IMTS 14

Chapter 14

“Sorry about earlier. Ah… my stomach hurt so much, I felt like I was going to die, so I got a little sensitive. Heh heh.”

“Ah… okay.”

The man apologized cheerfully and treated Cheonga warmly.

As they walked toward the café, she quickly realized why he seemed so familiar.

“Wow, Nurse! It’s been a while!”

“Hello, Professor. I’ll come see you later!”

He greeted every hospital staff member they passed as if he knew them all personally, yet he never ignored Cheonga.

It was impressive—really skilled behavior.

“What would you like to drink? Hehe. I’ll buy it too, as an apology. I can’t let such a pretty lady treat me. Get something expensive!”

He handed her the most expensive coffee at the hospital café and naturally continued asking questions. Most were work-related—like the preferences or snacks of people in the endoscopy room he had observed while taking out the trash.

He even subtly asked if she had ever seen the list of medicines professors usually prescribe. Typical pharmaceutical sales tactics.

Yet suspicion still lingered.

It was hard to put into words, but something felt off.

“I have to go see the professor now. See you next time!”

“Okay, go ahead.”

Only after parting from him did Cheonga realize the basis of her suspicion.

That man…

“He didn’t make a sound when he walked.”

A sales representative whose job relied on showing themselves off wouldn’t walk silently.

Now that she thought about it, it made sense.

Even in the restroom, she had been startled to hear a voice when she thought she was alone.

“Suspicious guy.”

Even if the salesman had really stolen and returned a note, it wouldn’t have been a big problem.

The Morse code didn’t contain anything important, and the real code couldn’t be deciphered without the pre-agreed password.

“The hospital is huge. And suspicious people keep showing up… ugh, this is troublesome.”

Cheonga stared down at her phone. She wanted to tell Yeonhee about this, but it wasn’t possible right now.

“And on top of that, someone’s eavesdropping.”

With a deep sigh, she shoved her phone into her pocket and trudged on to finish the rest of her work.

After finishing her day, Cheonga headed, as usual, to Yushin’s lab.

When she weakly pushed open the door, she met Min Yushin’s gaze, who was staring at a monitor.

“Uh…?”

Cheonga gave an awkward smile.

“You’re still here… I came to clean, you see.”

Her mind flashed to the Morse code message from Yeonhee’s note.

“Min Yushin. You said you’re definitely forty.”

Out of habit, she spoke politely.

The glow from the monitor reflected on Yushin’s glasses, then quickly vanished. He took off his glasses, placed them on the desk, and stood.

“Do you always come to clean after work? I think you came pretty late the other day too.”

Cheonga wanted to respond politely, but her words came out unfiltered:

“If I cleaned during work hours, I’d get fired. It’s outside the work guidelines, you see.”

Yushin’s expression darkened.

“Then why do you volunteer to clean every professor’s office?”

She had expected the question. To avoid such confrontational questions, she would have had to stay silent.

Cheonga swallowed hard.

“I’m a subordinate. If they tell me to do something, I do it. I can’t pick and choose. If a professor complains, my head’s on the line.”

Pouting, she closed her eyes tightly. Seeing Yushin’s office in such a mess today made her stomach churn.

“And the other offices don’t take long to clean…”

“….”

They both avoided eye contact.

“Professor. Don’t you feel sorry for me? Please, don’t mess up your office. Do you even read all these books? Why do you leave them piled up like this?”

“…I read them all every day.”

Yushin muttered a brief excuse.

Cheonga trembled as she pointed at the desk.

“The papers too?”

“Well… I need to study.”

For some reason, Yushin looked a little embarrassed. He smiled awkwardly and ran a hand through his hair.

Cheonga’s frustration grew.

“Still… couldn’t you put them away after reading?”

Yushin slowly turned his gaze to her, scanning her neck and wrists covered with patches, and said:

“I’ll try. For today… take a rest.”

“….”

“Come again tomorrow. A promise is a promise. Keep cleaning until it’s tidy… that would be good.”

He walked slowly to the center table and picked up a promotional item from a bag with the Buang Pharmaceutical sticker. It was a tonic.

With a click, the brown bottle opened and was handed to Cheonga. Surprised by the unexpected kindness, she blurted:

“Why?”

Yushin smiled, taking her hand and pressing a vitamin pack into it.

“You seem to like these.”

“Huh?”

“You ate two while cleaning that day.”

Cheonga’s face turned bright red.

—One or two wouldn’t matter, right…?

She remembered that day, thinking she could get away with it. She had eaten one, then another… but there had been dozens stacked up like a mountain. How did he notice?

Cheonga closed her eyes tightly.

Yushin laughed heartily.

“Ah… haha… th-thank you.”

“Oh, it’s fine. Take it, take it. It’s not my money anyway. I can give as much as you want.”

Cheonga, pale as a ghost, shoved the vitamins into her mouth and gulped down the tonic. Even after finishing the bottle, it felt like the vitamins were stuck in her throat.

“Then I’ll be going now!”

The moment she backed out of the office, she started running full speed.

This is insane…!

As she left, she saw Yushin smiling with his eyes nearly closed.

Whether it was from the stuck vitamins or her pounding heart from running, she couldn’t tell.

“Ugh… so embarrassing. Did he really go through the trash? How did he know?”

Her heart pounded as she sighed repeatedly.

“Why does he keep laughing like that… It hurts my heart. Wait… why does my heart hurt? He’s forty. Forty. He’s an older man… but that face… forty? Crazy. Suspicious guy.”

At the same time, back in the lab where Cheonga had disappeared, Yushin quickly tapped his in-ear to call Chamkkae.

[Hey, Mess.]

“Channel 29. Connect quickly.”

[Now? I’m busy.]

“I’m busier. I planted a bug on Meerkat.”

A loud laugh came through the earpiece.

[Again? You’re really talented. Did you force-feed it? Or charm him with your face?]

“Stop wasting time. It’s urgent.”

Typing and murmuring sounds came through.

[Ah… I’m really busy too. I’m decoding a cipher here. I have to work because you’re slacking.]

“….”

[The brute-force is too slow, and the Morse code scheme doesn’t match. Did you see the cipher text? Should we call an expert?]

“Don’t worry. It’s nothing important.”

Yushin’s casual answer brought a brief silence.

[Wait, Mess. You didn’t… decode it, did you? You did, right? You interpreted it!]

Chamkae started babbling, demanding the decoded message.