Chapter 226
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 226
Chapter Title: The Brick of a Business Plan
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I flipped open the first page of the business plan Park Seonyun had handed me.
And in one go, I read from the very first letter on that page to the very last.
I turned the page.
Then read from the first letter to the last again.
"……."
Huh?
How long had it been since text like this just wouldn't stick in my brain?
It felt like the first time since I'd crash-landed in the murim and faced ancient medical texts written in classical language.
And it wasn't even that Park Seonyun had crammed it full of business jargon I didn't know.
I'd just been overwhelmed by the sheer brick of it.
"Would you like to take a seat for a bit? Would it be more comfortable to talk in the exam room? I'll explain it step by step. In my opinion, going ahead with the project seems like a good idea."
Park Seonyun gestured back and forth between the exam room and the waiting room sofa.
No way. She expected me to read all this here? Ridiculous.
"I'll take my time to read it over and get back to you."
Part of me wanted to bolt, but I had to keep my cool in front of my soon-to-be business partner.
I flashed a gentle smile and politely showed her the door.
"Oh, sure, take your time. I'll come back tomorrow!"
My uncontrollable eyelids and lips twitched faintly.
Tomorrow?
Tomorrow was my day off from clinic.
But even so, expecting me to finish this in one day...?
"Ah, sorry! You're off tomorrow. I'll come the day after!"
......Same difference.
If we were meeting the evening of the day after next, when I had appointments, that meant I'd have to finish it all tomorrow!
"Sorry for dropping by unannounced! I got too excited and overstepped. See you soon!"
Park Seonyun handed over the brick and vanished.
She'd half-wasted her trip when she didn't even need to come in person, but her face showed nothing but joy.
She looked so happy.
'Whatever. I'll look at it tomorrow.'
The complete opposite of him, I tossed the papers aside and went to bed.
I even put off my energy circulation meditation until the next day.
I'm not one to get tired easily, but thanks to certain people, I'd burned through all my mental energy since morning!
The next day.
I woke from a nightmare of being crushed under a pile of documents.
"Ugh, what a nightmare of a day off."
True to modern form, I grabbed my phone first thing and checked the time.
I had things to do, but my day-off routine was to put them off a bit and tackle my game backlog first.
After that, I idly logged into a portal site and skimmed the news.
"......Ha."
But there was no escaping it.
Words like 'Saudi Arabia', 'prince', 'Faisal bin Amir', and 'Seongsu Clinic' were everywhere.
Half the headlines on the page featured them.
Was this really such big news?
It wasn't even that crown prince—just a close aide?
Unless someone had ordered a media blitz!
I clicked on one article about the prince that seemed least related to the clinic.
It detailed when Faisal would be in Korea and what his schedule entailed.
Complete with a photo of him flashing a satisfied smile and waving.
[Meanwhile, Prince Faisal bin Amir visited Busan yesterday and received headache treatment at Seongsu Clinic. He said his mind felt incredibly clear, freed from the torment he'd thought was his fate.]
I hit the back button fast.
Then took a deep breath.
Steeling myself, I checked an article whose title included our clinic's name.
I had to see it. Who knew what nonsense they might've written.
This one started with the prince but went on to name other celebrities we'd treated.
Even listing all our branch locations nationwide.
What, did I pay for this ad or something?
[Director!!!!!!!!!! What's this!!!!!]
A message push notification popped up. It was Chu Miyoung.
She must've checked SNS right after waking up too.
[That's how it is.]
I explained the absurd situation in the group chat with the branch directors.
It had all happened so fast that everyone was stunned, but the vibe was mostly celebratory.
[Got the business plan too. I'll read it and get back to you.]
No more putting it off.
I spread out the stack of papers on my desk.
From that first page that had been so impenetrable yesterday, I forced my way through the text.
Thankfully, with an open mind, it wasn't completely unreadable.
The readability was actually pretty good.
It really felt like Park Seonyun herself had written every word—I could almost see her shining eyes from behind the pages.
Thud.
I closed the final page. It was already late at night. The day off was over.
'I get the gist of what they want to do and how.'
There was a ton of reference material from overseas cases they'd reviewed beforehand.
'But this isn't a scale that ends with one or two royal hospitals...?'
To turn a profit on an investment this massive, we'd need to expand worldwide.
The blueprint for that was laid out in the plan.
Good thing they'd thoroughly reviewed the prescription rights I'd asked them to prioritize.
But still.
This was...
"Director Park."
The next day at work, I called Park Seonyun right away.
To ask about the plan I'd reviewed.
- Ah, Director! Want me to come over now if you're free?
"No need. I read it all! Had a few questions."
I checked if there'd been similar inquiries from anywhere besides Saudi Arabia.
As expected, no.
- Once we see results in Saudi, we can proactively pitch to other countries where we already have connections!
Park Seonyun was dreaming big.
......Someone would rein her in, right? The board or whoever, even if it wasn't me.
- But you read the whole thing? I was gonna summarize it for you. Do you always read every single clause, Director?
What was this now?
"Didn't you give it to me to read?"
I was utterly bewildered.
But Park Seonyun sounded even more shocked.
- Well, the materials are for reference. Usually, I tell people to skim a few pages and then do a presentation? I was gonna explain it to you when I handed it over...
Ah?
So that's why she'd suggested the exam room?
- Haha, Grandma always stressed explaining things so even a middle schooler could understand.
Damn, so that's how it was.
If I'd just stayed put, she would've highlighted key parts with a marker and walked me through it.
I'd suffered through that whole brick for nothing?
......No. Better to read it myself.
I needed to know how the business worked.
"I see. Anyway, yes... I checked it thoroughly. I'm impressed by your overflowing passion. Thanks for addressing the points I mentioned before."
Reeling from double the mental damage, I smiled brightly just like yesterday.
"I'll leave it to you, Director Park."
She wasn't even here, but I gave a thumbs-up alone in the exam room.
- Director...!
Unlike my goofy laugh, Park Seonyun's tone was deeply moved.
- Whatever the board says, I'll knock 'em down. I'll make this happen on the best terms for you. Thank you for trusting me!
No, you don't have to go that far.
But nitpicking now would drag this out forever.
I just said I trusted her and asked her to handle it well.
- By the way, are you going to keep calling me Director Park?
As I was about to hang up, Park Seonyun threw in a weird curveball.
"You're here for business, not as a patient, right?"
Calling her like a patient with a casual -nim felt off.
Sure, some companies did that internally these days, but they still used titles outside.
- W-well... true.
Oddly, she ended the call sounding a bit miffed.
What a goof.
[Done with my errands. See patients right away if any.]
I'd told the front desk that morning I might have business, so hold any new patients briefly if needed.
The call had wrapped quickly, so I messaged that I was ready for patients.
Business was business; seeing patients was seeing patients.
[One just arrived, registering and sending them in.]
[Got it.]
Luckily, no waitlist had built up in the meantime.
Moments later, the new patient's chart was ready.
Im Juwon, 17 years old. Nineteen in Korean age reckoning.
Chief complaint... headache.
'No way they saw the article and came, right?'
The prince coverage had me a tad paranoid.
"Hello."
But the patient who entered showed no such signs.
Rumor-chasers had that telltale eager anticipation or starstruck vibe from seeing a media face in person.
This high school girl just looked utterly drained.
'She's about to enter senior year, so headaches make sense.'
We saw headache cases every couple days even without the hype.
"Here for a headache, I see. How long?"
I set aside my suspicions and focused on her.
"I've had them off and on, but it's been bad since this morning."
Im Juwon pressed from the back of her head across to her temples.
"Tried painkillers?"
"No. They make me drowsy, hard to study. Thought I'd try acupuncture."
"Does it come and go normally?"
"Um... no. Too much sleep today, I think. Maybe once every month or two? Only when I oversleep. But it's from sleeping, so taking painkillers and sleeping more feels weird..."
She trailed off, glancing at me sheepishly.
Sounded like excuses.
"Just checking severity and chronicity. Not telling you to take painkillers. Good call coming in."
If it only hurt after oversleeping, not chronic migraine territory.
"Oversleeping can drop blood sugar from skipped meals, tense muscles from bad posture, poor circulation. Or mess with brain neurotransmitters."
"Ah, yeah. Like no blood to the head? ...Feels foggy and throbbing on the sides."
She finally nodded.
Unless sleep apnea or something, cause didn't matter much for oversleep headaches.
Treat the symptoms and done.
I smiled warmly to reassure her.
"Happens. How many hours?"
"Uh... about 14."
But her gaze dropped to her knees again.
Young patients get shy around doctors, but even accounting for that, her complexion was off.
"That's a lot. Just yesterday, or do you usually?"
Guilt shadowed Im Juwon's face.
Now alarm bells were ringing.
"I sleep a lot on weekdays too."
"Roughly? Bedtime to wake-up?"
"Before 10 p.m., up at 7 or 8. But I nap in self-study and math class too."
"Sudden uncontrollable sleepiness? Like narcolepsy?"
"No. I just want to."
She shook her head.
Narcolepsy ruled out.
"Let me check your pulse."
Despite excessive sleep, her pulse was weak and deep.
Shoulders slumped like the world wearied her; eyelids heavy, eyes half-open.
"No appetite? Skipping two or three meals? Lost weight lately?"
"Eat if school's lunch is there, but skip breakfast or dinner sleeping. Weight... uh, maybe?"
"Trouble focusing on studies?"
"......Yeah. I do it, but... wasn't great anyway."
She gave a wry half-smile.
"Busy thoughts before bed?"
"Not really? Just wish tomorrow wouldn't come."
This wasn't about the headache.
Nearly 14 hours daily was clear oversleeping.
And it fit depression criteria.