I Give Up on the BL Novel's Male Leads - Chapter 109
Edwin watched the person in front of him passionately defending him, and he became more convinced that this must be Illenas.
Why else would she offer to drink truth serum? It had to be Illenas, disguised by magic to stand in for Illein once again.
Yes, that must be it. That’s why she was going to such lengths for him.
If it was Illein, Illein wouldn’t have gone this far. With that thought, Edwin carefully observed Illenas and he noticed many small details.
The eyes reddened with unshed tears, the small hands clenched tightly, and the way she pressed her lips together to keep from crying.
All of this strangely tugged at his heart. Why was Illenas, someone who wasn’t even directly involved, standing up for him so fiercely?
Looking at Illenas, Edwin couldn’t help but worry. He feared she might end up like so many others who had crossed Rodein, disappearing quietly without a trace.
So Edwin decided it was time for him to step in and put an end to this.
“Ha, enough! Rodein, I’ll go to the police station.”
He stepped forward, even though it wasn’t what he wanted.
After all, he had already been falsely accused once—what difference would a second time make?
Edwin resolved to bear it all himself.
“Edwin! Don’t talk nonsense!”
But Illenas wasn’t willing to let it go and yelled in protest.
She didn’t even understand why she was so angry, only that she didn’t want him to do this.
“You’re doing this because of me, aren’t you?”
“What?”
“You’re worried I might get hurt, aren’t you? Don’t. Don’t do this.”
Illenas unknowingly spoke to Edwin in the same way Illein would have.
She couldn’t bear to see Edwin walk into the fire for her.
“Hmph, don’t flatter yourself. This has nothing to do with you.”
At that moment, Edwin knew he was right.
This had to be Illenas. And so, his response turned even colder.
Rodein, watching silently until their conversation ended, let a sly smile creep onto his face.
Seeing Edwin willingly step forward and bow down was satisfying enough to wash away all his irritation.
Despite trying not to show it, the feeling of victory was hard to suppress.
Rodein’s goal had always been to drag Edwin to the police for questioning.
Now that things were going his way, he spoke with a much more relaxed expression.
“That’s a wise decision, Brother. If only you had agreed earlier. Let’s go then! For the sake of appearances, I won’t have you formally detained.”
With a gesture from Rodein, the police officers who had paused earlier began approaching Edwin, wands raised.
“Hold on a moment.”
Though no one had spoken up until now, it wasn’t because they were oblivious to the situation.
Everyone could see that Edwin was stepping forward to protect Illein.
Finally, a few students, who had been quietly watching the tension unfold, decided to act.
“That’s right, Your Highness.”
Those who supported Edwin could no longer stay silent.
“Wouldn’t it be better to wait for the truth serum before taking any rash actions?”
In the imperial family’s power struggles, once one side became the victor, the defeated often suffered severe consequences.
Hearing this, the irritation that had briefly faded for Rodein began to resurface.
“Are you all ignoring me now?”
He scowled, glaring at the students who dared to speak up. His voice rose in frustration. But just as he was about to shout—
– Rumble! Crack! Boom!
Suddenly, a deafening crash echoed through the classroom, followed by a lightning strike that hit out of nowhere.
“What in the world?!”
Unable to contain herself, Illein had unleashed a lightning spell.
– Sizzle…
The entire class fell into dead silence after the lightning strike. The fact that Illein had cast such a spell—a power not just anyone could use—left everyone in shock.
As the room remained still, Illein issued a trembling warning while on the verge of tears.
“Wait for the truth serum to arrive! No one moves until then!”
Rodein was taken aback.
When Illein first claimed she had learned lightning magic, he hadn’t believed it for a second.
Lightning magic didn’t belong to any of the four elemental attributes, so mastering it in just one day was simply impossible.
That was the understanding Rodein had always known to be true. But now, faced with this unexpected turn of events, he found himself at a loss.
“Ha, ha.”
Rodein let out a disbelieving laugh. Could things get any more absurd?
As soon as the lightning disappeared, heavy rain began pouring down.
– Ssshhh!
“Oh…! I’m sorry.”
Illein, who had acted impulsively in the heat of her emotions, began to calm down as the rain started. She quickly looked around, noticing that everyone was now soaked because of her outburst.
Feeling embarrassed, her natural shyness kicked in, and her face flushed with redness. She hastily lowered her head in apology, waving her wand to dispel the lightning magic she had unleashed.
– Murmur.
The students who had witnessed the scene reacted no differently from Rodein. If anything, their shock was even greater.
Given the quiet, reserved persona Illein had always displayed, it was difficult for them to believe what they had just seen.
