Chapter 79

Chapter 79 – Phantom Opens His Eyes #1

There was a somewhat unusual operating room in T Medical Center. It could only be reached through a few tightly controlled areas, and even the cleaners working there were tightly controlled. This was to prevent what was happening inside from being leaked anywhere.

Two young men in work clothes were cleaning the operating room after the operation was done.

“Fuck, the artery was hit again. It's completely bloody in here."

"Uh… The blood isn't a joke."

“Even so, I would rather do this, since it's easy money."

Then one of them asked,

"By the way, Hyung-nim. I have a question."

"What is it? Ah, be careful there. If you fall then you will die. Your flesh will be cut off and sliced in pieces."

The young man, who almost slipped, clicked his tongue and put the flesh into the bag.

“Why isn't anesthesia used? Rather than cutting off one limb to stop them from moving, it would be better to just inject them."

The older one smirked at the youth's question.

"Hey! If you care about that then you shouldn't work here. The reason is simple. It's just like how fish are kept alive for sashimi. Won't the medicine affect the organs?"

The young man nodded with a face like he understood.

“At any rate, the cleaning of the operation room is almost finished… Now it is just throwing away the trash."

"Yes. Bring some hydrochloric acid and plastic from the warehouse. After the room is soaked for 3~4 hours, it can be used. Put the rest in the drum barrel. Ah, prepare two drums."

“Oh, one more is being done in the afternoon?"

“Yes. This is a really good business."

Since the organs from prisoners were banned in China, those who needed transplants now came to Korea for the surgery. In particular, it was safer than China which normally had side effects due to the unhygienic surgical environment.

Recently, the global market was heavily saturated with organs from India and Southeast Asia. The most expensive parts, such as the heart, liver and kidney, were traded for around 200 million won a piece.

However, T Medical Center had fresh organs that were checked by medical staff, making their prices were twice as high as international ones. Despite this fact, people still waited in line for them.

“I's roughly 1.5 billion per person? I would be happy to sell mine at such a high price. I would die happy. Huhuhu…"

Then the operating room door opened and Dr. J, a surgeon, entered.

"What? It still isn't clean? I told you to finish it as quickly as possible, didn't you hear me? Why are you just standing around?"

The older cleaner bowed his head.

"I-I'm really sorry. We will finish it as soon as possible."

"Yes, yes. Make sure you handle it. Kim Soo-bin still has one arm left; however, the schedule is tight, so she has to be done soon. Make sure you tie her up so that she's unable to move."

"Yes. I'll make sure she can't life even one finger."

“Phew, I'll trust you this time…"

Dr. J sighed and exited.

The youth asked the older cleaner who was still bowing.

“He is the doctor?"

“Yes, that is him. Remember the person in charge here."

"Wah… The atmosphere isn't a joke."

“I heard he is one of the top three experts in China. Don't rile him up because I don't know what he would do."

"Yes. But I am wondering one thing. Why are the limbs being cut off?"

"That's to prevent the doctor from being hit with an arm or leg during the surgery. They're sold for surprisingly high prices to collectors. Moreover, did you see yesterday's news?"

"Yes."

“Dr. J has a really fantastic mind. He used the parts that were thrown away to fake a mutilation murder case. Recently, there was a police officer sniffing around the missing children."

At that moment, the firmly closed door opened and Dr. J entered. He quietly approached the older cleaner and sliced his neck with a scalpel.

"K… Keook…"

Blood sprayed out from the older cleaner's mouth. Dr. J cleaned the blood from his hand and took out a cigarette before asking,

“What did I say? I told you to watch your mouth. Hey, Newbie."

"Yes? Yes!"

The youth froze with surprise before replying.

“Now you're the main cleaner, and your salary will double. Have you learned everything about the job?"

The youth smiled at the promotion and replied,

“I know everything."

“Then prepare that one. His body is rotten, but there might be a part that can be used."

Dr. J smoked his cigarette as he laid the man on the operating table and started working. After finishing everything, the doctor said,

"There is one more in the afternoon so keep it clean. And remember to watch your mouth."

"I understand. Doctor."

After finishing the cleaning, the young man went to eat. The menu was beef tripe and intestine soup.

@

Kim Soo-bin stared at the firmly closed door in the darkness.

Every time it was opened, one person in this room would be dragged out, never to come back. What happened to them? She didn't want to imagine it, but it absolutely wasn't a good thing.

Even with her eyes that had become accustomed to darkness, she could only dimly see the outline of body.

Kim Soo-bin hugged her trembling body.

When she woke up, one arm had disappeared. Unfortunately, the even sadder thing was that she lost the token of promise that she shared with her only friend. The token she treasured on her little finger…

Tears suddenly poured down.

Kim Soo-bin was a child who didn't receive any love from an early age. Her mother left the house. Her only remaining family, her father, saw her mother in Kim Soo-bin and abused her every day. In the end, she left the house and wandered the streets, committing all types of dirty actions such as shoplifting.

It felt like paradise didn't exist. In the end, the police picked her up at a crime scene and she was taken to a facility. Life there wasn't much different. She was stamped with the stigma of a criminal so the eyes of the adults were cold. If anything happened then she was suspected and beaten.

Just as she became resigned to suffering for eternity, Song Hye-mi appeared. The two people, who resembled each other so much so that it was like looking in a mirror, instantly became friends.

'I want to be happy.'

For the first time, that thought appeared in Kim Soo-bin's mind. On that day, Kim Soo-bin was reborn. She didn't do anything bad anymore and worked hard to develop her skills. She wanted to live with Song Hye-mi as soon as she left the orphanage. If she stretched out her hand, then she thought she could catch the happiness that she craved.

But then she was kidnapped by unidentified people.

Ddubeok…

At that time, Kim Soo-bin heard someone's footsteps. She was the only one remaining in this room. Was it finally her turn?

She had constantly wished that someone would save her. However, when she was kidnapped, and when her arm was cut off, nobody came to her rescue.

'Maybe someone is coming to save me…'

Kim Soo-bin didn't abandon hope until the end. This couldn't be over. She had a promise to keep.

-Let's be happy together.

Then the door opened. Kim Soo-bin's face distorted as she confirmed the appearance of the person.

That man. The man who cut off her arm.

"Aha, ahahaha! Be glad. It's finally your turn. Now you'll be able to live while surrounded by luxurious furniture. You can now eat all types of delicious foods, and be able to meet and have a loving relationship with a nice person. You'll now be able to spend your days in happiness."

Kim Soo-bin understood what the man's words meant. It wasn't the happiness that she wanted.

"S-Spare me. I’ll do anything… P-Plea… Oof!"

The young cleaner standing behind Dr. J covered Kim Soo-bin's mouth. Kim Soo-bin struggled desperately to avoid being dragged. Then Dr. J clicked his tongue and muttered,

"I should've had someone cut off the remaining arm in advance. I've been too busy these days. The death of one of you will bring happiness to over 10 people. Don't you think that is much better than living a tragic life?"

Dr. J stroked Kim Soo-bin's head like he was complimenting her. Then slowly, he injected an anesthetic into her neck. Kim Soo-bin's struggling body instantly relaxed.

“Cleaner, pick her up. I didn't want to use this to maintain the freshness. Still, it couldn't be helped. It wasn't a strong dose so even if she doesn't move, her consciousness will still remain."

"Yes. I’ve done all the preparations, doctor."

Dr. J nodded with a satisfied expression.

“You are quiet in comparison to your predecessor.”

The cleaner carried Kim Soo-bin and headed to the operating room.

Dr. J said quietly,

“Be careful. That girl you are carrying is worth 1.5 billion won."

The scalp, artery, liver, gallbladder, kidneys, blood, skin, eyes, teeth, shoulders, heart, spleen, stomach, small intestines… Every single one of those organs were worth valuable money that couldn't be abandoned. Even at the last minute, Kim Soo-bin was constantly thinking,

'I'm sorry… Hye-mi… I couldn't keep my promise…'

@

Tae-hyuk looked at T Medical Center from a distance.

It seemed like an ordinary hospital, but there was something wicked and nefarious was happening in its basement. He wanted to blow it up.

‘It would be great if I was a bomber.'

The important thing was justification. Tae-hyuk planned to inform the mass media about the existence of Phantom through the Doll Play event. In order to do this, Shin Se-ho the PD had been steadily preparing.

‘First of all, I have to capture what is happening here on camera. And…'

He took the opera mask out of his bag. Then he felt calm as if cold water had been poured over him. The opera mask had a specially made micro camera installed in it. Everything that Tae-hyuk saw and heard would be recorded in FHD. After he collected all the evidence, he was going to use 'it' in his bag.

He couldn't enter the basement area through the front door of the hospital, and had to pass through several gates in order to get there. Tae-hyuk went over the barbed wire and headed to the back door of T Medical Center.

However, a security guard came running out of nowhere.

“I’m sorry but this place is off-limits.”

It seemed like the building had several CCTV cameras that weren't visible from the outside. Through it, they noticed the presence of a trespasser. In addition, he was carrying a big bag with no weapons.

The guard waved the rod at Tae-hyuk, threatening him so that he would leave. Tae-hyuk laughed. It was funny that the guard would threaten him with such a confident face.

[Violence has been used.]

-Can use iron pipes.

Tae-hyuk narrowed the distance to his opponent at once and swung the iron pipe at the opponent's head.

"Kuak!”

The security guard fell to the ground. Tae-hyuk registered his voice in the Demon Revealing Mirror. Now he could use the Voice Modulation skill with no problem.

“First I have to put him in a corner."

Tae-hyuk tied up the guard and brought him to a place that wasn't visible, then checked his belongings. There was the pass badge, rod, radio, phone, etc. Unfortunately, the badge's security clearance was low so he couldn't go into the basement.

However, they would still be fairly useful. The atmosphere was important in this type of work.

Tae-hyuk muttered to the radio that was off.

"Phantom is here. From now on, I will enter the enemy camp."