Dirty Heart - Chapter 50

After a few more days passed, Liam came to visit. Perhaps it was a reward for last night’s sex, Lionel had finally given his permission.

Contrary to her worries, Liam seemed highly satisfied with life as a servant. His face had a healthy sheen, and his eyes were clearer than before, making him look much better. Compared to the exploitation he suffered at the orphanage, life at the ducal house was practically heaven.

“Meow.”

At that moment, a cat climbed up the wooden vines and stepped into the infirmary without hesitation. At first she thought it was just a stray, but it turned out Lionel personally took care of it. Apparently he had taken it in because it looked pitiful crying after losing its mother.

“As expected of our Young Duke, he’s got such a big heart. Even taking care of a stray cat, what a magnanimous man.”

As Liam stroked the cat and kept praising him, Courtney looked at him with disbelief.

“Didn’t you say there’s nothing to look at but his face because he looks so frail?”

“Hey, sister. When did I ever act that rude?”

“Liam, a man shouldn’t say two different things with the same mouth.”

Just as they were chatting idly, Bailey returned from the laundry room with a meaningful smile.

“Wow, Courtney. Was it that intense last night? The bed sheets were completely wrecked. Thanks to that, the laundry maids are going to be working themselves to death.”

“Bailey! What are you saying in front of a kid!”

Courtney hurriedly covered Bailey’s mouth. Recalling the passionate lovemaking from last night made her face turn bright red for no reason.

‘I’ve lost my mind.’

If anything was the problem, it was getting swept up by his ridiculous request for a birthday present. Realizing she couldn’t even blame the original body anymore, a wave of self-loathing surged over her.

“Kitty, is something bothering you?”

The one small relief was that Liam, distracted by the cat, didn’t seem to properly catch what Bailey said.

“Huh? Sister! The cat’s throwing up!”

At that moment, Liam shouted in a panic. The cat gagged and spat up pale stomach fluid.

“Oh dear. Does it have a stomachache?”

Courtney hurried over to the cat and took out a handkerchief she had kept on her. It was one she had received from Lionel at some point, and she had completely forgotten about it in her inner pocket until now.

“Huh…?”

As she cleaned up the vomit with practiced hands, a cursive embroidery caught her eye.

“Alex Lanchester…? This isn’t the Young Duke’s?”

It smelled faintly of medicine, so she had assumed it was Lionel’s, but it seemed to belong to someone else. At the same time, Courtney’s face hardened. Things she had been deliberately ignoring rose to the surface, making her uneasy.

‘Then how is this any different from Lionel.’

She looked down at the handkerchief and pressed her lips together. Just as Lionel had used Courtney Balkan to live, she was also using Alex.

‘Still, shouldn’t I go see him at least once before the surgery. I should at least thank him….’

Knowing full well that this too was nothing more than a selfish act to ease her own conscience, the pain only deepened.

While she was turning over these thoughts, her eyes fell on the stack of newspapers piled on the bedside table. She had read them again and again to confirm whether the pig heart transplant surgery had really been developed, but something strange suddenly stood out.

“Bailey. This newspaper… doesn’t it seem a bit odd?”

“Hm? What about it?”

“Usually at the bottom of a newspaper, isn’t there an imperial seal?”

Because it was an era of strict political censorship, every publication had to bear the imperial seal as proof of official approval. Even the low-grade magazines that wrote about Courtney’s promiscuity had the seal clearly stamped on them.

“Really? Maybe it just got left out.”

Unlike Bailey, who brushed it off, Courtney examined the newspaper closely. As expected, no matter how hard she looked, there was no imperial seal anywhere.

“Hey, Liam….”

“Hm? Sister.”

“Can you go to the village for a bit?”

Feeling a chill run down her spine, Courtney quietly beckoned to Liam.

***

Alex’s surgery date was one day away. He, who had been confined in the underground prison, had been moved to a recovery room and was resting.

Originally, they had prepared thoroughly long in advance, even renovating a villa so the surgery could be performed on Lionel’s birthday. But with things having turned out this way, they hastily cleared out a hall in the ducal estate and set up a separate operating room. The makeshift conditions were far from ideal, but the Duke considered it acceptable and hurried along.

“Is your recovery going well?”

The Duke asked in an indifferent voice as he looked at Alex lying on the bed.

“Thanks to your care, I’ve improved a great deal.”

Despite his words, there was not a single part of the man’s body that looked intact. His fingernails were all gone, his entire body was covered in blood, and his face was utterly pale.

“Good. If this surgery goes well, I’ll forget your insolence completely.”

“Thank you for your generosity, Your Grace.”

The man bowed his head and observed proper decorum, but his eyes were filled with resignation, and the Duke paid it no mind.

It seemed his son had by now completely cast aside his doubts, and the foolish maid was soaking in the hope that she could live, spending her days confined in the infirmary.

‘This works out better. That brat Lionel is the one keeping the maid from escaping, after all.’

The Duke nodded in satisfaction. Although Lionel had kept him from going near the maid at all, he’d heard through the attending physician that her condition was good. The stab wound at her side had almost healed, and her health was entering a recovery phase.

Of course, he could have stormed into the infirmary by force at any time, but he didn’t want to disturb his son’s mood with an important surgery ahead. At least until the surgery, absolute rest was essential.

After letting Lionel confirm Alex’s surgical results with his own eyes, all that remained was to proceed with the heart transplant on Lionel’s birthday as planned. In the meantime, subduing Courtney Balkan and moving her to the operating room would complete all preparations.

Although it had taken a roundabout path, in the end it would be exactly as originally intended. Courtney Balkan’s heart would naturally be transplanted into his son.

A sinister smile spread across the Duke’s lips.

***

Liam tightened his shoelaces and rushed out of the mansion. He was running an errand for Courtney.

For a while, among the servants, the news that the Young Duke would receive a pig heart transplant had been a huge topic, so Liam hadn’t doubted it much either. Everyone accepted it as if it were only natural.

“They say the Duke spent an enormous amount of money to develop it.”

“So the Young Duke will finally become healthy!”

“Then will he marry Courtney?”

“Come on. How could he marry a maid. He’ll probably keep her as a mistress.”

“Well, that’s true, right? Still, being a mistress isn’t so bad. He’s going to lead the ducal house in the future. If you think about it, it’s practically an upward marriage.”

Of course, the talk about the Young Duke keeping Courtney as a mistress bothered him greatly, but he thought it was just people talking without knowing anything. After all, he had seen with his own eyes how much effort the Young Duke had put in to save her.

“Liam. Can you go to the village and check the newspapers? Just confirm whether it really says the pig heart transplant surgery was developed for the first time.”

Then Courtney suddenly asked him a strange favor. She said something felt off because none of the newspapers in the infirmary had an imperial seal stamped on them.

“Newspapers! Get your newspapers! Latest news!”

As he reached the village square, the loud voices of newspaper vendors rang out from all sides. The boy hurriedly searched his pocket, took out a few coins, and held them out to the nearest vendor.

“Mister, one newspaper, please.”

“Here you go, kid.”

After receiving the newspaper, Liam immediately opened it to the front page.