Rejected by Daughter’s Second Male Lead Chapter 9

“If you need any help—”

“Don’t cross the line. It’s my problem.”

Anyone would think I was trying to extort money or something. At Yuan’s sharp response, Gillen let out a hollow laugh and stood up.

“Alright, well… I hope you get proper treatment. I’ll be going.”

Gillen gave a light nod and left Yuan’s room. He could feel the stinging gaze and pheromones pricking the back of his head, but he didn’t flinch or look back.

“Phew…”

He had told Cecilia and Hexion he’d return to the dining hall soon, but instead of heading downstairs, he went to his own room. He firmly believed the two would have a good time without needing alcohol’s help, and besides…

“This is really awkward.”

Whether it was due to brief exposure to overly strong pheromones or because it had been a while since he’d encountered another’s pheromones, his lower body was half-erect.

Of course, it wasn’t to the extent of an omega’s pheromones, which could send an alpha into a state of extreme arousal. The reason Yuan had released pheromones earlier was far from seduction. If anything, it was more accurate to say his pheromone control faltered during a panic episode.

‘Even so, getting aroused by another dominant alpha’s pheromones? What’s wrong with me?’

Gillen pressed down on his increasingly stiff lower half and hurriedly entered the bathroom attached to his room. As he pulled down his pants and underwear, a massive erection sprang free.

“Why are you acting like this? Huh?”

Gillen muttered, looking down at his member. Was it because he’d held back for too long? Or was it some kind of illness? A pheromone issue, perhaps? All sorts of questions cluttered his mind, but he concluded that he needed to deal with this first.

He roughly stroked himself up and down. His skin still tingled, and the citrusy scent lingered at the tip of his nose.

‘At this rate, I can’t even argue if I get called a pervert.’

Gillen bit his lip and moved his hand faster. Since he’d gotten aroused by pheromones, the best course was to finish quickly and be done with it.

*

His mind, clouded by pheromones, cleared after release. Having masturbated almost as if detoxing, Gillen took a leisurely bath while thinking.

‘That earlier seemed like a panic attack… Why did that crazy guy suddenly have one?’

The most likely trigger was being unable to move freely. Gillen’s half-joking act of wrapping Yuan tightly in the blanket had touched something in his subconscious while he was drunk.

Should I apologize? Gillen rubbed his face with an uneasy expression. Even if it wasn’t intentional, he had caused Yuan significant distress. Though it wasn’t entirely unintentional either.

Gillen stood up from the bathtub. Water cascaded down his sturdy physique. He roughly dried himself with a towel, changed into comfortable indoor clothes, and left the bathroom. But…

“Gah, you scared me!”

In the dimly lit corner of the bedroom, on a single-seater sofa, sat a silver-haired handsome man.

“H-Hampton?”

“You take awfully long baths, Duke Blake.”

Has this guy decided to drop all formalities with me? Not even “Duke” or “Your Grace,” just plain “Duke”? thought the forty-five-year-old man, seasoned by twenty years in a hierarchical society.

As if reading his thoughts, Yuan gave a mocking smile.

“You secretly carry a drunk person to their room, try to suffocate them with blankets and pillows, and take the chance to molest them. Am I supposed to keep calling you ‘sir’?”

“Molest? I was trying to help you! And I didn’t carry you secretly! I did it openly!”

“Oh, so you admit you openly took me to a room.”

“Did I take you to my room? I brought you to your room! What’s wrong with your head? It’s not like I’m possessed by some lust demon.”

“Lust demon? What’s that? Are you saying I’m possessed by an evil spirit?”

Yuan asked with a serious expression.

Gillen forgot—this world actually had people possessed by evil spirits, with priests going around performing exorcisms. With divine powers that could heal the injured in a second and gods delivering oracles directly, evil spirits were a given.

“No, it’s just a figure of speech. I meant your thoughts are too perverse.”

Gillen quickly clarified. Yuan scoffed.

“More perverse than a duke who got aroused by my pheromones and went to the bathroom to masturbate?”

“…”

How did he know? Did he hear everything? Gillen’s face flushed red.

Seeing the uncharacteristic blush on Gillen’s cheeks, Yuan gave a strange look. But only briefly—he stood up from the sofa.

“This room has traditionally been used by the lord’s wife. Not only is it connected by a door, but the walls are thin too. I could hear the sound of water dripping in the bathroom, so how could I not hear those blatant noises?”

Then you should’ve told me earlier, you jerk!

Gillen’s face grew hotter with the humiliation of being caught masturbating by someone young enough to be his son. Getting aroused by another alpha’s pheromones was an unspeakably embarrassing matter.

“It’s… it’s definitely some kind of problem. We’re both dominant alphas, aren’t we? It’s probably some medical reason, like a clash of overly strong pheromones! You think I did it because I enjoyed it? I wasn’t aroused by your pheromones. If it was offensive, I’m sorry, but—”

“Yes, it was very offensive. It woke me up from my drunken state.”

“Ahem…”

This time, Gillen was truly at a loss for words. As he quietly shut his mouth, Yuan ran a hand through his hair and said.

“If you keep what you saw in my room a secret, I’ll keep quiet about this too.”

“Really?”

Gillen was genuinely surprised. He had expected Yuan to say something like, “I recorded your masturbation sounds in a magical projection orb, and by tomorrow, the entire empire will know Duke Blake’s sordid nature.”

“I’m not so shameless as to lie like some people.”

His words had a knack for being infuriating, but the content was generous, so Gillen nodded.

“I won’t tell anyone. And I’ll apologize again. Even if pheromones can cloud one’s reason, I shouldn’t have done that. It’s understandable that you’d be offended. I’m sorry.”

“…Well, I know how troublesome pheromones can be.”

Yuan said curtly and turned away. He approached the door connecting to the lord’s room.

Then Gillen called out to him.

“By the way, Hampton, are you really okay?”

“What are you talking about?”

“That panic attack earlier. If you’re keeping it a secret, it sounds like you’ve never gotten treatment for it.”

Yuan’s eyes wavered. But he soon cut Gillen off coldly and firmly.

“Mind your own business, Duke Blake.”

With that, Yuan entered his room. Gillen stood still for a moment. As Yuan had said, sounds from the next room were as clear as if they were right beside him.

‘This is driving me crazy.’

Gillen lay on the bed, covering his face with one hand, letting out a silent scream.

He’d often heard stories of friends getting caught masturbating during puberty, but he’d never heard of anyone over forty enduring such humiliation.

At least Yuan, whose face was still flushed from alcohol, had offered to keep it a secret first. If he hadn’t, Gillen might have fled the empire out of shame.

‘By the way… there’s definitely something going on.’

In the original story, there were no scenes of Yuan struggling to breathe or suffering. But for him to trade silence for something as compromising as Gillen’s masturbation meant what Gillen saw was a significant secret to Yuan.

“…Mind my own business.”

Gillen muttered but stopped himself. Yuan, in the next room, would likely hear even that. He carefully slipped into bed under the covers.

He didn’t want to know Yuan’s secrets. He didn’t want to get any closer to him. Right now, he just wanted to fall asleep quickly.

*

The night passed without incident, and Gillen’s party left the lord’s castle for the Blake family’s villa. True to his word, Yuan didn’t mention Gillen’s incident to anyone, and Gillen did the same.

The early summer vacation flowed pleasantly. Capelli Island’s sea was clear and vibrant blue. Nobles in summer suits and dresses dipped their feet or swam in the water. Since there were no proper swimsuits, everyone wore lightweight casual clothes to enjoy the sea.

Gillen’s party was no exception. Cecilia, in a dark green summer dress, jumped into the sea without caring if her clothes got wet. Hexion, worried she might get hurt, followed her anxiously, while Yuan stood at a distance, casting a waterproof spell around Cecilia.

Gillen sat in a small tent set up by the servants, playing chess with his aide.

“Not going for a swim?”

“There’s no swimsuit, and I can’t exactly strip. What’s the fun in swimming like that?”

“Sometimes Your Grace says things that sound a bit perverted.”

The word “perverted” instantly brought last night’s events to mind. Gillen cleared his throat and moved a chess piece.

“No respect for your superior, huh?”

Nabard chuckled softly at Gillen’s reprimand. Just then, Yuan entered the tent.