[BL] Accidentally Becoming the Healer of the Deranged Archduke

Lady Serena let out a startled yell as she stumbled inside the chambers forbidden to others.

There, on the floor, lay Xion in Darius' arms.

It was as if there was heavy rain dyeing everything red, until not even a single inch of Xion was spared.

He looked lifeless.

"Xion... My child..."

"He is not dead!" Darius snarled. "He is not. My Xion is... Bring Allen. Now!"

Darius was pouring his mana into Xion's limp body. Suddenly, he was glad that he had suffered from Moonshade Affliction.

If not for that, Xion wouldn't have replaced his mana with his own.

That energy now rushed inside Xion without any resistance as if answering a silent plea.

The only obstacle now was the broken, fragile vessel before him, barely clinging to life.

Was it Serena, the sobbing Noxian, or one of the guards who had called for Allen?

Darius had no clue.

The moment the alchemist tried to touch the patient, he had instinctively pulled Xion tightly against his chest, cradling him protectively.

"Your Grace," Allen said in a tense voice.

There was a hint of pleading in his tone as he looked between the Archduke and his teacher.

"We need to heal his internal injuries, Your Grace. There's still poison inside him."

Poison... Yes, it was that vile toxin that had reduced Xion to this horrendous pain of life and death.

"Heal him."

Allen eagerly inched closer to the thin wrist, carefully trying to catch the vague thrumming beneath his fingertips.

The teacher is alive. Thank goodness.

However, the crisis was far more terrible than it had ever been.

Xion's clothes were completely stained with blood.

Thick red was coating the corner of his mouth as the Archduke continued to wipe it away with gentleness, almost as if that would ease the pain wreaking havoc inside the thin body.

Blood burned its way up to Xion's throat to spill from his lips, and all of it splashed directly on Darius.

"Do something!" Darius yelled, panic evident in his wide green eyes.

Allen hastily fumbled into his bag, pulling a special blue potion.

Even seasoned soldiers never used it as long as there was any other option.

The potion was made to mend the internal injuries, yes. But...

Its side effects were brutal. It could cause nerve damage and numb a person's limbs entirely.

Xion might never walk again, or never pick up his surgical knife and pens.

Allen's hands trembled as he gave the vial to the Archduke. "Here," he whispered. "Help him swallow."

Darius didn't hesitate. He cradled Xion's head and gently tilted the liquid past his lips. "Swallow it, Xion. It'll take the pain away."

The Archduke had never looked so terrifying before.

Now as Allen, Ray, Serena, and Noxian looked at him, they all could see the bloodlust that emanated off him.

The worry and fear in his eyes were so evident and so rampant that they were nearly manifested.

The way his fingers trembled slightly when they moved to touch Xion tenderly would be equally deadly for his enemies.

They all could see pure, maddening obsession— so intense it could suffocate them.

Serena lowered her gaze at Allen, who was preparing potions and carefully portioning them for Xion.

Just like them, Darius' gaze was also fixed on his sick lover.

Xion's cheeks were unnaturally flushed, his skin clammy. His once-bouncy black hair clung lifelessly to his neck, soaked with sweat and blood.

A sudden cough tore through him.

Finally, the tightly shut eyelashes fluttered weakly. "Darius..." he murmured in a barely audible tone.

"I am here," Darius carried Xion closer, careful not to hold him too tight. "I am here, Xion."

That voice seemed to bring a flicker of life to Xion's dead eyes.

"It's too cold..." he whispered softly in a cracked voice. He had since regained a little consciousness from collapsing earlier on, but now he was in immense discomfort.

"Darius, make it hotter. Warmer," the feeble fingers clutched at the fabric of his clothes, trying his best to snuggle his face into his lover's chest.

"My love," the Archduke said quietly, "bear with me a little longer, alright?" He took careful note not to touch him too roughly as he wiped the red away from his pale cheeks.

However, Xion didn't seem to hear anything. Gasping for fresh air, he kept repeating deliriously, "Darius, I want warmth." I want your warmth, please, please, don't throw me into that cold place.

"Yes, baby," Darius stroked his hair softly, hating how his red-soaked hand matted the black hair, "I will keep you warm. Don't worry."

"You won't..." Xion gasped heavily, nearly choking on the rusty liquid in his mouth.

His sightless eyes frantically rolled around, trying to catch a glimpse of silver and green. Yet only darkness spread everywhere.

He blinked, struggling to keep them open, "You won't leave, right?"

Deep in his mind, Xion was well aware that he was being selfish.

He was blind, and with the way things were, the poison in his body had spread to his internal organs, festering them one by one.

Was this how Darius felt every time he was in pain?

Such vague thought lingered in his mind as he struggled to open his eyes.

It was hard to take care of him, to even keep him alive. So, perhaps it would be better to just give up.

But... "Darius," he choked. A bloody tear rolled down his eye.

Am I very selfish for staying with you even when I am such a mess?

"Sorry, I..." I'm creating so much trouble for you.

"No, my love," Darius said softly, "Don't be. Never be."

His bloodshot green eyes blurred as a stream of hot tears slid down his cheek and onto Xion's forehead. "I won't leave you, sweetheart. Never. You are mine, Xion. You were and always will be."

Those words somehow soothed Xion's restless heart.

Darius still likes me. For now, that was enough.

Within seconds, Xion went back into the soothing embrace of darkness.

If it wasn't for his shallow breathing fanning Darius' cheek, the Archduke might have lost it right then and there.

He carefully helped Xion onto the other side of the bed before leaving the room with the others.

Barely had all of them stepped outside when Darius grabbed Serena by her neck and shoved her against the wall.

"Who did this to him?!"

Noxian, despite the tears running down his face, rushed forward. He grabbed the northern lord's forearm, his nails digging into the muscles underneath, and yet the Archduke didn't loosen his grip.

Serena gasped only for the grip on her neck to tighten further.

"You will kill her!" Noxian yelled. "Allen, help me!"

Allen didn't. Nor did Ray move forward.

"You knew. You always know what is going to happen, so why? Is it because he is easy to toss around? That no matter how you ignore his safety for your selfishness, he will forgive you?"

The tendrils of green mana flickered wildly around Darius.

Serena clawed desperately at the wrist, her pure white eyes filled with tears from suffocation.

"Let her go! Do you think brother will forgive you if you hurt her? She is our mother!"

Darius scoffed, but his grip finally loosened, letting Serena fall on the cold floor.

"Cough... I am not allowed to...cough-"

"Shut up." Darius' words were low, laced with venom. "You are just afraid to bear the pain. What about my Xion? What about the pain he is in?"

The green tendrils flared, lashing out, nearly tearing the walls beside them.

The impact was so strong that the flowers around the palace withered away. The fresh leaves turned yellow and then brown in a matter of seconds, and then fell down like corpses.

"Take her away," Darius commanded before hurrying back to Xion's side.

He would deal with Serena and every other person who was responsible for this.

Even if he had to bear the wrath of the goddess, he would hunt them all down, make them bear ten times the pain his sweet Xion was going through.

As soon as the doors closed behind him, his gaze fell on the limp body drenched in blood.

He knelt beside the bed, staring closely at how Xion's chest fell and rose with each breath. It was so light that he had to press his fingers closer to Xion's nose.

Only when warm air hit him did he shut his eyes. "Why, Xion? Why must we go through this agony? Why can't we be happy like others?"

My Xion likes to stay clean. I need to give him a warm bath and change his clothes. I should change the bedsheets too. They are dirty.

"Maybe then, you will wake up and smile at me. You will, right? You will let me feed you, right?"

His fingertips quivered as he removed the bloody clothes, one by one. "I will keep you warm, so you have to wake up from your nap."

Though it wasn't a nap, Darius didn't want to take it otherwise.