Dark-Haired British Doctor Chapter 1

Prologue – Back to the 19th Century?

“Joo-hyuk.”

“Please tell me quickly. I… … will it be difficult?”

Even though I said that, I still had some secret expectations.

What the hell is going on?

I'm only thirty-eight years old, and I'm dying?

I finally got my medical degree and went to the military, and now that I'm done with my fellowship, I wonder if I can live a decent life.

“This is… … the CT scan you took.”

Instead of answering, my friend turned the monitor around and showed it to me.

What appeared on the screen was my head.

To be exact, the brain, especially the middle part when cut horizontally from the top?

Even though I tried to ignore it, I couldn't take my eyes off the tumor that was almost 4cm in size because of the knowledge I had gained from my training as a doctor.

The degree of contrast and the appearance are both like that.

“It’s malignant. We’ll have to do a biopsy to be sure… … But if things continue like this, surgery will be difficult.”

"under……."

Yeah, just looking at it, it looks like surgery isn't possible.

It looks like X, really.

Why did something like that appear in my head?

My eyes closed without me knowing.

"uh……."

It definitely looked like a clinic just now.

When I opened my eyes, I saw a familiar ceiling.

I was lying in the hospital bed.

“Have you had a seizure already?”

"yes."

“Did you contact your parents?”

“That’s right, Joo-hyuk is an orphan. He’s not even married.”

“Ah… … That… … Right.”

The senior neurosurgery professor and his friend were talking next to me, unaware that I was awake.

“How much… … do you have left?”

My friend asked with a dark expression.

The professor couldn't answer right away and just sighed.

'no…….'

It was a familiar sight.

Even I couldn't open my mouth right away when I was standing in front of patients with pancreatic cancer or bile duct cancer.

In other words, it meant that the situation was hopeless.

“A month at most? Even more so because you’re young.”

"under."

“Since you’re single… …Tell him to take good care of himself. Tell him to take home at least some happy memories.”

“Shall I connect you to the hospice ward?”

“If you have pain, there’s nothing you can do. You’ll have to get palliative care.”

Palliative care.

It was not a treatment to extend life, but to make the path to death a little easier.

'What the fu*k… … .'

I've just been living hard.

As a result, I have finally been hired and became a professor.

A brain tumor before I could even get my professor's business card.

What the heck is this… … .

What the hell kind of life is this?

I don't remember much after that.

“Okay, have a nice trip.”

"thank you."

As soon as I was discharged from the hospital, I took a train straight to Donghae.

I felt like I wanted to see the sea before I die.

I arrived safely and was walking to the beach when something flew towards me at high speed.

“Oh, what is it?”

At first I thought it was an illusion caused by a brain tumor.

There's no way a truck the size of a house would suddenly appear here.

I already have cancer and now a truck is coming?

Isn't this too much?

“Ugh, euaaa.”

I had that thought in my mind as I flew by.

I thought I saw black asphalt, but then my mind suddenly went blank.

* * *

“Huh? The baby is crying!”

And when I opened my eyes, the unfamiliar ceiling was shaking.

It felt like someone was picking me up and shaking me.

No, it was really shaking.

“Oh, thank you, God.”

Then he pushed me into a woman he was seeing for the first time.

The woman smiled at me, then quickly frowned.

I also closed my eyes because I felt so weak.

When I opened my eyes again, I was tied up and couldn't move.

Although I couldn't even turn my head very well, I could figure out what was going on.

'I guess I've become a baby… … .'

Episode 1 19th Century [1]

The place where I was born.

So the place of rebirth was a small town called Upton in 19th century England.

“Hey, monkey!”

A small city with a population of about 12,000.

To be honest, if I were to compare it to the memories of the 21st century, it was more like a rural village than a city.

“You guys want to get behind me? How dare you do that to my friend!”

“Oh, Joseph is angry!”

“Hey, you should say something to those kids when they do that! They’re only doing that because you’re keeping quiet.”

“Well… … I can’t help it. I look different.”

Isn't racial discrimination something that still exists in the 21st century?

The island nation of Britain is even worse.

But the era I was reborn into was even the 19th century.

In Britain today, there are many people who are seeing an Asian like me for the first time.

‘No… … How could I have been reborn in England and not Joseon… … .’

Even I had doubts.

What the heck is going on?

As I found out later, my family was one of the first Catholic families in Joseon.

'I was going to Macau to become a priest or nun, but then I fell in love with someone and… … .'

My parents said that they fell in love while sailing to Macau with Father Kim Dae-geon and others.

Still, I could have just gone back to Joseon, but since I was already here, I decided to at least see England, so I followed Father Aidan.

My family history is that I was born and settled down on a ship while everyone else was working.

“They are all children of God! Just because they look different, what are they monkeys for? I am the real one!”

Thanks to the priest's help with various things, there weren't any major difficulties.

In particular, he lived better than most families because his father was employed at a winery run by the Lister family, who were devout Quakers.

me?

I'm from the Lister family… …so I was friends with Joseph Lister and we were getting along well.

“By the way… … Do you want to try it today too?”

“Oh, are your eyes okay? I heard that if you do that often, your eyes will hurt.”

“It’s okay. It’s something simple… … I can do it.”

It's okay if the child is okay.

This guy had a microscope.

The problem was that because it was such a primitive object, looking at it made my eyes feel like they were going to fall out.

Coming back to the 19th century in the 21st century, when there were so many fun things to do, there weren't many toys like a microscope.

“Then should I catch something first?”

"good."

Besides, as an Asian, I could go anywhere with Joseph, the neighborhood influencer.

Since they were a family that could be considered one of the richest in the city, everyone tried to look good to Joseph.

Of course, there were some kids who couldn't tell the difference between heaven and earth and just rushed in.

Isn't this the first person to rise to the level of professor in 21st century Korea?

There was not a single person, evil or violent, who could compare to me.

“Hey, hey. Pull!”

"okay!"

Anyway, Lister and I often went to the nearby beach to play and catch shrimp and fish.

Then, a simple dissection was performed and observed under a microscope.

To me, the heart-beating shrimp wasn't that surprising.

“Wow… … Really… … Running… … .”

It was a new world to Joseph.

“I guess I should go to medical school.”

Maybe that's why his dream was to become a doctor.

Shrimp and humans are probably quite different.

Although he wondered if it was okay to decide on a dream based on something like this, Joseph's father was very pleased with Joseph's decision.

“Really? You’re going to medical school?”

“Yes, Father. I want to go with Taepyeong!”

“Peace. Hmm.”

“I know medical school tuition is expensive. But Tae-pyeong is my best friend… … and he’s smart. If we go together, we’ll be able to pay it back later.”

I was so excited that I immediately promised to send him to medical school.

“Don’t just talk about it, go to London and see for yourself.”

“Yes? Really?”

“Yes, really. Tae-pyeong, you should ask your father for permission too.”

“Yes, thank you, father.”

What can our father do if he even pays the money?

Besides, I wasn't planning on going to college right away; I was just going on a field trip.

"London……?"

“Yes, London. I’ll tag along on the way to the winery.”

“Well… … That would be great. Just don’t go alone. You know? It’s dangerous.”

“Oh, yes. Of course.”

Permission was easy to obtain.

Of course you are worried.

Am I a kid?

He's 15 years old, so he's still a kid.

In this day and age, a 15 year old is practically an adult, and if you include the age from a past life, it's over 50.

In fact, I am older than my father, that's what was said.

'I'm so nervous… … .'

Still, the journey from Upton to London was exciting.

It was only natural, since I had never left this small town since I was born again.

And that excitement began to die down as soon as we set off.

'The length… is a total mess.'

I forgot it was the 19th century.

No matter how quickly Britain developed through the Industrial Revolution, the 19th century was still the 19th century.

“Uh uh… … .”

“Hey, hold on tight.”

Joseph was in the same situation.

This was his first time on a road like this, since he was also a country bumpkin from Upton.

Still, he was probably more surprised than I was.

Because his house is the epitome of luxury.

From the oriental-style bridge in the garden to the well-decorated trees… … .

Compared to that, this road was just hell.

“Okay, that’s London.”

No, the word hell was cancelled.

Hell was London.

“I… … am I in the gray city?”

I don't think so?

That's what the old man said.

London is the best city in the world.

But that is… … .

“Yes, that black smoke is the symbol of London.”

No… … Don’t use it as a symbol… … .

You can't go in there… … .

Dagdak dagdak-

Regardless of my wishes, the carriage soon entered London.

London, which looked far from comedy even from afar, was a true tragedy when seen up close.

"town."

“Hahaha! Is it because you’re a country bumpkin? You can’t adapt to the city vibes!”

The smell is fu*king… … .

I looked at the old man who was calling me a country bumpkin.

I was thinking to myself, "F*ck, f*ck."

No matter how much I thought about it, the curse was still Shintoism.

Even if a shitty situation comes up, don't you feel a little better if you do something?

'No, that's not it.'

Not today.

It couldn't be solved.

London is… … .

“Whew, waaaaay”

While riding in a carriage, someone vomited next to me.

“Let’s go, let’s go!”

Something covered in a blanket passed by, and I could vaguely see what looked like a human foot.

As I was thinking that it couldn't be true, the old man opened his mouth.

There was a face that was always smiling, as if something was so good about it.

“That’s a corpse that’s been delivered to the University College London Medical School. That’s why their dissection skills are top-notch!”

yes?

What?

You're delivering the body?

The word delivery itself was a problem, but I thought I could understand and pass it over as an occupational disease of the old man's work as a wine merchant.

The real problem was just with that body.

'Corruption… seems to have progressed quite a bit…?'

If I dissect that thing, I'm afraid I'll catch a terrible infectious disease before I can gain any knowledge.

“Haha. Joseph, I’ve told you a lot about London, but Taepyeong, you’re frozen because it’s your first time here! Hold your chest out! You have to be confident in a big city!”

"no……."

It's not about being confident, man.

You shouldn't dissect things like that.

You can't go to that university either.

“Oh, they’re all here. Let’s set up. This is something I do every day, so it’ll be over soon. If you just stand here and wait a bit, we can go out and take a look at the medical school.”

Whether he knew what I was thinking or not, the old man got out of the carriage and went into the store.

Then, together with the laborers, he diligently carried the wine inside.

I couldn't just sit still either, so I tried to help out, and the little boy who was originally at the store started staring at me.

"why?"

I thought the monkey song was about to start again, but something unexpected came out.

“Wow, it looks really unique.”

Is this a pure attack?

They say he has such a unique appearance and such a bright face.

“Inseok, come in!”

Fortunately, the store owner was kind.

“I’m sorry, I don’t know what you’re doing. Haha. I guess you were curious because you have yellow skin, small eyes, and black hair.”

I'll take back the word "good."

Just digging into the wound.

If it were the 21st century, racial discrimination would be punishable by death.

“Oh, yes. Thank you.”

But this is the 19th century.

It's a time when bad guys can capture you and sell you to the circus.

So, I bowed my head as I had been taught by my father and priest for the past ten years.

“Oh, really? We’re so lucky.”

After that, as I continued to carry the wine, the old man gradually left the line and started talking to the store owner.

There was nothing to say.

There is no law that says the boss has to do dirty work.

“Yeah. That’s great that your son is interested in medical school. I’ll finish up here, so you go first.”

“Oh, okay. I will do that. Thanks.”

“What is this between us?”

Anyway, as we were having that conversation, the old man suddenly came out and tapped Joseph on the shoulder.

"let's go."

“Yes? Where?”

“He’s having surgery. Let’s go see it.”

"yes?"

Are you going to watch the surgery?

What kind of new thing is this?

You shouldn't be looking at that.

So I made a blank expression, and the old man laughed again.

“Our Upton country bumpkin is going to be in for a surprise today. There is something called surgery in this world!”

I know, sir.

I became a surgeon and even a professor.

Even though I was diagnosed with a brain tumor right after becoming a professor…

No, he was hit by a truck and died before that.

“Let’s go first. If we’re late, we won’t be able to see you. Surgery, huh? It’s something worth seeing.”

“Uh huh.”

“Let’s go, what are you doing? Are you scared? You’re good at dissections, aren’t you?

“No, that’s not it… … .”

Without even being able to say anything, I was dragged away by the old man's hand and by Joseph's hand.

“Right. There’s a seat over there.”

The place we arrived at wasn't even indoors.

It was a square.

A square with open views on all sides.

In a space that would normally be empty, there was something that looked like a desk.

“No! If you don’t accept me, I’ll just die!”

As I was watching to see what was going on, a scream rang out from somewhere.

I turned my head and saw a man being dragged away by four men.

“Do you carry out the execution before the surgery?”

“No, it’s surgery?”

“Is that it?”

“Oh. That’s because it’s your first time. There’s something called surgery. It’s one of the ways to save a person.”

The old man smiled kindly as he looked at the sight.

I still couldn't take my eyes off the person being dragged away.

What should I call that?

Yeah, horror.

The patient was terrified.