The prince rolled his eyes and took Isaac by the shoulders. “You aren’t going to lose, so stop saying things like that.” He shook the younger knight a little. “I’m not promising that because it’s not necessary. You’re going to go out there and show them why you’re my most trusted knight, why Hale knights are the best in the known world. I trained you, so don’t let me down.”
Stilling at the tight grip, Isaac let out a deep sigh and slowly shook his head, locking eyes with the man he viewed as his older brother. “But I’m not a Hale, Derek, not really. I might fight like one and I might be loyal like one, but when it really comes down to it, I’m a Lahey, and Laheys aren’t fighters like your family.” He exhaled deeply at those words and cast his eyes out on what was his battlefield, and he clenched his jaw in determination. “But if I die, I’ll die fighting and I promise to make you proud of me no matter what the outcome, brother.”
Derek rolled his eyes again. “I said stop.” He took the helmet away from Isaac and clipped him on the back of the head. “That’s not how I taught you, so stop being stupid. Hale doesn’t mean blood, it means bond. Are you going to quit this dying crap or am I going to beat it out of you later?”