Please get me out of this BL novel...I'm straight! novel Chapter 226

Chapter 226: ’What is so funny?’

Heinz stared at Augustus, the flickering firelight casting shifting shadows across his face. His words—to make a statement—hung in the air, absurd to the point of being laughable.

’They’ve lost it,’ he thought. ’The entire village has officially lost it.’

He exhaled slowly, keeping his composure, but the weight of the situation pressed against his skin like a suffocating heat. The scent of burning wood and charred flesh curled in his lungs, thick and suffocating. Yet, beyond the fire, beyond the destruction, it was their eyes that unsettled him most.

Desperation. Hunger. Something deeper, something irreversible.

He spoke, his voice level, devoid of amusement.

"A statement?" Heinz repeated. "And what exactly does that mean? What does any of this have to do with your cheap illusions?"

Augustus smiled—slowly, knowingly. As if he had been waiting for that question.

"At first? We only wanted to scare you off. You and the prince. Thought you were just another pair of the king’s dogs sniffing around where you shouldn’t be."

His gaze flickered toward Florian, still limp in Kane’s grasp. Blood matted his light-purple hair, streaking his pale face. A dull pulse of irritation ran through Heinz’s jaw.

"But then I started thinking... none of our tricks worked, did they? The illusion magic—worthless. The fear tactics—useless. The two of you... you acted strangely for a couple of knights. You weren’t just any envoys."

Heinz said nothing, watching him carefully.

Augustus’ expression darkened, his smile thinning into something bitter. "We’ve been abandoned. By the king. By the gods. No matter how much we begged, how much we prayed, no one came."

’One of them already gave me this speech.’

Heinz felt an odd sense of repetition. The same justifications. The same bitterness. It was almost boring.

Augustus continued, voice sharpening. "But now... now we know one of you is important. No, more than important."

His lips curled as he nodded toward Florian.

"The sole prince of the king’s harem is here. And that changes everything."

Heinz furrowed his brows. "Why?"

Augustus’ eyes gleamed, something almost triumphant in their depths. "Because Florian is the key to finally making the king notice us."

There it was again.

’Florian being used to get my attention.’

A realization settled into Heinz’s chest, cold and sharp. Someone had put that idea in their heads. The very thing he suspected—that the traitor had been feeding the ignored villages dangerous ideas—was now undeniably confirmed.

’But why Florian?’

It didn’t make sense. There were easier ways to get an audience with the king—desperate ways, but easier nonetheless. Yet time and time again, Florian was the target.

Kane let out a dry laugh, his grip on Florian’s hair tightening. "You don’t even look surprised, Anastasius."

The name curled off his tongue like a taunt.

Heinz’s eyes snapped to him.

Kane’s sneer deepened. "Guess it makes sense. It’s not like this is the first time he’s been kidnapped, right?"

Something coiled deep in Heinz’s chest—slow, seething, dangerous.

His voice was sharp, cutting through the thick, smoke-filled air.

"What do you know?"

Kane smirked. "Enough."

Heinz’s fingers twitched at his sides. The heat of the burning village pressed against his back, but he ignored it. He was getting agitated. Annoyed. He didn’t have time for this. If they wasted another second, he was going to call for Azure and have every single one of them reduced to ashes.

Augustus tilted his head, watching Heinz carefully. Then, with something almost like resignation, he exhaled.

"All I wanted was for this village to survive. For my people to live."

For the first time, his voice carried something raw beneath its smoothness.

"Your king is the one who forsook us. And the only sin we committed..."

’That’s it, then. That’s what they’ve become.’

"These people look to you for guidance, for hope. Because they’re your people, Your Majesty. Whether you acknowledge it or not, they belong to this kingdom. They matter."

"Just because it isn’t your fault doesn’t mean you can ignore it. Isn’t it still your responsibility to try?"

’Absolutely foolish.’