CHAPTER 113: SAVING HIM

Finally Ashen and Lumina got to the royal physician’s chambers.

Ashen gently set her down on her feet, his hands steadying her until he was sure of her balance.

"Thank you," whispered tilting her face toward him with a small smile.

"It’s my pleasure," he replied, his tone gentle. Then he added quietly, almost in a murmur meant for her ears alone, "It’s my duty."

She felt her lips curve wider at that, warmth blooming in her chest.

Ashen bent to kiss her forehead briefly, his breath brushing her hair as he whispered, "Mind your friendship with Serena."

Lumina was about to protest when soft boots clicked against the floor behind them.

"Talking about me?"

Ashen’s shoulders stiffened. He turned his head just enough to glance back, his expression flat.

"Lady Serena," Lumina called warmly, breaking into a smile as she faced the sound of her voice.

Serena’s voice held a teasing smile as she replied, "Your husband just told you to stay away from me."

Lumina reached out and lightly jabbed Ashen in the side, earning a faint scowl from him that melted quickly into a reluctant smirk.

"Goodbye," he muttered under his breath, turning on his heel. His long strides carried him out of the chamber before Lumina could scold him for being rude.

Serena shook her head, amused. "He’s getting more protective by the day."

Lumina only smiled, choosing not to comment, and Serena guided her deeper into the room.

The session had almost started the apprentices stood in neat rows, some preparing mixtures, others practicing reading pulses. The soft clinking of glass vials and the rustle of parchment filled the air.

Lord Drex, however, was not yet present, so the apprentices spoke in calm tones as they worked.

Serena found Lumina in her seat near the table where bundles of herbs had been laid out for the day’s lesson.

Though Lumina could not see them, she reached out with careful fingers, her touch light, and began identifying them by scent.

The lesson had been going smoothly until the doors to the chamber burst open with a loud bang.

Everyone jumped.

Two guards rushed in, carrying a man slumped between them his breathing ragged, his face. From the hurried murmurs, Lumina quickly realized this was no ordinary patient.

"It’s Lord Marcellus!" someone gasped. "He is one of the senior council members, not just anyone can treat him."

The guards laid him gently on the floor, panic rippling through the room.

"Where is Lord Drex?" one of the guards demanded.

"He hasn’t arrived yet!" one of the apprentices stammered, already backing away nervously.

Several of the other apprentices hesitated, clearly unsure of what to do. A few rushed to gather supplies, but their movements were clumsy, panicked.

"He’s not breathing right... Someone do something!" a servant cried.

"I can help," Lumina said, standing abruptly from her seat.

A few of the apprentices exchanged doubtful glances.

"You?" one of them scoffed. "You can’t even see!"

"You will make it worse!" another added.

Lumina’s chin lifted slightly. "I can hear his breathing from here," she said evenly. "He’s choking and he doesn’t have time to wait for Lord Drex."

"Stay back," one of the older apprentices snapped. "You don’t belong at the front lines of care. Just sit and wait."

But before they could pull her back, Serena stepped forward, her voice sharp.

"Let her through."

The apprentices blinked at her.

"She knows what she’s doing," Serena let out. "You don’t have to like it, but you will not stop her."

Lumina exhaled slowly, focusing her senses as she knelt beside the man. She could smell the faint bitter tang of whatever he had consumed, and the rasp of his uneven breathing filled her ears.

"Roll him slightly to the side," she instructed the guards. They hesitated but obeyed when Serena nodded.

Lumina placed her hand gently over his chest, counting his shallow breaths, then pressed her ear closer to his mouth.

"He’s not getting enough air," she murmured. She reached for the pouch of herbs she had been working with earlier, fingers quickly selecting a small root.

She crushed it in her hands, releasing its sharp aroma, and held it under his nose.

"Breathe," she urged softly. The man let out a weak cough.

"Good," Lumina said, her tone calm despite her own racing heart. "Hold him steady."

She pressed along his throat gently, searching for the obstruction. Then, she tilted his head back and gave a firm but careful thrust just beneath the ribs not enough to hurt him, but enough to force a reaction.

A moment later, the man gagged violently, spitting out a dark clot and drawing in a deeper breath.

Relief swept through the room, and even the apprentices who had been scoffing at her a moment ago now stared in wide-eyed shock.

Lumina didn’t stop there. She carefully wiped his mouth with a cloth offered by Serena and checked his pulse by pressing her fingers to his wrist.

"It’s weak but steady," she said. "Keep him lying on his side until Lord Drex arrives."

As if on cue, the doors opened again, this time revealing Lord Drex himself.

"What is going on?" he asked, striding forward.

The apprentices rushed to explain, but Drex waved them aside and crouched next to Lord Marcellus, placing two fingers to his pulse and then inspecting his throat.

He glanced at Lumina, his eyes narrowing slightly before softening.

"You did this?" he asked.

"Yes, my lord," Lumina replied respectfully.

He looked back at Lord Marcellus and then nodded slowly, almost in approval. "You saved his life. If the obstruction had stayed a moment longer, he would have suffocated before I arrived."

The apprentices murmured among themselves, stunned.

Lord Drex stood, facing the room. "Let this be a lesson to you all," he said sternly. "A healer’s duty is to act, not to hesitate. Blind or not, Princess Lumina saw more clearly than any of you today."

Lumina felt heat rush to her cheeks at the praise, though she kept her head bowed modestly.

Serena squeezed her shoulder lightly, whispering, "Well done."

For the first time that day, Lumina smiled a small, proud smile as the weight of the morning lifted just slightly from her chest.