Help, I'm in Another World and All the Men Are Are So Dangerous! [BL]-Chapter 248: Clingy Obsession

A thin trickle of blood dripped from Sylas’s nose.

"Big Brother?!"

He yelped in alarm, but Sylas seemed completely unresponsive.

Muttering something under his breath, he collapsed backward, as if he had just been shot.

It looked serious.

Rocco immediately leaped from his father’s lap and pressed his ear close to Sylas’s lips.

At least let me hear your final words...

Sniff, sniff... Don’t die, Big Brother...!

"...That... actually doesn’t sound bad."

"BIG BROTHERRR!"

Sylas had ascended with the most peaceful expression imaginable.

With a dramatic wail, Rocco clung to his lifeless body.

Some Time Later...

Once again, Rocco had invited his friend Laxus over to his estate.

At this point, he had lost count of how many times they had played together.

Every time they met, Laxus seemed to become even more alluring.

Even as a child, he had always had an unusual air about him—almost too captivating for someone his age.

And now, as an 18 year old young man?

It was even more overwhelming.

His black hair remained as glossy as ever, and his crimson eyes held a deep, unreadable darkness that sent a shiver down Rocco’s spine whenever he looked into them.

In person, Laxus felt far more domineering than he had in the original story.

And he would likely only continue to grow more charismatic from here on out.

So, perhaps feeling a bit too comfortable around him, Rocco ended up casually mentioning the recent near-incest marriage fiasco.

Rocco had started talking as if it were just casual gossip between friends.

But the response he got back was far heavier than expected.

"...Rocco... are you really going to do it? Marry Sylas...?"

"Of course not! I couldn’t even if I wanted to!"

What Rocco wanted was some kind of sympathetic, "Ugh, that must have been awful! There, there."

Like a girls’ night kind of reaction.

Instead, Laxus responded like a heartbroken, sobbing mess—like some kind of clingy, mentally unstable boyfriend.

In the first place...

Why had he even chosen to vent about this to Laxus?

Even he wasn’t sure.

It wasn’t like Laxus was ever going to give a normal response to something like this.

But then again, Rocco didn’t exactly have anyone else to talk to about it.

When it came to someone outside of his family—someone he could freely unload all these bottled-up emotions onto—Laxus was the only person who came to mind.

As he fumbled with an uneven flower crown, Rocco let out a small hum.

Meanwhile, Laxus who is sitting beside him, was effortlessly weaving an intricately detailed crown that looked like something straight out of a store.

After a moment, Rocco muttered under his breath, almost to himself.

"...Maybe I’ve been relying on Laxus too much."

"Huh?! Rocco, you’ve been relying on me?! No way!"

Laxus’s reaction was instant.

His cheeks flushed bright red as he turned to Rocco with wide, sparkling eyes.

"No way, no way, I’m so happy...!"

He cradled his now-glowing face with his hands, looking for all the world like a maiden in love.

Rocco immediately averted his gaze.

Then, just as quietly, he let slip another thought.

"Maybe I should try making some more friends. Someone besides Laxus. And... maybe I should stop playing with Laxus for a while."

The atmosphere shifted in an instant.

"Rocco?!

A desperate, panicked voice cut through the air, making Rocco blink in surprise.

He turned back—

Only to find Laxus completely pale, as if all the blood had drained from his face.

The nearly-finished flower crown in his hands slipped through his fingers, landing silently on the ground.

Rocco tilted his head, brows furrowing.

"Oh no, you dropped it," he murmured, bending down to pick it up.

But the moment he lifted it—

Laxus grabbed his hand.

Tightly.

Rocco froze.

What was with this sudden intensity?

This was way too unexpected.

"R-R-Rocco...? W-What do you mean...?"

"Are you... throwing me away...?"

"Are you abandoning me and moving on to someone else?"

"Why? Why? Tell me why?"

Why, why, why?

Laxus repeated the question like a broken record.

There was something... unsettling about it.

It sent a chill down Rocco’s spine.

His instincts screamed that leaving Laxus in this state would be dangerous.

So, trying not to panic, he gave an honest answer.

"Because... I only ever think about you, Laxus."

"Whenever I want to play with someone, you’re the only one who comes to mind."

"That’s... bad, isn’t it? If this keeps up, one day I’ll just cling to you and never let go...!"

Rocco trembled slightly as he spoke.

And for some reason—

Laxus froze completely.

Mouth slightly open.

Expression completely blank.

That was...

kind of rare.

Tilting his head in confusion, Rocco continued.

"Being hugged forever would be annoying, right?"

"I don’t want you to hate me, Laxus... so I have to try my best to get some distance from you."

He puffed out his chest slightly, looking determined.

It wasn’t right for Rocco to be this dependent on Laxus—who was supposed to be "just a friend."

Friendships required boundaries.

He had read that in a book somewhere.

In his past life, he hadn’t had any friends at all, so things like personal space and emotional distance were still a bit hard to grasp.

But Laxus was the first person—across both of his lives—that he had ever grown truly close to.

And because of that, Rocco didn’t want to be hated.

He didn’t want to become so dependent that it pushed Laxus away.

So of course, it was normal to hesitate like this, right?

"Ugh... I don’t wanna be apart from Laxus..."

He had tried to declare it confidently—

"I’ll put some distance between us!"—

But the moment his guard slipped, his true feelings slipped out.

Flustered, he clamped his mouth shut.

Had Laxus heard that...?

Nervously, he shot him a sideways glance.

Laxus was trembling, his head down, completely silent.

No reaction.

Did that mean he hadn’t heard?

Relieved, Rocco let out a breath—

But then—

Laxus’s head snapped up.

"Wh-what?! What is it?!

Wait.

Did he actually hear that just now—?!