Doctor Player

Chapter 1

I am nothing but filth, a foul bastard born to one nobler than any other.

Everyone regarded me with contempt, mocking and scorning me. A lowly, wretched, repulsive existence… That was who I was.

But I also had a gift––the power to heal.

Healing was the blessed power bestowed upon us by the heavens, used to ease the suffering of humans who were ill or injured. Healers were highly regarded no matter their social status, and they lived in luxury, revered by all.

I worked tirelessly to be able to survive as a bastard child, to earn respect enough to be considered someone worthy of respect. But even as a healer, I couldn’t escape my pitiful reality.

My healing ability was lower than grade-F. No matter how hard I worked, I couldn’t overcome my lack of natural-born talent. I’d been stuck as a lowly apprentice for five years now, and now I spent my days performing menial tasks for the other healers.

Utterly worthless. Filth. Pathetic. That was how they labeled me. But then, one day... I experienced a miracle.

[You have awakened as a Player!]

[Class: Surgeon]

I was granted knowledge of the medical science used in a place called Earth. That miraculous ability took up residence within me—within a grade-F failure of a healer.

***

[You have awakened as a Player!]

[Class: Surgeon]

Raymond thought this message was nothing more than a dream when it appeared before him. It was only natural for him to think so. “Surgeon”? Not “Healer”?

Sur...geon? What’s that? Raymond let out a hollow laugh. It was a term he’d never even heard of before. I wish I could’ve dreamed about making money instead of this load of crap.

But that same night, he had yet another astonishing dream.

***

The scene playing out before him was one entirely unfamiliar to him. His surroundings were simple, gray and metallic. In the center of the room lay a man on a long bed, blood gushing from his open wounds. A patient?

“Vitals?”

“He’s losing too much blood!”

“Speed up the transfusion! No, use your hands! Squeeze the bag out!”

In his dream, Raymond was a healer—no, a “surgeon” in a blue surgical gown. And to his surprise, he realized he could understand the terms that were being thrown around: vitals, transfusion, Levophed... even though it was the first time he had heard any of these words.

“Double the Levophed dosage!”

“Yes, sir!”

The door to the metallic room slid open, and a short man wearing a surgical gown entered. When his eyes locked on the patient, his eyes shone with an iron will.

“Kelly forceps.”

Dream Raymond handed over a metallic instrument at the man’s demand, shouting, “Yes, professor! Here they are!”

The determined man took the instrument and went to work, suturing the artery pouring blood tightly closed. With a series of almost superhuman maneuvers, the patient was saved from the brink of death.

***

Raymond broke out of his dream with a jolt. What was that? Just a random dream? Still, it felt far too real to just dismiss it as something his brain had inexplicably cooked up. Furthermore, words like vitals, transfusion, and Kelly forceps... The unfamiliar terms from his dream and their meanings lingered in his mind, strangely vivid.

And that wasn’t all that was bothering him. The dream was about a surgery—a splenectomy performed on a patient with a ruptured spleen. Surgery, splenectomy… Raymond’s eyes widened at the memory of those terms. Did I dream about some kind of cult?

Healing was the only form of medical treatment available in this continent of Lepentina. Opening up a patient’s abdomen for surgery? This kind of treatment was entirely foreign to him. But Raymond instinctively knew that the medical procedure he had witnessed in his dream wasn’t some kind of cultish practice. In fact, it was much more advanced and reliable than their healing. What... What in the world has happened to me?

In that moment of deep confusion, something even more unbelievable began to happen—messages started appearing before his very eyes.

[Congratulations on your awakening as a Player!]

[Your class is <Surgeon> (Class Rank: SSS)!]

[Please open your status window!]

Status window? As he thought this to himself, a sequence of messages materialized before him.

[Player Status]

Name: Raymond

Class: Surgeon (SSS)

Class Rank: Novice Resident

Level: 1

Experience Points: 0/50

Skill Points: 0

Title: Filthy Bastard

Subclass: (Not activated)

[Stats]

Health: 3

Attunement: 2

Intelligence: 17

???: 1

Unused Stat Points: 0

[Academic Skills]

<Surgery> (D)

<General Medicine> (C)

<Basic Medicine> (C)

<Herbology> (S)

<Endemic Disease> (A)

[Attribute Skills]

<Heart of Steel> (D)

[Support Skills]

(None)

[Your level is too low to fully utilize the abilities of the <Surgeon> class!]

[Earn experience points by treating patients!]

[As your level increases, you will experience endless growth in your abilities!]

Raymond blinked at the flurry of messages that had appeared before him. He had no idea what was going on, but one thing was certain—an incredible miracle had fallen in his lap.

***

The Bellund Infirmary, where Raymond served as an apprentice, was one of the most prestigious institutions in the kingdom’s capital. However, the looks directed at Raymond by the center’s inhabitants were far from friendly.

“What’s that loser even still doing here?”

“I know, right? How long does he plan to stick around? He should know his place.”

Raymond was a filthy bastard by birth and had next to no talent, not even worthy to be called grade-F. He was a pathetic outcast, the target of everyone’s contempt. His association with his father was the only reason he’d been able to secure a position at such a prestigious healing center, but his welcome had quickly worn out.

“Shh. Be careful. What if your words reach his ears?”

“So what? He’s just a bastard, and not even a favored one. Bet he wouldn’t even care.”

“Ugh, I can practically smell the gutter rat on him. Wish he’d just drop dead somewhere.”

Their words were spoken loud and clear, as if they meant for him to hear. On a normal day, Raymond would have flinched at the abuse, withdrawing into himself, but today his mind was entirely preoccupied. Surgery, was it...?

<Surgery>

Category: Academic Skill

Proficiency: D

• This branch of medicine focuses on the use of surgical procedures in the treatment of patients.

• You can now treat patients by performing surgery.

• Due to your low academic level, you are limited in performing high-level surgeries.

Raymond’s mind was flooded with a wide variety of surgical knowledge: appendectomies, bedsore treatments, burn disinfection, fluid therapy... He was overwhelmed by the waves of knowledge swirling in his mind. Although he was limited due to his low level, the information that was coming to him was astonishing in and of itself. If I level up, I could gain even more advanced skills? And to do that, I need to treat patients?

[Experience Points: 0/50]

[Skill Points: 0]

A helpful explanation popped up.

[You gain experience points each time you treat a patient. You currently need 50 experience points to level up!]

Reading this, his heart began to race. Maybe I could become a great healer too.

All his life, Raymond had been treated as something filthy and disgusting. How hard had he worked to be not “no-good,” “pathetic” Raymond, but someone who could stand tall and proud, recognized by all? And now, finally, that future was within his reach. I can do it. I’m going to become a great healer, and gain fame and fortune!

But his moment of euphoria didn’t last long. A voice dripping with annoyance suddenly interrupted his thoughts. "Hey, Almond. Master Lance wants to see you."

“Beg pardon?”

"Ugh, you’re such a mess, and slow too! You were already born thick as a brick, and now you can’t even hear right? Get going!"

He rushed to Master Lance’s office.

"Come in, Senior Raymond."

He was welcomed by a young face. Lance had entered Bellund a year after him, but had swiftly climbed to a grade-B senior healer thanks to his remarkable natural talent, becoming the master healer of the Bellund Infirmary.

"Master Lance." He bowed deeply, his posture as respectful as possible.

Lance was the healer who treated him with the most cruelty, seizing upon the slightest opportunity to torment him endlessly. It was best not to give him any excuse.

"I called you in for a reason, Senior Raymond."

Raymond wasn’t fooled by his address. Lance only used the term “senior” as a mocking expression of contempt.

"It’s already been five years since you became an apprentice, hasn’t it, Senior Raymond?"

A feeling of unease began to creep into his chest. "Yes, that’s correct."

"Most people complete their training after two years, but you’ve managed to drag it out to five."

"Yes."

Lance sighed. "The certified healers held a discussion today. The Bellund Infirmary won’t be able to support you any longer."

"What... do you mean by that?"

"I’m saying it’s time for you to cease your apprenticeship and leave Bellund for good..."

Raymond listened on in mounting horror.

"...as becoming a full-fledged healer seems to be permanently beyond your pathetic talents." Lance spoke coldly, his voice laced with mocking amusement. "As of today, your apprentice status has been revoked. You don’t have the qualifications necessary to become a healer, so pack your things and get out."