[BL] Accidentally Becoming the Healer of the Deranged Archduke
Chapter 85: The Night When Little Butterfly Died

Chapter 85: The Night When Little Butterfly Died

Minato-sensei used to say this phrase so often that it settled in Xion’s chest more deeply than his own heartbeat.

"We don’t borrow grief from nothingness, my child. For every exchange comes with a price. And the future is one of such nothingness. The past is another."

Seventeen-year-old Xion rested his head on the middle-aged doctor’s shoulder. Despite being the younger one, he lacked the vitality that shone in the older man’s eyes.

"How so? Isn’t everything we do for the sake of the future?"

Minato chuckled. "We do it for the hope of betterment. But if we worry about a future that technically doesn’t even exist yet, aren’t we simply fools?"

Xion thought he understood, yet at the same time, he understood nothing.

"The past, the future... everything is but an illusion of existence. If you stop living in the present, my child," Minato patted Xion’s knee before continuing, "that nothingness will become something unbearable."

Xion scoffed lightly. "It’d be better if that kind of future disappeared altogether. You said we need to pay a price, what did you mean by that?"

"The price of worrying about illusions is joy. The more you worry, the more you pay with happiness. The less you worry, the more joy you keep for your present."

Xion huffed, "Then I’ll take your joy instead. You seem too happy for a middle-aged man whose son doesn’t want him anymore."

Angry at the fact that he could not understand what heavy wisdom his sensei was saying Xion deliberately stepped on the painful side.

Minato only laughed. "Really like an angry kitten. But don’t I have you with me? You better take care of my burial when I get wrinkled and old."

Xion scowled, irritated to his core. "Who wants to do that?! I refuse to arrange your coffin!"

Minato chuckled, ruffling Xion’s hair. "Calm down, angry kitten. I bought your favorite flavored milk."

-----

Never borrow grief from the future.

Xion had ingrained it into his very existence. Anytime there was a heavy rock blocking his way, he would look at the tiny pebbles at the side and admire their beauty until either the rock gave up or he found the solution to get rid of it.

However, what if he could see it all? The cries filled with anguish and sadness that ripped his chest apart?

It wasn’t him, yet it was. Xion Vaelis.

When Xion had been taken away by Caspian under the pretense of receiving an education, little Xion had been ecstatic.

I want to make my father proud, like Brother Soren does.

Even if he didn’t understand the world, he knew one thing: everyone dispised him.

If someone had asked him back then who he hated the most, little Xion might have answered without hesitation, his mother.

She had abandoned him at the orphanage and never returned. If not for his pretty face and obedient nature, the head of the orphanage might not have treated him so kindly.

That small kindness had shielded him from the filth of the world. And then, in the blink of an eye, he had been thrown into the den of a marquis.

It had been too overwhelming for him.

When Caspian Hale extended a generous hand with the promise to mold him into someone more like his father, Xion had been too happy to refuse.

For him, Caspian was like a guardian angel. After all, Caspian was giving him the opportunity to get the education that only nobles get!

The dependence and naïveté in his eyes had only made him more delicious to the man.

When he was about to be swallowed by the darkness, he saw him.

Klein Nocturne.

The Nocturne family was only in Brairhold for a couple of months. While Klein stayed behind for education. The same thing which tricked little Xion.

When Xion saw Klein, who had a very gentle smile even when he talked to the servants, he felt a tiny hope reigniting.

But what Xion did not expect was that the gentle and calm Klein had a blood lust.

For Xion, Klein Nocturne was a real monster, a beast who would sink his teeth into his neck and drink his blood until he lost consciousness.

"You taste so good, little butterfly."

When Klein bought Xion from Caspian, little Xion took this chance and jumped to his death.

The little baby had died in the same mansion where Xion now stood.

The timeline... I am supposed to die tonight.

It was absurd. So absurd that Xion wanted to laugh.

A chuckle bubbled up in his chest, and before he knew it, the corners of his lips tilted up in a brilliant smile that dazzled the onlookers.

It was time to play his part of the role.

"It’s nice to see you, Your Grace. And you too, Father."

Xion bowed just as Ray had taught him.

Bend at the waist. Not too much, just enough to show the illusion of submission. Let them feel the weight of your power being yielded in their presence. Keep your eyes low. Wait.

Only when they reply do you rise.

Xion did not have to wait for long. Barely had his greeting fallen when the Duke let out a hearty laugh, his voice rich with amusement, almost as if he were genuinely pleased to see him.

"So, you’re Xion. You look far better than the rumors made you out to be."

Rumors?

If he was referring to the whispers about him being an ugly woman, Xion was already well aware.

But he only smiled lightly in response. There was no need for words, especially when the vultures in the room were already circling, eager to seize this rare opportunity to build connections.

He very generously stepped to the side, giving Mrs Pomferrie the space to step forward.

The sight on him was getting sharp. Even without looking Xion knew it was Klein. The male had been gawking at him since earlier.

Then, just as expected, a subtle shove pushed him out of the gathering’s inner circle.

Xion didn’t resist. Instead, he took the opportunity gladly and slipped toward the corner with an easy grace.

Ray was still there, talking to the duke about something. They both took their leave from the crowd and went to the corner where no one disturbed them.

It only meant one thing, Xion might have to endure this place a little longer. At least until Ray returned.

A waiter passed by, balancing a tray of drinks.

Xion’s mood was already terrible, but when he spotted Klein weaving through the crowd toward him, it plummeted further.

Without hesitation, he plucked a glass from the tray. He needed something to take the edge off. Facing that psychopath while sober was simply out of the question.