The silence seemed to be deafening. Savier had the urge to retract his words, but now being watched by that mysterious but attentive gaze, he just thought fuck it and went through with it.
He might as well have taken the advantage of the fact that no one would question his actions, at least out loud. Yeah, Savier, this was being proviledged was like!
"Sir Rylan, can you train me too?" Savier said this with a straight face.
The nervousness was perfectly concealed, voice clear and steady.
Good job, Savier Remmington!
Sir Rylan stared at him, confusion filled his eyes, but also processing what he said. Savier only waited. Although he wanted to repeat what he said but he did not want to sound too eager. Even if he really was.
The others were also watching, but no one intervened. Savier did not focus on them; Sir Rylan occupied his whole attention.
Eventually, Sir Rylan nodded, to Savier's relief.
"If Your Highness wants to, then... It's my honor to train you."
As always, too respectful. Savier almost pursed his lips but held it in. He could only smile and nod as well.
The others dispersed to the side but did not leave, intending to watch. Savier looked at them, intending to dismiss them but... did not do so in the end.
Alright, just let them watch.
Savier followed Sir Rylan to the center of the training ground. Though, it was called that, there wasn't any training equipment at all. Most of them were makeshift ones and would make do with dummies.
Still, the space occupied much of the side yard. Savier even moved the other decorations and plants to open the whole space.
Sir Rylan stared at him, as if assessing him. Savier could not help but stand straight; his well-maintained body became apparent. He was tall and masculine, and the natural confidence he exuded was way above that of even most dominant alphas.
The bystanders felt awed and admiration from the bottom of their hearts. Being a dominant alpha, not to mention the crown prince of the empire, was indeed different from being ordinary.
From this perspective, Savier was even more buffer than the opposite alpha from him. He was taller, too. If no one had context, they would mistake Savier as the trainer instead.
Of course, everyone here was knowledgeable and knew never to underestimate the seemingly weaker alpha.
"Does Your Highness train before?" Sir Rylan asked. His typical tone rang in the air.
Savier nodded. "The basics."
He needed self-defense training, and exercising was a given. He also knew how to handle guns and fight, but never at a professional level. As a crown prince, he only needed the basics, or if he wanted some skills to enrich his survival skills, but not necessary to do more.
And, he was also a dominant alpha. His pheromones had more uses than just seducing omegas and reproduction.
Sir Rylan nodded his head, and the wind swept around them, making his black hair sway. He seemed to have said something, but it did not register with him; more focused on how Sir Rylan's hair was being messed up by the wind.
"Do you understand, Your Highness?" Sir Rylan's words snapped him from his blank state, and he hurriedly nodded even if he knew damn well that he understood shit.
"Now, let us demonstrate." Sir Rylan moved his head up and encouraged.
Savier's left eyelid twitched. What did he need to demonstrate? Batshit. Can you fucking pay attention, Savier?
It was Sir Rylan training you, and you weren't listening? Are you crazy?
"Wait, can you repeat that again?"
Nevermind. Being seen as dumb by Sir Rylan was not shameful; at least it had an impact. Savier definitely wanted to be optimistic about it.
Fortunately, Sir Rylan was not a strict trainer, and he calmly instructed again. His entire demeanor exuded patience, which made Savier sigh in relief.
Sir Rylan was truly kind. Savier admired his idol once again.
Oh, if only Savier knew! Rylan was a terrifying instructor in the military academy that a lot did not want to attend, but had no choice, being he was good as hell with it.
The bystanders who were watching, who knew Rylan as an instructor, also found this unfamiliar. However, they only marveled that Savier had it easy because he was the crown prince.
Savier got it and prepared himself. There was no need for hesitation. Sir Rylan was not weak, and going easy would offend him more. As someone he had admired for years, he was well aware of the alpha's prowess.
But when he was about to demonstrate it, he suddenly realized that... he was about to touch Sir Rylan! This move needed their bodies to be close to each other.
Savier paused. His hesitation seemed too obvious.
"It's fine, Your Highness. You can use full force if you want."
Savier heard something with those words. Wait, did Sir Rylan misunderstand his hesitation?
He quickly shook his head and explained.
"No, I'm not underestimating you. I'm just..." Savier stumbled on his words, eyes trembling. In a low tone, he continued. "I'm nervous."
There, he became honest. Hell, it was fine, sounding weak even as a whole ass dominant alpha. Savier was not one to be fixated about that image, anyway.
This time, Sir Rylan's eyes widened slightly. He appeared taken aback, not expecting what Savier said.
"I look strong, but I'm certainly not your match."
Now that he had already started it, the words just kept flowing. His words were sincere, and what he really thought. Savier gave a small, lazy smile.
"Is it surprising that I'm nervous, Sir Rylan?" His eyes met the other's directly, connecting midair.
Sir Rylan did not immediately answer, as if processing what he said. Surprisingly, he did not evade his gaze, and their eyes locked for those seconds of silence.
Savier's lazy smile faded, and his breath hitched. Being exposed to the sun in this hot weather was annoying, but currently, he did not mind at all.
Slowly, a chuckle sounded. In fact, it was too low and lasted only a second, but damn, Saviier felt like his knees were getting weaker.
Did Sir Rylan just... chuckled?
His eyes widened, and his jaw dropped slightly.
Sir Rylan seemed to have realized it late, too! He cooled off, evading his gaze.
"Uh... Sor—"
"No!" Savier cut him off loudly. He shook his head. "No, it's fine! No need to apologize!"
I'm not offended! In fact, you can laugh all day if you want!
Sir Rylan turned to Savier again. His eyes were observing again, confused even. Savier thought he was about to continue apologizing, but what he said was totally different.
"You did not lie, Your Highness."
"Mm?"
Sir Rylan shook his head and turned around, but Savier caught the small smile that spread across his lips. It was too fast for Savier, and he thought he was only seeing things!
But it was not! As Sir Rylan looked back again, a small smile on his lips, barely there, but it was indeed a smile!
"Your Highness doesn't need to be nervous. I'll be gentle." Rylan spoke this with a small curve on his lips but almost a whisper, tickling Savier's ears.
His use of words had always been off, often needing to think hard to respond and supplement his words.
And so... a certain someone's head almost blew up.
What the hell? Savier felt the hotness gathering on his face. Sir Rylan, you are... too lethal!