(BL) Rejected by daughter's second male lead-Chapter 63

Surprisingly, the one laughing was Yuan. It was the first time all three people there had seen him laugh so joyfully and excitedly. The Emperor raised his eyebrows in surprise, and Marius stared at Yuan’s face as if entranced. And Gillen...

"Oh, Yuan! You look so beautiful when you laugh like that! Keep smiling like that from now on! That’s a million-gold smile that even makes me feel good, hahahaha!"

Using his other hand—the one not holding Yuan’s—he patted Yuan’s thigh and even gave a thumbs-up. Ewan’s laughter immediately stopped at that uncle-like reaction.

"Why? You look fine, but you just stopped laughing."

"Don’t talk to me; it’s annoying."

After laughing so cheerfully, what was that all of a sudden? Gillen tilted his head, confused, but Yuan ignored him and looked straight at Marius, who was standing before him.

"Sir... High Priest, I want to say this clearly. I am in a relationship with Duke Blake. There’s no problem with us sensing each other’s pheromones, and we’ve had consensual sexual relations."

"Wait, wait, Yuan!"

Gillen jumped up in shock. There was no need to say something like that in front of His Majesty and the High Priest!

But Yuan didn’t care and firmly stated his position.

"If you’re remembering me as I was before, you’ll need to change that thought. I am... now—"

Yuan paused, took a breath, and continued.

"I am no longer alone."

Growing older and stronger doesn’t make fear any less fearsome. Yuan had just realized that. But having someone beside him holding his hand and getting angry on his behalf... that made it a little less frightening.

"...Hearing you say that, what more can I do? Yet both you and His Grace the Duke are acting as if I were the villain, which is rather confusing. I am not your enemy."

Marius lifted the corners of his mouth in a small smile. Yuan noticed that he was displeased. He stood up, following Gillen.

"Then that’s a relief. Now, please go and explain things clearly to the priests and the congregation. The High Priest, or whatever that is, that’s your role, isn’t it?"

With a tone so cheeky no one else could imagine, Yuan bowed toward the Emperor.

"We shall take our leave now, Your Majesty."

"Ah, very well. Do so."

The Emperor restrained a smile as he gestured, granting them permission to leave.

Yuan held Gillen’s hand and walked out of the private room, ignoring the piercing gaze of Marius behind them.

"Don’t say anything. That was the most polite tone I could manage just now."

Yuan said briskly as he strode forward. Gillen quickened his pace to walk side by side with him.

"You’re not planning to say anything? Good job."

Gillen smiled and gently shook Yuan’s interlaced hands back and forth.

"Being your partner today seems like the right choice. Do you feel the same?"

"...Hmph, not really."

Ewan turned his face away to the other side and answered haughtily. Gillen laughed heartily beside him. It seemed he was no longer affected at all by Yuan’s words.

It was then that they heard something.

"When will His Grace the Duke come out, I wonder?"

"I want to see the Marquis Hampton’s face just once more..."

"Me too. My eyesight seems a bit sharper, but maybe it’s just me?"

Voices of ladies came from beyond a nearby pillar. The two men, still holding hands tightly, came to an abrupt stop.

"Yuan."

"...Yes?"

"Could it be... you can teleport now?"

"Do you think my magic is some cheap potion that works immediately upon chanting?"

Yuan glared at Gillen as he retorted. But soon, another line of conversation made his eyes widen slightly.

"When the Duke arrives later, you have to push me properly in that direction, okay?"

"Yes, yes, I got it. I’ll make sure you land safely in His Grace’s arms, Laura."

The trend among omegas of once collapsing into the arms of alphas now seemed to have become a kind of romantic cliché. Hearing Laura and her friends’ conversation, Yuan gritted his teeth. In that moment, he and Gillen vanished down the corridor.

***

The place they arrived at was Yuan’s mansion. But the room was not a lounge or hall—it was filled with books, experimental tools, and all sorts of miscellaneous items.

"A study...?"

The bookshelves that covered the walls were packed from top to bottom with books, and books were stacked like towers on the floor and desk. But there were many unusual tools, and glass containers holding strange lifeforms, making it feel far from a simple study.

In another corner of the room was a fireplace, but instead of a red flame, a green fire burned inside. To anyone looking, it was a rather eerie sight.

"This is my laboratory. Why, is there a problem?"

Yuan let go of Gillen’s hand and asked sharply. Gillen waved his hands dismissively.

"No, not at all. Just asking."

With his hands free, Gillen approached the fireplace. Watching the green flames burn over the pale logs was fascinating no matter how many times he looked. It almost seemed like a fake fire, set up in a theme park to create a fantasy-like effect.

"Why is it green?"

"...It’s because I burned a prototype that contained Arcarisansarius solution. It’ll only stay like this for a few days."

"What? Arcarisansarius?"

Gillen asked the word ridiculously and then burst out laughing—"Ha! Ha! Ha!"

Yuan looked at this middle-aged man with a mix of exasperation and disbelief, then walked toward another part of the room.

"Ha! Ha! Ha! Not funny? Huh? Ha ha ha! Where are you going?"

Gillen clasped his hands behind his back and followed Yuan. Yuan went to the long sofa in the corner of the lab and pulled a rope attached nearby.

"I’ll instruct the robots to prepare a carriage. You’ll need it if you plan to return home."

"You’re sending me home?"

Gillen’s eyes widened. Yuan frowned and asked in return,

"Then you don’t want to go?"

"I thought there was a reason you brought me to your place."

Gillen smiled slyly.

"W-What reason?"

At Gillen’s mischievous expression, Yuan’s eyes widened. Seeing that, it seemed Yuan truly had no ulterior motive for teleporting here. Yet Gillen considered arriving at Yuan’s house a stroke of luck.

"Think about it. The Duke of Blake and the Marquis of Hampton suddenly disappeared from the party and didn’t show up anywhere all night. Cecil, who arrived home, was worried because her father didn’t return. So where would the two men have gone during the party? Naturally, to the Marquis of Hampton’s residence to spend a... hot night. Isn’t that what an ordinary person’s mind would conclude?"

"A... hot night?"

Yuan’s face turned bright red. Gillen pretended to look around while sitting on the sofa, secretly stifling a laugh. Even with a sharp mind, he still showed his youthful embarrassment at times like this. Regaining his composure, he looked at Yuan and said,

"Of course, we’ll need to send a separate message to Cecil. We can’t worry the girl. But for everyone else, especially High Priest Marius, who doubted us just moments ago, shouldn’t we show how special our relationship really is?"

"..."

Yuan’s expression calmed slightly. He lowered his gaze and looked at his right palm. Four fingernail marks were still vividly red. The tips of his nails, once clean, were now stained a dark reddish-brown from the blood, making them look messy.

"Tsk, is it really okay to take out your anger on your own body like that?"

Gillen, noticing the marks on Yuan’s hand, moved closer and sat down beside him. 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

"Let me see."

He took Yuan’s hand and examined it closely.

"How on earth did you clench your fist to get it like this? You’re strong. Is it because you were young?"

Muttering to himself, Gillen carefully inspected Yuan’s palm. The attentiveness felt oddly intimate, making Yuan pull his hand away.

"That’s enough. Healing magic will fix it in one go."

"You don’t need to disinfect it separately?"

It wasn’t necessary. Healing magic was deceptively difficult—the kind of spell that simply made wounds vanish as if by a miracle. Yet, strangely, Yuan couldn’t bring himself to speak. After a pause, he muttered bluntly:

"Well... disinfecting it a little is probably a good idea."

Gillen nodded with an approving "Of course." Just then, there was a knock at the door. The robot aide, Sebastian, entered.

"Did you call, My Lord? Ah, Duke Blake is here as well. I suppose you called to prepare a carriage for His Grace. I’ll have it—"

"No."

Ewan quickly cut him off. Gillen took over from there.

"Sebastian, good evening. No need for the carriage right now. Could you bring some disinfectant and ointment? Ah, is ointment unnecessary?"

He asked Yuan quietly. Yuan just nodded silently. A feeling came over him that was hard to describe.

"Then bring disinfectant, alcohol, and some late-night snacks. We’ll be spending the night here."

"Yes, understood. I’ll bring them right away."

Sebastian bowed and left. The only sound left in the lab was the crackling of the fire.

"You might not like it, but I’ll be staying here tonight. Is that alright, Yuan?"

Gillen asked with a smile. He seemed to already know that Yuan wouldn’t mind too much. Annoyed at Gillen’s smug attitude, Yuan pouted slightly.

"Hmph."

"Hahaha! I’ll take that as a yes."