Hazardous Concentration Chapter 29

When he turned his body, a mirror was immediately visible. The bathroom Eunhoo used had a washbasin and a shower stall set up one after the other. Therefore, he was able to check his face right away.

Although he had cooled it down by splashing cold water on it, it had been flushed red due to the fever until just a moment ago. As is the case with most of Eunhoo’s face, it was especially dark today. On his way back home, he stopped by the police station. It was to report his father’s disappearance. However, the police’s response was always the same.

‘If he were a minor, that would be one thing, but since he is an adult, there are many cases where it is simply running away from home, so it is difficult to file a missing person report. I am sorry that I cannot be of help.’

It was useless even when Eunhoo explained the circumstances. Still, he couldn’t give up, so even knowing it was futile, he couldn’t help but visit the police station.

The principal repayment date was right around the corner. He hadn’t known it before, but when a person is pushed to the limit, the thought of “let come what may” becomes stronger than feeling anxious.

“Ha.”

Eunhoo let out a short sigh and wiped the water off his body with a towel hanging on the towel rack. Just as he was rubbing his hair for the last time and leaving the bathroom, the ringing of a cell phone reached his ears.

Who is it?

He was puzzled because it was a bit early for a designated driver call, so Eunhoo looked at the phone and tilted his head at the number he was seeing for the first time.

The number was a general telephone line starting with 02.

“Hello.”

When he answered the phone with a cautious voice, a desperate voice came from the other side of the phone.

—This is the hospital. You are the guardian of Ms. Park Miok, correct? The patient’s condition is not good. You need to come quickly.

In an instant, his breath caught in his throat, as if water were filling his lungs.

Soaking wet with sweat, as if he had been caught in the rain, Eunhoo ran and ran.

“Huff, huff.”

Not only his lungs but even his chest ached. Bursting with breath that surged up to his throat, Eunhoo moved his trembling legs in any way he could to run.

As soon as he received the call from the hospital, he had dashed out and caught a passing taxi, but it happened to get caught in rush hour traffic.

Unable to wait any longer in the stagnant road conditions, he got off midway. And he ran like crazy. He couldn’t think of anything else.

She had received heart valve surgery once in the past and had managed to get by with medication until now, but when his mother collapsed recently, he had been told that if this were to happen one more time, they might have to proceed with surgery again. The problem was the surgery cost. Even if medical benefits were applied, it was in the millions. His mind knew that they had to have the surgery as soon as possible, but their circumstances were too poor. His mother knew that well, too, so she only said she was fine. So, Eunhoo, too, had just ended up closing his eyes to it.

“Huff, huff.”

Beyond his vision, which had become blurry from being drenched in sweat, he saw the familiar hospital sign.

Eunhoo, who had reached the hospital after running without stopping, even though he had almost tripped several times, headed straight to the room where his mother was hospitalized.

It was a 6-bed room with a total of six patients. His mother was in a window seat. Hurrying toward that spot, he found the bed was empty.

“Oh my goodness, Mr. Eunhoo!”

The caregiver, who happened to be coming out of the bathroom, saw Eunhoo and reacted with a fuss, asking what he should do.

“Why are you only here now!”

“M, Mom, our mom is….”

“Oh no, she was moved to the intensive care unit a little while ago.”

His face, which had been flushed red from the heat, turned pale to an unbelievable degree. Eunhoo immediately turned his body and headed toward the intensive care unit. The intensive care unit was one floor up from the hospital room. However, the intensive care unit was firmly closed.

Mom. Mom.

Eunhoo stomped his feet, his face twisted. Through the glass door in front of Eunhoo, who was heaving his chest and breathing roughly, he saw medical staff about to leave the intensive care unit. Eunhoo, who dashed in front of them as if to pounce, hastily opened his mouth.

“Yes, huff, mom, Pa, Park, huff huff.”

However, because he was out of breath, his words only circled inside his mouth. The doctor, who saw Eunhoo standing tall right in front of the glass door, was startled for a moment, but soon noticed who he was talking about and asked.

“Ah… are you the guardian of Ms. Park Miok?”

Eunhoo nodded with a deathly pale face.

“As I told you briefly over the phone, Ms. Park Miok suddenly experienced respiratory distress an hour ago. Fortunately, we discovered it immediately and treated her. For now, she is not able to breathe on her own, so we have connected her to a ventilator after performing an endotracheal intubation.”

Eunhoo blinked his eyes, not knowing if they were wet with sweat, tears, or both. His eyes were bloodshot.

“Th, then what should I do now?”

“She needs surgery, but….”

The doctor said something, but nothing reached his muffled ears.

“You might already be aware, but our hospital does not perform surgeries other than emergency treatment. You must go to a larger hospital.”

“Ah….”

The strength drained from his legs, which he had been barely supporting himself with.

“Oh my!”

Eunhoo barely managed to inhale. Perhaps because he was so shocked, the trembling of his body did not disappear. Every time a problem occurred with his mother, Eunhoo’s heart would sink.

“Guardian, are you alright?”

Eunhoo shook his head while wiping his wet eyes with his palm.

“…No.”

A hot sob welled up to his throat. He tried to swallow his tears while keeping his lips firmly closed, but it wasn’t easy. A sob leaked out.

“Not at all.”

Eunhoo muttered with a voice filled with weeping.

“I’m not alright.”

It feels like I’m going to die from the difficulty. From all directions, they were strangling my neck, telling me to die. No matter how much I wiped and wiped, the traces of misfortune on my body showed no sign of being erased.

It was hard to hold on any longer. Like sinking into a swamp, it felt as though my breath was being cut off. Having hit his limit, Eunhoo couldn’t lift his head.

He desperately wished for anyone, even if it were the devil, to rescue him from this hell.

∞ ∞ ∞

As they entered the summer season, the political scene, which had already been hot, became even more intense.

Although it was something most had already expected, July began with Assemblyman Jung Myunghoon being confirmed as the presidential candidate with the highest vote percentage of 82%. The business world also moved quickly in accordance with that.

Yeo Taejun, who was sitting in the back seat and scanning the documents for a large-scale order being pursued overseas, raised his head to look straight ahead. Before he knew it, the car was entering a familiar alley.

The Yeo family’s main residence was located in Seowon-dong, an affluent village. Among those, Haewon-ro was famous as a place that everyone who knew, knew.

Though it was called an alley, the width alone looked like it could easily be a three-lane road. The street was quiet. Especially now, close to midnight, there wasn’t even a trace of a person to be found. Even so, this place was one of the safest alleys in Seoul. This was because most of the residents used vehicles rather than walking, and the area was densely packed with CCTV cameras from the buildings to the street corners.

The car stopped at a building located on the largest road among them.

“Then, I will see you tomorrow, Director.”

Yeo Taejun nodded lightly to Kim Hyunseong and got out of the car. Including the servants residing in the mansion, there were very few cases where Yeo Taejun used the main gate. This is because there is a door inside the garage that leads directly to the main building.

Unlike other houses where the mansion is immediately visible upon opening the main gate and entering, in the Yeo family’s main residence, the garden was seen first. This was due to the instructions of his grandfather, who had lived his life while making many enemies. For this reason, those visiting for the first time would often lose their way in the garden, which was as complex as a labyrinth.

“Woof!”

As he entered the house, the Bull Terrier he raised came toward him, wagging its tail. The dog showed its belly to Yeo Taejun, panting with a docile face.

“You’ve arrived, Director. You returned home early today.”

Butler Yoon, who oversaw the household affairs, said while greeting Yeo Taejun.

The clock visible in the front was passing 11:40. It was a very late night approaching midnight, so it was not a time to call it early, but if you considered his usual return time, it was not an incorrect statement. Originally, he had barely returned home late at night after leaving the house at dawn due to the heavy workload, but as Chairman Yeo became unconscious due to an accident, Yeo Taejun became even busier. These days, it was common for him to return at 2:00 or 3:00 in the morning.

“Butler Yoon, you should head off to work as well.”

“Yes. I’ve seen that you’ve arrived, Director, so I shall go in.”

The place where Butler Yoon stayed was the servant building located next door.