As the words left Ardyn's lips, Luke barely had time to react when the man's body suddenly collapsed on top of him.
Startled, Luke instinctively wrapped his arms around Ardyn, noticing that the latter's body was shaking. However, when his hands reached Ardyn's back, he felt something strange. A somewhat sticky sensation clung to his hands, warm and wet.
Luke slowly lifted his fingers to see blood staining the skin.
Ardyn was bleeding.
Right. He needed to do something about this.
But his magic...
"Sorry!" Ardyn suddenly exclaimed as he quickly backed away. The movement, however, triggered the pain from his wounds, making him flinch visibly.
"You shouldn't move too fast like that," Luke told him softly. "You're hurt."
"I'll be fine," Ardyn insisted.
Luke shook his head and used his elbows to lift his upper body from the ground. After that, he moved to Ardyn's side and inspected the wounds on his back.