The Physician of Traditional Medicine Returns from Murim

After hearing the details, it turned out to be nothing major.

The InBody machine was quickly fixed by the service technician who came, and Jin Min-jung had left early with permission because her son was sick. Hwang Sang-hoon had okayed it and marked it on the work schedule, asking only that it be reflected when calculating her salary.

“You did well. What about the insurance company?”

“I’m not sure exactly. It seemed like someone came to verify if a treatment was for an injury. They brought copies of IDs, some kind of power of attorney, and all the documents that internet searches said were necessary, so I issued the initial consultation record.”

“Ah, I see.”

It was their first visit to our clinic, but I’d heard it happens occasionally.

Apparently, there’s a type of insurance that only covers treatment costs for injuries? They seem to go around checking if claims for illness treatments are fraudulent.

For medical institutions, we just need to record and issue what we’re told, so as long as they brought the proper documents, it’s not our concern.

“Did you keep all the documents they brought?”

“Yes. I put them on your desk for now.”

“That’s perfect! You handled it well! If the patient says anything, I’ll deal with it. From now on, feel free to call me anytime if something comes up, even on holidays!”

“I will. Thanks.”

What’s there to thank? I’m the one who should be grateful.

It was entirely thanks to him that I could forget about work on my days off.

They say the first stage of business is a company that can’t function without the CEO, the next is a company that runs even without the CEO, and the final stage is a company that runs better without the CEO.

Of course, I still need to work hard on clinic days, but at this rate, it won’t be long before Hwang Sang-hoon grows further, we hire another vice-director, and I just collect the profits.

“If there are any patients you’re not sure how to treat, don’t struggle alone, make sure to ask!”

“Okay, then…”

“Oh? Did an unusual patient come in?”

“No. It was just a rhinitis patient, but we’re out of medicine. It’s not prepared yet, but could you check if I wrote the prescription correctly?”

“Of course!”

Of course, I need to continue paying attention to his growth so that Hwang Sang-hoon doesn’t become independent too quickly.

I smiled contentedly as I planned to utilize him 200%.

◆◇◆◇◆

The day flew by in an instant.

Since I reduced my schedule to 4 days a week, patients who insisted on seeing me had to come on specific dates, and the number of patients I saw in a day increased even more.

Amid the whirlwind of treatments, running around, and meeting new people for consultations, even the night clinic closing time arrived quickly.

“Great work, everyone!”

“Wow, Doctor, it’s a record today! A real three-digit number!”

“This is all thanks to the hard work of our new Director Hwang and the staff!”

“You’re giving us incentives for patient returns, right?”

“Of course, as per the contract~”

Seo In-ae beamed, clearly pleased.

“Ugh, I’m really exhausted. If it weren’t for PT, I would’ve collapsed long ago!”

“Thank you, Doctor~”

Although Gong Na-ri and Seol Yu-hee were very tired, seeing them still going to their scheduled PT sessions afterward showed they had some energy left. It was indeed a good decision to proactively make them exercise before physical exhaustion became a problem.

“This is embarrassing. You saw over 70 patients…”

Today’s patient count was 74 for me and 28 for Hwang Sang-hoon. From his perspective, seeing less than half the number of patients I did seemed to bother him, but this wasn’t unusual at all.

Isn’t the reason for having a vice-director that I have more patients than the average practicing physician? He’s only been here a few months; if Hwang Sang-hoon could do as much as me already, he should open his own practice immediately.

“It takes time to build up. I saw new patients for months before you came, so I have a steady stream of regulars from that time. Don’t worry, you’ll gradually increase your numbers.”

In truth, he was already doing more than his fair share, but I offered this carrot, hoping he would continue to grow.

“I’ll do my best.”

Hwang Sang-hoon left for his nearby officetel, and the three employees went for their PT sessions.

Ah, Jin Min-jung isn’t here at closing time. She was contracted for part-time 10 to 4 from the start.

Anyway, I too headed home to my cozy studio apartment.

Once home, I showered and changed clothes.

…The next step, of course, was sitting in front of the computer I had set up.

“Oh, three raids cleared in just one day?”

It seemed my strategy guide had been a great help, as news came that the 4th, 5th, and 6th-ranked raid groups had cleared the raid.

[We cleared it thanks to this guide ㅠㅠㅠ Thank you so much ㅠㅠㅠㅠ God Divine ㅠㅠ!!]

[There really was a gimmick??? We couldn’t figure it out even after rewatching the first clear video multiple times?!]

└ [It was obvious once we went in, why did those Murim Alliance bastards say there was no gimmick?]

[Divine, can I ask one thing? With our guild’s tank and healer specs like this, do you think we can clear it?]

Checking the post, there was a flood of grateful comments from people who cleared it using my guide.

Ah, how satisfying!

After replying to each question scattered throughout, I logged into the game.

“Where is everyone?”

“The early birds went into the raid. They said they wanted to see if they could clear it without the raid leader.”

“I see~”

It would be nice if they could clear it without me.

While the 1st and 2nd-ranked raid groups run raids 7 days a week, I can only do daily quests on nights when I have clinic hours. Our raid members joined knowing this, but everyone’s busy times are bound to differ.

Since I take it easy 4 days a week, I can’t be a top-tier ranker, but…

“It’s okay~ I have money instead of time~!”

I was the first to obtain the Dragon Blood Plum Blossom Sword! Maybe there’s more equipment I could swap for?

Thinking this, I accessed the auction house.

I had already matched all the equipment that could be randomly dropped or bought with money, but since the game hadn’t been open for long, there was a shortage of items.

Even with excess money, you need good timing to buy equipment from the auction house.

But as always, there was no higher-tier equipment than what I was using in the Huashan section.

And the moment I clicked on “All”…

[High Monk’s Robe]

A legendary Shaolin equipment piece was right there.

“Gasp, someone must have got a mythic from this raid and is selling this?”

As the game had just opened and inflation was starting, legendary grade was the highest tier before the raid update. In other words, wearing this while raiding was currently the best spec possible.

Probably all the Shaolin monks in the 1st and 2nd-ranked raid groups, as well as those in the 4th, 5th, and 6th that cleared today, were wearing this.

I immediately thought of gifting this to our main tank and was about to bid… but I was short on gold coins? I bought gold with cash to make the purchase.

In our raid group, the top 2 in skill are me and Kyu Kyu, the top 2 in playtime and effort are Kyu Kyu and Blue Wind Young Master, and the top 2 in spending are Blue Wind Young Master and me.

Blue Wind Young Master is skilled enough to join raid members, and I play quite diligently on my days off.

But Kyu Kyu… our main tank is completely free-to-play.

“I thought Shaolin wouldn’t cost money since they fight with their fists…”

What nonsense. Among the orthodox sects, those monks are the richest.

Even from a gaming perspective, tanks are a class that requires excessive spending.

“Ah~ Too bad. If our DPS was just a bit higher, we might have cleared it!”

“I guess we can’t do it without our raid leader?”

“I’m sorry. If my defense was higher, Blue Wind could have lasted longer…”

“No! Our maknae did well! Don’t be discouraged, Kyu Kyu!”

Just then, the raid members who had gone to try without me returned.

“Ah, Kyu Kyu! I have something for you!”

Having just heard Kyu Kyu’s voice, I called out to him immediately.

“Kyu Kyu?”

“Huh? He was just here…”

“Did he log off right after the raid?”

“Our Kyu Kyu wouldn’t do that!”

Since the characters had returned to the guild building, Blue Wind Young Master and I tried interacting with Kyu Kyu’s character.

“Ah… I’m back.”

But he only reappeared after 5 minutes.

“What happened? Emergency poop?”

“Haha… Suddenly my stomach felt really sour and uncomfortable. I went to the bathroom to throw up. What’s up? Are we going to raid again with the raid leader?”

“No, we’re taking it easy today after pushing so hard yesterday. I called because there’s a High Monk’s Robe in the auction house. More importantly, are you okay? You were like this yesterday too, do you have gastritis?”

“Yeah. It happens sometimes.”

Kyu Kyu’s voice sounded quite unwell.

I asked him worriedly.

“If you leave it untreated when it’s bad once, it’ll keep happening. You need to get treatment. Where do you live? If it’s nearby, I could take a look.”

“I live in the countryside. It’s not just a sudden upset stomach… I’ve been weak since childhood. I guess it’s gotten worse lately from eating ramen every day while gaming.”

“How can you eat ramen when your stomach is bad?”

When I scolded him angrily, Kyu Kyu made his character do a head-scratching motion.

“Hehe, I’ll eat porridge tomorrow. But there’s no High Monk’s Robe in the auction house.”

While we were talking, Kyu Kyu had apparently been searching the auction house himself.

No, of course I already bought it! Did you think I’d contact you to bid on it yourself when I clearly know you don’t have money?

“I already won the bid to give it to you!”

I immediately initiated a trade with him.

“What? You don’t have to go this far! It must have been expensive…”

“It’s fine! Just take it! I have a lot of money! Plus, you need to hard carry the raid when I’m not there! I’m giving this for our guild!!”

“That’s right! Just accept it! The raid leader really is loaded! He’s a Korean medicine doctor! Take it! Take it!”

“Ooooh~! How cool!”

With even the raid members joining in, Kyu Kyu reluctantly accepted the trade.

“Wow, my defense has increased so much!”

Kyu Kyu was overjoyed.

“Yes! Now we can run raids even on days when the raid leader isn’t here!”

Blue Wind Young Master, who had said it wasn’t Kyu Kyu’s fault, now honestly expressed his joy once the equipment was acquired.

“Still, let’s go together today. Since I’m here.”

Two people left to get dinner, and we formed a party with replacement members.

Was the official term “subjugation team”? Skip-addicts don’t know such things. A raid is a raid, and a party is a party.

Clang! Clash!

Boom!

Feeling slightly apologetic towards Heavenly Demon, we wiped out the remnants of the demonic cult.

Not only Kyu Kyu’s armor, but my sword was also equipped with mythic grade, so the damage was substantial.

Until now, I had only played as a safety-first ranged DPS, but being forced into melee DPS, I was starting to see the fun in it.

As we had become familiar with the gimmicks and our specs were up to par, we reached the boss monster on our first try.

The bishop who fell in love with the North Sea Ice Palace Lord? Something like that, I think.

“Kyu Kyu! Activate Prajna Heart Sutra!”

Blue Wind Young Master shouted.

“Kyu Kyu?!”

But Kyu Kyu’s character, who needed to apply the debuff at the right timing, didn’t move an inch.

“What’s going on, did he lag?”

“I’ll apply the buff for now! Blue Wind and Doe, focus on DPS!”

“Got it!”

Boom!

We fought hard against the bishop even with the Shaolin monk frozen in place.

But without all the buffs and debuffs he was supposed to apply, it wasn’t enough.

Our damage barely scratched the boss, and the bishop’s demonic techniques were too strong.

‘Damn it, balance!’

They made Shaolin too strong! Those guys are strong to begin with, but… the presence or absence of the Prajna Heart Sutra debuff made too big a difference.

Who would raise a character that’s bald by default if the specs weren’t good, right?

In the end, the party was wiped out.

“Ugh.”

“So close. We almost had it.”

“Let’s retry, we’ll get it soon.”

“Is Kyu Kyu’s computer still not working? You said you live in the countryside, did you have a power outage? Should we call?”

Blue Wind Young Master, who knew Kyu Kyu’s contact information, said he’d try calling.

About 10 minutes later, Kyu Kyu’s motionless character made an apology emote.

“I’m really sorry. My stomach suddenly hurt so much… I think it was a gastric spasm.”

“Shouldn’t we call 911? What if your appendix burst?”

Despite Blue Wind Young Master’s reasonable suspicion, Kyu Kyu firmly denied it.

“No, no. This happens occasionally.”

“That’s not normal. Are you having recurring gastric spasms? You’re still young, how can you be like this already!”

“Um… I don’t have money to go to the hospital. There’s no emergency room nearby in the countryside.”

Blue Wind Young Master and I urged him to go to the hospital right away, but Kyu Kyu seemed to have no intention of listening.

“Stop eating only ramen every day.”

“I don’t have money, and I don’t really feel like eating anything in particular.”

Wait, didn’t he say he was a college student? A man in his early 20s should be eating five servings of pork belly at a time!

“Why do you have no appetite?”

“Divine, make him some herbal medicine~”

“It’s okay. I’m healthy.”

“I was actually thinking of doing that. Kyu Kyu, you haven’t been losing weight or anything, right?”

“Ah… Now that you mention it, I have lost some weight recently.”

“How much?”

“About 8 or 9 kilos?”

I was planning to nag him a bit about changing his eating habits, do a simple consultation, and send him some medicine if needed.

But Kyu Kyu’s words were like a bolt from the blue.

“…Over how many months?”

“Let’s see. 5 months? I’m not sure. I just noticed it one day.”

Weight loss was a clear red flag.

It needed to be confirmed through a medical examination.

“Kyu Kyu, go to the hospital tomorrow and get an endoscopy. This might not just be gastric spasms or gastritis.”

“Come on… It’s always been like this…”

“It could be cancer! Go right away!”