The alpha turned his face enough to study Noctis' expression directly, the shake of his head and the severe line of the frown pressed between those lips. "We haven't even started! You're going to give up already because it's going to be hard?" There was challenge in his tone.
He didn't blame the boy for not knowing how to read very well, and he didn't blame him for being uncomfortable. But Zoro could blame him for giving up so easily.