Don’t Tame It [Novel]

1.

Meanwhile, Irene hurried toward the dormitory. There was much to be done. First, she had to decide how to dispose of the books that occupied most of her room.

No, she should eat the cake before anything else.

Irene’s pace quickened, her arms clutching the bag to her chest.

“Isn’t that right, Irene?”

Diego, who had been looking to his side with gentle eyes, let out a dry laugh upon noticing the empty space a moment too late.

“You look away for a second, and she just vanishes.”

His mutterings hovered at his feet before scattering into the air.

Javier, who had been observing Diego’s expression, raised his eyebrows. His tone sounded vaguely offended, yet a soft smile curled around his lips.

Diego, having pulled his gaze away from Irene’s retreating figure as she slipped into the building, turned around with a light heart. The warm sunlight brilliantly illuminated the path ahead.

* * *

The anatomy lab, once the practicals had finished, was a place everyone avoided. Unless someone was particularly eccentric, no one wanted to remain in the company of corpses with their insides exposed.

Irene, of course, was one of those eccentric people.

To be honest, she quite liked the anatomy lab. There were no sea anemones here to pick fights with her, nor jellyfish to play mischievous pranks.

It was quiet. As if she were the only person left in the world.

Since childhood, Leticia had been terrified of being alone. Whenever the family left for worship, leaving behind a sleeping Leticia, the house would be turned completely upside down.

On Sundays, even the servants returned to their own homes, and the only people left in the two-story mansion were her and Irene.

—Sister. Sister, don’t go anywhere. Stay here.

Leticia, who usually regarded Irene with disapproval, would cling to her side like the most affectionate sister in the world. She would return to her original self the moment the family returned home.

In contrast, Irene did not fear being alone. The silence and stillness, heavy enough to make her ears ring, actually brought her peace of mind.

“The stench of a decomposing corpse is something I’ll never get used to before graduation.”

Though she covered her nose and mouth with cloth, the piercing foul odor did not fade in the slightest. However, once one passed a certain threshold, even this putrid smell was no longer perceived.

Olfactory adaptation.

It was the theory that the sense of smell adapts after being exposed to the same odor for about five minutes.

Irene wondered if the human heart might be the same. If suffering and pain persisted for a long time, perhaps there came a moment when one no longer perceived them as pain.

Perhaps that was why she had become unable to feel anything—not only pain, but even joy or affection.

Irene looked down at the corpse that had outlived its usefulness with indifferent eyes. After the lesson, the organs of the deceased were strewn carelessly outside the body.

It felt as if she were looking at herself. If her own belly were sliced open, it would likely be just as empty as a corpse with its organs extracted.

“An absurd hypothesis, though.”

After washing her hands thoroughly, she returned the scattered organs to their original places. The organs, which had been hot and soft just days ago, had already turned hard and were emitting a chilling coldness.

Her work finished, Irene began to wipe the bloodstains from the corpse’s skin with a damp cloth. The dried brown stains did not come off easily, even when she scrubbed with force.

Yet, Irene continued her work with sincerity and persistence. Often, Maxy would look at her with pathetic eyes.

—Whether your intestines are inside or out, it’s the same rot once you’re in the grave, so what’s the point of this trouble? Don’t you have anything better to do? It must be nice to be at the top of the class, having the luxury to care about a corpse right before midterms.

If Irene offered no reply, he would sneer with an even angrier expression.

—Hey, Broom. Why don’t you care about the living as much as you do the dead? How can you treat me worse than a corpse? Why? Did that corpse ask you to sew up its belly?

—Because the dead have no words.

—What? So you’re saying I talk too much? Ha, that’s ridiculous. Anyone would think I was desperate to talk to you. You don’t even have any other peers to talk to if it weren’t for me.

That wasn’t what she meant. She meant that because the dead were silent, they couldn’t ask to have their bellies sewn shut.

Irene, who had intended to explain, just clamped her mouth shut. She had no talent for clearing up misunderstandings, and for some reason, the more she tried to clarify, the angrier Maxy became.

In times like these, silence was best. Isn’t there a saying that eloquence is silver and silence is gold?

If that proverb were true, Irene should be a millionaire by now. She would have an immense amount of gold collected.

Even as she let her mind wander, Irene’s hands moved skillfully. In the name of class, the heart and lungs of the deceased had been exposed, and the liver and stomach had been left sprawling across the professor’s table, carved into pieces.

She believed that even a prisoner on death row deserved minimal respect. A minimal courtesy for having to surrender their flesh to students, unable to find eternal rest even after death.

That was why Irene always stayed behind alone after anatomy class to tidy up the bodies. She did her best to return them to a state similar to how they had first arrived.

And today was the last time for that, too. By next week, she would have to leave this school.

“There won’t be anyone left to tidy up the corpses now.”

Irene put down the wet cloth and picked up the needle with an indifferent expression.

“Though, that would change if I accepted Professor Figueras’s offer.”

Nevertheless, there was a reason she could not readily accept his offer: the fact that lodging was not provided for assistants.

It was only natural, but Irene had no spare money to find a boarding house of her own.

“If I told my parents… no, that wouldn’t work, would it?”

Baroness Rios, whose favorite phrase was “Do you have any idea how much money goes into your upkeep every month?” would surely glare daggers at her before she could even finish her sentence.

Irene had actually been receiving a scholarship for all four years, but if she mentioned that, the situation would only worsen.

—Do you think tuition is everything? You seem to think the clothes you wear, the dormitory fees, and your meals fall from the sky. Even for someone as shameless as you, how could you bring up money in front of me? You don’t even know the grace you’ve been shown until this age.

The Baroness’s nagging rang in her ears as if she were standing right there. The dress Irene was wearing was one Leticia had grown tired of and passed down, but she had enough sense not to point that out.

As it stood, there was no other way. Either she borrowed money from the Baroness and endured the verbal abuse to get a boarding house, or she gave up on becoming an assistant.

“Focus on the corpse.”

Noticing her needle-holding hand trembling, Irene shook her head lightly to dispel her thoughts. Her blue eyes settled into a state of calm.

The moment the tip of the needle descended onto the prisoner’s skin—

*Click.*

The door opened. Irene hesitated, withdrawing her hand, and turned to look at the intruder with blank eyes.

Diego was there. With a smile as bright as the sunlight. Behind him, Javier stood like a shadow.

He must be bored.

Irene looked away from Diego, who was walking toward her with heavy steps, and looked back at the corpse. She began to move her hand again.

The sharp needle pierced the thick skin. Irene muttered dryly, her eyes fixed on the tip of the needle.

“There is no need for you to come here anymore, Your Excellency. After careful consideration, I have concluded that it is better to accept Professor Figueras’s offer.”

“Oh, dear.”

Diego pursed his lips and squinted, as if expressing great regret. But his exaggerated expression made it look as though he felt no remorse at all.

In truth, there were plenty of skilled surgeons other than her. Without looking too far, wasn’t the runner-up student eyeing the position of personal physician?

Furthermore, even if it weren’t a graduate, she could just find a barber with good hand skills. Even without systematic education, they were experts skilled in this work for many years. They had their own unique know-how.

“How about you reconsider?”

Nonetheless, Diego made his offer for what felt like the umpteenth time. He thought himself clingy, but there was no one as interesting as Irene in his orbit.

Moreover, there were things he was curious about regarding her. Why she wanted to live so badly, what made her cling to life—he was deeply curious about that.

“…”

However, no matter how long he waited, no answer came from Irene. Yes, this was interesting too. Who would dare ignore the words of Grand Duke Cassis?

An intrigued gaze landed on Irene. Above the cloth that covered more than half her face, her distinct eyes were visible.

They were not indifferent eyes that masked her emotions. They were lively, sparkling with vitality. The exact opposite of Diego, who was well-packaged but dead inside.

Is she a corpse? Does she want to live because of the corpses?

No, that wasn’t the answer. Diego shook his head slowly and this time stared at her fingers.

Irene’s movements were without a single wasted motion. She achieved her goal with the minimum number of actions.

For an instant, Diego’s eyes lit up with interest. This was not a level one could reach with a day or two of effort. It was the result of countless failures and practice.

Diego, standing by the bed, held his breath and watched what she was doing. The stitches were uniform, and the sutured skin was neat.

There was no need for him to say he would help. Just like when she carried her bag, she completed her work silently on her own.

The greed that had wilted just moments ago bloomed once again. A ravenous desire to take her to his estate, no matter what it took.