Rejected by Daughter’s Second Male Lead Chapter 97

Gillen was neither a mage nor a priest. He couldn’t use magic or divine power, nor did he possess the great intellect of the original novel’s female protagonist, Cecilia.

However, thanks to the body’s owner, he did have a superb appearance, physique, physical strength, and the pheromones of a dominant alpha. He also had the advantage of knowing the contents of the original novel—let’s set aside the social skills and charm he had cultivated by schmoozing in this world for 20 years, as they seemed entirely useless at this moment.

In any case, the weapons Gillen now held seemed to be his large, sturdy physique, physical strength, pheromones, and information… but it would be impossible to escape this prison, which couldn’t even be handled by magic, with physical force. He did have the dagger he always carried tucked inside his clothes, but that too was useless in the current situation.

That left only his pheromones and information. Marius, being a beta, couldn’t feel them, but Yuan, a dominant alpha who was strangely sensitive to Gillen’s pheromones, might… First, he might be able to do something with his pheromones.

In fact, when you thought about it, pheromones were similar in nature to telepathic magic. Gillen focused his mind and looked at Yuan. Then, he released his pheromones, imbuing them with as much of his emotions as he could.

‘Calm down, Yuan. I’m okay. You’ll be okay too. So think calmly.’

Gillen repeated those words in his mind several times as he released his pheromones. And they definitely reached Yuan.

He could see Yuan flinch in surprise. He was reacting to the pheromones. His expression softened a degree from before. He must have properly sensed the intention in Gillen’s pheromones to comfort and calm him.

[I can’t use magic on Marius. A physical way to get you out is also out of reach for now. If you move, the situation will get worse.]

Yuan, having regained his composure, quietly sent a telepathic message to Gillen. Gillen responded with his pheromones. Though the response was only a conveyance of emotion, that alone was enough.

‘It’s okay.’

Gillen knew Marius’s ending in the original novel. Marius attempts a rebellion to found a holy kingdom, only to be severely injured by Cecilia’s strategy. For attempting a rebellion as a servant of God and shaking the faith of the empire’s citizens, the god Retina takes back Marius’s divine power. Marius, his divine power drained, shrivels up, turns to dust, and dies just like that.

The main flow of the original story doesn’t change easily, for the most part. Changes to supporting characters might not matter, but the core framework—the female lead regressing in time, succeeding in her revenge, falling in love with the male lead, and becoming the empress of the empire—was solid. This was also why Gillen had succeeded in separating Cecilia from the supporting male leads, but had ultimately failed to separate her from Hexion.

Marius was destined to fail. The conviction that came from knowing the original novel’s ending was contained in his pheromones, and those pheromones were powerfully transmitted to Yuan. Thanks to this, Yuan’s mind was also able to calm down with surprising speed.

“Are the two of you communicating with some kind of magic? Or is it pheromones?”

As Yuan and Gillen were quietly looking at each other for a while, Marius asked mockingly.

“As a beta, I feel left out. Even this trait was ordained by Lord Retina, but… I really can’t understand it.”

He tilted his head and cupped one cheek with his palm, feigning contemplation for a moment, then smiled brightly. At the same time, the prison confining Gillen glowed white.

“Gasp…!”

Gillen dropped to his knees amidst a splitting headache. He couldn’t breathe, and his vision momentarily went black before returning. From very far away, he thought he heard Yuan cry out, “Gillen!”

Is this what it feels like to have your life force drained…?

Gillen struggled to come to his senses. Fortunately, this terrible sensation did not last long. He opened his eyes wide and looked up at Marius. Marius was looking at Gillen with his usual benevolent smile.

“How was it, Duke Blake? Please tell Yuan what it felt like to have about five seconds of your lifespan stolen.”

Gillen was more surprised by how excruciating the pain of just five short seconds was than by the fact that his lifespan had been stolen. He couldn’t even imagine how much it would hurt if he were to have days, no, years of his life force absorbed. He even thought he might die instantly from the pain itself.

“You crazy bastard, stop it right now, won’t you?”

Yuan shouted, grinding his teeth. Sparks nearly flew from his eyes as he looked at Marius. He looked like he would burst into flames with rage and hatred at any moment. He literally looked ready to use fire magic. But he was barely holding back, knowing that if he used magic, Gillen would take the hit instead.

“What is it you want, specifically.”

Yuan asked as if whispering. The voice, spoken as if being chewed and spat out through his teeth, was quiet, and all the more frightening for it.

Marius smiled gently. He explained as if to a child who couldn’t understand.

“Starting today, Yuan will be bound here again by his own will. And you and I will resume that education we left off long ago. If you trust me, I can change Yuan’s magic into divine power.”

Yuan’s complexion turned pale. The method to turn magic into divine power was simple. From Marius’s perspective, of course. It was simply a repetitive cycle of torture and appeasement until one believed in God. Until a person’s spirit broke. A normal human would stop because of the torment, but for a madman like Marius, it was a very easy task.

Yuan clenched his jaw. Blood flowed down the back of his throat, leaving a metallic taste. His temper wanted to tear Marius to shreds. He felt pathetic and full of regret for only ever running away from Marius, making excuses like trying to become a nobleman, trying to pretend the past was nothing, trying not to antagonize the temple, and so on.

‘I should have killed him sooner…’

Yuan looked at Gillen. Trapped in the white, birdcage-like prison made of divine power, Gillen was slumped in the middle, still panting. Even so, he was continuously sending out pheromones meant to reassure Yuan, and thanks to that, Yuan was actually able to keep from losing his reason.

I can’t let that man get hurt.

Pheromones emanated from Yuan as well. They were pheromones born from an alpha’s instinct to protect his mate.

‘I will protect you.’

Gillen had clearly understood the meaning of those pheromones too. Because his gentle eyes had widened. He flinched and struggled to get up.

“Yuan, no. You can’t accept.”

Gillen’s voice was completely hoarse. The pain of just five seconds had ruined his throat. Yuan calmly walked toward Marius, one step at a time.

“Put the chains on me.”

He said. Marius’s face brightened. The chains wrapped around his body were very long, and it seemed he intended to bind both Yuan and himself together with them. He was truly a relentless man.

Marius approached Yuan, and Yuan also drew closer to Marius. Just as Yuan’s outstretched hands were about to touch the chains Marius held, Gillen shouted.

“For God’s sake, would you both stop this bullshit!”

Stop this bullshit!

Stop this…!

This…!

…it!

Gillen’s roar echoed through prison cell 444. He stood up straight. Yuan could feel pheromones pouring out of him unrestrainedly.

“Ugh…”

Yuan clutched at his chest and staggered. An enormous wave of anger, worry, and helplessness crashed over Yuan’s heart. It was Gillen’s emotions.

“Yuan? What’s wrong all of a sudden?”

Only Marius, unable to feel pheromones and unaware of what had happened, was startled and supported Yuan. But even as he supported him, the chains moved from his hand to his other. He was trying to bind Yuan even in the middle of this.

“Marius!”

Gillen shouted from his diaphragm. Marius stopped what he was doing and turned to look at Gillen.

“Do you intend to establish a holy kingdom after all?”

This time, it was Marius’s turn to be surprised. That was a plan he had never once spoken of aloud, and it was an idea that had been put on hold for the time being as his goal had narrowed to getting Yuan back a while ago.

“How… does the Duke know that?”

He couldn’t read minds, he didn’t have divine power, and he wouldn’t have received a revelation from God… There, Marius’s train of thought came to a dead stop.

“Could it be… you received a revelation from Lord Retina?”

“Th-That’s right!”

Although he stuttered for a moment, Gillen answered with dignity.

“The great Lord Retina appeared in my dream and told me. That you are trying to use Yuan to establish a holy kingdom, and because of that, the faith of the Moore Empire will be shaken to its very roots!”

Gillen raised both arms as if delivering an oration. He shot a piercing gaze at Marius.

“If you take Yuan now, you will lose your divine power and meet your death. I declare it.”

As he said this, Gillen unleashed his pheromones at Marius. It was a shower of pheromones that would be useless against a beta, but if one were to be hit by this level of pheromones, even a non-trait holder would feel a chilling threat on an instinctual level.

“What in the world is this, how…!”

And Marius, accustomed to thinking in religious terms, would have no choice but to connect this threat to the god Retina and understand it that way.

“W-Wait here for a moment, Yuan.”

Marius, as if he couldn’t breathe, trembled and quickly exited the prison. The door closed, and only Yuan and Gillen were left in the room.