Please get me out of this BL novel...I'm straight! novel Chapter 582

"No."

The word hit the air like a hammer.

Florian froze for a split second, disbelief flashing across his face before the frustration burst out of him.

His palms slammed down against the polished wood of Heinz's desk, the sharp sound echoing through the room.

"What?" he demanded, his voice rising. His chest tightened with anger and something far more painful beneath it.

Heinz's brows furrowed in surprise. "Florian, why are you upset? This isn't a matter we should even be talking about right now."

'Is he joking?' Florian's thoughts were sharp, burning. 'How could he not know why I'm upset?'

"You were aware of this before," Heinz continued, confusion creeping into his tone. "You seemed fine with it, I just—"

"That was before there was imminent danger after me!"

Heinz's voice rose slightly, frustration slipping into it. "There's always been imminent danger after you!"

"Exactly!" Florian shot back, his voice trembling—not from fear, but from fury barely held back. "There's always danger, but at least when I'm outside, I can do something about it instead of waiting here like some helpless—"

He stopped himself, teeth clenching as he glared at the king across from him.

Heinz sighed heavily, leaning back in his chair, one hand dragging through his hair as though he could physically scrape the exhaustion off himself. His eyes softened, but it didn't help.

"Florian, you need to understand." His tone was quiet now—too quiet, too careful. "I am willing to let you do anything right now except leave a place where you're safe."

He spoke like a man trying to reason with a storm.

"Before, your being their target was only a theory," Heinz went on, his expression tightening. "Now we've confirmed there are multiple people after you. Hendrix, the so-called savior, Charles, and that dragon. I will not let you walk into danger."

Florian laughed bitterly, shaking his head. His voice lowered, but the venom in it only grew sharper.

"And you actually think I'm safer here?"

Heinz blinked. "Of course. We have guards, Azure—"

"The guards that are dead?" Florian cut in. "The guards who have failed me every single time?" His voice trembled now, cracking at the edges. "Heinz, do you even hear yourself?"

He took a shaky breath, forcing himself to stand straighter. His eyes gleamed—not just with anger now, but something colder, something resolute.

"I am not safer here than I am out there," he said quietly, every word deliberate. "Because everyone expects me to just be here. To stay put like a possession."

He took a step back, his hands tightening into fists at his sides.

"I might actually be safer while you figure out this mess," Florian continued, his tone low but unwavering, "while I'm at Celestial Peak."

For the first time, Heinz didn't respond.

He just stared—his eyes shadowed, lips drawn tight, the muscles in his jaw twitching as if he was holding himself together by sheer force. His silence was heavy, suffocating.

The air between them felt thick, almost fragile, like if either of them breathed too loudly, it would shatter.

Florian straightened, crossing his arms tightly against his chest. The movement was sharp, defensive—a shield against the ache crawling up his throat.

"And that's just it, isn't it?" His voice was calm, but underneath it was a tremor of something dangerous. "Whether or not any place is safer for me, you just don't like the idea of me leaving. That's what this is really about, isn't it? It's never about safety—it's about control."

Heinz didn't speak.

Of course, he didn't.

Because Florian was right.

And they both knew it.

The silence stretched on, only broken by the faint ticking of the clock on Heinz's wall.

Florian exhaled slowly through his nose, turning away. "You heard the gods' message, Heinz. And despite how vague or poetic or holy it sounded, we both understood one thing."

He paused, his hand tightening at his side.

"I'm only a target because of you."

He spoke the words quietly, but they landed like a blade between them. "If you really want me safe, then making secret agreements to keep me here won't be the answer."

There was a sharp scrape—the sound of a chair being pushed back.

Florian didn't need to look to know Heinz had stood. He could feel it, the shift in the air. The hesitation. The guilt.

"What…" Heinz started, but his voice faltered.

For the first time, there was nervousness in his tone—something almost fragile beneath the usual command.

Florian's lips curled bitterly. 'Got you.'

"…what does that mean, Florian?"

"It seems you already know what it means, Your Majesty." His words came out like venom, quiet but sharp enough to wound.

He turned slightly, just enough to glance back—and the look on Heinz's face nearly made him stop.

Horror.

Real, unguarded horror.

Florian almost pitied him again.

Almost.

"It means," he continued coldly, "I saw the original Florian's father walk out of your office. I heard him talking about your little agreement."

The kind of calm that came not from peace, but from exhaustion—like standing in the quiet eye of a storm after surviving the first wave. 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

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