First day

'Darn it, that old coot left me alone!' Alex nearly cursed as his head throbbed painfully.

Gritting his teeth, he asked. "You said Nadia is downstairs?"

"Yes, sir." The maid replied.

"Call her for me."

The maid noticed Alex's discomfort as she asked. "Is everything okay sir?"

"Damn it, just call her!" Alex cursed in annoyance.

The maid quickly scurried away, slamming the door behind her as she left, not giving him a chance to apologize for the misdemeanor.

Struggling to get out of bed, he opened his eyes slightly but the backlash he received sent him to the ground immediately.

Clenching his fist, Alex slowly got back to his feet and taking deep breaths to calm himself, slowly walked toward the door.

Just as he reached out to open the door, he heard the door open and a familiar scent assailed his nostrils.

"May I ask why you were so rude to the maid?" Nadia sharply asked. "You could have just said no if you didn't want to have breakfast with me.

"I've noticed your change in attitude but this is getting out of hand and…"

"Nadia, I'm blind!" Alex suddenly said, cutting her off.

Nadia blinked a couple of times, completely speechless.

In her anger, she didn't notice Alex's heavy breathing or that his eyes were tightly shut.

"Wh..what happened?" She finally asked after regaining herself.

Alex shook his head. "Take me to Arthur, he should know what's wrong."

"Arthur left for the office an hour ago."

"Then take me to him… please." Alex barely breathed the words out before he stumbled forward and into Nadia's arms.

Instinctively, she held him and though his heated breath caused a few sensations, she understood that this wasn't the situation to mess around.

"Martha!" She loudly called out. "Get a carriage!"

"Yes, madam."

***

Alex was completely delirious as he switched between conscious and unconscious states.

It felt as though he was closing in on his death, a motion he couldn't stop no matter how much he tried.

It hurt him but the pain he was experiencing was too much to bear.

Amidst the chaos, a feminine voice he had grown accustomed to helped him remain lucid.

"Alex, stay with me. Stay with me, don't give up, we are almost there."

Nadia stayed beside him and her voice kept him from falling off the edge.

He might have said something in response but he couldn't recall and at a certain point… he decided to take a short nap.

***

By the time the coach reached the Morning Weeklies located in the western district, Alex was barely breathing.

If not for Nadia blowing air into his mouth while continuously pushing down on his chest, he would have been long gone.

Tears flowed freely from her eyes as she dragged him out of the coach.

Seeing her sorry state, the coachman helped and they rushed him into the building where the employees helped carry him to Arthur's office on the second floor.

***

Arthur sat in his office, a pipe in one hand and a picture in the other.

In the picture, a younger version of him alongside a beautiful woman with wolf-like ears and a somewhat large greyhound that sat on their legs was depicted.

The bright smile they held reminded Arthur of a happier time.

Taking a drag from his pipe, he muttered. "... Happiness is an illusion."

Just then, an abrupt knocking at the door jolted him from his reverie.

"Who's that?" Arthur scowled.

"Sir, it's Alex, something is wrong with him!" A panicked voice was heard.

Before Arthur could say anything, the door was flung open with Nadia and two other male employees rushing in with Alex in tow.

The latter was a vegetable as he continuously muttered something incoherent.

Arthur turned wide-eyed at the sight. "This…"

"Uncle, save him." Nadia cried out with tears in her eyes.

Completely perplexed by the situation, Arthur's eyes glowed a bright gold color as he inspected Alex.

A moment later, he gasped. "He broke the boundary!"

"Boundary?" The male employees present got confused at the strange term.

Meanwhile, Nadia seemed to understand as she turned wide-eyed as well before glancing at Alex.

"Uncle…" she muttered.

Arthur realized his mistake as he ordered. "Drop him on the floor and everyone, get out!"

Glancing at Nadia, he added. "including you."

Nadia hesitated but ultimately left alongside the others after Alex was placed on the floor.

Rushing over, Arthur got on his knees and placed his palm on his forehead.

"You are burning up," he muttered with a frown.

Alex was barely conscious as his mouth kept on moving with no actual words coming out.

He was no better than a vegetable as he lay on the floor while struggling to speak.

Arthur removed his palm and placed his thumb on Alex's glabella before speaking up. "You need to listen to me, boy. If you don't do as I say, you'd best prepare to meet Douglas wherever he is."

"…"

Taking a deep breath, Arthur closed his eyes and controlled his breathing.

Alex felt a sense of clarity he hadn't experienced since he woke up a moment later with warm energy enveloping him.

The pain was still there but it was possible to stay conscious now.

"Focus on your thoughts. Something like a mantra using words that mean something to you. Do it now, I don't know how long I can keep your state of clarity!"

Alex did as he was told as he recalled the reason he was willing to sacrifice so much.

Isabella.

Mary-Jane.

The moment he envisioned both women, Alex felt like he had alleviated the pain he was experiencing.

He called both their names inwardly repeatedly before he finally realized that the pain was gone.

With a sigh of relief, Arthur removed his thumb from his forehead before taking a step back to allow Alex some room to breathe.

He pulled out a chair and sat on it, his forehead filled with perspiration as he watched Alex open his eyes.