SLDS 68

That afternoon, Cecil headed to Saint Palace. He had been instructed to come dressed in comfortable attire and in secret.

When he arrived at the rear garden, there were guests who had arrived before him. Claude looked the same as always, and Yuria was wearing pants instead of a dress, her long hair that reached her waist tied back tightly with a leather strap.

“…Ah.”

Spotting the two of them, Cecil hesitated for a moment. He knew the misunderstanding had been cleared up, but he hadn’t properly faced them since that incident, and a subtle tension crept over him.

“You’ve arrived.”

“Mr. Cecil, it’s been a while. The weather is so clear today, isn’t it?”

However, Claude and Yuria greeted him cheerfully, as if nothing had happened. Claude, of course, wore his usual stoic expression, but Yuria had her characteristic bright smile.

For some reason, his chest felt ticklish. Unfamiliar with the feeling, Cecil 괜스레 rubbed the back of his neck and looked around. Alexis, the one who had summoned him here, was nowhere to be seen.

“Where is His Highness?”

“There is no need to be so impatient.”

A voice that cut broadly through the air came from behind him. When he turned around, he saw Alexis just walking out of the palace.

As the Crown Prince appeared under the hot afternoon sun, everyone bowed slightly in greeting. The only one holding his head high was Cecil.

“…Why in the world did you summon me?”

Alexis simply smiled at Cecil’s dazed expression and gave no answer. Then, his blue eyes leisurely scanned the group.

“Claude, have you not explained yet?”

“No, in truth, I have only just arrived myself…”

“My, my, the instructor is quite irresponsible.”

Instructor? The word, appearing out of nowhere, deepened the question on Cecil’s face.

As he looked directly at Alexis’s face, seeking an explanation, their eyes met without difficulty. Alexis gave a peculiar smile.

“I was growing deeply concerned, as there are two people who are unspeakably frail. At the very least, you should have the means to protect yourselves in a crisis. The Knight Commander will teach you himself. He has made time with great difficulty, so please be sure to follow him well.”

While the Crown Prince’s message continued, Claude nodded with his hands clasped behind his back. With his back straight and the tip of his nose held high, he looked quite arrogant.

“…So, you’re saying that Knight Commander Claude is going to teach us self-defense?”

“What’s the problem? I see no better instructor than him.”

Cecil and Yuria simultaneously looked at Claude. At the distrustful gazes directed at him, Claude raised an eyebrow.

“Why the reaction…”

Yuria quickly turned her head away.

“Your Highness, can’t we have someone other than Claude? It’s obvious he’ll just scold us and say mean things.”

“I would be grateful if you would reconsider your decision.”

When Cecil added his opinion, Claude was so dumbfounded that he let out a huff of air, whoo. He was the Knight Commander, for crying out loud, and this was the first time he had ever been rejected like this. His stubborn lips pouted, as if his feelings were seriously hurt.

But no one paid him any mind. Yuria, feeling desperate, approached Alexis and gently took hold of his sleeve. She pleaded in a voice full of earnestness.

“Couldn’t Your Highness teach us? We’re inside Saint Palace anyway, so no one will see.”

“Yuria, I am not that free of a person, am I?”

Alexis smiled gently and patted Yuria’s shoulder. It was an affectionate tone, but it contained a clear refusal.

In the end, it meant they had to do as they were told.

“I’ll be watching, so do it properly. It will definitely be helpful to learn.”

Leaving only those words, Alexis turned away. As if it were true that he was busy, he headed into Saint Palace without a backward glance.

The people left in the rear garden were simply quiet. Cecil could only sigh at the sudden command, and Yuria stood there, looking devastated. Claude glanced back and forth between their faces and then gave a crooked smile.

He spoke as he took a light stance to warm up.

“So, who shall we start with?”

Alexis went straight to his office. He had only been gone for a moment, but his chief aide came rushing over as if some great disaster had struck.

“Your Highness, regarding the implementation report on this year’s tax details. There is one part you must address.”

Thick documents arrived before he could even sit down.

“Dyke, there’s no need to rush.”

Alexis finished taking off his jacket and plopped down into his chair. He then rolled his sleeves up to his elbows. He was more than willing to immerse himself in his duties.

Cecil and Yuria, who had been receiving their training with an indifferent attitude, grew quite interested in self-defense as time went on.

Unlike swordsmanship, which required dedication to the basics, self-defense had a unique fun to it because what they learned could be used immediately.

In particular, Claude’s acting of the swaggering attitude peculiar to street thugs was quite funny, and there was even a thrill when they managed to subdue a person of considerable size with their techniques.

Since he couldn’t handle two people at once by himself, Claude even called in his trusted vice-commander.

While Claude was in charge of Yuria, the vice-commander approached Cecil and grabbed his collar forcefully.

“If you don’t want to die, you’d better come quietly… sir.”

For a threat, it was polite. Cecil calmly looked down at the hand gripping his collar. When his downward gaze returned to its original position, a chill lingered in his beautiful, jewel-like emerald eyes.

“How dare you spew such nonsense at me?”

“Um… you do know this is role-playing, right?”

Seeing the murderous gleam in his eyes, the vice-commander muttered as if he were already intimidated. Although he was an easy opponent to beat in terms of strength and skill, he had not forgotten that Cecil was a member of the royal family.

While he hesitated, Cecil firmly grabbed the vice-commander’s wrist and struck his bicep hard with his fist. When the vice-commander let out a grunt, eok, at the sudden blow, he didn’t forget to kick his knee.

“Ugh!”

The man with the massive build collapsed helplessly. Even so, he didn’t let go of the collar he was gripping, so Cecil rolled on the ground with him.

“Th-This is cheating, isn’t it!”

“Cheating or not, you said I had to survive. By the way, you are really heavy. It feels like I’m flipping over a boulder.”

Cecil said as they lay tangled together. He had succeeded in throwing the vice-commander to the ground, but the man’s body was so firm and heavy that he was already drained of strength.

But his mood, without a doubt, was refreshing. Sweat was pouring down, and his whole body was covered in dirt and grass, but for the first time in a while, he laughed.

Cecil wiped the sweat from his forehead with the back of his hand and then sat up slightly.

“But we shouldn’t be lying down together like this, should we?”

“No, from here you must quickly follow up with an attack. As you can see, I am still holding onto you, Mr. Cecil.”

“Then what should I do?”

“First, instead of my wrist, it’s better if you press here…”

The vice-commander, still lying down, guided Cecil’s clumsy hands here and there. He even demonstrated so that he could learn by doing it himself.

“This is quite fun, isn’t it?”

“Ye-es… I am glad you are having fun.”

“Let’s do it one more time. This time, don’t go easy on me; attack with all your might.”

“You won’t be able to handle it if I do!”

The vice-commander abruptly flipped their positions and pinned Cecil down. Even though he said that, how could he use his full strength against a member of the royal family?

Having succeeded in throwing him down once again, Cecil was in a good mood and laughed out loud.

Alexis, who was standing by the office window, looked outside at the sound of laughter coming from beyond the window.

He could see people grappling with each other in his rear garden. A faint smile spread across his face, which had been dry all day from handling his duties.

“As expected, seeing him smile is a good sight.”

Next to him stood his chief aide, Tristan Dyke. Tristan, who had been enthusiastically continuing his report, cleared his throat, ahem, ahem, as he saw the Crown Prince whose attention had been stolen by the view outside the window.

“Your Highness, may I continue?”

“Speak. I am listening.”

Alexis answered without turning his gaze.

“When His Majesty the Emperor’s birthday festival begins, it is expected that guests from various countries will pay their respects. In line with this, we should create opportunities to discuss diplomatic issues…”

“Why are they touching each other like that? Isn’t the contact excessive?”

At Alexis’s words, Tristan also craned his neck to look out the window. His eyes, too, took in Cecil and Yuria, who were in the middle of learning self-defense.

In Tristan’s view, there was nothing particularly problematic. In fact, they both seemed to be enjoying themselves.

“…Isn’t it normal?”

“It’s excessive.”

Judging by his frown, it seemed Alexis found it quite displeasing.

Just then, Claude lifted Yuria up and spun her around. A small scream, kyaak-!, followed by a burst of laughter, made Tristan inwardly click his tongue and understand the Crown Prince’s feelings. Who would like seeing their woman playfully making physical contact with another man?

Tristan Dyke, old-fashioned to the core, had no idea at this point that the Crown Prince’s gaze was directed far away from Yuria and toward someone else.

Because Cecil Adrian and the vice-commander, who were climbing on top of each other, lying down, and grabbing each other by the collar, were naturally excluded from his consideration.