Doctor’s Rebirth - Chapter 780

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

Chapter 780
The headquarters of Baekrin Medical Guild.
And the great city located beneath it.
Once an ordinary village, it had transformed beyond recognition with the constant flow of people arriving and departing from Baekrin Medical Guild, along with the goods they brought.
The growth was so dramatic that imagining its former appearance had become difficult.
The moment we arrived at the great city, something was flying across the sky.
‘What… what is that…?’
Kites were soaring through the air.
Colorful, ornate kites adorned the heavens, and among them were massive ones shaped like carp and dragons that seemed impossible to fly.
The enormous kites bore inscriptions.
-Congratulations! Jin Cheon-hee, Magistrate!
“No… what is all this?”
“Do the people of this district do something like this every day to honor your virtue?”
“That can’t be right. I’m not some northern kingdom’s Kongsan Party royal blood.”
Bewildered, another strange remark tumbled out of my mouth.
Jasi had gradually grown accustomed to my dialect.
This was simply who I was. What fascinated him more was the peculiar behavior of the city’s people.
“This is quite remarkable.”
“The price of paper has dropped significantly in Baekrin County. Well, I’m the one who caused it to drop, so the increase in kites is actually a good thing, but… the situation has become strange nonetheless.”
I sighed softly at that.
Thus we entered one of Baekrin County’s largest cities.
Baekrin East.
“The place names seem different from the areas we passed through before, don’t they?”
“I reorganized them. I overhauled the nomenclature and divisions to make administrative management easier. Of course, the people still call them by their old names out of habit.”
“So dividing things that way makes management simpler, does it?”
“Yes. It’s like addresses. In the old days, there were registered house addresses in the government offices, but they didn’t assign precise numbers by district. Usually, people lived in the same house their entire lives.”
In an agrarian society, everyone in a village knows how many spoons their neighbors own.
“But as the population grows, taxation, administration, and even welfare—though we’re only in the early stages—all become necessary. So I thought it best to divide things precisely.”
Corruption breeds in the gaps of administrative oversight.
Filling these gaps is the duty of those in power.
Jasi spoke.
“Good fortune flows through this city.”
“Oh, so shamans can perceive such things too.”
“You’re the strange one here.”
Beneath the enormous kites, the people were holding festivities.
The entire city was immersed in celebration.
‘What on earth is this about?’
No matter how much I thought about it, I couldn’t fathom the reason.
Had something changed in Baekrin County during my absence?
‘That’s right. The information provided by Gaebang is mostly described from the perspective of martial artists, so administrative matters like this could easily be overlooked. It’s certainly possible.’
I stroked my chin.
As expected, a child recognized me.
“Ilgwang! It’s Ilgwang!”
At those words, others turned to look.
Despite the pedestrians being so densely packed, my carriage and Hwang-gu still stood out.
“It’s the Patriarch!”
“Oh! Master Jin, may you be blessed!”
“Master So Ui-seon, you shall surely be blessed!”
They had even fashioned a massive Yoo Ho Toyong into a festival kite and sent it soaring into the sky.
Everyone welcomed me. It was dizzying.
“The people are praising your virtue. Is it always like this?”
“I never ordered anything like this. And besides, our Baekrin County isn’t that kind of place. Normally everyone just goes about their own business.”
I hurried toward the Medical Guild.
Red lanterns hung like peaches along the steps of the Medical Guild, and as I tried to ascend, Jasi hesitated.
“…What in the world is this place?”
“It’s the Medical Guild.”
Goosebumps rose on Jasi’s back.
“It doesn’t seem to be anything sinister, but there’s something massive on that mountain.”
At the Medical Guild?
I spoke.
“It’s filled with all sorts of formation arrays. From a geomantic perspective, it’s quite complex. That’s how it was designed.”
“You have greater shamanic talent than I do, yet you can’t sense that?”
“…?”
I tilted my head in confusion.
Soon I asked.
“Would you prefer to wait at the base of the mountain if it’s difficult?”
At those words, Jasi swallowed hard.
“No. I’ll go.”
He seemed resolved and climbed with me.
Instead, I chose the mountain path that was suitable for carriages to come and go, rather than the stairs.
It was a longer distance than the stairs and required circling around, but it was necessary for horses to pass through.
The Medical Guild, reached at last.
A golden-haired man stood guarding the entrance.
“Oh, Yoo Ho!”
“…Young Master.”
I was about to jest, but something felt off about the atmosphere.
And Jasi’s expression as he looked at Yoo Ho was also strange.
“…A deity…? Could it be a deity!?”
“Tsk. You’ve brought two troublesome ones.”
“Oh, can Yoo Ho see Isha?”
Click-clack, click-clack—
Jasi’s bone necklace trembled. Yet somehow, that trembling seemed born of fear.
Yoo Ho spoke.
“Perhaps we should save the detailed explanations for later. What do you say? Shaman. And young sapling.”
It seemed he called Isha the young sapling.
Jasi nodded with a pallid expression.
“…Very well. I shall defer to your words.”
“Then I shall see to the luggage. After all, today is an auspicious occasion—the Young Master’s celebration.”
My celebration? What? Why?
* * *
Following Yoo Ho’s guidance to the banquet hall, I found the Medical Assistants already dining.
The dishes were all beautifully presented with exquisite aromas, and performers danced and played instruments to enliven the mood.
‘Why does everyone look so uncomfortable?’
Despite such lavish delicacies spread before us, the atmosphere felt like sitting upon a bed of nails.
My Master sat at the place of honor.
He gazed down at me with those blue eyes.
His expression smiled, but his eyes did not.
“The guest of honor has arrived. Everyone, please welcome him.”
The Medical Assistants hastily applauded and cheered my name.
Something felt wrong.
At Baekrin Uiseon, the festivities and praise had been genuine and spontaneous.
But here at the Medical Guild, there was something—the scent of people groaning beneath a tyrant’s heel.
Even the other Clan Leaders, save Yoo Ho, seemed peculiar in their demeanor.
Sama-hye of the Regeneration Clan smiled brightly at me and spoke.
“Eun Gong! I’ve missed you! I heard you accomplished great deeds in the Sae territories—my congratulations!”
And simultaneously, her lips moved silently, revealing the truth.
-Eun Gong, run away.
What…?
Why would I need to flee from the Medical Guild, my own home?
‘M… Master?’
By this point, I could not fail to sense what was happening.
As I hesitated, the Herb Guild Master Manpagok and the Acupuncture Hall Master Sima Bing seized both my arms.
“Hehehehe, truly you are the Soggakju. My congratulations.”
“Indeed. There is no one quite like the Soggakju.”
This was… preventing an escaping prey from fleeing.
Those who had long served the Jegallim Family.
Their perception was flawless.
They were attempting to sell me to their lord.
Jegalling watched me and the Clan Leaders with a pleased smile.
“Everyone welcomes our disciple so warmly—I, Jegalling, cannot express how delighted this makes me. Now then, Hope. Come sit here.”
Saying so, he offered the seat beside him.
“M-Master?”
[Hope, come here.]
In that instant, my Master’s voice transmission pierced like a blade.
I realized the situation had gone terribly wrong, but there was nowhere to escape.
The clan leaders who had sold me out gripped me firmly from both sides.
‘Ah, Sama-hye is my only ally.’
Yet even Sama-hye was powerless before my Master.
Thus I proceeded forward warmly, flanked by the Herb Guild Master on my left and the Acupuncture Guild Master on my right.
My Master continued smiling.
“My disciple, the Magistrate and Administrator of Baekrin, Jin Cheon-hee, has been dispatched as an envoy to a distant foreign land by His Imperial Majesty’s command and has successfully completed his mission.”
As he spoke, the Herb Guild Master Manpagok said:
“Thanks to him, we have been able to import excellent medicinal materials from foreign lands. What great fortune this is!”
Waaaaaa!
Everyone cheered.
“I am overwhelmed by my Master’s praise.”
“Why so formal, Hope? Don’t be uncomfortable. This is your home, after all.”
-Run away. Eun Gong!
Sama-hye sent me a desperate signal with her eyes.
Run away? But where?
I could only roll my eyes.
My Master grasped my wrist firmly with his large hand and seated me beside him.
Then he served dumplings onto a plate for me.
“Come now, eat, Hope. I made these myself in anticipation of your arrival.”
The table before me was overflowing with delicacies—succulent dishes, meat fritters, fish fritters, dumplings, and fruits—leaving not a single empty space.
“Yes, yes. Master.”
As the saying goes, even a ghost who died eating looks healthy.
How I had missed the cuisine of Baekrin Medical Guild. And since my Master had prepared these with his own hands, I could not resist.
My Master’s culinary skills were truly exceptional.
I bit into a large shrimp dumpling.
‘Oh! The juices!’
Indeed, the dumplings were worthy of the Jegallim Family’s name.
With braised meat and fried fish besides, a veritable feast began in my mouth.
My cautious, hesitant eating soon turned into eager consumption.
My Master gazed at his disciple with satisfaction.
Food eaten in a foreign land tastes different, but it could never replace what one eats for a lifetime.
“But how did you prepare all this the moment I arrived…?”
“Hehe. I calculated when you would arrive and prepared this feast accordingly.”
“I see. Surely this isn’t all the food?”
“Yes. I made it all myself for my disciple.”
“Wow, they’re all truly excellent, Master!”
Jegalling gazed quietly at his disciple’s delighted face.
“How fortunate. So my memorial offering was quite delicious. That pleases me greatly.”
“Pardon?”
In that instant, my eyes widened. My Master observed me and sent a telepathic message.
[Today marks the forty-ninth day since you died, does it not? One must prepare it properly.]
Cough!
I spat out the tea I had been drinking.
“M-Master?”
[Your Master is quite compassionate, you see. I even prepared your memorial table with my own hands. So, was it delicious?]
Chills raced down my spine.
It was something that triggered humanity’s primal fear.
Overwhelmed by that profound dread, my thoughts froze.
How? How could Master? Why?
‘He knows everything, doesn’t he?’
Suddenly, I turned my gaze to examine my own table.
Red on the east, white on the west.
It was the memorial offering arrangement I had once prepared for Yoo Ho.
My Master must have observed it carefully and recreated it identically.
And then.
“Ah yes, one must have a final palate cleanser.”
My Master removed the cloth at the end of the table.
There, inscribed with my name, stood a wooden ancestral tablet made of paulownia.
“…M… M… M… Master?”
Murderous intent radiated outward. In this moment, no one could smile.
The Clan Elders who had sold me out wiped their foreheads with the smiles of sycophants.
The meaning was clear—their task was complete.
Jegalling responded to them with a glance.
Only Sama-hye kept her mouth agape in shock.
-Oh Eun Gong, dear heavens….
Jegalling asked.
“Do you like the tablet, Hope?”
After all, it’s best to ask the person in question.
An eerie chill invaded the space behind me.
Facing one’s own ancestral tablet—it triggered humanity’s deepest fear. Without thinking, I channeled my lightness technique and tried to flee.
Or rather, I attempted to.
In that instant.
Thwack!
My Master’s fan traced an afterimage and struck precisely at my acupoint.
The motion transcended Hwagyeong so completely that even eyes blessed with new enlightenment could not perceive it.
I collapsed with a thud, my consciousness growing hazy.
“My, my. I merely wished to persuade you to take better care of yourself, yet you seem terrified.”
Clang—
Startled, Jasi dropped his rice spoon.
The hall was so silent that the spoon’s clatter echoed repeatedly across the floor.
“….”
“So you are Jasi, who came from beyond the mountains. I hear my disciple owes you a considerable debt. I, Jegalling, am deeply grateful as well. My disciple’s guest is my guest, so please enjoy the feast.”
Yet despite his courteous words, his expression remained cold as that of an emotionless doll.
Jegalling hoisted my collapsed form onto his shoulder.
“This master wishes to spend time with my disciple and resolve the longing of our reunion, so let us depart first.”
With that, he strode out of the hall with heavy footsteps.
Creak—
The door closed.
Watching his departure, the Herb Guild Master Manpagok released a sigh of relief.
“Finally, he’s gone. He’s gone.”
As if waiting for this moment, Joo Dan-ha, the Chuuna Clan Leader, shook a wine bottle.
“Now that the Patriarch and the Soggakju have left, let us relax and drink freely.”
“Cheers!”

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