I Became the Oriental Doctor for Divine Beasts - Chapter 18

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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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The Oriental Medicine Doctor of Divine Beasts
#18
“I keep hearing Ra Bit call you Director, and it made me feel like you’re like an older sister to me too.”
Yun Sang’s flushed face drooped as he spoke, his chin tucking down to hide it. Even his brown skin couldn’t mask the crimson spreading across his features.
I burst out laughing at the sight.
“If you want to, you’re welcome to call me that.”
“……Really?!”
“Of course. Actually, while we’re at it, why don’t I drop the formality too? Yun Sang?”
At that, Ma Yun Sang’s eyes went wide and his words stumbled.
“I—I’m fine with it…….”
At his reaction, Jeong Ra Bit stopped her sniffling and cast a curious glance his way.
“My goodness, are you actually embarrassed, Yun Sang?”
“……!”
Yun Sang’s mouth opened and closed soundlessly. His face burned even deeper red.
Even his ears flushed crimson—looking flustered and shy like a timid younger brother, he was almost endearing.
‘Hmm?’
I felt a gaze on me then and turned my head.
Sure enough, Baek Eun Ho stood in the gap of the director’s office door, arms crossed.
Leaning against the wall, his eyes had gone cold and distant.
His expression said it all: “Playing around, I see.”
“Doctor. Let’s finish the clinic and head back to the residence.”
His low, dry voice cut through the air.
Ra Bit quickly latched onto my arm in protest.
“I want to spend time with Yeon Hui today! Sister went through something so serious—you must have been terrified.”
“I’d also like to spend time with you, Director—I mean, Yeon Hui.”
Yun Sang joined in with unexpected courage.
A sharp chill rippled through the air.
Eun Ho gave them a cold glare without a word.
Under that frigid pressure, the two Divine Beasts flinched but amazingly held their ground, each gripping one of my arms.
‘How adorable.’
Watching them, I felt my own tension melt away and I couldn’t help but smile.
I sided with my juniors.
“Alright, let’s stay at Baek Myo Dang tonight—we’ll have dinner and play for a bit. I’ll make something delicious for you.”
“What did you just say?”
Eun Ho’s brow furrowed.
I sparkled my eyes at him playfully.
“I’ve got some really good Yi Gang Ju saved for a special occasion! Ra Bit, Yun Sang—are you okay with alcohol?”
Rabbit ears perked up. Ra Bit clasped her hands together.
“Alcohol……! Since there’s no activity tomorrow, a little would be fine!”
“My tolerance is quite high—no matter how much I drink, it won’t affect my work.”
Yun Sang chimed in with obvious interest.
Eun Ho let out an incredulous snort.
“You’re really doing this? In times like these?”
“Come on, drink with us too. Baek Myo Dang’s protected by a Barrier anyway, isn’t it?”
I countered with a shrug.
Eun Ho released a deep sigh, looked us over in turn, then finally raised his hand in surrender.
“Fine……. But just a little.”
“Yes!”
Ra Bit and Yun Sang cheered in unison.
I lifted Alfred onto my lap, and for a moment I smiled at the warmth of his body.
Just for tonight, I wanted to let my guard down and laugh.
* * *
At much the same time, deep beneath the Stone Gate in an Underground Chamber.
A low, resonant hum filled the space.
Above the black altar, the great Crystal still emitted that strange, throbbing pulse.
But the swirling patterns on its surface had grown noticeably dimmer than before.
A crack of instability shot through it.
As the Crystal trembled uneasily, the Fallen Ones gathered around it exchanged tense looks.
“Jung Ik. Failed again.”
From a high chair overlooking the chamber,
the figure in the half-mask spoke coldly, and the air froze in an instant.
The shoulders of the man called Jung Ik stiffened. Then he spoke as if making excuses.
“My apologies, Leader. I didn’t anticipate that woman could reflect Dark Magic……. Next time, I will surely bring her.”
The Leader’s brow furrowed beneath the mask.
He had expended vast reserves of Spiritual Energy accumulated in the Crystal for this strike.
And yet, despite one of the Three Wings—the executive enforcers—moving directly, they had failed to capture the Purifier.
‘Perhaps I underestimated her.’
It was a painful miscalculation.
He had no choice but to accept that the plan needed to be reworked before moving again.
“What of the Purifier’s whereabouts?”
He asked in a low voice, and Jung Ik, reading his mood, bowed his head.
“……She only lost consciousness briefly—she appears to be unharmed. Moreover, the Barrier around Baek Myo Dang has grown substantially stronger. Even moderate Dark Magic bounces back without effect.”
“Hmm!”
The Leader’s throat rumbled with displeasure as he gripped his temple.
‘Still the same resilience.’
That stubborn, dogged temperament—that infuriating, unyielding resolve.
She was unmistakably that woman’s daughter.
He clicked his tongue low and opened his mouth.
His voice as he gave the command settled cold as a blade.
“Jung Ik, having failed successive operations, is hereby removed from active duty. Furthermore, our reserves of Spiritual Energy have been severely depleted. Whether you hunt Divine Beasts or use humans as sacrifice, it matters not—Right Wing, replenish the Crystal by any means necessary. And Left Wing…….”
The Leader slowly clenched his fist, the bones of his knuckles standing out white with tension.
“Find a way to capture the Purifier alive. Spread the will of the ‘Divine’ and recruit her to our cause if possible. If conversion is impossible……. Then eliminate her.”
“Yes, Leader!”
The Fallen Ones in dark garments bowed their heads in unison.
Gazing down upon them, the Leader declared in a low, steady voice.
“Do not forget. We are the true Purifiers, cleansing this rotten world according to the Divine’s will. For the new order!”
“For the new order!”
As the Crystal above the altar still pulsed with unstable rhythm,
their voices echoed back in grim unison, filling the dark chamber.
* * *
Shortly after.
The courtyard of Baek Myo Dang filled with the soft aroma of vegetable hotpot steaming off the stove.
Summer squash and fragrant crown daisy, Chinese chives, and plump shiitake mushrooms—all in abundance—made the broth rich yet refreshing.
Steam curled up from the pot, warming even the cool summer night air around us.
“Here, everyone take a glass!”
Yeon Hui poured alcohol for those seated on the wooden platform.
The Yi Gang Ju she brought filled each small glass with silvery ripples.
“Wow, Yeon Hui! Your cooking is incredible!”
Jeong Ra Bit’s eyes sparkled as she tasted the hotpot, covering her mouth in delight.
Ma Yun Sang nodded in agreement.
“Since the vegetables are grown fresh in the back garden, they taste especially crisp. I’ve never had hotpot this delicious before.”
“Is that so? I’m glad.”
Yeon Hui smiled sheepishly, scratching her cheek.
Ra Bit opened her eyes wide and tilted her head.
“So being a Purifier helps you grow plants well?”
“Ah, so that’s why.”
Yeon Hui set down her glass, her gaze growing distant as if searching her memory.
“Since I was little, anything I raised grew incredibly well—it was almost a problem. In elementary school I kept guppies for a summer project, and they bred so explosively I had to distribute them to all my classmates. Plants were the same way, so whenever the school had us work the garden beds, I always ended up being called over.”
“So you were special from childhood, it seems.”
Yun Sang, who had been listening intently with his arms crossed, nodded solemnly.
Yeon Hui glanced toward the unusually quiet Baek Eun Ho.
“Does it suit your taste?”
“Well, it’s not bad. You picked decent alcohol too.”
Eun Ho sipped the Yi Gang Ju somewhat coolly.
The truth was, the broth’s flavor had surprised him greatly, but he hid it.
Yeon Hui smiled softly and turned her glass.
“It’s from Sun Mi, who runs a cafe at the foot of Bukhansan. She was very close with my mother. I’d been saving it for a special day, and today felt right to finally open it.”
The four raised their glasses and drank slowly.
Beside them, Alfred ate the special meal Yeon Hui had prepared and purred contentedly.
The early summer night air was cool, and small lights scattered across the courtyard like fireflies.
It was when the night had grown quite deep.
“Everyone~ Would you like to see something fun?”
Yeon Hui, her cheeks flushed from the alcohol warming her blood, suddenly spoke up. Her eyes had grown slightly glazed, her tongue a touch slurred.
Ra Bit’s eyes went wide and round.
“Hmm?”
“Ra Bit, pick two numbers between one and ten.”
“Uh……? Then seven and three?”
“Seven and three. Perfect! Duke of Baekjak!”
Yeon Hui proclaimed triumphantly.
“Pardon??”
The other three looked at her in bewildered unison.
Yeon Hui jumped to her feet with a gesture.
“Come on, everyone follow me!”
And off she went, swaying slightly, into Baek Myo Dang.
“……?”
With no choice, they all followed behind.
Yeon Hui straightened her shoulders and confidently opened a door somewhere within the Oriental Medicine clinic.

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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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