By Zephyria “Mr. Yang Yohan. Did you sleep well last night? Did the new sleeping pills work well this time?”
“Hyun-mook Hyung…?”
Muttering blankly, Yohan couldn’t quite grasp what was strange. His mind felt strangely hazy. Why was the other person calling him Mr. Yang Yohan? They used to call him familiarly before. And why was he here? What had happened to him?
“It seems the medication is still lingering. You don’t have much strength in your body, do you? You might fall, so why don’t you sit on the bed for now.”
Bewildered, Yohan slowly followed the gentle guidance and sat on the bed. While feeling a strange sense of unease and just staring at the other person’s face, Lee Hyun-muk sat beside him with a kind smile. Only then did Yohan realize the other person was wearing a doctor’s coat. There was a name tag on the pocket.
“Ah, a doctor…”
As Yohan mumbled listlessly, Lee Hyun-muk spoke in a kind and gentle voice.
“That’s right. I am your attending physician.”
My attending physician, Lee Hyun-muk? Right, Mr. Lee Hyun-muk was a doctor. He was a doctor, but… but wasn’t he a different kind of doctor? Something felt off… As he tilted his head, Lee Hyun-muk patted his shoulder and said,
“Looking at your complexion, the sleeping pills didn’t work well? You look particularly tired today. Is there anywhere else that’s bothering you?”
Hearing that, a heavy fatigue suddenly washed over him. The headache in his head, which had been worse than before, now felt like a migraine. Yohan groaned and clutched his head.
“Yes, my head hurts…”
“Then I’ll prescribe a painkiller with your morning medication. Come, shall we take a walk before breakfast?”
Yohan, still unsure of what was happening, stood up with Lee Hyun-mook’s support. His mind hazy, he slowly moved his feet, and familiar faces caught his eye.
“Huh? Yakrin Noona…”
Yohan exclaimed in surprise. Seo Yakrin, wearing a straitjacket, was swaying her body in the hallway. She was also banging her head against the wall. The straitjacket and the gag in her mouth looked so constricting that he tried to go closer to free her, but Lee Hyun-mook held him back.
“Ms. Seo Yakrin has a disorder of impulse control, so it’s best not to get too close. Right? She has a temper and can’t control her anger easily.”
“Th-that’s true, but…”
Lee Hyun-mook’s words felt right, but Yohan couldn’t shake off a nagging feeling. Then, he pointed to Joo Ho-young and Yoon Seung-ryong with his finger. Joo Ho-young was so engrossed he looked like he was about to bury his head in the Game Console, and Yoon Seung-ryong lay on the floor, unmoving.
“Mr. Yoon Seung-ryong suffers from severe apathy, and Mr. Joo Ho-young is severely addicted to games.”
Lee Hyun-mook was right. There wasn’t a single point he made that was incorrect. But, but… A strong question suddenly arose, and Yohan looked at Lee Hyun-mook. He asked the doctor, who wore a picture-perfect, handsome smile,
“Then what about you, Lee Hyun-mook?”
“Me?”
“You’re here too. You told me before.”
Despite Yohan’s question, Lee Hyun-mook offered no answer, just smiled and looked at him before leading Yohan again.
“Come, shall we walk for now? Walking is good for your health.”
Something is wrong… Yohan couldn’t pinpoint exactly what was wrong, but he rubbed his lower back again. He had a persistent feeling of something catching and pulling since earlier. Lee Hyun-mook led him around the entirely white and clean hospital, saying,
“Mr. Yang Yohan, you’ve also returned safely from the Abyss, so you must work hard and receive Corruption Treatment. That way, you can return to your family.”
“Corruption Treatment? But… there’s no cure for Corruption… Except for purification…”
Yohan replied, bewildered. Lee Hyun-mook turned to him and said in a gentle but firm voice, cutting him off.
“Oh dear, Mr. Yang Yohan. True healing begins when you accept the fact that you are corrupted. There is no other method of treatment.”
“No, there is. You can purify it…”
“I don’t know what purification is, but I know Mr. Yang Yohan needs to take his morning medication quickly. Come on, let’s go. We’ve missed your medication time.”
For some reason, Lee Hyun-mook seemed a little angry, and Yohan flinched. Even as he was led by the hand, Yohan stubbornly said,
“And I’m not corrupted?”
“Mr. Yang Yohan, what are you talking about? That’s impossible, isn’t it?”
As Yohan stopped walking and stared intently, Lee Hyun-mook smiled and met his gaze. The doctor’s eyes were just cold and gleaming, causing Yohan’s brow to furrow. He felt so disappointed that his eyebrows drooped, and a tearful tone escaped his lips.
“Hyun-mook Hyung, your tone has been strange since earlier…”
“It’s your imagination, Mr. Yang Yohan.”
“You keep calling me Mr. Yang Yohan… I’m hurt. Why don’t you call me like you used to? And why are you looking at me so coldly?”
“……”
“…Hyun-mook Hyung?”
“I’m sorry, Yohan-ah. It’s because we’re doctor and patient. We agreed to keep things professional here, remember?”
“I think I remember…”
Only after hearing the familiar tone did Yohan’s mood lighten slightly. He walked along with Lee Hyun-mook again, his footsteps soft. Ahead, he saw a place with a sign that read ‘Treatment Room.’ It was the most dazzlingly white place in this hospital. As he walked along, Yohan stopped abruptly again.
“Yohan-ah?”
“…What’s my nickname?”
“Yohan-ah? Shall we take your medicine first? Then I’ll call you by your nickname.”
“I asked what my nickname is?”
As the hollow eyes turned towards him, Yohan shook off the hand holding his wrist and stepped back. Tilting his head, Lee Hyun-mook smiled and said,
“Hani?”
Heh, Yohan smiled and reached out his hand again, but then stopped, his eyes narrowing sharply. He immediately turned and ran, shouting furiously,
“Hani, my foot! Hyung calls me Yangyang!”
“Yang Yohan!”
The voice calling him from behind now sounded utterly strange. Glancing back, the doctor’s face had changed from Lee Hyun-mook to Lee Chan-ha. Why had I mistaken that person for Lee Hyun-mook? Feeling a chill, Yohan quickly bolted. After a moment of confusion, he felt something pulling at his waist again and instinctively ran in that direction.
“Huff, huff! Where… where is this?”
His mind was still hazy, and he couldn’t remember things clearly, but he knew something was terribly wrong. He shouldn’t be in a place like this. A place so clean and sterile was impossible. Because, because… this is the Abyss! With that intense realization, various memories began to flood back.
“That’s right, I’m… a Purifier!”
Panting, Yohan stopped walking and turned to look at Lee Chan-ha, who had already caught up to him. Lee Chan-ha smiled broadly with a beautiful, clean face. Her head tilted to the side.
“Mr. Yang Yohan, come here. I’ll make you happy and joyful. You can be at peace. Accept it. You just have to love this pain!”
“Get away!”
Screaming, Yohan fumbled for another memory. There had been a similar situation before. That is, yes, in the jungle! He had experienced hallucinations due to the pollen of a corrupted flower! Yohan instinctively unleashed the purification power he was now completely accustomed to.
Lee Chan-ha, who had been approaching Yohan with a smile, stopped. Seeing the dazzling light emanating from him, he widened his eyes. But Yohan couldn’t pay attention to Lee Chan-ha. As his light touched the clean, sterile hospital walls and tiles, they distorted, revealing grotesque shapes. At that moment, a terrified monstrous roar erupted.
▉Aah…▉▉▉aaaaaah!
A severe dizziness struck again, and Yohan collapsed on the spot. Everything spun dizzily, melting, tangling, and blurring. Yohan, closing his eyes tightly, managed to open them again just a sliver. The hospital was nowhere to be seen. His headache was even worse than before, and Yohan groaned in pain. A strange voice echoed, either in his ears or in his head.
What did you just do?
Do that one more time… Okay? Mr. Yang Yohan. I’m asking you. You can do it just once, can’t you?
“Who, who are you?!”
Yohan exclaimed in alarm, but the strange voice from before was gone. His heart pounded rapidly. It must have been Lee Chan-ha’s voice. He felt his waist being pulled again and was fumbling when he heard,
“Um, are you okay?”
He looked up at the voice and saw a woman peering at him with concern. Yohan staggered to his feet. The eerily clean and white hospital from before was gone, and he was in a subway station.