41
In our yard
When Yeon Ji-ho returned to the original world, it was early morning in Korea. As he looked up at the rising sun, Yeon Ji-ho hurriedly moved his feet.
After dissuading Set from coming along, Yeon Ji-ho crossed over to the neighbor’s house alone and quietly gazed at the house in front of him. Unlike Yeon Ji-ho’s pension, the two-story detached house with a red roof resembled the personalities of its owners, appearing cute and cozy.
“…What should I say?”
Standing in front of the low gate that barely reached his chest, Yeon Ji-ho pondered for a long time whether to ring the bell or not. It was a sudden occurrence, and while he had come, he hadn’t decided what to say first.
I went to another world…?
But I brought back a patient with an illness that can’t be treated there?
If someone came to me and said such things, I would immediately close the door. Not to mention, Uncle Soo-cheol was a doctor, and he might recommend a nearby mental hospital with that stoic expression of his.
Rubbing his throbbing forehead, Yeon Ji-ho finally pressed the doorbell without thinking. In fact, he didn’t have the luxury of time to hesitate. Shango would be struggling to breathe back at his house.
Ding-dong…
The cute sound of birds chirping echoed, and the doorbell rang through the fence. Soon after, there was a clattering sound from inside, and the door swung open, revealing someone rushing out.
“Ji-ho!”
Fortunately, it was not Uncle Soo-cheol but Uncle Seon-rok who came out. He approached with quick steps and opened the gate for Yeon Ji-ho.
“How was the trip? Did you have a good time? Do you know how worried I was since you didn’t contact me at all? I called, but it just said it couldn’t connect. Huh?”
“I’m sorry. I went somewhere far.”
“Ah, I knew you were going far when you left the garden to us. But you should have at least called to let us know you arrived safely!”
“Um… it was a place where the signal didn’t work.”
After going to another world, Yeon Ji-ho had indeed opened his phone, but it had turned on without any signal. In that world, his phone was only used as a camera and a clock.
“Are there still places like that? Where did you go?”
“…Um.”
“Oh, was it overseas? You went with that foreign friend from before, right?”
Just as Yeon Ji-ho was hesitating at Uncle Seon-rok’s barrage of questions, a huge shadow suddenly emerged from inside the house.
“Who is it?”
“Who else would it be? It’s Ji-ho, your garden friend!”
It was a man with a bushy beard. His expression was not bright, making him look just right for scaring a child.
Unlike Uncle Soo-cheol, who preferred to quietly stay at home, Uncle Seon-rok often roamed around the neighborhood. Thus, Yeon Ji-ho, who hadn’t seen him in a while, briefly bowed his head.
“Uncle Soo-cheol, have you been well?”
“Yeah.”
“Even if Ji-ho is here, you should at least respond. Aren’t you being very friendly for someone’s husband?”
“…”
Knowing how shy and quiet he usually was, Yeon Ji-ho was grateful that he had even responded. While the three of them were chatting at the gate, Uncle Seon-rok suddenly said.
“Watch my sanity. We were just about to have lunch! Perfect timing. Ji-ho, why don’t you join us? Is that okay?”
“Ah, um, Uncle…”
Yeon Ji-ho laughed and declined Uncle Seon-rok’s invitation to go inside. Uncle Seon-rok tilted his head in confusion.
“Why? Is something wrong?”
“If it’s okay, could you go with Uncle Soo-cheol to our house?”
“Your house? Why? We’ve been taking good care of the garden! Is there a problem?”
Hesitating, Yeon Ji-ho cautiously conveyed his request.
“There’s a patient at home.”
“A patient? Then this isn’t the time to be standing around; we need to go to the hospital!”
At those words, Yeon Ji-ho bit his lower lip, finding it hard to respond. It would be great if they could go to the hospital, but he couldn’t predict what might happen.
Even if they received treatment without insurance, if Shango’s body was different from theirs, and if the doctor happened to take an interest in them… Yeon Ji-ho needed a doctor who could keep a secret.
Just as Yeon Ji-ho hesitated to speak, Uncle Soo-cheol, who had been quietly listening, asked.
“What’s wrong?”
“Ah, um, I think it’s measles. He has a high fever and spots on his body…!”
“Seon-rok, get the IV. Also, fever reducers and painkillers.”
Without further ado, Uncle Soo-cheol specified what to prepare for Uncle Seon-rok. Since Uncle Seon-rok had worked as a nurse before marrying Uncle Soo-cheol, he understood his instructions and briefly went inside the house.
Soon, Uncle Seon-rok came out with a bag filled with various items and handed it to Uncle Soo-cheol. As he took the bag, Uncle Soo-cheol passed by Yeon Ji-ho and said to Uncle Seon-rok.
“You stay home.”
“Just me!? Why? Don’t you need a nurse?”
“Stay home.”
Leaving behind the sulking Uncle Seon-rok, Yeon Ji-ho stepped out of the gate with Uncle Soo-cheol. He probably didn’t want to take Uncle Seon-rok along due to concerns about infection. No matter how much of a minor illness it was in modern times, Uncle Seon-rok was his only Omega.
“Is the patient isolated in a separate room?”
“Yes, in a small room.”
“After I go in, do the disinfection first.”
“…I will.”
Uncle Soo-cheol took out a bundle of masks from the bag, putting one on himself and handing the rest to Yeon Ji-ho. As he followed him while putting on the mask, Yeon Ji-ho suddenly asked.
“Um… Aren’t you going to ask anything else?”
“Why? Should I?”
“No, just…”
Uncle Soo-cheol was someone who usually didn’t speak unless necessary. Yeon Ji-ho hesitated and eventually kept his mouth shut.
“Since it’s not just anyone but you, Ji-ho, there must be a reason for bringing him.”
With those words full of trust, Yeon Ji-ho lowered his gaze.
Uncle Soo-cheol and Uncle Seon-rok had been neighbors since Yeon Ji-ho’s parents were alive. When they first settled in this neighborhood, they were newlyweds, or so he had heard.
Due to various circumstances, Yeon Ji-ho’s parents had lost contact with their relatives, and when they both passed away simultaneously, Yeon Ji-ho had to hold the funeral alone. It was Uncle Soo-cheol and Uncle Seon-rok who helped him during that time.
“Ji-ho, from now on, let’s have dinner at our house together.”
“Really? No, it’s okay…”
At eighteen, when his parents passed away, he was an outcast at school, and there was no one to welcome him home. If Uncle Seon-rok hadn’t taken him to his house to have dinner when he saw Yeon Ji-ho walking home alone, he might have struggled with severe depression.
Because of that, Yeon Ji-ho gradually became closer to the shy pediatrician, who was known for being the most reserved in the neighborhood. Both of them had an interest in gardening and shared calm and composed personalities, which helped them bond.
For Yeon Ji-ho, Uncle Soo-cheol and Uncle Seon-rok were more like family than distant relatives he had never met. With a sudden thump in his heart at Uncle Soo-cheol’s casual remark, Yeon Ji-ho slowly opened his mouth.
“Um, Uncle Soo-cheol. You might find it hard to believe, and you might think I’ve lost my mind, but…”
“Yeah? What is it?”
“One day, something strange appeared in our closet.”
As he said that, they arrived at Yeon Ji-ho’s pension and house. Opening the door and guiding Uncle Soo-cheol inside, a large man waiting right in front of them appeared.
“…Ji-ho, is he a doctor?”
“Yes. Uncle Soo-cheol, this is…”
With gray hair and odd-colored eyes, and a build that was enormous. Seeing Set, who looked distinctly different from others, Uncle Soo-cheol quietly raised his eyes to look at him.
Yeon Ji-ho continued the sentence he hadn’t finished earlier.
“He came from another world.”
“…What?”
“Um, I can explain, but first, could you please check on Shango? He’s been in pain since last night.”
With his eyebrows furrowed, Uncle Soo-cheol headed towards the small room that Yeon Ji-ho was guiding him to. Yeon Ji-ho and Set followed behind him.
“Set, put on this mask.”
“A mask?”
“This is how you wear it.”
Yeon Ji-ho reached out and carefully placed the mask’s rubber band over Set’s ear. Set bowed his head and accepted the gesture obediently.
Then, Uncle Soo-cheol, who was ahead, glanced back at the scene. Without saying a word, he opened the door to the small room and entered.
As Set, Uncle Soo-cheol, and Yeon Ji-ho stepped into the cramped room, it felt full. Uncle Soo-cheol immediately approached Shango, who was lying down, and took out latex gloves from his bag to put on.
“When did the fever start?”
“Since last night. It took some time to create the gate. I couldn’t perform proper first aid.”
“…Gate?”
Uncle Soo-cheol, who had been silently listening, suddenly turned his head to look at Yeon Ji-ho. When their eyes met, Yeon Ji-ho hesitated and then carefully whispered something into Set’s ear.
Set nodded in response. Then, he pulled out the familiar sword he had now grown accustomed to, deliberately making the blade shimmer with a flashy effect.
“These two came from another world.”
“…”
Yeon Ji-ho hesitated for a moment, not expecting to say such things. He had no idea how much Uncle Soo-cheol would believe.
Uncle Soo-cheol was still looking at Yeon Ji-ho with slightly furrowed brows.
“Um… I know you might not believe me, but please trust me just this once. We came over in a hurry because treatment is urgent.”
Uncle Soo-cheol didn’t respond. Instead, he began to unwrap the packaging of the syringes one by one while wearing gloves.
“Over there, they tend to trust healing potions or divine magic treatments more than proper medicine, so there wasn’t a specific way to deal with measles. Uncle, so…”
“Ji-ho.”
“Yes?”
Uncle Soo-cheol, with a stoic expression, looked at the thin needle tip of the syringe filled with liquid. Then he glanced up and asked.
“So what kind of world is it?”
“…What?”
“Harry Potter? Lord of the Rings?”
“Uncle, um…”
Yeon Ji-ho suddenly remembered that Uncle Soo-cheol was just as much a fantasy enthusiast of the M generation as he was.
While Yeon Ji-ho tended to buy e-books and web novels indiscriminately, Uncle Soo-cheol was someone who had devoured comic books and paper novels as part of the rental generation.
“Did you meet elves?”
“No, I didn’t meet any elves, but I did see a wizard.”
Uncle Soo-cheol muttered with a hint of envy as he injected Shango in the thick arm. He skillfully handled the syringe and IV pack while murmuring.
“…I’m jealous… What about the sword master?”
“Um… I did see one.”
Yeon Ji-ho glanced at Set, who was standing beside him. Meanwhile, Uncle Soo-cheol continued to treat Shango alone.
“I always knew a day like this would come.”
“Really?”
“I want to see a sword master just once before I die.”
At those words, both Yeon Ji-ho and Set flinched. Set quietly made the sword he had created from his hand disappear.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
