The sound of Lucas' footsteps as he ran through the endless forest felt unfamiliar and loud. He knew he should proceed more quietly, or at least slowly enough that he wasn't announcing his presence to the entire forest. The relief he felt at finally being able to leave for the Capital, to Eva, was quickly dashed as he cursed the distance from their duchy to the blasted city.
I should have left sooner.
What he wanted to say more than anything was that he didn't have time to train Aug's son. To work through his prejudices against him. That both children were so behind martially was because of Aug's weakness. He let them sit in the palace in safety until they became so weak that Lucas wanted to scream. And really, training them was far less important than protecting Eva.
