A golden holographic screen appeared.
— Gang Taeho-nim has cured a mass infection comparable to biochemical terrorism.
— Special Reward: +1,000 Coins
— Current: 11,120 Coins
— Countdown: D-519
Let’s see.
Platinum started at 20,000 coins, so I had 8,880 coins left until Platinum.
— Intuition increased by +13%.
— Patient Empathy ability has been strengthened.
— Bio Vision Upgrade: It is now possible to distinguish viruses and bacteria by color according to type.
His senses sharpened with newfound keenness, and he felt his mind awaken with greater clarity.
A familiar face appeared on the screen.
It was Wang Rin, whom he had met upon joining Project Asclepius. She greeted him warmly.
“Revival Gang Taeho-nim, congratulations. Your achievements at the WHO were truly astonishing.”
Rin’s expression was much brighter than usual. But deep within her eyes, something secretive still lurked.
“To clash head-on with Global Pharmaco and bring them down—honestly, it was an outcome even we hadn’t anticipated.”
“But there is one thing I am curious about. How does Project Asclepius know information from the future? And how are internal documents from Global Pharmaco even stored?”
Taeho’s sharp question.
Rin hesitated for a moment, then cautiously opened her mouth.
“Gang Taeho-nim, I am sorry, but I cannot tell you at your current rank yet.”
“It’s always about the rank.”
“But do not worry. If you continue to grow, you will eventually learn the whole truth. When that time comes, you will understand why Project Asclepius exists, and what we are fighting for.”
Taeho was disappointed, but he pressed no further.
Before his rank rose, no matter how much he interrogated them, they would not tell him anyway.
How high did he have to rise to access all the information? In the end, he would have to gather one hundred thousand coins and reach Legend rank.
As Taeho fell into thought, Rin manipulated the screen.
A giant world map appeared in the background. Red dots were blinking at various points.
“I believe I must also tell you about Project Prometheus. The incident you resolved this time was truly a remarkable achievement, but in truth, it was only the tip of the iceberg.”
“You mean there is something bigger?”
“I cannot tell you the specifics yet. But one thing is certain: more complex and difficult situations await you.”
She looked at Taeho with a face full of conviction.
“Fortunately, we believe that you, Gang Taeho-nim, will be more than capable of resolving them. Judging by the ability and will you have shown so far, no matter what crisis comes, you will overcome it. There is no doubt about that.”
As the hologram slowly faded, Rin’s voice echoed.
“Continue to grow, Revival. You will gain the power to save both yourself and others.”
Taeho opened his closed eyes.
Gihwan, who was sitting beside him, spoke with a smile.
“Just what kind of sleep were you having? They said the in-flight meal is coming out, and I was wondering whether I should wake you up.”
“I fell asleep?”
“Yes. I called you several times, but you couldn’t hear me. I figured you must have been exhausted.”
“How long did I sleep?”
“For about ten minutes. You dozed off right in the middle of our conversation.”
“Ah….”
Taeho nodded and picked up the in-flight meal menu. He felt a new vitality in his body, as though he had enjoyed a truly deep sleep.
***
Unlike the cold air of Switzerland, the afternoon sun in Geumsan-ri was warm.
Taeho took a deep breath. He never knew the air of his hometown could be this comfortable and sweet.
Gihwan seemed to feel the same way.
“Home really is the best. It feels like a dream that I was so nervous at the WHO Extraordinary General Assembly.”
Taeho nodded with a smile.
The two stood before the entrance of the Geumsan Clinic, looking side by side in the same direction.
“Oh? They’re coming!”
Gihwan noticed first and shouted excitedly.
In the distance, a yellow kindergarten bus was approaching. The bus stopped in front of the Geumsan Clinic; the door opened, and the teacher got off first. After spotting Taeho and Gihwan, the teacher greeted them brightly, then helped Hayul out of the bus.
“Uncle!”
A tiny body hopped out the door. The child ran with her arms wide open.
Taeho bent his knees and caught her in his embrace. Hayul wrapped her arms around Taeho’s neck and rubbed her face against his.
“I missed you!”
“Uncle missed Hayul too.”
“Uncle Owl!”
“Hayul! Oh my! Hayul!”
Hayul hugged each of the two uncles in turn. Gihwan held her tightly and sniffled. Taeho also felt a stinging at the tip of his nose.
The overseas business trip had stretched far longer than expected. They had video-called almost every day for three weeks, but it was entirely different from seeing the child in person.
“Yay! Yay!”
Hayul’s joyous laughter echoed across the road. Passing villagers smiled and greeted them.
“The director’s back, I hear.”
“Hayeol must be happy, having her uncles return.”
“With the director back, the village feels full of life again, not like before when it was so empty.”
Receiving the neighbors’ warm greetings, Taeho’s heart felt at ease. Even without a blood relation, it was wonderful to miss and delight in one another like this.
Gihwan began asking the things he had been curious about.
“Hayul, how was kindergarten? Did you get along with your friends?”
“Yeah!”
“You look like you lost some weight. Didn’t you eat well?”
“It wasn’t yummy!”
“Why? Didn’t they serve much of the eggs and chicken you like?”
“Hayul was sad!”
“Why?”
“’Cause I missed my uncles!”
At Hayul’s answer, Gihwan pressed his hand to his chest with a deeply moved expression.
“Sorry, Hayul. I won’t be away for so long anymore.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, really.”
Hayul smiled brightly and took Taeho and Gihwan’s hands.
She looked like the happiest child in the world.
Then, from a distant building corner, a gaze was watching them.
A woman standing with emaciated hands gripping the wall. She watched for a long while, then slowly turned and disappeared into the darkness.
At dinnertime, the living room of the third-floor residence was filled with laughter. Hayul sat between her two uncles, taking out the gifts one by one and examining them.
“What’s this?”
“It’s a Swiss music box. I picked it out thinking of you.”
Taeho wound the music box and set it on the floor, and a beautiful melody flowed out.
“Wow!”
Hearing the fascinating sound for the first time, Hayul’s eyes grew round; she could not tear her gaze from the music box.
The chocolate Gihwan had prepared also suited Hayul perfectly. The child put a piece in her mouth, and her eyes sparkled.
“Yummy!”
“There’s plenty, so you can eat it all. But you can’t eat everything at once, so let’s have just one or two a day. Okay?”
The child, who had been smiling broadly, thought for a moment, then picked up one chocolate in each hand.
“Huh, Hayul?”
Hayul popped the chocolates one by one into Taeho and Gihwan’s mouths. Then she toddled over with her short legs and put one into Professor Bak Suhyeok’s mouth as well, who was sitting on the sofa smiling contentedly.
“Oh my, you thought of me too?”
“Yummy!”
Hayul nodded as if telling them to trust her and eat.
The faces of the three men looking at her were full of smiles.
Peaceful everyday life.
Taeho realized anew how precious these moments were. Uncovering international conspiracies and saving countless lives was important too, but in the end, these small moments brought the greatest happiness.
“But tell me exactly what happened. I watched the broadcast of the WHO Extraordinary General Assembly, but it was so incredible it was hard to believe.”
Bak Suhyeok clucked his tongue.
Taeho and Gihwan took turns recounting everything that had happened. Bak Suhyeok was startled again and again, but since he usually kept up with medical news with great interest, he quickly understood the circumstances.
The uncles talked for quite some time.
“Hayul, it’s time for bed.”
“Huh? Hayul already fell asleep?”
Hayul had been lying between her two uncles, rolling around, before dozing off.
Taeho and Gihwan moved the child to the bedroom and quietly returned to the living room.
At 2 a.m., the area around the Geumsan Clinic was silent. Only the streetlights illuminated the quiet streets.
Then, a staggering shadow emerged from the darkness. A woman who had been wandering near the Geumsan Clinic hesitated in front of the entrance.
She repeatedly took a step forward, then stepped back.
Suddenly, dizziness washed over her.
“Ugh….”
The woman slumped onto the bus stop bench in front of the clinic. Her abdominal pain grew unbearably severe. Cold sweat poured down, and she could hardly breathe.
‘Not now….’
But her body refused to obey her will. The woman collapsed on the bench.
At that moment, Taeho had gone up to the rooftop and was sitting alone. Perhaps because he had not yet adjusted to the time difference, sleep would not come.
Taeho, who had been mulling over everything that had happened.
He felt an uncomfortable, ominous sensation.
Taeho approached the rooftop railing and looked down. He spotted someone collapsed on the bench in front of the clinic.
Taeho hurriedly ran down into the house.
“Gihwan!”
Gihwan, who had just come out in his pajamas to get a drink of water, opened his eyes wide.
“What is it?”
“It’s an emergency patient!”
The two ran to the front of the clinic.
Taeho checked the woman collapsed on the bench and immediately assessed the situation.
“Her pulse is fast and irregular.”
The moment he activated Bio Vision, a shocking sight unfolded.
The woman’s entire intestines were covered in black shadows, like rotting tree roots. The intestinal walls, which should have been a healthy pink in a normal person, were discolored black in places, and malignant cells were rapidly proliferating and spreading between them like shooting stars.
The most terrifying thing was that these black masses were not simply staying in place. Like living creatures, they extended tentacles and infiltrated the surrounding organs.
To the liver, the pancreas, the peritoneum….
The metastasis was extensively advanced.
The woman’s bioenergy had already surpassed dangerous levels. The vitality that should have glowed in a bright, stable green in a normal person was flickering with a faint gray light.
Like a candle about to go out.
‘At this stage, is it terminal colon cancer?’
Taeho’s heart grew heavy. Every signal Bio Vision showed was saying one thing.
That she had already passed beyond the stage where medicine could help.
“Let’s move her inside right now.”
“Yes!”
The two lifted the woman and carried her into the Geumsan Clinic.
As they laid her on the bed in the second-floor inpatient room, a small voice was heard from behind.
“Uncle….”
Hayul stood in front of the open door, rubbing her eyes.
“Ah, Hayul woke up. How did you get all the way down here? Was it noisy?”
The moment Gihwan hurried over and picked her up, Hayul’s eyes grew round.
Hayul looked at the woman lying in the bed and shouted.
“Mommy?”