Chapter 11 : System Administrator (1)
Chapter 11 - System Administrator (1)
[System : Cumulative points acquired have surpassed 5,000P. Item Shop is now active.]
Sihyeon calmed his racing heart and reached out toward the notification window.
[Resource Balance: 5,000P]
‘I’ve gathered quite a bit in a week.’
And for good reason, as Sihyeon’s work ability was like night and day compared to the early stages of his first year in the past.
‘What should I buy?’
The items at the top of the Item Shop caught his eye.
[Core Items]
1. The Old Gentleman’s Couch (S)
2. Kaitman’s Glasses (S)
3. The Old Inmate’s Mirror (S)
The icon borders were glowing brightly in gold.
High-grade items at a glance.
‘The names... are certainly psychiatry-esque.’
He had a rough idea, but he decided to read the additional descriptions anyway.
Starting with ‘The Old Gentleman’s Couch.’
[The Old Gentleman’s Couch - Summons the strongest sofa in history. In this field, understanding of the unconscious and desires increases significantly.]
As expected.
The old gentleman was Sigmund Freud.
When Freud practiced psychoanalysis, a treatment technique he devised, he had patients lie on a couch and engage in free association.
‘Is it an item with field effects? Doctors who practice psychoanalysis would like this.’
Unfortunately, Sihyeon wasn't very interested in psychoanalysis.
Next was the following item.
[Kaitman’s Glasses - Kaitman’s lifelong research shines. Analyzes emotions and distinguishes truth from lies.]
Kaitman.
He wasn't a real person; I remember him as the protagonist of a procedural drama.
I think the premise was solving cases by analyzing micro-expressions.
‘Oh, this would be quite useful.’
Sihyeon’s fingertip moved toward ‘Purchase.’
[System : Insufficient resources. Purchase is not possible.]
[Kaitman’s Glasses - +999,999P]
‘What is this price...’
He had expected it to be a fairly expensive item, but the price far exceeded even those expectations.
He even doubted if he could buy it by the end of his residency.
[System : Subscription service is available for 5,000P / 1 day.]
‘What? 5,000P for a one-day subscription?’
Sihyeon’s eyes grew wide.
Even though the money he had remained the same, he suddenly felt poor.
The 5,000P he had acquired over the past few days became infinitely shabby.
He wanted to look at ‘The Old Inmate’s Mirror’ as well, but he didn’t dare.
‘Well, window shopping is free, anyway.’
Still, it was a core item in name.
Since it was an item that determined his direction of growth as a doctor, it seemed necessary to take a look.
[The Old Inmate’s Mirror - Reflects the purpose and meaning of life. Increases resistance to despair.]
The old inmate...
— Live as if you were living for the second time. And think that the action you are about to take now is the very same action you already did wrong in your first life.
Countless heroes who appeared in the history of psychiatry.
Among them, the person Sihyeon respected the most,
The figure who created Logotherapy through his survival experience in a Nazi concentration camp.
It was definitely Viktor Frankl.
‘I really don’t want to miss this one.’
Understanding of desire. Sophisticated observation. Discovery of meaning.
What is it that I need most now that I’ve returned to the past?
Perhaps it was a meaningless worry.
Because although he had scoured the Item Shop for a long time, there wasn't a single item he could buy.
……
[3:00 AM]
Sihyeon frowned as he checked the clock on his phone.
‘I’m screwed.’
Lying on the bed in the dark duty room thinking about this and that, it was already 3 o’clock.
There was a mountain of work to do tomorrow, but he had lost track of time browsing items.
Just as he was about to close the Item Shop and try to sleep, small text in the corner of the pop-up caught his eye.
[Sort by: Highest Price]
It felt like he was waking up all over again.
There was a reason why the item prices were as expensive as if they’d been hit by hyperinflation.
‘Sort by lowest price...’
This time, various potions caught his eye.
1. Recovery Potion (E) - Gradually removes fatigue accumulated from a day of clinical work upon use. (500P)
2. Deep Sleep Potion (E) - Recovers from sleep deprivation upon use. Sleep quality is significantly improved. At the current rank, it has a sleep effect of about +3 hours. (500P)
3. Acceleration Potion (E) - Movement speed increases significantly for a short time upon use. (500P)
[1st Year Special Pack! 2+1]
Even an event.
This was something he couldn’t not buy.
Sihyeon bought three potions—one of each—for 1,000P and closed his eyes.
‘Wait, deep sleep effect?’
According to the item description, sleeping for only 3 hours would have the effect of sleeping for 6 hours.
‘Let’s try it first.’
Sihyeon immediately touched the Deep Sleep Potion.
Feeling as if his time to go to work had been pushed back by 3 hours, Sihyeon slid into a deep sleep.
Ding-dong!
[System : As a first-time item use effect...]
……
How much time had passed?
Surely he had only slept for a short while.
His body felt light, as if he had slept soundly.
‘But... where is this?’
Where he opened his eyes was a strange space he had never been to before.
Seeing signs like Consultation Room, Lab, and Procedure Room on every door, it seemed to be a hospital.
Sihyeon was sitting in the waiting room like a patient waiting for a consultation.
Seeing that there were no other patients besides himself, it didn't seem like a very successful hospital.
“Doctor Cheon Si-hyeon. Please go into Consultation Room 1. He is waiting for you.”
A woman in a sophisticated beige jacket guided Sihyeon.
‘Waiting? Who?’
The door opened, and inside the room sat a man in a white coat at an executive desk that looked expensive at a glance.
“Nice to meet you. Please, come in.”
He greeted Sihyeon with a broad smile.
‘Who is this person?’
It was clearly the first time meeting him, but he felt a sense of familiarity.
Neither tall nor short.
Neither fat nor thin build.
Features with no particular distinction.
He looked older than me, but it was hard to gauge his exact age.
“Nice to meet you. Do you happen to know me?”
In response to Sihyeon’s question, the man typed on the keyboard with a smile without answering.
Ding-dong!
The notification sound rang out as soon as the man took his hands off the keyboard.
[System : You have encountered the Administrator of the system.]
And Sihyeon’s eyes widened at the message that followed.
His gaze reflexively moved toward the man’s white coat.
Kang Seong-jin, Psychiatrist and Director.
It was the first face-to-face meeting with the System Administrator.
‘Where is this? Who is this person? Is he an NPC or something?’
For one thing, there was no such person among the psychiatrists Sihyeon knew.
“By any chance, are you my senior?”
“Senior? It might look that way, but no. However, I’ve decorated this place to feel as familiar to you as possible.”
Kang Seong-jin treated Sihyeon with a smile throughout.
“The time we can stay here isn’t as long as you might think. You probably have many questions, don’t you? Go ahead and ask.”
Ding-dong!
[System : 3 questions are allowed for the Administrator.]
Three shining question marks appeared behind Kang Seong-jin’s back.
‘I think he really is an NPC.’
Sihyeon’s suspicion gradually turned into conviction.
“Why did I become a 1st year again? And what’s all this with the system and items?”
Things he had been curious about ever since returning to four years ago.
It didn't take long for Sihyeon to choose his questions.
“So you’re curious about the reason... May I take that as two questions?”
As soon as Kang Seong-jin finished speaking, two question marks went out simultaneously.
“First, you returned to your 1st year because there is a person or people who earnestly wish for it. And the system and items are provided to help, even if just a little, in fulfilling that wish.”
It was a vague answer.
‘People who wish? Who on earth are...’
Sihyeon wanted to ask right away who those people were and what they wanted, but he decided to think it over a bit more.
He only had one chance left.
“How should I live from now on?”
After thinking for a long while, Sihyeon spoke up.
“Good question. A really good question.”
Kang Seong-jin said, nodding his head as if satisfied.
“There is no correct answer. This time, I’d like to ask you. How do you want to live?”
“I... don't really know.”
Come to think of it, he hadn't thought about how he wanted to live since his medical student days.
The one year of internship and four years of residency were far too busy. It felt as if he had lived every day just putting out immediate fires, struggling to resolve whatever task had fallen on him that day.
“Since doing the 1st year twice is also unfair, for now, try doing whatever you want. Might the answer be in there somewhere? The system will always be rooting for you.”
Just as he was feeling that the answer was insufficient because it wasn't specific, Kang Seong-jin spoke.
“However, it would be good if you studied a lot as you have done until now, and especially treated patients diligently... that would be nice. You're spending four years anyway, aren't you? Perhaps the patients who weren't treated sufficiently called you back. Oh, and write papers diligently too... and listen to the professors. Professors Lee Gwang-seop and Jin Cheol-yeong are doing well, right? Anyway, contact the people around you frequently, those you haven't been able to take care of in the meantime...”
“…….”
‘To think the Administrator would be such a kkondae.’
He looked ready to say “Back in my day” at any moment.
“Excuse me, Administrator?”
“Ahem. My apologies. There isn’t much time.”
The Administrator seemed to have snapped out of it belatedly.
And the light on the last question mark went out.
“It’s a shame, but it’s time to part ways now. Before you go, there’s someone I’d like to introduce.”
Kang Seong-jin said as he pressed the call button.
“Tell her to come in.”
Knock, knock.
The door opened and a woman entered.
Sihyeon’s eyes grew wide.
Is this what it feels like to see a celebrity in person?
She was dressed plainly in a neat suit with an ID card hanging around her neck, but she was a beauty with calm eyes and a transparent skin tone that felt impractically surreal.
“Hello, Dr. Cheon Si-hyeon. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
“Ah, hello.”
Sihyeon answered somewhat nervously at the polite and disciplined greeting.
“This is the ‘Subjective and Objective Resident Assistant’ who will help you from now on.”
Subjective and objective? There was no way that was a name, and it was a quite unfamiliar expression even for a job title.
“What do you mean, help me...”
“I will assist you in communicating with the system,” the woman answered on behalf of Kang Seong-jin.
“Now it really is time to part ways. I wish you luck. Sincerely.”
“Yes. Thank you for your help.”
Kang Seong-jin looked at Sihyeon with a pleased gaze.
He had been smiling the whole time, but it was a complex expression mixed with expectation, concern, and support.
The ‘Subjective and Objective Resident Assistant’ he introduced opened the consultation room door.
“It is time for you to return. I will see you again in the near future.”
At her words, Sihyeon stepped out the door.
……
Flash.
5:59 AM
Sihyeon opened his eyes even before the alarm rang.
Only three hours had passed, but he felt as if his fatigue had vanished like melting snow.
‘Was I dreaming?’
To say so, the conversation they just had was far too vivid.
Ding-dong!
[System : A new feature has been added.]
[Subjective Objective Resident Assistant (SORA)]
‘It wasn’t a dream...’
As Sihyeon clicked the notification window, an additional message popped up.
[System : Currently in a deactivated state.]
How do I activate it?
Sihyeon was exploding with curiosity.