A Surgeon Who Uses Martial Arts [EN]: Chapter 314

The evening was two days before Jun-hoo’s farewell with Hoon-shik.

Jun-hoo, on night duty, walked along the corridor of the neurosurgery ward.

The corridor was brightly lit, but the wards were dark, with only a dim light, like moonlight, on in each room.

From the nearest ward, the sound of a patient snoring could be heard.

Jun-hoo entered the ward.

The sliding door opened and closed silently.

Jun-hoo’s fingers touched the snoring patient’s neck as lightly as a feather.

The patient’s booming snores stopped abruptly.

A peaceful silence settled in the ward.

“Doctor, thank you every time. I’ve been sleeping soundly these days thanks to you,” a patient on the opposite bed said in a whisper.

Jun-hoo nodded instead of answering. Then, he visually checked the condition of the patients in the ward.

There were no patients with any particular problems.

Jun-hoo’s footsteps led him to the next ward.

The night rounds would end in 10 minutes.

At least tonight, the probability of an emergency occurring in the ward seemed low.

If a problem were to occur, it would likely be in the intensive care unit or the emergency room.

“Are you doing your rounds?”

Nurse Jung-min pulled a dressing cart, full of medical supplies, out of the storage room at the end of the hallway.

“Yes, I just finished.”

“But Doctor, I have a question.”

“Two or three are fine,” Jun-hoo joked, and Jung-min chuckled.

“I’ve been wondering every time you do your night rounds. Are you a ghost? How can you be so silent?”

Jung-min’s voice was filled with curiosity.

“Maybe it’s because I’m really a ghost?”

“Don’t joke around. I’m really curious.”

“It’s because I try to make all my actions as quiet as possible. It’s hard to explain the trick.”

Jun-hoo awkwardly smiled and mumbled his answer.

To avoid disturbing patients and their families who were sleeping or trying to fall asleep, Jun-hoo was using martial arts techniques.

First, he used Ghost Steps when walking. Ghost Steps was a way of walking that suppressed one’s presence. [A martial arts technique to move silently.]

In fact, when Jun-hoo did his night rounds, there was no sound from his feet.

Besides that, when opening and closing ward doors…

When performing minor procedures, etc…

Each time, Jun-hoo used his internal energy [qi or vital energy] to hold the sound in one point in the air.

He tried to prevent the sound from spreading as much as possible.

Even though his main job wasn’t as an assassin, he knew these things because he had to take assassin classes in the Murim Alliance [a martial arts alliance].

“That’s too bad. I thought I could learn it if I knew the trick.”

“I guess there are many things in the world that are hard to explain.”

“Isn’t this your third week doing night duty alone? Aren’t you tired?”

“I’m managing somehow. I get some sleep in between.”

Jun-hoo pretended to be moderately tired.

To tell the truth, he wasn’t tired at all thanks to the combination of meditative breathing and nutritional supplements.

But he thought it would be suspicious if he didn’t seem tired at all.

“By the way, the patients really appreciate you being on night duty, Jun-hoo.”

“…….”

“They say you rush over like lightning when they say they’re in pain, and you do the procedures so quietly. You know Kim Myung-oh, the patient who was discharged today?”

“Of course, I know him.”

Kim Myung-oh was a 65-year-old man who had undergone surgery for a cerebral infarction [stroke].

“Kim Myung-oh wrote your name on the staff kindness card. You’ll probably be chosen as the kindest employee again soon.”

“Hahaha. Is that so?”

Jun-hoo didn’t particularly try to be kind to patients or their families.

He just thought about what was uncomfortable and painful for them and tried to solve those problems.

Putting himself in their shoes.

Perhaps that was the driving force behind Jun-hoo’s remarkable achievements and growth.

If you don’t genuinely care about someone…

Even if you have martial arts and internal energy…

Wouldn’t there be no place to use it?

In fact, even if an ordinary Murim person became a doctor, they probably wouldn’t go to the trouble of using Ghost Steps to avoid waking up patients sleeping at night.

“How can you be so kind?”

“Huh? I feel like the question suddenly came out of nowhere.”

“I can’t stand not knowing what I’m curious about.”

“Well, maybe it’s because I’ve lost too many precious people.”

After answering, Jun-hoo looked down at the health bracelet on his left wrist.

It was Sung-ho’s keepsake.

Sung-ho’s death and the deaths of countless colleagues who became stars in Murim rushed into Jun-hoo’s head.

His chest ached as if he had been cut by the Sword of Mortal Separation [a metaphorical sword representing loss].

It was true that someone who has been in pain understands someone who is in pain.

“You must have a story. Thank you for sharing.”

“Thank you for your hard work, Doctor. Feel free to call me if you need anything.”

“Yes!”

The conversation ended.

Jung-min carefully pulled the dressing cart across the ward corridor.

Jun-hoo stared at her, then turned his eyes to the conference room.

The light in the conference room was on.

Like a moth drawn to a flame, Jun-hoo’s feet led him to the conference room.

In the center of the round table, Dae-hwi, a first-year resident, was reading a neurosurgery textbook.

Dae-hwi had been studying at night every day for a week.

Considering that the first year of residency is the most difficult part of medical training, his will and perseverance were remarkable.

“Senior, you’re here?”

Jun-hoo deliberately made a loud noise, and Dae-hwi looked up at Jun-hoo.

His eyes were blurry.

It was obvious that he was forcing himself to study while fighting sleep.

“You look cool studying, but it would be better to just sleep.”

Jun-hoo put his hand on Dae-hwi’s shoulder.

“I want to become a great doctor like you, Senior. To do that, I have to study hard.”

“Shh! Anyone who hears that will think I’m already a professor.”

“It doesn’t matter if they hear. I sincerely respect you, Senior.”

Dae-hwi’s eyes and voice were sincere. When Jun-hoo first met Jae-hyun, wasn’t he probably like Dae-hwi now?

As his thoughts reached that point, a smile appeared on his face for no reason.

“I realized it because of you, Senior. How much influence one person can have on those around them.”

“You can see that even if it’s not me, just by looking at Professor Hong or Hyuk-jae.”

“They’re villains.”

Dae-hwi shook his head as if he was fed up.

“But Senior.”

“Yeah? What is it?”

“Have you finished organizing Professor Hong’s papers? I assisted Professor Hong in surgery today, and he was cursing you a lot. Saying you’re lazy.”

“Didn’t you even touch the papers?”

“…Was this your plan, Senior? To mess with Professor Hong by not organizing the papers?”

Dae-hwi clicked his tongue.

At least in Dae-hwi’s view, Jun-hoo’s scheme seemed to have more disadvantages than advantages.

If Jun-hoo didn’t organize the papers, Professor Hong would naturally suffer damage.

But how could he withstand the relentless harassment that would follow?

So far, no one who had been targeted by Professor Hong had managed to continue their residency unscathed.

How could a resident withstand it when a professor was determined to harass them?

“That’s part of the plan. You’ll naturally understand my intentions the day after tomorrow.”

“Sigh~ I really can’t figure out what’s going on in your head, Senior. I can know what people are thinking ten feet deep, but I can’t figure out what’s going on one foot deep in your head.”

“That’s my charm. And a big deal is going to happen to me the day after tomorrow, but don’t worry too much. It’ll definitely be okay.”

“Hearing that makes me even more scared.”

“Don’t worry about me, worry about yourself. Stop studying for a bit.”

Jun-hoo performed ‘Chuigung Gwahyeol’ [a technique to stimulate blood flow and relieve muscle tension] on Dae-hwi.

Releasing the muscles knotted in his neck.

Clearing the blocked blood flow.

Even slightly correcting his turtle neck.

With anatomical knowledge combined with martial arts and inner strength, Jun-hoo’s ‘Chuigung Gwahyeol’ had advanced a step beyond the ‘Chuigung Gwahyeol’ of the martial world.

“Wow. This is crazy. It’s so refreshing. My shoulders feel lighter too?”

Dae-hwi smiled brightly, rotating his shoulders.

Maybe it was just his imagination, but his head felt clearer too. At this rate, he felt like he could stay up all night.

“Still, don’t overdo it.”

Jun-hoo’s voice was filled with concern.

‘Chuigung Gwahyeol’ was definitely an effective technique for relieving fatigue, but its limitations were clear.

The effect was temporary.

The duration was only about 3-4 hours.

To relieve the fundamental fatigue accumulated in the body, one had to practice ‘Ungi Jojik’ [a deep breathing and meditation technique].

The problem was that ‘Ungi Jojik’ could not be taught to others carelessly.

“Do you often give Chief massages?”

Dae-hwi changed the subject.

“Why Chief?”

“Chief has been looking particularly tired lately too. He has to prepare for the specialist exam and his surgery schedule is packed.”

“I haven’t had much chance to see him lately, so I didn’t know.”

Jun-hoo nodded in response.

Come to think of it, Chief had every reason to be tired.

Unlike the Seoul branch, which had two 4th-year residents, the Daejeon branch only had Chief as the 4th-year.

The workload was bound to be concentrated on him.

“I should pay attention to Chief tomorrow too. Anyway, study in moderation.”

“Yes, Senior.”

As Jun-hoo left, Dae-hwi was left alone in the conference room.

Having been refreshed by Jun-hoo’s massage, Dae-hwi focused on studying, transcribing the contents of the textbook with a pen.

‘Ah… it’s happening again.’

Dae-hwi suddenly frowned and placed his hand on his chest.

He felt as if someone was squeezing his heart with their hand.

He temporarily had difficulty breathing.

It felt like his breathing passage was blocked.

The back of his neck felt cold, and his fine hairs stood on end.

It was an unpleasant experience, but it didn’t last long.

At most, about 10 seconds?

So Dae-hwi reassured himself that it was nothing serious.

Night study ended at 3 AM.

* * *

The next day.

The day before the plan to drive out Hoon-shik.

Jun-hoo, having finished his morning surgery schedule, was returning to the neurosurgery ward.

Checking the time on his phone, it was already noon.

He hadn’t eaten anything in the morning, so his stomach was empty and aching.

“Dr. Jun-hoo. Are you busy by any chance?”

Nurse Min-seo urgently stopped Jun-hoo as he passed the station.

“No, I’m okay. What’s wrong?”

“There’s a lot of procedures piling up. ABGA [Arterial Blood Gas Analysis], nasogastric tube insertion, and dressings, things like that.”

“Isn’t Dae-hwi in the on-call room?”

Jun-hoo asked, tilting his head.

Dae-hwi didn’t have a surgery schedule today. As a fixture in the on-call room, ward management was Dae-hwi’s responsibility.

He wasn’t the type to slack off…

What on earth was going on?

“He’s not answering his phone either. And he’s not in the on-call room when I go there.”

“I understand. Let’s finish the piled-up procedures first.”

Jun-hoo went around the ward with Min-seo.

Jun-hoo had mastered the Howol Sipsipgisu to the 10th level and was even performing difficult surgeries in his head.

Procedures that a 1st-year resident had to do were so easy that he could do them with his eyes closed.

The mountain of piled-up procedures was all completed in just 5 minutes.

Procedures that would have taken Dae-hwi 30 minutes if he had done them all.

“As expected, Dr. Jun-hoo. The best!”

After finishing the procedures, Min-seo gave Jun-hoo a thumbs up.

He was grateful for the praise, but Jun-hoo’s mind was elsewhere.

He was worried about Dae-hwi, who was nowhere to be seen.

Something felt wrong.

Drrr. Drrr.

Shortly after, Min-seo pushed the dressing cart back to the station, and Jun-hoo remained standing in the middle of the ward hallway.

Just then, Hyuk-jae, a 3rd-year resident who had finished surgery, was approaching from the opposite side.

“Hyuk-jae. Have you seen Dae-hwi?”

Jun-hoo spoke casually to Hyuk-jae.

There was no need to treat a senior who had treated his juniors like catching mice with a baseball bat with respect.

“I just got here too.”

Hyuk-jae replied, watching Jun-hoo’s expression.

After being thoroughly subjected to ‘Boongeun Chakgolsool’ [a martial arts technique that targets pressure points], Hyuk-jae had become a gentle lamb.

“Why Dae-hwi?”

“He disappeared without saying where he was going. Just check the on-call room for now.”

“I’m busy.”

“Do you think I’m not busy? I haven’t eaten a single meal all day today.”

“Okay, I’ll go.”

After sending Hyuk-jae to the on-call room, Jun-hoo searched the ward thoroughly.

Storage, on-call room, conference room.

He couldn’t find any trace of Dae-hwi anywhere.

Jun-hoo’s footsteps finally headed to the staff restroom.

That’s where Dae-hwi, whom he was looking for, was.

Dae-hwi was collapsed in the first stall with the toilet, as if he had fainted.

“Kim Dae-hwi!”

Jun-hoo’s voice grew louder.