Surviving as a Rogue Hospital Director - Chapter 93

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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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Episode 93.
Two hours had passed since Eun Seo-young’s surgery ended.
Permission came through to sip small amounts of water, and she was told she’d have a meal in the evening.
“Mom, water.”
Like a small child, Eun Seo-young whined for water. A rubber straw made for patients bent into her mouth as she lay half-reclined.
Gulp, gulp—
Eun Seo-young squeezed her eyes shut and swallowed the water.
‘Did water always taste like this? Ah, I feel like I’m going to live.’
While she was lost in the moment, the water level in the pitcher dropped at a rapid pace.
“Seo-young, that’s enough. Just a little more.”
“No, just a bit more, please.”
When Seo-young couldn’t restrain herself, her mother pulled the straw from her mouth. She’d been told to drink only enough to moisten her lips, but even knowing this, she couldn’t seem to stop.
“Not yet. I’ll give you some later.”
Watching the pitcher move away, Seo-young smacked her lips. No Michelin-starred restaurant could compare to that water.
Abandoned back on the bed, Seo-young sighed. When she drew a deep breath and exhaled, her ribs spread and the surgical site throbbed with pain.
A sharp intake of breath.
She didn’t dare touch it for fear it would hurt, but something was padded under her right armpit and along her flank, making that area feel thick and clumsy.
They’d said they’d drill several holes and go all the way down to the spine, so maybe that’s why it hurts like this.
Seo-young pressed the button on a switch hanging nearby at hand-level. With a soft whirring sound, the painkiller flowed in.
After surgery, everything felt inconvenient, painful, and difficult, but in one hand she had a call bell to summon the nurse.
In the other hand, she had a painkiller. There was nothing to fear.
All she had to do was endure the fatigue and boredom.
“Mom, how long do I have to stay awake?”
“Let’s see… they said six hours, so around five o’clock?”
A groan of disappointment.
‘Ugh, this is insane.’
She’d have to lie flat in bed for four more hours. Seo-young started to sigh but caught herself, remembering her ribs would hurt.
“Do you want to watch some TV?”
“No, I think I’ll get sleepy.”
“We can chat for a while. The director said that would be good for you too.”
Seo-young didn’t usually have long conversations with her mother, but right now there was nothing else to do anyway.
“What did you talk about with the director?”
“He said the hardest part comes right after surgery. He said it’s good to have a guardian around. I’m glad I came, really.”
She brushed Eun Seo-young’s bangs aside and gently stroked her face.
Ever since becoming an adult, her daughter had thrown herself into Eunseong Group affairs and insisted she could handle everything herself.
Words of encouragement didn’t seem to land with her ambitious daughter. So she’d chosen to cheer her on from a distance, watching over her.
‘My daughter, you’ve been having such a hard time, haven’t you?’
She loved when Seo-young acted spoiled like this. Even though her daughter was grown, in her eyes she still looked like a baby just learning to walk.
‘If the director hadn’t called, I don’t know what I would’ve done.’
Really, it was good that she’d come. No amount of saying it would be enough.
Her daughter had told her not to interfere and to let her handle even the surgery, and she’d agreed. But this was a moment when that approach had to be set aside.
“The director seemed quite worried about Seo-young.”
“Of course he’d be worried. The Eunseong owner’s daughter is admitted. How could he not pay attention?”
And at that moment, the door to Eun Seo-young’s private room opened.
A soft slide—
Talk of the devil: it was the Hospital Director they’d just been discussing.
* * *
Day talk is heard by the birds, night talk is heard by the rats,
and hospital talk is heard by the nurses.
After Seo-young’s mother arrived at the Korean University Hospital lobby,
news of her spread quickly to Beom-jun.
“I’m the guardian of Eun Seo-young. Which room is she in?”
Eun Seo-young’s mother had asked the information desk a very simple question.
“Hello, you’ll want to head to Ward 77. Go this way, take the elevator, and it’s the seventh floor!”
“Ah, yes. Thank you.”
But the moment she turned away, the desk clerk radioed in the VIP’s movements.
“Eun Seo-young’s guardian has arrived. Looks like her mother. Heading to Ward 77 now.”
The assigned nurse for Eun Seo-young informed Young-ran, the head nurse of Ward 77.
“Young-ran, Eun Seo-young’s guardian has arrived.”
“What? Already? Didn’t they say they’d call later?”
“They didn’t answer, so we were planning to try again, but they’re in the lobby now.”
“Okay, got it.”
Young-ran seemed pleased at the chance to contact the Hospital Director. With a VIP admitted, good opportunities were falling into her lap without her even trying.
“Director, do you have a moment? Eun Seo-young’s guardian has arrived at the hospital. Would you like to come by, even for a moment? Oh, it’s the patient’s mother. The wife of the Eunseong Group chairman.”
Young-ran called with the expectation of praise. Getting the director to meet the VIP when she arrived showed good sense, or so she thought.
But Beom-jun’s response was beyond her expectations.
“Ah, wonderful timing. I actually called her here myself.”
“The director called her?”
‘But the assigned nurse said she didn’t answer when they called…?’
As she was puzzling over this, Beom-jun continued.
“We spoke four days ago. VIP management, you understand.”
‘My goodness, so he’s been looking after not just the patient but the guardian too.’
Young-ran was flustered to learn the director had been managing the patient himself. Usually that was the head nurse’s responsibility.
“Oh my, I should have done that. I’m sorry.”
“No, it’s fine. I had something I wanted to discuss with her anyway. If it was needed, I would have asked you.”
Beom-jun brushed aside Young-ran’s embarrassment smoothly, and then immediately asked about Eun Seo-young’s condition.
“Oh, yes!”
“How is Eun Seo-young doing?”
She didn’t even have time to fully express her gratitude to Beom-jun, who was always pressed for time.
“Her condition is fine. Nothing special was reported from the recovery room; she went through the routine as planned. She started on sips of water a few minutes ago. From five o’clock, we’ll lift the nothing-by-mouth order and she’ll have a meal.”
“Good, sounds fine. I can come by then. See you soon.”
“Yes, understood.”
The moment she spoke, the call disconnected. He must have hung up without listening further.
‘The director really is the busiest one. Handling my work too. What am I doing right now? I shouldn’t just sit idle.’
Young-ran, who’d been lounging until a moment ago, called together the Ward 77 nurses.
“How are the other Eunseong VIPs doing besides Eun Seo-young? Let me know if there’s anything unusual.”
Young-ran resolved that she’d make sure the Eunseong VIPs received proper care.
* * *
A soft slide—
“Eun Seo-young, did your surgery go well?”
The one who opened the door to Eun Seo-young’s room was none other than Beom-jun. Behind him came Im Sung-hyuk, her attending physician.
“We’ll do the dressing on the surgical site tomorrow. For now, it’s best not to touch it if possible.”
Im Sung-hyuk checked Eun Seo-young’s surgical wound first. He was making sure there was no abnormal swelling or discharge from the surgical site.
“So this is the attending physician, and this is the Hospital Director?”
Eun Seo-young’s mother gestured to Im Sung-hyuk and Beom-jun as she spoke.
“Yes, that’s correct. We’ve only spoken by phone until now. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
While Im Sung-hyuk examined the surgical site, Beom-jun addressed Eun Seo-young’s mother.
“If you hadn’t called, I might not have come to visit. Thank you for that.”
She expressed her gratitude to Beom-jun first.
“And thank you too, Professor, for treating our Seo-young so well. The surgery went smoothly, didn’t it?”
“The surgery itself went well, but we’ll need to observe her progress further before I can say anything definitive.”
To her, Im Sung-hyuk conveyed the facts.
“Hmm, that makes me feel even more confident, hearing you say it that way. I’m sure you’ll take good care of her.”
With an air of refinement, she made a small humming sound. The fact that Im Sung-hyuk didn’t gloss things over seemed to give her more faith in him.
This is Im Sung-hyuk’s style. If it is, it is; if it isn’t, it isn’t.
That’s also why Beom-jun enjoyed watching Doctor X.
Im Sung-hyuk didn’t hedge with vague pleasantries to create favorable circumstances for himself. He preferred to focus on treatment instead.
The readers loved this about him too. Beom-jun felt the same way.
“What I mean is, it’s still too early to make a definitive statement….”
But sometimes Im Sung-hyuk’s mouth ran away with him. Ugh, looks like today was one of those days.
He should’ve just accepted the thanks and left it at that, but Im Sung-hyuk had to correct her words.
‘Just say okay and move on, will you? Do you want to argue with the guardian?’
Beom-jun inwardly groaned and activated his Control skill on Im Sung-hyuk.
[You have activated Control/Dominance on Im Sung-hyuk.]
[Adjusted downward to Level 2 to match the current situation.]
[Level 2: Reluctantly goes along with it.]
“Yes, I’ll do my best. I hope the patient recovers well.”
Im Sung-hyuk flinched as if struck by electricity, then delivered his line like an actor.
“You discovered Seo-young’s condition, and even identified that it was a family hereditary illness. You’re a lifesaver to us.”
‘A lifesaver?’
Beom-jun reacted to the word “lifesaver.”
“To be precise, the diagnosis of Eun Seo-young was actually made by the director.”
And still running his mouth, Im Sung-hyuk brought up Beom-jun’s role.
“If the director hadn’t suggested Long QT Syndrome as the suspected condition, we wouldn’t have been able to conduct the detailed tests.”
Beom-jun waved his hand, not stopping Im Sung-hyuk. He had a hunch that the quest completion was drawing near, now that the word “lifesaver” had been mentioned.
‘Good, a little more! Come on, a little more!’
As Beom-jun thought this, the Control skill activated.
[You have activated Control/Dominance on Im Sung-hyuk.]
[Level 5: Willingly takes the initiative.]
Im Sung-hyuk willingly rattled off what Beom-jun had accomplished.
“Discovering that it was hereditary was actually a consequence of that. Long QT Syndrome itself is hereditary, so screening the family is not unusual. Without the director, it would have been difficult.”
“Ah, is that so?”
The taciturn Im Sung-hyuk was now lavishing praise on Beom-jun, and the woman who suddenly found herself being addressed felt slightly displeased. She’d always held the upper hand in any relationship throughout her life. Im Sung-hyuk simply wasn’t sensitive to such things.
Noting her expression, Beom-jun smoothly passed the ball back to Eunseong.
“Ha, the disease name just came to mind for some reason. Eunseong’s fortune must be good.”
‘Hopefully that’s enough to smooth things over.’
He hadn’t considered that Im Sung-hyuk, like the patient Eun Seo-young, might be running low on energy after the surgery.
“The surgery went well, so that’s what matters. What else would you need?”
As Beom-jun spoke to the heart of what mattered most from a patient’s perspective—the surgical outcome—Eun Seo-young’s mother agreed, nodding slightly.
Then Eun Seo-young, who had been quiet until now, spoke up.
“Then the Hospital Director is our lifesaver.”
Eun Seo-young seemed to have noticed Beom-jun’s effort to ease the tension. She had grown fond of him before and after the surgery, and she slightly altered her mother’s words.
And then the long-awaited status window appeared.
[You have completed the Hidden Quest.]
[Hidden Quest: Build Defense Position]
[You have obtained the Eunseong Group Chairman’s Direct Number as a reward.]

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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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