Help, I'm in Another World and All the Men Are So Hot! [BL]-Chapter 257: A Complicated Situation

They seemed highly capable, and in fact, they must have been competent since they held positions like house steward.

"Yes, that’s correct," the merchant confirmed. "It was judged that those two would never earn more than ten gold coins in their lifetime. No one would hire them again."

Damien started to speak, but then fell silent, realizing the gravity of the situation.

It made sense. They had likely been targeted because of the potential connections to the Castellani family.

"After all," the merchant added, "even we slave merchants refuse to purchase anyone connected to the Castellani family. When I said I was going to buy them, my colleagues thought I had lost my mind."

That... far exceeded anything Damien had expected.

"With that said, I’ll offer you a discount, so would you be willing to purchase them, Mr. Crowell?" the slave merchant said with a cheerful smile.

Damien was taken aback and stammered, "A-actually, I’m also connected to Theo... I meant from the Dalehaven family..."

"Oh, I am well aware of that," the slave merchant replied, still smiling brightly.

Damien realized that the merchant had already known. He returned the smile with a strained one of his own.

It was clear that he couldn’t make the decision on his own.

"I-I’ll go home and discuss it first," Damien said, feeling uneasy.

...

Once Damien returned to the mansion, the first thing he did was ask Sebas where Theo was. He was told that Theo was in his office, working, so Damien rushed to find him.

He briefly wondered if it was alright to interrupt him while he was working, but since Sebas had said it was fine, Damien assumed it would be okay.

"Theo, I messed up!" Damien called out as soon as he entered the office.

Theo looked up from his paperwork with a surprised expression. Then, upon seeing Damien holding Yor, who was kissing Damien’s face repeatedly, Theo was doubly shocked.

"Welcome back, Damien. It’s true, you’ve really messed up. I think that’s a bit much," Theo sai while teasing him as he watched Yor continue to kiss Damien.

"N-no, you see..." Damien stammered.

The truth was, while riding back in the carriage, as a reward for his efforts that day, he had been playfully kissing Lysander and Ithnan. Yor, who had been watching that scene, had apparently picked up on it... and seemed to have taken a liking to it. Once he started, he didn’t want to stop.

By the way, when Damien kissed Yor on the lips, Yor would shyly hide his face and squirm, which would make him stop for a while.

Damien wasn’t sure how to explain the situation, and he was fumbling with his words when Theo let out a laugh, clearly amused by the scene.

"Ahaha, I’m just kidding. I thought you went out to find some servants, but you came back with more members for your harem. I was a little surprised. But this one’s from the Rabbit Men, right? I’ve heard of them. How old is he, by the way?" Theo asked, his curiosity piqued.

"Age, huh..." Damien muttered to himself.

He moved closer to Theo and whispered quietly into his ear.

"...You’ve really messed up. I think that’s a bit too much," Theo said, this time in a serious tone.

"Well, I haven’t messed up yet..." Damien replied.

"Aha, I’m just kidding. Well, if they’re okay with it, then there’s no problem," Theo said, still teasing.

Damien sighed, relieved. His lover was still as tolerant of his flirtations as ever.

Wait, no, that wasn’t the issue.

"Ah, no, the reason I came here wasn’t about Yor," Damien corrected himself.

Noticing Damien’s serious expression, Theo’s face grew serious as well.

"Then shall we talk on the sofa over there?"

They both sat down on the sofa in the office, and Damien began to explain the situation regarding Isaac and the others.

It was definitely not the right time to talk while kissing, so he asked Yor to stop and move away.

Now, Yor was sitting beside him, looking a little dazed.

"I see..." Theo said, listening carefully.

"Sorry, I was being careless," Damien apologized.

There was a possibility that the slave merchant might have spread rumors that Damien was planning to buy Isaac and the others, intending to sell them to him.

After all, Damien had already met them, discussed the prices, and even talked about possibly purchasing them. The foundation for such rumors had already been laid.

Damien didn’t fully understand what would happen if such rumors spread, but he had a feeling it wouldn’t end well. It seemed like a topic that all the nobles knew about, and it probably wouldn’t lead to anything good.

"No, it’s my fault for not involving you in the political conversation, trying to keep you out of it," Theo said, his expression turned serious. "But what should we do now? Sebas?"

"Yes, young master. I believe this could actually be a good opportunity," Sebas replied. "The Crowell family’s position might actually work in our favor here."

Damien was surprised. While they were speaking seriously, their tone was different than what he had expected. He thought it would be more of a "What should we do?" conversation, but instead, it seemed like they were both rather pleased.

The world of the nobility was complicated, and Damien didn’t fully understand it.

"Uh, Theo, sorry, but I’m not really following what’s going on here..." Damien began, his confusion apparent. "But, just to confirm, the situation right now is bad, right?"

Theo and Sebas exchanged glances at Damien’s words.

"No, rather, it’s more like a blessing in disguise," Theo said. "For me, this situation has actually worked out in my favor."

"Uh...?" Damien replied, still unsure.

He was trying to buy someone that Theo, his lover, was angry with. Was this really a good situation?

"Let me explain the main issue," Theo began, letting out a wry smile. "I wasn’t planning on making this such a big deal."