A week had passed since Kwon Minseong fell into the Elunem Empire.
Which meant seven days had passed since Adelgius gave birth to a healthy daughter.
Which also meant six days had passed since Reiner, the Court Physician whom Adelgius treasured dearly, gave birth to a healthy baby boy.
The birth of a young member of the Imperial Family heralded the arrival of spring.
The season of the Spring Festival had returned.
The Elunem Empire was consumed with preparations for celebration and festivities.
The imperial capital of Ellun, nicknamed the Blue Pearl of Elunem, was especially lively.
In fact, it was so full of energy that it resembled a pot with its lid rattling from the pressure inside.
Merchants who had been unable to travel throughout the long winter poured into Ellun by the hundreds each day.
Market stalls overflowed with seasonal fruits.
Traders from the frontier displayed strange regional specialties unseen in the capital and lured passing pedestrians.
Children sprawled across sun-warmed roads demanding toys from their exhausted parents.
Slightly older teenagers giggled while watching their younger siblings lie flat on the pavement and their parents sigh helplessly.
Young hearts that had blossomed before spring itself exchanged secret glances while hiding behind pale pink lace ribbons or newly published poetry collections celebrating the season.
Ellun was louder than ever.
And the Spring Festival wasn't the only reason.
Even the return of the Emperor of Elunem, who had personally suppressed a rebellious faction troubling the northern frontier, failed to overshadow the city's hottest topic.
"Did you hear about the new hospital?"
"Of course I did. Every rat living in Ellun has heard that rumor."
"Is it really true? The one they opened inside His Highness Visha's estate?"
"I couldn't believe it either, but my cousin's nephew's friend went there yesterday. Apparently it's true."
"An Omega specialty clinic. That's certainly unusual."
"The world keeps getting better. Back in my day, Male Omegas were lucky if they could find a midwife."
"They say the physician who opened it is a miracle worker sent by the gods. An Imperial Knight supposedly mistook him for a thief and stabbed him right through the stomach with a sword this big. Yet he calmly delivered Reiner's baby while bleeding everywhere."
"That's a real hero if you ask me."
"And that's not all."
The speaker lowered her voice.
"He's also the physician who helped deliver His Highness Visha's child."
"That's why all the young Omega nobles are lining up outside the clinic. They want the same hands that delivered an Imperial Family Member to deliver their babies."
"As long as the child is healthy, isn't that enough? Young people these days and their vanity..."
A brass pigeon circled lazily above the gossiping nobles.
The moment one of them clicked his tongue about "young people these days" and instructed his attendant to prepare oysters for dinner, the pigeon suddenly shot into the sky.
It flew swiftly and precisely through the narrow alleys of the shopping district before diving toward a pristine white mansion.
Without hesitation, it landed on a first-floor reception-room windowsill.
Its iron beak opened.
Beep. Beep. Beep.
"A pigeon is supposed to coo. What's with the beeping?"
The owner of the mansion—and Ellun's latest sensation—picked up the pigeon.
Kwon Minseong pressed the green button attached to its belly.
Instead of mechanical noises, a human voice emerged from its beak.
"You opened a clinic there, and I still can hardly believe it."
"Hello, Adelgius."
"Nothing about this is hello. How am I supposed to be well when my Court Physician isn't at the Imperial Palace?"
"How's Cordette doing?"
"Don't change the subject, Sisi."
"Who the hell is Sisi?"
"I think I've told you at least ten times that my name is Kwon Minseong."
"It's difficult to pronounce. Sisi is easier."
"Power really is wonderful. You can just rename people whenever you feel like it."
"It certainly is."
The smug reply came immediately.
"Power is sweet. You should know that yourself. You've been using the Imperial Family's name to advertise your clinic."
"That's a misunderstanding. The only thing I'm selling is medical service."
Minseong poured fruit juice into a large glass.
A refreshing citrus aroma filled the room that served as both his office and, once upon a time, Adelgius's private study.
"It's not too late. The position of Second Court Physician is still vacant. Return today."
"How am I supposed to live under the same roof as the guy who stabbed a hole in my stomach? I'm a very timid person."
Most physicians didn't panic over a little blood or exposed flesh, whether it belonged to themselves or a patient.
Nevertheless, Minseong shamelessly used his wound as an excuse.
"A timid person who practically ordered the Emperor to stab him?"
"Mmm. This juice is good. What fruit is this again?"
"..."
"Make eye contact with me when we're speaking."
"Can't do that. Too scared. What if he stabs me again?"
Despite having given birth to three children, Adelgius was only twenty-nine years old.
He was no match for a middle-aged man trapped inside a twenty-year-old body.
"I have not given up. I will bring you back to the Imperial Palace."
"Sure. As they say, the match isn't over until you quit."
"I guarantee you won't last long."
"Your Highness Visha, your information is outdated."
Minseong pressed a gold button embedded in his desk.
Immediately, rapid clicking sounds echoed from a narrow slot near the top.
Three seconds later, a long strip of paper began pouring out.
The machine functioned exactly like a printer.
It continued spitting out paper until the sheets covered the entire desk and spilled onto the floor.
Only then did it finally stop.
"Let's see."
Grinning, Minseong picked up the printout.
"What are you counting?"
"Two, four, six, eight..."
"What are you counting?"
"Forty-six, forty-eight, fifty..."
"What are you counting?"
"You're probably the only person in the Empire who ignores summons from the Imperial Family."
"Eighty-two, eighty-four..."
"Are you listening to me?"
"This is nice and new."
Minseong nodded.
"Oh, wait. I forgot where I was. Let's start over."
"Eighty-four! You stopped at eighty-four!"
"Thanks. Then eighty-six, eighty-eight..."
He continued counting.
"...One hundred. Exactly."
"The number of patients scheduled for tomorrow."
A broad smile spread across his face as he tapped the paper.
"This is why I keep rejecting your offer, Adel."
Why would I go back to the Imperial Palace when I'm living in paradise?
The reason Minseong's clinic became successful wasn't simply because he had helped deliver an Imperial Family Member on the side of the road.
Nor was it solely because he had saved a Court Physician suffering from an Advanced Maternal Age Pregnancy while bleeding from a sword wound.
Those stories certainly helped.
But they weren't enough to generate one hundred patients a day.
That level of business couldn't be sustained by publicity alone.
There were three reasons for his explosive success.
The first was the Imperial Family's reputation and influence.
The second was the customer service skills he had honed in South Korea.
And the third...
"I want a Retchel injection too. I heard childbirth doesn't hurt at all if you get one."
...was the miraculous medicine known as Retchel.
The forty-fourth patient of the day, Lord Yumer, demanded a painless-delivery injection the moment he entered the consultation room.
He was currently eleven weeks pregnant.
"Retchel isn't something everyone can receive. You know that, right, Lord Yumer?"
"Are you saying I'm not qualified? My father is a baron of this Empire!"
"We'd like to administer it whenever possible, but we have to confirm that you won't have an adverse reaction first..."
"Are you looking down on me? You're just some physician."
Lord Yumer cut him off and slapped the desk lightly.
For a moment, Minseong sat with his fingers interlocked and thought.
No matter where you go, entitled young brats are the worst.
The friendly smile vanished from his face.
He leaned back comfortably in his chair.
"If you keep speaking informally, you're not getting the injection."
Informal speech deserved informal speech.
You little brat.
"How dare you! Just because His Highness Visha keeps praising you, you've become arrogant! Do you have any idea what kind of family mine is?"
"You're scared right now, aren't you?"
Resting his chin on one hand, Minseong smirked.
Lord Yumer blinked in confusion.
"W-What? Why would I be scared of someone like you?"
"Your family has a history of miscarriages. Your mother..."
Minseong trailed off.
Ah. There I go again.
The most difficult thing about opening a clinic hadn't been memorizing noble titles.
It hadn't been adjusting to a new currency.
It hadn't even been hiring employees.
No.
The hardest question was:
What exactly was he supposed to call a Male Omega who had given birth?
Out of habit, Minseong kept referring to Male Omegas who had delivered children as mothers.
After all, from a biological perspective, they were the ones who had carried and given birth to the child.