It was a day when rain drizzled steadily. Michelangelo, settled in a room at the hospital that Viciellini had arranged, stared out the window at the falling rain.
Tap. Tap-tap.
Raindrops splattered.
Michelangelo gripped the bottle of medicine in his hand. It was stomach medicine he had brought this time, hoping to prevent another upset stomach. Although he had already taken the medicine, Michelangelo's stubborn eyes held no expectation.
He knew with high probability it wouldn't work.
Tap-tap. Listening to the sound of the rain, Michelangelo turned his back. Thunder struck. It was a day of heavy rain. The damp, fishy smell rising up was, in a word, the worst.
"The smell's probably quite bad."
Michelangelo furrowed his brow. He swallowed a sigh and walked over to pick up a surgical scalpel.
Today was the day to dissect the corpse that the monk Niccolò Viciellini from Santo Spirito had saved. Given the day, Michelangelo had hoped for good weather, but once again, the sky treated his wishes like dog dung.
It was a familiar occurrence.
As Michelangelo held his breath, he tore open the cloth Viciellini had left behind.
With the sound of tearing cloth, the pale face of a recently deceased, well-built Moor was revealed. The bluish skin told him this person was no longer alive.
Exhaling, the smell of rainwater mixed with the stench of fish and corpse filled the air.
Although mentally prepared, the smell was especially harsh, perhaps because of the rain. Whether leaving the window open was a mistake or a blessing was unclear.
"Let's finish quickly."
Michelangelo traced a small cross on himself, then lifted the surgical scalpel. On this dull day, Michelangelo's face was reflected.
His flat, sunken nose, his nearly square forehead, his lips thin like a snake's tongue, and his very sparse eyebrows caught the eye. The temples protruding outside his ears made Michelangelo's features even more peculiar. In short... excessively ugly.
He accepted this objectively.
That didn't mean he was in a good mood. Michelangelo tilted the scalpel sideways, now his face hidden from view.
"Everything's irritating today."
Was it because of the rain? Michelangelo, with a crooked smile, brought a thick stack of something hanging on the edge of the table right in front of the corpse.
Bang! He placed the pile down on the table with a palm slam.
It was a bundle of papers.
More precisely, it was anatomical diagrams Michelangelo had drawn each time he discovered bones, tendons, or muscles while dissecting corpses.
The vivid drawings looked as if they might twitch at any moment in Michelangelo's hands. Burn marks were found here and there as the pages were turned, evidence of parts he had burned himself.
Since he had set those parts on fire himself, Michelangelo didn't care.
Though the materials were so precious that any artist or doctor would drool to have them, Michelangelo treated his own drawings carelessly and recklessly.
If his devoted followers, Condivi or Vasara, saw this, they would be horrified.
"Well, whatever. Someday these papers will disappear in flames anyway."
Thinking that, Michelangelo reflexively flipped a page or two. His gaze dropped. The stench of the corpse's decay stung his nose. Before he knew it, one of Michelangelo's hands was holding a sharply carved charcoal stick.
Looking at his pencil and scalpel, Michelangelo glared at the edge of the stack of papers. Numbers were written there. The number was seven hundred sixty-seven.
The total number of anatomical structures Michelangelo had discovered so far through dissecting corpses.
"Not a satisfying number. For now... let's find just three more today."
Michelangelo gripped the scalpel tightly.
At the same time, he raised the scalpel over the corpse, which was starting to turn from blue to a purple hue.
Plunge—the scalpel pierced the skin.
Despite the boldness of the movement, it was handled delicately.
.
.
.
"Oppa?"
"·········."
Jing. Jing.
The vibration sound woke Kang Seok from his thoughts.
"Oppa!"
Coming to his senses, his phone was vibrating and Kang Chaeyoung was calling him from behind.
"Oppa, you got a call. Aren't you going to answer?"
"······I have to."
"Are you feeling sick?"
"Kind of."
For a brief moment, he seemed lost in old memories. Kang Seok squinted his eyes.
Jing. Jing.
He looked down at his ringing phone. The screen still read [Godoo Han]. Looking at it must have triggered his distraction, but since it kept ringing, it seemed Godoo Han would keep calling until Seok answered.
"Hello."
—Ah! You picked up!
"Yes, teacher. What's the matter?"
Since yesterday's lunchtime, Godoo Han's usually grim voice was somewhat brighter today. Without seeing his face, it was just a guess, but it seemed so.
Is there good news? If so, Kang Seok felt it might be related to him as he waited for the answer.
—You're at the hospital now?
"Yes, that's right."
—Hmm. When do you think you'll be done?
"It's a full medical check-up and there are four of us, so we'll probably be at the hospital all day. Why do you ask?"
—Hmm...
Godoo Han hesitated. Usually, when he hesitated like this, it meant he was about to say something good. When he won first place in the sketch contest, or when he made proposals after sketch time, it was the same.
Tap. Tap.
Godoo Han's tapping sound could be heard.
—I have a good project and I'm thinking of recommending you. Are you busy these days?
Just as expected. It was good news. Though he hesitated, Godoo Han never wasted time in long introductions; this time too, he threw out the main point first, planning to add extra details afterward.
"I'm not too busy... but what kind of project?"
What are you talking about? Oppa, you're busy.
Kang Chaeyoung moved her lips exaggeratedly in front of him to say this.
Busy? Yeah, he was busy. On weekday mornings and afternoons, he was working on the human figure sketch publication project, at night drawing countless pictures on small papers for his 800th piece, and on weekends or early mornings, preparing sketches and materials for commissioned sculptures.
But whether in his previous life or this one, Kang Seok was a typical workaholic. He enjoyed the 24-hour cycle packed with work. He hadn't expected to be like this in this life, but human nature doesn't change.
Besides, if it was Godoo Han, he was sure to take good care of him.
"It's okay. Shh."
After putting his index finger to his lips to quiet Kang Chaeyoung, Kang Seok held the phone between his shoulder and cheek. In one hand, he held a folded piece of paper and a blue pencil.
"Just a moment."
The paper was what he received when he registered for the health check-up, and the blue pencil was one of his art supplies he had brought to work on a little during the waiting time.
"Yes, you can speak."
—I don't have much to say. It seems the Hanyang University College of Arts' Department of Fine Arts professor got a project related to human anatomy, but they're short-handed.
"Human anatomy?"
Kang Seok's gaze returned to the book. Was that a spoiler? He looked at the book he almost grabbed earlier with a strange look.
Human anatomy... it was a field he couldn't be unfamiliar with. How many corpses had he dissected for anatomy? Kang Seok drummed the paper with his fingers like piano keys.
—Originally, the request was made to me, but I thought of you, Seok. Watching you recently working on human figure sketches, you seem to have studied anatomy quite well.
Godoo Han left out that he was too busy to handle it himself. He didn't want to appear unreliable to his student. Of course, Kang Seok didn't care.
━ You know quite a bit about human anatomy, right?
"I wouldn't say I don't."
Was humility a virtue? Kang Seok answered in a tone that was a strange mix of humility and modesty.
Neither Godoo Han nor Kang Seok was excessively humble, so Godoo Han didn't pay much attention to the answer.
━ So you know quite a lot. Then you should participate. Actually, the person leading this project is Park Ji-yeop from Korea National University of Arts. You know him, right? Park Ji-yeop?
Park Ji-yeop.
Kang Seok rolled the name around in his mouth.
There was no way he didn't know him.
Park Ji-yeop was a familiar figure appearing in interviews for [Art College Entrance] and [Art & Artist]. Before remembering his past life, Kang Seok even saved up his allowance to buy [Park Ji-yeop's Anatomy] because he admired him that much.
Park Ji-yeop was one of the top students admitted to the prestigious Korea National University of Arts (K-ARTS) as the top scorer and graduated at the top as well. He was on an elite path, being both an artist and a professor at K-ARTS.
There was no way not to respect him.
Moreover, Park Ji-yeop was known for succeeding more through effort than raw talent, making him an even more meaningful role model for Kang Seok.
But to have a project led by Park Ji-yeop...
Someone Kang Seok thought lived in a completely different world just recently—and now he might join a project with him?
Before even hearing about the pay, Kang Seok found himself drawn in.
Kang Seok chastised himself. Get a grip. Do you think your time has the same value as before? He forced his upward-curved lips from curiosity back down and answered:
"I know Professor Park Ji-yeop."
━ You even know he's a professor? Then you really know him. Yeah, he's pretty famous among high school students. Anyway, it seems to be a project related to human anatomy... I heard something about advancing Korean human anatomy, but they didn't say the details. So I'm not sure either, but it will be helpful.
Nothing Park Ji-yeop does ever fails. Godoo Han's soft murmur came through the phone speaker.
━ Well, whatever that guy does is probably somewhere between anatomy illustrations and making anatomy-related materials.
Was their relationship good or bad? Kang Seok wondered how to picture Park Ji-yeop and Godoo Han's connection as Godoo Han added one more sentence.
━ Anyway, the pay should be good. The project will be done with a small team, so it looks like the budget is generous. I heard each participant will get at least 3 million won per month...
At least 3 million won.
The important part was that it was monthly.
The longer the project went on, the more regular income it would bring. It was surely the actual payout of three million won.
The exact amount would be known by looking at the contract, but just hearing it described as a minimum suggested it could only get better, not worse.
━ It doesn't sound like a bad offer, so I decided to pass it on. What do you think?
Kang Seok answered right away.
"Sounds good. I'll do it."
━ I knew you'd say that. Like I told you last time, since you said you'd do everything greedily, I'll give you all of it—but don't take anything lightly.
"Yes."
Kang Seok nodded at the words filled with concern about the human anatomy sketch publication project and the pieces for Godoo Han's solo exhibition.
He planned to greedily dive in and devour everything.
━ Good. I trust you. I told Park Ji-yeop that you have a health check-up today but we'll arrange a meeting soon. When would be good for you?
"Well... just a moment."
━ Okay.
No time is ever convenient. Kang Seok's schedule was already full. He quickly pulled the phone away from his chin and cheek and brought it in front of his eyes to check the calendar.
Kang Seok lowered his head. Kang Chaeyoung was also on her phone. Someone approached Kang Seok's spot.
"Excuse me, just passing through. Sorry, excuse me."
Someone was walking down the hospital corridor carrying a box that blocked their view, bowing repeatedly.
A man with messy curly hair whose forehead and eyes were nearly hidden came closer to Kang Seok. It was obvious they were about to bump into each other. The man looked up.
Seeing Kang Seok right in front of him, the man hurriedly stepped diagonally to avoid him. At that moment, a woman, head down and focused on her phone without looking ahead, rushed toward the man.
"Excuse me—?!"
"Ah—!"
Unconsciously, Kang Seok took a step forward. Boom! Crash! Loud noises filled the hospital corridor.
Huh?
Startled, Kang Seok turned around.
━ How about tomorrow? If you finish the human anatomy sketch tomorrow evening and go right after... Seok?
"Ah. No. What did you just say?"
━ I asked if you're free tomorrow evening.
Despite the chaos, Kang Seok looked back at his calendar and answered:
"Yes. I think I can."
━ Got it. I'll tell him.
While the call ended, Kang Seok scanned the situation.
The first thing he saw was two men and women sitting on the hospital floor, their butts hitting the ground. Then a toppled box. And lastly, papers scattered from the box.
The papers were spread across the floor like the stuffing of a burst teddy bear. With his sharp memory and focus on drawings, Kang Seok quickly scanned the floor.
Drawings.
Why were there drawings in a hospital?
"Ouch..."
"Ah..."
The two men and women groaned, making a background noise as Kang Seok bent down slightly.
He was trying to pick up the papers resting on his feet.
Maybe because it was a hospital, the papers showed drawings of bones and tendons. They weren't prints but looked to be traced or painted by hand. Possibly with paint.
Looking at the pink, blue, and red colors filling the drawings, Kang Seok's expression was strange.
"Oh no, this is bad."
While Kang Seok looked at the drawings with a peculiar expression, the man who had bumped into him got up awkwardly, rubbing his butt with the palm of his hand, gathering the papers as if they were more important than himself.
The middle-aged woman who had collided with them glanced around and then left.
While people whispered and watched, a girl squatted down to pick up the papers. It was Kang Chaeyoung.
"Here."
"...Ah, thank you."
The curly-haired man bowed repeatedly to Kang Chaeyoung and rubbed his large glasses on his shirt before standing.
Had he gathered everything? He looked at the papers messily stuffed back into the box with a worried expression.
A boy holding one of the papers caught his eye.
The man—Hwang Nomin, a teaching assistant in the Department of Sculpture at Korea National University of Arts and a student under Park Ji-yeop—turned his head. Looking at the paper the boy held up, it was clearly a sample he had drawn.
Hwang Nomin's face flushed red. He was embarrassed at someone seeing his drawing.
Ahhhh, the papers. I need to get the papers. Hwang Nomin nervously stepped forward. The pain in his butt was gone. How he managed to approach the boy, he wasn't sure.
At that moment, the boy's small mumble reached Hwang Nomin's ears.
"This isn't how you draw this."