I Give Up on the BL Novel's Male Leads - Chapter 108
Edwin was clearly caught off guard by Illein’s sudden intervention.
“What? What are you talking about?”
At the same time, Rodein shouted in frustration.
“Forget that for a moment—why were you two together in the early hours of the morning?”
Rodein was extremely irritated by the situation. His already frazzled nerves were further aggravated by the fact that Illein and Edwin had been alone together at dawn.
It also deeply unsettled him that Illein was taking Edwin’s side.
Normally, Rodein wouldn’t have shown such overt emotion, but he couldn’t contain himself this time.
His anger boiling over, Rodein glared at Illein with a flushed face.
“I’ll explain again. We were practicing lightning magic…”
“Lightning? Who could possibly teach that? Lightning magic isn’t something just anyone can learn. Stop spouting nonsense! If you confuse the investigation, you could also be charged with obstructing justice.”
A surge of bitter emotion swelled in Rodein’s chest. He instantly realized that his anger wasn’t solely due to the current situation.
The jealousy he had felt as a child, which he thought he had outgrown when Edwin became the first prince, was now flooding back.
Why were Illein and Edwin together in the early hours? Why had Illein even met with Edwin in the first place?
According to Rodein’s original plan, Illein should have attacked Edwin by now. But his plan had been completely thrown into disarray.
He struggled to accept the reality that his previous attempts to manipulate Illein had failed.
If things had gone as Rodein intended, Illein would have been left in disgrace while Edwin, not Rodein, would have been suffering from wounds.
Where did things go wrong? Perhaps the magic Rodein had cast on Illein weakened due to his own injuries.
Or so he wanted to believe. If not, it would mean Illein either dispelled the magic on her own or Edwin did it for her, and Rodein didn’t want to accept that.
The idea that Illein might be more capable than Rodein had anticipated was unsettling to him… as it meant his own mistake. On the other hand, if Edwin was involved, Rodein found that equally unacceptable.
“It’s the truth!”
Rodein’s anger was intense, and Illein, who had initially stepped forward bravely, now felt intimidated by his forceful presence.
Trying to hold herself together despite her trembling body, Illein struggled to face Rodein’s pressure.
Her courage stemmed not only from not liking the false accusations Edwin might face but also from the fact that Edwin’s kindness toward her had been genuine.
“Hmph! Is there anyone here who doesn’t know you’re close with him? Even so, there’s a proper way to take someone’s side!”
Rodein’s escalating anger put immense pressure on Illein.
Despite her pale complexion and sweat-soaked face, Illein refused to back down. She stared resolutely at Rodein’s menacing gaze. Her determination makes her appear both pitiful and admirable to onlookers.
“Hey.”
Unable to watch Illein’s distress any longer, Edwin tried to intervene.
“Edwin, stay out of this!”
Illein immediately blocked him from speaking and went a step further.
“Police!”
“What?”
“Give me the truth serum immediately! I will testify that I was with Edwin! And if Edwin is not the culprit, how will you, Second Prince, take responsibility?”
“Indeed. Second Prince, if you’ve wrongfully accused an innocent person, shouldn’t you also make some kind of pledge?”
At this moment, Damon, who had initially been too shocked to act, stepped forward. His intervention forced Rodein to not ignore Illein’s request.
“If not, then I’ll kneel and apologize. Will that suffice?”
Rodein reluctantly agreed to take responsibility for the situation. However, his response was directed more at Illein than at Damon or Edwin.
Rodein then gestured to the police.
“Oh, no…!”
The police hastily searched their belongings, looking at each other in confusion, their eyes blinking in bewilderment.
“What’s going on?”
Rodein frowned and asked, clearly displeased with the police’ actions.
“We don’t have any on hand right now. Due to recent issues with obtaining truth serums, we weren’t able to carry any. We’ll go to the headquarters immediately to get some.”
The police hadn’t anticipated the situation escalating to this extent. Normally, it was a strict rule for police to carry truth serums when dispatched.
However, this time was different. Since the person in charge at the police department was affiliated with the Empress, the police had been sent out with a sense of obligation rather than preparation, and they hadn’t brought the truth serum.
As a result, everyone was now in a very awkward position.
Edwin, who had been quietly observing this farce, felt a strange unease.
