Chapter 166
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 166
Chapter Title: Ha Yul (2)
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The man named Park Jun-sang glanced at Ha Yul before speaking up.
"But... the patient I need to examine... is this person?"
Ha Yu-ri grabbed both of Park Jun-sang's hands tightly, pleading desperately on her face.
"Please... please take good care of her. Look after my little brother's condition properly..."
"...I'll do my absolute best. For now, roughly speaking, what condition is the patient in?"
I answered his question.
"Coma state. Probably a positive coma."
"A positive coma? Could it be... you have some knowledge of medicine...?"
"No. I can't go into the details, but I only know it's a positive coma state. I don't even know exactly what that entails."
"Hmm..."
Park Jun-sang didn't ask how I knew Ha Yul was in a positive coma.
He just seemed to be pondering something at the mention of it.
"Alright, for now. May I examine the patient's condition?"
"Of course."
After that, Park Jun-sang began checking Ha Yul's condition.
He first checked if her eyes would open or if she reacted to sounds, then seemed to examine her pupil response and muscle reactions.
After meticulously inspecting her for quite a long time, he finally spoke.
"...First off, I should say this. I've done all the basic tests I can, but my judgment might not be entirely accurate."
"Pardon? What do you mean...?"
"Truthfully, to accurately diagnose a coma state, medical equipment is necessary. Brainwave scans or imaging tests are the standard for precise diagnosis."
Truth be told, it was an obvious statement in a way.
There were natural limits to diagnosing a coma based solely on external reactions, without any physical defects.
"So I can't claim my diagnosis is perfectly accurate. I'd like your understanding on that upfront. You might feel like I'm shirking responsibility, but..."
"No, I understand."
Park Jun-sang's face genuinely looked apologetic.
Seeing his troubled expression, it was clear this wasn't an ideal environment for diagnosis.
"At any rate, it does seem to match the positive coma state you mentioned. More precisely, I'd estimate it's a conservative coma."
"Um... could you explain what a positive coma is and what a conservative coma means?"
"Of course. Broadly speaking, comas are classified into positive and negative types. Negative comas have almost no brain activity and virtually no chance of recovery."
"...So you're saying a positive coma has recovery potential?"
"Yes, exactly. Brain activity is slowed, but it's still present."
At Park Jun-sang's words, Ha Yu-ri teared up in relief.
"A conservative coma refers to a state where the eyes don't open and there's no conscious response, but bodily functions like breathing and heartbeat operate normally."
"Then..."
"Yes, it's a coma, but among various coma states, it's avoided the worst. In fact, it's the type with the highest recovery potential."
"...That's truly a relief."
"Yes, truthfully... in non-conservative comas, bodily functions don't work normally, so outside of Earth, in a place like this, it's practically death. No medical equipment, after all."
Ha Yu-ri wiped her tears and asked Park Jun-sang.
"Thank you, Doctor. So, how do we go about recovering my brother?"
"Hmm... truthfully, the biggest issue right now is the recovery method."
"...Pardon? But you said recovery potential is high..."
"Having high recovery potential is a term that applies on Earth. Eras lacks specialized treatment equipment, so continuous brainwave or blood tests are impossible, and periodic consciousness restoration experiments can't be done either."
"Ah... I-I see..."
Park Jun-sang bowed his head apologetically.
"...All I can do is this level of diagnosis. It's fortunate she's in a conservative coma, but I can't restore her myself."
"....."
Honestly, I'd anticipated this. Even on Earth, coma recovery takes immense effort and time—there was no reason to expect easy treatment in Eras.
But I wanted his opinion on the method I'd come up with.
'At least a specialist's view will help me.'
"Doctor."
"...Yes."
He responded tensely, as if expecting me to lash out for calling him.
His face showed tension and regret.
The tension came from knowing Ha Yu-ri—the one who'd summoned him here—held sway.
The regret was because he knew this was an opportunity. For an ordinary player, connecting with a top-three clan master was rare.
If he'd been able to treat Ha Yu-ri's brother, he'd be her benefactor.
So he felt disappointed at missing the chance.
"I have one treatment idea in mind. Could I get your opinion on whether it might work?"
"...Pardon my rudeness, but you've thought of a treatment method?"
"Yes. Though it's not scientific. It's in the realm of mental magic."
"Ah... could I hear the details?"
I explained to Park Jun-sang: Charis's ability and using it to enter Ha Yul's subconscious to awaken her.
After hearing me out, he pondered with a complicated expression for a long while.
"Hmm..."
I couldn't help but feel anxious waiting for his response.
'If this doesn't work, I'm truly out of options.'
Ideally, Ha Yul regaining consciousness would benefit me.
It wasn't purely selfless concern for Ha Yu-ri's brother—there were calculations involved.
'She's near ranker-level strength, after all.'
Of course, without control over her power, she wouldn't fully match a ranker.
But her stats were those of a true powerhouse.
Leyhakter's modifications had skyrocketed Ha Yul's stats through unnatural means.
If we could just restore her consciousness, it'd be like gaining another ally powerhouse.
"...I've got a rough idea of the method. I'm no expert on magic, but it doesn't seem impossible."
Park Jun-sang's words were good news for both me and Ha Yu-ri. Not fully positive, but not negative either.
"Trying it doesn't sound bad. The root cause of her coma is psychological trauma, after all. Breathing and heartbeat are normal, so it shouldn't strain her body much."
"I see. Thank you for the input."
"No, no. I'm sorry I couldn't think of any treatment myself."
'Nice guy.'
Maybe because Ha Yu-ri was beside me, but his attitude impressed me.
Someone might call him opportunistic for regretting the missed chance, but to me, it felt like a natural human reaction.
What made me think Park Jun-sang was decent was how he'd examined Ha Yul earlier.
His eyes then burned with determination to assess the patient accurately, beyond any opportunities.
It felt less about her being Ha Yu-ri's brother and more his genuine desire to save the patient.
'Doctors aren't just anyone, huh.'
"Where are you staying? Any affiliation?"
I asked casually, wondering if recruiting him to the clan might be worth it if he was unaffiliated.
His specs were average player level, per my Unique Trait.
"Ah... well... I've been thinking of applying to the Brothers Clan. I had a clan before, but it disbanded recently..."
"Ah... I see."
'Brothers Clan, huh...'
This could work out well—I might be able to help him.
'Seems like a good guy, and Seok-ho hyung's kind too.'
No need to bring him to Eternity; helping him join Brothers Clan felt right.
"If you're applying to Brothers Clan, I might be able to assist."
"...Pardon?"
"I know their master, Kim Seok-ho. I can put in a word."
"Ah, no, you don't have to go that far..."
'I know that's just polite refusal.'
His expression gave it away. Sure, a bit burdensome, but for him, Brothers Clan meant a stable future.
Not on par with Madan or Eternity, but still a solid clan.
"Haha, no worries. Your advice was a big help. Least I can do."
"...Thank you."
"Yeah. Thanks for your hard work today. Compensation's generous."
He bowed repeatedly after receiving payment.
'Well, I stuffed it pretty full.'
It wasn't my money—all from Ha Yu-ri's funds.
Proof of her sincerity in saving her brother.
Entering her subconscious for Ha Yul's treatment would happen a week later.
Still some time to spare.
"Ah, hyungnim."
"What, done training and showering?"
I ran into Hyun-jin coming down to the first floor, fresh from a shower.
"Yeah. Part of my daily routine now."
"You're dedicated."
As I finished speaking and headed down, Hyun-jin grabbed me.
"Ah! Hyungnim, heading to eat?"
"Yeah. Why?"
"If you're eating, join us? I-seo noona and I planned to eat together."
"Sure."
We hadn't eaten together in a while, and it seemed fine. Good to bond with clanmates periodically too.
Heading down with Hyun-jin, I spotted Kang I-seo already seated.
"Oh, what's this? Coming down together?"
"Ah, Hyun-jin suggested eating together."
"Good call. Both of you, sit."
We grabbed food and sat; Hyun-jin spoke up.
"Hyungnim, not with Ho-yeon noona?"
"Ah... she's tidying up, told me to eat first..."
I'd planned to eat with Wi Ho-yeon, but she'd insisted she was fine and pushed me to go ahead.
"Ah... I see. Hmm..."
"What's up? Why the reaction?"
Something was off about Hyun-jin's response.
"Well... hyungnim, not that Ho-yeon noona's here, but honestly, doesn't she seem different lately?"
"Different how?"
"Ah... you know. Uh... how do I put it. Just kinda..."
As Hyun-jin struggled for words, Kang I-seo blurted it out.
"What else? She's fucking radiating sex appeal now."
"Pfft!"
I couldn't help but spit out the water I was drinking.