A Surgeon Who Uses Martial Arts [EN]: Chapter 70

The Great War (3)

“I don’t want to!”

Geon-woo’s voice was cold.

Considering Geon-woo’s usual listless appearance, it was an unexpected reaction.

Jun-hoo was a little surprised, but he carefully examined Geon-woo’s expression.

Surprisingly, the emotion Geon-woo expressed was not rejection or disgust, but fear.

Geon-woo was afraid of taking off his clothes.

He was trembling, with his eyes downcast.

“Geon-woo, did your mom tell you not to take off your clothes?”

“…….”

“There’s only the teacher and Geon-woo here. You can be honest.”

“……Yes.”

Geon-woo’s answer was short, but it was enough.

The guardian [legal term for a caregiver, often a parent] must have ordered Geon-woo not to take off his clothes, fearing that he might be exposed for hitting him.

A vicious and cunning human being.

How could someone wearing a human mask commit such atrocities against their own child?

Jun-hoo hated the guardian, but at the same time.

He felt sorry for Geon-woo.

‘I can’t keep arguing.’

Jun-hoo’s gaze suddenly turned to the wall clock.

There wasn’t much time.

The guardian could return at any moment.

He had to secure evidence of abuse before the guardian returned and interfered.

“Geon-woo, are you really not going to change your clothes? You’re all grimy and smelly, you know?”

“Yes. I don’t want to.”

“The teacher doesn’t watch cartoons, but does Seonbi not wash well either?”

Jun-hoo turned the topic to Seonbi, a character Geon-woo liked.

“Seonbi?”

“Yes. Seonbi.”

“I haven’t seen him wash…….”

Geon-woo looked up at the ceiling as if recalling something.

“Then is Seonbi dirty and smelly?”

“No! Seonbi isn’t like that!”

“Then Seonbi must be changing his clothes and washing well when Geon-woo isn’t watching in the cartoon, right?”

Jun-hoo calmly persuaded Geon-woo.

In fact, there was no need to go through such a complicated process.

He could suppress his blood points [acupressure points], knock Geon-woo unconscious.

If there were abused areas of his body, he could just take pictures with his cell phone.

But if he acted like that.

What difference would there be between himself and the guardian?

Isn’t force necessary to protect me and the people I care about?

Or to punish evil people?

If he used force against Geon-woo.

Jun-hoo would be no different from the heretical sects he hated.

“Then Geon-woo should wash well and change his clothes like Seonbi, right? The teacher is right, isn’t he?”

“……Yes. That’s right.”

Was it thanks to mentioning Seonbi?

Geon-woo understood Jun-hoo’s words.

Creak!

As he was about to take off Geon-woo’s patient gown, the hospital room door opened roughly.

Tension rose as he wondered if the guardian had returned, but it was the patient from the next bed.

“The teacher will talk to your mom, so don’t worry.”

Breathing a sigh of relief, Jun-hoo completely removed Geon-woo’s patient gown.

It wasn’t difficult to find evidence of abuse.

Bruises on the inside of his thighs.

Bruises on his buttocks.

Bite marks on the inside of his arms, etc.

Large and small signs of abuse remained intact on Geon-woo’s body.

Some appeared to be injuries that existed before hospitalization.

Some seemed to be injuries that occurred after hospitalization.

Jun-hoo barely managed to suppress his rising anger.

She torments her own child like this and then pretends to be an angel in front of the nurses, putting on a hypocritical act?

What a disgusting human being.

“Teacher. Aren’t you going to change your clothes?”

Geon-woo asked as Jun-hoo stood still.

“Of course, I have to change. Before that, Geon-woo, I need to take pictures of your body.”

“Pictures? Why?”

“The teacher has to defeat the bad guy, and I need Geon-woo’s help.”

“Who’s the bad guy?”

Geon-woo asked with innocent eyes.

He didn’t recognize his abusive mother as the bad guy.

That’s why Jun-hoo’s heart ached even more.

-Mom hit you because you did something wrong. It’s all because of you, Geon-woo.

Geon-woo’s mother must have gaslighted him like that.

“I can’t tell you now. The identity of the bad guy shouldn’t be revealed yet. Can you help the teacher?”

“……Yes.”

“And today’s events are a secret, okay?”

Jun-hoo took out his cell phone and took pictures of Geon-woo’s body here and there.

There were many abused areas, and they were cleverly hidden.

The pictures he was taking now could be sufficient evidence.

Only after finishing taking pictures.

Jun-hoo put a new patient gown on Geon-woo.

“Teacher. But.”

“Yes. Tell me.”

“Are you sure you’ll tell me who the bad guy is later? Seonbi always punishes the bad guys.”

“Of course, I have to tell you. Geon-woo and the teacher are on the side of justice.”

Only after hearing Jun-hoo’s words did Geon-woo look relieved.

He looked contentedly at the Seonbi drawn on his left cast.

Jun-hoo only felt sorry for Geon-woo’s appearance.

To Geon-woo, Seonbi wasn’t just a favorite animation character.

He must have been the only support he could rely on from his guardian’s abuse.

“Teacher. But again.”

“Why?”

“Thank you for changing my clothes.”

Geon-woo bowed politely.

Why?

Why did his heart ache at the gratitude expressed by this little child?

Why were his eyes blurry?

“The teacher is more grateful. Get some rest.”

Controlling his overwhelming emotions, Jun-hoo left the hospital room.

* * *

“Wow! This is definitely it, isn’t it?”

Sora, a nurse in the pediatric ward, shook her head.

Sora was looking at the cell phone photos Jun-hoo had just handed her. The photos vividly showed the abuse Geon-woo had suffered.

“I never knew Geon-woo’s mother was like that.”

“Then you’re awake from your dream now, right?”

“Of course. Even when Teacher Seo suspected the guardian, I was half-doubtful, but if there’s this kind of evidence…….”

“…….”

“But how did you know this, teacher? Neither the nurses nor the medical staff knew.”

“Well. I guess you could say I have a good eye.”

Jun-hoo’s observation skills, honed from experiencing the martial world, were excellent.

Jun-hoo usually didn’t miss even the slightest action of the other person.

He couldn’t help but do so…….

Observation was essential to fighting life-or-death battles with villains while wielding a sword, and to surviving in them.

The opponent’s eyes.

The opponent’s leg movements.

The opponent’s arm movements, etc.

If he missed even one of these, he would suffer a critical injury or be driven to death in battle.

Observation skills developed in extreme situations.

This was another weapon Jun-hoo possessed.

He never imagined he would use his observation skills to uncover child abuse rather than perform surgery.

“I feel sorry for Geon-woo now that it’s come to this.”

Sora continued, looking gloomy.

“I just thought Geon-woo was a timid and introverted child. I never thought he would be suffering from such a terrible thing…….”

“It’s not the teacher’s fault. The guardian who cleverly hid the abuse is the culprit.”

“Come to think of it, she still hasn’t returned to the ward. That person.”

“Well, she’s probably out having fun somewhere. Because she has no affection for Geon-woo.”

Jun-hoo calmly continued.

“First, please share this information only with the teachers at the station [nurses’ station]. I’ll talk to the medical staff.”

“Of course, I will.”

“I have a ward call, so I’ll be going now. Thank you for your hard work.”

Jun-hoo left the station, holding his cell phone in his hand.

He contacted a total of three places.

* * *

Inside a van heading to Seoul.

Ji-sook was staring out the car window with an uncomfortable expression.

She was on her way back to the hospital after playing Go-Stop [a Korean card game] at a private gambling den, but her luck wasn’t with her today.

She was hit with a Go-bak [penalty in Go-Stop] in a Three-Go situation [another Go-Stop term].

She lost every time she ate [another Go-Stop term].

Conversely, there were many cases where she couldn’t avoid being hit with a Pi-bak [another Go-Stop penalty].

“Sister, you don’t look good?”

Mi-yeon, who was sitting next to her, asked, examining Ji-sook’s expression.

“Would you be in a good mood if you lost 300,000 won [Korean currency] in an instant?”

“You won last time. Gambling is something you win sometimes and lose sometimes.”

“I’m saying that because I lose more often.”

“Still, don’t take it out on me. You’re the one who asked me to tell you about the house.”

“Let’s go somewhere else next time. I feel like they’re cheating here.”

“If you have that kind of victim mentality, you won’t be able to go anywhere?”

“Victim mentality? Watch your mouth.”

Ji-sook glared at Mi-yeon and put a cigarette in her mouth.

Click.

She slightly opened the car window and blew out cigarette smoke.

“But, sister.”

“What again?”

“Wasn’t Geon-woo hospitalized? Is it okay to leave your seat for hours like this?”

“He’s just a brat with a broken leg. What’s there to nurse? And there’s no one to suspect anyway.”

Ji-sook answered confidently.

Her husband was a chef at a high-end restaurant and was busy with kitchen work all day.

He hardly paid attention to housework.

If Ji-sook said so, he would just accept it.

It was also a surefire way to get away with things by acting cute and making dinner well.

The nurses in the ward were no different.

She greeted them regularly.

She brought them some coffee.

She pretended to get along well with Geon-woo, and everyone thought well of Ji-sook.

In short, Ji-sook’s double life was perfect.

“What’s the point of being so good at studying? You have no eye for people.”

Ji-sook sneered at the hospital staff and laughed.

“Still, isn’t it a bit much? Leaving the child alone in the hospital.”

“What’s so bad about it? He’s not even my own kid anyway.”

Geon-woo was not Ji-sook’s biological son. He was the son born between her husband and his ex-wife.

That’s why Ji-sook hated Geon-woo like a thorn in her side.

She regretted that she could have started a completely new life with her husband if only Geon-woo wasn’t there.

“If you were in my position, wouldn’t you have done the same? Don’t be a hypocrite.”

“Yeah. I wouldn’t. Never.”

“It’s annoying how you pretend to be nice. Anyone can say anything.”

Ji-sook threw the finished cigarette butt out the window.

A short time later, they arrived in downtown Seoul.

Ji-sook, who got out of the van, took out perfume from her bag and sprayed it all over her body.

She also bought a lot of coffee to offer to the nurses.

“Teachers. You’re working hard today too. It’s not much, but here…….”

Ji-sook arrived at the pediatric ward and handed coffee to the nurses.

But the nurses’ eyes looking at her were cold.

It was a different reaction than usual.

Why are these people, who used to accept everything gratefully, suddenly acting like this?

Were they slowly becoming immune?

“Did something happen in the ward today? Everyone seems to be in a bad mood.”

Ji-sook said, pretending to care for the nurses.

“Something big happened.”

“What happened?”

“You’ll find out soon.”

Nurse Sora replied coldly.

She’s just a young nurse acting important.

Ji-sook muttered inwardly and moved to the hospital room.

Geon-woo was watching Seonbi animations on his cell phone.

While Ji-sook was losing money and getting angry.

Ji-sook didn’t like the fact that Geon-woo was happily watching animations.

So she snatched the cell phone.

“Give it here!”

“Oh…… Mom. It’s an important moment right now…….”

“Did I teach you to talk back to your mother?”

Ji-sook said in a small voice so that the other patients and guardians nearby couldn’t hear.

But Geon-woo quickly backed down at Ji-sook’s fierce expression.

“The cell phone is confiscated today, so keep that in mind.”

“……Yes.”

Ji-sook felt relieved only after seeing Geon-woo’s sullen expression.

“Did anything happen while you were alone?”

“No.”

“Geon-woo, you know this is because you’re always watching cartoons and causing trouble for your mom, right? Be good in the future.”

“……Yes.”

Ji-sook was bothered by the nurses’ blunt attitude, but she thought she had safely gotten through another day.

But it was at that moment.

Creak.

The door opened and a handsome doctor approached the bed.

Was his name Seo Jun-hoo?

“Teacher. Hello.”

Ji-sook greeted him with a smile.

“I can’t say hello.”

“Yes?”

“I can’t say hello. I’m disgusted by your hypocrisy.”

Did this guy eat something wrong?

Why is he suddenly coming and causing trouble?

“Teacher. You’re being too harsh. Why are you getting angry at an innocent person?”

“You’re the one being harsh. Geon-woo, can you go to the nurses for a while?”

“Why?”

Jun-hoo answered Geon-woo’s question with a cold expression.

“The bad guy the teacher mentioned earlier has appeared.”