[BL] Accidentally Becoming the Healer of the Deranged Archduke-Chapter 244: A Promise To Sleep

A few hours later...

Xion sat on the sofa with research papers scattered on the table. His fingers moved swiftly as he scribbled with his brow furrowed in concentration.

Suddenly, a soft plop broke his focus.

Startled, Xion looked up to find Noxian directly sitting on the floor while balancing a twig on his finger like he usually did with his sword. "It’s freezing in here," he complained.

"Then go find Ray," Xion replied without missing a beat, eyes returning to his notes. "He’s your best bet against the cold and your greatest teacher if you want to level up your swordsmanship."

Noxian scowled. "I don’t want to learn from him! He’s such a brute. Yesterday, he told me to swing my sword while channeling mana through it. When I asked how, do you know what he said?"

He mimicked Raymond’s voice mockingly: "’Go with your feelings, maybe.’ What kind of vague bullshit are these feelings? If I could feel it, I’d have done it already!"

Ah, so that’s what this was about. Xion finally looked up, his eyes twinkling with amusement. "So that’s why you’re sulking."

"Obviously," Noxian huffed, tossing the twig over his shoulder and it directly fell inside the beautiful expensive-looking ceramic vase.

Only Noxian would be bold enough to use a priceless gift from the king as a trash can. But then again, he grew up watching Xion who hardly bothered with royal status.

"I’m afraid I can’t help you with that, my child," Xion said with mock solemnity. "I’ve never touched a sword in my life. I use mana with my mind, not muscle."

"And I hate that," Noxian groaned in despair, face-planting onto Xion’s lap.

That was precisely the scene Darius walked in on.

The Archduke stopped at the threshold of the study. His venomous green eyes zeroed in on Noxian sprawled across Xion’s lap like a pampered brat. His eye twitched in irritation. Just a little.

Xion, still scribbling, didn’t notice. But Noxian did. After all, there was only one person who would give him such chills.

He smirked up at Darius. And then, slowly, he nestled deeper onto Xion’s lap.

You insolent little... Darius’s jaw clenched. The urge to physically remove the brat was nearly overwhelming. How dare he?!

Noxian even mouthed ’Mine’ to Darius as he did it.

"Brother," the purple-haired teenager turned to Xion and said sweetly. "Why don’t you sleep with me tonight? I still feel weird in this place."

Xion’s fingers halted. He had been busy for the past two days, distracted by his own problems.

He hadn’t realized how hard Noxian was struggling to adjust to their new place. Not everyone could just get used to the changes like him.

Although the most part of ’feeling at home’ was due to being with Darius, but still...

Xion suddenly felt guilty for not taking proper care of Noxian.

However, just as he opened his mouth to reply, Darius who had been silently staring at Noxian performing a drama for him spoke up.

"He can’t." He said in a very calm voice before plopping right beside Xion.

Two pairs of eyes, one lovely shade of blue and the other demonic purple turned to him at the same time. Darius decided that purple wasn’t the color he was fond of.

"He promised to sleep with me," the archduke added casually while not forgetting to shoot a glance toward the stunned kid. "Right, love?"

Xion froze. His ears flushed red faster than he thought humanly possible.

Darius, of course, noticed it.

Perfect.

Finally feeling generous enough, the archduke decided to elaborate. "Didn’t you want to visit the Caverns of Haldris?"

He glanced at Xion and while he was at it, he even dropped his arm over the back of the sofa. It was as if he was holding Xion in his arms, just like he did last night.

The thought pleased him, immensely so. It became evident how his eyes softened when he asked, "How about we leave tonight?"

"Yes!" Xion replied quickly. The cure couldn’t wait.

"I’ve already asked the servants to pack a few things," Darius told Xion, casually playing with his hair, all the while he was ignoring someone’s sharp gaze on him.

"It’s better to stay close, considering the cold and the beasts in that area. Don’t try to go wandering off alone. Don’t get reckless. Don’t try to endure if you are tired or in pain. You have to tell me immediately if you feel unwell-"

"Your Grace," Xion interrupted, laughing breathlessly, "you’re making it sound like you’re taking a toddler to the mountains."

"I am just worried about you."

"Alright, alright," Xion shook his head, finding the situation a bit too funny. "Got it. I’ll stick to your side the whole time. Is that acceptable?"

More than acceptable. Darius’s eyes glinted. "That’s how it always should be."

Then he lowered his gaze only to throw a victorious smirk at Noxian.

Not to be outdone, Noxian sat up straight. "Then I’ll come too!"

"No," Darius said instantly. "We’re using a teleportation array. It’s not meant for multiple people. Just Xion and I."

Noxian looked ready to explode. He glared so hard, it was a miracle fire didn’t shoot from his eyes.

Were he and this man enemies in a past life? What grudge had fate cursed him with to always be second to this icy bastard?

Xion, meanwhile, looked up in surprise. "Teleportation array?"

Those words caught all of his attention.

Teleportation magic required vast amounts of mana. Using it for even letters was already considered very advanced.

It had only succeeded because, firstly, letters were very lightweight and needed very little space. Secondly, the papers didn’t have any organs to rupture.

The idea of transporting people through one? That bordered on fantasy.

His wide blue eyes began to gleam with the hunger of a scholar.

Darius chuckled, amused by how quickly Xion’s attention had been pulled from Noxian. Good.

If he could keep feeding that curiosity, he could stretch the space between them wider and wider. Perhaps, one day, there wouldn’t even be room for Noxian anymore.

Meanwhile, he was also eyeing the space on Xion’s lap with a dangerous level of longing. He had never been the kind of man to yearn for something so undignified as resting on someone’s thighs, but... Gods, he desired that.

He wanted to slide down, lay his head where that little brat had so arrogantly rested. He wanted to wrap his arms around Xion’s waist, pull him close, bury his face against that soft stomach and if Xion let him he also wanted to use his mouth on- "Do you want to see the array?"

Stop. You’re an Archduke, he yelled himself. A dignified, feared, powerful Archduke.

"Oh, of course," Xion spoke with a huge smile. In his excitement, he directly grabbed Darius’ hand. "Is that alright to do that?"

That was all it took, Xion’s gentle laugh and that absent-minded stroke of his fingers against his hand, for Darius’s control to tremble.

Shamelessly, he imagined how that lap might feel when Xion wrapped his legs around him.

"Come up, I’ll show you. Until then, the things will be ready too."

Just like that Darius took Xion with him, leaving behind sulking Noxian. "I swear if you hurt my brother, I’ll make sure to hurt you if not kill you..." he muttered under his breath.

Despite being angry, he was still well aware of the difference between their strengths. Gritting his teeth, he stood up.

If he wanted to get better at fighting, there was only one person he could take any advice from. That brute knight commander.

Huffing, he stood up and instead of going through the door, he directly jumped out from the window. There was not a single trace of his dislike for the cold as he had complained to Xion.

Black Box- If they were in cultivation world...

Once upon a time, there was an immortal named Xion, who had remained in seclusion for a thousand years. When he finally emerged, the world had changed beyond recognition.

Greedy cultivators looted and killed under the guise of righteousness, branding the very gifts of nature as demonic.

How could spirit beings who had cultivated for centuries to gain consciousness be called evil?

Baffled by these atrocities, Xion created a shelter deep within a hidden valley, a haven only accessible with the owner’s permission.

That was how he ended up taking in a little boy with tiny horns sprouting from his head. Xion couldn’t quite identify the species, but the boy’s green eyes and silver hair were beautiful to look at.

So, without much thought, he let the child stay in his own quarters, never realizing that the so-called child was the infamous Devil King Darius.

Darius had been hunting and slaughtering corrupted cultivators without mercy, and Xion had been his next target.

But when he saw those calm blue eyes smiling at him... he changed his mind.

This person doesn’t look like a kidnapper so, I’ll observe for now, he thought, as he helped Xion tend to the wounded.

More than a decade later, the Devil King is still "observing" the immortal Lord Xion.

Though the place of observation has long shifted from the outer sect to the inner bedchamber.

And these days, it often involves rituals that leave the immortal lord breathlessly gasping his name.