Chapter 55: Heat, Mistake, and No Turning Back

Even though the weather was bitterly cold, his body only grew hotter. Moon Hae-min buried his head between his knees, trying to steady himself.

But it was useless. What good was calming his mind when his body had completely slipped beyond his control?

“Hah…”

Each shaky breath he exhaled carried traces of his scent. Catching it himself, Hae-min felt like crying. It would already be troublesome to go into rut in his own quarters, what kind of situation was this, collapsing like this in someone else’s garden?

He couldn’t even begin to guess where things had gone wrong.

“Moon Hee-yul!”

A thunderous voice called out. Startled, Hae-min lifted his head. Through his blurred vision, a dark figure approached, it was Song Seol.

“What is the meaning of this?”

The restrained anger in his voice made Hae-min realize the gravity of the situation. It had already been bad, but now it was truly serious.

“M-my apologies… I have brought shame upon Your Highness…”

“I didn’t ask for excuses.”

Growling, Song Seol forcibly pulled him to his feet. Normally, such contact would mean nothing, but now, his overly sensitive body reacted to even that.

“Ah-!”

A sharp gasp escaped him. Song Seol must have heard it, otherwise, he wouldn’t have suddenly stopped.

“Moon Hee-yul.”

“…”

“Is it your rut?”

Hae-min gave a tiny nod. He felt ashamed, embarrassed, and utterly hopeless. If he could, he would crawl into a hole and disappear.

“Did you not take the suppressants I gave you on time?”

He had been so diligent about taking them, and yet Song Seol clearly couldn’t understand the situation either.

“I-I did take suppressants. But… not the ones you gave me.”

“You took something bought on the street?”

“…Yes.”

“You should have asked me. I would have summoned Physician Kim.”

“…”

“No… even common suppressants wouldn’t cause side effects like this. What exactly did you take?”

Song Seol grabbed him firmly, his large hand running over his body as if checking him. Hae-min trembled helplessly.

“Stay still. I need to see what you took.”

“I-I can take them out myself-”

“Here?”

Before he knew it, Song Seol’s hand slipped into his clothes. Hae-min let out a small cry. Even through the fabric, the touch only fueled the heat inside him.

Fortunately, or perhaps frustratingly, the hand soon withdrew, holding a small paper packet.

“This is…”

Song Seol unwrapped it, revealing a few remaining pills. He brought them to his nose and lightly sniffed.

“I’m no expert in medicine, so I can’t identify it just by looking. But judging by your condition, this is no ordinary suppressant.”

“Yes…”

“Moon Hee-yul… could this be an aphrodisiac?”

“What?!”

“What else would cause arousal like this?”

The word made Hae-min flush deeply, even though he had already thought the same himself.

“No matter how ineffective a suppressant is, it wouldn’t cause this. It’s most reasonable to assume you took the wrong thing.”

“B-but… how…?”

“I don’t know how it happened. We can figure that out later. For now, we deal with what’s urgent.”

Song Seol’s dark gaze swept over him, heavy and deliberate. It felt as though he were physically touching him again, and Hae-min shuddered.

“I-I can handle it myself-”

“Oh? Even in this state, you think you can manage your desire alone? Impressive.”

Song Seol’s voice dripped with sarcasm. Hae-min only meant to avoid causing trouble, but clearly that wasn’t how it was taken.

‘It must be because I’ve already damaged his dignity…’

He had no right to feel wronged. Closing his eyes tightly, Hae-min tried desperately to suppress the rising heat, but what hadn’t worked before wouldn’t suddenly start working now.

“What is going on here?”

A shocked voice rang out, Yoon Seung-hyeok. Hae-min couldn’t bring himself to look. But even through his closed eyes, he sensed a shadow fall over him.

Carefully opening them, he saw Song Seol’s chest right in front of him. The man had stepped in, shielding him.

“There’s no need to explain. You can guess the situation. This is unfortunate, but we must take our leave.”

“…Understood.”

Hae-min felt even more miserable. Seung-hyeok, being an alpha, would surely sense everything, his condition, his scent, all of it.

“O-or would you like to borrow a room?”

Seung-hyeok offered kindly, but Hae-min felt nothing but shame. If possible, he wanted to vanish from existence altogether.

“What will you do, Hee-yul?”

Song Seol left the choice to him. Hae-min shook his head immediately. There was no way he could do such a thing in someone else’s home.

“I see.”

His voice dropped low again, this time, it sent a chill down Hae-min’s spine. Before he could process why, Song Seol grabbed his arm.

“…!”

Then he lowered his head.

Warm lips pressed against his.

Only when a tongue slipped between his lips did Hae-min realize…

Song Seol was kissing him.

It was his first kiss.

“Mmh-!”

Instinctively, he tried to push him away. But the moment their tongues touched, a sharp shiver ran down his spine. It was a different kind of pleasure from anything he had felt before.

Panic surged.

At this rate, he would truly lose control here.

He pushed at Song Seol, but the man didn’t budge. Instead, he pulled Hae-min tightly into his arms.

“Hng…!”

A thick tongue moved freely inside his mouth, brushing his teeth, drawing in his tongue, even biting his lips lightly. It felt as though Song Seol was exploring every corner.

At some point, the scent of winter wind filled the air. But Hae-min knew, it wasn’t truly the wind.

The more he breathed in that alpha scent, the more his reason dissolved. The thought that this was wrong faded away entirely.

His arms wrapped around Song Seol’s neck.

And in the end, he accepted the kiss.

“Ah… haa…”

He began to suck on Song Seol’s tongue. It was slick, slightly rough, soft yet firm.

It even tasted faintly sweet.

That couldn’t be real, and yet he kept tasting it again and again.

Before long, it was no longer Song Seol leading. Hae-min was the one moving, licking, nibbling, exploring without restraint. Song Seol accepted it all, gently stroking his hair.

“…Hah.”

After some time, Song Seol finally pulled away. Hae-min looked up at him with flushed, dazed eyes.

It wasn’t enough. He wanted more.

“To think… we must leave now.”

His voice was still low, but this time, it didn’t feel frightening.

“Let’s discuss the rest another time.”

Suddenly, Hae-min was lifted into the air. Song Seol carried him in his arms. Nestled there, Hae-min could only breathe shakily.

“Yes… please go safely…”

“I will formally apologize for this discourtesy later.”

“N-no, it’s alright. I understand… please don’t worry.”

As they left the garden, Hae-min caught a glimpse of Seung-hyeok’s stunned expression, as if he had just witnessed something unbelievable.

Under normal circumstances, Hae-min would have been mortified.

But now, he had no such luxury.

All he felt was burning desire.

****

Song Seol hurriedly mounted the horse with Hae-min in his arms. With a sharp pull of the reins, they rode out through the gates.

They had arrived on two horses, but now left on one. How things had come to this… there was no point dwelling on it.

Hae-min shifted slightly in Song Seol’s embrace. The hold felt both uncomfortable and strangely secure.

Contradictory, just like everything else.

He had sworn never to become involved with Song Seol, yet here he was, undone by a single episode of heat. Perhaps it was the strange pills, but regardless of the cause, this was the result.

‘I actually tangled tongues with Song Seol…’

The cold wind seemed to clear his head a little. Shame welled up, but so did a small sense of relief.

At least… a kiss alone wouldn’t lead to a child.

The worst-case scenario hadn’t happened.

If he could just regain his senses now… and avoid making any further mistakes.

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