Chapter 66: Cause (2)

[Do you think you know?] Baruda asked with surprise evident in his voice. This question was completely different from those he had posed so far. Instead of being designed to build logical reasoning, it seemed genuinely curious.

‘Oh.’

In contrast, Suhyuk maintained his calm demeanor as before. Even when he stood up using his cane, there was no significant change in his expression.

[Where…where are you going?]

‘Department of Diagnostic Laboratory Medicine.’

[Why there?]

‘I want to examine some patient samples. Although they may have conducted culture tests, I doubt they discarded the remaining specimens.’

[That’s…that seems likely.]

In a hospital run by traditional methods, they might not be so strict about storing specimens. However, this was Taehwa Medical Center, officially recognized as the best hospital in South Korea. Not only were their medical professionals highly skilled, but their systems were also meticulously maintained.

“Where am I?”

[On the map, it’s… Ah, that is the entrance.]

Suhyuk already had a mental map of the entire hospital, but finding a specific location for the first time proved challenging. It was even more difficult when dealing with departments like Diagnostic Pathology, which weren’t widely known and catered to a niche group. Thankfully, Baruda’s assistance made it less daunting.

Eventually, he approached a small room with a barely visible sign and tapped on the window next to the door.

“Who is it?” The employee at the window asked brusquely upon realizing Suhyuk was unfamiliar. It seemed they were tired from dealing with numerous medical staff rushing for test results.

“I’m Lee Suhyuk, a first-year resident from Internal Medicine. I came regarding the samples sent for testing recently.”

“Testing? We follow our scheduled timeline for those.”

“No, not about the results.”

“Then what brings you here?”

Suhyuk hesitated momentarily as the employee’s tone became even more curt than before.

[Should I inform Professor Shin Hyun-tae or Director Lee Hyunjong?]

Baruda, who was accustomed to using his authority, suggested the most despicable method. However, Suhyuk himself had not come from privilege. Unless absolutely necessary, he didn’t want others to experience the hardships he faced.

“I wanted to see if I could view the blood sample here. I know that part of the specimen used for testing is stored for a month.”

“Hmm.” The employee appeared to be mentally reviewing regulations.

Realizing the inconvenience, Suhyuk quickly continued, “Just a moment would suffice. It’s crucial for a patient’s life.”

“Ha…”

As expected, hospital employees responded differently when patient lives were mentioned.

As soon as he mentioned the patient’s life, the nurse reluctantly opened the door next to the window.

“What is the patient’s name? Do you know their registration number?” Although her voice remained unfriendly, she guided Suhyuk inside with cooperation.

Of course, this attitude didn’t last long.

“Huh? Professor Lee Suhyuk? What brings you here?”

A professor from the Department of Laboratory Medicine recognized Suhyuk and greeted him warmly after exiting the examination room.

[Baruda: This is Professor Hong Changgi. He is a contemporary of Shin Hyun-tae, and they have collaborated on many research papers together. One notable publication is ‘Examination Results from the Pathophysiology and Natural Progression of Lichacha’.]

Suhyuk was unsure about recognizing him, but Baruda knew otherwise. He had already digitized the names and faces of all the professors at this hospital quite some time ago. Furthermore, based on conversations with key professors like Lee Hyunjong and Shin Hyun-tae, he continuously updated their relationships. Although it wasn’t directly helpful from a medical standpoint…

“Ah, Professor Hong Changgi! How are you?”

“Oh. You know my name? Is this our first meeting?”

“We actually met when I was a student. Your research paper on liches made a strong impression on me. It has been immensely helpful in treating patients.”

“Really?” Initially, knowing his name might have seemed plausible, but to also be familiar with his research papers impressed Hong Changgi deeply.

As one of the most influential figures in this hospital, Professor Hong Changgi couldn’t help but believe that Suhyuk genuinely admired him.

“Yes. As the son of Director Lee Hyunjong, you truly are intelligent. Let’s meet occasionally and write some research papers together. We have a lot of data here, right?”

“Thank you, professor.”

“Well then, keep up the good work. Oh, Mr. Kim, please take special care of Dr. Lee Suhyuk. He holds significant influence within the hospital.”

Feeling exceptionally pleased, Professor Hong Changgi made an unexpected request to the staff member who had previously been critical of Suhyuk before leaving.

“Uh…”

Naturally, the face of the staff member, Mr. Kim, turned pale with anxiety.

Upon reflection, he realized that he hadn’t been particularly friendly until now. In fact, it would be more accurate to say he had been unfriendly.

“Uh…”

As he debated whether he should apologize, Suhyuk waved his hand dismissively.

“Just show me where.”

“Huh… You’re really the director’s son?”

“Pardon? Oh, yes. Well, I am, but please don’t worry too much about it.” Seeing the drastic change on the employee’s face from earlier, Suhyuk once again waved his hand reassuringly.

However, despite being told not to fret, it was impossible not to feel concerned. The son of the hospital director, no less - and specifically, the son of Dr. Lee Hyunjong, a renowned professor.

“G-go ahead and wait here for a moment. I’ll bring the sample right away. Y-you might find it uncomfortable otherwise.”

Thanks to this, the staff became overly friendly towards Suhyuk. Rather than being courteous, they were almost obsequious. Of course, Suhyuk wasn’t unkind, and he didn’t discourage their voluntary attentiveness. Additionally, walking through the narrow corridors of the diagnostic department with his cane was challenging for him.

“Yes. First, please bring me samples from Abscess: Pus. Blood tests are not needed.”

“Of course.”

As a result, Suhyuk could leisurely sit in the examination room with a microscope, waiting for the specimens. Normally, he would have had to personally search through the specimen storage area, so this assistance was indeed beneficial.

“Here, here you go. If you need anything else, please don’t hesitate to call me.”

“Thank you.”

Indeed, the employee was proficient at finding samples and quickly returned with it.

[If I had done this alone, it might have taken several tens of minutes. This is great.]

‘I didn’t realize before, but having power is truly good.’

[The director’s son is here too. It will be interesting to see when you become the director later.]

‘Isn’t that too far away?’

As they chatted back and forth, Suhyuk properly positioned the sample slide under the microscope. After confirming the slide was securely fixed with a click sound, he looked through the eyepiece.

[Hmm. Apart from its typical shape, there isn’t anything unusual.]

‘If there were any abnormalities, Jin-gam would have found them already and contacted me. Unless we specifically look for something suspicious, it probably won’t be noticeable.’

[What exactly are you suspecting?]

‘Look at it yourself.’

[Hm.]

Baruda expressed his brief dissatisfaction as Suhyuk feverishly changed slides. However, Baruda was originally created as an AI for diagnosis, so he soon focused solely on the slides.

[Ah.]

When Suhyuk inserted approximately the fifth slide, Baruda let out a sigh. He finally understood what Suhyuk suspected and what he was trying to find.

[This…]

‘I found it. I was worried that it might not be present.’

Both of them were observing long blue lines stretching between dead white blood cells and bacterial corpses they had consumed.

By following the blue line well, I arrived at an oval shape resembling a tadpole’s head.

[Mold… Type is…]

‘Scedosporium.’

[Ah, there was an analysis result in the case report. I didn’t think to connect this with organ transplantation.] Baruda sighed as if blaming himself.

Behind Baruda showing human-like reactions, Suhyuk recalled information about Scedosporium that he had just discovered.

‘It is a fungus found in contaminated water.’

In most cases, there was no need to worry about being infected by this fungus. However, it could cause infections when immunity was suppressed.

Even if it wasn’t the case, there were instances where infection could occur - specifically, with drowning victims.

‘The brain-dead donor must have been infected before passing away.’

[A typical culture test would not have detected it…]

‘An unknown fever was likely recorded.’

If the main issue for the patient had been the fever, more thorough testing might have occurred. However, by the time the brain-dead donor was rescued, they were rapidly progressing towards hypoxia-induced brain death. This meant that occasional fevers did not receive much attention from the medical staff.

‘Son Geumsuk received this infected kidney and took immunosuppressive drugs.’

[Naturally, the infection progressed.]

‘It also explains why antibiotics were ineffective.’

“We need to go up immediately. There’s no time to waste.”

‘Yes.’

Jinkoon usually didn’t pose any harm to individuals with normal immune systems. However, for those with suppressed immunity, it was sheer shock and terror. Depending on the strain of Jinkoon, infection could rapidly spread every moment. Fortunately, this particular strain of Scopulosporium wasn’t that aggressive, but there still wasn’t much time left since it had already invaded her lungs. If left untreated, serious complications could arise within just a day or two.

“U-uhm, excuse me. Could you please take care of wrapping things up here?”

“Oh, yes, absolutely.”

“I’m sorry. I just saw something crucial. It seems like I need to see the patient quickly.”

“No, no. Don’t apologize. Please take care, sir… No, Mr. Lee Suhyuk.”

Thus, after delegating the remaining tasks to the staff member, Suhyuk left the diagnostic department using his cane diligently. He then immediately headed towards the intensive care unit.

“Ah, what is this? What could be the cause?” Even now, Shin Hyun-tae was deep in thought with his head buried in his hands.

As he turned, he could see Patient Son Geumsuk rapidly deteriorating. Although they hadn’t known each other prior, their relationship had developed since she arrived at the emergency room. To a doctor, patients entrusted with their lives, whether by choice or necessity, always held a special place.

“Sigh…”

After almost sighing a hundred times, Suhyuk stood in front of Shin Hyun-tae. Due to the unique sound made by his cane, Shin Hyun-tae immediately looked up and faced Suhyuk.

“You…” At the same time, he noticed Suhyuk’s expression, which indicated that he had discovered something definitive.

Suhyuk handed his phone to the ecstatic Shin Hyun-tae. On the screen was a photo taken with a microscope.

“This… What is this?”

“I found it in the pus. Look at these blue spots here.”

“Hmm? Jinkoon… The type is…”

“It’s Scopulosporium.”

“Scopulo… From the donor… They drowned, right?”

“Yes.”

“Oh, this is it! This is it! It’s this!”