“It’s amnesia.”
Yieum stared at the doctor in disbelief.
While the man found collapsed on the mountain road was being transported to the hospital, his colleague Jeong Namsu had arrived as backup. They’d administered first aid and run several tests, but aside from the cut on his forehead, there appeared to be nothing seriously wrong with him.
And yet—
“He’s regressed psychologically,” the doctor explained. “He perceives himself as a young child. He doesn’t even remember his own name.”
“When will his memory come back?”
“It was most likely caused by temporary shock, so there’s no way to know for certain. He could recover today, or it could take much longer. You said you’re a detective, correct? For now, I think it would be best to identify him and contact his family.”
Suppressing a groan, Yieum pushed his bangs back from his forehead.
After the doctor left, he looked over at the unidentified man lying in the hospital bed.
No phone. No wallet. Nothing that could reveal his identity.
The modified hanbok suggested he might live nearby. Maybe an herb gatherer.
But what kind of herb gatherer wandered barefoot through the mountains?
Standing beside him, Namsu nudged his arm and tilted his head toward the hallway, signaling for them to step outside.
As Yieum turned to leave, the man on the bed suddenly reached out and grabbed his wrist.
His hand was enormous—broad-palmed, rough-knuckled, with long, straight fingers.
“Mister… where are you going?”
Startled, Yieum tried to gently pry the hand off.
Mister? Anyone can see you’re older than me.
But the grip was absurdly strong.
“I’ll be right back. If you need anything, ask the nurses, okay?”
The instant Yieum pulled free, the man’s face visibly crumpled.
For some reason, guilt stabbed at him.
Offering an awkward smile, Yieum followed Namsu out into the hallway.
Inside the smoking booth, he pulled out a cigarette, and Namsu lit it for him.
“I came all the way out here to catch a criminal. What the hell is this?”
“What happened with Mansik’s mother?”
“I met her, but she’s got dementia. Couldn’t get anything useful out of her. The old man next door said Kim Mansik stopped by a few weeks ago and left a number in case of emergencies.”
“You got it?”
“Yeah. I sent it to the team leader and asked him to run a location trace.”
Leaning back in his chair, Yieum rubbed both hands over his face.
By now, they should’ve already been on their way back to Seoul.
“Sunbae-nim,” Namsu said quietly. “Don’t you think that guy’s suspicious?”
“What about him?”
Namsu crushed out his cigarette and lowered his voice further.
“I saw him while they were changing his clothes. His body’s insane. Solid muscle everywhere. Felt like he was carved from stone.”
“So he works out.”
“Remember Jo Hyeonjin? The guy who murdered eleven people?”
“The serial killer?”
“He was caught hiding in the mountains too, right? They said his body was hard as a rock because all he did out there was work out nonstop.” Namsu paused. “That guy wore hanbok too. I saw the photos.”
Yieum let out a dry laugh.
“Nothing’s even been confirmed yet, and you’re already treating him like a criminal.”
“I’m just saying he feels off. Who ends up collapsed on a mountain road at that hour? And no matter how I look at him, he doesn’t seem like some herb gatherer.”
Yieum didn’t argue.
Because honestly, the more he thought about it, the stranger it felt.
The man’s face was too refined for someone who’d spent years living in the mountains. His features were strikingly handsome, and his skin looked smooth enough to belong to someone who received professional skincare.
So yes—he understood why Namsu found him suspicious.
“You head back first,” Yieum said. “I’ll handle him. Once we run his fingerprints, we should be able to identify him quickly.”
After finally sending a reluctant Namsu away, Yieum returned to the hospital room.
But the moment he stepped inside, a nurse hurried over to him.
“You’re the guardian of the patient who was just admitted, right? I think you need to come with me for a moment…”
Trailing off awkwardly, she gestured toward the room.
Confused, Yieum walked over.
The man was sitting stiffly on the edge of the bed, hands clenched between his knees, visibly anxious.
“What happened?”
“He says he needs to use the bathroom,” the nurse explained carefully, “but he refuses to go unless his guardian comes with him.”
Yieum stared blankly for several seconds.
Guardian?
Meanwhile, the man looked at him with desperate eyes, as if Yieum abandoning him would be the end of the world.
“…Fine. Let’s go.”
The man climbed off the bed while Yieum grabbed the IV pole.
As they walked down the hallway, the man timidly clutched the edge of Yieum’s sleeve.
Yieum glanced down at the hand gripping him.
Shaking him off somehow felt too cruel.
When they reached the bathroom, Yieum gestured inside.
“Go ahead.”
“I’m scared…”
“…Excuse me?”
“Mister, can’t you come in too?”
“….”
In the end, Yieum followed him inside.
Instead of standing at the urinal, the man stopped in front of the sink and stared at his reflection in shock.
Apparently, he still couldn’t accept the reality of his current condition.
Well, naturally.
The doctor had practically said he was mentally a child.
“Mister…” the man whispered shakily. “Is that really me? Is that me?”
His lips trembled.
His fierce-looking eyes filled with tears so quickly it almost startled Yieum.
“That’s not me,” he murmured weakly. “That’s not me…”
Yieum wanted to comfort him, but he had no idea what to say.
“The doctor said your memory should come back soon, so don’t worry too much—”
The words had barely left his mouth before the man burst into tears.
Loudly.
The guy was over 190 centimeters tall, broad-shouldered, thick-chested, and built like a tank. Just like Namsu said, even through the hospital gown his body felt hard as stone.
Watching someone that huge cry like a lost child felt deeply surreal.
Since there was no sign of him calming down, Yieum cautiously stepped closer and patted his shoulder.
“Hey, don’t be scared. Once we run your fingerprints, we’ll find your family. You’ll be home before you know it. Your memory might even come back once you see them.”
Suddenly, the man threw both arms around him.
“I’m scared, Mister… I’m scared…”
His crying only grew louder.
The embrace was so crushingly tight that Yieum’s breath caught in his throat.
“W-Wait—could you let go for a second? Even if your memories are gone, your body’s still fully grown—seriously, what the hell—”
After a considerable struggle, Yieum finally pried himself free and stumbled backward, exhaling hard.
The man stood there sobbing miserably, shoulders shaking, tears smeared across his face.
Jesus Christ. This is driving me insane.
With a sigh, Yieum grabbed paper towels and wiped his face clean. Then, somehow, he even found himself blowing the man’s nose before pointing firmly toward the urinal.
“Now go already.”
At that, the man looked at him pitifully.
“Mister… you can’t leave.”
“Yeah, yeah. I’ll stay right here, so hurry up.”
Yieum turned his head away for the sake of privacy.
A moment later, he heard strained grunting noises.
“Urgh… ngh…”
When he looked back, the problem became immediately obvious.
The IV needle in the back of the man’s hand was making it difficult for him to pull down the hospital pants.
“Mister… my pants won’t come down.”
Yieum squeezed his eyes shut.
One thing after another. Seriously.
Slowly inhaling, he forced a smile back onto his face.
Right. I’m a public servant.
This isn’t a grown man.
It’s a lost child.
A child.
Surely I can handle at least this much.
He reached over to help tug the pants down while carefully lowering the hospital gown for modesty.
And then—
Something came into view.
For a second, Yieum genuinely thought he was hallucinating.
Can something that size even belong to a human being?
If it had been erect, it would’ve been shocking.
The fact that it wasn’t somehow made it even worse.
Unable to hide his disbelief, Yieum froze.
The moment their eyes met, the man’s face crumpled again.
“Mister…” he whispered miserably. “Why is it so big? It’s scary…”
Yieum nearly lost his mind.
Listen to this bastard complaining because he’s too gifted.
“I’ll explain everything later,” he muttered weakly. “Just pee first.”
The man finished while repeatedly muttering that it was scary and gross.
After washing his hands and escorting him back out, Yieum felt utterly exhausted.
Honestly, the fatigue hit harder than chasing criminals all day.
Once the man was tucked back into bed, blankets pulled up neatly to his chest, he stared at Yieum with wide, wary eyes.
The doctor had mentioned he was a dominant alpha.
Apparently, even with memory loss, his pheromone control remained so precise that it was almost impossible to detect.
That alone spoke volumes about his self-control.
Of course, Yieum couldn’t smell alpha pheromones to begin with.
“Do you remember anything at all?” Yieum asked. “Anything. Try to think carefully. Do you know how you ended up there?”
The man slowly shook his head.
Yieum asked several more questions, but the answers were all the same.
Nothing.
Suppressing a disappointed sigh, Yieum leaned back slightly.
The man kept staring at him so intently that it felt like his face might burn through.
Unable to endure it any longer, Yieum laughed awkwardly.
“Why are you looking at me like that? Do I seem familiar or something?”
“You’re handsome.”
“…What?”
“You’re pretty,” the man said earnestly. “And handsome, Mister.”
Suddenly aware of the nurses nearby, Yieum glanced around before laughing under his breath.
“Well… looks like losing your memory didn’t affect your eyesight.”