"Aren... what’s wrong with you?"
With the chains gone, the suppression vanished.
The drug raging inside Aren surged to its peak, erupting without restraint.
His crimson eyes locked onto Nix like a starving beast sighting its prey.
A guttural snarl tore from his throat. Heat radiated from his body, scorching, suffocating.
Nix froze for a split second, then the leaves slipped from his hands, scattering across the floor.
One thought slamd into his mind.
Run.
He spun and bolted for the door.
But he had barely taken a step when a terrifying pressure crashed down from behind, freezing the air itself.
A searing hand clamped onto the back of his neck like iron.
"Let go—!" Nix struggled wildly.
Aren, lost to instinct, didn’t even seem to hear him. With a single motion, he lifted Nix off the ground as if he weighed nothing.
The world spun.
Nix was hurled onto the bed, the impact knocking the breath from his lungs.
Before he could recover, a burning presence lood over him.
"Help! Vincent—help !"
"Xarion—!"
Panic broke through completely as he shouted toward the door, thrashing with all his strength.
It made no difference.
Aren pinned both his wrists above his head with one hand, effortless, unyielding.
As Aren leaned closer, the door exploded open.
A wave of freezing cold swept in.
In an instant, both of them were encased in ice.
Xarion strode in, expression dark, and casually shoved the frozen Aren aside.
Inside the ice, Nix caught sight of him and nearly burst into tears.
Help . Please.
But no sound escaped.
Vincent stepped forward, a flicker of fla passing over the ice encasing Nix.
It lted instantly.
Jasper pulled him up and gave him a quick check. Once he confird Nix was unhard, he relaxed.
The mont Nix saw Vincent and Xarion, all fear drained away.
He stood beside Jasper, pointing accusingly at Aren, who was still frozen on the bed.
"He’s gone insane! He tried to—he tried to do that to !"
Yuel walked over, his gaze settling on Aren.
Blood continued to seep from the countless wounds across his body, staining the clear ice a deep, spreading red.
His eyes, visible through the frost, were just as crimson—feral, devoid of reason.
A beast, stripped of all restraint.
Crack.
Crack.
Fine fractures began to spread across the surface of the ice.
Seeing the cracks spreading across the ice, Xarion’s expression darkened. He raised his hand again, releasing another surge of freezing energy, thickening the ice around Aren and sealing him in once more.
Yuel took a step back, observing calmly.
"Judging by his condition, he’s been given the succubus clan’s aphrodisiac. Until the effects wear off, he won’t regain his sanity."
"Then what do we do?" Xarion frowned, glancing at Yuel. "Isn’t there an antidote? He’s already badly injured. His power has dropped from Rank Eleven to Rank Ten. If this keeps up, my ice will kill him."
Vincent turned to Yuel. "Will your blossoms help?"
Yuel shook his head. "They can only heal his external wounds."
Before anyone could say more, Paros stepped forward.
Without hesitation, he crushed the ice around Aren’s face and tossed a deep blue bead into his mouth.
Yuel’s gaze sharpened. "What did you just give him?"
"Dragon pearl," Paros replied.
Silence fell.
Everyone stared at him in shock.
Vincent’s eyes narrowed slightly. "Don’t tell that was your dragon pearl?"
To dragonkin, a dragon pearl was their life. Each dragon possessed only one.
It was said to neutralize toxins and even aid in advancent.
Had Paros really given up sothing like that?
"Of course not." Paros shook his head calmly. He had already given his own pearl... long ago.
"There are dragon pearls left behind by deceased elders. That’s what I used."
When a dragonkin died, they left behind their pearl. Those without mates would have their pearls returned to the clan.
"Will it work?" Jasper asked.
Paros gave a slight shake of his head. "No guarantee. But it’s better than doing nothing."
After all, there was no better option.
And none of them wanted Rory to see Aren like this.
What if she pitied him?
After swallowing the dragon pearl, Aren’s condition seed to shift slightly—but not enough.
The madness still burned in his eyes.
Jasper stepped forward, taking out a vial.
"My poison can kill," he said calmly, "but it can also neutralize toxins."
He glanced at the others.
"Should we try it on him too?"
Wen frowned slightly at the vial in Jasper’s hand. "But won’t your poison cause mory loss?"
Jasper replied calmly, "Not if the dosage is controlled."
Crack. Crack.
The ice encasing Aren began to fracture again.
Vincent watched Aren’s feral, unrestrained state and made a swift decision.
"Give it to him."
There was no hesitation in his voice.
In this condition, there was no way they could allow Aren anywhere near Rory. He had lost all reason—he could hurt her.
And they could not simply let him die either.
This was their only option.
With Vincent’s approval, Jasper imdiately administered the toxin, carefully controlling the dosage to avoid damaging Aren’s mory.
Xarion reinforced the ice once more.
Yuel stepped forward and fed Aren several of his blossoms.
To be safe, Vincent cut his finger and let two drops of firebird blood fall into Aren’s mouth.
Firebird blood could neutralize toxins as well.
Even after all that, Aren still struggled.
The heat radiating from his body grew so intense that it began to lt the ice itself.
Nix watched, then quickly pulled out a pill and handed it to Vincent.
"Give him this. It’s a sacred dicine from the Lion-Tiger Clan. It might help."
Vincent took it and fed it to Aren without delay.
Still not enough.
Wen imdiately produced a blood-red aquatic plant and handed it over.
"And this. A sacred redy from the rfolk."
Vincent clenched his jaw slightly, then fed that to Aren as well.
One after another, priceless redies were forced into him.
This ti, the effect was imdiate.
Aren’s body gradually stilled.
The violent tension drained from his limbs.
The crimson in his eyes faded, returning slowly to clarity.
The countless wounds across his body began to close at a visible pace, flesh knitting together as if ti itself were reversing.
Even his energy began to recover.
A quiet breath of relief passed through the group.
Xarion glanced at Aren, now lying motionless on the bed.
"So... he’s fine now?"
His tone carried a hint of disbelief.
The succubus clan really had no restraint.
"Probably..." Vincent said, though there was a trace of uncertainty in his voice.
The injuries were healed.
His energy had stabilized.
He had stopped struggling. His eyes had returned to normal.
By all logic, he should be fine.
"But... why isn’t he reacting?"
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