episode_0049
by fnovelpiaThanks to my body’s rapid healing, I was preparing to go home after a two-week intensive course of attack → surgery → recovery → discharge.
“It seems like we’ve been here for a really long time. But when I think back, it doesn’t seem like we’ve been here that long.”
On the other hand, Ruina helps with packing.
He tilted his head and expressed his doubts.
Me too.
Is it because I spend all day in this hospital room with nothing special going on, and only occasionally walk around the hospital for rehabilitation and a walk?
The two weeks, which were by no means a short period of time, seemed to have passed in an instant.
… … Is it because of my mood?
“But honey. Are you sure your wound is okay?”
“I heard that I can be discharged, so I guess it’s okay? Of course, I’ll have to receive outpatient treatment.”
“Uuuuu… … .”
Ruina shows a displeased expression.
It seemed like he secretly hoped that I would be discharged after I was completely healed.
But the limit was slowly approaching.
Even if you are in a single room, you will receive the highest quality medical services.
Even though I did rehabilitation exercises regularly on a high-end electric bed.
I want to go out…!!
My body and mind were longing for a normal, busy routine outside the hospital.
Don’t they say that people who are isolated somewhere for a long period of time due to infectious disease or other reasons often suffer from depression?
I was right at that limit right now.
Perhaps, if Ruina hadn’t been by my side the whole time, I would have grabbed the doctor’s trouser leg and begged him to let me leave the hospital.
“Thank you. For staying with me.”
He thanked Ruina and stroked her round head.
“Ahem. I just did what was expected of a girlfriend.”
Ruina put her hands on her hips and showed off her confident demeanor, her cheeks turning a peach color.
Even with that proud look, she was so cute and lovable.
“It looks like you’ve already finished preparing for discharge.”
“Ah, teacher.”
As if on cue, the doctor who had been watching me closely for two weeks showed up in my hospital room.
“First of all, the refund is in a very stable state… …. The deposit has been paid in full without any omission.”
The doctor opened his mouth as he looked at the medical records and the scraps of receipts stuck to them.
I must have lost millions of won in two weeks. And I paid it all back without even knowing it.
It seems that an invisible hand is involved when it comes to hospital bills.
“Still, is it too much for you to do strenuous exercise like extreme sports?”
“Haha… . I’ll keep that in mind.”
Even sports that aren’t extreme to begin with are rarely done after graduating from the academy…
“. And then. Hmm. ”
“Yes?”
The doctor in charge licked his lips as he put the card in his side.
It seemed like he wanted to say something to me, but he couldn’t bring himself to open his mouth.
“Excuse me. Guardian?”
“Huh?”
Huh? You’re suddenly calling Ruina here?
Is this something more serious than I expected?
“I have something to talk to Seong-Hoon, so could you please step aside for a moment? 30 seconds will do.”
“Is this serious?”
Ruina asked the question I wanted to ask without a single mistake.
“No, no. It’s not that serious. I just want the patient to hear this.”
“Ugh… … .”
Ruina looked up at me with anxious eyes.
“It’ll be okay. Just wait outside first.”
I patted Ruina’s shoulder and reassured her.
“Yeah… … . Okay.”
With a worried expression on her face, Ruina slung her backpack over her shoulder and walked out of the hospital room.
Ding ding.
Click.
After the sliding door is closed.
I hardened my face and looked at the doctor in charge.
“This is an important story, right?”
I couldn’t help but feel that my wounds had healed too quickly compared to the severity of my injuries.
As a doctor, I would be quite reluctant to say anything bad to the guardian.
so.
What the doctor will probably tell me is… … .
“Should I say it’s important? I didn’t really want to hear it.”
“Want to hear?”
Oh my gosh.
Something is a little different from what I expected?
“As I mentioned last time, you said to refrain from strenuous exercise until the wound is completely healed.”
The doctor turned his head away from me and continued speaking.
“So, there… … . It would be better to adjust the number of times you establish a relationship with your guardian… … .”
“엨.”
When the doctor finally brought up the story with great difficulty, I opened my mouth and froze in place.
A few days ago.
After first becoming deeply connected with Ruina.
It was because I suddenly remembered hugging her a couple more times after that.
“Mr. Sunghoon moaned “Yuri, Yuri” late at night, and the staff on duty heard it like a ghost’s voice… … .”
“Okay, I understand. Okay, then stop… … .”
I cut off the doctor’s words by raising my arm, indicating that I didn’t have to say anything more.
It was fortunate that others heard her as Yuri, a pseudonym, even though she was called Ruina.
After that.
Ruina and I came down to the lobby on the first floor of the hospital.
Of course, she immediately asked me what I had talked to the doctor about.
I mumbled and told her that I had only heard about wound care.
“Okay. If you’re going to hide it that much, I won’t ask any more questions.”
Ruina immediately knew it was a lie.
Well, you could tell right away that I was lying just by the way I spoke before.
“Haha… … .”
He took out his cell phone with a clumsy smile on his face.
Several messages arrived just in time for my discharge.
It was a light-hearted yet heartfelt message from Kyungtae.
It was a message that seemed to show Si-eun’s sorry feelings in words, as if the mood of her chatter had calmed down.
In addition, there were congratulatory messages from other acquaintances on my discharge.
“Huh?”
And lastly.
A text message from Team Leader Lee Tae-seok that was just sent a few minutes ago.
But no matter how you looked at the content, it had an ominous vibe.
“Not even a handler, my name is… … .”
Since I joined the operation.
The team leader never once called me by my name.
If anyone ever called me, they would just call me Handler, the code name the country forced upon me.
If that man called me by my name and came down from his seat… … .
“Honey? What’s wrong?”
“There’s Yuri over there.”
He opened his mouth while lightly patting Ruina’s head, who suddenly showed a worried face.
“Are there people around you staring at us?”
“Are you talking about suits? Wait a minute… … .”
In the middle of a bustling hospital lobby with dozens of people milling about.
In response to my question, Ruina slowly closed her eyes and slowly nodded her head from side to side.
“Oh, that’s strange. There’s not a single person?”
The scan results of Ruina, who returned shortly after, were as follows.
Following a text message from the team leader who had been missing for two weeks,
Now that all the black suits that never let our guard down for even a second have disappeared.
I had a gut feeling that something was going on underneath.
And that intuition is,
“There are no taxis… … .”
After leaving the main entrance of the hospital.
I was sure that there was no black van waiting nearby.
* * *
In front of my house, which I returned to after two weeks by taxi.
But me too, and Ruina too.
I immediately noticed that the area around my house was different than before.
“That’s still weird.”
“Yeah. No one’s here.”
Could it be because of what Team Leader Lee Tae-seok said about work-related matters?
It was a strange feeling to be constantly watched by so many people and then have them all disappear at once.
When I was actually being watched, I wondered when those eyes would disappear.
Enter the common entrance password as usual.
As usual, I climbed the narrow stairs.
As usual, I stop in front of room 402.
“… … Hmm?”
I glanced at Ruina, who was pouting, tilting her head to one side, and finally entered the front door password to open the door.
And soon.
What caught my eye was.
“What is this.”
It was the first time in my life that I saw high heels neatly lined up in the hallway.
“Woman… … Ja… … ?”
Leaving behind the rapidly cooling voice of Ruina, who seemed to know why.
I ran into the living room in a hurry.
“You’re a little late, Hero Handler. No, Villain Breeder Jo Seong-hoon. ”
“Who are you!!?”
A woman in a suit entered the house before me, the landlord, and sat on the sofa with her legs crossed.
She leisurely stood up from her seat and faced me straight in the eye.
“Nice to meet you. I am Jang Se-hee, the leader of the Strategic Crisis Response Team. Please take good care of me.”
“Woman… … !”
He didn’t even pay attention to the dazzling hostility from Ruina who jumped in after him.
The woman who introduced herself as Team Leader Jang Se-hee smiled smugly at us.
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