A suffocating tension filled the helicopter.
No one doubted that Kim Cheol-su was a genius. Still, it felt like he was pushing himself too hard.
Oh Ha-jin, under anesthesia, wore a frustrated expression.
And in truth, Kim Cheol-su’s own expression wasn’t good either.
Though he was a hepatobiliary surgeon, he had successfully performed resuscitation thoracotomy and emergency median sternotomy.
Yet unfortunately, even someone like Kim Cheol-su was deeply tense right now.
The entire sequence from Yoon Sang-gap’s sternocleidomastoid muscle osteotomy to cervical surgery was the pinnacle of trauma surgery’s intricate and complex techniques.
Kim Cheol-su didn’t know every step perfectly.
But he couldn’t just abandon the patient. If they waited, the patient wouldn’t get proper surgery and would die from respiratory failure.
Shin Se-young finished anesthesia and detoxification alongside Oh Ha-jin, then looked at Kim Cheol-su with worried eyes.
“Jung-ryeong-nim, the surgery preparations are complete.”
“Scalpel, please.”
“Jung-ryeong-nim… Somehow, I have a bad feeling about this. Couldn’t we wait a little longer? We might reach the hospital soon…”
“It’ll take tens of minutes just to get to Hampyeong. Waiting that long will kill the patient. Quickly, scalpel, please.”
“Understood. Here.”
Thud!
Just as Shin Se-young handed over the scalpel, the helicopter shook violently up and down.
The pilot shouted urgently.
“The air current just shifted suddenly. Sorry… Everyone, brace yourselves! This is the second impact!”
Thud, crash!
The helicopter rattled for the second time, and the medical team panicked.
“Ah! Ah!”
Startled, Shin Se-young screamed, and the pocket watch in Kim Cheol-su’s chest pocket rolled roughly on the floor, then suddenly bounced toward the partially open window.
“No, no!”
Kim Cheol-su moved at lightning speed and caught the pocket watch.
Luckily, he stopped it from falling out the window, but it was inevitably damaged.
Upon closer inspection, the minute hand of the half-open pocket watch was completely broken.
In the chaos, they couldn’t find the missing parts—they might have flown outside.
A sudden unease gripped Kim Cheol-su.
He knew this pocket watch wasn’t an ordinary object.
It was something that predicted events in the distant future and the near future. Thanks to it, he had gained knowledge of orthopedic surgery and even prepared for the subway flooding accident.
But now that the minute hand had completely vanished, he felt a creeping sense of dread.
Shin Se-young asked worriedly, “Are you okay, Jung-ryeong-nim?”
“I’m fine, but the watch has a bit of a problem.”
“Oh? The minute hand is broken? That looks expensive—what will you do?”
“That’s not the important thing right now… I’m fine…”
Thump.
At that moment, Kim Cheol-su felt as if his heart had stopped, and his body sank against the cold floor of the helicopter.
Voices shouted beside him.
“Jung-ryeong-nim! Jung-ryeong-nim! Why suddenly?! Jung-ryeong-nim! Captain Oh Ha-jin, adrenaline injection! Quickly!!”
“Here! I’ll give the shock. One, two, three…”
Kim Cheol-su felt his body arching like a bow from the electric shock.
Gradually, his consciousness faded.
Is this the end? All strength drained from his body… strangely, it felt close to peace.
The surrounding noise faded. He was slipping closer to death.
Though practically dead, Kim Cheol-su felt calm.
Honestly, had he been struggling for so long…?
Beep!
“The ECG graph has stopped! Jung-ryeong-nim! Get up quickly! You can’t die like this! No! Don’t die!”
“He’s already passed. Give up, Lieutenant Shin. I’m sorry, but Lieutenant Colonel Kim Cheol-su has… passed away.”
“No! No! That’s a lie, a lie!”
Shin Se-young’s face was streaked with tears.
Oh Ha-jin’s voice trying to calm her grew faint as her hearing dimmed. She barely heard him now.
He thought, dying was fine, but he wanted to open his eyes one last time.
He wanted to see his comrades who had struggled alongside him once more.
But in that moment… he died.
He slipped entirely into the world of darkness.
~
“Hmm…? Where is this?”
“Lost in thought again? Kim Cheol-su! You’re really going to get scolded.”
Wahaha!
With a bewildered expression, he looked around.
A large lecture hall. He had returned to his days as a medical student.
Kim Cheol-su stared in shock at the professor in front of him.
Professor Cha, the fifth-generation trauma surgeon, who had passed away ten years ago.
There he was, vividly alive before his eyes.
Kim Cheol-su said, unable to believe it, “Aren’t you Professor Cha, the trauma surgeon?”
“Yes, you little rascal! It’s me! Why?”
“No, why are you still alive?”
“What… what’s this nonsense?! When did I ever say I was going to die?”
Wahaha!
The faces of nearby friends smiling appeared strange.
Kim Cheol-su had gone back to the 1980s. Exactly what year? ’87? ’88? That didn’t matter.
He was utterly amazed that he had returned to the past.
But it truly was the familiar era.
Outside the window, the scenery from the fifth generation was vibrant. People’s clothing differed greatly from 2001.
“Wow… this is crazy. I really went back to the past? Incredible.”
Feeling a little overwhelmed, Kim Cheol-su turned his gaze to the blackboard.
‘Yoon Sang-gap Sternocleidomastoid Osteotomy Lecture’
He read the words carefully. Coincidentally, it was the exact class he needed to attend.
A chance to receive direct instruction from the greatest trauma surgeon in South Korea, Professor Cha—this was an opportunity he could not miss.
Eager to learn, Kim Cheol-su swallowed hard and said,
“Professor, is today’s lecture really about Yoon Sang-gap sternocleidomastoid osteotomy?”
“Oh my, you’re shameless to ask just after waking up. Yes! Today’s lecture is exactly that. But why?”
“I’m not sure I remember well. May I ask a few questions?”
“Of course. Go ahead.”
Normally, Professor Cha kept a close eye on student Kim Cheol-su. He never forgot anyone he had once seen and admired his fine surgical skills.
But he had been frustrated that Kim Cheol-su showed no interest in trauma surgery.
Kim Cheol-su had stubbornly insisted on hepatobiliary surgery, all for his ailing mother…
It was a shame in trauma surgery circles.
However, seeing Kim Cheol-su’s interest in trauma surgical techniques today, Professor Cha felt very pleased.
The professor’s salt-and-pepper hair rustled as he focused on this genuine genius who shone among many gifted fifth-generation medical students.
He was curious about what questions Kim Cheol-su would ask.
Kim Cheol-su felt the need to ask quickly since he didn’t know when he might return to reality.
Of course, he could stay here longer, but he feared returning suddenly.
Besides… returning to this exact lecture time wasn’t a coincidence.
The patient’s life was hanging in the balance, and now he was studying the exact surgery needed.
“Yoon Sang-gap sternocleidomastoid osteotomy… I don’t know precisely which part is incised. I understand it involves the neck, but exactly where is the Yoon Sang-gap area?”
“Ha! That’s a basic question and a disappointment. But I’m glad you’re interested in trauma surgical techniques, so I’ll explain. The Yoon Sang-gap joint refers to the thyroid cartilage above and the cricoid cartilage below.”
“So it’s part of the larynx? From the top, there’s the hyoid bone (010), the thyroid cartilage (1)/(I 001396), and the cricoid cartilage (0001003(MI390)) below.”
“Correct. But do you know exactly what role the larynx plays?”
“It’s the organ for respiration and voice production, isn’t it?”
“Right. Then, from those parts I mentioned earlier, where does the voice come from?”
“From the cricoid cartilage.”
Kim Cheol-su spoke uncertainly, as if unsure.
It had been a long time, but he mostly remembered.
The part protruding in a man’s neck is called the thyroid cartilage.
He knew the cricoid cartilage below was where the voice came from, but the exact structure escaped him.
“Be precise! Where exactly is the cricoid cartilage? How is it anatomically structured?”
“Sorry, I can’t recall exactly.”
Quick! Kim Cheol-su is having a hard time today. He’s been showing off for so long.
That’s why he embarrasses himself by sticking his neck out. Professor Cha’s always strict. There’s so much to study; can a med student really memorize all anatomy books?
Kim Cheol-su was engulfed in deep embarrassment.
It wasn’t because of the chuckling classmates beside him.
He realized that relying solely on his talents, he had recklessly performed numerous surgeries.
Of course, without those surgeries, all patients would have died… but Kim Cheol-su had entered surgery without being fully prepared.
He lacked knowledge beyond hepatobiliary and orthopedics.
Even now, he couldn’t fully answer questions about the larynx’s anatomical structure.
The guilt of trying to wield a scalpel on the patient in such an unprepared state made Kim Cheol-su bow his head deeply.
Whether by surprise or not, Professor Cha said,
“You’re a bit different today. But listen carefully: it’s not a fault for a medical student to be ignorant. Still, I appreciate your humbler attitude. The larynx’s cricoid cartilage is divided anatomically into the supraglottic, glottic, and subglottic parts. Phonation occurs in the glottic area, where the human voice is produced. Does that satisfy your curiosity?”
Hearing Professor Cha’s explanation after a long time helped Kim Cheol-su understand the larynx’s anatomical structure.
Of course, understanding the bone structure alone didn’t mean he was ready for surgery.
“Then what about the surrounding muscles?”
“Since you understand the bones, do you want to know about muscles next? Between the thyroid cartilage and cricoid cartilage lies the cricothyroid membrane (000010906906), and on either side are the cricothyroid muscles (00000000). These muscles assist with respiration and phonation.”
Ziiiing…!
At that moment, Kim Cheol-su felt something vibrating in his chest pocket.
What was that? What on earth…
He reached inside and pulled out something, his expression stiffening.
The golden pocket watch, with its broken minute hand, was still inside.
In this era, he didn’t have the pocket watch.
Just as Kim Cheol-su had predicted, this past was connected to the present of 2001.
He murmured so quietly that no one could hear,
“Is this the signal telling me I have to return soon? Wait a moment. I still have questions for the professor.”
Ziiiiiing…!
Suppressing the growing vibration with his hand, Kim Cheol-su prepared to ask his final question.
Once he heard the answer, he intended to return immediately.
Because it was such an important question, even Kim Cheol-su was nervous.
He hadn’t forgotten the fact that Gwak Do-hyun, the chief of ward 5, had a thick neck.
“Professor, I want to ask exactly which part of the neck should be incised. From what I remember, the incision should be made on the cricothyroid membrane ( )/( I 00010): the skin just below the thyroid cartilage protruding like a shield on a man’s neck. But if the thyroid notch isn’t clearly visible in an obese patient’s neck, what should be done?”