging someone as big as Maxine, but the former didn't care. Instead, she was just trying to process the fact that she had lost someone close to her.

Charles looked over to them and although her cheek was still aching, he couldn't be angry at Asla. He knew that people dealt with grief in different ways and when he looked at the corpse, he couldn't help but think about the traumatic events at the cult inn. These were all thoughts that he was trying to bury as it was the lowest point in his life.

A few moments later, he did look down at Jinshu's neck and he couldn't help but notice something that he thought was odd. He couldn't help but investigate further and he could see that there was something that had attached itself to the neck. Charles did think that it was some kind of evidence of Jinshu being stung but he couldn't help but think that it was highly unlikely.

With some care, Charles was able to grab onto the small object that he had discovered and was able to pull it out of Jinshu's neck. This hadn't gone unnoticed by Taiyun who looked at him with some shock. What he had pulled out definitely wasn't the remains of an insect but rather appeared to be something manmade.

Quickly he took a closer look at it while Asla was still completely distraught over what she had just witnessed. Maxine did notice that something that had gotten Charles's attention and she looked at him with some curiosity on her face. For the moment she was too far away to properly see but she would soon get her answer.

"What is it, Charles?" asked Maxine as she looked down at him. She did go down to one knee as she continued to be curious.

"I-I'm not sure," replied Charles as he couldn't really explain it himself. "I can't help but think that this is some kind of dart."

"Dart?" answered Asla who was still saddened by what had happened. However, she quickly turned and looked at the tiny object in Charles's hand. She was confused for several moments but her heart sank when she could see it properly. It was something that was alien to a person from Angleland but was actually quite well known in the lands to the East. Her expression changed to that of fear in an instant.

"Do you recognise it?" Before she answered his question, she muttered something in her native language and had a very concerned look on her face.

"Now is not the time for secrets," replied Maxine who could see the seriousness of the situation and that "If there's something that you know, tell us right now." There was a sternness in her voice, almost like a parent asking a child. Thanks to their height difference it was something that only exasperated this similarity.

"I-I…" It seemed as if Asla couldn't get the words out and Maxine stood up with her arms crossed. She looked over the trio with a stern look, her helmet might have mostly covered her face, but it was still evident what her expression was.

"Spit it out! One of your companions is dead and I won't stand here and allow anyone else to die." Her mind was mainly on Charles, she thought there was a chance that she could survive such an attack, but she doubted that he would. Jinshu had been a slightly larger man than him and it had killed him in a very short span of time. If Charles was struck by a poisoned dart, it was likely he wouldn't stand a chance.

"I-It's a dart that is laced with the secretion of what translate to the Fatal Frog. One prick of this and even someone as big as you will succumb to it."

"And why would your companion be struck by a dart like that. As far as I know, there aren't any of these so-called Fatal Frogs in Angleland."

"N-No, they're not." She was still very nervous and saddened by the whole events. The fact that there was a giantess looming over her didn't make the situation any better for them. "They're only found in my native land."

"And yet that's thousands of miles away from here. So, I ask again, what is a dart like that doing in a place like this? Is there something that you need to tell us? Lie to me and I promise to break one of your fingers."

"Maxine!" stated Charles with an annoyed tone. He gave a glare over to her and it was clear that he wasn't happy with what she had just said. To him, it was as if she was going back to the more violent side of herself.

"Fine, I won't break your fingers. But you need to be honest with us. No half-truths, I can smell bullshit from a mile away."

"W-Well," said Asla as she was still finding it hard to actually say what needed to be said. She did look up to Charles who looked back down to her with a reassuring look on his face. She then looked at Taiyun who gave her a nod, his expression seemed to show that he was accepting defeat.

"It's alright Asla," added Charles. "You can tell us." He didn't want to admit that what had happened actually scared him. He was just putting on a brave face and he still felt that he was terrified of the situation. But he wanted to make her feel more at ease and willing to talk about exactly what was going on.

"W-We're being hunted." This quickly got the attention of Maxine and Charles who for the moment said nothing as they simply wanted to listen to what she was saying. "I-I was hoping that we had given the slip but unfortunately it seems that they tracked us down."

"Who tracked you down?" He was still being calm as he knew that any kind of aggression might end poorly for all of them.

"I-In my land there is someone who sits on the thrown and they see me as a threat. A few years ago, I was brought to this land for my own protection, and I hoped that I would be left at peace. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem to be the case."

"And why would you be a threat?" asked Maxine. She looked down at the small woman and she couldn't imagine her being a threat to anyone. But it was obvious that looks were deceiving.

"You mustn't," stated Taiyun who placed caught the attention of Asla. She turned to him for a few moments, and she could see the look of concern on his face. She owed this man more than she could ever repay but she knew that now was the time to come clean and be honest with her companions.

"It's alright," replied Asla as she turned her head back towards Maxine and Charles. "You see, I'm the rightful heir to the throne." This was a big shock to both of them who needed to take a moment to register the information that they had just been given. "My name isn't Asla, it's Princess Luxina, the rightful ruler of Abalise."

Both Charles and Maxine continued to stand there as they didn't know what to do after receiving such information. Now they weren't sure whether they should be standing or kneeling to her. They wanted to believe that this was just some farfetched tale that she had told to make herself seem important.

However, from her body language and tone, they could tell that she was telling them the truth. It did make Maxine in particular quite intimidated as she had learned from her father that it was best to stay out of the affairs of high-born people. They were normally much more trouble than they were to common folk and now she was finding herself in the presence of not just a high born but royalty.

Charles too wasn't sure exactly what to do with the information he had. He had simply expected her to be someone who might be wanted for a crime. Never did he imagine that he was interacting with royalty. This made him think that he might have been disrespectful towards her and that he could be punished for such a thing.

"Y-You're a princess of Abalise?" asked Charles. He was still trying to work out everything that was happening. "B-But what are you doing in Angleland?"

"When my father died, one of his advisors seized power and before I could be assassinated, I was whisked away here. Taiyun here is honour bound to my family and is willing to give his life to protect me. Jinshu did the same…" She then looked down at the dead body of her former bodyguard and she couldn't help but shed another tear. "And unfortunately, his duty came to the ultimate end."

"And let me guess," stated Maxine who wasn't happy with the situation at hand. "Whoever killed him is someone who intends to kill you."

"Most likely." She was still saddened inside but wanted to keep her composure. After breaking down earlier, she wanted to seem like she was keeping it together. "There had always been a possibility that assassins would track me down and kill me. Fortunately for me, Jinshu struck by the dart rather than me. It cost him his life."

"I've heard enough." A stoic Maxine stood there with her arms crossed. "Our agreement is null and void. My squire and I were led to believe that you were simply people wanting to return to your homeland. Not an exiled princess who is being targeted for assassination. You have your problems, I understand that. But we're having nothing to do with this." She looked at Charles who was still kneeling by Asla. "Charles, leave them be. We're done here."

"Maxine, you can't mean that," replied Charles as he stood up and looked up to her with some shock.

"Have you ever heard me joke about such things. Believe me, no matter how much money they give to us, it won't be worth the trouble. Now come along, I'm not going to repeat myself."

Charles looked at her and he could see her becoming more like they were when they first met. This did make him somewhat intimidated but rather than backing down, he stood his ground and looked up at the giantess. He wasn't sure if it was the wisest decision, but he was standing his ground on the situation.

"No," stated Charles with some determination in his voice. He could hear his heart rate beginning to increase but he still thought that he was in no immediate danger.

"What did you say?" replied Maxine with some anger in her voice. She was by far the most terrifying person there, but Charles still refused to back down.

"I said no. Maxine, I know that you don't want to help them, but I do. No matter what happens, I'm going to help Asla reach the coast like we promised and make sure that she is sent back to her homeland. Her people need her."

"You believe her story about being a princess?" A part of her couldn't believe that Charles was standing up to her like this. She knew that previously, he would never have done such a thing, but it seemed as though he was finding the courage to do so. Although she was annoyed at this, she couldn't help but respect him for this.

"Yes, I do. Because of that, I want to help her. If you don't want to help, then we can meet up after all of this is over. But there's no way I'm leaving them to be killed."

"And how exactly do you plan on protecting them? You're still learning how to swing a sword. In a battle with anyone who has some skill, I doubt that you'd last very long." She was hoping more than anything that he would see reason and decide to leave along with her. However, she could see the determination in his eyes.

"I know, but it's still better than doing nothing. Please understand, I simply can't abandon them in their time of need. You needn't stay if you don't want to."

"Is that really how you feel?" She continued to stand there with a stoic stance. She loomed over everyone there and during this interaction both Asla and Taiyun had both remained silent.

"Y-Yes I do." He thought that he might be making a mistake and losing the one person that he considered to be his true friend. His hands were shaking as he simply stood there and waited to see her turn around and walk away.

"You know that if you stay and protect them, you're only going to get yourself killed like he did." She gestured towards the corpse of Jinshu. Her words and gestures were disrespectful towards the deceased man, but she continued. "That is something I simply cannot allow to happen."

"W-What are you going to do?" His tone rather than mocking, he seemed to be genuinely asking her the question.

"You're my squire and if I let you get hurt or killed then that would reflect badly on me. Therefore, I will remain in order to protect you." This was her own explanation as she had much more personal reasons for this that she didn't want to talk about.

"Thank you, Maxine,…" He was about to say something else, but he saw as she lifted her hand up to him.

"Wait, I'm not finished yet. I will protect you, but my protection is only for you. I won't raise a finger to protect them. They hid valuable information from us and put us in a position that we neither wanted nor was prepared for. If they die it matters not to me, do I make myself clear?"

Charles didn't say any words and simply nodded up to her. He could see just how angry she was about this whole thing. In a way, he didn't blame her as he knew that she hated being lied to. But her words were still harsh nonetheless and he wanted to turn and apologise to Asla. However, he knew not to do such a thing while Maxine was there, and he simply sat there and agreed.

Asla herself was disappointed by Maxine's reaction. She thought that she would have been too taken aback by what she had just admitted to become angry. Now she saw that this armoured giantess was truly not to be trifled with and she saw Taiyun make the foolish mistake of getting up to his feet and annoyingly pointing towards her.

"How dare you speak to the princess in such a manner!" stated Taiyun in a not too pleased tone. "Do you have any idea who you're addressing?"

"Do you know who you're addressing?" replied Maxine as she repeated his question. "I am Maxine Martel, eldest daughter of Sir Tucker Martel of Morgan. The woman who is so tall that my head normally strikes the ceiling in a room. I'm strong enough to lift a fully grown horse and I can crush a man's skull with only my bare hands!" I think it's best that you remember that."

Taiyun had no idea who this Sir Tucker was, but he felt that he must have been a very famous and respected person in Angleland. He had no idea that he was a knight who now lived on a farm with his family. However, her other statements he thought that the last too about her strength was exaggerated. He couldn't simply dismiss it as she was by far the largest human being that he had ever seen, and he did think that she was capable of such feats whether he wanted to admit it or not.

"Maxine, please calm down," said Charles as he wanted to smooth over the situation. He thought his words might indeed calm his friend down but as he looked, he could see that this wasn't the case.

"The last thing you should tell an angry person to do is to calm down," replied Maxine. He wasn't the focus of her rage, so she did give him some leniency. Her mood remained the same as the three people there could simply do nothing but watch. "If you want to take her highness there to wherever she needs to go, then I suggest we go now. He was just killed by someone that for now we know nothing about. It's too dangerous to stay here."

"But what about Jinshu?" asked Asla who was still in some disbelief over what had happened. "We need to burn him on a pyre. That is the tradition of my people." Such a thing would take a bit of time, but he saw the armoured giantess shake her head. This instantly made her heart sink.

"We have no time for such a thing. Leave him."

"We can't leave him like he's some kind of animal!" There was some rage that was building up within her. She clenched her fist, and she began to show no fear towards the woman who was close to being twice her height.

"And I'm not prepared to waste time doing something that could get us killed. He was killed out of the blue and if we stay around here much longer than the same could happen to us. The dead are not important, it is the living that you have to worry about."

"Maxine!" stated Charles. He was becoming annoyed with her outbursts and stance. Although he did see sense in what she was saying, the way she was going about it made her seem heartless. He could understand that she was angry, but he still felt that this was too far. "We should at least bury him, this made gave his life to protect someone else. That is worthy of some respect if you ask me. If you don't want to do it, I'll bury him myself with my bare hands if need be."

"That would still take too long; besides we don't have the right tools." She gave a sigh of annoyance. "Fine, burn him but we'll have to make it quick."

Although everyone else was still quite upset about everything. They began to collect as much wood as they could. Maxine didn't help in this effort but constantly stayed close to Charles. Although she wasn't helping, she was still protecting Charles as best as she could as she was worried about him. However, she didn't say anything as he collected the wood and simply stood there.

After a few minutes, the three had collected enough wood to place Jinshu's body on top of. It was less than was normally needed for such a ceremony but given the dangers that they were facing, they didn't have much of a choice. Instead, they lit the fire which began to burn the poor man.

Normally, they would remain there and watch the body burn and even say a few words. Either Asla or Taiyun would also sing a song to help their spirit back to the afterlife. Unfortunately, they weren't given the chance as Maxine commanded them to leave. Her annoyance was still evident, and she knew how important this was to the foreign people but she still wanted to leave the area as soon as possible.

The person who had killed Jinshu was still around, and she thought that remaining was putting Charles at risk. Although Asla and Taiyun didn't really like what she was doing, they couldn't help but agree with what had been saying. It was very dangerous and although Jinshu's body was still burning, they still walked away and left him where he was. It was a difficult decision but a necessary one, nonetheless.

As far as Maxine was concerned, Charles was the one who was leading the group. Now that her protection fell only onto him, she followed him and simply allowed the others to follow behind. Her armour would still clatter as she walked, and this also seemed to make a good warning to anyone that was approaching. Her mood was still pretty low, and any agitation could cause her to explode with rage.

The rest of the journey for the day seemed to go without issue as they arrived at the inn that the armoured giantess had mentioned before. By this time of day, it was beginning to get dark and made it more dangerous to travel. Like the night before, rather than staying downstairs to have a drink and something to eat, the two groups went to their rooms without barely a word between them.

Once in their room, Maxine took off her armour and it was obvious that she was still annoyed by the situation. But she still looked over to Charles and could see that he was perfectly fine. If it had been him that had been struck by the dart and died, she would be overcome with grief. As far as she was concerned, he was the only person on this trip that was worth protecting as he was the only was honest with her.

"You know, you didn't have to do that," said Charles who was sitting down on a nearby chair. He wanted to get up and walk while he was speaking but he was fatigued after the events of the day. There had been the shock of Jinshu's death but also the sheer distance that they had travelled. Due to this, he was simply too tired and needed to sit down and recover his energy.

"Do what?" replied Maxine. She pretended to be ignorant about what he was saying and continued to sit on the bed and rest.

"You know what I mean. The way that you acted back there was uncalled for. They had just lost their companion and you acted so coldly towards them."

"Well, they kept valuable information from us. They put us in a dangerous situation and my reaction was justified."

"Do you truly believe that?" He was annoyed with her, and he crossed his arms as he looked at her. He could see that there was a look of defiance on his face as she truly believed that she was in the wrong.

"Yes, I do." She too was refusing to back down on the matter. "There was one thing that my father taught me during our practice sessions. That is to never mix with either royalty or high-borns. No matter what they offer, it is always not worth it in the end. They don't care how big or strong you are or if you can read. All they care about is what they can get out of you, and they would sacrifice you in an instant. To them we're nothing but fodder so they can achieve what they want.

Maxine continued to sit there as she had said what she had wanted on the matter. She remembered her parents telling them about when they had run into a few lords and ladies and the majority of them hadn't gone well for them. She was determined to do avoid such a thing from taking place.

Shortly before they were to go to sleep Charles excused himself from the room so that he could do his business before bed. Maxine had no objection to this but there was still some tension between them. There had been no reading lesson that night as there had simply been too much that had taken place that day. The muscular giantess was still very annoyed, and it was clear that she was in no mood to learn how to read tonight.

Charles's intensions were a half truth. It was true that he did indeed need to relieve himself but after he had done that, rather than going back to Maxine straight away, he proceeded to the room that was occupied by Asla and Taiyun. On their walk to this inn, not too many words had been exchanged since they had discovered that she was a princess. This again caused some tension and all they were able to do was to try and get through this journey of theirs.

Once he was ready, Charles did knock on the door and slowly it opened. Rather than opening the entire way, it instead on opened enough for a person to look and see who their guest was. He couldn't see exactly who had opened the door at first but from where he could see the eye, he thought that it was likely to be Taiyun. This was confirmed when he asked a simple question.

"What do you want?" asked Taiyun. There was a hint of annoyance in his voice as it was clear that he wasn't happy with what had happened. There was also some sorrow as that day, he had lost a dear friend of his.

"I-I wish to speak with the princess," replied Charles. His voice was little more than a whisper as he didn't want Maxine hearing him. She was in the other room and if she knew that he was there, she would likely be annoyed.

"She doesn't want to talk, go back to your room." Suddenly both of them heard a voice and Taiyun turned to Asla. Both spoke in their native language and eventually the door to fully open. He still stood there and looked at Charles before gesturing to come inside. "Please make it quick."

"Thank you." With that Charles quickly stepped into the room and he saw Asla sitting on the bed much like Maxine had done in her room. Immediately upon seeing her, he bowed as a sign of respect. She was a foreigner but she was still royalty and thus, deserved a lot of respect. "Your majesty, I am so sorry about today."

"Please, you don't need to do all of this your majesty business," replied Asla. She got up to his feet and took a couple of steps towards him. "And please remain calling me Asla. I know I have told you the truth, but I prefer using that name right now."

"As you wish." He was about to say Princess but he stopped himself and simply bowed again. "First of all, I would like to give you my condolences on the loss of your bodyguard today."

"Thank you, Jinshu was more than my bodyguard. He was my friend who had been loyal to me and my family for countless years. I will think of him every day until the end of my own days." It was clear that she did think highly of the now deceased man and she seemed to appreciate Charles saying those words.

"And second, I want to apologise for the actions of Maxine. She probably didn't mean most of the things that she said, she was just very angry." Angry was an understatement as her annoyance had gotten to the point that he actually feared her for the first time in a good while. His own safety was not his concern but instead that of Asla and Taiyun. He didn't think that Maxine would harm them but when a person was angry, more or less anything could take place.

"I understand her frustration. To tell you the truth, it should be me apologising to her. I thought that it was best to hide the truth from her. It's just that if I went around telling people that I'm a princess, then you can imagine the danger that it would put myself and my companions through."

"That is understandable." He thought that she could be kidnapped and then ransomed. Such things had happened numerous times in the past. At that moment in time, he couldn't remember how many times he had heard about a high born being ransomed off. Their name normally commanding a high price. "But right now, I would stay away from Maxine. I've seen her when she's like this and it can take a little while for her to calm down. She didn't mean everything that she said, she was just angry."

"A-Alright then…" She didn't want to admit just how scared she had been of Maxine earlier. Seeing a woman of her size and strength in a less than pleasant mood was more terrifying than many could comprehend.

"Any I have to go now before she begins to question where I am. Again, I apologise for what happened."

With that, Charles quickly made his way back to the room that he was sharing with Maxine. He knew that he had been longer than he should have been but he hoped that she wouldn't be asking any questions. She hadn't banned him from speaking to Asla and Taiyun but he thought that she wouldn't want him to.

As far as she was concerned, she saw the pair as being dangerous. One of their had already been taken down very quickly by an enemy that they couldn't see and they could strike again at any moment. Charles might not be their target, but he could get caught in the middle and be killed. This was something that Maxine didn't want to imagine happening and yet there was a huge threat of such a thing taking place.

When Charles opened the door, he could see Maxine still sitting on the bed. Unlike before, she had taken off most of her clothing and was down to her undergarments. This was what she would normally strip down to before going to bed and she sat there and looked towards him.

Thanks to her size, the bed looked as though it was made for a child rather than it being normal size. She seemed to have a talent of doing this with everyday objects and furniture but that wasn't what Charles had noticed. Instead it was the unhappy look on her face which sent a shiver down his spine. He didn't fear for his physical health but she could still berate him unlike anyone else.

"You took your time," said Maxine as she looked at him. She crossed her arms and continued to look at him. She waited to see what his answer would be. As far as she was concerned, there was only one correct answer.

"I'm sorry about that," replied Charles. He smiled at her and rubbed the back of his head. "Yeah, I was a little longer than I expected."

"You went and spoke to them didn't you?" Her tone was harsh and in a way, it almost sounded like a wife accusing her husband of cheating on them. Although their relationship wasn't romantic, he knew that it was best not to lie to her. Not only was she in a foul mood but she he also knew how much she hated people lying to her. It was the cause of her temperament at that moment in time.

"Y-Yes I did. I just wanted to see if they're alright."

"I told you to stay away from them while we're here."

"You needn't worry. It's not like they are trying to hurt me or anything." He was trying to brush it off as nothing and this only made her stand up to her full height. As usual, the ceiling was too low for her to stand up straight. Her head struck the ceiling and a soft thud could be heard. She didn't react to it but Charles did become quite worried upon seeing this and he took a step back.

"It's not them hurting you that I'm worried about. It's whoever's trying to kill them. They might not be after you but I can't imagine that they would hesitate to take you out if you got in the way."

Charles could see the look of concern on her face, it made him forget for a moment about her actions earlier that day. Although she had acting in a way that he didn't appreciate, he could see that it was her concern for him that that caused such an outburst. In a way it did seem quite comical when he stopped to think about it.

When they had first met, he didn't think that Maxine cared too much about him. If anything he thought that he was a burden to her. Now he could see that he was more important to her than he realised. He didn't even say much as she went down to one knee and embraced her arms around him. It was something that he hadn't been expecting to say the least.

"I just don't want anything to happen to you," said Maxine as she embraced him. This was something that she rarely did and her own worry was getting the better of her. She did feel him hug her back although he struggled to wrap his arms around her large and muscular body.

"It's alright Maxine," replied Charles. He wasn't exactly sure what to say in this situation and he just wanted to reassure her. "I promise that I'll do everything I can to stay safe. But I can't simply turn my back on Asla and Taiyun. They need my help."

"I know Charles and that's why you're a better person than I. Despite learning about Asla and the danger that you're in, you still want to help. The only reason why I am still going along with this is to protect you. If you weren't here, I'd walk away and leave them to their fate."

"Well, maybe try putting yourself in their shoes." The hug did end and he took a few steps back as Maxine sat down on the bed where she had been before. He had her full attention and he wanted to use it as best as he could. "You're a mountain of a woman whose strong enough to lift a horse and you're of low birth…" He paused for a moment as he realised that she might not like what he had said. "No offense of course."

"None taken." She wanted to say more but instead simply wanted to hear what he had to say. Although she was sure that she wouldn't like it.

"Asla is an exiled princess from a faraway land in an unfamiliar place. Not just that but she has people out trying to kill her. Something that I don't think you need to worry about." He watched as the muscular giantess folded her arms.

"You'd be surprised." Charles did realise that this was likely the case as she had gained some enemies during her time on the road.

"Ok, you got me there but unlike you Asla doesn't have the physical might to protect herself. If I was her, I'd be absolutely terrified. I understand why she wanted to keep the truth from us but all I ask of you is to try and understand her. Try not to be so short with her and please try to protect her."

"I…" She gave a sigh as she was still annoyed about the situation, but she wanted to do what Charles was asking her. However, her own stubbornness was keeping her back. She was still angry over what had happened and her fear for Charles's safety was prevalent in her mind. "I'll try."

"That's all that I can ask. Now I think we should go to bed now. I have a feeling that we're going to need all the energy that we can tomorrow."

Maxine simply nodded to him and lay down in the bed. She waited for Charles to undress until he was down to his undergarments as well. When he was ready, he climbed into the bed, and he was more than ready to go to sleep. He could still remember when he was forced to sleep on the floor but now, she welcomed him into her bed.

From what he could see, this wasn't romantic but instead simply because he wanted to be warm and comfortable. To her, not only did it keep him warm but now it was also a way to protect him. By keeping him in her arms while they slept, this allowed her to make sure that he was as safe as possible.

Charles knew to not try and break free during this time. Doing such a thing would most likely cause further tension and he knew that she wouldn't harm him. Although he was slightly worried that she would begin to crush him while she slept, he still thought that it was unlikely.

Although he hadn't admitted it to her. His nightmares of what had taken place at the cult inn was taking place every night. Every time he went to sleep, he would find himself in the same cellar where he was surrounded by the cult who were all determined to sacrifice him. He wouldn't have Maxine to protect him and whenever he attempted to escape up the stairs. It would extend infinitely and no matter how many he climbed, he came no closer to the top and it only showed him the hopelessness of his situation.

Maxine on the other hand was having a dream that was the polar opposite to Charles's. Rather than reliving a traumatic event, she found herself in a field that contained pies as far as the eye could see. It also contained every flavour that she could possibly think of and as expected she began to gorge herself.

The muscular giantess was able to taste every single flavour and each was like she it had come from the heavens itself. One thing that she thoroughly enjoyed was the fact that no matter how many she ate, there were always more. Better still was that every single pie was for her and no one else.

What Maxine didn't realise was that he was beginning to bite down on Charles cheek. During their sleep, he had moved up in hr arms and was now at her level. The biting wasn't anything that was causing him any harm but it was enough to wake him up from the nightmare that he was having.

It took him several moments to realise where he was and that he was safe from any cultists. Even in the darkness, he could see the outline of the sleeping giantess. Slowly he moved his cheek from her mouth and he was still feeling tired. Unfortunately, sleep wasn't something that he could do.

Once more, his bladder was full and with great care Charles did manoeuvre himself out of Maxine's arms and got up to his feet. He heard a groan from her and he quickly grabbed a pillow and placed it in her arms. No sooner had he done this, he saw Maxine hug the pillow tightly and a smile appeared on her face.

It was hard to believe that this woman sleeping in the bed was as powerful and potentially dangerous as she seemed. From what he could see, she was adorable as she slept and thus waking her up was the last thing on his mind. Instead, he quietly made his way out of the room so that he could relieve himself.

This motion was relatively straight forward and he even walked by the room that was being used by Asla and Taiyun. He imagined them in the room asleep and he could only imagine what both of them had been through. It was likely that it was unlike anything that he and Maxine had been through. They had both been in life threatening situations and could likely tell each other stories about such incidents.

Charles didn't waste too much time in using the lavatory and when he was done, he began to make his way back to the room. He felt better after relieving himself and he didn't particularly look forward to going back to sleep. The nightmare that was waiting for him was evident and it was something that he wanted to afford. Unfortunately, sleep was something that he couldn't do without.

Suddenly he noticed something as he was travelling back to his room. There he could see a figure at the door that led into Asla's room. At first, he thought that it was the woman herself but realised that they were too big. They were also too small to be Taiyun and this made him worried.

The memory of Jinshu's sudden death was still prevalent in his mind. None of them had seen the person responsible for his death and he knew that they could be anywhere. This included being inside of the inn where they were and currently trying to get into the room. Charles's heart skipped a beat as he thought about what he was going to do.

One that did come to mind was that he tried to engage with the intruder, but he didn't think that it would work too well for him. Unlike Maxine, he wasn't a physically powerful as she was and if he tried to fight this intruder, he thought that it would end poorly for him. Plus, there was always the chance that this wasn't an assassin but rather someone who worked at the inn.

Another idea was to try and sneak by them but once again, this was something that he thought couldn't happen. There wasn't enough room in this corridor to get to his own room without being noticed. Other ideas included staying where he was and simply waiting until the coast was clear. By then, the intruder could have gotten into the room and killed Asla while she slept.

Only one other option seemed to present itself to him and Charles knew that it was a risk. However, to him it was better than standing by and doing nothing. It took him a moment to compose himself as he acted out this option and hoped for the best.

"Is there someone there?" asked Charles as he pretended that he hadn't fully noticed the thought to be intruder.

Before Charles could see what was happening, he felt himself get tackled to the ground and he landed relatively hard. Whoever the person was, they were taking immediate action against him, and it he thought that he could see a knife in the darkness. He wanted to shout for help but found a hand over his mouth. This muffled his voice and made it impossible for him to call out.

By this point in time Charles was doing everything he could to try and save himself. He punched and kicked whatever part of the intruder that he could come into contact with. His swings were wild and made more out of desperation than anything else as he simply wanted this person to stop attacking him. He was able to grab onto the wrist of the person as he could see the silhouette of the knife in the darkness. If it came down on him, it was likely that he wouldn't survive the encounter.

Suddenly Charles felt the intruder get lifted off of him. Behind them was a huge figure that had been able to pick them up with very little effort. Charles didn't need more than a moment to realise that this figure was Maxine who seemed to be doing what she had promised to do earlier that day.

There was a grunt from the Intruder and there was the sound of them trying to free themselves from her grip. She had been able to grab them by the back of the neck and with her mighty strength was able to strike them against the wall. The blow was so powerful that quickly the Intruder landed on the ground and ceased to move.

The whole incident was over within moments and Charles was quite shaken as he saw the outline of Maxine kneeling down towards him. Her hand extended to him and she was worried about his condition. Although she had acted quickly, there was still a chance that she was too late to prevent injury.

"Are you alright Charles?" asked Maxine as she continued to extend her hand to him. She felt him grab onto it and to her, this was a good sign.

"Y-Yeah I'm alright," replied Charles. He was relatively unharmed but was still shaken by everything that had taken place. "Thanks to you?"

"Thank the gods." Quickly he felt himself get hugged by her and it was obvious that she was concerned for him. "I don't know what I would have done if you had gotten hurt." The concern in her voice was evident and it felt a little funny to hear someone like her speaking with such a tone.

"Thank you again, but did you just kill that person?" He looked towards the person who had just attacked him. They were still lying there motionless and at first he thought that they were dead. However, this wasn't the case as he could hear them groaning and he realised that they were still alive.

Before Maxine could answer his question, they suddenly heard the movement of a person and at first they feared that this intruder hadn't come alone. The noise was coming from the door that they had tried to open and quickly it did indeed swing open. In the darkness they could see another figure but this one was familiar to them both. It was Taiyun who had heard the commotion that was taking place outside of the room.

Fearing for Asla's safety, he had gone to investigate and even made sure to have a source of light along with him. In the light he did see Maxine and Charles on the ground which did surprise him and at first, he didn't notice the Intruder since they had been flung a fair distance by the muscular giantess.

"What's going on?" asked Taiyun with a slight hint of impatience in his voice. He was beginning to think that the whole thing had been them acting up in some way and waking them up.

"We had an uninvited guest," replied Maxine as she looked up to Taiyun. This only lasted a few moments before she stood back up to her full height and allowed her head to press against the ceiling.

"W-What are you talking about?" His impatience was beginning to fear as he saw her pointing towards where the unconscious intruder was. When he brought the small flame torch that he was carrying, they could see what the intruder looked like. Rather than seeing a person who looked as though they fit into Angleland, they instead saw a person who was likely from the lands to the East. They were a man with a relatively large build and was wearing dark clothing so that it was more difficult to see him in the darkness. He was still lying where he had fallen and had barely moved.

"Someone you're familiar with?"

"No, I've never seen them before in my life. What happened?"

"I-I saw him trying to break into your room," answered Charles as he got up to his feet. He was shaken by the events that had taken place but he was physically unharmed. "I made my presence known and he attacked me. If not for Maxine, I most likely would have been killed."

"Then it's best that we put an end to him. He's too great of a threat. Let me get my knife and I'll do the deed myself."

"No, please no killing!" There was a slight hint of desperation in his voice. He had already seen too much death during his journey with Maxine. Due to this, he didn't want to see anyone else dying, even someone who had just tried to kill him. He did feel Maxine's hand come down onto his shoulder as she wanted to show that she was there for him.

"B-But he wants to kill her majesty. We can't allow him to live."

"If Charles doesn't want him to die then he won't die!" replied Maxine in a stern voice. Her size and presence made it clear that she wasn't backing down on the subject. Although she leaned more towards his way of thinking, she couldn't turn her back on Charles and she remembered the promise that she made to her mother. "Besides, he might hold valuable information."

"F-Fine!" He wanted to argue the point but he could see the look of determination on her face. Also since she was dressed in only her undergarments, he could see all of her muscles. He was impressed with her physique but also he wanted to make sure that he wasn't on the receiving end of her wrath.

There was still a lot of tension in the air as there was still the threat that this intruder wasn't working alone. But now at least they had one of them and it was likely that he was responsible for the demise of Jinshu as well.

Charles remained close to Maxine as it was clear that he was still shaken by what had happened. If not for her quick actions, he thought that he could have died. Thankfully his giant guardian had come to the rescues and he didn't think that he had picked up any serious injuries.

Taiyun still thought that this man was a threat but while Maxine was there, he knew that he couldn't do anything about it. He wanted revenge for his fallen friend and now he simply had to wait and see what happened in this situation. There was no doubt that they would get some information out of this assassin but whether it was worth it was another matter entirely.

All that was important to him was getting Asla back to her home country so that she could take her rightful place on the throne. Getting her there was another matter entirely and if she were killed, he shuddered to think about the suffering that could happen. Jinshu had already given his life for her and he was willing to do the same. Although he did prefer to get through this situation with his life.

As the Intruder slowly began to come to and he was struggling to remember exactly what had happened. The last thing he could remember, he was attacking someone who had startled him. The next thing, he felt something big grab him and then throw him against a wall with such force that he was surprised that he didn't break through it.

His head was spinning but he soon discovered that he was no longer lying on the ground but rather sitting on a chair. As a natural reaction to his situation, he went to raise his arm and rub his eyes, but this was impossible to do so. Instead, he found it tied down to arm of the chair and it seemed as if nothing he did could release him.

It wasn't just his arm that was tied to the chair but so was his arms and legs. His body too was tied to the chair and whoever had done this had made sure that the ropes were tight. He could barely breathe in them and his he could still feel some pain. As far as he was concerned, he had been attacked by a bear, it was the only creature that he knew about in this area that was strong enough to do what it did.

The first thing he saw in front of him was a man who he vaguely recognised. For the moment he couldn't put his finger on who it was but as his memories continued to return to him, he realised that it was Taiyun. He didn't know him by name but knew him as one of the exiled Princess's bodyguards.

"Ah I see that you're awake," said Taiyun. The Intruder was able to look around a little more and he could see Asla sitting on a bed next to a man that he didn't recognise. He didn't realise that this was Charles and that he had tried kill him a short time earlier. "I was afraid that you'd been killed."

Rather than speaking in the language of Angleland, the Intruder responded with the tongue that only Asla and Taiyun could understand. This wasn't too surprising for them, and it would make speaking to him more difficult from Charles's point of view. He could hear the Intruder saying something and it annoyed him that he couldn't understand a single word. Luckily for him, Asla continued to sit there and quietly translate for him.

"He's asking where he is," said Asla quietly to Charles. Her voice was too quiet for the others to hear. "Taiyun is telling him that he's lucky to be alive."

"Thanks," replied Charles. He was still shaken by what had happened, but he felt safe where he was right now. "Has he said why he's here?"

"No not yet, but I think he might have a bigger problem."

Suddenly a huge hand came down onto the Intruder's shoulder and he looked up slowly as he was terrified with what it was. As his head craned up, he could see the face of Maxine looming over him as she stood behind the chair.

Despite having time to change, the muscular giantess was still in her undergarments and it her physique could clearly be seen. What shocked the Intruder was not just her height and muscular frame but the fact that she was a woman. This was probably the biggest shock out of all of this. He could see that she was far from happy, and her scowl sent a shiver down his spine.

"Don't think that by only speaking your language that I don't know what you're saying," said Maxine. The truth was that she didn't understand what he was saying but she got a basic idea from his mannerisms and body language. She could see how terrified he was right now, and she knew that she had him where she wanted. "You tried to hurt my squire, if not for his mercy, I would have snapped your neck like a twig."

"I think he gets the message," answered Taiyun when the Intruder didn't respond to Maxine's words. He felt confident since Maxine was the hulking figure who could scare any man into talking. He was just glad that this time, he rage was not focused on him or the woman that he was sworn to protect. "Do you speak the language of this land?" The Intruder didn't say anything for a few moments but felt the pressure on his shoulder increase as Maxine tightened her grip.

"Y-Yes I do," replied the Intruder. He had a thick accent, and it was a little hard to understand him. But his words were clear, and the muscular giantess began to loosen her grip on his shoulder.

"Good, now tell us why you're here." He already could take a guess why the Intruder was there, but this was the line of questioning that Asla wanted and he would ask it to the best of his abilities.

"I-I was sent to kill Princess Luxina. B-Believe me, it's nothing personal, it's just a job." This was a simple answer but one that wasn't too unexpected. At least they knew that he didn't have any loyalty or political reasoning for his actions. He was simply an assassin who was paid to do a job.

"And my squire, why did you attempt to kill him?" asked Maxine. Her voice was commanding, and it was a tone that Charles recognised. It was when she wasn't in the best mood and was making commands rather than requests. If the Assassin was wise, then he would answer the question.

"H-He was getting in the way, so I tried to take him out. If he didn't try to interfere, he would have been safe." Suddenly he felt the hand on his shoulder squeeze tighter as she still wasn't happy that he had tried to kill Charles. The Intruder cried out in pain over this but for the moment, Maxine remained silent. "It's true, I'm not lying!"

"I know but maybe if I break your shoulder, you might learn a lesson." She increased the pressure on his shoulder and the Intruder continued to cry out in pain. Taiyun did nothing but watch as he didn't mind seeing the Intruder getting injured. Not after what he had just admitted to them.

"Maxine please stop," said Charles who stood up from where he was sitting. He looked over to his friend and almost immediately, she loosened her grip on the Intruder's shoulder and the pain mostly went away.

"Fine." There was some frustration in her voice, but she did what he had asked of her. His shoulder hadn't been broken but it was likely that her actions would leave a bruise. "It seems your luck is holding out tonight."

"You shouldn't have stopped," said Taiyun who was frustrated. "He killed Jinshu, he needs to suffer."

"I did what now?" asked the Intruder. Although he was still reeling from the pain, he did hear what had just been said.

"Don't play dumb, you heard me. You killed my colleague and friend earlier today and I want you to suffer for that."

"Wait, I haven't killed anyone today!" There was a small amount of panic in his voice as he didn't want Maxine hurting him again. He had already felt her wrath twice before and didn't want to experience it again.

"You're lying! How can we trust the word of a man who is paid to assassinate others?" If you ask me, if we killed him here, we would be doing the world a favour."

"No, it's the truth. I've admitted to being here to kill the princess. Why would I lie about not killing someone else? How did your friend die?"

"You already know that!" Taiyun's anger was increasing, and he was on the verge of striking him across the face. "You poisoned him earlier."

"Poison? Poison isn't one of my go to ways of killing my targets. Look, you've likely gone through my things before you tied me up. Did you find any poison on me?" No one answered as they had found knives on his person as well as a couple of other weapons. Poison was not amongst his personal effects. "See, I wasn't the one responsible for the death of your friend. So would you be kind enough to untie me?" He knew that this was simply wishful thinking on his part.

Both Maxine and Taiyun did believe the Intruder when it came to not assassinating Jinshu. They had thoroughly searched him before they had tied him up and everything that had been on his person had been removed. This didn't put him out of danger though as Maxine stepped in front of him. It was at this point in time when he realised just how huge and muscular, she actually was. Even if she hadn't of taken him by surprise, he knew that he had no chance in a one-on-one fight with her.

"Not quite," said Maxine. Her voice was quite sharp, and Charles recognised it as when she was making a point. It was a commanding tone which along with her stature made her an intimidating figure. "You attempted to harm my squire and that's something I can't forgive straight away. So that makes me ask a question, your hands or your tongue?"

"What?" replied the Intruder with fearful confusion in his voice.

"Which do you prefer to keep, your hands or your tongue?"

"What kind of question is that?" He knew exactly she was asking and what would happen if he gave a suitable answer. Before he could say anything else he felt a huge hand get thrust into his neck and he could feel himself be choked.

"If you don't answer then you lose both!" There was a look of intense rage in her voice, and it seemed as though she was serious. "Charles grab my hunting knife!"

"W-Wait!" He was struggling to speak, and he felt the grip around his neck get released. "C-Can't we discuss this?"

"Hmm, I could let you keep your hands and tongue. If you allowed me to turn you into a eunuch."

"What's a eunuch?" This was a word that he had never come across before and he wasn't sure if it had a translation into his own language.

"Maxine you can't!" stated Charles who was showing concern towards the Intruder. He saw her turn towards him and glare.

"Pass me my knife or else you can suffer the same as him!" Her words were sharp and scared Charles somewhat. However, he was beginning to realise something, and he nodded to her as he went to get the knife. She then turned back towards the Intruder, and she made sure that she loomed over him. "You tried to take what's most important to me so I'm going to take something that's most important to you. Something that is important to practically all men."

The Intruder was still confused for a moment, but he soon realised what the muscular giantess was talking about as he looked at his own crotch area and then looked back up to her. Sweat was beginning to drip down his brow as he feared what he was about to lose. His panic only increased when he saw the size of the knife that Charles gave to Maxine. To some it would be considered a large dagger but to her, it was nothing more than a knife and he could see the damage it could do.

"No, please," begged the Intruder. He would have tried to cover his crotch area but since his hands were still tied to the arms of the chair, this was something that was impossible for him to do. "I'll do anything you want, just don't cut anything off?"

"No, I have my knife now, besides it's been a while since I last did something like that. Believe me, it's not really worth having to begin with. I don't have a penis and I've been fine, so you should be no different."

"No!" His voice was more like a scream as he was sure that his life would more or less be over now. If he wasn't going to die here, he thought that he was going to lose one of his body parts.

"Hmm, seems like I got a bigger reaction than I expected. There is a way for you to leave this room whole."

"S-Sure, whatever you want." He was still in a state of shock but was also relieved with what she was saying. At this point in time, he was willing to practically do anything in order to not get anything chopped off.

"Well, a few things actually and if you decide to lie to me or refuse to answer. Then you'll be losing a body part. Got it?" The Intruder nodded to her and right now everyone fell silent and just watched her.

Charles could tell what the muscular giantess was actually doing. He didn't think that she would actually cut off any of the Intruder's body parts but instead was using it as a way to intimidate him. It seemed to have worked as he was more than willing to tell them whatever they wanted. The fact that Maxine was still holding onto her large knife didn't really help with the situation from the point of view of the man strapped to the chair.

The way that she had spoken to Charles was really what tipped him off to the fact that it was an act. The way she had been demanding was more like the previous version of her and he didn't think that she would speak to him like that. Everything that she had done was to simply make herself as threatening as possible.

"Good, now for my first question," said Maxine. She still held onto the knife, and it seemed as though she was willing to use it on a moment's notice. "Are you working alone, or do you have accomplices?"

"I-I'm alone, if there is anyone else after the princess, they're nothing to do with me." She looked at him for a few moments and from what she could tell, he was telling the truth. Right now, she had him exactly where she wanted him.

"Ok, I believe you. Telling the truth wasn't too hard now, was it? For my next question, who sent you?"

"I-It's no one that you would know." There was a loud grunt of annoyance from Maxine as it was clear that she didn't like the answer that she had been given. If he said anything out of turn, it could lead to a lot of trouble for him. "L-Lord Shinpai, he's the one who sent me!" There was some panic in his voice, but his name was unfamiliar to her. Because of this, she turned her head towards Taiyun who had been quiet, but she could see a look of frustration on his face.

"Recognise that name?" Her tone wasn't as striking as it had been before, and she awaited the answer with some eagerness.

"Yes, I do, Lord Shinpai was one of her majesty's greatest supporters from our country. He was a good friend to her father. I simply don't understand why he would send someone to kill her."

"Allegiances can change, you'd be surprised with what a person is capable of when it involves saving their own hides." She glanced over to Asla who looked to be upset and was holding onto Charles as she began to cry. This did make her feel something that she couldn't put her finger on, but she continued to focus on the task at hand and try to put what she saw in the back of her head.

Maxine looked back at the Intruder and now she had another problem. This was exactly what should be done with him. Simply killing him was the easiest and most efficient option but it was one that wasn't on the table. Charles had stated that he didn't want anyone else to be killed and there had been the promise that she had made to her mother. These were two very important people in her life, and she didn't want to go back on her word to either of them.

"Now, I do have one more question for you," said Maxine. "What would you do if I decided to let you go?"

"I-I would make sure that you and your friends would never see me again. That I can promise you."

"But you're a man hired to do a job. If you return without completing that task, then your reputation will take a nosedive. Because of that, I'm not exactly sure what to do with you. My first instinct is to slit your throat from ear to ear. But then that would make my squire very upset. It turns out that he has far more mercy than me."

"T-Then what will you do to me?"

"Hmm, now that is the question. Since I'm not the person that you were trying to kill, then I suppose the decision isn't mine. It could be my squire, but again he wasn't your target. Like you said, he only got in the way." She then turned towards Asla who was still sitting next to Charles. She had remained quiet throughout this entire event as she was worried about how things were going. But now she was the centre of everyone's attention. A position that she had been in on more than one occasion. "Your majesty, what do you want doing with him? The decision is yours."

Asla stood up from the bed and began to walk towards the Intruder and in her mind, she was trying to decide what needed to be done. She soon found herself standing near Maxine and she always felt tiny whenever they were together. She was barely taller than the muscular giantess's leg but at this moment in time, she was the one in charge.

Taiyun did make sure he remained close to Asla. Although things had gone well so far, he still thought that there was still a threat. He had already seen his colleague die that day; he didn't want to see the woman he had sworn to protect suffer the same fate. However, for the moment he said nothing as he wanted to hear what she would say.

"You wanted to kill me, and you almost killed my friend," said Asla. "It's dangerous to let you simply walk around but I don't want you to die. Instead, you are to serve alongside me. One of my bodyguards fell while performing his duties, you will replace him."

"B-But your majesty," replied Taiyun. There was a huge amount of shock in his voice as he couldn't believe what he was hearing. "How can you possibly trust him to not stab you in the back the first opportunity he has."

"Simple really, I'll appeal to something that he can't deny." She looked back at the Intruder who was still confused about the situation. "If you help me safely return home and I reclaim the throne that was taken from me, then you will inherit Lord Shinpai's lands and titles. You will have no need to assassinate anyone anymore. As the rightful ruler of Abalise this is a promise that I make to you."

The Intruder couldn't believe what he was hearing. Just a few moments ago he was sure that his life would come to an end, now he was being given the opportunity to become a powerful lord. Normally he would call that person out for offering something that was impossible to give. However, this wasn't the case when it came to Asla. If she were to sit on the throne, then she could more than easily give him what she was offering.

There was a simple thought that she could simply go back on her word when she got what she wanted but he knew that was unlikely. As royalty, her word was as good as a signed contract as if she went back on it, she would be judged by their gods and punished. Royalty was supposed to be above the common folks and if their word couldn't be trusted then nobody's could.

"Y-You're offering this lowlife such a thing?" asked Taiyun who was still in shock over what he was hearing. "That would make him one of the most powerful people in the land if you gave him that."

"And yet I can't trust the man with that seat right now," replied Asla. There was some determination in her voice and Maxine couldn't help but respect her for the stance that she was taking. She knew that the smaller woman was someone of importance but now she was throwing her weight around. Something that the giantess respected. "If I gave you those lands and titles upon my return, would you swear loyalty to me?"

"S-So basically it's either help you and become a rich and powerful lord, not help you and get killed or maimed…" replied the Intruder. In his mind it didn't take him long to come to a conclusion. "Ok, you have a deal."

"Good, now you've made a promise to a royal. You can't go back on it without divine punishment." She had her arms crossed and it was clear that she was the most powerful person there, even though she was the smallest one there.

"I-I understand." He was still nervous about everything, but he definitely preferred to help rather than getting killed. "I will only use my blade and skills for your benefit. When I get what is promised, I'll never have a need to kill again."

"Very well." She then looked up to Maxine who was still standing next to her. It was still strange to see two women of very different sizes standing next to one another. "Ms. Martel, can you please cut our new ally free."

"As you wish," answered Maxine. She had thought about refusing her request but the way that Asla had worded it made it seem as though she had a choice in the matter. Also, she knew that she couldn't make Asla look weak in front of the Intruder. It would make it seem like she was less powerful, and he might be tempted to betray them.

Quickly the muscular giantess stepped towards the Intruder with her large hunting knife in her hand. He was nervous as he saw the weapon coming closer to him and he couldn't help but think that she was going to try and kill him. Instead, she simply cut the rope that had been tying him to the chair.

As soon as they had been cut, the Intruder could feel some comfort but also some aching. As he looked at his wrists, he could see bruising from where the rope had been, and he was glad that he was seemingly going to survive this encounter. However, he did feel a familiar hand grip onto the back of his neck.

Before he could do or say anything, he felt Maxine lift him off his feet and walk him towards where Charles was sitting. When they arrived, not only did she put him down but also forced him down to one knee. Asla and Taiyun could only watch as she did this as there was still a look of annoyance on her face.

"You still owe my squire an apology for trying to kill him," said Maxine with a commanding tone in her voice. "The Princess here might have forgiven you, but I haven't yet."

"I-I'm sorry," replied the Intruder to Charles. His words seemed to be quite rushed and there was a hint of hurry as if he wanted to get it over and done with as soon as possible. However, he didn't see the scowl on her face as she was less than impressed with what she had just heard.

"Say it like you mean it. I don't care what's been promised to you, I won't hesitate to beat you black and blue if I so feel like it!"

"Ok." There was still some panic in his voice as he looked back at Charles who was still sitting on the bed. "I'm sorry that I tried to kill you. I now see the error of what I did and for that I apologise."

"Thank you," said Charles. He was still cautious about all of this, but he did appreciate what Maxine had done for him. In a way, it showed him how much she cared for him. He didn't think that anyone else that he had met would do the same for him.

"Good," stated Maxine as she still loomed over the Intruder with her arms crossed. "That's better."

"Can I stand up now please?" asked the Intruder. Rather than answering with words, she simply grunted, and this allowed him to stand back up on his feet. It was when he could really see the height difference between himself and her. She was more than three feet taller than him, and it was clear that she could snap him like a twig if she so pleased. "Thank you." He was still afraid of her, and he could see her arms folded.

"Do not thank me. Instead, you are to stay away from my squire. If you dare step anywhere near him, I swear I'll break that little neck of yours. I don't care what kind of agreement you've made with the princess here. Understand me?"

"Y-Yes ma'am."

As Charles listened to the Intruder, he was surprised by the tone that he was using. It reminded him of himself when he had been accompanying Maxine. In a way he was glad to see that she was taking his safety very seriously, but he also feared that she might be going a little overboard. Her concern was all coming from the right place but thought that it might lead to trouble in the future.

After the events that had taken place that night, Charles found it difficult to sleep, even though he was still the arms of Maxine. They lay in bed together and the muscular giantess was also still awake. However, this wasn't just because of everything that had taken place. She also wanted to make sure that he was safe since he had almost been killed that night. At this point in time, she didn't think that she would allow him out of her sight ever again. Even for something as mundane and private as going to the toilet.

Even so, she was just happy to see that he was uninjured, and she felt the desire to protect him was stronger than ever. Almost like he was some kind of lost child, and she was their guardian. His back was to her, and she simply enjoyed having him in her arms. That way she knew that he was safe.

"Maxine are you awake?" asked Charles with a quiet tone. He thought that he would get an annoyed grant from her, but he was more than surprised to discovered that this wasn't the case at all.

"Yes, I am," replied Maxine. Her voice was also quiet and soft. It was a tone that he wasn't used to hearing from her. "Is everything alright?"

"Y-Yeah everything's fine. It's just that…" He paused for a moment as he thought about what he was going to say. "Were you really going to cut off his penis? With how you came across, I don't know whether you were acting or not."

"At that moment in time, no I didn't. However, if he had seriously hurt you then I don't know what I would have done. I only acted like that so that he would be more willing to go along with whatever I said. I'm sorry I spoke to you in the way that I did, I just wanted to make it seem like I was going to do it."

"Ok I see… Have you ever cut a man's penis off?"

"No, I haven't, but believe me there have been several times when I've been tempted to do it. Why, are you worried about your own?" There was a slightly playful tone to her voice, and she felt him shake his head. "You needn't worry about me doing anything like that to me. As far as I'm concerned, you'll never have to be afraid of me."

"That's reassuring. But do you trust our new companion? What's to say that he won't try and betray us?"

"I can't answer that question. It was up to that princess whether he can be trusted or not. If he decides to stab them in the back, that doesn't concern me. All that matters is that you're safe. If he tries to stab you in the back, well let's just say that it would be a very bad idea." If he had been able to see her face, he would have seen an evil grin on her face that could send a chill down anyone's spine.

"You know you can be a little nicer to Asla. I know that she lied to you and how much you hate that but saying that she doesn't matter makes me feel like you see her as being less than human."

"I don't see her as less than human, I see her as less than you. Since we've been together you've helped me to no end and been honest with me. She was able to employ us under false pretences and put us in danger. Whether she reclaims her throne or ends up dead in a ditch, it matters not to me." There was a coldness in her voice which showed Charles that she meant every word that she was saying. It reminded him to never get on her bad side.

"Can you at least try to be nicer to her for me, please. I'm not asking you to like her. Just to treat her better than you are now?" There were several seconds of uncomfortable silence, and he thought that her mood might turn.

"For you I'll try but I can't make any promises. Now, try and get some sleep. I have a feeling that tomorrow is going to be another eventful day."

"O-Ok."

With that, Charles closed his eyes and attempted to sleep. This was still something that was difficult for him, but he could feel the expansion and retraction of Maxine's chest on his back. This was happening simply because she was breathing, and it did have a relaxing feeling to it. His mind did begin to drift off and eventually he did fall asleep.

Unfortunately for both of them, they weren't able to get the sleep that they needed as morning came far too quickly. It was a knock on the door that woke them up and someone outside telling them that they needed to move on. They both woke up at around the same time and neither of them had gotten enough sleep.

Charles was the first to get out of the bed and he needed to stretch himself for a moment as he tried to fully make sense of everything. His mind wasn't completely back to reality just yet and he would need a few moments in order to do this. Maxine remained on the bed and simply stretched her arms and legs out. When she did this, she completely took up the entire bed. Just a sign of how large her frame actually was.

With some reluctance she rose to her feet, and she forgot how low the ceiling was as a loud thud could be heard along with a grunt of pain. It was clear that it had caused her some discomfort and some dust even fell from the ceiling. Quickly she sat on the bed and began to rub her head as the impact had dazed her. She would be fine in the end, but it was just a reminder that she was a little too big for the world she lived in.

Around half an hour later, the group found themselves just outside of the inn. It was around mid-morning and all of them were still tired after the events that had taken place. The intruder from the night before was amongst them and when he looked at Maxine, he couldn't help but be afraid. It was also the first time that he truly saw her in her armour.

In his mind, the armour only made the muscular giantess seem bigger than she already was. To him, he thought that she was invincible as she was strong enough to knock any man down and her armour was so thick that he didn't know how anyone could land a lethal blow. He also noticed her sword and the sheer size of it. It was one that he had seen others wield but they always needed two hands to do so and from what he could see, he thought that she would only need one.

One thing that he still couldn't believe was everything that had actually taken place. Originally, he was in Angleland in order to kill Asla, now he was working alongside her and was going to be rewarded with a lordship when she returned to the throne. He was still trying to reason with everything that had happened, but it was taking longer than he expected for his mind to process everything.

When the group did eventually begin their walk, it was the three foreigners who were at the head of the pack. Taiyun stayed close to Asla as he still intended to protect her. The intruder from the previous night did stay relatively close. However, Taiyun didn't entirely trust him so wanted him to keep a small distance away from the exiled princess.

He couldn't help but glance towards Charles and Maxine who were walking a short distance behind them. He could see Charles remaining close to the giantess and when he looked up to her, she did notice him and gave him a scowl.

"Eyes front," stated Maxine with a commanding tone. It was clear that she hadn't forgiven him for trying to kill Charles and quickly he turned his eyes back forward and focused on where they were going. He said something in his native language under his breath and this was picked up by her. She didn't understand what he was saying but she could tell that it wasn't anything nice. "What was that?"

"N-Nothing," replied the Intruder from the previous night. He had told his name to Asla and Taiyun but had yet to mention it to Maxine and Charles. From what he could see, it was likely that she didn't care about his name whatsoever.

It was a good few hours before they finally stopped in order to take a rest. During this time, they mostly ate but Maxine also wanted to give Charles another lesson in swordplay. Although he was reluctant to do so, he still went through the lesson as he knew that she trying to teach how to protect himself. Especially after the events of the night before, it only made her more keen to teach him.

Her lessons were somewhat harsh and from the outside it did look as though she was punishing him in a way. Her strikes were coming strong and fast, and he was struggling to block them in time. The truth was that they weren't her strongest attacks but by the standards of a regular person, they seemed to be very powerful.

"Don't just be on the defence all the time," said Maxine as she continued to strike at him. Although he was struggling, he was able to block each one just about. "You need to find an opening and then attack."

"I-I'm trying," replied Charles. His arm was getting tired from the constant attacks. He could tell that her swings were much slower than she was capable of. On more than one occasion he had seen her unleash attacks that would be impossible for him to block. "Y-You're just attacking too quickly."

"And an opponent won't do that?" As she was attacking, she left several opportunities for him to attack but each time he failed to do so. This caused her some annoyance, but she still kept up with the lesson. Eventually one strike came too close to him, and she had to quickly pull her attack so that she didn't accidentally hurt him.

This was noticed too by Charles who had to dart back words and he was breathing deeply. It wasn't just the shock of the strike that had done this but generally because he was fatigued. Asla and her companions watched on with some astonishment and they didn't seem to be noticed by the armoured giantess. Instead, she was completely focused on her squire and she sheathed her sword once more.

"Are you alright Charles?" asked Maxine. Her tone wasn't as caring as it had been in the past as she still sounded as if she were trying to teach him.

"Y-Yeah I'm fine," replied Charles. He knew that she wouldn't harm him, but she had gotten close just then. "I-I'm just really tired."

"You are, I think it's best we end the practical part of our lesson today." She could see a look of relief on his face after she said this. "But there's still a lot of room for improvement. I left myself wide open several times there and you could have tried to counterattack. Instead, you stayed on the defensive. An opponent isn't going to give you that many opportunities. When you see one, you have to take it by the scruff of its neck because it might be the only way to walk away from the battle."

"I-I'll try and remember that." He was still tired, and he couldn't help but feel a little scared while the lesson had been taking place. Any normal person wouldn't particularly like the idea of facing off against someone like Maxine. This wasn't what he was afraid of however, instead it was the fact that he was wielding a sword. Before he met Maxine, he never thought that he would ever do anything like that and yet here he was. "I-I'm sorry if I disappointed you."

"You haven't disappointed me; you just have a lot to learn." Her tone was softer than it had been a few moments before, and she placed her hand on his shoulder. "I won't always be around to protect you, so you need to be able to protect yourself. Sword fighting isn't in your nature, I know that. But it is still for the best that you perfect it to the level that you can defend yourself from an attacker."

"I-I understand ma'am." He was still tired, but he didn't think that he would be even passable with a sword.

"And you needn't call me ma'am. Even when we're having a lesson like this. You will continue to address me as Maxine."

"As you wish." She continued to look at him and she couldn't help but give a sigh. She knew that he was trying in their lessons, but she was beginning to doubt that he would ever competently swing a sword. Her expectations for him weren't too high but even so, she had expected better.

In a way, she wasn't too surprised at this revelation. Charles wasn't a fighter like her and always tried to find the most peaceful way to resolve a situation. Fighting with a sword was simply not in his nature and she simply had to accept that. It didn't mean that she wanted to stop their lessons, but she also wanted to be sure that he could protect himself.

"Ms. Martel," stated a voice. It was a voice that she recognised, and she became annoyed. Quickly, the armoured giantess turned around and looked at the woman who was barely as tall as her leg.

"Yes, is there something you want?" replied Maxine. Her tone made it seem like she was being disturbed while performing an activity. Asla looked up at her and although most people would be intimidated by the giantess, she stood strong and convicted.

"My companions and I are about to cook some food; we were wondering if you wanted to some as well."

"No, I'm…" Before she could finish what, she was saying, she felt Charles's shoulder being nudged into her leg. This reminded her of the conversation that they had the night before and she couldn't help but grunt somewhat. "Thank you for the offer, my squire and I appreciate that. We'll be over in a few minutes."

"You're welcome, we appreciate what you've done for us so far. It will be an honour to have you with us."

Several minutes later Maxine and Charles found themselves sitting down near a fire that had been created. There, Asla and her companions had been cooking food from their native land. It let off a smell that was unfamiliar to Maxine and Charles and each of them simply sat there and waited for the food to be served.

As expected, Charles sat next to Maxine as she made sure to keep him close to her. On her other side the assassin who had joined them sat there as well. A cold sweat ran down his back as he glanced up to the armoured giantess. When he did this, he saw her glaring back down to him and this struck more fear into him than anything else he could ever imagine. The previous night he had been manhandled by her and he didn't need to be reminded just how large and powerful than he was.

A wooden bowl was given to each of them and eventually some food was placed within as well as being given two sticks in order to eat them. Both Maxine and Charles looked at it for a few moments and they both held the sticks that they had been given. Charles did glance over to Asla who was using her sticks to pick up the food and then eat it.

As he observed, he placed the sticks between his fingers and attempted to pick up the food. Although it took several attempts, he was able to do this, and he placed the food in his mouth. Almost instantly, he was attacked by a wave of flavours that were completely alien to him. They were unlike anything that he had eaten before and although it was strange, he was actually enjoying it.

Maxine too tasted the food but rather than using the sticks to do so she simply threw them to one side and simply lifted the bowl and tipped its contents into her mouth. Like Charles before her, she was able to taste the food but had a far different reaction to it. She could feel her mouth beginning to burn but it wasn't from the temperature from the food. She still chewed and swallowed the food, but she began to blow out of her mouth and waved her hand in an attempt to cool her mouth down.

Although watching her do this was quite comical, neither Asla nor her companions laughed as they feared her reaction. There was a chuckle, but it came from Charles, the only person who could laugh and get away with it.

"W-What was that I just ate?" asked Maxine after she had swallowed her food. She was still trying to cool down her mouth.

"I take it that you've never eaten anything spicey before," replied Charles with a slight chuckle in his voice.

"If it means setting the inside of my mouth on fire, then no!" He could see that her face was red, and sweat was running down her brow. It only made the whole thing seem more comical from his point of view.

"Well, I guess there aren't any dishes from round here that has any spices. I bet you would eat it without question.

Maxine didn't answer and simply removed some of the sweat that was on her forehead, and she was just glad that her sisters weren't present. Carrie in particular would probably laugh at her intensely because of this. At least when Charles was laughing, she knew that there was no malice behind it.

The three foreigners too also found it funny but tried their best not to laugh. They knew that Charles could get away with it, but they couldn't. If they did, they feared her reaction and thus they simply kept their head down and tried to eat their food. However, it was still hard for them not to look at the nine-foot woman who was struggling to eat food that consisted of spices.

In the end, the giantess couldn't eat the food as it was simply too spicey for him and Charles was more than happy to finish it off for her. A part of her thought that Asla had done this on purpose and made her meal extra spicey. However, she thought that this was unlikely, and it was simply that she couldn't handle it. She did look at Charles as he ate her portion and she thought that he had a mouth of iron.

When the meal was over, the group had to continue moving as they needed to reach the East Coast of Angleland. Maxine and Charles weren't exactly sure what was going to happen when they got there. All that they knew was that Asla had paid for them to take her there and although Maxine didn't want the money anymore and preferred to walk away. Charles was still determined to help. Like her, it was likely that he didn't want the money when all was said and done.

Like before, they continued to walk in the formation with Asla and her companions at the front and Maxine and Charles at the rear. Any kind of disturbance got an instant reaction from the giantess as she placed her hand down towards her squire and bring him closer to her. These disturbances were nothing that was a danger to them such as a bush that began to move. Rather than an assassin being there, it was just a squirrel who had been looking for some food.

Her actions hadn't gone unnoticed by Asla and her companions as they could see how protective she was of her squire. The Intruder from the previous night could see now how much of a mistake it was in trying to attack him. If anything, he was lucky that he hadn't been killed by the muscular giantess right there and then. It did make him fearful of her and the last thing she wanted was to anger her in anyway. Next time, he might not walk away with his life.

"You feeling alright now?" asked Charles as he looked up to Maxine. As she walked, he could hear the clanking of her armour and he watched as she looked down at him and although she looked flustered.

"Y-Yeah I'm fine," replied Maxine. Although she was wearing her helmet now, she could still feel some of the heat. "I'm still getting over what I had just ate. It's like someone lit a fire in my belly."

"I thought as much." He began to chuckle a little and he couldn't see that she was slightly blushing in embarrassment. "I thought that food would be a little too spicy for you. I take it that you're going to stick with pies from now on?"

"Most definitely."

"Then as soon as I can, I'll buy you a pie. Maybe a dozen, if the budget will allow it of course."

"We can make room in the budget for it."

"I forgot to mention that Jaxin is very sorry for how we met. He says that he hopes that you don't throw him around anymore."

"Who?" She was very confused as she hadn't heard the name before. As far as she was concerned, it was as if he was talking about someone who she had never met and thus had no idea about.

"Our new friend who we met last night."

"Oh him." There was an annoyed grunt that escaped her lips as she spoke as she knew exactly who he was talking about. "Wait, how do you know his name?" As far as she was concerned, Charles hadn't left her sight and thus she didn't see him interacting with the man who has tried to kill him.

"Asla spoke to me when you went off to relieve yourself. I understand your frustration but I'm glad that you ate their food. You might not have liked it, but you showed them that you were willing to at least were willing to interact with them."

"If it were up to me, I'd have nothing to do with them. If you weren't still so willing to help them, I would have walked away. Besides, I still want you to stay close to me, that other assassin is still out there. If you ask me, it's a miracle that they haven't struck again yet. We might have replenished our numbers, but they could more than easily take one of you down and stay hidden."

"We're being very cautious Maxine." He could see just how much she was worried about him and in a way, he found it cute. It was also very nice to have someone that cared so much for him that they were willing put their life on the line in order to protect him. A few months ago, he didn't think such a person actually existed.

"Not cautious enough. If you see anything remotely suspicious, you tell me as soon as possible." There was a stern tone in her voice which showed that she truly wasn't joking around on the matter.

"Y-Yes I will do." He wanted to say if about her protecting Asla as well but for now he said nothing. If she was in danger, he didn't think that she would simply stand by and do nothing. She would likely step in and do something in order to protect her but with her current temperament, it wasn't a guarantee.

Eventually the group came up to what seemed like an old bridge that stretched over a stream. The bridge itself looked to be quite small and fragile as if it hadn't been maintained in a good normal of years. Even with someone as small as Asla stepped onto it, the bridge began to creak.

Due to the doubts about the bridge's integrity, the group thought that it was best to step over one at a time. Out of the five, it was Asla who stepped over it first and it seemed that every step she took was with great care. Even though she was the smallest person in the group, it was still clear that the bridge wasn't long for this world. Give it another year or so, it was likely that it was going to collapse.

Next was Taiyun who like Asla was careful when he walked across the bridge. There was fear with every step he took as he was convinced that it was going to collapse on him. The fall down wasn't all that far but it was still likely that he could break a bone or suffer some other kind of injury. To him that would be a death sentence as he didn't think that he could get the medical treatment that he would need.

Each step was taken with great care and after a minute or so, Taiyun did reach the other side of the bridge. He was more than happy after he did this as he gave a sigh of relief and even rubbed some sweat off of his brow. It was more stressful than he had expected, and he looked over to the others who had yet to step across.

Jaxin too was nervous about crossing the bridge. Common sense was telling him not to walk across it, but he didn't want to be left by himself with Maxine. Although he was trained to kill people, he was still terrified of her. It was no secret that she didn't like him at all and now he was going to have to put his safety at risk in order to get there.

Even Charles did have some concern as he looked at the bridge as well. It wasn't himself or Jaxin who worried him. Since Asla and Taiyun had made their way across, he knew that it would be able to hold his weight. However, when it came to Maxine, she was far larger and more importantly heavy than they were. It only take time for them to see whether it was strong enough to hold someone of her weight.

There was a lot of nervousness that ran through Jaxin as he made his way across the weak bridge. He glanced back towards Maxine, and he could see that her arms were crossed and he thought that she was scowling at him. Her face was obscured by her helmet, but he felt that there was an aura around her. Either way, he didn't want to be around her by himself. There was always the fear that she could follow through with the threats that she had made the night before.

After a couple of minutes, Jaxin did reach the other side and there was a huge sigh of relief that escaped his lips. As he looked towards the other side, he could still see Charles and Maxine standing there and he hoped that they would be stuck there. However, he knew that this was likely not the case at all.

Charles was next and he did look up to Maxine before he began to step across. Like the others before, he could hear it creaking with every step that he took. As far as he was concerned, the fact that the bridge was still standing was nothing short of a miracle. If it were struggling with someone of his weight, he hated to think what would happen if a horse and carriage were to use it.

After a minute or two, he did reach the other side and he too gave a sigh of relief and wiped some of the sweat that was on his brow. There was a lot of nervousness that he could feel however, this time it wasn't for himself. Instead, it was for Maxine who was by far the largest and heaviest person in the group. If it seemed to struggle to carry him, he feared what would happen when she stepped across.

This was something that Charles didn't have to wait long for as Maxine stepped onto the bridge. Like before, it groaned but this time, it was much louder than when the others had used it. This did make her feel slightly nervous and under normal circumstances, she would decide not to use it and find another way to cross.

The one driving force in the mind of Maxine was to be by Charles's side again. She feared leaving him by himself as she feared that he could be attacked like he had the night before. Plus, there was the assassin who had killed Jinshu was still around. So far, they hadn't interacted with them again but there was still the fear that something like that could take place.

Her large, armour-clad feet would come down onto the bridge and each time they did, the groaning sound only grew louder. This caused the armoured giantess to become nervous but each time she felt like this, she would look over to Charles. This would always give her the motivation that she needed to keep going.

Slowly but surely, Maxine did make her way across the bridge but rather than the groaning sound, they began to hear what seemed to be a whining noise. By this point in time, she was roughly three quarters of the way across the bridge, and she almost felt the ground beneath her being shifted.

It only took her a few moments for her to realise that this was because the bridge itself was collapsing under her weight. Without wasting a single movement, Maxine ran towards the end of the collapsing bridge, and she even leapt forward in an attempt to get across to the other side.

Unfortunately, she hadn't travelled far enough as didn't quite reach the other side. Instead, she seemingly began to fall but was able to grab the edge where the bridge had once been. All she could hear was Charles calling her name and felt her arm being grabbed by her squire. She had only been able to grab the edge with one hand and she looked up to see him pulling up with all of her strength.

"Maxine, hold on!" stated Charles with panic in his voice. The fall to the stream below wasn't too far and it was likely that Maxine would survive. But he feared that she would pick up an injury and that was something that he had to do.

With all of his might, Charles attempted to pull Maxine up over the edge, but this was a feat that he found to be impossible. The problem was that she was simply too big for him to be able to do something like this. Despite this, he continued to try as he wanted to save the most important person in his life right now.

However, what he didn't realise was that despite only having one arm grabbing the side, she was still able to begin to pull herself up using her sheer strength alone. It was fairly easy for her to lift herself enough until she placed her other hand onto the edge as well. When they were both firmly placed there, she was able to pull herself up and finally onto safety. Charles still continued to pull and even Taiyun had approached so that he could try and help. However, his assistance wasn't needed.

"Maxine are you alright?" asked Charles with concern in his voice. He had just watched her almost plunge to stream below. Because of this, he feared that his friend had just hurt herself in some way.

"I-I'm fine thank you," replied Maxine. Now that she was over the edge, she was able to stand back up to her full height and although she did look a little intimidating, he wasn't afraid of her. "I guess that old bridge just wasn't strong enough to be able to hold my weight."

"I'm so glad to see that you're alright." Quickly he began to hug her as he wrapped his arms around her waist. He didn't care whether the others were still watching and instead only stood there and continued to hug her. She brought her arms down towards him and patting him on the back.

"Thank you for trying to save me as well." She didn't need his help in order to save herself, but she still wanted to show some appreciation towards him for what he had been able to do for her.

"We are also very glad to see that you are unharmed Ms Martel," stated Asla as she stepped towards the towering woman. She didn't seem to mind the fact that Charles was hugging Maxine and simply wanted to show that they had been concerned. "Do you require assistance in anything?"

"No, I'm fine thank you." It was around this time that Charles did end the hug and he continued to look up at Maxine. Nowadays, he couldn't imagine what would happen if she hadn't entered his life. He would probably still be working at the inn where she had found him and led a relatively boring life. "We need to keep going anyway. Hopefully now with that bridge gone if there's anyone following us. They're going to have a much tougher time keeping up."

"Agreed. We only have a few hours of sunlight left as well. We should use this time wisely."

Without too much hesitation, the group continued on with their journey. Charles was still more than glad to see that Maxine had been able to get through that incident without injury but there was one member of the group who was disappointed by this. While the events were unfolding, Jaxin had hoped that the muscular giantess would fall and break a few of her bones. That way, he knew that he wouldn't have to fear her but unfortunately this turned out not to be the case.

Now he constantly had to keep his eye on her as he feared that she would pick him up and toss him to one side like he had the night before. This was unlikely to happen unless he directly threatened Charles. Then she would likely pounce in order to protect him. Almost like a mother bear protecting their cub.

Throughout their remaining walk, Charles stayed close to Maxine, and he continued to look out for anything that he thought might be a threat. His keen eyes scanned the world around him and at the first sign of danger, he was sure to inform the others. For now, he simply continued to keep is eye out as the person who had killed Jinshu could very well still be around.

A wave of fear was being felt by everyone there. All but one of them was scared of the assassin who could still strike at any moment while the last was simply scared of the armoured giantess. However, eventually they had to put their fear to one side as they found themselves approaching a small town.

It was one that Charles and Maxine were expecting to reach as the former had seen the signs that was pointing towards it. He had informed his much taller friend since she still couldn't read. However, she had been able to tell the distance as she was still capable of understanding numbers.

Upon arriving at the town, it was relatively late in the day and their appearance didn't go unnoticed by the townspeople. The group got some stares as to most people, they were far from what they were used to seeing. Not only was there a woman who towered above everyone but three of them were also foreigners. Charles's darker than usual skin tone was also unusual to most.

The town itself looked like most that were found in Angleland. Rather than the big cities, the people here tended to live a quiet life and mostly kept to themselves. Agriculture was its main source of income although like many other towns, there were still shops and other facilities that were needed.

Although it was a town that Maxine had never been to, when she heard the name of Harrington, she did recognise the name. When she had visited her uncle's forgery on one occasion, she had heard that there was an order being fulfilled that was to go to that town. To her, it wasn't too surprising that she would one day end up here, but the circumstances was something that she couldn't have predicted.

With a lot of people around, it did mean that any assassins could more than easily blend in with the townspeople. However, there was one likely disadvantage that they had which was if they were from the same country as Asla and the others. Blending in would be much more difficult thanks to their skin tones. It would be far easier to spot them amongst the locals but then again, it wasn't too difficult to think that there were assassins who were from Angleland who were also searching for her.

"Do you think that it's best to stop here for the night?" asked Charles as he looked up to Maxine. He saw the helmet clad head of his friend look down at him and while she wore it, people who didn't know her would assume that she was a man. Her long red hair would flow underneath it but a long-haired man wasn't something that was rare in Angleland. "I don't know about you, but I'm pretty tired."

"Then we'll stop here," replied Maxine. Although she felt like she could continue going for longer, she was still concerned for her squire. "Tell the others that we'll stop here for the night. Also, if they wish, they can try and buy some more supplies. Same goes to you as well."

"I'll let them know."

Some words were exchanged between Charles and Asla with the latter easily understanding the message. She told her companions and quickly they began to look for a place where they could stop for the night. The first inn that they tried turned them away for reasons why the owners wouldn't explain.

It was a reason that had been expected by the group and it was something that although they thought was unfair, they had no choice but to accept. Not many inns would accept foreigners and the few that did normally charged more than the going rate. An injustice to say the least but it wasn't something that Asla and her companions had never experienced before.

The second inn did allow them to stay but they couldn't enter their rooms yet. It would still be a couple of hours before they would be able to enter and this included Maxine and Charles as well. For now, they simply went out into the town in order to buy the supplies that they had wanted for their journey.

This mostly consisted of food and fresh water but there was something else that Charles did decide to buy. This was a fairly long piece of rope that he wanted to keep in his satchel. For a few moments, Maxine was confused with why he would buy such a thing. However, he soon explained how such an item could be useful for them in the future.

A couple of hours later, the group found themselves inside of the inn. Rather than simply staying in their room, they were down in the tavern and were sitting at a table. When they had first arrived, they had feared that they would be rejected and forced to stay in their rooms. However, the people running the inn had allowed them to stay within the tavern despite the fact that they seemed so abnormal in the eyes of most.

The five of them sat at a table and waited for the food that had been ordered to be brought to them. Only one out of the five actually knew what was coming and that was Maxine. She sat on her chair with a small smile on her face as she waited. Out of all of them, it was Jaxin who was the most nervous about this. He thought that the giantess had bought something to get her revenge on him for what had happened the night before.

However, a few minutes later, the food was brought to them. None of them had expected the spicy food that Asla and her companions were used to eating. Instead, each was a crusted meal that was something that didn't surprise Charles whatsoever. What had been brought out were five whole pies and each was placed in front of the companions. The foreigners looked at their food with some confusion and they even looked towards Maxine as they wanted answers.

"You bought pies for everyone?" asked Charles who seemed to be the one who could ask the questions. He watched as the armoured giantess cut into her pie and was able to cut out a very large piece. "Our guests were kind enough to share their food with me earlier, so I thought that I'd return the favour."

"Oh, I see." He didn't think there was anything malicious behind what she had done. As far as he was concerned, she would make any excuse in order to eat some pie. "What flavour are they?"

"Now that would be telling." There was a smile on her face, and she bit into the piece of pie that she had cut. Suddenly she closed her eyes and smiled even more as she tasted the pie and simply enjoyed it.

For Asla and her companions, they had never eaten a pie before, and they picked up the knives and forks that had been provided. It wasn't the first time that they had held such cutlery, but they were still not completely familiar with it as they carefully cut into the pies that had been placed in front of them.

Over the next several minutes, each of them ate into their pies but for most of them it was simply too much for them to finish. Maxine wasn't amongst them as she more than easily ate her pie before anyone else was close to finishing it. When Charles had eaten his fill, he passed the rest of it to her, and she was more than happy to consume it.

One by one, the others did the same as they gave the armoured giantess their half-eaten pies and she ate them without hesitation. It almost seemed impossible for someone to have eaten that much but when Maxine and pies were involved, there was practically nothing that was impossible.

"Did you enjoy your dinners?" asked Maxine after she had finished her last piece of pie. She wanted to eat more but for now was satisfied for the time being.

"I-It was interesting," replied Asla as she looked over to the giantess. "I've never eaten such a thing before. What did you say that it was called?"

"Those were pies. Don't tell me that you don't have any pies in your country." There was a slight hint of fear in her voice as she said this. To her, such a thing was completely unheard of.

"No, this is the first time that we've eaten this. Or I believe it is anyway."

"I see. No offense but a country without pies is a place that I never want to visit." By now she had finished the leftovers of the last pie and for the time being felt full. Although if someone offered her one, she would always have enough room for more. "I still think we have much to discuss." She then glanced over to Charles who was sitting right next to her. "Charles, how long should it take for us to reach the coast?"

"Well at the rate we're going I'd say that it would take around three or four days," replied Charles. "We've made pretty good progress, but I doubt that it'll be entirely smooth sailing if you ask me."

"Why do you say that?"

"I can't help but be afraid that we're going to run into people who are plotting against us. I think we should still stay vigilant."

"And that we will." She then looked towards Asla who was just across from her. There was still some annoyance that she could feel thanks to her being lied to and that she was the reason why they were being vigilant. "Asla, how many so-called assassin's do you think are after you?"

"I have no idea," replied Asla. She shook her head while she spoke. "If I did, believe me, I'd tell you."

"Hmm, I was afraid that you were going to say that." She sighed as she wasn't sure what she had expected. If Asla actually knew, then Maxine would question how she knew but now she needn't ask such a thing.

"We would like to thank you again for accompanying us." There was a slight hint of nervousness in her voice as she wanted to get onto Maxine's good side. She knew that they were not on the best of terms.

"Don't forget, that I'm only here because of Charles. If not for him, I would have walked away from you and left you to your fate. It should be him that you thank, not me. He is a far kinder and braver person than I."

Charles sat there with a somewhat embarrassed look on his face as he accepted the compliment. He could understand why she was calling him kinder than herself but when it came to braver, he doubted that very much. There were times when he felt that he was a coward and would basically hide behind her for protection. However, if he had the same size and strength that she had, he would probably be as fearless as she was. Because of this, he thought that the bravery that she had mentioned was merely an empty compliment in order to make him feel better.

Jaxin didn't say a word during this dinner/meeting as he was still terrified of Maxine. Every time she glanced down to him; it would send a wave of terror through his body. When he was first arriving in Angleland, he had been told that people were taller there than they were in his native country. However, never did he imagine that he would run into a woman as large as her. He couldn't help but wonder if there were more people of her size in Angleland and if there were, he didn't want to meet them. For the time being, he had no idea about the other members of the Martel Family and the extreme size that the women were.

Something else that happened at the table was that Charles recorded down the supplies that they had picked up and he wanted to keep track of exactly what was consumed. That way, he could try and conserve as much as he could so that it could last them longer. There were variables that he was thinking about but if luck was on their side, then they wouldn't have to worry about picking up any more during their journey.

Once the meal and meeting were over, the group began to go up to their respective rooms. Like usual, Charles and Maxine went into one room while Asla and her companions stayed in another that was right across the hallway from each other. Almost immediately, the muscular giantess took off her armour with the help of her squire.

Although it took a few minutes, Maxine was eventually free of her armour, and she couldn't help but begin to stretch herself as she felt as if a tremendous weight had been taken off her body. There was a slight groan of pleasure as she did this and she could hear some creaking in her body as she did this.

Throughout this time, Charles continued to stand a short distance away and simply watched as she did this. Even though he had been in her presence for some time, it was still amazing for him to see a woman of her stature and physique.

"That feels good," said Maxine as she finished stretching herself. She stood up to her full height and she couldn't help but expect her head to strike the ceiling. However, much to her surprise, she discovered that the ceiling was high enough for her to stand up straight. She brought her hand up to the top of her head and noticed that there was an inch between her head and the ceiling. "Either I got shorter, or this room has a high ceiling." There was a small smile on her face as she knew that it was the latter.

"That makes a change although I wouldn't recommend you jumping around," replied Charles as he continued to look up at her. He was sure that his neck muscles were getting stronger as he was constantly having to look up. "The ceiling is higher, but it's not that high." He couldn't help but imagine Maxine jumping and either her head striking the ceiling or going through it completely.

"I'll remember that." She continued to smile as it seemed that having a belly full of pies always put her in a good mood. "I was thinking, we have a good hour or so before we need to go to bed, you could continue the lessons if you wish."

"I-I don't think it's wise to be swinging swords in a room like this. Plus, my arms are still tired from earlier."

"I don't mean sword fighting." She chuckled for a moment as she found the misunderstanding to be humorous rather than annoying. "I mean my reading lessons. Will that be all right with you?"

"Y-Yeah, that's fine. Less strenuous on me."

Charles appreciated that Maxine still wanted to learn to read. He thought that she might be more concerned about other things, but it was clear that her lessons were still very important to her. Like before, they found themselves sitting on the bed with him holding out his book and writing down some simple words in large letters.

Going through the alphabet had been something that they had done before, and he thought that they should move onto words. He purposely kept the letters short so that it would be easier for her. They did quickly go through the alphabet once again before moving back to the words.

"Ok Maxine, what does this word say?" asked Charles as he pointed towards the word that was on the page.

"Err…" replied Maxine as she continued to look at it. Her mind was trying to work out what it was saying but she was struggling. Some might find it comical that someone who was as big and strong as her was struggling to do something that many would consider to be incredibly simple.

"If you're struggling, just break down the word and try to read it like that. Start with the first letter."

"O-Ok…" She looked at the first letter and could see that it was the letter C. She tried to remember how to pronounce the letter. "Cu." She used the short pronunciation of the letter just like she had been taught.

"Good, now onto the second letter." He pointed at the letter, and she continued to look at it. This one she recognised easily as it was the first letter of the alphabet. However, like before it was difficult for her to properly make out what it meant. Charles continued to sit there, and he was patient as always. Although he wanted to tell her that it was very simple, he knew that for someone who couldn't read, it was very difficult. "Just remember what I taught you, if you need help, you need only ask."

"I-I'll be alright thank you." She continued to look at the letter and placed her lips together. "Ah."

"Very good, now onto the last letter." He pointed to the final letter in the word. "I know that you can do this one."

"Err…" She continued to look at the letter and this one she thought that she knew. "Tu."

"Excellent and now put all three of those letters together and what do you get?" There was a slight hint of excitement in his voice as he knew that they were only a few moments away from Maxine reading her first word.

"Cu, Ah, Tu."

Maxine continued to look at the word that she had just spelled out. Inside of her, she felt what felt like a great sense of joy as she had finally been able to do something that she thought that she would never be able to do. A smile appeared on her face as she looked over to Charles and he too seemed to be pleased. From his point of view, it was clear that they were making progress.

"Cat! Cat!" said Maxine with excitement in her voice. "Cu, Ah, Tu spells cat!" The bed began move as the muscular giantess was moving with excitement. It almost felt like she was a young child who had just achieved a breakthrough in life.

"Indeed, it does, very good Maxine," replied Charles who was more than happy to show that he was pleased with her.

"Can I try another one?" There was still excitement in her voice as she was sure that she was on a roll.

"Ok, let's try the next one. Again, if you're not sure, you can ask for help."

"Hopefully I won't need to." She watched him point to the second word that was on the page and once again, it was a simple word.

"Now, what does this word say."

"Err… Du... Oh… Gu…"

"Good now put them together and you get…"

"Dog, you get dog if you place them together." There was still excitement in her voice as she was on the verge of standing up and jumping in celebration. But she remembered that although the ceiling was higher, it was still too low for her to do something like that. Instead, she remained seated and looked happy.

"Yes, that's correct. You're doing very well. I'm really proud of you." He could see his friend still being very happy with what was happening. "You know what, I do remember going over the books earlier and I think that there's still room in the budget for one more pie." He then stood up from the bed and began to make his way towards the door of the room. "Now, you just sit and wait here while I go and get you one."

"Wait!" Faster than he thought was possible for a woman of her size, she stood up and moved in front of him. Now he found a tower of flesh and muscle standing between him and the door. "If you're going to go back down to the tavern then I'll come with you."

"I don't think that's really necessary Maxine." He could tell that she was beginning to panic a little and he wanted to make sure that she didn't do anything that he thought would make her feel worse.

"No, I insist!" She looked down at him and was able to place her hand on his shoulder without leaning down. Although her grip could be strong, her touch was gentle and caring. "I don't want you going anywhere by yourself."

"I'll be fine Maxine, really you needn't worry."

"But I do worry. Last night you went to take a piss and it almost got you killed. I've already made my mid up about the matter and I'll never let you out of my sight again. I don't want you to get hurt."

"I understand your concern, but you don't need to feel like that. I respect you a great deal, but we can't be together for every moment of every day." It almost seemed quite comical in his mind to see someone who was as concerned about him as she was. Besides his mother, no one had shown him this much compassion. "There will be times when you're not around to protect me, but it doesn't always mean that something bad is going to happen. Plus, if you're constantly worrying about me then you won't be able to concentrate on becoming a knight. The thing that you've always wanted.

"As far as I'm concerned, becoming a knight isn't as important as ensuring that you're safe." Her hand came up as she gently brushed his cheek with the back of her large index finger. "You're the only person in this world that I truly consider as my friend." The sincerity in her voice could be heard in her voice. There was no doubt that she was greatly concerned for his health and wellbeing.

"Ok Maxine, if you want to come with me, you can." He then grabbed onto her wrist and smiled up to her. "You can be the woman who watches my back while I buy her some pie. Now we better get going, I have a feeling that they might stop serving food very soon." He watched as she nodded and he wasn't sure or not, but he thought that she might be blushing. Her face definitely looked redder than before.

The whole issue of Maxine constantly looking out for Charles hadn't really been resolved just yet. But he thought that he could ease her into seeing that she was being overprotective. It was a task that was likely going to be some effort and take a fair amount of time.

Mere minutes later, Maxine found herself downstairs in the tavern and with a pie sitting right in front of where she was standing. It was bigger than the one that she had eaten earlier, and she couldn't help but look at it with a hunger that felt as if she hadn't eaten in days. Even though she had wolfed down several a short time earlier.

Charles was sure to pay for the pie before the muscular giantess picked it up and began to eat it. She didn't know what the flavour was for the pie to her it didn't matter. As long as there were no onions within, she was more than happy to eat it. To her, this was her treat pie as she was rewarded for being able to read two words. This pie was cheaper than they had expected since it was about to be thrown out, but the pair had been able to pick it up for a discounted price.

At this point in time, the tavern itself was mostly quiet as the majority of the patrons who had been there earlier had already gone home. This left Maxine and Charles mostly by themselves as they sat down at a table. The giantess continued to devour into her pie and loved every bite she was taking. Charles just sat there and watched and even though he had been with her for a long time by now, he was amazed with just how much food she could eat in one sitting. However, he couldn't help but not be surprised. If he was as tall and muscular as she was, he would have to eat enough to feed a family.

"Calm down there," said Charles as he chuckled. "You're going to choke on that if you keep eating it that quickly."

"S-Sorry," replied Maxine. She did seem to be slightly embarrassed by this. She had swallowed what she was eating before she had spoken. "I know I ate already, but I just love eating pies. If my belly were to explode from eating too many pies, then that would be a good way to die."

"You know, I've always been curious. Why do you like pies so much? Not saying that it's a bad thing but I was just wondering is all."

"Well, to you the truth, I have always liked them. But I think it really started when I was a little girl…" She paused for a moment when she realised that even when she was a young child, she was probably taller than Charles. "Well smaller than I am now anyway. When our local lord went to war, he called forth every knight and bannerman he had. That included my father. I remember that my mother didn't want him to leave as he was pregnant with Denise at the time. However, the lord's summon was final and he was forced to go to war. My father told me to look after my mother and sister as he said that I was the head of the house while he was gone. For six months he was away, and my mother worried about him constantly, she even gave birth to my sister while he was gone and she did struggle to look after us. My grandmother did assist us but always we were worried about him. We received no word about him during all that time and we thought that he might have fallen in the battlefield."

"Ok…" He knew that Sir Tucker hadn't perished as the two had met face to face a few months earlier.

"I still remember it clearly. It was snowing and I was playing in the snow with Carrie. My mother was watching over us with Denise wrapped up in her arms. Carrie and I began to fight over the snowman that we were making and then we could see someone approaching. At first, it was hard to make out who it was, but I was the first to notice. It was my father and I remember running out and hugging him. Probably nearly knocked him over when I did that, but we were all happy to see him return in one piece. A short time later, we all sat at the dinner table, and he made us a pie. I forget what flavour it was but when I took a bite out of it, it was the best thing I've ever tasted. But what was the best thing about it was that he was there, and we were all together as a family."

"Hmm, that is very interesting."

Although his response was relatively tame, he couldn't help but think quite intensely. In particular he began to see where Maxine's love for pies came from. It wasn't just the taste of them that she enjoyed but a memory that she held dear to her. The return of her father from a situation where he could have been killed. The fear of losing him had made the act of eating a pie give her comfort and a sense that he was safe. The respect that she had for him was greater than that for anyone else.

Not long after Maxine had finished telling Charles the story, she noticed that the pie that she had been eating was gone. She looked at the empty tray and she couldn't help but feel disappointed that it was all gone. This had been a treat for her, but she did wish that it had of lasted a little longer.

However, it was still late, and the pair decided that it was best to go back up to bed. They still had a long way to go and with the dangers that lurked around them, they needed to stay vigilant. Being fatigued was something that could cause them to make a mistake and that could very much be fatal to say the least.

Only a few minutes later, both of them found themselves sharing the same bed. Like many, many times before the bed was too small for a giantess like Maxine but she still lay on it nonetheless and kept Charles in her arms. They were both tired but couldn't quite fall to sleep just yet. Instead, they lay there and closed their eyes as they hoped that they would drift off sooner rather than later.

"Thank you, Charles," said Maxine as she continued to hold Charles in her arms. He couldn't see the smile on her face, but he did feel the warmth of her very large and muscular body.

"For what?" replied Charles. He was slightly confused by this, but he continued to listen to what she was saying.

"For everything. Most people would have not bothered being my squire or taken the time to teach me to read."

"It's nothing really. Besides, your lessons still aren't over but if you keep going at the rate that you are. You'll be able to read and write before you know it."

"How did you learn to read anyway? No offense but your status in society is around the same as me and yet you learned to read."

"Well, I had to, when I was young I had to help look after my mother and included watching what was going in and out of the house financially. She wanted me to have the best opportunities in life and even though it was expensive for us, she sent me to school and there, I learned how to read and write. Many of the other students didn't really like me and I admit, I hated going. A few of them even liked to hit me."

"Hmm, if I had gone to school with you, I would have made sure that no one hit you." She chuckled after she said this, and Charles couldn't help but imagine a younger but still very large Maxine holding one of his old bullies by the scruff of their shirt. It would have been nice having someone like her watch his back while he had been in school but at least he had her now.

"That would have been nice. But then I don't think that your mother would be happy. She seemed to be a bit of the protective type."

"You're telling me." She gave a sigh as she thought about her mother. "She's a lovely woman don't get me wrong, but you should have seen what she did when I told her that I wanted to be a knight. She hugged me and cried for what seemed to be an hour as she didn't want me to do something so dangerous. It took a lot of convincing from my father to let him train me."

"Well mothers do always worry about their children. Even ones as big and strong as you. I know if my mother was still alive, she'd be worried about me all the time." Memories of his own mother came flooding back and this did upset somewhat. This was picked up by Maxine who help him slightly tighter against her muscular body.

"I'm sorry Charles. I can only imagine how terrible it is to lose a parent." She didn't want to think about what she would do if one of her own parents were to pass away.

"It's alright Maxine, she's been gone for a long time, and I've grieved over her. She wouldn't want me to live my life in sadness. She would have wanted me to be happy and when I'm travelling with you, I am happy. I think my mother would have liked you if you had met her. I can almost imagine what she would have said."

"Let me guess, what have they been feeding me?"

"Nah, she would ask if you could dust the ceiling for her."

"Oh, I see." She couldn't help but chuckle about what had just been said. Out of all the comments that had been made about her, this wasn't offensive and instead was quite comical. "I would have liked to have met her."

"Unfortunately, that time has passed now. Let's just hope that we don't lose anyone important us any time soon. Anyway, we better get to sleep, or else we won't have any energy for tomorrow."

"Ok but tonight, please don't get sneaking out of this bed while I'm asleep. Last time it almost got you killed."

Charles simply nodded and closed his eyes. She could still feel himself in the arms of Maxine and already, she was fast asleep. All he could do was lie there and fall asleep himself. It was comfortable and he had a sense of safety as he knew that she would protect him no matter what. Even if there was a serious risk to her own health and wellbeing, she would still protect him without hesitation.

The night was surprisingly uneventful as both of them simply slept in the bed without being disturbed. Out of the pair, it was Maxine who was the first to wake up but rather than waking Charles up straight away. She decided to let him sleep for a little longer as he seemed very peaceful with where he was.

She could see sunlight beginning to come through the curtains of the room and she continued to lie there for almost half an hour. During that time, she even stretched the lower half of her body and when she did this, she discovered that her feet touched the ground while she lay on the bed. Only another indication for her that she was simply too big for the world that she lived in.

Eventually Charles began to stir, and Maxine could feel him moving around in her arms. Rather than waking him up suddenly, she allowed him to wake up on his own accord and for a few moments he didn't know where he was.

The small man was confused with why there was a pair of very long and muscular arms holding onto him. But after a few moments, his memories returned to him, and he remembered that it was Maxine. This made him feel at ease as he knew that he was safe. His dreams once more had been plagued with the people that he had killed in the cultist inn and that he still feared that they would harm him.

"G-Good morning, Maxine," said Charles. He wanted to stretch himself but found himself unable to while he was still in her arms.

"Did you sleep well?" replied Maxine. His head was lying on her chest, and he could hear her heartbeat. It was a relatively slow and relaxing beat that did put him at ease. Despite the nightmares that he had.

"Y-Yeah, as well as can be expected. But I really need to go and relieve myself. You don't mind just letting me go?"

"S-Sure." With that, he let go of him and he was able to climb out of the bed. He took several steps towards the door before he heard something heavy strike the floor. As he glanced behind him, he could see the towering figure of Maxine behind him. Already he knew what this was about, his mind did consider trying to convince her otherwise. However, he knew that he would be wasting his breath and simply allowed her to follow him to where the toilet was located.

Thankfully Charles was able to convince her to simply stand outside of the toilet door rather than going inside with him. This way he did have some privacy and since there was no other way in, she could be confident that no one else would be inside who could harm him. Even she thought that she might be taking things too far, but she always convinced herself that she was doing it for his protection.

While he was inside, Maxine did see someone else approaching the door. She stood there as she leaned on the wall and her head was only around an inch away from the ceiling. Rather than this person being a stranger to him, she could see that it was Jaxin. He needed to use the toilet as well, but he was surprised to see the nine-foot giantess standing by the door.

Although technically she was his travelling companion, he couldn't help but be terrified of her. Already he had been on the wrong end of her strength, and he didn't want to anger her. Instead, he just nervously smiled at her and thought about saying something but no words could pass his lips. Instead, she glared down at him and crossed her arms as she was far from happy to see him.

"Is there something that you want?" asked Maxine. Her tone made it clear that she wasn't pleased that he was there.

"E-Err yeah," replied Jaxin. In his mind, he was thinking of what he was going to say and hoped that he would get through this without incurring the anger of the giantess. "I just need to use the toilet."

"Charles is using it." Her words were blunt, and she didn't want to speak to him any more than she needed to.

"D-Do you know how long he's going to be?"

"He'll be as long as he needs to. I suggest you wait and if you piss yourself. Well, it's not my problem."

"R-Right."

Normally he would have tried to act tough and use some intimidation. However, this situation was far than in his favour. This was one person that he could never outmuscle or intimidate. Instead, all he could do was stand where he was and wait for his turn to go into the toilet.

To him, every minute felt like an hour but eventually he did see the door opening and then Charles stepping out. He felt some relief after what he needed to get done and he did see Maxine standing there, right where he had last seen her. However, he was somewhat surprised to see Jaxin.

Quickly, the now former assassin ran right passed him and went into the toilet. This did catch Charles by surprise as he more or less had to dart out of the way. Maxine was mere moments from stepping in as she did think that he was going to try and harm him. Thankfully this wasn't the case.

Instead, she simply kept him close to her and although she was needed to go herself. Her first priority was to protect and thus, she held it in for the time being. Instead, she just returned to the room where both she and Charles began to get changed. For the time being, Maxine only put on her regular clothes and didn't bother attempting to put on her armour. There were still things that she needed to do when it came to that.

Eventually, she did go to the toilet but at that moment in time, she couldn't keep an eye on Charles. Instead, he simply waited in the room and with the time that he had, he quickly wrote down a few things in his journal. One thing that he had noticed was that he was running out of blank pages. Before long, he would have to buy another one and then copy a few details across.

Almost immediately after Maxine was done, she came rushing back to the room. A part of her was afraid that there was someone else attempting to harm him and she was almost prepared for a fight. Instead, she simply found him sitting at a table and writing into his journal. A sigh of relief came out of her lips, and she could clearly see that her squire was safe and sound.

"You know you didn't have to burst in that," said Charles as he looked over to the muscular giantess. "I appreciate your concern for me, but you needn't worry about me like that. I'm perfectly safe."

"I know," replied Maxine as she sighed. "It's just I don't like you not having me watch over you. You've almost been killed too many times for my liking."

"You needn't remind me of that. Just try and tone it down a little." He knew that this was a difficult task for her to achieve as she was fiercely protective of him. Almost like a mother bear watching over her cub.

"I-I'll try." She didn't truly believe the words that were coming from her own mouth as she just wanted to keep him safe. While he was helping Asla and her companions, she feared that he could be killed trying to protect her.

After a few short minutes, Maxine did get back into her armour and once again looked to be ready to leave. Charles did help her in this endeavour although she had been able to do it herself. However, the help was greatly appreciated and part of the duties of a squire was to help a knight change in and out of their armour. She might not be a knight, but he was still more than happy to be her squire.

Once they were done, Charles went to the door of Asla's room and knocked on it with some care. He wanted to make sure that he didn't come across as aggressive, but he still had Maxine watching over him as he did this. Especially when the foreign princess and her companions were around, she was on her guard.

After a few moments, the door did answer and rather than being Asla who was opening the door, it was Taiyun who answered. None of them had barely left the room over the night and the morning besides just going to the toilet. Like Maxine, he didn't entirely trust Jaxin but with the price that had been offered to him, it would be foolish to turn it down.

"Good morning," said Charles. He had a smile on his face as he did mean what he said. "Do you need me to bring you some breakfast from the tavern?"

"N-No, we have already eaten," replied Taiyun. This was soon followed by Maxine loudly clearing her throat as he realised that there was something that he had forgotten to say. "Thank you."

"Alright then, if you three are ready, we'll continue on. The weather is looking good today so hopefully we'll make a lot of progress. Maxine and I will be waiting for you downstairs. Take your time if you need to."

With a few parting words, the door was closed, and the pair made their way down to the tavern below. Charles did consider buying some breakfast for himself, but he had spent the extra money that they had on Maxine's extra pie the previous night. This did make him hungry, but he still thought that it was worth it. She had put a lot of effort into learning to read and he knew that she had deserved a treat for it.

It was around half an hour later when Maxine and Charles saw Asla and her companions again. All five of them were just outside of the inn and each looked ready to continue on. Their supplies were satisfactory, and the weather was pleasant. If everything went to plan, they would make plenty of progress on their journey and get closer to their destination before needing to rest for the night.

However, all of them knew that such a thing was wishful thinking. There was always the threat of something taking place along the way and that not all of them would make it. To Maxine, all that mattered was that Charles was safe, the others didn't concern her. As far as she was concerned, they weren't important.

Only a short time later, the view of the town was gradually shrinking behind the group as they walked further away. Taiyun and Jaxin were at the front of the group with Asla walking behind them. In turn Charles walked behind her and Maxine walked behind him and kept her eye on him for the entire time.

To her, he was the only person that was important enough in this group to get her attention. Although many would consider him to be of the lowest birth out of the five of them. He wasn't royalty or the son of a knight. Instead, he was just a regular person who was simply trying to get through in life.

One thing that she did notice was that he was stepping closer to Asla. This made Maxine want to step forward and prevent him from doing so but decided to do nothing for the time being. She didn't see any direct danger from this although there still was the threat of an assassin attacking.

In the mind of the giantess, she remembered Jinshu and how he had been killed by a poisoned dart. If that had happened to Charles, there would have been nothing that she could do to stop him passing away. Even if she had killed the assassin in revenge, it wouldn't have changed the fact that he was killed.

Due to this, Maxine was nervous but still allowed Charles to step closer to Asla. However, she did constantly keep an eye on everything that was around them. Anything that was even remotely a threat would spur her into action. During this time, she even placed her hand on her sword as she was ready for whatever she did.

"Your highness," said Charles as he was close to where Asla was walking. They were relatively close to one another, and she turned her head towards him. A smile did appear on her face.

"Please call me Asla," replied Asla. The tone of her voice was pleasant, and it had a relaxing feeling towards him.

"Ok Asla, do you have a moment to talk?"

"Of course, I always have time for you." This did make Charles blush a little and her words were heard by Maxine. There was a slight grunt that could be heard but no one really reacted to it.

"Thank you. There were just a couple of things that I was wondering. When you leave Angleland, what do you plan on doing?"

"Well hopefully I can return home and rally those who are still loyal to my family. They can help me take what is rightfully mine and who knows. Maybe in a couple of years, you'll hear about my coronation."

"That I can hope for." He wanted to comment that he was confident that she would succeed. However, since he didn't know about the political climate of Asla's home country, he couldn't make assumptions. As far as he knew, she could either be guaranteed the thrown when she returned or instead be fighting an unwinnable battle.

"You can still come with me there. Out of everyone in this country, you've shown me the most kindness. When I return to the throne, I'm sure that I can find a place for you by my side. There can even be a place for Maxine. Someone like her would be practically invincible in my country."

"That is a very nice offer but I don't think we'd be able to. Besides, I doubt that Maxine would want to go anywhere that doesn't have pies." There was a slight chuckle from the armoured giantess as she could see that Charles knew her well. She also knew that if she did leave Angleland that she would never become the knight that she wanted to be.

"Hmm, it does seem to be something that she enjoys. Maybe when I ascend to the throne, I can introduce pies to my country. I think that they'll go over very well."

"I-I'm sure that it will." Charles couldn't help but have a silly thought about Maxine being some kind of pie ambassador. It would be a title that he knew that she would love dearly but there would be one problem if she were to deliver pies to other countries. That was that by the time that they got there that they would have been eaten.

"Wait," said Taiyun as his voice was fairly loud so that the others could hear him clearly. "There's something up ahead."

This got the attention of everyone there and they looked down towards the path that was just ahead of them. There, they could see what looked to be a cart just ahead of them. On either side were thick bushes and trees but that wasn't what they had noticed in particular. Instead, it was the fact that the cart had a broken wheel and the horse that had been pulling it had disappeared.

The group could also see that there was a woman who was at the cart and looked to be struggling. There were a couple of barrels that looked to have fallen onto the ground just behind it. From what they could see, it seemed that the cart had some kind of accident and that it was now stranded.

"Please can you assist me?" asked the Woman. She looked to fairly old, most likely in her fifties with fairly long hair and she looked as though she wasn't in the best of health. "I've been stranded here since last night and my horse decided to bolt. I need to deliver these wares as soon as possible. I promise that if you help me that I'll reward you for your time and effort."

"If you need our help then we'll be more than happy to assist," replied Asla. It was clear that she had sympathy towards the old woman. Her companions didn't seem to agree with her but since she was the one who was in charge as far as they were concerned. She was the one who ultimately made the decisions.

"Thank you good lady, I will forever remember your kindness."

"Think nothing of it, but I do question, what we're going to do. Fixing a broken wheel isn't exactly something that we can do."

By now, Charles had stepped towards Asla as he wanted to help her in this endeavour. Maxine for the moment stayed back as she couldn't help but be suspicious. It was in her nature to not entirely trust someone when she had first met them. However, in this situation, if anyone could help, it would be her.

Since they were bound to Asla, both Taiyun and Jaxin stepped forward to help with the efforts. The latter still couldn't believe that only a few days ago that he was hunting Asla down and intended to kill her. Now he was working alongside her and would hopefully become a lord once everything was said and done. Although he had been training to be an assassin almost his entire life, the thought of being a lord was enticing. He would be rich and people would fear him for different reasons. However, there was only one thing in the world that he truly feared.

"Maxine, can you come and give us a hand?" asked Charles as he looked towards the muscular giantess. He watched as she stepped forward and was fairly close to where he was standing. "Do you mind picking up those barrels please? We don't want anything to get damaged while we're helping."

"I can do if you wish," replied Maxine. She wanted to do everything that she could to help Charles and if this meant helping this woman, then she would do it without question. Even if she couldn't help but be a little suspicious of everything.

The giant woman stepped towards one of the barrels and went to pick it up. However, she soon discovered that it was much lighter than she expected and this caught her by surprise. She knew that she was strong, but she wouldn't be strong enough to not feel the weight of a full loaded barrel which was around three feet tall. The only logical explanation for why it was so light was pretty simple as far as she was concerned, the barrel in question was completely empty.

"Wait, this barrel is empty," said Maxine. She looked over to the older woman who was standing close by. "I thought that you said that you had to make a delivery into town. What are you delivering, air?"

"W-Well…" replied the Older Woman as she could see that things weren't going as she expected. Instead she whistled loudly. This did catch the others by surprise and quickly the woman slipped away into the bushes.

In her place, numerous men came climbing out of their hiding places and quickly blocked the path ahead of them. Each of them was armed with either a sword, dagger or crossbow and there were around eight of them. All eight of them were more or less dressed in rags and didn't look to be in the best of health.

Despite their appearance, Maxine still moved closer to Charles and made sure that she stood between him and this seeming group of bandits. As before, his protection was her sole intention and she drew her sword. As she glanced over to the others, she could see Taiyun and Jaxin stepping in front of Asla in order to protect her. It seemed that Taiyun was more used to doing something like this than Jaxin. The latter was still getting used being a protector rather than an assassin. He also remembered that if Asla were to pass away then his chances of a lordship would slip away instantly.

Although these bandits outnumbered group, they couldn't help but feel slightly intimidated by Maxine as she was the largest person that they had ever seen. Also since she was wearing her helmet, they couldn't tell that she was a woman. Instead, they just saw someone who was large enough to more than easily take down any one of them. However, they thought that they had safety in numbers.

"What is the meaning of this?" asked Maxine. Her sword was in her hand and she could feel Charles behind her. He was peering towards the bandits as if he was standing behind a wall made out of flesh and metal.

"It's simply really," replied one of the Bandits. Although he was nervous, he was still confident that they would get what they wanted. "You give us all of your valuables and we let you pass. Or we kill you and take them anyway."

"I'll gut you all like fish before you could even consider doing anything like that. Now back away before I start swinging." Suddenly she noticed a bolt from the crossbow get fired towards her. For a moment, she did feel worried but the bolt struck her armour and bounced off without causing her any harm.

This made Maxine see that her words weren't going to cut it and it was her actions that were going to convince them. Quickly, she grunted and then ran towards the group with the intention of attacking. Taiyun and Jaxin did consider fighting as well but for now remained close to Asla as they had to protect her. This was noticed by Charles but rather than seeing their actions as cowardice, he completely understood. He instead began to focus on the battle taking place just ahead of them.

As much as Charles wanted to help Maxine in her efforts, he knew better than to attempt to fight. Not just because his skills with a sword were not up to par yet, but he also thought that if he attempted to fight that he would only get in her way. He could only imagine how annoyed she would be if he tried to do this.

Despite being outnumbered, the armoured giantess seemed to be holding her own as she moved faster than any of the bandits could have expected for a woman of her size. She was able to swing her sword with some grace which almost seemed impossible for a weapon such as that.

Each bandit who weirded a sword had it knocked out of their hands whenever Maxine's sword struck it. The force was so great that they were sent flying several metres and then landed on the ground away from where it's occupant was standing. However, normally they wouldn't have a chance to pick their weapons up as she would likely strike them with either a powerful punch or a kick beforehand.

Despite the seriousness of the situation, she intended to keep the promise that she made to her mother and not kill any of her attackers. However, this didn't mean that she couldn't seriously harm them. Each strike caused the receiver to lose teeth or have some kind of bone shattered. All who were struck were more or less out of the fight immediately and for the moment, she seemed to be unstoppable.

No matter how much the crossbowman fired at her, the bolts would either miss or harmlessly bounce off of her armour. There were gaps within her armour where a crossbow bolt would cause a lot of damage. But unfortunately, she wasn't a slow moving target and with her ferocity of her attacks, none of them could focus long enough in order to get a good shot at her.

The only time when Taiyun and Jaxin acted was when any of the bandits came close to Asla. They used their own weapons which seemed almost alien to the people of Angleland. This included a slightly curved sword and Jaxin even went to use a spiked club like weapon which looked to be devastating.

Unlike Maxine, neither of them had any problems with killing their attacks. One of the bandits even received a strong blow to the head from the club like weapon and when he went down, it was clear that his wound was fatal. It was likely that he had died before he had even hit the ground.

In all of the chaos that was happening, no one was focusing on the older woman who had been the distraction for the group. She could quickly tell that things weren't going their way and she could see a couple of her companions dead on the ground. However, there was one thing that she noticed and this was Charles who was standing back away from the fight. Asla remained close to her own bodyguards and all of them failed to notice the older woman a short distance away.

Seizing her opportunity, she was able quickly get behind Charles. With a single motion she was able to grab onto him and then hold a knife right next to his neck. For the moment this hadn't been noticed by anyway but he found himself unable to speak thanks to everything that was taking place.

"Stop right there!" shouted the Older Woman. This quickly got the attention of everyone who quickly looked towards her. Maxine was the first to realise what was happening and her heart quickly began to sink. "Make one wrong move and I'll gut this coward like he's a stuffed pig."

"Leave him be!" stated Maxine with authority in her voice. It reminded Charles of the tone that she would taken when they first met. "Hurt him and I swear that I will break every bone in your body!"

"Do as I say or else!" Maxine knew that she couldn't step forward as she didn't want to risk Charles's life. The situation was angering her a great deal but not just because her squire had been taken hostage. But also since she had allowed it to happen, she had been so focused on the battle. She had failed to notice that he was about to be taken and she thought that he was going to die due to her carelessness. With some reluctance, the armoured giantess threw her sword to the ground. "Good, it seems that you're not just some giant idiot." Maxine clenched her fist as she wanted to strike the woman but couldn't risk doing anything while she still had a knife on Charles's head.

"I don't care what you want, just don't hurt him." Although she was angry, her worry is what won out and this was obvious due to the tone of her voice.

"That depends on your actions. Give us everything of value you have and let us go free. Then your friend here will be let go." She glanced over to Taiyun and Jaxin who was close by and looking directly at her. "And don't you dare try anything."

Maxine knew that she couldn't do anything in this situation. Despite her size and strength, she felt that she was completely powerless. It was both frustrating and saddening for her as she looked at Charles. She could see the worried look on his face as he could feel the cold sharp metal on his neck.

"Do as she says," stated Maxine. This time there was more authority in her voice. "We will not resist. I may not have much valuables on my person but my armour is worth a small fortune. Take that and my sword if need be." With that she took off her helmet and dropped it onto the ground.

"Ok and now for these gooks here," replied the Woman as she looked over to Taiyun and Jaxin. She didn't seem to care about the language that she had used to describe them. "What do they have?"

"I don't know." She then looked over to the two foreign men. "Just give her whatever you have."

The two men didn't speak and instead took out whatever valuables they had on their person. This included some gold, a couple of jewels and even weapons that they were carrying. The surviving bandits began to grab them and was even grabbing onto Maxine's armour as she was taking it off.

After a few moments, she was down to the clothing she wore beneath her armour and even her sword had been retrieved. It pained her to see these objects get taken but if it meant that Charles would be freed then she would do it a hundred times off if she needed to. These objects could be replaced, he couldn't.

Since the woman was so focused on Maxine and the surviving bandits were picking up all the valuables. None of them realised that Asla had actually been out of sight during this time. Carefully she was moving behind the older woman and thanks to her smaller size and her enemies having their focus elsewhere, she wasn't noticed.

Before anyone really knew it, she had gotten behind the older woman and had was able to brandish a small knife from her sleeve. Then with precision and mercilessness, she lunged the knife into the neck of the older woman. The suddenness of the attack caught her completely by surprise as she let go of Charles and screamed out in pain. She felt that she was being drowned by her own blood.

Her terrified gargles only lasted for a few moments before life simply slipped away from her as she fell to the ground with her fatal wound causing a pool of blood. The remaining bandits could only watch for several moments as none of them had expected this turn of events to take place.

One of them just happened to be in front of Maxine as he was just about to pick up her sword. However, since Charles was no longer a hostage, this bandit felt a swift kick to the side of his head and he fell unconscious almost immediately. He was lucky that his neck hadn't been snapped by her attack.

Rather than trying to retrieve her armour, Maxine instead quickly ran towards Charles and even called his name. He was still on his hands and knees as he was recovering from what had taken place. Before he knew it, he saw his friend on her knees and helping to pick him back up.

"Charles, Charles are you alright?" asked Maxine with great concern in her voice. As he looked up into her eyes, he almost thought that she was in tears. This was something that he had never seen from her at all.

"Y-Yes I'm fine," replied Charles. The truth was that he was uninjured but was still a little shook up about the situation. Before he could say another word, he felt her strong arms wrap around him and embrace him in a hug.

"Thank God, thank God." She held him tightly and for many who knew her, they would say that this was uncharacteristic of her. But at this moment she didn't care, all she cared about was that he was safe.

This hug seemed to be lasting a very long time and Maxine couldn't help but look a little in front of herself. There she saw Asla still standing there and despite what she had just done, she had a calm look on her face. It was clear that she didn't regret what had just happened and the muscular giantess nodded her head towards her.

"Thank you for saving him," said Maxine. She still held Charles tightly as she too was still recovering from the situation.

"I only did what any person in my position would. He is unharmed, as far as I'm concerned, that's all that matters."

"Your majesty," stated Taiyun with some anxiousness in his voice. "You shouldn't have put yourself at risk like that."

"And watch the only person in this land who has shown us true kindness to be killed? No, I cannot allow such a thing to happen. Never think that my actions were unnecessary!" There was a sternness in her voice that gave her social standings away. She might have been the smallest person there, but it was clear that she was the one who was in charge. At least within her trio.

"M-My apologises, I will never second guess you again." He gave her a small bow as a sign of respect. "The remaining thieves have fled, they dropped our weapons and Miss Martel's armour, but they have taken our gold."

"I see, not good but not bad." She looked and could see Maxine continuing to hug Charles. This was one side of her that the foreign princess hadn't seen before. In a way, it almost seemed comical to see someone who was as large and strong as Maxine was seemingly reduced to this bag of nerves that she was now. It didn't even seem that she registered that her sword and armour had been left behind. Instead, it was him that was most important to her was currently in her arms. "Collect everything that they left behind and then we keep going, we don't want to stay here for too long."

There were still a few minutes where Maxine continued to hug Charles tightly as she still feared for his safety. However, she did eventually break it off and pick up her armour that was scattered around. At first, she thought that some of it might have been taken but she was thankful to find each piece and with help from her squire, she was able to attach it back onto her body.

A part of her was glad that she hadn't lost any of her armour. As she said, it did cost a small fortune and it wasn't because the metal used was particularly valuable. It was strong but what made the armour so valuable was the sheer amount of metal that was used to forge it. Thanks to her size, the armour required enough metal to make two, maybe even three sets of armour for a person of average height.

Despite its value, she would have more than gladly given it up to ensure the safety of Charles. At that moment in time, Maxine had even considered giving up on her dream of becoming a knight. Just so that the man she called her friend was safe rather than being murdered right in front of her.

Despite everything that had happened, the group had no choice but to keep moving forward. The deceased and injured bandits were left where they were as they didn't have time to treat them or bury them. Maxine in particular didn't think that they were worth the kindness of such a thing.

At one point in time, she looked down at the woman who had held a knife to Charles's neck. If she hadn't already been killed, it was likely that she would have killed her herself. Even if it did mean that she was breaking the promise that she had made to her mother. In her mind, trying to murder Charles was the most unforgivable thing that anyone could do.

Hours went by as the group travelled with little incident. They still had their food and although they had lost a lot of money, they still had the money that Charles had on his person. It wasn't much but it was better than having nothing at all. The group was constantly on edge as they feared that someone else would try to attack or rob them. Because of this, Maxine in particular was very protective of her squire.

At no point in time did she allow him to be more than three feet away from her. At every incident that seemed remotely suspicious, she would step in front of him and ensure that it wasn't a threat. Normally it was merely an animal in the bushes and there was no need for alarm.

Unfortunately, when night fell, the group was still too far from a settlement for them to find and inn. Because of this, they had no choice but to set up camp near a lake where they just happened to be travelling by. At least with it, they had a fresh source of water which meant that they wouldn't have to buy any.

Some firewood was collected, and a fire was started so that they could cook some of the food that they still had on their person. All five of them sat around the fire and Charles was staying close to Maxine, she had brought her arm down onto him and brought him closer to her. Her protective instincts were kicking in and she wanted to ensure his safety. Even if she was beginning to go a little overboard.

Asla did notice this, and she did wanted to speak to her but didn't know how exactly to do it. What she wanted to say to the armoured giantess was meant to be in private, but she knew that Maxine wouldn't want to be anywhere without Charles. This did cause a dilemma and although she did have an idea, she wasn't entirely sure that Maxine would go along with it or decline.

"Ms Martel," said Asla. Her tone was very respectful, and this did get the attention of Maxine who looked over to her.

"Yes, is there something that you need?" replied Maxine. There was a small hint of impatience in her voice. She was still staying close to Charles and even glanced at him as he was eating some vegetables.

"I was just thinking, we've been through a lot in the past few days, and we haven't had an opportunity to wash ourselves. Why don't we take a dip in the lake and clean ourselves off? It'll be nice to freshen up."

"I'm fine thank you; Charles still needs me here and I don't plan on leaving his side any time soon."

"He is more than safe with my companions. Besides we wouldn't be long." She smiled at her, but this did little to convince her.

"That is generous, but I must decline."

"Maxine," said Charles. The armoured giantess looked down at the man sitting next to her. She was a little confused with what he was doing as she hadn't expected him to speak up. "I'll be fine, you go and have a bath if you wish. Besides, it gives me a little guy time with the others."

"C-Charles." Everything in her mind was telling her that she should stay where she was and protect him. But she couldn't ignore the look on his face and the words that he had spoken. Because of this, all she could do was nod at him. "Ok, I'll go." Slowly, the colossal woman stood up to her feet but before she did, she looked over to Taiyun and Jaxin who were still sitting there and looking up at her. "And if anything happens to him, I swear that I'll kill you both where you sit."

"Maxine, that wasn't necessary." There was a slight hint of annoyance in his voice when it was clear that he wasn't happy with what she had just said.

"I'm sorry." She gave a sigh as she knew that she was in the wrong and she didn't want him to be upset with her. "Just please keep him safe." She watched as the two foreign men nodded to her in agreement. With that, she and Asla stepped away as the men remained where they were sitting. It didn't seem like there would be much that could be spoken between Charles and the others, but he was sure to be polite to them.

The two women stepped towards the lake and took their time stripping off of their clothes. They made sure no one was around to see them and even in the darkness, they could still see each other clearly. One thing that Maxine couldn't help but see was how beautiful Asla's naked body actually was.

Despite her short stature, she was beautiful in every way and there didn't seem to be anything that Maxine could point out as being out of place. In a way, she was a little jealous as she couldn't help but wonder what her own life would have been like if she were average. Most likely it would have been unremarkable, and she would have married someone and started a family.

In turn the Asla couldn't help but be impressed with Maxine's naked body as well. Although she had seen the muscular giantess in her mere undergarments, seeing her completely naked was another thing entirely. She could see every aspect of her muscles and to her, it was not surprising that Maxine was so strong. It was also still hard to believe that a woman could have such a physique and that she as even able to get clothes that fit her.

With them both completely naked now, they stepped into the water of the lake and although it was quite cool, it still wasn't freezing. There was a small groan as they felt the cool water on their skin and the sound of the water being displaced upon their entry. It wasn't the first time that either had bathed in a lake but definitely the first time with each other.

Asla sat nearer to the bank as the water was shallower there while Maxine had moved herself slightly outwards. For them both, their heads and shoulders were above the waterline but everything from the chest down was underwater. Any fish that were present had swam away as they feared for their own safety. The two women weren't there to try and catch them, but they still wanted to ensure that they wouldn't be caught.

"This is nice," said Asla as she rubbed some of the water onto her body. "You should try some of the hot springs of my country. You truly don't know how good they are until you try them yourself."

"I'll remember that if I visit," replied Maxine. She paused for a moment as she thought about what she was going to say next. "I know that I already said this but thank you for saving Charles. If you hadn't of been there, I don't know what I would have done. Right now, I could not be with my sword and armour and yet that was what I preferred rather than losing him."

"You're welcome." She gave the muscular giantess a smile and she continued to look at her. "My apologises as well for not telling you about my royal heritage. Sharing such information would make me a target and of course, at the time, I didn't know you or Charles very well when we first met."

"I admit that I was angered by your deception but if I was in your position, I would have likely done the same thing. But still, if it wasn't for Charles, I would have turned my back on you and left you to your fate."

"Yeah, he is a rare person in this world." As she looked at Maxine, he could see her beginning to blush slightly and look away. If anything, this only confirmed something that that she had been suspecting for quite a while. "You love him, don't you?"

"What?" The suddenness of the question caught Maxine completely off guard as she couldn't gather her thoughts for a moment.

"I've seen how you look at him and act around him." A sly smile appeared on the face of the smaller woman and in a figurative sense, it was as if she had the giantess in an iron like bear hug.

"I-I don't love him; I merely respect him." There wasn't much conviction in her voice as it sounded as if she was trying to convince herself more than she was attempting to convince Asla.

"It might have started like that, but I've seen what you've been doing. You've been fiercely protecting him like a mother bear watching over her cub. Respect goes so far but from what I see, it's love. To tell you the truth, I'm not surprised that you've fallen for him, he's a perfect match for you."

"I told you that I don't love him!" There was further conviction in her voice, but she couldn't help the fact that she was still blushing. This was noticed by Asla who more or less moved in for the kill.

"And yet your face is bright red, and I can imagine that your heart rate has increased now. You might be able to lie to me, but you can't lie to yourself."

"I-I…" Maxine looked down at the water as many different thoughts went through her mind. She wanted to deny everything that Asla was saying but found herself unable to. It was true that in recent times, Charles had become the most important person in her life, and she had many different thoughts about him during their time together. "I-It's true." Her voice was so quiet that it was hard for the smaller woman to hear her.