An F-Rank Veterinarian Physically Heals an S-Rank Magical Beast - Chapter 17

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 17
Before the [Throne of Corruption].
Plague King Nergal, the ruler of the North, gripped a small syringe with trembling hands.
This tiny vial containing a transparent liquid.
It was something the human doctor had tossed to him, calling it a “sample.”
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“It’s a lie… Can such a mere liquid truly erase my suffering?”
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Nergal harbored doubts.
He was the King of Disease.
He knew every sickness in the world and commanded all suffering.
Yet this persistent [chronic rhinitis] clogging his nose and this [conjunctivitis] burning his eyes so fiercely he couldn’t open them—no magic could cure either.
He had always believed this was the karmic burden those who spread disease must bear.
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“If you don’t believe me, you can return it.”
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Jin-hyuk extended his hand.
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“Wait!”
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Nergal hastily concealed the syringe.
Belief aside, he felt as though he were suffocating this very moment.
Breathing only through his mouth had left his throat parched and raw, as if it might tear.
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‘Nothing ventured, nothing gained. If it’s poison, I’ll kill all of them and myself as well.’
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With apparent resolve, Nergal pressed the needle into his forearm—rotted skin though it was, veins still ran beneath—and depressed the plunger with his thumb.
The plunger descended.
A soft click.
The cool medication flowed through his veins.
One second, two seconds, three seconds. Only silence hung in the tense standoff.
The Hunters swallowed hard.
And after five seconds.
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“Hnngh…!”
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Nergal’s body convulsed as if electrocuted.
The swelling in his nasal mucosa, which had been completely obstructed, subsided in an instant.
Through the nostrils that had seemed sealed shut like concrete, a faint breeze began to flow.
A soft inhalation—.
Air.
Though it reeked of decay, to Nergal it was the sweetest oxygen in the world.
For the first time in five hundred years, breath entered through my nose.
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“Ahhhhh…!”
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Nergal threw back his head and gasped in wonder.
Tears welled up in his eyes.
The stabbing pain that had pierced my eyes, the crushing headache that had weighed down my skull—all of it vanished as if washed away.
The fog in my mind lifted, and a brilliant blue sky seemed to stretch open before me—a sensation of liberation.
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“It’s open…! It’s open! I can breathe!”
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Nergal leaped down from the throne and began dancing with unbridled joy.
At the sight of that grotesque fly-man performing what resembled tap dancing, the S-rank Hunters were left speechless.
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“Was that… actually real?”
“Rhinitis is truly terrifying, everyone.”
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Jin-hyuk watched with arms crossed, a satisfied smile on his face.
An antihistamine and steroid cocktail—a direct hit for acute symptom relief.
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“How is it, customer? Feeling the effects?”
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Nergal stopped dancing and rushed toward Jin-hyuk, his tentacles eagerly grasping the doctor’s hand.
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“Doctor! No, Master! What kind of medicine is this? Is it the tears of the gods?”
“Just something you’d find at any pharmacy. Though I suppose my mixing ratio is somewhat special.”
“Give me more! Please, give me more! Once the effect wears off, it’ll be blocked again!”
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Nergal pleaded desperately.
Now that I’d tasted what it felt like to breathe freely, the thought of returning to that congested state was worse than death itself.
Jin-hyuk feigned a troubled expression.
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“I have plenty of medicine. But this is only a temporary treatment. If you don’t address the root cause, you’ll be dependent on medication for the rest of your life.”
“The root cause?”
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Jin-hyuk pointed around with his finger.
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“Look at this pigsty of an environment.”
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[Throne of Corruption].
This place was, quite literally, a garbage dump.
Filth overflowed across the floor, mold bloomed on the walls, and dust and spores drifted through the air like snow.
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“With a home like this, how haven’t you developed allergies? How do you still have a nose left after living in a dust pit?”
“B-but… I am the Plague King. Filth is the very source of my power…”
“Power or not, what good is strength when you’re suffering so much you could die?”
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Jin-hyuk’s words struck true.
Nergal was left speechless.
He was right. What use was power?
Not when a blocked nose kept him from sleeping.
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“Choose. Will you live in this garbage heap with a stuffy nose, or will you tear it all down and live refreshed?”
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Nergal deliberated for a moment.
Five hundred years of maintaining his “pride in filth.”
But the “pleasure of breathing freely” he’d just experienced overwhelmed that pride.
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“Tear it all down.”
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Nergal made his decision.
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“Clean it all up! Don’t leave a single speck of dust!”
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Jin-hyuk turned back with a sly grin.
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“Well, you heard him? Let’s get started.”
“…Pardon?”
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Lee Shin-woo asked back, a sense of foreboding washing over him.
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“Cleaning. A deep cleaning.”
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[Urgent Mission: Remodel the Plague King’s Castle.]
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South Korea’s strongest Hunters donned protective suits once more. This time, it wasn’t manual labor—it was a cleaning service.
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“I’m… I’m the leader of the Zeus Guild… Why am I cleaning someone else’s bathroom…?”
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Lee Shin-woo sprayed bleach on the toilet—essentially a cesspool—while his voice trembled with emotion.
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“No excuses! Scrub every corner!”
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Jin-hyuk barked orders like a supervisor.
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“Ma Dong-tak! There’s mold on that wall! Use a sponge, not an axe!”
“Come on, hyung, this is faster! [Whirlwind]!”
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Ma Dong-tak spun his axe like a windmill, scraping away the mold along with chunks of the wall itself.
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“Seo Ji-hoo! Remove the moisture! Dry the floor completely!”
“Understood… [Dry Ice]….”
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Luna was equally busy. She diluted the disinfectant Jin-hyuk had given her and sprayed it throughout every corner of the castle.
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“Sterilize! Sterilize!”
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Jin-hyuk led Nergal to the bathhouse.
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“Now then, patient, you need a bath too. Let’s scrub away five hundred years of grime.”
“B-bathe? Water damages my skin!”
“It’s medicinal. Luna prepared a special herbal bath solution, so get in.”
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Jin-hyuk forcibly shoved Nergal into the bathtub.
Hot water infused with [Herbal Essence] + [Sulfur] + [Sterilizer].
Sizzzzzzle!
Black liquid oozed from Nergal’s body.
Parasites and bacteria shrieked as they peeled away.
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“Ahhhhh! It’s hot! It stings!”
“Refreshing, isn’t it? Now for the exfoliation.”
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Jin-hyuk slipped an [Adamantium Exfoliating Cloth] onto his hand.
A legendary item said to strip the hide off S-rank monsters.
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“Aaaah! Gently! Gently, I beg you!”
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An hour later.
The Throne of Corruption had been reborn as the Throne of Cleanliness.
The filth had vanished, and the floor gleamed with radiance.
The moldy wallpaper had been torn away and replaced with fresh white paint.
Instead of the nauseating stench of decay that once hung in the air, a crisp phytoncide fragrance—courtesy of one hundred bottles of air freshener—now permeated the space.
And Plague King Nergal.
He was unrecognizable in his transformation.
The crusted filth that had clung to him had disappeared, revealing skin that was now pristine.
Even his fly wings gleamed with transparent luminescence.
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“This feels… strange….”
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Plague King Nergal gazed into the mirror, touching his own face.
Smooth.
Not sticky.
Most of all… refreshing.
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“How do you feel?”
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I asked.
Plague King Nergal drew a deep breath.
Clean air, untainted by a single speck of dust, filled his lungs completely.
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“Invigorating…! I feel like I could fly away!”
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Plague King Nergal was moved with emotion.
He had believed filth was the source of his power, but he never imagined cleanliness could feel this magnificent.
He reached for my hand, then hesitated.
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“Wait.”
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Plague King Nergal pulled hand sanitizer from his pocket and sprayed it on his own hands.
Spritz, spritz.
Then he grasped my hand.
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“Thank you, Doctor. Now I understand. Hygiene is life itself.”
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I stared at Plague King Nergal with a bewildered expression.
This creature… had developed obsessive-compulsive disorder.
Having become so extraordinarily clean, his body could no longer tolerate filth.
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“Subordinates! Wash yourselves at once! If I see even a speck of dust before my eyes, it’s execution!”
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Plague King Nergal bellowed at the swarm of flies. They scattered in panic, flying toward the stream.
Flies washing themselves—it was an ecological catastrophe.
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“The treatment was successful. Now we need to settle the medical fees.”
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Jin-hyuk presented the invoice.
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[Medical Fee Itemization]
1. Rhinitis treatment and full-body exfoliation: 1 Essence of Plague.
2. Sanitation and cleaning service fees: Exclusive medical rights for Arcana Hospital in the North region.
3. Pharmaceutical costs: Full access to all toxic plant and virus data from The Abyss.
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Plague King Nergal nodded as he reviewed the invoice.
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“Cheap. It’s a bargain compared to the joy of breathing.”
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He sliced open his chest near his diaphragm.
From within, he extracted a gelatinous orb that bubbled with sickly green luminescence.
[Essence of Plague].
A core imbued with the authority to command all diseases.
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“Take it. And I’ll open the library in my castle as well. It contains records of every poison in existence.”
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Jin-hyuk accepted the essence and secured it.
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[Item Acquired: Essence of Plague (Legendary Grade)]
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With this, I had obtained the second essence.
Two remained.
And Luna’s eyes beside me sparkled with delight.
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“Toxic plant data…! Thank you so much! I’ll study it diligently!”
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For her, Plague King Nergal’s library was nothing short of a treasure trove.
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“You’ve worked hard. Please take your medicine regularly and ventilate the space often.”
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I gathered my bag and left the castle. Behind me, Plague King Nergal waved goodbye while wiping the door handle with a wet tissue.
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“Look around carefully. Oh, and shake the dust off your shoes before you leave. Don’t track dirt everywhere.”
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A perfect reformation.
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[Arcana Hospital – Abyss Branch] Return.
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“I’m back.”
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Jin-hyuk opened the hospital door and stepped inside.
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“You’re back?”
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Yoo Yi-soo sat on the sofa, reading a book.
Her complexion had improved considerably compared to a few days ago.
However, the blood vessels across her chest still protruded darkly.
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“Here, a gift.”
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Jin-hyuk retrieved the [Essence of Plague] and placed it on the table.
Beside the already-acquired [Essence of Phantom], the purple and green lights blended together in a radiant glow.
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“Already two? You really are… incredible.”
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Yoo Yi-soo marveled at the sight.
Two S-rank Demon Kings conquered in just a week.
Not through combat, but through medicine.
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“I told you. A doctor saves them first, then takes what they need.”
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Jin-hyuk removed his outer coat and collapsed onto the sofa.
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“Halfway there now. The West and South remain.”
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Jin-hyuk unfolded the map.
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“The [Frenzy King] in the West. A patient with anger management disorder.”
“The [Gluttony King] in the South. A patient with severe obesity.”
“Which one should we go to first?”
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Yoo Yi-soo asked.
Jin-hyuk paused to consider.
Anger management disorder required counseling and sedatives, while obesity… required a diet.
Just then, Ma Dong-tak entered from outside.
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“Director! We’ve completely run out of food supplies in the storage!”
“What? Already? You’ve eaten through all those instant rice bowls and ramen noodles?”
“Well, Balakas and the hyenas eat quite a lot… and besides, we have to feed the little patients Luna brought in as well.”
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Food shortage. This was a serious problem.
The flesh of creatures from The Abyss contained poison and couldn’t be eaten without purification, and the instant foods brought from Earth were running dangerously low.
After all, proper nutrition was essential for recovery.
Jin-hyuk’s eyes turned toward the south on the map.
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“I’ve decided. We’re heading south.”
“South? The Gluttony King?”
“Exactly. His epithet is ‘Lord of Gluttony,’ which means his territory must be overflowing with food.”
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Jin-hyuk licked his lips.
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“Let’s go trim down his excess fat while we’re at it, stock up our food storage, and scout out some fine dining establishments in the Demon Realm as a bonus.”
“A diet clinic?”
“No. [Infernal PT Training & Meal Management].”
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Jin-hyuk clenched his fist with determination.
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“Ma Dong-tak, prepare yourself. I’ll need your muscles for this.”
“Are we fighting?”
“No. You’ll be serving as a personal trainer.”
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The third target. Against the Gluttony King, obsessed with eating, the most grueling diet program in Hunter history was about to commence.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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