Chapter 172: Getting Heated (5)

[Yes.]

‘If you keep irritating me, I will rip you out of my head one more time?’

[Threatening when you can’t do it.] Baruda quickly continued, scratching Suhyuk’s nerves until the end. Despite his irritation, there seemed to be some anxiety about what might happen if Suhyuk removed him. As he accumulated various data, he fully realized that the current state of Suhyuk’s body could only be described as miraculous due to its rarity.

[The heart rate is not increasing compared to the fever… Diseases causing relative bradycardia include Legionnaires disease, yellow fever, Q fever, psittacosis, typhoid fever, and dengue fever.]

‘Hmm…’

There were infections causing relative bradycardia, which meant the situation was better than before.

Despite this information, Suhyuk’s expression remained grim.

‘The patient is a public servant?’

[Yes.]

‘He hasn’t traveled abroad either.’

[Correct.]

‘Then is there any possibility he could have contracted one of these diseases you listed?’

[I believe it is as unlikely as finding hair on a mouse.]

‘Do you really need to say…?’

Although annoyed, Suhyuk couldn’t help but agree that ‘as unlikely as finding hair on a mouse’ was quite fitting. The chances were indeed extremely slim. Moreover, relative adrenal insufficiency isn’t solely caused by infectious diseases.

‘In lymphoma cases… can relative adrenal insufficiency occur?’

[Yes, it can. Apart from infections, other non-infectious causes include drug-induced fever or central nervous system disorders. However, currently, the most likely cause appears to be lymphoma.]

‘Damn it.’

Suhyuk shook his head and opened his eyes.

Despite this, Shin Hyun-tae didn’t immediately realize Suhyuk’s approach. Firstly, his back was turned towards them, and secondly, Suhyuk hadn’t finished reviewing all the CT scans yet.

Suhyuk quietly scrolled down through the images without any comments.

“Hmm…”

Ji-sang couldn’t stand it anymore and moved to intervene, but Shin Hyun-tae stopped him.

“Shh. Don’t interrupt Soohyuk while he is diagnosing.”

“B…but…”

Ji-sang wondered why anyone would hold their breath even when a resident, not a professor, was making the diagnosis.

‘Oh my… They say he’s the hidden son of the director, but now even the manager is deferring to him.’

It wasn’t about deference; Manager Shin genuinely admired Suhyuk. However, Ji-sang, unaware of their past interactions, could only imagine the worst.

“Ah.” The subject of these thoughts, Suhyuk himself, interrupted Jisang’s musings.

Initially, Suhyuk mindlessly scrolled through the data but suddenly paused and raised his eyebrows.

[The ileocecal valve seems thickened?]

‘This… It suggests some form of intestinal inflammation, right?’

[Indeed. Hmm… That’s strange. Based on the patient’s history, there shouldn’t be any indication for this condition, should there?]

‘No… No. History taking… We didn’t conduct a thorough interview. We only relied on what was written in Ji-sang’s notes.’

[Hmm… Upon reflection, you’re correct.] Baruda nodded after reviewing the accumulated data. While they had revisited certain aspects, they hadn’t specifically inquired about the patient’s activities or lifestyle. They merely referenced what Ji-sang had documented. But could they truly trust Ji-sang’s observations?

I thought it looked fine after watching the video earlier.

[A resident of your level could have done this.]

But I shouldn’t trust him blindly, right?

[That is correct.]

According to Baruda’s evaluation, Lee Hyunjong was the only person at this hospital whom Soohyuk should consider superior to himself. If Suhyuk expanded his trust beyond Hyunjong, there would be more people he could rely on, but none met Ji-sang’s standard.

Therefore, redoing the interview isn’t a mistake.

[I agree. I request that you re-interview Patient Kim Hyunju.]

Okay.

Having reached a decision, Suhyuk abruptly stood up. Shin Hyun-tae, standing behind him, nearly broke his nose due to Suhyuk’s sudden movement without any warning.

“Uh.”

“It’s okay, it’s okay. I don’t know where you’re going, but let’s follow him.”

Instead of getting angry, Shin Hyun-tae quietly followed Suhyuk as he strode away.

At this point, both Jisang and the fellow couldn’t help their dissatisfaction. If anything, the fellow was more frustrated.

‘I reviewed her chart…but I am still unsure.’

After reviewing the CT scan, he felt even more confused. The test results were ambiguous. Honestly, they didn’t indicate any specific illness yet. There was only one certainty: the patient’s condition was progressively worsening.

‘If only the professor could take over, quickly diagnose, and start treatment… Otherwise…’

Meanwhile, Chilseong Hospital had consistently advanced by adopting cutting-edge medical technologies like HIFU (High Intensity Focused Ultrasound). Ashin Hospital was rapidly expanding its beds with financial support from Ashin Group and aiming to become the largest hospital in Asia.

If this continued, Taehwa could be relegated to being known as ‘just another decent hospital that used to be number one.’

It’s all because those professors were infatuated with some nobody.

When Shin Hyun-tae returned from his military service, he found out that Lee Hyunjong, previously just another fellow, had taken control of everything. Rumors suggested Hyunjong might have some talent, but…

Medicine was not a field where results could be achieved within one or two years. It took at least ten years of research to gain recognition from peers that someone had an interest in this area.

“Indeed.”

Thus, it wasn’t surprising for the fellow to display dissatisfaction on his face. On the other hand, Shin Hyun-tae wore almost the opposite expression.

‘What is he suspecting?’

He held pure anticipation, nearly 100%.

Unaware of the numerous eyes following him, Suhyuk opened the hospital room door.

“Are you there, patient?”

“Oh…yes.”

“I’m here to explain the CT scan results and ask you a few questions. May I come in?”

“Yes, Doctor.”

Compared to the fear he felt before, the CT scan didn’t take much time and wasn’t uncomfortable at all. When Jo Youngje entered his body, it felt warm, making him wonder if this was the beginning of side effects; however, that sensation only lasted for a moment. Thanks to this, he felt better than when he arrived.

‘What?’

The feeling abruptly changed to confusion as soon as Suhyuk entered the hospital room. An older-looking man, whom he had been wanting to see since his admission, quietly gestured for silence while entering simultaneously.

‘What’s going on here?’

If the patient had less patience or if Suhyuk hadn’t been preoccupied with questions, they might have sensed something amiss. However, coincidentally, the patient possessed considerable composure, and Suhyuk was too absorbed in his thoughts.

Fortunately, the patient seemed to be quite composed, and Suhyuk was preoccupied. Thus, Suhyuk continued with what he had planned to say earlier:

“Something unusual showed up on your CT scan. I can’t give you a definitive diagnosis yet, but we’ve taken a step closer towards understanding your condition.”

“Hmm…”

“However, we still lack information. May I ask you a few questions?”

At the same time, Shin Hyun-tae nodded vigorously from behind, still keeping his finger pressed against his lips.

Suhyuk had heard that this hospital wasn’t like it used to be, and now he understood why. But there was nothing he could do about it; he was already admitted, and they had conducted tests as well. He decided to go along with their requests for now.

“S…sure.”

“There might be overlapping questions from before. If you remember anything different, please let me know.”

“Understood.”

“You mentioned that you haven’t traveled overseas recently?”

“Yes.”

“Not even within the last month?”

“Nope, not at all.”

It was a disappointing answer. It would have been perfect if he had traveled abroad. However, I couldn’t turn back after coming this far.

“Have you had close contact with someone who… has returned from overseas travel?”

“Travel? No, not really.”

“Hmm… You said you were a public servant?”

“Yes.”

“What type of work do you mainly do as a public servant?”

“Well…”

I felt like I was being interrogated. What did it mean by asking what type of work I did? Was there some sort of inspection going on? Just as my dissatisfaction started to rise, Shin Hyun-tae entered my field of view again. He wore an incredibly kind smile and nodded vigorously once more.

Perhaps due to the bright hallway, it seemed like Shin Hyun-tae had a halo around him. If someone could maintain their composure after seeing that face, they might be the devil himself.

“Th…”

“Is it difficult to answer? National Intelligence Service?”

“N-No. It’s not like that.”

The absurd mention of the National Intelligence Service made Suhyuk relax slightly. He even managed a smile as he continued.

“I’m…at the health center.”

“The health center? Are you Mrs. Sellner?”

Suhyuk hadn’t served in the military, so he wasn’t familiar with what work was done at the health center. His knowledge came solely from conversations with Gongbo’s friends. Whenever they talked about colleagues, only one name surfaced: Mrs. Sellner.

“No, no,” the patient shrugged, seemingly frustrated but still able to continue without much difficulty. “I am in the laboratory.”

“Experiment…?”

“Yes, cultivating experiments with patches and such.”

“Cultivating?”

Cultivating - it meant to grow something. This was the first time I heard about cultivation experiments at the health center. However, they wouldn’t be growing just anything randomly.

“By any chance, have you done any recent experiments?”

“The food-mediated infection patch experiment.”

“Aha, food.” Suhyuk clapped his hands happily.

It was thanks to confirming the CT findings indicating intestinal inflammation just now. Of course, it might just be swelling without any infection. Yet, given that they conducted a food-mediated infection patch experiment, the possibility of infection seemed high.

“By any chance, do you know what substance was used for the experiment?”

“I am a technician. Exactly…I don’t know which bacteria were involved.”

“Can you find out?”

“Well…yes.”

“Could you please ask right away?”

The patient inadvertently looked back at Shin Hyun-tae whenever a new request emerged. Each time, Shin Hyun-tae nodded with a Buddha-like face - indeed, his nickname was ‘Buddha’ due to his kindness. The patient wasn’t Buddhist but couldn’t resist this smile.

“Y-Yes.”

Thus, the patient picked up their phone and made a call.

“Uh… Ms. Hyunju. How is your body doing? I heard you were hospitalized.”

“Oh… Still feverish, yes.”

“What illness do you have?”

“I’m undergoing diagnosis.”

“Really? That… recently Chilseong Hospital has been doing well. Along with Ah-sun Hospital.”

“That’s it.” The patient lowered their voice slightly before continuing, “Not about that though. Remember the experiment I conducted recently?”

“Huh? Yes, that’s right. Are you worried about the results? It is growing well.”

“Nope. What exactly was the bacteria I experimented on? I vaguely remember…”

“Ah… Wait a moment.”

The other party asked Suhyuk to wait briefly while they searched for something. It seemed like they were looking through records.

“Oh, here it is.”

It didn’t take long before the conversation continued.

“So… this time, you cultivated a foodborne infectious agent, correct?”

“Yes.”

“The bacteria…it is Salmonella. Specifically, Salmonella Paratyphi A.”

“Ah…Salmonella Paratyphi A.”

“Wow.”

Upon hearing this, Suhyuk clapped his hands again. Salmonella Paratyphi A was famously known as the cause of intestinal typhus.