Dowook only felt the aftermath of sensory impulse after he took his hands away from the keyboard and stood up.

Prof. Lee, Jeong Woo-seok, and his family in the parlor all stopped talking and were listening to

his playing.

Damn

He thought of just about every excuse he could make and forgot about them.

It started from the piano academy Mom sent me when I was young. And since then, I practiced when I could without letting anyone know.

The problem was that if he left this place, he wouldnt be able to play like this again. He discarded this single-use excuse because of its many holes.

I was planning on letting you hear, but I was the one who got to listen. It was a gift-like performance, Dr. Park.

Fortunately, Jeong Woo-seok was more focused on enjoying the music instead of asking how he learned to play.

I was only supposed to check the volume, Im sorry if I bothered you.

It wasnt a bother at all, I would like to request another song. I really want to hear Nocturne.

He didnt know what it was from just listening to the title. Although he was curious if he could play it without listening to the melody using his special sense, he couldnt sit back down just because he wanted to sate his curiosity.

There arent a lot of songs I can play very well. If there is a chance, I will play for you.

As the situation was a bit controlled, Dowook asked Prof. Lee right away.

What do you think of the patients optic nerve? Do you think it can get better?

We cant be sure until we consult with the ophthalmology department, but I think this is the limit. He hasnt used it for so long, his retina has hardened. Mr. Jeong, this is not yet the final diagnosis. After enough recovery time has passed, we will do a detailed examination and I will let you know.

Lets do it that way.

The consultation ended after 30 minutes.

As he came out and passed by the reception desk, he saw people waiting in line to enter the VIP ward.

A group of people neatly wearing formal clothes.

Dowook passed by them without a second thought. Then he overheard a conversation that made him flinch.

-There was a problem at the end-of-year concert due to Mr. Jeong Woo-seoks health. I hope we can cast the person who played the piano a while ago.

-Who do you think it was? I havent heard anyone say he was teaching a student.

It was a conversation that naturally made one pay attention.

-Do you think he is acquainted with just one or two pianists? Lets go in and ask.

-The broadcasting director asked Mina to play a few songs a while ago. Do you think he will be satisfied after hearing that? What should we do, Mina?

-Im really stressed right now so please dont talk to me.

Dingdong.

He got on the elevator quickly and hid. As they were going to the fifth floor, Prof. Lee started to talk.

You play the piano well.

Flinch

Ah, it was only that song.

Song Woo Jin from the Department of Family Medicine plays the violin well, and sometimes performs at the hospital. He also runs an ensemble. Hell be very happy to know theres a doctor who can play the piano. Hes been calling me a lot since I became Mr. Jeongs attending physician. Its annoying.

While laughing haha, Dowook vaguely said that he would contact them some other time. Connections as doctors were welcome, but classical connections were difficult. He prayed that he could quickly overcome this crisis.

As they got off on the 5th floor, Prof. Lee opened his mouth to speak.

Im now going to organize the data from the visit. Ill send you the chart after Im done. You did a good job.

You can give it to me right away. I have to keep staying at the clinic for a while.

Is that so?

The five seniors from the association who were waiting for him. It would be easier to satisfy their curiosity and send them on their way before the surgeries scheduled in the afternoon started.

Drrrk.

As he entered the resting area, the oldest of the 5 association members, Seongbuk Clinics Nam Gung Seok, welcomed him.

Youre here. We tried to analyze why the patients optic nerve recovered amongst ourselves while we were waiting.

Since this was a study that one could only find interesting, Dowook listened carefully.

No matter what, in any case that is related to tumors there is an assumption that the perfection of the technique must be guaranteed. Both you and Prof. Choi were top-notch, capable of painstakingly isolating nerve bundles. Thus, normal nerves that were buried in the malformed tissues were completely unearthed.

It was a reasonable assumption.

Technically, I also borrowed Prof. Chois sense, in conclusion..

The otherworldly skills of the king of the OR. That was what led to these results.

Dowook got goosebumps on his forearm for no reason. The best surgeon who guaranteed much better results than expected. Choi Hoo was such an existence.

The will to get used to all the senses hed accepted as soon as possible and become more perfect was overwhelming.

How is the patient?

All of his vitals are well.

They continued the conversation about Jeong Woo-seoks prognosis for a while. As they were talking, Son Jae-geol, whod been moving back and forth busily, poked his head into the resting area and looked at Dowook.

Dowook.

Hm?

You were at the emergency room when the students from the car crash were brought in, werent you?

Yeah.

As soon as he confirmed this fact, Son Jae-geol scurried to Dowooks side and spoke in a low voice.

One of the male students from the accident had aftereffects, so we did some tests. However, the cause is unclear on the CT.

What kind of aftereffects?

His eyesight keeps getting worse. Almost to the point of blindness. At ophthalmology, they said its not an eye problem but a brain problem. Could you take a look? We need some clues before we can do additional tests.

When a neurologist called on a neurosurgeon, they requested surgery, not a diagnosis.

At the unusual scene, the eyes of the five people sitting around the table began to twinkle.

The professor from Gyecheon propped up his chin and mumbled.

A patient with eyesight problems due to the aftereffects of a crash?

A fall in a large structure. Its not just simple trauma, his whole body must have been severely shaken.

As Dowook watched them start a new conversation, he was engulfed in anxiety that if they got started on a new topic, they wouldnt leave until tomorrow. So he immediately asked Son Jae-geol.

Wheres the chart?

In the staff room.

Lets take a look. Seniors, Ill just.

He was planning to come back quickly, but all five of them stood up along with Dowook.

..why?

It hurts since we were sitting for so long. Do what you have to do. We wont interfere.

* * *

This is the area where the students hospitalized at Hansung Hospital will take their exams. We plan to have the medical staff on stand-by. Dean Kim Chun Man, who opened the ward, said that in addition to the seven students brought in due to the bus accident, three more, including a patient hospitalized for acute pancreatitis, will take the CSAT.

Song Minji, who had been watching the news through her phone, looked at Jeong Taejun, a classmate who had been in the hospital with her for two weeks due to the same accident.

He only lay in bed all day feeling depressed.

Taejun, are you still having trouble seeing things?

Dunno. Dont ask.

The ophthalmologist said its only going to be temporary. Your eyes arent injured. There wont be any problems if you just take care of yourself.

There is a problem. I cant take the CSAT. There were just 4 points left.

Song Minji stopped the video she had been watching.

I checked but the test area in the hospital over there isnt much. Its cramped and stuffy. Will you be able to take the test properly in a place like that? We can take it next year after we improve our condition.

Well be lagging a year behind the others. How important will that one year be when we enter the workforce? And you can take the test. You have the best condition among us.

Im not going to take it this year.

Youre not?

I felt the world is quite different after I had something like this on my neck. I want to find a university where I can do what I want to do and match the criteria to go there accordingly. Slowly. Not according to the cut-off.

Thats.

Jeong Taejun, who had been acting harshly, said in a soft voice.

a bit cool.

Right? This noona became pretty cool after experiencing an accident, didnt she?

Whos the noona?

Then you should act like an oppa. Dont be so moody.

Letting out a big sigh, Jeong Taejun said.

I want to go to an amusement park. Its too stuffy here.

Should we skip?

Your neck hurts, my eyes are like this, where will we go?

Riding a wheelchair is pretty comfortable.

And whos going to push us?

Uh.each other?

Are you stupid?

Song Minji felt a bit relieved when she saw Jeong Taejuns expression, which seemed to have returned to his usual vitality.

Click.

In the meantime, the ward door opened and some people wearing doctors coats came in. Not just one or two but several.

Oh? Its that doctor.

Who?

The doctor who fixed the driver.

Dowook, who was walking in front, saw the girl he had met recently sitting there and nodded his head lightly in greeting.

Are you two friends?

Yes, were classmates.

Lets see, name is.youre Song Minji, this is Jeong Taejun?

Thats right.

Ok, Minji. We have to do some really important tests with Taejun now. Can you come back later?

Song Minjis face froze with anxiety.

Why? Taejuns eyes.no way..

Dowook shook his head when he saw Song Minji who was about to cry at any moment.

Stop. Its not like that. What.

Dowook covered his mouth and whispered something to her. Face turning red, Song Minji wheeled her wheelchair and left the room quickly.

After the female student left, Son Jae-geol asked Dowook.

What did you tell her?

Were going to take all his clothes off for the tests, was she going to watch.

Re-really?

Would it be real? Its just in case a sensitive diagnosis comes out. Just call his legal guardian quickly.

The intern went to get them.

Dowook went to Jeong Taejuns side.

Taejun, Im Park Dowook from neurosurgery, let me just ask a few questions. When you first woke up from the emergency room. How much could you see then?

At first? Um.

As he received the progress of blindness step by step, Dowook turned his attention to the five seniors who had followed him from the staff room to this place.

Collective intelligence is really a scary thing.

Before they came here, even Dowook couldnt find the cause when he only looked at the charts in the staff room.

Then, like in the operating room yesterday, he kept rotating among the senses of his seniors through his hands, something that was seasoned by numerous clinical cases that stimulated his mind.

As a result, he was able to figure it out.

The most likely cause was a concussion. It caused too much accumulation of cerebrospinal fluid and part of the optic nerve was swollen. The patients symptom was papillary edema.

The reason he didnt mention it right away even though he found the answer was that if he said it, it would be as difficult to fix the situation as when he suddenly started playing the piano. Like those five not going home until the evening.

Hows the headache?

It was really bad on the first day but it only comes for a short time now.

And you didnt vomit? How about feeling any nausea?

I dont really feel hungry so I sometimes feel nauseous.

I heard that the loss of vision did not come all at once. It blurred, blinked, and disappeared. Is this correct?

Yes, that was about right.

He continued to mention symptoms that would help make a diagnosis of papillary edema. Then, as he realized something, Son Jae-geol rummaged through one of the charts and found a sheet that recorded the pressure on the brain and held it in his hand.

Dowook, do you think it might be papillary edema?

Eventually, Son Jae-geol caught on. Dowook asked while controlling his facial expression.

What? If it was, the ophthalmologist should have figured it out by now. If the ophthalmoscope isnt broken.

No, look at the pressure. The brain was swollen and then slowly recovered. So the CT scan cant catch the lesion at all. How can it find this, its a pseudo brain tumor.

Is that so?

Ok. This is certain. Dowook, just a sec. I have to contact this patients attending physician. Weve figured it out so lets have him buy us a drink.

Son Jae-geol held his phone in his hand.

Situation finished.

The cause was discovered, and he could see the interest of the five seniors disappear in an instant.

It was not difficult to treat papillary edema caused by a pseudo brain tumor.

Do-doctor. A brain tumor?

Jeong Taejun, whod been listening quietly, asked in surprise. Dowook smiled brightly and answered.

There is the word pseudo in front. It means fake. Medical terminology is difficult but some are literal.

Dowook reassured the patient and looked at the band-aid on the patients forehead. Something about his facial silhouette was familiar. Then he remembered the black box video he saw the other day.

Taejun, you, did the bus driver help you put on the seatbelt just before the crash?

How did you know? Did the driver tell you?

The student rescued by the driver with great difficulty was this child.

The concussion you suffered was not a fall injury. A typical injury of accident victims who werent wearing their seatbelts. Forehead hit. You should be glad it wasnt a strong hit on the face.

Im sorry.

Its not something you should apologize to me for. I think you not being able to see was because of that. So dont worry. It will slowly recover by itself.

When will I be able to see?

Hmm, a complete recovery is about.two months? Before that, it will come and go.

Jeong Taejuns face quickly became dark.

It cant. I have to take the test. Is there no way my eyes can see in 6 days? I dont have to see everything. I just have to see the test paper.

Unfortunately, we cant do that. This requires a recovery process where the swollen optic nerve tissue gradually normalizes.

Doctor.

Jeong Taejuns hand, which was groping the bed, grabbed Dowooks arm. He probably couldnt see but he held on and didnt let go.

I have to take it. I must.

Taejun. When it comes to nerves, if you try to do something with it quickly, problems occur. Natural recovery is the best.

Tingle.

Hmmm?

Something stimulated his neural circuit and traveled through his wrist. It was feeble, but it was exuded by this student.

He didnt know exactly what the sense was for, but one thing was certain. The need to take the test and evaluate the score.

If this sense was conveyed, he thought that this was a student who studied really hard.

Dowook felt amazed and regretful simultaneously as this felt a lot like Jeong Woo-seoks sense which urged him to play the piano.

Im sorry. For some symptoms, the doctor cant do anything more.

As he was about to explain one more time that it was best for a future without aftereffects.

Perhaps the lingering senses of the 5 seniors overlapped with the patients sense. An idea flashed through Dowooks head. But he wasnt sure if this could be a solution.

Well. Hmm?

Dowook turned to the five who were sitting gloomily. He had forgotten that there were experts right next to him who could verify his idea.

Seniors. This pseudo brain tumor. If we consider it as idiopathic intracranial hypertension and proceed with an open surgery, wouldnt it be possible to instantly and completely restore vision?

All of a sudden, life returned to bored eyes.

What? What did he just say?

He said to make a gap in the optic nerve sheath and drain the accumulated cerebrospinal fluid manually.

Give up natural recovery? Is that possible without side-effects?

I dont know about other surgeons, but Dr. Park can. Yesterday, he completely ablated nerve bundles more difficult to control than that. He even saved the optic nerve.

There is a more reliable way. Not surgery, but a shunt procedure. Properly controlling the excess cerebrospinal fluid with a thin tube. It would rely on the surgeons skills, of course.

Oh, then it would be a new case? There is still no case in Korea where such a procedure was performed for papillary edema.

The discussion moved quickly, and it didnt take long for them to conclude the ideas possibility.

Dowook helped Jeong Taejun release him and put his hand down on the bed and spoke.

The neurosurgery seniors did find a way. But it is not easy.

What?

If you want to take the CSAT, you have to insert a small tube in your head that day. You cant leave the operating room either since we have to keep watch. We can barely use anesthesia, too. If it were me, I wouldnt take it like this.

Ill do anything. I want to try.

It is not just up to you. Talk to your parents first.