The Male Leads Were Stolen By The Extra [EN]: Chapter 118

Celonia suspected that the man ‘Gale’ whom McRyan had seen was the same man Grace had encountered at the Denroha estate and the one in Galloway’s room.

Moreover, McRyan had clearly witnessed Gale using black magic without hesitation at Grace’s command.

Her first instruction to McRyan was to stay close to Grace and gather information about her and Gale.

Given McRyan’s past record, Celonia didn’t have high expectations. Naturally, knowing there was a risk of him being caught again, she avoided mentioning the soul swap.

She only conveyed that Grace seemed to be orchestrating a larger scheme, and to deal with her effectively, they needed to uncover that scheme and find concrete evidence.

‘I mustn’t let the information I know be exposed.’

The knowledge she had gathered so far was her only weapon in her current vulnerable position. Her opponent was unaware of how much she had discovered.

Therefore, she had to leverage this information to the fullest to prepare and uncover everything.

“Why is that guy so quiet today?”

McRyan’s question broke the brief silence.

He spoke with dissatisfaction, looking at Tan, who stood silently next to Celonia with his arms crossed.

He disliked Tan’s red eyes that seemed to look down on him arrogantly, especially today. Furthermore, he resented the way Tan observed him, as if he were some animal.

Leif remained silent but also glanced at Tan, seemingly curious.

“It’s none of your business. Just do it right this time.”

Celonia responded instead. She glanced at Tan and saw no indication that he was about to speak.

She also found his silence a bit odd. Since agreeing to help her, Tan had barely uttered a word.

She expected him to inquire about her reasons for confirming Galloway’s reaction, but he hadn’t asked, neither at midnight nor after their meeting today.

She initially thought it was considerate of him to wait silently until she brought it up, but she couldn’t help but wonder about his unusual behavior.

“Okay, okay. I’ll be careful…”

McRyan pouted, grumbling at Celonia’s nagging.

Even though he had been targeted by black magic twice, he saw no reason to continue embarrassing himself in front of Tan.

McRyan was very displeased that the Grand Duke, who had no direct involvement, kept interfering whenever he met Celonia. He also disliked that their meeting place was the Grand Duke’s residence.

Besides, what was it about this house that made the air reek of demonic energy from every corner?

He understood intellectually that the Grand Duke’s residence was the safest place to avoid unwanted attention, but he couldn’t shake off his unease.

Part of it was due to the demonic energy, but the bigger reason was that he had always envisioned the four saviors’ bond as eternal.

He had no doubt that Ian, himself, and Leif would always be by Celonia’s side. He considered Grace’s trickery a temporary setback, confident that everything would eventually return to normal.

But the situation now was far from that.

Although the four of them were gathered, the person sitting next to Celonia was not Ian Chervil but Tan.

Even if Ian were freed from the black magic, Tan would likely remain by her side. Celonia’s affections had clearly shifted towards Tan.

He hadn’t given up on his feelings for Celonia.

It was because of Ian, someone more flawless and trustworthy than anyone else, that he had suppressed his feelings to be a good friend and colleague to Celonia.

If he had known that he would lose her to someone reeking of evil demonic energy, he would never have held back.

“How did you guys kill the Demon King?”

It was then.

The provocative words came from Tan, who had been silent all along. The corner of his mouth even lifted in a smirk, as if he found the whole thing ridiculous.

“What? What did you just say?”

Unlike Leif, who maintained his composure, McRyan, with his fiery temper, jumped up from his seat.

“Stop it.”

“Say it again!”

Despite Celonia’s attempt to restrain him, McRyan growled ferociously, stepping closer to Tan.

“To be treated as heroes for a lucky hit. What do you think? Don’t you think it’s shameless, even if you look at it objectively?”

“How dare you question our qualifications?!”

McRyan’s hand shot out and grabbed Tan’s collar. Blue energy began to emanate from his body.

He had lost his composure at the insinuation that their hard-won victory was being dismissed as insignificant.

“Qualifications, huh? Is it also a qualification for men to hide behind a woman?”

Tan smirked, finding McRyan pathetic, and stood up.

Instantly, a shadow loomed over McRyan. Tan’s large and imposing figure seemed to crush McRyan.

“Who hid behind what and when!”

McRyan shouted even louder, putting more force into his grip on Tan’s collar, which was suddenly pulled upward.

In contrast to his reddened face, an even darker blue energy flowed from his body.

“Stop it, both of you!”

Finally, even Leif stood up.

He forcibly removed McRyan’s hand from Tan’s collar and stepped between them.

“…….”

Celonia stared up at Tan’s face with a dazed expression.

What is this?

Was it just a random comment he made because he disliked McRyan? Why suddenly…?

Perhaps because she sensed that he was different from usual, Tan’s words felt even more unsettling today.

“How we are standing here, do you think you, who slept comfortably, would know?!”

McRyan, still in Leif’s grasp, who was trying to calm him down, was panting, his face contorted with rage.

How dare someone who knew nothing belittle his sacrifice.

“Please stop. Grand Duke, please stop as well. And please apologize for your remarks just now.”

Leif, having calmly calmed McRyan, turned his head.

His purple eyes stared resolutely at Tan, as if he also felt offended by the ignorant remarks.

However, Tan snorted dismissively and spoke with a coldly hardened expression.

“Get lost, both of you.”

“I’m going to kill you! How dare you make a fool of me!”

Despite Leif’s attempts to dissuade him, McRyan’s golden eyes flashed, and he lost control. The chilling dragon energy that was instantly released from his body threatened to engulf the reception room.

“Mac! Stop it! Get a hold of yourself!”

At Celonia’s sharp command, McRyan froze. The chilling dragon energy, capable of freezing everything, ceased to flow.

During the subjugation days, when he lost control and ran wild, Celonia would stop him like this, and it was still effective.

“Haa. Please just stop.”

“Celonia! He started it first!”

McRyan protested, feeling wronged, but his burning gaze gradually calmed down.

“Leif, please clean up. And take McRyan out.”

“……I understand.”

Leif was also upset by Tan’s words, but he couldn’t refuse Celonia’s request.

He closed his eyes and took a breath. Then, the white divine power that bloomed like a haze cleared away McRyan’s blue energies that filled the reception room, as if cleaning them up.

He had done it many times, so there was no discomfort.

A few seconds later, Leif, having neutralized all the energy, led McRyan away.

“Damn it. Let go! I’ll get out on my own.”

McRyan, upset that Celonia, even though she was a fellow savior, wouldn’t take his side, spat out curses and roughly shook off Leif’s arm.

Then, he stormed off, his footsteps shaking the floor, and yanked the door open violently enough to tear off the doorknob, leaving the reception room without looking back.

“Then I’ll be going.”

Leif bowed politely to the end and followed McRyan.

However, even in this situation, Celonia’s gaze remained fixed on Tan.

Because she had just seen it clearly.

Tan’s hand, clenched into a fist, was trembling. And blue veins were bulging on his neck.

As if he was suppressing some intense, unspoken emotion.

“……Tan, what’s wrong with you today? Are you okay?”

“What do you mean?”

Tan turned to Celonia, his expression nonchalant, as if nothing had happened.

“Your eyes…….”

The moment Celonia’s eyes met his, she gasped in surprise.

Tan’s eyes were dyed bright red. Even the whites of his eyes were blood red.

“Eyes? Celonia. What’s wrong?”

Tan approached her closely, feigning concern. He cupped her cheek with one hand and examined her complexion.

“…….”

She trembled at the sudden contact and couldn’t speak. The whites of Tan’s eyes had returned to normal as if nothing had happened when he blinked.

“Huh?”

He asked Celonia with affectionate eyes and a gentle voice.

“……No, it’s nothing.”

She looked up at him for a long time and then shook her head.

Her heart was racing, and her mind was filled with confusion.

Did she imagine it?

But the image was too vivid to dismiss. His red eyes, as if he were a different person.

What is this…….

“How boring.”

Tan chuckled.

Unlike his demeanor with McRyan and Leif, his lips curled into an alluring smile.

It was a familiar smile, the smile he reserved only for her.

Nothing had changed. But why did a corner of her heart feel uneasy…….

However, Celonia soon suppressed her rising anxiety and closed her eyes. Tan, who was gently stroking her cheek, lowered his head and impatiently pressed his lips to hers.

With a soft sensation, he licked her lips with his tongue, urging her to open them.

When she instinctively parted her lips, his breath fearlessly invaded, as if he had been waiting for this moment.

As if trying to devour all the doubts that had arisen within her.

* * *

“Please calm down.”

“How can I calm down? Aren’t you upset after hearing those words?!”

McRyan turned and snapped at Leif, who was following him.

The two were standing in the garden after leaving the mansion.

He had stormed out in anger, but now he wanted to go back and turn everything upside down.

“Damn it. It’s annoying. Celie is protecting that guy, too.”

With a flushed face, McRyan kicked a harmless stone in front of him.

The stone skittered across the ground and rolled several times.

“I also cannot understand the Grand Duke’s remarks.”

“‘Nim’ [honorific suffix in Korean] my ass. A guy like a wicked demon.”

McRyan gritted his teeth and raised his head.

“Qualifications. Qualifications, huh? Is it also a qualification for men to hide behind a woman?”

It was infuriating to hear, even after thinking about it repeatedly. What does he know……!

“……Wait.”

Come to think of it, those words were truly strange.

He wasn’t even part of the subjugation team, yet he spoke as if he had witnessed it firsthand.

Besides, the voice and the line were strangely familiar. As if he had heard them somewhere…….

It was at that moment.

A voice echoed in McRyan’s head, as if resonating.

“Hahaha. Men hiding behind a woman.”

Yes. Those were the same words.

The same words that the dead Demon King had said to himself, Leif, and Ian.

“……Could it be.”

McRyan stared at the Grand Duke’s residence, which reeked of demonic energy, with wide, surprised eyes.