And once this flashback's done, the trauma from that time will just magically disappear. I'm sure they will play it off as "you were just an idiot bro, get over it" and move on as if that's how you solve mental health. An arc where he actually had to go to therapy and everyone including him had to deal with that would have been a more interesting arc than this "will he, won't he (he won't, twice)" that they had after the first rejection.
╮(￣▽￣)╭
I hate how idiot plots are so prevalent in stories like these. So many people could have said or done something to prevent things coming to this point, but no, plot demands she misunderstands Riftan and goes back to her father, so everyone turns into an idiot for that to happen. Riftan doesn't tell her, no one else who is neither an oaf nor emotionally compromised as the father of the lost baby tells her. The Princess doesn't tell her after they leave... or when they arrive in the captial... or when she is fully safe and healed. The princess also doesn't shut Maxi's father down even after talking back rudely to a member of the royal family, especially since she knows he's been planning a marriage for years and hanging that over him would be considerable leverage.
**Devil's advocate warning!**
The dude is clearly suffering from an irrational trauma from their childhood, its not an issue you can just solve by "man the fuck up", the guy doesn't need lecturing, he needs a therapist. That being said, it does seem like the author intends for that to be the case, its going to be one long string of people calling him an idiot until he just magically gets past it. Chapter after chapter of making him look like an indecisive schmuck while only vaguely hinting at the reason he looks like he's about to have a nervous breakdown every time their relationship comes up.
Can't believe this is finished now ╥﹏╥ I've followed this for so long. Legendary series.