A very large room, like an interior stadium, was conceived for men to train and attend meetings inside. It could easily contain thousands of men and their steeds. There weren’t any horses when Cassandra got there though, actually most of it was empty. On one side a group of men were practising movements all together and on the other some were doing physical exercises. The center was the busiest, twenty soldiers in full armor were all fighting against one man, Kairen, alone with two swords. Immediately, Cassandra couldn’t help but worry about the obvious difference.
“Is this okay?”
“Probably not. I hope His Highness remembers it’s a pain to replace soldiers.”
Cassandra frowned. Was the Prince still at an advantage, despite the numbers? He didn’t even have his armor on!
Yet, after a few minutes of observing the battle, she had no choice but to admit Evin was right. The Prince had no need for armor. With his two swords, he effortlessly dismissed any attempt the soldiers made to get to him. He didn’t even seem to get tired, or put any effort in. Each movement was perfect and precise. Despite his broad frame, he moved with the agility and speed of a tiger. His muscles’ hard at work were showing with each gesture, under his tan skin.
Cassandra couldn’t help but slowly start blushing after a while. The lines of his body were just dancing perfectly, the Prince’s perfect form revealed. Cassandra felt a slight fever coming up inside. She could have used some more of the snow.
She was just watching from the side, but Cassandra was hypnotized by the fight, as if it had been some dance. Her heart fluttering with each of the Prince’s moves, she reacted to every action, fearing for him when a soldier seemed to stand a chance, relieved when he pushed them back, excited when he attacked himself.
As Cassandra didn’t bother him and stood silently, Kairen hadn’t noticed her entrance. Yet, the fight was over after only a few minutes. Each of the twenty soldiers, no matter how good they were, ended up butt or face in the sand, full of aches and muscle pains. Kairen was unscathed.
“How impressive,” whispered Cassandra.
“Of course. His Highness wasn’t named this Empire’s War God for nothing,” said Evin.
She couldn’t even hear Evin, her green eyes still stuck on her Prince. Kairen’s skin was barely sweating despite all this exercise, but it was shiny and lustrous, making her blush even more. She could vividly remember the feel of his skin under her fingers.
“Shall we go get His Highness?”
Just as Evin suggested that, Kairen’s eyes suddenly turned to them. Cassandra immediately blushed even more from having his eyes on her. Just as the Prince turned to walk up to her, Cassandra saw one of the soldiers aiming a knife at him.
“My Lord!” she yelled, a bit too late.
Though Kairen’s shoulder movement to dodge was near perfect, it was a second too late. The blade scratched his shoulder, before falling on the ground. A vivid red line appeared on Kairen’s skin, before he turned to the man who had done this. Cassandra’s heart was worried for a moment. Was he going to kill the soldier? Or get mad for attacking from behind? And injuring a member of the Imperial Family? But contrary to all her thoughts, Kairen talked to the man, calmly, something she couldn’t hear. They exchanged words briefly.
“What’s going on?” she asked Evin, confused.
“That man managed to injure the War God. His Highness is asking for his name and unit, for him to be rewarded.”
“Rewarded? Isn’t wounding the Imperial Family something to be punished?”
“Things are different on a training ground.”
Cassandra nodded. So it did seem. The Prince’s talk with the soldier was short, though. As soon as he was done, he turned around and walked to Cassandra. She found herself unable to stop blushing again as he came closer.
Once he faced her, as she was on some stairs that put her at the same height as him, he put his arm around her waist and leaned in for a kiss. Despite Evin being there, Cassandra couldn’t resist him, putting her hands on his chest to respond. His smell was even stronger after training, enticing her. Their kiss lasted a while, as Kairen kept playing with her tongue, caressing her hair and holding her close.
When they parted, Cassandra had to catch her breath a bit.
“Why are you so red?” he asked his concubine with a frown.
“I was…watching you,” she admitted, unable to answer any further.
“It made you like this?” he asked with a little smirk, his hand noticeably going down her back.
Cassandra felt ashamed that his hands were exciting her even more, and in the presence of Evin, too! She was about to burn away if things kept going.
“My Prince, a winter storm is coming… Can we go back to our tent?” she asked shyly.
Kairen frowned a bit, turning to Evin, who nodded.Then, without adding a word, Kairen lifted Cassandra, carrying her effortlessly against his shoulder. Since she knew there was no use in protesting against this, Cassandra held on to him until Kairen brought her back to the tent, inside which Evin didn’t follow.
Once inside, Kairen put her down, and she put her fur coat aside.
“My Lord, let me look at your injury, it…”
