A Surgeon Who Uses Martial Arts [EN]: Chapter 198

Chapter 37: Reckless (3)

4th floor staff lounge.

Jun-hoo was sitting side-by-side with Hee-joon on the sofa, drinking canned coffee.

The rare break was sweeter than coffee.

Neurosurgery was short-staffed as it was.

With the department members away at the seminar, they were busier than ever.

Before he knew it, half the day had passed.

“I’m sorry, Senior.”

“What’s this all of a sudden?”

“What I said in the hallway earlier, I think it was too aggressive.”

Jun-hoo recalled what he had said to Hee-joon and smiled bitterly.

-I’m not interested in self-preservation. If the same situation arises, I’ll act the same way. Even if everyone around me foams at the mouth and opposes it.

His values remained unchanged, but there was a slight problem with his expression.

More than anything, Hee-joon was worried about Jun-hoo and tried to stop him from performing the subdural hematoma [SDH; a collection of blood on the surface of the brain] surgery.

And that judgment was common sense.

Who would think that a first-year resident could successfully perform an SDH surgery?

No matter how much he had achieved so far.

Also, Hee-joon and the other staff members had no idea that Jun-hoo could use internal energy and martial arts.

In other words, from the staff’s point of view, stopping Jun-hoo was the best thing to do.

I was so focused on saving the patient that I only thought about myself.

It’s a repeat of the biggest mistake I made in the Murim [martial arts world].

My father’s enemy, Jeok Il-do.

It was a similar situation when I went to strike him down.

After discovering Jeok Il-do’s lair.

If I had waited for additional support from the Murim Alliance, my comrades wouldn’t have had to shed unnecessary blood…….

With this incident, Jun-hoo took the opportunity to reflect on his flaws.

The fact that he doesn’t care about anything once he’s fixated on something.

“It’s okay. The mindset itself was admirable. It just seemed too reckless.”

“I’m sorry again for making you feel bad.”

“Stop it. I hate apologies. If you’re going to give me something, give me a banana instead.”

Hee-joon responded to Jun-hoo’s words with a joke. Jun-hoo was just grateful for Hee-joon’s generous heart.

“I was worried about you as much as the patient.”

“Are you worried that I’ll be reprimanded if the surgery fails?”

“Actually, I was more worried about the emotional scars than the reprimand. People with great talent are surprisingly sensitive and get hurt easily. Si-ho was like that too.”

“What about Si-ho, Senior?”

Jun-hoo was curious about the story of Si-ho, who was suddenly mentioned.

He doesn’t know anything about Si-ho’s past.

That thought suddenly occurred to him.

“It’s not the same case as you, but Si-ho had a similar experience. He was treating a patient when something went wrong.”

“Please tell me more. I want to know.”

“What’s with you? Why are your eyes suddenly sparkling like that?”

“Because I’m curious.”

“Are you feeling competitive because you’re both aces?”

“I don’t fight with seniors or juniors. The targets I need to fight are traumas and diseases.”

“I knew you’d say something like that.”

Hee-joon took a sip of canned coffee and began to explain.

The incident itself was very simple.

During his second year.

Si-ho was performing a ventriculostomy [surgical procedure to drain fluid from the brain’s ventricles] on a patient with cerebral edema [swelling in the brain] in the operating room when he caused an accident.

He caused minor brain damage to the patient while performing the puncture.

“It was a mess. A small fire became a big fire. The chief at the time switched to emergency surgery and somehow managed to solve the problem.”

“…….”

“Si-ho was sick for days because of the shock. It was unlike him. I thought Si-ho was going to quit being a surgeon at that time.”

As if recalling the past was painful.

Hee-joon frowned.

“So you’re saying you were worried that I’d become like Si-ho, Senior, at that time.”

“To put it simply, yes.”

“But I don’t understand. Si-ho, Senior, failed at ventriculostomy.”

Jun-hoo questioned the episode with suspicion and doubt.

Regardless of his personality.

Si-ho’s treatment and surgical skills were among the best of the residents Jun-hoo had experienced.

Si-ho also used both hands relatively freely like Jun-hoo.

He had almost no hand tremors and was very knowledgeable in medicine.

Si-ho failed at ventriculostomy with those skills?

Jun-hoo found it hard to believe.

With Si-ho’s skills, he would have mastered ventriculostomy in his first year.

“I’m a little doubtful about that too. He wasn’t the type to fail at ventriculostomy.”

“…….”

“But you can make mistakes if you’re tired or lose focus.”

“Did the patient or guardian complain?”

“Not at all. It’s also a side effect listed in the consent form. Si-ho was so close to the patient and guardian that it went smoothly.”

“Was the patient completely cured?”

“He had a slight facial paralysis. He was a patient with a very pretty smile, but his smile became a little unnatural.”

“…….”

“It’s a shame, but he managed to defend well and was treated well.”

After listening to the story, Jun-hoo stroked his chin.

Is it because of his prejudice against Si-ho?

It seemed like Si-ho’s dark hand was involved in the incident.

What if the incident was not an accidental mistake but an intentional one?

As soon as he thought about that, goosebumps appeared on his arms.

“Let’s stop talking about other people’s sore fingers. It’s not polite.”

“Yes, Senior.”

“Anyway, I’ll handle the SDH surgery as if I performed it. Keep the people who were in surgery with us quiet.”

“I asked them to keep it a secret right after I left the operating room.”

“You’re quick at handling things. Shall we get up now?”

Jun-hoo left the lounge with Hee-joon.

Hee-joon had another surgery scheduled, so he went to the operating room.

Jun-hoo headed to the neurosurgery ward.

The code purple [hospital emergency code], the hostage situation Kyung-soo was involved in.

The sudden emergency SDH surgery.

As the major incidents that had been happening one after another came to an end, Jun-hoo was able to take a breather.

Only now did the surrounding scenery begin to come into focus.

Jun-hoo, who was on the escalator heading to the 6th floor, stared down at the lobby.

The scene in the lobby was the same as usual.

It was crowded with patients, guardians, and staff.

Looking at the scenery alone, it had a lively atmosphere like a large shopping mall rather than a hospital.

Where do people come from and where do they go?

Does he know where he’s going?

Suddenly, a Zen-like question flashed through his mind.

He also thought that the key to reaching Hyeon-gyeong might be at the end of that question.

Step. Step.

After arriving on the 6th floor, Jun-hoo walked straight down the hallway.

As he walked, he fiddled with the health bracelet on his wrist.

Hyung [older brother], I performed surgery on a traffic accident patient today. It was my first surgery, but I wasn’t nervous and was actually full of motivation.

I think I’m a natural-born surgeon.

If I hadn’t performed the surgery, that patient might have fallen into a vegetative state or brain death like Hyung.

After going from hospital to hospital that could perform the surgery.

It’s painful that I couldn’t save Hyung…… but I’ll try to prevent a second Hyung or a third Hyung from appearing.

I will gain more internal energy in the future.

Learn more martial arts.

Accumulate more medical knowledge and experience.

Save more people.

Watch where I go.

Jun-hoo’s pace quickened as he strengthened his resolve.

The dazzling sunlight streaming in from the hallway window was busy chasing after Jun-hoo.

* * *

9 p.m. that day.

For the first time in a while, all the residents gathered in the on-call room to eat late-night snacks.

The late-night snack menu was chicken nuggets.

It was a special dish brought by the residents who had returned from a seminar in Gangwon-do.

Spicy and sweet sauce.

Chewy rather than crispy 튀김 [deep-fried food].

The combination of soft flesh was not a local specialty for no reason.

Jun-hoo heard that the seminar was boring.

Before the seminar, he went around the tables and made eye contact with professors from other hospitals.

The seminar was just one-sided listening.

Even after the seminar, they had a after party for about 2 hours.

At least this seminar seemed more like a networking party than an academic conference.

I heard that the teacher also attended, so I could have seen him if I had gone.

Jun-hoo was a little sad that he couldn’t go to the seminar when he thought about that.

While eating chicken nuggets.

The hostage situation that Kyung-soo suffered also became a topic of conversation. The residents who attended the seminar were busy comforting Kyung-soo.

“I’m okay now. I don’t feel anything.”

Kyung-soo showed a composed appearance in the face of the outpouring of concern. He didn’t just pretend to be that way, he really seemed calm.

Kyung-soo also has a good mental state.

It was also thanks to Jun-hoo’s use of Jeong-an [a technique to calm the mind] in the right place.

After the late-night snack time ended.

Jun-hoo, who went to the bathroom and came out into the hallway, ran into Si-ho.

Si-ho was smiling brightly.

“Your performance was dazzling today, too? Saving a colleague from a hostage taker. Most people wouldn’t be able to act like that.”

“I guess it’s because I’m braver than the average person.”

“But wasn’t there an even bigger incident than that?”

“What are you talking about?”

“You performed SDH surgery. Are you going to deny it?”

Jun-hoo was quite embarrassed by Si-ho’s remark.

The only people who knew about Jun-hoo’s surgery were Hee-joon, Min-kyung, the intern Seo-joon, and the scrub nurse Hye-jin.

And the four of them had promised not to tell anyone about Jun-hoo’s surgery.

So, did one of the four accidentally let it slip?

“How could a first-year resident perform SDH surgery? It doesn’t make sense.”

Jun-hoo waved his hand and denied it.

Si-ho seemed to be conducting a deceptive interrogation, but Jun-hoo was not one to fall for such shallow tricks.

“Jun-hoo, don’t underestimate me too much.”

“I’ve never done that.”

“The SDH patient’s surgery started at 1 p.m. But there was no one who could perform surgery at that time.”

“…….”

“Hee-joon and Min-kyung were all in surgery, and Kyung-soo must have been out of his mind because of the hostage situation.”

“…….”

“Then you’re the only one left? If it wasn’t you, did a ghost perform the surgery?”

Si-ho smiled slyly after finishing his words.

I can’t believe he even analyzed the surgery time and the staff.

Jun-hoo found it hard to erase the unpleasantness of being hit.

No, in the first place, why is this human so interested in me?

Amidst the complicated emotions, Jun-hoo stared straight at Si-ho.

“So, what do you want?”