UR Chapter 55

Chapter 55

“First, I’ll check today’s meal and compile a list of any ingredients that could cause allergies.”

Casually agreeing with Beom-ho’s words, Sung-jun searched on his phone for the dinner course served at the hotel where the blind date took place. He opened the menu details to see what ingredients were used and which foods were potential allergens, downloading everything. He planned to keep the files until they got home and hand them over to Dr. Kim Sung-woo if he asked. Since the man was said to have dog beastman blood mixed in, it was possible he might have allergies to different ingredients than feline beastmen.

“Sung-jun, you remember I told you about picking up a puppy when I was little, right?”

“Yes. You also told me you lost it again later.”

“That’s right. Once, I brought home a lost white puppy—a very cute baby Maltese. But when I tried to keep it in the yard, everyone told me you couldn’t raise a white dog in a tiger’s house. Even my grandmother, who always took my side, firmly said no. So I kept it secretly in my room… and then one day, when I left the door open for a moment, it disappeared.”

Beom-ho murmured as if recalling a fond memory. Watching him, Sung-jun replied flatly,

“Yes… but what does that have to do with anything?”

“Seeing Kang Soo-hyun reminds me of that puppy.”

“Probably because he smells like a dog.”

“Smells like a dog?”

“Yes. Human memories are often linked to senses like smell, taste, and touch. Maybe the scent reminded you of that puppy.”

Nodding seriously, Sung-jun said it as if it were fact.

“Maybe so.”

Seizing the brief silence, Sung-jun scrolled through the downloaded ingredient list and tilted his head before asking cautiously,

“Yes, but… sir, is this really the full ingredient list for the course meal?”

“There’s one more thing—he had juice.”

“Was it possibly alcoholic?”

“No. I ordered it for myself. And I’d driven to the hotel, so I couldn’t have ordered alcohol anyway.”

—One minute until helicopter arrival.

Static crackled from the radio at the front.

“Sir, the helicopter will arrive in one minute. Dr. Kim Sung-woo is already here.”

“Good.”

“If Dr. Kim says it’s beyond his ability, we’ll transfer directly to the hospital.”

“Understood.”

Beom-ho nodded seriously.

—Guiding helicopter to the landing pad.

Hearing the announcement ahead, Beom-ho leaned toward Sung-jun and said in a low voice,

“You can go now.”

Then he gave Sung-jun a push toward the main gate.

“Uh… excuse me?”

“Go use your vacation days.”

“Ah… yes, sir!”

Worried he might change his mind, Sung-jun bolted away.

The fierce wind roared, turning the entire garden into chaos. The engine’s rotors thundered like a roaring predator. On this snowy night, when the world had been silent and insulated from outside noise, the mechanical sound seemed even louder, breaking the stillness and flooding the air with tension.

Clunk—

The helicopter door swung open, and Beom-ho pulled off his noise-canceling headset to step outside. The wind and blizzard were sharp enough to blind, but he paid no mind, his long coat whipping around him as he leapt from the still-spinning helicopter. In his arms, he carried a man.

“What is going on here?”

The peaceful Guhoche—a fortress-like estate perched on a mountain ridge—was thrown into commotion by the helicopter’s arrival. True to its name, meaning “as quiet as a tiger’s mouth,” it was usually far removed from noise. The word chae (砦) denoted a fort, and the place was indeed closer to a stronghold, far from disturbance.

Beom-ho’s beast form was a tiger, and with Korea’s long, connected mountain ranges, it was the perfect location for him—if he wanted, he could travel across the country in his beast form within a day. When there was no one around, he often roamed outside in that form instead of using a vehicle. For him to use a helicopter now was so unusual that the household staff looked unsettled at the sight of this “pile of scrap metal.”

That wasn’t the only surprise. The usually solitary Beom-ho, who preferred a quiet life without guests, had brought someone home—and held him in his arms as if he were precious.

As the staff glanced back and forth between the helicopter and their master, a man in a gown came hurrying out toward Beom-ho.

“Eun Beom-ho!”

The name tag on his gown read “Beastman Specialist Dr. Kim Sung-woo.” His hair stuck out in all directions, proof that he had been dragged out in a hurry.

“What… what happened here?”

From among the hesitant staff, a dignified middle-aged man spoke.

“Ah, Butler, it’s been a while! How have you been?”

While following closely behind Beom-ho to check the patient, Dr. Kim poked his head out to greet the butler with a smile. Beom-ho glanced at him, then jabbed his elbow into the doctor’s side and said coldly,

“Butler, please go open the guest room.”

Beom-ho cut off the conversation with a jerk of his chin. The butler nodded and hurried ahead to open the door to the guest room. A neatly made bed came into view.

“I’ll lay him down.”

The servants exchanged quick glances, sneaking side looks at one another before reaching out their hands. They had no idea who this stranger was, but in front of someone the master had personally brought and treated with such care, it was only proper to show courtesy.

“No, it’s fine. I’ll do this myself. Just get ready to tend to him—bring a wet towel and the tools Dr. Kim Sung-woo will need.”

Avoiding the servants’ hands, Beom-ho gave his instructions, then turned to Kim.

“Take a look at him. He collapsed while drinking juice.”

“Lay him down.”

When Beom-ho carefully set the man from his arms onto the bed, Kim slowly followed his gaze over him.

Sweat-dampened brown hair, a pale face faintly flushed, finely shaped brows—a man with delicate features.

Kim swiftly slipped the stethoscope around his neck into his ears.

“Heartbeat’s normal…”

He tilted his head, cautiously looking him over.

“What’s all this fuss about…”

Kim Sung-woo, beastman specialist at the Samho Foundation Medical Center, was both a capable physician—his wolf beastman lineage giving him a keen sense for changes in beastman bodies—and a long-time friend of Beom-ho.

They had known each other since entering medical school, and though Kim was not of the Eun family’s bloodline, he was one of the rare few allowed to remain close to him.

That was why the urgent call from secretary Eun Sung-jun had come as such a surprise.

Beastmen often thought differently from humans, and Beom-ho, despite his refined looks, was known for his apathy. In other words, behind that flawless face, there was nothing you could call warmth.

There were plenty of people who would have melted if he had just given them a bright smile, but he never shared feelings like affection with anyone. Marriage or mating was out of the question—he had never even considered dating or physical intimacy.

So the fact that the indifferent Beom-ho, who had little interest in other living beings, had actually gone on a blind date instead of walking away was already surprising. But for him to urgently ask through his secretary for someone to be examined was even more unexpected.

“Life sure throws you all kinds of strange things,” Kim muttered to himself, wrapping a tourniquet around the man’s wrist and sliding in a needle. Pressing the pale, slender wrist to find the vein, he quickly drew blood and popped open the cap of a test vial.

“Collapsed after drinking juice, you say?”

For an ordinary human, collapsing after drinking juice usually meant a breathing problem, cardiac arrest, or possibly a cerebral hemorrhage. But as a beastman specialist, Kim had to also consider things like an overwhelming aura from another beastman triggering shock, or pheromones from a rut period causing trouble.

“Yeah. No injuries or anything—just fainted.”

“Do you remember what kind of juice?”

“Grape juice.”

Kim exhaled, nodding as if he’d found the answer, and switched off his penlight.

“Oh. There’s nothing seriously wrong.”

“He collapsed.”

“He didn’t collapse—he fell asleep.”

After a thorough check, Kim hummed, dragging out the sound as he rubbed his lower lip.

“…Asleep?”

“That’s right.”

Beom-ho’s brow twitched as he raised his gaze, a mix of disbelief and relief at finding nothing seriously wrong passing through his eyes.