A Surgeon Who Uses Martial Arts [EN]: Chapter 203

“Yes, thank you for your hard work.”

Ah-young received the locker room key from the receptionist and left the counter.

She moved to the dressing room located at the entrance of the examination room.

Next to the shoe rack in the dressing room was a washstand with a large mirror, and inside, about twenty lockers were densely lined up.

About five examinees were already there.

Ah-young stood in front of locker number 23 and looked around the dressing room.

Perhaps it was because the world was so dangerous, but she was unnecessarily conscious of her surroundings when changing clothes.

She wondered if there might be a hidden camera.

Crimes often happen close to home.

After observing, Ah-young quickly changed into a gown.

She also put on slippers.

Standing in front of the mirror and checking herself in the gown, she couldn’t help but smile.

She should be showing Joon-hoo only her best side, but instead, she had to show him her in a baggy gown…….

Just as she was about to leave the dressing room.

Ah-young noticed a middle-aged woman behind her in the mirror.

The woman was struggling because she didn’t know how to fasten the examination gown.

Her face was clearly flustered.

“Can I help you?”

Ah-young approached the woman and asked.

“I would appreciate that.”

“The examination gown is a bit unique. It can be unfamiliar at first.”

Examination gowns usually had two straps on each of the left and right sides of the gown.

How should the straps be tied?

Should they be crossed?

How to prevent showing skin to others, and so on.

For someone encountering an examination gown for the first time, question marks were bound to pop up in their head.

Ah-young began to neatly tie the woman’s gown straps.

“You look like a student, but you’re already getting a check-up?”

“I thought it would be good to get it done in advance. You have to take care of your health when you’re healthy.”

“Well, there’s no order when it comes to going.”

The woman continued talkatively.

“I saw on the news that a 23-year-old student died from a rare ovarian cancer. You really never know what will happen.”

“…….”

“We’re all going to die eventually, so I don’t know why we live with so much greed.”

Ah-young smiled bitterly at the woman’s words.

Ah-young’s younger brother also passed away at the young age of 12.

Due to pediatric heart failure.

The reason she chose the check-up center as the location for their first date was largely due to that influence.

She wanted Joon-hoo to be healthy.

And to be with her for a long, long time.

Ah-young’s core emotion, as she saw it, was fear.

The fear that loved ones might suddenly leave her someday.

“All done.”

“Thank you, student. You’re so kind.”

“It’s nothing. Then, I’ll be going.”

After saying goodbye to the woman.

Ah-young returned to the check-up center lobby.

She took a seat next to Joon-hoo, who was already sitting on the sofa in his gown.

“Does it bum you out that our first date is at a check-up center?”

“Honestly, it’s not that fun…….”

Joon-hoo hesitated before continuing.

“Anywhere is okay as long as I can be with you, Ah-young.”

“What is this? You’re quite the smooth talker? Joon-hoo, were you always this cheesy?”

“Should my way of speaking be the same when I’m a friend versus when I’m a lover?”

“You’re doing well. So, keep doing well in the future. Got it?”

Ah-young smiled and stroked Joon-hoo’s hair.

She still felt like it wasn’t real. The fact that she had started dating Joon-hoo.

For over seven years, Joon-hoo had always felt distant, even though he was close, but now he was her man.

“But Ah-young, is there something wrong with your health?”

“There’s something I’m a little worried about.”

“What is it?”

“My chest burns and hurts, and I have a foreign body sensation in my throat.”

“I’ll have to get it checked out…… but it sounds like acid reflux.”

“I think so too.”

Ah-young nodded as if agreeing.

Acid reflux was a common ailment.

It occurs due to stress, irregular and unhealthy eating habits, lack of sleep, and so on.

You could consider it a kind of social disease.

The main symptom is chest pain accompanied by burning.

Because chest pain is the main symptom.

Ah-young, who majored in thoracic surgery, often saw patients with acid reflux.

Of course, after listening to the symptoms and running tests, she would send them to the gastroenterology department.

“Ah-young.”

“Yeah? What is it?”

“If it’s acid reflux, then no bread for you for a while. You know bread isn’t good for acid reflux, right?”

“Wouldn’t one or two a day be okay? I could eat whole wheat bread too.”

“No way. I’ll punish you if you get caught.”

“Hmph. Life is no fun without bread…….”

Ah-young pouted her lips in disappointment.

Then, a man caught Ah-young’s eye.

The man, who appeared to be in his mid-40s, had a belly that stuck out quite a bit.

Come to think of it, the man seemed to have been watching Ah-young closely for a while now.

Was it her imagination?

Or was he just looking, and she was being overly sensitive?

Ah-young quickly lost interest in the man.

“Number 22, Number 23, please enter the examination room.”

“Yes.”

Ah-young and Joon-hoo answered simultaneously and got up from the sofa.

* * *

The examination room was as stylishly decorated as the center lobby. The walls had a clean and neat wooden style.

Accessories such as plants and paintings were often seen.

The sofas placed in front of each examination room were also comfortable and luxurious.

“Are you Seo Joon-hoo and Lee Ah-young?”

A staff member at the check-up center spoke to the two of them.

“Yes, that’s right.”

“First, you’ll have a urine test.”

The staff member handed over urine cups and explained how to collect the urine.

Ah-young said she didn’t need to, so only Joon-hoo went to the bathroom first to complete the urine test.

“I feel kind of strange?”

“In what way?”

“Coming to the check-up center makes me feel like I’ve become a patient.”

Joon-hoo chuckled and said.

Perhaps today would be an opportunity to indirectly experience being a patient, in addition to checking his health.

“Humans are all potential and inevitable patients.”

“That’s a grand explanation, but it’s not wrong.”

Joon-hoo nodded.

The following tests were carried out quickly.

Blood test.

Chest X-ray.

Body composition analysis, and so on.

Among the tests, Joon-hoo especially excelled (?) in the hearing and vision tests.

“Your hearing is amazing! You got a perfect score!”

The staff member who conducted the hearing test was impressed with Joon-hoo.

She said that Joon-hoo heard almost all frequencies of the sound range perfectly and quickly.

It was a natural result.

Joon-hoo’s hearing, having experienced the Murim world, was beyond imagination.

Based on Murim standards, in his prime, he could classify large and small sounds within a radius of nearly 30 jang [approximately 90 meters].

In the vision test, Joon-hoo confidently scored 2.0.

If there were symbols and numbers higher than 2.0 on the test chart, Joon-hoo’s visual acuity would have been even higher.

After completing the series of tests.

Joon-hoo waited with Ah-young in front of the ultrasound room.

The next test was an abdominal ultrasound.

Unlike Joon-hoo, Ah-young had a gloomy expression.

She had gained 2 kilograms and her body fat had increased after the body composition analysis.

The bigger problem was her eyesight.

She had astigmatism in both eyes, and her vision in her left eye was especially below 0.5.

She needed glasses.

“I should get glasses this afternoon during our date.”

“I don’t want to wear glasses…….”

“Why? I think glasses would suit you.”

“Wouldn’t it be better to get LASIK surgery rather than wear glasses?”

Ah-young considered LASIK surgery.

-Doctors don’t get LASIK and LASEK surgery. That’s because it’s a surgery whose safety hasn’t been guaranteed yet. Look at the doctors. Almost all of them wear glasses.

There were rumors circulating, but this was only half true.

There was a risk of light scattering, where light appears blurred, after eye surgery.

In particular, the phenomenon of light scattering was a significant disadvantage for surgeons who perform delicate surgeries.

However, with the advancement of ophthalmic surgery.

Nowadays, light scattering can be minimized even after surgery.

Depending on the patient’s eye condition, the probability that eye surgery will not significantly harm daily life or delicate work has also increased.

“Still, I think it’s better to wear glasses. It’ll be annoying, but your eyes will be protected, and there might be light scattering.”

“You’re giving surprisingly clear-cut answers? I thought you’d say anything is okay.”

“Well, it depends on the case.”

“Number 22, please come into the ultrasound room.”

“Let’s talk more about it later.”

Joon-hoo entered the ultrasound room first. The ultrasound room had an atmosphere like an evil den.

The room was gloomy, and the lighting was dim.

Joon-hoo lay on the bed next to the ultrasound machine.

“What? Joon-hoo, was that you?”

The doctor who entered the examination room a moment later discovered Joon-hoo and was startled.

Joon-hoo also recognized the doctor and widened his eyes.

The doctor’s name was Jo Hye-mi.

She was a medical school classmate and a first-year resident in the Department of Radiology.

Joon-hoo was quite close to Hye-mi.

They had been involved in group presentations several times and often ate together.

“Hey, long time no see?”

“Yeah, I didn’t expect to see you at the check-up center. But isn’t it too early to get a check-up?”

“You have to take care of your health in advance. You never know what will happen, right?”

“You take care of your body so meticulously.”

“Ah-young is next.”

“Ah-young came too. I heard you two are dating? The rumors have already spread throughout the hospital.”

“If it’s reached your ears, which are slow, the rumors must have really spread a lot.”

“Don’t tease me. You might really get in trouble.”

Hye-mi swung the ultrasound stick in her hand in the air.

Joon-hoo chuckled.

“Are you used to ultrasound exams? Can I trust you with it?”

“I’m an expert in upper abdominal ultrasounds. What use is a radiologist if they can’t do ultrasounds?”

“Then I’ll trust you with it.”

“Untie your gown first.”

Joon-hoo untied the straps that were holding his gown together.

As the gown opened, Joon-hoo’s firm abs were revealed.

Hye-mi rubbed Joon-hoo’s stomach widely with a gel-covered stick.

Joon-hoo was unfamiliar with the slippery and cold sensation of the gel.

Soon, Hye-mi began the abdominal ultrasound in earnest.

“Take a deep breath…… hold it. Take a deep breath…… hold it. Good job.”

Hye-mi praised Joon-hoo for following her instructions well.

When performing an abdominal ultrasound.

Taking a deep breath and holding it makes it easier to examine because the abdominal organs descend below the ribs.

For reference, upper abdominal ultrasounds can be used to identify diseases that occur in the liver, gallbladder, pancreas, kidneys, etc.

The gel-covered ultrasound stick roamed Joon-hoo’s abdomen for a while.

Joon-hoo read some strange signs from Hye-mi.

He noticed that Hye-mi was intensively examining the right upper abdomen.

“Is there something wrong with my liver?”

“Hmm…… it’s not the liver, but there’s a problem with your gallbladder.”

“With my gallbladder?”

Joon-hoo frowned and asked.

He had always been confident in his health.

He had acquired medical knowledge and was carefully examining his body condition while practicing Qi cultivation [energy cultivation].

But to have a problem with his gallbladder…….

An ominous feeling began to rise with this unexpected variable.

“What is it? What’s the problem?”