The Royal Military Academy's Impostor Owns a Dungeon [BL]-Chapter 968: Confessions in the Clearing

"Butler Gary, would you mind if I borrow Luca for a moment?"

Xavier maintained steady eye contact with the stunned Luca, only momentarily turning to nod at the butler. The older gentleman blinked, quickly recovering his composure. "Ah, well, of course, Your Highness."

Before Luca could even process the sudden intervention, Xavier’s hand was firm but gentle against his, guiding him away from the practice floor.

"Would you care to come with me for a bit?" Xavier asked, his voice low and steady.

"Huh?"

Luca tilted his head and looked up at him in confusion.

"Where are we going?"

"We’re just going to take a short break."

"A break?"

The word sounded strange coming from Xavier’s mouth at this particular moment, especially considering how disastrous the dance lessons had been going. Still, Luca allowed himself to be led along.

It didn’t take long before the scenery around them changed. The sounds of music faded behind them, replaced by the quiet rustle of leaves overhead. Much to Luca’s surprise, they immediately arrived at a small clearing surrounded by extremely tall trees whose branches formed a loose canopy above them.

Sunlight filtered gently through the leaves, scattering soft patches of gold across the ground.

Luca paused.

The place felt both distant and familiar.

He slowly turned his head, recognizing the clearing almost immediately because he had once mentioned that he thought it was rather pretty during their excursion.

Looking around, the curious Guide rubbed the back of his neck before letting out a small sigh.

"I... I feel like I don’t deserve a break yet," he admitted quietly.

His tone carried an innocent melancholy, the kind that made it seem like ears on top of his head had drooped even though he didn’t have any there.

"I haven’t really improved at all."

Xavier studied him for a moment before tilting his head slightly.

"Well," the prince said calmly, "you can say that it’s partly why we’re here." He stepped closer, the shadows of the leaves dancing across his regal features.

Luca blinked.

"...We’ll see if we can relax the stiffness that’s built up in the last couple of days, is all."

Then Xavier opened his arms.

It was a simple gesture, yet somehow it caught Luca completely off guard.

The Crown Prince stood tall in front of him, arms spread wide as if inviting him into an embrace. For a moment, Luca simply stared at him.

It took him a beat.

Then another.

And suddenly he rushed forward.

The golden-eyed cadet practically jumped into his husband’s arms, wrapping himself around the prince with complete abandon. Xavier caught him easily, adjusting his stance without even the slightest struggle as Luca clung tightly to him.

In the end, it looked less like a hug and more like Luca had fully latched onto him.

The little chipmunk held onto Xavier tightly, burying his head against the crook of his neck as if clinging for dear life.

Xavier chuckled softly under his breath.

With Luca still attached to him, he slowly leaned his back against the thick trunk of a nearby tree and carefully lowered himself until he was sitting comfortably between the large roots that spread across the ground.

Which meant Luca was now straddling his lap.

It didn’t matter that he was rather elevated now. The Guide simply continued pressing his face into the crook of Xavier’s neck.

Meanwhile, the Prince rested one hand against Luca’s back and began stroking it in slow, soothing motions.

"How’s my wife?" he asked gently.

At first Luca didn’t move.

His voice came out muffled against Xavier’s skin.

"I’m fine."

It wasn’t true.

He simply didn’t want to add to his husband’s bucket of worries.

Xavier didn’t push; he simply began to caress Luca’s back in long, gentle strokes. Only after a moment of silence did he whisper, "Really?"

Luca remained quiet but tightened his grip.

He’d made up his mind to be okay. And technically speaking, he really was okay. When he compared this frustration to the worries he once carried or to the problems other people around him were dealing with, it felt almost trivial.

It was just dancing.

Just a few lessons.

But the longer he stayed wrapped in Xavier’s arms, the more something inside his chest began to twist.

The comfort of his husband’s body, the calm rhythm of his breathing, and the quiet reassurance of his presence slowly loosened something the small critter had been holding tightly inside.

The more he buried himself into the embrace, the more aggrieved he began to feel.

Until Xavier leaned closer and quietly whispered near his ear.

"Are you sure?"

"!"

That was the breaking point.

The little chipmunk suddenly pulled back from the embrace, lifted his head and looked straight at Xavier’s face.

Those familiar azure eyes.

That calm and patient expression that always made him feel safe.

And before he could stop himself, the words tumbled out.

"No, I’m not okay."

The confession, accompanied by a trembling bottom lip, seemed to open the floodgates.

"I’m doing it exactly the way they taught me," Luca said in frustration, his face scrunching slightly. "I step where they say to step. I turn when they say to turn. I even counted the beats properly."

His arms flailed helplessly as he tried to explain.

"But it doesn’t look the same."

Xavier blinked once.

"My body just isn’t cooperating," Luca continued, clearly distressed. "It’s like it has its own opinion about everything. When I try to relax my shoulders, they somehow become even stiffer, and when I try to loosen my stance, it actually becomes worse."

He frowned deeply, clearly offended by the betrayal of his own muscles.

"I don’t even know how that works."

He took a sharp breath, his grievances pivoting to the most distressing part of the ordeal.

"And they said it might be the shoes."

Luca looked up at Xavier with a mixture of disbelief and horror.

"So we kept buying new ones for practice."

His voice carried genuine pain now.

"So many shoes!"

That part truly hurt.

"We have to keep buying new shoes because everyone thinks they don’t fit right!"

"Papa said that we just need to find the right ones, and it would somehow work!" He looked nearly catatonic at the thought.

He groaned softly and Xavier added an extra comforting pat. The Prince had a feeling that the Duke simply believed that the dancing issues were purely mechanical, because how could it possibly be his precious son’s fault?

"They’re so expensive! They tried hiding the cost but D-29 saw it! And yet... it’s still the same."

Luca slumped slightly in defeat.

For a lifelong money-grubber and dedicated penny-pincher, the mounting cost of his own inadequacy was clearly the heaviest burden of all.

"And now we have so many shoes."

His voice turned small and mournful.

"...It’s very distressing."