A Surgeon Who Uses Martial Arts [EN]: Chapter 497

The Martial Surgeon – Episode 497

Chapter 97: An Ambitious Dream (3)

‘As expected of Chief! He’s insane!’

Yena’s eyes widened like saucers.

Jun-hoo suddenly shot up from his seat, and at first, she wondered why.

But when she turned her gaze, she saw a child, who looked like he was in the lower grades of elementary school, clinging to Jun-hoo’s arm.

A broad field of vision that allowed him to observe his surroundings even while talking.

The speed and agility with which he moved to prevent the child from hitting his head.

Every time she was with Jun-hoo,

Yena could only gape in admiration.

Thud!

Only after Jun-hoo reached the child first did the chair fall backward with a crash.

The loud noise drew the attention of the cafe’s customers to Jun-hoo.

The customers’ faces darkened.

Most of them murmured with worried voices, and some even walked toward Jun-hoo.

Yena joined the group as well.

Jun-hoo was in the process of placing the child, whom he had been supporting with both arms, on the floor.

The child’s pupils were all white. Froth bubbled from his parted lips.

His limbs shook violently as if he had been electrocuted.

There was no guardian in sight.

Could they have left their seat for a moment?

“Chief, should we take the child to the emergency room?”

“No. It’s okay. Let’s watch a little longer.”

Jun-hoo raised his hand, signaling that it was okay.

He seemed to know the reason why the child had collapsed as if he could see the palm of his hand.

His expression was like the surface of a calm lake.

“Are you sure it’s okay?”

Yena whispered out of concern.

Even though the child might look okay to Jun-hoo, he didn’t look okay at all to Yena.

If the child’s seizure and convulsions worsened, it seemed like it could turn into a major accident.

“If it wasn’t okay, would I be standing here with my hands tied?”

“What’s wrong with the child?”

“Guess it yourself.”

“Heing. Please tell me. I can’t stand being frustrated.”

Yena whined, but it didn’t work at all.

Jun-hoo simply smiled.

Since there’s no CPR [Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation] needed, it’s definitely not a heart attack.

Wheezing.

So, since there’s no abnormal wheezing sound, it can’t be asthma either.

There’s leftover cake on the table, so could it be anaphylaxis [a severe, potentially life-threatening allergic reaction] ?

But that’s strange.

If it were anaphylaxis, we should be sending the child to the emergency room.

The more she thought,

Yena was as confused as if she were lost in a maze. None of the diagnoses seemed to fit perfectly.

“Excuse me. Shouldn’t we take the child to the emergency room as soon as possible?”

A man who had been watching the situation nearby asked, as if he were scolding.

His eyes were full of dissatisfaction toward Jun-hoo.

He didn’t like Jun-hoo’s attitude of standing by and watching the child.

It was good that he had rushed over, but his subsequent actions were disappointing.

If he was just going to stand there and watch, why did he rush over so dramatically?

“Do you think the child will get better if you just stand there and watch?”

“Yes. He will get better.”

“What? Are you serious?”

“Yes. I sincerely believe he will get better.”

Jun-hoo’s voice was overflowing with confidence.

The man, as well as the people around him, were dumbfounded. His attitude was the epitome of absurdity.

The child was in critical condition, no matter who looked at him.

He was critical whether you looked at him sitting, lying down, or upside down.

“If we miss the golden time [the critical period for effective treatment], will you take responsibility?”

“Of course, I have to take responsibility. I wouldn’t have stepped in in the first place if I couldn’t take responsibility.”

“You’re a funny guy. Come outside quickly. Don’t make things bigger.”

“I understand that you’re worried about the child, but… if you don’t have a medical license, please stay still.”

Jun-hoo asked provocatively.

“Ah……”

The man scratched his cheek with his index finger.

The word ‘medical license’ struck the man in the back of the head. His cheeks flushed with embarrassment.

The sharp gazes around him also softened.

“……”

“……”

A round of bickering ended.

A heavy silence fell in the cafe. The customers were all focused on the fallen child.

The chatter had stopped as abruptly as a newborn meeting a dried persimmon [a Korean expression for sudden silence].

The child, who had shaken the cafe with a major seizure, was surprisingly showing signs of gradual improvement.

The rough breathing became milder.

The violent shaking of his limbs subsided. His pale white skin turned reddish.

All Jun-hoo had done was…….

Change the position of the child, who had been lying straight on his back looking at the ceiling, to lie on his side.

It was a meager treatment for a dying child.

Nevertheless, the effect was amazing.

“Ha-rim! Jeong Ha-rim!”

Just in time, a woman’s cry was heard.

The child’s guardian was rushing this way, her long hair flying.

* * *

Jun-hoo, having left the cafe, looked for another cafe.

Yena sat next to Jun-hoo.

Across from them sat a mother and child.

The guardian repeatedly bowed her head and expressed her gratitude.

Thanking him for taking care of the child.

Saying that the child had collapsed while she was briefly in the restroom.

“Well, it’s not like I did anything great.”

Jun-hoo smiled awkwardly.

The most important thing Jun-hoo had done.

It was running to catch the child so that he wouldn’t hit his head on the floor when he fainted and holding him in his arms.

After that, he didn’t really do anything.

The recovery position of lying the child on his side.

That is, he simply took the position to prevent saliva, phlegm, and vomit from blocking the airway.

Using his inner energy without anyone knowing.

He didn’t do any earth-shattering examinations or treatments.

“Hyung [Korean term for older brother or close male friend], do you want to eat?”

Ha-rim handed Jun-hoo a macaron that he had been fiddling with.

His expression, voice, and actions were all flawlessly clear.

He was completely unaware that he had just turned the surroundings upside down.

“I’ll enjoy it.”

“Hehe. Yes.”

Jun-hoo ate the macaron that Ha-rim handed him.

The guardian watched Ha-rim and teared up.

“You must be going through a lot.”

“Ha-rim is going through more than I am.”

The guardian’s voice was mixed with a sigh.

“Does he have seizures often?”

“It’s gotten worse in the last year or so. The intervals are getting shorter and shorter.”

“What did the professor say?”

“He said to try medication a little longer, and if it doesn’t work, we should do surgery……”

“You must be reluctant to have surgery.”

“Yes. Ha-rim is so young after all.”

“Chief, are you going to keep excluding me like this?”

Yena, who had been silent, asked in a whisper. Yena still didn’t know why Ha-rim had collapsed.

As she was not majoring in the Department of Neurological Surgery, it was natural that her understanding in this area was dull.

“Epilepsy.”

Jun-hoo whispered softly.

Only then did Yena nod her head, saying, ‘Ah!’

Epilepsy.

A disease that was formerly called epilepsy.

Recently, it was a disease that received attention in the media for being abused for exemption from military service by celebrities and athletes.

The causes of epilepsy were various.

Usually, patients with a history of brain injury suffered from it, and the main symptom was a seizure.

When an epilepsy patient has a seizure, the people around them are often very flustered or don’t know what to do.

Usually, they take a recovery position.

If you watch calmly, they often return to normal.

The reason Jun-hoo left Ha-rim alone as if he were neglecting him was because of that.

“Does Ha-rim have any difficulties in school life?”

“Why wouldn’t he… he does.”

The guardian continued with a gloomy expression.

“His friends are a little reluctant to be around Ha-rim. He’s only collapsed from a seizure once, but it must have looked intense to the children.”

“Oh dear……”

Jun-hoo clicked his tongue.

His heart felt heavy at the pitiful situation.

He had seen epilepsy patients even in the Murim world [a fictional world of martial arts and cultivation], although he didn’t know about epilepsy at the time.

During his time being educated at the Murim Alliance Academy.

Eon Saseong of the Eon family of Jinju suffered from epilepsy.

The students ostracized Eon Saseong, who fainted for no reason, foaming at the mouth.

Saying that he was possessed by a ghost.

Even adults couldn’t look kindly on epilepsy patients, so he wondered how Ha-rim’s situation would be.

No matter what the adults said, Ha-rim was busy playing with the macaron.

“I wish Ha-rim could have surgery.”

The guardian continued, bowing her head deeply.

“I don’t really feel like it. The thought of having to open this young child’s head. It’s horrifying just imagining it.”

The guardian shuddered.

The conversation ended like that in 10 minutes.

After the mother and child left, Jun-hoo and Yena also finished exploring Jewon University.

“It feels like there were a lot of things going on and we were busy. But surprisingly, there weren’t many gains.”

Yena, who was sitting in the passenger seat, muttered.

The two were returning to Shinwon University in Jun-hoo’s car.

“If Jewon University Hospital is doing well because it’s a local hospital, then there’s nothing we can do, right?”

Yena said in a resigned voice.

“Maybe so. But at least in the field of neurosurgery, we might be able to surpass Jewon University. Isn’t it said that a rolling stone dislodges a stone that’s been stuck in place?”

“Do you have a good method?”

“I do.”

“What is it?”

“Secret.”

Jun-hoo smiled like a prankster.

On the other hand, Yena was busy pouting and grumbling.

“Tch! Chief has too many secrets.”

* * *

That afternoon.

Jun-hoo visited the hospital director’s office for the first time in a while.

The hospital director gave Jun-hoo a big welcome.

He had a smile plastered on his face when he greeted Jun-hoo and hugged him with both arms.

He even served him special tea, which he only gave to special guests.

The fragrant coffee scent mixed with floral scents filled the office.

It wasn’t hard to understand the hospital director’s welcome.

Because Jun-hoo had saved Go Hyun-cheol.

Because he had discharged Go Hyun-cheol, who seemed impossible to revive after jumping from the 8th floor, with both legs intact.

Because the hospital director’s entry into politics had a green light again.

Since Jun-hoo’s appointment.

The fact that the various hospital statistics of the Department of Neurosurgery had skyrocketed was also one of the reasons for the welcome.

Inside the hospital. And outside as well.

Jun-hoo was a ‘hot’ surgeon that everyone acknowledged.

The hospital director talked about Jun-hoo’s achievements for a long time, so much so that Jun-hoo’s ears were bleeding.

Other professors would have held their noses high and raised their shoulders.

But Jun-hoo maintained a nonchalant expression. He listened to the hospital director’s praise with one ear and let it flow out with the other.

He was a hospital director who only cared about results, by results, for results.

The moment Jun-hoo’s performance became infrequent.

The hospital director would try to tear Jun-hoo apart like a hyena.

So, it wasn’t something to be happy about just because the hospital director was giving him a ride on an airplane [lavishing praise].

“Hospital Director. I have something important to tell you.”

“Good. Tell me frankly.”

The hospital director said, leaning back on the sofa.

“You know that Jewon University Hospital has better profitability than our hospital, right?”

“How could I not know? I even got hair loss because of it. But there’s nothing we can do about it.”

“……”

“Jewon University Hospital is like a long-established place. No matter how hard we try, we can’t catch up.”

The hospital director accurately knew what Jun-hoo had realized from today’s intelligence(?) activity.

He was definitely a scary human being.

His ability to calculate was number one.

“Still, shouldn’t we surpass Jewon University in at least one field while you’re the hospital director?”

“You’re going to do that?”

The hospital director noticed Jun-hoo’s intention and changed his posture. He took his back off the sofa backrest and crossed his legs.

He also folded his arms.

“Yes. I want to try.”

“Hmm…… judging by your eyes, it seems like you want to start a big game. I don’t have a good feeling about this.”

“……”

“Of course, you must have something in mind?”

“I’ll tell you right away.”

There was no need for curves, sliders, or forkballs [baseball metaphors for deceptive pitches].

Jun-hoo threw a fastball right away [a direct approach].

If the hospital director catches this ball, it will be a strike, and if he doesn’t catch it, it will be an error.