Chapter 18

“How long are you going to keep assisting? Come here.”

The man, who had briefly stepped away from the surgical field, gestured to the lead surgeon’s spot across from him.

Yeonwoo blinked in confusion, her round eyes wide with hesitation.

“Come on.”

He smiled gently and urged her again.

Her heart pounded and her hands trembled, but Yeonwoo steadied herself and walked toward the surgeon’s position.

“It’s not that difficult. You already know everything you need.”

Yeonwoo looked straight at Sajun.

In his dark eyes was unwavering belief that she could do it.

“Th-thank you.”

“No need to thank me. It’s time you did your part.”

My part.

It wasn’t a rebuke for not doing enough until now, but Yeonwoo couldn’t help the guilt that crept in.

Right. It was time for her to step up and perform her role as a surgeon.

It was late, but Master Beom had come back, not forgetting her.

And just as he’d promised, he was guiding her now.

If she couldn’t do it now, she didn’t deserve to hold a scalpel.

Yeonwoo took a deep breath and spoke firmly.

“Scalpel, please.”

Sajun chuckled quietly and placed the scalpel in her hand.

Yeonwoo had a strong feeling that this would be one of the most successful surgeries yet.

Her bright eyes gleamed with focus.

Slice.

As she incised the chest with the scalpel, blood oozed from the opened skin.

Sajun, holding gauze, naturally wiped away the blood.

“Bovie.” (electrocautery tool)

Yeonwoo handed him the used scalpel and took the electrocautery tool to continue the incision.

A hissing sound filled the air, accompanied by rising smoke.

Blood that had pooled spilled out in a rush.

Sajun suctioned the smoke and blood, securing the incision area with a retractor to ensure visibility.

Just like in the X-rays, the fractured bone was revealed.

“Don’t forget to check the lungs and heart before reduction.”

Sajun rinsed the clotted area with saline and suctioned it again and again.

“See the blood pooling in the pericardium?”

“Yes.”

“Clamp the vessel and connect the drain.”

Yeonwoo sutured slowly but with precision. With Master Beom watching her closely, she didn’t feel nervous.

A surge of strength welled up from the realization that she had finally taken a step onto the path she had longed for—becoming a real doctor.

“You did well.”

They checked the lungs where the chest tube had been inserted. No further issues were found.

“Shall we proceed with the sternal reduction?”

“Yes.”

From there, the surgery went smoothly.

*

After a long day, the end of the shift was approaching.

The emergency room was in a bit of an uproar, like a public hearing was taking place.

“So, you’re saying you two have known each other for a while now?”

Mansu kept asking the same question over and over, like a buffering video. Yeonwoo nodded.

“Yes, sunbae.”

“You met during overseas volunteer work?”

“Yes.”

“And what’s with ‘princess’? Is that some kind of nickname?”

“…It’s more of a nickname than a pet name.”

“Well, okay. But then, you just happened to meet at Cheongbong?”

Mansu fired questions like a detective.

“Yes, that’s right.”

It wasn’t entirely a coincidence, but she didn’t go into the full details.

But was Mansu always this persistent?

Yeonwoo glanced around at the others standing near Mansu, watching silently.

Everyone was nudging him, egging him on.

But no matter how much they probed, she had nothing more to reveal.

After the surgery, Sajun had gone to report to the surgery chief and hadn’t returned to the ER yet.

Yeonwoo wished he’d hurry up and rescue her, but even without him, she was grateful.

Even if it was late—very late—Master Beom had returned to Cheongbong, and like a gift, he had handed her the scalpel.

That alone had untangled the knot that had been in her chest for so long. Yeonwoo couldn’t stop smiling.

It was worth enduring.

She felt like dancing just thinking about being able to operate alongside him again.

“Hey, I think Princess has lost it.”

Jiwoong looked at her, baffled, as she chuckled to herself.

Yeonwoo cleared her throat and adjusted her expression.

Being called “Princess” didn’t faze her anymore.

Hadn’t she been trained thoroughly in Sutan?

“But still, why ‘Princess’? If anything, she’s more like a wildcat. What part of Dr. Ryu screams princess?”

Ah, okay.

So now I know exactly how you see me.

“Come on, we all said she was pretty when she first joined. Don’t you remember how the whole hospital was abuzz about a doll-like doctor arriving?”

At head nurse Kim’s comment, Jiwoong backed down.

“Well, yeah… I guess.”

“But Yeonwoo, is that really all there is between you two? Feels like there’s something more…”

Age brings wisdom, and Mansu stared at her suspiciously.

It probably did seem odd that someone she supposedly just worked with in Africa suddenly showed up like this.

But Yeonwoo decided to be honest—eventually they’d find out anyway.

“He’s a friend of my second eldest brother. They went to university together.”

“Oh, your brother’s friend? Right, didn’t you say your brothers are all doctors?”

“Not all of them. Just the second and third brothers.”

“Ah, I see how it is.”

“Wow, Dr. Ryu comes from a family of doctors?”

“That’s amazing. They’re all doctors.”

Well, not all. Ilkwon had taken over their father’s business and was working at the family company.

Yeonwoo felt a little embarrassed now that her entire family history had been revealed thanks to Master Beom’s sudden return.

“So, just to be clear—you two aren’t anything else, right?”

Nurse Park gave her a sharp, testing look.

“No, we’re not the kind of relationship you’re imagining.”

Yeonwoo smiled as she replied.

There was something between them, something that couldn’t be defined in a single word—but it definitely wasn’t what everyone was assuming.

What mattered was that he had come back.

Like a drama lead appearing in a quiet country hospital, Master Beom had returned.

The ER, filled mostly with older staff, was practically a retirement community of unmarried middle-aged men and women.

So whenever a new face arrived, everyone was all over it.

“Um, does no one have patients to see? We are still on duty… I should probably get going too.”

Yeonwoo tried to stand, but Mansu pressed her shoulder back down.

“Don’t worry about the patients—we’ll handle them. And don’t go on about patients who haven’t even arrived yet. Sit down.”

Everyone nodded in agreement and stared at her.

“…But why is everyone missing the actual point here?”

Dongmin, who had been watching quietly, finally spoke up.

“Udon, what are you talking about?”

“Well, Dr. Beom Sajun is one of our OS (orthopedic surgery) outpatient cases. He’s the gunshot victim who’s been getting rehab…”

“What the hell are you on about? You think a guy who got shot is spending hours in surgery? Didn’t you see him today?”

Jiwoong smacked Dongmin on the head.

“Ow! I told you not to hit me! And my eyes are sharp—I know what I saw! Just wait a minute.”

Dongmin stormed off, clearly about to make a phone call to confirm.

What nonsense. A gunshot?

Da-da-da-da.

A little while later, Dongmin came running back.

“I just confirmed it. That gunshot patient is Dr. Beom Sajun!”

“What? Seriously?”

“Yes! It’s true!”

Yeonwoo’s wide eyes grew even larger.

What… what was he saying?

That the gunshot victim was Dr. Beom Sajun?

The smile vanished from her face in an instant.

“Then what about the rumor that he’s the hospital director’s son?”

Someone asked.

“That’s true too.”

Dongmin replied.

“No wonder. The surname Beom isn’t exactly common.”

Bang!

Yeonwoo shoved her chair back and shot to her feet.

Her heart felt like it might explode.

Her mind went blank, and she couldn’t think at all.

“Yeonwoo?”

“Where are you going?”

“You know we have dinner plans tonight, right? Don’t run off!”

Ignoring the voices calling after her, Yeonwoo sprinted out of the ER.