Help, I'm in Another World and All the Men Are So Hot! [BL]-Chapter 102: Rushing to Theo

He tried to mimic the strokes of a swimmer he’d seen on TV, reaching out with his hands to push the water—only to let go of the float.

"Huh...?"

He found himself floundering as he plunged into the water.

Surprised, he struggled to stay afloat, but he couldn’t rise to the surface. Meanwhile, his parents, still laughing, continued to pull only the float, drifting further and further away.

"Dad! Mom! Wait! I’m right here!"

He cried out with all his strength, but his voice turned to nothing but splashes and bubbles, and his parents didn’t notice him at all.

"Wait! I’m right here! Don’t leave me!"

They drifted farther away until, at last, they disappeared from his view.

"Dad! Mom! Please, save me!"

Damien reaching out his hand and suddenly found himself staring at the familiar canopy above his bed.

...A dream?

"That dream... It’s been a while since I last had it."

The dream Damien had from time to time was actually a memory from before his younger brother was born. In reality, his father had quickly pulled him out of the water, and Damien couldn’t even remember feeling scared. The story had become a family joke over the years—how he had drifted downward with a blank expression, which his parents found amusing, even though it had been a close call.

Yet, for Damien, it must have left a lasting impression. Whenever he was feeling unwell, the dream would sometimes resurface, lingering from those early fears. It had been years since he’d last dreamt it... but he had nearly drowned this time, after all.

That thought jogged his memory, and he recalled what had happened just before he’d lost consciousness.

Theo!

Damien quickly looked around, but as he’d half expected, Theo was nowhere to be seen. Instead, an unfamiliar maid stood nearby.

"Where is Theo?"

He didn’t recognize her face, but her uniform marked her as staff at the manor, so he questioned her, urgently asking for Theo’s location. He couldn’t shake his worry over the absence of Leonide and his other attendants, but Theo was his main concern for now.

"Y-Young master, you are currently in your quarters..." The maid looked startled, but before she could finish, Damien jumped out of bed and dashed for the door.

"Wait! Master Damien, please!"

He heard her calling something after him, but there was no time to stop. Damien sprinted through his bedroom, burst through the lounge, and emerged into the corridor.

There, beside his door, stood a soldier clad in full armor with a sword at his side, who reached out a hand as if to hold him back. Ignoring him, Damien ran down the hall.

When he reached the area near Theo’s quarters, he noticed two more soldiers standing guard in full armor. They looked startled as Damien approached at a full run, drawing their swords instinctively. After a brief hesitation, they sheathed their swords and offered what he assumed was a salute.

"Thank you!"

He rushed past them, shouting his thanks as he sprinted between the two soldiers.

His breath was getting ragged, but he couldn’t stop. He had never seen fully armed guards within the manor, let alone outside Theo’s quarters—this was surely an emergency.

He worried about Leonide, too, but since Leonide had been with him, he assumed he was safe. Or at least he hoped so.

But Theo and the others, who he hadn’t seen at all, weighed heavily on his mind.

Damien finally reached Theo’s door, where two more armored guards stood stationed. When he tried to open the door, they stopped him firmly.

"Let go of me!"

He struggled, trying to shake off their grip as they held his arms.

He fought with all his strength, but the guards didn’t budge.

"This won’t do, Master Damien! Master Theo is not accepting visitors!"

...Not accepting visitors?

Hearing those words, Damien felt all the strength drain from his body.

"Yes, Master Damien. First, please calm yourself. Right now, Lord Rostov is—"

Thud!

Without waiting, Damien kicked the guard as hard as he could. His knee met something hard under the guard’s armor, sending a metallic clank through his leg. Pain shot up his knee, making him wonder if he’d hurt himself more than his target. But his kick seemed to loosen the guard’s grip, so Damien shook free and then launched himself at the other guard, hitting him with a swift, low headbutt.

"Ugh!"

The second guard’s grip slackened as well, and Damien grabbed the door handle.

"Please, wait!"

The first guard called out to stop him, but Damien ignored him, threw open the door, and—

He was suddenly lifted off the ground.

He didn’t know what had happened, but he felt someone holding him tightly. Damien tried to struggle, yet couldn’t move a single muscle, despite the seemingly light grip on his waist and neck.

"Let me go! Put me down!" he demanded.

"Calm yourself, Sir Damien."

The calm, measured voice made Damien’s blood cool instantly. Just hearing Sebas’s familiar voice reassured him, making him believe that Theo was alright.

It was almost as if Sebas had cast a spell on him, though Damien knew that was unlikely given Sebas’s notorious difficulty with magic.

"Thank you both for your service," Sebas said to the guards, his voice even and polite. "From now on, Sir Damien is permitted to come and go freely. Please ensure this is communicated to the rest."

"Yes, understood!"

Both of the guards gave sharp salutes, though one of them looked a little hesitant after what had just happened.

"I—I’m really sorry about that earlier..." Damien apologized, feeling a bit guilty. He couldn’t physically bow or gesture in apology since he still couldn’t move.

Even if he’d been upset, aiming there was a low blow. As a fellow man, he felt he should have known better.

"No, no! We’re the ones who were out of line, Master Damien!" the guards responded in unison, saluting him once more.

Apologizing over and over in his mind, Damien glanced at the second guard, who had taken the headbutt earlier. He owed them both an apology.