Chapter 5
Chapter 5
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: Experiment
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The needle Yuseong held up gleamed sharply.
The Baihui acupoint, located at the crown of the head, was a vital point that could lead to death if mishandled.
Not long ago, a promising late-stage prodigy expected to become a once-in-a-century genius had been ambushed by an assassin disguised as a servant.
Jegal Yeongyeong herself had personally drafted the official notice ordering strict protection for the major righteous faction's late-stage prodigies after that incident. She hesitated at the thought of willingly placing herself in a position where a single mistake could kill her.
"Does it have to be the Baihui point?"
"I understand your concerns, but in the current situation, it's the only option. It might not work, but I promise to administer the needle safely."
Recalling the sight of him she'd witnessed moments ago at Yuseong's assurance, Jegal Yeongyeong thought back.
He had bravely stepped forward to save the girl amid the tense situation, despite the risk of misunderstanding, and generously revealed the secret technique to revive someone thought to have a stopped heart and died.
'Yes, I'll trust him. At the very least, he's no assassin. If someone like this isn't a true physician, then who is?'
"Alright. I trust you."
Seeing Yuseong's bright smile, Jegal Yeongyeong felt her resolve waver once more.
'Surely I haven't fallen for his good looks...? A physician who looks like this? No, that's too narrow-minded. It's a rational judgment upon reflection. I'll trust him.'
With Jegal Yeongyeong's permission, Yuseong had her lie down on the patient's bed.
He parted her gathered hands neatly folded over her chest and her black hair, bringing the needle to the Baihui point.
'She's cultivated considerable martial arts, so I wonder if she'll sense my divine power like internal energy.'
Finally, the needle pierced the Baihui point, and Yuseong gathered all his remaining divine power, channeling it through the needle.
Confirming the divine power infiltrating through the Baihui point circulating her head along the meridians before naturally seeping into her brain, he withdrew the needle.
Jegal Yeongyeong had been inwardly tense at the eerie sensation of the needle burrowing into her Baihui point. She had been on high alert, the throbbing headache forgotten in the gravity of the needle's penetration.
"Ah...!"
A gasp escaped her unbidden.
In an instant, a refreshing clarity washed over her, sweeping away the headache as if it had never been.
It felt as though the very fact of her headache had been a lie; she felt more refreshed than ever.
Confidence surged that she could tackle those headache-inducing reports at her desk in a flash.
Her furrowed brow, unconsciously creased until now, smoothed out, her expression turning serene.
At the same time, gratitude toward Baek Yuseong welled up.
'This man deserves to be called a Divine Physician. Every other physician just prescribed medicine for this headache, offering only temporary relief, yet he surprises me again!'
Once the needling ended, Jegal Yeongyeong struggled to control the broad smile threatening to bloom on her lips.
"How is it, Chief Strategist? Does the pain persist?"
"No, it's like the fog has lifted—my head feels incredibly clear. How did a single needle fix it?"
"I'm glad it worked. I could treat you because you trusted me."
"It's truly amazing. But how long will this effect last? It would be troubling if it's too short."
"Your headache has been completely cured for now, so with sufficient sleep, it won't return. However, if you maintain your current lifestyle, it might recur in about seven days."
"Seven days!"
Forgetting her dignity, Jegal Yeongyeong let out a loud exclamation, unable to hide her joy.
She could be free from that maddening headache for a full seven days?
Then, a sly question arose, and she voiced it.
"If the headache returns, could I get needled like today and recover the same way?"
"Of course. Come anytime."
After Jegal Yeongyeong left, Yuseong hurriedly checked his body.
'The absolute amount of divine power has increased!'
It was slight, but unmistakable. It had grown without even praying to the goddess—a first across all his previous game experiences.
Every result has a cause.
Yuseong quickly formulated a plausible hypothesis.
'I treated her headache, and Jegal Yeongyeong felt gratitude toward me. That gratitude transmitted to me, increasing my divine power? That would explain why praying to Gaia the goddess yielded no response. In this world, the source of divine power isn't the goddess Gaia—it's me.'
Elation surged. It was still a distant goal, but now he knew he could increase his divine power.
'Let's keep treating patients. I need to check if even patients healed without using divine power boost it.'
Buoyed with excitement, Yuseong swiftly resumed his consultations.
***
Jegal Yeongyeong returned to the Murim Alliance.
"Chief Strategist, welcome back."
"Yes, could I have some tea, please?"
"Right away. Your complexion looks much better, by the way."
"Oh, does it? Thank you."
Examining her reflection, the dark circles under her eyes had lightened noticeably.
"It's truly miraculous."
Fondling the area under her eyes briefly, Jegal Yeongyeong sat back at her desk in the Chief Strategist's office.
The report that had eluded clear solutions despite three readings that morning lay spread on the desk.
Skimming the report once, Jegal Yeongyeong thought.
'Was I agonizing over this simple problem all this time? With the headache gone, I feel like I could fly.'
Her hand flew across the documents like a feather.
Rustle— Rustle—
The reports were processed at a rapid pace.
Even complex murim political situations difficult to resolve on the spot no longer required multiple readings for comprehension.
"It's like I've returned to my first days as Chief Strategist. Maybe I can even catch up on backlog studies today?"
Jegal Yeongyeong took a brief break when her arm tired before her head.
Sipping her tea, her eyes held not coldness, but curiosity and gratitude toward someone.
The subordinate who had delivered the reports to the Chief Strategist's office that morning only emerged as the sun set, unable to hide his guilt.
"Chief Strategist, shall I send in dinner soon?"
"No, I'll eat at home tonight. You've worked hard."
"I see. That's a wise decision. How could anyone work until dawn every day? Shall I inform the other strategists?"
The subordinate naturally assumed Jegal Yeongyeong was postponing work to rest early.
"The work is all done."
"Pardon? There was far more than usual today."
"Heh, I met a benefactor."
The subordinate thought Jegal Yeongyeong's steps seemed light and bouncy.
***
"It's increased again...!"
Yuseong was thrilled. Even treating ordinary patients yielded a slight increase in divine power, and just now, it had grown without even consulting—considerably so.
It meant that as long as patients felt gratitude toward him, it increased.
He had discovered another fact.
The amount of increase varied by the degree of gratitude.
The boost from treating Jegal Yeongyeong was greater than the minor ones, and just now, for some reason, a substantial chunk had added.
Having fallen asleep late from excitement, Yuseong learned the cause the next day.
"Greetings, Benefactor."
Seeing the politely bowing girl, Jin Eunseon, a thought flashed in his mind.
'Who would be most grateful to me if not this child? She's surely the one who sparked my divine power's seed.'
As Yuseong gazed intently at her face, Jin Eunseon blushed faintly.
"Why do you stare at my face so long?"
"Ah, sorry. Ahem, what I mean is..."
The atmosphere suggested something important was coming, so Jin Eunseon neatly crossed her legs and placed her hands demurely on her knees.
She imagined what her life-saving benefactor Yuseong might say next. Her heart pounded inexplicably.
'It's different from the recent throbbing chest pain. What is this feeling?'
Unwittingly igniting the girl's carelessness, Yuseong posed a question to grasp the karma of his divine power increase.
"Were you doing anything around Ha-si jeonggak last night?"
Yuseong waited patiently for the blushing, flustered Jin Eunseon to calm.
She glanced outside the consultation room where her father waited, then lowered her voice.
"That sounds good."
"Huh?"
"Where should I go? Out front of the medical hall?"
"What are you talking about all of a sudden?"
As Yuseong faltered at the baffling exchange, Jin Eunseon snapped to attention.
"S-Sorry! I forgot what you asked. After yesterday's treatment, my mind was a bit scattered. Ah! Not that I'm in pain or anything—the treatment worked perfectly!"
Yuseong let it slide, figuring her ramblings came from surviving a near-death ordeal.
"Ah, I see. It happens after big scares. My question was what you were doing around Ha-si jeonggak yesterday."
"Ah!"
Exclaiming, Jin Eunseon pondered skyward before answering.
"I think I was just lying down to sleep. Why do you ask?"
"Nothing else?"
"Before falling asleep... it's embarrassing, but I offered a small prayer for you. I hope that didn't offend you?"
Exactly!
Yuseong inwardly cheered.
Ha-si jeonggak was precisely when his divine power had surged in a lump.
Jin Eunseon, who had prayed to him like a deity, looked endearing.
"Offended? Not at all! I'd be grateful if you prayed to me every day from now on."
The anxious, watchful Jin Eunseon beamed at his words.
"Yes, I promise. Praying to you fills me with fulfillment too—I was planning to do it again today."
'Fulfillment after prayer? Worth observing.'
After the consultation confirmed no issues with her body, Yuseong sent Jin Eunseon off and, fired up, received the next patient.
The more he focused on physician life and treated patients, the more he could recover divine power.
Though fewer than yesterday right after the incident, a long line still reflected his changed status.
For patients treatable with regular medicine, he did so; for those beyond ordinary medicine, he used healing skill via needles at the affected areas.
***
Once consultations ended, Jo Physician, who hadn't come yesterday due to his day off, arrived.
The sixty-something elder with a flowing white beard occupied this second consultation room.
"White-Clothed Physician, I heard you treated the Murim Alliance Chief Strategist in my stead yesterday?"
"Yes, that's right."
"You stepped up in my absence. Tell me how you prescribed for her."
Demanding details of Yuseong's prescriptions like a superior was a breach of etiquette.
"I handled the prescriptions myself. No need to worry."
"Hey! The Chief Strategist is my patient—how dare you hide it from me? The prescriptions are obvious anyway!"
Jo Physician shouted.
Yuseong was dumbfounded. Why was Jegal Yeongyeong his patient?