A Side Character's Guide to Surviving an Otome Game

And Now We Return to Ambrose

Cale was acting... Well, strangely.

For him at least.

And since Cale was perhaps one of the most chaotic, unpredictable, and just generally odd people Ambrose knew, that was saying something.

"Stop scowling at the Prince," he hissed at his red-headed friend for what felt like the thirtieth time since the banquet began. "Gods help me, if you get us put on some sort of national security list because you can't stop your idiotic pissing contest with the crown prince of the kingdom, I will kill you."

Cale reluctantly reduced his vicious glare to one that looked less murderous and more hateful, yet still refusing to look away from the blonde that was chatting with a few nobles on the other side of the hall.

Ambrose resisted the urge to smash his head against the thick oak table.

He despised these parties, from the food- always far too thick and fancy for his tastes- to the people- always far too focused on power and prestige, which was honestly quite exhausting- to the clothes- always far too stifling and hot. Now Cale was knee-deep in an unexplainable rivalry with the crown prince, for reasons Ambrose couldn't quite fathom, and his leg was beginning to ache in earnest all of a sudden.

Ambrose missed his bedroom.

His fingers tightened around Stick as yet another flash of pain ripped through his leg. His lips pressed together as he forced down a gasp, not wanting to alert Cale to the sudden wave of pain. Cale always got far too freaked out whenever Ambrose's condition worsened, and it was exhausting trying to keep him calm.

"Lord Finley," an unfortunately familiar honey-smooth voice cut through his haze of pain "A pleasure to see you once again."

"Lord Stan," Ambrose said as smoothly as he could while the dead mana attacked his leg's nerves. "It certainly has been a while, hasn't it?" Two blessed years since his last interaction with the psychopath known as Venion Stan, the obsessive and sadistic heir to the Stan family.

He hated the psychopathic blonde.

If he had been any less restrained, perhaps Ambrose might've smacked him with his cane. If he had been anything like Cale, he would've.

Thankfully, for both his reputation as well as the Henituses' reputations, he managed to stuff his violent urges down deep inside of him.

Cale had no such reservations.

"If I remember correctly, Lord Venion, you were warned to stay away from Lord Finley," Cale hissed, finally tearing himself away from his one-sided staring contest to glare at the person both Ambrose and Cale despised equally. "Or did my father not make himself clear?" The look in Cale's eyes promised pain and violence.

Venion flushed a bright red.

In the game, Ambrose recalled, Venion was a lower-tiered villain who had become obsessed with the MC and attempted to kidnap the MC and take them to his torture dungeon, where they were saved by Choi Han and thus starting the Choi Han route. Venion was despicable and stalkerish, not to mention extremely violent and cruel.

Plus there was the issue with the whole torturing-a-baby-dragon thing that pissed Ambrose off. He wasn't necessarily fond of kids, per se. He'd actually prefer to never be in the presence of one. But the idea that someone would be perfectly fine torturing a kid for fun?

Just being near the creep made Ambrose's skin crawl in disgust, especially ever since Venion had turned the violent obsession he had possessed in the game with the MC towards him.

The Henituses seemed to share the same disgust towards Venion that Ambrose had. Cale especially nursed a special hatred towards him, though Ambrose assumed that was because of Venion's obsession with Ambrose.