Chapter 136: Training (1)

The interior of the submarine was more robust than it was outside, of course. Ayen thought he might become seasick or uncomfortable, since it was his first time traveling by sea.

But he did not. He only needed to adapt for the first couple of hours. However, maybe it also had something to do with the submarine being different from the ship.

Ayen could not compare the two, as he had yet to board a ship, but would a boat count? Probably not? His mind was all over the place, and his initial excitement had not died down a bit.

The submarine was huge, and it might take a while to completely explore it whole. Ayen was not too interested in it; the idea of being underwater was more fascinating.

Their living quarter, which was the area they were occupying, had transparent windows that allowed Ayen to see outside. For the most part, it was dark, but the surrounding area could still be seen because of the light the submarine emitted.

Devion and Khal did not disturb Ayen and left him to watch what was happening outside.

Ayen thought they would be attacked immediately, and he would be able to see a colossus sea monster, but surprisingly, none of that happened.

Aside from some mindless sea creatures and monsters, he did not see any. On second thought, it made sense too. He was with two SS-class espers.

It did not take too long before his excitement gradually faded. Since there was nothing to see at all, it was boring. It was still interesting, but Ayen gradually settled on his focus with other matters.

For example, training.

They would be travelling via sea for a few days, which meant they might stay underwater for the same amount of time too.

“Training?” Ayen questioned, sitting beside Devion and looking at Khal before them.

The room was filled with various training equipment. Some Ayen he could recognize, while of the majority of them he lacked any impression.

They were all probably training equipment for espers.

“Yes.” Khal nodded. “We need to build your stamina. Teach you some self-defense and also figure out how to utilize your contract with that child,” he explained.

Devion was unusually quiet. When Ayen was about to ask him, Devion raised a hand.

“Are you training him or both of us?” Devion asked. He then met Ayen’s gaze. “Ayen, I’m telling you this now. Don’t let Khal train you.”

“Why?” Ayen confusingly asked.

“Khal’s not a good trainer,” Devion’s lips twitched. “He’s a pervert.”

The moment his voice fell, Khal already burst out laughing. Ayen was taken aback and shifted his gaze to Khal before returning to Devion again.

Ayen had never seen Khal laugh like that before. He was captivated to say the least and, not to mention, curious as to what happened.

“What made you say that?” Ayen questioned him again.

As though flashbacks appeared in his mind, Devion shivered and pointed at Khal accusingly. “I swear, Ayen, if you let him train you, he’ll take advantage. You won’t learn anything. Just let me train you instead.”

Khal stared at Devion with a grin on his face. He almost laughed out loud again if not for Devion glaring at him.

Ayen bit his lips. He wanted to know!

This was the first time that Ayen truly wanted to be involved, even with their past. Of course, it was impossible. At least, he wanted to know what happened so he would not feel clueless.

“Why?” Ayen looked at Devion. “What happened?”

Devion, who had a sour expression remembering those moments, changed to obvious surprise when Ayen asked.

“Are you curious?”

“Yes. Can you tell the story?” Ayen glanced at Khal, who only smiled and did not intervene. Clearly, he was amused and not against Devion telling what happened.

Devion’s eyes lit up, and he reached out to hold Ayen’s hand in his excitement. “Of course, I can tell you. This will convince you not to let Khal train you.”

It was a long time ago. However, it left a very deep impression on him.

“If you want to learn something, Khal isn’t the best choice,” he spoke again, trying to convince Ayen.

Khal sat on one of the pieces of equipment, an amused smile playing on his lips. He was aware of why Devion had a wrong impression of him whenever training was involved.

Ayen’s curiosity was piqued even further.

“Tell me,” Ayen urged.

More than the excitement of hearing and being included in the conversation, Ayen liked the idea of finally discovering some of their past together.

Devion did not make him wait. He paused and focused on the memories of that particular moment. As an esper and even an SS-class esper at that, his memories were more enhanced than the others.

He could still vividly remember the memories of the past if he wanted to do so.

This memory happened a few months before Devion realized Khal was flirting with him. That absolute menace used training to take advantage of him.

They were already more than acquaintances at this point, but not really friends. Their relationship had gotten a bit better after what happened at that SS-class incident over the past few years.

At least Devion would not snark or roll his eyes at Khal, and the other would not look at him in disdain as he usually does. They cooperated with missions countless times, too.

They had gotten a bit closer. Or a little closer than Devion realized.

One time, Khal commented on something while they were in the training ground.

“Your position’s too stiff,” Khal casually pointed out. His voice was casual but still carried their usual chill.

The Khal at this time looked younger than his present counterpart. After all, he was only 22 years old. Devion was no different.

He was at a point in his time where he wanted to do anything he wanted. Devion’s hair color was hot red, with clip-on diamond earrings in his ear.

It was not really rebellious, but it was a version of himself that Devion would find cringeworthy to remember.

Compared to Khal, who wore a plain shirt and training pants but still looked like a cold noble, Devion wore striking and colorful training gear.

The two were too different.

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