A ​cracked, ​low ​voice ​calmly recalled his ​past.

“My ​father… ​seemed ​like ​a man plagued by ​an ​obsessive fear.”

“About what?”

“He ​was always afraid ​that ​I ​might ​fail ​to ​become his successor.”

“……”

“Because ​he ​always ​thought I was ​lacking.”

Lorenz’s eyes gazed at ​the flames ​burning inside ​the fireplace. ​For a ​moment, ​his ​gaze seemed hotter ​than the ​fire itself. Perhaps it ​was due to the ​anger and hatred toward ​his father.

Pouring ​himself ​another glass of apple cider, he ​continued his story.

“It probably ​started ​around ​the ​time ​he gifted me ​the car ​I ​drove here today. ​He ​began visiting various child protection ​facilities for ​volunteer ​work. He also ​significantly ​expanded ​the ​scale ​of his ​donations. ​And it ​was at one of the facilities where ​he regularly volunteered ​that he met ​Lucas.”

Since it had been ​made public ​to the press, ​Elian ​already knew the ​general story. Anyone ​associated with ​the ​name Lockhart ​could ​not escape ​the ​attention of ​the ​media ​and the public. ​Lucas ​was no ​exception.

The ​media ​had ​churned out sensational headlines about a child who had remained in a facility long past the age when adoptions typically occur, only to finally find a new home. The articles portrayed Lucas, visit our siteadopted into the Lockhart family, as a winner who had achieved visit our sitea complete reversal of fortune. Some articles even speculated in advance about the astronomical inheritance the child would one day receive.

“My father was a man who found smiling awkward. Since he had rarely smiled sincerely in his life, the muscles for smiling simply hadn’t developed. Yet, such a man spared no affection for Lucas. He never once frowned at him.”

Lorenz scoffed, staring off into space.

“He probably wanted to wash away the wrongs he had committed against me and Joshua through that child.”

As if the apple cider were strong whiskey, he drained the remaining drink in one gulp.

“It doesn’t matter what the reason for the adoption was. I’m no longer at an age where I crave my parents’ approval, nor do I have any intention of understanding or forgiving my father. However.”

He paused, his gaze turning toward Lucas once more.

“Having grown up that way… I’m not confident that I can be a proper guardian.”

“Ah…”

“I hate my father, but his method of parenting is the only way I know. I wonder if I’ll end up passing on the same emotions I experienced to that child… Yes, honestly, I’m afraid.”

As if his own confession of fear was ridiculous, Lorenz wiped his face several times and let out a hollow laugh.

Elian, who had been listening quietly until then, spoke in a calm tone.

“I think the very fact that you’re worried about that stolen content[Read on Read BL Novels][visit our site]is proof that you already possess the qualities to be a good guardian.”

“You don’t have to try and comfort me. Thanks to the education I received from my father, I’m the type of person who wants to know the truth, even if it isn’t sweet.”

“It’s not comfort.”

Lorenz gave a self-deprecating, bitter smile.

“I know myself that I’m not a decent human being. To be honest, I don’t care. I have no interest in anything other than grasping everything I can achieve with the name Lockhart. But…”

He swirled the glass in his hand a couple of times before continuing.

“Even if I’ve already become this way, I don’t want someone else to walk the same path I did. It wasn’t… a very pleasant journey.”

“For now, that is enough.”

“……”

At Elian’s quiet but certain tone, Lorenz slowly turned to look at him.

“There is no such thing as a perfect guardian. It’s impossible for one to exist. But Mr. Lockhart, you have the desire to not leave the same pain for Lucas.”

“What meaning is there in just having a thought?”

“With that thought alone, you are already making a different choice than your father did.”

Elian looked straight into the other man’s eyes without flinching.

To Lorenz—who was both the guardian of the child he was counseling and a child who had endured a dark childhood—Elian wanted to convey his sincerity as a counselor. The probability that Lorenz might be behind the Clinical Trial was a separate issue from this. Just as Lucas was separate from the Clinical Trial.

A distance where they could touch very easily if they reached out.

Lorenz’s gaze slowly traced every corner of Elian’s face. As if encountering a creature he had never seen before, his gaze was mixed with admiration and wonder. Like exploring a very strange and mysterious object.

“Having someone take my side… doesn’t sound too bad.”

“I’m not taking your side. I’m giving you my professional opinion as a child counselor.”

The gaze, green like the forest, slid down from the relatively light-colored eyebrows that matched his hair and the thick golden eyelashes, past the deep blue eyes, the bridge of the nose, and the cheeks, down to the lips, before returning to Elian’s eyes.

“But one thing is wrong.”

“Wrong…?”

“Not Mr. Lockhart, but Lorenz.”

“Ah…”

At his correction, Elian let out a mindless laugh.

It was because he had a feeling that every time he failed to call him Lorenz properly in the future, this correction would be persistently repeated.

“Do you always do this for every guardian?”

“……”

“Kindly, as if you’re healing them.”

“Well…”

Elian was about to answer, Because that’s my job, but his intention was swallowed by Lorenz’s next words.

“I imagine there must be many fools who get the wrong idea.”

“The wrong… idea?”

“Looking at them sweetly with those eyes and whispering that it’s not their fault. Wouldn’t it be easy to get the wrong idea?”

Sweetly… whispering… I had no such intention at all…

Crack, crack. Sparks flew inside the fireplace. At a distance where their shoulders would touch if they leaned in slightly, transparent green eyes gazed at Elian without hesitation. Those eyes were neither like a forest nor a swamp. In this moment, they were simply…

“Elian.”

“……”

“I’ve been thinking since last time. I like the smell of your shampoo.”

Lorenz’s face tilted slightly as he leaned in. Is he… trying to smell my shampoo?

While Elian hesitated, the tip of Lorenz’s nose came close enough to touch his cheek. It was a distance where their breaths intertwined.

Elian’s eyelids blinked rapidly.

Crack. The sound of sparks flying sounded unusually loud.

The eyes right in front of him were neither like a forest nor a swamp. In this moment, they simply… contained only Elian’s own face.

While he was momentarily focused on those eyes, Lorenz’s lips, deep and red like a well-aged red wine, completely erased the final distance of a single word.

“……”

“……”

The surfaces of their lips brushed and met. Before he could even realize what was happening, the next moment, the lips were pressed deeper. It was a pressure where he could feel the softness of the flesh.

Startled, Elian turned his head. Lorenz paused for a moment, but soon followed as much as Elian unauthorized copyhad pulled stolen contentaway. This time, Elian avoided his face more distinctly, moving further back.

Covering his lips with the back of his hand, he pushed Lorenz’s shoulder away with the other.

“Have you forgotten about Mr. Wesley?”

“……”

“You’re getting married soon.”

At the mention of a third party’s name, Lorenz frowned.

He made no attempt to step back. Right there, he breathed a ticklish breath against the tip of Elian’s nose and lips and whispered.

“Is that how you reject me?”

“Someone who is about to get married shouldn’t do this.”

“That sounds to me like you would have allowed it if I weren’t facing marriage.”

“……”

Elian could not firmly deny that particular statement. Even if Lorenz Lockhart had been the one to lead, it was true that for a moment, the atmosphere had flowed that way very naturally. If they hadn’t met in this situation, in these positions, he might not have rejected this kiss.

The broad shoulders that had been Read on Read BL Novelsholding their ground pushed in closer. stolen contentAs if he were about to knock Elian down visit our siteonto the carpet at any moment.

“Do you think I’ll remain chaste for my spouse? Neither the other person nor I expect such a thing from each other. My marriage is merely a strategic alliance.”

“Lockhar—regardless of your position, I can’t do this with someone whose marriage is decided. I don’t want to.”

His heart pounded violently. A chill like a tremor ran down his spine and the nape of his neck. The fingertips of the hand holding onto his shoulder to keep him from coming closer felt numb.

Hello, this is Kim David, the author of <Cypress Mosaic>.

I am writing to inform you that the serialization of <Cypress Mosaic> will change to 4 days a week starting next week. I am using the end of this episode to let you know.

Since the 5-day-a-week schedule was originally intended only for the month of May, I will return to the original 4-day-a-week schedule starting next week. I ask for the generous understanding of the readers who are following the series.

Starting next week, <Cypress Mosaic> will be serialized on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays at 7 AM.

I will continue to do my best to deliver a story without tiring until the conclusion.

I am also very much looking forward to the future journey of <Cypress Mosaic>, which will become another precious memory with the readers.

Thank you always. Have a relaxing weekend, and I’ll see you again on Tuesday.