(Training grounds, Imperial palace)
"Oh look at this young man! Who might you be sir?" Sir Leo stabbed his dull sword into the ground and spoke with a high pitch voice.
"I am not in the mood for jokes Leo." Iyan scratched his head and took off his blazer, he got too lost in his thoughts to remember to change clothes for training. He only grabbed a sword that always stood next to his bed. It was not Agathon, even if the sword was now legally his, Iyan chose for it to remain in its usual place in the throne room. It was too heavy for him to carry around and he was much more used to his regular sword. Iyan never trained with it or used it in general, it was a promise he gave to Sir Leo at the very beginning of their lesson many years ago. The sword is a weapon and we shall not use weapons.
It may have sounded silly at the time but Iyan had grown to accept this politic that his teacher lived by. Besides, he didn't long for a reason to use his sword on someone. As to why he was always carrying a sword around, even to a class where he was forbidden to use it, Iyan felt strangely safer with it.
"Has becoming a Crown prince really changed your life that much?" Sir Leo unbuttoned the only button on his shirt, it was the same shirt he was wearing this morning when Iyan saw him.
"You have no idea." Iyan also started unbuttoning his shirt.
"I have heard His Majesty is ruthless to every new part of his staff, I guess that also applies to you."
"His staff? That is the most accurate definition of my status that I have heard so far." Iyan even laughed a little. It was indeed like that, he was just a part of his father's staff, his successor. Employee who got promoted.
"Don't let it get to you," Iyan started warming up and Sir Leo followed even if he already did the entire training by himself. "Focus on the bright side."
"What is the bright side exactly?"
"Well you won't have to fight Neftali for the throne."
"Is that the only bright side you can think of?"
"Brightest of them all. I would not like to get into a fight with Neftali."
"You are just scared of her because she is close with our mother."
"I am not scared of Neftali, you should be scared of Neftali."
Iyan thought for a second, Sir Leo was right, he didn't want to fight Neftali for the throne, not because he was scared of her, but because he could not deal with the heartbreak of taking his sister's future away from her.
"So you are scared of my mother then." Iyan kept teasing back.
"Yes I am scared of your mother."
This made Iyan laugh so much that his stomach started to hurt. "You really are the most honest person I have ever met."
"Learn from it." Sir Leo took his sword that was left stabbed in the ground since Iyan got here, he pointed it towards the sword that was laying on the ground a few feet next to them, it was the same like his, dull but sharp at the end just enough to make a tiny cut on the surface of the skin. Sir Leo bought them from traveling merchants, it was better for combat training then the wooden ones. He also always bought an exclusive amount because both of them kept breaking them. In the academy, between the two of them they would go through about twenty swords a month.
Iyan hurried to get the sword, it wasn't his instinct that told him he was gonna get attacked from the back the second he turned, it was a routine. Sir Leo only ever attacked him from the back. Iyan blocked his attack right away, their sword met for the first time after a month.
"Good, the palace life didn't make you sloppy."
"Are you calling the Crown prince lazy?"
"Of course not, I am just checking the progress of my student."
"I also did the control training you assigned."
"Oh, you actually did that?"
Iyan stepped away for a moment. "Was I not supposed to? Was that a joke you made?"
"That I will let you fight me blade to blade only when you slice a dummy doll with a wooden sword? No, I was serious, I always am serious."
"What are you saying then, that I could not do it?"
"No, no, it is an important exercise that I learned from a very wise person."
"Oh really? And who was that?"
"Me, of course."
Iyan stared blankly at him, "Of course it was you."
"Everything I am teaching you, I taught myself how to do."
They got into combat again, "The world's greatest swords man."
"No, not the greatest, just good, very good."
"Also a humble knight."
"Not a knight."
"Ah yes, Lord Leonard of Vendrig."
"Please do not call me that, Your Royal Highness the Crown prince."
"Then you do not call me that. We are friends, right?"
"I am a little old to be considered your friend, but yes, we are friends."
"Good, I shall proclaim you an official friend of the Crown prince."
"Please do not do that."
"Mother will probably have my head if I pull a stunt like that."
"Both of our heads."
They separated again, they were both out of breath, even if it wasn't a real combat their moves were fierce, both of them always used a hundred percent of their strength. It didn't matter that this was just training. Sir Leo was a warrior, Iyan could not just play pretend fighting with him. Even if Iyan was sure Sir Leo never used his full strength on him, a soldier's full strength could never be revealed in a scenario like this one.
"So your promise still stands?"
"Of course, if you cut that dummy's head in front of my eyes, I will do anything you want."
"Great!"
"Is this considered a bribe?"
"A bribe? For what exactly?"
"I don't know, should I get something if you fail?"
Iyan looked at him like he was the biggest dumbass in the world. "I don't accept bribes."
"Yes Your Highness!"
Somehow Iyan ended up on the ground. "You should treat me with more care now, I am the next in line to the throne."
While Iyan was still on the ground Sir Leo placed his sword on his shoulder and looked at the sky like he was a great philosopher, "No. One day you will order me around, I should beat your ass as much as I can until then."
That made Iyan smile. "I am glad that you are back."
"Thanks kiddo."
Then Sir Leo started running full force towards him like a bull, Iyan was first running away but their roles were quickly swapped. Only that they didn't realise what great danger they were running towards.