Leave the Villainous Second Male Lead Alone - Chapter 4.10

Though he seemed resigned, Cliff still stood firm, his expression stern and his principles unwavering. Callisto’s face puckered into a pout, and he began muttering under his breath.

On his now slender, grown-up face, I could still see glimpses of the young Callisto. Back then, when the child had first started sneaking into my bedroom, Cliff had firmly opposed it, insisting that Callisto sleep separately. But after Callisto kept slipping into my room night after night, Cliff eventually threw up his hands in defeat.

Truthfully, Cliff had always been weak against Callisto’s charm. How could anyone not be, when faced with such an adorable child?

Amused, I watched the scene unfold. Callisto finally raised his voice in frustration.

“Then where am I supposed to sleep?” he exclaimed. “Are you kidding me? Am I supposed to sleep in the guest bedroom? Why am I a guest? I don’t want to!”

“What do you mean, Your Highness? Isn’t there a room right across from the young master’s bedroom?” Cliff responded calmly.

“I hardly ever slept in that room, even when I was young,” Callisto grumbled.

“Well, from now on, you can start.”

“Ah, seriously… Cliff!”

“Yes, Your Majesty. Do you have anything more to say?” Cliff replied nonchalantly.

Callisto’s cheeks flushed red as he glared at the butler. I couldn’t hold back anymore and burst out laughing. Callisto turned toward me, his expression one of sorrowful betrayal.

“My younger sibling said they want to sleep with their older sibling they haven’t seen in a while!” he protested.

Cliff, unmoved, calmly replied, “Isn’t he no longer your younger sibling?”

“…What?”

Cliff continued without missing a beat, “Isn’t he your fiancé?”

A brief silence fell over the room.

Though the engagement ceremony hadn’t been officially held yet, Callisto had already declared his intent to marry me in front of the empire’s citizens and nobles, receiving the emperor’s permission. Outside this mansion, everyone regarded me as the Second Imperial Princess.

The weight of my new status struck me anew. I glanced at Callisto, who was uncharacteristically silent, his cheeks and earlobes tinged with pink.

Callisto cleared his throat, bringing a clenched fist to his mouth.

“…Well, that’s true. Cliff is right.”

Suddenly, his mood lifted, and he smiled mischievously. He draped an arm over Cliff’s shoulder, patting it lightly.

“Cliff, you should start taking it easy now that you’re getting older. You need to take care of your health, too…”

“Don’t worry, I’ll still be around until your daughter and son are born,” Cliff replied, his tone serious.

“Daughter? Son?” Callisto blinked in surprise. “Cliff, you’re saying nice things today. I do like the idea of a daughter, though…”

“I’ve left the room empty for a long time, so it will need tidying. We also need to pick out new bedding. Would you like to come along to choose it?”

“Uh-huh. Should I?” Callisto’s grin widened.

The two began whispering to each other conspiratorially. With his arm still slung around Cliff’s shoulder, Callisto walked out of the room.

Left alone, I stared blankly at their retreating figures. They had been bickering just moments ago, but now they seemed like old friends.

And so, Callisto gave up on sleeping in my room and retreated to the bedroom across the hall. For the first time in 13 years, Callisto’s bedroom would actually be used.

I lay down on my bed, but sleep didn’t come. Ever since receiving the alpha manifestation stimulant, my body had been so weakened that I would collapse into sleep as soon as night fell. Yet, tonight was different.

Outside the window, a waning gibbous moon hung in the sky, its edges slightly worn. The moonlight poured through the white curtains, bathing the room in a soft glow.

Suddenly, the night Callisto returned flashed through my mind.

At the time, I thought it had been a dream. When I woke up, there had been no trace of Callisto, and no one else had seen him either. But it hadn’t been a dream—Callisto had returned to me as soon as he entered the empire.

Thinking back further, I remembered the night 13-year-old Callisto left the Winyates mansion.

The memory haunted me for years. Knowing that such a young child had been forced to leave home just to survive was like a trauma I couldn’t shake. If Callisto had perished, I doubted I could have gone on living a normal life. My only comfort back then was the knowledge that he was the protagonist of the “story.”

Everything had followed the original plot. Callisto survived, returned alive, and became the crown prince.

But in this timeline, things had changed. He wasn’t recognized as the leader of a rebellion but as the officially acknowledged Second Prince. And now, he was my fiancé.

“When did he grow up so much…” I murmured to myself. “Why is time passing so quickly? What kind of engagement is this with a kid… awkwardly?”

Tossing and turning, I found myself blaming time itself for this strange, unshakable feeling.

Since earlier, my chest had felt ticklish, as though butterflies were fluttering inside me. My face burned, and my stomach churned with a strange unease. It felt as though something was stuck inside me, but I couldn’t pinpoint what.

The only thing that lingered in my mind was Callisto’s scent—sweet, vibrant, and floral. It was the first time an alpha’s pheromones hadn’t felt overwhelming or oppressive. Instead, his scent wrapped around me gently, like a warm, protective embrace.

Still, it was unfamiliar. The Callisto I had known had left the mansion before I could fully grasp the scent of his pheromones.

It was probably due to his alpha pheromones. Callisto was still lovable, but at the same time, unfamiliar. He no longer felt like the little baby who used to cry in my arms. It felt as if he had become someone else entirely.

My baby had grown into an Alpha. Now that he had come of age, it should have been Lawrence standing beside Callisto—the Alpha he had become—not me.

Perhaps that was why my stomach had been fluttering and churning since earlier. I must have felt sad and regretful. Even after he enlisted, I couldn’t fully let go of Callisto. But now, it really felt like it was time to finally let him go.

That must have been the reason.

The quiet night flowed on in silence. I tightly closed my eyes, trying to shake off the complicated thoughts. But I couldn’t stop the sudden ones that sprang to mind.

Has Callisto fallen asleep…?

At that moment, the bedroom door opened quietly.

I sensed someone approaching. Soon, a refreshing floral scent filled the room, wrapping around me gently and warmly, as though to protect me.

As if by magic, the tension in my body melted away. For some reason, my heart grew loose, and a sense of comfort overtook me. Drowsiness followed, and I kept my eyes closed, unable to fight it.

The overwhelming urge to sleep enveloped me as if I could drift off then and there.

He soon reached me. I felt the edge of the bed sink slightly.

“Hyung,” Callisto called softly.

I couldn’t respond. I was already half-asleep. I felt long fingers gently brushing against my cheek.

The once-delicate and soft fingertips had grown rough with calluses. The scars scattered across them flashed vividly in my mind.

“Are you okay?” Callisto asked.

I wanted to answer. But even opening my lips was a struggle. I exhaled faintly, unable to open my eyes.

I heard Callisto laugh softly near my ear. It was a refreshing and gentle sound, like the soft breaking of waves.

“Why are you pretending to sleep?” he teased. “You’re not sleeping.”

“…Ego.”

This wasn’t the first time I had fallen asleep next to Callisto. He must have known I was only half-asleep. Slowly, I forced my heavy eyelids open. I had been tossing and turning just moments ago, unable to sleep, but the moment I caught Callisto’s scent, my body had gone completely limp. I’d never heard of an Alpha’s pheromones having sleep-inducing properties.

Through my blurred vision, I saw Callisto.

His amber eyes, illuminated by the moonlight, shone beautifully. Though he had grown unbelievably mature, his eyes remained the same as before. Half-asleep, I weakly reached out and touched the area around his eyes.

The lightly double-lidded eyes, with their slightly upturned corners, looked so neat. His dense eyelashes, soft as down, brushed against my fingertips.

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