Connections
After the official reporting session.
Baek Yuseong set aside his luggage and immediately returned to the medical clinic.
Despite the long journey, he never rested. People who had been staring at him with envy greeted him as he stepped into the clinic and took his seat.
Soon a patient entered the room.
Her sharp eyes were narrowed in concentration, her brows furrowed in concentration.
Yet the unspeakable joy she tried to hide shone brightly on her beautiful face.
She was the one he had often thought of during his time in the Namgung family.
“Chief Military Advisor Jegal, I’m glad you’re here. I’ve been waiting for you.”
It was Jegal Yeong-yeong.
“Oh? You waited for me?”
The moment he told her he had been waiting, her bright face broke into an even wider smile.
In the past he had never noticed it.
But after Namgung Yurin’s confession, he had clearly felt his own heart and desire, and he had also sensed something about Jegal Yeong-yeong’s feelings.
He had never seen her give anyone such a smile before.
Her face was either too businesslike or her sharp eyes made her seem cold.
“The Chief Military Advisor always looks so angry.”
He had accidentally overheard servants gossiping about it.
‘She really seems to like me.’
The realization changed how he saw her attitude.
“Of course. While I was away, I thought of you constantly and worried about you.”
“Hah, your words are surprisingly smooth today.”
He smiled inwardly as her hand unconsciously brushed through her hair.
“Alright, let me start by treating you first.”
Her furrowed brows suggested she still suffered headaches every time she studied formations.
“Thank you in advance.”
Jegal Yeong-yeong shook her head slightly and lay down on the familiar bed.
A pleasant fragrance lingered on her as she passed him.
“Huu…”
A sigh of relief escaped her as she lay there.
He had felt the same way after days without proper sleep while diving into the game, when he had suffered from migraines for a long time.
Headaches ruined sleep, and sleeplessness only made his head hurt again.
He understood her feelings perfectly because he had experienced that cycle himself.
He pulled out the acupuncture needles made from Heavenly Meteorite Stone.
Precise control of holy power required these needles.
‘I wish I could use the sustained healing skill with perfect precision even without needles…’
The thought suddenly struck him.
From the duel with Namgung Yurin and the Sword King.
What if he could use the sustained healing skill with perfect precision without needles?
Namgung Yurin’s preparation time to activate her skills would be drastically shortened.
He wouldn’t even need to pierce her skin, so he could protect her even when surrounded by others.
And if he could use long-range healing with perfect precision…
‘With my support, Yurin could keep using Sword Gang as long as her internal energy allows.’
Even if she couldn’t reach the level of a true Grandmaster, combined with his buffs she would become a Peak Realm master capable of crushing opponents in an instant.
It would be difficult for now, but he would need to practice it.
‘If Yurin becomes my guard, she’d be so reliable…’
Holding the needle, he was lost in these thoughts when a pitiful voice came from below.
“Clinic Master? What are you thinking? You can’t just leave it like that, right?”
“Ah, sorry.”
He treated Jegal Yeong-yeong first, as she had been enduring pain.
He parted her hair near the crown, revealing the Baihui point instantly.
‘There was a blank spot, and I found it in one go.’
It was only natural since he had placed the most needles there.
He inserted the needle and activated the sustained healing skill.
“Haaah…”
Jegal Yeong-yeong’s eyes softened and a slightly excited moan slipped out.
It was a sound she never made when he treated her daily.
He could only imagine how much pain she had endured during his time in the Namgung family.
Her face melted into a soft, radiant glow.
‘Even the sight of her melting away is beautiful.’
Lost in the moment, he looked down at her only to meet her eyes.
Whoosh—!
Her always-carried folding fan snapped open, shielding her face. Only her eyes remained visible.
And… he knew instantly that she was feeling shy right now.
“Ahem, ahem, thank you. The Clinic Master really is the best.”
She sat up once the headache was gone, just like always.
She didn’t rush back but tried to start a casual conversation.
Since he knew there were no urgent patients waiting, he and Jegal Yeong-yeong talked freely.
He didn’t want to let go of either Namgung Yurin or Jegal Yeong-yeong, but conversations were also a form of affection.
“How was the Namgung family?”
He had already finished the report on treating Namgung Yuhyeon and supporting the warriors after his visit to the Namgung family.
Jegal Yeong-yeong’s question couldn’t be about that.
He answered honestly based on what he had felt.
“The Namgung family is indeed a place of great reputation. Their warriors are formidable, and rows of merchants waited from dawn until late at night for their chance to trade with them. Their presence was overwhelming. Truly, are they the strongest in Anhui Province?”
“Hmm… really?”
Her uneasy expression made him realize he had spoken too much in his excitement.
He had that particular flaw of excessive boasting.
Since it was Namgung Yurin’s family, outsiders couldn’t possibly criticize it, so he had spoken naturally.
Jegal Yeong-yeong herself came from the Jegal family, ranked third among the Five Great Clans.
Even within the same orthodox faction, competition existed despite good relations.
And the Hubei Province where the Jegal family was located had the famous Wudang Sect.
Without the Wudang Sect, the Jegal family would never have been called the strongest in Hubei.
The way he had boasted about the Namgung family’s greatness in front of her must have made her uncomfortable.
‘I should calm her down.’
Having known her for a long time, he knew how to soothe her effectively.
“Following the Tang family of Sichuan, you also visited the Namgung family this time. The Jegal family must be impressive too, but I’m curious about your place.”
The moment he showed interest in the Jegal family, the corner of Jegal Yeong-yeong’s mouth twitched upward.
She often showed this expression when he praised something connected to her.
It was proof that she was extremely pleased.
Jegal Yeong-yeong lifted her chin slightly, making her high nose stand out more prominently.
“I’ll invite you to our family sometime. Compared to the Namgung family, our martial strength may not be as outstanding, but we have plenty of things that can satisfy the intellectual curiosity of someone as smart as the Clinic Master.”
She had been summoned to this world at fifteen.
Her knowledge of the world was nothing compared to others.
Knowledge naturally acquired from childhood left many gaps.
Yet he had shown her superiority in some fields, and she had come to believe he was truly intelligent.
‘Thanks to my innate comprehension… I feel good when praised too.’
They exchanged light remarks after applying makeup on each other’s faces, then he asked the question he had been curious about.
“About the medical clinic’s guard. It seems the schedule for selecting the guards has been advanced ahead of schedule—”
“Ah, I completely forgot about that. Sorry. Something came up that I had to attend to.”
Jegal Yeong-yeong quickly looked out the window, then stood up abruptly.
“Oh, I see. Please excuse me for a moment.”
He received the next patient while thinking that once his work here was done, he would visit Deputy Strategist Tae Jeong-heon.
Since he was the person in charge.
***
After finishing the medical clinic’s business without any issues, Baek Yuseong went to find Tae Jeong-heon.
He was busy with overtime, so they could speak for a moment.
“Clinic Master! How long has it been? I heard you had returned. I was about to visit you myself, but you came all the way here.”
He had saved Tae Jeong-heon’s life during the Ambassador Jegal incident and received complete devotion in return.
Thanks to that, he had been promoted and even received gifts frequently, and even while busy with military affairs, he personally oversaw the medical clinic.
“No, I’ve finished today’s work. Of course I should come. But…”
“Yes?”
Dark circles under his eyes were thick.
Even though it was past quitting time, the military department behind him still had lights blazing brightly.
He had never treated patients just for fatigue recovery, but if it was someone like Tae Jeong-heon with close ties…
Baek Yuseong hesitated as he tried to heal his fatigue.
It was because Tae Jeong-heon had unconsciously scratched his neck, exposing the scar from the Ambassador Jegal incident.
“…“
He had realized that he had left the scar on purpose before he obtained the recovery skill, fearing people would think something strange if the wound healed overnight.
Now that he could heal himself and use the recovery skill freely, it didn’t matter anymore.
Baek Yuseong healed his fatigue and cleaned up the scar on his neck perfectly.
“…!”
The dark circles were invisible at a glance, but his eyes widened when he touched the spot and felt the smooth skin on his neck.
“I forgot to ask you for treatment last time, but you even treated me first, and somehow I feel more energetic than before! Thank you so much!”
“If you’re really tired, come to the medical clinic anytime and I’ll recover your fatigue.”
Baek Yuseong finally got to the main point of his visit.
“It seems the schedule for selecting the medical clinic guards has been brought forward compared to what you mentioned before. Is there something wrong?”
Tae Jeong-heon stared into the distance for a moment, trying to figure something out.
“Ah, that’s something the Chief Military Advisor took care of personally.”
“The Chief Military Advisor?”
“Yes. I happened to be assigned a different urgent matter. But don’t worry. For now, I’ll handle the medical clinic work myself. Is there anything you need?”
There could be urgent matters, of course.
That was why Jegal Yeong-yeong had probably finished her work quickly.
What Baek Yuseong focused on was Tae Jeong-heon’s final words.
“Then… would it be possible to bring in one more guard for the medical clinic? Hmm… if it’s possible, that is.”
He had thought it might be difficult since he had never been involved in hiring guards before.
But.
“Of course! Anything at all. I’ll handle it right away. Who is it? Just tell me!”
Tae Jeong-heon, who had earned Jegal Yeong-yeong’s thick trust by working hard lately, answered cheerfully while thumping his chest.
She was the one who showed special favor to him.
Helping him actively was a way to gain her trust, wasn’t it?
Baek Yuseong helped, and Jegal Yeong-yeong’s trust grew even thicker.
‘Win-win all around.’