This World is too Cruel to Men – Chapter 98

“No way, what the…?”

I was confident enough to step forward because I believed I had what it took.

But now that I actually tried it, I finally understood why Yoonseo had struggled so much.

Surely, a seven-year-old kid’s grip strength couldn’t be any weaker than this.

Nevertheless, somehow I managed to pull off my goal and, holding it triumphantly in my hand, I turned to Yoonseo—

“Hey, is this…?”

But the moment I turned, what met my eyes was an unexpected sight.

“What the heck?”

Could it be… is she sleeping right now?

I couldn’t help but think that because Yoonseo was sitting on a chair placed between the prize machines, leaning against the wall with her eyes closed.

At first, I thought she was just asleep… but it didn’t take long for me to realize otherwise.

If she were simply asleep?

There wouldn’t be any reason for her breathing to be so labored or her face to be so flushed.

And above all—Yoonseo’s face, resting against the wall, was glistening with beads of what looked like cold sweat.

With all that sweat dotting her face, Yoonseo kept mumbling something in a slurred voice.

Seeing her in such a questionable condition made me feel like all the strength was draining from my hands.

“Now that I think about it…”

Earlier, at the Escape Room Cafe, when I barely touched her to cut the cable ties on her hands, she had felt hot too.

At the time, I just thought it was because her hands were bound and blood wasn’t circulating well…

Regret washed over me as I realized I should have recognized earlier that something was wrong, and with it came a bitter taste that lingered in my mouth as if I’d bitten into something strange, but I pushed everything aside and rushed to Yoonseo.

I reached up and placed my hand on her head—

“…She’s like a fireball.”

The heat radiating from her was so intense that even I, who was mentally prepared for it, jumped back, feeling the scorching wave of energy through my palm.

I couldn’t help but clench my teeth in frustration.

“No… there had to be signs earlier, why did I ignore them and put myself in this situation?”

“I’m not an idiot…”

I was irritated.

More than anything, I was annoyed at myself.

The fact that I could potentially understand why Yoonseo had gone through all this made it even worse.

She probably thought today was her last chance to reconcile with me, and that’s why she overextended herself.

Thinking that left a burning sensation rising from my stomach through my throat.

However, I knew this was not the time to dwell on those feelings, so I immediately started moving.

First, I called my friends over.

Then, with the help of Sangah and the girls, I managed to carry Yoonseo on my back—

“I’m sorry, but because she’s in this condition, you guys will have to watch the movie without us.”

We stepped outside the building.

As I stood there pondering whether to go to the emergency room or the hospital, I began to hear Yoonseo’s mumbling, which had been incoherent, gradually taking shape.

What she was saying was simply—

“I’m sorry…”

The moment I realized that the phrase she had been incessantly mumbling was that, my annoyance surged from deep inside once again.

“If you’re that sorry… why didn’t you just say it sooner?”

Just bottling it all up was what made her end up like this!

All the nagging I wanted to say to Yoonseo filled my throat, but I swallowed it down and flagged down a passing taxi.

“Uh, excuse me? Could you take us to the nearest hospital emergency room, please?”

After confirming the direction to the emergency room, I made sure Yoonseo could lean on me comfortably during the ride.

I even placed my hand on her head again—thankfully, I think it might have had some effect.

Compared to her boiling forehead, my palm felt relatively cool, which maybe was why her face relaxed a bit.

“Huh…”

As I watched her, internally sighing a bit, the taxi came to a halt in front of the emergency room.

When we finally arrived at the emergency room?

It was utter chaos!

Yet, amidst all that, the silver lining was—

“It’s just a cold.”

“Huh? With this high fever?!”

“That’s right, but I was wondering, has the patient…”

So, what had caused Yoonseo to become like this was merely a simple cold.

Even with that, the doctor speculated it had likely escalated because her physical condition had weakened, affecting her overall state.

Hearing that finally eased my mind.

How could it not? During the taxi ride to the hospital, I was plagued with wild thoughts.

To think that just moments ago, I was worrying, and yet it was only a simple cold.

As I sank into a chair beside Yoonseo, letting a sigh escape, I noticed that now she seemed a bit better with the IV in her.

Soon enough, right… she would wake up.

What should I do then?

I pondered that question for a moment, only to be abruptly reminded of something I had almost forgotten in all that chaos.

This place wasn’t exactly the best for discussing it, so I carefully turned my body toward the emergency room exit—

“…Huh?”

In that very moment, I felt something tugging gently at my clothes.

As I turned my partially rotated body back, I saw Yoonseo, looking very earnest, clutching the end of my shirt.

To be honest?

I was a little taken aback.

It was unexpected since the last time I saw her, she had her eyes closed.

“No…”

Hadn’t she been out the entire time? When did she open her eyes?

What worried me more was Yoonseo’s expression.

Her gaze was so desperate it seemed like she might burst into tears any moment.

“I, uh… was going to call your dad, but…”

Given her expression, my voice became cautious as I spoke.

Anyway, as I revealed why I was trying to step away, Yoonseo, who had been staring at me blankly, began to move her lips as if trying to say something.

“Go… g-g….”

Her voice seemed to struggle due to her sickness, and rather than speaking, she just shook her head in denial.

“Are you saying I shouldn’t go, but stay here?”

Seeing that gesture, I asked cautiously, and Yoonseo flinched, trembled, then slowly nodded her head.

Seeing that, I sat back down again.

The problem was that even after doing so, Yoonseo didn’t release her grip on my shirt.

Though that made my stomach twist, I couldn’t just ask her to let go.

“It’s a good thing I’m wearing something underneath…”

If I wasn’t wearing anything, I’d be an emergency room sensation by now.

Her strange attachment to my clothing didn’t loosen even after we received permission to leave the emergency room from the doctor.

“Uh, do you want me to carry you?”

“…No.”

“Are you really okay? You’re not dizzy or anything?”

“…Yeah.”

I wanted to say, “If you’re fine, then could you loosen your grip a bit?” but I held it back.

Instead, I let her keep holding on until she calmed down, and I began taking care of the things I needed to handle.

Well, the tasks weren’t much—just stopping by the pharmacy to get medication and grabbing some porridge for her since taking medicine on an empty stomach isn’t good.

“Are you going to eat samgyetang porridge?”

“…Yeah.”

Just to be sure, I checked, and of course, Yoonseo wanted the samgyetang porridge.

She really hated vegetables and seafood, after all.

“You want some soy sauce braised eggs too?”

“Yeah…”

Well, just eating porridge alone would get a bit bland.

With the medicine and porridge taken care of, I figured it was time to contact her dad, so I took out my mobile phone.

And as if she knew precisely what I was about to do, Yoonseo tightened her grip on my sleeve, and I heard her voice.

“Today at home…”

Home?

“Dad… isn’t here…”

What?