The faces of the thirteen youths in the lounge now reflected sheer bewilderment. The truth Arvin had just dropped on them was too far beyond the realm of their common sense. A world without magic and the reality of a game were concepts that had never once crossed their minds.
"What do you mean?" Allen finally voiced what was on everyone's mind.
"To those of us who lived on Earth, the world we are standing on right now... is essentially just a playground for anyone who enjoys the Boys Love genre."
"Boys love?" Alrian repeated, confused by the foreign term he had just heard. "What is 'Boys love'?"
"The boys love genre is a genre of stories or games that focuses on romantic relationships between men." Arvin explained in a flat yet straightforward tone.
Just by hearing that explanation, all of Arvin's spouses immediately understood the meaning of the term. After all, they were currently in a same-sex relationship.
Seeing their expressions of understanding, Arvin continued his sentence. He explained how the world they currently lived in was, in essence, a place created by someone on Earth to be played.
He slowly explained that everyone on Earth who played this game would go on adventures, complete various missions, and above all, be required to conquer the hearts of every romantic target character. This included conquering hidden romantic targets, which was the main prerequisite to defeating the final boss.
"And the final boss in this world is none other than Arvin Vedegra." he continued. "The name of the game is 'The Sign of Destiny', a game featuring the romantic adventure genre. That's why I know every secret in this world."
All the youths in the room looked at one another in sheer disbelief. The fact that the world where they were born, grew up, and currently lived in was essentially a mere creation of someone from Earth truly shattered their common sense.
"S-So..." Alrain suddenly spoke, his voice full of anticipation, though at the same time, he couldn't hide the bubbling enthusiasm in his chest. "...in your past life, you came from the realm of the Gods who created this world?"
Hearing such an innocent yet ridiculous question, Arvin was stunned. He never expected that his rational explanation would actually lead Alrain to think of Earth as the sacred realm of the Gods.
He shook his head.
"The place called Earth is inhabited by ordinary humans, just like us. It's just that their technology is vastly more advanced than here."
Alrain's eyes faintly sparkled upon hearing the word 'advanced'. Without a second thought, he asked his husband another question.
"If the technology in your homeland is so advanced, why don't you just implement it in this world?"
Instantly, Arvin's originally calm gaze sharpened, as if the question Alrain had just asked was something extremely taboo to hear.
Realizing that his husband was now glaring sharply at him, Alrain flinched.
That sharp glare... that is the same glare he always directed at me in my previous life.
Alrain realized he had misspoken and asked something that upset his husband. A wave of unease and guilt immediately washed over him.
"Never ask or request me to create things from Earth!" Arvin hissed, his voice heavy with absolute prohibition.
"Why?" Alvein innocently chimed into their conversation. "Isn't that—"
"Most of the technology from Earth is extremely dangerous to all living beings in this world!" Arvin cut him off firmly. "Not to mention the potential ecological devastation it could cause here. For instance, the air, the ground we stand on, and even the water that serves as the source of life would become polluted."
He looked at his spouses' faces one by one. "Do you want this world to be destroyed by human greed, just like what happened on Earth?"
Hearing those horrifying consequences, without a single shred of hesitation, all the youths in the room simultaneously shook their heads. Not a single one of them wanted nature to be ruined.
"If that is indeed your answer, from this second forward, never speak of Earth's technology again!"
Hearing that warning laden with absolute prohibition, everyone in the lounge knew very clearly that the head of the household strictly forbade any discussion about Earth. To them, once their husband forbade something, it became absolute law, and none of them were allowed to violate it.
However, amidst the lingering tension, Allen suddenly recalled what Arvin had touched upon at the beginning of his explanation.
"Then, who are these romantic targets?" the pink-haired youth asked, changing the subject to lighten the mood. "Are any of them among us?"
"Allen, you are the primary romantic target character. And your role in that game is to act as the Villain's killer!"
Arvin then continued his story about the other side of the Arvin Vedegra in his memories. He explained the tragic reality that the Villain actually loved Allen deeply, but never dared to say it directly due to his pride and fear of rejection. Because of this, Arvin Vedegra deliberately made Allen hate him through extreme means, all to awaken the protagonist's hidden powers.
"My Dear Husband, I already know about that because you've told me before." Allen interrupted in a calm tone. "What I want to know now is, who else besides me here is a romantic target?"
"Besides you, the other romantic targets currently present here are Ordion, Dylan, Arion, and Oliver."
Hearing their names clearly called by their husband, Ordion, Dylan, Arion, and Oliver immediately widened their eyes. They looked at one another in disbelief upon discovering that on Earth, they were merely a bunch of romantic targets whose hearts had to be conquered.
"And those who are romantic targets..." Arvin continued his explanation with a much more serious tone. "...are fundamentally the people destined to oppose Arvin Vedegra. Including Kaydan."
Everything suddenly made perfect sense. Ordion, Dylan, Arion, and Oliver finally understood why, in that era, they ended up becoming Arvin's enemies.
However, what Arvin said did not bring any relief to Kaydan's heart. On the contrary, he was deeply shocked. He truly never expected that he was also one of the people who opposed his own husband in that era.
"W-What?" Kaydan's voice trembled violently, his face reflecting pain as if he couldn't accept such a fate. "Why was I also your enemy?"
"Because you are one of the romantic targets, Kaydan." Arvin answered the question in a calm and reassuring tone. "The difference is, you are a hidden romantic target. In other words, you are a secret character who will only appear after the players complete a highly difficult mission in the Victoriaz Kingdom."