Chapter 15 : Loved Child

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Leon's face hardened. Though he closed his eyes and in pain, he could clearly feel something wet was dripping on his right hand right now.

'the heck is this?? why is my hand suddenly wet...what the heck is Noxin doing??'

As he thought that.

Hic*

He could hear someone cry silently. He then opens his eyes slightly.

flinched*

He flinched as he saw Noxin gripping his hand while shedding silent tears.

'Why is a man crying and clutching my hand like this?'

Despite the pain etched on Leon's face, inwardly, he regarded Noxin as if he had lost his sanity.

'What on earth, man? Have you completely lost it? Let me go, dude... Let go!'

Internally, he shouted for Noxin to release him, but his weakened hand proved powerless in escaping Noxin's grip.

'ah... I'm dead... if someone wal-'

Bang!!

Just then, the door abruptly swung open.

'ekk... ah 🙃... someone actually walked in."

"'Son!'" 

"Brother!!!"

Leon could vaguely deduce the identity of the incoming group based on how they addressed him, although his vision, clouded with tears, prevented a clear view.

'Oh, great... the most troublesome people have arrived.'

he thought as he closed his eyes in resignation.

'Now I'm completely dead...hah... whatever...'

Noxin, recognizing the voices' owners like Leon did, promptly stood up with proper posture and wiped away his tears respectfully.

"Greetings to the Duke, Duchess, and Young Master Luis."

As he did so, the trio who had just entered finally witnessed the severity of Leon's condition.

Flinched*

They involuntarily flinched as they beheld the distressing state of Leon. Stunned on the spot, their widened eyes fixated on the bedridden Leon, taking in the sight of his bleeding face and blood-soaked bedsheet.

"Bro...ther."

Luis, positioned third to the right of Duke Carl, stuttered, addressing his brother. His eyes trembled with shock.

"Why... why do you look like that, bro?"

A sharp pang struck his heart at the sight of his brother's condition. It hadn't been long since they shared dinner, and now Leon was in such a gruesome state. Luis's eyes welled up with tears, and he turned his head to the right, unable to bear the sight of his brother. Despite his efforts to hold back tears...

"Son!"

Upon hearing his mother's loud cry directed at Leon, Luis couldn't contain his own tears.

In the midst of this, Duchess Julia, stunned by Leon's condition, quickly rushed to his side upon snapping back to reality after hearing Luis stutter. 

Her tears flowed incessantly as her heart ached to see Leon in such a state. Approaching him, she inspected her son's body while crying, her words spoken in a choked voice.

"Son...so...n...hic...son...oh my gosh...my...dear...son...hic."

Each word she uttered was accompanied by a stutter as her heart sank. Her entire body trembled, and she felt a sense of helplessness, worried about the possibility of losing her son.

It was understandable; after all, the moment she was blessed with two precious sons felt like a miraculous gift from God.

Having waited for a child for a long time, when she found Leon at her house gate, there were no words to describe her overwhelming joy.

Married at the age of 16, she had struggled for nearly nine years to conceive. During that time, she tried everything, but nothing proved successful. She had almost given up hope until she met Leon—a beautiful child with captivating blue eyes and hair. In that moment, she knew.

'This child might be a gift from heaven for us!'

Therefore, she sought permission from her husband to adopt the child, even though she felt apprehensive about the possibility of him no longer loving her due to her inability to conceive. However, she was undeterred, believing that as long as she had the child, everything would be fine.

To her surprise, her husband shared the same sentiment and intended to propose the adoption idea himself but hesitated, fearing it might hurt her. Consequently, they joyfully welcomed Leon into the Fronti family.

Upon hearing this news, the territory celebrated with a three-day festival to welcome their first young master. While Leon remained unaware of this, it reflected the immense love the people of the territory and his family had for him.

Yet, the child whom these people adored now lay before her, breathing heavily and bleeding incessantly from his ears, eyes, and mouth. The blood flowed like a river.

'At this rate... my child will die bleeding...'

"Oh, God!"

Overwhelmed by fear of losing Leon, she broke into more tears, clutching his right hand tightly and holding on to it while bawling.

huff huff

'mom... don't cry please... this Leon's heart aches if you do that...'

Leon thought as he looked at Duchess Julia with his eyes half open. Though Duchess Julia is not his real mom, his body, being that of Leon, responded in accordance with the original Leon's emotions.

'Even Luis is crying... haa... This is troublesome.'

Glancing briefly at Luis, though not able to see him clearly, Leon noticed Luis wiping something from his face.

'It must be tears for sure... Luis loves his brother after all.'

Leon closes his eyes to the thought of how much his brother loves him. After all, the diary did mention about Luis's affection towards Leon.

'It's to the point that it's ridiculous, but...'

On Earth, people might label this kind of affection as "brocon." However, Leon didn't perceive it that way. It extended only to the level of Luis being willing to risk his life for Leon. So, Leon didn't categorize Luis as a typical "brocon" type; perhaps it was more of a warm brotherly affection, he thought.

"It's not that weird... different people, different ways of affection, I think."

Leon didn't harbor any dislike for those who openly expressed affection. Although he wasn't inherently inclined toward such displays, he acknowledged the importance of showing affection when necessary. Back on Earth, he was perceived as the gentleman type. Despite attracting the attention and admiration of many, both girls and guys, he remained indifferent. For Leon, his gentlemanly actions weren't driven by a desire for affection but rather by the need to fill a void where others hesitated. His guiding principle was to take the initiative when no one else did and guide others in the process.

"Noxin..."

Duke Carl, who had been silently enduring the anguish of witnessing his son's condition for a while, finally spoke up. His eyes, which had been fixed on his son without a break, shifted to the left side, focusing on Noxin's face with a calm yet cold expression.

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To be continued

Fuhh .. 😭 poor Leon

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