A Surgeon Who Uses Martial Arts [EN]: Chapter 268

Chapter 51: Get Lost (3)

Jun-hoo was searching the on-call room as quickly and thoroughly as possible.

The first target was the communal locker.

He opened the locker door and checked all the pockets of the doctor’s coats hanging inside.

Something did turn up.

Convenience store receipts, snack wrappers, and disposable supply wrappers—useless things that sapped his energy.

The second target was the bookshelf.

Jun-hoo swept the medical textbooks off the first shelf.

The books hit the floor with a thud.

There was no hidden compartment behind the bookshelf.

No notebook was tucked between the books.

Soon, Jun-hoo’s right hand reached for the fallen books.

Floating.

The books floated in the air as if by magic!

He used Levitation.

When Jun-hoo pointed his palm at the bookshelf, the books returned to their places one by one.

*There’s not enough time…*

In-cheol or Senior Min-kyung might barge in.

Jun-hoo checked his wristwatch and felt a surge of anxiety.

There was a real risk that another staff member might walk in while he was searching for the notebook.

What if that staff member got suspicious and reported him to Si-ho?

The thought alone was terrifying.

Si-ho would hide the notebook in a place Jun-hoo would never think to look.

So, the search had to be completed as quickly and meticulously as possible.

Jun-hoo searched the entire bookshelf in the same way.

Knocking the books onto the floor and scanning them.

Then using Levitation to put them back.

Unfortunately, it was all for naught.

If Si-ho had hidden the notebook in the on-call room, the bookshelf would have been the most obvious place…

Under the refrigerator.

Under the locker.

In the overhead luggage compartment, etc.

As time ticked by, Jun-hoo’s efforts felt increasingly futile.

Si-ho’s notebook felt like a phantom, a virtual object.

Like a unicorn.

Existing in legend, but nowhere to be found.

*‘Now that it’s come to this, I’ll see it through to the end!’*

Jun-hoo turned his attention to the personal steel locker. It was locked, but that wasn’t a problem.

Using a hypodermic needle he’d brought, Jun-hoo picked at the keyhole.

Click. Click.

With a few deft movements, the lock sprang open. Lock-picking was one of the minor skills he’d picked up in the Murim [martial arts world].

Jun-hoo began to search Si-ho’s personal locker.

“Ha…”

A sigh escaped his lips.

Even the locker had defied his expectations.

Casual clothes, a wallet, toiletries, etc.

Only mundane daily necessities were inside.

The notebook was still nowhere to be seen, and there were no clues related to it.

*This is troublesome…*

*I need that notebook to thoroughly crush Si-ho…*

While re-locking the locker, Jun-hoo felt a wave of disappointment. He eyed the last remaining drawer with displeasure.

The communal drawer by the window.

It was the least likely hiding place for the notebook.

So, he’d saved it for last.

Clutching at straws.

Jun-hoo approached the drawer.

Slide.

He opened the first drawer and found miscellaneous writing utensils. Ordinary, that was all.

It seemed Si-ho had hidden the notebook somewhere outside the ward, contrary to his expectations.

If so, it might be best to give up.

No matter how skilled Jun-hoo was from his time in the Murim world, he didn’t have the ability to find a notebook hidden somewhere in the vast hospital. Nor did he have the time.

The first drawer closed.

The second drawer opened.

The second drawer closed.

Just as he was about to give up and resign himself to defeat…

Jun-hoo, maintaining the Myriad Manifestations Divine功 [a martial arts technique], felt a strange incongruity in his hands and ears.

Something…

Something…

A sense that something was amiss spread through his body.

Jun-hoo opened and closed the first drawer with his right hand, then opened and closed the second drawer again.

The incongruity was felt in the first drawer.

A heavy yet hollow sensation was transmitted to his hand.

A dull friction sound reached his ears.

Instinct took over.

There was a secret space in the first drawer!

In the Murim world, there were things called Mechanical Traps.

Traps set to deter intruders, or hidden places revealed by recognizing weight when bowing on a cushion, etc.

The devices, made with the Murim world’s unique science and technology (?), were Mechanical Traps.

Having encountered numerous Mechanical Traps in the Murim world, Jun-hoo quickly understood the drawer’s secret.

*‘This human is quite the sly one?’*

Admiring and marveling at Si-ho’s cunning, Jun-hoo got to work.

First, he removed all the writing utensils from the first drawer.

He placed his palm on the drawer and channeled his internal energy.

Woo-oong. Woo-oong.

Internal energy rippled outward in concentric circles, like waves on a lake.

But there was a spot where the flow of energy was blocked.

It was the wooden panel attached to the inside of the drawer.

He tilted the wooden panel backward, as if laying it down.

Click.

The sound of the secret space being unlocked echoed softly.

When Jun-hoo pulled the drawer open once more, the treasure trove was revealed.

Maybe it was a trick of the light.

But it seemed as if colorful lights were emanating from the drawer.

Fentanyl vials.

Propofol vials.

Alcohol swab containers filled with various syringes and alcohol swabs.

Yellow tourniquets (rubber bands) for constricting blood vessels, etc.

*There’s a Jun-hoo who flies above a Si-ho who runs [a Korean proverb meaning someone is always one step ahead].*

Jun-hoo cheered inwardly.

This alone was enough to prove Si-ho’s crimes.

But a simple punishment wouldn’t satisfy Jun-hoo.

Jun-hoo grabbed Si-ho’s notebook, as dangerous as a forbidden text, and began to read it carefully.

Shock, disgust, anger.

Various negative emotions swirled in his heart.

Si-ho was more insane, more cruel, and more unhinged than he had imagined.

He had been killing animals and harming people even before becoming a doctor.

If he hadn’t intervened this time, not only the patients and their families but also A-young would have been in grave danger.

*‘You son of a bitch. I will never forgive you.’*

Jun-hoo barely suppressed his rising rage.

Then he examined the rest of the notebook.

There was also a completely unexpected revelation.

-I didn’t kill him, you X발놈아 [ssibalnoma – a Korean curse word]!!

There was a day when Si-ho’s composure broke for the first time, and he grabbed Jun-hoo by the collar.

It was when Jun-hoo pointed the finger at Si-ho after the vegetative patient died.

According to the notebook, Si-ho wasn’t involved in the patient’s death. It was a rare misstep for Jun-hoo.

Jun-hoo now understood why Si-ho had been so upset at the time.

But that didn’t diminish the weight of Si-ho’s other sins.

While engrossed in the notebook, he belatedly heard the sound of the on-call room door opening.

He’d been so focused that he’d lost track of his surroundings.

A wave of helplessness washed over him.

What if it was Si-ho behind him?

Or Min-kyung, who was infatuated with Si-ho?

The situation could spiral out of control.

Uneasy, Jun-hoo turned around.

“What are you doing there?”

Seeing the face and hearing the voice, Jun-hoo breathed a sigh of relief.

It was Kyung-soo.

“Why are you slacking off in the on-call room, unlike you? Feeling a bit sentimental today?”

“Sentimental would be a relief. I’m in the middle of being horrified.”

“What’s there to be horrified about this morning…?”

Kyung-soo approached Jun-hoo and his eyes widened.

He saw the propofol and fentanyl vials.

“Crazy… what is all this? Don’t tell me…”

“Don’t jump to conclusions. I’ll explain everything. And Kyung-soo, I need your help.”

Jun-hoo said, shaking the notebook.

* * *

That afternoon.

Immediately after assisting with a neurovascular surgery.

Jun-hoo was resting in the lounge.

After discovering the secret space in the drawer.

After reading Si-ho’s notebook.

He’d lost track of time while brainstorming ways to bring Si-ho down.

He came to his senses around 3 p.m.

While sipping a canned coffee, the lounge door opened and a familiar face appeared.

It was A-young.

“What’s going on? Why did you want to see me at this hour?”

A-young smiled and sat next to Jun-hoo.

“Does a lover need a reason to want to see their partner? How was your day?”

“I was busy. Since it’s my second year, I’m in the operating room much more often. It’s tiring, but it’s fun in its own way. What about you, Jun-hoo?”

“I was also busy. What do you want to drink?”

“I want… Dr. Pepper.”

“Is Dr. Pepper delicious?”

Jun-hoo asked, puzzled. To him, Dr. Pepper tasted like cosmetics.

The artificial scent was unpleasant.

“It’s hard to like at first, but once you do, you’ll get addicted?”

“I don’t think so…”

With a smirk, Jun-hoo got up and pulled a Dr. Pepper from the vending machine.

He handed it to A-young and sat down again.

A-young drank it with gusto.

The love filter was still firmly in place. Jun-hoo found even the sight of her drinking the strange beverage lovely and beautiful.

“What’s the hardest thing you’re dealing with these days?”

“Hmm… if I had to pick just one, I think it’s my skills that are the problem.”

“Skills? What are you lacking, A-young?”

Jun-hoo retorted.

A-young, who was so skilled that she took second place in the intern suture competition.

If Jun-hoo were to rank the staff he’d seen so far, it would be like this:

Si-ho >>> A-young >>> Kyung-soo.

“When I see the professors doing surgery, I realize that being moderately good isn’t enough… I wish my skills would improve significantly. So, I was wondering…”

“You were wondering?”

“Jun-hoo, you’re ambidextrous. Can you tell me how to train both hands?”

Jun-hoo nodded.

What could be wrong with that?

He wanted to give everything to the person he loved.

Jun-hoo taught A-young the ambidextrous gourd technique he’d learned during his internship.

The bizarre training method of playing rock-paper-scissors with both hands.

“Oh, right! Now that I hear it, I remember. You used to play rock-paper-scissors with both hands.”

“It looks silly, but it works. You can tell by looking at me.”

Jun-hoo played rock-paper-scissors with both hands.

His left hand beat his right hand.

His right hand beat his left hand.

He controlled both hands freely.

On the other hand, A-young’s hands often got tangled.

At first glance, she looked like someone with a learning disability or a broken machine.

“Heeing. It’s too difficult. It feels like my head is twisting. My hands are a mess.”

A-young grumbled cutely.

“It’s because it’s the first time. You’ll get better. Rock-paper-scissors also has the advantage of being able to do it in your spare time without needing any special equipment.”

“How long will it take to master?”

“About… a year?”

“That’s not easy. But thank you.”

“I’m more grateful. For you being by my side.”

Jun-hoo wrapped his hands around A-young’s hands.

The skin was rough and bumpy.

It was from scrubbing with a brush before surgery.

It was the inevitable fate of a surgeon.

“A-young.”

“Yes.”

Looking straight into her eyes, Jun-hoo prepared to get to the point.

The real reason he’d asked to see her was because he had something important to say.

He needed to protect A-young from the devil.

“There’s a favor I’d like to ask of you. Can you do it for me?”