(BL) Rejected by daughter's second male lead-Chapter 66

Your pheromone scent... kind of reminds me of orange?

Among those with traits, that was basically flirting. Gillen quickly tried to cover himself.

"No, no, your pheromones just smell fresh and sweet, like oranges or lemons. I just said it without thinking. No hidden meaning... really. If it made you uncomfortable, I’m sorry."

"I didn’t say anything."

Yuan simply replied and continued eating.

Had I been overthinking it alone?

Feeling awkward, Gillen cleared his throat unnecessarily. In doing so, he didn’t notice Yuan’s ears turning red or the tension tightening in his body.

"Ah, ah, let’s toast, shall we?"

Gillen hastily raised his glass. When the atmosphere was this awkward, a casual toast could cover it up. He clinked glasses with Yuan and downed his wine in one shot. From the side, he heard Yuan muttering, "Why are you drinking so fast?" but ignored it.

’It’s embarrassment, you little brat.’

But then he noticed Yuan placing his glass down too. Empty. Yuan had followed suit, downing his wine in one gulp.

"Huh? Yuan, you can’t drink that well. Why did you finish it all at once?"

"When drinking, you have to match the pace, according to noble etiquette books."

Yuan’s face had turned bright red in real time, his eyes slightly unfocused.

"Hey, Y-Yuan. You’re not drunk, are you?"

"Drunk? Who’s drunk... really, who do you take me for..."

"Take you for... oh, see! You’re drunk!"

"I’m not drunk, I said! Stop annoying me."

Yuan snapped haughtily, then poured more wine into the empty glass. Gillen quickly grabbed the bottle.

"Wait! Stop! No more drinking. Now, eat this. I’ll make another one for you."

Gillen placed an extra piece of bread on Yuan’s plate and moved some cheese over. But Yuan, with just a snap of his fingers, levitated the wine bottle into the air. The bottle poured wine into his glass without spilling a single drop—a sight that left Gillen’s jaw hanging.

"What... what kind of magic is that...?"

"Magic is up to the mage. Your Grace—no, Gillen said it himself: I’m an incredible genius mage."

Then Yuan downed another full glass of wine in one go. He had learned etiquette from books but couldn’t actually drink, so his rigidness was almost natural. Gillen let out a sigh. What was he supposed to do with this precocious, stubborn young man?

"You’re going to hurt yourself. Put the glass down."

"You’re the one... always acting like an old stick-in-the-mud... just because we’re, what, twenty years apart?"

"What? Ha! Ha! Ha! Twenty years is plenty of difference!"

"The Archmage is almost a hundred years older than me! And that Marius bastard... he’s, I don’t know... fifty or something... anyway... twenty years is nothing."

"Really drunk now. And you’re comparing me to those old codgers?"

"Exactly! Gillen, you’re not that old yet."

Earlier, Yuan had been calling him a grey-haired old man, an ’uncle,’ a stubborn adult—but hearing "you’re not that old yet" from this young kid felt... good.

"Ahem... fine. I’m still in my prime. Still older than you though. Listen to an adult. No more drinking."

Gillen snatched Yuan’s wine glass and turned it upside down. He also grabbed the wine bottle floating in the air and tucked it under the trolley.

"What I mean is... don’t pretend to be an adult only when it suits you. I’m an adult too, you know."

Yuan snapped irritably, reaching for the wine bottle again.

"Uh-uh!"

Gillen grabbed Yuan’s wrist gently, holding it in a soft but firm grip.

"If you’re an adult, act like one, Yuan."

At that, Yuan glared at him defiantly. His blue eyes were very close to Gillen’s. The silvery rim around the iris glimmered faintly with blue, like a jewel from a legend. Gillen muttered without realizing it:

"Divine Hero Yuan..."

Yuan’s expression shifted instantly.

"You know that story?"

"Who in the Empire doesn’t know that legend?"

Blake and Garrett were famous founding heroes, real historical figures with heroic deeds. In contrast, the Divine Hero "Yuan" was a legendary figure, said to be the biological son of the Goddess Letina—a fictional character.

Divine Hero Yuan had light purple hair and jewel-like eyes, a stunningly handsome man. He could control dragons at will, and with a mere gesture, could create or destroy entire continents.

His allure was so great that countless humans were captivated by him. Followers of the Divine Hero Yuan sprang up everywhere, and eventually a religion, the Yuan Faith, was founded.

While living among humans, Yuan shocked everyone by showing a vision of himself sacrificing his own life. As his blood spilled, the earth split and waters rose. That is how the current four continents were formed, with the southern continent—where he resided—becoming the base of the Moore Empire, now established by Moore, Blake, Garrett, and Winston.

People honoured the Divine Hero Yuan by always attaching the title "Divine Hero" whenever they referred to him, commemorating the sacrifice he made to serve his mother, the supreme deity Letina.

In reality, however, the Divine Hero Yuan had only pretended to die using magic. He had quietly returned to the side of his mother in the heavens and reportedly whined, "Humans are so annoying! I’m never going back to the human world."

This legend served both to illustrate the divine blood’s sacred power and to teach that worshipping any god other than Letina would bring disaster. No one actually believed it to be true, yet it was a story every Moore citizen grew up hearing.

"My name comes from that story," Yuan said.

Gillen didn’t seem particularly surprised and accepted it matter-of-factly.

"Yeah, I suspected it at first... but somehow, I figured you’d take your name from that legend."

Just as ordinary people were forbidden from using names like Letina, Moore, Blake, Garrett, or Winston, Yuan had to avoid certain names when he chose his own. Of course. How could a commoner dare use such sacred names?

Even the nobles rarely used the name "Yuan," knowing the temples would surely protest. Yet Yuan boldly went by Yuan. Criticism didn’t arise because—even though he didn’t have the light purple hair or jewel-like eyes of legend—he was still beautiful, magically gifted, and a hero capable of destroying an entire empire.

"Your parents must have had high expectations for you, giving you such an incredible name," Gillen said.

Yuan snorted.

"I lived without a name until I was five. I gave myself this name. Expectations? There weren’t any..."

Perhaps because he was drunk, words that normally would not have come out flowed freely from Yuan’s mouth.

"I was just property. Do you know what they used to call me? Gold Nugget. Not some cute nickname—literally gold. Something they could sell later for money."

"Hmmm..."

Is this really something I should be hearing? It seems tied to a dark past. If that’s the case, it’s not something you’d normally hear from someone drunk.

Gillen slowly rubbed Yuan’s back, lowering his voice and speaking gently to soothe him.

"I see... but now you’re Yuan. You have the surname Hampton too. You’re not just an object or property. You’re a living person. A hero of this empire. A very fine gentleman."

"Hmph. I know that. Still... I shouldn’t have used the name Yuan. It feels unlucky. Maybe even that old Marius took an interest in me because of my name. And so... I’ve kept regretting it..."

Yuan’s voice grew quieter and quieter, and his body slumped forward.

"Oh my."

Gillen quickly caught Yuan’s body, letting him lean back against the sofa. Yuan let out a moist little "Haa..." sigh, his lips slightly parted. 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

"Two drinks and you’ve already passed out."

I told him he was overdoing it.

"What kind of past did you have, Yuan? Someone this beautiful..."

Gillen looked at Yuan with a mixture of pity and curiosity. After all, to act like a twisted character in the original story, a dark past was almost a given.

"Still... considering all that, you grew up well."

He praised Yuan, already half-asleep, when suddenly a dense wave of pheromones hit him. No, it wasn’t just a scent—it felt like it was attacking every cell in his body.

"Ugh!"

Gillen covered his nose and mouth with one hand. It was Yuan’s pheromones. Perhaps he was too drunk to control them, or maybe the alcohol had overstimulated him, making the pheromones overflow.

"Ugh, Yuan! Get a hold of yourself... just for a moment!"

Normally subtle and hidden, Yuan’s pheromones were now spilling out completely unchecked, making Gillen’s skin tingle unbearably. Almost instantly, Gillen’s own pheromones began surging in response.

The difference from before was that this time, it wasn’t rut that had come. Moreover, Yuan was unconscious.

"Uh, no, wait a minute... ugh...!"

Gillen bent at the waist, an instinctive movement to cover his already aroused member.

"Hah... hah..."

Yuan’s pheromones wrapped around Gillen’s body like a snake. They coiled around his veins, seeped into every corner of his bones, and seemed to manipulate his nerves. Before he knew it, drool was running down Gillen’s mouth, and from his throbbing erection, watery precum dripped in beads, soaking his underwear unpleasantly.