So, semi-spoilers, but in Book 2 we’re introduced to a new character named
Annette (I think that’s her name, but I honestly can’t remember), and I really hope the manhwa does her justice because she was one of the very few characters who actually made Maxi question her relationship with Riftan.
She immediately noticed the way Riftan treated Maxi, openly criticized his behavior, and questioned why Maxi tolerated being treated that way. Honestly, she was a breath of fresh air because she brought up issues that the story itself seemed reluctant to address for basically all of Book 1. It’s a shame, though, because instead of fully exploring that conflict, the author seemed more interested in portraying Riftan as a wounded, "misunderstood" waif who was"abandoned" by his wife whom he doesn’t even treat like a wife, rather than holding him accountable for how his borderline abusive actions have affected Maxi and their entire relationship. We never really get to see Maxi confront him about their toxic dynamic, which makes me wonder what the hell the point of introducing a character who challenges Maxi perspective was in the first place.
Wait what? Riftan abuses her? Toxic relationship? Wdym? Doesn't he love her so deeply that he doesn't want any troubles reach her? I mean that's what I can see so far but there's too much communication gap which pmo
The way Riftan treats Maxi throughout the story, ESPECIALLY in the novel (after re-reading it), is abusive. Emotional, verbal, and sexual abuse — beginning with the marital rape on their wedding night.
[SPOILERS]
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In Book 2, Riftan repeatedly shuts Maxi out and uses emotional withdrawal almost as a punishment because she left him for three years. What makes this worse is that Maxi didn’t leave out of selfishness or because she stopped caring about him; she left because she was trying to protect him from her father’s actions to ruin Riftan's livelihood as well as strip him of his knighthood. After spending a significant portion of Book 2 stonewalling Maxi, Riftan then isolates her with him for an entire week, where he repeatedly forces her into sex despite Maxi expressing distress and verbally urging him to stop. His intentions do not erase the harm caused by his actions.
So yes, Riftan is abusive, and the frustrating part is that the story rarely holds him accountable for that abuse. Instead, it repeatedly frames his behavior through the lens of him being wounded, traumatized, or misguided, which shifts the focus toward sympathizing with him rather than rightfully addressing how his actions affect and further traumatize Maxi. That’s why I find the argument that Riftan receives significant character development ridiculous to accept. Any growth he does comes extremely late in the story, after a long pattern of emotional avoidance, refusal to communicate, and rejecting opportunities to actually repair their relationship. Compared to the amount of time he spends hurting Maxi and refusing to confront his own behavior, his development feels minimal, insignificant, and insufficient.
Geez so this shit is about to happen soon. Sigh~~~
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The fact that the word "husband" feels so foreign to me whenever I look at Riftan is quite telling since he hardly acts like one towards Maxi. Hell, even calling these two a "married couple" gives me second-hand embarrassment since their relationship has been described as more like a grown man coddling a small child. The fact that even characters in the story have made this comparison before only makes their dynamic look worse. As controversial as this might sound considering poor Maxi's miscarriage, I'm actually relieved that Maxi and Riftan never had a child together. Riftan would've been a terrible father if they had, especially if they'd ended up with a son. The idiot most definitely would've been competing with his own kid for his wife's affection. Lol, I can already imagine the awkwardness. I think it's fair to say this relationship was DOA since the marital rape in the first few chapters.
He acts like more like a toxic parent that wants their child to what they deem in safe and 'good for them'. Cus does he get mad anytime she shows even a hint of having her own thoughts and ideals that can clash with him.
Their relationship could've been this way by like the third season, but the author lacks the skills to write a coherent and consistent romance, apparently. Strap in, bros. Things are about to get worse from here #－.－)
Could you please spoil the context
Lol, here's my copy-pasta
SPOILER WARNING
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So, by the end of Book 1, Maxi is forced to leave Anatol to train as a mage. This decision is not made out of personal ambition or selfish desire, but rather it's part of a calculated plan that Princess Agnes thought of in order to protect Riftan from the political and legal consequences of his actions after he nearly beats Maxi's father to death. While this is arguably the only genuinely redeemable action Riftan ever takes on Maxi’s behalf, it places him in danger of punishment. Maxi’s departure is meant to protect him, *not herself.*
As expected, Riftan is upset by this decision and furiously lashes out at both Agnes and Maxi. He refuses to see Maxi off when she agrees to leave and coldly tells her that if she leaves, he would not wait for her, and he'd erase her from his mind—essentially forgetting all about her. He shouts at her, tells her to "get the hell out" of his room—but not before telling her that she isn't leaving for *his* sake, but rather for her own, despite Maxi assuring him multiple times that wasn't the case—and Maxi ends up leaving in tears. Only after she's gone does he collapse emotionally, admitting that he lied, that he would, in fact, wait for her and that he cannot live without her. The narrative frames this breakdown as a moment of realization and supposed emotional growth. Three years later, Maxi returns.
At this point, we're led to expect some form of reckoning or at least an acknowledgment of his earlier cruelty, relief at her safe return, or even a sincere attempt at reconciliation. Instead, Riftan does the opposite. Upon their reunion, he pointedly ignores her. He avoids her, refuses conversation, and withholds any emotional engagement. This behavior is not neutral or passive; it's actively punitive. He spends the early part of Maxi’s return emotionally stonewalling her, forcing her into uncertainty and distress while never explaining himself, as "punishment" for leaving him. This prolonged emotional manipulation culminates in the infamous "banquet scene."
In retaliation, Maxi provokes Riftan by attending the banquet in a deliberately revealing dress and dancing with another man right in front of him. Her actions are immature and reactive, sure, but they are also a direct result of Riftan’s sustained avoidance and refusal to communicate. Rather than addressing the underlying conflict, Riftan responds with violence disguised as passion. He forcibly pulls Maxi away and has sex with her in a guest room. This doesn't occur once, nor in a momentary lapse of control.
He confines her with him for an entire week.
During this time, he repeatedly has rough sex with her despite her physical discomfort, emotional distress, and explicit protests.At one point, Maxi is crying and begging him to stop, yet he ignores her pleas—pretending as if he can't hear her. The scene itself doesn't read as consensual reconciliation but instead—at least from my perspective—as coercion sustained over days of emotional avoidance. When he finally stops, he smugly asks her, “Isn’t this what you wanted?”—a statement that reframes her earlier attempt to provoke communication as justification for her suffering.
What makes this sequence absolutely disgusting and egregious is that it follows directly after Riftan’s supposed realization at the end of Book 1. There's a noticeable lack of remorse, no offer of an apology for his earlier withdrawal, no accountability for his emotional punishment of Maxi upon her return, and no acknowledgment of the harm he's caused both before her departure as well as after her return. Instead, the story substitutes communication with sexual dominance and expects the reader to interpret this as romantic intimacy rather than borderline sexual abuse.
Far from demonstrating growth, this arc confirms that Riftan’s internal feelings—his guilt, fear, and obsession—never translate into meaningful behavioral change. Maxi bears the emotional consequences alone, and it pains me to witness an otherwise wonderfully written female lead be reduced to a sex object because of the ML's emotional volatility.
If you're expecting a "happy ending," after what was essentially a hellstorm of misunderstandings and miscommunication, then, honestly, it's best if you look elsewhere. At some point, Riftan finally tells Maxi that he's "proud" of her, but along with the lack of accountability or proper apology for his emotional avoidance during the entire first half of Book 2, him telling Maxi he's "proud of her" feels more like a hollow platitude than anything meaningful. Then at the end, he makes a dramatic scene by declaring a "knight's oath" to Maxi, but again, the gesture feels incredibly fruitless because of everything he had done to her but never once apologized for. All in all, in my honest opinion, I'd say to just drop it. It's *an ending,* but I wouldn't call it a good or even *satisfying* ending. I think it speaks for itself when Maxi, in her own words, admits she's begun to feel more like a younger sibling than a spouse to Riftan because of his seemingly withered passion for her. So, after the festering disaster of watching them fumble and fail in their relationship, that's the best we get? The FL is left feeling like the little sister to her once obsessively horny husband. What mess this story has been, I swear.
What the actual fuck?! I'm pissed right know! He's a idiot. And the first part of this story looked so promising, ehh... Thanks for the spoiler, at least I won't be disappointed later (╯°Д °)╯
thank GOD fo this comment. Lately reading this has made me so fucking over Riftan. I still can't get over how he handled Maxie's miscarriage. I don't know if the author wants us to hate Riftan and constantly feel bad for and pity Maxine but that's what it feels like. Whenever Maxine gets agency or accomplishes something, Riftan is there to essentially take her down a peg and make her feel guilty for just having thoughts and opinions. Their sex scenes are also so gross, the sh*t Riftan says is SO RAPEY. Last chapter he said something like "I'm a beast I won't hold back" or some shit. Hello??? What happened to making love and pleasing your partner??? Wdym you "can't hold back" and you're a beast. You're actually not a fucking animal Riftan and you should be able to love your wife and have sex with her without being rough or hurting her jesus christ. Gonna drop this shit, I love Maxine but there are other stories with loving Male Leads that deserve my time more than this. When will authors stop writing pseudo abusive rapist Male leads smh
Thanks for this. I read some chaps then marinating this now.. I get notifs for new chaps just to see if it's near the end so I can resume. Now I won't. Dropping this now like a hot potato. Cuz what the fck was that garbage.
Boi.. can the manga artist/author not just erase this garbage and freestyle a better ending, cus if their not i might as well just drop
So, I don't necessarily dislike Rosetta, but I can't honestly say I like her all that much either, mostly because, as someone who's read the novel, it feels like the author never really knew what she wanted to do with her. Which is a shame because Rosetta had the potential to be one of the more compelling characters in the story. A lot of what Rosetta tells Maxi isn't even wrong. Her cynical views on men and relationships make perfect sense when you consider her upbringing, and some of her observations about Maxi's relationship with Riftan aren't exactly baseless either. What bothers me, though, is that the narrative seems more interested in having Rosetta question Maxi's love for Riftan rather than Riftan's love for Maxi. And that's where I get confused.
Rosetta is positioned as a character who sees through illusions and questions relationships, but I feel the narrative has her questioning the wrong person. Why would Rosetta doubt Maxi's devotion when the reader already knows how Maxi feels about Riftan? We're in Maxi's head for most of the story. We see her constantly worrying about Riftan, risking herself for him, and making major life decisions with him in mind. She followed a noblewoman she hardly even knew into a war zone because she was terrified something might happen to her husband. She dedicated herself to learning magic partly because she wanted to be useful and stand beside him as an equal. Whether those motivations are healthy is another discussion entirely, but her feelings for him are never really in question.
So why isn't Rosetta questioning Maxi about *Riftan* instead?
Considering her views on men, it would've made far more sense for her to be skeptical of *his* devotion instead of Maxi's. Why not ask whether what he feels is actually love, or whether he's simply obsessed with an idealized version of Maxi? Why not challenge the way he constantly tries to control her while insisting it's for her own good? That feels like a much more natural direction for Rosetta's character than repeatedly questioning feelings the reader already knows are there.
That's part of why Rosetta feels like she's a confusing character to me, especially after her return in Book 2. She had the perfect perspective to challenge some of the story's assumptions about love and romance, but the narrative never really lets her push on the questions that would've been the most interesting.
Looking at Rosetta's pov there's 2 possibilities that comes to mind
1) What Riftan feels does not matter. Max has already married him. There's nothing more to say about Riftan especially when he has no relation to the sister (in upbringing and blood). Especially with the social setting, it seems like the general expectation is for the woman to stick with her husband no matter what.
2) Rosetta's mind is already set that Riftan is like all men (aka her father). So if her mind is already set, why would she bother confirming if Riftan might be different or not.
You bring up good reasons, but if anything, that only makes me question the author's intent even more. I can absolutely see why Rosetta herself wouldn't bother questioning Riftan. If she's already convinced that men are fundamentally the same and that women are expected to endure whatever comes with marriage, then from her perspective, there's probably nothing left to discuss. What confuses me is why the narrative chooses to have Rosetta cast doubt on *Maxi's* feelings instead. The reader already knows the lengths Maxi is willing to go to for Riftan. We've spent the entire story watching her worry about him, sacrifice for him, and shape major decisions around him. Her devotion isn't really the thing being questioned, nor should it be, especially with what I know about the subsequent arc after the end of Book 1. During the first half of Book 2, Maxi spends a significant portion of the story trying to reach Riftan, understand him, and get him to communicate with her, while he's the one who repeatedly shuts her out and emotionally stonewalls her.
So now, the question to my original point shifts: Rather than having Rosetta question the legitimacy of Riftan's devotion herself, I think the more interesting direction would've been for her conversation to make MAXI question it. Instead of doubting her own feelings, Maxi could've started asking herself whether Riftan truly loves her for who she is or whether he's in love with an idealized version of her. That would've felt far more meaningful to me because it directly addresses one of the biggest issues in their relationship while also giving Maxi something new to reflect on.
Even when the story attempts to frame Riftan's "yearning" for Maxi in a romantic light, I could never see it that way myself because it isn't even yearning out of genuine love. He was obsessed with her to a very unhealthy degree. I mean, ffs, Maxi didn't even *know* the guy. I'm sure I'm probably the only one who gets icked out by this, but do you know how creepy it is being completely unaware of some dude staring at you from right across a room, watching you eat, apparently fantasizing a future with you, despite knowing nothing about you? Yes, Riftan. You're damn right it was a foolish, childish fantasy, but you forgot to include "creepy" as well.
Lol, yeah. I don't think it's sweet or hot. It's just weird.
Gosh… this broke the bubble. But yeah.. my perspective on the type of presence riftan is to maxi goes back and forth. As sweet as it sounds.. it’s not exactly in the good side of normalcy. Imma keep going back and forth though and enjoy the sweet sour and bitter flavors of this story ლ(´ڡ`ლ)
Y'all just hate anything atp
Fr
Responding to a well reasoned, thought out comment that you disagree with with low brow slop like it's so unheard of for someone to critique the media they consume. Yup, typical stan behavior.
I've mentioned how gross Riftan's obsession is before. I'm not blindly hating like you've implied, lol. I don't care how romantic the scene was meant to be, doesn't mean it actually is once you've removed your rose-tinted glasses. Although, I obviously never had them on if I felt creeped out by Riftan upon my first time reading this story, lol.
Lol, right? Like, I let you girlies gush and swoon and wet yourselves over a guy built like an industrial refrigerator, so let me rip him apart because he isn't as hot as you think he is. I mean, I pretty sure I'm allowed to have "controversial" opinions over a fictional character.
Lol, that's fair.
Personally though, I think he's staying true to his character (dywim) like coming from a regular mercenary who is literally surrounded by men, it's not weird he has that kind of fantasy to marry a rish noble daughter and become wealthy and so on. His obsession is unhealthy, I'm not denying that. But it's probably due to the society perception of woman at the time, weak and always in need of protection. Either way, I'm enjoying this
Wow I see that you never had a crush, and if you are like this in real life I would not be surprised if noone has had a crush on you.
I mean this is essentially set in the 1400-1500s so having feelings and musings like that about a beautiful woman you only get to see glimpses of makes sense. He’s a yearner and a yearner of his time, making up excuses to go to Croyso castle just to see her is not unlike something written about in old love poems.
Lol, it shows a lot about your maturity level if you stoop to personal attacks just because I made an observation about Riftan's toxic obsession. It also shows just how vapid you are if you think that his actions are akin to that of someone with a simple crush. And I suppose you use this same argument for yandere characters. After all, they're just yearning for the one they "love," and jist they're showing it in their own special way "UwU". It apparently doesn’t matter how obsessive, creepy, or toxic they are at expressing that "love," right? Get out of my comment thread, Bozo.
That still doesn’t make it any less weird to me. The setting may be medieval-inspired, but it’s also fantasy. The author already bends reality constantly through magic, worldbuilding, and modernized character writing, so “historical accuracy” isn’t really an excuse here.
I’m just saying the story absolutely could’ve depicted Riftan’s obsession as tragic or unhealthy without constantly framing it as deeply romantic. Especially when the two barely knew each other to begin with and still spend most of the story fundamentally misunderstanding one another. Their entire dynamic is built on obsession, poor communication, imbalance, coercive intimacy, and emotional exhaustion, so the narrative trying to package all of that as some grand love story just feels gross.
Bro I think if you’re not into this kind of story then you’re in the wrong place, stop complaining and go find a different manhwa
Nope, I don't think I will. I can enjoy other parts of the story (i.e., Maxi’s journey) while simultaneously criticizing other aspects about it. I mean, you're here responding under MY comment. What did you expect? Tf are you getting up at arm's about, lol?
I think this is more normal than you might think. Riftan’s feelings started as a crush and eventually became his first love. Plenty of people daydream about a future with someone they like, especially when they’re young.
For me, the difference between romantic longing and something genuinely creepy is whether someone acts on it in a harmful way or refuses to respect boundaries. Riftan admired Maxi from afar, but the story also makes it clear that there were huge social barriers between them. He wasn’t in a position where he could simply walk up and introduce himself. he was a low-ranking soldier and she was the daughter of a duke. The man basically had to go fight a war that most people were sure he was going to die in for him to even have a shot. That's part of why his feelings stayed in the realm of longing and fantasy for so long.
I can understand why some of yall find his fixation uncomfortable, especially because Maxi wasn’t even aware of him at first. But I don’t see it as uniquely creepy within the context of the story. A lot of romance dramas involve one character longing for someone from a distance before they ever get the chance to know each other. Riftan just happens to take that trope to an extreme because of his background and circumstances. That said, I do think it’s fair to view some aspects of his attachment as unhealthy. I just don’t think that automatically means it wasn’t genuine love.
I think it's creepy when you consider everything that comes afterward. From the fighting, the stonewalling, the coercive sex, even the marital rape on their wedding night, adding in the fact that he'd been in love with her before she even met him feels extra wrong when you consider how much he ends up hurting her in the end, and never ends up apologizing or atoning for his mistreatment of her. It's just wrong.
Riftan really is a fucking jackass. It took him this long to "finally" understand something Maxi had told him all the way back in season 1—something as damning as "I hate myself,"— after all that time he spent bedding and lovebombing her rather than attempting to further understand why his wife hates herself. He only just now put two and two together and understood what Maxi meant when she said she didn't like herself. I'm sorry, but I genuinely can't feel bad for Riftan here. Yes, Maxi should've opened up to him about her abuse, but first of all, she is not at all obligated to open up about something if she isn't ready or comfortable to do so yet, especially with someone she already hardly knows anything about. Second, the fact that this man already held preconceived notions about a girl who was unaware of his existence prior to their marriage certainly did not encourage Maxi to reveal to him that she wasn't the darling Duke's daughter as he had originally assumed. He never really gave her a safe space to open up about her past with him either, and the fact that Riftan himself was uncomfortable with talking about *his* past put Maxi in a spot where it made her less inclined to be candid with him. I swear, the miscommunication trope in this story is executed *so poorly,* and it's one of the reasons why I can't stand this ML. The only redeemable thing he does and will ever do for Maxi is beating the Duke, and—for once—taking accountability for the loss of their child. Other than that, after this arc, you won't even see an utter of an apology from this big, stupid animal.
Preach!
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Great. Poor girl can't catch a damn break. I swear the men in her life suck so much ass, all that comes out their mouths is utter bullshit.
So him beating the hell out of Maxi's father is quite possibly the only redeemable action he's ever taken on Maxi’s behalf, because everything he says and does after THIS, will only continue to justify my loathing of him. Even after being a live witness to Maxi's abuse, even after Maxi finally verbally confesses to him of said abuse... he never improves his aggressive and abusive behavior for the rest of the story. It's clear to me that the author sexualizes brolic, aggressive, and intimidating men like Riftan, while traumatized and abused women like Maxi are simply expected to adapt to the man's temperament. Maxi is expected to be responsible for Riftan's emotional volatility, yet Riftan is never expected by the narrative to meet Maxi halfway. And since many love to use this as a defense, this has nothing to do with the time period the story takes place in, as we've seen other male characters like Ruth and Hebaron behave reasonably and cordially with Maxi, and even actively call out and question Riftan's immature behavior, yet still you expect me to believe that her own husband, who's allegedly been "in love" with her since childhood, can't be fucked to express the bare minimum of emotional maturity and respect for *her* sake? The author's internalized misogyny is very apparent, as we've seen with many Korean novelists who romanticize toxic power dynamics in far too many "romance" novels/manhwas. Frankly, it's sick.
thank you for saying all this.
Her going to the wizard/magic tower/school and her time there were the last fun parts in the novel.
Even the way he doesn't act like an adult and never replies to her letters but kept them in a box, it shows how emotionally absent he is. Everything that follows is even worse, flat out ignoring her and only when she is in danger he pays attention.
It was even so bad I stopped 20 chapters before the novel's ending because I just couldn't anymore. (Feel free to tell me what happens in the last arc, I don't want to support the author but still am curious to know how it ends).
No character development and the author has such a misogynistic mind.
So thank you for calling it out as well.
So even after learning of his wife's abusive upbringing, this jackass thought it was a smart idea to threaten her with locking her up in their chambers just because she wanted to support him by testifying against her own father. What I disliked about this moment is that Maxi, despite rightfully scolding Riftan for behaving no different than her father, unfortunately apologizes for the comparison. It's very clear to me that the author was more interested in portraying Riftan as some misunderstood figure instead of having him reflect on his abusive actions. You can not make me feel sympathy for a character who refuses to change, especially one as inconsiderate as Riftan.