Chapter 254: Argument
Gasps broke from the cadets. No one spoke to Sun like that. Not in front of the nobles. Not in front of the instructors. A few hands even rose halfway in the air, as if trying to catch the words and shove them back into silence.
The prince’s face darkened, his jaw tightening. He strode forward, boots striking hard against the packed dirt until he stood only a few paces from Jae. The air between them seemed to hum, sharp and taut.
"You dare defy me in front of the men?" Sun’s voice rang like a drawn sword, meant to cut, meant to remind.
Jae didn’t move. Didn’t bow his head. His voice remained calm, steady. "I dare to protect them." He didn’t gesture to himself or to Sun, but to the cadets gathered in their uncertain ranks, still pale with fear. "If you order them into death, I’ll refuse."
The silence that followed was heavier than steel.
Some nobles gaped openly, hands twitching toward their hilts as if expecting a duel to erupt then and there. Others whispered in frantic, breathless tones, their shock palpable. The cadets stared wide-eyed, torn between terror at Jae’s defiance and a faint, undeniable flicker of relief. He had said what they hadn’t dared voice.
The instructors shifted uneasily but did not intervene. Their silence was telling. They too had seen the fear nearly consume the cadets the night before. They too had seen Jae hold the line where Sun’s words had faltered.
Byun stepped forward at last, flicking his coin into the air and catching it like nothing in the world could bother him. His grin was easy, almost careless, as if the tension wasn’t heavy enough to choke the camp. The coin clicked against his fingers with each turn, a small, sharp sound that drew more eyes than he probably deserved. "Whoa, whoa, whoa. Easy, boys. You’re both making good points here."
The coin twirled again, a glint of light in the morning haze. He gestured lazily toward Sun with a shrug that looked almost theatrical. "Sun’s right about not sitting around letting the enemy get comfortable." He turned, sweeping the coin toward Jae with the same lazy movement. "And Jae’s right about not feeding ourselves to the meat grinder." His arms spread wide in mock exasperation. "Two geniuses, one camp. How lucky are we?"
It wasn’t much, but it was enough. A ripple of uneasy laughter passed through the cadets, thin and shaky but still laughter. The sound came in small bursts, more like coughs than anything cheerful, yet it worked. Shoulders loosened slightly. Hands fell away from hilts. The silence broke, even if the tension didn’t.
Byun tilted his head toward Sun, his grin softening into something more measured. "Hey, you know I’ve got your back. Always. But maybe think about it, yeah? You want us alive to fight another day. Not just a heroic charge that ends with my pretty face smashed into the dirt. Nobody wants that. Least of all me."
He pivoted smoothly to Jae, coin still dancing over his fingers, slipping between knuckles like water. "And you, try not to sound so much like a mutiny, eh? Makes it hard for me to play the calm, reasonable one."
That drew a few chuckles, nervous but genuine. The sound trickled across the ranks like sunlight breaking through thin clouds. For the first time since dawn, the tension cracked, if only a little.
Jae let out a slow breath, the kind that almost fogged the air, then raised his voice, not shouting, but firm enough that the soldiers across the square heard every word. "We fight together. No splits. Shield wall on the low ground, mages behind them, archers on the flanks. We draw the enemy in, hold the line, then break them. That’s how we win without throwing lives away."
The cadets shifted. Heads turned toward one another. Some nodded before they even realized they were nodding. Others chewed the inside of their cheek or adjusted straps on their armor, uneasy but listening. The plan wasn’t grand, but it was clear. It wasn’t about glory, but survival. That alone steadied them.
For men who had seen scouts tear through their lines just hours ago, it was something they could believe in. Something simple enough that their tired minds could grasp and hold like a rope in the dark.
Sun’s jaw clenched hard enough that the line of it showed beneath his skin. The veins in his neck tightened, his shoulders going rigid. His voice came out sharp, clipped. "You speak as though you command here."
Jae met his glare without blinking. His red eyes didn’t waver. "I speak as someone who won’t let them die for nothing."
The words landed heavy. Even the wind seemed to pause, as if the whole camp was holding its breath again. The mist shifted faintly across the ridge, smoke still rising in lazy threads from the enemy’s campfires, but no one looked away from the two standing at the center of the square.
Byun slid between them, his grin returning though his eyes stayed sharp, more serious than his tone. "Alright, alright. Save the duel for later, yeah? After we’ve kicked the enemy’s teeth in. I don’t feel like explaining to the healers why half our commanders are bleeding before we’ve even started."
He spun his coin once more, the metal flashing as it arced through the air, then caught it with a practiced snap. He turned smoothly, flashing the coin toward the soldiers like it was part of a show. "See? Two leaders fighting over how best to keep you alive. That’s service you don’t get every day."
A few cadets laughed, awkward, nervous, but real enough to shake some of the heaviness off their shoulders. The sound spread in ripples, bouncing from one side of the square to the other. A boy near the back even smiled faintly, though he quickly hid it when Sun’s gaze swept near.
But under the laughter, whispers began to build. Not jokes. Not nervous chatter. Something else.
"Jae was right about the scouts."
"He saved us last night."
"Sun gives orders, but Jae delivers victories."