An F-Rank Veterinarian Physically Heals an S-Rank Magical Beast - Chapter 33
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————
Chapter 33
Director’s Office of Arcana Hospital.
Kang Jin-hyuk was buried in a plush leather chair, staring at the monitor before him.
On the screen, the numbers of Gold and Points flowing in in real-time were climbing madly.
[Current Subscribers: 3,500,000 Breakthrough]
[Daily Revenue: 1.2 Trillion Gold]
[Heavenly Realm Faith Index: +15% Increase]
[Demon Realm Liquidity: ‘Excellent’]
By the numbers alone, it was an absolute success.
Chairman Song was traveling to all branches worldwide with a grin splitting his face, and rumors had it that Mammon was wallpapering his castle in gold with dividend payments.
Michael, too, had ascended to idol status in the Heavenly Realm under the nickname “Insurance King Michael.”
But Kang Jin-hyuk’s expression was not entirely bright.
He furrowed his brow and pointed to the graph marked in red.
“Why is the loss ratio so high?”
Sitting before him was Judge, an inspector dispatched from the System Management Bureau.
She now wore a refined office look bearing the Arcana Hospital logo instead of her black suit.
[Cases of malicious exploitation by humans are surging rapidly. It’s called ‘abusing.'”]
Judge extended a tablet PC toward him.
“Abusing?”
[Yes. Take a look at this.]
A video of a party began playing on the screen.
C-Rank Dungeon, Flame Zone.
Five Hunters stood before a lava pool, playing rock-paper-scissors with each other.
“Alright, it’s Kim’s turn this time? Go in.”
“Ugh, it’s hot… Fine. It’s covered by insurance anyway.”
The Hunter called Kim plunged headfirst into the lava.
“Aaaahhhhh!”
Flesh seared and screams erupted. Just as his HP bottomed out, the party leader tore open a healing pack.
[Insurance System Activated.]
[Emergency Recovery!]
In an instant, Kim’s body regenerated completely.
He crawled out of the lava with skin now smooth and unblemished.
“Wow, my burn resistance skill leveled up! This is insane!”
“Great, next is Park! Let’s cut off one arm and regenerate it to build ‘pain tolerance’!”
My eyebrows twitched.
These lunatics were using my hospital as an infinite skill training ground.
“I said I’d treat you if you’re hurt, not that you should deliberately mutilate yourselves.”
[These ‘fraudulent patients’ currently account for 40% of all claims. At this rate, the fund could be depleted within three months.]
Exasperation colored Judge’s voice.
As an administrator who prioritized system efficiency, she could not tolerate such exploitative gameplay.
“Sigh… Human creativity truly shines brightest when doing exactly what they shouldn’t.”
I tapped my desk thoughtfully.
Insurance fraud.
Parasitic entities that inevitably follow in the wake of capitalist systems.
But I was no fool to be taken advantage of so easily.
“Revise the terms and conditions.”
[Pardon?]
“Establish a ‘special clause’ immediately. Article 44, Section 1: ‘Injuries resulting from intentional self-harm or training purposes are not covered.'”
[If you apply this retroactively to existing policyholders, there will be significant backlash.]
“Who said to apply it directly? We need to create justification first.”
I smiled wickedly and pressed the intercom.
“Public Relations? Release this to the media immediately: ‘Due to some malicious users, legitimate policyholders face the threat of premium increases.'”
A classic divide-and-conquer tactic.
Turn the majority of honest policyholders into my allies and isolate the fraudsters.
“And Judge, I’m going to grant you one authority.”
[What authority would that entail?]
“[SIU (Special Investigation Unit)] Team Lead position. You’ll leverage your system oversight abilities to the fullest and round up every last one of those abusing scoundrels.”
Judge’s glasses gleamed with sudden brilliance.
Catching system bugs.
It was her reason for existence and her favorite pursuit.
And on top of that, she could sanction humans ‘legally’.
[What about compensation?]
“Ten percent incentive per arrest quota. Plus unlimited supply of those ‘concentrated data cubes’ you love so much.”
[…Deal. I’ll eradicate them starting today.]
Judge left the room, radiating murderous intent.
By tonight, self-harm extortion Hunters across the globe would taste hell itself.
Rather than treatment reimbursement, they’d face the sledgehammer of ‘tenfold recovery of fraudulent claims’ and ‘permanent blacklist registration’.
“Phew, the urgent fire’s out.”
I rose from my seat.
Internal matters were settled.
Now it was time to turn my gaze outward.
The Hidden Quest, [The Primordial Patient].
I needed to reach the Tower of Babel where he resided.
“Let’s go, Luna.”
Luna jolted awake from dozing in the waiting room.
“Yes, yes! Where are we heading?”
“We’re climbing the tower. Pack your things. This is a long-term expedition.”
[Tower of Babel]
It was a colossal structure rising from the heart of the Abyss, nestled within the fissures of dimensions.
A height with no visible end.
The legendary tower that pierced through clouds and reached toward the cosmos itself.
The ultimate goal of all Hunters, and the sole passage through which one could touch the realm of divinity.
Yet the entrance to this majestic tower was far more bustling than expected.
“Line up, everyone! No entry without a ticket!”
“Party number 3 over there! You’re carrying too much. Pay the additional cargo fee!”
The vast plaza before the Tower 1st Floor entrance resembled a sprawling marketplace in chaos.
Thousands of Hunters had established camps, while armed guild members blocked the way forward.
They wore insignias on their chests—a golden serpent coiled upon itself.
Ouroboros: the world’s third-ranked mega-guild.
“What is this madness! The Tower is public property! Why are you collecting tolls?”
A Hunter cried out in protest, his voice trembling with indignation.
An executive of Ouroboros approached with a contemptuous sneer.
“Public property? Ha, what nonsense. We seized this plaza and declared it ‘Guild Territory’ ages ago. If you don’t like it, go form your own guild and claim some land.”
He slammed an enormous axe against the ground with a thunderous crack.
Ouroboros guild members surrounding him drew their weapons with menacing intent.
Every last one of them was an elite A-rank or higher.
“Entry fee is 10,000 Gold per person. Don’t like it? Go home.”
10,000 Gold.
For ordinary Hunters, it was a fortune—an entire month’s living expenses.
Yet Hunters who depended on the Tower to earn their livelihood had no choice but to pay through gritted teeth.
“This is absolutely disgusting….”
“Damn bastards. They’ll face divine retribution someday.”
That was when it happened.
A black limousine glided smoothly into the plaza from the far side.
A luxury sedan utterly incongruous with the menacing atmosphere of the entrance.
Screech.
The door opened, and Kang Jin-hyuk stepped out wearing dark sunglasses.
Luna followed, accompanied by goblin porters carrying premium travel luggage.
“Who are these pretentious fools?”
The Ouroboros executive’s expression darkened.
Kang Jin-hyuk lowered his sunglasses slightly, his gaze fixed upon the entrance.
“Wow, is this a toll gate? Traffic’s backed up like crazy.”
“Sir, vehicles are not permitted in this area.”
Luna whispered softly.
“Kang Jin-hyuk, that guild is blocking the entrance and extorting money. Ouroboros… they have a notorious reputation.”
“Ah. A toll tax.”
My eyes gleamed with interest. I had always despised watching others rake in profits, and if those profits were unearned income, my irritation doubled. I strode purposefully toward the ticket booth(?)
“Hey, you there. Get in line. Don’t you see the queue behind you?”
A guild officer blocked my path with his axe.
“Ah, I don’t need to wait in line. I have a free pass.”
“Free pass? What nonsense. Even the president pays 10,000 gold here.”
“Is that so? Then what about this?”
I pulled a business card from my pocket and handed it over.
[Director of Arcana Hospital, Kang Jin-hyuk]
[Chairman of the Tri-Realm Integrated Medical Insurance Association]
The officer glanced at the card and snorted.
“A doctor? What am I supposed to do with that? Did you think being a doctor would get you a discount? You must be loaded. You’ll pay 50,000 gold instead.”
“50,000 gold… that’s steep.”
I feigned a troubled expression.
“But your complexion looks rather poor, doesn’t it? Your liver enzymes are elevated—your eyes are yellowed. Your shoulders are asymmetrical, and most of all…”
I tapped the officer’s axe-wielding arm lightly.
“You have severe carpal tunnel syndrome. From swinging that axe so crudely.”
“What? You really want to die, don’t you!”
The officer, enraged, raised his axe.
In that instant, my hand moved like lightning.
Gag!
“Aaahhh!”
The axe clattered to the ground, and the executive’s wrist bent at a grotesque angle.
A clear preemptive strike.
“See? I told you it wasn’t good. The bone’s so brittle that just a light tap and it snaps.”
I clicked my tongue in disapproval.
Ouroboros guild members swarmed toward me from all directions.
“You bastard! How dare you strike our vice guild master!”
“Kill him!”
Dozens of blades and spears hurtled toward me. Luna shrieked and squeezed her eyes shut. But I remained composed.
“Patients… arriving in bulk, it seems.”
A sinister smile spread across my lips.
[Domain Deployment: Operating Theater]
Roooaaarrr!
The landscape transformed in an instant.
The desolate plaza was suddenly engulfed in cold metallic tiles, and dozens of shadowless surgical lights materialized overhead.
“What, what is this place!”
“My body… won’t move!”
The Ouroboros guild members panicked. Their bodies were being paralyzed by an invisible anesthetic gas.
“Now then, you will all be receiving group corrective therapy. Your postures are absolutely dreadful. Your spines are all curved into S-shapes.”
I snapped on white latex gloves with a flick. Snap! Surgical instruments—scalpels, saws, hammers—floated into the air around me.
“The treatment fee will be… the full amount of tolls you’ve collected.”
“This, this insane doctor…!”
“Anesthesia commencing. One, two, three.”
That day, the entrance to the Tower of Babel echoed with anguished screams.
Yet these were not cries of agony—they were shrieks of ‘(dubious?) ecstasy’ as bones and muscles were forcibly realigned into their proper positions.
“Uuuugh….”
“My back… my back is straight again….”
Thirty minutes later, as the surgical field dissolved, dozens of Ouroboros guild members lay sprawled across the plaza floor.
Though they were covered in bruises and drenched in sweat, their chronic ailments had mysteriously vanished without a trace.
Hunched spines had straightened, aching knees had become sound.
Of course, the price had been steep.
“Now, let’s settle the bill.”
I seized the collapsed vice-guildmaster by the collar and hauled him upright.
“Group manual therapy for fifty patients, acute fracture surgery for one, psychological counseling sessions for fifty-one. Total comes to 540 million Gold.”
“What, what did you say? 540 million?”
The vice-guildmaster’s eyes bulged from their sockets.
“No insurance, I assume? Non-covered procedures are rather expensive. Let’s just call it even with the money you’ve been hoarding over there.”
Luna dashed over and cracked open the ticket booth’s safe.
Heavy pouches of mana stones and gold bars spilled out.
Blood money extracted from hunters over the years.
“But this is our guild’s operating fund…!”
“Health is paramount—surely money matters less? If I catch you extorting tolls again, next time you’ll be getting a ‘full-body dermabrasion procedure.’ Understood?”
I brandished my scalpel with a smile.
The vice-guildmaster nodded frantically, trembling with terror.
This man before him was no doctor.
He was a demon wearing a doctor’s mask.
“Get out.”
“Y-yes! Retreat! Everyone withdraw!”
The Ouroboros guild members fled without looking back.
Cheers erupted in the space they had vacated.
“We’re alive! We made it!”
“That doctor saved us!”
“Thank you! Thank you so much!”
The Hunters who had been watching from the sidelines rushed toward Kang Jin-hyuk, expressing their gratitude.
Kang Jin-hyuk carefully pocketed even a single scattered coin amid the shower of applause.
“Ah, no need for thanks. You all have insurance, right? The Tower is dangerous, so please make sure to get coverage before entering. Sign up now and get 10% off your first month.”
Sales pitches know no time or place.
Hundreds of on-site registration forms sold out in an instant.
Dispensing justice, earning money, acquiring customers.
A perfect business killing three birds with one stone.
“Kang Jin-hyuk, you really are unstoppable.”
Luna shook her head in disbelief while deftly slinging the bag of money over her shoulder.
She too was being influenced by Kang Jin-hyuk’s ways.
“Now that the nuisance is gone, shall we finally head in?”
Kang Jin-hyuk stood before the entrance of the colossal Tower—the Dimensional Gate.
A swirling portal of azure light.
Beyond it awaited the primordial patient.
“Ready?”
“Yes!”
Kang Jin-hyuk and Luna hurled themselves into the portal.
[System: You have entered Tower of Babel 1st Floor, Field of Beginning.]
[Current floor weather: Clear]
[Warning: Tower laws apply.]
As my eyes opened, an endless meadow stretched before me.
The scent of grass pricked my nostrils, and a peaceful breeze swept across the land.
No monsters were visible.
“The 1st Floor appears to be a tutorial zone, so it should be relatively safe.”
Luna cautiously scanned the surroundings as she spoke.
But my expression was peculiar.
I crouched down and plucked a single blade of grass to examine it.
“Safe? I wouldn’t bet on it.”
As I tore the grass, not green sap but crimson blood oozed from the severed edge.
And then.
Kiiiieeeeek—!
The grass shrieked. It was no mere plant. Every blade of grass in this meadow was a living magical beast—[Mandrake Grass].
“Cover your ears!”
I shouted, but it was too late.
Tens of thousands of grass blades simultaneously screamed and erupted from the ground.
A sonic assault that threatened to rupture eardrums.
[Status Abnormality: ‘Confusion’ has been inflicted.]
[Status Abnormality: ‘Auditory Paralysis’ is progressing.]
“Aaaah! Jin-hyuk, my head…!”
Luna clutched her ears in agony.
For a Hunter with weak mental fortitude, this attack would liquefy the brain and cause instant death.
But I remained serene.
I tapped the wireless earbuds nestled in my ears—equipped with noise cancellation and a mana-blocking coating.
“Figures. The Tower sure knows how to make an entrance.”
I retrieved a massive megaphone from my inventory.
Fight noise with noise.
“Testing, testing, microphone check.”
I cranked the megaphone volume to maximum.
Then I activated the skill.
[Skill: Lion’s Roar – Hospital Announcement Version]
“[Attention, please! Weeding and pest control disinfection will now commence. Weeds, we ask that you remain quiet!]”
KWAAAAAANG!
My voice transformed into a physical shockwave, sweeping across the meadow.
The screams of the Mandrakes were swallowed by my roar.
Sound waves collided with sound waves as the air itself tore asunder.
[System: The Mandrakes have been subdued by overwhelming noise.]
[The Mandrakes have been knocked unconscious.]
The meadow fell silent in an instant.
Unconscious Mandrakes lay scattered across the ground.
“Phew, my throat’s killing me.”
I lowered the megaphone and cast a healing spell on Luna.
“You alright?”
“Yes… thanks to you, my eardrums survived. I really can’t let my guard down for a moment here.”
“That’s the charm of the Tower. And….”
I gazed at the scattered Mandrakes and licked my lips.
“These are all medicinal ingredients. Mandrake roots are supposedly excellent for restoring… vitality.”
I summoned the Goblin porters.
“Alright, let’s get to work. Harvest every root without damaging them. That’s 100 won bonus per root.”
“Kyiik! (Loyalty!)”
The Goblins excitedly grabbed their hoes and scurried about.
What had been a Tower ascent had transformed into a “medicinal herb harvesting experience.”
As I advanced, laying waste to the 1st Floor, something peculiar appeared before me.
A dilapidated hut standing alone in the middle of the meadow.
And seated before it, an elderly man.
The old man’s eyes were bandaged, as if he were blind, and his skeletal hands plucked at a worn harp.
[Hidden Piece discovered!]
[Tower 1st Floor Gatekeeper: ‘Blind Prophet’]
Each floor of the Tower had a gatekeeper who either guided the way to the next level or issued a challenge.
Usually they were formidable monsters, though occasionally NPCs like this one appeared.
As Kang Jin-hyuk approached, the old man ceased his playing.
“Stranger… you reek of blood and money simultaneously.”
The old man’s voice grated like metal on metal.
“Quite the nose you have. If I dug up some mandrake, you’d smell earth as well.”
“Do you desire the summit of the Tower? Then solve my riddle. Answer incorrectly, and I shall claim your soul….”
“Wait.”
Kang Jin-hyuk interrupted the old man’s words.
“We can do riddles later. Elder, your eyes—they’re troubling you, aren’t they?”
“…What?”
“I can see pus seeping through the bandage gaps. You’ve neglected conjunctivitis until it progressed to corneal ulceration. Leave it untreated and the inflammation spreads to your brain—fatal.”
The old man was utterly bewildered. In thousands of years facing countless challengers, never had one attempted to diagnose him before issuing a challenge.
“I am cursed with immortality. I cannot die. Only suffer.”
“So you can’t die but endure endless pain? That’s the absolute worst.”
Kang Jin-hyuk clicked his tongue and opened his bag.
“A curse is merely a form of illness. Allow me to treat it. In exchange….”
He glanced sideways at the treasure chests stacked behind the cottage.
“My fees are quite steep without insurance coverage, I’m afraid.”
“Insolent wretch… my curse was ordained by the divine! No mere human could possibly cure—”
“Patient, you talk too much. Open your mouth. Anesthetic going in.”
Kang Jin-hyuk shoved a cotton ball into the old man’s mouth and gathered sacred light at his fingertips.
[Skill: Divine Surgery – Curse Nullification and Ocular Reconstruction]
On Tower 1st Floor, history’s first involuntary gatekeeper surgery commenced.
A riddle? A Quest?
Such things are for those with healthy bodies and clear minds.
Before Kang Jin-hyuk, whether god or monster, they were all merely ‘patients who could pay their medical bills.’
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE
