Chapter 200: Chapter 201: A Family’s Celebration
After Ji Won finished introducing his father to Ares, they eventually began discussing the matter of leaving the hospital.
It wasn’t as simple as walking out.
Ji Won approached the nurses’ station and explained that his father wanted to be discharged, but the moment the staff checked the room and saw Han Do-hyun sitting upright beside the bed, everything stopped.
The nurse who entered first froze in the doorway.
For several seconds, she simply stared at him.
She had seen Han Do-hyun countless times over the past several years. She knew exactly what he had looked like whenever she entered the room: thin, pale, motionless, and completely dependent on the medical equipment surrounding his bed.
The man sitting in front of her now looked nothing like that patient.
His complexion was healthy, his body no longer appeared weak, and there was a clear sharpness in his eyes that hadn’t been there before. Even more surprising was the fact that he was sitting upright without assistance.
"Mr. Han..."
Her voice came out quietly.
Do-hyun looked toward her.
"Yes?"
The nurse blinked several times.
"I’m sorry, but... are you Han Do-hyun?"
Ji Won almost smiled at the question.
"Yes, that’s my father."
The nurse stared at him again before quickly turning around.
"I’ll call the doctor."
Within minutes, several doctors entered the room. Their expressions became increasingly confused as they examined Do-hyun and compared him with the medical records they had on file.
"Please lie down for a moment."
Do-hyun followed their instructions without complaint.
The doctors began checking everything.
His heart.
His lungs.
His nervous system.
His mana circulation.
His blood pressure.
His organ function.
They ran every examination they could reasonably perform, expecting to find some indication that the sudden change was temporary or that his previous condition was still present beneath the surface.
There was nothing.
His organs were healthy.
His mana circulation was stable.
His nervous system showed no signs of the deterioration that had previously characterized his condition.
Even the damage caused by years of Mana Paralysis Syndrome appeared to have disappeared completely.
One of the doctors stared at the results.
"This can’t be right."
Another doctor looked over his shoulder.
"What did you find?"
"Nothing."
The doctor shook his head slowly.
"His results are completely normal."
"Completely?"
"Yes."
The room became quiet.
The doctors continued checking the results, repeating several examinations simply because they couldn’t understand how the first results could possibly be accurate.
Each test produced the same conclusion.
Han Do-hyun was healthy.
The doctor eventually looked toward Ji Won.
"How did this happen?"
Ji Won hesitated.
He had expected this question.
"My father received a medicine."
"A medicine?"
"Yes."
"What medicine?"
Ji Won glanced briefly toward Ares before answering carefully.
"Something a friend gave me."
The doctor frowned.
"What kind of medicine could possibly do this?"
Ji Won shook his head.
"I don’t know much about it myself."
The doctors exchanged uncertain looks.
One of them picked up Do-hyun’s old medical records.
"This patient was in the final stages of Mana Paralysis Syndrome."
He looked toward Do-hyun.
"He shouldn’t even be capable of sitting like this."
Do-hyun smiled faintly.
"I understand."
The doctor looked at him again.
"Mr. Han, do you feel any pain?"
"No."
"Numbness?"
"No."
"Difficulty moving?"
"None."
"Any dizziness or weakness?"
"Nothing."
The doctor remained silent.
He looked at Do-hyun’s movements as the older man stood from the bed without assistance.
The doctor’s expression became even more complicated.
"You’re really fine."
Do-hyun smiled.
"It seems so."
The doctors continued discussing the results among themselves, clearly unable to reconcile the patient’s current condition with the records they had accumulated over several years.
Eventually, however, there was nothing left for them to examine.
The hospital could find no medical reason to keep him admitted.
The necessary paperwork was completed, his medical equipment was removed, and the hospital formally prepared his discharge.
Even then, several members of the medical staff continued glancing toward Do-hyun as though they were expecting him to suddenly return to his previous condition.
Nothing happened.
He remained perfectly healthy.
After everything was finally settled, Ji Won collected his father’s belongings.
Do-hyun changed into the clothes Ji Won had brought for him, and the transformation was even more noticeable once he was no longer wearing a hospital gown.
The man who had spent years lying helplessly in a hospital bed now looked like a healthy man in his late thirties.
He stood beside his son and adjusted his coat.
"Are we ready?"
Ji Won nodded.
"Yeah."
Ares stood nearby.
"Then let’s go."
They left the hospital together.
The doctors watched from a distance as the three walked through the entrance.
None of them said anything.
They were still trying to understand what they had witnessed.
For years, Han Do-hyun had been one of their most difficult long-term patients.
Now he had walked out of the hospital completely healthy.
---
By the time they returned to the apartment.
Ji Won had decided that simply bringing his father home wasn’t enough to celebrate what had happened, so the three of them had stopped at several restaurants and food stores along the way. By the time they finally returned, the dining table was completely covered with Korean food.
There were several dishes of grilled meat, japchae, fried chicken, tteokbokki, kimbap, mandu, various side dishes, bowls of rice, and several different soups. Ji Won had also bought enough drinks and desserts to make it obvious that they had no intention of worrying about leftovers.
The three of them eventually sat around the table.
Do-hyun looked at the food in front of him with a faint smile, while Ares quietly observed the father and son sitting across from him.
Ji Won, however, was still having trouble believing what had happened.
He looked at his father for several seconds before speaking.
"I still can’t believe it."
Do-hyun turned toward him.
"Hmm?"
Ji Won smiled faintly.
"That I’m actually sitting here with you."
He looked at his father again.
"After all those years of seeing you lying in that hospital bed, I honestly thought I’d never get to see you like this again."
His voice softened.
"Now you’re sitting here eating with me like nothing ever happened."
Do-hyun looked down at his hands for a moment before smiling.
"I’m having trouble believing it myself."
Ares looked between them.
Then he tilted his head slightly.
"Hmm."
Ji Won glanced toward him.
"What is it, Tae-Ho?"
Ares looked at Do-hyun.
"Is it just me, or do you two look more like brothers now?"
Ji Won froze for a moment.
"Y-Yeah..."
He looked at his father again and seemed to notice the resemblance more clearly.
"That’s probably because of the Elixir of Rebirth. Father returned to his youthful appearance, so he looks like he’s in his thirties again."
Do-hyun smiled faintly.
Ji Won continued with a more amused expression.
"Anyone who saw him like this would probably think he’s around my age."
Ares stared at him for a moment.
He laughed softly.
Do-hyun shook his head with a quiet smile.
"No matter what happens, I don’t think I’ll ever be able to replace your mother."
Ji Won’s expression softened.
"Well, I’m glad to hear that."
The three continued eating, and for a while the conversation became quieter as they simply enjoyed the meal together.
After some time, Ji Won finally remembered something he needed to tell his father.
"By the way, Father."
Do-hyun looked toward him.
"What is it?"
"There’s something I should tell you about tomorrow."
Do-hyun nodded.
"Go ahead."
"Father, Tae-ho and I will be going out tomorrow because we’re hunting inside an A-Rank dungeon."
Do-hyun immediately stopped eating.
"An A-Rank dungeon?"
His expression changed noticeably.
Ji Won nodded.
"Yes."
Do-hyun looked at him with concern.
"You’re planning to enter an A-Rank dungeon tomorrow?"
"Don’t worry."
Ji Won quickly explained.
"I’m not going in as the main attacker. I’m going there as support, and besides, I’m an A-Rank Awakener now, aren’t I?"
Do-hyun remained serious.
"That may be true, but an A-Rank dungeon is still extremely dangerous."
He looked toward Ji Won.
"The monsters inside are far stronger than anything you’ve been hunting before, and the boss is usually an S-Rank monster as well, isn’t it?"
"Yes."
Ji Won nodded.
"But my party is from the Titan Guild. They said they needed another A-Rank Awakener to provide additional support, so when I received the invitation, I decided to accept it."
He paused before continuing.
"And the reward is considerably higher this time. They’re paying five million won."
Do-hyun’s eyes widened slightly.
"Five million won?"
"Yes."
He nodded.
"That’s quite a lot."
Do-hyun looked thoughtful for a moment before his expression became serious again.
"But it’s still dangerous."
Ji Won understood his concern.
"I know."
He glanced toward Ares.
"But don’t worry too much, Father. Tae-ho is coming with me."
Do-hyun looked at Ares.
Ji Won continued.
"He may not look like it, but he’s actually much stronger than I am."
Do-hyun studied Ares for a moment.
Ares simply continued eating as though the conversation had nothing to do with him.
Do-hyun eventually sighed.
"I suppose there isn’t much I can say if you’ve already made your decision."
He looked at his son seriously.
"Just be careful, both of you."
Ji Won nodded.
"Yes."
Do-hyun lowered his gaze toward his food.
"The last time an A-Rank party from one of the major guilds entered an A-Rank dungeon, they were completely annihilated."
His expression became more serious.
"So whatever confidence you have in your abilities, don’t let it make you careless."
Ji Won nodded again.
"I understand, Father."
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