[BL] Accidentally Becoming the Healer of the Deranged Archduke
Chapter 306: A Puppet of Blood

Chapter 306: A Puppet of Blood

Just as Xion had guessed, Darius was distraught.

His fingers clenched around the thin wrist, seeking even the faintest tremor of life, but there was none.

Allen held onto the other wrist, pushing his mana into the dry veins. Yes, dry.

The entire body was parched from within, like a husk drained of all essence.

How? How could that even be possible? Allen’s brow creased deeper, his face paling to match the other two in the room.

"You can treat it, right?"

Never in his life had Ray longed so deeply to be proven wrong by the alchemist. This time, though, he was begging that his earlier conclusion was off the mark.

The knight commander had seen Allen pulling the dead soldiers back to life. He was hoping to see exactly that.

But any flicker of hope was obliterated when Allen shook his head in denial.

Twenty minutes. That was how long it took Allen to confirm that this was indeed just a corpse.

Just as Darius felt something snapping in his head, he heard Allen speak.

"This isn’t teacher Xion."

That one sentence forced two pairs of eyes to focus on him. The pressure they exuded wasn’t something he wanted to bear.

Sweat beaded on Allen’s brow as he channeled a dangerous surge of mana, enough to rupture ordinary veins.

The corpse’s white skin beneath his touch rippled before dissolving like wax under the flame. In just a span of a few seconds, the features morphed into something uncanny.

What remained was almost Xion-like.

The resemblance was exquisite but wrong in subtle, horrifying ways. The lips were too thin, the lashes too short. There was no radiant attractiveness that Xion possessed.

"A puppet," Allen breathed, wiping his hands with a handkerchief as if touched by something impure.

"Perfectly crafted to mimic Teacher’s mana signature. They even used real blood. They didn’t just copy him..." He stalled as he felt his mana running wildly in the empty human shell. "...They harvested him."

His voice caught in his throat when he glanced at Darius, whose expression had gone terrifyingly blank.

When no reaction came, Allen exchanged a nervous look with Raymond.

Touching His Grace was forbidden. So, Allen had to settle for the next best option.

Steeling himself, he reached out and gently patted the clone’s chest, right where Darius’ white-knuckled hand still gripped the false body.

As if some spell had been broken, those pale green eyes finally looked at Allen.

"What did you say?"

A low voice without any fluctuations was cold enough to make both of them sweat and shiver at the same time.

Seeing the alchemist stunned by His Grace’s terrifying look, Ray took it upon himself to reply.

"Your Grace... this isn’t him. It’s some kind of replica. Made with real blood and mana."

The silence that followed was more terrible than any outburst.

If it was made with real blood, it only meant that someone was cruel enough to hurt Xion. Someone had bled Xion enough to paint the sofa and floor crimson.

Ah, his Xion is alive. The heart that had nearly stopped beating thumped again in his chest.

But where was his beloved now?

A strange glint shone in the dull void of green.

A heavy disgusting stench nearly gagged Allen as terrifying green mana twisted around the corpse.

"Stop, Your Grace!" The Alchemist yelled amidst the loud smashes of things falling all over the place. The huge vase fell, cracking on the floor.

One piece dug into Allen’s knee, yet he shouted, "We need the body to investigate!"

Only then did Darius control the thick mana waves whipping the room in a thinly veiled rage.

"Keep it away from my eyes," Darius uttered in his usual authoritative tone as he tossed the lump on the floor.

Then he changed his mind. "When you are done, put it in a box."

Their lord was very benevolent after all. Even now Darius was generous enough to prepare a gift for those troublemakers.

"Two hours." Declaring that Darius strode out without another word.

On the other hand, the guests had been taken care of by Lady Nazia. Hence, none had any clue about the missing groom.

The wedding march they had been expecting was postponed for some reason. So under the rare clear sky, they happily departed to their homes with luxurious gifts.

The night that fell was buzzing with various voices. Most were talking about how gorgeous their new lord was while some discussed how lavish the food and other preparations were.

In a similar fashion, there was a cluster of voices that echoed in one of the hidden rooms in the Darkhlem castle.

"The people who possess the abilities are ’The Circle of Thirteen’ and the respected members of the church," Ray said, his gaze lingering on Serena before shifting toward the other people present in the room.

Yes, they were the only ones who could do something so... unbelievable. That was the collective thought of the group.

Darius had been utterly silent all this time. His Grace hadn’t even drunk anything let alone eat and Serena wasn’t in any better condition either.

Berry, who was excited to come back on such a joyous occasion, was still trying to process what Allen had told him.

Only Noxian was snoring in his room, clueless that his dear brother wasn’t just tired as he was told. He had vanished from the castle.

To disappear without a trace, one would need internal help. Yet no matter how they tried to investigate they couldn’t come up with anything.

The worst thing was that they had no idea about the types of blessings the thirteen elders held. Even Nazia could only purse her lips in annoyance.

"Five can control Earth, and three are water users," Serena suddenly spoke up, her gaze fixed on the Archduke.

"One can force others to speak the truth, one was endowed to burn the sinners to ashes. One of them has the blessing to purify humans of the filth in their blood."

"That’s elven. What about the remaining two?" Allen voiced out the question everyone wanted to ask.

When Serena was a member of the circle, she was familiar with their powers. However, after she was kicked out, two members had died since then.

There was no more information she could share.

As for this person who could make human puppets, it was either of the newly welcomed members.

However, even when they suspected the thirteen elders, they couldn’t directly point their fingers at them without solid proof. That would be like going against the religion.

Darius looked at Serena with sheer madness swirling in his eyes.

Others might not dare, but when had Darius followed the normal routes?

"I will ask them myself."

It was then the other five people realized they might be going on a bloody war against the priests.