The Terminally-Ill Duke Clings to Me Every Night (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 5

“How am I supposed to make a cure in just three months?”

Leah muttered in a grumpy voice, recalling the duke she’d met in the annex. It was a task only possible by mobilizing all of modern medicine.

“My luck is truly terrible.”

In her past life, she’d worked herself to the bone, only to be hit by a car and die right after finally buying her own house.

And now, just when she thought she’d barely settled into her new life as an apothecary after reincarnating, she’d stumbled upon a secret about the duke she never wanted to know.

Leah sighed deeply, lamenting her cruel fate. But what could she do? To survive, she had no choice but to pretend to develop a cure.

“By the way… ugh. Look at all this dust.”

Leah had come to the manor’s library to learn more about Porarium and began surveying the interior.

Aside from patches of rust here and there, the library in this outer estate was quite sizable.

“It’s spacious, at least…”

She hadn’t expected a librarian to be present, but she’d at least hoped the books would be neatly organized.

“What a mess.”

Cookbooks and poetry collections shared the same shelf. Novels clearly meant for adults were jumbled together with children’s fairy tales—utter chaos.

On top of that, the stale smell of old dust hit her nose sharply, as if no one had cleaned in ages.

“Cough, cough.”

Leah waved away the dust swirling toward her and took a step forward.

Given the duke’s family’s long history, the place had an antique charm—but the library itself was completely neglected.

At this rate, would she even find a book on herbalism today? Grumbling inwardly, Leah stopped before a massive bookshelf.

Fortunately, medical texts seemed to have been gathered in one spot, likely untouched for a long time.

“Quite a variety, huh?”

The collection covered everything from basic herbalism and potion-making to medical treatises—impressively diverse.

“Looks worn on the outside, but it’s still a duke’s library, after all.”

She pulled out every herbalism book she could find and began researching Porarium.

As time passed, a mountain of books steadily grew before her.

“Combining lily of the valley and Akapodium can induce cardiac arrest…”

Then, perhaps the side effects could be countered with an herb of completely opposite properties?

“Now that I think of it, evening primrose was good for blood circulation, wasn’t it?”

Cardiac arrest was usually caused by poor blood flow.

So, conversely, if she found an herb that improved circulation, couldn’t it serve as an antidote? The idea struck her.

Just as Leah was poring over a book for more details on evening primrose—

“Found it.”

After flipping a few more pages, she found a detailed entry on evening primrose. Her eyes slowly traced the lines of text.

“It purifies the blood by removing clots. So it must be good for blood-related illnesses?”

She realized evening primrose might work as an antidote.

As she turned the page again to look up Porarium’s side effects, a small note in the margin caught her eye.

[Caution::: Long-term use of Porarium may lead to decreased vitality and impaired sexual function.]

She blinked.

“Impaired sexual function…?”

She’d never known Porarium could cause such an issue. This was news to her.

Just as Leah was about to bury her face back into the book for more details, she sensed movement outside the library.

– Hey, did you hear? It seems that rumor is actually true.

– Rumor?

Through the half-open door, the excited voices of maids drifted in. Leah glanced toward the doorway where the sound came from.

– You know how the butler puts women in the duke’s bedroom once a month, claiming he needs an heir? I heard he doesn’t even touch a single hair on their heads!

– Really? How do you know that?

– Last time, Mari got curious and secretly peeked. She said the woman came right back out in less than ten minutes!

– Then that means…

For some reason, the maids’ hushed whispers sounded as clear as if they were speaking right into her ear.

– The duke clearly has a problem with his male functions.

Leah froze as if struck on the head. At the same time, the warning from the book she’d just read flashed through her mind.

[Long-term use of Porarium may lead to decreased vitality and impaired sexual function.]

After staring blankly into space for a while, Leah lowered her gaze. Was it her imagination, or did the words “impaired sexual function” stand out more vividly than the rest?

Carefully, she closed the book and held it to her chest.

“No wonder… He seemed far too sensitive.”

She remembered the duke’s irritable outburst the first time she’d entered his bedroom—he’d even thrown a vase at her.

It had seemed excessive for someone merely ill. Now she understood the painful truth behind it.

“There was a reason his nerves were so frayed.”

To suffer such an unspeakable condition at such a young age—it was no wonder his spirit had withered. Leah suddenly felt deep pity for the duke.

“I should treat him kindly.”

She’d have to research a cure for that devastating “illness” as well. With a determined look, she gathered the books she needed and left the library.

[This is the timeline separator]

“So heavy…”

Perhaps she’d been too greedy. Stacked high in her arms, the books blocked her view completely.

As she walked, regretting her overzealousness, she suddenly felt her arms grow lighter.

“You looked like you were struggling.”

A man with deep violet hair reminiscent of amethyst spoke to her in a friendly tone.

“You’re…”

“Don’t you remember my name? Rikel.”

“Oh.”

Leah nodded as if she’d just recalled him. He was a servant from the manor who’d helped her when she’d been lost a few days ago.

“Didn’t he say he worked in the kitchen?”

She’d overheard maids gossiping about him a few times—his rather handsome looks made him a frequent topic.

“You just need to get to the apothecary, right?”

“Ah, yes. Thank you.”

Though he’d been casually friendly from their first meeting, claiming they were the same age, Leah kept her distance by consistently using formal speech.

For some reason, this man made her uneasy.

“Characters with half-lidded eyes like that usually hide something, don’t they?”

It was a classic novel cliché—the sleepy-eyed character who awakens with a dramatic reveal.

Maybe that was why Leah found Rikel especially suspicious. As she shot him a wary glance, he cheerfully asked,

“By the way, didn’t you get scammed?”

“Huh? Scammed?”

“Everyone in the manor says so—you must’ve been tricked. Otherwise, why would you claim to be the duke’s apothecary?”

“Damn it.”

To be swindled by a former con artist—how humiliating. She awkwardly cleared her throat out of embarrassment.

“It wasn’t exactly a scam. I just misread the contract a little.”

Though, admittedly, that one mistake had turned out far worse than she’d expected.

“That’s literally a scam! You have to pay a huge penalty fee just to quit as apothecary, right?”

“Well… yeah.”

Leah’s shoulders slumped again as her pitiful situation returned to mind. Rikel, watching her from the corner of his eye, stepped ahead and stopped a few paces in front of her.

Blocked by his sudden movement, Leah looked up.

“I think I can help you out.”

“Help me with what?”

He glanced sideways to check if anyone was nearby, then leaned toward her and lowered his voice.

“I could make you even more money than that penalty fee.”

“…Money?”

More than the penalty fee? Rikel’s words sounded like a devil’s whisper, and Leah unconsciously swallowed hard.

“What do you say? Want to hear more?”

He grinned at her, eyes wide and round.

[This is the timeline separator]

What Rikel proposed to her that day was truly shocking.

[You want me to spy on the duke?] [Yeah. Just keep an eye on him, and occasionally slip something small into his medicine when asked. Don’t worry—it won’t be poison or anything.]

“It’s not a big deal, but one wrong move and you’re dead.”

Rikel promised her a large sum of money and a stable job in the future if she became a spy for the duke’s enemies.

He claimed his employer was generous, or so he said.

“The offer isn’t bad, I suppose…”

These were terms any commoner apothecary would find tempting. But what stirred Leah’s heart the most was this:

[You have to pay that penalty fee, right? The reward will be quite substantial.]

According to Rikel, if she pleased his employer, they’d even cover her penalty fee.

“So, if I complete the job successfully, I’ll get two hundred silver coins?”

Right now, Leah had no real choice but to accept Rikel’s proposal. Yet her sharp instincts warned her—something felt off.

“This is definitely dangerous.”

The duke wasn’t just any noble—he was imperial royalty, the rightful heir who should have inherited the throne.

Those watching and scheming against such a man were surely powerful figures.

From her experience, she’d never seen anyone entangled with such people meet a good end. Tapping her fingers on the desk as she pondered, Leah finally stood up.

“Then there’s only one way.”

With resolve in her eyes, she left her room—and arrived at the duke’s bedroom with a solemn expression.

“Whew…”

Leah took a quiet breath, checked for anyone nearby, then knocked on the door.

“Your Grace, it’s Apothecary Leah. May I come in for a moment?”

“……”

Only silence greeted her. Then she remembered—the duke was pretending he couldn’t speak. She sighed.

“Right. He can’t talk.”

She wondered if she’d have to wait until the possibly sleeping duke opened the door himself.

Just then, a sound came from inside—the clatter of something falling to the floor.

“Maybe…”

Thinking it might be a signal to enter, Leah cautiously stepped inside.

– Thud.

As the door closed behind her, a familiar male voice spoke.

“Good thing you’re quick on the uptake.”

The duke greeted her with words that could be either praise or reproach, his eyes questioning what she wanted.

“I know there’s no examination scheduled for today. You haven’t already developed a new medicine, have you…? What brings you here?”

He eyed her suspiciously. Leah took a short breath and replied,

“I have something urgent to discuss—something very important.”

The duke stared at her silently for a moment, then nodded.

“Sit.”

At his permission, Leah took a seat on the sofa in the center of the bedroom.

“Speak.”

The duke crossed his legs arrogantly, as if challenging her to say what she came to say.

“Earlier today, someone made me an offer.”

“An offer?”

“Yes. They proposed a rather tempting deal—in exchange for information about Your Grace.”

“Tempting, you say…”

He gave a faint, amused chuckle.

“And why are you telling me this?”

“Because I’d like to make a deal with you.”

“A deal… with me?”

He murmured in a flat tone. This was a gamble—one where she might lose everything.

Leah’s palms grew damp with sweat.

“I’ll serve as a double agent for you.”

“A double agent?”

“Yes. I’ll pretend to accept their offer and pass along any information I gather to you. In return…”

Leah moistened her dry mouth with a swallow and held up her fingers.

“Triple.”

“……”

“Three times the amount they offered me.”

She’d take money from both sides and run.

That was the conclusion reached by her, a former con artist.