Chapter 30, Part 1: Racing Against Time (5)

"Hey, does my talk sound like bullshit to you? Huh?"

In the third-year bathroom, Shim Byung-soo tapped the shins of Park Jung-hoon, who was in front of him, with his toes.

Shim Byung-soo was in a very bad mood.

It was because Park Jung-hoon, whom he had secretly bullied recently, had stopped bringing in the tribute money.

When the special allowance that used to come in regularly stopped, he got upset.

Or maybe it was because of the nerve-wracking encounter with Lee Min-seok in the morning.

He might be taking out his bad mood on Park Jung-hoon.

"My allowance is already all gone to you. I have no more money to give. You can't make money out of thin air, can you?"

Pressed by Shim Byung-soo's气势, Park Jung-hoon answered with his head bowed deeply.

"Hey, look at this ridiculous kid. If you don't have it, that's it? If you don't have it, you should make the money and bring it, as you just said."

Shim Byung-soo poked Park Jung-hoon's shoulder with his index finger.

He felt a strange pleasure from Park Jung-hoon's terrified appearance.

Shim Byung-soo enjoyed ruling over his friends and using them as he pleased. He felt a thrill in controlling everything and kneading it in his hands.

Because it made him feel like he was someone great.

"Hey, you can't come in! I said you can't come in!"

The sound of a scuffle was heard, and one of the delinquents on watch was caught off guard.

Thinking a teacher had come in, he was very nervous, but the person who appeared was none other than Lee Min-seok.

"What are you guys doing?"

Lee Min-seok's gaze, sweeping through the bathroom, was cold.

In contrast, Shim Byung-soo's eyes towards Lee Min-seok were fiery.

Shim Byung-soo disliked Lee Min-seok.

No, he hated him more than just dislike.

Because Lee Min-seok had monopolized the grades and the popularity among classmates that he wanted, making him look pathetic.

Because of Lee Min-seok, he had been stuck in the perennial second place, and some friends even teased him as "Shim Jiter," a play on his name and the character Vegeta from "Dragon Ball," who is always second to Goku.

The reason Shim Byung-soo started bullying Park Jung-hoon included such circumstances.

"Class president, what brings you to the bathroom?"

"There's a reason I came in. Jung-hoon, class is starting. Go back to the classroom quickly."

At Lee Min-seok's words, Park Jung-hoon looked at Shim Byung-soo for a reaction.

Shim Byung-soo glared at Park Jung-hoon, warning him that he wouldn't let him move a single step.

Stuck between Shim Byung-soo and Lee Min-seok, Park Jung-hoon was at a loss and fidgeted.

The tension in the bathroom was palpable.

"Go on, get back to class. I'll talk to Byung-soo."

"U... Okay."

Park Jung-hoon ultimately followed Lee Min-seok's words and returned to the classroom.

'So, you followed Lee Min-seok in the end, huh?'

Shim Byung-soo felt his mood twist like a pretzel.

"Don't bully your classmates so immaturely. Isn't your life already hard enough?"

"Lee Min-seok, just because you're the class president and a model student, do you think I can't touch you?"

"That's what I want to say. Do you think I can't touch you just because you have a few delinquent friends bought with money?"

Lee Min-seok shot back without hesitation.

The more I saw and talked to him, the more unlucky he seemed.

"Hey, let's go."

With the class about to start, Shim Byung-soo returned to the classroom with his delinquent friends.

He scribbled down ways to get back at Lee Min-seok in his notebook to calm his boiling anger.

A moment later, the homeroom teacher entered the classroom.

"The results of the recent nationwide mock exam are out."

At the homeroom teacher's words, Shim Byung-soo's ears perked up.

The main event to crush Lee Min-seok was finally beginning.

"There are two students in our class who achieved remarkable scores. First, Shim Byung-soo."

"Yes, teacher."

Shim Byung-soo, now transformed into a model student, answered politely.

"Byung-soo, your grades have improved a lot. You ranked 30th in the nation in the mock exam. Everyone, give Byung-soo a round of applause!"

Clap. Clap. Clap.

Shim Byung-soo smiled broadly at the applause, feeling a thrill from the hard work he had put in to beat Lee Min-seok.

"And Lee Min-seok."

"Yes, teacher."

"Min-seok, there's no need to say much, is there? Min-seok is the top student in the nation. It's a great honor for me as a teacher that the best student in the nation is in our class. Keep up the good work and help your classmates."

"Yes, teacher."

At the news that Lee Min-seok had topped the nation, Shim Byung-soo's limbs trembled with humiliation.

Again! Again! Again!

Beaten by that damn guy.

Why do I always have to look at the back of that kid's head?

Shim Byung-soo felt as if his body would explode with humiliation, jealousy, and hatred.

We'll see, Lee Min-seok.

* * *

I couldn't shake off the unease throughout the class.

Winning the top score in the nation was expected, so it wasn't particularly joyful, and the problem was Shim Byung-soo.

Shim Byung-soo's actions, twisted by inferiority, were increasingly crossing the line.

I never thought he would call out a classmate and yell at them.

Now that the rumor had been confirmed, I couldn't just stand by.

After the fourth period, during lunchtime,

I called Park Jung-hoon aside to talk, realizing the seriousness of the situation.

"Park Jung-hoon, what did you talk about with Byung-soo in the bathroom earlier?"

"Nothing much."

Park Jung-hoon, who had been the class mood maker until recently, looked gloomy.

I thought I understood the reason through the bathroom incident.

"There's no one watching or listening here. You can be honest with me."

"..."

"Is Byung-soo bullying you? Is that right?"

When I asked directly, Park Jung-hoon's lips moved as if he was about to say something.

But the answer that came out was disappointingly inadequate.

"No, just... asking for some money."

"Shim Byung-soo, a guy like him, asked nicely for money? He didn't take it by force?"

"Y... Yes. So, Min-seok, you don't need to worry about it."

"I want to not worry, but I can't in this situation."

Frustrated, I raised my voice slightly.

The person I should be angry with is Shim Byung-soo, after all.

"Park Jung-hoon, you need to be honest for me to help you."

"It's really nothing. I'm going now."

I could only watch as Park Jung-hoon brushed off the conversation and left.

He seemed to be too intimidated by Shim Byung-soo to speak up.

Even if Park Jung-hoon told me the truth,

I would ultimately have to rely on the homeroom teacher, and if the teacher gave a light lecture, Park Jung-hoon would only suffer more.

Park Jung-hoon must have visualized the whole process in his mind.

Damn school bullying.

A hell for victims, hard to prove and with trivial punishments.

An event I hadn't experienced in my previous life was giving me a headache.

I immediately headed to the school rooftop.

The rooftop was the hangout spot for Shim Byung-soo and his gang.

I intimidated the guys eating snacks from the cafeteria, telling them not to bully Park Jung-hoon anymore.

Unfortunately, that was the best I could do at this point.

The rest was about gradually preparing for retaliation by stepping on Shim Byung-soo's tail.

* * *

After finishing my task, I finished my lunch and wandered around the schoolyard.

My mind was heavy and complicated after realizing the relationship between Shim Byung-soo and Park Jung-hoon.

I needed a moment to breathe.

On my way to the playground, I spotted a student eating a cafeteria bread on a bench.

The student's name was Kwak Do-an.

He was from the next class and a friend of my close friend, Song Yun-ho.

We had hung out a few times.

"Whatcha doing here alone? Chewing on loneliness?"

I sat next to Kwak Do-an, jokingly.

"Just thinking to myself. What about you? Aren't you playing basketball with Yun-ho today?"

"Similar to you. I have some things to sort out."

"Really? Are you chewing on loneliness too?"

We chatted briefly and looked out at the playground, bustling with students playing soccer and basketball.

Laughter erupted from various spots.

"I heard you topped the nation in the mock exam? That's amazing."

"I worked hard, but mostly it was luck."

I wasn't just being modest; I truly believed it, having benefited greatly from the luck of regression.

"Ugh... For some reason, that sounds even more unlucky."

"Unlucky on purpose."

Kwak Do-an shuddered at my wordplay.

As I watched him, I noticed the prayer beads on his wrist.

"Are you Buddhist?"

"No. I'm not, but my grandmother was. This is her legacy."

Kwak Do-an's expression turned melancholic as he mentioned his grandmother's death.

His grandmother had passed away three weeks ago due to complications after heart surgery.

I had lost my father in a table death in my previous life.

Instantly, a solemn feeling and a sharp pain in my chest came over me.

"I see. Sorry, I didn't know..."

"It's fine. You couldn't have known."

Kwak Do-an waved his hand and continued.

"It was a strange feeling when my grandmother passed away. She was quite healthy, and the surgery was done at a big hospital. The doctor said there would be almost no aftereffects..."

"..."

"She passed away a week after the surgery due to complications. It felt like being struck by lightning."

As Kwak Do-an continued, I sensed something unsettling.

A week after surgery, she died from complications?

Was there an issue with hospital infection?

What heart condition did Kwak Do-an's grandmother have?

What kind of surgery did she undergo?

I felt an urge to investigate further.

"What was wrong with your grandmother?"

"I don't remember the details... but I heard her coronary arteries were blocked. She had a procedure to open them."

"What kind of procedure?"

"It's a popular surgery these days. No general anesthesia, and it only takes 1-2 hours. They said it was the best option considering her age."

It seemed Kwak Do-an's grandmother had undergone a coronary stent procedure.

A coronary stent procedure involves inserting a long tube into the narrowed coronary artery and expanding it with a metal mesh.

'Now that I think about it, this is around the time.'

In 1999, stent procedures were gaining popularity.

Traditional stent procedures had a high rate of restenosis and were limited to certain conditions.

However, the development of drug-eluting stents around 1999 paved the way for a new era in stent procedures.

A new technology that released drugs to prevent restenosis was developed.

The short procedure time, the advantage of quick recovery without general anesthesia or incisions, and the excellent procedure results made many cardiologists interested in drug-eluting coronary stents.

This led to a slight reduction in the influence of thoracic surgeons.

While stent procedures were relatively safe, they were also prone to incidents.

Especially during this period of upheaval in stent procedures, such incidents were more likely.

Was the suspicious feeling I had about Kwak Do-an's grandmother's death just a delusion?

"By the way, did you know the name of the professor who operated on my grandmother was quite unique?"

"What was the name?"

"Min-tae-rang. My mom laughed when she told me his name. It would have been a pretty good name if it weren't for the surname."

The unexpected name hit the back of my head like a hammer.

Min-tae-rang.

A name I couldn't forget and shouldn't forget.

Why did Min-tae-rang's name come up here?

I bit my lip, realizing the gravity of the situation.