Having finished her farewells, Kim Jeongsun left the surgical tent.
Until then, the operating room had been quiet, but suddenly the sound of suppressed sobbing cut through the air.
"H-hup, hnnn."
Taesu, Jeongminsu, and Kim Hyeokgwon looked at one another with bewildered faces.
Naturally, it was none of the three.
Old Man Wang?
He wasn't either.
Then who?
Swish.
Everyone's gazes turned toward the operating table all at once.
As expected, Park Huinam lay there with his face scrunched up in every which way, sobbing quietly.
Because he still couldn't move his arms, he couldn't even cover his tear-streaked face.
That same man sniffled and forced his mouth open.
"I was scared……. Hic. I was scared."
"……."
"I'm sorry……. Sniff. I was really afraid something would go wrong……. Hic. That I'd become a burden to my kids and their mother……. Sniff. I was really scared. Kkeuk, kkeug."
Park Huinam's sobs intensified until even his breathing grew ragged.
He had struck them as a strong man from the very first time they saw him.
Contrary to his outward appearance, his weeping figure looked terribly frail.
Old Man Wang wiped the mess of a face with a coarse hand and scolded him.
"You foolish man."
"Hic, sob. I'm sorry. Grandpa Wang……. I really……"
"That's enough, you fool. You call me an elder just because I've got some years on me, yet what is this, turning back into a baby the moment you cry? Tsk."
Smack, pat.
Old Man Wang's hand wiping away the tears grew as rough as his heart was pitying.
Even in the midst of that, Park Huinam moved his head.
He met eyes with Taesu and the other two.
He lowered his head with difficulty and apologized properly.
"I'm really sorry. But I was just so……. So scared."
"……."
"While listening to Dr. Choe's explanation……. My kids came to mind first."
"I imagine so."
"Keuheup. I could only think of my kids, and I even dreamed of playing with them……."
His tearful lament was filled with nothing but his children.
Everyone gave a bitter smile.
"The children must have worried you greatly."
"The head of the household can't just collapse, can he……. Then what would our kids live on?"
"I think you can set that worry aside for now."
"Keuheup. I'm sorry for speaking rudely. I'm sorry. Thank you."
Park Huinam apologized repeatedly and even offered words of gratitude.
His face was full of traces of tears, his innermost feelings plainly visible.
In that moment, Taesu's gaze turned to Kim Hyeokgwon.
"……."
He looked without saying a word.
He also sent a look asking what Kim Hyeokgwon intended to do about it.
As if he had read that gaze, Kim Hyeokgwon muttered with a sullen face.
"His sense of responsibility is on a completely different dimension from some damned bastard's."
It was irritation tied to his own past.
Swish, swish.
He answered with a wave of his hand instead.
Within that reaction was the implication that his anger had faded.
Taesu understood at once and spoke to Park Huinam.
"The apologies are enough now."
"Still, I'm sorry. I'm truly sorry. I really am."
"I've accepted them. We truly have as well."
"Um, I don't think that person over there has forgiven me yet. I was too much earlier……."
Park Huinam seemed bothered by Kim Hyeokgwon, who had his back turned.
Perhaps having heard that, Kim Hyeokgwon reacted first.
"I said it's fine. And stop crying already."
"I'm sorry."
"Oh, come on."
"Forgi……. No, thank you."
Park Huinam quickly corrected himself.
Taesu subtly blocked his gaze and answered in his stead.
"It's fine now. We really are okay, so I think it would be best for you to calm down."
"Hoooo. Pooo."
"We can't exactly say we did everything perfectly either."
"Th-then……."
Fear once again rose on Park Huinam's face.
Before that worry could deepen, Taesu continued.
"Seeing as you have feeling all the way to the tips of your toes, it seems the surgery was completed well."
"Ah, yes. Thank you."
Click.
Park Huinam responded with the largest nod he could manage.
Since Taesu hadn't said it to receive thanks, he immediately moved on.
"The problem starts now. So……."
He briefly explained the current situation and the subsequent recovery process.
And he calmly informed him that he had not yet completely escaped the danger of amputation.
Park Huinam's expression changed moment by moment as he listened.
In the end, he steeled his resolve.
"I'll do everything you tell me to do. Without fail, I'll definitely do exactly as you say."
"Yes. Let's work together so you can show your children the figure of a healthy father again."
"It will absolutely be that way."
Park Huinam spoke not with hope, but with conviction.
To that man, Taesu quietly added one more thing.
"Earlier, you said you dreamed of the children."
"Yes. I did."
"It wasn't merely a dream."
When Taesu spoke with certainty, Park Huinam's eyes went wide.
"What?"
"During the surgery, the children came right up to that curtain over there."
"Really?"
"Yes. They even shouted 'Dad' at the top of their lungs."
It was the moment Taesu paused briefly.
Swish.
Jeongminsu quietly approached from the side and chimed in.
"The kids were completely unreasonable."
"I broke into a cold sweat thinking they were going to open it and barge right in."
"Those kids, really……. Whew."
Jeongminsu and Kim Hyeokgwon took turns explaining the situation vividly.
Finally, Taesu added.
"The children were just as worried as you are, Mr. Huinam."
"Ah."
"Perhaps the surgery went even better because our hearts were as one."
"I simply, simply thank you."
Park Huinam repeated the same words with a trembling heart.
Then Old Man Wang, who had been watching in silence, also added a word.
"It seems Gang Yeonghun and Jo Jeongmin held the kids back and ended up taking a hit or two themselves."
"I-is that so?"
"Those brats, the spitting image of their father—short-tempered—and you wouldn't believe how strong they are."
Old Man Wang grumbled, but it seemed to reach Park Huinam's ears differently.
"They really are something."
"Well, well. You like hearing about the kids, don't you?"
"Well……. I suppose so."
Park Huinam seemed embarrassed, and even his face turned red.
Taesu said with a gentle smile.
"I think it would be best to meet the children after you've recovered a bit more."
"Then I'll do that."
"Still, you should be able to see them briefly tomorrow when you're moved to the ward tent."
"That's plenty. I just need to see their faces."
Park Huinam complied with and agreed to every word Taesu said.
His gaze was unexpectedly clean and clear.
It was slightly ill-fitting, yet there was something deer-like about it.
That seemed to be Park Huinam's true nature.
Taesu, Jeongminsu, and even Kim Hyeokgwon.
The unpleasant gazes had somehow all returned warmly.
The surgery?
'We did well.'
They all looked at one another and smiled.
Shortly after.
Taesu came out of the surgical tent, supporting Old Man Wang.
Kim Hyeokgwon, who followed behind, spoke to Taesu.
"Take care of Dr. Jeong's meal. I'm heading to Dwipara, so go on ahead first."
Swish.
Having finished his notice, Kim Hyeokgwon immediately headed for the warehouse.
Old Man Wang watched him and spoke in a low voice.
"It seems that fellow's insides are all twisted up too."
"Only his outward appearance is like that."
"Do you think I'm saying that because I don't know?"
"I couldn't say whether you've caught on or not."
At Taesu's answer, Old Man Wang glanced sidelong at him.
"My, you won't give an inch."
"I consider it a charm."
"Damn it. You said you were exhausted, but isn't your mouth exhausted?"
Old Man Wang glared and growled, but Taesu replied calmly.
"I rested a bit, so I've perked up."
"Then do another surgery."
"I would like to, but the current situation is not very favorable."
Taesu's words referred not to Park Huinam, but to the regional situation.
Old Man Wang, too, must have heard from Jo Jeongmin, for his expression, which had been angry, suddenly subsided.
"Another outbreak of that damn plague?"
"Pfft. Yes. That is exactly right."
"Did you say the way back is blocked?"
"That's right. I'm in a situation with neither home nor temple to my name, so please take good care of me."
Taesu subtly appealed to him.
But Old Man Wang snorted.
"Oh, spare me. Did we look that pitiful?"
"……."
"Are you unable to speak your mind because you're minding my pride?"
Old Man Wang pressed heavily for an answer.
Without overthinking, Taesu answered honestly.
"The blood pulled me."
"Nonsense."
"If not, would I stubbornly stay behind, stubbornly see to your meals, and stubbornly escort you like this?"
As Taesu stated his reasons point by point, Old Man Wang glanced at him.
"What does that blood amount to."
"Exactly. Even I can't understand why I'm subjecting myself to this hardship."
"You're a fool. It's not as if anyone will appreciate you for it."
"We know, don't we? Then that's enough."
Taesu spoke plainly.
At the answer that flowed as smoothly as a mountain stream, Old Man Wang rather let out a bitter sigh and fell silent.
"Hmm……."
"More importantly, it is time to examine you, Elder."
"I said I'm fine."
Old Man Wang cut him off sharply.
But there was no way Taesu's stubbornness would bend so easily.
Fortunately, rather than clash head-on, he spoke in a roundabout way.
"I'll wait until you permit it, but it can't take too long."
"Didn't I say I'm fine?"
"Shall I just push ahead right now?"
As Taesu's eyes sparkled, Old Man Wang's narrowed.
"Cut the crap. So what exactly are you planning to do?"
"The situation is fraught with imminent danger, so I intend to settle down here and act as the attending physician."
"If Park Huinam moves to the ward tomorrow, the others won't complain."
Finding a hook in those words, Taesu slyly asked.
"You don't ask what an attending physician is. And you seemed to know quite a lot about the surgery as well."
"Do you think I've been cooped up in a mountain valley my entire life?"
"I think you drifted in from somewhere like the wind. At the very least, I believe it was a city with a hospital."
Taesu spoke, interpreting it from a medical perspective.
Perhaps because that guess was not pleasant to hear, Old Man Wang warned icily.
"You said with your own mouth that you wouldn't pry."
"Not at all."
"That is exactly what you are doing right now."
"I am investigating how the villagers' health deteriorated."
Taesu said nonchalantly.
Still, Old Man Wang didn't seem to like it.
The problem was that Taesu was unpredictable.
To keep him from wandering about, he subtly said.
"It must have gotten worse after coming here."
"Why is that?"
"Because before then, their faces were not yellow."
"Thank you for providing a very important clue."
"Hmph."
Old Man Wang let out a heavy sigh and pressed his lips tightly shut.
Conversely, Taesu, having obtained a hint, smiled faintly.
Around evening.
It was the hour when the night air was growing cold.
An emergency countermeasure meeting was suddenly convened at the village platform.
Of the medical staff, only Taesu and Kim Hyeokgwon attended.
Taesu subtly turned and called Jeongminsu over the radio.
Beep.
"Minsu."
— Beep. What?
"How is Mr. Huinam?"
— Beep. I'm watching him like a hawk. His current vitals are…….
Jeongminsu's examination results followed.
One could tell over the radio why he had been unable to attend this meeting.