Chapter 174
Hyeon-woo was anxious about how Tae-geon would react if he fully regained his sight. Would they try to take Tae-geon away again to use him as a tool? If it was revealed that Tae-geon’s eyesight remained unaffected despite repeated ruts, they might realize that his imprint partner was nearby. It would only be a matter of time before they discovered that partner was him.
Rather than worrying silently, it seemed better to confront Mu-seok here and now. He felt he needed to hear directly from Mu-seok what his plans were for Tae-geon’s future.
Mu-seok had mentioned the cruel practices used to tame elephants without changing his expression. Of course, he wasn’t really talking about elephants…
Reaching this point in his thoughts, Hyeon-woo clenched his fists and demanded, “What happens to the tamed elephant now?”
“You’ve misunderstood my words,” Mu-seok clicked his tongue.
“Didn’t I say the bullhook was never in my hand to begin with? He was tamed by something else entirely, not a bullhook.”
Not understanding these cryptic words, Hyeon-woo faced Mu-seok, who asked dispassionately, “Do you pity that child?”
“…”
Hyeon-woo didn’t answer. How could he ask such a question when he was the one who had put Tae-geon in that state? Mu-seok’s eyes sparkled at Hyeon-woo’s expression full of hostility.
“…I’m curious. What other outcomes might have been possible?”
“Are you going to take Tae-geon away again if he regains his sight?”
Cutting off Mu-seok before he could continue his nonsense, Hyeon-woo asked directly. Mu-seok scoffed.
“Why would I? That defective product is useless everywhere.”
Hyeon-woo felt a surge of defiance at Mu-seok’s treatment of Tae-geon as a worthless, defective product.
“What if his eyesight isn’t damaged anymore after this? If I’m by his side-”
“Enough!!”
Mu-seok cut off Hyeon-woo with a thunderous shout. Hyeon-woo took a sharp breath in surprise.
“Let’s pretend I didn’t hear that. I’ll be going now.”
As Mu-seok stood up, gathering his coat, Hyeon-woo looked at him with a bewildered face.
“I’ll leave the rest to you, former butler.”
Following Mu-seok’s gaze as he spoke over his shoulder, Hyeon-woo turned around. The butler, who hadn’t been seen all morning due to Tae-geon’s surgery preparations, was standing behind them.
Mu-seok left the mansion alone, stopping the butler who tried to see him off. As he paused midway and glanced back, his gaze left an uneasy feeling in a corner of Hyeon-woo’s heart. If he felt human warmth rather than the usual predatory sharpness in Mu-seok’s gaze, as if daring him to do as he pleased, it must have been his imagination.
He never expected to meet Mu-seok in this situation, much less learn about Tae-geon’s secret birth. Why had he told him all these private matters before leaving? Wasn’t this a family that valued honor so much they would hide Tae-geon in this remote corner to avoid any blemish on their name?
While he had been curious about Tae-geon’s family history, he hadn’t wanted to know all the heavy truths behind it.
How much of what Mu-seok had told him did Tae-geon know?
Hyeon-woo’s heart ached at the realization that his warmth, interest, and affection might have been the first and only human kindness Tae-geon had experienced after such a desperately bleak childhood.
His guilt towards Tae-geon, who had always treated him poorly, intensified even more. He resented Mu-seok for leaving after burdening him with all of this. If there was one positive outcome from their conversation, it was the assurance that regardless of the surgery’s result, Tae-geon’s family would no longer arbitrarily control his life.
A defective product useless everywhere, he had said.
“…Damn it…”
Sitting in the chair, Hyeon-woo clasped his hands together and prayed fervently.
Please, let the surgery go well… Let no more shadows of despair fall on Tae-geon.
He felt the butler’s gaze fixed on him, but Hyeon-woo didn’t care. There was nothing else he could do but pray. He felt he couldn’t even breathe without doing at least this much.
*
Hyeon-woo, who had been keeping vigil without leaving his spot, sensed something was amiss when Hak-gyu, who had been going in and out of the operating room to check Tae-geon’s vitals, became noticeably busier.
When even the medical staff waiting outside changed into surgical gowns and were all called in for Tae-geon’s surgery, Hyeon-woo’s tension reached an indescribable peak. He stood up and paced the corridor with an anxious face. What on earth was happening inside? His heart began to race with foreboding.
The sunlight visible through the window had already turned yellow. As the sun was setting and the sky was tinged with sunset colors, Hyeon-woo took out his phone from his pocket.
Unlike Hak-gyu’s prediction that it would take six hours, the surgery showed no signs of ending even after more than seven hours had passed.
As he was biting his lip with an ominous feeling, the operating room door suddenly burst open and one of the last medical staff to be called in rushed out. Recognizing his urgent expression, Hyeon-woo grabbed him and asked,
“W-what’s happening?”
His hand clutching the man’s collar trembled. Unable to ignore Hyeon-woo’s anxiety, the man quickly explained,
“The inside of the orbit is a mess due to inflammation… There was severe bleeding while removing the adhered tissue. We’re running short on prepared blood and need to hurry. I must-”
“I have the same blood type! I’m O type!”
Hyeon-woo shouted urgently.
“I want to donate blood.”
At Hyeon-woo’s words, a faint glimmer of hope appeared on the pale face of the medical staff.
*
Donating blood didn’t mean Hyeon-woo could enter Tae-geon’s operating room. After completing various reaction tests, he lay on a separate hospital bed and began the blood draw.
Red blood flowed through the thin tube connected to the inside of his elbow. The flat blood pack gradually swelled red.
After the first blood draw was completed, a second one began. Since the maximum amount of whole blood that can be drawn from one person in a day is two packs, the staff reassured Hyeon-woo, who was worried that his donation alone might not be enough.
As he was squeezing the sponge in his hand, his phone in his pocket vibrated. Checking the caller ID, he saw it was Aunt Kyung-ae. She knew he couldn’t receive calls during work, so for her to call meant the situation was urgent. Hyeon-woo’s heart pounded ominously.
“Hello.”
“Hi, Hyeon-woo. It’s auntie. Are you working?”
Kyung-ae’s voice was cautious. Certain that she was calling about Jerome, Hyeon-woo’s face turned pale with tension. It was time for Jerome to have returned from his field trip. What could she be calling about?
“It’s okay, please tell me. What’s the matter?”
Hyeon-woo calmly waited as the aunt hesitated to answer his direct question.
“Jerome is sick…”
Hyeon-woo reflexively tried to sit up, letting out a short groan of pain.
He looked down at his arm, which was stinging with pain. He could see the blood that had slightly backflowed near the needle now flowing normally through the tube again. After double-checking that there was no problem, he focused on the call.
“Jerome, where, how is he sick?”
“Well, he actually had cold symptoms since last night. But it seems today’s field trip was too much for him, and he’s been very ill since he came back. We went to the hospital earlier, he got a shot and took medicine, but he’s still burning up.”
“…I see. You’ve been through a lot, auntie. Thank you as always.”
Hyeon-woo’s face was ashen, contrasting with his calm expression of gratitude.
“Hyeon-woo, I know it’s difficult, but could you come home a little earlier today?”
He checked the time on his phone. By now, the surgery should have been long over, with the outcome known, whether success or failure.
The surgery would resume after transfusing the donated blood to Tae-geon, so it was impossible to know how much longer it would take.
“…I, I have a situation today and can’t return early.”
“Oh dear, what should we do… Please come as soon as you can, okay? Jerome keeps asking for his dad.”
Hyeon-woo’s gaze anxiously darted between the setting sun outside the window and the needle in his arm.
“…He got a shot and took medicine, so he should get better. He’ll be fine soon.”
His voice trembled as he repeated the words like a mantra, trying to convince himself.
Not wanting to trouble Hyeon-woo further, Kyung-ae composed herself and spoke deliberately calmly.
“Yes, let’s wait and see. I’m sorry for worrying you. I’ll take good care of Jerome.”
“Thank you for calling. Please contact me if anything happens.”
“Okay, I will. Go back to your work.”
Shortly after the call ended, the person who had guided Hyeon-woo’s blood donation entered the room.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
