In actuality, Ace's condition was much worse. The tissue around his leg had been severely damaged, so much so that he'd be risking amputation, and his life along with it.
"I'm finished! Ah, I'm so full!" Joanna patted her stomach with a satisfied grin. She then turned to Liam and asked, "Did the doctor mention when I can take this cast off? And when is my estimated discharge date?"
'That depends on your physical condition and cooperation. It'd take at least two weeks, and at most months."
"I have to rest well then. Once I'm completely healed, I have to personally thank Moran for saving me."
Upon hearing this, Liam couldn't help but feel slightly panicked. "You don't really have to, right? He did you so wrong back then! Just take this as his way of atoning for his sins. What is there to thank him for?!"
He was worried that Joanna wouldn't be able to handle the shock and sadness if something really were to happen to Ace. Hence, he figured it would be best if the two stopped seeing each other again.
'You really are a petty kid, aren't you? Are you worried that my feelings for him might rekindle or something?" Joanna gently patted Liam's shoulder, comforting him.
"Be good, my little Liam. I promise you that I will never go back to that man, even if every man on this planet were to die. Relax, okay? And stop being so jealous all the time!"
She then poked him on his cheek. "Look at you, you're so angry that your cheeks are puffed up! Aww, what a cutie!"
'Fine…" Liam nodded, sighing helplessly at the same time.
He thought to himself, 'My boss is literally the only person in Beach City who would treat me, the legendary 'Devil Incarnate', like a little kid!'
Now, he could only hope that Ace was as tough as they thought.
After Liam made sure Joanna went to bed, he immediately rushed to Ace's surgery room to check out the situation.
The man had always been his top rival, and he used to mistreat Joanna as well, which was why Liam never really liked Ace. However, knowing that he was the man Joanna loved most, and also the father of those two little darlings, he still didn't wish for him to pass away at such a young age.
It was obvious that Liam loved Joanna so much that he'd be willing to give her everything. Despite this, he had also mentally prepared himself to give up if the two ever got back together.
The door to the surgical room was shut, with a sign on it saying that surgery was still ongoig. It was midnight, and there was no one else there aside from Liam.
He continued staring at the flashing red light, growing more anxious with time. He had never imagined himself ever being worried for his rival's safety.
With that, a couple of hours passed. Just as Liam found himself feeling fatigued from standing around for so long, the door eventually opened.
He saw the doctor walking out of the room, shaking his head and sighing profusely.
'Doctor, how is he? Is he… alright?"
'I'm sorry, we've tried everything we could. The damage in the tissue around his wound was too severe, causing his entire body to be infected as well. We couldn't save him…"
'No, that's impossible! He's a tough guy! There's no way…" Liam was utterly shocked, unable to accept it.
The doctor patted him on the shoulder and said regretfully, "My condolences.
"Impossible, that's just impossible! I refuse to believe this!" Liam mumbled as he fell to the ground in shock.
After that, the nurses pushed the surgical table from the operating room, with a tall man laying still on top of it. The body was covered with a white cloth.
"Would you like to see the patient for the last time?" The doctor spoke to Liam, who had turned pale. "If you decide not to, we will have to send him to the mortuary. Please make funeral arrangements as soon as possible."
"I…" Liam gulped nervously, wanting to stand up and take a look. However, he realized he still wasn't prepared to accept this cruel reality.
"I'll pass." He waved his hand, lowering his gaze dejectedly.
With that, the nurses walked past him while pushing the surgical table, heading straight towards the mortuary.
'Ace Moran is dead! He's dead…' The news felt like a curse, flashing repeatedly in Liam's head, making him feel extremely tense and uneasy. He wondered to himself, 'That legendary man died… just like that?!'
'I can't accept his death, and I'm his rival! Not to mention Joanna…'
He balled his fists. 'No, I can't let Boss find out about this, at least not until she's fully recovered!'
The next day, Liam brought along a delicious breakfast for Joanna first thing in the morning.
"You're here." The woman was already awake and immersed in a book.
"How are you feeling? Does it still hurt?" Liam asked out of concern as he shifted the overbed table over, placing a hearty breakfast on top of it.
"Nope! If the nurses hadn't stopped me, I would've even tried to walk!" Joanna said proudly, almost drooling at the sight of the delicious and well- made food.
As she ate, Joanna was eager to know more about Ace's condition. "What about that guy? Is he done with surgery yet? I just asked the nurses but… they won't tell me."
"He…" Liam took a deep breath, trying to not show any expression. "He's fine now. The experts operated on him themselves. Besides, he's the almighty Mr. Moran, so they wouldn't dare let anything bad happen to him."
"You're right, I feel relieved now," Joanna said, eating with a wide grin on her face.
"Oh, yeah. Does he have breakfast? Don't forget to make some for him too. " The woman reminded Liam.
"Don't worry, he's your savior. Taking care of him means that I'm taking care of you too. I wouldn't forget such a small detail."
"Good, as expected of my favorite person in the whole wide world." Joanna couldn't help herself and pinched Liam on the cheeks.
As the person she trusted most, she relied on Liam to do everything she requested. She didn't have to worry about anything if he was the one handling it, as he would always take care of them well. Hence, she believed that such small matters should naturally be easy for him to take on.
"Have some food first. Let me go check if he needs any help," Liam said and headed out with a perturbed expression.
If Ace had just passed, he figured that the Morans would soon come and demand for an explanation from them. He wouldn't be able to hide the truth any longer then.
Liam had decided to hide Ace's death for now, and transfer his body somewhere. At the very least, he didn't want anyone else to find out about the man's death before his boss recovered.
He then went to the mortuary, lying about being Ace's family and requested the guard to bring Ace's body out.