Savier glanced at Sir Rylan, who stood straight in front of the desk. He neither looked too subservient nor too intimidating. For the record, intimidating was not a word you would have used to describe him.
For a moment, he marveled at the idea of looking directly at the person he admired. Savier decided not to sit. In this position, he noticed he was half a head taller than the other. Which, in turn, had Sir Rylan slightly need to tilt his head to look directly into his eyes.
It was not like Sir Rylan would do that, as he was busy lowering his head. Savier could not help but grumble in disappointment. In times like these, hierarchy was more apparent than ever.
Savier cleared his throat and then proceeded to the matter at hand. They were not close enough to have a small talk, and he did not even imagine them having one in the first place.
For Sir Rylan, he was just someone he needed to protect; that was all.
This dampened his mood, albeit only slightly. No matter the case, he was his personal guard from now on. Someone who would be with him almost every day.
"Sir Rylan..." oh shit... Savier's mind spun, then he continued seriously, but asked. "Can I call you that from now on?" He glanced at the other alpha, feeling nervous inside. His hands, which were being hidden by the desk, clenched.
He hoped his cover was not yet blown. Not that he did not want to say it, but just embarrassing.
Sir Rylan blinked and met Savier's eyes. His blue-gray pupils reflected a serene expression with no hint of suspicion.
"There's no problem, Your Highness." A small smile then spread across his lips as he nodded. He sounded more formal though than friendly.
Savier blinked and looked down, pretending to look at the documents on his desk. "Then, I'll call you Sir Rylan." His hands were busy flipping the papers on his desk as he continued, while sensing the other's gaze watching him.
His hands almost trembled. Fortunately, his voice was steady.
"As I've said, I want a normal college life at least. So, having personal guards following me around is inconvenient. But since it's my last year, my royal father decided it's time for me to get used to it."
Not like he was not used to it, this was more to the idea of following him everywhere on campus, being more annoying than helpful.
He continued. "I don't have plans to let all the selected personal guards follow me everywhere. But I need someone..." Finally, Savier looked up. What he was saying next must be said with enough sincerity.
His and the other's eyes met, gazing directly at each other. Neither evaded the gaze. Perhaps, Sir Rylan also noticed the important words he wanted to convey.
"I need someone to follow me. But I only need one among the personal guards, for now. Sir Rylan, can you be that person?" Savier's words were clear, but he spoke too fast, afraid that his voice might shake, and so he was almost short of breath at the end.
Savier took a deep breath and then waited for the answer that seemed like forever.
Sir Rylan seemed stunned for a moment and opened his mouth before he closed it again. It appeared the other alpha did not expect this request.
Suddenly, Savier became nervous. Wait, what if Sir Rylan had other plans? Like... what if... he never wanted to be his personal guard in the first place, but his royal father had asked him to train these guards before being stationed again somewhere else?
Savier had heard it a lot before, and Sir Rylan was the youngest instructor in the royal guards and even the military. Just as his thoughts were becoming chaotic with these what-ifs, Sir Rylan spoke again.
"Why... me?" It sounded more like a thought said out loud than an actual question for Savier. And sure enough, the alpha became startled. "Ah, I mean, I apologize, Your Highness. It's just unexpected."
He bit his lips, looking so lost for words.
This time, it was Savier who became confused.
"Why?" Suddenly, his nervousness appeared to have left him, hearing that genuine confusion coming from the person he admired. "If not you, then who? Is there someone more skilled than Sir Rylan out there?" Savier asked, brows knitted. He sounded so certain that it made Rylan surprise again.
For Savier, it was such a weird reaction. For him, no one was more deserving than Sir Rylan to follow him around, so this discussion did not even flash into his mind.
What he said was more like a belief. A blind trust to someone he always admired.
Sir Rylan stared at Savier before answering as if wanting to search for any kind of falsehoods under his genuine confusion. If it were any normal occasion, a normal citizen would not even think of doing this.
But in this case, he appeared to have forgotten this, and Savier certainly did not care.
After a while, a sigh came out of his mouth before he lowered his head, but there was a ghost of a smile lingering on his lips.
Savier almost forgot what he was about to say as well seeing that small smile. And he completely lost it when Sir Rylan raised his head again and met his gaze again.
This time, the confusion was gone and replaced with determination. At least that was what Savier could see. He then respectfully saluted and gave a military bow.
"I'm at your service, Your Highness."
Savier's jaw dropped slightly, and he blinked, not realizing. Was that a yes... then?
Then came the realization as he bit his lips, wanting to stop himself from smiling, but he soon let it out. Savier did not care anymore. He wanted to let Sir Rylan know how happy he was that he agreed!
Smiling, his usual oppressive aura lessened significantly.
"Let's get along together, Sir Rylan." He held out his hand, waiting with anticipation.
Sir Rylan, wearing the same smile, carefully shook hands with Savier.
"Thank you for your trust. I'll protect you with all my life, Your Highness." His eyes held a glimmer of determination and something else that Savier had yet to know this time. He merely took it as a simple declaration of service that a royal guard should.
This was a pledge that Rylan always abided by. From then on, his life revolved about to revolve protecting someone who showed genuine trust in him.