Chapter 66
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ace
Chapter: 66
Chapter Title: The Power of the Word Cancer
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Cancer. The power that name carried was overwhelmingly strong.
Kkyukkyu stayed silent for a long time.
"Haha, no way. Kkyukkyu, you're still in college..."
The one who finally broke the silence was Azure Wind Young Master.
"These days, even people in their twenties get stomach cancer. Losing 8kg without even dieting on purpose isn't something to brush off. Of course, I hope it's not that, and since you're young, it's way more likely to be gastritis or reflux esophagitis, but getting it checked won't hurt."
"That's true."
"Kkyukkyu, like the Divine Physician says, go to the hospital."
Azure Wind Young Master and the other guild member agreed with me, but Kkyukkyu still said nothing.
"But..."
He hesitated for a long while before speaking.
"I don't have any money."
"The Divine Physician said it could be cancer! Is money the issue right now?"
"If you go uninsured, it's not that expensive. There are options around 100,000 won. Early stomach cancer often has no symptoms or just heartburn, so look into it."
Azure Wind Young Master snapped, and I tried persuading him once more.
Was this something to hesitate over? Back when I was in college, I lived without much money too, but after hearing this, you'd think he'd at least get tested.
...No, he might really be broke.
"If it's that bad, I'll cover the test fee. Go tomorrow."
"And if it's nothing?"
"That'd be a relief. I'll take the blame for nagging you. I'm just worried."
"Worried..."
Even then, Kkyukkyu hemmed and hawed. There was even a hint of tears in his voice.
"Um... but..."
"Yeah?"
"Even if you give me the money... I can't go."
"Huh? Why not?"
"...I'm actually not in college."
Ah...
That explained the odd vibe. A college kid without money would pick up a part-time job, but he sounded underage.
Now that he was coming clean, his voice did sound pretty young.
"High school? No way, middle school?"
"Yeah, middle school... Sorry. I thought the guild wouldn't let me in if I told the truth... I've been using my grandma's account."
Kkyukkyu confessed in a voice as tiny as an ant's crawl.
"Aigoo, whatever! It happens! Tell your parents and get to the hospital!"
Azure Wind Young Master said.
I had no intention of scolding him for lying about his age either. The guild didn't have an age requirement for joining, and he wasn't my kid—I didn't want to meddle in his late-night gaming habits.
But unlike Azure Wind Young Master, who still had parents, I got why Kkyukkyu kept mentioning money.
Living in the countryside, playing on his grandma's account instead of his parents'. And no one nagging him for gaming late into the night... That kind of home meant...
"I don't live with my parents."
Probably just him and grandma.
"Where's your place? I'll send taxi fare too."
I said. If I was going to help, might as well go all in.
"A taxi won't even come... It's real countryside. Hapcheon in South Gyeongsang Province, not even near the city center—no hospitals or anything..."
"Eek! A place without an internal medicine clinic? ...Gotta go all the way to Daegu for an endoscopy?"
Azure Wind Young Master, whom I pegged as coming from a solid Seoul middle-class family, kept saying clueless things.
I searched too, and while there was an internal medicine clinic in the city, it didn't seem equipped for endoscopies.
"At least it's Gyeongsang. I'm in Busan, so I'll drive and pick you up."
Bus would be tough; I'd need to rent a car. Good thing I got my license.
"The Guild Leader's coming here?"
"Yeah."
"I'm only 15... You sure that's okay...?"
"Think of me as a nosy big sis. Or just a drive! You can sightsee Daegu too, Kkyukkyu! I'll buy you something tasty!"
With that, Kkyukkyu finally accepted.
"Sweet! Get tested, then we game at a PC bang together!"
"Ooh, a sudden duo meetup? I'd head to Daegu too if I didn't have work!"
I got Kkyukkyu's phone number and address from him.
His real name: Yun Hanbyeol, second year middle school.
"If you get bad stomach cramps at night, don't worry about money—call 119. And for tomorrow's gastric endoscopy, stay fasted. No water in the morning either!"
"Got it. Thank you."
I gave Yun Hanbyeol some extra phone reminders before finally sleeping.
The next morning, I rented a car and headed to Hapcheon.
At a rest stop, I found a Daegu hospital that could do same-day endoscopies and booked it.
Hapcheon was in Gyeongsang, but Daegu was closer. It made sense route-wise: pick him up, test, drop him home, back to Busan.
'I hope I'm just overreacting...'
Yun Hanbyeol had called his homeroom teacher to say he was too sick for school and was waiting at home.
His place with grandma was an old two-story house, out in an area requiring a bus even to reach Hapcheon city center.
"Hi. ...Whoa, Guild Leader, you're super... uh... cool-looking."
"Hop in."
Meeting in person, he turned out shyer than expected. No wonder about the 8kg weight loss—he was pretty scrawny.
I put him in the passenger seat and sped to the reserved clinic.
Then came the consultation.
The doctor said the sudden weight loss definitely called for an endoscopy.
I waited in the lounge while Yun Hanbyeol went in.
And soon after, the results came.
"Stomach cancer, stage 2 suspected."
I'd hoped otherwise.
Thought it'd end with a sigh of relief that it was just excessive worry.
"M-Me? For real? Cancer, cancer?"
The diagnosis we'd dreaded in disbelief had dropped.
They explained it was early detection, surgery had over 90% survival rates, and so on, but Yun Hanbyeol couldn't hear any more.
I listened to the doctor's explanation on his behalf, then took the shell-shocked kid out of the hospital.
"No way. How... How could this happen to me? What did I even do?"
"...It's not from doing anything wrong. Bad luck."
"I ate some ramen, skipped some sleep—is that why? My friends do the same. Why me, why only me."
My words by his side didn't comfort him.
I offered to buy food, but he shook his head, tears streaming, so I took him back to Hapcheon first.
"It's shocking and tough right now... But most survive surgery. I've seen tons of patients live well after partial gastrectomy. You're young, Hanbyeol, so you'll recover even better."
"The doctor said... even after surgery, might need chemo... Like those bald kids in dramas with leukemia? I can't afford to be hospitalized like that..."
Yun Hanbyeol tore at his hair, sobbing uncontrollably.
"I don't wanna die. If I'm dying like this, might as well have killed me sooner. No, if I wasn't born, Mom and Dad wouldn't have fought so much!"
"It's okay. It'll really be okay. ...I know it's hard. Overwhelming."
"Waaah... Thank you... Guild Leader. You're the only one who's cared about me like this..."
I kept saying he wouldn't die, but his panic wouldn't subside.
I parked in Hapcheon and hugged him tight.
"Rest a bit first, then we'll call your parents. Gotta prep for surgery."
He'd calmed a little on the drive, but mentioning parents made him sharp again.
"...My parents won't care."
From what I gathered, they weren't deceased like mine.
Mom had remarried; Dad worked in the city alone but left Hanbyeol with grandma, unwilling to care for him directly.
It was a situation ripe for feeling abandoned by his parents.
"Still gotta tell them. You need surgery to live."
"They'd probably prefer I just die like this..."
"Dying even in late stages takes time, and it's painful. That what you want?"
Yun Hanbyeol shook his head.
His first words after diagnosis were that he wanted to live.
He was scared they'd say they didn't care, terrified to tell them.
"Surgery will go well. You can recover. If chemo's rough, I'll help."
"You, Guild Leader...?"
"Yeah. A few of my patients are on chemo."
"Why go that far...?"
"Why? No Kkyukkyu, no guild! Gotta get better quick and fight bishops with us!"
My tossed-off joke finally brought a smile.
"You won't kick me out?"
"Kick you? You're my precious main tank! We'll keep having fun together! Study hard, earn money as an adult, and whale out!"
"...I really want that."
Talking games coaxed a soft smile from Yun Hanbyeol.
I barely pried his parents' contacts from him.
* * *
I dropped Yun Hanbyeol home, then called from the car.
I didn't want to risk hurting him if his parents reacted badly.
The world had more trash parents than you'd imagine—ones who truly wouldn't care if their kid lived or died, telling them to fend for themselves.
"Hello, Team Leader Yoon Jeonghun speaking!"
A short ring, then a man answered.
"Hi. Are you Yun Hanbyeol's father?"
"Pardon? Yes. Something happen to Hanbyeol?"
"I'm..."
How to introduce? Words failed for a sec, but no choice—truth it was.
Not like I was saying I returned from the martial world or anything.
"...Someone who met your son playing games together."
"What?!"
As expected, he panicked hard.
"D-Did Hanbyeol scam someone or...?"
"No, nothing like that."
"Ah... Good."
"I'm Han Yeowon, director of Seongsu Clinic in Busan. Not a weirdo. While gaming, Hanbyeol suddenly mentioned stomach pain, so I asked about it. Sounded serious, so I suggested tests."
"Illness?!"
Yoon Jeonghun gasped in shock.
At least he wasn't the oblivious or angry type I'd feared.
Even when he thought I might be a scammer, hearing about the illness filled his voice with deep worry and concern.
"Yes. Luckily nearby, so I took him to Cheon Comprehensive Hospital in Daegu for an endoscopy. Hard to say, but... it's stomach cancer."
"......"
Yoon Jeonghun went silent.
I wouldn't believe it either.
"...Not a scam? Is Hanbyeol with you?"
"No. Dropped him at grandma's and called separately. He didn't want to contact Dad, but I thought you should know, so I got the number from him. Check with the hospital and Hanbyeol."
"...So you are a friend of Hanbyeol's... How's he doing? ...Hurting bad?"
"It's a huge shock. I tell him he won't die, surgery'll fix it, but 'cancer' is intimidating. Shocking for you too, Dad, but he's hurting most. Still... comfort him well."
It was so hard to say.
I realized anew how long it'd been since I delivered heavy diagnoses.
"Ah..."
Yoon Jeonghun's voice trembled. He groaned, at a loss for words.
"Um... excuse me, miss."
"Yes. Go ahead."
"You even took him for tests—big ask, I know."
"Yes."
"Just watch Hanbyeol a bit... No, no. I should come."
"I'll do what I can, but parents have duties. Not abroad, right? Come right after work."
Yoon Jeonghun hesitated, not agreeing readily.
If he'd been callous from the start, I'd have yelled. But I'd already sensed his genuine concern for his son.
"Something keeping you from facing Hanbyeol? Custody or restraining order...?"
"No! Custody's mine!"
I asked carefully, but he denied vehemently.
"Not that far. Busan. Just... if my son sees me... he'll hate me more."
"...Sounds like a big misunderstanding."