The Physician of Traditional Medicine Returns from Murim

Yoon Jung-hoon’s face brightened at my confident words.

“Thank you! I’ll pay whatever it costs, so please give him the best medicine possible.”

Perhaps because I helped detect his stomach cancer early, he seemed to trust me implicitly from the start, even without seeing my skills.

I do appreciate patients with this attitude.

It makes consultations easier, and patients who completely trust their doctor tend to have much higher recovery rates.

Unfortunately, dumping syndrome isn’t the kind of condition that can be cured with a single miracle drug… But perhaps that’s why the Yoon father and son’s trust in me might prove beneficial.

I explained straightforwardly what I could do.

“Of course, I’ll prescribe the best treatment. The reflux symptoms, heartburn, and nausea you mentioned can be largely controlled with medication. Your fatigue will definitely improve, and the dizziness should decrease to some extent.”

“Ah, I’m not expecting an instant cure. Even that much would be truly appreciated.”

I shook my head.

This wasn’t about covering myself in case the treatment didn’t work.

“The most important thing is changing your eating habits to suit dumping syndrome. The doctor told you to eat small amounts frequently and chew thoroughly, right?”

“Yes. He said to follow a low-carb, high-fat, high-protein diet to avoid raising insulin. I’m eating slowly during lunch at school.”

Yoon Han-byeol answered.

Judging by how he slightly averted his eyes, it seemed he wasn’t strictly following this either. He also didn’t seem to understand why raising insulin was problematic.

I drew a simple diagram on paper.

The esophagus, stomach, and small intestine.

“You’ve learned that ingested food travels from the esophagus through the stomach to the small intestine, right?”

“Yes.”

“Originally, food from the esophagus stays in the stomach for several hours, undergoing initial digestion, and then gradually moves to the small intestine. But now, that regulatory mechanism is missing.”

“…Yes.”

Yoon Han-byeol’s expression became a bit gloomy.

It seemed he was realizing the fact that more than half of his stomach was gone.

‘Hmm, this isn’t good.’

I changed my approach slightly.

It would be better to explain in a way that’s easier to understand rather than too literally.

“You know how the bishop in our raid spits out mobs little by little?”

“Huh? Oh, right.”

I drew the raid boss from Central Plains Online next to the digestive system diagram. Then I represented the demonic cult remnants as stick figures.

When I suddenly changed the subject, Han-byeol nodded, looking confused but attentive.

I could see a definite spark of intelligence return to his eyes.

“When we kill 70% of the mobs, it automatically moves to the next phase with even stronger mobs, right? What do you think would happen if all those came out at once as soon as we met the bishop?”

“Uh… with our current specs, we’d all die, right? Unless we all maxed out our levels and equipped the mythic gear from this raid.”

Yoon Han-byeol tilted his head as he spoke.

That’s right. We couldn’t handle it. As he said, it would be impossible to clear with our current raid group’s specs.

“That’s what’s happening to Kyu Kyu… I mean, Han-byeol right now.”

“…I see.”

“What I can do is boost our party’s specs. Like when I gave you that armor as a gift.”

“Ah, I was really grateful for that.”

“And there’s something Han-byeol needs to do.”

I drew the law enforcement officer following the bishop next to the bishop illustration.

In Central Plains Online’s setting, the bishop is not only one of the strongest in the demonic cult but also a power holder, and the law enforcement officer is a position appointed at the bishop’s discretion. Sort of like an attendant? Anyway, he didn’t seem very strong in the story.

“The law enforcement officer?”

Yoon Han-byeol immediately recognized my crude drawing.

“Yes. Instead of the function where 70% of the mobs dying triggers the next phase, this guy’s remaining HP controls the mob summoning.”

“Oh…”

“But he’s too weak. One skill use and his HP suddenly drops this much.”

“Ah, I see.”

He understood my analogy very well.

I asked Yoon Han-byeol:

“So what should we do?”

“Hit him with a normal attack, kill some mobs, then hit him with another normal attack?”

As expected from someone good at games, he’s smart.

He understood perfectly.

“Exactly. White rice, noodles, snacks – these carbohydrates are too strong, and if this many remnants pour out, we can’t handle it with our current specs. We need to eat small amounts of meat. For now, Han-byeol needs to control this so the party members – the various organs of your body – don’t suffer.”

“I understand.”

“It’s a bit troublesome, but pack food and eat small amounts throughout the day. Eat a little at the start and end of lunch time, and a bit more during breaks. Eating slightly slower than your friends isn’t enough.”

“Okay.”

“You don’t have to do this forever, so let’s endure for a few months! As we keep fighting like this, our level will increase and other organs will adapt. After that, you can do burst damage all at once.”

Yoon Han-byeol burst out laughing.

Yoon Jung-hoon didn’t seem to understand my analogy, but seeing his son happy, he nodded along with a smile.

“Besides the symptoms we just discussed, are there any other issues? Trouble sleeping, feeling cold easily…?”

I decided on a prescription after a brief consultation.

Yukgunja-tang.

TN: Yukgunja-tang (육군자탕 / 六君子湯) is a traditional herbal formula used in Korean and Chinese medicine. It is primarily prescribed to strengthen the digestive system and treat conditions related to weak digestion, fatigue, and poor appetite. Yukgunja-tang is often used for conditions characterized by spleen and stomach deficiencies, such as chronic indigestion, bloating, and lack of energy. It supports overall gastrointestinal health and is sometimes combined with other formulas to address specific symptoms.

It was an excellent prescription for replenishing energy depleted by surgery while addressing symptoms of phlegm-fluid retention like dizziness, nausea, and reflux.

I’ve equipped him well, so with time to level up, he should adapt.

‘This should be enough for Han-byeol to be careful on his own, and the rest is about diet.’

After sending Yoon Han-byeol out first, I gave Yoon Jung-hoon more detailed instructions on management.

“…I’ll do that. Thank you for explaining in such detail.”

Fortunately, the father who deeply loved his son willingly agreed to take on the troublesome tasks.

◆◇◆◇◆

After visiting the Korean medicine clinic, Yoon Jung-hoon’s daily routine began at 6 AM.

Doctor Han Yeowon had advised splitting meals into at least six portions for the time being to minimize Han-byeol’s symptoms.

So now he was preparing two lunchboxes for Yoon Han-byeol to eat at school, in addition to the school meal.

‘Whew, I thought I just had to grill things, but it’s not that simple.’

The Doctor had suggested a few Korean medicine hospitals that provide individual meals if it became too difficult, saying it would be okay to be hospitalized, but Han-byeol didn’t want to be admitted.

It was probably because he had made friends at his new school.

Instead, one of those hospitals had posted their meal plans on their website, so he referred to that while cooking.

“…Dad made this? Really?”

Yoon Han-byeol was very touched when he saw the lunchboxes.

“You’re having the hardest time, so of course I should do at least this much.”

“Ah…”

When Yoon Jung-hoon handed over the lunchboxes with a smile, Yoon Han-byeol’s face contorted.

‘Ugh.’

For a moment, the memory of his son’s harsh words flashed through his mind.

Just die, I never want to see you again, do you think you can live well on your own after abandoning me…

Even then, the child had made exactly this face.

Drip.

A single tear fell.

“Thank you, Dad.”

But the words that came out of Yoon Han-byeol’s mouth were completely different from before.

“Thank you. Really, thank you so much.”

The tears that had been welling up now flowed freely.

“…”

What had he been doing all this time?

How much had he hurt this fragile child?

He didn’t even have the courage to see how tattered his son had become while he was too busy hurting from the dagger in his own heart as a father.

I’m sorry.

The words rose to the tip of his tongue.

But what was he apologizing for? For leaving you alone? For not understanding? Or… for resenting you?

Yoon Jung-hoon didn’t want to seek forgiveness for all the hurt he had caused with that simple “I’m sorry.”

He needed to apologize. But not now.

He didn’t want this daily act of preparing lunchboxes to become his atonement.

“Dad always loves you.”

Yoon Jung-hoon said, hugging Yoon Han-byeol tightly.

This was just the natural thing to do.

Because he’s a father.

Yoon Jung-hoon saw his son off to school with a smile.

Yoon Han-byeol got on the bus, sniffling.

◆◇◆◇◆

Gulp.

Yoon Han-byeol swallowed the prescribed Korean medicine.

He had finished his meal very slowly, taken his medicine, and was now resting in his chair.

It was a noisy lunchtime, but he couldn’t join the boys playing soccer and had to wait for his food to digest in a slightly reclined position.

‘I’ve only cleared a little, so fight hard!’

Thinking about raiding with his guild members made this waiting time not so boring.

“Is that herbal medicine? It must be really bitter! Are you okay?”

A group of girls approached and spoke to him.

“Ah… I thought it would be, but it’s not as bad as I expected. The discomfort I had after eating is gone too.”

He didn’t know the girl’s name, so he quickly glanced at her nametag. He had become friends with some of the boys, but it was still hard to connect names and faces for the girls.

Anyway, he was grateful that they were concerned enough to talk to him.

Having had stomach cancer surgery and even collapsing once in front of his classmates, weren’t they all looking after him out of pity?

Honestly, he didn’t entirely dislike it.

“Really? That’s great!”

Suddenly, the girl who had spoken pulled out a macaron from her pocket.

“Here, eat this. We bought these yesterday when we went to Seomyeon, and they’re really delicious. You probably don’t know the good places in Busan yet since you came from the countryside, right?”

“Agh! Jeom-soon, what are you doing!”

“They don’t have these where you’re from, right?”

The other girls burst out laughing and teased her.

She protested that she was giving it because he looked pitiful being alone, but the girls were too busy teasing each other to listen.

“Ah…”

Yoon Han-byeol stared at the macaron.

Honestly, he really wanted to eat it.

‘Eating that would be like one-shotting the law enforcement officer.’

But he resisted with superhuman willpower.

He couldn’t kill all his raid members.

“I really appreciate it, but I can’t eat snacks yet. Actually, I’m eating my meals in small portions.”

“Oh really? I didn’t know, I’m sorry!”

After he briefly explained his condition, the girls felt very apologetic.

“If you don’t want to eat it, give it to me.”

And that macaron ended up in the mouth of one of the other girls.

As they left, Yoon Han-byeol sank back into thought.

‘Come to think of it, when I was in the countryside too…’

There was a classmate who had worried about him.

When he was feeling a bit nauseous and retching in the bathroom, a boy had spoken to him.

– Hey, are you okay? Shouldn’t you go to the hospital?

Looking back now, it was out of concern. But at the time, those words had made him so angry.

Was it because he wanted to go to the hospital but couldn’t?

– Where’s there a hospital in this backwater countryside?

– …Why are you looking down on us?

They fought.

And after that, no one spoke to him.

Thinking about it again, it wasn’t that those kids disliked Yoon Han-byeol, but that he disliked them first.

His classmates even made a rolling paper and sent it to the hospital.

Even though the surgery ended quickly and he was hospitalized for less than a week.

‘I transferred schools without even saying goodbye.’

In truth, it wasn’t his classmates he hated, but his reality.

He took out his frustrations in the wrong place, and when no one accepted him, he felt wronged.

Yoon Han-byeol hesitated for a moment, then took out his phone.

Fortunately, he had saved some contact information when he first transferred.

‘Hmm. If it were the guild leader, I bet she’d know how to say this coolly.’

It would probably be a bit much to bother her with something like this, right?

Yoon Han-byeol just sent a brief message.

He said he was grateful for back then, sorry for picking a fight, that the surgery went well, and asked if he could visit during the break.

The reply came immediately.

‘…It was this simple.’

While he was at it, he sent greetings to his grandmother and a message to his mom too.

Mom.

He thought she had completely forgotten about him after remarrying.

He was very surprised to learn that she had been continuously paying his insurance. She even came from Seoul to Busan to see him during the surgery.

Greeting these precious people made him feel somewhat proud.

Lunchtime quickly ended as he used his brain to choose what words to send in his messages.

◆◇◆◇◆

One month later.

“Aaargh! No, Blue Wind. How could you use your ultimate there?”

“I thought we could win…”

“Do you think you’re the guild leader? How are we supposed to match that!”

“Waaah. Kyu Kyu, help me! Your father is bullying me!”

Yoon Jung-hoon, who started playing Central Plains Online to spend time with his son after work, quickly became capable of pulling his weight in the raid group.

It was something I had suggested to help restore their family relationship, but unintentionally, it ended up strengthening our raid force.

“How can both father and son be so good at the game?”

“I used to fly in my youth. Where do you think his skills came from?”

“Still… how in just a month…”

Ah, now we won’t have to worry about DPS even without me!

I smiled very contentedly and made my character do a clapping gesture.

“By the way, how did yesterday’s hospital visit go?”

I suddenly remembered and asked.

It had been two months since Han-byeol’s surgery, but he was still visiting the hospital periodically for follow-up observations.

“Ah, I told that doctor everything too! That the dumping symptoms completely disappeared after taking the herbal medicine! He was really surprised!”

I had asked about the test results, but Yoon Jung-hoon started talking about what happened the day before.

No, I emphasized so much that eating in smaller portions was more important, so how could he go around saying the medicine cured it?

I could easily guess how the doctor responded.

“At first, he got angry, asking if we weren’t told not to take herbal medicine, but when I said it got better right after taking it, his expression changed! He said you must be an amazing person!”

…That can’t be right?