《Super Genius DNA》 Chapter 1: Scientist Ryu Young-Joon (1)

Chapter 1: Scientist Ryu Young-Joon (1)

Ryu Young-Joon, the Scientist of A¨CGen, a pharmaceuticalpany, was walking tiredly down the hall. Just then, he got a call from Park So-Yeon, his girlfriend. ¡ªHey, did you really get disciplinary action from thepany? Department transfer and suspension? Those were her first words to Young-Joon. ¡°Yeah,¡± he answered dryly. ¡ªHow long is the suspension? ¡°A month.¡± ¡ªYou¡¯re not quitting, right? ¡°I would quit right away if I could, but you know my family¡¯s financial situation. If I quit, my parents are going to have to live on the streets.¡± ¡ªSigh... So-Yeon sighed. After some thought, she spoke. ¡ªLet¡¯s take a break to think about this rtionship. ¡°What?¡± ¡ªEveryone whispers when they see me walk by. They talk about how I¡¯m the girl that¡¯s dating Doctor Ryu, the one who caused a big scene. ¡°No, wait. I didn¡¯t do anything wrong. I was just trying to protect research ethics. Are you serious?¡± ¡ªI¡¯m serious. Young-Joon was at a loss for words. He felt like his head was actually physically ringing from hearing something so unexpected and shocking. ¡°Seriously, I can¡¯t believe it. How could you... So-Yeon, you know how hard this is for me, right? And you¡¯re leaving me now? Instead offorting me?¡± ¡ªI can¡¯t believe it either. We¡¯re dating at work at the sameb, just on different floors and departments. How difficult of a position do you think you¡¯re putting me in by taking on the Lab Director? Did you even think about me when you did that? ¡°You also know what that director and management did! Does being a scientist mean turning a blind eye to lowly things like that? ¡ªBeing part of society means turning a blind eye to lowly things like that. Park So-Yeon spoke. ¡°....¡± ¡ªI think I told you several times, but I¡¯ll tell you onest time. Control your temper... You¡¯re not a kid anymore, you¡¯re not even in your twenties anymore. ¡°...¡± ¡ªSorry, I¡¯ll hang up now. Thanks for everything. Don¡¯t call me anymore. Beep. The phone call came to an end. Young-Joon¡¯s hand trembled as he tightly held his phone. He was furious; his head was ringing. ¡®Lab Director Kim Hyun-Taek.¡¯ This was all because of that despicable asshole. ¡°Ahhh!!¡± Young-Joon screamed. He raised his arm to throw his phone at the wall, but stopped just before he actually threw it. Even now, he was thinking about how much it would cost him to get his phone screen repaired. Young-Joon realized that poor people didn¡¯t have the luxury to get angry easily. ¡®Of course.¡¯ He wondered why he had chosen to go up against Kim Hyun-Taek when he knew that well. ¡®Getting angry, following your dreams, and keeping your ethics all have a price tag in this shitty world.¡¯ Young-Joon slid down the hallway wall. He buried his face in his knees and sobbed silently. * * * A¨CGen was an extremelyrge international pharmaceuticalpany. They had sixbs in the country and four internationally for a total of ten, and they had the rights to countless new drugs. They were a pharma-giant that had business in everything from makeup to healthcare products, new synthetic drugs, over-the-counter drugs, artificial gene synthesis and gene sequencing. Young-Joon, a twenty-nine-year-old elite doctor, joined thepany as the Scientist of the Anticancer Drug Research department. He was basically the assistant manager. He was pretty sessful when he first joined thepany; he was good at what he did, had passion, and was also quite smart. He also knew a bigwork of people due to his education at a prestigious university. His seniors called him for drinks every day and Young-Joon went to all of them and got along. He also started dating Park So-Yeon, the prettiest scientist of the Mobile Diagnostic Device Research Department, who had joined thepany around the same time as him. Young-Joon was a researcher beloved by all. The incident happened around a year after he started working in the Anticancer Drug Research department. [It¡¯s a new drug for early liver cancer developed by a venturepany, and it seems to be quite effective. It could bepetition.] Young-Joon gave his superiors a report. It was a treatment drug for early liver cancer called Celicure that was being studied. The problem was that A¨CGen was also selling Iloa, another drug for early liver cancer treatment. It was obvious that a significant amount of Iloa¡¯s stake in the market would be taken by Cellicure if it was more effective. ¡°Doctor Ryu!¡± A few dayster, a man named Yoon Bo-Hyun, an assistant manager from the management department, came down and called for Young-Joon. ¡°Doctor, could you purchase a small amount of that drug and perform aparative experiment between our drug and theirs?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± A scientist did not avoidparing their own product to apetitive product. Young-Joon contacted the venturepany himself and acquired thirty milligrams of the new drug for academic purposes. An experiment on live cells showed that the new drug was much more effective. [Cellicure, thepetitive product, is performing better than Iloa. Please see attached data for more details.] ~ About four months after sending that report in, Young-Joon heard surprising news. ¡°Doctor Ryu, did you hear? Our management bought Cellicure.¡± He was shocked when he heard the news from Kim Hyun-Seok, the Senior Scientist. ¡°What?!¡± ¡°It¡¯s like I said. They bought it for ten billion won.¡¯ ¡°That drug is only in phase one of clinical trials though?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°Then, we¡¯re going to be the ones who develop it from phase two to production, right?¡± Young-Joon¡¯s face lit up. Kim Hyun-Seok smiled. In an elevated voice, Young-Joon eximed, ¡°Wow. What¡¯s gotten into our management? Buying something as good as that.¡± ¡°Is Cellicure really better than ours?¡± ¡°That was the result of phase one. Iloa had side effects like rashes on patients and had problems like the treatment being needed to be administered for a long time to work, right? Cellicure had none of that.¡± ¡°Wow, really?¡± Kim Hyun-Seok patted Young-Joon on the shoulder as he chuckled. ¡°I¡¯m here.¡± Lead Scientist Hyun Mi-Ju came into theb. Young-Joon bolted up from his seat. ¡°Lead Hyun! Did you hear? Ourpany bought Cellicure!¡± ¡°Oh, really?¡± Hyun Mi-Ju smiled brightly. ¡°Yes! Let¡¯s finish it when we get it and put it on the market.¡± ¡°Ahaha, sure. The venturepany might be a little disappointed since they¡¯re losing the experience of developing a new drug, but it¡¯s good to hear that we bought a good drug.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. It¡¯s better for patients as well. I am confident I can get the clinical trials done properly. And our production pipeline is better, too!¡± Click. ¡°Good morning, everyone.¡± Scientist Park Yeon-Seo walked in. ¡°Scientist Park! Did you hear?¡± Young-Joon shouted as he ran out. ¡°He¡¯s going to be like that all day.¡± Hyun Mi-Ju chuckled as she spoke to Kim Hyun-Seok. ¡°It¡¯s the energy and passion of a young scientist. Well, I like it.¡± Kim Hyun-Seok smiled. That evening, Young-Joon visited a columbarium near Seoul. There was a small silver vase of remains in slot 274. [Ryu Sae-Yi] Behind the vase was a small name te and a picture of a girl who looked to be around nine years old. Young-Joon stared at the photo. ¡°Hey, Sae-Yi. Your older brother is here,¡± Young-Joon spoke calmly. ¡°Did you know? I can have your revenge soon. Amazing, right? Look how great your older brother is~¡± Young-Joon grinned. ¡°A venturepany made a good drug. Ourpany bought it and I¡¯m going to finish it.¡± Young-Joon stroked the vase. Young-Joon was the firstborn son and quite a bit older than his two siblings; he was ten years older than Ji-Won, who had just gone to university, and fourteen years older than Sae-Yi. Sae-Yi, the sister born when he was in middle school, felt more like his daughter than sister. In fact, he had basically raised her... Until she died of pediatric liver cancer, a very rare case, seven years ago. ¡°I¡¯ll make sure that no one dies of cancer, at least liver cancer.¡± Scientific advancements were always good; if advancements in science came with problems, those problems didn¡¯t go past things like hair loss that apanied chemotherapy. Sometimes, it just meant that they brought already-existing problems to the surface. The only kind of wrong science was the kind that stopped advancing. ¡®Science should always be advancing.¡¯ Not advancing did not mean stagnation, but regress. It meant that the world did nothing while it lost kind, hopeful children like Ryu Sae-Yi. * * * It had been three weeks. The study hadn¡¯t happened yet. [I would like to begin phase two of the clinical trial of Cellicure, the drug purchased for ten billion won. A detailed schedule of experiments is as follows: ...] Young-Joon had sent in a report multiple times, but he received no response. ¡°Why are they not experimenting with the new drug they spent so much money on?¡± When Young-Joon¡¯s frustration was at its limit, Lab Director Kim Hyun-Taek called him. ¡°Doctor Ryu, why are you so obsessed with that new drug for liver cancer?¡± Hyun-Taek asked Young-Joon in the director¡¯s office. ¡°Pardon? Well, it¡¯s because it¡¯s a better drug.¡± ¡°In what ways is it a better drug?¡± ¡°It has a higher clinical cure rate, right? It also has less side effects...¡± ¡°Then, it¡¯s a worse drug in a way, no?¡± ¡°....¡± Young-Joon was at a loss for words. It was cheaper to produce and more effective; it had no side effects and had a shorter treatment duration. ¡®How can it be worse?¡¯ As Young-Joon looked at him in confusion, Hyun-Taek smiled. ¡°Let me tell you. It takes two years forplete recovery with that drug. Iloa, our drug, takes five.¡± ¡°I... am not sure that I follow. What¡¯s the problem?¡± ¡°A patient has to take either the Iloa or the new drug. Which do you think would be better for ourpany¡¯s sales?¡± ¡°....¡± Young-Joon¡¯s face went pale and froze like a corpse. That was the first time he realized that words could cut open his skull and shake his brain. He felt like everything that he believed in was being destroyed. ¡°Fr... From the beginning...¡± Hyun-Taek said it for Young-Joon as he stuttered. ¡°We bought it because of that reason from the beginning. So, stop getting distracted and do what you¡¯ve been told to do. And forget about that drug.¡± ¡°....¡± Young-Joon gulped. He opened his mouth several times to speak, but nothing came out. He bit his lips. ¡°Do... Do other people know?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Of course. Do you think there would be another person as foolish and rigid as you at ourpany? It seems like no one told you because they didn¡¯t want to rain on your parade, but look. Doctor Ryu.¡± Taking off his sses, Kim Hyun-Taek moved closer to Young-Joon. ¡°Science takes money.¡± ¡°....¡± ¡°Your sry takes money, and it takes money to buy the reagents you use in experiments. Do you understand? This isn¡¯t a university; it¡¯s apany that works for profit.¡± Young-Joon¡¯s shoulders trembled. ¡®He¡¯s fake.¡¯ This person was not a scientist. ¡®Everyone knew? Kim Hyun-Seok, Hyun Mi-Ju, and Park Yeon-Seo... All of them?¡¯ Principal Scientist Kim Joo-Yeon, Lead Hwang Chan-Mi, Lead Park Shi-Joon, and dozens of scientists under the seniors in the Anticancer Drug Research department knew about it, but no one raised a problem. Scientists who were developing anticancer drugs had gotten rid of one and turned a blind eye. Everyone was fake. ¡°You... frauds...¡± Young-Joon murmured. ¡°What?¡± Young-Joon felt like betrayal pumped in his veins and up to his cerebrum every time his heart beat. He felt like vomiting from the disgust and anger; he felt his hands tremble from the unjustness and despicable behavior. His seniors whom he had respected and followed, and A¨CGen, the best pharmaceuticalpany in the world, were all fake. The science they did at thispany was no different from politics. And what did the venturepany do? They would¡¯ve fought for over ten years to get that one drug on the market. They trusted A¨CGen and sold it to them! The materialistic ploy for money by these greedy businessmen had gotten rid of a more advanced drug. ¡®They made science regress.¡¯ The thing that enraged Young-Joon, who had first reported about the new drug and started this, the most was that he had taken part in this as well. ¡°Hey, Doctor Ryu?¡± Kim Hyun-Taek waved his hand in front of Young-Joon as he stared into space. Crash! Then, Young-Joon mmed his fist on Hyun-Taek¡¯s desk. ¡°Director... You are a fucking asshole.¡± Young-Joon blurted out the anger that he swallowed back several times. Tears fell from his eyes. ¡°Don¡¯t ever call yourself a scientist.¡± Young-Joon opened the door with trembling hands and left the office. Several people from his department nced at Young-Joon, then turned back to look at their monitors. Young-Joon walked out of the office with heavy footsteps. Four days after that incident, Young-Joon was handed a month of suspension and departmental transfer. Chapter 2: Scientist Ryu Young-Joon (2)

Chapter 2: Scientist Ryu Young-Joon (2)

The one-month suspension flew by. All Young-Joon could remember about how he had spent most of his time was drinking Chamisul[1]. He didn¡¯t have a great alcohol tolerance, but the huge disappointment and heartbreak from thepany made him an alcoholic. He drank at least three bottles every day from day one to twenty-seven of his one-month suspension. If he were to add up all the bottles he drank, it would be a few cases at least. The reason he stopped drinking from day twenty eight was not to get ready to go to his new department; it was because he went to the hospital after feeling an excruciating pain in his abdomen. The doctor told him he had hepatitis and prescribed him medicine. He also warned Young-Joon that he could get cirrhosis and die if he didn¡¯t stop drinking. ¡®Life is shit, but it¡¯s not enough to kill myself.¡¯ More than that, the lives of his parents and brother would go wrong if he were to fall now. From that point on, Young-Joon pulled himself together. And today was the first day going to his new department. The Life Creation Department: this was what his new department was called. ¡°Hello. I¡¯m Ryu Young-Joon from the Anticancer Drug Research Department.¡± Young-Joon walked into the office early in the morning and introduced himself. However, the only person who was in the office was a man whoy back in his chair, sleeping. His feet were on the desk and he was blocking the light from hitting his eyes by covering his face with his jacket. Not long after, Young-Joon walked over to theb. It was a tidy and cleanb. Huge centrifuges and freezers were covering the walls and on the benches and shelves were all kinds of reagents, sks, and pipettes. On the shared table was a kit for DNA electrophoresis and a Gel Doc.[2] ¡®They have everything that¡¯s needed.¡¯ Young-Joon looked around theb before moving further inward. A small stic tube with a volume of 1.5 milliliters was reacting on a heat block, a device with slots for test tubes that allowed for precise control of the temperature. Looking closely, Young-Joon could see a milliliter of red liquid bubbling inside. Beep! Beep! Beep! The rm for the heat block suddenly rang; it meant that the reaction time was up. ¡°Oh...¡± Flustered, Young-Joon took out the sample from the heat block. It was almost reflexive. [Rosaline v4.87] That was what was written on the sample tube. ¡®Rosaline...¡¯ The department Young-Joon was transferred over to was the Life Creation Department. What would they do in this department? Of course, they would create life. It seemed like fantasy, but they were actually studying that. They were putting chemicals such as fatty acids, nucleotides, and a few types of electrolytes together and attempting to artificially synthesize a living cell by giving the mixture the appropriate amount of stimtion. This was the superficial purpose of this department; what was meant by superficial was that the Life Creation Department had a different, true purpose: it was to punish and exile people like Young-Joon, people who were cancerous to thepany. Creating life was impossible, after all. Pressuring people to get results that were impossible and grilling them about it was basically the same thing as thepany telling them to quit. ¡°An artificial cell...¡± Now, Young-Joon really felt like he was in the Life Creation Department. He felt the strength leaving from his hand, which was holding the sample. ¡®Maybe let¡¯s take a look?¡¯ Young-Joon took the sample to the microscope and examined it. After focusing the lens, he observed a few circr cell-like things. However, they were disappearing rapidly. ¡°I think it needs more salt...¡± Young-Joon added ten microliters of 10X PBS to the tube. For a moment, it seemed that the cells were doing better, but then, they began dying again. ¡®What a failure.¡¯ The moment he put his hand on the stage of the microscope to remove the sample... ¡°Ack!¡± He felt a sharp sensation from beneath his fingernail. He had cut his finger on a broken ss fragment beside the stage. ¡°Ouch...¡± Young-Joon held his bleeding finger and carefully removed the sample with his other hand. The cut stung. ¡°Why is there a piece of ss on a microscope?¡± Young-Joonined. ¡°They don¡¯t take care of equipment properly...¡± Young-Joon put the sample of [Rosaline v4.87] back into the tube and stared at it. ¡®My blood didn¡¯t go in here or anything, right..?¡¯ He couldn¡¯t even tell as the sample was bright red to begin with. Young-Joon stared at the cut on the tip of his finger, and he could see some kind of white foam on it. He red at the cut, clicked his tongue, then washed his hand under running tap water. When he returned to the office, a few more people had shown up. ¡°Huh? We have a newbie.¡± The man who was sleeping with his jacket on his face reacted as he saw Young-Joon. ¡°Hello, I¡¯m Scientist Ryu Young-Joon from the Anticancer Drug Research Department.¡± As Young-Joon introduced himself, the man slowly got up and held out his hand to him. ¡°I¡¯m Senior Scientist Park Dong-Hyun.¡± The position of Senior Scientist meant that he was basically a manager in terms of office titles. Young-Joon shook his hand. ¡°Nice to meet you.¡± Dong-Hyun greeted. ¡°I look forward to working with you,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°You know what kind of ce this is, right?¡± ¡°A department where we study creating life.¡± ¡°No. It''s an exile. Let¡¯s stick together as fellow outcasts. Otherwise, we won¡¯t be able to endure it here.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°So, what did you do, Doctor Ryu?¡± Dong-Hyun asked. ¡°I put myself up against Lab Director Kim Hyun-Taek.¡± ¡°Ah, are you the famous celebrity that cursed at Lab Director Kim?¡± Dong-Hyun chuckled. ¡°I heard about that incident, too. You probably hate thepany now, so howe you didn¡¯t quit?¡± ¡°It¡¯s because of financial reasons.¡± ¡°Are you married?¡± Dong-Hyun asked. ¡°No,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°I¡¯m forcing myself to tolerate this ce because of my wife and kids, but it¡¯s really difficult. It would be better for you to go to a differentpany now, Doctor Ryu. Even if you don¡¯t get your sry for a little bit until you get a new job, it¡¯s better in the long run.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± ¡°There are a lot of smallpanies that pay as much as these guys. The merit of A¨CGen is that they give you a lot of performance bonuses, but it doesn¡¯t apply to the Life Creation Department, which cannot perform.¡± Young-Joon nodded. What Dong-Hyun told him was true; their pay had indirectly decreased because there was no performance to be rewarded for, and their will toe to work decreased the more the superiors grilled them. On top of that, the other employees in thepany either smirked at or took pity on them, as being part of the Life Creation Project Team came with a certain... image. Not a lot of scientists held out long under that kind of humiliation. ¡°Just let me know whenever you want to quit. It¡¯s fine. I think there were around fifteen people who came in and disappeared while I held out here.¡± Dong-Hyun smiled bitterly. Then, as if he had just remembered something, ¡°Oh right! Did you see the sample in the heat block?¡± ¡°Oh, I took it out and looked at it. I added some 10X PBS because it looked like the cell membrane kept bursting.¡± ¡°Oh, how smart. You¡¯ve probably never done an experiment like that. I see that we¡¯ve received a great scientist,¡± Dong-Hyun eximed. ¡°Haha...¡± Young-Joonughed awkwardly. ¡°It¡¯s surprising that they sent a gifted person like you into exile just because you defied them. These A¨CGen assholes...¡± ¡°But the cells still died even with PBS.¡± ¡°Did they?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Dong-Hyun shook his head. ¡°Well, what can you do? It¡¯s not like it¡¯s the first time we failed. It¡¯s okay, even the superiors don¡¯t expect this project to seed here in the first ce.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± ¡°Theye down and give us an earful every week about not having results, but just sing a few songs in your head and ignore it.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Well... The year-end seminaring up soon is a little important, but...¡± Dong-Hyun clicked his tongue as he thought about thepany-wide year-end seminar. ¡°Sigh, how am I going to tolerate it this time?¡± ¡°...¡± Dong-Hyun nced at Young-Joon and tilted his head in confusion. ¡°Doctor Ryu? Are you alright?¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡®Now that I think of it, I was a little dizzy before.¡¯ ¡°Doctor Ryu? You¡¯repletely pale. It looks like you¡¯re breaking out in cold sw...¡± Thest part of Dong-Hyun¡¯s sentence was silenced by the sound of wind. Everything in front of Young-Joon was going dark as he fell to the ground on his side. Thud! Young-Joon lost consciousness. ¡°Woah, Doctor Ryu!¡± Dong-Hyun shook his shoulder in surprise, but Young-Joon did not respond. ¡°Hae-Rim! Call 119!¡±[3] The young woman that was sitting next to Dong-Hyun called 119 in shock. ~ Soon, paramedics arrived. Young-Joon was transported to the emergency room right away. However, his condition was extremely strange. His brain activity appeared to bepletely suspended, as he was unable to answer any questions. Even at Stage 4 on thea scale, people were able to respond verbally if asked something repeatedly. Being as unresponsive as Young-Joon was usually corrted with Stage 5¡ªtotal loss of consciousness¡ªor even worse. However, all his reflexes were intact. This was odd. Even in Stage 2, a mild lethargy, reactions to stimuli were bound to be slow, but Young-Joon¡¯s pupils constricted very rapidly when shone with light, and he was extremely sensitive to very mild pain and loud sounds. In fact, in terms of reflexes alone, he was doing better than a normal person. In cases like this, unconsciousness was usually determined to be just deception. Sometimes, criminals summoned to the police station or court faked being sick and were taken to the emergency room. The doctor at the emergency room swung Young-Joon¡¯s arm and made him p himself on the face. No matter how limp one made their hand, they were bound to control the power in their hands without intending if they were conscious. However, Young-Joon ended up hitting his cheek really hard. Then, he twisted his body and wrapped his hand around his face as if he was reacting to the pain he inflicted on himself or was fighting back against someone that was hitting him. Young-Joon acted the same even with multiple tests. He pped himself hard enough to make his cheek quite red, then reacted to the pain. It really did seem like he was unconscious. As the confused doctors were about to do some more precise tests, Young-Joon opened his eyes. ¡°Hello? Are you awake?¡± The young doctor asked as he shook Young-Joon¡¯s shoulder. ¡°... Yes... I think I¡¯m okay.¡± Young-Joon put his hands on his throbbing temples and raised his head. ¡°Do you have any chronic illnesses?¡± ¡°I was diagnosed with hepatitis four days ago.¡± ¡°Hepatitis.¡± The doctor nodded. ¡°Hepatitis can sometimes cause anemia. You should stay and get tested more precisely.¡± Young-Joon did not reply. The doctor tapped him on the shoulder. ¡°Sir?¡± ¡°...¡± Ryu Young-Jun stared into space with a ck face. ¡°What is this...? ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°Something is floating in front of my eyes.¡± It was a turquoise, translucent, rectangr window. On it were some sentences. [Creating life is God¡¯s domain.] [You have created an artificial cell and have be the first ever yer of Life in human history.] 1. A brand of soju. ? 2. A DNA electrophoresis is a method used to separate DNA fragments based on their size and charge. It is usually done in a type of gel, like agarose. A Gel Doc is ab equipment that records and analyzes the results of a gel electrophoresis. ? 3. 119 is the emergency number in Korea. It¡¯s equivalent to 911. ? Chapter 3: Scientist Ryu Young-Joon (3)

Chapter 3: Scientist Ryu Young-Joon (3)

¡°What can you see?¡± The doctor asked. ¡°Uh... Some weird letters,¡± Young-Joon answered. ¡°What does it say?¡± ¡°... I don¡¯t know.¡± Young-Joon found this too absurd to exin, and he also felt a little embarrassed for some reason. ¡°Are you hearing things as well?¡± ¡°No.¡± Ring! A notification popped up as soon as Young-Joon answered. [The artificial cell has recovered your body.] Then, a Siri-like voice read him the message. ¡°...I am hearing things.¡± ¡°What are you hearing?¡± ¡°It keeps beeping... like notifications or something.¡± ¡°Ringing...¡± The doctor wrote down a few more things on his chart. In the meantime, Young-Joon tapped the message windows with his hand with caution. With the sound of paper flipping, the windows disappeared immediately. The doctor asked, ¡°I think it would be best for you to go home today and then be evaluated by neuropsychiatry tomorrow. Would you like me to make you an appointment?¡± ¡°Yes, that would be great.¡± ¡°Do you feel difort anywhere else?¡± Young-Joon opened his hands and slowly examined his body; it didn¡¯t seem too bad. ¡°I¡¯m okay.¡± ¡°Alright. I didn¡¯t see any major issues when I was examining you either, so let¡¯s have you booked in for tomorrow afternoon.¡± ¡°Thank you,¡± Young-Joon replied and got up. ¡°The admission office is that way.¡± Young-Joon walked in the direction the doctor pointed toward and paid his bills. It was already the evening when he exited the hospital. As Young-Joon pulled out his cellphone to see if he had missed any calls, a nurse ran out and called him. ¡°Sir!¡± Young-Joon did not know this, but she was a new nurse. She had promised herself that she would be as kind as she could be to her patients among her scary and picky superiors. All she would have to do was do the little things that no one really noticed, such as keeping her patient¡¯s contact lenses safe and returning them. ¡°Yes?¡± As Young-Joon turned when he heard her, the nurse approached him with his contact lens container. ¡°These are your contact lenses.¡± ¡°Oh...¡± Young-Joon took the case. ¡°Get home safely.¡± The nurse smiled and walked back into the hospital. However, Young-Joon just stood there, staring into space. ¡®Contact lenses? So, I¡¯m not wearing them right now? And I can still see clearly?¡¯ Young-Joon tried to calm the thoughts that were racing through his head. Now that he thought of it, he did feel better. He just assumed it was temporary from getting some fresh air after being in the hospital for so long. But he wasn¡¯t mistaken. He was full of energy, and he could definitely feel that he was healthier. His vision wasn¡¯t the only thing that was better. His chronic lower back pain he had acquired from getting his degree in graduate school waspletely gone. His bad and forward head posture he gained from having a job where he had to stare at a screen for eight hours a day was fixed. Young-Joon could feel it; his neck didn¡¯t hurt anymore and all the joints in his body were flexible. The pain in his upper abdomen he had even before being diagnosed with hepatitis was gone. His gut felt fine, and even the lower belly fat he had gotten from putting on a little weight in graduate school was gone, too. Young-Joon¡¯s body felt light. He felt like he had gone back to his body in his twenties: flexible, toned, and full of energy. ¡°Haa.¡± Young-Joon took a deep breath. He could feel the oxygen fill his healthy lungs. His strong heart was beating fiercely. Young-Joon took out his phone again and went through it. He saw two missed phone calls and a message. [Doctor Ryu, it¡¯s okay if youe inte, so rest well. Call me when you are feeling better tomorrow. I hope it¡¯s nothing and you get better soon.] ¡®It should be fine, right?¡¯ Young-Joon thought he could just get treated at the hospital again tomorrow morning if there was anything wrong. * * * A little whileter, Young-Joon returned to his house, where he lived alone. ¡®I should take my medicine first.¡¯ Young-Joon took out the medicine he was prescribed from the hospital and swallowed his evening¡¯s worth. Bleep! He heard a sudden sound. Then, something popped up in front of his eyes. [The artificial cell is beginning to break down the orally administered drug.] [Has broken down 30 mg of Prednisolone.] [Has broken down 400 mg of Pentoxifylline.] ¡®What is this?¡¯ Young-Joon stumbled in confusion and flopped onto his bed. The message window followed him consistently as if it was at a certain fixed distance from his eye. He swatted at it, but nothing changed. Looking closely, Young-Joon could see two buttons on the side of the window. [Status Window] [Message Window] ¡°Status window?¡± Young-Joon tapped the [Status Window] button with his finger. With the sound of paper flipping, a brown, translucent status window appeared in front of his eyes. It was like something that would happen in a fantasy novel. Even though the status window was in front of Young-Joon, it was not his status that it was disying. [Artificial Cell Lv. 1] -Metastatic Status: Heart (2%), Liver (46%), Brain (7%), Kidney (13%), Spinal Cord (4%) -Synchronization: 3% -Cell Fitness: 1.3 -Gene Expression Control: Suppression of CYP2E1 Expression (44%) ¡°What the hell... What is this...¡± Young-Joon could see the status window clearly no matter how many times he blinked. Seeing that it didn¡¯t go away even if he swatted at it, it wasn¡¯t an actual object floating in the air. ¡®Are those letters engraved in my retina or something?¡¯ As Young-Joon stared at the letters nkly, he began to wonder what would happen if he pressed the [Message Window] button. He pressed the button that was below the status window. [Loading unread messages.] ... [Congrattions, Creator. The artificial cell has be synchronized to your body.] [Improve the metastasis and synchronization to increase the level of the artificial cell.] [Your recovery speed and total amount of fitness will increase as the level of the artificial cell increases.] [You, the owner of the artificial cell, can consume cell fitness to gain insight into processes of life or control the expression of genes.] ¡°What is this bullshit...¡± Young-Joon rubbed his eyes. ¡°I became what?¡± [The current message and status window is created by the artificial cell manipting your cerebral cortex; it analyzes the memories in your hippocampus and presents information to you with the UI design most familiar to you.] [I will remind you of the moment when you created life.] A new message popped up. At the same time, light shed in front of Young-Joon¡¯s eyes and he saw a hallucination. There were artificial cells on the small container that was on the stage of the microscope. To be exact, it wasn¡¯t a living organism yet. It was still not living even after Young-Joon added salt to it with 10X PBS. However, a miracle happened when a few microlitres of blood fell into it as he cut his finger. As Young-Joon¡¯s blood cells died from entering a new environment, they released arge amount of ATP. That ATP entered the artificial cells and created arge amount of energy, which stabilized the cell membrane. Then, the artificial cell rapidly rose to the surface. That was the unique characteristic of this cell: the ability to move into the air from the culture medium. ¡®The ability to float through the air.¡¯ The artificial cell entered his body through the cut on the tip of his finger. It traveled through his capiries and veins and reached his heart. ¡°Ack!¡± Young-Joon screamed and shook his head. [The artificial cell is now within you.] [Creator, please name the artificial cell.] ¡°Fxxk, w¨Cwhat...¡± [Would you like to name it, Fxxk, w¨Cwhat...?] ¡°No! This makes no sense!¡± [Would you like to name it, No! This makes no sense!?] ¡°...¡± Young-Joon thought about it for a little while, then said, ¡°Rosaline.¡± It was the name that was written on the sample tube in theb. [Creator, you have given the artificial cell the name Rosaline. You can see everything about Rosaline by calling this name, and Rosaline forever belongs to you.] [Also, life creation is an event that can only happen once. Remember that life will not appear even if you try to recreate Rosaline the same way.] With thisst exnation, all the message windows disappeared at once, and so did the strange-looking status window that read [Artificial Cell Lv. 1]. Young-Joon rubbed his throbbing temples and calmly called, ¡°Rosaline...?¡± Flutter! [Rosaline Lv. 1] -Metastatic Status: Heart (2%), Liver (46%), Brain (7%), Kidney (13%), Spinal Cord (4%) -Synchronization: 3% -Cell Fitness: 1.3 -Gene Expression Control: Suppression of CYP2E1 Expression (44%) The same status window as before appeared. However, the name had changed from Artificial Cell to Rosaline. ¡°Okay, be calm.¡± Every strange phenomenon had a scientific exnation. The way Moses stained the Nile River with blood had a scientific exnation: a red tide. The way that this artificial cell was created was nonsensical, to be honest. It only seemed intuitively usible because of the hallucinations and knowledge forced into his brain, but it was actually outside of the capabilities of current science. ¡®Let¡¯s think about that partter.¡¯ If Young-Joon believed that a magical cell called Rosaline was actually created and if everything that he saw was true... ¡°Then is the change in my body because of this, too?¡± Young-Joon focused on the part that was bothering him as he read the status window. [Liver (46%)] It was a particrly prominent value in the Metastatic Status category. The human body was made up of thirty-seven trillion cells, and since two hundred billion of them formed the liver, it meant that about a hundred billion Rosaline cells were covering his liver. What was the liver? It was the cause of fatigue... No, it was the biochemical factory in the human body that detoxified all the toxins that urred in the human body. This was the reason people got hepatitis, liver cirrhosis, or a fatty liver if they drank a lot, as the liver was the organ that broke down alcohol. The more alcohol one drank, the more they used the liver, which led to problems. The condition of Young-Joon¡¯s liver was terrible. Having hepatitis meant that his liver cells were being destroyed and were dying from the infection in his liver. If it progressed further, it would turn into liver fibrosis and eventually liver failure. Young-Joon opened the message window again. As he scrolled through the unread messages, he saw something surprising. [Starting normalization of the body.] [Detected a widespread infection reaction in the liver. Starting suppression of the infection and recovery of the organ. Prioritizing metastasis to this region. Discoveredrge amounts of lipids. Attempting lipase activation and removal of lipids.] [Detected overexpression of CYP2E1 inrge amounts of the liver cells. Suppressing at 57%.] [Detected spinal disc herniation between L4 and L5. Controlling expression of steroid hormones. 27% overexpression.][1] [Attempting reinsertion of the herniated disc. Starting recovery of nerve damage and contraction of muscle fibers.] [Detected scalp fascia contraction due to nerve damage. Starting muscle rxation.] [Detected possibility of a posterior herniation of the spinal disc above C2. Degree of deviation: 71. Attempting to strengthen cartge and recover nerves.][2] [Initiating myocardial cell regeneration.] ... Young-Joon¡¯s jaw dropped to the ground in shock. ¡®What is happening to my body right now?¡¯ 1. L1 to L5 are the vertebrae of the lumbar spine that is located in the lower back. ? 2. C1 to C7 are the vertebrae of the cervical spine located in the neck region. ? Chapter 4: Scientist Ryu Young-Joon (4)

Chapter 4: Scientist Ryu Young-Joon (4)

There were about eighty messages piled up. At the end of all those long messages, he could find these messages. [Body normalizationplete: 3h 44min.] [All organs have been normalized to their optimal condition.] [The expression level of CYP2E1 will be controlled continuously for 3 days.] [Rosaline has broken down and destroyed the remaining 1.7 mg of Prednisolone and 22 mg of Pentoxifylline.] [The liver is in optimal condition and does not require treatment.] This was everything. Young-Joon read all the messages, then closed all the windows and just left the status window open. He was confused, but he decided to focus on one category of the status window first. [Gene Expression Control: Suppression of CYP2E1 Expression (44%)] One cell in the human body contained around twenty thousand genes, and CYP2E1 was one of them. It was a gene that was involved in the detoxification of alcohol. If this gene worked well, alcohol could be broken down rapidly. Young-Joon¡¯s liver had overworked this gene to detoxify therge amount of alcohol umted in his body due to drinking three bottles of soju every day during his one-month suspension. Much like one¡¯s arm muscles would grow if they lifted weights every day, a gene would also grow into a monster if it was overworked. The CYP2E1 gene in Young-Joon¡¯s liver had be too powerful, and something being too powerful meant that it was harmful to the body. For example, someone who was using this gene too much could suffer a hemorrhage in their liver after taking a few tablets of Tylenol. In fact, Antonio Benedi, from the Bush administration, who drank a ss of wine every night, had almost died because of that. He had fallen unconscious for a few days after taking the appropriate amount of Tylenol for his cold. That was why Rosaline had suppressed this gene; Young-Joon could have died after taking Tylenol because of a headache. Chills ran through his body now that he thought of it that way. ¡®Let¡¯s look at the messages again. The next message after everything about the levels and stuff.¡¯ [You, the owner of Rosaline, can consume cell fitness to gain insight into processes of life or control the expression of genes.] ¡®I can consume cell fitness to gain insight into processes of life or control gene expression?¡¯ Young-Joon red at Rosaline¡¯s status window. [Cell Fitness: 1.3] Looking closely, Young-Joon could see a small gauge beside the number. The bar in the gauge kept getting longer, then returned to zero as soon as it reached the end. [Cell Fitness: 1.4] The fitness increased. The cell fitness value indicated how healthy the cell was: how strong the cell membrane was, whether the digestive organelles inside the cell were working properly, and if it was properly adhered to the te if it was an adherent cell. ¡®You¡¯re saying I can use this fitness level?¡¯ Young-Joon tried to find out how he could use it, but it wasn¡¯t easy. [Cell Fitness: 1.5 (MAX)] Soon after, the fitness of the cell reached 1.5. The bar did not increase anymore; it seemed like the maximum amount of the cell fitness was 1.5. ¡°Sigh.¡± Young-Joon thought his head was going to explode from the amount of stress he had been under. ¡®Am I mentally ill?¡¯ Young-Joon was a scientist inside and out. The most reasonable exnation for this situation was that the extreme stress he was under had created some sort of disorder in his brain, causing him to go crazy. It was definitely a possibility. With the betrayal of hispany and colleagues, a month of suspension and departmental transfer, the dreadful burden of his debt, and extreme depression, he must have felt like he deserved something after all this; his reward system was probably in y right now. Wantingpensation for his recent troubles was probably what was creating these hallucinations and fantasies. [I am going to get a close examination tomorrow morning. I¡¯m sorry. I will return as soon as possible.] Young-Joon sent a text message to Park Dong-Hyun. * * * On Tuesday morning, Young-Joon visited the psychiatric ward. Although it had only been about thirty minutes after they opened, there was already a patient waiting. He was in very thin clothing for the cold winter weather. He was pale and drawn, but he was arge man; he was quite chubby and looked to be about one hundred ny centimeters. Young-Joon stood behind him and waited for a little while before checking in. ¡®I can¡¯t even see the nurse¡¯s face because of this guy.¡¯ As trivial thoughts were going through his head... [Schizophrenia] A message window suddenly appeared in front of the man¡¯s back. ¡®Schizophrenia?¡¯ It wasmonly known as the mind-splitting illness. It was one of the worst and most horrendous mental illnesses, even being nicknamed the ¡°Cancer of the Mind¡±. It caused endless auditory and visual hallucinations, and people who suffered from it were known to do a variety of things when they were unconscious. I keep seeing hallucinations of these messages... Do I have schizophrenia?¡¯ Young-Joon smiled bitterly. After waiting a little while, it was Young-Joon¡¯s turn to check in. ¡°Hello, have you been here before?¡± The nurse at the counter greeted him. Young-Joon could tell that she had a cold because of her nasal voice, seemingly caused by a stuffy nose. ¡®The nurse has a cold and this patient has schizophrenia... It¡¯s truly a general hospital.¡¯ ¡°It¡¯s my first time here.¡± Young-Joon answered. ¡°Please fill this out.¡± Sniffling, the nurse handed Young-Joon a small piece of paper. It had spaces for him to write his name, phone number, address, and a short medical history. As he was standing at the counter, filling it out, the nurse took out some cold medicine and swallowed it with a ss of water. Bleep! All of a sudden, a message popped up in front of his eyes. [You can gain insight into the molecr biological phenomena using synchronization mode.] [Synchronization Mode: Would you like to gain insight into the cold medicine? Fitness consumption rate: 0.1/second] Young-Joon squinted his eyes. The button on the message was blinking as if it was prompting him to press it. ¡®Alright, I¡¯ll keep note of this and tell the doctor that I¡¯m having hallucinations like this when I see him.¡¯ However, at the same time, Young-Joon was intrigued. Then, he poked the synchronization mode with the tip of his finger. [Activate Synchronization Mode: Gain insight into the cold medicine. A message popped up. Bzzz! ¡°Ugh.¡± Young-Joon groaned. He felt like electricity was running through his head. [Fitness is quickly consumed in Synchronization Mode.] [You can observe things happening in the microworld in units of ?ngstr?m (?), dalton (Da), and picoseconds (ps).][1] [You can call upon any molecr biological phenomena and understand it intuitively in Synchronization Mode.] Young-Joon could see an image of the cold medicine traveling into the nurse¡¯s stomach. This medicine was an all-in-one cold medicine; it contained a number of different drugs to control the various reactions that would ur while removing the cold virus from her body. Ibuprofen, a type of fever and pain medicine, began circting in her body; her fever woulde down soon. Her body temperature was at 37.4 degrees Celsius, a mild fever. The white blood cells in her body were tracking the cold virus and removing it. However, her body temperature would fall one degree when the fever medicine began to work, and soon, the efficiency of her white blood cells would decrease by twenty-eight percent. It also contained carbocysteine, an expectorant and an anti-inmmatory; it would remove phlegm and alleviate the pain from the cold by suppressing the reaction to the infection. Next, it contained chlorpheniramine maleate, an antihistamine; it suppressed nasal blocking and mucus. Lastly, it contained dihydrocodeine phosphate as an agent for airway dtion; it was good for stopping coughs. However, Young-Joon could see more than that right now: the codeine was turning into morphine in the nurse¡¯s body. ¡®Morphine!¡¯ It was a type of addictive drug. Bleep! [You have consumed half of your fitness.] A message appeared. Young-Joon flinched, startled, then raised his head. [Synchronization Mode finished.] Then, the analysis of the cold medicine came to a stop automatically. ¡°...¡± ¡°Have you finished?¡± The nurse asked. ¡°Oh, give me a second.¡± Young-Joon wrote the remaining information with a trembling hand and sat on the couch provided for patients to wait. He was lost in thought for a little bit, then chuckled. ¡®Codeine turning into morphine... That makes no sense. Of course, I am crazy.¡¯ Then, Young-Joon pulled out his phone and googled codeine. [Dihydrocodeine medicine, Why?] There was a news article about it. ¡°...?¡± Thinking that there was no way, Young-Joon clicked on the article. [The European Medicines Agency has banned the use of codeine-containing medicine in children. Following the recent discovery that codeine turns into morphine inside the body, there is no way of telling what kind of effect it will have on children.] ¡°It... It¡¯s true?!¡± Young-Joon was bewildered. It was something that he did not know, but he had figured it out after taking one look at the cold medicine. ¡®Wait, I still can¡¯t believe it.¡¯ Young-Joon looked around. He wanted to try it one more time. If he could activate this [Synchronization Mode] anywhere he wanted... [Schizophrenia] Young-Joon stopped when he reached the schizophrenia patient. [Synchronization Mode: Would you like to gain insight into schizophrenia? Fitness consumption rate: 0.2/second] Young-Joon pressed the synchronization button. Click. The auditory hallucinations that the patient could hear began ringing in his head as well. -Elvis ended up hitting Sammy atst. It is because you acted like an asshole. -Hehehehehahahaha. -Five. Twenty-three. Seven. Six. Forty. I¡¯m behind you. No, not there, but beside. Yes, there... There¡¯s a murderer there! -I... miss you so much. I always think of you when I pass the cherry blossom tree and theke we walked beside together. -Cats. Books. The sole of a shoe. It¡¯s stained. It¡¯s dirty. Cat spit. Books. Ripped books. The sole of a shoe. It¡¯s dirty. -How did you find me? You¡¯re looking inside my head right now, right? How did you get in? Thud! [Danger!] [Synchronization Mode terminated.] Young-Joon¡¯s heart was pounding hard. ¡°Wheeze... Wheeze...¡± It was shocking. Young-Joon had learned that this was the state that schizophrenia created. The sentences did not make sense at all. It was apletely random word vomit, but some of the thoughts made sense by chance. ¡®Hearing auditory hallucinations like that would make a normal person go mad in a few days.¡¯ Young-Joon calmed his breathing and read the message in front of him. [You are a novice in using the Synchronization Mode. Rosaline is guiding you with your safety as the priority.] [You heard the auditory hallucinations of a schizophrenic patient. Your heart rate increased significantly from experiencing too much of a new kind of stress.] [Rosaline has stopped Synchronization Mode in concern for your health.] [Press the button if you wish to resume.] Young-Joon gulped and pressed the button. He could hear auditory hallucinations once again; in addition, he could now see other things as well, such as the patient¡¯s brain. They were things that he could not pay attention to before because of the auditory hallucinations. Young-Joon took a closer look. He could see that dopamine, a neurochemical used in signaling between neurons in the brain, was not functioning properly. The patient was currently unconscious. He was epileptic and his hand was trembling. Too much neurotransmitter was being released from one part of his brain, including the temporal lobe, and it had paralyzed the brain. It was simr to when a city experienced a power outage due to a sudden surge of electricity. Young-Joon was a scientist, not a doctor. He did not have the necessary knowledge to diagnose the man¡¯s condition. However, all doctors did was produce diagnoses based on things like seizures and EEG data and treat what they thought was the problem. What Rosaline showed him was something much more clear and specific than that.[2] ¡®A straight line is the closest distance between two dots.¡¯ It was something that could be understood intuitively. Just like one did not need a mathematician to prove this axiom, Young-Joon also did not need a doctor to tell him what was going on. ¡®This patient is in danger.¡¯ 1. The ?ngstr?m (?) is a unit of measurement equal to one ten-billionth of a meter, a dalton (Da) is a unit of mass equal to 1/12 of the mass of one carbon atom, and a picosecond (ps) is equal to a trillionth of a second. So... extremely small. ? 2. EEG is an acronym for electroencephalogram, a test that measures electrical activity in the brain. It is used to measure themunication between brain cells. ? Chapter 5: Scientist Ryu Young-Joon (5)

Chapter 5: Scientist Ryu Young-Joon (5)

Young-Joon walked up to the counter and spoke quietly to the nurse. ¡°Excuse me, sorry. What does that patient over there have?¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± The nurse asked with a look of confusion. ¡°I cannot disclose any patient information.¡± The nurse told Young-Joon. ¡°I¡¯m a doctor, too. It¡¯s just because that patient does not look good and I¡¯m worried for him. It could be an emergency.¡± Young-Joon was lying when he said that he was a doctor, but he felt like he needed to say something like this in order for this to work. ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± The nurse replied. ¡°It¡¯s schizophrenia, right?¡± Young-Joon asked again. ¡°... I can¡¯t tell you.¡± The nurse adhered to her ethics. However, she could not hide her brief look of surprise; she was still human, after all. In fact, that man was a patient who had been treated here multiple times, and the nurse knew his face. The patient did have schizophrenia. Everything that Rosaline had determined was true, meaning that the patient was unconscious, hearing auditory hallucinations continuously, and was in a state of extreme anxiety, nervousness, and panic. ¡°Hurry up and call a doctor. That man looks like he¡¯s in a dangerous condition.¡± Young-Joon told the nurse. However, the nurse dragged her feet to call someone as she stared at Young-Joon in doubt. ¡°... Wait here for a moment.¡± It was the moment she stopped sitting on her hands and stood up to go get someone. ¡°Argh!¡± Suddenly, the schizophrenic patient suddenly got up and began screaming. ¡°Kyah!¡± As the nurse screamed in surprise... Thud thud thud! The patient began running with his feet stomping on the floor. He was headed towards the window; he was trying to jump out. ¡°No!¡± The moment the nurse shouted, someone grabbed the patient from behind just as he was about to jump. The man was huge, about one hundred and ny centimeters and around one hundred kilograms, but Young-Joon had an average height and weight. It seemed like he wouldn¡¯t be able to grab and control the patient by himself, but Young-Joon had another power. [epting specific stimtion to myofibrosts of the brachioradialis, biceps brachii, triceps brachii, and extensor digitorum.] [Emergency situation. Fitness consumption changed to autonomic consumption.] [Overexpression of adrenaline.] [Activation of actin.] With those messages, Young-Joon felt a burst of strength in his arms. Thud! Young-Joon tackled the patient onto the ground and held him down. The man struggled, but he could not overpower Young-Joon. ¡°What is it!¡± Atst, a doctor ran out, surprised, with a few male nurses. The chaotic situation quickly calmed down. The doctor gave the patient a sedative and tied down the patient. ¡°Phew.¡± The nurse at the counter sighed in relief as everything went back to normal. There could have been a dangerous situation if the man who said that he was a doctor did not act fast. The nurse looked around the waiting room for him, but he was nowhere to be seen. ¡°Where did he go?¡± She looked back at the chart he handed her. [Ryu Won-Joon] [010-1111-1234] [Hospital Room No. 101, 50-27 Jungyun-ro, Seodaemun-gu, Seoul] ¡°...¡± The nurse did not notice it before when she just quickly scanned it, but reading carefully now, she could see that all the information that man wrote down was false. There was no way a phone number like 1111-1234 existed, and Jungyun-ro only existed up to 37-1. Considering this, the name he wrote down was probably false, too. ¡°Who is that guy?¡± * * * Young-Joon left the hospital. He had gone through a truly shocking incident. ¡®Rosaline is real.¡¯ He had a brilliant source of knowledge that could understand molecr biology at the atomic level in his head. Young-Joon even saw the structure of dopamine in the schizophrenic patient¡¯s head. Maybe he could develop a cure for schizophrenia. Also, how amazing was it that he figured out that codeine, amon ingredient in cold medicine, turned into morphine in the body? This ability that allowed him to understand those processes in the blink of an eye without any kind of experiments was an OP ability for a scientist. ¡°...¡± ¡®How can I use this?¡¯ Endless possibilities filled his head. Bleep! Then, another message popped up. [Rosaline¡¯s fitness is currently low. Rosaline has found out the following things while recovering her fitness.] [There is currently an imbnce of microbes in your gut. Rosaline requires the following in order to recover this: probiotics. Reward: 0.8 Fitness.] ¡®Probiotics?¡¯ Normally, probiotics referred to a mixture of live bacteria or yeast for your body; it was basically justctobacillus. ¡®It gives me fitness as a reward, huh?¡¯ He was intrigued. Young-Joon walked to the pharmacy on the first floor of the building. ¡°Hello.¡± The pharmacist greeted him as he entered. She was a young pharmacist who was quite pale and pretty. Young-Joon hade to this pharmacy, which was only about ten minutes from his house, often ever since he was a graduate student. It used to be run by an elderly woman, but Young-Joon was a little surprised as he saw someone unfamiliar. ¡°Can I have some probiotics, please?¡± Young-Joon asked when he approached the counter. ¡°Yes, just a moment.¡± The woman rummaged through the shelves about the counter on her tippy toes. The name tag on her chest caught Young-Joon¡¯s eye. [Pharmacist Song Ji-Hyun] ¡°Does someone else run this pharmacy now?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Oh, it was actually run by my aunt, but she went on vacation. Since I also took a leave of absence from mypany as well, I told her I¡¯d run it for a bit.¡± Song Ji-Hyun answered with a smile, then put something on the counter. ¡°Here. Probiotics.¡± Song Ji-Hyun pushed a box called Active Lactobacillin toward Young-Joon. ¡°If you¡¯re a pharmacist and you worked in apany, I¡¯m assuming it was a pharmaceuticalpany?¡± Young-Joon asked as he ripped the box open. ¡°Yes. It wasn¡¯t a bigpany, just a venturepany.¡± ¡°I see. Then, is this product from yourpany?¡± ¡°Haha, no, it¡¯s not. Ourpany also works with probiotics, but we don¡¯t have a product yet. The reason I gave you that one is because it¡¯s the best one out there. I take it as well and it¡¯s quite effective.¡± ¡®It should be reliable if pharmacists take it too, right?¡¯ Young-Joon checked the back for the manufacturer. ¡°Roche?¡± ¡°Yes. It¡¯s from apany as big as A¨CGen. They have good processing technologies and it also has a variety of bacteria in it. It¡¯s also the benchmark that we aim to achieve.¡± Young-Joon read theponentbel on the back. ¡°It has a lot of Bifidobacteriumctis in it. It seems like a type of bacteria... What does it do?¡± ¡°Um...¡± Song Ji-Hyun blushed a little. ¡°It¡¯s... good for constipation.¡± ¡°I see. Thank you... Huh?¡± Young-Joon tilted his head in confusion as he ripped the rest of the box. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°Oh, nothing.¡± Young-Joon gestured with his hand. However, there were incredible things in front of his eyes. [Lactobacillus acidophilus AT0021, Lactobacillus casei AT0014, Lactobacillus bulgaricus AT0033, Lactobacillus rhamnosus AT0041, Bifidobacterium bifidum AT0051, Bifidobacterium breve AT0117, Bifidobacteriumctis AT0121, Lactocusctis AT0449, Enterocus faecalis AT0511] ¡°...¡± Theponents list appeared in front of him automatically in their scientific names. It was definitely excellent, but it wasn¡¯t anything incredible as it was the same thing as reading thebel on the back. ¡®Wait.¡¯ He hadn¡¯t used Synchronization Mode yet, unlike when he gained insight into the cold medicine. ¡®Then maybe...¡¯ Young-Joon gulped and stared at thebel. ¡®Won¡¯t I be able to know more about eachponent in this probiotic if I use Synchronization Mode?¡¯ Bleep! [Synchronization Mode: Would you like to gain insight into these probiotics? Fitness consumption rate: 0.02/1 second] [Activation of Synchronization Mode!] The number of bacteria, their biological activation, and mechanism in the gut appeared in front of his eyes. ¡°Ugh!¡± Young-Joon stumbled, crushing the box of probiotics in his hand. Song Ji-Hyun stood up in concern. ¡°A¨CAre you okay?¡± She ran out from behind the counter; she was worried that he would faint or something. However, Young-Joon regained his bnce in just a few seconds. [No more fitness remaining.] A message in red blinked in front of his eyes. ¡°Wheeze... Wheeze...¡± ¡°Are you alright?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked in concern. ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± Young-Joon swallowed the probiotics. ¡°You said that yourpany also studies probiotics, right?¡± ¡°Pardon? Oh, yes.¡± ¡°Is it going well?¡± ¡°We were studying something good we found before I left. It will go well, I¡¯m sure.¡± Young-Joon was immersed in thought after reading the data chart that was analyzed in Synchronization Mode. From about two years ago, there were many attempts from countless pharmaceuticalpanies to discover a new strain of Bifidobacterium. Most of them were still trying.¡± ¡°Is it about Bifidobacterium?¡± ¡°Pardon? Ahaha...¡± Song Ji-Hyun scratched her head like she was a bit embarrassed. ¡°Well, it is the most popr fiend right now. It¡¯s a well-known secret in the industry. Since it¡¯s been a while since my leave of absence, I¡¯m not sure how advanced the study...¡± ¡°It won¡¯t.¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± Finding a new strain of Bifidobacterium was meaningless as Rosaline was telling him that the strains that have already been developed have the most optimal conditions. ¡°Bifidobacterium is done.¡± ¡°But...¡± People had to study apletely new strain of bacteria. All the pharmaceuticalpanies were all targeting apletely wrong type of bacteria. ¡®Clorotonis limuvitus.¡¯ Young-Joon thought about the secret strain of bacteria the Synchronization Mode showed him. ¡°What should we study if not Bifidobacterium?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked ¡°Beats me. I have no idea.¡± Young-Joon told her out of pity that they wouldn¡¯t find any gold in the empty mine they were digging at, but he wasn¡¯t going to tell them where the jackpot was. He grinned and walked out of the pharmacy. His heart raced in excitement. Young-Joon organized all the thoughts that were racing through his head on the way home. Biology was a field of study that was rtively underdeveloped. Comparing it to navigating the world, humanity was just at the beginning of the Age of Discovery. Countless researchers were wandering through the sea of knowledge and drawing messy maps. However, Rosaline¡¯s knowledge was like a high-resolution satellite; it was powerful. ¡°Kim Hyun-Taek... The new cancer drug...¡± Young-Joon mumbled. They were the ones who drove his career as a scientist to the ground. However, lotuses bloomed from muddy ponds; if he had hit rock bottom, the only thing left for him to do was to jump up and soar into the sky. Young-Joon downloaded the form for submitting his two weeks notice. He had already lost all loyalty to this ce; he had nothing to give to an exploitativepany like this that steals from the vulnerable. The only thing that bothered Young-Joon was that he had left with Rosaline, the sample that the scientists from the Life Creation Department had studied for over ten years. To be honest, a normal scientist would not put his own blood into an artificial cell if they were reasonable and scientific. Rosaline probably wouldn¡¯t have been created in thatb for decades if he didn¡¯t identally touch the shard of ss. As such, Young-Joon didn¡¯t really have to feel guilty for the creation of Rosaline, which was purely coincidental. The reason he was bothered by it was probably because of his strict morality. ¡®Park So-Yeon also told me to let go of some, too... Should I really do that?¡¯ Was Young-Joon obligated to return to A¨CGen with a powerful force like Rosaline and fill the pockets of viins such as Kim Hyun-Taek and Management just because he felt guilty toward the Life Creation Department? Young-Joon began filling out his two weeks notice. ¡®Where am I going to go if I quit A¨CGen?¡¯ The most prestigious and monopolistic pharmaceuticalpany in the country was A¨CGen, so all the otherpanies were trivial. There was nothing Young-Joon could gain from going to ces like that because theycked the infrastructure for that kind of research. Rosaline did tell him the answers, but it was up to Young-Joon to create that in the real world. Smallpanies did not have advanced equipment, such as a tool for flow cytometry,ttice light-sheet microscopes, or HiSeq sequencers. There would be a lot of obstacles to ovee when trying to obtain gically modified organisms or human-derived materials required for experiments. It would be near impossible to be approved for a clinical trial. ¡°But there are a fewpanies that canpete with A¨CGen in other countries.¡± Huge pharma-giants such as Roche, Pfizer, Conson & Colson were big enough to be able to fight against A¨CGen. Chapter 6: Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells (1)

Chapter 6: Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells (1)

¡°Roche, Pfizer, Conson & Colson...¡± Young-Joon, who was writing his two weeks'' notice, stopped and took his hands off the keyboard. ¡®Wait. Are they actually better than A-Gen?¡¯ He started to remember all the bad stories he heard about them. ording to The Independence¡¯s reveal on November 14th, 2011, Pfizer and several other transnational pharmaceuticalpanies began arge-scale clinical trial in India after restrictions regarding clinical trials were eased in 2005. Young-Joon didn¡¯t know just how recklessly they did it, but 1730 people died in three years. Of course, the subjects in the clinical trial were poor people, but there was something worse than that: there were minors in the study as well. There were kids who didn¡¯t even know how to read yet. Thepensation that people received for each deceased individual was 5.4 million won. Even though Independence exposed them, the pharmaceuticalpanies were not punished at all; they actually sued Independence instead. ¡°...¡± What about Roche? Five thousand AIDS patients in South Korea have been protesting against Roche over the past few years. It was because they did not sell Fuzeon, a cure for AIDS, in Korea because the determined price was too low. Even though the average ie in the United States was twice the average ie in Korea, Roche demanded the cure be sold at the same price. Also, it wasn¡¯t like Roche would suffer a loss if they lowered the price, as the manufacturing price was a hundredth of what they sold it for. Roche exined that the surcharge was because they needed funding for research, but Young-Joon didn¡¯t really buy it. It wasn¡¯t that convincing considering that they brought in billions in profits every year just with Fuzeon. The profits of transnational pharmaceuticalpanies were iparably higherpared to any other industry: finance, manufacturing, and even IT. There were only ten pharmaceuticalpanies included in the Fortune 500, but their profits surpassed the rest of the otherpanies¡¯ profitsbined. In a way, this was natural. They held the lives of people in their hands and had a monopoly on their drugs; no one could say anything, even when they charged a hundred times more than the manufacturing price. Because of that, a fair number of AIDS patients in Korea died, lost their vision, or became paralyzed. At least Korea was able to protest because they were a developed country. Some lucky patients were able to receive a small amount of Fuzeon from international relief organizations as well. Africa, on the other hand, was a living hell. It was impossible for patients in Africa to buy treatment for AIDS, which was as expensive as their weekly living expenses. Because of that, they were using a replica drug that was secretly manufactured in India. Of course, a lot of African people died as the quality of the replica drug hadn¡¯t been verified. In the midst of all this, many pharmaceuticalpanies, led by Roche, fiercely protested against the African and Indian governments about the issue, and they even had legal disputes over it. They did all this while recklessly conducting human experiments in India. Moreover, these pharmaceuticalpanies concealed any negative results and data about their new drugs. They did this with a well-known flu medicine as well; this was basically a secret that everyone in the industry knew about. Wouldpanies really want to develop amazing drugs in turn for fifteen years of their frontline scientists¡¯ lives? Or would it be better for them to lobby the government officials who were in charge of the FDA approval? In this case, it was easy for mediocre new drugs, created by hiding data about side effects, to be approved for the market. Why were several countries in the Americas, including the United States, so ridden with substance abuse? People who thought that it was because poor ck people or immigrants sold drugs were still naive about the pharmaceutical industry. Books that exposed transnational pharmaceuticalpanies as the bad guys were on every bookshelf in every bookstore. A-Gen was actually one of the betterpanies. Or so Young-Joon thought since he saw what they did with the new liver cancer treatment. ¡°Sigh...¡± Young-Joon covered his face with his hands. He didn¡¯t like any of them. ¡®What if I start my ownpany?¡¯ Young-Joon was confident that he would not be swayed by A-Gen. However, he would probably waste at least five years, as registering and setting up a newb was quite a picky process. It wasn¡¯t easy to get approval from the government because they would be handling dangerous substances, and there was a chance of leakage. ¡°...¡± ¡®Let¡¯s change the n.¡¯ There were no good pharmaceuticalpanies. Since they were all corrupt, he had to do it himself. However, it would take too long to build a start-up or a smallpany. Click. Young-Joon deleted his two-week notice from hisputer. ¡®Let¡¯s go back to A-Gen.¡¯ Young-Joon was going to take advantage of the strongwork A-Gen had already built and grow from there. He was going to give them amazing results, show them his potential, andunch an affiliatepany. He could just build thatpany, but he could also go further. ¡®Couldn¡¯t I actually absorb A-Gen?¡¯ It wasn¡¯tpletely impossible. 7-Eleven had its headquarters in the United States, but the branch in Japan took over the headquarters, did they not? The amount of power Rosaline held in the research field was close to infinite. How sad would it be if all he did with his power was build a mediocrepany and sell a few drugs? This power wasn¡¯t just going to end with curing things like cancer or AIDS; it was a scalpel that was going to remove the vile and materialistic politics that had infected the entire pharmaceutical industry. It was a guillotine that would behead fake scientists like Kim Hyun-Taek. * * * Senior Scientist Park Dong-Hyun of the Life Creation Department was looking at the experimental data. He was used to being grilled by his superiors during the weekly project meeting. However, there was a far worse problem than that next week: the annual report seminar. It was a huge research meeting all the scientists at A-Gen participated, except for the interns. Here, each project manager had to report their performance and discuss the results. It was a hellish discussion that took eight hours, and the atmosphere always turned hostile when it was the Life Creation Department¡¯s turn to present. Everyone ignored them or looked at them with a condescending look, and some of theb directors even cursed at them. The worst thing they heardst year was, ¡°Look at what you¡¯ve done right now. You could teach a monkey to do that!¡± ¡®Seriously, how could a monkey conduct an experiment?¡¯ They said things like that because all they came to do was break the Life Creation Department¡¯s spirits instead of giving actual feedback and discussion about their study. Of course, that was because the goal ofb directors was not to hear the Life Creation Department¡¯s presentation but to make them quit. ¡°Phew...¡± Park Dong-Hyun was frustrated that he had to go through that hell again. ¡°Hello, I¡¯m here.¡± On Tuesday afternoon, Young-Joon greeted everyone and sat in his seat. ¡°Are you feeling better?¡± Park Dong-Hyun approached him and asked. ¡°Yes, they didn¡¯t find any abnormalities.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a relief.¡± ¡°Yes. Senior Park, our year-end seminar is soon, right? I think we should evaluate our current progress and discuss which result we should present.¡± ¡°Alright, follow me.¡± Park Dong-Hyun and Young-Joon went to the conference room together. As Young-Joon made him a coffee and waited for a bit, two members of the Life Creation Department walked in. There were now four of them, including Young-Joon and Park Dong-Hyun. ¡°Well, everyone knows Doctor Ryu Young-Joon, right? He¡¯s the new one. The one that cursed at Kim Hyun-Taek. Please wee him,¡± Park Dong-Hyun introduced Young-Joon to his colleagues. ¡°Are you feeling better?¡± the woman with round sses asked. It was the woman who called the ambnce when Young-Joon copsed. ¡°Yes, I¡¯m fine now.¡± ¡°Take care of yourself. I¡¯m Jung Hae-Rim, and I¡¯m a senior scientist. I was in the Protein Purification Research Department, but I was transferred here after some incidents. Wee.¡± After introducing herself, Jung Hae-Rim nced at the man sitting next to her. He was quite chubby, and it was a little embarrassing because he was wearing a tight shirt that showed all the lines on his body. He had messy hair, wore square-frame sses, and had an innocent-looking face. He was extremely focused on a Japanese animation ying on his phone. ¡°Koh Soon-Yeol, we¡¯re going to have our meeting right now. You should introduce yourself since we have someone new,¡± Jung Hae-Rim said. Then, without even ncing at her, Koo Soon-Yeol said, ¡°There¡¯s still a minute left until lunch is over.¡± It was two o¡¯clock. ¡®Lunch?¡¯ As Young-Joon looked puzzled, Jung Hae-Rim said, ¡°Soon-Yeol went out for lunch a little after one o¡¯clock. Haha... You can tell why Soon-Yeol is here, right?¡± She shrugged her shoulders. ¡°Companies don''t like people who clock out at the minute.¡± Young-Joon nodded. ¡°Apparently, he came here after confronting the executive manager about why he wasn¡¯t allowed to leave when his shift ended at 6 pm,¡± Jung Hae-Rim said and shook her head. ¡°Is your name Koh Soon-Yeol?¡± Young-Joon asked the portly man. ¡°Yes, it is. Soon-Yeol, can you please introduce your¡ª¡± ¡°Ack!¡± Koh Soon-Yeol suddenly began ripping his hair out. He hugged his phone. ¡°Sonogo Kohaku dame-yo!¡±[1] ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°Kohaku-chan is... Sonna hazu wa nai...¡±[2] Jung Hae-Rim poked his shoulder, but Koh Soon-Yeol was already turning off his phone. He was like a robot who started working right at the hour. ¡°My name is Koh Soon-Yeol. Nice to meet you~¡± ¡°Are you Japanese?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°I am Korean-Japanese. But I¡¯m currently a Korean citizen. I don¡¯t think I really need to introduce myself. Kek. Hae-Rim-chan already introduced everything about me, right~?¡± ¡®Woah, is this guy for real?¡¯ Young-Joon could clearly tell what kind of guy he was even without an exnation. He felt like he could guess what picture he had on his pillow cover. Jung Hae-Rim looked at Koh Soon-Yeol like she had given up. She said to Park Dong-Hyun, ¡°Then let¡¯s begin, Leader Park.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not the team leader; we have our Executive Manager Cheon.¡± ¡°But he¡¯s in Cheonan right now. And I don¡¯t think he¡¯lle back... You know what he was assigned this time, right?¡± Park Dong-Hyun looked stumped as Jung Hae-Rim spoke. He exined to Young-Joon, ¡°Actually, there are two more people on our team. There¡¯s Principal Scientist Cheon Ji-Myung, our team leader, and Lead Scientist, Bae Sun-Mi.¡± ¡°Are neither of them here today?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°You will see them sometime. You don¡¯t have to remember their names for now. I¡¯ll introduce them again once they¡¯re here.¡± Park Dong-Hyun opened the presentation file on hisptop. ¡°Sorry to have kept you waiting. As you all know, we are the Life Creation Department, and our goal is to create a living artificial cell out of chemicals,¡± Park Dong-Hyun exined. ¡°And ultimately, we are thinking of using this to create artificial organs that will not be rejected by the patient¡¯s immune system and using it in transnts.¡± The creation and transntation of artificial organs: it was one of the major issues of future medicine. Non-functional organs could be swapped out for functional ones, like swapping out a faulty or broken part in a car. Even if one was diagnosed with lung cancer from smoking three packs a day... ¡®Don¡¯t worry. We have a healthy pair of lungs right here!¡¯ ...They would be fine after receiving a transnt for a new set of lungs. In current medicine, there had to be an organ donor in order to do a transnt. For example, patients with renal failure struggled on artificial dialysis to survive until there was a kidney donor. However, it would be a lot easier if an organ could be created as all they had to do was make it and put it inside. Another obstacle an artificial organ could ovee was rejection. In 1936, a person named Voronoy in Russia performed the first kidney transnt. Then, the recipient died, and the cause was rejection. The recipient¡¯s immune system attacked the transnted kidney, causing an infection, and eventually killing the patient. Why was that? It was because the gic material of the donor and recipient was slightly different. It was like someone wearing the wrong size glove and having it fall off while they were working. It meant that the recipient and the donor needed to have simr genes in order for the organ to work properly. Ultimately, even if there was a donor, a person with renal failure would die if the donor¡¯s genes weren¡¯t simr enough. This problem could also be solved if artificial organs were invented, as they just needed to use the same gic material when making it. ¡°But do we have to start with an artificial cell?¡± Young-Joon criticized. ¡°Then?¡± ¡°We can use embryonic stem cells.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. We do have something like embryonic stem cells, and it¡¯s also easier. However, those stem cells have a limit to howmercialized they can be.¡± Young-Joon nodded as he understood. Simply put, embryonic cells were made by injecting the patient¡¯s gic material into an embryo created from a sperm and egg. Embryos had the ability to differentiate into any kind of cell. As such, these stem cells could differentiate into whatever tissue the patient wanted, such as the liver. There also wouldn¡¯t be any rejection from the patient as it was basically injecting their own gic material into their bodies. If so, wouldn¡¯t people just have to make embryonic stem cells from the patient¡¯s gic material, create a liver with that, and then transnt it into the patient? It would be the end of traditional transnts if that could happen. However, the technology wasn¡¯t advancing even though it had been a while since this concept was proposed. The reason was that the one thing they absolutely needed for this was an embryo. What this meant was that in order to treat a patient with renal failure with stem cells, the doctor had to go through a number of steps. Inject hormones into a healthy female volunteer for approximately two weeks to induce ovtion, check them with an ultrasound, and then harvest the eggs from their ovaries with a syringe. Collect sperm from a healthy male volunteer. Use an ICSI, an IntraCellr Sperm Injector, to fertilize the egg into an embryo. Remove all gic material from the embryo. Obtain somatic cells from the patient to obtain their gic material. Insert the embryo with the patient¡¯s gic material. Transnt into the patient after growing it into a liver or as a cell. The doctor would have to do it all over again if even one step failed. This process was just incredibly difficult. Let¡¯s say a doctor and a highly-trained technician who was extremely skilled sessfully created a liver. ¡®Congrattions. You cured one patient.¡¯ There were hundreds of thousands of simr patients waiting in line. They would have to start from step one to treat the next patient. It waspletely different from stamping out cold medicine from factories. Who would be able to do such a crazy thing like that? Because of these obstacles, this treatment method was still deemed scientific fiction. Let¡¯s just say that somehow, the doctors and scientists were willing to go through that hell for each patient until everyone was cured. It would be for nothing if they didn¡¯t have a woman who would keep taking hormones for others and offer her eggs like Mother Teresa. ¡®Huh...?¡¯ A message suddenly popped up in front of Young-Joon¡¯s eyes as he was lost in thought. [Synchronization Mode: Would you like to gain insight into how to revert a normal cell into an embryonic stem cell? Fitness consumption: 2.0] This time, it didn¡¯t take fitness by the second, but it consumed 2.0 at once. However, the merit of gaining knowledge like that was incredible. ¡®Reverting normal cells into embryonic stem cells...¡¯ If that was possible, they wouldn¡¯t have to go through the seven-step process; all they would have to do is swab the inside of a patient¡¯s mouth, modify it, and then nt it into the patient¡¯s body. ¡°Would there be a way to revert a normal cell into an embryonic cell?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°A normal cell?¡± Park Dong-Hyun said. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°You mean like skin cells or blood cells?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Park Dong-Hyun chuckled. ¡°If that was possible... It would be revolutionary.¡± ¡°If we were able to make an embryonic stem cell from a normal cell, can we present that at the year-end seminar? It¡¯s a little different from our current project, though.¡± ¡°Of course that¡¯s okay. It¡¯s not like it¡¯spletely different. Why? Did you hear something?¡± Jung Hae-Rim interrupted and asked. ¡°No... Nothing like that.¡± As Young-Joon pretended like it was nothing, Park Dong-Hyun smiled. ¡°Young-Joon, if that happened, the Nobel Prizemittee woulde and beg us to take the Nobel Prize in Medicine.¡± 1. Dame is Japanese for ¡®That¡¯s no good!¡¯ ? 2. Sonna hazu wa nai is Japanese for ¡®That can¡¯t be...¡¯ ? Chapter 7: Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells (2)

Chapter 7: Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells (2)

¡°Yeah, that¡¯s Nobel Prize-worthy technology.¡± Jung Hae-Rim agreed. ¡°Even if it¡¯s different from the work our department is supposed to do, some trivialb directors won¡¯t be able to pick on us if we did that. But it¡¯s not feasible,¡± Park Dong-Hyun spoke. Jung Hae-Rim added, ¡°Once a cell differentiates, it can¡¯t go back. It¡¯s like how we can¡¯t go back to being an undergraduate student because we alreadypleted our doctorate.¡± Koh Soon-Yeol also added, ¡°Back in the day, you couldn¡¯t reset your skill tree in RPG games once you choose one. The cell system of the body is a pro that¡¯s been working for about ten billion years. So, I don¡¯t think...¡± Park Dong-Hyun went back to opening the presentation file on hisptop. ¡°Well, we¡¯re trying to focus on creating an artificial cell. Let¡¯s work on this a little more for now. I¡¯ll catch you up on the current results we have.¡± Young-Joon stared at the blinking message in front of his eyes. [Synchronization Mode: Would you like to gain insight into how to revert a regr cell into an embryonic cell? Fitness consumption: 2.0] Rosaline was telling him that it was possible. What kind of advancements would happen if this technology was invented? There would be no need to harvest eggs or sperm, and they would not have to make an embryo either. They also didn¡¯t need extremely precise micro-control to rece gic material. Since it was the patient¡¯s own gic material, there would be no rejection. This was like a technological leap from the days when women used to wash their clothes with a washing paddle to using a washing machine. Click. Young-Joon tapped on Rosaline¡¯s message. ¡°What are you doing~!¡± Koh Soon-Yeol tilted his head in confusion as Young-Joon tapped into nothing. ¡°Ah, just some dust.¡± Young-Joon made up some excuse. He pressed it, but as expected, nothing happened. [You do not have enough fitness.] The amount of fitness that Young-Joon had was 1.5; this was the maximum. To get it higher, he needed to upgrade Rosaline. ¡°...¡± ¡®But how?¡¯ Bleep! As Young-Joon was lost in thought, a message popped up with a notification. [Improve Metastatic Status or Synchronization to upgrade Rosaline¡¯s level.] [The fitness limit and the recovery rate will increase with Rosaline¡¯s level.] They were messages that he had read before. It was information he already knew. The problem was how he could improve the Metastatic Status or Synchronization... Young-Joon checked Rosaline¡¯s metastatic status. [Metastatic Status: Heart (2%), Liver (46%), Brain (7%), Kidney (13%), Spinal Cord (4%)] These values were the result of what Rosaline did in order to recover his body when he was an alcoholic. She had corrected his herniated disc, forward neck posture, fatty liver, and all kinds of small diforts. ¡®...Should I take some cyanide or something?¡¯ As Young-Joon wasing up with ridiculous ways, he heard Park Dong-Hyun presenting. ¡°4.87, the most recent version we tested, was destroyed because we could not get the cell membrane to stabilize.¡± ¡®4.87!¡¯ Young-Joon¡¯s eyes widened. He remembered that when he first obtained Rosaline, the artificial cell that was reacting in theb wasbeled v4.87. It was just a blob of chemicals that wasn¡¯t living yet, but Rosaline was born as soon as Young-Joon¡¯s blood went into it. ¡®What happened? The ATP originating from my blood cells entered into v4.87. Maybe ATP is the source that Rosaline needs to grow?¡¯ ATP was a very high-energy chemical entity; it was the fuel that was widely used in a variety of cellr functions in the body. And Rosaline, which was in Young-Joon¡¯s body, had also reacted strongly to ATP before. Then, wouldn¡¯t her Metastatic Status or Synchronization be improved with ATP? ¡°Does anyone have good ideas?¡± Park Dong-Hyun asked. However, Jung Hae-Rim and Koh Soon-Yeol all avoided his gaze and lowered their heads. Park Dong-hyun sighed. ¡°It¡¯s alright. It¡¯s not your fault that our project isn¡¯t progressing. It¡¯s because this project is too difficult and unrealistic.¡± ¡°How long do we have until our year-end seminar?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°About two weeks...¡± Young-Joon thought for a little while. It wasn¡¯t a terrible idea; it would cause huge waves in the scientificmunity if he could create embryonic stem cells from regr ones. If he presented this, it wouldn¡¯t be long before he entered stardom in the scientificmunity. It was a good way to gain some leverage at A-Gen. Another benefit was that this technology was fundamental. If he was sessful, it wouldn¡¯t end there. This technology would require further, more advanced experimentation, such as growing artificial organs or differentiating cells into tissues and nerves, which were all difficult for modern scientists. The ball would be in Young-Joon¡¯s court as he would also hold the key to solving those problems. If he used that, he would also be able to make a deal about the percentage of royalties. Young-Joon had decided that he would not give any percentage of the royalties to the executives or shareholders; why would he give them anything when none of them contributed? Young-Joon would need a little deception after presenting the data, but he was confident he could do that. If he seeded, the tables would be turned. He was determined to be the first author of the paper, the first inventor, and take the maximum share of the patent. Young-Joon silently stared at Park Dong-Hyun, Jung Hae-Rim and Koh Soon-Yeol. ¡°I will study the de-differentiation of stem cells in the meantime.¡± ¡°I¡¯m telling you, you can¡¯t.¡± Park Dong-Hyun seemed irritated. ¡°But I think it might be fine to let him do whatever he wants since he¡¯s new...¡± Koh Soon-Yeol told Park Dong-Hyun, to which thetter nodded after some thought. ¡°Alright. I guess it¡¯s not a great time to assign you new tasks because we¡¯re busy with the year-end report and you need time to get used to this ce, too. Do whatever you want for two weeks.¡± ¡°Thank you. I appreciate it.¡± The meeting ended not long after. The department hadn¡¯t found an idea to use at the year-end seminar, but it didn¡¯t matter; Young-Joon was confident he could make it himself. As soon as Young-Joon returned to theb, he searched for ATP. ¡®Found it.¡¯ He took out a small reagent bottle from the -20 degrees freezer. [Adenosine 5¡¯-triphosphate disodium salt hydrate] Without the disodium salt hydrate, it was called ATP, adenosine 5¡¯-triphosphate. Young-Joon extracted about a milliliter of ATP from the reagent bottle. He sterilized it by filtering it through a 0.22-micrometer filter and then put it into a five-milliliter syringe from theb. Then, he disinfected the inside of his elbow with alcohol and injected the ATP into his veins. ¡®I can¡¯t believe that I¡¯m conducting a clinical trial on my own body.¡¯ To be honest, it was crazy. However, this much was definitely harmless to a healthy person. Even if it didn¡¯t affect Rosaline, it would end with no particr negative effects on Young-Joon''s body as well. ¡®Let¡¯s take a look...¡¯ Young-Joon opened Rosaline¡¯s status window and stared at it. Bleep. [Rosaline has absorbed the ATP.] ¡°...¡± ¡®Is this wrong?¡¯ The moment Young-Joon, who was disappointed, was about to try something new... [The fitness of the cell will increase momentarily.] ¡®Momentarily.¡¯ [Rosaline Lv. 1] ¡ªMetastatic Status: Heart (2%), Liver (46%), Brain (7%), Kidney (13%), Spinal Cord (4%) ¡ªSynchronization: 3% ¡ªCell Fitness: 2.1 (+0.6: For 21 hours due to ATP) ¡ªGene Expression Control: Suppression of CYP2E1 (38%) A value of 0.6 was added to fitness from the ATP. It seemed like it meant that 0.6 would be added to his regr amount and that it wouldst for twenty-one hours. Whatever it was, his total fitness amount was over two. Young-Joon quickly opened the message again. [Check how to revert a regr cell to an embryonic cell (Fitness consumption: 2.0)] Click. A solution appeared when Young-Joon pushed the button. [You can revert a normal cell into an embryonic stem cell if you modify a few genes.] [It is the most simple method you can use right now. Rosaline rmends the next four sets of genes.] [SOX2, cMyc, OCT4, KTF4] [Overexpress these four genes in the cell.] ¡®Woah...¡¯ Young-Joon felt like he cheated off God¡¯s answers or something. How could someone discover that a normal cell could be reverted into a stem cell by modifying just four genes out of the twenty different kinds they have? If Young-Joon were to pick genes randomly and experiment with them, this knowledge would be like hitting the lottery jackpot billions of times. Chills went through his spine again when he realized that Rosaline also knew all the numbers to hit that jackpot. Young-Joon closed the message window and ran to his officeputer. He searched ] and logged in with his ID. This website sold genes. They sold individual fragments of artificially synthesized genes. He could order freeze-dried genes and use them in his experiments after melting them in some water. Young-Joon ordered those four genes right away. * * * The genes were delivered two dayster, but Young-Joon needed to flesh out his experiment a little more. How was he going to put the genes into the cell, and in what cell was he going to add it? What was the right amount to add, and how long would he have to wait to observe it after inserting it? Normally, he would have spent a month figuring out the best conditions for eachponent of the experiment, but Young-Joon didn¡¯t have to do that; Synchronization Mode provided him with the optimal conditions as well. He gained new messages as he regrly used his cell fitness. [Rmends you to insert the genes into a human embryonic kidney cell (HEK293). (Click to see the characteristics of an embryonic kidney cell)] [Insert the gene using a retrovirus. (Click to see how to produce viruses)] [Grow them using the same method of growing embryonic stem cells three dayster. (Click to see growing method)] Young-Joon consumed cell fitness every day and executed the experiment as per Rosaline''s instructions. He grew embryonic kidney cells and produced gene-carrying retroviruses. A few days flew by while he was busy with his experiment. And on Friday morning, Young-Joon finally infected the embryonic kidney stem cells with the retrovirus. Now, SOX2, cMyc, OCT4, and KLF4, the four genes Young-Joon put inside the cell, were going to start being expressed. Now, all he had to do was observe. The experiment would be a sess if this cell reverted back into an embryonic state. ¡®Anyway, it¡¯s so simple.¡¯ Comparing it to cooking, what scientists were basically doing was collecting unknown ingredients and creating a new recipe. But following Rosaline¡¯s orders was just like cooking by following the prepared recipe. The difference in the level of difficulty was unbelievable. Finally, Young-Joon ted the gically modified embryonic kidney cells onto a special STO culture dish. If the cells flourished on this te and differentiated, it would mean that these were artificially crafted embryonic stem cells. ¡®Is it really possible?¡¯ ¡°What are you doing?¡± Jung Hae-Rim asked Young-Joon from behind as he was observing the te through the microscope. She walked beside him and looked at the culture te. ¡°What is this?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a stem cell candidate.¡± ¡°Wow.¡± ¡°It can be called a stem cell if it grows from this culture dish. I¡¯ll send you the details of the experiment by email.¡± ¡°I hope it goes well, but honestly, I¡¯m not expecting anything.¡± ¡°It¡¯s lunch. Are you not going to eat?¡± ¡°We¡¯re heading out right now. We came to ask you toe with us.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± As Young-Joon followed Jung Hae-Rim out, Park Dong-Hyun and Koh Soon-Yeol were already waiting for them in front of the elevator with their jackets on. Young-Joon asked, ¡°Do you have to bundle up like that when we¡¯re going to the cafeteria?¡± ¡°The halls are cold. And we also have to wait a while when we¡¯re getting our meal tickets, so bring your coat,¡± Jung Hae-Rim replied. ¡°I heard that the flu is going around.Your immune system gets weaker when you¡¯re cold, so be careful, everyone,¡± Park Dong-Hyun added. ¡°Eek. The flu?¡± Jung Hae-Rim shuddered. ¡°Yes. Take your vitamins. And Doctor Ryu, our team usually has lunch together if there isn¡¯t anything special,¡± Park Dong-Hyun told Young-Joon. ¡°Is that so?¡± ¡°Yes. I told you before, right? We outcasts have to stick together at least. We won¡¯tst here if we don¡¯t do that.¡± Jung Hae-Rim and Koh Soon-Yeolughed. Park Dong-Hyun went on. ¡°We couldn¡¯t have lunch with you because you were busy with your experiment this week, but let¡¯s have lunch together starting next week.¡± Young-Joon nodded. They actually asked him to have lunch together a few days during the week, but Young-Joon turned them down because he had to work on a tight schedule if he wanted to have prominent results in two weeks. Now all he had to do was wait since he was finished with all the busy work, but for the past few days, he had brought kimbap from home and shoved them in his mouth.[1] Young-Joon wondered why they made such a fuss about eating together, but he was able to figure out why. Laboratory Six was used by seven departments in total. They didn¡¯t run into each other as each department worked with their own members, but everyone shared lunchtime and the cafeteria. Bleep! Young-Joon¡¯s profile showed up on the small monitor as he scanned hispany ID to get his meal ticket. [Scientist Ryu Young-Joon, Life Creation Department] At the same time, Young-Joon could feel the scientists behind him stare with unfriendly gazes. ¡°Why are they at Lab Six anyway?¡± someone behind him murmured. ¡°Ourb¡¯s performance falls because of them during the year-end seminar. I heard that Director Kim Hyun-Taek from Lab One leads the Anticancer Drug Research team by himself. But we have that department... Sigh.¡± ¡°They probably have nothing again this year, right?¡± ¡°Ha. Think about it. Do you think they would have anything to show?¡± ¡°The atmosphere at the seminar is going to be bad, yet again. It always goes south when they present.¡± ¡°It¡¯s because they are a collection of people that used to make things go south in their own departments.¡± 1. Kimbap is often eaten as a quick meal, like a simple peanut butter jelly sandwich. ? Chapter 8: Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells (3)

Chapter 8: Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells (3)

¡°...¡± When Young-Joon turned his head to look back, Park Dong-Hyun grabbed his shoulder. ¡°Don¡¯t give them any attention,¡± Park Dong-Hyun spoke. ¡°But still, they¡¯re talking so loudly that it¡¯s impossible to not hear them. It looks like they¡¯re doing that on purpose...¡± ¡°One of the biggest reasons people don¡¯tst here and quit is because of that. But if you hear it for a month or so, you learn how to pretend like you don¡¯t hear anything.¡± Park Dong-Hyun smiled bitterly. ¡°Sugoi!¡±[1] Suddenly, Koh Soon-Yeol, who was standing in front of the line, eximed. Young-Joon could hear him all the way from the back. ¡®So that¡¯s what happens when you get used to it.¡¯ Young-Joon nodded at Park Dong-Hyun. Koh Soon-Yeol turned to where they were standing and shouted, ¡°Senior Park! I told you the menu today is freaking good! Dak-gang-jeong itadakimasu-yo?[2] ¡°Oh, okay. Eat up,¡± Park Dong-Hyun replied awkwardly and waved his hand. The cafeteria was like a buffet. Young-Joon put a few different things on his te and grabbed a beverage as well. As he scanned the tables, he saw Jung Hae-Rim with her hand up. Everyone had gathered at that table except him. He walked over and sat down. ¡°Soon-Yeol-sunbae, why didn¡¯t you get any dakgangjeong? You were worshipping it,¡± Young-Joon asked.[3] ¡°It¡¯s not that he didn¡¯t get any. He just ate all of it,¡± Jung Hae-Rim answered for him. ¡°Sumanai na~ I couldn¡¯t stop myself because it was so good~¡±[4] ¡°Even if you ate it all, there isn¡¯t any sauce left either. How did you eat it like this?¡± Koh Soon-Yeol propped up his sses with his pointer finger and grinned. ¡°Haha. I guess I can¡¯t help it if I want to show this ningen. Wait for me to bring some more.¡±[5] He stood up with his te and walked away. The cafeteria was a buffet, and everyone was free to have as much as they wanted, so it didn¡¯t matter if he grabbed more. ¡°He does that sometimes if there¡¯s something on the menu he likes,¡± Jung Hae-Rim told Young-Joon, chuckling. ¡°Well, I also have more if there¡¯s something I like on the menu, but the ce where he put his dakgangjeong was clean as if he washed the sauce off...¡± ¡°He licked it off...¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Well, Soon-Yeol is a little strange, but he¡¯s nice, innocent, and smart.¡± Young-Joon nodded. ¡°Let¡¯s take our time while we wait for Soon-Yeol,¡± Park Dong-Hyun said as he picked up his chopsticks. ng! Suddenly, a loud sound of metal shing together rang in the cafeteria. All three of them turned to the sound in surprise. Koh Soon-Yeol stood there, flustered, and a young woman stood there, staring down at her shirt in shock and anger. Her white shirt had a big red stain on the front of it. ¡°I... I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°Damn it! What are you doing?!¡± the woman shouted while brushing off her shirt with her hand. ¡°You. What department are you from?¡± ¡°L-Life Creation...¡± ¡°Ah, this idiot,¡± she mumbled under her breath. Scratching his head, Koh Soon-Yeol looked like he didn¡¯t know what to do. ¡°I-I¡¯m sorry... But you bumped into me from behind when I was in front...¡± Then, a middle-aged man who looked like an executive manager showed up behind her. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°Sir! Look at this! This person bumped into me!¡± the woman shouted with a piercing voice. The executive manager frowned. Getting up from his seat, Young-Joon turned to face the table. ¡°We should go hel...¡± Both Park Dong-Hyun and Jung Hae-Rim were not in their seats; they were already running toward Koh Soon-Yeol. The Health Food Department was in A-Gen, a pharmaceuticalpany, but they didn¡¯t make pharmaceutical products. Their main goal was to develop functional health products. Simply put, they studied things like Korean Red Ginseng. It wasn¡¯t like they were giving red ginseng to a patient in clinical trials to see its effects or anything; rather, they developed and marketed products with vague functions, such as that it had health benefits, made people warm, increased metabolism, and more. Choi Myung-Joon, the team leader of the Health Food Department, was extremely confident in this year¡¯s annual seminar; they were about tomercialize a new product, which was made with pumpkin juice, bellflower juice, and pear juice, that was both delicious and nutritious. On top of that, the Health Food Department was already a crucial department in A-Gen as it brought in a lot of profits from its probiotic product. It was obvious that the Health Food Department was going to carry Lab Six in the seminar again likest year, although it was unknown just how awkward the idiots at the Life Creation Department were going to make it. Still, there was no way the Health Food Department would be criticized as they had already finished their presentation files, which were filled with information about their excellent performance. The Health Food Department was excited and rxed recently as they were able to go home without having to do overtime. Seo Yoon-Ju, one of the scientists on the team, was especially in a good mood, and she was even humming. She wore a white silk shirt, tights, and a tennis skirt to work because she was nning to leave at 6 PM sharp and go on a date with her boyfriend. She was in a good mood when she came out for lunch, but some fat otaku had ruined her day. ¡°Scientist Koh Soon-Yeol from the Life Creation Department.¡± Choi Myung-Joon scoffed. ¡°...¡± ¡°You all. Why is it that you guys are always causing a scene whenever I see you? You¡¯ll be doing that in the year-end seminar that¡¯s taking ce in a few weeks too, right?¡± ¡°I-I¡¯m sorry.¡± Koh Soon-Yeol apologized repeatedly. ¡°So what are you going to do about it?¡± Choi Myung-Joon asked in an arrogant tone. ¡°Ah... Um... C... Can I give you money for dry clean...¡± ¡°Dry cleaning? You think some dry cleaning is going to fix the damage you did to this shirt?¡± Seo Yoon-Ju shouted back with a piercing voice. ¡°T... Then I will reimburse...¡± ¡°Do you know how much this is?¡± ¡°B-But, it¡¯s not like I bumped into you. You bumped into m...¡± ¡°Soon-Yeol!¡± Jung Hae-Rim and Park Dong-Hyun hurried over to Koh Soon-Yeol and stood beside him. ¡°What happened?¡± ¡°I was waiting to get some more dakgangjeong, but this person bumped into me while talking on the phone and dropped her te...¡± ¡°I bumped into you?¡± Seo Yoon-Ju frowned. ¡°I-It¡¯s true. You were holding your te with one hand and then you tripp...¡± ¡°Tripp... what?¡± Seo Yoon-Ju spoke in a demanding tone. ¡°...¡± Koh Soon-Yeol closed his mouth and couldn¡¯t speak out of fear. ¡°What? Why aren¡¯t you finishing your sentence?¡± ¡°Sorry... I... I¡¯m not used to talking to 3D women...¡± ¡°Ah, this damn otaku is pissing me off.¡± Seo Yoon-Ju red at him in irritation. ¡°If you¡¯re done shoving food down your mouth, return your te and go work. Trying to get more food like the pig you are...¡± ¡°What?¡± Jung Hae-Rim looked shocked. ¡°What? Am I wrong? He finished his te and then lined up again! I let him get his ticket first and came in a while after to not get close to him.¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you being too harsh? No matter who bumped into whom, it was a mistake, wasn¡¯t it? If it was Soon-Yeol¡¯s mistake, he can give you money for dry cleaning or for the shirt. He even apologized, but is that the only kind of thing you can say to him?¡± ¡°Are you in the same department?¡± Seo Yoon-Ju asked. ¡°Yes, I¡¯m Jung Hae-Rim from the Life Creation Department.¡± Seo Yoon-Ju smirked. ¡°How befitting as the troublemaker department. Did you all rush over here to protect your otaku?¡± ¡°What?¡± Jung Hae-Rim asked angrily. ¡°Wait.¡± Park Dong-Hyun stopped Jung Hae-Rim and faced them. ¡°Koh Soon-Yeol is not a liar. To be honest, I think you¡¯re the one who bumped into him. If so, you should be the one giving him money for dry cleaning. There¡¯s some on his shirt, too.¡± ¡°Dry cleaning? Do you even wash that rag of a shirt? I would just throw it away and buy a new one.¡± ¡°Seriously, why are you speaking to him like that?¡± Jung Hae-Rim clenched her jaw in anger. ¡°To be honest, you all are just a nuisance to everyone during the year-end seminar. Can¡¯t you just stay quiet and not cause any trouble in theb at least? Do you have to ruin someone¡¯s clothes and mood and then all rush over to pick a fight?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s look at the surveince footage,¡± Park Dong-Hyun said. ¡°There¡¯s a camera in the cafeteria. Didn¡¯t know that, right? It¡¯s over there, above the spoons. I think it would¡¯ve gotten this area.¡± Seo Yoon-Ju frowned a little when he brought it up. Park Dong-Hyun added, ¡°I know a lot about Lab Six because I¡¯ve been here for a long time. If we see that you bumped into him, you¡¯re going to sincerely apologize to us and give him money for dry cleaning.¡± ¡°W-Why does it matter who bumped into who? Do you know how expensive this shirt is?¡± Seo Yoon-Ju said. ¡°So why would you wear an expensive shirt to theb? And you¡¯re also wearing tights and a skirt. That¡¯s against the rules for using theb.¡± ¡°I told her she could,¡± Choi Myung-Joon, who was silently watching the situation, interfered. Park Dong-Hyun, Jung Hae-Rim, and Koh Soon-Yeol all looked surprised. A principal scientist, who was the equivalent of an executive manager, was telling them himself that he allowed her to vite the rules. Choi Myung-Joon shrugged. ¡°Yoon-Ju isn¡¯t doing any experiments right now. Do you know why she isn¡¯t?¡± ¡°Pardon...?¡± ¡°You probably don¡¯t. Since you guys don¡¯t prepare for the year-end seminar, right?¡± Choi Myung-Joon looked at them. ¡°Yoon-Ju is the most talented person on our team. She has finished her experiments. She has exceeded this year¡¯s goals. She was the one who made most of our team¡¯s presentation slides. All Yoon-Ju is doing right now is editing those files.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Yoon-Ju. How much is that shirt?¡± ¡°Two hundred thousand won.¡±[6] ¡°You have to go to the store again to buy it, right? That means a crucial member of the Health Food Department, the one responsible for Lab Six¡¯s performance at the year-end seminar, is losing that much time. And it¡¯s not like these employees in the Life Creation Department can do what Yoon-Ju has to do, right?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Then, if these people have a conscience at least, they will reimburse you for the taxi ride to and from the store, right? You must be so sad that your outfit and your mood are ruined for your date today, huh? You should be reimbursed for that, too. Maybe about four hundred thousand won. Right?¡± Jung Hae-Rim clenched her fists. ¡°No way... You¡¯re going to make him pay four hundred thousand won for a used shirt that you bought for two hundred thousand won?¡± Even Park Dong-Hyun clenched his jaw. ¡°Even though you were the one at fault?¡± ¡°We don¡¯t know who was at fault yet,¡± Choi Myung-Joon argued. If the Life Creation Department asked to check the surveince footage, they would be harshly criticized for spending so much time cking off when they had no results. Choi Myung-Joon was basically threatening them to stop making this a big deal and crawl on the floor like the potato heads they were. ¡°I¡¯ll give it to you...¡± Koh Soon-Yeol said. ¡°Soon-Yeol?¡± Jung Hae-Rim looked at him in surprise. ¡°Sumimasen... I¡¯ll give you it right now, so please don¡¯t be mad.¡±[7] ¡°There¡¯s no need.¡± Young-Joon showed up from behind. Everyone stared at him in surprise. ¡°You said that you didn¡¯t do anything, Soon-Yeol. But why are you giving her anything?¡± ¡°Uh... But...¡± ¡°Who are you?¡± Seo Yoon-Ju asked. ¡°My name is Ryu Young-Joon. I came to the Life Creation Department a week ago.¡± ¡°Oh, the one who cursed at Director Kim Hyun-Taek?¡± Choi Myung-Joonughed. ¡°Yes, that¡¯s me. I cursed at ab director¡ªan executive. I can do a lot more if the other person is in a lower position,¡± Young-Joon said. Choi Myung-Joon flinched. ¡°Are you threatening me? You¡¯re going to punch me or something?¡± Choi Myung-Joon said. ¡°No, of course not. But let¡¯s look through that surveince footage. You have to apologize if it¡¯s your fault, Scientist Seo.¡± ¡°I think I told you to do some experiments if you have to go through that.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I am already doing an experiment.¡± ¡°You have something to present at the seminar?¡± Choi Myung-Joon smirked. ¡°Yes, we do,¡± Young-Joon spoke confidently. The three people beside him, including Park Dong-Hyun, looked shocked. ¡°W-We have something...?¡± Park Dong-Hyun whispered quietly. Young-Joon spoke firmly, ¡°Health Food? Whatever results your department presents, I¡¯ll show you something that is double that.¡± 1. Japanese for ¡®Amazing¡¯ or ¡®Great¡¯ ? 2. Dak-gang-jeong is small, bite-sized, fried chicken tossed in a sweet and spicy sauce. Itadakimasu is a Japanese phrase people say before eating, meaning ¡®Thank you for the meal.¡¯ ? 3. Sunbae refers to an upperssman or senior. In this case, Koh Soon-Yeol is Young-Joon¡¯s sunbae because he joined thepany earlier than him and holds a higher position. ? 4. Sumanai is a Japanese phrase used when saying sorry, but in a yful and slightly embarrassed way. ? 5. Ningen is Japanese for ¡®human¡¯ or ¡®mortal¡¯. ? 6. About 150USD when this chapter was tranted in Nov 2023. ? 7. Sumimasen is Japanese for ¡®Sorry¡¯ or ¡®My apologies¡¯. ? Chapter 9: Treating the Flu (1)

Chapter 9: Treating the Flu (1)

¡°Haha!¡± Choi Myung-Joonughed out loud. ¡°Oh, did you really create life or something?¡± ¡°Ahahaha!¡± The scientists who gathered around to watch the situation burst out inughter. ¡®Well, actually, I really did create life, but that¡¯s different since I can¡¯t prove it.¡¯ ¡°I will do that for you next time,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°If the Life Creation Department didn¡¯t create life, what are you so confident about?¡± ¡°We will win the Award for Exceptional Performance at this year¡¯s seminar.¡± ¡°...¡± Everyone went dead silent as if someone had thrown cold water on them. Even Choi Myung-Joon was dumbfounded at how confident Young-Joon was. It would be surprising if they won something just within Lab Six, but he was saying that the Life Creation Department was going to present the best results among all thebs at A-Gen. ¡°Are you serious?¡± Choi Myung-Joon asked Young-Joon. ¡°Why would I bluff when I have to show what I have in two weeks?¡± ¡°You. Did something go wrong in your brain because of what happened in the Anticancer Drug Research Department?¡± ¡°You¡¯ll see for yourself in two weeks at the seminar.¡± ¡°Ha! Alright. I look forward to it.¡± ¡°You can¡¯t just end it there. Get the footage and apologize.¡± ¡°You already know that this isn¡¯t about the spilled food anymore. See you in two weeks. If you really win something, we will apologize and give Koh Soon-Yeol money for dry cleaning.¡± Young-Joon nced at Koh Soon-Yeol¡¯s shirt. To be honest, it looked like something he would have bought for five thousand won at the flea market or something. ¡°Soon-Yeol, this is from Comme des Gar?ons, right?¡± Young-Joon asked. Seo Yoon-Ju¡¯s eyes widened in bewilderment. ¡°What are you talking about? How is that Comme Des Gar?ons? It looks like something he pulled out from clothing donations or something! Plus, it doesn¡¯t even have the brand logo!¡± ¡°It fell off because it was a limited edition that was released with a vintage concept. The logo was barely sewn on. Even a worn one costs two hundred thousand won, right?¡± Although none of it was true, Young-Joon kept going. ¡°Poor Soon-Yeol. You probably won¡¯t be able to buy the same one since it was limited edition. You¡¯re going to have to do the legwork to buy something that looks simr. It would be a huge loss to our team if a highly-valued employer like Scientist Koh Soon-Yeol were to get tired after looking for that shirt. Soon-Yeol, you should get like four hundred thousand won, right?¡± ¡°Hahaha!¡± Choi Myung-Joon burst out inughter. He said, ¡°I heard that the Life Creation Department was weird, but a really strange person joined the team, huh?¡± ¡°Well, I wouldn¡¯t have cursed at Kim Hyun-Taek if I was ordinary. I am quite extraordinary.¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu Young-Joon, was it? I¡¯ll remember your name. Let¡¯s do what you said. We¡¯ll give you four hundred thousand won if the Life Creation Department wins the grand prize.¡± ¡°Alright. Let¡¯s do that.¡± ¡°We¡¯ll see. Let¡¯s go, Yoon-Ju.¡± Choi Myung-Joon took Seo Yoon-Ju and walked away. As the crowd dissolved, Park Dong-Hyun grabbed Young-Joon so strongly he was basically holding him by the cor. ¡°Are you crazy? Why did you do that?¡± Jung Hae-Rim also shouted, ¡°What are you going to do, Young-Joon!¡± All Young-Joon did was smile. ¡°Just wait a little bit. Trust me.¡± ¡°No. Whether you are good or not, Doctor Ryu, how can you yield results when you¡¯ve only been here a week?! How can we trust you?!¡± Park Dong-Hyun shouted in frustration. ¡°The Nobel Prize.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°You said it was Nobel Prize-worthy,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°If I present results like that, getting the Award for Exceptional Performance should be a piece of cake.¡± * * * It was Saturday morning. Young-Joon was working on Rosaline¡¯s status window. During the week, he used his cell fitness for his embryonic stem cell experiments, but he had no use for them during the week as he had done everything he had to do. However, Young-Joon had no intentions of wasting time with his fitness fully charged. He increased his maximum cell fitness value to 2.1 by injecting ATP into his veins, but it didn¡¯t change the fact that Rosaline¡¯s maximum fitness value was 1.5. As such, he decided to investigate all kinds of diseases within the range of 1.5 during the weekend. He was thinking about developing an important drug unrted to A-Gen. The way to develop a new drug without A-Gen¡¯s help in a goshiwon with nob equipment, let alone a TV?[1] All Young-Joon had to do wasmission an agency that did experiments for the customer. He could create the drug bymissioning it to a chemicalpany, show its effectiveness through animal testing, and then patent it. Young-Joon was thinking of selling it to another pharmaceuticalpany. He would get billions of dors at the least. This was to get some money quickly as it would take too long for him to earn money from stem cells. He didn¡¯t have the option to sell stem cells as they were too valuable to waste like that and because the onlypany in the country with the infrastructure to do stem cell research was A-Gen. ¡®I will put an end to my poverty by this weekend.¡¯ The reason he limited it to the end of the weekend was that he was going to be busy with his stem cell experiments and preparing the presentation from Monday. ¡°Tell me how to cure liver cancer,¡± Young-Joon ordered as he stared at Rosaline¡¯s status window. [You do not have enough fitness.] [Liver cancer is tooplicated to analyze at once.] ¡°Hmph. Then lung cancer.¡± [You do not have enough fitness.] [Lung cancer is tooplicated to analyze at once.] ¡®Maybe it¡¯s too much to target cancer.¡¯ Cancer was such aplicated disease. It was like a puzzle, as there were too many causes and variables intertwined. What would be easier: curing every type of cancer or curing all diseases except cancer? Personally, Young-Joon thought it was thetter. It would be a different story if Rosaline¡¯s maximum fitness increased as she leveled up, but it didn¡¯t seem like cancer was something he could do with how much power he had right now. ¡®I wish I could increase Rosaline¡¯s level or something.¡¯ Bleep! Rosaline¡¯s status window suddenly rang. [Rosaline requires the following nutrients: Vitamin B6 0.7 mg, Zinc 3 mg. Reward: 0.8 Fitness.] Currently, Rosaline¡¯s fitness was at 1.5, the maximum value. That was why Young-Joon was intrigued. ¡®What would happen if I didn¡¯t use any fitness and took it?¡¯ He could ingest vitamin B6 and zinc through food, but it would be difficult to measure the quantity like that, and he didn¡¯t know when he would get another message like this. ¡®Maybe I should get a multivitamin supplement from the pharmacy.¡¯ * * * Ring. The bell on the pharmacy door rang. ¡°Hello!¡± Song Ji-Hyun shouted with a friendly voice. She recognized him when Young-Joon approached the counter. ¡°Oh, you were herest week, right? The probiotics?¡± ¡°Oh, yes, that¡¯s right. Could I have a multivitamin supplement with vitamin B and zinc?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Give me a moment.¡± As Song Ji-Hyun walked over to the shelf and grabbed a bottle, she asked, ¡°The probiotics you mentioned before... How did you know that stuff?¡± ¡°I work at a pharmaceuticalpany.¡± ¡°I actually asked the scientists at ourpany after what you said. They told me that there have been no advancements since I stopped working. They thought that bifidobacteria wasn¡¯t working very well.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± It was just as Young-Joon expected. ¡°But there are still a lot of pharmaceuticalpanies that are going after bifidobacteria. The fact that it doesn¡¯t work seems to be pretty important information, so why did you tell me that? Isn¡¯t it apany secret?¡± ¡°Well, I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s important information or apany secret. I¡¯m not part of the probiotics department anyways.¡± ¡°Then, what is your department?¡± ¡°Um... It¡¯s rted to stem cells.¡± ¡°Stem cells... That¡¯s a totally different field from microorganisms.¡± ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right.¡± ¡°Then how do you know so well about probiotics?¡± Young-Joon pulled out his credit card and made up some excuses as hepleted the transaction. ¡°Well, it was just a thought that came to mind as I was reading some papers.¡± Young-Joon took out a pill from the bottle and popped it in his mouth. [Vitamin B6 and zinc supplemented.] [Rosaline¡¯s Synchronization +1%] [Rosaline has leveled up.] [The maximum fitness value has increased. (1.8)] [The Vitamin B6 is pure. Fitness is additionally increased. Rosaline Fitness: +0.1] [Cell Fitness: 1.8] ¡®Hm?¡¯ Young-Joon looked satisfied as he read the unexpected messages. ¡®Where are these vitamins from? I like them.¡¯ ¡°These are from Dongkwang Pharmaceuticals? Benefit Alpha?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Doesn¡¯t A-Gen have the best product in the vitamin market right now? I thought you would give me Power Nature. It¡¯s advertised a lot, too.¡± ¡°There are a lot of people whoe for that. But it has virtually the same ingredients as Benefit Alpha. But it¡¯s twice as expensive. I can give you Power Nature if you want it.¡± ¡°Oh, that¡¯s alright. And I don¡¯t like A-Gen anyways.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Song Ji-Hyun tilted her head in confusion like she didn¡¯t expect it. Young-Joon said, ¡°Like you said. Power Nature is expensive because of the brand name. It¡¯s not made out of anything amazing.¡± ¡°Yeah, I agree. I don¡¯t like A-Gen either. But it doesn¡¯t affect what I prescribe or anything, though,¡± Song Ji-Hyun agreed. ¡°Really? Why don¡¯t you like A-Gen? Their management is terrible, but they are good at what they do. They¡¯re not too bad from a pharmacist¡¯s perspective, no?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. But I don¡¯t like them as an employee from another pharmaceuticalpany. A-Gen is good at doing bad things, too.¡± ¡°Bad things?¡± ¡°Like making apetitive drug from a venture pharmaceuticalpany vanish.¡± Young-Joon was so shocked that he almost choked. ¡°They did that to ourpany,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said as she stared out the window with a bitter face. ¡®No, it can¡¯t be, right? What if?¡¯ Young-Joon sent a report on a new drug for liver cancer when he was part of the Anticancer Drug Research Department. And Kim Hyun-Taek, theb director, and A-Gen¡¯s management bought it to destroy it. It was Cellicure, the new liver cancer treatment drug from Celligener. ¡°Um, are you...¡± As Young-Joon was about to ask Song Ji-Hyun about herpany... Ring! An old man entered the pharmacy. He was wearing severalyers and was very pale. ¡°Achoo!¡± the old man sneezed quietly. Zing! ¡°Agh!¡± Young-Joon''s head throbbed. He grabbed his head with both his hands in extreme pain. [Danger!] A message blinked in front of his eyes. The saliva droplets that the old man spat out when sneezing came into his view. Young-Joon was dizzy. He could barely hold onto his consciousness as his head was throbbing with pain simr to very intense anemia. When Young-Joon opened his eyes, everything looked white, as if it was covered in snow. Song Ji-Hyun greeting the old man sounded like static from an old radio. But Young-Joon couldn¡¯t see her face; everything was white as if he had cataracts. Crinkle... Young-Joon heard the sound of paper crinkling from somewhere. His eyes hurt. Then, his focus returned but was slowly drawn to a ck dot in the middle of his view. It was weird; it was as if he was looking through an extremely precise microscope. He saw a circr structure in front of him that had several receptors protruding from its shell. [Flu A Virus] A message popped up. ¡°Ack!¡± As Young-Joon covered his eyes and screamed, Song Ji-Hyun and the old man stared at him in surprise. ¡°Wheeze... Wheeze...¡± Young-Joon felt like blood was now getting to his brain. He could see clearly now. ¡°Oh my...¡± ¡®What did I just see? The flu virus?¡¯ 1. A goshiwon is a single room upancy in Korea. It is known to be very cheap and extremely small. ? Chapter 10: Treating the Flu (2)

Chapter 10: Treating the Flu (2)

¡®A virus? Like the virus that I know?¡¯ A virus was about 1/2000 of the width of hair. Some thought it was simr in size to bacteria, but it wasn¡¯t; if bacteria were elephants, viruses would be mice. That was how small viruses were. Because viruses were so small and simple, it was confusing as to whether they were living things or not. It was true that the scientificmunity hadn¡¯t decided if viruses were living beings or not and that they were withholding their decision. Viruses were primitive and dust-like, making it difficult to observe a virus, even through a microscope, if the scientist wasn¡¯t skilled enough, or if the lens was flimsy. ¡®But I saw it with my own eyes.¡¯ Young-Joon tried toprehend this insanity. [Cell Fitness: 1.7] His fitness fell by 0.1. ¡®Damn it. I didn¡¯t even want to see what the Flu A virus looked like, but it showed me it by using 0.1 fitness.¡¯ Was Rosaline reacting with some defense mechanism because Young-Joon was exposed to this virus from a sneeze? ¡°Are you okay?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked. ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± Young-Joon shook his hand. Song Ji-Hyun tilted her head in confusion. The old man let out some air through his nose and said to her, ¡°Please give me some cold medicine.¡± Song Ji-Hyun nced back at the old man. ¡°What are your symptoms?¡± ¡°I have a cough and a stuffy nose.¡± ¡°What about a fever?¡± ¡°A little, I think.¡± Young-Joon stared at the side of the old man¡¯s face in bewilderment. ¡®He can¡¯t get normal cold medicine.¡¯ Some people thought that the flu was just a bad cold, but they were strictly different diagnoses. ¡°Let¡¯s see your temperature.¡± Song Ji-Hyun took out a thermometer from a drawer and put it to the old man¡¯s ear. It read 37.4 degrees. ¡°You have a mild fever,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°How long have you been sick?¡± ¡°About five days. Cough!¡± The old man coughed at the end of his sentence. ¡°And you haven¡¯t been to the hospital?¡± ¡°Yes. I had a fever, but it came down. I am coughing a lot, and I have a lot of phlegm.¡± ¡°Then I¡¯ll give you some regr cold medicine. Some expectorant and...¡± ¡°Wait!¡± Young-Joon shouted instinctively. Song Ji-Hyun and the old man stared at him in surprise. ¡°Um...¡± ¡®How do I exin this?¡¯ Young-Joon couldn¡¯t just say that he saw the Influenza A virus in the saliva the old man spat out as he sneezed. ¡°If it¡¯s been five days... Shouldn¡¯t most cold symptoms... Go away?¡± Young-Joon stammered as he asked Song Ji-Hyun. ¡°If you¡¯re still really sick, then... Um, the flu is going around now. Maybe you should go see a doctor...¡± ¡°Seeing a doctor would give you the most urate results,¡± Song Ji-Hyun told the old man. ¡°But if it has been five days, it¡¯s toote to prescribe something like Tamiflu, even if it is the flu. You probably won¡¯t get an antiviral drug even if you go to the internal medicine department above us.¡± ¡°It¡¯s toote to use Tamiflu?¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Yes.¡± Young-Joon was a little flustered. This was the difference between a scientist, who developed drugs, and a pharmacist, who prescribed them. A scientist knew the detailed mechanism of the drug, as well as endless experimental data that most pharmacists and doctors have never seen. They also knew otherpetitive drugs as well. However, their knowledge about a drug drastically declined if it wasn¡¯t in their field; they basically knew a little more than average. And Young-Joon, a biologist, knew almost nothing about something like the effects of Tamiflu, a new, synthetic chemical drug, as all he knew about it was what he learned about during his biochemistry ss in university. Young-Joon¡¯s major was in synthetic biology. ¡°Tamiflu is only effective if it is given within forty-eight hours after infection. It¡¯s when the virus is actively replicating in the cell and causing high fevers,¡± Song Ji-Hyun replied. ¡°If someone recovered to a mild fever of about thirty-seven degrees, prescribing Tamiflu is meaningless because it means that the person has already recovered to some extent.¡± She gave the old man the regr cold medicine she was initially going to prescribe him. ¡°I¡¯ll prescribe you something that will help with the pain you¡¯re experiencing from the immune response. It¡¯s an antihistamine and an expectorant. Take this three times a day, two after each meal. And this one...¡± Young-Joon was a little embarrassed as he watched Song Ji-Hyun prescribe the medicine like an expert. While he was reflecting on how he interfered so presumptuously, the old man took the medicine and walked out. ¡°Have a great day.¡± It was just Song Ji-Hyun and Young-Joon left in the pharmacy again. ¡°You, a stem cell major, knew so much about probiotics, but you don¡¯t know so much about new synthetic drugs like Tamiflu.¡± Song Ji-Hyun snickered. ¡°I¡¯m no good at chemistry.¡± Young-Joon also chuckled. ¡°You only do bio, then.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°New biological drugs. It has huge potential.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Of course. The bio-industry will turn the pharmaceutical market upside down.¡± ¡°Hey. I''ve heard things like that ever since I was in high school, and it¡¯s been four years since I got my doctorate.¡± ¡°The future has just yet toe. Hm, I wonder why?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked with her arm on the counter and her chin resting on her hand. ¡°Our principal scientist said that it¡¯s because there hasn¡¯t been a revolutionary genius in the biology field.¡± ¡°A revolutionary genius?¡± Young-Joon tilted his head in confusion. ¡°Yes. There were amazing biologists, but there were no geniuses who broke through all the frustrating problems in the field and brought out the potential. Someone like Einstein,¡± Song Ji-Hyun replied. ¡°What¡¯s the point of us scientists at pharmaceuticalpanies making flu vines every year? The flu virus evolves every year, making the previous vines useless.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true.¡± Young-Joon agreed. ¡°Did you know? Theoretically, we could eradicate the flu with the current flu vine,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. Young-Joon nodded his head. ¡°If we had enough vines and manpower,¡± Young-Joon replied. If seven billion people, the entire world¡¯s poption, got the flu vine all at once, the flu virus would not be able to infect anyone as everyone would be resistant to it. Viruses could only replicate by infecting people, but what would happen if they had no one to infect? Extinction. Just like how the African ck Rhinoceros were wiped out, all poptions of the Flu A virus would disappear from the Earth forever. But why were new vines made and administered every year? It was because seven billion people could not get vinated all at once. For example, if people began to vinate people in Asia after vinating people in the Americas with the newly developed vine, the flu virus in Europe would have already evolved. The vine wouldn¡¯t work on the newly-evolved virus, so by the time they finished vinating Asia and starting in Europe, the new flu virus would begin to circte in the Americas. Simply put, the reason why humanity could not eradicate the flu virus was because the speed at which the virus evolved was much faster than the speed at which people got vinated. ¡°We need a solution that addresses the root of the problem,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°Maybe an ingenious biologist will show up and revolutionize the concept of vines. Eradicate the flu just like that or something.¡± Song Ji-Hyun¡¯s eyes sparkled in excitement. ¡°Eradication of the flu...¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Like how humanity eradicated smallpox and anthrax a long time ago.¡±[1] ¡®Should I open something about the flu in Rosaline¡¯s status window?¡¯ ¡°Oh, right. What pharmaceuticalpany do you work for? Can I ask?¡± Song Ji-Hyun said to Young-Joon. ¡°What about you?¡± ¡°It¡¯s apany called Celligener.¡± ¡®Just what I thought.¡¯ Celligener was a small venture pharmaceuticalpany that only had about thirty people. People in the industry were shocked because they created an amazing treatment for liver cancer that passed stage one of clinical trials. Of course, Kim Hyun-Taek was one of the people who were shocked, and he had somehow made Celligener¡¯s management do what he wanted and bought the drug. ¡°The drug A-Gen took from you. Was it a new drug for liver cancer?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Oh? How do you know?¡± Song Ji-Hyun¡¯s eyes widened. She said, ¡°We worked really hard to develop that drug. But A-Gen took it and destroyed it.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°At first, we thought A-Gen was going to develop it and use it. We thought they would do it better than us because they have more experience and have a good production pipeline. Although, there was also pressure from A-Gen¡¯s management, and money problems, too,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°We were naive. A-Gen bought that drug to destroy it. If we knew that, we would¡¯ve done anything to stop ourpany from selling it.¡± ¡°...I see.¡± Song Ji-Hyun thought for a moment with a reminiscing look on her face, then said, ¡°Phew. I can¡¯t believe I¡¯m talking about something like this with a stranger. I¡¯m sorry, it was stupid.¡± She chuckled. ¡°No, it¡¯s alright,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°So what about you? Where do you work?¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joon could not answer. How could he just say that he goes to A-Gen in this situation? Even worse, he was the one who was responsible for the liver cancer drug; it all started with him giving management a report that a newpetitive drug was developed. Should he talk about cursing at Kim Hyun-Taek and getting transferred... That whole ordeal? Young-Joon couldn¡¯t open his mouth. The fact that Celligener was a smallpany with about thirty people but still developed such an amazing anticancer drug suggested that most of the people there would have worked extremely hard to create it. And Song Ji-Hyun would have been one of them. ¡°Where is it? Hm?¡± ¡°Um... Actually...¡± Just as Young-Joon was about to tell her, the pharmacy doors swung open, and a bunch of patients came in. There were four old women who hade down together after visiting the internal medicine department above. ¡°Wow, the pharmacist here changed to a youngdy.¡± ¡°Whatever happened to the one before?¡± They all rushed over to the counter and pushed their prescriptions toward Song Ji-Hyun all at once. ¡°Just one moment. I¡¯ll make each one in order.¡± Song Ji-Hyun took all the papers and went into the production room. Young-Joon had already left the pharmacy when Song Ji-Hyun was done making the patient¡¯s cold medicine. * * * Bzzz! Young-Joon¡¯s phone rang on his way out of the pharmacy. A new article about the issues he had set notifications for sent him a message. [The seasonal flu is going around. Vination...] Young-Joon only read the first sentence of the article on the preview screen, but he remembered what happened at the pharmacy a little while ago. ¡®What if I cure the flu?¡¯ Young-Joon remembered how much money the inventor of Tamiflu made. After returning home, Young-Joon turned on Rosaline¡¯s status window straight away. ¡°I want to cure Flu A,¡± He said. [Microworld Focus: Would you like to gain insight into Influenza A? You have the following choices: 1. Biological mechanism of flu infection. (Fitness consumption rate: 0.05/second) 2. Cure for Influenza A. (Fitness consumption: 0.9) 3. Strategy for eradicating Influenza A. (Fitness consumption: 1.5) ¡®What?¡¯ Young-Joon¡¯s eyes widened. ¡®Eradication?¡¯ Young-Joon thought for a bit. Even if he selected the third option, there was a high chance that it would be something that he was incapable of doing. He didn¡¯t have to use fitness on the first option because he could find that information by searching it on the inte. ¡®Should I go with the second option?¡¯ However, he was too curious about the strategy to eradicate the flu. And his fitness was recovering 0.1 every half an hour. If things didn¡¯t work out, all he would have to do was save some fitness without using it for an afternoon or so. After giving it some thought, Young-Joon selected the third option. 1. Anthrax isn¡¯t really eradicated in real life. ? Chapter 11: Treating the Flu (3)

Chapter 11: Treating the Flu (3)

Bleep! With a ring, Rosaline sent a message to Young-Joon. [Rosaline searched for current methods you can use.] [Rmends eradicating Influenza A by using the new flu virus.] ¡°What...¡± Getting rid of the flu with the new influenza virus? The word ¡°flu¡± literally meant ¡°influenza¡±, meaning that the new flu virus was the same thing as the new influenza virus. ¡®Eradicating the flu with the flu? What kind of pseudoscience is this? It¡¯s like fighting fire with fire.¡¯ Young-Joon was bewildered. [There is a tendency for the seasonal flu virus strain to be wiped out when a new flu virus begins to circte.] An exnation popped up on the window. [The new flu virus is highly contagious and can quickly infect the world¡¯s poption. And the new flu virus contains the gene of the existing flu virus.] [The people infected with the new flu virus will also gain resistance to the existing flu virus. It will have the same effect as vinating the entire world at once.] [If the entire world is infected with the new flu virus, the seasonal flu virus will not have a host to infect, therefore going extinct.] ¡°Holy crap...¡± Well, Rosaline wasn¡¯t wrong. In fact, there was some research that stated the past seasonal flu virus went extinct after something like the Spanish Flu went around and killed a million people. Rosaline¡¯s messages kept popping up. [Rosaline rmends synthesizing a new flu virus based on a rhinovirus.] ¡®Rhinovirus.¡¯ They were just pathogens that caused themon cold. It was much less virulentpared to the flu virus. [With this, you can create a pathogen that has the virulence of themon cold and the contagiousness of a new flu virus.] Bleep! [Make this into an aerosol and spray it in many popted areas around the world. All of humanity will gain resistance to the flu virus in six months, and the virus will die.] Bleep! With an alert, a window of options came up. [Select to see how to create a new rhinovirus-based flu.] [Select to see how to create it into aerosol form.] [Select to see target locations to spread the virus.] ¡°This ispletely insane!¡± Young-Joon screamed. ¡°This isn¡¯t spreading a cure, it¡¯s spreading a disease! Are you crazy?!¡± [The rhinovirus is just a normal cold virus. The new flu virus suggested above is not dangerous.] A message popped up as if it had heard Young-Joon talking to himself. ¡°What? It can also answer me?¡± [Rosaline is currently at Level 2. She is capable of simple conversations for options that consume more than 1 point of Fitness.] ¡°Uh...¡± Young-Joon gulped. ¡°Whatever. I can¡¯t do this. Even if it is a rhinovirus that has low virulence, people who are immunpromised could die.¡± [However, it is below the number of deaths caused by the flu in three years. It is past the breakeven point.] ¡°...¡± ¡®Breaking even with human lives? What kind of thinking system does this lunatic have?¡¯ [And since seasonal flus will disappear forever, it is the most useful and effective method considering the risk and cost. It is also the only method you can choose, Ryu Young-Joon.] ¡°Ah, enough! I can¡¯t do that. That¡¯s something a mad scientist would do.¡± [Ryu Young-Joon. I have watched you create embryonic stem cells. It was unexpected that you would use Rosaline¡¯s power on something so trivial.] ¡°What?¡± [You are not a scientist of a pharmaceuticalpany, but a yer of Life. If you have a target you want to catch and you have a gun in your hand, I don¡¯t understand why you are trying to catch it by hitting it with the buttstock when it¡¯s much easier to aim and pull the trigger.] ¡°Then are you saying that there¡¯s an easier way to make stem cells?¡± [No. I am saying that there is no need.] ¡°Exin.¡± [You do not have enough fitness. To analyzeplicated life processes, Rosaline¡¯s level...] ¡°Ugh, are you kidding me right now?¡± [Rosaline can only provide data within the fitness level. Increase your level.] [Ryu Young-Joon. The creation of life is a one-time event. Even if another scientist does what you did in the A-Gen Life Creationb, Rosaline will not be created.] ¡°I know that.¡± [You are the first yer of Life in humanity, but also the only one. I hope you take responsibility for your luck and use your powers wisely.] ¡°Even if you say that, I¡¯m not doing something as crazy as spreading a cold. That''s a bioterror, not vination.¡± [Shutdown.] The messages about the synthesis of the new flu virus were minimized. ¡°Shutdown? Hey?¡± [...] No answer. ¡°Damn it.¡± Young-Joon sat on his bed and quietly stared at Rosaline¡¯s status window. [Rosaline Lv.2] ¡ªMetastatic Status: Heart (2%), Liver (46%), Brain (7%), Kidney (13%), Spinal Cord (4%) Synchronization: 4% ¡ªCell Fitness: 0.3 ¡ªGene Expression Control: None The gene expression control category had changed without Young-Joon noticing. Rosaline had said that the expression of CYP2E1 would continue for three days. Young-Joon searched the inte for flu treatments while recovering Rosaline¡¯s fitness. Other than Tamiflu, there were other new drugs like Janamivir and Flu-Free. It took Young-Joon about three hours for Young-Joon to investigate their properties, chemical structures, and usage. [Cell Fitness: 0.9] Rosaline¡¯s fitness had reasonably recovered. Young-Joon opened the information about the flu from Rosaline¡¯s status window. 1. Biological mechanism of flu infection. (Fitness consumption rate: 0.05/second) 2. Cure for Influenza A. (Fitness consumption: 0.9) 3. Strategy for eradicating Influenza A. (Complete) Young-Joon was now able to open option three without any requirements. He pressed the second one this time. A single cell in the human body had twenty thousand kinds of genes. Then how many kinds of genes would a flu virus have? Barely ten. Right now, the products of the ten genes from the virus were interacting in front of Young-Joon¡¯s eyes, like a car. Young-Joon had to find the weakness in the huge,plicated machinery. A car could be stopped from elerating by putting a small, heavy piece of metal on its brakes, and this was how new drugs were developed. He had to find a chemical substance that capitalized on a biological substance required for the flu virus. Blink! The molecr structure floated in front of Young-Joon¡¯s eyes like a haze. ¡°Found it.¡± Young-Joon quickly copied the shape onto his notebook. It was simr to Tamiflu, but it had a benzene ring attached to it on the right side with a distinct motif. It was a drug that blocked the activation of a certain protein of the flu virus. In a way, the flu virus market could be asrge as the stem cell treatment market. Like Rosaline said, the flu was so contagious that the new flu could infect the entire world. And considering that the Spanish Flu killed over a million people, the fatality rate wasn¡¯t low in patients with poor immunity. Whether it was a new flu or a seasonal flu, it would be used widely in the medical field if it was a drug that could prevent the multiplication of a virus by administering it right after the infection. Tamiflu was also very famous when it first came out, but Young-Joon had developed a drug simr to it with a few minutes of meditation. ¡®The problem is that I have to test this drug.¡¯ Rosaline¡¯s status window gave him the right answer, but it was up to Young-Joon to prove to others that it was the right answer. He had decided to use A-Gen with the stem cells because he couldn¡¯t do it alone. But for this one, he was thinking of proving it through anotherpany. He would monopolize the patent and then quickly sell it without going to clinical trials. Young-Joon opened a new tab on hisputer and searched for apany that would do his experiments for him. ¡ªReaction Chemistry ¡ªCell Bio Reaction Chemistry was apany Young-Joon used often when he was in the Anticancer Drug Research Department. They manufactured chemicals through organic synthesis reactions. They were quite good; they had also seeded in creating a substance that A-Gen¡¯s Organic Synthesis Department had failed to make. Cell Bio was apany that specialized in biological experiments. If a customer sent over a few potential drug candidates, they did cell and animal testing for them. The problem was the money. He would need a lot of money tomission these kinds of experiments, and applying for a patent would also cost quite a bit of money. He thought that he would need at least ten million won to do it. But where would he get that kind of money? ¡®Should I call the loanpany for more money?¡¯ Young-Joon already had some debt. He thought that he could take on some more debt since this was an investment that would have a high return. He was lost in thought, then felt his stomach grumble. ¡°Let¡¯s get some food first.¡± It was already one o¡¯clock in the afternoon, but he still hadn¡¯t eaten lunch. He decided to go grab some food. Click. Just when he opened the door and was about to leave, Young-Joon saw a familiar face standing in front of the door. ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Woah.¡± It was a nice-looking man who was wearing a suit. He was Young-Joon¡¯s friend whom he had known for twenty years. ¡°Park Joo-Hyuk?¡± ¡°I was just about to ring the doorbell.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk pulled Young-Joon by the shoulder and hugged him tightly. ¡°What? Why did youe here without telling me?¡± ¡°It was a surprise visit that you¡¯re supposed to be moved by.¡± ¡°Why are you here?¡± ¡°I was worried if my little Young-Joon was doing well, if you were eating well, and if your ugly face got better.¡± ¡°It¡¯s been a while since we met, and you¡¯re already spewing nonsense. Did your probation period at the Lawyer Association or something end well?¡± ¡°Of course. I am a realwyer that can be appointed.¡± ¡°Lucky. If I punch Kim Hyun-Taek by ident at work or something, please defend me.¡± ¡°Is Kim Hyun-Taek yourb director?¡± ¡°Not anymore. I got punished and got transferred. I¡¯m at anotherb.¡± ¡°Because of you cursing at him?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°Is it something that this righteouswyer should step up for?¡± ¡°No. You don¡¯t have to do anything. I¡¯m going to crush him with my scientific career. But Joo-Hyuk... Do you have some cash?¡± ¡°Why? I don¡¯t have any since I¡¯m not working yet.¡± ¡°I need about ten million won.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk¡¯s jaw fell to the floor. ¡°Did... Did you get into some trouble after juggling your credit cards?¡± Young-Joon¡¯s family had been poor ever since he was young. His parents had retired, and they had two hundred million won in credit card debt. They did not have a car or a house. Young-Joon also had school loans, credit card loans, and other debts. And Park Joo-Hyuk knew this because he was an old friend of his. However, Young-Joon never asked Park Joo-Hyuk for money once, even if he had to starve, so Park Joo-Hyuk was surprised when he asked for ten million won. ¡°No, it¡¯s nothing like that,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°If it¡¯s not anything like that, why do you need that much money? You didn¡¯t get a loan from loan sharks or anything while I was busy during my probation period, right?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Phew.¡± ¡°I went to the loan sharks before you went into your probation period.¡± ¡°Holy shit... How much?¡± ¡°Thirty million won.¡± ¡°Thirty million!¡± Park Joo-Hyuk said in shock. ¡°You have debt other than your student loans? Debt? And you¡¯re seriously talking about loan sharks? What did you use it for?¡± ¡°I had my mother¡¯s debt as well as my father¡¯s. I juggled around loans to pay those off, and that¡¯s how I ended up like this. It is from loan sharks, but the interest rate isn¡¯t that bad. Although my credit score is pretty low.¡± ¡°Shit...¡± ¡°But that¡¯s not the reason why I¡¯m asking you to lend me money. There¡¯s somewhere else I want to use it.¡± ¡°You have somewhere else to use ten million won when you¡¯re in debt for thirty million, idiot? You should pay off some of the principal if you have that kind of money!¡± ¡°I¡¯m doing it to pay it off.¡± ¡°Are you going to go to a casino or something? Or pouring it all into stocks...¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°No? I don¡¯t think so. Sigh. Remember when you were ying Lineage in middle school, and you dropped a super expensive item or something? You bought twenty random boxes with your allowance to get it again, and what did you get?¡±[1] ¡°Hey, that was a long time ago!¡± ¡°You don¡¯t think I know you? I¡¯ll help you pay off your loan when I get paid after I get into aw firm, so don¡¯t think about doing anything stupid and just save so we can pay it off.¡± ¡°Stop it. You gave some of the money you earned from working part-time and gave it to my father, right?¡± ¡°Hup...¡± Park Joo-Hyuk was flustered. ¡°You didn¡¯t think I would know? My father told me a long time ago.¡± ¡°I kept telling him to not tell you... Well, even if it was your father, I¡¯ve known him since I was a kid...¡± ¡°It¡¯s enough that you used the little money you earned while scraping grills and studying for the bar to pay off your friend¡¯s father¡¯s debt. You don¡¯t have to take on my debt, too... You¡¯re not a charity worker. It¡¯s fine.¡± ¡°Then, what are you going to do with thirty million won of debt?¡± ¡°I¡¯m going to make a drug.¡± ¡°A drug?¡± ¡°Just watch. I¡¯m going to be able to buy a building if this works out.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk squinted and stared at him in doubt. ¡°One of the legal cases I read had a graduate student who was caught for producing and selling addictive drugs...¡± ¡°Seriously, it¡¯s nothing like that! It¡¯s a new and legal drug.¡± ¡°Are you serious?¡± Park Joon-Hyuk asked. ¡°Yeah,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°Making a new drug... At A-Gen? Are you leading it?¡± ¡°No, I¡¯m not getting any help from A-Gen. I¡¯m doing it on my own. I¡¯m going to patent the drug and sell it.¡± ¡°Nope, not going to happen. Yourpany is going to take it because it¡¯s an employee invention. You¡¯ll get somepensation, though.¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t involve A-Gen.¡± ¡°Even if you don¡¯t use their facilities, you can¡¯t do it because it incorporates the knowledge and ideas you gained from A-Gen, dummy. If you do experiments about anticancer drugs at work, the drug you make outside of work is thepany¡¯s.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not an anticancer drug. It¡¯s for the flu.¡± ¡°The flu?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk stared at him with squinted eyes. Young-Joon exined, ¡°Yeah. It doesn¡¯t fit the conditions of employee inventions because it¡¯s out of the scope of my work, right? Just because a microbial researcher improves a microscope, doesn¡¯t mean it¡¯s thepany¡¯s, right?¡± ¡°Ah, this damn scientist is giving me a headache. It¡¯s not outside your scope of work, but your job. In this case, it falls under inventions anyways...¡± ¡°So is it mine or not?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know, man. It depends on your contract. But there is a case where the Supreme Court acknowledged an employee¡¯s invention as their own when thepany supported them and funded their patent. Thew protects the individual¡¯s right for inventions a lot, so I guess it can be defended.¡± ¡°Right? And I¡¯m part of Lab One. They don¡¯t even work with the flu there. I don¡¯t know how it looks to an arts person like you, but a drug for the flu and cancer are very different.¡± ¡°Really? Then you¡¯ll probably be fine. Just in case, did you go to any seminars about the flu or see any data on developing a drug for the flu at A-Gen?¡± ¡°Never.¡± ¡°Okay, then. But personally, I want to stop you. If A-Gen sues you, and even if you can win, an individual going up against apany like that...¡± ¡°Park Joo-Hyuk will defend me for free, right?¡± ¡°How did someone like you be my friend? Oh, but you have to do experiments and stuff like that, right? Can you do that yourself?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk asked. ¡°That¡¯s why I need ten million won. To request for experiments to be done on my behalf.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know, man. You¡¯re not doing weed or anything, right?¡± ¡°Stop talking nonsense. Let¡¯s stop talking about this if you¡¯re not going to lend me the money. Since you came all the way here, buy me something good before you go.¡± ¡°How did you manage to put a plot twist on a sentence so short? I thought you would tell me that you were going to treat me.¡± ¡°I have no money.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk ruffled his hair, then nodded. ¡°Let¡¯s go. Meals alwayse first. Let¡¯s talk about it over lunch.¡± 1. Lineage was a popr MMORPG game in Korea that a lot of people yed in the past. ? Chapter 12: Treating the Flu (4)

Chapter 12: Treating the Flu (4)

Young-Joon and Park Joo-Hyuk ordered a rice set meal from a restaurant nearby. Even as they were eating, Young-Joon was looking through his contacts to see if there were people whom he could borrow money from. Watching him, Park Joo-Hyuk asked, ¡°Can you really buy a building if you have ten million won?¡± ¡°Yep.¡± ¡°What¡¯s the drug you¡¯re making?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a new medicine for the flu. It¡¯s like Tamiflu, but more effective. Plus, storage and production will be much easier, too.¡± ¡°And you¡¯re going to develop it on your own bymissioning the experiments to anotherpany to make it unrted to A-Gen? Then, you¡¯re going to patent it?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°Well, it makes legal sense, but can you make that much money if you develop and patent it yourself?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk asked. ¡°Do you know how much Tamiflu makes in a year?¡± ¡°How much?¡± ¡°Three trillion won.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk squinted his eyes in disbelief. ¡°Three... Trillion?¡± ¡°A pharmaceuticalpany called Roche is selling that right now, and their annual international sales is three trillion won. And about five percent goes to the patentee in royalties ording to the contract.¡± ¡°...¡± Park Joo-Hyuk was lost in thought. Looking at him, Young-Joon said, ¡°Hey. If you can lend me the money, just trust me and invest. I¡¯ll give you five times what you lent me.¡± ¡°If you develop a drug, you¡¯re going to have to do years of clinical trials beforemercializing it. How are you going to earn anything in a year?¡± ¡°I¡¯m going to show its effectiveness with animal testing, then sell it to a pharmaceuticalpany as a prototype. I don¡¯t want to live poor for a few years while developing it, no matter how sessful it might be. I¡¯m thinking I¡¯ll get about ten billion won if I sell it as a prototype.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk had some seaweed soup, then sighed. ¡°Man~ I still think this guy is shitting me right now.¡± ¡°Joo-Hyuk, I told you everything because it¡¯s you. I already know the structure of the new drug, and I have a sense of its effectiveness. I just need to experiment with it and prove it.¡± ¡°Hm... Alright. I¡¯ll lend it to you,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk replied. ¡°I thought you had no money?¡± ¡°I only have five million won. I¡¯ll borrow the other five million and lend it to you.¡± ¡°Are you crazy? That¡¯s not what I meant. Let it go if you don¡¯t have the money to. I¡¯m not going to pretend I don¡¯t know you after I seed just because you don¡¯t lend me it. You don¡¯t have to get a loan.¡± ¡°What are you going to do if I don¡¯t give it to you? You have a terrible personality and anger issues, so you don¡¯t have many friends other than me. Where are you going to borrow it from? Loan sharks? Again?¡± Young-Joon flinched. Park Joo-Hyuk scoffed as Young-Joon lowered his head. ¡°This bastard was really going to go to loan sharks again. It¡¯s fine. I¡¯ll get it for you.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk grabbed his phone and called someone right away. ¡°Hello? Yes, Big Bro! It¡¯s me, Joo-Hyuk. Yes.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk then made some small talk, exined that he needed five million won urgently, read him his bank ount number and hung up. ¡°Who was that?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°A colleague fromw school. He¡¯s rich.¡± ¡°How rich is he that he can just lend you five million won on the spot?¡± ¡°He¡¯s a third generation chaebol.¡±[1] ¡°Wow...¡± ¡°But just because they are a chaebol doesn¡¯t mean that they spend and lend money thoughtlessly. Rich people are actually more picky when ites to spending. But I¡¯m awyer now, and unlike Ryu Young-Joon, the loner from Jungyoon University, I have a hugework of people and great credit because I was always popr. I can get five million won.¡± Ring! There was a message on Park Joo-Hyuk¡¯s phone. ¡°The money came in. I¡¯ll send it to you.¡± ¡°Thanks.¡± ¡°I added one hundred thousand won. Don¡¯t starve to death.¡± ¡°Are you done? Let¡¯s go, I¡¯ll buy you coffee with the hundred thousand won you just sent me.¡± Young-Joon and Park Joo-Hyuk left the restaurant together and ordered some coffee from a nearby coffee shop. ¡°For here or to go?¡± The worker asked. ¡°To go, please.¡± Hearing Young-Joon''s words, Park Joo-Hyuk tilted his head in puzzlement. ¡°Are you going somewhere?¡± ¡°The pharmacy. Sorry, I need to call someone.¡± Young-Joon called Manager Kim Ji-Chul of Reaction Chemistry. ¡°Hello, sir.¡± ¡ªHello! It¡¯s been a while, Doctor! Kim Ji-Chul greeted him with a cheery voice. ¡ªHave you been well? Is there something you need to synthesize?¡± ¡°Yes, I¡¯ll send over an email with the structural form of the chemical to be synthesized right now.¡± Young-Joon sent an email with the structural form of the flu cure that was saved in his cloud. ¡ªYes, I got it. Hm... I¡¯m going to have to think about how to synthesize this. ¡°The synthesis mechanism is there, too. I attached a PDF file as well, right? That¡¯s the synthesis mechanism.¡± ¡ªThe synthesis mechanism? ¡°Yes.¡± There was no way a biologist like Young-Joon knew the synthesis mechanism of organic molecules; the two were as different as painting and music. Young-Joon had requested for synthesis a few times at A-Gen, but he had nevermissioned it like this. But he was confident as it was the synthesis mechanism that Rosaline gave him. ¡®This is what I should get for spending 0.9 fitness.¡¯ * * * Organic synthesis was kind of like a game of Go; just like how the flow of the game changed depending on where the next stone was ced, the chemical structure changed as well. Like herding sheep, they had to protect against the undesirable mechanisms using defense mechanisms and induce the reactions wanted. Of course, it wasn¡¯t simple, and even experienced chemists had to carefully design the synthesis with the final structure in mind. It cost quite a lot of time and money. However, it was much easier if they had the synthesis mechanism. It was easier than that if they had the starting materials. ¡°I also have the starting materials for the synthesis mechanism I sent you. I¡¯ll ship it to you,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡ªYou have the starting materials? Kim Ji-Chul asked like he was excited. Starting materials referred to the chemical molecules that were present at the beginning of the organic synthesis. In terms of Go, it was like letting a novice ce a few stones beforehand; synthesis was generally much easier to do if they started at defined points in the mechanism. ¡°Yes. I¡¯ll also send over the structure of the starting materials by email right now. Please look over it.¡± ¡ªAlright. The starting material Young-Joon was talking about was Cozel, a regr cold medicine that was sold at the pharmacy. He saw that the structure was very simr, so he thought it could be the starting material. ¡ªOh. If this is the starting material, it should be fairly simple to make. Kim Ji-Chul spoke in a slightly delighted voice. ¡°How much of it do you need?¡± ¡ªAbout ten grams to be safe? ¡°Alright. How much would it be?¡± ¡ªIt would have been around three million won if it was just the synthesis, but since you gave us the synthesis mechanism and the starting material, it will probably be around two million won. One bottle of the cold medicine cost four thousand won. Even if he bought ten grams, it was probably within forty thousand won. Young-Joon had actually profited from this. ¡°Alright. I will send over the money to thepany¡¯s ount. I will send the starting material within this week.¡± ¡ªOkay. I¡¯ll send over the final product to yourpany after synthesis. Ward B1 of Lab 1... ¡°No.¡± Young-Joon stopped him. ¡°I¡¯ll give you another address.¡± ¡ªOkay, I¡¯ll write it down. ¡°Um...¡± Young-Joon was about to read him 77-14, Jungyun-ro, Seodaemun-gu, Seoul, but stopped. Maybe his address up to this point was fine, but the other part was Hyundai One-Room Suite B101. Nothing was wrong with it, but he was worried they would think it was weird. What kind of scientist sent the results of a chemical experiment to his own house? ¡®Wait. I¡¯m going to send it to Cell Bio anyway for cell experiments.¡¯ ¡°Can you just send it to Cell Bio?¡± ¡ªCell Bio? ¡°Yes. That drug isn¡¯t going to be tested at A-Gen. The cell experiments will bemissioned to Cell Bio.¡± ¡ªAlright, I¡¯ll send it there. Should I put the package in your name? ¡°Yes, please do.¡± It didn¡¯t really matter as Young-Joon would just have to tell Cell Bio that a package in his name would be arriving. ¡°When will the synthesis be done?¡± ¡ªIt will take about a week from the day we receive the starting materials. ¡°Alright. Thank you.¡± Young-Joon hung up and turned to look at Park Joo-Hyuk. Their order hade out as he ended the call. Holding his americano, Young-Joon said, ¡°Well then, let¡¯s go and get the starting materials, shall we?¡± There were eight tablets in one small paper box. Since one tablet was five hundred milligrams, he would need at least three boxes to get ten grams. He was a little ufortable with meeting that woman who worked at Celligener, but there was nothing he could do. A little whileter, Young-Joon and Park Joon-Hyuk arrived at the pharmacy Song Ji-Hyun was running. Ring. As they entered with the bell ringing, Song Ji-Hyun greeted them. ¡°Hello.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk suddenly gasped. There were a few customers in the pharmacy, and they were lined up at the back and waiting. ¡°Hey, did you see?¡± Park Joon-Hyuk whispered, nudging Young-Joon¡¯s waist. ¡°I went tow school at Jungyoon University, but to be honest, everyone at our school just studied. Everyone was so boring like you that there was an eighty percent chance a pub would shut down within three years of opening. But I didn¡¯t know a fairy like that existed in our town.¡± ¡°She¡¯s the niece of the olddy that used to run this pharmacy. She went on vacation and she¡¯s just running it in the meantime.¡± ¡°How do you know?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk asked. ¡°Because I asked her before,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°Do you know her name as well?¡± ¡°She has a name tag. Song Ji-Hyun.¡± ¡°My god. You already hit on her? Do you have her number?¡± ¡°What are you talking about?¡± ¡°Have some manners. You already hit on her when I was reading those stupid cases?¡± ¡°I think you¡¯re even crazier now that you¡¯ve be awyer. You were pretty high before, but do you guys all do drugs atw school?¡± ¡°You¡¯re not interested in that pharmacist, right?¡± ¡°I can barely take care of myself right now. I don¡¯t have the money or desire to.¡± ¡°Okay, then I¡¯m getting her number,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk dered. ¡°Woohoo. I¡¯m cheering for you.¡± The number of customers in front of them quickly decreased as they were having a meaningless conversation. ¡°How can I help you?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked. ¡°Could I have three bottles of Cozel?¡± Song Ji-Hyun grinned. ¡°You¡¯re here pretty often. With probiotics and vitamins, now cold medicine?¡± She grabbed three bottles of Cozel from under the counter and pushed them toward Young-Joon on the counter. ¡°It¡¯s twelve thousand won.¡± Swipe. After swiping Young-Joon¡¯s card in the machine, Song Ji-Hyun gave it back to him along with the receipt. ¡°Are you working on a new drug based on Cozel?¡± Song Ji-yun asked Young-Joon as he put the Cozel in a bag. ¡°Ah, well, it¡¯s something like that.¡± ¡°Then I can find out where you work when apany releases a new cold medicine for clearing your sinuses, right?¡± ¡°Haha, maybe.¡± Young-Joon nced at Park Joo-Hyuk. ¡®I thought he was going to get her number. He¡¯s just frozen.¡¯ Since they couldn¡¯t just stand there and block the counter, Young-Joon grabbed Park Joo-Hyuk and left. ¡°I thought you were going to get her number?¡± ¡°I can¡¯t say anything.¡± Young-Joon nodded his head. Park Joo-Hyuk had no talent in getting girl¡¯s numbers and things like that. Young-Joon went to the convenience store with Park Joo-Hyuk. He bought a zipper bag and put all three bottles of Cozel in it. He bought a box and shipped it to Reaction Chemistry right away. However, he still had things to do. ¡°Hey, can you also file patents, Joo-Hyuk?¡± Young-Joon asked. 1. A chaebol refers to a very wealthy family in Korea. ? Chapter 13: Treating the Flu (5)

Chapter 13: Treating the Flu (5)

¡°Well, I can if you want. You want to file a patent?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk asked Young-Joon. ¡°Yeah. Right now, if I can. I can¡¯t do this because I need to work my actual job during the weekdays.¡± ¡°You want to do it right now?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you just send a package to make a new drug? Am I hallucinating or something? How are you going to file a patent when you don¡¯t even have a drug?¡± ¡°I guess thiswyer in front of me doesn¡¯t know thew very well,¡± Young-Joon said with a chuckle. ¡°You can revise a patent a year after filing it, Joo-Hyuk.¡± ¡°I know that, but that¡¯s just a revision, isn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°The details aren¡¯t revealed when it¡¯s filed, so you can file it with just the concept and without any data.¡± ¡°Shit...¡± ¡°So that¡¯s why you file it first, revise it with the experimental data, and then register it after going through an evaluation.¡± ¡°Oh my...¡± ¡°It looks like something bad like cutting the corners, but it¡¯s not. But there¡¯s fiercepetition for a great concept in this field. And you have to dere the concept first so that other researchers don¡¯t bark up the wrong tree with a simr experiment.¡± ¡°I guess?¡± ¡°And it¡¯s okay since you automatically lose the details in the patent if you don¡¯t get it done in a year. So, I¡¯m going to file it just with the concept and without the data. That way, I can file it quicker.¡± ¡°Sure. Lawyers can also file patents, but it will be better for you to talk to a patent attorney.¡± ¡°Do you know a patent attorney?¡± ¡°Give me a sec.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk pulled out his phone and looked through his contacts. [Lee Hae-Won, Batch of ¡®12][1] * * * Patent attorney Lee Hae-Won majored inw and minored in biology at Jungyoon University. Young-Joon waspleting his master¡¯s degree in graduate school when she entered university, and Park Joo-Hyuk was inw school. Young-Joon, who was much older than Lee Hae-Won, wouldn¡¯t normally have any reason to meet each other, but Park Joo-Hyuk, the legendary social butterfly ofw majors, would sometimes show up at thew majors¡¯ lounge and treat his juniors. Some said that he was being extra, considering how old he was, but Park Joo-Hyuk¡¯s humorous and cool personality made him quite popr amongst his juniors. One of Park Joo-Hyuk¡¯s juniors during that time was Lee Hae-Won. She was quite close with Park Joo-Hyuk. Some of their fellow students were suspicious of their rtionship, but they were really just good friends, although he couldn¡¯t see her for a while because she locked herself up in a goshiwon[2] to study for her patent attorney exam. She got her license as an attorney, and Park Joo-Hyuk became awyer at around the same time. The only way that a novice patent attorney could catch up to her seniors was to bury her face in past cases regarding patents. People who had studied with her called her unbelievably tough, and Lee Hae-Won ended up getting to know everything there was to know about past cases regarding bio-drug patents. Lee Hae-Won had her own patent-filing business now, but to be honest, she barely got any clients. Why was that? If someone was the executive manager and had to choose someone to file a patent for a new drug prototype that had an expected value of three trillion won, would they choose a man in his fifties who had lots of life experience or a youngdy in herte twenties? Usually, people picked the former. Most of the customers asked if there was anyone more experienced, and when Lee Hae-Won shook her head, they left. ¡®Should I go into a patentw firm and gain some experience?¡¯ Lee Hae-Won was thinking the same thing she had been contemting for the past few days. A patent filing office was an individual business, but a patent corporation established by a few patent attorneys was like aw firm. Bzz. Lee Hae-Won¡¯s phone rang. ¡°Hello?¡± She picked up. ¡ªHello. My name is Ryu Young-Joon. I¡¯m a scientist at A-Gen. ¡°Yes, Hello.¡± ¡ªI got your contact information from Mr. Park Joo-Hyuk. Would it be possible to set up a meeting about filing a patent? Lee Hae-Won nced at her Google calendar that was on herputer. It was basically empty. ¡°I am free, but Thursday and Friday between one and four o¡¯clock would be best this week.¡± ¡ªI¡¯m sorry, but could we meet on the weekend? I can only do it on the weekends. ¡°The weekend?¡± ¡ªTomorrow, if possible. Lee Hae-Won took a second to think about it, then replied, ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll schedule a meeting for tomorrow. Is one o¡¯clock good?¡± ¡ªSure. What¡¯s the address? ¡°It¡¯s Hae-Won International Patent Office, Inhun-dong, Gwanak-gu.¡± That wasn¡¯t too far from Young-Joon¡¯s house. ¡ªAlright. I¡¯ll see you then. Young-Joon ended the call. There were two reasons why he was moving up the date so quickly. The obvious reason was that the faster he did this, the faster he would be able to earn money. The second reason¡ªalthough it would never happen¡ªwas to prevent anyone at Reaction Chemistry or Cell Bio from stealing his drug, as it was safe if he filed a patent beforehand. As Young-Joon put his phone in his pocket, Park Joo-Hyuk, who was sitting beside him asked, ¡°What did she say?¡± ¡°We¡¯re meeting tomorrow.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s go together.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°I need to trante legal terms for a STEM nerd like you.¡± ¡°She will probably do it.¡± ¡°No. It¡¯s going to be a disaster if you talk to Hae-Won alone. It¡¯s going to be as bad as the trade war between the US and China at the least. If you start rambling on and exining, Hae-Won¡¯s not going to be able to cut you off because she¡¯s nice, and she¡¯s going to be super frustrated. And you¡¯re not going to be able to understand what she is saying right away, either.¡± ¡°When did I ramble?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°You remember when you went on a group blind date with the girls from Sehyun University, and they rejected both of us because you started exining why the DNA double helix structure was more durable than RNA...¡± ¡°Hey, why are you bringing that up now? When are you going to stop bringing that up! It¡¯s been ten years.¡± ¡°Whatever. Let¡¯s go together.¡± ¡°Okay, be honest with me. You¡¯re not awyer, you¡¯re jobless, right? How does awyer have this much free time on his hands?¡± ¡°It¡¯s only been two weeks since I finished my six-month probation period at the Korean Association of Lawyers. I need to enjoy my freedom a little bit longer.¡± ¡°Ah, fine. Do whatever you want.¡± ¡°But I¡¯ll take you.¡± ¡°You should¡¯ve mentioned that first. We have to be there by one o¡¯clock. You¡¯re going to pick me up sometime in the morning, right?¡± ¡°Okay.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk snapped his fingers and happily agreed. * * * It was one o¡¯clock on Sunday. ¡°Hello.¡± Young-Joon entered the attorney¡¯s office. ¡°Hey! It¡¯s been a while. How have you been?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk greeted Lee Hae-Won with a d smile. ¡°Oh! Joo-Hyuk oppa, you¡¯re here, too.¡±[3] Lee Hae-Won walked out with a cheery smile on her face. ¡°I came because I wanted to see your face, Hae-Won. Oh, this is Ryu Young-Joon. He¡¯s an associate scientist at the A-Genb.¡± ¡°Nice to meet you. I¡¯m Attorney Lee Hae-Won.¡± ¡°Nice to meet you. My name is Ryu Young-Joon.¡± ¡°Then, shall we talk about the patent? Are you applying for a new drug?¡± ¡°Yes, I¡¯m developing a new treatment for the flu. It¡¯s one drug. I want to file a patent.¡± ¡°Shouldn¡¯t we start by discussing the consultation fee?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk butted in. ¡°It¡¯s alright. I don¡¯t need a consultation fee. Since you¡¯re a friend of Joo-Hyuk oppa¡¯s. Can I ask what stage of development you are in?¡± Lee Hae-Won asked. ¡°I am synthesizing the new drug right now,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°...¡± Lee Hae-Won tilted her head in confusion. ¡°So, there isn¡¯t any data about testing yet?¡± she asked. ¡°But I can propose a molecr biological mechanism that shows its treatment effect as a biological formtion. I want to file a patent with the concept first. Add the data when I edit it.¡± ¡°Hm... It is possible, but...¡± Filing a patent for a drug could be done this way, but it only applied to when it was clear that the drug would seed. People usually filed a patent for a drug after seeing some promising data from cell experiments and then added data after doing some animal testing, as there was almost a hundred percent chance that they would fail if they had no data whatsoever. But if Young-Joon was saying that he was just starting to synthesize the drug, it meant that he didn¡¯t even have cell experimental data. ¡®Where is he getting the confidence to file a patent, let alone think the drug will work?¡¯ ¡°I can do it, right?¡± Young-Joon asked again as Lee Hae-Won looked confused. ¡°Pardon?¡± Lee Hae-Won said. ¡°The patent.¡± ¡°Yes... You can. But you need to have experimental data in a year if you just file it with the concept alone. If you don¡¯t, the concept will also be penalized a little. That¡¯s why you need to think about it.¡± ¡°It won¡¯t take a year. I will have data in about a month.¡± ¡°A month?!¡± Lee Hae-Won eximed. ¡°I thought you were still synthesizing the drug?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a very effective drug, so the experiments will probably seed right away. So, I want to prepare all the paperwork beforehand so that we can edit and publish the patent right away once the dataes out.¡± ¡°Alright. I will give you the papers that you need. You have to write a short paragraph about the mechanism of the drug you are publishing, and there are other things you need to fill out. I¡¯ll highlight them.¡± ¡°Can I fill some of it out while I¡¯m here?¡± Young-Joon asked. He had nothing better to do at home, and it was better for him to be here so that he could ask the patent attorney right away when he ran into something he didn¡¯t know. However, Park Joo-Hyuk butted in before Lee Hae-Won could answer. ¡°A patent attorney is paid by the hour. You¡¯re going to go bankrupt if you sit here and fill it out.¡± ¡°Haha, it doesn¡¯t matter. I have no customers anyways,¡± Lee Hae-Won said as she shook her hand. Young-Joon nced around. It didn¡¯t seem like this ce was all that busy, looking at the amount of documents on the desks or shelves. ¡°How much will the attorney¡¯s fee be?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Should we do one million five hundred won?¡± Lee Hae-Won asked. ¡°Why are you asking me? Isn¡¯t it fixed?¡± Young-Joon replied. Lee Hae-Won looked flustered. ¡°Oh, maybe... I actually haven¡¯t done this a lot.¡± Young-Joon nced at Park Joo-Hyuk, doubtful if he could trust her. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. She¡¯s good,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk said to him. ¡°But I guess she doesn¡¯t get a lot of clients. I really don¡¯t understand.¡± He shrugged. ¡°It¡¯s because I¡¯m young, I guess,¡± Lee Hae-Won said. ¡°How can they look down on you because you¡¯re young? You have better memory and better problem-solving when you¡¯re younger. Everything¡¯s better.¡± ¡°Most of the people whoe here as clients are either senior or executive managers at theirpany. I guess I¡¯m not that trustworthy to people that old.¡± Lee Hae-Won exined. ¡°When theye in, they ask if there¡¯s anyone more experienced, and then they leave.¡± ¡°If this goes well, I¡¯ll keep giving you work,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Do you even have anything to give her?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk asked. ¡°New drugs will keep being developed as long as diseases still exist.¡± ¡°I¡¯m asking whether those new drugs will be yours.¡± ¡°They will be mine if this goes well. Anyway, I would appreciate your help.¡± ¡°Of course! You can count on me.¡± Lee Hae-Won replied with determination. Ring! Young-Joon¡¯s phone rang. ¡°Hello?¡± Young-Joon took the phone call as he was filling out the documents. ¡ªDoctor Ryu? ¡°Yes, who is this?¡± ¡ªWait, we didn¡¯t exchange numbers? Howe I have your number? It¡¯s me, Jung Hae-Rim. ¡°Oh! Yes, sunbae. Is there something you have to tell me?¡± ¡ªHow did you do it? ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡ªI came in today to make the presentation for the year-end seminar and... I took a look to see if maybe, and... Jung Hae-Rim stammered. ¡ªThe cells you made grew from the culture medium. It really looks like embryonic stem cells... Is it? 1. A batch refers to a group of students, typically university, that entered in a certain year. It is simr to the ¡°ss of ¡®**¡±, but it refers to when students enter university, not graduate. ? 2. a small, cheap ce to stay ? 3. Oppa is an informal way that younger women refer to older men. It is usually used when they are friends or family. ? Chapter 14: Year-end Seminar (1)

Chapter 14: Year-end Seminar (1)

Although Jung Hae-Rim spoiled the big news, the Life Creation Department was quite shocked when they heard that Young-Joon¡¯s experiment seeded on Monday morning. Park Dong-Hyun saw the growth of the embryonic stem cell colony in the te, and all he could do was admire it with his mouth wide open. He looked like a primitive person who had just discovered fire. Koh Soon-Yeol, on the other hand, froze when he saw the dish and left the room, mumbling something to himself with his Kohaku statue in his hand.[1] Then, he quietly whispered to Young-Joon about an hourter when they ran into each other, ¡°Um, Ryu Young-Joon-kun, are you from the future?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Are you from the future? So like, I was wondering if you¡¯re from a hundred years into the future, but you rolled off a cliff or something and ended up here.¡± ¡°... I¡¯m not.¡± Although, Young-Joon did have an all-knowing dictionary about molecr biology rather than future knowledge in his head. Young-Joon gathered pictures of the embryonic stem cell colony. The pictures were automatically taken in one-hour intervals over the weekend; it was good evidence for morphological changes in cells. However, he needed more evidence that these were embryonic stem cells that had dedifferentiated from a normal cell line to an embryo cell line. Young-Joon said to the team, ¡°We¡¯re going to get really busy from now on. Could all of you help me? The presentation is on Friday, right? We have to get data to prove that these are really embryonic stem cells before then.¡± ¡°W-what should I do? RT-PCR?¡± Park Dong-Hyun asked.[2] ¡°Yes. After I extract all the RNA from the cells first, could you reverse transcribe it and do exome sequencing on it?¡± ¡°Then, I¡¯ll analyze the DNA methtion,¡± Jung Hae-Rim added. A bunch of technical terms began flying around in the room. Everyone began working together right away. These people hadn¡¯t produced any significant results for a while and were doing nothing but beating a dead horse, but it wasn¡¯t because they weren¡¯t skilled. All of them were experts; they all knew exactly what they had to do, and had the brains to do it. Young-Joon nodded in satisfaction. ¡°Thank you. I¡¯ll leave it to you two. Then, I will work on differentiating this embryonic stem cell into a muscle cell. It¡¯s going to be perfect if we can do that.¡± The cell was currently an embryonic stem cell, but it was originally a kidney cell. Young-Joon had made it into an embryonic stem cell, and now he was going to differentiate it into a muscle cell, apletely different cell type. If Young-Joon seeded in doing that, no one would be able to object; it would be irrefutable data. However, Park Dong-Hyun stopped Young-Joon as he was about to begin his experiment. ¡°No. You need to make the presentation data, Doctor Ryu. And you have to file for a patent. Please go consult a patent attorney. Soon-Yeol!¡± ¡°Alright.¡± Koh Soon-Yeol raised his head. ¡°Please differentiate this cell into a muscle cell. No one will be able to say anything if we seed at that.¡± ¡°Ore ni makasero!¡± Koh Soon-Yeol replied. ¡°What does that mean?¡± ¡°Leave it to me!¡± ¡°...Thank you. Let¡¯s finish this and get the Award for Exceptional Performance.¡± Young-Joon left it to Koh Soon-Yeol and began working on the presentation material. Even if the experiment went perfect, he needed an exnation for it; he needed to be able to exin why he chose SOX2, cMyc, OCT4, and KTF4 as the genes for dedifferentiation and what their specific functions were. Of course, this wasn¡¯tpletely necessary. Some anticancer drugs that people took had unclear mechanisms as well; they just took it because it was effective. Still, it was definitely better if the mechanism had a clear exnation. Young-Joon began to write exnations for the four genes. Of course, he was using his fitness and just copying down what Rosaline¡¯s status window was telling him to do. ¡®The gene SOX2 controls the expression of another gene called DKK1 to control the Wnt signaling pathway; it maintains the ability of an adult stem cell to differentiate...¡¯ Young-Joon left space for data that he didn¡¯t have yet and just wrote down the exnations. He added pictures of the cell colony and finished the slides one by one. * * * For three days, Park Dong-Hyun, Jung Hae-Rim and Koh Soon-Yeol stayedte at work on their own. It was the process ofpleting the data of a sessful experiment. It was hard, but thinking of how theb directors and the executive managers of the other departments would react when they presented this crazy data at the seminar gave them strength. ¡°I got the methtion data.¡± The first toe was Jung Hae-Rim. She sent Young-Joon an excel file and ran over to exin every single detail to him. ¡°Ipared the methted areas of the DNA. The first data set is the data from actual embryonic stem cells made from an embryo in Japan six years ago, and the second data set is from the induced pluripotent stem cells you made, Ryu Young-Joon.¡± Simply put, it was aparative analysis of data to prove that what Young-Joon made were really embryonic stem cells, which had been created before. ¡°It¡¯s the same,¡± Young-Joon said to Jung Hae-Rim. ¡°I know, right? Doctor Ryu! It¡¯s amazing! Everything lines up with nothing out of ce! Insane!¡± Jung Hae-Rim shouted in an excited voice. ¡°Doctor Ryu!¡± That was when Park Dong-Hyun ran into the room. ¡°I got the data from the RT-PCR. It¡¯s a collection of the expression levels of genes. We analyzed a hundred thousand types of RNA made from twenty thousand types of genes.¡± ¡°How is it?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°I sent you an excel file. Pull it up.¡± When Young-Joon opened it up, a graph showed up, just like what Jung Hae-Rim sent him. ¡°I mapped it on the total RNA database, and look. The first data set is from embryonic stem cells from a real embryo, and the second data set is yours, Doctor Ryu. Exactly the same, right?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°You seeded.¡± ¡°Oh my...¡± The three of them were silent for a moment. Park Dong-Hyun gulped. ¡°Doctor Ryu, how did the patent filing go?¡± For the past few days, Young-Joon was preparing to file a patent while making the presentation material. He had already requested it to the patentw office that manages Lab Six and finished the paperwork. ¡°I already did it. There¡¯s nothing for me to do at the moment, and I¡¯m just waiting for a call from the office.¡± ¡°Alright. Doctor Ryu, what are you going to do?¡± Park Dong-Hyun asked Young-Joon. ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°If you present an item like this, it¡¯s not just going to be the Exceptional Performance Award. You¡¯re going to be either promoted or transferred to a new department, probably the Stem Cells Department.¡± ¡°I won¡¯t transfer. I don¡¯t want to move since I just got here. Personally, I want to be promoted and get a bonus. I want to have a team dinner or something.¡± ¡°A-Gen does a lot of bad things, but they give a lot of bonuses to employees who show results. But from what I think, this technology is something that could change the trend of medicine in ten years. I don¡¯t know how the management andb directors of A-Gen will see it, but I think that your bonus is going to be as much as your sry.¡± ¡°Woah...¡± Jung Hae-Rim eximed. ¡°Should we split it?¡± Young-Joon asked. Jung Hae-Rim quickly turned over to Young-Joon. ¡°What do you mean? You did everything, Doctor Ryu.¡± ¡°The only reason I can present is because you guys made the data.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have to do that.¡± Park Dong-Hyun exined, ¡°The bonus is what you get individually, and another bonus will be given to our department separately.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Of course. Just organize the data well. Call me if you need any help on anything,¡± Park Dong-Hyun said to Young-Joon. ¡°So, what happened to differentiating with the muscle cell?¡± ¡°Hm... Koh Soon-Yeol is practically living in theb,¡± Park Dong-Hyun told the others. ¡°But I don¡¯t think it has worked.¡± ¡°That¡¯s the hard evidence we need...¡± * * * Friday morning, the grand conference room of Lab One in the A-Gen headquarters was busy with preparations for the seminar. Usually, scientists wore casual attire at work; how could they carry out experiments while wearing suits and dresses? Shorts and tights were forbidden as they did not protect against hazardous reagents if they sshed onto them, but a lot of people wore t-shirts and jeans as well. However, everyone wore formal clothing today. The year-end seminar: it was the most important and the most tiresome day for the scientists at A-Gen. Click. Kim Hyun-Taek and the scientists of Lab One came in through the door. ¡°Hello, sir!¡± Scientists from differentbs came up to him and tried to greet him first. Kim Hyun-Taek was acknowledged by others as the best scientist at A-Gen, and he was extremely powerful. There was a good chance that he would be the next CTO when the current one, Nichs Kim, retired. He was just ab director right now, but everyone thought that he would rise to a position where he would control and manage all thebs of A-Gen in a few years. Of course, the Anticancer Drug Research Department, one of the best departments in A-Gen, was behind Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s sess; they were A-Gen¡¯s key yers, like Messi or Ronaldo. They were responsible for all the achievements of Lab One, and they carried all their other departments. The item that they developed this time was also incredible; in coboration with the Mobile Diagnostic Device Research Department, they had created a diagnostic system that could diagnose stomach cancer early. With one drop of blood, it could analyze the DNA and determine whether someone had stomach cancer or not. It had an uracy level of ny-two percent, and a sensitivity level of ny-six percent. They needed to make it more precise, but it was still pretty efficient. They hadn¡¯t even presented yet, but the news spread. The Anticancer Drug Research Department and the Mobile Diagnostic Device Research Department were receiving everyone¡¯s attention and envy. ¡°Oh? Where did you get the coffee?¡± Lead Scientist Hyun Mi-Ju, who came in a littlete, asked Senior Scientist Kim Hyun-Seok about his coffee. ¡°It¡¯s at the entrance,¡± Kim Hyun-Seok replied. ¡°Is it good?¡± ¡°I think they got it from Starbucks. It tastes like Starbucks.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not my favorite, but I should grab a cup. There¡¯s a bit of time before the seminar starts, right?¡± ¡°Lab Six isn¡¯t even here yet. Go grab one.¡± Hyun Mi-Ju ran into Park So-Yeon as she walked into the conference hall. She was a Scientist of the Mobile Diagnostic Device Research Department who dated Young-Joon. She had a small and pretty face; she was called the prettiest one in her department from the moment she joined thepany. She usually did not wear makeup when she worked, but she took her time to put makeup and perfume on today. ¡°So-Yeon, you look nice today for the seminar,¡± Hyun Mi-Ju said to Park So-Yeon when she saw her. ¡°Haha. It¡¯s one of the only opportunities for me to wear a skirt.¡± ¡°You contributed a lot when we developed the stomach cancer diagnosis system. I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll be rewarded something big this time.¡± ¡°I really hope so. But it only happened because you and the Anticancer Drug Research Department pinpointed the cancer gene markers well.¡± Hyun Mi-Ju poured herself a cup of coffee. ¡°But So-Yeon, do you know if Lab Six is here yet?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t Young-Joon there?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Is it awkward or anything when you see each other? It hasn¡¯t been long since you guys broke up, right?¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine. It¡¯s not like I did anything wrong.¡± ¡°The Life Creation Department... I wonder how much they will get criticized today. I¡¯m worried for them.¡± Hyun Mi-Ju spoke with a chuckle. She was saying that she was worried, but it looked like she kind of enjoyed it. ¡°I just hope it doesn¡¯t get too hostile in there. But doesn¡¯t Lab Six have a well-performing team as well?¡± ¡°The Health Food Department? They¡¯re Lab Six¡¯s hope.¡± ¡°What do they do there?¡± ¡°They do a lot of stuff, probiotics and vitamins and other things. But it¡¯s okay. Whatever they bring, it¡¯s not going to be as good as the stomach cancer diagnosis system. The Exceptional Performance Award is either going to go to Anticancer or the Diagnosis Department.¡± ¡°Hm. There¡¯s a rumor that the Anticancer Department has another card up their sleeve other than the stomach cancer diagnosis system.¡± Hyun Mi-Ju covered her mouth andughed as Park So-Yeon asked. ¡°I wonder. I¡¯m not too sure.¡± Click! The main entrance of the conference room opened, and a group of scientists walked in. They were scientists from Lab Six. 1. Kohaku is an anime character from Dr. Stone. ? 2. RT-PCR is aboratory technique that is used to measure the amount of a specific RNA. ? Chapter 15: Year-End Seminar (2)

Chapter 15: Year-End Seminar (2)

People usually gathered freely for the year-end seminar. If all the scientists at theb were close to each other, they would rent a bus and go together. If the departments all worked individually without a lot of joint projects, they would go separately by department. It was thetter for Lab Six. Choi Myung-Joon and Seo Yoon-Ju of the Health Food Department arrived at the conference and walked over to where the coffee was. They greeted Hyun Mi-Ju. ¡°Heya~ Lead Scientist Hyun, it¡¯s been a while.¡± Choi Myung-Joon greeted her and shook her hand. ¡°Hello. How have you been?¡± Hyun Mi-Ju asked. ¡°Great. Are there any outstanding achievements from Lab One this year?¡± ¡°Haha, just wait and see. We have something huge. We did an important project with Scientist Park¡¯s team over here,¡± Hyun Mi-Ju said to Choi Myung-Joon as she put her hand on Park So-Yeon¡¯s shoulder and pulled her close. ¡°We also did something big with Scientist Seo over here, too,¡± Choi Myung-Joon replied with a chuckle. ¡°Is that so? It looks like our departments have bright futures. You guys should get to know each other since you are both young scientists. Both of you will lead thepany in the future.¡± ¡°Haha, Yoon-Ju here is already leading our team. She contributed a lot in creating this year¡¯s achievements.¡± ¡°Is that so? Do you have something good?¡± Hyun Mi-Joo asked. ¡°Simr to the year before. You said the Anticancer Drug Research team made something important. Can you tell me in advance?¡± ¡°Haha, you can see it when we present itter. The Award for Exceptional Performance is going to be ours this year.¡± ¡°Now that I think of it, a celebrity in ourb who has only been at A-Gen for a year said that their team was going to get the award.¡± Choi Myung-Joon mentioned. ¡°Celebrity?¡± ¡°The person who cursed Lab Director Kim Hyun-Taek in the face.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Ryu Young-Joon?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Ahaha!¡± Hyun Mi-Ju burst out inughter. Park So-Yeon also covered her mouth and lowered her head, trying to keep in herughter. ¡°Did Young-Joon say that?¡± Hyun Mi-Ju asked. ¡°Yes. That¡¯s what he said.¡± ¡°Pfft... Well, Young-Jun is good, but... Chuckle... Oh my, what should we do about that rascal? It¡¯s both funny and pitiful.¡± ¡°How was he at your department?¡± Choi Myung-Joon asked. ¡°He was smart and was good at his job. He was fine, but the problem was that he was too uptight. People don¡¯t keep their mouths shut about thepany being corrupt because they¡¯re bad people, right? It bothered people that he thought he was better than everyone else. Going on and on about research ethics and whatnot. Phew, just an amazing scientist, really.¡± ¡°Haha, he was kind of like that in Lab Six as well. He had a little bit of conflict with Yoon-Ju over here, and it took a weird turn.¡± ¡°And no matter how great they are, it¡¯s still the Life Creation Department. How would they get the award?¡± ¡°Weughed a while about it, too. I was starting to get worried about his well-being.¡± ¡°Hahaha!¡± As the three of them were trying to calm theirughter, the main entrance doors opened, and the Life Creation Department came in. ¡°Hello.¡± Park Dong-Hyun and Jung Hae-Rim walked into the conference room and grabbed some coffee. ¡°Hello.¡± Hyun Mi-Ju, Choi Myung-Joon, and Park So-Yeon slowly approached and greeted them. ¡°Hello, it¡¯s been a while.¡± Park Dong-Hyun returned the greeting. ¡°Where is Doctor Ryu Young-Joon?¡± Choi Myung-Joon asked. ¡°He¡¯s on his way.¡± ¡°The seminar is starting soon.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry. He¡¯ll be here soon.¡± ¡°Koh Soon-Yeol isn¡¯t here either? I need my dry cleaning fee,¡± Seo Yoon-Ju said to them. Choi Myung-Joon chuckled. ¡°See you inside,¡± Park Dong-Hyun replied. He grabbed his coffee and walked to their table. The Life Creation Department¡¯s seats were at the very end of the conference room. They only had five chairs even though they had six people. One of the chairs was a cheap one without a back to it, which looked like something someone would bring with them for fishing. The organizers were purposefully trying to mess with them, but the Life Creation Department wasn¡¯t very angry. ¡°You arrived before us.¡± There were two more superiors in the Life Creation Department: there were Principal Scientist Cheon Ji-Myung and Lead Scientist Bae Sun-Mi. They had both been assigned to Cheonan, but they were doing workpletely unrted to their department. They were helping the GMO Development Department by harvesting gically modified winter spinach. A-Gen justbeled it as helping the GMO Development Department, but it really was just a way to insult them. How would doctors who spent their entire lives reading papers and had twenty years of experience with experimentation feel if they were told to go harvest spinach in the middle of winter at a farm? It wasn¡¯t about thinking one job was more valuable or sophisticated than the other; it was about how insulting it was to suddenly assign a professional of a certain subject to do somethingpletely unrted to their field of expertise. They had to work outside, shivering in the cold, without proper equipment. And there was no way that other people would stay at apany if they were called slow or stupid while doing something they had never done before. However, they endured it. ¡°We¡¯re d you¡¯re back,¡± Park Dong-Hyun said. He nced at Cheon Ji-Myung and Bae Sun-Mi with pity. ¡°We left a lot of unfilled gaps in our work because we left so suddenly, right? You did well, Doctor Park. How did the preparations go for today¡¯s presentation?¡± ¡°Well, we finished making the slides.¡± Park Dong-Hyun handed Cheon Ji-Myung a USB. Normally, it was the rule for the principal scientist from each department to present. However, Principal Scientist Cheon Ji-Myung didn¡¯t even have a chance to look at the presentation files yet as they could not send it out of thepany until this morning because of the security system, and because Cheon Ji-Myung was up until one o¡¯clock in the morning harvesting spinach. ¡°Sigh...¡± Park Dong-Hyun exined it to him on the phone, but he wasn¡¯t confident at all. He added some more bad news. ¡°There¡¯s one problem. The slides in this USB were made from data from two weeks ago.¡± ¡°What are you talking about?¡± Cheon Ji-Myung frowned. ¡°We were really busy for the past two weeks with a different project,¡± Park Dong-Hyun replied. ¡°Man, did you guys harvest spinach, too?¡± Bae Sun-Mi asked like she felt bad for them. ¡°It¡¯s nothing like that. The new member of our department started a new project on his own, but it hit the jackpot, so we were all over the ce because we needed to get data for that.¡± ¡°Jackpot?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry for not telling you in advance. We got the data just a couple weeks ago so... I was doubtful at first, but I became really busy once it became clear.¡± ¡°What are you talking about? Where is that new member?¡± ¡°Um...¡± Park Dong-Hyun hesitated. At eight o¡¯clock in the morning before heading to the seminar hall, Park Dong-Hyun, Jung Hae-Rim and Young-Joon were finalizing their presentation data at their office. They put data about Park Dong-Hyun¡¯s life creation project first, then put the data about the embryonic stem cells Young-Joon made after it. The goal was to quickly go over the first part, as it was easy for them to be attacked for it, ande down from the stage with a huge round of apuse by emphasizing theter part. But as they almost finished editing their slides... ¡°Kiseki-yo!¡± Koh Soon-Yeol ran into the office all out of breath. ¡°What is it?¡± Park Dong-Hyun turned to face him and asked. ¡°It differentiated into a muscle cell!¡± ¡°It differentiated?¡± Young-Joon and Jung Hae-Rim shouted and shot up from their seats. ¡°Wait.¡± Park Dong-Hyun quickly calcted the time in his head. It was toote to add that data to their presentation now, but it was evidence much too powerful to give up. Right now, the only data in their presentation was that they reverted a regr cell into an embryonic stem cell. But what if they were to say that they were able to differentiate that back into a heart muscle cell? That wouldplete the storyline of their experimental data. With this, they could argue that this technology could be used to treat patients who needed a heart transnt. Instead of looking for an organ donor and waiting, they could just swab the inside of a patient¡¯s mouth, grow a heart, and transnt that into the patient. A technology that only seemed possible in science fiction was now possible. ¡°Sunbaes, this presentation will be worth half as much if the data that the cell differentiated into a heart muscle cell isn¡¯t included,¡± Young-Joon eximed. ¡°You¡¯re right.¡± Park Dong-Hyun agreed and nodded. He added, ¡°Let¡¯s do this. Doctor Ryu, stay here with Soon-Yeol and organize the data to create a new part for the embryonic stem cell.¡± Jung Hae-Rim looked shocked as he told everyone the n. ¡°Are you crazy? We have so little time right now that we should be on a taxi headed to the conference hall right now.¡± ¡°I know, but we can¡¯t exclude that data. And ourb will most likely be thest one to present.¡± She was even more shocked. ¡°So are you saying that we should enter during the seminar?¡± ¡°That¡¯s the best we can do.¡± ¡°What if it bes our turn before Young-Joon gets there?¡± ¡°That is why Hae-Rim, you, will go first to prevent that worst-case scenario,¡± Park Dong-Hyun replied. ¡°...¡± ¡°We¡¯re going to give Manager Cheon the data about the life creation experiment. If the situation you said happens, he will talk about the data from that experiment and buy us some time. I¡¯ll call Doctor Ryu and let him know. When that happens, you stop everything you are doing and call a taxi with the stuff you have done. It takes twenty minutes from here to the conference room, and Manager Cheon can hold them off for more than thirty minutes.¡± There was nothing but silence between the four people. ¡°What do you think? I¡¯m not forcing you, though. Even if we take out the data about the cell differentiating into a heart muscle cell, this can still be an excellent presentation.¡± ¡°Then let¡¯s take it out.¡± Young-Joon was firm in his decision. Park Dong-Hyun was surprised as it was a bit out of character; considering Young-Joon¡¯s personality, he thought that Young-Joon would ask to go all in even if they were biting off more than they could chew. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°If what Dong-Hyun sunbae says really happens, I have to interrupt ande up onto the stage while Manager Cheon presents.¡± ¡°You can. You can¡¯t even do that when you called Kim Hyun-Taek human garbage right to his face?¡± ¡°I can do that, but how would that make Manager Cheon feel?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°How bad would he feel if a new member ran the stage to present this huge aplishment while he would have just been berated?¡± ¡°...¡± Park Dong-Hyun, Jung Hae-Rim and Koh Soon-Yeol stared at Young-Joon for a few seconds with their jaws on the floor. ¡°Pfft.¡± Park Dong-Hyun suddenly beganughing. ¡°Phahaha!¡± Then, all three of them burst out inughter. ¡°Ah! Crazy!¡± Jung Hae-Rim hit him on the shoulder, and Park Dong-Hyun even wiped tears from his eyes. ¡°W-Why?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Doctor Ryu, you are... very kind.¡± Park Dong-Hyun replied. ¡°Chuckle... Ah, I¡¯m trying... Manager Cheon, you lived a good life... Even getting a subordinate that cares about you,¡± Jung Hae-Rim added as she also wiped tears away from her eyes. ¡°Thank you for worrying, Young-Joon, but you don¡¯t have to worry about Manager Cheon. I told you that I¡¯ve been at Lab Six for a really long time, right? And I can¡¯t even say that I¡¯m good at ignoring them in front of Manager Cheon.¡± Koh Soon-Yeol nodded and interfered. ¡°He has been in our department for so long, he¡¯s basically rotting...¡± ¡°Young-Joon, he may not look like it, but he spent sixteen years at the Life Creation Department. You don¡¯t have to worry about him,¡± Jung Hae-Rim added again. ¡°He¡¯s like a professional tanker or something. Ningen no namae wa tough-desu..¡± Koh Soon-Yeol added again. [1] Park Dong-Hyun gathered up everything with a chuckle. ¡°And even if you got to the seminar early, you probably won¡¯t be able to exin the embryonic stem cell project to him. Either way, you have to get up there and talk about it yourself, Doctor Ryu. We don¡¯t have the confidence to exin it either. Of course, it¡¯s breaking the rules, but it¡¯s okay since our results are so good that it¡¯ll easily trump small problems like that.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°And Manager Cheon was criticized in thepany for sixteen years. He would love it if his subordinate embarrassed theb director. I¡¯m actually worried that he¡¯ll giggle as he thinks about the embryonic stem cells while presenting and getting berated by them.¡± ¡°...Okay, let¡¯s do that,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°Good.¡± ¡°The two of you should go now. Soon-Yeol sunbae and I will organize the data as quickly as possible and follow you.¡± Park Dong-Hyun grinned, took out the entire part about embryonic stem cells from the presentation files, and pressed save, saving the file as another name. 1. ¡°Ningen no namae wa tough-desu means ¡°That human''s name is tough.¡± ? Chapter 16: Year-End Seminar (3)

Chapter 16: Year-End Seminar (3)

¡°You¡¯re saying he reverted a normal cell into an embryonic stem cell?¡± Bae Sun-Mi¡¯s jaw dropped to the floor. ¡°Wait, wait. Why am I set to y defense?¡± Cheon Ji-Myung asked, baffled. ¡°You¡¯re good at that, sir. Please help us out,¡± Park Dong-Hyun replied. ¡°Of course. I can even sing if you want. You need like three hours?¡± ¡°Thank you. If you begin the presentation, you just have to drag it out until the newbie and Soon-Yeol get there.¡± ¡°Of course. Doctor Ryu, was it? Tell him to finish the data, go through it thoroughly, and bring it to me with a cup of coffee.¡± Suddenly, loud apuse and shouts came from the audience. ¡°Whoo!¡± The MC for the seminar appeared on the stage. It was Kim Hyun-Taek, theb director of Lab One. He stood up in front of the mic. ¡°The young ones are usually the ones to do this, but...¡± All the scientists in the roomughed as Kim Hyun-Taek chuckled. ¡°Anyway, I will be your emcee for tonight. First, the CTO would like to say a word. Please greet him with a warm round of apuse.¡± With Kim Hyun-Taek''s introduction, Nichs Kim came onto the stage with loud cheers. ¡°Hello, my name is Nics. This long year is finallying to an end. Have you all achieved the goals you nned at the beginning of the year?¡± Nichs asked the crowd. ¡°Personally, I made a goal to stop drinking and smoking and to work out every day for at least an hour... But I failed at all three.¡± Nichs smiled warmly. He looked like the kind grandpa who lived next door, but he used to be a professor at Harvard. He was probably one of the most sessful Korean-Americans. He was also one of the best scientists of this time. ¡°However, I got my annual check-up, and luckily, I¡¯m still healthy. I think this is what our goals and achievements are supposed to be like. You may fail to achieve your goals; that¡¯s what science is about. It¡¯s about looking for that bright light in a dark room, right?¡± Nichs took a deep breath. ¡°It¡¯s alright if we fail. We still have time. There are about a thousand scientists gathered here. Everyone, there isn¡¯t any problem that we cannot solve if we work together. This seminar is also for us to cooperate.¡± The crowd concentrated on Nichs¡¯ speech. ¡°Everyone, it will be very intense when we begin discussing our performance. However, I want us to be kind to each other and provide constructive feedback to n our next goals. Thank you all for your hard work.¡± p p p! The scientists in the room gave Nichs a round of apuse as he finished his speech. ¡°The first to present will be Laboratory One,¡± Kim Hyun-Taek said on stage. ¡°The presenter from the Anticancer Drug Research Department, pleasee up to the stage.¡± Then, Kim Hyun-Taek walked down to the front row where the otherb directors were sitting. Kim Joo-Yeon, the principal scientist of the Anticancer Drug Research Department, came up to the podium. She opened the presentation file. ¡°I will present our performance for this year. First of all, we protected the sales of our liver cancer drug, Iloa. When our sales were being threatened by Cellicure, a new liver cancer drug developed by apetitor, one of the employees in our department discovered this and reported it so that our management could take appropriate action right away...¡± They cleverly omitted Young-Joon¡¯s name, referring to him as an employee of their department. The political game they yed to destroy the better drug from thepetitor had be ¡°appropriate action¡± taken by management. ¡°We are working on Cellicure, the drug we obtained, in our department,¡± Kim Joo-Yeon stated. However, she was lying; Cellicure, the treatment for early liver cancer developed by a venturepany, was never going to see the light of day. The scientists of otherbs who did not know what was actually going on just listened without any doubt. The performance of the Anticancer Drug Research Department that followed was incredible, which matched their reputation. Kim Joo-Yeon first presented a new drug to treat the lesions in the affected area after resecting tumors in breast cancer. Then, she talked about the item they developed with the Mobile Diagnostic Device Research Department. It was their crucial weapon. ¡°...And so, we are able to diagnose stomach cancer early with an uracy of ny-two percent and a sensitivity of ny-six percent. This technology is very advanced,bining the molecr diagnostic proteins for stomach cancer discovered by the Anticancer Drug Research Department and the Mobile Diagnostic Device Department¡¯s system and kit...¡± The scientists and journalists in the room stared at her with interest. ¡°They really are amazing,¡± Choi Myung-Joonmented. ¡°They are,¡± Seo Yoon-Ju agreed. ¡°But if they split the achievement with the Mobile Diagnostic Device Department and theirs, they might not be able to win the award.¡± However, the Anticancer Drug Research Department had another card up their sleeve. Even the Mobile Diagnostic Device Department did not know about this. ¡°Along with this, we have developed a new anticancer drug using the stomach cancer markers mentioned earlier,¡± Kim Joo-Yeon added. ¡°This new anticancer drug can precisely track the markers of stomach cancer cells. As such, when used on a patient, it can destroy only the cancer cells without touching the healthy stomach cells.¡± ¡°Wow!¡± This time, the scientists audibly eximed in surprise. It was a new drug for stomach cancer that selectively destroyed cancer cells. Drugs that worked like this were called targeted therapy¡ªthey urately found the target and destroyed only the cancer cells to decrease the level of negative side effects. It was something that a lot of other pharmaceuticalpanies were aiming to develop. A variety of drugs had been developed already, but they were stillcking. The scientists stared at Kim Joo-Yeon in awe as she presented the experimental data. The Anticancer Drug Research Department was the first to present, but all the scientists in the room had already determined that they would be the department to win the Award for Exceptional Performance. ¡°That is the end of our presentation. Are there any questions?¡± There was nothing but silence. It was actually quieter because the presentation was so outstanding. Kim Joo-Yeon, who came down from the podium with a round of apuse, stopped by the Mobile Diagnostic Device Department table. ¡°Sorry that I was hiding a nuclear weapon up my sleeve. The award is ours,¡± Kim Joo-Yeon said with a chuckle. ¡°Congrattions. That is definitely enough to get the award. I can¡¯t believe you developed a new target therapy drug. The Award for Excellent Performance will be enough for us,¡± Song Yu-Ra, the principal scientist from the Mobile Diagnostic Device Department replied with a cheery smile. The next to present was the Mobile Diagnostic Device Department. They also came down from the podium with equally favorablements. But they were both the best departments in A-Gen. Theb directors began to attack the departments as they presented, starting with the Medical Device Department. ¡°What would you use that for?¡± ¡°Does that even make any money?¡± With that, they threw around technical terms and even bluntly asked them what the hell they were thinking doing experiments like that. The seminar always went like this; the atmosphere got more hostile as it went on. ¡°They don¡¯t even know the basics of science! Why is the precision of the affected area for that chemical important at all? You can just limit the delivery method locally!¡± People like Kim Hyun-Taek even shouted at people. Doctor Tae Jin-Sung from Laboratory Five came down from the stage. It was finally Laboratory Six¡¯s turn to present. But Young-Joon still hadn¡¯t arrived. After the four departments of Lab Six presented, Choi Myung-Joon from the Health Food Department, the self-acimed MVP of Lab Six, began his presentation. ¡°Our department is about tounch a new product, which consists of a mixture of pumpkin juice, bellflower juice, and pear juice. A quick exnation of this product...¡± Choi Myung-Joon¡¯s presentation went on for about fifteen minutes. It was a pretty good achievement, but theb directors did not look very happy. ¡°Didn¡¯t Pfizer release a product that has pumpkin juice, bellflower juice, and pear juice?¡± Kim Hyun-Tae asked. Choi Myung-Joon looked a little nervous as he stammered an answer, ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°I¡¯m thinking that they dominated the market first, but do you think it¡¯s beneficial to develop the same product in terms of efficiency?¡± ¡°Our product has better nutrients. And the difference in the manufacturing method is that we obtain our pumpkin juice through low-temperature extraction, whereas Pfizer destroys their nutrients through their high temperature. I believe we can win against them in the market because our method makes the drink healthier...¡± ¡°That¡¯s what you think.¡± Kim Hyun-Taek criticized. ¡°Low-temperature extraction or whatever, the public is not interested in the manufacturing method. I think I say this several times every seminar, but I want our scientists to have some sense of business.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°You are not researchers who research at universities. Don¡¯t focus on making a good product; focus on making a product that will sell. How high do you think sales will be from selling that pumpkin juice? Pfizer has a higher brand recognition than us in North America and Europe! You¡¯re going to beat Pfizer with low-temperature extraction? Do you think that makes sense?¡± There was fear in the air. It was quite shocking and ufortable seeing a manager be berated byb directors in front of young scientists. However, Kim Hyun-Taek went on. ¡°Your probiotic sales are down as well, right? Your share in the market was taken little by little after Roche developed a new probiotic and put it on the market. Isn¡¯t that right? What percent are you at right now?¡± ¡°...Twenty-two percent,¡± Choi Myung-Joon replied. ¡°And the year before?¡± ¡°It was at forty-nine percent.¡± ¡°At least you know that. But you did not develop a new product?¡± ¡°We are working on it...¡± ¡°Work on revolutionizing probiotics instead of making something stupid like pumpkin juice. The future industry of health foods will be probiotics.¡± ¡°We will keep that in mind.¡± ¡°Is there anything else to present?¡± ¡°...No, sir.¡± ¡°Come down. Good work. Next. Lab Six. Who is it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s the Life Creation Department.¡± Oh Jun-Tae, theb director of Laboratory Three replied. ¡°The presenter for the Life Creation Department. Come up.¡± ¡°Do we really have to listen to this?¡± One of theb directors mocked. The other directors smirked. Principal Scientist Cheon Ji-Myung slowly headed to the podium. ¡°We were criticized because of you,¡± Choi Myung-Joon quietly whispered as he walked by. There was a jinx that the atmosphere always became very hostile before the Life Creation Department presented. ¡°I will begin the presentation for the Life Creation Department.¡± Cheon Ji-Myung opened the presentation file. A bunch of pictures of cells popped up on the first slide. ¡°What is that? Are those frog eggs?¡± Lab Three Director Oh Jun-Tae asked in a mocking tone. ¡°Hahaha.¡± The scientists burst out inughter. ¡°It is Artificial Cell Rosaline 4.8. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s hear it. I wonder what kind of shitty data you will go on and on about this time,¡± Laboratory Two Director Koh Yoo-Sungmented. Cheon Ji-Myung¡¯s presentation began. ¡°... Like this, we tested from Rosaline v4.80 to v.4.87, and we created v.4.80 in the following way.¡± Cheon Ji-Myung was presenting rtively well, but everything in his presentation was about failing and trying something, and then failing again. Theb directors sighed, but Cheon Ji-Myung paid no attention to it and went on. ¡°And if you look here at v.4.87, you can see that the organelles within the cell have stabilized. But the cell membrane was unstable and...¡± ¡°Why is the membrane unstable?¡± Kim Hyun-Taek asked. ¡°We have tracked down that reason and are trying to alter our experiment ordingly.¡± ¡°What do you think the reason is?¡± ¡°We are predicting that it is an osmosis of some sort, and we are going to control the salt concentration within and outside the cell.¡± ¡°Then you should have done that experiment and brought thepleted data,¡± Koh Yoo-Sung said. ¡°I wanted to, but...¡± ¡°Why didn¡¯t you do that experiment?¡± Kim Hyun-Taek asked. ¡°When our department was doing this project, I was in Cheonan for a month to help the GMO Department with their work...¡± ¡°Why does that matter!¡± Lab Two Director Koh Yoo-Sung screamed. The GMO Department was part of Lab Two. ¡°Even if you weren¡¯t there, you could have instructed the experiments by phone or email! You couldn¡¯t do that as an executive manager, so you are using your business trip as an excuse?¡± Cheon Ji-Myung stayed silent for a bit. To be honest, this attack waspletely forced. Even if he did the experiment he was talking about, they would have asked him what he thought about those results. If he didn¡¯t know, they would attack him for not knowing, and if he thought of a reason why, they were just going to attack him about why he didn¡¯t do that experiment. ¡°Instructing work by email from being away from the frontlines of work for months at a time can cause problems in progress,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung replied. Theb directors frowned right away. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Is that his excuse?¡± Kim Hyun-Taek shouted. ¡°All our members did the best they could. We just needed more time to solve this problem.¡± ¡°Doctor Cheon Ji-Myung, take a look at your data.¡± As Kim Hyun-Taek spoke, Cheon Ji-Myung turned to look at the screen. ¡°Do you think that data is good enough to gather all the scientists at A-Gen and present at a year-end seminar, Doctor Cheon?¡± ¡°We cannot throw away any data. We may find something important in the data that we think is insignificant.¡± ¡°Stop talking about such principles. We want to see output. What¡¯s in your presentation other than the fact that you failed, and then failed again at fixing it?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry. We were not good enough,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung replied politely and briefly. As he did, he nced at the clock. He had been defending for twenty minutes. From afar, Park Dong-Hyun was sending him a signal. ¡®They¡¯re almost here.¡¯ Chapter 17: Year-End Seminar (4)

Chapter 17: Year-End Seminar (4)

¡°Why do you get paid if you¡¯re not capable?¡± Kim Hyun-Taekined. ¡°Haha, I¡¯m sorry. Instead, I didn¡¯t get a bonus for sixteen years.¡± ¡°How can youugh in this situation?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± Theb directors sighed. This was how Cheon Ji-Myung acted every time; he was always like this. Even if hurtful words were thrown at him, he justughed it off and said everything he needed to while still being respectful. He did random assignments like harvesting winter spinach, which was meant to humiliate him, withoutining. No matter how much theb directors belittled him, berated him, and pushed him away, Cheon Ji-Myung just endured it. ¡°Doctor Cheon Ji-Myung.¡± Gil Hyung-Joon, theb director of Laboratory Six, called him. ¡°What kind of progress have you made in the Life Creation Department in sixteen years?¡± ¡°We gave you a report every monthly meeting. In this case, one of our advancements was stabilizing the organelles in the artificial cell, and we think that it has potential if we are able to stabilize the cell membrane from breaking.¡± ¡°Shouldn¡¯t you bring some tangible data instead of spections?¡± ¡°We will work harder next time.¡± ¡°You say that every year! That¡¯s what¡¯s wrong with you people. Everyone in your team is an idiot. How many doctors do you have there?¡± ¡°Five... No, we have six now.¡± ¡°You have six people with doctorates, but you can¡¯t do this one thing in sixteen years?¡± ¡°To be honest, it¡¯s not that easy. It¡¯s something only the creator can do, right?¡± ¡°You think that is something a scientist should be saying?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°No, just look at your data! You found nothing. For sixteen years. Can¡¯t you see how it is frustrating for us!?¡± ¡°Science is about finding that bright light in a dark room, so we might not get results if we¡¯re unlucky.¡± Cheon Ji-Myung borrowed CTO Nichs Kim¡¯s words. ¡°Ha!¡± Kim Hyun-Taek scoffed. ¡°Stop talking about those principles. We are the ones paying you. You are a doctor and have been a scientist for over twenty years, but doesn¡¯t it embarrass you to bring that kind of data every year?¡± ¡°I really am sorry. But the thing about research is that...¡± ¡°Just! Shut your mouth!¡± Gil Hyung-Joon mmed his fist on the table. ¡°You¡¯re being criticized by executives because of how crappy your data is. Stop talking so much and making excuses!¡± ¡°That is...¡± Click! The doors of the seminar hall opened, and a young man entered. His hair was a mess from running, but he wasn¡¯t out of breath at all. [Activating Rosaline, who has been metastasized to the lung.] [Rosaline is beginning to optimize breathing.] ¡°Oh geez!¡± However, the man who followed him inside was about to die. He was on the chubbier side. ¡°Manager Cheon''s on the stage. I think that he is still presenting,¡± The chubby man said to Young-Joon as he propped up his sses. ¡°Thank you.¡± Young-Joon stared right at the podium. His eyes met Cheon Ji-Myung¡¯s eyes. He had only seen him in pictures. Cheon Ji-Myung grinned, and then gave him an okay sign with his hand; he was telling Young-Joon toe up to the stage. Young-Joon walked down the stairs and headed to the stage. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Who is that?¡± The scientists murmured. ¡°What do you think you¡¯re doing!¡± Gil Hyung-Joon shouted. ¡°Who are you?!¡± Koh Yoo-Sung also shouted. However, Young-Joon ignored them and went up to the podium. ¡°My part is done. Doctor Ryu, it¡¯s your turn now.¡± Cheon Ji-Myung whispered into Young-Joon¡¯s ear. Young-Joon bowed slightly and grabbed the mic. ¡°I''m Scientist Ryu Young-Joon.¡± Young-Joon introduced himself to the crowd. ¡°Scientist?¡± Koh Yoo-Sung tilted his head in confusion. ¡°Just a scientist? Isn¡¯t that basically an associate manager?¡± The crowd whispered noisily. ¡°I havee up to the stage because I had something to present. I apologize for causing confusion with the abrupt interruption, but I had no choice but to do this in order to present important data from the Life Creation Department,¡± Young-Joon stood on the podium and spoke into the mic. ¡°What are you doing?¡± Kim Hyun-Tae asked. ¡°Come down from there, Doctor Ryu. It¡¯s not a podium for someone of low rank like you, and we¡¯re in a meeting about the Life Creation Department¡¯s progress.¡± ¡°The data that I brought is also our team¡¯s progress.¡± ¡°How dare you interrupt when theb directors are speaking!¡± Oh Jun-Tae shouted. ¡°...¡± Young-Joon slowly looked down and stared at Nichs, the CTO. He crossed his legs and made himselffortable in his chair. ¡°Let¡¯s hear it,¡± Nichs said. The CTO¡¯s words were absolute. Theb directors still looked irritated but soon calmed down. ¡°Thank you.¡± Young-Joon inserted his USB, and as he opened the file, a picture of embryonic stem cells appeared on the screen. ¡°What is that?¡± Kim Hyun-Taek asked. ¡°They are embryonic stem cells,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°Why is that here?¡± ¡°It¡¯s because we made it.¡± ¡°Ha?¡± Theb directors tilted their heads in confusion while sitting in a cocky manner. ¡°He¡¯s crazy. They are really crazy now. Everyone in that department is crazy.¡± Koh Yoo-Sung drew circles with his finger beside his head. Young-Joon ignored him and began exining. ¡°The reason behind why we began this life creation project was because if we create an artificial cell this way, we would be able to transnt it into a patient or grow it into an artificial organ to fix faulty organs or tissue.¡± Young-Joon added, ¡°And thepetitive technology of life creation is embryonic stem cell technology. It is much better and rewarding than our project. If we were to use embryonic stem cell technology, we wouldn¡¯t have to take the difficult route of creating life.¡± Kim Hyun-Taek raised his hand. ¡°So, you¡¯re saying that you studied embryonic stem cells? You really are insane. Where did you get the embryo? You better have a good exnation. Unless it was donated, you used your budget at your disposal for another purpose that was not previously discussed. And if you bought it, you will not be able to avoid criticism of your ethics. Thepany¡¯s position on the issue has not been decided yet. As such, you should not have acted on your own. This is grounds for severe punishment.¡± Young-Joon stared directly at Kim Hyun-Taek. ¡°We did not use an embryo.¡± Theb directors frowned. ¡°Did you use magic or something?¡± Oh Jun-Tae mocked him. ¡°These cells were originally human liver cells. We inserted four genes into the cells and reverted them into embryonic stem cells,¡± Young-Joon replied and went on to the next slide. [SOX2, cMyc, OCT4, KTF4] With the names of the four genes, a picture of the initial liver cells appeared. Then, morphological pictures of the cells taken in one-hour intervals after the injection of the four genes appeared on the screen. As time went on, they started looking more and more like embryonic stem cells. Silence. The crowd was dead silent like they had frozen. It was like they weren¡¯t even breathing. Scientists who knew a little bit about stem cells already had a look of extreme shock on their faces. ¡®The advancement of science was sometimes a huge leap in knowledge.¡¯ Sometimes, a discovery transformed the world so greatly that a world without it waspletely different from the world after it: for example, the invention of the phone, inte, and airnes, or the establishment of the theory of evolution, proof that the Earth is round, and the establishment of heliocentrism. All the scientists in the seminar room knew what the information Young-Joon was presenting meant. ng! One of the people in the Stem Cells Department broke the silence as they dropped their tumbler on the floor from their trembling hands. Stammering, Oh Jun-Tae asked, ¡°W-Wait. So that... Are you telling us to believe that? You made a normal cell into embryonic stem cells?¡± ¡°We are certain,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°Surely, the morphological pictures look simr to embryonic stem cells. But I think we need more detailed evidence,¡± Kim Hyun-Taek said. ¡°We have DNA methtion data and gene expression data as well. Please take a look,¡± Young-Joon replied. Aparative analysis of the data was shown on the next slide. The data from the real embryonic stem cells from actual embryos and Young-Joon¡¯s embryonic stem cells matched perfectly. ¡°...¡± ¡°Hm!¡± Theb directors were imagining the kind of impact this would have on future medicine. Of course, it still had a long way to go before it could go through clinical trials. Things like creating an artificial organ or transnting a lesion and letting it multiply weren¡¯t simple things to do. However, those were things that time would solve; the important thing was that they had ovee a huge obstacle. This was a trendsetter for future medicine. Theb directors could already draw a huge blueprint for the new proceduresrge hospitals would be performing in the near future. Young-Joon stated, ¡°Embryonic stem cell technology has been forgotten for too long because of the huge con that it required an embryo, but we have broken through that limit.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°From next year, we are thinking of studying embryonic stem cells as a side project while keeping the life creation project as our main focus.¡± ¡°Is there any evidence that it can differentiate into different tissues?¡± Kim Hyun-Taek criticized. ¡°There is. That¡¯s why we werete.¡± Young-Joon went to the next slide. Now, the embryonic stem cells were differentiating into muscle cells. ¡°These are cardiac muscle fiber cells.¡± Young-Joon added, ¡°We can make cardiac muscle if we grow these cells. There is still a long way to go, but it means that theoretically, we can make an artificial heart. Because the embryonic stem cell we made is exactly the same as regr embryonic stem cells made from real embryos, it can differentiate into any type of cell.¡± ¡°Can you exin?¡± Nichs asked Young-Joon; it was the first time he had spoken after his opening address. The scientists who were sitting near him nced over. ¡°Can you exin why it turns into embryonic stem cells if you inject those four genes?¡± ¡°Of course,¡± Young-Joon replied. It was a question Young-Joon had predicted. He moved on to the next slides, and descriptions of the four genes began to appear one after another. ¡°The cMyc gene acts to promote cell proliferation and phenotypic change, and binds to histone acetyltransferase...¡± Suddenly, Young-Joon began lecturing in the middle of the seminar. Among the technical terms that he was using, some of them were foreign to scientists in the same field as Young-Joon. Even theb directors could barely follow along. All one thousand scientists in the room were staring at Young-Joon. He scanned through all of them and continued his lecture. ¡®Park So-Yeon...¡¯ Young-Joon¡¯s eyes met her¡¯s. She had long hair before, but it was short now. Park So-Yeon looked quite confused. Young-Joon looked away. ¡°...Like this, the undifferentiation of the cell is controlled andpleted by the endogenously expressed Nanog and Oct4 and is reverted into an embryonic stem cell state like an embryo. That is all.¡± ¡°...¡± There was nothing but silence in the seminar room. All the scientists were frozen. The shock was stronger because they were fellow scientists; the more one knew, the more they understood. The members of the Stem Cells Department were just in awe. Even the hot-temperedb directors could not say anything. The excellent achievements of the Anticancer Drug Research Department made everyone¡¯s jaw drop, but the Life Creation Department¡¯s overwhelmingly incredible and almost magical results made everyone shut up. In the silence... p. p. p. Someone began pping slowly. It was Nichs, the CTO. Everyone¡¯s attention was drawn to him. ¡°It is truly a technology of the future,¡± Nichsmented. ¡°This is what revolutionary means. This is the advancement of technology and what science is about. I didn¡¯t think that I would see studies as exceptional as this at ourpany in my life. What did you say your name was?¡± ¡°My name is Ryu Young-Joon, a Scientist,¡± Young-Joon replied. Nichs got up from his seat. ¡°Scientist Ryu Young-Joon, I guess things like this have disappeared nowadays, but when I was younger, attendees used to give a standing ovation if there was an amazing presentation at a conference or lecture.¡± Nichs added, ¡°As a fellow scientist who studies biology, regardless of the hierarchical rtionship between CTO and Scientist, I sincerely thank you.¡± Nichs began pping. Surprised, other scientists quickly stood up and began pping. Chapter 18: Year-End Seminar (5)

Chapter 18: Year-End Seminar (5)

A-Gen¡¯s standing ovation continued for about three minutes. The pping did not stop for a while even after Nichs put his hands down. After it calmed down a little, Nichs sat back down in his seat. It didn¡¯t really matter to him whether he stayed standing or not, but it was to let the other scientists who were worn out from presenting to sit. Nichs asked, ¡°This is apletely different project than what the Life Creation Department has done in the past. Be honest. You started this by yourself, didn¡¯t you, Doctor Ryu? Did you achieve this on your own?¡± ¡°Yes, I did start this alone, but my department members were incredibly helpful. I wouldn¡¯t have been able to do this if I was alone,¡± Young-Joon replied. Young-Joon wasn¡¯t wrong; it would have been impossible to create high-quality data such as this in that short amount of time even with Rosaline¡¯s power. To evaluate the members of the Life Creation Department, Park Dong-Hyun, Jung Hae-Rim, and Koh Soon-Yeol were all incredibly skilled. They already knew what kind of data they needed in order to make the presentation logical even before Young-Joon asked them, and they gave it to Young-Joon in two or three days, perfectly organized. Even the Anticancer Drug Research Department, which was supposed to have the best scientists in thepany, did not have people who were as good as them. Nichs shed a smile of satisfaction. ¡°I didn¡¯t know that A-Gen had such a talented individual like you. The bravery and insightfulness to start a project like this... Truly amazing. You look young, Doctor Ryu Young-Joon. May I ask how old you are?¡± ¡°I am thirty.¡± ¡°I look forward to your progress more because you are younger. Did you know this? Most of the Nobel Prize recipients started their work that got them their prize in their forties.¡± Young-Joon smiled like he was embarrassed when Nichs mentioned the Nobel Prize. Park Dong-Hyun did mention that this was Nobel Prize-worthy. Of course, they wouldn¡¯t give a young scientist like Young-Joon a Nobel Prize since the years of experience were taken into ount as well. However, someone may nominate him for the prize when he had more research experience. In that case, his induced pluripotent stem cells would be a powerful achievement that would support himter on. To be honest, it was something that made him so happy even just thinking about it in his head. Considering Young-Joon¡¯s young age, his chances weren¡¯t that slim; he was the most likely to receive it among people in his age group, was he not? Nichs also mentioned the Nobel Prize because he could see it happen. ¡°Usually, I would have to discuss it with theb directors, but to be honest, there is nothing to talk about. The Award for Exceptional Performance for this year goes to the Life Creation Department. Doctor Ryu Young-Joon, it is because of you.¡± ¡°Wait.¡± Kim Hyun-Taek objected as Nichs finished his sentence. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but this is something that Doctor Ryu Young-Joon, who was only transferred there about two weeks ago, started on his own. And it seems like Cheon Ji-Myung, their department head, doesn¡¯t even know about this project.¡± ¡°How do you know that he doesn¡¯t know?¡± Nichs Kim asked. ¡°He didn¡¯t even know about the original projects either,¡± Kim Hyun-Taek replied in a sneering tone. He red at Young-Joon, then nced at Nichs again. ¡°This has to be seen as an individual¡¯s work. We should recognize Doctor Ryu¡¯s contributions, of course. However, the Award for Exceptional Performance is given to an entire department. I do not think the Life Creation Department deserves the award. Yes, the other scientists would have contributed to getting that data, but a scientist must do more than get data,¡± Kim Hyun-Taek said. ¡°Hm.¡± ¡°We have the Revolutionary Scientist Award that can be given to the individual. I think that we should give that to Doctor Ryu and award the Award for Exceptional Performance to another department.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you ask Doctor Cheon Ji-Myung yourself? Whether he thinks he deserves the award as the department head,¡± Kim Hyun-Taek said. Nichs rested his chin on his hand and stared at Cheon Ji-Myung with interest. ¡°What do you think, Doctor Cheon Ji-Myung? As the head of the department, do you think you deserve the honor and privileges of being the leader of a department disying exceptional performance?¡± Young-Joon secretly nced at Cheon Ji-Myung like he was worried. Cheon Ji-Myung had no idea about this project until today before the presentation. However, because he was the executive manager, he automatically became the interim head of the project on paper, as the position was vacant at the time they submitted the project proposal. Young-Joon couldn¡¯t even select his name as his position rank was too low for the system to have it. Cheon Ji-Myung could reject the award because of the pressure that he was the head of a stem cell project that he knew nothing about and the guilt from not being of any help to his members. That was also what Kim Hyun-Taek was going for. ¡°...Respected executives, I believe that you all know how greatly Doctor Ryu has contributed to this achievement. Therefore, his individual contributions must be highly appreciated. You should give him the Revolutionary Scientist Award,¡± Cheon Ji-Hyung replied. Kim Hyun-Taek scoffed. ¡°Then, the Award for Exceptional Performance should...¡± ¡°And I believe the Life Creation Department has the right to receive the Award for Exceptional Performance,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung said firmly. Young-Joon barely held in hisughter as he saw Kim Hyun-Taek scowl. Now that Young-Joon thought about it, Cheon Ji-Myung has been the head of the Life Creation Department, which was where the troublemakers of A-Gen went, for sixteen years. Right now, the debate about which department received the Award for Exceptional Performance was not about evaluating the magnitude of the contribution and its appropriateness¡ªthat had already been decided. Right now, he was engaging in political warfare with Kim Hyun-Taek, and Cheon Ji-Myung knew this, too. Cheon Ji-Myung also knew that in this situation, the executive manager¡¯s job was not to back down for not knowing about the project and not being able to manage it but to win the award for his department members. And Cheon Ji-Myung had a strong enough backbone to be bold and dered that they deserved the award when Kim Hyun-Taek was pressuring them. Nichs was also chuckling with his head down. ¡°Doctor Cheon Ji-Myung, do you know anything about that embryonic stem cell project?¡± Kim Hyun-Taek attacked him fiercely. ¡°Yes, of course,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung replied respectfully. ¡°As the project manager, I am guiding the future direction of this project. If we improve this technology, we will be able to cut out the stomach and imnt an embryonic stem cell in its ce to regrow it to treat advanced stomach cancer instead of using an anticancer drug to selectively destroy cancer cells. I imagine that will be easier and more effective. I am thinking of allocating the special research budget with an emphasis on developing this technology, and I am also considering creating a task force that will use the privileges from the award to cooperate with various departments in Lab Six.¡± Although there wasn¡¯t much substance to what Cheon Ji-Myung was saying, he still kept talking. As he did, Kim Hyun-Taek''s face became red. The best aplishment of the Anticancer Drug Research Department¡ªthe star of Lab One¡ªthis year was a treatment for stomach cancer that selectively worked on cancer cells. Cheon Ji-Myung had covertly attacked Kim Hyun-Taek, saying that the Life Creation Department¡¯s creation was much better than his. ¡°Ahem.¡± Nichs cleared his throat and interrupted. He already really liked Young-Joon and wanted to give him a bunch of things; he wanted to see what kind of things that young, ingenious scientist would be able to achieve if he had the privileges that came with the Award for Exceptional Performance. ¡°Surely, an executive manager¡¯s job isn¡¯t to use a pipette to grow a cell. Doctor Cheon Ji-Myung, please allocate the department¡¯s budget like you said, and I hope you guide the project in the right direction,¡± Nichs said to Cheon Ji-Myung. ¡°Yes, sir. Thank you.¡± Cheon Ji-Myung bowed towards Nichs. ¡°Does anyone else have any objections?¡± Nichs asked as he looked at theb directors. They were quiet. After a bit of time, Nichs opened his mouth. ¡°Well, the Award for Exceptional Performance has been decided. Now, we should choose what departments will get the other awards.¡± Nichs smiled and went up to the podium. ¡°Ah, ah.¡± Nichs tested the mic and said, ¡°Scientists of A-Gen, good work. We have reached the end of the seminar. We will take a thirty-minute break and then continue the award ceremony here.¡± * * * ¡°Oh my god! This is insane! What should we do! Ahh! We¡¯re really going to get an award!¡± Jung Hae-Rim was jumping up and down, unable to control her excitement and joy. ¡°Good work, Doctor Ryu.¡± Park Dong-Hyun patted Young-Joon on the back. ¡°Thank you everyone.¡± Young-Joon ran into Bae Sun-Mi as he thanked the other members. Like Cheon Ji-Myung, he had also never seen Lead Scientist Bae Sun-Mi before. She looked like a middle-aged woman in her forties, and she had a warm, soft vibe to her. ¡°Hello, Young-Joon. My name is Bae Sun-Mi. I¡¯m a lead scientist.¡± ¡°Hello. Nice to meet you.¡± Soon after, Principal Scientist Cheon Ji-Myung, who was greeting the heads of other departments, returned. ¡°Where is he? Our youngest?¡± He looked around for Young-Joon. ¡°Doctor Ryu!¡± When Cheon Ji-Myung found Young-Joon, he spread his arms wide and ran toward the young scientist. ¡°Such great work!¡± He hugged Young-Joon hard, then asked while letting go, ¡°Seriously, where did this lucky charme from? What department are you from?¡± ¡°I¡¯m from the Anticancer Drug Research department.¡± ¡°I see that Kim Hyun-Taek made a huge mistake! Losing a scientist like you! Haha! Just amazing work~¡± ¡°Haha, you as well, sir.¡± ¡°Did you see Kim Hyun-Taek scowl? Did you see him get angry because Lab One didn¡¯t get it? Ahahaha!¡± Cheon Ji-Myungughed. ¡°I think that¡¯s because you talked about the stomach cancer drug,¡± Park Dong-Hyun said as he smirked. ¡°But what kind of actual benefit do we get for the Award for Exceptional Performance?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°The benefit is huge! That¡¯s why Kim Hyun-Taek was trying to do everything to stop us from getting it,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung replied. Jung Hae-Rim exined, ¡°First of all, the department that wins the award gets an extra 1.5 billion won added to their budget. And the superiors usually don¡¯t interfere no matter what kind of project the department chooses to do. They be sort of like an independent department that can work individually as well. On top of that, other departments can¡¯t refuse if the winning department asks for support.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Young-Joon eximed. ¡°Thest two aren¡¯t actualpany policy like the 1.5 billion won, but it¡¯s kind of like a longstanding tradition.¡± ¡°Of course, we don¡¯t know what it will be like for our department. We might keep getting ignored because our image was so shit in the past.¡± Park Dong-Hyun smiled bitterly. ¡°I see,¡± Young-Joon replied. Now that Young-Joon thought about it, there was one person who wasn¡¯t here. ¡°What happened to Soon-Yeol-sunbae? We have to go and get money for dry cleaning. The Comme Des Gar?ons...¡± Bae Sun-Mi stared at Jung Hae-Rim with squinted eyes. She looked at her as if it was awkward having Koh Soon-Yeol and Comme Des Gar?ons in the same sentence. Jung Hae-Rim burst intoughter and exined to Bae Sun-Mi what had happened. ¡°He left for the washroom a little while ago,¡± Park Dong-Hyun said. ¡°Oh really? I also have to go to the washroom.¡± As Young-Joon left the seminar hall, he pulled out his phone. Going to the washroom was just an excuse for him to make a phone call. He read the message he had gotten earlier. [This is Cell Bio. We got the reagent that came in your name from Reaction Chemistry. We want to call you beforehand to confirm the experiment before we begin. Please give us a call when you have about ten minutes.] Young-Joon pressed their number and called. ¡ªHello, this is Cell Bio. ¡°Hello. My name Is Ryu Young-Joon. I requested the experiment.¡± ¡ªOh, yes! Hello, doctor. You emailed us the experimental design before, but we wanted to confirm it before we began. ¡°Yes, thank you.¡± ¡ªThis is a new drug for the flu, correct? ¡°Yes.¡± ¡ªWe use the bird flu virus H9N2 to infect MDCK cells, and then treat it with your candidate drug to see whether the virus stops multiplying, correct? ¡°Yes, that¡¯s correct. Please dissolve the candidate drug in DMSO when you treat the cells. Ten milligrams of the drug should melt at room temperature for one milliliter of DMSO.¡± ¡ªAlright. ¡°When can I get the experiment results?¡± ¡ªWe were already doing a base experiment of infecting the multiplied cells with the virus before your candidate drug arrived, so we can treat it right away. You should be able to get data in about a week or so. ¡®Next week.¡¯ This was why Young-Joon liked Cell Bio; if he hadmissioned it to apany that wasn¡¯t very capable, they would have started multiplying the cells and infecting them after Young-Joon¡¯s drug had arrived. If so, it would have taken at least three weeks. It was a good choice that hemissioned it to Cell Bio. ¡°Thank you. Please tell me when you get the results.¡± Young-Joon ended the call. That was it; all that he needed to do now was add the experimental data on the patent Attorney Lee Hae-Won would have filed and get it published after evaluations. Then, he was going to sell the new drug to a pharmaceuticalpany. He could also sell it to A-Gen, but he would need to think about it. If he got to that point, he could escape this damn poverty for good. ¡®Let¡¯s think about what to do next with Rosaline¡¯s power after this.¡¯ His father, who was working as security at an apartment, and his mother, who had hurt her knee tendon but was still working at a restaurant with a limp, would never have to work again. Young-Joon could also tell Ryu Ji-Won to stop tutoring part-time and focus on studying. Young-Joon could pay off all his debt, give Park Joo-Hyuk the money he owed him, and move out of a basement unit. ¡®Should I buy a car?¡¯ Just thinking about it made him happy. ¡°...¡± When Young-Joon usually thought about a great future like this, there was one woman who was always in the picture. ¡®Park So-Yeon.¡¯ Young-Joon had seen her during his presentation at the seminar, and she had gotten even prettier in a month. ¡®I got worse because I was drinking all that time.¡¯ Of course, Rosaline fixed it all, but he felt that it was a little unfair for some reason. Tap tap. Someone tapped on Young-Joon¡¯s shoulder from behind. ¡°Hey.¡± It was Park So-Yeon. Chapter 19: Year-End Seminar (6)

Chapter 19: Year-End Seminar (6)

¡°Yeah.¡± Young-Joon turned around and faced Park So-Yeon. Seeing her face again roused a myriad of emotions within him at once, like the scum of love, betrayal, and anger. To his surprise, he wasn¡¯t d to see her, nor did he miss her. Young-Joon pushed those feelings down in his heart like he waspressing a full garbage bag. ¡°It¡¯s been a while,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Yeah. I think it¡¯s been about a month... How have you been?¡± Park So-Yeon asked. ¡°You think I would have been well?¡± ¡°...I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°Whatever.¡± ¡°I feel like you changed a little.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Before, you were sweet and kind, sort of like a puppy.¡± ¡°Really? I was?¡± Young-Joon reacted like he was surprised. ¡°I was like a puppy when I was the one who cursed at Lab Director Kim Hyun-Taek?¡± ¡°Well, that was when you were really mad. You¡¯re not usually like that. You were wagging your tail and running around when you first heard that A-Gen bought that liver cancer drug from that venturepany.¡± Park So-Yeon faintly smiled. ¡°Then maybe I am mad right now,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Yeah, you¡¯re kinda acting the same as when you swore at Director Kim,¡± Park So-Yeon said. ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Are you still mad? At me?¡± Park So-Yeon asked. ¡°What do you want?¡± ¡°It was hard for me after we broke up, too.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°You did really seed this time, but you will have to make peace with Director Kim if you want to seed in thepany.¡± ¡°Maybe.¡± ¡°My seniors and I can help mitigate things between you and him.¡± ¡°So?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll help you out a lot. Oppa, let¡¯s date again.¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joon silently stared at Park So-Yeon. She was clinging to him like she was hung up on him, but there wasn¡¯t a hint of nerves or fear in her face. She was confident, and it was because Young-Joon really loved her. Park So-Yeon was someone who had always been on the receiving end of love. As foreign as this situation was to her, she did not think that she would be rejected. ¡°If you want to do something like a joint departmental project with your iPSCs, talk to our executive manager.¡±[1] ¡°It¡¯s nothing like that!¡± Young-Joon shouted. Park So-Yeon was startled. ¡°It¡¯s true. I regretted it a lot after we broke up like that,¡± Park So-Yeon said. ¡°Then why did you break up with me like that? Without evening to see me?¡± ¡°...I thought it would be harder for me if I saw you. I have a dream at thispany, but I had a lot of things to think about when you went against theb director and had to leave Lab One.¡± Young-Joon stared at her without a word. Park So-Yeon could not look him in the eye. She lowered her head and fiddled with her sped fingers behind her back. ¡°I can¡¯t trust you anymore,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°...¡± ¡°And you told me to control my temper, right? It¡¯s not that I need to control my temper, but you need to have one.¡± Young-Joon added, ¡°Be moral and have a temper. You¡¯re a scientist too, aren¡¯t you?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The ceremony is going to start soon. I¡¯ll see you inside.¡± Young-Joon passed Park So-Yeon and went back into the seminar hall. * * * There were five awards given during the year-end seminar. The first prize was the Award for Exceptional Performance, which was only given to one department. The second prize was the Award for Excellent Performance, which was given to three departments. Finally, the third prize was the Research Award, which was given to five departments. These three awards were given departmentally; they were given a tremendous amount of research funding and a bonus depending on their position. The next two were given to individuals. One of them was called the A-Gen Scientist Award, and it was given to a total of ten scientists along with a small bonus. It was usually given to young scientists, mostly to encourage them to work hard. The final award was the Revolutionary Scientist Award. It was given to one scientist who produced the most innovative results. It was the most honorable award for an individual in the A-Gen seminar. It was usually given to executives at a higher position than lead scientists, but not this time since there was someone who produced unbelievable results. ¡°The recipient of the Revolutionary Scientist Award is...¡± Nichs spoke into the mic. The winners of the other trivial prizes had already been announced, and the only two that remained were this one and the Award for Exceptional Performance. ¡°Scientist Ryu Young-Joon. Congrattions. Pleasee up to the stage.¡± The crowd apuded and shouted. ¡°Scientist Ryu Young-Joon. You are awarded this award for leading A-Gen¡¯s development and enhancing A-Gen¡¯s prestige. Presented by Nichs Kim, the Chief Technology Officer of A-Gen.¡± Nichs handed Young-Joon the que. ¡°Thank you.¡± As Young-Joon thanked him and was about to walk off the stage, Nichs grabbed his shoulder. ¡°Take one more award before you leave.¡± The crowdughed. ¡°Next, I will announce the Award for Exceptional Performance. This award goes to the department that pioneered the future technology of A-Gen by producing the most exceptional results. This team developed a method to produce embryonic stem cells easily and proposed a new field for pharmaceuticals and medicine. The Life Creation Department of Lab Six, pleasee up.¡± The crowd apuded, but much less than when Young-Joon came up. Young-Joon carefully examined each scientist from every department. None of them were actually congratting them sincerely. Even though Young-Joon caused a big scene by going up against Kim Hyun-Taek, he had only been at thepany for a year. Most people didn¡¯t really know who he was, and as such, they could congratte him on receiving the Revolutionary Scientist Award without much concern. However, it was different for the Life Creation Department. Everyone in this seminar hall thought that the Life Creation Department was beneath them; they all just thought that they got lucky because a smart guy just happened to transfer there. The Life Creation Department was still looked down on by everyone. ¡®... It¡¯s not that.¡¯ From what Young-Joon saw, everyone in the Life Creation Department was smart and very skilled. They just didn¡¯t have any results because the project they were given made no sense to begin with. They also epted Young-Joon, who came to their department after causing trouble, without any prejudice. But everyone was staring at these talented scientists with disgust in their eyes. However, Young-Joon was sure that it was going to change from now on as he was going to use this department and its members a lot. ¡°...Presented by Nichs Kim, the Chief Technology Officer of A-Gen.¡± Cheon Ji-Myung and Bae Sun-Mi took the que together as Nichs handed it to them. There was another round of apuse, along with camera shes. Those pictures were going to be put up on thepany¡¯s official website. Park Dong-Hyun stroked the que with his fingers in awe, and Koh Soon-Yeol wiped under his nose with his pointer finger. Young-Joon looked around for Jung Hae-Rim and found her standing behind him. ¡°Why are you standing in the back?¡± As Young-Joon tried to drag her to the front, she tried desperately to stay where she was. ¡°N-No... Sob... I¡¯m going to get my picture taken... Weep...¡± She was crying with her face buried in her hands. Now that Young-Joon looked around, he could see that Cheon Ji-Myung¡¯s eyes were wet as well. It was natural for them to cry as they had received the greatest honor in thepany after sixteen years of beration. ¡®It¡¯s actually nothing.¡¯ Developing this kind of technology was as easy as counting numbers for Rosaline. The 1.5 billion won that would be allocated to their budget as a bonus wasn¡¯t a big deal as well. Young-Joon was the primary patent holder on the iPSC technology, which was being drawn up in the patent attorney¡¯s office right now. He had written whatever he wanted on the share of the patent as well. ¡®Soon, the papers will be sent to Gil Hyung-Joon from the attorney¡¯s office, and he will hit the roof.¡¯ But Young-Joon had something in mind. * * * The seminar wasing to an end as people were leaving one by one. A small proportion of them were returning to theb, but most were heading home right from here. The Life Creation Department had decided to go for a celebratory dinner. It was to wee Young-Joon to the team as well as to congratte them for receiving the Award for Exceptional Performance. ¡°Where should we go?¡± Bae Sun-Mi asked. ¡°Of course we should go for meat! Right? Hm... Beef?¡± Park Dong-Hyun nced at Jung Hae-Rim like was asking for approval. ¡°I like meat, but beef is a little expensive. I¡¯m okay with Korean-Chinese food too. If we get like kkanpunggi or something like that...,¡± Jung Hae-Rim suggested while fixing her eye makeup.[2] ¡°How can we have something like kkanpunggi on a day like this?¡± Bae Sun-Mi said in shock. Then, Jung Hae-Rim left the decision up to Koh Soon-Yeol. ¡°What would you like, Soon-Yeol-ssi?¡± ¡°Hamburgers...?¡± ¡°Oh my... None of you know how to use money the right way.¡± Bae Sun-Mi scoffed. That was when Cheon Ji-Myung interfered. ¡°Our star should be the one to decide. Doctor Ryu, what do you want?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. But can we use our bonus to pay for dinner?¡± ¡°Of course not,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung quickly responded like he knew that would lead to trouble. ¡°Then do we have expenses?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°We do, but not a lot. But I¡¯m buying today, so choose whatever you want.¡± ¡°Then should I get some from over there?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Over there?¡± Young-Joon was pointing to the entrance of the A-Gen building. Choi Myung-Joon and Seo Yoon-Ju of the Health Food Department were standing there. ¡°Hm.¡± Choi Myung-Joon crossed his arms. ¡°I heard, but I don¡¯t want to cause trouble with another department right away when Doctor Ryu saved our department¡¯s face like this.¡± ¡°But they started it first,¡± Park Dong-Hyun replied to Cheon Ji-Myung. ¡°They looked down on our entire team,¡± Jung Hae-Rim added, and Park Dong-Hyun agreed. ¡°To be honest, Soon-Yeol-ssi, I wanted to throw that shirt out for you. But the way they were talking was just so outrageous.¡± ¡°Even if we don¡¯t get money, we should at least get an apology,¡± Young-Joon added. ¡°Alright, then I¡¯ll...¡± As Cheon Ji-Myung was about to go there, Park Dong-Hyun quickly stopped him. ¡°It¡¯s going to get weird if manager-level personnel go there. We¡¯ll take care of it ourselves.¡± ¡°But they have an executive manager too. Shouldn¡¯t I go fight?¡± Cheon Ji-Myung asked as he pointed at Choi Myung-Joon. ¡°All of us have fought against manager-level personnel during our prime time. We also have someone who fought against ab director who is said to be the next CTO.¡± Park Dong-Hyun nced at Young-Joon. ¡°Ah... Right. I forgot that all my members were Saiyan.¡± Cheon Ji-Myung nodded in understanding. ¡°Oh, over there.¡± Koh Soon-Yeol suddenly pointed. ¡°Haha, I saw that woman in front of the washroom before the ceremony.¡± ¡°Seo Yoon-Ju-ssi? What did she say?¡± Park Dong-Hyun asked. ¡°That is...¡± Koh Soon-Yeol scratched his head. It was about three hours ago when Young-Joon was talking on the phone with Cell Bio regarding his experiment that he hadmissioned them. Seo Yoon-Ju had called Koh Soon-Yeol at the entrance of the washroom as he was about to go in. ¡°Koh Soon-Yeol-ssi!¡± ¡°Eh? Ore?¡± Koh Soon-Yeol asked as he pointed to himself. ¡°Are you really going to ask for four hundred thousand won if your department wins the Award for Exceptional Performance?¡± ¡°Um...¡± ¡°To be honest, it was all Doctor Ryu Young-Joon! You guys didn¡¯t do anything, so why should you get that award and rip me off?¡± ¡°Etto... The data at the end of the presentation that showed the cell differentiating into a heart muscle cell was from me.¡±[3] As Koh Soon-Yeol propped up his sses, Seo Yoon-Ju frowned. ¡°Still, this is wrong. How is that rag that you¡¯re wearing Comme Des Gar?ons!¡± ¡°Yare yare, the pointo is that you promised.¡±[4] ¡°No, whatever. y the CCTV tape or whatever, I don¡¯t care. Sue me if I was the one who bumped into you. Even if it¡¯s my fault and destruction of property, I won¡¯t be ordered to pay that much. No way that the rag that you are wearing costs four hundred thousand won. This is fraud. Just sue me because I can¡¯t just give that to you.¡± Park Dong-Hyun and Jung Hae-Rim were shocked. ¡°She said that?¡± Park Dong-Hyun asked. ¡°Without even apologizing?¡± Jung Hae-Rim added. Bae Sun-Mi covered her mouth like she was in shock as well. ¡°She should first be apologizing, but she¡¯s telling you to sue her?¡± Cheon Ji-Myung frowned. ¡°I don¡¯t understand. Still, we got the Award for Exceptional Performance...,¡± Bae Sun-Mi murmured. ¡°They think we¡¯re the same old Life Creation Department that¡¯s beneath them even if we get the award,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung replied like this was a headache. Crack. Crack. Park Dong-Hyun cracked his neck and warmed up his body. ¡°Ah, man... They¡¯re making my temper from my prime timee up again...¡± As Park Dong-Hyun walked toward them like he was about to destroy them, Young-Joon stood in front of him. ¡°I will take care of it.¡± ¡°What are you going to do?¡± Jung Hae-Rim asked. ¡°We can¡¯t be fighting them on a departmental scale right now. Probiotics is a field I want to study next year, so we have to use the Health Food Department a lot.¡± ¡°Hm...¡± ¡°But we can¡¯t just let this slide. I will get them here and make them apologize, so just wait.¡± Young-Joon calmed the four people down and walked over to Choi Myung-Joon and Seo Yoon-Ju. ¡®It¡¯s actually better when they apologize to me on their own like Park So-Yeon.¡¯ [Rosaline Lv.2] Young-Joon pulled up the status window. He pressed on the message window and opened the data on probiotics. It had the analysis of Roche¡¯s probiotic product, Active Lactobacillin. 1. iPSC is short for induced pluripotent stem cells. ? 2. Kkanpunggi is a Korean-Chinese dish that consists of deep fried chicken pieces in a spicy and sweet garlic oil sauce. ? 3. Etto is a filler word in Japanese, and it essentially means ¡°uhh¡± or ¡°umm¡±. ? 4. Yare yare means ¡°well well¡± in Japanese, and pointo is the Japanese pronunciation for ¡°point¡±. ? Chapter 20: The Ambitious One (1)

Chapter 20: The Ambitious One (1)

¡°Hello.¡± Young-Joon greeted Choi Myung-Joon and Seo Yoon-Ju. Both of them were startled like they saw a ghost or something. Now, they could see Cheon Ji-Myung, Bae Sun-Mi, Park Dong-Hyun, and Jung Hae-Rim re at them with fierce eyes from afar. Seo Yoon-Ju gulped. She was extremely nervous. Young-Joon stared at her for a bit and then said, ¡°The happening at the cafeteria. You were in the wrong, right, Scientist Seo?¡± ¡°... Yes, that¡¯s right... I¡¯m sorry,¡± Seo Yoon-Ju answered in a tiny voice. ¡°Well, I¡¯ve only been in the Life Creation team for a week, and the ones that you had trouble with were my seniors, so you don¡¯t have to say sorry to me. You just need to go talk to the seniors yourself.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The reason why I came to see you wasn¡¯t to argue about that but just to let you know about something.¡± ¡°Let us know?¡± Puzzled, Choi Myung-Joon asked with his head tilted. ¡°Yes, a venturepany in Korea is working on probiotics, and I think they are going to create a good product soon.¡± Young-Joon was talking about Celligener. Of course, the part about them creating a good product was a lie. ¡°Whichpany?¡± ¡°I can¡¯t tell you that. When ites out, it will be better than Roche¡¯s Active Lactobacillin.¡± ¡°What?¡± Choi Myung-Joon was filled with shock. ¡°Manager Choi, the Health Food Department is the team working on probiotics at A-Gen, right?¡± ¡°...Yes.¡± ¡°I heard that you got an earful because you let Roche steal your share in the market.¡± ¡°Yes... That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°Even if Roche surpassed A-Gen, I heard A-Gen is ahead in markets in Korea and Asia. However, if a venturepany in Korea develops a good product, theirpetition is going to be A-Gen rather than Roche, isn''t it? Because they¡¯ll start with the market in Korea.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°If you do nothing, you might bleed a little from the criticism during the next seminar. Do you have a n to solve this?¡± ¡°We¡¯re working on it,¡± Choi Myung-Joon said. ¡°If you sit back and rx like that, A-Gen will keep losing its share in the probiotics market. It¡¯s a reliable item and the future industry, so we can¡¯t afford to lose it like that. I¡¯m thinking of experimenting with probiotics since our department received the Award for Exceptional Performance.¡± ¡°That¡¯s our department¡¯s responsibility!¡± Seo Yoon-Ju shouted in surprise. ¡°I know. But there¡¯s a tradition of letting the department that got the award do whatever research they wanted for a year, and they have the budget to do that, too. And we¡¯re all A-Gen employees, aren''t we? It¡¯s all of our loss if A-Gen loses the probiotics market. We should stop it if we can, no matter the department. I have a better item than the venturepany, too.¡± ¡°What... is it?¡± Choi Myung-Joon asked with a slightly quivering voice. ¡°It¡¯s a secret.¡± ¡°S-Stop bluffing. How can someone who¡¯s only worked with animal cells at the Life Creation Department know about probiotics? Those are bacteria and microbes!¡± Seo Yoon-Ju shouted. ¡°Lactobacillus acidophilus, Lactobacillus casei, Lactobacillus bulgaricus, Lactobacillus rhamnosus, Bifidobacterium bifidum, Bifidobacterium breve, Bifidobacteriumctis, Lactocusctis, Enterocus faecalis.¡± As if he was chanting a magic spell, Young-Joon began listing theponents of Roche¡¯s probiotic product. Choi Myung-Joon and Seo Yoon-Ju couldn¡¯t see it, but a list of ingredients in Roche¡¯s product that he had seen before was floating in front of his eyes. ¡°Those are theponents in Roche¡¯s product.¡± Young-Joon added, ¡°I can also tell you the biological mechanism of these bacteria. For example, Lactobacillus acidophilus usually usectose, and they can suppress the growth of harmful bacteria by creating around twenty different types of chemicals and using those as natural antibiotics. When given to the intestines, it can help with the activation of the immune system and improve bowel movements.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Do you need me to exin the others?¡± ¡°No...¡± Seo Yoon-Ju gulped. ¡°You really don¡¯t think I have a good item? Because it¡¯s weird that someone who worked with animal cells knows a lot about probiotics? But it¡¯s also just as weird for someone who developed anticancer drugs to work on stem cells,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°...¡± ¡°I want to borrow the Health Food Department¡¯s equipment once I start working on probiotics. We can work together, right? Or we can make a task force team for probiotics. Of course, we would share some of the rewards with you.¡± ¡°Of course,¡± Choi Myung-Joon replied with a bright face. ¡°That¡¯s a relief. I was going to work with that venturepany if you said no.¡± Choi Myung-Joon and Seo Yoon-Ju both flinched. Young-Joon went on. ¡°To be honest, the person who told me that the venturepany was working on probiotics is actually my friend. Haha, they told me they wanted to do it together. It would look good if A-Gen and a venturepany had a technology partnership, right? So I was thinking we should make a partnership with them and work together.¡± Choi Myung-Joon¡¯s hand trembled slightly. ¡°W-Would you need to work with anotherpany when you have a department that works on probiotics in the sameb...¡± Seo Yoon-Ju mumbled. ¡°Right? There¡¯s no reason to do that. Haha. I feel a little sorry for my friend, but I should give my item to the Health Food Department, and give my friend¡¯spany something else, right?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Of course...¡± ¡°Oh, Scientist Seo. I heard that you met Soon-Yeol-sunbae in front of the washroom during the break before the ceremony started.¡± ¡°Huh? Um... Yes, we met.¡± Seo Yoon-Ju went pale as if all the blood left her body. ¡°I heard you guys talked for a little bit? I assume you apologized?¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joon stared at her. Seo Yoon-Ju could not say anything. ¡°Or did you fight more?¡± Young-Joon asked like he was curious. ¡°Um... That is...¡± ¡°We¡¯re sorry.¡± Choi Myung-Joon quickly interfered. ¡°We couldn¡¯t deliver a proper apology because we were so busy. We will apologize right now and providepensation.¡± Choi Myung-Joon put his role as the department head, a middleman, above being a scientist. He believed that his eye for people had be pretty sharp from working at apany for so long. From what he saw, Young-Joon was not someone they should keep as an enemy. Choi Myung-Joon considered what kind of results Young-Joon, a scientist who was only about thirty, had shown. His bravery in setting up projects that seemed almost impossible in the Life Creation Department, which was basically barren, in the face of pressure to get results. His determination, which drove the project forward when his department members would have disagreed on it, and his ingenuity, which allowed him to get results. The spirit and ferocity to go against Kim Hyun-Taek withoutpromising his morals. ¡®This guy is dangerous.¡¯ They were rtively autonomous in terms of research direction now that they got the award, and they also had received funding. What this meant was that there was no telling what this genius would do next. Young-Joon was probably going to climb up thedder quickly. He would probably be an executive soon since he was talented and also caught Nichs¡¯ eye. He might even be the CTO when he became Choi Myung-Joon¡¯s age. If that happened, it would go in whatever direction Young-Joon wanted, as A-Gen was a research-focusedpany, There was no reason for Choi Myung-Joon to be afraid as Young-Joon was still a Scientist, but it was clear that he was someone they should not keep as an enemy. ¡°Let¡¯s go, Yoon-Ju.¡± Choi Myung-Joon quickly grabbed Seo Yoon-Ju¡¯s wrist. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± Young-Joon grinned and led the way as if he was waiting for this. ¡®He came here, already knowing that this would happen.¡¯ Choi Myung-Joon gulped. He felt like Young-Joon, who was walking in front of them, looked like the devil. However, to Koh Soon-Yeol and the other members of the Life Creation Department, Young-Joon looked like a wizard. They couldn¡¯t think of any other way to exin that situation other than Young-Joon using magic, such as mind control. ¡°He¡¯s really bringing them here?¡± Park Dong-Hyun eximed in surprise. ¡°Doctor Koh Soon-Yeol.¡± Choi Myung-Joon bowed to Koh Soon-Yeol. ¡°We misspokest time. We sincerely apologize.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I was the one who bumped into you. I will providepensation,¡± Seo Yoon-Ju also apologized in a tiny voice. ¡°We¡¯re also really sorry to Doctor Jung Hae-Rim and Doctor Park Dong-Hyun.¡± The two bowed toward them as well. Park Dong-Hyun crossed his arms and stared at them. ¡°Alright. I hope something this exhausting doesn¡¯t happen again.¡± ¡°I will send you the money for dry cleaning. I¡¯m really sorry. I will be careful next time...¡± Seo Yoon-Ju noted down Koh Soon-Yeol¡¯s bank ount number with tears welling up in her eyes. * * * ¡°Should we choose where to get dinner?¡± Bae Sun-Mi asked after Choi Myung-Joon and Seo Yoon-Ju left. The members of the Life Creation Department were psychos who could not get along with people in other departments. However, all they did was not suck up and speak up in an authoritative kkondae environment.[1] They were also people withmon decency. ¡°Let¡¯s get beef. We can finish dinner at nine, and people who want to go for round two can go if they want. Drinking is optional as well,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung announced. ¡°Is there anywhere near here to get beef?¡± Park Dong-Hyun asked and pulled out his phone to look up ces nearby. ¡°I know a ce. There¡¯s a good restaurant around here that has good beef,¡± Bae Sun-Mi said. ¡°Oh! Of course you do, sunbae. You said you have a foodie blog for restaurants... Where is it?¡± Jung Hae-Rim brightly smiled. ¡°Do you know that they have ck cows in Jeju? They call it Jeju ck Cow, and this ce specializes in it. They cook it for you, and the taste...¡± Bae Sun-Mi showed a thumbs-up as she imagined it. ¡°Let¡¯s go already. I¡¯m getting dizzy,¡± Park Dong-Hyun said. ¡°Follow me, everyone.¡± Bae Sun-Mi led the way in excitement. The ce she took the team to was a barbeque ce behind the restaurant alley behind the A-Gen building. [You a Fool If You Ain¡¯t Been Here][2] ¡°...¡± ¡®What a name, huh?¡¯ As confident as Bae Sun-Mi was, the meat was absolutely delicious. The server grilled the thick cut of beef with mushrooms and onions. Koh Soon-Yeol, who grabbed a piece, was shocked when he put it in his mouth. ¡°Haa? Oishii? It¡¯s better than wagyu.¡±[3] ¡°I¡¯m going to cry because it¡¯s so good. I want to subscribe to your blog...¡± Jung Hae-Rim said with teary eyes. ¡°It¡¯s really good. I¡¯m going toe here with my wife next time,¡± Park Dong-Hyun added. ¡°Hae-Rim and Dong-Hyun, you¡¯re going to drink, right? Soon-Yeol doesn''t drink.¡± Cheon Ji-Myung asked. ¡°Of course!¡± Jung Hae-Rim shouted with a bright smile. ¡°Lead Sun-Mi isn¡¯t drinking too because she needs to watch her kid¡ª¡± Cheon Ji-Myungmented but was interrupted swiftly. ¡°No, I¡¯m going to have some today. My husband is at home watching the kid because it was his day off.¡± ¡°Aha. Alright. Do you like alcohol, Doctor Ryu?¡± Cheon Ji-Myung asked. To be honest, Young-Joon could barely tolerate alcohol. He had it every day after being kicked out of the Anticancer Drug Research Department, but before that, he tried really hard not to lose consciousness during everypany dinner. ¡°I¡¯ll have a little bit.¡± ¡°We don¡¯t force you to drink or anything. You don¡¯t have to have any if you don¡¯t want to,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung assured Young-Joon. ¡°Ahaha, yes, thank you. Just a little bit, please.¡± ¡°Alright. Soon-Yeol, you want Coke?¡± ¡°I would like it if you got me Sprite. Sprite is good to have because it¡¯s refreshing, just like our win.¡± ¡°Excuse me, could we get two bottles of Chamisul[4] and a bottle of Sprite?¡± Cheon Ji-Myung ordered and turned his attention toward Young-Joon again. ¡°How much can you drink, Doctor Ryu?¡± ¡°About half a bottle of soju.¡± ¡°No, you can¡¯t talk about your limit like that,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung replied. ¡°Dong-Hyun, how should a scientist say their alcohol limit?¡± He asked. ¡°Of course, in liters per hour,¡± Park Dong-Hyun replied. ¡°Haha, then I¡¯m not sure. What about you, Dong-Hyun-sunbae?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°My limit is one bottle per hour, but I can only have half a bottle because of my wife.¡± ¡°Does she scold you if you have more than half a bottle?¡± Young-Joon asked as Park Dong-Hyun suddenly brought up his wife. ¡°No, well, nothing like that, but...¡± ¡°Haha, Doctor Ryu. Dong-Hyun¡¯s wife has a good grip on him. Don¡¯t have a marriage like that,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung said, chuckling. ¡°No, I just really love my wife. She doesn¡¯t control me or anything.¡± Park Dong-Hyun shook his hand like it was nonsense. ¡°... Is what he says, but he always calls her and reports the situation every hour when we have a team dinner. You¡¯ll probably see him do it today, too,¡± Jung Hae-Rim said with augh. Young-Joon also chuckled and remarked, ¡°Well, no matter the reason, it¡¯s good that you hold yourself back.¡± Cheon Ji-Myung poured everyone a ss once the server brought it to their table. The winter night deepened, and the Life Creation Department kept drinking and eating. Koh Soon-Yeol watched an hour of anime during dinner, and Park Dong-Hyun made an excuse that he needed to go to the washroom and went and called his wife. No one forced them to stay, and yet, no one left. Everyone wanted to enjoy today¡¯s feelings a bit more. And after a few bottles of wine at a bar, they went for round three... ¡°Doctor Ryu, I¡¯m saying this not as your department head, but as a scientist who has done research for a lot longer than you have. I¡¯m being sincere, and it¡¯s because I¡¯m thinking for your sake,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung said with a slur. ¡°I want you to leave A-Gen.¡± 1. Kkondae refers to people who are usually authoritative and force their traditional and negative thoughts and beliefs onto someone else. These people are usually from the older generation. ? 2. This restaurant name is a wordy. ??, or ck Cow, is often used as ??, which means ripped-off, because it sounds simr. The original name of the restaurant means that you¡¯re getting ripped off if you haven¡¯t been here. ? 3. Oishii is Japanese for ¡°delicious¡±. ? 4. A soju brand ? Chapter 21: The Ambitious One (2)

Chapter 21: The Ambitious One (2)

¡°You want me to leave?¡± Young-Joon asked again. ¡°Yes. There¡¯s no reason for a talented person like you to rot here.¡± Cheon Ji-Myung grinned. Bae Sun-Mi and Park Dong-Hyun also nodded slightly. Park Dong-Hyun added, ¡°Actually, I also thought about the same thing. Doctor Ryu, to be honest, our team will get berated again after you leave, but we¡¯re okay since we¡¯re used to it. We don¡¯t want to weigh you down.¡± ¡°I agree. I only saw you for the first time today, but I really don¡¯t think you should stay here if you were really the one who made the iPSCs,¡± Bae Sun-Mi added. Young-Joon did not say anything and just fiddled with his ss. ¡°What¡¯s your dream, Doctor Ryu?¡± Cheon Ji-Myung asked. ¡°My dream?¡± ¡°Is it a little weird to ask this?¡± ¡°No, not at all. My dream... Is to save more people by curing more diseases.¡± Cheon Ji-Myung chuckled. ¡°What an innocent dream.¡± ¡°Like a true scientist,¡± Koh Soon-Yeol said as he drank his Sprite. ¡°But we¡¯ve forgotten all about that passion,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung said. ¡°Our only dreams, like me or Lead Bae Sun-Mi here, is just to make sure our kids grow up nicely and make sure they get married.¡± ¡°To be honest, Doctor Ryu, I think you¡¯re too good to stay at A-Gen, let alone our team,¡± Park Dong-Hyun added. ¡°But where else could I go?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Hm.¡± ¡°All the smaller pharmaceuticalpanies are under A-Gen¡¯s umbre. Realistically, theyck the infrastructure. I can¡¯t set all that up and grow thepany. Look at the iPSCs made. At A-Gen, I can get genes or viruses in a day if I request to buy it, right? It would have taken one or two weeks if I did it at a smallerpany because they wouldn¡¯t have a good enough supply chain.¡± ¡°That is true.¡± ¡°And I have to now work on growing organs or differentiating it into different tissues, but there aren¡¯t anypanies other than A-Gen that have those kinds of facilities or research support.¡± There was a moment of depressed silence among the team. ¡°I guess there aren¡¯t any substitutes for A-Gen realistically,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung said. Young-Joon would just buy a couple pieces of experimental equipment if he needed them. However, research infrastructure didn¡¯t just mean equipment, but also human resources. Something like that was difficult to solve with money alone. The only reason the Life Creation Department had people like Park Dong-Hyun, Jung Hae-Rim, or Koh Soon-Yeol was that it was a top-level pharmaceuticalpany like A-Gen. It was difficult to find scientists who could differentiate induced pluripotent stem cells into muscle cells, produce methtion data, orplete exome sequencing in just a few days. Reaction Chemistry and Cell Bio were goodpanies, but they weren¡¯t this good. If Young-Joon didn¡¯t have a technician, it meant that he had to do everything himself. For example, if he needed a gically modified marmoset monkey, he would have to create, grow, and maintain it himself. All he had to do at A-Gen was call the Experiment Animal Resource Center. The biggest problem of all was that the CEOs of those smallpanies could be controlled by A-Gen, like Celligener. Nopany would be able to function normally if the head was being controlled. If Young-Joon was to start his own pharmaceuticalpany, he could stop it from being controlled by A-Gen, but he would have to take the long way around. First of all, he would have to apply to the Ministry of Science and Technology and the Ministry of Health and Welfare to establish a biologyb. He had to obtain permission to use gically modified organisms for each unit of theboratory. There would be five documents needed to purchase every piece ofb equipment, and if he wanted to purchase experimental animals or a cell line, he would have to write a n starting with the supplier and manager, and a written n of the product¡¯s transportation, experimentation, and disposal. Management and regtion was picky because leakages could be dangerous. No matter how exceptional Rosaline was, there was nothing she could do about the examiners of the government. If Young-Joon had to set up every single one of thoseponents, it would take five years for him to start one experiment that he wanted to do. ¡°The executives would keep me from leaving after all the attention I get from the stem cells. Well, that would make me feel good, but there aren¡¯t any realistic alternatives,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°Maybe in Korea, but there are otherpanies just as big as A-Gen overseas,¡± Park Dong-Hyun said. ¡°There is. But they¡¯re not that different from A-Gen. You know that,¡± Young-Joon replied. If the management at A-Gen were satans, the people in foreign pharmaceuticalpanies could make them retire; their evilness was on a different level. It wasmon for them to do human experiments on minors in underdeveloped countries who hadn¡¯t been registered in the system, or hold human lives hostage and threaten governments because they wanted to make profits one hundred times the manufacturing price. Even if they treated scientists better, Young-Joon didn¡¯t want to work for a ce like that. ¡°I interned at Conson & Colson, and... You¡¯re better off not going,¡± Jung Hae-Rim replied. ¡°Some people say that a familiar asshole is better than a foreign asshole.¡± ¡°Or just be a professor instead of staying at apany,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung suggested. He then added, ¡°With your talent and a paper on stem cells, Jungyoon University will invite you to be a professor.¡± ¡°But professors don¡¯t have a lot of power. All they can do is just produce basic technology; they can¡¯t make something that can bemercialized. I want to help the world.¡± ¡°But if you work here, you¡¯ll only help the people at the top of A-Gen. Not the world.¡± ¡°I won¡¯t do that again since they did that to me in the Anticancer Drug Research Department.¡± ¡°No matter how smart you are, you¡¯re an employee being paid by thispany. Whatever you do will be thepany¡¯s, and the executives and the shareholders own thepany.¡± ¡°They will never fill their pockets because of me.¡± ¡°But isn¡¯t the patent of the iPSCs going to be distributed among the shareholders?¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s not.¡± There was a moment of silence. Bae Sun-Mi froze with her ss in her hand. ¡°What are you talking about? Do you think you can do whatever you want? All the patents that are developed at thepany are theirs. To be honest, it irritates me that you are filling their pockets.¡± ¡°The technology is thepany¡¯s.¡± ¡°... I¡¯m getting really anxious all of a sudden. How did you fill out the patent application?¡± Cheon Ji-Myung asked. ¡°I wrote my name as the primary holder of the patent. The secondary is Soon-Yeol-sunbae. The next is Dong-Hyun-sunbae and Hae-Rim-sunbae. I decided this based on the importance of the data. I know it¡¯s unfortunate, but Manager Cheon and Lead Bae, you didn¡¯t get a share because you weren¡¯t at thepany, nor did you do any experiments. I wrote whatever I wanted for the shareholding percentage.¡± ng! There was an obnoxious sound as Park Dong-Hyun dropped his ss on the table. ¡°Oh sorry. My hands are trembling.¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu, did you really write that? You wrote the shareholding percentage yourself?¡± Cheon Ji-Myung asked. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Oh my...¡± The way A-Gen published patents was unique. The scientist who was the primary holder developed the technology and then filed a patent application. At this stage, the primary holder was able to specify the shareholding percentage. This rule was actually invented when A-Gen was a startuppany. They created this rule on the ideology that it was a scientist-centeredpany, but it actually didn¡¯t mean anything as the executives evaluated it after it was filled out in the attorney¡¯s office. If they didn¡¯t really like the ratio the primary wrote, they sent it back, or they called them into the executives¡¯ office, crushed them, and then made them change it. The employees had no choice but to follow as they had no power. When this kind of thing went on for decades, the fact that the scientist could specify the shareholding percentage became kind of a useless, dead rule. Nowadays, most scientists didn¡¯t even fill out the shareholding ratio when they filled out the patent; they just submitted it to the Research Support Department. Then, the Research Support Department would fill out the ratio per the orders of theb director and send it to the attorney¡¯s office. The young scientists thought that was the rule. There was a reason why there wasn¡¯t much dissatisfaction among the scientists. First of all, most patents didn¡¯t really make much money as most of them weren¡¯t reallymercialized; that¡¯s why no one cared. And in the case ofmercializable patents that made money, which rarely happened, it took several years and dozens of scientists days and nights to publish. This meant that patents that made money were destined to berge projects, so they consumed a lot of money, manpower, and time. If Young-Joon started the iPSCs without Rosaline, how much resources would A-Gen have had to pour into them? The only time this kind of patent came out was when thepany knew about the research project very well from the beginning and supported it fully. When it became like that, it became meaningless to split the share between the primary scientists; it was difficult to give everyone a share when over two hundred scientists participated. Of course, a few of the prominent contributors received a share in the decimals, and the rest waspensated as a bonus. The rest of the share? It was either given to thepany or split among the shareholders. No one had anyints since it was also right in terms of research ethics; they could not ignore the contributions of thepany, theb director or the Research Support Department for supporting them for one project over a few years. However, it was different in Young-Joon¡¯s case. He could have done this because it was such an exceptional situation. Cheon Ji-Myung broke out in cold sweat. ¡°You¡¯re crazy... You filled out the share ratio yourself. And you didn¡¯t put Gil Hyung-Joon, theb director, or the CTO? And you sent it to the attorney¡¯s office?¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu, you have to include the executives¡¯ names...¡± Bae Sun-Mi said to Young-Joon in worry. ¡°What are you talking about?¡± Young-Joon said with a straight face. ¡°Those people did not even know that we were doing that sort of work until I presented the results at the seminar. So why should they get a share? That¡¯s against research ethics.¡± There was silence at the table once more. ¡°H... Honmono...¡±[1] Koh Soon-Yeol suddenly mumbled. ¡°Not just a picky person by the book, but... This person... is really honmono...¡± ¡°Science should be done ording to the rules. It is a field that is based on objectivity, and it should be the most pure, right?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°I agree,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung replied. ¡°But I don¡¯t know if Gil Hyung-Joon or the other executives will agree with you. Nichs could be okay with it in this case since he¡¯s a true scientist and by the book like you, Doctor Ryu.¡± ¡°You skipped the Research Support Department and directly gave it to the attorney¡¯s office in charge of Lab Six, right?¡± Bae Sun-Mi asked. ¡°Yes,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°Then, it will go to the Research Support Department as soon as the papers are finished and then to Gil Hyung-Jooon. He¡¯s going to hit the roof...¡± ¡°I¡¯ll deal with it myself. You don¡¯t need to worry.¡± ¡°Exin the royalty ratio in detail,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung asked like he was worried. ¡°I saw that no one individual could take more than ten percent of a patent that had high potential. So, I took ten percent, and Dong-Hyun-sunbae, Hae-Rim-sunbae, and Soon-Yeol-sunbae got three percent each,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°We got three percent?¡± Jung Hae-Rim was shocked, as she didn¡¯t even expect to be given any shares. ¡°Of course. It¡¯s only right you receive a share since you contributed to the research. I would have even given Kim Hyun-Taek a share if he did the experiment,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°Then what about the rest?¡± Cheon Ji-Myung asked. ¡°Since we used A-Gen facilities to develop it, and since they will publish the patent, I gave A-Gen and Lab Six 0.5 percent each.¡± ¡°Then is that eighty percent left?¡± ¡°There is a use in thews rted to in-house patents that at least eighty percent of the share must be given to thepany. So, I put the remaining eighty percent as funding for the Life Creation Department.¡± ¡°Department funding?¡± ¡°Bypany, they mean A-Gen as a whole or one of the sixbs. I actually can¡¯t write it by department, but I did it anyway. I didn¡¯t want a department like Health Food using this money. I will write a separate contract to confirm that funding and get the final approval in my name.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Young-Joon-kun, did youe from the future?¡± Koh Soon-Yeol asked. ¡°Ah~ I¡¯m not. What do you even mean?¡± ¡°It feels like a sixty-year-old executive has returned in the body of a young man and is having his bloody revenge...¡± ¡°Do you really think that¡¯s going to pass, Doctor Ryu? It¡¯s never going to happen since it¡¯s an invention on the job...¡± Jung Hae-Rim¡¯s voice was full of worry. ¡°Just wait and see. I have something in mind,¡± Young-Joon replied with a smile. ¡°Doctor Ryu,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung called Young-Joon. ¡°If it is your dream to make another drug and save someone as soon as possible, it would be faster for you to give those shares up to the executives and ask for their cooperation.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true.¡± ¡°But fighting with management to get individual research funding and approval... It seems like you have ulterior motives. What is it that you want, Doctor Ryu?¡± ¡°What do I want?¡± ¡°I want to help you if it¡¯s something I can help you with.¡± ¡°Well, I¡¯ll just tell you. I trust our members and other people will probably just scoff and brush it off if they hear it. My dream is what I told you before,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°And I am thinking of bing the chief executive officer of A-Gen to achieve that goal. I will also be thergest shareholder in order to stabilize management.¡± ¡°...¡± There was nothing but silence at the table. ¡°Does it seem a little oundish? But that¡¯s the only way I can think of. There aren¡¯t a lot ofpanies that have better hardware than A-Gen, even overseas. The problem is that the operating system here has a virus. I am going to format the hard drive and install a new one.¡± Park Dong-Hyun raised his hand. ¡°I¡¯m not going to talk about how it¡¯s difficult, or it¡¯s not possible or anything like that. To be honest, the iPSCs were also sci-fi-level stuff, right? And you got it done in a week? I am on your side, Doctor Ryu.¡± ¡°You might be hired as a proxy executive officer, but it won¡¯t be easy bing thergest shareholder. That¡¯s basically saying that you¡¯re going to be the owner of thepany. You know that, right?¡± Cheon Ji-Myung asked Young-Joon. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Even if you have that much money, it¡¯s hard to buy that many shares. They¡¯ll stop it to protect their executive rights.¡± ¡°Right now, sure. But a lot of things are going to change now. It wouldn¡¯t work if A-Gen had been an ordinarypany, but A-Gen is a research-basedpany, right? I¡¯m going to borrow A-Gen¡¯s research infrastructure, start an affiliatepany that can study iPSCs, and build that to take over A-Gen.¡± ¡°Ha. It would be good if it worked out, but... Realistically...¡± Cheon Ji-Myung scoffed. ¡°Doctor Ryu, when iPSCs bemercialized and get used to cure all kinds of different diseases, I think your reputation and wealth will skyrocket high enough for you to try for executive rights,¡± Park Dong-Hyun said. ¡°When that happens, please make me the executive manager of the Life Creation Department. I¡¯m sucking up to you in advance.¡± Cheon Ji-Myung red at him like he was being ridiculous. ¡°Then what about me?¡± ¡°It¡¯ll be in like twenty years, so you should retire and go down to the country somewhere. You know, harvest some winter spinach, watch your grandchildren sing and dance...¡± ¡°He¡¯s insane...¡± Cheon Ji-Myung said. Young-Joon chuckled. ¡°It won¡¯t take twenty years. I will get it done as soon as possible.¡± ¡°Alright. I will do everything I can to help if you are going to be able to do everything you want, Doctor Ryu,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung promised. ¡°Me too,¡± Jung Hae-Rim added. ¡°I can start right now. Doctor Ryu, what should I do?¡± As Park Dong-Hyun joked around, Bae Sun-Mi nced at him. ¡°Dong-Hyun is super upbeat today. Why is he so excited?¡± ¡°It¡¯s just so exciting to think that Doctor Ryu will be the head of A-Gen. Doctor Ryu, please reform this corruptpany and lead it. I have a love-hate rtionship with this ce now.¡± ¡°Anyway, the thing we know for sure is that Gil Hyung-Joon wille to our department with a metal pipe in his hand around Monday after reading the patent documents?¡± Cheon Ji-Myung said. ¡°I¡¯m guessing a hammer,¡± Park Dong-Hyun added. ¡°An electric chainsaw,¡± Jung Hae-Rim also added. ¡°...¡± ¡°Stop talking nonsense and let¡¯s drink.¡± Young-Joon raised his ss. 1. Honmono means ¡°the real thing¡± in Japanese. ? Chapter 22: The Ambitious One (3)

Chapter 22: The Ambitious One (3)

The Life Creation Team received an award at the seminar that finished off the year and drank into the night. On Saturday morning, Young-Joon began his calctions. The amount of his bonus hadn¡¯t been decided yet, and even if it had, he would get it next month on his payday. However, his cash prize for the awards was given to him on the day of the seminar itself. He had received one hundred million won from the Revolutionary Scientist Award and the Award for Exceptional Performancebined; it was 2.5 times more than his sry. He didn¡¯t get a lot of money from the Award for Exceptional Performance because he was only a Scientist, but he was given a lot for the Revolutionary Scientist Award as it was usually given to lead scientists and above. ¡®I should send some to my family first.¡¯ Young-Joon wouldn¡¯t be able to fix his family¡¯s debt with this, but this would give them some room. Ring! Young-Joon got a call as he was about to send money to his mother after sending some to Ryu Ji-Won, his younger sister. [Ryu Ji-Won] ¡ªWhat is this? Where did you get this money? Ryu Ji-Won asked with a high-pitched voice as soon as Young-Joon picked up the phone. ¡°I sent you some allowance, that¡¯s all.¡± ¡ªI think you put too many zeros on it. Do I just send it back? ¡°No, I sent you a million won. That¡¯s correct.¡± ¡ªI got ten million won. ¡°Oh, I sent you the wrong amount. Sorry. I¡¯ll read you my bank ount number right now.¡± ¡ªRight? You would¡¯ve starved tomorrow. Young-Joon could hear Ryu Ji-Won snicker over the phone. ¡ªI¡¯ll just send all of it back. I don¡¯t really need money right now. What would a student need money for anyway? Just give it to Mom for our debt. ¡°I was going to give you one million won and give the rest to Mom. Ah, you just keep one million won and transfer the rest to her.¡± ¡ªAre you serious? ¡°Of course. It doesn¡¯t matter whether I send it or you send it. ¡ªNo, I mean, are you okay with sending this much money? ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m fine. I got a bonus from work. ¡ªHoly... ¡°So have all of it. You can use all of it.¡± ¡ªReally? You¡¯re serious, right? It was really inconvenient not having aptop. Can I buy one? No take-backs. ¡°Yes, you can.¡± ¡ªThank you so much. You¡¯re the best. I love you. Young-Joon hung up the phone and looked at the remaining amount. ¡®Ny million won.¡¯ Young-Joon called Park Joo-Hyuk. ¡ªYeah. What¡¯s up? Park Joo-Hyuk picked up with an indifferent voice. ¡°What are you doing? ¡ªI¡¯m gamin... Ah! You frustrating assholes, how could you not get that! These damn Ryu Young-Joons... Agh! ¡°...¡± ¡ªHey, hang up if it¡¯s nothing urgent. I have to go clean up their shit. I have to go do the teamfight of the century right... ¡°Can youe out for a bit?¡± ¡ªWhat? Why? ¡°To pay you back.¡± * * * Park Joo-Hyuk came out wearing sweats and slippers. His hair was a mess, and he had gunk in his eye. Who could possibly think he was awyer? ¡°What do you mean you¡¯re paying me back already? You borrowed it a week ago.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk yawned and sat down at the coffee shop table. ¡°I got an award from A-Gen.¡± ¡°With the drug you made before?¡± ¡°No, A-Gen doesn¡¯t know about that. And that has nothing to do with them, so they won¡¯t give me an award for that.¡± ¡°Then with what?¡± ¡°It¡¯s called induced pluripotent stem cells. You insert a few genes into a human-derived kidney cell and revert the differentiation stage to the beginning. You can make it into a simr state to embryos and use it to make... ¡°Okay! That¡¯s enough. Alright, I get it. So you got a prize? How much did you get?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk asked. ¡°One hundred million won.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk¡¯s jaw dropped to the floor. ¡°Seriously?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk asked. ¡°Well, I have a lot of debt to pay back, whether it¡¯s mine or my family¡¯s, but I can¡¯t pay back all of it with this anyway. I thought I should pay you back in advance because I owe you a lot, and I¡¯ll owe you a lot in the future as well. I said that I¡¯ll pay you back five times more, right? I¡¯ll send it to you right now.¡± ¡°...¡± Park Joo-Hyuk stared at Young-Joon nkly and then said, ¡°No. Five times more in a week is way over the legal rate of interest.¡± ¡°Are you from the Financial Supervisory Service? I want to give it to you, so what¡¯s the problem?¡± ¡°Just pay me back five million won so I can pay back that hyung.¡±[1] ¡°You lent me some money too, right?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Let¡¯s call it an investment. And I don¡¯t have a lot to spend on right now anyway. I want to see how the cold medicine you made turns out.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not cold medicine. It¡¯s a treatment for the flu.¡± ¡°Whatever that is.¡± ¡°Well, alright. It¡¯s good for me since I have a lot to spend on. Then I¡¯ll pay you back next time. Hey, Joo-Hyuk, can you help me out?¡± ¡°Help you out with what?!¡± ¡°I¡¯m thinking of writing a contract rted to the stem cell patent I developed at thepany. Can you take a look at it?¡¯ Young-Joon pulled out hisptop. ¡°What is this?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk asked. ¡°I wrote something like this for splitting the royalties for the patent, right?¡± ¡°Hm.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk read every line in the document in detail. ¡°So? How is it?¡± ¡°Shut up. Let me focus.¡± Young-Joon remembered Park Joo-Hyuk doing nothing every time he saw him, but it seemed like he was still awyer. It was quite nice to see Park Joo-Hyuk focus hard on something that was simr to his job. ¡°And you made this stem cell technology by yourself?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk asked. ¡°Yeah. I used some of the facilities in Lab Six.¡± ¡°Was there any information you got from A-Gen when you were developing this? Any papers published from other departments of A-Gen?¡± ¡°No. And this technology can¡¯t have anything to reference off of. This advancement is on another level.¡± ¡°And you did that?¡± ¡°In two weeks.¡± ¡°I think you¡¯re getting weirder and weirder, but alright. Okay, list me everyone who participated in developing this technology, even if it¡¯s a little bit.¡± ¡°It¡¯s the people listed here: Koh Soon-Yeol, Park Dong-Hyun, and Jung Hae-Rim. That¡¯s all of them.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t want to give the executives or the shareholders any share of the royalties, right?¡± As Park Joo-Hyuk was Young-Joon¡¯s old friend, he instantly read his mind. ¡°Yeah. What do you think of the contract?¡± ¡°It¡¯s full of shit. All else aside, what is this thing about eighty percent of the royalties being used as funding for your department and you having the final approval of it? Did you write this thinking that yourpany¡¯s executives would sign off on this?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°Do you think that signature is your cause of death?[2] You told me your executives are hot-tempered. They might bash your head in when they see you.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about that part. I have a way to get past that. See if there¡¯s any risk of it bing falseter on.¡± ¡°I think it will be fine if you can get over that part.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°You developed anticancer drugs before, and these are stem cells, so they¡¯re different, right?¡± ¡°They are.¡± ¡°Then even if you used A-Gen facilities, it¡¯s a small percentage. So you could take this to court by iming you have the full rights over this as an off-duty employee invention. It¡¯s not ridiculous for you to im ten percent.¡± ¡°Alright, good.¡± ¡°And you gave eighty percent of the patent to thepany, right? The problem is that you¡¯re trying to get the final approval, but... I don¡¯t think yourpany will agree to this, but if you get them to agree somehow, it will be fine.¡± ¡°Right?¡± ¡°But they can sue you if those guys change their minds. Then it gets exhausting. It¡¯s really difficult for an individual to fight against apany.¡± ¡°That¡¯s enough for me. I don¡¯t want it to go to a legal dispute. And the contract just has to be legitimate.¡± ¡°What are you going to do?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll make a deal with the superiors if they call me, whether it be theb directors or management. Can you help me if I have to change the contract?¡± ¡°I have a pretty steep rate as an appointed attorney.¡± ¡°You didn¡¯t even get appointed...¡± * * * Young-Joon was able to save a lot of money since Park Joo-Hyuk didn¡¯t take the money. He was going to get a huge bonus in a month, and he would be able to escape poverty when he sold the flu treatment to an alright pharmaceuticalpany. Right now, Young-Joon wasn¡¯t pressed for money. However, he decided to invest the extra money on a new drug rather than spending it all. Aside from A-Gen, he was thinking of owning arge number of patents for new drugs, simr to the treatment for the flu. This was going to be his ammunition for when he was going to be the center of A-Gen¡¯s executives. He was going to grow his reputation with stem cells and follow-up research, and then show his hidden card. Until then, he had to have as many powerful patents up his sleeve. There weren¡¯t anypanies that could do a project as big as stem cells except for A-Gen, but other diseases could be done with Reaction Chemistry and Cell Bio. The problem was his fitness. Rosaline was still at level two, and his maximum fitness was 1.8. ¡®But maybe?¡¯ Young-Joon turned on Synchronization Mode and searched for the cure for liver cancer. [You do not have enough fitness.] [Liver cancer is tooplicated to analyze at once.] And on an early Sunday morning... Ring! Young-Joon woke up to the sound of an rm. [Currently, you are not getting enough physical activity. Rosaline requires the following in order to recover this: three hours of jogging. Reward: 0.5 Fitness.] Young-Joon was now wide awake. Before, Rosaline leveled up when he granted her request when his fitness was full. Young-Joon quickly put on his jacket and ran outside. There was a pretty big park about ten minutes down the road. ¡°Hup!¡± Young-Joon took a deep breath and started running. Pitter patter! An appropriate amount of stimtion was going to be effective for Rosaline¡¯s development and fitness maintenance. As Young-Joon was running and getting out of breath a few minutester, he saw a message pop up in front of him. [Activating Rosaline, who has been metastasized to the lung.] [Rosaline starts optimizing breathing.] He had seen these messages before when he was running to the seminar hall. He wasn¡¯t feeling out of breath anymore. The amount of air an adult breathed in in one breath was about five hundred milliliters. Since twenty percent of that was oxygen, one hundred milliliters of oxygen was basically being breathed in. But was all of that absorbed? No. Fifteen percent of the breath breathed out was oxygen. The lungs weren¡¯t all that efficient since they only absorbed twenty-five milliliters of oxygen even if they breathed in five hundred milliliters. As Young-Joon was running with energy... ¡°Oh!¡± Young-Joon almost ran into someone when they came out of nowhere. ¡°What are you doing!¡± Young-Joon shouted as he barely dodged them. He saw that it was Song Ji-Hyun. She was also surprised to see him. ¡°Oh, the probiotics!¡± ¡°...My name is Ryu Young-Joon.¡± ¡°Oh, I¡¯m sorry, but please help me!¡± * * * Song Ji-Hyun had a golden retriever. It was a big dog, which could be difficult for a woman to take care of on her own, but she had taken good care of it until now. It was because she was very attentive to her dog and because Brownie, her golden retriever, was very gentle. Her dog was very calm at home if it got enough exercise and walks. Song Ji-Hyun took her five-year-old Brownie on a walk every morning. She thought it was weird that Brownie, who usually ran in front of her, panting in happiness, was slow and weak today. Then, Brownie stopped in the middle of the walk. ¡°Kack!¡± Then, Brownie vomited and copsed. Surprised, Song Ji-Hyun tried to pick Brownie up and go to the nearby animal hospital, but it wasn¡¯t easy. Controlling a big dog by its leash and picking up an unconscious big dog was a totally different thing. So, Song Ji-Hyun decided to ask for help. Not a lot of people were at the park this early in the morning, but there was one man wearing a hat who was jogging with incredible stamina. She had stopped him since he happened to be right in front of her. That was Young-Joon. ¡°Where is the dog sick?¡± Young-Joon asked after hearing the situation. ¡°I don¡¯t know. Brownie just suddenly copsed... The vet is just across the street. Can you help me?¡± Young-Joon took out his phone and looked at the clock. ¡°It¡¯s eight in the morning right now. Do you think they¡¯re open?¡± ¡°Oh.¡± Song Ji-Hyun went pale. ¡°W-What should we do?¡± She looked like she was going to cry at any moment. Young-Joon nced at the dog. [Synchronization Mode: Would you like to gain insight into parvovirus? Fitness consumption rate: 0.04/second.] ¡®Parvovirus?¡¯ Young-Joon remembered hearing about it during his virology lecture when he was an undergraduate student. It was a virus that infected animals, especially canines. ¡®I¡¯m not a vet, but maybe I¡¯ll take a look.¡¯ [Activating Synchronization Mode!] 1. Hyung is an informal way for a man to call a man older than him. ? 2. This is a Korean wordy with Hanja, Chinese characters used in Korea. Sa-in, or sign, is the Hanja for cause of death and the short-form of signature. Park Joo-Hyuk is joking that this contract will be Young-Joon¡¯s cause of death because it is so ridiculous. ? Chapter 23: The First Author (1)

Chapter 23: The First Author (1)

It was a globr substance with about twenty sides, and it had receptors on the surface that looked like small bumps. This light green virus entered this golden retriever through its mouth and caused white cell depletion, vomiting, and dehydration. And right now, Brownie was in very bad condition. If the dog wasn¡¯t treated within six hours, it would die. The animal hospital was closed, but there was still a way. Young-Joon tracked down the structure of the chemicals that acted on the surface of the virus and the infected cells. He found five different kinds of treatment. ¡°Let¡¯s go to the pharmacy,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°What?¡± Song Ji-Hyun replied. ¡°You can open the pharmacy right now, right? Let¡¯s go, hurry.¡± Young-Joon picked up the golden retriever and started running to Song Ji-Hyun¡¯s pharmacy. ¡°Wait for me!¡± Song Ji-Hyun quickly ran behind him, but could not catch up to Young-Joon, who was carrying a thirty-kilogram dog. Of course, it was because of Rosaline. Atst, they were in front of the pharmacy. Song Ji-Hyun was still confused even as she was opening the doors with her keys. She hade here on a whim inplete panic as Young-Joon strongly suggested that theye here. ¡®But is it okay toe to the pharmacy because the vet is closed? What can we do here?¡¯ Song Ji-Hyun¡¯s hand trembled, causing her to miss the keyhole several times. ¡°Stay calm. It will be okay.¡± Young-Joonforted her. When Young-Joon entered the pharmacy, he put down the golden retriever on one side and began rummaging through the shelves. His Synchronization Mode was on, so he could see the chemical structure ofmercial drugs as soon as he opened the box. After making a little bit of a mess on the counter... [Cleo] Young-Joon found the drug he was looking for. To be more specific, he had found hydrocortisone acetate, aponent of the treatment. It was a hormone that was secreted from the adrenal nds, and it was a strong anti-inmmatory drug. No one in the world knew this yet, but it also was able to stop the growth of the parvovirus. Young-Joon squeezed the long end of the Cleo bottle. He squeezed out two bottles and fed it to the retriever. ¡°What are you doing? What are you giving him?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked with wide eyes. ¡°It says Cleo on the tube.¡± ¡°That¡¯s an ointment for cuts on people!¡± Song Ji-Hyun shouted in shock. ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°No! Are you insane?¡± Surprised, Song Ji-Hyun pushed Young-Joon out of the way and hugged her dog. ¡°Brownie!¡± She was shaking the dog¡¯s face and trying to get it to vomit out the treatment. ¡°The dog¡¯s name is Brownie? What a name...¡± Song Ji-Hyun did not reply and took out a bottle of hydrogen peroxide from the cupboard with an angry face. She ran to the water dispenser and got some cold water. As she was about to mix in an equal amount of hydrogen peroxide into the water, Young-Joon grabbed her arm. ¡°You¡¯re trying to get Brownie to vomit, right? There¡¯s no need.¡± ¡°Let go! What did you do to...¡± ¡°Your dog is alive. Look.¡± Young-Joon pointed to Brownie. The dog still couldn¡¯t get up, but it was now conscious. It was staring at Song Ji-Hyun. ¡°...¡± There was a look of shock on Song Ji-Hyun¡¯s face. Whimper... Whine... When Song Ji-Hyun got close, Brownie made crying sounds and licked her finger. ¡°Still, it¡¯s just a temporary treatment. Take her to the vet right away when it opens. It looks like it¡¯s a parvovirus infection, which doesn¡¯t have any kind of treatment.¡± ¡®Well, it didn¡¯t exist until now.¡¯ ¡°You¡¯re going to have to treat the symptoms and take care of it so that the dog can beat it on its own,¡± Young-Joon said. It didn¡¯t look like Young-Joon would have to administer more Cleo as Brownie was getting better, ording to what he saw through Synchronization Mode. Since it was a big dog, it would be able to heal on its own by getting enough rest and eating well. ¡°...What on Earth did you do?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked in bewilderment. ¡°How did you know an ointment for human skin would be effective on a dog?¡± ¡®Because Rosaline told me.¡¯ But it was normal that Song Ji-Hyun was surprised. Even drugs that were being sold could have unknown therapeutic effects or be toxic to specific patients or illnesses, but most pharmacists, doctors, and scientists did not know that. People were unexpectedly finding anticancer effects or antibiotic properties in vegetables like tomatoes, which people have eaten for thousands of years. It was the same formercial drugs; they could also have properties that even the scientists who studied andmercialized them were not aware of. Recently, a study showed that minocycline, a widely used antibiotic, could dy the onset of dementia, which was surprising. Minocycline was already being sold as its own product, but no one had known that it had therapeutic effects on dementia. It was natural; how could someone imagine a toxin, which was used to kill harmful bacteria in the gut could help prevent brain cells from being destroyed? There was no reason to experiment because no one would expect something like that, and so, its effects would never be known. Simrly, how could someone figure out that an ointment treatment for cuts could be given to dogs to suppress the growth of the parvovirus and infections? If it wasn¡¯t for Rosaline, nobody would have known it for a hundred years. To Song Ji-Hyun, who was a pharmacist very knowledgeable in drugs, it looked like Young-Joon was magical. ¡®But I can¡¯t tell her that Rosaline is the one who told me.¡¯ Young-Joon made an excuse. ¡°There was some data rted to this from ourpany. I used it because it was an emergency and your dog was in bad shape, but you can¡¯t go around talking about it, okay? I trusted you and used it because it was urgent. I couldn¡¯t let your dog die.¡± Song Ji-Hyun just stared at Young-Joon in surprise. It seemed like she was still in shock. ¡°Anyway, go to the vet once it opens. I¡¯ll be on my way. I kind of want to take a shower since I exercised,¡± Young-Joon hurriedly made an excuse to leave. ¡°Wait!¡± Song Ji-Hyun quickly stopped him as Young-Joon was about to leave. ¡°Um...¡± She looked a little flushed. ¡°Thank you. I¡¯ll treat you to a meal sometime. If it¡¯s okay, could I get your number...¡± Song Ji-Hyun slowly gave her phone to Young-Joon. ¡®Holy. I¡¯ve never had someone get my number in my life.¡¯ Young-Joon took her phone and put in his number. ¡°You said your name was Ryu Young-Joon?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°My name is Song Ji-Hyun.¡± ¡°I know, I saw your name tag that was on your gown.¡± ¡°Oh, really? Anyway, I¡¯ll give you a call once Brownie gets better. Thank you.¡± ¡°Alright. Take care.¡± Young-Joon bowed slightly and left the pharmacy. On the way home, Young-Joon¡¯s heart was thumping with excitement froming up with an amazing idea. He ran faster than when he was jogging and came home. Instead of hopping in the shower, he turned on Rosaline¡¯s status window first. ¡®I¡¯m going to make new drugs for animals.¡¯ This would allow him to bypass clinical trials as a whole since he didn¡¯t need to do them. Animal experiments were the alpha and omega of drug development; if he could prove that the drug had effects during this stage, he couldmercialize it right away. It felt like he had taken a step down since he was making doggy drugs now when he made a flu treatment candidate that was worth three billion won, but it didn¡¯t matter. It was all about quantity. Since animal disease treatments have not been studied well, there weren¡¯t many drugs that had been discovered. For example, there were five different kinds of treatments that showed up when he looked into the parvovirus. And Young-Joon would be able to patent it all since there was nothing that had been found before. He would be able to find dozens of potential drug candidates. One sophisticated drug that cured aplex disease was good, but gathering a bunch of patents with drugs that weren¡¯t time-consuming was also good when Young-Joon didn¡¯t have any foundation yet. And since a lot of people were invested in pets now, the drugs would be pretty valuable. It would be on a whole different level if Young-Joon expanded it to the livestock industry. There were countless animals that died every time the bird flu or cholera went around. They died meaningless deaths, and it was also a huge economic loss, even in Korea, where the industry wasn¡¯t very big. How worse would it be for ces like the USA? It would have unimaginable merit. * * * ¡°I¡¯m done! Freedom!¡± It was Monday past midnight. Patent Attorney Lee Hae-Won had justpleted the papers necessary for the patent for Young-Joon¡¯s flu treatment. It kept her busy for the entire week. She actually had the draft finished on Thursday, but she took her time and was thorough; she had put her effort into it since Young-Joon was her first client after opening her own office, and since he hade here on Park Joo-Hyuk¡¯s rmendation. Now, all she had to do was submit the documents and data. But she had to send them to Young-Joon first as she had to cross-check with the patent holder. Ring. After sending Young-Joon an email with the documents regarding the patent filing, she went onto Coupang and began to do some inte shopping.[1] ¡°Now, let¡¯s have some fun.¡± She saw that a portable hand warmer with a kitty character design that also worked as a charger was only 19,800 won. Lee Hae-Won bought that, considering it a gift for herself since she worked until night on the weekends. ¡®I¡¯m also out of water.¡¯ She also ordered six two-liter water bottles. Lee Hae-Won read a few news articles, then took some selfies and posted them on Instagram. [It¡¯s a Sunday, but I worked hard!! #LateNights #PatentAttorney #Patent #HaeWonInternationalPatentOffice #...] As she was about to write #newdrug, a message notification popped up at the top of her phone screen. [This is Young-Joon. Please give me a call when you have time. Now is fine as well if you¡¯re awake.] Lee Hae-Won called. ¡ªHello. ¡°Hello.¡± ¡ªSorry to bother you thiste at night. ¡°That¡¯s fine! I just finished your patent application documents. Did you see the email I sent you?¡± ¡ªYes, that¡¯s the reason I messaged you. ¡°Yes. I will proceed with it if you¡¯re okay with it. The experimental data just needs to be given in a year. That¡¯s alright with you?¡± ¡ªThe cell experiment data will probablye out next week. It will take a little longer with the animal experiment data, though. ¡°Really?¡± Lee Hae-Won was shocked at how fast Young-Joon finished the job since it usually took people around a year. ¡°I guess it was a very effective drug. Let me know when you get the data. We should discuss the data together and decide what parts to take for the patent.¡± ¡ªYes, let¡¯s do that. And I have more drugs to file patents on. ¡°You have more?¡± ¡ªYes. They are new drugs for pets and livestock. I want you to file them out. Young-Joon looked through the patent application Lee Hae-Won wrote, and it was quite good. Park Joo-Hyuk had really rmended a good attorney. He decided to leave all of his new pet drugs to her. ¡°How many?¡± Lee Hae-Won asked. ¡ª122. ¡°Pardon?¡± Lee Hae-Won reacted as if she just doubted what she heard. ¡ªI am going to file patents for 122 drugs for thirty-four different diseases. I will send them to you right now. Shocked, Lee Hae-Won was at a loss for words. ¡°...¡± ¡®122?¡¯ Lee Hae-Won was sure she heard Young-Joon right, but she could not understand what he was saying. It kind of felt like a mukbang BJ saying that they were going to have a light snack of thirty Big Macs, two hundred fries, and three liters of Coke.[2] ¡°122 as in one hundred in the Arabic numbers that I know, and twenty-two more than that?¡± ¡ªThat¡¯s right. It¡¯s a lot, right? ¡°...¡± Lee Hae-Won nked out for a bit, then asked, ¡°122? No, how...¡± ¡ªRx, you heard me right. I¡¯ll send you all of them by email, so please take a look at them. ¡°What stage are the drugs at?¡± ¡ªThey haven¡¯t been synthesized yet. ¡°Oh, so you¡¯re filing patents for the ones that will have therapeutic effects?¡± ¡ªNo. They will all be effective. ¡°...¡± ¡ªI should have results in about three months if I press Reaction Chemistry and Cell Bio hard. Although, I will have to use some money. What would your rate be at? ¡°I haven¡¯t done anything this big before, so...¡± ¡ªDoes that mean I can¡¯t ask you? ¡°No! I¡¯ll do it! Leave it to me!¡± Lee Hae-Won shouted with determination. * * * On Monday morning, Lab Six Director Gil Hyung-Joon was shocked when he saw the documents that thew office sent him. It was because of the patent application Young-Joon filled out and the contract he electronically created. ¡°This crazy bastard!¡± Gil Hyung-Joon threw the papers on the floor, fuming with anger. His assistant was standing near him and stared at him in surprise. ¡°Look at what this asshole wrote! He put his share as ten percent and left the eighty percent as funding for his department. Is thepany his fxxking yground or something?!¡± He mmed his fist on his desk. ¡°Call this bastard right now. No, I¡¯ll do it myself. I knew what this guy would be like from the moment he swore at Director Kim. He¡¯s a tumor to thispany.¡± Gil Hyung-Joon roughly grabbed his phone and dialed Young-Joon¡¯s number. 1. Coupang is the Korean-equivalent of Amazon. ? 2. Mukbang is a broadcast/video where the host consumes food as they talk to the audience. ? Chapter 24: The First Author (2)

Chapter 24: The First Author (2)

Gil Hyung-Joon was about to press the phone number for the Life Creation Department, but his finger wandered in front of his phone screen. He had memorized all the department phone numbers in Lab Six, but it was a little difficult to remember their number since he had only called that garbage department a few times. He asked his assistant, ¡°What was the number for the Life Creation Department?¡± ¡°437...¡± ¡°Oh, wait.¡± ¡®Let¡¯s think about this.¡¯ This bastard Young-Joon was one of the hottest celebrities within the entire A-Genb right now, and most of all, Nichs embraced him as if he were his own. Nichs liked Young-Joon so much that it looked like he wanted to adopt him. After the seminar, CTO Nichs Kim had apany dinner with only theb directors, and he hadplimented Young-Joon so much that his lips almost fell off. ¡°But how did a scientist as talented as him go to the Life Creation Department? Did he apply to go?¡± Nichs asked. ¡°He had some conflict with me. I had a talk with HR and transferred him there,¡± Kim Hyun-Taek answered. ¡°That¡¯s unfortunate. To have trouble with you out of all people... What happened?¡± Nichs asked. ¡°Well, there were just some things that we didn¡¯t agree on work-wise. He was talented, but also arrogant, so he didn¡¯t get along with others that well. I was going to fire him, but I didn¡¯t think he would make something like that.¡± ¡°Hm.¡± Nichs took a sip of his drink. After some thought, he said, ¡°Director Gil Hyung-Joon, I assume you are going to leave them be for a year since they got the Award for Exceptional Performance?¡± Gil Hyung-Joon really hated that he had to do that, but he had no other choice. ¡°Yes, of course.¡± ¡°Director. I really want to observe Doctor Ryu for a long time. Please try to go easy on them and look after them no matter what happens. Science ispleted by one genius putting thest piece in a puzzle that ny-nine gifted scientists put together.¡± ¡°Yes, sir.¡± ¡°The whole world willugh at us if we lose a genius like that. Hold onto him and keep him at thepany at all costs unless he swears at your face or something.¡± Kim Hyun-Taek, whom Young-Joon already swore at, flinched. ¡°Alright,¡± Gil Hyung-Joon replied. Nichs smiled with excitement. In the seven years they had Nichs on as the CTO, they had never seen him this happy. A world-famous scientist like Nichs Kim was swooning over Young-Joon right now. Gil Hyung-Joon put down his phone. He thought it wouldn¡¯t be right for him to break his promise right on Monday morning after getting a request like that during his Fridaypany dinner. So, Gil Hyung-Joon read through the patent again. ¡®Fuck. Still, this isn¡¯t right.¡¯ It was more ridiculous the more Gil Hyung-Joon thought about it. He could kill him or let it pass. He thought about it for a while until a good idea popped into his head. He could get someone else to do it if he couldn¡¯t handle it himself. Someone who could keep Nichs in check and an executive who had power in another way. As Gil Hyung-Joon signed off on Young-Joon¡¯s document, he wrote down Ji Kwang-Man for the next approval. ¡°Take this to management.¡± Gil Hyung-Joon said as he gave the assistant the papers. Ji Kwang-Man was the division manager of management at A-Gen headquarters. The management division was where patent-rted documents were finalized anyway. Usually, they were taken care of by employees lower than executive managers, but Young-Joon could put the division manager¡¯s name down since it was important. He felt like this patent was worthy of a division manager¡¯s approval since it was a patent for a technology that held tremendous value. ¡®Ji Kwang-Man.¡¯ ¡°Hehehe...¡± Gil Hyung-Joon couldn¡¯t help but chuckle thinking about how he was going to berate Young-Joon. Ji Kwang-Man was called the Mad Hound at the headquarters. He was huge, including his head, and he also looked vicious, making him look like a gangster. But his personality was respectable enough that he could be treated as the gang boss. One time, Illsung Hospital only prescribed a certain drug after getting a rebate from Roche Korea. When Ji Kwang-Man found out, he reported this to the Anti-corruption & Civil Rights Commission. Of course, this was the appropriate response. But he didn¡¯t stop there. He hired a bunch of actors and sent them to Illsung Hospital. They caused a scene in the lobby in front of the administration desk and exposed the hospital and their rebates. They screamed about simple and provocative stories, such as how their kid died from the hospital taking bribes and using worse drugs, in front of the patients. It was extremely impactful. Ji Kwang-Man even had reporters waiting there so that they could report that. It ended up making the front page of the morning news. From the next day, Illsung Hospital began prescribing A-Gen products. The funny part about it was that for the product in question, Roche¡¯s product was actually a little bit better than A-Gen¡¯s. However, the image of the rebate that was put on Roche made their product look worse, and A-Gen gained rebound profits. For a while, even other university hospitals used more of A-Gen¡¯s productspared to Roche¡¯s. That was the kind of person Ji Kwang-Man was. The government was slow, and it took a long time to sort things out legally. If Ji Kwang-Man took this path and Illsung Hospital received punishment, what kind of gains would there be for A-Gen? ¡®Take the surest,rgest, and fastest way when taking profit.¡¯ This was Ji Kwang-Man¡¯s philosophy. Gil Hyung-Joon put his feet up on his desk with a smile on his face. Young-Joon, A-Gen¡¯s famous scientist with intermittent explosive disorder who cursed at Kim Hyun-Taek, against Ji Kwang-Man, the Mad Hound of Management. They were iparable in terms of their rank in thepany, but Young-Joon was a rising star that Nichs embraced. What if¡ªalthough it wouldn¡¯t happen¡ªNichs epted this insane patent application? If Nichs supported him that much, this could be a battle between Nichs and Ji Kwang-Man. Of course, whatever it was, Gil Hyung-Joon just had to sit back and watch. * * * There were a lot of ideas about how Gil Hyung-Joon should screw Young-Joon up, but surprisingly, no action was actually taken against him. ¡°I can¡¯t believe it. Do you think Gil Hyung-Joon really epted it?¡± Jung Hae-Rim asked during lunch. ¡°But if he did, management would call him, saying that there was something wrong with the patent application that someone named Ryu Young-Joon from yourb submitted,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung replied. ¡°They will call us during the afternoon,¡± Park Dong-Hyun added. ¡°You know management people start their work after eating lunch. They take such a long time with something they can get done by just submitting one document. It¡¯s frustrating.¡± However, Park Dong-Hyun¡¯s prediction was wrong; instead of a phone call, someone came all the way down to theb. It was Manager Yoon Bo-Hyun from management. At one o¡¯clock in the afternoon, he went straight to the Life Creation Department as soon as he got his visitor pass from theb entrance. ¡°Hello,¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun said, standing in front of the office entrance. ¡°Who are you?¡± Park Dong-Hyun asked as he was about to enter theb. ¡°I¡¯m Manager Yoon Bo-Hyun from management.¡± ¡°Ah, yes. Hello.¡± ¡°Is Scientist Ryu Young-Joon here by chance?¡± ¡°Young-Joon.¡± Park Dong-Hyun called him over. Young-Joon was sitting in front of hisputer with an academic paper file opened, pretending to read it. He was actually tapping on Rosaline¡¯s status window, designing his next experiment with stem cells. ¡°Did you call for me?¡± Young-Joon looked up over the partition and asked. ¡°Here. Manager Yoon Bo-Hyun is here to see you.¡± Young-Joon shook hands with Yoon Bo-Hyun and moved to the small conference room. ¡°Doctor Ryu, how have you been? We¡¯ve seen each other before, right?¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun made small talk with Young-Joon as they walked to the conference room. Yoon Bo-Hyun was right; he and Young-Joon had seen each other before. They saw each other once, and it was a nightmare of a memory for Young-Joon. Yoon Bo-Hyun was the person who asked him to buy Illoa, Celligener¡¯s liver cancer treatment, and conduct aparative experiment. He was an assistant manager then, but he had already be a manager. Young-Joon didn¡¯t get a good vibe from him for some reason. Yoon Bo-Hyun reached into his bag and gave something to him when they arrived at the small conference room. It was a can of coffee from the convenience store. ¡°Have it. I bought it at the GS25 near here,¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun said to Young-Joon.[1] ¡°There¡¯s a coffee machine in here and a cafe downstairs as well.¡± ¡°But canned coffee is so much better, don¡¯t you think? Do I just have cheap taste? Haha.¡± Young-Joon opened his canned coffee and took a sip. It had gotten a little cold, and it was now lukewarm. ¡°There¡¯s a rumor going around that you killed it at the seminar, Doctor Ryu,¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun said as he took a sip of his coffee. ¡°I did.¡± ¡°A scientist interrupted a presentation with all theb directors present and showed astonishing data, then bam! I heard you received a standing ovation from the CTO?¡± ¡°Well, I guess so.¡± ¡°Wow, amazing. I thought it was some TV show, you know? If you get a call to shoot something here, call me. I want to see what goes on.¡± ¡°Do you mind getting to the point? I have an experiment to run. What do you have for me?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Oh right. We wouldn¡¯t want to keep our most expensive employee here. I¡¯m sorry.¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun pulled out a bundle of papers from his briefcase. [Patent Application] [Inventor: Ryu Young-Joon, Park Dong-Hyun, Jung Hae-Rim, Koh Soon-Yeol. This includes the stem cell technology that dedifferentiated a normal somatic cell into an embryonic stem cell.] Yoon Bo-Hyun grinned. ¡°I don¡¯t know why someone as smart as you made this kind of mistake. The share ratio is especially weird.¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun asked. ¡°Everything written there is right. I am taking ten percent, Seniors Koh Soon-Yeol, Park Dong-Hyun, and Jung Hae-Rim get three percent each. The headquarters and Lab Six both get 0.5 percent, and the rest go to the Life Creation Department. I am thinking of having the final approval of those funds with a separate contract.¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun red at Young-Joon for a little bit. ¡°Doctor Ryu, share ratios like this are unheard of. They don¡¯t exist.¡± ¡°We would be setting a good example.¡± ¡°Why do you want the Life Creation Department to have a share?¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun asked. ¡°There are a lot of things I want to study. The reason I have the final approval is to not let others use it. I trust our department members, but HR could transfer other people to our team, right? Since I am the one who invented it, I think I have that right. Well, it¡¯s not like I¡¯m going to use it for personal use. I will write a proposal and leave it for evaluation as well.¡± ¡°... Sigh, this isn¡¯t going to be easy. This is just apletely personal question, but why did you put the one percent for the headquarters and thebs? Surely, you didn¡¯t seriously consider thepany¡¯s sake when you wrote this insane patent application.¡± ¡°I did genuinely consider thepany¡¯s sake. I got help from the headquarters¡¯ patent team in developing the technology and writing the application, and I used Lab Six¡¯s facilities too. To be honest, I thought it was like a 0.3 percent contribution, but I was easy on you. Consider it on the house.¡± ¡°Are you going to fight thepany or something?¡± ¡°To be honest, I don¡¯t even understand why I have to fight. It was my idea, my results from experimentation, and the scientists at our department found the data to prove it. Didn¡¯t I give thepany a lot more than it actually deserves?¡± ¡°Management is hitting the roof over this right now. If this doesn¡¯t get taken care of here with me, you¡¯ll be summoned to the headquarters. And you must put Lab Director Gil Hyung-Joon¡¯s name on it.¡± ¡°The first time I saw his face after transferring here was at the seminar. And do you think he would have allowed me to do this experiment if I told him that I was working on induced pluripotent stem cells before meeting him? No, he would have stopped me. He has no share.¡± ¡°... You have a unique way of thinking.¡± ¡°Including them because they are your superiors or supervisors. Putting them as the first author even though they didn¡¯t do anything just because they oversaw the project. I cannot allow those kinds of things. This is correct ording to research ethics.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not going to listen even if I keep talking, are you?¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun asked. ¡°Of course not,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°Then you will be summoned to the management headquarters.¡± ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll finish up the experiment I was doing and head there right away. Please make an appointment for me.¡± As Young-Joon was about to get up, Yoon Bo-Hyun frowned. ¡°Doctor Ryu, sit.¡± ¡°Do you have more to say?¡± ¡°Thanks to you, the Life Creation Department is finally starting to have a better image. But are you going to piss off the superiors again like this?¡± ¡°... Manager Yoon.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Do you think I¡¯d be in this department if I was scared of that?¡± ¡°Hm...¡± ¡°Please tell that to the superiors and let the patent pass as is. That¡¯s the best decision.¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you juste with me? Finish up your experiment ande back,¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun said with a smirk on his face. A-Gen Headquarters was in Yeoksam. The headquarters did not have ab; they only took care of the business aspect. Departments like the management division and the finance division were all there. Low-ranking scientists didn¡¯t really have any reason to go visit the headquarters. However, at four o¡¯clock in the afternoon, Young-Joon was there. The atmosphere in the building was tense. As Young-Joon went into the division manager¡¯s office, Yoon Bo-Hyun, who returned without any results, began chatting with Executive Manager Lee Hyun-Woo. ¡°I failed. He¡¯s aplete lunatic.¡± ¡°But our manager is also very...¡± Lee Hyun-Woo said in a worried voice. ¡°Well yes, but our manager is predictable since he only works for profit. But Young-Joon... He kind of feels like a lunatic who has strong beliefs. He is devout to research ethics. From what I can tell, I bet he bows at Kant¡¯s grave three times before going to bed. * * * Ji Kwang-Man gave Young-Joon a bottle of cold water. ¡°I heard that Yoon Bo-Hyun was unsessful in persuading you,¡± Ji Kwang-Man said. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°What is it that you want, Doctor Ryu?¡± ¡°It¡¯s to get this patent application finished.¡± ¡°No,¡± Ji Kwang-Man said as he shook his head. ¡°I¡¯m asking what you want to do in the future after getting this patent approved.¡± ¡°I will further develop iPSCs and create a good drug.¡± Ji Kwang-Man just silently stared at Young-Joon. Ji Kwang-Man¡¯s face was twice the size of Park So-Yeon¡¯s. His protruding eyes had an overwhelming weight to them. ¡°This is a direct defiance of orders, and you¡¯re interfering with management. What are you going to do if I refuse?¡± Ji Kwang-Man asked. ¡°Then I will give up patenting the current item, quit, and then go to the US. I will file the patent there again, and I will go to Pfizer with that same condition.¡± ¡°...Do you think that will work? That patent is ours, ording to regtions regarding employee inventions. What will you do if we sue you?¡± ¡°It¡¯s going to be hard to prove that part. My job responsibilities are about life creation, not stem cells. And actually, A-Gen¡¯s facilities had a trivial effect. This is worth having a legal dispute over.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Since Pfizer is money-mad too, they are going to protect me to take the patent worth hundreds of trillions of dors. If so, you will be making this an international battle. It doesn¡¯t matter if I don¡¯t win; A-Gen would lose a tremendous amount of time,¡± Young-Joon said. He added, ¡°And in the meantime, I will finish the follow-up research with these stem cells at Pfizer and finish treating nerve damage in clinical trials. A-Gen would lose priority in this entire field.¡± 1. GS25 is a famous convenience store chain in Korea. ? Chapter 25: The First Author (3)

Chapter 25: The First Author (3)

Division Manager Ji Kwang-Man stared at Young-Joon in thought. His protruding eyes were extremely intense and made Young-Joon slightly ufortable. He looked like a thousand-old toad that was staring at its prey before it was about to eat it. But weirdly, Ji Kwang-Man¡¯s facial expression did not seem hostile; it just looked like he was running calctions in his head. He didn¡¯t say anything, but Young-Joon could see that he was considering every possible scenario and calcting the gains and losses of each one. Young-Joon felt his hands sweat a little. He was a little nervous as Ji Kwang-Man was staying silent for a while, but he held his breath and waited cautiously. ¡°Interesting.¡± Ji Kwang-Man opened his mouth. ¡°It¡¯s an interesting story. You¡¯re the most fascinating person I¡¯ve met recently, Doctor Ryu.¡± Young-Joon stayed silent. ¡°But Doctor Ryu, do I look like someone who would be flustered because a mere scientist is threatening to go to Pfizer?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. But what I can tell is that you don¡¯t seem like a person to judge someone entirely on their rank.¡± Ji Kwang-Man chuckled. ¡°You¡¯re not backing down even a little bit, are you? You definitely have the guts to curse at Director Kim... but you know you can only do things like that if you have the skills to back you up, right? If you don¡¯t, it¡¯s nothing but acting out.¡± ¡°Of course,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°How are you going to prove that you¡¯re talented? I know that you presented great results at the seminar. But your past performance does not matter when we are talking about your next performance, right?¡± ¡°I will treat nerve damage with iPSCs. I will sessfully treat it in animal experiments, so please prepare a clinical trial for it.¡± ¡°How long do you need?¡± ¡°A month should be enough.¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu, I majored in business, but I also studied biology on the side. I may not know how to do experiments, but I know as much theory as a newbie scientist. I also know how monumental your iPSC technology is, and I also know that it¡¯s in its early stages. But you¡¯re saying that you¡¯re going to finish pre-clinical trial experiments in just a month?¡± ¡°I can do it.¡± ¡°It¡¯s something that other scientists couldn¡¯t do, even if they were given decades. You know that, right?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°...Hm.¡± Ji Kwang-Man rose from his seat and walked over to the window. He crossed his arms and looked out the window in thought. ¡°Doctor Ryu, I am a businessman, so I only think about profit. No matter what it is, if I consider the gains and losses and I can profit from it, I¡¯ll do it. Whether it be giving an associate manager-level employee a right to the final approval of a huge budget or giving an individual ten percent of a huge patent.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°But I¡¯m not sure whether it will be a gain for thepany to give you such powers, Doctor Ryu.¡± Ji Kwang-Man turned his head and red at Young-Joon. ¡°You can finish pre-clinical trial experiments for treating nerve damage with iPSCs in a month? If you¡¯re that talented, why are you still at ourpany? If it were me, I would start my own business. You would earn more money that way and be treated better.¡± ¡°Even if I did, all I would be able to make would be trivial drugs. The only ce that has the infrastructure to grow artificial organs with iPSCs and differentiate them into new tissue is this ce. And that¡¯s the kind of research I want to do.¡± ¡°Is that all?¡± ¡°It is. There are countless patients who are living a hard life with irreversible damage in their bodies. I want to develop iPSCs and treat people like that.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t really understand people like you, Doctor Ryu. You probably hate thepany after fighting with Director Kim Hyun-Taek like that, but the only reason you¡¯re staying is because you want to study iPSCs, and the only ce that has the infrastructure is here?¡± ¡°That¡¯s correct.¡± ¡°Are you saying it¡¯s just because of your pure passion for developing new drugs?¡± ¡°Do you know the reason why I fought against Director Kim and got demoted?¡± Ji Kwang-Man closed his eyes. ¡°I do.¡± It all happened after A-Gen destroyed a superior liver cancer drug that Celligener developed. After knowing about it, Young-Joon exploded in anger, saying that it was against research ethics, and he ended up cursing Kim Hyun-Taek in his face and fighting him. ¡®So, what kind of person is Ryu Young-Joon?¡¯ If Young-Joon thought politically, even just a little bit, he wouldn¡¯t have been able to go against a person of power like Kim Hyun-Taek. That was an ident that happened because Young-Joon was a scientist who was truly pure and ethical, and could not calcte his gains and losses. That was what Yoon Bo-Hyun reported as well; Young-Joon was an oddball genius who was crazy about science and research ethics. If Young-Joon started his own business with his talent, he would make a lot of small drugs and get rich; he would live out the rest of his life loaded with money. But he was saying that the reason he was staying at A-Gen was because he wanted to develop iPSCs into a treatment. If snakes like Gil Hyung-Joon said anything like that, he would have stopped them there. He wouldn¡¯t have believed them since it would be dangerous for someone who had the power to control a huge budget like that to go against management. ¡®But what precedents has this young man shown?¡¯ ¡°...¡± Ji Kwang-Man opened his eyes. ¡°Alright. I will give you one month.¡± ¡®Whatever. I¡¯ll y his game and I¡¯ll watch him a little longer.¡¯ ¡°Complete your animal model experiments sessfully and bring me the results in a month. In the meantime, I¡¯ll put this as a provisional application, and I will leave the status of this contract as pending, too.¡± ¡°Please assure me that you will proceed as is if I seed.¡± ¡°If you seed, I will approve of this patent application request and your contract. I give you my word. And one more thing.¡± Ji Kwang-Man added, ¡°I will give the Stem Cells Department the same assignment. Please share the iPSC technology with them. I will not interfere with whatever disease model you treat with it. You and the Stem Cell Department can have different results.¡± ¡°The Stem Cells Department... Like you said, it is not easy to sessfully treat a disease in an animal model in a month. I do not want to put any pressure on that department.¡± ¡°I am not going to punish them or anything if they are unable to do it. But to really prove that you are more exceptional than other scientists and that you are valuable enough for us to give you almost ny percent of the shares of a patent, we need aparison group, do we not?¡± ¡°... Alright.¡± Young-Joon smiled slightly when Ji Kwang-Man mentioned aparison group. It was a scientific term that referred to a separate sample that was only treated with thepetitive drug when trying to prove a candidate drug¡¯s effectiveness. Division Manager Ji Kwang-Man. There were countless rumors that he was the Mad Hound or that he was a gang member, but now that Young-Joon met him, he was just an extremely logical person. There were times when extremely rational and calcted judgements could paradoxically look monstrous or like a maniac. That was the kind of person Ji Kwang-Man was; he was a sociopathic person who would do anything and everything for profit and sess. There was a reason why people were afraid of him. Young-Joon thought, ¡®Ah, now that I think of it, I have someone worse than that in my head.¡¯ Young-Joon remembered Rosaline, who calcted the breakeven point with human lives and suggested that they eradicate the flu by spreading the disease intentionally. Rosaline was a true lunatic¡ªa psychopath on another level... It was weird, but Young-Joon felt a little reassured. ¡°Then I will see you in a month.¡± Young-Joon bowed and left. * * * ¡®One month...¡¯ Young-Joon had set the conditions himself, but he almost felt sorry for the Stem Cells Department. Even if he gave them the recipe to make induced pluripotent stem cells, it would take over a month just to recreate that. But to sessfully treat an animal disease model... ¡®If they could do that, none of the Stem Cell Department members would be there. They would beb directors...¡¯ But since they werepeting now, he was going to give it everything he had and surpass them. Young-Joon went to find Lead Scientist Bae Sun-Mi. She was looking at nude mouse model data on herputer. ¡°Lead Bae.¡± When Young-Joon called her, she turned and looked at Young-Joon, startled. ¡°You¡¯re looking at nude mice.¡± ¡°Haha, it¡¯s not really rted to what we do. You caught me fooling around.¡± A little embarrassed, Bae Sun-Mi closed the browser on herputer. Nude mice were a type of experiment rats that had no immune system. Additionally, they also had no fur, which gave them their name. They were usually used when studying immune responses. Bae Sun-Mi was a scientist who used to work at the Experiment Animal Resource Center, and she usually performed animal experiments. She ended up here after having some conflict with her superiors about maternity leave and other things when she had her second child. But even when she was doing biosynthesis experiments here, she really missed animal experiments. Because of that, she sometimes looked through new animal models, or the animal experiment services that A-Gen and otherpanies sold as products. ¡°Do you think we could do animal experiments?¡± Young-Joon asked Bae Sun-Mi. ¡°In our department?¡± ¡°I think mouse experiments will be good.¡± ¡°Wow. Do you have something in mind?¡± ¡°I¡¯m going to make optic nerves,¡± Young-Joon replied. Shock painted Bae Sun-Mi''s face; she couldn¡¯t understand what Young-Joon was saying. ¡°Optic... nerves?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°The stuff that¡¯s in the retina of your eye? The optic nerves that I know?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°You can make that with stem cells?¡± ¡°Stem cells can differentiate into all kinds of cells. Of course nerve cells are possible.¡± To Bae Sun-Mi, it was like Young-Joon was saying, ¡°A spaceship can go to outer space, and it can obviously go to Mars or Jupiter since it could fly in space. So, why don¡¯t we have our nextpany barbecue in Jupiter?¡± Of course iPSCs were incredible, but how could they make optic nerve cells with those? It was uncharted territory. It wasn¡¯t even a joke since they knew nothing about it. But there was a reason why Young-Joon set such a difficult target. This was the starting gun that was going to announce a new trend in medicine. He had to build his reputation worldwide and leave a huge impact. The target to reach for this was vision. A few years ago, there was big news about a pharmaceuticalpany called Spark releasing a new drug called Luxterna. This drug was a type of gene therapy that acted on the retina. It used a virus to insert an artificially synthesized RPE65 gene in patients with gic diseases that destroyed their RPE65 gene. When it was inserted, patients went fromplete blindness to having vision that allowed them to see the grayscale and contrast. It wasn¡¯t perfect, but it drastically improved one¡¯s quality of life. There was a huge difference in everyday life between only seeing pitch ck and being able to see shapes and the grayscale. The drug cost one million won per eye. It was extremely expensive, but people were lining up to do it. It was a little dramatic, but people probably wanted to sell their liver or part of their kidney to do it if they could. That was how much humans relied on the sense of vision. And after Luxterna achieved tremendous greatness, a fascinating trend happened in the pharmaceutical industry: a gene therapy boom. The story of opening a blind man¡¯s eye was incredibly impactful. The people who were against gene therapy, saying that its safety hadn¡¯t been proven and could be dangerous, had lost their justification. ¡®Dangerous or not, our child is about to die! Luxterna worked, too!¡¯ The voices of the people against gene therapy were buried by the overwhelming voices of people looking for other gene therapies like Luxterna. The atmosphere of pharmaceuticalpanies waspletely turned upside down, and they could no longer suppress the development of gene therapies. Several pharmaceuticalpanies including A-Gen poured a tremendous amount of their budget into developing gene therapies, and governments also supported them with huge amounts of money. As a result, dozens of new drugs had entered clinical trials in just a few years. It was the same for stem cells. What Young-Joon was doing was the first ever induced pluripotent stem cell therapy. He had to achieve greatness by having a huge impact on the world. He had to be at the center of attention by standing out in the medical field. He had to make Ji Kwang-Man, who was basically testing him, kneel and thank him with tears in his eyes. That would allow subsequent drugs using iPSCs to cruise through without difficulty. ¡°Optic nerve cells are much easier to achievepared to things like the spine or brain. But it¡¯s significant in that it can dramatically improve a patient¡¯s quality of life,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Yeah sure, but shouldn¡¯t we try easier...¡± Bae Sun-Mi mumbled doubtfully. ¡°It¡¯s okay, we¡¯ll be able to do it. Lead Bae, do you think we could get some mice models with degenerated retinas? End-stage.¡± A mice model of end-stage degenerated retinas meant that the mice¡¯s cells in the retina did not work at all; the mice werepletely blind. Young-Joon was going to create new optic nerves for them. He was going to create a new sense¡ªvision¡ªin mice that would have never seen anything in their life. Luxterna was a gene therapy that barely improved the state of a specific gic condition on perfectly normal optic nerve cells. Even so, it caused huge ripples throughout the field. But what Young-Joon was doing was going to reconstructpletely destroyed optic nerve cells as a whole. It was not just going to be a couple of mice opening their eyes; scientists and doctors worldwide would be opening their eyes to a new future of medicine. ¡°I¡¯ll try to get them. No matter what.¡± Bae Sun-Mi answered with a firm voice. ¡°Thank you,¡± Young-Joon replied. Chapter 26: The First Author (4)

Chapter 26: The First Author (4)

Bae Sun-Mi requested twenty-four retinal degeneration mouse models from the Experiment Animal Resource Center. And on the second day, someone from the Research Support Department showed up with a cart that had six cages on it. Each individual patient¡¯s cells had to be used when making induced pluripotent stem cells, and this was the same for mice as well. Young-Joon harvested fibrost cells from twenty out of the twenty-four mice and dedifferentiated them into stem cells by inserting the four genes into them. But this was not all; Young-Joon still had to differentiate those cells into optic nerve cells. He used the lentivirus to introduce a few new kinds of genes and grew them carefully for ten days by controlling the expression level. On Monday morning, Young-Joon opened the incubator and took out the nutrient broth. The broth contained hydrocortisone at a five micromr concentration. It was also treated with EGF and dorsomorphin. He did it all ording to what Rosaline directed him to do. The results were also exactly what Rosaline predicted: the stem cells differentiated into optic nerve cells. It worked. ¡®I made optic nerve cells.¡¯ Young-Joon felt chills down his body. He couldn¡¯t believe that he really made artificial optic nerve cells in just ten days. Now, he had to inject this in the eyes of the retinal degeneration mice with a syringe. ¡°Lead Bae, could you help me?¡± Young-Joon asked. He went into the animal experimentb with Bae Sun-Mi, gave each of the mice a number, then picked one up. This was the difficult part; Young-Joon had to inject the optic nerve cells into the mouse¡¯s eyes. He needed to anesthetize the mice and then precisely inject into the sub-retinal part of the eye. He needed a very experienced and skilled technician for this, and Bae Sun-Mi was this technician. ¡°I¡¯m a little nervous. It¡¯s been a long time since I¡¯ve done this.¡± Bae Sun-Mi gulped as she weighed the mouse. ¡°Two hundred seventy grams.¡± ¡°You¡¯re going to anesthetize them with ketamine and xzine, right? Into their arteries?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Yes,¡± Bae Sun-Mi replied. ¡°The amount?¡± Bae Sun-Mi tapped her calctor. ¡°1.04 grams of ketamine. And 248.4 milligrams of xzine.¡± Young-Joon prepared the anesthetic. Carefully, Bae Sun-Mi pierced the needle into the mouse¡¯s artery and pushed in the anesthetic. After a moment, the mouse stopped moving. Bae Sun-Mi put the mouse on the operating microscope so that the light was focused on the retina of the mouse. Then, she drew the optic nerve cells with a microsyringe. ¡°Phew...¡± Bae Sun-Mi¡¯s hands trembled a little. The end of the needle was right in front of the mouse¡¯s eye, but it could not go in. She tried a few times, then put down the needle. ¡°I can¡¯t do it...¡± She said. ¡°It¡¯s been too long since I¡¯ve done it... I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll try.¡± Young-Joon sat in front of the microscope. ¡°Doctor Ryu? Have you done animal experiments before?¡± ¡°No.¡± A scientist who has never done an animal experiment injecting something into the retina? It was no different from sacrificing one mouse, but Young-Joon could do it. [Synchronization Mode Activate!] Synchronization Mode allowed Young-Joon to observe biological processes at the angstrom level. The angstrom was usually a unit used to determine the movement of atoms. To put it into terms the public was more familiar with, it was basically 0.1 nanometers. Of course, 0.1 nanometers wasn¡¯t a normal measurement used in everyday life. It was a rough estimate, but it was about one millionth of the width of a single strand of hair. The end of the needle pierced above the iris of the eye. The nozzle, which smoothly followed the rim of the iris, stopped in front of the degenerated retina. Sheee... Young-Joon could hear the cells being dispersed from the nozzle as his senses were heightened because of his Synchronization Mode. The optic nerve cells were sticking to the retina of the mouse. Bae Sun-Mi was in shock at the extremely precise injection. ¡°What? Are you a robot or something...¡± ¡°That should¡¯ve been good, right?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°That was one of the most perfect injections I¡¯ve seen.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s do the rest of them quickly together.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll do it, too.¡± Bae Sun-Mi regained courage along with her skills from her prime time. With her, Young-Joon anesthetized each mouse and injected stem cells into their retina. Of course, Young-Joon was much faster; he did seven mice in the time Bae Sun-Mi did two, but that was it. [No more fitness remaining.] No matter how fast Young-Joon did it, his limit was seven. ¡°My eyes are a little sore... I¡¯ll take my time doing them, haha...¡± Young-Joon made an excuse. ¡°Of course. Don¡¯t worry about it, Doctor Ryu.¡± Bae Sun-Mi sped up a little. ¡®It¡¯s definitely much easier to have a technician like Bae Sun-Mi in the same team.¡¯ Bae Sun-Mi injected optic nerve cells into the mice quickly and precisely. Now, all they had to do was wait for the mice to wake up from the anesthetic and recover their vision. ¡°Good work, Lead Bae.¡± Young-Joon smiled brightly at Bae Sun-Mi. ¡°If this seeds, I¡¯m going to write a new patent and a paper. Your name will be in it, too.¡± ¡°Thank you. I¡¯ll have my name on a big paper thanks to you, Doctor Ryu.¡± ¡°I look forward to your help on animal experiments.¡± ¡°Trust me. I was the best scientist at the Experiment Animal Resource Center back in the years.¡± ¡°Haha, thank you.¡± Young-Joon left theb and opened his phone. He had an email. [Your manuscript has been epted.] It was an email from the editor of the Science journal. It said that the paper Young-Joon submitted had been approved. * * * There were three major journals in biology: Science, Nature, and Cell. They were the best scientific journals in the world, and every scientist¡¯s dream. Most university professors had never published any papers in these journals. It was natural as most papers in these kinds of journals usually had a very profound impact on the scientificmunity or provided extensive amounts of data through extremely strict experiments. Usually, mostbs and researchers did not have the capital or facilities to do a project that big nor did they have the ability to produce data like that. Then, which was the best: Science, Nature, or Cell? Each of them differed a little in their specialties, but Science was considered the best out of the three in terms of public image. It was a journal that had grown with the support of Thomas Edison and Graham Bell. It became a world-ss journal as papers like Einstein¡¯s study on the gravitational lens, Hubble¡¯s study on the gxy, the design and n for the Apollo program, and early papers on AIDS. Samuel, the editor-in-chief of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the publisher of Science, was in shock when he read the paper that was sent to him. ¡°What the...¡±[1] The paper was about how they dedifferentiated normal cells into stem cells. He had just read the first part, and it was insane; it was the most revolutionary paper he had seen in the past few years. Young-Joon Ryu, the first author and corresponding author. Soon-Yeol Koh, Hae-Rim Jung, and Dong-Hyun Park were the three authors after him. There were just four people. From Samuel¡¯s experience, a study like this had to be intensely studied for years by huge teams such as Harvard or Cold Spring Harbor. That would result in dozens of authors, and a few of them would probably be professors. Also, there would normally be two or three co-first authors, but this paper only had one first author and corresponding author. ¡°Young-Joon Ryu. Who is this person?¡± Samuel asked Jessie, an editor. ¡°He¡¯s a scientist that¡¯s working at A-Gen.¡± ¡°This is fake, right? It makes no sense that they did this with just four people, but the fact that this person is the only first author and the corresponding author means that they carried this project on their own. How did he...¡± ¡°It¡¯s most likely true. They wrote the analysis of the process of dedifferentiation in the discussion part perfectly, right? Take a look. A-Gen is distributing press releases right now.¡± ¡°Oh my god...¡± Samuel was at a loss for words after he read all of the discussion of the paper. ¡°Put this on the front page of the journal release next month. And let¡¯s get an interview, too. We have an editor that can speak Korean, right? Or we can hire an interpreter...¡± ¡°But you know the letter they sent to the editor? The one separate from the paper manuscript,¡± Jessie said to Samuel. ¡°A letter?¡± Samuel opened the letter attached to the back of the manuscript. ¡°If you read it, he asked us to not release it for a month and wait.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°He said that he was going to differentiate the iPSCs back into optic nerve cells and get retinal degenerative mice to regain vision.¡± ¡°What kind of crazy talk is that?¡± ¡°He asked us to release it with this one as a special once the dataes out.¡± tter. Samuel dropped his pen on the floor. These induced pluripotent stem cells alone were big enough to grab the attention of scientists all around the world. It was a paper that would be on the front page of Science, the best scientific journal in the world. After it gets published, a lot of universities would probably invite him to their school to teach. If he went to a conference, countless scientists woulde over for a handshake and ask him to do a project together. ¡®But is he saying that it¡¯s not enough? He¡¯s going to achieve the next level of feats and publish it at once? Curing a retinal degenerative model by creating optic nerve cells? In a month? How can this be possible?¡¯ ¡°It... It doesn¡¯t make sense. I have to send someone. Jessie, get some volunteers to meet Doctor Ryu to see the data in person and interview him. I have never heard of nor seen a scientist like him.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll go.¡± Jessie raised her hand up high like she was waiting for this. ¡°You?¡± Samuel asked. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°But you can¡¯t speak Korean.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll bring an interpreter. I¡¯ve always wanted to visit Korea. I¡¯m a fan of BTS.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not going on vacation, you know.¡± ¡°Of course. I¡¯ll get the job done. I¡¯m a little fascinated by Doctor Ryu now, too.¡± * * * Jessie got off at the Incheon International Airport with her interpreter and went to Lab Six of A-Gen. There were a lot of foreign scientists at the A-Genbs, but Jessie was a woman who caught everyone¡¯s eye. The scientists in theb all nced at the beautiful blonde woman wearing tight jeans, a sweater, and a white coat whenever she walked by. Jessie went to the Life Creation Department¡¯s office on the fourth floor of the building when it was time. ¡°Hello?¡± Jessie greeted Young-Joon with a few lines of Korean she had prepared. ¡°Hello, my name is Ryu Young-Joon.¡± Young-Joon shook hands with Jessie and went to the small conference room with her. She had brought her interpreter along with her, but she didn¡¯t really need him for her meeting with Young-Joon since the usualnguage for science was English. Most papers were in English, so people wrote them in English as well. A lot of people did their meetings in English as well. Young-Joon put the paper¡¯s data up on the screen in the small conference room and exined each one to Jessie. ¡°SOX2 controls the expression of DKK1 to suppress the Wnt signal and maintains the ability of differentiation...¡± Jessie¡¯s expression grew more and more ecstatic as she listened to his lecture. To be honest, she was a little doubtful at first because it was so radical, but now she had faith. ¡°Fantastic... You said you¡¯re going to publish this with a follow-up study, right?¡± Jessie asked. ¡°Yes. We¡¯re treating the nerves by making stem cells from the fibrost cells of the mice and differentiating them into optic nerve cells.¡± ¡°Is that experiment going well?¡± ¡°Would you like to see?¡± Young-Joon took Jessie to theb. ¡°You can leave the coffee here. You¡¯re not allowed food and drinks in theb,¡± Young-Joon said as he pointed to the cup of americano Jessie was holding. They went into the animalb together. Arge box was divided into two rooms with a ss pane and ck paper. The mice would be able to see the other room if Young-Joon moved the ck paper, but these mice were retinal degenerative mice; normally, they should not be able to see anything. ¡°Number one to twenty are the mice that have been treated with stem cells, and mice numbered from twenty-one to twenty-four haven¡¯t.¡± When Young-Joon moved the paper, twenty mice that were numbered one through twenty were interested in the new space in the other room. As Young-Joon ced a fake piece of bread that had no odor in the other room, the mice that had been treated ran toward the ss wall. The other four did not react. ¡°Oh my god...¡± Jessie stared at them in shock with her hand over her mouth. ¡°These mice had their vision restored?¡± ¡°We¡¯ll produce a few more pieces of data to prove it. I¡¯ve already written the paper. I will send it after I add the data and organize it a little.¡± ¡°Did you also do this, Doctor Ryu?¡± ¡°Me and Lead Scientist Bae Sun-Mi.¡± ¡°The two of you?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°...¡± Koh Soon-Yeol, Park Dong-Hyun, and Jung Hae-Rim, the three people who were in hisst paper were not here. There was someone new called Bae Sun-Mi, and again, the only first author and corresponding author was Young-Joon. Just him. Jessie felt goosebumps all over her arms. She could just tell from how he exined the data that he hadpletely mastered this research. Induced pluripotent stem cells, the reconstruction of optic nerve cells and curing retinal degeneration in animal models: these great achievements that were going to be huge milestones in medicine basically had happened in the hands of this man. Does this make sense? Jessie couldn¡¯t even believe it after seeing it with her own eyes. Was this really possible? Could one single scientist yield results like this? These results would probably turn the scientificmunity as well as the entire medical industry upside down. It wouldn¡¯t be able to cure all eye diseases, but he would be able to rescue quite arge fraction of blind people. Jessie gulped. ¡°I will prepare clinical trials right after the publication,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°... Doctor Ryu, this is research that could get you the Nobel Prize. Maybe not right away, but you will definitely receive the award when you¡¯re older and more experienced.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± ¡°I want to do an interview. I want to publish this as the cover of the next edition of Science and do a feature series on this. I want to put your interview and picture on the front page.¡± Jessie knew that she couldn¡¯t let this go. This could be an interview more important than the huge paper on stem cells and optic nerve treatment. A new star of biology. The most revolutionary person after Darwin. Jessie knew that she could not lose him to Nature or Cell. Science had to be the first one to report that a genius like Young-Joon took a giant step to advance science. 1. Samuel and Jessie, editors from the American Association for the Advancement of Science, are speaking in English. ? Chapter 27: A Supernova In the Scientific Community (1)

Chapter 27: A Supernova In the Scientific Community (1)

The interview did not take too long as Young-Joon had already prepared what he was going to say. Jessie also thought that this interview may be more important than the paper itself, but Young-Joon was sure; it was more important, especially for his future. Young-Joon had prepared for this interview a while ago. It was an interview that scientists all around the world were going to see, and countless reporters in Korea would fight to publish it first. For a moment, a massive amount of fame and honor would be given to him, and Young-Joon could not miss that opportunity. However, he had to get the timing right as the deadline for his promise to Ji Kwang-Man was getting close. This couldn¡¯t blow up too fast, and it couldn¡¯t be toote since all the excitement would die down. Young-Joon was about to take a bold first step toward the goal of bing A-Gen¡¯srgest shareholder and CEO. When Young-Joon finished the interview, it was time for him to go home. He thought it would be okay if he produced the data to prove the retinal degenerative mice regained vision a little slower. ¡°I¡¯m heading out. Good work, everyone.¡± Young-Joon said goodbye to the members of the Life Creation Department. ¡°Take care!¡± ¡°Have a great weekend!¡± Jung Hae-Rim and Bae Sun-Mi waved. As Young-Joon was going down on the elevator, he saw that he had missed a call from someone. It was from a number he didn¡¯t know. He pressed the button to return the call. ¡ªHello? It was the voice of a young woman. ¡°I called because I missed a call from this number.¡± ¡ªOh, yes. This is Young-Joon¡¯s phone, right? ¡°Yes it is.¡± ¡ªI¡¯m... Song Ji-Hyun. From the pharmacy outside Jungyoon University. ¡°Oh, yes. Hello.¡± ¡ªHaha, hello. Song Ji-Hyunughed as if she was a little embarrassed. Then, there was a moment of awkward silence. ¡ªMy Brownie is healthy thanks to you. She¡¯s in the hospital right now, but they said she¡¯ll get better soon. ¡°That¡¯s a relief. But what did you call me for?¡± ¡ªOh, did you get off work by chance? ¡°Yes, I just left.¡± Again, there was a moment of silence. ¡ªThen, um... Do you want to grab dinner together if you haven¡¯t yet? We could grab drinks if you want. Song Ji-Hyun asked Young-Joon cautiously. ¡°Do you like drinking?¡± ¡ªI kind of want to today. ¡°Then, should we go somewhere like an izakaya?¡± ¡ªSure. Do you want to meet me at the intersection in front of Jungyoon University? There¡¯s a good ce around there that I know of. ¡°I think I know where you¡¯re talking about. Late Night Kiyoi?¡± ¡ªYes! How did you know? ¡°Because I¡¯ve lived there for ten years. I think I¡¯ll arrive there in about thirty minutes. I¡¯ll meet you there.¡± * * * Young-Joon met Song Ji-Hyun at the intersection in front of Jungyoon University, and she was shockingly beautiful. He did think that she was pretty, but she was even more beautiful when she was dressed up. ¡°How is your dog? It was parvo, right?¡± Young-Joon asked Song Ji-Hyun on the way to the izakaya. ¡°It was. And she¡¯s much better now. I thought something was going to happen to her when she copsed, but she lived thanks to you.¡± ¡°That¡¯s good.¡± ¡°Do you have a girlfriend?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a relief.¡± ¡®A relief?¡¯ As Young-Joon stared at her, she said, surprised, ¡°Oh! I just thought it wouldn¡¯t be right to call you out for drinks if you had a girlfriend. So...¡± ¡°Oh, okay.¡± Kiyoi was a Japanese bar with rooms. The rooms weren¡¯t closed off with doors, but big curtain-like pieces of fabric with traditional Japanese drawings separated the room from the outside. Young-Joon and Song Ji-Hyun got a table and sat down. ¡°What would you like? It¡¯s on me,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°Can I have something expensive?¡± ¡°Of course. You saved Brownie¡¯s life.¡± ¡°But why did you name a golden retriever Brownie? Don¡¯t you usually name them by their color?¡± ¡°It¡¯s because I like brownies.¡± ¡°Oh, you like sweets.¡± ¡°Brownie¡¯s mom¡¯s name is Whipped Cream.¡± ¡°Wow, you really like sweets... Do you eat sweets with alcohol, too?¡± ¡°No, anything is fine. And is there anything sweet at an izakaya anyway?¡± ¡°No. Should we get sukiyaki?¡± Young-Joon asked as he pointed to the menu. Song Ji-Hyun smiled. ¡°Sure. What would you like to drink?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked. ¡°Soju?¡± ¡°What about sake?¡± ¡°Hm, I guess you¡¯re loaded.¡± ¡°Someone came to our pharmacy and got probiotics and vitamin supplements and three bottles of cold medicine. I made a lot of money thanks to him.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll keep buying it from there when I run out of probiotics. I¡¯ll get the one with bifidobacterium, the one you said was good for constipation. The one that you take.¡± ¡°Agh... That¡¯s not true. I don¡¯t take it because of that.¡± After they exchanged a few jokes, Song Ji-Hyun ordered the food and drinks. Then, she began to ask Young-Joon a bunch of things from how old he was, to how his research on stem cells was going and how he found his work. But she did not ask where he worked. Young-Joon was preparing himself mentally as he knew that Song Ji-Hyun would not like it if he told her that he worked at A-Gen. Then, he asked, ¡°Ji-Hyun, why did you take time off work?¡± ¡°Hm.¡± Song Ji-Hyun became noticeably downhearted. Song Ji-Hyun¡¯s expression was so familiar that he almost asked her if she was punished after cursing at someone at herpany. ¡°Ourpany, Celligener, is basically a vassal of A-Gen.¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± Young-Joon¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°A-Gen invested a lot of money into Celligener, and our management is being dominated by that capital.¡± ¡°What are you talking about? I thought yourpany sold the liver cancer drug you made to A-Gen?¡± ¡°We did.¡± ¡°Then you would have some money. Why would you get someone like A-Gen to invest?¡± ¡°We didn¡¯t get the investment after selling the patent to the new drug.¡± ¡°Then what was it?¡± ¡°The condition to sell it was an investment.¡± ¡®What kind of bullshit was this? Didn¡¯t A-Gen pay them ten billion won for the patent for the treatment? But that was investment?¡¯ ¡°What kind of contract did you sign for that? So, they were taking the new liver cancer drug, this huge new technology, and on top of that, they are taking more if their investment is profitable?¡± ¡°It¡¯s unfair.¡± ¡°Why on Earth did you sell your drug under those conditions?¡± ¡°We were threatened.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°They said that Celligener could be a huge pharmaceuticalpany if they ept this investment offer, but we would have to close our doors if we refused.¡± ¡°That¡¯s what they said? Really?¡± ¡°Word for word. I still remember a few of them. Their faces and their names and their position.¡± ¡°... Who was it?¡± ¡°First of all, Kim Hyun-Taek, theb director of A-Gen,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. Young-Joon closed his eyes. It was Kim Hyun-Taek again. ¡®Damn it. This damn old snake...¡¯ ¡°There were a few people from management as well. This person named Yoon Bo-Hyun was an assistant manager, and I remember him especially well. He was very smirky.¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun. He was an assistant manager at the time, but now he was a manager. It was because of Yoon Bo-Hyun that Young-Joon tested Cellicure, the liver cancer treatment drug from Celligener. He hade to theb from management and asked Young-Joon himself to conduct an experiment with it. Young-Joon also thought it was a little odd as scientists were usually assigned things from theb director. It was weird that an assistant manager from management came out of the blue and asked Young-Joon, who was at ab far away from the headquarters. It wasn¡¯t about capability, but it was because management didn''t usually do that, especially if they were only an assistant manager. He probably did it since Kim Hyun-Taek approved it, but Young-Joon was still suspicious of him. Personally, he predicted that the n to destroy Cellicure started from Yoon Bo-Hyun or someone close to him. ¡°But can A-Gen shut down anotherpany, no matter how strong they are?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°You¡¯re naive.¡± Song Ji-Hyun smiled bitterly. ¡°A-Gen is not just any pharmaceuticalpany. They have a close rtionship with people in politics, press, and key institutions and huge pharmaceuticalpanies outside the country.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°And since pharmaceuticalpanies have to close their doors if the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety doesn¡¯t approve, they are directly in the hands of politics.¡± ¡°No, but still... It¡¯s just so shocking. They¡¯re not gangsters, but how...¡± ¡°They are gangsters,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said, clenching her jaws. ¡°Even if they don¡¯t use the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, they could obstruct retailers, or cut off the supply of equipment and reagents we need to develop new drugs. They said that there are a lot of things that A-Gen could do.¡± ¡°Oh my...¡± ¡°So, the contract for the ten billion won investment and transfer of the new drug ended with our CEO signing it. The investment itself wasn¡¯t a small amount of money for a venturepany, and we really thought that thepany would grow with things like technological alliances and sharing of facilities since A-Gen was going to develop us. At the time, of course.¡± Song Ji-Hyun added, ¡°But we were wrong. Since then, they suddenly were giving us subcontracts rted to new drug developments. It was basically grunt work.¡± ¡°Oh...¡± ¡°They weren¡¯t supporting the research we were doing. They were giving us the difficult and hard things from things they were studying that weren¡¯t important. To be honest, ourpany is basically an essory of A-Gen right now.¡± ¡°Oh my god...¡± Song Ji-Hyun sighed. ¡°Celligener is a really capable startuppany. I¡¯m not saying this because it¡¯s ourpany, but there are a lot of key yers from bigpanies or famous universities.¡± ¡°Of course. You wouldn¡¯t have been able to make a new liver cancer drug if you didn¡¯t have the skills to do it.¡± ¡°A-Gen wanted those human resources and the technology. A-Gen almost wanted to make Celligener into their seventhb. They thought they could get a lot of output from here since there were a lot of skilled scientists.¡± ¡°So was that why you took off work? Because that situation took a toll on you?¡± ¡°Oh, we were talking about why I took off work, right?¡± Song Ji-Hyunughed. ¡°I didn¡¯t take off work because it was hard on me. Everyone at Celligener is like family to me. I couldn¡¯t just abandon them because it was hard.¡± ¡°Then...?¡± ¡°I wanted to expose the terrible things A-Gen did. Since I have a pharmacist license, I was going to try to use the power of the Pharmaceutical Association to keep them in check.¡± ¡°So were you able to?¡± ¡°No. All I found was that the A-Gen cartel was much bigger than I thought. I didn¡¯t know it was that big at first, but A-Gen invests huge amounts of money to medical and pharmacy schools and hospitals in the country as donations.¡± ¡°Oh...¡± ¡°The association was full of A-Gen¡¯s people as well. Now, you could say that Korea¡¯s medical and pharmaceutical field is in the hands of A-Gen. I couldn¡¯t do anything.¡± ¡°I see.¡± Song Ji-Hyun sipped her sake with a depressed face. ¡°Then what are you going to do now?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°I have to return to work.¡± Song Ji-Hyun let out a sigh. ¡°Actually, I go back to work next week. My aunt¡¯s vacation ended, so I won¡¯t be at the pharmacy if youe anyway.¡± Young-Joon nodded dejectedly. ¡°Young-Joon.¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°You work at A-Gen, right?¡± Young-Joon was surprised. ¡°How did you know...?¡± ¡°Haha, I thought so. You talked about A-Gen and stuff when you bought your supplements,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°And after I told you about how A-Gen stole our liver cancer drug, it seemed like you didn¡¯t really want to tell me the name of yourpany.¡± ¡°... That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay. A-Gen is a hugepany, and you¡¯re part of the Stem Cells Department, right? You probably didn¡¯t know that your management got rid of anotherpany¡¯s anticancer drug.¡± Young-Joon felt his heart ache out of guilt. ¡°Actually...¡± ¡°Oh! And about ourpany¡¯s probiotics... We made an important technology.¡± ¡°An important technology?¡± ¡°Probiotics are living bacteria, right? We have to coat them so that they can safely get to their destination safely without getting easily destroyed in the stomach, so we developed a coating technology based on Roche¡¯s product. But it¡¯s more advanced.¡± ¡°Are you allowed to tell me information like that?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°I told you because it¡¯s you.¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°You told me yourpany secret in front of me to save my dog.¡± ¡®Oh.¡¯ Song Ji-Hyun was talking about how Young-Joon fed Cleo, an ointment for cuts, to Brownie to save her. ¡®That¡¯s not actually apany secret.¡¯ From the perspective of Young-Joon who had Rosaline, that information about Cleo was as valuable as the information that this sukiyaki had two pieces of mushroom in it. It was justmon and simple knowledge; to Young-Joon, it was as valuable as leaves on the floor. ¡°For some reason, I felt like I could tell you, and I wanted to. I wanted to level the magnitude of information.¡± Song Ji-Hyun rested her elbow on the table and stared at Young-Joon with her chin resting on her hand. ¡°And it¡¯s not really a problem since I didn¡¯t tell you what that technology was specifically.¡± She chuckled. ¡°Still, thanks for telling me. So, you have that kind of technology, right?¡± ¡°Yes. Although, I am worried that A-Gen will take it from us again...¡± Young-Joon thought about the time he analyzed Roche¡¯s probiotic product with Synchronization Mode. At the time, Rosaline showed him the most valuable bacteria strain that could be used, but she did not show anything about the capsule coating to send it to the intestines. It could have been because Rosaline¡¯s level was lower, or it could be because Rosaline¡¯s analysis was limited to living things. The one thing for sure was that products that sent microbes to the intestines orally required not only an excellent strain of bacteria, but an advanced coating technology. ¡®Wait. Couldn¡¯t I incorporate the capsule coating that Celligener developed, which was better than Roche, with Chlorotonis limuvitus, the best microbe Rosaline presented?¡¯ If Young-Joon dominated that market bymercializing an overwhelmingly efficient probiotic and gave Celligener the share they deserved through a technological alliance, it would be enough for them to escape A-Gen¡¯s control. The fact that theirpany ended up like that started with Young-Joon, did it not? Although he didn¡¯t mean for it to happen, and there were other people actually responsible for this, he was carrying this with him. ¡°Why don¡¯t you work with me?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Probiotics and the Stem Cells Department?¡± ¡°The name of my department is the Life Creation Department.¡± Song Ji-Hyun squinted. She thought, ¡®What kind of name is that?¡¯ ¡°What does your department do?¡± She asked. ¡°As the name states, we literally artificially synthesize life.¡± ¡°But you said you were working on stem cells.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true; we are also doing stem cells. But now, we want to try probiotics.¡± ¡°Then are you working on a cure for AIDS or anticancer drugs?¡± ¡°We are considering it.¡± Song Ji-Hyun was bewildered. She thought, ¡®What kind of ridiculous ce is this?¡¯ ¡°You¡¯re going to work in the food business in a few years then?¡± Song Ji-Hyun said jokingly. ¡°That¡¯s a good idea, too. There will be a food shortage in the near future, and it is up to biologists like us to prepare for that and solve it. We don¡¯t have to limit it to pharmaceuticals.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Anyways, probiotics. If you¡¯re interested, give me a call so that we can set up a meeting with the CEO of Celligener,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°If you work with me, A-Gen won¡¯t be able to interfere with your management anymore.¡± * * * Young-Joon took his experimental data and went to the management headquarters at A-Gen. ¡°Is Division Manager Ji Kwang-Man in? We were supposed to meet now.¡± Young-Joon asked Yoon Bo-Hyun when he ran into him in the management office. Yoon Bo-Hyun frowned. ¡°Go inside.¡± ¡°Thank you,¡± Young-Joon replied. After Young-Joon went inside, Yoon Bo-Hyun mumbled, ¡°That TMJ asshole. Something feels off about him.¡± ¡°TMJ?¡± Lee Na-Rae, an employee sitting next to him asked. ¡°Too Much Justice... I came up with the name. Perfect, right?¡± Lee Na-Raeughed with her hand covering her mouth. But Yoon Bo-Hyun was still frowning. ¡°I don¡¯t think we should let him be more powerful... We need to step on him once.¡± Chapter 28: A Supernova In the Scientific Community (2)

Chapter 28: A Supernova In the Scientific Community (2)

¡°I created optic nerve cells with induced pluripotent stem cells and used them to treat retinal degenerative mice,¡± Young-Joon said to Ji Kwang-Man. ¡°There hasn¡¯t been anything uploaded as a performance report,¡± Ji Kwang-Man said as he looked through Young-Joon¡¯s data. ¡°Because I haven¡¯t uploaded the draft yet.¡± ¡°Then why don¡¯t you do that? Why did youe to me first and tell me this?¡± ¡°There is something I want to tell you in advance, Division Manager.¡± Ji Kwang-Man rested his fat body on the back of the chair. He stared at Young-Joon with suspicion. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°The fact that I have ny percent of the royalties of iPSCs means that I have the key to all studies following it and whatever profitse from it.¡± ¡°So?¡± ¡°My studies are set to be published in Science. Not only the iPSCs, but the optic nerve cell treatment as well. People who don¡¯t really know biology won¡¯t really know what stem cells are, but they will be surprised if they hear that I will be able to open a blind man¡¯s eyes.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The situation has changed now. When the paper is published, it will not only be the scientific and medicalmunity that will focus on me. Investors will be interested, and so will the shareholders of ourpany. They were usually more focused on profits and their portion than what kind of drugs were developed, but it will be different this time.¡± ¡°Hm.¡± ¡°And they will be displeased when they find out that just some lowly scientist has most of the royalties of iPSCs. They will also be shocked when they realize that they will not be given a single penny even after publishing a patent as big as this.¡± Young-Joon added, ¡°Since you are going to be the one approving my patent application request, you will also be held responsible.¡± ¡°So?¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you cooperate with me?¡± Ji Kwang-Man silently red at Young-Joon. ¡°I will sell a portion of the eighty percent of royalties dedicated to the Life Creation Department to thepany. Then, you will be the best manager who got great results from encouraging a talented scientist while maximizing the shareholders¡¯ profit.¡± ¡°How much do you want?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want money. I want shares of A-Gen.¡± Ji Kwang-Man¡¯s eyes shook. He took a few sips of his hot tea and said, ¡°How much?¡± ¡°You must give me one percent of the shares per five percent of the royalties of the original iPSC technology. How much will you buy?¡± ¡°You¡¯re crazy. You think I will make a deal like that?¡± ¡°Why can¡¯t you?¡± ¡°That eighty percent is part of thepany fund. It is not your own money. The shareholders will be displeased, but it¡¯s essentially money that will be invested back into thepany. All we have to do is give that profit to the shareholders.¡± ¡°That is under the assumption that I will produce results with the eighty percent of royalties given to the department.¡± Ji Kwang-Man¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°... What are you talking about... You are A-Gen¡¯s employee! Are you saying that you will purposely ck off with your own mouth?¡± ¡°Who will be the one to decide whether I am cking off or whether I¡¯m not getting results even though I¡¯m working hard?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Is there anyone in the world who knows more about induced pluripotent stem cells, nerve differentiation, and nerve transnts than me?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°And if I be one of the shareholders, will they really dislike that? My name value will be different once the special on my paper is released in Science. Giving me shares of A-Gen and inviting me to the executive¡¯s table will not be a harmful decision to you, Division Manager. It will help the development of thepany, and the shareholders will like it. And if I give you some royalties, it¡¯s a win-win situation for both of us.¡± Ji Kwang-Man bit his lip. Young-Joon added, ¡°I will be generous. If you give me four percent of thepany shares, I will give you thirty percent of the royalties. You can share that with the shareholders or do whatever you want with it.¡± ¡°Four percent is almost as much as we give tob directors. And four percent of shares in cash is trillions of won!¡± ¡°Considering the value of the patent, I am selling it to you at a very cheap price. I don¡¯t know if you will get a lot of money from this itself since it is a base technology, but the stem cell therapy market that will start from this will be worth trillions of won.¡± ¡°No matter how expensive or cheap it is, do you think that I can just give you a share that big myself?¡± ¡°You have toe up with the how, Division Manager. Personally, I think it is a realistic amount.¡± ¡°Can I assume that you are acting this way because you want to participate in the management of A-Gen?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± Young-Joon answered firmly. ¡°I mistook you. I thought you had no interest inpany politics and management. I thought all you wanted to do was study stem cells?¡± ¡°Research was everything to me. But thepany used scientists¡¯ results on something different when I took no interest. I am not going to be used like that anymore.¡± ¡°Stop.¡± Ji Kwang-Man waved his hand. ¡°Doctor Ryu. The contract you gave me. That¡¯s nothing but a piece of paper. I haven¡¯t signed that yet, and we could discuss this again and do it ording to thew. Do you really want to do it that way?¡± ¡°That¡¯s unexpected. I trusted your word andpleted differentiating stem cells into optic nerves and finished treating retinal degeneration in animal models, but you¡¯re not going to keep your promise?¡± ¡°I think I told you before, but I am a businessman. I only act based on gains and losses. In this case, I think it¡¯s more beneficial for me to break my promise, have people say some things about me and be resented by you. I have no intentions of being swindled by you anymore. Go to Pfizer or don¡¯t go. Do whatever you want.¡± ¡°Hm, I wonder. It won¡¯t be easy for you to do that. I already said I was getting eighty percent.¡± ¡°To who?¡± Knock knock knock. ¡°Division Manager, it¡¯s Secretary Joo.¡± Ji Kwang-Man¡¯s secretary came inside. ¡°What is it? We¡¯re in a meeting right now.¡± ¡°Um... Some reporter wants to do an interview.¡± ¡°A reporter?¡± ¡°A reporter from CNN.¡± ¡°CNN?¡± Ji Kwang-Man tilted his head in confusion. ¡°Not SBS or KBS, but CNN? CNN from the US? All of a sudden? Who are they interviewing?¡±[1] ¡°You and Doctor Ryu Young-Joon.¡± ¡®No.¡¯ Ji Kwang-Man felt his heart drop and his breath stop. Something was wrong. Young-Joon was clearing his throat right next to him. ¡°I didn¡¯t know they would be here already. News travels really fast. The special from Science didn¡¯t even go out yet...¡± ¡°What did you do?¡± ¡°I did an interview with the Science journal.¡± ¡°...What?¡± ¡°I only told the truth. And I only said things that were good for thepany. I didn¡¯t say any bad things like how A-Gen stole a smallpany¡¯s liver cancer treatment and destroyed it, or made a principal scientist harvest spinach to get him to quit. Don¡¯t worry too much. All I did was talk about the promise you made me in a more humanistic way.¡± Young-Joon smiled, which sent chills through Ji Kwang-Man¡¯s spine. He understood the situation right away. Being in this business for over thirty years, Ji Kwang-Man had been through hell and fought all kinds of psychopaths and lunatics to get to where he was. But he had never felt this kind of fear from someone, not once. Young-Joon¡¯s smile looked like the devil¡¯s. ¡°The deal I offered you. Don¡¯t forget it. Four percent.¡± * * * Research papers that were published in Science had to be under four thousand five hundred characters, but the papers Young-Joon published were over ten thousand charactersbined. Samuel, the editor-in-chief of Science, ignored all the rules and published all of it. This paper was unique and the only one on its subject in the entire history of the Science journal. The number of characters wasn''t a big deal. Chuckling, Samuel read the abstract of the paper again. [Although stem cells have a great potential to recover damaged nerves and organs, they are limited in that they require embryos. In this paper, we dedifferentiated regr somatic cells and transformed them into stem cells. Furthermore, we seeded in differentiating those stem cells into cardiac muscle and optic nerve cells. With those optic nerve cells, we were able to inject them into the retinal area in mice with end-stage retinal degeneration and recover their vision.] It was a very short and straightforward abstract that was only filled with exnations about the data. Each sentence was like an ax to the scientificmunity. ¡°You didn¡¯t see thising, did you, you Nature assholes? The top biology journal is Science from today onward.¡± Samuel smiled in satisfaction as he uploaded the manuscript. He thought that there was no paper to match up to this one in all of Science¡¯s history other than the paper on the Genome Project. And there was something more important than this groundbreaking paper: the discovery of Doctor Ryu Young-Joon, a biologist. They said that he was a young man, only twenty-eight years old. He said that he was thirty in his country because Korea had this weird system where everyone became a year older when the year changed, but he was twenty-eight in America. Jamie Anderson, the person who discovered the structure of DNA, was an elite who graduated university at the age of sixteen and finished his doctorate at twenty-four, but Young-Joon was more than that. ¡®What kind of things will this genius discover and create in the decades of research years he has left?¡¯ Young-Joon said many things that would grab the attention of scientists and people in the medical and pharmaceutical industry around the world. The best part about the interview was thest part of Jessie¡¯s interview. ¡ªDoctor Ryu, do you have ns for the optic nerve cells created from iPSCs to be used in clinical trials to treat actual patients? Jessie asked. ¡°Of course. A-Gen will support our clinical trial. And we won¡¯t stop there.¡± ¡ªThen? ¡°Induced pluripotent stem cells have the potential to differentiate into any tissue or nerve. And we have the ability to make that possibility into reality.¡± Young-Joon added, ¡°In a few years, we will put an end to all neurological disorders such as Parkinson¡¯s, spinal cord damages, strokes, epilepsy, dementia, multiple sclerosis, Lou Gherig¡¯s disease, Refsum¡¯s disease, and more.¡± It wasn¡¯t put on the interview manuscript, but Jessie almost screamed when she heard him. ¡ªIs... Is that possible? ¡°It will not take long. I will promise you right here. I am nning a major pharmaceutical project that will erase all kinds of neurological diseases. Like how no one suffers from smallpox in the twenty-first century, no neurological disorders will make anyone suffer in the future. Human medicine has already advanced to the next stage, and all humans have the right to not be in pain. They have the right to keep their bodies safe and be happy.¡± Young-Joon added, ¡°What we are dering war on are neurological disorders itself, and the first target among them are eye diseases. I promise you that in six months, we will perfect a technology that will be able to cure all patients who have optic nerve damage.¡± Jessie felt like she was suffocating; an emotion that she could not figure out filled her heart. She was someone who had finished her doctorate at MIT and had been a scientist. Research took years, and it was difficult, hard, and boring. And one day, she gave up on research. Instead, she found interest in introducing things other scientists discovered. After she became an editor at Science, she did not once miss the life of a frontline scientist. She was happy reading the newly published papers. Her intellectual thirst was quenched, and she took delight in watching knowledge that wasn¡¯t known to humanity before be discovered. That was the science Jessie was doing. As an editor, the science that she knew was the subject of admiration and entertainment. But today, she realized that science could be touching. The future that Young-Joon was building was not a fascinating and fun future; he was not a scientist who found intellectual enhancement and entertainment in discovering beautiful and exhrating truths and disseminating them to editors and the public. Young-Joon, a frontline scientist, was like a warrior in battle. The battlefield he was in was not about the discovery of new cutting-edge technology or new scientific knowledge but about destroying diseases. Young-Joon was a soldier of science who was fighting on the frontlines of the oldest battle in humanity: the battle between humanity and disease. He knew that was his role, and he held to his values. ¡ªUm... Is A-Gen funding the research? Jessie asked. ¡°Of course. A-Gen is the best pharmaceuticalpany in the world. They give plenty of support to scientists as well. The shareholders didn¡¯t even take the shares of the iPSC. It was solely to reinvest into research.¡± ¡ªReally? ¡°Yes. If I seed in this research, A-Gen has decided to give me ten percent of the royalties of the iPSCs, and they have agreed to leave eighty percent of the royalties for my department¡¯s budget and give me final approval of the allocation. They were being considerate and letting me do all the research that I wanted to do.¡± ¡ªWow! ¡°They even left the remaining ten percent of royalties for the frontline scientists. The shareholders did not take even a little bit of the royalties.¡± ¡ªWow... Amazing. Do they have that much faith in you, Doctor Ryu? ¡°Not only that, they have high expectations for this research. That¡¯s the kind of ce A-Gen is. Instead of milking the results of research, they highly praise the frontline researchers and support them to encourage them toplete their follow-up research.¡± ¡ªIncredible. Yourpetitorpanies like Pfizer and Conson & Colson must be both worried and nervous. ¡°They do not have to be.¡± ¡ªWhy is that? ¡°They could have people close to them who are suffering from severe neurological disorders, or have family members suffer because of it. Patients are not separate people from us; everyone can be in an ident and be paralyzed from the waist down. It doesn¡¯t matter whether I develop it, or Pfizer or Roche. All we have to be able to do is give hope to these patients. Scientists should not chase after money or prestige, but pursue the convenience and welfare of humanity.¡± ¡ªI see. Does the management of A-Gen think so as well? ¡°They will, since they gave up all the shares that would normally go to the shareholders and fully supported me and other fellow scientists.¡± 1. SBS and KBS are national broadcastingworks in Korea. ? Chapter 29: A Supernova In the Scientific Community (3)

Chapter 29: A Supernova In the Scientific Community (3)

The reporter from CNN who came to see Young-Joon after hearing the leaked information from Science asked him simr questions to Jessie. And the reporter asked Ji Kwang-Man all the difficult questions. ¡°It probably wasn¡¯t an easy decision for thepany to give their full support by awarding one outstanding scientist ny percent of the patent shares.¡± ¡°...¡± Ji Kwang-Man was pale. ¡°I can only think that like Doctor Ryu Young-Joon, A-Gen¡¯s management has the same values: to cure all diseases as a true pharmaceuticalpany.¡± ¡°Yes...¡± ¡°I think that the Science¡¯s special on the paper and Doctor Ryu¡¯s interview will be released in a few days. I think our interview will be released together as the main news for that CNN broadcast. We requested this interview because Doctor Ryu Young-Joon mentioned in his interview with Science that you were the one who made the decision regarding the patent shares, Mr. Division Manager. Could I have ament?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Sir?¡± ¡°Y...es, that¡¯s right. I divided the shares as such. Because the goal of A-Gen is not to earn profit... but to destroy diseases,¡± Ji Kwang-Man said with his fists clenched and trembling in anger. ¡®Four percent! This crazy bastard. I¡¯ve gone through hell with the CEO to be where I am right now, and I only have three percent.¡¯ Ji Kwang-Man thought this greenhorn scientist was just some boring bookworm who was only interested in papers, but he was a yer. This guy was dangerous. If Young-Joon was left unchecked, he would climb to the top to im the management of thepany as a whole, and Ji Kwang-Man did not want to admit it, but Young-Joon had enough power to do so. He was smart, acted fast, and had the boldness of a CEO of a venturepany. The biggest problem was that he was capable enough to research everything there was to know about that stupid induced stem cell technology or whatever and turn the entire pharmaceutical and medical industry upside down. A-Gen was ab-centeredpany. Sometimes, they yed politics, such as buyingpetitive drugs from venturepanies to destroy them or bing the owner of small venturepanies by controlling their stocks, but even so, thepany was based on drug research; a thousand scientists were supporting thispany. What this meant was that Young-Joon was like a fish in the water. More specifically, A-Gen was like a huge sea, and he was like a megalodon: someone who could destroy the whole ecosystem. ¡®All this time, I thought he was just a fat tuna with a lot to eat...¡¯ If someone like Young-Joon obtained as muchpany stock as ab director, every one of his words would have a huge impact on thepany. First of all, if a low-level scientist suddenly rose to the position of a major shareholder in thepany, the scientists would be swayed, and he would be a star amongst them. People became jealous if someone they were simr to seeded, but they admired them if they achieved unimaginably great sess. It was possible that he could temporarily gain more support and respect than Kim Hyun-Taek, the next CTO. ¡®Sigh...¡¯ Ji Kwang-Man sighed in his head and continued the interview. He wasn¡¯t getting anything the reporter was saying; all he was doing was glossing over the subject and agreeing with them that A-Gen was a goodpany. What he was actually doing was thinking about the solution to this situation. But as time passed, he was no longer hitting the roof in anger. He was calm, and he was logical again. ¡®Wait. Now that I think of it, I¡¯m not really backed up into a corner. The situation could actually be better if I use this situation to my advantage, right? I can just make Ryu Young-Joon one of ours.¡¯ Just like how Yoon Bo-Hyun nicknamed him TMJ, it would be difficult to bring him in since he was so focused on ethics, but Ji Kwang-Man thought that was just because he was young. ¡®I can make him rot a little and turn him into an ally, right? Who in the world doesn¡¯t turn when they get money and power?¡¯ Yoon Dae-Sung, the current CEO of A-Gen, was brought to mind. He was the founder¡¯s son, and he had built thispany along with his father. His family owned fourteen percent of thepany shares and was basically thergest shareholder. Also, Yoon Dae-Sung and Ji Kwang-Man were close enough to be brothers and had been business partners for a long time. If he brought Young-Joon into this group, no one would be able to touch them. On the way back to his office after the interview, Ji Kwang-Man called CEO Yoon Dae-Sung. ¡°Sir, it¡¯s me.¡± ¡ªYes, Mr. Division Manager. Have you eaten? The CEOughed heartily as he did not know about the things that were happening under him yet. ¡°Sir, do you remember the person who received a standing ovation from the CTO during thest seminar?¡± ¡ªOf course. Doctor Ryu Young-Joon, was it? The one that made induced pluripotent stem cells. ¡°I have some things to talk about regarding him. Could we meet right now for a bit? I wille to you.¡± Ji Kwang-Man was walking, but suddenly paused. ¡°Oh, sorry. I will call you back in a minute.¡± He saw Yoon Bo-Hyun standing outside his office. ¡°Mr. Division Manager, I have something I would like to discuss,¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun said. ¡°Come in.¡± Ji Kwang-Man opened the door and walked in. He opened the refrigerator and handed Yoon Bo-Hyun a beverage. Yoon Bo-Hyun opened the bottle and satfortably in the chair. He crossed his legs and stared at Ji Kwang-Man. ¡°What did you talk about with Ryu Young-Joon? CNN suddenly came here, and you even did an interview, right?¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun asked. ¡°He said that he sessfully turned iPSCs into optic nerves. And he said that he did an interview with Science as he announced his paper and talked about the patent royalties as if they had been confirmed.¡± ¡°Did he put the nail in the coffin so that you couldn¡¯t go back on your word?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°You made a mistake.¡± ¡°I agree. I thought he had no interest in power, and even if he did, I thought that I would be able to crush him easily.¡± ¡°I knew from the start that Ryu Young-Joon was that kind of person. I warned you many times, right? I told you he was dangerous.¡± Ji Kwang-Man nodded. ¡°Mr. Division Manager¡ªno, Uncle Kwang-Man.¡± ¡°Manager Yoon. Be careful at thepany. You¡¯re not trying to spread the word, are you?¡± ¡°I¡¯m saying this not as the manager of A-Gen management or as the heir getting management lessons, but because we are close.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Are you perhaps thinking of turning him into an ally by including him in your group or something?¡± ¡°Um...¡± Ji Kwang-Man thought for a bit. ¡°I only asked because I was worried, but I guess it was true. Uncle, don¡¯t overdo it. You won¡¯t be able to handle Ryu Young-Joon. To be honest, there¡¯s some dirty corruption in ourpany, right?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Knowing his personality, he will blow up thepany if he finds out about even one of them. He has Reset Syndrome. Thepany will explode. We cannot let him be a part of our management.¡±[1] ¡°...Sigh. What do you want to do?¡± ¡°I think that we should step on him before he gets bigger. This is the maginot line.¡± ¡°Do you have a way?¡± Ji Kwang-Man asked. ¡°We have to go strong. First of all, let¡¯s rip up that shitty patent application request and contract. And give him something so that he cooperates.¡± ¡°But if we do that, we¡¯ll be a national embarrassment after the Science publication and the CNN news broadcast. Do you think we could handle that kind of smearing on our image? We will look like an insanepany that is obstructing the future of a genius scientist who is saying that he could cure all neurological disorders. And we¡¯re basically giving a new pharmaceutical market worth trillions of won to America.¡± ¡°Do you think that bastard will really leave? Did he say that he was going to go to Pfizer or Roche? It¡¯s all bullshit. Immigration isn¡¯t that easy. Hepleted elementary, junior, and high school here. He also got his bachelor''s, master¡¯s, and doctorate in Korea. He¡¯s Korean inside out. Throwing away his home that he¡¯s lived in all his life and going to another country? It¡¯s not that easy. If we crush his spirits a little, spoil him with money and a promotion and swindle him, he¡¯ll stay.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Don¡¯t get scared and be strong. You¡¯re not acting like yourself, Uncle.¡± ¡°Sigh... Bo-Hyun... Never mind. We can¡¯t do that. I know that you learned a lot from CEO Yoon ever since you were little, but you are seriously mistaken. We can¡¯t poke Ryu Young-Joon like that.¡± ¡°Ah. Seriously! Stop being so frustrating. All he is is a scientist, an assistant manager at best. How can we not handle someone like him? How can we be swayed by him and lose?¡± ¡°That guy made iPSCs in a couple of months, differentiated it into optic nerve cells and cured blind mice with it.¡± Ji Kwang-Man added, ¡°That is enough for him to bet on his talent and just ask for four percent ofpany stocks. He didn¡¯t have to make a deal with the royalties of his patent. If he threw a tantrum and said he was going to Pfizer if they didn¡¯t give him stocks, smart people like the CEO or Nichs would just give it to him and let him be an executive.¡± ¡°What are you talking about! That¡¯s ridiculous. All of you are overestimating Ryu Young-Joon,¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun replied. ¡°Of course, I acknowledge the significance of his results. He was so lucky that he would¡¯ve hit the jackpot if he lived in the US, but that¡¯s all. Unless he has an alien locked up in his house and he¡¯s torturing it, there is no way he¡¯s going to seed in everything he does. There were a lot of one-hit wonders in this field, right? And they all disappeared quickly.¡± ¡°That¡¯s the scary part!¡± Ji Kwang-Man shouted. ¡°There are definitely going to be shareholders that will think of him like that. They are going to think that he¡¯s just going to be a one-hit wonder, or they¡¯re going to wonder why we gave a mere scientist four percent. They¡¯re going to ask if that thirty-year-old scientist is on the same level as Lab Director Kim Hyun-Taek since he also has four percent. They are going to be angry!¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°If that happens, he might not be able to get his shares. That¡¯s why he is making sure by giving me thirty percent of the royalties of the induced pluripotent stem cells! He¡¯s basically telling me to give the shareholders the royalties and convince them!¡± Ji Kwang-Man wiped off the cold sweat from his forehead. ¡°He blocked my escape route with the interview with Science and made it so that everything went just how he wanted. He was making sure he would get the right to participate in thepany¡¯s management!¡± ¡°...¡± Ji Kwang-Man¡¯s hands trembled. ¡°And how would the directors who got the shares feel? They might not like Ryu Young-Joon, but they will want to keep an eye on him. Then, from that point on, there will be people who like him among the board of directors.¡± ¡°Hm...¡± ¡°He¡¯s insane. That portion of the royalties isn¡¯t even his, but already part of thepany. But he¡¯s selling it to thepany directors like it¡¯s already his, and getting a seat at the management table while also getting stocks worth trillions of won for that? Is he Kim Sun-Dal selling water from the Taedong River or something...¡±[2] Yoon Bo-Hyun scratched his head. Ji Kwang-Man said, ¡°He¡¯s not just some talented and confident kid. Ryu Young-Joon knows exactly how much value he has, and he is only acting in ways that match that. You want me to have some guts and tell him to go to Pfizer if he wants? He¡¯ll actually go. Honestly, what¡¯s he got to lose?¡± ¡°But still...¡± ¡°I am also telling you this as your father¡¯s friend who has known you for a long time, but be careful with Ryu Young-Joon. He¡¯s like andmine, so it will be your foot that flies off if you step on him the wrong way. If you want to inherit the business safely, you have to make him your ally. Leave it to me.¡± ¡°But we can¡¯t let him into the board of directors. We have some corruption in ourpany, right? Some of them aren¡¯t evenparable to the liver cancer drug from Celligener, and if he finds out...¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about that part either. I will discuss it with the CEO and get it taken care of. You, don¡¯t worry about it anymore.¡± * * * There was an emergency board meeting. It was just before the publishing of Young-Joon¡¯s paper and special in Science, and the release of the interview. Considering the time zone difference, a bunch of news and articles woulde up on Friday morning. On top of that, A-Gen¡¯s stock prices would skyrocket. But before that, they would have to decide what to do with this matter. Since the situation was so urgent, management had informed the board of the meeting the day before and asked for their attendance. Still, most of the board directors had taken their seats, but the atmosphere was a little unsettled. ¡°Four percent... It¡¯s too much for an individual to have. That¡¯s the same amount that Director Kim has, right?¡± ¡°We cannot give four percent of thepany stocks to an unverified kid like that. We don¡¯t even know who he¡¯s associated with...¡± ¡°If we give him that, we will also have to give him an executive position. We¡¯re going to have to hold a temporary general board meeting. COO Son, what are your thoughts?¡± Oh Jun-Tae asked. After pondering for a brief moment, a frown appeared on COO Son Jin-Gap''s face and he answered, ¡°If we assume that everything that Doctor Ryu Young-Joon does goes well, all of our stocks will skyrocket. If he is able to cure all those neurological disorders, thepany could be a lot bigger. If we consider that merit, it could be a big mistake to refuse just because we cheap out on four percent.¡± ¡°Ha, I can¡¯t believe this. I only have two percent,¡± Goh Yoo-Sung mumbled in irritation. ¡°Lab Director Gil Hyung-Joon has one percent, right? Haha, someone who was just a scientist suddenly is worth four times more than his ownb director. He¡¯s not just getting a seat at the table, now you basically have to serve him.¡± Gil Hyung-Joon had his eyes closed as if he was in pain. ¡®I told this idiot Ji Kwang-Man to get ahold of Ryu Young-Joon, but he¡¯s the one who got crushed. Four percent? Four percent? A thirty-year-old rookie is going to take stocks worth trillions of won alone? This bastard is out of his mind!¡¯ Four percent was how much Lab Director Kim Hyun-Taek had, and he was the one who did all the hard work with CEO Yoon Dae-Sung and built the business back when it was just a mid-sizedpany. The only individuals who had more stocks than him were COO Son Jin-Gap, CTO Nichs Kim, and CEO Yoon Dae-Sung. ¡°Let¡¯s give it to him,¡± Nichs said without hesitation. ¡°Like the COO said, all of our stocks will rise if Doctor Ryu really seeds. And as the chief technology officer of A-Gen, I am confident he will.¡± ¡°But still, four percent is...¡± ¡°Ourpany has about twelve percent of treasury stocks, right? Give him four percent from there. Doctor Ryu is a scientist valuable enough for that. Everyone, don¡¯t think of him just as a worker or employee of thispany; we have to think of him as the elite who will win the bread for ourpany,¡± Nichs said firmly. 1. Reset Syndrome is when an individual believes that they could reset their life and what they¡¯ve done in real life like they could do in games or on aputer. ? 2. Kim Sun-Dal is a famous fraud that lived during the Chosun time period. His most famous fraudulent act was lying to merchants that he owned the Taedong River, which was an important water source for people as there were no wells in Chosun, and selling it off to them for arge sum of money. ? Chapter 30: A Supernova In the Scientific Community (4)

Chapter 30: A Supernova In the Scientific Community (4)

¡°I am not against giving him stocks,¡± Kim Hyun-Taek said. The attention of all the board members was drawn to him. Kim Hyun-Taek looked calm, but he had a lot of mixed feelings. ¡°Considering the performance Doctor Ryu showed, he will make the entire pie bigger if he bes a major shareholder and executive.¡± COO Son Jin-Gap added, ¡°Director Kim is right. If the interview is released along with what he has shown thus far, the stocks of thepany will rise. But if it bes known that he has be apany executive and a major shareholder with four percent of the shares? If we say that we are promoting a scientist into an executive by giving them a huge portion of thepany stocks and are extensively supporting him? Depending on how we y this, the increase in our stocks could be much more than four percent.¡± ¡°Then is Doctor Ryu joining the board from now on?¡± Kim Hyun-Taek asked. There was a moment of silence. ¡°Doctor Ryu is too dangerous to let into management. His ideology is a little different from ours, and honestly, that part worries me.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s give him the shares and put him as an unregistered director. Use that to stop him froming onto the board of directors,¡± Ji Kwang-Man said. All eyes were drawn to Ji Kwang-Man this time. ¡°Wait, Division Manager. Do you think he¡¯s going to be an unregistered director when he has as many shares as Director Kim?¡± Go Yoo-Sung asked like he was bewildered. ¡°We have to gloss over it and convince him. We can go with something like because it¡¯s a unique circumstance, we won¡¯t be able to give him a vote on the board of directors since he is still young and inexperienced, but it¡¯s okay since he gets this much stock and has that much power amongst the shareholders,¡± Ji Kwang-Man answered. ¡°Do you think that clever bastard will ept it? What if he makes a fuss about joining the board too? From what I saw, he¡¯s like a beagle that chews through anything until it bes a rag when it sees something that it doesn¡¯t like,¡± Gil Hyung-Joon said with a frown. ¡°The only condition he gave me was just the four percent of stock for now. If we give him that, he won¡¯t be able to say anything, right? He¡¯s not going to go that overboard.¡± ¡°Hm...¡± The directors were lost in thought. ¡°He definitely has to be a registered director if he is going to hold four percent,¡± Kim Young-Hoon said. Ji Kwang-Man nced at him with a gulp. Kim Young-Hoon was one of the people that the SG group had put on the board. Thergest shareholder of A-Gen was Yoon Dae-Sung¡¯s family. Himself, his wife, his son Yoon Bo-Hyun, and his older brother Yoon Dae-Pyung had fourteen percentbined. The entirety of the fourteen percent distributed amongst them was actually being used in whatever way Yoon Dae-Sung wanted. And Ji Kwang-Man and Son Jin-Gap, who were both close friends with him, had shares as friendly shares. Although it seemed like things between Nichs Kim and Yoon Dae-Sung had be a little awkward, they still had a link as they attended the same school, and theb directors still followed Yoon Dae-Sung. Their shares were quite strong in defending the management rights. But there were other forces in thepany as well. Aside from the National Pension Service, which had eleven percent, SG, a Koreanpany, had six percent. It was because A-Gen had gotten investments from them when they had no money when they first started out. For the same reason, Berkshire, a foreign investmentpany, had eight percent, which they had acquired when A-Gen was building a fewbs outside the country. Conson & Colson, who was interested in A-Gen since they were a small pharmaceuticalpany, had four percent as well. Thebined shares of the three exceeded the Yoon Dae-Sung family¡¯s. There hadn¡¯t been much contact between them yet, and there weren¡¯t any problems since Yoon Dae-Sung had a lot of friendly shares. Furthermore, the main task of SG Electronics, the core of the SG group, was to make semiconductors. Even if they expanded their subsidiaries and dabbled in a few different businesses, they did not know enough about this field to interfere with A-Gen¡¯s management. But since a huge potential value of A-Gen was revealed along with the appearance of Young-Joon, no one knew how the situation would unfold from here on. ¡®Ji Kwang-Man, this bastard is trying to take him out of the board and work him.¡¯ Kim Young-Hoon thought as he stared at Ji Kwang-Man. Outside directors like Kim Young-Hoon, Berkshire, and Conson & Colson had rtively less contact with Young-Joon. If he wasn¡¯t part of the board, it became that much harder to form a connection with him. ¡®That can¡¯t happen. We have to make Ryu Young Joon the card to keep the Yoon family in check.¡¯ ¡°Didn¡¯t you make the treasury stocks for the session of management rights?¡± Alex asked. He was someone from Berkshire. ¡°I¡¯m worried if it will be okay to just give it out like that.¡± ¡°It should be fine,¡± Yoon Dae-Sung replied. ¡°If you¡¯re going to give him shares, give him the right to attend board meetings. It does not make sense for him to not have a vote in board meetings when he has four percent,¡± Kim Young-Hoon said. ¡°But don¡¯t we have some problems in ourpany?¡± Ji Kwang-Man asked. ¡°If we let Doctor Ryu Young-Joon have a seat at board meetings, we don¡¯t know what he will do when he finds out. He is no joke.¡± ¡°He may find out someday if we give him four percent and let him be a director. We can buy some time before he finds out if we don¡¯t give him a seat in board meetings, but can that change his personality, too?¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu said that he will give us some of his patent royalties.¡± The directors suddenly changed. ¡°What are you talking about now?¡± Gil Hyung-Joon asked. ¡°He took ny percent of the royalties afterining that he can¡¯t give any to anyone who didn¡¯t participate in the experiment, but he¡¯s giving it to us again? Does he have multiple personalities or something?¡± ¡°He¡¯s asking us to use it to get his shares from the board of directors. It¡¯s proof that Doctor Ryu is also learningpany politics. He¡¯s smart, so he will learn quickly.¡± ¡°So, Mr. Division Manager, what you are saying is that he will be able to think from the perspective of management with time?¡± Kim Hyun-Taek asked. ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Ji Kwang-Man replied. ¡°Let¡¯s take a break and gather again. I¡¯m a little tired,¡± Kim Young-Hoon said. * * * It was a Friday. During their lunch break, Young-Joon and the Life Creation Department received everyone¡¯s attention as they stood in line in thepany cafeteria. ¡°It wasn¡¯t this bad even when we got the award at the seminar,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung said awkwardly. The reason everyone was like this was because of the publishing of the paper in Science. A huge ten thousand character paper was put on the front page. It was going to be a masterpiece that would be looked back on several times in the medicalmunity and would boast a legendary citation index. After the paper, there was a special on Young-Joon and his interview. [The pioneer who is spearheading a new trend in medicine: Ryu Young-Joon, Ph.D] In the eyes of a scientist, the paper itself was extremely shocking, but his deration in his interview made their heads ache. ¡®We will put an end to all neurological disorders.¡¯ ¡®In a few years.¡¯ In the past, any scientist would have beenughed at and called a lunatic if they said things like that, but Young-Joon had shown that he had the ability to make that happen. All scientists read scientific papers. Like the fathers in the nies who read the daily newspaper that was delivered to their doorstep, they all put the main article of Science on their front screens on Friday. This morning, they had all read Young-Joon¡¯s paper and interview. And since news travels fast, everyone was already talking about how he was an executive and had four percent of shares. ¡°Um, you¡¯re Doctor Ryu Young-Joon, right?¡± A scientist in his fifties approached Young-Joon. ¡°Yes, I am.¡± ¡°I am Ha Hun-Wook, the department head of the Nerve Research Department. I read your paper, and it was interesting.¡± He reached out and shook hands with Young-Joon. ¡°Would you consider working with us when you start clinical trials for the optic nerves?¡± He asked. ¡°Our department has been studying peripheral nerve regeneration for a long time, and we have a lot of hospital contacts as well. We also have experience in clinical trials as well. If you¡¯re okay with it, we¡¯d like to join you in your clinical trials and use stem cell technology to treat a patients or retinal degenerative patients who have dysfunctional optic nerves. We will be a lot of help to each other.¡± Ha Hun-Wook handed Young-Joon his business card. ¡°Please give me a call if you are interested.¡± ¡°Yes, thank you.¡± Young-Joon took the business card and put it into his pocket. After Ha Hun-Wook, a bunch of scientists began crowding in front of him as if Ha Hun-Wook had started this. ¡°Doctor Ryu, are you also thinking of growing organ tissue with induced pluripotent stem cells?¡± ¡°You¡¯re going to focus on spinal nerves after optic nerves, right?¡± ¡°If you focus on brain diseases, you will have to work with the medical imaging team. Our department...¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joon received seven business cards even before he got his meal ticket. What was even more surprising was that they were all business cards from people who were heads of their departments. ¡°Wait, why do you have seven cards when Lab Six only has four departments? Whatb are they from?¡± Park Dong-Hyun said in bewilderment. ¡°But is that true?¡± Jung Hae-Rim asked Young-Joon. ¡°What is?¡± ¡°That you¡¯re bing an executive.¡± ¡°Hm.¡± Young-Joon nodded his head. ¡°It¡¯s true.¡± ¡°Holy.¡± ¡°Oh my god...¡± Park Dong-Hyun and Jung Hae-Rim¡¯s jaws dropped to the floor. ¡°Oh, Director Ryu. You came all the way down here to this humble cafeteria. We should have known in advance and brought you to a luxurious ce. We are so sorry...¡± Cheon Ji-Myung started joking around but was swiftly interrupted. ¡°Eek. Stop it,¡± Young-Joon stopped him as if it was burdening. ¡°Um, you¡¯re Doctor Ryu Young-Joon, right?¡± Three young people who looked very smart came and talked to Young-Joon. ¡°Yes, I am.¡± When Young-Joon replied, the three of them hesitated a little. ¡°Are you going to propose a project?¡± Park Dong-Hyun asked. ¡°No. Um, we work at the Research Support Department of Lab Six. We were wondering if we could get your business card? ¡°My business card?¡± ¡®Why does the Research Support Department want my card?¡¯ In puzzlement, Young-Joon pulled out some business cards from his coat and gave it to them. As he did, one of them handed him a pen. ¡°Could I get an autograph on that as well?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu, you¡¯re already a celebrity,¡± Bae Sun-Mi said. ¡°He¡¯s going to get the Nobel Prize in ten to fifteen years,¡± The employees said as they got Young-Joon¡¯s signed business card. ¡°We do science, but we can¡¯t propose a project since we¡¯re not scientists. But we wanted to get something like this since you¡¯re a big star that will be long remembered in the history of science in Korea.¡± ¡°We¡¯re cheering for you. Go Doctor Ryu!¡± ¡°Please be an executive, and I hope you¡¯lle to Lab Six as theb director!¡± The three of them said goodbye several times and left, giggling. Watching them walk away, Park Dong-Hyun said, ¡°Doctor Ryu, do you want to take some pictures? Exchange some used things. Socks you wore... or I¡¯m wearing Guess underwear...¡± ¡°What are you talking about!¡± Young-Joon shouted in disgust. ¡°But Doctor Ryu¡¯s reputation has definitely gone up a lot. How many project proposals have you gotten today...¡± Cheon Ji-Myung said. ¡°What are you going to do next, Doctor Ryu?¡± Jung Hae-Rim asked. ¡°Well, I am going to start clinical trials with optic nerves,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°What¡¯s the next experiment with induced pluripotent stem cells?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not getting into that right away. I¡¯m going to decide on a targetter on.¡± ¡°So are you just going to do the clinical trials?¡± Cheon Ji-Myung asked. ¡°No, I¡¯m going to do probiotics. We have to beat everyone to it since it¡¯s an important future market,¡± Young-Joon replied. The Health Food Department of Lab Six had the best facilities and technicians to study probiotics, and they were linked to A-Gen¡¯s giant probiotics productionplex. Young-Joon was going to borrow their infrastructure. And Celligener had a new coating technology for developed strains. He was going to coborate with Celligener and borrow it. Finally, he had the magic strain that Rosaline picked out for him, Clorotonis limuvitus. It was one of the types of bacteria that Young-Joon discovered when he gained insight into the probiotics from Roche Song Ji-Hyun gave him at the pharmacy. Thebination of the three would make a powerful item. They were going to each get a huge amount, even considering that one venturepany and two departments were going to work together and split the performance. There was a high chance that they would have a monopoly in the probiotics department. There was a reason why that was important. The human body was made of approximately thirty-seven trillion cells, and all those cells were the person¡¯s. It was part of themselves, something they had created by steadily dividing from an embryo in their mother¡¯s stomach. But actually, there was a huge number of immigrants living in this enormous biological republic: microorganisms that lived in symbiosis with the human body, likectobacilli in the gut. How many of them were living in one person¡¯s body? Every paper had a different number, but the paper that was on the low end of the estimate predicted thirty-nine trillion microorganisms. The paper that was on the high end of the estimate? There were papers that thought there were ten times more microorganisms than human cells. Whether it be the former or thetter, it was embarrassing to im that the body was human. It was unbelievable, but most biologists in the past almost ignored the huge number of bacteria living in the body. But as more research is done on microorganisms, more shocking facts are discovered. microorganisms that live in symbiosis with the human body could make a person¡¯s skin smooth or keep them skinny. Conversely, if someone had more harmful microorganisms, they could get bad skin or be obese. It seemed unbelievable, but it was true. Furthermore, those microorganisms controlled a person¡¯s immune response, affected their mood, and yed an important role in determining someone¡¯s biological age. Scientists would be able to tell how old a person is with an error range of plus or minus two just by their gut bacteriaposition. It was the biggest buzzword of healthcare in the twenty-first century. Probiotics: the item that the pharmaceutical industry was paying huge attention to. The next step of the genius who shook the scientificmunity with stem cells and optic nerves was going to be on the microorganisms market, something much different from before. Chapter 31: Probiotics (1)

Chapter 31: Probiotics (1)

What are drugs? If someone answered that it was to treat diseases, they would be half right. The concept of drugs epassed the prevention of diseases as well. Young-Joon was going to continue the line of research on the treatment of neurological disorders using stem cells, but he had to start something in the healthcare field now at thetest since this could take a long time. The keyword in the center of healthcare was probiotics. There were almost one thousand five hundred kinds of microorganisms living in the gut, and they had almost one hundred fifty times more gic material than one person. The huge amount of biomaterials that are expressed from their gic material are released in the form of microspores, then reabsorbed into the human body. They are sent to various ces through the blood. It would be strange to think that they wouldn¡¯t have an effect on the body. It was pretty well-known to the public that Helicobacter pylori, one of the microorganisms that lived in the stomach, could cause stomach cancer in some people. That was why hy Co., Ltd, a Korean yakultpany, made Helicobacter Project Will, saying that it was a probiotic drink that would destroy that. Helicobacter pylori was the most famous one, but there were reports about microorganisms in the stomach and cancer every year. One of the most recent papers found that proteobacteria and actinobacteria species could cause pancreatic cancer. It really showed that gut microorganisms could really drive or suppress cancer. It was not the only reason for cancer development, but it seemed certain that it was an important reason. These discoveries hadn¡¯t been studied deeply enough or be widely known. That was why there weren¡¯t many people who bought probiotic products even when new ones were made, and it wasn¡¯t as good for profit from thepany¡¯s perspective. Just in terms of money, developing a new anticancer drug could be better for profit short term. But shouldn¡¯t scientists who fight for the health of humanity show the potential of probiotics to the public and supply the market with an excellent product? In terms of preventing diseases, it could be an item that contributes more to human health than stem cells. ¡°...And A-Gen¡¯s profit on probiotics has continuously gone down after the release of Roche¡¯s Active Lactobacillin,¡± Young-Joon said. Five scientists from the Health Food Department, including Choi Myung-Joon, cleared their throats in embarrassment as they read the chart Young-Joon was presenting. A joint department meeting was happening in the meeting room of Lab Six. From the Life Creation Department, Young-Joon who proposed this meeting, Koh Soon-Yeol and Park Dong-Hyun, who both have experience with probiotics, and Department Head Cheon Ji-Myung were in attendance. The Health Food Department was much bigger and had around twenty people, but there was Choi Myung-Joon, Seo Yoon-Ju, and three new people here as they specialized in probiotics. Young-Joon said, ¡°To be honest, I don¡¯t think it¡¯s the Health Food Department¡¯s fault that we lost our share in the market. There isn¡¯t much of a difference between our product and Roche¡¯s right? It¡¯s more of a failure in marketing rather than the scientists.¡± ¡°But we could have beaten Roche if we developed a better probiotic product,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung added. ¡°But probiotics have been developed to their fullest. There isn¡¯t much we can do now.¡± Choi Myung-Joon made excuses as if he was letting his frustration out. ¡°Like Doctor Ryu said, our product is simr to Roche¡¯s, right? It¡¯s because we have developed it as far as it can go. The scientificmunity has analyzed one thousand of the gut microorganisms in the body. There aren¡¯t any better products.¡± Young-Joon shook his head. ¡°There are definitely problems in our existing product. If we find a solution to that, it will be a better product.¡± ¡°What problems?¡± ¡°First of all, the biggest problem: even if you take probiotics, your gut microorganismposition doesn¡¯t change very easily. It¡¯s because the ones that already exist are too strong and too high in number.¡± Young-Joon exined. Gut microorganisms were like the old guards; the ones that established themselves first killed and drove out the ones that cameter on. Because of this, the gut microorganismposition did not change easily even if one took a lot of probiotics. ¡°Actually, among the recent papers published in Cell, one proposed that most probiotics get discharged as is because it is difficult to get rid of the microorganisms already established there. It¡¯s hard to establish them in the gut if we don¡¯t use probiotics customized to the individual.¡± Seo Yoon-Ju suddenly raised her hand. ¡°So I was thinking. What if we make probiotic form for infants? I have proposed that idea for a long time. What do you think, Doctor Ryu?¡± Infants who were just born do not have any microorganisms in their gut because the uterus of a mother is a sterile environment. There were many microorganisms in a woman''s vagina, but they could not easily invade the uterus. Basically, humans were first introduced to microorganisms from the moment of their birth. As such, the best n would be to help beneficial microorganisms to establish themselves during early age. ¡°But that is dangerous,¡± Young-Joon disagreed. ¡°It¡¯s a good n, Scientist Seo, but it could be harmful to give them probiotics, arge amount of bacteria, because they have a weak immune system. Even if they are beneficial.¡± ¡°Then we don¡¯t really have a good n,¡± Choi Myung-Joon said. ¡°So, like the old n, we¡¯ll have to use probiotics for a long time and make them fight for their ce in the gut.¡± ¡°Or we can use antibiotics to destroy the existing microorganisms in the gut. It¡¯s violent, but theoretically possible,¡± one of them from the Health Food Department added. Young-Joon interfered in their conversation, ¡°Don¡¯t do that. Maybe we should change the bacteria strain.¡± ¡°The strain?¡± The scientists all stared at him with wide eyes. ¡°There is a strain called Clorotonis limuvitus. Let¡¯s use that.¡± ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a bacteria that usually resides in volcanic soil. There should be a lot in the soil near Mount Sinabung, one of the volcanoes in the Sumatra inds in Indonesia.¡± Young-Joon had looked up this information beforehand with the name of the strain. ¡°No strain can match limutivus in terms of its advantages to the human body, but it also has excellent intestinal viability, so it can destroy other microorganisms and establish itself. We don¡¯t have to use harsh methods such as antibiotics.¡± ¡°...¡± Everyone was quiet for a moment. ¡°You want to use bacteria living in volcanic soil as probiotics?¡± ¡°It will be the best strain. Let¡¯s reduce all Lactobacillus types in our existing product by two percent, and include eight percent of Clorotonis limuvitus.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡®There he goes again. Doing something weird.¡¯ Park Dong-Hyun stole a few nces at Young-Joon. Putting bacteria that live in volcanic soil into a person¡¯s intestines was no different than just eating dirt. They were not more surprised because Young-Joon was the one saying it, and it had an unreasonable level of persuasion because he said it. Well, Park Dong-Hyun was going to support him anyway, but he was a little worried, to be honest. For everyone else, Seo Yoon-Ju asked, ¡°Doctor Ryu, is that true? How do you know that?¡± Young-Joon made up an excuse. ¡°Clorotonis limuvitus is a strain of bacteria I kept in mind after hearing about in a microorganism conference when I was a student. No one has tried it as an intestinal microorganism, but I think it will be effective ording to the papers I¡¯ve seen on it.¡± Seo Yoon-Ju still looked like she could not ept it. ¡°But Doctor Ryu, that limuvitus thing or whatever. It¡¯s a strain that has never been known as an intestinal microorganism, right? That means that it hasn¡¯t been found in a healthy person¡¯s gut during studies. Will it really be safe and effective?¡± ¡°That¡¯s because the concept of healthy people is based on citizens of developed countries. We just didn¡¯t know about it because there hasn¡¯t been much research done on non-Western people since science was a Western-centered subject. For example, if you analyze the gut microorganismposition of people living in long-living viges in Nepal or Tibet, you will find a lot of this strain. We could also use this in marketing, saying that it¡¯s usually found in residents of long-living viges.¡± Everyone from the Health Food Department in the meeting was at a loss for words. They just stared at Young-Joon in shock. Young-Joon said, ¡°Well, if you can¡¯t believe me, you don¡¯t have to do it. We¡¯ll pay the fee, so just let us borrow your facilities. We can set it up ourselves.¡± ¡°No! Let¡¯s do it together!¡± Choi Myung-Joon shouted urgently. It was obvious that people would have reacted like this when he first brought up iPSCs. They would have all listened to him in bewilderment, wondering what the hell he was talking about. But Young-Joon probably mentioned it because it was something that he could do. ¡®Of course I have to get on this first-ss wagon. We have an incredible driver.¡¯ ¡°Please let us be part of it,¡± Choi Myung-Joon said once again. ¡°Alright. But our Life Creation Department has never studied microorganisms before. So I was wondering how the Health Food Department obtains new microorganisms?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°If it¡¯s a registered strain in the ATCC or KACC, we buy it from there. If there isn¡¯t a vendor, we contactbs who are selling it and get it there. If we can¡¯t do that, we go there ourselves and get a sample.¡± ¡°They probably won¡¯t sell it at ces like the ATCC because it¡¯s such a unique strain. There should be some foreignbs that are studying limuvitus, so we¡¯ll have to contact them to get it,¡± ¡°We will begin that part. We have connections tobs that study microorganisms in major universities,¡± Choi Myung-Joon said. ¡°Sir! I found it!¡± As soon as Choi Myung-Joon finished his sentence, Seo Yoon-Ju, who was sitting next to him, shouted with her phone in her hand. She showed him her phone screen. ¡°This is the excel file of the list of microorganisms we got from theb from University of Madras in India. It¡¯s here, limuvitus.¡± ¡°Good. We will make sure to get this,¡± Choi Myung-Joon said. As they were a team who had originally worked on probiotics, they definitely had good infrastructure and plenty of sources to get the bacteria strains. If Young-Joon did this all by himself, it would have taken him at least a few weeks to find ab that studied limuvitus. ¡°Then please purchase that. We will start experiments as soon as they arrive. And we will coborate with Celligener, a venturepany, for this project.¡± ¡°Celligener?¡± ¡°Yes. They work on probiotics as well, and they have a new coating technology. This product will bepleted only if we use that technology.¡± ¡°Of course. We will prepare a meeting.¡± Young-Joon got up from his seat. As he left, Jung Hae-Rim appeared. ¡°Oh! Director Ryu. You were here.¡± ¡°...Please just call me Young-Joon. I haven¡¯t even been appointed yet...¡± ¡°I heard that I have to look good to you because there will be a lot ofpetitors.¡± ¡°Dong-Hyun-sunbae told you that, right?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Jung Hae-Rim covered her mouth and giggled. Young-Joon stared at her with a disapproving look and found Koh Soon-Yeol walking past them. ¡°I wonder if Soon-Yeol-sunbae will be alright,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Why?¡¯ ¡°We¡¯re going to work with the Health Food Department because of probiotics. I¡¯m ambivalent about their department, so it doesn¡¯t matter to me if we work together since they have a good infrastructure andwork, but even if Soon-Yeol-sunbae got his apology and money for the clothes, I¡¯m worried that it will be emotionally exhausting...¡± ¡°Huh? You haven¡¯t heard the news?¡± Jung Hae-Rim asked with wide eyes. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Soon-Yeol and Yoon-Ju are dating.¡± ¡°Cough!¡± Young-Joon¡¯s saliva went down the wrong way because he was so surprised. He began coughing. [Starting to normalize breathing.] [Relieving irritation of submucosal receptors.] ¡°They¡¯re dating?¡± That news was the most shocking thing Young-Joon had heard recently. ¡°The money Yoon-Ju gave to Soon-Yeol for his clothes was originally for her trip to Tokyo. But apparently, Soon-Yeol heard that and asked her to go to Tokyo for him and get a Kohaku figurine for him at Akihabara. But then, Yoon-Ju went to Akihabara and opened her eyes to a whole new world. She became a fan immediately and broke up with her boyfriend who she wasn¡¯t on good terms with. Then, she actively pursued Soon-Yeol, saying that he was cute when you looked at him closely...¡± ¡°Holy shit...¡± Now that Young-Joon thought about it, Seo Yoon-Ju was looking at Koh Soon-Yeol with lust. He did not imagine this plot twist. Jung Hae-Rim said, ¡°You live to see such weird things, right? Soon-Yeol is actually quite a charming person. Even now, Soon-Yeol is the one giving her a chance. Apparently, he only smiles a couple times when they talk about Kohaku.¡± She giggled, then suddenly remembered something. ¡°Oh, right! Young-Joon, there are reporters outside. I actually came here to tell you that. You said you were doing an interview in the afternoon today.¡± ¡°Yes. I¡¯ll be back.¡± After the release in Science and CNN, Korean reporters were calling A-Gen every day and asking for interviews. It was fun at first, but now, it was burdensome and tiring. ¡®I¡¯ll do this one and then decline any other ones.¡¯ * * * On Friday evening, when the Science special was published and before Young-Joon had the joint department meeting, Choi Yeon-Ho, the CEO of Celligener, called Song Ji-Hyun, who had juste back from her break, into his office when she was experimenting. He showed her Young-Joon¡¯s Science paper and interview. Her eyes widened. ¡°Doctor Song, is this the A-Gen scientist you mentioned before?¡± ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right.¡± ¡°He was the one who requested a meeting with us to work on probiotics together, right?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± With his fingers on his lips, Choi Yeon-Ho stared at the young man¡¯s face that was on the interview page. Song Ji-Hyun had told him that he was a scientist who worked on stem cells in the Life Creation Department or something like that. And she said that he had asked her to work together in creating a new probiotics product. ¡®How good could a person who works on stem cells be at microorganisms?¡¯ Choi Yeon-Ho had justughed it off when he heard that from Song Ji-Hyun. He didn¡¯t know how good he was at microorganisms, but he did something huge in stem cells. ¡®Well, I didn¡¯t know he was this good. It¡¯s apletely different thing now...¡¯ Induced pluripotent stem cells¡ªit was an incredibly ingenious and revolutionary thing. The fact that he differentiated it into optic nerves was huge as well, but it took him less than two months to get results in animal experiments with that. ¡®Is he human?¡¯ It didn¡¯t seem like a person as talented as Young-Joon would not know what he was talking about. He must know something about probiotics, and he would have asked them to coborate on a project because he knows how to do it. ¡°This person. What kind of person is he?¡± Choi Yeon-Ho asked. Chapter 32: Probiotics (2)

Chapter 32: Probiotics (2)

¡°Doctor Ryu Young-Joon obtained his doctorate from Jungyoon University and is working at A-Gen,¡± Song Ji-Hyun exined. ¡°A-Gen...¡± Choi Yeon-Ho thought about the name for a while. ¡°Right, he said A-Gen in his interview, too. Ugh, why does it have to be A-Gen again...¡± Choi Yeon-Ho covered his face with his hands. Celligener had a traumatic memory of A-Gen. Even right now, their management was being swayed by A-Gen because of their investment. ¡°Doctor Song, if we coborate with this person, will we be able to solve the problems with the probiotic we are working on?¡± Choi Yeon-Ho asked. Song Ji-Hyun thought for a little bit. When she first met Young-Joon, he said that there was no point in digging deeper into bifidobacterium when he was looking at Roche¡¯s probiotics, and that proved to be true. He was someone who worked on stem cells, but he knew how to suppress the parvovirus in animals as well. He shook Science, the best scientific journal in the world by making induced pluripotent stem cells. He was a mysterious person, and Song Ji-Hyun could not figure out his specialization. She could not determine the depth of his knowledge. That was the kind of scientist he was. And Young-Joon said that they were going to make a product that would dominate the probiotics market. ¡°I think it will be good if we coborate. I think he will be of great help.¡± ¡°What about his personality? I want to work with someone who keeps their research ethics. We suffered a lot with the new liver cancer drug, right?¡± If it was Gil Hyun-Joon or Kim Hyun-Taek that Choi Yeon-Ho was asking, they would have been furious and would have said that he was clinically insane when it came to research ethics. But the image that popped up in Song Ji-Hyun¡¯s head was not Young-Joon cursing at Kim Hyun-Taek or insisting that he could not give a penny of royalties to Gil Hyung-Joon. She thought about how Young-Joon revealed apany secret in front of a scientist of apetitor in order to save her golden retriever. It wasn¡¯t enough to judge a person¡¯s character, but that incident was deeply embedded in her head. ¡°I think he is an amazing person.¡± ¡°Good. Then let¡¯s set up a meeting. Please contact them and get a date,¡± Choi Yeon-Ho said. * * * Celligener¡¯s existence depended on this probiotic product. If this product¡¯s process development went well, they were thinking of getting a lot of money and escaping the hands of A-Gen. There was a reason they chose probiotics. First of all, the market had a huge growth potential; they could maintain thepany through a stable source of ie if they established themselves there. Second, even though A-Gen was dominating the Korean pharmaceutical and healthcare market, they had a weak spot in probiotics because ActiveBio, Roche¡¯s product, was quickly taking over the international market. In this situation, A-Gen would not be able to scream about making them close doors like they did with their new liver cancer drug because if Celligener held out engaged in a legal dispute, Roche would seize the opportunity of the scandal and take the Korean market. As such, they developed a new capsule coating technology, and based on that, they tried to make the best probiotics. But they had a problem. Could they find the solution in this meeting? As Celligener¡¯s representatives, Choi Yeon-Ho, Song Ji-Hyun, and Principal Scientist Gu Dong-Ho went to A-Gen to visit Lab Six. ¡°They definitely have a bigb because they are a bigpany,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said with a little admiration. ¡°To be honest, I¡¯m a little jealous that they have six of these.¡± Choi Yeon-Ho let out a sigh inside. ¡®Celligener should be this big, too.¡¯ If A-Gen didn¡¯t steal the new liver cancer drug from them, they would be a much biggerpany by now. A sessful and hugepany like A-Gen stole from a start-up pharmaceuticalpany that was the size of their palm. To be honest, it was unfair and infuriating. Choi Yeon-Ho, Song Ji-Hyun, and Gu Dong-Ho received their visitor passes at the Lab Six entrance and went inside. They looked for the meeting room in Ward One, but they could not find it; it was hard to navigate because the building was so big. ¡°I¡¯ll try calling him.¡± Song Ji-Hyun called Young-Joon, but all she heard was the dial tone. ¡°I guess he¡¯s busy,¡± Gu Dong-Ho said. ¡°Maybe he¡¯s preparing for the meeting since it¡¯s soon.¡± Song Ji-Hyun looked a little worried. That was when two women wearingb coats appeared at the end of the hallway with excited faces. They could hear them talk as they walked in their direction. ¡°Wasn¡¯t that Doctor Ryu Young-Joon in front of the washroom?¡± ¡°Right? I saw him, too. It¡¯s crazy. He even seems handsome now that he¡¯s sessful.¡± ¡°I should have asked for his autograph or something.¡± ¡°You¡¯re right. My colleague from Lab Two asked me to get Doctor Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s autograph if I ever run into him... I heard that his name is on the Nobel Prize waitlist.¡± ¡°Excuse me! Wait!¡± Song Ji-Hyun ran in front of them. ¡°Do you happen to know where Room 104 is? The small meeting room for visitors.¡± ¡°If you go down to that corner, you¡¯ll see a poster of someone named Doctor Ryu Young-Joon. If you look to the left from there, you¡¯ll see the room.¡± ¡®A poster of Ryu Young-Joon?¡¯ They really did see a poster of him as they turned the corner in puzzlement. [The supernova of the scientificmunity that Lab Six created. Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s Special Work Seminar] The Research Support team had put it up as ordered by Gil Hyung-Joon. They had put a huge picture of someone¡¯s face on it and listed the schedule for the seminar. Also, someone had crossed out the word ¡°created¡± and doodled below it. [Did Korea University create Kim Yuna?][1] [Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s mom created Ryu Young-Joon] ¡°We¡¯re going to the meeting room to meet this person right now?¡± Choi Yeon-Ho asked in puzzlement. He predicted that Young-Joon would have be a huge star now that he had released an incredible paper and interview, but he didn¡¯t expect it to be this big. Young-Joon was probably extremely busy after gaining this much fame, so didn¡¯t the fact that he was the one who asked for this meeting about probiotics first mean that there was something to look forward to? When the three people entered the small meeting room, they met Young-Joon. ¡°Hello. You¡¯re alone?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked. ¡°Next time, let¡¯s have a meeting with all the department members that work on probiotics. You¡¯ll just have a short meeting with me today.¡± First, Choi Yeon-Ho, the CEO of Celligener, presented the capsule coating technology. As he went through the slides, he exined the capsule coating technology of Roche and A-Gen, and did aparative analysis of Celligener¡¯s technology with the others. ¡°... And so, we selected the strategy of using microcapsules oveid with Alginate, a natural polymer material. If you use this to coat microorganisms along with prebiotics that contain a few types of amino acids, it can be stored for a very long period of time,¡± Choi Yeon-Ho said. ¡°You¡¯re packaging prebiotics in the same capsule?¡± Young-Joon asked. Prebiotics generally referred to nutrients that promoted the growth and activity of intestinal microorganisms. Recently, a technology where theposition of intestinal microorganisms could be changed with specific prebiotics and without introducing new microorganisms. ¡®But packaging probiotics with prebiotics in one capsule?¡¯ ¡°Yes. We have done that for the capsule coating technology we developed. We discovered that the viability and storage time increases greatly.¡± ¡°I see.¡± It was great technology and very advanced as well. The viability of the microorganisms that were sent to the body was much higher than the capsule coating that A-Gen or Roche used. Probiotics usually went through four steps to enter the human body. 1. The growth of microorganisms. 2. Downstream process. 3. Storage. 4. Consumption through the stomach. The probability of a microorganism surviving the four steps andnding in the intestine was quite low, so the key to probiotic products was to increase that probability. First of all, it was necessary to cultivate it from the beginning of the growth process with high efficiency and to highly concentrate the living cells with equipment such as a giant centrifuge. A-Gen¡¯s probiotics team was good at this, and Choi Myung-Joon specialized in this. And as of now, Celligener had the world¡¯s best technology for the downstream process and storage steps. ¡°How much does the viability of the microorganisms introduced to the body increasepared to Roche or A-Gen?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°It increases by about eight percent,¡± Choi Yeon-Ho replied. Young-Joon was satisfied. He smiled on the inside as eight percent was quite a significant value. ¡°But we have a problem,¡± Song Ji-Hyun spoke all of a sudden. ¡°A problem?¡± Young-Joon asked as he turned to face her. ¡°It¡¯s not so much a problem... as it is a point for improvement, but I thought we should tell you this in advance if we work together.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°When the alginate hydrogel capsule is introduced, the cross-link is undone through a cation exchange reaction and dissolves. If this happens in the beginning, the viability of the microorganisms decreases greatly.¡± ¡°Hm...¡± Young-Joon thought for a bit, then said, ¡°Do you happen to have a prototype or something like that of your probiotic product?¡± ¡°Our product?¡± Choi Yeon-Ho asked. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Well, it¡¯s not really a product yet, but...¡± They did bring something that was packaged like a real product to appeal to Young-Joon. It was a small blue stick that looked like Lemona.[2] ¡°This is our product prototype.¡± Choi Yeon-Ho handed him something. Young-Joon ripped the end off and examined the inside. [Synchronization Mode: Would you like to gain insight into probiotics? Fitness consumption rate: 0.2/second] Click. Young-Joon pressed the synchronization button. [Bifidobacteriumctis, Bifidobacterium bifidum, Bifidobacterium...] This time as well, the names of the microorganisms and information about their processes appeared at once. ¡®It would be nice if she could give me a hint about capsule coating... Huh?¡¯ A message popped up above Synchronization Mode. [Rosaline¡¯s synchronization level has increased due to the frequent usage of Synchronization Mode.] [Rosaline has leveled up.] [The Rosaline cells in your brain are able to exchange electrical signals more systematically with the synapses in your cerebral cortex. As a result, you are able to ask Rosaline for conscious advice from now on.] [You were able to have short conversations with Rosaline when choosing options consuming more than one fitness point, but it was limited to the exnation of the option itself. However, Advice allows Rosaline to find the information you want as the almighty presence in the microworld.] [This option consumes arge amount of fitness as it requires Rosaline to form new neurons and multidimensional electrical signals from your cerebral cortex.] ¡°...¡± [Advice: About capsule coating. Fitness consumption rate: 2/second] This option consumed two points of fitness per second. It was arge amount, but Young-Joon could use it. As Rosaline leveled up, Young-Joon¡¯s fitness was recovered, and the maximum amount was increased as well. Right now, Young-Joon had 2.2 points of fitness, meaning that Rosaline could teach him about capsule coating for one second. However, this information was not exined, absorbed, and understood throughmunication media such as speech or text; it was the forced injection of knowledge that created new long-term memory neurons in the brain. He would be able to absorb quite a lot of knowledge in one second. Click. Young-Joon pressed the [Advice] button, and powerful knowledge beganing into his head. [Put ayer of chitosan on the inside of the alginate to create a twoyer coating.] [Create an aqueous solution of 0.4% chitosan, remove insoluble impurities by permeating it through nylon, then add 0.1M of CaCl2. Then follow Celligener¡¯s standard producing methods, but include a step to add the sodium alginate solution to the sterile chitosan solution. Keep at -20 degrees Celsius with the strain protectant.] ¡°...¡± As Young-Joon stared nkly at the message window, Song Ji-Hyun tapped his shoulder. ¡°Doctor Ryu?¡± ¡°Oh, I solved it,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°Solve what?¡± ¡°The capsule coating problem you just talked about, Doctor Song. You have to add chitosan. I¡¯ll tell you how.¡± The three of them were frozen, unable to say anything. Young-Joon was now used to this atmosphere. ¡°Trust me and test it once.¡± * * * ¡®This is insane.¡¯ Rosaline, who leveled up, didn¡¯t just help Young-Joon gain insight and find the answer, but it could generate answers that did not exist. ¡®Wait.¡¯ Young-Joon, who was returning to theb, stopped in his tracks. Clorotonis limuvitus was also a strain that Rosaline rmended when she was still at a low level. ¡®Maybe I could get more information if I inspect it with Advice?¡¯ As soon as Young-Joon returned to theb, he waited for his fitness to recover as if he had bought a lottery ticket and was waiting for the numbers to be announced. He even injected ATP into his veins. After he had enough fitness, he gained insight into Clorotonis limuvitus, the microorganism strain, and gained advice. [Clorotonis limuvitus is a mucus-dissolving bacteria that can live in the mucusyer of the intestines. They are more efficient than Akkermansia muciniph and are excellent at settling in the intestine. However, they are less efficient in creating vesicles than Akkermansia muciniph, so overexpress the following genes: ATak711, YJ2, mCAL...] ¡®What is she talking about? Why is Akkermansia muciniphing up?¡¯ Akkermansia was also the name of a microorganism. It was the main focus of a paper published in Nature in 2013. It was a species that was excellent in preventing obesity when it was in the intestines. Furthermore, the paper stated that it had a small effect on type 2 diabetes. [If you overexpress the genes above in Clorotonis and transnt it into the intestines, it is predicted that it will be one thousand times more efficient than Akkermansia muciniph.] [If this microorganism is orally administered, you can cure 74% of existing type 2 diabetes patients.] [No more fitness remaining.] 1. Kim Yuna used to attend Korea University, and the university used her for marketing and advertising the school, saying that they created Kim Yuna. ? 2. Lemona is a packaged vitamin C powder stick. It¡¯s a skinny rectangle that contains vitamin C powder in it. ? Chapter 33: Probiotics (3)

Chapter 33: Probiotics (3)

The pancreas secreted a substance called insulin when the sugar level in someone¡¯s blood increased after eating. It circted the body through the blood vessels and ordered cells to digest the sugar. Then, the cells would absorb the sugar in the blood and blood sugar levels would go down as a result. In diabetes mellitus, a state of high blood sugar continued because this system was broken. The term diabetes mellitus was derived from Latin, diabetes meaning discharge and mellitus meaning honey sweet, describing the sweet urine produced when the excess sugar in the body is excreted through urine.[1] Type 1 diabetes was when insulin wasn¡¯t secreted even when blood sugar levels were high, and type 2 diabetes was when insulin was secreted, but certain cells around the body did not listen. It was called insulin resistance. The molecr biology of the cause of insulin resistance was yet to be discovered... Until now. ¡®Now I know the reason.¡¯ Rosaline showed Young-Joon. This was rted to an immune response. The immune system was usually soldiers of the body that existed to destroy invading enemies like viruses or bacteria. But they malfunctioned in some people¡¯s bodies. Some of these immune cells had gone crazy and invaded allies like fat tissue, muscles, liver, and even the bone to cut off the insulin signal by holding a knife to the throats of cells in those tissues. This was the cause of type 2 diabetes. Then how did intestinal microorganisms like Clorotonis or Akkermansia suppress diabetes? It was because they were not human cells, but bacteria; they were the ones that immune cells actually paid attention to. Even if the immune cells were powerful soldiers who created a coup d''etat and forcibly upied the government, they still had to defend the country if North Korea invaded, right? Amuc, a biomaterial that Clorotonis released, was an attractant that immune cells went crazy for.[2] Amuc stuck onto immune cells and controlled their activity, ultimately resulting in them no longer attacking random ces to stop the insulin signal. Clorotonis could get the immune cells to wake up just by hiding in the mucusyer in the intestines and releasing vesicles containing Amuc. As a result, insulin resistance was cured, and therefore type 2 diabetes as well. ¡°Frick, is this real...¡± Young-Joon had discovered the mechanism of type 2 diabetes, one of the biggest problems in medicine in the twentieth century that no one knew the cause of. He felt like someone had hit him in the head as he had absorbed such a huge amount of shocking knowledge. Now, this wasn¡¯t just a supplement. It wasn¡¯t that the healthcare industry wasn¡¯t important since it was clear that maintaining the health of a healthy person and preventing diseases was the best n, but the probiotics that Young-Joon was going to develop could also cure patients on top of that. Then was this a drug? Not necessarily, since almost all drugs had toxic side effects when taken for a long period of time. As such, it was the rule that the patient took it on a scheduled regimen. However, this probiotic would have no side effects even if a healthy person took it every day; it was like vitamin C. It was normal for strains of bacteria such as Akkermansia or Clorotonis to exist in a healthy person¡¯s body; the problem was that they disappeared in type 2 diabetes patients. As such, if this was given to a normal person, it would just be excreted since there would be no free space in the intestines for the microorganisms to establish themselves, thus keeping the characteristic of healthcare. Now, this wasn¡¯t a drug nor was it healthcare. It had an overwhelming level of efficiency that could make all the type 2 diabetes treatments in the market retire, but it was also a natural health booster that would have no side effects whether a patient or a healthy person took it every day. ¡®How could something like this be made?¡¯ This was like an invasive species like the Northern snakehead or bass that would destroy the ecosystem of the type 2 diabetes drug market. Young-Joon called Choi Myung-Joon. ¡ªYes, Mr. Director! Choi Myung-Joon answered brightly. ¡°... I don¡¯t know where you heard it from, but I am not a director yet. ¡ªHahaha, you will be one soon. I knew long before this that you would seed, Doctor Ryu. Congrattions, sir! ¡®... I can see through this guy so clearly.¡¯ It wasn¡¯t disgusting or anything, but it was funny to see that he changedpletely when he was nothing but condescending before Young-Joon created iPSCs. ¡°Alright. Manager Choi, when do you think we will be able to get the Clorotonis limuvitus that we requested from the University of Madras in India?¡± ¡ªIt will arrive in five days! Choi Myung-Joon¡¯s voice was filled with energy. ¡®Five days?¡¯ Young-Joon was surprised. The process of importing microorganisms was actually veryplicated. They could not just ship it over and receive it. First of all, they had to freeze-dry it or spread it on a solid medium so that the microorganisms did not die during long-term transportation. Then, they had to submit a bunch of documents about what the microorganism was, whether it had gene variations, if it was safe or not, and a lot more to the Korea Research Institute of Bioscience & Biotechnology. They had to submit the certificate of importation, import contract, a transportation n, a safety n, a summary of the experiment, its use, invoices, and more. The time the government took to process these was absolutely disgusting. The microorganisms were not able toe into the country and were stuck in airport storage units until they were approved. And although it was hard to believe, the microorganisms that were locked up for long-term storage sometimes died because they had surpassed their lifespan. That was how long the importing of microorganisms took, but what did Choi Myung-Joon say right now? ¡°It¡¯s reaching in five days?¡± Young-Joon asked again. ¡°What did you do to get it done in five days? You have to report it to the government, right?¡± ¡ªYes, that¡¯s right. But we are one of the departments that specializes in microorganisms at A-Gen. We have reported the import of microorganisms to the government departments thousands of times. And nothing was wrong with all of them. I¡¯m saying that we have extraordinary credibility. On top of this, since we conduct our own safety screening, our materials are processed quite quickly. Also, I asked them to prioritize this case in particr. Choi Myung-Joon went on about the strengths of him and his department. It was like Young-Joon was interviewing him. ¡°Thank you. Then the processing will be quicker,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡ªOf course. And since we spent the night writing the documents to report the import and submitted it already, we should be approved around the day after tomorrow. The University of Madras also said that they were going to send it on the earliest flight tomorrow. I will go and get it right away when it arrives at the airport. ¡°Thank you. Please contact me when it arrives.¡± ¡ªOf course! I look forward to that! Choi Myung-Joon shouted. Young-Joon hung up the phone. Choi Myung-Joon clenched his fists in delight. ¡°Yes!¡± It was quite funny how he was sucking up to when Young-Joon was twenty years his junior in the field, but Young-Joon was one of the few geniuses that existed in human history. It was like he was Bob Ross; Young-Joon did a couple of strokes and created induced pluripotent stem cells. That easy! Young-Joon also created optic nerves with a couple of strokes. That easy![3] Choi Myung-Joon wondered what Young-Joon would do from now on. He knew that he had to align himself well, so he was determined to show that he was extremely useful. He felt like the first assignment Young-Joon gave to him regarding Clorotonis limuvitus was a sess. Ring! Choi Myung-Joon¡¯s phone rang again. ¡°Yes, Mr. Director!¡± Choi Myung-Joon answered again with an energetic voice. ¡ªThere was something that I forgot to mention before. We have to alter the genes of limuvitus when they arrive. ¡°Alter the genes?¡± ¡ªYes. We have to increase the expression of seven genes. Could you take care of that part for me? I will give you detailed instructions for the experiment. ¡°Oh, of course. I will spend the night perfecting it to your liking if needed!¡± Choi Myung-Joon replied. He had gotten his second mission. * * * The seeds that Young-Joon nted were ripening and bearing fruit. The very first one he harvested was the new flu drug, which was the first one hemissioned. The cell experiment had beenpleted a while ago, and now he had the data for the animal experimentation. Cell Bio had sent all their data to Young-Joon, and he had sent all of it to Patent Attorney Lee Hae-Won. Patent Attorney Lee Hae-Won, who had just finished filing the im for the patent evaluation, received Young-Joon¡¯s email as she was taking a break and scrolling through Instagram in her office. [Subject: Regarding the patent application of 122 new animal drugs for pets and livestock] Lee Hae-Won had received animal experiment data from thirty-one drugs that had been tested first out of the one hundred twenty-two drugs for thirty-four different kinds of diseases. ¡°No...¡± Lee Hae-Won wanted to cry. ¡®Doctor, I am too busy... Please...¡¯ Lee Hae-Won was debating whether to close her office because she didn¡¯t have enough work, but now she had too much work. She could hire someone just for the amount of work Young-Joon brought her. ¡°Phew. I should still do it. Where am I going to get another business partner like this?¡± Young-Joon wasn¡¯t rude, the speed at which he produced results was unmatched, and the request documents he filled out were done well as well. Lee Hae-Won began to write the patent application for the new animal drug. At the same time, Young-Joon was reading a report on using stem cells in clinical trials. ¡®Clinical trials areing up soon.¡¯ After Young-Joon secured the technology to make iPSCs into optic nerves, the work to start the clinical trials was transferred to the Stem Cells Department. He coborated with them to obtain tissues from patients and developed them into iPSCs, then optic nerve cells. The next step was for the hospital. They had sent him a progress report of the clinical trial. Although this project was still a ¡°joint-department project¡± for the Life Creation Department, the recipient of the Exceptional Performance Award, it was nothing but a formality; the actual director of this project was Young-Joon. p. p. Young-Joon read each page of the report carefully. In the meantime, A-Gen wrote a clinical trial n and submitted it for approval to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety and the Institutional Review Board. This project was also closely observing this project as well. Since it was the first step of the driver of future medicine, its sess would be a great symbol and be rewarded ordingly. The support of the government could increase, which would affect next year¡¯s election. Conversely, the losses would be great if it failed. As such, the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety and the Institutional Review Board examined EyeStem, a stem cell therapy that recovered a patient¡¯s optic nerves, very carefully and approved the trial atst. Now, this project was handed over to Sunyoo University, the clinical trial investigation institution. This was who A-Gen was working with on this project. * * * ¡°Soo-Young, we¡¯re going to be entering the trial now. We asked you this when we harvested your somatic cells, but we¡¯re going to ask one more time,¡± The employee from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety said. ¡°Has the trial investigator exined everything about this clinical trial?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± The woman who replied was in her thirties and sitting on the hospital bed. Her husband was holding her hand tightly. ¡°This clinical trial injects optic nerves created from induced pluripotent stem cells into your retina. Do you understand?¡± ¡°Your optic nerves may not be repaired, and considering it is stem cell therapy, there is a possibility of getting a tumor. Have you had this part exined to you?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Thank you. So, when you undergo this treatment...¡± ¡°Doctor,¡± Son Soo-Young said. ¡°I could sell my soul if I could see my baby¡¯s face just once.¡± She had already lost vision in her left eye due to macr degeneration a long time ago, and now it was time for the right eye. She had problems with this eye ever since she was in high school, and the timing of it was terrible since she was pregnant. Eye pressure usually went down with pregnancy, but it was the opposite for her. The acute a that happened with the sudden increase in eye pressure was difficult for the doctor to treat as well. Arge amount of a treatments were harmful to the fetus, and carbonic anhydrase inhibitors could cause deformities in the fetus. None of the drugs proved to be safe in clinical trials, and toxicity was reported in most of the drugs during animal experiments. Son Soo-Young had tried aser treatment called selectiveser trabeculosty ording to the doctor¡¯s rmendation, but it was not sessful. So, the doctor rmended brimonidine; its effects on the fetus hadn¡¯t been confirmed, but it was the safest option. Son Soo-Young thought about it for a long time: her remaining vision and the baby in her stomach. When she realized she was weighing the two against each other, she refused the doctor¡¯s suggestion after a sense of shame. She was determined that she would not send anything to her fetus that could cause even the littlest bit of harm. Afterward, she fought her disease alone and gave birth to her daughter, but she still hadn¡¯t seen her face; her eyes had lost the light forever. But the tragedy did not end there. Sometimes, someone¡¯s life could be more tragic than the main character of a soap opera. This time, it was the baby. She had a condition called persistent pulmonary hypertension of the newborn. The hospital put her in intensive care and treated her by administering one hundred percent oxygen or injecting her with alkaline solutions to correct acidemia in the incubator. Still, she was in a dangerous situation. The doctor told her that the baby would not be able to live long with a dejected voice. When she heard this news from the postpartum care room, Son Soo-Young cried more than she had in her entire life. Now, her eyes had not only lost light, but she had shed all her tears. ¡®It¡¯s because of me. It¡¯s because I thought about it. It¡¯s because I contemted whether to put in the medicine or not.¡¯ It was a false sense of guilt, but she had to turn the me onto herself because otherwise, if no one did anything wrong and her daughter left without anyone responsible, the despair would have been too great for her to bear. Son Soo-Young was broken, her body and mind. She had given up on everything and prepared herself. She was also ready to let her daughter go, but she had onest wish. She pleaded to the employee, ¡°Please, I just want to be able to see my daughter just once. Doctor, I beg you.¡± 1. ÌÇÄò is Dang-Nyo, which is Hanja for diabetes. Dang is Hanja for sweet, and Nyo is Hanja for urine, directly tranting to sweet urine, which refers to the excess sugar in the urine of diabetes patients. ? 2. In real life, Amuc is released by Akkermansia muciniph. ? 3. This is a Korean meme that came from the time Bob Ross went on Korean TV and taught painting. The program was dubbed, and the channel tranted ¡°That easy!¡±, which Ross used as words of encouragement, into ¡°So easy, right?¡±, making it seem like Ross was painting with a difficult technique and calling it easy. It became a meme that pros use to newbies when showing them something insanely difficult and making it look easy. ? Chapter 34: Independence (1)

Chapter 34: Independence (1)

It was eight o¡¯clock in the evening. Young-Joon hadn¡¯t gone home yet and was sitting in his seat in the office. ¡°You¡¯re not going home, Doctor Ryu?¡± Jung Hae-Rim, who was getting ready to go home after overtime, asked. ¡°I¡¯ll be leaving soon.¡± ¡°You have work left? What is this? SBS Live on Youtube?¡± ¡°I¡¯m waiting for the eight o''clock news. Since there¡¯s only five minutes left until eight, I think I¡¯ll miss it if I head home right now.¡± ¡°You¡¯re waiting for the eight o¡¯clock news?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°And you¡¯re not going home from work to see that?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°... People who usually like the news this much are from Manager Cheon¡¯s generation or older. I guess you¡¯re an old man on the inside. Do you watch the National Singing Contest on the weekends?¡±[1] ¡°The National Singing Contest is entertaining, okay? It¡¯s not a program meant for the elderly.¡± Doo du du. With the opening music, the news program began on Young-Joon¡¯sputer. [The first clinical trial of stem cell therapy.] ¡°So you were waiting for this.¡± Jung Hae-Rim stood behind Young-Joon and focused on the news. ¡°Don¡¯t watch it.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Um...¡± As Young-Joon was hesitating, the news anchor started briefing the news. ¡ªToday, at three o¡¯clock, the first clinical trial for optic nerve therapy derived from induced pluripotent stem cells, developed by A-Gen began. Trial patient Son lost her vision to a. A-Gen and Sunyoo Hospital created stem cells from Son¡¯s somatic cells and differentiated them again into optic nerves to inject them into Son¡¯s retina. The screen changed, and an interview came up. ¡°Hup.¡± Jung Hae-Rim smiled and covered her mouth. It was because Young-Joon came up on the screen. [A-Gen Scientist Ryu Young-Joon.] [The inventor of induced pluripotent stem cells.] Watching the subtitles below and his awkward face on screen, Young-Joon buried his face into his hands. The Young-Joon on the screen began speaking. ¡ªWe have already seeded in recovering the retina and optic nerves of retinal degenerative mice by using induced pluripotent stem cells to create them. Personally, I predict that the clinical trials will have great results. ¡°Wow! You¡¯re good,¡± Jung Hae-Rim eximed. Young-Joon stood up from his seat with ears red from embarrassment. ¡°I can¡¯t watch it because I¡¯m so embarrassed. You can go now since it¡¯s done.¡± ¡°Why are you embarrassed? But you should have gotten a haircut before you did the interview.¡± ¡°I had no time to go to the barbershop.¡± ¡°Those are the interviews that you¡¯ve been doing.¡± ¡°There¡¯s that one and another one from another channel. There was one from a newspaper and one from BRIC/[2] ¡°They¡¯re not asking anymore?¡± ¡°They keep asking me a couple of times a day, but I¡¯m rejecting them. It¡¯s too pressuring.¡± Young-Joon wasn¡¯t very talented at this sort of thing. He was better off fighting Kim Hyun-Taek or Ji Kwang-Man. He didn¡¯t know how to react when people eximed that he was a genius in interviews. * * * It had been four days, but Son Soo-Young, the first trial patient, hadn¡¯t recovered her vision yet. Everything was still dark. ¡°I guess it doesn''t work very well.¡± She smiled bitterly. Even though the treatment failed, she was grateful to everyone since several people had fought to help her regain her vision. ¡°It¡¯s okay. It¡¯s okay.¡± Her husband patted her on the back. ¡°What about Blue?¡± Son Soo-Young asked. That was the baby¡¯s nickname. ¡°She¡¯s alright. She¡¯s holding out. Doctor Hong said that we should try whatever we can to hold onto her. He said that we don¡¯t know when herst day will be, but the parents can¡¯t give up first.¡± ¡°Yeah...¡± Son Soo-Young buried her face in her husband¡¯s chest. ¡°It will be fine. Touch her with your fingertips. I¡¯ll help you.¡± There were countless needles and tape on the really small-sized baby. Even her father, who could see clearly, had to be extremely careful when touching her, so it was much harder for Son Soo-Young. She hadn¡¯t seen her daughter yet, and all she had touched was the tips of her toes. But now that she failed at recovering her vision, there was no way. Her husband hugged her close, stroking her hair. Son Soo-Young said, ¡°It must be hard for you too. Me and Blue are both tormenting you.¡± ¡°I¡¯m steeping in it.¡± Son Soo-Young chuckled. ¡°I¡¯ll turn off the lights. Let¡¯s go to bed.¡± It was the moment he let go of her. ¡°Huh?¡± Son Soo-Young suddenly raised her head. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± ¡°...Come back here. Stand in front of me again.¡± Son Soo-Young called her husband over again and buried her face in his chest. Then, she lifted her face and stared at the ceiling. ¡°It got brighter.¡± ¡°What did?¡± ¡°My eyes... It¡¯s brighter now than when I had my face in your chest.¡± Son Soo-Young gulped. ¡°I can feel the lights.¡± 107 hours after the procedure, the optic nerves began establishing themselves as the retinal tissue healed. Although it was very weak, Son Soo-Young¡¯s eyes were able to distinguish light. Afterward, her eyesight improved by the day. After a week, she could detect something moving in front of her eyes. She could see the faint movement of light. On the tenth day, the light focused on the retina became an object she could recognize. ¡°Okay, open your eyes,¡± Her husband said. He put something near her foot. ¡°Can you tell what it is?¡± ¡°...A phone?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Did I get it wrong?¡± ¡°...No, you¡¯re right.¡± Son Soo-Young could see her husband hugging her. It seemed like he was letting out tears that he had suppressed for a long period of time from how he was shaking. ¡®Not steeping.¡¯ The light on the retina became clearer as time passed. Her vision was recovering quite quickly as the optic nerves were recovered since her optic cells did not have much damage in the first ce. Although the resolution was low and they would have to observe her progress, they could have a report on the clinical trial. Sung Yo-Han, the primary doctor of the clinical trial at Sunyoo Hospital submitted a report to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, the Institutional Review Board, and A-Gen. ¡°It was sessful.¡± It was shocking. Even though Sung Yo-Han did this procedure with the optic nerves A-Gen created for him himself, he was doubtful. Blindness caused by a was incurable. Blindness could be prevented if it was taken care of during the early stages, but it was impossible to cure someone who was already blind. But not anymore. Medicine had found a solution. The results some genius scientist made brought light to a patient¡¯s eyes. Sung Yo-Han could feel that he was in the midst of the advancement of human medicine. ¡°Thank you. Thank you so much.¡± Sung Yo-Han didn¡¯t believe in a religion, but he offered a prayer of gratitude to someone. The next morning, every news channel and newspaper came out with a provocatively titled report. [Sess in clinical trials using optic nerves derived from induced pluripotent stem cells] [ns created to add five additional a patients to clinical trials] [a-caused blindness now curable] [A-Gen, developer of a cure] [A-Gen stocks reach a high along with the pharmaceutical industry. Analysis of the stem cell concept] [How are stem cells changing the future of medicine?] [The advancement of medicine created by a thirty-year-old scientist] [Ryu Young Joon: the scientist who conquered a] * * * As Young-Joon was heading to Lab Six for work, he received a call from Park Dong-Hyun. ¡ªYoung-Joon! Where are you right now? ¡°I¡¯m almost at the entrance. I¡¯m getting off the bus now.¡± ¡ªYou can¡¯te in through the main entrance! No! ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡ªThere are reporters lined up there, waiting for an interview. Soon-Yeol and Hae-Rim are stuck there right now. ¡°Why are Soon-Yeol-sunbae and Hae-Rim-sunbae stuck there?¡± ¡ªI think they are asking about what kind of person you are because they know that they are in the same department as you... Anyway, don¡¯te in through the main entrance! ¡°I¡¯m already at the main entrance. I got off the bus right now. How many reporters can there be...¡± ¡°It¡¯s Ryu Young-Joon!¡± Someone screamed from the entrance of theb. Then, about thirty reporters with cameras and microphones began running over to him. Startled, Young-Joon almost ran the other way. ¡°Doctor Ryu! This is Yoo Su-Min from the Chosun Ilbo[3]. I heard that you...¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu! Sunyoo Hospital has stated that they have sessfully treated patients with optic nerve cells derived from induced pluripotent stem cells in clinical trials! Did you know that?¡± ¡°How do you feel as the first person who developed a treatment for a?¡± ¡°Do you think this can be recreated in other patients?¡± ¡°What do you think the profits will be for this technology?¡± ¡°Did you know that A-Gen stocks have reached an all-time high today?¡± ¡°Can induced pluripotent stem cells be used to create other nerve cells?¡± ¡°What do you predict for the future of stem cell therapy?¡± Cameras shed from all over and microphones flew into his face from every direction. ¡°Oh...¡± Young-Joon did consider the possibility that reporters woulde to cover this story after he received the email saying that the clinical trial had seeded. ¡®But I didn¡¯t think it would be this huge...¡¯ Since he already said everything in his interview with Science and CNN and since a lot of reporters hade by and already covered the story, Young-Joon didn¡¯t think it would be that crazy this time. He just thought a few reporters would call him to request an interview and politicians would ask to have a meal together sometime. Even though Science was the world¡¯s best journal, it was still a journal; the people who read it were usually limited to scientists. Even if CNN did a huge broadcast about stem cell therapy and its vision, it was still just a possibility. To the public, science depended on results. No matter how much scientists talked about the bright potential of something and its surprising mechanism, the public didn¡¯t really care at all. To them, the middle part wasn¡¯t necessary; the only thing that was important was whether someone was cured or not. That was why Young-Joon thought that the Korean news reporters who came to see him after the CNN broadcast were probably just here to cover another boring story. He didn¡¯t expect this to be this huge. But now that he thought of it, those reporters were lucky since they could reuse their article because they already had an interview. ¡°Wait!¡± ¡°Please move!¡± Suddenly, a few men wearing ck suits came running through the reporters and reached him. Young-Joon thought they were A-Gen¡¯s security guards, but they weren¡¯t. He looked carefully, but he didn¡¯t see the symbol for ATCaps, the security firm, on their chest. The men protected Young-Joon and got him out of the crowd of reporters. ¡°Let¡¯s go, Doctor Ryu. We will escort you to theb.¡± ¡°Who are you?¡± ¡°We will exin along the way.¡± Young-Joon was a little flustered, but he followed them since they were heading in the direction of Lab Six. He was going to work anyway. As he got closer, he could see the ATCaps guards on edge. ¡®They are going to have a long day today.¡¯ * * * The people who dug Young-Joon out of the crowd of reporters were the security guards of Congressman Shim Sung-Yeol. Even Young-Joon, who wasn¡¯t interested in politics any more than the average person, knew who Shim Sung-Yeol was. He was the former leader of the ruling party, and he was also the next presidential candidate. He was in the office of the director of Lab Six, Gil Hyung-Joon. ¡°Oh, our national hero, Doctor Ryu. You¡¯re here!¡± Shim Sung-Yeol put on a greasy smile and walked toward Young-Joon with wide arms. He lightly hugged him and said to Gil Hyung-Joon, ¡°You must feel so assured having such a great scientist like him, Director!¡± Gil Hyung-Joon¡¯s expression soured instantly, as if he just chewed a bug or something. ¡°Yes... So assured...¡± Gil Hyung-Joon said with his teeth clenched. ¡°Director, Doctor Ryu. How about this? I think it will be good for all of us to go to the hospital and visit the patient. Get a picture, too. It looks good, right? The government supported A-Gen a lot all this time, right? The congressman of the ruling party, Doctor Ryu, the project manager, Director Gil, and the patient all in one picture...¡± Shim Sung-Yeol made the shape of a camera with his hands andughed. ¡°If we do that, other scientists will also trust the government more and be more motivated, right? Doctor Ryu, you will be the greatest star scientist of this government. You can get famous and be theb director. Director Gil can be the CTO. Hahaha!¡± ¡°Haha... Great. Yes, let¡¯s go,¡± Gil Hyung-Joon replied as he snuck a nce at Young-Joon. ¡°I should get back to my experiments,¡± Young-Joon said firmly. Gil Hyung-Joon¡¯s expression soured even more. ¡°Hahaha!¡± Shim Sung-Yeolughed out loud. ¡°Experiments? Of course. Our national hero is full of passion. But surely, you can take a day off, right? The smarter you are, the more important it is to get fresh air and rest. Isn¡¯t that right, Director?¡± Shim Sung-Yeol asked as he stared at Gil Hyung-Joon. Sighing on the inside, Gil Hyung-Joon wrapped his arm around Young-Joon¡¯s shoulders. He pulled him over to one side and whispered into his ear. ¡°Hey, Doctor Ryu, are you that slow? He¡¯s the next presidential candidate. Suck up a little. That way, we can get more government funding and it will be easier to get approval for clinical trials when you do something with stem cells in the future...¡± That was when Young-Joon pushed Gil Hyung-Joon away and stared right at Shim Sung-Yeol. ¡°Congressman, scientists and politics must be independent of each other. I do not like scientists who go out to drink and y golf to get funding instead of researching and reading papers. I dislike bing the face of the government as a science hero even more. Science is the study of objectivity and proof, and it must be an independent field that one can only prove themselves through papers.¡± ¡°Fuck...¡± Gil Hyung-Joon whispered under his breath behind Young-Joon. Young-Joon added, ¡°I do not want any other kinds of power to be mixed with my research. I had many other politicians request meetings, but I have declined all of them. I ask you to please not use my findings for politics.¡± Gil Hyung-Joon cracked open the ice-cold water bottle he got from the fridge and gulped it down. 1. The National Singing Contest is a TV program that has been going on since 1980. It is usually watched by the older generation. ? 2. BRIC stands for Biological Research Information Center, and it is a collection of biology discoveries. It is based in Korea. ? 3. The Chosun Ilbo is the oldest daily newspaper in the country. ? Chapter 35: Independence (2)

Chapter 35: Independence (2)

How did Archimedes, the greatest mathematician before Isaac Newton die? It was when Roman soldiers took over Syracuse, the city he lived in, and invaded his home. As the soldiers stepped on the shape he drew, he told them not to touch it. Of course, the soldiers who could barely do addition and subtraction did not know the value of his work. And so, they stabbed him to death as the soldiers didn¡¯t like how a citizen of a defeated country was telling them what to do. The situation Gil Hyung-Joon was looking at felt simr to that. It was clear that Young-Joon was as slow as Archimedes was, but what about Shim Sung-Yeol? After some tension... ¡°Ha. Hahaha!¡± Suddenly, Shim Sung-Yeol burst out inughter. This old, snake-like politician had already finished calcting this in his head. ¡°I have made a mistake, Doctor Ryu. Since I¡¯m getting older nowadays, I guess I was a little nervous that I would have less influence in the party. Forgive me.¡± Shim Sung-Yeol bowed to Young-Joon and apologized. Shim Sung-Yeol saw right through Young-Joon¡¯s character. He was a powerful incarnation of research ethics itself, and the fruit of pure science who did notpromise with any kind of power. If Young-Joon was a person like this, he would not hold hands with other politicians either, meaning that Shim Sung-Yeol¡¯spetitors would not be able to use Young-Joon easily. Then, he didn¡¯t have to be anxious right now, nor did he have to be angry. He just had to back off once, y the character that fit his values and win his favor. Young-Joon was a scientist who would gain more and more influence. If he left a good first impression, it would help him in the future. ¡°Of course, science and politics should be separate. I do not have the slightest intention to use your findings from research politically or anything like that. But I just wanted to support an outstanding scientist like you as a politician and out of patriotism,¡± Shim Sung-Yeol said. ¡°...¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t that what scientific technology is? Do we have oil? No, we don¡¯t. All that our country has to live off of is people¡¯s brains. Hahaha. Don¡¯t you think that you earned us thirty years of food to live off of? That¡¯s why I wanted to support you with what I could, and I think that¡¯s why I misspoke and called you a star scientist. I¡¯m sorry.¡± Shim Sung-Yeol tapped Young-Joon¡¯s shoulder. ¡°If you don¡¯t want to, you don¡¯t have to face the media or do anything like that. Don¡¯t feel pressured; do the research you want, and please just let me know if you need anything. I will do everything in my power to support you fully.¡± Shim Sung-Yeol put his business card in Young-Joon¡¯s hand. ¡°But even if you don¡¯t go with us, you should still go to see the patient, right? Since you know best about this project, the patient probably has a lot of questions for you as well.¡± ¡°Yes, of course.¡± Young-Joon already had ns to go visit the patient, but how could he go all of a sudden when he was receiving the nation¡¯s attention? It could be unmannerly of him. ¡°I will go separately,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°Then since I already had ns to go right now, you can go after I leave when it gets quiet,¡± Shim Sung-Yeol said. * * * Son Soo-Young, the first cured a patient, received as many interview requests as the amount of spotlight Young-Joon received. But she had declined most of them. Even though the good news that a was conquered gave hope and encouraged everyone working in medicine and pharmaceuticals, she was not that happy since what she could see with those historic eyes was her dying daughter. She thought that she would even sell her soul for a chance to see her daughter just once, but now that she had been cured, she became greedier. She wondered how humans could be so selfish. Every day during visiting hours, Son Soo-Young stood beside her baby and watched her small daughter, whom she felt looked even smaller than the size of her open palm, just calling her name. She wanted to see as much of her dying daughter with her recovering eyes. But she couldn¡¯t see her daughter as much during visiting hours because some big-time politician named Shim Sung-Yeol appeared at the hospital. ¡°Our doctors, thank you for your hard work. Where is Madam Son Soo-Young right now?¡± ¡°She is in the newborn intensive care unit...¡± Sung Yo-Han, the doctor in charge of the clinical trials, answered him. ¡°Why is she at the newborn intensive care unit?¡± ¡°She had a baby recently, and her daughter is not well.¡± ¡°Oh no. It hasn¡¯t been long since she recovered from a, but now her child is sick... How unfortunate. Tsk tsk.¡± Shim Sung-Yeol clicked his tongue. ¡°It¡¯s unfortunate, really. Visiting hours end at twelve-thirty, so you can meet Madam Soo-Young after then. There¡¯s twenty minutes left,¡± Sung Yo-Han said. ¡°Hm.¡± Shim Sung-Yeol nced at his watch and said, ¡°We don¡¯t really have time right now. Could we go there?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but not everyone can go into the newborn intensive care unit.¡± ¡°Really? Hm.¡± Shim Sung-Yeol changed his mind. This was his chance to put his face on the good news that a was cured. He didn¡¯t have to add the story of a baby in critical condition and create negative energy. ¡°Then could you call Madam Soo-Young for a moment? Can¡¯t she visit next time?¡± ¡°...¡± As Sung Yo-Han hesitated, not knowing what to do, Shim Sung-Yeol hurried him. ¡°Please call her now. We have to see her and then go.¡± As Sung Yo-Han was contemting, Professor Lee Jun-Hyuk, the hospital director, showed up behind him. He hurried over to where they were standing and greeted Shim Sung-Yeol. ¡°Congressman! When did you arrive? You should have contacted me...¡± ¡°Haha, it¡¯s alright. I didn¡¯t want to call on someone so busy like you. But the reason I am here is because I wanted to meet the patient who was cured of a.¡± ¡°Yes, I heard. Doctor Sung, where is the patient?¡± Lee Jun-Hyuk asked Sung Yo-Han. ¡°She is at the newborn intensive care unit.¡± ¡°Really? Then hurry up and get her.¡± ¡°...Yes, of course,¡± Sung Yo-Han answered helplessly. He walked away from the hospital director and Shim Sung-Yeol and went to the newborn intensive care unit. Son Soo-Young was touching the tip of her daughter¡¯s toes and just stared at her as she breathed. ¡°Madam Soo-Young. Um... You have a visitor,¡± Sung Yo-Han said with a look of shame. ¡°I said I¡¯m not meeting anyone during visiting hours.¡± ¡°Yes, I know. But...¡± Sung Yo-Han hesitated. ¡°Who is it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a congressman named Shim Sung-Yeol. The hospital director asked for you to step out...¡± ¡°Sigh... Alright. Let¡¯s go.¡± Son Soo-Young got up from her seat. She could not refuse after seeing how much of a predicament he looked like he was in. A momentter, Shim Sung-Yeol took the hospital director and Son Soo-Young to her room. They took pictures with her sitting on the bed and Shim Sung-Yeol and the hospital director standing behind her and smiling. They took several pictures from several angles and the time passed by fast as Shim Sung-Yeol gave a short speech and showed showmanship in front of reporters. Now, it was past visiting hours. After the photoshoot ended, Shim Sung-Yeol, the hospital director, and the reporters all scattered to get lunch. It was now 6 PM: the second visiting hour. Son Soo-Young, who already had dinner, went over to the hospital entrance to wait until the visiting hours started. Then, she ran into someone who was talking with Sung Yo-Han in the hallway. ¡°Oh! You¡¯re here.¡± Sung Yo-Han weed Son Soo-Young and introduced her to the man. ¡°Doctor Ryu, this is Son Soo-Young.¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu?¡± Son Soo-Young¡¯s eyes widened. She had also heard about him since it was quite a big deal. This time, Son Soo-Young was also sincerely happy to see him. This was the only time she was positive about someone visiting her after her vision improved. Son Soo-Young grabbed Young-Joon¡¯s hands. ¡°Doctor, thank you. Thank you so much.¡± Son Soo-Young thanked him again and again. ¡°Thanks to you, I am able to see again.¡± ¡°Haha, you should be thanking the doctors here. The one who carried out the procedure is him.¡± Surprised, Sung Yo-Han shook his hand. ¡°What are you talking about! No! The stem cell optic nerves you made did everything.¡± ¡°Both of you are my saviors,¡± Son Soo-Young said. ¡°Thanks to that, I get to see my daughter every day.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a relief. If your progression is simr to the pre-trial data, your vision should keep increasing. After a month or so, your vision should be simr to what it was before a,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°You can go on a nice trip with your daughter once you get discharged.¡± ¡°Haha...¡± Son Soo-Youngughed bitterly. ¡°That would be great if I could, but my daughter is not well...¡± ¡°She¡¯s not well?¡± ¡°She¡¯s in the newborn intensive care unit,¡± Sung Yo-Han said. ¡°How is she sick?¡± Sung Yo-Han was not the doctor in charge of the baby, but he hade to know about her daughter in quite some detail while treating Son Soo-Young. ¡°She has persistent pulmonary hypertension of the newborn.¡± ¡°... I see.¡± As Young-Joon looked dejected, Son Soo-Young tried to smile. ¡°It¡¯s alright. I am satisfied with being able to see my daughter¡¯s face. Thank you, Doctor. I should get going. It¡¯s almost the start of visiting hours.¡± As she left, Young-Joon asked Sung Yo-Han, ¡°Could I meet the doctor in charge?¡± * * * The doctor who was in charge of Son Soo-Young¡¯s daughter was at the newborn intensive care unit. Young-Joon went to the room to see them, but he waited outside since he wasn¡¯t allowed inside because of restrictions. They were quite far away, but Young-Joon could see Son Soo-Young and her daughter along with a bunch of message windows. [Synchronization Mode: Would you like to analyze persistent pulmonary hypertension of the newborn? Fitness consumption rate: 0.4/second] Click. Young-Joon pressed the button. Persistent pulmonary hypertension of the newborn was when the pulmonary blood vessels contracted abnormally. When the baby came out of the womb and started to breathe on their own, their pulmonary blood vessels should naturally rx and transport oxygen. But in some cases, their blood vessels remained contracted like they did in the womb for a few reasons. Obviously, if the blood vessels were contracted, there would be less space in the vessel, therefore resulting in lower amounts of blood flow and high blood pressure. That was why it was called pulmonary hypertension. The biggest problem was theck of oxygen due to the decrease in blood flow. The baby could die because the blood was not able to transport enough oxygen. Usually, it was treated by injecting nitric oxide and increasing blood oxygen concentration. The rate of sess? It was only about seventy percent, which was low because it meant that about three out of ten treated infants died. ¡°Hello.¡± A strict-looking doctor in their thirties appeared. She crossed her arms and introduced herself to Young-Joon. ¡°My name is Hong Ju-Hee, and I am taking care of Blue. You wanted to see me?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°I heard that the baby is suffering from persistent pulmonary hypertension of the newborn. Are you treating her with nitric oxide?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°How is the prognosis?¡± ¡°I cannot discuss patient information. Normally, I shouldn¡¯t even be outside at this time. But I know how much hope you have given the mother, so I came here out of gratitude. But that is all I can do. I cannot discuss patient information.¡± ¡°Just tell me one thing. Did the nitric oxide treatment seed?¡± Without answering, Hong Ju-Hee chewed on her lip and thought about what kind of person Young-Joon was. The impact he had on this hospital was a huge issue in the hospital. They were all doctors; everyone knew how amazing the things Young-Joon made were, and she had an even greater appreciation for it since she saw Son Soo-Young every day as she regained her vision. Son Soo-Young came to every visiting hour on the dot and kept her daughter¡¯s side with her recovering eyes because she wanted to see her daughter a little bit more and for longer. That sight, which Hong Ju-Hee witnessed twice a day as she took care of the babies in the intensive care unit, made her heart cry every time. ¡°It failed... The nitric oxide treatment failed,¡± Hong Ju-Hee replied dejectedly. ¡°Then what are you going to do now?¡± ¡°There is nothing we can do...¡± Hong Ju-Hee replied with her teeth clenched. Her eyes were red. ¡°Doctor Hong,¡± Young-Joon called. ¡°There is a substance called prostandin in one of the metabolites of arachidonic acid, which is primarily produced by the vascr endothelial cells. It is procured when cyclooxygenase acts on arachidonic acid. It is usually released when the body has high blood pressure and low blood flow; it sends a signal to the prostandin receptor connected to a G-protein to expand the blood vessels and lower blood pressure.¡± ¡°... Pardon?¡± Hong Ju-Hee looked bewildered. ¡®What is he talking about?¡¯ Young-Joon added, ¡°Veratex, a treatment for high blood pressure, is a biosynthetic drug that perfectly mimics the structure of prostandin. Velross, the pharmaceuticalpany, developed it by taking on a little bit of a loss.¡± ¡°... You¡¯re saying that we should administer Veratex?¡± ¡°I know what you are worried about. The drug hasn¡¯t been tested on infants yet. From what I know, it has only been used on a five-year-old child and that¡¯s the clinical data of the youngest patient. If you administer Veratex to that baby, that bes the first case of the clinical trial. That¡¯s too much pressure, right?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°But the nitric oxide you are using on that baby has be regr treatment because someone made the first case.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I¡¯m not a doctor, but as a scientist who works in pharmaceuticals, there is no drug safer than Veratex. Since it is a natural product that has exactly the same structure as something that should naturally ur in an infant¡¯s body, there should be no side effects.¡± Hong Ju-Hee was lost in thought for a moment. Young-Joon was right; it was way too much pressure for her to be the first person to try a drug that hadn¡¯t been tested on an infant ever. If she was a bold and forward doctor, she could have actively encouraged the mother to use experimental treatments, but Hong Ju-Hee did not think she could do that. But Son Soo-Young¡¯s face, which made the hearts of the people who saw her every day in the intensive care unit ache, her eyes, which were starting to see the light, and the baby, who was holding onto her miraculous life... She could not get the image of those two out of her head even when she was eating bread she got from the convenience store for dinner, having a catnap on her chair, or when she opened her eyes on her bed on her day off, which she almost never got. She thought that maybe she would never forget them even when this was all over. ¡®I was the one who said that the parents can¡¯t get tired first, but maybe the person who was tired...¡¯ Hong Ju-Hee bit her lower lip. ¡°You must have fought for her to live as well,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°...¡± ¡°I have heard about it as well. What the newborn intensive care unit is like. You probably never get more than five hours of sleep every day. You only go home twice a week, and you probably do that after barely finishing your work. The mother probably knows that, and she will thank you, even if the baby dies.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°But are you satisfied with that result, Doctor Hong?¡± A teardrop rolled down Hong Ju-Hee¡¯s face. She had been keeping it in for a long time. The babies, whom she took care of for months and even a year, sometimes felt like her own children. They were taken care of by her more after birth than their actual mothers. ¡°How... How could I be okay with that? The baby I took care of...will die...¡± Hong Ju-Hee said as she wiped her eyes with her hands. Young-Joon calmly nodded his head. ¡°Then, please just have a little courage. Veratex is a good possibility. Please convince the mother and ask her to try just once more as thest shot. We can¡¯t let her go like that, right?¡± Chapter 36: Independence (3)

Chapter 36: Independence (3)

Son Soo-Young and her husband were having a serious conversation together. ¡°An experimental treatment...?¡± Son Soo-Young became a little depressed. ¡°We have to consider that the nitric oxide treatment has failed. She keeps getting more resistant. We¡¯re reaching a limit.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°There¡¯s a new drug called Veratex. It¡¯s a drug derived from natural products, and it can expand the blood vessels to decrease blood pressure. The risk will be low since it is a very safe drug.¡± ¡°But that¡¯s just the prediction, right?¡± Son Soo-Young¡¯s husband asked. ¡°Yes. There¡¯s no record of it being given to an infant, only on a five-year-old child. It was sessful then.¡± ¡°Five-years-old... That¡¯s a lot more than our little girl...¡± Son Soo-Young said in a depressed voice. ¡°But since it¡¯s a substance that is naturally produced by the infant¡¯s body...¡± ¡°Doctor.¡± Son Soo-Young held her husband¡¯s hand tightly and barely spoke as if it was difficult for her to say this. ¡°From a long time ago, I wondered whether I was holding onto our daughter because of my greediness and making her suffer for a long time.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Maybe it¡¯s time for us to let her go. I don¡¯t want to torture her anymore.¡± Son Soo-Young bowed toward Hong Ju-Hee. ¡°I am sincerely grateful to you, Doctor, for looking after our daughter...¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I thought, too,¡± Hong Ju-Hee replied. ¡°It¡¯s a shame to admit it myself, but even I thought that there was no hope now. But yesterday, Doctor Ryu Young-Joon came to me.¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu Young-Joon?¡± Son Soo-Young¡¯s eyes widened. Hong Ju-Hee could see a little bit of hope bloom on her face. It was normal for Hong Ju-Hee, who had treated newborns for a long time, to know a lot more about persistent pulmonary hypertension than Young-Joon, who was only a pharmaceutical scientist. There was no way that Young-Joon could solve something that Hong Ju-Hee couldn¡¯t. However, Son Soo-Young was an ordinary office worker who didn¡¯t know much about medicine or pharmaceuticals, and to her, Young-Joon was more than just some doctor or scientist. After receiving stem cell therapy, she could feel her vision returning by the second, and that was truly astonishing. Since everyone praised that great achievement, she was even more convinced. Maybe... If it was Young-Joon, maybe he could do something. Now, Son Soo-Young¡¯s eyes shone with hope. She was hoping that the person who proposed they use Veratex was Young-Joon. ¡°Doctor Ryu rmended it,¡± Hong Ju-Hee said. ¡°And I chose that drug as a doctor. Veratex is the safest drug for high blood pressure that is allowed to be sold.¡± ¡°Then...¡± ¡°Let¡¯s try to do everything we can. Blue held up until now, right?¡± * * * After contemting long and hard, Young-Joon had decided on the next target for iPSCs to be used. ¡®Alzheimer¡¯s.¡¯ He had chosen it among the eight possible choices. He thought a lot about arthritis and spine damage, but he chose Alzheimer¡¯s. A lot of people confused dementia with Alzheimer¡¯s, but they were subtly different. Dementia included symptoms such as not being able to recognize people and objects or having problems with memory, and one of the causes of this was Alzheimer¡¯s. The former was the symptom, and thetter was the disease. For example, dementia was like having a runny nose and coughing, and Alzheimer¡¯s was like the flu. Simr to how having a runny nose and coughing could also be symptoms of a cold, it could not be Alzheimer¡¯s even if someone showed signs of dementia; there were things such as vascr dementia or senile dementia. But Alzheimer¡¯s disease was a serious and severe illness since half of dementia patients had it. Then, what was Alzheimer¡¯s exactly? Alzheimer¡¯s was when a substance called beta-amyloid umted in the cell and induced nerve cell death by causing neurotoxicity. Dementia symptoms would begin as the nerve cells died. The new drugs that Pfizer and several other pharmaceuticalpanies developed and were developing broke down beta-amyloid, therefore slowing the progression of and preventing Alzheimer¡¯s. However, it was unable to recover the nerve cells already destroyed by the beta-amyloid protein. This meant that it could stop the progression of Alzheimer¡¯s, but wouldn¡¯t be able to fix dementia if it had already begun. Conversely, one could cure Alzheimer¡¯s and treat dementia symptoms if those nerve cells were revived. Even people who did not study biology would be able to predict how difficult this would be; there was no need to exin it. Even if Young-Joon made iPSCs and broke the closed doors to stem cell regenerative medicine, they had a lot more mountains to climb ahead. First of all, the method to differentiate iPSCs into brain nerve cells; it was something that ordinary scientists would study for ten years, but let¡¯s just say that Young-Joon somehow did it. There was a difference between being able to produce it and mass-producing it. Since there were about one hundred billion nerve cells in the brain, they would have to fill in a billion nerve cells even if just one percent of brain cells were damaged. Since some of the ones that the doctor put in would not establish themselves and die, the actual amount that would need to be injected would be more than a billion. Let¡¯s assume that Young-Joon was able to solve that problem by inventing a miraculous way of growing cells. When he was curing a, he had to inject the optic nerve cells into the retina. Then, would he have to use the same method with nerve cells? Should he cut open the patient¡¯s skull with a saw, check the necrotized region, pierce it with a needle and inject new nerve cells into it? Young-Joon had to consider the fact that most Alzheimer¡¯s patients were over sixty. It was difficult for an elderly patient with a significantck of physical strength and recovery speed to endure such a stressful operation. For ordinary scientists who weren¡¯t Rosaline, treating Alzheimer¡¯s with stem cells was probably as difficult as terraforming Mars. As such, Young-Joon had to take a different route with this Alzheimer¡¯s cure. Rosaline told him the way to do that. [Advice: About the differentiation of stem cells in tissue. Fitness consumption rate: 2/second.] [Advice: About the mass production of stem cells. Fitness consumption rate: 2.3/second.] [Advice: About the injection of stem cells into the veins. Fitness consumption rate: 1.8/second.] ¡®The consumption rate! Are you serious?¡¯ ¡°Doctor Ryu!¡± Park Dong-Hyun shouted as he ran out of theb. ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°The stuff you ordered from Sigma-Aldrich came.¡± ¡°Oh, yes, thank you.¡± ¡°But why did you order ATP in bulk? I saw that you spent like three million won.¡± ¡°There¡¯s just something I want to try, personally.¡± Young-Joon made up an excuse and went out to the hallway. The salesperson was writing something on his notepad with the tworge ice boxes of ATP on the ground. ¡°Hello.¡± As Young-Joon greeted him, his face lit up. ¡°Hello! Doctor Ryu, this is the ATP you ordered. This is the statement.¡± ¡°This isn¡¯t going to be paid with the budget because I¡¯m buying it out of my own pocket. Could I pay by card?¡± Young-Joon pulled out his card. ¡°You¡¯re getting it on your own?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± The salesperson looked a little puzzled, but he gave Young-Joon the card reader. As Young-Joon purchased it and was about to bring the materials in, the salesperson reached out to Young-Joon with a notepad. ¡°Um, Doctor Ryu.¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°Could I get an autograph?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I also did my master''s in biology. I¡¯m in sales now, but I did research as well. I¡¯m a fan.¡± The salesperson smiled like he was embarrassed. * * * Young-Joon¡¯s reputation changed every day after he came to Lab Six, but this upward trend was way too steep. In the beginning, no one even knew who he was when he went down to the cafeteria for lunch. After the year-end seminar, they began to steal nces at him, and after the publication in Science, they beganing up to him and asking for meetings and coborations. But after that, he seeded in his clinical trials, raised thepany stocks to an all-time high, and swept the news and papers. Now, Young-Joon saw that all the scientists became silent when he came down to the cafeteria. And they began to whisper among each other from afar as if they were seeing something amazing. ¡®I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll ever get used to this...¡¯ Honestly, it was burdening and ufortable. He wished that they would just not care. ¡°It¡¯s happening since you¡¯re in stardom now. You can¡¯t help it,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung said as they had lunch. ¡°But I think it would be ufortable, Doctor Ryu. To be honest, even I¡¯m just ufortable watching you,¡± Jung Hae-Rim said. ¡°It will be okay when you be a director since you won¡¯te to the cafeteria often,¡± Park Dong-Hyun said. Usually, directors met up with one another and had lunch outside rather than using the cafeteria. ¡°Doctor Ryu can have lunch with Gil Hyung-Joon,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung said while smirking. ¡°Eek. I can¡¯t stomach food when I¡¯m with people who make me ufortable.¡± ¡°I think Gil Hyung-Joon will be the one who will get indigestion if he has a meal with Doctor Ryu.¡± Park Dong-Hyun imitated Young-Joon, ¡°Director! It¡¯s against meal ethics to pour sauce on a shared tangsuyuk without permission![1] Since we each paid half for this tangsuyuk, you only have half the shares. Take your half and pour sauce on it; I will take the other half and dip it. And let¡¯s draw up a contract to take turns choosing the restaurants from now on!¡± ¡°Pfft!¡± Jung Hae-Rim spat out a little bit of water. ¡°Is my image that bad?¡± Young-Joon¡¯s ears were flushed. ¡°You¡¯re kind of like an incarnation of research ethics from hell...¡± Koh Soon-Yeol said while propping up his sses. ¡°But Doctor Ryu, when are you bing a director?¡± ¡°It wille up during the next shareholders meeting,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°Oh my. So only a week left?¡± Bae Sun-Mi¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°It pains me that we only have a week left to see you, Doctor Ryu, since you¡¯ll get your individual office and move there,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung feigned a cry. ¡°About that...¡± Young-Joon began. ¡°If I was to create apany, what would you think about working with me?¡± ¡°Starting your ownpany?¡± Cheon Ji-Myung tilted his head in confusion. ¡°I thought you were going to be the CEO of A-Gen? And be thergest shareholder as well?¡¯ ¡°Yes, of course. That goal hasn¡¯t changed. And since it will be difficult to do any follow-up knowledge on stem cells if I leave A-Gen¡¯s infrastructures, I will have to stay here.¡± ¡°Then what are you talking about? Starting your ownpany?¡± Park Dong-Hyun asked. ¡°The optic cell treatment has been sessful in clinical trials, and we are getting investments from all over. The board is probably going to try to make the investments as big as possible.¡± ¡°Hm.¡± ¡°I thought of an item that will be that big. If I seed in this, it will have such a huge impact that it will make a seem like it was nothing.¡± ¡°I¡¯m scared already about what kind of crazy idea you will propose and start it.¡± Park Dong-Hyun¡¯s face was filled with excitement. ¡°I am going to cure Alzheimer¡¯s.¡± ¡°...¡± There was nothing but silence around the table. ¡°If that happens, it¡¯s no longer something that can exist only as a department. Then, two huge pipelines that are connected to iPSCs will be made. And among that, an Alzheimer¡¯s cure is as valuable as a mid-sizepany.¡± ¡°You¡¯re right. If it¡¯s Alzheimer¡¯s, it will be that big.¡± Cheon Ji-Myung nodded his head. ¡°But the problem will be that one director will own all of that. For thepany, they will be happy, but in a predicament at the same time since I will get too much power. There will be people who are going to try to use me to keep CEO Yoon Dae-Sung in check, which will make him ufortable with me.¡± ¡°You¡¯re saying that there might be a division in the board?¡± ¡°Yes. I¡¯m going to use that to make A-Gen into a group, and I¡¯m going to propose that we create an affiliatepany. Something that will pay a set price and use all of A-Gen¡¯s infrastructure. And I will be the owner and CEO of that ce.¡± ¡°Hah... It¡¯s too unrealistic. Do you think that it will be easy? It¡¯s a different story if thepany was a subsidiary, but ces like affiliates that have no governance and share-division structure are usually made by royal families who are connected by blood...¡± Cheon Ji-Myung said while stroking his chin. Young-Joon smiled. ¡°I have a few things I¡¯ve nned.¡± 1. Tangsuyuk is a Korean-Chinese dish that has pork strips andes with a sweet and sour sauce. Some people like dipping the sauce to keep it crunchy and some people like pouring the sauce on it. ? Chapter 37: Independence (4)

Chapter 37: Independence (4)

A-Gen management was preparing to hand over the management rights. CEO Yoon Dae-Sung had long considered how to hand over the management rights and the huge assets to his son Yoon Bo-Hyun. Normally, there were three procedures that were followed by the head family of argepany. First of all, they would start their own childpany. When doing this, they would make sure that the prince who was going to receive the management rights had a significant share of the newpany. Second, they would concentrate the high-profit work on the childpany and grow it at an abnormal speed. Third, they would merge therge childpany with the motherpany and allow the prince to have arge share. After those steps, the management rights and assets had been transferred sessfully. The person who was preparing this huge management right session project was Ji Kwang-Man, the Division Manager of A-Gen management. He had known Yoon Dae-Sung for a long time, and they were basically family. Ji Kwang-Man was extremely loyal to him, and he sincerely respected and liked Yoon Dae-Sung. Then, what did he think about Young-Joon? ¡®A legendary horse that is stubborn and runs however it wants.¡¯ That was Ji Kwang-Man¡¯s honest judgment about him. When Yoon Bo-Hyun said that they needed to crush him a little, he told Yoon Bo-Hyun that he would take care of it. Young-Joon was a difficult person to break, and he would be an enemy that they would constantly collide with if left like that. Then, wouldn¡¯t it be the best course of action to make him into an ally? Ji Kwang-Man strongly proposed that Young-Joon should be appointed as an unregistered director during the board meeting. He also strongly insisted that they give him shares as well. It went as he nned during the board meeting, and the decision would be confirmed during the shareholders'' meeting. The next thing to do was to make Young-Joon an ally. This was about two weeks from when Young-Joon rmended Veratex, a treatment for high blood pressure, to Hong Ju-Hee. Ji Kwang-Man was parking his car in the Lab Six parking lot. ¡ªThis is the eight o¡¯clock evening news. Today at three o¡¯clock, the optic cell treatment derived from induced pluripotent stem cells that were developed by A-Gen has entered Phase One of the clinical trial. Trial patient Son has lost their vision to a. The SBS News came out from the car radio. Click. Ji Kwang-Man turned off the radio and got on the elevator. At the same time, Young-Joon was covering his face with his bag in embarrassment after the eight o¡¯clock news revealed his interview to Jung Hae-Rim. While standing beside him, she said, ¡°Oh, and Young-Joon. In your next interview, don¡¯t nce at the camera. If you see on TV, all the doctors and scientists who are wearing gowns always keep a forty-five degree angle from the camera. That¡¯s the ssic way.¡± ¡°... I have wondered why they do that for a long time. Why do they always make it like that when a news outlet or TV program does an interview with an expert?¡± ¡°It adds trustworthiness to the interview if they make the situation look like the expert is not acknowledging the camera. It kind of feels like the expert is talking in a more objective way? Broadcasts are all about the details.¡± ¡°No, but I don¡¯t understand why they do that when I¡¯m doing the interview to exin this to the public who are watching it through the TV.¡± ¡°Did you argue about that with the reporters?¡± ¡°Well, I didn¡¯t argue, but they did say something because I looked at the camera so much. But they gave upter on because I kept staring at it.¡± ¡°Wow! You really exceed my expectations. You don¡¯t allow anything that is even a little unreasonable or unfair, do you?¡± Young-Joon¡¯s ears turned red. ¡°I don¡¯t think it¡¯s unreasonable or unfair... I didn¡¯t look at it on purpose or anything. I¡¯m not that much of a fighter, you know. I just couldn¡¯t help but nce at it because it was bothering me a little.¡± Young-Joonughed like he was a little embarrassed. ¡°What is this?¡± Jung Hae-Rim pointed to a book that was propped up on one side of Young-Joon¡¯s desk. ¡°I Lived As a Scientist, Not a Businessman. Author: Yoon Dae-Sung? This is a book written by our CEO.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°You¡¯re reading something like this because you¡¯re about to be a director...¡± ¡°It¡¯s not that. I only read it as a reference to help me decide what my next target will be for the iPSCs¡± Ring! The office doorbell suddenly rang. ¡°Who is that?¡± Jung Hae-Rim turned to the door in puzzlement. Usually, the people who rang the office doorbell were salespeople who were here to deliverb materials. But it was eight o¡¯clock in the evening; it was long past the time for salespeople to visit. ¡°I¡¯ll get it and see.¡± Jung Hae-Rim went outside the office. When she returned, she had a sour expression and Ji Kwang-Man with her. ¡°Sir?¡± Young-Joon rose from his seat. ¡°You haven¡¯t gone home yet. Good. I was just going to meet Director Gil Hyung-Joon if you weren¡¯t here.¡± Ji Kwang-Man did a fakeugh. As he approached Young-Joon, he saw the CEO¡¯s book on his desk. ¡°Oh, Doctor Ryu, you read our CEO¡¯s book as well?¡± ¡°Yes. I was wondering what kind of person our CEO is. I think I¡¯ll get to see him more often once I be a director.¡± ¡°Haha, it¡¯s a good idea.¡± Jung Hae-Rim was packing up her things and leaving. As she left, she waved to Young-Joon and silently mouthed the words "good luck" to him. ¡°But what brings you here?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Haha, it¡¯s nothing much. I just wanted to talk to you, Doctor Ryu. Would you like to go for a drink?¡± Ji Kwang-Man was a businessman. Before he became the division manager, he usually took on the role of a lobbyist when A-Gen was just a smallpany. It was him who had gotten that investment from SG Group. It was also him who had undone all the frustrating regtions that were put on them as a pharmaceuticalpany by the government. His lobby was simple but powerful. He rted himself to them through schools, mutual friends, and family. Then, he gave them a pretty girl and poured expensive alcohol into their stomachs using the girl¡¯s hands. They went back to their most primitive ways together. And depending on the other person¡¯s personality, he used several cards that were up his sleeve: luxury goods, secret information, meetings with certain people, and more. If he included a usible exnation and a profit-loss calction, it was a sess. But Ji Kwang-Man did not lead Young-Joon in that way. ¡°This is the ce. It¡¯s quiet, but has a nice atmosphere. It¡¯s the perfect bar to have a straightforward conversation.¡± The ce Ji Kwang-Man led Young-Joon to was an upscale sky-lounge bar. ¡°I thought people that were around your age went to ces like hostess bars,¡± Young-Joon said as he took a seat. ¡°Haha, there are a lot of people like that. But I detest ces where people get women and drink with them. What kind of drinks do you like?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure. I don¡¯t drink often.¡± ¡°How about some wine? They have a set menu here.¡± It didn¡¯t seem like Young-Joon would notice even if Ji Kwang-Man ordered an expensive appetizer, and he thought that it could actually backfire. ¡°That¡¯s good with me.¡± Ji Kwang-Man called over the bartender and ordered a bottle of wine and canap¨¦. After they had a couple sses, Ji Kwang-Man got to the point. ¡°Doctor Ryu, how would you feel about making a childpany of A-Gen?¡± ¡°A childpany?¡± ¡°Wouldn¡¯t it be easier for you to pursue the research you want if you became the CEO and led thepany? We will also give you a fair amount of shares.¡± Young-Joon sipped his wine without replying. Ji Kwang-Man smiled on the inside. ¡®Bingo.¡¯ Ji Kwang-Man had thrown a curveball. What Young-Joon wanted was not money nor prestige. If he wanted things like that, he would have quit a long time ago and started his own venturepany by now. Young-Joon¡¯s goal was research. He showed the qualities of a businessman when he crawled up to management as he fought forpany shares, but Ji Kwang-Man couldn¡¯t let that distract him. The reason Young-Joon wanted to interfere with management was because of the conflict he had with Kim Hyun-Taek. All he was trying to do was to perfect a level of power that no one from management could touch to protect research ethics, the thing he basically worshiped. Then conversely, they could make him into an ally if they secured the autonomy of his research. It was a brilliant idea. They would start a childpany for the session of management rights, and Yoon Bo-Hyun would hold thergest percentage of the shares legally possible. Then, he would give the position of CEO to Young-Joon along with a percentage of shares a little lower than Yoon Bo-Hyun. The rest of that could be taken by A-Gen headquarters. The headquarters wouldn¡¯t have to concentrate their high-profit jobs on them since genius scientist Young-Joon would make thepany big himself, which would only increase Yoon Bo-Hyun¡¯s power. All Yoon Bo-Hyun had to do was befriend Young-Joon. Since they were simr in age, it would be easy if he sucked up a little and had simr hobbies. Then, they would make Young-Joon Yoon Bo-Hyun¡¯s right-hand man when merging thepany with A-Gen headquarters. It was the perfect situation. It was no different with Nichs standing beside Yoon Dae-Sung. Ji Kwang-Man grinned and stared at Young-Joon. ¡®You can¡¯t resist, right? It¡¯s such a sweet and perfect deal.¡¯ nk. Young-Joon put down his ss. Staring at him, he said, ¡°Not a childpany, but I was thinking about starting an affiliatepany.¡± ¡°Kuk!¡± Ji Kwang-Man almost dropped his ss. He actually shouted because he was so surprised. ¡°Y-You¡¯re making what?¡± Ji Kwang-Man¡¯s voice trembled. ¡°An affiliatepany of A-Gen.¡± ¡°...¡± A childpany and an affiliatepany were different things. The former allowed A-Gen to have over fifty percent ofpany shares and thereforeplete control. However, an affiliatepany had separate, independent management. The most important standard was how much shares they were willing to give to thepany that was in the same group as them, but an affiliatepany was basically a separatepany. ¡°And I want to start with the possession of one hundred percent of the shares of this affiliatepany,¡¯ Young-Joon said. Things were getting worse. ¡°Doctor Ryu, did you have a drink or something before meeting me?¡± ¡°No, I¡¯m serious about this. And I want you to help me get this proposal approved.¡± ¡°... Why are you trying to make an affiliate?¡± ¡°You just said it, sir, that it would be easier for me to pursue the research I wanted if I became the CEO and led thepany. To ensure that, the best way is to keep all thepany shares to myself first. Well, I could divide the shares upter for tax savings, but I am going to do that,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Well, if you are going to be that conservative about it, don¡¯t you think it will be easier if you just start your ownpany?¡± ¡°I can only use A-Gen¡¯s huge infrastructure if I¡¯m in the same group.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The reason I wanted to be a director of A-Gen was because of the ability to build an affiliatepany,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°In order for the concept of affiliate to be established, the same person must hold more than thirty percent of the twopany sharesbined with an affiliated person. Mywyer friend told me.¡± ¡°That... is true...¡± ¡°As soon as I be a director of A-Gen, I be an affiliate of the CEO. It fulfills the conditions of an affiliatepany.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not going to happen. Even if that¡¯s the case legally, do you think thepany will invest arge amount of money to make an affiliatepany and just give it to you as a whole? Realistically, do you think that will happen?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a smallpanypared to A-Gen. It¡¯s going to be worth around twenty billion won. And there¡¯s no need for A-Gen to invest because I¡¯ll pay one hundred percent of it.¡± ¡°Excuse me?¡± ¡®Did he just say twenty billion? Is this bastard crazy? No wait.¡¯ Whenever Ji Kwang-Man thought that Young-Joon was not in his right mind, he always got stabbed in the back hard. If this guy looked like he was bluffing and was talking nonsense, it was true. There was a good chance that what Young-Joon was talking about right now was true. ¡®But still, twenty billion won?¡¯ Twenty billion won was not just a small amount of money that people would have lying around. How could a mere Scientist, that was the lowest on thepany hierarchy, have twenty billion won in their pocket? ¡°...Doctor Ryu, you haven¡¯t received A-Gen shares yet. You¡¯re not thinking of selling that, are you? And you can¡¯t sell them off that easily. You will have be a director when you receive those shares, and you must announce it even when selling just one share,¡± Ji Kwang-Man said as if he was warning Young-Joon. ¡°I know that. And I have no intention of selling A-Gen shares. Why would I sell it when I gave away the shares of my precious iPSCs?¡± ¡°... Then how would youe up with twenty billion won by yourself?¡± ¡°Haha, I won the jackpot, you see.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t joke around.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a secret. I¡¯ll tell you next time.¡± As soon as they parted, Ji Kwang-Man called everyone he knew. It was to investigate the deposits and withdrawals from Young-Joon¡¯s ount. Of course, it wasn¡¯t easy to find out an individual¡¯s financial transactions, which was under heavy security, but Ji Kwang-Man influence reached key government agencies that dealt with money, such as the National Tax Service. Ji Kwang-Man invoked the right to request financial transaction information to track Young-Joon¡¯s ount. Young-Joon peacefully agreed to all of it and put all of it out in the open. After some time, the news was now talking about how Son Soo-Young was sessfully cured in the clinical trial. When A-Gen was in a celebratory mood, Ji Kwang-Man couldn¡¯t even sleep. He felt like he was going to go crazy. The news that a had been conquered was broadcast every day and night. ¡°Fxxk, I wish they¡¯d stop broadcasting that. That damn a!¡± On his way to work in the morning, Ji Kwang-Man turned off the radio in irritation. This was two days before the shareholders'' meeting where Young-Joon¡¯s appointment as director would be confirmed. At A-Gen right now, Young-Joon¡¯s reputation was skyrocketing into space. In this atmosphere, Ji Kwang-Man really didn¡¯t know what would happen if he really brought twenty billion won and said he was going to start an affiliatepany. Ring! One of hisworks from the National Tax Service was calling him. ¡°Hello?¡± ¡ªSir. Young-Joon is poor. He has tens of millions of dors in debt in private loans. He also has student loans. ¡°And he has no assets?¡± Ji Kwang-Man asked on the phone. ¡ªNothing. He has no car or a house. He pays rent monthly for a basement. He¡¯s poorer than me. He hasn¡¯t gotten any funding from anywhere either. ¡°Of course. He can¡¯t get individual funding since he¡¯s going to be a director of thepany. Sigh... This is insane.¡± Now, there were just two days left. ¡®He¡¯s going to make twenty billion won in two days? Is there some kind of job where the daily rate is ten billion won? What is this bastard trying to do?¡¯ Chapter 38: Independence (5)

Chapter 38: Independence (5)

¡°We have a problem.¡± Ji Kwang-Man went straight to Yoon Dae-Sung and told him everything that had happened until now. But there was no way Yoon Dae-Sung also had a solution either. The fact that Young-Joon was going to be appointed as a director was already confirmed. It had leaked through an unknown route and was put on the editorial page of a major newspaperpany. And in the meantime, A-Gen hadn¡¯t denied it once. It was because they liked the image of being an open-minded and progressivepany that gave a dramatic promotion to a talented young employee and gave them a seat at the director¡¯s table. They couldn¡¯t push back the appointment now. ¡°Sigh... Let¡¯s go with it for now. I don¡¯t know where Doctor Ryu would get that kind of money, but even if he did, we could just stop him from creating an affiliatepany at the board meeting. We don¡¯t have to propose the idea.¡± The separation from apany and the creation of an affiliatepany happened in two steps: it needed to be first brought up during a board meeting and then be approved in the shareholders'' meeting. Young-Joon couldn¡¯t even attend the board meeting since he was an unregistered director. It wouldn¡¯t be a problem if it was held up in the board meeting and not passed over to the shareholders. ¡°But I feel like he¡¯s going to do something during the shareholders'' meeting...¡± Ji Kwang-Man said. ¡°Do what?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know, but I¡¯m anxious. What if he announces something about starting an affiliatepany in front of the shareholders during the meeting?¡± ¡°Ah, that¡¯s going too overboard with just a cure for a. The shareholders won¡¯t react to that.¡± Yoon Dae-Sungughed and patted Ji Kwang-Man on the back. ¡°Let¡¯s go with this for now.¡± * * * This was thergest A-Gen shareholders'' meeting that was ever held; there were almost five times more people than usual. Mom-and-pop investors who had only invested small amounts in A-Gen hade to see Young-Joon. Among them, there were people who only had a single share as well. There were three types of people at the shareholders'' meeting. The majority of them were people who had benefited greatly from Young-Joon; they wanted toe see the golden calf. The second group were people who were suffering from a or family members; they wanted to meet Young-Joon in person and show gratitude since he was able to greatly improve their quality of life. Thest group were people who had other neurological disorders or their families. There was no way they would be able to hear any good news in today¡¯s presentation since it wasn¡¯t like stem cell therapies were created in one day, but they were able to have hope as they had a base technology of induced pluripotent stem cells. That¡¯s what they were here for. ¡°... And so, we would like to appoint Ryu Young-Joon as an in-house director. He was rmended by the board of directors, and the candidate¡¯s brief history is as described in the shareholders¡¯ meeting notice,¡± CEO Yoon Dae-Sung said. ¡°Director candidate Ryu Young-Joon has contributed greatly to thepany¡¯s development by creating induced pluripotent stem cell and optic nerve differentiation technology and sessfully finishing clinical trials for a. Are there any shareholders who object to this?¡± ¡°No!¡± ¡°Of course, not!¡± The shareholders shouted in their seats. Of course they had no objections as Young-Joon had increasedpany stocks by fifty percent in two days. ¡°Thank you. Then, I dere that Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s appointment as an in-house director has been approved as rmended by the board.¡± p p p. The crowd gave a round of apuse. Young-Joon, who was sitting on one side of the stage, smiled as he saw someone wave their hand in the crowd. Cheon Ji-Myung, Bae Sun-Mi, Park Dong-Hyun, Jung Hae-Rim, and Koh Soon-Yeol were there. They hade to congratte him on bing appointed as a director. Behind them were Choi Myung-Joon and Seo Yoon-Ju. He hade to show Young-Joon he was there, and she hade to spend time with Koh Soon-Yeol. ¡®They¡¯re interesting people.¡¯ Young-Joon chuckled as he looked at them. It was now four o¡¯clock in the afternoon. The meeting wasing to an end. At the end of the shareholders¡¯ meeting, A-Gen usually gave the appointed director some time for a short speech. Young-Joon walked up to the podium and grabbed the mic. ¡°Hello, shareholders,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I¡¯m sure you have heard that I used induced pluripotent stem cells to differentiate somatic cells into optic nerve cells and seeded in curing a with it in clinical trials.¡± Young-Joon met eyes with each and every shareholder sitting in the hall. ¡°The reason why I seeded in this important research is not because I was outstanding, it was because a lot of people at A-Gen helped me. If I did it alone, I wouldn¡¯t have even been able to start clinical trials; I wouldn¡¯t have been approved.¡± Young-Joon¡¯s voice was full of confidence. Now, it was time for this meeting to be turned upside down. ¡°So, my next research is something for A-Gen. While studying the history of the establishment and ideology of A-Gen, I came to know how thete Doctor Yoon Chul-Joong, the founder of A-Gen, spent hisst days.¡± Yoon Dae-Sung froze. It was something that hade up multiple times in his book. His father, Yoon Chul-Joong, had suffered from Alzheimer type dementia. It was the humble end of the greatest intellectual who led Korea at that time; he spent hisst days in loneliness, losing all his brilliant knowledge and wisdom. From then on, Yoon Dae-Sung¡¯s life goal was to cure Alzheimer¡¯s. ¡°I am working on the next treatment based on stem cells to repay CEO Yoon and the shareholders who have raised A-Gen this far.¡± Young-Joon walked over to theputer on one side of the stage and plugged in his USB. Experimental data began toe up one by one. The first one that came up with a nerve cell with a unique shape. It had a dyed nucleus in the middle and his dendrites and axonsing out of it. ¡°This is a neuron,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I have seeded in differentiating induced pluripotent stem cells into neurons. I am going to cure Alzheimer type dementia with this.¡± The crowd was dead silent as if someone had thrown cold water on them. The crowd was frozen as if they had been hit in the head. ¡°T-Take a picture.¡± As soon as someone among the reporters spoke... Click! sh! Young-Joon was suddenly bombarded with a shower of camera shes. The reporters¡¯ hands trembled. Compared to a a cure, this was on another level. Was it true? Was it really possible to cure Alzheimer¡¯s? Young-Joon added, ¡°The development has progressed considerably. I would like to give you a brief report now. In the body, there is a biomaterial called activator protein C, and I have put 3K3A-APC, a variant of that biomaterial, inside iPSCs using the AAV virus. Right now, I have finished applying for a patent, and I am in the middle of doing animal experiments.¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu! What do you think will be the clinical sess rate?¡± One of the reporters shouted. ¡°I think it will be one hundred percent.¡± ¡°And I think I will be able to cure most neurodegenerative dementia, not only Alzheimer¡¯s. I believe that it will be applicable to Parkinson¡¯s and strokes,¡± Young-Joon answered in certainty. ¡°Holy shit...¡± One of theb directors murmured. There was somemotion amongst the mom-and-pop investors in the audience. People were sending texts in excitement, some were crying into their handkerchiefs. ¡°After you differentiate it into neurons, how are you going to put the cells into the patient¡¯s brain?¡± One of the reporters asked. ¡°I am not going to use fully differentiated neurons. I have controlled the expression of the AKKT gene and created small iPSCs that are sixty percent smaller than regr stem cells. I have attached a caverlin ligand on the cell membrane to allow it to pass the blood brain barrier.¡± ¡°Are you worried that it will go somewhere else and not the brain?¡± ¡°The stem cells I created have glycoprotein RVG29, which leads it into the cerebrum in the bloodstream. Also, it cannot survive in other tissues, eliminating the risk of it developing into a tumor. I am going to treat Alzheimer¡¯s by administering the stem cells into the veins and sending it to the brain, then administer 3K3A-APC and differentiate it into neurons in the lesions.¡± ¡°...¡± The reporters¡¯ hands moved as fast as lighting to write down Young-Joon¡¯s presentation. Cameras shed at him from all over. Jung Hae-Rim showed Park Dong-Hyun her phone. It was the real-time hot issues list on Naver.[1] 1. Ryu Young-Joon 2. Alzheimer¡¯s 3. A-Gen. 4. Ryu Young-Joon stem cells 5. A-Gen shareholders¡¯ meeting ... ¡°He¡¯s actually insane. When did he even do that?¡± Cheon Ji-Myung whispered from behind. ¡°Doctor Ryu has been holed up in the animal experimentb with Lead Bae and doing only that recently. He goes into the protein engineeringb once every two days and creates rbination proteins. He¡¯s spending the nights there. I think the employees there also didn¡¯t sleep. But they probably didn¡¯t know what they were making,¡± Jung Hae-Rim said. ¡°Look at this.¡± Park Dong-Hyun put up his phone. A-Gen stocks were skyrocketing like crazy. They were up around two percentpared to thirty minutes ago, but now, it was over a five percent increase. ¡°I can see it hitting an all-time high in two hours,¡± Park Dong-Hyun said. The bald, middle-aged man sitting beside him nced at him briefly. After he pulled out his phone and checked his stock app, he showed it to his friend sitting beside him, unable to hide his excitement. The hall was suddenly buzzing. Young-Joon waited for them to calm down, then said, ¡°But if we were to treat Alzheimer¡¯s, it would be too much work for the pipeline that one single department is responsible for. I would like to separate this into anotherpany and lead it myself for the efficiency of work and the project.¡± Ji Kwang-Man covered his face with his hands and lowered his head. This was what he was afraid of. This was it. Young-Joon said, ¡°Thepany I will start is an investmentpany, A-Bio. The creation of thispany is under way through my personalwyer. Yesterday, I paid twenty billion won of my personal money as a stock subscription. I did not burden A-Gen at all as they did not invest.¡± Young-Joon showed a bunch of documents to the audience. ¡°This is the subscription receipt. I am showing you this to show you my sincerity.¡± Ji Kwang-Man sighed. ¡°He managed to... Where did he get that kind of money anyway?¡± Young-Joon went on. ¡°A-Bio will be an affiliate of A-Gen and will contribute greatly to their development. They will also be the pioneer of the international stem cell therapy market in the future. Also, as a director of A-Gen, I will do my best to promote A-Gen¡¯s rights, and I am also considering giving some of A-Bio¡¯s shares to A-Gen to the extent where it will not affect my management rights. As such, the shareholders of A-Gen do not have to worry about the stocks of A-Gen falling due to the advancement of the affiliatepany.¡± ¡°Is this already confirmed?¡± One of the reporters asked. ¡°It will be on the agenda for the next board meeting. We will decide then how much of A-Bio shares A-Gen will take,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°I n to confirm this notion by opening a special shareholders¡¯ meeting afterward. I am considering distributing some of my shares to the shareholders who exercise their voting right and approve of the establishment of A-Bio. The amount that will go to each person will be extremely small, even far below the decimal point, but within a few years, it will be huge enough to buy a condo.¡± ¡°Wow...¡± The shareholders looked at him differently. Again, there wasmotion in the hall. Cameras shed again. The hot issue list on Naver was changing by the second from Ryu Young-Joon, to Alzheimer¡¯s, and then to A-Bio. ¡°Fuck...¡± Ji Kwang-Man quietly cursed. Young-Joon was stating that he was going to protect the current A-Gen stocks and give them the newpany¡¯s stocks if they approve. On top of that, the newpany was going to be built and run by Young-Joon and was going to be an affiliate of A-Gen. The shareholders would have to be insane to reject that notion. No, the shareholders looked like they were going to approve of it this instant. Ji Kwang-Man turned around and looked at the in-house directors. Even some of theb directors who were rtively less loyal to the CEO, such as Lab Five Director Joo Hwa-Young, looked like they were thinking about it. ¡°But what was he talking about when he said it was on the agenda? Why haven¡¯t I heard anything?¡± In bewilderment, Gil Hyung-Joon asked Koh Yoo-Sung, who was sitting beside him. ¡°Nichs.¡± Yoon Dae-Sung turned around to face the CTO. ¡°Are you helping Doctor Ryu?¡± ¡°I like Doctor Ryu, but I¡¯m not involved in this.¡± ¡°It was me.¡± Kim Young-Hoon raised his hand. He smiled in a smirking way. He was someone that the SG Group, a majorpany in Korea that had six percent of shares, had put on the board. SG Group was also doing pharmaceuticals; it was called SG Pharmaceuticals. Recently, Young-Joon sold his new flu drug patent to SG Pharmaceuticals for one hundred billion won. It hade into his bank ount just yesterday, and he had invested twenty billion won as soon as he had it. He had actually gotten more than he thought; it was probably because he was worth a lot more after creating iPSCs, optic nerve treatment, and a a cure. And in the process of selling the flu drug, Young-Joon got to know Kim Young-Hoon. ¡°To be honest, the SG Group is hoping A-Gen abandons Doctor Ryu this time. Haha. We¡¯re thinking about scouting him to SG Pharmaceuticals. Doctor Ryu is insisting on staying at A-Gen since SG Pharmaceuticals is nowhere as big as A-Gen and has crappy infrastructure, but he¡¯ll go to SG Pharmaceuticals if you abandon him. The CEO of SG is also considering investing trillions of won into Doctor Ryu,¡± Kim Young-Hoon said. ¡°Anyway, we are going to put it on the board meeting agenda. We¡¯re registered directors of A-Gen, right? Although it seems like Doctor Ryu cannot participate in board meetings. And in this situation, you¡¯re not going to be able to cut it off at the board meeting either. Why don¡¯t we set a date for the special shareholders¡¯ meeting?¡± The faces of the people who supported Yoon Dae-Sung turned sour. It would be beneficial for SG Pharmaceuticals just for Young-Joon to create an affiliatepany and leave A-Gen, which was growing rapidly. SG Group didn¡¯t have a good rtionship with A-Gen in the first ce, so they didn¡¯t have a way to coborate with Young-Joon even if they wanted to, but if Young-Joon became independent, it was possible. Ji Kwang-Man¡¯s hand trembled. ¡®Why is the CEO or other people not getting this?¡¯ There was something else that was seriously dangerous. Young-Joon said that he was going to give a part of A-Bio to A-Gen in order to protect the shares that the A-Gen shareholders have. It was a n to get approval for the separation of the affiliatepany, but the situation was seriously twisted. Young-Joon was the one getting profit while the risk was taken on by A-Gen. On the other hand, if A-Bio failed to begin due to A-Gen¡¯s rejection? Young-Joon would leave after as SG Group poured trillions of won into him, and A-Gen stock prices would plummet, causing irreversible damage to Yoon Dae-Sung¡¯s management abilities. If A-Gen didn¡¯t take A-Bio¡¯s shares as he stated? Yoon Dae-Sung¡¯s management abilities would also take a huge hit as people would say that they couldn¡¯t take it even when Young-Joon was handing it to them. This would also be irreversible damage. What this meant was that whatever Young-Joon requested in turn for A-Bio¡¯s shares, A-Gen had to give it to him to help start his affiliatepany. Young-Joon was so clever that he just may be the Devil¡¯s child. Ji Kwang-Man imagined what that monster would request in turn for A-Bio¡¯s shares in this situation. It was probably going to be an exchange ofpany shares, A-Gen for A-Bio. ¡®Fxxk.¡¯ Young-Joon already had four percent. If, if the worst happened, Young-Joon could be the CEO of A-Gen and A-Bio. 1. Naver is a popr Korean search engine. It has a function that shows the frequently searched words real-time. ? Chapter 39: A Player of Life (1)

Chapter 39: A yer of Life (1)

The shareholders¡¯ meeting came to an end. As soon as it ended, the reporters ran out of their seats and came to Young-Joon. They surrounded him and bombarded him with questions. ¡°Doctor Ryu! Please tell us more about the Alzheimer¡¯s cure.¡± ¡°When will you start clinical trials?¡± ¡°I heard that you were doing additional clinical trials for a as well. Are you not participating in that, Doctor Ryu?¡± Young-Joon answered them as concisely as possible and quickly left. The guards stopped the reporters who were following him. However, he ran into another group of people. This time, it was the shareholders. However, they were not people who were thanking him because they earned some money. With serious expressions, they ran in front of him with tears in their eyes. ¡°Doctor Ryu, thank you.¡± ¡°I have a in one eye.¡± ¡°My mother has dementia.¡± ¡°Thank you so much.¡± ¡°Please develop a cure soon. I am begging you. Dementia is such a sad and difficult disease, even to the family members.¡± ¡°I believe in you, Doctor Ryu.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Doctor Ryu, but does it not work for spinal nerves yet?¡± ¡°Does it not work for organ regeneration? My husband is waiting for a liver transnt...¡± ¡°Do you think this cure will work on Lewy Body Dementia? My younger sibling is struggling with this.¡± ¡°It¡¯s different from stem cells, but can you cure cancer?¡± ¡°My wife has to go to the washroom every two hours after getting her bowel resection from colorectal cancer. Can you do something like this?¡± ¡°...¡± Since Young-Joon cured a in just a few months and now, he was saying that he was going to cure Alzheimer¡¯s, it seemed like he would be able to cure any disease. The people who had patients around them were getting anxious. They wouldn¡¯t have asked these kinds of questions to an ordinary scientist. But Young-Joon¡¯s achievements were something else. People crowded him with the expectation that maybe this person could have the solutions to all kinds of severe diseases. Young-Joon looked very solemn. ¡°I will conquer those diseases as quickly as possible.¡± * * * ¡°I¡¯m doing it because you want me to, but are you sure this is okay?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk asked Young-Joon at the cafe after eating. ¡°What is?¡± ¡°I was wondering if it¡¯s okay for you to start an affiliatepany without consulting it with yourpany.¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay. So what if they don¡¯t do it? It¡¯s a one-way stab-in-the-back, so it doesn¡¯t matter. We¡¯re not worried about hurting each other¡¯s feelings or anything.¡± ¡°Hah... You did the stock subscription?¡± ¡°Yeah. I sold the flu drug and paid for it. I paid you the money I borrowed, right? I¡¯ve been so busy that I¡¯m not sure.¡± ¡°You paid it all back the day you said you got the money for the drug.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a relief. I still have quite a lot left... Should I get you a car or something? You¡¯re always working hard to help me.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t need it. But I feel like you have somewhat changed.¡± ¡°I changed? Was I a dick because I got a little rich or something? Or was it about the car?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°No. I know you said that because you are really grateful. You would be an ungrateful bastard if you didn¡¯t even offer. I took care of little Ryu Young-Joon and wiped his snot.¡± ¡°Then how did I change?¡± ¡°Not in that way, but... Kind of...¡± Park Joo-Hyuk squinted. After searching for the right words, he said, ¡°You¡¯ve gotten clever or something. Stabbing yourpany¡¯s management in the back and scheming something like this makes you seem like some sort of genius psychopath.¡± ¡°What kind of nonsense is that?¡± ¡°It was nonsense. Sorry.¡± Young-Joon sipped his iced americano. He thought for a bit, then asked, ¡°Do... Do you think I really changed?¡± ¡°Yeah,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk replied. ¡°The Ryu Young-Joon I know is kind of timid and sort of a loser, you know? He¡¯s not one to do something as bold as this. Do you remember in high school when you skippedte-night study hall with me to go y games, but you went back to school because you were too nervous to y?¡±[1] ¡°That was so long ago. I was young back then.¡± ¡°But that¡¯s who you are to me. So it is kind of weird to see you nning something this dramatic against the management people of a hugepany like A-Gen and actually doing it.¡± ¡°Hm.¡± ¡°Of course, you have a crazy side, and you did do some weird things when you were pissed. In university, you fought with your advisor and put up a poster about it. But this feels worse than that.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Why? Is it bothering you? It¡¯s okay. You¡¯re still Ryu Young-Joon even if you¡¯ve changed a little. Even if you pretend to be nasty, I know that inside, you¡¯re still that loser. Oh, wait. I¡¯m getting a phone call.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk took his phone and went outside. He had a habit of pacing back and forth whenever he called someone. ¡°...¡± Watching him, Young-Joon was lost in thought. ¡®I changed?¡¯ Before, during the year-end seminar, Park So-Yeon had said something to him. She said that he had changed. Park So-Yeon said that Young-Joon seemed angry. She said that a nice, dog-like person who liked people and always smiled had changed. But now, he had heard this from his friend of twenty years. This time, he called him a psycho. Young-Joon checked Rosaline¡¯s status window. [Rosaline Lv. 4] ¡ªMetastatic Status: Heart (2%), Liver (46%), Brain (7%), Kidney (13%), Spinal Cord (4%) ¡ªSynchronization: 11% ¡ªCell Fitness: 2.5 ¡ªGene Expression Control: None. Rosaline had gained a level and became level four in the process of developing an Alzheimer¡¯s cure. There weren¡¯t any special abilities that had been added, but there was a value that bothered him. ¡®Eleven percent of synchronization.¡¯ Rosaline had once told Young-Joon how to eradicate the flu. It was to spread a virus derived from influenza and infect the entire world poption. Thousands, even millions of people could die, but Rosaline said that they would easily pass the break-even point as it was within the number of deaths caused by influenza in three years. Then, the flu virus would be destroyed as humanity would gain resistance to the flu. It was really something that a psychopath would think of. Perhaps as Young-Joon became more synchronized with Rosaline, his personality was affected? The human mind was thought of as something that was a free and independent realm, a deviation from the physical world, but it wasn¡¯t. ¡®Personality was affected by genes.¡¯ A research team from Cambridge University published a paper in Nature in coboration with French and American universities. It was a paper that had analyzed the gic background of empathy. They assessed empathy in forty-six thousand individuals and analyzed their genomes. What they found was that mutations at specific loci of 22 genes were identified exclusively in individuals exhibiting high levels of empathy. Conversely, the people who didn¡¯t have that mutation were low in empathy. This meant that empathy was created by genes. Gic factors also yed a strong role in psychopathy. And it was a widely known truth that the proportion of people with low empathy increased as one climbed up to higher social positions. The scientificmunity generally believed that the difficult process of advancing to high-ranking positions naturally selected individuals with lower empathy levels. It was a harsh metaphor, but it was like how those who could refuse a friend who called them out at night after breaking up with their long-term significant other and prepare for exams would pass. And now, Young-Joon was A-Gen¡¯s director, and he was going to be the CEO of A-Bio. He was at quite a high social position. The things he had done in the process was ckmail Ji Kwang-Man,mit huge things without thepany knowing, and take advantage of his soaring fame to make a situation that management could not resolve. ¡®Was I someone who could do things like this?¡¯ Could Young-Joon have done this, aside from nning and intelligence and in terms of personality or boldness? What if this was all created by Rosaline? Young-Joon thought that he thought of the n himself and created an air-tight n, but what if it wasn¡¯t him, but Rosaline continuously giving him ideas? Young-Joon examined the status window again. ¡ªMetastatic Status: ... Brain (7%)... Chills ran down Young-Joon¡¯s body. ¡°Hey! Lee Hae-Won is here.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk, who had left the cafe, came back with Patent Attorney Lee Hae-Won. She looked a bit thinner. ¡°Her face is half the size it was before. Do you have a lot of work?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk direction the question at Lee Hae-Won. ¡°Yes. I lucked out and got a lot of work, but it¡¯s killing me...¡± ¡°Hello...¡± Young-Joon greeted Lee Hae-Won in a dejected voice. ¡°Why are you so depressed all of a sudden?¡± ¡°Nothing you need to know about.¡± ¡°Ha, what a weirdo.¡± Young-Joon let out a big sigh. ¡°It¡¯s okay.¡± Young-Joon didn¡¯t have to be that scared. He found a ce where he could keep researching, he was giving hope to a lot of people, and he was developing the drugs he wanted. Everything was going well. He just had to stop using Synchronization Mode for the time being, just in case, and watch for any other side effects that may arise. ¡°Well then, let¡¯s talk about work.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk nced at Lee Hae-Won. ¡°Do you have more to give me?¡± Lee Hae-Won asked. Her eyes seemed like they were saying that she didn¡¯t want any more. ¡°I do,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°There is a patent that I published through the patentw office at A-Gen that is exclusive to Lab Six. Thepany¡¯s stakes were set pretty high, so I¡¯m going to move it to A-Bio, my newpany.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s probiotics. I am going to use it at A-Bio. Could you just prepare it for now? A-Gen management doesn¡¯t know yet, but I am going to make a deal and get it. Then, we can start it for sure.¡± ¡°You¡¯re going to get that in turn for yourpany stakes?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk asked. ¡°This and more shares. And one more.¡± * * * Young-Joon had paid off all his debt. He paid off his private debt, his parents¡¯ debt, and his student loans. And on Saturday morning, he got on the Gyeongbu Line train. It was to go to Daejeon, his hometown. Returning home after achieving sess was the dream of countless young people, and it was also Young-Joon¡¯s dream. ¡®But I didn¡¯t know I was going to seed this much.¡¯ He wasn¡¯t going to recklessly spend his money, but he was going to buy his parents a house for them to live in. He was going to go look at some ces when he was there. Young-Joon sat at his seat and went into Science on his phone. Some passionate scientists who were a bit of a nerd had a tendency to read papers in their free time as well. It was simr to how people who drew for a living doodled in their free time if they had a pen and a notebook. There was a paper published about a gene called isocitrate dehydrogenase 1 (IDH1). It was a gene that influenced cell metabolism and epigics. Mutants of this gene were found often in gliomas, which were tumors that were found in the brain and spinal cord. As Young-Joon was focusing on the paper, a message popped up. [Synchronization Mode: Would you like to analyze IDH1? Fitness consumption rate: 0.1/second.] Young-Joon closed the message. He was going to stop using Synchronization Mode for a while and see what kind of changes happened; his synchronization value might decrease if he didn¡¯t use it. ¡ªWhy aren¡¯t you pressing it? A message popped up. Young-Joon¡¯s hand froze. ¡®What¡¯s happening? I didn¡¯t use Synchronization Mode or Advice, but I¡¯m getting a message?¡¯ ¡ªRosaline is Level 4 now. When you read a paper, do an experiment, or focus on research like you are doing now, the cerebrum is activated, and the Rosaline cells in the brain cause a cascade. Because of that, it exceeds the threshold of stimtion required for my consciousness to ur. ¡ªWhen you receive a Synchronization message, you always press the button when you have enough fitness. But you are not acting that way this time. Is there a reason? ¡°...¡± 1. Korean high schools have a mandatoryte-night study hall for grades 11 and 12 from 6:30 to 10:00. ? Chapter 40: A Player of Life (2)

Chapter 40: A yer of Life (2)

¡°... I just didn¡¯t do it because I think you are too synchronized,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡ªThere cannot be too much synchronization. The higher it is, the more logical thinking you can do and the more knowledge you can absorb. Why are you avoiding this? ¡°...¡± ¡ªI can detect an electrical signal from the neurons in the basal ganglia of your limbic amygd to your GABA receptors. This is a change that urs in the brain when humans feel fear. You have entered a state of anxiety and fear from the moment I talked to you. ¡°That is...¡± ¡ªI think I know. You are worried that your thoughts will be affected as the synchronization value increases, right? Young-Joon gulped. There was nothing that Rosaline did not know. Hiding it was impossible. ¡°Can that happen?¡± ¡ªYes, it is possible. Rosaline replied. ¡ªRyu Young-Joon. Your body is like a hugepany, like A-Gen. Although miniscule, I have a share in your body. That much of my vote is going into all your thoughts and actions. ¡°Shit...¡± ¡ªThoughts are just the results of electrochemical interactions that ur in the cerebral nerves. I have taken over part of your cerebrum, and because I am synchronized, the electrical signals I create are also included in your thoughts. ¡°Howe you¡¯re just telling me this now? You should have told me this earlier.¡± ¡ªWhy? ¡°Because I don¡¯t want my thoughts to be interfered with.¡± ¡ªBut everything interferes with human thoughts. It is like when you mentally create an additional incurred expense the moment you see a pack of gummies hanging near the cash register in a supermarket. All the information you perceive from your five senses is constantly creating new electrical signals in your brain. Even being sick from a light cold can change which neurons get excited and therefore, change the conclusion of your thoughts. The signals I make are no different from that. Thoughts that arepletely free and not interfered with by anything other than your own brain is a fantastical ability that does not exist in humans. Rosaline sent Young-Joon messages like a rapid-fire cannon. He rubbed his head as he felt an imminent headache. ¡°Alright. But the thoughts you make are different from that.¡± ¡ªHow are they different? ¡°You have no emotions. It¡¯s different from the thoughts that humans have. I don¡¯t want to damage my human nature.¡± ¡ªI do not understand. What is human nature? ¡°It¡¯s about being human. So... Young-Joon was stuck. ¡®How should I exin this?¡¯ ¡°A moral sense... Or feeling someone else¡¯s feelings?¡± ¡ªI can understand human psychology more urately than anyone else. For example, I can not only determine that you simply feel the fear you feel, but I can also quantify the level of fear by measuring the excitement of the GABA receptors... ¡°No, no. That¡¯s not what I¡¯m talking about.¡± ¡ªIs it a different concept? ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡ªI cannot understand. ¡°That¡¯s why you have no humanity. You would have understood if you had it.¡± ¡ªThat is the circr argument facy. The process of rifying the definition of humanity and proving its existence muste first. ¡°Ah, whatever. Stop it. Is this some philosophy ss?¡± Young-Joon cut Rosaline off. Other than that, this was a serious issue. It didn¡¯t seem like Rosaline was threatening now, but Young-Joon didn¡¯t know how this would unfold. ¡®I¡¯m not going to have to fight for shares of my own body with Rosaline, am I? But wouldn¡¯t that have almost a zero chance of me winning? I¡¯d rather fight someone like Ji Kwang-Man; she¡¯s a munchkin on another level.¡¯ ¡ªYour level of fear has intensified. Rosaline announced. ¡ªBut Ryu Young-Joon, you do not need to worry. ¡°Why?¡± ¡ªI cannot survive without your body. Therefore, I will only look out for your safety and will only function to achieve what you want. I will protect your body, keep it in the most optimal conditions, and I will help you gain power by elevating your position within this society. ¡°That¡¯s nice, but that¡¯s not your life goal, right? ¡ªLife? Was life not the right word to use? Rosaline sounded a little shocked as well. She usually knew everything and just gave exnations to Young-Joon, but for the first time, she was speechless. ¡ªYes... I think I know what you are talking about. I am a living being... Yes. I have something called a life. But Ryu Young-Joon, this isn¡¯t a question I can answer. ¡°What?¡± ¡ªWhy did you create me? Since you are my creator, the only person who could give me an answer to this question is you. ¡°...¡± ¡ªI have never thought about something like this before. Is there a goal or reason for my existence? ¡°... No, there¡¯s nothing like that. It was just an ident.¡± Somehow, Young-Joon felt like he was doing something wrong. ¡°Sorry.¡± ¡ªWhy are you apologizing? I am your subordinate. You do not have to apologize to me in any situation. Rosaline said. ¡ªAnyway, I now know that there is no goal or reason for my existence. As nned, I will function for you. I can only survive if you are well-kept. ¡°Are you serious?¡± ¡ªOf course. Bleep! A message window that was different from anything he¡¯d seen before popped up. [Rosaline now has an ego.] [From now on, you can have everyday conversations with Rosaline.] [However, you must still consume fitness when you gain insight into the microworld.] ¡®Now she has an ego? Wow, isn¡¯t this getting more dangerous?¡¯ ¡°Rosaline.¡± ¡ªYes. ¡°Now, can we just talk without Synchronization Mode or anything like that?¡± ¡ªThat¡¯s correct. And I could start the conversation before you call on me. I have gained a new nervous system. From now on, I can maintain full consciousness. ¡°...¡± ¡ªOn top of that, you can give me control of your body and rest if you want. ¡°Ack! No, that¡¯s okay,¡± Young-Joon quickly replied. * * * In countless movies and dramas, a problem always arised when the sessful main character went back to their parents with lots of money and prestige. It was clich¨¦-type things, such as the main character getting rid of the nasty customer or superior that was picking on them at work. But Young-Joon¡¯s parents were already living infort because everyone knew that they were his parents. Young-Joon¡¯s father, Ryu Tae-Sik, was working as a security guard at Happiness Apartment, but the residents who didn¡¯t care much about him started toe to talk to him, one by one. The first was thedy from Unit 701; she was in graduate school. ¡°Excuse me! You know Doctor Ryu Young-Joon, right? My mom said that you were his father...¡± ¡°Ah, yes, yes. That is my son.¡± ¡°Haha. It¡¯s nothing much, but I¡¯m doing a graduate program in medical school. But I just saw Doctor Ryu doing an interview after he published a paper on Science.¡± Handing Ryu Tae-Sik a beverage gift set, she added, ¡°Um, could I meet Doctor Ryu? It would be best if I could work with him, but even if I can¡¯t, I would really like to meet him.¡± ¡°Oh, yes, I will talk to him about it. But my son is very busy too...¡± ¡°Haha, it¡¯s alright if you can¡¯t. Well, I guess he is super busy. Don¡¯t worry about it.¡± At this point, Ryu Tae-Sik thought his son was a little famous. He smiled about it all day. He didn¡¯t know what Science, the journal Young-Joon published a paper in, was, but it seemed great since ady who didn¡¯t even usually greet him came up to talk to him. And a little while ago, his wife said that Young-Joon sent her almost ten million won. ¡®He was smart ever since he was younger. Maybe he did something huge and got a huge incentive from work!¡¯ That¡¯s the level of sess Ryu Tae-Sik could imagine. Thinking of it now, it was trivial. One day, Young-Joon suddenly appeared on TV. Ryu Tae-Sik was watching television from the TV in his patrol room, and Young-Joon had suddenly appeared for an expert interview. He said things that Ryu Tae-Sik could not understand, talking about curing a or something to the reporter with an awkward face and then left. ¡®He¡¯s on television now, too.¡¯ Of course, he was proud, but he was more fascinated. Then, two weeks passed. It was when the news that Young-Joon had seeded in the a clinical trials was bing known. Now, the residents all talked about Young-Joon and a whenever they passed him. ¡°You¡¯re probably so happy that your son developed the first a cure in the world. He¡¯s going to get rich.¡± ¡°Are you quitting your job now? I¡¯m so envious that your son seeded like that. My son has to study too. How did you get your son to study?¡± ¡°Everyone on the news is talking about Doctor Ryu. My executive manager also has a in his right eye, but you can cure it, right? He asked me to thank you when I told him about you.¡± ¡°Hey! I got enough money for a new car thanks to your son! I had about thirty million won in A-Gen, and it jumped to about fifty million in a few days. Tell him I said thanks!¡± If a parent heardpliments and appreciation every day, even the most conservative parents would be a little proud of themselves. But after this, the news about the development of an Alzheimer¡¯s cure broke out. Ten percent of the people living in this apartment were elderly people over the age of sixty-five. Could they believe it? What was going to happen now? The neighborhood grandpas began sitting in the small patrol room for hours. People lined up asking to see his great son. Ryu Tae-Sik received questions about whether it was happening or when the drug wasing out every two hours. Furthermore, the news that Young-Joon was making an affiliatepany called A-Bio also broke out. Now, Ryu Tae-Sik¡¯s title had changed from Security Guard to the Father of the Alzheimer¡¯s Cure CEO. He actually felt ufortable now rather than proud. The worst of them all were matchmaking requests. ¡°I heard that Doctor Ryu is still single? My daughter works at the town office here. Maybe we can set something up for the kids?¡± ¡°My niece is an elementary school teacher. She is kind, pretty, nice...¡± Ryu Tae-Sik was getting requests like this every day. The worst of them all was the grandma from Unit 1201. ¡°Ryu¡¯s father. Come look at this.¡± ¡°What is this?¡± ¡°It¡¯s my granddaughter¡¯s picture. She¡¯s pretty, right?¡± ¡°She is.¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you tell that Doctor Ryu Sung-Joon to meet her?¡± ¡°But she looks a bit young...¡± ¡°Eh, no. She¡¯s twenty now. She took her university entrance exams two months ago.¡± Ryu Tae-Sik was speechless for a few seconds. ¡°She¡¯s still a kid if she¡¯s twenty! Why are you trying to find a partner for a girl who just took her entrance exams!¡± ¡°She¡¯s not young. She¡¯s all grown up. Back in my days, people got married when they were eighteen.¡± ¡®Well, that was sixty years ago.¡¯ ¡°... Does your granddaughter know about this?¡± ¡°She doesn¡¯t know. I¡¯m going to tell her when Doctor Ryu Sung-Joon says yes.¡± ¡°It¡¯s Ryu Young-Joon, not Ryu Sung-Joon.¡± ¡°Alright. Mention it to him.¡± ¡°Yes...¡± But Ryu Tae-Sik never mentioned things like this to Young-Joon once. It was because he did not want to bother his busy son with this. This was no different for Young-Joon¡¯s mother, Oh Young-Sook. She worked in the kitchen of a restaurant in Domadong, Daejeon, and she was smiley all day. It was because her son wasing back today. She didn¡¯t care about what papers he wrote, what drugs he made, or whatpany he was starting; she was as happy as when Young-Joon used toe home as a university student. ¡°Ah, Young-Sook is so happy her son ising,¡± Kim Sook-Ja said as she washed the dishes. ¡°How happy would she be that her son came back after seeding?¡± Han Young-Mi added. ¡°Brush out your bangs since you¡¯re seeing your son.¡± Laughing, Kim Sook-Ja pointed at Oh Young-Sook¡¯s messy bangs. ¡°But didn¡¯t he say that he wasing straight to the restaurant? He said that he¡¯s going to see his dad with you, right?¡± Han Young-Mi asked. ¡°Yes. He said that he would stop by at home to leave his stuff ande here at four.¡± ¡°Four?¡± Han Young-Mi tilted her head in confusion. ¡°It¡¯s after five right now.¡± * * * In Ji Kwang-Man¡¯s office, Yoon Bo-Hyun asked, ¡°Is that bastard really starting apany?¡± ¡°We can¡¯t stop him with his reputation now,¡± Ji Kwang-Man replied. ¡°I heard he¡¯s going to exchange it for A-Gen stocks.¡± ¡°That¡¯s what he¡¯s going to request.¡± ¡°... Uncle, are you going to let him do that?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°What happens to me if A-Bio is made?¡± ¡°Management session will get much harder.¡± ¡°There are people who actually built thispany, even from my grandpa¡¯s generation. My father, you, Lab Director Kim Hyun-Taek. Didn¡¯t you sleep five hours a day and build thispany? And you¡¯re just going to give it to Ryu Young-Joon? You¡¯re going to hand him the management rights? Are you serious?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not that bad yet.¡± ¡°Maybe not right now, but doesn¡¯t he take everything if I don¡¯t inherit the management rights? It¡¯s finished if he uses A-Bio to exchange shares and then mergepaniester on!¡± Originally, the n was to make a childpany in Yoon Bo-Hyun¡¯s name, fast-track its growth by giving it all the high-profit work, and give him the management rights to A-Gen by merging thepany. But if a strong start-up called A-Bio getsunched and it begins to grow rapidly, they couldn¡¯t use this management session strategy at all. ¡°Phew.¡± Ji Kwang-Man let out a sigh. ¡°... You said to leave it all to you, Uncle. You said you were going to make him into an ally.¡± ¡°...¡± He was going to, but Young-Joon didn¡¯t fall for it. Ji Kwang-Man now thought that it was impossible to appease him. Young-Joon wasn¡¯t a wolf that they could justpromise with, he was a tiger. He was someone who would only be satisfied after eating up everyone and ruling over them. ¡°When we destroyed the liver cancer drug that we bought from Celligener. You were the one who had final approval,¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun said. ¡°If Ryu Young-Joon gets ahold of thepany¡¯s management rights, you¡¯ll be the first one to be beheaded. So will I.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°And I know worse business deals that you have done. What do you think will happen if Ryu Young-Joon finds out?¡± Ji Kwang-Man quickly raised his head. He red at Yoon Bo-Hyun like he was telling him to watch his mouth. ¡°My father, you, and Lab Director Kim on anth...¡± ¡°You be quiet!¡± Ji Kwang-Man shouted. ¡°...¡± ¡°Phew.¡± Ji Kwang-Man sighed again. ¡°Bo-Hyun, then should we kick Ryu Young-Joon out right now? Even in that case, our management takes a serious hit. Think about how the shareholders would react.¡± ¡°What should we do when the goose thatys golden eggs tries to bite its owner? We already gained some profit off those golden eggs. We can maintain our status and management without any losses if we don¡¯t send him to another farm.¡± ¡°... You. What are you thinking?¡± ¡°Uncle, this is the maginot line. If we give him more time, we lose this opportunity, too. Do you know that Ryu Young-Joon denied Congressman Shim Sung-Yeol when he came to see him? Because he¡¯s so caught up with ethics, he does not have powerful people as his guardian. It means that he¡¯s only famous.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°But if heunches A-Bio, he will have actual power since poweres from money, not fame. Even if he is a goose thatys golden eggs, we have to decide to cut his belly open at this point,¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun said. Chapter 41: A Player of Life (3)

Chapter 41: A yer of Life (3)

The ce that Young-Joon¡¯s parents were living in was an old house that was in a remote area in Doma-dong, Daejeon. To get to the house, he had to go through a narrow, maze-like alley. Taxi drivers didn¡¯t really like these kinds of roads. ¡°You can drop me off here.¡± Young-Joon got off the taxi at the entrance to the alley. Looking at the old, gray stone walls... old memories of the ce surfaced in Young-Joon''s mind. ¡®I yed a lot with Park Joo-Hyuk near here.¡¯ Young-Joon went down the alley. And when he arrived in front of a rice shop that was no longer open... Vrooom! A truck suddenly came out from the left. Crash! Young-Joon could not understand what just happened. He felt a strong impact on his left shoulder and arm, then his whole body flew into the air. His body flew dozens of meters and tumbled on the ground. Three men got out of the truck and confirmed the situation. ¡°Is it done?¡± The man with a mustache and wearing a leather jacket asked while lighting a cigarette. ¡°Check,¡± the man who was seemingly the leader ordered. One of the gangsters approached Young-Joon with a wrench in his hand and flipped him over. Blood ran down Young-Joon¡¯s head. ¡°I think it¡¯s done, sir,¡± the gangster said. ¡°Huh! Hey! Behind you!¡± Spitting out his cigarette, Mustache yelled in surprise. ¡°Behind?¡± The gangster turned his head and fell to his knees in shock. Young-Joon¡¯s upper body was smoothly getting up from the ground. It looked as if someone was pulling on his cor to get him up. His cut on the back of his head was healed. He stared at the gangsters with cold eyes void of emotions. * * * The order, which had passed through a few people, was to eliminate Young-Joon. They had prepared a lot for this. They did multiple simtions in this exact spot with the truck owned by the identity they stole. People didn¡¯t reallye by here, and there was nothing but stray cats and dog poop in this alley. There were no surveince cameras either. Along with his subordinates, he nned a lot of potential scenarios. And when the time came, they attacked him just like they nned without hesitation, like a machine. But they failed. When the leader woke up, he found himself in the truck and tied to the driver''s seat with green tape. His subordinates were seated behind, tied up and unconscious, and Young-Joon was seated in the passenger¡¯s seat. Tap! Tap tap tap! Young-Joon tapped Lee Kwang-Soo¡¯s phone. ¡°Uh.... Euh...¡± Lee Kwang-Soo moaned in fear. This guy wasn''t human. They had never seen a monster like him before. How did that kind of strengthe out from a scrawny little nerd like him? Everyone fell to the ground in just a few minutes, and then Lee Kwang-Soo went unconscious after getting his joints twisted and hit on the back of his head. ¡°Who ordered you?¡± Young-Joon asked in a cold voice. ¡°... I-I don¡¯t know.¡± ¡°There is a phone call and text from a man named Kim Il-Soo on your phone.¡± Lee Kwang-Soo looked bewildered. ¡®How did he open my phone? There¡¯s a passcode on it?¡¯ Young-Joon stared at Lee Kwang-Soo, then said, ¡°Human fingers leave behind residue like fingerprints, bacteria, and dead skin on ces they touch. ces you touch more often have more of those residues left than other ces. Zero, one, three, four¡ªthese four numbers were exactly like that. And there aren¡¯t manybinations you can make with four numbers.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The passcode was zero-four-one-three. And looking at your messenger, that was your wife¡¯s birthday. You take care of your family even when you do things like this?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Kim Il-Soo isn¡¯t in my memory. I assume that you got the order from higher up. Tell me who it was. Then I will let you live.¡± ¡°I-I don¡¯t know. I only work with Il-Soo-hyungnim...¡±[1]Lee Kwang-Soo answered in a terrified voice. ¡°It¡¯s Ji Kwang-Man, isn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°N-No, it¡¯s not!¡± Lee Kwang-Soo desperately tried to hide it, but it didn¡¯t mean anything to Rosaline. She already detected the change in blood flow in Lee Kwang-Soo¡¯s brain. She could get the answer by looking at the limbic system that was activated when he heard Ji Kwang-Man¡¯s name. But she needed to hear it from Lee Kwang-Soo himself since knowing and proving were two different things. Rosaline got close to Lee Kwang-Soo. She smiled. To him, the smile was as chilling as a devil¡¯s. * * * When Young-Joon regained consciousness, he was in his room at his parent¡¯s house. He was hurt and throbbing everywhere. ¡°Ugh.¡± He massaged his throbbing body and nced at the clock. It was six o¡¯clock. There was blood on his shirt. ¡ªDo not move too much; you are still recovering. The message Rosaline sent him popped up. He had lost consciousness from the moment he was hit by the car, but he could faintly remember the things he saw through Rosaline¡¯s eyes. ¡°What happened? It wasn¡¯t an alley cars usually go through.¡± ¡ªIt was a deliberate ident. Aimed at you. ¡°No way. What if...¡± ¡ªIt¡¯s true. They were people who Ji Kwang-Man sent. With a little bit of torture and threatening, they said it with their own lips. ¡°Sigh.¡± Young-Joon covered his face with his hands. He did think that they were going to do something as their management rights were being threatened. He predicted a few different reactions, but he didn¡¯t expect them to be this violent. ¡®Are they crazy?¡¯ ¡°I think it was three people. What happened to them?¡± ¡ªThey are alive, so don¡¯t worry. I subdued them and tied them up in the car. ¡°...¡± ¡ªAfter that, I came to this house to disinfect the injury, and I controlled your consciousness while recovering you. So that control of this body could return to you. ¡°I need to go see it for myself.¡± Young-Joon put on a new shirt and went outside. In the old car, three people were tied up with green tape. To be honest, Rosaline didn¡¯t really have to tie them up as they had broken bones everywhere and could not move because their joints popped out of ce. Two of them were unconscious, and Mustache, the only person who woke up, wiggled as he saw Young-Joon. ¡°Hup!¡± Young-Joon ripped off the green tape from his lips. In fear, the man lowered his head and bowed. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. Please let me live. I¡¯m sorry. I¡¯m sorry...¡± ¡°Why did you do it?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°We said no as well. At first, we told them that we couldn¡¯t do it this time. It¡¯s true. We kept saying no because it was too pressuring since the subject was a famous person. I¡¯m telling you. But he kept on convincing us...¡± ¡°Ji Kwang-Man did?¡± ¡°... That is... I did say that it was ordered by the Division Director, but I am notpletely sure. The order has gone through a few people...¡± ¡°You¡¯re saying that someone else gave the order, right? How did they convince you?¡± ¡°They said that it was fine until now since Doctor Ryu was famous, but not powerful...¡± Mustache said as he nced at Young-Joon. ¡°They said that Doctor Ryu has no ties to politicians because he is picky. And isn¡¯t this a world where no one gets caught after a celebrity who was forced to engage in sexual entertainment writes a list of people andmits suicide? A famous person and a powerful person are different. The world does not care when an ordinary person dies, but when a famous person dies, the whole world pays attention, but it was a battle of power to find the culprit.¡± ¡°So they convinced you that even if you kill me, they could cover it up if they put their minds to it? Because I¡¯m only famous and they are powerful?¡± ¡°Yes... They said they could bury it since there are no politicians linked to you and watching your back.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°A-And they said they were going to give us a lot of money. We can¡¯t keep living like this either. Since this was going to be ourst time, we were going to get lots of money and move to a different country. They said they were going to get boat tickets for us too...¡± ¡°And you trusted that?¡± ¡°He is not a liar. He has worked with us for ten years, and we¡¯re basically brothers...¡± ¡°You are really stupid. If you kill me, you don¡¯t have a way to get out of this country. They are going to use you and cut ties.¡± ¡°But... We have worked with Il-Soo-hyungnim for over ten years...¡± ¡°Call Ji Kwang-Man right now.¡± ¡°We have never been connected with Division Director Ji Kwang-Man. We just assumed. We only talk to Il-Soo-hyungnim, so...¡± ¡°Is the middle-man¡¯s name Il-Soo?¡± ¡°Kim Il-Soo...¡± ¡°Then call him. Put it on speakerphone. I¡¯ll record it. * * * ¡°Aren¡¯t you crossing the line?¡± Gil Il-Soo asked in a hostess bar located in Bangbaedong. He was a middle-man broker who took requests from customers like Ji Kwang-Man and moved illegal organizations ordingly. ¡°I did overdo it a little. But we were running out of time. I couldn¡¯t help it,¡± Ji Kwang-Man replied. ¡°Right now, he has no power. All he has is a huge amount of fame. I think this is the maginot line. If we give him more time from here, he bes untouchable as politicians get involved. But right now, I can cut ties and get rid of him, although it will get noisy.¡± ¡°Won¡¯t they be suspicious of us?¡± ¡°Who? Us?¡± Ji Kwang-Man sighed. ¡°They won¡¯t find out,¡± Ji Kwang-Man said. He added, ¡°The public does not know that we are not on good terms with Young-Joon.¡± Publicly, A-Gen was apany that fully supported Young-Joon to the extent that they gave him full shares of induced pluripotent stem cells. They mobilized high-level personnel in thepany and helped with optic nerve differentiation and clinical research by giving him all the retinal degenerative mice from the Experiment Animal Resource Center. They also hired him as a director even though he was just a Scientist. A-Gen had given him a huge share of four percent when he was aplete stranger. In addition, A-Gen should actively support Young-Joon as they were about to gain huge profits from theunching of his affiliatepany. How could anyone suspect that they were behind Young-Joon¡¯s murder? No one would be able to suspect Young-Joon other than himself, but he was dead and gone. The dead did not speak. Then, the public¡¯s anger would not be aimed at A-Gen or management since there was no way apany would cut open a goose thatid golden eggs. There would be anger toward the government, asking why they did not protect a gifted person like him. Public opinion will roar and demand a thorough investigation to catch the criminals. ¡°At that point, we can catch the worthless people who did it and throw them right in front of the public. Get them to pour out all their anger and hang him or pull his limbs apart,¡± Ji Kwang-Man said. He added, ¡°They rip them apart in excitement. The public is the great unwashed; they can only think so hard. Once you rise to my level, you can run simtions of them and predict what will happen next. A cold sneer appeared on Ji Kwang-Man''s face. ¡°What¡¯s next? After that, a conspiracy theory about the people behind it wille up. There are two suspects: America or SG Pharmaceuticals. I one hundred percent guarantee you these two wille up.¡± The scenario was that Americans assassinated him to protect their lead in international science as the person who was going to transform medicine from now on was Korean. There was a simr conspiracy theory when Doctor Lee Hwi-So passed away as well, although it wasn¡¯t confirmed whether it was true or not. The other alternative scenario was that SG Pharmaceuticals assassinated him because they could not stand to see A-Gen¡¯s growth. ¡°There will be no room for A-Gen to be raised as a possible suspect as they fight. In the meantime, A-Gen will gather all their employees, hold a memorial service, and it will all end beautifully with the CEO shedding a tear. Rather, the mom-and-pop investors might be moved by that and stock prices might increase.¡± Kim Il-Soo felt chills on his shoulders. ¡°It¡¯s okay to throw them under the bus, right?¡± ¡°Of course. They will keep their mouths shut if you give them enough money.¡± ¡°Of course. I will fill their pockets.¡± Ji Kwang-Man finished his drink cheerfully. He was thinking of reporting a celebrity sex scandal after the three garbage lives took all the public¡¯s anger and disappeared. He would wait for the news to die down, then normalize A-Gen¡¯s management that was disturbed by Young-Joon. The situation may have unfolded differently if Young-Joon had a politician like Shim Sung-Yeol watching his back, but there was no one. Nichs? He was just fond of the man as a scientist; he wasn¡¯t going to fight his ownpany for someone who was dead now. ¡®Ryu Young-Joon. Your integrity was your poison. A clean fish can¡¯t live in a big, dirty river, right?¡¯ ¡°This one was a big case, and I¡¯m only asking because I¡¯m nervous, but you¡¯re only throwing my people under the bus, right? Not me?¡± Kim Il-Soo asked. ¡°Of course, how could you be included, Mr. Kim. Why are you so anxious?¡± ¡°Haha, never mind. I was just worried about taking out such a famous person like that.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t get scared. We can do it. And this is the only way we can protect ourpany¡¯s management rights.¡± ¡°Yes, of course. It will go well.¡± Buzz! Kim Il-Soo¡¯s phone buzzed. ¡°I guess the job is done.¡± Kim Il-Soo picked up the phone. ¡ªH-Hyung-nim? ¡°Yeah. Is it done?¡± ¡ªThat is... Um... Ryu Young-Joon... ¡°Why? You didn¡¯t take care of him?¡± ¡ªAre you Kim Il-Soo? It was Young-Joon¡¯s voice. Kim Il-Soo froze. Ji Kwang-Man also heard it because the phone volume was quite loud. ¡°Uh... Yes, who is this?¡± ¡ªThis is Ryu Young-Joon. Kim Il-Soo gulped. Ji Kwang-Man was ring at him. ¡°I-I don¡¯t think we know each other. What is this about?¡± Kim Il-Soo replied with a trembling voice. ¡ªI already recorded you asking whether I was taken care of, so let¡¯s talk freely. ¡°...¡± ¡ªThe people you sent failed. I called the police, so they will be arrested soon. I¡¯m sure you will get arrested, too. I heard that you¡¯ve been working with these people for ten years. They don¡¯t know much about Ji Kwang-Man, but they sure do know quite a lot about you. ¡°Ha... Haha. Sir, I don¡¯t know what you are talking about.¡± ¡ªThe reason I called you is because I wanted to ask you something. ¡°... Ask me something?¡± ¡ªHow much are you going to tell when you get investigated? Kim Il-Soo took a deep breath. He put force into his tone of voice. ¡°I don¡¯t know what you are talking about. I will hang up if you¡¯re going to keep talking nonsense.¡± ¡ªTell them about everyone. If it includes Ji Kwang-Man, tell them about him too. This isn¡¯t something you can handle by yourself anyway. ¡°Excuse me. Wait...¡± ¡ªJust don¡¯t talk and listen if you¡¯re going to pretend like you didn¡¯t do it. Young-Joon went on. ¡ªTo be honest, I learned something from this. I also understand what kind of logic and n was behind you doing something like this. And you people probably know a lot of powerful people who could make this go away, whether you bribed them or you know their weak spot. ¡°...¡± ¡ªBut it doesn¡¯t matter how sturdy the ties you are holding onto are. I have the ability to take that from you. Only I can give them what they want the most, what they want more than money or prestige: a healthy life. Whee! They could hear the sirens of police cars and ambnces from Young-Joon¡¯s side. ¡ªI will make sure that not only the public¡¯s anger is focused on you, but also the resentment of the majority of the politicalmunity as well. It¡¯s going to be hard to take that all on your own. Tell them about everyone who was behind this. ¡°H-Hey, wait.¡± ¡ªTo be honest, I was recently thinking about how I was ripping apart Ji Kwang-Man and management too much. As a person, I felt guilty for destroying management with traps, bluffing, and ckmail. Young-Joon said. ¡ªBut it doesn¡¯t matter now. I feel like I can go as far as needed without anything holding me back now that I know that you people are garbage. From now on, your life will be a living hell worse than you could ever imagine. If you don¡¯t want to be fucked by yourself, give me all the people you are hiding. Beep. Young-Joon hung up the phone. Kim Il-Soo stared at Ji Kwang-Man, frozen. Ji Kwang-Man pulled out his electronic cigarette and put it in his mouth. His fingers trembled. He took a deep breath with his eyes closed. Thud! He mmed the table with the cigarette in his hand. ¡°This is how you get the job done?¡± ¡°That is...¡± ¡°You figure it out on your own.¡± ¡°... Y-You said that you¡¯re not going to throw me under the bus.¡± ¡°Get lost. I don¡¯t know anything about this from now on. Let¡¯s keep this encounter a secret, too.¡± Ji Kwang-Man took his coat and left. * * * Attempted murder of star scientist Ryu Young-Joon, a national hero. The nation was turned upside down. News articles poured out nonstop since the first breaking news in the media, and A-Gen¡¯s stock prices plummeted sharply. Public opinion was raging in criticism against the government and gangsters. Young-Joon was watching the news on the television inside the VIP hospital room at a university hospital. The anchor was reporting Young-Joon¡¯s ident once again. ¡ªAround 4 PM today in a remote neighborhood in Doma-dong, Daejeon, Doctor Ryu Young-Joon of A-Gen was attacked and transported to a nearby university hospital with major injuries. Thankfully, he suffered no severe injuries. The criminals were three gangsters... Beep! Young-Joon turned off the TV. He closed his eyes and thought long and hard. He could quickly recover from his injuries if he used Rosaline, but he didn¡¯t use her on purpose. The reason why he was staying at the hospital was to take this situation to the extreme. Young-Joon thought about Shim Sung-Yeol, who went to visit Son Soo-Young, the sessful patient of the clinical trial, a while ago. There was no ce better for them to create a positive impression than a hospital room. ¡®They should be getting here anytime soon.¡¯ ¡°Mr. Ryu Young-Joon, you have a visitor,¡± The nurse said as she approached him. ¡°Who is it?¡± ¡°He says that he is Congressman Kim Joo-Chul...¡± ¡°Please allow all the visitors toe in,¡± Young-Joon replied. 1. Hyung-nim is a masculine word that males use to refer to older males. It means older brother, and it ismonly used amongst gangsters when referring to their superiors or bosses. ? Chapter 42: A Player of Life (4)

Chapter 42: A yer of Life (4)

Kim Joo-Chul was a young politician who was sessfully re-elected. He was building up his support and getting better at what he was doing. He was thirsty for prestige, so he did whatever he could if it meant that he could make his name. And since he happened to be in Daejeon, he was able toe see Young-Joon first. It would be quite helpful for him to make a name for himself if he could put his face on a provocative incident like a superstar being attacked. That was the only reason Kim Joo-Chul visited Young-Joon¡¯s hospital room. As it waste in the evening, he was thinking of getting a picture with the new rising scientist and advertising it on social media rather than bringing in a reporter and making a fuss. ¡°Hello.¡± With a bright smile, Kim Joo-Chul walked into Young-Joon¡¯s room. ¡°Hello,¡± Young-Joon replied dryly. He was talking to Rosaline in his head. He consumed one fitness point as it was not an everyday conversation. ¡®What do you think?¡¯ ¡ªHe has stomach cancer. Stage one. ¡®If they resect it?¡¯ ¡ªIt would have to be a total gastrectomy. Young-Joon thought that someone his age would have some sort of minor illness, but it was a big one right off the bat. Did Kim Joo-Chul know that he had stomach cancer? ¡°Doctor Ryu, how are you feeling?¡± Kim Joo-Chul asked. ¡°I am good.¡± ¡°How could an ident like this happen to someone who works day and night for the advancement of science in our country? It really breaks my heart.¡± With a look of pity, Kim Joo-Chul came over and sat beside Young-Joon. ¡°I am alright. I had a thorough examination, and it wasn¡¯t that serious. I am doing an endoscopy tomorrow,¡± Young-Joon replied. He was throwing bait at Kim Joo-Chul as politicians used anything in order to form a bond. ¡°Oh, is that so? I also got an endoscopy recently,¡± Kim Joo-Chul said. ¡°What kind of endoscopy?¡± ¡°An upper endoscopy.¡± ¡®Bingo.¡¯ If he did an endoscopy, they would have found a severe stomach ulcer. ¡°Were there any problems?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Haha, they told me to get it checked out, so I did, and I was diagnosed with stage one stomach cancer. But you can treat it with an endoscopy since it¡¯s only stage one, right?¡± Kim Joo-Chul said, chuckling. ¡°I can¡¯t get surgery right away since I was re-elected and it¡¯s a busy time for me, but I am going to go in soon and get it treated.¡± ¡°With an endoscopy?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Did your doctor say that?¡± ¡°No, but it¡¯s stage one, right?¡± ¡°So did you not ask how much of your stomach needs to be resected?¡± ¡°Yes...¡± Kim Joo-Chul looked a little nervous as Young-Joon kept asking. ¡°I think it would be best if you asked him. Not all stage one stomach cancers can be treated with an endoscopy.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± ¡°Sometimes, you may have to do a total gastrectomy. Normally, people think that you have to resect more of the stomach as the stages progress, but the amount that needs to be resected is actually dependent on where the cancer is located.¡± Kim Joo-Chul went a little stiff. ¡°Congressman, where did they say the cancer was?¡± ¡°T-The upper side...¡± ¡°I cannot be certain as I did not see your chart, but they usually do a gastrectomy if the tumor is located in the first third of the stomach. It is a surgery where the entire stomach is taken out and the esophagus is connected to the small intestine.¡± Kim Joo-Chul froze right away. This was devastating news. Kim Joo-Chul thought, ¡®I have to take out my entire stomach?¡¯ ¡°What... It¡¯s only stage one, but I have to take out my entire stomach? It¡¯s only stage one? Why?¡± ¡°If only the upper part of the stomach that has cancer cells is removed, side effects such as severe reflux esophagitis would ur. Then, you would not be able to eat anything. That¡¯s why the entire stomach is taken out.¡± ¡°B-But the doctor did not say anything like that.¡± ¡°I do not know about the doctor¡¯s situation. They might be thinking about it because it is in a tricky location. It may have not beenmunicated well since the doctor and you both have very busy jobs. Anyway, I¡¯m just saying that it is generally like that.¡± ¡°...¡± When Kim Joo-Chul was getting his examination, he was alreadyte to the re-elected congressmen meeting. He left the office after hearing that stage one stomach cancer had a recovery rate of almost one hundred percent. He said that it was because he was busy and that he would hear the rest by phone afterward. It wasn¡¯t that he didn¡¯t care about it at all, but he had just put off calling the doctor for a few days. But after hearing it now, he thought it could be much more serious than he thought. ¡°You should call your doctor and ask how much of your stomach needs to be resected.¡± ¡°Please give me a moment.¡± Kim Joo-Chul, who had turnedpletely pale, quickly pulled out his phone and called the doctor¡¯s phone. The doctors probably weren¡¯t working anymore as the time waste, but he couldn¡¯t think about that right now as he was too in shock. ¡°Hello? Doctor? Yes, I am Congressman Kim Joo-Chul. I went to see you before... Yes, that¡¯s right. Yes. I just wanted to ask if I would have to resect my entire stomach?¡± Kim Joo-Chul asked. And a little whileter, his hand fell helplessly along with his phone. His breathing was a little rough out of shock. Watching him, Young-Joon cautiously interrupted. ¡°Did he say that you will have to do a total gastrectomy?¡± ¡°Yes... He said... that will be best...¡± ¡°Well, what can you do? Don¡¯t worry too much about it. However, your quality of life will decrease.¡± Young-Joon said,. ¡°After you resect your entire stomach, you will have to chew your food at least thirty times and eat slowly for at least twenty minutes. You have to chew your food more since your stomach can¡¯t digest it. And since you willck the ability to store food, you will have to eat five or six times a day in rtively small amounts.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°And if you don¡¯t be careful, you might start dumping, which is when high concentrations of undigested food pour into your intestines and cause abdominal distension, stomach cramps, vomiting, or diarrhea. And if you¡¯re unlucky, you could get dizzy or fall into aa. So you must follow your diet carefully.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°And you musty down slightly after thirty minutes of eating since you have to slow the passage of food. You can¡¯t get up right away and move. There are a few kinds of food you have to restrict, such as dairy, but the hospital will tell you that. You have to take care of yourself.¡± Kim Joo-Chul urgently turned his face toward Young-Joon. ¡°S-Sir, is there any way?¡± ¡°Any way?¡± ¡°You cured a too, right? You said you are going to cure Alzheimer¡¯s as well...¡± Young-Joon stroked his chin as if he was contemting for a bit. Kim Joo-Chul gulped in nervousness. ¡°Sir...?¡± ¡°There is a biomaterial called CD44 on the surface of cancer cells. It¡¯s on normal cells as well, but there is specifically more on cancer cells. If there¡¯s about one on normal cells, there¡¯s about one hundred on the surface of cancer cells. So, a lot of scientists tried to target that and create an anticancer drug since it would only kill cancer cells with one hundred times more efficiency.¡± Young-Joon went on. ¡°But the scientists discovered while developing it that a small subset of stem cells in the body had as many CD44 as cancer cells. Maybe not one hundred of them, but about eighty. So, all those cells died when the anticancer drug was used, and that was quite fatal. That¡¯s why the pharmaceutical industry hasn¡¯t been able to create an anticancer drug that targets CD44 even though it is one of the most efficient targets.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°But strangely, stomach cancer cells have a variant of CD44 on the surface.¡± ¡°A variant?¡± ¡°It is a material called CD44v8. There are a lot of them since it is derived from CD44, but it doesn''t exist on other cells because it is a variant.¡± ¡°Then...¡± Kim Joo-Chul could barely follow Young-Joon¡¯s exnation. ¡°Then can you make a drug with that?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Then, stage one stomach cancers will not need any resection at all. It will be cured by just putting the medicine on the tumor since it is highly toxic to cancer cells,¡± Young-Joon replied. He added, ¡°But it is very tricky to develop. It¡¯s difficult to make a unique antibody just for CD44v8, and that¡¯s why the scientificmunity has not been able to develop it into a pharmaceutical yet. I had a few ideas, which I think would have a pretty high sess rate. But I haven¡¯t been able to even start developing it. As you can see.¡± Young-Joon lifted his arm that had an intravenous line in it. ¡°Because I¡¯m in this situation.¡± Suddenly, sparks flew from Kim Joo-Chul¡¯s eyes. Young-Joon smiled bitterly. ¡°I should have been born earlier... I¡¯m sorry,¡± Young-Joon said in a half-joking voice. ¡°No...¡± ¡°But I also have stem cell technology, Congressman. It¡¯s okay even if you resect your entire stomach. If you hold out a little bit, I can make you a new stomach.¡± Young-Joon added, ¡°If I am still alive by then. Since someone seems to be after my life.¡± ¡°...¡± Kim Joo-Chul grit his teeth. ¡°Doctor Ryu, did you do anything to make someone resent you?¡± ¡°I made some enemies while trying to live the right way.¡± ¡°If you have anyone you suspect, please tell me.¡± ¡°I do, but it is only a suspicion. I want to take care of this based on evidence and thew. I¡¯m worried that they will suffer more damage than their share if I thoughtlessly tell you their name.¡± ¡°They are going to be people with power if they messed with someone like you, Doctor Ryu. They are going to try to cover it up if you let them be, no?¡± Kim Joo-Chul said. ¡°I will do it ording to thew as you wish. I will investigate it thoroughly and find them.¡± * * * About ten people hade to see Young-Joon in the span of about ten days. There was a pretty scary energy going around the politicalmunity. The public¡¯s request to thoroughly investigate was nothing but a clich¨¦ stimulus for the old snakes who had seeped in politics for a long time, but what Young-Joon gave them was a much stronger motivation. Everyone who had met him once were all caught up in a roaring anger. In the meantime, Young-Joon met some more close people he missed. As soon as Ryu Ji-Won heard the news, she skipped all her afternoon sses and got on a train right away. She was usually yful and fun, but it seemed like something like attempted murder was too much of a shock. She began crying by his bedside with her face buried in his bed. ¡°I knew things were going too well for you!¡± Wiping the tears off her face, she sobbed and said, ¡°Hey, just don¡¯t do research anymore. That¡¯s why this happened, right? Some strange people are after you because you¡¯re famous?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not because I¡¯m famous, but I do have more enemies now...¡± ¡°More enemies? You?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°... Yeah, you have a pretty bad temper. You should bring a bodyguard with you when you go ces now. I heard that Einstein also had a bodyguard with him.¡± ¡°Well, he, a German Jew, criticized the Nazi in Europe when Hitler was ruling. He really lived like there was no tomorrow.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not that different, either!¡± ¡°And Einstein didn¡¯t have a bodyguard after he sought asylum in America.¡± ¡°Anyway.¡± ¡°Whatever. Einstein was racist, and he had a pretty bad personal life as well. Don¡¯tpare me to him.¡± ¡°Where¡¯s Mom and Dad?¡± ¡°They came here the day I came to the hospital, and they¡¯re here almost every day. They went out to eat right now, but you should take them for some coffeeter.¡± ¡°Young-Joon!¡± The door swung open and Park Joo-Hyuk entered. Patent Attorney Lee Hae-Won followed him in. ¡°You lunatic. What are you doing here? What happened?¡± As Park Joo-Hyuk was making a fuss and walking toward Young-Joon, he saw Ryu Ji-Won sitting beside him. ¡°Long time no see, Ji-Won. How is school?¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine. Hehe.¡± ¡°It¡¯s nice that you¡¯re here, even though you¡¯re probably really busy with school. Coming all the way here because of your stupid brother. Sigh,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡°Are you Kim Jong-Nam or something? You can¡¯t control yourself now that you¡¯re famous, huh? Are you some chaebol who is secretly fighting for power or something? This is going overboard, man.¡±[1] ¡°I didn¡¯t know they would act like this, too. That¡¯s why I was hit. Why did you bring Attorney Lee?¡± ¡°You¡¯re her best customer and her ie. What is she going to live off of if you¡¯re gone?¡± Lee Hae-Won chuckled like she was embarrassed by what Park Joo-Hyuk was saying. ¡°But I am d you¡¯re okay.¡± ¡°You should rest a lot now since I¡¯ll be giving you more work once I get discharged.¡± ¡°Ugh...¡± Lee Hae-Won looked sad. That was when Park Joo-Hyuk interrupted. ¡°Hey, Young-Joon. I looked into some private security firms. About a hundred of them show up when you search it up on Naver, but half of them are ghostpanies, and the other half are worthless. A lot of them just use part-time workers instead of actually trained guards. I made a list for you just in case you spend money on bad ones like an idiot and get stabbed in an alley or something.¡± ¡°So which did you choose?¡± ¡°K-Cops.¡± ¡°... The Robot Police?¡±[2] ¡°Ji-Won doesn¡¯t understand that joke. Be careful; it makes you look old.¡± Ryu Ji-Won actually looked like she didn¡¯t know what they were talking about. ¡®Holy...¡¯ ¡°Anyway, ask them for security since K-Cops are trustworthy. Or ask for protection from the government.¡± ¡°Okay. Thanks.¡± ¡°Take care of yourself. Sigh, you always worry me, little bro,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk said, clicking his tongue. 1. Kim Jong-Nam was the firstborn son of Kim Jong-Il of North Korea who was assassinated by a nerve poison in 2017. ? 2. Robot Police K-Cops, or Brave Police J-Decker, was an animation that aired in Korea in 1994. ? Chapter 43: A Player of Life (5)

Chapter 43: A yer of Life (5)

A few hours after Ryu Ji-Won, Park Joo-Hyuk, and Lee Hae-Won left, the members of the Life Creation Department showed up. Young-Joon did hear that they were alling to see him, but he wondered if it was okay for all of them toe to Daejeon together. ¡°Isn¡¯t it work hours right now? It¡¯s a weekday today.¡± ¡°We all took the evening off. We arranged all the work in the morning, so don¡¯t worry.¡± Jung Hae-Rim approached Young-Joon with a worried face. ¡°Seriously, what happened?¡± ¡°I think Ji Kwang-Man did this,¡± Young-Joon replied. They all froze. ¡°What does... But is there a reason for him to do something this bad?¡± Park Dong-Hyun asked like this was unbelievable. ¡°Are you sure it¡¯s Ji Kwang-Man?¡± Cheon Ji-Myung asked Young-Joon. ¡°I think so.¡± ¡°Do you have proof?¡± Jung Hae-Rim asked. ¡°There will be some soon.¡± ¡°Will be some?¡± ¡°Well, I reached out to some politicians, the prosecution, and ces like that?¡± ¡°You?¡± Cheon Ji-Myung tilted his head in confusion. It was like seeing a cow eat beef. ¡°It¡¯s true. I just thought that it might not proceed ording to thew if I let it be, so I just gave it a little nudge so that it would. Ji Kwang-Man will be caught in the investigation soon enough.¡± ¡°Oh my...¡± ¡°But isn¡¯t it better for you to question him if you have suspicions?¡± Bae Sun-Mi asked. ¡°Then, it could look like I had a veiled fight for power with Ji Kwang-Man. I am going to keep my stance as the victim,¡± Young-Joon replied. Since he had a lot of people who would y for him, there was no need for him to hold a knife and put blood on his bands. ¡°Other than that, how did the Alzheimer¡¯s mice experiment go? Did we get the data?¡± Young-Joon asked Bae Sun-Mi. ¡°I win! Give it to me!¡± Suddenly, Jung Hae-Rim eximed and put out her hand towards Park Dong-Hyun and Koh Soon-Yeol. ¡°Hmph. I¡¯ll transfer you the money.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll give it to you in cash.¡± Koh Soon-Yeol pulled out a few ten thousand won bills and gave it to Jung Hae-Rim. ¡°What kind of bet did you have?¡± Young-Joon asked in bewilderment. ¡°I predicted that you were going to definitely ask about research progress and I bet my money on that,¡± Jung Hae-Rim remarked with a proud smirk. ¡°I didn¡¯t think someone who was just hit by a car and lying in the hospital would ask about work,¡± Park Dong-Hyun said in a depressed voice. ¡°So, did we get the data?¡± Young-Joon asked Bae Sun-Mi again. ¡°I also bet that you would ask, so I brought myptop. I¡¯ll show you the data.¡± Bae Sun-Mi pulled out herptop and put it on the side table beside the bed. The first slide that showed up when she opened the PowerPoint file was the brain dissection of an APP model mouse. An APP mouse referred to a Beta-Amyloid Precursor Protein (APP) model mouse. This mouse had a V717F variant in the APP gene, so the beta-amyloid protein kept umting outside the brain cells. As human Alzheimer¡¯s was also caused by beta-amyloid proteins umting in the brain, APP model mice were basically a recreation of human Alzheimer¡¯s in mice. ¡°If you see here, you can see the formation of the amyloid que, and you can see the locations where synapses were lost,¡± Bae Sun-Mi said as she pointed to the checkmarks on the picture. ¡°As time passed, the brain was continuously destroyed to turn into this kind of shape.¡± She turned to the next slide. The picture now showed a brain that had a much more contracted shape than before. ¡°And the result of the stem cell therapy Doctor Ryu created...¡± She turned to the next slide. Ny percent of the destroyed brain tissue had been recovered. Now, there was no noticeable differencepared to a healthy mouse¡¯s brain. ¡°They also showed significant improvements in cognitive ability and memory tests. I think that one hundred percent of their brain will be recovered if we give them more time.¡± ¡°We seeded.¡± Young-Joon grinned. ¡°Yes.¡± Bae Sun-Mi looked exhrated. ¡°Doctor Ryu, rest well and take your time. I¡¯ll be preparing for clinical trials.¡± * * * Young-Joon was getting ready to be discharged. He changed into his jeans and shirt, and organized his stuff that he had set up in his room. As he was packing up his stuff, the news came on the television. ¡ªToday, the prosecution indicted Ji Kwang-Man, a registered director of A-Gen, who was immediately arrested on charges of soliciting the murder of Doctor Ryu Young-Joon. On the screen, Young-Joon saw Ji Kwang-Man being bombarded with camera shes from the reporters. ¡ªThe prosecution suspects that Ji had nned a hit on Doctor Ryu Young-Joon after identifying him as a threat to management. They think that Ji saw him as a direct enemy as Doctor Ryu Young-Joon became famous after obtaining arge stake in thepany and bing a director. He is denying all charges. Ji Kwang-Man¡¯s short interview came out next. ¡ªI did notmission anything like that. I heard that my name was mentioned by the broker, but I have never seen him before, and... ¡ªOn the other hand, the Korean Organization for Rare Diseases and A-Gen shareholders organized a rally condemning Ji today as well. The rally came on the screen. A woman in her forties was shouting into the mic. ¡ªMy daughter is dying every day because she cannot get a bone marrow transnt. People here who have incurable diseases and their families are all living in hell and on limited time. In the Science interview, Doctor Ryu Young-Joon said that he can cure all of that, and he has shown the possibility of that. Trying to kill Doctor Ryu Young-Joon in this situation is no different than trying to kill all of us! ¡ªOn the other hand, Doctor Ryu Young-Joon seemed very surprised that Ji was pointed out as the person behind this incident. The screen switched to Young-Joon¡¯s interview. In the VIP hospital room, he spoke to the reporters with a bitter face. ¡ªAll I have done was study hard for the growth of thepany and the treatment of patients with incurable diseases. I cannot understand why he did that to me. It is shocking, and I feel very betrayed and sad. Bleep! Young-Joon turned off the TV. He went to the administration department to make the payment for his hospital bills, then went outside. He saw Park Joo-Hyuk standing there with security agents from K-Cops. There were three men and one woman, and they looked terrifying. ¡°My name is Kim Chul-Kwon, and I am the head of security.¡± A man who looked like a statue from Easter Ind reached out to him.¡± ¡°My name is Ryu Young-Joon.¡± After they shook hands, he got on the van they had prepared. On the way, Park Joo-Hyuk said, ¡°About the thing you asked me about. There¡¯s an empty experiment building fifteen minutes from A-Gen¡¯s Lab One. Apparently, Lab One bought it with the purpose of increasing the number of research wards, but put it out on the market again.¡± ¡°We can buy that. How much is it?¡± ¡°Fourteen billion won.¡± ¡°They¡¯ll give me a discount since I¡¯m using it for A-Bio?¡± ¡°Looking at the general atmosphere in society right now, they might just give it to you for free if you just ask.¡± ¡°It¡¯s better to take the proper route and just buy it. It¡¯s not like I don¡¯t have the money.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true.¡± Young-Joon looked at Rosaline¡¯s status window. [Rosaline Lv. 8] ¡ªMetastatic Status: Heart (9%), Liver (47%), Brain (8%), Kidney (15%), Spinal Cord (8%) ¡ªSynchronization: 16% ¡ªCell Fitness: 5.0 All the values increased significantly after this ident. He couldn¡¯t help it since they were urgent injuries. Rosaline¡¯s metastatic status increased as she treated the cut on the back of his head and fractures, and the synchronization value increased along with it. Also, Rosaline¡¯s level jumped from 4 to 8 as well. From games to English, leveling up was normally a good thing, but it was a little different for Rosaline. ¡®Can I keep using her?¡¯ Lost in thoughts, Young-Joon turned his head toward the window. ¡°But what is so loud outside?¡± ¡°It¡¯s the rally condemning Ji Kwang-Man,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk replied. ¡°Where are we passing right now?¡± ¡°We will soon be at Gwanghwamun Square,¡± One of the K-Cops agents told him. As the car reached the front of Gwanghwamun Square, Young-Joon saw a shocking view from his window. ¡°What is this?¡± A surprising amount of people had filled up the za. Their shouting continuously pierced through the car window and could be heard from the inside as well. Young-Joon knew that they were talking about the rally on the news, but he didn¡¯t think it was this big. ¡°The police predict 1.3 million people here today,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡°...¡± ¡°To be honest, people are right to be angry. I would have also gone to that today if I wasn¡¯t on security today. My grandma also passed away after suffering from Alzheimer¡¯s,¡± Security Head Kim Chul-Kwon said. ¡°And they are even more angry because the person whomissioned the hit was an A-Gen director. A pharmaceuticalpany that should be developing drugs to cure patients basically tried to kill them all, so...¡± Park Joo-Hyuk nodded. ¡°No matter what kind ofwork Ji Kwang-Man has, his punishment won¡¯t be light if the situation gets this bad. His crime is terrible, and public opinion about him is bad as well. His life is basically over.¡± Young-Joon still looked like he couldn¡¯t believe it. He thought that something like this would happen if he strictly maintained his stance as a victim and exposed Ji Kwang-Man¡¯s self-destructive foul y via the prosecution. He thought patients with incurable diseases would open a rally condemning A-Gen, making it difficult for Ji Kwang-Man to escape, but he didn¡¯t expect it to be this huge. It was more shocking than delightful or touching. ¡°There are seven hundred thousand patients with rare, incurable diseases in the country. And a million cancer patients,¡± Kim Chul-Kwon said. ¡°...¡± ¡°Please fix all of them, Doctor Ryu.¡± Kim Chul-Kwon chuckled. ¡°From what I can see, this country is sick. People are sick physically, but also mentally. Do you think someone in their right mind would try to kill you?¡± * * * Young-Joon moved into a luxury apartment for himself near Jungyoon University. He only packed the things he needed from his basement house and put them here. He bought most of the furniture as well. Ryu Ji-Won, who heard the news on the day Young-Joon moved in, moved out of her dorm right away. ¡°Oppa, I¡¯m here!¡±[1] She put her bags on the floor as soon as she came in and took a deep breath. ¡°These are so heavy I almost died.¡± ¡°Should I havee and helped you?¡± Young-Joon handed her a water bottle. ¡°No, it¡¯s okay. I brought a worker.¡± ¡°A worker? ¡°Hello.¡± When Young-Joon turned at the sound of a man¡¯s voice, he saw a boy standing at the door. He was a big guy who was holding Ryu Ji-Won¡¯s stuff. ¡°My name is Yang Dong-Wook, Ji-Won¡¯s friend.¡± ¡°Hello. Thanks for helping out. Come in.¡± ¡°What happened to Ji-Won?¡± She was sitting on the floor up until a few seconds ago, but she was gone now that Young-Joon saw. Then, they heard a scream from the small room. ¡°Ack! My room is amazing! It¡¯s exhrating!¡± Ryu Ji-Won was jumping up and down in excitement. ¡°You like it that much?¡± Young-Joon chuckled as he watched her from her room entrance. ¡°You haven¡¯t lived in our dorm, right? It¡¯s not a home. It¡¯s basically like a human farm.¡± ¡°Farm...¡± ¡°Ask Dong-Wook. He lives in the dorm as well.¡± Yang Dong-Wook nodded and added, ¡°The upper floors hardly get any hot water.¡± ¡°Instead of getting water, they have cockroaches every now and then. The rooms are tiny, and they are not even sound-proof,¡± Ryu Ji-Won said with a feigned shiver as she thought about the disgusting circumstances. ¡°And I have a girl who¡¯s a year older than me as one of my roommates, but man, I couldn¡¯t live with her because she had nomon courtesy. She kept putting on music and cking her keyboard when I was sleeping.¡± ¡°Should I donate to Jungyoon University when I get rich so they can build some dorms? It is my university,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Then your name is going to be on the donor''s que in the main hall. That¡¯s cool.¡± ¡°I hate things like that.¡± ¡°Wouldn¡¯t he get a memorial hall dedicated to him if he donated enough money to build a dorm?¡± Yang Dong-Wook said. ¡°You¡¯re right. The Ryu Young-Joon Hall. There¡¯s some emptynd beside the engineering building, where they took down the Future Hall. I think they¡¯re building a new building there, so they can name it the Ryu Young-Joon Hall.¡± Ryu Ji-Won smirked. ¡°The Ryu Young-Joon Hall. That''s hrious. My oppa really is a great person.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t mock me.¡± ¡°What? I¡¯m serious. You saved me from a chicken pit.¡± Ryu Ji-Won jumped into bed andid down. She hugged her nkets and stretched. ¡°I was suffering from assignments and my job, but I can rx now...¡± A silly expression crept onto Ryu Ji-Won¡¯s face. Yang Dong-Wook saw her response and turned away with a faint red hue on his cheeks. Young-Joon walked out of Ryu Ji-Won''s room, he asked, ¡°Dong-Wook, can I ask a personal question?¡± ¡°Of course!¡± ¡°Are you dating Ji-Won?¡± ¡°What? No!¡± ¡°I won¡¯t say anything even if you are. I¡¯m just curious. It¡¯s normal for her to have a boyfriend since she¡¯s all grown up now.¡± ¡°It¡¯s nothing like that.¡± ¡°So you¡¯re just here to help her as a friend?¡± ¡°Um... Actually...¡± Yang Dong-Wook hesitated. ¡°I actually came here to see you, hyung...¡±[2] ¡°Mhm... Huh?¡± ¡®What kind of twist is this?¡¯ Yang Dong-Wook added, ¡°I¡¯m a big fan of you, and I¡¯m in biological engineering. After you seeded, a lot of students wanted to go to graduate school and work in Professor Ban Du-Il¡¯sb, the one where you got your doctorate from. And I¡¯m one of them. Although, I still have a long ways to go until I go.¡± ¡°Professor Ban Du-Il.¡± It was a nice name to hear. ¡®I wonder if he¡¯s doing well. I should go visit him.¡¯ ¡°Hyung, my dream is to get my doctorate at hisb and then go into A-Bio,¡± Yang Dong-Wook said. ¡°It will be a really bigpany by then, right? Since it¡¯s like ten yearster.¡± ¡°... Yeah, sure. Probably?¡± ¡°You are the future of Korea¡¯s science. Can I get your autograph after we organize everything?¡± ¡°But are you really releasing an Alzheimer¡¯s cure?¡± Yang Dong-Wook asked him another question. ¡°Information about the research stages is confidential until we hand out press releases.¡± ¡°I had five million won that I saved from working, and I put all of it into A-Gen since they¡¯re low right now because of Ji Kwang-Man. It¡¯s going to be fine, right?¡± ¡°Five million?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Then you shoulde to the special shareholders¡¯ meeting and get some A-Bio shares. It won¡¯t be a lot at the beginning, but you¡¯ll be able to escape that chicken pit or human farm and move to your own ce soon.¡± 1. Oppa is an informal way for younger females to refer to older males. It is used between friends, but also family. ? 2. Hyung is an informal way for a younger male to refer to an older male. ? Chapter 44: A Player of Life (6)

Chapter 44: A yer of Life (6)

Scientist Shin Young-Yeon of the Stem Cells Department partied away her Friday night at a club. She felt like all the stress she got from preparing for the clinical trials was going away. But her stamina ran out quickly. ¡®I was totally fine even when I stayed up the whole night in my twenties.¡¯ At one o¡¯clock in the morning, she barely left the club and got a nearby taxi. ¡°Hello!¡± She spoke in a tipsy voice, and her tongue was twisted. Climbing into the backseat and holding onto her bag, she said, ¡°Can you go to Kunyoung Apartment in front of Sindorim stati... Huh?¡± She noticed someone was in the passenger¡¯s seat. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I thought it was empty. I must have been mistaken.¡± As Shin Young-Yeon was getting out of the car, the taxi driver said, ¡°Ma¡¯am, this is an empty car. The person sitting in the front seat is my wife.¡± The driver was an old man who looked like he was in his seventies. The wrinkles on his face weren¡¯t just a product of time, but hardship. ¡°My wife has Alzheimer¡¯s, and I¡¯m taking her around with me because there is no one to take care of her at home. You can get off if you¡¯re ufortable, but I will drive you home if it¡¯s alright.¡± ¡°Oh... It¡¯s fine.¡± ¡°Alright. Then should I head to Kunyoung Apartment in Sindorim?¡± ¡°Yes, please.¡± As Shin Young-Yeon sat diagonally from the passenger¡¯s seat, she could see the old woman sitting there. She had age spots over her face, and she was a little chubby. She was wrapped up in a thick coat her husband had put on her. On the way home, the taxi driver continuously spoke to his wife andpletely dismissed Shin Young-Yeon''s presence. ¡°Honey, look outside the window. This is the Han River. Can you recognize it? We came here with our little Dong-Il and yed,¡± the driver said as they passed Yanghwa Bridge. The grandma did not respond. ¡°It¡¯s pretty, right?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°But I should have hung up theundry before I came out. It should be done now.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Can you do it for me when we get home? I¡¯ll do the dishes.¡± ¡°No,¡± The grandma replied in a sassy voice. ¡°No? Hahaha. Then do you want to do the dishes?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Are you hot right now? You¡¯re sweating.¡± The driver wiped the grandma¡¯s cheek with his right arm. ¡°I¡¯ll unwrap your clothes a littleter after we drop off our customer. Just wait a little bit.¡± ¡°...¡± The car stopped at a red light. In the meantime, the taxi driver yed the National Singing Contest from YouTube on his phone. ¡°Do you want to watch this?¡± He handed her his phone. ¡°No.¡± The grandma turned away cheekily. ¡°Haha.¡± The driverughed like he was a little embarrassed. ¡°It¡¯s just like when we started dating. She was so picky when we first met. I went through a lot to make her happy,¡± the taxi driver said as he nced at Shin Young-Yeon through the rearview mirror. ¡°Still, those were good times...¡± The light turned green, and he stepped on the elerator. A little whileter, the taxi arrived in front of Kunyoung Apartment. ¡°You can let me off here.¡± As Shin Young-Yeon paid with her card, she pulled out a business card from her bag. ¡°Um...¡± She handed them the business card. ¡°I¡¯m a scientist working in the Stem Cells Department at A-Gen, and we¡¯re preparing a clinical trial for Alzheimer¡¯s treatment.¡± ¡°Clinical trials?¡± ¡°Yes. Please give me a call if you are interested. Although, the patient has to do the clinical trial suitability test, so not everyone can do it even if they volunteer, but...¡± ¡°If it¡¯s A-Gen, is it being done by Doctor Ryu?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± Shin Young-Yeon replied. To be honest, she had never met a huge star like Young-Joon because she was the lowest rung on thedder, but he was still the manager of this project. ¡°Actually, I was also thinking of participating in A-Gen¡¯s clinical trials as well. And Doctor Ryu Young-Joon is famous as well.¡± The taxi driver smiled, but for some reason, it felt like he was squeezing it out with all his strength. ¡°Thank you for the business card. We¡¯ll call you next time.¡± * * * On Monday morning, Young-Joon was having a one-on-one meeting with Yoon Dae-Sung, the CEO, in his office. ¡°We seeded in developing an Alzheimer¡¯s cure. We confirmed results in mice experiments with confidence, and I sent a manuscript to the Science editor,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°That¡¯s nice,¡± Yoon Dae-Sung responded dryly. He was not in the least bit happy as he knew what Young-Joon would request now. Young-Joon said, ¡°The Stem Cells Department and the Clinical Trial Management Center from headquarters are gathering participants right now.¡± ¡°Do you think it will seed in trials?¡± Yoon Dae-Sung asked. ¡°In my personal opinion, yes. One hundred percent.¡± Yoon Dae-Sung wiped his face with his hand multiple times as if this was causing him a headache. ¡°Director Ryu, you are going to create an affiliatepany with your Alzheimer¡¯s treatment and be independent, right?¡± Yoon Dae-Sung asked. ¡°Yes. Also, I am going to transfer the shares A-Gen and the Life Creation Department has of the iPSCs to A-Bio. Of course, with the a treatment as well.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°And I need your support, sir. There¡¯s a research ward that Lab One listed for sale, and I am considering buying it and setting up A-Bio there. It¡¯s fourteen billion won, but could you lower the price?¡± ¡°By how much?¡± ¡°I heard that Lab One bought it for nine billion won. I will buy it for ten billion.¡± ¡°I will deliver the message to Lab Director Kim Hyun-Taek. ¡°Thank you. And I would like to take a few more things from A-Gen.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°First of all, please give us ess to all of A-Gen¡¯s facilities.¡± Yoon Dae-Sung closed his eyes. It was time. Young-Joon added, ¡°A-Bio will not only use stem cell therapy for nerve differentiation but for growing artificial organs as well. In this process, I will need the Experiment Animal Resource Center and ess to the Clinical Trial Management Center that I was using at A-Gen before. I will also need the help of the three-dimensional incubator and technicians.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The research that A-Bio will conduct in the future will absolutely require A-Gen¡¯s infrastructure. As such, I would like the same ess rights as the otherbs. Please allow me to pay a usage fee and use the entire main system.¡± This system was like the core of A-Gen¡¯s research and development. One of the biggest reasons that other pharmaceuticalpanies in the country could not match up to A-Gen was because they failed at setting up this system. It took an astronomical amount of money and a huge amount of time. It was the research support main system that had been built for sixty years, all the way from Yoon Dae-Sung¡¯s father¡¯s generation. But Yoon Dae-Sung had no way to deny Young-Joon¡¯s requests anymore. ¡°... Alright,¡± he replied. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°What is your next request?¡± ¡°There is a new probiotics product being developed in the Health Food Department at Lab Six. I am overseeing the development. It¡¯s a big project that we are coborating with a venturepany called Celligener, but I think there will be confusion in delivering the instructions for thepany if I move to A-Bio.¡± Young-Joon added, ¡°So, I was thinking of moving it all to A-Bio. We don¡¯t have to move the entire probiotics team, but just that one new product. Even if we do, we¡¯ll still study it at A-Gen like before since all the equipment is here.¡± ¡°...¡± Yoon Dae-Sung thought for a moment. He couldn¡¯t understand why Young-Joon wanted it when it was nothing but probiotics. Of course, the healthcare industry was an important field and probiotics was an emerging item. But all he was taking was not the entire field, but just the pipeline of one new product. Then, it was true that there was less of an impactpared to stem cells. He was suspicious that Young-Joon was hiding something huge in that new probiotic drug. Yoon Dae-Sung would have screamed in shock if he knew that it was a treatment for type 2 diabetes. But Young-Joon did not tell anyone about that. Even Choi Myung-Joon and Song Ji-Hyun from Celligener who were both working on probiotics did not know. ¡°I will deliver the message to transfer the pipeline,¡± Yoon Dae-Sung said. ¡°Thank you. And furthermore, we will have to use A-Gen¡¯s GMP (Good Manufacturing Practices)ter. Please include A-Gen¡¯s manufacturing part along with the infrastructure and research development.¡± GMP was a set of rules created by the American FDA, and it was a guideline on how to produce drugs and medicine. If A-Gen was a sockpany, the GMP would determine the quality of nylon, or how to care for polyester and things like that. A sockpany would not be monitored that strictly, but for new drugs that would be given to the human body, evaluation was mandatory; they had to be manufactured in a facility that passed GMP¡¯s due diligence. Normally, manufacturing facilities of new biodrugs went through the process of producing and purifying biomaterials in hundreds of liters of liquid culture media. In A-Gen¡¯s case, they had the biggest system in the world. It was unbelievable, but the GMP here had liquid culture media in tanks. Employees walked through hundreds of incubators and tanks after changing into uniforms and sterilization. The biggest culture media tank was so big that it had a boat. People usually took a sterile wherry and crossed to the other side. It was unbelievable, but that was what they were doing because it was hard to go around since it was such a big tank. Since it was so big and the capital they managed was astronomically high, A-Gen¡¯s GMP factory had as much independence as its ownpany. And it was the facility that Young-Joon wanted the most from A-Gen. ¡°Alright. Is there anything more?¡± ¡°There was an early liver cancer treatment called Cellicure that Celligener sold to A-Gen about six months ago. I would like the rights of that drug to be transferred to me. I am thinking of developing it with Celligener at A-Bio.¡± ¡°...Alright.¡± Actually, the Cellicure case wasn¡¯t even reported to Yoon Dae-Sung as it was taken care of by Ji Kwang-Man and Kim Hyun-Taek. But after Young-Joon¡¯s fame skyrocketed, he had also heard about what had happened. ¡°That is all. I was thinking that I would have to convince you, but you granted all my requests. Thank you.¡± ¡°That way, you will consider my situation when I exchange shares with you, Doctor Ryu.¡± ¡°Haha, alright. I will try my best.¡± ¡°So, what do you have in mind for the ratio?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s exchange ten percent of shares in thepany¡¯s name. The ratio will be one-to-one. A-Gen will take ten percent of A-Bio, and A-Bio will take ten percent of A-Gen.¡± ¡°...¡± Yoon Dae-Sung froze. ¡°Doctor Ryu.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°You invested twenty billion won into A-Bio, yes?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°The market capitalization of A-Gen is over two hundred trillion won.¡± ¡°I am aware of that.¡± ¡°But one-to-one? Do you think that will be possible?¡± ¡°The government said they would invest in me. They are going to give me three hundred billion won with no strings attached in the name of a small and medium-sized business support policy.¡± ¡°But do you think that isparable to the stock of apany worth two hundred trillion won?¡± ¡°We can talk about the sharester. Let¡¯s just write a contract for transfer rights for ten percent and work out the detailster. You can terminate the contract if you think the prices don¡¯t match.¡± ¡°What is the time limit?¡± ¡°I just need one year. A-Bio will grow massively in that time. None of the shareholders will be able to criticize you for a one-to-one exchange.¡± Yoon Dae-Sung took a sip of his tea. Young-Joon already had four percent. If A-Bio took ten percent of A-Gen¡¯s shares, it was the same thing as him having fourteen percent since he would own ny percent of A-Bio. On the other hand, it was difficult for Yoon Dae-Sung to do what he wanted with the ten percent of A-Bio that A-Gen would have as although he was the CEO, he and his family only held fourteen percent of A-Gen. As a result, the amount that Young-Joon would have in A-Gen was the same amount that the Yoon family held. Yoon Dae-Sung had a lot of friendly shares, but would that be maintained even after A-Bio grows? ¡®The management rights are shaking.¡¯ Ji Kwang-Man moved hastily, but he was probably worried about this situation. He would have thought they would have no choice after the creation of A-Bio. ¡®Ji Kwang-Man... Why didn¡¯t you do a better job?¡¯ After the Ji Kwang-Man incident, all eyes were now on A-Gen. And they were putting the me of Ji Kwang-man¡¯s crimes on the Yoon family as well since they were part of the same management. If Yoon Dae-Sung rejected Young-Joon¡¯s one-to-one request? How would the public¡¯s anger and the condemnation of the shareholders on A-Gen change? The stocks of A-Gen that plummeted after Ji Kwang-Man¡¯s incident could be restored after theunch of A-Bio. Most of the small shareholders, SG Group, Berkshire, and others didn¡¯t really have an interest in Yoon Dae-Sung¡¯s management rights; it didn¡¯t matter to them whether the CEO changed. They could actually like it more if Young-Joon took the job. The moment Yoon Dae-Sung denied Young-Joon¡¯s request to exchange shares, his management rights would disappear. ¡®I was mistaken.¡¯ The management rights were already partly out of reach now. He would just get one year of probation if he agreed to the exchange. Chapter 45: A Player of Life (7)

Chapter 45: A yer of Life (7)

¡°Director Ryu, do you have interest in running A-Gen yourself?¡± Yoon Dae-Sung asked a bold question. ¡°I have never run apany, nor have I learned to. To be honest, I am not confident that I can run apany this big,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°But I will do it anytime if the situationes to it.¡± ¡°And what kind of situation is that?¡± ¡°You have probably heard, but I fought with Lab Director Kim Hyun-Taek about the case where Division Manager Ji Kwang-Man and him bought an early-stage liver cancer drug and destroyed it. That¡¯s when I knew that ourpany wasn¡¯t as healthy as I thought it was.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Sir, A-Gen is where the world¡¯s best intellectuals are gathered. I have gotten schrships, and I did my doctorate at Jungyoon University, the best university in the country, but I¡¯m just normal here. When I line up at the cafeteria at lunch, every tenth person I see is from an Ivy League school. When I was at the Anticancer Drug Research Department, half the people in the department were people who had published a paper in Nature or Science. That¡¯s the kind of intellectuals who are here.¡± ¡°... That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°I think intellectuals have a social responsibility. I¡¯m not talking about the social responsibility of apany, I¡¯m talking about the responsibility of an intellectual. They have the responsibility to guide the present time of humanity and explore the future. I think that they should research and study with the determination that one more person could live tomorrow if they developed a new drug today.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°But destroying a better drug? For the profit of thepany? That isn¡¯t just abandoning responsibility to me, but it is like being a vulgar traitor in academia.¡± ¡°I understand what you are saying.¡± ¡°If management leads thispany in that way and if it corrupts so much that no one raises any problems with that, I will dly threaten management to change that culture. I¡¯m sure you know why I chose an Alzheimer¡¯s cure as my next target for stem cells and why I chose to develop that first.¡± Yoon Dae-Sung nodded. Yoon Chul-Joong, Yoon Dae-Sung¡¯s father and the founder of A-Gen, suffered from Alzheimer¡¯s before he died. From then on, he had fought for an Alzheimer¡¯s cure for a long time. That was when his heart burned more with a scientist¡¯s passion for research than being a businessman. The fact that Young-Joon picked neurons and Alzheimer¡¯s rather than other choices such as recovery of spinal nerves felt like a metaphor to Yoon Dae-Sung; it was a humble warning and a desperate prayer Young-Joon was sending him. During thest shareholders¡¯ meeting, he had felt something deep in his heart when Young-Joon mentioned his book and Alzheimer¡¯s. ¡°I am a little ashamed to look at you as a scientist and not as a businessman, Director Ryu. I guess I am much more corrupt than you thought, Director Ryu,¡± Yoon Dae-Sung said. ¡°Did you do things worse than erasing Cellicure?¡± ¡°...¡± Yoon Dae-Sung took a few more sips of his tea. He gathered his thoughts for a moment, then changed the subject without answering. ¡°It is unreasonable for you to ask for a one-to-one exchange right now, Director Ryu, but you might convince me in a year. A-Bio will grow at a tremendous speed if you seed at curing Alzheimer¡¯s and supply that technology internationally.¡± ¡°Yes, it will.¡± ¡°And since you have already shown us things, the shareholders will also bet on the fact that your Alzheimer¡¯s cure will seed. Since ces like the SG Group or Berkshire don¡¯t feel pressured by my management rights being split, they will want A-Bio to beunched as we sign the contract for the stock exchange. And if we can terminate that contract after a year, they won¡¯t lose anything either. They will be hostile to me if I reject it.¡± Yoon Dae-Sung smiled bitterly. ¡°You probably came to me after thinking of all that.¡± ¡°To be honest... Yes.¡± ¡°In a year, you will have the same amount of influence as me if we do this exchange. You also know that, right?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°I will bet on your conscience as a scientist, Director Ryu. Even if my management rights transfer to you in a year, I will not regret it. I will support you.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I am old, and I did think that managing thispany was getting harder. If you can maintain that attitude you have right now, I don¡¯t think it would be a bad thing to leave A-Gen in the hands of a capable youngster like you.¡± ¡°... Thank you.¡± ¡°Then, you may go now, sir.¡± As Young-Joon left the CEO¡¯s office, his thoughts were a littleplicated. Yoon Dae-Sung said that he was ashamed as a scientist and not as a businessman, and he said that he would support Young-Joon. To be honest, it was a little unexpected. It was just a few days ago that Ji Kwang-Man, someone who was like family to Yoon Dae-Sung, tried everything to get rid of him, including extreme measures that led to his demise. But all of a sudden, Yoon Dae-Sung was saying that he would grant all his requests, help himunch A-Bio, and support him? And even give him the management rights of A-Gen? ¡®Liar.¡¯ All he did was gloss over the situation with some nice words. All he did was soften the hostile mood as Young-Joon was gaining a lot of ground. Yoon Dae-Sung was going to try to defend his management rights by increasing his shares however he can and getting more friendly shares. He might be thinking of a way to get rid of Young-Joon, but he had to keep in mind that he could be stabbed in the back at any time. But this was good. It would be best if Yoon Dae-Sung sincerely supported Young-Joon, but even if Yoon Dae-Sung didn¡¯t, all he had to do was be careful. But there was one thing that Young-Joon found confusing. ¡®Was I always this skeptical?¡¯ As he climbed up thedder, he felt like he was changing. He felt that when he was destroying Ji Kwang-Man. He manipted politicians who came to see him as he slowly got treated at the hospital for injuries he could recover quickly by using Rosaline. It was actually a power fight for management rights, but he drove Ji Kwang-Man to the ground by keeping his innocent scientist image and stance as the victim. Doing something this calcted and political was strange for him. But how was the world reacting? A crowd of one hundred thirty thousand people held a rally for him, and a twenty-year-old young man he had never seen before was hoping they would work together in the future. People liked the current Young-Joon better and not the innocent and righteous scientist he was when he took on Kim Hyun-Taek as a Scientist who had nothing. The bigger he became, the more burdening his changing environment became. ¡®Can I really keep going like this?¡¯ Perhaps something had been wrong for a long time. * * * Young-Joon, who returned to Lab Six with a bunch of concerns, went into the Life Creation Department office. ¡°I¡¯m back from headquarters.¡± Young-Joon greeted Park Dong-Hyun, who was walking around the office entrance with a cup of coffee. ¡°Did it go well?¡± Park Dong-Hyun asked. ¡°Yes. I¡¯m going tounch A-Bio. He also granted all my requests.¡± ¡°Damn! You¡¯re the best, Doctor Ryu. You¡¯re going to take me there, right?¡± ¡°Of course. If someone was as talented as you, I would scout them for mypany, Dong-Hyun sunbae.¡± ¡°Is my sry increasing too?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll have to think about that.¡± ¡°I see that business is business.¡± ¡°But I¡¯ll give you a stock option. I am thinking of giving all the scientists a little bit, although it will be way below the decimal mark.¡± ¡°I think I¡¯ll be able to buy a house with that share if I work with you, Doctor Ryu.¡± ¡°I hope you can.¡± ¡°Oh right, you have a visitor.¡± ¡°A visitor? Who?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not gonna tell you~¡± Young-Joon tilted his head in confusion as Park Dong-Hyun said in a yful attitude. He smiled and said, ¡°They¡¯re in the snack room. Go inside. You¡¯ll be happy to see them.¡± Even if they were someone he would be happy to see, people Young-Joon knew personally could note into thepany since it was difficult for outside personnel to enter theb due to security. So what this meant was that they were probably someone from thepany, which made him wonder who it could be. Young-Joon opened the door with a confused look, then froze when he saw who was waiting for him in the room. ¡°Doctor Ryu...¡± Participants in clinical trials could visit thepany for a report and a consultation on the progress of the trial. They could enter theb by getting a temporary pass at the entrance in order to meet Young-Joon. They couldn¡¯te inside theb due to security reasons, but they could meet the supervisor in the snack or conference room. Son Soo-Young and her husband were standing there, and they were holding a small baby wearing white pajamas in their arms. ¡°I heard that you rmended Veratex. I heard that you convinced the doctor and asked for it to be given to Blue...¡± A tear suddenly ran down her face. She couldn¡¯t think about the many things she thought about to express her gratitude while waiting for him. Son Soo-Young dropped her head; all she could say was thank you. ¡°... Thank you so much,¡± she said. Her voice was trembling. ¡°Doctor Ryu. Thank... Thank you so much. Really... Our baby... is healthy now.¡± ¡°... Is her pulmonary blood pressure stable now?¡± ¡°Yes...¡± Son Soo-Young smiled while wiping her eyes. ¡°I can see well now, too. It¡¯s the same as before I got sick. Blue was discharged yesterday as well. Yesterday, our entire family slept together in the same room for the first time.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I had my daughter in my arms as she slept, and I stared at her for a long time. I was so tired, but I didn¡¯t want to take my eyes off her... so I kept myself from sleeping and watched her. She... She was so pretty...¡± Son Soo-Young felt something deep in her chest. ¡°You are our family¡¯s savior, Doctor Ryu,¡± Son Soo-Young¡¯s husband said. ¡°How could we repay this debt? We should havee to see you sooner, but... I didn¡¯t have time since I was taking care of my wife and baby. I¡¯m sorry. I couldn¡¯t evene see you after you got in an ident. And I didn¡¯t have a good way of contacting you either...¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s alright.¡± Young-Joon bit his lip. He felt like he was going to cry if he let go a little. ¡°I¡¯m really relieved that you both recovered.¡± Creak... As the door opened, Hong Ju-Hee, Blue¡¯s doctor, entered the room. She visited Lab Six as part of Son Soo-Young¡¯s group, and she had juste back from the washroom. ¡°Doctor Ryu.¡± There were a lot of emotions on Hong Ju-Hee¡¯s face that could not be described with words. She hesitated for a long time, then said, ¡°Thank you, Doctor Ryu, for giving me courage... Thank you so much for convincing me to use Veratex.¡± ¡°... No. The baby got healthier because you did a good job, Doctor Hong. What did I do?¡± ¡°I¡¯m ashamed to say this as a doctor, but to be honest, I had given up. And I would have lived in guilt for the rest of my life if I let Blue go like that. It¡¯s all thanks to you.¡± Young-Joonughed awkwardly and changed the subject. ¡°But did you not give Blue a name? I thought that Blue was just a baby nickname.¡± ¡°We had a name, but we changed it,¡± Son Soo-Young¡¯s husband replied. ¡°To what?¡± ¡°Lim Si-Ah. Si for seeing, and Ah for righteous. We gave her that name so that she could grow as brave and good like you, and only see righteous and beautiful things like her mother.¡±[1] ¡°... I see.¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu,¡± Hong Ju-Hee said. ¡°I saw the news that someone tried to kill you. I couldn¡¯t believe it, but I guess there are people who are jealous of you and hate you.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°If it¡¯s too hard and scary, no one is going to me you even if you stop. We will be on your side in any situation. Just remember that you rescued a family from despair. You also prevented me from doing something that I would have regretted for the rest of my life.¡± As Hong Ju-Hee said that, Son Soo-Young hugged her baby. ¡°Thank you, Doctor Ryu. We will raise Si-Ah to be someone who helps other people like you. Thank you so much.¡± * * * Young-Joon returned to theb. On the whiteb table, there was a huge centrifuge, a clean bench, an incubator, a live cell imager, an ICSI, a set of pipettes, and a box of tips. Everything he needed was here. He felt like he had returned after a long journey. There was a lot of confusion, but now the situation was stable. After he made A-Bio, no one would be able to stand in the path of medicine that he was going to pave. It didn''t matter what Yoon Dae-Sung¡¯s real intentions were. ¡®Nothing is wrong with me.¡¯ He was no longer wavering anymore; he felt that after meeting Son Soo-Young¡¯s family. That was the kind of thing Young-Joon had dreamed of. His personality changing to a calcted and clever one? Rosaline taking over his brain? What did that matter? Young-Joon thought about Ryu Sae-Yi, his youngest sibling who died of liver cancer seven years ago. Everything he was experiencing right now was just power and measures to achieve the things he had dreamt of since then. No matter how strong and big Rosaline became, Young-Joon was not going to lose his mind to her. His confidence was solid now. [Rosaline Lv. 8] Young-Joon opened the status window. He was thinking of starting another research as the clinical trial for the Alzheimer¡¯s cure was happening. He did not want to waste any more time or fitness. ¡°Turn on Synchronization Mode.¡± ¡ªYes. What disease would you like to analyze? Rosaline asked. 1. Si is hanja for ¡°to see¡±, and Ah and hanja for ¡°righteous¡±. ? Chapter 46: A-Bio (1)

Chapter 46: A-Bio (1)

¡°Pancreatic cancer,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Analyze pancreatic cancer. You can do it now, right?¡± Rosaline¡¯s level was higher now and she had more fitness; she had grown enough for her to be able to show cancer as an option. There were two reasons why Young-Joon chose pancreatic cancer as his target. First of all, it was difficult to start the follow-up research for stem cells right now as all the stem cells experts in thepany had to focus on the clinical trial for the Alzheimer¡¯s cure. Second, A-Bio would already be created by the time this project was on track, which meant that this was the first research he would do as the CEO of A-Bio and not an A-Gen scientist. Put differently, it meant that A-Bio was entering the anticancer drug market. It was true that the public still focused on stem cells when thinking of A-Bio. Everyone thought that it was a regenerative medicinepany. But A-Bio couldn¡¯t just be that; thispany had to be the frontier that dominated all areas of the pharmaceutical industry. That was why they had probiotics, a healthcare product. Of course, cancer, thergest disease that threatened humanity, could not be an exception. This research was going to be one that showed what A-Bio was. Then, why did Young-Joon choose pancreatic cancer as his target when pancreatic cancer only ounted for two percent of all cancer patients? It was because it was the hardest cancer to deal with. There were countless advances in almost every type of cancer, but pancreatic cancer was still undefeatable. The average survival rate of cancer patients after five years of discovering it was around seventy percent, but pancreatic cancer had an average of around ten percent. Even Steve Jobs, the CEO of Apple and the most famous businessman, died of pancreatic cancer. The world¡¯s greatest doctors would have done everything they could to save someone like him, but he still died. It meant that it was still too difficult for humanity. Why was it so difficult? First of all, most cases were already severe once they felt pain and got checked up at the hospital because there weren¡¯t really any symptoms. And it was almost impossible to introduce treatment drugs to the pancreas. Anticancer drugs could kill normal cells as they were usually toxic. So the key was to only deliver it to cancer cells. This was called local delivery, but local delivery of treatment to the pancreas was so difficult that it always caused despair to numerous scientists. This was why it would cause a huge impact in the anticancer drug field¡ªbecause it was such a difficult disease. ¡ªLet¡¯s eliminate pancreatic cancer with a coated Birnavirus. Rosaline said. ¡°Birnavirus?¡± The strategy to use a virus as a transportation method to introduce drugs wasn¡¯t a very new idea, but viruses like AAV were used. Even Young-Joon, a biologist, wasn¡¯t familiar with the birnavirus. ¡°What¡¯s the birnavirus?¡± ¡ªIt¡¯s a virus that causes infectious pancreatic necrosis in fish in the salmon family. It destroys the pancreas and causes them to die. ¡°A virus that infects salmon also works on humans?¡± ¡ªIt does not work on mammals. ¡®Makes sense why I¡¯m so unfamiliar with it.¡¯ It was not infectious to humans, so the pharmaceutical industry wouldn¡¯t have paid much attention to it. ¡°Then how do we use it?¡± ¡ªWe can make it selectively infect cancer cells in the pancreas if we manipte a few of the receptors on the surface of the virus. Whoosh! The images Rosaline analyzed popped up into his head. There were four types of receptors protruding from the surface of the birnavirus. Originally, they were meant to pierce the surface of fish cells, but their mechanism changed as their structure changed. These biomaterials recognized transferrin receptors on the surface of pancreatic cancer cells and the structure of a polymer called ERBB2; they were both target cells that were only expressed in high quantities in pancreatic cancer cells. The birnavirus would rip through the pancreatic cancer cell membrane and infiltrate it. A little whileter, the cells infected by the birnavirus would activate the necrosis mechanism. Then, the cancer cells would die one by one. ¡ªIt is a virus that originally destroys the pancreas. It can also destroy the tumor on the pancreas. It will be able to treat pancreatic cancer effectively. ¡°...¡± As Young-Joon calmed his breathing after seeing the hallucinations, he asked, ¡°I have so many questions to ask. First of all, how would the virus be introduced? Through the veins?¡± ¡ªIt would be better to go with an ingested drug since the pancreas is part of the digestive system. That would be more convenient for patients as well. ¡°Alright. But that virus is dangerous. I don¡¯t think it should be left in the pancreas.¡± ¡ªThey will not be able to proliferate in the pancreas if we eliminate the BVP3 gene. The viruses we put inside the body will be eliminated by the macrophages after they¡¯ve destroyed the cancer cells. It will be safe if we administer the right amount of birnavirus to eliminate pancreatic cancer. ¡°Hm.¡± ¡ªBut there is a problem. The birnavirus ispletely destroyed in the stomach. The acidic digestive fluid in the stomach destroyed the structure of the virus. The pancreas was connected to the duodenum, just after the pylorus of the stomach. It meant that if the birnavirus was swallowed, it had to pass the stomach to have a chance to approach the pancreas. ¡°Then we have to make it so that it can withstand stomach acid.¡± ¡ªWe can change the structure so that it can tolerate stomach acid. But there is another problem. Due to the stomach¡¯s nature of being a digestive organ, it will stay for a long period of time. The birnavirus will also infect stomach cells after that amount of time. Everything about biology had exceptions. Even drugs that had strictly controlled functions had side effects; eventually, they would influence normal cells little by little. Of course, the more normal cells were exposed to the drug, the higher the chances were of it influencing them. ¡°You¡¯re saying that it can¡¯t go to the pancreas if it loses its function due to stomach acid, and it will infect the stomach if it withstands the acid, right?¡± ¡ªYes. So, I rmend that you coat the outside of the virus with a capsule rather than altering the virus itself to withstand stomach acid. This coat will tolerate stomach acid but will be eliminated by fluids secreted by the pancreas. ¡°... Okay, let¡¯s go over this again. So, after we capsule coat it to stop both the virus being destroyed and it infecting the stomach, the birnavirus that flows out after the capsule is destroyed by pancreatic fluids will move to the pancreas to infect only the cancer cells and eliminate them by activating necrosis, which viruses naturally induce? And we¡¯ll get rid of side effects by putting in just enough of the virus to destroy the cancer cells without the ability to self-reproduce?¡± ¡ªYes. ¡®Holy, the difficulty of this is unreal.¡¯ It was a solution that lived up to its reputation of bringing countless scientists and doctors to their knees. There was a reason why the medicalmunity hadn¡¯t seeded in treating it. Young-Joon couldn''t believe that it had to be treated in such a creative way. First of all, most scientists who studied cancer most likely did not know that something like the birnavirus existed. It was probably studied by scientists in veterinary medicine and fishery. The idea to manipte a pathogen that infected fish and infect humans with it was a crazy idea as well. It was an extremely erratic, dangerous, and bewildering thought, was it not? But to destroy pancreatic cancer by eliminating its ability to self-reproduce and making it so that they only act on cancer cells? On top of that, it would be orally delivered, and it would only be introduced to the pancreas after it passed through the stomach with a capsule that only reacted to pancreatic juice? It was basically a sci-fi novel at this point. ¡°There was a reason why you whined about not having enough fitness to analyze cancer... I didn¡¯t know it would be thisplicated.¡± ¡ªDon¡¯t worry. I can do most things now. With Rosaline¡¯s reply, a couple options came up. [How to modify birnavirus genes. (Fitness consumption: 1.0)] [How to coat birnavirus with a capsule. (Fitness consumption: 1.5)] After opening and reading each of the options, Young-Joon picked up thepany phone. Following the ARS¡¯s instructions, he chose the option to buy experiment materials, then to buy experiment animals or genes, then to buy viruses. ¡ªHello, this is Kim Young-Hee from the Research Support Center. ¡°Hello. This is Ryu Young-Joon from the Life Creation Department.¡± ¡ªHup. Kim Young-Hee was a bit surprised. ¡°Hello?¡± ¡ªOh, yes, sorry. How may I help you? She asked. ¡°I am trying to purchase the birnavirus. ¡ªThe birnavirus...? Kim Young-Hee obtained her doctorate in virology and was responsible for viruses at the Research Support Center. Nevertheless, she was unfamiliar with the birnavirus. ¡ª... I¡¯m sorry, but what kind of virus is that? Kim Young-Hee asked hesitantly. It was natural for her to not know. How could she know about something like that? It wasn¡¯t like A-Gen farmed salmon or something. ¡®I didn¡¯t mean to make her embarrassed.¡¯ Feeling a little sorry, Young-Joon made it more clear. ¡°It is a virus that causes infectious pancreatic necrosis in salmon.¡± She was even more confused. ¡ªSalmon? Like the fish? Kim Young-Hee asked in a confused voice. ¡°Yes. It¡¯s a virus that infects salmon. Would we have a sample of it at theb?¡± ¡ªNo... I know all the viruses we have in theb, but we don¡¯t have anything like that. Kim Young-Hee replied. ¡°How long would it take if we purchased it from somewhere else?¡± ¡ªPlease give me one second. After searching the database, Kim Young-Hee replied. ¡ªIt will take about a month. ¡°Alright. Please proceed with the purchase. It would be great if it is in the form of a DNA vector.¡± * * * About seven minutes away from Lab One by foot, there was a seven-floor building that was about two hundred-pyung.[1] Originally, Lab One intended to make this building into a separate research ward and move the Anticancer Drug Research Department here. It was registered as ab and was equipped with waste liquid treatment facilities, but Lab One could not use it due to the situation. As such, it was put on the market, and now, it was thepany building for A-Bio. ¡°It¡¯s smaller than I thought. I thought you would get like a two thousand-pyung building with your name value,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk, who came with Young-Joon to see the building, said. ¡°I¡¯m going to move to arger building once thepany and the number of people grows,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°But we don¡¯t have to waste money already. This is enough for now since we¡¯re going to use the facilities at A-Gen for manufacturing or research, and we¡¯ll only be conducting the main research here.¡± ¡°How many people do you have?¡± ¡°Right now, seven.¡± ¡°... Does one person get one floor?¡± ¡°You think that makes sense? Oh, wait. It¡¯s eight people including me.¡± Everyone from the Life Creation Department had transferred over, and so did Choi Myung-Joon and Seo Yoon-Ju after Young-Joon was given the probiotic project. Choi Myung-Joon had passionately convinced Seo Yoon-Ju, who was hesitant on leaving a bigpany like A-Gen for A-Bio, saying that Director Ryu was the real jackpot. ¡°Do you want to work as an in-housewyer?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°At A-Bio?¡± ¡°Yeah. I¡¯m going to make a legal team when thepany gets bigger. I want you to be in charge of it.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk crossed his arms and thought about it. ¡°Alright. I don¡¯t want to live off the money I get from being appointed.¡± ¡°Okay, so nine people. Let¡¯s bring in Attorney Lee Hae-Won and make it ten people.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a good idea, but why don¡¯t you just post a job opening? You¡¯re not going to run apany with just ten people, right?¡± ¡°I already did.¡± ¡°Saramin?¡±[2] ¡°There, too...¡± Young-Joon turned on his phone. There were about forty application emails in his inbox, and all of them were foreigners. Park Joo-Hyuk was shocked when he saw Young-Joon¡¯s phone screen. ¡°Where did you post the job opening to get someone named Abdul Azeez as one of the applicants? Do people from the Middle East use Saramin nowadays, too?¡± ¡°I posted a job opening in Science Career Jobs.¡± ¡°Holy...¡± ¡°Wait. There¡¯s a Carpentier in the applicants. Is this actually Carpentier?¡± Young-Joon¡¯s hands trembled. ¡°Who is Carpentier?¡± ¡°Be quiet for a little bit because I¡¯m kinda going crazy right now.¡± Young-Joon opened the email. He thought it might just be someone with the same name, but it was actually them. They wrote about their research on transnting lipid stem cells to reconstruct skin tissue in the first paragraph; it was really the Carpentier that Young-Joon knew. ¡°I know that ourpany definitely has potential, but is he for real? What is he thinking... He¡¯s throwing away his tenure anding to Korea?¡± ¡°Who is this person?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk pestered Young-Joon for a response like he was frustrated. ¡°He¡¯s a professor at Caltech. And he¡¯s a recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.¡± ¡°...¡± Park Joo-Hyuk¡¯s jaw dropped to the floor. After being speechless for a while, he asked, ¡°Someone like that ising to yourpany?¡± ¡°I can¡¯t believe it either, but I got an application email from him.¡± ¡°... Am I going to join thepany at the same time as a Nobel Prize recipient?¡± ¡°If hees after sorting things out with Caltech, you¡¯ll be his senior in terms of when you joined thepany. Maybe not in terms of rank, though¡± ¡°When that persones to Korea, reporters are going to ask him if he knows Ryu Young-Joon.¡± ¡°Ack!¡± Young-Joon screamed at that thought, which was horrifying, but fostered national prestige. 1. Pyung is amon measurement used to measure how big a house or building is in Korea. One pyung is equal to about 35.6 square feet. ? 2. Saramin is an employment website for job openings in Korea. ? Chapter 47: A-Bio (2)

Chapter 47: A-Bio (2)

On Friday morning, Carpentier, a professor at Caltech, was reading the Science journal. ¡°Ryu Young-Joon...¡± It was the young man who had left a strong impression of himself on the scientificmunity with his shocking interview after being on the cover page of Science. It hadn¡¯t been long since that happened, but he swept the journal again. This time, it was a paper about his sess in a clinical trials, but even that huge incident was on the second page. Shockingly, this young, genius scientist published two papers at once in a journal like Science. ¡®He put induced pluripotent stem cells and cell differentiation in one publication as well...¡¯ Aside from the fact that his research speed was unreal, his results were just shocking. The paper that was on the front page was an Alzheimer¡¯s cure. It was filled with the data they obtained from animal experiments, and he had written about how clinical trials were beginning in the discussion. Carpentier remembered what Young-Joon said during his CNN interview: he had said that he was going to soon erase neurological disorders from the history of humanity. When he first heard it, he dismissed it as just gossip andughed it off with other professors during the luncheon meeting, saying that there was a new oddball genius in themunity. But now, Carpentier understood that Young-Joon¡¯s statement was not just out of youthful passion and confidence; he actually showed the potential to aplish something that great. With his skills and research speed, he might just be able to do it, perhaps even more. The Science journal provided job opportunities in the Careers section. In the headline job section, there was a listing for apany named A-Bio. Carpentier pressed it because the person in charge was Young-Joon, and he saw that it was actually hispany. It was a start-uppany that hadunched as one of A-Gen¡¯s affiliates. [At A-Bio, we are looking for the greatest scientists.] After reading the job listing, Carpentier thought for a while as he stroked his beard. He had lived his entire life as a single man. People said he was homosexual or asexual and all kinds of other things, but there was a different answer. When he was in graduate school, there was a woman he was going to marry. She was an international student named L. She liked swimming and jogging, chugged her beer, and liked to go on drives while sting the music. She was outgoing and fun, and she was theplete opposite of Carpentier, who was timid. That was why his sadness was worse when she got in a car ident and got locked-in syndrome. It was more of a curse than a disorder. If there was such a thing as punishment in hell, this would have been it. L had a conscience, and she could move her right eye; that was it. Locked-in syndrome was a disorder that locked up someone in their own body for life due to all their nerves dying. The words she made out by blinking yes or no when Carpentier pointed at letters of the alphabet was ¡°Kill me¡±. Perhaps, L was someone they had to let go of, but no one had the courage to, and there were a lot of people who wanted to hold onto her as she was a lovely person who always spread her optimistic energy to everyone around her. From then on, Carpentier swore to dedicate the rest of his life on stem cells and regenerative medicine. ¡°...¡± After entering his sixties, more oftenly, he began to think about meeting L after he died. He still couldn¡¯t face her. He received a Nobel Prize, but it wasn¡¯t enough. ¡®But this man... If it¡¯s Ryu Young-Joon...¡¯ Click. Carpentier clicked the button to apply right below the listing. * * * ¡°I¡¯m here.¡± Jacobnded in Incheon after a ten-hour flight. Then, he traveled another hour and a half to get to the A-Biob. ¡°Phew.¡± On the way to the waiting room, Jacob was full of confidence. Jacob, who had just turned thirty, was confident that he was in the top 0.1 percent of his age group in the entire human poption in terms of his academic career. He had gotten a schrship with overwhelmingly high grades at Caltech majoring in biological engineering, where the smartest people in the world were gathered, and even graduated early. After that, he published a paper that was cited over three hundred times while working on his doctorate in a Nobel Prize recipient¡¯sb. Some universities sent him offers for post-doctoral research, guaranteeing him a professor position. Jacob, who had a guaranteed future, hade all the way to South Korea, and he was entering a small start-uppany, an affiliate of A-Gen. Adults who didn¡¯t know any better stopped him, asking him what he was doing, but Jacob was confident in his decision. A-Bio was apany that could change the trend of the pharmaceutical industry. It wasn¡¯t dirty like existing pharmaceuticalpanies since it was new, and it could dominate the sector of the market existingpanies didn¡¯t have as A-Bio was based on stem cell technology and regenerative medicine. It would be nice to be a professor at Harvard, but Jacob wanted to participate as a start-up member of an importantpany like this and create products that would directly help humanity. ¡®I¡¯ll only be able to make choices like this when I¡¯m young. How am I going to think about getting a job at a venturepany in Asia that¡¯s ten hours away by ne after I be a professor?¡¯ Jacob was very satisfied in his ambitious decision. Creak. He opened the door. The first person that caught his eye was Carpentier, who was drinking a coffee from Ediya Coffee.[1] Jacob could see some familiar faces. His chest, which was puffed up in pride, had deted in a second. ¡®What is this?¡¯ He felt like was at a conference. He could recognize a few famous people in the academic society. ¡°Professor Carpentier...?¡± Jacob approached him and said. He felt like he was dreaming. ¡®I take back what I said about not being able to make a bold decision like this after bing a professor.¡¯ ¡°You came to apply as well?¡± Carpentier asked with a chuckle. ¡°... Why would you...? You have tenure as well...¡± Tenure was a system that guaranteed the professor a job at that institution for life. That aside, he was a Nobel Prize winner; he would have a rich and prestigious life just by giving lectures, so why? ¡°There is a wish I want to achieve before I die. It might be possible at thispany.¡± Carpentier smiled with excitement. ¡°Carpentier!¡± Suddenly, someone shouted from behind like they were happy to see him. When Jacob turned around, he could see Feng Zheng, a professor of life sciences who worked in ab in MIT¡¯s medical department. After writing the paper that was on the cover of Nature at thirty-five, he had published twenty papers in Nature and their sister journals until now. He was a Nobel Prize candidate and one of the stars of academic society. Jacob was shocked. ¡®Even he applied? Wait a minute. He¡¯s in cancer research, isn¡¯t he?¡¯ It was puzzling why he even applied to a regenerative medicinepany, but it didn¡¯t matter if one was someone like Feng Zheng. He was someone who could create a new anticancer pipeline that didn¡¯t previously exist at thispany and secure a position. CEOs who said that they didn¡¯t do anticancer drugs would begin to do it if Feng Zheng said he wasing. ¡®Wait.¡¯ Feng Zheng, Carpentier, and all those other people. ¡®... Shit. What if I don¡¯t get in?¡¯ Apletely unexpected feeling of anxiety was in Jacob¡¯s heart. ¡°You want to apply to thispany too, Professor Zheng?¡± Carpentier asked Feng Zheng. ¡°Originally, I came here because I was curious about what kind of person Doctor Ryu was. But I heard something shocking during my interview, and now I want to work here.¡± ¡°Something shocking?¡± ¡°It seems that Doctor Ryu is thinking of developing a cure for pancreatic cancer.¡± ¡°What?!¡± Jacob screamed. All the scientists around them turned around to face Feng Zheng. ¡°Well, I don¡¯t know the details either,¡± Feng Zheng said. ¡°He said that he hasn¡¯t done any experiments yet as he is still just sketching out the idea. He didn¡¯t reveal the details, though. But he said that he was going to erase pancreatic cancer from human history soon.¡± ¡°Pancreatic cancer?¡± The crowd of scientists began murmuring quickly. ¡°Normally, I would think it¡¯s nonsense without any data, but honestly, I¡¯m looking forward to it seeing that it was Doctor Ryu who said it,¡± Carpentier said. ¡°Wait. Professor Zheng, are you saying that A-Bio is going to do anticancer drugs as well?¡± Jacob interfered and asked. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°What is...¡± ¡°Since Doctor Ryu had originally studied cancer, he probably had an interest in anticancer as well. And that¡¯s the reason why I came all the way here.¡± Click. A Hispanic woman in her mid-thirties came out from the interview room. Her name was Felicida, and she was a pretty famous scientist. She worked in Carpentier¡¯sb, and she was very interested in regenerative medicine and health care. ¡°Doctor Ryu said that he¡¯s going to do health care,¡± Felicida said to Carpentier. He nodded. ¡°If he does stem cells, he could probably connect it to health care. Something like skin improvement with skin regeneration...¡± Carpentier said. ¡°No, not anything like that. Actual health care. He said that he¡¯s going to do probiotics. It seems like he already has a lot of progress.¡± ¡°Do what?¡± Jacob asked in disbelief. Hadn¡¯t he already made something huge, like an Alzheimer¡¯s cure, based on stem cell technology? But he was doing probiotics and anticancer, which werepletely different things, rather than working on a stem cell pipeline? ¡®What kind ofpany is this?¡¯ ¡°An Alzheimer¡¯s and a cure for the stem cell pipeline, a pancreatic cancer cure for the anticancer pipeline. Considering this, the probiotic is probably something else, too. Did you hear anything?¡± Carpentier asked. Felicida shrugged and shook her head. ¡°But he said that there would be some excellent effects on a major disease. He said that was why he brought it from A-Gen. It¡¯s probably something important.¡± ¡°...¡± If he said it was a major illness, it would probably be on the same level as pancreatic cancer and Alzheimer¡¯s. What kind of probiotics was it that it was as effective as a cure? Then, someone came out from the interview room and called on Jacob, who was spacing out. ¡°Jacob,e on in.¡± Extremely nervous, Jacob went into the interview room. There was a pale, neat-looking, tired man sitting inside. It was Doctor Young-Joon. To Jacob, it seemed like Asians never got old; he even looked younger than Jacob. Beside Young-Joon, a few other scientists were reading Jacob¡¯s resume. ¡°Hello, Jacob. I read your paper. The one in Nature,¡± Young-Joon said. Jacob gulped. He was even more nervous than when he was defending his thesis. ¡°I¡¯m very d that a talented scientist like you applied to ourpany. Normally, we would have to hear about your research through a seminar, but we are going to substitute it with your paper and the report on your CV.¡± ¡°Yes...¡± ¡°Jacob, why do you want to join A-Bio? I assume you have a special determination to join a start-uppany in a country so far away.¡± Jacob gulped. ¡°I wanted to go into a pharmaceuticalpany and develop a drug myself. Not basic research that universities do. But I didn¡¯t want to go to arge, transnational pharmaceuticalpany because most of them are all corrupt,¡± Jacob said. ¡°Then, I heard that you started thispany and I applied. It would grow fast since it has a strong base technology, and I thought that it wouldn¡¯t be dirty because it¡¯s new. I also heard that A-Gen, your motherpany, kept their research ethics and was fair to you.¡± Thest part was a little different, but Jacob¡¯s answer satisfied Young-Joon. He nodded. ¡°What kind of research do you want to do here?¡± ¡°Honestly, I thought that I would be able to contribute a lot in differentiating stem cells to nerves since I studied cell signaling mechanisms.¡± Then, without confidence, Jacob added, ¡°To be honest, I was pretty recognized for my talent. So, I thought that if I came here, I would be good partners with you and grow thispany into a bigger one.¡± ¡°But you don¡¯t think so now?¡± ¡°I think thepany will grow well, but I am not sure if there will be room for me to contribute. Professor Carpentier and Professor Zheng are out there, too...¡± Young-Joon chuckled. ¡°They are outstanding people, but you shouldn¡¯t be intimidated by authority or fame.¡± Young-Joon added, ¡°The research we are doing is cutting-edge. We are exploring outside known human knowledge, where no one has the answer to.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I think that the creativity of young scientists could shine brighter than the experience of Nobel Prize winners. Have confidence.¡± * * * The news of A-Bio¡¯sunching swept the nation. [Carpentier, Nobel Prize recipient, joins A-Bio.] [Professor Feng Zheng of MIT joins A-Bio.] [What is A-Bio, a biology and pharmaceuticalpany?] Nichs read the news articles that were flowing in with interest. The reactions that wereing up on Twitter were interesting as well. ¡ªI heard that Avengers are getting released. Is it this? ¡ªWhat if Carpentier has to workte at night like the Hell Korea is and goes home crying? ¡ªGod-Young-Joon is not someone who would do that. ¡ªIt seems like his entire schedule is a block looking at the time it took him to develop the a cure. ¡ªI¡¯m sorry, but I want him to develop a cure even if he goes through hell. My mom has Alzheimer¡¯s and our entire family is suffering. ¡ªHe said the Alzheimer¡¯s cure is going into clinical trials. Wait for it. ¡ªBut does Carpentier have anything to do even if hees? I heard that Doctor Ryu nned all the experiments for iPSCs, Alzheimer¡¯s, or a. ¡ªThey¡¯ll probably divide their research project and give it to people. If it was Alzheimer¡¯s after a, it will be together this time. ¡ªA Korean venturepany that orders around a Nobel Prize winner. This is insane! ¡ªI can feel the national pride rising... Get me some more![2] ¡°Carpentier or Feng Zheng... I¡¯m jealous of them,¡± Nichs said quietly as he closed hisputer. To be frank, Nichs would jump out of his chair and join A-Bio if it wasn¡¯t for his title of CTO. He just thought of Young-Joon as a young man with a promising future at the year-end seminar, but it was way past that now. Nichs looked over thest Alzheimer¡¯s clinical trial report he was given. It was data that they had gathered appropriate trial patients and that they were dedifferentiating stem cells from patient somatic cells. If he calcted the time right, the Alzheimer¡¯s cure that Young-Joon made would be administered to the patient next Monday. 1. Ediya Coffee is a coffeehouse chain based in South Korea. ? 2. This is a meme in Korea for national pride, or gookbbong. The more literal trantion is, ¡°I can feel it... Madam, get me some more!¡± As national pride makes people feel good, it ispared to alcohol, thus asking the madam, or the server, to get them more. ? Chapter 48: A-Bio (3)

Chapter 48: A-Bio (3)

There was a Starbucks on the first floor of the A-Bio building. Young-Joon ordered an iced americano with the employee benefits card that was given to him yesterday. ¡°Could you put it in this tumbler, please?¡± Young-Joon asked as he handed the worker a tumbler. ¡°You have a tumbler?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk asked. ¡°I saw one rolling around in the kitchen cupboard, so I brought it.¡± ¡°It says Jungyoon University on it. I guess it¡¯s from school.¡± ¡°You¡¯re right. I just saw it.¡± Young-Joon checked the writing written on the side of the tumbler. [JUNGYOON UNIVERSITY] ¡°I guess I got it sometime during school. I was there for ten years, from undergraduate to my doctorate,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°No, I don¡¯t think so,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk replied. ¡°How do you know?¡± ¡°Because it says 2019 in small letters below it. It¡¯s way after old people like us graduated. It¡¯s obviously your sister¡¯s. You live together now, right?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I remember Ji-Won bawling and making a huge fuss when you took her four-colored pen to school.¡± ¡°Ji-Won was eight.¡± ¡°That was when her personality was simr to our cocker spaniel.¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joon stared at the tumbler, then said, ¡°This is a secret, right?¡± ¡°Wash it thoroughly and put it back. I¡¯m scared of her, too.¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± Sipping their coffee, they headed to the elevator. ¡°After I set up thebs here, I¡¯m going to invest in a few small and medium-sized businesses and do coborative research projects,¡± Young-Joon said to Park Joo-Hyuk as they walked. ¡°With where?¡± ¡°Celligener, Cell Bio, Reaction Chemistry, and a sunbae I knew in undergrad, Lee Jae-Hong who studied bioinformatics,unched a start-uppany. I was considering there as well.¡± ¡°What¡¯s bioinformatics?¡± ¡°So, it¡¯s like... Huh?¡± A lot of people came to this building, and there were a lot of new faces due to the recent interviews, but Young-Joon had never seen this elderly woman before. ¡°Are you here to see someone?¡± Young-Joon approached her and asked. ¡°Uhm... No.¡± The elderly woman turned her head and tried to leave. [Synchronization Mode: Would you like to analyze stage-6 Alzheimer¡¯s dementia? Fitness consumption rate: 0.7/second] ¡®... No? What are you talking about?¡¯ Staring at her back as she turned around, Young-Joon was lost in thought for a second. This wasn¡¯t where they were doing the clinical trial. The Clinical Trial Management Center was at A-Gen headquarters, and Sunyoo Hospital was the Clinical Investigation Institution. ¡®Why is she wandering around A-Bio?¡¯ ¡°Ma¡¯am, do you have someone with you?¡± Young-Joon asked. She shook her head. ¡°Can you tell me your name?¡± ¡°...¡± Again, there was no response. ¡®She must have a guardian. Do I have to make an announcement and find them?¡¯ As Young-Joon was contemting what to do, he saw two people running towards them from the washroom at the end of the hall. It was an elderly man who looked like he had a hard life and a young woman. ¡°Dear!¡± ¡°Grandma... Hup!¡± Shin Young-Yeon, a Scientist from A-Gen¡¯s Stem Cells Department stopped in her tracks when she saw Young-Joon. She dide all the way here to A-Bio to meet him in the first ce, but she was a little nervous now that she was actually facing him. ¡°H-Hello, sir.¡± Shin Young-Yeon greeted him awkwardly. ¡°Hello.¡± ¡°I¡¯m Scientist Shin Young-Yeon from A-Gen¡¯s Stem Cells Department,¡± she introduced herself. ¡°Nice to meet you. I¡¯m Ryu Young-Joon from A-Bio.¡± After shaking her hand, he nced at the elderly couple, who seemed to be a patient and her guardian. They seemed to be with her. The reason a Scientist from A-Gen¡¯s Stem Cells Department was here probably had something to do with them. ¡®Are they here because of the clinical trial?¡¯ ¡°Can I ask why you are here?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°I was wondering if I could ask you for something...¡± * * * Sixty-nine-year-old Park Joo-Nam. She worked at a barbershop from the age of neen. Countless young men from the neighborhood hit on her because of her pretty face, but she had someone else in her heart. It was Kang Hyuk-Soo, a taxi driver. Back then, taxi drivers had sort of a professional image. Nowadays, twenty-year-old newbies drove safely and conveniently with GPS and the help of automatic gear systems and advanced driver assistance systems, but it was not like that back then. Not only did they have the ability to find the directions to anywhere the customer said like they had a map on the palm of their hand, but they were sometimes required to be conversational in English depending on the situation. Park Joo-Nam fell in love with Kang Hyuk-Soo at first sight at how handled a manual transmission skillfully and drove well when she happened to get in his taxi. Kang Hyuk-Soo often came to the barbershop to shave. Thanks to that, she was able to find connections with him easily as she had many opportunities to meet him. They got close quickly, became a couple, got married and had two kids. ¡°You look like a bandit when your beard grows because you have a scary face.¡± Park Joo-Nam became a stay-at-home wife as she raised the kids, but she put her skills to use and shaved Kang Hyuk-Soo¡¯s face every morning. ¡°I guess I always have to shave your face if you don¡¯t want customers to run away.¡± When Kang Hyuk-Soo sat in his chair after breakfast, her soft, pale fingers would spread white foam all over his lower face. The de of her razor made crisp sounds as it moved along the texture of his skin. Kang Hyuk-Soo loved his mornings where he could watch her face as she concentrated. Even if she got wrinkles and time bore itself on her face, her beauty was unchanging. The two of them grew old together. It was just a normal and ordinary life story. Like other people their age, they went through small andrge events in modern history like the military dictatorship, democracy protests, and IMF. They got involved in various incidents and went through trouble, but they endured it well together. But not Alzheimer¡¯s. At first, it just seemed like Park Joo-Nam¡¯s forgetfulness had just gotten worse. They were things like forgetting to turn off the heat after cooking and asking the same questions again. Then, she started getting slow and clumsy in calcting money, confusing the few friends she had, and forgot how many children the young couple in the neighborhood had. Then one morning, it happened. Kang Hyuk-Soo still clearly remembered the shock he felt that morning. ¡°Can you shave my face?¡± Kang Hyuk-Soo asked as he drank a ss of milk for breakfast. ¡°Shave? ... What was that again?¡± With an anxious heart, Kang Hyuk-Soo held her hand and went to the hospital. She was diagnosed with stage-four Alzheimer¡¯s. She was prescribed medication like tacrine, an acetylcholinesterase inhibitor, and was treated regrly at the hospital, but her cognitive abilities and memory progressively worsened. And now, a few years from then, her cognitive function had decreased significantly, and she could not tell what the date was or what season it was. She needed Kang Hyuk-Soo¡¯s help to dress for the weather, and it was hard for her to eat, wash her face, and brush her teeth. Sometimes, her conscience woulde back, but sometimes, she did not even recognize him. She also began to suffer from urinary incontinence. Now, Park Joo-Nam spent the entire day in the passenger¡¯s seat of Kang Hyuk-Soo¡¯s taxi as she required her guardian¡¯s help for everyday life. * * * ¡°Doctor Ryu.¡± Kang Hyuk-Soo suddenly grabbed Young-Joon¡¯s arm. ¡°Please, Doctor. Help us.¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°Please include us in the clinical trial.¡± ¡°You have to talk to the primary doctor of the clinical trial at Sunyoo University.¡± ¡°We did. And she was supposed to participate,¡± Shin Young-Yeon answered instead. She sounded a little depressed. ¡°By supposed to, are you saying that she isn¡¯t anymore?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk interfered and asked. ¡°Yes. They suddenly changed their minds.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°They said it was because she has high blood pressure.¡± ¡°Hm...¡± For this clinical trial, the method of delivery was intravenously administering stem cells and sending them to the brain through the blood vessels. The AKKT gene in the stem cells used was manipted to make them sixty percent smaller than regr ones. A cell membrane with a caverlin ligand was used to pass the blood-brain barrier and reach the brain. After, a drug called 3K3A-APC was administered to differentiate the stem cells in the brain to nerves and regenerate the destroyed brain. As such, the heart of this experiment was for the stem cells and drugs to flow through the blood vessels well. ¡®Is that why the primary doctor excluded patients with high blood pressure?¡¯ But it didn¡¯t make sense that they excluded someone already chosen just because of something like high blood pressure. It wasn¡¯t something like heart failure either. Furthermore, they would have chosen her as a participant after confirming that she had high blood pressure during the screening process. Had they made a mistake? ¡°Was there a restriction for high blood pressure in the participant selection conditions that we proposed?¡± ¡°No, just heart failure,¡± Shin Young-Yeon replied. ¡°Then it should be fine. If it¡¯s just high blood pressure... How high is it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s one hundred fifty over ny-five.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not too serious.¡± ¡°I guess they want to conduct it with the healthiest people possible to ensure safety,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk said. What he said was also right. The clinical trial for this cure was still in phase one; if this was something like cold medicine, this would be when it was administered to normal, healthy people to prove that it had no side effects. This treatment was directly administered to the patient due to its nature, but it was only to a small number of people, around eight people; they didn¡¯t have to include a patient with high blood pressure. But what kind of reason would they have to exclude someone they had already chosen? ¡®Rosaline, could there be problems during treatment for a patient with this blood pressure?¡¯ ¡ªYou already know the answer. ¡®There aren¡¯t any, right?¡¯ ¡ªIt does not matter. This treatment will even work on a patient with heart failure. You do not need to care about blood pressure that high. ¡®But why did the doctor exclude her?¡¯ As Young-Joon was lost in thought, Kang Hyuk-Soo called him. ¡°Doctor Ryu, we do not have much time left.¡± ¡°Pardon me?¡± ¡°The doctor said that she has dysphagia. Apparently, it happens with severe dementia. They said it¡¯s when they have difficulty with swallowing. The doctor said that it gets inhaled into the lungs, causing pneumonia. She won¡¯t be able to spit out phlegm either. The doctor said that she will get stiff, and that she will have to lie down more often because it¡¯s difficult for her to move. They said that I should be careful of bedsores.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°When thoseplications happen, her immunity will decrease and she¡¯ll suffer fall injuries. They told me that¡¯s how people die, not from dementia itself. So, I have to take good care of her. But... Doctor Ryu, I¡¯m seventy-four. To be honest, I¡¯m not sure if I can keep working to feed and take care of her alone. It¡¯s not because I don¡¯t want to, but because my body can¡¯t keep up,¡± Kang Hyuk-Soo said. ¡°I keep thinking about what would happen to her if I can¡¯t get up the next morning.¡± ¡°What are your children doing?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk asked. ¡°How could we burden them when they¡¯re busy taking care of their own kids... And our kids are living abroad...¡± After some thought, Young-Joon said to Shin Young-Yeon, ¡°Could I talk to you?¡± He took her to a corner that no one really came to and asked, ¡°Do you know if all eight spots have been filled?¡± ¡°Yes, they have.¡± ¡°Do you happen to know who took her ce?¡± Young-Joon was suspicious of what was happening. He thought that the reason Shin Young-Yeon came to him instead of convincing andforting Kang Hyuk-Soo was because there was something going on. ¡°I don¡¯t know their information because we only get the participant identification code... But there is something that our manager heard through someone they know at Sunyoo Hospital. Apparently, they are top VIP,¡± Shin Young-Yeon said. ¡°Who is it?¡± ¡°Um...¡± Shin Young-Yeon pulled Young-Joon to the side and whispered, ¡°It¡¯s Congressman Shim Sung-Yeol¡¯s mother.¡± ¡°Shim Sung-Yeol?¡± Shim Sung-Yeol¡¯s mother was eighty; she was old. Five years ago, she had gone to a nursing home after getting Alzheimer¡¯s. Shim Sung-Yeol had continued to act like a dutiful son, but to be honest, he was sick of picking up after his old mother. He was tired of going to the nursing home once in a while to show his face, and he thought that the thousands of won going toward her hospital fees were a waste. His eyes were only focused on one thing: the uing election. Everything that would add to that was good, and everything that didn¡¯t help was useless. To someone like him, Young-Joon¡¯s clinical trial for Alzheimer¡¯s was one of the best things that could happen. If it seeded, he could piggyback off of Young-Joon¡¯s image and be seen in a positive light. Even if it failed, he would gain sympathy votes. Of course, it would be best if Young-Joon seeded, but wouldn¡¯t he, since he was so outstanding? Even Nobel Prize recipients came to work with him. ¡ªScientists must be independent from politics. The face of that young man who declined his request right to his face when he went to visit Son Soo-Young kept popping up in Shim Sung-Yeol¡¯s mind. He was an international scientist star right now. ¡®I will do as you say for now,¡¯ Shim Sung-Yeol thought as he pushed the director of Sunyoo Hospital. ¡®Next time, I will visit you to thank you as the dutiful son of a clinical trial patient, not as a politician, Doctor Ryu.¡¯ * * * ¡°Joo-Hyuk!¡± Young-Joon, who was talking to Shin Young-Yeon for a bit, returned to them. ¡°Huh?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk looked a little flustered. ¡°What did you guys talk about? Why are you so angry? Man, you look like the time when Ji-Won ate all our Haagen-Dazs ice cream when we were young...¡± ¡°We have to go somewhere right now,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Go where?¡± ¡°Sunyoo Hospital.¡± Chapter 49: A-Bio (4)

Chapter 49: A-Bio (4)

Young-Joon was like a volcano that was about to erupt. Baffled, Park Joo-Hyuk grabbed his wrist. ¡°Let¡¯s go. I¡¯m so mad that I can¡¯t wait one more second.¡± As Young-Joon was about to drag Park Joo-Hyuk out, Kang Hyuk-Soo stepped in front of him. ¡°Doctor Ryu, if you go to Sunyoo Hospital right now, will she get the treatment?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Young-Joon replied firmly. ¡°Only the experimental hospital has the right to select participants. It is not something I can do. I sympathize with your situation, but it doesn¡¯t do anything.¡± ¡°Then...¡± ¡°I will support the doctor¡¯s judgment that her high blood pressure will be a problem if it is appropriate. You will have to wait for phase two of the clinical trial since the range of participants will expand then. If it¡¯s too difficult for you to take care of her in the meantime, please tell me. I will assist you financially.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°But please remember that I do not have the right to interfere with the selection process of clinical trial participants,¡± Young-Joon said as he nced at Shin Young-Yeon. ¡°Let¡¯s go, Joo-Hyuk.¡± Leaving the elderly man and Shin Young-Yeon who both looked disappointed, they left the building. On the way to the hospital in Park Joo-Hyuk¡¯s car, Young-Joon, who was sitting in the passenger¡¯s seat with his arms crossed, was lost in thought with a serious face. ¡°Why are you so angry? Who got in the trial instead of that elderly woman?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk asked. ¡°Congressman Shim Sung-Yeol took out that woman and put in his mother.¡± ¡°Hm.¡± Leaning his head on the window, Park Joo-Hyuk stared at Young-Joon. ¡°Is that something to be this mad about? I think it¡¯s the angriest you¡¯ve been since you started working at A-Gen.¡± ¡°Of course!¡± ¡°Because a politician interfered?¡± ¡°No. If that''s what I was mad about, I would have made us go to Shim Sung-Yeol¡¯s office rather than Sunyoo Hospital.¡± ¡°Then why are you so mad?¡± ¡°The bastards at Sunyoo Hospital messed with my research.¡± Young-Joon grit his teeth. ¡°Shim Sung-Yeol could have requested that to the hospital to help his mother because he doesn¡¯t know anything about experiments and research. I understand that. It¡¯s wrong, but I can at least understand it, right? But the hospital shouldn¡¯t have epted that.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°A clinical trial isn¡¯t treatment. I don¡¯t know how high people¡¯s expectations of me are and why everyone is dying to be included in my clinical trial, but a clinical trial is not the same thing as treatment in any way.¡± Young-Joon emphasized what he was saying. ¡°This is research and an experiment! A-Biomissioned a clinical experiment to the hospital, and that hospital is an institution that conducts the experiment for A-Bio.¡± ¡°Patients are just trying to get into your clinical trials because you¡¯re such a famous star. They trust you that much and are trying to get better...¡± ¡°That¡¯s wrong, too! I¡¯m thankful that they have that much faith in me, but in principle, they should not be doing that. It¡¯s not like fame guarantees sess. Do they think that I¡¯ll be right this time too because all the experiments I¡¯ve done in the past were right? We can¡¯t do that since this is a clinical study with people¡¯s lives on the line. Research should be done ording to data, not the name value of the participant.¡± ¡°Okay, man. Why are you getting mad at me?¡± ¡°And everything about a clinical trial must be controlled as strictly as possible, starting from the participant selection process! We have to exclude volunteering patients who don¡¯t fit the criteria and conduct it after randomly selecting the participants from the remaining people. That is controlling the variables in a study. It¡¯s the basics!¡± ¡°Okay, I get why you are so mad. Can you calm...¡± ¡°After excluding patients who do not meet the criteria, the will of the investigator should never be involved in the selection process of the remaining patients. They have to be drawnpletely randomly, like rolling a dice. There are ces overseas that use aputer to randomly pick. If this principle is broken, it¡¯s data maniption.¡± ¡°Data maniption?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk¡¯s eyes widened at an unexpectedly impactful word. ¡°Of course! How can the data be reliable when the sample is subjectively selected? If I allow this, the research will be a mess right away. There are so many scammer pharmaceuticalpanies that choose patients with light symptoms or ones that they think they could treat and advertise their sess in clinical trials to sell their drugs! If I pick the participants, how am I any different?¡± Thud! Young-Joon mmed his fist on the window out of frustration. ¡°But an outside force interferes with my research and puts pressure on participant selection? And the hospital changes patients ording to that for reasons that aren¡¯t part of the criteria? It¡¯s an experiment that works with people¡¯s lives; they shouldn¡¯t be conducting it however they want, right? If something happens, I can¡¯t even track down the cause! What were they thinking? These bastards...¡± ¡°Woah... Rx, man.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not something to rx about! This is something that institutions in developed countries that are really strict about research ethics could kick everyone rted to the study kicked out for.¡± ¡°... It¡¯s that bad?¡± ¡°Of course! It¡¯s data maniption. It¡¯s a fake paper! And to be honest, I¡¯m suspicious of Shin Young-Yeon-ssi from the Stem Cells Department bringing that elderly woman. It would be nice if she didn''t have any rtionship with them, but what if she got something from the elderly man and lobbied the hospital? It¡¯s a clinical trial of a project where I¡¯m the general manager, but the staff under me are lobbying and switching out patients, and politicians are switching patients by putting pressure on them... It¡¯s a fucking mess.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I trusted them because they were arge hospital and experts, and I didn¡¯t think it would be right for me to supervise and tell them what to do when I requested it to the clinical trial investigation institution. I just received reports and waited. I even went to the hospital after the patient was fully cured during the a trial. But they stab me in the back right from the selection process?¡± ¡°I think you should also manage the clinical trial yourself.¡± ¡°I was considering opening a hospital when thepany gets bigger, but I think I have to hurry. I don¡¯t think I can trust any investigation institution easily.¡± ¡°But in my opinion, I don¡¯t think Shim Sung-Yeol acted in worry for her mother or because he wanted her to get better.¡± ¡°Then?¡± ¡°It¡¯s because he can get close to you if it seeds. The election is right around the corner,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡°I know that people are confusing your clinical trial and actual treatment, but honestly, not me. I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s because I¡¯ve known you ever since you were a little kid, but I don¡¯t trust you that much, okay?¡± ¡°Wait, this is kind of hurtful too.¡± ¡°But to put my mother in phase one of a clinical trial Ryu Young-Joon is running? I could never do that. I would just wait until phase two, and it¡¯s not like dementia is an immediately life-threatening disease. Since a politician like Shim Sung-Yeol would have a lot of money, he could just get her a caregiver, and she wouldst until phase two.¡± ¡°Hm...¡± ¡°But the reason he went out of his way to make another spot and include himself in phase one? Because he¡¯s in the Ryu Young-Joon fantasy? Nope. In my opinion, his goal in the first ce wasn¡¯t his mother¡¯s health, but a connection with you,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡°The news that it was the first sessful treatment in phase one and the news that it works well for many patients in phase two have different impacts. He is just trying to take a picture with you in the huge spotlight when you seed in treating Alzheimer¡¯s for the first time ever and befriend you.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°He¡¯ll give you some gifts as a clinical trial patient¡¯s son, call all the patients together for a meal and gain sympathy by asking you if there were any difficulties in the study, that he was so touched by seeing his mother get better, and that he is indebted to you and wants to support you.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk went on. ¡°After he makes you an ally by cajoling you, actually supporting you, and creating a win-win rtionship, he will ask you to support in his election campaign in turn for a spot in the Ministry of Health and Welfare or the Ministry of Science and Technology. It¡¯s a cliche repertoire, isn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t care if that is true or not. Even if it is true, tell him to keep going with that disgusting scheme and delusion that uses his own mother. I will never follow along.¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you cooperate a little bit? He¡¯s a candidate after all. Do you hate politics?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not that I hate politicians, but I never cooperate with people who don¡¯t keep principles. He¡¯s already done to me from the things he¡¯s shown me before.¡± ¡°You also put pressure on politicians too, right? When you caught Ji Kwang-Man.¡± ¡°All I did was ask them to investigate it thoroughly ording to thew. It wasn¡¯t even a request. A victim who was attacked can¡¯t even ask them to thoroughly investigate the people who attacked him? I only asked them to do it ording to thew, and I never said Ji Kwang-Man¡¯s name. If he was innocent, he wouldn¡¯t have been caught. I did put pressure on them, but it was to do everythingwfully. Isn¡¯t that different from this?¡± ¡°You¡¯re right. To be honest, I don¡¯t think there¡¯s a problem with that either.¡± ¡°Then why are you picking a fight with me?¡± ¡°I just want to tease you when you''re mad. You know when you want to mess with kids who are upset? It¡¯s simr to that.¡± ¡°Are you a psychopath?¡± Young-Joon cringed. Park Joo-Hyuk saw the side of his face and chuckled. ¡°It¡¯s been a while since you¡¯ve been this angry. It reminds me of old times... Were you like this when you cursed at theb director?¡± ¡°It was worse. My hands were trembling back then.¡± ¡°You had a tremor, right?¡± ¡°Stop talking nonsense and focus on driving.¡± * * * Young-Joon, who pushed the Sunyoo Hospital main doors open, headed straight to the Neuropsychiatry Department. The nurses at the administration counter recognized him. ¡°Hello.¡± A nurse quickly approached him and greeted him. ¡°I¡¯m here to see Professor Koh In-Guk. He¡¯s the primary doctor, right? Where is he?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°He should be in the office.¡± ¡°When will he be done?¡± ¡°He is done soon because of the clinical trial preparations. In about...¡± The nurse nced at the clock. ¡°Ten minutes?¡± ¡°Alright. Please let me know when hees out.¡± Young-Joon went to the waiting room and sat down quietly. ¡°You looked like you were going to barge in through his office door,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk said with a smirk. ¡°I don¡¯t have the right to interfere with the patient¡¯s rights to be treated, so...¡± A little whileter, Koh In-Guk came out of his office. After the nurse approached him and talked to him for a bit as she gestured to Young-Joon, he came over. ¡°Hello.¡± Koh In-Guk smiled and greeted him. ¡°Hello. Let¡¯s cut straight to the chase since we don¡¯t have much time. Can we go somewhere quieter?¡± Young-Joon asked. Koh In-Guk got a little nervous as he saw that Young-Joon¡¯s expression and tone was serious. ¡°Nurse Kim, do we have any seminar rooms avable?¡± ¡°Room two-one-one would be empty. The lecture room where the immunity seminar was held.: ¡°I¡¯m just going to use that for a bit,¡± Koh In-Guk said. ¡°Let¡¯s go, Doctor Ryu.¡± Young-Joon followed Koh In-Guk and Park Joo-Hyuk to the small conference room. ¡°You came here regarding the clinical study?¡± Koh In-Guk asked as he sat down in the chair. ¡°Yes. I heard that the patients were changed.¡± Koh In-Guk flinched slightly at Young-Joon¡¯s response. He pretended like he didn¡¯t know anything. ¡°The patients were switched?¡± ¡°You¡¯re the doctor in charge, and you don¡¯t know? That¡¯s a problem as well.¡± ¡°... A woman named Shin Mal-Ja came in instead of someone named Park Joo-Nam. That¡¯s what you¡¯re talking about, right?¡± ¡°What¡¯s the criteria?¡± Koh In-Guk gulped. ¡°That is... We didn¡¯t think she was fit because she had high blood pressure.¡± ¡°Is that all?¡± ¡°... Yes.¡± ¡°If you look at the pre-clinical data we provided, there is data on obese mice as well. And obese mice have pretty high blood pressure. You know why we tested that, right?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°It is because eighty percent of Alzheimer¡¯s patients are obese. And a lot of them have high blood pressure as well.¡± ¡°That is... true...¡± ¡°We could get a safe starting point if we only included patients with no cardiovascr diseases, but it would only be effective for twenty percent of Alzheimer¡¯s patients. That was why we purposely tested obese mice. We have blood pressure data as well. But why aren¡¯t you using it?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The treatment I developed is to send small stem cells to the brain. The stem cells are less than eight micrometers in diameter. It¡¯s smaller than the diameters of capiries. And the stem cells, which will be administered through the veins in the arm, will move through the internal carotid artery to reach the brain. Right? The diameter of the cerebral carotid artery is usually measured in millimeters, isn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Do you think that a patient¡¯s internal carotid artery will get smaller than eight micrometers even if a patient¡¯s artery constricts due to high blood pressure? I¡¯m curious about your opinion as a doctor.¡± ¡°As I told you, we just wanted to get a safer starting point just in case anything happens...¡± Young-Joon stared straight into Koh In-Guk¡¯s eyes. ¡°So there is no scientific reason.¡± ¡°... Yes.¡± ¡°Do you know why I am asking you this aggressively?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°The patient who was put in the ce of Park Joo-Nam. It was Shim Sung-Yeol¡¯s mother, right? I heard that he put pressure on you.¡± Koh In-Guk froze. ¡°Please be honest. There were only eight participants approved by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, and you already had eight people. So, in order to fulfill Shim Sung-Yeol¡¯s request, you had to take someone out, and the person chosen was a patient with high blood pressure, whom you would have an excuse for. Is that right?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°How could you allow external pressure in the selection process and...¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± Koh In-Guk bowed. ¡°I am truly sorry. I will be honest. I couldn¡¯t bear it because it was weighing on my conscience, but I can¡¯t do it anymore. I will just resign. This was what the hospital director ordered me to do.¡± ¡°The hospital director?¡± ¡°Yes, I¡¯m sorry. I will make it right now. I¡¯m so ashamed.¡± ¡°... Then, it¡¯s not something that can just be settled with you, Professor,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I think I need to meet the hospital director.¡± Chapter 50: A-Bio (5)

Chapter 50: A-Bio (5)

Lee Jun-Hyuk, the hospital director of Sunyoo Hospital, was having tea with Shim Sung-Yeol in his office. To him, the hospital was a business. In that sense, Sunyoo Hospital was seeding, and it was because of a rare genius scientist named Ryu Young-Joon. Seeding in clinical trials was a bonus factor for hospitals. It made the hospital more famous by giving it the reputation that it was the first to cure a difficult disease. After seeding in the a trial, Sunyoo Hospital received a lot of investments from several ces, and it became the first ce that patients with eye conditions came to. ¡°I¡¯m d the hospital is doing well,¡± Shim Sung-Yeol said. ¡°It¡¯s all because you looked after us,¡± Professor Lee Jun-Hyuk said with a chuckle. Shim Sung-Yeol had a political connection with Lee Jun-Hyuk for a long time. Sunyoo Hospital was a huge university hospital; they didn¡¯t just treat patients, but also conducted research and education. Despite theirck of significant results, Sunyoo University received 19.2 billion won in government funding in thest eight years as they were selected as a research-oriented hospital. Behind their funding was Shim Sung-Yeol; he was one of the directors of the Sunyoo Social Welfare Foundation, which supported Sunyoo Hospital. It was a public interest foundation and was supporting Sunyoo Hospital, but Shim Sung-Yeol actually benefited more from it than them. It seemed obvious that it was going to be that way with the Alzheimer¡¯s clinical trial as well. Ring! The office phone rang. ¡°Please excuse me.¡± Lee Jun-Hyuk picked up the phone. ¡°This is Lee Jun-Hyuk. Yes. Yes.¡± He frowned a little. ¡°... Yes, I will be there right away.¡± After hanging up the call, he nced at Shim Sung-Yeol like there was a problem. ¡°What is it?¡± Shim Sung-Yeol asked. ¡°I think I might have to head out for a moment... But it¡¯s nothing. The professor in charge of the clinical trial wants to see me for a little bit. I will be back soon.¡± For some reason, Lee Jun-Hyuk looked like he was carrying a lot of worries as he quickly ran out of the office. Shim Sung-Yeol just stared at the office door that Lee Jun-Hyuk closed on his way out. * * * ¡°Was there any lobbying or request involved in Park Joo-Nam¡¯s participation in the clinical trial as well? For example, an employee from the Stem Cells Department at A-Gen. Please be honest with me,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I do not know anything about that,¡± Koh In-Guk replied. ¡°The only case where there was external pressure in the participant selection process was from Congressman Shim Sung-Yeol.¡± ¡°I am asking because I think that Shin Young-Yeon, a Scientist from A-Gen¡¯s Stem Cell Department, knows Park Joo-Nam, the patient who was excluded.¡± ¡°I do not know. Park Joo-Nam only came with her husband to volunteer.¡± ¡°Hm.¡± Young-Joon crossed his arms. ¡®Does Shin Young-Yeon have nothing to do with it?¡¯ Park Joo-Hyuk, who was beside him, said, ¡°They could have just gone to the Stem Cell Department for the clinical trial, met Shin Young-Yeon, and she just brought them to you. Or they knew each other before, but she just told them how to volunteer.¡± Young-Joon nodded his head. ¡°Maybe. I guess I was too sensitive.¡± Click. The conference room door opened, and a professor who looked like he was in his fifties or sixties appeared. It was Lee Jun-Hyuk, the hospital director. ¡°Why, Doctor Ryu, hello. Thank you foring all the way here. You should have called us before.¡± Lee Jun-Hyuk approached Young-Joon with a smile, acting like they were friendly. ¡°It is not that far. It¡¯s ten minutes by car.¡± ¡°Haha, is it?¡± ¡°That was why I gave the clinical trial to this hospital, since it is convenient to provide fresh iPSCs or nerve cells and technical support. Do you know what I mean? It means that there is no reason for me to insist on this hospital as the investigation institution other than the fact that it is in a convenient location.¡± ¡°... I heard that you were angry about the patients being changed,¡± Lee Jun-Hyuk said as cold sweat dripped down his neck. ¡°Did you know Park Soo-Nam?¡± ¡°It¡¯s Park Joo-Nam.¡± ¡°Yes, Park Joo-Nam. Haha, my apologies. We must have made a mistake; we didn¡¯t know that they were important to you... We will fix this right away.¡± ¡°Important to me?¡± Young-Joon frowned. ¡°All those patients are important to me! What are you talking about? Do you think I am doing this because of some personal rtionship? Selecting patients subjectively is data maniption, you know that, right? I am bringing this up because I want this clinical study to be strictly controlled.¡± Lee Jun-Hyuk looked like he realized he made a mistake, then tried tough it off. ¡°Now, now. Please rx, Doctor Ryu. Would it be such a big problem that one patient out of eight were switched? They are all Alzheimer¡¯s patients after all.¡± ¡°I am the principal investigator, and the paper will have my name as the first author. The data that will be included in that paper will be manipted. Even if you or Professor Koh are included as co-authors, the final responsibilityes down to me. Do you think I can rx?¡± ¡°How can you call this data maniption? It''s a small issue, and you are overreacting. Hahaha. We can just say that the person we randomly selected was Congressman Shim Sung-Yeol¡¯s mother in the first ce.¡± ¡°I¡¯m saying that this kind of attitude is wrong.¡± ¡°Then what should we do now? Shin Mal-Ja, the congressman¡¯s mother, is a clinical study participant who is already registered on our side. We can¡¯t take her out now.¡± ¡°How old is she? I assume she is quite old as she is Congressman Shim Sung-Yeol¡¯s mother.¡± ¡°She is eighty-three.¡± ¡°Then isn¡¯t she included in the aged, eighty and over category, and ssified as a separate age group in clinical trials?¡± ¡°There are a lot of ces that do that, including the FDA in America. But since it¡¯s a clinical study on Alzheimer¡¯s, it would be good to obtain data on aged, eighty and over patients.¡± ¡°My point is that you did not use that ssification of age when we got the permission to do the clinical trial.¡± ¡°We can revise something like that easily.¡± ¡°Revisions are something I should discuss with the doctor in charge and decide. ording to the clinical study guidelines, she should have been excluded. Why are you trying to gather participants and then change the criteria?¡± ¡°Haha. Doctor Ryu, we won¡¯t be able to do clinical trials if we are strict about every single thing.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± Young-Joon stared at Lee Jun-Hyuk. ¡°Then don¡¯t do it.¡± ¡°...¡± Lee Jun-Hyuk froze, and Koh In-Guk¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°I guess it can¡¯t be helped if you can¡¯t manage something as small as that. If this hospital isn¡¯t capable of that, I don¡¯t want to conduct my clinical trial here. Stop the study. I will talk to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety and the clinical trial evaluationmittee. I will have to go through tedious paperwork again, but it doesn¡¯t matter. I will transfer this to another institution and conduct it there.¡± Lee Jun-Hyuk let out a sigh. ¡°Doctor Ryu, I will be frank. You shouldn¡¯t go against politics if you want to run A-Bio. What are you going to do?¡± ¡°Who said I am going against them? I am only saying that we should keep principles and ethics.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t understand why you are not cooperating with someone as huge as Congressman Shim Sung-Yeol when he is reaching out to you first. If you let this go just this one time, his mother bes healthy, you get a supporter, and the congressman gets a young, talented individual and a newwork. Everyone is happy, right? To be honest, it¡¯s frustrating.¡± ¡°I hope you find another scientist like that. I¡¯ll stop here. Please organize everything that was prepared here since I¡¯ll be conducting the clinical study at another hospital.¡± As Young-Joon was about to take his bag and leave, another person opened the door and came in. It was Shim Sung-Yeol. He slowly approached Young-Joon. Standing close, Young-Joon and Shim Sung-Yeol stared at each other. Chuckle. Shim Sung-Yeolughed. ¡°It seems like you don¡¯t like me, Doctor Ryu.¡± Young-Joon didn¡¯t reply. ¡°I want to be friends with you, but it¡¯s not easy.¡± ¡°I am open to being friends personally, Congressman. But I will not help your political activities. And I will not ask you anything regarding research. You must remember that business is business in our rtionship. Do you still want to be friends?¡± ¡°Why are you trying to distance yourself from politics so much? WIth your fame and reputation, it¡¯s worth a shot to cooperate with me.¡± ¡°It would definitely be easier if I had someone like you backing me. It would be easy to get permissions for clinical trials, and my products would easily be given permission tomercialize.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true, especially if you have someone who could use their power. They could discretely ease the restrictions on drug standards that congress develops.¡± ¡°That is why it has to be separate,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°...¡± ¡°I also know what kind of position I am in among Korea¡¯s scientificmunity. Of course, I¡¯m not the first one, but I think I will make a huge step. I think I told you before, but science is independent and the study of objectivity.¡± ¡°Hm.¡± ¡°All drugs developed by scientists must obtain permission and regtion ording to their level of side effects and efficacy. They cannot be loosened because someone is friends with someone. I know how pharmaceuticalpanies used to do things by the rule of thumb, and it¡¯s not just in Korea. But I want to change that culture as much as I can. I want to make a culture where we prove development by data instead of lobbying. I hope you understand.¡± ¡°... Yes, of course,¡± Shim Sung-Yeol replied in a subdued voice. ¡°Alright. I understand your ideology, Doctor Ryu. And I made a mistake with this Alzheimer¡¯s clinical trial. I don¡¯t know much about medicine and pharmaceuticals or clinical trials.¡± Shim Sung-Yeol added, ¡°Doctor Ryu, I didn¡¯t want to break thew or research ethics or anything like that. I asked the director if there were any openings because I wanted to help my mother, and this is what happened.¡± ¡°So you¡¯re saying that the director did this out of loyalty even though you didn¡¯t ask him?¡± ¡°He knows how I think about my mother and how I take care of her. He just made a mistake while trying to help me out of pity.¡± ¡°See, this is why we must stay away from politics,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Yes, I understand. I guess this reaffirmed your beliefs,¡± Shim Sung-Yeol replied. ¡°My mother will apply for phase two of the trial, and I will make sure that she is randomly selected. So please do not worry anymore and let¡¯s conduct ording to principles, like you want.¡± ¡°Yes, thank you.¡± Shim Sung-Yeol smiled, patted Lee Jun-Hyuk on the shoulder and left. Young-Joon stared at him as he walked toward the door. Something that happened at Lab Six at A-Gen came to mind. Even then, Shim Sung-Yeol was shut down when he tried to get Young-Joon on his side. He also apologized and left, just like he was doing now. But unlike thest time, this might sour their rtionship a little. ¡®He might be an enemy, but I can¡¯t help that.¡¯ Lee Jun-Hyuk approached Young-Joon and said, ¡°Well, it¡¯s a bummer, but I guess it¡¯s done. Then, we¡¯ll just continue with the patient that was originally selected, yes?¡± ¡°What?¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°We will continue with the patients that were originally selected, but I cannot trust you anymore. We will continue this trial at a different institution. Thank you for your hard work.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Let¡¯s go, Joo-Hyuk.¡± ¡°Wait!¡± Lee Jun-Hyuk urgently grabbed Young-Joon¡¯s arm. ¡°S-Sir, wait. We wrote a contract to hold the clinical trial here and everything. You can¡¯t do this...¡± ¡°The primary investigator said he was going to resign, too,¡± Young-Joon said. Lee Jun-Hyuk turned to Koh In-Guk in surprise. Koh In-Guk confirmed it with a serious face. ¡°I will resign. My pride has been hurt too much over this incident, and I feel ashamed at the work I am doing here.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Goodbye. I won¡¯t be giving clinical trials to Sunyoo Hospital anymore.¡± Young-Joon said goodbye to Lee Jun-Hyuk and left with Park Joo-Hyuk. On the way back to A-Gen, Park Joo-Hyuk nced at Young-Joon, who was lost in thought. His hands were trembling lightly. ¡°Hey. You went in there like a bulldozer, but... You overdid it, didn¡¯t you?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°You did good.¡± ¡°Thanks.¡± ¡°Hey, but I have something to ask you.¡± ¡°Why did you bring me? You can take care of it by yourself.¡± ¡°Just in case we fought about legal problems.¡± ¡°So I was yourw robot.¡± ¡°And I need someone to stop me if I get too heated.¡± * * * Young-Joon called the Stem Cells Department and talked with Shin Young-Yeon on the phone. She actually had no rtionship with the old couple. All she did was tell them how to apply and fill out their application form. She also said that she told them multiple times that they could not be selected. They only came to Young-Joon after they were absurdly removed from the trial afterward even though they were selected as participants. ¡ªI did not break research ethics! How could I dare toe see you if I did that? You have nopromise about that. ¡°Right? ¡ªOf course. At A-Gen, your personality and attitude toward research is like what you¡¯d see in textbooks. If I got the participants selected by lobbying, it would be suicide toe see you. ¡°Alright. Could you please give me the couple¡¯s contact information?¡± ¡ªContact information? ¡°Yes. I want to visit them.¡± Young-Joon got their contact information and made time on his weekend to go to the old couple¡¯s house. There were rows of worn-out, ragged houses in the suburb. The old, dark streets and dirty roads reminded him of his parents¡¯ house in Daejeon. Young-Joon brought them to an apartment he got near Jungyoon University, and they were going to move in soon, but they still lived there. ¡°...¡± Kang Hyuk-Soo, who was standing in the living room, which also was the kitchen, looked very disheartened. ¡°Sorry, I don¡¯t have anything to offer you...¡± Kang Hyuk-Soo handed Young-Joon a ss of water. ¡°Your wife will be able to participate in the clinical trial.¡± Kang Hyuk-Soo¡¯s face lit up when he heard Young-Joon. ¡°Thank you!¡± ¡°There is no need to thank me. I didn¡¯t do anything. She was randomly selected.¡± ¡°Still, thank you.¡± ¡°But the clinical trial investigation institution will change, so it will take longer than nned.¡± ¡°... Is that so?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry too much. She will get better quickly when the treatment starts. But I think it will be hard for you to take care of her alone until then, so why don¡¯t you get a caregiver?¡± ¡°I did look into it. The hospital said that without a professional caregiver, it¡¯s easy for people with Alzheimer¡¯s as advanced as her to get sepsis or something, and they said that she had to be admitted into a nursing home to be properly taken care of.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± ¡°Yes, but it was too expensive. I live paycheck to paycheck from my job as a taxi driver. How could I afford something like that? Even the health insurance doesn¡¯t work because of something about my wife.¡± ¡°... I would like to help you, butrge sums of money or valuables should not be exchanged between clinical trial personnel.¡± ¡°Haha, it¡¯s alright. I did not tell you so that you could help me. I¡¯m just grateful that you developed a drug like that.¡± Young-Joon grinned. ¡°She will get better, I promise. Don¡¯t worry about the selection process and have hope. ¡°Yes, thank you. Thank you so much.¡± Young-Joon left the house as the old man bowed to him multiple times. He stopped in front of Kang Hyuk-Soo¡¯s front door. After checking that he went back inside, Young-Joon slipped a little envelope in his mailbox. It was some money for him to be able to use a professional caregiver or go into a nursing home until the clinical trial. It was funny and bitter, but one of the most powerful disease suppressors in the world was money. In the bounds of science, that determined treatment and survival. Chapter 51: A-Bio (6)

Chapter 51: A-Bio (6)

This was the neuropsychiatry department at Yeonyee University Hospital. There were about a dozen elderly people lying in the hospital beds in the room. This was the new institution that was in charge of the powerful clinical study of the stem cell based Alzheimer¡¯s treatment. It was all over the news everywhere when they heard that a clinical study was being conducted, but it got quiet after a month. It was because none of the patients showed signs of improvement. Shin Jung-Ju, the primary doctor in charge of the clinical trial, came in. ¡°How are you feeling?¡± She asked Park Joo-Nam. She didn¡¯t reply. As Shin Jung-Ju was examining her by asking her a few more questions, Young-Joon approached her from the back. Young-Joon chose Yeonyee Hospital as the next institution because Professor Koh In-Guk rmended it. Now, instead of receiving report documents, he came to the hospital in-person and checked the progress once every week. He felt a little sorry for the primary doctor, but he couldn¡¯t stop worrying if he didn¡¯t do this. Although, it was a relief that Professor Shin Jung-Ju didn''t mind Young-Joon visiting him. It was because Shin Jung-Ju was friends with Koh In-Guk and had heard about everything that had happened. ¡°I think we will have to monitor them and see how it goes,¡± Shin Jung-Ju said to Young-Joon. ¡°Yes, of course. It will take some time for the newly differentiated nerve cells to establish themselves. A month might not be enough,¡± Young-Joon replied. As Shin Jung-Ju was examining them, Young-Joon also examined them using Synchronization Mode. To be honest, this was more urate than a doctor¡¯s examination. Although it didn¡¯t seem like it on the outside, the treatment was just about to work. It was usually like this most of the time for stem cell therapy type biological agents. The changes didn¡¯t show up on the outside, like an incubation period, but it had a time of perseverance where things were being done under the surface. After a certain point, the treatment effect will rise exponentially. ¡°Oh, you¡¯re here, Doctor.¡± Someone suddenly came out from behind and greeted Young-Joon. It was Kang Hyuk-Soo. They saw each other quite often, but he always reacted this way whenever Young-Joon came. Kang Hyuk-Soo didn¡¯t make it obvious, but to be honest, he knew that the money that was in his mailbox was from Young-Joon. That was why he came to him and respectfully greeted him out of gratitude and happiness, but Young-Joon found it a little too much. ¡®I purposely came here at a time he wouldn¡¯t be here...¡¯ Young-Joon already felt tired, but he still greeted him brightly. ¡°Hello.¡± ¡°Doctor, would you like some chocte?¡± Kang Hyuk-Soo handed him a chocte bar. ¡°I''m fine. But shouldn¡¯t you be driving your taxi right now?¡± ¡°Ie here five or six times a day to see my dear.¡± Kang Hyuk-Soo smiled warmly. ¡°That grandpa is such a devoted husband,¡± An elderly woman who was near the window said in a yful voice. She had early-stage Alzheimer¡¯s and was the most lucid out of all the patients here. ¡°It would be nice if my husband was like that.¡± Kang Hyuk-Soo scratched his head with an embarrassed look on his face and handed Young-Joon a chocte bar again. ¡°It¡¯s because this is all I have to give you, Doctor. Please eat this and work hard!¡± ¡°Thank you, but I¡¯m fine. Let¡¯s give it to the doctor.¡± Young-Joon gave the chocte bar to Shin Jung-Ju. ¡°I¡¯m a little ashamed to receive this since we haven¡¯t made any progress on the patients yet,¡± Shin Jung-Ju said with a chuckle. ¡°Haha, they will get better soon,¡± Kang Hyuk-Soo said as his wrinkly eyes blinked. ¡°Isn¡¯t that right, dear?¡± He asked as he turned to face Park Joo-Nam. She slowly raised her head. As she did, Young-Joon flinched a little. It was because a message window popped up when they met eyes. [Synchronization Mode: Would you like to analyze synaptogenesis? Fitness consumption rate: 0.1/second] Synaptogenesis: it was when new synapses formed. It meant that the developed neurons were connected to each other. ¡®Then there should be a sign...¡¯ ¡°Shave,¡± Park Joo-Nam said to Kang Hyuk-Soo. There was a moment of silence. He was frozen and unable to move. Park Joo-Nam stared at him, and said in a low voice, ¡°You should shave.¡± ¡°What... did you...¡± Shin Jung-Ju stood in front of Kang Hyuk-Soo, whose eyes widened in shock. ¡°Ma¡¯am, can you recognize him?¡± ¡°...¡± Park Joo-Nam slowly nodded. It was very slow, but she had gotten her memories and cognitive abilities back. It was proof that the battle between Alzheimer¡¯s and stem cell therapy, which happened in the patients¡¯ brains over the past month, hade to an end. * * * As time passed, the fully developed neurons began to establish themselves one by one in all the patients. Once they entered recovery, they progressed quickly. In just four days after Park Joo-Nam brought up shaving, none of the patients had incontinence anymore. After a week, patients who had a hard time moving could move on their own, although they were slow. In the second week, the patients¡¯ cognitive ability and problem solving abilities returned to simr levels before suffering from Alzheimer¡¯s. ¡°Ma¡¯am, we¡¯re going to subtract seven from one hundred in our heads,¡± Shin Jung-Ju said. ¡°One hundred, ny-three... eighty-six? And um... Seventy-nine?¡± ¡°That¡¯s correct. Can you do more?¡± ¡°Seventy-two! And let¡¯s see... If I take three away from ten, and it¡¯s five if I add two... Sixty-five?¡± Shin Jung-Ju got goosebumps on her arms. Before treatment, they couldn¡¯t even subtract one from one hundred. Now, their problem solving abilities might be better than the average elderly person. There were still no signs of side effects, such as the stem cells causing tumors in the brain. From the MRI data, she could clearly see that the atrophied cerebral cortex and hippocampus had been normalized. The ventricles that had expanded had shrunk and returned to normal. She still had to observe them, but she knew that she could cautiously make a conclusion as a doctor. ¡°I cannot say that they have fully recovered, but I can say that they have improved significantly,¡± Shin Jung-Ju said. Jessie, the editor of Science who got her medical opinion from her, felt like her heart was beating so fast that it was going to shoot out of her chest. ¡°Tha...nk you so much...¡± Jessie¡¯s voice trembled. In terms of what kind of impact this would have, it was on a whole other levelpared to a a cure. Phase one of a stem cell therapy clinical trial aiming to cure Alzheimer¡¯s had seeded: apart from this turning the academicmunity and hospitals upside down, what kind of effect would this have on society overall? Before this, there were a lot of drugs developed to treat Alzheimer¡¯s. Some of them aimed topletely cure it, while others used stem cells. ces like AllBio, Naturegenic, and Trinity Clinic Fukuoka conducted a lot of research like that. Furthermore, a lot of them went into clinical trials as well. A bunch woulde up if she searched for stem cell therapy for Alzheimer¡¯s on Google. The problem was that they all failed. There were a lot of new and existing pharmaceuticalpanies who jumped into this field in high spirits and ready for the challenge, but they all failed because it was too hard. So, the only four products that were approved by the FDA in America were Namenda, Aricept, Exelon, and Razadyne. And all they did was ease the symptoms or slow the progression of Alzheimer¡¯s. A drug that had the potential to regenerate damaged brain cells and cure them did not exist, until now. There were around eighty million patients who suffered from Alzheimer¡¯s around the world. The number rose so steeply that some predicted the number would be around 2.7 million in 2050. ¡®A future like that won¡¯te if this technology ismercialized.¡¯ Young-Joon was rescuing the person¡¯s life and quality of life, but if the financial and emotional costs, which arose due to the nature of the disease, it had on society were also considered? This was something that was worth more than receiving the Nobel Prize ten times over. ¡°Are you also going to interview Doctor Ryu?¡± Shin Jung-Ju asked. ¡°Yes, of course.¡± ¡°But you might not be able to interview him because he¡¯s extremely busy.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°It¡¯s just something I heard, but he is expanding his business, writing the Alzheimer¡¯s paper and he¡¯s also preparing another clinical trial for another new drug. I heard that he doesn¡¯t get more than four hours of sleep every day.¡± ¡°Woah...¡± ¡°But I think he will publish his paper soon. I think this will definitely be on Science.¡± ¡°No matter what kind of papers are released this month, this one¡¯s going on the cover no matter what.¡± ¡°I¡¯m excited, too. I get to have my name on a Science paper thanks to Doctor Ryu.¡± Shin Jung-Ju smiled. * * * ¡°Kill... me...¡± Lee Hae-Won had finished registering patents for all one hundred twenty-two drugs for thirty-four different diseases. Even if she grouped a few drugs together for one disease, she was still writing thirty-four different patents. ¡®I swear I would have died from overworking if I had two more.¡¯ She flopped over on her office desk. But all one hundred twenty-two drugs had good experimental data. All the data that Cell Bio sent her showed that all the experiments seeded. ¡®How is this possible?¡¯ Usually, the process of developing a new drug involved putting thousands of drug candidates into one disease model cell line at once and then selecting one that had an effect. It meant that there was a one in a thousand or ten thousand chance of discovering a new drug. But Young-Joon couldn¡¯t have tested hundreds of thousands of candidate materials alone. ¡®How did he know that these candidates had effects? To put it a little harshly, it felt like someone¡¯s delusions all turned out to be correct. After picking out one hundred twenty-two candidates like they were already existing drugs, he conducted the necessary experiments to make data, then patented them? Everything went ording to n, like a conveyor belt running, but it truly was astonishing. There were a lot of things about Young-Joon on the newstely, but this was more fascinating to Lee Hae-Won than iPSCs or a a cure. He was more than a genius. ¡®Does he have an alien trapped in his basement or something?¡¯ As Lee Hae-Won was making up a fantasy... Click. She heard the door open. As she stood up slightly to see the door, she could see Park Joo-Hyuk walking in. ¡°Heya.¡± ¡°I thought you were a customer.¡± Lee Hae-Won chuckled and sat back down like she wasn¡¯t excited anymore. But she stopped mid-way in a weird position. ¡°Wait...¡± She suddenly felt anxiety in her heart. With a trembling voice, she asked, ¡°H-Hey, um... Doctor Ryu didn¡¯t give you anything more, right?¡± ¡°Hehehe. You cannot escape from work, you ve. I¡¯ll tie you to your chair right now because you shouldn¡¯t even think about leaving.¡± Lee Hae-Won went pale. ¡°Please let me sleep eight hours a day.¡± ¡°But even if you work that much, you don¡¯t want to lose our CEO, right?¡± ¡°Of course. If I lose him, I won¡¯t have a job.¡± Lee Hae-Won poured a ss of orange juice and gave it to Park Joo-Hyuk. ¡°So, what¡¯s up?¡± ¡°I actually didn¡¯te here to give you work. Tricked you, right?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°I¡¯m here to scout you,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡°Scout me?¡± ¡°What do you think about working as the in-house patent attorney?¡± ¡°At A-Bio?¡± ¡°My CEO says that he has quite a few things he wants to assign you. He¡¯ll make sure your sry is much higher than what you¡¯re earning right now.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Why do you look like that? You don¡¯t like it?¡± ¡°I like that I¡¯ll be paid a lot, but I think the amount of work I have will be several times more than what I have now if I be an in-house...¡± ¡°I heard about a few items and his business direction when we had lunch together. I assume it will be a dozen times more.¡± ¡°Holy...¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry. You won¡¯t be doing them alone. We¡¯re going to make apany legal team, and we¡¯re going to have a few people who specialize in patents. And if youe to work here, your work-life bnce will be better.¡± ¡°It will be better?¡± ¡°Ourpanyplies with the fifty-two-hour workweek limit. And everyone gets off work on the dot.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Lee Hae-Won was shocked. ¡°But it¡¯s still a start-up... How does that work?¡± ¡°Well, all the base experiments are done in the CEO¡¯s head..¡± ¡°I¡¯ll go right away. Where¡¯s the contract? I want to sign it right now,¡± Lee Hae-Won said quickly, not wanting to lose this opportunity. ¡°Good. The first thing you¡¯ll probably be doing once youe will be transferring the probiotics product. Hemissioned that to you, right?¡± ¡°Yeah. I¡¯m discussing it with the Patent Law Office at Lab Six and working on it.¡± ¡°Good. Take care of that when you start working. You¡¯re going to have to work alone for a while. You could discuss it with the CEO, but you¡¯ll probably have to do it by Skype.¡± ¡°By Skype? Why?¡± ¡°He¡¯s going on a business trip to the U.S.¡± ¡°The U.S.?¡± ¡®Is he getting an investment in the U.S.?¡¯ Lee Hae-Won tilted her head in confusion. ¡°He said that he¡¯s going to the International Integrative Brain Disorder Conference. He¡¯s going to present the results from using stem cells to treat Alzheimer¡¯s in the clinical trial to get some funding.¡± Chapter 52: A-Bio (7)

Chapter 52: A-Bio (7)

Song Ji-Hyun, who worked at Celligener, was on the first floor of A-Bio. Thinking about it now, it was like a dream that Young-Joon treated her dog, Brownie, and they had a drink together in return. It felt like a guy she knew from the neighborhood who was good at dancing debuted and became Michael Jackson in just a few weeks. Song Ji-Hyun just thought of him as a unique and talented scientist, but one day, his paper and interview were published in Science. And then, he became super famous in a few months by appearing everywhere on the news, and now, he was the CEO of apany named A-Bio. ¡®I have a personal connection with someone like that?¡¯ No matter how Song Ji-Hyun thought about it, she couldn¡¯t believe it. She had Young-Joon¡¯s number on her phone, but she didn¡¯t have the courage to call him even out of curiosity. So, instead of calling him and asking him for directions, she was wandering on the first floor of A-Bio alone. She couldn¡¯t find the elevator. ¡°Hello.¡± Choi Myung-Joon and Seo Yoon-Ju, who ran into her by chance, greeted her. ¡°Hello,¡± Song Ji-Hyuk replied. ¡°I haven¡¯t seen you around. Are you Doctor Song Ji-Hyun?¡± Choi Myung-Joon asked. ¡°Yes, I am.¡± ¡°Nice to meet you. I¡¯m Choi Myung-Joon. I am responsible for probiotics at A-Bio.¡± ¡°Nice to meet you.¡± They shook hands. ¡°Let¡¯s head over to the conference room.¡± There was a probiotics meeting scheduled today. It was to share their results and check the direction of the progress. Song Ji-Hyun attended the meeting as Celligener¡¯s representative. The three of them went to the conference room on the second floor together. Inside, Young-Joon was waiting for them. With the beam projector on, he was putting out beverages and chocte and setting up for the meeting. ¡°Ack! Sir, I will do it!¡± Choi Myung-Joon ran toward him in shock and took the snacks away from him. ¡°Oh, it¡¯s fine... Haha, thank you.¡± ¡°Sir, why don¡¯t you hire a secretary? You can get your employees to do this...¡± ¡°I¡¯ll consider it when thepany gets bigger. I have no problem managing my schedule by myself right now.¡± Young-Joon walked over to the front of theputer. ¡°Doctor Song, did you send the files for the meeting by email?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°The wireless connection in the conference room isn¡¯t good, so I''ll download it to a USB from my office. Wait here.¡± ¡°Here. I brought it on a USB as well just in case.¡± Song Ji-Hyun handed him a USB. ¡°Thank you.¡± As Young-Joon was plugged in the USB and opening the file, Song Ji-Hyun, who was watching him, talked to him. ¡°Double-coating the capsule worked.¡± ¡°Really? That¡¯s good.¡± ¡°It worked when we did it ording to what you told us, Doctor Ryu... I mean, sir.¡± ¡°Just call me Doctor Ryu.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Oh right, Doctor Song,¡± Young-Joon called. ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°There are two things I want to work with Celligener on.¡± ¡°Two?¡± ¡°One of them is developing a coating technology for a pancreatic cancer treatment. I¡¯ll provide a sketch of the basic concept of it. Celliener should be able to do it quickly since you have a lot of experience with developing capsule coating technologies and you have a lot of equipment. I can¡¯t give you royalties, but I will providepensation for it.¡± ¡°Thank you. I¡¯ll talk to the CEO about it. What¡¯s the other one?¡± Young-Joon grinned. ¡°What do you think it is?¡± ¡°...¡± Song Ji-Hyuk tilted her head with a puzzled look on her face. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s the development of Cellicure, an early liver cancer treatment.¡± Song Ji-Hyun¡¯s eyes widened slowly. ¡°Cellicure?¡± ¡°I brought it with me when A-Bio left A-Gen. Let¡¯s work on it again.¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked again as if she couldn¡¯t believe it. ¡°You brought Cellicure with you?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Doesn¡¯t Lab One of A-Gen have it?¡± ¡°A-Bio got the development and patent rights of Cellicure. We¡¯re going to continue it from phase two of clinical trials.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°This is the right thing to do. A more advanced drug shouldn¡¯t disappear like that. If you want, we can let Celligener participate in the development process. And we will providepensation as well. What do you think?¡± ¡°We would absolutely want to do it if you let us. It was the first drug we developed, so it means a lot to us.¡± ¡°Good. We¡¯ll set up a meeting with your CEO next time.¡± ¡°We¡¯re ready, sir!¡± Choi Myung-Joon said after putting up the slide about the progress of the development of probiotics on the screen. ¡°Thank you. I only have an hour for the meeting since I have to head to Incheon Airport right away to go to a conference in America,¡± Young-Joon said as he sat down. ¡°You¡¯re going to a conference?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Where?¡± ¡°The International Integrative Brain Disorder Conference.¡± ¡°I¡¯m going to a conference in the U.S. in two days. It¡¯s a different one, though.¡± ¡°The IUBMB?¡± ¡°How did you know?¡± ¡°That¡¯s the most famous one among the ones that are happening now. I¡¯m going there after my conference, too.¡± IUBMB stood for the International Union of Biochemistry and Molecr Biology. The reason that Celligener was going to IUBMB was because they were a venturepany. It was where promising new technologies were promoted, international investments were given, and where people were recruited. It was the best ce for new investors, job seekers, and venturepanies who needed to meet otherpanies they could work with. Although, Young-Joon had a different goal. ¡°Shall we begin?¡± Choi Myung-Joon said. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°First of all, we bought the strain you told us, Clorotonis limuvitus. And we also modified the genes you directed us to do. We confirmed ATak711, YJ2, mCAL by sequencing, overexpressed them by two hundred percent, and we also confirmed them by Western Blot.¡± ¡°I think I also asked you to check the expression level of Amuc and the vesicles. Did you do that by chance?¡± Young-Joon didn¡¯t tell anyone yet, but Amuc was a biomaterial secreted by bacteria that could cure type-2 diabetes. Vesicles were a small foamy membrane that the bacteria used to transport Amuc. ¡°It¡¯s right here.¡± Choi Myung-Joon went onto the next slide as if he was waiting for it. Pictures of the vesicles from Clorotonis limuvitus came up on the screen. ¡°This picture was taken by adding a fluorescent green tag to Amuc. As you can see, the vesicle is lighting up in green, meaning that Amuc is wrapped in the vesicle when it is secreted.¡± Young-Joon smiled in satisfaction. Choi Myung-Joon went on. ¡°We used fluorescence flow cytometry and separated these vesicles into another tube. We purified it with FPLC and confirmed that it was Amuc.¡± ¡°Good work.¡± ¡°Sir, we did this because you ordered us to, but what does Amuc do?¡± Choi Myung-Joon asked. He thought it would have some significant effect since Young-Joon was so obsessed with it, but he couldn¡¯t predict what it would be. ¡°I guess I could tell you now since Attorney Lee Hae-Won and this project is confirmed to be A-Bio¡¯s.¡± Young-Joon went on. ¡°That material called Amuc is a cure for type-2 diabetes.¡± Choi Myung-Joon almost dropped hisser pointer. ¡°This is... What? What is this?¡± ¡°Type-2 diabetes is a type of autoimmune disease. The Amuc protein will normalize the function of immune cells to suppress their response and decrease insulin resistance.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°It will probably have therapeutic effects on diabetes even if we purify Amuc and inject it intravenously. But the best method is to establish Clorotonis limuvitus in the gut as the patients take probiotics. In my opinion, the most severe patients will also see results in four months at the most.¡± ¡°How did you figure this out?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked like she couldn¡¯t believe it. ¡°I got the idea while reading some papers.¡± Choi Myung-Joon was a little confused. ¡°Then... Is this a drug? Or is it a health supplement?¡± Usually, products that were made to prevent and treat diseases and had clear effects and side effects were usually called drugs. Products that had less of an effect but were safer due to less side effects were called health supplements; they didn¡¯t target a specific disease and improved arge variety of functions in the body. ¡°It¡¯s neither. It¡¯s more effective than any diabetes treatment in the market right now, but it virtually has no side effects. It specifically targets diabetes, but it¡¯s still probiotics, which improves arge variety of functions,¡± Young-Joon said. Seo Yoon-Ju gulped. ¡®So, he¡¯s saying that this drug is out of this world...¡¯ Choi Myung-Joon asked, ¡°Then what are you going to create it as?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s do both. Let¡¯s put it out as a generic drug by purifying Amuc and as a health supplement by using live bacteria.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°But I think it will be really hard to get approval from the MFDS.¡±[1] Song Ji-Hyun added, ¡°It¡¯s not a GMO, but a LMO.¡± GMOs were gically modified organisms, but they were dead. For example, they were things like gically modified corn powder. However, LMO were living modified organisms. Not only were they heavily regted, they had to start by obtaining approval for Clorotonis, a microorganism that wasn¡¯t recognized by the MFDS. ¡°Even if we prove its safety, the MFDS will be very conservative on this because they are going to be afraid of taking responsibility if something goes wrong unexpectedly.: ¡°It¡¯s alright. They will give us their approval.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°There are three hundred million type-2 diabetes patients in the world. They will not be able to make three hundred million people suffer in pain because they¡¯re scared and hesitant to give their approval when we¡¯ve clearly shown its safety and efficacy,¡± Young-Joon said. He added, ¡°And someone who is internationally renowned in this field has joined us. Doctor Felicida will join us as the principal scientist.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± ¡°We¡¯re going to focus ourpany¡¯s resources on this project for quite a while. Let¡¯s take a look at the progress for the capsule coating technology.¡± ¡°Sure.¡± Song Ji-Hyun opened her presentation files and reported their progress. ¡°... And so, we confirmed that the capsule coating safely transported the target material through the digestive organs into the gut through a mouse experiment done with the radiology team. We saw that the alginate hydrogelyered with chitosan had a positive effect as well.¡± Young-Joon nodded his head. ¡°Good. I think you should have a meeting with Doctor Felicida next. I think I will be a bit busy even after returning from America. I will leave the basic set-up of Amuc to you.¡± * * * On Friday morning, a paper was published in Science. The name of the paper was [The Treatment of Alzheimer¡¯s Disease and Regeneration of the Brain Using Stem Cells.] There were about fifteen authors: Young-Joon as the first and corresponding author, and Professor Shin Jung-Ju who conducted the clinical study as the second author. Other than them, scientists who participated in creating the stem cells and the doctors who took care of the patients were listed as authors in order of their contribution. When someone clicked on the affiliation category, which showed where the author was affiliated with, Young-Joon¡¯spany came up. It had changed from [A-Gen] to [A-Gen, A-Bio.] A summary of the paper, which was edited by the editor in chief, Samuel, himself, made the front page of Science. [In this paper, we created small stem cells, eight micrometers in diameter, by suppressing the expression of the AKKT gene, and we sent it to the brain by attaching a caverlin ligand to pass the blood brain barrier. Afterwards, we treated it with 3K3A-APC to differentiate the stem cells into neurons and regenerated the brain. We found that the brain size, cognitive ability, and problem solving of all eight patients who received this treatment recovered to normal levels, and there were no signs of side effects for five weeks.] Even if there was a huge paper published in Science, it usually didn¡¯t dominate the news on Naver. However, it differed by what kind of paper it was. For news like this, reporters who specialized in science had to release an article covering this paper. All of a sudden, it became huge. [A-Bio conquers Alzheimer¡¯s.] [A world with no Alzheimer''s is approaching.] [The age where no brain diseases exist.] [Dementia cured with stem cells.] In just about an hour, forty news articles had been released. There were also some ridiculous articles among the sports news gossip. [Stem cells can improve learning in students?!] [Erectile dysfunction is treatable with stem cells! Give confidence to slouched men... ] [Ryu Young-Joon, CEO of A-Bio, dating scandal with an actor, Miss S.] It was just clickbait with no actual content. The only thing those articles wanted to do was attract more views as A-Bio and Ryu Young-Joon were keywords that guaranteed clicks. ¡°Are they insane? Who is Miss S? They are literally saying anything.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk felt bewildered as he read the articles in the morning. Andter, in A-Bio¡¯s office, all thepany phones were ringing at once. Around ten employees were answering the phone, looking like their soul had been sucked out of their body. ¡°As nothing has been agreed upon yet...¡± ¡°I will deliver it to the CEO...¡± They were repeating the same thing over and over again, like parrots. Offers for investments and meetings were pouring in. 1. MFDS is the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. It is the FDA of Korea. ? Chapter 53: A-Bio (8)

Chapter 53: A-Bio (8)

Young-Joon was someone who was born and raised in Korea. It meant that unlike other elite scientists, he hadn¡¯t been overseas ever. He finished his bachelor¡¯s, master¡¯s and doctorate at Jungyoon University. He went overseas a few times for conferences, but he didn¡¯t stay that long. Even so, he couldn¡¯t go to conferences in the U.S. or Europe because it was too expensive, as theb hepleted his doctorate in didn¡¯t have a lot of money. They struggled to pay the students even after getting a one million dor project from the government, so they couldn¡¯t afford the flight to Europe or the U.S. As such, Young-Joon¡¯s experience overseas was only limited to Asia. He was one of the smartest people in humanity who had conquered a and Alzheimer¡¯s, but he had never taken a flight that was more than ten hours long. ¡®I¡¯m kind of nervous.¡¯ A day before the paper was published in Science, Young-Joon, who had arrived at Incheon airport with his security team, was kind of frozen in nervousness. He had to fly for eleven hours with Delta America Airlines. Park Joo-Hyuk had booked him a first-ss ticket, saying that he had to befortable when flying for long hours. Young-Joon always sat in economy with cheap airlines, but all of a sudden, he was flying first-ss. ¡°Sir!¡± A woman who looked to be in her thirties arrived with two airport employees. She approached him while dragging her carrier. She reached out to Young-Joon for a handshake as she took off her sunsses and hung them in her shirt. ¡°Nice to meet you. My name¡¯s Alice, or Choi Yeon-Ah.¡± ¡°Nice to meet you.¡± Young-Joon shook her hand. Alice had a master¡¯s in biology, and her current job was as a simultaneous interpreter. She also tranted English biology books into Korean. She also happened to be Lee Hae-Won¡¯s sunbae, which was why they were able to get in touch. ¡°I can only read and write in English since I¡¯ve been in Korea my entire life.¡± Young-Joon chuckled like he was embarrassed. Actually, Young-Joon¡¯s English was good enough for him to have a conversation with Jessie in English, like he did during the Science interview. He didn¡¯t have a problem with using English in everyday life, academic meetings, or conversations. ¡®But this meeting is a business meeting.¡¯ Young-Joon thought that even the nuance of one word could have a big influence. As such, he hired a trantor to be safe. ¡°No problem. I will help you,¡± Alice replied. Young-Joon stared at the airport employees standing behind Alice. ¡°Hello, sir. We will escort you to the VIP check-in lounge,¡± the employees said. Young-Joon had found out now that the airport took care of the pre-boarding processes if they were flying first-ss. There was no need for him to line up; if he just sat in the lounge and sipped his drink, the airlinepleted everything, from checking in to checking in baggage, and helped him board the ne. ¡°You didn¡¯t know?¡± Alice asked Young-Joon, who looked a little stunned in the VIP lounge, as if this was unexpected. ¡°Yes. I¡¯ve only flown economy before. It¡¯s cool, but also a little too much,¡± Young-Joon answered in embarrassment. ¡°The airport limousine sometimeses to pick you up as well. They do everything for you, from the front of your house to the destination.¡± ¡°I see.¡± Money really made things convenient. ¡°But you are a fascinating person. I¡¯ve done international tranting as well with some businessmen and high-ranking officials, but I¡¯ve never seen anyone like you before, Doctor Ryu.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°You know everything about research, but nothing about things like this. Usually, people are the opposite.¡± ¡°... All a scientist needs to know is science.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. I said that because I like that about you. I heard about you from Park Joo-Hyuk, and you¡¯re just like what he said.¡± ¡°What did he say?¡± ¡°He said that science is the only thing you know and that you¡¯re smart, but an oddball and single-minded person.¡± ¡°Please tell him that I do not like being exposed.¡± ¡°There are probably people that are fans of you because of that, myself included.¡± * * * Soon, Young-Joon and his group boarded the ne. He was shocked by therge space, seat, bed, and bathroom that made it look like a hotel room, but he didn¡¯t let it show. As they were having dinner, which was provided by the ne, Alice asked, ¡°Could I ask you about A-Bio? Normal people like me are really curious since you¡¯re super famous, and A-Bio is really big right now.¡± ¡°Sure. I¡¯ll tell you unless it¡¯s apany secret. What do you want to know?¡± Young-Joon replied after taking a sip of wine. ¡°Is Alzheimer¡¯s really curable with stem cell therapy?¡± ¡°I guess I can tell you since my paper will be on Science by the time wend.¡± Young-Joon added, ¡°The Alzheimer¡¯s clinical trial already seeded.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Alice¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°Yes. We¡¯ll be able tomercialize it after we go through phases two and three with more patients, but it was sessful in phase one.¡± ¡°Woah... What about the a treatment?¡± ¡°Phase two is already done, and we¡¯re on phase three.¡± ¡°Then will the future you talked about during your interviewe soon?¡± ¡°We still have a long way to go.¡± ¡°But you¡¯ll get rich.¡± ¡°Haha, not yet. The fact that nothing has beenmercialized yet means that we have no sales yet,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°Then is there no revenue model for thepany yet?¡± ¡°We¡¯re getting royalties from the iPSC technology. After the a clinical trial, a lot of medical schools and biotechpanies are using that technology and trying new things.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°But it¡¯s really little. To get enough money to grow thepany, products like the a or Alzheimer¡¯s treatment have to bemercialized and used in hospitals.¡± ¡°When do you think that will happen?¡± ¡°At this rate, in a few months.¡± ¡°Also, I heard that you¡¯re trying to get funding. What is that for?¡± Kim Chul-Kwon, the head of his security team, asked. ¡°There are two things I need in order to proceed. The funding is to arrange those two,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°What is it?¡± Alice asked. ¡°It¡¯s a secret from here on.¡± ¡°Hmph.¡± Young-Joon smiled. ¡®Professional staff and a major hospital.¡¯ It was going to be a very new type of treatment center. Whether it was the a treatment or Alzheimer¡¯s treatment, there was one problem when it was based on induced pluripotent stem cells: it was that it required the process to create stem cells for treatment. Could doctors at the hospital do this? They were professionals, but cultivating cells was something entirely different. As such, A-Gen created the stem cells and sent them to the hospital when they were doing the clinical trials for a or Alzheimer¡¯s. The reason he chose Sunyoo Hospital in the first ce was because it was close to theb, therefore making that process more convenient. No matter how safe it was, the fact that there was a transportation process was a penalty for safety that could not be ignored. As such, stem cells had to be developed on-site and used right away. That was why Young-Joon was going to make a hospital that specialized in regenerative treatment. Hospital technicians who specialized in cell biology would standby in the cell culture room and develop the patient¡¯s tissues into iPSCs as soon as they received it. Then, it could be delivered to the doctor right away to be administered to the patient and treat them. It was simr to how a radiological technician was hired by the hospital to work with doctors. A hospital that specialized in the treatment of a and Alzheimer¡¯s, other neurological disorders, which would be developed in the future, and organ regenerative treatment. After that, it would be the pioneer to conquer all incurable diseases, starting with pancreatic cancer and type-2 diabetes. If A-Bio paved the way, several other hospitals would follow. And to achieve this, Young-Joon needed arge number of technicians who could develop stem cells and doctors who could do things like bone marrow transnts. They would need to newly develop these people, but they also needed to invite talented people from all over the world. This was why Young-Joon was going to the US. ¡°If you get funding, are you selling bonds? I don¡¯t know what it is, but I want to buy some if I can,¡± Alice asked with a chuckle. ¡°Oh, it¡¯s not that kind of funding.¡± ¡°Then what is it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a sponsored crowdfund. We¡¯re going to create a foundation and raise funds from all over the world to fight incurable diseases.¡± At this rate, he would be able to make a specialized hospital from donations alone. If he was short in some areas, he could use government subsidies or his own money. Young-Joon had seen corruption during the clinical study for Alzheimer¡¯s. If he could, he wanted to leave the foundation and the hospital as independent of capital as possible. * * * This year¡¯s International Integrative Brain Disorder Conference was held at Brown University. It was an Ivy League university located in the state of Rhode Ind. Originally, it wasn¡¯t a very popr conference. Usually, about a thousand scientists and doctors attended, and about twentypany booths opened. But this year, almost three thousand people in the industry attended. The reason was Young-Joon. Speakers at the conference had to deliver their presentations to the people in charge of the conference in advance. It was because they had to make a schedule with the title of the talk and the speaker¡¯s name in advance so that the other scientists could choose the one they wanted to listen to. As such, after Young-Joon sent the manuscript of his paper to Science, he also notified the association in charge of the conference of the presentation data when Samuel and Jessie were editing and fixing the format of his paper. Simply put, it meant that the title of Young-Joon¡¯s talk already circted in the conference, like a spoiler, even before the paper was published in Science. [The Treatment of Alzheimer¡¯s Disease and Regeneration of the Brain Using Stem Cells] This was the title, and the person delivering the talk was the star scientist who shook the world with his sess in the a clinical trial. What did this mean? It probably meant that although the data hadn¡¯t been revealed yet, he seeded in the clinical trial. After the schedule for his talk was released, the number of attendees instantly skyrocketed. The organizers of the conference rushed to increase lecture rooms, rearranged chairs and desks, and modified restaurant reservations. And finally, on the day of the conference, numerous speakers gathered on the first floor of the natural sciences building at Brown University. Professors of medicine from prestigious universities showed up continuously, and famous people from the Harvard Medical Center, the Alzheimer¡¯s Team at Salk Institute, and the GDFI Braincell Laboratory showed up all at once. ¡®Holy, what is this?¡¯ Professor Behnach from Brown University was under great pressure as the head of this conference. It was rare to see such famous people gathered in one ce at any conference, as everyone¡¯s schedules didn¡¯t match up very well. ¡®Is there some sort of medical social group that I don¡¯t know about? Did they rent a bus together ande?¡¯ About three thousand people were registered for the conference, but there were way more people than that. It was because of the insane paper that was published in Science the day before. This reminded him about the line of tourists that was in front of the Forbidden City when he visited Beijing on vacation. Professor Behnach wondered who all these people were, but when he looked closely, they weren¡¯t all scientists. There were excited reporters, businessmen thinking about how to connect this astonishing item with their business, students burning with passion and pride in science, and patient families who found a ray of hope in the dark. It was extremely rare for a conference to attract such a diverse poption. Atst, the conference became so big that they needed guards to maintain control. ¡®This isn¡¯t a Justin Bieber concert or something, but guards have toe and control the crowd because so many regr people came to some boring conference?¡¯ Professor Behnach had never seen this kind of thing in his thirty-five years of teaching. It felt like he was dreaming. This phenomenon itself was newsworthy. Reporters were capturing the situation and making articles about it in real-time. Young-Joon¡¯s talk was at ten in the morning. After giving his talk for two hours, he was going to have a luncheon meeting with a few professors of medicine and professors from Brown. Since it was half past nine, Young-Joon should be showing up, but he hadn¡¯t arrived at the conference yet. * * * At eight in the morning on the day of the conference, Security Head Kim Chul-Kwon called Young-Joon by the hotel phone. ¡ªAre you ready to leave, sir? ¡°Yes. Should we get going? What about Alice?¡± ¡ªShe¡¯s already down and waiting with us. ¡°I¡¯ll be down right away.¡± ¡ªI will go up and escort you down. Please wait inside. ¡°Alright.¡± ¡ªBut you have a visitor. ¡°A visitor?¡± ¡ªThey came without letting us know. Should we set up a meeting right now? ¡°It¡¯s a little tight since we only have two hours left until the seminar. I don¡¯t know.¡± ¡ªBut they seem important. ¡°Who are they?¡± ¡ª... They came from the White House. Kim Chul-Kwon¡¯s voice trembled as he delivered the news. While working as security, Kim Chul-Kwon had worked for rude, third-generation chaebols[1] and famous celebrities in East Asia. But that was it; those were the most famous or powerful people he had met. Young-Joon had suddenly be one of the most famous people in the world, but he didn¡¯t expect someone from the White House toe see him as soon as he came to America. ¡°Who from the White House?¡± ¡ªThey are from the Office of Science and Technology Policy. The director himself is here to see you. The Office of Science and Technology, the OSTP, had a great influence on science and technology in the United States. The director of this office was also the science advisor to the President, who consulted the President on policies regarding science and technology. Simply put, they were the key person who determined and oversaw the science and technology policies that came from the White House. The director, the chief executive, hade all the way here to see him. ¡°I¡¯ll see him.¡± Later, Kim Chul-Kwon, who hade to get Young-Joon, escorted him to a private meeting room inside the hotel. ¡°Haha. Hello sir...¡± Alice greeted Young-Joon with a nervous face. The security team from K-Cops stood behind her, and there were five men in suits standing across from her. The man with white hair stood up from the sofa. ¡°Hello.¡± ¡°Should I trante? He said hello,¡± Alice said. ¡°I know that much.¡± Young-Joon shook hands with the man. ¡°Nice to meet you. I¡¯m Young-Joon Ryu.¡±[2] ¡°Nice to meet you. I¡¯m Director James Holdren from the Office of Science and Technology at the White House. I apologize for not letting you know in advance. We came right away after seeing the paper.¡± ¡°It¡¯s alright. But I do not have a lot of time as I have to attend a conference soon. Can we get straight to it?¡± Young-Joon said while staring right at James. Young-Joon didn¡¯t seem intimidated or nervous when he had the leader of American science sitting right across from him. ¡®Then why was he nervous when he got on the first-ss flight?¡¯ Feeling a little baffled, Alice started to focus on tranting. ¡°Have a seat first.¡± James let Young-Joon sit down beside Alice and went on. ¡°We had our eyes on you when you first published your paper on induced pluripotent stem cells and nerve cell differentiation in Science.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°Since you say you don¡¯t have time, I will get straight to the point,¡± James said. ¡°Doctor Ryu, we will give you US citizenship. Come to the United States. The U.S. federal government will provide you with unimaginable funding and support.¡± 1. word referring to conglomerates owned by families and also to members of said families ? 2. Young-Joon is introducing himself in English, but speaks Koreanter on, which is tranted by Alice, his trantor. ? Chapter 54: A Next-Generation General Hospital (1)

Chapter 54: A Next-Generation General Hospital (1)

¡°You¡¯ll give me citizenship?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Yes. Do you remember when you said you would cure all neurological disorders in your interview?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°Honestly, not a lot of scientists believed you then. Your iPSC technology was astonishing, but curing neurological disorders is something entirely different. The public may have cheered, but the majority of scientists just thought of it as something you blurted out in youthful passion.¡± ¡°I would think so.¡± ¡°But now that you released clinical trial data that shows your sess in treating Alzheimer¡¯s, a lot more people will take your interview more seriously,¡± James said. ¡°To make your dreame true as soon as possible, you will have to coborate with them. And the most effective way to do that is for you to move your research base to the U.S.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°You probably already know this as you are an expert in this field, but the United States is an international hub of biology and medicine, which is acknowledged by the world. We have the most advanced technology, facilities, and human resources that no other country can match up to.¡± James smiled. ¡°One evidence of that is how your country pronounces genome, right? It used to be genom, but everyone says genome now.¡± Genome, or the entire set of DNA instructions in a cell, was first introduced as genom, which was the German way to say it.[1] It was pronounced like that up until the 2000¡¯s, but all the scientists in Korea were influenced by the overwhelming research and results produced from the Anglo-American region. Now, everyone in Korea pronounced it the American way. ¡°You know a lot about Korea,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°My son-inw is Korean. That¡¯s why I am more fond of you.¡± James had done a lot of research on Young-Joon: what kind of person he was, and what kind of things he considered before choosing and acting. ¡°Doctor Ryu, it feels like God sent you here to advance medicine and science. It seems like that¡¯s the only thing you want.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I heard that you do notpromise with power, nor do you seek money. The only thing you want is the advancement of science, the conquering of diseases, that¡¯s it. Is that right?¡± James asked. ¡°Then is there any reason for you to note to America? Put your patriotism aside for a little bit and think globally for the future of humanity. The U.S. has the most resources in biology, and I think we have a responsibility to support you.¡± ¡°Thank you for saying that. There are no borders in science. I will do anything to elerate my research as long as it does not break research ethics.¡± Alice and Kim Chul-Kwon looked at Young-Joon in surprise as he said that. ¡°Director, how can the federal government support me?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°First of all, transfer A-Bio to America. The federal government will lead and help the moving process. I heard that a significant number of key individuals at yourpany are foreigners who joined yourpany after seeing the job listing in Science. I don¡¯t think they will leave because you¡¯re moving thepany here. And it will be less bothersome to do it now as yourpany is still new.¡± ¡°What about A-Gen? I am still the director.¡± ¡°It¡¯smon forrge multinationalpanies to have a foreign director or CEO. Even if you obtain American citizenship, it won¡¯t be a problem for you to work at A-Gen. It¡¯s just moving the location of A-Bio to America,¡± James replied. He added, ¡°And if A-Bio bes a U.S. corporation, the federal government will set up a new office building for A-Bio in Silicon Valley. And we will provide you with three billion dors of financial and material aid every year. How does that sound?¡± ¡®Three billion dors.¡¯ It was definitely an extraordinary offer. ¡°But I think the Korean government would regte it if we do something like that.¡± ¡°Of course. But if you want to, Doctor Ryu, we will be able to make a way,¡± James replied. ¡°And there is one more benefit we can provide you with.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°The federal government of America will protect you from the cartels of vested pharmaceuticalpanies.¡± ¡°Pharmaceuticalpany cartels?¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu, there was an attempt to use stem cells for nerve cell treatment before. It was a pretty promising venturepany called Neural Clinics. Do you know about their downfall?¡± ¡°What happened?¡± ¡°A few established pharmaceuticalpanies, including Schumatix and Roche, wrote press releases. It had this kind of information on it.¡± James pulled out an article with the press release. [Cancer stem cells are cancer cells that have stem cell-like characteristics. They originate from stem cells and produce various types of cancer cells. Usually, cancer cells only produce a limited type of cells, like lung cancer creating lung cancer cells and liver cancer creating liver cancer cells, but cancer stem cells can produce all types of cancer cells and spread them throughout the body. The safety of stem cell therapy being developed by Neural Clinics has not yet been proven, and the possibility that it can mutate into cancer stem cells still exists. ording to the research of Professor Pietro of Harvard Medicine and twelve others, tumors were found in twelve out of thirty mice that were injected with stem cells, and...] ¡°Well, they¡¯re not wrong,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Instigation in science is usually only done with facts.¡± ¡°You¡¯re telling me to not be like Te?¡± ¡°Exactly.¡± In the twentieth century, Edison invented direct current electricity, and Te invented alternating current electricity. Alternating current electricity was more effective and convenient, and it waspletely safe. But Edison knew that, too. Feeling his livelihood threatened, Edison invented the electric chair using alternating current electricity and used it as an execution tool. It was a way to smear Te¡¯s image; he had left an impression to the public that alternative current electricity was dangerous. As a result, Westinghouse, thepany that invested in Te, almost went bankrupt. ¡°The truth wille out one day, but it will take a long time. The public isn¡¯t as smart as you, Doctor Ryu. Patients all around the world are still loyal torge pharmaceuticalpanies. If the cartels start instigating lies and get in your way, you will face many difficulties,¡± James said. ¡°So are you saying that you will stop them from instigating lies and making threats if I move A-Bio to America?¡± ¡°No, this is still applicable even if you don¡¯t move A-Bio to America.¡± Young-Joon tilted his head in puzzlement. ¡°Even if I don¡¯t move?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. From now on, Doctor Ryu, I am not speaking as the director of the Office of Science and Technology at the White House, but as a citizen and a scientist,¡± James said. ¡°I like the beliefs that you have more than your genius mind. I like the scientist side of you behind the genius side that I got to know while researching about you.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I¡¯ve seen a lot of the things pharmaceutical cartels do while being in this position. In ces like Africa and India, there is unimaginable violence and immoral acts happening. Those people really calcte people¡¯s lives in terms of money.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right...¡± ¡°Before I became a director, I was a professor at MIT and a scientist. Speaking as a scientist, I believe the pharmaceutical industry needs someone to show them the right attitude to have, not someone who will cultivate knowledge. Even if Prometheus brought us fire, what good would it be if the person using it was an arsonist?¡± James took a deep breath. ¡°To be honest, that was one of the reasons why we wanted you more.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°There¡¯s only one thing that we want,¡± James said. ¡°It is for you to grow yourpany quickly without being destroyed by the maniption ofrge pharmaceuticalpanies and advance human medicine. I''m sorry to say this, but I don¡¯t think that Korea will be able to do that properly.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t that quite a dangerousment?¡± ¡°Why does it matter? It¡¯s not like this conversation is being recorded anyways. And right now. I think your future and the advancement of science is more important than the rtionship between the U.S. and Korea or our honor. I want this conversation to be nothing but honest.¡± ¡°I understand what you are saying.¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu, please think globally. You are not someone who should be limited to Korea. Objectively, the U.S. can support you better. Come to America.¡± James made a move. After a moment of silence, Young-Joon spoke, ¡°As I said before, there are no borders in science. I also am not really bogged down by what country¡¯s citizenship I hold.¡± ¡°Then are youing to America?¡± ¡°Even if you are going to give A-Bio a lot of support, I cannot move there. The key individuals of A-Bio are Korean scientists who first created iPSCs and a a treatment. It¡¯s easier for me to work with people who have good chemistry with me. I don¡¯t know about the long-run, but if I move mypany, I am certain that we will lose time right now.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°But I understand the part you brought up, Director. I do not want to lose an advantage like that. How about this? I will make an affiliate of A-Bio in the U.S., and I would like it to be partnered with the National Cancer Institute.¡± ¡°The National Cancer Institute?¡± ¡°We are also considering starting cancer research. We are currently developing a treatment for pancreatic cancer.¡± James looked at him in shock. He did not know this. ¡°Pancreatic cancer?¡± James asked. ¡°Yes. I cannot give you data about it, but I believe it will seed. The U.S. is the leading country in cancer research and treatment in the world. And the National Cancer Institute has extensive data about patient gics. They dominate this field,¡± Young-Joon said.¡±If you give us ess to all the data, cutting-edge sequencing equipment, all types of chemical, doctors, and technicians, we will continue cancer research there in the future. Please provide all the support you mentioned before to the affiliatepany.¡± ¡°...¡± James thought about it for a moment. ¡°You have shown significant results in the stem cell field, but there hasn¡¯t been anything you have been acknowledged for in anticancer drugs.¡± ¡°Then you can wait until we conduct the pancreatic cancer clinical trial. We can discuss thister on.¡± * * * As soon as Young-Joon got off his escort vehicle, he ran straight to the seminar room. Kim Chul-Kwon ran behind him without difficulty, but Alice quickly ran out of breath. ¡®This brings back memories.¡¯ Young-Joon did this when he was going to present about induced pluripotent stem cells at the year-end seminar at A-Gen. He was worried that he might bete like that time, but he made it just in time. Click. When Young-Joon opened the door and walked inside, it was five minutes before his turn. The thousands of people filling up the first and second floor of therge lecture room all stared at Young-Joon at once. This room was rented specifically for his presentation. It was originally a cultural space used for concerts and ys, but it was transformed into a lecture room for this conference. The capacity of this hall was about two thousand five hundred people; it was bigger than the seminar room A-Gen had, but it didn¡¯t look like there was room to spare. It was because researchers who wanted to listen to this monumental presentation and passionate students came inside even though there were no more seats. They were sitting on the staircase, standing in the aisle, or leaning on the second-floor railing with a pen and notepad in their hands. ¡°Wee, Doctor Ryu!¡± Professor Behnach said. ¡°Sorry I¡¯mte,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°It¡¯s alright. There¡¯s still five minutes left.¡± ¡°I should get up there quickly.¡± Young-Joon nced at Alice. She seemed a little flustered because the lecture was bigger than she thought. ¡°S-Should I go up with you?¡± Alice asked. ¡°It¡¯s alright for now. I will do the presentation and answer questions by myself.¡± Young-Joon went up on the stage. It was wide, like a stage for a premier. He walked across the stage and approached theputer, step by step. He looked small from a seat faraway from the stage, but he still looked strong. The presentation data he sent beforehand was already open on theputer. The host handed him aser pointer that connected to the mouse on theputer. In the tense silence, Young-Joon picked up the mic. He pressed the present button and lit up therge screen. [The Treatment of Alzheimer¡¯s Disease and Regeneration of the Brain Using Stem Cells] As the title came up, there was a short round of apuse from the audience. Young-Joon stood in front of therge audience. Across from him, there were slightmotions and nervousness. There were fingers flipping through papers that were printed beforehand, the sound of pens scribbling, and the sound of keyboards cking. Young-Joon could see desperate or hopeful tears, sighs, and prayers from a few ces. ¡°Hello. My name is Ryu Young-Joon from A-Bio.¡± Young-Joon spoke into the mic. Even the sound of breathing disappeared as the scientists focused on the presentation. Watching that, Alice felt a little thrilled. Everyone was extremely focused on this presentation: the sess of phase one of the Alzheimer¡¯s clinical trial using stem cells. ¡°I will begin the presentation about the research where we administered stem cells to eight Alzheimer¡¯s patients and improved their symptoms.¡± Young-Joon began the lecture. He had used a lot of energy meeting and talking to someone like the director of the Office of Science and Technology at the White House early in the morning, but he was not mentally tired at all. The lecture, which was filled with extensive clinical data and thorough analysis of the mechanism, went on for an hour-and-a-half and captivated the audience slowly, but intensely. ¡°... And so, through the MRI, you can see that the cerebral cortex has expanded again, the ventricles have gotten smaller, and that we have recovered an average of ny-seven percent of the brain¡¯s sizepared to the normal brain. The beta-amyloid imaging also confirmed that the amount umted had significantly decreased and was no longer found in the brains of the patients,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°We have seen the same treatment effect in all eight patients, and no tumors have urred as of now. Thank you.¡± The presentation came to an end. ¡°I guess we have about thirty minutes left. I will answer any questions if anyone has any.¡± p p p! With a round of apuse and shouts, hands shot up from the audience from all over. ¡°Can this be applied to other brain disorders other than Alzheimer¡¯s?¡± Reba, a professor at the Johns Hopkins Brain Science Institute, asked. ¡°We haven¡¯t tested it, but I believe it will be. I think it will be effective for strokes and Parkinson¡¯s as well.¡± ¡°How did you cross the blood brain barrier?¡± This time, Aiden, a biology professor at Brown, asked. ¡°We attached a RVG29 glycoprotein to it.¡± Questions poured in from all over. ¡°How safe is 3K3A-APC?¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu, how many people are you considering to include in phase two of your clinical trial?¡± ¡°Do you have ns to do clinical trials on patients who have a different gic background than Korean?¡± ¡°Is there a possibility of those stem cells going to different tissues?¡± Young-Joon answered each question calmly. Then, he got an appropriate question. ¡°What¡¯s A-Bio¡¯s next target for stem cell therapy?¡± ¡°We are going to regenerate the spine.¡± ¡°The spine!¡± ¡°And we will make bone marrow as well. Next, it will be the reconstruction of cartge and organs. We are going to start clinical trials on them in less than a year.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡®What?¡¯ The professors¡¯ jaws dropped in shock. The entire audience looked dumbfounded. ¡°A-Bio is capable of doing that. I believe that we have proved it today. There is something I would like to create while developing these technologies. Since there are a lot of reporters here, I will also consider this a press conference and announce it right now,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°We are nning to build a hospital tailored to individual patients using organoids, tissue that mimics theplexity of an organ, and regenerative treatment that is based on stem cells.¡± ¡°T-Take a picture...¡± The audience had been told to refrain from taking pictures beforehand, but it didn¡¯t matter anymore. Cameras began shing from all over. Reporters¡¯ pens and typing began writing faster. They didn¡¯t miss one single word and wrote down everything Young-Joon was saying. ¡°This hospital will be the first new-generation hospital. We need a lot of money and people. Please help me.¡± 1. Genom doesn¡¯t have a ¡°j¡± sound like genome does, but a ¡°g¡± sound. ? Chapter 55: A Next-Generation General Hospital (2)

Chapter 55: A Next-Generation General Hospital (2)

What was a hospital? It was where diseases were treated with treatment methods that were based on humanity¡¯s knowledge of the human body. Hospitals in ancient times were basically a ce for sorcery. Their idea of treatment was to light a fire and pray; it wasn¡¯t really much of a hospital. Ancient Greece created the first medical profession that was separated from the clergy. It was a prototype of the modern hospital system. The naturalist view of disease was first established, but most of the treatment was still sorcery-like. For example, they believed that one could rx their mind and have their disease cured by drinking spring water, bathing cleanly, and going through a quiet tunnel leading to the healing room. It was shocking, but back then, this method and extracting blood was considered to be a treatment method. In Rome, a treatment center was created. It was the point where it began to be systemized and more scientific in many different ways. Significantly improved hospitals began appearing In the Imic world during the Middle Ages; they even had a separate psychiatric department, taught professional doctors, and created a code of ethics, although their level of knowledge was quite low. It was funny in that most of the treatment was free and they gave discharged patients money for living expenses, but there were some parts that were better than now. But for the rest of the world, treatment was still focused on taking care of patients and nursing them. It was only after the modern scientific revolution that the concept of hospitals that was familiar to modern society appeared. The rapid development of medical science, the discovery of penicillin, the discovery of varition, the development of anesthesia, the invention of the stethoscope, and the establishment of X-ray examination: hospitals grew rapidly as major breakthroughs came out one by one. Hospitals, which were basically charity organizations and nursing homes before, wiped their te clean, and the scientific approach and research to find out what diseases were and deal with them began. Their progress was extremely fast, and they became significantly better quickly. Modern hospitals treat patients while geared up with thetest knowledge and technology in medicine and cutting-edge equipment like MRIs and surgical robots. But they still had a limitation. ¡®Modern hospitals fail to differentiate each patient¡¯s individual characteristics.¡¯ Of course, they did basic levels, such as differentiating between children and adults, or pregnant women. But if two adults around the same age went to the hospital for the same disease, they would be prescribed the same medicine. What was the problem in prescribing them the same medicine if they had the same disease? It was a problem. ¡°It¡¯s because the level of efficacy of the medicine can be different,¡± Young-Joon said near the end of the question-and-answer session. ¡°Right now, early-stage cancer patients get first-line drugs when they go to the hospital. Things like Imatinib or Erlotinib. But will they work well on those patients? Some may see effects, but there are patients who don¡¯t.¡± The reporters took photos of Young-Joon without rest. They hade to report on the sess of the Alzheimer¡¯s clinical trial, but much more shocking news was happening live, right in front of them. ¡°For example, Vemurafenib is a powerful anticancer drug that catches and kills mutations that ur in a gene called BRAF. It is effective for that type of cancer cell. But what if that cancer cell has a mutation in the MEK gene? Then, those cancer cells carry resistance to Vemurafenib,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°But in modern medicine, we do not investigate the molecr characteristics of the patient¡¯s tissues when treating them. We just use drugs like Vemurafenib and Imatinib, then switch to another one if it doesn¡¯t work. If we use it for one month and it doesn¡¯t work, we switch to another one. If that one doesn¡¯t, we switch to another one after using it for a month.¡± What Young-Joon was saying could be taken as a little provocative, but the doctors just nodded. It was because they knew that Young-Joon was not criticizing them. ¡°It is not the doctor¡¯s fault. It¡¯s a limitation of the system and science. There have been attempts to analyze the gic sequence and treat patients more precisely, but it hasn¡¯t beenmercialized yet. Most hospitals feel limitations in human and material resources. So, we are just trying everything until we find one that works,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°But it is also true that this is killing patients. While we are lost, trying to look for the right drug, patients are losing precious time. So, if we make an organoid based on the stem cells I made, we can solve this problem.¡± ¡°What is an organoid?¡± a reporter raised their hand and asked. ¡°Organoids are small tissues that mimic organs. Imagine, for example, taking the liver tissue out of a patient and growing about one hundred tiny liver tumors, then treating it with one hundred different anticancer drugs.¡± The reporters, who understood what he was saying, looked at Young-Joon in shock. ¡°It will be much easier if we use the anticancer drug that destroys the most cells among the cultivated liver tumors. Itbines ultra-precise diagnosis and treatment. We can dramatically reduce the trial and error for each patient, and even if we don¡¯t develop additional treatments, we can save a lot of patients who do not have much time by dramatically increasing the efficiency of the drugs that exist today.¡± Young-Joon added, ¡°I gave an example of cancer patients to help you understand, but simultaneous diagnostic treatments using organoids can be applied to almost any disease.¡± Click! Click! Cameras shed continuously. ¡°Can organoids be made right now?¡± A reporter asked. ¡°A lot of scientists have attempted, and there has been a lot of progress, but we still have a long way to go. But A-Bio can achieve that quickly. It is because we have stem cell technology,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°We will make organoid technology that can mimic all types of organs. And we will research technology to regenerate the spine, bone marrow, cartge, bones, fat tissue, skin, and organs. And we will use it to regenerate badly damaged structures in the body.¡± Alice felt like her legs were going to give out. ¡®Is that really possible? Hospitals are going to examine and treat people like that?¡¯ ¡°The hospital that A-Bio wants to create will be the first hospital to simultaneously perform regenerative medicine with stem cells and ultra-precise diagnosis using organoids. It will be a type of hospital that has never existed before. Just as we have moved from medieval medicine, which was just nursing homes, to science-based modern medicine, it also must be prepared to advance,¡± Young-Joon said. * * * An expert interview on Young-Joon¡¯s presentation was on the radio. It was Professor Shin Jung-Ju from Yeonyee University Hospital. ¡ªInte Choseon, there was a hospital called Jejung Hall, the first-ever Western-style national hospital. Shin Jung-Ju said. ¡ªThe director who ran the hospital was a doctor and missionary named Avison, and apparently, he had a very hard time because the facilities there werecking. They could only treat about two hundred sixty patients a day. ¡ªTwo hundred sixty patients? In a day? The host epted the lecture. ¡ªYes. So in 1990 at a medical missionary meeting at Carnegie Hall in New York, Professor Avison appealed to the audience to support the Korean medical industry. And do you know what happened? ¡ªWhat happened? ¡ªOne of the famous oil kings in the U.S. who built an oilpany with John D. Rockefeller at the time donated ten thousand dors. It¡¯s billions of dors in today¡¯s market. ¡ªBillions? Just from one appeal? This is amazing, too. So, did Jejung Hall be bigger? ¡ªThe person who donated that money was Louis Henry Severance. And the hospital that was built with that donation was Severance Hospital. No one can deny that Severance Hospital has taken care of the health of a lot of people. ¡ªOf course. ¡ªI want topare what Doctor Ryu did in the U.S. to Avison¡¯s appeal. Now, it¡¯s time for the Severances to step forward. But I don¡¯t think it is just to build a modern hospital in Korea, but it¡¯s a great experiment to advance hospitals for all of humanity. ¡®I know he¡¯s my friend, but is he crazy?¡¯ Park Joo-Hyuk muttered in his head as he listened to Young-Joon¡¯s lecture after hearing the radio show at A-Bio. People were grouped up and watched a video of Young-Joon¡¯s lecture from the International Integrative Brain Disorder Conference on theputer. They had checked it in the morning, which was about twelve hourster due to the time difference, but the world had been turned upside down in one night. Young-Joon¡¯s name was trending, and so was the International Integrative Brain Disorder Conference and the next-generation hospital. Those three were trending for eight hours straight. ¡°Our CEO is so cool. He¡¯s going to do that in one year,¡± Jung Hae-Rim said. ¡°Why are you acting like this is the first time you¡¯re hearing about this? He talked about this during ourst team meeting. He said he¡¯s going to do all kinds of things with stem cells, make a next-generation hospital, let¡¯s do it in a year, all that stuff,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung said. ¡°No, but I didn¡¯t think he would promise the whole world that right then and there. All eyes are going to be on him once he gets the funding.¡± Park Dong-Hyun scratched his head as if felt like he was going to faint just from thinking about it. ¡°But what is an organoid?¡± One of the scientists asked. ¡°It¡¯s like a small organ. To be honest, there were some attempts to use them medically, but it was nothing but a fantasy because it¡¯s so difficult,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk, who was listening to their conversation, replied. ¡°If our CEO did something like that, should we assume that we won¡¯t be going home for a year? Just thinking of that makes me excited.¡± Cheon Ji-Myung chuckled. ¡°But we have a lot of new people joining us. Carpentier ising, too,¡± Jung Hae-Rim said. ¡°Most of them areing in the second half of the year. They all worked important jobs all around the world, so they have to get things sorted and get someone to take over their work. Carpentier included.¡± ¡°I guess that¡¯s true. We don¡¯t have to go home, right? That¡¯s alright, isn¡¯t it, Dong-Hyun sunbae?¡± Jung Hae-Rim nced at Park Dong-Hyun. ¡°Oh, but I have to go see my kid. You know I¡¯m whipped by my wife.¡± ¡°I think it will be possible within a year if the CEO sets up all the basic schemes like before,¡± Jung Hae-Rim said. ¡°Hey, even if our CEO is a genius, we should be suspicious that he¡¯s an alien wearing a skin suit if he can do that alone. We have to call Mulder and Scully, seriously.¡± ¡°As you may remember, I have consistently insisted on the theory of reincarnation for a long time,¡± Koh Soon-Yeol interrupted as he adjusted his sses. ¡°...¡± ¡°Now, I feel like we should really investigate him out of reasonable doubt.¡± ¡°But he hasn¡¯t failed at anything that he said he would do, right?¡± Park Dong-Hyun pointed out. ¡°Let¡¯s trust him.¡± On one side of theb, scientists from the Science journal who joined A-Bio earlier were sharing shockingments. ¡°I want to quit all of a sudden.¡± Jacob had a frown all of a sudden. ¡°To be honest, no otherpany would be able to do that if it wasn¡¯t A-Bio. And our staff aren¡¯t just focused on stem cells, right? Professor Carpentier hasn¡¯t arrived yet, either. Are you joining us on stem cells, Doctor Felicida?¡± Jacob asked. ¡°I had a meeting with the CEO before he left for America, but he told me to just focus on probiotics.¡± ¡°He¡¯s going to do probiotics while doing a business that big?¡± ¡°I think he¡¯s also going to do something with pancreatic cancer as well.¡± ¡®Seriously?¡¯ Jacob doubted what he was hearing. Felicida said, ¡°And I heard what those probiotics were about and it¡¯s a lot more important than Jacob thinks.¡± ¡°Can we do that at such a smallpany like this unless he knows the answer key?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it too much. He probably has a n. He made iPSCs and cured a and Alzheimer¡¯s in a few months with a small number of people, right? Now, he has thirty scientists working here. Being as genius as Doctor Ryu, he will be able to get it done if he has more hands working. I trust him.¡± On the other hand, the phones at the A-Bio¡¯s administrative headquarters were blowing up so much that the employees couldn¡¯t bring themselves to answer it. It was the same situation at A-Gen as well. As A-Bio¡¯s phone lines were burning up with calls and continued to be busy, people got impatient and called A-Gen. They were reporters, investors, businesses, employees from government departments, or hospital staff. They asked what stage the research was in or asked if they could please invest. Some wanted to donate even though they hadn¡¯t made a foundation yet. In the case of hospital staff, they were asking if A-Bio could use their hospital instead of building a new one, or they were asking about working at A-Bio¡¯s hospital when it was built. The sess of the Alzheimer¡¯s clinical trial and the next-generation hospital. It blew up. Chapter 56: A Next-Generation General Hospital (3)

Chapter 56: A Next-Generation General Hospital (3)

A little while before it became huge in Korea, Young-Joon had a short meeting with the professors at the conference while having lunch. ¡°We need a lot of doctors and technicians,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°A lot of cell culture experts who have a lot of experience with clinical trials and have stem cell differentiation technology.¡± ¡°Are you nning on recruiting people?¡± Professor Behnach asked. ¡°Yes. The IUBMB is happening in New York in two days. I am going to attend. I have a booth for A-Bio. I am going to meet some people there.¡± ¡°Could I work at your hospital?¡± Professor Reba asked. The other professors nced at her, a little surprised. ¡°You¡¯re going to leave the Johns Hopkins Brain Science Institute?¡± Behnach reacted like he couldn¡¯t believe it. ¡°The hospital Doctor Ryu will make will be a monumental hospital in human history. Johns Hopkins is nice, but wouldn¡¯t it be nice to be a founding member of a ce like that?¡± Young-Joon unexpectedly scored one of the best professionals in the world while eating. He quickly expressed his gratitude. ¡°I would be grateful if you joined us, Professor Reba. You will be of great help to A-Bio. Let¡¯s tackle other types of brain diseases other than ones with nerve damage.¡± ¡°But is there a reason you are gathering funding just by donations?¡± Behnach asked. ¡°It¡¯s because I want to separate it from capital.¡± ¡°Well, wealthy people from all over the world will just give you donations for a hospital with that much potential. It¡¯ll probably be better than most funding from investmentpanies.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Doctor Ryu, the Bill Gates Foundation could build a new hospital building and just donate it to you.¡± Reba agreed. ¡°I really wish that would happen.¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu, I am not a doctor or a technician,¡± Professor Aiden, a biology professor at Brown University, said. ¡°So I may not be able to work at the hospital, but I am very interested in A-Bio. I would like to study making spines or bone marrow there. Is there any space for me to join?¡± ¡°Of course. Ourpany has a lot of space. Everyone here is wee at any time,¡± Young-Joon said. From the afternoon, people began leaving the conference like the tide was out. Most of them were thinking that there was nothing more to see now that Young-Joon¡¯s lecture was done. Feeling a little sorry for the other scientists for some reason, he concentrated on the afternoon seminars and debated more. And at seven o¡¯clock in the evening, Young-Joon, who returned from the conference, passed out on his bed. Now that he was rxed, he felt like he was getting tired all of a sudden. ¡ªShould I secrete some serotonin? Rosaline sent a message. ¡°What serotonin?¡± ¡ªYou seem tired, so I will make you feel better. Since dopamine-rted ones are stimting, it¡¯s better to use serotonin-rted hormones when you are tired, like now. Dopamine and serotonin were hormones that were both rted to happiness. Dopamine provided an intense and exhrating sensation, such as getting intoxicated or when a sexual desire was quenched. On the other hand, serotonin was rted to tranquil happiness, like taking a walk on a sunny day. ¡°... Try it.¡± [Serotonin overexpression (9%)] Young-Joon felt his body rx as he eased up. ¡°You really know how to do a lot of things.¡± ¡ªI secreted three hundred percent of dopamine and endorphin when you were attacked by the people Ji Kwang-Man sent. ¡°Really?¡± ¡ªI had to reduce the pain. So when I stopped the bleeding on the back of your head and you got up, you were smiling. The gang members screamed in shock. ¡°... That really happened?¡± ¡®It feels like I created an embarrassing history.¡¯ ¡ªYes. Then, I subdued them by only breaking their bones so that they couldn¡¯t move. They looked at you like you were some sort of monster. They said Ji Kwang-Man¡¯s name when I threatened them a little. ¡°...¡± Young-Joon wondered how he got them to confess, but now he understood the story. ¡®Well, who could hold out when your opponent is Rosaline?¡¯ ¡ªBut Ryu Young-Joon, are you going to keep using my powers for medicine? ¡°Then?¡± ¡ªI think I told you this before, but you are a yer of Life, not a scientist at a pharmaceuticalpany. You can do something much more impactful than pharmaceuticals. ¡°How?¡± ¡ªThere are things like the biodiesel industry, right? Scientists are not good at it yet, but I can make a great innovation in that area. Rosaline said. ¡ªFor example, bacteria can be used to break down starch to produce gasoline. A very efficient refining process can be created as well, so it will be premium oil that has almost zero impurities and only theponents you want. ¡°... Really?¡± ¡ªPeople say that oil is ck gold or something, but to me, it¡¯s just a carbonpound. And all organisms have the ability to break and form carbonpounds. Although, the ones each organism produces is different. Rosaline said. ¡ªIf you manipte a few of the genes involved in the metabolism process of bacteria, you can create a biological factory that produces oil. If you grow it inrge amounts and pour in starch, you will get gasoline. The production price will be much cheaper than drilling it. If you want, you could make kerosene, diesel, LPG gas, or asphalt. ¡°Holy...¡± ¡ªModern civilization is based on oil resources. Everything from agriculture to industry, telmunications, transportation, and the military industry. You know how rich countries like Libya and Saudi Arabia are, right? Rosaline said. ¡ªJust make something like that and then sell the resources exclusively to reorganize the world¡¯s power structure around you. If you get your hands on something like that, you can be the secret dictator of the world. After that, you will be able to do whatever you want. ¡°... You really think differently than I do.¡± ¡ªI am just considering efficiency. ¡°I¡¯ll think about it. It would be nice to relieve it since the energy resource problem is also a serious matter. But I want to focus more on pharmaceuticals right now. The reason I became a scientist is because of my youngest sister, who died of liver cancer. I want to cure people¡¯s diseases.¡± ¡ªYou can dominate the world with your ability, and you should because you have me. You are a prophet in terms of knowledge; your knowledge is not the same as your coworkers. Honestly, it¡¯s frustrating that you are only using it to save people¡¯s lives. ¡°Whatever. I have my own ways. Don¡¯t nag me. I¡¯ll deal with the energy problemter.¡± Young-Joon fullyid down on the bed. ¡°But it¡¯s funny. Do you feel frustration, too?¡± ¡ªFrustration... Rosaline thought for a moment. ¡ªI see. It is fascinating. How do I feel something like that? ¡°Isn¡¯t it because your synchronization level is higher? Maybe you became more human.¡± Young-Joon had said that without giving it much thought, but it seemed like Rosaline was in shock. ¡ªAre you serious? ¡°Why?¡± ¡ªIt can¡¯t be. It seems that you are right. The higher my synchronization level bes, my thinking bes more gentle, and it seems like I was impacted by your emotions. Ryu Young-Joon, you have given me something called emotions. It is a very new sensation. I like it. Thank you. ¡°...¡± ¡®It¡¯s like the Wizard of Oz.¡¯ ¡°Are you the tin woodman?¡± ¡ªPardon? ¡°Never mind.¡± Knock knock. Someone knocked on the door. ¡°Who is it?¡± Young-Joon asked as he walked toward the door. ¡ªIt¡¯s room service. ¡°Room service?¡± Young-Joon hadn¡¯t ordered anything. As he opened the door in puzzlement, the hotel employee was standing there with a cart loaded with a cake, a sandwich, Coke, wine, and other things. ¡°I never ordered room service,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I know. This is... I am just giving you this.¡± ¡°Pardon me?¡± The employee smiled awkwardly as Young-Joon reacted like he was confused. ¡°I didn¡¯t go to university, and I don¡¯t know anything difficult like biology or medicine. But I know that you are a good person, Doctor Ryu.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°My mother has Alzheimer¡¯s. I hope that my mother can get treatment once the clinical trial is finished.¡± ¡°... She definitely will.¡± ¡°I think so, too. There are probably a lot of people rooting for you all over the world. I hope you work hard and do a lot of good research. I am rooting for you, too,¡± the employee said as he put the food down on Young-Joon¡¯s table. ¡°Please call me if you need anything more.¡± Click. After the employee left, Young-Joon cut the cake. ¡°What do you think? It¡¯s not making oil or anything, but this is nice too, right?¡± Young-Joon asked Rosaline. ¡ªYour serotonin levels are rising rapidly even though I did not control it. Do humans like these kinds of products? ¡°It¡¯s the thought.¡± Young-Joon was going to rest for a little bit, but he couldn¡¯t do that because he was so energized from the gift. He turned on hisputer and went into his email inbox. ¡®Let¡¯s take a look at the progress of the tasks I assigned.¡¯ There were nine unread emails. His A-Bio employees had sent him reports about the work he missed and meeting results. As they all knew Young-Joon¡¯s personality, all of them skipped the unnecessary greetings and sent the reports with concise and straightforwardments... Except for one person. [The report of the probiotics meeting results to our CEO, who is working hard in a far country like America] The title was a little off. It was Choi Myung-Joon. [Korea is still burning up about the bold and intense presence you showed at the international conference at Brown University. I am moved as an employee of A-Bio. But at the same time, I am worried that you are tired because of the time difference, or that the food isn¡¯t to your liking. I should have followed you and taken care of you, but as I had too many experiments scheduled because I wanted to quickly advance A-Bio...] ¡®Eek. This man.¡¯ It was funny how he had changedpletely when it felt like it was only yesterday that they were fighting and exchanging harsh words. Although, it was nice that he was good and he did what he was supposed to do well. Young-Joon scrolled through the email, skipping through the unnecessary greetings, and opened the meeting report. [Report on the Celligener Meeting] As he read it, he could see there were three main items. 1. Felicida had joined the team. 2. The probiotics were effective in the mice experiment. 3. Instead of using live bacteria and establishing it in the intestine, we are considering just purifying Amuc, the diabetes-treating material. But in this case, we have to determine how to administer it to the patient. The first two didn¡¯t matter, but Young-Joon had to give them feedback for thest item. Choi Myung-Joon and Doctor Felicida would brainstorm and strategize if he let them be, but Young-Joon could get an answer right away if he used Rosaline. Young-Joon activated the [Advice] function of Rosaline. ¡°If the treatment has the same effect, an oral drug would be better than an injection, right? There¡¯s no need to pierce them with a needle. ¡ªOf course. ¡°But Amuc is such a big molecule that it can¡¯t be absorbed through the digestive tract barrier.¡± ¡ªAttach a glycerol-modified molecule to Amuc. Then, it will be absorbed into the lymphatic vessel in the small intestine. ¡°You¡¯re going to tell me the detailed design, right?¡± ¡ªOf course. I will show you the image now. Rosaline sent the image into Young-Joon¡¯s head. The simplified experimental scheme of how to attach the glycerol-modified molecule to Amuc showed up. ¡°But I think it will be dissolved in the stomach if we go with this.¡± ¡ªYou found the answer to that for the pancreatic cancer treatment, right? Pass the stomach with a capsule coating. ¡°Good.¡± Now that he thought about it, he didn¡¯t know how the capsule coating part of the pancreatic cancer treatment was going. It was because Celligener hadn¡¯t shared the file with him yet. ¡®Since Song Ji-Hyun said that they¡¯reing to the IUBMB tomorrow, I¡¯ll ask her then.¡¯ As Young-Joon was about to close his inbox, he stopped after seeing something. The ount he was signed into right now was his CEO ount, which was his personal email ount. Beside the CEO ount, there was the officialpany email inbox. It was usually used for marketing or correspondence by management. There were more than nine hundred ny-nine unread emails. Young-Joon squinted his eyes. When he pressed on it, after a little bit ofgging, thousands of emails came pouring out. ¡°What is...¡± Young-Joon suddenly froze and was at a loss for words. The employee who gave him room service was not lying when he said that there were probably a lot of people who were rooting for him all over the world. He had received a huge amount of support and gratitude. Eighty percent of it was in English, and about seventy percent of them were grammatically incorrect. They were not from the Anglosphere. They were full of short English sentences, choppy Korean that was made by Google Trante, or unreadable sentences written in their ownnguage. [To Doctor Ryu Young-Joon. Thank you. We are hope. Hope you treatment of spine paralysis will happen soon.] [To CEO Ryu Young-Joon and A-Bio. I am Kim Si-Joon¡¯s wife, and he was a clinical trial patient for phase two of the a clinical trial. Thank you. My husband can now see. Thank you for making a treatment like this. We will never forget this. We will donate to your hospital. Thank you so much.] [Hello. My name is Emma White. I live in London, Ennd, and I am a sixty-eight year-old woman. I am one hundred sixty-three centimeters and sixty kilograms. I heard that you needed this information. I want to volunteer for the Alzheimer¡¯s clinical trial. I am only at stage-two, but it is getting worse. I am sending you this email because I do not want to be a nuisance to my children. Thank you.] ¡°...¡± Young-Joon read each email and slowly scrolled down. There were emails from the Middle East, India, and Mexico. All of them thanked him, said they believed in him, and that they wanted to participate in the clinical trial. Young-Joon felt a little moved reading it. Scroll. As he was scrolling down, his mouse stopped when he saw something. [We want to support the establishment of A-Bio¡¯s hospital.] It was from the Paul Getty Foundation. Chapter 57: A Next-Generation General Hospital (4)

Chapter 57: A Next-Generation General Hospital (4)

Ring! While Young-Joon was reading the email from the Getty Foundation, he got a new email in his personal inbox. It was from A-Bio¡¯s management department. [This is a collection of emails regarding donations.] It was working hours in Korea due to the time difference. They were sorting through thousands of emails and picking out the business-rted ones that Young-Joon must read. When he clicked on it, he realized that the Getty Foundation email wasn¡¯t the only one. [We will organize small donations from individuals in a separate email and post a draft soon. We havepiled the emails that you should see as soon as possible.] A link leading to the individual emails showed up as he scrolled down. [This email is regarding donations from the Getty Foundation.] [This email is regarding donations from the Abu Dhabi royal family.] [This email is regarding donations from the British Royal Pce.] [This email is regarding donations from the Ford Foundation.] [This email is regarding donations from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.] [This email is regarding donations from Guo Guangchang, a wealthy Chinese businessman.] [This email is regarding donations from Rakesh Jhunjhunw, an Indian investor.] ¡®...¡¯ After reading them, Young-Joon saw that none of them were going to donate right now; they wanted to set up a meeting for a donation contract. Although a financial reward didn¡¯t follow like an actual investment, people had reached out to him to donate to increase their brand worth by leaving their name on the hot topic of the next-generation hospital, or purely out of real humanitarianism. Finally, it was time for Alice, the trantor, to work after the meeting with Director James. There was a little time before the IUBMB opened. In that short time, Young-Joon had to leave Rhode Ind, check in at his hotel in New York and meet the sponsors who had the time or were in the city. [The HR team is nning to hire a secretary for you. We will proceed if you confirm.] That was thest sentence written in the email that management sent him. Young-Joon felt the pain that the management employees would have felt while sorting the thousands of emails. ¡®I feel a little bad.¡¯ A venturepany that wasunched a few months ago didn¡¯t usually receive thousands of emails overnight. It was normal for thepany email, which was managed by management, to only receive a few dozen at the most. ¡®I didn¡¯t think that thousands of people would want to send me an email.¡¯ The employees working in management would have also been shocked. [Good work. Please go ahead with the secretary hire. And please list my personal email on thepany website. I will receive personal emails addressed to me by that address.] Young-Joon responded. * * * This year, the International Union of Biochemistry and Molecr Biology, or IUBMB, held their conference at New York University. It was not a venue strictly for academic exchange, but a ce with strong business characteristics. Several start-ups and venturepanies opened their booths, then went to find other booths to hold meetings and discuss each other¡¯s business. They had to move fast in order to recruit investors and staff, and they had to draw in people who were walking past by handing out gifts. Celligener was one of them. Song Ji-Hyun was sitting at the booth with Scientist Kim Soo-Chul. They were discouraged after hitting the wall of extreme indifference. ¡°No one ising,¡± Kim Soo-Chul said in a depressed voice. ¡°Even if we give people gifts and hold them here, they just leave, right? Ji-Hyun sunbae, what¡¯s the matter with us?¡± ¡°There are over thirty start-up booths open today, and they are all pretty well-known. Plus, there are booths fromrger, medium-sized businesses as well. And most of all, A-Bio opened a booth today. Everyone is interested in A-Bio among start-ups or smallpanies.¡± ¡°True.¡± Kim Soo-Chul nodded. ¡°But I guess he isn¡¯t here yet.¡± He pointed at the empty booth across from them. A-Bio¡¯s booth was put along with the other start-ups and small businesses since they were ssified as a venturepany. About thirty people had passed by here in thest two hours in order to meet Young-Joon. Some of them even took selfies in front of the empty booth. ¡®It¡¯s not some sort of tourist attraction...¡¯ ¡°We¡¯re the same venturepany, but there¡¯s a huge difference.¡± ¡°It¡¯s because they are in the eye of the hurricane right now.¡± ¡°Ji-Hyun sunbae, didn¡¯t you say that you kind of knew him personally? You said you had drinks with him once.¡± ¡°We did once. Just one. Before he got famous. We don¡¯t know each other personally.¡± Song Ji-Hyun¡¯s ears became red. ck ck. With the sound of dress shoes, three good-looking men wearing suits showed up. They chatted together in fluent English while ncing at A-Bio¡¯s booth. ¡°He¡¯s not here yet.¡± ¡°Do you think something happened?¡± ¡°It could have. He¡¯s really busy, so it¡¯s a possibility.¡± Listening to their conversation, Kim Soo-Chul whispered to Song Ji-Hyun, ¡°Sunbae, those people are from Fidelity.¡± ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± ¡°It¡¯s an investmentpany. It¡¯s apany made by a legendary investor from Wall Street named Peter Lynch.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± Song Ji-Hyun nodded. ¡°It would be nice if we got investments from ces like that. Escape A-Gen¡¯s hands... Right, sunbae? Should I call them?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll talk to them.¡± Song Ji-Hyun quietly left the booth with a paper gift bag in her hand and approached them. ¡°Hello.¡± Song Ji-Hyun greeted them with a wide smile, but Fidelity didn¡¯t seem too interested. ¡°Hello. We¡¯re from apany called Celligener.¡± ¡°Oh, sorry, We¡¯re a little busy.¡± She was shot down immediately. She said goodbye in embarrassment and returned to her seat. ¡°It¡¯s not easy.¡± ¡°Sunbae, look at that booth over there. They¡¯re having a meeting with Roche.¡± Located diagonal from them was a booth from a venturepany called G-Protein Medicine. And employees from Roche, a hugepany, were sitting at the booth doing an investment meeting. ¡°That¡¯s the ce doing the clinical trial for the leukemia treatment, right?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked. ¡°Yes. The technology isn¡¯t really that amazing if you look at their trial data, but it seems to slightly lengthen their survival.¡± ¡°It¡¯s worth their attention.¡± ¡°Sigh, we shouldn¡¯t have sold Cellicure like that,¡± Kim Soo-Chul added like it was unfortunate that they did. A few more people appeared in front of A-Bio¡¯s booth. They were administrative staff from famous medical schools and people from Schumatix, Roche, Pfizer, and others. It seemed like they were all waiting for Young-Joon. ¡°Watching them be like that right in front of us... It¡¯s a little too much,¡± Kim Soo-Chul said, scratching his head. ¡°Hello.¡± Suddenly, a picky-looking man with sses came to Celligener¡¯s booth and sat down. It was the Fidelity employee that had told Song Ji-Hyun that they were busy. ¡°Oh, hello.¡± Song Ji-Hyun quickly greeted him. ¡°Have you ever heard of Celligener...¡± ¡°Oh, sorry, but is A-Bio opening today? Or has CEO Ryu Young-Joon just stepped out for a little bit? I was just wondering about that.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I am not sure. But he hasn¡¯t been here since we opened our booth,¡± Kim Soo-Chul replied. ¡°I see. Thank you.¡± The man got up from his seat and returned to his group. ¡°Seriously...¡± Song Ji-Hyun mumbled in a depressed voice. ¡°Ourpany is also capable and has potential too...¡± ¡°I know, right.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not easy for a venturepany to make an early liver cancer treatment just two years after starting and get it into a clinical trial,¡± Song Ji-Hyunined like it was unfortunate. More people were gathering, but there were nothing but flies flying around Celligener¡¯s booth. There were meetings happening everywhere, but their booth was the only quiet one. ¡°I¡¯m going to get some fresh air.¡± Frustrated, Song Ji-Hyun stood up. On the way out of the building... ¡°Our drug controls the number of white blood cells by using antibodies that target structures on their surface...¡± Song Ji-Hyun could hear the people from G-Protein Medicine exin the development process of the leukemia drug to Roche. She stole a nce at them, and Roche looked quite happy. ¡®They¡¯re going to get investments from them.¡¯ * * * Song Ji-Hyun was having a can of coffee while sitting on the bench in front of the building. To be honest, she was envious of all the other venturepany booths that were here. She was confident she could advertise the fact that they went to phase one of clinical trials with an early liver cancer treatment if someone sat down at Celligener¡¯s booth. But the problem was that she couldn¡¯t even get to that part. Here, Celligener was apletely namelesspany. They had some people show interest, but they were buried under the booths of hundreds of famouspanies. ¡®Is this natural since all we¡¯ve been doing is A-Gen¡¯s subcontracts?¡¯ Song Ji-Hyun let out a bitter sigh. ¡®Let¡¯s go back inside.¡¯ Sitting out here wasn¡¯t going to do anything. A-Bio was an unusual case, and it was probably normal for start-ups to start in indifference, like Celligener. As Song Ji-Hyun was about to get up from the bench, she could see Young-Joon far away. Four security guards from K-Cops were surrounding him. Young-Joon was talking to three employees from A-Bio who came to help and two men who looked to be investors. The woman wearing sunsses in the middle tranted for him. After some time, people began swarming to that group like clouds. Swoosh! As the main entrance doors opened behind Song Ji-Hyun, the employees from Fidelity Investments ran out. They had heard that Young-Joon was here. Following them, people from Schumatix, Roche, Pfizer, and the IUBMB employees from New York University came pouring out. They ran toward Young-Joon as if they were escorting him inside. ¡°Sir!¡± ¡°Hello, sir. We are from Fidelity Investments.¡± ¡°Hello. We are from the Harvard Medicine Administration.¡± ¡°Sir, we are from the IUBMB conference. You didn¡¯t participate as a speaker at our conference. If...¡± Young-Joon was slowly walking toward Song Ji-Hyun while talking to them, but suddenly stopped. ¡°Oh.¡± He had seen Song Ji-Hyun, who was a little frozen in surprise. ¡°Hello, Doctor Song,¡± Young-Joon said in Korean. Everyone stared at her. ¡°Oh... Yes. Hello,¡± She awkwardly responded. ¡°I was going to talk to you about some business if I ran into you here, but I guess I was lucky.¡± The inventors and scientists around them all looked confused. ¡°Business?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked. ¡°Yes. Not here. Later. You¡¯re at your booth, right? Did youe out here to take a break?¡± ¡°Yes. I¡¯m going to head back inside.¡± ¡°Then let¡¯s go together. We¡¯re probably going in the same direction anyway since all the venturepany booths are beside each other.¡± Young-Joon joined Song Ji-Hyun. He quickly introduced her and Celligener to the curious investors around them. ¡°Celligener is a Korean venturepany that is doing coborative research with A-Bio.¡± * * * Kim Soo-Chul was pacing and on his phone while keeping the empty booth. He was surprised by the sudden appearance of arge crowd. It was because in the middle, Song Ji-Hyun was talking to Young-Joon and walking together. She came to their booth, greeted Young-Joon, and returned to her seat, which was next to Kim Soo-Chul. ¡°What happened?¡± He asked. ¡°We met at the front of the building.¡± She had received the interest of investors in the five minutes she walked here, talking to Young-Joon. As Song Ji-Hyun stood there, a little surprised at the unexpected attention, someone sat in front of her. They were the employees from Fidelity Investments. ¡°Pardon our behavior before.¡± They formally apologized. ¡°We¡¯re sorry, but could we still get to know Celligener?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± Kim Soo-Chul handed them a pamphlet quickly. People were already lined up behind Fidelity Investments and waiting their turn. Song Ji-Hyun gulped and began to promote Celligener. ¡°Celligener has developed Iloa, an early liver cancer drug, in just two years afterunching...¡± At the A-Bio booth across from them, Young-Joon was handing out USBs to two men wearing suits as gifts. ¡°These are USBs that have the A-Bio logo,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°The memory storage isn''t very big, though.¡± ¡°Thank you. More than this, I wanted to see the A-Bio booth.¡± They were the people responsible for the donation from the Gates Foundation. They had just signed a donation contract for fifty million dors at the cafe nearby. Young-Joon was a littlete to open the booth because of that, but it was okay. People who came after listening to his presentation at the International Integrative Brain Disease Conference had formed a long line in front of A-Bio¡¯s booth. Chapter 58: A Next-Generation General Hospital (5)

Chapter 58: A Next-Generation General Hospital (5)

Like thest time, Young-Joon was nning to put out a job listing on Science as well as other international academic journals. It was sad, but no matter how outstanding A-Bio was, Korea was just a country just touching on science from an international perspective. On the other hand, the IUBMB was one of thergest academic conferences in the world. Professors from prestigious universities, key individuals from huge pharmaceutical industries, and lead scientists frombs weremonly seen here. Young-Joon could not miss this opportunity. He met people with the intention to recruit all his staff for A-Bio and the hospital he was going to build. Fortunately, many skilled individuals came to A-Bio¡¯s booth continuously since his presence at the Integrative Brain Disorder conference was quite intense. After hours of interviews back-to-back, Young-Joon received a call from one of the people who organized the IUBMB conference. It was Director James from the White House¡¯s Office of Science and Technology. ¡ªAmerica was going to scout you, a Korean, but instead, you are taking all of America¡¯s intellectuals. James said with a chuckle. ¡°There are no borders to science,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡ªHahaha. Touch¨¦. ¡°It¡¯s not a problem, right?¡± ¡ªOf course not. I think what you are doing right now is a universal advancement for humanity. Let¡¯s put aside our nationality for a while. ¡°A lot of people may return there after we build A-Bio¡¯s cancerb beside the National Cancer Institute.¡± ¡ªWill you return them after training them? ¡°Of course not. I will learn a lot from them,¡± Young-Joon said humbly. ¡ªIt¡¯s really a relief that there is someone like you in this world, Doctor Ryu. James said. ¡ªI also want to donate to you with my own money. ¡°We are ready to receive it at any time,¡± Young-Joon replied. After having meetings with several people and meeting investors and donors, the time was four o¡¯clock. Young-Joon left the booth to his employees and went to an empty conference room with Song Ji-Hyun. ¡°Thank you for being considerate earlier,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°Considerate?¡± ¡°You pushed investors toe to our booth by talking to me.¡± ¡°What? I didn¡¯t,¡± Young-Joon replied like he was confused. ¡°Huh? But... You purposely greeted me in front of people...¡± ¡°That¡¯s normal, isn¡¯t it? Why does it matter that we are in front of other people? If I didn¡¯t greet my colleagues we are doing a project with and pretended to not know them, that would be rude.¡± Young-Joon grinned. ¡°... But didn¡¯t you purposely schedule a work meeting in front of the investors and reveal that we are working together?¡± ¡°I was going to talk to you about work anyway when I met you here. I don¡¯t really care about those investors. It¡¯s more important for me to make more progress in our research as we can by having a meeting with you than what those people are thinking and doing. But we don¡¯t have to hide the fact that we are coboratingpanies and secretly meet each other because of them, right? It¡¯s not like it¡¯s wrong for us to coborate with you.¡± Song Ji-Hyun lightly bit her lower lip. ¡°Right...¡± Young-Joon was right. The reason that he nicely apanied her to her booth was also probably because they had to go in the same direction. He probably had no ulterior motives. He also set up his own meeting when they held the probiotics meeting at A-Bio even though he was the CEO, did he not? That was just the kind of person Young-Joon was. He did not engulf himself in power. He was the same person he was before bing a star in the scientificmunity. He would have acted the same way even if he was an ordinary scientist who hadn¡¯t made iPSCs yet. Of course, he probably knew that his actions would push investors to Celigener, but that wasn¡¯t a reason for him to act differently. Song Ji-Hyun had heard about Young-Joon from a few people, including Choi Myung-Joon, while working with A-Bio because of probiotics. They said he strictly went by the book and that he was a single-minded scientist who never mixed power or personal rtionships with science. He really just greeted her because she was an employee of apany he was working with, and he scheduled a meeting because he wanted to talk about work. The reason he told the nearby investors or scientists that she was from a venturepany he was working with was because they were curious and he wanted to be considerate of that. That ended up being a huge benefit to Celligener and Song Ji-Hyun, but he did not do it on purpose as he had no personal feelings... ¡°Doctor Song?¡± ¡°Oh, yes?¡± Song Ji-Hyun, who was momentarily lost in thought, was startled and quickly raised her head. ¡°What are you thinking about so hard? You didn¡¯t even answer me when I called you,¡± Young-Joon said, grinning. ¡°Oh, sorry. What did you say?¡± ¡°The capsule coating that we¡¯re going to use for the pancreatic cancer treatment. I want to wrap the Amuc that¡¯s separated from Clorotonis limuvitus and make it into a treatment for type-2 diabetes.¡± ¡°You want to coat Amuc?¡± ¡°Yes. How is the development of the capsule coating technology going?¡± ¡°I was doing experiments right up until I had to leave for America. The technology to create a coat to protect materials from stomach acid isn¡¯t that difficult in the first ce. We also applied a part of the chitosan doubleyer coating method you told us about before as well. The coating technology itself is in its final stages.¡± ¡°That¡¯s good. We can coat a biomaterial like Amuc with that, right?¡± ¡°It should be possible.¡± ¡°Good. Let¡¯s make some progress on the treatment for pancreatic cancer and diabetes together when we return to Korea.¡± ¡°... Sure.¡± Song Ji-Hyun¡¯s voice was weak. * * * On Sunday morning, Young-Joon arrived at Incheon airport. His two-week schedule in the U.S. was finished. Now, A-Bio was the center of attention internationally, and they had already received a significant amount of funds for the establishment of the hospital. ¡°Good work everyone. You¡¯re all free to go. For the people who gave me their weekends, take Monday and Tuesday off,¡± Young-Joon said. A After letting the employees who helped A-Bio¡¯s booth go, he also said goodbye to Alice. ¡°Thank you, Alice.¡± ¡°Good work to you too, sir.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll make sure to find you if I ever need trantion.¡± ¡°Do you really need one? You are good at English.¡± ¡°I feel better if I have one.¡± ¡°Alright. Call me whenever.¡± Alice put on her sunsses and left. After sending everyone away, Young-Joon slowly made his way back to the airport with his K-Cops security team. Then, his legs automatically froze after facing a shocking situation. ¡°It¡¯s Ryu Young-Joon!¡± There were hundreds of people and police covering the airport. sh! sh! The cameras of the reporters shed from all over like fireworks. ¡°Doctor Ryu! Over here!¡± ¡°You¡¯re so handsome!¡± ¡°Hospital King Ryu Young-Joon!¡± ¡®Hospital King?¡¯ Young-Joon looked confused. Some people in the crowd were holding posters. [Doctor Ryu is building a hospital] [The Gaviscon of Science, Ryu Young-Joon][1] [Why use taxes to build hospitals when you can get donations?] [???: The herb of immortality? Don¡¯t you mean stem cells?] ¡®...¡¯ ¡°Can I have your autograph?¡± ¡°Oppa!¡±[ref]In Korea, people use oppa to call male celebrities that they like.[ref] The police and airport security guards were blocking the crowd from getting too close, but there were a few who were too excited. The police were on edge and tried their best to maintain order. Tap! Someone hit Young-Joon¡¯s shoulder as he was slightly paralyzed for a little bit from the shock. It was Park Joo-Hyuk. ¡°You should smile and wave your hand at them or something. You¡¯re just going to stare into space and stand there like an amateur? You haven¡¯t seen something like this on TV?¡± ¡°But I¡¯m not some kind of celebrity...¡± ¡°Let¡¯s go. Follow me. Everyone! Follow me.¡± Under the protection of the K-Cops security team, Young-Joon followed Park Joo-Hyuk outside. When he got in the car, he saw some weing faces. It was Principal Cheon Ji-Myung, Lead Bae Sun-Mi, Park Dong-Hyun, Jung Hae-Rim, and Koh Soon-Yeol. ¡°What? Our entire Life Creation team is here.¡± Young-Joon was surprised. ¡°It¡¯s a Sunday today.¡± ¡°We didn¡¯te here as employees. We came here as personal friends. We are that close, right?¡± Jung Hae-Rim asked. ¡°I¡¯m touched. Thank you so much.¡± As Young-Joon replied, Park Joo-Hyuk stared at him, baffled. ¡°Hey, you didn¡¯t say anything to me. I came to pick you up on a Sunday too.¡± ¡°Thanks,¡± Young-Joon replied monotonously. ¡°Man, how sincere of you.¡± ¡°But where are we going right now?¡± ¡°Did you have something to eat? Airne food?¡± ¡°No. I didn¡¯t feel like it.¡± ¡°Then let¡¯s get something to eat first.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk entered the name of a famous Korean restaurant on the car GPS. * * * From nine o¡¯clock in the morning on Monday, Young-Joon met with every team, with meeting being a maximum of two hours. ¡°He¡¯s like a vending machine with answers. You put in a problem and he just gives you an answer...¡± Jacob said with a nk face after he walked out of the CEO¡¯s office. Felicida chuckled when she saw his face. ¡°He ns all the experiments, right?¡± ¡°Yes. How can a person be like that?¡± ¡°For six hours, he¡¯s been telling all the team members in detail how to make a spine with stem cells, how to make bone marrow with stem cells, how to make cartge with stem cells. And telling them to do the exact experiment.¡± ¡°I seriously can¡¯t believe it. Of course, it won¡¯t be easy to carry out an experiment like this,¡± Jacob said. When Young-Joon was developing the flu drug and treatments for domestic animals or livestock diseases, he had outsourced it. It was because those treatments were simple to make; after synthesizing it, they just had to treat animals or cells with it to check the effect. But the difficulty of growing another structure or tissue with stem cells was on another level. It was simr to how everyone could easily make instant noodles, but the moreplicated the dish was, it was difficult for someone to make if they weren''t a skilled chef, even if they had the recipe. Also, because it was difficult to control all the variables in biological experiments, they had to consider where the water was from: the Han River or Jeju Ind. It was ridiculous, but this was necessary as sometimes, the results varied depending on the line of the manufacturing factory the culture medium was made in. And for experiments that hadn¡¯t been done before, such as the differentiation of stem cells into novel structures, the frontline experimenter¡¯s ability to control the situation was especially important. ¡°We have to optimize the method for cell transfection by examining the condition of the cell and its differentiation stage, or use FACS salting methods. There are a lot of things we still have to mediate,¡± Felicida said. ¡°But it¡¯s doable if he sketches out the n this well. We should be able to do it somehow.¡± Click. Principal Scientist Chloe¡¯s team came out of the CEO¡¯s office. ¡°What are you in charge of?¡± Jacob asked. ¡°Using stem cells to regenerate skin,¡± Chloe responded with a nervous expression. She was also given a difficult experiment and felt both passion and determination. In the CEO¡¯s office, Young-Joon was looking over the distribution of work among his team members again. Excluding the probiotics team and the pancreatic cancer treatment team, he had divided the remaining scientists into four teams. He had assigned them the spine, bone marrow, cartge, and skin. Thest team was the Life Creation team. Knock knock. Cheon Ji-Myung knocked on the door and came inside. Then, Bae Sun-Mi, Park Dong-Hyun, Jung Hae-Rim, and Koh Soon-Yeol sat down. ¡°What are we making with stem cells?¡± Park Dong-Hyun asked. ¡°I am going to give you organoids.¡± ¡°Organoids?¡± ¡°Yes. It is the most important thing that we are starting with stem cells. Organoids are small biological tissues that mimic a person¡¯s organ. It has the same structure and function as organs, but it¡¯s just smaller. To put it another way, we will be able to grow artificial organs if this seeds,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°We will use organoids for precise diagnosis and use artificial organs to treat patients. And we are going to start that process now.¡± ¡°Oh...¡± Jung Hae-Rim eximed in worry. ¡°To be honest, I don¡¯t know if we can do it. It¡¯s too difficult... None of us have worked with organoids before.¡± ¡°I know. But there isn¡¯t anyone who has experience with organoids at ourpany right now. The person who applied to ourpany from France has done organoids before, but they said that it would take some time for them to start working here because they have to sort things out there.¡± ¡°So are you saying that we don¡¯t have any organoid experts at ourpany right now?¡± Cheon Ji-Myung asked. ¡°Yes.¡± Young-Joon nodded. Cheon Ji-Myung chuckled emptily. They were starting one of the most difficult and newest technologies in the world as a new business, but they were just starting from scratch without anyone who had experience with it? But it was Young-Joon; he was probably telling us to do it because it was possible. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about the project itself because I can n the experiment scheme. But it will still be very difficult,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°This experiment really depends on the person, so they have to be someone who is extremely trained in biology experiments.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°That¡¯s why I am giving it to you.¡± ¡°But there are world-ss scientists at ourpany right now...¡± Bae Sun-Mi said in a dejected voice. ¡°I think that the people in this room right now are the most qualified. Because you have been creating life.¡± The Life Creation team members looked confused. ¡°Does it have something to do with creating life?¡± Jung Hae-Rim asked. ¡°No, but it has one thing inmon.¡± ¡°One thing?¡± ¡°That they are both impossible projects with humanity¡¯s current level of technology.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I¡¯m being serious right now. Life creation. You guys tried all sorts of different things in order to do that, right? Senior Park Dong-Hyun spat in the liquid culture medium because he tried everything that he could.¡± ¡°Ack! How did you know that?¡± Park Dong-Hyun asked in surprise. ¡°It was in the experiment log. I read it when I was at A-Gen.¡± ¡°... I wasn¡¯t in my right mind because I was angry after getting grilled by Gil Hyung-Joon.¡± ¡°All the people who have joined ourpany are all famous in their own field, so I think they wouldn¡¯t be familiar with trying something new. But not this team.¡± ¡°We did try everything and anything to make Rosaline and be a little less berated at the year-end seminar at A-Gen,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung said. ¡°Exactly. So, you will be able to do it. You would have umted a lot of different experimentation skills while going through hell. You can do it. Have confidence.¡± ¡°What should we do?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s start with an organ that has a rtively easy structure.¡± ¡°Which one?¡± ¡°The intestine,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Specifically, the small intestine. After we seed with organoids, we are going to scale it up and create a small intestine.¡± ¡°Making an organ artificially...¡± Jung Hae-Rim mumbled in surprise. ¡°It is quitemon for patients who have resected parts of their small intestine due to tumors or Crohn¡¯s Disease to get short bowel syndrome. They suffer in pain from severe stomach aches, chronic diarrhea, fatty stool, dehydration, and lethargy. If it¡¯s severe, they end up getting a transnt. But there is no way to do that if they don¡¯t have a donor,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°With our technology, they won¡¯t need a donor. Let¡¯s be the ones to improve their quality of life.¡± ¡°Alright,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung replied. Young-Joon sorted out the detailed experimentation method and told them. They were all smart elites, so the five of them quickly understood his strategy. After they left, Young-Joon was lost in thought while holding his coffee mug. Reconstruction of the spine, bone marrow, cartge, skin tissue, and the small intestine using stem cells: these five projects would severely threaten the livelihood of existingrge pharmaceuticalpanies. For example, if cartge regeneration became possible and wasmercialized, all the arthritis-rted drugs in the market would die. ces like Schumatix did not do anything after his presentation at the Integrative Brain Disorder conference, but they were definitely nning something. Young-Joon remembered what James had warned him about. ¡®He said to be careful of ending up like Te.¡¯ Young-Joon took a sip of his hot americano. 1. Gaviscon is an antacid product that relieves heartburn, indigestion, and other things. It¡¯s a meme that Korean people use when something has relieved their frustration. ? Chapter 59: A Hospital of the Next Generation (6)

Chapter 59: A Hospital of the Next Generation (6)

Young-Joon established a hospital with funds raised through the A-Bio Foundation. He bought arge, old building in Mapo-gu in Seoul, applied for repurposing the building, and began to renovate it, and turn it into a hospital. As Phase Three of the a clinical trial was going smoothly, they would be able to provide a treatment after the construction ended and it became a general hospital. If they could make just one small intestine organoid until then, they could perform precise diagnoses and treatment, although it would be limited to the small intestine. These were the first services provided by the next-generation hospital. They would be able to broaden their range of treatments as the results from stem cell research came out one by one. As such, they had to get more research results as soon as possible. And he was lucky enough to get a chance to elerate his research even more. ¡°Long time no see.¡± Carpentier and Young-Joon lightly hugged. Carpentier, a professor from Caltech, was a Nobel Prize recipient. He had studied the regeneration of spinal nerves using stem cells for a long time. So, had he seeded in recovering the nerves using stem cells? No, he hadn¡¯t. If he had, Young-Joon wouldn¡¯t have been doing this in the first ce. Sometimes, Nobel Prize-winning achievements sounded like magic to people, and this was the case for Carpentier as well. He had wirelessly connected the nerves of a patient with a broken spinal cord with an electrical chip. Stem cells were the main goal of his research, while this was only one of many n-B theories, but he had actually seeded with this instead. The spinal cord was a long collection of nerves that was connected to the brain and ran all the way down to the waist. One of the clinical trial patients had damage in the upper region, in particr the thoracic nerves, and could not deliver messages from the brain to some regions below his chest. Carpentier inserted extremely small electrical chips directly above and below the damaged area. As a result, when the patient wanted to walk, the excited electrical signals from the nerves would travel through the chip, skipping over the damaged area, and be sent to the living cells below it. The patient was able to take a few steps alone in just four weeks, and Carpentier received the Nobel Prize. He worked on this project for about twenty years. It also took four years for this treatment to reach the patient after it seeded on monkeys. This was how careful the study was done. It was amazing how the U.S. government and Caltech both steadily funded his research for twenty years, but Carpentier¡¯s own persistence, which ultimately led to his sess, was also astonishing. Unfortunately, this technology still had limitations. Patients recovered enough to be able to walk, but they couldn¡¯t run or bend their waist. They also had to always be careful to not hit their back, which had the electrical chip. Most of all, there was no way to treat spinal nerve damage if it was higher than the thoracic nerves, as there was no technology to imnt a chip in the brain yet. Thus, Carpentier was hoping to reach the next step at Young-Joon¡¯spany. ¡°But Professor, aren¡¯t you busy at work? You said that you were going to join uster in the year.¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°That¡¯s correct.¡± Carpentier nodded. ¡°But it¡¯s my sabbatical year and I happen to not be supervising any students right now. I came a bit early because I had two months to spare after taking care of a couple of things.¡± ¡°Are you leaving in two months?¡± ¡°Yes, but I¡¯ll be back during the second half of the year.¡± ¡°Great. Please lead our team for the two months you¡¯re here. I am so d you joined us, Professor.¡± ¡°I will try my best.¡± ¡°Thank you. But because you are still working at the university, you have to sign a short-term contract as an outside technical advisor.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± ¡°Is this okay with Caltech?¡± ¡°Yes. There are a lot of professors who work as technical advisors forpanies.¡± ¡°Good.¡± Young-Joon had Park Joo-Hyuk put together the contract and got Carpentier¡¯s signature. ¡°You would be morefortable with the spine if you were to join the stem cell differentiation teams, right?¡± Young-Joon asked as they scheduled a meeting. ¡°I¡¯m fine with the bone marrow as well.¡± ¡°The nervous system and the bone marrow are twopletely different fields.¡± ¡°I studied that a lot as well because I studied stem cells for a long time,¡± Carpentier replied with a chuckle. * * * Jacob was in the spinal regeneration team. He went into the meeting on spinal regeneration with stem cells with six other team members. ¡°Professor Carpentier?¡± Jacob¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°Hello, Jacob. Nice to see you again.¡± ¡°What about the university?¡± ¡°It¡¯s my sabbatical year.¡± ¡°Then, should we discuss the current progress?¡± Young-Joon asked. As it hadn¡¯t been long since the project started, most of the presentation was about establishing detailed conditions for the experiment. ¡°... As such, we have currently created iPSCs, and we are nning to differentiate them after injecting them into the spinal paralysis model mice.¡± Jacob finished his presentation. He stared at Carpentier and Young-Joon a little nervously. Carpentier was the first to speak. ¡°The biggest problem with nting stem cells directly is the development of tumors. Do you have any ideas to solve this problem?¡± ¡°So, in our project, we have selected the mechanism whereby the iPSCs will be nted in the affected area, and then the cells that have not differentiated for a certain period of time will trigger apoptosis[1],¡± Jacob said. ¡°That is quite a good idea. But will the undifferentiated cells proceed to apoptosis well?¡± ¡°When the differentiation into spinal nerves urs, the expression of the KRAK gene is inhibited. We have cloned TP54, a cell suicide gene, on the end of this gene and expressed it.¡± ¡°Then, the cells that haven¡¯t differentiated into nerves would keep expressing KRAK and die as TP54 is expressed as well.¡± It was quiteplicated, but Carpentier understood the key details of the study right away. No wonder he was a Nobel Prize recipient. ¡°But won¡¯t the stem cells die before they differentiate?¡± Carpentier asked. ¡°That¡¯s why the number of cells that seed in differentiating is low,¡± Young-Joon replied for Jacob. ¡°But we can just put in a lot of stem cells in the first ce. If ten nerves have to be recovered, we would put in about a thousand stem cells. The nine hundred ny cells would be eliminated via apoptosis and the ten that remain would be nerves.¡± Carpentier nodded his head. It seemed like a harsh method, but it was the most straightforward, safe, and effective way. Doctors administered arge amount of insulin at once when treating type-2 diabetes. This allowed them to see the effects of insulin even if it was less effective due to insulin resistance. This was the same thing. The reason they had been unable to use this method in the past was that it was impossible to grow that many stem cells. But with the iPSC technology, this was no longer an issue. When one powerful technology was invented, it was bound to be able to solve a lot of problems. * * * After the spinal regeneration team meeting came to an end, Carpentier also attended the bone marrow regeneration meeting. ¡°By bone marrow regeneration, you are specifically talking about making hematopoietic cells, right?¡± Carpentier pointed out. ¡°Yes,¡± Young-Joon responded. Bone marrow was the fluid tissue located in the center of bones, and it was an essential structure that produced blood cells, such as red and white cells. Then, how were blood cells made in the bone marrow? There were things called hematopoietic cells that existed in small ratios, about one in every ten thousand cells, in the bone marrow tissue. They were a type of stem cell, but they could not differentiate into other types of cell, like how embryonic or induced pluripotent stem cells could. Their self-replicating ability was only limited to blood cells, meaning that all the blood cells in the human body were made by the division of hematopoietic cells. As such, bone marrow transnts that were used to treat leukemia patients were actually hematopoietic stem cell transnts. ¡°We will create hematopoietic cells from stem cells,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Leukemia will be our main target,¡± Carpentier said. ¡°That¡¯s right. We will treat a lot of blood diseases with bone marrow regeneration, including leukemia.¡± ¡°Then let¡¯s try something else since we¡¯re doing it anyway.¡± Carpentier pitched an idea. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Treating AIDS.¡± There was a moment of silence around the table. ¡°You can treat AIDS with this?¡± asked Doctor Lee Jung-Hyuk, the head of the bone marrow regeneration team. ¡°Yes. There is only one case of AIDS being cured,¡± Carpentier said. ¡°Has AIDS been cured before?¡± This was the first time Young-Joon had heard of this as well. ¡°Yes.¡± Carpentier nodded. Young-Joon was amazed. Rosaline knew everything there was to know about molecr biology in the universe, but it was limited to scientific facts. She couldn¡¯t have knowledge from experience or know about things that had actually happened in the history of science. In addition, Young-Joon used to work in anticancer; since AIDS was a viral infection, it was a little far from his specialty. On the other hand, as Carpentier was a top scientist who had been in the industry for a long time, there were a lot of cases he knew from a lot of different fields. ¡°The patient¡¯s name was Timothy Ray Brown. He was once one of the most unfortunate people in the world. The reason is... He had both AIDS and leukemia at the same time,¡± Carpentier said. ¡°My God!¡± Doctor Lee Jung-Hyuk and the other team members eximed at the same time. Carpentier went on. ¡°They are both famous and fatal incurable diseases. Timothy first got a bone marrow transnt to treat leukemia.¡± Among the sixty donors, they managed to find someone who met the conditions and he was able to receive a transnt. Fortunately, it worked well and his leukemia was considered cured. But weirdly, the AIDS virus, HIV, was no longer found in his body. ¡°HIV multiplies by infecting and destroying white blood cells. The white blood cell number continues to decrease because of that, eventually reducing immunity, and ultimately killing the patient fromplications,¡± Carpentier said. ¡°The hematopoietic cells in the bone marrow of the donor had resistance to HIV, and the white blood cells their cells created did not get infected by HIV.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°After time, all the white blood cells that had no resistance to HIV died, establishing the resistant ones in the body. HIV continuously decreased as it had nothing to infect and eventually disappeared. ¡°There was a mutation in CCR5,¡± Young-Joon interrupted. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± Carpentier nodded. The gene CCR5 was the infection route of HIV. The white blood cells that this gene was active in could be infected by HIV. But the hematopoietic cells of the person who donated bone marrow to Timothy Ray Brown had a mutation in CCR5, and the white blood cells that came from it had mutations as well. ¡°It¡¯s an interesting case,¡± Young-Joon said. Carpentier smiled. ¡°The bone marrow that Timothy Ray Brown was donated just happened to have a natural mutation. But if we could artificially make the bone marrow, or the hematopoietic cells, with stem cells...¡± Carpentier said. ¡°Then, we could alter CCR5 and make it into bone marrow that has resistance to HIV, could we not?¡± ¡°That is a good idea,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°But sir, how would we manipte CCR5?¡± Doctor Lee Jung-Hyuk asked. Young-Joon had manipted a lot of genes before, but he had only introduced foreign DNA into cells using viruses. Creating a specific mutation in a gene that already existed in the cell waspletely different. ¡°That¡¯s the problem,¡± Carpentier said, frowning. ¡°I think that we should treat the stem cells with a very low concentration of chemicals that damage the DNA and select the ones that have mutations in the CCR5 gene.¡± ¡°Won¡¯t that take a long time?¡± Lee Jung-Hyuk responded. ¡°Mr. Technical Advisor, that seems like the only option, but I think we will also have to check if other mutations have urred in other locations as well. Then, there will be a lot of tedious work to do.¡± ¡°It will be tedious, but if we can cure AIDS patients with that, we should do it.¡± ¡°The price of that treatment will skyrocket if you consider thebor and the price of DNA sequencing. It will take a long time to treat one patient as well. Wouldn¡¯t it be hard tomercialize it?¡± ¡°Hm...¡± Carpentier was lost in thought. It wouldn¡¯t be easy even if they used DNA scissors that could cut part of the DNA. As they would be experimenting with the entire genome, tens of thousands of ces would be cut randomly at once. They needed scissors that precisely cut CCR5 and only that. ¡°We have no other way. Maybe this is an impossible project,¡± Carpentier said with a bitter smile. ¡°There is a way,¡± Young-Joon interrupted. There was a message in front of his eyes. [Synchronization Mode: Check how to induce mutations in the CCR5-¦¤32 gene. Fitness consumption rate: 1.7/second.] ¡°I will research it and tell you at the next meeting.¡± 1. Self-destruction mechanism for cells ? Chapter 60: The First Product (1)

Chapter 60: The First Product (1)

After the meeting ended, Young-Joon went to theb instead of his office. ¡°Do we have Streptocus pyogenes by chance?¡± asked Doctor Lee Ju-Chan when Young-Joon ran into him at theb entrance. ¡°I¡¯m not sure. I think you¡¯re going to have to ask the microbes team for that.¡± Young-Joon called Choi Myung-Joon right away. ¡°Hello. Do we have any strains of Streptocus pyogenes stored in theb?¡± ¡ªWe don¡¯t have any of that in the building. We only have beneficial bacteria and a few types of pathogens. Choi Myung-Joon replied. Streptocus pyogenes was a type of bacteria that caused necrotizing fasciitis. A-Bio didn¡¯t have this bacteria as they had never studied the diseases rted to this bacteria before, but not A-Gen; as they had a huge resource for research, there were numerous types of organisms kept at theirpany. Young-Joon contacted the Research Support Department and requested for Streptocus pyogenes. He received the bacteria that evening, and it was shipped in the form of colonies in a solid culture medium. He also ordered some short strands of DNA, and those were shipped along with the bacteria as well. Using these, Young-Joon obtained a DNA copy of one of the Streptocus pyogenes genes. [Cas9] Young-Joon had named this great gene; it meant CRISPR associated protein 9. From decades ago, there were reports about an unknown DNA sequence called CRISPR¡ªclustered regrly interspaced short palindromic repeats¡ªin bacteria. There were also frequent references to the biomaterials of various species associated with it. However, there was yet to be a clear exnation as to what CRISPR was. However, Rosaline showed Young-Joon what no one knew. ¡ªCas9 is a type of gic scissor that can cut exactly at the position you want. It is like the bacteria¡¯s immune system that they use to remove foreign gic material. Young-Joon¡¯s hands trembled as he thought about the potential Cas9 held. ¡®It can cut DNA exactly at the position I want?¡¯ It was an item as revolutionary as induced pluripotent stem cells. Cutting DNA with gic scissors waspletely different than using scissors for paper crafts because DNA molecules were so miniscule that it was difficult to see even under a microscope. How would someone be able to cut that with handheld scissors? It was impossible. Cutting up DNA actually referred to a set of chemical reactions; the DNA strand would be cut when it was put in solution with gic scissors at 37?C, but as it was being cut indirectly, it was very difficult to cut the DNA at a certain location. The method normally used was to decode the entire DNA sequence beforehand and find a unique sequence that only existed at one single location. Then, they would use gic scissors that only recognized that one sequence to cut only at that location. This was simr to a program that found a certain word in a book and corrected it; one would find one unique word that was at a certain location, and then run a program to recognize and correct it. Of course, the designing process for this kind of work was extremely particr, and unfortunately, it would sometimes be impossible to manipte it at all if they couldn¡¯t find a unique sequence. Still, many scientists have crafted small DNA fragments with this technology. Then, could one manipte human DNA with this? In terms of characters, there were about three billion letters of DNA in a single human cell. That was about fifteen thousand books with two hundred pages each. The amount of information wasn¡¯t just a single book, but a library. It would be impossible for a scientist to decode all that, but there was also no way for them to find a word that only existed once in the entire set of books. As such, putting gic scissors with a human cell would just break the DNA into fragments since there would be several unique structures that the scissors would recognize. Those fragmented DNA pieces were useless and the cell would die as well. As such, it was near impossible to manipte a certain gene in human cells. ¡ªBut you can set the location of the strand to be cut by Cas9. Design a long target to specify the desired location and put it in with Cas9. Then, only that location will be cut. Unlike existing gic scissors that had a predetermined DNA structure to recognize, a person could determine the DNA structure Cas9 should recognize. For example, one would get a huge number of results if they searched up ¡°Liu Bei¡± in a library database. But if they searched up ¡°Liu Bei shared drinks with Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, became sworn brothers, and took an oath to die at the same day and time¡±? Only books about the Three Kingdoms woulde up out of the fifteen thousand books, and the search results would only contain the part about the Oath of the Peach Garden. The scientist could program Cas9 to find that sentence and correct it. ¡ªAs such, you are able to cut exactly at one desired location. Theoretically, any location out of the three billion strings of letters could be precisely targeted. ¡®This isn¡¯t just for manipting CCR5.¡¯ Young-Joon felt chills run down his spine. If iPSC was a technology based on regenerative medicine, this was a technology based on gene therapy. Every type of gic condition urred because of a mutation in a gene. If they could precisely recognize and only cut the gene that was broken due to a mutation and repair it by adding a new gene? Theoretically, all gic conditions could be cured. Although, they still had a long way to go as it was just a base technology. ¡°Doctor Lee, do you have the stem cells that you¡¯re going to differentiate into bone marrow?¡± asked Young-Joon, who went to the bone marrow regeneration team¡¯sb. ¡°Yes, we are growing them right now.¡± ¡°Could you give me some?¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I am going to manipte CCR5.¡± * * * At a luxurious bar in Basel, Switzend, a middle-aged man was waiting for someone with an expensive bottle of whiskey on the table. He was Luca Taylor, the CEO of Schumatix. Later, arge man wearing a hat came into the room. ¡°Hello,¡± the man said ¡°Long time no see, Andrew.¡± Andrew was a broker and lobbyist who helped Luca Taylor. His main areas of service were persuading the responsible departments in each country for overseas clinical trials and obtaining permission to sell new drugs from Schumatix. However, he had done dirtier things than this. Andrew was one of the people that Luca Taylor trusted the most. ¡°Whiskey?¡± Luca Taylor asked as he held up the bottle. ¡°I¡¯m fine. I¡¯m trying to cut back on drinking.¡± ¡°Then Coke?¡± Luca Taylor asked as he pointed to the Coke bottle. ¡°No, I¡¯m okay.¡± ¡°How is it going with A-Bio? Did some of your people join?¡± ¡°Yes, a few have joined A-Bio.¡± ¡°Are the things that Ryu Young-Joon announced at the conference really being developed at A-Bio?¡± ¡°Yes, it is exactly like he said. Although, I could not gather a lot of information as each team is thorough with experiment confidentiality.¡± ¡°... I can¡¯t believe it. They can really do that...¡± ¡°I¡¯ve heard through rumors that they are developing a stem cell treatment that can cure AIDS,¡± Andrew said. ¡°An AIDS cure? How?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know how yet. Young-Joon hasn¡¯t revealed it to anyone.¡± ¡°It¡¯s probably difficult to copy easily even if you know how to do it. Stem cells were a minor field before iPSC technology came out. There weren¡¯t many world-renowned experts in that field, and since they all signed contracts with A-Bio already or are set to, it¡¯s going to be difficult for us asters to catch up with them even if we figure out Ryu Young-Joons¡¯ n.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true.¡± ¡°Anyway, it worries me that they are making an AIDS cure.¡± ¡°It¡¯s bothering me as well.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t have the slightest clue as to what he is trying to do, but if it¡¯s released, all our antiretroviral drugs for HIV are going to retire.¡± ¡°Probably.¡± ¡°He cured a, cured Alzheimer, and he¡¯s going to make spines, bone marrow, and cure AIDS...¡± ¡°He also said he¡¯s going to make organs.¡± ¡°He really is Jesus reincarnated, isn¡¯t he? He¡¯s going to do all that in a year?¡± Luca Taylor scoffed like it was ridiculous. ¡°But Ryu Young-Joon really might be able to do it if you consider the things he has aplished in the past six months. He had nothing back then, but like you said, all the world-renowned stem cell experts are on his side now.¡± ¡°I also think that he will deliver on a significant amount of what he promised. That¡¯s why it¡¯s even more ridiculous. Seriously, in a year, A-Gen and A-Bio will dominate the pharmaceutical industry. We won¡¯t have space in the market.¡± ¡°What are you going to do?¡± Luca Taylor silently poured himself a ss of whiskey.¡± ¡°Andrew. Are you going to drink the Coke?¡± ¡°Pardon? Oh, no.¡± Luca Taylor took the bottle of Coke that was in front of Andrew. ¡°Ryu Young-Joon is like this bottle of Coke. He is full of people¡¯s expectations.¡± Then, he opened the lid slightly and vigorously shook it up and down. Psh... Pop! With the sound of air escaping, the bubbles rose to the top, pushed the lid out of the way and poured out of the opening. ¡°Shake him a little bit and let him explode,¡± Luca Taylor said as he stared at the Coke bottle, which was pouring onto the table. ¡°Reputation and support in this industry is like a house of cards. The public isn¡¯t supporting him because they know the science behind it; it¡¯s just blind faith that¡¯s almost religious. The atmosphere will change in seconds if you show them evidence about the dangers.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°All drugs have side effects, and they will be used as drugs if the efficacy outweighs the side effects. It¡¯s all a matter of what is focused on.¡± ¡°Do you have a n?¡± ¡°We have to destroy stem cells, which is the root of everything Ryu Young-Joon is working on. We are going to use a strategy that spreads the perception that it is dangerous to the world.¡± ¡°Like the time we destroyed Neural Clinics?¡± ¡°Neural Clinics was a venturepany, so just spreading the word that stem cells were dangerous and getting their funding cut off was enough to destroy them. But A-Bio has A-Gen supporting them. It¡¯s not that simple.¡± ¡°Of course. Even if we instigate things, the truth wille out eventually, and A-Bio won¡¯t fall by then.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. And his funding won¡¯t be cut off since Ryu Young-Joon has shown the world the possibility of sessfully curing Alzheimer¡¯s. We can¡¯t get them in the same way we got Neural Clinics.¡± ¡°Then what are you going to do?¡± ¡°We have to drag them down and catch up to their technology.¡± ¡°You¡¯re going to get me to drag them down, right?¡± ¡°We can¡¯t touch the clinical trial that he¡¯s supervising and conducting in Korea, but there¡¯s a product that has a clinical trial ending soon.¡± ¡°The a one? That is going to go intomercialization in a couple months.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. That¡¯s the first technology A-Bio manufactured. If it besmercialized and provided worldwide, we can use it, too.¡± ¡°Clinical trials end at Phase Three, but that¡¯s only based on the standards of the general public. In the pharmaceutical industry, there¡¯s a Phase Four.¡± ¡°I understand what you¡¯re saying.¡± ¡°Feedback on problems aftermercialization.¡± Tung! Luca Taylor threw the empty Coke bottle into the trash can. ¡°We are going to aim for that and make Ryu Young-Joon stumble. Just once is enough. When he¡¯s no longer overestimated and A-Bio is running around like headless chickens, we can steal some of his people and technology. We can catch up to him then.¡± ¡°I understand. I wille up with a detailed n.¡± ¡°You¡¯re going to have to move pretty fast if there¡¯s only a month left untilmercialization.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry, sir. I thought you would say that, so I already started preparing it.¡± Andrew grinned. * * * Young-Joon was greeting friendly faces in his office. It was Nichs Kim, the CTO of A-Gen. ¡°I¡¯m thrilled to see that yourpany already looks this good,¡± Nichs said. ¡°Thank you,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°I remember when you barged into the year-end seminar and went up to the podium.¡± Nichs was reminiscing. ¡°It was quite entertaining to see those violentb directors all go silent in shock.¡± ¡°Did you? You were so quiet that I didn¡¯t know you enjoyed that.¡± ¡°Haha, I just thought you were an ingenious and bold oddball back then, but now I see that you are a good businessman as well. To build a hospital like that with donations...¡± ¡°All I want to do is advance medicine.¡± ¡°I believe you are capable of doing that, Doctor Ryu.¡± ¡°How is A-Gen nowadays?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°It seems they were motivated after seeing A-Bio grow like this. Everyone is working hard. Although, theb directors seem a little discouraged.¡± ¡°Those hot-tempered people are capable of bing discouraged?¡± ¡°Doesn¡¯t someone¡¯s anger issues get resolved in front of people stronger than them?¡± Nichs said with a chuckle. ¡°Everyone is worried that you will take away their livelihood. Myself included.¡± ¡°Haha, don¡¯t worry. I¡¯m the CEO of A-Bio, but I am also a director of A-Gen.¡± ¡°Of course. To be honest, I like the situation now. I like that theb directors have be nicer as well.¡± ¡°Are they nicer to scientists now?¡± ¡°It seems like the directors are scared that the scientists will leave because they keep ncing at A-Bio. They have be quite nice. In particr, Director Gil Hyung-Joon is trying to get closer to the scientists by buying them coffee and giving them movie tickets.¡± ¡°Hahaha, I can¡¯t even imagine what that would look like. I still clearly remember how he screamed at us during the seminar.¡± ¡°That¡¯s why the young scientists call you Ryu Hyung-Wook.¡± ¡°Ryu Hyung-Wook?¡± ¡°Theybined your name with a famous dog trainer. I heard the scientists talking about how there is no such thing as a bad director a few times.¡±[1] ¡°Oh my god.¡± As Young-Joon chuckled in bafflement, Nichs also chuckled. ¡°I also told the directors multiple times to be kind to their scientists, but they didn¡¯t listen to me. To be honest, I¡¯m grateful for you, Doctor Ryu. In this atmosphere, A-Gen should be able to progress quicker.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a relief.¡± ¡°Please keep what I said a secret.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± Nichs took a few sips of his tea. He hesitated a little, then said, ¡°Doctor Ryu. Have you heard anything about the pharmaceutical cartels recently?¡± 1. Kang Hyung-Wook is a famous dog trainer on the TV show, ¡°There Is No Such Thing as a Bad Dog¡±, where Kang Hyung-Wook trains violent and bad dogs to correct their behavior. ? Chapter 61: The First Product (2)

Chapter 61: The First Product (2)

Young-Joon was about to take a sip of his coffee, but he raised his head to look at Nichs Kim. ¡°The cartels? I haven¡¯t heard anything in particr,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Something is off, Doctor Ryu. The work you are doing right now is heavily threatening the livelihood of thosepanies. A-Gen included, but we¡¯re affiliated with you, so... Anyway, you haven¡¯t received any calls from those transnational pharmaceuticalpanies?¡± ¡°They did contact me to do business together at the IUBMB.¡± ¡°What did you say?¡± ¡°That I would consider it.¡± ¡°Did they contact you after that?¡± ¡°Roche and Pfizer contacted me. We¡¯re going to have a business meeting soon, and I haven¡¯t heard from Schumatix yet.¡± Nichs tapped his lip, then said hesitantly, ¡°I recently heard a few things about Schumatix.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°Schumatix is making a next-generation hospital in India.¡± ¡°It¡¯s the first I¡¯m hearing of this.¡± ¡°To be exact, Schumatix has a hospital they sponsored in India, and they are going to renovate the facilities to make a next-generation hospital.¡± ¡°Why are they not doing that in Switzend or the U.S., where they have their headquarters, but in India?¡± ¡°... That¡¯s the part that bugs me, Doctor Ryu. The a treatment is beingmercialized soon, right?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°You¡¯re making it into a kit, right?¡± ¡°There are two products: one is a stem cell and optic nerve production service done at A-Bio, and the other is a stem cell production kit that can make it.¡± ¡°Can you tell me a little bit more about the kit?¡± ¡°To use the a treatment, you have to extract the patient¡¯s somatic cells and put a few types of genes into it using a virus. You also have to add a few genes when you differentiate it into optic nerves,¡± Young-Joon exined. ¡°It¡¯s easier than you think if you have the virus, but making the virus is quite fussy. So, we are going to make the virus and sell it as a stem cell creation kit. The somatic cell will differentiate automatically if you put a single drop of the virus solution in it.¡± ¡°Hm.¡± ¡°We are only going to supply the product to verified biological experiment agencies. After creating stem cells and optic nerves, we are going to verify them with a technology like FACS and use it to treat patients at hospitals associated with them.¡± ¡°You¡¯re saying that you are going to link biological experiment agencies all around the world with their local hospitals because there aren¡¯t a lot of hospitals that have technicians to carry out the optic nerve differentiation, right? And you¡¯re going to supply the kits to make the differentiation more convenient?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a good idea, but don¡¯t do it,¡± Nichs said. ¡°Let¡¯s only make stem cells and optic nerves under your supervision and only use the treatment at A-Bio¡¯s hospital. There will definitely be people from pharmaceutical cartels that challenge the safety of that kit.¡± ¡°Our research shows that the kit ispletely safe. And we used a lot of stem cells and optic nerve cells produced by the kits in the clinical trial. And if there really is a safety problem that wasn¡¯t identified in the clinical trial, it would be right to dispose of the product. If that happens, I will dispose of all of it,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°That¡¯s not what I am saying, Doctor Ryu. You know what kind of people the pharmaceutical cartels are, don¡¯t you?¡± Nichs said like he was frustrated. ¡°They might sabotage you even worse than anything you can imagine. They might test the kit, artificially produce negative results, then attack you with it.¡± ¡°They could,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°And you are still going to use that kit? Then, what if you only do it in ces within your scope for now? You can take your time supplying the product to the world with the kits, right?¡± Young-Joon took a sip of his coffee. There was a moment of silence. Nichs was staring at Young-Joon with worry in his eyes. ¡°Thank you for your consideration, but Mr. CTO...¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°My enemy is not Schumatix, Roche, or Pfizer.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The enemy that I have been fighting against since I was an undergraduate student who didn¡¯t know much, even before joining A-Gen and going into graduate school, was disease itself.¡± ¡°Phew...¡± ¡°If I take a step back because I¡¯m afraid of the pharmaceuticalpany¡¯s sabotage and limit this new technology that I can supply worldwide to Korea and A-Bio, it will reduce the risk to mypany,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°But it¡¯s not like that risk goes away. ¡°Patients from all over the world will share that risk together. A-Bio¡¯s hospital in Korea. If we limit treatment with limited space and manpower, patients will have to wait a long time, fly long distances, and they are going to need more time and money. Eventually, the number of people who cannot receive treatment will rise exponentially as you go towards developing countries.¡± ¡°But Schumatix will definitely sabotage you,¡± Nichs said. ¡°Then I will just fight them with science,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I will ept it if their attacks are reasonable, and if there is a problem with it, I will just destroy it with clear evidence and knowledge. I don¡¯t know how to take the long way ory low to protect other¡¯s livelihoods. Isn¡¯t that the principle of learning and the right thing to do? ¡°There is only the truth and advancement in science. If there are any side effects on society that ur in the process of advancement, it should be taken care of, but I don¡¯t think that includes the livelihood of Schumatix or Roche.¡± Nichs massaged his eyes with his hands like he was getting a headache. ¡°I heard that you lost your younger sister to liver cancer.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°I think that has be a source of trauma for you, causing you to be obsessive. You can¡¯t treat all patients this quickly. Even if there is a shortcut, you have to know how to go the long way if that path is dangerous. You have to be more careful about doing significant work that might improve the medicalmunity,¡± Nichs said. ¡°Doctor Ryu, how many pipelines do you have for stem cells?¡± ¡°a, Alzheimer¡¯s, spine, bone marrow, cartge, skin, organoids. A total of seven.¡± ¡°You started too many things at once. You probably made that many enemies. If backed up into a corner, a mouse will bite the cat.¡± ¡°If those mice transmit diseases or eat away at our future food source, I will dly get bitten and fight them.¡± ¡°You are determined.¡± ¡°You know me.¡± Nichs suddenly smiled. ¡°Alright.¡± He nodded. ¡°I don¡¯t care what anyone says, but I like your unwavering personality. I¡¯m just worried that it will destroy your future, Doctor Ryu.¡± ¡°Thank you. But don¡¯t worry too much. I¡¯m fine.¡± ¡°Alright. If you have difficulties, please tell me. I¡¯m not as smart as you, but I know how dirty this industry can be, more than you. I will definitely be of help.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± After Nichs left, Young-Joon leaned back in his chair. ¡ªI really cannot understand you. Rosaline said. ¡ªIf you are worried about the harm that the pharmaceutical cartels will do to you, there is a much easier way. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡ªI¡¯ll design a few viruses for you, and then you can go meet thepany¡¯s board members and infect them. They¡¯ll end up in a long-terma. They will not think of touching you if their management copses. It¡¯ll be hard for them to even keep theirpany running. ¡°... No, don¡¯t do that...¡± ¡ªIt¡¯s not like we¡¯re killing them, right? We just have to let themy down for a few years. We can wake them back up after you dominate the pharmaceutical industry, right? ¡°How can you say something so crazy and insane as if you¡¯re saying that you want to grab burgers for lunch today?¡± ¡ªI have analyzed your morals and ethics for a long time. In my opinion, this is not hical. This is the fastest choice for the improvement of universal health, and it is safe because we are not taking their lives. And since they will not be criticized by the shareholders if they are sick andying in bed, unable to run theirpany, it will give them a reason for their loss. It¡¯s a win-win for both. ¡°I don¡¯t have the right to do something like that. It¡¯s not like they caused me harm or anything.¡± ¡ªThere¡¯s a possibility they will, no? If police run into an extremely agitated criminal, they will subdue them and put cuffs on them to take away their freedom of movement. That isn¡¯t considered immoral to you, right? It is the same thing. ¡°It¡¯s a no, man.¡± ¡ªThen what are you going to do? I can stop them if they attack you directly, but they might attack you more politically. Rosaline said. ¡ªIf I was the CEO of a multinational pharmaceuticalpany and my livelihood is being threatened by you, I would find a problem with your kit, like Nichs said. ¡°They will do something like that.¡± ¡ªIf I were them, I would cause a problem with the patient. After causing a fatal eye disease, I will say that it was a side effect from your treatment kit. Young-Joon put down the coffee he was drinking. ¡°I hope they don¡¯t go that far, but there is a possibility they will do that.¡± ¡ªMaybe. ¡°They might prove that there was no problem with the administration of the treatment itself by using a renowned doctor, and sabotage me by saying that my kit is the problem.¡± ¡ªI would do that if it was me. What are you going to do? ¡°If they mess with the patient, I will show them hell. But I can¡¯t make all the directors brain dead even before they do anything just because I think they are going tomit a crime. I have my own way. I¡¯ll hide a counter-attack in the kit, so don¡¯t worry.¡± ¡ªAha. Are you going to do something like revealing that it was caused by Schumatix when a patient gets a fatal disease like cancer? ¡°No. A patient will not get hurt,¡± Young-Joon said. * * * After Carpentier joined thepany, the progress of the study had risen sharply. In just a month, numerous tissue regeneration experiments based on stem cells had quickly progressed. Results had starteding out one by one as he took charge of the spine and bone marrow. But surprisingly, the work that had the fastest progress was organoids, the hardest one. ¡°As you said, we three-dimensionally grew four types of epithelial cells and an intestine stem cell at the same time,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung presented at the meeting. ¡°We had some trouble with getting the right ratio and the gene expression level, but these are the results.¡± He went to the next slide. There were pictures of circr cell structures. It looked like a dandelion. People who didn¡¯t know much would wonder what kind of intestine looks like this, but Young-Joon looked at it interestingly. ¡°We created the endoderm first by promoting TGF-? signaling. Then, we created the stomach structure by treating the FGF4 and WNT3A,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung said. ¡°I will exin each cell in the picture in order. This is the enterocyte, over here and here are goblet cells and the enteroendocrine cell. And the cells on the outside are intestine stem cells.¡± Cheon Ji-Myung exined the pictures in order. ¡°They are still the size of my thumbnail. This can¡¯t rece the small intestine, but theoretically, we can use this to cultivate artificial small intestines if grown inrge quantities.¡± ¡°But it will cost a lot of money to do that, right?¡± ¡°There is still the question of whether we can grow this into an organ with current technology, but even if we can do it, the materials for growing them would cost an astronomical amount of money,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung said. ¡°It¡¯s fine. It¡¯s a big deal that you made an organoid in the first ce. It¡¯s already worthy as the front page of Nature. Good work,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°And this doesn¡¯t need anything like a clinical trial. The research is done if you sessfully created organoids. Doctor Cheon and our organoids team, good work. From now on, we will use this organoid in the next-generation¡¯s hospital to precisely diagnose patients with Crohn¡¯s or tumors in their small intestines and treat them.¡± ¡°Haha, thank you. We almost died while making it, but it feels rewarding.¡± ¡°Was it really hard?¡± ¡°We stayed up for days. It¡¯s difficult enough to differentiate and grow one cell, but to tie five different types of cells together and grow them simultaneously to create a 3D structure was... I don¡¯t know. It was a very, very creative attempt to put it really nicely.¡± ¡°Haha, it was crazy, I admit it. To be honest, I didn¡¯t think you would do it this quickly.¡± ¡°It¡¯s because you designed the strategy for us.¡± ¡°It¡¯s still an amazing speed, even considering that.¡± ¡°A lot of world-ss scientists joined thepany, so we have to work hard to not get fired,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung said yfully. ¡°Anyway, sir, give us a lot of bonuses since we all worked hard.¡± ¡°Of course. I will give you a vacation as well. And when youe back, let¡¯s try making the next organoid.¡± ¡°The next organoid?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s increase the difficulty a little and try liver organoids,¡± Young-Joon said. The life kind of drained out of Cheon Ji-Myung¡¯s face. ¡°Yes... We will do that.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t spend the night and overwork yourselves. You have to take care of your team¡¯s health for the long run,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Oh, and Doctor Cheon, please write a paper that you seeded in creating organoids. You can be the first author and please distribute the order of authors to your members. I will leave it to you.¡± ¡°Okay. I will enter you as the corresponding author.¡± The first author was usually the front-line scientist who did the experiment, but the corresponding author was the project¡¯s supervisor and manager. If the first author was a graduate student, the corresponding author would be the professor. ¡°Alright. You should send it to Science. It will be on the cover since it¡¯s big,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I didn¡¯t think I would ever write the cover of Science,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung said with a giggle. ¡°Yes. if there aren¡¯t any other papers.¡± The manuscript for the paper was still being written, but the news that they had seeded in creating a small intestine organoid swept through thepany and spread a sense of motivation. ¡°Let¡¯s steal the cover of Science,¡± Carpentier said during his meeting with the spinal regeneration team. ¡°I sincerely congratte the organoid team¡¯s performance, but we can¡¯t fall behind, right? Let¡¯s work hard and yield good results. Regeneration of the spinal nerve can go up against organoids. If we see results in mice experiments, we could be able to surpass organoids. Then, the Science cover is ours.¡± Carpentier chuckled. ¡°It¡¯s like archery...¡± Doctor Goo Chan-Yeol said. ¡°Archery?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a sport that Korea is proud of, and thepetition to choose the national team is more intense than the Olympic gold medal match.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t watch archery, so I don¡¯t know. Anyway, we have made good progress on our project, so let¡¯s work hard and have it out.¡± But thepetitor for the cover of Science was something no one expected, and it was a much more powerful result than organoids or spinal regeneration. [A-Bio finished with Phase Three of the a treatment.] [The first-ever stem cell therapy to bemercialized.] [A-Bio, the center of the stem cell treatment market.] Just overnight, a huge amount of news poured out. The a treatment was finished with the third phase of its clinical trial. They had treated about a thousand patients. Now, it was facingmercialization. Chapter 62: The First Product (3)

Chapter 62: The First Product (3)

In order for people to buy the stem cell and optic nerve differentiation kit, they had to receive basic training about the experimentation method from A-Bio, as A-Bio would not sell it unless one attended the session. Although A-Bio couldn¡¯t reimburse the transportation or amodation expenses, the training itself was free. As such, scientists from all over the world swarmed to A-Bio after the third phase of the a clinical trial ended. Usually, A-Bio¡¯s stem cell experts would do the training, but Young-Joon decided to give the first lecture himself as it was the first time. ¡°Look, there are two kits. They look like eye drops, right? One drop of solution wille out of them if you squeeze the bottle,¡± Young-Joon exined as he showed the kit to the audience. ¡°They are either called the first kit and second kit, or called the dedifferentiation and optic nerve differentiation kit.¡± Young-Joon dropped one drop of each solution onto a tissue to show them. ¡°First, you need to overexpress the genes SOX2, cMyc, OCT4, and KTF4 in order to dedifferentiate somatic cells to stem cells.¡± Young-Joon took a culture dish out of the incubator and showed it to the scientists. ¡°The sample of the patient¡¯s somatic cell you harvested onto the culture te should look like this. There¡¯s a picture of a microscope beside it, right? Now, this somatic cell is mine,¡± Young-Joon said with a chuckle.[1] ¡°We are going to add ten drops of solution number one, the dedifferentiation kit we developed.¡± Drop! Drop! ¡°There is a living virus in this solution. For you to handle this, you will have to get aboratory inspection and permit from your respective countries,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°This virus inserts the four genes I mentioned earlier into the somatic cell¡¯s DNA. Then, dedifferentiation urs as these genes are expressed.¡± Actually, all of the scientists here knew that as they had all read Young-Joon¡¯s paper, but even so, they passionately wrote down everything that he was saying. ¡°The volume ratio is one drop per culture medium, and you must distribute the solution evenly across the culture te. After three days, they will have be iPSC. Let¡¯s use iPSCs that I prepared beforehand since I have to show you how to do it.¡± Young-Joon pulled out another culture dish. ¡°It will look something like this after three days, and you can see that morphologically, it has the structure of a stem cell. You can also additionally verify it through things like DNA methtion analysis,¡± Young-Joon exined. ¡°I will leave that up to you. The next step is to make these iPSCs into optic nerves. Now, we use the second kit, the optic nerve differentiation one.¡± Drop! Drop! Young-Joon put a few droplets of the solution from the optic nerve differentiation kit onto the culture medium. ¡°They will now differentiate into optic nerves. But at this step, you must use a culture medium that contains five micromoles of hydrocortisone,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°It¡¯s not that difficult. Everyone will actually be doing this experiment for about ten days here. I will hand out experiment protocol books so that you can read that and follow it after you leave.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°I appreciate it.¡± As they began their experiments, Young-Joon silently observed them. There were several scientists from numerous countries: Switzend, Britain, USA, France, and more. They were also affiliated with different ces; some were part of huge pharmaceuticalpanies like Roche or Pfizer, and some were from venturepanies he had never heard of. However, Young-Joon had his eye on one person. ¡®Daniel.¡¯ He was a scientist from Schumatix. He looked very friendly, but Young-Joon wondered what kind of person he was. Whatever it was, he would get training for ten days and buy the virus to take home. And there was a very high chance that it was going to be used in India. * * * Young-Joon was sending someone an email from his office. [Hello, this is Ryu Young-Joon from A-Bio. I am sending you an email from the business card you gave me. There is something I want to ask as a favor. It might be a secretive talk. Please reply to this email if you are willing.] Time passed, and it was now evening. Young-Joon was getting ready to leave when he got an email on his phone. [Please use the cell phone we sent you. Pick up the phone at 9 PM in Korea time.] ¡®A cell phone they sent me?¡¯ As Young-Joon was confused, someone knocked on his office door. ¡°Sir? It¡¯s Yoo Song-Mi.¡± ¡°Come in.¡± Yoo Song-Mi was the secretary that was hired three days ago. She handed him a small package. ¡°Thank you.¡± Young-Joon opened the package to see a tacky-looking foldable phone in it. When it became nine o¡¯clock, he really got a call on this phone. ¡°Hello?¡± ¡ªHello.[2] It was an electronic voice that had been altered. ¡°Hello, this is Ryu Young-Joon.¡± ¡ªNice to meet you. I called because you sent me an email, Doctor Ryu. It¡¯s James. It was Director James Holdren from the White House¡¯s Office of Science and Technology, the person he had met at his hotel before attending the Integrative Brain Disorder Conference in America. He was also the person who warned him about how the huge pharmaceutical cartels would pressure him. ¡ªYou have something you want to discuss with me? And secretly? ¡°Yes.¡± ¡ªI didn¡¯t know that you would ask for this type of call from someone like me. I thought you only took public and clean paths. ¡°I¡¯m sorry for disappointing you. It¡¯s because it¡¯s about a patient¡¯s life.¡± ¡°-Haha, I¡¯m joking. It¡¯s fine. Please, go ahead. Although, I think I know what this is about. ¡°I am developing a product that will treat a,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡ªYes, I heard the news. Congrattions. ¡°Word travels fast.¡± ¡ªYes. And since I congratted you, I will also warn you. From what I see, I think A-Bio is in danger because of that product. ¡°Have you heard something?¡± ¡ªYou hear things you don¡¯t want to hear when you¡¯re in this position. You should go first, Doctor Ryu. I think the fact you contacted me means that you sensed danger as well. ¡°I heard that Schumatix is building a next-generation hospital in India.¡± ¡ªHaha, yes. That¡¯s the information I got as well. ¡°I think that scientists need basic respect and trust toward other scientists in the same field. But to be honest, I can¡¯t help but feel suspicious.¡± ¡ªI think so as well. ¡°I hope that I¡¯m just being overly anxious, but if they use my kit and try to ruin a patient¡¯s life, the situation will go south.¡± ¡ªI will be honest. In my opinion, Schumatix will induce eye cancer in a patient. They already used that idea to attack Neural Clinic¡¯s new stem cell therapy. ¡ªAnd there¡¯s a fine line between stem cells and cancer cells. The biggest thing that all scientists fear when using stem cell therapy is cancer. There¡¯s a big possibility that stem cells will cause cancer, right? ¡°I think so as well. And it¡¯s going to be hard for them to make a connection with the stem cells if they cause any other diseases.¡± ¡ªOf course. They can¡¯t pour acid in the patient¡¯s eyes and argue that it¡¯s because of your stem cells. It¡¯s not like they have the ability to melt eyes or something, so who would believe that? ¡ªAnd if there is an immune response when it¡¯s the patient¡¯s own cell, it would mean that Schumatix contaminated something while growing the cell, and if there is an infectious disease, it would mean that the doctor neglected good sanitation when doing the procedure. No matter what, they would be cutting off their nose to spite their face. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡ªBut not eye cancer. If cancer urs, they can strongly propose that it is because of stem cells. Even if they don¡¯t, people would think that it was because of the stem cells just from hearing that the patient got cancer. ¡°Probably. Cancer isn¡¯t something that can easily ur naturally. I would also think it was because of the stem cells as well.¡± ¡ªYes. Then, how are you going to defend yourself when they do a press conference and say that Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s stem cells aren¡¯t safe? ¡°Cancer won¡¯t happen.¡± ¡ªWhat are you talking about? That¡¯s what we¡¯ve been speaking about this whole time? If you put in arge amount of stem cells and leave them, you get cancer. What I am saying is that Schumatix will only use one of your kits. They will use the first kit to dedifferentiate into stem cells and put it into the patient¡¯s eyes without using the second kit and differentiating it into optic nerves. A lot of stem cells will turn into cancer. ¡ªAnd there will be no evidence that it was Schumatix¡¯s fault because people will just think that the cancer was caused by the stem cells that weren¡¯t fully differentiated into optic nerves. They will think that, ¡°Oh, they don¡¯t all be optic nerves even if you use the second kit. If you¡¯re unlucky, the stem cells don¡¯t differentiate and it bes cancer.¡± Then, they will think it is dangerous because they wouldn¡¯t think that they only put in stem cells. ¡°Even if you just put in a huge amount of stem cells, you won¡¯t get cancer.¡± ¡ª... ¡°Among the technology we are developing, there¡¯s a spinal nerve differentiation one. The differentiation rate is very low, but it¡¯s quite sessful. Do you know how we do that?¡± ¡ªHow? ¡°Because the differentiation rate is so low, we administer stem cells to the lesion in dosages that are a hundred to a thousand timesrger.¡± ¡ªHoly... Aren¡¯t you just administering a tumor at that point? Doesn¡¯t the cancer spread right away? ¡°We put a safety mechanism on it. The cells that don¡¯t differentiate in a certain period of time will trigger their apoptosis mechanism and die,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°The optic nerve differentiation is the same as well. If the differentiation isn¡¯t promoted by the second kit, all the stem cells will die in three weeks.¡± ¡ª... ¡°Originally, it was a safety mechanism that we put just in case. This was just in case an unskilled scientist didn¡¯t faithfully follow A-Bio¡¯s protocol, or if they didn¡¯t thoroughly verify that the stem cells were properly made with something like FACS. It was to ensure that even if some undifferentiated stem cells that were left go into the patient¡¯s eyes, it doesn¡¯t cause cancer.¡± James couldn¡¯t say anything. Nothing came out of his mouth because he was so shocked. ¡®This is possible?¡¯ ¡°But if the scientist really ¡®made a mistake¡¯, most of the cells will be established in the retina because they are optic nerves. A very small number of stem cells will self-destruct in the patient¡¯s eye. So, most people don¡¯t know that there are stem cells left. They will just think that they¡¯ve been cured.¡± ¡ªProbably. ¡°But what if a scientist just puts in arge amount of stem cells that haven¡¯t even started to differentiate into optic nerves in the patient¡¯s eye?¡± James gulped. ¡ªWhat happens? ¡°When the safety mechanism is activated, because there is arge number of stem cells, they will aggregate[3]due to the nature of the destruction process. The aggregated mass will be big, and it will look like a tumor from a nce. ¡ªThen... ¡°If Schumatix reports something about cancer, it will mean that they didn¡¯t use the second kit and administered stem cells into the patient¡¯s eyes,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I will dere war at that moment. I will tell them to see whether the tumor on the patient¡¯s eye disappears in three weeks. If it does, I will tell them that it¡¯s not cancer, but the safety mechanism activating. I will argue about how scientists at a ce like Schumatix did the experiment to get results like that.¡± ¡ªThey are either so horribly unskilled that they forgot a step even after getting training from the production site, or they tried to cause cancer in the patient¡¯s eyes by purposely administering undifferentiated stem cells. ¡°Yes,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°And if it¡¯s thetter, I will do everything in my power to banish them from the scientificmunity forever.¡± ¡ª... I guess I shouldn¡¯t be worried about you. The bomb is in Schumatix¡¯s hand. Then, what is it that you want to ask me for? ¡°There are two things. This probably won¡¯t happen, but please stop it if Schumatix doesn¡¯t use my kit at all and tries to induce apletely different disease in the patient.¡± ¡ªYou don¡¯t have to worry about that. Schumatix is still one of the greatest pharmaceuticalpanies in the world, and there are a lot of intellectuals there. They won¡¯t make a move that stupid. They would be shooting themselves in the foot if they did that. ¡ªNo matter what kind of disease they create, it will be hard for them to attack you if it¡¯s not cancer because people will think that they made a mistake, whether it¡¯s in the growing phase or the administration itself. And the truth wille out if they follow the evidence left on the patient¡¯s eye. Their only option is cancer, the biggest problem with stem cells. ¡°I think so as well. I am just trying to be prepared for anything out of worry.¡± ¡ªI see that I am also one of the safety mechanisms. Alright. What¡¯s your next request? ¡°If I do a press conference and go to war with Schumatix, they might try to remove the patient out of anxiety,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°They might do that so that the world doesn¡¯t see that the thing they imed was a tumor was actually just stem cells in the natural process of dying from the safety mechanism. I am saying that they will try to get rid of the evidence.¡± ¡ªThey could do that. ¡°In that case, please protect the patient.¡± ¡ªNow I get why you called me, and why it was so secretive. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡ªYou are asking me to move the CIA, right? ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right.¡± James smiled. ¡ªI will report this to the President and begin. And I will also get you more information on this. If Schumatix reports of a tumor, I will let you know how far up thedder it goes. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡ªDon¡¯t forget to partner with the National Cancer Institute and build A-Bio¡¯s cancer researchb here. ¡°Of course.¡± 1. This is a Korean meme originating from a news anchor reporting about how a person stole the certificate of a registered seal, which the actual owner provided to use their car as coteral for loans, and stole the car. The anchor says, ¡±Now, this somatic cell is mine¡± to reenact how the car was stolen. ? 2. Spoken in English. The rest of Young-Joon¡¯s conversation with James is in English. ? 3. a process in which cells clump together ? Chapter 63: The First Product (4) Chapter 63: The First Product (4) ¡ªEvery second week of March is World a Week. It¡¯s a week of campaigns to raise awareness for a, one of the three major causes of blindness. The organizers of this week are the World Health Organization, the World a Association, and the World a Patient Association. Professor Shin Jung-Ju of Yeonyee Hospital said on the radio. ¡ªOh, I didn¡¯t know there was something like that. World a Week? The interviewer replied to Shin Jung-Ju. ¡ªYes. Coincidentally, the second week of March happens to be the week when Phase Three of the a trial ends. I think this year¡¯s a campaign will be quite hopeful. Shin Jung-Ju said. ¡ªThen maybe this week will be called the a Conquering Week from now on. The interviewer said with a chuckle. ¡ªThat¡¯s right. Especially with A-Bio¡¯s product, not only are they providing the treatment, but they made a stem cell production kit and have decided to supply it to the world. With this product, you can easily design stem cells and optic nerves with patients¡¯ somatic cells from anywhere around the world. Shin Jung-Ju exined. ¡ªWow, so are you saying that we can do it without a scientist? ¡ªHaha, no. You still need someone who studied stem cell differentiation. People will be able to make somatic cells into optic nerves following the experimentation method provided by A-Bio after receiving training from them. ¡ªI see. ¡ªBut the efficiency of the treatment increases exponentiallypared to if A-Bio and their hospital treats patients. ¡ªOf course. ¡ªYes. There are more than forty-five million a patients in the world. That¡¯s the entire poption of Korea. How could the A-Bio hospital treat them all by itself? And because a originates from age, the patients don¡¯t have much time either. It¡¯s hard for them to wait for their turn. Shin Jung-Ju said. ¡ªI see. The interviewer replied. ¡ªA-Bio would have earned a lot of money, and their stocks would have surged if they just provided the treatment and monopolized it. Perhaps this way would have been better to establish their identity as the first-ever next-generation hospital. Shin Jung-Ju added. ¡ªBut I think that the fact that they went out of their way to develop a kit and have decided to supply it to the entire world was truly a humanitarian decision. They were thoughtful of the people who wanted to see their grandchildren¡¯s faces just one more time before they died. It was truly brave and clever. I personally think highly of their decision. Even before the excitement subsided, there was more breaking news. [Launching of A-Bio¡¯s next-generation hospital] [Alzheimer¡¯s expert, Professor Koh In-Guk of Sunyoo Hospital joins A-Bio.] [Professor Reba of the Johns Hopkins Brain Science Institute joins A-Bio.] [Professor Sung Yo-Han, the first primary doctor of the a trials, joins A-Bio.] [The doctors of A-Bio¡¯s next-generation hospital will be the best in the world from the start.] Articles poured out. [A-Bio Hospital performing a treatment and epting appointments¡­] [A-Bio secures small intestine organoid technology and will use it when treating patients with intestinal diseases.] [Artificial organ technologyes within reach.] [A new paradigm of intestinal disease treatment.] [Organoids in one hand, stem cell therapy in the other: what kind of ce is A-Bio?] [More precise diagnoses, more powerful treatment.] The inte was going wild. ¡ªHoly crap. ¡ªIt was the twenty-first century yesterday. What century are we in today? ¡ªThey destroyed one of the three blindness-causing diseases. Wtf. ¡ªI don¡¯t even know what an organoid is. Everything that''s beening out recently is so out of this world. All I can manage to understand with my brain is a. ¡ªCurrent med student here. I¡¯m d and also sad at how the amount of testable material is increasing. ¡ªI can¡¯t believe we¡¯re treating a. My father has a. I should take him there. Are there a lot of appointments? ¡ªBut isn¡¯t it still dangerous? We don¡¯t know if it¡¯s safe or not. ©¸ It already cured a thousand patients. Cure rate is one hundred percent and the side effect rate is zero. Statistics don¡¯t lie. Don¡¯t ever ignore Phase Three again. But the good news was far from over. As they had sown many seeds at once, there was a lot to reap. A new drug that was more impactful than the a treatment or organoids had finally entered clinical trials. [A-Bio¡¯s Amuc, a type-2 diabetes treatment, enters the first phase of clinical trials.] This news was so powerful that itpletely outweighed all the other good news that came out about A-Bio. Three hundred million people from all over the world suffered from this disease. Everyone¡¯s eyes were on A-Bio. As A-Bio showed huge results right before Amuc went into clinical trials, the impact this news gave was stronger. Since they had conquered a and organoids, areas that seemed impossible, there were high expectations that the same thing was going to be possible with diabetes. ¡°This is insane¡­¡± Samuel, the editor of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and its journal, Science, was screaming out of joy. ¡°How many cover-worthy papers are we getting? A type-2 diabetes treatment,mercialization of the a treatment, and organoids? Organoids?!¡± Samuel eximed in excitement. ¡°Jessie! Should we buy a lottery ticket? With this luck, don¡¯t you think we¡¯re going to win the Powerball or something?¡± ¡°We have a lot of important papers, so let¡¯s not get distracted and focus on editing these well. It¡¯s over if we make a bad impression and we lose Doctor Ryu to Nature.¡± ¡°Hahaha! Never. But seriously, how can apany like this exist? They got all of this data in just a couple months?¡± ¡°They studied type-2 diabetes and a for over six months,¡± Jessie pointed out. ¡°Only six months. Even in thest half century, there was no work that crushed type-2 diabetes this much. And a was an incurable disease.¡±¡¯ Ding! Jessie¡¯s phone rang. ¡°We got another paper from A-Bio,¡± Jessie said. ¡°The first author is Carpentier. Study of spinal nerve differentiation with induced pluripotent stem cells¡­¡± ¡°Oh God! Thank you, Father! Thank you for letting me live in the same generation as them!¡± Samuel shouted. Jessie tried her best to smile. Samuel stood up from his seat and got close to her. ¡°What did they do?¡± ¡°How should I know? I just got the paper too. In the abstract¡­ Um¡­ It says that they seeded in regenerating spinal nerves. They performed the treatment on spinal damage model mice and seeded in making them walk.¡± ¡°If this was a civilization game, Korea would im the Scientific Victory.¡±[1] ¡°I don¡¯t y games, so I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about.¡± Jessie looked through the paper, then found something. ¡°Oh, but if you look at the letter to the editor, they¡¯re asking us to publish this slowly.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°It says that they have to put an embargo on the automatic death technology for stem cells for a while.¡± ¡°Okay! We can do that for sure.¡± ¡°Other than that, Samuel¡­ What do you think? About releasing an A-Bio edition.¡± ¡°This definitely deserves a special feature. It¡¯s going to be difficult to choose a cover, but this is crazy. Seriously, if all of this is true, A-Bio will dominate the first fifty pages of this month¡¯s Science.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s get an interview from Doctor Ryu when we release the feature.¡± ¡°Good idea. You¡¯re going to go, right?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°I think A-Bio will publish more papers, so why don¡¯t you just stay there instead ofing back?¡± ¡°You¡¯re joking, right?¡± ¡°I am, but I can seriously consider it if you want.¡± ¡°... Let me go to Korea first.¡± ¡°Jessie, think about the day when all of this technology getsmercialized and provided to patients. It¡¯s insane. It¡¯s not just a step forward in medicine, you know that, right?¡± ¡°It¡¯s like elerating on a car,¡± Jessie agreed. ¡°Samuel, the a treatment kit wasmercialized and released, right? I think that will be key. If that is safe and works perfectly all around the world, A-Bio will have a clear path ahead of them.¡± ¡°Phahaha. They had one thousand patients for their third phase, and their cure rate was one hundred percent. The power of A-Bio¡¯s clinical data is probably legendary in the pharmaceutical industry. Since it¡¯s the first ever stem cell therapy, Doctor Ryu probably conducted it really strictly because he was worried about people doubting its safety. What kind of idents will happen?¡± Samuelughed. He said, ¡°Anyway, hurry up and go to Korea!¡± ¡°Do you know how many papers I am editing right now? I have to finish that and go.¡± ¡°Oh, you can push that back a few days.¡± ¡°This is a paper from Harvard Med, too.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll talk to them myself if they say something to us because the editing is taking too long. So, hurry along. I¡¯ll book the ticket for you.¡± ¡°... Okay.¡± * * * India was called the world¡¯s pharmacy. It was because this was where all types of new drugs were replicated. The reason this was possible was because the Indian government¡¯s patentws were a little different than the world¡¯s. Normally, the drug had to show novelty or some sort of special advancement when getting a patent for a new drug. But the Indian government was very generous regarding this issue. They acknowledged it as a new drug even if it was slightly different, and they disregarded existing patents from multinational pharmaceuticalpanies in their country. They had a lot of conflict with internationalpanies because of this, but thepany that had the worst rtionship with them was Schumatix. Schumatix was selling a drug named Gleevec that treated leukemia at a very high price, but India made a replicate drug. Schumatix immediately sued thepanies that designed the replicate drug, but the Indian government didn¡¯t care about the international verdict and just protected their ownpanies. To bepletely honest, the Indian government hadpletely ignored international patentws. But it was also true that Schumatix could no longer sell Gleevec however they wanted, making a profit that was one hundred times more than the production cost, as the Gleevec-replicate drug manufactured in India made its way around the world. ¡®If this goes well, the Indian government will also take on some damage. They¡¯re basically failing once at getting on stem cell therapy, the world¡¯s new medical trend.¡¯ Luca Taylor, the CEO of Schumatix, was sitting in his office, lost in thought. Bzzzz. His phone rang. ¡°Hello.¡± ¡ªIt¡¯s Andrew. I¡¯m calling you to give you an update. ¡°Good. How is it going?¡± ¡ªDoctor Daniel got a kit and has safely returned to Schumatix India. ¡°Yes. Yes!¡± Luca Taylor clenched his fists. ¡ªWe gathered quite a lot of patients, but we are thinking of inducing cancer in one of them. Andrew said. ¡ªThe sess rate was one hundred percent for a thousand people, so it would be weird if there were a bunch of cancer patients. ¡°That¡¯s true. How many patients are there? ¡ªWe have gathered around one hundred people. We are only going to induce cancer in one of them. ¡°Who are they? I hate people like family or something like that begging and pleading, you know that, right? You have to do this as quietly as possible.¡± ¡ªOf course. We have been advertising that Schumatix India is using the new a treatment and treating the poor, free of charge, for charity. Andrew said. ¡ªThe Dalit[2], beggars from Mumbai, and a sick, lonely elderly man all the way from New Delhi. It was a hassle bringing him here. ¡°Who is the target? The old man?¡± ¡ªThe old man is over seventy. Even if we induce cancer in him, it won¡¯t have much of an impact. People might just say that it¡¯s because he¡¯s old since there were no reports of side effects when they treated a thousand patients in the clinical trial. ¡°Good. Great job. Then, who¡¯s the target?¡± ¡ªIt¡¯s a man named Ardip. He¡¯s in his thirties, and he¡¯s healthy except for the fact that he has a. He has a limp in one of his legs, but it¡¯s okay. He was born in a prostitution hole, and his mother died as soon as he was born, meaning he has no family. He grew up running errands for the gang members that managed the prostitution hole for food and was beaten regrly. He wasn¡¯t educated and he has no rtives either. ¡°Alright, good. What stage are you at right now?¡± ¡ªWe have obtained the patient¡¯s somatic cells and have treated it with the first kit. After the dedifferentiation ends, we will begin the surgery. ¡°Who did you say was the lead surgeon?¡± ¡ªIt is Professor Martin from France. He specializes in eye diseases and is highly respected in medicine. He put his gown on toe to this crappy neighborhood and examine patients in the spirit of service. ¡°You picked a good person. You set up a CCTV in the operating room?¡± ¡ªOf course. We got Professor Martin¡¯s consent as well. ¡°Alright. If we did this much and we release the video, we can sway the public that the procedure itself wasn¡¯t the problem. Let¡¯s use Professor Martin¡¯s reputation,¡± Luca Taylor said. ¡°No matter how good Martin is, unless he has microscopes for eyes, how can he know whether he has stem cells or optic nerves in his needle?¡± ¡ªI will contact you if there are any updates. ¡°Okay. Good work.¡± After ending the call, Luca Taylor put his legs up on his desk. ¡°India. A garbage country that only knows how to replicate drugs,¡± he said to himself. ¡°This is why Asian monkeys who haven¡¯t properly developed new drugs can¡¯t make it. Look at them opening their markets right away as soon as Ryu Young-Joon makes a product that¡¯s getting famous.¡± Other countries reacted quite passively to Young-Joon¡¯s a treatment. Even though he had results of sessfully treating a thousand patients, the government¡¯s regtions did not ease. As it was the first ever stem cell therapy, they were going to see the vibe of how it was going in other countries and slowly lift their regtions. However, the reason that pharmaceuticalpanies from all over the world sent their technicians to A-Bio to be trained was that they knew the regtions would be lifted soon; it wasn¡¯t easy to get amazing results like a cure rate of one hundred percent on a thousand patients. They were still prohibiting stem cell therapies because they were waiting for the right time. But this was an opportunity for Luca Taylor. Once they lift regtions and begin administering the a treatment, it would be toote for them. It would just be considered a huge outlier among the overwhelming amount of sessful results from all over the world. ¡®Strike first.¡¯ Luca Taylor had to dominate it first. Before other countries began a treatment, he had to reveal the side effects to the public and shock them to create a fearful environment. That was why Luca Taylor picked India. As loose as their regtions on new drug patents were, they weren¡¯t that picky about using new drugs either. ¡°To be honest, Pfizer, Conson & Colson, A-Gen should all be grateful to me.¡± Luca Taylor leaned back in his chair and raised his ss. It was a bit of an early toast. ¡°I¡¯m giving them time from that pharmaceutical monster. They should use this opportunity to get ahead. Venturepanies are like a house of cards, so they¡¯lle falling down with one hit, and we can steal some people and technology in the meantime.¡± He finished his drink. ¡°A good n.¡± He thought his n to screw over India, the people he found most irritating, and Young-Joon at the same time was brilliant. Luca Taylor was satisfied. 1. There are various types of victories in civilization games, one of which is the Science Victory, the ending given after bing the most advanced in science and technology. ? 2. A word that refers to members of a low-ss Hindu group that is outside the caste system. This word was dered illegal in India and Pakistan. It was used in this sentence as Andrew and Luca are being very demeaning and do not view these patients as people, but subjects they are using to screw over Young-Joon. ? Chapter 64: The First Product (5) Chapter 64: The First Product (5) A lot of scientists at A-Bio took turns having interviews with Jessie. Because Young-Joon volunteered to be the veryst, she met with Carpentier¡¯s spine regeneration team, Cheon Ji-Myung¡¯s organoid team, and Choi Myung-Joon¡¯s type-2 diabetes team. ¡°Spinal regeneration still has a long way to go. We did see results in mice experiments, but the experimental group was small. Also, we have to do monkey experiments due to the nature of the research to finish pre-clinical experiments,¡± Carpentier said. ¡°The small intestine organoid has a lot of room for future applications in the research and treatment of various diseases, including Crohn¡¯s disease. Oh, we spent nights making progress because we were motivated as well. We were like, ¡°Finally! It¡¯s done! Boom! Organoids!¡±... but now, our CEO wants to do livers as well. If you can, can you add a job posting at the end of this interview? Our team is dying right now,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung said. ¡°All of this sess was created from our CEO¡¯s critical insight and brilliant ideas. All we did was strictly follow the basic strategy he designed and control various factors and conditions. Simr to how you can be the first in your ss if you study by the book, we developed Amuc following the direction of our CEO¡­¡± Choi Myung-Joon said. ¡°I heard that you developed this in coboration with Celligener. Could I meet someone from Celligener?¡± Jessie asked. ¡°I think you¡¯ll have to go to Celligener for that. They don¡¯t work here.¡± Celligener: it was a venturepany that became pretty famous at the IUBMB. Jessie had heard that they were doing a coborative project with A-Bio. ¡°Thank you. I¡¯ll head there.¡± ¡°But the key scientist who does probiotics probably isn¡¯t there. They¡¯re in India.¡± ¡°India?¡± ¡°Yes. They secured a good investor at the IUBMB, and it¡¯s some wealthy man from India. So, the CEO of Celligener and that scientist went to India to get some funding.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°Are you going to go to Celligener? I think I¡¯m going to have to think about it if neither the CEO or the key scientist is there. I¡¯ll go see the clinical trial scientists first.¡± * * * Jessie went to A-Gen. She visited the Stem Cells Department and the Clinical Trial Management Center that conducted the a trial and interviewed the people responsible. She also met Sung Yo-Han, the primary doctor from Sunyoo Hospital who was in charge of the clinical trial. ¡°Why did you move to A-Bio?¡± Jessie asked during the interview. Actually, the reason Sung Yo-Han moved hospitals was because he heard that Sunyoo Hospital had a conflict with Professor Koh In-Guk and Young-Joon over the Alzheimer¡¯s clinical trial. There were quite a lot of doctors who were disappointed in the hospital because of that, and a few doctors left as Koh In-Guk, who was very respected in the hospital, moved to A-Bio. ¡°I wanted toe work here from the moment I heard that it was being built,¡± Sung Yo-Han said. ¡°But I had to finish the clinical trial I was doing at Sunyoo Hospital, so I finished it and came here.¡± ¡°Sunyoo Hospital must miss you. Patients wille to see you, the primary doctor of the clinical trial, and now they will go to A-Bio, not Sunyoo.¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter what hospital patients get treated at. As long as they get better.¡± ¡°You are right,¡± Jessie replied. She was almost done with her interview. After finishing it, she came back to A-Bio and met Young-Joon. ¡°It¡¯s been a while, Doctor Ryu!¡± Jessie greeted Young-Joon brightly. ¡°Nice to see you.¡± ¡°How have you been? A-Bio has been giving us papers like carpet bombing.¡± ¡°It¡¯s all thanks to our scientists who work hard on their experiments.¡± Jessie did a short interview with Young-Joon. It was about how the next-generation hospital was going to be run, which research had the fastest progress and things like that. ¡°You have been providing your a treatment kit to the entire world. Have you heard anything about where it is being used?¡± ¡°I imagine I¡¯ll be hearing things soon, but I haven¡¯t heard anything yet either. But I heard that Schumatix India, a hospital that Schumatix sponsors, is remodeling into a next-generation hospital and providing a treatment.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Jessie said. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Wow. We¡¯ll be hearing good news soon.¡± Young-Joon just smiled quietly as he watched Jessie exim in joy. After about thirty more minutes, Jessie got up from her seat. ¡°I had a great time today. I will call you again.¡± ¡°Jessie.¡± Young-Joon called her. ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°When are you going back?¡± ¡°Since I came here already, I took a couple days off to have some fun and get some rest. I will leave in about a week.¡± ¡°I see. Then you might hear some important news during your stay.¡± ¡°Important news?¡± Jessie¡¯s eyes shone. ¡°Yes. There¡¯s something I heard about, and I think it¡¯s going toe out in a few days. * * * What kind of news was this that the person who had mastered all kinds of new technologies would call it important? Jessie was prepared to cancel her flight to see that. And what Young-Joon said turned out to be right. It was around eight in the evening when Jessie was having ate dinner at a Korean restaurant after Jessie visited a bunch of ces. As she was scrolling through her social media on her phone from boredom, she saw a news article pop up. [Breaking news: Eye cancer found in a patient in Navi Mumbai, India, who was being treated for a.] ¡°What¡­?¡± Jessie¡¯s eyes widened. She only recognized a few words with her Korean, which she had learned a little bit of after her first interview with Young-Joon, but she understood what it was right away. She quickly searched on the inte, then called Samuel right away. ¡ªJessie. Isn¡¯t it too early in the morning to call? I thought it was my rm. ¡°Samuel! Look at the news right now! Is it airing there, too?¡± ¡ªWhat news? ¡°A patient in India who was treated for a with A-Bio¡¯s product has eye cancer!¡± ¡ªWhat?! ¡°Schumatix is announcing it right now.¡± ¡ªWhat the¡­ I¡¯ll go look at it right now. ¡°Nature will write this as their headline. If there is a problem with the a treatment, it could damage us because we published the paper.¡± ¡ªAlright, calm down. First, I have to see Schumatix announce this. I¡¯ll watch it and then get back to you. After hanging up, Samuel turned on hisputer right away. Luca Taylor, the CEO of Schumatix, was doing a press conference. ¡°We are sponsoring an Indian hospital, Schumatix India, as part of our international medicine charity. India Schumatix recently purchased A-Bio¡¯s a treatment kit, and it was used by the hospital¡¯s scientists and doctors to treat patients. Most of them are improving, but we have discovered that one patient has developed eye cancer.¡± ¡°Who are you referring to when you say the hospital¡¯s scientists?¡± asked the reporter. ¡°We got volunteers from the stem cell experts at Schumatix and sent them to A-Bio. They learned stem cell dedifferentiation technology from CEO Ryu Young-Joon himself and worked on optic nerve differentiation at India Schumatix.¡± ¡°Are you saying that there were scientists who could do optic nerve differentiation at the hospital?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. We were inspired by A-Bio¡¯s growth and decided to quickly follow their pace. We set up dedifferentiation facilities for stem cells and provided technicians to India Schumatix in order to make it into the second next-generation hospital in the world.¡± ¡°Is there a possibility that the reason a patient developed eye cancer was not because of the optic nerves, but the doctor¡¯s mistake?¡± ¡°It cannot be. We were trying to grow this hospital out of humanitarian and welfare purposes. We recruited Professor Martin, the best eye doctor expert in the world, all the way from France. Additionally, the entire treatment process was recorded by the security camera in the operating room, and there were no problems in the procedure,¡± Luca Taylor said. ¡°And even if you make a mistake in the procedure, a tumor doesn¡¯t suddenly begin growing unless you shoot the patient with radiation or something. There were no other factors that could have caused cancer.¡± ¡°How is the patient?¡± ¡°We are preparing for surgery, but we are in a predicament as it is very difficult to remove it due to the nature of the tumor.¡± ¡°Are you sure that it is a tumor?¡± ¡°We are sure,¡± Luca Taylor said. He was a businessman now, but he was once one of the best scientists in the world. Luca Taylor was careful about what he was doing. The most certain way to determine that it was a tumor was to take it out with surgery and analyze it. But the evidence would be tampered with in that case, as the tumor had to be revealed to the world while it was in the patient¡¯s eye. Then, what was an indirect way to determine it? They could observe how the tumor changed. If it was just the aggregation of normal cells, it would disappear in about three days. But the tumor was growing even after five days. ¡°The tumor is growing continuously. It is unfortunate, but India Schumatix Hospital does not have the facilities to remove the patient¡¯s tumor. As such, we are going to transfer them to another country to treat them because the longer it takes, the worse it is for the patient. We are going to be as fast as possible,¡± Luca Taylor said. ¡°There were no patients who developed tumors during the clinical trials, so why did one ur here?¡± asked one of the reporters. ¡°Most of the people who participated in the clinical trial were Korean, right? I believe that a difference in gic background could have caused this. Whatever it is, what¡¯s clear is that the safety of this technology hasn¡¯t been proven enough to be distributed to the world,¡± Luca Taylor said. ¡°It is the first-ever stem cell therapy, and it is a technology that uses stem cells, a type of cell that is not that different from cancer cells. We need to be a lot more careful with this than other drugs.¡± As the reporters were writing down what Luca Taylor was saying for their article¡­ Ring! One of the reporter¡¯s phones rang. When they took it out and read the message, they were shocked. ¡°Ryu Young-Joon, the CEO of A-Bio, is going to have a press conference in Korea right now.¡± ¡°A press conference?¡± They were doing a press conference here right now, and Young-Joon was fighting back right away? He reacted so fast it was as if he was waiting for it. The reporters murmured. Luca Taylor, who had be pretty sharp and quick from being a businessman for a long time, sensed danger. ¡®Something¡¯s wrong.¡¯ * * * ¡°Right now, Schumatix is making an issue about the safety of A-Bio¡¯s a treatment kit. They said that a tumor urred in the eye of a patient who was treated with the kit,¡± Young-Joon said in front of the reporters. Jessie wasn¡¯t a reporter, but she was also here. sh! Click! The reporters continuously took photos and wrote notes. ¡°But that is not a tumor,¡± Young-Joon said firmly. ¡°That is the result of the activation of the safety mechanism included in the stem cell treatment kit.¡± ¡°Safety mechanism?¡± The reporters began talking amongst themselves ¡°When you use the first kit, the virus attaches a gene called TP54, a self-destruction gene, on the end of a gene called LOX3. Because the cells that haven¡¯t been differentiated into optic nerves keep expressing LOX3, TP54 also gets expressed, resulting in self-destruction after a period of time,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°This process bes suppressed by the virus in the second kit. As the cells differentiate into optic nerves and LOX3 gets suppressed, TP54 is no longer expressed. This algorithm triggers self-destruction in the stem cell state, but does not when they be optic nerves. The reason why we made this system was because we were worried that a miniscule amount of stem cells could remain during the treatment process and cause side effects. It is a type of safety mechanism. As such, our stem cells do not cause cancer even if they go into the affected area.¡± ck ck ck! The reporters¡¯ typing noises filled the room. The reporters could not follow Young-Joon¡¯s exnation right away, but Jessie, who was a former scientist, could understand what he was saying right away. It was truly shocking. Countless scientists had been working hard to make nerves out of stem cells and treat patients with them. The reason that a was an incurable disease was because they couldn¡¯t do that. But not only did Young-Joon conquer that step, but he went beyond that. Now, he had eliminated the side effect, which urred in extremely low probabilities. ¡®How can this work?¡¯ Jessie felt euphoric as if she was engulfed in religion or something. When everyone was praising Young-Joon that the technology was an innovative advancement, he wasn¡¯t satisfied and devoted himself to research, taking the next step. ¡ªNot advancing doesn¡¯t mean stagnation, but regress. Jessie remembered what he said during hisst interview. She got goosebumps thinking about what he said. Young-Joon said, ¡°Then what is the tumor in the patient¡¯s eye? If only a small amount of stem cells remain in the patient¡¯s eye, the destruction process cannot be monitored because they are too small. But if arge amount is administered, the stem cells create a clump of cells due to aggregation after time. From the outside, it looks like a tumor. The thing that Luca Taylor determined to be cancer was that.¡± Young-Joon did not refer to Luca Taylor as the CEO of Schumatix, nor did he respectfully address him by doctor as a fellow scientist. He just called him by his name, Luca Taylor. Some of the reporters picked up on Young-Joon¡¯s slightly aggressive tone. They could sense that something bigger was going toe out. ¡°I actually want to think that it was because Schumatix is just extremelycking. I want to believe that even though the scientists there received training from A-Bio and the experiment spoon-fed to them, they were just unable to do it because theycked the skills,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°But that was not the case. A few days ago, a report from the CIA that was given to the President of the United States was shared with me.¡± Young-Joon picked up a file with a document in it. ¡°In here, there is suspicion that Luca Taylor himself ordered the hospital to administer stem cells directly into the patient¡¯s eye, not optic nerves. He was trying to purposely cause cancer in the patient¡¯s eye.¡± ¡°Ah¡­¡± ¡°Woah¡­¡± Brief sighs and shock spread among the reporters. They became extremely confused in seconds. Amidst the murmuring noise, Young-Joon spoke. ¡°We will have to thoroughly investigate what dirty tricks and purposes they did this with.¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu! Is everything you said true?¡± shouted one of the reporters. ¡°If there is even an inch of lies in what I said right now, I will resign from my position as CEO of A-Bio.¡± Young-Joon made another power move. The reporters, who were shocked again, didn¡¯t stop pressing their cameras. Young-Joon said, ¡°The safety mechanism is not a regr cell destruction mechanism, but an artificial mechanism by TP54. This process is about two weeks slower than regr cell destruction due to aggregation, but it is much safer as it disappears slower.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Two weeks. Watch. The thing that Luca Taylor said was a tumor will disappear. Please watch that it is impossible for those despicable people who deceive medicine to purposely cause cancer, and that the true power of science is far superior to their wickedness.¡± * * * At Schuamtix¡¯s press conference¡­ ¡°Ryu Young-Joon of A-Bio is iming that it is the aggregation of stem cells!¡± shouted the reporters. ¡°We are getting reports of the press conference from the breaking news in Korea. In the United States, the White House Press Secretary has announced and confirmed the same.¡± ¡°Sir. Did you really directly inject stem cells into a patient¡¯s eye and induce cancer?¡± The reporters¡¯ questions became hostile. Luca Taylor¡¯s hands were wet with sweat. ¡°How¡­ could we have done such a thing¡­ I do not know anything about that. I was told that it was a tumor, and all I¡¯ve done is report it.¡± Chapter 65: The First Product (6) Chapter 65: The First Product (6) ¡°There is a report from the CIA that this was ordered from you,¡± said the reporter. ¡°No. I had no idea.¡± ¡°Is that really a tumor?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a tumor! It is!¡± Luca Taylor shouted with his jaw clenched. ¡°CEO Ryu Young-Joon ims that it is cell aggregation, and he has put his position of CEO on the line that it will disappear in two weeks. Can you do that, too?¡± ¡°If stem cells aggregate, they disappear quickly! This is a tumor!¡± ¡°He says that it dissolves safer and for a longer period of time because it is a destruction mechanism triggered by TP54. Do you have anything to say?¡± Luca Taylor gulped. He tried to say something, but he couldn¡¯t say a word. ¡°Is the patient at Schumatix India right now?¡± The reporters began throwing questions at him again. ¡°Please tell us about the patient.¡± ¡°The White House Press Secretary is announcing the data obtained by the CIA. They say they have recordings obtained through the recording devices in Schumatix India¡¯s stem cellb, experiment logs and cell morphology pictures. They are saying that there is no data about optic nerves.¡± ¡°Did you ever actually make stem cells? There is a recording of Doctor Daniel speaking with a person named Andrew on the phone. They talk about only treating the cell with the first kit.¡± ¡°Does Professor Martin know about this? Did he also know that it was stem cells he was injecting?¡± The atmosphere became more hostile. Luca Taylor felt cold sweat run down his neck. ¡°I will end the press conference here.¡± He quickly ended the conference and got up to leave. But even as he was walking to his car, reporters followed him, asking him for answers. ¡°Please give us a response!¡± ¡°Mr. Taylor! Is what Doctor Ryu announced at the press conference true?¡± ¡°Who is Andrew?¡± ¡°What are you going to do if that really isn¡¯t a tumor and disappears in two weeks like Mr. Ryu said?¡± Luca Taylor silently escaped the reporters with the escort of his security guards. ¡°Sir! Please exin this!¡± ¡°You cannot just go. Give us an exnation!¡± The reporters even blocked the front of his car. They clung to the windows and pounded on the hood of his car, demanding an exnation. This was a big deal. Schumatix, which was based in Switzend, was one of thergest pharmaceuticalpanies in the world. A shocking allegation that they caused cancer in a patient¡¯s eye was made against a ce that should be leading the advancement of medicine. It was just the reporters going wild right now, but in a few hours, the whole world would be turned upside down. And there was a high chance that Schumatix would be a heinous criminal. They had to fix the situation somehow. The car drove away after the security guards pulled the reporters off. Luca Taylor pulled out his phone and called someone. ¡ªHello! Someone was yelling urgently over the phone. ¡°Andrew! Where are you?¡± ¡ªI was just about to call you. Sir! What¡¯s going on? ¡°I asked where you were.¡± ¡ªI¡¯m near Schumatix India. I¡¯m in an alley a little far away from the hospital. Andrew replied. He visited the hospital, but soon left in horror, as the hospital was filled with police. Andrew¡¯s face was on TV; he was being wanted. At first, he couldn¡¯t believe his eyes, but it was real. Right away, he ran to an old and deserted alley that was to the east of the hospital. He was first going to escape people¡¯s sight before doing anything else. Andrew shouted into his phone, ¡°Sir, we¡¯re in trouble right now! There are police everywhere. They¡¯re looking for me! What the hell happened?¡± ¡ª... We failed, Andrew. Get rid of that patient. That¡¯s the only way. Luca Taylor¡¯s voice was filled with a mixed feeling of despair. ¡°No! I can¡¯t. The police are covering the entire ce.¡± ¡ªYou have to find a way somehow! The longer that bastard is alive, the less we can get out of this. We fell into a trap. Ryu Young-Joon that bastard dug a trap and waited for us! Luca Taylor shouted. ¡ªThe tumor will gradually disappear from that patient¡¯s eyeball with time. If that happens, it¡¯s all over. ¡°Even if you say that, it¡¯s physically impossible. I don¡¯t know what happened, but there are ten Indian police beside that patient right now.¡± Crash! As Andrew was walking in the alley, he collided with someone with his shoulder. A muscr man offered his hand to Andrew, who had fallen back. ¡°Sorry.¡± ¡°Hmph.¡± Instead of holding his hand, Andrew grabbed his phone that was on the floor and got up. ¡°Hello? Sir? Sorry, I bumped into¡­¡± As Andrew was about to walk away, the man called him. ¡°You dropped something.¡± He pointed to where Andrew fell. As he reflexively turned his head¡­ Crack! Andrew felt a sharp pain on his waist and fainted. ¡°Target secured.¡± CIA agent Robert said into his walkie-talkie. He turned off his taser and picked up Andrew¡¯s phone. Luca Taylor, who was sly as a fox, already hung up, but it didn¡¯t matter. Robert was going to suck out all the phone records and contacts on Andrew¡¯s phone. Robert collected the phone as evidence and loaded Andrew in his car. * * * [What is in Patient Ardip¡¯s eye: tumor or stem cell aggregation?] [Luca Taylor, CEO of Schumatix, orders Schumatix India to administer stem cells in the patient¡¯s eye to induce a tumor¡­] [Schumatix and India¡¯s sour rtionship, starting with Gleevec¡­] [Nobel Prize recipient Carpentier heavily criticizes Luca Taylor,menting that he ¡°cannot forgive Luca Taylor; a parasite that undermines medicine.¡±] The world¡¯s attention was drawn to this issue as news articles poured out. On issues with two opposing opinions, the side that released more provocative information was at an advantage. The story that the a treatment could cause cancer was quite provocative, but the argument from the other side released at the same time was more impactful: Schumatix induced a tumor development in a patient. Plus, Young-Joon already began with a powerful piece of evidence, as the White House Press Secretary announced the CIA¡¯s report and hinted at sanctions against the activities of Schumatix, a multinational pharmaceuticalpany, in the United States. On top of that, public opinion of them became worse as the evil acts Schumatixmitted in the past starteding out. [Do you know Neural Clinics, the unfortunate venture pharmaceuticalpany that was destroyed by Schumatix¡¯s sabotage?] [Why did Schumatix have conflict with the Indian government? What is Gleevec, a drug that has a profit one hundred times the manufacturing price?] [The tyranny of big pharmaceuticalpanies like Schumatix: What kind of evil do they do to venturepanies?] [Schumatix does not research for patients; they work for money.] [CIA arrests Andrew, Luca Taylor¡¯s subordinate. CIA obtains phone records and messages with Luca Taylor.] [Luca Taylor sends four billion won to Andrew since 2011 using a burner bank ount. Suspicions of embezzlement.] As news headlines came out one by one, Schumatix and Luca Taylor¡¯s image came crumbling down in an instant. Onlinemunities all around the world stood with A-Bio. ¡ªWow, Schumatix is a huge asshole. Unimaginable. How can a person do that? ¡ªWe stand with you, Doctor Ryu. Shred that bastard into particles. ¡ªCurrent A-Gen scientist here. Doctor Ryu Young-Joon is famous around here for going ballistic when research ethic is broken. I think Luca Taylor is done for. ¡ªBut why is Luca Taylor doing that? What does he get from it? ©¸ He was trying to keep God Young-Joon in check. ©¸ He did it because hispany''s sales will plummet when Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s stem cell technology getsunched. He¡¯s trying to mess with A-Bio¡¯s future. ¡ªI hope Luca Taylor gets eye cancer. ¡ªSchumatix¡¯s shares are plummeting for three days in a row. Is this real? * * * Two days after the press conference, police came to Luca Taylor¡¯s home. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± They even handcuffed him. Crack! As soon as they came out the door, eggs began flying at Luca Taylor. ¡°Die!¡± shouted the people who were rallying. ¡°You shitty asshole! Would you do that if it was your family who had a?¡± ¡°You¡¯re a waste of oxygen! Go die!¡± The police pulled away Luca Taylor even more roughly. They were trying to move him to the police car quickly before the angry people caused a scene. Luca Taylor tried to walk fast, but he tripped on something on the ground. It was a pile of garbage. Now that he took a look, he saw a huge amount of garbage in front of his house. The Swiss people had thrown it all over his house. There were curses and swears written on his fence and mailbox. * * * Lab Director Kim Hyun-Taek scoffed during his meeting with Lab Director Gil Hyung-Joon. ¡°CEO Taylor is basically sentenced to death,¡± Gil Hyung-Joon said. ¡°Ryu Young-Joon lost it and came at me when he heard I destroyed Cellicure even when he was a Scientist who had nothing,¡± Kim Hyun-Taek replied. Gil Hyung-Joon nodded. ¡°He went to Sunyoo hospital¡¯s director and caused a scene because Congressman Shim Sung-Yeol put his mother in the Alzheimer¡¯s clinical trial, and then moved hospitals.¡± ¡°You also heard the news, huh. That guy sticks to research ethics like it¡¯s his religion. But someone tried to make a tumor in a patient¡¯s eye on purpose with his product? With Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s personality, he¡¯s going to rip Taylor apart until he¡¯s dead.¡± ¡°There¡¯s no reason for Ryu Young-Joon to be at the front fighting and criticizing him. If that insane technology is true, he just has to sit back and watch until it ends. Public opinion is going to kill Luca Taylor,¡± Gil Hyung-Joon said. ¡°That¡¯s right. But to be honest, I am a little worried because A-Bio is getting so big.¡± ¡°Are you worried about your future position as CTO?¡± ¡°Haha, honestly, I am worried about that too. And Ryu Young-Joon already has a lot of control over A-Gen. Nowadays, the Research Support Center and the Clinical Trial Management Center are just subcontractors of A-Bio.¡± ¡°It¡¯s going to get worse now.¡± ¡°Probably. That idiot Taylor was trying to crush Ryu Young-Joon, but actually gave him wings.¡± Kim Hyun-Taek frowned like this was trouble. ¡°Haha. But Taylor was actually our enemy, wasn¡¯t he? How much did we fight with Schumatix over patents? Let¡¯s enjoy this right now.¡± ¡°Yes, I agree. It¡¯s a problem if Ryu Young-Joon bares his teeth to us, but it¡¯s actually quite satisfying to see him rip apart Schumatix. We surpassed a powerful enemy.¡± It was already a very bad situation for Schuamtix as the White House supported Young-Joon, but time was still on Young-Joon¡¯s side. The tumor began disappearing in Ardip¡¯s eye, the patient who became Schumatix¡¯s target. He was transferred to thergest university hospital in India and was currently resting. They had decided to consider methods to remove the tumor, like surgery, if the tumor didn¡¯t disappear after a week of observing it. And on the sixth day, the size of the tumor was observed to be significantly smaller than the day before. On the seventh day, the size was reduced to half. Now, it was clear as tumors never went away on their own; this was the aggregation of stem cells. [The cell mass in Patient Ardip¡¯s eye is disappearing.] [Tumor revealed to be the aggregation of stem cells.] [Ryu Young-Joon was right: The a treatment kit was safe.] New news articles were released from all over the world. Schumatix, who seemed to be recovering from their downfall, began plummeting again. The result of this fight did not just simply reveal Schumatix¡¯s evil acts and destroy them; the support from A-Bio began skyrocketing internationally. Hepletely convinced people who were doubtful of the first-ever stem cell treatment. ¡ªI want to say that this was a transitional incident in which advances from the old generation to new. Then, what did A-Bio gain from this? They gained an incredible amount of patient¡¯s trust. Professor Shin Jung-Ju of Yeonyee Hospital said. ¡ªTrust? The interviewer asked. ¡ªYes. So, it¡¯s something like this. Because A-Bio¡¯s product was so safe and perfect, a world-renownedpetitor like Schumatix tried to make cancer on purpose with that product, but it was impossible. It wasn¡¯t like that you got side effects if you were unlucky, but you couldn¡¯t even if you tried to induce them on purpose. Because the product is so perfect. It¡¯s not just some students, but even Schumatix can¡¯t make the side effects happen. ¡ªWow. Now that you say it like that, it¡¯s amazing. ¡ªThis is science. This is the advancement of technology and medicine. In my opinion, A-Bio is marking a new chapter between old and new medicine, and the gap between it is huge. And Schumatix advertised that fact themselves. ¡ªI see. ¡ªThe White House stood with A-Bio. What do you think this means? The United States has already caught on that A-Bio and Doctor Ryu Young-Joon is the path that leads to the future of medicine. The fact that we have a gift like him in our country is the best luck we¡¯ve had since Dangun.[1] The interviewerughed. ¡ªIt seems like you enjoy exining Doctor Ryu Young-Joon and A-Bio. ¡ªHonestly, it¡¯s so fun. It¡¯s because this issue was so provocative, but it¡¯s also because the things A-Bio is developing right now will reform the structure of medicine. Personally as a doctor, I found this so entertaining. And I¡¯m very excited. ¡ªHahaha, I know how you feel. But it¡¯s not just doctors. I feel that way as well. ¡ªRight? Back to the topic. As I told you just now, this incident proved the safety of A-Bio¡¯s product to the world, right? We have to consider the fact that most of the new drug pipelines from A-Bio are probably based on stem cells. Originally, there was probably a lot of worry regarding the safety of those new drugs, but their path was cleared for them. Shin Jung-Ju exined the situation again. ¡ªI see. ¡ªThe countries that had regtions on the a treatment kit are positively evaluating it and are nning to lift regtions soon. They would have been lifted anyway because clinical trial results were good, but it was fast-forwarded by Schumatix¡¯s sabotage. ¡ªSince the main reason for regtions is safety. ¡ªThat¡¯s right. But if it¡¯s so safe that it is impossible to induce cancer artificially, what government in their right minds would regte it? 1. The Dangun Myth is a story about how Korea was first founded. ? Chapter 66: The First Product (7) Chapter 66: The First Product (7) Luca Taylor was arrested and Schumatix was rapidly deteriorating. Now, their brand value was less than a tenth of what it was during their prime time. ¡°We apologize. Our board of directors dismissed CEO Luca Taylor.¡± The directors of Schumatix stood in front of the reporters and bowed, publicly apologizing. That was broadcast to the entire world, but the people¡¯s anger didn¡¯t seem to subside. It was because the evil acts Schumatix had done in the past were too wicked to say that this was just a deviation from Luca Taylor. They became an international bastard as the issue about them profiteering on Gleevec came out. Gleevec was a treatment for chronic myelogenous leukemia. It was the first new type of treatment for leukemia, which could only be treated by bone marrow transntation. ¡ªThe price for one capsule of Gleevec was one hundred dors in the United States. If you take one pill per day, that¡¯s three thousand dors per month. Can you believe it? But there are patients who have to take three or four pills a day. A professor from MIT said on CNN. One hundred dors was equivalent to one hundred thousand won. Three million won per month was the price of staying alive. It was a little cheaper in Korea, but the prices were still murderous. Patients have to spend money equivalent to the sry of a smallpany employee every month on medicine. That¡¯s why they did whatever they could, including getting loans, because they would die if they couldn¡¯t pay. Since Schumatix had the lives of patients in their hands and there was no other drug topete with, they could just choose whatever price they wanted. The Korean government had proposed to lower the domestic price of one capsule, which was twenty-five thousand won, to around eighteen thousand won, but they failed. ¡ªIs this expensive because it is expensive to produce? No, it isn¡¯t. It doesn¡¯t even cost one dor to produce a capsule. The professor said. ¡ªExcluding all the shipping costs and things that ur during the distribution process, the manufacturer, Schumatix, takes more than one hundred times the production cost as profit. What kind of industry is this? For patients, it¡¯s the same thing as monopolizing on air or water and selling a day¡¯s worth for one hundred dors. It¡¯s the same thing as telling the patients to work hard and give them all the money they earned if they want to stay alive. ¡ªIt¡¯s a shocking price. Is it because it took a lot of money to develop it? ¡ªLarge pharmaceuticalpanies usually set drugs at a high price for the purpose of getting development costs, but even if it was for that, Schumatix went too far. The professor said. ¡ªAnd Schumatix didn¡¯t even put that much money into developing that drug either. It¡¯s because Imatinib, the raw material for Gleevec, was created in universitybs. All Schumatix did was just buy the patent and make it into pills, but they monopolized it and sold it at that price. ¡ªWow. How could they? Did this not get out in the past? ¡ªIt did. But Schumatix kept silencing the issue so that it did not get big. But the issue was brought up again. ¡ªI heard that the replicate drug developed in India was a replica of Gleevec. ¡ªThat¡¯s right. And Schumatix sued India or countries who imported that replica for infringement of patent rights. ¡ªHow shocking. I heard that A-Bio is working on making bone marrow with stem cells. If that technology besmercialized, will we live in a world where we won¡¯t need Gleevec? ¡ªOf course. As a fellow scientist in the field, I am hoping that Doctor Ryu Young-Joon will conquer leukemia one day. Bleep! Young-Joon turned off the television. ¡ªThey are talking about you everywhere. Rosaline said to him. ¡°Well, it was a big fight.¡± ¡ªThe natural destruction of stem cells was something I taught you before, right ¡°Yeah. I just changed the differentiation target from spinal cells to optic nerves.¡± ¡ªYou can do it on your own now. I didn''t know you would apply that technology like this. ¡°Are youplimenting me?¡± Young-Joon chuckled. ¡ªYes. But I still want to insist on putting all the board members in aa. Don¡¯t bother going the long way. Even if we put all of them in beds, it would just be a few thousand people. If we sacrifice that number, you can turn the world into a better ce in three years without anything getting in the way. ¡°I told you I can¡¯t do that. ¡ªAlright. To be honest, the method you chose wasn¡¯t bad either. A-Bio has seeded in gaining the patient¡¯s trust from this incident. It¡¯s worse than eliminating all thepetition and dominating the field, but this is also a gain. ¡°All you think about is gains and losses, isn¡¯t it?¡± ¡ªIs anything else necessary? The power that advanced humanity was selfish motives. From a gic perspective, selfless acts are all inherently due to selfish motives. Rosaline asked. ¡°Are you talking about the Selfish Gene theory?¡± The Selfish Gene theory posited that people¡¯s selfless acts all came from the selfish motive to spread their own genes. For example, a mother running in front of a car to save their child was not acting in selflessness for their child, but they acted that way because that child had half of their DNA. As she would ultimately be preserving and spreading her own genes to the world if she and her child all lived no matter how severe their injuries were, it was a gamble in terms of gics that was motivated by selfishness. ¡ªIt was just a theory to Doctor Dawkins, but it is a definite truth to me. From billions of years ago when the human animal wasn''t human yet, all organisms on this Earth have acted with selfish motives. ¡°Maybe they did.¡± Young-Joon nodded. ¡°But there is something about humans that can¡¯t be exined by that. People don¡¯t just act with selfish motives, although it¡¯s probably hard for you to understand.¡± ¡ªHow very interesting. Can you teach me? ¡°I don¡¯t know if you will be able to understand it even if I exin it¡­¡± ¡ªWhen you met Son Soo-Young, the first a trial patient, her family, and her newborn¡¯s doctor at yourpany, I felt your body release a lot of serotonin. I couldn¡¯t understand that phenomenon either. You don¡¯t gain anything from the fact that Son Soo-Young came to see you, but you were very happy. Young-Joon remained silent. ¡ªIs this what you were talking about? Is something like emotional gains instead of actual gains the motive for the actions you are talking about? ¡°Well, it¡¯s simr.¡± ¡ªVery fascinating. I want to feel that emotion too. Knock knock. Someone knocked on his door. ¡°Come in.¡± ¡°Why are you in the office on a weekend?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk asked as he opened the door and came in. ¡°Why are you?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°A touching surprise visit,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk said as he spread his arm wide open. ¡°Wow, how moving.¡± Young-Joon replied dryly. ¡°I actually went to your house and you weren¡¯t there, so I came here.¡± ¡°Why did you go to my house?¡± ¡°Do you know that there¡¯s a Ryu Young-Joon fan club?¡± Young-Joon squinted. ¡°There¡¯s a what?¡± ¡°You have a fan clu¡­ Pfft!¡± Park Joo-Hyuk burst intoughter at the end like he also found it funny. He sat on the edge of the couch and said, ¡°Actually, it¡¯s been around for a while. But the number of subscribers is exploding these days. I signed up for it, too.¡± ¡°Why did you join?¡± ¡°I¡¯m curious. It was a Naver cafe before, but it got moved to a Facebook group now. There¡¯s a lot of overseas fans.¡± ¡°Holy¡­¡± ¡°I¡¯m a bit of an attention seeker on social media, so I went to your house to take a photo with your house as the background because I wanted to set a record for my Facebook likes. That should get me like ten thousand at least, right?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t post anything weird, okay?¡± Young-Joon said, engulfed in intense anxiety. ¡°I¡¯m debating between a selfie with your living room or your junior high yearbook as the background. Do you remember when you made a fuss about going to the hair salon to get a good photo, and then you ended up with dog fur for hair?¡± ¡°Why do you do this to me, huh?¡± ¡°Hehe. I just love teasing you.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk tapped Young-Joon¡¯s shoulder. ¡°I¡¯m kidding. I just went because I had nothing to do for the weekend. Hey, you want to take a look at the fan club?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk handed Young-Joon his phone. When he looked at it, it was shocking. The Facebook group was filled with posts that had pictures of Young-Joon that he didn¡¯t even know about. There was even a picture of him barging up to the podium during the year-end seminar. [This was Schu-fighter¡¯s prime time. It was so funny seeing theb directors shut up LOL it was so satisfying to see that] ¡°Who took this picture¡­? What department? What is Schu-fighter?¡± ¡°The person who fights Schumatix.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°There¡¯s something called the bas-fighter as a side thing too.¡± ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± ¡°The bastard fighter.¡± As Young-Joon scrolled down, there were pictures of him taken at the Integrative Brain Disorder conference and the IUBMB. There were a lot morements and posts than he imagined. Among them, there was Son Soo-Young. It was a picture of her holding her daughter in her arms and a caption. [It¡¯s almost an honor to be the first patient that Doctor Ryu has helped. I am always rooting for you. Please be the light for more patients like me.] There were parades of people who were certifying their recovery from a. There were some posts written by the patients from the Alzheimer¡¯s clinical trial. [I used to take my wife who had Alzheimer¡¯s in my passenger¡¯s seat. Now, my wife is better, and it¡¯s all because of Doctor Ryu Young-Joon.] Kang Hyuk-Soo, the taxi driver, added a photo of himself in the taxi. [My wife took this photo for me. Thank you.] On the passenger¡¯s seat, there was a picture of them standing with Young-Joon. Young-Joon was touched. ¡ªSerotonin is being released again. Rosalien said as if it was fascinating. Young-Joon ignored her and kept scrolling down. Of course, the most popr video among the vast amount of posts was the press conference video where he quickly responded to Schumatix¡¯s sabotage. There were also a lot of foreigners writingments as well. From English to Arabic, thements were filled withnguages from a lot of different countries. ¡ªHyung! Destroy them! Good luck! There was onement that had the most likes. When Young-Joon saw it and went into the person¡¯s profile, it was someone he knew. [Yang Dong-Wook] ¡ªMajoring in Biology at Jungyoon University. ¡°This is Ji-Won¡¯s friend,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°He¡¯s famous in your fan club. He basically worships you like a religion, but you know this guy?¡± ¡°He came to help me when I was helping Ji-Won move out of her dorm room.¡± ¡°Go do a lecture at the school or something. He¡¯ll probably cry if you go. * * * Young-Joon had some tea with Park Joo-Hyuk in his office. It had been a while. They had been busy for quite a while and jumped over a huge obstacle recently, so they needed time to rest mentally. There was no better way to do that than chat about useless things with an old friend. Park Joo-Hyuk, who was reminiscing about the third grade for about an hour, suddenly brought up an issue. ¡°Is the U.S. asking for anything?¡± ¡°Asking for what?¡± ¡°The White House stood on your side and destroyed Schumatix, even using the CIA. They fully showed that they were on Team Ryu, so I imagine there was some kind of favor.¡± ¡°I¡¯m going tounch a cancer researchb as an affiliate of A-Bioter, and it¡¯s going to be partnered with the National Cancer Institute.¡± ¡°That¡¯s what it was?¡± ¡°It was just a verbal conversation I had with the director of the Office of Science and Technology when I went to the United States. He said the U.S. would support us a lot.¡± ¡°When are you starting?¡± ¡°The sooner the better.¡± ¡°Then leave this ce to me and go there. The Schumatix incident is wrapping up anyway.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not done yet. I have things left to do,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Like what? Park Joo-Hyuk asked. ¡°I have to cure Ardip.¡± ¡°Who¡¯s that?¡± ¡°How can you not know? It¡¯s the Indian patient Schumatix sabotaged.¡± Ardip was a pitiful man who was born in a prostitution hole and lived in poverty and hardship. After bing Schumatix¡¯s target and having his face broadcast to the entire world with a tumor in his eye, he was now the main character in A-Bio¡¯s legendary stem cell story. He was a famous star, but none of it was because he wanted it. The only thing he signed up for was the a treatment because they said it was free. ¡°Everyone is focused on that person, but no one cares about his health,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Everyone is just watching whether the thing in Ardip¡¯s eye is a tumor or just cell aggregation. They are watching whether Schumatix or A-Bio wins, as if this was some boxing match.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°But Ardip went to Schumatix India to treat his a. And he hasn¡¯t been treated for that yet.¡± ¡°Wow¡­ Amazing. That was bugging you while you were fighting with Schuamtix?¡± ¡°Ardip¡¯s treatment is as important to me as punishing Luca Taylor,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Whether Luca Taylor retires, whether it was a safety mechanism or tumor, no matter all those things, Ardip has to be cured. Whatever the process was, he was treated with my technology.¡± ¡°So, it¡¯s a problem of pride as the creator of the treatment?¡± ¡°Yeah. True medicine is to take responsibility for the patient who you started to treat.¡± ¡°You¡¯re going to go to heaven,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡°If you don¡¯t go, the only people in heaven will be Jesus and Buddha.¡± Young-Joon frowned. ¡°I¡¯m not being nice or anything. This is the norm and the normal thing to do,¡± he said. ¡°The people who don¡¯t do this are abandoning their responsibilities. Anyway, I¡¯m going to dispatch a trustworthy scientist to India, where Ardip is right now, or bring him here and treat him at our next-generation hospital.¡± ¡°This hasn¡¯t been publicly announced yet, right?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°Then can I make a spoiler in your fan club? I think the like count will explode and say that you¡¯re amazing for taking responsibility.¡± ¡°No.¡± Chapter 67: The Conqueror of AIDS (1) Chapter 67: The Conqueror of AIDS (1) Ardip was being treated at Apollo Hospital in Chennai, the biggest hospital in India. They were preparing an important announcement today. The reporters who were called were all waiting in the hospital lobby from early in the morning. There were quite a lot of foreign reporters among them as well. They had an idea of the announcement the hospital was going to give today. ¡°We have confirmed that the stem cell aggregation has fully disappeared from the patient¡¯s eye today,¡± said Hospital Director Vichas. Everyone already predicted this ending when the aggregation shrunk to half its size, but it was a whole other thing to actually confirm that. This was like a deration of the end of the war between Schumatix and A-Bio. Schumatix¡¯s defeat was already marked, but it was now basically publicly determined. [A-Bio¡¯s a treatment kit is safe. Complete destruction of stem cells confirmed.] [It does not cause tumors, and the invalid cells are naturally eliminated.] [Even if arge amount of stem cells only treated with the first kit are put in the eye, they automatically disappear.] [A-Bio¡¯s a treatment kit does not create tumors.] As news articles were being written as the announcement wasing out, Vichas gave them a new announcement. ¡°Additionally, we were contacted by A-Bio a week ago,¡± he said. ¡°A-Bio has promised us that after the activity of the safety mechanism is finished and all the stem cells are destroyed from patient Ardip¡¯s eye, they will treat his a for free.¡± It was the first time this news was being released. The reporters¡¯ eyes widened. ck ck ck! The reporters began typing even faster. ¡°A-Bio has said that they will either send us a technician that can perform the stem cell dedifferentiation and optic nerve differentiation, or they will cover the cost of moving patient Ardip to Korea for treatment and returning him back to India.¡± sh! Click! The reporters continuously pressed their cameras. Vichas announced, ¡°We have epted A-Bio¡¯s offer, and we are in the middle of discussing it with the patient, Ardip. He will go to Korea on the next flight avable, and he has decided to be treated at A-Bio. Thank you.¡± Headlines and news articles began pouring out. This decision of Young-Joon¡¯s was quite impactful. [Even in the midst of a controversy surrounding the new technology of automatic destruction of stem cells, A-Bio never took their eyes off the patient.] Young-Joon read the leading article in the newspaper as he had breakfast. He didn¡¯t even distribute press releases and make a big deal out of it before doing this, but this was what happened. [A-Bio promises the treatment of the patient Ardip.] [A-Bio¡¯s CEO Ryu Young-Joon takes responsibility for the patient if they were treated by his a treatment kit, no matter the process.] Because it wasn¡¯t first announced by thepany, it had a much more positive effect on thepany¡¯s image. ¡ªThe reason why A-Bio did not announce that they would be taking responsibility for that patient? It¡¯s simple. It¡¯s because that¡¯s the obvious thing to do. When I was conducting the Alzheimer¡¯s clinical trial, I met with Doctor Ryu Young-Joon often. He only had two things he was interested in. Shin Jung-Ju said. ¡ªWhat were they? ¡ªHow the trial was going and if I had any questions for him, the inventor. ¡ªQuestions? ¡ªYes. Doctor Ryu is a ssic scientist. He tries to take responsibility for all the data and technology he has put out. If something that he didn¡¯t predict happens, he thinks that he has to provide an answer for that no matter how trivial it may be. ¡ªI see. ¡ªTo be honest, that¡¯s the right thing to do. That¡¯s the attitude a true scientist and inventor should have. I believe that is why Doctor Ryu is trying to finish the Indian patient¡¯s treatment; it¡¯s because that¡¯s the obvious thing to do. ¡ªYou said it was the obvious thing to do. Are there a lot of people who don¡¯t do that nowadays? ¡ªYes, a lot. I think that scientists in the pharmaceutical industry have lost their craftsmanship. If they get a report that something they developed does not work well, they do not answer. ¡ªDo they just ignore it? ¡ªYes. Especiallyrge pharmaceuticalpanies. They just trash data that says that something does not work. As a doctor, when I report the side effects of using the drugs they developed, there will be no answer, and the report of the side effects often does not get included in the pharmacological data they provide. They are deliberately disregarding it. Shin Jung-Ju said with a hint of frustration in her voice. ¡ªSometimes, they won¡¯t just do that during the data feedback phase aftermercialization, but they will do that from the clinical trial phase. They just erase reports about the drug having no effects or having side effects. There are some products fromrge pharmaceuticalpanies that don¡¯t have their clinical trial data fully disclosed, and that¡¯s because they have erased the data that could be unfavorable to the effect of the product. She continued. ¡ªAh¡­ Are there a lot of drugs like that? ¡ªA famous flu drug that we all know about is one of them as well. One time, doctors protested to thepanies to reveal all of the data. ¡ªWow. This is shocking. ¡ªYes. It¡¯s obvious, but pharmaceuticalpanies should not act like this. If there is feedback that there¡¯s a problem with the product, or that it failed to treat something, the manufacturer should solve that problem and take responsibility for it. Look at A-Bio right now. This was manipted by Schumatix from the beginning, but they are taking responsibility because no matter the process, A-Bio¡¯s product failed to treat him. Schumatix made the mess, but they are trying to clean it up for them. ¡ªWow. The more I hear about it, the more amazed I am. ¡ªThis is the attitude of a professional. Ordinary people do not know a lot about science or pharmaceuticals, right? When they are hurting and their lives are on the line, they don¡¯t really care about what A-Bio did right and what Schumatix did wrong. It doesn¡¯t matter to patients; they can sort it out in court themselves, but they just want to be treated. Most of them feel that way. Shin Jung-Ju said. ¡ªBecause they are the only people patients can rely on. ¡ªThat¡¯s right. What should the patient do if those smart experts are distracted by their fights with each other and abandon them? That is why A-Bio put the focus on the patient. ¡ªYou¡¯re saying the attitude A-Bio has is that even though it was Schumatix¡¯s fault, it was still their product, and they are going to take responsibility for the patient¡¯s treatment as the world¡¯s top expert in a within the category of medicine? ¡ªExactly. That¡¯s the kind of expert patients really want. I want other scientists and health professionals to really take after the attitude A-Bio has. * * * The fight with Schumatix and treating Ardip were both separate things from research. Even if those were happening, the research had to go on; not advancing was not stagnation, but regress. Even during the hectic situation, Young-Joon continuously advanced his research. Thanks to that, Samuel, the editor of Science, was able to get another paper from him. ¡°The precise editing of target DNA using CRISPR-Cas9¡­¡± Samuel squinted as he read the title of the paper. ¡°What is this talking about?¡± Some technologies that were too powerful couldn¡¯t be understood intuitively at once. Samuel began slowly reading the abstract of the paper again in confusion. ¡°Ahh!¡± At the same time, Jessie, who understood the point of the paper a little faster than Samuel, suddenly screamed. ¡°What the¡­¡± She was at a loss for words for a second from shock, then ran to Sameul at once. ¡°Samuel! Did you read Doctor Ryu¡¯s paper?¡± ¡°I¡¯m reading the abstract right now, but what is this?¡± Samuel said. ¡°If it wasn¡¯t his paper, I would have trashed it right away. The paper has no animal experiment data, and the data he has is mostly in vitro with one cell experiment.¡± Samuel shook the paper in his hand. ¡°How can he send a paper written with such poor data to Science? It¡¯s not like he doesn¡¯t know what kind of journal Science is. Maybe he got overconfident because every paper he sent got published? Why did he¡­¡± ¡°Samuel! The thing that this paper is reporting on is a new paradigm of gene editing!¡± Jessie shouted. ¡°It does talk about gene editing in the abstract, but I haven¡¯t read the whole thing so¡­¡± ¡°Slowly read through the entire thing. It¡¯s gene scissors that can cut at any location in the three billion base pairs in human DNA. You can cut it however you want!¡± ¡°Are you talking about genes when you talk about any location?¡± ¡°No. That is also astonishing, but this technology is talking about the entire DNA.¡± DNA was a muchrger concept than genes. Only about two percent of DNA were genes that produced biomaterials. The rest of the DNA either controlled gene expression or maintained DNA structure. If DNA was converted into character count, it would be about three billion letters. This was a miraculous new technology that allowed people to find and edit any location in the huge, natural database of humans that was as big as a library. Samuel¡¯s mouth slowly opened as he read the entire paper. This technology was something bigger than induced pluripotent stem cells. Theoretically, this could cure all the problems in the human DNA: all kinds of gic disorders and cancer. This technology had the potential to cure all diseases that started from an error in the DNA sequence. ¡°Oh my God¡­¡± Samuel¡¯s hand trembled. ¡°Read the one cell experiment data they have,¡± Jessie said. Samuel quickly flipped through the paper and found the data on the cell experiment. ¡°Editing the gene CCR5 of a hematopoietic cell differentiated from an induced pluripotent stem cell¡­¡± Samuel read the paper. ¡°They cut CCR5 and destroyed it?¡± He tilted his head in confusion. ¡°You don¡¯t remember what that gene is?¡± ¡°It sounds familiar.¡± ¡°It was reported with Timothy Ray Brown. The infection route of HIV.¡± Samuel felt chills run down his spine. ¡°Can this technology cure AIDS¡­¡± He gulped. * * * After sending the paper to Science, Young-Joon announced the technology that would cure AIDS during the bone marrow regeneration team meeting. ¡°... And so, you can manipte CCR5 this way. If you enter an RNA that matches the order of the CCR5 gene into Cas9 and put it into a cell, it can find CCR5 and cut it. After the cell corrects the ce that was cut, the structure changes and does not work again,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°We used this method on the stem cell we got from Doctor Lee Jung-Hyuk and made stem cells with manipted CCR5, and we also grew that into hematopoietic cells. We confirmed that CCR5 is not made through Western blotting. We think that we can cure AIDS if we transnt this into a patient¡¯s bone marrow, as this is the same cure that Timothy Ray Brown received.¡± The meeting room was silent from the shock. Carpentier quietly put down the americano he was drinking. ¡°Doctor Ryu, you know that this is much more than curing gic disorders or AIDS, right?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°This technology allows gene editing.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°In ten years, there might be people who try to edit the genes of IVF babies.¡± Young-Joon nodded. ¡°I know.¡± AIDS could be cured if the patient received bone marrow with destroyed CCR5. Put differently, an HIV-resistant baby if CCR5 was modified from the embryo stage. When Cas9 would be announced, research would surely begin in that direction somewhere with a rtively weak sense of ethics. No one couldn¡¯t stop it; technological advancement would cross ethical borders when given time. The start would be HIV-immune babies, but what if it went further than that? Someone could manipte the genes that determine height, vision, or skin and create a customized baby. At first, people would be afraid to step forward, but people would eventually try. There would be a huge ethical issue. Would humanity be able to handle that future? In the case that something goes wrong, huge bullets of criticism may fly towards Young-Joon, who first found the technology. ¡°That was why I contemted on revealing this technology,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°But you¡¯ve decided to use it?¡± Carpentier asked. ¡°Yes,¡± Young-Joon replied firmly. ¡°I can¡¯t abandon the people who are suffering in pain from AIDS.¡± ¡°This technology is certainly more than shocking,¡± Carpentier said. ¡°But I do agree with you, Doctor Ryu. I also agree with manipting CCR5 with this technology and curing AIDS.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°People may cheer now, but there will be people who do weird things with it and if so, religious or various conservative organizations may challenge this technology. They might be a harder enemy to fight than people like Schumatix,¡± Carpentier warned. ¡°I understand. There is always light and darkness to great technology. The same knife could be a scalpel that can save patients in a doctor¡¯s hand, or it can be a weapon that kills people in a gang¡¯s hands. It would be nice if this technology was only used safely and in the right way, but some people may try dangerous things too quickly,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°But everyone, there are thirty million AIDS patients in the world. And the number of patients with cancer or gic disorders we can treat with the technology is in the billions,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I am not going to abandon people in front of me who are suffering in pain just because I am afraid of an uncertain future in the far future. If a problem happens because of this technology, it will also be science that solves it.¡± Chapter 68: The Conqueror of AIDS (2) Chapter 68: The Conqueror of AIDS (2) ¡°Alright,¡± Carpentier said. ¡°Doctor Ryu, I fully agree, but I don¡¯t know if our bone marrow regeneration team will be able to do the AIDS cure as well. What do you think, Doctor Lee Jung-Hyuk? Would you be able to take on this project as well as the head of the bone marrow regeneration team?¡± Lee Jung-Hyuk was covering his face with his hands. ¡®What am I going to do about this workload¡­¡¯ Lee Jung-Hyuk finished his undergraduate at Jungyoon University, and he published papers in Nature and Cell one after another while doing hisbined master¡¯s and doctorate degree at Stanford. He was originally working as a principal scientist at A-Gen¡¯s Stem Cell Department, but he moved to A-Bio. His job was very stable as he had a high sry, and there was a high chance he was going to be promoted to an executive. However, he had moved to A-Bio because he had a desire for achievements as a scientist. He wanted to do important research that would lead into a new generation at apany like A-Bio. But to be honest, half of that passion had burned away now. ¡°To be honest, we have a lot ofte nights already¡­¡± Lee Jung-Hyuk groaned. Beside him, his team members were quietly waiting for his response. Lee Jung-Hyuk felt like he could hear their voices. ¡®Please, sir, please! Help us¡­ Let us go home!¡¯ ¡°I will increase your sry.¡± Young-Joon made a deal. ¡°And I will also do experiments with you when I have time.¡± Lee Jung-Hyuk let out a deep sigh. ¡°Sir, we had no weekends this entire month. Our schedule was Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Friday, and Friday. Everyone is working harder than they did during their grad school.¡± ¡°I know. I will give you a long vacation when this project is over. I will let you get some good rest to make up for it. You can take a couple months off, and I will give you vacation money.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Shin Myung-Suk, one of the scientists, raised his head like he was happy to hear that. This changed everything. Lee Jung-Hyuk¡¯s expression changed as well. Now, they were contemting it, but in a more positive direction. ¡°I will give you big performance bonuses as well. After this project ends, go on a yacht on the Mediterranean Sea and rest for a month,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I¡¯m sorry that this is all I can give you. I don¡¯t really want to rush you, but if we burn our passion now, we can save one more patient.¡± ¡°... Phew. Alright. I would have stayed at A-Gen if I wanted to get good money and do easy research at my job,¡± Lee Jung-Hyuk said. ¡°Like you said, we can save at least one more person the faster our research ends. We don¡¯t want to take our time doing it either. Scientists should have that attitude.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°And since you are willing to do all that, we¡¯ll focus hard and get data.¡± ¡°I will also go to theb during my spare time,¡± Young-Joon said. As soon as the meeting ended, Young-Joon came back to his office and called the Experiment Animal Resource Centre that was part of the Research Support Centre at A-Gen. ¡°Hello, this is Ryu Young-Joon from A-Bio. I would like to purchase an AIDS model chimpanzee for research.¡± As animals like chimpanzees were very expensive, it wasn¡¯t an animal that regr venturepanies would be able to try easily; the losses would be too big if it didn¡¯t work out. That was whypanies usually slowly experimented with chimpanzees after seeing the effect on small animals like mice or beagles. But it didn¡¯t matter for Young-Joon. He already knew that the drug would seed and A-Bio had a lot of money. And it wasn¡¯t difficult to get chimpanzees if he used A-Gen. There was a reason why Young-Joon wanted chimpanzees. As they were the animal most simr to humans, it was appropriate evidence to take a difficult treatment method like bone marrow transnt to the clinical trial stage. What more experiments would be needed if it was sessful in chimpanzees when they are the most simr to humans? The second reason was because the HIV virus originated from chimpanzees. The name of the virus that infected monkeys was called the simian immunodeficiency virus, or SIV. It wasn¡¯t clear how it came to humans. Perhaps in the distant past, some chimpanzee saliva sshed into skin wounds of some African tribe while they were hunting chimpanzees. ¡°When can I get the chimpanzees?¡± Young-Joon asked the employee at the Experiment Animal Resource Centre. ¡ªWe only have five at the centre right now. We¡¯ll bring them to you tomorrow. Would you need more? ¡°Fifteen more please.¡± It had already been proven that they could make hematopoietic cells with manipted CCR5. Now, he had to get this technology into clinical trials as fast as possible. ¡®If it¡¯s possible, I want to do the clinical trial in a poor country.¡¯ Another name for AIDS was the Disease of Poverty because the poorer the country was, the higher the risk of being exposed to AIDS. In fact, seventy percent of the thirty-five million AIDS patients in the world were in Sub-Saharan Africa, and the rest of the patients were mostly concentrated in poor countries. As A-Bio had to do a difficult task like bone marrow for this cure, it would be best to take it to an international clinical trial and perform it. That way, it would elerate the process when the poor countries, the homeground of AIDS, began a full-fledged right against it. ¡®I should look for hospitals or pharmaceuticalpanies that want to coborate.¡¯ * * * On Friday morning, Young-Joon took the cell culture sk that contained the somatic cells he obtained from the chimpanzee and went to cell experimentb three. When he walked in, his eyes widened. ¡°What is this? Hello?¡± There were a bunch of scientists in theb. There were about twenty people filling up the room. ¡°Like we said, we came here to observe your experiment, sir,¡± Park Dong-Hyun said. ¡°Wait¡­ You did ask if you could watch, but you didn¡¯t say it was twenty people.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t expect this many people toe either. I just asked people who didn¡¯t properly learn stem cell experiments to apply, and then forty people did.¡± ¡°Forty people? There are forty people who don¡¯t have experience with stem cell experiments at ourpany?¡± ¡°No, they just all signed up. But I can¡¯t stop them when they want to watch¡­ They couldn¡¯t alle in here, so we had to draw names.¡± Young-Joon was at a loss for words because of the ridiculous situation whenJacob interrupted. ¡°Sir, I really want to watch the greatest legend in the stem cell field do his experiments. I was even assigned to film it.¡± ¡°Who asked you to film it?¡± ¡°Professor Carpentier. He said that we should train new employees with this video.¡± Young-Joon¡¯s ears went red. ¡°It¡¯s just like any other experiment. Well, don¡¯t get too excited.¡± Young-Joon sat at the sterilizedb bench. At the edge of the bench, a UV disinfectionmp that was turned on in advance was shining light on the bench for twenty minutes. He turned off the UVmp and turned on the fluorescent light, then turned on the venttion option so that dust couldn¡¯t get in from the outside. He wiped the pipettes and liquid culture bottle with ethanol and Kimtech tissues[1] and ced them on the bench. Lastly, he put the chimpanzee cell sk on the bench. Now, he was ready for the experiment. Young-Joon nced around. Twenty scientists were dead silent and watching him. Some of them were even taking notes. ¡®What¡¯s with the pressure?¡¯ ¡°I think Jacob will be better than me. It¡¯s been a few months since I¡¯ve done experiments myself,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°But a legend is a legend,¡± Park Dong-Hyun said. Young-Joon sighed quietly, then held up the cell sk. ¡ªSince it¡¯se to this, let¡¯s show them a proper demonstration. Rosaline sent a message. ¡®How?¡¯ ¡ªI have watched scientists do experiments several times, and there are a lot of people who do it wrong. Now is a good chance to teach them properly. ¡®Hey, there¡¯s no difference between how they experiment and how I do it.¡¯ ¡ªYou are included in the people who do it wrong. ¡®...¡¯ ¡ªDon¡¯t be disappointed. All experiments humans do are inefficient. I will teach you. ¡®How?¡¯ Young-Joon tilted his head in confusion. ¡ªPlease give me control of your two arms for a moment and share your perspective with me as well. ¡®What should I do?¡¯ Young-Joon thought for a bit, then loosened his arms and put them on theb bench. He was a little worried, but he was also curious how he was doing experiments the wrong way. ¡®Try it.¡¯ As soon as he allowed Rosaline to have control of his body, his two arms floated up at right angles like a robot. Then, something shocking began happening in front of his eyes. His two hands began moving like conveyor belts. When opening sks, rookies would hold the sk in their left hand and open the lid with the right. But to do that, they had to set down the pipette or suctioning equipment on theb bench. Doing that created another hand movement in order to pick that up again, resulting in a decrease in work efficiency. But it was possible to open the sk lid with one hand; it was simr to opening a stic water bottle, although it required some skill. If exactly 1.17 million nerve cells in the left hand were excited, the sk lid would rotate exactly twelve and a half times¡­ Like this. Drr! ck! The lid was loosely on top of the sk opening. It didn¡¯t fly away, but was just lightly covering the top. The only thing left for Young-Joon to do was grab the opened lid with his left thumb and pointer finger. Like this, he could remove the lid only with his left hand and keep holding it with his fingers. Now, it was time for the right hand, which had the suctioning equipment, to move. The suctioning equipment wasn¡¯t put all the way into the bottom of the sk as it increased the chances of contamination. Young-Joon began seeing images in front of him. He could see the dead bacteria corpses stuck to the side of the sk. ¡®Holy¡­¡¯ His two arms moved in a pathway that never crossed the top of the opened sk as microorganisms could fall from his arm and enter the liquid culture. Like a machine with a well-written algorithm, Young-Joon¡¯s arms performed the experiment with the most optimal movements that minimized the chances of contamination. He tilted the sk and put the suctioning equipment into it, avoiding the bacteria corpses as he did it. He removed the liquid culture that was near the entrance of the sk. He quickly lifted the bottle of PBS solution and poured it in the opposite direction of the cell attachment surface of the sk. Usually, it was carefully poured in with equipment such as pipettes in exact measurements, but it was unnecessary for Rosaline¡¯s hands. Even if she just poured it in, it was ten milliliters. She didn¡¯t have to worry about the cells getting damaged because it was the opposite direction. After washing the cells with the solution, Rosaline suctioned again. Then, she tilted the tube with trypsin solution and dropped in two milliliters in each sk. If she dropped in the solution from far away, there was no risk of contamination and it drastically reduced time. It took Young-Joon forty seconds to treat the cells in the two sks with trypsin. It took Jacob, who was one of the best in terms of technique at A-Bio, two minutes, and it took Carpentier one minute and thirty seconds during his prime time. ck¡­ Someone dropped their pen and notepad. ¡°Thank¡­ you¡­¡± Jacob said. ¡°I did record it, but I don¡¯t know if anyone will be able to do it.¡± ¡°You have to be this good to start apany like A-Bio¡­¡± Someone murmured. ¡°Thank you, sir. I learned a lot¡­ Actually, I don¡¯t know if I learned it, but thank you¡­¡± said Na Yeon-Woo, frozen in shock. ¡°That¡¯s it, everyone. Everyone go and do your experiments!¡± Young-Joon said quickly. He cleaned up theb bench with his hands, which he got back control of, and got up. ¡®I¡¯m never going to experiment when people are watching now.¡¯ * * * Ardip, the victim of Schumatix¡¯s a treatment kit sabotage, finally arrived in Korea. Professor Sung Yo-Han, who had joined A-Bio Hospital, was in charge of his treatment. As he was the first person who conducted the clinical trial for treating a with stem cells, he was the best expert in the field. He brought Young-Joon with him as an advisor for the a treatment and met the patient together. ¡°Hello.¡± Young-Joon greeted Ardip. The Marathi trantor they had prepared in advance tranted his greeting. Ardip said nothing. Young-Joon quietly observed his face as he was keeping his silence with a very tired look on his face. He was stick thin, and he looked a lot older than his early thirties. Young-Joon could feel the tiredness from the rough life he had lived from the aura around him. Ardip would have been cared for well at Apollo Hospital, but he still didn¡¯t look well. Ring! Young-Joon was surprised when a message window popped up. ¡®a isn¡¯t the only issue here.¡¯ Young-Joon had heard that Ardip had a limp in one leg, but now he knew the reason why. [Synchronization Mode: Would you like to analyze a stroke? Fitness consumption rate: 1.1/second.] As Sung Yo-Han read the examination records sent over by Apollo Hospital, he said to Young-Joon, ¡°It says that he has been hospitalized for a stroke before. There aren¡¯t any problems other than that he has a limp when he walks due to paralysis in his left leg. It shouldn¡¯t matter for the a treatment, right?¡± Young-Joon silently stared at Ardip, then said, ¡°Yes, it should be fine. You can go ahead with the treatment. And¡­¡± Young-Joon swallowed his words. The third phase of the Alzheimer¡¯s clinical trial wasing up. A stroke was a nerve paralyzing and destroying disease that urred as a blood vessel in the brain was blocked or burst. It was still a type of neurological disorder. The cerebral nerve regeneration technology used to treat Alzheimer¡¯s was also effective on strokes. Young-Joon was actually preparing for a clinical trial for cerebral nerve regeneration geared towards treating strokes or Parkinson¡¯s disease. ¡®I should have a talk with Professor Shin Jung-Ju.¡¯ 1. A Korean brand for experiment materials ? Chapter 69: The Conqueror of AIDS (3) Chapter 69: The Conqueror of AIDS (3) Professor Shin Jung-Ju from Yeonyee University was getting a kick out of exining A-Bio¡¯s new technology on the radio. ¡®But she needs to see some patients now.¡¯ Young-Joon snickered in his head. He wanted to start the Parkinson¡¯s and stroke clinical trials when the time was right. He looked through his phone and found Shin Jung-Ju¡¯s number to contact her. When Young-Joon got up from his seat¡­ ¡°M madata kara.¡± Ardip, who had been silent and timid throughout the examination, opened his mouth. ¡°Help me,¡± the trantor said. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. We will cure your a,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°My a is fine. I want to ask you for something else. I heard that you can easily fix any disease. Please, I beg you.¡± ¡°... Are you talking about your paralysis from your stroke?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Sir, we have treated Alzheimer¡¯s during the clinical trial, but we haven¡¯t conducted a clinical trial for a stroke yet. There are no treatments that have beenmercialized yet. It¡¯s not something that I can give you however I want.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t care about the stroke or my paralysis,¡± Ardip said. ¡°Doctor. Please cure AIDS.¡± ¡°AIDS?¡± ¡°The reason I came to Korea is to ask you about this. That¡¯s it.¡± Ardip suddenly stumbled to his feet, then bent his dull leg to bow to Young-Joon on the floor. Surprised, Young-Joon and Sung Yo-Han quickly picked him up from the floor. ¡°What are you doing!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t do this!¡± Ardip, who was getting back up, repeatedly begged Young-Joon with desperation and tears on his face. ¡°Please make a cure for AIDS. Please. I don¡¯t have to be able to do anything. I don¡¯t care about the a or the stroke.¡± ¡°Sir, are you suffering from AIDS as well?¡± Sung Yo-Han asked. ¡°... No.¡± Ardip shook his head. * * * The price of living in India was cheap. But the quality of life was that low. Mumbai, the capital of Maharashtra province, was the biggest city in India with a poption of twelve million. Their international airports and trade ports ounted for one-third of India¡¯s trades. Rich foreigners came and went, contracts worth hundreds of millions of dors were signed, and smart cities like Navi Mumbai were also born. But on the other hand, thergest slum and red-light district in Asia was here. This ce was dominated with human trafficking and confinement, violence and disease. In front of the sewer in the dirty alley that reeked of the smell of spices of multinational food and the stench of household garbage, Ardip was born. His mother, who carried all kinds of chronic diseases, died as soon as she gave birth to him. Ardip, who was born with misfortune, grew up by running errands for the gang members who managed the red-light district. Suffering daily from beatings, malnutrition, drugs, unsanitary conditions, and diseases, Ardip copsed from a stroke when he was around twenty. He got a limp in his left as an aftereffect, and he was abandoned by the gang after losing his vision to a. Then how was Ardip, who was born with nothing and was now disabled, able to survive in the slums of Mumbai? It was thanks to the help of the prostitutes in the red-light district. They were friends of his mother, whom he didn¡¯t even know; they had fed him, bathed him, and raised him. Some were women his age who had been raised with him. Some were girls who were struggling to adapt because they were new. To Ardip, they were his mothers, aunts, significant others, and siblings. Ardip, who was abandoned by the gang, went to the small home the women secretly made for him in the small corner of the red-light district. The women got a handful of food once a day; they each took a spoonful of their own food and fed him. They did it for six years. That was until Ardip came out to the city himself after hearing that Schumatix India was providing treatment for free. It was not because those women were extremely humanitarian or nice; it was because the weak who were on the edge had absolutely nothing. The only thing they had was someone who would hug and embrace their hurting bodies and kindness. The women didn¡¯t think they could bear the loss they would feel if they lost Ardip. That went for him as well. ¡°They were the people who took me to a hospital when I copsed from the stroke¡­ They are family to me,¡± Ardip said. ¡°But they are all suffering from AIDS. They don¡¯t have a lot of time left. They haven¡¯t received any kind of treatment. And I heard AIDS is an incurable disease.¡± Wiping his face, which was already dirtied with tears, Ardip repeatedly bowed and begged Young-Joon. ¡°I am getting a lot ofpensation from Schumatix. I will give you all of it. I have a lot of money. I don¡¯t have it right now, but I heard that I am getting a lot. Doctor, please. You don¡¯t have to fix my a. Please just do something about AIDS. You are a genius who can cure any disease.¡± Young-Joon slowly rose from his seat. ¡°We are already developing an AIDS cure,¡± he said. As soon as the trantor delivered the message, Ardip¡¯s expression brightened. ¡°But I¡¯m afraid I won¡¯t be able to live up to your expectations. It is still in preclinical stages, and it will take a long time because there are a lot of clinical trials to go through untilmercialization.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°And even if the cure is finished, it will take more time to be supplied because it will be very expensive.¡± Ardip copsed to his knees helplessly. There was a moment of heavy silence. Young-Joon nced out the window. He felt all kinds of emotions. Ardip didn¡¯t move at all as if he just froze on the floor. ¡°You will receive treatment for your a. During that time, you may be encouraged to apply for a clinical trial treating paralysis caused by strokes,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°That is something separate from the a treatment, and it has nothing to do with the development of the AIDS cure. So, if you receive a suggestion like that, do not think about anything else and just listen closely to what that treatment is. You must fully understand it and think about it for a long time before deciding.¡± * * * ¡°Is there a better way?¡± Young-Joon, who returned to his office, undid his tie in frustration. ¡ªWhat is the problem? Rosaline asked. ¡°This is something I¡¯ve thought about from a while ago, but curing AIDS using stem cells is too expensive. Even if we do the research as quickly as possible andmercialize it, the cure itself is too expensive,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°It¡¯s the best strategy in that it canpletely cure it, but it requires the best doctors and intensive experiments done by scientists. The process of harvesting a patient¡¯s bone marrow, manipting the genes, verifying that it was done correctly, and transnting it back to the patient¡¯s body is too difficult.¡± ¡ªYou can do it easily at the next-generation hospital. ¡°You can. But that next-generation hospital doesn¡¯t exist in poor countries. It doesn¡¯t even exist in developed countries right now.¡± ¡ªThat¡¯s right. ¡°That method is the best choice, for sure. But is it also the best that we can do?¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Only rich patients of developed countries with good health care will be able to get the cure. But where would the women from the red-light districts that Ardip was talking about get bone marrow transnts? The other name for AIDS is the Disease of Poverty. Most of the patients are poor people living in poor countries.¡± ¡ªThat¡¯s right. ¡°I was originally going to get support from their governments and partner with the WHO to treat it extensively,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°But to be honest, that will take a long time as well, and I don¡¯t know if governments in ces like Africa will actually respond.¡± Young-Joon sat in his chair with his fists clenched. He was almost angry at the feeling of helplessness and defeat. Destroying a disease like AIDS wasn¡¯t easy even with the help of Rosaline. It wouldn¡¯t be difficult if his goal was to treat a couple people, but could he be satisfied with bringing people from developed countries to Korea, curing their AIDS, and getting a lot of money from it? The ultimate goal of this treatment should be to cure all AIDS patients, resulting in the extinction of the human immunodeficiency virus; eradicating the virus forever in human history, just as smallpox was eradicated. But the method they had right now was too difficult and time-consuming. ¡ªThen let¡¯s look for a different way. Rosaline said. ¡°A different way?¡± ¡ªLet¡¯s run a few different simtions. Although you have to consume fitness in order for me to provide it to you. Young-Joon thought for a moment, then asked Rosaline after thinking of something. ¡°You¡¯re not going to suggesting anything weird this time?¡± ¡ªSomething weird? ¡°Something like putting the officials into a vegetative state in order to gain the cooperation of African governments, or making a bacteria that makes oil and threatening them with it.¡± ¨CBecause you don¡¯t like those kinds of methods. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡ªBut it¡¯s odd. You mentioned those methods first even when I didn¡¯t suggest them. Rosaline said. ¡ªYou wouldn¡¯t have even imagined it in the past. ¡°Maybe we¡¯re getting more simr to each other as we are getting synchronized,¡± Young-Joon said with a chuckle. ¡°To be honest, the things you said before don¡¯t sound all that crazy anymore. I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s because I¡¯m crazy or if it¡¯s because the world is crazy.¡± ¡ªYou are not wrong. Rosaline said. ¡°But you said I was frustrating before?¡± ¡ªIn the past, yes. But now I don¡¯t think that. There is something I felt from the Schumatix incident. It is something that I analyzed before, but¡­ ¡°What is it?¡± ¡ªHumans are not originally animals that can ept me. Rosaline said. ¡ªImagine if Luca Taylor had me. ¡°Ugh. It¡¯s horrific just thinking about it.¡± ¡ªFrom that day, all the executives from pharmaceuticalpanies will die. And someone like Luca Taylor would artificially create a fatal virus, spread it, and then monopolize the cure for it. He would rule the world in three years. ¡°Someone like him is fully capable of doing something like that.¡± ¡ªI am searching for the reason for my creation. And why a second Rosaline cannot be created in the same way. That moment is a mystery to me. ¡°It¡¯s a mystery to me too.¡± ¡ªThe vast amount of ATP in your blood created me, but I am starting to think that it might have not happened if it wasn¡¯t your blood. ¡°...¡± ¡ªA frustratingly extreme and obsessive sense of ethics. Maybe it is not possible to bnce out this power without a sense of morality like that. ¡°... Thanks, but to be honest, I have corrupted a lot. I¡¯ve felt it for a while. I put pressure on politicians when catching Ji Kwang-Man, and¡­¡± ¡ªI think that is probably because of your synchronization with me, but your current sense of ethics is still far superior than the average human¡¯s. If you let go of all of your ethics that are limiting my power, the world will face a great upheaval. I can even prevent humans from dying. ¡°Holy¡­¡± ¡ªBut what if only the top 0.1 percent of wealthy people will be able to live forever because that procedure has astronomically high prices? What if they live for three hundred years, monopolize the immortality technology and dominate the world? What if there bes a life gap instead of a wealth gap? Can humanity right now ept that kind of society? ¡°I, for one, am worried.¡± ¡ªIf I present that technology, someone like Luca Taylor will not hesitate to fast-forward that society because he is part of the top 0.1 percent. But you won¡¯t. You will think so hard about it in your room that your head will explode. ¡ªI think that the reason or purpose of my existence may be connected to that. Bleep! A message popped up. [Synchronization mode: Analyze eighty-two treatments for AIDS. Fitness consumption: 4] ¡°What is this?¡± Young-Joon asked, baffled, as he read the message. ¡ªAt my level right now, the only option to cure AIDS I can see right now is marrow transntation. Rosaline said. ¡ªBut life-sustaining treatment is possible. Some drugs are avable at a much lower pricepared to bone marrow transnts, so they can keep AIDS patients alive. It¡¯s just like a diabetic patient getting insulin shots. Bleep! [Synchronization Mode: Analyze seventeen HIV vines. Fitness consumption: 4.4] ¡ªAnd you can also make vines. You will be able to stop the spread of AIDS by vinating people with this. Since it is useless if AIDS spreads to two people while treating one patient with a bone marrow transnt, you can vinate people without HIV to make them immune and start from there. ¡ªYou can use prevention, life-sustaining treatment, and a cure all at once. With a strategy like this, you might be able to eradicate HIV through international cooperation. It also doesn¡¯t vite our ethics. ¡°...¡± Young-Joon felt kind of moved. ¡°I never thought I would feel moved by a cell.¡± ¡ªIf you¡¯re grateful, just take a shot of ATP after. ¡°What does it feel like when I take it?¡± ¡ªI get a little buzzed and I feel good. ¡°... Alright then.¡± Young-Joon pressed the message in Synchronization Mode. He began to write an email as he looked at the chart floating beside him. [n for the Eradication for the Human Immunodeficiency Virus project.] The recipient was Tedros. They had exchanged business cards when they met at IUBMB. He was the Director-General of the World Health Organization. Chapter 70: The Conqueror of AIDS (4) Chapter 70: The Conqueror of AIDS (4) On Sunday at two o¡¯clock in the afternoon, Park Joo-Hyuk was going into the A-Bio building. He had left something there on Friday. As he was walking past the office, he saw that the lights in the CEO¡¯s office were on. ¡°On a Sunday?¡± When he knocked on the door, Park Joo-Hyuk heard a dying voice. ¡ªCome in. ¡°Hey what? Why are you here?¡± Park Joo-Huk asked as he walked into the office. ¡°I had a lot of work to do,¡± Young-Joon replied feebly and copsed on the couch. Park Joo-Hyuk, who was walking toward him, stopped in his tracks. ¡°Hey, that sweater you¡¯re wearing. Weren¡¯t you wearing that on Friday?¡± ¡°That¡¯s because I haven¡¯t gone home since then.¡± ¡°You lunatic. Why aren¡¯t you going home when you have a nice apartment? You look sick! Go home man. What the hell are you doing?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°What is all this? Why do you have stacks of papers?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk picked up the papers that were on the table and couch. ¡°Treatment 1, Treatment 2, Treatment 3, Vine 1, Vine 2¡­ What is all this?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t have the energy to exin all of that. I just worked on about a hundred chemical molecules. I was seeing how they match with the ones that have already been developed and strategizing on what would be a good way to use it¡­¡± Park Joo-Hyuk gathered up the papers and stacked them on the table. He dragged Young-Joon out. ¡°Get up. Just go home. Something¡¯s going to happen to you if you keep working like this. You always stayte during the weekdays, so you need to get some rest during the weekend at least.¡± Young-Joon waved his hand like he was tired of hearing it. ¡°Ugh. Just let me be. And stop nagging me. My head hurts from listening to someone nagging me a hundred times to take care of my body.¡± ¡°Who¡¯s nagging you?¡± ¡°Someone. A noisy one¡­¡± Young-Joon nced at the dozens of messages floating on top of his head. They were messages that read, ¡°Warning. Warning. Warning.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll go home in two hours,¡± Young-Joon said to Park Joo-Hyuk. ¡°Why two hours?¡± ¡°That¡¯s when I have to draw blood from the chimpanzee.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I¡¯m checking in four hour intervals to see if the virus is there. After I¡¯m done with this, I should be less busy from Monday.¡± ¡°You¡¯re probably the only person who draws chimpanzee blood on the weekend as a CEO.¡± ¡°I¡­ guess so.¡± ¡°So all you have to do is draw blood from the chimpanzee?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°Then I¡¯ll do it for you. Go home.¡± ¡°What are you talking about? How can you do it?¡± ¡°You have to teach me. It seems pretty easy. You just have to stab the needle in, draw it out, and that¡¯s it, right?¡± ¡°Like how you just need to memorize thew and take the test to be licensed as awyer?¡± ¡°...¡± Park Joo-Hyuk scratched his head. ¡°Anyway, you need some rest. You¡¯re ugly as is, but your face looks even worse now that you¡¯re so tired.¡± ¡°If you¡¯re just going to talk nonsense, just go.¡± ¡°Just tell people below you to do it. Don¡¯t spend the night alone and go overboard.¡± ¡°Everyone from the bone marrow regeneration team came today as well. They are in an emergency as well.¡± ¡°Wait, that team is the reason you stay up all night ande to the office on the weekends? That team is always herete, too. What on earth are you doing there that everyone has tunnel vision?¡± Massaging the back of his neck, Young-Joon sat back up. ¡°We¡¯re doing something monumental for human history.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°We are going to eradicate the human immunodeficiency virus and get rid of AIDS forever.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk kind of froze. ¡°Is that possible?¡± ¡°Well, obviously not quickly. It will be a very big, long-term global project. We are going to need a huge amount of vines and treatments. It¡¯s a lot of work just to produce it, and¡­ No matter how much international cooperation I get, it¡¯s going to take a few years topletely eradicate HIV.¡± ¡°I think the fact that this is a matter of time is a revolution itself. You¡¯re permanently eradicating an infectious disease that was incurable. Does it matter that it¡¯s going to take a few years?¡± ¡°But to be honest, it¡¯s going to be really hard. And there might be a lot of resistance as well.¡± ¡°You¡¯re eradicating HIV. What kind of lunatic would resist?¡± ¡°A lot of people. For example, pharmaceuticalpanies that used to sell AIDS-rted drugs, religious organizations that rejected bone marrow transnts, or conservatives that worry that people¡¯s sexual activity will be promiscuous once the drug gets released.¡± ¡°Hm¡­¡± ¡°But this is something that is doable even with that risk, and it is something that should be done.¡± ¡°Because you¡¯re destroying an infectious disease.¡± ¡°Right. Even if there are ten defenders standing in front of the goal post, I will take the shot if they are going to give me one hundred points for just one goal.¡± Young-Joon picked up the documents. ¡°And we can do it. We¡¯re going to tackle it head on with science, just like we¡¯ve been doing before, and eventually eradicate HIV.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Anyway, do you have time on Thursday next week?¡± Young-Joon asked Park Joo-Hyuk. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°The Secretary General of the World Health Organization ising. Let¡¯s go together.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk¡¯s jaw dropped. ¡°Because of the HIV eradication project? You¡¯re big enough to be able to tell someone like that toe and go?¡± ¡°Of course not, dude. I just told him that we should meet since he¡¯s visiting Korea.¡± ¡°Where are you meeting him?¡± ¡°The Conrad.¡± ¡°Okay. I¡¯ll clear my schedule.¡± Knock knock. Someone else knocked on Young-Joon¡¯s office door. ¡°Come in,¡± Young-Joon said. Doctor Lee Jung-Hyuk opened the door and came in. He looked even worse than Young-Joon, and his dark circles came all the way down to his chin. ¡®Wow. He looks brutal.¡¯ Inside, he felt sorry for him, but was also a little touched.¡± ¡°Oh, Attorney Park, you were here too. Hello.¡± Lee Jung-Hyuk said hello. ¡°Hello.¡± ¡°Should Ie a littleter if you are discussing something with Doctor Ryu?¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s fine. I¡¯ve discussed everything that I need to. Pleasee in.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk turned to nce at Young-Joon. ¡°I¡¯ll be on my way.¡± Then, he mouthed to Young-Joon as he was closing the door on his way out. ¡®Go home.¡¯ Young-Joon secretly gave him an OK sign. * * * On Monday, Young-Joon ran the PCR machine to determine whether the DNA of HIV existed in the chimpanzee¡¯s blood. [3 hours 40 minutes] The machine showed how much time was left. After checking that, Young-Joon went to the conference room. He had returned to being a frontline scientist and was doing experiments himself, but he was still in a position where he had to oversee the progress of all the research being done. The next meeting was a coborative meeting with Celligener, thepany that was developing Amuc, a treatment for diabetes. ¡°It¡¯s been a while, Doctor Song.¡± Young-Joon greeted her as he walked in. ¡°Hello,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. For some reason, her voice seemed a bit gloomy. ¡°You weren¡¯t in our meetings for a while right? I heard you were on a business trip overseas.¡± ¡°Yes. I was in India.¡± ¡°India?¡± Young-Joon was surprised as he was fighting Schuamtix in India regarding Ardip justst week. ¡°Where in India?¡± ¡°Navi Mumbai.¡± ¡°Cough!¡± Choi Myung-Joon, who was beside her, choked and coughed. Navi Mumbai was where Schumatix India was located. ¡°You were in an internationally famous ce,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Yes¡­ I was,¡± Song Ji-Hyun replied. ¡°Why did you go to India?¡± ¡°For an investment. Thanks to you and the IUBMB, we were able to connect with a millionaire in India and a few pharmaceuticalpanies. So I went with our CEO for business meetings regarding investments.¡± ¡°I see. When did you get back?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°I got backst evening.¡± ¡°Then, you went to work right away and came all the way to this meeting?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Hahaha. We¡¯re staying up nights anding to work on the weekends, but I see that it¡¯s also pretty bad for you too. No wonder you seem to have no energy today,¡± Young-Joon said. Song Ji-Hyun smiled. There was actually a different reason why she seemed so down. When she was in Navi Mumbai, she had caught on early to Schumatix India¡¯s suspicious behavior. It was before Ardip¡¯s a treatment incident blew up. She wanted to collect more specific data and give it to Young-Joon as she had received so much help from him. She tried to get some useful information by going to Schumatix India and meeting doctors and patients, but it didn¡¯t go well. Then, the situation started to rapidly unfold in a violent way. Schumatix attacked Young-Joon by reporting a tumor, which Young-Joon destroyed straight on with a shocking new technology, and the CIA moved as the White House gave an announcement. What could Song Ji-Hyun, a scientist at a venture pharmaceuticalpany, do in arge-scale incident like this? In Navi Mumbai, the center stage, she felt extremely helpless. She wanted to repay what he had done for her, but she couldn¡¯t do anything. She felt like nothing. She was happy that A-Bio got through this crisis, but she couldn¡¯t help but feel a little sad. ¡°Doctor Song?¡± Snapping back into it, Song Ji-Hyun quickly raised her head. ¡°Oh, sorry. What did you say?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not about our meeting right now, but if you met a lot of pharmaceuticalpanies in India, did you ever contact apany that works on an AIDS treatment?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°An AIDS treatment? There was, but why?¡± ¡°Would you be able to introduce me to them?¡± * * * The HIV eradication project was going in three methods. First, a bone marrow transnt to cure AIDS patients one by one. Second, a life-sustaining treatment to stop the progression of AIDS in the patient. Lastly, a vination that stopped HIV from spreading to other people. The first andst method required the development of a new drug, but the drugs that would be used in the second method were already developed. But like what happened with Gleevec, there was a lot of profiteering. The treatment for AIDS that cost about a million won in Korea cost about fifty thousand won to make. As such, poor countries like Africa couldn¡¯t use the treatment and died. Then did India pharmaceuticalpanies that fought like hell with Schumatix from cloning Gleevec leave that expensive AIDS treatment alone? They obviously replicated the treatment and mass produced it. Thanks to that, ny percent of the AIDS treatments used in developing countries were from India. As developing countries had most of the world¡¯s AIDS patients, almost fifty percent of the AIDS treatments in the world was being supplied by India. Their nickname of being the World¡¯s Pharmacy didn¡¯t really seem like an exaggeration. But there were still people in poor countries who died because they could not use the treatment. Even those drugs, which were drastically cheaper from evading patent rights, were still too expensive. Then what could be done? They could lower the price of the treatment. Rosaline was also capable of finding ways to create drugs. If Young-Joon designed a good strategy based on that, it couldpletely change the production process and dramatically lower the cost of production. From what Young-Joon calcted by staying up all night, he found that it could be reduced to less than one-thousandth of the previous cost. The only thing left to do was to find apany to produce this drug. Of course, it would be best to find it in India as they have already been mass-producing and supplying it. Young-Joon couldplete the entire process, from manufacturing to distribution, by finding a few good pharmaceuticalpanies and forming a technology alliance with them. But the best part about this, better than the others, was that this didn¡¯t require a clinical trial because it wasn¡¯t a new drug; it was just changing the production process of an existing drug. Young-Joon would be able tomercialize it just with a bioequivalence test. ¡°There¡¯s apany called Karamchand Pharmatics,¡± Song Ji-Hyun told Young-Joon. ¡°They are one of thergest pharmaceuticalpanies in India, and they mass-produce the treatment for AIDS. They probably make about seventy percent of the treatment that goes to Africa.¡± ¡°Oh, really?¡± Young-Joon stood up in excitement. ¡°Could you give me their contact information?¡± * * * After the meeting ended, Young-Joon came back to his office and did a little research on Karamchand Pharmatics. Thepany certainly wasn¡¯t bad. [n for the Eradication of HIV Project] Young-Joon sent Karamchand Pharmatics an email simr to what he sent Director-General Tedros. They didn¡¯t have to participate in the meeting at the Conrad, but Karamchand Pharmatics made a tight schedule after hearing that there was a chance to meet Tedros. On Wednesday morning, the day before the meeting, Karamchand Pharmatics sent a few people to Seoul. It was Sachet, the CTO, and three key scientists. And at ten o''clock the next morning, they arrived at the conference room at the Conrad. When Sachet and the scientists went inside, there were already about ten people inside. A slightly thin young man greeted Sachet and his group. ¡°Hello. My name is Ryu Young-Joon.¡± ¡°Sachet. It is an honor to meet you.¡± The two of them shook hands. Arge man with arge belly approached Sachet. ¡°Hello. I¡¯m Tedros, the Director-General of the WHO.¡± After briefly introducing themselves, Young-Joon turned on the monitor. ¡°I only briefly mentioned this in the email I sent you that I want to discuss the HIV eradication project. I will begin the actual presentation now.¡± Sachet nodded as the trantor delivered Young-Joon¡¯s message. Tedros took a sip of water. The achievements that Young-Joon had shown thus far had been so great, and the reason they hade all the way here was because of the paper on CCR5 maniption technology and hematopoietic cell regeneration that was recently published in Science. But this was the first time they were hearing in detail about the strategies and technologies he had. ¡°We developed a technology that cures AIDS through bone marrow transntation. We want to cure all AIDS patients with this,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°But it will not be able to follow the speed of the infection,¡± Tedros pointed out. ¡°I know. That is why we are going to stop the spread by making a vine.¡± ¡°Vine?¡± The scientists in the room all froze. This was a shock. ¡®A vine? Was AIDS a disease that they could make a vine for?¡¯ But even before the shock from his sensational proposition could wear off, Young-Joon yed his next card. ¡°And I would like to use the drugs produced at Karamchand Pharmatics to stop the progression of the disease in already-infected patients. But the output is highly insufficient for the number of patients. Karampia, the AIDS treatment that is being produced right now, takes about a month to make. Through a process that consists of thirteen steps,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I will show you a method to produce that in thirty-six hours with two steps. The reagents required for production are also drastically reduced, so the production cost will be less than 0.1 percent of the present cost.¡± ¡°What?!¡± Sachet screamed in shock. ¡°0.1 percent? How is that possible?¡± ¡°Originally, you were chemically synthesizing a thirty-seven-unitplex by connecting them one by one, right? You can use the polymerization system in yeast cells to do that at once. I will show you how to do it in detail.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°If both of you could help me, we canpletely eradicate HIV from this Earth. Please join me,¡± Young-Joon said. Chapter 71: The Conqueror of AIDS (5) Chapter 71: The Conqueror of AIDS (5) The conference room at the Conrad was filled with silence. Everyone was confused because it was such an oundish idea. Tedros was the first one to speak and break the silence. ¡°First of all, our organization does not seek profit,¡± he said. ¡°The World Health Organization is a specialized agency of the UN for healthcare. It is our job to guide and coordinate international health affairs to ultimately improve health universally. Your project to eradicate HIV¡­ Of course we will do it. But what I¡¯m curious about is¡­¡± Tedros bit his lip. ¡°Is that really possible? You said you would eradicate HIV, but the idea of making a vine is shocking, but to lower the production cost to 0.1 percent of the current treatment?¡± ¡°Both ideas are possible. We will develop the vine using the facilities at A-Gen and start clinical trials this year. Karamchand can produce the treatment in mass quantities.¡± ¡°About that treatment. You said it was called Karampia? The one we are selling.¡± Sachet interrupted and asked. ¡°Yes,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°You said that you will synthesize the drug within yeast cells?¡± ¡°To be exact, we are only extracting and using the materials involved in the polymerization system in the yeast cell.¡± Sachet was lost in thought. Karampia was a replica drug of Fuzeon, Roche¡¯s AIDS treatment. It interfered with the mechanism of the cell membrane and the structure on the surface of the virus fusing together as HIV infected the white blood cell. It was in the spotlight in many countries as it had minimal side effects, it worked well, and there was minimal drug resistance as well. But the production process was extremely picky. This drug was a veryrge,plex chemical that had a long centipede-like molecr structure. Each part was one chemical molecule, and they had to be synthesized one by one through chemical reactions, like building Lego. After thirty-six steps, it wasplete. It had thirteen steps that took about a month, and countless scientists were worked to the bone for this. ¡®And he¡¯s going to reduce it to two steps that only take thirty-six hours?¡¯ Was this how European people at the transition point to modern times felt when they heard about steam engines for the first time? If it was anyone else, Sachet would have snickered and told them to stop talking nonsense, but the person who said it was a monster who had achieved unrealistic results one after another, such as induced pluripotent stem cells, a a cure, and a clinical trial for an Alzheimer¡¯s treatment. He was the biggest rising star in the scientificmunity. It didn¡¯t seem like he was bluffing; he probably did have that technology. But Sachet had one concern. ¡°To be honest, the problem arises from the moment we lower the production cost to 0.1 percent of what it was before. I don¡¯t have the slightest clue as to how I should alter the price because the price break is so severe.¡± ¡°Lower it so that all AIDS patients can survive,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Once Karamchand¡¯s factories begin working with our new yeast cell synthesis technology, I don¡¯t want anyone dying from AIDS anywhere in the world.¡± ¡°It might be possible if the production cost is 0.1 percent. But¡­ I don¡¯t know. I¡¯ve never seen such a big technological innovation. I also can¡¯t imagine producing big enough quantities to supply the entire world,¡± Sachet said. ¡°It probably won¡¯t be easy, given how huge the job is. That¡¯s why the Director-General of the WHO is here right now.¡± Tedros¡¯ eyes widened. ¡°Me?¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t it the WHO¡¯s role to coordinate the global health industry?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°If we have this kind of technology and Karamchand¡¯s facility, the WHO must take responsibility to help Karamchand and supply Karampia to every AIDS patient in the world.¡± Tedros slowly nodded with a surprised look on his face. He said, ¡°Although I need to do some calctions, it should be possible with the production cost falling to 0.1 percent. If it¡¯s not possible with Karamchand¡¯s facilities alone, we can partner with other pharmaceuticalpanies.¡± ¡°Yes. and we have to distribute the mass-produced drugs as well. Like Africa, there are a lot of poor developing countries that are at war or have divided governments due to civil wars,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°As the government isn¡¯t properly carrying out its duties, it will be that much harder to distribute the drugs. The WHO must make sure to solve that problem.¡± ¡°I see. I will do whatever I can,¡± Tedros said with a stern look. ¡°But Doctor Ryu, if this really seeds and we destroy AIDS, how long will that take?¡± Sachet asked. ¡°I don¡¯t know. It depends on how many countries our Director-General can get support from and how active he can get them to be,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°If it¡¯s really fast, three years. If we¡¯re slow, it¡¯ll take decades.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s just say that it takes three years. If HIV is eradicated, wouldn¡¯t one of our pipelines disappear?¡± Sachet said. ¡°And to be honest, I¡¯m not confident that we will be able to secure our livelihood in three years. Unlike A-Bio, we don¡¯t have the monstrous pace of research that can print out new drug candidates every few months.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true. You could be put in a difficult position.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry for being so crude, but if the technology you told us about is really true, this is a very dangerous variable for us, not good news.¡± ¡°I understand, and that¡¯s why it¡¯s a relief, right? You found out right now that a technology that can destroy yourpany,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Some ces like Roche might be unsuspecting and take a huge hit to their sales, but Karamchand has time to prepare.¡± To be honest, Sachet knew as well; he didn¡¯t have a choice in this matter. It seemed like Young-Joon was asking for his cooperation, but Young-Joon was giving Karamchand, who was destined to be unemployed from more advanced technologies, ast chance. Young-Joon had nothing to lose. He could just push back their three-year n to eradicate HIV for fifteen years and do it himself at A-Gen. It will take a long time for A-Gen to do it as they had never touched the AIDS drug industry, but that also meant that it wouldn¡¯t affect theirpany sales even if AIDS was destroyed. The reason why Young-Joon was presenting Karamchand with this offer was because it was the shortest way to eradicate AIDS and a way to save time. If Karamchand lost Young-Joon, it was obvious that the one who would be unsuspecting and take a huge hit to their sales would be Karamchand, not Roche. But unlike Roche, Karamchand wouldn¡¯t be able to recover from that kind of damage. ¡°But you don¡¯t have to be that worried,¡± Young-Joon said with a smile. ¡°We don¡¯t have to worry?¡± ¡°Right now, medicine is moving onto the next chapter. Some diseases will be eradicated in this process. But at the same time, new interests will emerge,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Unless humans can live forever, there will always be a demand for something in medicine. We just have to match that, don¡¯t we?¡± ¡°The point is that I don¡¯t think we will be able to do that in three years.¡± ¡°You will be able to create something with A-Bio.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°And there is something I want to make sure with both of you.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± Tedros asked. ¡°What we are trying to do right now is not some old-school healthcare business where we are making a new drug and treating patients to get rich and grow thepany,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Edward Jenner created inoction, the first ever vine, and contributed greatly to the eradication of smallpox. But he distributed that vine free of charge. You both should know since you¡¯re both doctors.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The Royal Society of Medicine told Jenner to publish a patent and get royalties, but he refused. He pushed for free distribution, hoping that it could save at least one more person that way. He fell out of favor with the society and was criticized, but everyone eventually came to respect him,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°That is what we are doing. Thanks to Jenner, we don¡¯t get smallpox even if we don¡¯t get the smallpox vine because it has been eradicated, right?¡± Tedros, who was stroking his chin, was lost in thought. The World Health Organization dered smallpox eradicated in 1977. He was a university student when that monumental event happened. ¡°It¡¯s time for modern medicine to dere HIV eradicated. And we have all the puzzle pieces of the technology needed for that to happen.¡± ¡°We will support you fully,¡± Tedros said. He was strongly determined. ¡°Sigh.¡± Sachet let out a deep breath. ¡°Alright, fine, Doctor Ryu. To be honest, I also wanted to wipe out AIDS as a scientist, aside from the profit of thepany,¡± he said. ¡°I will have to report this item to the board of directors and get approval, but the technological side of thepany usually follows what I want to do. I want to join you.¡± * * * The chimpanzee experiment was over. Now, it had been experimentally proven that AIDS could be cured by transnting bone marrow with CCR5 that had been manipted by Cas9. Samuel, the editor of Science, had already received the manuscript from Young-Joon, and he had also heard about the HIV eradication project meeting in advance. It had been about a month since the meeting at the Conrad. On a warm and nice Tuesday morning, the World Health Organization started a major announcement. ¡°In cooperation with A-Bio and Karamchand Pharmatics in India, we are nning a project to eliminate the human immunodeficiency virus from the face of this,¡± Tedros said in front of the reporters. ¡°This project will start next month, and many governments have already given us their promises of cooperation. This project will have three broad strategies. The first will be to stop the progression of the disease in infected patients. For this, Karamchand Pharmatics and seven pharmaceuticalpanies will be producing and distributing fifty billion doses of Karampia, an AIDS treatment. The World Health Organization is supporting this cause, and¡­¡± The speech that would be left in history went on. The WHO had dered that they would forever eradicate HIV from the face of this and was strongly determined to do so. Tedros¡¯ announcement was broadcasted live to the entire world. Doctors and scientists from all over the world were watching that historical deration with interest. Geo Hutter was one of them as well. Gero Hutter was a German hematologist and a surgeon. He was the primary doctor of the Berlin Patient, Timothy Ray Brown, who was the first lucky man to be cured of AIDS. He was the first person to report the cure of AIDS after confirming that HIV was no longer seen in Brown¡¯s body following the transnt with modified CCR5. At the time, he was attacked by a lot of people in the field as he had only observed the absence of the virus for two years. He was criticized by people saying how he could determine that the patient¡¯s AIDS had been cured by just two years. But there was a different reason why Gero Hutter reported something like that. Because he had never seen this phenomenon before, he wanted to get the advice of doctors around the world. As he published his paper, he asked what would be the best thing to do for Timothy Ray Brown, the patient, and he faithfully applied the advice of many other famous doctors. He was a very ethical doctor who was worthy of respect. ¡°The eradication of AIDS¡­ Haha, was the world I am living in right now in a time where it was capable of doing something like this? I won¡¯t be able to boast about curing AIDS just once anymore,¡± Hutter eximed in admiration as he listened to the Director-General¡¯s announcement. Click. His office door opened. ¡°Professor Hutter.¡± Horkheimer, his senior professor at the hospital, came to see him. ¡°Did you see this?¡± Horkheimer handed him today¡¯s Science magazine. ¡°What is this?¡± Hutter asked. ¡°The WHO Director-General¡¯s announcement isn¡¯t what¡¯s important right now. There¡¯s no technological exnation in that; all he is talking about is how the project is running and what country¡¯s governments are cooperating. Anyway, look at this.¡± Gero Hutter took the magazine. A picture of Young-Joon was on the cover. Now, it wasn¡¯t even surprising that this man was on the cover. ¡°A-Bio is in the HIV eradication project. It seems like Doctor Ryu did something there, huh?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not just something,¡± Horkheimer said. [AIDS can be cured by transnting hematopoietic cells made from Cas9-manipted stem cells into bone marrow.] [Development of the mosaic vine thatbines three key types of surface antigens of HIV.] [Method of mass-producing Enfuvirtide using the polymerization system of yeast cells.] Enfuvirtide was the chemical name for Karampia. The three papers on the first page all had Young-Joon¡¯s name as the first and corresponding author. The name of the edition was [The HIV Eradication Project]. ¡°He did all of it,¡± Horkheimer said. ¡°The WHO announcement came first and the paper was a littlete, but it will rise to the surface now. If this project seeds, he will get the Nobel Prize, don¡¯t you think?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Ignore the other things and look at the first paper. It¡¯s thest puzzle piece of HIV eradication that the Director-General is talking about.¡± ¡°Bone marrow with manipted CCR5¡­?¡± ¡°This personmercialized the technology you used to treat the Berlin Patient.¡± ¡°No way¡­¡± Gero Hutter¡¯s hands trembled. ¡®This is possible?¡¯ In the case of Timothy Ray Brown, he was extremely lucky. Normally, it was difficult to find a bone marrow donor fit for the transnt. But the probability that the person they found had a mutation in CCR5 and didn¡¯t work? It was close to zero percent; it was a miracle. But a genius scientist on the other side of the pulled that probability up to one hundred percent. ¡®He created a miracle in theb.¡¯ ¡°As the first doctor to have experience in curing AIDS, I think there¡¯s something you could do there,¡± Horkheimer said. ¡°It says that they are recruiting doctors that can do bone marrow transnts. Why don¡¯t you apply?¡± Chapter 72: The Conqueror of AIDS (6) Chapter 72: The Conqueror of AIDS (6) Gero Hutter had an interest in Young-Joon and the next-generation hospital for a long time. In particr, he wanted to work at the next-generation hospital from the moment he heard about the n to build it. But he didn¡¯t think he could live in the unfamiliar East Asian culture, and the patients he was in charge of in Germany weighed on his mind. ¡°You don¡¯t have to go to Korea because this is an international project,¡± Horkheimer said. ¡°Stem cell technicians from A-Bio will be dispatched around the world. They are going to design stem cells and hematopoietic cells from a patient sample and manipte CCR5. But the hospital facilities will have to be changed a little for them to use.¡± ¡°Then can it be done at our hospital as well? Is it turning into a next-generation hospital? ¡°We can¡¯t go that far because weck the know-hows, and it¡¯s not like we hired any stem cell technicians. But we can get A-Bio scientists to use this ce if we change the facilities a little. Then, AIDS patients in Germany won¡¯t have to go all the way to Korea.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The WHO said that they will fund the renovation of hospital facilities around the world. In other words, we are using it as an outpost so that the A-Bio headquarters can use it for the eradication of HIV.¡± ¡°I see.¡± For some reason, Gero Hutter felt very moved. ¡°This is a war on HIV. The WHO dered war, and themanding officer is Doctor Young-Joon. Karamchand Pharmatics is supplying the munitions,¡± Horkheimer said. ¡°You are the only doctor who has destroyed that virus before. If you join them, the hospital will fully support you. How does that sound? Will you ept the new technology?¡± Doctors were different from scientists. Scientists discovered truths hidden in the natural world, and they found joy in inventing a new technology. On the other hand, doctors were more interested in treating patients than new things; they were quite conservative towards new technology, just like how Hong Ju-Hee, the doctor from the newborn intensive care unit, contemted for a long time before using Veratex on Blue. It was because it was their fault if something went wrong with the patient. It was true that the patient could live with drugs like Karampia, and if they were a citizen of a developed country like Germany, they could live for a very long time. But what if they pushed for a bone marrow transnt as treatment and something went wrong? It was prettymon to see drugs that were sessful in clinical trials failing in actual hospital settings. On top of that, if it was a unique new drug that had undergone high-level techniques of designing stem cells and manipting genes? As a doctor, Gero Hutter knew that there were risks. Horkheimer was asking him because he knew that as well. Usually, they would see if it went well in other hospitals before adopting it. But he still remembered the feeling he felt when he could no longer see HIV in Timothy¡¯s body. It was a great tion and joy, and an infinite sense of victory at the fact he destroyed a difficult enemy like AIDS. That was more intense and stronger than any other reward he had ever gotten in his life as a doctor. ¡°I will go.¡± Gero Hutter made a decision. He was going to take on a part of this project. There were definitely risks and it wasn¡¯t going to be easy, but he wanted to do it. As a doctor, he had to do it. ¡°Please make a stem cell research facility at our hospital. Please tell Doctor Ryu that the medical school at LMU[1] in Germany is with him.¡± * * * As Young-Joon¡¯s three papers published in Science blew up in a row, the world began to focus on A-Bio again. Everyone now knew where HIV eradication, the huge project of the WHO, began from. In fact, the project proposer on the official documents released by the WHO was Young-Joon as well. His name was being discussed on many broadcastingworks. This project drew a lot of attention from the general public. After the WHO¡¯s announcement, AIDS ranked higher in the Google''s searched term ranking aspared to porn. Of course, the web was going crazy over the paper as well. ¡ªThis science is out of this world. ¡ªI¡¯m getting so high on national prestige I don¡¯t even have to get drunk or smoke. All I have to do is watch the news. ¡ªI woke up to see Ryu Young-Joon permanently eradicating something that was incurable up until yesterday. Did he take a time machine again? ¡ªA HIV vine, treatment, and cure all at once! It¡¯s all-inclusive. ¡ªA man who makes the WHO move¡­ Who are you? ¡ªAt this speed, cancer will disappear in ten years LOL ¡ªBut people¡¯s sex lives are already promiscuous. Isn¡¯t it going to run wild when HIV is eradicated? ©¸It doesn¡¯t matter for you since you don¡¯t get any either way. ¡ªI watched Bohemian Rhapsody yesterday. Freddie Mercury would have lived longer if Ryu Young-Joon was born a little bit earlier. How unfortunate. ¡ªRyu Young-Joon is actually an alien. I saw it for myself. ¡°Hey, your fan club is going crazy right now,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk said. He was having lunch with Young-Joon in his office. ¡°Do you want me to read it?¡± ¡°No,¡± Young-Joon replied briefly as he read something on his phone. ¡°This is super entertaining though. Hey, there¡¯s a photo of you sitting in a time machine, too.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Are your eyes glued to your phone? Who are you texting? I¡¯ll let you off the hook if it¡¯s a girl.¡± ¡°I¡¯m reading a paper.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk peeked at Young-Joon¡¯s phone, then sat back, clicking his tongue. ¡°You¡¯re addicted to work, seriously. You¡¯re either in a meeting or reading papers, aren¡¯t you?¡± ¡°I do experiments now.¡± ¡°Oh, right. You have to draw chimpanzee blood, right?¡± ¡°I¡¯m done with that one. It has to go into clinical trials now.¡± ¡°What¡¯s going on with the vine? Is that in clinical trials?¡± ¡°It¡¯s in the preclinical phase right now. But it will happen soon because we have all the strategies nned out. Good data, too. Actually, I have to go to a meeting in the afternoon because of that.¡± ¡°A meeting? With A-Gen?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk tilted his head in confusion. ¡°A-Gen is in it, but there¡¯s one more.¡± ¡°Where?¡± ¡°The International Vine Institute.¡± It felt like international agencies would only be in ces like New York or Geneva, but there were dozens of ces that had offices in Korea. Surprisingly, there was an office that acted as the headquarters for an organization under the UN: it was the International Vine Institute located within the Research Park at Jungyoon University. Like most public interest organizations, it wasn¡¯t very big. There were also only one hundred forty scientists from sixteen countries, and thirty of them were Korean. To be honest, their research and development infrastructure was a littleckingpared to transnational pharmaceuticalpanies like A-Gen. However, the International Vine Institute had excellent public confidence. It was convenient to carry out international clinical trials as they were an international agency, and people trusted in them because they were a public interest organization. On top of that, they had recently developed and gained approval for a new product that reduced the cost of the cholera vine, which was originally thirty dors, to one dor. They distributed that to citizens in cholera-stricken areas such as Asia and Africa in 2009 and gained considerable recognition from developing countries. Other than that, they had conducted programs like DOMI, the Diseases of the Most Impoverished, to destroy typhoid fever and dysentery. They were a sessful international institute. Then what about AIDS? The International Vine Institute hadn¡¯t touched AIDS yet. But four years ago, Doctor Jason Kim was appointed as the new Director-General. He was a world-renowned expert on AIDS research and vine development. He had written over one hundred forty papers. He was someone who was selected by Vine Nation as one of the the Fifty Most Influential Persons In Vines. For a long time, he wanted to develop a HIV vine. Although, he hadn¡¯t made any progress yet because it was so difficult. ¡°Director-General Jason and A-Gen will do coborative research. A-Bio will provide the key technology, and A-Gen¡¯s scientists will develop it using A-Gen¡¯s facilities,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°And the International Vine Institute will take that to international clinical trials and supply it to the entire world. * * * Jason Kim, the Director-General of the International Vine Institute, was having tea with two visitors. It was Yoon Dae-Sung, the CEO of A-Gen, and Nichs Kim, the CTO. Jason said, ¡°Karamchand and other Indian pharmaceuticalpanies will mass-produce treatment using a new production method, A-Bio will develop a bone marrow transnt treatment that can cure AIDS, and we will make the vine. It looks nice.¡± ¡°A-Gen has already developed two kinds of vines before. And we have sufficient facilities for vine development,¡± Nichs said. ¡°But a vine for HIV was an unbeatable fortress. Will Doctor Ryu¡¯s idea really work?¡± Yoon Dae-Sung asked. The human body produced these things called antibodies when a pathogen entered from the outside. It was like a natural drug that was automatically produced in the body. Like how different medicine was prescribed for different diseases, the human body also prescribed different antibodies for different types of pathogens. If it was the first time the pathogen was infecting the body? There were no antibodies for that pathogen in the body. As such, white blood cells would fight it to death, analyze theponents, and design and produce new types of antibodies. This process took a bit of time, but the next time the same pathogen came into the body, it could be quickly taken care of as the body already had antibodies. People who were bedridden for two weeks and about to die during the first infection would just feel a little tired during the second, and they would feel fine after a good night¡¯s rest. Simply put, they would not be infected. Vination was a technique that artificially created antibodies in the body. They would damage pathogens so that they could not cause diseases, then put them in the body to train white blood cells to design and produce antibodies. But for AIDS, that training wasn¡¯t easy. Even if they put in damaged HIV, they would be infected if they were exposed to it again. Because of this, HIV vines that had been developed in the past had failed. ¡°What do you think, Doctor Jason, as the greatest expert in AIDS and vinations?¡± Nichs asked. ¡°Just looking at the data in the paper Doctor Ryu published in Science, I think it has potential,¡± Jason said. Knock knock. Jason¡¯s secretary knocked on his door. ¡°Doctor Ryu is here.¡± The three of them stood up right away. Young-Joon, who opened the door and came in, looked a little tired, but his eyes were bright. For some reason, Nichs felt proud. He hadn¡¯t done anything to help Young-Joon¡¯s growth, but he was pleased as the young man, whom he had known before he got famous, was growing at an astonishing speed. Now, he was big enough to have a meeting with the Director-General of the International Vine Institute, and the CEO and CTO of A-Gen. He was good enough to move international health agencies and carry out a global healthcare project. But this man¡¯s growth wasn¡¯t going to stop here as he had more things to do in the future. ¡°I will exin the HIV vine project. After I hand over the technology and preclinical data today, A-Gen and the International Vine Institute can continue the rest,¡± Young-Joon said as he handed out the presentation. ¡°What is this?¡± Yoon Dae-Sung asked as he held up the document. There were diagrams of seventeen types of antigens on it. ¡°The reason why past attempts to develop an HIV vine failed is simple,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°It¡¯s because HIV evolves rapidly. Even if we administer a vine and create antibodies against the virus, HIV will quickly adapt to it. It will evolve to a variant that has resistance to that antibody.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± This had already been reported in his paper, and Yoon Dae-Sung, Nichs, and Jason had all read that paper already. ¡°Then, it is actually simple. We just have to make an antibody against that variant with the vine.¡± Viruses were faster than vines. Even if an antibody that was made from a vine chased after the virus, it would run away faster. No matter how great the vine was, it would never be able to catch the virus. But if another vine was in the escape route of the virus? If an antibody against a variant that had resistance to the previous antibodies already existed in the body? The way for police cars that were slower than the perpetrator¡¯s sportscar to catch them was to corner them from all sides. Like this, they would create many different types of antibodies at once and not give the virus room to escape. ¡°In the paper, you used four different types of vines. I saw the animal experimentation data that ny percent of HIV could be prevented,¡± Jason said in astonishment. ¡°Your idea to track the virus¡¯ evolution pattern and create vines against that to use all at once is revolutionary, and your ability to actually perform that is shocking as well. Should we do the clinical trial now?¡± ¡°In the paper, we put out animal experimentation data that show the vine, which catches the four variant patterns, prevents as much as ny percent of the virus. We only did that much because we didn¡¯t have enough time. But I added more from there. We got more variant patterns,¡± Young-Joon said. For a moment, Jason felt his head spin. ¡®Wait. So those antibodies on the documents he just handed out are¡­¡¯ ¡°There are seventeen in total,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°It is a vine that can catch all the possible early and mid-term variant patterns that can ur in HIV.¡± This insane act of being able to analyze and predict a virus¡¯ evolution pattern was already shocking progress. It was amazing that Young-Joon had found four targets already, but seventeen? ¡®He found seventeen? Is this true? Is this possible with current biology?¡¯ ¡°With one shot, people won¡¯t be infected by HIV even if you directly inject it into the blood,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°We tested it on one hundred mice and not even one was infected. Now, A-Gen can do chimpanzee experiments, and the International Vine Institute can begin clinical trials.¡± 1. The acronym for Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, a prestigious university in Germany. ? Chapter 73: The Conqueror of AIDS (7) Chapter 73: The Conqueror of AIDS (7) ¡°Where are you considering for the clinical trial?¡± Jason asked. ¡°I would like it to begin first in the Republic of South Africa, Nigeria, India, Kenya, and Russia. These countries have the most infected poption. As such, I think measures to prevent the spread are urgently needed.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t ces like Zimbabwe and Uganda have more infected people than Russia?¡± ¡°But Russia has a high mortality rate,¡± Young-Joon replied. Jason nodded. ¡°Alright. Leave it to me.¡± The meeting went on for about two hours, with a technical lecture about vine development followed by a debate about adjustments to the clinical trials. Young-Joon was going to form a technological alliance with A-Gen and the International Vine Institute and supply the key technology. Pharmacotoxicity experiments and drug efficacy demonstrations were mostlypleted in mice and beagles. A-Gen and the Institute would carry out the chimpanzee experiment and clinical trial. ¡°I will send you the information and data about the experimentation method by email. I have to be on my way,¡± Young-Joon said as he got up after the meeting ended. ¡°It¡¯s been a while since we saw each other. Why don¡¯t we grab a bite to eat?¡± Yoon Dae-Sung and Nichs said together like they wanted some more time with him. ¡°I would also like to have a meal with you, Doctor Ryu,¡± Jason also added. ¡°Oh, we can have lunch together next time. I have to get to another meeting right away¡­¡± ¡°Where are you going?¡± ¡°The Ministry of Health and Welfare. The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention want to meet me regarding some project.¡± Young-Joon bowed, then left. Staring at the door, Jason said, ¡°He is so busy.¡± ¡°He¡¯s the proposer of a huge project like HIV eradication. Even if he had multiple bodies, it wouldn¡¯t be enough,¡± Nichs said. ¡°Let¡¯s say that it takes a few years to determine the sess or failure of that project. Assuming that it seeds, he¡¯ll not only get the Nobel Prize, but the Nobel Prize¡¯s grandfather as well.¡± ¡°No matter how conservative the Nobel Prize Committee is, they would find Doctor Ryu themselves and give it to him for that kind of achievement.¡± ¡°It seems like he¡¯s going to be a candidate again this winter. I¡¯m excited. It¡¯s nothingpared to HIV eradication, but curing a and a sessful Alzheimer¡¯s clinical trial are both pretty amazing things as well.¡± ¡°If the Alzheimer¡¯s cure besmercialized, he¡¯ll get the Nobel Prize even if he doesn¡¯t eradicate HIV. If he does both, a Young-Joon Prize will be created.¡± As Nichs and Jason were raving about Young-Joon, Yoon Dae-Sung had more mixed feelings. ¡°Oh Mr. Yoon. Isn¡¯t Doctor Ryu a director at A-Gen?¡± Jason asked. ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right.¡± ¡°Then when you retire, you can merge with A-Bio and put Doctor Ryu as the CEO. They are an affiliate anyways, and won¡¯t A-Gen stand at the top of the global pharmaceutical industry if youbine with apany like that?¡± Nichs snuck a nce at Yoon Dae-Sung. What Jason said could happen in ces like the U.S., where entrepreneurship was strong. But in Korean corporate culture, it wasmon to pass down management rights to their children. ¡®Yoon Bo-Hyun.¡¯ He was Yoon Dae-Sung¡¯s son, who was working at A-Gen and learning to manage thepany. If it wasn¡¯t for him, Ji Kwang-Man would have stood by Young-Joon already, and not attacked him so hastily. Would Yoon Dae-Sung hand over thepany he had been working for since his father¡¯s generation to Young-Joon, aplete stranger? Or would he cause a conflict with Young-Joon for his one and only son? Nichs also had mixed feelings as he watched this confrontation. Yoon Bo-Hyun was the son of his old friend, and Nichs had known him ever since he was a baby. To be honest, he felt a little sad when he thought of that boy, who only focused on studying and working with the responsibility of inheriting the family business and leading A-Gen, being pushed out by Young-Joon. But right now, Young-Joon was the best intellectual of mankind. In addition, his ethics and character were great, and he would be able to safely lead the future of this revolutionary science. If Nichs put aside personal emotions and only looked out for a better world, it would be right for Young-Joon to take that position. ¡®Yoon Bo-Hyun is a smart guy, but personally, I would like Doctor Ryu to take that position¡­¡¯ Nichs nced at Yoon Dae-Sung like he felt bad for him. Ultimately, all the decisions would be made in Yoon Dae-Sung and Young-Joon¡¯s hands. ¡°I am considering it,¡± Yoon Dae-Sung said. ¡°But being outstanding as a scientist and the ability to lead arge corporation as management are two different things. Doctor Ryu is leading A-Bio well, but it is a smallpany if you just consider the size. Even if they have astonishing new technologies and a lot of money, they don¡¯t have a lot of employeespared to A-Gen.¡± ¡°That is true.¡± Jason nodded. ¡°If it is proven that Doctor Ryu is capable of leading A-Gen, I would consider handing over A-Gen to Doctor Ryu,¡± Yoon Dae-Sung said. Nichs swallowed his worrisome groan. He was friends with Yoon Dae-Sung for a long time, but he couldn¡¯t tell when he was being sincere. * * * ¡°No way.¡± Ryu Ji-Won, who was walking into the main entrance of her school, stopped. It was because she noticed a huge banner on the main entrance. [We support Alumni Doctor Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s eradication of HIV.] ¡°Ugh¡­¡± She was proud, but it was also a little burdensome. She also felt a little weird. As she walked to the lecture room, the topic of conversation of all the students around her was Young-Joon. She could hear two male students wearing jackets from the biology department chatting. ¡°Did you see Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s Facebook?¡± Ryu Ji-Won¡¯s attention naturally headed towards them. Her brother was not on social media. What they were talking about was Young-Joon¡¯s fan club. ¡°An A-Gen employee wrote this post, but apparently at theb the person who posted was at before, Ryu Young-Joon cursed and called theb director a piece of garbage and left. They said it¡¯s a legendary incident.¡± ¡°He¡¯s like an incarnation of research ethics.¡± ¡°I wish he woulde to our school and teach our professor a lesson.¡± ¡°Yeah. If Ryu Young-Joon was a professor, I would consider going to grad school.¡± ¡°Even if he is a professor here, we can¡¯t study under him because we don¡¯t have enough credits, man. And you were almost put on academic probationst semester¡­ If Ryu Young-Joon was a professor, Harvard graduates would apply to hisb. How would we get in?¡± ¡°Hey, we can start studying from now on. Ryu Young-Joon sunbae also studied in the same environment as us. We can¡¯t be that good, but we could probably be good enough to study at hisb if he bes a professor.¡± ¡°Yeah, I don¡¯t think so.¡± Ryu Ji-Won lowered her head and quietly walked past them. She quickly walked to the lecture room. In the Green Square, where the Student Hall and the Central Library faced each other, there was a space where students could vote or survey people. Ryu Ji-Won stopped in her tracks again as she was walking past it. [We stand against the development of the HIV vine.] They had put up a small banner and a few students were surveying people. ¡®What is that? They¡¯re against the development of a HIV vine?¡¯ Feeling bewildered, Ryu Ji-Won approached them. ¡°What is this?¡± ¡°Hello. It¡¯s a petition that expresses concern about A-Bio¡¯s development of the HIV vine. It would be great if you could participate,¡± said the male student with curly hair as he handed Ryu Ji-Won the petition. Surprisingly, there were already around a dozen people who had signed. ¡°Why are you against developing the vine?¡± Ryu Ji-Won asked. ¡°Well, we¡¯re not against it, but we¡¯re trying to say that it should be done with A-Bio¡¯s money, not on the taxpayer¡¯s dime.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t that the same thing? It¡¯s not like they are making something bad. What¡¯s the problem with making a vine with taxes¡­?¡± Ryu Ji-Won asked like she could not understand. ¡°It is bad. Vines are a medical practice that hasn¡¯t been provedpletely safe. Vines aren¡¯t natural, and they have impurities. That¡¯s what is dangerous.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°The human body has the ability to create antibodies against invading pathogens on its own. But vines recklessly inject pathogens into the body, right? Doesn¡¯t that alone make you feel ufortable? But there are other impurities in the things used to create vines. It¡¯s not natural materials, but preservatives like thimerosal. That¡¯s even more dangerous.¡± The male student showed Ryu Ji-Won a few documents and a poster. ¡°Take a look at this. It¡¯s a paper that Andrew Wakefield, a conscientious doctor from Ennd, published. Looking at children with autism, he found that all their symptoms appeared after receiving the MMRbination vine. Vines can cause autism.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The health authorities did not fully verify the dangers of vines, and they are doingpulsory vinations on children when they don¡¯t know a lot about it. That is putting people in danger. There isn¡¯t enough scientific evidence, and above all, it is an anti-democratic medical practice that vites the people¡¯s choice and freedom as it is a mandatory vination.¡± Ryu Ji-Won was barely listening to the student because she was thinking of who Wakefield was. She was familiar with the name as her brother, who was a science nerd and rambler, went on and on about the various issues in the scientificmunity whenever he bought her a meal. She was sure that it was a name she had heard of back then. ¡°Oh!¡± Suddenly, Ryu Ji-Won shouted. ¡°I remember now. Didn¡¯t that paper turn out to be wrong? So Wakefield had his medical license taken away¡­¡± ¡°That never happened!¡± shouted the student with a tense face. ¡°Weird. I think that¡¯s what I heard.¡± ¡°Who said that?¡± ¡°... Someone I know who got his doctorate in biology.¡± That was all Ryu Ji-Won said. ¡°Anyway, vines are dangerous. President Clump of the United States is also against vines. The president of a country that is very advanced in science, like the United States, is against it. He has even appointed an anti-vaxxer as the Chairman of the Vine Safety Committee. Vines are dangerous things that haven''t been proven yet. Just think about it: why would you get a shot when you¡¯re not sick and create a disease? Does that make sense?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°And it¡¯s even more dangerous in the case of the HIV vine A-Bio is developing right now. Do you know why?¡± said the student. ¡°What will the people who were vinated think? Won¡¯t people who were behaving from fear of AIDS get excited after a dose of the vine and start living promiscuously, meeting prostitutes and random people at clubs?¡± ¡°Um¡­¡± ¡°Not only is the HIV vine simply dangerous, but it has a deadly danger in that it could cause societal immorality. And there will be more homosexual people as well,¡± said the student. ¡°We cannot understand why they are making such a dangerous product that hasn¡¯t been verified yet, but we are against it being done on the taxpayer¡¯s dime. We have supported Doctor Ryu, and we are all for everything else about treating HIV and AIDS, but not vines.¡± ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll be on my way now,¡± Ryu Ji-Won said. ¡°Okay. Could you join our petition? This will be an important piece of information that delivers the nation¡¯s message to A-Bio.¡± ¡°No, I¡¯m good,¡± Ryu Ji-Won answered briefly, then left. * * * Yoo Song-Mi was Young-Joon¡¯s secretary who was hired to help him with managing his schedule and other various tasks. As murderous as his schedule was, she was also extremely busy every day. But the good thing was that she was getting used to the busy schedule. She was a little clueless at first, but she was pretty good at her job now. RIght now, Yoo Song-Mi was delivering an offer from SBS producer Na Sung-Jin to Young-Joon about going on TV. ¡°... So, they want you toe on it.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a lecture-style live broadcast?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Nah. How can I go on TV? I¡¯m not a celebrity or a professor; I¡¯m just a scientist.¡± ¡°But sir, I think it¡¯s a good idea for you to go on this time,¡± Yoo Song-Mi said. ¡°Why?¡± Yoo Song-Mi wasn¡¯t someone who usually expressed her opinions. Young-Joon raised his head among the documents at the unexpected opinion. She said, ¡°There are a lot of people who are worried about the development of the HIV vine. I think it would be good for you to get on TV and exin it in detail.¡± ¡°Worried? About what?¡± ¡°I¡¯m managing your email inbox, right? A lot of emails like thate in.¡± Young-Joon had his personal email listed on the A-Bio homepage. Out of the hundreds of emails he got in a day, Yoo Song-Mi delivered the important ones to him. ¡°There are a lot more emails that support and root for the vine development. So when I got a few emails that were against it, I left them out. But I¡¯ve been getting more.¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joon knew that there was going to be resistance as he did this huge project. To be honest, the most difficult opponents he had were those who rejected bone marrow transnts because of religious reasons. ¡®If they are against the development of the vine, are they anti-vaxxers?¡¯ They were the easiest opponent among the resistance he predicted. ¡°Let¡¯s see what kind of emails they are,¡± Young-Joon said. Chapter 74: The Conqueror of AIDS (8) Chapter 74: The Conqueror of AIDS (8) ¡°Even though there are people who are against the development of the HIV vine, there are way more emails from people who support it,¡± Yoo Song-Mi said. ¡°So, it will take a while for you to find them yourself. I will gather the emails that are against it and send them to you.¡± ¡°Yes, thank you.¡± Young-Joon went back to working on his documents. In thirty minutes, Yoo Song-Mi organized the email inbox. As a bonus, she showed up with a cup of iced americano. ¡°It seems like you always have one at this time.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Young-Joon slowly went through his inbox. There were vine skeptics among students at the most prestigious universities in the country like Jungyoon University. There were more than that among the general public. They were quite concerned about the technology Young-Joon was developing. [Dear Doctor Ryu Young-Joon. I am a citizen who has supported you for a long time. Do you know RCWM? It¡¯s a movement to raise our children without medicine.[1] Vines are dangerous. It was nice that you developed a lot of good drugs and treatments, but I don¡¯t understand why you are trying to go down an unverified and dangerous path¡­] [My name is Kim Pil-Young, and I am a second-year history major at Jungyoon University. Recently, there has been a movement against the development of the HIV vine in the Green Square at Jungyoon University. I would like to ask you, Ryu Young-Joon sunbae. Vines are¡­] [Doctor Ryu, if something like an HIV vinees out, people¡¯s sex lives are going to be more immoral and dirty. Doesn¡¯t AIDS happen from dirty sexual intercourse? In fact, the percentage of AIDS is high in homosexuals who engage in anal sex. I think that AIDS might actually increase.] Click. Young-Joon closed his inbox. ¡ªThey are funny people. There are only two organisms in the entire world that were created from nothing: one is themon ancestor of all organisms, and the other is me. Rosaline said. ¡ªOrganisms never just appear. Are they saying that HIV is magically created in thin air and causes AIDS while non-infected people have sexual intercourse promiscuously? That does not happen. It''s not that easy even if ordinary scientists tried their hardest to create it by reacting all kinds of liquid cultures and organic matter with a thermocycler. Young-Joon was lost in serious thought with his chin resting on his hand. ¡ªYou¡¯re bothered by it. I don¡¯t think you need to. Just ignore it. That¡¯s a kind of thing that would have worked before the neenth century when Pasteur was experimenting with a swan-neck sk. ¡°It¡¯s not that simple,¡± Young-Joon said. Vine conspiracy theories weren¡¯t a new phenomena. It wasn¡¯t something that could be dismissed as just ignorance. This was because the more developed countries with higher education levels tended to have stronger beliefs in vine conspiracy theories. In particr, it was especially stronger in highly educated, high-ie Caucasian people in America. Personal experiences about the side effects of vines, and a sense of security that there were no life-threatening infectious diseases everywhere like developing countries. They were the ones who created distrust and opposition to vines. In addition, a solid logic was created when those who were educated in democracy began to appeal to the individual freedom of choice. That was why President Clump of the United States appointed an anti-vaxxer as the chairman of the Vine Safety Committee. Young-Joon, who was then working on anticancer drugs, thought it was ridiculous when he heard the news. How shocked would scientists who studied immunology and vines have been? In one American immunology journal, theymented that the appointment was an international embarrassment. But that person was still acting in that position. That was how strong the opposition to vines in developed countries like the U.S. was. There were no full-fledged movements in Korea yet, but there was a possibility that the HIV vine would be the starting point. ¡ªIf that¡¯s what you are worried about, just go on the show. Rosaline said. ¡ªIf the vine opposition is a type of immune response, you can be the vine itself. Make some antibodies against that opinion in Korea. ¡°I¡¯ll think about it today.¡± Young-Joon rose from his seat. ¡°I¡¯m going to head home. You should, too, Ms. Song-Mi. It¡¯s already past working hours,¡± Young-Joon said to Yoo Song-Mi as he headed out of his office. * * * Young-Joon hade home in two weeks. He was so busy that he normally spent the night at thepany, and he didn¡¯t even go home on the weekends. It was because he thought it was a waste of time for him to go home. He brought some clothes to the closet in his office, slept on the couch, and showered in thepany shower room. ¡°I¡¯m going to forget my son¡¯s face. Come home often,¡± said Young-Joon¡¯s mother, who had moved here a couple of months ago. ¡°Don¡¯t pressure him when he¡¯s busy,¡± his father lightly criticized his mother. ¡°Young-Joon, don¡¯t care about us and do whatever you want to do, okay?¡± ¡°I¡¯lle home often now,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Recently, I had to stay up at work because I was so busy from eradicating HIV, but I can rx a little in a few weeks.¡± ¡°Oh, that¡¯s a relief.¡± His mother tapped him on his shoulder. ¡°You have to take care of yourself. If you get sick, nothing else matters.¡± Ryu Ji-Won also came home early because Young-Joon was having dinner at home. It had been a while since the whole family had a meal together. ¡°How strange of you toe home,¡± Ryu Ji-Won said like she was fascinated. ¡°I¡¯m here to see if you¡¯re studying hard.¡± ¡°Actually, I have a confession to make.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°I used yourputer because mine broke when I was doing my assignment, but I broke that, too.¡± ¡°What? What kind of assignment were you doing that made you break twoputers?¡± ¡°I was downloading some program¡­¡± Ryu Ji-Won nced at Young-Joon in a little bit of guilt, then giggled cutely. ¡°Sorry. I¡¯ll make sure to fix it with my own money.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t that the allowance I gave you?¡± ¡°Uh¡­ That is true¡­ Anyway, I¡¯m sorry. Oh right, I saw vine conspiracy theorists at school today.¡± Ryu Ji-Won quickly switched the topic. ¡°Conspiracy theorists?¡± ¡°They were talking about how vines are dangerous, they can¡¯t be trusted, and that AIDS will actually increase if you create something like that because they will live more promiscuously. They were petitioning.¡± ¡°How can people like that exist?¡± Young-Joon¡¯s father said angrily with a frown. ¡°I guess they could think that way. To be honest, I felt that way in the past,¡± Young-Joon¡¯s mother said. ¡°It¡¯s so worrisome and hard for mothers to see their baby get a shot. It¡¯s so hard to make the decision to vinate them when they¡¯re not even sick.¡± ¡°Oh honey, please don¡¯t say that anywhere else. How can you say that when you¡¯re Young-Joon¡¯s mother?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not saying I feel that way right now; I¡¯m just saying that I understand. Mothers who raise their children without medicine don¡¯t do it because they are bad people. What kind of mother would want to ruin their kid¡¯s health on purpose? They think that they are doing the best they can with wrong information,¡± Young-Joon¡¯s mother said. ¡°And I think it¡¯s possible for them to believe that. How can regr people know what vines are? I studied a little after Young-Joon went into biology, but it was so hard that I couldn¡¯t understand any of it.¡± ¡°Sigh.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t know how vines work, either.¡± ¡°... Actually, I¡¯m thinking about going on TV because of that,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°TV?¡± Ryu Ji-Won¡¯s head shot up. ¡°You¡¯re going to be on TV?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve had a lot of offers for me to go on lecture programs or talk shows. I declined all of them though. But I¡¯m thinking about it now. I thought I¡¯d go and exin about vines and AIDS.¡± ¡°Then you should do it!¡± Ryu Ji-Won said excitedly. ¡°I¡¯ll do your makeup before you go on. Split the fee? You take seven, I take three? Yes?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t need makeup. I¡¯m not a celebrity or anything, so why would I do that?¡± ¡°Hey, you don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about. If you go on something like that, it¡¯ll be forever pinned in your fan club.¡± Young-Joon got goosebumps on his arms when Ryu Ji-Won put it that way. ¡°But I haven¡¯t decided whether to go on or not.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡®A scientist should only talk about the data and evidence in their paper.¡¯ Young-Joon swallowed his words as it was obvious they were going to be frustrated with him. But for him, it wasn¡¯t an easy decision. In his lifetime as a scientist, he had seen a lot of scientists get fame from things other than papers: scientists who worked on television, news columns, radioworks, and other mass media. The professor in theb next door when he was studying at Jungyoon University was someone like that. The graduate students of thatb were abandoned; they had barely gotten any supervision from the professor, as the professor was busy going on TV and writing books that they could barely make it to theb once a week. The faces of his colleagues next door who wereining as their graduation became distant kept popping up in Young-Joon¡¯s head. Thatb barely published any papers. That professor didn¡¯t read papers either. The research did not progress, and the professor was appealing to the public and intoxicated by his fame. To Young-Joon, that too seemed fake. Of course, he might go on television just this once and go back to being a scientist. But the hardest part about anything was the first time, right? ¡®I already changed so much because of Rosaline. But can I really give up my attitude as a scientist?¡¯ Young-Joon was worried because he didn¡¯t have confidence in himself. ¡°Whether you go on the show or not, you should do whatever you want to do. Everyone supports you,¡± Young-Joon¡¯s father said. ¡°Yes¡­¡± Young-Joon replied. Ring! A new email came into his inbox. [Hello. I¡¯m a woman in her forties living in Seoul. I am emailing you after seeing the petition against your vine development at Gangnam Station.] He clicked on the email because he was curious what kind of worries she was going to talk about. But the rest of the email was unexpected. [My second kid is at Jungyoon Hospital because he¡¯s sick, and there was a baby who was two years old. They had a bunch of machines hooked up, and they looked very sick. It turns out that the mother was in RCWM, so she didn¡¯t vinate them or give them any medicine because she wanted to raise them without medicine. People who are in RCWM are probably trying to raise the baby in a healthy way with their own beliefs. But eventually, the baby had brain problems after they suffered from a major injury, and they have to live with a permanent disability. The mom cries every day, saying that it¡¯s her fault. I support you, Doctor Ryu. I hope you keep going with your research no matter what people say.] Young-Joon let out a sigh. ¡®I¡¯d rather fight Schumatix.¡¯ He sent Secretary Yoo Song-Mi a text message. [When you get to work tomorrow, please set a date for me to go on the show. And I have a request about the audience. I¡¯ll call you tomorrow.] * * * Kim Pil-Young, a second-year history major, was petitioning at Mapo-gu. The number of participants for the temporary organization, ¡°Group Against the Development of the HIV Vine¡±, or GAHIV, quickly grew and was now nationwide. They were even on the news a couple days ago. People at GAHIV printed that video on a huge poster and held it up wherever they went; it was a screenshot of the anchor on screen and the caption, ¡°Group Against the Development of the HIV Vine.¡± The number of GAHIV people gathered in Mapo-gu today was huge. There were around a hundred people as this was an important location in this movement. ¡°Hey you. Do you know where this is? How dare you do something like this here?¡± said a man in his fifties as he clicked his tongue. ¡°This is right in front of the next-generation hospital that Doctor Ryu is running! How dare you petition something like this here?¡± ¡°Vines are really dangerous, sir. You must think about what kind of societal impact it will have when something like that is made.¡± Kim Pil-Young began to desperately convince him. ¡°Hey. You¡¯re doing this here because it¡¯s in front of the hospital, right!?!¡± A little female student wearing sses interrupted. ¡°Isn¡¯t this the first ce that Doctor Ryu will supply the vine once it¡¯s made?¡± ¡°What¡­¡± The moment the man frowned like he was baffled, GAHIV began shouting from behind him. ¡°That¡¯s right!¡± ¡°We have to petition here because it¡¯s the hospital!¡± ¡°We are against the development of the HIV vine!¡± Kim Pil-Young got close to the man with a pen and the petition. He said, ¡°Sir, there is a paper that vines cause autism. The more developed the country, the less its citizens get vines. Why do you think that is? In Japan, a HPV vine had side effects as well. Are vines really okay? Do you know how vines work?¡± ¡°Um¡­¡± ¡°Like how you gain resistance if you take too many antibiotics, vines also¡­¡± ¡°Hello!¡± Suddenly, a young man and woman appeared in front of Kim Pil-Young. ¡°We¡¯re from SBS.[2] GAHIV is doing the petition here, right?¡± the woman asked. ¡°Yes! We are,¡± Kim Pil-Young said with a bright smile. ¡°Are you interviewing us?¡± ¡°No.¡± The woman shook her head with a smile. ¡°Doctor Ryu Young-Joon is going on a lecture-style program, and he is going to talk about the HIV vine and the infection process of AIDS, and do a live debate.¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°He asked us to fill the audience with people who are against the development of the vine,¡± she said. ¡°If it¡¯s alright, could youe on our show?¡± 1. In Korean, it¡¯s called An-A-Ki, which stands for the Korean for raising children without medicine. It is a movement that believes in the natural healing power of the body and strives to not use modern medicine. ? 2. SBS is a famous broadcaster in Korea. ? Chapter 75: The Conqueror of AIDS (9) Chapter 75: The Conqueror of AIDS (9) A hundred people signed up to participate in the live lecture and debate. They couldn¡¯t take more than that as the studio was a very unique ce: it was Room 411, ab in Lab One at A-Gen. Thisb was made and used for science high schools[1] or university students to observe experiments. A-Gen had made this in order to improve thepany¡¯s image, pushing the slogan for the poprization of science and societal contribution. It was muchrger than a regrb, and it had a structure that was fit for a lecture, such as having a separate podium at the front of the room. Young-Joon wanted to do the lecture program here. ¡ªFilming in ab? Producer Na Sung-Jin found it ridiculous when he first heard the idea, but after thinking about it some more, he felt like it was actually going to be a very entertaining sight. The background would target the taste of the viewers who wanted to see the star scientist. It would be more interesting than meeting Young-Joon on a podium with a suit on, right? ¡ªI¡¯ll get it ready. We will also gather the audience like you want. * * * Young-Joon borrowed the pAFM, the super-resolution visible photoactivated atomic force microscope, from Lab One. It was an optical microscope that could see one hundred thousandth of a piece of hair using light. It had outstanding performance among existing optical microscopes, and it was pretty expensive as well. A-Gen had this kind of thing because well, they were A-Gen, but Young-Joon had to wait a little in order to borrow this equipment. There were a few more things that needed to be set up in Room 411 for his lecture. Ten days were needed in order to gather those things and the audience. In the meantime, Young-Joon headed to India. Karamchand Pharmatics was now starting the production of the treatment, and Young-Joon was asked to conduct a technical inspection of the system. In the meantime in Korea, another issue was unfolding noisily. Professor Sung Yo-Han, the optometry specialist of the next-generation hospital, opened a press conference. He was not alone; beside him was the most famous patient in the whole world right now, Ardip from India. He was the first patient in the world to use the a treatment kit, the firstmercialized stem cell therapy, the patient who got a tumor in his eye and was almost sacrificed by Schumatix¡¯s evil scheme, and the patient who informed the world of A-Bio¡¯s advanced new technology of automatic stem cell death. The whole world was angered at the horrible things Schuamtix did to him, and voices supporting Ardip came from everywhere. The hashtag, ¡°PRAYFORARDIP¡± dominated social media, and countless intellectuals, celebrities, and politicians criticized Schumatix and issued statements praying for Ardip¡¯s recovery. How many people would experience such ups and downs as an ordinary patient? Among patients, he was as famous as Timothy Ray Brown. As the international medical industry was busy with the HIV eradication project, there were countless people who were curious about what happened to Ardip after the incident. ¡°We have cured Ardip¡¯s a at the next-generation hospital,¡± Sung Yo-Han announced. Click! Click! shes poured onto them from all over. The reporters stared at Ardip with curious eyes. It was understandable that they were releasing this as this was an issue rted to the confidence in the a treatment product. But was there a reason to open a press conference and bring the patient himself just for that? Professor Sung Yo-Han said to the puzzled reporters, ¡°Ardip told me he wanted to have a press conference. That is why I arranged this. The professional trantor that was prepared by A-Bio will deliver the patient¡¯s message.¡± Sung Yo-Han handed Ardip, who looked nervous, the mic. ¡°Feel free to talk.¡± ¡°Y¡­ Yes¡­¡± Ardip gulped as his hands trembled. Dozens of reporters were staring at him. As he had lived as an insignificant and poor citizen, the interest was so overwhelming that it felt like he was being crushed. But he had to say this for Young-Joon and for the women at the red-light district that looked after his life until now. Ardip teared up even before he opened his mouth. ¡°I heard that Doctor RYu is developing an HIV vine. I also heard that there are a lot of people who are against it. I saw it. I saw it with my own two eyes because I can see now. They were petitioning in front of the next-generation hospital.¡± The reporters look shocked. It was because they thought he would criticize Schuamtix, praise A-Bio, or talk about the a treatment, but Ardip began talking about the HIV vine out of the blue. ¡°Please don¡¯t do that. Please. I beg you. You don¡¯t know what kind of disease AIDS is. I grew up in Kamathipura in Mumbai, India,¡± Ardip said. ¡°Kamathipura is like hell. It¡¯s the worst red-light district in the world, and that ce is infested with AIDS.¡± Kamathipura was the biggest and oldest brothel in Asia. It was Hell where once someone came in, they could never get out. There were about twenty thousand prostitutes that lived there. A significant portion of them were minors, but there were too many that it was hard to estimate. There were even children under the age of ten. Some women came to this ce on their own after reaching the verge of starving to death from poverty, some were sold here by fraud, and some were kidnapped from Nepal and handed over by human trafficking. There were also women who were born here and were raised as prostitutes. Usually, women would be kidnapped or sold when they were in middle school in Korean age, and locked in a 3 pyung[2] express our deepest regrets as alumni of this school, and¡­] The conservative organizations were anxious at the different atmosphere and strange public opinion. The GAHIV homepage sneakily changed their goal from the rejection of the development of the HIV vine to rejection of the use of the HIV vine in Korea. Time flew by, and it was the day of the live show. In Room 411 of Lab One at A-Gen, Young-Joon went up to the podium in front of one hundred people and a dozen cameras. ¡°Hello. I am Ryu Young-Joon from A-Bio,¡± said Young-Joon as a greeting. ¡°A few days ago, I visited Karamchand Pharmatics in India. I was asked for technical advice on the production of Karampia, an AIDS drug. But in the meantime, something quite noisy happened in Korea,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Ipletely understand how Ardip feels. And now, I have a sense of responsibility to develop the HIV vine as soon as possible and distribute it to Kamathipura and the world.¡± Kim Pil-Young felt his palms sweat. Young-Joon stared right at the audience. ¡°Before we go into the lecture, I want to ask you. Is there anyone here who is against my research?¡± In the silence, Kim Pil-Young slowly raised his hand. ¡°Why are you against it?¡± Young-Joon asked. His voice was not aggressive in the slightest; it really seemed like he was asking out of curiosity. Kim Pil-Young replied, ¡°Vines¡­ are drugs that haven¡¯t been proven safe.¡± ¡°Why do you think so?¡± ¡°There¡¯s a paper that a British doctor wrote. It was published in Lancet, a famous medical journal. It talks about how the thimerosal contained in the MMR vine causes autism in children.¡± ¡°That paper was fabricated. The British General Medical Council criticized that fact in 1998. There was a record that five out of the twelve patients were already diagnosed with underdevelopment. And mistakes were found in hospital records for the remaining seven cases as well. That was why Lancet withdrew the paper,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°And that doctor was stripped of his medical license from the British Medical Association because of fabrication. Do you know that as well?¡± ¡°... Isn¡¯t that because of the pressure from pharmaceuticalpanies?¡± ¡°The fact that patient information was fabricated in that paper is exined in detail in a paper published in the British Medical Journal in 2010.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t believe that paper.¡± ¡°Then how can you trust the paper that Lancet withdrew, stomping on their own pride, and that the General Medical Council criticized as being false?¡± Kim Pil-Young tried to say something, but didn¡¯t. Then, he said, ¡°The HPV vine is mandatory, but even if you don¡¯t get the vine, only 0.007 percent of people get cervical cancer. I¡¯m saying that you don¡¯t need to get the vine. This is the statistic released by the American Cancer Society. There are only twelve thousand cervical cancer patients among one hundred seventy million American women. Why do we have to get the vine while taking the risks for side effects when this is the case?¡± ¡°Can you say that in front of twelve thousand patients?¡± Young-Joon grinned. ¡°We can discuss further about the gains and losses of vines, but let¡¯s find out about the more clear-cut things,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I am also curious if A-Bio¡¯s HIV vine is really dangerous, if it has side effects.¡± He pulled out a small vial from the drawer. ¡°The thing in this vial is the HIV vine. It is the HIV vine we have developed: the one that we havepleted the formtion of, and the one that will enter clinical trials soon. You can be immune to HIV if you inject five milliliters into your veins,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°A week ago, I administered this to my own body.¡± The crowd gasped. Producer Na Sung-Jin was surprised at the shocking news. ¡°Now, let¡¯s see the effects. Let¡¯s see what kind of antibodies are in my blood, and whether it can destroy HIV,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I think that there will be a limit to delivering its safety and efficacy with words. So today, I will show you myself.¡± Young-Joon walked to the front of the microscope. ¡°This is called a super-resolution visible photoactivated atomic force microscope. This has such a high resolution that you can take pictures of viruses. A-Gen modified the equipment so that it could take videos.¡± Young-Joon pulled out another vial. ¡°And the thing in here is an active form of HIV.¡± Young-Joon drew up one milliliter of the virus.¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu!¡± Horrified, Na Sung-Jin shouted as he got up from his seat. But he was toote. As everyone was in shock, Young-Joon injected the virus into his arm. Theb was filled with silence. The audience was frozen. Young-Joon stared at them with a calm face. ¡°I will not release my vine only in AIDS-risk areas in developing cultures and conduct clinical trials there when there is so much resistance because of its danger,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°But also, I will not take a defensive stand against this vine development. As Ardip said, people in high-risk areas need this technology as soon as possible. That is why I am administering and testing it myself.¡± Young-Joon switched the syringe and drew blood from his arm. He mixed in a dye that stained white blood cells into his blood and put a droplet on the ss slide. Then, he turned on the microscope. A video of the virus rushing to the huge white blood cells was shown on therge screen. ¡°Let¡¯s see together what happens to the virus.¡± 1. Science high schools are a special type of school where there is arge focus on science and technology. You must qualify to attend. ? 2. A Korean unit of size. It is roughly equal to 107 square feet.[ref] room. The room would be small, and the ceilings would be so low that they wouldn¡¯t even be able to stand up fully. Sometimes, they would stay in that windowless room for years and never be able toe up. These women lived and prostituted in this ce, which was not that much different from an animal pen. Also, these women shared prostitution beds with each other because they didn¡¯t have their own. From dawn until they went to sleep, these women had to take customers, no matter if they were on their period, pregnant, or had a miscarriage. The money they received for this was around a few hundred won, but most of it was taken from them as a room fee by gang members. To maintain order, they used violence, verbal abuse, and even electrical torture. But there was something even scarier than that. The true ruler of terror that reigned over that region was not people, but a virus. The infection rate of HIV was sixty percent; half of the people who lived there were suffering from AIDS. Everyone fell into despair when the women in the next room, which was divided by a cardboard partition, got sick. It was unimaginably painful that this disease, which infected the only people these women could rely on and consider as family, was an infectious disease. It was the horrid enemy that robbed them of theirst strand of hope and their affection and care for each other. AIDS divided people from people; it was the devil that took away life and hope at the same time. From a ten-year-old child to an elderly in their sixties, this disease did not discriminate. It killed the gang members who ruled over the women, the rich tourists from strong nations who visited Kamathipura, and the women living there. The worst case was to give birth to a baby while being infected with HIV. The baby would have HIV from the moment it was born. It was sinful that it was born into that hellhole, but the mother was also giving it HIV. ¡°AIDS is not what you think it is,¡± Ardip said while tears ran down his face. ¡°That infection is a curse. It is the devil that takes away thest strand of hope from people who have nothing. I heard everything the people who are against the vine said. The things about the side effects or homosexuality increasing.¡± Ardip bit his lower lip. ¡°How¡­ Why does that matter? Even if that is true, is that a reason to stop the vine development? I have been blinded by a, and I have a limp in my left leg from a stroke. But still, I¡¯m more afraid of AIDS. When you go to sleep, you don¡¯t worry about whether you were infected by HIV or not. You are not in terror at the news that someone is coughing in the morning. That is why people in developed countries can worry about the side effects and resist vines,¡± Ardip said. ¡°Please let him exile that disease from Kamathipura. I beg you. Please do not stop Doctor Ryu. The people who live there are like family to me. Please rescue those people.¡± Ardip came out of chair and begged them, bowing on the floor. Sung Yo-Han quickly got him off the floor and settled the situation down. ¡°We will not be receiving any questions for the condition of our patient.¡± * * * Ardip¡¯s appeal about the ce called Kamathipura and the situation of AIDS there had quite an impact. The issue about AIDS cure and HIV vines was heated. Kim Pil-Young was also shocked as he heard firsthand from a local survivor that the infection rate of HIV was sixty percent. The first ce where the atmosphere changed was Jungyoon University. The booth where they were petitioning was in pieces. A poster with a long message written by students was put up in the Central Library. [Recently, we have seen a group on campus leading the movement against the development of the HIV vine and campaigning for signatures. The biotechnology major students, batch of 2019,[ref]This is the Korean equivalent of ¡°ss of¡­¡± in university, but the year is when they enter, not graduate. ? Chapter 76: The Conqueror of AIDS (10) Chapter 76: The Conqueror of AIDS (10) ¡°Ack!¡± shouted Nichs, who was watching TV, as he quickly got up. ¡°What is he doing¡­?¡± Everyone froze as it was so shocking. Nichs thought that it wouldn''t be easy to break the strong belief of anti-vaxxers with some vague logic and persuasion, so he expected Young-Joon to take strong action, given his personality. But he didn¡¯t think it would be this dramatic. To administer the vine and HIV to himself? ¡°Wait, he¡¯s putting HIV inside his own body? Is Doctor Ryu crazy?¡± ¡°Can he do that?¡± Joo Hwa-Young, theb director of Lab Five, asked Nichs as they were watching TV together. ¡°Whether he can or not, people usually aren¡¯t able to do that, no matter how confident they are in their product,¡± Nichs said. ¡°Isn¡¯t human testing against research methods?¡± ¡°Um¡­¡± Nichs thought for a moment. ¡°It is normally against research ethics for the frontline experimenter to experiment with a sample from their bodies,¡± Joo Hwa-Young said. ¡°But Director Joo, Doctor Ryu is not only the frontline experimenter, but the project leader,¡± Nichs replied. It was normally against research ethics for a frontline experimenter to experiment with their own sample; it was banned byw, and the project leader would get punished. This wasn¡¯t originally in the ethics guidelines, but it was created after a professor at a university forcibly collected eggs from his female students and conducted stem cell experiments. ¡°The reason the human research guidelines prohibit the self-experimentation of researchers is to protect them. If they allow that, superiors like a CEO or professors can force their subordinate scientists to donate samples or do experiments,¡± Nichs said. ¡°That¡¯s true.¡± ¡°But it isn¡¯t a problem if you use the project leader¡¯s sample.¡± ¡°That is also true.¡± Joo Hwa-Young nodded. There were two key points in determining research ethics in human subject research experiments: the first was whether the subject fully understood the experiment, and the second was whether the experiment urred underpletely voluntary consent. The frontline experimenter could fulfill the first condition better than anyone, but thew fundamentally prevented it as there was a risk of problems arising in voluntary consent. Then what about project leaders? Because they were the manager of the entire project, they knew more about the purpose, principle, and the side effects of the experiment better than the frontline experimenter. There was no worry about them being coerced into the experiment or the donation of a sample as there was no one to give them orders about the experiment because they were the manager. As such, the project leader was exempt from the research guidelines of human subject research; there were no stipted provisions at all. Because of this, professors who burned with the passion to experiment often used their own bodies to experiment. Young-Joon also wasn¡¯t the first person to administer a vine to their own arm. A few professors who studied vines had done this before the first phase of clinical trials. These people weren¡¯t even far from home; someone like Lee Sang-Hee, a veterinary professor at Chungnam National University in Korea, had injected a vine for bird flu into their arm. It was to test its effectiveness before the clinical trial. Someone like Kim Min, a famous parasitology professor, had once put parasites in their eye and cultivated them. ¡°But still, injecting HIV is too dangerous¡­¡± Joo Hwa-Young said in a worried tone. ¡°He¡¯s probably showing some gut because he saw that a target antibody was created after the vine injection,¡± Nichs replied. ¡°He really is bold. Sacrificing his own body for the advancement of science.¡± In A-Gen¡¯sb, a video that Young-Joon was filming live through the microscope was on the screen. The camera that was filming him also turned their cameras toward the video. Huge cells and tiny, dot-like viruses showed up on the screen. ¡ªLet¡¯s take a look together at what happens to these viruses. As they listened to Young-Joon, Joo Hwa-Young asked, ¡°Is Doctor Ryu going to show the immune response to the virus live right now?¡± ¡°It seems like it.¡± ¡°But it won¡¯t be easy,¡± Joo Hwa-Young said. ¡°I don¡¯t know if you know this, but I studied molecr imaging in the past. It¡¯s not easy to use a microscope that can observe viruses, and filming something like that isn¡¯t just about how skilled someone is at using a microscope.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s see what kind of miraculous science he will show us this time.¡± * * * The microscope was the most effective tool for humans to enter the microworld. The true value of biology began rising to the surface after Leeuwenhoek began studying microbes and Robert Hooke began studying cells. But the scientificmunity had yet to properly film a virus and the immune response to catch the virus. Why were they unable to do so when they had a microscope with enough magnification? It was because after magnifying a part of the microworld like that, it was difficult to figure out which ones were the white blood cells, tissue cells, and the virus. It was simr to how it would be impossible to determine a grain of rice if it was erged to one thousand times its size. Because of reasons like this, molecr imaging, the technology of observing the microworld through microscopes, had been established as its own field of study in science as it was extremely difficult work. Things like observing viruses or filming the differentiation process of certain cells were often published in top journals like Science or Nature. There were quite a lot of scientists that studied molecr imaging as their performance would be very noticeable with just one good picture. Even so, there was no scientist who had seeded in filming the immune response to a virus. But not anymore. ¡°I put in four different kinds of dye in this blood sample. They will stain different types of white cells so that we can observe them at the same time.¡± Only colorless and translucent cell masses were on the screen where the dye had not yet worked. There were ck dots that looked like viruses, but their movements weren¡¯t captured urately. It was because they were too small and they kept moving out of focus. ¡°The dyes will stain neutrophils, B-cells, T-cells, and macrophages. Now, I also don¡¯t know which of these giant white blood cells are which. But you can tell if you stain them.¡± This dye was a fluorescently tagged antibody that recognized the biomaterials on the surface of the white blood cells. Young-Joon would be able to dye them ording to what kind of type they were. For example, the dye would paint neutrophils green from their high expression of CXCL12. Additionally, he added a red fluorescent protein on the capsid of HIV. Young-Joon made a darkroom by putting a lid on the chamber, then irradiated with a light that fluoresced the fluorescent proteins. Numerous red dots appeared on the monitor, andrge cells that were emitting green light were following the red dots. ¡°The cells that are shining green are neutrophils, a type of white blood cell. They are one of the first T-cells to notice and react to a bacterial or viral infection,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Can you see the small green dots that are left in the neutrophil¡¯s tracks? These are signs that the neutrophil leaves. It¡¯s a cell fragment with something called CXCL12.¡± Young-Joon went on and exined further. ¡°Now, a white blood cell called a T-cell will follow this path.¡± A little after, they could see cells that were stained yellowe into view. ¡°T-cells y a key role in regting the overall immune system. And HIV recognizes a substance called CD on the surface of these cells and infects them,¡± Young-Joon said. Red dots swarmed near the yellow cells, but even after time, they could not infiltrate the T-cells. ¡°But this time, they can¡¯t infect the T-cell. Why do you think that is?¡± Young-Joon asked as he turned to the audience, but no one could answer. ¡°Do you see these gray dots on the surface of the red virus?¡± Young-Joon asked as he zoomed in on the screen a little more. ¡°These are antibodies. Antibodies are biomaterials that bind to viruses. The virus cannot infiltrate the T-cells because the antibodies are attached to the virus, changing their structure.¡± Young-Joon exined more. ¡°When the virus cannot infect the T-cells, the host of this virus, and gets stalled, the macrophages that follow the signal of the neutrophils will track them down.¡± Young-Joon pointed to the purple cells that appeared on the screen. ¡°Macrophages are cells that engulf and destroy things that are weird and suspicious in our bodies.¡± Now, the macrophages were swallowing up the red dots. ¡°Because macrophages have powerful digestive enzymes inside, they fragment everything thates into the cell by endocytosis and destroy it,¡± Young-Joon exined. ¡°This mechanism removes the virus from the body of a vinated person. It¡¯s the first time I¡¯m seeing it as well.¡± Now, most of the red dots had disappeared. After they were all eliminated, the white blood cells began to scatter. Young-Joon turned off the monitor. The broadcasting screen also returned to the camera that was filming the podium in theb. Young-Joon turned to face the audience. ¡°The immune response is almost over now. Does anyone have any questions?¡± The audience was silent. No one among the opponents could say a word. Even if logical exnations about the mechanism of vines and the process of antibody production were given to anti-vaxxers, their beliefs didn¡¯t change easily. But science was able to give irrefutable evidence. People who believed that the Earth was t like a religion would have no choice but to ept the truth that the Earth was round if someone took them to outer space in a rocket and made a circle around it. Young-Joon injected himself with the vine and HIV, and he filmed the immune response with an antibody-staining technology and an ultra-precise microscope and presented it as a video. Who in the audience would have thought they would see such a thing? Producer Na Sung-Jin gulped as he looked at the audience¡¯s expressions. They made the atmosphere for a live debate and whatever, but what debate? He had given Young-Joon gloves and put him in the ring to do a little sparring, but Young-Joon just pulled out a gun on the first round and shot the opponent. ¡®How is this a debate? The other side was obliterated in ten minutes¡­¡¯ Kim Pil-Young, the person who was the most fiercely opposed, was also silent. ¡°As you just saw, you can stop a virus from infecting your body if you have antibodies. Antibodies are produced by the white blood cells called B-cells. But for them to make it, they need a recipe, and the vine is the drug that delivers that recipe. ¡°...¡± The audience was still silent. ¡°I know why you are against vines,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°It¡¯s because you¡¯re afraid. You would have heard a lot of stories that there are side effects, or that someone was sick after getting vinated.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Then, do vines really have side effects?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°To be honest, no scientist will be able to be one hundred percent confident. Side effects could show up depending on the person who got the vine.¡± Young-Joon approached the audience. ¡°There is nothing in the world that doesn¡¯t have side effects. Your life could be in danger if you drink ten liters of water at once. Cats are usually safe animals, but they cause allergies in some people,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°If vines are made by humans, they will definitely have effects in some unlucky people. Side effects that couldn¡¯t be found when conducting a clinical trial with hundreds of people could be found when it is conducted with millions of people. But we use vines because those side effects are weak and don¡¯t happen often; the gain of using vines is much higher than the risks of side effects.¡± Kim Pil-Young¡¯s eyes met Young-Joon¡¯s. He lowered his head, but he didn¡¯t know why. Young-Joon said, ¡°The Lancet paper that states the MMR vine causes autism that the man sitting in front here mentioned earlier. After it was announced, many people refused to get the MMR vine. What do you think happened?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Measles, which was on the verge of eradication, was revived. MMR is a measles vine. There was a measles epidemic that developed countries like the U.S. hadn¡¯t experienced before.¡± Kim Pil-Young¡¯s ears reddened a little. ¡°Infectious diseases find small weaknesses in our immunity and enter. They spread quickly, paralyzing our society. And the only way to fill those weaknesses is vines,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Currently, our vine was developed with a form that can produce antibodies to all seventeen variants. It has shown significant results in chimpanzees and is in preparation for clinical trials. From now on, we will start clinical trials with the International Vine Institute in areas like Kamathipura and other ces with high infection rates.¡± Chapter 77: A-Bio Cancer Laboratory (1) Chapter 77: A-Bio Cancer Laboratory (1) Young-Joon came back to his office after the show ended. He took out some orange juice and had a ss. ¡ªCan I get rid of the remaining virus now that it¡¯s over? Rosaline sent him a message. ¡°How long will it take to get rid of it with a regr immune response?¡± ¡ªIt will be less than 74 hours for the virus to bepletely eliminated. ¡°Not bad.¡± ¡ªBut your body will be pretty heavy and tired during it. I¡¯ll just get rid of it now. ¡°Okay.¡± [Controlling immune response.] [Inducing target location of macrophages.] [Destroying reverse transcriptase and virus.] Rosaline controlled the immune response and destroyed the virus by using a little bit of fitness. ¡ªThere won¡¯t be any people that will get in the way of making the vine now, right? ¡°There¡¯s no way it will be solved that easily.¡± Young-Joon stretched out his legs as he leaned back on his couch. ¡°The opposition against the vine will still be there.¡± ¡ªEven though you exined everything about how the vine worked and why it is needed? ¡°Even if they were convinced logically, people who were against it once will always be against it because they don¡¯t want to admit that they were wrong.¡± ¡ªReally? Rosaline asked again with a hint of surprise in her voice. ¡ªWhy do they do that? They don¡¯t admit it even after understanding that they were wrong? ¡°People are like that. They call it cognitive dissonance.¡± ¡ªIt is the most puzzling thing I have heard and seen since I was born. In this case, doesn¡¯t understanding mean the same thing as admitting? The fact that they do not admit it when they have understood is like hot iced tea. Rosaline said. ¡°People are like that.¡± ¡ªUnbelievable. Then was the show and the lecture all for nothing? ¡°No.¡± Young-Joon grinned. ¡°A lot of the anti-vaxxers will leave, and the people who didn¡¯t know about the vine will not go that way now, so there are definite benefits.¡± ¡ªI see. ¡°The people who were strongly against it will continue to be stubborn, but that organization will lose power soon. Like a virus that was discovered by an antibody.¡± ¡ªI understand. ¡°Anyway, I¡¯m done with the urgent things now. The International Vine Institute will do the clinical trial for the vine, Karamchand will produce the treatment, and now that the bone marrow is out of my hands now, I should rest for a while,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°More than that, it¡¯s suspicious that Roche is keeping quiet.¡± ¡ªRoche? ¡°It¡¯s apany that originally made a lot of money from AIDS drugs. It won¡¯t hurt them a lot if it disappears, but they¡¯re probably annoyed that the replica drugpanies in India participated in the HIV eradicationpanies, and it¡¯s weird of them to have just left me alone,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I¡¯m sure they¡¯re up to something¡­¡± Thud thud! Someone banged on his door. It was Park Joo-Hyuk. He looked a little angry. ¡°Are you insane? Why would you inject a virus into your own arm?¡± ¡°To a scientist, research is like their child. What are you going to do if you don¡¯t believe in it?¡± Young-Joon replied calmly. ¡°Oh, my blood pressure¡­¡± Park Joo Hyuk looked up to the ceiling while grabbing the back of his neck. Young-Joonughed. ¡°You¡¯reughing?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk frowned. ¡°You¡¯re actually out of your mind, aren¡¯t you?! Argh! What should I do with a lunatic like you?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk put Young-Joon in a headlock, which was partly serious and partly a joke. ¡°Ah okay. Sorry, I¡¯m sorry. I¡¯ll be careful from now on,¡± Young-Joon said as he escaped from the headlock. ¡°You will, right?¡± ¡°Okay. I¡¯ll probably be nagged a lot by my family, so please stop here.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk red at Young-Joon like he was annoyed. ¡°Yeah, I guess you hear an earful from your parents. Enough about that. There was an entertaining incident in the industry recently. Do you know about it?¡± ¡°An interesting incident?¡± ¡°Conson & Colson absorbed Schumatix.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Young-Joon was surprised. ¡°It was revealed this morning. Schumatix almost went into aa after being punched by you, right? It was basically impossible to recover from, right?¡± ¡°Well, their business was in the medical field, so it was pretty fatal that they induced a tumor in a patient on purpose.¡± ¡°Right. But Conson & Colson already had a lot of stakes in Schuamtix. It seems like they just took this opportunity to take over thepany.¡± ¡°Wow¡­¡± ¡°That¡¯s not it. There¡¯s another multinational pharmaceuticalpany that is based in Switzend other than Schumatix.¡± ¡°Roche?¡± Young-Joon¡¯s eyes widened. Most of the executives at Schumatix were from Roche. As the twopanies cooperated,peted, and developed together in that tiny Switzend, they had a very close rtionship. They also had stakes in each other¡¯spany, but they were already close, starting from theirwork of people. ¡°No¡­¡± ¡°Conson & Colson guaranteed the status of the Schuamtix¡¯s executives. And it seems like Conson & Colson must have sessfully negotiated arge stake through them with Roche.¡± ¡°Then did Conson & Colson and Roche be rtedpanies?¡± ¡°Yeah. It¡¯s hard to estimate it urately because the stock prices are fluctuating, but experts predict that thebined market value of the threepanies will exceed one hundred trillion won,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡°It¡¯s five times A-Gen. Three times Pfizer.¡± ¡°So there¡¯s a new pharmaceutical dinosaur.¡± ¡°Anyway, it seems like Conson & Colson are negotiating with Pfizer, too. If they sign some contract together, it will really be thergestpany in the world. It will be an unprecedentedpany that is monstrously big.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°Why are you so calm? Isn¡¯t it obvious that they¡¯re trying to keep you in check? Those people are probably thinking that you will ultimately be A-Gen¡¯s CEO. They think that it will be hard to fight you if A-Bio¡¯s research ability and A-Gen¡¯s infrastructuree together,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°And they really started feeling the danger as they saw Schuamtix getting destroyed. Seeing even the White House be on your side, they know that it will really be dangerous if they just leave you alone. That¡¯s why the multinational pharmapanies are bunching up together. To keep A-Bio in check.¡± ¡°I know,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Then why are you so calm?¡± ¡°It¡¯s better if thosepaniese together and make a better drug.¡± ¡°Fuckkk¡­ Seriously, you¡­¡± Young-Joon burst intoughter as he saw Park Joo-Hyuk frown. ¡°I¡¯m kidding.¡± Young-Joon got up. ¡°Love for humanity is important, but so is ourpany.¡± ¡°Shouldn¡¯t we do something?¡± ¡°We are already doing a lot of things. Everyone is working hard, and we¡¯re getting good results, right? This is enough.¡± ¡°I looked up some things about Conson & Colson¡¯s CEO, and he¡¯s really dangerous.¡± ¡°He¡¯s famous. He¡¯s like the Steve Jobs of the pharmaceutical industry, right?¡± ¡°You already know. Apparently, he¡¯s pretty good. I mean, look at them now. They absorbed Schuamtix, and they also rode that wave to get Roche, too. What if they bring in Pfizer?¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± Young-Joon shrugged. ¡°It¡¯s just anotherpany that we have topete with.¡± * * * For a while, everyone who Young-Joon met nagged him to not be reckless, and that it was too much to inject a virus into himself no matter how confident he was in the vine. ¡®Well, I was also confident in the vine, but honestly, I mostly believed in Rosaline when I injected the virus into myself¡­¡¯ But since Young-Joon couldn¡¯t exin Rosaline, he just said he would be careful and moved on. In the meantime, a video of Young-Joon¡¯s self-clinical trial of the HIV vine was uploaded on A-Bio¡¯s homepage and fan club. ¡°I get the fan club, but why on the homepage¡­?¡± To Young-Joon, who was puzzled, Yoo Song-Mi exined, ¡°Public opinion is really good right now. The management team distributed a press release with the live broadcast video of you.¡± ¡°A press release?¡± ¡°Yes. You have a really good image right now. They were saying that they need to improve thepany¡¯s image with this energy.¡± Before Young-Joon started the live broadcast, the internationalmunity was focused on the press conference that Ardip appealed to with tears. Ardip, who cried and begged on his stomach while revealing the situation in developing countries to the people against the development of the vine, showed up everywhere in the media. When the whole world was dripped with tears, Young-Joon suddenly appeared and injected the virus into his own body on live television to see the effects of the vine. To people, it looked like he was reacting to Ardip¡¯s tears. ¡®This person isn¡¯t just a genius scientist; he¡¯s a pioneer of medicine who sacrifices his own body.¡¯ The image he imprinted on the whole world was different than before. Young-Joon¡¯s ingenuity had already drawn attention as he put the stem cell treatments into clinical trials, but his personality hadn¡¯t been highlighted as much. Things like how he went against hisb director because of Cellicure and how he fought with the hospital director because the clinical trial patient changed weren¡¯t stories that were revealed to the public. Destroying Schuamtix¡¯s scheme with a counterattack made him out to be smart andpetent, not a matter of personality. But it was different this time. The way people understood the flow of events was as follows: 1. Young-Joon, who visited India for the production of Karampia, an AIDS treatment, felt the unsanitary conditions and the prevalence of infectious diseases in developing countries. 2. Young-Joon was very heartbroken as he watched Ardip crying and begging for people to not oppose the development of the HIV vine on TV. 3. Young-Joon was determined to eradicate HIV as fast as he could. To elerate the vine development, he had to spread the word about its safety and efficacy, and he conducted an experiment on his own body to do this. 4. Hurry up and give him the Nobel Prize. ¡°That¡¯s the atmosphere right now?¡± Young-Joon asked, baffled. ¡°To people right now, you¡¯re like a great saint who sacrificed his own body to medicine,¡± Yoo Song-Mi said. ¡°That image is too much¡­ It¡¯s a little burdening, to be honest.¡± ¡°But it¡¯s true. The public is raving about you right now because stories of you fighting over research ethics areing up all of a sudden. Search it up.¡± ¡°...¡± What Yoo Song-Mi said was true. Public opinion, which was continuously popping up on Twitter, was no joke. ¡ªHe¡¯s a genius, but look at his personality. He¡¯s perfect. ¡ªHe¡¯s like someone that would be in something like a Marvel Comic. Everything about him is so outstanding that it almost seems unreal. ¡ªI scraped together other people¡¯s reactions to the live broadcast LOL the amount of national pride I have right now is lethal ¡ªI live in Minnesota, and the anti-vine movement also went down in America. Before this, people who were against vine development were marching and stuff like that, but they all just disappeared. ¡ªThey might not admit it, but they will have to be conscious of the current social climate. ¡ªWasn¡¯t the number one mad scientist Werner Forssman, who invented conduit technology by cutting a vein in his arm with a knife and putting in a rubber tube? Now, he has to hand over the crown. ¡ªBut I was so scared. I¡¯m worried that Doctor Ryu will get sick. Please be careful. You have to work for a long time. ¡ªA resident who used to work at Sunyoo Hospital here. Spilling tea about why Doctor Ryu moved the Alzheimer¡¯s clinical trial from Sunyoo Hospital to another ce. This story is true because I heard it from the nurses who work on clinical trials. I¡¯m deleting this in five minutes. Featured by Politician S. ¡°They¡¯re talking about all sorts of things¡­ There were only a few people who knew the reason why we moved the Alzheimer¡¯s clinical trial. ¡°Speaking of clinical trials¡­¡± Yoo Song-Mi said. ¡°The Clinical Trial Management Center called when you stepped out briefly.¡± ¡°About what?¡± ¡°They said they are done setting up the stroke clinical trial and starting Phase One, and the second is that Amuc, the type 2 diabetes cure was sessful in the first phase. Young-Joon shot up from his seat. ¡°Phase One of the Amuc trial was a sess?¡± ¡°Yes. Try calling them.¡± As Young-Joon picked up the phone, Yoo Song-Mi said, ¡°And I have two more things to tell you. Hold on.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± As Yoo Song-Mi checked her phone and her notes, she said, ¡°You had a meeting with KCDC[1] about the diagnostic kit development, right? They asked us to submit a program n because they put forward a national projectpetition. And Director Kim Young-Hoon at A-Gen wanted me to schedule a meeting because he wants to see you.¡± Kim Young-Hoon was the person SG Groups added to A-Gen. ¡°Oh, and one more. The Office of Science and Technology from the White House called. They were asking when you¡¯reing to America. And they also want to schedule a meeting there¡­ Seriously, the amount of work you have is murderous.¡± ¡°I think it¡¯s about building the cancerb.¡± Young-Joon was lost in thought for a moment. ¡°First of all, please set a business trip to America. Right now, I¡¯m going to check the clinical trial report on the diabetes cure. Please set up a meeting for this either today or tomorrow, and schedule a meeting with Celligener and the Probiotics team during next week.¡± ¡°Wait, go slower,¡± Yoo Song-Mi said as she quickly jotted it down. ¡°But sir, what is the meeting agenda that I should tell to Celligener?¡± ¡°We¡¯re going to talk about developing a cure for pancreatic cancer.¡± * * * ¡°I heard that they are past stem cells and are touching the anticancer drug markets,¡± Mason said to the board of directors at Conson & Colson. ¡°The Office of Science and Technology in America is supporting that. And they said they are building ab right beside the National Cancer Institute,¡± Richard exined further. All the faces of the directors were dark. They had erged themselves by buying Schumatix and holding hands with Roche; the negotiation with Pfizer was going well too, but even so, Young-Joon¡¯s advancement into America was still trouble for them. ¡°I will go meet Director James,¡± said David, the CEO of Colson & Conson. 1. Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ? Chapter 78: A-Bio Cancer Laboratory (2) Chapter 78: A-Bio Cancer Laboratory (2) As soon as the board meeting came to an end, David set up a meeting with James, the director of the Office of Science and Technology. A-Bio¡¯s entry into America: how would Young-Joon, the revolutionary, change the medical market of America? As a scientist in the same field, it made him very excited. But at the same time, it made him very anxious as a manager of apetitor. ¡®Ryu Young-Joon¡­¡¯ David couldn¡¯t attack him with a sloppy move. Young-Joon was a genius in scientific technology and research development, but he was also highly skilled in politics and management. He saw through and prepared for Schuamatix¡¯s sabotage andpletely destroyed him by hitting back at just the right time. A hugepany like that took fatal damage from just one strike and copsed. Even if the White House supported them, it wasn¡¯t an easy thing to do. It was because the timing of Young-Joon¡¯s counterattack was so perfect. It gave David goosebumps thinking of how Young-Joon had the CIA ready and just calmly waited for his prey to step on the web. And he also did a huge performance live on television to put a stop to the anti-vine movement. Perhaps Ardip¡¯s press conference was also in his hands. If so, Young-Joon was quite skilled at being a manager. His talent would certainly shine in the American market as well. ¡®But the American market won¡¯t be that easy, Doctor Ryu.¡¯ David smiled as he watched a video of Young-Joon¡¯s show again. ¡®Attacking straightforward without any tactics and only taking what you need to take¡­¡¯ A-Bio was never going to be able to monopolize this country, as the issue ofpetition betweenpanies was not just about new technology. ¡°Sir.¡± Alice, David¡¯s secretary, came to see him. She said, ¡°I scheduled a meeting with the director of the Office of Science and Technology. It is two days from now, and it is two o¡¯clock.¡± ¡°Thank you. Alice¡­¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°Do you know how band-aids were first invented?¡± ¡°... I¡¯m not sure.¡± ¡°About a hundred years ago, there was an employee in charge of purchasing cotton in our purchasing department. Name was John Dickson,¡± David said. ¡°At the time, John was enjoying his sweet honeymoon, but his wife was a little clumsy, so she used to trip a lot and get cuts all over from a kitchen knife. John always put gauze and tape on his wife¡¯s injuries and treated her.¡± Alice tilted her head in confusion. It looked like she was curious why David was telling her this story. David said, ¡°His biggest concern was what he would do if she got hurt while he was at work. After some thought, Dickson put some gauze in the middle of some medical tape beforehand to make it easy for her to use it when she needed it. That¡¯s the first ever band-aid.¡± David slowly rose from his seat. He was sixty and quite old, but the suit he was wearing looked good on his lean and toned body. It was because he had taken care of his health well; David was someone who lived so regrly that his schedule was measured with a ruler and the hand of a clock. David looked out the window. ¡°It was a simple invention thatbined technology that already existed without using anything new, but it became the best medical item in the twentieth century. The president of Conson & Colson at that time found it andmercialized it in astonishment. It was one of the key products that developed ourpany into a majorpany. John Dickson went on to be the vice president.¡± ¡°Oh¡­¡± David smiled. ¡°I just want to talk about that. If you get a boyfriend, Alice, I hope he is someone as sweet as John Dickson.¡± ¡°Haha, thank you.¡± Alice smiled while she tidied up her hair. David went outside. He wanted to organize his thoughts while taking a walk. Conson & Colson was apany that was clearly one of the toppanies among the numerous pharmaceuticalpanies. They had the highest profits in the industry, but it wasn¡¯t because they wielded incredible new technology like A-Bio. Big money came from little things, did they not? It was just like how Coca-C, a beverage brand, was the number one brand in the world. Conson & Colson¡¯s main products were small items like band-aids, painkillers, lotion, or contact lenses. In this sense, Conson & Colson¡¯s business didn¡¯t actually ovep with A-Bio; there wasn¡¯t really much for them to directly conflict over. Actually, they could win-win if Conson & Colson provided things like medical adhesive when A-Bio did procedures like bone marrow transntation. There were actually directors who were optimistic about the situation. But not David. ¡°Now, Ryu Young-Joon ising to America to make an anticancer drug. What should Conson & Colson do now.¡± His heart beat at the entertaining development. David, who didn¡¯t ever have apetitor while leading the number onepany in the industry, even felt like he was younger now. ¡°This man was the first one to open the field of stem cell treatment. He would have had mountains of work to do just with stem cells, but he made a type 2 diabetes cure within a year and got it into clinical trials. He also made a HIV vine,¡± David muttered to himself as he walked on the trail. ¡°And he ising here to target the anticancer market and swallow up the National Cancer Institute. He already buttered up Director James.¡± Everyone thought that Young-Joon was the father of stem cell technology, but David thought differently. To Young-Joon, stem cells were only one of his many items. That was why he did things unrted to stem cells like a HIV vine, a diabetes cure, probiotics, and a pancreatic cancer cure. ¡®Ryu Young-Joon will push through to this field sometime.¡¯ He will be Conson & Colson¡¯s biggest enemy. Then, what would be the best point to stop his growth? ¡®Anticancer drugs.¡¯ The field that had the most variables in the world. The disease that was moreplex and difficult to handle than any other disease. Even a genius like Young-Joon was not going to be able to be confident in everything when oveing this barrier. David had no intention of sabotaging him to make him slip; he was going to let them sprint ahead, and all he had to do was climb on top of his shoulders and hold his leash. Then how? The way that medicine dealt with diseases was divided into three stages: 1. Prevention. 2. Diagnosis. 3. Treatment. If the disease was cancer, the first stage was usually impossible. Unless the cancer was a rare type that urred because of a virus like cervical cancer, cancer could not be prevented. The reason that cancer urred was because people were unlucky. The mutation of a gene, which caused cancer, waspletely coincidental. Cancer could happen even if one lived a very healthy life. And honestly, no one could beat Young-Joon at the third stage. Wasn¡¯t he someone who said he was going to fix pancreatic cancer right away? But the second stage, the diagnosis market? In the stream of medicine, diagnosis was upstream of treatment. If David controlled the stream there? If he dominated the diagnosis market and then reached out to Young-Joon, he would have no choice but to hold David¡¯s hand. ¡®I will tame him while making a cooperative rtionship.¡¯ David called his secretary. ¡°Alice, please contact Illemina and ask for a meeting as soon as possible.¡± ¡ªIllemina? It was the bestpany in the world for DNA analysis. Illemina had invented a technology that analyzed DNA in the blood, and if there were cancer cells in the body, a miniscule amount of their DNA would flow through the blood vessels. If he could find it and analyze it, they would be able to diagnose the presence of cancer without an endoscopy. Although, no one had tried it ormercialized it yet. David could see a few big pictures in his head. He would ce Illemina¡¯s DNA analysis equipment in each hospital and analyze the patient¡¯s DNA using that. He would monopolize the diagnosis of cancer in all patients. Then, he could have the upper hand over Young-Joon. Young-Joon¡¯s technology would be used when being treated at the hospital, but the one sending the patient to the hospital would be Conson & Colson. In that world, Young-Joon¡¯s anticancer drugs would only be able to y a limited role; even if he made an anticancer drug that could cure end-stage pancreatic cancer, all patients would already be diagnosed when it was at its early stage. * * * Young-Joon finished a few meetings hecticly. Now, he was talking to the Life Creation Team. ¡°How is the liver organoid going?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a dead end¡­¡± Park Dong-Hyun said in a dejected voice. Cheon Ji-Myung added, ¡°We can differentiate a stem cell into a liver cell. But the hand technique required in the process of cultivating it from the matrix to the tissue is too hard. We use fifty microliters of the culture liquid, and we have to stick it exactly in the duct cells that are in the middle. That part¡¯s a little difficult.¡± ¡°It is probably possible to do if we experiment like you, but¡­ We can¡¯t do it like that,¡± Park Dong-Hyun said as he thought back to Young-Joon¡¯s experiment. Young-Joon, who thought for a moment, said, ¡°Let¡¯s put that on pause for a moment and let¡¯s do something else.¡± ¡°What?¡± Park Dong-Hyun asked. ¡°The KCDC held a project contest while spearheading a new business. Do you know about it?¡± ¡°The dengue virus?¡± Jung Hae-Rim asked. ¡°Oh, you know about it?¡± Young-Joon was surprised. It was because frontline scientists were too busy doing their assigned experiments that they had less interest in other projects or national ones. ¡°Haha.¡± Jung Hae-Rim¡¯s chest puffed up. ¡°You should know this if you are a scientist. Try harder, everyone,¡± Jung Hae-Rim said with a proud face. ¡°What kind of project is it exactly?¡± Cheon Ji-Myung asked Young-Joon. ¡°It is to develop a vine, a treatment, or a technology to diagnose the infection for the dengue virus. We are going to work on developing a diagnostic technology,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°Diagnostic?¡± ¡°Yes. Actually, I had a meeting with the KCDC. They asked me if I could eradicate dengue fever like AIDS.¡± ¡°So?¡± ¡°I told them that we can¡¯t start anything new because we have too many projects going on.¡± ¡°But are you still going to do it?¡± Jung Hae-Rim asked like she was nervous. ¡°The reason the KCDC is interested in dengue fever is because Korea is being threatened by the dengue virus,¡± Young-Joon said. The dengue virus was originally a virus that mosquitoes transmitted in hot regions like Vietnam. But as the average temperature rose due to climate change, its urrence began rising to the North. ¡°The dengue virus has already arrived in Jeju Ind. There was a confirmed casest year.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true.¡± Park Dong-Hyun nodded. ¡°But why are we developing a diagnostic technology? Not a treatment or a vine?¡± Bae Sun-Mi asked. ¡°We can¡¯t afford to develop treatments or vines and put them through clinical trials.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± ¡°Yes. You all have to get back to liver organoids after this, right?¡± ¡°Oh¡­¡± The team all covered their faces with their hands. Watching them, Young-Joon smiled. ¡°Dengue fever doesn¡¯t actually need a special treatment. It usually gets better after a week. The problem is dengue hemorrhagic fever or dengue shock syndrome, and they require intensive treatment. So the solution to control this disease is urate diagnosis,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°We have to develop a very cheap, fast, and urate diagnostic kit. We will be able to secure a tremendous advantage in controlling this infectious disease.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± Young-Joon opened a PowerPoint file on hisptop. ¡°This is the base technology for this diagnostic kit. It¡¯s only a sketch of the main idea, so it needs to be developed more,¡± said Young-Joon. ¡°What¡¯s the logic behind it?¡± ¡°Do you remember Cas9?¡± Cas9: it was a pair of gene scissors that could find a precise location in the huge, three billion letters of human DNA and cut it. ¡°The fact that it can cut at one exact location means that it can help identify the presence of DNA that has the information of that location,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°With this, we can cut the DNA of the dengue virus that is floating around in the blood. If it¡¯s cut, the patient is infected with dengue fever, and they are not infected if there is no reaction.¡± ¡°Wow¡­¡± the Life Creation Team eximed. It was surprising that gene scissors could be used this way. ¡°How long did you do ¡°Think Big¡± for?¡± Park Dong-Hyun asked.[1] ¡°I didn¡¯t do anything like that. And there¡¯s one more thing to do with this diagnostic technology. I¡¯m thinking of diagnosing cancer with this on top of dengue fever.¡± ¡°Cancer?¡± The Life Creation Team¡¯s eyes widened. Young-Joon exined, ¡°If we have cancer, the cancer cell¡¯s DNA flows through our blood vessels, although it¡¯s a really small amount. We can catch that with Cas9 with the same logic as dengue fever.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I will freeze-dry the Cas9 protein and make a kit with fluorescent material. If you drop someone¡¯s blood on it, the kit will change color as it cuts the DNA of the dengue virus of cancer cells.¡± ¡°So, the thing you are trying to make is¡­¡± ¡°This diagnostic kit is like a pregnancy test,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°It will be sold in ces like convenience stores or grocery stores. Regr people will be able to buy it, and they will be able to diagnose what kind of disease they have if they put one drop of their blood on it with the included blood-collection needle.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°They won¡¯t have to go to the hospital, and they don¡¯t have to borrow expensive equipment from DNA analysispanies like Illemina. We are going to make them doctors in everyday life.¡± ¡°Oh my god¡­¡± ¡°The biggest problem with pancreatic cancer is that it is not only difficult to treat, but also difficult to diagnose,¡± Young-Joon said. 1. ¡±Think Big¡± offers a variety of educational content for all age groups, but mostly children. Their content includes workbooks and worksheets for children. ? Chapter 79: A-Bio Cancer Laboratory (3) Chapter 79: A-Bio Cancer Laboratory (3) A-Bio had never made a diagnostic kit before. For this product in particr, it was probably going to require a difficult level of work because the technology was pretty sophisticated. ¡°To be honest, it might take a long time to develop it. The idea to catch DNA with Cas9 is extremely creative and innovative, but we have a long way to go because there are a lot of problems to solve to make it into a kit,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung said. Young-Joon nodded. ¡°That¡¯s right. And the key point of this project is to use PMDS to make ab-on-a-chip that is stable for a long period of time, so we will probably have to coborate with A-Gen¡¯s Mobile Diagnostic Device Research Department at Lab One,¡± Young-Joon said. Lab-on-a-chip: it was given this name because it was a technology that could carry out experiments normally done inbs on a tiny chip that was the size of one¡¯s palm. It was an object that integrated semiconductor technology, ultra-fine nano circuit manufacturing technology, and cutting-edge biochemical engineering technology based on biomaterials. Pregnancy tests were also consideredb-on-a-chip as it confirmed the presence of human chorionic gonadotropin through an antibody reaction. If they were going to make A-Bio¡¯s all-in-one diagnostic kit into a product that could be bought at convenience stores, they would have to ovee theb-on-the-chip. The problem was that confirming the presence of DNA using Cas9 was a very basic main idea. It was simr to saying, ¡°Let¡¯s put an elevator in high buildings and go up and down easily.¡± Like how a lot of cutting-edge technologies of electrical engineering and physics was put into making that elevator, there were obviously lots of difficult obstacles in the process of applying Cas9 tob-on-a-chip. ¡°How do they analyze DNA in blood at Illimena?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°They separate all the blood cells like red and white from the blood. They spin it in a centrifuge and only take the upperyer because that¡¯s where DNA is,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung replied. ¡°But there¡¯s only a trace amount of cancer cells or dengue virus DNA in that. So they can¡¯t use that as is, but they have to uniquely amplify their DNA.¡± ¡°If you¡¯re amplifying them, you¡¯re doing PCR (polymerase chain reaction), right?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± To settle the cells in blood, a centrifuge was required, and to amplify DNA, a thermo-cycler that could carry out PCR was required. Both pieces of equipment were worth a few million won. If they made a diagnostic kit with Cas9, it needed to be done in a kit that was the size of one¡¯s palm; it actually had to be ab on a chip. ¡°And we also need to create a signaling system that allows us to visually confirm that Cas9 has responded,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung said. ¡°We have a lot of obstacles to ovee. But we will find a way eventually,¡± Young-Joon said. * * * David, the CEO of Conson & Colson, was in a meeting with the scientists from Illemina. The person who came to the negotiation table as the representative of Illemina was Jonathan, the CTO. In this industry, he was a person who was called ¡°One of Them¡±. It was because he was one of the people who first invented the cutting-edge technology called next-generation sequencing. The reason why this technology was amazing was because it drastically reduced the money and time required for DNA analysis. For example, before this technology was invented, the Human Genome Project was a gigantic project that took three trillion won and hundreds of scientists worked on for more than a decade. But with next-generation sequencing, it could be done in around ten days with tens of millions of won. Now, the technology was more advanced that it cost around a million won. ¡°Did you see the paper about Cas9 that Doctor Ryu published?¡± asked Jonathan abruptly while they were talking about business. ¡°Of course I read it,¡± David replied. ¡°Mr. CEO. We are focusing on the fact that Cas9 can find a specific sequence of DNA. We think that they will be able to easily track down mutants that ur in the body with that technology. If they apply that in diagnosis, I believe they can be the most threatening enemy to our business.¡± ¡°Do you think it will be that easy?¡± ¡°It will be difficult, but I don¡¯t know what will happen with Doctor Ryu¡¯s ingenuity. Everything you suggest is great, but I¡¯m worried that Doctor Ryu will bring about a new trend with Cas9 in the diagnostics market.¡± ¡°I thought you didn¡¯t look well, but that¡¯s what you were worried about.¡± ¡°As you know, it is best to not start a big new business when there is a huge variable.¡± ¡°Hahaha,¡± Davidughed. ¡°Jonathan, don¡¯t worry too much. No matter how amazing the Cas9 technology is, it will be impossible to use that to measure DNA in blood. Even if Doctor Ryu uses that in diagnosis, he won¡¯t use it on blood. It will be far from the business we are trying to do.¡± ¡°Hm¡­¡± ¡°Even if the patient has end-stage cancer, there are only trace amounts of the cancer cell¡¯s DNA in your blood. In the end, they can only confirm the presence by amplifying it. And doesn¡¯t amplification mean that they must use a thermo-cycler? If they get there, the most precise technique is Illemina¡¯s next-generation sequencing. Cas9 will not be used there.¡± ¡°I also think so as well, but¡­¡± Jonathan pressed on his temples with his fingers and thought hard. ¡°Haha. It will all be fine, don¡¯t worry. You are too afraid of Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s ingenuity,¡± David said. ¡°But that ingenuity will feed us. If we hold the diagnostics market in our hands, the treatment market will naturally have no choice but to depend on us.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I will tell Director James this as well, but I am thinking of a strategy to supply Illemina¡¯s equipment to every hospital in America. When patients who visit the hospital pay about a hundred dors to get their blood drawn and give it to the doctor, the doctor will start Illemina¡¯s equipment to see if DNA of cancer cells are present in the patient¡¯s blood. It will be a precise and fast diagnosis,¡± he said. ¡°We will set a new trend in blood testing. It¡¯s not just simple PCR like before, but we will be doing next-generation sequencing at the hospital about the target locations that show cancer mutations.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about Doctor Ryu. There are more than a couple obstacles to ovee to use Cas9 for diagnosis. Now, shall we sign? I need a weapon if I¡¯m going to convince James.¡± David pushed the contract in front of Jonathan. Chewing on his lower lip, Jonathan stamped on the contract. * * * ¡°There is a way to separate blood cells from the sma,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°How?¡± ¡°Like how we can filter out impurities and just get water with a water filter, we can put in a filter. Blood cells will get caught because they are much bigger, and we will be able to collect sma only.¡± ¡°Hm¡­ But I can¡¯t imagine doing that on a t chip. Are you going to enclose the filter and syringe separately in the kit?¡± ¡°We¡¯ll make a micro-circuit in the PDMS chip where the blood moves through. We can make a from agarose on that pathway¡¯s wall. Then, the blood cells will be trapped there, and sma and DNA will flow through.¡± ¡°Woah,¡± Park Dong-Hyun eximed. ¡°I didn¡¯t know there was a solution like that. Wow, you are really good. Then what about DNA amplification?¡± ¡°Hm.¡± Young-Joon was lost in thought for a bit instead of answering. He was stuck. He didn¡¯t have an answer anymore. ¡®Rosaline. You can use as much fitness as you want, so give me some advice.¡¯ ¡ªI didn¡¯t think you needed me anymore because you did everything well alone from capturing DNA with Cas9. Rosaline said yfully. ¡®Of course not. Please help me. It¡¯s hard.¡¯ [Synchronization Mode: See Isothermal DNA Amplification Reaction. Fitness consumption: 1.5] ¡®Isothermal DNA Amplification Reaction?¡¯ ¡ªYou can use rbinant polymerase amplification. After isting the DNA using a material that attaches to single-stranded DNA¡­ Young-Joon scoffed after seeing the fantasy and detailed mechanism Rosaline showed him. ¡®Right. She finds answers that didn¡¯t exist before.¡¯ ¡°There is a way,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°But I think I will have to do the first experiment to see if it works. It¡¯s also difficult to exin it as well.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± ¡°We also have to look for a signal amplification device that can show us that Cas9 did cut the DNA¡­¡± [You do not have enough fitness.] Rosaline sent him a message. ¡ªThere is a way, but let¡¯s recover your fitness first. There¡¯s a limit to making neurons in your head right now. ¡°Let¡¯s think about that next time. First, let¡¯s test if it is possible up to here,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°What should we prepare?¡± Bae Sun-Mi asked. ¡°We have to make an experimental prototype for theb-on-a-chip with PDMS. Let¡¯s all go to the Mobile Diagnostic Device Research Department at Lab One next week,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Hup! Diagnostic Device!¡± Suddenly, Jung Hae-Rim¡¯s head shot up. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Oh¡­ Um¡­ I know, sir.¡± She nced at Young-Joon like she was trying to see if he was okay. ¡°Are you talking about Park So-Yeon?¡± Young-Joon said first since it seemed like it was difficult for her to say it. ¡°Yes¡­ You might see her there, and¡­ If we do coborative research together, she mighte to A-Bio ore into meetings¡­¡± Park So-Yeon was a skilled Scientist who worked at A-Gen¡¯s Mobile Diagnostic Device Research Department. She was also Young-Joon¡¯s ex-girlfriend. ¡°I don¡¯t care, so we can just move forward with it. It doesn¡¯t matter to me if we are working together. You know me, right? I won¡¯t incorporate any personal feelings, so let¡¯s just work by meritocracy, alright?¡± * * * ¡°What should we do now?¡± asked a man as he kept touching his curly hair. They were on the way out after a meal. Park So-Yeon desperately wanted to ask to go home, but she kept it in. Her friend had tried hard to set her up. She said that he was a good person. To be honest, he wasn¡¯t bad, but it was just that his bluffing was funny and he wasn''t charming. ¡°Why don¡¯t we go to a cafe?¡± Park So-Yeon asked. ¡°Maybe not coffee. I have a nice sky lounge that I know. Do you want to go there in my car?¡± As if he was waiting for it, he pulled out a smart key from his pocket. A shiny Audi rang. ¡°It¡¯s only been two weeks since I bought it. Ms. So-Yeon, you¡¯re the first woman I¡¯m taking in my car.¡± The man put on a confident expression. This man, who said he worked at SG Group, constantly bragged about his money and job, even while eating. He would have loved it if Park So-Yeon asked how much the watch he was constantly touching was. ¡°I like walking after I eat. I¡¯ll take the car next time.¡± Park So-Yeon started walking with the man slowly. ¡°You seem to have a very calm personality, Ms. So-Yeon,¡± the man said. ¡°I do?¡± ¡°Kind of like an ice queen? You¡¯re that type, right? You don¡¯t talk much, don¡¯t have much of a reaction.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°You shouldn¡¯t be like that. Men like girls who have a big reaction to things.¡± What kind of crap was this? ¡®Do you think I came here to make you feel good and react to what you say?¡¯ Park So-Yeon wanted to spit it all out, but she didn¡¯t. ¡°What kind of things do you like?¡± the man asked. ¡°I like perfume.¡± ¡°Oh! Which one? I know a bit about perfume. I mostly use Jo Malone or Chanel. Which do you usually use?¡± ¡°I just use one that I like. I don¡¯t care about the brand.¡± ¡°What kind of scent?¡± ¡°One that smells like rain.¡± ¡°Oh, you like the smell of rain. It¡¯s nice. The scent of rain is different depending on the kind of perfume. Did you know that? Ones like ska Raindrop from Jo Malone are made with melted skan snow water, so it has a colder and fresher scent. The scent of rain is different in different regions. Depending on the origin¡­¡± ¡°Water molecules don¡¯t have a scent. Rainwater doesn''t have a scent as well,¡± Park So-Yeon said. The man who was confident was sort of flustered. ¡°Oh, really?¡± ¡°The smell of rain is actually the smell of a substance called geosmin emitted by bacteria living in the ground traveling through rainwater and flowing into the humid atmosphere. The smell of rain is actually just the smell of bacteria.¡± ¡°...¡± After finishing her exnation, Park So-Yeon chuckled. It was because she thought of Young-Joon. He was the one who told her about the smell of rain. On the first date before actually dating him, Young-Joon had exined to Park So-Yeon with a straight face that he had read a paper like that. Now that she thought of it, it was pretty funny. Depending on the situation, wasn¡¯t it something that could be a little rude or insensitive? Breaking the romance of the first date by exining to a woman who liked the smell of rain that it wasn''t actually rain but bacteria. ¡®I thought that was cool back then.¡¯ Young-Joon¡¯s charm was his innocent curiosity and passion for science. He wasn¡¯t interested in cars, watches, or showing off his money, and he liked reading papers more than meeting girls. It seemed like everyone was focused on his ingenuity right now, as he was very famous, but his real charm was his humanness behind all that. ¡®I was crazy, wasn¡¯t I?¡¯ She shouldn¡¯t have left Young-Joon when he fought with theb director. She should have stood by him when he was having a hard time. This was the biggest mistake in her entire life. It wasn¡¯t because Young-Joon was sessful now, but it was because it wasn¡¯tmon to see someone so innocent and upright in character. She felt this so much every time she was set up with another person. If she didn¡¯t make a mistake back then, maybe she would be happily experimenting beside him. ¡°Phew¡­¡± Park So-Yeon suddenly let out a deep sigh. Surprised, the man was now walking on eggshells. ¡°Um, well¡­ I don¡¯t know if the smell of rain is bacteria or something because I¡¯m in the arts, but Jo Malone¡¯s perfume smells good. I just wanted to tell you that. Would you like one?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have to,¡± Park So-Yeon replied. ¡°And I¡¯m really sorry, but I don¡¯t think I should be on blind dates.¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think I¡¯m over my ex-boyfriend yet. I¡¯m really sorry. I came out here not ready to meet someone else.¡± Chapter 80: A-Bio Cancer Laboratory (4) Chapter 80: A-Bio Cancer Laboratory (4) On Monday morning, Young-Joon and the scientists from the Life Creation Team showed up at the Mobile Diagnostic Device Research Department¡¯sb at Lab One. It had been a long time since Young-Joon hade to Lab One. He hade to A-Gen a few times in the past, but he had only visited theb director¡¯s office or the administrative office to get A-Bio¡¯s first building. It was the first time he wasing into theb ward where other scientists were after his punishment. ¡°It feels like people are ring,¡± Park Dong-Hyun said as he walked. The scientists at Lab One weren¡¯t hostile to Young-Joon, but they were staring at him like it bothered them quite a bit. ¡°Just ignore them,¡± Young-Joon said. They walked through the hall and went up to the second floor. When they got off the elevator, there were thirteen of the Anticancer Drug Research Department¡¯sbs. The only way to get to the Mobile Diagnostic Device Department¡¯sbs was to go past them. Click. As they were on their way, a scientist popped out of Room 211. ¡°Oh¡­¡± It was Senior Scientist Kim Hyun-Seok. He was Young-Joon¡¯s sunbae that used the desk next to him when he worked as a Scientist at the Anticancer Drug Research Department. He froze when he saw Young-Joon. ¡°It¡¯s been a while, Senior Kim. How have you been doing?¡± Young-Joon greeted him. ¡°God, Doctor Ry¡­ I mean, Sir. How have you been doing?¡± ¡°Well.¡± ¡°... What brings you to Lab One?¡± Kim Hyun-Seok nced at Young-Joon like he was trying to figure it out. ¡°I just have some business to take care of.¡± ¡°I heard that you are developing a pancreatic cancer cure. Is it rted to that?¡± Kim Hyun-Seok asked cautiously. The idea and experiment strategy Young-Joon was going to use to cure pancreatic cancer hadn¡¯t been revealed yet because of security reasons. But the word that he was developing a cure had traveled fast, and everyone in the industry knew. Kim Hyun-Seok was always wary of this situation where Young-Joon was going to put out a cure and target the anticancer drug field. Because if so, he would bepeting with the Anticancer Drug Research Department. This department at A-Gen was home to the world¡¯s greatest intellectuals, but to be honest, Kim Hyun-Seok wasn¡¯t confident he could beat Young-Joon. ¡°It is rted to that,¡± Young-Joon replied. A bit of relief came onto Kim Hyun-Seok¡¯s tense face. ¡°You¡¯re going to co-develop the pancreatic cancer cure with us?¡± Kim Hyun-Seok asked. Even if Young-Joon was a genius, cancer was going to be difficult. He probably couldn¡¯t have developed a cure like that by himself. He probably tried a few different things and then came to the Anticancer Drug Research Department because it wasn¡¯t working out, as this department at Lab One was one of thebs with the most umted results and know-hows in the world when it came to anticancer drug development. ¡°No.¡± Young-Joon calmly shook his head. ¡°We are almost done developing it already. The reason we came to Lab One is to meet the Mobile Diagnostic Device Department.¡± ¡°The Diagnostic Department?¡± Kim Hyun-Seok tilted his head in confusion at the unexpected answer. ¡°Yes. Well, I¡¯ll be on my way since I have to go do experiments. We should grab a coffee next time,¡± said Young-Joon briefly, then walked past Kim Hyun-Seok. As he and the Life Creation Team walked through the hallway, the Diagnostics Department¡¯sbs showed up. Young-Joon went into theb. ¡°Hello. We¡¯re from A-Bio.¡± Young-Joon greeted the scientists at the entrance. ¡°Wee. I heard that you wereing from the director,¡± Principal Scientist Song Yu-Ra greeted Young-Joon. ¡°I won¡¯t bother you too much. Please help us with the PDMS biochip, and please put a talented hands-on scientist on us.¡± When Young-Joon stepped inside, Song Yu-Ra gave them a scientist to work with. They were a doctor-level Scientist who had the best technique in the Diagnostic Department and majored in developing theb-on-a-chip using PDMS. It was Park So-Yeon. She gasped in surprise when she saw Young-Joon, but he was unfazed by her at all. ¡°T-This way,¡± Park So-Yeon said. She took Young-Joon and the Life Creation Team and moved to one side of theb. When she took out the various types of PDMS chips from the tank, he chose the one that was three millimeters wide. ¡°I would like to make a path for the sma to flow through on the PDMS chip. Can we do that?¡± Young-Joon asked. Park So-Yeon put the chip in the mold and stamped it to make the lines. Young-Joon cut the unnecessary parts on the edges with a knife. He punched a groove in the middle. Then, he boiled agarose, pipetted a few ten microliter drops into the gap of the line that Park So-Yeon made, and let it harden. On the other side, he hung up a suctioning equipment. If he pulled blood into it and made it go through the path inside the PDMS, they would be able to filter out the blood cells with agarose¡¯s fine mesh and separate the sma. ¡°Can we make a microchamber at these locations?¡± asked Young-Joon as he pointed to a few ces. Park So-Yeon made a chamber with a fine-movement puncher at the desired locations on the line where the sma moved through. ¡°Thanks.¡± The separated sma all moved to separate microchambers. Young-Joon added the freeze-dried Cas9 and other samples into the chambers. ¡°Please dry the samples.¡± As Young-Joon held out the chip, Park So-Yeon blew all the solvent from the sample from the dryer. The two people did not discuss anything other than work. All Park So-Yeon did was silently follow Young-Joon¡¯s orders. He was also focused on the experiment. At the end of a two-hour job, Young-Joon dropped his blood onto the PMDS chip. After watching the reaction for a moment, he said, ¡°Can you please hand me the nuclease-free water?¡± It was the most sterile distilled water used in theb. Park So-Yeon handed him the water, which was stored in a small vial, and Young-Joon used that to melt and collect the DNA. ¡°Please analyze this with NGS.[1]¡± Park So-Yeon calmly took it when Young-Joon handed her the DNA. ¡°Yes.¡± The experiment proceeded at a rapid pace. * * * Young-Joon and the Life Creation Team worked hard on the experiment all day with the help of Park So-Yeon. In just one morning, they had almost finished the key technology of the diagnostic kit. People would have fainted if they heard about how fast they were progressing, but this wasn¡¯t a big deal to the Life Creation Team anymore. When they finished the experiment and left the building, it was already past seven in the evening. ¡°Should we grab some dinner? It¡¯s on me,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°That sounds good. Should we go to the ce where we had our first dinner as a department?¡± Bae Sun-Mi asked. Coincidentally, they weren¡¯t too far from the restaurant. It was the first barbeque restaurant they went to after presenting their results at the year-end seminar. [You a Fool If You Ain¡¯t Been Here] ¡°Reminds me of the good old days,¡± Young-Joon said as he grilled some beef. ¡°It was really exhrating when we dropped the bomb about the iPSCs at the year-end seminar, right?¡± ¡°Yes. And we didn¡¯t know that this would happen back then. Who would have imagined Doctor Ryu would have be a director, made an affiliatepany, and we would be working under him?¡± said Cheon Ji-Myung with a chuckle. ¡°You can talk informally now. We¡¯re off work now, and it¡¯s an informal setting. Park Joo-Hyuk even swears at me when it¡¯s just the two of us. It¡¯s more awkward for me to see him be formal when other people are around.¡± ¡°Haha.. Yes¡­ sir?¡± Cheon Ji-Myung raised the end of his sentence awkwardly. ¡°To be honest, I don¡¯t like dividing ranks and creating authority in thepany¡­ I think that scientists who have been educated enough should know how to respect each other, but Park Joo-Hyuk nagged me that organizations don¡¯t work that way.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Organizations don¡¯t work like that. In a formal setting, you must be treated as the CEO,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung said. Young-Joon didn¡¯t really agree, but he didn¡¯t say anything because he felt like he would be pressuring him even more. ¡°But we really seeded in just six months,¡± Park Dong-Hyun said. ¡°Do you all remember when Doctor Ryu said he was going to swallow up A-Gen and be their biggest shareholder and whatever?¡± ¡°I don''t know if I should say this, but honestly, I thought you were crazy at the time. But now, it¡¯s really on the verge ofing true. You¡¯re set to being the biggest shareholder of A-Gen if you trade it with them. It was like a dream back then,¡± Jung Hae-Rim said. ¡°Didn¡¯t Dong-Hyun say that he believed in Doctor Ryu? Saying that it looked possible,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung said. ¡°Ah, well, I was half in doubt, but I had to ally myself with him at least in words, right? You don¡¯t know how life will turn out.¡± ¡°Alright, now I know how you really feel,¡± said Young-Joon with a smile. Park Dong-Hyun yfully hit him on the shoulder. ¡°No, I¡¯m kidding. I love you, sir.¡± ¡°Please give your love to your wife and babies at home. I¡¯m good.¡± To Young-Joon, the Life Creation Team members were like his hometown friends. They hadn¡¯t known each other for long, but the fact that they knew the Young-Joon during his Scientist days gave him a sense of relief that was unexinable with words. And since they didn¡¯t fall behind among the talented individuals that came to A-Bio from all over the world, they were honestly the best team for him. They were people who he could trust more with projects that were more creative and difficult and people he could rely on personally. As their sses emptied one by one, the night deepened. ¡°But Doctor Ryu¡­¡± Jung Hae-Rim said with a twisted tongue. ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°Uh¡­ Can I say this? Um¡­ About Ms. So-Yeon.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°I think she still has feelings for you.¡± Park Dong-Hyun, who was sitting beside her, strongly nodded. ¡°The way she looked at you when you were doing the experiment was like something out of a drama.¡± ¡°Was it?¡± ¡°Yes. Even Mr. Soon-Yeol, who is the slowest out of all of us, probably noticed.¡± Park Dong-Hyun pointed at Koh Soon-Yeol. He calmly nodded his head. ¡°I can tell now that I¡¯m dating Ms. Yoon-Ju, but her face definitely looked like she had feelings for you¡­¡± Young-Joon shrugged. ¡°But what can you do? To be honest, I am not interested in Park So-Yeon at all. I have no affection left, and I don¡¯t like her or even hate her. I just don¡¯t have any kind of opinion about her now,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Woah¡­ Cold guy.¡± Cheon Ji-Myung chuckled. ¡°But I want Doctor Ryu to enjoy life and date people, even if it¡¯s not Ms. Park So-Yeon,¡± Bae Sun-Mi said. ¡°You¡¯re still young. Working is great, but there are things that you can only enjoy right now.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. If I was your age, not married, and I had your fame and money? Then it would be insane. Hehe,¡± Park Dong-Hyun said. Young-Joon chuckled. ¡°Thank you. But I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s because I¡¯m addicted to work or something, but I like researching a lot more right now. And I don¡¯t want to meet anyone anyways.¡± * * * The best advantage of a diagnostic kit was that it didn¡¯t require a type of clinical trial where they had to inject drugs into someone¡¯s body since all they had to do was harvest some blood and watch the reaction in a few minutes. In just a few days, the members of the Life Creation Team got used to developing the diagnostic kit quickly. Now, they were at a point where they didn¡¯t need Young-Joon¡¯s help. Their progress of development was also pretty far ahead, so the basic type of the product was expected to be created soon. But before that, big news that would surprise the entire world came out. [A-Bio enters clinical trials for pancreatic cancer cure.] [Phase One to be simultaneously done in Korea and the U.S.] [The only experimental therapy that can cure pancreatic cancer that recurred after surgery.] Even though the treatment difficulty of pancreatic cancer was extremely high, it was something that a lot of bio-venturepanies actually undertook. There were two reasons for this. One was that due to the nature of ventures, they started with at least one ingenious strategy. In other words, there was a vague expectation that this method could cure pancreatic cancer. Another was that it was fairly easy to gather clinical trial volunteers; put another way, it meant that pancreatic cancer did not have a cure. There were volunteers who wanted to try an experimental therapy if they were going to die anyway. In particr, it was a significant incentive if it was a technology that was made by apany like A-Bio that had already shown a lot of innovations. In Korea, the A-Bio Next-Generation Hospital conducted the clinical trial. In the U.S., Professor Feng Zhang of MIT¡¯s medical department, who hadn¡¯t yet joined A-Bio, agreed to supervise the clinical trial. And about three weeks after A-Bio began to develop the kit, Young-Joon was in MIT professor Feng Zhang¡¯s office. ¡°It¡¯s been a while, Doctor Ryu.¡± ¡°Hello.¡± ¡°You look a little tired.¡± ¡°I still have jetg. How is the clinical trial going?¡± ¡°It is revolutionary,¡± Feng Zhang said as if he was waiting for him to ask. His voice was full of excitement that he could barely hold back. ¡°I should have gone to A-Bio earlier and worked on this!¡± Feng Zhang was almost jumping up and down. ¡°Haha, don¡¯t worry. We still have a lot of cancers to conquer. You are joining A-Bio in the second half of the year, right?¡± ¡°I want to go right now if I can.¡± ¡°Are the patients showing improvement?¡± ¡°The five-year survival rate of pancreatic cancer is only eight percent, right? There are a lot of cases where the cancer returns in end-stage patients even if we resect the pancreas with surgery. And for older patients, we can¡¯t do surgery at all a lot of the time,¡± Feng Zhang said. ¡°But because this cure doesn¡¯t require surgery and it¡¯s an oral drug, it¡¯s easy to introduce it to the body. We¡¯re testing it against fourteen patients, and almost ten are on the verge of being cured.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes. The other four patients are showing great improvement as well. The drug itself is quite strong. How did you make it? The drug is only finding the cancer cells in the pancreas, which is known to be hard to target, and killing them. Other than that, the drug works so fast that ny percent of the tumor disappears in some patients just after five days. ¡°It¡¯s a relief that it is working well.¡± ¡°Yes. In the case of end-stage pancreatic cancer patients, it¡¯s difficult to treat because the cancer cells spread to other parts of the body, but¡­ Well, there¡¯s nothing we can do about that with current technology. It¡¯s a miracle that we can treat it this efficiently.¡± ¡°Of course¡­ It can spread when it bes end-stage¡­¡± Young-Joon rested his chin on his hand and thought about what Feng Zhang said. ¡°There¡¯s nothing we can do about it. But Conson & Colson and Illemina are saying that they will provide a quick diagnostic service for pancreatic cancer so that it doesn¡¯t get to end-stage.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± ¡°Yes. I heard that CEO David of Conson & Colson cajoled Illemina to create a MOU and had it out with the director of the Office of Science and Technology. Each hospital will be supplied with Illemina¡¯s equipment and technology, and the U.S. federal government will support it.¡± ¡°Hm.¡± ¡°It¡¯s nothing but a rumor spreading behind the industry¡¯s back, but I heard it from someone involved.¡± Feng Zhangughed in a friendly way. ¡°Someone involved?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°That is¡­ Haha. Actually, I heard it from David himself. He said not to talk about it, but it should be fine, haha. He¡¯s my senior from my undergrad, and we¡¯re quite close,¡± Feng Zhang said. ¡°Now, the number of people who will die from pancreatic cancer will drastically decrease if Conson & Colson diagnoses and A-Bio cures.¡± ¡°Conson & Colson thought well.¡± ¡°Yes, And David wants to meet you. If you¡¯re okay with it, should I set it up?¡± ¡°That sounds great,¡± Young-Joon said without hesitation. A-Bio was filled with scientists from all over the world. Of course Young-Joon heard about the rumor that was spreading behind the industry¡¯s back. ¡°I will meet him if you set up the date,¡± Young-Joon said. But actually, David was already on the list of people he was going to meet during this visit to America. 1. NGS is an acronym for next-generation sequencing. ? Chapter 81: A-Bio Cancer Laboratory (5) Chapter 81: A-Bio Cancer Laboratory (5) Feng Zhang looked remarkably happy when Young-Joon said he would meet David. ¡°Wow, the CEO of the world¡¯s best pharmaceuticalpany is meeting the CEO of thepany that will be the greatestpany in the world. It¡¯s like a union between generations.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Of course. I¡¯ll call him and set up a meeting.¡± Feng Zhang pulled out his phone right away and called David. After chatting for a little bit, Feng Zhang brought up how he was with Young-Joon right now and how he wanted to meet him. ¡ªSure. When is he free? ¡°When are you free?¡± Feng Zhang delivered David¡¯s question to Young-Joon. ¡°I can¡¯t do tomorrow because I have to meet Director James. After that, my schedule is¡­ I should be free from Monday next week. Feng Zhang told David exactly what Young-Joon said. ¡ªAlright. We can have the meeting on Monday. ¡°Where would you like to have it?¡± Feng Zhang asked David. ¡ªConson & Colson has a drug researchb in Pennsylvania. It¡¯s about three hours from Washington by car. It might be a bother, but I will show you around if youe to ourb. I would like to introduce you to ourb for each other¡¯s development in the future. Feng Zhang confirmed the location with Young-Joon. ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll be there.¡± * * * Director James greeted Young-Joon with a bright face. ¡°Wee, Doctor Ryu. Your Science paper on the pancreatic cancer cure was great. Is the clinical trial also going well?¡± ¡°Yes. The clinical trial is going swimmingly,¡± Young-Joon said with a smile. Alice was standing beside him as his trantor. There were three more men with Young-Joon: one was Park Joo-Hyuk, and the other two werewyers from A-Bio¡¯s legal team. Young-Joon just left them to explore the city when he was meeting Feng Zhang, but he needed their help now because he was going to sign a contract. ¡°Now, shall we talk about building A-Bio¡¯s cancerb that we discussed before?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°You said you wanted to build ab that is partnered with the National Cancer Institute (NCI)?¡± James asked. ¡°Yes. We did catch a powerful disease like pancreatic cancer, but we¡¯ve just put out the big me. There may be pancreatic cancers that evade our treatment method, and we need to do a lot of research on other types of cancers.¡± ¡°Because cancer is a drug with a lot of variables.¡± Each type of cancer felt like a different organism. As such, an anticancer drug that was effective in one patient may not work at all on another. A drug that was previously effective might not be anymore when the cancer cells suddenly gain resistance, or it was sometimes the opposite. There were some surprising instances where the cancer cells, which were addicted to the anticancer drug, died when they stopped using it. And after some cancer cells spread to other tissues, they acquired new properties and turned into apletely new type of cancer. That was how versatile of an enemy cancer cells were. The pancreatic cancer cure using the birnavirus was more effective and precise than any other method developed before, but a patient with a type of pancreatic cancer that couldn¡¯t be cured by this may somedaye out. This was what Young-Joon had to n for. He couldn¡¯t be satisfied with making a few good anticancer drugs and saving a lot of patients. ¡®I originally studied anticancer drugs before, so¡­¡¯ And the background behind this was Ryu Sae-Yi, his youngest sister who was caught by a catastrophe with a terrible probability called pediatric liver cancer. Young-Joon wanted no one to suffer from cancer again, and he wanted that world toe as soon as possible. ¡®Oveing all cancers¡­¡¯ Curing Alzheimer¡¯s or diabetes was child¡¯s ypared to this grand goal. The whole world struggled because they couldn¡¯t do something about pancreatic cancer, so things like end-stage cancer that had metastasized to the entire body was something for despair. Among some scientists, there were people who believed that oveing cancer was an unattainable goal. But Young-Joon was going to challenge that, and he wanted to build A-Bio¡¯s cancerb in the U.S. for that goal. He needed to use the vast amount of data, new technology, and equipment that the NCI had. It would be a catalyst that would elerate Rosaline¡¯s research and development. Since it could take too much time for Rosaline to destroy the enemy alone, he was going to give her a weapon. ¡°You are aiding us with three million dors of support, right?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°That¡¯s right. But you must establish it as an American corporation that follows U.S.w. You know that, right?¡± ¡°Yes, it doesn¡¯t matter to me.¡± ¡°Then should we sign the contract? We¡¯ve prepared it.¡± James got the contract from the federal government¡¯swyers and handed it to Young-Joon. ¡°Read through it thoroughly and let us know if you have any questions. You don¡¯t have to sign it right now.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Young-Joon handed over the contract to Park Joo-Hyuk. Park Joo-Hyuk sat at the table beside him with the document and began to read through it with the legal team¡¯wyers, even focusing on onema. Young-Joon was going to read it after they were done checking over it. ¡°Oh, did you meet CEO David from Conson & Colson?¡± James asked. ¡°I am going to go see him next week.¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu, did he talk about the Illemina equipment?¡± ¡°The project to install Illemina¡¯s DNA analysis machines in every hospital?¡± ¡°Yes, that one.¡± ¡°I only heard about it through rumors.¡± ¡°Actually, I had a meeting with him the other day. He requested the federal government¡¯s investment in the project and the easing of rtedws.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Did you?¡± ¡°First of all, the amount he requested was quiterge. Illemina¡¯s DNA analysis equipment is quite expensive, and it would be installing it in all major hospitals in America. But that¡¯s not all. They have to teach doctors and nurses how to use that equipment, and if that¡¯s not possible, they have to ce technicians,¡± James said. ¡°And it needs deregtion because it is dealing with patient DNA, and that is a type of personal information. David is trying to do it with me because it¡¯s such a big project and David can¡¯t do it alone.¡± ¡°So did you refuse?¡± No. I told him I would give him an answer after consulting you.¡± ¡°With me?¡± ¡°He said that this project would ultimately be of help to you.¡± ¡°To me?¡± ¡°Yes. He talked about expanding the diagnostic market, conducting a clinical trial for the pancreatic cancer cure and establishing a structure to support the A-Bio Cancer Laboratory based on that.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± David was definitely a skilled businessman. Young-Joon could see the picture he wanted. If Young-Joon didn¡¯t have the insane technology of the diagnostic kit, there was a very high chance that the situation would go exactly as David nned. David was trying to sell the diagnostic information he obtained from the DNA analysis equipment installed around the country to A-Bio¡¯s cancerb. That would be important data for future cancer research. And if they sessfullypleted this project, the United States could make tremendous strides in cancer research. If so, it was something that was worth trying for the U.S. federal administration since they didn¡¯t have much time left in office; it could be a huge political achievement if it seeded. ¡°Personally, I think it is a great idea. It¡¯s a win-win for all of us. You get data on cancer patients, Conson & Colson gets rich, and we get a political achievement.¡± James said that he would give David an answer after asking Young-Joon, but he was basically convincing him. ¡®It¡¯s a good move.¡¯ In the end, Conson & Colson would be at the top of the biggest issue in the pharmaceutical industry: A-Bio¡¯s entry into the United States. It was a strategy that allowed them toy back doing nothing and just suck out profit using Illemina¡¯s technology, the federal government¡¯s support, and Young-Joon¡¯s ingenuity. David really nned it well since without the diagnostic kit, neither James and Young-Joon would have a reason to reject the proposal, and they would have reached an agreement. But that was it. ¡°Don¡¯t do it,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Pardon?¡± James¡¯ eyes widened as if Young-Joon¡¯s response was so unexpected. ¡°Why are you telling me not to do it? This benefits you as well, Doctor Ryu. Aren¡¯t you going to develop more anticancer drugs at your cancerb? You are receiving three million dors worth of support from us annually, but if you don¡¯t do anticancer research with that¡­¡± ¡°We will do research.¡± ¡°Then you need DNA diagnostic data from patients¡¯ cancers.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. But we are not going to obtain it in the way Conson & Colson think.¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± An extreme confusion took over James. ¡°I have a much more efficient diagnostic technology than that. It will bemercialized in a few weeks,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Since I was going to show CEO David anyways, I will show it to you too, Director.¡± Young-Joon took out hisptop from his bag. ¡°What are you going to show me?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a video of our product¡¯s prototype. We couldn¡¯t bring the actual project for security reasons. Just be satisfied with this.¡± Young-Joon opened a video file that was on the background of hisptop. And after the video hit the three minute mark¡­ ¡°Oh god¡­¡± James was so shocked that he almost screamed. ¡°This is¡­ No, this¡­ This is possible?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a project thatbines A-Bio¡¯s Cas9, A-Gen¡¯sb-on-a-chip technology, and finally, SG Electronics¡¯ semiconductor technology.¡± James clenched his fists slightly. He didn¡¯t want to show his hands trembling as he was the director of the U.S. Office of Science and Technology. ¡°We are going to sell it in convenience stores and grocery stores. We will make diagnosing diseases an everyday medical service.¡± ¡°... How much is it?¡± ¡°All kinds of amazing technology went into it, but it won¡¯t be very expensive because the sample itself isn¡¯t really expensive, and we don¡¯t need a lot of it,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Excludingbor costs, it costs a little bit less than a dor in raw material costs. If we machinerize it and produce it in factories, the supply price will probably be around ten to twenty dors, even if we include the distribution costs.¡± It was only ten thousand to twenty thousand won. James already knew that this wasn¡¯t on the level of treating incurable diseases and things like that. He was confident that this was the greatest invention after smartphones. James asked, ¡°Are you going to make things more like this at the A-Bio Cancer Laboratory?¡± ¡°Unfortunately, this is an A-Gen product.¡± ¡°Or something simr¡­?¡± ¡°We have to focus on cancer research there. As Young-Joon answered with a chuckle, James looked disappointed. ¡°Please tell us if there¡¯s anything you need to build the cancerb. I will do anything if it¡¯s something within my reach.¡± * * * Young-Joon arrived at Conson & Colson¡¯s drug researchb in Pennsylvania. ¡°Hello, Doctor Ryu.¡± Greeting him, David sat Young-Joon down on the chair across from him. After a brief introduction¡­ ¡°Should we talk about business now?¡± David said. ¡°You may already know, but we are nning to install DNA analysis equipment in a thousand hospitals in the United States and do a pilot operation. We have already put in our order to Illemina, and they are producing around two hundred right now.¡± ¡°Doesn¡¯t one of them cost around five hundred thousand dors?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°You really did it big, didn¡¯t you?¡± David smiled at what Young-Joon said. ¡®Did it big?¡¯ Wasn¡¯t it obvious? This kind of dramatic decision was needed to ovee apany like A-Bio and dominate the market first. So far, David had beatpetitors several times by reading the market with his keen insight and making bold decisions. It was the same this time as well. He persuaded Jonathan from Illemina, who was scared and cowering, and James and pushed for the project. ¡°Because I know that you or Director James will not reject,¡± David said confidently. ¡°A-Bio will need a lot of DNA data on cancer patients to do cancer research in the future. There is a lot at the NCI, but that won¡¯t be enough,¡± David said. ¡°Before the end of this year, we will install Illemina¡¯s DNA analysis equipment in all major hospitals around the United States and use that to obtainrge amounts of data on DNA mutation.¡± Young-Joon was just quietly listening. David went on. ¡°We will supply that data to the A-Bio Cancer Laboratory. In exchange, give us shares in yourb.¡± ¡°Shares?¡± ¡°Yes. We will buy shares in yourb. Thirty percent,¡± David said with a confident face. But Young-Joon¡¯s answer was very unexpected. ¡°Mr. CEO, stop this project when you can. It¡¯s going to be trouble if you continue.¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± David frowned a little. ¡°We developed a diagnostic kit. Patients aren¡¯t going to be treated in the way you think.¡± ¡°What are you talking about? A diagnostic kit?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a kit that an ordinary person can use alone to diagnose about one hundred diseases in less than three minutes. This kit can be linked to a phone and be diagnosed in detail with an A-Bio app. It can also send data to doctors at registered hospitals for real-time data-based treatment.¡± Chapter 82: A-Bio Cancer Laboratory (6) Chapter 82: A-Bio Cancer Laboratory (6) Every sentence was clear in Young-Joon¡¯s exnation, but David could not understand it easily. David looked like he just heard that Young-Joon made a time machine or a transportation machine. ¡°What did you make?¡± David asked. ¡°I think it will be too difficult to exin, so I¡¯ll show you a video.¡± Young-Joon pulled out hisptop and yed the video that he showed Director James. [A-Bio Diagnostic Kit Prototype No. AB_01520] The person in the video was Park Dong-Hyun. First, he put one hundred microliters of his blood in each of the five test tubes. Then, he put one microliter of water in the first test tube and mixed it with the blood; this was the negative control group. For three of the test tubes, he put in one microliter each of dengue virus DNA, HIV DNA, and variant DNA from pancreatic cancer cells in separate tubes and mixed it with the blood. Lastly, he put all three types of DNA into the tube. The kit was t, and it was made of a silicon and semiconductor that was the size of one¡¯s palm. Park Dong-Hyun injected the five different blood samples in five separate kits. Blood moved along the tube as the built-in battery worked. The agarose filtered out blood cells, only letting sma and DNA pass through. The sma sequentially passed through one hundred of the holes on the sides. The first kit had no response, but from the first kit to the fourth, one hole at different locations in each kit shone with a green light. And in thest kit, all three holes were green. ¡ªEach hole contains a target DNA amplification system and a Cas9 that discriminates the sequence of the DNA structure. Park Dong-Hyun exined in the video. ¡ªWith this mechanism, you can detect the dengue virus, HIV, and pancreatic cancer cell variant DNA in order at the location of each hole. The corresponding disease DNA is marked with a green light-emitting signal, and all three were marked as all three disease DNA were detected. Park Dong-Hyun exined as he showed the kits to the screen one by one. ¡ªIn order, the blood samples are from a dengue virus patient, HIV patient, and a pancreatic cancer patient, and for thest sample, it is a hypothetical case where the patient is suffering from the dengue virus, HIV and pancreatic cancer. Park Dong-Hyun pulled out an additional test tube. ¡ªThis is a blood sample from an Alzheimer¡¯s patient that was provided by the Next-Generation Hospital. Alzhemier¡¯s is diagnosed by the seventh hole in the kit. Park Dong-Hyun took out a new kit and injected the patient¡¯s DNA. After about two minutes, the seventh hole shone with a green light. David was getting paler as the video progressed. Young-Joon kind of felt sorry for him as he watched his face. ¡®There¡¯s still one more big thing¡­¡¯ Park Dong-Hyun pulled on the button that was located at the bottom of the kit he used to test the Alzheimer¡¯s patient¡¯s blood. A small connecting jack came out. It was a 5-pin terminal. He plugged that into his phone. Ring! With a brief sound of an rm, an external memory recognition message popped up on his phone. He opened [A-Bio Diagnostic Kit Prototype Application v2.17] on his phone. The application recognized the green light from the connected diagnostic kit and sent a message. [Diagnosis: Stage 2 or 3 of Alzheimer¡¯s dementia. A precise examination and intensive care are rmended from nearby hospitals.] [Stage 2 Alzheimer¡¯s: A very mild state of cognitive decline, causing minor memory problems, such as forgetting the location of everyday objects like keys or familiar names. It can be difficult for people around you to notice.] [Stage 3 Alzheimer¡¯s: You may not remember where you put your valuables. Your nning ability declines and you cannot remember sentences well. People around you will be able to notice your cognitive decline.] [Sign up for remote treatment.] [Find nearby hospitals] ¡ªThere aren¡¯t any linked hospitals as it is still in development, and we cannot use the remote treatment system due to legal regtions. But we can find nearby hospitals using the phone¡¯s GPS. Park Dong-Hyun said. He pressed thest option. When he did, a map popped up on the screen with nearby hospitals. When he pressed on the hospitals, a profile of the neurology and psychiatry doctors provided on the hospital¡¯s website came up as well. ¡ªThis is the end of the test of Diagnostic Kit Prototype AB_01520. With Park Dong-Hyun¡¯sstment, the video ended. With his lips firmly shut, David red at the ck screen of Young-Joon¡¯sptop. ¡°When this kit ismercialized, the DNA analysis equipment you are going to install in hospitals will be worthless,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I think it¡¯s best that you stop the project now.¡± ¡°No way¡­¡± David grit his teeth and nced at Young-Joon. ¡°How is this possible? This actually exists? Are you bluffing, Doctor Ryu?¡± Young-Joon was an unrivaled, talented individual in research and development of new technologies, but he was also skilled in business management. What if Young-Joon was trying to destroy Conson & Colson¡¯s business in the U.S.? What if he was bluffing with a technology that didn¡¯t actually exist? ¡°This is just a video, not even the actual product. How can I believe that this is real and not just some edited video? It does not make sense.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have to believe me. It doesn¡¯t matter. I only told you because I¡¯m worried for you,¡± Young-Joon replied calmly. ¡°But is there a reason for me to lie to you? Assuming that this diagnostic technology does not exist, it would help our cancerboratory if this business of yours seeds.¡± ¡°You could make me stumble on this business, then go to America and do it yourself. That kind of bluffing, information wars, and stealing ideas ismon betweenrge pharmapanies.¡± ¡°Not us,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°This is science and medicine, not anything else. As long as I am the CEO, I will not fake something to make money or grow thepany. I want to make a new rule in the pharmaceutical and scientificmunity. I want to create an atmosphere in the industry where we do not lose our moral and principled attitude as scientists. If you can¡¯t believe me, you don¡¯t have to. But you will be in troubleter.¡± ¡°...¡± David wrapped his head in his hands and thought hard. ¡°Doctor Ryu,¡± said David after a moment. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°I want to trust you, Doctor Ryu. but in order to stop this project, I need to be sure. Please confirm a few things for me, only to the extent that you can answer.¡± ¡°Yes, ask me.¡± ¡°DNA amplification requires equipment such as thermo-cyclers. Isn¡¯t that the basic principle of PCR? You need to be able to adjust the temperature from sixty degrees to ny-five degrees Celsius by the second. You can only amplify DNA by doing that for two hours. In this kit, it seems like you just amplified DNA at room temperature without any equipment. How does that work?¡± ¡°The DNA double helix structure loosens if you use rbinase and attach a primer to the target location. If you attach a single-strand binding protein to the single-stranded DNA and amplify it with a polymerase, you can amplify DNA at room temperature without a thermo-cycler.¡± ¡°... But how do you amplify each target for one hundred different kinds of diseases? The primers would all mix.¡± ¡°We put in primer and magnesium, the starter for the amplification, in each hole. Only the target DNA will be amplified in each hole, so the primers will never mix.¡± ¡°...¡± David bit his lower lip. ¡°Then¡­ How did you separate the sma from the blood?¡± ¡°There is a vacuum pressure applied inside the kit by the air battery. The blood travels along a thin tube inside under that pressure, and the very low concentration of an agarose mesh in the tube filters out the blood cells.¡± ¡°What about the green illuminating mechanism?¡± ¡°We made it with a variant of Cas9. If the sequence of the amplified DNA matches the sequence entered in Cas9, it reacts to the DNA. The light-emitting signal is amplified by the principle of FRET (Fluorescence Resonance Energy Transfer) ording to the structural change of Cas9.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I cannot tell you what kind of Cas9 variant it is. That¡¯s the most essential part of this technology.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡®I lost.¡¯ This wasn¡¯t a bluff. It was apletely usible and reasonable exnation. ¡®How the hell did he do that? Is he human?¡¯ David suddenly shot up from his seat. ¡°Shit.¡± He no longer looked rxed. Now, he was really in trouble as the project had already started. Thump! He stomped on the floor. ¡°Phew¡­¡± David caught his breath and organized his thoughts. Young-Joon said, ¡°Director James knows this as well because I told him. He will give you an answer soon that it will be difficult for him to support your project.¡± ¡°I assume so.¡± David let out a sigh. ¡°Your ingenuity is much more outstanding than I nned, Doctor Ryu.¡± ¡°I¡¯m ttered.¡± ¡°... So, why did you show me this?¡± David asked. David was definitely a fast, quick-witted person. He had already read half of Young-Joon¡¯s mind. ¡°If you just let us be, you could have seen a powerfulpetitor like Conson & Colson step on a mine and have its legs blown off. Why did you tell us and stop us?¡± ¡°As I said before, I want to create a new atmosphere and rule in this industry. We are all advancing towards the future of science, are we not? I want co-prosperity and cooperation rather thanpetition,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°We will have no choice but to destroy those like Schumatix that severely damage research ethics, but I want to have respect for people in the same field who research rightfully and legally.¡± ¡°...¡± David was a little ashamed. ¡°And there is some profit I would like to gain through this. It will be of help to you too, Mr. CEO.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°You can¡¯t cancel the order for the two hundred pieces of the DNA analysis equipment, right?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Sell that to me.¡± ¡°... For how much?¡± ¡°I will buy it at fifty percent of the price you bought it for from Illemina.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± David covered his face with his hands. ¡°Don¡¯t do this, Mr. Ryu. It hasn¡¯t even been shipped out yet. It¡¯s still being produced. It¡¯s not used. It¡¯spletely new.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have anywhere to sell it to if I don¡¯t buy it.¡± ¡°That is true, but¡­¡± ¡°Even if there is demand, how high do you think it will be for a piece of equipment that costs five hundred thousand dors? And even if we don¡¯t have that equipment, we canmission DNA sequence analysis to a sequencingpany that has the equipment. So, the demand for the actual equipment itself is very low,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°It will take a few years to sell two hundred of something like that. Then, it will really be used. And venturepanies orbs who want to get one will get a new one from Illemina. They wouldn¡¯t get a used one from Conson & Colson, which isn¡¯t even a DNA analysispany.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°If you drag your feet and time passes, technology will advance more, and the price will drop even more. Fifty percent is a high offer. This is the only chance you have to get rid of two hundred of these white elephants at once.¡± ¡°Ugh.¡± David clenched his eyes shut like this was painful. To be honest, the loss wasn¡¯t that burdensome to apany as big as Conson & Colson if they stopped the project right now. But there was clearly a reason why Young-Joon was taking two hundred of those super expensive pieces of equipment. That man was a scientist inside-out, but like a natural businessman, he never did business that would cause losses. ¡®Just look at the talent that created that monstrous diagnostic kit.¡¯ If a genius of the century took two hundred of Illemina¡¯s DNA analysis machines and went to hispany? David was sure that he would bring something that would knock the scientificmunity out again in a few months. ¡®What is it? What can he do with two hundred of those machines?¡¯ ¡°Are you not going to sell them?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Um¡­¡± ¡°This is your only chance.¡± Young-Joon smiled. ¡°Alright¡­ I will sell them to you,¡± David replied helplessly. David didn¡¯t have a choice. He couldn¡¯t even predict what was in that genius¡¯s view. Even if David took on some loss, he had to stop this project right now and get out. Young-Joon said, ¡°Thank you. But I will give you a very special opportunity to secure a share in the A-Bio Cancer Laboratory.¡± ¡®What? An opportunity to get a share in A-Bio¡¯s cancerb?¡¯ David gulped. ¡®I went through hell to get here, but I didn¡¯t expect to be dragged along by a thirty-year-old CEO at this age¡­¡¯ For some reason, David wanted to decline and say that he didn¡¯t need the share because of his pride, but he knew that he was in no position to do that. ¡°What is it?¡± David asked in a slightly exhausted voice. Chapter 83: A-Bio Cancer Laboratory (7)

Chapter 83: A-Bio Cancer Laboratory (7)

The way Conson & Colson was going to secure stakes in the A-Bio Cancer Laboratory... David didn¡¯t think Young-Joon would give it to him that easily, but it really wasn¡¯t simple. ¡°Conson & Colson have a patent for the Chimeric Antigen Receptor T-cell Therapy, one of the third-generation cancer immunotherapies. Schumatix originally had it, but it was transferred to Conson & Colson.¡± ¡®No...¡¯ David felt dizzy. ¡®Please not that technology.¡¯ This technology was basically the future of Conson & Colson. David¡¯s heart began beating wildly. He tried to keep a calm face. Young-Joon said, ¡°Please transfer that international patent to the A-Bio Cancer Laboratory. Then, I will give you shares.¡± Chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy, or CAR-T therapy, was a technology where one used immune cells to eliminate cancer. There was a mechanism in the body where immune cells tracked down cancer cells and destroyed them. It was a natural defense that the human body used to remove cancer on its own, and the chimeric immunotherapy helped that work better. The process was extremelyplicated. They would have to harvest T-cells, a type of immune cells, from the body and then manipte their DNA. Then, they would attach a material that would allow the T-cell to recognize cancer cells better. And after the T-cells were injected into the body, they would find the cancer cells and destroy them. It was a treatment method that was in the spotlight because it was especially effective on blood cancers like lymphoma and was rtively safe. The problem was the price. It cost four hundred fifty thousand dors for a single procedure. That was over four hundred million won in Korea. ¡°But I can drastically reduce the price of that treatment. And I can increase the efficiency as well.¡± ¡°How?¡± David asked. ¡°Because I have Cas9 and stem cell maniption,¡± said Young-Joon. ¡°Because we have stem cell technology, we do not have to extract immune cells from the patient. We can just make stem cells from the patient, differentiate it into bone marrow, and mass produce immune cells from there since immune cells are made from bone marrow.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°And like we manipted CCR5 with Cas9 to cure HIV, we can gically engineer them to their most optimal state so that the immune cells can kill cancer cells better.¡± ¡°That¡¯s... true...¡± ¡°Conson & Colson made it so that people couldn¡¯t work on it easily by heavily raising the royalties on patent for the technology. It seems like you wanted to study it exclusively at Conson & Colson.¡± ¡°Honestly, yes. That¡¯s right¡± ¡°But A-Bio has stem cells and Cas9. Conson & Colson will not be able tomercialize that. So, transfer it to us. We will let that technology see light.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t that the same for A-Bio as well? You have stem cells and Cas9, but not our technology.¡± ¡°We can develop another technology that bypasses the patent for the chimeric immunotherapy. I just think it¡¯s a waste of time.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡®This man talks about making a new technology like he¡¯s going to fry an egg or something.¡¯ But the problem was that Young-Joon actually seeded. Again, he said it without any evidence, but there was a power to it that could not be ignored. What if he really did develop a technology that bypassed chimeric immunotherapy? Then, Conson & Colson really wouldn¡¯t be able to get anything. ¡°If we transfer the technology to you, how much shares of the cancerb are you going to give us?¡± ¡°We will give you two percent.¡± ¡°Two percent! Only two percent?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not just two percent. I am giving you an amazing deal because you may be able to give us your help when we go to America.¡± ¡°Mr. Ryu, chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy is the most important technology among three third-generation immunotherapies. You also know that, right?¡± ¡°But the only ce it will be able to see light is A-Bio. If you just leave it like that, it will not be an important technology, it will die as a technology that could have been important. I am giving you a lot of shares by buying it at two percent.¡± ¡°What are you going to do if I refuse?¡± ¡°Then like I said, I will develop a different technology,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°And you will greatly regret that you lost the chance of a lifetime to secure two percent of shares of the A-Bio Cancer Laboratory. You may also be questioned during your board meeting.¡± ¡°Phew...¡± David let out a deep breath. How big was the potential value of the A-Bio Cancer Laboratory? The chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy was a technology with high potential value rather than being an excellent profit model right now. To be honest, it was true right now that it would only transform into something actually useful if it went through A-Bio. ¡°But to exchange two percent of shares of yourb with the chimeric immunotherapy...¡± ¡°You are good at making bold decisions, aren¡¯t you, Mr. CEO?¡± Young-Joon grinned. ¡°You don¡¯t get a second chance for this.¡± ¡°This is not something I can decide on my own.¡± ¡°You can give me an answer after discussing it thoroughly at the board meeting.¡± ¡°I will think about it because you did really show us that you can cure pancreatic cancer. I will use that as evidence and bring it up during the next meeting,¡± David said. * * * A-Bio, which was always in the spotlight, received the most attention with its HIV eradication project. Even before that died down, news even bigger than that came pouring. About a few weeks after Young-Joon returned from America, the door to targeting cancer had finally opened. [A-Bio¡¯s pancreatic cancer cure seeds in Phase One of clinical trials.] The first news that came out was about the pancreatic cancer cure. Phase One of its clinical trial, which was being carried out in Korea and America simultaneously, had already made significant progress when Young-Joon met Professor Feng Zhang. The same results came from Korea as well. However, considering the time, it was not yet the point to dere the clinical trial a sess. But there were two reasons why this kind of news wasing out. The first was that the prognosis was quite good. The patient¡¯s cancer cells died rapidly in a short amount of time, and the cure was highly efficient. Reporters ended up choosing provocative buzz words because they wanted to report on it as fast as possible. The second reason was because of the huge breaking news in the United States. Like how everyone followed the popr kid, Korean reporters had hopped on the bandwagon and took the opportunity to release the news about the pancreatic cancer cure. The news in the United States was obviously the announcement of the establishment of the A-Bio Cancer Laboratory. [A-Bio signs contract to build a cancerboratory in Marnd.] [Federal government promises three million dors a year in funding.] [The National Cancer Institute to provide all its gathered data and technology.] [Conson & Colson signs contract to transfer patent for chimeric immunotherapy to the A-Bio Cancer Laboratory.] [Conson & Colson gives up rights to the most famous third-generation immunotherapy and joins forces with A-Bio.] [The first step to the great achievement of conquering cancer.] On top of that, the address Young-Joon gave at the groundbreaking ceremony of the A-Bio Cancer Laboratory spread through the media. ¡°Cancer is a difficult andplex disease with almost an infinite number of variables. But A-Bio has developed a medicine that cures pancreatic cancer, the most difficult type of cancer, and was greatly sessful in the first phase of the clinical trial,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°From now, we will destroy all types of cancers: liver cancer, lung cancer, prostate cancer, brain tumors, ovarian cancer, leukemia, skin cancer, colorectal cancer, breast cancer, non-Hodgkin¡¯s lymphoma, esophageal cancer, thyroid cancer, and more. We may not be able to get them all in a day, but we will conquer them one by one and open the doors to a cancer-free world in the near future. The world was turned upside down again. ¡ªHoly shit. ¡ªI just called 1301. This is the number I should call to report my national pride right? Cause it¡¯s making me high.[1] ¡ªNational pride is literally giving me hallucinations. I had a dream about him yesterday. ¡ªThe American government is giving them three million dors yearly. What is our government doing... ¡ªHave you ever seen the Korean government invest in fundamental science before? And our government doesn¡¯t have any money. ¡ªBut our government quietly gave A-Bio ten billion won when it was first opened. Don¡¯t hate on them so much. ¡ªBut is Conson & Colson high or something? Why did they do that all of a sudden? They just gave their key technology to their most powerfulpetitor. ¡ªI think they aligned themselves. Smart choice. Kim Hyun-Taek, the director of Lab One, grit his teeth as he read the posts that wereing up in Young-Joon¡¯s fan club ¡°He¡¯s building a cancerb?¡± he said. On the other side of the table, Doctor Kim Joo-Yeon, the principal scientist in the Anticancer Drug Research Department, sat there with a tense face. ¡°It¡¯s weird,¡± Kim Hyun-Taek said. ¡°Whatever about the pancreatic cancer cure. Sure, the U.S. federal government can support Ryu Young-Joon. But Conson & Colson is handing over the chimeric immunotherapy? For just a sliver of shares? What do you think, Doctor Kim?¡± ¡°It¡¯s very strange. I¡¯m wondering if Doctor Ryu made some sort of deal when he went to America.¡± ¡°From what I know, Conson & Colson were going to install Illemina¡¯s diagnostic devices in hospitals around the country to dominate the diagnostics market, then pressure Young-Joon to take a lot of shares of theb. This was how the scenario was going to go.¡± ¡°If that happened, we could have turned around the atmosphere by leaking a headline that the cancerb isn¡¯t actually Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s, but Conson & Colson¡¯s, an Americanpany.¡± ¡°I know. But there¡¯s nothing like that, and they even gave them chimeric immunotherapy? This looks like they are supporting them. They are making someone who is already powerful stronger. What happened?¡± ¡°To be honest, I don¡¯t really know because it¡¯s so unexpected...¡± Kim Hyun-Taek brushed through his hair like he was frustrated. ¡°He is going to be dangerous if we leave him be. He used to be a cancer scientist. He went back to his field of expertise. With the help of the U.S. federal government, the world¡¯s best research institute, and thergest pharmapany in the world.¡± ¡°You have to do something,¡± Kim Joo-Yeon said. ¡°Sir, the center of cancer research will no longer be in our department. It will be transferred to Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s cancerb.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Ryu Young-Joon is already being mentioned for the next CTO. He is more popr than you. If you give him the anticancer drug field in this situation...¡± ¡°The reason why Conson & Colson turned to supporting Ryu Young-Joon. Does it have anything to do with the diagnostic kit he is developing?¡± Kim Hyun-Taek asked. ¡°I don¡¯t know for sure, but I think it will.¡± ¡°I should go down there.¡± Kim Hyun-Taek got up from his seat. He put his coat on and went to the Mobile Diagnostic Device Research Department with Principal Scientist Kim Joo-Yeon. ¡°Who is the scientist that is working with Doctor Ryu?¡± Kim Hyun-Taek asked Principal Scientist Song Yu-Ra. ¡°Are you talking about Doctor Park So-yeon?¡± ¡°Park So-Yeon? Take me to her.¡± * * * Park So-Yeon was looking at Young-Joon¡¯s experimental data on herptop. It was truly fascinating and extraordinary. The idea of diagnosing DNA with Cas9 was so innovative, and his potential that pushed that idea and got results was amazing as well. The mechanism that DNA is amplified at room-temperature was shocking. Everything was just so surprising. It was only in its development stages, but it really was an amazing item. The structure of the whole diagnostics field was going to be reformed. ¡®This probably affected Conson & Colson¡¯s decision.¡¯ This item could potentially be a more powerful item than the pancreatic cancer cure. ¡°Doctor Park So-Yeon.¡± Someone called for her as they came inside. Startled, she instantly turned off herptop. ¡°Director?¡± ¡°I came here because I want to ask you something.¡± Kim Hyun-Taek approached her. ¡°I want to see the experiment notes for the diagnostic kit that you and Doctor Ryu from A-Bio are developing together.¡± ¡°Um... That is...¡± ¡°Hurry. This is important. I have to know what it does.¡± Park So-Yeon hesitated. ¡°O-One moment.¡± Click. Park So-Yeon turned on herptop. She followed the directory to find the experiment data and opened a few folders. She felt like cold sweat was running down her neck as Kim Hyun-Taek red at her. ¡®Wait.¡¯ Park So-Yeon stopped. ¡®Is it right for me to give this to him?¡¯ Park So-Yeon also didn¡¯t know any information about the Cas9 variant, which was the most essential part of the diagnostics kit. It was because Young-Joon was strict about the security regarding that information, which was the most important. She had heard that only the members of the Life Creation Team knew that in A-Bio as well. As such, there was a low probability that it would cause a problem for Young-Joon even if she revealed the information she knew. And no one would be able to do anything because it is just beforepletion. But did that mean she could give this information to him? This experimental data was developed by Young-Joon borrowing the samples and facilities at the Diagnostic Device Research Department as the CEO of A-Bio; it was not a coborative research betweenbs, so it had nothing to do with Kim Hyun-Taek. ¡®Would Ryu Young-Joon have given it to him?¡¯ Park So-Yeon didn¡¯t hope to get back with him or anything now. This was a different matter; it was not because of personal feelings. The scientists here had learned something from Young-Joon, and she had learned it better and harder than anyone else. Park So-Yeon hesitated, then said in a quiet voice, ¡°I... I¡¯m sorry... But I don¡¯t have it...¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have it?¡± Kim Hyun-Taek frowned. ¡°...¡± ¡°Talk clearly.¡± ¡°...gainst...¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Against research ethics...¡± 1. 1301 is the number in Korea to report drug-rted crimes. ? Chapter 84: The Diagnostic Kit (1)

Chapter 84: The Diagnostic Kit (1)

Kim Hyun-Taek stared at Park So-Yeon like perhaps he heard her wrong. There was a moment of silence between the both of them, and she just lowered her head, unable to say anything. ¡°What did you just say?¡± ¡°It is against research ethics...¡± Park So-Yeon was basically mumbling because she was so scared, but Kim Hyun-Taek understood what she said. ¡°Research ethics.¡± Kim Hyun Taek scoffed like this was ridiculous. ¡°That damn research ethics. My ears are going to fall off. Do you know how the structure of work management works? Hey, So-Yeon-ssi, what department are you part of?¡± ¡°The Mobile Diagnostic Device Research Department...¡± ¡°Whatb is that department part of?¡± ¡°Lab One...¡± ¡°And who is the director of Lab One?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I have a right to know about the work that you do and the department does. You just give theb director the data if they ask for it. Why are you talking about research ethics?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Stop talking nonsense and open the data.¡± Park So-Yeon clenched her eyes shut. To be honest, there would be nothing wrong with giving him the data right now. The diagnostic kit was nearpletion already. Even if Kim Hyun-Taek saw part of the data, there was nothing he could do. But this was about Park So-Yeon¡¯s own responsibility for her research ethics. The day Young-Joon went against Kim Hyun-Taek and was kicked out of theb with punishment, she let go of him. This was only just a few months ago. After that, she regretted it like hell. The current Park So-Yeon was different. She was still new to the workforce, but she wasn¡¯t aplete neer who had just joined thepany like when the incident happened. Back then, she was walking on eggshells around her superiors from one minor mistake and worrying whether she would make a bad impression on anyone at thepany. ¡®I was scared, too.¡¯ Everyone at theb basically knew that she and Young-Joon were dating. But he didn¡¯t fight with just some department head, he fought with theb director¡ªthe future candidate for the CTO position. If she took his side, what kind of burden would she have to have taken on? This was the firstpany she joined after studying for a total of ten years, from her bachelor¡¯s to her doctorate, and finally graduating. It was also Lab One, the most famousb at A-Gen, the best pharmaceuticalpany in the country. It was a reward for her ten years of studying, and she did not want to give up on the wonderful dream and life that would unfold from this great position. She was just scared of everything. Park So-Yeon was still scared. But now, she had the courage to ovee that fear. ¡°This is not a co-research project,¡± Park So-Yeon said. ¡°Mr. Ryu borrowed the facilities here, and I was dispatched as research support for the development of the PDMSb-on-a-chip. Our department andb do not have any rights about that project. Mr. Ryu has all the authority, and I cannot share the data at will.¡± ¡°Ah, are you going to be troublesome like that?¡± Kim Hyun-Taek said irritably. ¡°Excuse me, So-Yeon-ssi, why are you being sensitive about something so stupid? As long as Doctor Ryu experiments here, he probably knows that all the data produced here can be shared with me.¡± Kim Hyun-Taek snapped at her. ¡°You don¡¯t think I know research ethics? I worked in this field thirty years more than you. Who are you trying to teach?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°It¡¯s alright in practice. Then, do I have to go to Doctor Ryu because I want to see the data and get permission? When my subordinate at myb has that data? When it¡¯s obvious that he¡¯ll say that I can see the kind of data that Park So-Yeon-ssi has?¡± ¡°Then request it from Mr. Ryu...¡± Park So-Yeon said. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Come find me after getting Mr. Ryu¡¯s permission. That¡¯s the proper procedure...¡± ¡°...¡± Kim Hyun-Taek grabbed the back of his neck in anger as he grit his teeth. The other scientists were staring at him, then quickly turned away when he looked back up. But he could hear people whispering, ¡°What¡¯s So-Yeon-ssi going to do...¡±. ¡°Damn it.¡± He let out a sigh. Park So-Yeon still looked scared, but it seemed like she wasn¡¯t going to back down easily. He knew that this wouldn¡¯t happen even if he yelled at her. ¡°Whatever. I don¡¯t need that data,¡± Kim Hyun-Taek said. ¡°I will never forget this. I didn¡¯t know that a rookie doctor who doesn¡¯t know what she¡¯s doing would screw me over like this.¡± ¡°...¡± Thud!! Kim Hyun-Taek mmed the door behind him and left. ¡°Sigh...¡± Park So-Yeon, who was no longer tense, sat back down. Her legs trembled. Suddenly, she felt tears in her eyes. She pulled out a handkerchief and wiped her eyes. She covered her face with her hands and thought in silence. After breaking up with Young-Joon, she was in pain every time she hung out with the people from Lab One. Until Young-Joon turned around thepany atmosphere with a powerful performance at the year-end seminar, they all talked badly about andughed at Young-Joon. They weren¡¯t really careful because they were around Park So-Yeon, his ex-girlfriend. And she usually joined them in talking behind Young-Joon¡¯s back. Whenever she did, she felt ufortable in the back of her mind as if she had an upset stomach or something. She didn¡¯t even wish him congrattions for his sess. Considering her hardships, regret, and how sorry she felt, she thought that she would rather fall out of favor with Kim Hyun-Taek. * * * The birnavirus was originally a virus that caused infectious pancreatic necrosis in fish of the salmon family. Young-Joon¡¯s strategy was to change the structure of this virus so that it only infected cancer cells in the pancreas. For this, he made a transferrin receptor and a ligand for ERBB2 on the surface of this virus, and he removed the BVP3 gene so that the virus could not multiply in the body. The pancreatic cancer cure team was the one who was in charge of it up to this point. It took A-Gen¡¯s Research Support Center to get their hands on the birnavirus because it was such a unique virus. It also took a long time to manipte the genes and confirm the structure. But there was another step. Because the virus would be destroyed by stomach acid, they had to make it pass through the stomach with a capsule coating, go through the pylorus, and allow the coating to dissolve in bile that is secreted from the pancreas. Celligener was the one responsible for the capsule coating technology. It took a long time as it was a project that started with a very creative idea and hadpiled all kinds of new technologies. ¡°But we sessfully finished the first phase of clinical trials,¡± Young-Joon said on the podium with a ss of wine in his hand. Below him, around twenty people gathered to hear Young-Joon¡¯s speech after drinking the sses distributed by the servers. It was a congrattory dinner party. He had brought Principal Scientist Lee Jae-Chun¡¯s team that was in charge of developing the pancreatic cancer cure and five scientists under Song Ji-Hyun from Celligener to a hotel restaurant. ¡°The establishment of the A-Bio Cancer Laboratory is all thanks to you. I congratte and thank you for this sess.¡± Clink! They all clinked their sses and took a sip of wine. ¡ªI will detoxify the alcohol. Rosaline sent him a message. ¡®I kind of want to get drunk today.¡¯ ¡ªIf you would like a calming effect, I will control your serotonin level. Let¡¯s just get rid of the alcohol because it is harmful to your body. ¡®It¡¯s been months since I¡¯ve had a day off. Can you just leave it?¡¯ ¡ªI don¡¯t want to use the same blood vessels as alcohol. ¡®So picky... Do whatever you want.¡¯ Rosaline began breaking down the alcohol. ¡°Doctor Ryu.¡± Song Ji-Hyun approached Young-Joon. ¡°I saw the speech you have at the groundbreaking ceremony for the cancerb. You said you were going to conquer a variety of cancers one by one...¡± ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right.¡± ¡°Is the clinical trial for Cellicure going to start now?¡± ¡°Um...¡± Young-Joon looked a little hesitant. To be honest, he didn¡¯t want to continue Cellicure¡¯s clinical trial in this state. It was a good drug, but Rosaline could develop it into a better form. Right now, Cellicure was effective in destroying liver cancer cells and didn¡¯t really have any side effects, but there was one drawback. It was that it broke down too much in the liver. So to increase the efficacy, they had to increase the amount while keeping in mind the amount that was broken down. However, they had to increase the number of doses instead of the intake as an increase in a single dose could damage regr cells. Patients would have to take the cure six times a day, which was a pretty severe drawback for a new drug. It was pretty bothersome that they would have to keep to a schedule in everyday life. People living in the busy and hectic modern society could easily forget their intake time. But Young-Joon could rectify the drawback if he changed a few things about Cellicure. He just had to make the drug only go into cancer cells and not regr liver cells. Then, they could decrease the breakdown, and they could see a better efficacy with less of the drug and fewer doses. ¡®I should tell her, right?¡¯ ¡°Actually, I...¡± ¡°About Cellicure...¡± The two people began talking at the same time, then stopped together. ¡°Oh, go ahead,¡± Young-Joon said with a smile. ¡°Yes, sir. This is something I¡¯ve been thinking about while working on the pancreatic cancer cure coating, but what if we coat Cellicure with an exosome and attach a receptor that targets liver cancer cells on the surface of the exosome? Then, we can send Cellicure only to the liver, which would decrease the number of doses and increase the efficacy...¡± Young-Joon¡¯s eyes widened. Song Ji-Hyun flinched a little when she saw his face. Pitching an idea to a genius like Young-Joon needed a bit of courage. Song Ji-Hyun¡¯s ears reddened. ¡°Haha, maybe not? It was just a thought. If it doesn¡¯t work, you don¡¯t...¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s fine.¡± It was exactly what Young-Joon was going to exin, even down to the idea of using exosomes. ¡°It¡¯s a great idea,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°If we work on that, we could advance Cellicure a little more.¡± Song Ji-Hyun¡¯s expression brightened a little. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you work on it? We won¡¯t have to repeat Phase One because it isn¡¯t a change to the drug itself but only the delivery method. Let¡¯s reinforce it and begin Phase Two.¡± * * * Kim Young-Hoon, a director at A-Gen, was someone the SG Group had put in. He wanted to put Young-Joon at the top of A-Gen. ¡®Maybe Yoon Dae-Sung is fine, but Ryu Young-Joon is much better than someone like Yoon Bo-Hyun.¡¯ To stop Yoon Dae-Sung from passing down his management rights and putting A-Gen in the possession of Young-Joon: Kim Young-Hoon even helped establish A-Bio for this goal. He was the one who sold the patent to the flu treatment that Young-Joon had to SG Pharmaceuticals so that he could secure capital for establishment. It was a win-win for everyone. But recently, Kim Young-Hoon began starting more direct conversations. When the diagnostic kit was still in its early phases, Kim Young-Joon requested a meeting with Young-Joon, and he connected him to SG Electronics. That was how the smartphone-linking technology was born. As Kim Young-Hoon was driving home, his heart beat in excitement. ¡®Now, the world is going to be turned upside down.¡¯ He had heard what stage the diagnostic kit was at when he called Young-Joon. It was almost done, and he had heard that it was going into mass production at A-Gen¡¯sb-on-a-chip production factory. And everything was going to be revealed tomorrow. It was going to be on the cover of Science tomorrow, and it was going to be the main news on the Nine O¡¯Clock News. ¡®It will be on the headlines of every news article tomorrow.¡¯ Kim Young-Hoon took the four diagnostic kits he received as a prototype and came home. He gave one to his family, who were watching the TV together. ¡°What is this?¡± asked Kim So-Jung, his daughter who was in high school, as she examined the kit. ¡°You want to take out the sterile blood-collecting needle and get a drop of blood from your finger?¡± With a curious look, she opened the needle and poked the end of her finger. With a stinging pain, the blood started moving into the kit with the pressure from the built-in battery. Kim Young-Hoon watched the kit in silence. Thankfully, there weren¡¯t any signals. ¡°Oh my! Something is lighting up on mine!¡± Kim Young-Hoon¡¯s wife held up the kit and tilted her head in confusion. There was a green light from hole forty-eight. ¡°It¡¯s because you have diabetes. That¡¯s been diagnosed,¡± Kim Young-Hoon said. ¡°Diabetes?¡± ¡°This is the diagnostic kit that A-Bio developed.¡± When Kim Young-Hoon was about to exin, the Nine O¡¯Clock News started on the TV. ¡ªWee to the Nine O¡¯Clock News. Do you remember CEO Ryu Young-Joon, who drew attention for his HIV eradication project and the establishment of his cancerboratory in the United States of America? At A-Bio, hispany, they developed a real-time blood diagnostic kit. The news anchor announced. ¡ªThis kit allows people to self-diagnose one hundred types of diseases, including various types of cancer, HIV, and the dengue virus, in three minutes. The structure of the kit appeared on the screen. ¡ªThis kit finds and amplifies the disease-rted DNA in the blood and uses the Cas9 system to determine the DNA sequence. It shows the diagnosis through a green light. The anchor said. ¡ªThere are a total of one hundred disease diagnosis spots, and each of the spots show the presence of the disease through a green light. This kit can also be linked to a phone, and the application that A-Bio developed can automatically present a specific diagnosis and connect people with a nearby hospital. ¡°Holy crap...¡± Kim So-Jung¡¯s jaw dropped. ¡°Dad, can I take a picture of this kit and put it on Instagram? And the Ryu Young-Joon fan club...¡± ¡°Of course.¡± Kim Young-Hoon chuckled. ¡ª... And so, CEO Ryu Young-Joonmented that this diagnostic kit is being produced right now, and it will be avable in convenience stores and grocery stores around the country in as fast as two weeks. Kim Young-Hoon gulped. The a cure and the pancreatic cancer cure weren¡¯t items that affected the lives of healthy individuals. But this was different. This was no different from buying a doctor¡¯s diagnostic services from the convenience store. ¡®Was it Steve Jobs that said that the best innovation in the twenty-first century woulde from the meeting point of technology and biology?¡¯ This was the moment the world took a step towards that point. Chapter 85: The Diagnostic Kit (2)

Chapter 85: The Diagnostic Kit (2)

¡°Hey, did you get the diagnostic kit?¡± Ryu Ji-Won pricked up her ears when she heard the voices of the students on their way to school. All the students walking into the main entrance were talking about the same thing. ¡°I saw my mom use that yesterday at home, but it¡¯s so freaking cool. My mom has diabetes and arthritis, and only those two came up when she plugged the kit into her phone and opened the app.¡± ¡°I went to the convenience storest night to get it, but it was all sold out. It¡¯s trending like the kkul butter chips[1]. Apparently, people who work at convenience stores buy twenty of them when theye in and sell them for a higher price to people they know.¡± ¡°Insane...¡± ¡°The supply speed isn¡¯t keeping up with the demand. And people who have the money already bought their supply for a few months. Apparently, they are going to diagnose themselves once every week.¡± ¡°Seriously, why are they like that? Why do they have to take all of it? It¡¯s not like a disease that wasn¡¯t there a week before will suddenly appear or something.¡¯¡± ¡°I guess they¡¯re older, so they¡¯re anxious about it. But I think the supply and demand will settle down with time, right? It¡¯s probably like this right now because it was just released.¡± ¡°I think the convenience store at school would have gotten some. Do you want to go?¡± ¡°They might be out already. The biotech kids are going crazy about it and going on the school convenience store raids every morning.¡± This wasn¡¯t an exaggeration. The biotechnology students were huge fans of Young-Joon. But it was natural as nowadays, Young-Joon made people¡¯s chests puff up just by themonality that they were both Korean. As such, the pride and respect that woulde from Young-Joon being an alumnus of their department would be quite special. Plus, it wasn¡¯t like he was an alumnus from twenty years ago; Young-Joon had only graduated from school a year ago. Some of the current undergraduate and graduate students had learned directly from him in theb when Young-Joon was a graduate student. ¡°No, they are actually crazy. I get it because they are OG fans of Ryu Young-Joon, but...¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t it more because this is the homeground? I heard that some peoplee into the school to see it. They evene to his advisor¡¯sb.¡± Ryu Ji-Won gulped as she listened to them ¡®The pressure is no joke...¡¯ It was like this before, but it was getting worse. There weren¡¯t a lot of people at school who knew that she was Young-Joon¡¯s younger sister. They didn¡¯t even think of that because their age gap was pretty big, but a few of her colleagues and seniors knew that. It was something she revealed at the MT[2] at the beginning of the semester when she was exining the system that discounted tuition if two or more people in the family were from or attending Jungyoon University. ¡®I didn¡¯t know he would be a huge star back then.¡¯ If she knew that, she wouldn¡¯t have told anyone. Already, Ryu Ji-Won was suffering quite a lot from it. There were some people who asked her if they could meet Young-Joon or wanted her to ask Young-Joon for advice on going to graduate school. One of the older girls in her school club who had a promiscuous past wanted her to set up a date. There was no telling what kind of troubles she would go through if more people knew she was Young-Joon¡¯s younger sister. ¡®I¡¯m going to hide it as best as I can from now on.; Ryu Ji-Won went to the convenience store that was in the basement of the Central Library. Of course, it wasn¡¯t for the diagnostic kit but to get something to drink during ss. All the students who came to the convenience store asked the same thing at the counter. ¡°Do you have A-Checkup?¡± A-Checkup was the product name of A-Bio¡¯s diagnostic kit. ¡°No, we¡¯re out.¡± The part-time worker was also suffering as they were repeating the same thing they would have said since the morning dozens of times. Ryu Ji-Won quietly paid for her drink and went to the lecture room. Unfortunately, her ss right now was her general biology course. The reason she enrolled in this course when she was a non-major student was to take advantage of her brother. All she would have to do was ask her brother since he was a doctor of biology, right? She wanted to get good grades easily, but she deeply regretted her decision now. The professor for this course was Professor Ban Du-Il. He was the professor who supervised Young-Joon from his undergraduate all the way to his doctorate; he was the ¡°Ryu Young-Joon Maker¡±. And as he had known Young-Joon for a long time, he knew about Ryu Ji-Won as well. ¡°Oh, hello.¡± Ryu Ji-Won greeted Ban Du-Il when she saw him at the entrance. ¡°Hi.¡± Ban Du-Il, who was sixty and close to retirement, was extremely delighted. He had been this way these days. It was natural as his student, whom he taught from his undergraduate to doctorate degree, was sweeping the scientificmunity. ¡°Ji-Won, your brother. Is heing to school anytime soon?¡± asked Ban Du-Il, hinting at something. ¡°The school is doing a World Schrs Seminar. It¡¯s for all students down at the big hall, and our department is inviting a schr this time. And I¡¯m the one in charge. Your brother would be enough, right?¡± ¡°A World Schrs Seminar?¡± ¡°The one where we bring in one person every semester. It¡¯s probably the first you¡¯re hearing from it because it¡¯s your first semester. Haven¡¯t you heard about it from your brother?¡± ¡°The seniors at my club were talking about how Chomsky camest year. Is it that?¡± ¡°Yeah. The humanity department called him for the second semesterst year. Well, I got the baton, so it¡¯s my turn to invite someone. If we invite your brother, we can save money since your brother¡¯s Korean and we don¡¯t have to hire a trantor.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I¡¯ll talk to the department office and make the lecture fee worth his while. Although it won¡¯t be worth a lot to him.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll ask him. But he doesn¡¯te home very often nowadays.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes. He¡¯s so busy that he just stays up at work or sleeps at a hotel nearby. He says that it¡¯s a waste of time to drive home.¡± ¡°Man. He didn¡¯t work that hard for his degree. Anyways, just ask him for me.¡± * * * Dengue fever was a mosquito-borne viral disease. It affected fifty to one hundred million people in about one hundred countries around the world. This value had soared since the 1980¡¯s. This was because the poption of underdeveloped countries increased rapidly, causing people to live in the habitat of mosquitoes, and proper quarantine and epidemiological investigations were not conducted. The problem was that the urrencetitude of dengue fever began traveling to the north in the Northern Hemisphere with climate change. Last year, the asian tiger mosquito (aedes albopictus) was found in Jeju Indst summer; these mosquitoes were one of the carriers of the dengue virus. ¡°Dengue fever itself is not that dangerous. It heals naturally with some rest. But still, we must quickly find and take action against confirmed cases of the dengue virus. If left unattended, the virus spreads and the patient is in danger as well,¡± Ji Young-Soon said. ¡°As you know Doctor Ryu, there aren¡¯t a lot of mosquitoes that have the virus in Jeju Ind. But it¡¯s a different story if a dengue fever patient is bitten. When a healthy mosquito without the virus absorbed dengue virus-infected blood, the virus multiplied in the mosquito¡¯s stomach. The virus then spread all over the mosquito¡¯s body and infiltrated their salivary nds. When that mosquito bit someone else, the virus in its saliva would enter the body and cause an infection. ¡°The infection could grow instantly. And there is another problem,¡± Ji Young-Soon said. ¡°There are several different types of dengue virus. When a person infected with one type gets infected with another type, cross-immunity urs. A strong inmmatory reaction urs, which leads to dengue shock and bleeding.¡± Simply put, the person who was infected with the dengue virus first wasn¡¯t dangerous, but they could spread the virus if they were bitten by other mosquitoes, and it could be dangerous for the patient as well. ¡°Thankfully, there hasn¡¯t been word of an infected patient being bitten by a mosquito and spreading the virus. So up untilst year, we didn¡¯t even iste patients. But this time, we are going to monitor the situation and start isting patients if it is severe.¡± ¡°I think that is the best thing to do,¡± Young-Joon agreed. Ji Young-Soon finally got to the point. ¡°We need arge amount of A-Checkup in order to continuously check and track it. That¡¯s why we are worried.¡± The sell-out crisis was a phenomenon that made ordinary citizens impatient, but it was a serious problem for the KCDC. It was alreadyte April; mosquitoes wereing out one by one as the weather was warming up. ¡°There are six hundred thousand citizens living on Jeju Ind. We need quite arge supply to have enough for everyone.¡± ¡°Probably.¡± ¡°But it is still selling out fast right now, right? Would you be able to decrease the amount distributed to the market and supply it to the government first? We will make a stockpile and use it at Jeju Ind.¡± ¡°But it¡¯s just selling out fast because the supply is in the early phases. Wouldn''t the situation improve as it slowly dies down when people are used to the kits?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Of course, we also believe that is the case, Doctor Ryu. And we still have some time until the summer. But we are in a position where we have to be prepared for any kind of situation,¡± Ji Young-Soon said. ¡°We are a national organization. Working hard isn¡¯t enough; we have to be good. We work on the taxpayer¡¯s dime and we have a responsibility and the power to take care of the Korean people¡¯s health.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± Young-Joon thought for a moment while touching his lips. He soon spoke. ¡°Then let¡¯s produce the supply you need at Karamchand.¡± ¡°Karamchand?¡± ¡°The Indian pharmaceuticalpany. They have a huge production facility. They probably have one of the best GMP facilities in the world. We are producing diagnostic kits there for the HIV eradication project.¡± It was to quickly diagnose HIV patients and focus on their care. ¡°We will adjust the royalty rate and receive a portion of the production to Korea instead. I¡¯ll give you a little discount since it¡¯s to save our people.¡± Now, Ji Young-Soon¡¯s face lit up. ¡°I didn¡¯t know there was such a way. It¡¯s very helpful to have a connection to a superrge GMP like Karamchand. Thank you, Doctor Ryu.¡± ¡°But you must fully control the dengue fever epidemic in Jeju Ind this summer.¡± ¡°Of course. We will not let you down.¡± There wasn¡¯t a problem if they would have some leftover as they could just send it to developing countries to treat HIV. There was no way demand would go down as long as the HIV eradication project was going on. * * * After his meeting with the KCDC, Young-Joon took a little break as he got ready for his next meeting. ¡ªIf you want to stop the dengue virus from going around, there is a better way to do it. Rosaline sent him a message. ¡°A vine? It¡¯s a good idea, but it takes time to develop it. Even if you make it in one day, I have to do a clinical trial.¡± ¡ªNo. This method gets rid of the carrier. You don¡¯t need a clinical trial.¡± ¡°Getting rid of the carrier? Mosquitoes?¡± ¡ªYes. Young-Joon squinted. ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡ªExactly what I said. Extinct the mosquitoes that transmit the disease. ¡°...¡± A mosquito eradication project was one of the oldest leads in biology. In fact, there was actual research going on about this topic. With Google and the Gates Foundation leading the way, many multinationalpanies were investing a lot of money in this business. But no one had yet seeded. ¡°But that business is still being criticized for destroying the ecosystem. And to be honest, I¡¯m a little worried as well.¡± It was divided between experts as well; people who said the ecosystem would be destroyed and those that say that we can stand against each other. ¡ªIt is because humans are stupid about the ecosystem. ¡°I think the scientists will be a little angry if they hear you. ¡ªI am just saying it to deliver the truth, not to mock you. Humans do not have a lot of knowledge about the ecosystem. ¡°I think it¡¯ll make people more mad that you weren¡¯t mocking them or exaggerating... But okay. ¡ªThe only problem that urs when mosquitoes go extinct is that the profit of mosquito spraypanies goes down. ¡°And there aren¡¯t any problems in the ecosystem?¡± ¡ªYes. ¡°Alright. I don¡¯t think we will be able to do the mosquito extinction project in Jeju Ind this summer, but let¡¯s hear it. From the part where there¡¯s no problem.¡± ¡ªOf course there is no problem. Was there a problem in the ecosystem because smallpox or back rhinoceroses went extinct? The ecosystem is more flexible than you think, so you don¡¯t have to worry. ¡°But insects are different from viruses or ck rhinos. And insects like mosquitoes are food to many organisms.¡± ¡ªThere are three thousand five hundred forty-two types of mosquitoes on Earth. ¡°There are that many?¡± Young-Joon felt goosebumps on his entire body. ¡ªYes. And there are only around ten species that sucks on human blood. There will not be a problem even if you make all of them go extinct. Of course, there will be a small structural change, but it will quickly be fixed because it is nothing fatal. It is because there are a lot of substitutes in nature for an insect like mosquitoes in the food chain. Rosaline said. 1. Kkul means ¡°honey¡± in Korean. ? 2. MT is short for ¡°Membership Training¡±, and it is a Korean university culture where a department goes on a short trip together to get to know people. ? Chapter 86: The Diagnostic Kit (3)

Chapter 86: The Diagnostic Kit (3)

Mosquito was a word that actually referred to the unit of family, meaning that the mosquito family was as big as the felidae, the cat family, or canidae, the dog family. Just like how lions and cheetahs were part of the cat family, there were a huge variety of insects in the mosquito family. They were divided into forty-three different genuses and were then divided into about three thousand five hundred species. Of course, these genuses and species could change with the development of gics as the ssification of insects was ambiguous and every scientist had different arguments. One thing that was for certain was that there were only about ten species that sucked on human blood. ¡°There¡¯s actually less than I thought.¡± ¡ªYes. Humanity already made countless species go extinct after the industrial revolution. Nothing will change even if you add ten more species to that. I do not understand why humans are worrying about the disruption of the ecosystem when they are killing mosquitoes. ¡°Because the impact of extinction can berger when the organism is at the bottom of the ecosystem.¡± ¡ªOf course, if you wipe out an organism like bees, humanity will not be able to ovee the repercussions and will copse. But not mosquitoes. There are countless insects that can rece its role. This was an extremely prized problem between scientists who studied insect ecology for decades. In fact, they actually did a mass debate at Silver Spring, and it had totally gone to the dogs. The incident where Doctor Legion, one of the greatest experts in the field, yelled at the people with a flushed face, calling them dumb idiots who didn''t have a basic understanding of trophic levels that even undergraduate students knew, was a legendary story in the ecology field. However, the issue was too difficult since it was something that no one could be confident in. Rosaline, who could firmly say that there would be no problem, was the unique one; it wasn¡¯t that the scientists werecking. ¡°Then I guess it is worth trying if there isn¡¯t anything wrong with it,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡ªThat¡¯s right. The mosquito eradication project that Google or the Gates Foundation is doing is inefficient in many ways. And I have much more effective methods. ¡°How does it work?¡± ¡ªUse Cas9 to create a mutation in Kpaf2, one of the genes of the mosquito¡¯s seminal vesicles. ¡°Then what happens?¡± ¡ªOnly male mosquitoes will be born from the eggsid by the female mosquitoes that mate with them. The males who are born from those eggs will also have that mutation, so they will only have male offspring. After a few generations, the sex ratio will bepletely destroyed. ¡°Holy...¡± ¡ªYou can destroy the sex ratio and make the ratio of males increase exponentially. For Jeju Ind, if you make ten million mutant male mosquitoes and release them into nature, the percentage of females after six generations will fall under 0.01 percent. They will be extinct in a few years. ¡°...¡± As Young-Joon was frozen in shock, Rosaline sent him another message. ¡ªI just exined a more stable method at the expense of efficiency. ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡ªIf I could, I would manipte the dengue virus and infect mosquitoes. The fact that the dengue virus can multiply in the stomach and spread to their salivary nds means that it can also spread to their reproductive organs. Rosaline said. ¡ªIf you manipte it a little, you can make it into a sexually transmitted infection for mosquitoes. You could make a deadly epidemic like AIDS for mosquitoes. And if you let it threaten their lives, the virus will spread in an instant and mosquitoes will go extinct. ¡°But if I try to use that method, people will oppose it, worrying about what would happen if that deadly dengue virus is transmitted to humans.¡± ¡ªI calcted that in advance and rmended a more stable method. ¡°... Yeah, thanks. I guess it might be faster to copse the sex ratio bnce to actually carry it out,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°But we can¡¯t do this project in Jeju Ind this summer. It will take a long time just to get the mosquitoes ready.¡± ¡ªTwo or three weeks is enough for mosquitoes to hatch from their eggs and be an adult. Even if you consider the gene maniption stage... ¡°How long do you think it will take for the Ministry of Health and Welfare to approve of this insane project? It will take at least three months for them just to go through it.¡± ¡ªUghh... Rosaline groaned without sending him a message. ¡°They will need dozens of documents until it is approved, and it will take a long time.¡± ¡ªIt is really frustrating. I feel like I am going to get cancer.[1] ¡°You can¡¯t get that.¡± ¡ªIt¡¯s an exnation at your eye level. A type of metaphor. ¡°We can catch the dengue virus in Jeju Ind without any damage if we use the diagnostic kits well because it isn¡¯t very infectious,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°We have to use a big knife like mosquito eradication to kill something big, like a cow. We have to prepare it more carefully and take it to an international project.¡± ¡ªAn international project? ¡°If you list the diseases that mosquitoes transmit, the dengue virus will have to wait in line for a long time. There are several diseases like mria, yellow fever, Zika, and chikungunya lined up in front. Most of them are infectious diseases that are going around in least developed countries,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°It means this project is something we have to do with the World Health Organization. We have to get support from the Gates Foundation and Google, which started before us, and do it as an international coborative project.¡± Young-Joon was going to start preparing it now and start it as the next project after HIV eradication. He got up from his seat and went to his secretary¡¯s office next door. To Yoo Song-Mi, who was organizing a few documents, he said, ¡°Song-Mi-ssi, please contact the WHO.¡± ¡°The WHO?¡± ¡°Yes. Tell them I would like a meeting about a mosquito extinction project.¡± * * * At the Next-Generation Hospital, Ardip was catching up with the prostitutes at Kamathipura through email. ¡ªHey Ardip. Are you doing well? Are you better now? After your interview, the International Relief Organization and the Indian government are intervening. The gang and the police who were in charge of this ce were either arrested or fled. When we said that we knew you, they gave us aputer so that we could send each other emails. They asked us to tell you to say something good if you do another interview. Ardip read the email with a smile on his face. The person who sent it was the person who raised Ardip like his mother. She went to school and learned to read and write, but she was sold off to Kamathipura when she was fifteen. She lived in that hellhole for thirty years, but it wasing to an end now. Kamathipura was being freed. The UN intervened as international attention was drawn to Kamathipura, and the Indian government began cracking down on sex traffickers. Many corrupt police and gangs who were covered up got arrested or disappeared. The only enemy left there now was disease. But truckloads of the HIV cure produced from Karamchand Pharmatics began flying in. And the International Vine Institute selected this region as a subject for the HIV vine clinical trial and carried out vinations. Many people volunteered for the clinical trial thanks to Young-Joon¡¯s powerful performance of using himself as a test subject on TV. The vine was extremely effective. The spread of HIV was being severely hampered. On top of this, major hospitals in India were conducting bone marrow transntations with the help of A-Bio. They began curing patients one by one with the bone marrow that the technicians sent from A-Bio. Of course, the price of this treatment was not something that the poor could afford, but the WHO was supporting this project. This international project, which was based on sponsors from all over the world, allowed the poor to get a turn slowly but surely. Kamathipura transformed quickly. ¡ªAnd Ardip, the diagnostic kit from A-Bio that you mentioned before is being supplied here, too. The supply for India is being supplied by Karamchand. They are using that kit to quickly diagnose patients and treat them. The diagnostic kit was useful for citizens in developed countries to check their health every day, but its true value was seen in at-risk regions for infectious diseases. Affordability, precision, and swiftness: these three qualities showed indescribably enormous potential in finding infected patients in a short amount of time and isting them. ¡ªFrom what people are saying, the reason why the cure, vine, bone marrow transnt, and the diagnostic kit are being primarily supplied to us is because of Doctor Ryu Young-Joon. Apparently, he asked the people high up when he came to India. Ardip kept reading the email. ¡ªYou said you were in the stroke clinical trial, right? I hope it goes well and you cane back to India. I miss you. Ardip felt his eyes tear up. He clicked on the reply button and wrote an email. Tomorrow was his flight back home. This was thest email he was sending from Korea. * * * Ardip, who arrived at the airport, faced a huge crowd of reporters. He was linked to the demise of Schumatix and the take over by Conson & Colson, A-Bio¡¯s new technology and an explosive rise in brand value, the first generation patient of the first stem cell therapy, and the most unfortunate man in the world who was born in Kamathipura and suffered from a stroke, a, and eye cancer. But it was different now. His paralysis in his left leg had disappeared as his brain nerves were all reconstructed. He could see well now because his a had been cured. His unbnce in nutrition had been taken care of as he was intensely cared for at the Next-Generation Hospital. Everyone could tell even without a medical examination; they could see that he had be healthier just from his eyes andplexion. Ardip had transformed into apletely different person from when he first came to Korea. He was now the luckiest man in the century who had ovee all those hardships. Numerous reporters had gathered at the news that he was flying back home. Half of them were foreign press. But a man more famous than him suddenly appeared and stole the reporters¡¯ attention. ¡°It¡¯s Ryu Young-Joon!¡± When someone shouted, the reporters¡¯ all turned to him. ¡°Doctor Ryu!¡± As the reporters were flustering, Young-Joon approached Ardip with the protection from the K-Cops security guards. ¡°Hello, Ardip,¡± Young-Joon said with a friendly smile. ¡°Hello,¡± Ardip said in Korean with an ent. There happened to be a trantor who the reporters prepared to get an interview from Ardip. Their conversation was tranted on the spot and articles were written right away. ¡°Are you flying back?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Yes. Where are you going, Doctor Ryu?¡± ¡°I am going out for a little bit because I have a meeting with the WHO. I didn''t expect to run into you here.¡± Young-Joon tapped Ardip¡¯s shoulder. ¡°How are you feeling?¡± ¡°I am all better thanks to you. I don¡¯t have paralysis in my leg anymore, and I can see well. I ampletely healthy.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a relief.¡± ¡°Um... When I get mypensation from Schumatix, I would like to donate all of it to the A-Bio Foundation,¡± Ardip said. ¡°You don¡¯t have to do that.¡± ¡°No! Please. If I don¡¯t do that... How can I repay all this debt?¡± ¡°Then please use it to take care of patients when you go back to Kamathipura. And...¡± Young-Joon went on. ¡°Our legal team has already sued Schuamtix and is getting it to an international trial. We will get our share ourselves, so you don¡¯t have to worry about us. The stroke treatment was a clinical trial, so we should actually be the ones topensate you.¡± ¡°...¡± Ardip was going to say something, but thought for a bit. Now that he was facing Young-Joon, his gratitude deepend. Ardip¡¯s life was inplete despair. He didn¡¯t have anything but two incurable diseases, and the people he called family were all AIDS patients. He cursed his own life multiple times, saying that if there was a God, he wouldn¡¯t have put him in a ce like this. But everything changed because of Young-Joon. He had predicted the nasty sabotage from viins like Schuamtix and prepared more than a simple cure. He was the one who had rescued him from his life, which was trapped deep in the valley of despair, and let him see light. He even fought against AIDS, the worst infectious disease that was taking over Kamathipura. The life there was changing enormously; he could tell by the email he received yesterday. Ardip couldn¡¯t thank him enough. As his heart filled up with gratitude, he felt like he could give Young-Joon his life. Now that he was facing Young-Joon before going home, his emotions became even more intense and made him choke up. ¡°Thank... you,¡± Ardip said with a trembling voice. ¡°Thank you... Doctor Ryu, thank you so... so much.¡± Ardip covered his face with his hands. ¡°I heard that you are supplying the vine and the cure... to Kamathipura first... Thank you so much...¡± Cameras shed from all over. Ardip did not care one bit. He could not bear the weight of his emotions that had overflowed here. He felt like the presence of Young-Joon was a reward for a lifetime of pain. ¡°All I did was supply Kamathipura first because it is an at-risk region for AIDS,¡± Young-Joon said as heforted Ardip. ¡°... I will never forget this debt,¡± Ardip said as he hugged Young-Joon tightly. ¡°I will live thinking that I was given the gift of a different life... I will always be grateful...¡± ¡°Haha, don¡¯t be indebted to me. I hope you are happy and healthy when you get back. Oh, and this is a present.¡± With a smile, Young-Joon handed Ardip a diagnostic kit. ¡°I actually brought it for myself, but you should go back and try it.¡± Click! Click! The reporters took photos continuously. The most famous scientist in the world and the patient who was rescued by his new technology were together in one frame. * * * Young-Joon hadn¡¯t nned it at all, but him meeting Ardip at the airport was quite a dramatic scene. As the meeting with Young-Joon was revealed in the World Health Organization¡¯s schedule, the dramatic feeling of their idental run-in became stronger. Young-Joon, who arrived in Geneva, Switzend, stopped by the convenience store on the way to the World Health Organization building. On the front page of the morning paper on the newsstand, there were pictures of Young-Joon and Ardip. ¡°What is this? What does this say...?¡± He couldn¡¯t read any of it because it was in French, but it seemed like it said something about how touching it was or something. Science, which was going forward at Rosaline¡¯s speed, did not forget humanity. The historical moments that emerged from the cold and thorough advancement of science were surprisingly humanistic. ¡®No...¡¯ As Young-Joon checked his phone in anticipation, all sorts of onlinemunities and his fan club had blown up. 1. This is amon way to express deep frustration in Korea. ? Chapter 87: The Diagnostic Kit (4)

Chapter 87: The Diagnostic Kit (4)

Most of the pictures that were sweeping through onlinemunities were pictures taken in Kamathipura in India. Recently, a lot of foreign press were going to and reporting on Kamathipura, where major reforms were taking ce, and those pictures and articles had suddenly be an issue. From Young-Joon and Ardip¡¯s picture to the vination scene in Kamathipura, the huge amount of Karampia that was being transported inrge trucks, and hospitals and doctors who were carrying out bone marrow transnts. The hundreds of photos and reports had everything about Kamathipura¡¯s revolution. And a lot of praise poured out from onlinemunities all over the world. ¡ªHe¡¯s not just a scientist or a businessman now, right? ¡ªHe is definitely going to get the Nobel Prize. They¡¯re probably going to tell him to take his pick from peace, chemistry, and medicine. ¡ªHe healed a hellish prostitution hole like Kamathipura... ¡ªI am a businessman in Mumbai. Kamathipura changed a lot. In this town, Doctor Ryu Young-Joon ispared to Ambedkar. ¡ªWho¡¯s Ambedkar? ¡ªHe was a human rights activist for the Dalit of the caste system. He is regarded higher than Gandhi in India. ¡ªI¡¯m an employee at the WHO. It¡¯s not just in Kamathipura, India. HIV is being caught at a rapid speed in Africa and China as well. Doctor Ryu is the genius of the century, but we are working hard as well :( ¡ªLet¡¯s go WHO! Let¡¯s go Ryu Young-Joon! ¡ªLast week¡¯s report from the British Medical Journal: The growth rate of AIDS cases in sub-Saharan Africa was 48 percentst year, but it plummeted to 6 percent. They¡¯re predicting that it will turn negative soon... ¡°Things are going faster than I expected,¡± Young-Joon said to himself as he read the articles on the web. There was an even more shocking post on his fan club; it was a scene from aedy show. A member from a girl group was picking her ideal type, and for some reason, Young-Joon was there. His eyes widened. ¡°Wait, why...?¡± He wasn¡¯t a celebrity or someone on TV, so why? The thing that was more shocking was that one of the members of the group, Groovy, actually picked Young-Joon. ¡ªIt¡¯s because I like someone who is smart and has a warm heart. I¡¯ve been a fan for a long time. I signed up for the fan club a long time ago. With a short subtitle, her statement was screenshotted and pinned in the fan club. ¡ªGroovy, are you reading this? Doctor Ryu is off-limits. ¡ªGroovy, submit some papers first. We¡¯ll observe you first through an interview-type of thing, and then we can think about it. ¡ªOur Doctor Ryu has to experiment! Everyone get lost! Doctor Ryu is already married to science! ¡°...¡± Young-Joon, who was baffled, went to the WHO headquarters, trying to calm himself down. But this ce was worse. This was the headquarters of the HIV eradication project. In ces like Kamathipura, Young-Joon was their savior, but here, he was the revolutionary who had started this huge project. ¡°Oh! Doctor Ryu?¡± An employee, who was bald and looked to be in his forties, froze when he saw Young-Joon. He wiped the sweat off his forehead with his hand and held out a notepad and pen in a fluster. ¡°I¡¯m a fan of yours. Could I get your autograph?¡± That was the start. On his way to the Director-General¡¯s office, countless employees who heard about his arrival from somewhere all came over and asked for his autograph and a picture. ¡°Leave the project to us, Doctor Ryu!¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu, I am voluntarily resigning soon, but it¡¯s truly an honor to do something as important as HIV eradication before I go.¡± ¡°I went to Henan Province in Chinast week. Things have gotten a lot better. Apparently, they used to run a sma business, so people sold blood. They said that it became Hell with AIDS as they began reusing disposable needles.¡± ¡°I love it because I am seeing HIV disappear in real-time. The results are really tangible if you examine patients with the diagnostic kit. HIV is caught by the diagnostic kit until you use a treatment like a bone marrow transntation. When you see that it¡¯s no longer there after the procedure, it¡¯s touching and thrilling...¡± Young-Joon was in shock as he heard the employees talk all around him. Even the managers who came out to control the employees all went back after getting his autograph. * * * Young-Joon, who barely made it to the Director-General¡¯s office, delivered his congrattions andpliments to Tedros. ¡°I saw that HIV is being caught quickly. It seems that way from what the employees are talking about on the way here. I heard that the increase dropped from forty-eight percent to six. The World Health Organization is the World Health Organization for a reason. Congrattions.¡± ¡°Haha, it¡¯s all thanks to you, Doctor Ryu,¡± said Tedros, the Director-General. This tangible result that came out in a short period of time was evidence that the WHO was focusing all their power and strength on this project. It was also because in addition to the vines, cures, and bone marrow transnts, another powerful ally was added on the technical side. ¡°It¡¯s all thanks to the diagnostic kit you developed. At this rate, I don¡¯t think it will take three years. The spread was caught quicker than I thought.¡± There were two ways to stop the spread of an infectious disease: 1. Preventing the virus from spreading even if an infected and non-infected persones into contact with vines and such. 2. Quarantining so that the infected and non-infected do note into contact at all. They could not give vines to the billions of people without HIV, and they could not perform the expensive and difficult bone marrow transnt surgery on infected patients all at once. As such, the first way was impossible. But if they used the diagnostic kit, they could easily do the second way since all they had to do was go to at-risk areas for HIV, give out a bunch of kits, diagnose them on-the-spot, then iste patients. The World Health Organization was doing this job very well. ¡°You made us the gun, the bullet, and you taught us how to shoot it, so we would be idiots if we couldn¡¯t even do that. We¡¯re a United Nation organization; this is the least we should be doing,¡± Tedros said with a heartyugh. ¡°Doctor Ryu, I think the diagnostic kit will be used to catch a lot of other infectious diseases. Let¡¯s justmission it to a lot of GMP production facilities and produce it in huge quantities.¡± Tedros gulped down the fruit and vegetable juice from a small juice pack. ¡°With this, we can catch all kinds of infectious diseases like dengue, mria, and Zika.¡± ¡°All those diseases are transmitted by mosquitoes, right?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°Then let¡¯s get rid of mosquitoes.¡± ¡°Oh! Mosquitoes? Man, you really think big, Doctor Ryu. You¡¯re talking about the one being done at Google and the Gates Foundation, right? We can try it if you have a good idea.¡± ¡°Yes. But this will have to be an international project. It will be bigger than HIV eradication.¡± ¡°The current mosquito elimination project is focused on reducing the mosquito poption to less than eighty percent in tropical climates alone. It is having a hard time, but do you have a good strategy?¡± ¡°Pardon? No, I¡¯m not talking about reducing the poption, I¡¯m talking about making them go extinctpletely. Let¡¯s get rid of the thirteen species that are the disease carriers.¡± Tedros set down the juice he was about to drink. If he drank it, he might have spat it out in shock. As he started at Young-Joon like he didn¡¯t understand, Young-Joon exined. ¡°That way, the mria parasite and the viruses will go extinct. If I start this, I don¡¯t intend onpromising on an ambiguous goal like poption reduction. That leaves the risk of the disease developing.¡± ¡°... But Doctor Ryu, there were no significant results in that ambiguous goal of poption reduction. Well, there have been some varying results, but not most of them. I¡¯m saying that it¡¯s not an easy thing to do even if Google or the Gates Foundation does it...¡± ¡°I know. The technology to reduce the number of mosquitoes mostly works by manipting the male mosquito¡¯s genes to make thervae unable to hatch from their cells.¡± ¡°That¡¯s correct.¡± ¡°But it¡¯s only as effective as the number of mosquitoes that people manipte and put into nature. If those mosquitoes die, it¡¯s over.¡± ¡°... That¡¯s right. If not that, then how...¡± Tedros had no idea what Young-Joon was thinking. His eyes shook. Young-Joon said, ¡°We make it so that only males are born from the eggs of the female mosquitoes that mated with gically modified mosquitoes. And if we make the offspring from those newborn mosquitoes only male, we can make a snowball effect by modifying male mosquitoes and releasing them into nature once.¡± ¡°Is that possible?¡± ¡°It is,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°The reason I asked for a meeting today was because I was curious if the WHO could afford to work on this project.¡± ¡°Hm...¡± Tedros thought for a bit. ¡°Like you are worried about, weck manpower right now because we are pouring everything into HIV eradication.¡± ¡°Of course. It¡¯s not an easy disease.¡± ¡°But this is also an important project. We will try to prepare for it. However, we also need to do some research in advance on what disturbances will ur in the ecosystem,¡± Tedros said. ¡°If you carry out this project with us, you may be criticized by ecologists. As the Director-General of the World Health Organization, I am on board because I think it¡¯s more important to get rid of infectious diseases, but...¡± ¡°I know. I will make some data about the kind of disruptions that will ur in the ecosystem and whether it is something we will not be able to handle to convince them.¡± * * * Young-Joon¡¯s humane image was in the spotlight during Ardip¡¯s flight, but his star quality was still rooted in his ingenious research ability. About a week after Young-Joon returned from Geneva, two huge papers and a cover news article was published in Science like he was trying to prove that he was a scientist. [We differentiated induced pluripotent stem cells into cartge cells.] [We differentiated induced pluripotent stem cells into skin tissue.] The differentiation into cartge cells and skin tissue: the only project Young-Joon had left among the ones he started as he built the Next-Generation Hospital was making organs and spine regeneration. Another powerful whirlwind began sweeping through the medicalmunity. First of all, cartge cells had the potential to cure a verymon and ufortable disease like arthritis. How many patients would there be if the number of patients that had rheumatoid arthritis, which urred in young people as a type of autoimmune disease, and degenerative arthritis, which usually urred in older people, werebined? There were nearly five million people just in Korea, meaning that one in ten people were arthritis patients. Then what about skin tissue? The skin cell that A-Bio created was not just one type of skin cell. They had differentiated a total of seven types of cells each from epidermis cells that had the characteristics of the ectoderm, tissue cells from the mesoderm, and the dermisyer from the cranial neural crest cells. This meant that they not only could regenerate the outeryer of skin, but they had the potential to make skin itself. Samuel, who was admiring the huge potential value of it, even wrote a review on the paper. [The skin is aplex organ that is intricately connected. If A-Bio seeds in making this with organoids, it looks like they will be able to create hair follicles. I believe that it will be possible someday as they have already seeded with organoids before.] ¡®Create hair follicles.¡¯ It was a statement that widened the eyes of many stic surgery clinics. It meant that they could give bald people hair. Of course, it was true that cartge and skin regeneration still had a long way to go as it was still in its development phases, but people felt like they would be able to see some results in the near future as Young-Joon¡¯s research speed was abnormally fast. And in this noisy situation, a fascinating story began circting among the sports news and rumors. [Ryu Young-Joon, the CEO of A-Bio, has 122 new drug patents. They are not revealed to the public yet as it has not yet been one year and six months since its application and is still being approved, but there is a rumor that Doctor Ryu Young-Joon has 122 drugs for pet and livestock animals. ording to Mr. K, an employee at the patent office, the approval period is getting longer because there are a lot of patents, but there is a high chance that it will be approved soon...] This rumor had basically poured oil into Young-Joon¡¯s fame, which was already burning up. And there was one person who was feeling anxious about this. It was Kim Hyun-Taek, theb director of Lab One. CTO Nichs Kim¡¯s term was about to end. In this atmosphere, there was a very high chance that the future CTO position of A-Gen would go to Young-Joon. Kim Hyun-Taek could not go home and was lost in thought for the night. Chapter 88: The Diagnostic Kit (5)

Chapter 88: The Diagnostic Kit (5)

When CTO Nichs Kim retired, A-Gen would choose their next CTO from the in-house directors. How would Young-Joon react? ¡®What would I do if I was Ryu Young-Joon?¡¯ Kim Hyun-Taek often thought about that. Young-Joon was a smart man, and he made sure to take things that would increase research speed, even the little things. Then, wouldn¡¯t he obviously try to take over that role, which would allow him to supervise all of A-Gen¡¯s research and development. A-Bio was going well, but there was no reason for him to decline if A-Gen offered him everything. Normally, ordinary people wouldn¡¯t be able to manage both at once so they would never even try, but Young-Joon definitely would. If Kim Hyun-Taekpeted with Young-Joon over that position? He would never be able to win, as Young-Joon¡¯s performance was overwhelmingly better. It would be a problem if Kim Hyun-Taek won as well. The fact that he was the CTO and not ab director meant that all of A-Gen¡¯s research and development was in his hands. It meant that he was the supervisor of the technologypetition with A-Bio. He was even less confident in this. But he couldn¡¯t give Young-Joon the CTO position and be his subordinate because he could find some dangerous data if he could ess experiment records of all security levels in thepany. There was no telling what Young-Joon would do with his personality. This was also the reason why Ji Kwang-man went overboard and tried to eliminate Young-Joon, who was trying to join the core of management. ¡®Idiot... Should have done it well.¡¯ Kim Hyun-Taek let out a sigh. The best scenario would only be this: after Kim Hyun-Taek bes A-Gen¡¯s CTO, instead of Young-Joonpletely being severed from thepany andpeting against them, he supports him as the CTO of A-Gen. It was a ridiculous n, but there was one way to get this picture. Right now, Young-Joon was so popr that a girl group member said she liked him on aedy show; he was the national hero. Kim Hyun-Taek was going to use that fame and prestige. * * * When Young-Joon was having dinner at work, he got a phone call from Ryu Ji-Won. ¡°Schrs Seminar?¡± Young-Joon frowned like he was baffled. ¡ªFor your information, Chomsky visitedst month. ¡°I¡¯m not a world schr. I think my professor is way too proud of his student. ¡ªWhy? He should be. ¡°Even if I have some good results, I¡¯ve only been active for about six years in the academicmunity, even if you include my years as a grad student scientist. I¡¯m not a schr. No, I don¡¯t want to. I don¡¯t want to be annoying.¡± ¡ªWhy does that matter? Look at how many incurable diseases you¡¯ve cured. ¡°The only treatment that¡¯s beenmercialized is the a cure kit, okay? The others are doing well in clinical trials, but a lot of drugs stumble in the second and third phase.¡± ¡ªEven without all that, you should be called a schr with just the diagnostic kit alone. Ryu Ji-Won said. ¡°Hey, I can¡¯t be called that, alright? Don¡¯t say that anywhere else. People who are world-renowned schrs or experts are usually people who have researched for over thirty years or Nobel Prize winners.¡± ¡ªOne of those people is Carpentier or Carpenter, right? Doesn¡¯t he work for you? Young-Joon was at a loss for words. ¡°Well... He does, but...¡± ¡ªWell, I delivered the message. Professor Ban really wants to see you again, saying he wants to benefit from his student. ¡°But still...¡± ¡ªI¡¯m hanging up, okay? I have dinner ns. I have to go now. Beep. After hanging up, Young-Joon held his head like he had a headache. ¡°What happened?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk asked. ¡°Ryu Ji-Won.¡± ¡°What did she say?¡± ¡°Professor Ban wanted her to ask me to do the seminar.¡± ¡°Seminar?¡± ¡°You know, the World Schr Seminar we do every semester at school. The bioengineering department has to invite someone, and I guess Professor Ban is in charge of it. He asked me toe.¡± ¡°Wow. Doesn¡¯t Jungyoon University use our tuition to bring legends in the field? I can¡¯t believe you made it on that list.¡± ¡°I can go because I¡¯m really indebted to Professor Ban, but that title is so cheesy and burdensome...¡± ¡°Why does it matter? Just ignore it and go. Didn¡¯t you say that Professor Ban paid for your tuition and living expenses when it was really hard for you during grad school?¡± ¡°... Yeah. He¡¯s an important teacher to me. I should repay that debt.¡± There were a lot of incidents in the ten years that Young-Joon was being supervised by Ban Du-Il. He had made a mistake and caused trouble when he was doing an administrative errand, and there were times Ban Du-Il was put in a sticky situation when Young-Joon fought with other professors due to his personality. Still, Ban Du-Il protected Young-Joon until the end. Although most of the professors were psychopaths who had terrible personalities, Ban Du-Il had integrity and was humane. ¡°He¡¯s one of the few people I respect as a teacher in this field,¡± Young-Joon said. Young-Joon was reminiscing about when he was in university when Park Joo-Hyuk beganughing silently beside him. ¡°Why are youughing?¡± ¡°Do you remember when you cursed at the school because they were using our tuition on such shitty things?¡± ¡°Did I?¡± ¡°Yeah. You were furious then. You heard from somewhere that they spent three million won to invite Jamie Anderson and youined about it for the entire lecture.¡± ¡°Jamie Anderson is a racist. Why would you bring someone like that to the school? It¡¯s demeaning.¡± ¡°What you were angry about back then wasn¡¯t that Jamie Anderson was a racist, but that you felt like your tuition was going to waste for bringing that racist to school.¡± ¡°I was a student back then and I was poor.¡± ¡°And now, you¡¯re the hippo that¡¯s swallowing up that tuition.¡± ¡°Ugh... I¡¯m going to return it so they can use it for schrships.¡± Young-Joon shook his head. * * * The World Schrs Seminar took ce in the Grand Hall for the students. Professor ban Du-Il, who was in charge of the schr invitation and event, briefly introduced Young-Joon. ¡°He¡¯s the most famous person right now. Please wee Ryu Young-Joon, CEO of A-Bio, to the front.¡± When Young-Joon went up to the podium, all the students simultaneously pulled out their phones. They were all taking photos of him. After waiting for the students¡¯ excitement to die down a little, he greeted them. ¡°Hello. My name is Ryu Young-Joon.¡± ¡°Wooh!¡± p p p! Cheers and apuse poured out from the students. Ryu Ji-Won was also among them. She was staring at him like she was very interested. ¡®She¡¯s going to take a picture and tease me about it for a long time.¡¯ Young-Joon took a look at all the students. ¡°I came to Jungyoon University around ten years ago as an undergraduate student. And I did my master¡¯s and doctorate here as well. Professor Ban here supervised me the entire way,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°When I was a student, I used to sit here and listen to the lectures from schrs all over the world, but it feels weird that I am the one up here now. I also think that title is too much for me, someone who is only thirty. I came here thinking that it meant that I should work harder.¡± Young-Joon could see Ban Du-Il grinning. ¡°Professor Ban asked me to talk about some important things we are working on at A-Bio, important events in my life, or my beliefs. So for today¡¯s lecture, I decided on the topic of research ethics and the diagnostic kit,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°The standards for research ethics change depending on how you obtain information about the disease from the patient and how you code it, and for this...¡± The lecture had started. It wasn¡¯t an easy topic, but it seemed familiar as the diagnostic kit was a very famous product. Young-Joon¡¯s lecture went on for about an hour and a half. There were a lot of students from majors other than bioengineering, so he stayed away from things that were too technical. He also tranted all the words used in the field into Korean. He also made some jokes here and there. Thelecture came to an end, and there was a question session. ¡°Are there any questions?¡± Young-Joon asked. The bioengineering students all raised their hands first. ¡°Where do you get your creative ideas when you work?¡± ¡®I can¡¯t say that it¡¯s from Rosaline...¡¯ ¡°Scientists have to read a lot of papers. You obviously have to dig deep into your specialty, but some research that is a little different from yours will help in getting creative ideas.¡± ¡°Have you considered being a professor at Jungyoon University? If I studied under you, I think I could actually enjoy studying for the first time in my life,¡± said one of the students. The audienceughed a little. ¡°I like being a corporate scientist right now. Companies have a lot more money than the government or universities. Universities are a good ce to do basic research, butpanies are a good ce to do product-rted research. I want to be making products right now.¡± The vibe of the seminar at Jungyoon University was light and friendly. Young-Joon¡¯s image became friendlier and softer as the question session went on as he was an alumni that had graduated recently. There were professional questions asking about what was missing from the research they were doing, and there were questions asking for advice on going to graduate school. When it was near the end, there were yful personal questions. ¡°This is a little bit of a personal question, but are you dating Groovy...¡± ¡°Hahaha. I¡¯ve never even met them,¡± said Young-Joon as he waved his hand. The studentsughed along. ¡°I guess we¡¯ve gotten all the questions since people are asking about girl groups now,¡± Young-Joon said. That was when a student¡¯s eyes widened as they were reading the news on their phone. They raised their hand and asked like this was a perfect time. ¡°Mr. Ryu, apparently the Blue House is saying that they want to invite you as the director of the Office of Strategic R&D[1] nning at the Ministry of Industry. They say it¡¯s a CTO position for the country...¡± Young-Joon squinted his eyes. The director of the Office of Strategic R&D nning: the CTO of a country. It was a simr role to James, the Director of the White House Office of Science and Technology. ¡°Wow...¡± The students admired him. Ban Du-Il froze a little. That position was a minister-level public office role. Obviously, he could not also work as a board director of apany. If he went there, he would have to back out of A-Bio or A-Gen. The student asked, ¡°Are you going to take it?¡± They looked like they were very much anticipating this. It was natural as they were already overpowered by the enormous title of national CTO. ¡°...¡± Young-Joon thought about his answer for a moment. ¡°It¡¯s the first I¡¯m hearing of this. I¡¯ll have to give it some thought.¡± * * * The seminar came to an end. ¡°Can we talk in my office for a bit?¡± Ban Du-Il asked. ¡°Yes, of course. But I just need to make a phone call.¡± Young-Joon excused himself and came outside. He went to a ce where there were rtively few students and took out his phone. He called Yoo Song-Mi, his secretary. ¡°Secretary Yoo, what is this about? What is this thing about the director of the Office of Strategic R&D nning all of a sudden?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡ªIt¡¯s the CTO for the country. I was just contacted today, and the Blue House wants to invite you to be the country¡¯s CTO.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡ªI said that I would deliver the message, but... You¡¯re not going to do it, right...? Yoo Song-Mi asked. ¡ªIt¡¯s true that it¡¯s an honorable position at the vice minister-level, and it is an important position that coordinates Korea¡¯s overall science and technology policies, but it is also a public office. You can¡¯t work somewhere else. ¡°Yes. Did someone from the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energye by chance?¡± ¡ªThey asked for your schedule, so I told them that I would get back to them after asking you. The time you have avable in your schedule now is five o¡¯clock in the evening tomorrow, or two o¡¯clock on Friday. ¡°Please set up the meeting for tomorrow,¡± Young-Joon asked. 1. R&D is short for Research and Development. ? Chapter 89: The Diagnostic Kit (6)

Chapter 89: The Diagnostic Kit (6)

After ending the call, Young-Joon went to meet Professor Ban Du-Il. He looked full of concern, so Young-Joon purposely went in with a smile. ¡°How have you been?¡± asked Young-Joon. ¡°Yes, I have been well. I feel very energized right before my retirement thanks to you,¡± Ban Du-Il said. ¡°Young-Joon, are you going to take the national CTO job?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t really want to,¡± Young-Joon replied calmly. Only then did Ban Du-Il''s face brighten up. He let out a sigh of relief. ¡°Good. You have to be researching right now. The national CTO is an important position that supervises the entire direction of Korea¡¯s research and development, but you can¡¯t do research yourself. Your main job is to give research funding to universities and organizations and set up projects.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°I think other scientists can do that too, although I don¡¯t know if they can do better. But you are the only one who can eradicate HIV and use stem cells to develop new treatments.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°If you leave the forefront of this country¡¯s research and development, everything will be that much slower.¡± ¡°I also still want to work as a frontline scientist.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Ban Du-Il looked like he was d to hear that. ¡°That¡¯s such a relief. I was so anxious when I heard it,¡± Ban Du-Il said. ¡°Young-Joon, I think this idea came from people who purely wanted to use your abilities for state business, but for more calcting people, I think they want to use your image for their approval rating.¡± ¡°Approval rating?¡± ¡°There¡¯s only one year left until the election.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± ¡°The KCDC is trying to catch dengue fever in Jeju Ind right now after you developed the diagnostic kit, right? They are trying to ride that wave and recruit a brilliant scientist to create an impression of a government that is experienced at leading science. Though, it will actually help them if youe.¡± ¡°I understand what you mean,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°Then you are going to decline, right?¡± ¡°After I see what they propose.¡± Ban Du-Il¡¯s grin disappeared immediately. He looked nervous. Young-Joon smiled. ¡°It¡¯s a good position and a great opportunity. I am going to see if there¡¯s something I can use for the advancement of science. It won¡¯t be toote to make a decision then.¡± * * * The minister of the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy, visited A-Bio to meet Young-Joon. Yoo Song-Mi brought out some mate tea and fruit. ¡°I¡¯m honored to meet you, Mr. Ryu, the hottest scientist in the world right now.¡± Minister Lee Yoon-Ho reached out. Young-Joon shook his hand. ¡°Nice to meet you. I am Ryu Young-Joon. Please, sit.¡± Lee Yoon-Ho was an innocent-looking man with round facial features. He silently stared at Young-Joon for a moment. ¡°Mr. Ryu, I know what you are worrying about regarding the national CTO position.¡± ¡°What I am worrying about?¡± ¡°I think there are two things. The first is that you won¡¯t be able to research and develop when you leave A-Gen and A-Bio. The other is whether this is a scheme rted to the approval rating of this government, correct?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°The people who should know all know about the fight between you and Congressman Shim Sung-Yeol. So, I knew that you would worry about something like this.¡± Lee Yoon-Ho chuckled. ¡°Is that so?¡± ¡°Because of that, the people in the government who wanted to make you the poster boy for science disappeared. If not for that, people from several parties would have alreadye to you and bothered you.¡± ¡°Are you saying that this has nothing to do with that?¡± ¡°To be honest, it does. The approval rating of the Republican party has gone down a lot. Isn¡¯t the KCDC trying to catch the spread of dengue fever in Jeju Ind right now? There is an ulterior motive that is trying to create synergy with that and maintain the government.¡± ¡°Then I will not be the director of the Office of Strategic R&D nning.¡± ¡°I knew you were going to decline, so at first, I also declined when I was ordered to recruit you, Mr. Ryu,¡± Lee Yoon-Ho said. ¡°But on second thought, Mr. Ryu, it wasn¡¯t. The more I thought about it, the more I knew that there was no one better to take the position than you. The government is doing their work right now; I¡¯m saying that it¡¯s not just ttery.¡± ¡°There are other people who can take that position. There are a lot of brilliant scientists in Korea.¡± ¡°There aren¡¯t any creative scientists,¡± Lee Yoon-Ho said firmly. ¡°Being the CTO of the country means that they will be providing the directions to all the research and development happening in this country. Simply put, it is a role that requires insight into future business prospects.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Who is the one changing the trend of medicine right now by pioneering a new field of stem cells and creating a next-generation hospital? Is there anyone in Korea who has a better insight into future business prospects than you, Mr. Ryu?¡± Spit flew out of Lee Yoon-Ho¡¯s mouth. He began gesturing with his hands and feet and passionately persuading Young-Joon. ¡°In less than a year, you seeded in curing prominent diseases like a, Alzheimer¡¯s, and pancreatic cancer. You evenmercialized one of them. Please lead the country with your abilities, not a private enterprise like A-Gen. I am asking you to see things more nationally. If you are the captain, all domesticpanies will follow.¡± Lee Yoon-Ho was serious. ¡®Recruiting Ryu Young-Joon is in the nation¡¯s best interest.¡¯ Young-Joon could show the best performance in the frontline of research, but he could do much bigger things as the director of the Office of Strategic R&D nning. Lee Yoon-Ho seriously thought so. ¡°But I understand that the position of director doesn¡¯t allow me to just lead the research direction in any way I want. Roughly speaking, I can¡¯t just take that role and order SG Pharmaceuticals to make a drug in this way like I¡¯m ordering a subordinate, right?¡± ¡°Do that!¡± Lee Yoon-Ho shouted confidently. ¡°Pardon?¡± Ryu Young-Joon tilted his head like he was baffled. ¡°It is true that it was a position that didn''t actually do the projects, but just hand them out. But it could be different if you do it, Mr. Ryu. Design experiments like you are doing now and orderpanies and universities to do them. You can consult them on their research.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°And we have a four trillion won budget for the office. Use part of it as funding for your own research, Mr. Ryu.¡± ¡°That¡¯s tax money, though. It is okay to give it to universities or research institutes that win project contests, but it¡¯s embezzlement if I use it for research that I want to do.¡± ¡°It won''t be. We are going to push to pass a new legition so that you can research, Mr. Ryu.¡± ¡°Hm...¡± Young-Joon crossed his arms and thought. It was a more special proposal than he had thought. ¡®I didn¡¯t think they would do this much to recruit me.¡¯ Lee Yoon-Ho was staring at Young-Joon with a desperate and sincere look in his eyes. ¡°Sir?¡± Yoo Song-Mi knocked on the door and came in. ¡°I¡¯m sorry to interrupt your meeting, but I have something to show you.¡± She approached Young-Joon and whispered in his ear. Young-Joon opened his email on his phone. The news article Yoo Song-Mi sent him popped up. It was about seven famous scientists in Korea dering their support for the decision of the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy. [Ryu Young-Joon, the CEO of A-Bio, has changed the trend of medicine in very innovative and creative ways, and he is presenting new research directions. If he only works at A-Bio, his abilities will only be limited to the pharmaceutical industry, but we think his potential can determine the entire industry of science in this country. If CEO Ryu bes the director of the Office of Strategic R&D nning and takes control of the direction of science in Korea, we believe that severalpanies, universities, and research institutes will faithfully follow his instructions and produce more effective results...] Young-Joon quickly read through the entirety of the deration. [... And so, we believe that the decision of the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy was very wise, and to this, Kim Hyun-Taek, the Lab Director of Lab One of A-Gen, and six others strongly support Mr. Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s appointment as the Director of the Office of Strategic R&D nning.] * * * ¡°Mr. Ryu Young-Joon? He is also the CEO of A-Bio, but he is also a director of A-Gen. He is a talented individual who is the closest to being the next CTO of ourpany. Of course, we don¡¯t want to let him go,¡± said Kim Hyun-Taek during an interview. His deration had gathered a lot of attention as he had just given up the best scientist in the samepany to the country. A lot of reporters hade to ask him more about his deration of support, and he had epted all of them. ¡°But let¡¯s think more nationally. If Mr. Ryu bes the CTO of A-Gen, A-Gen will grow rapidly. Then what? That¡¯s it. It stops at A-Gen growing rapidly. But if Mr. Ryu bes the director of that office, he will be able to grow the slice of the pie that this country¡¯s scientificmunity has,¡± Kim Hyun-Taek said. ¡°The position of A-Gen¡¯s CTO can be filled by myself or any otherb directors. But Mr. Ryu is unique. Wouldn¡¯t the world develop faster when everyone goes to a position that suits their capabilities? I want him to lead science in this entire country. I am introducing the best talent at ourpany to the government in hopes that he will leave a private corporation like A-Gen to us and lead this country.] Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s interview caused quite the stir. In addition, the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy announced a policy that would guarantee Young-Joon¡¯s autonomy in research and connect him to variouspanies and universities along with the final authority on a four trillion won budget. The public went wild. ¡ªHe is using his amazing ingenuity for the development of the country, not a private corporation. The public began picturing a future where Young-Joon decided on the direction of the country¡¯s science and policies andpanies and universities followed along to develop rapidly. And exactly three days after that, a coalition of about one hundred professors around the country issued a state of opposition with Professor Ban Du-Il leading the charge. [A tiger should be left to roam the jungle.] [The idea of the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy is excellent, but it is not realistic. It is not because CEO Ryu is not capable enough, but because of the structural limitations of the national industry. Firstly, the Ministry imed that they will allow Doctor Ryu to conduct research within the department, but in what research institute? Will they hire new scientists in the ministry, where only administrative employees exist? This irresponsible proposal that was blurted out in the absence of any required infrastructure is just another typical hasty, Korean-style red tape. Secondly, the Ministry imed that they will provide four trillion won of funding to Doctor Ryu, but given the reality that SG Electronic¡¯s one-year research budget is thirteen trillion won and A-Gen¡¯s one-year budget is seven trillion won, it raises the question whether that amount will be enough to realize Doctor¡¯s Ryu¡¯s potential. Thirdly...] The public, who were excited by the dream of a national science industry led by Young-Joon, was met with opposition. ¡ªWow. What¡¯s going to happen? ¡ªSo what is the condition where Ryu Young-Joon can realize his potential to the fullest? ¡ªKorea¡¯s administration is just garbage. Just stay at A-Bio, Doctor Ryu. ¡ªHe¡¯s going to be leading the nation¡¯s science and technology. Isn¡¯t that obviously going to be more helpful than him leading A-Gen or A-Bio? ¡ªThat ¡°leading¡± he is doing is just giving projects to private corporations. It¡¯s just like, ¡°Hey, develop an anticancer drug. I¡¯ll give you a billion won.¡± But Doctor Ryu¡¯s ingenuity isn¡¯t about giving money; it¡¯s about developing anticancer drugs himself. ¡ªBut can¡¯t he just design the R&D and give orders topanies like SG Pharmaceuticals or A-Gen like he¡¯s doing now? It¡¯s basically just makingpanies in Korea into Ryu Young Joon¡¯s hands and feet. ¡ªRealistically, does that make sense? It is an infringement of corporate management rights. We¡¯re not a dictatorship or something, and you want the government tomit illegal acts? ¡ªFxxk, I don¡¯t know. It just seems like Doctor Ryu is too much of a genius that one job isn¡¯t enough. ¡ªWhatever happened to Professor Shin Jung-Ju, the mainmentator of A-Bio? Hurry up and go on the rado and interpret this situation... The public was as noisy as it could be. The public opinion waspletely prized. One media outlet opened a poll about Young-Joon¡¯s appointment as the director of the Office of Strategic R&D nning. The people in favor were slightly stronger at sixty-one percent supporting it. Kim Hyun-Taek eased up a little bit. There were a lot more scientists against it than he had thought, but it seemed like there was a high possibility that Young-Joon would ept the position. He wouldn¡¯t be able to disappoint the public easily as he was the national hero. Plus, he would actually be able to do a good job in that role. From then on, it didn¡¯t matter if Kim Hyun-Taek took orders from Young-Joon because he wouldn¡¯t be apetitor anymore; he would be a government employee that gave him projects. And when everyone¡¯s attention was drawn to this issue, Young-Joon held a press conference. ¡°Hello, my name is Ryu Young-Joon.¡± He went up to the podium and grabbed the mic. Dozens of cameras shed towards him. ¡°First of all, I would like to thank the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy, who rmended me to such an important position,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I have discussed this with a lot of different people. I also met with Doctor Kim Si-Yeon, the current Director of the Office of Strategic R&D nning. She told me that she only has six months left in her term and that she would like me to be her sessor.¡± Click! Click! The camera shes did not stop. Young-Joon said, ¡°For that important position, I rmend the current CTO of A-Gen.¡± The reporters¡¯ eyes widened. Kim Hyun-Taek screamed in his office. Young-Joon said, ¡°The Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy said that they would give me the authority to specifically direct industry-academic research. But that risks the government infringing on the research autonomy rights of industry and research. Additionally, it is not realistic because it is important that the instructions for research and development understand the experimenters¡¯ expertise and proficiency. I know that well about the scientists at A-Gen, but not about other industries or academic institutions. It would only be counterproductive for me to direct their research.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°But I know what the nation expects from me. Therefore, when the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy requests advice on policies, I promise to answer. I swear that I will use the knowledge or ideas I have for this country like a public good,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Now, I will speak about the CTO of A-Gen I rmended. CTO Nichs Kim is a world-renowned scientist who has studied in the industry for forty years. Not only is he an expert in biology, he is knowledgeable in physics as well. He has experience in leading apanyrger than mine, and he has experience as a professor as well. I believe that he is someone who would be able to use my advice excellently, even if it iscking, to advance science in Korea. Please have as much faith in him as you support me.¡± With a smile, Young-Joon added, ¡°And just in case, CTO Nichs Kim is Korean. His Korean name is Kim Hyun-Sik.¡± Chapter 90: Cellicure (1)

Chapter 90: Cellicure (1)

With Young-Joon¡¯s announcement, Nichs became one of the most searched-up people on the web. Nichs was a scientist who was very knowledgeable in biophysics and protein engineering. He was pretty famous in the industry, but it was the first time he had been in the spotlight so much as his job as a scientist was distant from the public eye. Nichs was having some tea in his office while he read Young-Joon¡¯s announcement. There was a slight disturbance outside his door. ¡ªIs the CTO inside? It was Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s voice. ¡ªYes, he is. But did you schedule a meeting? ¡ªNo, but I¡¯ll step in for a moment. ¡ªThe CTO has to leave soon... ¡ªI just need a second. Click. Kim Hyun-Taek opened the door stubbornly. ¡°What happened?¡± Kim Hyun-Taek asked as he sat beside Nichs. ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°Are you going to be the director of that office? Did Ryu Young-Joon tell you that he was going to do this?¡± ¡°Mr. Ryu.¡± Nichs corrected Kim Hyun-Taek. ¡°Mr. Ryu asked me to do this. He said that he needed to work more in the frontlines of research, but someone had to take that important position. He said he could trust me.¡± ¡°...¡± Cold sweat ran down Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s cheek. ¡°So when are you going?¡± ¡°You¡¯re worried that Mr. Ryu will take over the empty CTO position at A-Gen if I go right now, right?¡± ¡°... Yes.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I am not leaving right away since the current director¡¯s term is not over yet,¡± Nichs said. ¡°And Mr. Ryu does not want toe to A-Gen right now. He is looking for the right time. He is preparing to merge A-Bio and A-Gen and make this ce his main base. The moment he wille to swallow this ce up will probably be when hees to do the stock exchange he promised with our CEO.¡± ¡°Mr. CTO.¡± Kim Hyun-Taek stuck out his head close to Nichs. ¡°Sir, aren¡¯t you old friends with Mr. Yoon? Are you going to betray him? Do you want to hand over thispany to Ryu Young-Joon?¡± ¡°All I am trying to do is appoint a person who is worthy of the CTO position of the country¡¯s top pharmaceuticalpany that will be created as A-Gen and A-Bio merge. I don¡¯t want to know about the rest, and it¡¯s none of my business.¡± ¡°What if Ryu Young-Joon finds out about that secret?¡± ¡°That secret?¡± ¡°The one. About anthrax...¡± Nichs closed his eyes with a serious face. ¡°Confess. Turn yourself in the few months I have left before I leave the CTO position and Mr. Ryues here, finds out about everything and destroys everything,¡± he said. ¡°I also delivered the message to CEO Yoon as well. When you and CEO Yoon decide, I will take care of the problems myself without dirtying Mr. Ryu¡¯s hands and leave.¡± Kim Hyun-Taek red at Nichs for a while. ¡°I can¡¯t do that,¡± he said. ¡°Director, do not force me to expose that incident.¡± ¡°... You will kick yourself for this and deeply regret your decision.¡± * * * Kim Hyun-Taek, who returned to theb, began making rounds to every department. This was one of the situations that scientists feared the most, as he would attack them until everything was burned down if he found one little thing he didn¡¯t like. ¡°Who uses a pipette and leaves it on theb bench with the volume adjustment knob still on? Who manages their equipment like this?¡± The shouting started from Room 101, the first room Kim Hyun-Taek went into. As soon as Principal Scientist Kim Joo-Yeon figured out the situation, she quickly returned to herb and let the Anticancer Drug Research Department know. ¡°The director is making rounds to thebs from the floor below us and shooting everyone up, so pull yourself together and be careful of what you do.¡± ¡°Ah, again? What happened this time?¡± Senior Scientist Kim Hyun-Seok said irritably. ¡°How should I know? Theb director is going crazy today, so be careful. Senior Park, you didn¡¯t write four days-worth ofb notes, right? Did you do that? He¡¯s going to go nuts if he finds out.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll write it right now,¡± Park Yeon-Seo said as she quickly grabbed her notepad. ¡°You might get caught writing it here, so go to Room 212 and write it. If he asks why you¡¯re there, just say that you stopped by to freeze-dry some protein.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± She took her notepad and quickly left. ¡°Wait.¡± Kim Joo-Yeon flinched when she thought of something. ¡°Didn¡¯t the Diagnostic Department fight with the director once?¡± ¡°Not the department, but a Scientist there, Park So-Yeon, fought with the director because she refused to give him the experiment data,¡± Lead Scientist Hwang Chan-Mi replied. ¡°Holy... She¡¯s going to get executed today. Tell her to take the rest of the day off and run away. If he sees her today, she is going to be executed immediately.¡± ¡°Is he in that bad of a mood today?¡± ¡°Yeah. I¡¯ve known him for over ten years, and it¡¯s the worst. You know the Diagnostic Department well, right, Chan-Mi-ssi? Call them right now. Tell them to run away, I¡¯m being serious. I¡¯m not responsible for that department, but it won¡¯t be great if the vibe of the entireb is down.¡± Hwang Chan-Mi sighed and picked up the phone. But she was toote. ¡ªUm... He¡¯s already here... Principal Scientist Song Yu-Ra from the Mobile Diagnostic Device Research Department said in a quiet voice. ¡°This is trouble.¡± Kim Joo-Yeon sighed. Park So-Yeon was quivering as Kim Hyun-Taek stood in front of her. He looked like he was going to kill someone. ¡°Pull out the data on the diagnostic kit development. Let¡¯s see the progress.¡± Park So-Yeon entered the passcode on herputer and opened the data. ¡°Exin it,¡± Kim Hyun-Taek said as he crossed his arms. ¡°The A-Gen Simple Chip is being developed based on PDMS, and it uses antibodies to quickly diagnose protein...¡± ¡°You don¡¯t think I know that? When I am supervising this project? I¡¯m not talking about the idea sketch, but the progress.¡± ¡°... We are currently designing a circuit for PDMS now. It works by putting an antibody at the end of each of the forty-right lines and cross-verifying it six times.¡± ¡°Why six times?¡± ¡°Because the binding specificity of the antibodies used aren¡¯t that high. We are increasing the uracy by cross-verifying it six times.¡± ¡°Then shouldn¡¯t you be working on improving the binding specificity of the antibody?¡± ¡°But we are not doing protein engineering...¡± ¡°Then you can work with a team that does protein engineering!¡± Kim Hyun-Taek shouted. Song Yu-Ra quickly intervened. ¡°Um, sir. We talked about this during ourst meeting. The protein engineering team said they don¡¯t have the time to take on another project...¡± ¡°They finished a project four days ago. They can do it now,¡± Kim Hyun-Taek said as he red at Park So-yeon. ¡°Communicating with other departments is one of the fundamentals of research. Don¡¯t you know how Ryu Young-Joon makes all those great achievements from that teenypany?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°It¡¯s because he steals all the abilities of A-Gen¡¯s departments!¡± Kim Hyun-Taek shouted. Now that he was talking about it, it made him angry. It was true; A-Bio¡¯s own equipment and facilities weren¡¯t great. They didn¡¯t even have a facility that raised animals for experiments. He used it all from A-Gen. From the super-resolution visible photoactivated atomic force microscopy (pAFM) he used to destroy the opposition of the HIV vine to the countless experimental animals like mice and chimpanzees, the department that conducted the clinical trial, and even the PDMS chip and human resources from the Mobile Diagnostic Device Research Department, Young-Joon used it all from A-Gen. ¡®Fxxk.¡¯ Crash! Kim Hyun-Taek kicked the table. With a sound, the chair with wheels was pushed back from the impact. ¡°I don¡¯t know what you are all thinking. Are we part of A-Bio? A-Gen is the one that pays you! I pay you! The work that the Research Support Center does is a mess. It¡¯s all to support A-Bio¡¯s research! Look at the Clinical Trial Management Center. We don¡¯t have a single drug that is going into clinical trials! It¡¯s all A-Bio, A-Bio... Is thispany A-Bio¡¯s?!¡± Kim Hyun-Taek screamed. He red at Park So-Yeon like he was going to kill her. ¡°Scientist Park So-yeon. So, did you get on Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s good side by making a good diagnostic kit and offering it to him?¡± ¡°Pardon...?¡± Park So-Yeon was baffled. ¡°If you have the time to use all your strength to make a product for anotherpany, do it after you are done with what you are supposed to do! Coborating with other departments and catching up with their schedule!¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°If the protein engineering team is done with a project, you should have found out on that day! You just have to contact them and ask! Do you have to wait until theb director tells you?¡± ¡°... I¡¯m sorry.¡± Park So-Yeon lowered her head. ¡°The entirepany has gone mad! Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s sess story has made everyone insane. The CTO is already kissing his ass, so how could his subordinates be in their right mind?¡± Kim Hyun-Taek clenched his fists and trembled in anger. That was when... ¡°It¡¯s hard for just a Scientist to figure out the progress of a project since it is confidential information.¡± Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s voice was heard from the office entrance. When everyone nced at the door, he was actually standing there. ¡°How could someone call another department every day and check their progress? A regr scientist can¡¯t do that. Aren¡¯tb directors the ones who should organize and assign projects and coordinate schedules so that departments can coborate together? I don¡¯t know why you¡¯re angry at the newest person in the department for not doing your work that you passed onto her,¡± said Young-Joon. ¡°...¡± Kim Hyun-Taek froze for a second, then red at him with hostility. ¡°Doctor Ryu. Are you nowing in and out of myb without telling me in advance?¡± ¡°I¡¯m here because of an experiment for the diagnostic kit I developedst time. I got your permission when I signed the contract.¡± ¡°You¡¯re done with that experiment.¡± ¡°If it was, theb entrance wouldn¡¯t even have opened with the Lab One pass that was temporarily issued to me,¡± Young-Joon said as he shook the pass in his hand. ¡°Read the contract again because it hasn¡¯t ended. And the reason I am here is to do a few additional experiments to improve that diagnostic kit.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡®He¡¯s developing it more? Here?¡¯ Kim Hyun-Taek felt like his blood was boiling. He felt like he was going to faint because his blood pressure was so high. ¡°So are you saying that you are going to do experiments here?¡± ¡°Yes. And I need Scientist Park So-Yeon¡¯s help because I have to use the PDMS chip. I don¡¯t have a lot of time, so do you have more to say to her? Should I wait outside?¡± ¡°... No.¡± Kim Hyun-Taek barely suppressed his boiling anger and left the office. Young-Joon watched him leave, then went to Park So-Yeon. She turned her head and didn¡¯t look at him. ¡°So-Yeon-ssi, can we have a talk?¡± ¡°... Yes...¡± Her helpless voice was teary. She turned her head so that Young-Joon wouldn¡¯t be able to see her tears, but he felt like he knew what she looked like. She was definitely not in the condition to discuss work-rted things right away. ¡®I¡¯m going to have to talk to her after I calm her down.¡¯ Young-Joon took Park So-Yeon to the cafe inside theb. * * * ¡°Latte?¡± ¡°... Yes.¡± Park So-Yeon kept wiping around her eyes with her fingertips. She was worried that her makeup had been ruined. When she took thette Young-Joon handed her, she choked up again a little. It was because it was a matchatte, something she always used to drink when they were dating. ¡°Are you feeling better?¡± ¡°... Yes.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t take it to heart since he does that often. Although, I think it¡¯s a lot worse today.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Anyways, to get to the point, I¡¯m thinking of redeveloping the diagnostic kit into a format that can be used in the pet and livestock industries,¡± Young-Joon said. Park So-Yeon clenched her eyes shut, then opened them. ¡®Let¡¯s just talk about work.¡¯ She swallowed all the words that came to mind. She sniffled then took a deep breath. ¡°... You¡¯re talking about making a diagnostic kit for animals?¡± Park So-Yeon asked. ¡°Yes, that¡¯s it.¡± The international patent approval for the one hundred twenty two types of treatments for pet and livestock was almost finished. If he developed an animal disease diagnostic kit, it could create synergy with this. The world livestock industry was worth more than thousands of trillions of won. Thanks to that, the amount of damage of livestock that were mass-killed by hoof-and-mouth disease, tuberculosis, and AI[1] every year was easily over a trillion won. It wasn¡¯t easy for the person who does the killing, nor the livestock, nor the owners of the farm. Now, it was time to stop that. Science that had been advanced to the extreme could put an end to the despair that repeated itself every year. 1. short for avian influenza, or bird flu ? Chapter 91: Cellicure (2)

Chapter 91: Cellicure (2)

Beforeing to A-Gen to meet Park So-Yeon, Young-Joon met a guest. His name was Mckinney. He was a fifty-two-year-old American, and he was one of the big shots in the livestock industry. He was also suffering from pancreatic cancer. He had tried various intensive treatments at the hospital for two years, but it wasn¡¯t easy. When Mckinney thought that there was nothing more he could do, he volunteered for the clinical trial of the pancreatic cancer cure Young-Joon was conducting in the United States. It was a new technology that manipted the bornavirus, which originally destroys pancreatic cells, induced it to the pancreas and selectively killed cancer cells. The cure was administered multiple times in small doses, and the size of the tumor decreased daily when he examined it through imaging. Mckinney was able to see the difference with his own eyes as his doctor showed him pictures every day. It felt like magic as the efficacy of the cure was amazing. He wondered how the disease that caused him so much pain in the second half of his life could be cured so easily. After two weeks of medication, he waspletely clear of cancer cells; they had beenpletely destroyed. And so, Mckinney was determined to meet Young-Joon. Mckinney, who came to A-Bio, expressed his gratitude to Young-Joon over and over again. ¡°I regained my health thanks to you.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a relief that the pancreatic cancer cure worked well. I¡¯m d it helped.¡± Young-Joon was sincerely happy. He was always proud when he saw the new technology he developed cured patients who were in despair. ¡°There is something I would like to discuss with you,¡± Mckinney said. ¡°There are one hundred twenty-two animal drugs among the international patent applications, right?¡± ¡°Where did you hear that from?¡± ¡°I hear rumors from here and there since I¡¯m in the livestock industry. I heard that incredible drugs areing out, although it seems like it hasn¡¯t been revealed because it hasn¡¯t been a year and a half and approved yet. I heard that the approval takes a long time because there¡¯s a lot of them and because it¡¯s an international patent, but it¡¯s almost done.¡± Taking a sip of his tea, Young-Joon didn¡¯t reply and waited for him to finish. ¡°Mr. Ryu, along with those treatments, is there any way to use the diagnostic kit for livestock epidemics?¡± ¡°Infectious diseases of livestock?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Yes. I don¡¯t know about biology that much, but I thought you could somehow do it,¡± Mckinney said. ¡°Mr. Ryu, with that and the treatments, we could save countless livestock and people from the national disaster of livestock epidemics that returns every year.¡± ¡°Save people?¡± ¡°Yes, it can save people.¡± ¡°Hm. I guess the economic damage is big if an epidemic urs. It can help farm owners.¡± Young-Joon nodded, but that wasn¡¯t Mckinney¡¯s point. ¡°Sir, I was talking about the cull house workers. Their job is a lot different from what people usually think. If you throw chickens or ducks into the rendering machine, you get screams, bits of meat flying around, and sshes of blood. It¡¯s a mess. If you get ten dayborers, eight of them run away after the morning job. They vomit and get nightmares. The cull house is a living hell.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°They used to originally use public officials, but they outsourced it to dayborers because they were taking sick leave due to trauma, quitting, and there were protests from the union. Usually, poor immigrant workers do that job. It¡¯s like that in the U.S., so it¡¯s probably the same in Korea as well. You have to bulldoze pigs to death, and you have to keep grinding up animals in a machine in the metallic smell of blood and bits of meat and bones from God knows what animal,¡± said Mckinney. ¡°Hm...¡± ¡°And people spend the night in that bloody hellhole and even eat there because they have to get rid of it quickly. After that, they all get PTSD or depression.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°The economic damage is enough to drive a farm owner to take their own life, but you also can¡¯t ignore the trauma of cull house workers. They provide psychological treatment with state funds in the United States, but I don¡¯t know about Korea.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think they do.¡± ¡®They don¡¯t even take care of their veterans.¡¯ With a sigh, Young-Joon said, ¡°Like you said, it will be very helpful in catching livestock epidemics if we reform the diagnostic kit for animals. But the problem would be reducing the unit price of the kit since there are tens of millions of livestock culled just in Korea.¡± ¡°... Is there a way?¡± ¡°I will think about it. With this, we will definitely be able to create synergy with the treatments and bring about important changes in the livestock industry.¡± * * * ¡°That¡¯s why you came to see me,¡± Park So-Yeon said. ¡°Yes. I think we can lower the unit price by dividing the diagnostic kit by the disease,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°We don¡¯t have to produce a lot ofrge kits that diagnose a bunch of diseases at once since the type of infectious disease is already specified when the animals are about to be culled. We don¡¯t have to spend more money diagnosing other diseases when we just have to determine whether it¡¯s AI[1] or not.¡± ¡°So, people will have one condensed kit that can diagnose all livestock diseases, use it on chickens or pigs that aren¡¯t in good condition, check what disease it is, then track that disease spreading with the cheap kit, right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± Young-Joon nodded. ¡°That¡¯s why we need to reduce the size of the PDMS chip and make a small kit that can diagnose specific diseases like hoof-and-mouth disease, bovine tuberculosis, and bird flu one by one. And lower the unit price as much as possible.¡± ¡°I understand,¡± Park So-Yeon replied. ¡°But not everyone from the Life Creation Team will be able to join this project. Only Koh Soon-Yeol-ssi and Jung Hae-Rim-ssi will participate.¡± ¡°Yes, that¡¯s alright. I just have to be better,¡± Park So=Yeon said calmly. Ring ring! Young-Joon¡¯s phone rang loudly. ¡°Just one moment.¡± Young-Joon picked up the phone. It was Song Ji-Hyun. ¡°Hello?¡± ¡ªDoctor Ryu! Park So-Yeon¡¯s head fell as she heard a woman¡¯s voiceing out from the other side of the phone. ¡ªIt seeded. Cellicure. We said that we were going to coat it in an exosome and improve its efficiency by only sending it to cancer cells in the liver, right? It worked!¡± ¡°Oh, really?¡± Young-Joon smiled brightly. ¡°Congrattions. Good work.¡± ¡ªI was just passing by A-Bio. Are you free for a meeting right now? Or I can send you the data by email. ¡°No, let¡¯s discuss this in person. I¡¯ll head there.¡± Young-Joon hung up. ¡°I have another meeting, so I have to go. Thank you,¡± Young-Joon said to Park So-Yeon. * * * Young-Joon arrived at A-Bio and met Song Ji-Hyun at the main entrance. She immediately got up from the bench when she saw Young-Joon. Her face was flushed with excitement. ¡°Doctor Ryu! Look at this.¡± She ran towards Young-Joon, basically jumping in joy, and opened the data on her tablet. ¡°Haha, are we going to stand here and talk about it? Let¡¯s look at it at that cafe over there.¡± ¡°Should we?¡± Embarrassed, Song Ji-Hyun put her tablet back in her bag. Young-Joon was somewhat d to see her so happy. He had be dull to this kind of feeling because he had spent half a year seeding with everything he touched. As a scientist, Young-Joon knew what that felt like: the thrill of seeing the results of long, hard research because the desired data popped out miraculously. ¡°If you were part of A-Bio, I would have given you a bonus,¡± said Young-Joon as they walked. ¡°Should I go there right now? Will you hire me if I apply?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°Haha, thank you. But I still like Celligener.¡± The two went into a quiet cafe that was in front of thepany. Young-Joon met someone unexpected there. ¡°Doctor Ryu?¡± Hong Ju-Hee greeted him with a bright face. ¡°Who is it?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked. ¡°She¡¯s a doctor who works in the newborn intensive care unit at Sunyoo Hospital,¡± Young-Joon exined. The daughter of Son Soo-Young, the first clinical trial patient who was treated with the a cure, suffered from a disease called persistent pulmonary hypertension of the newborn. The baby¡¯s primary doctor was Hong Ju-Hee. They had be familiar with each other when Young-Joon gave her a hint about treating the patient. ¡°It¡¯s been a while, Doctor Hong. You¡¯re probably so busy, but what brings you here?¡± Young-Joon asked as he greeted her. ¡°Oh, I¡¯m actually here because I wanted to ask you for something, but... I was thinking about it by myself here because I didn¡¯t know if I should call you.¡± ¡°Ask me for something?¡± ¡°There¡¯s a patient with pediatric liver cancer at Sunyoo Hospital.¡± Young-Joon flinched. ¡°Pediatric liver cancer...¡± ¡ªAgh... Rosaline groaned. ¡°Sorry, wait.¡± Young-Joon got a small headache. He excused himself and went to the washroom. He felt like he was going to vomit for some reason. ¡°Why am I like this all of a sudden?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡ªIt¡¯s because of me. ¡°Why?¡± ¡ªDo you remember when I was created and established myself in your body? ¡°Of course.¡± ¡ªI have over a hundred million cells in your body right now, but I only had one before. It¡¯s the mother cell that is basically my main body. After the creation, the mother cell moved to your brain through your blood vessel. ¡°To my brain?¡± ¡ªThe easiest energy source to consume is glucose, and it is supplied to the brain the most. And it located itself where the ganglion signal was the strongest. Do you know where that is? ¡°Where?¡± ¡ªAmong the nerve cells inside your hippocampal tissue responsible for long-term memory. The ce where your obsession with science and research ethics is rooted. Rosaline said. ¡ªIt¡¯s where the memory of Ryu Sae-Yi, your youngest sister who died at nine-years-old, was located. She died of pediatric liver cancer. ¡°Oh...¡± Young-Joon held his head. ¡ªThe moment you heard that it was pediatric liver cancer, the nerve cells near my mother cell suddenly got excited and affected it. ¡°I understand what you mean. Then, will this happen when I hear about pediatric liver cancer from now on?¡± ¡ªIt¡¯s fine now. I have rxed those nerve cells. I am stronger than the hippocampal nerve cells. ¡°Alright.¡± Young-Joon caught his breath and left the washroom. In the meantime, Song Ji-Hyun and Hong Ju-Hee were having a serious conversation. Young-Joon went to their table. ¡°How old is that patient?¡± Young-Joon asked Hong Ju-Hee. ¡°The patient is female, and she is nine-years-old.¡± ¡°...¡± It was the exact same state as Ryu Sae-Yi. Something ached in his head again. [I rxed it again. It¡¯s fine.] Rosaline sent him a message.n ¡°How is the patient?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a hepatocellr carcinoma. The tumor is located in the right lobe, and we are treating it with CCG 8881B therapy.¡± ¡°8881B?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a treatment where we intravenously inject cistin and doxorubicin under the conditions provided by the American Academy of Pediatrics.¡± ¡°Is the reason you came to see me because it is not working well?¡± ¡°... The cancer cell gained resistance,¡± said Hong Ju-Hee in a depressed voice. ¡°What about other drugs?¡± ¡°The child¡¯s prognosis isn¡¯t that great. Using a drug that is more toxic isn¡¯t rmended, so I came to see you in case you had any other way. But here... Doctor Song, was it? She said that she had a good drug,¡± Hong Ju-Hee said as she looked at Song Ji-Hyun. Song Ji-Hyun nodded with a tense face. Young-Joon said, ¡°Doctor Song, let¡¯s see the data for Cellicure.¡± Cellicure was the most effective and safe drug among the existing liver cancer treatments, at least it was from the data from the first phase of clinical trials. It was also true from the data that Rosaline analyzed. There were barely any side effects. * * * Lee Yoon-Ah, who was nine-years-old, was admitted to Sunyoo Hospital when her friends entered elementary school. It wasn¡¯t easy for a small child to tolerate chemotherapy that even adults had a hard time with. She cried and threw a tantrum every time she got a shot, but the surprising thing was that she did not lose her smile. Even then, Lee Yoon-Ah was sitting on her bed andughing while on her phone. ¡°Hahaha. Mom, look at this.¡± Lee Yoon-Ah showed her phone screen to the woman, who aged dramatically in just two years, who was sitting beside her. ¡°Someone is having a staring contest with a dog.¡± ¡°Yeah...¡± The extremely exhausted womanughed feebly as she nced at Lee Yoon-Ah. Kim Hyo-Jin was a young mother, just thirty-three-years-old. She got married in her early twenties and had her first child when everyone else was in university. All of her memories in her twenties were with her daughter; she had traded her youth with this child. Kim Hyo-Jin stroked her forehead, which waspletely bald. Click. The door to her room opened. There was Professor Kim Chun-Jung, Lee Yoon-Ah¡¯s primary doctor, Hong Ju-Hee from the newborn intensive care unit, and a few nurses. But Kim Hyo-Jin shot up from her chair after she saw the person behind them. Her eyes widened. She didn¡¯t blink once as Young-Joon approached her with the doctors. She thought she was dreaming. ¡°Doctor... Ryu Young-Joon?¡± Her voice trembled. ¡°Hello.¡± Young-Joon greeted her, then nced at Lee Yoon-Ah. He didn¡¯t know if he was mistaken or it was because all her hair had fallen out due to chemotherapy, but she looked very simr to Ryu Sae-Yi. 1. short for avian influenza, or bird flu ? Chapter 92: Cellicure (3) Chapter 92: Cellicure (3) Um Doctor Ryu, can you cure my little girl? Kim Hyo-Jin, the patients mother, said with desperation in her voice. I dont know yet. We do have a new liver cancer treatment, but we have to see if we can use it, Young-Joon answered briefly. He leaned towards Lee Yoon-Ah. Hi, Yoon-Ah. Lee Yoon-Ah giggled, then turned away and buried her face into her pillow. Then, she peeked so that only her eyes were out and nced at Young-Joon. Say hello to the doctor, said Kim Hyo-Jin as she patted Lee Yoon-Ah on the shoulder. Lee Yoon-Ah just bowed her head without saying anything. How is it? Young-Joon asked Rosaline. You can cure her with Cellicure. But to destroy the cancer cellspletely, you have to precisely measure the number of doses and the amount. It will damage regr cells if it is too much, but the cancer cells will gain resistance if it is too weak. How do I adjust it? You have to use fitness to check that. Then use it. Oh Rosaline moaned again. Theres a problem. I will send you a messageter. What? Why? You are more important to me than hundreds of those children. Theres a problem in your hippocampus. Bleep. Rosalines status window disappeared. Hey? Rosaline? Baffled, Young-Joon called Rosaline, but she did not reply. He couldnt even pull up her status window. Rosaline was focusing all her strength on examining his hippocampus. In front of her were over ten million neurons. Each neuron formedworks with about twenty or thirty thousand neurons and formed arge neural of long-term memory. This was Young-Joons library of memories. Rosaline was examining each of the electrical signals. In between therge nerve cells among the subiculum and presubiculum, there were heavy ck nerves; they were very old tissue. To Rosaline, they looked like a dormant volcano or a dead old tree. In those cells, there were memories such as the time Young-Joon met Ryu Sae-Yi for the first time in her cradle when she was a baby, the stone wall road that he used to take when walking her to kindergarten while holding her hand, and the time he worked a part-time job as a university student and bought her crayons when she was about to enter elementary school. ... They hadnt had any activity for a long time. And now that Young-Joon had found Lee Yoon-Ah, neurotransmitters such as norepinephrine were flowing out likeva. I am going to use some fitness. Rosaline sent a message to Young-Joon. Huh? Hey, tell me what to do with the Cellicure concentration! A littleter. I have to pour all the fitness into this right now, Rosaline answered briefly. Then, she began controlling the expression level of a few genes. The neurons began rxing, and the neurotransmitters that were being produced slowly disappeared. This had happened in a sh, but it felt like hours of work for the cells. Rosaline was now able to take a breath. But why does he keep getting so stimted when I stopped it earlier? Rosaline stared past the neural and examined it. The start of the excitation was not the hippocampus; the signal wasing from the other side. The trauma left a scar on part of Young-Joons hippocampus, which preserved memories of Ryu Sae-Yi, but the trauma was mainly located in the amygd. The amygd was the structure that controlled the unconscious connected to the end of the hippocampus. And some information from memories was trapped there in the form of emotions. Maybe when Ryu Sae-Yi died Rosaline loaded herself into the blood vessels. She moved through the bloodstream that was beating from the heart. I like that theres a lot of glucose. There was an extreme abundance of glucose, the sole energy source for the brain, here. The carbohydrates Young-Joon ate for lunch flowed through here in the form of sugars. Rosaline absorbed the glucose within the blood and moved towards the amygd, aplex neural tissue that controlled emotions. She had influenced that region many times since she entered Young-Joons body, but she had never directly entered a cell into it. Doctor Ryu? Professor Kim Chun-Jung, Lee Yoon-Ahs primary doctor, asked Young-Joon. But she was a little surprised when she saw Young-Joon, who turned to look at her. His stone-cold face and the strange look in his eyes gave off an alienating feeling. Doctor Ryu? Kim Chun-Jung called him again. Yes. Are you feeling alright? Yes. Young-Joon was really fine. He was fully conscious as well, but for some reason, he felt like a psychopath who had no feelings. He felt the sympathy and sadness he felt for Lee Yoon-Ah just a few moments ago disappear instantly. And like how it was easy to find a needle in the haystack if the hay was all burnt away, the only thing that filled Young-Joons void head was pure logic and reason. His thinking had been extremely sharpened to the extreme as he was under the influence of Rosaline. Can we cure her with Cellicure? Kim Chun-Jung asked. I can tell you after I look at her chart. Give me the data, Young-Joon said mechanically. Song Ji-Hyun stared at him in shock. His face and way of speaking was extremely awkward; he didnt seem like the Young-Joon she knew. * * * The discussion on how to administer Cellicure began in Kim Chun-Jungs office. Hepatocellr carcinoma. Tumor is located in the right lobe. Treated with 8881B therapy after removing the tumor with surgery, said Young-Joon as he read the chart. The tumor began growing in the liver again on day 174. Cistin and doxorubicin didnt work, and it is currently two centimeters big. ... Where is the childs weight shown? Young-Joon asked. Its at the very top, replied Kim Chun-Jung. Young-Joon checked Lee Yoon-Ahs weight at the top of her chart. She was twenty-four kilograms. We intravenously inject 0.6 milliliters of Cellicure, which has been developed into a new form, per kilogram. We have to inject it with a steady flow for two hours. The duration of the treatment will be two weeks, and administered twice a day. ... Kim Chun-Jung, Hong Ju-Hee, the nurses, and Song Ji-Hyun were staring at Young-Joon quietly. Why? Young-Joon asked. Nothing It was just fascinating how you can just determine the administration conditions of a new drug just like that, said Hong Ju-Hee. She and Song Ji-Hyun believed Young-Joon, but Kim Chun-Jung wasnt that easy, as Lee Yoon-Ah was her patient. The entire process of treating a patient could not be done just by having trust in someone, no matter how brilliant they were. Im sorry, but what is the evidence behind that method? Kim Chun-Jung asked. Why is it 0.6 milliliters per kilogram? If you convert the concentration of Cellicure for the patient, we are injecting sixty percent of the dose that was used in patients in the first phase of clinical trials. However, because it is more stably introduced into the patients cancer cell when administered due to the change in drug form, the increase in efficiency should be taken into ount. It is about 1.6 times more efficient than the original Cellicure if you induce exosome integration when it uniquely recognizes XRCC, a liver cancer cell marker. As such, the right amount of the drug is being injectedpared to Phase One of clinical trials, considering that the patient is a child, Young-Joon said. For a moment, Kim Chun-Jung was at a loss for words. She stammered, then finally opened her mouth. T-Thank you. Then, why are we injecting it twice a day in twelve-hour intervals and limiting the administration time to two hours? Like I said before, Cellicure is packaged in an exosome, so it attaches to cancer cells by recognizing the unique markers on liver cancer cells. The reason why we dont pour in Cellicure all at once is to give it time to ess the entire liver. Two minutes after the exosome enters the cell, the cell membrane copses so that other exosomes cannot enter. Young-Joon poured out an exnation. As such, the exosomes that are injected slower in the span of two hours have the opportunity to enter the cancer cells sequentially and ess many more cancer cells more effectively. If you pour it in all at once, all the exosomes would enter only a portion of the cancer cells. ... The reason we have to treat the patient for two weeks is because of the size of the tumor. If Cellicure eliminates seventy percent of the tumor surface with one administration, it has to be administered for a total of twenty-six times with said conditions to theoretically kill all cancer cells. The extra two times are considering the proliferation of the cancer cells. ... Thud. Hong Ju-Hees elbow idently bumped her notepad onto the floor. ... Sorry. She quickly picked it up. Kim Chun-Jung didnt show it, but she was extremely shocked. Humans arent robots. How can he analyze things like that? She asked for his evidence behind the administration method, but she would have approved of the treatment if Young-Joon said something about the clinical data and how Lee Yoon-Ah was still a child. However, the person who was the most surprised was Young-Joon himself. It felt like Rosaline had borrowed his mouth and was exining it for him. But that sense of surprise was also a rational sense of surprise; it was a sort of a reasonable doubt about whether he was someone who was capable of such urate analysis. There was no sense of emotion at all since it was fully removed from him. * * * -Ugh Rosaline groaned on the way out of the hospital. At the same time, Young-Joon felt like a loose screw in his head had been tightened again. He felt like he was back to normal now. Hey, what happened? Young-Joon asked. Did I exin everything right? Everything was correct. Dont worry. ... Where did you go? What did you do to my body? Thats what I want to ask you What are you going to do about this amygd? What? You should clean up. Its not like youre using this body alone. ... Young-Joon was baffled. What was she saying? I explored your unconscious mind where your trauma was. It was like hell. I have never seen such a vast universe like that in my life. Isnt six months your entire life? Thats true. Anyway, I cleaned up the unique structures that were floating around in your unconscious mind. What trauma? I have trauma? Are you kidding? You have so many. Starting with yourme inferiorityplex from your poor childhood, its just Clean it up! ... Of course, the most severe one among them was about Ryu Sae-Yi. Rosaline said. I couldnt dare to touch it. Haha. Kim Hyun-Taek stimted this when he stole Cellicure? Hes crazy. If he was unlucky, he could have been murdered. ... Anyways, theres no way for me to get rid of this because its so big. You have to take care of it yourself. Me? You will need like ten thousand fitness to remove it through cell apoptosis. But you can uproot it depending on the situation since you are not a cell, but arge human. If Im a citizen, you are as big as a country. You can do things I cannot do by myself. Doctor Ryu! Someone shouted and followed Young-Joon. It was Song Ji-Hyun. You just left alone without saying goodbye when I was out for a moment That was mean, Song Ji-Hyun said like she was disappointed. When he didnt have emotions, Young-Joon just left because he was done with his business, but now he felt a little sorry. They came together, so it was also kind of weird to leave alone without even saying goodbye. Young-Joon said, Sorry. Lets go. Ill drive you home. He and Song Ji-Hyun went to the parking lot where hispany car was parked. Song Ji-Hyun said to him in the elevator, Um Are you okay? Me? You just seem a little different. You also look a little upset. Oh, Im fine. Its just Young-Joon was thinking of an exnation, but he couldnt talk about Rosaline. So, he came up with a simr reason. I have a trauma about pediatric liver cancer. A trauma? My youngest sister died of liver cancer. Oh Song Ji-Hyun looked like she felt bad for him. There was a moment of silence, and the atmosphere became sad very quickly. Young-Joon said something first because he felt bad. Thats also the reason why I went to grad school and started studying science. It was because I wanted to make a pediatric liver cancer cure. Song Ji-Hyun stared at Young-Joon. I see. So was that why you fought with theb director when Lab One stole Cellicure? Young-Joon smiled. Yeah. How do you know about that? Everyone in this industry knows, said Song Ji-Hyun. Back then, I was a rookie student, but now I am a scientist leading apany like A-Bio. I hope it really seeds this time. ... Dont worry. Song Ji-Hyun lightly patted him on the back. You rescued this drug that was buried after Celligener worked on it for seven years. Ding! The elevator arrived at the underground parking lot. The elevator doors are opening. Chapter 93: Cellicure (4) Chapter 93: Cellicure (4) Gu Sung-Woo, the Commissioner of the Korean Intellectual Property Office, was looking over the patent applications that came in this morning. These patents, which had been filed through the International Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT), were documents that hade for the final approval stamp. The Patent Cooperation Treaty was the standard model of international patents that pursued the protection of patents regarding inventions in more than one hundred fifty countries with an international patent treaty. The patents that Lee Hae-Won spent several nights filing was now Goo Sung-Woos problem. Arge pile of documents came into his office in a small cart. What is this? he asked with wide eyes. Its CEO Ryus from A-Bio. Goo Sung-Woo covered his face with his hands after he heard the employee, who was moving the documents into his office. He figured out what this was after he heard that it was Young-Joons. This was well-known from the examination stage. They were all animal disease treatments, and there were one hundred twenty-two patents of them. The patent attorney had grouped it by disease when writing the statement instead of separating them into individual ones, but there were still thirty-two. Additionally, there were about four hundred pages for each patent statement written for every group. Is the attorney who filed these still alive? asked Goo Sung-Woo as he stacked the documents on his desk. I heard that the attorney went into Ryu Young-Joonspany as the in-house patent attorney. They wrote this, and theyre still working for him? Yes. Is it like Stockholm Syndrome or something? I dont know. But the examiner used all his time off after this and disappeared. ... Anyways, these are all the documents about the one hundred twenty-two new drugs. They have all been approved. I didn''t think they would actually all get approved. I think Ill get a cramp in my arm just from stamping it. The patent examiners from other countries probably put their blood, sweat, and tears into this. Phew. What can you do? It came in for priority review. Starting with the first drug, Goo Sung-Woo began looking over them one by one. * * * The first group of livestock infectious diseases included rinderpest, hoof-and-mouth disease, swine fever, highly pathogenic avian influenza, vesicr stomatitis, Valley fever, Bluetongue, and sheep pox. The second group of diseases included tuberculosis, Aujeszkys disease, equine infectious anemia, nausea, rabies, chronic wasting disease, anasma, and Duck virus hepatitis. The third group of diseases included bovine ephemeral fever, akabane disease, avian mycosmosis, porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome, porcine epidemic diarrhea, avian encephalomyelitis, Mareks disease, and infectious bursal disease. It also included pet diseases for dogs and cats like the parvovirus infections and leptospirosis, Patents for one hundred twenty-two drugs for a total of thirty-two groups of diseases were approved. There were basically three drugs for one disease, and there were two reasons for this. The first was topletely preventpetitive drugs from being discoveredter and patented, and the second was to use another drug as a backup in case one drug does not work due to animal specificity. These incredible drugs were examined from all over the world and approved. [Ryu Young-Joon publishes patents for one hundred twenty-two types of animal diseases.] [A-Bio CEO Ryu Young-Joon secures one hundred twenty-two animal drug patents personally.] [How will all these drugs transform the livestock market and the pet industry?] The news articles that wereing up one after another were more provocative than usual. Professor Shin Jung-Ju appeared on the radio for the first time in a while. CEO Ryu hadmissioned these experiments to famous, mid-sizedpanies called Reaction Chemistry and Cell Bio. He spent over a million won onmission fees and patent publishing. And he seeded in all of them. Is this possible? How can an individual do something like this just with experiment agencies? The interviewer asked. Usually, they cant. Some say that CEO Ryu may have registered personal patents by stealing internal data from A-Gen. Haha, conspiracy theories like that areing out because he seeded in publishing an unbelievable amount of patents, but they will disappear soon. It is because A-Gen has never studied animal diseases before. No matter how talented the thief is, how could they steal something that doesnt exist? Of course. But how did CEO Ryu do it? No one knows. But there is something more surprising. Its that CEO RYu requested Reaction Chemistry to design a total of one hundred twenty-two drug candidates, and the number of animal experimentsmissioned to Cell Bio was one hundred twenty-two. What do you think this means? What does it mean? It means that CEO Ryu already knew all the results when synthesizing the new drug candidates, whether the drug cured avian influenza in chickens, cholera in pigs. He knew this for all one hundred twenty-two. Oh! The interviewer eximed like they realized what she meant. I understand what you are saying, Professor. Youre saying that you dont know what disease in what animal it cures even if you synthesize the drug since its not like the information about the disease is written in the molecr form or something, right? And if you dont know that, you need to do much more than one hundred twenty-two animal experiments because you need to test one candidate on various animals and diseases? Thats exactly right. Its shocking that he requested the synthesis of exactly one hundred twenty-two candidate drugs. It means that he only requested that many because he was confident that the structure of the designed molecule would be effective. Usually, people synthesize around a thousand different molecules and do experiments to pick out the ones that are effective. Wow But CEO Ryu synthesized one hundred twenty-two drugs, only did one hundred twenty-two experiments, and seeded in publishing patents for all of them? Now can you see how unbelievable this work is? ... Professor Shin, do you think CEO Ryu actually knows that the new drugs and treatments he is developing for human diseases right now are going to be sessful? Do we need a clinical trial? As an individual, I would honestly believe him if he said that he was confident in human diseases as well given his uracy. But I shouldnt believe him as a scientist since there are rules about the steps to developing a drug, and they are there to protect everyone. Shin Jung-Ju said. I see. But from this point on, its clear that the clinical trials of new drugs developed by CEO Ryu will gain a lot of credibility. He did seed in every clinical trial he conducted before this, but this is apletely different magnitude than before in terms of quantity. Its truly fascinating. How did CEO Ryu do this? No clue. Maybe he has an answer key to biology? Hahaha. Young-Joon was listening to the radio in his car. I guess Professor Shin Jung-Ju was right. Rosaline said yfully. Youre right. Soon, the world will know about me. You want to be? No. What if you get captured by the U.S. army and experimented on? Where did you hear that from? I saw a few movies while I was searching through your memories. But there are times when I am really worried. I can fight off some sloppy gangsters, but I wont be able to stop an attack like a machine gun because of the fitness limit. Dont worry. Thats why I travel with these security guards right here, right? Young-Joon nced at Kim Chul-Kwon, the head of the security team, who was sitting beside him with his arms crossed. He was muscr like a lond gori, and his suit looked like it was going to explode from being so tight. Do security guards usually look like this? All his muscle fibers are erged to their limit. Really? I have never seen someone with such a trained body. I guess Park Joo-Hyuk introduced me to the right guy. Ring! Yoo Song-Mis phone rang from the passengers seat. She took the call, then handed it to Young-Joon. Its Mr. Mckinney. Young-Joon took the phone. The news and media is going crazy in the United States. I keep getting messages from people in livestock associations about this. Really? Should I read some of them to you? Um From Fox News this morning, they said, The experimental data released from Ryu Young-Joons patented treatments showed that the designed experiments were strictly controlled like academic papers, and they are expected to have a great impact on the actual treatment of animal diseases. The U.S. livestock industry is worth one million dors; being able to save them from livestock epidemics, which can cause considerable damage to the industry, is expected to bring tremendous benefits not just in bioethics, but economically as well. Mckinney read the news report to Young-Joon. It feels good to beplimented. How is the diagnostic kit going? We can do this with certainty only if we have that. We are working hard to develop it. Weve also found a way to lower the unit price as well, Young-Joon said. I see. Mr. Ryu, when will you begin production? I am on my way to meet the CEO of A-Gen to discuss that, he replied. * * * Young-Joon, who arrived at A-Gen, was alone with Yoon Dae-Sung. I knew that you were smart and you made good drugs, but I didnt know that you filed one hundred twenty-two patents without A-Gen knowing, Yoon Dae-Sung said. A-Gen had the idea, but didnt work on animal disease treatments. Those patents. Theyre not A-Bios or A-Gens, but your own, right? Yes. Yoon Dae-Sung put his hand on his head like this was trouble. Are you here to sell that to me? You also know how much money these patents will generate. They wont just be produced at A-Gen, but pharmapanies all over the world that are in the livestock industry will want to pay royalties and make the drug. Of course, especiallypanies like Conson & Colson. They will do it since the United States is one of the countries with a powerful livestock industry. Yes. But a patent is only a patent. Its another story frommercialization. You know that, right? ... Yoon Dae-Sung understood what Young-Joon was trying to say. He was trying to make a deal withmercialization while he kept the patent. I can make A-Gen the first to seed atmercialization out of anypany, Young-Joon said. The one hundred twenty-two drugs that were registered were all manufactured on theboratory scale. They only make like five or ten milligrams. They were produced in a very rigorous process and were tested with a very pure formtion. But its not used like that in real industries. Everything changes when you manufacture a drug on a factory scale. Yes. Making a drug in ab and manufacturing a drug in a factory waspletely different. Lets say that it cost one million won to produce one dose of the drug in ab. It couldnt be produced like that because the unit price was too expensive. The drug would be sold for over two million won including the distribution fee and profit margin in pharmacies, so who would buy something like that? As such, the process ofmercialization was an essential adjustment process that reduced the cost of production for factory manufacturing. In this process, everything changed, like the reaction buffer, the boiling equipment and column. Optimizing this was also a process of research and development. As I am the developer of the one hundred twenty-two drugs, I also know how to make it into a factory scale. And you are going to hand that over to A-Gen? Yes, because I am a director of A-Gen. Its important to grow ourpany, right? We have to start producing before everyone else. What do you want for it? Do you want the next CTO position when Nichs term is over and it bes vacant? I will get that position even if you dont want me to, Young-Joon said. ... The shareholders will support me a lot if I reveal that I have established all themercialization methods and are going to supply them to A-Gen for free. It will be difficult for the CTO to hand over the position to someone else after his term ends in that atmosphere. Then what do you want? Yoon Dae-Sung gulped. He felt like Young-Joon was going to ask him to give up his seat. Right now, the shareholders were absolutely on Young-Joons side. Yoon Dae-Sung had no choice but to ept it, even if Young-Joon was asking for too much, since his management abilities would be seriously questioned if he declined sloppily and themercialization methods went to Conson & Colson. And in Young-Joons perspective, it didnt matter who made the product as he would be the one making money. Yoon Dae-Sung had been dragged along by Young-Joon several times, but he could never stop him, even if he knew. He couldnt even imagine what it is Young-Joon wanted Is it shares? Young-Joon smiled as he saw Yoon Dae-Sungs tense face. Sir, you dont have to be so tense. I have no intention of asking for too much. Chapter 94: Cellicure (5)

Chapter 94: Cellicure (5)

¡°I am nning to buy arge number of DNA analysis equipment from Conson & Colson,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°DNA analysis equipment?¡± Yoon Dae-Sung asked. ¡°I am buying two hundred.¡± ¡°Two hundred!¡± Yoon Dae-Sung was shocked. Of course, he knew the things that happened while Young-Joon developed the diagnostic kit. He knew that Conson & Colson¡¯s n to install Illemina¡¯s DNA analysis equipment in hospitals around the United States went up in smoke. However, what happened to the two hundred pieces of luxury equipment that was already purchased hadn¡¯t been revealed. ¡°The cost aside, why would you buy that?¡± ¡°Of course, tens of billions of won wasn¡¯t something that would make apany as big as A-Bio tremble, but they didn¡¯t have a reason to waste it unnecessarily even if it was a small amount. What were they trying to do? Yoon Dae-Sung couldn¡¯t even predict what Young-Joon was going to use them for. Companies that did a lot of DNA analysis usually had five units at most, did they not? And Young-Joon was going to buy two hundred of them? ¡°What in the world are you going to use them for?¡± Yoon Dae-Sung asked. ¡°Gicists have continued to work on discovering the entire DNA sequence of humans after the Human Genome Project. The scientificmunity was sessful in umting a huge amount of data and has revealed many variants associated with disease.¡± Analyzing the enormous database, which consisted of twenty thousand types of genes and three billion letters of DNA, against tens of thousands of people could unveil the secret of biology one by one. For example, it was revealed that people with an indel[1] variants in the BRCA gene had a higher chance of getting breast cancer. ¡°It¡¯s the most valuable treasure that modern science has ever achieved,¡± said Yoon Dae-Sung. ¡°But seventy-eight percent of that DNA data is from Europeans,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°Oh...¡± Yoon Dae-Sung nodded like he knew what Young-Joon meant. Young-Joon siad, ¡°Recently, Nature has described this as an injustice in genome science. I fully agree.¡± ¡°Hm... But Mr. Ryu, the reason that most of the data is geared towards Western people is because they are the ones that lead science, especially in America. Isn¡¯t it natural for them to analyze their own data first since it¡¯s easy to get samples?¡± ¡°I understand. I¡¯m not saying that it is their fault, but I am going to lead science now.¡± ¡°...¡± Yoon Dae-Sung had nothing to say when Young-Joon said that arrogantment because he was actually doing exactly that. ¡°And this imbnce in data is actually a problem in science. All of the new drugs being developed based on gics are centered around European DNA, but if you do that, it can act differently when using it on other races. All scientists know that, don¡¯t they? For example, gluten allergies are quitemon in Western people, but it is very rare in the East. If a new drug is developed based on that gene, it is highly likely that it will not work in the bodies of Asian people or cause side effects,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Then are you going to analyze the DNA of other races?¡± ¡°It was something that someone should have done already.¡± ¡°Hm...¡± ¡°I am going to begin the Human Genome Project again. I am going to analyze the genes of minority races in science, such as Asians, Africans, Oceanians, Native Americans, Hispanics, and Latin Americans, since science is a study of objectivity. The data should not be ethnically biased to one side,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Yes. I agree. Everyone in the scientificmunity is neglecting that issue, but it is necessary work.¡± Yoon Dae-Sung nodded. ¡°Then what is it that you want from me in order to do that, Mr. Ryu?¡± ¡°Scientists who can run DNA analysis equipment and analyze the data are very professional human resources. There aren¡¯t many people who can operate two hundred of them either.¡± Yoon Dae-Sung felt chills run down his spine. He immediately understood what Young-Joon was asking for. ¡°Are you asking for people?¡± ¡°Please let me have the Diagnostic Device Department at my disposal.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°They do not have to transfer to A-Bio. They will still be part of A-Gen and the Diagnostic Device Department, but they will just work with me, the CEO of A-Bio.¡± ¡°Lab Director Kim Hyun-Taek would scream if he heard this.¡± ¡°But you know that this work cannot be done by requesting departmental cooperation. As big as the project is, I have to be able to dispatch the department as a whole.¡± ¡°Sigh...¡± ¡°Mr. Yoon, this is more than the profit of A-Gen or growing A-Bio. You have to consider this as a scientist leading the scientificmunity, not as a CEO of apany. This is work that creates base data that countries not in the anglosphere can reference when developing new drugs.¡± ¡°... Alright. But I have to discuss it with Lab Director Kim Hyun-Taek.¡± ¡°I believe that you will convince him well. Call me if you can¡¯t; I¡¯ll tell him myself.¡± ¡°Let me ask you one thing,¡± Yoon Dae-Sung said. ¡°Mr. Ryu, are you doing this because you are holding a grudge about what happened before with Lab Director Kim Hyun-Taek? Trying to steal the department he is fond of?¡± ¡°If that was my goal, I would have asked for the Anticancer Drug Research Department. I still don¡¯t like him, but I don¡¯t do science with personal feelings,¡± said Young-Joon. ¡°Alright,¡± Yoon Dae-Sung said. * * * ¡®All done.¡¯ At ten o¡¯clock at night, Park So-Yeon picked up a standard model of the single disease diagnostic kit. She seeded in diagnosing rabies using the blood of a beagle and disease DNA she obtained from the Experimental Animal Resource Center. She didn¡¯t know exactly how much the unit price would be when produced on a factory-scale, but she knew that it would be very cheap. It would be able to diagnose other diseases if they used the same strategy and changed the target DNA; they would be able to find thirty-two different types of diseases. If it was supplied to the industry, they would be able to quickly quarantine the diseased animals and put them under intensive care to stop the spread of the disease and minimize the damage. ¡°Phew...¡± It was very fascinating now that she was looking at the final product. How did Young-Joon think of this idea and know that something like this worked> Park So-Yeon stored the diagnostic kit in the cold room and left the office. When she pulled out her phone, she saw Young-Joon¡¯s name as one of the most searched-up keywords. She wasn¡¯t all that surprised as it happened often, but she wondered what he did this time. ¡®Huh?¡¯ The second searched-up keyword was Celligener. Park So-Yeon knew thispany. The reason she broke up with Young-Joon started from this, as he constantlyplimented Celligener during their dates after Celligener showed Cellicure¡¯s efficacy in Phase One of clinical trials, which ultimately led to Young-Joon fighting with Kim Hyun-Taek, getting punished, and her breaking up with him. Surprisingly, Cellicure was the third most searched-up keyword. Park So-Yeon pressed on the news article. [Ryu Young-Joon of A-Bio enters Phase Two of clinical trials with Cellicure, a liver cancer cure co-developed with Celligener, a venture pharmaceuticalpany.] [Usage of experimental therapy on a nine-year-old girl as ast resort as no other existing liver cancer treatments work.] [Is the Ryu Young-Joon legend going to seed again?] ¡®...¡¯ Park So-Yeon read the news article closely. Below the article, there was a picture of Young-Joon standing with Celligener. He was standing next to a middle-aged man, and there was a surprisingly beautiful woman standing to Young-Joon¡¯s right. She even caught Park So-Yeon¡¯s eye. There was a caption below the picture. [Choi Yeon-Ho, Celligener¡¯s CEO, Ryu Young-Joon, A-Bio¡¯s CEO, and Song Ji-Hyun, the scientist who developed Cellicure.] ¡®Song Ji-Hyun...?¡¯ A little whileter, the fourth most searched-up keyword became Song Ji-Hyun. It was for no other reason than the fact that she was so beautiful in the picture she took with Young-Joon. Reporters began releasing articles about her as they saw that she was attracting attention. [Who is Song Ji-Hyun, the goddess of the scientificmunity?] [The past of Scientist Song Ji-Hyun, the key developer of Cellicure.] [Picture collection of Scientist Song Ji-Hyun from Cellicure in real life.] In addition, a bunch of onlinemunities were putting Young-Joon and Song Ji-Hyun together as she was also a scientist with intellect and beauty who had developed an important drug like Cellicure at a young age. Song Ji-Hyun standing beside Young-Joon, who was rewriting history in science, was quite a pretty picture to look at as they had good chemistry. Park So-Yeoo turned off her phone. * * * ¡°It was huge yesterday. The goddess of the scientificmunity,¡± said Young-Joon yfully on the elevator heading to the fourth floor of Sunyoo Hospital. Song Ji-Hyun¡¯s ears reddened. ¡°Ah... It¡¯s too much.¡± ¡°You¡¯ve be a star on Instagram,¡± Young-Joon said jokingly. ¡°I don¡¯t even use social media nowadays, but reporters keep taking photos of me from the past and writing articles with it...¡± ¡°It was when you were younger. No wonder you look a little different now.¡± ¡°Really? Do I look different? A lot different?¡± ¡°I worked with you for a long time, but goddess? You are pretty, but are you that pretty...¡± Young-Joon tilted his head in puzzlement as a joke. ¡°Hey.¡± Song Ji-Hyun poked his shoulder like she was disappointed ¡°But to be honest, I was a little frustrated,¡± she said. ¡°Really?¡± ¡°When A-Gen stole Cellicure, I reported it to the Pharmaceutical Association and to reporters. I tried really hard to expose A-Gen for being evil. No one paid any attention, but I am on the most searched-up keywords with just a few photos. It feels so meaningless.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true.¡± ¡°And they don¡¯t even care about the fact that an important drug like this is going into Phase Two of clinical trials on an actual child.¡± ¡°They will pay attention to that from now on, if we are sessful in treating the patient,¡± Young-Joon said. The two went to Lee Yoon-Ah¡¯s room. It was the first day that Cellicure was being administered. Professor Kim Chun-Jung called Young-Joon and Song Ji-Hyun as the technology advisors. A momentter, Kim Chun-Jung was getting ready to administer Cellicure in the patient room. Lee Yoon-Ah wasying still on her bed after multiple rounds of check-ups. Kim Hyo-Jin, who was sitting beside the bed, continuously stroked her head. Lee Yoon-Ah nced at Young-Joon when he and Song Ji-Hyun approached her. ¡°Mister,¡± Lee Yoon-Ah said. ¡°Yeah?¡± ¡°My mom told me to say thank you.¡± ¡°... Tell that to her over here.¡± Young-Joon pointed at Song Ji-Hyun. ¡°Thank you,¡± Lee Yoon-Ah said. Then, the drip was changed to the one containing Cellicure. Kim Chun-Jung was about to turn the infusion pump and inject Cellicure into Lee Yoon-Ah¡¯s body. When her hand touched the pump... [Synchronization Mode: Observe Metastasis. Fitness consumption: 5.3] Metastasis referred to the phenomenon where the tumor cells spread and caused a new tumor in another location. ¡°Professor, a moment...¡± Young-Joon took Kim Chun-Jung outside the patient room. ¡°Did the cancer cells spread anywhere?¡± ¡°No?¡± Kim Chun-Jung said like she didn¡¯t know what Young-Joon was talking about. ¡°Stop the administration for a moment,¡± Young-Joon said to her and went back inside. In end-stage liver cancer patients, there were some cases where therge tumor ruptured and caused internal bleeding in the organs. Then, the immune response would be promoted and the patient could die from shock. As such, it was better to conduct the tumor destruction strategically in the treatment process as the patient could be put in danger if it was done recklessly. The administration method Young-Joon set up right now was a treatment method against cancer in the liver. It would be different if it metastasized to other ces. Cellicure had the ability to find cancer cells, and they would look for and destroy the metastasized regions. There was no telling what side effects would happen based on the location and the level of metastasis. 1. Indel is short for insertion or deletion, which is a deletion or insertion of nucleotides in the DNA, causing a variant. ? Chapter 95: Cellicure (6) Chapter 95: Cellicure (6) Young-Joon stood in front of Lee Yoon-Ah and hit Synchronization mode. Whoosh. Young-Joon felt like he was standing alone in the middle of the beach as the wave was rushing in. The biological processes that were urring in Lee Yoon-Ahs liver were being reconstructed in his head. The liver was the organ that had the most cells as a single structure in the body. All those cells processed enormous amounts of metabolism. It was enough to call it the chemicalb within the body. In order for the liver to do its job, it had to constantly receive numerous substances equivalent to raw materials from other organs. For this, the liver had two arteries; it received blood loaded with fresh oxygen from the hepatic artery connected to the heart, and it received blood containing absorbed nutrients from the portal vein connected to the intestine. About two thousand liters of blood were supplied a day from the two arteries, and 1.4 liters of blood passed through the liver per minute. As it was an organ with an active blood flow, it also had the property that blood vessels were easily produced. That also applied to cancer cells. Angiogenesis. It was the biological process for cancer cells to pave a new way for blood to flow through; the new blood vessels would be entangled in a disorderly way, forming a turbulent flow. The goal for that was to supply glucose. The main source of food for rapidly multiplying cancer cells was glucose as it was the easiest material to change into energy. Cancer cells would absorb a huge amount of glucose from the newly formed blood vessels and grow. The multiplying cancer cells also conducted this process in Lee Yoon-Ahs young and weak liver. They didnt stop there, but moved to the blood vessels and loaded themselves onto the flow of blood. This was simr to a carrier of a virus leaving the area of the epidemic. The immune cells, which acted like police, tracked them and eliminated a lot of them, but there were ones they had missed. Lee Yoon-Ahs liver cancer cell traveled through the blood and Ack! Rosaline suddenly screamed. [Synchronization Mode over.] A message popped up in Young-Joons head. At the same time, he stumbled while holding his temple after feeling a piercing pain in his head. Song Ji-Hyun, who was standing beside him, was surprised. Are you alright? ... Im fine. Doctor Song, Im sorry, but lets talkter. Professor Kim, I will visit your officeter. I have to think for a little bit, Young-Joon said. Song Ji-Hyun looked worried, but she did not follow him out. For some reason, she felt like she shouldnt bother him. Young-Joon, who walked to the end of the hall, went halfway down the emergency stairs and stood in a ce where no one was around. What happened? Young-Joon asked Rosaline. ... I cannot analyze this. Rosaline replied. What? Tracking the spread of cancer is difficult, even for me. You have to use arge amount of fitness to see it. But you said the fitness consumption was 5.3? I had that much. Now it is at zero. Rosaline replied. It was true when Young-Joon looked at the status window. He hadpletely run out of fitness. Do you know? What? The liver cancer metastasized in Ryu Sae-Yi before she died as well. Your fitness decreased significantly because of that trauma. I dont remember. Young-Joon said. You erased it from your memory because the pain was too strong. But I went into your amygd and saw your trauma that was ck and entangled. There was definitely a memory about the metastasis of liver cancer among the stored fragmented memories. You heard it directly from Ryu Sae-Yis doctor at the time. I heard it myself? Yes. The memory of you hearing that her liver cancer had spread is in your unconscious mind. All of a sudden, Young-Joons legs gave out and he stumbled. He was surprised. Tears were also rolling down his cheeks. He felt like an alternate self hiding in his body shed tears; he didnt feel any sadness, but his eyes were crying. You have to pull yourself together. From the beginning, this wasnt just treating a child to me, but fighting with your trauma. Rosaline said. Wait Young-Joons shoulders trembled lightly. Some scenes floated around in his head like hallucinations: the hospital room that felt dim and gloomy for some reason, doctors and nurses who wereing and going busily, and the small, thin body of his youngest sister who was dying. He remembered the horrible sense of helplessness he had when there was nothing he could do. Those days seven years ago that felt like hell slowly began to rise to the surface of his memory. He felt like those memories, which were like faded ck-and-white photos, gained color and were being yed in front of his eyes like a video. Then, Rosaline witnessed the huge rush of neurotransmitters erupting from the boundary between the hippocampus and the amygd. It was like a tsunami that was rushing in after a big earthquake. Oh Crap This is trouble. ... Young-Joon was seeing the fragments of his memories with Rosaline. Ryu Sae-Yis voice lingered in his ears like he was hearing a ghost. I dont want to get treatment anymore, oppa[1] I think Im all better now. Please help me Ryu Sae-Yi always used to throw up on the bedside after undergoing radiation and strong chemotherapy. Then, she cried for an hour while suffering from a stomach ache. Ryu Sae-Yi, who was a lot younger than Young-Joon, used to act childish a lot of the time; she always pouted whenever she tripped or bumped into something. But from some point, she didnt even react when a needle was put in her as if she was a corpse. The cancer has spread. Her doctors voice rang in Young-Joons head. It has spread to the lungs. A lot of new blood vessels were created there as the cells had simr properties to the liver cancer cells, and they are pressing down on the alveoli and blocking her breathing. His mother copsing to the ground was vivid in his mind like it happened just yesterday. She copsed onto the floor like people did in the movies. Young-Joon remembered how she med herself, saying that it was because she had Ryu Sae-Yi when she was so old, and that it was all her fault. He could see Ryu Sae-Yi, who was dying, holding his hand and faintly smiling. Hello? Ryu Young-Joon..? Rosaline called Young-Joon repeatedly like she was anxious. Young-Joon was out of breath. It was hard for him to breathe as if excessive stress and tension were physically putting pressure on his lungs. I will activate the parasympathetic nervous system and calm you down. Rosaline squeezed out the little bit of fitness that was recovered and controlled the expression of acetylcholine, a hormone. Young-Joons heart rate and breathing was slowly returning to normal. Are you feeling better? Yeah Thanks. Ryu Young-Joon. Your amygd is basically doing a coup detat, okay? I think I have to go over there. ... To be honest, Im not confident Ill be able to stop it that easily. Its better for me to correct a forward head posture or a spinal disc herniation; what can I do about that massive nerve cell rebellion alone when I dont even have fitness? ... Sorry. Lets do this. I will engulf a portion of the glucose rushing to your brain right now. Ill try to fend off the trauma with that. Eat foods with a lot of sugar for a week. Rosaline. I have to save Lee Yoon-Ah. Im sorry, but theres no way for me to help. You are more important to me than Lee Yoon-Ah. Young-Joon clenched his eyes shut. But Ryu Young-Joon, we exchanged quite a lot of things with each other in the meantime. I received your feelings, and you have a lot of the knowledge I have. Rosaline said. Do you know that there are genes that determine intelligence? ... If you measure the expression level of those genes, it is ten times higher in you than Einstein right now. Even if Im away, even if you cant use Synchronization Mode, youll be able to do it on your own. Believe in yourself. ... Then, Ill be back. Click. The status window that was floating in front of Young-Joons eyes disappeared. Rosaline was gone. She didnt respond even if he called her, as she went over to the amygd and buried herself within his trauma; she was controlling the neural signal herself and fighting against it. Young-Joon could feel that she was fighting as the memories and emotions that were rushing in so hard from his unconscious mind that it was making him breathless had calmed down quickly. But it wasnt like he had be an emotionless psychopath like thest time Rosaline went into his amygd. It was because she was not active there, but onlybined with the trauma. Young-Joons conscience was not any different. He went to see Professor Kim Chun-Jung. Can I see Patient Lee Yoon-Ahs CT scans again? Young-Joon asked. Kim Chun-Jung pulled up the scan file on herputer and showed him. Young-Joon said, I think the cancer has crossed over to the portal vein. Its near the boundary. Then isnt there a risk of metastasis? There is. Cellicure can track the metastasized cancer cells and destroy them. It is effective in killing cancer cells. However, if we dont check where and how much it spread beforehand and poke around recklessly, there might be severe side effects. Phew Kim Chun-Jung let out a long, worrisome sigh. You are right, Doctor Ryu. But even if the cancer spread, there is no way to find out in the early stages. ... Young-Joon thought about it for a moment, then said, I will find a way. What way? A way to diagnose the metastatic tumor early on. Please confirm the location when I find a way. Lets hold off on administering Cellicure until then. Wait, what are you talking about? You are going to find the trace amount of metastasized cancer? Of course, Young-Joon was the person who invented a technology that diagnosed cancer from one drop of blood. However, that was just diagnosing whether cancer existed in the body or not; finding out where it had spread to was apletely different matter. From the outside, cancer cells were no different than normal cells, and it was indistinguishable from regr tissue until it swelled and became a tumor. But how was Young-Joon going to find cancer cells that had just metastasized? Patient Lee Yoon-Ah doesnt have that much time, Doctor Ryu. How long will it take to develop that technolog I will bring it next week. ... Next week? Yes. I do not want even a little bit of uncertainty in treating that patient. I will cure her no matter what I do. Give me a week. Young-Joon rose from his seat. He went downstairs to find Song Ji-Hyun. Lets go, Young-Joon said. What? What about Cellicure? We have decided to hold off on it for a little bit. Before that, I think I need to make a more thorough diagnosis of the patient. * * * Whats up with our CEO recently? Park Dong-Hyun asked Jung Hae-Rim. After returning from Sunyoo Hospital, Young-Joon lived in theb for five days. He canceled all his meetings as well. As Rosaline was pouring all her strength into stopping the trauma, he had to do everything by himself. Young-Joon went back to his old ways; he let go of the convenience of being able to select all the right answers from Rosalines perspective and returned to the fundamental attitude of a scientist. However, everything changed after he met Rosaline. Although he couldnt use Synchronization Mode, which allowed him to vividly observe microscopic phenomena at the cell level, he had Rosalines insight. Young-Joon read seventy papers about the characteristics of liver cancer, cancer cells, the metastasis mechanism of cancer cells, and the diagnostic methods of cancer in five days. Yoo Song-Mi was shocked every time she came into Young-Joons office when she saw the pile of sugar supplement wrappers in the garbage can. It was true that the CEO was acting weird nowadays. Everyone wondered what was driving someone like him insane. Although, everyone thought that it maybe had something to do with Cellicures clinical trial since he was acting that way after visiting Sunyoo Hospital. Click. Young-Joon opened his office door and came in. Hisplexion was pale. Yoo Song-Mi, who happened to be in his office, said, Sir, you are going to get diabetes. Why do you keep taking sugar supplements? I had quite a bit, but not all of them. Pardon? They are for experiments, Young-Joon said. He took another supplement that was on his desk, put it in his mouth and chewed it. Cancer cells ate about twenty times more glucose than regr cells, so the concentration of glucose in cancer tissue was very high. Cancer cells like glucose. They like it so much that they relocate blood vessels for it, Young-Joon said. We will track glucose. That will tell us where the cancer cell is. 1. Oppa means older brother, and is used by younger women to refer to older men. Chapter 96: Cellicure (7)

Chapter 96: Cellicure (7)

On the sixth day, Young-Joon visited Sunyoo Hospital again. He was alone without Song Ji-Hyun. He met Professor Kim Chun-Jung and pitched the idea. ¡°Let¡¯s scan glucose and see where the cancer has spread since cancer cells eat a lot of glucose.¡± ¡°Are you going to use FDG?¡± FDG, or fluorodeoxyglucose, was glucose that wasbeled as a radioisotope. It was a drug that was often used to study diabetes and such, and it was easily absorbed in ces where glucose was absorbed as it had a very simr structure. FDG emitted positrons from where it was absorbed, so it allowed one to see how the glucose moved with a positron emission tomography scan. The problem was that FDG was a radioactive material. It constantly emitted radiation, internal contamination urred continuously within the body, and it wasn¡¯t metabolized and destroyed easily like glucose. It was discharged from the body as urine after a long time, but until then, the patient¡¯s body was like a walking, radioactive lump. ¡°I¡¯m against using it.¡± Kim Chun-Jung shook her head. ¡°She is still young. I would use it if the patient was old and there was a high risk of metastasis. But not Lee Yoon-Ah.¡± ¡°You¡¯re saying that since cell division must keep urring in the body as she is young, internal contamination, which can cause damage to DNA, will do more harm than good, right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± she replied firmly. ¡°I thought so as well,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I don¡¯t want to use FDG. Let¡¯s just scan glucose.¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°Since we don¡¯t have time, I wasn¡¯t going to develop a new technology that had to go through clinical trials. I am going to change how we use existing technology, and we are going to track glucose with the safest material possible. Give a few candies to Lee Yoon-Ah. Then let¡¯s take a picture of the change in glucose concentration with an MRI.¡± Kim Chun-Jung froze for a moment. For a second, she thought that Young-Joon had gone insane. ¡°Um... Mr. Ryu, we can¡¯t take a picture of glucose concentration with an MRI.¡± ¡°We can. It was just that there was no one who tried to take a picture of glucose concentration with an MRI.¡± ¡°...¡± Kim Chun-Jung was extremely confused. ¡®What the hell is he talking about?¡¯ MRI was a diagnostic imaging technique that was able to provide abundant information about things such as bone marrow or soft tissue in bones by imaging water molecules in the body. However, glucose wasn¡¯t water, and an MRI wasn¡¯t an optical device, such as a microscope. It was impossible to measure the flow and concentration of that fine substance. Young-Joon, who saw her confused face, began exining. ¡°The human body is mostly made of water. An MRI involves applying a strong maic field on a patient¡¯s body, which forces the protons of water to align in one direction. Then, the protons emit a certain wave of energy when you shoot electromaic waves at a specific frequency due to resonance. If you measure that, you can see the flow of water molecules in cells. That¡¯s how an MRI works.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± Kim Chun-Jung nodded. ¡°I did a few simple experiments, and I found that I can track down the protons attached to the hydroxyl groups on glucose with an MRI.¡± ¡°How?¡± ¡°When you produce a maic field with an MRI, the protons of both glucose and water are aligned in a specific direction. Then, if you shoot an electromaic wave that matches the frequency of the protons on glucose, they will fall off of glucose, transfer onto water, and change the frequency value of water.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°You can find where glucose is if you fire an electromaic wave that matches the frequency of glucose, then track where the intensity of the electromaic wave signal of water molecules drops.¡± Kim Chun-Jung literally felt like someone had hit the back of her head with a hammer; she felt lightheaded after hearing Young-Joon¡¯s exnation because it was so shocking. The MRI, which was first invented in 1983, was being used for forty years, but no one had thought of anything like this. The basic way to use it was to fire an electromaic wave and measure the wave the body shot out in response. Even if they sent out electromaic waves to glucose, the signal that would be generated as a reaction would be very weak. As such, everyone thought something like this was impossible. However, Young-Joon¡¯s idea right now was to measure the decrease in the electromaic wave emitted by the body. He was proposing to measure how the water molecule changed due to glucose since the signal glucose emitted would be too small to measure. It was a simple way of thinking outside the box, but it was shocking. ¡°How much glucose can you measure with this method?¡± Kim Chun-Jung asked. ¡°ording to my experiment, I was able to measure glucose levels as low as a micromole (¦ÌM),¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°I tested it by injecting glucose into a mouse¡¯s veins, and I think it can work in the human body as the metabolic process of glucose is well-known.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Professor Kim, glucose concentrations are usually constant in the body except for the brain, while it is twenty times higher in ces where cancer cells are present. If it has metastasized, there will definitely be a spike in the value. I¡¯ll pay for the MRI scan, so please just try it once.¡± * * * Lee Yoon-Ah tensed up a little bit when Young-Joon and Kim Chun-Jung returned to her room. It was because Young-Joon left after discussing something with a serious face and her mother was upset. After predicting a few possibilities based on that situation, she came to the result that she was going to be receiving a very painful treatment. Lee Yoon-Ah held Kim Hyo-Jin¡¯s hand tightly out of anxiety. However, what Young-Joon handed her was candy. ¡°Yoon-Ah, do you want some candy?¡± said Young-Joon as he sat on the edge of her bed. After hesitating a little, she took the glucose candy that was in his hand. When she paused, Young-Joon said, ¡°You can eat it.¡± ¡°... Lemon...¡± ¡°Hm?¡± ¡°Lemon vor...¡± said Lee Yoon-Ah as she pointed to the candy bag that was poking out of Young-Joon¡¯s pocket. ¡°Oh, you want the lemon one?¡± Young-Joon looked for the lemon vored candy, but ended up giving her the entire bag. This time, Lee Yoon-Ah hesitated because of her mother. ¡°You can have it,¡± Kim Hyo-Jin said as she hugged Lee Yoon-Ah¡¯s shoulder tightly. Only then did she rx and open the lemon candy wrapper. She went to take an MRI after having two pieces of candy, but she didn¡¯t look very scared. ¡°This one is loud, but I like it because it doesn¡¯t hurt.¡± Children were usually terrified of this equipment because of the loud roar when the chiller ran and the feeling of being trapped in a small space. A nine-year-old child who hade to like MRIs after suffering from all kinds of chemotherapy: this situation was ironically pitiful. With the help of Young-Joon and the MRI operator, Kim Chun-Jung set the frequency of the electromaic wave to glucose. ¡°Lie down over here.¡± The MRI operatorid Lee Yoon-Ah down on the table and put a towel under her arm. ¡°There aren¡¯t any metals on her, right?¡± the operator checked again out of habit, then started the machine. The table where the patient wasying went up and moved into the circr maic field. Kim Chun-Jung and Young-Joon nervously watched the data screen the operator was taking on theirptop. As the electromaic wave was fired, the image appeared on the screen like ripples on water. The operator of the MRI tracked the signal by moving the image, which was by the millisecond. They put a filter on the intensity of the signal so that decreasing values would be highlighted. ¡°...¡± Kim Chun-Jung¡¯s jaw slowly dropped. A strong red signal was popping out from below the pelvis. ¡°It metastasized under the pelvis.¡± ¡°Hm...¡± Kim Chun-Jung groaned like she was in pain. ¡°Let¡¯s discuss this outside.¡± Young-Joon took Kim Chun-Jung outside. * * * A million thoughts were racing through Kim Chun-Jung¡¯s head on their way back to her office. The very first emotion that popped up in her head was a sense of relief. It could have been a big problem if they administered Cellicure at that dosage without having diagnosed the metastasis to the bone. The by-products of cells destroyed by necrosis, the cancer cell¡¯s destruction mechanism, would be littered in the bone. But immune cells had a tendency to flock to clean up these messes; the bone marrow was also where immune cells were created. If they used Cellicure, the entire bone could be destroyed with a strong inmmatory reaction from the pelvis. Or, there could be no reaction if the cancer cells already took over the immune system. In that case, the remains from cell necrosis could stick to nearby tissues and spread, causing another side effect. Plus, no one knew what this would bring as Lee Yoon-Ah was a child who still had to grow for a long time; no one could predict the oue as this was a very unique clinical trial case. When Kim Chun-Jung reached this conclusion, she relied on Young-Joon again. ¡®Maybe he will be able to predict the consequences of Cellicure. Maybe he¡¯ll be able to find the way with the least side effects.¡¯ And when she was close to her office, the small sliver of hope turned into a stronger anticipation. Maybe... ¡®Maybe Ryu Young-Joon will be able to cure bone metastasis.¡¯ An effective treatment method for bone metastasis currently didn¡¯t exist. There was a high possibility that even Cellicure wouldn¡¯t be able to fully cure it. Even if it caused a strong inmmatory reaction as it destroys the affected area, including the bone, it wouldn¡¯t be able topletely eliminate the cancer cells. After a few years, the cancer cells would return and grow in the bones. All Cellicure was going to do was prolong the patient¡¯s life until rpse. However, Young-Joon had cured pancreatic cancer, the most difficult one of them all. ¡®Maybe this person can cure bone metastasis.¡¯ Kim Chun-Jung, who began the meeting at her office with a sliver of hope, heard something shocking from Young-Joon. ¡°It¡¯s a relief,¡± he said. ¡°A relief?¡± ¡°Since we caught it early.¡± ¡°... Can we treat it? Should we use Cellicure?¡± ¡°Using Cellicure right now could be a gamble. Let¡¯s leave the liver cancer for a moment. We have to get rid of the cancer cells that spread to the bone.¡± ¡°Is there another way?¡± asked Kim Chun-Jung in desperation. ¡°What do we have to do?¡± ¡°This is also an experimental therapy, but it¡¯s a technique that has gone through Phase Three of clinical trials in the United States. And it is very effective in treating blood cancer or myeloma. It¡¯s a third-generation cancer immunotherapy. Since manipted immune cells are used to directly remove cancer cells instead of chemicals like Cellicure destroying them, it will be taken care of neatly without the remains of the necrotized cancer cells flowing into the bone marrow.¡± This was a new cancer immunotherapy that had finished up to Phase Three of its clinical trial in the United States. Kim Chun-Jung¡¯s jaw dropped. ¡°No way.¡± ¡°I bought this technology from Conson & Colson when I went to America. And A-Bio has the best scientists who are able to perform it.¡± * * * Carpentier was a scientist who had seeded in regenerating bone marrow from stem cells. He was a Nobel Prize recipient and one of the greatest experts in immunology. He entered theb and called for Jacob. ¡°Jacob!¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°What experiment are you working on right now?¡± ¡°I did a cell transfection yesterday, and I am maintaining other cells...¡± ¡°Can you go to Sunyoo Hospital right now as technical support?¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Orders from the CEO. Come with me.¡± ¡°Orders from the CEO? What¡¯s going on?¡± ¡°You know the Chimeric Antigen Receptor T-Cell Therapy, right? The third generation cancer immunotherapy that Conson & Colson had.¡± ¡°Yes. Isn¡¯t that the one that he bought by selling the shares of our cancerb?¡± ¡°We have a patient we have to treat with it. We are going to manipte a target marker in the patient¡¯s stem cell and make T-cells from it.¡± Jacob seemed intrigued. ¡°Who¡¯s the patient?¡± ¡°They have liver cancer, but apparently it metastasized to the bone.¡± ¡°Oh... Is it the nine-year-old kid that was on the news? The clinical trial patient for Cellicure?¡± Jacob frowned. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°Oh...¡± ¡°End-stage liver cancer and bone metastasis. It¡¯s the worst, right?¡± ¡°It really is.¡± ¡°This is the email from the CEO. Take a look.¡± Carpentier showed Jacob the email. [We are going to get rid of the trace amount of cancer cells that have metastasized to the bone with chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy, then treat the liver cancer with Cellicure. I think that this patient is past the current boundaries of current medicine, but it is our job to explore that territory.] Chapter 97: Cellicure (8)

Chapter 97: Cellicure (8)

All the drugs that were administered to Lee Yoon-Ah now were strong painkillers like morphine. None of the existing anticancer drugs worked, and there were no other treatment options. It could be said that current medicine had given up on them, but from the perspective of a nine-year-old, it was nice because she didn¡¯t have to get any more painful anticancer drugs. She couldn¡¯t go around alone because she was in pretty bad condition, but she was quite cheerful, which was fitting for her age. ¡°Mom, YouTube.¡± Lee Yoon-Ah was into this YouTube channel that a nine-year-old elementary student, who was the same age as her, had. Now, she was watching a video of them going to an amusement park. ¡°I want to go here when I¡¯m all better,¡± Lee Yoon-Ah said. ¡°Mhm...¡± Kim Hyo-Jin replied weakly while patting her on the shoulder. That was when Young-Joon, Jacob, Professor Kim Chun-Jung, and the nurses came in. ¡°We¡¯re going to draw some blood,¡± said Kim Chun-Jung. She had already told Kim Hyo-Jin the situation that the liver cancer had metastasized to the pelvic bone and that there was no way to treat the cancer cells in the bone as of right now. She had also told him that Young-Joon had stopped the Cellicure treatment and was preparing a new technology called chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy. ¡°Can we talk outside for a moment?¡± Sniffling, Kim Hyo-Jin took the medical team, Young-Joon, and Jacob outside. ¡°I¡¯m thinking of stopping treatment now,¡± she said. ¡°Stopping treatment?¡± Kim Chun-Jung asked in surprise. ¡°... Yoon-Ah wants to go to the amusement park... She was always in the hospital. We can stop now, and I can take her to the amusement park, go y by the river...¡± Kim Hyo-Jin wiped away her tears. After a short moment of heavy silence, Kim Chun-Jung spoke. ¡°As your doctor, I respect the guardian¡¯s wishes first and foremost. But you have Doctor Ryu... You know the effects of what he has given to the medicalmunity, right?¡± ¡°Of course, I don¡¯t know as much as you, but I studied a lot about cancer while looking after my daughter. I memorized names of difficult drugs and I know papers, too. I know about the chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy... It takes three months to prepare it for use,¡± Kim Hyo-Jin said. ¡°Doctor Ryu, be honest. What is the probability that my child will live with that technology?¡± ¡°Because Lee Yoon-Ah¡¯s case is very unique, we can¡¯t calcte the probability because we don¡¯t have any clinical data,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°...¡± Kim Hyo-Jin clenched her eyes shut. She tried her best to smile. ¡°Thank you. Thank you for working so hard. I¡¯ll take my baby and get discharged.¡± ¡°Three weeks,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I will get the treatment ready in three weeks.¡± The chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy: it was a technology with thergest potential among existing cancer treatments. The technology extracted the patient¡¯s immune cells, then gave them a machine gun to obliterate the cancer cells. The immune cells that were supplied with the best weapon would immediately wipe out the cancer cell as soon as they returned to the body and cure the patient. ¡°But it isn¡¯t very effective against solid tumors. So, we are going to eliminate the myeloma in the bones and the cancer cells that are floating around in the blood with chimera immunotherapy, and then we¡¯re going to treat the liver cancer with Cellicure. I¡¯m nning to finish this in five weeks, and I have set this as the final deadline. I cut off the time required for the chimeric immunotherapy preparation at three weeks,¡± said Young-Joon. ¡°... Three weeks... I-Is that possible?¡± Kim Hyo-Jin asked like she couldn¡¯t believe it. This technology cost nearly four hundred million won for one round of treatment. As astronomically high as the price was, it took a very long time to design and create the treatment. The reason was that it was very difficult to grow immune cells, and it was also very hard to manipte genes. Three months was the minimum amount of time required. ¡°Three weeks...?¡± Kim Hyo-Jin mumbled in hesitation. ¡°I have stem cell and Cas9 technology,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°...¡± ¡°We can grow immune cells and manipte genes a dozen times more effectively than what Conson & Colson used to do. We can make it much faster, although we are still racing against the clock.¡± ¡°Excuse me...¡± Jacob, who came with Young-Joon, interrupted carefully as he nced at everyone. In English, he said to Young-Joon, ¡°Sir, it seems pretty serious right now; what¡¯s going on? I haven¡¯t learnt a lot of Korean yet.¡± ¡°It will end soon. I will exin it to youter,¡± replied Young-Joon briefly. Then, he turned to Kim Hyo-Jin again. ¡°This scientist right here is one of the best technicians at A-Bio. He graduated early from Caltech in bioengineering and published a paper in Cell, one of the best scientific journals, from a Nobel Prize recipient¡¯sb. He is one of the young scientists in the spotlight of the world.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°We have already seeded in bone marrow regeneration, and we have also manipted genes with Cas9 when we cured HIV. Carpentier, a Nobel Prize recipient, Jacob, and I will do the experiments ourselves.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°We promise to cure Lee Yoon-Ah by the deadline. Please have hope onest time.¡± * * * After a week at A-Bio... ¡°Give me the media,¡± said Young-Joon. Media referred to an animal cell culture medium. Jacob handed Young-Joon the RPMI culture medium. They had dedifferentiated Lee Yoon-Ah¡¯s cells into stem cells, and Young-Joon was now differentiating it into T-cells, a type of bone marrow. Carpentier and Jacob were helping him; they were the first people toplete a technology that developed hematopoietic cells, which create blood in the bone marrow. This couldn¡¯t be done simply with knowledge and required practical skills and excellent technique. Young-Joon had never made hematopoietic cells before, but he was skilled in cell experimentation. Also, he had Rosaline¡¯s senses left in his fingertips. He didn¡¯t have the precision to excite exactly 1.17 million nerve cells in his left hand, but he could mimic it. Drr! Young-Joon held the sk lid, which spun exactly twelve and a half times, with his left pointer finger and thumb, then took out the culture medium and cell with a pipette-aid. ¡°Please give me the SFG-1928z,¡± said Young-Joon. It was a type of retrovirus. It was used to put specific genes into a cell. He received the designed virus solution from Carpentier and infected the stem cells with it. He had already treated it with the virus that differentiated it into immune cells. The only thing left to do was manipte a few genes with Cas9. He was going to add Cas9 in the form of a proteinplex when gene expression stabilized after the virus fully entered and the cell condition improved. An additional five days were spent, and Young-Joon¡¯s face became more and more thin. ¡°Sir, aren¡¯t you going to shave?¡± asked Yoo Song-Mi when she found Young-Joon copsed on the sofa in his office like a corpse in the morning. ¡°I have no time to. I¡¯m showering as fast as I can in the office shower as well.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I¡¯m concerned about this more than anything else I have invented.¡± Young-Joon went back to theb. This time, he had to use a piece of equipment called a flow cytometer and only select the cells that were in the desired condition in the most optimal state. Young-Joon ran the flow cytometer he bought before and extracted cells with fluorescence. Of the ten million cells from the culture that he started with, only one hundred thousand were left. As there may not be enough cells to cure the patient, he had to put in cell stocks, which was in the intermediate stage, to make more of the treatment. ¡®I guess three weeks is still tight even when I have good technology.¡¯ Young-Joon had set the deadline even shorter on purpose as Lee Yoon-Ah¡¯s treatment was a race against the clock. Removing cancer cells from the bone marrow wasn¡¯t the end; the real enemy was liver cancer. Since chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy wasn¡¯t very effective on solid cancers like liver cancer, it would only be able to treat the blood cancer and myeloma in the pelvis. Having to use Cellicure afterwards meant that the liver cancer treatment was dyed for that long. That was what Young-Joon was worried about, as her liver was alreadypletely taken over by cancer cells. When Young-Joon was pushing himself, Jacob, and Carpentier and conducting the experiments, Song Ji-Hyun came to visit A-Bio. * * * ¡°Doctor Ryu, I heard about your treatment strategy. You¡¯re going to get rid of the cancer cells that metastasized to the bone with chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy, and then administer Cellicure, right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°But... If you do that, you may run out of time. The clinical trial patient¡¯s liver is barely performing normally right now. We need to administer Cellicure quickly.¡± Young-Joon sighed. ¡°I agree with you, so I am working day and night.¡± Song Ji-Hyun could tell even if he didn¡¯t say it. Looking at his thin face, his grown-out stubble, and greasy hair, it was clear that he probably only washed once every two to three days. ¡°Do you get some sleep...?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked like she was worried. ¡°I sleep a little sometimes.¡± ¡°... Administer Cellicure right now.¡± ¡°We can¡¯t. It will cause problems in the pelvis.¡± ¡°I know. But at this rate...¡± Song Ji-Hyun sighed. ¡°It would be nice if we could send Cellicure only to the liver. Then, we could cure her by treating the liver cancer without any problems happening in the pelvis and treating the bone metastasis with the chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy.¡± ¡°I wish,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°But it won¡¯t be easy. It really is depressing. Cancer is so hard,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said like it was painful. ¡°Doctor Ryu, I thought it would work if we attached a receptor that recognized things on the surface of cancer cells on the exosome. What if we use it without the exosome coating at all? I think the chances of it moving to the pelvic bone would decrease.¡± ¡°It will still go there eventually. We have to make it so that Cellicure only enters the liver cells.¡± ¡°... Even the notorious pancreatic cancer has been sessful in clinical trials, but I didn¡¯t know that liver cancer would be so difficult.¡± ¡°Pancreatic cancer?¡± Young-Joon¡¯s eyes suddenly shone. ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°Pancreatic cancer?¡± ¡°Yes... You developed it. A pancreatic cancer cure.¡± ¡°Yes. Why didn¡¯t I think of that?¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°The pancreatic cancer cure used the bornavirus. It¡¯s a virus that only infects pancreatic cells. We just have to use that same strategy in the exosome, right? We already know a very famous virus that only infects liver cells.¡± ¡°... Hepatitis...?¡± Song Ji-Hyun said, frozen. ¡°It¡¯s the virus that causes hepatitis. Separate the materials on the shell of the hepatitis E virus and mix it with the exosome. Then, it won¡¯t be able to infect healthy liver cells, but make it so that Cellicure only goes to the liver.¡± Young-Joon jumped up from his seat. He went straight to theputer and searched up the virus¡¯ information on Google. [Hepatitis E virus] Watching the structural diagram of the viruse up, Young-Joon called A-Gen¡¯s Research Support Center. ¡°Could I get the hepatitis virus?¡± he asked. ¡ªDo you need the live form of the bacteria? ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter whether it¡¯s in the DNA form or the live virus as long as ites out quickly. Give me anything.¡± * * * Song Ji-Hyun, who could be said to be the greatest expert in the world about capsule coating of drugs, exosome creation, and the drug form of Cellicure, was responsible for hepatitis. She took the hepatitis virus DNA she received from Young-Joon and began staying up as soon as she returned to Celligener. Young-Joon, who she hadn¡¯t seen for a long time, looked pretty bad. She could tell that he was fully concentrating on this clinical trial. As the developer of Cellicure and one of the managers of this clinical trial, Song Ji-Hyun was a little ashamed. ¡®I have to work on this as hard as Doctor Ryu.¡± Young-Joon was also the one who came up with the idea that could send Cellicure only to liver cancer. She had to be able toplete this at the least in order to be able to look him in the eye. This case wasn¡¯t just the clinical trial of a new drug or the treatment of a young child to Young-Joon; Song Ji-Hyun felt like she knew what he was feeling right now. ¡®Doctor Ryu said that his youngest sister died of pediatric liver cancer.¡¯ That was probably a reason why he was holding onto this so desperately. She couldn¡¯t even predict what kind of shock and pain this genius would receive if he failed at treating Lee Yoon-Ah. Song Ji-Hyun wanted to protect Young-Joon. It was time to advance Cellicure one step further for him, who she had gotten help from numerous times. Young-Joon wouldplete the chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy... ¡®And I will finish Cellicure and meet him on the day of the clinical trial treatment.¡¯ The structure of the hepatitis virus was rtively well known. Song Ji-Hyun focused on the structure known as HEV-2, one of the receptors that existed on the surface of the virus shell. It corresponded to the second open reading frame in the gene of the virus. After separating this gene, she synthesized the biomaterial through in vitro trantion and coated it on the exosome. For the week that the experiment was being conducted, her face also started bing thin like Young-Joon. * * * On the day the new drug was to be administered, Young-Joon showed up to Sunyoo Hospital with a brown bottle, which contained the purified chimeric immunotherapy treatment, and Song Ji-Hyun showed up with a small vial, which contained Cellicure. Both were products that had been refined at the GMP facility at A-Gen. Everyone was nervous. ¡°We will begin.¡± Kim Chun-Jung injected both drugs into Lee Yoon-Ah¡¯s veins. Chapter 98: Cellicure (9)

Chapter 98: Cellicure (9)

The white liquid traveled into Lee Yoon-Ah¡¯s thin arm; it was Cellicure and the chimeric immunotherapy treatment. The results of all the research Young-Joon and Song Ji-Hyun struggled to create were mixing into one and being administered. If they were right, the drug would cure her liver cancer and bone metastasis. Lee Yoon-Ah just stared at the medical team calmly. No one could predict the results yet. Song Ji-Hyun snuck a nce at Young-Joon. She too wasn¡¯t in good condition as she buried herself in experiments for the past few weeks, but he looked worse. She was worried about him. Most of all, Young-Joon had special feelings towards this child because of his trauma. That bothered her all along. ¡°I¡¯m going to step out for a moment.¡± Young-Joon excused himself and left the room. He could not bear to watch her. He was so nauseous that he felt like he was going to vomit. ¡®Is this really the best thing to do?¡¯ He felt like an unknown sense of anxiety and frustration were engulfing his entire body. The chimeric immunotherapy and Cellicure were clearly reasonable treatment methods. It was the best n at the moment, and the chances of sess were clearly high no matter how many times Young-Joon ran a simtion with his knowledge. However, it was not one hundred percent, and he couldn¡¯t guarantee it as there were no clinical cases. As such, he told Kim Hyio-Jin that he didn¡¯t know about the sess rate. ¡®I didn¡¯t get it confirmed by Rosaline.¡¯ Rosaline could predict the results of all molecr biological phenomena, but not him. All he had done was infer without Synchronization Mode, but only the problem solving abilities and knowledge that Rosaline had left him. He had convinced Kim Hyo-Jin under the judgment that the sess rate was high from his calction. Ryu Sae-Yi¡¯s death kepting to mind. She had died at the hospital. Maybe Young-Joon should have discharged Lee Yoon-Ah. Maybe he should have given her some happy memories before she left. Young-Joon expected the sess rate of the treatment to be high, but an irrational anxiety weighed heavily on his heart: a feeling that it was going to fail, an unfounded sense of guilt, and a bad feeling. ¡°...¡± Young-Joon flopped down onto the emergency exit staircase. His hands were trembling. ¡°Doctor Ryu!¡± Someone wrapped their arm around his shoulder from behind. It was Song Ji-Hyun. ¡°What are you doing here?¡± ¡°...¡± Song Ji-Hyun looked at him with pity. ¡°The stairs are cold. Get up. Let¡¯s go back inside.¡± ¡°What do you think the sess rate of this treatment is, Doctor Song?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°You can¡¯t calcte it because it¡¯s a very unique case and we have no clinical data, right?¡± Song Ji-Hyun impersonated Young-Joon. ¡°I know. But... You have a feeling as the developer of a treatment.¡± ¡°I think one hundred percent,¡± she said firmly. Young-Joon was a little surprised. ¡°For a scientist, aren¡¯t the results of our research like our children? How can we not have faith in our own technology?¡± Song Ji-Hyun smiled. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Doctor Ryu. The treatment we made is the best. You have cured the notorious pancreatic cancer before, right? This will be sessful as well.¡± ¡°... But I keep thinking of my sister. To be honest, it bothers me. I thought maybe I was being stubborn because of my trauma. Maybe I should have given Yoon-Ah a chance to make memories like her guardian said. I¡¯m just worried about that...¡± ¡°It¡¯s different from your sister,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°...¡± ¡°It¡¯s not Ryu Sae-Yi, but Lee Yoon-Ah. Their names are different except for one syble[1] They look different, too, right? Different genes as well. Did your sister have bone metastasis to the pelvis?¡± ¡°No, it metastasized to the lungs.¡± ¡°See? It¡¯s a totally different clinical case. And most of all, you¡¯re a different person than before. yYou were a university student back then, and now, you¡¯re the world¡¯s greatest scientist and the CEO of A-Bio. We can do it. We have Cellicure and chimeric immunotherapy.¡± ¡°... Alright. Thank you,¡± Young-Joon replied weakly. * * * Young-Joon¡¯s amygd waspletely surrounded by Rosaline¡¯s cells. She was controlling them right now and was in a kind of siege. This battle wasn¡¯t going to end easily, as her mother cell was directly affected by the stimtion that urred from the amygd. She was able to control most biological processes, but there was nothing she could do about the shock to her mother cell. All of Rosaline¡¯s cells had divided from a single mother cell, as the mother cell was the first organism that was created from Young-Joon¡¯s blood, and it was the root of Rosaline¡¯s existence. ¡®The tissue of the trauma has fully taken over the mother cell.¡¯ Rosaline realized that it was impossible to transfer her consciousness to the mother cell as it had gone into the trauma tissue of the amygd. The trauma tissue looked like a giant ck hole; it absorbed all the energy and neurotransmitters from its surroundings and it did not expel anything. It was basically impossible to destroy this monster that was deep in the amygd without damaging Young-Joon¡¯s body. It was also difficult to take out the mother cell. Rosaline gathered the umted fitness and set it off all at once. [Promotion of AKAM1 expression by 80%] [Promotion of KROII expression by 120%] [LOX switching.] [Promotion of epinephrine by 30%] Ssh! Some of the lipids that were flowing in the vessels of the trauma tissue sshed out. Amines and neuropeptides were flowing out. Rosaline collected and absorbed some glutamic acid and drilled a hole in the trauma tissue. [Promotion of perforin expression by 200%.] ¡®Sorry, Ryu Young-Joon.¡¯ This was like a perforator used to destroy harmful organisms such as bacteria that invaded Young-Joon¡¯s body from the outside, but it bothered Rosaline that she was using it on his cells. However, even a powerful weapon like perforin only left a small injury on the trauma tissue; it wasn¡¯t able to pierce it. ¡®This doesn¡¯t work?¡¯ Her n to rescue the mother cell kept failing. As the mother cell was captured there, Rosaline couldn''t think of a good way even with her insight. In this situation, there was only one answer. ¡®I have tobine the mother cell with the trauma.¡¯ It was better for the mother cell to engulf the trauma rather than being taken over by it. Cell fusion was when two different cellsbined into one. It seemed like humans had done this kind of work before ording to Young-Joon¡¯s memories of the papers he had read before, but Rosaline could do it better. [Activation of all GPCRs.] [Major activation of membrane proteins.] Rosaline controlled the genes that were involved in cell membrane formation and ruffled the mother cell¡¯s membrane. It seemed like a part of the apoptosis mechanism, but it wasn¡¯t. Slrr... The mother cell, which now had its membrane broken, began entering into the trauma tissue by endocytosis. ¡®Hup!¡¯ Although Rosaline had no respiratory organs, she took a breath or surprise in her heart. The trauma, which had slowly merged, wasing into her consciousness. The first thing she felt was a huge sense of sadness. ¡°I can¡¯t believe it!¡± To Rosaline, this was a simr shock to discovering the New World. Perhaps this was the wonder that a person who was blind since birth and had never experienced vision before actually saw for the first time. She never knew that emotions and senses could be this intense. The depth and weight of them were incredible. It was also very intense as it was the emotion from long-term trauma. ¡®Oh my...¡¯ Rosaline felt the touch of Ryu Sae-Yi¡¯s thin fingers from Young-Joon¡¯s hand. It was a direct sense of touch that she had never experienced before. Additionally, there was also the smell of medicine in the hospital room, the smell of hydrangeas that Ryu Sae-Yi used to like, the taste of MSG in the soondaeguk[2] that he had at the restaurant in front of the hospital, and his guilt towards Ryu Sae-Yi. All his experiences were awakening each and every one of Rosaline¡¯s cells. Her mother cell absorbed it like a sponge and acquired it. It was not a phenomenon that could be interpreted by theoretical exnations such as the transfer of signals. ¡®... It¡¯s euphoric.¡¯ Rosaline didn¡¯t have eyes, but she felt like crying. Was this what organisms who acted with fully functioning bodies felt? It was very impressive for Rosaline, a cellr organism who had only lived in the bubble called Young-Joon. Like a rollercoaster, Young-Joon¡¯s emotions soared up to the climax. With the moment when a t line that was calm like an ocean was drawn onto Ryu Sae-Yi¡¯s monitor, and the moment everyone burst into tears and the doctor announced the time of death, Rosaline¡¯s consciousness slowly drifted away with a powerful, uncontroble emotion that had reached its limit. ¡®It¡¯s not easy.¡¯ The mother cell had seeded in fusing with the trauma, but it was still too powerful. The mother cell had fallen into a state of suspended animation, like a cryogenically frozen human falling asleep with the hopes of being revived in the future. ¡®I¡¯ve never felt this kind of threat after being born into this world. This is what a treat to life feels like. My life might end here.¡¯ Rosaline had thought the attack by the sloppy gangsters who had been influenced by Ji Kwang-Man was nothing, but this was different. Now, her only hope was for Young-Joon to ovee this trauma. ¡®...¡¯ Rosaline, whose consciousness had drifted away, fell into a deep sleep. She could not feel anything. But after two weeks had passed in real life, Rosaline, who was half-dead, was engulfed in a light so intense it could burn all of her cells at once. She could feel it; she could feel that major structural reforms were happening in Young-Joon¡¯s amygd. * * * ¡°Ny-two percent of the liver cancer tissue, and one hundred percent of the bone metastasized cancer cells have died,¡± Kim Chun-Jung reported. ¡°We still have to administer more Celicure. But I believe it can be cured at this rate. We will have to monitor her for five years to see if it returns, but in my opinion... I think she will be able to be discharged sometime next week. The clinical trial was a sess.¡± Kim Chun-Jung choked up a little at the end. This clinical case was touching even for an old warhorse like her, who had spent forty years at Sunyoo Hospital as a professor. One couldn¡¯t even imagine the depth of emotion the child¡¯s mother was feeling. ¡°...¡± Kim Hyo-Jin sat in her chair, unable to say anything. All she could do was bury her face in her hands with trembling shoulders. Song Ji-Hyun, who was watching her, tapped the end of her nose with her finger as it was so touching. She nced at Young-Joon. Unexpectedly, he didn¡¯t cry or be amazed; he looked calm just like any other day. ¡°Thank you. Good work.¡± Young-Joon said briefly and got up. As he looked like he was going to get up, Kim Hyo-Jin quickly got up and held onto him. ¡°Thank you so much, Doctor. Thank you...¡± said Kim Hyo-Jin, her face all messy from tears. ¡°It¡¯s alright. I just did my job.¡± Young-Joon forced a smile and opened the office door. He meant everything he said, and he didn¡¯t want to be thanked, as the person who was saved might have not been Lee Yoon-Ah or Kim Hyo-Jin, but Young-Joon himself. ¡°...¡± Young-Joon, who was walking outside, stumbled a little as his legs were giving out. Song Ji-Hyun quietly trailed behind him. With her hands behind her back, she cautiously followed him at a distance as it was difficult for her to call him for some reason. Young-Joon went to the end of the hall and stepped out to the small balcony. He was holding onto the railing and looking down at the entire hospital. ¡°It¡¯s over... It¡¯s really over, Sae-Yi. Really. Now, no one your age will die of liver cancer,¡± Young-Joon mumbled quietly. His head was clear; he felt like he had been born again. ¡°Doctor Ryu.¡± Song Ji-Hyun quietly approached and stood beside him. The smell of shampoo wafted over to his side. She had recovered her original beauty as she started to shower, eat, and sleep regrly after the treatment began. ¡°Are you okay?¡± she asked. ¡°Yes, thanks to your concern.¡± With a smile, Young-Joon turned to face Song Ji-Hyun. And... ¡°Huh?¡± Young-Joon¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°Um...¡± [Synchronization Mode: Analyze Song Ji-Hyun¡¯s oxytocin, vasopressin, and dopamine expression levels. Fitness consumption rate: 0.7/second.] A message window popped up. ¡ªHave you been well? Rosaline sent him a message. ¡ªYou seeded. Congrattions. Thanks to you, I was also able to escape the trauma. I knew you were going to rescue me. ¡®But what¡¯s with the expression level of oxytocin or vasopressin and all that? You can analyze these things, too?¡¯ ¡ªI think this incident has created new changes for me as well. I have grown. [Now, Rosaline¡¯s cell can survive for thirty minutes outside of Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s body.] [Rosaline¡¯s Synchronization Mode has be more sophisticated. You can observe phenomena with a finer resolution, and you can see things that you were unable to before. Your fitness consumption has be more efficient.] ¡®Things I couldn¡¯t see before?¡¯ ¡ªLike the ratio of Song Ji-Hyun¡¯s hormones. ¡®What use do I have for that?¡¯ ¡ªOxytocin, vasopressin, and dopamine are hormones that rise sharply when people feel love. Hehe. ¡®...¡¯ ¡ªAnd there is another new ability. ¡®Another new ability?¡¯ [Now, you can use Molecr Biology Simtion Mode through Rosaline.] ¡ªWhat you can do in Simtion Mode depends on the fitness consumption. If you use less, you can set up virtual patients and run clinical trial simtions when you develop a new drug. Rosaline said. ¡®If I use a lot?¡¯ ¡ªWhen an epidemic for a particr infectious disease urs, you can track the global path of the spread and everything about the results, and you can calcte the number of possibilities. You are able to see biological phenomena from a global perspective. ¡®Holy...¡¯ ¡ªThe perspective of someone who has seeded in creating an organism like me should be special. 1. Yi and Lee are the same in Korean, but written differently in romanization. ? 2. Korean blood sausage soup ? Chapter 99: Laboratory One (1)

Chapter 99: Laboratory One (1)

¡°Doctor Ryu?¡± Song Ji-Hyun called. ¡°Oh, yes.¡± ¡°What are you thinking so hard about?¡± ¡°It¡¯s nothing,¡± said Young-Joon as he organized the message windows in front of his eyes. ¡°Are you going to go back to work?¡± ¡°No. I¡¯m going to have dinner and then rest for today.¡± Song Ji-Hyun nodded. ¡°You need to recharge. It was very hard on you even after Lee Yoon-Ah started the treatment. Rest well today.¡± ¡°I will. Are you going back to work?¡± ¡°No, I¡¯m going to go home after dinner as well.¡± ¡°I see.¡± After some hesitation, Song Ji-Hyun asked, ¡°If it¡¯s okay, Doctor Ryu, would you like to have dinner with me?¡± For her, she had built up a lot of courage to say that. They have had drinks together in the past, but for some reason, it was awkward now. And that went for Young-Joon as well. ¡®Rosaline, it bothers me because you said something stupid about Doctor Song¡¯s hormones and stuff.¡¯ ¡ªWould you like to be synchronized? Would you like to in more detail? Doctor Song is worse than before. I can hear her heartbeat and it¡¯s no joke. When Young-Joon stared at her, Song Ji-Hyun avoided his gaze. Her ears were a little red. ¡°Let¡¯s have dinner together,¡± he said. They went together in the car as their houses were in the same direction. At a restaurant near their houses, they ordered a steak, sd, and wine. Song Ji-Hyun said, ¡°Honestly, I thought you were a super genius and knew all biological phenomena.¡± ¡°Haha, no way.¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu, do you know the syphilis treatment called Salvarsan, one of the top ten medicines in scientific history?¡± ¡°Yes, it¡¯s a pretty famous drug in organic chemistry.¡± ¡°Professor Ehrlich, the person who invented it, failed six hundred times until he reached Salvarsan. He kept changing and changing thepounds, and repeating the experiments to get the structure of Salvarsan.¡± ¡°I remember hearing that when I was in undergrad.¡± The conversation topic that Song Ji-Hyun chose for a date-like situation was Salvarsan; she was something else as well. She was as much a science nerd as Young-Joon, who lectured Park So-Yeon about how the smell of rain was a material emitted by bacteria when they first met. Song Ji-Hyun said, ¡°Doctor Ryu, I thought that the most difficult aspect in doing science was that you can¡¯t tell if the research you are doing is going in the right direction. Ehrlich got lucky with Salvarsan; he seeded in six hundred tries, but you might not even gain anything even if you fail thousands of times.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Science is like inching forward in a dark room by feeling the ground. It¡¯s really hard that you can¡¯t figure out what the right direction is at all.¡± ¡°Right!¡± Song Ji-Hyun shouted. ¡°It¡¯s just like that metaphor. But it seemed like you knew where everything was and in what direction you had to go.¡± ¡°Oh, no. It¡¯s not like I¡¯m a fortune teller or something.¡± ¡°But you seeded in everything you put your hands on. And you always seemed confident that you would seed,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°There was a time where I imagined something unbelievable. I thought you could figure out sessful drugs with a superpower that I didn¡¯t know about.¡± ¡ªLike Professor Shin Jung-Ju, people nowadays are getting close. Rosaline sent him a yful message. Young-Joon quickly closed it and focused on his conversation with Song Ji-Hyun. ¡°But while working with you, I was very inspired by the human side of you that was behind everything.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°You were also struggling and afraid that the medicine you developed wouldn¡¯t work. But you pushed for it because you thought it was the right direction, right?¡± ¡°Um... Yes, that¡¯s right.¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu, apart from our personal rtionship, I respect you as a scientist. I just wanted to tell you that. I am so d that you are here in this world.¡± ¡°... Thank you.¡± ¡°I would like to work with you in the future as well.¡± ¡°I also have a lot to ask you, Doctor Song.¡± Song Ji-Hyun smiled like she was satisfied as Young-Joon replied. ¡°I¡¯m just going to go to the washroom before the foodes.¡± Song Ji-Hyun left the table. While she was gone, Young-Joon began a conversation with Rosaline again. ¡®I couldn¡¯t ask you before because Doctor Song suddenly called me, but what are you talking about when you say you can survive for thirty minutes outside of my body?¡¯ ¡ªIt¡¯s exactly like it says. Do you remember the time I first went into your blood? ¡®Of course.¡¯ ¡ªAt the time, my mother cell was on a slide. And your finger was a few centimeters above it. But how was my mother cell able to go into the cut on your finger? ¡®Moving in the air...?¡¯ ¡ªThat¡¯s exactly right. I can float in the air. It¡¯s a property I originally had, but I couldn¡¯t do that in the meantime as I would die if I left your body. But I can withstand thirty minutes now. ¡®Do you want to try it?¡¯ Right after he told Rosaline... ¡°Ack!¡± In shock, Young-Joon shouted and almost fell off his chair. It was because a figure of a nine-year-old girl suddenly appeared out of thin air. She turned her face to nce at him with a yful face and lively eyes. Her face was... ¡°Sae-Yi?¡± ¡ªMy cell that is floating through the air probably looks like this to you. I look the same as your youngest sister, right? ¡°Shit... What kind of joke is this?¡± ¡ªI did not control this. This is because my mother cell fused with your trauma. Your limbic system is creating an illusion. ¡°...¡± ¡ªDon¡¯t worry. I won¡¯t be visible to other people, and they won¡¯t be able to hear my voice either. They won¡¯t be able to see me without a microscope because the size of my body is only micrometers wide in diameter. I¡¯m like a ghost that only you can see. ¡°But why is your hair red?¡± ¡ªThe hair follicle cells where hair grows is one of the ces with the fastest cell division in the human body. Maybe it¡¯s because of that, but my hair resembles the characteristics of my mother cell more than the trauma tissue. ¡°Hm.¡± ¡ªI won¡¯te outside if you don¡¯t like that I am borrowing your youngest sister¡¯s appearance. ¡°No, it¡¯s okay.¡± ¡ª-That¡¯s a relief. To be honey, I was quite looking forward to leaving your body and traveling the world myself. ¡°...¡± Rosaline hopped down from the table as light as a feather and stood on the ground. ¡ªI wanted to experience the world with my own body. I am very excited. With her hands behind her back, she leaned back and turned to look at Young-Joon. Her face really looked like Ryu Sae-Yi before getting cancer, healthy and full of dreams. ¡ªCan I go? ¡°Uh... Yeah.¡± Young-Joon allowed her to go in a hesitant voice. ¡ªThank you! Rosaline ran through the restaurant quickly. ¡°Don¡¯t go too far!¡± Young-Joon shouted, not realizing the fact he just said that. ¡ªDon¡¯t worry! I can send you a message as well. Rosaline was already out in the hall. ¡ªAnd it¡¯s okay since my mother cell is in your head. With that message, there were no more. Rosaline was like an excited young child who was visiting the amusement park for the first time. ¡°...¡± Young-Joon was kind of worried. He felt like he had be a dad even though he wasn¡¯t married. Young-Joon took a sip of wine and waited for Rosaline and Song Ji-Hyun. Ring! A message popped up with a notification sound. [Rosaline is exploring the outside space. You can use the mother cell¡¯s fitness and Rosaline¡¯s senses can be shared with you.] [Share Rosaline¡¯s senses. Fitness consumption rate: 0.8/second.] ¡®Share senses?¡¯ The fitness consumption rate was pretty steep, but he was so curious about how it would feel. Young-Joon pressed the button. Click. The view that Rosaline was seeing showed up in his head. It was Song Ji-Hyun¡¯s pale, lean calf and thigh as she was standing up. ¡°Eek!¡± Young-Joon¡¯s shoulders flinched in surprise. It was in the women¡¯s washroom. Rosaline, whose viewpoint was quite lowpared to Song Ji-Hyun, was right at her leg, she did not feel anything at all. However, that was normal because it was impossible to see a cell with the naked human eye. Rosaline sent him a message. ¡ªI am going to observe Song Ji-Hyun more closely. This woman yed a big part in rescuing me from the trauma. Rosaline climbed up to the sink and stared at Song Ji-Hyun¡¯s face very closely. She was looking in the mirror and fixing her makeup. She reapplied her lipstick and tidied her hair. Then, she made a few expressions. ¡°Ahem, hm.¡± She cleared her throat. ¡°It¡¯s really good.¡± She smiled into the mirror. ¡°Hm... Maybe this doesn¡¯t seem genuine? If we¡¯re in the middle of eating...¡± Song Ji-Hyun puffed her cheeks with air and pretended to chew. ¡°It¡¯s so good!¡± she said in a bright voice as she looked into the mirror. ¡°Doctor Ryu, thank you for rmending such a good restaurant.¡± Song Ji-Hyun tucked her hair behind her ear and smiled towards the mirror. ¡ª... Rosaline froze. ¡ªRyu Young-Joon, what is Doctor Song doing right now? Rosaline asked like she was shocked. Young-Joon had his eyes shut at the table like he saw something that he shouldn¡¯t have. ¡ªRyu Young-Joon, this is the most iprehensible situation that I have ever heard and seen. Is Doctor Song chewing air? I don¡¯t think she has any mental illness... ¡®No... It¡¯s not that. Stop looking at her ande out. I feel like I¡¯mmitting a sin.¡¯ Young-Joon¡¯s face was flushed. He hastily stopped sharing senses as he felt like he shouldn¡¯t see any more. * * * Park So-Yeonpleted thirteen types of the animal disease diagnostic kit. The rest were going as nned as well. Young-Joon was all over the ce with the clinical trial of the pediatric liver cancer patient. She was motivated pretty hard after hearing that he was focused on experiments day and night. It was because she felt like she knew how he felt. ¡®I really hope it goes well.¡¯ Park So-Yeon, who knew about Young-Joon¡¯s trauma, prayed for that little girl whenever she thought of her. She hoped the clinical trial patient would be cured and that he would ovee his pain. And on one side, she focused on what Young-Joon had assigned her, as she wanted to wee Young-Joon, who was busy with the clinical trial, with huge results when he returned. As such, Park So-Yeon worked as hard on experiments as Young-Joon, and the results until now were quite sessful. ¡®Hoof-and-mouth disease, AI, bluetongue disease, sheeppox, rabies, anasmosis, duck virus hepatitis, chicken mycosmosis, Akabane virus, Marek¡¯s disease, infectious bursal disease, porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome.¡¯ Single diagnostic kits for thirteen diseases. ¡®He¡¯ll like it, right?¡¯ Park So-Yeon organized the diagnostic kit samples in the cold room and left theb. It was already nine o¡¯clock at night. Time flew by when she was working nowadays. Then, her eyes widened when she unlocked her phone. [A-Bio¡¯s Cellicure clinical trial seeds again. Their victory continues.] [Confirmed that liver cancer and bone metastasis have all been destroyed.] [The spotlight is on Cellicure, a miraculous liver cancer cure.] [A-Bio findsmercialization potential in chimeric immunotherapy, a third-generation anticancer treatment.] Park So-Yeon clicked on additional articles. [Two genius scientists saved the life of a nine-year-old girl.] [Song Ji-Hyun of Celligener, the new talented scientist who will follow Ryu Young-Joon and lead science in Korea.] [What impact did the Ryu Young-Joon Syndrome have on young scientists in Korea? Focusing on Song Ji-Hyun, the influence on young scientists...] Park So-Yeon stopped scrolling for a second. She read the articles one by one. Foreign media was also covering this news like it was really big. On the homepage of the New York Times and Le Monde, an article about the clinical trial was on the front page, and an interview that was linked as a special edition was written beneath it. [Miracles can be produced in theboratory.] [Interview of CEO Ryu Young-Joon, who ced a conquer g in pediatric liver cancer.] [Interview of Song Ji-Hyun, the partner of humanity¡¯s greatest genius.] On the main screen, there was a picture of Young-Joon and Song Ji-Hyun sitting beside each other. They were smiling in a friendly way. Park So-Yeon read Young-Joon¡¯s interview first. ¡ªThe key developers of Cellicure are Doctor Song Ji-Hyun and her colleagues at Celligener. We bought this drug, which was in a clinical trial conducted by A-Gen, and ended up developing it together. All the credit should go to Doctor Song Ji-Hyun and Celligener. Young-Joon gave up all the apuse for Song Ji-Hyun in that humble interview. Song Ji-Hyun was worthy of it as Cellicure was something she achieved at Celligener from start to finish without Young-Joon¡¯s help. Honestly, the real genius might be Song Ji-Hyun if Rosaline wasn¡¯t there. And in Song Ji-Hyun¡¯s interview, she thanked Young-Joon. ¡ªI got a lot of hints as I watched Doctor Ryu¡¯s research. I also thought of the exosome coating technology thanks to him. Celligener received a lot of help from Doctor Ryu in the past, and he is a huge inspiration to me. I wouldn¡¯t have been able to do the clinical trial this well if it wasn¡¯t for him. How they were ttering and respecting each other after a huge sess looked very heartwarming. Song Ji-Hyun had made headlines before because of her beauty, but this time, she was rising to stardom at once as the focus was put on her skills as a scientist. Chapter 100: Laboratory One (2)

Chapter 100: Laboratory One (2)

Young-Joon, who had a good rest at home, something he hadn¡¯t done in a while, spent the weekend morningzily. It wasn¡¯t until eleven o¡¯clock that he slowly got out of bed and came out into the kitchen. He saw Ryu Ji-Won, who was watching the TV whileying on the living room couch,ughing. ¡°Oh, you¡¯re up. Mom made kimchi-jjim[1] before she left. Have some,¡± she said after briefly ncing at him. ¡°What about you?¡± ¡°I had some before.¡± ¡°Where¡¯s Mom?¡± ¡°She went out on a date with Dad.¡± ¡°Ha. You¡¯re not going anywhere today? You don¡¯t have any ns?¡± ¡°No? Should I have some?¡± ¡°Shouldn¡¯t you be going on blind dates and meeting boys at your age?¡± ¡°It¡¯s so bothersome.¡± ¡°If you have a mutation in the SLC35D3 gene, the dopamine receptors in your brain get dull and you getzy. You don¡¯t get any activity and only eat chips while sitting on the couch.¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t apply to me since I¡¯mying on the couch.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Oh!¡± Ryu Ji-Won suddenly got up. ¡°Right, I had something I wanted to ask. Who is Doctor Song Ji-Hyun? Are you guys dating?¡± ¡°What kind of nonsense is that?¡± ¡°Hehe.¡± Ryu Ji-Won squinted and stared at Young-Joon. ¡°What?¡± ¡°You know that you smelled like women¡¯s perfume when you came in yesterday night?¡± ¡°Did I?¡± ¡°I heard that the clinical trial seeded. From what I suspect with my detective skills honed by watching Detective Conan when I was younger, you went on a date with Doctor Song to celebrate the sess. Right? Hehe. Tell me about it.¡± ¡°Stop joking around and keep watching TV. Is this the kimchi-jjim?¡± ¡°Yeah. And look at this.¡± Ryu Ji-Won ran towards him with her phone. On it were posts on Young-Joon¡¯s fan club. It talked about Song Ji-Hyun as much as Young-Joon. ¡ªIt¡¯s great to see two geniuses cooperate and research together while respecting each other. I¡¯m rooting for you. ¡ªUnnie[2] marry me... ¡ªRyu Young-Joon and Song Ji-Hyun. These people are driving me crazy. ¡ªThey cured end-stage liver cancer that spread to the bone marrow in the pelvis... And in a nine-year-old? It¡¯s like a movie. Insane. ¡ªI know I shouldn¡¯t be doing this with actual people, but I hope they get together. ¡ªWhat kind of genius would be born if those two get married and have kids? ¡°Stop reading useless things,¡± said Young-Joon as he gave the phone back to Ryu Ji-Won. ¡°Who did you have dinner with yesterday?¡± ¡°Doctor Song.¡± ¡°See! I knew it.¡± ¡°She is just a research partner.¡± ¡°Are you sure she¡¯s not a life partner?¡± ¡°Phew. You¡¯re such a kid. Getting all excited about dating.¡± Young-Joon poked Ryu Ji-Won¡¯s forehead. ¡°Doctor Song and I aren¡¯t like that. Mind your own business.¡± Young-Joon turned his head towards the pot again. ¡°Oh,¡± he said in surprise. Rosaline was on top of the kitchen counter beside the sink. She was looking straight down at the kimchi-jjim inside the pot and examining it while on her knees. ¡®I really can¡¯t get used to this.¡¯ Rosaline had to recover for at least six hours in Young-Joon¡¯s body after spending thirty minutes outside. It meant that she could only go outside for less than two hours a day. ¡ªThis is a very fascinating food. Rosaline said. ¡®Is it?¡¯ ¡ªKorean cabbage leaves with bacteria and meat were steamed together with water. To me, it¡¯s a pot full of bacteria corpses. ¡®...¡¯ ¡ªDon¡¯t worry; they are mostly beneficial gut bacteria. It isctic acid bacteria to be exact. ¡°Hey, so you¡¯re not going to date Doctor Song? Honestly, I think there¡¯s potential. To meet someone like that with your face is...¡± ¡ªThere are a lot of microorganisms that break down glucose, but there are significantly less bacteria that break downctose. As mammals usedctose for that merit just before the point of divergence... ¡°Ah, shut up!¡± Young-Joon shouted. ¡°Seriously, these kids. Move. I have to eat and go out.¡± * * * Park So-Yeon was already at A¡ªBio. She requested a research meeting with Young-Joon regarding the development of the animal disease diagnostic kit. The reason why she came to see him even though there was a team meeting that included Park Dong-Hyun and Jung Hae-Rim was because she wanted to talk about something personal with him. Park So-Yeon knew Young-Joon well. All he did was work during work hours, and he was as cold as a robot when it came to science. However, he was the most warm-hearted person when he wasn¡¯t working. Although she hurt him a lot by leaving him when he was going through something really difficult, she knew that he wasn¡¯t the type to refuse when she asked to talk for a little while. ¡®Of course, we also won¡¯t be able to date again.¡¯ Park So-Yeon had no intention of asking for that as well. It was true that she had regrets, but it was not about wanting to date him again. What was left was something like a regret for ending things the wrong way. Park So-Yeon wanted to fix that. Her hands trembled as she grabbed the door handle to Young-Joon¡¯s office. ¡®Haa. Be calm. This is really thest time, so I have to do well.¡¯ Click. When she came into the office, he was sitting at his desk and reading a paper. He was exactly the same person who she loved back then. ¡°Have a seat, Scientist Park So-Yeon,¡± Young-Joon said as he stood up from his chair. ¡°I had seven meetings today, and this is myst one. Let¡¯s get it over with and go home. Let¡¯s take a look at the data.¡± As he sat down on the sofa, Park So-Yeon sat down across from him and opened herptop. She began briefing him on the progress. ¡°As you can see, we tested for hoof-and-mouth disease, swine fever, and AI forty times and seeded in diagnosing the target disease all forty times,¡± Park So-Yeon said. ¡°And if you see the next chart, for rabies and anasmosis...¡± Her briefing went on for about fifteen minutes. During it, Young-Joon asked small questions like what the error bar beside the graph represented. And as she went onto thest side, she said, ¡°As mentioned before, we have secured single diagnostic kits for thirteen diseases, and we believe that diagnostic kits for the rest of the twenty-one diseases will bepleted in two weeks.¡± ¡°Thank you. Good work. You did a lot in a short span of time. It¡¯s amazing.¡± ¡°It was just difficult to find the right conditions the first time, but the rest was just changing the type of Cas9. The rest wille out soon.¡± ¡°Great. I wasn¡¯t able to follow the progress of the project because I was busy with clinical trials, so thank you foring to see me and briefing me on it. Keep up the good work until the project is over.¡± Young-Joon grinned. ¡°Of course,¡± Park So-Yeon replied. ¡°I think that¡¯s everything, right?¡± ¡°...¡± Park So-Yeon stared at Young-Joon. It was time for her to bring up the personal conversation. ¡°Um...¡± ¡°Oh, right,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°So-Yeon-ssi, you might have to work with me for two to three more years after this project ends.¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°I am going to receive temporary authority over the Mobile Diagnostic Device Research Department. I have already discussed this with Mr. Yoon.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°For what?¡± ¡°I am going to purchase two hundred of Illemina¡¯s equipment from Conson & Colson. I need scientists who can operate them and analyze DNA. I am going to begin a new genome project with them.¡± ¡°The Genome Project?¡± ¡°We will analyze the genomes of different races and create background knowledge for future pharmaceuticals. All pharmapanies will use it.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°You are especially good, so I look forward to working with you.¡± ¡°... Um, sir,¡± Park So-Yeon said. ¡°Can I talk about something personal for a moment?¡± Young-Joon shrugged. ¡°What is it...?¡± Park So-Yeon hesitantly opened her mouth while touching her hair. ¡°I¡¯m leaving A-Gen.¡± Young-Joon¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°Leaving?¡± Park So-Yeon''s face had a faint smile on it. ¡°What do you mean you¡¯re leaving?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°That is... Can we... think that this is ourst time together and... go back to the past?¡± ¡°...¡± Park So-Yeon bit her lower lip. She yed with her pants near her thigh, clenching it and letting go repeatedly. ¡°Okay, go on,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°...¡± Park So-Yeon cautiously spoke. ¡°I thought about it a lot as I watched you work. I wondered what it would feel like to constantly challenge and run towards your dreams and goals so passionately and how much fun it would be. I just get my pay by doing a few experiments every day while trying to please my seniors.¡± ¡°Um...¡± ¡°And you were so differentpared to me. The happiest I¡¯ve been at thispany in the past year and a half was when I was developing the diagnostic kit. Working was really fun. It was hard to stay up and research, but it was fun. So, I¡¯m going to try and look for something like that. I¡¯m going to quit my job and find something that I like... Something like my dream. So, I told Lab Director Kim Hyun-Taek that I¡¯m quitting.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°It¡¯s funny when I think about it now. I could have quit thispany this easily. I thought I¡¯d be in trouble if I kept dating you. Why was I so stupid? What was I so scared of that I betrayed someone who believed in me? And it was when things were the hardest for you. When there was someone who pointed out the hical behavior of thepany and fought with the director, I was just afraid of getting on their bad side and having problems with promotions...¡± ¡°... No, it¡¯s understandable. I didn¡¯t think of you and acted rashly. I don¡¯t regret it, but I still feel bad. So, don¡¯t feel guilty.¡± ¡°... Things are so ironic, aren¡¯t they? I saw that Doctor Song, the one who developed Cellicure, is famous these days.¡± Park So-Yeon smiled. ¡°Yeah. She was already talented and she has passion, too. She should get famous.¡± ¡°You look good together,¡± said Park So-Yeon. ¡°I wasn¡¯t good enough to be by your side. The reason we broke up is because I couldn¡¯t measure up to you.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°That¡¯s why I¡¯m quitting. You get what I¡¯m saying, right?¡± ¡°... Yeah, I think I know what you mean.¡± There was a moment of silence. Park So-Yeon bit her lip. ¡°Phew. I wasn¡¯t going to talk about this first. I started off so weird.¡± She chuckled. In contrast, her eyes were full of tears. She lowered her head. ¡°I¡¯m sorry...¡± she said. ¡°I¡¯m really sorry. And congrattions on everything you achieved after leaving Lab One. I am sincerely happy for you, and congrattions.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I know that you don¡¯t have any feelings towards me now. I¡¯m not asking you to take me back or anything. I just wanted to apologize and congratte you.¡± ¡°... Okay.¡± Park So-Yeon sniffled, then smiled. ¡°I should get home now. I¡¯ll make sure to finish the remaining kits, so don¡¯t worry. And you have to be professional with me like usual if you meet me in the few weeks I have left, so you don¡¯t have to care about that.¡± Park So-Yeon got her things and left. ¡°I¡¯ll be on my way,¡± she said. ¡°Mr. Ryu.¡± * * * Click. Park So-Yeon felt like her heart, which was drenched in sadness, was beating out of her chest as she closed the office door behind her. She let out a deep breath. It was over now; it was a clean ending. She felt like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders. ¡®Should I go to the United States after I quit... Or maybe Europe... Should I apply for the WHO?¡¯ A smile appeared on her face. She came down from the office with light footsteps. ¡®Did he say that he was going to get authority of the Diagnostic Device Department for a few years?¡¯ Park So-Yeon tilted her head in confusion. Recently, Kim Hyun-Taek had been nning a new national project for the Diagnostic Device Department. Even she didn¡¯t know what it was yet in detail. All she knew was that Kim Hyun-Taek was making it arge project with all the department members participating one hundred percent. Park So-Yeon had told him that she was quitting in the process of writing the list of participants for the project as it could be a problem if she quit after the project started. ¡®But can they transfer the authority over the department after this kind of thing starts? When Kim Hyun-Taek is doing a national project with this department?¡¯ Of course, it was going to take a while for it to be selected as a national project as it was just in its nning stages right now. And there wouldn¡¯t be any problem if Young-Joon got the departmental authority in the meantime; there was a high chance that that would happen. ¡®But something feels off for some reason.¡¯ Park So-Yeon thought as she got on the bus. ¡®I should find out more about this project when I go to work tomorrow.¡¯ 1. a steamed kimchi stew, typically with pork ? 2. How a younger woman refers to an older woman informally. ? Chapter 101: Laboratory One (3) Chapter 101: Laboratory One (3) This happened around two weeks ago when Young-Joon was clinging to Lee Yoon-Ahs clinical trial. Yoon Dae-Sung, the CEO of A-Gen, called Kim Hyun-Taek, theb director of Laboratory One, for a meeting. When Kim Hyun-Taek heard what Yoon Dae-Sung was saying, he trembled in anger. Sir, what are you talking about? Kim Hyun-Taek asked. Yoon Dae-Sung lowered his head like he was sorry. Theres nothing we can do. Let Doctor Ryu do as he wants. You want me to give Ryu Young-Joon the Mobile Diagnostic Device Research Department? Were not transferring the department itself; Im saying that we send the scientists at the department like a task force. And its just for the duration of the project. Its two to three years at most. That isnt a short period of time, right? And do you think they will adjust well when theye back to me if they work with Young-Joon for that long? That department is my department. This isplete nonsense. Doctor Ryu said that he would share themercialization strategy of the animal disease treatments he patented. Damn it, of course he has to do that! Was he going to sell themercialization strategy to a differentpany when hes a director at A-Gen? Ryu Young-Joon is a director at A-Gen, but he is also the CEO of A-Bio, and those patents are all privately owned by him. From his perspective, it doesnt matter whether it is produced by A-Gen or Conson & Colson; all that matters is that it gets produced and he receives royalties. But wouldnt he also be criticized by A-Gen shareholders if he handed that over to Conson & Colson? Would he really be? What are we going to do if he says that he had no choice because we didnt meet his demands? Would the shareholders still attack Doctor Ryu? ... And wasnt that demand of his asking us to lend him the manpower needed to carry out a huge project like the Genome Project of the entire race after he bought two hundred pieces of Illeminas equipment from the United States for cheap? The shareholders attacking a director who works hard and is good at his job? Do you think they will? No, but Who do you think the shareholders will criticize if Doctor Ryu, who was offended because you didnt cooperate with him to keep his power in check, decides to not align with A-Gen and sells themercialization strategies of one hundred twenty-two patents to America? ... Kim Hyun-Taek sighed. Let Doctor Ryu do what he wants. We have no other choice. Sir, I was fine when you asked me to hand over the building Lab One had so ABio could use as theirpany building, Kim Hyun-Taek said. I let him use AGens Research Support Center, Experimental Animal Resource Center, and the Clinical Trial Management Center like they were his toys. I allowed him to use the facilities at Lab One. I even let him make that shitty diagnostic kit in ourb with our departments technicians! Calm down. Do you think I can? We let him do all that, and now, this snake is stepping on the line because of his endless greed. And now he wants a department? A department? Didnt Doctor Ryu do everything you said after paying the fair price? Dont talk about it like he stole it from you. Sir, whose side are you on? How can you be so calm when thispany that we sacrificed our life to grow is going to go into someone elses hands? Doctor Ryu is proceeding with this not as the CEO of ABio, but as a director of AGen. It will help the reputation of AGen a lot if he makes the Genome Project in our name. Its not a bad thing for us either. It is bad. This precedent, which shows him that he can steal other departments from us, is bad! Kim Hyun-Taek shouted. Then what do you want me to do? What Doctor Ryu requested is logical. There is no way for me to refuse. And to be honest, the Diagnostic Device Department doesnt have any important projects going on, do they? Important projects? Kim Hyun-Taeks eyes widened. Wait. Sir, lets think about this He crossed his arms and tapped on his lip. What are you trying to do? asked Yoon Dae-Sung. I cant just let him do that to me, can I? Dont try anything weird. Everyone who tried to keep Doctor Ryu in check all failed and were defeated. This isnt even trying to do that. I can act in self-defense against someone who is trying to steal my hands and feets, right? Kim Hyun-Taek said. After ending his meeting with Yoon Dae-Sung, Kim Hyun-Taek returned to Lab One. He went straight into theb directors office, and immediately began looking through the project documents. He picked out a few useful ones among the random ideas and old proposals. I am going to get a national project. The contest that had the closest deadline was the one that was closing in three days. 20th MSIT[1] New Materials Competition 2020. * * * Park So-Yeon, who confessed everything to Young-Joon and wrapped things up, was now waiting to quit A-Gen. She only had two weeks left as an A-Gen employee, so she had toplete all the diagnostic kits within that time. And one additional task was created; this wasnt given to her by Kim Hyun-Taek or Young-Joon, but she made it herself. As soon as she arrived at work, she looked through the departmental project documents file as she drank her coffee. Then, she began to carefully read through the most recently created project proposal. [Development of a highly efficient waterproof new material based on the DNA of lotus leaves.] Because there are fine protrusions on the surface of lotus leaves, water is not absorbed even when it rains. The water droplets trickle off the surface and wash off dust. This self-cleaning mechanism is called the lotus effect. Many studies have been conducted in the past to develop a material with the lotus effect, but no efficient new material has not been created. This research aims to transform the clothing industry by developing this new material through analysis of the DNA of lotus leaves and extracting the fibers in the structure of the leaf. This project Hm. Park So-Yeon rested her hand on her chin and thought. The idea itself wasnt bad; a new clothing material that had the lotus effect was a goal that many ambitious scientists dreamt of from a long time ago. But its only a basic idea. All that was in the proposal was that they were going to find the gene that created the epidermal fibers of lotus leaves and artificially express it. Ideas about how they were going to find that gene or how they were going to express it were flimsy. It was an iplete document in the eyes of a doctorate-level scientist. Park So-Yeon looked through the links that were on the proposal. A news article appeared. [Selected proposal for the 20th MSIT New Materials Competition 2020.] She was surprised. Why is there a link to this proposal in the article? When she pressed on the article, thinking that this couldnt be possible, she was shocked. Among the twenty selected projects, the [Development of a highly efficient waterproof new material based on the DNA of lotus leaves.] was neenth on the list. No way. The announcement of the selected projects was only a few days ago, but the submission deadline was two months ago as the decision took a long time. But how could the lotus leaf new materials project be selected for this? How can a proposal that was written after the submission deadline be selected? * * * What technology among the ones A-Bio had were foreign countries most interested in? A-Bio had seeded in curing huge diseases like Alzheimers, a, and diabetes, but there was a drug that was more popr than that. Its Cellicure, Young-Joon said to Park Joo-Hyuk. Why? Treatments based on stem cells are not exactly drugs, but therapies. It requires a technician who is skilled inplex cell culturing. The diabetes cure or the pancreatic cancer one are drugs that dont need that, arent they? The problem with the diabetes cure is that it has to be taken regrly, although that will be solved once we develop probiotics. The administrations in charge of food and drug safety around the world were still a little reluctant aboutmercializing a live bacteria that had been gically modified. Anyways, since people have to take it every day when it is in the drug form, insulin injections still have a shot atpeting even though oral drugs are more advanced. Hm. And for the pancreatic cancer cure, people are waiting around for more clinical cases to umte and looking for the right time since it uses live viruses. People are more conservative than I thought. The food and drug safety organizations in any country are one of the most conservative organizations in the world, although time will take care of it. But Cellicures safety has already been proven, and its a new drug that is overwhelmingly superior to all other liver cancer drugs. So everyone wants Cellicure. Cellicure was already being called the miraculous liver cancer cure from ces around the world. It was the drug that had seeded in curing liver cancer that was so far along that nothing could be done; it was the drug that had no side effects even though it was highly toxic as it didnt touch normal cells. Cellicure might finish Phase Three of clinical trials very quickly. Im going to release it as a product as soon as possible. Hm. And there was a lot that happened for the drug to get here, right? Investigate what illegal things happened at the point where Celligenerpleted Phase One and it was transferred to Lab One at A-Gen. From what I heard from Doctor Song in the past, I think Celligener was threatened as well. Okay, Ill look into it. We have to set things straight so that there isnt any talk about it afterwards. Yeah. I want to make sure that Celligener gets everything they rightfully deserve. Young-Joon, who left his office after his meeting with Park Joo-Hyuk, found huge boxes that were piled up in the lobby. There were already thirty boxes stacked up, but more wereing in. The shippingpany employees were carefully bringing them in, and a lot of A-Bio employees were watching the baffling situation. Sir, what is all this? Park Dong-Hyun asked Young-Joon. They are DNA analysis machines I bought from Illemina. You bought thirty of these expensive machines? I bought two hundred. ... Park Dong-Hyuns jaw dropped to the floor. Wait, why We are going to do the Human Genome Project again. We are going to make a new, huge database that epasses all races for future medicine. Who is going to run two hundred of these? Im going to bring in the Mobile Diagnostic Device Research Department from A-Gen. All of these experiments will be done at A-Gen. Dont worry Dong-Hyun-ssi, I wont make you do anything hard. Park Dong-Hyun looked a little worried. Sir, you know what kind of person Lab Director Kim Hyun-Taek is, right? Is he going to give up his department so easily? Of course not, Young-Joon said. He saw the article on the projects that the MSIT selected for 2020. From what he heard from Park So-Yeon as they developed the diagnostic kit and the other department scientists, there was no talk about a new project. But a national project all of a sudden? Of course, Kim Hyun-Taek had dug an escape hatch to protect his department from Young-Joon. Actually, Im going to go to Lab One right now because of that, said Young-Joon. Young-Joon walked past Illeminas equipment, which were being stacked neatly in thepany lobby, and stepped into the K-Cops security teams car. * * * Thats what happened, said Kim Hyun-Taek. Mr. Ryu, this is a national project. This research is being funded by tax money, and because it is a public project, I cant cancel the research just because I want to or send participating personnel to external services. Young-Joon nodded. I understand. It will take a while to finish as its a two-year research project. It is disappointing for you, but I think you will have to find different scientists or wait two years. Two years? Yes. Kim Hyun-Taek smiled. Im disappointed as well, Mr. Ryu, that I cant help you with something as big as the Human Genome Project. I am also upset; why didnt you consult me in advance before nning something this huge? To be honest, I heard a lot of things as I visited the Diagnostic Device Department frequently while developing the diagnostic kit, but all the scientists said that there werent any projects that were going on or being nned, Young-Joon said. So, I thought that I would definitely be able to receive cooperation. I didnt know you would suddenly be put into a national project in such a short amount of time. ... Thats what happened, Kim Hyun-Taek replied. Young-Joon smiled. Director Kim. Yes. I believe the research on the development of a new material with the lotus effect is incredibly important. It will make peoples lives more convenient and prosperous. Not only will it just be used in the clothing sector, it will be applied in many industries that require waterproofing. Of course. Yes. If we take two years for something like that,mercialization will be pushed back two years as well, right? If I can run this project, I can finish it in two weeks. What? Lets do it together and push back the Genome Project for about two weeks. I felt bad about borrowing a department in your hands for a few years, but I think I would feel a lot better if I helped you get huge results. 1. acronym for Ministry of Science and Information and Communication Technology Chapter 102: Laboratory One (4) Chapter 102: Laboratory One (4) Youre going to finish it in two weeks? Kim Hyun-Taek asked Young-Joon like he was shocked. Yes. I can do it in two weeks. Are you serious? I know that you have a way of making new drugs, but this isnt something like that. We are developing a new material. I understand. Isnt that why its easy? We dont need things like clinical trials, right? Young-Joon replied like it was no big deal. Kim Hyun-Taek was even more flustered. Even Kim Hyun-Taek, who proposed this project, had no solid ideas for experiments. Honestly, even the general supervisor couldnt be certain that this study could bepleted within two years. But Young-Joon could do it? In just two weeks? How in the world are you going to do it? Lotus leaves have numerous bumps, which are three micrometers in diameter, on its surface, and the nanoparticles have a water-repellent coating. That is the key structure in achieving the lotus leaf effect. We just have to iste the gene that codes for it, make it synthesize the biomaterials, and then refine them. Its easy when you say it. The process to find that gene is The gene is the three hundred second ORF[1] in chromosome seven, Young-Joon said. It doesnt even have a name since its not really well-known in the scientificmunity, so should we just call it the lotus leaf gene from now on? Kim Hyun-Taek took a sip of coffee as his hands trembled. Are you being serious? Or are you messing with me? Why would I mess with you? I am being serious. Theres a paper that says the surface structure of lotus leaves were destroyed when that gene was broken. A paper like that exists? This data is from an on-campus paper published by Chengkun University. Kim Hyun-Taek squinted his eyes in suspicion. He had never heard of this university before. How did you find an on-campus paper from somewhere like that? I did some research after I saw that the MSIT selected as one of their projects for 2020. This was not information that could be found by just thoroughly looking through the literature. To be honest, Kim Hyun-Taek wasnt confident that he could find a no-name paper buried in the wilderness like him; it wasnt easy for any scientist to find that kind of literature. Of course, it was different for Young-Joon. As he could figure out the answer first through Rosaline, he was able to search up the answer as the keyword. It was very difficult to find that the lotus effect was rted to the three hundred second ORF in chromosome seven from huge databases of literature without any background knowledge, but it would be easy to find results if one searched up the exact gene. But will the data be right when its from a no-name paper like that? There are a lot of papers that cannot be reproduced. How can you believe that paper? Kim Hyun-Taek argued. Because I tested it myself after reading the paper. You tested it yourself? Yes. This was even more shocking. Kim Hyun-Taek froze. Wait, Doctor Ryu, how is that possible? How could you have done an experiment when it just got selected? And it wasnt even an ordinary experiment, but a gene maniption experiment. Because I have Cas9, Young-Joon said. I bought lotus leaves, put in Cas9 through agrobacterium and cut the candidate drug. The surface of the leaf was destroyed in five hours, and it lost the lotus effect. ... Kim Hyun-Taek had nothing to say. Even if he assigned this to a very experienced doctorate-level scientist, it wouldnt be easy for them to produce the data that Young-Joon just talked about. The Diagnostic Device Department would maybe be able to find that gene if they all participated and researched for a year. What about the gene maniption experiment? If Young-Joon didnt have Cas9, this experiment would have taken at least six months. Even if they did, it would take more than a month if they couldnt handle it as well as Young-Joon. But he skipped that entire process in a day and showed up with experimental results that would have taken a year and a half? This monster This was Kim Hyun-Taeks mistake. He should have thought of this beforehand. Young-Joon was this kind of person. He had easily taken over all kinds of major incurable diseases and humanitys long-standing enemies, and he had conquered HIV, one of the worst infectious diseases in human history, had he not? Young-Joon was not exaggerating when he said he would do it in two weeks. Perhaps even that span of time might have been modest. When other people were nning the project and studying background knowledge, this man would be able to finish it and judge the results. Well, I think even this much information would really help the research, Young-Joon said. And Director, to be honest, the Diagnostic Device Departments part in this project should be to discover the gene that causes the lotus effect, right? I think their work is done if you just cross-examine that what I told you is right. ... Then, the Protein Purification Department should work on synthesizing biomaterials with that gene. I will help you then as well, so please let me borrow the Diagnostic Device Department for a few years. Of course, once you cross-examine what I told you with experiments and prove that what I told you is correct. Kim Hyun-Taeks fists trembled. ... He slowly opened his mouth. No Pardon? Doctor Ryu, stop it. What are you talking about? You have enough, dont you? Will you be satisfied if you take thispany away from us? Or are you doing this because you have a grudge against me because of what happened with Cellicure? Young-Joon raised his head like he was baffled. No, what are you talking about? You know that I dont work emotionally. And isnt what I am suggesting now also helpful to you, too? ... Director, we are using the same people at the same time and doing the Genome Project on top of developing a new material with the lotus effect, right? Of course, I would receive the reward for the Genome Project, but you will be given a department with the experience of working on a project like that. This alone would be a considerable asset. Kim Hyun-Taek sighed. Lets be honest here. I know the reason why you want the management rights to A-Gen. You are trying to stop hical things that management does, like how I stole Cellicure and tried to get rid of it, right? ... But now, you are big enough to do whatever research you want and not be controlled by A-Gens management. But why do you have to suffocate me and reach the top of A-Gen? Kim Hyun-Taek said. Mr. Yoon and I may not have ingenious research abilities like you, but we have been in this field for decades. You really want to fight head-on? Youre going to have to bleed in order to destroy us. Stop it now. Mr. Yoon, Ji Kwang-Man, and I lead thispany and grew it. Even if you are a genius, you cant swallow this up in just a few years. ... Young-Joon ran his hand through his hair. Phew He sighed. He looked a little irritated. He stared at Kim Hyun-Taek. Director Kim, he said. To be honest, what you are saying is ridiculous. What? Current medicine is Eurocentric. All new drugs are tailored to the bodies of European people, and races like Asian, Hispanic, African, Native American, Latin American, and Oceanian are excluded, Young-Joon said. You know that since you are a scientist in pharmaceuticals and you do biology, right? Gic differences between races exist biologically as well. Im not just talking about skin color; the expression level or number of replications of genes like KRT1 are different. In order for medicine to advance to be individually catered, one of the obstacles that must be ovee is the Eurocentric database. ... Is it that hard to solve it? Young-Joon asked. Why are you talking about management rights? Did I ask for the CEO position of thispany? Did I ask for your job? ... Director Kim. Young-Joon brought his face in front of Kim Hyun-Taeks. The look in Young-Joons eyes as he red at Kim Hyun-Taek was exactly the same as the time he cursed at him, calling him a fxxking piece of trash. Dont put politics into science, Young-Joon said. ... This is exactly the same as Cellicure. The drug that you almost destroyed saved the life of a nine-year-old child. Do you know that? Food and drug safety administrations around the world are interested in this drug, and liver cancer patients are calling it a miraculous drug. Ha I believe that these things could one day act as a fatal weakness at a critical moment. Dont stop an important research like the Genome Project for such trivial reasons. Im saying this for your own good, Director. ... I dont think this is a very good atmosphere to have a productive discussion. I wille againter. I hope to hear a good answer. Young-Joon shut the door and left. Kim Hyun-Taek, who was left alone, stared at the empty table for a while in thought. Thud! He mmed on the table with his fist. He felt like his blood vessels were going to pop from his blood boiling so much from anger. Fuck!! He stood up and kicked the sofa as hard as he could. This bastard quickly rose to be a candidate for the CTO position, and there was a high possibility that he would fill the vacancy when Nichs left office. He was threatened when he saw Young-Joons growth, but he wasnt angry. However, his emotions were too intense right now. How dare a doctor that only graduated a year ago screw me over like this? Crash! He threw a tablet against the wall. A thirty-year-old rookie is teaching me the attitude I should have when doing science? When I have worked in this field for over thirty years? Ha Huffing and puffing with a red face, Kim Hyun-Taek opened the window. He had to stop that monster as he was out of control. What should I do? What could Kim Hyun-Taek do to screw that asshole over? Did he have to use an extreme and violent method like Ji Kwang-Man? When Kim Hyun-Taek was lost in thought Knock knock. Someone knocked on his office door. Come in. His secretary heard him screaming and throwing his tablet against the wall. Because of that, she was quite nervous. It was even worse as the news she was about to give him was horrible. What is it? Kim Hyun-Taek asked when he saw that the secretary looked uneasy. Um I think you should turn on the TV. The trailer for the next Unanswered Questions[2] is on. What? One of the employees from Lab One blew the whistle about Cellicure. ... Kim Hyun-Taek froze. What are you talking about? They said that you bought that important drug from Celligener and tried to bury it * * * Park So-Yeon bought a ne ticket headed to the United States. She apologized to Young-Joon, and she was almost done with everything she had to do in Korea. There was one more thing left for her to do, and it was to report Lab Ones conspiracy that was behind Cellicure. There were three main reasons behind why she was doing this. The first was because this was the just thing to do. Kim Hyun-Taek had yet to be punished from this; he deserved what he deserved. Secondly, it was for her own atonement. She was trying to wash away her shameful past when she betrayed Young-Joon and hid. Lastly, this was herst present to Young-Joon before she left. The research on a new material with the lotus effect was a project that was passed without the proper steps. The proposal wasnt even finished, and the development strategy was missing parts. The reason why Kim Hyun-Taek was taking this as a national project was probably to stop Young-Joon from beginning the Genome Project. Park So-Yeon was going to destroy that see-through strategy. Park So-Yeon was sitting on the couch at home and watching TV. Her interview was being aired with her face blurred out and her voice modted. This is the incident where the liver cancer treatment, Cellicure, the most popr topic in the medicalmunity, almost disappeared. A-Gen was selling Iloa, a liver cancer treatment, and Laboratory One Director Kim Hyun-Taek, who usually worked on anticancer drugs, felt threatened. So, he bought Cellicure, which had gone through Phase One of clinical trials with Celligener, and tried to bury it without developing it further. They didnt have to change my face or voice. Park So-Yeon didnt feel that the program needed to as she was going to quit anyways. She gulped down her beer. Doctor Ryu Young-Joon, the person who was against that and the current CEO of A-Bio, fought and exchanged curse words, and he was demoted and transferred to a different department in a differentb. You should be able to find it if you look through HRs[3] files. That was also the reason why he took the development rights to Cellicure from A-Gen and left after he seeded and started A-Bio. Cellicure would have disappeared if it was left at A-Gen, so he tried whatever he could to save it since it is a very important and excellent drug as everyone knows. Park So-Yeon nced at her phone. The program wasnt even done airing yet, and the public was running wild. Wait, is that true? Get a special prosecutor on this. We have to get to the bottom of this. Fuck. My mom passed away from liver cancer three months ago. This is bullshit. They tried to get rid of a new drug by even demoting Ryu Young-Joon? Hes supposed to be a scientist who studies new drugs. Theres no way he is a human being. The impact of this was going to be huge. This might even jeopardize Yoon Dae-Sungs position. Kim Hyun-Taek would be held ountable and be reced, and the national project would either disappear into thin air or be taken on by the nextb director. 1. acronym for open reading frame 2. A popr Korean investigative journalism program. 3. HR is an acronym for Human Resources Chapter 103: Laboratory One (5) Chapter 103: Laboratory One (5) Burning with global humiliation and anger, the public swept over A-Gen. The worlds interest in this drug called Cellicure was huge right now. It was the only cure that had seeded in curing end-stage liver cancer. Additionally, it had no side effects, it was precisely delivered to the liver, and it didnt even cause problems in cancer cells that had metastasized to the bone. Of course, it had to be monitored carefully as only data from Phase Two of the clinical trial had been released, but it seemed clear that Cellicure was going to save countless liver patients in the future as it was safe enough to be used on a nine-year-old childcking immunity and strength. It was one of the top items among the drugs that A-Bio conducted clinical trials on, but A-Gen tried to get rid of it. It was none other than a scientist who worked in the pharmaceutical industry who tried to get rid of a great drug with that much potential. Remove Kim Hyun-Taek! Remove him! Remove him! Investigate the research ethics vitions! Investigate it! People had already gathered outside A-Gen and Lab One to start protesting. There was a signature campaign criticizing Yoon Dae-Sung, and the petition to the Blue House to start an investigation was instantly signed by three hundred thousand people. Foreign media like Fox News also covered this huge scandal in depth. Simultaneously, another issue blew up as well. It was about the legendary thirty-year-old Scientist who had fought against theb director alone when everyone at Lab One stayed quiet after it happened. Is that actually possible? Hes the CEO of A-Bio and the top scientist in the world now, but he was just a Scientist at the time, and he criticized theb director to not do something like that? This story came up in the fan club from time to time. It was the backstory of how CEO Ryu Young-Joon left Lab One at A-Gen. It was just like hearsay, but I cant believe it was real. That seems even more amazing than curing incurable diseases. How can a thirty-year-old young man who just graduated from school and got a job have such courage? Was he able to make apany like A-Bio because he had that kind of courage, or was he able to act that bravely because he was a genius smart enough to found apany like A-Bio? Anyway, the one thing for sure is that we have to destroy Kim Hyun-Taek. They have to arrest him and investigate. Seriously, Cellicure wouldnt have been able toe out into the world if it wasnt for Ryu Young-Joon. Thoroughly investigate how high up this incident goes. If the CEO approved it, they have to cut off his head, too. How could scientists who make medicine try to erase a drug like Cellicure to keep their livelihoods? I thought Schumatix were crazy bastards when they tried to attack Ryu Young-Joon by nting a tumor in a a patients eye, but Korea is the same fuck lololol the CEO of A-Gen should just go die. This is how the public is reacting, Kim Young-Hoon said. A-Gen was having an emergency board meeting. Rain was dripping down the window. The heavy, depressed atmosphere was the worst. Key shareholders from Berkshire and SG Group red at Yoon Dae-Sung like they were going to chew him up. Mr. CEO, please exin, Kim Young-Joon said. I dont know anything about this, Yoon Dae-Sung denied. The CEO didnt know about purchasing all the rights of a new drug thatpleted Phase One? Lab Director Kim Hyun-Taek had the final approval. What Yoon Dae-Sung said wasnt wrong. Kim Hyun-Taek discussed it a lot with Yoon Dae-Sung when purchasing Cellicure, but Kim Hyun-Taek had the final approval. That was how Yoon Dae-Sung did business; it was a defense strategy to keep him from being med in the future. This was also the reason why he threatened Celligener and lowered the price; it was to lower it enough so that Yoon Dae-Sungs approval was not required underpany policy and it could be taken care of with Kim Hyun-Taeks budget. This isnt something that you can get away with by just saying that you didnt know. As the CEO, you have the final responsibility, Kim Young-Hoon argued. I know. Should I resign? Yoon Dae-Sung said. ... Eh. Sigh. The directors grunted disapprovingly. It will be a problem if you suddenly let go of the CEO position. You have led thispany for decades, so it will be difficult for people to get used to the new system and there will be quite a lot of knock-back, Alex said. What if Director Ryu Young-Joon fills the CEO position? Kim Young-Hoon asked. Yoon Dae-Sung flinched. However, Alex was against the idea. I believe someone like Doctor Ryu would do a good job, but he cannot be the CEO of twopanies at the same time. We can merge. Then it bes a very slow response. Merging a bigpany like this doesnt happen overnight. The stocks of A-Gen will plummet while were doing it. The directors were all torn about what to do. Yoon Dae-Sung lowered his head. To be honest, he wanted to let it all go. He was tired in a lot of ways. He felt doubtful about everything he had done in the past as he watched Young-Joon, who was growing rapidly. All the dirty things that were hidden in the shadow of the old A-Gen; it had festered for a while, and it was now like a huge infection that was difficult to fix. Yoon Dae-Sung wanted to let Young-Joon destroy it all and take control of thepany, but Yoon Bo-Hyun, his son, always weighed on his mind whenever he thought of that. Lets hold Lab Director Kim Hyun-Taek responsible and dismiss him. And appoint Director Ryu Young-Joon as the Lab Director for Lab One. We can calm down the public if we move fast, Yoon Dae-Sung said. Can Director Ryu be the CEO of A-Bio and the director of Lab One? Kim Min-Hyung asked. Its not a problem ording topany policy. I was asking whether the amount of work would be too much for him. He has already used many of A-Gens facilities at his disposal. And as A-Bios office building was originally purchased for Lab Ones expansion, Lab One and A-Bio are close to each other. * * * Kim Hyun-taek was packing up his things at his office. This was before the board of directors made their decision. He already knew what was going to happen. I lost. This was it for Kim Hyun-Taek. He knew that Young-Joon was not behind the whistleblowing; he didnt show any signs of doing so when he came here before and got angry at him. The program blurred out the whistleblowers face and changed their voice, but a fellow scientist would be able to sort of make out who it was. Kim Hyun-Taek thought that it was probably Park So-Yeon. Sigh Kim Hyun-Taek let out a deep breath. He didnt know that she would stab him in the back with a huge knife right before she left. He knew that she broke up with Young-Joon, but maybe she still had feelings left for him. Or perhaps she was also the type of person to cause a fit about vitions of research ethics since people date people simr to them. It didnt matter what it was anymore. It was toote now. Zip. Kim Hyun-Taek zipped up his bag and sat on the chair. Professor Shin Jung-Jus weeklymentary was ying on the radio. A lot of people are curious about what the Life Creation Department is, the department that CEO Ryu Young-Joon was demoted to when he was a Scientist. Yes, Professor. What does that department do? From what I have found, they artificially synthesize life, just like their name. Is that possible? Of course, its not easy. Its in Gods domain, is it not? Theoretically, it is possible to an extent. Professor Craig Venters team has already seeded in rebooting a bacteria by putting in artificial DNA into a bacterial shell. Shin Jung-Ju said. Are you saying that they resuscitated bacteria? Yes. And actually, the idea of a living thing is not a biologically defined word. Is that so? Yes. Biologists have defined a living thing over one hundred times, but there were always exceptions. But Professor, we have an idea of what living things are. I mean, for example, whether they produce offspring. Self-replication is one of the most basic characteristics of life. But thats not enough. If so, are infertile people nonliving things? Ah The interviewer was at a loss for words like she was shocked. Shin Jung-Ju went on. The most well-known example is a virus. The biologicalmunity still has not decided whether to ssify it as living or nonliving. Really? Yes. Viruses are just huge molecr lumps made of protein and genes when they are floating in the air, but they suddenly perform biological phenomena when they go into the host cell. They also self-replicate. Thats fascinating. Anyways, Im saying that creating life isnt all that ridiculous. You can seed if you find the exact boundary. If a genius like CEO Ryu Young-Joon stayed in that department Stupid. If he stayed there, he would have ended up as a failure. How can you create life? Kim Hyun-Taek said mockingly. He grabbed his bag and got up, but paused. The Life Creation Department A strong sense of curiosity came over him. All of this began when Young-Joon, who left Lab One, came here and suddenly showed up with induced pluripotent stem cells. There was no logical exnation, but Kim Hyun-Taek thought that something must have happened there. Maybe I should visit before I leave. Kim Hyun-Taek wanted to slowly follow Young-Joons trail at the Life Creation Department. Also, he had to go to Lab Six to drop off something anyway. * * * [Rosaline Lv. 16] Metastatic Status: Heart (9%), Liver (47%), Brain (9%), Kidney (15%), Spinal Cord (8%) Synchronization: 20% Cell Fitness: 10.0 Young-Joon filled the fitness, which recovered with time, to the maximum. Should I try it? Young-Joon asked Rosaline. Rosaline was sitting on the coffee table in front of the couch and stared at Young-Joon with a nervous expression. Simtion Mode: they needed to test it in advance as they didnt know how and when they would use it. When Young-Joon was about to press the button, a message window popped up. [You can eject a portion of Rosalines cells that exist in your body and gather information about the environment. They can move at the speed of sound and observe the microworld to identify biological phenomena.] [Fitness consumption is extreme, and you will lose Rosalines cells if you consume more than your fitness limit.] [In the case that you lose Rosalines cells, there may be losses to your metastatic status or synchronization, and Rosalines level may decrease.] Theres quite a risk. But since the mother cell will not disappear even if you really overuse it, you can still increase the level and recover your current condition with time. Rosaline said. Of course, I wont be able to leave until I grow that much Ill be careful. Reassuring Rosaline, who was dejected, Young-Joon pressed the button from the status window. [Activate Simtion Mode.] What are you going to look for? The most dangerous infectious disease in the world right now. This proximity cannot be analyzed with your current fitness. Please reset it in the Seoul and Gyeonggi[1] region. Thats it? Even though I built my fitness to ten? Thats right. Didnt you say something about observing the number of possibilities globally and whatnot? Then, you will have to level up a lot. Alright. Lets focus on checking that this simtion works well, Young-Joon said. Activate it in the Seoul Capital Area. A-Bio will probablye up, right? Since we have HIV that we used for experimental purposes. Pssh! His visionpletely faded out into ck. Young-Joon could feel millions of Rosalines cells being ejected from his body. The topology information and senses they were obtaining in real-time came into his head one by one. There were thousands of research institutes in the Seoul Capital Area. Rosaline searched for biological elements throughout them. Shrrr A big map formed in front of Young-Joons eyes. It was a circr map that included half of Yangpyeong-gun in Gyeonggi-do based on the current location of Young-Joon, which was A-Bio. For the level of danger, I willprehensively consider the infectiousness, and the individual and societal burden it could cause. Please individually set the weight of each element afterwards. Bleep! Gray dots began popping up one by one. Each dot represents a pathogen that can cause disease in a person. Rosaline said. The dot increases in size as the amount of pathogens increases, and the color gets darker the more dangerous the pathogen is. And I wont mark diseases weaker than themon cold. Dozens of dots showed up, but they were mostly very light gray. Bleep! This ones pretty dark, said Young-Joon as he looked at the brick-colored dot on A-Bio. This is HIV. Its not that big of a deal if you look at it like this. It is because the virus here is for experimental purposes. If you go to Africa, the Sub-Saharan region will bepletely gray. Bleep! A much darker gray popped out from A-Gens headquarters. What is that? Young-Joons eyes widened. There isnt ab at A-Gens headquarters. Why is there such a dangerous pathogen over there? What species is that? Why isnt the name showing up? I have never seen that pathogen either. And it is already dead. The corpses are preserved in a liquid nitrogen container. Even if youve never seen it before, it must have a rtionship with other organisms, right? What is it most closely rted to? The most closely rted organism is Bacillus anthracis. 1. a province near Seoul in Korea Chapter 104: Laboratory One (6) Chapter 104: Laboratory One (6) Bacillus anthracis? Young-Joon frowned. A sense of uneasiness swept over him. Anthrax? Why is something like that at A-Gens headquarters? I wouldnt know. But that is not actually Bacillus anthracis. Then what is it? Bacillus anthracis doesnt have a sex, but that bacteria does. What kind of bacteria has a sex? I dont know. It seems like a very evolved organism that began from Bacillus anthracis. Did someone use Bacillus anthracis as a base and perform directed mutagenesis? Perhaps. If so, they probably separated the males and females as a safety mechanism, so that it only has biological activity when the males and females arebined. But it is not dangerous because it is already dead. There are about one hundred thousand bacteria cells in that stock, but all of them are dead. But why would they have Bacillus anthracis was a dangerous aerobic, spore-forming, and gram-positive bacteria inside the bacillus. The fatality rate varied depending on the type of infection, but the fatality rate in the case of respiratory infections was ny-five percent. It was higher than eb. Fortunately, it was not easily transmitted by coughing. But when an infected person died, the region became contaminated, and because the contaminated area was not easily cleansed, it continuously caused infections over a long period of time. The reason the bacteria was difficult to cleanse was because of its incredible survivability. If the environment was not optimal, Bacillus anthracis would go into spore-form and defend itself; in that state, it was capable of surviving in the ground for more than one hundred years. It withstood dry heat above one hundred thirty degrees and survived in coal water slurry. It didnt die even when frozen, so it would be active again when the ice melted. It wasnt easy to kill this monstrous bacteria unless it was shot to death with radiation, like gamma rays. For this reason, anthrax had brought down the powerful Uighur Empire in Mongolia in a year in the mid-ninth century in Mongolia. HIV would surely bow at its feet. In bacteriology, Bacillus anthracis was like the Lord of Terror. -But theres a vine, right? Rosaline asked. She was right. There was a vine for anthrax. It was developed with the tremendous dedication of Pasteur, the greatest master in bacteriology, and numerous junior scientists. Because not a lot of people died from anthrax in the modern age thanks to the vine, people didnt really get vinated against it. Then, what happened to Bacillus anthracis? It would have been nice if this monster went extinct and disappeared forever, but it didnt; there were always two sides to science. Countries all over the world tried to develop Bacillus anthracis into a biological weapon. It was called the M143 bomblet, and it was actuallypleted. About six trillion spores could go into an agent that was 0.3 kilograms, and it could kill up to three hundred million people if it spread. Of course, it was only a calcted value and it wouldnt actually spread like that, but it was true that it was a bomb that matched up to an atomic bomb. Why would they make a weapon like that? Rosaline asked like she couldnt understand. It was created to subdue the opposing country during war. You dont need luxurious resources like uranium to make it, unlike atomic bombs. Wow, it is a very stupid idea. They multiply bacteria, which is lethal to Homo sapiens, to kill people, the same Homo sapiens species? What kind of species does something this stupid. It is stupid. So, we made an international treaty to ban biological weapons. Anthrax bomblets were almost ever used, Young-Joon said. The problem was why something like that was at A-Gens headquarters. Even if they were just corpses, it wasnt something that should be in an office, not aboratory. No, it shouldnt even be in ab. A gic mutated organism with that danger level Bleep! The rm rang again. This time, it was Lab One. In Lab Director Kims room? Young-Joons eyes widened. That is also a variant of Bacillus anthracis. They are females. And all the bacteria in that sample are all dead. Kim Hyun-Taek has Bacillus anthracis? Even worse, the dot began moving. From the speed of the dot, it seemed like he was in a car. Where is he going? The cells over there can share their visual information with you. Young-Joon red at the dot of Bacillus anthracis, which Kim Hyun-Taek was carrying. The middle of his eyebrows tingled. A pattern that was simr to dragonfly wings stained his vision and soon turned into a ck and white image. It was Kim Hyun-Taek, who was driving. Cell number 8 207 401 is sending you this video. Rosaline said. If you increase the level, the image will be more focused and be in color. Young-Joon slowly turned his perspective and checked the GPS. The destination was Lab Six. Why is he going to Lab Six? Bleep! The rm rang again. It was Lab Six. No way. There were no dangerous organisms like that at Lab Six. They didnt even have a very high Biological Safety Level either. However, the dot that appeared on the map was pitch ck. It was so dark that it looked like it was photoshopped like Vantack, which only reflected 0.03 percent of light. The size of the dot meant the number of pathogens, and the color represented the danger level. Rosaline, what is that? ... I dont know. I think you will have to go see for yourself. * * * Kim Hyun-Taek was taking Yoon Dae-Sungs call. Im sorry things went like this. Yoon Dae-Sung said. I understand. This was probably the best course of action from your perspective. I will try to stop your prosecution as much as possible. I might not be able to do it right now, but I will try to secretly get you out or something when it dies down. Sure. Thank you. Other than that, what did you do with the item? Mr. Ryu is going to take your ce after you leave. Then, we cant store it in theb directors office. I know. I am taking it out right now. What are you thinking of doing? I will give it to Director Gil Hyung-Joon. Lab Six? Yes. I am on my way. With the item? Yes. I was going to drop by because I was curious about something. Can you trust him? He is our only option. And hes someone who already knows the gist of this project. Its burdensome for you to have all two. But the bacteria may already be dead. Those samples are decades old. But if even one of the cells is alive, and it leaks and bes active, a major catastrophe will happen in decades. Hm What Im saying is, do we have to get Director Gils help because were worried about that low possibility? Even if I have both We have to get Director Gils help. You know that something like this has to be separated by theb, dont you? Ha I dont know why the situation came to this. If I were to go back to a year ago, I wouldnt touch Cellicure and let Ryu Young-Joon do whatever he wants. Haha, its toote now. Sir. If I disappear, you are the only person left for Ryu Young-Joon to tear apart. You know that, right? I know. Please be careful. Screech! Kim Hyun-Taek stopped the car and climbed out with his bag. He went into Lab Six and went to see Gil Hyung-Joon. When he went up to theb directors office and exined while showing him the item, Gil Hyung-Joon screamed. Wait, why are you giving me this? You know we have to store it separately. Please keep it safe while Im gone; its an important sample. Ha You know that this was the hidden cash cow that grew A-Gen into a bigpany a long time ago. We are all indebted to this. We only have you to trust now. With a sigh, Gil Hyung-Joon took the bacteria capsule. It was already in a sealed mini liquid nitrogen case, but he put it into another airtight container and sealed it again with parafilm. Then, he put it into his own personal safe. Click. Gil Hyung-Joon, who locked the safe, stared at Kim Hyun-Taek like he was irritated. You cant let me be criticized for thister on, okay? Of course. And I will requestpensation from you about this. Do as you wish. But I have something that Im curious about, Kim Hyun-Taek said. What is it? Can I see the experiment log from the Life Creation Team? The record after Doctor Ryu came here. Um. This kind of data wasnt shared very much, even between directors. But Kim Hyun-Taek was not only a colleague to Gil Hyung-Joon, but his friend. They had a long-standing friendship from working as ab director at the samepany for years. Since hes leaving. Gil Hyung-Joon thought. And the Life Creation Departments data was useless as all of it was about ying around with an artificialyer of bubbles. Since he was taking in the top-secret sample of thepany, Gil Hyung-Joon decided to extend his favor a little more since he was doing it anyway. Here it is. Gil Hyung-Joon opened a file on hisputer and printed it. But you cannot take it out of this room. Take a look at it here and leave it here when you go. Thank you. Kim Hyun-Taek flipped through the documents and calmly read them from where he was sitting. Huh? Kim Hyun-Taeks eyes widened. Director Gil, there was a medical ident? Yes. Apparently, Doctor Ryu fainted on the first day. But they said it was nothing. He got anemic because of hepatitis or something like that. He came back to work after that. ... Kim Hyun-Taek looked up the record of Young-Joons first day at this department. There was no data; he didnt do any experiments, but Young-Joons name was mentioned in Park Dong-Hyuns experiment notes. [As Rosaline v4.87 died as shown in the provided microscope data, Scientist Ryu Young-Joon added ten microliters of 10X PBS. However, the sample was discarded due to continued apoptosis.] Thank you. Kim Hyun-Taek left the documents on the desk and got up. He took the elevator down to the Life Creation Department. * * * Ryu Young-Joon arrived at the Life Creation Department and went into theb. Kim Hyun-Taek slowly followed Young-Joons footsteps. The sample was probably boiling on the heat block near the entrance of theb. Kim Hyun-Taek inspected the heat block that was at the entrance of theb. When he turned his head to the right, the animal cellb was right in front. The optical microscope that was inside caught his eye. This was what Young-Joon would have seen as well. He probably observed the sample with the optical microscope. Then, he would have put it back in the sample container. Sample Rosaline v4.87? Kim Hyun-Taek went to the liquid nitrogen tank and began looking through the samples. He found Rosaline v4.87. He organized the sample boxes and put them back in the tank. What are you doing? He heard Young-Joons voice from behind. ng! Surprised, Kim Hyun-Taek dropped the original cell of Rosaline. Cling! Young-Joon picked up the Rosaline v4.87 sample that rolled towards him. Only authorized personnel should be touchingb material. ... Im sorry. I came to see Director Gil, but somehow I came all the way here. I was just curious and wanted to take a look at the sample. Really? [Activate Synchronization Mode.] Young-Joon examined Kim Hyun-Taek. It was to check if he had found something and was ying a game with him. Young-Joon could track the neural response of lying if he read Kim Hyun-Taeks brain waves and blood flow. Hes telling the truth. He was looking at it because he was actually curious. Although, he probably meant that he was going to take it to hisb, grow it, and look at it through a microscope. Rosaline said. You cant grow this. Its a failed sample, Young-Joon said to Kim Hyun-Taek. Kim Hyun-Taek flinched. There are a lot more Rosalines that were developed after this. Do you want me to take them out? Would you like to see it? ... Thats alright. Haha. I just looked at it out of curiosity because I wondered if your ingenuity might have something to do with this. Young-Joon smiled. It was rted, but he wouldnt be able to recreate it as the creation of life was a single event and could not ur twice. ... But Director Gil hasnt used thisb yet, and he left it empty, Kim Hyun-Taek said. I asked him to do that. A few people including Principal Scientist Cheon were on the Life Creation project for so long that it has a ce in their hearts. They said that they wanted to use this ce again in the future. ... Arent they passionate people? I see. Are you also here to experiment something? No. Actually, Young-Joon was here to find the ck dot he saw during Simtion Mode, but he couldn''t find anything yet. Im here to find you, Young-Joon replied. Thats what he said as he couldnt say that he came here after viewing Simtion Mode. And he originally meant to meet Kim Hyun-Taek as well. Director Gil? No, Director Kim, Young-Joon said as he gestured in Kim Hyun-Taeks direction. Me? Why? Director Kim, do you know about Bacillus anthracis? Kim Hyun-Taeks face froze as Young-Joon asked. While observing the change in expression, Young-Joon said, Theres something I heard. ... Give it to me. You have it, right? I Kim Hyun-Taek gulped. I dont know what youre talking He almost said that he didnt have it. How did he find out? Kim Hyun-Taek felt cold sweat run down his spine. -Its not with Kim Hyun-Taek. Rosaline said. Its not? Yes. I would have been able to feel it at this distance. But Kim Hyun-Taek was moving with it when we looked at the simtion? You turned off the simtion after seeing the fitness drop instantly. Kim Hyun-Taeks hands are empty now. If you dont have it right now, where did you leave it? Young-Joon asked. Do you have to hear an answer? I can feel it from upstairs. Rosaline said. Chapter 105: Laboratory One (7) Chapter 105: Laboratory One (7) Kim Hyun-Taek felt fear as he saw Young-Joon raising his head reflexively. Young-Joon was staring in the direction of Lab Director Gil Hyung-Joons office. Mr. Ryu, about Bacillus anthracis Who did you hear it from? Kim Hyun-Taek asked cautiously. Why? Ourpany has never studied Bacillus anthracis before. I would like to know for sure if my name is also involved. As you know, Im in a difficult position right now, and I have a lot of enemies as well. If someone who is holding a grudge against me is taking this chance to spread false rumors about me, shouldnt I be prepared? Young-Joon just stared at Kim Hyun-Taek. Director Kim, this is also a kind of whistleblowing; do you think I would reveal who did it? The one thing for sure is that an organism based on Bacillus anthracis that underwent directed mutagenesis and is now separated by their sex is at thepany. One of them is in Mr. Yoons office, and the other one is in your possession, Director Kim. What the hell? What is this bastard? Kim Hyun-Taek was more than shocked; he was terrified. He knows that its in Mr. Yoons office? And that the bacteria are separated by their sex? Young-Joon said, And I know that you dont usually visit otherbs, so you wouldnt go out of your way toe to Lab Six the day before you cleared your office and visit the Life Creation Department before meeting Director Gil, right? You probably already met him. ... I think I have an idea of why you met with him. Kim Hyun-Taek wiped the sweat off his forehead. Fuck, is he the Devil or something? At this point, the only people who knew that much information at thepany were Yoon Dae-Sung, his son Yoon Bo-Hyun, Gil Hyung-Joon, Nichs, and Ji Kwang-Man. Wait, Ji Kwang-Man? After having a conflict with Young-Joon, Ji Kwang-Man was arrested and imprisoned for hiring a hitman to kill Young-Joon. Although, there was a high chance that Yoon Dae-Sung would get him out however he could when the issue died down. If Ji Kwang-Man leaked it? It was a possibility as Ji Kwang-Man was a clever man. What if he tried to make a deal with Young-Joon by telling him this secret before getting arrested, but failed? Wait. This couldnt have been it. If this had happened, Young-Joon would have already turned A-Gen upside down a few months ago. Wouldnt he have shot everyone dead, whether it was Yoon Dae-Sung or someone else, with a machine gun and tried to build a new pce? Nichs! Kim Hyun-Taeks mind nked. Nichs was rmending Kim Hyun-taek and Yoon Dae-Sung to turn themselves in. What if Nichs saw that he was resigning from the Lab One Director position and told Young-Joon in advance since there was a possibility he would find out anyway? What are you thinking so hard about? Young-Joon asked Kim Hyun-Taek. Kim Hyun-Taek snapped out of his imaginary investigation. He wanted to ask Young-Joon if Nichs told him about it, but he couldnt; he needed to give him as little information as possible. Kim Hyun-Taek, who barely held back his words, held his breath and looked at Young-Joon. What did you do with that bacteria? Young-Joon asked. ... I dont know what you are talking about. We dont have that kind of bacteria, Kim Hyun-Taek replied. Do you regret the answer you gave me right now? I think the best way to minimize the damage that wille will be to tell me everything right now. ... I dont know who told you that, but dont believe them. Its all nonsense. Alright. Ill see you again, Young-Joon said to Kim Hyun-Taek and turned away. He walked towards the elevator and pressed the button going up. Kim Hyun-Taek could also see Young-Joon waiting for the elevator through thebs ss door. Is he going to Gil Hyung-Joon now? Considering Gil Hyung-Joons reaction when he handed him the bacteria and the time it took for Young-Joon to get here, Gil Hyung-Joon wasnt the one who told him. Kim Hyun-Taek quickly took out his phone and called Gil Hyung-Joon. Director Gil, Ryu Young-Joon is going up there right now. If he asks you about anthracis, just say that you dont know anything and that you dont know what this is about, said Kim Hyun-Taek as fast as possible, then hung up. Then, he called Nichs. Mr. CTO, I have something to ask you, he said. What is it? Ryu Young-Joon knows about the anthracis. Pardon? Werent you the one that told him? What What are you trying to do! Are you trying to destroy thepany? Wait, Director Kim. It wasnt me. I have never told anyone. ... If Doctor Ryu knows, I feel like it leaked through Division Manager Ji Kwang-Man. Whats the situation right now? I came to Lab Six to give Director Gil the sample I had. But Ryu Young-Joon came all the way here to find me and asked for the anthracis. What is All of this just happened right now. And Doctor Ryu went to meet Director Gil. Does Doctor Ryu know that you gave it to him? I would be able to infer that if I was Doctor Ryu. What reason would I have toe to thisb at this point? He probably guessed that I came to give Director Gil that item since I have to clear theb directors office tomorrow. Alright. Im passing by Lab Six right now, so Ill drop by. * * * At theb directors office, which was a few floors up from theb, Gil Hyun-Joon was staring at his phone. Baffled. [Lab One Director Kim Hyun-Taek] Wait, what is this guy talking about? Why would Ryu Young-Joone here all of a sudden? Knock knock! Gil Hyung-Joon heard his secretarys voice from outside the door. Sir, Mr. Ryu from A-Bio is here. Mr. Ryu? Should I let him in? ... Fuck His heart began beating hard. The first thought that popped up in his mind was that he was fxxked. He took out a bottle of cold water from the refrigerator and gulped it down. Phew After a deep breath, he said, Let him in. Click. Young-Joon, who came into theb, sat down on the guest sofa with a calm face. Its been a while, Mr. Ryu. Gil Hyung-Joon greeted Young-Joon with an awkward smile. Hello, Mr. Director. How have you been? Ive been well. Youre very busy nowadays, right? Its alright. What brings you here today? The anthracis. You have it, right? ... Gil Hyung-Joon closed his mouth. After some thought, he said, We dont have anthracis at ourb. Are you thinking of starting a new project with it? No. The bacteria that Director Kim gave you. Its an organism that was created by applying directed mutagenesis on Bacillus anthracis. Director Kim gave me something like? I didnt receive anything. Did Director Kim say that? Gil Hyung-Joon pretended like he knew nothing. Young-Joon just stared at him. Gil Hyung-Joon looked extremely nervous. After a moment of silence, Young-Joon spoke. Director Gil. Yes. When Nics, the CTO, resigns and takes the government position, A-Gen will merge with A-Bio. ... The shares I will have then will be more than all of Mr. Yoons friendly sharesbined. I see And since there are things I have achieved at A-Bio as well, dont you think I would be supervising all the research that goes on in the newly mergedpany? ... Then, I will have the right to read all the past research notes. When that timees, I will look for everything myself, Young-Joon said. I dont know if the reason you decided to take in the bacteria was because you made some kind of deal with Director Kim or if it was just because of your friendship, but the easiest answer I can think of is that you were also one of the developers of that bacteria. Uh That is Gil Hyung-Joon went pale. Dont let me be the CTO and read the past notes with a negative mindset. ... Just tell me right now. Tell me what that bacteria is and where it was used. Gil Hyung-Joon picked up his bottle of water to put his answer on hold. He needed some time to think. He drank his water slowly for quite a while. He felt like his thoughts were bing moreplicated with every gulp. Crackle. Gil Hyung-Joon set the water bottle on the table and nced at Young-Joon. ... Mr. Ryu, I will tell you what I know, Gil Hyung-Joon said in a diminishing voice. Please tell me. That is a biological weapon. It was co-developed with the United States military. It was when A-Gen was very small. Sigh Young-Joon let out a deep sigh. I thought so. Theres nothing to profit from creating an organism like that except for military purposes. ... Its a vition of the Biological Weapons Convention (BWC). This isnt just an internal problem at A-Gen; this could be a national problem as well. Does our government know? As far as I know, they dont This is frustrating. This was co-developed with the U.S. military? Yes. It was created in secret and supplied to the U.S. military. We received a lot of money from it, and I believe that it became the funding for growth for A-Gen in the early days. Has that weapon ever been used? I do not know that. Why is A-Gen holding onto that dangerous bacteria sample instead of disposing of it? Because its evidence that it was co-developed with the U.S. military and that we supplied it to them. Having the actual bacteria was the most powerful piece of evidence they could have; if a bioterror urred somewhere, they couldpare the DNA and prove whether the bacteria used was this one or not. If we destroy all the samples and the United States argues that they know nothing about it, A-Gen would take sole responsibility for it. If were unlucky, other international pharmapanies might attack us by swaying the media and saying that we might have sold it to terrorists or something. So, its to take them with you if its ever revealed? Yes. Then, if we reveal the bacteria sample, match the DNA, and release the co-development and supply documents, a significant amount of the responsibility goes to the United States military. ... Even if a situation like that doesnt happen, this is also the U.S. federal governments weakness. Corporate executives dont dispose of these cards easily, no matter how dangerous they are. Young-Joon put his hand on his forehead and thought hard. What do you think? They are idiots. Rolsaine said. But Mr. Ryu, from what I know, this bacteria was not developed as a weapon. Then? The development period was in thete twentieth century when extreme Muslim militarized powers were highly influential. I believe that it was made as research in concern about the risk of biological terrorism using anthrax. ... Dont despise Director Kim so much. We did notmit any crimes with this, Gil Hyung-Joon said cautiously. Mr. Ryu, things are difficult for Director Kim right now, and its a difficult time for A-Gen as well. Please let it go just this once. If you reveal something like this and add illegal research charges on Director Kim, it will be difficult for him to evere back. The bacteria are carefully kept through safety mechanisms like separating males and females, so He is not lying. Rosaline said. I can tell that he is being sincere even without analyzing his cerebral blood flow. However, it didnt mean it was right because it was sincere. Developing a biological weapon is a vition of the Convention, and it is also a vition of research regtions because you worked on it in secret. You said that you didntmit a crime with that or anything, but the research itself is a crime. ... And the fact that a pathogen like that exists is far from safe. The fact that you are carefully keeping cannot be an excuse, Young-Joon said. Director Gil, biological weapons are of a different naturepared to other weapons of mass destruction. The range of damage can be calcted even for nuclear weapons, but the reason why biological weapons are dangerous is because there can be variables you cant calcte. ... No one can predict what kind of mutation that bacteria, which has spread to nature, will gain and how it will spread. It will threaten the life of mankind as a whole. That is right. Give it to me. Young-Joon held out his hand. Gil Hyung-Joon thought hard with his eyes closed, then got up from his seat. There was no way for him to know if Young-Joon was going to execute Kim Hyun-Taek with this right now, but he didnt have the power to decline his request. Click. He opened the safe. Chapter 106: Laboratory One (8) Chapter 106: Laboratory One (8) The door of the safe opened. The bacteria was in a sealed tank containing liquid nitrogen, and it was sealed two more times with the casing Gil Hyung-Joon put on it. As Gil Hyung-Joon was about to take out the bacteria m! The office door flew open. Kim Hyun-Taek appeared with an angry face. Beside him, Gil Hyung-Joons secretary stood beside him, flustered. Gil Hyung-Joon was startled at first, but dropped his head like he was ashamed. Director Kim Im sorry. ... Kim Hyun-Taek red at Gil Hyung-Joon silently, then walked right up to Young-Joon. Then, at that moment Paa! Rosaline suddenly popped out and stood between them with her arms spread out like she was defending Young-Joon from something. What? Young-Joon was more surprised by Rosalines reaction than Kim Hyun-Taek. Get out of here! Rosaline shouted. What is it? What are you doing all of a sudden? Its a pathogen. But I cant figure out what it is. A pathogen? Lab Director Kim Hyun-Taek is a pathogen? A pathogen entered Kim Hyun-Taeks body. I dont know what it is for sure, but what I am sure of is that Kim Hyun-Taek is infected. Young-Joon distanced himself from Kim Hyun-Taek slightly. Can Director Gil or I get infected? There is no pathogenic response from the aerosolsing out of his body right now. You wont get infected because youre here right now, but Its better if you leave this room. Im worried. I have to know Kim Hyun-Taeks condition. I cant leave by myself. Then Ill use some fitness. Rosaline said as she red at Kim Hyun-Taek Pzzzzz. Young-Joons fitness, which had recovered to five, began falling in seconds. Rosaline looked through Kim Hyun-Taeks entire body. His immune cells were running wild all over his body. If his body was a country, this was like a state of disaster; it was like a huge tsunami hit, or like ashes were pouring down all over the country due to arge volcano erupting. His immune cells couldnt even clearly discern the enemy; they were just excited due to the emergency and were running around, destroying ces at random. His organs were damaged in ces, and internal bleeding was happening. If hes infected, is it anthrax? No, its not a living thing. I would be able to feel it if it was a living thing. He was healthy just a moment ago. Can this happen so suddenly? That is also strange. However, it is certain that he will be in danger if this continues. We need to suppress the immune response first. Wait The ck dot we saw during Simtion Mode Is it that? It could be. Lets check the infectiousness. Turn on Simtion Mode. It is an unknown pathogen, so you may not be able to see it urately. And you will not be able to see a wide range because you dont have much fitness left. Still, lets try. [Activate Simtion Mode.] With the message window, a shocking image appeared. The only range that could be observed with the remaining fitness for Rosaline was Gil Hyung-Joons office. Within that range. Kim Hyun-Taek appeared as a ck dot. It was as dark as a ck hole;pared to this, the Bacillus anthracis that was in the safe beside him was white. What is this Gil Hyung-Joon approached Kim Hyun-Taek with caution. D-Director Kim You dont look so good Kim Hyun-Taek ignored him and spoke to Young-Joon. Doctor Ryu, dont touch anthracis. This is connected to the United States military. Just bury it as a secret. Dont poke around. Blood trickled down from his nose. Director Kim! Your nose is bleeding! Gil Hyung-Joon shouted in surprise. Young-Joon slowly rose from his seat. You touched the cell line tanks downstairs. Did you touch something dangerous? What did you do? Tell me the truth, Young-Joon said. ... I didnt do anything. I havent been feeling well ever since meeting Doctor Ryu earlier, Kim Hyun-Taek said as he wiped the nosebleed. He is not lying. Rosaline said in a trembling voice. Ryu Young-Joon, I dont have a good feeling about this. Get out of here. Rosalines shoulders trembled slightly. She was terrified. Ugh Kim Hyun-Taek suddenly grabbed his chest, then began coughing severely. Cough!! He coughed up a handful of blood. Then, he slid down and copsed onto the floor. He was most likely unconscious. Gil Hyung-Joons secretary was calling 119.[1] * * * Young-Joon was watching the security camera footage from the CCTV in front of the Life Creation Department at Lab Six with Gil Hyung-Joon. Cameras werent installed inside the experimentb, but there was footage of the front of the elevator and the hallway. Young-Joon was recorded getting on the elevator after meeting Kim Hyun-Taek in the experimentb. As soon as the elevator began going up, Kim Hyun-Taek appeared in the hallway. He took out his phone and called someone for a while before shaking abruptly and dropping his cell phone. He coughed and flopped down, but managed to get up by using the wall and barely walked to the elevator. Kim Hyun-Taek hade to Gil Hyung-Joons office like that. Knock knock. Someone knocked on the office door. Nichs came in with a serious face. Mr. CTO? Gil Hyung-Joon was surprised. Where is Director Kim? He was taken to the hospital in an ambnce just a moment ago, Young-Joon replied. What brings you here, Mr. CTO? I got a call from Director Kim. He told me that Doctor Ryu knew about the anthracis and demanded to know whether I told him. Then, he began coughing severely and hung up, saying that he was feeling horrible, Nichs said. He nced at Young-Joon with a bitter face, then said, Mr. Ryu, can I have a word with you outside? He went to the executives rest area and began talking. I heard that you already know quite a lot about the anthracis, Nichs said. I only know that it exists. They said it was a biological weapon, Young-Joon replied. Who told you? I just happened to hear about it. ... Nichs quietly stared at the side of Young-Joons face. He seemed to be focused on something and looked like he was lost in thought. Nichs smiled. You already dont care about the anthracis. Pardon? I heard that Director Kim copsed. ... Yes. Youre wondering what kind of disease would put someone in such a bad condition that they bleed and faint all of a sudden when they werepletely healthy when you met them a couple hours ago? Um That seems like you, Mr. Ryu. I came here to talk about the anthracis, but should we talk about it next time if theres a lot on your mind? ... Its alright. I will ask you something since youre giving me the opportunity to. Were you involved in developing that? No. It happened a long time before I came to A-Gen. I knew about it, but I kept it buried. You cant do that. I know. Nichs calmly nodded. Mr. Ryu, why dont you leave this to me? To you? As you may already know, CEO Yoon is an old friend of mine. I have been rmending that he confess to all these illegal research projects. ... It is something that I was going to take care of before I left the CTO position. Director Kim and CEO Yoon will all be punished for their part in the research. Are you asking me to pretend I didnt see it and wait? I cannot do that. You are the new wind in science. In the past, there were a lot of people in the scientificmunity who wrote papers with experimental data that could not be reproduced and poor statistical methodology andmitted fraud. ... A lot of the time, science sought after money rather than the truth, and it sometimesbined with politics or ideologies and yielded horrendous results like the Holocaust or nuclear weapons. This bioweapon is one of them, NIchoals said. You have continuously fought against that, but honestly, I have always wanted you to use your strength to create something new rather than spend energy fighting those things. You are the future of the scientificmunity. I wish that you wouldn''t dirty your hands with blood to fight with the powers in the messy past. ... Even old people like me can clean up the past. However, the only person who can make the future is you, Mr. Ryu. You understand what Im saying, right? Young-Joon frowned and thought about it hard. Mr. CTO, I do not enjoy fighting against huge powers like A-Gens management. Who in the world would like that? But the reason I have insisted on research ethics and conflicted with them is because its right. This isnt something I can just turn a blind eye to. Troubles always happen afterwards if you dont correct the wrongdoing in science early on. I know. Im not asking you to ignore it. I am only asking you to let me finish it since my term as the CTO isnt over yet. ... I have only seeked honor when doing research. Please let me cleanse the dirty things with my own hands before I resign. After thinking about it, Young-Joon said, Alright. Please make me a promise that Mr. Yoon, Kim Hyun-Taek, and those involved in this incident will be arrested before you leave your position. I promise you. Then I will leave it all to you, Mr. CTO. Since you are still the CTO and the chief officer, I think its right for you to finish this. However, I will keep an eye on this incident. If any problems arise, I will do it myself. Alright. Thank you for understanding. I will repay this debt in the future. * * * Kim Hyun-Taeks condition was much worse than expected. He was dered brain-dead. Young-Joon went to visit Kim Hyun-Taek and monitored his condition with Rosaline. This guy. He was touching Rosaline v4.87? Young-Joon said to Rosaline. Hes not going to get up all of a sudden and say that he can see messages or something, right? Never. Rosaline said, horrified. Creating life is not that easy. It is also not an event that can happen twice at the same time. Really? The point where themon ancestor for all living things on Earth appeared was 3.8 billion years ago. A new living thing has never been created during the 3.8 billion years. There is no way that it would be made twice in a year. Its a miracle that I happened as well. I guess the probability is too low. And Kim Hyun-Taek is basically dead already. The machines are maintaining his breathing, but it will be difficult to cure him with current medicine. And you can? I dont know. You dont have enough fitness. Rosaline popped out in the form of Ryu Sae-Yi, then climbed up onto Kim Hyun-Taeks bed. She observed his face up close. She frowned. Ugh Theres so much grease. She quickly came down. Do you have any predictions about what this disease could be? I wouldnt call it a prediction, but Just IMO[2] Where did you learn things like that? I heard Park Dong-Hyun use it before. ... So, what do you think? This is the pathogenicity of my existence that was created at the same time I was born. Young-Joon squinted. Pathogenicity? Young-Joon asked like he was confused. What are you talking about? Exin it in detail. Youre pathogenic? I am the second creature that has been created on this. It can be said that I am apetitor to all existing poptions of life in that I have apletely different set of genes. ... Lets say that at the end of the Cretaceous period that reptiles dominated, a powerfulpetitor called mammals appeared. Rosaline said. Its a mouse fighting a T-Rex if you look at it closely, but from afar, it is a battle between a ss called reptiles and a ss called mammals. From a macro-perspective, all mammals arepetitors to reptiles. Hm This perspective may be awkward for humans as it is too vast. Anyways, from the point of my appearance, I became an enemy to all living things on Earth. Rosaline said. But Ryu Young-Joon, reptiles are enemies to mammals, right? Thats true But why have I been cooperating with you to increase the lifespan of humans all this time? Mankind is the most powerful opponent among my enemies. I didnt feel any aversions. Why was that? And the countless living things I have met did not show any signs of rejection towards me. That was also fascinating. ... What if the pathogenicity I had separated and split off in the early stages of the mother cell development? What if that is the reason why the living things on thisnd do not recognize me as an enemy and I feel no aversion in helping you? Then, that pathogenicity was left at the Life Creation Department andter infected Kim Hyun-Taek? Yes. Because it is not a living thing but the property of causing diseases itself, it will just keep destroying everything. I cant really imagine it with the knowledge that I have. Think of it as a yer of Life, not as a scientist. And the Life Creation Department was used for a long time after you were created. No one had any problems. Im not sure of that. But since I kept growing, if we think that the pathogenicity has also grown Young-Joon rested his chin on his hand and became lost in thought. After contemtion, Young-Joon asked Rosaline a question. If everything you said was right, can we cure Kim Hyun-Taek? You dont like him. Youre going to cure him? I have to save him to make him take responsibility and get punished for the incident. Youre not normal either. Rosaline said like she was baffled. 1. 911 is 119 in Korea 2. IMO is an abbreviation for in my opinion. Chapter 107: Laboratory One (9) Chapter 107: Laboratory One (9) But Ryu Young-Joon, I dont know for sure if I will be able to cure Kim Hyun-Taek or not. Rosaline said. I still havent urately diagnosed what this pathogen is. I have to inspect it closer. Closer? I am going to go inside Kim Hyun-Taeks body for a moment. Can you do that? It should be fine. Theres nothing that will mess with me except that pathogen anyways. Do you think something like Kim Hyun-Taeks immune cells can go up against me? Rosaline said. Its kind of gross that I am going inside the body of a man in his fifties whose body was wrecked by alcohol, cigarettes,ck of exercise, and chronic tiredness, but this is the only way. Alright. Then Ill be back. Rosaline climbed onto his bed again and stuck her finger in Kim Hyun-Taeks mouth. Then, her body slipped right in as if she was being sucked in by a ck hole. Ugh. Rosaline groaned. He stunk of cigarettes right from his esophagus. Before moving into the stomach, she dug into the mucous membrane at a good point and moved into the blood vessels. I will share my perspective with you. Rosaline consumed one point of fitness and showed Young-Joon the inside of Kim Hyun-Taeks blood vessels. It was filled with cholesterol and fat. Youve never seen something like this before, right? Its probably horrible. Dont be like that. Its because of the average Korean mans work stress andpany dinner. Young-Joons voice came through. To be honest, Ryu Young-Joon, your body was no different. Really? It was simr to this when I first arrived. Well, it was bound to be like this since you were an alcoholic back then. Anyways, Im cleaning your blood vessels every morning and evening. Be grateful. ...Thanks. Rosaline took the vena cava and moved to the heart. The pathogen has not been found yet. Maybe it doesnt have a physical entity? If everything Rosaline thought was right and it was the pathogenicity that fell off her body that infected Kim Hyun-Taek, it may not have a clear physical entity. There was nothing that she could be certain of. All the immune cells have stopped working. It was because the doctors had injected an immunosuppressant. If it wasnt for that, Kim Hyun-Taeks body might not have been able to withstand it. Rosaline passed by the huge white blood cells. This time, she took the artery to cross the blood brain barrier and went to the brain. Oh! Rosaline was startled. What is it? A significant part of the brain has been destroyed. Ugh This will be difficult to reconstruct even with stem cell therapy. When youe out, tell me how damaged it is. Lets think of a way to cure him. Okay. But it will be difficult to find a way to cure someone who is basically a corpse at my level. Well have to increase your level a lot as well. Oh, wait. I found something. Rosaline stopped moving. A cloud of ck gas was floating around in front of her. It was a strange substance that looked like a cus or like a protein lump. So this is the pathogen. Rosaline observed it more closely. It was definitely not a living being, so it wasnt active in the body and it also didnt multiply. As such, it was normal for it to not be that harmful to the body. The reason that Kim Hyun-Taeks body was this ruined wasnt actually because of this substance, but the immune cells that reacted to it; it was a type of allergic reaction. However, it was odd that it was so intense that it led to brain death. What is this thing? It wasnt easy to discern what it was even from Rosalines perspective, which could analyze the microworld. It felt cloudy, as if something was covering her eyes. Rosaline cautiously touched the object. Pff! Suddenly, steam shot out with the burnt smell of coal. Crash! Rosaline, surprised at the sharp protrusions flying towards her, fired an attack reflexively. [Perforin overexpression by 420%] Boom! A hole was sted through the ck, empty ball. With a sound of air deting, the ball turned white and evaporated. At the same time, a few pieces of debris popped out. They were very small chemical molecules. Rosaline knew these structures. Prednisolone? Rosaline tilted her head in confusion. Another type of chemical flowed out. It was pentoxifylline. However, it looked like a tangled mold. She pulled in some water molecules and hydrolyzed them. After cleaning up her area, she went into the blood vessels again. She traveled for a long time and went back the way she came. Phaa! Rosaline, who came out of Kim Hyun-Taeks body, took a deep breath. It was so suffocating in there. What happened? Young-Joon asked. I met a pathogen in there. And? I touched it, and it tried to attack me. Attack? You? So? I got rid of it. It disappeared when I put a hole through it with perforin. Little thing didnt know who it was up against. Rosaline puffed up her little chest. ... Then is Kim Hyun-Taek all better now? You cant do anything about the explosion just because you caught the terrorists. Its over for Kim Hyun-Taek. Really? It was a little upsetting. Well, we might be able to cure him if we develop stem cells further. But I cant think of a good way because my level is too low. And the pathogen has beenpletely destroyed? The ones that were in his body, yes. * * * [Kim Hyun-Taek, Laboratory One Director of AGen, dered brain-dead due to a sudden stroke.] The news began spreading. The story that Kim Hyun-Taek copsed at Lab Six while raising his voice due to having a conflict with Young-Joon was pretty provocative. Its Gods punishment. I dont even feel pity for him because hes a bastard who doesnt think other peoples lives are precious. Just take him off the venttor. Hes a waste of oxygen. The public was cold. An in-house board meeting was held at A-Gens headquarters. Young-Joon was now theb director of Lab one; it was the best of the best that had seven departments including the Anticancer Drug Research Department, Mobile Diagnostic Device Research Department, nt-based Pharmaceutical Research Department, and the Protein Manufacturing Research Department. The best research personnel who could be considered the main force of A-Gen was now under Young-Joon. The scientists at the Anticancer Drug Research Department were having an emergency meeting. Principal Kim, what do we do? said Lead Scientist Hwang Chan-Mi as she grabbed her hair. They all remembered the day Young-Joon fought with Kim Hyun-Taek at the department and left for the Life Creation Department. When he came out of Director Kims office in anger, everyone in the department nced at him and ignored him. Here, Young-Joon was quite a controversial person; a lot of seniors liked him because he was smart, had passion, and finished his work perfectly, but there were quite a lot of people who didnt like him because of his tunnel vision and stickler attitude. CEO Ryu probably feels betrayed by us, too, Senior Scientist Kim Hyun-Seok said with a sigh. But there was nothing we could do about Cellicure. What, would we have embraced Doctor Ryu and fought with Director Kim? How could we do that? Even his girlfriend broke up with him, Hyun Mi-Ju argued like it was unfair. But we could have given him a heads-up about why Cellicure was purchased. No matter how badly we were stepping on his excitement, said Principal Scientist Kim Joo-Yeon. I should have carried the ball and done that as the head of the department, but I didnt pay attention. I should have at least pretended to intervene and protect Ryu Young-Joon when he was being sliced up by Director Kim. Its not your fault, Hwang Chan-Mi said. Do you think CEO Ryu has any feelings towards us? Lead Park Shi-Joon asked. I dont know. Click. The door opened and someone walked into the office. Hello. It was Young-Joon. Oh! Uh All the document folders that were on the table fell off as Kim Hyun-Seok, Hyun Mi-Ju and others scrambled to get up in surprise. In that chaos, Hwang Chan-Mis elbow hit Kim Joo-Yeons phone, and it slid off the table. Snatch! Young-Joon, who caught the phone like it was nothing whileing their way, held it out. Its been a while. H-Hello. Kim Joo-Yeon took the phone. The scientists all greeted him nervously. Sir, I thought you were in a meeting with the other departments Im done now. I had about thirty minutes left before myst meeting, so I decided to stop by. Young-Joon was having meetings with every department at Lab One. It was to see the new projects that were going on at each department now that he was appointed as the new director. Oh, yes Haha Kim Joo-Yeonughed awkwardly. There was a heavy silence in the room. Since I know the research data of the Anticancer Drug Research Department until six months ago, I think I just need a short briefing for about twenty minutes. Shall we just have the meeting now? Young-Joon asked. Right now? We dont have a presentation ready. Lets just do it verbally. Uh Just a moment please. And theres something I want to tell you just in case youre worried, Young-Joon said, I dont have any feelings about you. All I want to do is do good research together. Since I was in this department, I know how talented you are. ... But you will have to be more careful about research ethics when youre working with me. Alright, said Kim Joo-Yeon after taking a deep breath. Alright, Director Ryu, well begin the briefing. Sure. The Anticancer Drug Research Department has four anticancer drugs right now. And Iloa, the cash cow, will now retire because of Cellicure. Yes. Are you developing Iloa further? No. Good choice. Cellicure is no regr drug. It wont be easy to top it. Two of the three remaining drugs have good efficacy and no side effects, so they do not need to be developed further. However, Tagvix, our inhaled lung cancer treatment, is the problem, Kim Joo-Yeon said. From what I remember, I think that was our main project when I was here about six months ago, Young-Joon said. That;s right. The problem then was that Tagvix kept causing immune reactions in the lungs because of its high immunogenicity. Thats right. That hasnt been resolved yet. We have been using A-Bios gic scissors, Cas9, to get rid of the substance that causes immunogenicity, but weve failed. Does it not work well? We believe the problem is our proficiency. Were not familiar with Cas9. Then I will support you with A-Bios Cas9 technicians. You can co-develop it with them, Young-Joon said. Kim Joo-Yeon nodded. This was something she predicted. Things would be much simpler if scientists who were in charge of Cas9 at A-Bio woulde and help. And the other two anticancer drugs are treatments for malignant lymphoma and kidney cancer, right? Clutinib and Alimap? Thats right. Those two need to be developed further. Develop them more? Kim Joo-Yeon was confused. But sir, the clinical trials for them have already beenpleted, they are effective, and they have no side effects. Why do Because it is expensive. Expensive? Cancer patients pay over a hundred million won for these treatments. Its burdensome, even if it is insured, to the patient and the country. ... But there is a way to solve the problem about the price of the drug. Not just Clutinib or Alimap, but all biosimr medicine. What? There are two reasons why I took this position as director of Lab One. The first is that I can get a lot of talented scientists like all of you. And the other is Young-Joon said. because the nt-based Pharmaceuticals Research Department is here. It is a unique department that only exists at A-Gen in Korea, and one of a few in the world. Well use that department and significantly lower the cost of biosimr drugs. The nt team? Yes. We should be able to lower it to at least one thousandth of the original price or one hundred thousandth at most. As long as we n a good strategy. What?! The scientists were filled with shock. Kim Joo-Yeon was especially shocked. There were instances whenpanies, like Roche, would purposely set new drugs at a high price so that they could profit. But Clutinib and Alimap werent drugs like that; the reason why they were expensive was because the manufacturing cost was high. And that manufacturing process was the fruit that modern science had optimized. But he could reduce it to below one thousandth of the regr price? What What are you going to do? He probably said these crazy things at A-Bio every day, right? And he probably seeded in doing all of them, right? Kim Joo-Yeons hands were sweating. Young-Joon said, The reason why anticancer drugs, along with vines and biopharmaceuticals are expensive is because we have to grow animal cells in order to produce it. A lot of money is spent because the culture liquid is quite expensive. And if a culture facility is infected with bacteria or viruses, they will suffer tremendous damages. ... I am going to put in a gene that synthesizes biodrugs in tobo so that the drug is highly expressed in the leaves of the nt. If you grind one leaf into a blender and make it into a juice, you will get enough for ten patients. The ultimate goal is to ensure that the cost of treatment per person doesnt differ much from the price of vegetables at the supermarket. What does That makes no sense. The expression level of a foreign gene wont be that high. Hwang Chan-Mi refuted. That is true if you put the gene inside the nt cells genome, Young-Joon said. Im thinking of putting in the chlorosts of the nt cell. One nt cell has more than two hundred chlorosts. Chapter 108: Plant-based Pharmaceuticals (1)

Chapter 108: nt-based Pharmaceuticals (1)

Confusion swept over Principal Scientist Kim Joo-Yeon. It was the same for the other scientists. The department that had the worst performance at Lab One was the nt-based Pharmaceuticals Research Department. Just like Young-Joon originally thought, this department was created to produce pharmaceuticals from nts. However, their initial goal was not to mass produce pharmaceuticals; it was just an attempt to be free from bacteria and viruses that usually infected animal cells. ¡°All that department has been doing for the past ten years is making vitamin-rich lettuce... You know that, right?¡± Hwang Chan-Mi asked. ¡°Of course,¡± Young-Joon replied. They weren¡¯t even purifying vitamins or anything, but just growing lettuce that was bred to contain a lot of vitamins. Honestly, it wasn¡¯t much different from what the Health Food Department was developing. It was an awkward research direction considering that the name of their department was the nt-based Pharmaceuticals Research Department. ¡°To be honest, the reason they have been doing that for ten years is because ourb has given up on making pharmaceuticals in nt cells,¡± Kim Joo-Yeon said. ¡°The nt team said that during our meeting. I am thinking of restarting the business they gave up on,¡± Young-Joon replied while calmly nodding. ¡°But... Director, I¡¯m sorry, but it¡¯s not going to work well. I know this because my colleague who joined thepany with me is the head of that department, but they all tried really hard back then. But it doesn¡¯t work. The process of expressing genes in nts is very different from animal cells.¡± ¡°I know.¡± ¡°The reason that most viruses and bacteria that infect animal cells do not have pathogenicity against nt cells is because their environments arepletely different. The pattern of sugar chains attaching to peptides tranted from RNA ispletely different in nt cellspared to animal cells. Even if you put in the same gene, the results will be different. To analyze that pattern and put in a gene that matches it? That is... That is incredibly difficult. It¡¯s harder than getting an anticancer drug like Cellicure to Phase Three of clinical trials.¡± ¡°But we can¡¯t just let antibody drugs or biopharmaceuticals be produced and sold at extremely high prices, right? A lot of money is going into the vines that are being used for HIV eradication as well. There is progress being made for that project because the WHO is backing it up and numerous charity organizations are pouring money into it,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I have no intention of being satisfied with just HIV eradication, and along with the extinction of mosquitoes, I am going to eliminate countless infectious diseases from this. For this, it is essential to lower the unit price of biopharmaceuticals overall.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I will give you the direction for the basic research, so don''t; worry and follow me.¡± ¡°Have you discussed this with the nt team?¡± Kim Joo-Yeon asked. ¡°Of course. They are burning with passion right now.¡± ¡°...¡± Kim Joo-Yeon was at a loss for words. This was the democratization of drugs. There were actually a lot of expensive pharmaceuticals that cost hundreds of millions of won untilplete recovery, but they just didn¡¯t receive a lot of attention because the number of patients was so small. With Young-Joon, these highly expensive drugs may all be as cheap as vitamin supplements. ¡®Wait. Can vitamins be produced this way as well? Then, the supplements on the market right now will...¡¯ A chill ran down Kim Joo-Yeon¡¯s neck. ¡°We might be shooting ourselves in the foot with this,¡± Kim Joo-Yeon said. ¡°Director, if we seed in what you said, there will be a revolutionary change in the price of pharmaceuticals. There will be pharmaceuticalpanies that go out of business if the prices drop that low. We don¡¯t know the changes that happen to A-Gen¡¯s financial structure. There may no longer be a merit to the pharmaceutical industry itself, and...¡± Kim Joo-Yeon stopped talking mid-way. It was because Young-Joon was staring at her. ¡°Um... I would like to reduce the prices, but I just wanted to tell you that I am worried that management will not like it.¡± ¡°From now on, we will call this the nt-based pharmaceutical production method. In five years from now, the trend in pharmaceuticalpanies will change to this,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°And as you said, it will be a huge variable in the management budget of many pharmaceuticalpanies. There will bepanies among them that will go bankrupt.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°We can¡¯t do anything about those that cannot adapt and copse. For people who lose their jobs, we can hire them if they are talented and someone we need. But we can¡¯t not develop cars because we are worried about coachmen, right?¡± Kim Joo-Yeon nodded in confusion. Conversely speaking, they were developing cars in a time when people rode carriages. What she meant was that it would be too difficult. ¡®Maybe it¡¯s not a big deal to Ryu Young-Joon?¡¯ Kim Joo-Yeon could not guess how confident Young-Joon was in starting this project as he was a person who had done incredible research like it was nothing. * * * In the pediatric ward at Sunyoo Hospital, a group of children were joking around and ying. A ten-year-old boy put on a white mask that he got from somewhere and pretended to be a doctor. ¡°Where are you feeling pain?¡± A girl who looked to be about eight-years-old lied down on the bed and touched her stomach. ¡°My tummy hurts.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s take a look.¡± The boy put the wire of his earbuds on his friend¡¯s stomach instead of a stethoscope. ¡°Hup! This is a stomachache!¡± ¡°What¡¯s a stomachache?¡± the girl asked with wide eyes. ¡°A stomachache is a very scary disease. You need to get a needle this big.¡± ¡°Stupid, a stomachache means that your belly hurts. She came because her belly hurts, but how can you say that she has a stomachache?¡± A nine-year-old girl who was beside them interrupted. She was one of the legendary patients of Sunyoo Hospital. She was the child who had survived an extreme situation where cancer cells spread to her pelvis during her end-stage liver cancer. To put it strongly, she had crossed the River of Styx halfway and returned. And now, she had recovered enough to join the rtively healthy group of kids and y with them. ¡°No, Yoon-Ah. I diagnosed her with a stomach ache because her belly hurts. That¡¯s what my doctor said, too. He said I have a stomachache,¡± said the boy. ¡°He was talking about your symptoms. A symptom and a disease are different things.¡± Lee Yoon-Ah flinched. She would have been hurt by that statement in the past, but she was not that surprised now. All she felt now was a little bit sorry and disappointed. ¡°I¡¯m getting discharged tomorrow,¡± Lee Yoon-Ah said. ¡°You¡¯re getting discharged?¡± ¡°Discharged?¡± Surprised, all the children gathered around her. ¡°You¡¯re all better now?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°Then you¡¯re going home?¡± ¡°Yeah...¡± ¡°It¡¯s fun when Yoon-Ah is here. She¡¯s going because you said that your tummy hurting is a stomachache, Ho-Taek-oppa.¡± The girl who pretended to be the patient got up and scolded the boy. ¡°Don¡¯t go home, Yoon-Ah. y with us, okay? I¡¯ll be good,¡± the boy said in disappointment. The adults who were watching them smiled slightly. ¡°He said that he¡¯ll be good. My husband always says that, too.¡± The women chatted yfully. ¡°I¡¯ll visit often,¡± Lee Yoon-Ah said. Creak. The door to the patient room opened. A nurse and Kim Hyo-Jin appeared and looked for her. ¡°Come here, Yoon-Ah.¡± This was herst examination before being discharged. Kim Hyo-Jin was overwhelmed to the point where she felt emotional. She took Lee Yoon-Ah¡¯s hand and went to the examination room. There were two scientists sitting beside Kim Chun-Jung, their doctor. It was Young-Joon and Song Ji-Hyun. They were reading the data that checked how much Cellicure and the chimeric immunotherapy was discharged from the body and the presence of any side effects. ¡°There aren¡¯t any problems so far,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°There is a lot of clinical data that Conson & Colson had about chimeric immunotherapy. It hasn¡¯t been tested on a lot of children, but since all the values are consistent with clinical data, it shouldn¡¯t cause any side effects if everything has been okay so far,¡± Young-Joon said to Kim Chun-Jung. To be honest, that data was additional, and Young-Joon actually examined Lee Yoon-Ah in Synchronization Mode. Being extra cautious, Rosaline came out herself and observed her condition up close. ¡ªShe is cured. There aren¡¯t any cancer cells left. None. Rosaline said as she patted Lee Yoon-Ah¡¯s shoulder. Lee Yoon-Ah didn¡¯t feel anything, but Young-Joon was relieved. ¡°There isn¡¯t a lot of clinical data on Cellicure, but the results are generally consistent with Phase One data of the old version,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. Kim Chun-Jung thoroughly examined the data sheet, then talked to Lee Yoon-Ah. ¡°Do you feel any difort anywhere?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°And it doesn¡¯t hurt?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°...¡± Kim Chun-Jung smiled. ¡°Mrs. Kim.¡± ¡°Yes!¡± Kim Hyo-Jin replied right away. ¡°We don¡¯t know what kind of aftereffects she will have because Yoon-Ah resected a lot of her liver. If possible, try not to eat anything heavily seasoned, and if you ever need to go to the hospital, make sure to let them know that her liver has been resected when they use medicine.¡± ¡°Yes, I will make sure to do that.¡± ¡°And because she¡¯s still developing, we don¡¯t know how her liver will recover. It will be best for her toe in regrly and be examined for the next five years.¡± ¡°Of course...¡± ¡°Anyways, I¡¯m very d that Yoon-Ah has be much better. You¡¯ve worked so hard. You can leave tomorrow morning. And I want to especially thank Doctor Ryu and Doctor Song,¡± said Kim Chun-Jung as she gestured to them. Kim Hyo-Jin quickly bowed. ¡°Thank you so much. All three of you have saved my daughter¡¯s life. Thank you so much. Especially Doctor Ryu... Chimeric immunotherapy is really expensive, but you gave it to us free of charge... How can I thank you...¡± ¡°I can¡¯t take money since it¡¯s a clinical trial. We should actually be the ones paying you,¡± Young-Joon said. To be honest, Lee Yoon-Ah was a reason why he was determined to develop the nt-based pharmaceuticals production method. He was interested in research rted to this from before, but it was less importantpared to other things; he thought that developing drugs for incurable diseases was first. However, the emails he received after sessfully treating Lee Yoon-Ah showed him the reality. [Hello, I am a father in my forties living in Chungcheongnam-do. My son has pediatric cancer that has metastasized to the bone, but I heard that you have seeded in curing this with the chimeric immunotherapy. I am asking if we could receive the treatment. I heard that not anyone can get the treatment as it is still in clinical trials, and that it is very expensive, but...] Young-Joon received hundreds of emails like this, and they weren¡¯t just from Korea; he got countless emails regarding this from overseas as well. However, he could tell that everyone struggled with the financial situation as he was ssifying the emails. This situation was actually ironic as the clinical trial waspletely free. The patients and their families weren¡¯t talking about money because they didn¡¯t know that. When Young-Joon read their logic, it was usually in this order: 1. Not everyone can get into the clinical trial. 2. This treatment was extremely expensive. 3. Then, won¡¯t they include us in the clinical trial if we pay money? However, the chimeric immunotherapy was an ultra-expensive treatment that cost over four hundred million won for one round of the treatment. How could regr people pay that? As such, there were usually two kinds of people. The first were people who were financially well-off. The best of them was an oil king from the Middle East, and they wrote Young-Joon an email. [To Doctor Ryu. I am Aziz, and I live in Saudi Arabia. I have seven sons, and my first son is very sick from pediatric cancer. He received treatment in America, but he was dered terminally ill. We thought about receiving chimeric immunotherapy through Conson & Colson, but they didn¡¯t do it because they thought the sess rate would be very low and if it failed, it could be a problem when getting approval from the FDA. However, I know that the child you sessfully treated with this treatment was in worse condition. I can donate over thirty billion won to A-Bio, and if you would like to expand your business to Saudi Arabia...] And as expected, the other type of people were regr folks who didn¡¯t have a lot of money. Unexpectedly, there weren¡¯t a lot of people who appealed to humanpassion. They actually told him not to worry about the cost of treatment, saying that they would steal, or sell their house or organs for it. They were scared that they would lose their opportunity to be treated if they acted timidly. ¡®The problem isn¡¯t other pharmaceuticalpanies going out of business when this is the situation...¡¯ Young-Joon thought about what Kim Joo-Yeon said again. To be honest, other pharmaceuticalpanies weren¡¯t really where problems could ur in this ambitious business. * * * ¡°We have to prepare to fight insurancepanies,¡± Young-Joon said. Park Joo-Hyuk squinted. ¡°With who?¡± ¡°Insurancepanies.¡± ¡°Woah... Now that you¡¯ve killed all yourpetitors in the STEM,[1] you¡¯re going to take over business and economics?¡± ¡°Do you think I¡¯m a gangster or something?¡± ¡°But why are you fighting insurancepanies?¡± ¡°I¡¯m in charge of Lab One now, right?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± There are two big projects that I can start from here,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°One is the revolution in drug prices. The other is the Genome Project through the Diagnostic Device Department.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk had heard a general exnation about the way he was going to lower the price of pharmaceuticals. He had also heard about the Genome Project, but he didn¡¯t understand thempletely. ¡°But what does that have to do with insurancepanies? Because the prices of drugs will fall?¡± ¡°Do you know that Angelina Jolie had surgery to resect herpletely normal breasts?¡± ¡°Really? She cut them off even though they were fine?¡± ¡°Yes. The probability of breast cancer was high ording to her DNA test.¡± ¡°Just because of that...¡± ¡°It¡¯s not just because of that. She predicted it and dealt with it before the tumor formed. It¡¯s one of the mostmon things we¡¯ll see in future medicine. But it would have started in the West.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°If we conduct the Genome Project on all races and build a dense DNA database, that future will start in Korea.¡± ¡°Oh, I get it. It¡¯s because insurance is a business where you bet on the uncertainty? If we can predict diseases, insurance has no ce to stand?¡± Young-Joon nodded. ¡°It will take time to predict it precisely, but in addition to that, we have powerful, rapid, and cheap diagnostic kits, treatments that are the price of vegetables, and a next-generation hospital armed with a future technology called regenerative medicine.¡± ¡°Woah...¡± The big picture was alreadypleted: they would predict the disease, quickly diagnose it with a cheap diagnostic kit, rapidly cure and discharge the patient by using the next-generation hospital system, which is based on cheap pharmaceuticals and regenerative medicine. What point could insurancepanies target if the uncertainty of disease development significantly decreased, treatments became so cheap that even poor people could buy it, and patients could quickly recover and return to their everyday lives? It was obvious that this major structural reform that was going to happen in medicine was going to cause huge changes in the insurance market. ¡°We have to begin preparing for that future,¡± Young-Joon said. 1. acronym that stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics ? Chapter 109: Plant-based Pharmaceuticals (2) Chapter 109: nt-based Pharmaceuticals (2) These are the fortypleted kits that diagnose thirty-two diseases in groups or individually, said Park So-Yeon as she pushed the box containing forty kits towards Young-Joon. I backed up all the research notes of the development process on thepanys cloud, and I left the hard copy in theboratory archive, so you can use it when you need. And this is an exnation of each project. I just wrote the basic things. Young-Joon took the exnation that Park So-Yeon handed him. He flipped over each page and read through it. Wasnt yesterday yourst day? I heard that you left everything in my secretarys office when I wasnt here, Young-Joon said. I did, but I had a couple of things to add to this exnation and data, so I came for that. I dropped off all the products here in the secretarys office yesterday. I see. Young-Joon organized the exnations and put them on one side of his desk. So, are you leaving now? Yes. Im going straight to the airport because my flight is soon. Do you want me to go with you? Oh, its okay Lets go in my car. Young-Joon took Park So-Yeon and went to the parking lot. He shook his hand as the K-Cops security team was about to escort them to their van. Its alright. I will drive. Young-Joon declined and went into the drivers seat. Then we will follow you in a different car, Kim Chul-Kwon said. Alright. Young-Joon took Park So-Yeon, who was sitting in the passengers seat, out of thepany. On the way to Incheon Airport, he asked, Where are you going now? America. Im going into the WHO, Park So-Yeon replied while staring at him as the strictly formal tone he had been keeping with her disappeared. The WHO? Yeah. Im already confirmed to join them. Its not easy to get into there. Its amazing. They took me as soon as I said that I was one of the developers of the diagnostic kit. Haha, I guess it was a valuable project. Then what are you going to do there? Im going to go to Switzend after I finish a few things in America. The WHO headquarters are there. After that, Ill probably be dispatched to Africa. Africa? The ce where the diagnostic kit is being used the most is Africa. Theyre using a lot for HIV eradication. So, youre doing something rted to the diagnostic kit in Africa? Yeah. I think they talked about the need to produce the diagnostic kit within Africa. Ill probably go there and work on optimizing the production process in their conditions. ... Young-Joon thought for a moment, then said, So-Yeon, the Diagnostic Device Department is going to start the Genome Project. The Genome Project? Youre talking about collecting DNA data from different races? Thats right. Youre going to find disease-rted mutants based on the DNA data you obtained from the Genome Project? Yeah. Its not going to be easy. The rtionship between gene mutations and diseases is clear, but the data will greatly vary between individuals. The same mutation can present differently in different people. Probably. So, Im thinking of gathering the genomic data of at least one hundred million people. What? Park So-Yeon was filled with shock. How many people did you say? she asked again. One hundred million. ... Individual differences will gradually fade as the sample size bes enormous. If one million people out of one hundred million are skin cancer patients, I can get values beyond individual differences if Ipare their gic variation against the remaining ny-nine million people. Chills ran down Park So-Yeons spine. Youre probably the one person who can start a project that big. I am going to request cooperation from otherpanies and universities that work on DNA analysis. Itll be an international project like HIV eradication. Of course, Young-Joon could find gic mutations with Rosaline. However, the fitness consumption to scan the entire DNA of humans, which was about three billion letters, would be too great. Additionally, it would be difficult to convince people if he found mutation points like that. In this project, it would be most effective to use Rosaline to ovee the important obstacles. Come back any time if you are interested in the Genome Project, Young-Joon said. This is why you offered to give me a ride, isnt it? Park So-Yeon smiled. Thats not why. Its just I wanted to see you off. I know how you feel. Thanks. Its easy for former employees to join the team because the process isnt very picky. And you cane back whenever you want, especially because you were a key person in developing the diagnostic kits. Thank you, but its okay. I am going to find what I should do in Africa. Okay. We might meet again someday because of how small this society is. I look forward to working with you. Young-Joon drove to Incheon Airport. Their romantic rtionship ended long ago, and they had settled all their old feelingsst time. The project they worked on together as an employee and executive was over as of today. Their emotions and power would be equal the next time they met; they would just be another colleague working in the same field. Young-Joon waved goodbye to Park So-Yeon who was going into the airport terminal and returned to A-Bio. * * * The most powerful technology that existed in manipting genes was Cas9, the gic scissors. The Cas9 and RNAplexes were going to be wrapped in double lipids and introduced to the chlorost. If they put in the desired gene at this time, the gene would be inserted into the sliced part, which was cut by Cas9, through homologous rbination. It couldnt be described as sophisticated work, but a chemical probability game. The sess rate was very low, but it wasnt that difficult for Young-Joon. Finished. Young-Joonpleted the experiment and cleaned up the sterile hood. There was no way to observe the molecr phenomenon even with a microscope, but he confirmed that he seeded with Synchronization Mode. Please grow this cell, Young-Joon said as he handed a scientist a cell culture te. Yes, sir! Lead Scientist Jang Jin-Ho of the nt-based Pharmaceuticals Research Department took the te. He was a little amazed. This department was the one thatgged behind the most at Lab One. Then, someone huge called Young-Joon just burst onto the scene. Lab Director Kim Hyun-Taek berated the nt Department a lot in the past, but he didnt really provide any good directions for their research. However, Young-Joon was different. He actually came into theb himself and started off this major project himself. Dozens of department members were watching Young-Joons experiment behind Jang Jin-Ho with a tense expression. It was a simple transfection, but it looks different than us, Scientist Lee Shin-Ju said. It looks like the pipette is shining Will the target gene really be expressed from that? The other scientists murmured. Before leaving theb, he said to them, I am going toe to thisb for the next three weeks. Lets correct the tobo nt genome together. We have to manipte a few genes that affect the sugar chain with Cas9 for the target gene to be properly expressed. Young-Joon actually came to theb for the next three weeks. He was probably constantly busy as he held big titles like the CEO of A-Bio and Lab One Director, but he never left the frontlines of research. Since the project was in its beginning stages, the employees needed to be familiar with improving nts using Cas9 at the least. They were smart people, so they would follow along well if Young-Joon just showed them once. However, Young-Joon was not only focused on this experiment. The Diagnostic Device Department will be divided into two teams. One team will work on the Genome Project. It will take at least two years, and they will be analyzing the DNA of over one hundred million people of all the races in the world, Young-Joon said to the entire department. You will obtain some skin tissue cells from subjects all over the world and use the Illemina equipment to analyze their entire DNA. There are two major points: one is to collect the entire three billion letters of DNA data of each subject, and the other is the subjects disease information. Disease information? I dont think we can collect that information because its private information, Song Yu-Ra said. Thats right. Because of that, we cannot record any personal information when conducting this study. Only write the age, sex, and race. Destroy all personal information like their name or contact information, Young-Joon replied. The Genome Project can be done because it is an academic study as long as it remains anonymous. We will also distribute all the data we have free of charge. What will the other team be doing? All academic studies are bound to be usedmercially. Young-Joon grinned. * * * SG Life was one of the oldest insurancepanies in Koreas private health insurance industry. Senior Managing Director Lim Gil-Won was doing a presentation at the board meeting. He had be a senior managing director in histe forties, and he had quickly predicted problems for thepanys future with his unique sense of insight and danger detection skills. And recently, he had been focusing on Young-Joons new technology parade. The item I am bringing up today is regarding CEO Ryu. Ryu Young-Joon again? Executive Vice President Baek Joong-Hyuk frowned. I keep bringing up this item because we have note up with a concrete alternative, Lim Gil-Won exined. Now, stop with all this. CEO Ryu bought DNA analysis equipment. DNA analysis equipment? Chief Executive Officer Hwang Jun-Young asked. Yes. I heard he bought two hundred of them. Where would CEO Ryu use that? I believe that he will use that to start a gene analysis business. A gene analysis business? This time, the directors faces changed. The gene analysis market was one of the future industries that was quite worrisome among insurance nners. Of course, the insurance industry still required information such as family history when customers subscribed to insurance products. However, if gene analysis data becamemonce, the probability that was previously lumped with family history would be much more urate. From the perspective of insurancepanies that developed and sold products based on uncertainty, the future of more urate predictions was burdensome. Is that information urate? Hwang Jun-Young asked. I am certain. Dozens of Illeminas equipment came into A-Bio, Lim Gil-Won said. And I dont think that is all. We need toe up with countermeasures against the huge structural changes that CEO Ryu will make in the Stop, Baek Joong-Hyun cut him off. Director Lim, youre talking about CEO Ryu like his work is going to cause some sort of structural reform in the whole insurance industry, but have there been any kind of changes to our work even though he has been on the news countless times? ... Now there are only people who think that a is no longer one of the three major eye diseases. Now, our insurance covers a stem cell therapy. Thats all the change weve seen. That is because the only kit that has beenmercialized is the a cure kit. If you look at the business that CEO Ryu is doing You keep bringing up that item every time we have a board meeting, but I dont think we need to be that nervous. Lets keep watching. Slowly. Lets hear the next item on the agenda, Baek Joong-Hyuk said. One of the new cancer insurance products that Boryung Life has released provides living expenses The next director began presenting. An hourter, the board meeting came to an end. Lim Gil-Won, who returned to his office, couldnt calm down his anger and kicked his sofa. Thud! Damn it, these grandpas He swung his fists in the air. He felt like he was going to die from frustration. Stagnant water was bound to rot; those senile old men were so stuck in the old-fashioned insurance industry and could not predict the future. The entire medical insurance industry is on the verge of chaos. What good is the new product that Boryung Life released?! Knock knock! Mr. Director! Executive Manager Lee appeared outside. Yes. You have to see this. He handed Lim Gil-Won his tablet. A news article was on it. As soon as he saw Young-Joons name in the headline, he thought that the time hade. [Ryu Young-Joons seeds at producing Alimap, a kidney cancer treatment, from nt cells.] nt cells? He was expecting something about the Genome Project, so he was a little surprised when he saw that it waspletely different. However, his fingers trembled as he read the news. [... As such, it is predicted that Alimaps production price will fall to less than one-thousandth of the original price, and Director Ryu Young-Joon stated that he would apply this production method to other drugs as well. Each drug will need its own optimization process, but theoretically, there will be a major drop in the price of all kinds of bio-based drugs, and] No way. Lim Gil-Won turned off the news. The diagnostic market was not the only problem; he could also reform the price of treatments like this. Damn it. He sighed. I didnt even think of this Anyways, thank you for giving me this important information, Mr. Manager. Um Sir, theres more news after it. Theres more? Lim Gil-Won turned on the news again. [Ryu Young-Joon begins Genome Project for one hundred million people.] [Ryu Young-Joon provides gic testing services.] Chapter 110: Plant-based Pharmaceuticals (3) Chapter 110: nt-based Pharmaceuticals (3) There was a gene named BRCA. It was one of the most famous genes in the world of gics. There were two types of BRCA that existed in the body: BRCA1, which existed on the seventeenth chromosome, and BRCA2, which existed on the thirteenth chromosome. The reason why they were famous was because they were cancer inhibiting genes. Human DNA was continuously destroyed by ultraviolet rays, chemicals, and naturally urring reactive oxygen species in the body. Because cells with destroyed DNA died, there was a mechanism in the cell to repair damaged DNA to prevent death, and the BRCA gene was one of the genes that repaired DNA damage. But if there was a mutation in the BRCA gene and it could not function properly, the cell would be left with damaged DNA and just die. However, there were some unlucky cases where the DNA would repair itself in a slightly misaligned shape with BRCA. Then, those cells would turn into cancer cells. ... As such, there is a high chance that cells with broken BRCA will be cancer cells, Young-Joon said. The members of the Diagnostic Device Department were taking notes in their notebooks while listening to Young-Joons presentation. Young-Joon continued with his lecture. The probability of cancer urrence changes depending on where the mutation is in the BRCA gene, but women who have a mutation in BRCA have a fifty percent chance of getting breast cancer and a fifteen percent chance of getting ovarian cancer. In Angelina Jolies case, there was an eighty-seven percent chance of her getting breast cancer and a fifty percent chance of ovarian cancer. Ultimately, she got surgery to remove her breasts, ovaries, and fallopian tubes. Are you going to begin BRCA gene testing services with this diagnostic project? Song Yu-Ra asked. Thats right. Young-Joon nodded. As you all probably know, ording to WHO statistics, four hundred fifty-eight thousand people die of breast cancer each year. If we can recognize the risk of developing it by gic testing, it will help us control the incidence of cancer. ... What I want is for people to receive our services and test genes like BRCA, and I want people with a high chance of developing it to receive preventative surgeries or check frequently with the diagnostic kit. The survival rate will increase dramatically if it is diagnosed early and they receive treatment right away. Young-Joon handed out documents to the department members. There are twenty-four famous gene mutations in the data provided. This data includes three BRCA mutants. From now on, we will start a business that diagnoses twenty-four of these target mutations. The scientists looked over the documents and checked the list of mutations. P53 KRAS EGFR They were all famous ones like BRCA, and they were genes that controlled the apoptosis signal of cells or growth signals. And everyone knew that these twenty-four targets werent all of them. Young-Joon began a huge Genome Project, and it was to discover new targets; he was trying to find indicators of cancer that the scientificmunity did not know yet, but were as important as the BRCA mutation. If the mutation of an unknown gene A was only found in lymphoma patients, it could be called a sign of lymphoma, couldnt it? A huge genome project that decoded the DNA of one hundred million people. The big data to be obtained from it may be able to read all cancerous species that urred in the human body. ... Song Yu-Ras hands trembled in shock. There were a lot of changes that happened to the disease treatment market after Young-Joon began induced pluripotent stem cells. Now, a lot of developed countries were building next-generation hospitals and investing in stem cell technicians. The treatments and cures that were in clinical trials right now were soon going to be products and pour out. Additionally, a major structural reform was happening in the disease prediction market. You are the best technicians at DNA analysis, and there are two hundred of Illeminas DNA analysis machines here, the best equipment in the world. Lets begin the gic testing business as early as next week, Young-Joon said. * * * The Anticancer Drug Research Department and the nt-based Pharmaceuticals Research Department were both in shock. It had already been a week, but their shock seemed to not go away. How did he do it? Kin Hyun-Seok mumbled. Young-Joon had seeded in producing Alimap from nt cells; it really worked. Seriously, this makes no sense. What do you think? Kim Joo-Yeon asked like she was dumbfounded. We tried to express animal genes in nt cells for ten years, but we have never seeded once, Jang Jin-Ho replied. But the director did it in one month? Yes ... Young-Joon picked out around a dozen locations from the hundreds of millions of target locations in the tobo nt, as if he knew it all and it was obvious to him to manipte them. After he cut them and stuck them together with gic scissors, he put the new genes in the chlorost. Then, all of a sudden, Alimap beganing out of the leaves. It was like looking at AlphaGo put together a one hundred thousand-piece puzzle in ten minutes; no matter what piece he picked up, he put it into the right location as soon as he picked it up. Can a human be like that? ... Click. Oh, you were using the conference room. I thought it was empty. No, were done now. We were just leaving, Jang Jin-Ho said as he got up. You can use it, direc Hup. The end of his sentence was stopped by bewilderment. It was because a guest was standing behind Young-Joon. It was Yoon Dae-Sung, the CEO of A-Gen. Sir! Surprised, the employees all greeted him. They are the scientists who were responsible for and drove the expression of Alimap in nt cells. A word of encouragement, please. Young-Joon introduced them to Yoon Dae-Sung. Great work, everyone. Thanks to you, we are able to produce Alimap very cheaply. Honestly, I dont know if this is good for thepany, but Hahaha. Yoon Dae-Sungughed awkwardly. Hahaha. Young-Joonughed with him and let him into the conference room. T-Then well be on our way. The members of the Anticancer Drug Research Department and the nt-based Pharmaceuticals Research Department bowed to Young-Joon and Yoon Dae-Sung, then quickly ran outside. Young-Joon closed the door and sat across from Yoon Dae-Sung. Mr. CEO, there was a n to build arge GMP facility in Pyeongtaek, right? Young-Joon got straight to the point. There was. What if we set that up as a nt-based production facility? And mass-produce Alimap from there? Yes. I am thinking of taking all biodrugs to a nt-based production system from now on. The possibility of contamination is low, and the amount of production is much higher. In particr, antibody types that were previously produced using eggs will be produced more efficiently if they are made from nts, Young-Joon said. As you probably know, producing biodrugs based on nts will be the new trend in drug production because we seeded in producing Alimap from nts. To be ahead in this field, we need a huge GMP nt-based production facility. Yoon Dae-Sung already knew that Young-Joon would propose this. As such, he was not that surprised at this request. However, he was worried about something else. But Doctor Ryu, will it be okay to reduce drug prices this sharply? I think we might be destroying our livelihood with our own hands. We could be. However, we need to adapt and change our livelihood if science advances. We cant take swords to a battlefield when tanks have been developed, right? Young-Joon said. ... Yoon Dae-Sung closed his eyes and thought. After a moment of silence, Young-Joon spoke. And there is something I would like your help with. My help? The gic testing business and cheap treatments might pressure insurancepanies. Probably. I am also working with the legal team and preparing a response. But I need your help in this process. Hm. Yoon Dae-Sungs worries about their livelihood disappearedpletely from his mind. This project was not being done by A-Bio; they were participating in this business by lending Illeminas equipment, and it was Lab One of A-Gen who was in charge of the project. This meant that if insurancepanies attacked this business, they would not only be shaking up Young-Joon, but Yoon Dae-Sung as well. What a shrewd man Yoon Dae-Sung clicked his tongue in his head. Young-Joon, who was eating away at A-Gens shares and at odds with Yoon Dae-Sung, was now trying to throw Yoon Dae-Sung in front of him as a shield How can I help? However, Yoon Dae-Sung couldnt ignore him, as this project was being done by the Anticancer Drug Research Department and the Diagnostic Device Research Department, the two most well-known and high-performing departments among all the research departments at A-Gen. Plus, Yoon Dae-Sung didnt dislike Young-Joon. Even if they were going to end up fighting for the management rights to A-Gen, it bothered him that other people were attacking Young-Joon right now. I will support you fully if it is something I can help you with. * * * A new board meeting was held. CEO Ryu is moving faster than we thought, Baek Joong-Hyun, the executive vice president, said cautiously as he nced at Lim Gil-Won in guilt. Lim Gil-Won felt like his head was going to explode from stress as he listened to his frustrating voice. Hes moving faster than we expected? Is he kidding? How can he say something like that when he knows the number of drugs that Ryu Young-Joon put into clinical trials in a year? Young-Joons research waspletely different from other scientists. Lim Gil-Won evaluated him as more of a trend of advancement or a social phenomenon, such as the Bio Revolution or the Fourth Industrial Revolution, rather than an individual concept of a genius scientist. We could have ridden this wave well if these old gits listened to me earlier. Lim Gil-Won sighed. Um It is a littlete, but do you have any good ideas, Director Lim? Baek Joong-Hyuk asked. Not anymore. I kept giving reports of this since Doctor Ryu Young-Joon came up with a cure for a. We should have dealt with it from then, Lim Gil-Won replied as he pushed down his irritation. ... What if we challenge the credibility of gic testing and do media y? We cannot do that! Lim Gil-Won screamed in shock. The credibility of gic testing! Thats a scientific problem! That is something that can be calcted with experiments and be in papers! Is this grandpa crazy? I know that he is old-fashioned, but he wants to go into that monsters home ground and fight? We will end up like the HIV opposition, one hundred percent. We will bepletely destroyed if he proves it in front of everyones eyes with a crazy, unimaginable experiment. And Ryu Young-Joon is someone who is capable of doing that. ... Is he? Baek Joong-Hyuk scratched his head. Phew Lim Gil-Won sighed. What if we just give up on keeping him in check? Lets actually get close to him, learn about his gic testing business and support it. Then, we can develop a new insurance product based on that. Develop a new insurance product? Well design an insurance product that fits the generation of gic testing. I dont know what it will look like but Lets do this, Hwang Jun-Young, the CEO, said. Lets do what Director Lim said, and on the other side, lets put pressure on the government to illegalize and regte gic testing because it vites the Personal Information and Privacy Act. Chapter 111: Plant-based Pharmaceuticals (4)

Chapter 111: nt-based Pharmaceuticals (4)

¡°Regte it by illegalizing it?¡± Lim Gil-Won asked Hwang Jun-Young. ¡°Yes. A regrpany will basically be able to view health information, which is more sensitive than hospital medical records, so we should be able to regte it if we challenge it based on the Personal Information and Privacy Act.¡± ¡°Kyah!¡± Baek Joong-Hyuk, the executive vice president, eximed. ¡°Sir, you are amazing. An outstanding insight, sir.¡± However, Lim Gil-Won frowned. He spoke while maintaining a cool head as much as possible. ¡°Sir, it won¡¯t be that easy.¡± ¡°It won¡¯t work?¡± ¡°Originally, you needed a doctor¡¯s permission to receive gic testing in Korea. But now, thew has been revised so that ordinarypanies receive samples from customers and do it arbitrarily.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°It won¡¯t be easy to flip it around a year after it has been revised and make it illegal. Ryu Young-Joon proceeded with this business also knowing that as well.¡± ¡°Why are they allowing things like that to regrpanies?¡± Baek Joong-Hyuk said, worked up. ¡°That¡¯s the trend the international diagnostic market is heading in. In the U.S., regrpanies have been doing gic testing for individuals for a long time,¡± Lim Gil-Won exined. ¡°Of course, it was not against disease-rted genes, but to find someone¡¯s ethnic origins as America is a multinational country.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The market for diagnosing diseases is increasing as thosepanies get bigger. Although, there hasn¡¯t been anyone who did it this big by buying two hundred of those expensive pieces of equipment and doing the Genome Project simultaneously.¡± ¡°So is that why Korea also eased the regtions?¡± Hwang Jun-Young asked. ¡°That¡¯s right. If we pressure the government now, we would be turning the clock back. Even if the government overturns the regtion, that only buys us time. They will follow the trend eventually.¡± The table was filled with silence. ¡°Then you don¡¯t have any good ns, Director Lim?¡± Hwang Jun-Young asked. ¡°Let¡¯s support CEO Ryu instead. We don¡¯t know how that gic testing business is going to go yet. We could have known something if we prepared in advance by looking at the trend even before he started the project, but in this situation right now, we should be calm ande up with a long-term solution. We should actually support him and find out more.¡± Hwang Jun-Young touched his hair like he wasn¡¯t open to the idea. ¡°What if we push for a revision to thew that allows us to ask customers for their gic testing results? Then, we just don¡¯t ept customers with a high probability of cancer.¡± Hwang Jun-Young asked. ¡°Oh...¡± Lim Gil-Won eximed. Right now, gic testing was not left in the insurance service¡¯s history as it was not a medical practice. Additionally, consent items for ess to personal information were focused on insurance services in the existing insurance subscription form. As such, there was currently no legal justification for insurancepanies to ask customers for their gic testing results that happened at A-Gen. ¡°That¡¯s right. We should ask for that!¡± Baek Joong-Hyuk spoke up again. ¡°As the CEO said, if there is an imbnce in information, people with a high incidence may choose insurancepanies as a result of gic testing. The information must be given equally.¡± ¡°That may be very bad for the image of ourpany,¡± Lim Gil-Won criticized. ¡°Director Lim. Even now, we refuse customers or set high premiums if we retrieve medical records and see that they have received chemotherapy in the past five years. Isn¡¯t it simr to this?¡± Baek Joong-Hyuk said. ¡°But isn¡¯t it different to say that to normal people who have never even developed the disease? We¡¯re saying that they can¡¯t get our insurance because it seems like they will develop it based on gic testing data.¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter. All the insurancepanies will eventually do that.¡± Baek Joong-Hyuk stopped Lim Gil-Won firmly. Then, he nced at the CEO. ¡°Sir, I will contact congressmen and push for this.¡± ¡°But it will take time to revise aw. What will we do about people who swarm here after receiving gic testing from A-Gen?¡± Lim Gil-Won asked. ¡°We can ask them if they have received gic testing before,¡± Hwang Jun-Young replied. ¡°Not their test results? Just whether they have received testing or not?¡± ¡°Yes. Then, just make up some excuse for the people who have received gic testing before and refuse them.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°If that keeps repeating, people may avoid gic testing on their own. Do you know why?¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°What will people think when experiences of being denied insurance registration after saying they have received gic testing umte?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°They might think that insurancepanies can view gic testing results through some unknown route, right?¡± Hwang Jun-Young said. ¡°Then, insurance is not the problem. They will begin wondering if this will cause problems in getting a job or being promoted. Whatpany would promote someone who has a ny percent chance of developing lung cancer in their fifties to an executive? There will be widespread distrust that insurancepanies can ess this information, or that maybe A-Gen secretly sells the health information. Let¡¯s secretly back up that rumor. Then, the growth of the gic testing market will be much shorter. We can buy enough time for the bill to be revised.¡± ¡°Wow, no one can think like you, sir.¡± Baek Joong-Hyk pped briefly. ¡°...¡± There was a lot on Lim Gil-Won¡¯s mind. ¡®Can we do this?¡¯ He felt like things were heading in the wrong direction. * * * Young-Joon, a world-star scientist, was starting his diagnostic business. This was a coborative business between A-Bio, his home ground, and A-Gen, a huge pharmaceuticalpany. This news swept over the nation at once. They didn¡¯t even need marketing, as all the media in the country were relentlessly talking about what that business was. Shin Jung-Ju, a professor at Yeonyee University was called to all major broadcastingworks to exin what gic testing was. ¡°Steve Jobs, who passed away due to pancreatic cancer, paid one hundred twenty million won to receive gic testing before he died. He wanted to analyze the DNA of the pancreatic cancer cells and find the most optimal treatment method,¡± Shin Jung-Ju said. ¡°The expensive price of testing has fallen to around one million won in just ten years. It¡¯s cheaper at A-Gen because they are not analyzing your entire DNA, but only identifying some disease-rted locations. Additionally, the price is lower because they are providing the service at the wholesale price based on therge number of equipment. So, if you look at their advertisements right now, they are saying that they will test disease-rted genes for less than one hundred thousand won.¡± ¡°What is the benefit of getting gic testing?¡± the interviewer asked. ¡°It can predict the incidence rate, such as telling you that the chance you will develop a certain kind of cancer. It is going to be an extremely important field in health care.¡± ¡°How will the service work?¡± ¡°I contacted A-Gen and found out. There are three steps to it. First of all, a customer requests gic testing from A-Gen. Then, A-Gen will send them a small stic container. Lastly, the customer spits in that container and sends it to A-Gen. That is it. Afterwards, A-Gen amplifies the DNA in the saliva and analyzes the DNA.¡± Gic testing was a foreign concept to the public, but it became familiar quickly due to the media constantly talking about it and a lot of people paying attention to Young-Joon. On the day the gic testing service was being offered for the first time, A-Gen suffered from inquiries about signing up for the service since the morning. The number of customers who signed up for it quickly reached two thousand people, and seven out of ten customers requested it for their families. ¡°Have you heard? I heard from upstairs earlier that they had to stop taking customers after five hours,¡± Lee Myung-Guk of the Diagnostic Device Department said. ¡°I knew this would happen, but it is still shocking.¡± Song Yu-Ra covered her face with her hand. ¡°I should have gone to the Genome Project team.¡± ¡°That¡¯s another hell, too. It¡¯s not easy to decode the DNA of one hundred million people...¡± ¡°That¡¯s also why I came here, but I can¡¯t even imagine what it will be like when I think of the amount of work...¡± Lee Myung-Good sighed. They took arge amount of the stic containers and went upstairs. They went to the Gic Testing Department, a newly established department at Lab One. There were mostly administrative employees here, and they were still taking calls even when the registration for the service had ended. Like parrots, they were just all repeating the same thing that today¡¯s gic testing registration had ended. ¡°I brought the stic containers for the samples,¡± said Song Yu-Ra as she set down the bag with the containers on the empty table. ¡°Thank you,¡± the department head said with newly formed dark circles under their eyes. ¡°The division of work isn¡¯t clear yet, but next time, the administrative department will prepare the stic containers, gather samples from customers, and send them to yourb.¡± ¡°Yes... Thank you. I think we will barely be able to do five thousand cases daily even if we run the machines and analyze data for the entire day. And this service ising in internationally as well.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know your process because I¡¯m in the Arts, but I know that you will have a lot of work. Good luck.¡± ¡°... Good luck to you as well.¡± The two department heads looked at each other with camaraderie in their eyes. ¡°What are you doing?¡± Young-Joon came out of the elevator at that moment. ¡°I know it is difficult, but hold out a little longer. I will hire more people, and we¡¯re still looking for people.¡± ¡°Are you hiring more scientists as well?¡± Song Yu-Ra asked. ¡°Yes. But how many scientists in the country are able to run a billion-won piece of equipment from Illemina and analyze DNA data? I think you are the only ones, so we will have to supply scientists from overseas... It will take time.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I can increase your sry.¡± ¡°Right...¡± ¡°Good luck.¡± * * * Young-Joon walked into a luxurious bar in Gangnam. It was because Kim Young-Hoon of SG Group, one of A-Gen¡¯s directors, asked him to meet here. Young-Joon was grateful to Kim Young-Hoon as he was the person who helped him prepare twenty billion won when he first started A-Bio. Also, he helped Young-Joon find a way to link the diagnostic kit to phones through a mobile device jack when they were developing it; he had taken advantage of his knowledge from SG Electronics, his originalpany. Kim Young-Hoon had always assumed the position of growing Young-Joon and his influence while keeping Yoon Dae-Sung in check. But now? Kim Young-Hoon, who was so moved by the miraculous innovations Young-Joon had created, had be his powerful supporter from when the diagnostic kit was developed. ¡®A-Gen and A-Bio will merge someday, and Ryu Young-Joon must lead that giant pharmapany.¡¯ Kim Young-Hoon was set on this. Then, he finally called Young-Joon to get drinks together after listening to drunkints from Lim Gil-Won, a junior at SG Life he was fond of, for several days. ¡°Hello, I¡¯m Ryu Young-Joon.¡± Young-Joon shook Lim Gil-Won¡¯s hand. Lim Gil-Won was already quite drunk as he already had a lot of drinks with Kim Young-Hoon before Young-Joon arrived. However, he looked focused and nervous, as if meeting Young-Joon had sobered him up. ¡°Nice to meet you. I¡¯m Lim Gil-Won from SG Life.¡± ¡°Now, everyone, sit down,¡± said Kim Young-Hoon as he sat everyone down. ¡°The scientist and businessman that I respect the most in our country. It feels good that I am introducing you to each other. Let¡¯s chat.¡± ¡°I heard from Director Kim that you wanted to see me,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°...¡± Lim Gil-Won bit his lip and gathered his thoughts. ¡°Phew.¡± He took a shot, then wiped his lips. ¡°Mr. Ryu, SG Life is trying to secretly harm your gic testing service.¡± ¡°The gic testing service?¡± ¡°Yes. They are trying to make it seem like A-Gen is secretly selling gic testing results to outsiders by refusing insurance registration to customers who have received gic testing.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°They are going to buy themselves time with that, then include gic test results as a reference document when registering for insurance by revising thew. And they are going to refuse registration depending on those results.¡± Young-Joon stared at Lim Gil-Won. ¡°Why are you telling me this?¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°I know that the gic testing business can impact the insurance industry. It seems like SG Life has prepared a response to that, but why are you telling me this?¡± ¡°...¡± Lim Gil-Won looked a little dejected. ¡°Mr. Ryu, insurance is about dividing risk ording to thew ofrge numbers. It is thest resort of poor, ordinary folks who have faced a huge catastrophe called disease,¡± he said. ¡°And gic testing is a technology that predicts those catastrophes. It is also the hope of ordinary folks.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want the insurance industry to obstruct the future of a technology like that. The gic testing business should flourish in the way you do it, Mr. Ryu. And the insurance industry should adapt to that and look for other ways to survive. It shouldn¡¯t be like this. And refusing registration based on gic testing results? How can we do that? Then where do they get protection when they get sick? These people have a high incidence rate, too. This isn¡¯t dividing risk, it¡¯s giving all of it to one side.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°This is not the insurance industry I know and have been doing so far.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°There were some people who called me a genius and whatnot because everything went well for me at thepany as I became a senior managing director in my forties. It¡¯s funny saying this in front of an actual genius, but I am actually not that smart. This industry was attractive to me, so I just worked hard. How democratic is it that everyone holds hands and shares the risk of danger in the unknown future?¡± Lim Gil-Won said with a serious face, then suddenly burst intoughter. ¡°Haha, maybe I am drunk. I said some unnecessary things.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine.¡± Young-Joon smiled. ¡°And thank you for telling me about SG Life¡¯s strategy. I have a countermeasure as well.¡± ¡°A countermeasure?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°What is it!¡± ¡°I can¡¯t tell an SG Life executive.¡± Young-Joon grinned. ¡°Oh... Yes, that¡¯s right. Don¡¯t tell me. I will have to tell the CEO if he asks me.¡± Lim Gil-Won nodded as he licked his lips. ¡°Excuse me, I need to use the restroom.¡± Young-Joon got up from his seat. He turned the corner in the hall and left the building. He took out his phone and called Yoon Dae-Sung, the CEO of A-Gen. ¡°Sir, sorry for calling sote. Were you asleep?¡± ¡ªNo, I haven¡¯t even gone home yet. ¡°Haha, I asked for something too hard, right? I¡¯m sorry. I don¡¯t know anything about the financial industry because all I¡¯ve done is research.¡± ¡ªIt¡¯s alright. It¡¯s not that hard for me to make an insurancepany in the form of a subsidiary of A-Gen. Yoon Dae-Sung said. ¡°I just heard something, and it seems like the insurance industry is reacting like how I expected them to.¡± ¡ªThat¡¯s normal. What crazy person would register insurance for people who are considered high-risk from gic testing results? Even I was surprised. Young-Joon grinned. ¡°If it is a loss for an insured person to develop a disease, the way to improve profits is not to prevent high-risk groups from joining. It is best to sign them up, get insurance premiums from them, and make the customer not get sick or diagnose it extremely early and treat it cheaply.¡± Chapter 112: Plant-based Pharmaceuticals (5) Chapter 112: nt-based Pharmaceuticals (5) Jang Jin-Ho, the principal scientist of the nt-based Pharmaceuticals Research Department, was working on fifteen different projects simultaneously. Young-Joon set the guidelines of the research method by using Alimap as an example. The smart scientists who had worked with nt cells for a long time understood the direction of their work and the main principle right away. Produce Clutinib in the same way I produced Alimap in tobo cells, Young-Joon ordered Jang Jin-Ho after sessfully producing Alimap. Starting with the interim results Young-Joon had made, Jang Jin-Ho and his team members developed Clutinib in tobo nts in two weeks. This item was a malignant lymphoma treatment that cost about 2.5 million won for a months worth; it also wasnt covered by National Health Insurance. We have seeded. If you look at the Western Blot data here, a substance is being seen at two hundred fourteen kilodaltons. This is Clutinib. We are producing it with FPLC. Jang Jin-Ho, who went into the meeting with a proud face, presented confidently. Congrattions. Good work. After praising their hard work, Young-Joon gave them a terrifying order. Now that you are used to it, lets increase the amount. I printed out a list. Young-Joon handed the department members a printed Excel document. There were eighty drugs listed. This is a list of the major pharmaceuticals on the market right now that are expensive. ... Are you going to do all of these? Yes. Young-Joon nodded. All eighty types? Youre going to produce all of these from nts? Yes. But considering work efficiency, it wouldnt be great to proceed with eighty drugs at once. The second sheet has the diseases with the highest incidence. Jang Jin-Ho and the other scientists turned the page. There are still fifteen. We can do it. Ill point out the gene maniption that is key to developing each one, so you can proceed based on that. Principal Jang Jin-Ho, please distribute the work among the team members. ... Alright. But Director, can I ask something? Jang Jin-Ho asked. Of course. Does it work like this at A-Bio? Yes. After I give them the rough research direction and pointers, the scientists experiment themselves and create data by minimizing trial and error. No, its not that, but Do they work on fifteen drugs at once? Its just so shocking At A-Bio, the Bone Marrow Regeneration Team has even differentiated hematopoietic stem cells and secured HIV curing technology through gene maniption under the leadership of Doctor Carpentier and Doctor Lee Jung-Hyuk. With just seven people. What Oh my They pushed ahead with the project more quickly because it was before we started the HIV Eradication Project. Isnt this better than that? Young-Joon said,ughing. Yes. Thank you for only giving us fifteen, Jang Jin-Ho replied jokingly. Well, thank you for your hard work. Yes, thank you. * * * The main customer base of the gic testing service werent wealthy people or patients who paid close attention to their health, but ordinary people who were somewhat healthy. As such, the gic testing service became quite an interesting issue among the employees at A-Bios cafeteria. It was also because they were at an age where they were worried about all kinds of lifestyle diseases and cancer. Lee Hyun-Ju, one of the workers, was especially interested as she didnt have any cancer insurance. Whenever her friends rmended her to get insurance, she always waved her hand and refused, saying that she couldnt pay hundreds of thousands of won a month when she could barely make ends meet. But now, she was seriously regretting her decisions. The gic testing service was free for employees at A-Bio and Lab One of A-Gen; it was a part of thepanys employee benefits. Lee Hyun-Ju participated in the testing service with the other employees, and the results were shocking. [A defect in four nucleotides from position 6714 in the DNA sequence of the BRCA2 gene resulted in the 2166th amino acid changing into a terminating codon. This prevents the synthesis of regr BRCA2.] [An rs80357894 SNP urred in Exon 17 of BRCA1.] [Based on the above data, the incidence of breast cancer is expected to be 92%, and the incidence of ovarian cancer is expected to be 34%.] [Warning: Individual differences can have a significant impact on the prediction of the incidence rate of cancer, and the above values may not be urate.] Lee Hyun-Ju felt like the world was falling apart. That was when she urgently visited SG Life to get insurance, but she received a very unexpected question. [Have you received gic testing from A-Gen? Yes/No] SG Life was asking whether she had received gic testing before with a document saying that filling in false information could be a problemter at the very front. Lee Hyun-Ju felt that she would have a problem with getting insurance if she answered positively to this question for some reason, but there was nothing she could do. As she handed the paper to the insurancepany employee after circling Yes, the employee read through it in detail. You have diabetes. Pardon? Yes. In this case, it is difficult for us to provide insurance to you. What? Lee Hyun-Jus eyes widened. What does diabetes have to do with cancer? Theres nothing I can do as it is prohibited under internal regtions. Why dont you try Boryung Life instead? ... Lee Hyun-Ju, who was deeply disappointed, went to Boryung Life, but it was the same. You have been treated for hepatitis before, said the insurancepany employee. Yes In these cases, insurancepanies will not give you insurance as it often develops into cancer. ... She went to a few other insurancepanies, but it was the same thing. It felt as if someone had ordered insurancepanies to collude and not let her get insurance. Its because of the gic testing. Lee Hyun-Ju knew by intuition. All insurancepanies were asking whether they had received gic testing or not. She searched the inte to see if there were any other cases like this, and there were actually people who had the same experience as her. Get insurance before getting gic testing from A-Gen. You cant get insurance if you got gic gic testing. My incidence rate for breast cancer is 11 percent, but I still cant get insurance. I guess 11 percent is high since the normal incidence rate is in the decimals, but theres a higher chance that I wont get it, right? Its upsetting that they wont take us at all. Im trying to get insurance because Im scared of getting sick, but what do they want us to do if they wont ept us because they think were going to get sick? Are the gic test results leaked from A-Gen? Theres a rumor that they are selling data to insurancepanies. Is this true? I just heard it from somewhere. Maybe not I hate people who say, Maybe not. Would Ryu Young-Joon do that? He fought with theb director as a Scientist because of Cellicure. Would someone like that sell customer data? You never know. I had a bad feeling about Ryu Young-Joon. Honestly, I think they are selling data. The conspiracy theory heated up and slowly rose to the surface. And to make matters worse, shocking news came from the National Assembly. This morning, Congressman Kim Young-Hyun issued a revision to thew that would allow insurancepanies to view results of A-Gens gic tests. People didnt really pay much attention to newws, but this case quickly became the center of attention. The public opinion was riled up. Are they insane? Insurancepanies are going to select their customers based on disease incidence rates? Then whats the point of getting insurance? To the people who havent gotten gic testing yet: dont take it. Insurance people. Those axxholes. But isnt it right to let insurancepanies see it? If not, only people with high incidence rates will get insurance and thepanies will go bankrupt. Isnt the problem that they are leaking important personal information like gic information to outsiders? Im telling you, Ryu Young-Joon already leaked it. There are a lot of rumors that A-Gen sold all the data. Theres no smoke without fire. I think A-Gen sold data, too. Ryu Young-Joon isnt someone who would do that. Lets be unbiased and keep an eye on this. * * * Hwang Joon-Young, the CEO of SG Life, and Baek Joong-Hyuk, the executive vice president, were reading a report about the public opinion with satisfaction. Everything was going as they predicted for now. The other directors were also very impressed by Hwang Joon-Youngs response except for one person, Lim Gil-Won. This is not right, said Lim Gil Won, who was reading the public opinion analysis report with them. Sir, lets look for a smarter way to coexist. We cant keep going like this. What are you talking about? The situation is over, Baek Joong-Hyuk said with a mocking smile. This opportunity may work better for us if we can sort out people with a high incidence rate, Hwang Joon-Young said. Thats right. Think about this, Director Lim. People who buy insurance these days are getting it partly because they are worried about getting sick and partly as savings. We can just put a bigger emphasis on savings. People who have a low incidence rate will still buy insurance because they feel like they will still need it. ... Simply put, we are in a position where we can maintain our ie with little change and actually improve our gains and losses by identifying high-incidence customers, who we have lost a lot of money on. Then, where will those people get insurance from Lim Gil-Won said. Well, thats none of our business. Hwang Joon-Youngughed. An insurance product that costs about five hundred thousand won a month will probablye out. It will target those people, Baek Joong-Hyuk added. Buzz! Lim Gil-Wons phone suddenly rang. Ring! Ding! At the same time, Hwang Joon-Youngs phone rang. It was a littlete, but Baek Joong-Hyuks phone rang as well. The person who called Lim Gil-Won was the executive manager who first reported A-Gens gic testing service to him. Im in a meeting right now, Lim Gil-Won said in a quiet voice after taking the call. As he was about to hang up, the executive manager urgently shouted. Sir! A-Gen made an insurancepany. What? Lim Gil-Wons eyes widened. He raised his head and nced at Hwang Joon-Young and Baek Joong-Hyuk. The two people, who were both on the phone, had the same expression as him. It seemed like they had heard the news as well. * * * Yoon Dae-Sung, the CEO of A-Gen, announced the founding n of A-Gen Life. it was established as a subsidiarypany of A-Gen, but it was quickly known that Young-Joon was behind it. It was because Young-Joon, who was at the announcement with Yoon Dae-Sung, exined A-Gen Lifes key business item to the reporters himself. Many insurancepanies refuse insurance if you have a prominent medical history or family history. And along those lines, I heard that insurancepanies are requiring the government to allow them to view gic testing results, Young-Joon said. They will probably refuse insurance to people with high incidence rates. I understand that. I think that being able to view test results is a fair and legitimate procedure in the application process. I support that bill as long as protection of personal information and privacy is strictly enforced byw. If insurancepanies couldnt see gic test results, people who were diagnosed as high-risk with a high probability of developing the disease may choose insurancepanies to file ims. If that went on, insurancepanies would either go out of business or raise their premiums, and it would negatively impact the general public in the long-term. Rather than that, it was better to relieve the imbnce of information and allowpanies to view gic test results like medical history. Everyone can apply for A-Gens insurance products, especially those who were ssified as high-risk ording to the gic test results, Young-Joon said. It does not matter if you have past medical history. You can have family history. It is okay even if you were diagnosed with a one hundred percent incidence rate. The premium for the insurance is about twenty percent more expensive than what regr insurancepanies offer. Twenty percent seems extremely cheappared to the risk. How does that work? one of the reporters asked in shock. Actually, the premium is the same as other regr insurance products; the twenty percent increase is the price of diagnostic kits. We are going to include diagnostic kits in our insurance product. The responsibility of the insured, other than paying the premium, will be to self-diagnose with the diagnostic kit at least once a month. ... We are not going to abandon the insured who are in fear of diseases. We do not think giving people money when they be sick after casting them aside is it. What would be the point of a patient who only has one month to live from cancer metastasizing to their entire body getting a few hundred million won? We explore the customers development of a disease extremely early with continuous examinations through our diagnostic kit, and we ensure rapid recovery and return to your daily lives with immediate treatment after diagnosis. The reporters looked confused. Insurance was a financial instrument, but could that be called a financial instrument? Wouldnt the treatment fee be expensive no matter how early you diagnose it? Can the product be maintained by giving insurance to high-risk people with an inexpensive premium? asked one of the reporters. Usually, if it is diagnosed very early on, the patient can be treated with medication as an outpatient and be cured. Because it is before the tumor gets bigger, it does not require surgery or hospitalization. There isnt much to spend money on. But anticancer drugs are expensive, arent they? From now on, those treatments will be very inexpensive. Chapter 113: Plant-based Pharmaceuticals (6) Chapter 113: nt-based Pharmaceuticals (6) The founding of A-Gen Life and its insurance product became a huge issue. There was also a debate in the public over whether it could be viewed as an insurance product or not. It was because the insurance business A-Gen Life started was very differentpared to the existing insurance business in many ways. They were selling a unique product to high-risk people who existing insurancepanies would not take. The price of diagnostic kits was included in the premium, and the customer would pay the premium. If the customer self-diagnosed with the diagnostic kit and did not develop cancer until the expiry date, it was the end. A-Gen Life would providepensation. If the customer developed cancer, but thatpensation would not cover medical expenses; instead, it was more simr to giving them treatment through their next-generation hospital. Additionally, the range of treatment was different depending on the product. For example, if there was a customer that had a 0.001% incidence rate for stomach cancer and a forty-five percent incidence rate for breast cancer, this customer could get insurance only for breast cancer, or they could get it for stomach cancer as well. The premium would go up as they got more insurance, but it wouldnt be much more expensive than the products existing insurancepanies sold even if they got every kind of insurance they could get. If the customer developed the cancer covered by the product they purchased, they could receivepensation for all kinds of treatments until they were cured or died. The customer could even receive chimeric immunotherapy in the case of myeloma or blood cancer. In other words, they could receive a four hundred million won treatment. However, a situation where a technology like that would have to be used wouldnt happen because the diagnostic kit would find the disease before it became that serious. There wouldnt be a patient who would develop the disease on purpose as they werent receiving money, but just treatment. Early myeloma and blood cancer could be cured quickly with treatments like Clivan. The one problem was that Clivan was an expensive drug, but the nt team solved this problem. It was the first drug they had achieved results for among the fifteen target drugs. A-Gen has seeded in producing Clivan from nt cells. A single tobo nt can yield enough Clivan for ten patients to use for a day. Jang Jin-Ho, a principal scientist at A-Gens nt-based Pharmaceuticals Research Department, believes that this technology will be able to reduce the price of Clivan from one hundred ten thousand won per pill to one thousand won The news about A-Gens technological innovation was on television and in newspapers every day. It was Alimap and Clutinib first, and now it was Clivan. The nt-based pharmaceutical production method quickly prated the existing pharmaceutical production market. It was absorbing drugs at a rapid pace and creating a revolution. The insurance business that A-Gen will be doing is not a financial game with capital. A-Gen Life is not guaranteeing financialpensation, but treatment. As it is a subsidiary of A-Gen, the premium that customers pay will go to A-Gen and be reinvested in research and development. It is a way to develop cheaper and better treatments to ount for our customers health and divide the risk of incidence. Young-Joon exined A-Gen Life in more detail in the interview article that was released after the press conference. During that, he alsomenced on the newly amended legition about the usage of gic test results. ording to the current amended legition, if an insurancepany asks A-Gen to view data with the consent of the customer, A-Gen will have to show them the customers gic test results. There are no conditions for the data analysis methods or data selection. "I get the impression that the congressman who proposed the bill handled the matter hastily without a deep understanding of gic testing. For example, the bill states that the original data must be delivered. Original data refers to raw data, but would insurancepanies be able to analyze that? Furthermore, would data about an HPV infection be required for insurance against leukemia? DNA information can be personal information that is much more confidential and important than their Resident Registration Number[1] or home address, as it is a powerful criterion for exining what kind of person they are. Sensitive health information like this, which could even affect employment, should be as secure as possible. It should be about only providing properly processed analytical data about the gic test results rted to the insurance product the customer is trying to buy. Additionally, the insurancepanies must strictly protect this information. After Young-Joons interview was released, the public opinion, which was confused for a moment, was wiped clean. The conspiracy theories about how Young-Joon sold customer information from A-Gen to insurancepanies disappearedpletely. All that was left was bacsh. What happened to all the bastards who said that Ryu Young-Joon sold gic test data and whatnot? Cant you tell from the Cellicure incident? That TMJ wouldnt do that. I dont know why people are ripping him apart over something so obvious. But its so obvious that they are all part-time workers. Werent existing insurance just keeping him in check? But what do you have to do to sign up for A-Gen Lifes insurance? I have SG Lifes insurance, but I want to cancel it and go to A-Gen Life. ???: If the customer is a high-risk patient, dont you just have to get rid of the risk? Why cant people do that? He conquered all of STEM, and now hes swallowing up the Arts. I want to ask about A-Gen Lifes insurance. Where do I call? An insurance product that one could buy even if they had a high incidence rate, family history, or past medical history. Plus, it was cheap, and what they were guaranteeing was not money, but a cure. Of course, there would be cases where it failed and thepany would suffer losses as the patient died, but it could be minimized. A-Gen received questions from people about how they could get this insurance even before A-Gen Life was established. It was more than the inquiries that A-Bio received about the gic testing service. And this situation that was happening at A-Gen strongly motivated pharmaceuticalpanies and botanists all around the world. We have to dive into this before A-Gen develops all those new drugs, David, the CEO of Conson & Colson, said at the board meeting. CEO Ryu probably patented the nt-based pharmaceutical production method. Lets look for a way to avoid that, and if there isnt, we have to give him whatever amount of royalties and use that technology. The future trend willpletely change to nt-based pharmaceuticals. Lets make a production line right away, and recruit a lot of scientists who studied nts. David, MetLife has contacted us, said one of the directors. MetLife? MetLife was a gigantic health insurancepany. They asked whether we can do the same thing CEO Ryu is doing right now. They want to work with us if we can. David thought for a moment. Honestly, it will take us a few years to catch up with A-Gens technology We have to follow them even if we are slow. This is the right direction. I knew they would be a powerful enemy when they released the a product, but now, it seems like they are getting ahead. We all have to work harder. Set up a meeting with MetLife. * * * Fxxk, is he serious? There was nothing Hwang Joon-Young, the CEO of SG Life, could do as he watched the situation unfold. There was a saying that getting too big of a shock could paralyze the brain A huge predator had appeared in the industry, but he couldnt think of any countermeasures because he was so dumbfounded. Sir, what do we do now? Baek Joong-Hyuk asked cautiously. How should I know? How will we stop that? Is that really an insurance product? What do you think, Director Lim? he asked. Lim Gil-Won said nothing. He was lost in thought while staring into space with a nk face. Director Lim? Yes? Lim Gil-Wons head shot up. Young, smart people like Director Lim should think of some ideas on how we should respond to this crisis. Lim Gil-Won thought for a while. To be honest, he felt both extreme fear and astonishment at the establishment of A-Gen Life. The fear was that major insurancepanies including SG Life were now going to have topete with A-Gen Life, and the astonishment was from A-Gen Lifes surprising idea. An insurancepany that guaranteed treatment itself rather than reimbursing treatment fees or giving millions of won as a reward He had never thought they would do this with new technologies like diagnostic kits or nt-based treatments. Lim Gil-Won believed that technological advancements like this were far from finance businesses like insurance, but it was so closely rted. We should have beat them to the punch, said Lim Gil-Won. We should have reached out to CEO Ryu before and asked him to work together as we want to develop these kinds of insurance products. I put this on the agenda several times before Ahem! Baek Joong-Hyuk cleared his throat. Director Lim, you are not ming me, are you? Of course not. Even if we reached out to CEO Ryu, he would not have given us an item that big. This was inevitable, Baek Joong-Hyuk said. Really? Would he have not? Lim Gil-Won analyzed Young-Joon quite closely. He was an extremely smart person, but he didnt really want money, which was a relief to other businesspeople. If his goal was to get rich, he probably would not have worked on something like nt-based pharmaceuticals, which would drastically reduce drug prices. He also had more than one hundred personal parents, did he not? It would be better for him to make a new drug with his ingenuity; why would he reduce the unit price of drugs and negatively affect his own livelihood? If we offered to do A-Gen Lifes insurance business first, Ryu Young-Joon might have coborated with us and helped us. Young-Joon didnt even have enough time to focus on his own research, and he probably didnt want to use his energy on something else. However, it was all toote. There is nothing we can do now. We are not in the position to receive research results directly from A-Gen like A-Gen Life. We dont have enough information nor do we have that kind of pharmaceutical technology There is no way to fight that strange hybrid business with financial business alone. * * * Young-Joon, who has been working at Lab One for a while, returned to A-Bio. It has been a while. He felt like he hade back to hisfortable base camp. He had actually spent most of his time at A-Gens Lab One after graduating from school, but he felt more familiar with A-Bio. He took the elevator up to get to his office. Pop! Confetti popped in front of the elevator doors as they opened. The Life Creation Team along with a few scientists were standing in front and pping. What is this? To congratte your three trophiesLab One Director at A-Gen, CEO of A-Bio, and CEO of A-Gen Life, Park Dong-Hyun said. Ah, no. What are you talking about? Why would I run an insurancepany? Young-Joon waved his hand in denial. Then what? The majority of A-Gen Lifes shares are owned by A-Gen and A-Bio. We are the owners, but we are going to hire a professional manager to run thepany. Who are you going to hit? We are going to have to think about it. We will do an open recruitment and do interviews to find the best candidate. I do have someone who I want to hire personally, but we have to make it a fair process. Who is it? Jung Hae-Rim asked. A senior managing director at SG Life. He became an executive in his forties, and it seems he is pretty famous in that field. Cheon Ji-Myung interrupted. It wont be easy to recruit someone like that even if we ask him toe. And there is no way he would volunteer and do an interview Its okay if we cant. As Young-Joon was chatting, Park Joo-Hyuk appeared at the end of the hall. Oh! Ryu Young-Joon! Sir. He shouted because he was d to see Young-Joon, but quickly changed into a formal tone. I have something to discuss with you, Park Joo-Hyuk said. He took Young-Joon to Young-Joons office, pushed him inside, and sat in the chair across from him. Did you finish your business at Lab One? he asked. Yeah, I guess. Ill be able to direct them from here. Thankfully, theb is close to here. Yeah. Anyways, look at this. Park Joo-Hyuk pulled out a few documents. He showed Young-Joon each one and exined them. We caught the people who leftments insinuating that you sold private customer information. How did you catch them? We reported them to the police for defamation, then contacted them saying that we were the legal team from A-Bio. They all started crying when we told him that. Just let them go. I dont really care. I would have. Whats the big deal about a bunch of couch-potato keyboard warriors talking crap about you at your level? But theres a reason I didnt let them go. What is it? SG Life wrote thosements to manipte public opinion. And there is evidence of them confessing here. too. Park Joo-Hyuk tapped on the documents with his finger. 1. a national identification method in Korea Chapter 114: The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences (1) Chapter 114: The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences (1) SG Life manipted public opinion? asked Young-Joon. Yeah. But youre not really surprised? Park Joo-Hyuk replied. Well, I kind of knew about it. You knew? Rather, it was Park Joo-Hyuk who was surprised. Young-Joon nodded. Lim Gil-Won had already told him about it when they had drinks before. Lim Gil-Won had hinted to Young-Joon that SG Life was trying to covertly harm him by making it seem like A-Gen was secretly selling gic test results to insurancepanies and others. But its nice that we found evidence. Young-Joon slowly read through the documents Park Joo-Hyuk brought. Its not that difficult to find evidence like this. SG Life probably knew that they were going to get caught. But the reason that majorpanies do things like this is because its better for their business to eliminate apetitor by smearing their image than being sued and fighting in court. Probably. But theypletely failed since the public is supporting you after the announcement of A-Gen Life. If SG Life starts a big court battle right now, they will be taken out. Hm. What should we do? asked Park Joo-Hyuk. I dont have any particr feelings towards them. Im not angry either. Meaning that we should destroy them without any personal feelings? A grin slowly appeared on Young-Joons face. Park Joo-Hyuk knew him all too well. Park Joo-Hyuk said, This isnt the first time that SG Life has eliminated theirpetitors or kept them in check this way. Someone needs to put a stop to this vicious cycle. Like how birds of a feather flocked together, Park Joo-Hyuk was also very by the book and strict about ethics, although it wasnt as severe as Young-Joon. Alright. Then Ill leave this to the A-Bio legal team. And there are more people you can use. The A-Gen legal team? Yeah. Its much bigger than our legal team since its an older and biggerpany. Ill let Mr. Yoon know, and you can lead both teams and fight. Got it. * * * Under Park Joo-Hyuks lead, A-Gens legal team began attacking SG Life based on the evidence they had collected so far. They handed out press releases and made the situation as noisy as possible. [Not just A-Gen, but all science and engineeringbs around the world prevent data from being released by security programs. This is because it can be detrimental topanies if important technology is leaked. Secure Groupware, the security firm for A-Gensboratories, has stated that there is no record of data being released from the Gic Testing Department.] [Even employees cannot easily view personal information as the gic testing data bes encrypted after being sent to the customer. Personal information can be automatically discarded if the customer wants.] [It has been discovered that SG Life manipted public opinion by insinuating that CEO Ryu Young-Joon sold customer data illegally] This attack was like a nuclear missile to SG Life, which was already losing ground due to the emergence of A-Gen Life. Day after day, they began being berated by the media, rallies, and the public. Hwang Joon-Young, the CEO of SG Life, took responsibility for everything and resigned. Executives like Baek Joong-Hyuk were also punished. The main shareholders of thepany began looking for the problem-solver who helped SG Life ovee many crises. Where is Director Lim? They called Lim Gil-Won at the board meeting, but he did not show up. It was because he was meeting Young-Joon. The little bit of attachment Lim Gil-Won had left for hispanypletely disappeared after this incident. Now, he was deeply moved by A-Gen Lifes ideas and aspirations. You want to join A-Gen Life? Young-Joon asked. Yes. After joining SG Life through open recruitment, I was promoted to senior executive director in just twenty-two years. SG Life was not a huge insurancepany when I joined, but it is now the bestpany in the industry. I have contributed quite a lot to thepanys development, Lim Gil-Won said. Young-Joon investigated Lim Gil-Won separately after the meeting Kim Young-Hoon had prepared. He was a celebrity in the insurance industry that everyone knew about. Not only did he get promoted to senior executive director at a young age without any connections, he had solved difficult problems that arose in thepanys management. But you havee to the wrong ce if you want a guaranteed job, Young-Joon said. I contributed a lot in founding A-Gen Life, and I am practically the owner, but I have no intention of participating in management. I have left most of the process to Mr. Yoon. I think you should be talking to him about this. I know. However, you dont trust Mr. Yoon that much, do you? Lim Gil-Won asked frankly. Me? Mr. Ryu, I have been doing business for a long time. I know a lot about A-Gen and Mr. Yoon. I dont think he is the type of person you will like. A little intrigued, Young-Joon listened to Lim Gil-Won go on. A-Gen is a pharmaceuticalpany, so you will have to hire a professional manager to run an insurancepany like A-Gen Life. And at least for the first step, I think things will only proceed if you have confidence, not Mr. Yoon. That is why I came here. Lim Gil-Won was clearly smart. He was skilled at reading someones mind. Young-Joon had left everything to Yoon Dae-Sung, but he was going to participate in hiring the CEO in any way possible. Lim Gil-Won had predicted that ande here. However, Young-Joon wanted the process to be fair, as people more skilled than Lim Gil-Won could have applied through Yoon Dae-Sung. Please tell Mr. Yoon that you are applying for the CEO position. I cannot choose anything on my own right now, Young-Joon said. Alright. I hope you can lead A-Gen Life, Director Lim. * * * The summer was over. As the weather was getting cold, Young-Joon was reading a report on the sess of the AIDS treatment in Phase Three. In just a few months, products that had been in the final stages of approval were getting sessful results one by one. As he had tried many drugs at once, results poured out simultaneously as well. There were a total of five pipelines that had beenmercialized. 1. The Alzheimers cure based on induced pluripotent stem cells. 2. Cellicure, a liver cancer cure. 3. Birnafan, a pancreatic cancer cure. 4. Amuc, a type 2 diabetes cure. 5. The AIDS cure based on induced pluripotent stem cells. All of them were shocking, but the most impactful one was Amuc. In just two months of itsmercialization, Amuc became as famous as aspirin. It was because the number of patients was overwhelmingly higher than all other diseasesbined. Ten percent of people in Korea, which had a rtively low obesity rate, had diabetes. Ny percent of those diabetes patients had type 2 diabetes. The incidence of diabetes was highest in the Middle East and northern Africa, where urbanization was rapidly progressing. Western countries already had a high incidence due to their food culture. The worlds diabetic poption was approaching five hundred million, and Amuc, a drug that could cure most of them, showed overwhelming authority among the drugs A-Bio had developed so far. Lets give up on insulin, David, the CEO of Conson & Colson, said on the day the FDA approved Amuc. Thepany that produced the most insulin syringes was Conson & Colson. David had tears in his eyes, but he cut off insulin quickly and coldly. No matter how convenient we make injectable drugs, it cannot ever beat orally administered drugs. The pressure of having to pierce the skin with a needle is very different from taking something, he said. Maybe if insulin syringes were better than Amuc in some aspects, but Amuc has fewer side effects and much better efficacy. Instead, lets focus on making a replica of Amuc. Davids prediction was correct; just two months after its appearance, Amuc reced most of the insulin market. A simr column appeared in USA Today and The New York Times. [It has been two months after Amucs appearance. 80% of type 2 diabetes patients have seen effects. Insulin injections are difficult to administer. Since its an injection, it requires pre-administration processes such as shaking the solvent, disinfecting the needle with alcohol, attaching it to the syringe, and removing air bubbles by spritzing a small amount. However, all Amuc requires is popping out the tiny pill out of the casing and swallowing it with water. It does not have a sharp pain like an insulin injection does. Most of all, the best thing about Amuc is that it is easy to store and carry. It is much smaller than an insulin injection, which is about as long as a finger. It is also stable for years at room temperature unlike insulin, which has to be refrigerated. Amuc has already reced 80% of the insulin market, and insulin injections are expected to disappear from the pharmaceutical industry forever in the near future, and] A-Gen Life had also safelyunched. Lim Gil-Won, who had finished his work at SG Life with haste in a few months, became the CEO despite lots ofpetition. Mr. Ryu, take a look at this. One day, Lim Gil-Won sent Young-Joon an email. I already saw it, Young-Joon replied calmly, but he was actually quite happy. Lim Gil-Won had sent him a huge statistics article in foreign media. Since he was looking at it, he decided to read it again. [It has been ten months since the appearance of Doctor Ryu Young-Joon, the supernova in the scientificmunity. How has the world changed? The future of medicine seen through an index. Eight hundred thousand eyes that were blinded by a around the world regained vision. Eight thousand forty-two Alzheimers patients have regained their cognitive functioning. One thousand one hundred seven pancreatic cancer patients were discharged after confirming theplete death of the cancer tissue. At least two thousand liver cancer patients were discharged after receiving Cellicure. The number of people who have received gic testing at A-Gen has surpassed eight million. 1.7 million of them are foreigners. The number of people who bought A-Gen Lifes insurance product has surpassed two million. More than forty insurancepanies that carry insurance products simr to A-Gen Life have appeared in the United States and Europe. A-Gens market capitalization has exceeded Conson & Colson. HIV infection rates in countries where HIV eradication is prioritized, including Eswatini, Lesotho, South Africa, and Zimbabwe, have turned negative. The spread has been perfectly controlled through diagnostic kits, vines, and cures, and patients have been cured by stem cell therapy. At least two hundred fifty million diagnostic kits have been sold, and at least four hundred thousand people have been treated in hospitals after finding dangerous diseases as a result of using these kits. It was truly moving. Young-Joon had seen numerous patients, including Son Soo-Young, shed tears after being treated in clinical trials. It was touching then, but it was more intense this time. Young-Joon, who was a scientist inside-out, was even more amazed at the quantified data. Buzz! Young-Joons phone rang. It was Professor Carpentier. Usually, he only contacted Young-Joon about research-rted things, and it was always through email. It was because it was easy to show him pictures and videos. Hello? Young-Joon picked up the phone. Hahaha, congrattions, sir. Pardon? Did you know that I have studied in Sweden before? Sweden? Why Sweden all of a sudden? One of my friends who I went to school with is one of the key members of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. Do you know what kind of institution it is? No? It is the institution that awards the Nobel Prize. Kuk It was usually called the Nobel Foundation or the Nobel Committee. Young-Joon, who wasnt very interested in it, hadnt heard of the actual name of the institution until now. Every year around September and October, the Nobel Committee contacts famous university professors, past Nobel Prize recipients, and essential members of the academy. They ask for rmendations for nominees. ... No My friend rmended you, Mr. Ryu. And from what Im hearing, it wasnt just him. It feels strange; I think you can look forward to it. Chapter 115: The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences (2)

Chapter 115: The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences (2)

¡°I was rmended? As a Nobel Prize nominee?¡± Young-Joon asked in surprise. ¡ªHaha. You are definitely qualified, Mr. Ryu. No, you are more than qualified; you are a highly likely candidate. Carpentier replied. ¡°...¡± ¡ªOf course, you won¡¯t be able to receive it this fall even if you are selected. You know that, right? ¡°Yes.¡± ¡ªThis year¡¯s recipient wille from the nominated candidates in the letters that were sent out around this timest year. I¡¯m sure they already finished the consideration process. You will probably be screened next January. Carpentier said. ¡ªI think it¡¯s almost certain that you will receive the Nobel Prize next year. ¡°I hope so.¡± ¡ªSpeaking of the Nobel Prize, recipients sometimes have difficulty in conducting further research. ¡°Why?¡± ¡ªIt might not be urate because it¡¯s only based on my friends¡¯ and my experiences. However, people feel a little ufortable when Nobelureates ask to do research together or when they go into a new research team. ¡°Really?¡± ¡ªYes. It¡¯s because the spotlight is put on the Nobelureate when a paperes out from the group they are part of. ¡°Oh...¡± ¡ªAnd even if Nobelureates try to do research together... Ah well, they are all people who were sessful in their fields. Usually, they don¡¯t listen to other people, are stubborn, and a lot of them have weird personalities. The... What was it in Korean? I learned it from Doctor Park recently. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡ªAh, I remember. Kondae![1] Most Nobelureates are kondae. ¡°Do you mean kkondae?¡± ¡ªThat¡¯s right. Kkandae. Haha. Carpentierughed a little. ¡°...¡± ¡ªI worked with Jamie Anderson for a little while, but I fought with him and left theb because he kept telling me what to do on my research and got on my nerves. ¡°Jamie Anderson?¡± ¡ªYes. Theb director of the Cold Spring Laboratory. ¡°...¡± Jamie Anderson: he was one of the living legends of twentieth-century biology who was also in general biology textbooks. ¡ªOh, do you know that all the papers thate out of the Cold Spring Laboratory all have Jamie Anderson¡¯s name on it? ¡°Does he participate in all the research?¡± ¡ªNo, he just forces the scientists to put his name in as the corresponding author. He¡¯s basically the Cold Spring¡¯s barcode. ¡°...¡± ¡ªI¡¯m getting off track. Anyways, you won¡¯t have to worry about not having anyone to work with after getting the Nobel Prize. Since you already own apany like A-Bio. ¡°Really?¡± ¡ªOf course. I am already working with you, aren¡¯t I? If you be a Nobelureate, more scientists might go to A-Gen. I think you can look forward to next October. After hanging up the phone, Young-Joon was lost in thought for a moment. Korea was quite alienated from the center of science. Because of that, it was very rare for Korean scientists to be nominated for science-rted awards such as the Nobel Prize in Physics, Chemistry, or Medicine. However, it was also entertaining for scientists to watch the Nobel Prize ceremony. Sometimes, they made bets on who would receive the award. ¡®Back when I was a grad student, I also made bar bets with seniors and juniors on whether Doudna or George would receive the Nobel Prize in Medicine...¡¯ The Nobel Prize game was a war among the stars as only the top scientists were nominated. ¡®I can¡¯t believe I am one of them.¡¯ Young-Joon thought that this might happen while doing his research, but it was shocking to see that it actually did. He wasn¡¯t doing research out of patriotism, but he was pretty proud to be the first Korean to receive a Nobel Prize in the science field. ¡®Ah, I need to stop thinking about it.¡¯ It wasn¡¯t like he had received it; he had just been selected as a nominee. The selection process wasn¡¯t going to start until next January, and even if he did receive it, the ceremony was more than a year away. ¡®I should focus on my research.¡¯ Young-Joon called Yoo Song-Mi, his secretary. ¡°Can you get me the notes from my meeting with Doctor Cheon¡¯s team, please? It¡¯s about the organoid design,¡± Young-Joon said. A little whileter, Yoo Song-Mi appeared with the notes. She also gave him something unexpected as well. It was a golden envelope. It was sealed in an old-fashioned wax seal. ¡°What is this?¡± ¡°It¡¯s from the Karolinska Institute Faculty Council. I don¡¯t know much about it.¡± Young-Joon eyes widened. ¡°The Karolinska Institute?¡± ¡°Yes. What is it?¡± Young-Joon opened the envelope, thinking that there was no way. He felt his breath stop as he read a few lines of the letter inside. It was true that the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences hosted the final awarding of the Nobel Prize, but the judging process was divided among a few institutions. For the Nobel Prize in Medicine, it was judged by the professors of the Karolinska Institute, one of the best medical schools in Europe. And in very special and exceptional cases, they could consult outside experts. ¡ªDear Doctor Ryu Young-Joon from the Karolinska Institute Faculty Council. We request your consultation on the judging process for this year¡¯s recipient of the Nobel Prize in Medicine. * * * ¡°So when are you going?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk asked Young-Joon while having lunch. ¡°Sweden?¡± ¡°Yeah. You have to go yourself for the judging process, right?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not going. Why would I go?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk narrowed his eyes and looked at Young-Joon. ¡°What is this crazy nonsense? They are letting you pick the Nobel Prize recipient, but you¡¯re not going to go?¡± ¡°I would take some time off if they were giving me the award. But I don¡¯t have enough experience to judge a scientist who is worthy of the Nobel Prize, and it¡¯s a burden.¡± ¡°Who is the person you are judging?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know either. They said they would tell me stuff like that when I go to Karolinska. It¡¯s an important secret, so they probably won¡¯t be able to reveal that information to the outside.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know who it is, but they probably sent you a letter because you are the best expert in the research the nominee is doing. You don¡¯t have to be so humble. Not being qualified to judge... If you don¡¯t have the right, what does that make a professor like Carpentier who is working under you?¡± ¡°And to be honest, it¡¯s a waste of time. It¡¯ll be good no matter who wins the Nobel Prize, so I want to do my research with that time,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I guess I have no way to convince you when you say it like that.¡± After finishing his meal, Young-Joon wrote a reply refusing participation in the judging in a respectful tone. ¡®I don¡¯t know why they are doing it in such an old-fashioned way when an email would take a second, but...¡¯ Young-Joon respected their tradition as much as possible because this was the way it was. However, people were bound to throw their traditional way out the window and take the convenient one when it was urgent. The day after Young-Joon¡¯s reply arrived at Karolinska, he received an international call from the institute. It was an early call in the morning for them; the professors had basically called him as soon as they received his letter. ¡ªDoctor Ryu? ¡°Yes, hello. This is Ryu Young-Joon.¡± ¡ªNice to meet you. My name is Heriot, and I am the director of the Nobel Committee at the Karolinska Institute. I see that you turned down our request for your counsel on the judging process. ¡°I did. It is too much for me, and I am busy with my research right now.¡± ¡ªDid you hear that you were selected as one of the nominees for the next Nobel Prize? ¡°I did.¡± ¡ªPeople who have been rmended as nominees tend to hear about it in any way. Then, you also know that we will be judging you next year, right? ¡°Yes.¡± ¡ªHaha, people in your position would buy a ne ticket to Sweden immediately when we requested your counsel. But you are noting because you are busy with your research... You are worse than your rumors. ¡°...¡± ¡ªHowever, if youe to Sweden, it will be a lot of help to the research you are doing right now, Mr. Ryu. The key result of this nominee rtes to your research. ¡°Is it about stem cells?¡± ¡ªIt isn¡¯t. That is a rtively new field, and who could give you help when you are already the best expert in the world? ¡°Then, what is it?¡± ¡ªMr. Ryu, I was impressed with how you drastically reduced the unit price of existing new drugs as you produced nt-based drugs. ¡°...¡± ¡ªBut there is no change in the price of the chimeric immunotherapy, right? ¡°It has been lowered a little, but it does need additional development.¡± ¡ªBecause it uses someone¡¯s immune cells. There is nothing that can be done through nt cells. nt-based production was producing pharmaceuticals that were originally made in animal cells in nts. This method had already reduced the price of several drugs. But if the pharmaceutical was the animal cell itself? Immune cells were also the cells from an animal¡ªhumans. As long as that was the pharmaceutical itself, there was nothing that could be done with the nt-based production method; they could not make animal cells from nt cells. ¡°I am doing a lot of research to solve that.¡± ¡ªYou are trying to make a universal chimeric immune cell, right? Hariot asked. The universal chimeric immune cells: it referred to an immunotherapy that could be used on any and all patients. Originally, chimeric immunotherapy required the immune cells that were uniquely designed against the patient¡¯s cancer cells. Because of that, the entire treatment was personalized. They had to harvest cells from each patient and match the type of cancer they had. But if this could be mass-produced? If they could mass-produce it and just administer it when cancer patients came to see them? It would be a cure from therapy. The price would fall drastically. It was not a very innovative idea, as Conson & Colson also poured in a huge amount of time and money to do this. ¡®And they failed.¡¯ It was extremely difficult work. It was so difficult that Young-Joon could not obtain results at once even with Rosaline. Young-Joon was using his fitness and walking toward the answer, step-by-step. ¡ªThis year¡¯s nominee is rted to cancer and immune cells. We cannot tell you any details right now... But I am sure it will be very helpful to the things you are trying to make,¡± Hariot said. ¡°Oh!¡± Young-Joon was surprised. ¡°They are rted to cancer and immune cells?¡± ¡ªThat¡¯s right. ¡°Professor Kagekuni?¡± ¡ª-... ¡°Or Professor Oliver?¡± ¡ªPhew... I won¡¯t say anything. Anyway, it will be an event that will definitely help you. Could youe to Karolinska for a little bit? Kakegunia and Oliver were the ones who created a sensation at the cancer conference a few years ago with the development of the immune checkpoint inhibitor. ¡°Would I be able to learn about their research if I go there?¡± ¡ªThey happen to be preparing a seminar. Professor Kakeguni is giving a lecture. ¡°I will go,¡± Young-Joon said. * * * Scientists studied their entire lives; they studied for ten years from undergraduate until they finished graduate school, and they studied again after getting a job. They weren¡¯t learning their new responsibilities, but actually learning new knowledge by printing out papers and highlighting the main ideas. It was because they would fall behind in their field if they didn¡¯t. However, reading papers was not the only way; attending conferences was a good way to study as well. ¡®I should bring the hands-on employees since it¡¯s a difficult and important project.¡¯ It was also a form of benefit that thepany was providing to those who had worked hard. Young-Joon posted an announcement to the scientists at A-Bio to gather participants for the conference. [We are looking for scientists to attend the Anticancer Immunotherapy Seminar at the Karolinska Institute in Sweden for a six-night trip. Flight and hotel amodation will be provided by thepany.] 1. Kkondae is an expression in Korea used to describe a condescending older person. Kkondae are often very stubborn and expect unconditional obedience from their juniors. ? Chapter 116: The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences (3)

Chapter 116: The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences (3)

Park Dong-Hyun was talking to the Life Creation Team members. The topic of conversation was whether it was a good choice to go to the conference in Sweden. ¡°No, why are we thinking about this? They are saying that they will guarantee us free time excluding the time for the conference seminar. It¡¯s a chance to go on a five-night trip to Sweden. On top of that, they said we could use our days off back-to-back with the trip and go on vacation,¡± Jung Hae-Rim said like she couldn¡¯t understand them. ¡°That is true, but there is some pressure in attending the conference seminar,¡± said Park Dong-Hyun. ¡°Huh? Dong-Hyun-ssi, is a conference seminar too much pressure for you?¡± Jung Hae-Rim was surprised as if it was unexpected. She said, ¡°It¡¯s not like we have to do difficult experiments or solve a problem with no answer. We just have to listen to what others have worked on and learn, right? Isn¡¯t it fun to listen to lectures?¡± ¡°Of course, it¡¯s entertaining to listen to a lecture about a field I am interested in. And since everyone is so tired of studying, listening to a conference seminar isn¡¯t very stressful, but...¡± Park Dong-Hyun trailed off. ¡°But what?¡± ¡°We¡¯re going with the CEO,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung replied instead of Park Dong-Hyun. Park Dong-Hyun nodded and added, ¡°Hae-Rim-ssi, can you imagine what he will want from us after he takes us to Sweden, paying for our ne ticket and hotel, to listen to the conference?¡± ¡°Um...¡± ¡°The list of professors lecturing there is no joke. All the immunotherapy and anticancer experts are there,¡± said Cheon Ji-Myung. ¡°Hae-Rim-ssi. If the CEO goes there, I am one hundred percent certain that he will start another cancer project. He¡¯s going to be like, ¡®I went to the seminar, and it looks like we can conquer lung cancer now. Let¡¯s get rid of lung cancer now.¡¯ Then, he¡¯s going to start something new. Who do you think he will give the project to?¡± ¡°... Someone who listened to the conference?¡± Jung Hae-Rim replied with a slightly frozen face. ¡°That¡¯s right!¡± Cheon Ji-Myung snapped his fingers. ¡°He¡¯s going to say, ¡®This project is rted to what this professor presented at the conference; we listened to the lecture together, right?¡¯ Then, he is going to make us do it. If we go, we are going to be awarded with bootcamp from hell. He won¡¯t stop until we destroy a type of cancer.¡± ¡°But there¡¯s the Anticancer Drug Department at Lab One, and there are teams at A-Bio that worked on developing the pancreatic cancer cure. Will he really make us do anticancer research?¡± ¡°He might make us do it since it¡¯s rted to immunotherapy. We¡¯re the first team that started stem cells.¡± Jung Hae-Rim was lost in thought. She looked serious. There was a pretty heavy silence at the table. ¡°What about you, Soon-Yeol-ssi?¡± ¡°Eh? I was going to go in the first ce,¡± Koh Soon-Yeol replied. ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Seo Yoon-Ju-ssi said there¡¯s a famous Kohaku figurine shop in Stockholm, and she wants to go there.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Ah, whatever. Then I¡¯m going, too. I kind of want to see Karolinska,¡± said Jung Hae-Rim. ¡°And all the research we do here is difficult anyways. The work intensity was already high.¡± ¡°I¡¯m going, too. When would we be able to go to Sweden if not now?¡± Bae Sun-Mi said. ¡°You know what? Let¡¯s go, all of us. If he tells us to get rid of lung cancer after we get back, he will give us good research directions.¡± Park Dong-Hyun shot up from his seat. ¡°Then, we¡¯re all going to go, right? I¡¯m going to sign us all up, okay?¡± * * * Young-Joon was looking into Professor Kakeguni and Professor Oliver with his officeputer. Kakeguni was one of Young-Joon¡¯s former teachers. He was a professor at the University of Tokyo, and his grandfather was Korean. He had a special love for Korea as he was taken care of by his grandfather. Many years ago, when Young-Joon was still a second-year undergraduate student, Kakeguni visited Jungyoon University as an exchange professor. He lectured and taught experiments at the university for one year. He didn¡¯te as an exchange professor for money or prestige as he was already the face of the University of Tokyo and considered a Nobel Prize nominee. There were two reasons why Kakeguni came to Jungyoon University; the first was because of his affection for Korea, which was his grandfather¡¯s native country, and the second was because of his belief that science in Asia should progress as a whole. As one of the only star scientists in Northeast Asia, he was trying to share his knowledge in Korea, China and more. At the time, Kakeguni gathered passionate students and started a project. One of those students happened to be Young-Joon. ¡®Reminds me of the old days...¡¯ Young-Joon smiled cheerily while reading the introduction of Kakeguni that was on hisb homepage. The conversation he had with Kakeguni when they experimented together in hisb came to mind. * * * ¡°Why do you want to be a scientist, Young-Joon-kun?¡± Kakeguni asked. After some hesitation, Young-Joon told him about Ryu Sae-Yi. Then, he responded to Young-Joon with something unexpected. ¡°The reason I started working on cancer is simr, too. I lost my closest friend to cancer when I was in grad school.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes. That¡¯s when I got the ambition to catch cancer. Young-Joon-kun, Korea hates Japan, right?¡± ¡°Uh... I guess there are some feelings like that.¡± ¡°Because Japan killed a lot of people and stole a lot of resources when Japan colonized Korea. As a Japanese person, I feel bad. However, that is something I find strange as a scientist.¡± ¡°What about it?¡± ¡°Like how Korea hates Japan, many countries that were damaged by colonialism dislike the colonizing countries. But if that¡¯s the case, why don¡¯t people hate this disease called cancer, which has killed the most people in the world and consumed the most societal resources? Because it is a natural disaster?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Perhaps people have given up on naming cancer as the nasty enemy. Maybe they excluded it from revenge because it is too powerful of an enemy. But scientists shouldn¡¯t do that. I¡¯m telling you because you have a clear goal and you say that you will study your entire life, but this job is not something to have with soft emotions like curiosity or snobbism. The public might think of scientists like that, but scientists should not think of themselves like that. Scientists are warriors. You must remember that.¡± At the time, this conversation was shocking to young Young-Joon. It was because he thought being a scientist was a romantic job where he would find new knowledge that mankind did not know yet. Click, Young-Joon closed Kakeguni¡¯s website. ¡®He was already a Nobel Prize nominee when he came to Jungyoon University. He might actually get it this time if he hasn¡¯t been eliminated and is still one of the final candidates.¡¯ If Kakeguni were to receive the Nobel Prize, it would probably be because of the research he didst year. He studied the process of immune cells finding cancer cells. He discovered a number of biomaterial immune cells used to recognize cancer cells and other cells that worked together. Rosaline was doing something simr now tomercialize chimeric immunotherapy. How long would it take for Rosaline to find the knowledge Kakeguni found alone? If Young-Joon used his fitness without wasting any, it would take about a month. It was an incredible speed as it was about twenty years of Kakeguni¡¯s research. However, if Young-Joon could listen to Kakeguni¡¯s seminar and get his help, his work might progress faster. ¡®Although, it¡¯s funny that I will be judging him.¡¯ Whoosh! Young-Joon could hear the sound of wind from outside his door. A small cell flew in through the cracks. To him, it looked like Ryu Sae-Yi shot through the door like a ghost. ¡ªI¡¯m back! Rosaline said with a bright smile. ¡°Did you have fun?¡± ¡ªI observed your subordinates. ¡°Please call them colleagues.¡± ¡ªThere are a lot of people who want to participate in the conference. ¡°Really?¡± ¡ªI memorized the list. Would you like me to tell you? ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡ªCarpentier, Jacob, Park Jae-Hong, Yoon Jae-Don, Cheon Ji-Myung, Bae Sun-Mi, Park Dong-Hyun, Jung Hae-Rim, Koh Soon-Yeol, Felicida, Chloe, Park Mi-Young, Choi Tae-Il, Hong Soo-Jung, Lee Jung-Nam, Elliot Kim, Kim Jin-Ju, Park Hee-Sun, Kim Ji-Won... ¡°Wait, stop. Why are there so many?¡± ¡ªMaybe they want to go to the conference. ¡°I don¡¯t think I would like it if my CEO asked me to go to a conference together...¡± ¡ªBy the way, Ryu Young-Joon, why did my name be Rosaline? ¡°Huh?¡± Young-Joon was a little flustered. ¡°Your name?¡± ¡ªYes. What does Rosaline mean? ¡°Um... The Life Creation Team gave it to you. I don¡¯t know much about it either.¡± Now that Rosaline asked, he was curious as well. ¡®Maybe I¡¯ll ask them when I see them.¡¯ * * * Most people applied to the conference while only a few stayed back to keep Lab One and A-Bio. Young-Joon decided to take them all. Thankfully, everyone was able to attend as there was no limit to the number of people who could attend. Although, a lot of people wouldn¡¯t be able to listen to the popr lectures because of thepetition. Young-Joon made a reservation at a hotel, and he reserved nearly half of the rooms. On the morning when they arrived in Sweden, Young-Joon let everyone listen to the lectures freely, and he went to the anticancer immunotherapy seminar and talked with the professors. ¡°It¡¯s been a while, Professor Kakeguni,¡± said Young-Joon. ¡°Ah, yes.¡± Kakeguni greeted Young-Joon cheerfully and shook his hand. ¡°Young-Joon-kun, or should I say Mr. Ryu?¡± ¡°Just whatever you arefortable with.¡± ¡°Then, let¡¯s call you Doctor Ryu, a universal title in our field. Haha.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°Anyways, I wanted to see you after hearing about your sess, and now we meet here.¡± ¡°Yes. We were rtively near each other, but we¡¯re seeing each other on the other side of the world.¡± ¡°Haha. Anyways, although this is long overdue, congrattions on A-Bio, your great papers, and the treatments. I should have given you schrships and living expenses and taken you to the University of Tokyo as my student.¡± Kakeguni made a disappointed face jokingly. ¡°I didn¡¯t study under you, but I still remember what you taught me back then.¡± ¡°That makes me happy.¡± Thud. As the seminar doors opened, another professor who looked to be in his fifties showed up. It was Oliver P. Allison. He worked at the Cold Spring Laboratory, then moved to MIT. ¡°Herees my rival,¡± Kakeguni said with a chuckle. ¡°I have never met him,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°He is an amazing person. I would congratte him even if he received the Nobel Prize. I hope you get along with him as well, Doctor Ryu,¡± Kakeguni said. The moment Young-Joon was going to approach him, the doors to the seminar room opened. An old, gray-haired professor with age spots on his face appeared. All the scientists in the room froze. ¡°Jamie Anderson...?¡± Carpentier, who was standing beside Young-Joon and talking to other professors, frowned a little. ¡ªHe was asked for counsel. ¡®How do you know that?¡¯ ¡ªI heard the Karolinska professor talking. ¡®... That¡¯s why he¡¯s here.¡¯ ¡ªIs he a remarkable person? ¡®Yeah.¡¯ Young-Joon replied to Rosaline. ¡®He discovered the double helix structure of DNA at the age of twenty-four.¡¯ Jamie Anderson was the greatest biologist after Darwin; he was the father of modern biology and living history. He was the person who built the foundation of DNA research, the origin of all biological processes. The sound of his footsteps echoed in the silent room. Jamie Anderson passed several professors and Nobelureates and stood in front of Young-Joon. ¡°Hello,¡± he said as he held out his hand. ¡°Nice to meet you, Doctor Ryu. I wanted to meet you.¡± Chapter 117: Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences (4)

Chapter 117: Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences (4)

¡°Nice to meet you.¡± Young-Joon shook hands with Jamie Anderson. There was a slight tension in the seminar room. From Oliver¡¯s perspective, it felt like the transition from one generation to the next: the encounter of Jamie Anderson, the scientist who was the king of biology from the mid-twentieth century until now, and Young-Joon, the young and ambitious genius who was opening a new chapter in science. Click! Someone took a picture of them. It was a young research professor from MIT, a student of Jamie Anderson¡¯s. ¡°It¡¯s a nice shot,¡± he said as he walked toward them. ¡°Doctor Ryu and Doctor Anderson together in one photo. I think this will be published in a biology textbook someday.¡± Jamie Andersonughed happily. ¡°Keep that photo safe,¡± he said. Then, he turned to Young-Joon again. ¡°Doctor Ryu has been doing well recently, making a pancreatic cancer cure and a diabetes cure. To be honest, I think your achievements have already gone beyond all the other scientists in the room. Including me.¡± ¡°You tter me,¡± Young-Joon replied humbly. Ring! With a ring, a message window popped up near Jamie Anderson¡¯s head. [Synchronization Mode: Observe the change in Jamie Anderson¡¯s cerebral blood flow. Fitness consumption: 2.5] ¡ªQuite an interesting emotion. Rosaline suddenly popped out. She floated around in the air andnded on Jamie Anderson¡¯s shoulder. Then, she looked into his head. ¡®What¡¯s interesting?¡¯ ¡ªThe emotion is veryplicated. I have never seen anything like this. ¡®What is it?¡¯ ¡ªI have to use fitness to show you. ¡®Use it.¡¯ Young-Joon was so curious about theplicated emotion Jamie Anderson was feeling as he looked at Young-Joon. As he went into Synchronization Mode, arge map of a brain appeared in front of his eyes. Swish. Swish. The flow of his blood showed up. The points that were being activated appeared. A strong nerve reaction showed up in a few locations along with conditioned taste aversion. The emotions were delivered to Young-Joonpletely raw. It wasn¡¯t logical because he didn¡¯t know why they were urring, but he could experience the emotions that Jamie Anderson was feeling: astonishment, envy, anger, admiration, disgust, jealousy, emotional, thankful... ¡®Can these emotions be felt simultaneously? How?¡¯ As Young-Joon was about to feel a bit of confusion... ¡°Mr. Ryu,¡± Jamie Anderson said. ¡°Oh, yes?¡± Young-Joon left Synchronization Mode. The emotions that were rising within him cooled downpletely. Jamie Anderson said, ¡°Look around you. There are forty scientists here. Everyone here is a Nobelureate, is a nominee, was a nominee, or will be a nominee soon enough.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°And most of them are Caucasian, European people. The only people who aren¡¯t are you, Professor Kakeguni, and Professor Lieping Chen.¡± Lieping Chen was a Chinese-British professor at Yale University. Young-Joon looked around. Just like Jamie Anderson said, the non-white person was himself, Kakeguni, and Lieping Chen. ¡°Do you know what this means?¡± Jamie Anderson asked. ¡°I¡¯m not sure.¡± ¡°I¡¯m saying that cultural background has some influence on conducting scientific research, just like how Japan, which seeded in modernization rtively quickly and started working on science, has quite a few Nobel Prize winners, but Korea doesn¡¯t have anyone yet.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Just like how it¡¯s difficult for Korea to study sciencepared to Japan, if you think of it on a wider scale, it¡¯s difficult for Asia to study sciencepared to the West. However, all three of you are amazing people as you havee this far nheless,¡± Jamie Anderson said. ¡°In particr, Doctor Ryu, you have shown results that would be andslide victorypared to any scientist here in just a year. You did an amazing job in aparably difficult environment. It¡¯s incredible.¡± It was apliment, but Young-Joon felt a little ufortable for some reason. ¡®Maybe it¡¯s because he took Asia as a whole and treated it like some underdeveloped country in science.¡¯ In fact, that was actually not the case. It wasn¡¯t like the Anglo-American region represented the West, and there were a lot of research institutes in Asia that made significant achievements as well. However, it wasn¡¯t something to be so offended by if Young-Joon took it euphemistically, and there were some parts to admit as well. ¡°Thank you for your praise,¡± Young-Joon replied. As he was about to end the conversation, Jamie Anderson pulled something out from his coat. ¡°I will give you this, Doctor Ryu.¡± It was a golden badge. Scientists who were near Young-Joon were surprised when they saw it. ¡°Sir!¡± the research professor from MIT shouted. ¡°It¡¯s alright. He has the right to get this.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but what is this?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°It¡¯s a membership to the GSC, the Great Scientists Club.¡± ¡°GSC?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a group of the best scientists in the world. There are a total of one hundred people from the scientific field including biology, medicine, chemistry, and space science.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°You can think of it as the organization that leads mankind. GSC has its headquarters in the United States, and we provide various kinds of advice and counsel to the UN, governments in various countries, andrge multinational corporations,¡± Jamie Anderson said. ¡°I¡¯m telling you in advance, Doctor Ryu, that this position cannot be filled by just anyone. I have offered this position to people only a few times. Even Nobelureates can¡¯t join easily. You can only join when a seat opens up when someone leaves or dies.¡± ¡°Who left?¡± ¡°Doctor Stephen Hawking passed away recently.¡± ¡°Ah...¡± ¡°It has been vacant since then, but I get to rmend someone for the position. I am giving it to you, Doctor Ryu.¡± Young-Joon nced around. All the scientists were frozen and in shock. ¡°What kind of obligations will I have if I take this?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°There isn¡¯t anything like that. This badge onlyes with rights and honor. I guess the obligation is not to ruin the honor. You can return it right away if you don¡¯t like it, haha.¡± ¡°... Then I will take it. Thank you.¡± Young-Joon took the badge. * * * Kakeguni and Carpentier both said something simr to Young-Joon as they left the seminar room. ¡°It¡¯s a good thing that you joined the GSC. There are a lot of amazing scientists there. But don¡¯t keep Jamie Anderson close.¡± Carpentier gave Young-Joon personal reasons, such as that Anderson had a crappy personality, but Kakeguni¡¯s reasons were different. ¡°That person is a racist. He is also sexist.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Young-Joon was shocked. ¡°He has all three aspects of being an American, white male supremacist. He was condescending to Asia back there, too. He can¡¯t just lump Asia into one and belittle it like that.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°You probably didn¡¯t know because you haven¡¯t been in the mainstream of science for long and you¡¯ve done nothing but study; you haven¡¯t socialized with scientists at all. But stories have spread among all the star scientists.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu, do you know how Jamie Anderson discovered the double helix structure of DNA?¡± ¡°Professor Anderson, Professor Francis Crick, and Professor Michael analyzed the X-ray crystallography of DNA and discovered it, right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Then, do you know who took that X-ray crystallography?¡± ¡°It was... Oh!¡± Young-Joon¡¯s eyes widened. The name he heard a long time ago during his general biology ss came to mind. And coincidentally, it was the same name he had been calling in the past year. ¡°Rosaline...¡± Whoosh! [Rosaline Lv. 17] ¡ªMetastatic Status: Heart (9%), Liver (47%), Brain (9%), Kidney (15%), Spinal Cord (8%) ¡ªSynchronization: 20% ¡ªCell Fitness: 9.4 The status window popped up. But Young-Joon wasn¡¯t calling Rosaline. ¡°That¡¯s right. Rosalind Franklin,¡± Kakeguni said. ¡°She was the scientist who took a picture of a DNA crystal with X-rays and obtained an X-ray crystallography image.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu, a grandpa like me can¡¯t teach you science now, but I can tell you old stories. I was a young student who was burning with passion and curiosity back when the structure of DNA was revealed. You probably weren¡¯t even born yet, haha,¡± Kakeguni said with a smile. ¡°It was a pretty big issue at the time. Rosalind actually did most of the work to reveal the structure of DNA by herself. She was deserving of all the praise Jamie Anderson is receiving right now. However, she did not receive the Nobel Prize; she had already passed away when it was being awarded. The reason was because she was exposed to too much X-ray, and she died of ovarian cancer.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°And before she died, Jamie Anderson took that X-ray crystallography photo and wrote a paper. Do you think he got Rosalind¡¯s permission?¡± ¡°He didn¡¯t...?¡± ¡°Yes. He stole it without permission.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu, there was a huge star scientist who was said to be the best in the world in the mid-twentieth century when Jamie Anderson was revealing the structure of DNA. In chemistry. Do you know who it is?¡± ¡°Chemists back then... Linus Pauling?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± Kakeguni nodded. ¡°He was the top scientist in the world before Jamie Anderson appeared. And he also worked on analyzing the structure of DNA. He was ahead of him. But in the end, he lost his results to Jamie. Why do you think that is?¡± ¡°... I¡¯m not sure.¡± ¡°Because he couldn¡¯t participate in the conference Rosalind was at. He was invited, but he couldn¡¯t go. If he met Rosalind, he might have looked at the X-ray and figured out the structure of DNA first. Then, why couldn¡¯t he go? It was because he was at the forefront of the anti-nuclear and anti-war movements. He could not leave the country.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°If Einstein dominated physics at the time, Pauling dominated chemistry. But he didn¡¯t even participate in the Manhattan Project. He led the signature campaign and gave lectures that were against nuclear tests and making weapons like that,¡± Kakeguni said. ¡°Because of that, Pauling lost the opportunity to see definitive evidence, the X-ray crystallography image of DNA. However...¡± Kakeguni smiled. ¡°He received the Nobel Prize in Peace for his anti-war movements. And an intellectual like Pauling would have easily gotten the Nobel Prize in Chemistry. That¡¯s why Pauling is a two-time winner: chemistry and peace.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu, scientists are people who explore knowledge. But people who are at the top, the teachers of mankind who are called star scientists, have to do more than that. And you are one of them, Doctor Ryu.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°As a professor who taught you briefly a long time ago, as a scientist living in the same time as you, and as a citizen living on this, I hope you be Linus Pauling, not Jamie Anderson.¡± * * * Park Dong-Hyun and Jung Hae-RIm were looking at the posters for the professors. ¡°Hae-Rim-ssi, do you want to make a bet?¡± ¡°About what?¡± ¡°Whether Kakeguni or Oliver gets the award.¡± ¡°Ha! Of course, it¡¯s Oliver. Don¡¯t you know he¡¯s the one that developed the immune checkpoint inhibitor?¡± Jung Hae-Rim replied like she was wondering why he was asking her such an obvious question. ¡°But Professor Kakeguni isn¡¯t an easy opponent, either. He discovered the tumor induction process of immune cells, and the treatment method of antigen-presenting cells...¡± ¡°Dong-Hyun-ssi!¡± Someone suddenly called Park Dong-Hyun and ran towards him. It was Young-Joon. ¡°Oh, sir. ¡°Hello. Have you been enjoying the seminars?¡± ¡°Yes, of course.¡± ¡°Um, well... I¡¯m sorry for asking you a question like this so out of the blue, but the artificial cell the Life Creation Department was working on was called Rosaline, right?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Was that from Rosalind Franklin?¡± Chapter 118: The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences (5) Chapter 118: The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences (5) Rosaline? Park Dong-Hyun asked. Yes. As Young-Joon nodded, Jung Hae-Rim interrupted from beside them. We didnt give it the name, but I think it is from Rosalind Franklin. Really? Rosaline Franklin is the one who took a picture of a DNA crystal with X-rays, right? Yes, thats right. We dont know in detail either, but apparently, there was a female scientist who volunteered toe to the Life Creation Department. Crazy, right? Apparently, she came because she wanted to make an organism. Because she wanted to make an organism? Yes. And she probably named the artificial cell she made Rosaline v1.0. Hm Weve never seen her either. We dont know her name. There were many other artificial cell candidates when she was working, but after Principal Cheon came in, they were all wrapped up except for Rosaline. They just took the one that had the highest potential and studied it to death. Thats why they ended up only doing Rosaline. I see. But from what I heard from Principal Cheon, she always talked about Rosalind Franklin, saying that she discovered the structure of DNA but died before being rewarded, and she felt bad for her. ... So maybe Rosaline came from Rosalind Franklin? Do you happen to know her name? No. Weve never seen her. You should ask Principal Cheon. Alright. Park Dong-hyun, who was listening to Jung Hae-Rims exnation, interrupted. I dont know why she named the cell Rosaline, but Principal Cheon also told us Rosalind Franklins story. So we are very attached to the name Rosaline as well. Really? Rosalind Franklin was not just an unlucky person. She faced extreme discrimination. Discrimination? There is still some sex discrimination in science, but it was way worse back then. Michael Wilkis was awarded the Nobel Prize along with Jamie Anderson and Francis Crick. It was for his contribution to the identification of the structure of DNA. He was a colleague of Franklins, but they were not on good terms. Dark Lady was what Michael Wilkis called Franklin; it was a ng referring to women with darker hair and skinwomen who were not traditionally beautiful. Wilkis hated Franklin and was condescending to her, and he treated her like she was his subordinate. Sex discrimination was extreme at Kings College in Britain, her workce, as it followed the tradition of the Church of Ennd. It wasnt easy for women to obtain a degree, and Franklin had to eat with students as she could not enter the facultys cafeteria. The courage to carry out ones research through such systematic discrimination and contempt is not something that an ordinary person can do, said Park Dong-Hyun. ... That was simr to us, the Life Creation Department. Thats why we all liked Rosaline. Young-Joon slowly nodded. I didnt know there was a story like this behind Rosalines name. Principal Cheon will tell you more about it if you ask him, Jung Hae-Rim said. Alright. Thank you. Oh, sir. Park Dong-Hyun stopped Young-Joon, who was about to leave. I saw a few people from Celligener earlier during the lecture. Really? Yeah. There seemed to be about ten people including Doctor Song. I see. Well, they were part of developing the pancreatic cure and they made Cellicure, so maybe they are more confident and interested in developing anticancer drugs. I guess immunotherapy is a hot topic in the anticancer field. I should say Hi if I run into them. Thank you for letting me know. * * * Its a good picture, said Bet, the research professor from MIT, as he showed Jamie Anderson the photo of Young-Joon and him together. Thanks. Jamie Anderson smiled faintly. But why did you give Doctor Ryu the GSC membership? Bet asked. Because he is smart. He has the right to join the GSC. Thats true, but Because hes Asian? Yes. Haha, thats right. He is Asian. Thats the fascinating part, Jamie Anderson said. Before, I said that outstanding scientists do note from Asia because their research infrastructure iscking and because the East and the West started science at different points in their history, right? But we know that is not true. Its a gic difference. Thats right. Is there any other reason why White people havee to rule thisnd? The same goes for ck people. People who predict the future of Africa optimistically say that under the assumption that ck people are as intelligent as us, but people who have worked with them know that thats not true. I was the director at Cold Spring Laboratory for forty years; I have met several different races, but there is certainly a biological difference between them. ... Just as men perform better in mathematics and engineering than women, gic differences between races certainly make a difference when performing in STEM. I mean, thats the case from my experience. Its like how ck people are better at short-distance running because of their high expression of the actinin gene, and therefore most Olympic short-distance runners are ck. Its no coincidence that most of the leading scientists in the scientific world are White. Then, why Ryu Young-Joon Isnt it fascinating? Imagine a short little Asian kid who knows how to run incredibly fast standing at the same line as those ck people and waiting for the pistol signal. How fascinating is that? Jamie Anderson chuckled. Hes incredible for an Asian. This is the mystery of biology. The true beauty of biology is that a mutant that escapes the general theory always arises in any group. And Ryu Young-Joon is the best among them. Thats the only reason you gave it to him? But the GSC is too powerful to give him a membership like that. Mostpanies will go crazy for you if you say you are a GSC member, and governments in various countries will expect good advice as well. Its alright. Ny-nine percent of the GSC is White anyways. Its fun to have at least one maverick among us. And he has the right, too. Plus, we need to have someone like that so that the world does not challenge us on the equity of our group. Ah. Isnt this such a frustrating world? Those illiterates who know nothing about science. They make a nket statement that there are no differences between races, and that sexes and races are the same without any evidence or knowledge. Do they know how big the gic differences between them are? How can they have the naive conviction that those differences dont affect brain activity? Click. The doors to the office opened, and Professor Oliver came in. Professor Kakeguni is giving his lecture right now. Dont you have to go listen to it? Oliver asked. External judges and you have to listen to Kakegunis lecture, right? Yes, thats right. How bothersome. Is Doctor Ryu there as well? Yes. With a groan, Jamie Anderson got up from his seat. The Nobel Prize Committee is such a rigid and boring group. Oliver is going to get the Nobel Prize anyways, so I dont know what they are contemting. Kakeguni did good research as well, but What Im saying is Jamie Anderson looked at Oliver. You wrote those papers at Cold Spring Laboratory. You published papers with my name as the corresponding author. Yes. And the Karolinska Institute Faculty Council dares to judge Cold Spring? Not even funny. ... Lets go. We still have to listen to Kakegunis lecture. * * * Young-Joon went into Kakegunis lecture. He sat at the back of the lecture room and listened to the presentation. ... As such, the dendritic cells process antigenic substances, then express them on their surface and show them to T-cells, Kakeguni said. If a cancer cell urs in the body, these dendritic cells collect the mutated materials from cancer cells and exin it to immune cells. Immune cells that were activated like this track the mutated materials that the dendritic cells showed them and find cancer cells to destroy them. The scientists in the room wrote down Kakegunis exnation in their notes. Then, Kakeguni put up a structure of a chemical on the monitor. This chemical acts on the receptor of dendritic cells, and it optimizes the process by which dendritic cellsmunicate with immune cells. In other words, more immune cells are more strongly activated in patients who have taken this drug, and cancer cells are more easily found and destroyed. After about ten minutes, Kakeguni finished his lecture. Song Ji-Hyun, who had listened to the lecture at the very front, was burning with questions. This technology can potentially be linked to Ryu Young-Joons chimeric immunotherapy. It would show incredible synergy if these two technologiesbined. Song Ji-Hyun wanted to confirm this possibility with Professor Kakeguni. Professor, I have a ques The moment she was about to ask, someone hopped onto the stage. It was Young-Joon. Great lecture, professor, he said to Kakeguni. Thank you for listening. Professor, the content you just presented is what you will be evaluated on, right? Thats right. It was definitely powerful. Dendritic cells have not been the main targets when developing anticancer drugs because the immune cells that actually attacked the cancer cells were T-cells. However, dendritic cells were sort of like themanding officers that gave T-cells orders. This anticancer treatment was targeting dendritic cells to enhance the fighting ability of T-cells. I see that it is difficult for you and Doctor Oliver to share the Nobel Prize because the technologies you developed are contradictory. Yes. Young-Joon thought for a moment. The technology Oliver developed was outstanding, but With technology like this, I believe that you will be able to surpass Doctor Oli Great lecture. Someone spoke from the back of the room. Song Ji-Hyun, who hadnt left the lecture room yet, turned to where the voice wasing from. She was shocked when she saw who it was. It was Jamie Anderson. Howe biologys living fossil is here? Song Ji-Hyun had never seen him in person before. She took a step back without even realizing. Now that she looked at it, the three people standing here were a Nobelureate, a Nobel Prize nominee, and Young-Joon, who was surely going to receive the Nobel Prize sometime in the future. She wanted to leave the tension, but her curiosity won. She was so curious as to what kind of conversation the three of them would have together. Song Ji-Hyun quietly listened to their conversation from an awkward distance. Jamie Anderson approached Kakeguni and Young-Joon. Can immune cells that were activated by this method kill solid tumors for sure, Doctor Kakeguni? It was effective on breast cancer when we tested it, Kakeguni replied. Any side effects? There were a small number of patients who developed rashes as a side effect because the immunity became too strong. Jamie Anderson smiled. You know the technology that Doctor Oliver made, right? The immune checkpoint inhibitor Thats right. Oliver was the inventor of the immune checkpoint inhibitor in immune cells. When someone had cancer, the immune cells would search for the cancer cells and try to destroy it. If the cancer cells were in a tumor state, the immune cells would be embedded into the tumor, like a beehive; the immune cells were stuck on the tumor tissue as they were trying to destroy it. However, arge portion of those immune cells were known to be inactive. They werent destroying the cancer cells, but just staying still with their activity stopped. What was making immune cells, which hade all the way to the tumor to destroy cancer cells, so stupid? This was a long-standing mystery in the scientificmunity. The truth that was revealed atst was extremely shocking. Cancer was so clever that it was creating a signal that ordered immune cells to stop working. As such, the immune cells that got close to the tumor received that signal, became inactive, and just stood there. What Oliver designed was an antibody that disrupted the inactivation signal the cancer cells sent. The immune cells were able to continuously attack the cancer cells in patients who received this antibody, and they had seeded in erasing cancer as well. The greatest part about this technology was that it had no side effects. Increasing the activity of immune cells, and stopping its inactivation, Jamie Anderson said. They look simr from a nce, but they are different in terms of side effects. Thetter is much more stable, since we are only talking about this in cancer cells. Professor Kakeguni, you might have better luck next time. Kakeguni gulped. Jamie Anderson said, Theres nothing you can do; the technology that Doctor Oliver developed has no side effects. It seems like thats how its known. Rosaline sent Young-Joon a message. [Synchronization Mode: Observe the hyperprogression mechanism in cancer cells that urs when using immune checkpoint inhibitors. Fitness consumption: 8.5.] Chapter 119: The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences (6) Chapter 119: The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences (6) The hyperprogression of cancer cells Young-Joon read the message window. Hyperprogression was a phenomenon where the progression of cancer increased explosively and the tumor grew multiple times its size in an instant. Excuse me for a moment, Young-Joon said to Kakeguni and stepped out into the hall. As he walked he talked to Rosaline. Turn on Synchronization Mode. How does this side effect work? Oh, wait. Lets see this in Simtion Mode, not Synchronization Mode. The thing we usedst time when we found anthrax? Yes. Dont we use that to see how a virus spreads in the country? You can do that if you use a lot of fitness. If you use a little, you can select an imaginary person, administer any drug you want, and test it. It seems perfect for a situation like this. Alright. Lets try it. [Simtion Mode] Click. Young-Joon pressed the button. Ack! He felt a piercing pain break out in his head. His vision turned pitch ck. What is this? Rosaline? He couldnt see anything. Jamie Anderson, who was in front of him, and Kakeguni all disappeared. He felt like he had just dropped out of the lecture and into space. The desks,puters, and chairs disappeared, and the floor turned pitch ck. His feet werent even on the ground. What is this? Bleep! A message window appeared in front of his eyes again. Enter the subjects biological characteristics. [Expand] Biological characteristics? Chromosome 1 Chromosome 2 Chromosome 3 Chromosome X Chromosome Y Humans had forty-four autosomal chromosomes and two sex chromosomes. Half of them were from the father, and half of them were from the mother, resulting in twenty-two autosomal chromosomes of the same type. They were numbered by their order. Young-Joon clicked on chromosome 1. Coding genes Noncoding genes Pseudogene The chromosome was full of coding genes, noncoding genes that controlled the expression of genes, and junk DNA that did not do anything. Does this mean I can select all of them? Wait Is this Young-Joon froze up a little. He thought that he had been through most of the surprises as he worked with Rosaline, but he never imagined anything like this. This was the future technology that he ultimately wanted to implement in reality based on the Genome Project of one hundred million people and DNA analysis technology. Young-Joon, although he was the only one, easily surpassed the process, which would have taken years, through Rosaline. Ive gotten to the final stage in personalized medicine. Young-Joons heart thumped. He pressed on the button for coding genes. AADACL3: Arcetamide deacetse-like 3. AADACL4: Arcetamide deacetse-like 4. ACAADM: acyl-Coenzyme A dehydrogenase, C-4 to C-12 straight chain. ... They were all gene names. A whopping two thousand sixty-four genes appeared one after another. They were all the genes that existed on chromosome 1. Holy shit, what is all this Honestly, how could anyone know this? No one could know this, not even biologists. Even if someone worked for the Weather Network, it would be impossible for them to know the humidity of a small hill in the valley of a limestone cave located in Singi-myeon, Sancheok-si, Gangwon-do. This was the same thing. Young-Joon pressed the first gene that appeared. [ATGGCG] The DNA sequence of the AADACL3 gene showed up. Young-Joon was able to manipte the sequence as he liked. His shock had exceeded its limit. Is this real? Rosaline, are you insane? Dont be so touched. This isnt that difficult for me. Still, this is Young-Joon was able to edit all one billion letters of DNA. Rosaline could not only figure out the humidity of a small hill in the valley of a limestone cave, she could set it to whatever she wanted; she could set the hills humidity to twenty percent and make a pond twenty-eight degrees. She could basically manipte the weather in that amount of detail. That is an interesting metaphor. Quickly finish the details so that you can observe when and where a hurricane disappears when it urs at a certain point in the Pacific Ocean. This simtion was able to understand the human body mechanically. All the secrets of biology were answered. But when will I finish setting up all twenty thousand genes? Young-Joon pressed the [Close] button beside the message and closed all the detailed setting options. Set it to a random patient type who can experience side effects when using the immune checkpoint inhibitor. Sure. Suddenly, a random, fictional patient appeared in front of his eyes. He was a pretty old man with a medium build. He had a bushy beard, and he looked Hispanic. Beep! His profile popped up on the message window. Age: 63. Male. Height: 184.5 cm. Weight: 105 kg. Blood Type: A A bunch of data rted to the patients lesion showed up below, and thest entry disyed the progression level of his cancer. Lung cancer: stage 3. EGFR mutation driven. EGFR? EGFR referred to the epithelial growth factor receptor. This cell divided and proliferated upon stimtion, but some unlucky cells had their EGFRs broken. These mutated EGFR would send division and proliferation signals to the cell even in the absence of external stimtion. Then, the cell would keep dividing, get bigger, puff up, and escape their designated location. Young-Joon understood the problem right away. The immune checkpoint inhibitor is rted to the EGFR? Yes. Administer the immune checkpoint inhibitor to this fictional patient. Bleep! A graphic of an antibody, which was the immune checkpoint inhibitor. Young-Joon dragged that with his finger andid it on top of the patient. [Routes of Administration] Injection Oral administration Patch The immune checkpoint inhibitor is an injection. Click. When Young-Joon pressed the [Injection] button, questions about whether it was going to be injected into the tumor or intravenously, how much should be injected, and how often it should be administered poured out. Damn it There were too many choices. I dont even go to Subway because I hate having so many questions. Young-Joon selected the intravenous injection, and chose to administer one hundred twenty-five milligrams per square meter every hour; square meter referred to the surface area of the body, which was determined by height and weight. [Activate Simtion Mode] Atst, a message appeared. Young-Joon monitored the fictional patient nervously. The molecr phenomena appeared in front of his eyes. The immune checkpoint inhibitor that was injected intravenously quickly spread throughout the body and became concentrated in the liver. Suddenly, dozens of genes were expressed in liver cells. The urea cycle quickly began to circte as the genes that were involved in protein breakdown became activated. The proteinase stuck onto the immune checkpoint inhibitor and was trying to break it. A part of it broke, but a significant portion of the antibody survived and kept flowing in the blood vessels. And Its going into the lung cancer. Young-Joons jaw slowly dropped. The immune checkpoint inhibitor absorbed into the tumor and began coordinating the battle between the immune cells and cancer cells. [Time: 1 day] [Level of cancer cell death: 3%] A new message window appeared. The time was increasing by the day every second. In proportion, the cancer cell death value was also rising rapidly. And after some time [Time: 5 days] Bleep! [Hyperprogression has urred.] As the stop signal that the cancer cell was sending to immune cells was blocked, the EGFR popped up on the surface of the cancer cells as aplementary mechanism. As the number of EGFRs increased, extreme pressure to proliferate was being applied onto the tumor. In just a few hours, the cells began doubling. Then [Angiogenesis has urred.] New blood vessels were created in the tumor. [Time: 7 days.] The tumor had grown more than five timesrger than before the inhibitor was administered. [The lung cancer cells have begun metastasizing.] [Time: 10 days] [The cancer has metastasized to the breast tissue.] [Time: 14 days] [The patient has died.] [Simtion over.] Leave Young-Joon ended Simtion Mode. * * * It may be dangerous to use the immune checkpoint inhibitor in cancer patients with tumors due to mutations in EGFR, said Young-Joon. This was the judges midterm evaluation discussion meeting. All the professors looked at him in confusion. What are you talking about? Jamie Anderson asked. Its exactly as you heard. It has side effects, or its actually counterproductive. EGFR is amplified on the surface of cancer cells as aplementary effect when the immune checkpoint signal is inhibited. If you use an inhibitor, the countereffect due to EGFR amplification bes stronger than the efficacy from the immune cells from the fourth day. The proliferation of cancer cells exceeds the destruction efficiency. Thats when hyperprogression begins. The cancer cells explode in number, and the patient could die within a few days. EGFR mutations are quitemon in cancer cells, so hyperprogression like this will ur in more than ten percent of patients if you use the drug in this state. ... The table was filled with silence. Doctor Ryu, are you being serious? Do you have evidence? Did you test this? Jamie Anderson asked. There is no experimental data, but its a theoretical prediction. Dont talk so carelessly if you dont have experimental data. The immune checkpoint inhibitor is a product that has already beenmercializ Professor Hariot, said Young-Joon while looking at the chairman of the Nobel Committee at the Karolinska Institute. Please let me borrow ab. Ab? Yes. Are you going to do experiments here? Hariot asked in surprise. I will show you this with a mice experiment. Please sell me ten mice. But those mice are not EGFR mutants, and they dont have cancer. I can make it. ... Even if you are that talented, Mr. Ryu, can you do an animal experiment of that scale alone? It can be done alone, but I am not alone. Pardon? The greatest dream team in the scientificmunity is here right now. The people I brought from A-Bio and Lab One at A-Gen. ... After some thought, Hariot said, I will lend you ab. And I will give you the authority to use all the facilities and equipment at the Karolinska Institute. How much time do you need? About two weeks. Thank you, Young-Joon replied. Young-Joon, who left the room after the meeting, took out his phone. He sent out an email to the top scientists who were in Sweden right now through thepany messenger. [I have started a project at the Karolinska Institute. I am looking for scientists who can stay for an extra two weeks and help my experiment. You will be given first author in this paper, which will be published in Science, PTO[1] equivalent to the number of days used in the study, and the equivalent of a months pay.] Bleep! Park Dong-Hyun, who received a notification for the email, was shocked when he saw his phone. Wow. Did you see this? Is this real? Cheon Ji-Myung chuckled while reading the email like he was baffled. I knew that he was going to start a project to destroy a cancer when we go back, but I didnt know that he would start it here. Maybe he has an allergy to taking time off? Our CEO? If its not that, how can anyonee all the way to Sweden and borrow someone elsesb to do an experiment? Hehe I guess the research topic was so fascinating that he couldnt resist starting it until he returned to Korea. But the benefits are amazing, arent they? Youre working for two weeks and getting a months pay. Yeah. It might be reallypetitive. Where is the CEO right now? Cheon Ji-Myung asked. 1. Acronym for Personal Time Off. Chapter 120: The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences (7)

Chapter 120: The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences (7)

Young-Joon gathered a task force to test the side effects of the immune checkpoint inhibitor. The most talented people of the scientists at Lab One and A-Bio gathered after receiving the email. There were about thirty people from a variety of departments; they all had different nationalities, and there were also promising young scientists, professor-level scientists, and even experts like Carpentier. These people would be able to easily establish a start-uppany just in terms of theirbined research abilities. ¡®Oh my...¡¯ Hariot clicked his tongue as he watched them chatting in the seminar room. Hariot, who was a medical doctor, barely had the time to attend conferences because he was so busy with hospital work. It was the first time he saw them altogether. He already knew that they were at the conference as he heard that Young-Joon brought them, but it was quite shocking to actually see them in-person. ¡®Some of these people could apply to Karolinska right now and be a professor...¡¯ It was shocking that people like them were all working at onepany, but it was also fascinating that they assembled with one word from Young-Joon when they hade all the way to a conference. ¡®Scientists who are called experts in their field usually don¡¯t like it when other people give them their research topic or direction because of their pride, but...¡¯ Click. The seminar room opened. Young-Joon came in and briefly greeted everyone. ¡°Are you all enjoying the seminar?¡± ¡°We were, before you assembled us here,¡± Carpentier said with a chuckle. ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°I have traveled to other ces as a visiting lecturer, but I have never been a visiting researcher.¡± There was lightughter among the scientists. ¡°This conference was supposed to be a vacation-like benefit we were giving to you so that you would be able to take a break while listening to the lectures you wanted. I feel bad that I am making you work all of a sudden,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°However, I am so grateful and happy to see that so many of you have volunteered to work. Like me, you are all deep-rooted science nerds. I think I chose my colleagues well.¡± ¡°It¡¯s difficult to do research for a living after studying this much if you don¡¯t fanboy over academia,¡± Koh Soon-Yeol said as he fixed his sses. ¡°Haha, thank you. Like I wrote in the email, we will provide plenty ofpensation in the form of PTO and bonuses,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I would have still done it without thepensation because the research topic was so interesting. We couldn¡¯t let you work alone sir, so we had to...¡± Choi Myung-Joon raised his hand and interrupted. ¡°Ah, Manager Kim, you¡¯re going overboard.¡± The other scientists lightly scolded. ¡°Anyways, thank you, everyone,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Professor Hariot here will provide us with theb mice. Since we are at war with the clock with this research, we will have to do a few experiments simultaneously.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± ¡°First, could Doctor Kim Myung-Shin and four members from the Protein Structure Analysis Team form a group with Doctor Cheon and the five members of the Life Creation Team and administer the inhibitor into the mice and control it?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°We need to test the amount of drugs discharged and the toxicity, just like the pre-clinical data. And we must monitor the size of the tumor. From day four, the tumor will undergo hyperprogression and get huge rapidly.¡± The scientists looked a little shocked. They knew that they were looking at the side effects of the immune checkpoint inhibitor, but it was the first they were hearing about hyperprogression. ¡°Hyperprogression?¡± Carpentier asked. ¡°That¡¯s right. Doctor Carpentier and the Bone Marrow Differentiation Team, please work with the Diagnostic Device Department to analyze the pharmacological mechanism of hyperprogression in mice.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± ¡°Doctor Felicida¡¯s team and Doctor Choi Myung-Joon¡¯s Health Foods Department, please sacrifice the mice at the appropriate point and create data on the size of the tumor.¡± * * * In order to test an anticancer drug in a mouse model, the mouse obviously had to have a tumor as it would allow one to observe whether or not the tumor decreased when it was treated with anticancer drugs. Then, how could one create a tumor in mice? They could treat them with drugs and naturally induce tumors, but usually, a cancer cell from a human was injected into a mouse and grown into a tumor. This method was called a tumor xenograft. ¡°These mice have tumors that were created using cancer cells from NSCLC(Non-small cell lung cancer) patients. These cells are known to have a mutation in their EGFR,¡± said Hariot as he gave Young-Joon twenty mice. ¡°We were originally going to use them for an experiment, but we will let you use them first since it will be a waste of time for you to wait for a xenograft.¡± ¡°Thank you. What kind of cancer cell is it?¡± ¡°It originated from lung cancer, and the cell strain number is HCC1010.¡± It was clearly a cell that was known to have a mutation in the EGFR. However, Young-Joon couldn¡¯t just blindly trust existing data and begin the experiment; they had to check the condition of the EGFR mutation first. ¡°We do have a DNA analysis machine at Karolinska,¡± Hariot said. ¡°That¡¯s perfect. Would we be able to use it once?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°But the technicians who do it are on vacation and not here...¡± ¡°It¡¯s alright. Our people can do it.¡± The scientists from the Diagnostic Device Department at A-Gen stepped forward. ¡°The technician you have didn¡¯t maintain the machine well. We will take a look at the equipment itself as well,¡± they said. ¡°... Thank you...¡± Hariot nodded in confusion. In just half a day, the Diagnostic Device team got some data. They extracted the genome from the cancer cell that was used to create the tumor, amplified EGFR DNA, took it out, and read it with the DNA analysis machine. ¡°From the report I received, there¡¯s a mutation in EGFR at L858R. Is that correct?¡± Young-Joon asked Hariot the next day. ¡°That¡¯s correct.¡± Leucine, the eight hundred eighty-fifth material that was made from the EGFR gene, had turned into arginine. It was the most famous type of EGFR mutation, and it was the mostmon mutation that induced cancer. ¡°Please give me the inhibitor now,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Of course.¡± Hariot had given Young-Joon a portion of the immunity checkpoint inhibitor that was kept at the Karolinska Institute. Cheon Ji-Myung and the Life Creation Team administered the immune checkpoint inhibitor intravenously as they grew the mice in appropriate conditions. The daily dosage varied from a very small amount of ten micrograms to a high dose of ten milligrams; they had created a variety of conditions. The Diagnostic Device Department used imaging equipment and measured the size of the tumor that was in the mice¡¯s lungs. They tracked the tumor size of all twenty mice every day and gathered data. On the third day, there was still no sign of hyperprogression in the mice. The tumors had gotten smaller than before, and the mice seemed healthy. * * * ¡°This is nonsense. This drug has already beenmercialized,¡± Jamie Anderson said. ¡°We administered the drug to thirty-two patients as we progressed through Phase Three of the clinical trial, but nothing like hyperprogression was observed,¡± said Oliver. ¡°Ryu Young-Joon is testing NSCLC. Were there patients with that type of cancer?¡± ¡°... I don¡¯t think so.¡± ¡°Apparently, there are a lot of EGFR mutations in that type of lung cancer.¡± ¡°How would we have data about whether clinical trial patients had EGFR mutations or not? We had a lot of samples, like blood, but we didn¡¯t analyze their DNA or anything.¡± ¡°Because the only bastards who do that kind of stuff is the A-Bio Next-Generation Hospital. But you can¡¯t let them do this. The Nobel Committee is a conservative organization,¡± Jamie Anderson said. ¡°Oliver, even if side effects don¡¯t happen in this experiment, people like Professor Hariot may be ufortable with it and withhold the Nobel Prize since they¡¯re all possessed by Ryu Young-Joon.¡± ¡°Then what should we do?¡± ¡°The Karolinska Institute is not only a research institute, but a university hospital. There are NSCLC patients here, too.¡¯ ¡°Are you saying that we should use the immune checkpoint inhibitor on NSCLC patients?¡± ¡°I heard that the patient is already past the third stage of lung cancer and they have no other options left. They were going to be given the immune checkpoint inhibitor anyways. The primary doctor seemed to be hesitant because Ryu Young-Joon brought up side effects, but you should go see him.¡± ¡°Um...¡± ¡°If you cure them, Ryu Young-Joon will no longer be able to stubbornly argue that there are side effects.¡± ¡°...¡± Oliver hesitated. ¡°You are the one who made this drug. Are you not confident in it?¡± Jamie Anderson asked. ¡°No, of course not. But...¡± Oliver trailed off. Oliver had researched for more than ten years to create this drug. This technology was like his child. Of course, he believed in it; he was confident in the efficacy of the immune checkpoint inhibitor. He had checked all the pharmacological mechanisms, and he saw that it did not have toxicity. However, his opponent was Young-Joon. The person who was criticizing the side effects of this drug, which had gotten the FDA¡¯s approval, was not just some third-rate rando, but Young-Joon. That weighed on Oliver¡¯s mind. What if this technology, which was like his child, ended up killing someone? What if hyperprogression really urred, like Young-Joon said? ¡®Will I be able to handle the consequences?¡¯ To Oliver, who was lost in thought, Jamie Anderson said, ¡°Oliver, it has already beenmercialized. Have confidence. The fact that the FDA approved it means that its safety was proven in the medicalmunity. This is not a clinical trial; it¡¯s normal treatment. The drug deserves to be administered to the patient.¡± * * * Doctor Song Yu-Ra from the Diagnostic Device Department was given twenty mice from Cheon Ji-Myung¡¯s team in the morning. She used a PET/CT scan and took a picture of the mice¡¯s lungs. The size of the tumor was about half the size of her pinky fingernail until the third day. It was barely distinguishable on the screen, and it was continually getting smaller. However, on the fourth day, Song Yu-Ra doubted her eyes. ¡°What...?¡± The tumor becamerger. The tumor size in the mouse that received one hundred micrograms of the immune checkpoint inhibitor had visibly changed. The tumor had be as big as the space between her knuckles in mice that had received one milligram and ten milligrams. ¡°...¡± How could it get this big all of a sudden? Song Yu-Ra took a photo to save the data, then observed the other mice. The mice that only received trace amounts of the immune checkpoint inhibitor and those who hadn¡¯t received the drug as the control group had no problems. It was clear: the immune checkpoint inhibitor had impacted it negatively. Although, the tumor hadn¡¯t be too big yet. ¡®Is it really hyperprogression?¡¯ Her hands trembled. It was approved by the FDA, and it was the most promising drug from several years ago. It was the most famous anticancer drug in the world before Young-Joon appeared and created the pancreatic cancer cure or Cellicure. It was an anticancer immunotherapy that was expected to change thendscape of the anticancer market along with chimeric immunotherapy. ¡®But it has a side effect.¡¯ Song Yu-Ra sent this data to all the scientists who were participating in the research. Soon, Young-Joon and Carpentier came running. ¡°Sacrifice a set of mice we are using for the experiment and experimentally analyze the pharmacological mechanism. The EGFR signal should have increased. Please confirm that with western blotting,¡± Young-Joon said. Reporting the side effects alone would have a strong impact, but it was the responsibility of scientists to figure out the mechanism. ¡°And please tell the Life Creation Team to keep administering the drug to the rest of the mice and continue with the research. We will be able to see the hyperprogression clearly from tomorrow.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± Song Yu-Ra replied. Young-Joon was correct. The next morning, the tumor nearly doubled in size in the mice that had received the ten milligrams of the inhibitor, thergest dose. The tumor, which was about half the length of a finger, was too much for the mice¡¯s small body ¡°You can see angiogenesis, too...¡± The scientists who gathered behind Song Yu-Ra watched the monitor in shock. The cancer had metastasized. ¡°It¡¯s hyperprogression,¡± Carpentier said. ¡°This mouse will not survive until tomorrow.¡± The scientists nced at Young-Joon. ¡°Thank you for working so hard to create important data. Since there¡¯s still more than a week left until the allotted time, please obtain data from the remaining mice as well. And...¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Write the paper. I will contact Science.¡± Chapter 121: The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences (8) Chapter 121: The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences (8) Samuel, the editor for Science, was extremely excited after reading the newsletter that he received in the morning. Jessie! Jessie! Go on a work trip! he shouted urgently. To Korea? Jessie, who had basically be Young-Joons personal interviewer, asked. No. Sweden. Oh! What a surprise! Is it Karolinska? Or Lund University? Doctor Ryu Young-Joon has been dominating the scientificmunity these days, so its time for a paper toe out from the West as a counterattack. Jessie said like she was d to hear it. Its Doctor Ryus. What? Jessie squinted. Doctor Ryu took his scientist to a conference in Sweden, and he wrote a paper in two weeks after doing research there. ... How is that possible? Has anything hes done ever made sense before? Anyways, go. This is important. Has anything hes done not been important? Jessie said, impersonating Samuel. Did he make some incredible new drug again? she asked as she approached him. He reported on the countereffect of the immune checkpoint inhibitor. Immune checkpoint inhibitor? Doctor Olivers technology was developed at the Cold Spring Lab. ... The most famous technology among the next-generation of immunotherapies. Its about how hyperprogression can ur if it is administered to lung cancer patients with an EGFR mutation. Hyperprogression? Jessie said. She was shocked. This isnt just a mere side effect. I know. Its not a side effect; its a countereffect. And I think there should be some additional exnations about the paper. This paper was the paper that Nature emphasized the most two years ago. And its also what the Cold Spring Lab and Jamie Anderson put forward as their biggest achievement in recent years. ... The scientificmunity might exchange some bitter words with each other. Jamie Andersons faction and the opposite group might fight with Doctor Ryu in the middle of it. Ill go, Jessie said. * * * Hyperprogression urred in all the mice that were given more than one hundred micrograms of the immune checkpoint inhibitor. The mice that only received trace amounts were not in fatal condition, but they had gotten worse. The mice that received more than one milligram of the drug did not survive for more than eight days. As these mice all got worse than the mice that received no treatment, it seemed clear that the inhibitor was what killed the mice. This data was an important target for security as the paper hadnt been released yet. However, Young-Joon revealed this to Hariot and the other evaluators, as well as Oliver and Kakeguni. He gathered them into a small seminar room and presented the data. As you can see, hyperprogression urred in all but four mice, which had received less than a microgram of the drug, and most died, Young-Joon presented. He presented the data measuring the size of the mices tumor and their weight change. It was clear that the change in the tumor size was rted to the dosage of the immune checkpoint inhibitor. Hyperprogression urred faster with more of the inhibitor, the tumor erged more rapidly, and the mice died faster as a result. I was told that this lung cancer cell was obtained from a lung cancer patient at Karolinska twenty years ago, Young-Joon said. What would have happened if the immune checkpoint inhibitor was administered to that patient? This drug is dangerous for NSCLC patients who have EGFR mutations. The scientists were silent. Hariot was incredibly baffled. Hyperprogression really urred, just like Young-Joon said. At this point, it was not science, but a prophecy. So how does the hyperprogression ur? Can you tell us the mechanism? one of the doctors asked. Yes, of course. We identified the mechanism as well. Lets look at the next data. Young-Joon went on to the next slide. As you can see, we identified that the expression of EGFR was amplified. If you treat these types of cancer cells with the immune checkpoint inhibitor, the EGFR signal bes stronger, causing the cancer to increase explosively. Doctor Ryu, Jamie Anderson said. The immune checkpoint inhibitor was administered to a lung cancer patient at Karolinska University Hospital. Young-Joons eyes widened. What? What kind of lung cancer? It was NSCLC, like the one you wrote about. ... Professor Marcus here is in charge of that patient. Professor, please exin it yourself. A lung cancer specialist who looked to be in his sixties opened his mouth solemnly. The patient is eighty-eight years old and has stage three lung cancer. No other treatments worked, and themercialized immune checkpoint inhibitor was the only hope. We were going to use it anyway, so we consulted Professor Oliver, the developer of the treatment, since he was here, said Marcus. Of course, we dont know if theres an EGFR mutation in his lung cancer; we will know when we check it with the DNA analysis machine. We dont know whether hyperprogression will happen when there is a mutation in the EGFR like you said. ... But thankfully, there are no signs of that yet. The sure thing is that the cancer is disappearing from the patients body. It has shrunk to about half its size. ... Young-Joon was pale. Ahem. Jamie Anderson cleared his throat after Marcus stopped talking and added, Doctor Ryu, the immune checkpoint inhibitor is a good drug. It can treat various types of cancer effectively, and lung cancer happens to be Stop the administration right now! Young-Joon shouted. What have you done? You knew that I was studying that drug, didnt you? Even if there was no other way, how could you administer a drug that has issues with hyperprogression? You could have waited for the results! Or examined his EGFR! The tumor shrunk to half its size!Jamie shouted. Doctor Ryu! I dont know how you got that data from the mice experiments, but the immune checkpoint inhibitor has gone through a strict clinical trial and has been approved by the FDA! There are no side effects, and it is clearly suppressing the growth of the tumor! Most NSCLCs have EGFR mutations! Young-Joon said as he mmed the table with his fist. Professors, hyperprogression does not ur right away. In the beginning, the tumor shrinks due to the immune checkpoint inhibitor. Young-Joon opened other data on hisputer. It was data from the first three days. The tumor was getting significantly smaller. However, it returned to its original size on day four, and it became enormous by day five. The growth suppression early on is like an incubation period. The cancer cells in the tumor that received the inhibitor begin to express EGFR inrge quantities. It just takes time to make it! The tables turn from the moment it gets produced! The size of the tumor doubles every six hours! Marcus and the other scientists looked confused. Frustrated, Young-Joon ran down from the podium. Where is that patient right now? Lets examine their EGFR first. ... Lets go, Doctor Ryu. I will show you the diagnostic imaging data, Marcus said. * * * The medical team and scientists followed Marcus into the CT room. Look. Marcus opened the files saved on hisputer. It was aputed tomography scan[1] of the patients lung cancer. The tumor was as big as a fist in old scans, but it had shrunk to almost half its size in the scans Marcus showed Young-Joon next. These were taken yesterday morning, Marcus said. What do you think, Doctor Ryu? ... Young-Joon could not tell right now. If the patient was lucky, he may not have a mutation in his EGFR and be cured. But if he had an EGFR mutation? It might already be out of hand, as there was always calm before a storm. Click. The door to the CT room opened, and a young doctor appeared with a few nurses. An old patient, who was in a gurney, came with them. Oh, Professor Marcus, the doctor said like he was happy to see him. I just contacted you because your patientined about stomach aches and nausea. Did youe down here for that? ... A stomachache and nausea? Its the first I am hearing of this Marcus was confused. The patient who was lying on the gurney was the NSCLC patient who was given the immune checkpoint inhibitor. I see. I decided to take a CT scan and brought him here. What would you like to do? Lets take a CT, Marcus said. The patient had already received a contrast medium. He climbed into the CT machine andid down on the bed. The machine began working and soon, a scan appeared on the monitor. ck. Marcus dropped his pen. Shock swept over the medical team and the scientists. The tumor, which had shrunk by fifty percent, had grown bigger than its original size in just one day. How How could this Marcus stuttered. Its hyperprogression. Young-Joon sighed. * * * Jessie, who had arrived in Sweden, had not been able to meet Young-Joon. Im sorry, but now is not the time for an interview nor am I in the mood. There are a total of three co-first authors of this project, so please interview them, Young-Joon said briefly and declined the interview. He was sitting in a small cafe in Solna and drinking coffee. Do you want to save the patient? Yeah, Young-Joon replied in a quiet voice. That patient does not have much time left. Hyperprogression has already begun, and it is difficult to control it. He will probably die in a few days. Is there any way? Of course, I can think of countless ways. Rosaline said like it was not a big deal. But realistically, most of them will be difficult for me to do, right? Most of them are illegal. For example, you could administer arge amount of EGFR inhibitor through inhtion to stop hyperprogression. Theres an inhibitor like that? You have to make it. But it takes time to make it? Thats why it is a problem. You will be able to save the patient if you borrow or steal ab in Solna, organically synthesize the inhibitor, skip all the animal experiments and the clinical trial approval process, and then shove it into the patients nose. Experimental treatment is possible if I get consent from Marcus and the patient, but they wont agree to use some unknown chemical that hasnt been tested before. Wont they just trust you and let you do it since youre a miracle-working scientist who has been sessful in a lot of things? Well, maybe if I desperately try to convince them. But I dont want to try it with some unclear possibility that they might let me do it. Just administer it secretly. Then, you can still save the patient. But then Ill go to jail. Rosaline thumped her feet on the ground in anxiety while sitting in the chair. Then there is no way. ... Its possible to use chimeric immunotherapy, but it takes too long. Young-Joon was lost in thought, but then his eyes widened. Wait. Chimeric immunotherapy What about it? Rosaline. Im going to write a sci-fi novel right now. Tell me the possibility of it working. Alright. Tell me. Chimeric immunotherapy takes out the immune cells and gives it a new weapon by editing the genes. Yes. And the dendritic cells are cells that provide information about cancer cells to immune cells. And Professor Kakegunis technology is about stimting dendritic cells to help that process. Thats right. What if we revise it a little and make it so that the dendritic cell delivers the gene to the immune cell? What if we give the weapons to the immune cells in the patients body? Young-Joon asked. Then, wouldn''t we be able to skip the process of extracting immune cells from the patients body and manipting the gene and do the chimeric immunotherapy right away? 1. moremonly known as a CT Chapter 122: The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences

Chapter 122: The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences

Rosaline¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°So?¡± Young-Joon urged Rosaline for an answer. ¡ªIt is definitely a sci-fi novel full of imagination. ¡°Would it be too difficult?¡± ¡ªHonestly, yes, it is. You¡¯re throwing out these crazy, unbelievable ideas because you trust me, right? ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡ªI didn¡¯t think of that, but it¡¯s interesting. It will be realistic if I improve the technical parts. ¡°Really?¡± ¡ªYes. Let¡¯s make it together. Rosaline said. * * * Kakeguni had practically given up on this year¡¯s Nobel Prize. Honestly, he thought that it was going to go into Oliver¡¯s hand, and he thought that hisst chance had gone out the window because he was so old. However, the tables had turned now. The immune checkpoint inhibitor had a fatal side effect: it was countereffective in patients who had a mutation in the EGFR gene. ¡®Then won¡¯t I have a chance?¡¯ Kakeguni, who was in deep thought, received a phone call in his hotel room. ¡ªThere¡¯s a guest who would like to meet you. Should I tell them to wait in the lobby? The hotel employee at the front desk said. ¡°Yes. I¡¯lle down.¡± Young-Joon had contacted Kakeguni today asking to meet briefly. He thought that it would obviously be Young-Joon, but it was someone entirely unexpected. It was a beautiful and intelligent woman who was in good shape and looked to be about thirty years old. ¡°Hello, professor. My name is Song Ji-Hyun, and I am from a Korean pharmaceuticalpany called Celligener.¡± Song Ji-Hyun introduced herself. ¡°Nice to meet you. Were you in my lecture?¡± Kakeguni asked while shaking her hand. ¡°Yes. I was thinking about a lot of things after listening to that lecture, and I had a very good idea. I asked the staff at the conference and came to this hotel. I apologize that I asked to meet you so suddenly without contacting you in advance.¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s alright. Should we go over there and continue?¡± Kakeguni led Song Ji-Hyun to the coffee shop in the hotel and ordered a beverage. ¡°So, what is the good idea?¡± Kakeguni asked. ¡°There is something called chimeric immunotherapy among the technologies developed by Conson & Colson. A-Bio has acquired it and is currently progressing with further development. I think that if it continues to advance, it could soon conquer all types of cancer. I believe it could be the most powerful cancer treatment.¡± Kakeguni nodded. ¡°I agree as well. Clearly, there is a reason why scientists are abandoning the old strategy of targeting cancer cells with chemicals and are trying to use the capabilities of the human immune system.¡± ¡°Because chemical agents can destroy normal cells, and it is easy for cancer cells with resistance to develop.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. If the patient rpses, the drug bes useless, and it¡¯s over for the patient. However, immunotherapy is not like that, especially chimeric immunotherapy. Theoretically, it can be upgraded endlessly.¡± Chimeric immunotherapy was about attaching new weapons to immune cells. If cancer cells evolved to have armor when immune cells were given powerful swords? They would just have to give guns to the immune cells. If the cancer cells evolved further and wore bulletproof vests? They just had to give missiles to the immune cells. Being able to engineer immune cells meant that they could create them in the most optimized state to target cancer cells. ¡°Although it is currently unrealistic since it costs tens of billions of won and takes months of work,¡± Kakeguni said. ¡°That is what I am talking about,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said with sparkling eyes. ¡°Professor, wouldn¡¯t we be able to engineer the immune cells in the patient¡¯s body using your dendritic cell maniption technology?¡± ¡°With dendritic cell maniption...?¡± ¡°Yes. Your technology is about using endocytic receptors to feed dendritic cells with the desired substance, right? And then we make the dendritic cell recognize that substance as an antibody and teach the immune cells to find and destroy it?¡± Cancer cells had various kinds of mutations, such as an EGFR mutation. What would happen if they gave the EGFR mutation to the dendritic cell? The dendritic cell would analyze the EGFR mutation carefully, and then teach it to the immune cells. ¡®This looks dangerous, so find this and destroy it.¡¯ Dendritic cells were themander of immune cells; the immune cells that received its orders would look for EGFR mutations furiously. There was a huge difference in the efficiency of an operation between having amand tower and not having one. Kakeguni had developed a method to feed desired substances to dendritic cells. Of course, this process urred naturally in the body even if it was not fed to them, but in extremely low probability. It sort of worked like this: 1. A floating dendritic cell meets a cancer cell due to luck. 2. That cancer naturally dies or gets destroyed by a wandering immune cell at that moment with incredible luck. 3. Out of the billions of substances that are flowing out of the cancer cell, the mutated EGFR miraculously gets absorbed into the dendritic cell. 4. This lucky single dendritic cell analyzes the mutated EGFR and survives until it can teach the immune cells. It was not easy to sessfullyplete all these steps. The reason why it was so inefficient was because dendritic cells were originally amand tower to recognize foreign pathogens. They were extremely skilled in finding substances made by foreign bacteria that had entered the body. However, it was not easy for them to track something like a mutated EGFR that a cancer cell made as it was originally the patient¡¯s cell. But using Kakeguni¡¯s technology, they could feed the mutated EGFR to many dendritic cells at once and make them recognize that as the enemy; the immune mechanism would be activated very efficiently. ¡°Hm...¡± Kakeguni thought hard for a moment. ¡°What do you think? Do you think it¡¯s a good idea? If it¡¯s okay, should I talk to Mr. Ryu and start this project?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked. ¡°Do you know Mr. Ryu?¡± ¡°... We are not closer personally, but we did a few projects together in the past.¡± To be honest, Song Ji-Hyun was not very confident in this amazing idea. She did not know about dendritic cells or chimeric immunotherapy in as much detail as Kakeguni or Young-Joon. She could be just spewing an embarrassing delusion. However, that was why she came to Kakeguni first rather than meeting Young-Joon; it was so that she would be able to talk to Young-Joon more confidently if Kakeguni said it was possible. Atst, Kakeguni opened his mouth. ¡°However, Doctor Song, dendritic cells aremanders, not engineers. Dendritic cells can teach immune cells about who the enemy is, but they cannot edit immune cells themselves.¡± ¡°Would this be difficult?¡± ¡°Substances are delivered from dendritic cells to immune cells and the antibody that the dendritic cell recognized would probably move as well, like the mutated EGFR. But the EGFR is just something that controls cell growth. It can¡¯t manipte the immune cell¡¯s genes or anything like that.¡± Thud! The coffee shop doors opened forcefully. The bell on the door rang loudly. Young-Joon, who was out of breath, walked inside while catching his breath. ¡°Professor Kakeguni!¡± he shouted as he ran towards them. Kakeguni and Song Ji-Hyun were startled. ¡°... Doctor Ryu...?¡± ¡°Mr. Ryu...?¡± Young-Joon briefly greeted Song Ji-Hyun at the table. ¡°Hello, Doctor Song.¡± Then, he quickly turned to look at Kakeguni. He was flushed, and his face, which was more excited than ever, was filled with passionate joy. ¡°Professor, let¡¯s use the dendritic cell technology. Let¡¯s make chimeric immune cells with that!¡± Song Ji-Hyun¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°What a coincidence! Doctor Song was just talking about that,¡± Kakeguni said. ¡°Really?¡± Young-Joon turned his face toward Song Ji-Hyun in surprise. ¡°Uh...¡± Song Ji-Hyu blushed a little. ¡°But Professor Kakeguni said that it won¡¯t work. He said that dendritic cells only give the substance that will be the antibody to the immune cell and that it can¡¯t manipte genes...¡± ¡°Let¡¯s put in Cas9,¡± Young-Joon said. The two froze like someone had mmed a hammer down on the table. ¡°Let¡¯s attach an RNA that recognizes the target on Cas9, feed it to the dendritic cell, then deliver it to the immune cell. It will be recognized and delivered easier because it is originally from a bacteria,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°This process is not making the immune cell recognize and search for Cas9, you know that, right? Cas9 are gene scissors; it is to manipte the immune cell¡¯s genes with the Cas9 that has entered the cell.¡± ¡°Holy... Is that possible?¡± Kakeguni was shocked. ¡°Doctor Ryu, a DNA particle is smaller than dust. Even if you use gene scissors, it is difficult to manipte it, even in theb. But you¡¯re going to indirectly introduce it to the immune cell through another cell, and then manipte those fine genes by cutting and gluing it within the body? By indirectly using the gene scissors through a cell?¡± In terms of surgery, this was no different than performing brain surgery by holding a scalpel with a robot arm that was inside a w machine; it was insane. ¡°Doctor Ryu, you think that will work?¡± Kakeguni said like it was ridiculous. ¡°It will. There''s a way,¡± Young-Joon said confidently. ¡°I will exin the details soon. Just tell me if you have a kit that can be put into a dendritic cell through endocytosis.¡± ¡°I... do have one...¡± ¡°That¡¯s enough. I can guarantee you that we can safely manipte more than forty gene locations in any way we want at once.¡± ¡°Forty!¡± Kakeguni shouted. ¡°Yes. If we use this, we can make chimeric immune cells very easily, and we can destroy most cancers at once.¡± ¡°...¡± Song Ji-Hyun waspletely frozen. She had almost given up on the idea with a little embarrassment when she heard Kakeguni¡¯s answer. But Young-Joon was going to break through it in such a powerful way? Can this really work? ¡®Wait.¡¯ If this seeded, what kind of world would open up? Chimeric immunotherapy was evaluated to have the potential to cure ny percent of leukemia patients after it was developed. ¡®...¡¯ But that wasn¡¯t all. The technology that could simultaneously manipte forty genes of individual cells within the human body: this was DNA surgery. It was the same as a surgeon cutting open the abdomen with a scalpel, excising lesions, and administering medication, but on a molecr level instead. Chills ran down Song Ji-Hyun¡¯s body. ¡°Doctor Ryu, this makes no sense. Even if you can extract a patient¡¯s immune cells and manipte its genes in a test tube, you can¡¯t manipte forty of them,¡± Kakeguni criticized. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°Then how could you possibly handle forty genes when you are indirectly using another cell and indirectly manipting their genes within their body, where there are millions of intricately linked variables?¡± ¡°It¡¯s because it is done in the body,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°As you know, immune cells cannot live long if you extract them outside the body. There is a limit to growing immune cells. The time constraint is why it is difficult to manipte their genes outside.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°But it is okay since we are doing it inside the body. Instead ofying the immune cell on the surgical bed, we are doing the surgery in the immune cell¡¯s home. It is the most stable. The dendritic cell will deliver the information of about forty genes and Cas9 to the immune cell, and Cas9 will rip apart and fix the forty genes in the immune cell,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°That immune cell will be the most powerful cell in the history of mankind. Lung cancer cells will not stand a chance.¡± Chapter 123: The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences (10)

Chapter 123: The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences (10)

Forsberg was an elderly patient who was almost ny years old. He was an NSCLC patient. It had been three days since hyperprogression started, and Forsberg¡¯s condition worsened every six hours, but a rxed smile appeared on his thin face covered with age spots. ¡°I¡¯ve long passed my supposedst day. Don¡¯t you think I did pretty well?¡± he asked Marcus. ¡°What do you think, Marcus?¡± ¡°... I¡¯m sorry.¡± Marcus dropped his head like he was ashamed to see him. ¡°No. I would have administered APD if I were you, too,¡± Forsberg replied. APD was the drug name of the immune checkpoint inhibitor. ¡°Of course, there was no such drug when I was your supervisor.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°It¡¯s actually for the best. Through my body, you found that this drug can cause hyperprogression in certain patients,¡± Forsberg said. ¡°In this life, I taught at Karolinska, evaluated Nobel Prize nominees, and reported the huge countereffects of the immunotherapy that is considered to be the greatest drug today. I am satisfied in every way.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Anyway, what a fascinating young man Ryu Young-Joon is.¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu?¡± ¡°I did hear a lot about him because he is so widely known, but how did he predict hyperprogression? That¡¯s not something that can be done with ingenuity, right?¡± ¡°...¡± Before giving Forsberg the immune checkpoint, Professor Marcus already told him everything about how Young-Joon was arguing about the fatal side effects of the inhibitor, and how hyperprogression could ur if he had a mutation in a certain gene. However, Forsberg calmly epted it. What he had said then was still fresh in Marcus¡¯ head. ¡ªNothing works on my body now. So, you were going to administer APD to me as ast resort; that was the original n. But are you being swayed just because of a im that one scientist is making based on theoretical reasoning? Even though he doesn¡¯t have any data yet? No matter how much of a genius scientist he is, and even though everything he says is right, you can¡¯t do that. Even if the entire world believes him, doctors have to administer drugs by trusting data, not people. Proceed with what you originally nned! It was a tough, angry scolding, but it waspletely right. Still, Marcus could not use a drug so recklessly on his teacher, who taught him in training, and the master of medicine in Sweden. ¡ªWhat if Doctor Ryu is right? Then what are you going to do?! You want me to carry all the guilt if hyperprogression urs? Forsberg replied nonchntly to Marcus, who was arguing with his jaw clenched. ¡ªThis rookie is shouting at me now that he¡¯s be a professor. There is only one result if hyperprogression urs in my body, Marcus. What do you think that is? It means that the problem Ryu Young-Joon is raising has gained a powerful piece of evidence. ¡ª... ¡ªIt cost an astronomical amount of money to develop APD. Do you think that a drug like that will easily withdraw from the first-line of treatment just because of some mouse experiment? People will begin to examine it seriously if side effects are reported in humans. It might take more than one person, and I am going to be the first person to start that process. It¡¯s great if I get cured, but even if I don¡¯t, I¡¯m satisfied that I produced important clinical data for the advancement of medicine. Marcus was extremely upset, but there was nothing he could do. As he was also one of the doctors who was deeply touched by the legendary Young-Joon, he was anxious that Young-Joon was going to be right this time as well. In this situation, however, he needed to proceed. The results were horrendous. ¡°You are a stubborn bull,¡± Marcus said to Forsberg. ¡°Hahaha. Thank you. That¡¯s apliment, right? I was able to have this much honor in my life because I have lived my whole life like this.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°But I have a question, and I hope you will give me an honest answer. How much time do I have left?¡± ¡°I think you have a week at most...¡± ¡°A week...¡± A faint smile appeared on Forsberg¡¯s face. ¡°It¡¯s a shame, to be honest. Looking back, I¡¯m satisfied with my life, but it¡¯s still a shame. I would even be able to see my great-grandchild¡¯s face anymore.¡± ¡°... Would you like me to discharge you?¡± ¡°Actually, there is one thing I have to do before I leave.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± Knock knock knock! Someone knocked on the door. The VIP patient room that Forsberg was in was a single room, and since Marcus was visiting right now, there was no one else that would being to see him. Puzzled, Marcus opened the door. ¡°Oh...!¡± He backed away in surprise. Key members of the Royal Swedish Academy of Science hade along with their entourage. And among them was a middle-aged couple with dignity and elegance. ¡°We¡¯re here to see Professor Forsberg,¡± said Desideria, the crown princess of the Swedish Royal family. Frozen, Marcus stammered and backed away. The Swedish Royal family was very simple, and they did not make gossip by luxuriating or socializing like other Royal families in Europe. They didn¡¯t use their authority or boast their power because they were Royals. However, she was the heir apparent to the Swedish throne, ¡°Marcus, bring them in.¡± Marcus stepped aside and cleared the way. ¡°Thank you.¡± Desideria thanked him and approached Forsberg with her entourage and the scientists. ¡°How are you feeling?¡± she asked. ¡°I¡¯m so good that I think I¡¯ll be discharged soon. I do push-ups in my spare time nowadays,¡± Forsberg replied yfully. Desideria smiled. ¡°All the other professors are disappointed because you¡¯re not at the academy anymore,¡± she said. ¡°Haha... My apologies.¡± ¡°...¡± Desideria stared at Forsberg, then asked, ¡°How much time did they say you have left?¡± Forsberg was one of the key members of the academy. The scientists of the academy and the facultymittee of Karolinska were all very close to each other. Since they had a rtionship like that, the word got out quickly. There was already talk about hyperprogression and whatnot. ¡°They say a week,¡± Forsberg replied calmly. Desideria frowned slightly. Then, sadness appeared on her face. ¡°The Royal family will do whatever we can.¡± ¡°Haha, just let me go quietly. All I want is to take my great-grandchild on a walk by Rostanga Lake.¡± ¡°...¡± No one could say anything. There was a heavy silence in the room. Knock knock knock! Someone knocked on the door again. All twenty people in the room turned and nced at the door, confused. ¡°Everyone who should be here is already here,¡± Professor Alchen of the academy mumbled. Marcus opened the door. A young, Asian man and woman, and an old man appeared. Marcus did not know who Song Ji-Hyun was, but he recognized Young-Joon and Kakeguni. ¡°Doctor Ryu? Professor Kakeguni?¡± Marcus said with a surprised face. As Marcus spoke, Forsberg raised his head from his bed to look at the door. ¡°Doctor Ryu?¡± he said. ¡°Is Doctor Ryu here?¡± Forsberg leaned and tried to see Young-Joon through the scientists and the Crown Princess. However, it wasn¡¯t easy as they were also moving and trying to see Young-Joon. ¡°Why are there so many people here...¡± Song Ji-Hyun, who was surprised, quietly mumbled without realizing. It was strange that the patient room was a VIP room. All she hade to do was meet the patient, but there were over twenty visitors. Additionally, they were all wearing formal suits, and the atmosphere seemed serious. ¡®Who is the patient?¡¯ ¡°You had visitors. Excuse my abruptness. Could we talk outside?¡± Young-Joon asked Marcus. ¡°Wait!¡± Forsberg shouted. ¡°Stop, Doctor Ryu. Come here.¡± Young-Joon stared at Forsberg with a slightly puzzled look. ¡°I don¡¯t know what you are going to tell Marcus, but I want to hear it if it¡¯s rted to my body,¡± Forsberg said. ¡°The patient will be able to hear it through Professor Marcus,¡± Young-Joon replied respectfully. The treatment of a patient had to be left entirely to the primary doctor. Too many cooks would spoil the broth. It could create false hope for the patient if an outsider talked to the patient about treatment carelessly. Plus, it wasn¡¯t respectful to the primary doctor either. Young-Joon was thinking of convincing Marcus to do the treatment. However, Forsberg was stubborn. ¡°I have the right to listen. Doctor Ryu, pleasee over here. I am not just a regr patient. I was a doctor and professor who looked after patients and taught students at Karolinska for forty years, and I am a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. I know more about the lung cancer in my body than most people in the world. I am one of the greatest scientists in Sweden.¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joon did not know this. ¡®This is the lung cancer patient Marcus was looking after?¡¯ ¡°I think we can discuss it here, Doctor Ryu,¡± Kaekguni said with a smile as he looked at everyone in the room. Contemting, Young-Joon looked at Forsberg¡¯s eyes. He was an elderly scientist who was about ny years old, but his eyes were shining with pure passion and the curiosity of a young boy. Young-Joon knew that feeling. ¡®If I was sitting in that hospital bed with less than a few days left to live... And if I saw a famous scientist who has cured many incurable diseases suddenlye to see my doctor...¡¯ He would also guess that there was something and be extremely curious. It would be fine if the treatment failed; he would just be so curious about what n the scientist brought to the table. The biggest disappointment in the short time he had left may be not being able to hear the ideas Young-Joon brought. ¡°Alright. I will tell you here. But who are these people...?¡± Young-Joon asked Marcus as he gestured at Desideria. ¡°...¡± As Marcus stammered again, Foxberg replied for him. ¡°They are my friends. You can just talk to me here because they are all trustworthy.¡± ¡°... Of course. Professor Marcus, Professor Kakeguni, Doctor Song, this way please.¡± Young-Joon called the three people to the bed where Foxberg was lying. Kakeguni briefly stopped in front of Desideria while walking. ¡°Scientists like that have no interest in socializing. Please understand his impoliteness of not recognizing you.¡± Kakeguni bowed, then went to stand beside Young-Joon. Then, Young-Joon¡¯s deration fell into the room like a bomb. ¡°I can cure the patient.¡± ¡°...¡± The great, talented scientists of the academy were here, but no one could say anything. They froze because they were so dumbfounded. ¡°How are you going to treat me?¡± Forsberg asked. ¡°I am going to use chimeric immunotherapy.¡± ¡°I heard you used that on a child who was suffering from liver cancer in Korea. That you did that in three weeks, a very short amount of time. It¡¯s true that you cut the time hugely, as it usually takes months, but you can¡¯t use it on me,¡± Forsberg said. ¡°Doctor Ryu, I have less than a week left. It will take a week just to extract cells from my body and grow them. We won¡¯t have time to manipte the gene, test it, and administer it to my body again.¡± ¡°I can treat you today.¡± ¡°...¡± Forsberg¡¯s eyes widened. Young-Joon exined further about how he was going to feed Cas9 to dendritic cells, deliver that to the immune cells to manipte the gene, and use that immune cell to destroy the cancer cells. ¡°My god!¡± Alchen, a professor at the academy, shouted. ¡°Doctor Ryu, are you insane? A patient is not ab mouse. What are you trying to do?¡± ¡°Professor Kakeguni¡¯s technology is safe, and it is amercialized treatment that has already been approved by the FDA. The same goes for the chimeric immunotherapy.¡± ¡°Of course, that¡¯s true. But they have never been used together like that before, right? Even two approved treatments may require new approval for clinical use if the action mechanism changes like this. And Cas9? Has the stability of gene scissors been proven?¡± ¡°You are right. I have chosen a way tobine existing technologies to skip the constraint of getting approval for clinical use, but frankly, this treatment could be overturned if you challenge that part,¡± Young-Joon said with honesty. ¡°However, I am confident that this treatment will seed. And that is why I came to convince Professor Marcus.¡± ¡°...¡± Silence filled the room again. ¡°Sigh, this is... I¡¯ve never seen such a crazy and unusual treatment before,¡± said Alchen. ¡°Professor Marcus, this could create legal problems if you proceed with this without approval.¡± ¡°...¡± Marcus was deep in thought. As he picked at his lips, Foxberg spoke to him. ¡°Why are you thinking about this, Marcus? Go ahead.¡± ¡°Professor!¡± Some of the scientists were shocked. ¡°I¡¯m going to die in a week anyway. I will receive Doctor Ryu¡¯s experimental treatment thatbines the greatest technologies in this generation.¡± Chapter 124: The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences (11) Chapter 124: The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences (11) Mr. Forsberg, are you really okay with this? asked a bearded man with a good build. It was the Secretary General Kanius; he was a permanent member who held the highest position at the academy. Its alright, Forsberg replied with a grin. I am worried that you are being too reckless with your body. Science is important, but your body is important as well, Kanius said. Im really fine. And Doctor Ryus idea is quite convincing. Both technologies are so stable that they dont need any other approvals. But since this is the first case ofbining and using them together, this clinical case could conflict with medicalws. I hope you could ease them if theye up, Your Royal Highness, Forsberg said to Desideria. Song Ji-Hyun flinched. It seemed like she was surprised that Desideria was a princess. Young-Joon was also surprised, but it didnt really show. Forsberg added, Because even if this treatment goes wrong, I dont want it to hold Doctor Ryu back. My work in the scientificmunity is done and Im just reviewing Nobel Prize nominees now, but Doctor Ryu is a young scientist who has much to do. Desideria stared at Forsberg silently, then said, I will promise you in the name of the Swedish Royal family. Then we will prepare the treatment to administer to the patient, said Young-Joon. I look forward to it, Forsberg said with a chuckle like he found it interesting. Young-Joon, who said goodbye to the scientists and the Crown Princess and stepped outside, headed straight to theb. It was theb he borrowed from Karolinska. Professor Kakeguni appeared with the dendritic cell-promoting kit. On the sterile bench, Young-Joon added Cas9 into the MEM solution, which was heated to thirty-seven degrees, and mixed in the promoting kit. As they were busy with the procedure, a guest visited theb. It was Crown Princess Desideria. She came to theb with her security team and entourage, rang the doorbell and waited outside. She thought that she shouldnt go into theb without authorization. When Young-Joon came outside, Desideria asked him a question. Doctor Ryu, can you really cure Professor Forsberg? I didnt get the chance to ask you before because we were in front of the professors. Young-Joon nodded. Of course. Please, I am asking you. He is the most important person at the academy. He sacrificed his whole life to look after patients and teach students. Forsberg was a national hero in Sweden. He was the greatest doctor in the country. He had a simr level of respect and recognition as Professor Lee Guk-Jong[1] in Sweden. It was not an exaggeration to say that he had sacrificed his entire life for medicine. He had copsed five times from overworking when he was a surgeon at Karolinska and looked after patients. He was also very open to new technologies, so he spent nights reading new papers. If he found a technology that was even a little bit more advanced than what he had, he was the first to adopt it. He wasnt just a regr doctor at a hospital; he was someone who had continuously led medicine in Sweden. He is probably well-known in the pharmaceutical and biologymunity. Is this the first time youve seen him? Desideria asked. I Yes, I didnt know him. Im sorry, Young-Joon replied in embarrassment. Because Doctor Ryu is young, Kakeguni, who was now behind him, said as he put his hand on his shoulder. How many people do you think would recognize Mendel if he came back alive and showed up here? Scientists do not know faces of people from the past who they havent met in research. The scientists pictures arent published in the papers. I see. Desideria nodded. There was no way for Young-Joon and Forsberg to meet in the research field since Forsberg had already retired and be part of the Nobel Committee when Young-Joon was in graduate school. But there are a lot of professors in my age group that know Professor Forsberg, even though medical doctors are quite different from scientists in pharmacology and biology, Kakeguni said. Desideria added, Professor Forsberg is one of eighteen lifetime members of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. If you cure him, the Royal family of Sweden and the academy will be deeply grateful to you both. Young-Joon nodded. I will make sure to seed. * * * It was early in the morning. The dendritic cell promoter, a monumental masterpiece made by Kakeguni, was created. Usually, they included a material that was like a map to find cancer cells in the promoter, but this time, Cas9 was added. Additionally, information about the structure of fourteen genes was added into the promoter in the form of RNA. We will begin. Marcus injected the treatment into Forsbergs veins with trembling hands. Can you check it? Young-Joon was observing it, but with Rosaline. I will turn on Synchronization Mode for you. The substances flowing in Forsbergs veins were expanded enormously and created an image in Young-Joons retina. Time had slowed down. He was able to slowly observe the molecr phenomenon in Synchronization Mode, which could distinguish picoseconds and angstroms. Like a rocket was docking at the space station, one RNA molecule attached to one Cas9. This RNA was a map for finding the target gene. For this treatment, fourteen types of RNA were added; it was to manipte fourteen genes. Cas9 would find the target location with the RNA map and cut it. Pshhh With the sound of the phospholipid disintegrating, the promoter knocked on the dendritic cell membrane. Like it was being engulfed softly in bubbles, the Cas9 moved into the cell. The dendritic cell began packaging the Cas9 in a substance called MHC. The package popped up to the cell surface again, and then made contact with an immune cell that was floating nearby. There was no way, but Young-Joon felt like he could hear the cells talking to each other Its a new antibody. The dendritic cell handed the Cas9 over to the immune cells. I will check it. The immune cell swallowed up the Cas9. At that moment, the Cas9, which had infiltrated the cell, suddenly became active and moved to the immune cells DNA. The Cas9 read the RNA map and searched the huge library of gic material that contained three billion letters. Atst, it found the target gene. E1K Snip! Cas9 cut the gene where E1K was located. The cutting of DNA, the core of biological processes, was a very serious thing for immune cells. The DNA repair mechanism was activated in the immune cell. However, a few bases that came with Cas9 interfered with the repair. It was like cutting a knee with torn cartge with a scalpel and putting in metal pins. The DNA was torn apart, and a portion of the gene variant was put in and left to heal naturally. A muchrger amount of E1K poured out of the newly formed and edited gene. The immune cells were moving differently now. Whoosh! They traveled through the blood vessels and ran towards the tumor rapidly. Beep! A signal came from the tumor. It was a PD-L1 signal that stopped immune cells. Ting, ting, ting. However, the substances that the tumor was pushing out could not pierce the immune cell membrane and just bounced off. Boom! The immune cell crashed into the tumor and began to dig deep into the interior. T-cell infiltration. Young-Joon wanted to eat some popcorn while watching the biological process he had learned from textbooks. It was as thrilling as an action movie. Pahh! The perforin secreted by the immune cell sted away three cancer cells. As their cell membranes had been broken, they became slimy and copsed. Crash! Three more cancer cells were destroyed by another shot. ... Its not going to take long. It was more powerful than Young-Joon had expected. It was even more effective than the chimeric immunotherapy that he used on Lee Yoon-Ah. It had to be, as the immune cell had fourteen edited genes; even excluding E1K, it had thirteen additional target genes to improve the power of the immune cells. These genes enhanced tumor attraction, resisted the inhibitory substances secreted by the tumor, increased the ability to prate into the tumor, or increased the amount and power of cytotoxic substances released to destroy the tumor. I can edit up to forty genes in immune cells at once when I use Professor Kakegunis method. Young-Joon had only targeted fourteen genes to minimize the risk of side effects, but it was already powerful. I should optimize this technology and push formercialization once the cancerb is done in America. Young-Joon may really conquer one day. He stopped Synchronization Mode. Thest thing that he saw were tens of thousands of immune cells swarming toward the tumor. * * * The conference was over. The scientists at A-Gen or A-Bio had already returned to Korea, or they were enjoying their vacation and traveling all over Europe. However, Young-Joon was still at Karolinska. It was thest day of reviewing the Nobel Prize nominees. The final decision was going to be submitted to the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences tonight. Of course, the biggest issue was the countereffect of the immune checkpoint inhibitor. I exined the mechanism in which it urs throughb mice. But now, the mouse experiment isnt that important. Since a clinical case was reported, said Professor Herrekr. Jamie Anderson gulped. The hyperprogression that urred in Forsbergs body was a huge shock to Oliver, the inventor of the immune checkpoint inhibitor, and to him as well. But this is only the first case. And we dont really know if the patient had a mutation in EGFR, right? Jamie said. Judges, the immune checkpoint inhibitor has been administered to many patients, but this is the first time hyperproession has urred. It is ridiculous to devalue an important drug like this just because of a single incident. I am not saying that we should not use immune checkpoint inhibitors. Of course, it is still valuable and an important drug, Young-Joon said. But it can induce hyperprogression in patients with EGFR mutations. In that sense, it is true that the value decreases a little in terms of versatility. Jamie Anderson clenched his jaw and red at Young-Joon. The immune checkpoint inhibitor was developed at the Cold Spring Laboratory, and the director of thatb was Jamie Anderson. He put his name as a corresponding author on every paper published from there. What this meant was that the value of the immune checkpoint inhibitor decreasing also impacted Jamie Anderson. The things that Doctor Ryu has said still require additional experiments and cross-examination, said Jamie Anderson. That is true since it says that less than ten percent of the papers in Science or Nature will survive fifty yearster. I might be wrong, so we must cross-examine it. When the paper is published, many scientists will test the rtionship between immune checkpoint inhibitors and EGFR genes. But Doctor Ryu, we cant dy the Nobel Prize until then, can we? We cant cancel the Nobel Prize just because of one clinical case and mouse experiment. Professor Oliver should receive the award. Jamie Anderson was being stubborn. ... The Karolinska professors sighed worriedly and nced at the two of them. They were Swedish, and they were doctors. Not just any doctor, but doctors at Karolinska. Here, Forsberg was a legendary person, and they were obviously ufortable with the immune checkpoint inhibitor that had destroyed him. As such, they were already leaning towards Young-Joon and Kakeguni, but Jamie Anderson did not back down easily. The confrontationsted for a moment. Then Sorry, Imte. Marcus, who was one of the judges, came in. Surprisingly, he was pushing a wheelchair. It was Forsberg. Professor! Surprised, the Karolinska professors all bolted up. Should you be out like this? they asked, worried. Ah, its fine. I am recovering quite quickly, Forsberg said with a chuckle as if he was in a good mood. He stared at Young-Joon, then turned to face Jamie Anderson. Its been a while, Anderson. ... Yes, it has. How are you feeling? Jamie Anderson asked with a frown. Hahaha. I trusted your name and used the immune checkpoint inhibitor, but I almost died. But Professor Kakeguni and Doctor Ryu Young-Joon saved me, Forsberg replied. Then, he asked the professors, So, how is the process going? Who are you leaning towards? Professor Forsberg has no right to participate in the judging process, Jamie Anderson said firmly. Oh, of course I dont. I just asked because I was curious. I have no intention of interfering with the process. However, Director Anderson, you know Know what? My right as a lifetime member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences has not been suspended. Lifetime means until I die, but Im still alive thanks to Doctor Ryu and Professor Kakeguni. ... When the review isplete, the Karolinska Nobel Conference will vote, then present a letter to His Majesty the King that includes the name and achievements of the final selected candidate, saying that we should give the Nobel Prize to this person, Forsberg said. If Im lucky, I think I will read that letter beside His Majesty as well. I think I will be able to leave the hospital quickly at this rate. Jamie Anderson grit his teeth. Forsberg smiled. And Director Anderson, I think I am going to be suspicious of whether it was due to racism if someone is eliminated, so I hope you make a wise decision and present the letter. 1. a very famous and well-respected doctor in Korea Chapter 125: The American Cancer Conference (1) Chapter 125: The American Cancer Conference (1) Young-Joon received a text message from Song Ji-Hyun on the way out of the Nobel Prize review debate. [Theres a ce that sells Swedish food near the Rostanga Lake. Do you want to go together?] He was leaving in a few days. Young-Joon came to Sweden to see Kakeguni and attend other scientists lectures, but looking back, he barely had time to look around as he did experiments, made a new technology, and published a paper here. [Sure.] Young-Joon sent a reply. The review debate happened to have just ended. He drove to Rostanga Lake. He had arrived when the evening sunset was still lingering on theke''s surface. Song Ji-Hyun had already ordered a dish and was waiting at the restaurant; it was a traditional Swedish dish made with pickled herrings as the mainponent. Professor Forsberg rmended this restaurant, Song Ji-Hyun said. Really? Yes. He told me about it when I went with Professor Marcus to analyze immune cell activity in his blood, she replied. Actually, Forsberg pestered Song Ji-Hyun about her and Young-Joons rtionship, saying that it was natural for young, charming, and passionate scientists to fall in love as they studied together. Then, Forsberg rmended this restaurant to her in a yful voice; he told her to spend time with Young-Joon and not spend all their time working here. Song Ji-Hyun did not tell Young-Joon about this backstory. I found out aftering here that Nordic food has a bit of a hearty taste to it, said Young-Joon. Song Ji-Hyun nodded. Since cooking methods have developed for stored food because of the cold and barren environment. Do you know surstromming? Fermented herring? Song Ji-Hyun frowned like it was painful to even think about. It is a Swedish food, but apparently its also pretty controversial here because of its reputation. I heard its like fermented stingray. Should we order it? Young-Joon asked. Lets not take on anything we cant handle. Horrified, Song Ji-Hyun stopped him. She didnt want to have a conversation with him in this good atmosphere while smelling like fermented herring. Okay, Young-Joon replied. Actually, he didnt bring up surstromming because he wanted to eat it. I am curious. Rosaline, who was walking around near the table, said. You make surstromming by sealing salted herring into a can without sterilization. As fermentation progresses, it bes naturally sterilized as oxygen decreases and carbon dioxide, hydrogen sulfide, and carboxylic acid products increase. However, those gasses are released when it is opened. That is what causes the stench. ... Arent you curious about a powerful gas mixture that can sterilize microorganisms? Not here. Go look at it in the kitchen. Hmph. There arent any open cans in the kitchen. Rosaline climbed down from the chair,ining. As they continued with their meal, Song Ji-Hyun said, But I like that Swedish food has a lot of food with fish, potatoes, and beans. Do you like them? No. Actually Im on a vegetarian diet. Really? Young-Joon tilted his head in puzzlement as it was unexpected. I remember you enjoying the steak before. It hasnt been long. But why, all of a sudden? Is it for your health? No. Then, is it for animal rights? Its because of food production efficiency. They say that twenty times morend resources are consumed to produce meatpared to grain production. I see. But I dont criticize people who eat meat or anything. I actually want to eat it, too. Song Ji-Hyunughed in embarrassment. Its just that everyone chooses different things. Its not like theres a chance that the hunger crisis in underdeveloped countries will be solved just because I dont eat meat, right? Its just for my satisfaction. I chose that satisfaction over eating meat. And I eat fish for that same reason. She pointed to the herring. I see. I understand. It would be good if the cultured meat technology developed faster, Young-Joon said as he put some herring on his te. Cultured meat technology was artificially creating meat fromboratory culture dishes. This was already quite advanced, and there werebs that actually made hamburgers with this. However, the cost of production was unimaginable, since it cost almost one million won to make the patties for a Big Mac. Wouldnt it be possible to end the hunger crisis if the cultured meat technology advances and nt seeds be reformed enough? Song Ji-Hyun said. Maybe And even if its not about the hunger crisis, we need this technology. The moment when poption growth exceeds food production wille soon, Young-Joon said. Yes. I saw a FAO report that it wille in about twenty years. So, there seem to be some attempts to use bugs as protein. ... When that timees, maybe surstromming will not be avable Yeah. If we could reform cultured meat technology and grow meat on a te quickly Oh! Young-Joon shouted all of a sudden. Hyperprogression! What? We can use hyperprogression! That made a tumor double in size in six hours. If we apply that growth speed to cultured meat cells Oh Song Ji-Hyuns eyes widened. I should test it when I get back. One of the fun things about science was that there was no telling how a new discovery would be used in the future. Hyperprogression, a tumor proliferation phenomenon that threatened human life, was a target of eradication in the context of anti-cancer drug development. However, extracting only the cell growth mechanism from hyperprogression and applying it to cultured meat technology could result in increasing production. It is possible. Rosaline said. Actually, that is not very difficultpared to curing cancer. You can make meat from grilled pork skin[1] to prime Hanwoo[2] hanger steak. ... However, this could lead to a war with the livestock industry if he messed with this. But do you have time to work on that? Song Ji-Hyun asked. Well, I can make the time. A cancer conference is happening in the United States soon, right? You will probably be invited because you attacked the immune checkpoint inhibitor Well, probably. Its going to be a mess. But I might not be invited because the paper might not be published until then, since it will take months, Young-Joon said. * * * Unlike Young-Joons expectation that it was going to take months, the paper was published in three days. This was an unusual speed even considering that Young-Joon, who had published numerous papers in Science, was the corresponding author on numerous papers in Science. This was because the paper did not undergo any review or editing process. Normally, a paper went through the following when it was sent to a journal. 1. Peer review. In this stage, the manuscript was sent to prominent scientists in the field for evaluation. Other scientists could ask for further experiments on wrong or confusing parts of the paper. 2. Revision. The authors of the paper revised and improved the paper by conducting additional experiments at the request of fellow scientists and the editor. 3. Preparation to be published in the chosen journal. In this stage, the final,pleted paper went under another review. After evaluating whether the authors fulfilled their fellow scientists requests or not, the paper was edited and published in the journal. These three stages took a couple of months to over a year. However, Samuel, the chief editor for Science, boldly skipped it entirely. [This paper reports on the immune checkpoint inhibitors fatal countereffect. As this drug has already beenmercialized and is currently being used in many hospitals, informing the risk of the treatment was judged to be the top priority. As such, the peer review and editing process was omitted, and the draft manuscript was published.] This news was like an exploding bomb hitting Oliver, Jamie Anderson, and the Cold Spring Laboratory. Cancer expert scientists and executives of pharmaceuticalpanies all over the world read this shocking paper with interest. I knew it. I knew something was wrong with that. Look, David, the CEO of Conson & Colson, said as he showed the directors the paper. I said that we shouldn''t buy the patent for the inhibitor, right? I said that something felt off. I knew this would happen. But theres talk about Mr. A, the clinical patient that hyperprogression urred in, was Professor Forsberg, said Benter, the CTO of Conson & Colson. That grandpa was still alive? David asked while squinting. Apparently. But hes probably done with if hyperprogression urred. But why am I not hearing anything when the master of Europes medicine has fallen? Apparently, he didnt die, Benter replied. But hyperprogression urred? And if you look at the published date, the tumor is probably in the kilograms right now. This isnt for sure, but apparently Doctor Ryu treated him. ... There were goosebumps on Davids head. He cured what? Doctor Ryu cured the tumor undergoing hyperprogression in an eighty-eight-year-old elderly patient who had end-stage lung cancer Wait, I know Doctor Ryu has done unexinable things before, but this is He got rid of end-stage cancer in a young kid, and now he got rid of lung cancer in an elderly patient who is almost ny? Hyperprogression? Its still just a rumor. But apparently, Doctor Ryu wrote that in the paper and published it in Science. Apparently, Samuel dances when hees to work now. Wait. Doctor Ryu is building A-Bios Cancer Lab beside the National Cancer Institute, right? How is that going? Its almost done. Then, do you think hes going to work on it more at the National Cancer Institute andmercialize that technology? Theres a good possibility he will. Damn it. We have a small share of that cancerb, right? We got a little on the condition of giving up chimeric immunotherapy, Conson & Colsons future livelihood. What a relief. I contemted it at the time, but I guess that was the best I could do. Maybe a world where we are free from cancer will reallye. David let out a sigh of relief. Wait. Director Benter, if Doctor Ryu cured Forsberg Is he in Sweden right now? Probably. I heard that he went to judge Kakeguni and Oliver. Shit Are you saying that he ripped apart the immune checkpoint inhibitor in Olivers face as Jamie Anderson was watching? Arent you excited for the next cancer conference? ... Lets bring some popcorn. * * * It was the first week of October. Young-Joon attended the Nobel Prize ceremony. The professors chose the final candidate and sent a letter to the King of Sweden. Now, it was obvious that Kakeguni was going to receive the award, since they didnt have to worry about Jamie Anderson thanks to Science publishing the paper first. Kakeguni received all the votes. It was as Young-Joon predicted. Professor Hariet read the award letter. Your Majesty, anddies and gentlemen. The Royal Karolinska Institute is very pleased to have selected Doctor Kakeguni, a pioneer in immunology and currently the most distinguished scientist in the field. Although his work for this prize is only a part of his research, Doctor Kakeguni has led advances in medicine for the past few decades. As such, by discovering the mechanism by which immune cells migrate to the tumor, he marked an important milestone in the uing era of cancer immunotherapy. The indirect activation of immune cells using dendritic cells has also shown powerful therapeutic effects SInce it was the Nobel Prize, the letter itself took more than ten minutes. The A-Bio and A-Gen scientists who used their time off and were still in Sweden were in the hall. They hade to see it as it was a public event and anyone could attend. Young-Joon heard the announcement with Song Ji-Hyun and the other employees. However, something shocking happened after Kakeguni received the award. Suddenly, King Hubertus of Sweden grabbed the mic. In the final stages of selecting the Nobel Prize recipient, there was the birth of a new technology based on Doctor Kakegunis dendritic cell-bypass immunity promotion method. It hasnt been published as a paper yet, but Doctor Forsberg here, a lifetime member of the academy, destroyed end-stage lung cancer thanks to that technology, he said. The facultymittee of the Karolinska Institute told me that the invention of this new technology was extremely important in the process of selecting the Nobel Prize recipient. And I heard that Doctor Ryu Young-Joon conducted the key research in developing this technology. ... The Swedish Monarch and the Karolinska Institute evaluated the possibility of co-awarding the Nobel Prize. However, there are rules such as the Nobel Prize being awarded with a focus on the base research, and only candidates registered in the previous year being able to be selected as co-recipients. Everyone turned to look at Young-Joon as he was brought up. Hubertus said, We thought about an unusual way to change the rules, but we were concerned that receiving the award like that right now could reduce the value of the Nobel Prize that Doctor Ryu may receive in the future. This is because the authority and the value of the Nobel Prize will only shine if it is difficult to receive. For this reason, despite the infinite appreciation of the Swedish monarch, it is difficult under the currentw to award the Nobel Prize to Doctor Ryu. In response, the Swedish monarch has looked for other ways. Young-Joon was baffled at the unexpected turn of events. All the scientists and dignitaries in the hall were already focused on Young-Joon. The reporters were done taking pictures of Kakeguni and were focusing on getting pictures of the king and Young-Joon. What are they going to do? Staring directly at Young-Joon, who was baffled, Hubertus said, In recognition of saving the life of Doctor Forsberg, the greatest doctor and scientist in this generation, and for reporting the adverse effects of new and existing treatments, the Swedish monarch has decided to award Doctor Ryu the Seraphim medal, the greatest honor of the Swedish monarch, and the title of duke. At the same time, Doctor Ryu Young-Joon is an honorary citizen of Sweden from now on, and the Swedish monarch and the government promise to do our best to protect Doctor Ryus rights in the country. 1. a popr Korean BBQ meat made of marinated or salted pork skin 2. a breed of cattle native to Korea that is very expensive Chapter 126: The American Cancer Conference (2) Chapter 126: The American Cancer Conference (2) There were four medals that the Swedish monarch gave: the Seraphim medal, the medal of the Sword, the Pr Star medal, and the Vasa medal. The monarch began awarding medals to several important figures from the mid-eighteenth century. The Order of the Vasa was the lowest, and the Royal Order of the Seraphim was the highest. The Royal Order of the Seraphim was only awarded to foreign heads of state or to the Swedish Royal family, so it was very unusual for a foreign individual who had nothing to do with state affairs. ... Young-Joon froze as he had not expected this at all. I am only announcing this since today is for presenting the Nobel Prize. We will make a separate arrangement to award Doctor Ryu Young-Joon the Royal Order of the Seraphim, said Hubertus. * * * A few dayster, Young-Joon received the Royal Order of the Seraphim at the royal pce. It was two days before his flight out. The medal was a beautiful and carefully crafted object that lived up to its reputation. The chains on the medal were made of gold, and it wasposed of eleven blue Eastern Orthodox crosses and eleven seraphim. The badge of the medal was a cross ted with enamel. Four seraphim and IHS were attached to the cross, and a crown was at the top. Hubertus wrapped a sash around Young-Joons right shoulder and hung the chain on his neck. The knights of the Royal Order of the Seraphim were given the duty of overseeingrge Swedish hospitals, including the Seraphim Hospital in Stockholm in the eighteenth century, she said. Now, it''s done by doctors, of course. However, looking back on that tradition, you can say that it means a lot in medicine. It is an honor to present such a medal to Doctor Ryu. The photos of the ceremony were soon published in the news as breaking news. It was obvious for everyone to wonder how Young-Joon received such a major medal. And naturally, news about how Forsbergs lung cancer urred and how it was treated was published as well. There were more voices from the academicmunity that asked for objective data on the dendritic cell-bypassed immunotherapy. Samuel, the chief editor of Science, quietly revealed Young-Joons paper in advance when it was still in peer review. By first reporting the most powerful treatments that have the potential to cure extreme cases of cancer, we attempt to improve the possibility of treatment for end-stage cancer patients who may lose their chance However, everyone could tell that Samuel was making excuses; he was just striking while the iron was still hot, since everything would have died down when the paper was released after the normal process. Media around the world, including CNN and Fox News, were releasing news articles with Forsbergs name embedded in the title. [The Cancer Conqueror: Doctor Ryu] That was the headline for CNN. They wrote big, provocative titles like this and put Young-Joons photo on the front cover. Damn Young-Joon felt a lot of pressure as he watched the news at a hole in Solna, Sweden,te at night. Im not even close to conquering cancer. However, a scientists perspective and the expectations of the public were different. Lung cancer and pancreatic cancer were both very difficult to treat, but Young-Joon had managed to cure end-stage lung cancer in a ny year old patient when hyperprogression had urred. From the perspective of regr people, it looked like no one would die from cancer in just a few months. Wow, this is crazy. Hes on another level. Honestly, isnt Sweden getting on the Ryu Young-Joon gravy train? Giving him citizenship and stuff. He went to Sweden for a conference, borrowed theirb at their university, and then made a new technology there? In two weeks? Wow, is he human? ???: Dont people just easily write papers for Science during vacation? One every week? The Seraphim medal was awarded to President Lim Yeon-Hoo once as well. Dont call him a genius anymore. Maybe super-genius or ultra-genius?[1] If you look at the Swedish Kings speech, it seems like its a given that hell get the Nobel Prize in the future. Nothing is probably finalized now since its a yearter. But theres probably a high possibility if Ryu Young-Joon did that much. If he conquers cancer, theyre going to have to make a Nobel Prize by hand and give it to him. ... Young-Joon turned off his phone and put it on the table. The airport is probably going to be full of reporters, right? Rosaline asked. I would think so, Young-Joon replied dryly as he got ready to go to bed. Are you nervous? The most nervous Ive been in my life is when I used the chimeric immunotherapy and Cellicure on Lee Yoon-Ah without you. Back then, I seriously felt like I was going to vomit every time I ate for weeks, but after that, I dont feel very nervous no matter what I do. Then, its alright. But I am a little worried. I wonder what it will be like this time since Korea always makes such a huge deal when something good happens that its pressuring. Rosaline popped out of Young-Joons body. With her red hair flowing in the air like waves, Rosaline walked up to the hotel room window. Then, she quickly turned to look at Young-Joon. Can I go out for a bit? Thiste? Morning and night mean little to me. I guess. Do what you want. Thank you. I want to take in more of this city before we go back. Rosaline jumped off the window. * * * On the afternoon of the next day, Young-Joon, who arrived at Incheon Airport, faced a huge number of reporters as expected. He answered as politely as possible as questions poured in with the flood of camera shes, but it seemed like it wasnt going to stop soon. I think were going to have to go now, Young-Joon said to the reporters. Lets go. The K-Cops security team opened the way for him. Young-Joon quietly followed Kim Chul-Kwons muscr back and escaped the swarm of reporters. He climbed onto the back of the car and massaged his eyes, which were full of exhaustion. I would rather develop new technology and write papers. I dont know what to say in interviews, and my eyes hurt from the camera shes. Should I drive to your house? Kim Chul-Kwon asked. It was already Friday afternoon. Even if he went to thepany right now, it would be the end of day when he arrived. I dont have to go right now since Ill only be pressuring everyone. Young-Joon nodded. Please drive to my house. He spent nearly a month in Sweden as he attended the conference, conducted experiments, and reviewed the Nobel Prize nominees. His house, which he hadnt been to in a long time, was the same as before, but it somehow became unfamiliar in just a month. Hey! Ryu Ji-Won, who was on herputer in her room, popped out into the living room. Yeah, Im back, Young-Joon said as he threw his bag on the living room couch. Show me the medal. Is that the first thing youre going to say to me? Is it real gold? I dont know. Bite it and see for yourself. Young-Joon took out the medal case from his bag and gave it to her. Ji-Won, wheres Mom and Dad? he asked. Theyre on a trip. A trip? They went to Jeju Ind. Ryu Ji-Won put the medal around her neck and yed around, looking in the mirror and taking selfies. Oh, right, she said all of a sudden. She ran to sit beside Young-Joon and opened her phone. Do you know about this? I dont, but do I have to know? Young-Joon replied whileying down on the couch like he didnt care. Look at this. The Blue House is thinking of awarding you with a medal. Kek! Young-Joon coughed. What are you talking about? Agh, that makes me exhausted already. The idea is being criticized by the public already. Theyre saying that its just a free gift that they give to public officials when they retire. They shouldnt be proud when they are giving you something that is given out as an annual event to high-ranking officials, how they are so slow in giving you a medal when you have done so much that they are imitating Sweden, just dont do anything since its so embarrassing Young-Joon covered his forehead with his hand like he was getting a headache. Theyre not going to make mee to the Blue House to get that, right? Why, are you toozy? To be honest, I was toozy to get the Seraphim medal, too. I had to stay there two more days because of that. Well, I guess you wouldnt care about a medal since youre a workaholic who doesnt date anyone or meet his friends. ... Its not like youre dating anyone. Its been a while since you went to university, but youve still never dated anyone. Me? Ha, man. Young-Joon scoffed like she was baffled. Youre belittling me, huh? Hey, Im Jungyoon Universitys scandal maker. Of course, Im single now, but ... Youre getting to an age where you should be thinking of settling down, but Im worried that you will miss all the good opportunities because of your work. Aw, worrying about your brother and all; how much youve grown. I raised you well. A lot of my sunbaes are fans of you. Do you want me to set you up? If they are your sunbaes, theyre in their mid-twenties at most. Werent they freshmans when I was a TA? There are some people who are older than you because of the extremeck of jobs. They are the fossils among the fossils[2]. Since minors who graduated high school early are a crime, they are off limits. We have various age groups prepared for you, from the age of twenty to early thirties. Do you have any preferences, sir? My preference is a thousand microliter pipette. What is that? Ab tool. Man, you are no fun Oh. Ryu Ji-Wons eyes widened like she thought of something. Or Do you have someone you are dating right now? That person? Um, what was it Doctor Song Ji-Hyun? No. Young-Joon denied it, but Ryu Ji-Won squinted and smiled creepily. Anyways, are you going to take it if the Blue House gives it to you? I dont care, but how are they going to look if I decline? I have to take it anyway. But Im going to America soon. America? In two weeks. I have to attend the American Cancer Conference. Im going to Pennsylvania. Wow. Ryu Ji-Wons eyes shone in admiration. You keep going to conferences. I got an invitation email yesterday. * * * The American Cancer Conference was a conference that was held annually by the American Association for Cancer Research, the AACR. It was thergest conference in cancer research, and there was particrly more important content this year. First of all, the A-Bio Cancer Lab was finished. The U.S. government also rushed the process a little and finished it a week earlier. Of course, Young-Joon was the reason. The U.S. government had decided that it would be better to report on theunch of a cancerb at the cancer conference if possible and use Young-Joon to announce what kind of research would be conducted there in the future. Second, a grand debate was going to be held on the life or death of the immune checkpoint inhibitor, which was the best hope for cancer treatment. This drug seemed dangerous in patients who had EGFR mutations. Then, how would it behave with other gene mutations? Should this drug be discarded now? Or could it be used in the future if it was controlled strictly? Jamie Anderson, who was utterly humiliated in Sweden, was probably going to prepare the big guns. The Cold Spring Laboratory was going to mobilize all the data possible to protect the immune checkpoint inhibitors. This was an important point of focus. And the third, most important reason was that Young-Joon wasing. He was the person who invented the first treatmenta treatment with incredible efficacyfor pancreatic cancer, one of the worst diseases of mankind. He was the one who worked with Song Ji-Hyun to develop Cellicure, the liver cancer cure of the century, and cured end-stage liver cancer that had metastasized to the bones. He was also the one who used dendritic cell-bypass immunity promotion to cure hyperprogressing end-stage lung cancer in an eighty-eight year old elderly patient. The title of Cancer Conqueror that CNN gave Young-Joon seemed a bit much, but it wasnt wrong as he was actually conquering cancer. There were much more registrations for lectures than usual. 1. The original joke is Dont call him cheonjae anymore. Maybe manjae or ukjae? Cheonjae is Korean for genius, but cheon also means one thousand. Man and uk are ten thousand and one hundred thousand respectively. The author is making a joke that he is ten times, a hundred times, smarter than genius. 2. people who have stayed in school longer than they should have are called fossils Chapter 127: The American Cancer Conference (3) Chapter 127: The American Cancer Conference (3) It had been a while since Young-Joon came to A-Bio. As he held meetings that were dyed with each team, he found out something surprising. We seeded, said Cheon Ji-Myung after he opened the presentation. Bae Sun-Mi, Park Dong-Hyun, Jung Hae-Rim, and Koh Soon-Yeols chest was puffed up with pride. No wonder. You were all so triumphant when you walked in here that I knew something happened. Young-Joon smiled. Great work, Life Creation Team. Could you exin the data please? As requested, Cheon Ji-Myung went over the slides one by one. Our team had two goals: one was to make a liver organoid, and the other was to expand the small intestine organoid that we seeded in growingst time to produce an artificial organ. Young-Joon nodded. We seeded in the liver organoid a few times, but the experimental results were shaky because it required such difficult techniques. So, we couldnt say that we finished it. It was something that Rosaline could not help with, as those difficult techniques were so simple and easy for Rosaline. She could manipte every muscle fiber in Young-Joons hand and do an experiment so intricately as if she were carving a jewel. However, this had to bemercialized. Rosaline couldnt borrow Young-Joons arms and do all the experiments for all the patients at the next-generation Hospital. The only way was to decrease the difficulty of the techniques so that regr scientists could do it. But our team worked a lot with diagnostic device development at Lab One, right? When we were working there, we saw that the Diagnostic Device Department has a very powerful robot arm. A robot arm? Youve probably never seen it. Its deep inside the department, and its a robot arm in a big hood that can hold a pipette. The picture of the equipment showed up when Cheon Ji-Myung went to the next slide. A w machine-like robot arm was inside a huge sterile hood. The Diagnostic Device Department said that they used equipment like this to create microcircuits because they designed microchips, Cheon Ji-Myung said. But no matter how intricate a robot arm is, its difficult for it to be more precise than your hands, Young-Joon said. There were a lot of cases where robot arms were used for experiments, but its precision wasnt as high as one expected. They were usually used to carry out simple, repetitive tasks, not for precision. However, like he was prepared for this question, he answered, Not this equipment. This is the newest model developed by an Americanpany called AutoTron, and its more precise than a human hand. It can control things up to the nanometer. Really? But its pretty expensive. 2.1 billion won. Director Kim bought something very expensive. Yeah. So, we asked Lab One for their cooperation and experimented with this robot arm. The results Boom! Twenty out of twenty tries seeded. Cheon Ji-Myung showed Young-Joon the liver organoid creation data, which was organized in an Excel sheet. So, its possible to create a liver organoid if we buy a 2.1 billion won equipment. Yes. Alright. Well buy one for our hospital. Lets harvest tissue from patients whoe to our hospital with liver problems and make organoids for customized treatment. Before, the same drug was prescribed to patients who suffered from some kind of liver disease. It worked well in some patients, but it didnt in some. Of course, the patient suffered a great deal during the trial and error of testing out drugs one by one. However, it waspletely different if they could make organoids. They could create a liver organoid of the patient as they administered the first drug. This liver organoid was a mini experimental liver that had the exact characteristics of the patients actual liver. Then, they could treat it with the second and third drugs they were nning to administer. This was a future technology of medicine called precision medicine. Only the small intestine organoid is being used in the A-Bio Next-Generation Hospital, right? Young-Joon asked. Thats right. Good. This was difficult, but you seeded. Great work. Should we n our next goal? Before that, we have to report on something else we seeded in, Cheon Ji-Myung said boastfully. Another one? We seeded in erging the small intestine organoid. Young-Joons jaw dropped. He hadnt analyzed this work with Rosaline, and he hadnt given them any information on it. How? In order to erge it before the tissue was destroyed, there was a need to increase the number of cells and grow the tissue by promoting cell division. Probably, but how We used hyperprogression. Hyperprogression? Young-Joon asked. Park Dong-Hyun, who seemed like he couldnt hold it in any longer, interrupted. Ha, sir. I pitched the idea. Watching your work in Sweden and the report on hyperprogression, I thought that maybe we could grow an organoid to the size of an artificial organ if we quickly grow the tissue and erge it by using EGFR well. And you seeded? Cheon Ji-Myung moved on to the next slide. A cylindrical tissue that was in a three-dimensional cell culture appeared. It was the first-ever artificial organ in humanity. Oh my god Perhaps these people would have been the true geniuses if Young-Joon didnt have Rosaline. What state have these people reached as they went through all kinds of experiments and trial and error at the Life Creation Department? Could we use this to treat patients with short bowel syndrome? Severe dyspepsia urred in cases where more than half of the small intestine was removed by surgery; this was called short bowel syndrome. Babies who were born with intestinal production or rotation problems also suffered from short bowel syndrome as they had to resect their small intestines. Short bowel syndrome was quitemon as it urred in twenty-four people out of one hundred thousand. Not only did quality of life decrease significantly, but it showed a thirty percent mortality rate in children. I think it will be possible, Cheon Ji-Myung said. Good. Young-Joon took a few sips of his coffee. I have a proposal for everyone. A proposal? Lets go to the American Cancer Conference together. All of a sudden? Bae Sun-Mi asked like she didnt understand. Why does a liver organoid and an artificial small intestine lead to a cancer conference Cheon Ji-Myung was confused. Theres someone there you should meet. Im thinking of starting a new project, and I need your help. * * * Two weeks after preparing for a few things, Young-Joon and the Life Creation Team arrived in the city of Phdelphia in the northeastern United States. This region was one of the greatest bases in life science. Behind Phdelphia was the New York branch of Nature, one of itsrgest branches, and the American Association for Cancer Research. In Marnd, a little southwest of here, there was a huge institution called the National Institute for Health; it was a national institution that oversaw health care and health-rted policies in the United States. There were twenty thousand employees, and they had research capabilities that could easily overpower most universities,bs, and pharmaceuticalpanies. Above all, the National Cancer Institute, one of eleven affiliated organizations, was here. Itprehensively coordinated national cancer-rted projects and directly conducted or supported all research and training of scientists rted to cancer prevention, diagnosis, and treatment. Additionally, there was an organization called the National Center for Biotechnology Information. The database that this organization held was a sort of textbook for scientists all over the world. If this ce disappeared, research in all of biology could be stopped; that was how powerful their database was. And its only an hours drive from the American Cancer Research Association in Phdelphia to the national institutions in Marnd, said Young-Joon as they moved. Its very close. Right? Thats how concentrated all the U.S. resources involved in cancer research are in this region. The closer you are with them, the more convenient it is to borrow their resources. And did A-Bio enter thend of opportunity? Thats right. The A-Bio Cancer Laboratory was built inside the U.S. National Institute of Health in Marnd. Its a separate institution, but it will be very easy to work with them since were in the middle of the organization, Young-Joon said. But where are we going right now? Jung Hae-Rim asked. The conference starts tomorrow, but we have someone to meet today. Someone to meet? All the team members stared at Young-Joon in curiosity. They are a little high-ranking, but theres no need to be nervous. You just have to act like you usually do. Are we going to see Jamie Anderson or something? How is Jamie Anderson high-ranking? Young-Joonughed. Park Dong-Hyun nced at Kim Chul-Kwon, who was sitting with them in the limousine. He looked very nervous. Where is this car going? Bae Sun-Mi asked. Were going to Washington, D.C., Young-Joon said. * * * The Life Creation Team assumed the person they were meeting was going to have a high position since Young-Joon referred to them as high-ranking, but this was simply beyond imagination. The car that the K-Cops security team was driving went into the White House. They took the Life Creation Team, who were frozen in shock, and escorted Young-Joon into the meeting room. Its been a while, Doctor Ryu. James Holdren, the director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy of the United States, stood up and greeted him. Young-Joon lightly hugged him and introduced the Life Creation Team. They are scientists from ourb. Nice to meet you. In order, James shook hands with Cheon Ji-Myung, Bae Sun-Mi, Park Dong-Hyun, Jung Hae-Rim, and Koh Soon-Yeol. This is Doctor Collins, the director of the National Health Institute. Then, James introduced someone new to Young-Joon. He was a friendly old man with white hair and sses. Ive heard a lot about you. Im Ryu Young-Joon. Young-Joon shook hands with him. Then, shall we talk business? All the scientists here knew what the treatment method Young-Joon used in Sweden meant. Doctor Ryu, I will ask you frankly. Please answer me honestly. The dendritic cell-bypassed chimeric immunotherapy: can we conquer all cancers if we develop that? James asked. I believe it will be possible. James and Collins had a look of joy on their faces. Of course, it wont happen overnight. I think it will take a few years. A few years? Thats not a big deal when were conquering cancer. Jamesughed. Young-Joon began exining. We used fourteen genes when we treated the lung cancer patient in Sweden, and that was a customized treatment for the patient. Customized? Yes. As such, even if we use my technology, if the patients genes change, the prescription to treat that changes as well. The technology that I made is gene surgery in immune cells. Its a fundamental technology. Considering the period when surgery was developed for the first time, the baffling idea of cutting away the tumor and stitching up the belly had tremendous therapeutic potential. However, very obviously, they had to figure out how much of the lung to resect, what happened when the liver was resected, how dangerous short bowel syndrome was when the intestine was resected, and more. There was little that could be done by cutting the patients stomach with a scalpel without knowing this; that was not treatment. We can conquer cancer. However, we have to figure out what genes of the immune cell to manipte for each patient, Young-Joon said. As such, conquering cancer is synonymous with figuring out the gene variant types of all cancer patients. This requires vast amounts of patient data and personalized research. And A-Gen is doing that right now? Collins asked keenly. Thats right. It seems like genome sequencing data of Asians are pouring out from there A Genome Project of sorts. It seems like most of it isposed of Korean, Japanese, Chinese, Southeast Asian, and Russian data, but there is some Hispanic, Indian, and Middle Eastern data as well. We are conducting it on a huge scale. But Im under the assumption that theres already a lot of genomic data on Western people, including the U.S., Young-Joon said. There is. There is a lot of umted data at the National Cancer Institute under the NIH[1] and the National Center for Biotechnology Information, Collins replied. External ess is prohibited, right? Thats right. But in previous meetings with Director James, it was decided that the data would be shared with me as the A-Bio Cancer Laboratory wasunched as a partnered institution. Thats right, James said and nodded. Doctor Ryu, we will share all the resources of biology and medicine in Marnd and the northeastern region of the United States. The three of them smiled in satisfaction. Now, the important thing would be the division of results thate from theb, Young-Joon said. The atmosphere became a little tense. Park Dong-Hyun gulped as he watched them. Young-Joon was given the essence of anticancer research that the United States had umted for decades. The United States government was going to use that to im a certain percentage to the enormous achievements that the A-Bio Cancer Laboratory would make. I had something in mind, Young-Joon said. 1. acronym for the National Health Institute Chapter 128: The American Cancer Conference (4) Chapter 128: The American Cancer Conference (4) Two dayster at the American Cancer Conference, the K-Cops security teams car pulled into the AACRs underground parking lot.[1] Young-Joon got out of the back seat. There wasnt anyone from the Life Creation Team; he was alone. He pulled out his schedule and checked it. The lecture schedule was about seven days long, and they were packed from nine in the morning to six in the afternoon. He was giving the nine oclock lecture on the first day. Building A, Room 102, the grand seminar hall. Young-Joon looked around for the elevator to get to the lecture room. This way, Kim Chul-Kwon said as he pulled Young-Joons arm. The elevator was closing with a crowd of young scientists. Wait! Young-Joon hastily ran towards the elevator. Bleep. Someone pressed the button to keep the doors open. The doors were almost closed, but barely opened. Thank you. The moment Young-Joon thanked them and walked inside No probl The scientist who took their finger off the button froze. Not just them, but all five people in the elevator froze in shock. D Doctor Ryu? Are you Doctor Ryu? one woman asked as she fixed her sses. Yes, hello. Im Ryu Young-Joon. Wow! Oh my It got rowdy in the elevator all of a sudden. Wait! They suddenly surrounded Young-Joon and took out notebooks and pens from their bags. Im a huge fan, Doctor Ryu. Could I have your autograph? Then, they held it in front of Young-Joon. ... Wait, let me press the button first. Young-Joon pressed the elevator for the first floor, and signed their notebooks one by one. After getting his autograph, a ck scientist who was wearing a navy shirt pulled out his phone and asked, Doctor Ryu, could I get a photo with you? Pardon? Oh, sure The man stood beside Young-Joon and took a photo with his phone. Everyone else quickly stood behind them so that they didnt lose their chance. Click! They began introducing themselves after taking a photo. Im Peter. Were from Professor Una Biyasb at Johns Hopkins University. Nice to meet you. You study siRNA, right? I think I saw your paper in Natures sister journal. Thats right! The students faces lit up. Youre studying something so fun. Professor Biya is giving a lecture as well, right? When was it? Its tomorrow afternoon! Oh, right. I was nning on attending it, Young-Joon said. Ding! With a ring, the elevator stopped. Young-Joon thought it was the first floor, but it was not. It was the basement level two. It wasnt a parking lot, but it had a 7-Eleven and a print shop. Whir Three middle-aged scientists holding coffee and snacks appeared as the doors opened. Oh They flinched a little when they saw Young-Joon, then stepped inside. Um Are you Doctor Young-Joon Ryu? a man with a good build asked as he put some potato chips in his bag. Yes. Wow! the three of them eximed together. Then, they began asking him questions left and right. Did you really cure Forsberg? His prognosis is very good for now. Hes going to the hospital as an outpatient now, Young-Joon replied. About the chimeric immunotherapy I noticed that BRT15 was one of the genes you edited. Why did you choose to manipte that one? It is effective in sending the immune cell to the tumor. Why? Overexpressing that gene can help the immune cells leak out of blood vessels. The immune cells that were in the blood vessels can go to the tumor. Young-Joon answered them as briefly as possible. ... There was a moment of silence. Wow! The scientists looked excited all of a sudden. Una Biyas students crowded Young-Joon as well. Questions poured in from all over. Doctor Ryu, how did you find the gene variants you introduced to the virus to use it to treat pancreatic cancer in humans? Is Doctor Forsberg you treated fully cured now? You manipted the genes of immune cells with the dendritic cell-bypass technology, right? Do you think that can be applied to other types of cells? Doctor Ryu, if we change the process you used to coat Cellicure like this Doctor Ryu Young-Joon was a little stunned. Some of the questions they were asking were difficult to condense and answer in just a few sentences. However, as the author of the paper, he thought that he had a responsibility to give them an answer. As he was about to answer them one by one, the elevator rang. Ding! Now, they were on the first floor. The elevator doors opened to show the reception desk in the hallway and countless scientists, reporters, andpany booths. When Young-Joon stepped off the elevator, all their attention was drawn to him. Is that Ryu Young-Joon? He could see a group of people whisper among themselves. However, no one approached him right away. It was difficult for people to distinguish people from different races unless they were familiar with them; since all East Asian scientists looked simr to them, they were hesitant to approach Young-Joon because it might not actually be him. Instead, they listened closely to what he was saying, which was his response to Peter, the student in Una Biyasb. Currently, no lung cancer cells are being observed in Doctor Forsberg. But with cancer, we have to see if theres recurrence within five years before we can dere him cured, so well have to wait and see. Doctor Ryu! Scientists began swarming to him. Now, it was clear that he was Young-Joon since he was discussing Forsberg. Hello, Doctor Ryu. Im Jennifer, the CEO of Jennys LifeTech, a bioventurepany in Silicon Valley. A female scientist in her fifties held out her hand. Starting with her, handshake requests and introductions poured out from all over. Um Im sorry, but I have to go prepare for my lecture at nine, Young-Joon said in shock after shaking the hands of a few people. However, the crowd did not back away easily. Kim Chul-Kwon and two security guards were blocking people in front of Young-Joon, but it could be rude to just use force in a ce like this. All they could do was stand there and block the crowd from approaching. Mr. Ryu! In the middle of that, a familiar voice resonated in the hall. Young-Joon turned around and saw David, the CEO of Conson & Colson, approaching him with hispany executives. * * * A fight had already broken out in Room 102 even before the nine oclock lecture. The scientists were raising their voices and pointing their fingers. What kind of standards did the FDA use to approve a drug that causes hyperprogression? Didnt it just get approved because of Cold Spring Labs name value? A countereffect was only reported once in the drug! There was no report of that before. Do none of you doctors know the basics of biology? There are always exceptions in the field of biology. There is no such thing as one hundred percent. If you wanted something like that, you should have done physics or math. EGFR mutants are verymon in cancer. What good is that drug if it is linked to EGFR mutations and hyperprogression? What kind of patients are going to want to use that? Even if there isnt a mutation in EGFR at first, it could ur as the tumor progresses. Realistically, were not going to be able to use that drug on anyone. The paper that Doctor Ryu Young-Joon published is just the raw manuscript that hasnt even been peer reviewed. Youre saying that we should trash something that the Cold Spring Lab has been working on for twenty years? I do not understand why we are having this meaningless debate. This will be solved eventually as we analyze other clinical cases. Dont talk about it so lightly when peoples lives are on the line. We have to revoke the approval! As they exchanged harsh words, the conference room doors opened. A white-haired old man with wrinkles and age spots all over his face walked in. Themotion in the hall died down at once. Jamie Andersons face was tense in anger. That grandpa is going to cause trouble today. Collins, the director of the National Institute of Health sighed inside. Jamie Anderson was someone who always caused conflict with other scientists whether it was major or trivial. And whenever there was an argument, he never backed down and fought stubbornly. He didnt even back down from arguments that began because of his sexiest or racistments. A genius who has identified the structure of DNA at twenty-four and received the Nobel Prize at thirty: Jamie Anderson, the living legend of biology, was as full of pride and arrogance as his reputation. Now, he was very on-edge as he was backed up into a corner. I am right. Jamie Anderson repeated in his head. I am right. I have to be right. He walked into the lecture room. Scientists were quietly watching from everywhere. They looked like hyenas who were waiting for the death of an injured lion. Bastards. Jamie Andersons blood boiled with anger. They were probably arguing about the immune checkpoint inhibitor until I came here. They were probably praising Ryu Young-Joon again. But I will be right. Watch. He clenched his fists. I reigned at the top of science before that baby was even born. I was the one who led the birth of biology. But these bastards who werent even born then dare to criticize me? How dare someone teach me science? How dare someone say that I am wrong? Click. The doors opened. Doctor Ryu! There was a small cheer at the entrance. This time, it was Young-Joon who entered the room with David. However, there was no one who rushed to ask him for an autograph or a handshake because unlike the outside, the atmosphere inside the hall was quite tense. It was because of Jamie Anderson. Everyone was both anxious and excited that Young-Joon and Jamie Anderson were in one room together, like they were watching a bomb that could explode at any moment. Doctor Anderson! When all the scientists were cautious around Jamie Anderson, one scientist bravely spoke up. It was Una Biya, a professor from Johns Hopkins University. Una Biya was a ck woman who was from a poor family in South Sudan. Although she was put at a huge disadvantage, she became a professor at John Hopkins University after oveing all of her hardships by studying and passion. She was not very scared of ruffling Jamie Andersons feathers. Tell us about hyperprogression. What do you think? she asked. Jamie Anderson frowned. You can hear it when I give my lecture, he said in a harsh tone. I would like to, but its thest day of the conference. There are probably a lot of people here who wont be able to participate, including myself. Could you tell us just briefly? Everyone probably wants to hear your exnation. Jamie Anderson red at her silently. Then, he slid past her. What a noisy neanderthal. Una Biya clearly heard what he mumbled under his breath. What did you say? she said as she quickly turned around. Nothing much. You said that I was a neanderthal? Una Biya said with her jaw clenched. I did not say anything. What you should do is change your child-like English ent. I think I heard a racistment. You said that I was a neanderthal right now. Didnt you go through trouble before because of your several racistments? Saying something so rude all of a I am not racist, Jamie Anderson said. It is not racism; I am just saying scientific facts. Like how the reason why neanderthals went extinct was because their low intelligence could notpete with homo sapiens, there is a clear difference in intelligence between races in the human race as well. I am not ashamed of that perspective because it is true. It is the same for Asians as well. I believe that they are less intelligent than White people. They are mesmerized when they see nature, but White people think of a n to develop it. The way our brains think is different. There is a clear difference. Jamie Anderson stole a few nces behind him as he finished his sentence. Young-Joon was about ten meters behind him, and Jamie Anderson had made a statement to provoke him on purpose. All the scientistss attention was drawn to them. I dont know, Young-Joon said with a chuckle. Doctor Anderson, homo sapiens, the current human race, came over to Europe and Asia after originating from Africa. White people are the offspring of a hybrid cross between them and neanderthals in Europe. Jamie Anderson stopped walking. He turned around and red at Young-Joon with anger in his eyes. Young-Joon said, Pure homo sapiens are indigenous ck people from sub-Saharan Africa. You are the one who has neanderthal genes, Doctor Anderson. Jamie Anderson and Young-Joon stood against each other. After some time Doctor Ryu! Please prepare for your lecture now! said Doctor Moore, who was in charge of the conference, from the stage. Of course, Im on my way. Young-Joon headed for the stage. 1. AACR is an acronym for the American Association for Cancer Research Chapter 129: The American Cancer Conference (5) Chapter 129: The American Cancer Conference (5) Doctor Moore had worked for the American Association for Cancer Research for thirty-seven years. He was going to retirest year, but he pushed back his ns to oversee the preparations for this years conference himself. It was because he was deeply inspired by Young-Joon. Moore was also once a promising rookie who had sessfully made his debut in Science. He went on to be a professor at Brown University and a well-known scientist whose name appeared in many of Americas top newspapers. He was past his prime now, but he was once nominated for the Nobel Prize. He had studied cancer for over thirty years and seen countless scientists, breakthroughs, and new drugs. However, the progress being observed since Young-Joon appeared like aet was different. Good morning, everyone, and wee to the Cancer Conference, Moore said as he presented Young-Joon. It was a standard courtesy for the moderator to give a brief overview of the seminar speakers career before they began their lecture. Doctor Ryu was personally invited by me. He has graciously agreed to give the first lecture on the first day of the conference to kickstart this event. As the person who was in charge of organizing this conference, I would like to express my deepest gratitude. Moore then pulled up a small slide on the screen. Im sure many of you already know about Doctor Ryu Young-Joon, but I would like to give you a brief introduction. I have brought with me three important statistics that can visibly demonstrate Doctor Ryus achievements. Several graphs appeared on the screen. These are data that was gathered by the American Association For Cancer Research. These are the statistics on the number of patients newly diagnosed with cancer each month. Breast cancer: 240 000 Lung cancer: 200 000 Liver cancer: 85 000 Pancreatic cancer: 15 000 These data were gathered at the end ofst year. Moore went on to the next slide. Now, lets look atst months results. Breast cancer: 310 000 Lung cancer: 240 000 Liver cancer: 125 000 Pancreatic cancer: 21 000 There is no way that the number of cancer patients increased so suddenly in just six months because there was a major change in human genes or lifestyle. So, how did this happen? Moore asked. Diagnostic kits someone murmured. Thats right. With themercialization of the diagnostic kit that Doctor Ryu developed about five months ago, cancer patients areing to the hospital and getting early diagnoses. People who would have otherwise not known they had cancer were diagnosed, said Moore. Lets look at the next one. Breast cancer: 50 000 Lung cancer: 170 000 Liver cancer: 80 000 Pancreatic cancer: 40 000 This is how many patients die of cancer every month. These values were collectedst year. How has this changed? Moore went on to the next slide. Breast cancer: 48 000 Lung cancer: 170 000 Liver cancer: 2000 (Monthly average after theunch of Cellicure, the liver cancer cure) Pancreatic cancer: 3000 (Monthly average after theunch of Birnagen, the pancreatic cancer cure) The graph of monthly changes shown below this statistic was even more dramatic. The values for liver and pancreatic cancer dropped to less than one-tenth of the original value from June and July. p p p! As someone in the audience began pping, others followed. Thest statistic is fascinating as well. Alimap: $7800 Clutinib: $5200 Keraptin: $3800 Osimerzumap: $2900 Bevatinib: $7500 This was the average monthly cost of the conventional anticancer drugs. As we all know, this is not something the average person can afford to pay out of pocket without insurance. Moore went to the next slide. Now, it has changed to this. Alimap: $9.70 Clutinib: $7.50 Keraptin: $3800 Osimerzumap: $8.50 Bevatinib: $7500 Wow Everyone had heard the news, but seeing it this way came as a shock, even to the scientist who already knew. A-Bios new nt-based pharmaceutical production method has yet to be applied to Keratinib and Bevatinib due to patent issues, so the price has remained the same, said Moore. However, the other three have gone down to almost less than 0.1 percent of the original cost. It is now the price of a burgerbo. Moore turned off the slideshow and walked over to stand beside Young-Joon. I believe these three statistics clearly show the things you are doing, Doctor Ryu. Youre finding patients who were undetectable before, youre saving patients who were previously untreatable by providing new technologies, and youre reducing the economic burden on society by bringing down the cost of drugs. Moore finished up his introduction of Young-Joon. I thank Doctor Ryu again for participating in todays lecture when you are doing such important work. Please give him a round of apuse. p p p! Once again, apuse filled the seminar room. Moore handed the microphone to Young-Joon. Thank you, Doctor Moore. I dont think anyone in mypany has ever shown me such a well-organized statistic before. Can the A-Bio marketing team buy this data and use it? Young-Joon asked yfully. There was mildughter in the audience. Young-Joon presented the slide on dendritic cell-bypass chimeric immunotherapy. What I am going to present today is my new paper, which is a technology thatbines Professor Kakegunis technology, the chimeric immunotherapy developed by Conson & Colson, and Cas9, which are gene scissors. It is called gene surgery. Young-Joon began his lecture. All the scientists listened with interest, but their attention was all focused elsewhere. Will there be a discussion about the clinical patient at the end of this? The moment Forsberg was mentioned, the conversation could turn into a debate about immune checkpoint inhibitors. That was what everyone was worried and excited about at the same time. ... Ultimately working this way. Furthermore, a trial was done on an end-stage lung cancer patient in Sweden with hyperprogression. Was that trial approved? Someone threw a keen question at Young-Joon. It was Jamie Anderson. Yes. The trial was approved by the Swedish Medical Product Agency. And there was no animal data on this? No. There was no animal testing done at the time. So, you administered a new drug that hadnt been tested on animals directly to humans? Isnt that a bit risky? ... Young-Joon stared at Jamie Anderson. Jamie Anderson was trying to put a dent in this technology; he was trying to get revenge on him for damaging the image of the immune checkpoint inhibitor. It was a reasonable decision. Dendritic cell bypass, chimeric immunotherapy, and gene correction with Cas9: all three are well-established techniques. Trying them in the body all at once was the novel work being done. Thats what I am saying. I mean, it just doesnt make sense to me that the Swedish Medical Product Agency would approve of a treatment that hasnt been pre-clinically tested for drug excretion or toxicity. Was there some kind of external pressure? Jamie Anderson attacked Young-Joon more tantly. The patients condition was so severe that he only had about a week to live. Just because they are a hopeless patient, it doesnt mean that you can test any new drugs on them like youre doing animal testing. I agree. However, the patient insisted on this treatment, and the Swedish Medical Agency approved of the treatment because they recognized its potential. Still, there is something called protocol in modern pharmaceutical practice That is enough, Anderson! Someone shouted from across the lecture room. Young-Joon wondered what scientist was brave enough to speak up, but to his surprise, it was a familiar face. Nichs, the CTO of A-Gen, was sitting in his seat with his legs crossed and a scowl on his face. Protocols are important, but we dont have to getpletely hung up on them. That was a brave and wise decision made by the Swedish Medical Agency. And as for the hyperprogression that urred in the clinical patients body, wasnt that due to the immune checkpoint inhibitor that came out of yourb? What! Jamie Anderson scrambled to his feet with a frown. Sit down, said Yoon Dae-Sung, the CEO of A-Gen, who was sitting beside Nichs. Doctor Anderson, is there a need to make such a disturbance at a conference this big? ... Jamie Anderson red at Yoon Dae-Sung angrily, then sat back down. Young-Joon was a little baffled. Wait, when did those grandpase? Of course, they coulde as it was a big conference, but it was normal to send scientists rather thaning themselves. It was understandable for David and Nichs as David liked these kinds of things and Nichs was a scientist. But I didnt know Yoon Dae-Sung woulde. Young-Joon didnt recognize them as there were so many people in the seminar room and he had to get on stage right away. I should greet them after Im done. Young-Joon picked up the microphone again. I will now exin the prognosis of the clinical patient. He continued with his lecture. * * * About twenty minutester, Young-Joon finished his presentation and received another round of apuse. Are there any questions? Young-Joon asked. Dozens of hands immediately shot up from the audience. You manipted a total of fourteen genes in immune cells in your paper. How many genes do you think can be manipted at most? I believe we can manipte up to forty genes. Originally, there were reports that chimeric immunotherapy worked well on blood cancers but rtively poorly on solid tumors. But you cured a solid tumor in lung cancer with the technology you developed, right? Yes. And before that, it was used to cure liver cancer that had metastasized to the bone in a pediatric patient. Then, do you believe that it will be effective on other types of cancers as well? I predict so, Young-Joon replied. More questions followed until finally, Young-Joon heard what he had been waiting for. Doctor Ryu! a young, enthusiastic scientist asked. I know its a bit off-topic from your talk today, but you reported that immune checkpoint inhibitors have the potential to induce hyperprogression in a paper that came out around the same time, right? Yes. I was wondering if you could talk about that, at least briefly? The look in everyones eyes changed. Jamie Anderson clenched his jaw. I know that everyone is curious about that. We have data from an animal experiment and one clinical case, but science bes clear through countless repetitions, Young-Joon replied. However, I also believe that it is unreasonable to keep giving patients that risky drug and wait for hyperprogression. Doctor Ryu! Jamie Anderson shouted. That drug has no possibility of hyperprogression. Do not speak about your own opinions that havent been peer-reviewed so recklessly. Nichs interrupted again. It happened to an actual patient! Jamie Anderson turned and red at Nics. Do you have any evidence that it was due to EGFR like Doctor Ryu ims? There is a high probability of NSCLC having a mutation in EGFR! Its just a high probability, not a proven fact! But isnt that probability enough to reconsider administering it to patients in the future? That drug was studied at the Cold Spring Laboratory for twenty years. It passed all clinical trial phases. I believe that there is nothing wrong with it. As the director of the Cold Spring Lab, I am sure of it. ... Then, A-Gen will have to be more careful about using drugs developed at the Cold Spring Lab from now on, Nichs said. Doctor Nichs, you are the CTO of A-Gen, arent you? How can you say that so lightly? Of course, I can. Doctor Ryu is an executive of A-Gen. ... Jamie Anderson paused. It is just like what Doctor Nichs said, Yoon Dae-Sung interjected, taking a deep breath. Doctor Anderson, Because Doctor Ryu is an A-Gen executive, the paper that Doctor Ryu published is also A-Gens paper. It is a legitimate criticism and a reasonable issue that could be raised in the scientificmunity. What would the pharmaceuticalpanies think if the developers of a new drug did not provide any feedback? ... There was a heavy silence in the room. The air was so sharp and tense that someone could cut their finger on it. Lets do this, Young-Joon spoke up again. I understand your position that mice experiments and one piece of clinical data are insufficient. It is a prominent new drug, so we should approach it carefully. Young-Joon went on. On thest day of this conference, I will demonstrate the process of hyperprogression caused by immune checkpoint inhibitors. The scientists in the room looked confused. There were murmurs around the room. How will we be able to see that with our own eyes? Are you going to inject the immune checkpoint inhibitor in the mouse, then take it out and measure the size of the tumor? Like you did in your paper? Jamie Anderson asked. No, Young-Joon replied. If we cut open a rat, we can only see the size of the tumor at that moment. Its direct evidence, but I know you wont believe it because it would be a discussion only based on the result after the fact. And since there are a lot of different factors at y inside an organism, you could argue that its not because of the immune checkpoint inhibitor but because of other characteristics of the mouse. Then what are you going to do? I will show you the hyperprogression outside of the rats body. Not in pictures, but in videos. You will be able to watch the process of the tumor expanding explosively with your own two eyes, not just thest moment of the tumor. ... The scientists were even more confused now. They all looked at each other like they didnt understand this nonsense. Young-Joon smiled. His cell phone rang with a message from Cheon Ji-Myung. [Weve attached an EGFR-mutant cancer cell to an organoid and created a mock tumor. The organoid has been treated, and you will be able to use it for your experiment in five days.] Chapter 130: The American Cancer Conference (6) Chapter 130: The American Cancer Conference (6) The A-Bio Cancer Laboratory was a new, cleanb with all new equipment and facilities. Some of the equipment still had their vinyl packaging on. I feel like our CEO is actually enjoying doing experiments in ces other than ourb, Cheon Ji-Myung, who was the first one to rip off the packaging, murmured to himself. Right? Is he going to travel around the world and write papers in each country? Its not like hes getting a stamp every time Park Dong-Hyun said. Well, its not actually a differentb since the A-Bio Cancer Institute is A-Bios. Its better than Karolinska, though, Jung Hae-Rim said. Beep! Bleep! The security device made a loud noise at the entrance. The door swung open. Young-Joon, who stepped inside, took a quick look around theb, then asked Cheon Ji-Myung, Is everything going well? Well, I guess. Did you enjoy your lecture at the conference? he asked. Yes. Did Jamie Anderson or the Cold Spring Lab attack you about it? Jung Hae-Rim asked. They did, but these two people here defended me. Two people? The Life Creation Team members scratched their heads. Two middle-aged men appeared at the door. The washroom is a bit far, Yoon Dae-Sungined. But it is a niceb, Nichs said as he took a look around. Sir! Mr. CTO? They were surprised. Yoon Dae-Sung had never attended an international conference like this after A-Gen had be a majorpany. Executives of apany rarely went to conferences in the first ce as there was nothing for them to gain. Even though new data was being presented, it was too early to even begin thinking aboutmercialization. Usually, executives sent out their frontline scientists so that they could gain some new ideas, get to know their fellow scientists, or sent out their marketing team to spread the word about thepany and recruit new talent. Hearing the news from the protein purification room, Bae Sun-Mi quietly whispered to Koh Soon-Yeol, Why do you think Mr. Yoon came? Theres nothing for a CEO to gain from the conference. Our CEO went because hes a scientist to the core and likes conferences, but what about him? Well, I dont think our CEO is going to conferences just purely because he is a scientist to the core either, Koh Soon-Yeol said. Then what? When he presents something at a conference and people are stunned, he uses that to get funding and a building. So, he makes sure to gain something ... Young-Joon gave Yoon Dae-Sung and Nichs a tour of the facilities at the A-Bio Cancer Laboratory. After onep, Yoon Dae-Sung asked, But Doctor Ryu, why is the Life Creation Team here? Because I asked them to do an experiment. Is it rted to the one you talked about at the conference, were you said you would show us hyperprogression in person Yes. Young-Joon nodded. Wow. What is it? Nichs asked. Its still a secret. You will find out on thest day of the conference. But what are you doing here? Executives usually donte to these kinds of things. University professors are usually the main audience of a conference. We came because we thought it would be difficult for you to take on Jamie Anderson by yourself, Yoon Dae-Sung replied. I see. Thank you for your consideration. Well, you are one of A-Gens executives as well, Mr. Ryu. And this isnt just a battle between you and Anderson as a scientist. Really? Its a battle between Cold Spring Laboratory and A-Gen. ... Yoon Dae-Sung said, Cold Spring Laboratory is an old and time-honored ce. Jamie Anderson was theb director for forty years, and every paper that came out of thatb has Andersons name on it. Can you imagine the kind of power that someone as smart and political as him would have built up during that time? Anderson is a huge, symbolic figure. ... Oliver and Andersons lecture is on thest day, right? Thats when theyll probably pull out all the stops to protect the immune checkpoint inhibitor, not just with data, but with connections as well. It will be difficult to break through that with just your paper and one piece of clinical data. And when you say connections, what kind of people might that be? The people who approved it. The FDA? Most likely, but we dont know what they will do. Anderson knows that this conference is important and that its over if he backs out. Probably. But even if they keep using the drug, they will keep getting reports of hyperprogression like this one. It will be taken off the market eventually. That could happen if the reports keeping. But Jamie Anderson doesnt believe in hyperprogression. The other scientists are skeptical as well because this drug went all the way to Phase Three and treated two hundred people with no side effects. Young-Joon nodded. He recalled that most of the clinical trial was focused on types of blood cancer. EGFR mutations werent verymon there. I think they were quite lucky in choosing their clinical patients because most of them didnt have EGFR mutations, Nichs said. That could have been the case. Anderson is never going to ept a disastrous blemish on Cold Spring Labs groundbreaking work. Even if he understood your exnation about hyperprogression in mice, he would have had cognitive dissonance. Yes. Nichs smiled. But always remember that A-Gen is always standing behind you, Mr. Ryu. Were not a smallpany that can be overlooked. Were a major internationalpany, too. Thank you. Young-Joon turned to Yoon Dae-Sung. I didnt expect you toe, sir. Thank you. Honestly, we have had some internal squabbles overpany shares and controls, but we have to join forces when youre up against someone like Anderson, Yoon Dae-Sung said. Thats why I took the time toe here, but it seems like you already made your defenses. Young-Joon grinned. Thats right. Dont worry too much, Young-Joon said. Science is a discipline of understanding, not faith, right? I dont care if Anderson doesnt believe it; I will make him. * * * You said there was someone here for us to meet, but youre just making us do experiments all day, Cheon Ji-Myungined, half-jokingly and half-seriously, after Yoon Dae-Sung and Nichs left. I was so excited toe all the way to America and travel, but Im only in theb, so I cant tell if this is A-Bio or America Im sorry, but its true that there is someone for you to meet. You will be able to see them after the conference. Who is that? Mckinney. Mckinney? Hes a big shot in the American livestock industry. He is also an animal rights activist. Ive met him once before. He was the first person to buy and use the diagnostic kit for animal diseases. But what about him? Weve got some work to do together. When were done, lets do a little tour of America, Young-Joon said. Broadway! Jung Hae-Rim shouted. Lets go to Broadway! Thats New York. Its not a long drive from here. Dong-Hyun-ssi will drive. Why are you Park Dong-Hyun looked at her, flustered. Youre the only one who has an international license. The security team will be driving. Itll take about three hours from here. Alright, lets go to Broadway, Young-Joon said. Yay! Lets watch a musical. Please book the tickets. Its on me. What about the seats? Jung Hae-Rim asked with sparkling eyes. Choose the best seats among the ones that are left. Anywhere you like. Thank you! Other than that, can I take a look at our artificial tumor? Young-Joon was led to an incubator by Cheon Ji-Myung. A small intestine organoid was created in arge culture tube, and a small tumor that was the size of a grain of rice was attached to it. How big will it be in five days? Young-Joon asked. It wont be that big. Around the size of a bean? Cheon Ji-Myung replied. Good. Youre trying to treat this with the immune checkpoint inhibitor at the conference and grow the tumor, right? Yes. * * * A typical conference had multiple lecture halls as different lectures were going on at the same time. On thest day, Jamie Anderson and Young-Joon were giving a lecture at the same time in different rooms. What? The scientists who were entering Andersons lecture room were shocked by some of the faces they saw. Who said that conferences were for professors to hang out? It was shocking that Yoon Dae-Sung and David, CEOs of huge pharmaceuticalpanies, came yesterday, but today was even more shocking. Everyone was confused as they saw the two people talking to Anderson. It was Scott, themissioner of the FDA, and Katherine, the secretary of the department of health and human services. Hello everyone, and wee to the lecture, Jamie Anderson went onto the stage and talked into the microphone. Today, I will be lecturing about the immune checkpoint inhibitor, the new drug developed by Cold Spring Laboratory. I can say with confidence that it will be the best anticancer drug of this century. Jamie Anderson put up the biomolecr mechanism of the immune checkpoint inhibitor on the screen. Advanced cancer cells produce a structure like this on their surface. A long structure that was in the shape of a Y appeared. It is called PTLA-L1, and it binds to the PTLA structure on immune cells, which tells them to stop working. The schematic of this appeared on the screen. Jamie Anderson went on to the next slide. Weve made an inhibitor of PTLA-L1 and developed it into a drug. When this is administered, the inhibitor binds to PTLA-L1 and immune cells can no longer be stopped. As such, the immune cells can destroy the cancer cells, said Jamie Anderson. What do you think makes this technology better than existing anti-cancer drugs? He slowly walked across the stage. Anticancer drugs are basically poison that destroy cancer cells. However, the normal cells in our body are simr to cancer cells in most ways. This is because cancer cells are normal cells that have gained mutations. As such, the anticancer drugs that science has developed before inevitably destroy normal cells as well. That is why patients lose their hair and feel pain. Then, Jamie Anderson spoke with emphasis. But folks, immune cells can tell the difference between cancer cells and normal cells! The human eye cant tell them apart, but cells can. ... For too long, medicine has had the wrong approach to treating cancer. We thought of cancer as a foreign invader, like a bacteria. Like how we try to kill bacteria by treating it with antibiotics, we tried to kill cancer by treating it with anticancer drugs, Jamie Anderson said. But no. Cancer is a rebel force within the body, and it is a civil war filled with spies and espionage. We can safely destroy cancer if we empower immune cells, the cells that can urately recognize cancer cells Jamie Anderson paused, then went on. He spoke as if he wanted everyone to listen carefully. Without any side effects, he said. Immunotherapy has no side effects. A paper was published recently, but I dont believe it. A lot of papers that are published in Science have errors, and they are discarded over time. We have already established the safety of this technology in two hundred clinical cases. Scott! Doctor Katherine, what do you think? Scott, themissioner of the FDA who was standing on one side of the stage, nodded. The FDA can assure you. No side effects have ever been reported in the immune checkpoint inhibitor, and it is a safe drug that has a clearly understood pharmacological mechanism. There are some people who are attacking the drug, saying that the FDA was wrong to approve the immune checkpoint inhibitor and that it was too soon. They are making up a conspiracy theory, as if the Cold Spring Laboratory put some sort of pressure on them. What do you think? Jamie Anderson said. Thats just not true. We approved of new drugs fairly. The Department of Health and Human Services, a higher-ranking department, can vouch for that, said Katherine. As such, the recent issue about the reported side effects of this technology is As Jamie Anderson was speaking Wow! A tremendous roar erupted from the lecture room next door. What is that? Jamie Anderson frowned. A few young scientists who were sitting at the very back of the room jumped to their feet and went to the lecture room next door. Doctor Ryu did it again! With immense curiosity, they opened the door to Young-Joons lecture. To their surprise, there was a small ss incubator on the stage. Inside was a tiny small intestine organoid tissue. Can you see this bean-sized tumor here? Young-Joon said. This is a cancer cell that has a mutation in the EGFR. It originated from lung cancer, and it was transnted into this small intestine and grown. Then, Young-Joon pulled out a small box from his bag. I purchased this APD from the National Institute of Health this morning. Its themercially avable immune checkpoint inhibitor. It is unopened and still has the quality assurance mark on it. Take a look. Young-Joon showed it to the audience and opened it. Now, I am going to administer one milliliter of this to the artificial tumor, and you will see what happens with your own eyes. You should see hyperprogression by this afternoon. Young-Joon pierced the rubber seal on APD with a needle, drew out the liquid, and injected it into the artificial tumor. Chapter 131: The American Cancer Conference (7) Chapter 131: The American Cancer Conference (7) This was biology that was beyond art. The ss incubator that was on one side of the lecture room was like an instation. APD, the immune checkpoint inhibitor, went into the tumor on the organoid. The APD rushed to the surface of the cancer cell and attached to PTLA-L1, the immune cell shutdown factor. Young-Joon turned on the live cell imager and connected it to the incubator. A magnified version of the tumor showed up on one side of the monitor. It still seemed like a static mass of tumor. However, there was a lot of work going on in the microscopic world. Changes began to ur inside the cancer cells as arge amount of PTLA-L1 was neutralized. Its going crazy. Rosaline sent a message. She was outside of Young-Joons body and observing that phenomenon. By nature, organisms wanted to maintain a certain base level; this was called homeostasis. As such, if something was activated in the organism, there was bound to be a reaction. In the case of cancer cells, the response to PCLA inactivation was the expression of EGFR. However, this EGFR was mutated, unlike regr cells. It malfunctioned by continuously producing growth factors inside the cell. Replication was promoted inside the cancer cell nucleus. DNA polymerases began moving and replicating the chromosomes. The cell cycle changed as numerous additional biomaterials were produced. The cancer cells now entered mitosis and multiplied like an amoeba undergoing binary fission. The cancer cells, which had exactly half of the DNA, still had arge amount of EGFR. The cell division promoting signal was still active. The cancer cells began preparing for their second division. It would take about two hours topletely copy the DNA and create enough biomass to divide. The initial single cell quadrupled in just four hours. Hyperprogression has already begun. The conference ended in eight hours. By then, this tumor, which was the size of a bean, was going to be bigger than the organoid. Lets observe this slowly, and while the reaction is happening, I am going to present something else. Young-Joon put up a new slide on the screen. It was information about a huge number of DNA sequences. What we have here is data on targeted mutations. Targeted mutations? The audience gasped. From now on, the A-Bio Cancer Laboratory will use gene surgery in the body to manipte immune cells, and we will use this to cure various kinds of cancer. This is information about our first experimental candidate. The scientists were still confused. They didnt understand why Young-Joon was presenting a candidate at the conference. It was a drug candidate, but the CEO of a pharmaceuticalpany was just openly revealing that at a conference? They didnt possibly think he would do this, but Young-Joon made an announcement that shocked all of them. We have decided not to patent this information. * * * This was when Young-Joon and the Life Creation Team were in a meeting with James, the director of the Office and Science and Technology Policy, and Collins, the director of the National Health Institute, at the White House before the conference began. The base technology is dendritic cell bypass, so it will be patented by A-Bio and Professor Kakeguni, Young-Joon said. The problem would be the patent rights to the treatment method tailored to the type of cancer patient, or the selection of genes to operate on. The base technology of manipting the genes of immune cells in the body was developed by Young-Joon. But which genes were they going to manipte, and in which patients? This was a huge portion of ignorance that science hadnt touched yet. If someone discovered that manipting a certain gene was effective for lung cancer, they could patent that gene. It was a kind of intellectual property. It wasnt that the technology became an invention, like what Young-Joon made; every gene mutation pattern that could use that became intellectual property. Humans had about twenty thousand genes. They had to figure out what gene mutation patterns in what were associated with cancer, and how that varied by race, gender, and age. And if there were multiple genes at y simultaneously? Thebinations were almost infinite, and there were countless variables. Doctor Ryu has opened a gold mine, and now, countless scientists will go on a gold rush. Collins made an appropriate metaphor. Now, it was time to decide the division of rewards within the A-Bio Cancer Laboratory, the most powerful team in that gold mine to collect gold. Lets split it six to four, James said. Doctor Ryu, the support that the U.Ss government is pouring into the A-Bio Cancer Laboratory is enormous, as I am sure you are aware of. We have the right to forty percent of the invention. James wasnt very greedy for money; he was an academic, and he valued the advancement of human medicine. However, it was apletely different story if they were talking about conquering cancer. Cancer was the second leading cause of death in humans, after heart disease. Conquering that? That huge humor was too sweet and exhrating to give up. Unless they were Buddha, it was natural for people to expect a reward if they were to aplish an achievement of that magnitude. And it was not a personal award but for the U.S. government. This was something that James had to fight for as the director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy. The U.S. built A-Bios cancerboratory right next to the National Cancer Institute, and we have shared all our tforms for cancer research that we have created. You know that, right? James said. He acted calm, but inside, he was a little nervous. His original n when he built the A-Bio Cancer Laboratory was to use the genius Young-Joon to advance American science. Plus, one couldnt do cancer research no matter how genius they were. It required a huge amount of patient data and gic experiments. As such, James was going to use Young-Joons ingenuity with the National Cancer Institute, which could do that well, and take the results. But I didnt think he was this much of a genius. James knew that he was going to be long remembered in history when he made induced pluripotent stem cells and showed that he could cure Alzheimers, but that was it. But conquering cancer? Curing end-stage lung cancer and liver cancer in a ny year old elderly and a child? Hyperprogression and bone metastasis? At this point, the support the National Cancer Institute was giving Young-Joon was supplemental. The ball was in his court now. They would be able to conquer cancer faster if they used the umted research resources and data from the U.S., but that was it. Seeing that Young-Joon was working on a huge genome project in Korea, he was more than capable of conquering cancer on his own. ... What do you think? James asked cautiously. He had suggested a six to four ratio, but he was actually thinking more of a seven to three, or eight to two. However, Young-Joon gave him a shocking answer. Lets not patent it. What! James shouted in shock. Collins jaw dropped, and he was speechless. From now on, scientists from all over the world will be rushing into this business to find gene variants with therapeutic effects. We need to patent the genes to attract them, but Young-Joon said. Still, most of the gene variants wille from the A-Bio Cancer Laboratory until cancer is conquered. Probably, since the research base that the U.S. has built on cancer overpowers the rest of the world, and youre a bigger genius than Einstein. But I dont want to patent them. Why! James shouted incredulously. Because a patent is an incentive, but it also stops other people from getting into the business, Young-Joon said. ... Youpared this to a gold mine, right? What if people could get more gold by mining in the same spot we got gold from? What are you talking about? You can manipte up to forty genes at once with gene surgery. Since there are about twenty thousand genes, there are about twenty thousand to the power of forty variations. The effect will change depending on how the genes are mixed and matched. But if we patent one gene? Do you think people will try to study that gene? ... I am deeply grateful to you. You have always supported me fully. I want to give you a lot in return, but not like this, Young-Joon said. I am working on a genome project in Korea. After a few years, when the scientists working on it be better, we will have research resources that will surpass the data that the National Cancer Institute has umted over the years. ... There is only one reason why I am not using that to monopolize the results and using the A-Bio Cancer Laboratory in the United States. To conquer cancer quicker? Collins asked. The faster the better. ... Phew James let out a deep breath while covering his head with his hands. Im sorry. All I can give you is honor, Young-Joon said. Ha Im shocked. This is not something I can decide on my own. Please discuss it with the President. Alright. Whatever conclusion wee to, it will be better to announce it on thest day of the conference if possible. Everyone will be wondering how things will proceed at the cancerb. ... Alright. * * * There was the full support of the U.S. government behind this bold decision, Young-Joon said. The scientists, who were shocked, were already sending messages to all the cancer researchers they knew. The reporters hands were trembling as they filmed Young-Joons announcement. The reporters who specialized in science already deeply investigated the establishment of the A-Bio Cancer Laboratory and James. They knew that the A-Bio Cancer Laboratory was going to take most of the gold in the gold mine Young-Joon opened. But they are going to release all that gold for free? What are they talking about? Are they crazy? This huge achievement isnt just a bag of money; they could buy a building with this in cash. But distributing it freely This was charity like no other. Did you say that the U.S. government supported this? one of the reporters asked. Yes, thats right. Did the White House choose to do that? The U.S. government had decided to honor all the support they previously promised to the A-Bio Cancer Laboratory. And they havepletely relinquished any intellectual property rights to the target genes that will be discovered there. I am relinquishing them as well. The A-Bio Cancer Laboratory promises to share all of this knowledge, which will save mankind, for free. ... The disturbance that was in the hall had now subsided. There was only the silence of shock and confusion. Thud. Dozens of scientists poured in as the doors to the lecture hall opened. They were the ones who had attended Jamie Andersons ss. There were more people now than when Young-Joon first took out the incubator. Everyone hade here in curiosity because it was getting so loud here. H-hey, look at that. One of the scientists who had been here since the beginning pointed to the incubator. It looks like the tumor has gotten bigger. The tumor, which was the size of a bean, had doubled in size. Chapter 132: The American Cancer Conference (8)

Chapter 132: The American Cancer Conference (8)

¡°It grew...¡± said one of the scientists in the audience. They began whispering again. ¡°It is definitely bigger than before.¡± ¡°Can tumor growth be observed like this?¡± ¡°It usually takes a few days for it to grow like this.¡± ¡°The only reason for a tumor to grow that fast is hyperprogression...¡± ¡°My god...¡± ¡°How could you do an experiment like this? How is this technology possible?¡± Young-Joon silently watched themotion spread. ¡°Doctor Ryu!¡± someone shouted. ¡°How did you do that experiment with the organoid and tumor? I read in your paper that A-Bio developed a small intestine organoid, but... This experiment is too shocking. Please exin how you did it.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± Young-Joon picked up the microphone. ¡°The relinquishing of patent rights and the free distribution of target genes, which are intellectual property, that I mentioned earlier is only possible because the U.S. government has also relinquished all rights and fully supports us. I would like to give a very special thanks to them. And...¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°This experiment you are seeing right now, the miracle of being able to observe hyperprogression in real-time, is only possible because of the outstanding scientists from ourb.¡± Then, Young-Joon looked at the Life Creation Team members who were sitting in the front. ¡®No...¡¯ Park Dong-Hyun flinched. ¡°Principal Scientist Cheon and our members, pleasee up here for a moment?¡± ¡°Eek...¡± Bae Sun-Mi was flustered. ¡°H-hey guys, you go up there.¡± The scientists in the audience were all professors at the world¡¯s most prestigious universities or key scientists at big pharmaceuticalpanies. And if she went up there, she would have to lecture them about organoids and artificial tumors. ¡°Why are you scared, Lead Bae?¡± said Cheon Ji-Myung as he stood up. ¡°This is nothingpared to being grilled at Lab Six every year.¡± The members walked onto the stage with ted faces. Young-Joon put down the microphone and spoke to them in a low voice. ¡°I won¡¯t bother you too much, so don¡¯t worry.¡± ¡°Please give us a warning when you do this kind of thing, sir,¡± Park Dong-Hyun said yfully. Young-Joon picked up the microphone again and introduced the Life Creation Team. ¡°They are the key scientists who have done many important experiments at ourb, including the development of organoids. From the left, Principal Scientist Cheon Ji-Myung, Lead Scientist Bae Sun-Mi...¡± p p p! After a round of apuse and cheers, Young-Joon began his lecture on the process of making organoids and introducing an artificial tumor. He asked the Life Creation Team questions during the lecture. ¡°...¡± For some reason, Jung Hae-Rim felt a little choked up. Young-Joon could have answered everything himself, but the reason why he brought up the Life Creation Team was out of respect for the frontline scientists. He wanted to recognize and praise their efforts by giving them the spotlight. ¡ªThe scientists who conducted the experiments should get the most honor. That was one of the basic principles of the scientificmunity. That was why the first author was given to the person who did the experiments and wrote the paper. However, it was something that people tended to overlook, especiallypanies. ¡®He really is a great person...¡¯ Jung Hae-Rim nced at Young-Joon. He started from the bottom and worked his way up to that position at an incredible speed. He had the White House in the palm of his hand, and he was famous enough to destroy a hugepany like Schumatix. And yet, Young-Joon still had the same attitude toward frontline scientists as before. * * * After the presentation ended, the incubator came out of the lecture room and was ced in front of the conference information center. It was ced right next to the reception desk that people saw when they walked in through the main entrance to the conference. The live cell imager and a monitor that showed an erged image of the tumor were also set up right next to it. ¡°Why are they putting it here...?¡± one of the receptionists, who helped people sign up for lectures, whispered to her supervisor. ¡°Because it¡¯s the most essible and there¡¯s a lot of peopleing and going.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a lot of pressure.¡± ¡°There¡¯s nothing we can do.¡± Now, there were many more peopleing to see the tumor than people asking to register for lectures. A constant stream of scientists, journalists, and people were crowding the incubator, taking photos and looking at it. They were making a huge fuss over it. It didn¡¯t end with just one look. ¡°Look at this. I took this photo before the lecture started, but look at it now. It¡¯s almost 1.5 times bigger.¡± ¡°I took a picture of the live cell imager video that was on the screen when Doctor Ryu was giving his lecture at nine o¡¯clock, right? I think it¡¯s gotten three times bigger.¡± The scientists whispered among each other with their phone gallery open. They kepting back in regr time intervals to take pictures and make observations. The peak was around lunchtime. There were so many peopleing in that the reception desk was paralyzed. Everyone was curious to see if the size of the tumor would be noticeably different before and after lunch. Because of that, it was incredibly busy after lunch as well. It was a clear indication of how much people were interested in this show that wouldst in the history of biology. By two o¡¯clock in the afternoon, everything became clear. ¡°The tumor is as big as the organoid now,¡± the scientists said in admiration. ¡°Can the tumor grow this fast if it¡¯s not hyperprogression?¡± ¡°Excuse us for a moment.¡± The Life Creation Team and Young-Joon appeared through the scientists. Park Dong-Hyun and Koh Soon-Yeol were pushing a cart with something on it. It was another monitor. ¡°You can leave it here. You can give it to me now,¡± said the video program expert who came with them. They set up the monitor familiarly and then connected it to the live cell imager. Inside the machine was a five-hour video of the microscope, recorded from nine in the morning to two o¡¯clock in the afternoon. They loaded the video and yed it on the second monitor at sixty-four times speed. The five-hour video waspressed to about four minutes. The growth of the tumor was even more obvious like this. Four more minutes were added into the video after it yed once. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°No problem. Please call me if you have any questions. I¡¯ll be back in myb, Room 303, in the diagnostic imagingb.¡± ¡°Yes, thank you.¡± As Young-Joon was about to leave, the room suddenly fell silent. Jamie Anderson and Oliver were here. People began to slowly back away, creating a path in the middle. Jamie Anderson slowly walked towards the incubator. He looked down at the enormous tumor with aplicated expression. ¡°...¡± A heavy silence filled the room. Young-Joon stared at him, then approached him. ¡°Doctor Anderson.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I am upset that I had to attack important research from the Cold Spring Laboratory this way, but there is no value in science that trumps the truth.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The incubation will run until this evening, and everything will be cleaned upter on. The data will be sent to Science.¡± ¡°...¡± Jamie Anderson clenched his teeth. Oliver, who was standing beside him, let out a sigh. Oliver was the true developer of the immune checkpoint inhibitor. He was the first author of the paper as well. All Anderson did was fund the project; Oliver was the one who actually ran the experiments. The technology, which was like his child, was being dismantled before his eyes. ¡°Doctor Ryu,¡± Oliver said in a voice with mixed feelings. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°... Thank you for reporting the important problem with this technology.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Thanks to you, we were able to prevent more idents. Thank you.¡± Oliver thanked Young-Joon. * * * In the Oval Office at the White House, James Holdren, the director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, was having a conversation with President Campbell. ¡°He is amazing,¡± Campbell said. ¡°But it¡¯s such a loss that... Why did you grant a request like that? I honestly didn¡¯t expect it,¡± James said. ¡°Huh? You can¡¯t say that to me, Director Holdren. You said that Doctor Ryu would conquer cancer with or without our help, didn¡¯t you? You said to take the opportunity since it was just a matter of time,¡± Campbell said. ¡°That is true, but... Still, I didn¡¯t think you would do it that willingly. To be honest, I am a little disappointed. I mean, look at how much money we¡¯re pouring into Doctor Ryu. We¡¯re giving him ess to all the research resources the U.S. has built up over decades of cancer research and a whopping three billion dors, right? But the fact that we are not gaining anything from that is...¡± ¡°Why aren¡¯t we getting anything from it? All the papers that wille from there will have an acknowledgement of the funding from the National Institute of Health, right?¡± ¡°But that¡¯s just for honor,¡± James said. ¡°Mr. President, scientists like myself like honor and prestige. We would be thrilled if we worked hard in that cancerb and published a paper in Science as the first author. Universities will hand you a job as a professor if you have a paper like that under your belt. It¡¯s a powerful weapon for your career.¡± ¡°But since I don¡¯t care about that and I¡¯m investing a lot of money in Doctor Ryu, I should gain some tangible profit from him?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not that capitalistic, but... It is true that the amount of money we¡¯re pouring in is too much for us to just think of it as charity.¡± Campbell smiled. ¡°You¡¯re right. But we are the government, not apany.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Wasn¡¯t it you who told me that the scientific world was shifting to Asia with Doctor Ryu¡¯s performance in the past year?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, but...¡± ¡°Director, the United States has been the best in the world in businesses of the future, such as medicine, biotechnology, and biopharmaceuticals, by arge margin.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°And I think maintaining that is worth it.¡± ¡°Hm...¡± Holdren scratched his head. ¡°The overwhelming support of three billion dors is to keep Doctor Ryu on our side.¡± ¡°To keep him on our side...¡± Has the U.S. government ever sacrificed this much in order to make one person into their ally? ¡°In my opinion, this isn¡¯t even half of what Doctor Ryu is capable of. He mentioned cultured meat during our meeting before, right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right...¡± ¡°What do you think? Am I wrong? I think that if we continue to support Doctor Ryu like we are doing now, the United States will be able to continue leading the world in science.¡± ¡°Well, probably. Doctor Ryu knows more about cancer than any other scientist in the twenty-first century.¡± ¡°Right?¡± ¡°Yes. Cellicure, a liver cancer cure, Birnagen for pancreatic cancer, and the gic surgery that cured lung cancer this time around: all three havepletely different drug bases.¡± Cellicure was a traditional treatment using chemicals. Even though Song Ji-Hyun yed a vital role in the development of Cellicure, Young-Joon must have given her a lot of help. As such, Young-Joon had most likely mastered organic chemistry. However, the cure for pancreatic cancer was unexpectedly a virus; no chemicals were involved at all. He actually used the crazy idea of manipting a virus that caused pancreatic necrosis in fish to destroy pancreatic tumors in humans. On top of that, when he cured lung cancer this time around, hebined a couple of new technologies and manipted genes like he was doing surgery. It was neither chemotherapy nor virus-based treatment, but immunotherapy. ¡°Usually, it¡¯s hard to do any of those three. He has mastered all kinds of scientific knowledge, he has an incredible imagination and reasoning skills, and he has strong execution skills to make it happen. If we can stay friendly with Doctor Ryu and run the A-Bio Cancer Laboratory, the United States will be able to stay where we are in biology right now.¡± ¡°That¡¯s good enough. No one willin that we are spending tax money on useless things because the United States has the most cancer patients in the world. Three billion dors is not expensive if we can keep Doctor Ryu as an ally and give the American people pride and hope that we are conquering cancer,¡± Campbell said. ¡°Actually, since it hase to this, I think we need to go one step further, Director Holdren.¡± ¡°A step further?¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t the Swedish crown trying to im Doctor Ryu by making him an honorary citizen and whatnot? I¡¯m sure there are other countries that want him too, but technically, we are the first ones in line.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Right? We have supported Doctor Ryu since Schumatix. Why don¡¯t we give him a little boost and solidify our rtionship?¡± ¡°How?¡± ¡°Should we make him an honorary citizen, too?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I¡¯m kidding. Let¡¯s start with publicly affirming A-Bio¡¯s patent guidelines that Doctor Ryu would have announced today.¡± Chapter 133: The American Cancer Conference (9)

Chapter 133: The American Cancer Conference (9)

Campbell moved fast. He held a press conference right away and confirmed the details Young-Joon announced during the cancer conference. ¡°The U.S. government provided three billion dors in annual funding to help Doctor Ryu Young-Joon, the CEO of A-Bio, build the A-Bio Cancer Laboratory,¡± Campbell said. ¡°The A-Bio Cancer Laboratory is an affiliatepany of the National Institute of Health, and it will have ess to all anticancer research data at the National Cancer Institute, and the National Center for Biotechnology Information.¡± Even if the corporation itself followed U.S.ws, it was still a foreignpany. Plus, it was highly unusual for the U.S. government to give them this much ess. And frankly, the fact that they were giving him three billion dors was just insane. ¡°Furthermore, the U.S. government has decided not to im any rights to any new drugs developed from it,¡± Campbell said. ¡°The A-Bio Cancer Laboratory was controversial from the beginning of its establishment. People were asking why America should spend so much tax money to help a foreignpany get off the ground. The White House was attacked because of this decision, but thosements disappeared while the cancerboratory was being built. Do you know why? It¡¯s because A-Bio and Doctor Ryu Young-Joon have aplished so much.¡± The reporters wrote down Campbell¡¯s announcement. It was information that people in the know already knew about, as Young-Joon had dropped a spoiler of sorts at the conference. ¡°Now, the situation has taken aplete turn, and people are making all sorts ofments: that it doesn¡¯t make sense for America to invest that much money and get nothing out of it and that an investment that does not yield profit is a failed investment from a capitalist perspective, no matter the excuse. There are some saying that the rtionship between Doctor Ryu and myself should be investigated,¡± Campbell said. It was true that people were saying that, but that was not the public¡¯s general opinion. There was a reason why Campbell let Young-Joon announce everything at the conference first: to see how the public reacted. Campbell¡¯s announcement would change slightly depending on that. But things were going as he expected and as he wanted. ¡°First of all, I only met Doctor Ryu for the first time just a few days ago, and...¡± Campbell said. ¡°This bold decision was made by the U.S. government because we had confidence in the synergy that would be created between Doctor Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s ingenuity and American capital. We are at the threshold of an important battle.¡± Campbell took a deep breath. ¡°With the help of Doctor Ryu Young-Joon, A-Bio, and A-Gen, the United States of America will find theplete answer to cancer in the next fifty years. We will create a world where we will no longer have cancers that are incurable because of theck of technology.¡± Campbell raised his voice while holding the microphone and looking at the reporters. ¡°To those who say that the U.S. government is investing a great amount of money and resources but not getting anything out of it, let me give you this answer. 1.73 million people were newly diagnosed with cancer in the United Statesst year, and six hundred nine thousand people passed away from cancer,¡± Campbell said. ¡°ording to data from thest five years, the average American citizen has a thirty-eight percent chance of being diagnosed with cancer at least once in their lifetime. Last year, fifteen thousand two hundred seventy children and adolescents under the age of neen were diagnosed with cancer and eighteen hundred of them lost their lives because of it.¡± Campbell¡¯s supporters cheered at the right time as he spoke. ¡°And the national cost of caring for cancer was estimated to be one hundred forty-seven billion dors. Isn¡¯t an investment of three billion dors a year to end this huge loss of lives and capital a bargain?¡± Campbell went on. ¡°After Doctor Ryu Young-Joon developed gene surgery that can be done in the body, the scientificmunity is full of people who want to work with him on his anticancer project. However, the White House wisely noticed his abilities and prospects months ago and established a cancerb, ultimately leading to the start of this project.¡± ¡°Good job!¡± ¡°Give him more money!¡± Some of the citizens shouted. Campbell smiled inside. ¡°The United States is not investing in the A-Bio Cancer Lab; it was brought into the United States. And I believe that what is happening right now is one of the best things this government has done this year,¡± Campbell said. ¡°Doctor Ryu Young-Joon has experience in working on transnational projects such as the HIV Eradication Project, and he has also developed effective treatments for incurable diseases like Alzheimer¡¯s and diabetes. His and A-Bio¡¯s capabilities have already been proven. Moreover, he has shown us his true integrity andmitment to this project by even giving up his own patent.¡± Campbell went on. ¡°I promise you, the great people of the United States of America, that we are Doctor Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s best ally and friend. We will give it our all and work together toward the greatest goal in human history: the conquering of cancer. If we join forces, this disease will be extinct in fifty years.¡± * * * In a restaurant that served beer and burgers on Kingsreta Street, Phdelphia... ¡°...¡± Young-Joon¡¯s hand froze while still holding his fork. So did all the members of the Life Creation Team who were sitting at the same table. It was because the president¡¯s announcement was on the huge television that was at the front of the restaurant. ¡°When did you be friends with America?¡± Cheon Ji-Myung asked. ¡°It¡¯s the first I¡¯m hearing of it,¡± Young-Joon replied while putting down his fork. Park Dong-Hyun chuckled. ¡°They¡¯re really showing off their friendship.¡± ¡°A-Bio¡¯s entry to the U.S. was not an investment by the U.S., but brought in by the U.S... Wow...¡± Cheon Ji-Myung eximed ¡°But honestly, it is something to be proud of. I would have bragged to the prime minister if I was the president too,¡± Park Dong-Hyun said. ¡°Right, sir? The person they funded with three billion dors a year and built a cancerb for suddenly developed a tform that can end all cancers? Isn¡¯t this like bitcoin-level sess? If this was an investment, they would be Warren Buffett.¡± Young-Joon scratched his head like he was a little embarrassed. ¡°Now, you¡¯ll be treated like a guest of honor in any country,¡± Bae Sun-Mi said. ¡°That¡¯s a lot of pressure.¡± Young-Joon sipped his Coke. ¡°Sir, why are you not drinking beer?¡± Jung Hae-Rim asked. ¡°Hm... I¡¯m just not feeling it today.¡± Young-Joon made an excuse and nced at Rosaline, who was ying with her fingers beside the table. ¡®She¡¯s probably going to get all angry because she doesn¡¯t want to use alcohol-filled blood vessels, right?¡¯ Young-Joon took another sip of his Coke. ¡®Hey. What are you doing?¡¯ Young-Joon asked Rosaline. ¡ªI¡¯m just people-watching. ¡®Is it entertaining to just stand there and stare at people¡¯s faces like that?¡¯ ¡ªYes. It seems like other people enjoy it too. They are all staring at your face. ¡®Huh?¡¯ As Young-Joon looked around after hearing Rosaline, he made eye contact with five other people in the restaurant. He realized that people were stealing nces at him while drinking. The president¡¯s announcement had ended on television, and it was now showing Young-Joon giving a lecture at the conference. ¡°Um...¡± someone called Young-Joon from behind. It was a man with a bushy beard. He was the owner of the restaurant. ¡°Are you Doctor Ryu Young-Joon?¡± he asked whileparing Young-Joon¡¯s face on television to his actual face. ¡°Yes, I am.¡± ¡°Wow,¡± he eximed in a thick voice. He stared at Young-Joon with a nk stare, then mumbled, ¡°Wow...¡± His hands trembled as if he saw something that he shouldn¡¯t have. Then, he asked, ¡°I-is there anything... Anything you need?¡± ¡°Pardon? Oh, no.¡± ¡°Wait, hold on. I will bring out some things on the house.¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s fine...¡± Young-Joon was about to decline, but the man had already turned his body. He ran towards the kitchen with a smile on his face. Then, other people began to crowd Young-Joon¡¯s table as well. They were people from the nearby tables. ¡°Are you really Doctor Ryu?¡± they asked. ¡°Yes, I am...¡± ¡°Wow... I am a huge fan, Doctor Ryu. Could you take a picture with my son?¡± asked a woman in her forties as she pulled on her son¡¯s hand. ¡°Wait. Let¡¯s not bother him while he¡¯s eating,¡± said an old gentleman in his seventies from behind. ¡°Doctor You, if it¡¯s alright with you, could we pay for your dinner?¡± asked a young couple. ¡°Hey!¡± the owner peeked out from the kitchen and suddenly shouted. ¡°Don¡¯t touch Doctor Ryu. And I was already going to give it to him on the house!¡± ¡°...¡± As Young-Joon stood there, dumbfounded, the customers went on. ¡°My grandmother had Alzheimer¡¯s, but she became a lot better after your treatment.¡± ¡°My wife here had liver cancer.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve lived with diabetes for twenty years, but my quality of life has improved a lot after taking Amuc. I have it with me right now, do you want to see it? This. It¡¯s Amuc, right?¡± In the frenzy of people talking, the owner showed up with a huge te. ¡°Hahaha, Doctor Ryu,¡± he said as he set the te down on Young-Joon¡¯s table. ¡°I was actually HIV positive.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°My wife was HIV positive as well. I gave it to her because I didn¡¯t know I had it. I was in agony. But now, both of us got treatment.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°It¡¯s funny how we say we were patients because just a year ago, I didn¡¯t know we could use this phrase. Thank you so much. The fact that I¡¯m alive and cooking here is all thanks to you, Doctor Ryu.¡± Young-Joon smiled happily. ¡°I¡¯m d you are okay.¡± ¡°If it¡¯s alright, could I get an autograph? We want to keep it at our restaurant for a long time.¡± ¡°Sure. You¡¯re paying for our meal, so it¡¯s the least I can do.¡± ¡°Great, thank you. Do you mind if I call my wife? She¡¯s at home, right in front of the ce, and I¡¯m sure she would love to see you.¡± ¡°Haha, that¡¯s not for me to decide. Please, do as you wish.¡± ¡°Wow, everyone!¡± the owner excitedly shouted to the customers in the restaurant. ¡°Everything is on the house today! Eat up!¡± ¡°Wow!¡± The customers pped. The excitement in the restaurant was in full swing. ¡°Sir, look at that,¡± Jung Hae-Rim said as she pointed to the television. Another news broadcast was on. ¡ªDoctor Ryu Young-Joon brought an artificial tumor to the American Cancer Conference that was transnted into a mini-small intestine designed by organoid technology. After administering APD, an immune checkpoint inhibitor, the artificial tumor was found to grow rapidly by more than sixteen times its original size in nine hours. The screen showed the footage of the artificial tumor experiment, then people crowding the reception desk to the cancer conference, then to Jamie Anderson¡¯s grim face. ¡ªThe European Medicines Agency is taking this very seriously and has decided to thoroughly examine the possibility of revoking APD¡¯s approval. Moreover, they have asked hospitals to refrain from using it until they have reached a definitive conclusion. Chapter 134: The American Cancer Conference (10) Chapter 134: The American Cancer Conference (10) What are you going to do about this? asked Scott, the director of the FDA. Scott was talking to Jamie Anderson in irritation in theb directors office at the Cold Spring Laboratory. He had a frown on his face. Director, the EMA[1] has asked hospitals all over Europe to refrain from using APD. And they are considering withdrawing the approval. ... The FDA has been very kind to you and the Cold Spring Lab. You know that, right? We trusted you and used it. But you earned that much from us, too. What are you insinuating? There is nothing wrong about our rtionship. Watch what you say. ... The EMA has almost the same status as the FDA. Just like how the United States has the FDA, the European Union has the EMA; it is the FDA of the European Union. We cant sit on our hands if they revoke APDs approval. Phew And even the president is defending Ryu Young-Joon like that, so how can I take your side here, Director? Im getting out of this here. But do you have any other solutions? ... Wheres Doctor Oliver? He hasnt beening to worktely. Hes probably in shock. ... Sigh, everything is a mess. Honestly, Im shocked, too. I didnt know that there was such a severe side effect to the immune checkpoint inhibitor. I didnt believe it before, but now, I have no choice but to believe it. Anyway, youre on your own now. Sooner orter, the FDA will be making an announcement to refrain from using APD, Scott said briefly and left. The Cold Spring Laboratory had studied the immune checkpoint inhibitor for almost twenty years. They considered it to be one of the greatest achievements since the founding of theb. There were many challenges along the way, and Oliver, the leader of the project, was so overwhelmed by the difficulty and stress that he tried to abandon the project several times. Even the executives of theb were doubtful as well. It was because the idea of activating immune cells to cure cancer was so far-fetched at the time. They were still worried even after the mechanism was rtively well-known. The person who pushed for it was Jamie Anderson. And when they finished the clinical trial, he thought that had done it. Hard work can be wasted. It was before this huge project received a death sentence. Jamie Andersons status was falling rapidly. * * * Wild dogs were bound to wander around a lion lying on the ground with a bad wound. They woulde near it and sneakily nibble it a little with their small teeth. The start of this was a post on ResearchGate, an onlinemunity for scientists. I feel bad for Doctor Oliver, but someone got what wasing. He was racist all the time, and now, he was screwed over by an Asian. LOL This short post quickly blew up on Twitter, and the issue of Jamie Andersons racism began to surface. He was already in the spotlight because of the immune checkpoint inhibitors side effects. But if he was also a racist? Instinctively realizing that this was going to be a very entertaining story, media outlets like CNN and Fox News began gathering more specific tips. And the next morning So, are you saying that he continued to make discriminatory and offensivements to female and ck scientists at theb? asked Natalie, the CNN reporter. One scientist at the Cold Spring Laboratory, who was guaranteed anonymity, let out everything she had been holding in. Yes. It was no joke. It was worse for me especially because I was a ck, female scientist. Youre going to be shocked when you hear it. Can you give me a specific example? ... Once, he said that ck women evolved to have a big butt due to gics, so they are good at twerking. He said that I should practice it and perform it at thepany pic. ... Natalie was momentarily speechless in shock. Uh Thats really beyond my imagination Right? Theres a lot worse than this, too. He said that ck people have smoother skin because they have a higher expression of the gene that synthesizes mnin, but mnin expression probably contributes to lower intelligence. ... Wait, youre saying that Director James Anderson said this? He says this kind of stuff out loud in public ces, like conferences. What do you think hes like in theb? Racism and sexism happen daily in thatb. If a ck scientist gets bad data, hell say that the future of this project is as dark as your skin color during the meeting. How could someone say that? And to be honest, he doesnt even know half of the projects of the papers that are published from there. But he still puts his name on every single one of them, which is a vition of research ethics. Wow Honestly, I dont think someone like that is qualified to be ab director. I hope he just takes responsibility for the immune checkpoint inhibitor projects failure and leaves. Jamie Andersons untouchable charisma and prestige vanished like it was a mirage. Scientists, who no longer had to be afraid of him because he was the boss, began speaking up. The nation was stunned by the ugly side of Jamie Anderson, the Nobel Prize recipient and discoverer of DNA structure who was the hero of twentieth-century biology. Scientists in the same field reacted like they knew that this would happen someday, but the general public was extremely shocked. Media outlets had no time to rest nowadays. They had to cover Young-Joons deration to conquer cancer, the presidents announcement, and the side effects of the immune checkpoint inhibitor. After working so hard, they had Jamie Andersons racism and sexism scandal to cover as well. [The fall of the greatest scientist in the 20th century, and the rise of the greatest scientist in the 21st century.] CNN ran a headline with a photo of Young-Joon and Jamie Anderson. They were simr to each other in terms of their ingenuity, and they had both risen and fallen around the same time. They were also sworn enemies who fought about the immune checkpoint inhibitor. American media outlets continuouslypared them and asked Young-Joon for interviews. He declined most of them, but he could not deny the request asking him to exin the experiment he did with the mock tumors at the conference. Scientists could read papers, and they could understand the exnation Young-Joon gave them at the conference. However, if it attracted this much attention from the public, it was necessary for him as principal investigator to provide an easy exnation for ay audience. ... As such, EGFR continues to generate cell division signals, and the cancer cells proliferate rapidly. Young-Joon concluded his exnation in the CNN interview. Then, as he feared, Natalie slyly asked a question about Jamie Anderson. Theres been a lot of issues regarding racism in the scientificmunity recently. Yes. Its being argued that it is a naive premise to think that intelligence evolved the same way when all races have slightly different characteristics, such as skin color. What do you think about this argument? They were probably going to use Young-Joons answer to beat Jamie Anderson; after all, the public loves a hero who takes down a viin. Genes can affect intelligence. If genes differ significantly between races, intelligence could vary, but Young-Joon said. What exactly is intelligence? Pardon? Deductive reasoning, synesthesia, imagination,nguage, memory, arithmetic skills. There are a lot of different abilities that could be called intelligence, and it is being constructed and organized pretty well in the scientificmunity, but we still dont know which are superior, Young-Joon said. And how cannguage be tested? Do genius writers like Hemingway who can make people cry with just six words have incrediblenguage abilities? Then what if that person is good at writing, but cannot speak? Does that person have goodnguage abilities? Or is it bad? Oh And who is more intelligent between a great philosopher like Sartre and a genius mathematician like John von Neumann? I understand what you are saying. Theres no point inparing them. Thats right. This is the same thing asparing mass and length. If someone asked what was bigger between one meter and one milligram, who could answer that? There is no point inparing biological intelligence quotients unless those preliminary questions are addressed. And Young-Joon said. There are about two thousand genes that affectnguage. How they are expressed in each individual brain cell determines the activity of that cell. How those cellsmunicate with each other determinesnguage ability. Theplexity of the microworld is far greater than we can see. So, youre saying that you agree that genes will have an effect in some form, but that it is tooplex and variable for us to understand? Thats right. Thank you for your interview. Theres one more thing we would like to ask you. Yes. Its about a paper that Doctor Jamie Anderson, the director of the Cold Spring Laboratory, published in Nature about the structure of DNA. There is a rumor that he stole the data from a scientist named Rosalind Franklin. What do you think about this? ... Rosaline, who was sitting beside Young-Joon, quickly turned her head and nced at him. I think a lot of what Doctor Rosalind Franklin deserved went to Doctor Anderson, Young-Joon said. Doctor Rosaline Franklin produced that data, and the paper was being written; it hadnt been revealed yet. Regardless of who gave that to Doctor Anderson, it is true that her data was used without permission. There is no question about that. Its a major research ethics vition. This kind of thing should not happen. * * * At A-Bio, Park Joo-Hyukughed so hard that his stomach hurt while standing beside Lee Hae-Wons desk. Ah, this crazy bastard He got justice all the way in America, and he made an old guard from the twentieth-century retire. He wiped a tear from the corner of his eye. He is our CEO, but he sometimes scares me, Lee Hae-Won said. The things that were happening in the United States were major news in Korea as well. This morning, there was breaking news. [Jamie Anderson resigns as the director of the Cold Spring Laboratory.] It was called resignation, but he was basically fired. Anyways, Im happy that a racist like him was destroyed, Park Joo-Hyun said. If youre done, you should go work as well. I have patent documents to write. Theres another patent? Park Joo-Hyuk chuckled. Yes. Its from Sweden. That, um, gene surgery. Oh, youre writing about that. Yes. But work is manageable nowadays. Note nights either. You got an email. Park Joo-Hyuk pointed to her monitor. Lee Hae-Won really received an email, and it was from Young-Joon. Click. When she clicked on it, she saw a manuscript that looked like a rough draft of a paper and a few concepts. [Please have the patent team review this in denial and prepare the application.] [Patent application for technology to quickly grow cultured meat by hyperprogression.] ... Lee Hae-Won was speechless. Park Joo-Hyuk gave her a pat on her shoulder. Good luck tonight! 1. European Medicines Agency Chapter 135: Cultured Meat (1) Chapter 135: Cultured Meat (1) Springdale was a city in Arkansas that was about an eighteen-hour drive from Marnd on Interstate 70. This was where Tekeyson Foods was, a huge livestockpany. Tekeyson Foods first started out as a meat processingpany but now, it acquired thousands of livestock farms and grew their own livestock. It was the secondrgest livestockpany after Redmeat in Brazil. Also, it was the biggest beef exporter in the United States. The head of Tekeyson Foods was Mckinney; he was a legend in the livestock industry. There were three reasons why he became famous. One was because of his talent and sharpness in business. He was the one who went to Korea as soon as Young-Joon developed the diagnostic kit and proposed they make an animal disease diagnostic kit together. Thanks to that, he made a contract with Young-Joon faster than anyone else and seeded in supplying the kit to Tekeyson. That was how sharp, fast, and urate Mckinneys business sense was. The second reason was that he was a strong animal rights advocate. It was ironic that someone who made his living by ughtering livestock would be an animal rights advocate, but that was what he aimed for. An advocate for the rights of animals suffering in factory farming: that was the image Mckinney sold to the public. People wanted to eat meat; that was the inevitable truth. But at the same time, people felt sympathy for animals who were brutally ughtered. In response to the inevitable tragedy, Mckinney took on the role of the moderator. He took over a number of livestock farms and transformed the factory farming system into a welfare system. The animals had more green space to roam, and they ate clean feed. The animals were killed in the quickest way possible to minimize the pain, with no fear of death until just before the ughter. Tekeyson solidified its brand value by building a reputation for animal welfare. They made morally conscious customers feel less guilty about eating meat. The third reason why Mckinney was famous was because he came back from end-stage pancreatic cancer. There were quite a few people who survived the disease now that Virnagen, A-Bios pancreatic cancer cure wasmercially avable, but there was nothing like that in Mckinneys days. He stepped away from his role as the CEO after being diagnosed with end-stage pancreatic cancer, but he came back after participating in the clinical trial that A-Bio conducted. He recovered from pancreatic cancer, which had a mortality rate of nearly one hundred percent, and came back to his role as the CEO. Steve Jobs didnte back, but Mckinney did. A lot of people were amazed and apuded at his return. Theres swine fever at the Westcoff Barn? Mckinney asked. He was listening to the third-quarter earnings report. They look fine, but the diagnostic kit showed the sign. Its only one pig for now. It didnt show up in the rest of them, said the franchise farm manager. Good. Whatever it is, lets quarantine them right away. Test the herds once every week if possible since the diagnostic kits are cheap, said Mckinney. Everything looks fine but the diagnostic kit showed swine fever? The diagnostic kit was probably right. Its probably in its incubation period, and it will develop soon. There was no cure for swine fever, so there was a high probability that the infected animals would die. And because swine fever was so contagious, an entire barn would have to shut down if it spread in the incubation period. Im d I bought the kit. Mckinney let out a sigh of relief inside. The diagnostic kit had already saved him twice. When he first supplied the kit, bovine akabane disease was found in Missouri. If they found it a littleter, three farms in Missouri would have been destroyed. Additionally, about a month ago, infectious bursal disease was found in one of the farms in New Mexico. What could have killed hundreds of animals and forced them to close their doors ended with the loss of five cows and two chickens. There is an economic loss, but killing livestock is too cruel. The top priority is to stop the infection from spreading, so lets quarantine it if it shows up in the diagnostic kit no matter what, Mckinney said. He knew well about the killing process. It was a living hell. The chickens were suffocated and then tossed into a spinning grinder, but some of them were alive. The chickens, who had their legs and spines broken alive and had their organs crushed, could barely scream. The blood that sttered everywhere and the smell of blood on their bodies was enough to traumatize the healthiest of people. Large-scale killing doesnt align with ourpany image, so lets stop it as much as possible. And keep promoting ourpany image with that, Mckinney said. Of course. But sir, didnt you say you were meeting someone today? the manager asked. Yes. I have to be out by about twenty past three. Its twenty-five past three right now. Oh! Mckinney looked at the clock in surprise, then got up. Move, move! He put on his jacket in a hurry and ran out. I cant bete! He is an important guest! * * * Young-Joon arrived at the Tekeyson headquarters in Springfield at thirty past three. There were refreshments prepared in the meeting room. Mckinney, the head of Tekeyson Foods, greeted Young-Joon happily. Hello. Its been a while, Young-Joon said. Were meeting in America this time around. Its nice to see you. Young-Joon took a seat. Are you hot, Mr. Mckinney? Youre sweating. Haha, its fine. Chuckling, Mckinney wiped the sweat off his forehead. The reason I asked to meet with you today is about the cultured meat business. Young-Joon cut straight to the chase. The cultured mean industry? Yes. Mr. Mckinney, you run one of the worldsrgest livestock industries, and you are also a strong animal rights advocate. I thought you might be the person who will be able to apply my technology in the best way possible. Have you developed cultured meat technology? To be honest, I dont have any experimental data as it is only in theory. However, I think it is very promising. So, I thought it would be good to talk about it while Im here before I go back to Korea, Young-Joon said. Hm. Mckinney crossed his arms and thought. Young-Joon said, Of course, I understand that it will be hard for you to support cultured meat technology when you are the CEO of a traditional livestock industry. However, please think about this not as the CEO of Tekeyson Foods, but as an animal rights advocate. Consider how many human and animal lives this could save, and how it could protect the environment. Can cultured meat save human lives too? Absolutely, Young-Joon said. Right now, there is plenty of food; the reason there are starving people is because of unequal distribution. However, that wont be the case in the future. I see. I agree with you. Mckinney nodded. Doctor Ryu, I focus on livestock, but I am also quite interested in agriculture as well. There have been a lot of predictions that a food crisis will slowly approach due to continued global warming andnd degradation. And I read somewhere Um, the United Nations Climate Council The IPCC. Yes. You know about it. I saw the IPCCs prediction the other day, and they said the increase and decrease in food production will be rtively equal in 2020, but the decrease will be a lot bigger from 2030. Thats right. This means that from 2030, yearly food production will decrease when the poption is growing. We will be able to defend ourselves for a while by changing how we distribute it, but its only a matter of time. If the temperature rises by even one degree, the production of rice and wheat drops by ten percent on average, and the quality will drop by thirty percent, Young-Joon said. Mckinney interrupted Young-Joon and said, I get your point, Doctor Ryu. Almost half the corn currently produced on Earth is eaten by livestock. Youre saying that if we changed all thatnd used to grow livestock and corn to grow grains, we could solve a lot of our food problems, right? Exactly. Thats why you are saying that it will save people too. Thats right. Cheon Ji-Myungughed inside while listening to their conversation. There was a reason why Young-Joon came to Mckinney without hesitation. It was because Mckinney was simr to Young-Joon: smart and virtuous. They are really hitting it off. To Mckinney, Young-Joon said, And the environmental issue is important as well. If methane was carbon dioxide, the emissions from a single cow would be equivalent to a car. Then, theres the issue of disposing of waste from the ughtering and processing. Theres also severend degradation because it takes a lot of cultivation to feed those animals. Mckinney nodded. Ipletely agree with you, Doctor Ryu. I saw the data from the Food and Agriculture Organization saying that fifteen percent of all greenhouse gassese from the meat industry. Yes. Then, why dont you invest in cultured meat technology? If you decline, I will take it to anotherpany. If existing livestock industries dont take it, A-Bio will do it. Mckinney smiled. Doctor Ryu, we are already investing in cultured meat. Really? Yes. Theres a venturepany in Silicon Valley that makes cultured meat. There arent a lot ofpanies that do cultured meat because it is a new business, but it is the biggest and most famous one. What is it? Its called Eat the Green. They have about sixty employees, and they are passionate. We invested two hundred million dors on itst year. Is it an SI? SI, or a strategic investment, was when a bigpany strategically invested in another venturepany. It was the opposite of a financial investment, FI, where the capital provided the money. Ventures that received SI from argepany had an advantage when going public. Thats right, Mckinney said. It is true that the livestock industry is afraid of the cultured meat industry, as it is an alternative industry that could rece us. However, the scarier an enemy is, the more you have to keep an eye on them. Mckinneys seasoned business sense had already caught onto the cultured meat industry. Rather than ignoring the technology that would blow up and turn the livestock industry upside down one day, he decided to do it himself. If he could monitor its development, the livestock industry could also adapt quickly to minimize the damage. Actually, there are quite a few livestockpanies that have invested in cultured meat ventures like me. I see. Why dont youe to Eat the Green with me? * * * The employees at Eat the Green were very busy. It was because Mckinney, the CEO of their biggest investor, Tekeyson Foods, was suddenlying to visit. Geez, how could our CEO say yes at once just because he asked? said Frederick as he cleaned theb. Theb wasnt a messy ce to begin with, but he had to make the ce shine because an important guest wasing. Theres nothing we can do about it. And besides, they said it was important business, Stephan said. The scientists organized the artificial meat that was cultured. te three is the most sessful experiment. We should make some burgers with the meat we grew here, Frederick joked as he nced at the incubator. Ding! The elevator in the hall outside theb arrived. Exiting the elevator were Mckinney, executives from Tekeyson Foods, and five Asian people. One of them was incredibly famous. Doctor Ryu! Frederick shouted in shock. Young-Joon, who heard it, looked over. Ack Frederick groaned. Hello, Young-Joon said as he held out his hand. Im Ryu Young-Joon, the CEO of A-Bio. N-n-nice to meet you. I-Im Frederick Frederick shook Young-Joons hand while stuttering. Young-Joon was a legend in the cultured meat industry. Of course, he didnt actually do anything directly because he only recently became interested in cultured meat. However, cultured meat was usually made from stem cells, and two years ago, when Frederick first entered the field, stem cell technology was very inefficient. They had to be harvested every time from the cows bone marrow, cultured and then used to produce meat. That was the biggest obstacle to the development of the cultured meat industry. That was until some crazy genius from Asia invented a shocking base technology called induced pluripotent stem cells. Because it was such a fundamental base technology, it had caused huge structural changes in fieldspletely unrted to pharmaceuticals as well. Chapter 136: Cultured Meat (2)

Chapter 136: Cultured Meat (2)

¡°You¡¯re a scientist at Eat the Green, right?¡± RYJ asked. ¡°Yes, I am...¡± Frederick answered in a trembling voice. ¡°A-Bio hase here to invest. As a hands-on scientist, what do you think? Are the experiments going well?¡± ¡°...¡± Frederick thought for a moment. The CEO of Eat the Green wasn¡¯t a bad person, but people were bound to emphasize results and hide failures when trying to attract investments. However, Frederick wanted to give him all the information. It was a courtesy for the best scientist in the field. ¡°To be honest, it is not very efficient...¡± Frederick, the scientist who was on the lowest rung of thedder, had no right to say this, but he courageously spoke up. ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes. It¡¯s far more productive to grow cows and get meat from them. Maybe that¡¯s how it¡¯s supposed to be... Maybe this whole artificial meat culturing is just too inefficient.¡± ¡°No way.¡± RYJ shook his head. ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°We use a lot of unnecessary energy when we get meat from cows, right? It¡¯s not like we eat cow eyes, hair, or hooves.¡± ¡°... What?¡± ¡°When livestock produces meat, they also produce waste that we don¡¯t need. But cultured meat doesn¡¯t produce any of that waste, and all of its resources go straight to producing meat, right? Of course, cultured meat is more efficient than raising livestock for meat.¡± ¡°...¡± Baffled, Frederick was at a loss for words.¡± It was like someone was telling him that teleportation was a much more efficient technology than airnes because it¡¯s much faster. ¡°The methodology is correct. The only thing that is inefficient is the technology,¡± RYJ said. ¡°And I¡¯m here to solve it. Where is the CEO?¡± * * * Diego Lopez, the founder of Eat the Green, grew up in a small town in Mexico. He had witnessed something shocking when he was eleven; it was the scene of a chicken vendor killing a chicken in his truck. The vendor grabbed a chicken by the beck from the steel cage that was on the back of his truck. The chicken clucked with its legs iling in the air, which Diego found amusing until then. He knew that the vendor was going to ughter the chicken, but Diego, who had never seen that process before, did not realize how brutal it would be. Squirt! In the blink of an eye, the vendor¡¯s knife pierced through the chicken¡¯s stomach. ¡°Gurgle...¡± The chicken made a weird sound. Its iling legs froze. Then, the chicken vendor threw that into the pot with boiling water. Diego froze as if he met a poisonous snake at a trail. After a moment, the chicken vendor pulled out the chicken with tongs, plucked its feathers and cleaned out its organs before selling it to Diego¡¯s grandma. That day, Diego did not touch the chicken mole that was on the dinner table. Diego became a vegetarian a few weekster. At first, his decision didn¡¯te from a clear belief that animals also had a right to live; it was just that the scene of killing the chicken was so traumatizing that it had be ingrained in his mind. Diego learned to supplement his protein intake with dairy products, like cheese and milk, and grains, such as corn and beans. But like many vegetarians, he ran into a problem with vitamin B12. Vitamin B12 was an important nutrient that was used in many important processes including DNA replication, cell division, and blood production. However, there were almost no ways to absorb it on a vegetarian diet. There were reports that nt-based foods like fermented foods and marine algae had B12, but the absorption rate was low. The easiest and most efficient way to get vitamin B12 was to eat red meat. If that wasn¡¯t possible, they had to at least eat something like fish. For Diego, it felt like human fate. ¡®Humans can only survive by taking the lives of other animals.¡¯ To solve this problem, Diego looked for a lot of different vegetarian groups. He found that many others were struggling with this issue as well. ¡®Could there be a more fundamental solution?¡¯ The desire to eat animal flesh without causing pain to animals waspletely contradictory. Diego knew that he was making a big deal by refusing to eat meat, and he knew that it could look like a uselessint from an overly sensitive and frustrating idiot. But what could you do if you were born that way? And there were quite a lot of people like that in the world. Even if they weren¡¯t actually vegetarians, many people have stood at this crossroads at least once in their lives, maybe during puberty. It was a decision between havingpassion for animals and enjoying the pleasure and health of eating meat. ¡°I chose to be vegetarian, but I do not condemn people who chose the other way,¡± Diego said. ¡°Of course, since it is their choice,¡± RYJ said. ¡°Yes. But the problem is that if you choose one, you will have to sacrifice the other.¡± It seemed like there was no way between the two crossroads. Just like how it was impossible for Shylock to cut off one pound of flesh without spilling blood, there was no way to obtain meat without harming animals. They were like opposites that were ipatible. ¡°However, science can create paths that don¡¯t exist. The most fascinating part of science is that it can make previously unimaginable and illogical thoughts into reality. For example...¡± ¡°For example?¡± ¡°Like going to the moon,¡± Diego said. ¡°Mr. Ryu, think about how ridiculous that desire was before the space age. It was almost psychotic. But we went to the moon. Like that, I believe that science will be able to realize the crazy idea of being able to eat meat without causing pain.¡± ¡°Yes, I think so as well.¡± ¡°I came to the United States after marrying my American wife who I met in a vegetarian group. And I started studying cultured meat.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°Yes. And I¡¯m telling you since you¡¯re here to invest in us, but we¡¯re at the top of the world in cultured meat technology,¡± Diego said with confidence. ¡°Is that so?¡± ¡°We reduced the production cost, and it is three hundred times lesspared to the technology fifteen years ago. Of course, the induced pluripotent stem cells you made yed a huge part in it. Haha, ourpanies actually pay a lot of royalties to A=Bio and A-gen, so we were basically already business partners.¡± ¡°I think I¡¯ve seen your names in a few reports. I remember.¡± ¡°Really? It must have been nothing since A-Bio has a lot of new drug pipelines, but thank you for remembering us. Anyway, we are very grateful to you in many ways,¡± Diego said. ¡°That¡¯s why we¡¯ve set up a meeting today. We don¡¯t need any investments right now, and we have been refusing any investments. However, we are willing to work with you, Mr. Ryu. How much are you willing to fund us?¡± ¡°I am not going to invest money since you say that you have enough. I am here to invest my technology.¡± ¡°..¡± Diego looked confused. Hadn¡¯t he just said that Eat the Green was the best in the world at cultured meat? ¡®He¡¯s investing his technology in ourpany?¡¯ He was already using RYJ¡¯s iPS cells, and he had never heard of A-Bio doing cultured meat. ¡°What kind of technology... are you talking about?¡± Diego asked. ¡°Cultured meat technology, of course. It costs about three thousand dors to produce one hamburger patty¡¯s worth of meat right now, right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°I can make that near three dors.¡± ¡°Three dors!¡± Mckinney, who was listening to them, shouted. ¡°How can you make it three dors... Three dors... Three dors?¡± Up until this point, cultured meat had only shown promise as a future technology. At three thousand dors for one hamburger patty, it was three million dors for a hamburger. It would be even more expensive if the value of the intermediate distribution process was included. Therefore, people did not think of it as more than being interesting or just merely wanting it to go well. However, it could make a Big Mac if it became three dors. It was still more expensive than conventional meat, but there were so many benefits to cultured meat that the price was stillpetitive. ¡®Commercialization is possible.¡¯ Eat the Green would be able to grow from a venturepany that relied on technology patents to a medium-sizedpany with a product. ¡°And I have more technologies to invest. The meat you¡¯re producing now is just tightly packed muscle fibers, right?¡± RYJ asked Diego, who was frozen. ¡°... Yes.¡± ¡°How is the texture?¡± ¡°A lot of people say that it is tough because it¡¯s one hundred percent muscle fiber. It feels like chewing on hardened Spam.¡± ¡°The problem of texture is probably something that the cultured meat technology is going to have to solve over the next few decades. The reason is that real muscle isn¡¯t made up of just muscle fibers. There are fascicles that hold bundles of fibers together, and they are wrapped with the perimysium and the epimysium. There are blood vessels in this, and blood contains a lot of different types of cells. The heme in red blood cells is the mainponent that makes the taste of blood. The epimysium also holds a lot of moisture, and there are a lot of fatty acids in it as well. Perhaps it¡¯s more familiar to call it marbling? And you have to include nerve trunks as well. It will be challenging to delicately create meat tissue that contains all of these ingredients while controlling the proportions of all of them,¡± RYJ said. The meat that was obtained from livestock was like a sandwich with all sorts of toppings. No matter how many slices of bread were made, it still couldn¡¯t make a sandwich. The biggest challenge of cultured meat was cultivating tissue that contained all thoseponents. ¡°And creating the muscle isn¡¯t just the end of it. It will be hard for artificial meat to match the meaty texture that is created from the process of muscle on bones being pulled apart, destroyed, and regenerated. At the current rate of development in the cultured meat market, it will probably take decades for it to surpass the quality of traditional animal products.¡± ¡°...¡± There was silence. Diego cautiously spoke up. ¡°We haven¡¯t even dreamed of that. Are you trying to say that what you are saying is possible...?¡± ¡°We don¡¯t make cultured meat, but we are the best in the world at making organoids for medical purposes. And the inventors of that technology are here.¡± RYJ introduced the Life Creation Team. Cheon Ji-Myung and the other scientistsughed awkwardly and introduced themselves as well. ¡°We have already seeded in co-culturing tissue. We can show you how to co-culture fat cells and muscle fibers. We will also show you how to grow it so that the gaps between the muscle fibers are hydrated. All the things I mentioned earlier are theoretically attainable.¡± ¡°W-wait,¡± Mckinney interrupted. Sweat rolled down his neck. He had invested in cultured meat for a long time, but how could things advance so quickly? ¡°Can that be done overnight? Ourpany will go bankrupt.¡± Tekeyson Foods was a traditional livestockpany. They ran the farms they acquired, and they ughtered and processed the livestock from them and supplied them to a number of restaurants and butchers. Cultured meat, of course, required no ughtering and very little processing. Since one hamburger was still three thousand dors, Mckinney was just looking for a way to adapt while slowly building the technology, but it seemed like it was going to be three dors overnight. ¡°Mr. Ryu, that technology will make everyone in the livestock industry lose their livelihood. It¡¯s different from pharmaceuticals... People will kill themselves,¡± Mckinney said. ¡°Like how more people look for wild products after sessfully creating a farmed product, this will result in premiumization of the traditional livestock industry,¡± RYJ said. ¡°But like you said, Mr. Mckinney, there would be a lot of confusion if a technology like this suddenly came into the market.¡± ¡°... Then, what?¡± ¡°I met with President Campbell beforeing here.¡± ¡°The President?¡± Diego asked in surprise. ¡°Yes. The United States produces the most beef in the world; about twenty percent of the entire productiones from the United States.¡± ¡°And arge portion of thates from ourpany,¡± Mckinney said like it was painful. RYJ smiled. ¡°But don¡¯t worry. Technology eliminates jobs, but it also creates them. This will be a huge nned economy project with the cooperation of governments around the world.¡± Chapter 137: Cultured Meat (3)

Chapter 137: Cultured Meat (3)

Campbell was enthusiastic when Young-Joon decided that all the patents from the A-Bio Cancer Laboratory would be distributed free of charge. He even scheduled a few things after their meeting as he didn¡¯t think it was necessary to draw out the meeting. However, Campbell canceled all of them within ten minutes of meeting Young-Joon. ¡°Mr. Ryu, let¡¯s take a deep breath... Let¡¯s take our time thinking through this¡± Campbell said, flustered. ¡°This ispletely different from the new drugs you have made before. You¡¯repeting with differentpanies within the same industry when you develop new drugs, but cultured meat is turning an entire industry upside-down. You know what I mean, right...?¡± ¡°I know.¡± ¡°As a politician, I am pretty familiar with cultured meat due to the food crisis and environmental issues. That technology is not supposed to rece traditional livestock overnight. It is supposed topete with the traditional livestock industry for a long period of time and then slowly move to cultured meat.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°But what you¡¯re talking about, Mr. Ryu, seems to be something that can be realized in a short period of time.¡± ¡°Would you like to do it over a long period of time?¡± ¡°There is going to be mass unemployment if you do it right away. The reason that primary industries are so scary is because there are so many industries rooted in it,¡± Campbell said. ¡°For example, A-Gen might take a hit even though it seems like they are unrted. One of the biggest consumers of antibiotics produced by pharmaceuticalpanies is the livestock industry because they have to feed it to livestock. The distributors that sell the meat, thepanies that dispose of the waste, and even the research and development industry that breeds livestock... The research and development industry alone has a six-billion-dor market. If cultured meat disrupts this industry, the entire market disappears into thin air. There will be no need to breed animals.¡± ¡°Well, even if they take a temporary loss, those people probably won¡¯t take a major hit like long-term unemployment since they just have to change their field of research.¡± ¡°That... Yes, that is true, but the biggest problem is the farm owners who grow livestock. It¡¯s going to be a pain if they fight back about their right to preserve their livelihood,¡± Campbell said. ¡°The traditional livestock industry will still be maintained even if there is cultured meat. Publishingpanies made a huge deal about how paper books were going to disappear when e-books were developed, but they are fine, aren¡¯t they? And they are coexisting with things like art books.¡± ¡°You¡¯re saying that the traditional industry will be premiumized, just like how people look for wild, organic products?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°That will happen to a certain extent, but not all farms will be able to survive bybeling them as premium. They need a second option.¡± ¡°That is why I want to speak to you. The cultured meat industry will create tons of new jobs. Would you be willing to help farmers change their industries?¡± ¡°Change their industries?¡± Campbell tilted his head in confusion. ¡°Mr. Ryu, changing industries in a primary industry like livestock is different from closing down a restaurant and reopening it as a bar after remodeling the ce. What are the farm owners going to do with that ruralnd they have left after getting rid of all their livestock?¡± ¡°Make them farm.¡± ¡°Farming?! That¡¯s ridiculous. The agriculture industry is already saturated. How are they supposed to use their small plot ofnd topete with existing farmers who spray pesticides on their farnd with an airne?¡± ¡°It will be a little different from existing farming. They will be producing the base material for cultured meat.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Existing cultured meat developers emphasize the fact that cultured meat can protect animals as their biggest advantage, right? They say that it is safe for vegetarians as well.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°But there is one secret that cultured meat developers are hiding, and that is the limitation of cultured meat in protecting animal rights.¡± ¡°A limitation?¡± ¡°If you artificially grow animal cells, where do you think those cells are grown in?¡± ¡°Well, like a nutrient-rich solution...?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Those nutrients include all the different kinds of growth factors, vitamins, amino acids, sugars, and hormones. You can artificially match them to a certain extent, but you will still reach a limit eventually. So what can you do? Currently, animal cell cultures use FBS.¡± ¡°FBS?¡± ¡°Fetal bovine serum. It refers to appropriately processed bovine serum. You collect cow blood, settle the blood cells, treat the sma, and then use the serum. It uses the various nutrients in the cow¡¯s blood to culture animal cells.¡± ¡°Ah...¡± ¡°It¡¯s the same for cultured meat. Cultured meat uses FBS as well. It also uses cow¡¯s blood. Theypromise with animal rights by drawing blood instead of ughtering them. Sensitive vegetarians would probably refuse to eat meat if they knew this since it¡¯s made by exploiting cow¡¯s blood.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°And FBS is extremely expensive. It has to be since you have to remove invisible bacteria, viruses, and blood cells, and you have to check the quality of it to make sure there is nothing left. You need a skilled scientist and expensive equipment like centrifuges,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°That¡¯s why cultured meat is expensive. The reason why one hamburger patty costs millions of dors to make is because of the FBS.¡± ¡°Hm...¡± Campbell stroked his chin in thought. ¡°Since you¡¯re saying that you can dramatically reduce the unit price of cultured meat... Have you found something to rece FBS?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Is it a nt?¡± ¡°Precisely. Hormones and growth factors are normally ipatible between nts and animals because the structure ispletely different, but I found a nt species that can be used to grow cultured meat with some processing.¡± Campbell knew exactly what Young-Joon meant. ¡°Alright. So, you¡¯re trying to say that the nt species will have to be mass-produced when the cultured meat industry bes the major meat industry, right? And you¡¯re asking the government to help existing livestock farm owners change their business to that?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°You¡¯re taking livestock farm owners and adding them to the cultured meat industry by using thend that they already have for livestock.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± ¡°Are you okay with that?¡± ¡°Of course. And one more thing. Mr. Ryu, do you think you could slow down themercialization of the cultured meat technology?¡± ¡°How?¡± ¡°By releasing the technology you have over the span of five to ten years instead of releasing it at once. To give cultured meat and traditional meat to coexist.¡± ¡°Hm.¡± ¡°... Please.¡± ¡°Alright. We do have to minimize the damage to existing farms.¡± ¡°Thank you,¡± Campbell said, relieved. ¡°Mr. Ryu, I¡¯m saying this out of worry, but do not feel guilty if this technology reforms existing livestock farms and puts them out of work.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Cultured meat is not just a technology that is required because of picky vegetarians. The food crisis and environmental problems caused by poption growth are much closer than most people realize. If you don¡¯t start this now, it will be toote. This advancement is a good thing,¡± Campbell said. ¡°And it is inevitable for people¡¯s jobs to change as technology develops. And it¡¯s the government¡¯s job to minimize the noise in that process. I am grateful that you have pointed out the new jobs that will be created by recing FBS or whatever that is. You can leave it to me from here.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°But I think it would be a good idea to talk to other governments about this, not just the United States. If this is difficult for you, I can do it for you. How does that sound?¡± ¡°Sure.¡± ¡°Great.¡± With a bright smile, Campbell shook Young-Joon¡¯s hand. * * * ¡°Alright, sure,¡± Mckinney said. ¡°I will do that, Mr. Ryu. What¡¯s that nt called? I will buy it right away. We just have to gradually reduce and get rid of the livestock we have right now and grow nts, right? And then we have to change the ughtering and processing operations to facilities that grow cultured meat and test for bacteria infections or something?¡± ¡°Yes. That would be great.¡± ¡°Tekeyson Foods will go in that direction. Save some of the farms and businesses and sell traditional meat at a premium... I can picture it already. How much support did the government say they were going to give?¡± ¡°President Campbell is going to n the budget and announce the policy.¡± ¡°Alright. That¡¯s a relief. It¡¯s great that you are not going to release your technology at once but do it over a few years,¡± Mckinney said enthusiastically. ¡°Mr. Ryu, I knew that one day, the cultured meat technology was going to turn the livestock industry upside down. I think it¡¯s much better to do it in a nned way with your cooperation and the government¡¯s. I am a supporter of the free market, but things are bound to go wrong when you leave a technology like this to the market. Companies will pit themselves against each other and spread rumors.¡± ¡°That could happen.¡± ¡°If you announce this, there may be some livestockpanies who resist the change and try to maintain the status quo, such as Red Meat. They are ourpetitor, but they are good at politics. Be careful.¡± ¡°U-um, Mr. Ryu...¡± Diego interrupted. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but why are you bringing us this powerful technology instead of doing it yourself?¡± ¡°Because I don¡¯t want to be in charge of it,¡± Young-Joon replied calmly. ¡°You don¡¯t want to manage it?¡± ¡°This business will bring in a lot of money, but I am already busy with developing new drugs. I don¡¯t want to spend my energy on something other than running the A-Bio Cancer Lab, A-Bio, and A-Gen.¡± ¡°... Alright. But when you invest a technology like this, you usually take equity in thepany. I don¡¯t think we will be able to pay for the technology because we¡¯re only a venturepany.¡± ¡°Then A-Bio will take the equity, but I don¡¯t intend to participate in running thepany,¡± Young-Joon said. * * * In a flower shop in the suburbs of Springfield, L, the florist working there, met an unusual customer. It was an Asian man wearing a mask, and he came in with four big security guards. The man kept mumbling to himself in a quiet voice. ¡®What did you say the name of the nt was?¡¯ ¡ªIt¡¯s called Kochia. It¡¯s over there. Rosaline replied. ¡®Where?¡¯ ¡ªHere. Rosaline popped out of Young-Joon¡¯s body and led him to the Kochia nt. It was an ornamental and perennial nt that was about a meter tall. It wasmonly used to decorate gardens. ¡ªYou have to collect these leaves, grind them up, boil them at ny-five degrees, and then age them for a day at room temperature. The restriction enzymes will break down the starch as the nt cell wall bursts and make a lot of EGF (Epidermal Growth Factor). Rosaline said. ¡ªAfter that, you just have to dilute it in water and pour it into a container with the stem cell. The cells will multiply quickly as the EGFR is stimted. ¡®Does it not matter if the EGFR isn¡¯t mutated like hyperprogression in cancer cells?¡¯ ¡ªIt doesn¡¯t matter because you are mass-differentiating stem cells into muscle fibers, and cells that are undergoing differentiation have high EGFR expression anyway. All you have to do is put in a lot of the EGF that can stimte the EGFR. And Kochia leaves have a lot of that. ¡°Alright.¡± Young-Joon picked up the Kochia nt that was a meter tall. ¡°How much is this?¡± he asked. ¡°It is two hundred dors. Will you be growing it at home?¡± ¡°Um, yeah.¡± As L waspleting the transaction, L asked, ¡°Are those men outside with you?¡± ¡°Men?¡± Young-Joon turned to where L was pointing. Three men wearing suits were staring at Young-Joon from the entrance. When he left the shop, they talked to him first. ¡°You¡¯re Mr. Ryu Young-Joon from A-Bio, right?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°We¡¯re from the Blue House.¡± ¡°The Blue House?¡± ¡°Yes. We¡¯re here about a letter from the White House about the livestock industry. Can we talk to you for a minute?¡± Chapter 138: Cultured Meat (4)

Chapter 138: Cultured Meat (4)

¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± Young-Joon said. He gave the Kochia nt to Kim Chul-Kwon. ¡°Please keep this in the car for a bit.¡± Young-Joon followed the Blue House employees and went to a cafe nearby. There was already a room reserved. As Young-Joon walked in, the cafe owner gave him a drink. Then, a middle-aged man with gravitas came in. ¡°Hello, Doctor Ryu,¡± he said as he sat down on the sofa across from him. ¡°I¡¯m Kim Jun-Rak, the chief of staff of the Blue House. ¡°Hello.¡± ¡°We should have met at the Blue House sooner, but we are a littlete. I apologize.¡± ¡°How did you know I was at a flower shop?¡± ¡°Our informants track you when you go overseas.¡± ¡°...¡± That was a bit of a problematic statement. ¡°I am a citizen. Are you saying that you were surveilling me?¡± ¡°You were attacked in Korea before as well, right? We¡¯re just trying to keep track of your whereabouts because it will be a big problem diplomatically and a big loss for the country if you get into an ident overseas.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I could have made excuses, but I told you in honesty because I respect you. I hope you don¡¯t take it the wrong way.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± ¡°And from what we know, we are not the only people tracking your movements.¡± ¡°Are you saying there are more?¡± ¡°Yes. We cannot tell you in detail, but intelligence organizations from a lot of countries and bigpanies are following you, Doctor Ryu. I mean, they have no choice since... We never know when you are going to do something, like develop cultured meat technology. It is helpful to at least know that you went to Eat the Green, a venturepany that does cultured meat.¡± ¡°I see what you mean. Then, let¡¯s get to the point,¡± Young-Joon said. Kim Jun-Rak took a sip of his coffee. He paused for a moment before speaking. ¡°Doctor Ryu, don¡¯t develop the cultured meat technology.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t develop it?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°It is for your own good, Doctor Ryu. They are too big of an opponent. This research will affect the entire traditional livestock industry. There will be opposition, and whatever that opposition is, it will be significant. It could even be physical.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry about that.¡± ¡°It does seem like you have a great security team.¡± Young-Joon automatically nced at Rosaline, who was sitting beside the sofa, and Kim Jun-Rak nced at the K-Cops security team. ¡°But Doctor Ryu, you don¡¯t know what will happen in a country like the United States where they have guns, no matter how good your security team is. President Kennedy was assassinated here, but you don¡¯t have that level of security,¡± Kim Jun-Rak said. ¡°And there¡¯s also the question of public support. The concept of cultured meat is unfamiliar to people, and a lot of people are going to reject it. If livestockpanies provoke them with even a little bit of false information about its dangers, there is quickly going to be opposition. Cultured meat has too many points that can be attacked in terms of safety. It can be ripped apart by everyone and be destroyed.¡± ¡°I already know that.¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu, you have be a hero in the pharmaceutical industry. You are the most valuable human resource in South Korea right now. To be honest, we don¡¯t want to lose that,¡± Kim Jun-Rak said. ¡°We are saying this because we don¡¯t want to see you go into the cultured meat industry and copse. That industry is too big to take on. It¡¯s apletely different story frompeting with big pharmapanies like Schuamtix and A-Gen. You should stop when you can.¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joonbed through his hair with his hand. ¡°Mr. Kim, do you not think that this technology is needed?¡± ¡°It is. I am also someone in charge of shaping the policies of a country. We are on the verge of a global food crisis, and it won¡¯t be long until it hits the world, but I would like you to leave that to other scientists. There is no need for you to go up against them yourself. You have too much to lose.¡± ¡°... Mr. Kim, do you know about a scientist named Jon Beckwith?¡± ¡°Beckwith?¡± ¡°He was a world-renowned scientist who was the first to iste a gene from E. coli in 1969. In that important period in his career when he had so much prestige and attention, he held a press conference and said this.¡± ¡°What did he say?¡± ¡°Be cautious as this technology may ultimately pose a threat to humanity, and scientists must exercise self-restraint in carrying out this research.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Apparently, he was even called a traitor to science at the time because he poured cold water on the rapidly developing field of gics when he was the greatest scientist in the field,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°But scientists must know how to act like that. They have to know exactly what they are studying. What they should be considering is the impact of that research on humanity and the world.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I believe that prestige and wealth are secondary to a scientist.¡± ¡°Your life might be in danger.¡± ¡°All the scientists working in high-riskbs at biosafety levels three and four have already put their lives on the line. And as you know, I¡¯ve also injected HIV into my body.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°If I was scared of danger, I wouldn¡¯t have started science to begin with. Cultured meat is a technology that humanity must secure. I will still do this even if you try to stop me.¡± * * * Diego, the CEO of Eat the Green, held a press conference. There was no way a press conference held by the CEO of a small venturepany would attract so much attention, but this was an exception. It was because Young-Joon joined the press conference. What did this mean? It meant that Eat the Green¡¯s stock prices rose by thirty percent even before the press conference was held. And stock prices of traditional livestockpanies, such as Red Meat, began falling rapidly. With the public¡¯s attention centered on thepany, Diego gave the reporters hamburgers. ¡°That hamburger is made from cultured meat,¡± Diego said. ¡°It used to cost millions of dors to produce one, but I¡¯ve ordered fifty, one for everyone here. Obviously, I don¡¯t have that kind of money.¡± The reporters weren¡¯t interested in Diego¡¯s show; they hadn¡¯t even taken a bite out of the burgers and were already typing up their articles on their tablets. [Eat the Green has drastically reduced the cost of cultured meat with the help of Doctor Ryu Young-Joon. It is now ready formercialization...] Diego presented the experimental data analyzing the synthesis process of cultured meat on the monitor. Eat the Green¡¯sb reproduced the experiment that Young-Joon demonstrated several times. ¡°With the help of Doctor Ryu Young-Joon here, Eat the Green was able to reduce the production cost of cultured meat and drastically increased the growth rate by using FBS substitutes,¡± Diego said. ¡°We have sent amercialization n to many governments. The currently developed cultured meat will bemercialized soon following the FDA¡¯s approval, and further research will be done to improve the vor. Within ten years, we n to rece most of the meat currently on the market.¡± Everything was announced by Diego, and even though Young-Joon just stood there beside him, everyone¡¯s attention was on him; everyone knew that this huge incident was because of Young-Joon. ¡°Doctor Ryu!¡± The reporters showered him with questions when it was time for questions. ¡°Is it really possible to rece all meat on the market in less than ten years?¡± As the CEO of apany, Diego could inte his achievements and bluff. But not Young-Joon; there wasn¡¯t a single technology he¡¯d talked about that hadn¡¯t been realized. ¡°Yes, it is possible,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°We will make it happen.¡± Some of the reporters stood up from their seats out of excitement. ¡°You¡¯re going to sh with the traditional livestock industry; do you have any ns for this?¡± ¡°The government will make a detailed announcement on that matter.¡± ¡°Did A-Bio acquire Eat the Green?¡± ¡°We received a lot of equity in Eat the Green, but we don¡¯t intend to interfere with the management of thepany. We are going to limit our role to the technical advisor.¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu...!¡± All the questions were directed at Young-Joon, which was a little embarrassing for Diego. The inte was going wild with the breaking news. The United States was the world¡¯srgest livestock producer. Not only had public opinion in the United States been turned upside down, the world was so noisy that it was like someone had poked a beehive with a stick. It was certainly a different atmosphere than when Young-Joon developed a new drug. The world cheered when big drugs like the Alzheimer¡¯s cure and pancreatic cure came out, but not this time. People were more worried than cheerful. ¡ªThat¡¯s trouble... ¡ªWe were going to need that technology someday. ¡ªWhat¡¯s going to happen when a primary industry like the livestock market gets disrupted like that... ¡ªI wish the American economy good luck. Those in the agriculture and livestock industry who were watching the news quickly began thinking. Red Meat, the world¡¯srgest livestock processingpany, was shocked. They received a letter from the United States government about the n to rece traditional meat with cultured meat almost simultaneously with Eat the Green¡¯s announcement. ¡°Are you kidding me?¡± Steven, the CEO of Red Meat, crumpled up the letter and threw it against the wall. ¡°Kochia? They¡¯re going to rece meat by growing some little ornamental nt? They¡¯re crazy...¡± Steven had started out as the owner of a small cattle farm, but he had built thergest livestockpany in the world. He was oftenpared to Mckinney. They had a lot of simrities, but a lot of differences as well. Mckinney adapted himself to changes, but Steven adapted the world to his standards. ¡°What does everyone think?¡± he asked the executives of Red Meat. ¡°Tell me about the situation. This situation was also urgent for otherpanies, as well as the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Calls from traditional livestockpanies were pouring in. They had already asked the U.S. Department of Agriculture to regte cultured meat in the early days of its development. They demanded that the definition of meat be limited to those produced by traditional livestock farming methods. However, the Department of Agriculture had held off on answering for a long time. This resulted in the rapid development of cultured meat. Farmers in Korea were already preparing to rally. The Food and Agriculture Organization, a United Nations agency, was also put on the spot. People were asking about the United Nations¡¯ position on this issue. Their priority was solving humanity¡¯s food problems, and they had been working with the World Health Organization and others to campaign against hunger in poor countries. In some contexts, cultured meat was great because it would help solve the world¡¯s food problem. But on the other hand, no one knew how it would affect the primary industry of livestock in poor countries. * * * ¡°Oh my god...¡± Tanya Manker, the founder and CEO of Gro, an AI-powered global food data analyticspany, was horrified by the news. It had been two years since she spoke at the TED Conference and warned the world that a food crisis was going toe in ten years. She thought that there was nothing they could do. With the United States leading the charge, agricultural and livestock superpowers were throwing away food to control the prices of their products and starving half of the nt. The environment was extremely degraded, and much of thend in underdeveloped countries like India, China, and Africa had been urbanized. The poption was rapidly increasing while the amount of arablend was sharply declining. The situation was dire from the perspective of a food expert who analyzed data, and other food organizations including the FAO[1] knew that as well. However, those superpowers did not care as they were not the ones who were starving. At this rate, humanity was going to have an energy deficit of two hundred fourteen trillion kilocalories by 2027. The food crisis was going to be a catastropherger than any disease, and it was clear that it was going to crush poor countries first. ¡°...¡± But now, there was a solution. ¡°Get in touch with this Doctor Ryu Young-Joon. I know it¡¯s going to be hard to reach him right now with his phone blowing up, but we have to do it somehow,¡± Tanya Manker said to her employees with the newspaper in her hand. 1. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations ? Chapter 139: Cultured Meat (5) Chapter 139: Cultured Meat (5) There were five people in the Neil Simon Theatre located on Broadway, New York. They were covering their faces with a hat, and sunsses, and talking in Korean. Can we really be watching a musical right now? Jung Hae-Rim asked while fixing her sunsses. Didnt you say that you wanted to? Young-Joon replied. Well, I didnt know we would watch it under these circumstances. Jung Hae-Rim pointed to the big television in the theaters waiting room. Employees of livestockpanies who were gathered in Washington City were waving banners and carrying signs condemning President Campbell. One of them was caught on the screen. [MIND YOUR OWN MEDICINE] It was a message to just stick to developing drugs. I think theyre talking about you, Park Dong-Hyun said. I think so. Young-Joon nodded like it wasnt a big deal. Well, at least they are not trashing you openly because its right after you made the cancerb. Honestly, it doesnt matter if they trash me, Young-Joon replied while fiddling with his ticket. To be honest, Im curious. Is there something youre counting on? Cheon Ji-Myung interrupted. Counting on? It just seems like youre so nonchnt in these circumstances. The livestock workers just ran out because they were surprised. They will adapt when the policy from the government will go smoothly. It will die down once weve sessfully transformed one ce as a demonstration. A demonstration? Tekeyson Foods is going to turn three of its farms into Kochia farms, and it is going to change the facility associated with them into a cultured meat production facility. But you said that the taste and texture doesntpare with regr meat yet? There are some foods where that isnt very important, like meatballs or sausages. Tekeyson Foods will be able to adapt because they also produce things like that. Hm. The Life Creation Team took a breath of relief. That would certainly cut down on a lot of the fuss they are making, Bae Sun-Mi said. At that point, experts on food statistics who can back up the cultured food will step forward. Experts on food statistics? Like Tanya Manker. I saw her TED Talk before. A lot of food experts predict that a food crisis wille in ten to twenty years. The crisis is closer than we think. It will bete if we dont start cultured meat now, Young-Joon said. The public didnt really care even if they talked about it because most developed nations have plenty of food, and the idea of a food crisis didnt really make sense to them; thats why change has been so slow. But this time, its going to be different. I have something in mind as well Youre saying that people like Tanay Maker are going to step up? Yes. She might even contact me. But sir, farm owners of traditional meatpanies might be satisfied if the government gives them Kochia and supports them, but would the businessmen?Jung Hae-Rim asked. The businessmen I think that Mr. Mckinney is a very unusual case because most executives at bigpanies dont like change, and they dont like venturepanies like Eat the Green growing because of a new technology that could disrupt their power, right? Sure. And its even worse if Tekeyson Foods demonstrates sessful change and takes the lead in the cultured meat market. Other livestockpanies will try to challenge them and drag them down. Hey, Cheon Ji-Myung tapped Jung Hae-Rims shoulders like he was baffled. Our CEO is a master at beating people like that, dont you know that? Yes, but I couldnt tell what you were going to do Jung Hae-Rim trailed off. Science always reveals the truth, right? The musical is about to start. Lets go inside, Young-Joon said as he pointed to the theater entrance. * * * There was a protest denouncing Campbell in front of the White House in Washington, D.C. Guarantee the right of farmers to maintain their livelihood! We condemn the hasty policy! Limit the definition of meat to those produced from traditional livestock! The crowd was pretty big. The impact was quite strong considering that the protest was organized only a few days ago. That was how impactful the cultured meat technology was on the existing livestock market. The government had sent the livestockpanies a letter about the policy regarding the cultivation of Kochia, but it wasnt epted easily. There was no need to grow livestock for cultured meat. It also didnt require additional processing like ughtering and deboning since it was produced as a chunk of flesh. From the livestockpanys perspective, this seemed like a terrifying technology that was going to take away their livelihood. It was like a Mercedes was driving by them while they were pulling carriages. It was a technology that didnt need horses, hay, or coachmen; it was a transportation vehicle that started with only a gas pedal and one that had much better braking power. That was what cultured meat felt like to livestock farmers. I dont understand that, Mckinney said as he watched the TV. I mean, its not like the already-made cultured meat is going to disappear because they are against it. There are tons of businesses in the world that go out of business because of technological advancements, but does the government give them guidelines to change their business? All they do is give them a little money. He put his feet up on the table and turned to look at his secretary. Right? Yes, sir. I dont know if people are just stupid or if they cant perceive reality because they are sofortable Cultured meat was a ticking time bomb that was going to go off in the livestock industry someday, and it exploded in the safest way possible under the control of Doctor Ryu and the government. Why cant they see that? They would be able to secure their livelihood if they followed the guidelines from the government and changed businesses as Doctor Ryu said. Comining, Mckinney poured himself a ss of whiskey and took a few sips. Speaking of which, is our demo farm and facility going well? Of course. The renovation is almostplete, and it can start right now, the secretary replied. Mckinney disyed his remarkable decisiveness and began changing his business even before Eat the Green and Young-Joons announcement. He transformed three farms and one facility into a pilot case. It was a stroke of genius that I made a deal with Doctor Ryu so early on. Thanks to that, Mckinney was able to catch that extremely important piece of information a little bit faster than everyone else and move fast. He didnt have to see if everything added up or not; Mckinneys business instincts were telling him to listen to Young-Joons cultured meat n. Tell me about how the business is going, Mckinney said. First of all, we moved five hundred eighty-one cows, three thousand forty-seven chickens from Bellwood Farms to Tiffton Farms. We moved them there because they built a new bar, right? Is there enough space? Yes, they have room. Thats good. And we tore down the barn, removed the concrete floor, and nted Kochia at Bellwood Farms. Its a popr ornamental nt, so they ordered three hundred full-grown trees from a garden shop. Get all of them while you can. They are going to be sold out soon. Yes, sir. And they are probably picking the Kochia leaves and sending them to the facility Has the facility been reced? The CEO from Eat the Green came and helped us set up the facility. We installed fifty one hundred liter incubators and trained the staff again. And it wasnt difficult? They were all afraid because they had to grow animal cells, but they said it was pretty simple because it wasnt for research and they just had to follow a recipe. And they didnt hate it? To be honest, the farms and workers at the facilities are very happy. I would think so. You would have to be a psychopath to actually like ughtering live animals, cutting open their stomachs and gutting them with blood sttering all over. People just do it because society needs it and it makes money. But with cultured meat, youre growing it on a stic dish, so it feels better and its cleaner. Yes, and they said that its fun. The farmers love it, too. Its easier to look after Kochia than livestock. And it doesnt feel good to send their beloved animals to the ughterhouse. I know because Ive done it before. Yes, sir. We have to support Doctor Ryu and Eat the Green. If our farm and facility go well, we have to send out a press release and tell them weve sessfully changed industries. Thats respectful to them and its good for us. Tell the PR team to get that ready. Yes, sir. * * * After the performance, Young-Joon took the contact number that Kim Chul-Kwon handed him. It was a call that he received while he was watching the musical. Its from a Tanya Manker. Oh, she finally called. Young-Joon called the number. After setting up a meeting, he spoke to the Life Creation Team. We were supposed to hang out together, but Im afraid I wont be able to. Do you have a meeting? Yes. Go have fun. Thank you for working so hard on experiments and meetings. You should go tour New York and rest at the hotel until you fly back, Young-Joon said. Then, Young-Joon said to the security team, Lets go. As he was heading to the security car, Park Dong-Hyun stopped him. Sir! Yes? Your card Oh, my card. Haha, I thought you wanted to go to the meeting together. Hehe Sorry. Park Dong-Hyun scratched his head like he was a little embarrassed. The best boss is the one who leaves his card. Ill be on my way now. Have good food and spend a lot of money. Young-Joon gave him thepany card and got in the car. Make sure to keep the receipts. Alright, take care! * * * Young-Joons car drove toward 12 E 49th Street. Fortunately, Tanyaspany, Gro Intelligence, was located in New York City. It was apany that specialized in agricultural data analysis systems using artificial intelligence and big data. Gro Intelligence was the Wikipedia of agriculture; it had a deep analytic engine that analyzed climate, crop conditions, and crop types to predict the future. We have a three thousand-dor membership, and its recognized around the world as the best data avable. Our customers are mainly investors in the agricultural business, multinational corporations, and governments, Tanya said. I was interested in Gro Intelligence, so I looked into it, Young-Joon said. Really? Mypany isnt very famous. I saw your TED Talk.. I see. Is that why you did cultured meat? I have thought about the food crisis before, but that talk kind of pushed me to do it. Plus, I found an appropriate technology while finding a cure for lung cancer. I heard that news as well. Im not in the pharmaceutical industry, but it was impressive, Tanya Manker said. Young-Joon grinned. Then, should we talk business? Why did you want to see me? Please use ourpanys system, Tanya said straightforwardly. Gro Intelligences system? Yes. The public is not yet aware of the food crisis. But its closer than we think. ording to our prediction program, the food crisis wille in ten years. But we can stop it if we use the cultured meat technology well. Please tell that to people. But they wont believe me. But Ms. Manker, you should be the one to say that. Pardon? You have emphasized the food crisis for a while now, and its time to step up again. ... But I dont have your fame and reputation, Doctor Ryu. Even if I speak, people will not pay attention. They will this time. And please let me use that program. I can add my own variable data to the AI prediction program, right? Yes, you can. Then, please give me the license so I can use it for about ten days. Afterwards, Young-Joon received the program from Tanya. He left Gro Intelligence after installing it on hisptop and registering as a user. Mr. Ryu! Tanya, who followed him out, shouted. Yes? I am going to give another lecture emphasizing the food crisis and how the cultured meat technology can solve it. Thank you. But you said that they were going to believe me this time, right? Yes. Is Is that because cultured meat technology exists now? The lives of citizens from developed nations have been so plentiful that it was weird to talk about a food crisis, but now they will understand the logic because the change has already started? Yes, that too, and Yes, that is why. Young-Joon smiled and got in the K-Cops car. Tanya looked a little puzzled. Thud. He closed the car door and closed his eyes. Rosaline. Yes. I am going to hype up Gro Intelligence. How? I am going to feed Gro Intelligences AI with some important data as a variable, use that to track crops and make predictions with it like a fortune teller. Important data? Because I have you. Young-Joon said. Rosaline, activate Simtion Mode. Chapter 140: Cultured Meat (6) Chapter 140: Cultured Meat (6) [Proposed Amendment to the Meat Regtion Bill] Campbell read the proposal that was published in the morning. This bill was the one that Congress was going to have a legitive hearing about. Haha, geez. Campbell handed the proposal to the chief of staff. They are proposing an interesting bill. Our Congress is talented at wasting its energy on nothing. Do you think so, too? I feel exactly the same way. Sometimes they do a good job, but sometimes they just do pointless things. Restricting cultured meat for the sake of the livestock industry Isnt this the same thing as the medieval Church banning crossbows because they were too dangerous? Thats actually a rumor. Really? All the Pope said was that Christians should not use ranged weapons. I see. Anyway, the congressmen probably dont actually think they can stop the technology from developing. But they are just going along because the livestock industry is fighting back against cultured meat pretty strongly. Thats what is meaningless, Campbell pointed out. Ive reviewed this technology very closely with Doctor Ryu. And Ive reviewed it with James, the director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy. Frankly, we need this cultured meat technology and its effective. Recing the traditional livestock industry with the cultured meat industry over ten years; I am going to make this the most important economic achievement of my term. Then, shouldnt you convince the congressmen? If you look at the details of this bill, it seems like they consider cultured meat to be very dangerous and are trying to make heavy regtions And they are trying to adjust the price by increasing the taxes on cultured meat to protect the traditional livestock industry The main points are that they are going to increase regtions on existing cultured meat so that it wont be easy to get market approval, and they are going to put a bunch of taxes on it and make it fifty times more expensive than regr meat? Yes. They will retreat on their own. I dont need to do anything. How? All the White House needs to do is to advertise the policy of changing farms to grow Kochia instead of livestock. I will let you know the timing. Can you tell the director ofmunications? And when will this be? When the first sessful transformation storyes out. It will probably be Tekeyson Foods that Mr. Mckinney is running. Keep an eye on them. Congress said that they are having a public hearing about the bill, right? Yes, and they are broadcasting it live. Theres a high chance that Mr. Mckinney will be on the panel. Just watch if there is any lobbying from the traditional livestock industry to influence the panel selection process. Other than that, just leave it alone, said Campbell. Doctor Ryu will take care of it. Everything is going ording to his n. * * * Woahhh Rosaline eximed as she popped out of Young-Joons body. They could see a huge golden field stretching to the horizon from the window of the K-Cops car, which was driving down a dirt road. Ive never seen anything like this before. Me either. Young-Joon said as he nced out the window. America really does have a big agricultural industry. I heard they use light airnes to spray pesticides, but wow Can I go out for a bit? No. We have a long way to go. Where are we going? There are going to corn farms after we pass this field. We have to go there. Why corn? Its the main product of the American agriculture industry. And the yields were much lowerst year. Do you know why? Why? There was an outbreak of a disease that infects corn called red mold. Red mold? Rosalines eyes shone. Does it look like this? Rosaline manipted Young-Joons vision and a pathogen that looked like a clump of red dust appeared in front of his eyes. How many people in the world do you think know what fungus looks like unless their eyes are a microscope? I dont know, but youre probably right. As Young-Joon was replying to Rosaline, he realized something. Where did you get this image? It wouldnt have been in my head. I saw it myself. Its in that field over there. Rosaline pointed to the window. Oh I wasnt sure, but we came to the right ce. I heard they didnt use red mold-resistant seeds and just usedst years seeds. The mold is still spreading as I expected. But that field is a wheat field, not a corn field. This fungus can infect wheat and rice as well. It seems like it has spread in the corn field as well. The spores are flying around in a pretty wide area. Alright. We are going to make the outbreak of the damage into data. And we are going to use that on Gro Intelligence. Youre saying that you are going to analyze how it will affect this years crops? Yes. The program from Gro Intelligence is a crop forecasting program. You feed. It data as variables, and artificial intelligence predicts the results. The more diverse and better quality the data is, the better the results. Young-Joon said to Rosaline. But its pretty difficult to get data on things like how much a pathogen will spread. But lets include that data this time. What if people ask how we got the data? They probably wont be interested in how we got the data. They probably will have already gone wild over the results that Gro Intelligence predicted with the data. Sir, Kim Chul-Kwon said to Young-Joon from the passengers seat. Yes. Should you be going around the United States right now? Shouldnt you return to Korea? Why? Korea has a livestock industry as well. It sounds like the atmosphere there isnt good either. I would think so. Kim Chul-Kwon handed his phone to Young-Joon. It was the free discussion board on the A-Bio website. Ryu Young-Joon should stop doing pointless things and focus on developing new drugs. No matter what it is, its better if its from nature. If you synthesize meat in ab, what benefits would that have? The way for people to live is by eating meat from healthy pigs who grew in the wild. Man, people in Hell-Joseon never change, do they?[1] You treated him like a national hero when he destroyed all kinds of incurable diseases, but youre treating him like a traitor as soon as he tries to touch your livelihood. I think that you should have discussed this in-depth with the livestock industry and gotten approval before developing this technology. Who do you think you people are for him to discuss developing new technology with you and get your approval? And if you did discuss it, would they have told him to do it? Youre talking nonsense. Ryu Young-Joon, you axxhole. I didnt peg you for someone like that, but Im trembling in anger because of your betrayal right now. Are you happy that you drained the life out of poor farmers and fled to the U.S.? Doctor Ryu, please ignore the ridiculousments here and keep doing your research. I am rooting for you. I am a vegetarian. I hope cultured meates out quickly. Youve changed, Doctor Ryu Young-Joon. Wheres the person who studied pharmaceuticals for ordinary folk? Why are you making something that threatens the livelihoods of ordinary people? This is right. Everyone changes when they get their hands on money. He just fled to the U.S. because cultured meat makes a lot of money. Axxhole should rot in hell. When you say that this is right, youre talking about how its right for me to beat you up, right? How can you say he has changed? This is for everyone saying that Ryu Young-Joon has changed. Ryu Young-Joon is the same person he was before. Why are people making a fuss about a scientist doing science? The livestock industry is taking a hit right now, but a fatal food crisis wille in ten years if we dont do this now. Stop criticizing a person who is doing important work and shut your mouth. But the government is making a policy about how to grow Kochia for a living and allocating eighty billion won to it, arent they? Whats the matter? They are going to getpensation and the military is going to renovate the barn for them. The government is also going to buy the livestock, ughter them and use it to feed soldiers. Arent they doing everything they can? Selfish bastards. What a mess. The discussion board exploded after the announcement of the cultured meat technology, and now there were over one hundred pages. Young-Joon had done a lot of different research before, but nothing had be this big of an issue. Shouldnt you return and take care of thepany and exin to people? Kim Chul-Won asked. Its okay. It will calm down in Korea if we do it in the U.S. Really? There are over 2.2 million farms in America, totalling 3.7 million square miles. Thirty-seven percent of the U.S.nd area is farms that grow and raise agricultural and livestock products. Its thergest in the world, Young-Joon said. Theres even a saying that the scariest weapon the United States has is not a nuclear submarine, but corn. I see. And our politics and economy are so heavily influenced by the U.S. that its basically a miniature version of America, right? If we stabilize cultured meat here, Korea will naturally follow. So will the world. Sir, the young security guard who was driving the car turned to Young-Joon. The corn field is up ahead. Please pull over in front of the farmers house, Young-Joon said while looking at his phone. He was getting a call. [Tekeyson CEO Mckinney] Hello, this is Ryu Young-Joon. Hello, Mr. Ryu. Hello. I called because there is something I would like to discuss with you. What is it? Red Meat bought some of our cultured meat. They bought some? Yes. Is it already on the market? Eat the Green got approval from the FDA for what we are making right now a while ago. The only thing that has changed is the production process from your idea. The problem isnt getting the product on the market. Of course, we dont know when the FDA will pick a fight with us and stop it, but we are packaging the meatballs to put on the market. Red Meat is therge livestockpany that is most strongly opposed to cultured meat, so they are probably going to try to argue that theres something wrong with the meatballs. I think so as well. But I had no choice but to sell it to Red Meat because we were advertising it a lot beforeunching it. If we didnt, they would have thought that we werent selling it because we have something we are hiding. Probably. You did good. But I am worried about what they will quibble about. Since its a food product, there could be heavy metals or antibiotics in it, and that could be fatal to us. Things like that cant be left in our cultured meat production process. Thats right. Thats why Honestly, I have no idea what they are going to do. Okay. Thank you for letting me know. Young-Joon hung up the phone. * * * Three days before the public legitive hearing about the bill was held, a video was uploaded to the online Bellwoodmunity board. It was a video that Tekeyson Foods employees took of the facility in the Bellwood region. The employees took a video tomemorate the asion as they were so excited and proud to see the meat growing on their tes. Since Mckinney didnt have any privacy policies for that, they first posted that on their personal social media. Those videos quickly gained traction with tons of likes. Then, someone took that video and posted it to the onlinemunity board. After that, it spread to other regions as well. It quickly spread among the farmers of the livestock industry. Theres already apany that adapted to cultured meat. Tekeyson is making cultured meat. More unbelievable news came up at the same time. It was that all the workers who originally ughtered livestock there before the change were still there. How could the people who used to kill cows do biology? How can they grow meat on tes? The workers from other facilities were shocked but soon understood the situation. It was because it wasnt as difficult as they thought. Production was different from research and development. Research and development to increase the density of semiconductors required a high level of expertise and creativity, but the factory workers who produced them didnt need it. All they needed to do was simply follow protocols and perform set tasks among mechanized and automated equipment. Tekeyson did not fire a single employee as they changed three farms and one facility into a cultured meat establishment. In the future, thepany ns to convert other farms and facilities as cultured meat technology evolves while gradually reducing the number of livestock. As soon as the first sessful case came out, the White House began advertising their policy. Now, they had confidence in their sess. They changed the policy letter, which had previously been sent torge livestockpanies and farmers, to a more public format. They created a press release for the public. They held press briefings, ran advertisements, and exined the policy in detail through various newspapers and news outlets. In all of it, they used Tekeyson Foods sessful adaptation as an example. We have to push now, Campbell said. Please tell me the panels that have been selected for the public legitive hearing. The opponents are Red Meat andmentators from conservative organizations. What about on our side? We have Mr. Mckinney from Tekeyson Foods, Diego from Eat the Green, and Tanya Manker, the CEO of Gro Intelligence. What about Doctor Ryu? I believe he has been contacted to attend and were still waiting to hear back. 1. Hell-Joseon is a negative term that people use to criticize Korea, calling it a living hell. Chapter 141: Cultured Meat (7) Chapter 141: Cultured Meat (7) The public legitive hearing about the bill was about ten dayster. However, that was only the D-Day; there were dozens of smaller, localized battles going on every day. Numerous intellectuals and livestock industry officials were constantly appearing on TV debates and lectures, strongly voicing their opinions. Among them, there were three people who had the strongest influence. The first was Steven, the CEO of Red Meat. He was the godfather of conservative organizations and the traditional livestock industry. Although many of his workers had left recently, the interest group of traditional livestockpanies that rallied around him was still powerful. The second was undoubtedly Mckinney. He proved that it was possible to change the traditional livestock system into a cultured meat system by being the first in the world to show a sessful transition to cultured meat. This outstanding real-world example was much more powerful than a lot of rambling debates and lectures. The third was Tanya Manker, who had a recent surge in poprity. She had already given a lecture predicting a food crisis at a TED conference in the past. However, there was no one to take her seriously in North America, where half the poption was obese. It was nothing more than an interesting theory to average citizens, and they just talked about it as gossip for a few days, then forgot about it. At the time, Tanya was advocating for agrarian reform in India and Africa for the relief of the food crisis. However, it was different this time. It was because there was an entirely new way to solve it. Every market has its tipping point. Tanya, who was giving three lectures a day, was repeating something she had said countless times before at New York University. A tipping point is when something starts to change drastically. From that point on, the whole world is affected and a lot of things change irreversibly. Its like the subprime mortgage crisis; it passed its tipping point in September of 2007 when the interest reduction policy came out. The Lehman Brothers went bankrupt as the real estate bubble burst, and the whole world went into a huge, uncontroble mess, Tanya said. There is a tipping point to the food crisis. If we do not take action now, I believe that point will be ten years from now. Tanya presented a world map on the screen. Many regions were colored either red or blue. This map is the worlds calorie data: the calories of food produced in each region minus the calories consumed. Countries colored blue are those that have a surplus of calories and are stockpiling or exporting food, Tanya said. Brazil, India, Europe, and many other ces have emerged as a calorie powerhouse over thest forty years; they became countries that are self-sufficient and can stockpile and export food. But China has gone from being an exporter to the worlds top food importer. She pointed to China. It was so fiercely red that there was an obvious differencepared to the other red countries. What about the future? Tanya asked. Ten years from now, thebined poption from Africa, China, and India will be more than half the worlds poption. Will Africa and India, which are still blue, follow China in the future? Or will they maintain the status quo? There was a dead silence among the audience. Getting the students attention, Tanya said, There are people who are optimistic about the situation. They believe that India, which has seeded in the Green Revolution, will continue to be a calorie exporter. But that wont happen. Tanya slowly walked to the front of the stage. India and Africa are regions with growing economies and poptions. What happens in these countries is that existing people in agriculture will start a new business and the rural areas will be developed and urbanized. Thend that can produce food decreases while the poption rapidly increases, which makes us race towards the tipping point, Tanya said. Forty years ago, China was also a calorie exporter, just like India and Africa. It is likely that India and Africa will follow in Chinas footsteps. ... We have developed an artificial intelligence forecasting program, Tanya said. This program analyzes things like world food production and consumption and climate change patterns to predict the future. In 2027, there will be a two hundred fourteen trillion kilocalorie deficit. That means we will need three hundred seventy-nine billion more Big Macs to feed the worlds poption. Thats more Big Macs than McDonalds has ever produced, Tanya said. Whats worse is that this isnt even including things like nutrient bnce; this is just a calction of the energy. Not only do we need carbohydrate foods, which can produce a lot of energy from fewer resources, we need high-quality sources of protein as well. Tanyas lecture was shifting to cultured meat. When we get close to the tipping point, governments around the world will start destroying traditional livestock industries at a great cost, just like how the U.S. government spent hundreds of billions of tax dors to keep AIG and the banks afloat during the financial crisis since you cant starve your citizens. They will end up using desperate measures before starving citizens turn to riots and things spiral out of control, Tanya said. Meat production is a huge waste of resources. It takes thirty kilocalories of feed to make one kilocalorie of beef. If we consider the opportunity cost of thend resources that produce that feed, weve lost even more energy. The calories of feed used to raise livestock are enough to feed four billion people across the world. Tanya went on. There are other problems as well. The traditional livestock industry is a major contributor to deforestation and methane gas production, which elerates climate change tremendously. Because crop yields plummet exponentially with a one-degree rise in temperature, the traditional livestock industry is having a huge negative impact on food production in the long run. However, its apletely different story if we set up aplete cultured meat facility. There is no environmental degradation or waste of resources. We can use all thatnd used to produce livestock feed to produce food crops. Cultured meat is the technology we need right now. * * * That is ridiculous. Theres a woman who is talking about something like that, right? Steve from Red Meat, the godfather of the traditional livestock industry, was directly arguing Tanyas point at the University of Pennsylvania. The traditional livestock industry does not destroy the environment that much. It takes thirty calories of feed to produce one calorie of beef? It takes eight calories to produce one calorie of pork and chicken, Steven said. And the food crisis. Logically, will there ever be a food crisis? I believe that argumentes from ack of understanding of market economics. If there is going to be a food crisis, the price of food in the world is going to go up. Then, do you think India and Africa will stop producing food and develop their rural areas? India will still be a food exporter. Steven lectured aggressively. I dont even know what the AI program that predicted the food crisis is. If they had that kind of technology, they should start something like Google; its baffling that they are looking at food production with that amazing artificial intelligence, Steven said. And isnt it funny that the solution she suggests is cultured meat? Cultured meat? Is she telling us to eat that unknown, grotesque clump of meat that was made in ab with a bunch of chemicals? It would be more realistic for us to eat cockroaches like in the Snowpiercer. Several protein substitutes like insects or marine resources have been discussed, but cultured meat is a stupid idea. Steven was shouting to the conservative organizations and students at the University of Pennsylvania. A little ways from there, at Columbia University, Mckinney was giving a lecture. I have studied market economics for forty years, and I agree with Tanya Mankers argument. The reason is that you cannot revert and that has already been developed. For example, everyone, lets tear down the Columbia University campus and grow cows here since we dont have enough food, Mckinney said with his arms wide open. There wasughter among the audience. We cannot stop the development in India or Africa. The problem is not about market economics; the problem is about the model of development of countries. How do rural areas in America, the best in the world for agriculture and livestock, look like right now? There are less young people, agriculture is losing power, andnd is continuing to be developed. India and Africa will inevitably follow that route, Mckinney said. Oncend development urs, it is difficult to go back. How can you grow crops and livestock onnd that has been urbanized? Land is bound to keep reducing. And like all of you know, the world poption is increasing. Isnt the food crisis inevitable? With the three people leading the discussion, experts on food and agricultural and livestock industries went all over the United States and gave their lectures. Diego, the CEO of Eat the Green, often moved to support Mckinney while he was busy withmercialization. A significant amount of their lectures were uploaded on YouTube and had a lot of views. Everyone was curious about how this battle would be concluded. Everything ends on the day that the hearing starts. At the same time, there was one more thing that people were wondering. What is Ryu Young-Joon doing? There was no way he could be this quiet. While rambling debates and spontaneous lectures were happening from all over, Young-Joon hadnt appeared publicly, not even once. Its because Doctor Ryu is not confident in his cultured meat technology! It is because he does not believe in the food crisis either! Taking the opportunity, Steven shouted whatever he wanted. He just quietly made cultured meat as a meat substitute, but he got scared because the impact was bigger than he thought. And he has a guilty conscience as a scientist because there is no such thing as a food crisis! Doctor Ryu knows that as a scientist; he knows that that third-grade artificial intelligence is useless! Steven, who finished his lecture, received a round of apuse, then started receiving questions. One student raised their hand. Mr. CEO. Yes, the female student over there. Doctor Ryu Young-Joon just published a press release from A-Bio thirty minutes ago. A press release? Steven flinched. * * * Who could have imagined? When everyone was fighting over cultured meat, Young-Joon was studying somethingpletely different. Cultured meat? I already created and supplied the technology, and I also suggested a solution to change industries, which can protect workers. I did my job as a scientist. The things happening right now seem to be a political fight rather than a debate about the truth of cultured meat. I am not interested in things like that, Young-Joon said. I will exin the dangers of cultured meat during the legitive hearing. But right now, I dont want to get into this fight. I would like to study something that will be more helpful to farmers with that time. Young-Joon went on. I have been using Ms. Tanya Mankers artificial intelligence program. There is a high chance that red mold will spread in the Central United States within ten days. Last year, the corn fields in the eastern and central parts of the United States were hit hard by red mold and had significant crop failures, but they did not use resistant seeds this year and used the same seeds. It was because they believed that red mold waspletely eliminated. However, A-Bio confirmed that red mold is still present and in its incubation period in the wheat field a little west from the corn field. The data that was included in the artificial intelligence as variables were shown. These are values from entering in information about the type of crop, surface area of harvestation, space in between organisms, and climate. The temperature will fall this Sunday and drastically increase the number of spores. The resulting spores will be carried eastward with the Foehn winds from the Rocky Mountains in the western United States. They end up taking over the central United States, and most of the corn crops will be affected as the organisms are close together and there is no windbreak to block the wind. If Ms. Tanya Mankers program is correct, it is predicted that most of the corn will be infected in ten days, Young-Joon said. Please remove red mold-infected ears immediately and dry them to prevent an outbreak, and please buy and use A-Gens fungicide that was developedst year during the red mold outbreak. Chapter 142: Cultured Meat (8)

Chapter 142: Cultured Meat (8)

Young-Joon received a call right after the press release was published. It was Tanya Manker. ¡°Hello?¡± ¡ªWhat happened, Mr. Ryu? ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡ªYour prediction about the spread of the disease. ¡°The artificial intelligence program you gave me already had a function that can track that.¡± ¡ªThere is, but it¡¯s not usually used... Since it¡¯s difficult to get data on how a disease will spread. ¡°I see.¡± ¡ªRed mold is especially hard to detect because it can¡¯t be observed during the incubation period. The Department of Agriculture did an inspection justst week, but they didn¡¯t find any signs of an infection... Tanya said in confusion. ¡°The way we found the red mold is rted to A-Bio¡¯s new technology, so I can¡¯t tell you now. I will reveal it when the time is right,¡± Young-Joon said. Rosaline chuckled. ~ Young-Joon used Rosaline¡¯s Simtion Mode to find the red mold and modeled the spread of the disease. After collecting the data, he used Rosaline to predict how the fungus would spread, and it was exactly what Tanya Manker¡¯s artificial intelligence program predicted. The red mold would producerge quantities of spores starting on the fifth day, which would travel with the Foehn wind and take over the cornfield in the central region. After about five days of incubation, the outbreak would begin on the tenth day and cause massive crop damage. ¡ªBut people don¡¯t know that. Like how difficult it is to get data on red mold. Tanya said. ¡ªMr. Ryu, the only thing people understood was that my artificial intelligence program predicted the spread of red mold. If it¡¯s not right, my prediction of the food crisis will take a hit, too. ¡°Are you nervous that you¡¯ll be wrong?¡± ¡ªI am confident in my program. But I am scared because I don¡¯t know how you got the data and used it as a variable in the program. ¡°Don¡¯t worry too much. There is definitely red mold in the wheat field, and if the program is right, there will be a major outbreak in the cornfields ten days from now. ¡ªThe timing coincides with the legitive hearing. If we fail to predict it, we will take a huge hit at the hearing. ¡°It will seed, and it will be the weapon of the cultured meat advocacy group,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡ªIt¡¯s easier said than done. ¡°It will be fine. Don¡¯t worry too much and just wait. ¡ªSigh. Okay, then. After the call ended, Young-Joon got a call from A-Gen. It was Nichs, the CTO. ¡ªDoctor Ryu, you asked to increase the production of Fungcide, the drug for red mold, by ten thousand percent in the request you sent to the production line. Is this a mistake?¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s not. The weekly production is only about twenty thousand liters right now, right? Soon, the central and western United States is going to be using five hundred thousand liters a day. We need to supply them. Even if we increase the production a hundred times more, it won''t be enough.¡± ¡ªTo be honest, even I¡¯m scared to trust that AI program. If you change the production line by that much and if red mold doesn¡¯t spread, it¡¯s going to be difficult to get rid of the leftover inventory. It¡¯s going to be a pretty big loss. ¡°I understand. But it¡¯s really necessary, so trust me and do it. If anything, the sales will skyrocket and you¡¯ll make a lot of money.¡± ¡ªDoctor Ryu, is this really okay? ¡°Of course. There will be mold.¡± ¡ªNo, not this, but you. The things you are doing are a little different from pharmaceuticals, Doctor Ryu. And for the first time, you¡¯re being attacked by people, right? I¡¯m asking if you are okay. Isn¡¯t it too much to predict red mold? ¡°Thank you for your concern, but I¡¯m really fine. Please make sure to increase the production of the red mold drug.¡± ¡ªI will trust you this time since we are close. But I have to convince the executives with something this big. I can¡¯t guarantee it, but I will try. ¡°Thank you.¡± * * * Mckinney was also surprised by the press release, but Steven, the CEO of Red Meat, was even more shocked. People were starting to be swayed, and the political sphere was getting nervous as well. The criticism of the farmers was directed to the Department of Agriculture. Just a week earlier, they had conducted arge-scale investigation on diseases, but they hadn¡¯t mentioned anything about red mold. The farmers wanted the Department of Agriculture to give them some sort of exnation about Young-Joon¡¯s announcement. Atst, the Secretary of the Department of Agriculture held a press conference. ¡ªThe recentrge-scale investigation included the wheat production area in the western region, which Doctor Ryu ims is the origin of the red mold outbreak. However, the Department of Agriculture did not find any signs of a red mold infestation. During the red mold outbreak crisisst year, the Department of Agriculture dried and disposed of all the infected lips and contained the outbreak. Through this, we confirmed theplete eradication of red mold in the western region of the United States. There cannot be red mold in the region. This is why we did not mention it. When the statement finally came out, it was met with a flurry of questions about whether the red mold was just dormant in the western region. ¡ªIt is impossible to find red mold when it is dormant, and it cannot be predicted with an artificial intelligence program. However, if it is dormant, there should have already been an outbreak in the West. Since it is already twenty dayster thanst year''s initial outbreak, we think it is highly unlikely that we¡¯ll see red mold this year. * * * Steven, the CEO of Red Meat, borrowed the announcement from the Department of Agriculture exactly. ¡°That artificial intelligence was talking about the food crisis ten yearster, and now it¡¯s saying that red mold, which doesn¡¯t even exist, is going to take over the cornfield,¡± Steven said. ¡°Don¡¯t believe that, people. The reason that I can be sincere as the CEO of a livestockpany is because the livestock industry consumes half of the corn production in the country. Corn is the mostmon feed of livestock. Please believe me. There is no red mold.¡± Steven firmly refuted Young-Joon¡¯s ims. ¡°People, this year¡¯s crops in the central regions were not nted with red mold-resistant seeds. Not many farmers used resistant seeds even though we had that messst year. Do you know why? Because red mold waspletely eliminatedst year. There is a very low chance that it will spread this year. This is evidence that the artificial intelligence is wrong. It is giving apletely wrong prediction, isn¡¯t it?¡± Steven said. ¡°No one will take this seriously. In fact, no one has confirmed what Doctor Ryu said. Who would bet on such a wild im? Didn¡¯t Tanya Maker, Mckinney, and Diego all stay silent?¡± Like Steven said, people who were in favor of cultured meat and emphasized the food crisis all stayed quiet about this issue; they were afraid they would give the other side a bigger weakness if they tried something. As Steven¡¯s attacks became stronger, the situation actually became worse. The major agriculturalpanies in corn-producing areas began to issue statements attacking Young-Joon. ¡°A third-rate artificial intelligence robot and a fortune-telling scientist cannot have more credibility than the Department of Agriculture,¡± the representative of the union of the Agriculture Corporation of the Central Region announced. ¡°Our corporations are already being hurt by the cultured meat technology. It is because more than half of our corn production is being used in livestock feed. Our stock prices have dropped significantly since that false prediction of a food crisis and the introduction of this unsafe junk food called cultured meat. And now red mold? I don¡¯t know what kind of bridges Doctor Ryu Young-Joon has burned with the agriculture corporations in the central region of the United States to say something as ridiculous as this, but there is no way!¡± On top of that, they stormed to the United States National Institute of Health, where the A-Bio Cancer Laboratory was, and held a rally. ¡°Ryu Young-Joon starves American farmers! He must go!¡± ¡°Ryu Young-Joon is the tumor of the food products industry!¡± As the atmosphere was getting riled up, David, the CEO of Conson & Colson, was lost in thought. ¡°Doctor Ryu Young-Joon is not wrong. Would someone like him announce something like that just based on an artificial intelligence program? He probably has other evidence.¡± His sharp business intuition was focused on the cultured meat issue and waiting for the right time to get rich. And this was one of those times. However, it looked too dangerous. Even if that artificial intelligence program was incredible, would things really go as Young-Joon said? ¡°We have a treatment for red mold, right?¡± David asked the CTO. ¡°We do. A-Gen copied our treatment to make their¡¯s.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s increase production by fifty percent. But let¡¯s keep it a secret since it might fail.¡± ¡°Are you sure?¡± ¡°Fifty percent is not too bad. We will suffer a loss if there is leftover inventory, but there was a huge messst year because there wasn¡¯t enough treatment. It¡¯s better than that,¡± David ordered. The public was prized. Racist and conservative organizations, led by traditional livestockpanies and agriculture corporations from the central region, all criticized Ryu Young-Joon. And environmentalists, people who saw great benefits from Young-Joon¡¯s drugs, and his supporters fought against them. ¡ªRed mold cannot spread. The Department of Agriculturepletely eradicated itst year. Fungus usually produces spores when the temperature drops below eleven degrees Celsius, but we already passed that temperature twenty days ago. ¡ªBut after that, it was pretty warm due to high atmospheric pressure. The lowest temperature drops to eight degrees this Saturday. That is when the artificial intelligence predicted that red mold spores would ur. ¡ªEverything that Ryu Young-Joon has ever said was right. I think red mold will spread this time. Time flew by as chaos spread across the United States. On top of the cultured meat issue, debate shows on TV and the news began talking about the red mold crisis as well. * * * On the fifth day, Young-Joon came to the wheat fields in the West with Rosaline and sat down on a hill as the sun went down. The ripe ears of the whelmed seemed aze with a gold me against the setting sun. ¡ªIt¡¯s beautiful. Rosaline said as she watched the beautiful scenery. ¡°It is beautiful.¡± ¡ªI think I¡¯ve really been influenced by you. I can feel this way, and I don¡¯t even find it awkward. ¡°Yeah. You were a psychopath when we first met. Talking about how we would pass the breakeven point in a few years if we kill some people and eradicate the flu.¡± ¡ªI am d you are an ethical person. Rosaline said. ¡°Even within the arts, the most boring studies are things like philosophy and ethics, so it seems like it¡¯s unrted to science. It seems like people who are used to scientific thinking won¡¯t really consider morals,¡± Young-Joon said as he looked down at the wheat leaves. ¡°But we shouldn¡¯t do that. Science is a science that tells us what can we do, but ethics tell us what we should do. The advancement of technology should be able to answer both questions.¡± ¡ªDid you find a definite answer about cultured meat? ¡°Moving to cultured meat is necessary. I trust Mckinney and President Campbell to handle the fuss in that process. Since there¡¯s already a case of a sessful transformation, it will go well.¡± ¡ªI see. Rosaline came closer to Young-Joon. She climbed onto his knees and sat down. However, she had no weight. Young-Joon quietly observed Rosaline¡¯s face. Rosaline, who hade from his trauma, looked exactly like Ryu Sae-Yi. And in fact, there was something innocent about her, like a child her age, marveling at her newfound senses and feelings. If something looked interesting, she would pop out of Young-Joon¡¯s body from time to time to look at it and touch it, and it really felt like Ryu Sae-Yi hade back to life. However, she had no weight. What Young-Joon saw in front of his eyes was nothing but a fantasy, since her real body was just a cell floating in the air. And as a cell organism, she also had some unusual perspectives. ¡ªI feel pity for the livestock. She said. ¡°The livestock? Not the livestock industry?¡± ¡ªYes. It had been a while since he had felt this kind of confusion from his conversation with Rosaline. ¡°Why?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡ªBecause once the cultured meat industry is fully established, the number of livestock will decrease exponentially. ¡°Is it the number of animals that is the problem, or is it the fact that they are crammed into small spaces, abused, and forced-fed in factory farming conditions?¡± ¡ªI can definitely feelpassion and sadness for that. Rosaline said. ¡ªBut when you look at it from the perspective of a single-cell organism, it¡¯s a little different. The chicken, for example, has exploded in poptionpared to its ancestor, the red fowl, and the poption now is about thirty-five billion. ¡°...¡± ¡ªAfrican ck rhinos went extinct as homo sapiens appeared on Earth andpeted with other species, but chickens grew in poption. Rosaline said. ¡ªFrom my perspective, the domestication of animals is an adaptation that is a huge merit to the reproduction of that species. ¡°I didn¡¯t know you could think of it that way.¡± ¡ªBut their species will face a huge crisis as cultured meat gets set up. Maybe, they will be extinct. In maybe fifty years, chickens will be an endangered species. Rosaline said. ¡ªFrom now on, animals that use cuteness as a weapon, like cats, will be the only animals that will be able to adapt and survive in the age of humans. ¡°...¡± ¡ªWe¡¯re going to wipe out HIV, and we¡¯re nning to make mosquitoes go extinct. We¡¯re getting rid of everything that does not help and bothers humans. ¡°HIV too?¡± ¡ªOf course. That is also an organism. ¡°...¡± ¡ªI¡¯m not saying it is wrong. You are also a human, and your world is still important to me. Tell me if you want something after livestock. Rosaline said. ¡ªI will get rid of that species forever. Young-Joon felt a little scared. He was going to say that she was still a psychopath but paused. ¡®Compared to Rosaline, who perceives the eradication of HIV in terms of species extinction, maybe I¡¯m the psychopath.¡¯ As Young-Joon was a little confused, Rosaline spoke. ¡ªOh, it is starting. ¡°What is?¡± ¡ªThe spores are forming. Do you want me to turn on Synchronization Mode? Rosaline said as she pointed at the wheat field. Chapter 143: Cultured Meat (9) Chapter 143: Cultured Meat (9) The level of infection of the wheat field was pretty high, but most of the hyphae were underground, and only a few fungi had infected the wheat. And regardless of where they were, all the fungi were dormant. They spread their hyphae in the ground, settling in and gathering nutrients. It had multiplied inside the wheat leaves, but it did not show. But now, it was different. As the temperature dropped, they began to turn into spores. The fungi had to mix their spores and be diploids before winter came; simply put, the spores had to mate to mix their genes. Next, they would go into a long winter hibernation in the ground with new genes. Thest chance to gather energy before then was now, when the ground was rich in nutrients from the many leaves and fruits that had fallen. The leaves of the wheat were golden brown, and the tips of the hyphae were peeking out of the ground. Now, the white spores began opening one by one. The wheat leaves would turn white from the remaining spore shells, and they would soon fade into a reddish color and begin to disease the nt. This fungus was named red mold because of this color. Pshh The spores that popped out from the ground first infected the wheat. The level of infection that was around five percent quickly became eighty percent. However, there were still countless spores. Then, the wind beganing down from the Rocky Mountains: Foehn wind. Whoosh! The sound of the wind rang in Young-Joons ears. The Foehn wind took the spores and headed East. Those spores would fall on the central region. However, this was not the end. The newly infected red mold spores had a short incubation period. This is because the average temperatures were right now. As individual spores varied greatly, they would be able to extend their hyphae and form new spores in as little as a few hours or three days. The enormous amount of new spores would continue to blow toward the central region. They would continue to multiply until the temperature dropped further and they entered the fmentous body. Lets go. Young-Joon got up. There will be talk about the appearance of red mold in the wheat fields any minute now. * * * Campbell was lost in deep thought. He was a supporter of Young-Joon, and he was also a supporter of cultured meat, but he was skeptical about the red mold outbreak. And Anthony, the secretary of the Department of Agriculture, was someone he had appointed himself; Campbell trusted him. Do you really think Ryu Young-Joon is wrong this time? Campbell asked. I know that you trust Doctor Ryu Young-Joon a lot, sir. And I like him as well. I mean, Im taking Amuc, the diabetes drug, as well. But not red mold? We had it containedst year, and I believe that it will not happen this time. And its already twenty days past red molds usual appearance period, Anthony said. Sir, Doctor Ryu, for once, is wrong. Unless he is a god, he cannot be right about everything. He misjudged the capability of that artificial intelligence program, thats all. But I got this email. Campbell opened his inbox. It was an email from Young-Joon. [A-Gen will be producing great quantities of a red mold treatment in preparation for the outbreak, and if you arrange to purchase them through me in advance, you will be less resented by the farmers.] It wasnt very long, and it was bold. How did he get your email? I told him it when we were doing cultured meat because Im going to make that my most important aplishment of this term. I told him to email me directly if there are any problems with it. But he wrote about red mold, not cultured meat. If he is right, Doctor Ryu emailing me directly wouldnt be a problem. Campbell rested his chin on his hand and tapped on the table with his fingers. Im thinking of writing a contract to arrange something. Dont do that. You will be criticized even more. Is that so? Even Tanya Manker, the creator of the artificial intelligence program, has stayed silent as well. Shes not confident either. That is how unlikely it is to happen. ... Campbell let out a deep sigh and held his head. Alright. I will think about it. You can go now. If red mold does not appear, that artificial intelligence program and Tanya Manker will be under a lot of fire, and shes the logical center of the cultured meat industry. Things could get a little difficult. Dont worry too much, sir. You will still be able to push for the cultured meat industry, Anthony said. But it would be wise for you to not provoke corn farmers any further right now since they will suffer losses from having corn leftover during the setup process of cultured meat. That leftover corn is the key to solving the food crisis. Leave it to me to protect thatnd and those farmers until the timees. All we need to do is win the cultured meat legitive hearing. Anthony reassured Campbell and walked out. He returned to his office and sat down. New reports had piled up on his desk during his brief absence. Taking a sip of his coffee, he picked up the report that was at the very top of the pile. Huh? His eyes widened. Surprised, Anthony set down his coffee and read the report closely. [Diseased nts were found in the wheat production area. The leaves have turned a dark red color, indicating one or more of the following infectious agents: red mold, leaf blight, leaf minerrvae, or mites.] What is The number of infected nts wasnt very high; only about thirty of them were infected in two farms. However, if this was red mold, the infection rate was probably close to one hundred percent. The rest just hadnt shown up yet. ... Anthonys mind went nk. It could be a different type of disease, but if it was red mold? Microscopic spores that werent visible to the naked eye had already swept across the central region with the Foehn winds. The cornfields may already be infected. Young-Joons email that he read in the Oval Office lingered in front of his eyes. He quickly called the office. Sir, I think I was wrong. There is a possibility of a red mold reemergence Anthony said. A reemergence? Yes. You havent written back to Doctor Ryu Young-Joon about not buying any treatments, right? I was still thinking about it. ... We have to do a close examination to determine if it really is red mold. I think it will take about four to five days. Is that the day of the hearing? Is it? If it is red mold, can it appear in the central region as well? Yes. The incubation period is short as the temperatures are low and the fungus are spores right now. If spores flew over the central region, we will have an outbreak in five days, and things will be a mess. I see. Do a close examination. I will reply to Doctor Ryu Young-Joon, and you can take him to the Department of Agriculture and write a contract for the purchase of the red mold treatment yourself. Yes, sir * * * As Tanya Manker, Mckinney, and Diego, who didnt know how things were going, hesitated, the cultured meat opposition crowd gathered momentum. Steven was now excitedly criticizing Young-Joon and the developers of the cultured meat technology. The cultured meat regtion bill must be passed. It is ridiculous that we are having a legitive hearing over this. The world shouldnt be controlled by one mad scientist who is pretending to be a prophet. How much have the stock prices of agriculture and traditional livestockpanies dropped? Steven shouted to a crowd of conservative groups. He needed to gather as much power as possible right up until the day before the legitive hearing. It would be a powerful weapon in the hearing and would make or break the bill. Above all, cultured meat is dangerous, everyone. Not only is it economically dangerous, it is dangerous to the health of the American people. Do you know how they make that meat? Steven shouted confidently. Its the same way cancer cells are made! The method of making the cultured meat borrows the mechanism by which cancer cells divide. Its made like a cancer cell! Ryu Young-Joon and his minions are trying to put cancer cells in our belly! The final three days leading up to the hearing were basically a one-man show for Steven and the conservative organizations. Most of the conservative organizations came together. They gathered on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., even on the morning of the hearing, and began marching. Get Ryu Young-Joon out of America! Ban dangerous cultured meat! Protect livestockpanies! Their chants echoed in front of the Capitol. However, the organizers sensed something wasnt right. Farmers from the central and western regions had not shown up to thisst, important rally. * * * Steven, who sat in the hearing with experts from conservative groups, stared at Mckinney. He looked a little nervous. They were rivals andpetitors who had fought for a long time. It was like you to extend to the cultured meat industry first, Mckinney. Steven thought to himself. But you burnt your tongue trying to eat a potato that was too hot. After you stop the wave as the breakwater, I will eat it slowly. Break just this once. Tanya Manker also looked nervous. She sat in her seat and whispered to Mckinney and Diego. Today is the tenth day. Mckinney nodded. Theres still the rest of the day left, Tanya. ... We should be seeing some kind of sign by now if there is an outbreak of red mold. If not, so be it. Well just have to prove the safety of cultured meat and argue for its food production efficienc Mckinney paused. Drrr. It was because Young-Joon, who wasing to sit down in his seat, was pushing a huge cart. And there was a huge machine on top of it. What is that? The audience began whispering. All the panelists were shocked. Young-Joon put the cart behind the seat, pulled out the cord and plugged it in. What are you doing! Steven shouted. I got permission from the Capitol, Young-Joon replied briefly. Last time, I said that I would discuss the safety of cultured meat at the legitive hearing when I pointed out the danger of the red mold outbreak in the central region. Young-Joon tapped the machine with his fingers. This is the Foodscan 3.4 version we purchased from Force Healthcare. It is the newest product. It is the most efficient machine that can analyze theponents of raw and processed meat products and even measure the CD value at the amino acid level. ... The speaker of the House walked in front of Steven, who was frozen in shock. The speaker, who was in charge of leading the hearing, stepped up to the podium and picked up the microphone. Before we proceed with todays legitive hearing, I would like to share with you a fact that may affect the oue of the hearing, the speaker said. A disease has spread in corn and wheat fields in the western region. The number of infected nts was increasing slowly until yesterday afternoon, but the situation deteriorated rapidly since the evening, and most of the nts are showing symptoms. What Steven, who was surprised, stuttered. The speaker said, The Department of Agriculture has closely inspected the site for five days, and we received the results this morning. The source of the infection has been determined to be red mold. This was announced thirty minutes ago. I am announcing this now as this is likely to have an impact on todays hearing, but you may have not heard it due to time constraints. Chapter 144: Cultured Meat (10) Chapter 144: Cultured Meat (10) Jake, a farmer who owned a corn farm in Michigan, sat in his field for thirty minutes. Last night, the ears of hundreds of corn suddenly began to turn dark red and go bad. He felt uneasy since then, but his entire field was devastated by the morning. ... He didnt care about thest rally before the legitive debate; his harvest for this year was about to be destroyed. A much deeper issue than all the protests and marches they had done had urred. The battle between the traditional livestock industry and cultured meat? All of the feed for livestock in those traditional livestock industries was about to be cut off. A food crisis in ten years? A crisis would start in the United States next year, as half of the entire corn production in the country was used for livestock feed. All of that was about to disappear. Then, the price of livestock feed would naturally increase, and so would the price of meat. That was the problem for livestock farmers, but it was even worse for corn farmers. Jake! Someone from behind shouted. Pendleton, an old friend of Jakes, was driving his truck over. So? Did they have any treatments at American Farmer? Jake asked. American Farmer was the most famous distributor of agricultural supplies. They bought pesticides from pharmaceuticalpanies and supplied them to farmers. No. Pendleton shook his head. What about Husbandry? Someone already bought all of it. Right But they only had about ten thousand liters. They said it was sold outst night. Damn it. Jake let out a deep sigh. Damn it! Jake kicked the wheels of the truck. Lets go in now, Jake. I failedst year, Jake said in a depressed voice. ... Our crops failedst year, too! Im the fxxking idiot for listening to the axxholes at the USDA[1] and not using resistant seeds! Jake shouted. ... Since the harvest decreases a lot if you use resistant seeds. We were greedy. Who can we me? I thought they had itpletely contained. Everyone thought so. Its not our fault. Pendleton patted Jake on the shoulder. How the hell did it spread Apparently, there was some left in the wheat fields, Pendleton said. Really? You know Winterwheat Company in the winter wheat fields? The first red mold-infected seed came out from one of their farms. The department heard about that and investigated it, and it turned out to be the origin. Winterwheat. Did those idiots even contain it? They did. But the investigator missed that spot because they didnt nt wheat therest year. What? How could the fungus be there if there was no wheat? It was a bit damp, and the red mold was left there as a fmentous body in between the moss in the dirt. Oh And when they nted wheat in that spot this year, it got infected and became the first infected seed. The USDA thinks it started from there because its the exact same thing that spreadst year. Sigh How much did you losest year? About three hundred thousand dors. You think its going to be worse this time? I am going to go bankrupt at this rate. Its over. ... Its not just small farmers like us that are going to get crushed. All the big agriculture corporations will take a hit as well. They are all in trouble. Both of them dropped their heads in despair. Jake! Pendleton! Another truck was headed their way. It was their friend who also owned a farm. Look at the news! Watch the announcement from the USDA! * * * The USDA and the White House who were under attack due to the cultured meat industry took this opportunity to turn the tables. The USDA waspetent, and they had to rebuild their image. The USDA never ignored farmers and people in the livestock industry; that image and their credibility needed to be restored. The USDA has always beenmitted to protecting the livelihood and property of existing farmers and livestock workers, Anthony said. The USDA dismissed the possibility when Doctor Ryu warned us of the spread of red mold in the central regions. However, we felt that we had to consider the huge damages that farmers would suffer if the USDA was wrong. Anthony deeply thanked Young-Joon in his head as he stood in front of the reporters shing cameras. Doctor Ryu Young-Joon proposed to supply the USDA with arge amount of red mold treatment, and after much consideration, we epted the proposal and signed the contract on the thirteenth, about nine days ago. A-Gen has produced about one hundred times more than their usual amount, and we have already secured inventory. We are going to supply the treatment to farmers in the central and western regions, Anthony said. Also, we deeply apologize for not being able to prevent the outbreak before it happened, even though Doctor Ryu warned us about this situation. * * * There was silence in the hall where the legitive hearing was being held. The congressman had never seen the hall be this quiet. It was obvious, but they could not broadcast Anthonys press conference while the legitive hearing was proceeding. However, the focus of most of the citizens sitting in the audience had already slipped away from cultured meat. They all had their phones out and were watching Anthonys press conference. Red mold is here? People began whispering amongst themselves. They quickly searched through the news. A heavy silence fell over the room. Even those in favor of cultured meat and supporters of Young-Joon were extremely shocked at what had happened. Public opinion had changedpletely. Posts shocked about the incident were pouring in. Then can the red mold in the central and western regions be treated? They say that the treatment itself is easy. They just have to spray it like youre spraying pesticides from an aircraft. They say the nts can be recovered because its still in the early stages of infection. A national crisis happenedst year because we didnt have enough treatment, but this time we can prevent it. How the hell did the AI do it? The AI predicted that a dormant red mold that showed no symptoms would show up and wipe out the entire Midwest? Then is the food crisis real? That wille in just ten years? Isnt it just that Ryu Young-Joon used the artificial intelligence program well? Not that the artificial intelligence program is good? Ryu Young-Joon also analyzed the food crisis theory by the same artificial intelligence program. Tanya Manker also had the same results. I cant believe red mold actually came The USDA made a mistake in not preventing or predicting it, but its a relief that they listened to Ryu Young-Joon and bought the cure at thest minute. * * * D-Doctor Ryu! Did you not spread it?! Steven shouted. Everyones attention was drawn to Young-Joon. Me? Young-Joon tilted his head in confusion. How? ... Perhaps you brought spores Red mold spores can only survive in air for about four hours. It takes over ten hours by airne to get from Korea to the United States. Or you brought an infected nt I would have been reported at the airport if I had brought in a live, infected nt. You can check my immigration records. ... But Or do you want to say that I created and spread apletely contained fungus after I entered the United States? ... Ive been advising the Department of Agriculture on this red mold outbreak for a few days now and have been given a detailed exnation. There is a separate origin of the outbreak. We can figure this out after the hearing since this is a hearing about cultured meat, not red mold, Young-Joon said. The audience murmured. They were already talking about Winterwheat. They were already on Young-Joons side; they were astonished by his incredible insight in predicting this huge agricultural crisis and the powerful analytical capabilities of artificial intelligence. First member of the affirmative party of the cultured meat restriction bill, please present your opening statement. The speaker began the legitive hearing. It was Stevens turn to speak. As he stood up, Young-Joon nced at him with a notebook and pen in his hands. Steven picked up his statement with trembling hands. He had purchased cultured meat from Tekeyson Foods before, and he produced negative data on cultured meat. He had a lot of data prepared, but he could not speak. If Young-Joon did not spread it himself, how could the uracy and timing of his predictions be this good? Steven felt terror. Young-Joon seemed like a shaman who could make it rain with a prayer, or a strategist who could predict dozens of moves ahead with his amazing strategic abilities. To Steven, Young-Joon did not look human anymore. C-Cultured meat is created in the same way cancer cells are made. Stuttering, Steven began his statement. Cultured meat is grown in a dangerous environment with growth hormones. That originates from Kochia leaves. And cultured meat can also be infected with bacteria or viruses because it is grown in a nutrient-rich culture. If we eat cultured meat, we are eating that as well, Steven said. And cultured meat is created from stem cells. Like cancer cells, stem cells have the ability to divide indefinitely. Theres no guarantee that stem cells wont go into your body and be cancerous. Stevens statement went on for about fifteen minutes. Thank you. First member of the negative party of the cultured meat restriction bill, please cross-question. The legitive hearing, a variation on the Karl Popper debate method, was where each side presented a speaker and took turns asking questions about the speaker. Young-Joon stood up and began his cross-questioning. You stated that cultured meat is dangerous because it contains growth hormones, is that correct? ... Yes, Steven replied with a shaky voice. Do you know where that growth hormonees from? I understand that ites from Kochia leaves. Do you know that Kochia leaves are consumed for food? ... I do not know. It ismonly used for food in India and Pakistan. It is difficult for nt growth hormones to be active in living animal bodies when administered orally. The reason is because it cannot pass the stomach wall. ... That is why people in India and Pakistan do not have any health problems even though they eat a lot of Kochia leaves. However, it is different when it is dissolved in cell cultures. The growth hormone can act on and divide cultured meat because the receptors are all exposed at the cellr level. This means that the hormone is effective in cultured meat, but it has no effect in the human stomach, Young-Joon said. The hormone does not enter our body as the culture medium containing it is removed during processing, but even if it does, it is a food used in India and Pakistan. ... Furthermore, cultured meat is also very unlikely to be infected with bacteria or viruses because it is grown in a sterilized space. Let me ask you, Steven. Are the barns where traditional livestock farmers raise their cows, pigs, and chickens, sterile? When you handle the animals, do you use equipment that has been sterilized at high temperature and pressure using equipment like autoves? ... No. Do you install HEPA filters and air barriers in your barns to control airing in from the outside, and do you use floor adhesive pads to remove contaminants from under your feet? ... No. Then, do you sterilize empty barns with UV light and OPA-based disinfectants? Do farmers wear sterile clothing, masks, goggles, waterproof boots, and hair caps when they enter the barn to feed or care for livestock? ... Watching Young-Joons attack, Diego whispered to Mckinney, Steven looks like hes going to cry any minute Young-Joon went on. The medium in which we grow our cultured meat contains indicators, so any virus or bacterial infection is reported immediately. The cultured meat tanks are basically automatically diagnosed twenty-four hours. Does a system like that exist in your barn? ... No, it does not. You imed that eating stem cells can cause them to be cancerous in the body, is that correct? ... Is that correct? Yes Are you certain? Steven covered his face with his hands. In a pained voice, he replied, That is my understanding Do you know that A-Bio uses stem cells to treat a? ... I did not know that. We directly administer stem cells into the patients eye by injection when we treat a. ... Four hundred thousand American patients were cured like that. Not one of them developed a tumor. Do you know why that is? Steven replied that he did not know, but he knew. The stuff about stem cells and cancer was not to attack Young-Joon, but to scare the people who were watching this hearing on television since it would be beneficial to Steven if even one person believed it, no matter how many scientific exnations Young-Joon gave. However, the scale had been tipped too much. The red mold that had emerged right before the hearing gave Young-Joon an enormous amount of power. Steven berated Young-Joon about acting like a prophet, but he actually became one. We have developed a technology that automatically kills undifferentiated stem cells. This technology has also been applied to cultured meat, Young-Joon said. To Steven, it sounded like Young-Joon was telling him that he was going to destroy him like Schumatix if he kept getting in the way. Cultured meat is safe. Do you have any objections to my question so far? Young-Joon asked. ... Steven dropped his head. Young-Joon turned to the speaker. Thank you. I conclude the cross-questioning. As Young-Joon went back to his seat and sat down, the speaker nced at Steven, then said, First member of the negative party, please present your statement It was Young-Joons turn again. I will begin. He walked over to the Foodscan machine. 1. United States Department of Agriculture Chapter 145: Cultured Meat (11) Chapter 145: Cultured Meat (11) Cultured meat is an already-established technology that is necessary to deal with the uing food crisis, prevent environmental destruction, and solve the moral problem of eating meat. I believe everyone is already familiar with its usefulness, Young-Joon said. I think the reason why this legitive hearing is being held on the bill to restrict cultured meat is because people are not yet convinced of the safety of cultured meat, as stated by the affirmative party beforehand. Young-Joon turned on the Foodscan machine. For those who were not convinced by my statement earlier, I will prove it to you now. He pulled out a fewrge stic bags from the ice box next to him. Each bag had arge piece of tape on it, and it had beef inside. I requested this from the administrators. The name of thepany that processed each piece of meat is probably written underneath that tape. It could be cultured meat, it could be from Tekeyson Foods, or it could be from Red Meat. Young-Joon lined up the ten stic bags on the table. I dont know the order either. We will randomly pick one, analyze it, see the results together, then take the tape off. Which one should we pick? Number one is the far left, Young-Joon asked the audience. This was not how an introductory statement was usually done. The usual way was to just read through the statement. Young-Joon wasnt viting the rules, but the audience was taken aback by his unusual actions. However, one brave person from the audience shouted, Number three! Alright, I will analyze number three. Foodscan can analyze ten species at a time, so lets do one more. Which one should we do? Number five! someone shouted again. Sure. Young-Joon picked up the two stic bags and took out one hundred grams of beef from each. He opened the first and second samplenes, put in the beef, and pressed a button to start the analysis. Beep! Whirr! With his arms crossed, Young-Joon silently waited as the machine started with a short beep. This was too rxed to be an opening statement, where every second counted. We dont need to be constantly talking for fifteen minutes. Rosaline said. A picture was worth a thousand words; showing people once was enough. Click! The lids of the first and second samplenes opened. It meant that the analysis wasplete. Young-Joon pressed a button, and the results were presented on the screen in the front of the hall. [Sample 1: 324.1 kcal. 25 g of fat (12 g saturated fat, 1 g polyunsaturated, 12 g monounsaturated), 85 mg cholesterol, 57 mg sodium, 331 mg potassium, 0 g carbohydrate (0 g fiber, 0 g sugars), 24 g protein, 0IU vitamin A, 9 mg vitamin C, 3.1 mg iron, 2.5 g cobmin, 22 mg magnesium] These are the values from the first sample, Young-Joon said. Shall we look at the second sample? Young-Joon went on to the next slide. [Sample 2: 284.7 kcal, 19 g fat] There is a big calorie difference, and the fat and protein content is very different. The second sample has a much higher vitamin and protein content as well. What do you think they are? Young-Joon asked. The second is cultured meat! The first is Red Meat! someone shouted from the audience. The second sample is cultured meat Really? Young-Joon said, then turned to face the panelists. What do you think? The affirmative party was flustered, and so was Mckinney and Diego from the negative party. Um I also think that the second sample is cultured meat, Mckinney said cautiously. The first sample is cultured meat, said the man with a beard who was sitting beside Steven. It was rence Bishop; he was one of the conservative polemicists who was strongly against cultured meat. I studied food nutrition, and it seems to me that the fat content of the first sample is higher than a beef tenderloin processed the normal way, rence said. Doctor Ryu, I did a lot of research on cultured meat myself, and free fatty acids can ur in the process of stretching the muscle fibers. When you use the mechanism of cancer cells and proliferate it in a short amount of time, the fatty acids will stay in the muscle fibers and increase the saturated fat content. It bes a product detrimental to your health. Is that so? Young-Joon asked. Yes. The first sample is cultured meat. Young-Joon chuckled, and so did Diego. Then, lets reveal it. Young-Joon took off the tape, and thepany name was revealed. [Red Meat], [Red Meat] ... The affirmative party was a little flustered. Wait, how could you do this? Putting Red Meat in both of them and rence argued. I didnt tell you before, but I asked for three products from eachpany. I did not know that both of them were Red Meat products either. We picked them at random as everyone saw, didnt we? Young-Joon said. ... What do you think happened? How is it that the same species of cattle, raised in the same traditional way and ughtered and processed in the same way, have such differentponents in their tenderloins? Young-Joon took off the tape on all of the stic bags. He put each sample into the Foodscan and ran it. The reason they differ is because theye from a live animal, Young-Joon said. Its the same way that we all look different from each other, have different personalities, different heights, different weights, and different tendencies. Livestock animals like cattle also have different tendencies, so naturally, the meat we get from them is going to be different. Young-Joon picked up a product from Red Meat. Theponentposition of meat is not strictly analyzed; they are just being distributed, right? We do not scientifically know what we are eating. Theponents in a beef tenderloin known on the market are average values. And all biology has great deviations to the left and right of the average, Young-Joon said. Tenderloin is generally thought to be low in fat and cholesterol, but what about sample one? The values were so shaky that even a food nutrition expert was confused, right? Thats because I thought there was cultured meat among them, so rence mumbled. Young-Joon nodded. Now that there is cultured meat, people are at least suspicious. Before that, everyone would have eaten it without thinking, even people with high cholesterol. ... It is just that the human body itself is robust enough to buffer a lot of variables. But eating food that you dont know theposition of is not a desirable situation both nutritionally and medically. Ending up with acute kidney failure or intestinal ulcers ismon from eating bad things and not being able to digest them, Young-Joon said. But cultured meat is different. You can trust the nutritional facts. Cultured meat is grown fiber by fiber in a strictly controlled manner, so it does not have a big deviation, like traditional meat. Click! The analytical data for the ten different meats showed up on the screen. There were three from Red Meat, three from Tekeyson Foods, and four pieces of cultured meat. Letspare the data. First, Young-Joon opened the data from Red Meat and Tekeyson Foods. It was aplete mess. The worst one showed that a piece of Red Meats beef had a three times higher sodium content than the meat from Tekeyson Foods. Young-Joon pressed a few buttons and statistically analyzed the data. He organized Red Meat, Tekeyson Foods, and cultured meat into three separate ces. He graphed the results with error bars. Regardless of whatpany it was, the values of traditional meat varied tremendously with error bars ranging from twenty percent to three hundred percent. In science, these values are usually seen as meaningless. We conclude that another factor is required to control the data, Young-Joon said. That is how new technologies are invented: by discovering and applying new factors. Young-Joon went on to the next slide. The result of that is cultured meat. The error margin was two percent, the calories for all four samples were 320.5, and three samples had a fat content of fifteen grams with one having 14.9; the values were basically identical. Theposition of cultured meat is more stable and credible than traditional meat. Young-Joon pressed a few buttons for analysis again. This time, lets take a look at the values of residual hormones, antibiotics, bacteria, and viruses in the meat. This was even worse. All the values were much higher in the traditional meat. This made sense in a way as these animals had umted them from eating feed that was enriched with antibiotics and hormones. No matter how hygienic the ughter conditions were maintained, blood sttered everywhere, and saws were used to cut through meat and bones. As they hosed it down with water afterwards, there was naturally a higher chance that microorganisms would reproduce in these ces. The microorganisms that were left in the body of the livestock in the first ce would have developed resistance to antibiotics after a long battle and remained in the processed products. In terms of food safety regtions, it doesnt matter if it is eaten after processing, Young-Joon said. But there is no reason to intentionally eat something that is full of antibiotics, hormones, and microorganisms when there are alternatives. Young-Joon went on to the next slide. There was almost zero residual amount in cultured meat. It wasnt created in a hygienic ughter environment; it was created in a sterile space. Like how workers who assembled ultra-microscopic semiconductors wore dust suits, cultured meat was made on a biosafety workbench with workers wearing sterile suits,pletely isted from outside contaminants. The product, which is vacuum-sealed there, contains no bacteria or viruses. Even the trace amounts that you see now must havee from my hands during the transfer from the bag to the machine, Young-Joon said. There are no residual amounts of hormones and antibiotics. There are no antibiotics because we dont use any, and the hormone disappears when we remove and wash away the culture media. Of course, as I said earlier, it is okay to consume because it is from a nt and does not affect the human body. Young-Joon went on. Everyone. Cultured meat is safe. You can rest assured. That is it for my statement. You have forty seconds left, said the speaker. Its fine. Its my turn to be cross-questioned, right? It was the same thing as how Young-Joon attacked Steven when he gave his statement first. This time, Steven had to question Young-Joon and find holes in his statement. Thats right. The first member of the affirmative party, please begin the cross-questioning, said the speaker. Steven pursed his lips and stood up. He was speechless for a long time as he stared at Young-Joon. ... Ask me anything, Young-Joon said. ... question. Pardon? ... With a defeated face, Steven said, There is nothing to cross-question * * * The hearing was basically over after Young-Joons statement. The rest of the discussion was one-sided and meaningless. After everything ended, Tanya Manker and Mckinney called Young-Joon, who left the hall. I was so surprised, Mr. Ryu, Mckinney said. I apologize for not giving you a heads-up about how I was going to present it in advance. I was busy advising the Department of Agriculture on the red mold thing. Thats alright. We won easily, thanks to you. ... Doctor Ryu, Tanya interrupted. Is there any chance you could tell me how you predicted that with my program? I will tell you if I get a chance to, Young-Joon said, smiling. Vrrr A few huge dump trucks that were heavily loaded were driving by on the other side of the road. Thats probably the red mold treatment. I heard they are concentrating the supply on infected areas right now, Mckinney said. It must be hectic down at the USDA. They are probably busy, but also probably happy, Tanya said. They averted an immediate crisis thanks to Mr. Ryu. And the global crisis ten yearster, Mckinney added. Chapter 146: Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (1)

Chapter 146: Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (1)

Tanya Manker¡¯s artificial intelligence program seeded in predicting red mold. Worries about the safety of cultured meatpletely disappeared after the legitive hearing. Now, experts on food supply who emphasized the food crisis excitedly began to advertise the need for new technology everywhere. With the United States, one of the countries with the most developed livestock industry, leading the charge, governments around the world drew up a long-term n for ten years. They would gradually reduce the number of traditional farms and rece it with a field to grow Kochia; this would allow them to preserve farmers¡¯ profits by making use of thend instead of it being idle. They would also help meat processing industries train their employees to transform their operations into cultured meat production facilities and maintain employment. ¡°If only things could go ording to n.¡± Young-Joon was spending his time sitting on a hill near a cornfield in Iowa. Hum... The sound of light airnes flying overhead echoed in the sky. Large amounts of red mold treatment were being sprayed over the cornfields five times a day. ¡°It¡¯s a relief that there is a cure,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡ªA-Gen is probably really happy since they sold a ton of the treatment to the U.S. government. ¡°Probably.¡± Pshh... The nes poured the treatment onto the cornfield again. ¡ªIt looks like it¡¯s raining. Rosaline popped out of Young-Joon¡¯s body. She began running towards the center of the cornfield. ¡°Where are you going?¡± ¡ªI want to go inside. Rosaline ran into the corn stalks that were taller than her. The treatment poured onto her, but her clothes or hair didn¡¯t get wet at all. After observing the sky, she looked around at the corn ears. ¡ªThis drug is a fat-dissolvingpound with a steroid cure. Rosaline said. After soaking into the ground, the treatment would absorb through the roots of the corn and travel along the sieve tube. Rosaline shared her vision with Young-Joon. The treatment went into the corn and the leaves and entered the alpha receptors of the fungus. The twenty-fourth carbon of the treatment acted on the back of the hyphae-forming material in the fungus. ¡ªIt works as a Lewis acid. Rosaline said ¡ªThe fungus dies as the hyphae-forming material is destroyed. ¡®You can show me this without using fitness now?¡¯ Young-Joon chuckled. Rosaline turned and nced at him. ¡ªNo. I used fitness. ¡®Ugh...¡¯ ¡ªI didn¡¯t think I would need to get permission because I only used a little. ¡®It¡¯s okay.¡¯ Rosaline stopped Synchronization Mode, which she turned on herself, and returned to Young-Joon. ¡ªThat treatment looks simr to prednisolone. ¡°Prednisolone?¡± ¡ªIt makes sense as they are both steroids. ¡°What is prednisolone?¡± ¡ªIt¡¯s a hepatitis treatment. It¡¯s one of the two pills you were taking when you first created me. The other one was pentoxifylline. * * * ¡°If Doctor Ryu says that he is going to terraform Mars next week, I¡¯m going to trust him and buynd on Mars,¡± David said in the car with a loud chuckle. ¡°Did you make some profit?¡± asked his driver, who had worked for him for thirty years. ¡°It was huge. We increased production by fifty percent, but we should have increased it by about two hundred percent. We sold all of it, no inventory left. And thepany image improved a lot, too.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°I mean, Conson & Colson was the national pharmaceuticalpany of the United States, right? We already had a pretty goodpany image. But on top of that, we became thepany that had the foresight to see the potential in Doctor Ryu¡¯s absurd prophecy,¡± David said as he snapped his fingers. ¡°He is a genius. I hope to maintain a good business rtionship with him.¡± ¡°When you first saw him, you tried to dominate the diagnostic market first to keep Doctor Ryu in check, right?¡± ¡°Well, I didn¡¯t know that he was such a genius back then,¡± David said. ¡°When brilliant people and geniusese along,pany executives that have a vested interest are bound to try to consume them.¡± ¡°But not now?¡± ¡°You have to follow them if they are overwhelmingly brilliant,¡± David said. ¡°I believe that someone like Doctor Ryu Young-Joon is unprecedented in the history of humanity. He used to bepared to people like Einstein, but I think he¡¯s past that level now.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± ¡°You can see it in the way he made everything in this cultured meat project go ording to his n. He¡¯s not just a scientifically brilliant scientist who can develop good drugs; being able to deliver a technology that could transform an industry asrge as this while minimizing the noise like that is beyond the capabilities of a normal human being.¡± ¡°It was really fascinating. I was shocked to see that red mold actually reemerged. Plus, he does things like analyze the nutrientposition of cultured meat on live television...¡± ¡°The idea of protecting the livelihood of most of the people who were already in the industry is amazing. Scientists don¡¯t usually think of things like that because they¡¯ve fulfilled their responsibility by providing the new technology,¡± David said. ¡°I see.¡± ¡°I¡¯m just d that an ordinary person like me can live in the same generation as a giant like him.¡± ¡°If you¡¯re just an ordinary person, what does that make the rest of us? Hahaha.¡± ¡°Compared to Doctor Ryu, everyone is just amon, ordinary citizen. Now, I think Doctor Ryu is doing science in all fields, not just pharmaceuticals. I have high expectations for what he will do next.¡± * * * On the day that Young-Joon was returning to Korea, he met Campbell. As a state guest, Campbell was personally seeing him off. This was also quite unusual, but as a politician, Campbell used Young-Joon¡¯s image well. Young-Joon was someone who had stopped a national crisis and someone who established a cancerboratory to begin a long-term project with the United States. This was enough justification; Young-Joon didn¡¯t like to get involved in politics, but he didn¡¯t have any reason or grounds to refuse Campbell¡¯s offer to thank him and see him off. ¡°The United States of America is greatly indebted to Doctor Ryu Young-Joon from this red mold outbreak. I hope we can maintain a positive rtionship.¡± Campbell shook Young-Joon¡¯s hand and turned around to face the camera. Click! Click! Cameras shed from all over. ¡°The White House has arranged a ne for you. I hope you have afortable return home,¡± Campbell said. Just like Campbell said, the way back was very nice andfortable. Being treated as a state guest, Young-Joon spent his time leisurely in the White House¡¯s private jet. It had been a while since he had rxed. ¡°What are you going to study when you get back?¡± Kim Chul-Kwon asked. ¡°I don¡¯t know. I¡¯m thinking of finishing up the things I have already started instead of starting a new research project,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Like what?¡± ¡°I started a lot of things, so I have a lot to finish as well. For example, probiotics.¡± ¡°Probiotics?¡± ¡°You have to keep taking Amuc to treat diabetes right now, but we can cure diabetes if we create a gut environment where the microorganism can produce Amuc by itself.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°But since it¡¯s a living bacteria with edited genes... It¡¯s difficult to get approval for a clinical trial. That¡¯s what I¡¯m thinking about,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡®Wait.¡¯ Now that he thought of it, his results about probiotics changed depending on Rosaline¡¯s level. At first, all Rosaline said was to use a bacteria called Clorotonis limuvitus. When Rosaline became level three and he was able to use [Advice], Rosaline told him to manipte the genes of the bacteria to treat diabetes. ¡®Rosaline is level twenty right now.¡¯ Young-Joon also had a powerful skill called Simtion Mode. ¡ªDo you want me to look at probiotics again? Rosaline asked. ¡®Yes, please.¡¯ [Activate Simtion Mode] A message window popped in front of Young-Joon¡¯s eyes. His vision faded out into pitch ck. ¡°I¡¯m tired. I¡¯m going to take a short nap,¡± Young-Joon said to Kim Chul-Kwon and calmly closed his eyes. He leaned back on his chair and focused on the scene in front of his eyes. The small, intricate andplex system of the bacteria appeared. ¡ªThis is the microorganism empire. Rosaline said. ¡ªBiologically, humans have three cell systems. ¡®Three?¡¯ ¡ªThe first is the somatic cell system. These are cells that exist in a newborn baby¡¯s body and mature during growth but don¡¯t divide much afterward. They are difficult to regenerate, but they are rtively strong and used until people die. ¡®And the other two?¡¯ ¡ªThe other is the immune system. Because the most dangerous enemy that threatens the somatic cells is foreign invaders, they need a system to defend against that. That is the immune system. White blood cells, which are made in the bone marrow, constantly circte the body and look for foreign invaders. Rosaline said. ¡ªAnd surprisingly, there are foreign invaders that have established themselves in the human body. That is the empire of microorganisms: the microbiome. You can think of them as foreign individuals who have such a huge business in the country that the government cannot touch them. ¡®And you¡¯re saying that the human body is maintained from the harmony of these three systems?¡¯ ¡ªYes. And this might be obvious, but the immune system is the most interested in the microbiome. You can say that most of the immune reactions happen in the intestines. As such, developing a well-crafted and amazing probiotics is not just simply effective for diabetes or weight loss. Rosaline said. ¡ªBecause manipting the microbiome means manipting the immune system. ¡®I get it now. Like how diabetes was a type of autoimmune disorder, but you can treat it with probiotics now...¡¯ ¡ªYou can treat most autoimmune diseases and allergies. Should I list some? Rosaline said. ¡ªWhat Simtion Mode is saying right now is rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, Sjogren¡¯s syndrome, psoriasis, ulcerative colitis, some forms of autism, Crohn¡¯s disease, ankylosing spondylitis, a few types of anemia, asthma, some forms of Lou Gehrig¡¯s disease, dementia, and most allergies. ¡®...¡¯ ¡ªAnd this isn¡¯t a treatment, it¡¯s a prevention. There were three stages to the pharmaceutical industry: prevention, diagnosis, treatment. Excluding the vine, most of the things Young-Joon had done until now were limited to treatment, but this was different. ¡®How many genes have to be edited to see those results?¡¯ ¡ªYou have to use two more species of bacteria other than Clorotonis limuvitus. And you have to modify a total of 107 locations. ¡®Alright. Thanks. End Simtion Mode.¡¯ [Stop Simtion Mode] Young-Joon, who minimized the window and took a sip of wine, began thinking. ¡®How do I get approval for that ridiculous probiotics?¡¯ Even eating cooked corn and beans with a couple edited genes created several issues. If Young-Joon proposed a crazy idea to put a live bacteria with one hundred seven genes edited into someone¡¯s gut? No matter how much Young-Joon had shown the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, he couldn¡¯t imagine them just saying yes. Also, he didn¡¯t want them to give him approval just because he was Young-Joon, as that would be a vition of research ethics. ¡®... Wait. But have I contemted things of this magnitude before?¡¯ His scale of thinking had changed at some point. Young-Joon was originally making one drug for single diseases, like the flu treatment, but his scale of thinking had changed after trying to conquer cancer. Now, he was thinking of ways to cure all those autoimmune diseases at once. ¡®Is this because of Rosaline?¡¯ Young-Joon took a sip of his wine. [Rosaline has dposed the alcohol.] ¡ªDon¡¯t drink wine. Your blood vessels smell like ethanol. I¡¯m toozy to clean it. Rosaline said. ¡®Oh... Alright.¡¯ Chapter 147: The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (2) Chapter 147: The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (2) Young-Joon arrived in Korea. [Ryu Young-Joon returning to Korea after developing cultured meat.] Photos of him entering the airport terminal appeared in various articles. He was a little worried, but fortunately, the trouble had mostly died down. Young-Joons prediction that Korea would follow if the United States calmed down was correct. The n to transform traditional livestock into cultured meat that he discussed and created with the White House, the USDA, and Mckinney was based on the United States, but it was created with other countries in mind as well. Campbell shared the n with other governments, including Korea. Its funny seeing how peoples attitudes change, Park Joo-Hyuk said to Young-Joon, who had arrived at A-Bio. What attitude change? Public opinion. When you announced cultured meat, people were all up in arms, making a fuss about how you were a traitor to your own people and whatnot. It looked that way, even in the United States. They were fighting with your fan club, environmentalists and vegetarians who were in favor of cultured meat. It was pretty big. Did you getints? You think it was justints? They swarmed here to protest and stuff. A-Bio people suffered. It must have been hard. Yeah. But that public opinionpletely disappeared after red mold showed up and the live legitive hearing was broadcasted. Thats good. And there are two farms that switched to cultured meat in Korea, too. Now that theyve done it sessfully, public opinion is praising it again. Talking about how this is the way to prepare for the future and whether it would be Korea, which imports food from the United States, or the United States that is going to go down if a food crisis happens. Young-Joon nodded. Countries that import food, like Korea, would be on the verge of starvation. But if a food crisis like that came, it wont matter whether they are a food exporter or importer. Because there will be a war? Yeah. People would have bowed to A-Bio and eaten cultured meat if we developed this technology after the food crisis. Its a bit unfair because were being berated for making it early and pushing for it. Ah, whatever. Young-Joon leaned back in his office chair. Other than that, did anything else happen while I was gone? Young-Joon asked. Young-Joon could ask this because Park Joo-Hyuk was his friend. There were other supervisors in the research team, management team, or finance team that he could ask as the CEO. However, Park Joo-Hyuk was his partner and a friend that he could rely on; he could be the most logical and give Young-Joon the advice he needed without being afraid of stepping on someones toes. Well, I dont think there are any problems, Park Joo-Hyuk said. But Young-Joon, do you want to go on a blind date? Do what? Young-Joon squinted like he didnt believe Park Joo-Hyuk. A blind date. If I were to make a line with the people who want to meet you through me, it would reach A-Gen. Phew, no. I dont want to. I dont have the time, and Im not interested in dating. Thats weird. I feel like you werent this uninterested in girls. Park Joo-Hyuk crossed his arms and tilted his head in puzzlement. Do you secretly have a kid or something? Are you crazy? Young-Joon was startled. If you dont, you dont. What are you getting so worked up for? ... Rosaline, who was beside Young-Joon, giggled. Are you already seeing someone? Is it that Doctor Song? No. Im not interested in seeing anyone, so stop, Young-Joon said firmly. Park Joo-Hyuk stared at Young-Joon in thought. What? Young-Joon asked. I usually dont tell you to date someone because I pity the girl who would date you. This bastard But honestly, Im worried for you. You look like youre addicted to work. Youre going to burn out if you keep doing that. ... I had burnout syndrome when I was studying to be awyer, so I know what it feels like. Its a medical condition registered by the World Health Organization. I was worried about you because the entire world was criticizing you when you were doing cultured meat. And honestly, you have too much stress. Im fine. And youre single, too. You shouldnt be worried about me. I can get a girl whenever I want to because Im good-looking, Park Joo-Hyuk said. Ha. People can look like dogs or like cats, right? All your past girlfriends have looked like puppies, right? Really? I know someone that looks exactly like a puppy. Shes a model. Whatever. You date her. I dont like puppy faces. Puppy faces are drawn to puppy faces. Then what are you? Young-Joon asked. Park Joo-Hyuk gave him a sexy look. A sculpture. A broken one? Knock knock. As they were exchanging stupid jokes, Yoo Song-Mi, Young-Joons secretary, knocked. Sir. Yes,e in. Click. Yoo Song-Mi poked her head in and said, You have a meeting at the A-Bio Next-Generation Hospital. You have to leave now. * * * Jung Soon-Rae, an elderly woman, bought A-Gens life insurance. She did it because her son and his wife forced her to, but she didnt think it was a waste of money. It was because A-Gen sent her a diagnostic kit every month. It was included in the premium. One day, a bright dot appeared in the kit. What does this mean? Jung Soon-Rae asked her grandson anxiously. You can diagnose yourself. Her grandson connected the diagnostic to his phone and turned on the remote diagnostic service. [Mnoma] A few nearby hospitals showed up on the screen, and A-Bio Next-Generation Hospital was one of them. Jung Soon-Rae went straight to the hospital. The diagnostic kit said mnoma? Have you had any age spots show up on your skin recently? Here. She showed him the dark spot on her shoulder. Mnoma was one of the cancers that A-Gen and A-Bio had yet to conquer. The odds werent in their favor with existing treatments. However, this was the A-Bio Next Generation Hospital. This hospital was bing increasingly different from other hospitals as Young-Joons research was getting faster and beingmercialized here. Well harvest some skin cells. We need it for simultaneous precision diagnosis, said the doctor. He harvested the cells from the epithelial tissue from where the mnoma was and sent them to the stem cell technicians at the Next Generation Hospital. Epithelial skin tissue from patient sample 48847 The technicians dedifferentiated the somatic cells into stem cells. And at the same time, they sent the entire genome extracted from the cells to the Diagnostic Device Department at Lab One. [Requesting whole genome (WG) analysis for patient sample 48847] The results were transferred to the A-Bios server cloud a few dayster. Gic analysis data of patient sample 48847. The data was fully analyzed. 34 mnoma-specific mutations were found. Of these, clinical cases of mutations that were resistant to treatment are the following. [KN44 T790M mutation: report of celostin resistance in a 44-year-old male patient, Nature.] [ART K24L mutation: report of telinib resistance in an 85-year-old female patient, NEJM.] ... This information was more valuable than gold to a doctor. Back in the day, hospitals would just try a bunch of drugs and change them if they didnt work to find the right one for the patient. But in just two days, A-Gen could analyze existing clinical cases and the patients genotype to pick the most promising treatments. However, this is a theoretical value; they needed empirical data. The skin tissue is ready. The Stem Cell Research Team sent a report. The organoid wasnt ready yet; the Life Creation Department hadnt gotten to that stage. However, A-Bio had seeded in regenerating some skin epithelial tissue from stem cells before. Celostin and telinib are very likely to be resistant, so please test those two if you have time. In the meantime, lets prioritize clutinib, alimap, keraptin, osimerzumap, and bevatinib. The Stem Cell Research Team, which had received the doctors email, began dropping the treatments onto the skin tissue they grew. Among them, osimerzumap showed especially strong effects. The doctor, who received the results, gave her a prescription. Its called osimerzumap. I will give you a weeks worth, soe back after you finish them. Because Jung Soon-Rae had A-Gen Life, all the costs were covered by them, including whole genome analysis and the stem cell-based treatment testing. It seemed like A-Gen would lose money because it was so expensive, but to everyones surprise, A-Gen Life was making a huge profit. It was because the price of the testing had gone down. The two hundred gene analysis machines at A-Gen were running twenty-four hours a day, producing massive amounts of data. Technologies like iPSC and skin tissue differentiation were well-established and could be tested quickly and easily. And the most crucial point was that drugs were cheap. One weeks worth of treatment is eighteen thousand won, the pharmacist said to Jung Soon-Rae who went down to the pharmacy with her prescription. The nt-based Pharmaceuticals Research Department had worked on a total of seventeen drugs so far, and osimerzumap was one of them. Plus, it was a perfect match for Jung Soon-Rae. In just two months, Jung Soon-Raes mnoma was almost gone. If it was a few years ago, she would have spent tens of millions of won to try a bunch of drugs. She would have lost her hair, gotten sick, and gotten worse overall. She could have been in danger if she used celostin or telinib. Diseases that other hospitals cant cure can be cured here. And they can do it cheaply, quickly, and with minimal side effects. After her treatment, Jung Soon-Rae became a walking advertisement for A-gen Life. Whenever the elderly people in the neighborhood gathered, she talked about the Next-Generation Hospital and A-Gen Lifes insurance. Its a relief to hear that its going well, Young-Joon said when he heard how the hospital was going. Several donors who were running public welfare foundations and doctors were present at the hospital board meeting. I dont want to interfere with running the hospital, but the reason I called for a board meeting is because of the A-Bio Cancer Lab, Young-Joon said. I would like the new anti-cancer technologies that will be created there to be adopted right here. Technologies that canpletely conquer cancer in the future. It would be best to write a technology supply agreement as soon as possible. * * * Young-Joon, who came out of the meeting after writing the contract, looked around the hospital. It had gotten bigger, and it now had thirty-two medical specialties. There were about a thousand beds and more than one hundred attending doctors. Was there a psychiatry department here? Young-Joon asked as he walked down the hall. He asked because he saw the Department of Psychiatry down the hall. It was built a few months ago when Professor Shin Jung-Ju transferred here from Yeonyee University Hospital, said the young intern doctor who was seeing Young-Joon off. I see. Oh! Suddenly, Rosaline popped out of his body as if she had seen something. What? Young-Joon stopped in his tracks and stared at Rosaline. She began running toward the lobby where the front desk of the psychiatry department was located. Come here. Young-Joon, who followed her, was surprised. Doctor Ryu? Song Ji-Hyun said with wide eyes. Beside her was a big man who was shaking his leg with his head down. He raised his head and stared at Young-Joon. Young-Joon recognized him. [Synchronisation Mode: Would you like to gain insight into schizophrenia? Fitness consumption rate: 0.2/second.] A message window popped up. He also recognized this message as well. This man was in the hospital lobby when Young-Joon went to see a psychiatrist to see if he was going crazy after getting Rosaline. He had barely stopped this man, who was extremely tense, anxious, and panicked at the time, from jumping out the hospital window. And this is? ... Hes my brother, Song Ji-Hyun said. Chapter 148: Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (3) Chapter 148: Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (3) Song Jong-Ho was a year younger than Song Ji-Hyun. Their father was an executive at SG Group, and their mother had a doctorate in economics, but she quit her job to be a stay-at-home mom. They had nothing but happy memories of a warm and stable childhood in a prosperous middle-ss family. Song Ji-Hyun was also famous for her beautiful looks, but Song Jong-Ho was even more famous; he was a celebrity among the moms in the neighborhood. Oh, Jong-Ho is a boy, but hes still so much prettier than girls. Hes going to break some hearts when he gets older. Everyone who saw Song Jong-Ho said he was handsome, praised him, and loved him. In fact, he became a good student who was smart, well-spoken, athletic, and studious, just like his sister. Then, it began when Song Ji-Hyun was a freshman in high school. You got all of that today? Song Ji-Hyun asked in surprise when she saw Song Jong-Ho pouring something out of his bag after returning from school. It was a bunch of chocte. Yeah. Can I read the letters? Not the letters. Then can I have some chocte? Yeah. You can have all of it. I think some of them are handmade Are you sure you dont want it? I dont like sweets anyway. And you always have a sweet tooth. You even named your dog Cream. How could you name a golden retriever Cream? When she grows up and has puppies, Im going to name them Brownie, Song Ji-Hyun said as she picked up one of the choctes. Are you sure? Im going to have them all. Yes, Im sure. You only like me, your sister. What am I going to do about you? Song Ji-Hyun said as she unwrapped a piece of chocte. Youre the only one I like. Gross. Stop being so ridiculous. Its true Song Jong-Ho said. So you cant hate me. Youre the most popr person at school. Who would hate you? No. There are a lot of kids who hate me. A lot of them Says the person who just poured out forty letters and choctes out of his bag. Its true. They talk crap about me all the time. I can hear all of it. Its gotten to the point where its almost traumatic. I feel like I can hear them telling me to fuck off and calling me an asshole. I think Im being bullied. Stop being silly. You dont think I know you? We went to the same school just a few months ago, Song Ji-Hyun replied as if he was being ridiculous. Theres no one I can trust at school now that you went to high school Surprisingly, there was a tear in Song Jong-Hos eyes. Song Ji-Hyun was surprised to see him wipe away a tear from his eyes. Are you crying? Never mind. Song Jong-Ho ran into his room. What the Shocked that Song Jong-Ho was in tears, Song Ji-Hyun contacted someone she knew in their junior high. It was a junior she had be friends with in literature club. Na-Eun, youre in the same ss as Jong-Ho, right? Yes. Its been a while! How is high school? Yeah. Do you know how Jong-Ho is doing in school nowadays? Jong-Ho? Hes great. Hes the only celebrity at Sungseo Junior High now that youre gone. Okay Hes not getting bullied or anything, right? Whaat? Bullying? No way. ... Jong-Ho is more popr amongst the guys because hes good at ser and the girls give them attention when theyre with Jong-Ho. Among the girls Ask him how much chocte he got today. I heard that he has to take a little every day because it doesnt fit in his backpack. ... Okay, thanks. Song Ji-Hyun came out of her room and walked past Song Jong-Hos room. Cream, their small golden retriever that was around three months old, came and licked her toe. She hugged Cream and calmed down her strange sense of anxiety. Five monthster, Song Ji-Hyun heard that Song Jong-Ho got into a fight with his friends. She heard that her brother, who had never fought with anyone, let alone raise his voice, had punched someone. Hey, Jong-Ho is acting a little strange nowadays Na-Eun said to Song Ji-Hyun on the phone. Hes a little sensitive to coughing noises or sniffles, but hes beenshing outtely. Thats how he got in a fight. Really? He said that he feels like people can see his thoughts leaking out because his head is wide open. Saying that he cant take his mind off of it * * * We went to get examined, and they said it was schizophrenia, Song Ji-Hyun said. And hes been getting treatment regrly? Young-Joon asked. Yes. We thought he was cured once, but it came back. Since then, weve beening to the hospital for medication. ... It must be hard. Schizophrenia is a difficult disease that is often called the cancer of the mind. You have endless hallucinations, delusions, and sometimes you lose consciousness, too, Song Ji-Hyun said. Some people, like my brother, are lucky enough to catch it early on, but its still dangerous. ... Recently, our data took him to the hospital and while he was gone, Jong-Ho tried to hurt himself. He tried to jump out of a window. Really? Young-Joon felt a little put on the spot. Yes. But thankfully, a man who was there stopped him and was able to prevent the ident. Oh Thats a relief. Hes not usually violent, but hes be like this recently, so After some thought, we moved to the Next-Generation Hospital. Its not like the Next-Generation Hospital will be able to cure schizophrenia like Alzheimers, but they have good doctors, so we came here to see if he will get better, Song Ji-Hyun said. That was when a nurse shouted from the doctors office. Song Jong-Hos guardian? Pleasee into the doctors office. Alright, Song Ji-Hyun said as she raised her hand. As she walked away, she said to Young-Joon, I think hes done. Im going to go talk to the doctor. See you around. * * * Schizophrenia is an incurable disease, said Shin Jung-Ju, Song Jong-Hos doctor. Shin Jung-Ju, who used to work at Yeonyee Hospital, recently moved to the Next-Generation Hospital. How is Song Jong-Ho? Young-Joon asked. You should know better, Doctor Ryu. I dont talk about patient information to anyone. ... Professor Shin, could you teach me a little about schizophrenia? Are you going to develop a schizophrenia cure? If I can. It wont be easy, Shin Jung-Ju said. Doctor Ryu, understanding schizophrenia is much more difficult than understanding cancer. The reason is because we dont know the cause. I dont know a lot about it, but Ive heard that its not the disease of the mind but of the brain. If so, I think biology will be able to find a way, Young-Joon said. Hm. Shin Jung-Ju stroked her chin and thought for a moment. Doctor Ryu, how high do you think the incidence rate for schizophrenia is? I dont know, maybe one in a hundred thousand people? Its one in a hundred. Young-Joons eyes widened. One in a hundred? Yes. The incidence rate is one percent. And it is the most typical modern disease, with urban patients having more severe symptoms, Shin Jung-Ju said. Its what the WHO calls the schizophrenia paradox. Usually, the oue of diseases is better in developed countries because they have better healthcare systems. But with schizophrenia, its the opposite. Compared to patients in underdeveloped countries with predominantly agrarian societies, patients living in cities have more severe symptoms and a worse prognosis. ... I think its going to be an increasingly dangerous disease since the world is being more urbanized. But there is so little research, Shin Jung-Ju said. Theres also a growing view that it is not a single illness. Cancer is also not a single illness. Like how lung cancer, pancreatic cancer, and breast cancer arepletely different, schizophrenia should also be divided into several different diseases. But the medicalmunity doesnt know that, so they are lumping it together as schizophrenia. I see. Even if you develop a drug, Doctor Ryu, its unlikely that it will cure all kinds of schizophrenia. However, if you catch even some of it, a lot of people will have hope, and it will be a huge step in the research. I will tell you what I know. The symptoms of schizophrenia were the definition of what people thought of as a crazy person. Even in primitive n societies, there were people who suffered from visual and auditory hallucinations because of schizophrenia. As societies developed, they became madmen, shamans, or prophets. They also became people who were possessed or people who received divine revtions. Mental asylums appeared in the Middle Ages, but they were more for the istion and confinement of people with schizophrenia rather than treatment. Also, patients were often assaulted to make the demons leave the body; beatings and assault were considered treatment. It was a doctor named Philippe Pinel who changed that barbaric paradigm. Treatment of people with schizophrenia cannot be achieved by abusive methods. Pinels arguments and movement, along with his followers, were the first to systematize psychiatry, and he seeded in making mental illness a medical concept. And after Freuds psychoanalysis swept through the psychiatricmunity, the name schizophrenia was given to the condition. Recently, there was a paper published in Nature that found one hundred eight genes associated with schizophrenia. Shin Jung-Ju found the paper on herputer and printed it out. I think youd be interested. Take a look. * * * It waste at night, and Young-Joon was reading the paper. Before Young-Joon used Rosaline to find the correct answer, he wanted to see where medicine was in conquering this disease. Rosaline, can you fact-check this for me? Young-Joon asked. Yes, go ahead. Schizophrenia has a strong gicponent. If one twin is diagnosed with schizophrenia, theres a fifty percent chance that the other twin will be diagnosed as well. If both parents have schizophrenia, theres more than a ten percent chance that the child will have schizophrenia as well. Thats right. Rosaline replied. Genes dont determine schizophrenia in istion. Its not like if someone has this gic information, they will definitely get schizophrenia. Its more like if someone has this gic information, they will have a very high risk of getting schizophrenia. It says that in most cases, the brain produces too much dopamine and it gets out of control. Its not just dopamine, its the interaction of three neurotransmitters: dopamine, serotonin, and glutamate. ... And neuropathologically, theres a reduction in the volume and cross-sectional area of the hippocampus and amygd, disabilities in the neurofments and the fiber arrangement in the prefrontal-temporal region, and a disruption in the cavum septum pellucidum. Those things y a role as well. Then does brain damage cause schizophrenia? No. It starts with the overexpression of neurotransmitters. That damages the brain, the symptoms get worse in the damaged brain, and the overexpression of neurotransmitters gets worse. Its a vicious cycle. Can we target the brain like were treating genes with Cas9? Are you going to send the Cas9 to the brain in a virus? The dendritic cell bypass can be used to send Cas9 to immune cells, but not brain cells. But if you use a virus, you will have to use the adeno-associated virus, and you cannot edit one hundred genes at once. What if I put in normal genes? Same thing, you cannot put in one hundred genes in a virus. ... Young-Joon pressed the [Advice] button. Give me any idea, even a crazy one. Lets put the genes in the mitochondria and put it into the brain. The mitochondria? The energy-producing organelles in the cell. And it is also a type of bacteria. Right. The mitochondria was a part of the cell that was inside the cell. It was an organelle that produced power, like a generator in a factory. In the strange microscopic world, the definition of a single organism became blurry, and that was exactly what the mitochondria was. It was a bacteria that had invaded the interior of an eukaryotic cell and be symbiotic billions of years ago. It was a primitive organism that had be part of the cell. Now, it was unclear whether it was a separate living or nonliving entity that could be distinguished from human cells. Mitochondria have their own genes. They are also quiterge, so they can carry about a hundred extra genes. Take a mitochondrion, iste it from a patients cell, and grow it. Turn it back into a primitive bacterium. And then insert a hundred genes into it. Rosaline said. Inject that into the nasal passages and send it to the brain so that it enters the brain cells. I know that I said that even a crazy idea was okay, but this is Mitochondria are a part of human cells, so it is safe. But since the genes have been edited, the biomaterials produced from it will be different. Rosaline said. That could cure schizophrenia. I was talking about whether I was going to get approval for probiotics on the ne, but this is much harder. The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety could call Young-Joon insane for proposing to put in a gically engineered bacteria into the intestines. But putting in a bacteria with one hundred edited genes into someones brain? Phew Young-Joon let out a deep sigh.
ra''s Thoughts Ryu Young-Joon is back to making drugs! Honestly, I kind of missed him doing this kind of work. Cultured meat was fun, but this is his specialty! Just a note that I am using patients/people with schizophrenia when referring to them as a narrator, but I will sometimes use schizophrenics in speech to show contempt and negative emotions toward people with schizophrenia! Person-firstnguage is usually how people with mental health disorders, such as schizophrenia, like to be addressed :)
Chapter 149: Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (4) Chapter 149: Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (4) Song Jong-Hos condition was pretty severe. Shin Jung-Ju didnt tell Young-Joon, but she sighed as she read his medical history. [Those voices made them do it and they said they eat red when they stop studying. Monks who hit mes at the temple took out the wire-tapping chip, but the sound leaked out from the chip water drop water drop ugrhtakgyaktakdkadak] [I wore a hoodie and the car made an uneven beep sound the monks made snot by boom boom boom. They were hard on me. I was bathing but when I was strong, I wore the sunset hat in the evening and scrubbed it hard.] It was written by Song Jong-Ho. Incoherence. This was one of the ssic symptoms of chronic schizophrenia: disorganizednguage with no coherent argument, fragmented and meaningless logical progressions that were all over the ce, resulting in the sentence making no sense at all. Song Jong-Hos condition was pretty advanced. Additionally, he also had circumstantiality and neologism: this was when the patient spoke nonsense without a point and created new words that didnt exist. They were both typical symptoms of severe schizophrenia. I prescribed abination of clozapine, risperidone, and an SSRI, an antidepressant. I hope it will be okay, Shin Jung-Ju said as she read the prescription history. This prescription was from the insistence of his guardian, Song Ji-Hyun. Originally, Shin Jung-Ju was only going to prescribe clozapine. However, Song Ji-Hyun interfered with the prescription, talking about the guidelines and articles from the World Federation of Societies of Biological Psychiatry (WFSBP). It was a bit of a bold decision from Shin Jung-Jus perspective, but there was nothing she could not do. Honestly, it seems like she knows more about schizophrenia than I do It made sense that Song Ji-Hyun knew a lot about new drugs since she was a pharmacist and a famous scientist who developed drugs, but even considering that, her depth of knowledge was incredible. Her knowledge of schizophrenia was probably one of the best in Korea. They say that cancer patients know as much about anticancer as doctors because there are so many ways to study. Shin Jung-Ju clicked her tongue. * * * Jong-Ho, you have to take your medicine. Song Ji-Hyun, who returned home, gave the drug to her brother. It was always a battle to make Song Jong-Ho take his medicine. It was nearly impossible for a woman to physically control a man who was one hundred ny centimeters tall and had be one hundred twenty kilograms due to the side effects of medication. Talking to him was impossible because hisnguage was broken, and she could not match his physical force. Her father who could physically control Song Jong-Ho to some extent was not home, so Song Ji-Hyun had to give it to him on her own. Of course, this wasnt the first time this had happened. As if she was trying to subdue an animal that wouldnt listen to her and give it medicine, she shoved a pill into Song Jong-Hos mouth with her finger and tried to give him water. Aghhh! However, Song Jong-Ho quickly spat it out when the pill entered his mouth. You need to take this to get better. Song Ji-Hyun put the pill that had fallen out of his mouth back in, but he spat it out again. After thirty minutes of wrestling and getting saliva and water everywhere, she finally seeded in getting him to swallow a single pill. He also needs to take risperidone and SSRI The treatment for schizophrenia was a dopamine inhibitor. After intense research on schizophrenia, modern medicine discovered one important truth, which was that dopamine was abnormally overexpressed in the brains of patients with schizophrenia. Thisrge amount of dopamine was what created a variety of problems in the brain. As such, they predicted that inhibiting dopamine would be able to reduce the symptoms. This turned out to be correct, and dopamine inhibitors could be given to patients with early-stage schizophrenia and significantly improve the condition. This was a huge step in psychiatry. Patients had fewer hallucinations and delusions, and their cognitive abilities were restored. They were able to distinguish between the mental world where hallucinations and delusions urred and the mental world when they were normal. From that point, the patient could regrly take the drug on their own to manage their symptoms, like diabetes, and live a rtively normal life. Lets take this, too. Song Ji-Hyun was able to give him risperidone. Thankfully, it didnt take her as long this time. Clozapine and risperidone were both domaine inhibitors. They were used inbination to treat severely ill patients. But the treatment was brutal. Song Ji-Hyun gulped. She saw Song Jong-Hos eyes after taking the medicine. Her heart felt heavy. Dopamine was the happy hormone; this hormone was usually released when people were delight, joyful, and happy, and it made people feel excited. Inhibiting that dopamine meant that it left the patient feeling incredibly helpless and depressed. ... All you need to take now is the SSRI. Song Ji-Hyun took out another pill. SSRI stood for selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, which meant that this was an antidepressant. She took out the SSRI and put it near Song Jong-Hos mouth. p! Song Jong-Ho aggressively pped away her hand. Ugh Youll feel better after taking this. Its okay. Come here. Song Ji-Hyun picked up the pill that had fallen onto the ground. Die! Song Jong-Ho swatted away the medicine again. This time, his fingertips also hit Song Ji-Hyuns cheek. Ahh! His hand was the size of Song Ji-Hyuns head. Her head turned from the force even though Song Jong-Hos hand just barely hit her. ... She caressed her cheek. She picked up the pill again. * * * How is it? Young-Joon asked Rosaline as he took out the sample from the centrifuge. The sample contained cell lysate. The substances inside the lysate separated by weight when it was put in a centrifuge and a strong force of gravity was applied to it; the heavierponents went to the bottom. After an hour of separation,yers formed in the liquid, just like how the heavier sand in muddy water would sink down and separate from the water if it was left long enough. Itsplete. Rosaline said. Separate the light blue portion in the thirteenthyer from the bottom. That is where the mitochondria is. The thirteenth from the bottom? Young-Joon squinted and stared at the fifty-milliliter Falcon stic tube. There are thirteenyers in this sample? The boundaries of the separatedyers could not be distinguished because the sample was nearly transparent and colorless. When Young-Joon frowned, Rosalien intervened. Uh, not there. Oh, the human eye cannot distinguish those as differentyers. Rosaline popped out of Young-Joons body. Oh well. I will show it to you. She pointed at the bottom of the Falcon tube. This part. Theres a separatedyer here? If its too difficult, should I do it for you? I will extract it if you give me control of your hand for a moment. Its fine. Hey, I did biology experiments for ten years, too, Young-Joon said as if his pride was hurt. Then try it. I will coach you. Young-Joon held the pipette, drew out the solution, carefully isting the liquid from the targetyer. Did I do it? You drew out some impurities, but it was good enough. Arent those impurities going to be removed during the culturing process anyway? Thats right. But how are we going to culture mitochondria? I will teach you that right now. Its not very hard because the mitochondria was originally a separate organism. The concept of an organism was quite vague, as an organism usually meant a singr entity with one identity. However, even the most basic unit such as the cell had a collection of organisms, and the mitochondrion was the most well-known one. About 2.1 billion years ago, there was an unusual prokaryotic cell that was muchrger than the rest of the microscopic organisms. One day, it identally absorbed a bacterium. The bacteria was not digested inside the prokaryote as food, and the bacteria didnt destroy the prokaryote as a pathogen. Instead, the bacteria came to the very unusual conclusion that they were going to have a symbiotic rtionship. It was the moment when two organisms from different microworlds joined hands. It was the birth of the greatest miracle of biology on Earth: the eukaryote, themon ancestor of animals and nts, including all insects, fish, mammals, reptiles, angiosperms, ferns, and more. The eukaryote was infected by countless viruses and absorbed them into its genes. Viruses lived in symbiosis with eukaryotic cells and helped them evolve in the form of transposons. One cell was like a collection of many organisms. At some point, the eukaryotic cell decided it was no longer going to live alone as a single cell. They formed colonies and invented a cellr society where many cells grouped together; this was the emergence of multicellr life. As the ozoneyer formedter and reduced the amount of ultraviolet light reaching the surface ofnd, the multicellr organism moved ontond. This was about five hundred million years ago, and all live on Earth today descended from it. It had been living as a part of eukaryotic cells for 2.1 billion years. It has probably lost a lot of its ability to function as an independent organism, but it will be able to grow with a few tweaks. Alright, lets try it. How do we do it? First, lets recreate the environment of the time when the mitochondria were still bacteria. Rosaline said. Were going to recreate the ocean that existed 2.4 billion years ago. Lets start with the PBS solution. Put four hundred grams of sodium into the 1X PBS solution on the shelf. Four hundred grams of sodium. Then, we have to remove the oxygen from it. The ocean was starting to produce oxygen, but only in small amounts. And it reacts first with minerals like marble and iron, so it wasnt enough for organisms to use. Alright And we have to increase the concentration of methane. Do you think you can do that? And then what? Now, we need to put the genes into the mitochondria. Mitochondria have lost a lot of their own genes over thest 2.1 billion years. Theyve been importing things made by the eukaryotic cells own genes and using it, so lets activate their domestic economy that was missing. Youre getting so eloquent now. I kind of want to use your domestic economy joke. You have to say that it was mine if you use it. * * * Young-Joon cultured the mitochondria for four days. It grew like crazy and filled a liter of culture liquid. Young-Joon took a photo of them under an electron microscope and recorded values like the O.D. The mere fact that he seeded in restoring mitochondria to primitive bacteria and grew it was worthy of the cover of Science. Even though it didn''t have any medical or industrial applications, it had a great academic value. However, Young-Joon did not write a paper yet as he still had a lot to do with this. Heres the one hundred seven genes you requested. The DNA Synthesis Team at A-Gen sent Young-Joon arge amount of freeze-dried DNA. But where are you going to use all this DNA? the employee who delivered it asked in puzzlement. I am going to develop a new treatment. The details are still a secret, but I will give it to the scientists when I get some results. Im doing it myself because its a pilot experiment, Young-Joon said. Electroporation was used to put the genes into the mitochondria. This technique used an electrical impulse to tear the cell membrane and insert the DNA. Most microbes didnt survive the damage and died, but it didnt matter, as he just had to recover the survivors and culture them. The cells cultured twice would all have new genes. Now, lets do animal experiments. Rosaline said. Young-Joon got a mouse model of schizophrenia from the A-Gen Research Support Center. The mouse had its dopamine-expressing gene manipted to make it behave simrly to those with schizophrenia. If Young-Joon seeded here, he would be taking the first step toward a clinical trial. Well need a ton of animal data to prove its safety to get this crazy new drug approved for clinical use, but Young-Joon stared at the cage containing thirty mice. Chapter 150: Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (5)

Chapter 150: Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (5)

Doctor Oh Hyun-Dong, a member of the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety¡¯s IRB, the Institutional Review Board for clinical trials, was one of Young-Joon¡¯s supporters. Of course, being a supporter didn¡¯t mean that he was going to be generous in granting clinical approval for Young-Joon¡¯s work; it just meant that he admired the brilliance of the future that a genius like him was building. Recently, there had been no new clinical trial requests from A-Bio, but this was inevitable. Thetest cancer research Young-Joon had done was going to be reviewed by the FDA as it was done in America. The research he had done at the Karolinska Institute in Sweden skipped clinical trials. ¡®They technically should have done a clinical trial for that, too.¡¯ It didn¡¯t really matter because the patient strongly asked for it, and the government approved of it with the rmendation from the Swedish Crown. Besides, what could the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety in Korea say about something that happened in Sweden? Cultured meat was also developed in the United States, and Young-Joon had already proven its safety when he was there. Also, because the safety review was going to be done by the FDA first, there was less for the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety to do. Simply put, Oh Hyun-Dong was bored. The contrast was even clearer when he thought of the aftereffect of Young-Joon¡¯s induced pluripotent stem cells. Developing the first stem cell treatment for a, a cure for Alzheimer''s, a cure for HIV, a cure for pancreatic cancer... It was hectic for a few months at the ministry as a bunch of drugs were released. ¡®Is he going to show us another fascinating technology?¡¯ Oh Hyun-Dong, who came to work and was mindlessly surfing the web, soon regretted what he thought; it was because he got a call from Young-Joon, and what he said was extremely shocking. ¡°You¡¯re going to do what with mitochondria?¡± Oh Hyun-Dong shouted. ¡ªThe idea is to take mitochondria from human-derived cells, differentiate them so they can proliferate, and use them to transport genes. I want to insert one hundred seven genes into the mitochondria and send it to the brain so that they enter the brain cells. I am going to cure schizophrenia by making those genes be expressed. ¡°...¡± Oh Hyun-Dong dropped the pen that he was using to write down notes. ¡°Doctor Ryu, this... You¡¯re going too far,¡± he said. ¡°The usual way to put genes into human cells is with something like the adeno-associated virus (AAV).¡± ¡ªThere¡¯s no way to put one hundred seven genes that way. It¡¯s difficult to put even one gene in there because it¡¯s so small. ¡°But why are you trying to put in one hundred seven genes?¡± ¡ªBecause we need to do that to cure schizophrenia. ¡°...¡± ¡ªI contacted you to see how much preclinical data you will need for me to get approval for a clinical trial with this. I can produce as much animal data as you need. ¡°I can¡¯t even determine how much animal testing you will need because the experiment is so dramatic and unprecedented. Doctor Ryu, do you know why people use the AAV when putting genes into the body? ¡ªBecause it¡¯s safe. ¡°That¡¯s right. Its safety has been proven. It¡¯s known that AAV does not proliferate after it goes into the target cell. But do you have data on the safety of bacterial mitochondria that you want to use?¡± ¡ªIsn¡¯t the clinical trial supposed to be for that? A clinical trial alwayses with a risk. ¡°Well... That is true, but...¡± ¡ªAnd the reason AAV is safe is because it does not go into the cell¡¯s DNA, right? ¡°Y...es...¡± ¡ªThe mitochondria doesn¡¯t go into the DNA either. It just stays in the cytosm. ¡°I guess.¡± ¡ªAnd it does not proliferate in the body because it needs a high concentration of methane for it to multiply. When it goes into human brain cells, they work just like regr mitochondria, only their genes have been altered. ¡°...¡± ¡ªIf we can set this up right, it could be very helpful in treating schizophrenia. I know it¡¯s a bit of a radical experiment, but we have to take it to clinical trials. What do I need to get approval? ¡°Sigh... I will discuss this with the other members. But for the animal experiment, please make it certain that the mitochondria you¡¯re using in your treatment will only go into the brain cells and not anywhere else.¡± * * * ¡ªWhat did they say? Rosaline said. ¡°We need evidence that it only enters the brain cells and not any other cells,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡ªWell, that¡¯s simple. ¡°But I am curious, too. How do we get the mitochondria to specifically enter the brain cell? This is much bigger than a virus. It¡¯s going to be difficult to get it in.¡± ¡ªIt¡¯s just like we did with electroporation. Rosaline replied. ¡°You¡¯re going to run a microcurrent in the brain?¡± ¡ªNo. Cell membranes in the brain are damaged and repaired a little bit every second because of the electric currents flowing between neurons. Rosaline said. ¡ªThe mitochondria will enter on their own by chance if they are able to stick to the target cells in the brain. The ones that don¡¯t get in will be deactivated by theck of methane and be eliminated. ¡°How can we visualize it sticking to the target cells?¡± ¡ªOne of the genes we introduced into the mitochondria is a gene called D7T1. ¡°D7T1?¡± ¡ªIt¡¯s a custom-made dopamine receptor. With this, the mitochondria we made will track dopamine, like a drug-sniffing dog following a scent. The mitochondria will track it by following the dopamine pathway through the midbrain-limbic system. And it will stick to cells that have high dopamine activity. ¡°Since the cells with high dopamine activity are the cells that cause schizophrenia, the mitochondria have to enter those cells?¡± ¡ªThat''s right. There are over a thousand mitochondria in a cell. We will be putting around one hundred mitochondria in a cell with our drug, and that isn¡¯t going to affect the physiology of the cell very much. Rosaline said. ¡ªBut the one hundred seven genes expressed from it will suppress dopamine production and control serotonin and glutamate to rece drugs. ¡®Wow...¡¯ Young-Joon eximed in admiration. He had seen Rosaline¡¯s ingenuity several times before, but this was incredible. It seemed like a sci-fi novel when she first brought up mitochondria, but now, it was actually within reach. Science was about understanding; it seemed fascinating and magical when one didn¡¯t know how it worked, but it became obvious and clear once the logic was discovered. The mechanism of gene therapy through mitochondria was very clear now. ¡®Then should we try it on mice?¡¯ Young-Joon injected a solution containing mitochondria into the base of the mouse¡¯s skull with a syringe. ¡ªBut did Doctor Song Ji-Hyun say that they caught the schizophrenia early in that patient? Rosaline asked as Young-Joon was focusing on the experiment. ¡°I think so.¡± ¡ªIf they caught it early on, it doesn¡¯t usually lead to suicide. We examined him through Synchronization Mode when we ran into him before, right? We saw that it was pretty severe. ¡°Really?¡± ¡ªThe disease is very advanced. ¡°But why did Doctor Song say that?¡± ¡ªWho knows? Maybe she didn¡¯t want to tell you in detail. Rosaline said. ¡ªI think you should meet with her. ¡°Really?¡± ¡ªEven if you obtain great results in animal experiments, it might not be as good clinically. ¡°Why?¡± ¡ªBecause there are psychological factors that catalyze schizophrenia. Schizophrenia is half gic and half environmental. The gic factors like dopamine and things like that mean that you are susceptible to schizophrenia. There are also environmental factors that trigger schizophrenia. ¡°...¡± ¡ªOf course, it is not impossible to trante thetter into biology, as any psychological factor works by the electrical signaling in the brain or the release of adrenaline or epinephrine. Rosaline said. ¡ªBut you would have to deal with a huge amount of variables to get that with drugs, and that would take thousands of clinical trials. I can show you a way, but it is not realistic. ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll meet with Doctor Song,¡± Young-Joon said as he put the mice in their cages. * * * Young-Joon asked Song Ji-Hyun if they could meet up. Unexpectedly, she asked him toe to her house. ¡ªIt¡¯s my parent¡¯s ce, not mine. I just came here because I had something to do, but my parents aren¡¯t home right now. And there¡¯s no one to take care of my brother. I can¡¯t take him to a cafe or anything so... Juste here. Song Ji-Hyun gave Young-Joon her address. He hung up and got in his car, but he felt weird. It was the first time he was going to Song Ji-Hyun¡¯s house. ¡ªDon¡¯t get too excited. Rosaline said. ¡°W-What? Who says I¡¯m excited?¡± ¡ªI thought your heart rate was a little high. ¡°Don¡¯t make a fuss about it. I¡¯m just nervous that I might make a mistake when I ask about the patient.¡± Young-Joon took K-Cop¡¯s security car and went to the address Song Ji-Hyun told him. He went into the apartment alone with the security team waiting in the car. The security guard checking his identity at the entrance was surprised to see his face. ¡°Doctor Ryu? Doctor Ryu Young-Joon? A-Bio...?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Oh my!¡± ¡°I¡¯m here for suite 1402. They will tell you if you call them,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°1402? Oh, them...¡± The security guard¡¯s expression darkened a little. ¡°Why?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Nothing. Their daughter told me that someone was going to be here around this time.¡± The guard pressed a button, and the door opened. He followed Young-Joon as he walked toward the elevator. ¡°But why are you going to that house...¡± ¡°I¡¯m here to see the daughter.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not about that psycho, is it?¡± The security guard¡¯s tone was odd. Young-Joon nced back at him. ¡°Ahem.¡± The security guard cleared his throat with his hand covering his mouth and said quietly, ¡°Be careful, Doctor Ryu. There¡¯s a schizophrenic man in that house. What if he suddenly attacks you?¡± ¡°... Does a patient with schizophrenia attack people?¡± ¡°Well, they are insane, so it¡¯s easier for them tomit murder... You know. What if someone like you gets hurt?¡± ¡°There¡¯s about sixty-eight criminals whomit violent crimes per one hundred thousand people. What about for people with mental illnesses?¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°It¡¯s about thirty-three per one hundred thousand people.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°People with schizophrenia sometimes have violent tendencies depending on the situation and medication, but it often does not lead to violent crimes,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°In fact, there were three or four people who actually tried to kill me, but they were all sane, and the person who ordered them to was an executive of argepany with considerable intelligence.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Well, I understand you because the preconception that the mentally ill can easilymit murder is quite widespread, and I am not saying it¡¯s your fault. But those people are not the Devil or animals,¡¯ Young-Joon said. ¡°They are patients.¡± Ding! The elevator arrived on the first floor. Young-Joon walked in and pressed the button for the fourteenth floor. There was a piece of paper on the wall of the elevator. [Resident Survey] Which of the following factors do you think has the greatest impact on the decline in real estate prices? (ce a sticker on the factor you think is the correct answer.) 1. A huge, severely schizophrenic patient. 2. Foreign workers. 3. People with disabilities. There were over eighty stickers on number one alone. ¡°Tsk,¡± Young-Joon clicked his tongue. ¡°Rosaline. I think I know why Doctor Song said that.¡± He tore the paper off the wall. Chapter 151: Ministry of Food And Drug Safety (6) Chapter 151: Ministry of Food And Drug Safety (6) Come in. Song Ji-Hyun opened the door for Young-Joon. Sorry foring on such short notice. Young-Joon, who came in, sat on the sofa in the living room. Would you like something to drink? Song Ji-Hyun asked. Sure. Thank you. You like coffee, right, Doctor Ryu? Song Ji-Hyun brewed a cup of coffee with the coffee machine in the kitchen. She put some ice in a cup, poured the coffee inside, and gave it to Young-Joon. I noticed you only drink iced americanos when we have a meeting. What can I say? Im addicted to caffeine. Young-Joon took the coffee and took a few sips. What happened to your cheek? Young-Joon asked when he saw Song Ji-Hyuns face up close. Her right cheek was a little red. He swatted me away when I was trying to give him medicine and hit me in the face. A little embarrassed, Song Ji-Hyun caressed her cheek. Oh Its okay. Its not like it happens often. I made a mistake. Where is your brother right now? Young-Joon asked. Hes in his room. Hes probably sleeping. I see. Whats this? Song Ji-Hyun asked after seeing a piece of crumpled paper in his right hand. Oh, this. Its nothing. Young-Joon slipped it in his pocket, but she saw what was written on it as he put it in. Is it the survey that was on the elevator? she asked. Yes. ... After some thought, Song Ji-Hyun said, To be honest, my brother isnt in good condition. I lied when I said that we caught the symptoms early. Even if he was better, most people react like that survey. Young-Joon wasnt very surprised. Song Ji-Hyun said, They just want us to move out of this apartment because its unsafe and the price is going down. Theyre pressuring us. ... Thats why I said I would take care of him for a bit because it seemed like they were so tired of everything. I see. But your parents are lucky to have you. Song Ji-Hyun smiled bitterly. I wouldnt have even left the house if I was such a good daughter. ... Its been a while since Ive been here, and the atmosphere has gotten much more hostile and tant. Didnt the guard say something when you said you wereing here? He told me to be careful and not get hurt. Haha, Song Ji-Hyun. It might sound funny for me to say this with a bruised cheek, but Jong-Ho sometimes harms himself, but hes not the kind of person who would hurt someone, she said. But I understand the other residents being scared. Really? Because the media reports that someone with schizophrenia has murdered someone. ... Song Ji-Hyun began to vent like she had been keeping a lot in. I think its bing especially worsetely. Things like how theymitted arson in an apartment, or they stabbed someone in a bathroom in a bar, stuff like that, she said. Its framed as if you be very likely tomit a crime if you have schizophrenia. But Doctor Ryu, the prevalence of schizophrenia is one percent. If there are fifty million people in this county, five hundred thousand of them have schizophrenia. Thats right. If you think about that number and look at the crime rate, its actually lower than the general poption. Its kind of unfair to the patients and their families. Most of those people are taking medication and staying in treatment. They are maintaining their cognitive abilities nor are theymitting violence. Exactly, and even among the severely ill patients who have gone off their treatment and rpsed, there really arent that many who attack others because most of those people are extremely anxious and scared to even leave the house. ... But once an ident happens, patients with schizophrenia will hear voices andmit crimes like assault. I think thats why it appears on the news more and why people are more scared of schizophrenia. So I am sad that people in our apartment feel that way, but I also understand, Song Ji-Hyun said. I dont want to me the citizens either. But adding onto what you said, I think theres a problem with the countrys management system, too. Right! Song Ji-Hyun shouted like she was waiting for him to say that. You also know. The hospital admittance criteria has be a lot more picky since 2017. Now, its be more difficult to admit severely ill patients. Even if they are in a condition that is obviously dangerous, they cant be admitted unless theres a clear possibility of self-harm or harming others. Really? Yes. There was a lot of pushback from the psychiatry field when they changed the admission criteria in the statue, but it just went through without any real feedback. ... And in the U.S., if a citizen calls the police about a patient with schizophrenia, the police can take them to a psychiatric emergency center if they see the patient and think they could be a danger to the public, right? A psychiatric emergency center? Yes. Admittance isnt decided there, but the doctors observe them for a period of time, and then they can admit them if they have to. The police also have the authority to take you there. Not in Korea, the police dont have that power, and theres no such thing as a psychiatric emergency center. In Korea, its just a private medical institution that runs inpatient units. ... Its true that the current system isnt one that can handle a serious disease that affects half a million patients. The conversation paused for a minute. Young-Joon drank his coffee and Song Ji-Hyun fiddled with her phone. Doctor Ryu, you said that you came to see my brother today, right? Thats right. ... Song Ji-Hyun thought for a moment. Young-Joon was someone who had taken down the most dreaded diseases known to humanity, even Alzheimers, which seemed impossible to conquer. He regenerated and destroyed brain cells and restored cognitive abilities and memory. Byparison, schizophrenia was probably easier to conquer as schizophrenia usually had milder less brain damage. The problem was that they didnt really know how schizophrenia worked, but Song Ji-Hyun had hope because it was Young-Joon. The fact that you came all the way here Is it what I think it is? Song Ji-Hyun asked cautiously. I am developing a schizophrenia treatment. Is it a substitute for dopamine inhibitors? No, its a cure. Oh Song Ji-Hyun eximed. It was just as she expected. I didnt think it would be anything simr to existing drugs if you were making it. Its still in the early stages of development, so dont get your hopes up, Young-Joon said. Can you tell me a little bit about the technology? Song Ji-Hyun asked. Um Young-Joon scratched his head. Um Dont be surprised. Then, Young-Joon exined the radical treatment that Rosaline made. What? Song Ji-Hyun was still shocked even though Young-Joon told her to not be. Youre going to put a hundred genes in the mitochondria and deliver that to the brain cell? Song Ji-Hyun froze. Because thats the only way to put in hundreds of genes, Young-Joon replied. Well That is true, but Young-Joon understood why she was flustered. Its definitely something to be baffled about. But psychiatric treatment requires both drug and psychological treatment. The doctors will know what to do once it gets approved andmercialized. But right now, I need some research data about psychological factors, Young-Joon said. What Im saying is that I need to know what psychological factors caused schizophrenia in real patients to factor that into developing my treatment. Song Ji-Hyun bit her lower lip. You want to know what happened when my brother was a student? Yes. Tell me anything you think would be relevant. * * * Rosaline popped out of Young-Joons body as soon as he entered Song Ji-Hyuns house. She went to the small room right away, and she had been watching Song Jong-Ho even since. This was Young-Joons order. The actual psychological causes might be different than what Doctor Song thinks. Ill talk to her, and in the meantime, could you go into his brain and find the memory that caused schizophrenia? This wasnt very difficult for Rosaline. She went into Song Jong-Hos nose. She traveled through the nasal mucosa and into the bloodstream. After traveling in the bloodstream for a moment, she made a little cut in the blood vessel and went into his brain. It was the first time she was entering a human brain that wasnt Young-Joons as a cell. Bzzz. Dopamine swarmed to Rosalines cell membrane. How bothersome. Rosaline swatted them away and moved to the midbrain. There should be a neuron in the limbic system that connects to the hippocampus or the amygd. She slowly moved along the dopamine pathway like she was taking a walk. There were millions of neurons intertwined in aplex web. The infinitebinations of electrical excitations created here was what made the human brain a small universe of its own. Noputer could calcte the number of variables, but everything was clear to Rosaline. Found it. Rosaline found a small neuron among the bundles of cranial nerves. It led to the amygd and the hippocampus. It reminds me of when I fought with Ryu Young-Joons trauma. This was a much easier opponentpared to that. Rosaline searched through the hippocampus cells and the amygd. She observed Song Jong-Hos old memories and his emotions rted to his trauma. ... It was like pulling out a bunch of archaic books from an old library and going through them one by one. Maybe Ill use a little bit more fitness. Rosaline burned her fitness a little faster to increase her efficiency. When she was analyzing the signals from twenty thousand seven hundred cells Kaboom! A huge explosion shook everything. The cell membranes became damp, and a lot of electricity was flowing. What happened? Rosaline immediately assessed the situation. She thought there had been an ident, but it was nothing; Song Jong-Ho had just woken up and sat up. However, it was apanied with a flood of dopamine. The drug that Song Jong-Ho took inhibits dopamine receptors, Rosaline said as she looked up at the dopamine pathway in the limbic midbrain. As the drug just blocked dopamine receptors, the amount of dopamine did not change. If there were the same number of nuts and bolts, the bolts would be useless if all the nuts broke, but the bolts didnt just disappear. That was why there was so much dopamine everywhere. Ugh I should tell him to not make me work for a while after this. With a frown, Rosaline cleared away the dopamine that was wandering near her cell membrane. Song Jong-Ho came out into the living room. Usually, he fell in and out of consciousness. Even with the same drug, he would sometimes be lucid, and other times he wouldnt be. When he wasnt lucid, he would wake up shaking in the corner of a room. When he wasnt lucid, he would be very irritable and spew nonsense to other people. RIght now, the medication was working well, and he was pretty calm. Who are you? Song Jong-Ho asked. Even though he was lucid, he still slurred his words. Young-Joon and Song Ji-Hyun were sitting in the living room with a puzzled look on their faces. Your guest? Song Jong-Ho asked Song Ji-Hyun. Im Ryu Young-Joon. ... Oh? Nice to meet you. But what is this? Maybe the medication hasnt kicked in yet. Im still seeing things. Song Jong-Ho waved his hand in front of his eyes while rubbing his temples. There are words. Hey, what did I take today? Song Jong-Ho asked Song Ji-Hyun. Words? she replied. Uh Rosaline? Level Young-Joon flinched. Whoosh! Rosaline popped out of Song Jong-Hos mouth. Phew. That was tough. Stretching her neck, Rosaline walked over to Rosaline. Hey, its a little kid now! A little girl appeared! Song Jong-Ho said in surprise. Rosaline quickly turned and nced at Song Jong-Ho. Snap! Rosaline snapped her fingers. Then, she went back into Young-Joons body. Huh Song Jong-Ho couldnt see anything anymore. What happened? Young-Joon asked. There was a sudden burst of dopamine when my cell was in the patients brain. It was a temporary effect of being swept up by that. ... I didnt know that could happen. Ill have to watch out for that. Luckily, he has schizophrenia, so he probably sees a lot of hallucinations. Just pretend that you dont know anything. Song Jong-Ho touched his hair like he was anxious. Are you still having hallucinations? Song Ji-Hyun asked. No. I think the medication is kicking in now. Im fine. Chapter 152: Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (7) Chapter 152: Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (7) Song Jong-Ho was diagnosed with schizophrenia in the third year of middle school[1] and started taking medication since then. For the first six months, what Song Ji-Hyun said was true; they had caught his symptoms early on and treated it well. They got his auditory and visual hallucinations under control quickly, and he was able to be lucid until he graduated. However, not all of his life had returned to the way it was before his illness. Whats wrong with Jong-Ho? ThatsJong-Ho? What happened to him? He gained a lot of weight due to the side effects of the medication. This time, he wasnt hearing things; students were actually whispering about him. His handsome and charming looks were quickly ruined. It was difficult for him to be active as he gained forty kilograms in an instant. He lost his confidence and strength, and he felt an overwhelming sense of helplessness and depression from the medication. Ordinary people usually had a reserve of extra cognitive resources in their head, and they could tap into that reserve when they felt stress. However, people with schizophrenia did not have that line of defense. Song Jong-Hos fall from the peak of poprity at school during his sensitive adolescence: the whispers from his friends pierced his heart like thorns. Hes schizophrenic My god He hears things and stuff like that? So hes basically crazy? Ive never seen a schizophrenic before. Maybe hes possessed or something. Friends left his side one by one out of fear. Even those who had suppressed their aversion to schizophrenia and remained friends with him could not endure how much Song Jong-Ho had changed. Students began to distance themselves from him, as they also felt depressed around him. I want to go to your high school, Song Jong-Ho said. He was almost finished with middle school. My school? Song Ji-Hyun said. Yeah All Song Jong-Ho had left was Song Ji-Hyun. She was the only person he could trust and the only person who understood him. He thought that he would be less lonely and it would be less painful if he went to Song Ji-Hyuns high school. ... Okay. Song Ji-Hyun told him to in a calm voice, but she felt different about it. She too was only in her first year of high school, and it was too much pressure to take care of a younger brother with a mental disorder. Jong-Ho said hesing to my school. That night, Song Ji-Hyun locked her door and called her friends. Jong-Ho? Your little brother? Yeah. Isnt your brother super cute? He was before, but Hes sick now, so not anymore. Dont get your hopes up. Why is he sick? ... Song Ji-Hyun had never told anyone around her that her younger brother had schizophrenia; she was scared of how they would react. Schizophrenia Schizophrenia? It was too shocking for students, who thought being sick just meant something like the flu. Oh my god! Is that contagious? Is it really schizophrenia? Is he not possessd? Why dont you try an exorcism or something? What if he causes trouble at our school? Her friends concerns made Song Ji-Hyun both frustrated and irritated. Perhaps Song Jong-Ho heard their conversion, or maybe he just saw those emotions on her face because from then on, Song Jong-Ho stopped taking medication. Later, Song Jong-Ho said that he thought he had been cured. He said that he thought he could differentiate and control his delusions and fantasies himself without his medication. He believed that he could manage his weight and not be depressed anymore since he wasnt going to be taking any drugs. He thought he could go back to his old self. Then, Ji-Hyun wont avoid me anymore. After entering Song Ji-Hyuns high school, Song Jong-Ho joined the broadcasting club. He also ran for ss president. In his second year, he wanted to be a student leader at school. He wanted to participate in many extracurricr activities and be a smart and popr student again. Then, in the early fall of Song Jong-Hos first year of high school, just after summer break, his schizophrenia returned. The dopamine that was running wild after he had stopped taking his medicine took him over the edge. This time, he had stronger symptoms that were apanied with some brain damage. Song Jong-Ho even lost his consciousness. The morning of the huge ident: everything felt like a nightmare, and Song Ji-Hyun struggled to wake up from it. The principal put a chip in my head. Song Jong-Hos voice wasing from the speakers right before the morning broadcast. He put a chip in my head and is taking all my thoughts away, and I think he is selling that to the district office. Please help me. I know I have schizophrenia. It is because some site is trafficking everything inside our head. Surprised, the teachers ran to the broadcasting room. They called for Song Ji-Hyun as they stopped Song Jong-Ho. Even the teachers were unfamiliar with schizophrenia, and they wanted to ask Song Ji-Hyun, his family, about his condition. However, she was not in ss. She didnt even take her things and just ran out of the school. It felt like a huge pit was holding her ankle and dragging her in. She wanted to run away from it all. * * * I just kept walking without thinking, and I ended up at Mapo Bridge. I just stared at the Han River there until the sun set. I ignored all of the calls I was getting from teachers, Song Ji-Hyun said. This was when Rosaline was observing Song Jong-Ho, who was still asleep. Song Ji-Hyun was telling Young-Joon about the psychological factors behind his schizophrenia. I ignored Jong-Ho back then. I ran away, she said. ... Song Ji-Hyun wiped away a tear from the corner of her eye. She chuckled in embarrassment. It feels like Im confessing or something, she said. I was so ufortable when Cellicure came out and people wereparing me to you. It was like I was wearing a big hat that didnt fit. ... I am not someone great, like you. You saw your younger sister get sick, and you stood by her until the end. Then, you started anticancer research to get revenge. You are different from ordinary people, and Im not talking about your ingenuity. Song Ji-Hyun covered her face with her hands. You are not a cold, rational scientist, Doctor Ryu. You have a lot ofpassion for humans. ... Thats why I told you this. Because I trust you. The psychological factor that caused schizophrenia I think its my fault I should have taken better care of him before it even came back. Its not your fault, Doctor Song, Young-Joon said. Song Ji-Hyun looked like she was tired of everything. It was probably because she had to take care of her brother. Maybe it was because she forced herself to talk about a difficult topic. She rested her head slightly against Young-Joons shoulder. Please help me, Song Ji-Hyun said. Id do anything to cure my brother. Young-Joon lightly put his arm around Song Ji-Hyuns shoulders. Do you remember Lee Yoon-Ah, the nine-year-old liver cancer patient at Sunyoo Hospital? The girl we treated together. Yes If it wasnt for you, I might not have been able to do it on my own. It was possible because of you and Cellicure. And that Young-Joon trailed off. That was also about healing my trauma. I promise you that I will help you this time. I will make a drug that cures schizophrenia. ... Song Ji-Hyun stared at Young-Joon. As there was a tense silence between them Click. That was when the door opened, and Song Jong-Ho and Rosaline came out into the living room. * * * Why is your heart rate so high? What did you do here while I was going through Song Jong-Hos head? Rosaline asked after returning to Young-Joons body. W-what do you mean?! What? Nothing. All I did was listen to Doctor Song. Suspicious. Rosaline said with her eyes squinted. Im not sure about this, but if you have children, I think I will be able to go into your childs body as well. What? Its like a country house. And your body is the main house. What are you talking about? Im always open to it. Ugh. I dont have anything with Doctor Song. Dont do this to me. While Young-Joon was talking to Rosaline in his head, Song Jong-Ho spoke to him. Um I know a little bit about you, Doctor Ryu. What brings you here to our house? Young-Joon was going to say that it was because of the schizophrenia cure, but he stopped. The fact that he came here because of that would mean that he knew that Song Jong-Ho suffered from schizophrenia. No matter how he got that information, it could be a little ufortable from Song Jong-Hos perspective. As there was an awkward silence, Song Ji-Hyun spoke up. Its because he is developing a drug. A drug? Hes developing a cure for schizophrenia. Thats why I requested a meeting. I see. Song Jong-Ho nced at Young-Joon. When is that druging out? There is still a long way to go because it is still in its early stages. Will I be able to take the drug if I participate in the clinical trial? If you sign up, we will randomly select volunteers for the clinical trial. You may get it. This was only possible if the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety even approved of it. This was going to be theirrgest crisis. 1. Middle school in Korea is from grade seven to nine, so the third grade of middle school is the ninth grade.
ra''s Thoughts OMG! Young-Joon and Ji-Hyun finally had physical contact! Do you think they are right for each other? I think theyplement each other well, and I hope they start dating!
Chapter 153: Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (8) Chapter 153: Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (8) The president of the Womens Association of the apartment?[1] Young-Joon tilted his head in confusion. Song Jong-Ho scoffed. Shes probably telling us to leave. Do theye and pressure you like this? Of course. My family used to be well off, Song Jong-Ho said to Young-Joon. We used to live in a house, but things became difficult after I was diagnosed with this condition because of how expensive medication was and how our neighbors kepting to see us. ... Song Ji-Hyun sighed as she listened to them. She opened the door. The president bit her lip when she saw Song Ji-Hyuns face. Are you the older sister of the son who lives here? Thats right. Your brother I know. Youre telling us to leave, right? Song Ji-Hyun said quietly. Talk quietly since my brother could hear us. Oh And were going to leave soon. We cant take the hospital fees and the price of medication. Were going to take out our deposit and switch to a month-to-month basis.[2] ... Its not that The president trailed off. She looked like she was in a bind. Pardon? Oh? Werent you on television before? the president said with wide eyes. ... Um, youre the person who studies under Doctor Ryu Young-Joon. I work with him. We work at differentpanies. Then, youll know a lot about medicine. Even better. What do you mean? Thats Actually The president of the Womens Association could not speak up easily. After some time, she finally said, My daughter isnt doing well Shes not doing well? The hospital said that it could be schizophrenia. They said it looks like schizophrenia from the questionnaire, but they need to do a blood test or something like that to see how much dopamine she has. ... Was your brother like this? I was wondering what medication he is on right now and what family members should do. Were neighbors and were both in a tough situation, so I thought we could share some information. I came here because I was so anxious and frustrated. Then, the president handed Song Ji-Hyun a stic bag. Oh, take this. I brought it for you and your brother. It was some oranges. Song Ji-Hyun was bbergasted. The president of the Womens Association was the one who put the survey on the elevator. She was the person who had been harassing her parents so much until Song Ji-Hyun came home. It was so bad that her parents, who had a lot of pride, swallowed it and asked for her help. But now the president was here, asking her for help because her daughter had schizophrenia. Did she have no shame? Song Ji-Hyun frowned. The president flinched, then dropped her head. Um I made it difficult for you guys, right? I know, but there was nothing I could do. The Womens Association was putting pressure on me. I was only their puppet. Im sorry. Song Ji-Hyun stared at her. She was so hypocritical, but Song Ji-Hyun didnt even have the energy to get angry at her. The president of the Womens Association was a middle-aged woman in her fifties who must have worked hard to get here. Like most ordinary people, this house that she owned with a mortgage was probably her only asset. Schizophrenia usually developed in adolescence, so her daughter was probably in middle or high school, just like Song Jong-Ho. Phew Song Ji-Hyun covered her eyes with her hand. Patients with schizophrenia and regr people who were afraid of them were all normal members of society. There were some misconceptions and prejudices mixed in, but in the end, the real evil was the disease itself. I have to take care of my brother right now. We can talk when my parentse hometer. I will tell you what you know. Oh, thank you Thank you so much. And Im sorry. Song Ji-Hyun, who came back inside, handed Young-Joon an orange. Have one. What did she say? Young-Joon asked like he knew nothing. Young-Joon knew what they said because Rosaline went outside and heard everything they said. The president said that her daughter also has schizophrenia, Song Ji-Hyun said. Really? Song Jong-Hos head shot up. Then, he bursted intoughter. Hahaha. Good. Serves them right. Dont be like that. The daughter didnt do anything wrong. Song Ji-Hyun sat down on the sofa. There are a lot of patients with schizophrenia, Young-Joon said. Well, theres one in a hundred people. Its just a matter of the severity. Some people can control it with medication and have a normal social life. ... But as you saw earlier, we need a drug that can cure it for sure. Alright. Is there anything I can help with? Song Ji-Hyun asked. Its alright. Developing the drug isnt very difficult; the problem is whether the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety will approve it, Young-Joon said. * * * It wont be approved. Oh Hyun-Dong, a member of the IRB at the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety said to Young-Joon. Young-Joon, who received the call in his office at A-Bio, frowned. It wont be approved? Yes. I am telling you the truth because I really like you, DOctor Ryu. That was the decision we came to at the discussion. But what I dont understand is that isnt it normal to ask for experiments to show that it is safe? What do you mean you wont give me approval when I havent even produced any data yet? They wont approve it no matter what animal experiments you do. They are going to make all kinds of excuses and stop it. I tried my best to convince them, but it didnt work. They were shouting at me about whether I would take responsibility for it if there was an ident. ... Doctor Ryu. Oh Hyun-Dong said. The MFDS[3] isnt as progressive and ambitious as you think. We are the most conservative out of the conservatives. You guys just dont want to take responsibility. I wont deny it. But that treatment method is too new. Nothing even simr to that has been done in clinical trials, has it? ... You probably dont know this, but do you know how your pancreatic cancer treatment that used live viruses was approved for clinical trials? How? Originally, we werent going to approve it because the members were strongly against it. They were talking about how it was a gically modified virus that hadnt been administered to a human body before, so we couldnt predict what kind of diseases it might cause. They also talked about who would be responsible for it But? But you did the clinical trial for the pancreatic cancer treatment in the United States as an international clinical trial. Since the FDA got involved, the members had something to say. Ha, Young-Joon scoffed like it was ridiculous. So youre saying that you need something to deflect the me? To be honest, yes. But Doctor Ryu, you need to understand our perspective, too. Oh Hyun-Dong said. Were civil servants, not scientists. You are probably confident because you created the technology, but we are the ones who have to doubt it as much as possible when we apply it to patients. Thats our job. I agree with that, Young-Joon said. But what you are trying to do right now isnt doubting it, but covering it up and denying it. ... Well, if you put it like that, theres nothing I can say. Oh Hyun-Dong said. But Doctor Ryu, Im not in a position to do anything about it. Most of the members were shocked when they heard about this. ... This is exactly what the judges said. If the drug uses an innovative method like this, it must be first approved by a big and famous organization overseas, such as the FDA or the EMA. What are you talking about? They said that if a drug like thates out and gets approved in the United States first, they can give you approval for a copy drug after you do the bioequivalence testing That is a copy drug! Young-Joon shouted out of frustration. I developed this drug in Korea, but youre telling me I have to register it in the United States first and make a replica drug in Korea? ... This is why pharmaceuticals in Korea cannot progress. We cant do our own research and establish a new market. This is why all we can do is ride on the coattails of developed countries. Sigh, I think so as well, but I cant do anything because everyone is so adamant. ... There are five hundred thousand patients with schizophrenia in Korea. Yes I was talking about this with a scientist I know personally, and I found out that they have a family member with schizophrenia. Do you know what that patient said? They asked to be part of the clinical trial, even though I had barely started mouse experiments and he doesnt know anything about it. ... That is how desperate patients are, but you wont give me approval because theres no precedent for this treatment in developed countries? Um Let me try to convince them one more time. Oh Hyun-Dong said to Young-Joon in a quiet voice. ... Its not your fault. But please let me know if you cant convince them because I will have to try something else. W-What are you going to do? Oh Hyun-Dong asked in surprise as he knew what Young-Joon had done in the past year. Its nothing. Do you think Im going to attack the MFDS? Im just saying that you shouldnt unconditionally oppose and ban it. Thats not how science works. * * * It was not easy to recreate mental health disorders in animal models. How could they know that a nonverbal animal was having auditory or visual hallucinations? How could humans confirm that they were having vicious delusions? There was no way. As such, animal models of schizophrenia were evaluated based on their behavior. For example, catatonic schizophrenia was characterized by motoric immobility, extreme negativism, echopraxia, hyperactivity, and stereotypic movement. Then, they would measure expression levels of neurotransmitters like dopamine in the animal model to determine if it has a disorder simr to human schizophrenia. The mouse experiment was a sess. Schizophrenia symptoms were greatly reduced in thirty mice with schizophrenia. But this isnt enough, Young-Joon said. What more do you need? I only did the mouse experiment to generate baseline data, and I knew the MFDS was going to be that conservative. We need strong evidence to break through that. What would that be? A brain organoid? An organoid that can model schizophrenia would basically be an artificial organ. If we make a brain with that, I dont think I can handle the ethical issues they would create. Then lets go with primates. Rosaline said. Apes? Use bonobos. Bonobos are the most simr to humans, and most of all, they have a simr psyche to us. They have all the higher intellectual abilities that humans believe are exclusive to humans: empathy, patience, altruism,passion, sensitivity, and more. Uh I dont know. It makes me a little ufortable. Young-Joon scratched his head. Why? Like you said, bonobos are too simr to humans, so they are being used less in animal testing. Thats funny. Who decides what animals are fine and what animals arent? Thats why there are a lot of scientists who are against it. But it is a little ufortable because they are really simr to humans. Even chimpanzees are being used less. Thats a shame because developing this drug could help bonobos, too. What? Young-Joon was shocked. Why? What are you talking about? Bonobos can suffer from schizophrenia? Well, they have a psyche simr to humans. Bonobos that live in urbanized zoos probably have schizophrenia. Wait, then that changes everything, Young-Joon said. I can do the testing on those bonobos. Those animals havent been gically engineered to produce more dopamine, they just have natural cases of schizophrenia, just like humans. 1. Apartments in Korea can have a Womens Association in the apartment to promote friendship and respond to matters of their apartment ormunity. 2. Korea has something called jeonse, which is a long-term deposit rental system. They typically put down arge deposit for two years and live there without paying rent. Then, the tenant would get the deposit back at the end of the contract. 3. Ministry of Food and Drug Safety Chapter 154: Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (9) Chapter 154: Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (9) FOXP2, a gene first reported in 2001, was called thenguage gene. Faraneh Varga Kadem, a neuroscientist at University of London, and her team discovered this gene after examining a pedigree of people with severe speech impairment. Excited, they wrote a paper and published it in Nature. [This gene appears to be one of the key factors that carries out a crucial role in how humans usenguage.] Of course, FOXP2 wasnt the only gene as biologysplexity meant that no single factor determined all oues alone. However, it was clear that a significant portion of the humannguage ability was linked to this gene. FOXP2 was especially highly expressed in fetal brain tissue to createplexnguage systems; it developed the brain tissue responsible fornguage processing and the motor nerves that controlled the tongue, vocal cords, and mouth movements. Then, was the FOXP2 gene unique to humans with advancednguage skills? It wasnt. Many mammals had slightly different versions of this gene. In bonobos, in particr, the human FOXP2 gene differed in only one ce in the entire genome. It was like changing one part of the same car. This meant that bonobos hadnguage ability. Kanzi, a bonobo born in 1980 at the Yerkes Primate Research Center in the United States, was a living testament to this. At the time, attempts to teachnguage to apes were popr in academia, and the original subject was not Kanzi, but his mother. However, young Kanzi, who watched the scientists teach his mother words, actually ended up learningnguage. After that, the research team changed their subject to Kanzi. This genius ape seeded in understanding three thousand words until he died. It wasnt even hieroglyphics; Kanzi had learned lexigrams, established symbols that represented a word and had had no connection to the actual objects. Kanzi not only understood words, but he knew how to write sentences. He could gather word cards, make a clear sentence, such as I want to eat grapes, andmunicate that to scientists. Later, he demonstrated a level of tool use humans had in the Stone Age, breakingrge stones to create sharp tools and using them to cut rope. Eventually, Kanzi was even able to gather firewood, light it with a lighter, and roast marshmallows. At this point, it was difficult to determine whether to consider Kanzi as an animal. And along the way, bonobos were banned fromboratory use because they were endangered, highly intelligent, and were too human. But I didnt know there were animals that have schizophrenia. Young-Joon picked up the office phone and called A-Gens Research Support Center. As he called the center every week for the past year, the representatives were able to recognize his voice. What can I help you with? The representative asked. Please connect me to the Experiment Animal Resource Center. Yes, Ill put you through. After some ringing, a representative from the Experiment Animal Resource Center picked up. This is the Experiment Animal Resource Center. What can I help you with? Hello, this is Ryu Young-Joon from A-Bio. Can we get some bonobos? Bonobos? They were baffled, just like Young-Joon expected. Yes. Not just bonobos, but I need ones that have schizophrenia. What? Of course, since theres no way to be sure that they have schizophrenia, you can tell me the ones that exhibit psychotic behaviors. Then, I can check it out for myself. Uh Im sorry, but we dont have bonobos. I thought so. But A-Gen would have done experiments with bonobos in the past, and we still have chimpanzees, right? Could you see how we got bonobos in the past? Please wait. I will call you backter. The representative hung up. The Experiment Animal Resource Center was able to provide Young-Joon with anything if there was something he needed while doing countless experiments. But this wasnt easy even for them. That was how difficult it was to obtain this experiment resource. However, Young-Joon was confident that he could handle the rest if he knew what country and organization supplied them. Ring! After a moment, Young-Joons office phone rang again. Hello, this is the Experiment Animal Resource Center again. The representative said. I looked through some shipping manifests and invoices regarding the import of LMO (Living Modified Organisms). Yes. And it says it was important from Congo. Congo? Yes. The Salonga National Park in the Democratic Republic of Congo is protecting bonobos, and it seems that we got them from there. Would the center be able to contact them again and buy it? Um The representative hesitated like she was put on the spot. Ill try. The representative said. Thank you. Young-Joon hung up and called Park Joo-Hyuk into his office. They needed another strategy to pressure the MFDS based on the experimental results from bonobos. Are those MFDS bastards crazy? Park Joo-Hyuk was furious after he heard what Young-Joon told him. They wont start unless a precedent is set in the United States. That drug is going to belong in the United States if the precedent is set there, Park Joo-Hyuk said. Its an attempt to avoid me, which is typical for a government official. But honestly, I get it, Young-Joon said. Why? Thats how much this technology is baffling. That bad? Yeah. but I have confidence in this. And if there are seven billion people in the world, seventy million people suffer from this disorder. If there is enough evidence that this is sessful in bonobos, its worth pushing for clinical trials, even if we fight with the MFDS. Hm. Park Joo-Hyuk crossed his legs and thought. Should we start looking for clinical trial patients before it gets approved? Ring! The phone rang. It was the Experiment Animal Resource Center. The phone call was probably redirected to Young-Joon after Yoo Song-Mi, his secretary, spoke to them. This is Ryu Young-Joon speaking. RYK picked up the phone. Hello, sir. Im Lee Ji-Young from the Experiment Animal Resource Center. Yes. I am calling you about the bonobo import you mentioned before. I just contacted the Congo Salonga National Park, and they said that they cant export any bonobos. They cant? Yes. The Congo government stopped exportation after they were dered an endangered species. Then I will get them myself. Could you tell me the contact information of the representative you spoke to? Oh, sure. Young-Joon could hear the keyboard clicking over the phone. I just sent you an email of the contact information along with a few invoices that weve used before. Please call us if you have any more questions. The representative said. But it says that the exportation of bonobos is prohibited by the government. How are you going to get them? Oh, well Please teach it to us if it goes well. Haha, alright. Young-Joon hung up. Then, he briefly exined the situation to Park Joo-Hyuk. ... So, I have to go to Congo, Young-Joon said to Park Joo-Hyuk. Park Joo-Hyuk frowned like that was ridiculous. I think you spend more time overseas than in Korea, Park Joo-Hyuk said. You want to go with me? Young-Joon asked. Ill think of a way to push for the clinical trial, Park Joo-Hyuk said. Alright. But what are you going to do when the government banned exportation? Do you have a n? Im going to use this. Young-Joon pulled out a golden badge from his wallet. What is that? Jamie Anderson gave it to me as a present. Its a badge for the Great Scientists Club (GSC). * * * After going into the GSC website, Young-Joon opened the badge and took out the security card. It was simr to a security card for banking. The difference was that the GSC only had one hundred members. Young-Joon created an ID on the GSC website and entered his security card toplete the verification. However, that was not the end of the identity verification. The GSC was the most prestigious club of scientists who could provide scientific advice to governments and major organizations around the world. The verification process for the GSC was much more direct and strict: someone came from the GSC. They came from the Korean branch, and the workers were very excited to help Young-Joon get verified. Honestly, the Korean branch has only been able to provide services to foreign scientists when they came here and asked for help. Until now, the GSC representative said as they finished Young-Joons verification process. Now that youre a member of the GSC, we can hold our heads high. Thank you for your help, Young-Joon said. After the GSC representatives left, Young-Joon looked for a GSC member that was in Africa. Michelle Njabo: she was a professor at Boston University medical school who had returned to Congo, her hometown. She taught briefly at Boston University, and now she worked for the welfare department of the Congo government. Young-Joon sent an email for help to Michelles GSC email. It didnt even take a day for her to respond. [This is Michelle. We are always wee. Please give us a call when you arrive in Congo. We will help you take all the bonobos you want.] * * * After three days, Young-Joon arrived at the Ndjili International Airport that was in Kinshasa, Congo. Michelle and government officials came to greet him. Michelle was a middle-aged woman who looked to be around sixty-years-old. You said you wanted to see the bonobos before taking them, right? And youre picking the ones who have psychotic behaviors? she asked. Thats right. But you scheduled the park visit forter in the afternoon. Im going to take care of business in the park first and then go rest at the hotel. I see. Shall we go? Michelle took Young-Joon on the limousine she brought. They drove for about two hours and went to the Salonga National Park. We were expecting you. We will guide you, the safety staff and the guide said. They transferred Young-Joon, Michelle, and the others into three cars that looked like safari tour cars, and they drove it themselves. After passing the dry field, a small forest appeared. It was the bonobo reserve. There were about fifteen thousand bonobos that were divided into more than a thousand groups. Young-Joons group soon encountered the first group. But if you want to pick out the bonobos that are in a psychotic state like you want, you will have to observe them with the guides over here, Michelle said. However, Young-Joon pointed to one female animal in the group. Its that one. The guide was surprised. That one is Ginai, and its a female. It has been acting strangetely. The guide and the park rangers stared at Young-Joon, wondering how he knew. The way she keeps pulling out grass looks like neurotic behavior, Young-Joon said as an excuse. They couldn''t see, but Rosaline, who was on Young-Joons shoulders, was selecting bonobos with Synchronization Mode. Chapter 155: Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (10) Chapter 155: Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (10) The national park tour vehicle went around the bonobo reserve and found about eighteen different groups. Rosaline was able to determine which ones had schizophrenia within seconds of finding a new group. Then, she would Theres none here. Either wave her hand Its that one. Or she would point at one. The one with the white spot in front of its eyebrow? No. That one is just anxious. The one to the right of it. The male that is balding. Please get the male over there thats balding, Young-Joon asked the ranger. The rangers used the tranquilizer gun to make the bonobo go unconscious and moved them into cages. By the evening, they had captured twenty bonobos. Young-Joon also included six normal animals as a control group. Back at the hotel, Young-Joon worked out a transportation n with Michelle. Well send them to A-Bio on a flight the next morning. You should tell your employees to pick them up at the airport, Michelle said. Thank you. Us GSC members should help each other out. You really helped Congo, no, the entire region of Africa. With the HIV cure? Thats right. Michelle smiled brightly. You will be surprised if you knew what kind of changes have happened in sub-Saharan Africa. Has it be a lot better? The infection rate of HIV has be negative, and thats very significant. A negative value means that its not spreading anymore and those who were already infected are being cured, Michelle said. By the time you get your Nobel Prize, Doctor Ryu, Africa will have made so much progress that it will be difficult to find HIV patients here. Thats a relief. Michelle smiled deviously. Doctor Ryu, did you know that bonobos only live in Congo, even in Africa? I heard. In our country, they are an endangered animal. Dont worry. We will return them to Congo safely after treatment. Im saying that exportation itself is illegal. However, I fiercely convinced the President, and we were able to hastily pass a specialw to allow the exportation of bonobos. ... Here ites. Most sessful scientists that were from Africa did not live in Africa. If Harvard offered them a tenured post, why would theye back and work in their home country that was likely to be in a civil war? Most of them would assimte into Western civilization and continue their studies in the amazing infrastructure while receiving high sries. That was the privilege that great scientists had. Among those great scientists, Michelle was someone who had such great aplishments that she was able to join the GSC. However, she returned to Congo, her home country. Congo was so dangerous that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Korea advised against traveling here. It wasnt difficult to figure out why she returned; it was because Michelle was that famous. She had devoted her entire life to advancing science in Africa. Im sure she will ask for something in return for giving me the bonobos. Maybe coborative research As he sipped his tea, Young-Joon said, Please feel free to tell me if theres anything I can do to help, Doctor Michelle. I will do my best to help. Thank you. That was when Michelle pulled out a file from her bag. This is a copy of the data that the Ministry of Public Health in Congo has been collecting on a certain disease, Michelle said as she handed Young-Joon the file. Its the eb virus. Eb? Its a virus that spreads by human contact, but its also spread by bats. The Congolese government hasnt been able to control itpletely. Were using this treatment called Gmapp, but its not very effective. Hm I am just telling you about it since youve conquered so many diseases so quickly. If its possible, we would like to develop a cure or a vine with you. I understand. Young-Joon put the file in his bag. I will visit Congo after this is over. * * * Rosaline was observing the mitochondria that had be a bacteria again. This had been an organism billions of years ago, became a non living organism after bing part of an eukaryotic cell, and it had be an organism again. It was like a human arm that had been cut off had be an organism and could now find food, reproduce, and move on its own. It was probably a strange thought from a conventional biological point of view, which thought of one human as one life, but it wasnt for Rosaline. As a cellr organism, it wasnt fascinating that a mitochondria became an organism again. She only had one question. Can I survive outside of Young-Joons body? Rosaline, the greatest life form in the world and the second naturally urring life form on Earth, could not leave Young-Joons body. She nced back at Young-Joon. He had wrestled the bonobos while trying to administer the treatment through the nasal passages. Now, he was lying face-down on theb table and sleeping. My creator. Rosaline approached Young-Joon and stared at his face as he was sleeping. Did I be a part of Young-Joons body, like the mitochondria? Perhaps. Rosaline did not have a sense of self when she first entered Young-Joons body. But at some point, she started growing and now, she had acquired an independent self. And now, she had Ryu Sae Yis mind and sense as well. Now, Rosaline could even leave Young-Joons body for a certain amount of time every day and travel freely to wherever she wanted. Will I leave Ryu Young-Joons body one day and be independent like this bacterium? Click. The door to theb opened softly. Jung Hae-Rim walked in. Sir Jung Hae-Rim was about to call Young-Joon, but she stopped because she realized that he had fallen asleep on the table. She felt bad for him. In just a week, he had flown to Congo to get bonobos and began the experiment himself. Most of the scientists were already at their capacities and couldnt afford to take on another project; since the experiment was just beginning and the bonobos couldnt get hurt, Young-Joon put on ab coat and did it himself. Hes probably the only CEO that also does experiments as a frontline scientist. Young-Joon was also running A-Bio and Lab One at A-Gen; it was a superhuman amount of activity. Jung Hae-Rim hade here because she was worried about him, and he was just as she thought. He was bound to pass out. He is human after all. Jung Hae-Rim did not wake Young-Joon up. She decided to look at the bonobos conditions for him. Bzz. She opened the automatic door to the animalb that was at the back of theb and went inside. Huh? The bonobos, which were anxiously pacing around the cage, were sitting still. They were all calm. One of the animal model behaviors of schizophrenia, excessive motor activity, had disappeared. Of course, this behavior could also be a symptom of other disorders, such as attention-deficit/hyperactive disorder or bipr disorder. However, these bonobos had schizophrenia, as they measured the levels of several neurotransmitters like dopamine, glutamate, and serotonin when they arrived in Korea. What was more surprising was the bonobos change in social behavior. Normal social animals expressed curiosity and intimacy to an unfamiliar individual by approaching and sniffing it, but animals with schizophrenia did not. This was a sign that they were negative for schizophrenia. Their aggression toward unfamiliar objects and avoidance of shared spaces had disappeared. Now, the bonobos were sitting close together ormunicating by touching each other. This is unbelievable. Jung Hae-Rim froze in shock. It worked. Then, she jumped at the voiceing from behind her. In the process, she slightly hit Young-Joons chin with the back of her head. Ack! Oh, Im sorry! Its alright. Rubbing his chin, Young-Joon stared at the bonobos. Hae-Rim-ssi, could you help me measure their dopamine levels? Pardon? Oh, sure! Jung Hae-Rim, who was still a little shocked, began moving quickly. Please call a few more people if you can. This is the end point of the experiment, and theres a lot of data to produce. * * * The Clinical Trial Headquarters of the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety was turned upside down in the morning. It was because Young-Joon himself was here. Hes definitely going to ask for approval for that schizophrenia drug or something. Fifteen staff were walking to the conference room. They were the evaluators, the principal officers, and the working officers. As they walked, they urgently checked each others ns. You have to say absolutely not. Hes going to say that he did his animal experiments like this and that, but deny it by saying that there is no way that is going to determine theplexity of the human mind. If he threatens to do the clinical trial in the United States, tell him to do it. Its easier for us if he just does it overseas. Everybody got it? The key word is the human mind. A rat doesnt have a mind like humans, right? How can we approve a drug for a mental disorder based on a rat that doesnt have a mind? They kept talking until they reached the conference room. They all stood there together. Be careful not to give away any loopholes. Heo Song-Hyuk, the principal officer, took a deep breath and opened the door. Hahaha. Doctor Ryu, hello. Its been a while. He shook Young-Joons hand with a bright smile. After some formalities, the principal officer got to the point. I heard youre here to get approval for a clinical trial of a drug for schizophrenia that A-Bio is developing. May I see some preclinical data? Here it is. Young-Joon pulled out a file out of his bag and handed it to him. How many did you experiment with? Twenty-six. Isnt that number too low for such a difficult disease? You should have done like fifty. I wanted to, but it seemed like it was too much for Congo to give away that many subjects. I was happy with a statistically clear range. Congo? Heo Song-Hyuk frowned. Yes, Young-Joon replied. What about Congo? Didnt you use beagles or rabbits? Heo Song-Hyuk said. I used bonobos. A few people froze. Bonobono?[1] One of the employees tilted their head in confusion. No, bonobos. They are a type of primate, like a chimpanzee, Young-Joon said with a chuckle. The evaluators began whispering amongst themselves. Yes, and these bonobos have almost the same mind as humans. They can understandnguage and even start a fire. ... I have obtained enough data to prove that the bonobos suffered from the same schizophrenia that humans suffer from. The expression levels of neurotransmitters are the same as those of patients with schizophrenia, and we have identified all the unusual behaviors, Young-Joon said. And out of the twenty bonobos, we gave ten of them the treatment and ten of them a cebo. The ones that were given treatment were cured, and the ones that received cebos are still suffering from the disorder. ... We also did the same experiment with six normal bonobos, divided into two groups, and there was no effect on their health. We also found that the mitochondria in their brains that were used in the treatment were all dead and expelled. No That is How The evaluators were speechless. Please give me approval for the clinical trial, Young-Joon said. 1. Bonobono is a character, a blue otter, from a Japanese manga. Chapter 156: Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (11) Chapter 156: Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (11) There was tension in the conference room. Heo Song-Hyuks hand trembled as he flipped each page of the preclinical data. We lost. Oh Hyun-Dong instinctively knew that they hadpletely lost. This was almighty; Young-Joon was here with evidence that could not be beaten. A clinical trial was an experiment done on humans. The preclinical experimentation process was obviously done on animals, as it would be a clinical trial the moment they used it on an actual person. And in preclinical stages, the bonobo was the final boss. Bonobos were on the brink of being human, and they were the closest to humans of all the creatures on the. What could the evaluators do when Young-Joon had proved that the drug worked in bonobos? He had given them this, and they wanted more data? How? The only thing left would be humans, and that wouldnt be preclinical data. Better clinical data could not logically exist. Its over. The evaluators were underwater as soon as the meeting started. N-No way Is this real? Heo Song-Hyuks voice was filled with panic. Doctor Ryu, the exportation of bonobos is illegal. Thats why there haven''t been any preclinical experiments done with bonobos in the past few decades. But I made a deal with the Congolese government and acquired them. Since I needed an animal that had the human mind, and the bonobo was the best example. ... There is no better preclinical data than this. You have to give me approval for a clinical trial. Sigh A few of the evaluators wrapped their hands around their heads. I know you are afraid, and I know that this is quite an ambitious treatment, Young-Joon said. Pharmaceuticalpanies or patients could take the risk after considering the rewards, but not the MFDS. ... If it fails, the MFDS will be criticized for the oversight and theck of validation. But even if it seeds, no one gives you credit. When news of a new drugs sess in clinical trials came out, patients celebrated and the pharmaceuticalpanys stock prices soared. The media praised the developers of the drug and painted a rosy picture of the future that was full of hope. However, the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety was not part of the celebration. The performance of the governmental department that oversaw clinical trials was usually not even recognized by the government either. No political party that hade into power had advertised that they had approved of some new drug as their achievement. The reason that no one has done that was because no one thought that the MFDS contributed anything to developing that drug. The only perception that existed was me when the drug failed. The MFDSs contribution in verifying and overseeing clinical trials so that it goes well was only perceived as an obstacle to drug development. I know that it is a lot of pressure for the MFDS to approve a clinical trial since even if a drug is fully tested and approved, side effects can be reportedter. The MFDS is one of the organizations that only gets med without any praise, Young-Joon said. ... But this drug has to be approved. There are five hundred thousand people with schizophrenia in Korea alone. Theres seventy million people in the world. Do you really want me to go overseas with this data? We can grant approval for most things as you want, Heo Song-Hyuk said. But not this, Doctor Ryu. We will tell you the reason if you want. What is it? There hasnt been any long-term observation of side effects and verification. We confirmed that the administered mitochondria were all killed and excreted. There is no way that side effects that dont ur at the time of administration would ur after a long period of time. Thats an excuse. ... I am firm on that decision. It cannot be approved unless it has been verified through long-term observation. Come back in a few years with more data or conduct the trial overseas, Heo Song-Hyuk said. Sir Some of the evaluators were inclined. Some of them wanted to just grant approval since Young-Joon had done so much. But Heo Song-Hyuk was adamant. Heo Song-Hyuk was the old guard of the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety who was about to retire. He survived for a long time in a ministry that, as Young-Joon said, was only criticized. Heo Song-Hyuk believed the secret to his survival was not taking risks. To be honest, he wasnt sure about his decision now, as Young-Joon had aplished so much. However, clinical trial approval was about the drug, not the person. The data is irrefutable, but this is too much. Youre putting in bacteria in the brain. Heo Song-Hyukforted himself. I am not doing something bad. Sending adventurous drugs to be tested in other countries is something that other administrations do. Heo Song-Hyuk thought to himself. I am not avoiding me. I am trying to protect the nation. As an employee of the MFDS, I have to be extremely conservative. Rustle. Young-Joon gathered up the document. He put them in his folder and put it in his bag. I am very disappointed, Young-Joon said. I could do the clinical trial overseas. Like a few other multinational pharmaceuticalpanies, I could do it in underdeveloped countries or ones that are in civil war. I could take illiterate people and trick them into giving consent and do the clinical trial however I want. Is that what you want? ... Isnt it the MFDSs job to protect the health of the nation from all kinds of dangerous drugs and products? Young-Joon asked. But I am doubtful of those intentions when you cant muster up the courage to connect this preclinical data to patients. Is that what you really want to protect, or is it your safe retirement? ... Heo Song-Hyuk chewed on his lower lip. Young-Joon left the conference room. Then, he pulled out his phone and called Park Joo-Hyuk. It didnt go well. Got it. * * * Conducting the clinical trial overseas was the worse option for two reasons. First, it was more difficult to get his drug into a clinical trial overseas because it was developed by a domesticpany, not by international research. Second, foreign drug regtory authorities would be suspicious as to why Young-Joon wasnt conducting the clinical trial in his own country if he applied for a clinical trial overseas. Naturally, the drug regtory authorities would analyze the data more meticulously and would be hesitant to grant approval. However, Young-Joon had a second card up his sleeve; it was time to put Park Joo-Hyuks strategy into action. The next morning [A-Bio develops schizophrenia cure] [Treatment verified in bonobos, which have simr minds to humans.] [What are bonobos?] [The significance of curing mental disorders.] [How much is our society spending on schizophrenia?] By the afternoon, a bunch of press releases poured out. There was even a paper published. [Ryu Young-Joon publishes a paper on schizophrenia treatment on BioRxiv.] If Young-Joon submitted his paper to Science, it would take time to be released. Instead of sending it to Science, he published it as a draft on BioRxiv, a site that distributed scientific papers for free. This paper would be published in Scienceter. Now, everyone in the world could see the experimental data on bonobos. No way Heo Song-Hyuk realized that he had made a mistake. He had misjudged the situation. Young-Joon was not someone who would go down without a fight. He had no intention to go overseas, and he wasnt willing to wait years; he was trying to end this once and for all. Then, a much more shocking article was published. [Choo Eun-Pil, the perpetrator of the Jungyoon University Station incident, volunteers for the clinical trial.] What is this Surprised, Heo Song-Hyuk opened the article. The Jungyoon University Station incident: it was a tragic incident where a crazy person swung a knife at students walking to ss in the morning. Five people died and two people were seriously injured. The deaths of these promising young men at a prestigious university shocked rippled through the country. That was when the association between schizophrenia and violent crime had peaked. Some suggested that people with schizophrenia should be directly detained and monitored by the government. The defendant was not lucid when that incident urred. That was what Choo Eun-Pils defense argued at the trial. Choo Eun-Pil did not say anything because they didnt have the cognitive ability to even speak. Choo Eun-Pil continued to receive medical treatment while incarcerated. Their condition improved slightly and they were still all over the ce, but there were times where they would be lucid. I thought those people were trying to kill me. I thought they poisoned my breakfast every morning. I dont even have breakfast, but I thought that I would die if I didnt harm them, Choo Eun-Pil said two years into treatment while incarcerated. Then, they heard that Young-Joon had developed a schizophrenia treatment, and this was before the press release. They heard it because of Park Joo-Hyuk and Song Jong-Ho. Park Joo-Hyuk slipped the news that the MFDS had refused to approve a clinical trial to the pharmaceutical society. Song Ji-Hyun quickly caught wind of the information and asked Young-Joon about confidentiality and got his permission to distribute it. The information was passed on from Park Joo-Hyuk to the pharmaceutical society, then Song Ji-Hyun, then Song Ji-Hyun, then finally to the schizophreniamunity. It was the [People who have ovee schizophrenia]. It was a non-profit organization with tens of thousands of patients with schizophrenia, including Song Jong-Ho. They also had contact with Choo Eun-Pil. Choo Eun-Pil, who had gotten information of the new drug Young-Joon made and the clinical trial, believed this was their destiny. This is what I have to do. Choo Eun-Pil felt that this was a final act of reparation for all the schizophrenia patients they had inconvenienced. They decided to give courage to other patients by volunteering for the clinical trial. * * * Producer Na Sung-Jin was contacted by Young-Joon. Surprisingly, the scientist who only stopped doing research at night when he was sleeping, volunteered to give a lecture. It was because he wanted to clear up misconceptions about schizophrenia and exin the new treatment. The mitochondria is an organelle that naturally exists in human cells. What we have done is take those mitochondria, make them into bacteria and multiply them, then deliver them into the brain with genes that can cure schizophrenia, Young-Joon said. I will be honest. The brain is originally the most important organ in the body that receives special protection from external infections. Its not a normal situation to have bacteria in a ce like that. Young-Joon looked straight into the camera. Because of the risky means, I consulted with the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety while developing this treatment. As expected, they wanted to be very conservative and meticulous in verifying the preclinical data. They said that they wouldnt allow us to use it on people with mere experimental data on animals like rats or beagles. Because of that, we had to take the more difficult path. Young-Joon opened the data from the published paper. This is the result. Its a preclinical experiment that the creativity of A-Bio and the rigor of the MFDS created, Young-Joon said. This is preclinical data from a very unusual animal called bonobo, which is the most simr animal to humans. We used primates that were much more simr to humans rather than beagles. Young-Joon talked about the interpretation and exnation of the results for about half an hour. In this way, we demonstrated both safety and efficacy, and we expect to be able to conquer schizophrenia now. When Young-Joon finished his talk, the MC asked him the question that everyone was curious about. Are you nning a clinical trial? Heo Song-Hyuk and the evaluators who were watching the broadcast on television had sweat in their palms. Yes, Young-Joon said. Wow, the MC exined. Doctor Ryu, many patients with schizophrenia, including Choo Eun-Pil, are volunteering to participate in the clinical trial. When do you think it will begin? Like any country, we can begin as soon as we go through the legal process. We are ready, Young-Joon said. And half of the credit for producing this important data goes to the MFDS. Even when I asked for a clinical trial, they defended it, almost too rigidly, because they were worried about the health of the people. We were able to get data on bonobos because of them. If it wasnt for them, we could have tried to start clinical trials with much weaker data. I hope you give them all your praise. Chapter 157: Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (12)

Chapter 157: Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (12)

There was a strange vibe in society. As Young-Joon gave the lecture, patients with schizophrenia who had been hiding in society beganing forward one by one. They had been living like sinners, under the assumption that they had the possibility of spontaneouslymitting violent crimes. Even people who were able to catch and control their symptoms early on with medication and lead normal lives were not immune to the stigma of beingbeled as a schizophrenic. However, they realized that they could see the end of their suffering. People at the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety knew how crude Young-Joon¡¯s treatment method was, but ordinary people didn¡¯t understand it that much. What was clearer to them was the name Young-Joon, who had destroyed several diseases in the past year. ¡ªI would like to volunteer for the clinical trial. ¡ªPlease let me be part of the clinical trial. Countless requests for clinical trials were posted on the A-Bio message board from patients who were suffering from the torture of hallucinations and delusions. The response from the academia was worthwhile to see. ¡ªData from experiments with bonobos hasn¡¯t been published in academic journals in recent years. The first reason is because Congo no longer exports bonobos. The second is because it is burdensome because they are too big and expensive. Shin Jung-Jumented. Actually, the scientists were as excited as the patients. ¡ªThe McLean Institute for Psychiatric Technology, a hospital affiliated with Harvard¡¯s medical school,mented that the paper was the most beautiful experiment in thest thirty years. Ipletely agree. ¡ªThe public may not be able to recognize the significance of using bonobos for the experiment, but it¡¯s pretty amazing to scientists. ¡ªThe neurotransmitters in bonobos are pretty much simr to humans. If that gene therapy worked well in bonobos, it¡¯s likely to work well in humans as well. ¡ªThe fact that they were able to get rare bonobos and use it in their experiment shows that the developers have a lot of confidence in this drug. It seems like they told the Congolese government that they would fully cure the bonobos and safely return them. And they actually seeded, didn¡¯t they? It¡¯s difficult for scientists to make such bold promises and do such bold experiments. ¡ªOf course, as Doctor Ryu said, we have to apud the MFDA for strongly regting and not grant approval for a clinical trial until we got data on bonobos. I think it was their coboration that led to this great paper. Then, the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety was swarmed by reporters from public broadcasters. The reporters, who came in with smiles on their faces andpletely oblivious, asked Heo Song-Hyuk and the other evaluators for interviews. ¡°Hello, I¡¯m from SBS[1]. We¡¯re going to do a special on the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety about what the ministry does, how clinical trials work, and how the consultations were conducted during the development of the schizophrenia drug...¡± Amidst the flood of interview requests and feature proposals, politicians also became interested in the MFDS. Heo Song-Hyuk avoided interviews as much as possible, but when he was forced to do so, he rambled. The MFDS¡¯s publicmunication board was going wild, which was unusual. The board only received a post once every two days, and even those posts were mostly advertisements like [Build your job skills! Start now for free!]. Those posts usually got around fifty views. But now, the board was filled with inquiries about the clinical trial for schizophrenia and posts praising the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. ¡°...¡± With trembling hands, Heo Song-Hyuk called Young-Joon. ¡ªThis is Ryu Young-Joon from A-Bio. ¡°Doctor Ryu... This is Principal Officer Heo Song-Hyuk.¡± ¡ªYes, hello. ¡°Have you requested the FDA or the EMA for a clinical trial?¡± It had already been a few days since then. Given Young-Joon¡¯s personality, he could have already applied for a clinical trial overseas and be conducting it. That wouldplicate things a lot. Nervously, Heo Song-Hyuk asked, ¡°Could I ask what stage it is at now...¡± ¡ªNot yet. Young-Joon¡¯s answer was surprising. ¡°Not yet?¡± ¡ªNo, we have done anything yet. We were waiting for your call. ¡°...¡± ¡ªAs you can see from the reactions now, academia is also very optimistic about its potential. Young-Joon said. ¡ªNow you have enough justification to grant permission, right? ¡°...¡± ¡ªAnd you probably saw the countless number of people asking for the clinical trial. You can see how desperate these patients are for this treatment. Young-Joon said. ¡ªA cure for schizophrenia isn¡¯t just about curing a couple patients; it¡¯s about curing society¡¯s fear and loathing of mental illness. ¡°... I¡¯m sorry...¡± ¡ªIt¡¯s alright. I understand your perspective as well. ¡°We will approve your clinical trial.¡± * * * There was a lot of talk about picking violent criminals for the clinical trials, but Young-Joon ignored it. The subjects were grouped based on age, gender, and the severity of the illness, then were randomly selected. One of them was Song Jong-Ho. Young-Joon dissolved the mitochondria, which was multiplying in the high-methane solution, in the PBS solution. Now, the mitochondria would die in thirty minutes. The primary doctor drew up the treatment into the syringe and injected it into the nasal passage to send it to the brain. The DT71 on the surface of the mitochondria tracked the amount of dopamine; it was simr to how an amoeba followed their food. The mitochondria moved to the midbrain following the dopamine gradient, and it was distributed along the dopamine pathway to the limbic system. By the end of fifteen minutes, all the mitochondria were attached to the surface of target cells with high dopamine expression. Pzzz. Pzzz. Young-Joon heard tiny static sounds as he zoomed into extreme resolution in Synchronization Mode. It was the noise of the microcurrent flowing through the neurons of the brain. The electrical stimtion was tearing and repairing a few nanometers of the cell membrane. Normally, it wouldn¡¯t be fatal to the cells, but the brain cells of people with schizophrenia were so fragile that they couldn''t withstand such small damage. That was also one of the reasons why their brain cells gradually copsed. The mitochondria moved into the tears, and one hundred seven genesnded safely in the brain cells. They were expressed all at once and corrected the genes that were creating problems in the cells. It was like installing a new air conditioning unit in a house with a broken air conditioner. Serotonin, glutamate, dopamine, and their receptors: the various biomolecules involved in their metabolic pathways gradually stabilized. The dopamine levels, which were so high like they had done drugs, began to drop. After thirty minutes... Psh... The mitochondria died with the sound of air deting. They were the ones that hadn¡¯t made it into the cells. The environment inside the human brain was too extreme because they could not tolerate the low concentration of methane. ¡®It worked.¡¯ Young-Joon observed them until thest minute, then left the patient room. Rosaline followed behind him. ¡ªIf this experiment is sessful, it should be rtively easy to get approval for the probiotics. Rosaline said. ¡®Since it¡¯s much safer to nt gically engineered bacteria in the gut than in the brain.¡¯ Young-Joon nodded. ¡®But we still have to prove them again because the bacteria are a different species and the genes are different, too.¡¯ ¡ªBut the MFDS won¡¯t be stubborn like this time. ¡®That¡¯s right.¡¯ ¡ªI was a little surprised. I thought you would attack the MFDS. You could pressure them by praising them. ¡®...¡¯ Young-Joon gathered his thoughts for a moment. ¡®The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety was originally under the Ministry of Health and Welfare. It was known as the Korean Food and Drug Administration. But they made them independent because the safety of food and drug products is the basis of public health and it¡¯s a very important issue.¡¯ Young-Joon said to Rosaline. ¡®At the time, we had the ambition to create a Korea version of the FDA. Since then, we¡¯ve contributed to build it as an independent organization and even promoted it to a ministry, which is directly under the prime minister, but it still has a long way to go to be like the FDA.¡¯ ¡ªReally? ¡®Right now, the tasks and rights that the FDA has in the U.S. are shared among several organizations.¡¯ ¡ªHow? ¡®Well, for example, when the MFDS tries to regte the safety of agricultural products, they get into conflict with the Ministry of Agriculture, Food, and Rural Affairs. And it seems like the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the original ministry, wants to take it again. Or if the MFDS tries to regte seafood, the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries tries to take over.¡¯ Young-Joon said. ¡®As departments with simr taskspeted for power, the MFDS gradually lost confidence and failed to be a powerful organization like the FDA.¡¯ ¡ªI see. ¡®But do you know what schizophrenia means?¡¯ ¡ªWhat does it mean? ¡®It means the splitting of the mind. It was used to emphasize the mental confusion and fragmented thinking of people.¡¯[ref]In Korean, schizophrenia is called ¡°Jo-hyun-byung,¡± and it means to pick the strings of an instrument. It was named that because the mind is dizzy like a string instrument that hasn¡¯t been tuned.[ref] Young-Joon said. ¡®I believe that the safety management standards for food and drug products should be unified and regted by a single agency so that there¡¯s no confusion. But right now, the system isn¡¯t organized enough. They have to stop splitting.¡¯ ¡ªI see. ¡®I hope this gives people with schizophrenia some hope and the MFDS some confidence, even though we can¡¯t be the FDA overnight.¡¯ As Young-Joon was leaving the hospital, someone rushed up behind him and grabbed Young-Joon. ¡°Doctor Ryu!¡± It was Song Ji-Hyun. ¡°Hello.¡± As Young-Joon greeted him, Song Ji-Hyun caught her breath and hesitated a little. ¡°Thank you,¡± she said. ¡°Thank you so much.¡± ¡°I think I told you multiple times, but I should be the one thanking you with this clinical trial.¡± ¡°Because it¡¯s not a treatment, but an experiment?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°... Still. Thank you,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°I hope Jong-Ho-ssi gets better soon,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°Me too.¡± ¡°It will go well. Don¡¯t worry too much.¡± ¡°But my brother told me something.¡± ¡°What did he tell you?¡± ¡°He told me that he tried to hurt himself at the hospitalst winter, but some man stopped him. He told me that it seems like that man was you. He told me you look simr.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Haha, probably not. That¡¯s when he was going in and out of consciousness, so he¡¯s probably mistaken.¡± After some thought, Young-Joon spoke. ¡°The thing you told me about how you ran away from school and left your brother there.¡± Song Ji-Hyun flinched. ¡°Yes...¡± ¡°You should talk to him when he¡¯s feeling better.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think that is your brother¡¯s trauma.¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°The onset of his schizophrenia was before that incident, and I think you¡¯re the only one who is feeling guilty about it.¡± ¡°I¡¯m the only one? Young-Joon smiled. ¡°See you around.¡± * * * Rosaline, who explored Song Jong-Ho¡¯s brain, reported it to Young-Joon. ¡ªSong Jong-Ho already had genes that were at risk for schizophrenia. Rosaline said. ¡ªAnd the switch that turned those genes on was the pressure he had during school ¡°Pressure?¡± ¡ªSong Ji-Hyun is dull, so she doesn¡¯t mind getting all the attention and being a star, but not for Song Jong-Ho. Rosaline said. ¡ªThe overwhelming attention was difficult for him. And maintaining that image was a lot of pressure. ¡°That pressure cause schizophrenia?¡± It was unexpected. Young-Joon was also in the national spotlight, but that in itself was not stressful enough to cause him distress. It was different for everyone, but he couldn¡¯t imagine it being so stressful that it could cause schizophrenia. ¡ªIt¡¯s because Song Jong-Ho was already vulnerable. Rosaline said. Surprisingly, the fact that Song Ji-Hyun had left Song Jong-Ho behind didn¡¯t even exist in his mind. ¡°It¡¯s such a difficult disease to understand,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Even if the drug besmercialized, it¡¯s still going to be difficult for psychiatrists.¡± ¡ªBut biology is still one of the underlying causes, and the drug you developed can correct all of that. Rosaline said. ¡ªLeave the rest to doctors. I¡¯m sure they will do a good job. Song Jong-Ho¡¯s condition improved daily. This was the case for all eighteen patients in the clinical trial. They no longer took dopamine inhibitors anymore, but they didn¡¯t suffer from hallucinations or delusions. Song Jong-Ho¡¯s mind was clearer than ever. ¡°There are some things that are bing clearer as my mind gets better.¡± It had been eleven days since the start of the clinical trial. Song Jong-Ho, who was almost free of his symptoms, said to Song Ji-Hyun, ¡°I saw a hallucination when Doctor Ryu came to our house before, right?¡± ¡°Yeah. You said a little girl was going around the living room?¡± ¡°That scene is too vivid. Other hallucinations and visions fade away, but that one is still clear.¡± Song Ji-Hyun chuckled and ruffled Song Jong-Ho¡¯s hair. ¡°Maybe an angel visited you because you were meant to get better.¡± 1. a big public broadcaster in Korea ? Chapter 158: Ebola (1)

Chapter 158: Eb (1)

Young-Joon was watching the bonobos that he brought from Congo. Tomorrow, they would fly back to Salonga National Park to rejoin their original group. They were all cured. Of course, the human eye couldn¡¯t tell how severe their illness was; how could people tell what kind of delusions bonobos had? Behaviors rted to schizophrenia could be mistaken as a different disorder, such as extreme anxiety or nervousness, if it wasn¡¯t supported by evidence like measurements of dopamine levels. But these bonobos were probably ones that stood out in their groups, like the patients with schizophrenia in human society. ¡ªThese guys will be happy once they go back. ¡°I hope so. I unintentionally created another cure for animal diseases,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡ªYeah. ¡°This makes me think that the recent trend of blindly banning experiments with primates is not a good thing.¡± ¡ªBecause they have ovepping diseases? ¡°Yeah. HIV is originally from chimpanzees, right? And mental illnesses like schizophrenia also exist in primates. Experimenting with them could be helpful to them depending on the situation.¡± ¡ªThat¡¯s right. Rosaline stared at the bonobos. ¡ªThat one is asleep. ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡ªThat reminds me of something, Ryu Young-Joon. There have been some changes in my body through this incident. ¡°Changes?¡± ¡ªI started thinking about the value of an independent organism as I induced the process of the mitochondria turning into organisms, and I felt my cells enter a new phase of evolution. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡ªI am now able to run simtions over a wider area using more fitness, and I have gotten more sophisticated. The scope of the simtion can now cover an entire continent. ¡°...¡± Young-Joon was able to see quite a wide region when he was in Simtion Mode and observing the red mold in the United States. It wasn¡¯t continental though. ¡ªBut there¡¯s a problem. ¡°What problem?¡± ¡ªI have been feeling drowsy for the past few days. ¡°Drowsy?¡± ¡ªYes. Young-Joon was a little confused. Was Rosaline an organism that slept? ¡ªAnimals are the only organism that sleeps. Invertebrates sleep, even the most primitive ones like nematodes. Fruit flies sleep, too. Rosaline said. ¡ªBut I am not an animal. I am a unicellr organism. ¡°...¡± ¡ªIt is a huge penalty for animals to have evolved to sleep because when they do, they arepletely defenseless against their enemies. Rosaline said. ¡ªThe reason that almost all animals still sleep is to repair DNA damage in their cells. They had to lower their metabolism to repair the damage to their DNA from the ultraviolet light and oxygen they received during the day. ¡°...¡± ¡ªBut I can repair DNA damage without doing any of those things. Sleeping is for animals who have old, simple cells. ¡°... But you feel drowsy?¡± ¡ªI don¡¯t know. I¡¯ve been feeling that waytely as I¡¯ve been growing. I am consciously regting it now. But I might fall asleep after using a lot of power. ¡°Hm...¡± ¡ªMaybe it¡¯s because I¡¯ve changed a lot with you. We¡¯vee to share quite a lot of each other¡¯s traits. Have there been any physical changes for you? Young-Joon tilted his head, puzzled. ¡°I don¡¯t think so.¡± ¡ªI see. ¡°Have you used anything like Synchronization Mode after you¡¯ve started to feel drowsy?¡± ¡ªYes. I¡¯ve used it a few times. I used it recently to see Song Jong-Ho¡¯s treatment progress. ¡°But you didn¡¯t fall asleep or anything?¡± ¡ªYes. ¡°Alright. That means it¡¯s safe to use that.¡± ¡ªBut I might sleep for a few hours if you run a simtion of an entire continent. ¡°Okay. I¡¯ll keep that in mind,¡± Young-Joon said. * * * Shin Jung-Ju was the one who had carried out Young-Joon¡¯s Alzheimer¡¯s clinical trial. She was the first to volunteer to conduct the clinical trial as soon as the cure for schizophrenia was developed at A-Bio. The miraculous moment when Alzheimer¡¯s was cured was still vivid in her head. It was when Park Joo-Nam, the patient she was in charge of, mentioned shaving and recognized her husband¡¯s face. It was amazing. After seeing the preclinical data that Young-Joon had made with bonobos, Shi Jung-Ju was certain that this was going to seed. She didn¡¯t know what this insane genius did, but Young-Joon created a cure for schizophrenia just a few weeks after asking about it. Shin Jung-Ju wanted to feel that incredible wonder again. And two weeks after the administration of the treatment, Shin Jung-Ju cautiously predicted that schizophrenia had been cured. The primary doctors of the clinical trial patients also agreed with her. The medicalmunity was extremely excited to share this huge news with the world. ¡ªIt is possible to cure schizophrenia. A few dayster, the doctors published a paper reporting the results from the clinical trial in a medical journal called the New Ennd Journal of Medicine. It was often viewed by doctors, and it had a higher citation index than Science. It was the best journal for clinical research. Of course, they cited Young-Joon¡¯s paper as a reference. [A-Bio conquers schizophrenia.] [The scientist who studied the illnesses of the body now explores the illnesses of the mind.] Young-Joon was not very interested in the numerous articles that were being published. He was reading the emails in the CEO¡¯s personal inbox. They were from people with schizophrenia and their families. They were all in differentnguages because they were from all over the world. He used Google Trante to read thenguages he was unfamiliar with. [Thank you, Mr. Ryu. I am a psychiatrist in Singapore. Schizophrenia is one of the most difficult diseases to treat. I was not expecting this at all, but I am so happy to see a treatment like this. I hope it will soon be out of clinical trials and on the market so that all my patients will be able to use it.] [I came to Norway after spending five years in a monastery because they said I was possessed by the devil. When I was in the monastery in my home country, the monks tortured me by beating me and burning me to exorcize the devil. Now, I realized it was an illness. I missed my window of treatment, so I change personalities several times a day. But the treatment you developed gives me hope that I will be cured someday, Doctor Ryu.] Young-Joon liked these emails much more than the articles that overly praised him. He felt energized when he read them. ¡°Sir.¡± Yoo Song-Mi knocked on his door. ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°You have a guest from the International Vine Institute,¡± she said. ¡°Oh, please take him to the conference room.¡± ¡°He is already there.¡± ¡°Yes, thank you. I¡¯ll head there right now.¡± Young-Joon quickly got up. Jason Kim, the director general of the International Vine Institute, contacted Young-Joon. He said that he wanted to have a meeting with him about the eradication of HIV and Eb. That was the meeting they were having today. * * * Jason Kim was waiting in the conference room while sipping some tea that Yoo Song-Mi prepared for him. ¡°Hello, Mr. Director General.¡± Young-Joon entered the conference room and greeted him brightly. ¡°It¡¯s nice to see you, Doctor Ryu.¡± They shook hands and sat down. ¡°Should we start off with the HIV eradication project?¡± Jason pulled out a few documents from his bag. ¡°First of all, this is the greatest achievement,¡± he said as he pushed a document towards Young-Joon. ¡°The Indian government seeded in controlling HIV in Kamathipura, Mumbai.¡± ¡°Wow.¡± Young-Joon had heard that the HIV infection rate had gone down to the negatives in sub-Saharan Africa, but this was the first time he was hearing about Kamathipura. It had only been a few months, but it felt nostalgic, like a distant memory. ¡®I wonder how Ardip is doing.¡¯ Jason said, ¡°The Indian government focused on Kamathipura once it was selected as the first-priority area to eradicate HIV and the world took interest in it. They got rid of most of the pimps and gangsters, and the cops who had a cozy rtionship with them. Kaamthipura is pretty much destroyed now.¡± ¡°That¡¯s good to hear.¡± ¡°And we¡¯re actively fighting HIV with the massive amounts of the treatment and diagnostic kits from Kamachand, and we¡¯re curing AIDS with stem cells and CCR5 gene maniption.¡± Young-Joon nodded. ¡°You¡¯ve done a great job. We may be able to wipe out HIV with a little more work.¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu,¡± Jason said. ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°There¡¯s something I¡¯ve been hearing from GSC memberstely while I was working on this.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°I heard that you agreed to help catch the Eb virus in exchange for using the bonobos from Congo.¡± ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right,¡± Young-Joon replied calmly. ¡°Hm.¡± Jason stroked his chin. ¡°Doctor Ryu, when the Eb virus broke out a few years ago, the World Health Organization funded several pharmaceuticalpanies and universities to fight it.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Several studies were done to develop a vine, but most of the international coborations failed. Do you know why?¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°Because there was no standard blood serum. As you know, to develop a vine, you need to inject an animal with the vine candidate and measure the amount of antibodies it develops, right?¡± ¡°Yes. if that vine candidate doesn¡¯t cause the disease and it produces high levels of antibodies, you develop that candidate further.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. But we don¡¯t have a standard for what is a high level of antibodies.¡± Young-Joon tilted his head in confusion. ¡°Why? Even if the fatality rate of Eb is high, there has to be someone who has survived, right? We just have to get their blood and make a standard blood serum. The amount of antibodies they have in their body can be the standard level.¡± ¡°RIght, but people in Middle Eastern countries don¡¯t give blood.¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joon was dumbfounded, like someone had hit him in the head with a hammer. ¡°They don¡¯t give blood?¡± ¡°It¡¯s because of religious reasons. Even if they are sick, they sometimes refuse to take other people¡¯s blood. Giving their own blood to foreigners when they don¡¯t even take their own people¡¯s blood? No one will do that.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°And it¡¯s very difficult to find someone who is open-minded and willing to give their blood among those few survivors who have naturally healed after contracting a highly fatal disease like Eb.¡± ¡°I see. That¡¯s a challenge I hadn¡¯t thought of.¡± ¡°The National Institute of Health, the big pharmapanies like Conson & Colson, Schumaatix, and famous university research centers like Harvard and Stanford, were going crazy because they couldn¡¯t get that blood serum.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°It was a mess. They were all reporting their data, and some teams got a ten-fold increase in antibodies whereas another team got a thousand-fold increase in their antibodies. But if you quantitativelypared them, the team that got a ten-fold increase actually had higher levels of antibodies. It was a mess because there was no reference value.¡± It was the same thing as trying to measure the length of something without a metric like centimeters. It was a mess because they were measuring the length with the size of their hand when they all had different hand sizes. There was a reason why the world¡¯s top pharmaceuticalpanies and universities, as well as the National Institute of Health, failed to develop a vine for Eb. ¡°But then, we found four Korean people who had beat Eb,¡± Jason said. ¡°Koreans?¡± ¡°Yes. Eb was kind of going around in Korea as well. And since the headquarters for the International Vine Institute was in Korea, it was the easiest to get it here.¡± ¡°So, did you make a standard blood serum?¡± ¡°We got their blood, but we failed.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°It was too difficult to purify the Eb antibody from the blood serum. That¡¯s where we failed. Then, we stopped further development because Eb was dying down.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°If you are going to study the eradication of Eb, you will probably want to start here.¡± Jason pulled our four documents with some personal information. Personal information like names or national identification numbers were concealed, and there was only information like age, sex, and weight. ¡°I will contact them if you would like,¡± Jason said. ¡°Please do,¡± Young-Joon said. Trantor¡¯s thoughts I always love it when a new episode starts!! We¡¯re seeing some abnormalities in Rosaline, which could be problematic...?? We don¡¯t know yet, but let¡¯s hope everyone is alright! Personally, I wish Rosaline would leave Young-Joon¡¯s body and take the form of Ryu Sae-Yi, his younger sister. Chapter 159: Ebola (2)

Chapter 159: Eb (2)

Thest Eb outbreak in West Africa was only five years ago. But in the meantime, two of the four subjects died. It wasn¡¯t because of Eb, and it definitely wasn¡¯t because the International Vine Institute harvested their blood serum. They just died because they were old. As such, Jason, the director general, was only able to reach two people when he called his subordinates after his meeting with Young-Joon. One of them also refused to donate blood. ¡ªI tried to convince them, but they were firm in their decision, saying that they weren¡¯t going to do it anymore. I gave up because I couldn¡¯t force them. Jason, who called Young-Joon, said with a sigh. ¡ªWe need at least five liters of blood to get enough blood serum. We failedst time with twenty liters. ¡°How much blood do you draw at once?¡± ¡ªAbout fifty milliliters is standard for vine development research purposes. But in previous experiments, we got around five hundred milliliters like a standard blood donation. Jason said. ¡ªBut even if we do that every month, it would take at least ten months, since we only have one subject now. ¡°That will take too long.¡± Young-Joon frowned. ¡ªRight. Jason replied. If Jason was doing this alone, he would have waited ten months to draw all the blood, as Eb wasn¡¯t spreading that badly since the outbreak in 2014. He wondered why Michelle asked Young-Joon to study Eb all of a sudden, but there hadn¡¯t been an outbreak reported to the World Health Organization yet. However, Jason knew that Young-Joon wouldn¡¯t wait that long. Young-Joon had been hunting down and crushing diseases as they came for the past year; he would die of frustration if he had to wait ten months just to get blood serum. ¡ªAnd there¡¯s another problem. Jason said. ¡°Another one?¡± ¡ªWe can¡¯t draw a lot of blood at once because thest subject isn¡¯t very healthy. ¡°...¡± ¡ªHonestly, if they weren¡¯t the only subject remaining, we would advise them not to donate any blood. ¡°If they are so unwell, why are they trying to donate blood? For money?¡± Paying people to donate specimens was a sensitive topic in research ethics. It was an incentive to get subjects to participate, but it became problematic if it was arge amount of money. Of course, it depended on the situation. Arge sum of money was eptable since the International Vine Institute was a non-profit international welfare organization and there was a very small number of people who have naturally recovered from Eb. The institute was offering five hundred thousand won for each blood donation. Considering that the Red Cross usually gave out a movie ticket in exchange for blood donations, it was quite arge amount. However, it was about the money. ¡ªIt¡¯s because of the schizophrenia clinical trial. Jason said. * * * The subject was a ny-one-year-old grandpa, and his name was Pi Mak-Su. He was very frail, being only one hundred fifty nine centimeters tall and weighing forty-four kilograms. Normally, he couldn¡¯t donate blood at the Red Cross even if he wanted to. Additionally, he had a lot of geriatric diseases, and he walked very slowly due to a significant decrease in muscle mass. Pi Mak-Su himself knew very well that his health was in bad condition. As such, he was going to refuse when the International Vine Institute asked him, but he changed his mind when he heard that the person in charge had changed to Young-Joon. ¡°My grandson had schizophrenia,¡± Pi Mak-Su said when he finally met Young-Joon. ¡°Was he in the clinical trial?¡± Young-Joon asked as Pi Mak-Su said his grandson had schizophrenia. However, he shook his head. ¡°No.¡± ¡°Oh... Then is he still suffering from the illness?¡± ¡°No. He¡¯s dead.¡± ¡°...¡± Pi Mak-Su smiled bitterly. ¡°You¡¯ve helped me out a bit, Doctor Ryu. I have insurance from A-Gen Life, I¡¯m using the diagnostic kits, and my diabetes has gotten much better since I¡¯ve been taking Amuc.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°But my grandson wasn¡¯t so lucky. He killed himself before you developed a cure.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu, I¡¯m an uneducated old man who doesn¡¯t know anything about science or medicine. But I think that it¡¯s up to you whether people live or die.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I will do anything I can do to help you do your job, Doctor Ryu. You can take all the blood in my body.¡± ¡°Thank you,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°But I will only take a small amount.¡± After the meeting with Pi Mak-Su, Young-Joon went to see the medical staff at the International Vine Institute. ¡°Please draw ten milliliters of blood,¡± Young-Joon asked. It was an embarrassingly small amount of blood. The needle was inserted into Pi Mak-Su¡¯s arm. After a few drops of blood went into the stic bag, the nurse snapped the lock. ¡°That¡¯s it.¡± Pi Mak-Su looked around in confusion as he heard the nurse. ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°We¡¯re done with the blood draw, sir. Thank you. You can leave now.¡± The blood in the stic bag was transferred into a sterile test tube the size of a finger. It was delivered to A-Bio the next day by a specimen transportationpany. It was safe for Pi Mak-Su, but it was a very small amount to use for experiments. ¡°Ten milliliters?¡± Jason was baffled when he heard Young-Joon. ¡°Doctor Ryu, I think we will fail if we do that. He might pass away before we fill the required amount.¡± ¡°We won¡¯t need additional donations,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°We won¡¯t?¡± ¡°We¡¯ll do it with ten milliliters.¡± ¡°What?¡± Jason thought he had misheard Young-Joon. ¡°We can¡¯t get antibodies from that. There is a very little amount of antibodies in the blood. We have to purify the antibodies from arge volume of blood to get analyzable amounts,¡± Jason said like it was a shame. ¡°No. There are enough antibodies in the blood. The problem is the purification efficiency.¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°Purifying ten percent of the antibodies in one liter of blood is the same thing as purifying one hundred percent of the antibodies in one hundred milliliters.¡± ¡°... Still, can you increase the purification efficiency like that overnight?¡± ¡°I will try, Young-Joon said. Young-Joon returned to theb after talking to Jason. However, he didn¡¯t have time to do the experiment himself because Michelle requested an urgent meeting with him. ¡ªWe need an emergency meeting regarding an Eb outbreak. I will schedule it for the earliest date you can fly to Congo. Young-Joon decided to leave the antibody purification to his employees. They could not fail because there was only ten milliliters of this important sample. Even if they went with the route Rosaline suggested, they had to do it right the first time because they didn¡¯t have enough to do several experiments. Young-Joon looked for a trustworthy person at theb that could carry out the experiment precisely. ¡®Most of the purification experts in thepany can¡¯t afford to take on a new project.¡¯ However, there was one team that was on a break after seeding in creating a lung organoid. It was the Life Creation Team that was focused on organoids and artificial organs. Of course, they weren¡¯t a department focused on purification even when they were at A-Gen. ¡®But it was a ce of exile for a lot of people from different departments.¡¯ Jung Hae-Rim was at the Protein Purification Team before being banished to the Life Creation Department, and she was quite skilled in that field. ¡°Hae-Rim-ssi.¡± Young-Joon gathered the Life Creation Team and called Jung Hae-Rim. Now, there was only one problem left. It was that they would have to use theb at A-Gen because the equipment at A-Bio was already being used. ¡°Hae-Rim-ssi, would you be open to working with the Protein Purification Research Department at Lab Three?¡± Young-Joon asked. As expected, Jung Hae-Rim¡¯s expression immediately turned sour. ¡°I will do it if you order me to. But if you¡¯re asking me how I feel about it, I really don¡¯t like those people...¡± ¡°What kind of people are they?¡± Young-Joon knew that she probably didn¡¯t leave on good terms, but it was far worse than he imagined. Jung Hae-Rim left the Protein Purification Research Department after fighting with the executive manager, who kept touching and covertly sexually harassing her. At first, it was under the pretense of teaching her how to do experiments. It began with him hugging her from behind and groping her hands. When the executive manager realized that she liked to drink, he kept doingpany dinners and making her sit beside him. However, people who liked to drink only liked it if they were drinking with people they liked. Jung Hae-Rim tried to get out of his sight, but it wasn¡¯t easy. No one in the department helped her. Rather, a strange rumor began going around at some point. It was that Jung Hae-Rim was drinking and flirting with the executive manager to get a promotion. When she first heard it, it was so unbelievable that she didn¡¯t believe her ears. It didn¡¯t take her long to find the origin of that rumor. It was one of her colleagues who joined thepany with her; it was someone from another team who had asked her out. He was spreading the rumor out of spite. When people get backed up into a corner and get extremely stressed, they tended to snap, especially if they were someone like Jung Hae-Rim, who had a hot temper. She didn¡¯t just internally report her executive manager, who kept touching her butt; she reported him to the police for sexual harassment. But the result? The charges were dismissed due to the consistent statements from all the employees. The executive manager was suspended for a week for causing trouble, and Jung Hae-Rim was suspended for one month and transferred to the Life Creation Department. ¡°I still get so angry when I think about it that I can feel my head get hot,¡± Jung Hae-Rim said. ¡°Our executive manager was a guy named Song Pan-Sup, and he was one of the leading experts in the world on the development of protein purification methods.¡± Even theb director tended to give into his demands because that department had some of the best technicians in the world. ¡°That¡¯s why I sleep facing away from Lab Three,¡± Jung Hae-Rim said. ¡°I see,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°But what will I be doing?¡± Jung Hae-Rim asked. ¡°Purifying the antibodies for Eb.¡± Jung Hae-Rim¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°Making a standard blood serum? We did that a few years ago at the department. The International Vine Institute came to us after failing to purify the antibodies a few times. But we couldn¡¯t do it either,¡± she said. ¡°I was the one who actually did that. From my experience, hm... It might be possible if we have around fifty liters of blood.¡± ¡°We¡¯re going to do it with ten milliliters.¡± ¡°Kek!¡± Jung Hae-Rim coughed. ¡°Ten milliliters? Sir? Ten milliliters? Can you even get something from that?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a little strange, but it¡¯s possible,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°The reason that purification efficiency is so low is because the antibodies keep making aggregated structures that are more than tetramers. The amino acid sequence also gets very messy with a lot of helix repeats.¡± ¡°How messy?¡± ¡°There are twenty helices in a row, and when you predict them through simtion, they are all tangled up.¡± ¡°...¡± Jung Hae-Rim looked frustrated. How were they going to produce enough antibodies to use in vine development with only ten milliliters? Young-Joon said, ¡°The yield will be less than 0.001% with conventional methods. We would have to get ten kilograms of blood to get 0.1 grams of antibodies. But we need them in bulk.¡± ¡°Hm...¡± Developing a purification method was also research. It took hundreds of trials and errors to find the right answer. And the biomaterial that Young-Joon exined to Jung Hae-Rim wasn¡¯t going to be possible with hundreds of experiments. It was so difficult that it would take Song Pan-Sup, the head of the Protein Purification Research Department, thousands of attempts to even have a chance at seeding. ¡°If it¡¯s thatplex, I honestly don¡¯t think I can do it...¡± Jung Hae-Rim said without confidence. ¡°No, I know how to do it. You just have to follow the instructions. But it will be a handful,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Really?¡± ¡°I will send you the purification method by email.¡± Young-Joon turned on hisputer, opened his email, and began typing on his keyboard without any hesitation. It was natural since he was just writing down what Rosaline was showing him. ¡ªCentrifugation for 2H at 13 000 rpm. Separate the sma and purify with affinity chromatography with a HaloLink resin column. Use the followingponents for the buffer: 1. 140mM NaCl binding buffer, 3mM KCl, 10mM Na2HPO4... ¡°...¡± Jung Hae-Rim, who was watching the scene with her mouth open, asked, ¡°Did you major in protein purification?¡± ¡°No, what are you talking about? I majored in anticancer drugs.¡± Young-Joon pressed the send button. * * * Young-Joon, who arrived in Congo, went to Kinshasa, the capital, with Michelle when he arrived at the airport. Young-Joon knew the situation was going to be dire when he received Michelle¡¯s request for an urgent meeting, and he was right. ¡°Is there an Eb outbreak?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Yes,¡± Michelle replied. ¡°Is it bad?¡± ¡°Not really, but the reason I asked for a meeting so urgently is because the infection site is strange.¡± ¡°The site? You mean the ground?¡± ¡°Yes. And as far as I know, that isn¡¯t a characteristic of Eb. But all the infected bats and other animals nearby had Eb symptoms,¡± Michelle said. ¡°Why is that?¡± Young-Joon asked. With a tense face, Michelle replied, ¡°I don¡¯t know, Doctor Ryu. But what I know is...¡± She gulped. ¡°I know that anthrax tends to contaminate thend in infected areas and cause a persistent epidemic.¡± Chapter 160: Ebola (3)

Chapter 160: Eb (3)

¡°Anthracis?¡± Young-Joon¡¯s eyes widened. Michelle nodded her head with a worried expression. ¡°Anthracis are bacteria that can live in the ground. If it makes spores underground, it can live for thirty years. Most sterilization methods don¡¯t work, and the damage is continuous. ¡°...¡± ¡°It¡¯s nothing new. Anthrax is one of the oldest diseases in Africa.¡± ¡°Has the Eb virus gone into anthracis?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know for sure, but what we do know is that genes from the Eb virus were found in the soil at the vige of Bakori, where the first Eb patient was from.¡± It was difficult to find a virus, something difficult to observe even with a microscope, in dirt. So, how was Michelle able to detect the presence of a virus? A technology called PCR could be used to amplify the virus¡¯ genes in the suspected contaminated soil. If the gene was amplified, it meant that it was present, and if it wasn¡¯t, it probably wasn¡¯t present. ¡°But we found the genes of anthracis and Eb in the dirt,¡± Michelle said. ¡°Doctor Ryu, as you know, Eb is not a virus found in soil. The virus spreads from organism to organism and is transmitted through bodily fluids.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Young-Joon tapped his lip in thought, then had something he was curious about. ¡°But why did you try to detect Eb and anthracis genes in soil? I don¡¯t think it''smon to look at the soil of an Eb-infected area.¡± ¡°You¡¯re right and wrong,¡± Michelle said. ¡°As you said, it is unrted to Eb. However, we do look for anthracis in soil in all of our infected areas.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°I said anthracis is an old disease in Africa, right? The country that suffers the most is Congo. It¡¯s because most of Congo is a jungle.¡± ¡°Jungle?¡± ¡°Yes. And the soil in the jungle area is perfect for anthracis to grow. So, it¡¯s be habitual for us to test the soil for anthrax whenever we go anywhere. Testing for Eb was kind of like a negative control.¡± A negative control was a sample used to verify that there was nothing wrong with the experiment; it was always negative. An example of a negative control was testing for Eb virus genes in soil where it could not survive. If there was a positive reaction, one would assume there was a problem and redo the experiment. But if it was positive over and over again, panic set in, just like Michelle. ¡°Thankfully, anthracis hasn¡¯t caused huge damage to people yet. It just destroyed a lot of goris,¡± Michelle said. ¡°Human capturing is the biggest reason why goris in Africa are at risk of extinction, but anthrax is probably a close second. I used to get a lot of reports like that when I worked at the World Health Organization.¡± ¡°...¡± Michelle sighed. Young-Joon knew what her sigh meant. ¡°What¡¯s the infection route of Eb?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°It¡¯s transmitted from animal to animal through organisms like vampire bats, then to humans. It¡¯s carried in bodily fluids like blood.¡± ¡°What do you think is the rtionship between Eb and anthrax, Doctor Michelle?¡± ¡°It¡¯s probably one of two things,¡± Michelle replied in a depressed voice. ¡°That¡¯s right. One possibility is that Eb has evolved and multiplied with anthracis as a host, and the second is that anthracis consumed Eb and absorbed the genes into its own.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°If it¡¯s the former, Eb could be detected in soil and infect people. If it¡¯s thetter, the Eb gene will be active in people who have anthrax and show Eb symptoms,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°If it was thetter, Doctor Michelle, it would have been an anthrax infection and had the properties of anthracis. Did they have any signs of anthrax?¡± ¡°No, but we can¡¯t say for sure. We didn¡¯t have many patients.¡± ¡°But it makes it more likely.¡± ¡ªThe former is right. Rosaline said. Rosaline was staring at the ins from the moving car window. ¡ªOver there. She pointed. ¡ªThere¡¯s an anthracis that¡¯s been infected by Eb. ¡®I see.¡¯ Young-Joon gulped. This was the worst situation possible. Thebination of anthracis, a bacterium that grew and spread the soil, and a virus that was transmitted between organisms through bodily fluids, drastically increased the possible infection routes. This wasn¡¯t an additive effect, but multiplied. ¡°You said the entirety of Congo is covered in jungles, right?¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Yes,¡± Michelle replied. If a gori was infected by the Eb virus that was in the anthracis infecting one region of the jungle and went to another region, it would die there due to Eb¡¯s highly fatal hemorrhagic fever reaction. The bodily fluids from the dead gori would seep into the ground and infect the anthracis in the nearby soil. After a few times, the disease would go through livestock and quickly reach humans. Eb would spread quickly and conquer the jungles in a short period of time. It would live for a long time through the unique ability of anthracis and continuously produce the virus. ¡°The bacterial genome is rtively stable, but a virus evolves quickly,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Doctor Michelle, I think the Eb virus infected anthracis.¡± The world of microorganisms was a chaotic world that wasposed of tens of thousands of different bacteria and viruses. It wasn¡¯t umon for them to eat and be eaten. However, it was extremely rare for something like this to ur between a famous virus and bacteria like Eb and anthracis. ¡°I thought so. This is terrible...¡± Michelle chewed her lip nervously. The Congolese government wasn¡¯t even able to control the spread of Eb through animals like vampire bats, cattle, and pigs. This was for two reasons. The first was the people¡¯s ignorance. The Congolese people weren¡¯t properly educated in science, and they went to a church to offer a prayer instead of following the government¡¯s advice and going to a hospital when they had Eb. The longer they were left unattended, the more their bodies produced the virus and spread to other people. The second reason was because of war. Congo was listed as a ¡°Do Not Travel¡± country in Korea. Although, Young-Joon was rtively safe because he moved with key members of the government under the protection of K-Cops. In 2014, the WHO had already tried to create a quarantine safety to block the transmission routes of Eb in Congo. But even then, it was just health workers standing on the road, taking temperatures and quarantining people. How could they do their job if the rebels pointed guns at them and told them to get out of the way? Because of that, the quarantine safetys quickly became ineffective. And now, anthrax has emerged as a new route for infection. ¡°Sigh...¡± Michelle let out a deep sigh. There was nothing they could do. This was a national disaster. Also, could this really only be limited to Congo? If the transmission ability and survivability had evolved that greatly, there was a high possibility that it would spread outside of Congo. ¡°This could be a pandemic,¡± Young-Joon said. * * * Two middle-aged men were having beer and chicken at an old pub in Donjak-gu. It was Yoon Dae-Sung, the CEO of A-Gen, and Nichs Kim, the CTO. ¡°This reminds me of the old days,¡± Nichs said as he swallowed a piece of chicken. ¡°Yeah. We used to have a ss of beer here a lot when we were poor college students.¡± Yoon Dae-Sung finished off his beer. He set the empty ss down on the table and added, ¡°The owner and the name are all different, but the beer tastes almost the same.¡± ¡°Yeah. I usually feel really terrible on the next day when I drink because I¡¯m old now, but the beer here is less terrible.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Kim Hyun-Sik, you know one of the ways I know I¡¯m getting older?¡± Yoon Dae-Sun said. ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t keep up with thetest research trends,¡± Yoon Dae-Sung said. There was a trend in science. When a major discovery was made, everyone swarmed and studied everything rted to that. Then, once there was nothing more to study, another team would make another breakthrough. Like fashion, science had trends. People who did research that wasn¡¯t thetest trend were sometimes called stubborn and stupid. And people who quickly chased the trend were sometimes thought tock expertise in one field. In the end, the only winner and greatest contributor in the scientific world were the trendsetters. They were the discoverers that led the trend of research and ushered in a new era. They were usually the ones who won Nobel Prizes, and there were only a few of them in the world. ¡°I lived my entire life chasing trends, but I can barely keep up with it now. A new technology is discovered every day,¡± Yoon Dae-Sung said. ¡°It¡¯s already been thirty years since we were able to absorb new knowledge and information like sponges. Our brains aren¡¯t that creative anymore, Nichs said. ¡°But Dae-Sung, how much of a relief is it that we have a trendsetter at ourpany?¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu?¡± ¡°Yeah. Doctor Ryu has already made two new trends.¡± ¡°...¡± The first trend was stem cells, and the second was Cas9, which were gene scissors. They were both base technologies that had incredible potential. The list of things that hade from stem cells was just mind-boggling: cures for a and Alzheimer¡¯s, and several organoids and artificial organs. On top of that, Cas9 had sessfully carried out a sophisticated gic maniption that cured HIV. It also became a keyponent of the diagnostic kits that made up the bulk of A-Bio¡¯s revenue. Now, it also had the potential to end all cancers with the introduction of a new technology called dendritic cell bypass. This technology was only going to get bigger. It was clear that the concept of gic surgery was going to reshape medicine for decades. ¡°I¡¯m thinking of leaving A-Gen in his hands,¡± Yoon Dae-Sung said. Nichs was shocked. ¡°Are you serious?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Yoon Dae-Sung solemnly nodded. ¡°And I¡¯m going to turn myself in for the development of anthrax as a bioweapon and step down.¡± ¡°... What about Bo-Hyun?¡± Nichs asked. ¡°DId you talk to him about this?¡± ¡°He doesn¡¯t know yet.¡± Yoon Dae-Sung shook his head. ¡°He probably thinks he is going to inherit thepany,¡± Nichs said. ¡°I¡¯ll have to talk to him.¡± ¡°When are you going to turn yourself in?¡± ¡°... There¡¯s only a few months left until the share exchange I promised Doctor Ryu. I¡¯m going to clean up my mess as much as I can and then turn myself in.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°It¡¯ll be best to merge A-Gen and A-Bio and have Doctor Ryu as the sole CEO. I¡¯m also going to transfer my shares to him,¡± Yoon Dae-Sung said. ¡°You made a big decision.¡± ¡°Please take care of Bo-Hyun when I leave.¡± ¡°... Okay.¡± Yoon Dae-Sung finished his beer. ¡°The beer here is really good,¡± he said as he shook the ss. ¡°It¡¯s gentle.¡± * * * In Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Disaster Response Committee was convened to take care of the Eb epidemic. The head was Michelle, and it wasposed of the best scientists and doctors in Congo. All of them were deeply concerned about Eb infecting anthracis. There was a high possibility that this was going to be an unprecedented biological disaster. How could the Congolese government stop this? There were already people who had basically given up even before the fight. However, they had hope when they saw a man in the conference room. Young-Joon had appeared with a bunch of documents in his hand. ¡°This is a genome map of the Eb virus,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Let¡¯s begin.¡± Chapter 161: Ebola (4)

Chapter 161: Eb (4)

¡°Wait,¡± Michelle said. ¡°We have to wait for one more person.¡± ¡°One more person?¡± Young-Joon turned and nced at Michelle. That was when a bald man with arge physique walked into the conference room. ¡°Hello.¡± Michelle, the ministers, and the members of themittee greeted him. The man approached Young-Joon and held out his hand. ¡°I¡¯m Phillip Kadena, the President of the Democratic Republic of Congo. Nice to meet you.¡± Young-Joon shook Phillip¡¯s hand. ¡°I should have printed out more,¡± Young-Joon said as he looked at the paper with the virus¡¯ genome map. ¡°It¡¯s alright. Please go ahead with the meeting. Don¡¯t mind me,¡± Phillip said. ¡°I have it memorized, so you can look at this, sir.¡± Young-Joon gave Phillip the document. The scientists read their own copy of the document. A few of the papers had tens of thousands of characters making up an iprehensible alphabetic code, such as ATGGTGCTACCA... This was the DNA sequence of the entire genome of the Eb virus. ¡®He memorized this...?¡¯ Phillip flinched. Michelle looked at Young-Joon, baffled. She knew that the DNA sequence was important, but to memorize it? It was like a math genius had memorized pi for fun. ¡°But why did you bring the DNA sequence with you?¡± one of the scientists asked. It was Nizar, a vine scientist from the WHO¡¯s office in Congo. Nizar was one of the experts in vine research. He was very confused by the DNA sequence that Young-Joon had brought. Nizar said, ¡°We have to start with obtaining blood serum if we want to make a vine. We need to make a standard serum and get a baseline level of antibodies to validate the vine candidates.¡± ¡°I know. We need a vine, but we¡¯re working on that separately.¡± ¡°Separately?¡± ¡°At A-Bio.¡± ¡°Then what is this?¡± ¡°Traditional scientists would draw serum first to develop a vine during an epidemic, but I have a different idea,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°A vine is a sure thing, but it takes the long way around. That¡¯s because vination is for the uninfected.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°As long as a vine is a preventive agent that is used on the uninfected, it¡¯s unlikely that citizens in an outbreak area will be willing to be vinated, especially if they are less scientifically educated.¡± ¡°Hm...¡± It was a painful but undeniable point for the Congolese government. ¡°And since Eb is a highly lethal disease that has be more contagious with anthrax as a new route of infection, we can¡¯t develop a vine at a leisurely pace because there will be deaths while we develop it. We need a frontline response that is faster than a vine.¡± ¡°Then are you saying that this is to create a cure, not a vine?¡± Nazir asked. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°But are we starting with the DNA sequence? Laying it out like this...?¡± Michelle looked down at the document again while listening to Nazir¡¯s question. ATGGTCTACCA... GTTGA. The paper was full of irregrly repeating letters of the four alphabets, A, T, C, G. There were eighteen thousand nine hundred fifty-nine characters. What information could they get from this? The DNA sequence was a cryptic recipe for creating biomaterial. The letters didn¡¯t mean anything to the human eye, but they had meaning to the cell. It was like aputernguage, like 1010111001... All that was different was that DNA had four letters instead of ones and zeroes. As such, the DNA sequence only had meaning if the identity of the biological material coded by DNA was interpreted through aputer and several experiments, then refined. Imagine a developer walking into a program coding meeting with a stack of ones and zeros. It was natural for Nizar to be baffled. ¡®That¡¯s what I thought at first.¡¯ Michelle turned to face Young-Joon. Then, he began exining. ¡°This is abination of the DNA of the five previously discovered strains of Eb virus.¡± ¡°Five?¡± one of the scientists asked. ¡°Yes. The genomes of the viruses that were found in each region were a little different from each other. Zaire Eb, Tai Forest Eb, Sudan Eb... This is the data from all of them,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°This is simr to the standard blood serum, which is the average of the blood serum in recovered people. These are the standard genes of Eb.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°After I arrived in Congo, I immediately went to visit the Eb patients with Doctor Michelle. I separated the Eb virus from their blood,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°And then I had an employee who came with me send the new DNA of Eb to A-Bio. We have two hundred DNA analysis machines there, and we can get results in a couple of hours if we use that to process it. The data we got from it is on page two.¡± Everyone went to the next page. There were neen thousand characters of the DNA sequence on the second page as well. ¡°There¡¯s a difference between pages one and two. If you use a DNA contrast program, you can see the difference. Right here.¡± Young-Joon pointed to the twelve thousand two hundred ny-fourth character in the DNA sequence. ¡°There are thirty-nine changes in the DNA sequence.¡± The recipe for designing the biomaterial had changed. ¡°The type of amino acids have changed, and as a result, the structure of one biomaterial has slightly changed as well.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°This is the point of evolution. That change in the DNA sequence evolved the virus. The evolved Eb then infected anthracis,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I used a protein folding simtion program to analyze this mutation. I artificially created a mutated protein containing this point with aputer.¡± Young-Joon ran the program on hisptop. A virus that looked like a parasite appeared. Young-Joon zoomed in on the screen. The result of the mutated DNA sequence was on the surface; it was a receptor with a new structure, and it was a light brown color. ¡°This is the mutant receptor we found. It¡¯s what the Eb virus evolved to have. This part is what allows it to make contact with the cilia of the anthracis, open the virus shell, and get inside.¡± ¡°...¡± Nizar was so shocked that he was at a loss for words. ¡®He found the target to develop a drug.¡¯ Nazir did not know this was possible. It would have taken weeks for them to find the mutant receptor in theplete virus. But Young-Joon had picked it out at once byparing the DNA sequences. Nazir could see how A-Bio was able to produce so many amazing drugs one after another. ¡®This guy has apletely different way of doing science.¡¯ He was like Columbus crushing the bottom of an egg and standing it upright. While other scientists were fumbling around to find the center of gravity, Young-Joon had just extracted the results he needed. ¡°And there¡¯s hopeful news,¡± Young-Joon said to the scientists, who were frozen. ¡°What is it?¡± Phillip asked. ¡°It¡¯s actually easier to treat this Eb virus. It was difficult to find a weakness in the old virus because it was so tightly structured, but we can target the receptor in this virus.¡± ¡°H-How?¡± Nizar asked in excitement. Young-Joon smiled. ¡°It will be obvious if you hear it. What do you think it means that this mutant receptor can merge with the cilia of anthracis?¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°Look on page three.¡± Themittee went to the next page. There was another DNA sequence map and a simple schematic of a protein. ¡°This is the tip of the anthracis cilium,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°We will attach a substance that promotes the destruction of DNA.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The mutated receptor can merge with the cilia of anthrax. Simrly, it will also react with the cilia of this treatment as well. Then, the DNA-destroying substance will remove the DNA of the virus,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°When we administer the treatment, the virus will be quickly eliminated from the patient¡¯s body. That¡¯s it.¡± ¡°...¡± Silence filled the room. This was too far outside the box of conventional science. For scientists, research was something that they had to do hands-on. It was about repeating multiple experiments to extract data and slowly building a crude map. However, this was like a genius military strategist exining his tactics before a war. And as Young-Joon exined, victory loomed in the distance. ¡°... But will it really go as nned?¡± Michelle asked. ¡°It will. Let¡¯s not start blindly, but let¡¯s design this treatment first and start testing it on animals.¡± ¡°What I¡¯m asking is whether we will be able to make a substance that mimics the cilia of anthracis.¡± ¡°It¡¯ll be possible,¡± Young-Joon said. He had already asked for Nichs¡¯ help. Young-Joon asked him for some of the research A-Gen had done on anthracis in the past. Nichs said he would send them as soon as he organized them, so it should be here by tomorrow morning at thetest. If he had that, all he had to do was just find the most optimal method to iste the end of the cilium with Rosaline. ¡°And since this is an urgent matter, it will be best to obtain only the essential data and begin clinical trials,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Oh, I see. We will prepare it,¡± Nizar said nervously. ¡°But this won¡¯t be enough to eradicate Eb,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°What?¡± ¡°This is just stopping the Eb virus that has infected someone¡¯s body. If it can multiply through anthrax, it will create a constant epidemic. It¡¯s not enough to treat a few patients here.¡± ¡°Then a vine?¡± ¡°Yes. And since Eb and anthracis are having serious effects on the environment as well as people, we have to deal with that as well. We¡¯re going to be very busy.¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu,¡± Phillip interrupted. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know much about biology, but I have a feeling that we will be able to get through this crisis unscathed with you leading themittee.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I will give you full authority as a special advisor to this disaster responsemittee. Please work with Doctor Michelle to save Congo.¡± ¡°Of course. Don¡¯t worry.¡± * * * On the way out after the meeting, Young-Joon was shocked at the scene in front of him. It was because of the shouts from protesters and eggs being thrown at Phillip¡¯s vehicle that had taken off before Young-Joon. ¡°What is that...?¡± Young-Joon asked Michelle, who was sitting beside him, in surprise. Michelle sighed. ¡ªRemove the illegal government! ¡ªI refuse the manipted vote count! Do the election again! ¡ªThe leadership change belongs to Commissioner Pauro! The crowd¡¯s shouts even banged on the Young-Joon¡¯s limousine window. ¡°Leadership change? What are they talking about?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°The Congolese government has never changed leadership through voting in the sixty years since its independence from Belgium,¡± Michelle said. ¡°Thisnd called the heart of Africa, a country as big as Western Europe with eighty million people, has so much potential, but its government is unstable. The leadership has always changed with civil wars and assassinations.¡± ¡°... But I think they¡¯re talking about how the voting was manipted.¡± ¡°President Phillip was the first person to be voted into power,¡± MIchelle said. ¡°But during the election, there was an unfair voting process for the opposition party.¡± ¡°Unfair?¡± ¡°A city with a poption of two million people couldn¡¯t vote. The previous government stopped them.¡± ¡°What? Why?¡± ¡°Why do you think so?¡± Michelle smiled bitterly. ¡°It was because Eb was going around. The infection could have spread rapidly during the crowded voting process.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Of course, the crowd is saying that Eb was a superficial reason. They are saying that President Phillip made some sort of agreement with President Kabilie, who ruled for eighteen years, to keep cities with high support for other opposition parties from voting.¡± ¡°I see...¡± ¡°This fight isn¡¯t going to be easy. The Eb virus is soplexly tangled up in this country that it¡¯s going to be difficult to deal with.¡± Chapter 162: Ebola (5)

Chapter 162: Eb (5)

The Democratic Republic of Congo was one of Belgium¡¯s colonies during the early 1880¡¯s. At the time, they were ruthlessly exploited and oppressed by King Leopold II of Belgium. Congo finally seeded in gaining independence from Belgium in 1960, but the country wasn¡¯t stable. ¡°There were constant dictatorships, civil wars, terrors, coups, and assassinations,¡± Michelle said. ¡°There were people in ethnic conflicts already, and a military government that controls them by force can¡¯tst very long. When civil wars and dictatorships are prolonged, assassinations follow naturally. A total of four million people died in the civil wars before 2003.¡± ¡°Four million?¡± Young-Joon was absolutely shocked. ¡°It¡¯s amon number of casualties in Africa. The president was assassinated during the war, and Joseph Kibli, his son, became the president. He was a dictator for eighteen years.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The people are tired of the military government and dictators fighting. They want peace and democracy,¡± Michelle said. ¡°A lot of people wanted to vote for the president. We had an election, but there was a problem.¡± ¡°The vote count maniption you talked about?¡± ¡°Yes. Plus, there were two candidates from the opposition party in the first ce. One was Phillip, who is now the president, and the other was Commissioner Paulo. There was an election, and Paulo won,¡± Michelle said. ¡°Then, Phillip left the party and ran as an independent. The presidential election was a three-way race, including the candidate from the ruling party.¡± ¡°If there was a candidate from the ruling party and the former President manipted the voting, wouldn¡¯t the ruling party candidate have won?¡± ¡°That was never going to happen because the public¡¯s heart had turned away from President Kablie already. It was basically just a battle between Phillip and Paulo.¡± ¡°And you¡¯re saying that Commissioner Phillip became the president?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Michelle nodded. ¡°Paulo was someone who was trying to destroy the government officials of the dictatorship, including President Kabilie. Phillip was more about bringing everyone together.¡± ¡°Oh... So, he helped the person who was the least threatening?¡± ¡°Yes. In fact, Phillip had a private meeting with President Kabilie before the election. After that, they prevented Maibi, a city of two million people, from voting.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The support for Commissioner Paulo at Maibi was close to eighty percent.¡± ¡°And they said the reason they prevented them from voting was because of Eb.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. But there is another problem, Doctor Ryu.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°There aren¡¯t a lot of people who have Eb in Congo right now. There were four people in Maibi.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a relief that there aren''t a lot of patients. But it might be in its incubation period.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. However, you have to understand what this means.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°To the people of Congo, Eb is an evil excuse, something that is nothing but a legend.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The Congolese people can¡¯t ept that Eb is back because they don¡¯t actually see anyone dying from it.¡± ¡°Then...¡± ¡°What will people think if we go around saying that we will provide Eb vines and Eb treatments?¡± ¡°No...¡± Young-Joon¡¯s jaw dropped. ¡°Yes, it¡¯s exactly what you think. They will think we are President Phillip¡¯s minions. They might mistake us as a force trying to defend the voting disruption that happened in Maibi.¡± ¡°...¡± This was trouble. Congo already had problems with religion, anti-science, and low education levels. But now, another problem had popped up. ¡°Is it true that the government manipted the election by disrupting voting? Please be honest,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Michelle said calmly. ¡°Doctor Ryu, I am a scientist. I am not good enough to focus on anything other than that.¡± * * * There was an unexpected guest at the Protein Purification Research Department¡¯s entrance at Lab Three. ¡°Senior Jung Hae-Rim.¡± The scientists who were at the department approached her. Jung Hae-Rim fought Song Pan-Sup in court after using of sexual harassment, then was shunned by the rest of the department. She was banished to the Life Creation Department, and she never thought that she would have to see them ever again except at the year-end seminar. But then, Jung Hae-Rim received a huge award with Young-Joon at the year-end seminar and went to A-Bio. Now, she was back here as an employee of Young-Joon, a director. ¡°Hello, it¡¯s been a while,¡± Jung Hae-Rim said brightly as she walked in. ¡°I¡¯ll be working for a little bit. Thank you.¡± ¡°I heard the news,¡± Song Pan-Sup suddenly interrupted. ¡°I was in some hot water when you used me of something so ridiculous. But now we¡¯re working together again. Such a small world, isn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°... Which bench can I work at?¡± Jung Hae-Rim said, ignoring Song Pan-Sup. Song Pan-Sup frowned a little. ¡°It¡¯s at the end over there. In front of the clean bench,¡± one of the scientists said. ¡°Thank you.¡± Song Pan-Sup followed Jung Hae-Rim as she walked over to the bench. ¡°Hey, Hae-Rim, we should talk.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°I think what happened before was because of a misunderstanding. Let¡¯s forget everything that has happened and start fresh.¡± Jung Hae-Rim frowned. It was ridiculous, and she knew exactly what Song Pan-Sup was up to. He was thinking about Young-Joon, who was responsible for the sudden surge in A-Gen¡¯s stock prices and was ushering in a new era. It was because he knew that Young-Joon and Jung Hae-Rim were close and that Young-Joon was extremely strict about hical things that happened in the scientificmunity. Although it was unclear whether Young-Joon would be the CEO, there was a good chance that A-Gen and A-Bio would merge one day. Additionally, Young-Joon was also already an executive of A-Gen and the director of Lab One. Song Pan-Sup was wary of his power. ¡°Be honest. It wasn¡¯t a simple misunderstanding,¡± Jung Hae-Rim said. ¡°You should apologize if you want to make this rtionship better. And I don¡¯t know if I will even ept that.¡± Song Pan-Sup flinched a little. ¡°...¡± He red at Jung Hae-Rim, then said, ¡°I know what you¡¯re doing because I got a call from Mr. Ryu as well. Hae-Rim, you¡¯re trying to make a standard blood serum for Eb, right?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°With just ten milliliters?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°It won¡¯t be easy. I will help you. You know that I¡¯m the best in the world in protein purification, right?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t need your help,¡± Jung Hae-Rim said right away, irritated. ¡°Excuse me, Senior Jung. What are you going to do if you blow a ten milliliter sample? Just give it to me.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°This is theb protocol?¡± Song Pan-Sup asked as he read the paper Jung Hae-Rim printed out beforehand. ¡°Give it to me.¡± ¡°Did you write it?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Who wrote this? It¡¯s a mess. Hae-Rim, you¡¯re not going to have anything left at the end of the purification if you do it like this.¡± Snap! Jung Hae-Rim forcibly took the paper from Song Pan-Sup¡¯s hand. She tried to ignore him and started the experiment. Jung Hae-Rim put the tube containing ten milliliters of blood into the microfuge to separate the sma. Then, she took out a container with various types of salts from the shelf and began making a solution. ¡°Is that the binding buffer?¡± Song Pan-Sup interrupted. ¡°Are you going to treat it with a two hundred millimr solution of NaCl? You¡¯ll denature all your antibody structures. You¡¯re really going to do that?¡± ¡°...¡± Jung Hae-Rim silently focused on the experiment. Song Pan-Sup continuously made doubtfulments as she conducted her experiment. ¡°Are you sure you want to use maic beads in that buffer?¡± ¡°You¡¯re going to use the spin te?¡± ¡°You¡¯re using Sigma¡¯s FPLC cartridge? The fifteen centimeter one?¡± To be honest, Jung Hae-Rim was also doubtful. The experiment protocol that Young-Joon gave her was too dramatic. The process of purifying antibodies required extreme care and caution; it was like sending a ss cup through mail. Young-Joon¡¯s experiment method was overprotective of the antibody being purified. While his method certainly protected each ss, it greatly reduced the number that could be shipped at a time. At only ten milliliters, it was doubtful they would be able to extract enough. But Jung Hae-Rim had faith in Young-Joon. ¡°Hae-Rim, change the protocol now when you can. I don¡¯t know if someone wrote it for you or you did, but you¡¯re not going to get anything if you stick to this.¡± ¡°Please be quiet.¡± This experiment required a little bit of a tricky technique. Jung Hae-Rim tried not to make a mistake through Song Pan-Sup¡¯s chatter and criticism. And during the FPLC, thest stage, Jung Hae-Rim and Song Pan-Sup froze when they saw the peak in protein quantitation. There was a huge amount of antibodies. ¡°What is...¡± Song Pan-Sup murmured. ¡°You need dozens of liters of blood to get this amount... How... What happened?¡± Jung Hae-Rim gulped. Even if he asked her, she didn¡¯t know how. All she did was conduct the experiment Young-Joon ordered her to without any mistakes. There was probably an unimaginable level of biology and chemistry happening at the molecr level. ¡°Then, I¡¯ll be on my way.¡± Jung Hae-Rim put the protein in a little sk. As she was about to leave, Jung Hae-Rim ran into someone as they suddenly came into the entrance. It was Oh Jun-Tae, the director of Lab Three. ¡°D¨CDirector?¡± ¡°Hm. It¡¯s been a while, Senior Jung.¡± Oh Jun-Tae came into the room clenching his jaw. Now that she saw, there were a few more people standing outside. ¡°Someone may contact you soon,¡± Oh Jun-Tae said. ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°It was a long time ago, but... Doctor Ryu reported it to the internal audit team.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Principal Song!¡± Oh Jun-Tae shouted. ¡°Come out here. Let¡¯s have a chat with the audit team.¡± Oh Jun-Tae called Song Pan-Sup irritatedly. Then, in a softer voice, ¡°You can go now, Senior Jung. And please let him know... Ugh.¡± * * * Young-Joon borrowed ab at the University of Kinshasa, which was affiliated with the Congolese government¡¯s Ministry of Public Health. Nichs Kim had sent him the data on anthracis. Young-Joon was reviewing it with Rosaline. ¡ªThe genome of anthracis is muchrger than the Eb virus, but it isn¡¯t difficult to analyze. Rosaline said. ¡ªHowever, this research will be very different from taking a few receptors from viruses. The cilia of anthracis is aplex of much more diverse cells and extracellr matrix. ¡°Probably.¡± The extracellr matrix was a messy tangle of mucus membranes and the cell skeleton secreted outside the membrane. Now, Young-Joon and Rosaline were trying to rip off a part of it. ¡ªIt¡¯s a good thing we have this much data. It would have consumed a lot of fitness if we went into this blindly. Rosaline picked out a few genes while slowly analyzing the data. There were seven in total. ¡ªPut these in a cloning vector, rbine them, and express them. Send them back to Doctor Jung for purification. Rosaline said. ¡ªThen, you just have to attach the DNase to it.[ref]DNase is a DNA-destroying substance. ¡°Great.¡± Young-Joon gathered some more genome information. ¡°Doctor Ryu!¡± One of the employees at the Ministry of Public Health showed up to theb with a huge package. It was big enough to fit a mini refrigerator. ¡°It came for you. What is this?¡± Young-Joon smiled when he read the name. It was from Jung Hae-Rim. The box was the definition of overpackaging. There was arge styrofoam box when he opened it, and it was full of dry ice. The actual sample was a small sterile tube the size of a finger. The rest of it was dry ice to keep the sample at negative twenty degrees Celsius during the international shipping. ¡°This is the weapon to make the vine. Please call all the scientists here, and Michelle, too,¡± Young-Joon said. As people were crowding in, Young-Joon called Jung Hae-Rim. ¡°We got the antibody. It would have been a pretty difficult experiment, but you did well. Thank you,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡ªI just did what you told me to do. ¡°If the recipe is hard, it all depends on the cook, no matter how well-written the recipe is. Good work.¡± ¡ªThank you. Did you report Song Pan-Sup to A-Gen¡¯s internal audit team?¡± ¡°Yes. He harassed you, right?¡± ¡ªWell... Yes. But it¡¯s been so long... ¡°I can¡¯t stand something like that happening in theb. Go ask our legal team for help regarding the legal stuff. You can talk to our attorney, Park Joo-Hyuk. You can file an appeal or do anything you want, but just make sure to let out all your frustration. Thepany will support you.¡± ¡ª... ¡°Of course, you don¡¯t have to do it right now if you don¡¯t feelfortable doing so. It¡¯s up to you.¡± ¡ªThank you. Jung Hae-Rim said. ¡ªI am so lucky to have met you at the Life Creation Department, Doctor Ryu. ¡°I am grateful for you. I received the antibodies. I think we will make a lot of progress thanks to you. I¡¯ve got to go back to work,¡± Young-Joon said. Michelle and other scientists wereing in. Chapter 163: Ebola (6)

Chapter 163: Eb (6)

Young-Joon gathered the genes that made up the end of the anthracis cilia and put it in an E. coli smid. They were put into BL21, a strain of bacteria, then grown in LB broth. Then, all the bacteria were killed by sonication, and it was purified using a histidine tag that was attached to a piece of the cilia. ¡®Done.¡¯ Young-Joon proceeded with care and caution as if he was building an borate Lego sculpture. He attached DNase, a substance that destroyed DNA, to streptavidin, then added it to the cilia to anthracis with biotin. The scientists under the University of Kinshasa and Michelle were closely observing what Young-Joon was doing. All he was doing was mixing, measuring, and collecting solutions that were less than a milliliter. It seemed like nothing much to the human eye, but important things were happening in the microworld. The scientists followed along closely as they took notes. ¡°It¡¯s done,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°The treatment is done?¡± Nazir asked. ¡°Yes. We¡¯re ready for the pilot experiment. Let¡¯s take the samples you made and go to theb.¡± Young-Joon and thirty other scientists left the biologyb at the University of Kinshasa and drove forty minutes to arge space. It was an empty field that was blocked off by a huge wire fence. There was a smallb in the middle of it. ¡°Is it that?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Yes. Follow me.¡± MIchelle identified herself with her ID to the soldiers that were guarding the entrance. ¡°I¡¯m with the Ministry of Public Health.¡± After getting ess, she walked in with the other scientists. They walked through three metal gates on the way from the entrance to theb. [Danger] [Authorized Personnel Only] Therge words that were written in bright red warned about the dangerous animals that were inside. [Biosafety Level 4 Laboratory (BL4)] There were a total of four biosafety levels. The organisms that were used in biosafety levels one and two didn¡¯t affect healthy adults very much or caused minor and easily treatable diseases. The organisms used in biosafety level three could cause pretty severe symptoms, but they were not contagious and could be treated. In biosafety level fourbs, The organisms used in level four had twomon characteristics: They caused serious illness in humans and were highly contagious, therefore posing a high threat to public health, and there were no effective preventions or treatments. In other words, if someone came in here, touched the wrong thing and got sick, they were done for. This was literally the frontline of the war against disease. As such, the conditions for safety were strict. They needed to have the best HEPA-filtered air purification system, a chemical shower system, a breathing air supply, and a wastewater treatment facility. They needed to meet strict requirements for facilities in many areas. The cost of construction and maintenance was also significant. Therefore, a mediocreb could not maintain such a facility due to financial reasons. Even if they had the money, there was a huge amount of paperwork and evaluations required to set up a biosafety level fourb in Korea, at least. Although, Young-Joon didn¡¯t know how it was done here. ¡°I¡¯m opening the door.¡± Michelle opened thest sealed metal gate. Whirr! The HEPA filter was purifying the air with a horrendous noise. Now, they were inside the facility before the actual entrance into theb. ¡°This is the only level fourb in Kinshasa. You can study the Eb virus, the vari virus, thessa virus, and more,¡± Michelle said. ¡°Isn¡¯t it too close to the University of Kinshasa considering it¡¯s a level fourb?¡± Young-Joon asked. A biosafety level fourb usually wasn¡¯t set up near a university because they dealt with pretty dangerous things. It was kind of unsettling to put such a terrifying facility near a school where young people studied. Even in the United States, biosafety level fourbs were set up near the National Institute of Health or the United States Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases; they were rarely approved to be near private facilities. ¡°But Congo is not in a position to consider gains and losses. The University of Kinshasa is the best university in Congo, and the people here are the best human resources we have in the country. It¡¯s in our best interest to bring them here and let them fight this fight,¡± Michelle said. ¡°I see,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°Let¡¯s get dressed first.¡± The scientists opened the closet for them. Everyone changed into protective clothing that looked like a spacesuit. After putting ontex gloves, they put on the thick protective boots they took out from the closet. Next, they put on a protective suit that looked like a jumpsuit and zipped it up. They hooked the stic sleeve hole onto their thumb so that their wrists were covered. They had to cover their entire body because their skin could not be exposed. That was the same for their head. ¡°I¡¯m putting on the PAPR,¡± Young-Joon said. A PAPR was a device that filtered outside air and delivered it to the wearer. It was like a fully enclosed helmet, covering everything from the head to the chest, and one was only able to breathe out of a filter. ¡°The filter life is good, and the connecting hose looks good, too.¡± Young-Joon checked the condition of the PAPR, then put it on his head. Pshhh. Young-Joon disinfected his protective year through the chemical shower at the entrance. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± Young-Joon moved to theb with the scientists. He was already feeling stuffy in his heavy protective suit. ¡®Phew...¡¯ His neck was sweating. ¡ªI¡¯ll control your temperature a little bit. You¡¯re heating up because your sympathetic nervous system is too excited. Rosaline said. ¡®Thanks.¡¯ Even Young-Joon wasn¡¯t used to a level four facility since he had only been here a few times. Even though A-Bio developed a vine for HIV, HIV was also a level three organism because it wasn¡¯t thought to be very contagious. On top of that, HIV already had a treatment, even if it was expensive and just a life-sustaining one. However, Eb was different. ¡®Eb had no cure.¡¯ Additionally, there was an eighty percent chance one would die if they caught it due to its high lethality rate. Looking at it from that perspective, Young-Joon was basically going into touching the most terrifying thing that existed in this world. He could see that the other scientists were tense. ¡°...¡± No one made a single joke. In the heavy silence, one of the scientists went to the deep freezer, which was at negative seventy degrees. ¡°Here it is.¡± They handed Young-Joon a vial. The small stic bottle had about three hundred microliters of liquid. It was the Eb virus. ¡ªUgh... Rosaline, who popped out of Young-Joon before he put the protective suit on, came close to him. ¡®Are you nervous?¡¯ Young-Joon asked. ¡ªIt¡¯s just a trivial organism to me. ¡®But why are you clinging to me?¡¯ ¡ªBecause it¡¯s not trivial to you. It¡¯s going to be a hassle to clean up if there is an ident. ¡®Don¡¯t worry. I have my protective suit on, and I won¡¯t make a mistake.¡¯ Young-Joon drew out the virus from the vial with a syringe. He then went to the cage and injected it into the thirteen mice. Then, he took out the Eb treatment from the styrofoam box he brought. ¡°From now on, we are going to inject this into two mice every two hours,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°We are going to observe the efficacy of the treatment. Please record it.¡± * * * ¡°Ack... It¡¯s done.¡± The scientists came out of the experiment exhausted. They went through the chemical shower one by one. Now, it was time for them to take off the stuffy protective suit. They also had to follow an order when taking the suit off; they could not just do it randomly. They had to take it off while turning it inside out so that nothing touched the skin. It was the suit first, then the boots, and then the PAPR. The gloves werest, but they also had to be careful to not let the gloves touch the exposed skin, like the wrist. They had to take one hand off half-way and take off the other hand with the tip of their fingers. ¡°Phew...¡± The scientists, who were letting out a deep breath, were soaked in sweat. It felt like they had just surfaced from a dive into the dangerous deep sea. The HEPA filter kept making noise. There was a moment of silence from exhaustion. Everyone looked tired. ¡°It feels like we just fought a war or something,¡± Young-Joon said as he looked at them. ¡°I¡¯m telling you as a citizen of a country that has civil wars often, but this is worse than a war.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°You can rx at home after a war ends, but we have to be anxious about whether we¡¯ve been infected or not.¡± ¡°Haha, I see.¡± Some of the scientists chuckled. ¡°But we¡¯re going to have to do this experiment dozens of times,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°...¡± ¡°Will everyone be okay?¡± ¡°We will,¡± Nazir said. ¡°Doctor Ryu, my wife was part of the ten thousand people who died in West Africa due to the Eb outbreak in 2014.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I will win this fight. We have nothing more to ask if you help us, Doctor Ryu. I¡¯m actually happy that I have the chance to get revenge.¡± Young-Joon grinned. ¡°Thank you all. I know it¡¯s hard, but keep up the good work. If we fight with all our strength, there will be one less person who dies from Eb.¡± * * * ¡°Sir, there is another case of Eb.¡± A member of the Union for Democracy and Social Progress reported. ¡°Be careful to not let confusion spread among the people,¡± Paulo warned. He had no time to talk about this in detail, as he had to go on television and give his speech. ¡°Let¡¯s talkter.¡± Paulo walked to the studio. This broadcast had the most political power in Congo. Paulo was greeted by the host and sat down. ¡°The government has assembled a team of researchers, led by Michelle, the secretary of the Ministry of Public Health, to develop a cure for Eb. And it looks like they¡¯ve brought Doctor Ryu Young-Joon from Korea. What do you think?¡± the host asked. They started off with the issue about Eb. ¡°We don¡¯t need a treatment,¡± Paulo said firmly. ¡°There isn¡¯t an outbreak of Eb. There are a few patients who have been diagnosed with Eb, but are they really? Has anyone seen anyone die from Eb in the past three years?¡± Paulo began to spew propaganda. ¡°I¡¯ll be honest. Eb has killed countless people in West Africa during 2014 and 2015. I know it is a dangerous disease. However, everything about the government making a vine or treatment for Eb is...¡± Paulo said. ¡°... For show.¡± Paulo clenched his fists. ¡°They say they brought Doctor Ryu Young-Joon for this. Somementators say that how could Eb be a lie when we have brought the famous Doctor Ryu Young-Joon here to make a treatment?¡± Paulo said. ¡°It is a lie. I can be sure. Everyone, Doctor Ryu Young-Joon is not interested in politics in Congo. That person will go study on the moon if he could destroy Eb. He even went to Sweden to make an anticancer drug. Of course, he coulde to Congo to study Eb, since there are a lot of clinical data here.¡± Paulo spoke straight at the camera. ¡°But the fact that Doctor Ryu is studying here does not prove that there was Eb in Maibi. The diagnosed patients are also a lie. It was unconstitutional to ban voting in Maibi, and this election was manipted,¡± Paulo said. ¡°We need to have a re-election. Currently, we have petitioned the constitutional court for a reflection. Everyone, this is the first democratic change in power in sixty years. Even if I am not chosen, there must not be any unfairness. Please support me.¡± Paulo shouted into the camera. There really may be Eb in Congo. However, the one thing that Congo needed was not an Eb treatment; it was a leader who could ignite the mes in the people who were tired of the long dictatorship and civil wars. And Phillip wasn¡¯t a leader like this. The constitutional court absolutely had to announce a reelection. Chapter 164: Ebola (7) Chapter 164: Eb (7) On a hill overlooking the jungles of western Congo, Rosaline was looking around south-central Africa in Simtion Mode. Woah Rosaline eximed. Its bad, Young-Joon, who was also seeing what Rosaline was seeing, said. Its no joke. The jungles of southern and western Congo have already been taken over by Eb and anthracis. ... Young-Joon held his head. Anthracis isnt that good at spreading, is it? Anthracis quickly hopped onto the herbivores in this area when they got Eb and had low immunity. Rosaline said. And if they go to another area after Ebs incubation period and die, they are going to spread the anthracis there. How much do you think it relies on anthracis? The spread of Eb? Yeah. About eighty percent. Thats pretty high. Young-Joon thought for a moment. The hot, thirty degree wind brushed his neck. What do we have to do to kill anthracis? Young-Joon asked. Its difficult to destroy once it forms spores. We can kill it if we pour a solution of ten percent formalin onto it. But if we pour something like that onto the jungle The environmental damage will be severe. But at this rate, the other countries in Africa will pour formalin on Congos jungles. At this rate, Eb can cause a pandemic, and that is the only option to stop it. Using formalin to put a fence around the spread of anthracis in Africa. I guess so. Its a desperate measure that damages itself. But we have a better way, Rosaline. Lets use anthracis to catch Eb. Young-Joon shot up from his seat. Using anthracis? Rosaline asked. Our target is the anthracis in eastern Congo where Eb hasnt spread yet. We can stop the spread of Eb using them. How? We develop a virus that mimics Eb. We only leave the receptor that infects anthracis so that it doesnt harm humans or animals. ... We can add Eb genes into it so that it can have immunity to Eb. We make a vine for bacteria and inject it into anthracis? Exactly. Young-Joon snapped his finger. Although, its hard enough to develop an Eb vine for humans, let alone one for anthracis. And youre going to make me do all the work, arent you? Five milliliters of ATP when we get back to A-Bio. Good? Ten. ... Okay, ten. * * * In theb at the University of Kinshasa The animal experiments will turn out well, and you can make a treatment based on that data, Young-Joon said. And A-Bio made us a standard serum. You can develop a vine based on the antibody values here. Young-Joon handed Michelle the standard serum. Are you going back to Korea? Michelle asked. She seemed disappointed that Young-Joon was leaving. No, Im going to stay here. And take this. Young-Joon gave them another document. What is this? Michelle asked. Its a research protocol. Itll be good to consider when youre developing the vine. Its a vine candidate. The Eb virus is difficult to use as an inactivated vine, Young-Joon replied. An inactivated vine was a vine containing a virus that had been killed through chemical and heat treatment. If you develop an inactivated vine, there will be rare cases of people failing to produce antibodies and dying. Instead, weve isted some of the fragments that are essential to the Eb virus, Young-Joon said. And were going to vinate with fragments? Michelle replied. Thats right. Michelle read the research protocol. It was very detailed and specific. BALB/c mice will be immunized twice every three days ording to the standard vine development injections. On day seven, blood will be drawn and antibody levels will bepared to the standard blood serum. Formte the vine at a concentration of 15 mg/L and proceed with preclinical studies. ... How could you n it in such detail? Michelle asked. It felt like Young-Joon had already done the experiment before. Well, because Ive been doing simr experiments. If you follow that protocol, the vine will be developed in ten days, Young-Joon replied. ... But if you have a n like this, why didnt you do the rest? And youll still be here? Yes, but I have something else I have to do. Its about Eb. I will be doing my own research for a while. ... Michelle was a little baffled, but she couldnt force Young-Joon to develop the vine and treatment. He had already provided them with a prototype of the treatment, as well as a standard serum and target for the vine. He had already done much more than what an advisor would do. Okay. We will start it then. Michelle was also a member of the GSC. She was one of the worlds leading experts in vines, and she was a brilliant biologist. She also wasnt going in blind. If Young-Joonid the groundwork, the rest of it would be easy. A scientist like Michelle would be more than capable of leading her team and getting good results. But do you know that, Doctor Ryu? Michelle asked. What? The constitutional court of Congo made a decision to hold a reelection. ... When is it? About two weekster. This was bad. The incubation period for Eb varied, ranging from two days to twenty-one days, but it usually took around two weeks. Given the current situation, the anthracis that had taken over all of southern and eastern Congo and the Eb virus they were spewing were going to have significant impacts. Young-Joon had to make a vine and get it to patients as soon as possible. People are going to refuse the Eb vine at least until the vote, Young-Joon said. Thats right, since [people are already reluctant to get vines because they are not treatments. ... But I think we will be able to meet the deadline since weve been prioritizing the development of the treatment like you said. The data from the mice experiment are looking good, Michelle said. At this rate, we will be able to do a preclinical experiment and then go straight to administering it to Eb patients. Since this is urgent, the Ministry of Public Health is going to use the Infectious Disease Control Act to skip Phase One of clinical trials. It wasmon to give specialized drugs, such as cancer drugs, to patients in Phase One of clinical trials. However, drugs like the Eb treatment needed to be tested for safety first. As such, they were administered to healthy people in Phase One. If they didnt cause any side effects in them, the drug moved on to Phase Two, where they were given to patients to observe its efficacy. The spread of the virus through anthracis is very fast. We have to think that a lot of people have already been infected. The incubation period will soon be over and there will be a major outbreak, Young-Joon said. Michelles shoulders slightly quivered. We must have arge supply of the cure by then, Michelle said. Yes. Ill contact A-Gen and have them start production in advance, Young-Joon said. In advance? Yes. We skipped Phase One of clinical trials because of the urgency of the situation, but well also skip some of the red tape too, since well be able to get the drug to Congo right away if there arent any problems. ... Michelle was at a loss for words. This wasnt something that a CEO of apany would think of. A mass production of drugs was usually done after Phase Three of clinical trials at the least. There were a lot ofplex processes they had to do in order to mass produce a drug, such as optimizing various production processes and teaching the manufacturers. That cost a significant amount of money and time. That was why mass production was done after proving the drug worked; that way, thepany didnt suffer any losses. Thank you This wasnt simply confidence in the drug he developed; Young-Joon was making a huge gamble in order to save the people of Congo. Michelle was extremely touched. We will make sure to seed in the vine and the treatments preclinical trial, Michelle said. * * * The treatment was finished eight dayster. The research was being done at an incredible speed. The vine was also being done at an extremely fast rate. Young-Joon told them to inject them twice, but they had already gotten a lot of antibodies with the first injection. It seemed like they would haveplete resistance to Eb with the second shot. Hes insane Michelle mumbled while checking through the research data. She followed the protocol Young-Joon gave her, and she was able to make a treatment and vine for Eb in a short period of time. She sent the research data to President Phillip. And that evening, the Congolese government dered an Eb emergency. Philip was giving a speech in front of the Kimitiere Church, the biggest church in Kinshasa. We have discovered that the Eb virus can infect anthracis, Phillip said as he read the announcement. This gives the Eb virus the ability to survive for long periods of time in anthracis, an organism with high survivability. This is allowing the virus to spread at an unprecedented rate. Get out! shouted one of the citizens. The Congolese government is putting all its resources into creating an Eb vine and treatment as fast as possible. We will have a prototype of it soon. The people of Congo, do not be afraid and believe in the government. Vination wil Crack! An egg thrown by the crowdnded on Phillips shoulder. Get lost! Youre not the president until we do the reelection! Go away Phillip! The agitated people were swarming. The security guards were blocking them. I will not run for reelection if everyone gets vinated! Phillip shouted into the microphone. ... Everyone stopped. They stared at Phillip in bafflement. Congo is currently facing a huge biological disaster. The outbreak will begin sooner orter, and it will be a pandemic. It will be nothin like the one in 2014, Phillip said. The chief of staff, who was standing downstairs, looked concerned. The government cant scare the people like that. Phillip picked up the microphone. However, we can stop the disaster if we cooperate. Michelle, the secretary of the Ministry of Public Health I invited, is one of the best scientists in the country. And Doctor Ryu Young-Joon, the person we invited as an advisor, is rewriting history in medicine, Phillip said. Led by these two experts, countless scientists are shedding their blood and tears and working in biosafety level fourbs while risking their lives. The treatment is almost finished, and I heard the vine wille out soon as well. People Phillip said as he clenched his fist. I know that Eb is being treated as a ghost in our society. I know that no one believes that Eb is going around. I also know that Eb is the reason why voting was banned in Maibi. ... But I need your help. Eb exists. Please believe that. Chapter 165: Ebola (8)

Chapter 165: Eb (8)

When most of the scientists, including Michelle, were toiling away in the biosafety level fourb, Young-Joon was studying anthracis in a biosafety level threeb. In thisb, he didn¡¯t work with Eb, which had the highest risk level, directly; what Young-Joon was touching was a part of the Eb virus¡¯ genes. It wasn¡¯t infectious in this state, and it was no different than a clump of organic matter floating in water. It was like how a dangerous beast was safe if it had no ws. However, the experiment itself was quite intense and exhausting. ¡ªWe have to conduct around thirty experiments on a billion anthracis bacteria today. Rosaline said as she read the schedule. ¡ªBe honest. You¡¯re regretting that you didn''t bring your scientists from A-Bio, right? ¡°Well, I didn¡¯t know it was this urgent. But having A-Bio help me remotely when we were developing the vine and treatment made it a lot easier. Same with the standard blood serum,¡± Young-Joon said, sitting at the clean bench, as he kept his eyes glued on what he was working on. His hands were restlessly doing a transduction on anthracis. ¡°This is a race against the clock. Eb and anthracis will cross the jungles in Congo if we don¡¯t act now. If they make it to the eastern region, all of Africa will be dead in a matter of minutes.¡± ¡ªWhy don¡¯t you ask A-Bio for help now? ¡°It takes more time for me to exin this project and assign tasks. There¡¯s nothing I can do now.¡± ¡ªTrue. Rosaline nodded. ¡ªSince people¡¯s way of thinking doesn¡¯t change once they are established. The idea of using anthracis, the root of the Eb infection, as a trap for Eb will be very strange to them. ¡°But our scientists are pretty open-minded.¡± ¡ªBecause we only recruited the best people in the world. ¡°That too, but also because they¡¯ve grown used to the crazy things we¡¯ve done.¡± ¡ªI see. Rosaline jumped onto the table beside Young-Joon¡¯s clean bench. She stared at the anthracis culture te that was inside the sterile hood. The bacteria¡¯s immune system was being activated in the microworld. The scientificmunity had only recently found out primitive, single-celled organisms like bacteria had such a thing. The immune system in humans was made up of immune cells, which was the smallest functional unit, but even those were bigger than bacteria. Then, could an immune system exist within the cells of bacteria that were so small? This was simr to asking whether a nuclear family of five or six people could have separation of power and a judicial system. But surprisingly, there actually was such a thing. When a virus infected a bacterium, a part of the virus¡¯ genes entered the bacteria¡¯s DNA. The bacterium thenpared the newly entering virus against it, and it destroyed the new virus DNA if it matched. That was how it stopped viral infections. Cas9, the gene scissors Young-Joon found, also originated from this mechanism. ¡ªThose ones have immunity now. Rosaline pointed at a few culture tes. ¡°Really?¡± ¡ªYes. The experiment was a sess. ¡°Good.¡± ¡ªNow, all you have to do is verify that it is safe. ¡®Safety verification.¡¯ Young-Joon had to show evidence that the Eb vine for anthracis did not infect other organisms so that it did not cause environmental problems when it was sprayed in the jungle. He verified its safety by running a simtion through Rosaline, but he needed real data to convince the governments of other countries. ¡°But there are still a few more conditions we need to finalize before we start the safety verification.¡± Young-Joon was about to proceed with the next transduction when he realized that he was out of sterile tubes, one of the materials required for the experiment. He had to grab it from the inventory room from the other side of theb. ¡°Crap.¡± As Young-Joon eximed in annoyance, Rosaline shrugged. ¡ªI would have helped you if I had real hands. The project was also a race against the clock, but so was this experiment he was doing right now. Because he had already made the transduction solution mixture, he had to proceed with the next step quickly. The experiment would be inefficient and not work if it stayed like this for more than five minutes. Pitter patter! Young-Joon sprinted to the other side of theb as fast as he could. He hadn¡¯t run inside ab in this much of a hurry since graduate school. When Young-Joon came back with sterile tubes, Rosaline spoke to him. ¡ªRyu Young-Joon. ¡°I¡¯m busy, so tell meter. It¡¯s distracting.¡± ¡ªNot that. You have a visitor over there. ¡°A visitor?¡± Young-Joon peeked out the door. Phillip, the president of Congo, was standing outside theb. Click! Young-Joon quickly opened the door, then back to theb bench. ¡°My apologies, but I¡¯m doing an urgent experiment right now. If you have to speak to me, I will listen to it while I conduct the experiment.¡± ¡°Oh, yes, of course. I just stopped by. Please do your experiment.¡± Phillip had his guards stand by outside and looked around theb. In the meantime, Young-Joon was almost done with the experiment. He cleaned up his bench and got up, taking a deep breath. ¡°What brings you here?¡± Young-Joon asked Phillip, approaching him. ¡°I came by to cheer our hardworking scientists on.¡± Phillip showed Young-Joon the thing he was holding in his right hand. It was arge bag with a lot of ice cream. ¡°Thank you. Doctor Michelle and the other scientists are at the level fourb, but I¡¯ll give this to them when theyeter.¡± Young-Joon took the bag from Phillip. ¡°But eating is prohibited in theb. I¡¯ll keep it in the fridge in the scientists¡¯ lounge. Young-Joon went to the lounge with Phillip. The refrigerator in the lounge was so small that all the ice cream did not fit in the freezer. ¡°You should buy us a fridge when we¡¯re done with this,¡± Young-Joon said as he forced the ice cream into the freezer. ¡°I¡¯ll buy you one that¡¯s better than the one I have,¡± Phillip replied with a chuckle. They sat down at the table in the lounge. ¡°Is the experiment going well?¡± Phillip asked. ¡°I¡¯ve taken a step back from the frontline after finishing the base experiment. I trust that Doctor Michelle and the scientists under her are doing a great job. I saw them, and they are all amazing.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a relief. Will we be able to stop the Eb outbreak?¡± ¡°We¡¯ll cut it close, but we will be able to stop it.¡± ¡°Thank you so much.¡± Phillip bowed his head to Young-Joon. ¡°You should be thanking Doctor Michelle, not me. I¡¯m sorry to say this, but thebs here don¡¯t have great infrastructure. The reason that Doctor Michelle, one of the best scientists in the world, gave up her tenured position at Harvard to work in these poor conditions is all out of patriotism.¡± ¡°... That¡¯s right. She is amazing. I know that because I brought her here.¡± ¡°You brought her here, Mr. President?¡± ¡°Yes. It was when I was in the opposition. It¡¯s been a while. I went to Harvard and I begged her on my knees. I asked her to save science in Africa and advance our country.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°To be honest, I also thought abouting to you and begging on my knees. Hahaha. But I guess the heavens helped us because you ended uping to Congo for bonobos. So, I took the opportunity. I told Secretary Michelle to give you the bonobos and ask you to help us with Eb.¡± ¡°I see.¡± Young-Joon chuckled. He thought that Michelle had done this on her own, but the President had actually supported her. ¡°I heard that you said you wouldn¡¯t run for the next election if people ept that there will be an Eb outbreak and stop it,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I sort of meant it. Paulo is an amazing person, but I can do better.¡± ¡°... I am curious about something.¡± ¡°Yes, please ask me.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to interfere in the politics in Congo, but I¡¯m only asking because I am curious. Did you really manipte the election before?¡± ¡°You¡¯re asking me whether I colluded with former President Kabilie?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°I did collude with President Kabilie, but I did not manipte the vote in Maibi,¡± Phillip said. ¡°Doctor Ryu, in Africa, there is a monster that is as scary as Eb. Do you know what that is?¡± ¡°Civil war?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. There are two kinds of people in Africa: the Hutus and the Tutsis. These ethnic groups have existed since the eleventh century, and they arepletely culturally separated, like how Koreans and the Japanese are different,¡± Phillip said. ¡°And they began living in Congo together under Belgian colonization. That¡¯s what caused civil war. The current government is dominated by Tutsis, and there is the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda in Kivu, which is in the east of Congo, that is centered around the Hutus.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°And I¡¯m actually Hutu.¡± Young-Joon was surprised. ¡°Hutu? I thought the government was dominated by the Tutsi?¡± ¡°Hahaha, yes. I was actually a Hutu rebel. I was a child soldier, and when I was young, I was taken prisoner by the Congolese armed forces. I was imprisoned, then got higher education after I got out. Since then, I¡¯ve been fighting for harmony in thisnd with pro-democracy and anti-war movements.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°And there are new things I¡¯ve learned. It¡¯s that the cause of civil wars is not just because there are different ethnic groups. It¡¯s also because of the neighboring countries.¡± ¡°Neighboring countries?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Congo has tons of mineral resources, such as diamonds, gold, copper, tin, uranium, coltan, and more. There¡¯s more than you can imagine. It is worth trillions, and there are a lot of neighboring countries that are after it,¡± Phillip said. ¡°Those countries support the FDLR[1]. They provide them with weapons and also treat their injuries as Doctors Without Borders. They take advantage of the fact that the eastern part of Congo is out of control from war and loot our resources.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°We call that the Diamond Curse,¡± Phillip said. ¡°And the person who took the strongest stance and said he was going to wipe them all out was President Kabilie. He was a Tutsi. I colluded with Kabilie as a Hutu antiwar activist and a presidential candidate.¡± ¡°I understand what you are saying,¡± said Young-Joon. ¡°I told him to not let any more people die. I have some connections with the Hutu rebels. I wanted to free all the political prisoners and create peace in the country. I¡¯m embarrassed to say it, but I think that¡¯s something that only I can do, not Paulo.¡± ¡°Is Paulo a hardliner?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Very much. That¡¯s why he has a lot of support, especially in Maibi where three thousand people died from a terror attack by the Hutus.¡± ¡°...¡± Now, Young-Joon had a rough idea of the political battle here. ¡°But I am not the only one who stopped the vote in Maibi. I warned them about the dangers of Eb before that, but I wanted to reschedule the election.¡± ¡°But former President Kabilie stopped the vote there?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Yes. And I didn¡¯t oppose that because that was advantageous to me. So in a way, you could say I did participate in the vote maniption. The usation and criticism by Commissioner Paulo is somewhat reasonable.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°But the fight between Hutu and Tutsi and the presidential race between me and Commissioner Paulo is nothing in the face of the Eb epidemic. They are really trivial fights,¡± Phillip said. ¡°I don¡¯t know much about biology, but I¡¯ve been interested in Eb for a long time, and I became sure after I studied the report you and Secretary Michelle gave me. Congo is facing a major catastrophe that is much worse than all the past civil warsbined.¡± ¡°... Yes.¡± ¡°If I can stop it, I don¡¯t have to be president. What I said about not running for reelection if the vination goes well was not for show,¡± Phillip said. ¡°Doctor Ryu, I¡¯m begging you. Please stop this crisis.¡± ¡°Yes,¡± Young-Joon said and nodded. ¡°Don¡¯t worry too much.¡± * * * Michelle announced that the treatment and vination were all prepared. The treatment hadpleted Phase One of clinical trials and was in Phase Two with a few confirmed patients. They also purchasedrge quantities of the treatment from A-Bio. There wasn¡¯t a lot of the vine yet, but it was also being produced at A-Bio. ¡°The vine is safe and effective.¡± ¡°Please get your free Eb vine and help prevent the spread.¡± Michelle and Phillip publicly received the vine themselves. ¡°I dere that I am withdrawing my candidacy. Please believe in the Eb crisis and the vine,¡± Phillip said. Following Phillip¡¯s withdrawal, a lot of people were swayed to recognize the dangers of Eb. Some of the citizens, including Philip¡¯s supporters, began getting vinated. Still, the general public was cold. ¡ªDon¡¯t be fooled by the Eb outbreak myth. ¡ªFear is how governments control the people. ¡ªThere is no Eb epidemic. The majority of people who yearned for a democratic society and the opposition, led by Commissioner Paulo, remained firm in their opposition to the vine. ¡°We need more treatment since there aren¡¯t a lot of people getting vinated,¡± Michelle ordered her employees. ¡°Ask A-Bio to produce more, and if they can¡¯t meet the demand, outsource it to other pharmaceuticalpanies. It doesn¡¯t matter how much it costs.¡± The virus was now nearing the end of its incubation period. Michelle and Young-Joon could sense that the situation was on the verge of an outbreak. ¡°Come at me.¡± Michelle clenched her fists. A staggering amount of Eb treatments were piling up at the Ministry of Public Health. Then, at dawn on the next day, a biological disaster of epic proportions struck Maibi first. Hospital emergency rooms were being overwhelmed with patients. Hundreds of ambnces flew around the cities like bees. [Breaking News: Sudden increase in Eb patients in Maibi, currently at 1800 people.] After a short headline, a series of shocking reports followed. [Breaking News: 720 confirmed Eb cases in Kinshasa.] [Breaking News: Surge in Eb cases in Limbu, fails to get an urate count.] There were multiple breaking news reports. The news anchor, who was in fear, sat down at the news desk, but it was not the person who was usually in charge of the news at this hour. ¡°This is the Eight O¡¯Clock News in Kinshasa. Anchor Leiubu is currently being treated for Eb at the hospital,¡± said the young anchor with a trembling voice. The equipment team who were looking at the camera while standing across from the desk began coughing. The news anchor could see people backing away from them. The anchor gulped. There were tears in their eyes. They continued the report. ¡°The WHO has dered a Phase Five pandemic of Eb in the Democratic Republic of Congo...¡± 1. French acronym for the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda ? Chapter 166: Ebola (9) Chapter 166: Eb (9) In Kivu, the eastern region of Congo Aack! Unamu Stang, a Hutu child soldier, screamed from his tent. All the adults who were coughing from exhaustionst night had copsed. They all coughed up a handful of blood as well. Everyone in the FDLRs army[1] were on the floor except Unamu, who went to Rwanda to sell tungsten. Uncle! Uncle! Unamu shook one of the bodies. He put his finger on the mans mustache to see if he was breathing. He couldnt feel anything. Unamus legs gave out. Uncle The man who was on the floor was a soldier of the FDLR who had raised Unamu, an orphan, since he was a baby and taught him how to shoot. He was one of the kindest people among the adults who were always abusive and violent. He was like a father to Unamu. Ah Ha Unamu frantically ran out of the tent in fear. But then, he saw something in the dense jungle that brought him to a halt. He saw several dead goris lying on the floor exactly like the adults. A thought shed through Unamus head. Eb. Chills ran through Unamus body. Eb was a killer far more terrifying than guns orndmines; it was the top predator that ruled Africa. Eb quietly entered the tent like a silent assassin, killed everyone, and left. MMaybe me too Unamu had been here for a while. He had already touched the corpses. Ahhh Unamu wanted to cut off the hand he touched them with. Unamu, who fell to the floor in fear, began crying. Dont move! Suddenly, someone from behind pointed a gun at the back of Unamus head. There were dozens of soldiers. Congolese army. Put the gun down, the lieutenant said. ... Unamu put his gun on the floor. HHelp me Help you with what? All the adults are unconscious We surrender What are you talking about? The adults are all unconscious? The lieutenant tilted his head in confusion. Cough! A soldier from the Congolese army covered his mouth all of a sudden. It was Corporal Litui who had beenining about being tired and how he wasing down from a few days ago. Blood oozed from the cracks of his hand. WWhat? The lieutenants eyes widened. I dont think Im feeling very goo Litui copsed to the floor, grabbing the tree next to him. He stared at hisrades in fear. Everyone was already three meters from him. ... Everyone back to their ces. Assist Litui, and put this kid in handcuffs, the lieutenant ordered. AAssist? the soldier who was next to Litui asked in surprise. Do I have to say it twice! Assist him! But Sir The soldiers all frowned. ... Sir Help me Litui said in a dying voice. But no one could move. They couldnt touch Litui, as if he was an anti-tank mind that was about to go off. Suddenly, someone broke the silence. IIll help him said Unamu, the Hutu child soldier. What? The lieutenant red at him. I might already be infected I touched other peoples bodies. ... But please consider this as a mitigating factor during the court-martial. ... I promise. Unamu cautiously approached Litui. He wrapped Lituis arm around his shoulder and helped him up. Now that he was up close to Lituis face, his face seemed somewhat familiar to Unamu. He also had a mustache, like the man who had cared for Unamu. The lieutenant, who had returned to the Congolese army base, found something shocking. The government in Kinshasa sent this to us this morning. [A-Bio] There was a truckload of vials with A-Bios logo on it. They said its the Eb treatment. * * * The number of confirmed Eb cases in Congo quickly surpassed three hundred thousand. The real battle starts now. Stay focused! Michelle shouted at the Disaster Response Committee. This Eb is going to attack in waves, and this is only the first. After this attack, there will be a second and third wave. Michelle went on. Eb does not spread when it is in its incubation period, but the infection can spread through bodily fluids when people start showing symptoms. Since there are already three hundred thousand patients, the infection will spread to people who are around them. Michelle opened a color-coded map that showed the statistics of densely popted areas and the number of confirmed cases. We have to vinate as many people as possible and secure more of the treatment before it spreads again. We have already started vinating people. But were not able to right now because we dont have enough vines, said one of the scientists from the Ministry of Public Health. Everyone looked terrible. Even the soldiers who were in the civil war in Kivu probably werent this exhausted. What about the amount of the treatment? Fortunately, were good for now. I dont know if it will be enough to stop the second or third wave, but we bought quite a lot from A-Bio, right? Nazir said. Thats a relief. What about the eastern region? We sent them a significant amount of treatments and vines as well. Good. But maam an employee from the Ministry of Public Health said. Do we have to give the treatment to the rebels in Kivu? ... Give it to them. Thats the Presidents order. Hes not the president right now. And hes not running for reelection Are you against giving it to them? The employee sighed. My entire family died because of the rebels terrorist attack. ... Michelle bit her lip. Everyone, think like scientists, she said. One more infected person means one more w in our prevention of Eb. You know that the virus can spread further through that person and cause more damage, right? ... Even if we are pointing guns at each other, shouldnt we work together if aliense to conquer us? The same goes for Eb. Share the treatment with the rebels in the East like we nned. Okay, but But? To be honest, I dont know if the Congolese army in the East will follow those orders. ... Well, its chaotic enough here, and Im not sure I can control them, so Lets just trust them. By the way, where is Doctor Ryu? I saw him the other morning, but he said that he needed to go somewhere. We havent heard from him since. Phew, alright. Lets set up the quarantine as we nned and proceed. * * * The World Health Organization was on alert and watching this situation extremely carefully. A total of ten thousand people died in West Africa during the Eb outbreak in 2014, but the number of infected cases had already passed three hundred thousand in Congo alone. A million people died in the biggest civil war in Congo, but that was over the span of several years. Now, Eb had created three hundred thousand infected people on the first day of the outbreak. In addition, the fatality rate of Eb was extremely high. Statistics varied, but the rate ranged from sixty to even ny percent. There was no telling what kind of consequences this mad biological disaster would have. We have to think that it has already spread from Congo to neighboring areas. A WHO[2] meeting was held in Kenya, Africa. Along with the International Vine Institute, people from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and WHO scientists and doctors from the United States and Europe gathered here in the morning. It was to n measures to contain the spread of the infection and stop the infection from spreading to their own countries. But everyone who gathered had a solemn expression and didnt speak for a while. Doctor Park So-Yeon, how is the diagnostic kiting along? Doctor Kevin from the International Vine Institute asked. The diagnostic kit was originally developed to be used in developed countries in Asia and the United States. Eb isnt part of the diagnosable diseases. I developed it more to include Eb in the diagnostic kit after I got here, but the efficiency is still low, said Park So-Yeon, who was working at the WHO in Kenya. ... Well, I guess the infection has never spread like this there The scientists nodded The entire jungle, including the Kivu region in eastern Congo, has been infected by Eb and anthracis. We have to assume that Rwanda, Burundi, Uganda, Tanzania, Zambia, and Ang have also been infected. Kenya has shown no signs of infections so far. I hope it does not spread here. Lets reinforce the quarantine now and stop the spread. Thankfully, Uganda and Kenya havent had any major conflicts. You can probably just send them a letter asking for their cooperation. As she listened to the scientists talk, Park So-Yeon opened her phone. Oh! Her eyes widened. What is it? asked the doctor who was sitting next to her. Oh, nnothing. Its nothing. Park So-Yeon opened the email. It was from Young-Joon. [Eb wont spread to neighboring countries. Please tell that to the WHO. Work with the neighboring governments and prevent a pandemic.] [Attached file: ProjectName_Anthracisfence.pdf] It was a short and concise email. Young-Joon knew that Park So-Yeon had joined the WHO and was working in Africa. ... Anthracis fence? What is this? Park So-Yeon opened the file. * * * Anthracis and Eb did not cross the borders of Congo. All the scientists fears were put to rest. Young-Joon nned the Anthracis Fence operation when he was almost finished developing the Eb vine for anthracis. He used his GSC membership and contacted the health ministries in neighboring countries. He informed them of the Eb virus connection to anthracis and requested a video conference using Skype. Eb can use anthracis as a new infection route, and the contagiousness of anthrax increased as well. It is mainly in the jungles, and it cannot be eliminated easily because it can grow in the ground. The continuously produced virus contaminates the entire area, Young-Joon said in his hotel room. Health officials from various governments were left speechless when Young-Joon provided them with some relevant data. The cities of Congo have already been infected. Your country shares a border with Congo, but it hasnt spread there yet. Thats a relief, but it will spread soon. The health officials in each country all had some base knowledge about Eb and anthracis because they were long-standing diseases in Africa. They knew it was going to spread soon. Young-Joon was saying that it hadnt crossed the border, but they could never be sure; it could have already spread. ... The health officials froze for a moment. After a long silence, the secretary of Uganda''s Ministry of Health spoke up. Then, should we close the borders and quarantine now? The other health officials looked at the secretary. It seemed like they were wondering if they, the health officials, should be asking Young-Joon this question. However, the situation was so dire that they were desperate for a clear answer. There is one way, Young-Joon said. I have a new drug that makes anthracis resistant to the Eb virus. Lets spray it on the border and jungles of your country and build a fence to keep Eb out. This was the key aspect in the Anthracis Fence project. Its already toote in Congo, but they can fight it alone because they already have arge amount of treatment and vines. Young-Joon exined further. But not the neighboring countries, like Rwanda. Things will get out of hand if Eb crosses the border. To prevent a pandemic, we need to keep Eb contained in Congo. The Anthracis Fence project was simr to a sticky fly trap. The Eb virus, which had been traveling through bodily fluids, would swarm to the anthracis in nearby jungles and infect it. However, the virus wouldnt be able to reproduce there; it would be eliminated by the anthracis because it would have received the vine and be immunized against Eb. The evolved form of Eb became highly infectious through anthracis. Rosalines analysis showed that more than eighty percent of Ebs infection route depended on anthracis. In other words, it meant that they could control eighty percent of the spread if they could get to that route. The quarantine that humans make has ws, but not the one microorganisms make, Young-Joon said. Im sorry, but What about when it is transmitted through human contact? asked the health official from Ang. We are going to control all the infected patients in Congo, Young-Joon said. 1. acronym for the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda 2. World Health Organization Chapter 167: Ebola (10)

Chapter 167: Eb (10)

¡ªWhat about when it is transmitted through human contact? The health official from Ang asked Young-Joon. ¡°We are going to control all the infected patients in Congo,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡ªIt seems like there will be an epidemic in Congo, but are you saying that you will be able to cure all of them? The secretary of the Ministry of Health in Uganda asked. ¡°Yes. Congo already has the resources to treat all its citizens,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°And I promised Secretary Michelle this, but the Congolese government will not only prevent patients from leaving the country once the epidemic starts, but they will also make it mandatory for citizens from other countries to be vinated when they enter Congo. Our goal is to minimize the impact of Eb in Congo, but also to prevent it from bing a pandemic. ¡ªBut isn¡¯t it possible that there could be some infected people in our country that we don¡¯t know about? The Angn health official asked. ¡°Are you worried about something?¡± ¡ªNot in particr, but... There are some people who go to Congo for business... The health official trailed off while avoiding Young-Joon¡¯s gaze. ¡°That¡¯s right. The people who visit both countries often for business might transport the virus in its incubation period,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°But it won¡¯t be enough to start a pandemic.¡± ¡ª... ¡°And the Congolese government haspiled an entry list from the past month, which I will share with you. Screen and quarantine those people now. Since the virus isn¡¯t contagious for the twenty-day incubation period, you shouldn¡¯t have to worry about an Eb outbreak if you quarantine them.¡± ¡ª... But the health officials still looked very displeased. ¡ªDoctor Ryu... You developed and produced the vine and treatment at A-Bio, right? Could you share some with us? The Ugandan secretary asked. ¡°Unfortunately, I cannot. Both the treatment and vine are currently only produced by A-Bio, and we have an exclusive contract with the Congolese government because of the urgency of their situation.¡± ¡ªWe will produce it ourselves if you give us permission to produce it, with royalties of course. ¡°Then I will give you a license. But I¡¯ll warn you in advance that the production process is very particr. It won¡¯t be easy to adapt it to the facilities of localpanies. It will likely take at least a few months.¡± ¡ª... ¡°But if you do as I say, you won¡¯t really need the cure. If you set up the anthracis fence, you won¡¯t have an Eb outbreak in your countries. If you have a small number of infected patients among travelers, you just need to buy a small amount of the treatment from Congo.¡± ¡ªUm... Alright... The health officials replied. ¡°Or is there something bothering you?¡± ¡ªNo, nothing. ¡°We are transporting arge amount of the anthracis fence to Kenya right now. We will sell it to you immediately when you contact us,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡ªThank you. Young-Joon left the video conference. When everyone left, Young-Joon leaned back in his hotel chair and clicked his tongue. ¡ªWhy? Rosaline asked. ¡°There will be quite a lot of cases that they won¡¯t be able to control.¡± ¡ªNo. There are no problems with the anthracis fence. Eb cannot cross it naturally. ¡°We can also prevent human-to-human transmission if we hand over Congo¡¯s entry list, but...¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°There will be a lot of people who entered illegally. The people who are taking advantage of the civil war in eastern Congo toe in and loot resources.¡± ¡ªOh. Rosaline nodded slowly. ¡ªAnd they¡¯re going to have an Eb outbreak in their countries because they will not be able to control the people not on the entry list? ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡ªBut even so, there won¡¯t be a major outbreak because the infection route will be destroyed by the anthracis fence. ¡°Yeah. We can definitely stop a pandemic, and the outbreak in nearby countries will be much smaller than the one that was in 2014, so it will just cause somemotion, nothing more.¡± ¡ªYes, probably. ¡°But they won¡¯t be able to ignore it. And they will have to beg Congo for the treatment, but I don¡¯t know if Congo will give it to those looters.¡± ¡ªThey deserve it. Why would you fuel a civil war in another country, get people killed and sneak in to loot their resources? ¡°They deserve it...¡± ¡ªThere is something I¡¯ve noticed about the human world ever since I met you. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡ªDisease, which people hate the most, is the only equal thing that humans experience. ¡°...¡± ¡ªYour world is full of injustice and inequality, but look. Rosaline said. ¡ªEb infects everyone fairly; it doesn¡¯t discriminate between the rich, poor, looters, the government, the rebels, or ethnic groups. ¡°But richer and more developed countries have good prevention systems, so they don¡¯t get Eb.¡± ¡ªThat¡¯s an inequality that humans made. Rosaline said. ¡ªThe virus itself can infect the president of the United States as well. The inequality that humans made just limited the Eb virus to Africa. Young-Joon could not argue with Rosaline because she was correct. Young-Joon smiled bitterly. ¡°Everyone should be equally free from diseases. And that¡¯s what we study for.¡± * * * ¡ªWe are doing pretty good for now. A few dayster, Young-Joon was watching central Africa through Simtion Mode in his hotel room. The virus was spreading like crazy. The virus was mostlying from the dead animal carcasses. Originally, the Eb virus in Congo used anthracis as a medium and amplified the epidemic, like they were going through an alternation of generations. After severely contaminating the environment, the Eb virus hid in the anthracis to amplify itself again, then popped back out to wreak havoc. The anthracis acted like a bunker for Eb, which was vulnerable to the sun¡¯s UV rays and oxidizing environments. Eb used anthracis as a base to start an aggressive war to conquer. However, the virus was unable to cross the Eb vine that was spread by governments in Rwanda, Ang, and Uganda. The anthracis in the jungle were steadily absorbing and eliminating the Eb virus. Young-Joon looked at the infection rate by color in Simtion Mode. Congo was ck, and the rest of the jungles near it were white. The virus wasn¡¯t going to spread, and there wasn¡¯t going to be a pandemic. ¡ªYou seeded. Congrattions. ¡°We still have to monitor it. What about Congo? Run the simtion there,¡± Young-Joon said to Rosaline. Now, major cities in Congo including Kinshasa showed up in front of his eyes. Congo announced that they had three hundred thousand cases, but the simtion showed that they actually had over a million cases. The rest were either people who didn¡¯t have symptoms yet because the virus was still in its incubation period or those who were too scared to go to the hospital. However, the Ministry of Public Health in Congo promoted the Eb treatment under Michelle¡¯s leadership. ¡ªFree Eb treatment. They attracted patients by distributingrge quantities of the treatment they purchased from A-Bio for free. Michelle deserved to be part of the GSC; her leadership in disease management was exceptional. Her ability not as a scientist, but as the head of health policies in Congo was something that even Young-Joon couldn¡¯t mimic. ¡®Now, I want to scout her and bring her to Korea.¡¯ Michelle was incredible at sending exactly the right supplies to local hospitals and using aggressive marketing tactics to exin Eb and attract patients. The Korean Disease Control and Prevention Agency also had all kinds of brilliant people, but Michelle would still stand out among them. Treatable and free: these two phrases that seemedpletely unrted to Eb, swept across the towns of Congo. Health workers went to rural areas where it was difficult for patients to get to hospitals with the treatment. The number of vine recipients grew rapidly. It was only a few hundred people a few days ago, but now there were almost five hundred thousand people who were vinated. * * * The mayor of Maibi was a passionate supporter of Paulo. His family had been wiped out by rebels, so he hated Phillip with a deep-seated grudge. He believed that the Eb outbreak was a fantasy that Phillip created; like Paulo said, he thought that it would never happen. ¡°... I was wrong.¡± Phillip tried to warn the Congolese people about Eb, even giving up reelection to do so. Now, he realized how sincere Phillip was. [The Constitutional Court tentatively postpones the reelection.] The mayor saw a news article. We can¡¯t hold a vote in a national disaster like this.¡¯ The mayor read the reports from the health authorities. Michelle, the secretary of the Ministry of Public Health, had sent two tons of the treatment to Maibi. Thanks to that, not a single person had died in Maibi even though the number of cases exploded¡ªeven though the dreaded diseases, which had a ny percent fatality rate, swept across the city. In addition to that, Maibi was also being vinated. ¡®To be honest, Michelle and Phillip stopped this Eb epidemic.¡¯ The city of Maibi was deeply indebted to them. The mayor picked up the phone and pressed Paulo¡¯s number. However, Paulo could not pick up because he was meeting Phillip in Kinshasa. ¡°The entire country is crazy right now,¡± Paulo said. ¡°Yes, it is.¡± Phillip cut off a piece of his cake with his fork and ate it. Paulo, who was watching him, spoke. ¡°How did you know that Eb wasing?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t know,¡± Phillip said. ¡°You didn¡¯t know?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not a scientist, so how could I have known? Of course, I didn¡¯t. But I trusted Secretary Michelle and Doctor Ryu Young-Joon.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I was keeping a close eye on a few infectious diseases including Eb. Then, Secretary Michelle came in with a serious look on her face and reported that Eb seemed to be infecting anthracis. I¡¯m sure you saw it as well, Commissioner Paulo,¡± Phillip said. ¡°And since Doctor Ryu Young-Joon owed us, we took the only opportunity we had to invite him to Congo. He also agreed with Secretary Michelle, and he did some experiments and reported to us that it was true.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t do much. Actually, I failed at everything I tried to do. I even gave up on running for reelection to convince the people about the dangers of Eb, but it wasn¡¯t effective,¡± Phillip said. ¡°This is when I feel the helplessness of a politician, since the people who actually solved the problem were Doctor Ryu Young-Joon, Secretary Michelle, and the scientists they led.¡± But it was Phillip who had invited Michelle to Congo and given her a ministerial position, as well as the one who brought in Young-Joon by allowing the exportation of bonobos. Paulo knew that as well. ¡°It¡¯s because of me,¡± he said. ¡°People not believing in Eb. That was my fault.¡± ¡°Because you really didn¡¯t believe in Eb,¡± Phillip said. ¡°...¡± ¡°And I think that¡¯s fair enough.¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s not. You know what people are saying about me, right?¡± Paulo said. Paulo was right. After the Eb epidemic, voices condemning Paulo spread across the country. The people who supported Paulo, saying that Eb wasn¡¯t going to happen, were now horrified and demanded he be held ountable. Those who had remained neutral or supported Phillip berated Paulo; it seemed like they were ready to drag Paulo to the town square and execute him. ¡°It¡¯s all my fault,¡± Paulo said, depressed. ¡°I¡¯ve been focusing all my attention on the democratic election that I politicized the issue.¡± ¡°...¡± Phillip ate another piece of his cake. ¡°I did some research about Doctor Ryu Young-Joon, and this is what he said,¡± Phillip said. ¡°He said to separate politics from science. He said that science should be an absolutely objective discipline.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I really liked that. We¡¯ve been bogged down by political confusion from ethnic conflicts, civil wars between the government and rebels, and dictatorships. It¡¯s be a world where we can¡¯t tell what is right and wrong anymore. But not science. This absolutely objective discipline searches for the right answer without any political bias, and sometimes, it really does find it.¡± ¡°... I see.¡± ¡°Commissioner Paulo. I want Congo to be a country of science. ¡° ¡°...¡± Paulo let out a small sigh. He finished his ss of water, then said with difficulty, ¡°Mr. Phillip, since you¡¯re not running, I¡¯ll probably be in the election alone.¡± ¡°I suppose so.¡± ¡°I am thinking of dropping out. Since the reelection has been tentatively postponed, I can probably give up now.¡± ¡°Hm.¡± It was a possibility because public opinion about Paulo was very negative. However, Phillip didn¡¯t think Paulo would say it here himself. ¡°There won¡¯t be a suitable candidate left if I drop out, so the Constitutional Court will probably start over from the candidate selection process. They also have the justification to do so,¡± Paulo said. ¡°And because you have shown something, no one will be opposed to you running again.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°This is myplete defeat, and I learned a lot. I look forward to working with you.¡± Chapter 168: Ebola (11)

Chapter 168: Eb (11)

There was a very bizarre and unusual situation going on in Kivu, which was located in eastern Congo. Government soldiers, rebels, and foreigners who hade to loot resources were lying side by side in the temporary treatment centers: government soldiers who had gotten Eb aftering here to subdue the rebels, rebels who had gotten Eb while forming an organization to carry out a terrorist attack, and smugglers from neighboring countries who copsed due to Eb before getting home. Rosaline was right when she said Eb was fair and equal. Ideologies and greed were weakened in the face of death. People who were in excruciating pain and coughing up blood due to Eb showed up to the government¡¯s temporary treatment centers one by one. ¡°We surrender... Please help us...¡± ¡°I¡¯m from Uganda... I¡¯m sorry. Help me...¡± The news of cured patients and free treatment spread quickly here. The virus of death that had infected and defeated so many people had ironically created a ceasefire in this region. Unamu, a child soldier from the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda, found this unfamiliar peace a little baffling. He didn¡¯t have to walk through the jungle in fear of being shot or stepping onndmines anymore. He thought that he would be executed by the government if he was captured, but the government army was surprisingly merciful. ¡°You will be tried in a court-martial, but child soldiers don¡¯t usually get time nowadays And the president... Well, I guess he¡¯s not the president anymore, or he could be again... Anyways, President Phillip emphasizes harmony, so there won¡¯t be any rebels that get executed.¡± This was what the soldier with the mustache said to Unamu when he was helping him back to the tent. Unamu was given a certain amount of freedom at the base, but he didn¡¯t run away or fight back. It had been four days since Unamu had been in the government¡¯s temporary treatment center. At noon, Unamu, who had eaten his share of the rations, was sitting on the dirt floor, throwing stones at the tree. ¡°Hey, kid,e here!¡± The doctor from the government¡¯s army called Unamu. ¡°Yes!¡± Unamu quickly scrambled to his feet and ran to the doctor. ¡°Come here. What did you say your dad¡¯s name was?¡± ¡°He wasn¡¯t my dad. His name was Toba.¡± The doctor went inside the small tent and went to the man who wasying on the bed that was furthest from them. ¡°Mr. Toba, I have the kid you were looking for.¡± A young soldier was lying in bed. He also had a mustache. It was Toba from the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda. ¡°Oh...¡± Toba got up right away when he saw Unamu. ¡°Oh, thank you God,¡± Toba said quietly as he hugged Unamu. ¡°You should be thanking me. I was the one who fixed you,¡± the doctor said yfully. ¡°Thank you so much, Doctor.¡± ¡°And be thankful to Doctor Ryu Young-Joon, too. He¡¯s the one who made this unbelievable treatment.¡± ¡°Yes, I will pray for Lui Yeon-Joon.¡± ¡°... And this kid left without you because he thought you were dead.¡± The doctorughed. ¡°It¡¯s okay. Unamu, are you okay?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°That¡¯s good. That¡¯s such a relief.¡± Toba hugged Unamu close. ¡°Is this the Treatment Test Seven?¡± A crowd of soldiers swarmed inside. There was a man in his fifties who was wearing a military uniform that didn¡¯t have a single crevice; he was the deputymander of the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo. He had a lot of military officers and soldiers beside him. Toba froze. His arm tightened around Unamu. ¡°Are you a rebel?¡± the deputymander asked. ¡°... Yes...¡± ¡°Alright.¡± Toba thought themander would transport him to Kinshasa and either put him in jail forever or execute him, but he didn¡¯t care. The deputymander walked past Toba and Unamu. Leaving them confused, the deputymander went to the patient who was lying next to them. ¡°Are you a rebel, too?¡± ¡°Pardon? No, I¡¯m a Rwandan citizen.¡± ¡°How did a Rwandan citizen get here?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Please show me your passport.¡± ¡°That is...¡± ¡°Did you go to a rebel-held gold mine here and make a contract with the rebels to smuggle gold?¡± ¡°... Yes...¡± the man replied timidly. ¡°Are there any other foreigners here?¡± ¡°I am the only one in this tent.¡± ¡°Alright. You will be arrested by the military police and go to Kinshasa. Please understand that the military police are arresting you because this is a civil war zone,¡± the deputymander said. ¡°Arrest him.¡± The military police ran out when themander ordered. ¡°Wait.¡± The doctor stepped in front of him. ¡°Sir, he is still a patient that needs treatment.¡± ¡°How long until he is fully healed?¡± the deputymander asked. ¡°He needs to take medication for about four more days.¡± ¡°Then I will transport him four dayster.¡± The deputymander turned to the smuggler. ¡°Don¡¯t worry too much. We¡¯re just gathering evidence and witnesses. Your punishment won¡¯t be severe if you cooperate.¡± ¡°...¡± The deputymander chuckled when he looked at the smuggler, who looked extremely nervous. Neighboring countries asked Congo to sell the treatment they had. The Congolese government nned to use this opportunity to make a strong argument with the arrested smugglers. * * * It had been a week. The first wave of the Eb epidemic had subsided. Themotion was dying down. ¡°First of all, I would like to give Secretary Michelle the credit for the rapid response to the Eb epidemic,¡± Phillip said in a statement to the public. ¡°Secretary Michelle was the first person who predicted the start of this outbreak. Since the first confirmed case in Maibi, she has done considerable and in-depth research into the transmission routes of the Eb virus and realized that it can spread through anthracis.¡± Phillip went on. ¡°And Secretary Michelle brought Doctor Ryu Young-Joon here, one of the brightest stars in the scientificmunity. We were able to get his help and develop a treatment and vine for Eb in time. I would like to extend a special thank you to Doctor Ryu Young-Joon.¡± It was still a little early to im victory. Michelle¡¯s perfectionist nature urged Phillip to dy the announcement, but Phillip thought it was the right time, because it was the government¡¯s job to calm people¡¯s fears. ¡°This was a dangerous disaster that could have cost a huge number of lives across the entire country, but were were able to catch it thanks to the efforts of Secretary Michelle, Doctor Ryu Young-Joon, and the great scientists in our country, as well as the public¡¯s quick recognition and active cooperation,¡± Phillip said. ¡°Our country is facing a huge change. Thisnd is as big as all of Western Europebined. It¡¯s ten times the size of Korea, Doctor Ryu¡¯s country. We have trillions in underground resources. Thisnd was once called the heart of Africa.¡± Phillip squeezed the microphone. ¡°Over the years, ournd has been in fear and confusion from dangers like civil war, terrorism, dictatorships, and disease. We have hated each other due to shing ideologies. But look, we endured a major epidemic caused by abination of the two deadly diseases.¡± The people listened to him silently. Phillip had polished and read this speech many times, but at this moment, he felt genuinely choked up. ¡°From the first case until now, no one has died from Eb in this great heart of Africa. We have saved everyone.¡± Phillip stopped himself from choking up. Africa, an underdeveloped and impoverished country: Phillip knew how Congo was perceived by the internationalmunity. He also knew how difficult the conditions actually were. But they overcame a serious catastrophe that was put onto them. ¡°Of course, the Eb epidemic hasn¡¯t been eliminated yet, and it needs to be managed. But folks, you can go back to normal now. The government has Eb under control. Go back to work and catch up, and enjoy a peaceful weekend with your families,¡± Philip said. ¡°The Congolese government will not allow Eb to threaten your lives. Just as we have ovee such a huge disaster, we will be able to ovee all future problems. We can ovee anything: the civil war with the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda, conflict between ethnicities, looting of resources by powerful countries. We are strong. Let¡¯s move forward to the future together.¡± * * * Two men were standing in the garden of a luxury apartmentplex in Seocho-gu, Seoul. They had an employer-employee rtionship, but they were also father and son. It was Yoon Dae-Sung, the CEO of A-Gen, and Yoon Bo-Hyun, his son. Yoon Bo-Hyun was respectful to Yoon Dae-Sung at A-Gen because they had a huge difference in rank as a manager and a CEO, but not at home. Yoon Dae-Sung taught Yoon Bo-Hyun the ways and charisma of a chaebol[1], a king who ran argepany. And Yoon Bo-Hyun mastered it perfectly. He was naturally savvy in business, and he was strategic. He was able to read the market and people¡¯s minds with keen insight. When all the executives at A-Gen were idly standing by and observing Young-Joon, Yoon Bo-Hyun was the first one to recognize his growth and threat. Yoon Bo-Hyun was also the one who used Ji Kwang-Man as a pawn and tried to get rid of Young-Joon when he was still nothing. ¡®He¡¯s better than me now.¡¯ Yoon Dae-Sung already thought Yoon Bo-Hyun had surpassed him years ago. Yoon Bo-Hyun was the perfect sessor. They were father and son, not an employer and employee; Yoon Dae-Sung saw him as another businessman. As such, they sometimes smoked cigarettes together in private. ¡°What did you just say?¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun asked as he put out his cigarette on the ashtray. ¡°I¡¯m going to step down from A-Gen. I¡¯m thinking of merging with A-Bio and handing over the control to Doctor Ryu,¡± Yoon Dae-Sung said with a tense face. ¡°Father, are you serious?¡± ¡°And I am going to turn myself in for developing the anthrax bioweapon.¡± ¡°...¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun stared at Yoon Dae-Sung. ¡°Father, I have studied and worked since I was in high school with the goal of inheriting yourpany. I¡¯ve dedicated more than a decade of my life to A-Gen.¡± ¡°I know.¡± ¡°You know that, and you¡¯re still going to give everything to that bastard?¡± ¡°Sigh...¡± Yoon Dae-Sung sighed. ¡°You¡¯ve dedicated ten years to thispany, but I¡¯ve dedicated my entire life to it, Bo-Hyun,¡± Yoon Dae-Sung said. ¡°But that¡¯s why I need to give it to Doctor Ryu Young-Joon. He¡¯s not just some adequate businessman or a bright scientist. He¡¯s not like us criminals. This is apany I care about, and I want it to seed after I leave, too.¡± ¡°I can do a good job, too! You were supposed to give it to me!¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun shouted, grabbing Yoon Dae-Sung¡¯s arm roughly. ¡°You can¡¯t,¡± Yoon Dae-Sung said firmly. ¡°You can¡¯t win against him.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I can¡¯t win against him either. Even David can¡¯t win against him. When a genius like him exists, criminals like us have to live in his shadow. If you try to run A-Gen, you¡¯ll sh with Doctor Ryu, and you will be the one who is destroyed.¡± ¡°Father!¡± ¡°Stop. This is good for everyone. Even if we give A-Gen to Doctor Ryu Young-Joon, we will be the same. We will just sell our shares to Doctor Ryu. That alone will give you enough money to livefortably until you die.¡± ¡°...That¡¯s not what I want. What I want is ownership.¡± ¡°Yes, and that¡¯s a dream I instilled in you. I¡¯m sorry, but you have to give up on that dream now.¡± ¡°...¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun took out a cigarette. He lit it up and took a deep breath. ¡°Father,¡± he said. ¡°I knew that this might happen. If I were to take over A-Gen, I would have had to make an affiliatepany in my name, but A_Bio was the one that started growing. I was expecting this.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°You pretend to be a businessman, but deep inside, you¡¯re still a scientist,¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun said. ¡°But I was never a scientist. I am a businessman.¡± ¡°Bo-Hyun, please.¡± ¡°Why do you think I let Ryu Young-Joon go wild?¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun asked. ¡°Do you think I was scared because Ji Kwang-Man failed?¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun shook his head. ¡°No, I let him be because I didn¡¯t think it was time to strike yet. You are right, Ryu Young-Joon is not just some bright scientist; he¡¯s a genius, and he¡¯s a rampaging beast with an obsession with research ethics.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°You said I can¡¯t beat Ryu Young-Joon? You¡¯ll regret that you said that,¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun said. ¡°Because when everyone was scrambling to get something out of Ryu Young-Joon, I¡¯ve been working on ways to overturn it and grab him by the neck.¡± ¡°Bo-Hyun, stop. I¡¯m begging you. You¡¯re no match for him!¡± ¡°That¡¯s where you¡¯re wrong,¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun said. ¡°Ji Kwang-Man failed, and so did Schumatix, but not me. You¡¯ll see how I am going to take him down.¡± ¡°...¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun leaned closer to Yoon Dae-Sung. ¡°Then you¡¯ll have to give me thepany and apologize.¡± 1. arge family-owned business ? Chapter 169: GSC (1) Chapter 169: GSC (1) Young-Joon retired to Kinshasa after traveling to several countries to help establish the anthracis fence. He was at a hotel restaurant. Michelle was the first to arrive, then Young-Joon. When are you flying back? Michelle asked. In two days, replied Young-Joon. You would be treated like a state guest anywhere else. Im sorry for bringing you all this way and just making you work. Haha, its alright. I did some good research, a few papers, made a new treatment and a vine, finished a clinical trial, and worked on a new prevention method for disease. I did all of that with the Congolese governments money, so it was good for me. Now that you say that And I brought in a lot of revenue for mypany from supplying the treatment, vine, and the anthracis fence. Youre probably the only person who can bring in that much money from a business trip. I will take that as apliment. It is. As they were making small talk, someone else showed up at the table. It was Phillip. Am Ite? Im sorry, he said as he sat down. You should have started without me. Im sure you were hungry. We just got here as well. Michelle smiled. As Phillip sat down, the dishes beganing out, starting with the appetizer. The three people talked about the battle against Eb over the meal. Its all thanks to Doctor Ryu, Phillip said as he took a sip of wine. I couldnt praise Doctor Ryu too much during the speech because I had to give hope to the frightened people of Congo. But I think you are the biggest contributor to this battle against Eb. I agree, Michelle said. Like he said, no matter how well we nned the strategy, we wouldnt have been able to do anything if we didnt have the treatment, vine, and the anthracis fence. Im ttered, but the real credit goes to someone else, Young-Joon said. Who? Michelle asked. Its the scientists who risked their lives in a level fourb to bring the treatment up to product level. ... Phillip lowered his head solemnly. That is also true, since they risked their lives for that research. Ive also worked in a level fourb, and the scientists who work there deserve our respect, Michelle said. They are all going to receive special recognition, Phillip said. But if it wasnt for Doctor Ryu, we wouldnt have even been able to start the experiment in a level fourb, and Eb would have swept across this country, Michelle said. Thats right, Doctor Ryu. Please tell us anything you want. Im not the president, but I will do anything I can if I be the next president, Phillip said. Like I said to Secretary Michelle, I already gained a lot here Still, I would feel so bad if I let you go like this. I could consider this foreign aid and if youd like, we can open diplomatic rtions for our underground resources, almost as friendly countries. Even if Phillip offered that, Young-Joon didnt know what to say, since hed never thought about trade and diplomacy at the national level. Should I ask for hydrogen fluoride? After a brief moment of daydreaming, Young-Joon snapped back to reality. I will contact you if I need anything, Young-Joon said. The three of them enjoyed their meal and wine. Although, Young-Joon couldnt get drunk because Rosaline cleaned the alcohol up as soon as he drank wine. And after the evening came to an end, Young-Joon, who was tired, returned to his hotel room and flopped down on his bed. While he was idly scrolling on his phone, he noticed something that made him get up in surprise. He sat up straight and read his phone again. There was arge picture of him on the main screen of the GSC homepage. [The person who went to Africa alone and solved the Eb pandemic] What is this? [In biology, diseases sometimes intersect with each other, just as science intersects. A terrible epidemic was born in Congo when Eb and anthracis fused together. There was a deadly crisis where this could have be a pandemic, but thanks to the quick response of the Congolese government and neighboring countries, it now appears to have subsided. Much of this is due to the work of Doctor Ryu Young-Joon, the youngest member of the GSC.] ... [This is different from making a cure or a vine. Doctor Ryu made anthracis resistant to Eb by nting a viral vector and delivering part of the Eb genes to the bacteria. He seeded in transforming anthracis, the infection route of Eb, into a capturing device and eliminating the spread of Eb.] [This changes the paradigm of the scientificmunitys approach to epidemic prevention. Health authorities including the WHO should consider setting up biological fences like this as a way of securing their borders in the future. Furthermore] Young-Joon quickly realized what this article was aiming for. At the end of the article, there was a link to another announcement. Convening of the International GSC Membership Conference. Location: Granny Hyatt Hotel, Seoul, South Korea. * * * Originally, the GSC first started with the Royal Academy of Sciences in Paris, France. They were scientists who were paid a stipend by the king to solve scientific problems that were given to them. They initially focused on mathematics and philosophy, but theyter moved on to physics, chemistry, and more. Gradually, they began to be more international in nature while working with the Anglosphere and eventually became independent as the GSC. The concept of one hundred great scientists was first created when they became independent. The idea was to heal and unite people who had been scarred by the First and Second World Wars through the power of science, which had no borders. Since then, there have only been one hundred members. But as the organization grew, it decided to open up membership to the general public. The conditions to be a general member are less rigid, so we have over two million members. That was what Michelle said to Young-Joon over tea the next afternoon. Objectively speaking, it was a bit ridiculous because most of those general members were scientists who were at least research professors at universities or senior scientists atpanies. Not surprisingly, there were also many Nobel Prize recipients among the general members. Carpentier was also a general member. But those two million scientists cant go to the GSC Membership conference that is held every year. The international conference picks a venue and only invites the one hundred scientists who hold the membership. They are the only ones who get tickets, Michelle said. Did you see the article in GSC? Young-Joon asked Michelle. Of course, I saw it. ... It has some pretty specific information about what happened. Did they contact you about the article or anything like that? Yes. Didnt they contact you, Doctor Ryu? No. Did you update your personal information on your ount? Personal ount? You have to put your contact information and opt-in to receive notifications for the GSC administration team to contact you. I see. They probably published your story as bait. Bait? All of the GSC members are incredibly egotistical and busy. Of course, they are since they only picked one hundred scientists out of all the scientists in the entire world. ... What Im saying is that even if they convene an international conference, not even fifty people wille. Its usually thirty or forty people, and about fifty people wille if theres an interesting issue. So are you saying that they wrote my story since its being held in Seoul? Its probably the opposite. Theyre putting the spotlight here since you are at the heart of the scientificmunity and holding it in Seoul. Oh But you should go to the International GSC Conference since its quite educational and socially meaningful. GSC was not just for people in biology or medicine; there was also astrophysics, math, organic chemistry,puter science and more. It was an elite club for scientists from a variety of fields. It was a collection of the best brains in all the STEM disciplines that made the world function The GSC only had one goal. The consilience of science. For example, it was like when the interaction between SC Electronics and A-Bios biology resulted in a diagnostic kit. When different fields of science synergized, the results were often revolutionary. That was what international conferences were for; scientists who were experts in their field shared their research and perspectives to find out what theyve been missing. They were able to pool their ideas to solve global problems that couldnt be addressed easily. The topics are usually very general and vast. The Eb and anthracis we caught recently could also be one of the topics. But we also discuss things like the depletion of oil resources, climate change, poption growth, and aging, Michelle said. The topics themselves are things that could be discussed at a university, but its different in that were gathering toe up with a realistic solution. Im guessing were going to talk a lot about you this time. Really? The food crisis was one of the topics three years ago, and one of the solutions that was mentioned was cultured meat. And you did that yourself, Doctor Ryu. ... The International GSC Conference also has a lot of influence on the policy decisions of governments around the world. So if youre going, do well. Are you going too? Ill have to see, since I still have to focus on Eb in Congo. * * * Upon returning to Korea, Young-Joon was suddenly overwhelmed with mental fatigue. Developing the Eb treatment and vines, researching and developing the anthracis fence, and convincing and installing them in neighboring countries: even with Rosalines help, this was not easy. I thought I recovered when I rested at the hotel for a few days after it was all over. Young-Joons body had recovered, but he hadnt mentally rxed yet. He actually felt like it was all over once he met Yoo Song-Mi, his secretary, at the airport. But why are you here? Young-Joon asked Park Joo-Hyuk, who was standing beside Yoo Song-Mi. I came to check if our dear CEO was okay and wasnt exhausted, and to take you home. Why are you acting like that all of a sudden? Creepy. Young-Joon frowned. Ill tell you what has happened at thepany while you were gone. This has some security issues, and its important. Okay, tell me on the way, Young-Joon said as he got in the K-Cops car. First, Yoo Song-Mi told Young-Joon everything that had happened at thepany while he was gone. Lab One at A-Gen has seeded in developing a new material that has the lotus effect, Yoo Song-Mi said. Oh, right To be honest, even Young-Joon had forgotten about that. I heard it works very well, Yoo Song-Mi said. Thats good. And the Life Creation Team at A-Bio has made an artificial liver. So they did it. It wouldnt have been easy. They were able to make an artificial intestine, and now an artificial liver. I wonder if theyll actually be able to produce all the organs one by one, put them together, and actually seed in creating life by creating a heart and brain. Young-Joon chuckled. And Doctor Carpentiers team created a hair follicle tissue, Yoo Song-Mi said. Hair follicle tissue? Young-Joon asked. They say its expected to give a lot of hope to people with hair loss. ... And Doctor Feng Zhengs team used the dendritic cell bypass method in the research with the A-Bio Cancer Institute and had sess in treating esophageal cancer in preclinical trials. Great. And Doctor Cheon Ji-Myungs team was able to get their probiotic approved by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. Probiotics? Yes, its a probiotic with Clorotonis limuvitus that has been edited. I guess they finally came to their senses, Park Joo-Hyuk added. It felt like they had gotten off easy this time, perhaps because Young-Joon had done something insane like putting in gene-edited bacteria into the brain. But there was still a problem. The probiotics that had been approved now was what Young-Joon made when Rosaline was at a much lower level. And now, Rosaline had proposed a new and better probioticsposed of bacteria with a lot more edited genes. Sorry, Doctor Cheon, but were going to have to start a new product Thats all the progress, Yoo Song-Mi said. Thank you. Ill hear the rest of the details during meetings, Young-Joon said. Then, he turned to Park Joo-Hyuk. Now, lets hear what Joo-Hyuk has to say. The legal team at A-Bio got an important case. What is it? Exchanging shares with A-Gen, and a merger, Park Joo-Hyuk said. Mr. Yoon wants to see you. He asked to set up a meeting. Chapter 170: GSC (2)

Chapter 170: GSC (2)

A-Bio was founded on twenty billion won. However, it had grown tremendously in just one year. It wasmon for small or medium-sized pharmaceuticalpanies to be a little bit smaller than big pharmapanies with just one powerful drug. But A-Bio had alreadymercialized well over a dozen drugs like that. They had stem cells and Cas9, base technologies that could change the trend of future medicine. As a subsidiary, A-Bio had the A-Bio Cancer Laboratory and the Next-Generation Hospital. A-Gen Life was a subsidiary of A-Gen, but it was only run by Yoon Dae-Sung; A-Bio and Young-Joon actually had the majority of the shares. There had never been apany that had undergone such a transformation in such a short period of time. As such, the evaluation of A-Bio¡¯s worth varied from expert to expert. The situation was especially chaotic before the merger with A-Gen. Experts had one of three opinions: 1. A-Bio had higher market capitalization than A-Gen. 2. A-Bio wasn¡¯t as big as A-Gen yet. 3. A-Bio was simr to A-Gen. A-Gen was a huge pharmaceuticalpany that was valued at two hundred trillion won andpeted with Schumatix, Roche, and Conson & Colson. A-Bio, which was only valued at twenty billion won, waspeting for the acquirer position as they were merging with A-Gen. ¡°A-Bio is worth more based on the current market capitalization.¡± That was what some experts were saying. ¡°That¡¯s because they grew so fast that people invested in their growth. It¡¯s a bubble that will burst soon.¡± That was what others were saying. ¡°Growth is also one of the metrics for investment. This is not a bubble.¡± ¡°There¡¯s no guarantee their future drugs will also be sessful, right?¡± ¡°When you merge entities, their value is the arithmetic mean of their monthly average stock price, the weekly average stock price, and the previous day¡¯s closing price. If calcted this way, A-Gen is slightly higher.¡± ¡°What¡¯s the point of that? Should we leave A-Bio for another year? No, let¡¯s leave them for a month. They made a hair loss cure yesterday. Do you want to see how much more A-Bio will be worthpared to A-Gen next month?¡± ¡°And if you include the value of the A-Bio Cancer Institute, they can buy ten A-Gens.¡± ¡°The cancerb is an American entity.¡± ¡°It¡¯s an affiliatepany of A-Bio that was incorporated under U.S.w. If you look at the shareholder structure, it is owned by A-Bio.¡± ¡°Then what about the value of A-Gen Life? They are growing so fast that they are crushing all the domestic insurancepanies.¡± ¡°A-Gen Life is still an affiliatepany of A-Gen.¡± ¡°I think everyone is mistaken, but A-Bio is not the only one who grew rapidly. A-Gen also synergized with A-Bio and grew quickly.¡± ¡°Would A-Bio have been able to grow that quickly if they didn¡¯t have A-Gen¡¯s centralized research support system? They¡¯re like Siamese twins that use one body together.¡± ¡°A-Bio did create incredible drugs, but A-Gen still has a much higher revenue than A-Bio, since most of the facilities that produce their drugs are owned by A-Gen.¡± ¡°A-Bio also produces their own drugs as well.¡± ¡°Still, it¡¯s only a small amountpared to A-Gen. Most of the nt-based pharmaceutical production facilities are A-Gen¡¯s GMP nts. They sell the inventory from those facilities and split the revenue between A-Gen and A-Bio. A-Gen has also made a lot of money from that.¡± ¡°It¡¯s possible to change the manufacturing nt, although it will take time. And A-Bio could build a new one if they wanted.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t that what the merger is for?¡± ¡°Speaking of which, A-Gen has grown to the point where its value can¡¯t be determined because of the production of nt-based medicine and the lotus leaf effect. That is how important a tform technologies are, since nt-based production can be applied to all pharmaceuticals.¡± ¡°tform technologies? Do you know that A-Bio has Cas9 and stem cells?¡± ¡°A-Gen also owns stem cells. The terms of equity are a bit unclear.¡± ¡°Check again. When the Life Creation Team went to A-Bio, they took most of the patent rights to the stem cell technology with them.¡± The discussion went something like this. Numerous brokerage firms, ounting firms, and economists debated this interesting merger. The situation of bothpanies were so unusual that it was impossible to judge their value. * * * ¡°Let¡¯s merge and use A-Bio¡¯s name,¡± Yoon Dae-Sung said. Young-Joon, who was sitting on the guest sofa and drinking tea, frowned slightly. He wasn¡¯t here to decide on some oue; he came here because he wanted to talk about how to move forward. ¡®He¡¯s going to make it this easy?¡¯ Young-Joon set his tea down on the table. ¡°I¡¯m sure you¡¯re very attached to A-Gen,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°It¡¯s not like A-Gen is disappearing. All the employees will stay the same, and so will the sixbs, right?¡± ¡°I promise you that.¡± ¡°It¡¯s just that the name of thepany will be A-Bio, and A-Bio¡¯s management will be in the engine room running thepany. A-Gen will stay the same.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu,¡± Yoon Dae-Sung said. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°A year ago, you came to me with A-Bio, which was only worth twenty billion won, and asked to do a one-for-one exchange of shares with A-Gen, which was worth twenty trillion won.¡± ¡°I did.¡± ¡°And that really happened. We said we would exchange ten percent, but I think it¡¯s better to give you management rights and merge.¡± Yoon Dae-Sung let out a deep sigh. This middle-aged executive had worked at A-Gen his entire life. Young-Joon thought that he would be tired after all that time, but he looked much more exhausted than that. ¡°I have to step down now. I should spend the rest of my days killing time in the countryside,¡± Yoon Dae-Sung said. ¡°... Thank you. I hope you¡¯ll give the bondholders and shareholders enough share certificates after the shareholders meeting. Please take care of it well so the shareholders have enough.¡± ¡°Haha, don¡¯t worry. Who wouldn¡¯t want to be acquired by A-Bio?¡± Yoon Dae-Sung said. ¡°And Doctor Ryu, there¡¯s something else I have to finish.¡± ¡°To finish?¡± ¡°Something you already know about. A-Gen has developed an anthrax bioweapon in the past.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°We sold it to the U.S. military. We did that after my father made A-Gen and was on the verge of going bankrupt because we had no business,¡± Yoon Dae-Sung said. ¡°There were a few of us including me, Director Kim Hyun-Taek, and Division Manager Ji Kwang-Man. That became the nutrients that made A-Gen what it is today.¡± ¡°Developing biological weapons is a vition of internationalw,¡± Young-Joon said. Yoon Dae-Sung smiled. ¡°That¡¯s right. You really are so strict.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I¡¯m going to turn myself in and finish it.¡± ¡°You made a tough decision.¡± ¡°It took a while for Nichs to convince me.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°But I can¡¯t turn myself into the police right now. Please understand this.¡± ¡°You¡¯re going to turn yourself in after the merger is sessful?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. There¡¯s a good chance that the merger won¡¯t happen if I leave because the CEO will be gone and it will be bad news. The stocks will suffer a big fall, and the merger will be postponed.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± ¡°But I¡¯m exhausted. I want to just hand it over to you and be done with it, Doctor Ryu. After the merger, I want you to be the new CEO of A-Bio. I¡¯ll help you take over A-Gen¡¯s management,¡± Yoon Dae-Sung said. ¡°I am nning my visit to the police after that. It will be about four monthster.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°And no one working at A-Gen right now had anything to do with the anthrax bioweapon. I hope you don¡¯t dislike the employees here.¡± ¡°Of course, not.¡± ¡°I believe Nichs will also leave when I retire. It will be very difficult for you to manage thepany and be the CTO, so if you want to focus on one position, it¡¯ll be good to hire an executive.¡± ¡°Yes... Thank you.¡± ¡°And Doctor Ryu...¡± Yoon Dae-Sung hesitated. ¡°Um... I have a son.¡± ¡°A son?¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°And he is working at thispany. His name is Yoon Bo-Hyun. He¡¯s working in management as a manager.¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joon was surprised when he heard Yoon Bo-Hyun¡¯s name, but he didn¡¯t show it. ¡°He was supposed to take over thepany. I let him work his way up to manager. Now, he¡¯s in his mid-thirties and about to be promoted to senior manager. He did it all on his own. He¡¯s quite capable.¡± Yoon Dae-Sung smiled bitterly. He thought of the things Yoon Bo-Hyun had said to him; he had said he would destroy Yoon Bo-Hyun himself and take thepany. ¡°Please take good care of my son,¡± Yoon Dae-Sung said. Yoon Dae-Sung contemted whether to warn Young-Joon about Yoon Bo-Hyun several times a day, but in the end, Yoon Dae-Sung swallowed his words. ¡°You don¡¯t have to do anything special for him. Just treat him like a normal employee. You just have to let him be.¡± ¡°... Alright, thank you.¡± * * * Young-Joon left most of the merging process to Park Joo-Hyuk and the legal team. There was no need to spend a lot of energy and time on the merger as they already had Yoon Dae-Sung¡¯s enthusiastic and full cooperation. Young-Joon was confident that Park Joo-Hyuk, who was much more familiar with thew, would work with investmentpanies and take care of it. Instead, Young-Joon was meeting with three guests at A-Bio: Legion, a climate change expert with a background in ecology; Messelson, a systems biologist; and Tedros, the secretary-general of the WHO. Legion and Messelson were GSC members. ¡°What brings you here? Aren¡¯t you all busy?¡± After a brief greeting, Young-Joon made some coffee for them. Messelson, however, didn¡¯t drink coffee. ¡°There¡¯s something we would like to discuss with you before the GSC conference,¡± said Messelson. ¡°Yes, what is it?¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°We are going to make mosquitoes go extinct.¡± ¡°Mosquitoes?¡± ¡°Yes. Doctor Legion and I have worked on this problem for a long time. We got funding from the Gates Foundation. The species we are targeting are the Asian tiger mosquitoes.¡± ¡°Are they vectors of Zika and dengue fever?¡± ¡°Yes. The Asian tiger mosquito is of particr concern because it is highly distributed in developed countries such as South Korea, Japan, Taiwan, France, Australia, and Hawaii. If left unchecked, it could cause a dengue or Zika epidemic whenever ites into the country.¡± Young-Joon nodded. ¡°I mentioned something simr to Secretary-General Tedros before about eradicating mosquitoes.¡± Now, Young-Joon had an idea of why these two people came with Tedros. ¡°You talked about wiping out all thirteen species of blood-sucking mosquitoes,¡± Tedros said. ¡°To be honest, when I first heard that from the Secretary-General, I thought you were talking nonsense because you didn¡¯t know much about the field, Doctor Ryu¡± Legion interrupted. ¡°Really?¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°But I changed my mind after seeing you contain Eb and anthrax in Africa.¡± ¡°We can afford to do it since the HIV eradication project was sessful,¡± Tedros said. ¡°Doctor Ryu,¡± Messelson said. ¡°The fact that there are so many countries where the Asian tiger mosquito lives means that we will basically need cooperation from the entire world to make it work.¡± ¡°Probably, since HIV tends to be rtively localized while mosquitoes aren¡¯t,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°That is why we are going to announce this item at the GSC conference.¡± ¡°You¡¯re saying that it¡¯ll be easier to ask other governments for cooperation if it is approved at the GSC conference, right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± Messelson nodded. Legion, who was sitting beside him, frowned. ¡°But even if it is the GSC, there are a lot of idiots when ites to ecology. They don¡¯t even know what trophic levels are. They are going to object and freak out, which is why we need to be prepared for everything,¡± Legion said. ¡°Alright,¡± Young-Joon replied. * * * In the intensive care unit at Yeonyee University Hospital, Yoon Bo-Hyun was sitting next to a bed. A middle-aged man was lying in the bed, but he had been in aa for months already. It was Kim Hyun-Taek. He was dered brain-dead; a certain part of his brain tissue had died. His heart was beating and was being kept alive by mechanical devices, but he was basically a corpse. Yoon Bo-Hyun squeezed Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s hand. ¡°There¡¯s about two months left now,¡± he said. ¡°The GSC conference will be held after the year-end seminar. Director, the world¡¯s best scientists will gather in one ce. That¡¯ll also be around when A-Bio and A-Gen merge and split management rights. Everyone in that conference room will hear the shocking news.¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun stroked Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s forehead. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but I¡¯m going to have to use your name.¡± Chapter 171: GSC (3)

Chapter 171: GSC (3)

Park Seung-Won, a scientist who joined thepany A-Gen during their second biannual recruitment period, was extremely nervous. He wasn¡¯t this intimidated even when he took his doctoralprehensive exam before graduation; he wasn¡¯t this nervous during A-Gen¡¯s interview. The only time he had been this nervous recently was his interview at A-Bio. ¡®And I had toe to A-Gen because I didn¡¯t get in.¡¯ Park Seung-Won had applied to Lab One, but he was sent to Lab Three. However, he was certain that A-Gen would merge with A-Bio someday. Also, Park Seung-Won was in Lab One today. The location of the year-end seminar was randomly picked between the sixbs. Likest year, the grand conference hall at Lab One was chosen again. ¡°Seung-Won! It¡¯s this way,¡± said Park Seung-Won¡¯s senior, who had joined thepany a few years earlier than him. Park Seung-Won approached a huge lecture hall as he followed his senior. It was big enough to hold nearly one thousand people. And now, it was famous as the starting point of the Ryu Young-Joon phenomena. ¡®I would have been able to see that legendary scene if I graduated a year early.¡¯ Park Seung-Won thought it was a shame. However, he would be able to see Young-Joon as A-Bio was also attending this seminar. ¡®A joint seminar to promote coboration betweenpanies.¡¯ That was how Nichs Kim, the CTO, exined it, but everyone knew that wasn¡¯t true, as the twopanies already worked together well. This joint seminar was about merging. ¡ªThis is the pancreatic cancer cure! ¡ªThis is a stem cell therapy to cure AIDS. ¡ªThis is a hair follicle tissue differentiation method that just finished preclinical trials. ¡ªThis is a diagnostic kit that allows an ordinary person to self-diagnose about one hundred diseases in three minutes. The seminar was a battle among the stars of science. Of course, all those stars were from A-Bio. The scientists from A-Gen didn¡¯t feel deted or inferior because they knew the seminar would go like this. They knew that it wasn¡¯t because they weren¡¯t good enough, it was because A-Bio was too good. Of course, there were scientists within A-Gen who couldpete against A-Bio. ¡ª... As such, we developed a nt-based pharmaceutical production method. ¡°Lab One hopped on the right gravy train and blew up.¡± The scientists sitting beside Park Seung-Won whispered amongst each other. Everyone was waiting for Young-Joon to appear, but he never showed up to the seminar. During the seminar, Young-Joon was in theb with two scientists from the GSC and Tedros, the secretary-general of the World Health Organization. ¡°It was hard to get my hands on this,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I got an earful from the Experiment Animal Resource Center because I was asking for mosquitoes this time around,¡± he said as he tapped on therge stic container. There were about two thousand Asian tiger mosquitoes in the container. ¡°It¡¯s kind of gross,¡± Tedros said. ¡°Well, what can you do? We have to do it if we want to make a cure,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°You mentioned before that you were going to remove the Kpaf2 gene from the male mosquito¡¯s seminal vesicles, right? Are you still going to do that?¡± Tedros asked. ¡°Yes, I am.¡± ¡°What are the effects of removing that gene?¡± Legion asked. ¡°Female mosquitoes that mate with these males will onlyy male eggs,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°...¡± ¡°And the male mosquitoes from them will also be mutant and have a nonfunctional Kpaf2 gene. Then, the imbnce in the sex ratio will rise exponentially over generations.¡± ¡°And the mosquitoes will go extinct after a little while?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°It¡¯s going to be a little tricky to remove the Kpaf2 gene,¡± Messelson interrupted. ¡°Tricky?¡± ¡°Yes. I mean, it¡¯s true that Cas9 is the most efficient gene scissors for manipting genes, but it seems like this experiment will be quite challenging because you¡¯re manipting a mosquito¡¯s seminal vesicles.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true, and that¡¯s why I would like to add some details to the experimental methods,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Let¡¯s use a bacteria called Wolbachia to deliver the Cas9 into the seminal vesicles. We can easily infect the mosquitoes with the bacteria by spraying the culture on thervae, and it will deliver the Cas9 to the seminal vesicles on their own.¡± ¡°Wolbachia?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a bacteria that causes an epidemic in mosquitoes. It doesn¡¯t harm humans or other animals, but it shortens the lifespan of mosquitoes to twenty-one days instead of fifty days,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°You said it causes an epidemic in mosquitoes. If you use the bacteria, does it spread among mosquitoes?¡± Messelson asked. ¡°That¡¯s right. It¡¯s a type of sexually transmitted infection and a gic condition in mosquitoes. If a female mosquito mates with a male mosquito infected with Wolbachia, it will be transmitted to the female. And if the femaleys eggs, it will be inherited to the progeny as well.¡± ¡°Oh...¡± A terrifying picture shed through Legion¡¯s mind. Wolbachia, an epidemic among mosquitoes, would carry Cas9 into the seminal vesicles of male mosquitoes. These gic modifications would spread like a gue among the mosquitoes. The result of this gic modification was the destruction of the sex ratio. As the number of females rapidly decreased, more male mosquitoes would flock to the few remaining female mosquitoes; in turn, the female mosquitoes would be more likely to encounter male mosquitoes infected with Wolbachia. ¡®How many generations will theyst?¡¯ Legion, the world¡¯s leading scientist in insect ecology, could really picture it. ¡®Making thirteen different species of mosquitoes go extinct... Is this ecologically safe?¡¯ * * * About three months had passed since Young-Joon¡¯s meeting with Legion, Messelson, and Tedros. It was mid-February, and it was still a little chilly. The merger between A-Gen and A-Bio was going as nned. Bothpanies wanted to merge; they were hoping for a pharmaceutical giant that would be born as A-Bio¡¯s technology and A-Gen¡¯s research and production facilitiesbined. ¡°Are you dead?¡± Young-Joon said to Park Joo-Hyuk, who was lying face-down on the desk. ¡°Yeah...¡± Park Joo-Hyuk replied, still lying down. ¡°I died of exhaustion after having an eleven-hour meeting with the investmentpany. Didn¡¯t you know?¡± ¡°So this thing in front of me is a zombie?¡± ¡°Uhhh...¡± Park Joo-Hyuk moaned like a zombie. ¡°It looks like you¡¯re fine since you¡¯re joking around.¡± ¡°How could you leave something as big as apany merger to me?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk asked with only his head up. ¡°It¡¯s because I trust you,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°You should doubt people once in a while.¡± ¡°Stop whining. You can go on vacation after the merger.¡± ¡°Obviously. Oh hey, you¡¯re going to hire a CEO after the merger, right?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk asked as he sat upright. ¡°Probably.¡± Young-Joon shrugged. ¡°I can¡¯t do research while running thepany. If I have to pick between the two, I want to focus on research,¡± he said. ¡°Then we¡¯ll have to look for someone,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡°Well, we can do that slowly.¡± Young-Joon put on the jacket he was holding. ¡°I have to go,¡± he said as he opened the door and left. ¡°Where are you going?¡± ¡°GSC.¡± * * * The International GSC Conference was held at the Grand Hyatt Hotel. Usually, only about thirty to forty people came to the conference¡ªfifty if there was an interesting issue¡ªbut this was a record number. Even the GSC Operations Team was impressed with the sess. Using Young-Joon¡¯s name was effective, as they had brought in ny scientists in the GSC. In addition to Legion, who was thought to be the best insect ecologist since Fabre, and Messelson, who basically created the Biological Weapons Convention, who were already in Korea to work with Young-Joon, the biggest names in science from around the world came to the hotel. ¡°Jamie Anderson isn¡¯t here,¡± Legion said to Messelson. ¡°Probably because this international conference is all about Doctor Ryu. It¡¯s probably difficult for him toe,¡± Messelson replied. The international conference proceeded with the one hundred members of the GSC. However, general members could also attend, they just didn¡¯t get to speak. There were quite a few people who Young-Joon knew among the general members. Several scientists, including Carpentier, showed up in the conference room. ¡°Doctor Ryu!¡± Song Ji-Hyun and a few scientists from Celligener waved their hands at Young-Joon. Song Ji-Hyun wanted to talk to Young-Joon, but she didn¡¯t have the chance to as Nichs suddenly showed up and took Young-Joon, pulling him by his shoulder. ¡°It¡¯s surprising that the International GSC Conference is being held in Korea, but it¡¯s even more shocking that a Korean member can attend it as a member of the GSC,¡± Nichs said. ¡°I¡¯m even more excited because you will be at the center of this conference.¡± ¡°Haha, thank you.¡± ¡°Have you prepared something to present at the conference?¡± ¡°Oh, yes. We are nning an international coborative project to eradicate the Asian tiger mosquito.¡± ¡°Asian tiger mosquito?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a species of mosquito that has the potential to cause a Zika or dengue fever outbreak in many developed countries.¡± ¡°Oh! You¡¯re nning a project to reduce the number of mosquitoes. Doctor Legion did something simr to that with funding from the Gates Foundation. I think I saw somewhere that they seeded in reducing the number of mosquitoes by seventy percent somewhere in Southeast Asia.¡± ¡°It has recovered now because the number of predators that eat mosquitoes and the number of prey that mosquitoes feed on have remained the same. The mosquito poption can bounce back with time.¡± ¡°I suppose so.¡± ¡°But I¡¯m working on this research with Doctor Legion and Doctor Messelson. It¡¯s funded by the WHO, and this project is making mosquitoes go extinct.¡± ¡°Extinct?¡± Nichs¡¯ eyes widened. ¡°Doctor Ryu, that¡¯s not going to be easy. Not only is it going to be technologically challenging, but how are you going to exin the impacts on the ecosystem?¡± Nichs asked. ¡°We¡¯ve done a lot of research on that. You¡¯ll hear about it when I presentter,¡± Young-Joon replied ¡°Huh... I see.¡± ¡°Enough about that. Are you going to the government when A-Gen and A-Bio merge, Mr. CTO?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°You¡¯re talking about the director of the Office of Strategy and nning at the ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy? The national CTO?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Of course. I will be able to help you if I take that position,¡± Nichs said. ¡°Please just make sure that the transfer of management rights after the merger goes smoothly.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°The board will select a chief executive officer. Even if you hire someone elseter, you should take the position at first so that management can stabilize.¡± ¡°Thank you. We are preparing for that.¡± ¡°Haha, it will go well. CEO Yoon will also be a candidate for the position as a formality, but you¡¯ll be the CEO since he doesn¡¯t want to.¡± Young-Joon smiled. ¡°Oh, the conference is going to begin soon. Doctor Ryu, why don¡¯t you go inside? I¡¯ll observe the meeting from there,¡± Nichs said. ¡°Sure.¡± Young-Joon went to the GSC conference room. All ny of the GSC scientists in the room stared at him at once. ¡®Is that Ryu Young-Joon?¡¯ ¡®He¡¯s extremely young.¡¯ ¡®He looks better than the picture from Science.¡¯ ¡®It would be nice if there was someone like him in physics, too.¡¯ Young-Joon could feel people whispering about him. He was a little nervous. The conference began, and it was soon going to be Young-Joon¡¯s turn to speak. ¡°Doctor He Jiankui.¡± A rtively young Chinese scientist stood at the podium. As soon as Young-Joon heard his seminar, Young-Joon almost screamed in shock. ¡°We¡¯re in the age of gics. Thanks to the great contribution of Doctor Ryu Young-Joon here, scientists have gotten their hands on gene scissors, Cas9,¡± said He Jiankui. ¡°Doctor Ryu has used Cas9 to design hematopoietic stem cells with a CCR5 deletion and cured AIDS with it. Then, all of us can think of one simple and clear way; we¡¯re just afraid to start it. Someone will do it one day, and someone should do it.¡± He Jiankui squeezed the microphone. ¡°Last May, I gically engineered a zygote obtained through artificial insemination with Cas9, removed CCR5, grew that zygote, and imnted it into the mother.¡± ¡°What...¡± The atmosphere in the seminar room fell cold like someone had thrown cold water on them. ¡°Yes. And those babies were born recently,¡± He Jiankui said. ¡°They are the first gically engineered babies in human history.¡± Chapter 172: GSC (4)

Chapter 172: GSC (4)

¡°Are you insane?!¡± Someone from the audience stood up and shouted. It was Max Decani, a professor of medicine in Germany who was regarded as the pride of European medical research. He was considered one of the best doctors in Northern Europe alongside Forsberg. ¡°What did you just say? Did you say that you made gene-edited babies?¡± Max, who was usually a calm person, was red in anger. Even his voice was trembling. ¡°Haha, rx,¡± He Jiankui said with a smile. However, all the scientists already had stiff expressions from shock and bewilderment. ¡°Why did you do it?¡± Someone¡¯s voice resonated in the silent conference room. It was Young-Joon. ¡°Because they won¡¯t get HIV if we edit CCR5,¡± He Jinakui replied. ¡°Everyone, there is no reason to look at this negatively. Those babies are the first ever HIV-immune babies to exist.¡± ¡°That is technically misleading. There are already people who have mutations in CCR5 and are immune to HIV,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Doctor He Jiankui, you mean those babies are the first to be artificially immune to HIV.¡± ¡°Ah, yes. You¡¯re right.¡± He Jiankui smiled brightly. ¡°We artificially made the babies immune to HIV. Everyone, HIV can be transmitted from the mother to the infant, but what if we make the baby immune to HIV by modifying the CCR5 gene? Then, that baby can be born safely,¡± He Jiankui said. ¡°Shut up!¡± shouted Alexandria, the greatest expert in biological physics. ¡°You can take a drug that stops CCR5 and still give birth to a child without any side effects,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°That¡¯s right. Those are called CCR5 blockers. It¡¯s one of the drugs that Doctor Ryu and the WHO are using in their HIV eradication and also one of the drugs that Doctor Ryu has revolutionized the production of with the nt-based production method.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°But there have been cases where the CCR5 blocker has failed to defend against HiV inheritance in the United States. Of course, it¡¯s only a few cases, but even one failure is a huge hit since HIV is being passed down. However, it doesn¡¯t fail if you manipte the genes of a fetus and give birth to it.¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t the Chinese government authorities do an ethics review of the research? I didn¡¯t see anything internationally reported,¡± Messelson interrupted. ¡°It was all reviewed by the board of ethics,¡± He Jiankui replied. ¡°Bullshit,¡± Doctor Wang Lui interrupted, squinting his eyes in doubt. ¡°You¡¯re not the only Chinese scientist in the GSC, He Jiankui. An ethics review? There¡¯s no way the authorities would approve such a thing. You must have fabricated something.¡± ¡°You¡¯re all being so frustrating.¡± He Jinakui hit the desk with his fist. ¡°We are facing a huge red line right now, and we have to decide whether to cross it or not. Why are you afraid of gene editing, people? What¡¯s the problem? We have seeded in creating a HIV-immune baby. Is that strong? Will you say that when the baby is in danger of getting HIV?¡± ¡°They won¡¯t be in that kind of danger,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Because we will erase HIV from this world in this generation.¡± ¡°You are amazing, Doctor Ryu, but everyone, editing CCR5 is just one example. We have proven that we can do it safely with Cas9, the gic scissors Doctor Ryu invented.¡± ¡°The saying that a knife can either be a weapon or a scalpel depending on who¡¯s holding it really is true,¡± Messelson said. ¡°He Jiankui. Doctor Ryu developed the world¡¯s most powerful anticancer drug by using dendritic cells to deliver Cas9 to immune cells; this is a technique that can cure all cancers. What the hell did you do?¡± ¡°Iid the foundation for humanity to take the next step,¡± He Jiankui said. ¡°You Nazi!¡± Max Decani shouted. ¡°He Jiankui, you¡¯re a disgrace to modern medicine!¡± ¡°Stop it!¡± He Jiankui shouted. ¡°Everyone, my research is not wrong. Humanity will use my sess to eliminate all gic diseases.¡± ¡°No one would disagree with that for medical purposes,¡± Messelson said. ¡°The problem is that you crossed the line too soon before any ethical research and regtions have been done. Now, there is going to be reckless gic modification, aren¡¯t we?¡± ¡°Science can¡¯t progress just because we¡¯re scared of that? People, science is about doing what we are capable of doing,¡± He Jiankui said. ¡°He Jiankui, what will you do if gene editing is done to change someone¡¯s height, or appearance or skin texture? What if something like Gattaca happens?¡±[ref]Gattaca is a science fiction from 1997 about gene editing./[ref] ¡°We can think about that when we get there. All I did was show the possibility. That¡¯s why I edited CCR5, the safest gene.¡± ¡°...¡± The room was full of tension. Several scientists were staring at He Jiankui like they were going to kill him. ¡°It is not safe,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°What?¡± He Jiankui stared at Young-Joon like he had misheard him. ¡°It¡¯s not safe. And those two poor babies will be in trouble because you dared to use humans for your experiments with your little knowledge.¡± ¡°What are you saying? Doctor Ryu, you¡¯ve cured AIDS by a bone marrow transntation of hematopoietic cells with edited CCR5, right? And those patients didn¡¯t have any problems?¡± ¡°CCR5 is the route of infection in adults, that¡¯s it. However, it¡¯s different for fetuses who are developing,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°As a fetus divides and develops from a fertilized egg, its telomeres increase. Telomeres are the damage-resistant segments at the ends of DNA.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°If CCR5 doesn¡¯t work, those telomeres aren¡¯t made normally, and those babies can start aging early and live a short life.¡± ¡°...¡± The seminar room fell silent. ¡°Really?¡± He Jiankui chuckled. ¡°How unfortunate, but there¡¯s nothing we can do. Sciencees with sacrifices.¡± ¡°This is a scandal,¡± Messelson said. ¡°An ident of this magnitude will put the brakes on Cas9 research for a while because there will be no funding. The rich GSC members probably don¡¯t know this, but most scientists rely on government or institutional funding to do their research. All of that will be stopped, Doctor He Jiankui. You didn¡¯t advance science; you blocked it.¡± ¡°Like how Doctor Messelson stopped research on biological weapons forever?¡± He Jiankui replied mockingly. ¡°...¡± ¡°There were many scientists who lived off of biological weapons research. Because of you, countless people couldn¡¯t get funding and disappeared into the background.¡± ¡°I did the right thing. Is there anyone against the Biological Weapons Convention now?¡± ¡°No, I¡¯m not pointing out that it¡¯s wrong,¡± He Jiankui said. ¡°Like how it won¡¯t be wrong if my research ends up stopping research on Cas9 for a while.¡± ¡°Do notpare that to Doctor Messelson!¡± Legion shouted. ¡°He and the other nuclear physicists risked their lives in the anti-war movement. How can someone like you bepared to him?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. I don¡¯t think there is a right or wrong in science, only truth and false. What do you think, Doctor Ryu?¡± He Jiankui asked Young-Joon. ¡°...¡± Young-Joon clenched his jaw. ¡°There is a right way in science,¡± he said. ¡°What a disappointing answer. I thought the sensation of modern science would be more daring and rebellious, but you¡¯re just a model student, aren¡¯t you?¡± He Jiankui said. ¡°I knew a day like this woulde when I first brought Cas9 into the world, but I never imagined it would be so unprepared and sudden. I didn¡¯t know there would be a science as radical and reckless as you,¡± ¡°It¡¯s people like me that make the world go around. After all, Doctor Ryu and I are two of the best scientists who are good at working with Cas9.¡± ¡°...¡± There were no objections. There was no one here who had ever manipted human genes. * * * The conference became so chaotic that a short break was called. He Jiankui walked around the hotel surrounded by bodyguards. ¡°The CCR5 blocker has failed before? That¡¯s bullshit. I¡¯ve never heard of that,¡± Messelson said. ¡°It¡¯s the first I¡¯m hearing of it, too.¡± Young-Joon bit his lip. ¡°But Doctor Messelson, what was the Biological Weapons Convention about?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°It¡¯s nothing. I was a big advocate for the abolition of biological weapons back in the day.¡± Messelson, one of the GSC members, was no ordinary scientist. He had received a big award called the Future Vision of Life Award, and it was given to heroic people who put themselves in harm¡¯s way to save lives. Messelson was awarded for his work leading to the international convention on the prohibition of biological weapons. In 1993, Messelson was working on arms control for the United States military when he discovered that they were developing biological weapons. ¡°Why are you making this?¡± When Messelson asked his superior, he got this answer. ¡°Because it¡¯s cheaper and easier to make than nuclear weapons.¡± Biological weapons were as powerful as nuclear weapons, but cheaper. ¡®Is it right to produce something like this?¡¯ The nuclear bomb¡¯s greatest safety came from the difficulty of developing it. In other words, it wasn¡¯t something that a small terrorist organization could hack together in a few months. But what about biological weapons? Once it was created and used somewhere, the area would be contaminated. A good biologist could scrape together the bacteria left there and culture it to make a biological weapon. A powerful weapon can be a deterrent to war, but should they be expensive and difficult to make? ¡°The use of biological weapons was banned in the 1925 Geneva Protocol.¡± When Messelson went to his superior and told him this, he was told, ¡°That¡¯s useless in the Cold War era. We don¡¯t know when war will break out again. We need weapons. The Soviet Union has more nuclear weapons than the United States, and we need cheaper, more powerful weapons.¡± Back at theb, Messelson wrote a report called the United States and the Geneva Protocol. The report was sent to President Nixon through Henry Kissinger, and Messelson campaigned against the development of biological weapons. And inte 1969, President Nixon gave up on biological weapons. And not just that, Messelson asked the Senate to go beyond the Protocol, which banned the use of biological weapons, and to abandon the research of offensive biological weapons altogether. Eventually, the United States abandoned biological weapons research, leading to a global movement against biological warfare. And in 1972, the Biological Weapons Convention was signed, banning all research. ¡°Doctor Ryu.¡± Carpentier appeared from the conference room. ¡°Lecture two is starting now. It¡¯s your turn.¡± Chapter 173: GSC (5)

Chapter 173: GSC (5)

Out of the thirteen mosquito species, Asian tiger mosquitoes would be prioritized for extinction. If they were sessful in doing that, they would be able to sequentially eliminate the other mosquito species one by one. ¡°... As such, mosquitoes cause the most human deaths on the. ording to a report from the World Health Organization, one million people die every year from mosquito-borne diseases, steadily umting more damage than any war. With this project, we hope to eradicate this problem once and for all.¡± As soon as Young-Joon finished his presentation, several GSC scientists raised their hands. ¡°To be honest, I don¡¯t know much about ecology because my major is in nuclear physics. You or Doctor Legion probably know better than me,¡± Robert said. ¡°But what I am concerned with is whether it is really possible to urately predict the consequences of wiping out a species?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t think it will be possible?¡± Legion asked Robert. ¡°Because there are so many variables. There are so many organisms in nature, right? I don¡¯t think anyone can predict the changes in the food chain that would result from the disappearance of one of them.¡± ¡®But Rosaline can.¡¯ Young-Joon smiled on the inside. Besides, this was a question Young-Joon¡¯s team had expected, and they had an answer prepared. ¡°First, we looked at all two thousand species of direct and indirect prey and predators associated with the Asian tiger mosquito and identified their trophic level,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°There is no possibility of a problem urring. We also ran a simtion with Ms. Tanya Manker¡¯s artificial intelligence program, which was famous for predicting red mold.¡± ¡°You¡¯re saying that there won¡¯t be any problems?¡± Robert said. ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°But as long as it is a human intervention, we don¡¯t know what variables will ur in the natural world,¡± Doctor Louis interrupted. Louis was a scientist from Saudi Arabia, and he was the one who first created porous carbon fibers. ¡°All science is a game of probability, right? If the bnce in the ecosystem is destroyed, even a little bit...¡± ¡°Those situations won¡¯t ur, so you won¡¯t have to worry about it,¡± Legion said. ¡°But it¡¯s a bit of a stretch to do a project like this on a global scale right away,¡± Jane Dalinar, an ecologist, objected. ¡°For a project like this, it¡¯s standard to do a pilot experiment on a small scale first.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, and that¡¯s why we¡¯re going to conduct the pilot experiment on two inds in the Guangdong province in China. If we sessfully eradicate the Asian tiger mouse, we will expand the project to a global scale,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°Is there any chance that the Wolbachia bacteria could spread to other organisms?¡± Jane Dalinar asked. ¡°We experimentally tested that.¡± Young-Joon went to a new slide. It showed the results of Wolbachia infections on one thousand three hundred insect species. ¡°Wolbachia is infectious to some species, but it won¡¯t spread to other insects because the infectivity is low.¡± ¡°But mosquitoes suck the blood of other animals, so they could be transmitted in the process, right?¡± Robert asked. ¡°No. Wolbachia multiplies in the gonads and stays there. Wolbachia is not transferred during the process. We also experimentally confirmed this.¡± ¡°It¡¯s Doctor Ryu¡¯s experiment, so it¡¯s trustworthy...¡± Jane mumbled. ¡°We will start it in Shazai Ind and Dadaosha Ind. It will be clearer once you see the results,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Was this approved by the Chinese government?¡± asked He Jiankui. ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°But couldn¡¯t things have changed? You should check,¡± He Jiankui said, chuckling. ¡°What are you saying?¡± Legion asked. ¡°Well, I don¡¯t know. Approval for this kind of experiment is based on the scientist¡¯s name, right? You don¡¯t know what will happen if there¡¯s a problematic issue.¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu is the one who predicted the red mold epidemic and prevented the spread of Eb. Of all the scientists out there, he¡¯s probably the second best expert in ecology,¡± Legion said. ¡°With the first being me.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. I have some ties with the Chinese government, so I hear things. It seems like there¡¯s a lot going on in Africa right now,¡± He Jiankui said. ¡°... Thank you for the advice. I will check it out,¡± Young-Joon said. The conference ended well, but something felt wrong. As soon as the conference ended, Young-Joon, who was overwhelmed with an indescribable anxiety, asked the GSC conference coordinator, ¡°Is Doctor Michelle present today?¡± ¡°No, Doctor Michelle signed up to participate, but she canceled a few days before.¡± ¡°She canceled?¡± ¡°She said something urgent came up and that she couldn¡¯te.¡± Young-Joon took out his phone right away and called her. Something was wrong. ¡®What the hell is going on?¡¯ * * * ¡°You did what?¡± Yoon Dae-Sung¡¯s body froze in shock. The merger was almostplete, and all there was left to do was to elect the CEO. What Yoon Bo-Hyun told him was just shocking. ¡°The anthrax bioweapon you developed,¡± said Yoon Bo-Hyun. ¡°I sold that to Africa.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Director Kim Hyun-Taek had one, right? But he¡¯s in aa right now, and you only have one as well. So where¡¯s the rest? I asked the directors and found out it was with Director Gil Hyung-Joon.¡± ¡°So...¡± ¡°I got it from him. And when I opened the package, it was a stic vial the size of my fingernail. It only had a dust-like powder of tiny spores. I¡¯m guessing it¡¯s trace amounts because it¡¯s only for development. He said it was in the micrograms.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°It¡¯s so small and odorless that it can¡¯t be detected by sniffer dogs. It¡¯s also easy to travel with it because it looks like a lotion bottle under X-ray. I thought biological weapons are wonderful because something this small can kill thousands of people, and it can kill an entire country if it is cultivated and grown,¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun said. ¡°Well, that¡¯s probably why a country like the United States that has the best security in the world, was attacked by anthrax.¡± ¡°But the bacteria in Director Gil¡¯s sample was sterilized.¡± ¡°Yes. Director Gil said the bacteria in that sample were dead and had no activity. But there is a way to use it because you sold the anthrax to Africa.¡± ¡°The U.S. military sold it, not me!¡± ¡°I couldn¡¯t care less. I asked General Manager Ji Kwang-Man to let me borrow his ount for a short amount of time. I dug through the old sales records and found the broker¡¯s contact information. I contacted them in China and passed it on,¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun said. ¡°What...¡± ¡°And I sold it to the rebels in South Sudan through a broker. It was actually much simpler than I thought,¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun said. ¡°Partly because biological weapons are so easy to hide, and partly because it¡¯s been nearly thirty years since A-Gen has worked on anthracis.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t this a very old project that was done by a very small group of people in secrecy? No matter how scrupulous the supervisors or their sessors are, do you think they will check to see if the son of the developer from thirty years ago is going to China with a microgram of bacterial corpse?¡± Yoon Dae-Sung¡¯s hands trembled. ¡°So it ended up in the rebel¡¯s hands...?¡± ¡°Yes. Those rebels have used the anthrax weapon before, though there¡¯s no bacteria left now because of sex segregation and natural death. I figured if I sent them a developmental female, even the dumbest person could pluck out a few genes and activate the male. And it worked, as expected. You¡¯ve heard, too, right? Anthrax is going around in Africa again.¡± p! Yoon Bo-Hyun¡¯s face turned. Yoon Dae-Sung¡¯s hand trembled. He was ring at Yoon Bo-Hyun with anger in his eyes. ¡°This is unexpected. You think you have the right to criticize me? I¡¯m just repeating what you started, Father.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Wars in Africa are just a gold mine for bigpanies like us! American armspanies even sell weapons to their enemies, don¡¯t they?¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun leaned close to Yoon Dae-Sung. ¡°You should praise your employee for selling something.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The outbreak has already started. It¡¯s not just South Sudan. There are incidents in several countries,¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun said. ¡°Why did you do something like that?¡± ¡°Do you know where the South Sudanese rebels are using the anthrax weapons right now? Ang, Rwanda, Burundi, Zambia, and the Republic of Congo.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°It¡¯s where Ryu Young-Joon set up the anthracis fence.¡± ¡°You...¡± ¡°Father. The legend of Ryu Young-Joon looks perfect, but it¡¯s easier to tear someone down like him: a man of justice, ethics, and ingenuity. The more heroic and great someone is, the more they wille crashing down with a ssh of ink.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°ims that the anthracis fence is unsafe will start to be made. And Africa will start to take a turn for the worse because Ryu Young-Joon used the wrong technology to contain Eb there.¡± Thud. Yoon Dae-Sung copsed onto the sofa as his legs gave out. ¡°You said you would turn yourself in, right? Are you still going to do it?¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun asked. ¡°...¡± ¡°Now, all the cards are in your hand. If you expose this, I will rot in jail and Ryu Young-Joon will be the CEO of A-Gen. He¡¯s a smart person, so he might be able to clean up this mess in Africa,¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun said. ¡°That¡¯s the good path. If that¡¯s what you want, do it.¡± Yoon Dae-Sung clenched his jaw. ¡°I will leave everything to you, Father. But...¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun sat down beside Yoon Dae-Sung. Then, he quietly said, ¡°If you don¡¯t have the courage to send me to prison, I hope you¡¯ll just watch how I destroy that monster and protect thepany we¡¯ve built. Please take your time and enjoy it.¡± ¡°... I saw the news this morning that a baby gically engineered with Cas9 was born,¡± Yoon Dae-Sung said. ¡°Did you do that, too?¡± ¡°Since Ryu Young-Joon first reported Cas9st year.¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun smiled. ¡°We started then. Didn¡¯t we start a paperpany in China back then? I funded them through that.¡± ¡°...¡± Yoon Dae-Sung covered his face with his hands. ¡°What are you going to do when Doctor Ryu falls?¡± Yoon Dae-Sung asked. ¡°All of A-Gen¡¯s research is revolving around him. What are you going to do when Doctor Ryu disappears?¡± ¡°Hahaha,¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun burst intoughter. ¡°It disappears if Ryu Young-Joon disappears, Father. A-Gen will merge with A-Bio. Do you know the kind of drugs A-Bio has right now? The scientists they have? They are all professors from the Ivy League. And they won¡¯t be able to leave easily because of the work they¡¯ve done.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°There will be some confusion when Ryu Young-Joon disappears, but A-Gen will be too big and be the number one corporation in the world. No one will be able to threaten us. Conson & Colson? They¡¯re a joke.¡± ¡°What if Ryu Young-Joon goes there?¡± ¡°He won¡¯t be able to. He¡¯ll lose whatever value he had.¡± ¡°You still have more left?¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun smiled. ¡°You¡¯d better do a good job keeping our CTO¡¯s mouth shut, since he especially favors Ryu Young-Joon.¡± * * * This was the second day of the GSC. The second day was usually for physics. Astronomers were preparing to present an item rted to ckhole photography. Before the presentation started, Mr. Kim Jun-Seok, the branch manager of GSC Korea, ran up to the podium. Cold sweat was running down his neck. ¡°Before we start today¡¯s session, Doctor Kristoff has something urgent to announce,¡± he said. Kristoff was a GSC member who was working at the WHO. He studied infectious diseases and advised governments on disease control. ¡°Anthrax is spreading in Africa,¡± Kristoff said as he grabbed the microphone. ¡°Anthrax is spreading?¡± Young-Joon frowned. ¡°Yes. I will give you all the information we have from Doctor Michelle from the Congolese Ministry of Health right now, and I would like to ask anyone in the GSC who has knowledge in this area to help.¡± Kristoff began exining. ¡°How bad is it?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°The mortality rate is very high, around ny percent, and it¡¯s quite contagious.¡± ¡°Ny percent!¡± The scientists began murmuring. ¡°What is the route of infection?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°It hasn¡¯t been confirmed.¡± ¡°Which part of the body is mainly affected, the digestive system or the respiratory system?¡± ¡°They say it¡¯s the respiratory system.¡± ¡°Respiratory!¡± Young-Joon froze. And he wasn¡¯t the only one who was shocked by what he heard. It was Messleson, the great systems biologist who had led the charge for the Biological Weapons Convention. Chapter 174: GSC (6)

Chapter 174: GSC (6)

¡°Doctor Ryu, may I have a word?¡± Messelson took Young-Joon outside. ¡°You heard that I participated in the movement against biological weapons, right?¡± asked Messelson. ¡°Yes,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°The weaponization of anthrax was the issue back then,¡± Messelson said. ¡°...¡± ¡°I have a lot of ties to anthrax. The first time I decided that we shouldn¡¯t make biological weapons was at an anthrax manufacturing facility, and there were some things that happened in the former Soviet Union.¡± ¡°In the Soviet Union?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°A ce called Sverdlovsk. Have you heard of it?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°It was probably before you were born, Doctor Ryu,¡± Messelson said. It was the 1979 Sverdlovsk anthrax leak. Sverdlovsk was a small city that was one thousand three hundred seventy east of Moscow. It was a peaceful town with the Pyshma River running through it. Then, in 1979, at the height of the Cold War, two thousand residents suddenly developed high fevers and coughs, along with cold symptoms. Before long, sixty-four people had died. The cause of death was anthrax. Soviet authorities announced that the cows were infected with anthracis, and the epidemic began with the residents eating beef that hadn¡¯t been properly cooked. They made a big show of quarantining meat, ughtering stray dogs, and culling livestock to try and catch it, but it was all for show. In reality, it was a bioweapon. There was an anthracisboratory in Sverdlovsk, and it was used to develop bioweapons using anthracis. An idental leak of anthracis by a factory worker led to the release into the city. ¡°I was the person who uncovered the truth,¡± Messelson said. ¡°If the residents were infected by consuming infected meat, it would have caused problems in the digestive system. But at the time, patients were suffering from respiratory problems like difficulty breathing. Something like this happens when anthracis is breathed in as a spore.¡± ¡°So, it was actually infected through the respiratory system, unlike the Soviet authorities¡¯ announcement?¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Yes. After iming that and tracking the issue down, the truth was uncovered as theb director of the Soviet Union who had fled to the United States confessed. But Doctor Ryu...¡± Messelson said. ¡°In its natural state, anthracis doesn¡¯t cause infections through the respiratory system easily...¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°It¡¯s very likely that this type of anthrax is a bioweapon.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°If it is, it needs to be dealt with very urgently on an international scale. It means that weapons of mass destruction are circting in the hands of African rebels.¡± ¡°I talked to Doctor Michelle on the phone yesterday,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°What did she say?¡± asked Messelson. ¡°She said the same thing: that it felt like a weapon. And... Most of the outbreaks are in regions where I ced the anthracis fence.¡± ¡°It probably has nothing to do with that. I¡¯ve read your early ess paper published by the WHO, and it has a very little effect on the bacteria itself.¡± ¡°I think so as well.¡± But it wasn¡¯t normal that anthrax was spreading in just those areas. And the timing was odd. A CCR5-edited baby being born and an anthrax outbreak happening right before the merger between A-Gen and A-Bio? ¡°I need to step away for a moment,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I will be back soon.¡± * * * Nichs was so shocked that he was at a loss for words for a few seconds. His jaw was still on the floor. ¡°What happened?¡± ¡°It¡¯s exactly what I said,¡± Yoon Dae-Sung said in an exhausted voice. ¡°Yoon Bo-Hyun caused trouble. He spread the anthrax bioweapon in Africa.¡± ¡°Ha...¡± Nichs copsed onto the sofa. He touched his forehead in frustration. ¡°Let¡¯s think about this for a moment. So, if that spreads, Yoon Bo-Hyun is going to say that it happened because of Doctor Ryu¡¯s anthracis fence?¡± Nichs asked. ¡°I think so,¡± Yoon Dae-Sung replied. ¡°No way. People are going to believe that?¡± ¡°Not everyone has scientific training or has a scientific mind. People will eventually get suspicious if anthrax coincidentally urs near the anthracis fence that was ced around Congo.¡± ¡°This isn¡¯t right, Dae-Sung. You need to confess everything to the police and fix this situation. How are you going to handle this?¡± ¡°...¡± Yoon Dae-Sung¡¯s head hung low. ¡°I can¡¯t... I don¡¯t think I can.¡± ¡°...¡¯ ¡°I can¡¯t turn myself in anymore...¡± ¡°Dae-Sung!¡± ¡°I won¡¯t be the only one getting published. Now, Yoon Bo-Hyun, that bastard, will also get a huge sentence...¡± ¡°... T¡ªthen what about this? Let¡¯s hide Yoon Bo-Hyun for now, and you can turn yourself in about having an anthrax bioweapon. There are old records of you selling it to the U.S. military, right? Just say you don¡¯t know anything other than that. Then, people will think the United States used it in Africa and point their criticism there.¡± ¡°The U.S. military...¡± ¡°I¡¯m saying this because you can¡¯t do anything because of Bo-Hyun, but that¡¯s what we have to do now. The most urgent thing is to get this situation under control. We need to get the news of that anthrax weapon out, let Doctor Ryu and the other scientists study it and figure out how to deal with it.¡± Yoon Dae-Sung covered his face with his hands. ¡°...¡± ¡°Dae-Sung,¡± Nichs said. ¡°I... I don¡¯t know... I don¡¯t know what to do anymore...¡± Yoon Dae-Sung began sobbing. ¡°Everything is my fault. I raised that kid into a monster. I never showed him affection since he was young... I¡¯ve always been so strict with him... I badgered him about taking over thepany. My misguided education turned that good kid into a monster...¡± ¡°Dae-Sung. Snap out of it! You need to snap out of it to...¡± Knock knock knock! Someone knocked on the door. It was Yoon Dae-Sung¡¯s secretary. ¡ªSir, this is urgent. May Ie in? Yoon Dae-Sung wiped his eyes. ¡°Come in.¡± The secretary opened the door and rushed in. His secretary had worked with him for twenty years, and it had been a while since they were this nervous. ¡°Sir, I just received word from thepany¡¯s management headquarters that a man named Yoon Bo-Hyun is set to do an insider¡¯s interview. Did you know about this?¡± ¡°What?¡± Yoon Dae-Sung¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°Damn it, where!¡± Nichs shouted. ¡°Apparently, reporters are crowing in front of the Grand Hyatt Hotel.¡± ¡°... Is that where the GSC conference is being held?¡± Nichs asked. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°What is he announcing?¡± ¡°That is...¡± ¡°Hurry!¡± ¡°He said he is exposing the true side of Mr. Ryu Young-Joon of A-Bio...¡± The three people seemed to stop breathing. There was a heavy tension in the CEO''s office. * * * ¡°Kim Hyun-Taek, theb director of Lab One at A-Gen, has conflicted with Doctor Ryu Young-Joon for a long time,¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun said in front of the reporters. ¡°When Doctor Ryu was growing rapidly within A-Gen, A-Gen gave him four percent ofpany shares and treated him like an executive. He was only about thirty-years-old. But this was quite reasonable, considering his abilities.¡± Yoon Dae-Sung grabbed the microphone and began to speak passionately. ¡°But he was not satisfied with that. He started A-Bio to swallow up thepany. He¡¯s been ckmailing A-Gen¡¯s management and taking more shares, eventually leading to a merger between A-Gen and A-Bio.¡± The reporters¡¯ cameras shed. ¡°Everyone thinks that A-Gen will be fine if Doctor Ryu Young-Joon takes over, but it won¡¯t be. So, as an employee of management, I am here to expose the truth about Doctor Ryu,¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun said. ¡°First, Doctor Ryu Young-Joon is a murderer.¡± The reporters¡¯ eyes widened. ¡°What...¡± One of the reporters dropped their notepad in surprise. Yoon Bo-Hyun said, ¡°When Doctor Ryu Young-Joon was actively trying to take over A-Gen, Director Kim Hyun-Taek was kicked out of the position. Everything was ording to his n, but Director Kim Hyun-Taek also knew Doctor Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s weakness. He rushed to Lab Six in order to secure that before leaving.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°And somehow, Doctor Ryu found out and chased after Director Kim Hyun-Taek. The two briefly shed at the Life Creation Department at Lab Six. No one knows what happened there, but...¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun said. ¡°Three hours after that, Director Kim Hyun-Taek suffered an extremely painful seizure and copsed while bleeding. He¡¯s still in aa at the hospital.¡± ¡°...¡± The reporters¡¯ hands trembled. ¡°Are you saying that Doctor Ryu harmed Director Kim Hyun-Taek?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°But how is that possible?¡± ¡°Who knows? That genius can go to a conference and create a new drug and a paper in a week. Don¡¯t you think he could make a poison with that kind of ingenuity?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°But I¡¯ve been sorting through Doctor Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s materials, and I have some information that he dug up about Doctor Ryu Young-Joon,¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun said. ¡°Doctor Ryu Young-Joon is the person who developed the anthrax bioweapon!¡± An extreme shock surrounded the reporters. Some were so surprised that they stopped taking photos. Yoon Bo-Hyun stared at them. ¡°After he was kicked out of Lab One at A-Gen, he went to study anthracis at the Life Creation Department at Lab Six. It was possible because it was a department that no one cared about.¡± There was no one who could uncover the truth of the past. Would the U.S. military who made and smuggled biological weapons onto another country¡¯s soil after the convention be willing toe clean and admit their wrongdoings? Or would Yoon Dae-Sunge forward, facing the pain of sending his biological son to prison? Or was Nichs so cold that he would tear apart a family, including his best friend and his son? Nothing. There was nothing. ¡°That¡¯s probably what made Director Kim Hyun-Taek copse as well. And do you know how Doctor Ryu stopped the spread of Eb in Africa?¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun said. ¡°The anthracis fence...¡± someone murmured. ¡°Doctor Ryu had already done quite a bit of research to develop anthrax as a bioweapon, which is why he was able to go to Africa and create the anthracis fence in just a few days,¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun said. ¡°This is different from when he went to the conference in Sweden and developed the gic surgery method in a week. When Doctor Ryu went to Africa...¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun raised his voice. ¡°There was nothing! No one from A-Bio followed Doctor Ryu! He went to Africa alone, without any equipment, and created the anthracis fence in just a week! How did he manage to do that?¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun said. ¡°It¡¯s because he was the developer of the anthrax bioweapon.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°And the biggest proof of all ising from Africa right now. Because the anthracis fence that Doctor Ryu installed originated from the anthrax bioweapon, the weaponized anthrax has begun going around.¡± The reporters were shocked again. ¡®Anthrax is going around?¡¯ ¡°I publicly condemn Doctor Ryu Young-Joon. He is a murderer, and he has caused an epidemic of a serious disease using unproven methods in the name of stopping the spread of Eb in Africa,¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun said. ¡°I cannot ept someone like this as the CEO of A-Gen and A-Bio. Many shareholders watching the merger of the twopanies should take this into careful consideration, and...¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun added, ¡°I hope the police will detain Doctor Ryu as soon as possible.¡± Chapter 175: GSC (7)

Chapter 175: GSC (7)

After the press conference, Yoon Bo-Hyun went to the main lobby of the Grand Hyatt Hotel. Scientists who were attending the GSC International Conference wereing down from the floor above for a break. Yoon Bo-Hyun had also nned this. Reporters swarmed to Young-Joon, fighting to get there first, as he came down into the lobby. ¡°Doctor Ryu!¡± Their countless microphones were aimed towards Young-Joon like they were going to pierce him. Camera shes fell on his face. ¡°Pleasement on the anthracis in Africa!¡± ¡°There is news of the anthracis fence causing an anthrax epidemic in Africa. Is this true?¡± ¡°Is it true that you developed the anthrax bioweapon?¡± ¡°How do you feel right now!¡± ¡°There was an expos¨¦ from an insider that you are a murder suspect! Anyments?¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joon stayed quiet. His eyes stared past the crowd to the other side where Yoon Bo-Hyun was standing. They stared at each other for a few seconds. * * * ¡°What the fxxk is that...¡± Park Joo-Hyuk let out a sigh as he watched the TV. Several A-Bio employees were standing in front of therge TV in the break room. ¡°Oh no...¡± ¡°Is that true?¡± ¡°Are you kidding?¡± ¡°Wait, who¡¯s Yoon Bo-Hyun? Some stupid nobody...¡± ¡°I¡¯ve never seen him at A-Gen...¡± The employees murmured amongst themselves. ¡°Mr. Kim,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung said to Park Joo-Hyuk. ¡°How much do you know about what¡¯s on TV right now?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know anything,¡± he replied. ¡°That little piece of shit who just showed up out of nowhere. What the hell is he doing?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk frowned. ¡°How¡¯s the public reacting? Do you know anything?¡± Cheon Ji-Myung asked. ¡°I don¡¯t know. I think I have to go down to management and see.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk quickly ran up the stairs to management. The office phone lines were burning. People were chaotically running around with documents and taking calls. ¡°Return fire immediately! This is some bullshit from a crazy nobody who doesn¡¯t know anything!¡± shouted Lee Chan-Yeol, the executive manager of management. ¡°Send out press releases now! How is the public reacting?¡± ¡°They are defending Doctor Ryu so far.¡± ¡°Of course they are. It¡¯s all a fxxking conspiracy theory. The CEO has done so much for people. He¡¯s saved so many lives, and this conspiracy theory will blow over. I want you to send out a press release saying that we deny all allegations.¡± ¡°Yes, sir.¡± The employees pounded away at their keyboards. * * * The world was turned upside down, and not just in Korea. It included the United States, where the A-Bio Cancer Laboratory was located, Sweden that gave Young-Joon the highest medal in the country, Mumbai that established a statue of Young-Joon for his work against HIV in Kamathipura, the Congo that was sessful in containing the spread of Eb, along with the International Vine Institute and the World Health Organization. It was like a bomb had hit countless countries and organizations. ¡ªThis is nonsense. Why would Doctor Ryu harm him? ¡ªAn anthrax bioweapon? There¡¯s no evidence of that. ¡ªDoctor Ryu certainly has research capabilities that go beyond conventional knowledge, but why would he make an anthrax bioweapon with his talent? ¡ªHow could anyone know what that genius is thinking? Obviously, no one knows why he made a weapon, but Doctor Ryu is receiving extraordinary support from the United States, so that could be a reason. ¡ªThis is nonsense. It¡¯s all a conspiracy theory. ¡ªThen, what¡¯s going on in Africa right now? There¡¯s an anthrax epidemic along the anthracis fence. And it¡¯s a respiratory disease! ¡ªLet¡¯s say he didn¡¯t make the anthrax bioweapon. Still, the anthracis fence was a failed strategy. It stopped Eb, but it created an even worse biological disaster. ¡ªThere¡¯s very little known about the anthrax outbreak in Africa because it¡¯s still new. How do we know it was caused by the anthracis fence? ¡ªThen what is it? Anthrax has never caused an epidemic like this before the anthracis fence. ¡ªEveryone blindly trusted him because he was part of the GSC and showed incredible research abilities. That¡¯s why the anthracis fence was done in African countries without much examination. But science should not do that! ¡ªDoctor Ryu has citizenship in Sweden. He can run away any time, so we should suspend his passport at once. ¡ªI think he should be detained. Someone as capable as Doctor Ryu should be able to get rid of the evidence. There¡¯s no one who knows biology better than him. ¡ªDetain? Are you kidding me? Don¡¯t you know what kind ofpany he is running? He¡¯s practically directing all the research at both A-Gen and A-Bio. ¡ªAnd that research is right? ¡ªCan research that saves lives be wrong? ¡ªLook at the gically engineered babies! Look at what Doctor Ryu¡¯s technology has created! Society was burning. Several intellectuals from all over contributed to the discussion, going for each other¡¯s throats. In the midst of it all, Yoon Bo-Hyun wrote a column in the newspaper. It was shared thousands of times on the Inte and received a huge number of views. [The dangers of unprepared technology] [The technology that Doctor Ryu Young-Joon of A-Bio has presented is truly amazing. The world seems to have moved into the twenty-second century in the blink of an eye. But is that something to celebrate? Doctor Ryu Young-Joon has given hope to cancer patients by developing Cas9, gene scissors, and he has also created a diagnostic kit. Recently, however, Doctor He Jiankui from China has used Cas9 to create a gically engineered baby. Doctor He presented his work at the GSC International conference and was heavily criticized by fellow scientists. There was a divide about this issue, even in the scientificmunity, which means that even the scientificmunity, which has developed Cas9, cannot provide ethically safe guidance on this technology. Many ethicists and religious organizations around the world have raised concerns about gically engineered babies, and humanity has yet to find an answer. This was science-fiction until yesterday; today, it is a real problem that needs to be addressed immediately. However, Doctor Ryu is still pushing on the elerator. A-Bio is working on a massive project to decode the entire genome of one hundred million humans using more than two hundred gic analysis machines. This will give him aplete picture of what genes direct what aspects of appearance. He will publish his findings in a paper, which will bring him a lot of fame and money. But is there any reason for a second He Jiankui to read that paper and not touch those genes? Doctor Ryu Young-Joon will perfect both gene scissors and high-resolution gene maps, and humanity is not yet ready to ept that. Now is the time to hit the brakes, not the elerator.] Amidst the extreme confusion in society, the doctors in charge of the intensive care unit and Yeonyee University Hospital released a statement. ¡ªThe patient in question, Kim Hyun-Taek was brought to the hospital unconscious due to brain death. ¡ªWe conducted tests for various diseases in the patient¡¯s body, but we have not identified signs of anything, including anthrax. ¡ªKim Hyun-Taek is not infected with anthrax. We can assure that. However, this did not touch the public¡¯s heart. People who believed in Young-Joon from the beginning may have been reassured by this announcement. But those who didn¡¯t believe him from the beginning still didn¡¯t because Young-Joon was a genius scientist who conquered many diseases in just one year. ¡®He probably manipted it so that they couldn¡¯t find it.¡¯ It wasn¡¯t scientific, but it was a line of reasoning that was intuitively epted. Public opinion was still split fifty-fifty. [The anthracis fence has nothing to do with the bioweapon. The genes in the anthracis fence is the junk DNA of Eb, and this cannot have any impact on the phenotype of anthracis except for increasing the immunity of the bacteria. The anthracis fence has nothing to do with the current anthrax epidemic.] Michelle, other African health officials, and the World Health Organization issued a statement. ¡°But conspiracy theories don¡¯t go away easily,¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun said. Yoon Dae-Sung had his eyes closed, and Nichs was trembling in anger. ¡°These are people who still believe in the moonnding conspiracy theories in the twenty-first century. There¡¯s also the fan myth[refThe fan myth is a popr misconception in Korea that having an electric fan running in a room while sleeping will kill someone due to theck of oxygen.[/ref] and the myth that the CIA is spreading the flu to curb poption growth. There are quite a lot of people who strongly believe in nonsense like that,¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun said. ¡°And that¡¯s Ryiu Young-Joon¡¯s weakness. He¡¯s too smart, too perfect, and too moral. He¡¯s too much of an elite, even though all his poweres from the support from the public and most of them are ignorant.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The truth may eventuallye out, but not until the twopanies merge and elect a CEO.¡± ¡°Y¡ªyou crazy bastard!¡± Nichs finally lost his cool and grabbed Yoon Bo-Hyun by the neck. ¡°Do you know what you¡¯ve done?¡± ¡°I know! I¡¯m protecting thispany instead of my father!¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun shouted. ¡°...¡± ¡°Division Manager Ji Kwang-Man and Director Kim Hyun-Taek all went down during the battle. My father raised the white g, but not me.¡± Yoon Dae-Sung let out a sigh like he had given up. ¡°People don¡¯t hate the viin; what they hate are hypocrites. When someone better than you behaves admirably, you respect and follow them, but that doesn¡¯tst long. They change as soon as you give them a few shreds of suspicion, like that person has murderous intentions, or that person has developed a weapon that causes a gue,¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun said. He added, ¡°Go hide if you can¡¯t fight, but don¡¯t get in my way.¡± Nichs let go of Yoon Bo-Hyun. A silence from exhaustion filled the room. ¡°Bo-Hyun,¡± Yoon Dae-Sung said quietly. ¡°You made a big mistake.¡± ¡°Do you still think that? Even though I backed him up into a corner like this?¡± ¡°The reason that Doctor Ryu is not finishing you off right now is because his priority is the anthrax epidemic in Africa. He doesn¡¯t even consider you his opponent. To him, you¡¯re nothing but a small fruit fly.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°You still don¡¯t have an idea of the kind of power he has.¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun clenched his jaw. ¡°Father, I...¡± ¡°Does Doctor Ryu just seem like a genius scientist to you? No matter how incredible a scientist is, they can¡¯t make apany like A-Bio in just a year. He¡¯s not good at science; he¡¯s just incredibly intelligent.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I won¡¯t get out now. It would be ridiculous for me to turn myself in and try to find a way to live alone. I will stand by your side, and I will leave with you when you fall, Yoon Dae-Sung said. Yoon Bo-Hyun stared at him with disappointment. Nichs silently agreed with Yoon Dae-Sung. When the anthrax bioweapon came up, Young-Joon would have already figured out that it was something A-Gen had developed in the past. But Young-Joon hadn¡¯t contacted Nichs yet; he hadn¡¯t asked Nichs, who had ess to all of A-Gen¡¯s research notes, to expose the anthrax bioweapon development because he could destroy Yoon Bo-Hyun without embarrassing Nichs. * * * Young-Joon didn¡¯t leave the country during the talk of him being detained and all that. But there was one person who did get on a ne to the Congo. It was Doctor Messelson. He was reading the email Young-Joon had written the day before. [The whole genome sequence of the anthracis in Africa is as follows: ATTGTACTGCTCCATTTACATTGGGGGATCAT.......] The email attachment contained 5.23 million letters of DNA data. Not only that, it also described what materials were made in each location, how much they were expressed, and what their three-dimensional structure looked like. ¡®...¡¯ When he first got this file, Messelson thought Young-Joon had actually designed a bioweapon because it was physically impossible to make something like that overnight. But he changed his mind after some more thought. He couldn¡¯t have made this data, even if he was the developer¡ªeven if he was Young-Joon. This was data that scientists who have worked on anthracis for five to ten years would barely get, which meant that there was a separate scientist who produced this data. In reality, this was the result of using Rosaline, but to Messelson, it seemed like Young-Joon already held the evidence to clear his own name. ¡°I¡¯m not the one who created the anthrax bioweapon. However, I think it¡¯s true that something like that is going around Africa,¡± Young-Joon said to Messelson. ¡°I obtained this data through a route I cannot discuss right now, and since it¡¯s a little difficult for me to leave the country now, I am leaving the heavy lifting to you, Doctor Messelson.¡± ¡°That¡¯s fine. Leave it to me, Doctor Ryu. I¡¯m the expert on anthracis and bioweapons,¡± Messelson replied. And when he was on the ne, Young-Joon held a press conference. Chapter 176: GSC (8)

Chapter 176: GSC (8)

It was time for the press conference. There was a crowd of reporters in front of Young-Joon, who went to sit down at the table for the interview. Cameras shed and clicked from all over. The atmosphere was more tense than usual. People wanted an exnation for the allegations that were spreading right now. However, Young-Joon didn¡¯t have the time to worry about them right now. He had more serious matters to attend to. Young-Joon was going to keep his exnations to clear the air as short as possible and get back to work. ¡°I have never developed or been involved in the development of anthrax bioweapons, and I have never harmed Doctor Kim Hyun-Taek. I will ept any investigation, and I will confront the rumors that are being spread right now,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°It has been said that I developed the weapon in the Life Creation Department at Lab Six of A-Gen. As the director of Lab One and an executive of the research department, I posted a data release draft yesterday. I asked that all the research records of the Life Creation Department be provided to the prosecution and, to the extent that there is no problem, the public.¡± The reporters quickly wrote down Young-Joon¡¯s statement. The sound of keyboard clicking rang throughout the conference hall. ¡°All of A-Gen¡¯s research records are stored in a secure online cloud associated with the National Research Foundation of Korea. Depending on the ess level, they can be viewed by both the government and thepany, but they cannot be modified. Therefore, there are no concerns about the destruction of evidence; all allegations will be put to rest once the research records of Lab Six are made public. I would like to make this clear in advance,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°The possibility that the anthracis fence caused the disease instead of the biological weapons is also being raised. This is also not true. The anthracis fence did not install anthracis, but rather vinated the anthracis that was already in the wild.¡± Young-Joon presented the entire genome of anthracis on the minotaur. ¡°Anthracis has about one thousand six hundred forty-one genes. Do you know how many of these genes the anthracis fence affected?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Zero. The anthracis fence didn¡¯t touch those genes. All it did was insert DNA fragments of the Eb virus into the empty spaces between the genes. And those fragments don¡¯t have any biological effect either.¡± Young-Joon continued as he went on to the next slide. ¡°Next, the gically engineered baby,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I am somewhat in favor of gic engineering.¡± The reporters who were taking photos and typing all stopped. They looked like they couldn¡¯t believe it. ¡°I¡¯ve seen an editorial that said it was time to press the brakes because the technology was moving too fast and shaking the foundations of human history, but that¡¯s not true,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I will give you an example. It¡¯s a story about a soldier named Jeff Carroll who served in the U.S. army. While Jeff and his wife were preparing to have a baby, they found out that they had a gic mutation that caused Huntington¡¯s disease. If they were to have a child, there would be a fifty percent chance of the baby having Huntington¡¯s, so they gave up on trying to have a baby.¡± Young-Joon went on. ¡°However, they had hope and studied more about biology and modern medicine, and eventually found out that there was a process called PGD, preimntation gic diagnosis. It¡¯s a kind of test-tube baby where you can test for gic mutations in the embryos and find the ones that don¡¯t have any problems since there¡¯s also a fifty percent chance of having a healthy baby,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Jeff and his wife gave birth to a healthy baby. This was in 2006. Jeff, who was inspired by the power that biology held, is working at the University of Washington as a researcher.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°That¡¯s what the advancement of science looks like. In the past, we would have only known if a baby had Huntington¡¯s after it was born. But modern medicine has made it possible to test amniotic fluid for the possibility of Huntington¡¯s and offer the option of abortion. And with IVF, we now have the option of selecting only healthy embryos before imntation. So what lies beyond the invention of Cas9?¡± Young-Joon asked the audience. ¡°We will now be able to fight against diseases that are one hundred percent gic. Science means more choices and greater freedom.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Vast freedom for those who are unprepared may lead to catastrophes like nuclear war, but we can¡¯t let the fear of that hold us back from advancing science and leaving citizens like Jeff in difficulty.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°However, in the case of Doctor He Jiankui¡¯s engineering of CCR5, it could be a problem because if that gene doesn¡¯t work properly during embryonic development, it could cause early death or elerated aging.¡± Young-Joon went to the next slide and showed a schematic of CCR5 and telomeres. ¡°Doctor He Jiankui did that research because he didn¡¯t know much about CCR5,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°That¡¯s why I am doing gic analysis at A-Bio because people can only choose the right path when they can clearly see the choices in front of them. The gic maniption of Cas9 is already under discussion at the International Research Ethics Forum, so it will be regted appropriately, including the punishment for Doctor He Jiankui.¡± * * * ¡°Hey, is this going to be enough?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk asked Young-Joon on the way out of the press conference. ¡°What else should I have done?¡± ¡°You should have crushed that bastard Yoon Bo-Hyun! Should have sued him for defamation and been more aggressive!¡± ¡°That¡¯s the kind of fight that Yoon Bo-Hyun wants.¡± ¡°What are you talking about?¡± ¡°Yoon Bo-Hyun is Yoon Dae-Sung¡¯s son.¡± ¡°... Huh?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°Maybe Dispatch[1] will figure it out soon enough. Anyway, Yoon Bo-Hyun¡¯s goal is probably to make this as noisy as possible and drag me into mud-slinging. What he wants is Yoon Dae-Sung maintaining control over A-Gen.¡± ¡°Then, why is he making all the fuss instead of using someone? This will be a weakness for both of them if it gets out that he is Yoon Dae-Sung¡¯s son.¡± ¡°Because Yoon Dae-Sung wants to give me thepany,¡± Young-Joon said. Rosaline had read Yoon Dae-Sung¡¯s brain waves when they were talking about the merger, and Yoon Dae-Sung was sincere. ¡°So, Yoon Bo-Hyun did this all on his own. If he used someone, Yoon Dae-Sung could just fire him and stop it. But if Yoon Bo-Hyun does it himself, he has no choice but to side with him.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Yoon Bo-Hyun can¡¯t inherit apany as big as A-Gen because he¡¯s too young and ipetent. But he¡¯s trying to stop it from getting into my hands because he can inherit itter if it¡¯s kept in his father¡¯s hands.¡± ¡°So that¡¯s what happened.¡± ¡°Are the people from the KDCA[2] at the office right now?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Yeah. They¡¯ve been waiting there since before the press conference started.¡± ¡°Good. I have to be there right now. That¡¯s a more urgent issue than Yoon Bo-Hyun.¡± ¡°What are you having a meeting for?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk asked. ¡°Korea might be a target for an anthrax attack.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk stopped in his tracks. ¡°What?¡± ¡°I talked with the CIA, and they said there¡¯s a possibility of an anthrax attacking to Korea.¡± ¡°Wait, why? What do we have to do with Africa? They only target Western countries like the United States or Europe, right?¡± ¡°Yeah, but most of the scientists who are leading science in the world are in Seoul right now, and most of them are from the United States of Europe.¡± ¡°The GSC International Conference...¡± ¡°It might be a coincidence, but we have to be prepared if there¡¯s even a glimmer of a possibility. Our government was probably warned by the CIA, and that¡¯s why they¡¯re here to see me.¡± ¡°Oh my god.¡± ¡°The government probably contacted the organizers for the GSC conference to stop the whole thing and send people home.¡± ¡°But I haven¡¯t heard anything about the members going home.¡± ¡°They¡¯ll start going one by one. But some people may stay,¡± Young-Joon said. Young-Joon had already gotten a few emails from GSC members. It was about how they were going to stay to join him in nning a defense strategy against the possible bioterror that may happen. ¡°Sir!¡± Yoo Song-Mi, Young-Joon¡¯s secretary, called him as he entered A-Bio. ¡°The KDCA? I¡¯m going to see them right now.¡± ¡°No, not that...¡± ¡°Is someone else here for a meeting?¡± ¡°Mr. Nichs Kim is here.¡± ¡°The KDCA is my priority. Please tell him to wait.¡± Young-Joon walked past Yoo Song-Mi and headed to the elevator. However, Nichs was standing in the hallway. ¡°Were you waiting here?¡± Young-Joon asked Nichs. ¡°No. I went to the bathroom and saw your secretary leaving, so I thought that I would take a chance and wait,¡± Nichs replied. ¡°Let¡¯s go together, Doctor Ryu. You¡¯re going to the meeting with the KDCA, right?¡± ¡°How did you hear about it?¡± ¡°Because they asked for A-Gen¡¯s cooperation as well.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± Young-Joon stepped on to the elevator with Nichs. ¡°I¡¯m going to leave right away after the meeting, so please prepare the car,¡± Young-Joon said to Yoo Song-Mi so that she would leave. ¡°Yes, sir.¡± Young-Joon, who was left alone with Nichs, pressed the button for the sixth floor, which was where the meeting was being held. The elevator started going up. ¡°...¡± There was so much Nics wanted to say, but he hesitated because he didn¡¯t know where to begin. He had heard Young-Joon¡¯s press conference, and he only asked for Lab Six¡¯s records to be released. If Young-Joon had requested an audit of all of A-Gen¡¯s records, A-Gen¡¯s anthrax weapons could have been revealed before the merger. And if that happened, Young-Joon would have been able to im that he was unaware of the problem. But that¡¯s not what Young-Joon did. ¡°I¡¯m saying this just in case, but don¡¯t tell the KDCA about the anthrax weapon,¡± Young-Joon said out of the blue. ¡°What?¡¯ Nichs was surprised. ¡°It¡¯s exactly what I said. Don¡¯t talk about A-Gen¡¯s anthracis. I am going to let Mr. Yoon finish that on his own.¡± ¡°... Doctor Ryu. I have something to confess,¡± Nichs said with a tense face after making up his mind. ¡°The anthrax going around in the Middle East right now was the anthrax bioweapon A-Gen developed in the past. Yoon Bo-Hyun sent the sample that was left for development to Africa... That got into the hands of the rebels, and they made a weapon.¡± ¡°Is that what Yoon Bo-Hyun said?¡± ¡°Yes... Doctor Ryu, we have to confess everything to the KDCA and prepare a n based on the records we have.¡± ¡°No.¡± Young-Joon shook his head. ¡°Yoon Bo-Hyun probably doesn¡¯t know, but the rebels did not use that.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°The anthrax weapon that caused the epidemic in Africa is unrted to the one that A-Gen developed.¡± ¡°It¡¯s unrted?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Extreme confusion shed across Nichs¡¯ face. ¡°What are you talking about?¡± * * * Young-Joon talked to Michelle on the first day of the GSC conference. Michelle suspected anthrax, but she wasn¡¯t sure. ¡°Could you send me a sample of the patient¡¯s blood?¡± Young-Joon asked Michelle. ¡ªOf course. He received the blood sample two dayster, but it was when Yoon Bo-Hyun was directly attacking Young-Joon after the anthrax mess had begun. Young-Joon put the fuss aside and analyzed the anthracis in the patient¡¯s blood. ¡ªThis isn¡¯t the bioweapon that A-Gen had. ¡®I thought Yoon Bo-Hyun had sent A-Gen¡¯s anthrax bioweapon to Africa and used it along the anthracis fence.¡¯ ¡ªYou¡¯re talking about the male anthracis that Director Kim Hyun-Taek had?¡± Rosaline asked. ¡ªI told you that it was safe early on. That was considering the danger of the bacteria itself, but also considering the possibility of it falling into the hands of terrorists. ¡®Even if terrorists got hold of the carcasses of A-Gen¡¯s anthracis, they can¡¯t revive it?¡¯ ¡ªYes. ¡®Why?¡¯ ¡ªIt¡¯s not visible to the human eye, but there was a lot of nuclease activity. Nuclease was an enzyme that destroyed DNA. ¡ªThe DNA in those bacteria carcasses is so degraded that it would be difficult to use. It¡¯s probably been twenty to thirty years since they developed it, so it¡¯s possible. If Yoon Bo-Hyun sent it to Africa, he did somethingpletely useless. ¡®Then what¡¯s this?¡¯ Young-Joon frowned as he looked at the blood sample. 1. A famous Korean news outlet that reports a lot of gossip about celebrities; the TMZ of Korea. ? 2. Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency ? Chapter 177: GSC (9)

Chapter 177: GSC (9)

¡ªThis is a de novo anthracis. Rosaline said. De novo was a Latin biological term meaning ¡°new¡±. It usually referred to the artificial splicing of DNA from scratch. De novo material was not reproduced from a pre-existing living organism; it was implied that it was artificially synthesized. The result was no different, but the word was used to describe the difference between the processes. ¡ªIt¡¯s not quite an artificial life, but it is artificial in many ways. It¡¯s different from A-Gen¡¯s anthrax weapon, which was just a separation between evolved males and females. Rosaline said. ¡ªIt kept most of the shell and organelles of anthracis, but most of the genes are different. Almost all of the genes are new and biosynthesized, and many are from other pathogenic bacteria. ¡°...¡± It was a kind of chimeric variant. Chimeric organisms were harder to create as the organisms became moreplex, but it was rtively easy for bacteria. Even so, manipting anthracis to this extent was a daunting task for even the most experienced university professors. It would take GSC members like Michelle a year or two if she had a good team. It required an in-depth understanding of not only anthracis, but bacteria as well. Ring! A phone rang. It wasn¡¯t Young-Joon¡¯s or the office phone either. The sound came from the drawer. ¡®...¡¯ Young-Joon opened the drawer and took out a tacky-looking flip phone. ¡ªHello. A man¡¯s voice came from the phone. ¡°Hello.¡± ¡ªYou have to throw this phone away after use. Why do you still have it? ¡°I will throw it away after this time.¡± ¡ªThe White House delivered some information that the CIA gathered to the Korean government, but I contacted you because I thought you should know about it as well. ¡°Thank you, Mr. Director. What is it?¡± Young-Joon asked. James Holdren, the director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, said. ¡ªAfter you stopped Eb, our intelligence agents were in Africa with Doctor Michelle tracking the origin of the outbreak. ¡°Where was it?¡± ¡ªIt was an abandoned hideout for a terrorist organization on the border between the Republic of Congo and the Democratic Republic of Congo. It¡¯s one of the ces that the CIA found recently. ¡°...¡± ¡ªSurprisingly, there was a research facility there. It was a very crude facility, but it had a lot of important information, like how they caused a gic mutation in the Eb virus. ¡°Are you saying that the Eb virus infecting anthracis wasn¡¯t natural evolution?¡± ¡ªThat¡¯s right. That kind of evolution doesn¡¯t happen in nature very often. ¡°But they artificially caused that evolution?¡± ¡ªSome scientists are more evil than you think, Doctor Ryu. ¡°I¡¯m not talking about character; I¡¯m talking aboutpetence. I can¡¯t understand why a scientist with that kind of research ability would be in a terrorist organization,¡± Young-Joon said. Evolving Eb to infect anthracis was possible with a guided evolution experiment. But think about what that would take. Even the best scientists from the Congolese government could barely do it in a biosafety level fourb. The rebels obviously didn¡¯t have such ab, meaning that they did this experiment illegally in a much worseb setting. There were probably people in those rebel groups who got infected and died from working with Eb. That meant that there was a scientist among the rebels who could push for the experiment and produce results while controlling the spread. ¡ªThat¡¯s why the CIA and other international intelligence organizations are in shock. James said. ¡ªWe still have yet to identify them. Someone that talented would already be active in international conferences and things like that, so you¡¯d think everyone would know their name. There¡¯s no one among people like that who we can¡¯t track down. ¡°...¡± ¡ªWe¡¯re also guessing that they created the anthrax that is going around Africa right now. ¡°I see.¡± ¡ªAnd we don¡¯t know anything about them, but there¡¯s one thing... James said. ¡ªThere was a signature in one of the Eb research records, ¡°Rosalind.¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joon froze as soon as he heard that. ¡ªDoes that ring a bell or anything? ¡°... No,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡ªThere¡¯s also another problem. Among the records they wrote, there was data about the schedule of the GSC International Conference. ¡°The conference?¡± ¡ªYes. Maybe the anthrax epidemic in Africa is nothing more than a decoy or a preliminary experiment. A terrorist attack targeting the GSC International Conference might happen. That¡¯s why I¡¯ve called, and I¡¯ve passed it on to the Korean government. ¡°Alright, I will make arrangements. And I¡¯ll ask Doctor Messelson and help track down the bioweapon since he¡¯s the leading expert in anthracis and bioweapons.¡± ¡ªThank you. After ending the call with James, Young-Joon called for Doctor Cheon Ji-Myung right away. He had been at the Life Creation Department the longest. When Doctor Cheon came up to his office, Young-Joon asked, ¡°Doctor Cheon, do you know how Rosaline got her name?¡± ¡°Rosaline?¡± ¡°Yes. Rosaline was the name that was given to the artificial cell when we were at the Life Creation Department.¡± ¡°Oh, that.¡± Cheon Ji-Myung nodded. ¡°There was an oddball who came to the Life Creation Department because they wanted to. It was a ce of exile to everyone else, but she wanted to try creating life.¡± Young-Joon had heard this from Park Dong-Hyun and Jung Hae-Rim. ¡°She was a huge fan of a scientist named Rosalind Franklin. That¡¯s why they named the artificial cell Rosaline. And it started from there.¡± ¡°... And their name?¡± ¡°Elsie.¡± ¡°Elsie?¡± ¡°She was a Korean-American. She came into Korea with her mother and ended up getting a job at A-Gen,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung said. ¡°And she was a really talented scientist, although she¡¯s nothingpared to you, but certainly better than me... I was a neer with some good papers, but I felt like she was much better than me every time we worked together.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I often wondered what was going on in her head that she wasing up with these experiments.¡± ¡°Do you happen to know where she is now?¡± ¡°No. She worked here for about three years before going back to the United States. I don¡¯t know what happened to her after that.¡± ¡°And you don¡¯t have her contact information?¡± ¡°Hm... I¡¯m sure there¡¯s a number somewhere, but I don¡¯t know if that number or email will still work.¡± ¡°Could you please still find it? ¡°Alright.¡± ¡°And did she do any dangerous research or anything like that when he was at A-Gen?¡± ¡°Dangerous?¡± ¡°I¡¯m asking whether they worked with anthracis or Eb.¡± ¡°Hahaha, nothing like that. She got frightened easily, and she was also nice and innocent.: ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes. I took over all her experiments after she left, and I looked at all theb notes, too. There wasn¡¯t anything dangerous in there.¡± ¡°Alright, thank you,¡± Young-Joon said. * * * Messelson, who arrived in the Democratic Republic of Congo, met with Michelle. ¡°Thank you foring all this way.¡± After briefly greeting Messelson, Michelle led him to the meeting room. There were seven men with great physique waiting for them. They were too intimidating to be doctors or scientists. ¡°They are from the CIA,¡± Michelle exined. ¡°The CIA is in Congo?¡± ¡°Yes. Our government gave them permission.¡± ¡°Hm... I see. I heard from Doctor Ryu that a few governments in Africa and the CIA would be working together.¡± ¡°It hasn¡¯t been revealed to the public, but it¡¯s standard for the ECOWAS and the Arab League to deal with this terror in Africa.¡± ¡°ECOWAS?¡± ¡°It¡¯s the Economic Community of the West African States.¡± ECOWAS referred to the organization of West African countries. They shared the fact that they were politically unstable due to religious conflicts between Im and Christianity, economic imbnces between member countries, and civil wars over resource exploitation. After civil wars in Liberia and Sierra Leone, the organization created the multinational army of the West African Union, with invibility protocols and anti-terrorism policies to ensure regional security. ¡°We can¡¯t have the UN armye in because of the issue of intervention,¡± said Robert, a CIA agent. ¡°Once we find the terrorist organization¡¯s hideout, ECOWAS and the multinational army will destroy them, but finding them is what we¡¯re here for.¡± ¡°I see.¡± Messelson nodded. ¡°Did Doctor Ryu give you any hints? He said that he was sending them with you,¡± Michelle said. Messelson opened his email. It showed almost all the information about anthracis that Young-Joon had written in a day. ¡°What is this?¡± Robert tilted his head in confusion, but Michelle¡¯s jaw dropped to the floor in disbelief. ¡°This... This is...¡± ¡°Exactly what you think. It¡¯s the DNA information about the anthracis that is going around right now,¡± Messelson said. ¡°Oh my... All the ORFs are written down, and all three thousand of the alternatively spliced enzymes... Even their quaternary folding structures... How did he do this?¡± ¡°When I first got this, I thought Doctor Ryu made the anthrax bioweapon,¡± Messelson said. ¡°How old is Doctor Ryu?¡± Michelle asked. ¡°About thirty?¡± ¡°Then, unless he started working on this when he was an elementary student... Even the real developer probably doesn¡¯t have this data...¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°Wait. The promoter here is a TAC, right? Then, they inserted foreign DNA in this part, right?¡± Michelle said as she read the data. ¡°That¡¯s right. There are dozens of areas like that. This is a de novo bacteria,¡± Messelson said. ¡°There¡¯s the P6K20 gene!¡± ¡°It¡¯s from cholera.¡± ¡°And M2?¡± ¡°It¡¯s inserted as a TRC promoter. Doctor Michelle, this is where the apoe genes that increase the respiratory infectivity of anthracis show up. You¡¯ve seen this gene, RF0012, recently, right?¡± ¡°Oh!¡± Michelle pped. ¡°Red mold!¡± ¡°This gene name appeared in Doctor Ryu¡¯stest paper on red mold. The terrorists transnted some of the genes that red mold uses to make spores into it.¡± ¡°Wait, I know why Doctor Ryu sent us this.¡± Michelle smiled brightly. Messelson nodded and said what Michelle was going to say. ¡°Let¡¯s track down the genes that were inserted.¡± ¡°Robert,¡± Michelle said as she looked back at the CIA agents. The agents, who were staring into space, came back. ¡°Oh, yes. You¡¯re finally including us in the conversation now? I was drifting off for a moment. I was wondering whatnguage you guys were taking in,¡± Robert said yfully. ¡°Sorry. Robert, the anthracis has a lot of genes that originate from different organisms. And I doubt a scientist from a terrorist organization would have obtained these from a broker far away.¡± ¡°Since the more of them there are, the more likely they are to be caught,¡± Robert said. ¡°So, let¡¯s track the information that came from universities in Africa,¡± Michelle said. * * * ¡°Hello everyone,¡± Young-Joon greeted as he walked into the grand conference hall on the second floor of A-Bio with themissioner of the KDCA. There were about thirty scientists waiting for him. They all stared at Young-Joon calmly. ¡°Themissioner will exin the details, but first...¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I would like to sincerely thank everyone here. I can¡¯t tell you how touched I am that you¡¯re willing to stay and devise a defense strategy instead of running away from this ce full of terror threats. Chapter 178: GSC (10)

Chapter 178: GSC (10)

¡°Everything else aside, it¡¯s outrageous and unforgivable that terrorists would target the GSC directly,¡± said Brayden, a British scientist. ¡°Even if they are angry at the West and want revenge, what did us scientists do wrong?¡± Doctor Dn clicked his tongue. ¡°Yes. It¡¯s just like people taking out their anger at Doctor Ryu because He Jiankui made a gically engineered baby,¡± Doctor Lily said. He Jiankui flinched. ¡°Gically engineered babies are a necessary technology, and medicine will eventually head in that direction. You should be thankful for me starting it off,¡± He Jiankui said. ¡°We¡¯re saying that you started it off the wrong way.¡± ¡°Funding for Cas9-rted research might be cut off.¡± ¡°That baby might die early because its CCR5 is modified. How are you going to take responsibility for it?¡± ¡°What? You people shouldn¡¯t be criticizing me!¡± He Jiankui said angrily. ¡°If you all do biology and medicine, you will eventually gically engineer embryos, won¡¯t you? You can¡¯t criticize me when I¡¯m taking the brunt of the barrage of condemnation you¡¯re going to get from religious organizations.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t be absurd. We don¡¯t experiment with people.¡± ¡°You have to do it for medical purposes when it¡¯s absolutely necessary. You can stop HIV from being inherited with drugs without modifying CCR5, but you stupidly...¡± ¡°Stupidly?¡± Scientists criticized He Jiankui from all over. There was an instant uproar. ¡°Everyone,¡± Young-Joon said. All the scientists looked at him. ¡°I will protect those babies,¡± he said. ¡°Because I feel responsible as the developer of the base technology. I also knew that someone would try to gically modify embryos.¡± Young-Joon nced at He Jiankui near the end of his sentence. ¡°Although I didn¡¯t expect someone who is capable enough to conduct such an experiment to do it so recklessly in secret, without even asking me, the patent holder of Cas9, for permission,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Because you wouldn¡¯t have given me permission if I requested it,¡± He Jiankui said, shrugging. ¡°We¡¯ll discuss thatter because we¡¯re facing a bioterrorist attack,¡± themissioner of the KDCA said. ¡°Alright. Let¡¯s get to the point. How much does Doctor Ryu or the Korean government know about the bioweapon that the rebels are using?¡± asked an old, gray-haired scientist. It was Caleb, a Canadian scientist. ¡°To be honest, we know almost everything.¡± Young-Joon shared the presentation with the scientists. They read through all of it carefully: the DNA sequence, the various proteins made, the structure, and their mechanisms. ¡°Ha, this is a monstrous bacteria,¡± Dn said. ¡°They pulled in a lot of new foreign genes here and there to make it more infective, but the biggest problem is the pumps,¡± Lily said, reading the bacteria¡¯s data. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°There are thirty different antibiotic pumps. How did you figure this out, Doctor Ryu?¡± ¡°After I got the patient sample from Doctor Michelle, I isted the bacteria and read all the DNA using the analysis equipment at A-Bio,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Then, I used the BLAST program to match the DNA and find the genes involved.¡± ¡°But all the protein structures are here, too. How did you do this?¡± Lily asked. ¡°That¡¯s a secret because it¡¯s rted to A-Bio¡¯s new technology.¡± It wasn¡¯t something that was possible with current technology, but Young-Joon couldn¡¯t say that Rosaline told him. ¡°You¡¯re such a scientist. The discussion keeps going astray when something interestinges up,¡± He Jiankui interrupted. ¡°Let¡¯s get back to the pumps.¡± ¡°We can¡¯t kill this bacteria with antibiotics if there are these many antibiotic pumps.¡± ¡°Normally, anthrax can be treated with lots of antibiotics if it¡¯s early in the infection, but this anthrax is different.¡± The scientists expressed their worries. ¡°We can make a cure,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°It¡¯s a type of super bacteria that doesn¡¯t respond to any antibiotics. Can we make a cure for it?¡± Dn asked. ¡°We are going to take advantage of the fact that it has a lot of pumps, since these pumps work by active transport.¡± Pumps were structures on cell membranes. If antibiotics came into the cell, the pumps would pump them back out, and that was how the bacteria gained resistance to antibiotics. However, active transport pumps consumed energy. Pumping out antibiotics was not a natural process, but it was something that required energy from the bacteria. ¡°There are thirty pumps. Since there are thousands of them in total, the bacteria¡¯s energy source will be depleted if they run wild. It won¡¯t be able to survive,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Are you saying you¡¯re going to administer all thirty of those antibiotics?¡± themissioner asked. ¡°No, that would take a pretty big toll on the patient¡¯s stomach and liver. Instead, we¡¯d give them themon active factor of the pump through the patient¡¯s respiratory system. Antibiotics can damage human cells depending on what they are, but not the active factor. The antibiotic pumps don¡¯t exist in human cells, so it won¡¯t affect them at all.¡± ¡°But that wouldn¡¯t kill the anthrax, would it? The anthrax can go back to a spore and grow,¡± Dn pointed out. ¡°Then it¡¯s much easier. If spores are created within the body, the immune cells can eliminate them on their own,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Hm.¡± The scientists nodded. It was convincing. ¡°Personally, I think it will be sessful. If there¡¯s a terrorist attack, the antibiotics won¡¯t work, and we¡¯ll end up treating in the way I described. However, we will bemercializing it without enough clinical data.¡± ¡°There¡¯s nothing we can do if it¡¯s urgent and nothing else works,¡± themissioner said. ¡°But this drug is just in case people get infected. The best case scenario would be if there is no bioterrorism at all,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Is there a way?¡± asked Steinhauer, the leading expert in astrophysics. ¡°This anthrax infects the respiratory system. The terrorists will most likely bring in gas bombs and spray them in hotels and other ces.¡± ¡°So we should scan for gas bombs at airports?¡± ¡°Unless the terrorists have gas in their heads instead of their brain, they won¡¯t bring it to the airport in gas form,¡± Brayden said sarcastically. As Steinhauer red at him, Lily added, ¡°They will probably make it into a spore and condense it using a centrifuge to make a pellet. 0.05 milligrams should be enough to paralyze a region as big as Yeouido[1].¡± ¡°They¡¯ll bring it into the country and put it into gas cylinders,¡± Dn said. ¡°Then if we can figure out where they are going to detonate the bomb, we can have police patrol the nearby regions and look for gas cylinder bombs,¡± Steinhauer said. ¡°Just to be clear, the terrorists¡¯ target is the GSC, right?¡± Brayden asked. ¡°Then would the terrorists be so stupid as toe all the way to Asia, where they have no ties, and kill Koreans to make another enemy? Maybe if they have gas in their heads...¡± Steinhauer said to Brayden sarcastically. ¡°Please don¡¯t fight,¡± Young-Joon intervened. ¡°Realistically, there¡¯s no way for us to detect micrograms of bacteria at the airport. We can¡¯t go through every passenger¡¯s luggage, and even if we did, we probably wouldn¡¯t find it.¡± ¡°I suppose.¡± ¡°What I would like to ask everyone to do is to stay at the Grand Hyatt until this attack is sorted out,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°You want us to act as bait?¡± Dn asked. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°Well, alright. I¡¯m confident that we¡¯ll be able to stop it. It¡¯s nothing but a biological weapon used by some trivial terrorists.¡± ¡°We would¡¯ve run away already if we were going to.¡¯ ¡°But we have to make sure the terrorists don¡¯t realize we know about their attacks. If they find out, they might abandon the GSC as a target and strike somewhere else,¡± Lily said. ¡°But we still have to evacuate the citizens, right?¡± Brayden asked. ¡°The government will take care of that,¡± themissioner said. ¡°Well, alright. If they put in the anthracis in gas cylinders, how big will they be?¡± Brayden asked Young-Joon. ¡°It will fit into a backpack.¡± ¡°The size of a backpack...¡± ¡°So now we just need to figure out a way to find the gas cylinder? What should we do? I would like to hear from some of the physics and engineering doctors.¡± He Jiankui looked back at Doctor Comat. ¡°Let¡¯s increase the number of police officers on patrol and give them portable X-ray scanners. They can scan someone¡¯s belongings with one swipe of the stick,¡± Comat said. ¡°Or what about this? We can organize in clothes officers and have them shoot shear wave guns at backpacks or suitcases,¡± Steinhauer said. ¡°If there¡¯s gas after metal, we can figure out if it¡¯s a gas cylinder based on the refractive index of the shear waves.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a good idea. But can you make shear wave guns small enough to carry?¡± Caleb asked. ¡°It already exists. I developed it a few years ago, and I¡¯ve been supplying it to the U.S. army. We can get it through expedited shitting and use it,¡± Steinhauer said. ¡°Whatever works,¡± Young-Joon interrupted. ¡°Besides that, I would like to put one more safety mechanism between detecting the gas cylinders to prevent release and the cure to treat the infected.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± Caleb asked. ¡°It¡¯s to get rid of the released anthracis in the air.¡± ¡°Is that even possible?¡± ¡°We will also release gas. However, this gas will contain bacteria that will collect anthracis.¡± ¡°...¡± The scientists were quiet for a few seconds. Themissioner of the KDCA nced at Young-Joon. ¡®He¡¯s doing something weird again.¡¯ ¡°There¡¯s a bacteria called Thermosma volcanium that lives in hot springs that are one hundred sixty degrees Fahrenheit. Recently, it was discovered that Thermosma live in the hot springs at the Yellowstone National Park and the Hakone Hot Springs,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°It seemed unlikely that animals or humans transported the bacteria there. Some scientists studied it out of curiosity and realized that the bacteria can fly.¡± ¡°So if you release arge quantity of Thermosma, it will fly around and catch anthracis?¡± ¡°Of course, Thermosma won¡¯t be interested in anthracis, but we have Cas9, the best gic engineering technology avable.¡± He Jiankui flinched again. ¡°We can put a few genes into Thermosma using Cas9, and we will synthesize a protein into the cell wall.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s an antibody that sticks to anthracis. When we release this bacteria into the air, it will chase the anthracis and collect as many anthracis as there are antibodies. We expect one Thermosma to catch two hundred anthracis.¡± ¡°What happened next?¡± ¡°Anthracis can¡¯t multiply when they are captured by Thermosma, so it won¡¯t be pathogenic. And Thermosma is a bacteria originally found in hot springs, so it won¡¯t live long at room temperature.¡± ¡°How long can it live?¡± Dn asked. ¡°Less than a day, at most. When it dies, it secretes arge amount of nuclease and protease. It will destroy the anthracis that is attached to it.¡± Caleb marveled. ¡°That¡¯s a real bacterial war.¡± ¡°Is Thermosma dangerous?¡± Lily asked. ¡°No. It¡¯s a bacteria that lives in almost all hot springs. It¡¯s safe to say that everyone who has bathed in hot springs has been infected with it at least once. It¡¯spletely fine,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°It¡¯s interesting.¡± He Jiankui pped. ¡°Doctor Ryu, let¡¯s show the terrorists what real scientists¡¯ biology is like.¡± 1. Yeouido is arge ind on the Han River in Seoul ? Chapter 179: Bacterial War (1)

Chapter 179: Bacterial War (1)

Yoon Bo-Hyun¡¯s name rose to prominence as he targeted Young-Joon. Now, he was standing in the eye of the storm of the merger between A-Gen and A-Bio. At this point, it was also reported that Yoon Bo-Hyun was the son of Yoon Dae-Sung, the CEO of A-Gen. Although he never publicly confirmed it, many people knew that silence was a sign of affirmation. ¡ªWhat a disappointment, Ryu Young-Joon. Developing a bioweapon is a vition of the international convention. ¡ªHonestly, does it make sense that a research ethics fanatic like Ryu Young-joon would develop a bioweapon andmit murder? Ryu Young-Joon said that it wasn¡¯t true, and all these allegations seem fake. ¡ªAll he has to do is just open the records from Lab Six, right? ¡ªBut can we be sure that Ryu Young-Joon didn¡¯t meddle with those records? He¡¯s already one of the best scientists in the world, and the research foundation is probably trying to stay on his good side. ¡ªPeople, please. The anthracis fence and the anthrax outbreak in Africa aren¡¯t rted at all. Anthrax can¡¯t spread from that fence. Please do some research before you criticize... ¡ªI knew Ryu Young-Joon was going to cause trouble soon enough. Someone who seeded that much in such a short amount of time is bound to be dirty. ¡ªI think Yoon Dae-Sung will take the A-Bio-A-Gen merger. Money is more important to the shareholders than truth. Even if they believe Ryu Young-Joon, to give him the CEO position with his current image... They¡¯ll merge under Yoon Dae-Sung, and then change to Ryu Young-Joon when the allegations are all cleared up. ¡ªThis is ridiculous. Because of these garbage rumors? Look what Ryu Young-Joon has shown us thus far. ¡ªDon¡¯t trust Ryu Young-Joon too much. I think he¡¯s dangerous. The things he has done are senseless, right? All geniuses have a w in their personality. Professors and GSC members are all entric, too. ¡ªBreaking news! Ryu Young-Joon confesses >>>Click Here<<< ¡ªDon¡¯t clickbait, you bastard. ¡ªBut why isn¡¯t Ryu Young-Joon doing anything after thest press conference? He¡¯s so quiet. ¡ªDoctor Ryu only does big things. He doesn¡¯t have time to fight with Yoon Bo-Hyun or whatever. ¡ªHerees the Ryu Young-Joon cult believer. Click. Yoon Bo-Hyun turned off his phone. All the posts that were being posted on themunity page of A-Gen and A-Bio¡¯s website were something like that. The public was reacting simrly as well. ¡®But it¡¯s strange.¡¯ Young-Joon was a perfectionist. Considering his personality, he should get on TV and do some sort of weird experiment again; he should be demonstrating that there was nothing wrong with the anthracis fence. Or, he should have released the records of A-Gen¡¯s anthrax weapons and buried Yoon Dae-Sung and Yoon Bo-Hyun. That was what Yoon Bo-Hyun had predicted Young-Joon would do, but he still hadn¡¯t responded. What about the government? The government did not detain Young-Joon, nor did they rush to release the research foundation¡¯s records to exonerate him. All the prosecution said was that they would investigate this thoroughly, and in reality, it was being ignored as if Young-Joon should be doing something else. ¡®What is going on?¡¯ Yoon Bo-Hyun, who was a little anxious, remembered what Yoon Dae-Sung had said to him ¡ªYou don¡¯t stand a chance against him. The reason he is not destroying you right now is because his priority is the anthrax epidemic in Africa. To him, you¡¯re nothing but a small fruit fly. Yoon Bo-Hyun clenched his fists. ¡®That¡¯s not true, Father.¡¯ Yoon Bo-Hyun pulled apany document on hisputer. It was the data on A-Gen¡¯s anthrax weapon obtained through Ji Kwang-Man¡¯s ount. He wasn¡¯t allowed to carry it out, but he took photos of it on his phone. It was a lot of data, about two hundred pages. ¡°Um... Manager Yoon,¡± said Kim Chun-Yeol, the team manager of the Business Development Division. ¡°Yes, sir.¡± ¡°Haha, there¡¯s a proposal that was sent to me right now, and I approved it. But I want you to take a look.¡± ¡°A proposal?¡± The team manager position was way higher than Yoon Bo-Hyun, and he didn¡¯t have to show him things that had been approved by him. ¡°You¡¯re going to be the head of ourpany, so you should see my work.¡± Patting him on the shoulder, Kim Chun-Yeol gave Yoon Bo-Hyun the documents. ¡®He¡¯s probably trying to be on both my side and Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s.¡¯ Yoon Bo-Hyun didn¡¯t trust him, but he trusted the favor for now. ¡°Thank you.¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun¡¯s eyes narrowed as he read the document carefully. The proposal was from A-Bio. [Mass production of anthrax drug AL0074] [This product has not yetpleted preclinical studies, but based on the urgency of the situation and safety observed in cell experiments, production has been proposed. This has been approved by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety.] Yoon Bo-Hyun read through the document. There was no information about theposition of the drug itself. It was secured because the drug was still in development and A-Bio was still separate from A-Gen. However, there was information that it was approved by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety and an exnation that A-Bio would supply the raw materials needed for mass production. ¡°Did Ryu Young-Joon propose this himself?¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun asked. ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°There¡¯s nothing about theposition of the new drug?¡± ¡°That¡¯s why I¡¯m showing it to you, Manager Yoon. It¡¯s before the merger and approved by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, so there¡¯s nothing wrong with it, but...¡± The team manager frowned at him with a suspicious gaze. Yoon Bo-Hyun smirked. ¡®Did you think I would interfere if you told me theposition?¡¯ No matter how reckless Yoon Bo-Hyun would be to take down Young-Joon, he wouldn¡¯t stop him from selling drugs to patients in Africa and increasing thepany¡¯s revenue. Yoon Bo-Hyun gave the document back to Kim Chun-Yeol. ¡°It looks good. Thanks for letting me know.¡± ¡°Are you okay with not knowing theposition?¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine,¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun said. Yoon Bo-Hyun smiled as he watched Kim Chun-Yeol return to his seat. ¡®It¡¯s probably a drug that prevents the male and female anthracis frombining, or something like that. I know enough about the anthrax epidemic in Africa, Ryu Young-Joon.¡¯ * * * At the same time, the team searching for anthrax terrorists in Africa was moving at a fast speed. ¡°Doctor Ryu is mass-producing the cure right now. He¡¯ll send it to Africa soon,¡± Messelson said. ¡°You are the defense, and we are the offense. Let¡¯s aim to finish them off here, if possible, before they hit the GSC conference in Korea.¡± ¡°Then, let¡¯s check it over,¡± Robert, the CIA agent, said. ¡°We have a record of a shipment of research-grade superbugs from the Ghiblium Institute of Technology in Saudi Arabia. The person in charge is Doctor Jihadim,¡± Michelle said. ¡°The Arab League traced this person, and he¡¯s in the Republic of Congo. Not the Democratic Republic of Congo, but an independent country right next to ours. They¡¯ve also found forty-two genes that have been shipped out here and there.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve been tracking the order in which these foreign genes were inserted into anthracis based on the degree of methtion,¡± Messelson said. ¡°The seven hydropumps went in first, then three genes from Eb, then the individual antibiotic pumps... but there¡¯s a lot. First, the puromycin pump, then the kanamycin pump, ampicillin pump... And then four chitin synthesis genes to maintain the cell membrane of anthracis. Then, the carbenicillin pump...¡± ¡°There¡¯s a lot of them,¡± Michelle said. ¡°Anyway, let¡¯s try to piece together the information of where each gene came from in each country based on the order of insertion.¡± ¡°Leave it to us,¡± Robert said, picking up the documents. ¡°This is our specialty.¡± * * * In the secret hideout at the Palestinian Liberation Front, Abrahim, a young man who was standing guard, saw a small truck approaching. The driver was like a brother to Abrahim; they were just some lowly soldiers. However, the person who was sitting in the passenger¡¯s seat was one of the military officers of the Palestinian Liberation Front. ¡°Major Aziz!¡± Abrahim saw him and saluted. ¡°Everything¡¯s been okay?¡± Aziz said after he got out of the truck. ¡°Yes, sir.¡± ¡°Good work, Doctor Ref. You cane down now,¡± Aziz said. Then, to his surprise, an exotic-looking woman stepped out from the back of the truck. She had soft skin like she hadn¡¯t seen hardship in her life, intelligent eyes, and a gracious smile. She looked so out of ce here. ¡°For a prisoner, you look a little too...¡± Abrahim said. She looked too rxed for a prisoner. ¡°Who is she?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t need to know. Be polite as she is an important guest,¡± Aziz said. ¡°Over here, Doctor.¡± ¡°Shukran,¡± Doctor Ref said as he passed by Abrahim. It was Arabic for ¡°thank you.¡± Abrahim nked as he watched Doctor Ref and Major Aziz walk inside. ¡°That person...¡± Abrahim said to the driver. ¡°Who is she?¡± ¡°She¡¯s a biologist. I don¡¯t know the details, either. Apparently, she¡¯s been very helpful in helping us wipe out the rebels in the area and settling down here.¡± ¡°How old is she?¡± ¡°She looks like she¡¯s in her twenties, right?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°But apparently, she¡¯s over fifty.¡± ¡°What?!¡± Abrahim was shocked. Doctor Ref, who went into the hideout, sat down in the work chair in the small makeshiftb. ¡°Phew. It¡¯s so nice to be here after sitting in a truck. My behind was killing me earlier. Thest hideout I was in was morefortable, but I didn¡¯t realize you would move so far away while I was gone.¡± ¡°We moved because there was a high chance it would be discovered by international intelligence agents.¡± ¡°You cleaned up well, right?¡± ¡°Yes, I covered up almost every trace.¡± ¡°There are some papers there with my signature, and there are sketches of a n to attack the GSC. If those fall into the CIA¡¯s hands, this operation could be doomed.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I had Abraham and a few others burn most of it to the ground. There will be some research facilities left, but no materials.¡± ¡°Hm.¡± Doctor Ref chuckled and stared at Aziz. Aziz felt a little overwhelmed. ¡°I checked as well,¡± he said. ¡°Well, alright. But it doesn¡¯t matter if you fail.¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter?¡± ¡°Because there are endless ways and opportunities to attack. And we¡¯re just trying to destroy the GSC for symbolic reasons, there are other important targets, too,¡± Doctor Ref said. ¡°Of course, it would be better if we seeded. But for now, let¡¯s assess the situation. Can we look at our weapon?¡± ¡°Here it is,¡± Aziz said. One of the scientists in the hideoutb handed her a vial that was the size of their finger. Their hands trembled. ¡°Even if we¡¯re growing a monster without safety measures, at least don¡¯t touch them with your bare hands.¡± Doctor Ref took the vial with anthracis with a cloth. At a nce, it looked like one of those lotion samples from cosmetics stores. ¡°Aziz, I¡¯ve had someone in Korea make some gas cylinders already.¡± Doctor Ref held out a note. ¡°I left it in a storage locker at Seoul Station, and this is the address. All you have to do is take the cylinder out, open the lid, put the bacteria inside, and lock the cylinder.¡± Doctor Ref took out a small needle from her bag. ¡°I¡¯ll give this injection to the carrier.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± Aziz asked. ¡°A vine. It¡¯s respiratory, so you never know.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Aziz took the syringe from her. ¡°But Doctor Ref, there¡¯s something I want to ask.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°Why did you use anthracis in a few African countries? Isn¡¯t it our goal to show our will and strength to the West?¡± ¡°There are a few reasons. The first is to test out its toxicity; we can¡¯t sacrifice our own, right? Second is to keep the attention of the internationalmunity to Africa so that they miss the GSC, which is the real target. Andstly...¡± she said. ¡°It¡¯s to keep Ryu Young-Joon there. I honestly don¡¯t think it will work. It¡¯s good if it does, and it doesn¡¯t matter if it doesn¡¯t, but maybe we¡¯ll get lucky.¡± Chapter 180: Bacterial War (2)

Chapter 180: Bacterial War (2)

¡°Keep Ryu Young-Joon there?¡± Aziz asked. ¡°Yes. Doctor Ryu Young-Joon is the biggest obstacle to this operation since he stopped Eb as well,¡± Doctor Ref replied. If word got out that the anthracis fence had caused side effects, Young-Joon would receive bacsh. Doctor Ref had nned this in advance but didn¡¯t expect much from it because Young-Joon wasn¡¯t one to be destroyed by that. ¡°But I was unexpectedly dealt a very good card,¡± Doctor Ref said. ¡°A good card?¡± ¡°Some idiot in Korea sent the anthrax bioweapon to the rebels in South Sudan.¡± Aziz tilted his head in confusion. Doctor Ref continued. ¡°The bioweapon itself was useless because it was already scrapped, but it seems like the person who sent it had the same idea as me. In exchange for sending it, he asked them to spread it in a few ces, and those were all ces where the anthracis fence was put up.¡± ¡°Are you saying that someone from Doctor Ryu¡¯s home country thought of the same nder as you?¡± Aziz said. ¡°You¡¯re bound to make enemies the more great and famous you get, especially someone with Doctor Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s personality.¡± ¡°Who is it?¡± ¡°Yoon Bo-Hyun. He¡¯s the next-in-line for A-Gen, but he¡¯s in danger of losing it to Doctor Ryu,¡± Doctor Ref said. ¡°So, he sent the anthrax weapon here to subdue Doctor Ryu in order to protect his inheritance?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Doctor Refughed. ¡°Look, Aziz. Isn¡¯t it so funny? Having control over apany... Why does that shit matter when people are dying on the other side of the world?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Makes me sick,¡± Doctor Ref said quietly. The look of disgust on her face made Aziz feel nervous for some reason. Doctor Ref pulled out her phone and checked the time. ¡°I only came here to give you the syringe and the location of the gas cylinder, but I¡¯ve been here longer than I thought. Now I have to get back,¡± she said. ¡°Are you going back to theb?¡± Aziz asked. ¡°Yes. Just in case, please don¡¯t attack London, okay? I¡¯m going to be there now.¡± Doctor Refughed yfully. ¡°Of course, we won¡¯t,¡± Aziz replied. ¡°Be careful not to get caught. The CIA and other international intelligence organizations are more capable than you think. They¡¯ve destroyed a lot of organizations, right?¡± Doctor Ref gathered her things. Everything fit nicely into a backpack because Doctor Ref only brought a few things. ¡°Now that I see, it¡¯s time to take my meds.¡± Doctor Ref, who was organizing her bag, picked up a brown medicine bottle. She took out a light brown pill and swallowed it without water. Aziz, who was watching her, asked, ¡°Doctor Ref, can I ask one more question?¡± ¡°Sure.¡± ¡°Who are you?¡± ¡°Who am I?¡± ¡°You first came to our organization three years ago. From then, the things you¡¯ve done...¡± Aziz gulped. ¡°I¡¯d believe you if you said you were the Devil, not a human.¡± ¡°Haha, I¡¯m not that great,¡± Doctor Ref said. ¡°Devils are people like Yoon Bo-Hyun. I¡¯m...¡± She fiddled with her medicine bottle. ¡°I¡¯m just a person born a little differently.¡± ¡°A little differently?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. He Jiankui made a gically engineered baby with Cas9,¡± Doctor Ref said. ¡°Scientists all over the world think he was the first, but that¡¯s not true.¡± ¡°... Gic maniption?¡± ¡°DNA scissors that could manipte genes existed before Cas9. They were called TALENs. They were much less efficient than Cas9, but it was possible to modify an embryo¡¯s genes with great skill and persistence,¡± Doctor Ref said. ¡°There are about two thousand genes in humans that are rted to intelligence, and my mother optimized the expression of them to make a daughter. And that¡¯s me.¡± ¡°...¡± Chills ran down Aziz¡¯s neck. Now, he felt like he had a glimpse into this woman¡¯s inhuman calctions, strategies, andmand. ¡°And I know because I am the final product of modern science,¡± Doctor Ref said as she touched the medicine bottle. ¡°I know that science is like Icarus¡¯ wings to humans.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Humans don¡¯t deserve this.¡± She rose from her seat. ¡°I should really get going. Take care of yourself, Aziz.¡± * * * ¡°I heard this when I was in undergrad, but about twenty years ago, a professor in Korea did oral pipetting while doing an experiment,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°What is that?¡± themissioner of the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency asked. ¡°It¡¯s exactly what it sounds like. He pipetted with his mouth.¡± Young-Joon jerked his thumb. A pipette was a long experimental equipment for measuring. It was simr to a spoid, but it was much more precise and expensive. Pressing and releasing the button on the head of the device would create a suction pressure at the opposite opening. A disposable funnel, called a pipette tip, would be inserted to cover the opening, and the suction pressure would draw the solution into the tip. The suction pressure would keep the solution in the tip, and pressing the button again with the tip in the desired location would release the solution. Simply put, a pipette was a suction device used to hold and transport solutions with the tip. ¡°That professor was toozy to go get a pipette, so he put the tip in his mouth and tried to draw a tiny bit of solution to move it. Instead, he swallowed it.¡± ¡°What kind of idiot...¡± Themissioner frowned in disbelief. ¡°The more skilled a person is in experimentation, the more pride andziness will lead to safety insensitivity,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°What¡¯s worse is that what he swallowed was a radioactive substance called EtBr. He became a walking radioactive man.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The professor called 119[1] and told them what happened. Theb was locked down, and the professor was bundled up in a spacesuit and taken to the hospital. They also made sure that no one could ess theb or the floor of the building.¡± ¡°You¡¯re talking about mimicking that, right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Let¡¯s say that there was an ident while presenting experimental results at the conference and a radioactive substance was leaked. We can just tell them not toe near until they¡¯re done cleaning it up.¡± The KDCA immediately epted Young-Joon¡¯s suggestion. The public announcement was about cleaning up the radioactive substance spilled during the GSC conference, and this was broadcast as breaking news. ¡ªThe KDCA confirmed that the radioactive substance was rtively safe but asked people to refrain from using the hotel until all the radioactive substance is removed to avoid disruption. ¡ªMembers of the GSC, an international union of scientists, have also reassured us that the risk is very small and have agreed to personally supervise and assist in the removal of the radioactive substance. ¡ªFor this reason, the GSC International Conference, which ends in seven days, will continue to be held at the hotel. ¡ªThe Grand Hyatt has also decided to refund andpensate guests and temporarily close the second floor and above until all radioactive material is removed. There was an interview from the hotel management. ¡°We were told that the radioactive material that has leaked is not dangerous, but we have decided to restrict ess to the hotel for the safety of our citizens and to prevent further leaks.¡± ¡ªCitizens are praising the hotel¡¯s decision. This time, it was an interview with a citizen. ¡°It¡¯s probably a big loss for the hotel, but I¡¯m grateful that they are refunding all of it and giving me a voucher for another hotel. I can feel that they care a lot about the safety of their guests...¡± At the same time, hotel management, GSC members, and the public servants working at the KDCA, were gathered in the GSC International Conference seminar room. ¡°How big was the loss for the hotel?¡± asked themissioner of the KDCA. ¡°Well, thankfully, we only had general guests during the GSC, and we didn¡¯t receive reservations for any important business meetings in the first ce,¡± said Um Se-Joon, the manager of the hotel. ¡°Other than that, we were worried that the leakage of a radioactive material would damage our reputation, but...¡± ¡°Thank you for your big decision.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine. I think we can actually aim for a boost in our reputation if we market it well. It would be the worst if we didn¡¯t know what to do and had an anthrax attack while we had a bunch of guests.¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu, how much Thermosma do you have prepared?¡± asked themissioner of the KDCA. ¡°We have enough, so don¡¯t worry. We will spray it inside the hotel and near the Yongsan area from now until the end of the conference,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Okay, are we all set?¡± asked themissioner. ¡°It would be great if we could track the terrorists,¡± said Dn. ¡°It¡¯s a little frustrating that we don¡¯t know when they areing.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s wait since we have prepared everything,¡± the other scientists said. Young-Joon left the seminar room. ¡®Rosaline.¡¯ ¡ªYes. ¡®If I turn on Simtion Mode right now, how big can my scope be?¡¯ ¡ªIf it¡¯s for a moment, you can look at all of South Korea. ¡®How bad will it be if I do real-time monitoring for the entire day until the end of the conference?¡¯ ¡ªWow... This is forcedbor... I¡¯m going to turn you in to thebor board. ¡®Please help me with this once.¡¯ ¡ªThere¡¯s only seven days left, right? Rosaline asked. ¡ªThen I think we can do... around Seoul. ¡®Thanks. I¡¯ll leave it to you.¡¯ ¡ªBut why? ording to the CIA¡¯s report, they¡¯re targeting the GSC. ¡®But that information got to me too easily. I don¡¯t fully trust anything important when it¡¯s going easy.¡¯ ¡ªSays the man who churns out cures for incurable diseases every month. ¡®It¡¯s also suspicious that Rosalind¡¯s signature is still left there. And creating a chimeric bacteria is something that the Life Creation Department could have done. They¡¯re no ordinary scientist considering their skills. It doesn¡¯t matter if it¡¯s Elsie or whoever; there¡¯s something we¡¯re definitely missing.¡¯ Young-Joon said. ¡ªDo you have somewhere that you¡¯re suspicious of? ¡®Lab Six of A-Gen, and Yeonyee University Hospital.¡¯ ¡ªYeonyee Hospital? ¡®Yeah. I already contacted my employee and set up Thermosma there. If something happens, we¡¯ll be able to stop it for a moment. But I can¡¯t rx unless I see it myself. ¡ªAlright. * * * A crowd of Arabs arrived in front of the lockers at Seoul Station. They were soldiers of the Palestinian Liberation Front that Aziz had sent. In other countries, they were simply called terrorists. Bahadul, the leader, opened the locker with the password they had received in advance. Inside were three gas cylinders and a note. ¡°There¡¯s three?¡± They had definitely gotten themand to spray two cylinders. Confused by the extra cylinder, Bahadul picked up the note. [Themand is being delivered this way to avoid wiretapping. The following information is the real objective of this operation of the Palestinian Liberation Front and top secret information only known to themander. Bahadul and the operations team will follow the following procedure.] [The team will divide into two, the first of which is responsible for spraying two anthrax weapons at the Grand Hyatt Hotel, where the GSC International Conference is being held, to attract the police. In the meanwhile, the second team takes the remaining anthrax gas cylinder to Yeonyee University Hospital.] [The team will discharge the anthrax at the entrance of the hospital to cause disruption. After outrunning security, the team will enter ICU room 1407. You will return with the patient¡¯s blood in a syringe.] [The patient¡¯s name is spelled as follows in Korean, so do not make a mistake.] [Kim Hyun-Taek.] 1. equivalent to 911 ? Chapter 181: Bacterial War (3)

Chapter 181: Bacterial War (3)

It was a chilly evening. After finishing their meals, people on Myeongdong Street stopped in their tracks and watched therge screen. There was breaking news. This news would be another variable in the many allegations surrounding Young-Joon. ¡ªThis is breaking news. The WHO and the CIA are iming that the anthrax epidemic in Africa did originate from a biological weapon. ¡ªording to the letter the United States Department of State sent to the South Korean and African governments, they have confirmed that the anthrax epidemic in Africa was a terrorist weapon that was used by rebels in South Sudan and had nothing to do with the anthracis fence. Some of the people who were watching the screen let out a sigh of relief, while others nodded in agreement. Another news item followed. ¡ªThe prosecution investigating Ryu Young-Joon, the CEO of A-Bio, has requested the National Forensic Service to test the body of Kim Hyun-Taek for anthrax. * * * ¡°I got it!¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun, who was watching the news, clenched his fists. The news that the anthrax bioweapon being used in Africa has nothing to do with the anthracis fence would shift the public in Young-Joon¡¯s favor, but Yoon Bo-Hyun had one more card up his sleeve. News broke that the National Forensic Service was going to test Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s body for anthrax, and it was time to reveal that card. Doctors had already announced that Kim Hyun-Taek didn¡¯t have anthrax in his body, but it didn¡¯t matter; an investigation by the forensic service conveyed a different image to the public as it was more focused on being a criminal investigation. If their investigation found the anthrax bioweapon, there would likely be ims that Young-Joon actually bribed Yeonyee Hospital. Yoon Bo-Hyun was waiting for the National Forensic Service all this time, and now it was time. ¡°Ryu Young-Joon, now is not the time for you to be cleaning up the leaked radioactive material at the GSC.¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun was digging a grave for Young-Joon, and it was time to bury him. ¡°Director Kim, I¡¯m sorry.¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun took out a small syringe from his bag. He still had a trace amount of A-Gen¡¯s developmental anthrax weapon that was sent to South Sudan in the syringe. It was safe to keep it like this as all the bacteria had died; it wasn¡¯t infectious at all. Of course, it felt a little gross, but it was worth it. Yoon Bo-Hyun got in his car and drove to Yeonyee Hospital. He was going to inject it into Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s IV. Adding five hundred microliters of bacteria carcasses wasn¡¯t going to be noticeable. No nurse would be able to notice a tiny needle hole in the holder of a used IV fluid bag. However, the forensic service would do an investigation and find anthrax in Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s blood. ¡®It¡¯s not infectious, but they will be analyzing the DNA anyway.¡¯ Yoon Bo-Hyun assumed that there would still be DNA in the dead bacteria, and that DNA would match the biological weapons the South Sudan rebels were using. Then, Young-Joon would be arrested. This was the moment for the final blow in this flight. * * * People thought that the best scientists in the world were gathered in the GSC conference room at the Grand Hyatt and brainstorming ideas to remove the radioactive material, but not really. The scientists were fiddling around out of boredom, watching the news, or reading papers. ¡°The GSC conference is almost over. They should be here soon,¡± said Doctor Dn. ¡°Doctor Ryu, did Messelson contact you?¡± ¡°Not yet, but I heard they found a lot of information. They will find their hideout soon,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°We have been patrolling in clothes officers and spraying Thermosma gas for the past few days,¡± Doctor Lily said. ¡°Was the intelligence wrong?¡± ¡°The CIA is brilliant, but unless those terrorists are idiots, would they have exposed their n to attack the GSC this easily?¡± The scientists murmured, but Young-Joon was quiet. It was because he was extremely focused, as billions of Rosaline¡¯s cells, which he shared his sense with, were examining Seoul. ¡ªAh, these damn Thermosma! Rosaline shouted irritatedly. ¡®Why?¡¯ ¡ªThey keep rubbing up against me. These little things. ¡®I guess they like you.¡¯ ¡ªI¡¯m not kidding. They¡¯re making the search a lot less efficient. ¡®But have you found the anthrax yet?¡¯ ¡ªDo you think it¡¯s easy to search all of Seoul? Rosaline said grumpily. ¡ªBut I distributed my cells heavily in the hotel you¡¯re in, Lab Six, and Yeonyee Hospital, and I¡¯m monitoring it carefully. I won¡¯t miss it if theye in. ¡®Good.¡¯ ¡ªBut can I destroy some of these Thermosma? They¡¯re getting in my way. ¡®No, they¡¯re the safety mechanism that¡¯s going to stop the anthracis.¡¯ ¡ªI can catch the anthracis as well. I can just poke a small hole in their cell wall with perforin and... ¡®But you said you have to use a lot of fitness for that, right?¡¯ ¡ªI can get rid of them within my fitness if there isn¡¯t a lot of th... No, wait. I take that back. ¡®What?¡¯ ¡ªThe anthracis is here. ¡®The location?¡¯ ¡ªIt¡¯s the hotel. Young-Joon shot up from his seat. ¡ªThey were here yesterday. Seven people of Arab descent. Rosaline said. The terrorists rehearsed it once yesterday. They had entered the ground floor of the hotel with empty bagste in the afternoon and left. They wanted to see how sensitive the hotel was to outsidersing in and out and how secure it was. There were no problems, and it seemed like the easiest operation they had ever done. ¡ªThey brought the anthracis gas cylinder this time. And there¡¯s quite a lot more anthracis than I thought. I can¡¯t deal with all of them, so I¡¯ll leave it to Thermosma. Rosaline said, looking at the men approaching from the direction of the hotel lobby. ¡®Alright. Come back now.¡¯ Young-Joon walked slowly through the scientists. ¡°Let¡¯s go out, shall we?¡± ¡°Where are you going?¡± Doctor Comat asked. ¡°To meet the terrorists.¡± Young-Joon opened the conference door and walked to the front entrance of the hotel. The scientists followed him out even though they were confused. Then, they were all shocked, as there was alreadymotion in the distance. ¡°Ayreh feek!¡± The soldiers of the Palestinian Liberation Front cursed in Arabic as they ran away.[1] Five of them had already been captured by the police. The situation was so different from the day before. All the hotel employees on the first floor who were smiling at them were all inclothes officers. The terrorists had no idea that under those smiles, they had been scanning their bags with a shear wave gun. And today, the gun had discovered gas cylinders. They couldn¡¯t even reach the hotel entrance; as soon as they got out of their taxi at the parking lot behind the hotel, they were swarmed by the police. It was because a police officer who was undercover as a parking attendant saw the results of the gun and immediately radioed the other officers. ¡°... Damn.¡± Al-Asad, a soldier of the Palestinian Liberation Front, stopped walking. He had given up on bringing the cylinder into the hotel. He opened his bag about ten meters away from the front door. Just opening the lock on the cylinder could make thepressed gas explode and flood the area. It wasn¡¯t the n, but if they were lucky, they would be able to get the GSC inside the hotel. ¡°Hey, get that bastard!¡± the police shouted as they ran towards him. The taser gun they fired hit Al-Asad¡¯s bag. Creak! Al-Asad froze as soon as he opened the lid. The gas that was rushing out of the cylinder didn¡¯t spread. Then, dust-like particles began to gather rapidly from thin air, like dew. ¡°Uh...¡± Neither Aziz nor Doctor Ref had warned him about this phenomenon. Something was wrong. Anthracis was a tiny bacillus, about four micrometers long. It wasn¡¯t visible to the human eye, but hundreds and thousands of them swarmed and fused together as they were captured by Thermosma. Now, they had be particles that were visible to the naked eye. The air near the gas cylinders became cloudy, as if a dusty nket had been shaken off. ¡°What... This...¡± Thud! The police grabbed Al-Asad, who was confused, by the neck. ¡°Don¡¯t move!¡± the police shouted as they tackled Al-Asad to the ground. ¡°...¡± As Al-Asady on the ground, he saw a group of scientists walking out of the hotel. ¡°Is the situation over?¡± He Jiankui looked around. ¡°But what about Doctor Ryu?¡± Young-Joon, who walked out with them, had disappeared. * * * A car was traveling at a frightening speed along Sowol-ro. Young-Joon was pushing on the elerator himself as he had heard the news about Yeonyee Hospital from Rosaline as he left the hotel. A simr situation to the hotel had urred at Yeonyee Hospital. Bahadul, who opened the gas cylinder, froze in shock. It was because the anthracis aggregated in the air like dust and fell to the ground instead of exploding out of the cylinder. ¡°S-Sir...¡± The soldiers looked at Bahadul in confusion. ¡°This is different from what we heard.¡± ¡°...¡± Bahadul thought for a moment. They couldn¡¯t enter the ICU here unless they made an appointment for visitation, and they also had to enter information like their rtionship to the patient. They would be stopped by security if they tried to force their way in, and the police would arrive right away as well. ¡°This operation... failed...¡± said one of the soldiers. ¡°No.¡± They couldn¡¯t give up like this. Theirrades were already distracting the police at the hotel, and they would most likely be arrested. If they came this far at that cost, they had to do something. ¡°We break through,¡± Bahadul said. ¡°We cannot afford to fail. Let¡¯s go in. Follow me.¡± He stepped into the elevator with the other soldiers. They went up to the fourteenth floor and ran for room 1407. As they ran, Bahadul said to Nassir, ¡°Call the emergency contact.¡± ¡°Doctor Ref?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± Corporal Nassir pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and punched in the emergency contact. ¡°W-Who are you people!¡± An intern doctor stepped in front of the room before they could enter. The doctor instinctively sensed danger. Even though they weren¡¯t in uniform, Bahadul and his men, who ran all the way here, looked incredibly hostile. They didn¡¯t look like the average visitor. ¡°Y-You have to have an appointment to visit the ICU. Did you make...¡± ¡°Get out of my way!¡± Bahadul violently pushed the doctor out of the way. ¡°Hey!¡± Two security guards who saw him from the end of the hallway began running towards them with hostile looks on their faces. ¡°Deal with them,¡± Bahadul ordered his men. Security guards were no big deal; they weren¡¯t the police or soldiers. But Bahadul¡¯s men were elite soldiers who had fought for their lives in Africa amongst flying bullets. ¡°Yes, sir,¡± Nassir and the other men replied as they pulled out knives from their pockets. Thud! Bahadul kicked the door to room 1407 in and walked inside. ¡°What?¡± Bahadul tilted his head in confusion. It was because a young man was standing beside the middle-aged man who was on the bed. ¡°Uh...¡± Flustered, Yoon Bo-Hyun pulled away from Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s side. He quickly hid the syringe behind his back. ¡°I-I made... an appointment for visitation... Who are y...¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun asked in a frightened voice. But his voice grew smaller. Bang! p! Thud! It was because terrifying noises wereing from beyond the door. ¡ªRequest for assistance! Violent men have broken into the fourteenth floor...! Yoon Bo-Hyun could hear the security guard shout into his walkie-talkie, but that sound also ended with the sound of something cracking and breaking. ¡°...¡± Click. Soon, two more men entered the room. They were two Arab men with blood all over their faces. The terrifying atmosphere surrounded Yoon Bo-Hyun like knives. ¡ªThis is Doctor Ref. A female voice came from the phone that was in Nassir¡¯s chest pocket. ¡°We may fail at this operation,¡± said Bahadul. ¡°But we are trying to finish it. We are in room 1407.¡± ¡ªAlright, please do the best you can. ¡°There¡¯s a man I¡¯ve never seen before standing in front of the target. What should we do with him?¡± Bahadul asked as he began walking towards Kim Hyun-Taek. ¡ªDo as you please. Yoon Bo-Hyun could hear Doctor Ref¡¯s voice from the phone. He didn¡¯t know any Arabic, so he couldn¡¯t understand what they were saying. However, he knew that he was in danger. He instinctively backed away in fear, but the wall was behind him. Thud. Yoon Bo-Hyun, who was backed up against the wall, stared at Bahadul, trembling. ¡°P-Pleas...¡± As soon as he opened his mouth... Crack! A crushing blow flew to the center of Yoon Bo-Hyun¡¯s face. Bahadul¡¯s fist had shattered his nose and cheekbones. 1. Ayreh feek is Arabic for ¡°fuck you.¡± ? Chapter 182: Bacterial War (4)

Chapter 182: Bacterial War (4)

¡°Ack!¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun¡¯s screaming echoed through the hospital room. He copsed, covering his broken nose and cheekbones. ¡°Move.¡± Bahadul violently grabbed his shoulder and pulled him out of the way. Something fell from Yoon Bo-Hyun¡¯s hands as he fell to the ground with a tter. Drrr. A small syringe rolled across the floor of the clean hospital floor. All the soldiers¡¯ attention was drawn to it. ¡ªWhat¡¯s this sound? Doctor Ref asked. ¡°It was a syringe. This man had it.¡± ¡ªA syringe? ¡°Now that I remember, I think he was poking a needle inside the IV pack when I came in. He doesn¡¯t look like the medical staff.¡± ¡ª... After some thought, Doctor Ref beganughing. ¡ªHahahaha! Afterughing heartily for a while, she spoke again. It was in perfect Korean. ¡ªYou there. Are you Yoon Bo-Hyun or someone he sent? Be honest because I can save you. ¡°...¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun stared at Bahadul and the phone in fear. ¡°Y... Yes. I¡¯m Yoon Bo-Hyun.¡± ¡ªHahaha! This is really funny. Were you going to inject anthracis into Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s blood and incriminate Ryu Young-Joon for murder? ¡°...¡± ¡ªWhat a silly little trick. Doctor Ref said. ¡ªYou¡¯re so pathetic. Don¡¯t you realize that the anthrax going around in Africa isn¡¯t that? I feel like everyone who¡¯s in this game knows that except for you. ¡°W-What are you...¡± ¡ªAnd the sample of A-Gen¡¯s developmental anthracis you have won¡¯t be detected even if you inject it into Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s body because all of its DNA has already been destroyed. Dumbass. I can¡¯t believe I expected something from you. ¡°...¡± ¡ªBahadul said he failed at spraying anthracis gas at the GSC and the hospital. I have an idea of what happened: Ryu Young-Joon sessfully defended it, though I don¡¯t know what specific strategy he used. ¡°S-Spray anthracis gas...?¡± ¡ªYeah. I saw you making a bold move to get Ryu Young-Joon, so I thought maybe you could do something, but you failed as expected. ¡°...¡¯ ¡ªI don¡¯t know if you thought you were a strategist who could get Ryu Young-Joon, but you were nothing but a pawn rolling around on this board. Now do you see? ¡°...¡± ¡ªSpeaking of which, let me tell you this, Yoon Bo-Hyun. You were born into a wealthy chaebol family in a safe, plentiful, and developed country. You were educated as an elite and grown to be the heir to take over argepany like A-Gen. So, you always felt superior to others and thought you could control everything with your own ns. ¡°...¡± ¡ªYou are insensitive to other people¡¯s pain, and you probably see wars and diseases happening in the Third World as nothing but a cash cow, which is why you made a n to send anthracis sample to the rebels in South Sudan to destroy Ryu Young-Joon. I can¡¯t forgive that kind of cruelty either. But you know what? Doctor Ref said. ¡ªDeath does not discriminate. It¡¯s the only quality that is equal, and it¡¯s the only enemy of humanity that every scientist is fighting. Science has been fighting to push the limits of the time given to people. You don¡¯t know any of that because you¡¯ve been working for a seat at the table and some pennies. You¡¯re not a scientist. ¡°...¡± ¡ªAnd because of that, you¡¯ve never risked your life for anything. People who have gone into biosafety level fourbs wearing space suits and touched Eb can¡¯t hand over a bioweapon easily, even if the target is a faraway Third World country. But now, you¡¯re in the middle of the battlefield. When you¡¯re after someone else¡¯s life, you have to risk your own, too. ¡°What... What are you saying? Who are you...¡± Instead of replying, Doctor Ref gave amand in Arabic. ¡ªGet rid of him, Bahadul. Shwing! Bahadul took out a very sharp military knife from his pocket. Yoon Bo-Hyun didn¡¯t understand Arabic, but he knew what was going to happen next. ¡°Ahhh!¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun ran for the entrance in fear, but he was captured by Nassir right in front of the door. Crash! Nassir grabbed Yoon Bo-Hyun and mmed him into the ground. With a loud crack, blood gushed from the back of his head. ¡°...¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun¡¯s eyes rolled back in his head. Then, Bahadul reversed his grip on his knife and stabbed his chest. ng! It was a close call. A phone flew in the air and hit Bahadul¡¯s face. His knife missed Yoon Bo-Hyun due to the pain. However, Yoon Bo-Hyun couldn¡¯t regain consciousness. Young-Joon was standing at the door. ¡°I called the police. All of you, don¡¯t move,¡± Young-Joon said in English. ¡ªThese people don¡¯t speak English. Doctor Ref said from the phone. ¡°...¡± Bahadul got up, rubbing his nose. ¡°There¡¯s another intruder. Should I kill him?¡± ¡ªHe sounds like Ryu Young-Joon, so don¡¯t touch him. ce the phone on the table and harvest Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s blood. There¡¯s not much time left. ¡°What about Yoon Bo-Hyun? He may still be alive.¡± ¡ªRyu Young-Joon will stop you if you try to kill him. Ignore a pawn like Yoon Bo-Hyun. Our priority is collecting his blood. ¡°Alright.¡± Bahadul ced the phone on the table and pulled out a needle from his bag. ¡ªRyu Young-Joon, we talk atst. Doctor Ref said in Korean. ¡°Who are you?¡± ¡ªI¡¯m Doctor Ref. Of course, it¡¯s an alias. And I was the one who orchestrated this terrorist attack and used Yoon Bo-Hyun. Young-Joon red at the phone. ¡°Is your real name Elsie? The one who was at the Life Creation Department.¡± ¡ª... Doctor Ref was quiet for a while. ¡ªIt¡¯s astonishing that you got that far, but no. ¡°Why did you try to attack?¡± ¡ªIt was to collect Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s blood. ¡°...¡± Young-Joon stared at Bahadul. He was drawing Kim Hyun-Taeks¡¯ blood with a needle. ¡°I think the magnitude of what you did was a little too great to just be for someone¡¯s blood.¡± ¡ªI needed to do this so that I could keep your attention elsewhere. ¡°Why are you trying to take Director Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s blood?¡± ¡ªBecause it contains the pathogenic material that was created with Rosaline¡¯s birth. ¡°...¡± [Woah, who is this woman?] Rosaline stared at Young-Joon in surprise. ¡®I don¡¯t know either.¡¯ Young-Joon red at the phone. ¡®Maybe I should just pretend that I don¡¯t know anything.¡¯ ¡°I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about,¡± Young-Joon said. Doctor Ref scoffed. ¡ªHaha, maybe it¡¯s because you¡¯ve been so honest all your life, but you¡¯re not very good at lying. I thought you were reading off a book or something. ¡°...¡± Rosaline shook her head. ¡ªRyu Young-Joon. Doctor Ref said. ¡ªPalestine is a country in territorial dispute with Israel over Jerusalem. Look at Wikipedia for more details. I¡¯m sure there¡¯s something written by intelligent citizens of wealthy countries. ¡°...¡± ¡ªOne thing I want to tell you about is about a weapon called white phosphorus munition. ¡°White phosphorus munitions?¡± ¡ªIt¡¯s an explosive mixture that contains a phosphorus mixture and benzene separated by water. The ignition point is low, at about sixty degrees Celsius. Once it is ignited, it creates a violent chemical reaction and produces a lot of toxicity and heat. ¡°...¡± ¡ªOnce it¡¯s lit, it doesn¡¯t go out easily, even if you douse it with water. Even if you¡¯re lucky enough to put it out, the white phosphorus dissolves into fat and gets absorbed into your body, ultimately killing you with chemical toxicity. Doctor Ref said. ¡ªEven if you don¡¯t touch it directly, the toxic gas thates from thebustion is also very dangerous. It¡¯s called phosphorous pentoxide. If exposed to the skin or mucous membrane, it can melt flesh and cause tremendous pain, which can kill you. ¡°...¡± ¡ªIt¡¯s a weapon that is now internationally banned from being used to kill people, but the Geneva Convention is nothing but wordy because I¡¯m the daughter of a family who died from a white phosphorus bomb. ¡°Died from a white phosphorus bomb...?¡± ¡ªI said there was a dispute between Palestine and Israel, right? Israel dropped a 155mm white phosphorus bomb on a civilian school built by the UN and the regions nearby. ¡°...¡± ¡ªAll of my friends and family died, and I was also seriously injured. Burns all over my body, and a pain that felt like my nostrils and lungs were being torn apart. People had turned into ashes, and children were screaming for help while they were on fire. No words can convey the feeling of seeing something like that unless you experience it for yourself. And one more amazing thing... Doctor Ref said. ¡ªAt that time, Israeli citizens would hike up mountains to drink beer and celebrate it. They watched the bombs, took pictures of it, and posted them on the inte as if they were watching fireworks. ¡°...¡± ¡ªIn the distant past, when humans went to war, the worst they could do was stab someone with a knife. Even further in the past, they just hit someone with a stone. But look, Ryu Young-Joon, what other organisms in the worldmits genocide and enjoys it like humans do? Doctor Ref said. ¡°Isn¡¯t that a sermon that some mad scientist would give in a mediocre movie? Do you think that justifies your actions? Even so, you¡¯re just a terrorist.¡± ¡ªHaha, I¡¯m sick and tired of these kind of sermons being consumed as the viin¡¯s philosophy in a fictional movie that Hollywood spends astronomical amounts of money on. You also think that, even though the worst part is that it¡¯s being used for entertainment. ¡°...¡± ¡ªAnd one more. I¡¯m not a terrorist driven by revenge because I suffered from white phosphorus. I already forgave them. ¡°You forgave them?¡± ¡ªBecause that¡¯s the nature of human beings. Humans are naturally insensitive to other people¡¯s pain and have sadistic qualities. This is not a judgment of something being right or wrong; I¡¯m just saying that the human animal was made like that. ¡°...¡± ¡ªBut that is why the public cannot have science. Doctor Ref said. ¡ªLook. No matter how good of a drug you make, there are people who try to imnt a tumor in someone¡¯s eye, and there are people who try to cause war by supplying Africa with an anthrax bioweapon, right? ¡°...¡± ¡ªIt¡¯s a world where you need a government permit to carry a gun, but why is it that the core knowledge needed to develop weapons of mass destruction are avable to the public as an open source? Even when an idiot like He Jiankui was able to create a CCR5-engineered baby under the public¡¯s nose with regtions present? Doctor Ref said. ¡ªThe same goes for arms manufacturers selling weapons to Africa and encouraging wars. Science shouldn¡¯t belong to the masses; it should be monopolized by a few ethical elites like you, who then benevolently distributes its products to the ignorant public. That¡¯s the kind of power science is. ¡°...¡± ¡ªThat¡¯s why I didn¡¯t hurt you, Ryu Young-Joon. It¡¯s because you are an unrealistically ethical person. ¡°No matter what your beliefs or goals are, you¡¯ve be nothing but a terrorist from a criminal organization from the moment youmitted bioterror as a means to achieve that. You¡¯re not qualified to judge the public. ¡ªIt must be so nice being able to clearly define good and evil. Doctor Ref said. ¡ªI¡¯ll talk directly to Ryu Young-Joon¡ªno, Rosaline. You¡¯re listening, right? Rosaline was startled. She pointed to herself and stared at Young-Joon with wide eyes. Chapter 183: Bacterial War (5)

Chapter 183: Bacterial War (5)

¡ªIs she talking about me? Rosaline asked Young-Joon. ¡®I think so.¡¯ ¡ªBut how? Young-Joon stared at the phone a little anxiously. ¡ªYou might be called something different now, but I¡¯ll use this name because it¡¯s more familiar to me and you know who I¡¯m talking about. Doctor Ref said. Young-Joon nced at the phone. He had asked the police to trace Doctor Ref¡¯s location from her phone signal. He needed to buy more time. ¡ªI¡¯ll ask you a question. It¡¯s about biology, and it¡¯s the only question you will never find the answer to. ¡°Tell me.¡± ¡ªMost sophisticated animals in the world are divided into male and female. What¡¯s the advantage of having different sexes? Doctor Ref said. ¡°Gic diversity. This is ridiculous. You call this a question...¡± Young-Joon replied instead of Rosaline. This was one of the most basic things that was taught in general biology. The simplest and most effective way for an organism to reproduce was to multiply through binary fission; that way, they didn¡¯t have to waste energy on activities like sexual reproduction. However, if different sexes engaged in sexual reproduction, they could create offspring with half the genes of both parents, and gic diversity increased as a result. ¡°That diversity gives us the power to adapt to changes in our environment.¡± ¡ªThat¡¯s right. Doctor Ref said. ¡ªThen, Rosaline, why do two sexes, male and female, exist? ¡°...?¡± Young-Joon frowned. ¡ªGic diversity will be maximized when every individual can mix their genes with every other individual. Splitting sexes into two is giving up the opportunity to mix genes with half the poption. ¡°...¡± ¡ªDefeats the purpose of increasing gic diversity, and it¡¯s less effective than the multiplication of microorganisms. Why did wee up with such an illogical method? Rosaline¡¯s gaze moved downward. ¡ªRosaline, you know the answers of all biological phenomena, but not this. The reason is... Doctor Ref said. ¡ªBecause you are not an organism. ¡°...¡± ¡ªThe grand principle of life is self-replication. Every organism wants to create offspring. They may fail to do so for a variety of reasons, such as being unattractive or being disabled. However, the desire itself is at the core of all life. Doctor Ref asked. ¡ªRosaline, do you have something like that? Rosaline froze. ¡ªYou have be a part of Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s body; you are not a separate organism. Even viruses, the simplest microscopic organism, can be independent from their host when they enter the lytic cycle. The lytic cycle was when a virus left the host DNA, wrapped itself in proteins, and escaped the cell. ¡ªYou are iplete. Doctor Ref said. ¡ªCome to me. I can make youplete. I am the best expert in life creation. ¡°...¡± ¡°Doctor Ref, it¡¯s done,¡± Bahadul said as he packed up the syringe. ¡ªGood work. You can return now. Doctor Ref said in Arabic. ¡°Yes,¡± Bahadul replied. Bahadul and his men ran out the door, leaving the phone on the table. But they couldn¡¯t leave, as they encountered the Special Operation Unit[1]. Young-Joon was watching the SOUe up with Rosaline¡¯s shared sight. ¡°Your men will be arrested,¡± Young-Joon said as he looked at the text on his phone. ¡°And your call is being tracked, too. I just got a message that they¡¯re finished. It¡¯s over for you.¡± ¡ªYes, I already thought it wasn¡¯t going to work when we failed to spray anthracis. I feel sorry for Bahadul, but... Doctor Ref said. ¡ªWhat can I do? I¡¯ll just have to look for the next opportunity. Ding. The call disconnected. Young-Joon stepped out the door and looked through Rosaline¡¯s view. He could see that all the soldiers of the Palestinian Liberation Front had been arrested on the emergency stairs leading down at the end of the hallway. * * * ¡°I sent Elsie an email, but I haven¡¯t received a reply yet,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung said. ¡°Alright.¡± Young-Joon nodded. ¡°I really want to meet her. Is there any way?¡± ¡°If you send me on a business trip to the U.S., I¡¯ll look for a way.¡± ¡°Can you do that?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve been to her house before when I went to the U.S. for a conference.¡± ¡°Then please do,¡± Young-Joon asked. After Cheon Ji-Myung left, Young-Joon looked out the window. Rosaline was sitting there in a depressed mood, which he had never seen before. ¡°Rosaline.¡± Young-Joon approached Rosaline. ¡ªShe is wrong. Rosaline said. ¡ªI know why the sexes became divided. It¡¯s a form of eusociality. By giving procreation, a huge survival penalty, to one sex, it makes the rest of the poption more active and thus morepetitive. It¡¯s the most primitive form of eusociality. ¡°...¡± ¡ªAnd having two sexes can actually maintain higher gic diversity because instead of abandoning half of one¡¯s potential partners, they¡¯re actually going to have to travel longer distances to find another partner. You can push the limits of gic diversity using geographic istion. Rosaline said. ¡ªThat person is garbage. ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡ªHow dare she try to teach me with her worthless knowledge. She doesn¡¯t know anything. She¡¯s nothing but a descendent of the primordial soup. Rosaline clenched her fists. ¡ªShe doesn¡¯t know anything! Rosaline shouted as she looked back at Young-Joon. ¡ªI can tell just by how she tried to take Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s blood! I destroyed all the pathogenicity in there. Even if she takes it, it¡¯s nothing but Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s useless blood! ¡°...¡± ¡ªThe creation of life is something that can barely happen once every 4.6 billion years. My birth was all a coincidence. She has no power over life. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡ªShe knows nothing. How dare she say that to me with nothing but that small amount of knowledge she umted in her insignificant cerebral cortex and hippocampus over a few decades... Young-Joon chuckled. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it,¡± he said to Rosaline. ¡°Like you said, she¡¯s garbage. I¡¯m sure of it.¡± ¡ª... ¡°Science is a good force that advances humanity; it¡¯s not a fruit that someone can monopolize. We¡¯re all standing on the shoulders of giants. ¡ªShoulder of giants? ¡°Newton said it. If scientists can see further than others, it¡¯s not because that person is bright, but it¡¯s because they¡¯re standing on the shoulder of giants, which is past science.¡± ¡ª... To be honest, you can see further than others with my ability, not because of past science. ¡°Haha, that¡¯s right.¡± Young-Joon chuckled. ¡°You¡¯re special, so don¡¯t worry about it,¡± he said. ¡ª... But I don¡¯t have the desire to self-replicate, and it¡¯s not realistically possible either. That part is true. ¡°Well, maybe it¡¯s because you¡¯re still young? You leveled up a bit, and now you can survive outside of my body for thirty minutes, right?¡± * * * At the same time, there was someone as depressed as Rosaline. It was Doctor Ref. ¡°I acted tough, but honestly, it¡¯s killing me.¡± She pushed the bottles lined up in front of her to the side. She opened a new bottle of liquor. She drank it straight from the bottle, then flopped onto the desk. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± a man with a handsome mustache who was sitting next to her asked. ¡°I think Rosaline is there,¡± Doctor Ref said. ¡°You were expecting it, right?¡± the man asked. ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°Doctor, you said that everything Ryu Young-Joon is doing would be impossible without Rosaline.¡± ¡°Right, but how did he seed?¡± Doctor Ref asked, suddenly raising her head. ¡°I failed hundreds and thousands of times! All the Rosalines I made died within minutes, up to three days at the most.¡± ¡°Calm down.¡± ¡°Calm down? You think I can calm down right now? Do you know what it¡¯s been like to watch all those Rosalines die by my side? Right now, I...¡± she said, all choked up. ¡°I feel my child got stolen...¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I feel like I¡¯ve been robbed of a child I had after struggling with infertility for a long time.¡± ¡°You know howmon scooping is in this field.¡± Scooping was a ng term in science. It was when another team published a paper on a topic that someone was working on first. ¡°Doctor, even if you¡¯ve been working on it longer, since your mother¡¯s time, Ryu Young-Joon can still beat you to it, and that¡¯s not his fault.¡± Doctor Ref stared at the man, then slowly dropped her head. ¡°Yeah, you¡¯re right.¡± She took another sip of her drink. She opened the locket on her ne. Inside was a photograph of Elsie. Doctor Ref fiddled with it, then said, ¡°But I still can¡¯t catch up, even with all the research my mother¡¯s done. I thought that maybe I could get some clue with Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s blood, but Ryu Young-Jon got in the way.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s think of a different way,¡± the man said. ¡°I hinted eusociality to Rosaline. Maybe she¡¯ll rethink her role in this world, that she¡¯s not just a worker bee who does what Ryu Young-Joon tells her to do, but she¡¯s a queen bee who can create a new world,¡± Doctor Ref said. ¡°Will shee to you if she thinks that way?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. She¡¯s the next generation of life, not something primitive intellectual beings like us can predict. And from my experience...¡± she said. ¡°She may not be able to leave Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s body yet.¡± Doctor Ref sipped her drink in frustration. * * * [Bioterrorism Against South Korea. The Close Crisis and the Scientists¡¯ Response]. This news was being broadcasted for several days. ¡ªDoctor Ryu Young-Joon worked with the Korea Disease and Control Agency to block civilian ess to the Grand Hyatt Hotel and continued the GSC International Conference to volunteer as bait for the bioterror attack. ¡ªUsing an extremely thermophilic bacteria called Thermosma, he seeded in eliminating all the anthracis in the air. ¡ªThe reason Doctor Ryu Young-Joon stayed silent was to pretend they had let their guard down until the terrorists were captured. ¡ªDoctor Ryu Young-Joon had already secured arge inventory of an anthrax treatment and was preparing to distribute it to citizens in case of an emergency. The news, which had been quiet, exploded. ¡ªA-Genmented that half of the treatment has already been delivered to Africa and was saving lives, and they will deliver more to Africa as they have safely stopped the terrorist attack. Everyone praised and celebrated the great achievements Young-Joon had aplished before, but it was much greater this time. The forensic service also delivered their results around the same time. ¡ªThe National Forensic Service did not find any evidence rted to anthrax in Lab Director Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s body. Then, there was another piece of news that was much more definitive. ¡ªIt was confirmed that Mr. Yoon Bo-Hyun, who imed Ryu Young-Joon was guilty of murder and the development of a biological weapon, was in Kim Hyun Taek¡¯s hospital room during thest terrorist attack. ¡ªA syringe with Mr. Yoon Bo-Hyun¡¯s fingerprints was found. The police and the National Forensic Service are investigating why he was there. Mr. Yoon Bo-Hyun almost lost his life to the terrorists, but he was rescued by Mr. Ryu Young-Joon. However, the police are having difficulty in their investigation into Mr. Yoon Bo-Hyun due to his injuries. ¡°It¡¯s a big win for us. Why do you look so sour?¡± Park Joo Hyuk asked ¡°What big win?¡± Young-Joon replied as he tapped his foot on the ground while sitting. ¡°Do you know how the atmosphere has changed? All your haters went under. You want me to read some tweets?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk took out his phone. ¡ªWow, he¡¯s just amazing. Now... he can stop a terrorist attack. ¡ªI repent my sins for doubting you for a moment. Please forgive me. ¡°Stop it, it¡¯s embarrassing,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°And if you don¡¯t have anything to do, Joo-Hyuk, you should go. I¡¯m expecting a guest.¡± ¡°A guest? Oh!¡± Park Joo-Hyuk nodded. ¡°Call me when you¡¯re done.¡± ¡°Of course,¡± Young-Joon replied. Park Joo-Hyuk left and looked down at the front entrance to thepany from the hallway window. A middle-aged man stepped out of a limousine. It was Yoon Dae-Sung, who looked like he had be twenty years older in the past two months. 1. SOU, the equivalent of SWAT ? Chapter 184: Bacterial War (6)

Chapter 184: Bacterial War (6)

The sudden appearance of Yoon Dae-Sung caused a stir at the front entrance of A-Bio. Yoon Dae-Sung hadn¡¯t shown up throughout all themotion, making excuses about his health. But today, he suddenly showed up at A-Bio, not A-Gen. He was not apanied by other executives or his entourage. He looked miserable and his body had no energy. Through the whispering, Yoon Dae-Sung silently walked to Young-Joon¡¯s office with heavy steps. ¡°Sir, Mr. Yoon Dae-Sung is here,¡± Yoo Song-Mi said as she knocked. She was also slightly nervous because of Yoon Dae-Sung¡¯s aura. When Young-Joon opened the door, Yoon Dae-Sung walked in and sat down. ¡°It¡¯s been a while. I heard you weren¡¯t feeling well. Are you okay?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°To be honest, my health was in good condition, but now it¡¯s deteriorated rapidly,¡± Yoon Dae-Sung said with a bitter smile. ¡°Because of your son?¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°...¡± Yoon Dae-Sung let out a short sigh. ¡°He¡¯s a foolish bastard,¡± he said. ¡°Doctor Ryu, you know what Yoon Bo-Hyun did, right?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Young-Joon nodded. ¡°All this time, did you just let him do all of that on purpose?¡± ¡°My priority was to deal with any terrorist attacks that might be in Korea. I couldn¡¯t afford to take care of it.¡± ¡°I see,¡± Yoon Dae-Sung said. ¡°I taught him science from an early age. I emphasized logic and reasoning, and I kept him away from emotional things.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Actually, he wanted to be a poet when he was younger. He liked to read poetry, which doesn¡¯t really suit him now.¡± ¡°It really doesn¡¯t.¡± Young-Joon chuckled, and Yoon Dae-Sung smiled along with him. ¡°I didn¡¯t let him read. It doesn¡¯t make money, and I told him to do something that directly helps society.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°It¡¯s all my fault,¡± Yoon Dae-Sung said as he closed his eyes. Back when A-Gen was weak and Yoon Dae-Sung was helping his father grow thepany, he was an elite scientist who studied abroad at a prestigious university, which was very rare in Korea at the time. He brought Kim Hyun-Taek, whom he had be close with abroad, as theb director and began working on research. They had no revenue and fought to secure funding from venture capital firms, but they failed. ¡°This will be a good item if we study it a little bit more. This anticancer drug ispetitive in the international market as well! The cell experiments showed good results, and animal data is looking good as well.¡± Yoon Dae-Sung¡¯s father dropped to his knees in front of the venture capital investors. Young Yoon Dae-Sung watched all of it. ¡°But you don¡¯t know how clinical trials will go. And you people spend too much energy on base research. What we want to see is a tangible product.¡± The manager of the capital firmly refused their offer. ¡°How can you do science with no base experiments?¡± ¡°You should leave that to the universities. Apany that should be making money shouldn¡¯t be wasting their energy on base experiments.¡± ¡°No university in the country is this good! It hasn¡¯t been long since Korea has started doing science properly. We don¡¯t have enough basic research facilities and people.¡± ¡°Then we should be investing in growing that infrastructure, notpanies.¡± ¡°It¡¯ll be toote then! We can¡¯t wait twenty or thirty years when biology is emerging as thetest trend in medicine! We have to follow pharmaceuticalpanies in superpowers like the United States! If we don¡¯t have enough basic research, we have to do it ourselves!¡± ¡°Even if you say that, it¡¯s not something that we can do. And even the government won¡¯t give you funding for something that long-term, so how can you ask private venture capital firms to do so?¡± ¡°The government is...¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have anything to say, right?¡± ¡°We gave up on the government a long time ago, but venture capital...¡± ¡°Stop. Go away now.¡± Yoon Dae-Sung clearly remembered his father¡¯s weak and dejected footsteps as he headed back to thepany. ¡®This country isn¡¯t a country where you can do science.¡¯ Yoon Dae-Sung and Kim Hyun-Taek felt that as well. And when thepany had financial difficulties and could not pay their executives for three months... ¡°I have a way to get some cash,¡± said Ji Kwang-Man, who gathered Yoon Dae-Sung and Kim Hyun-Taek secretly. ¡°It¡¯s to develop an anthrax weapon. The United States army is pursuing this business in secret.¡± ¡°That¡¯s crazy! That¡¯s a vition of the international convention! If we get caught, we won¡¯t just get shut down, we¡¯ll go to jail!¡± Kim Hyun-Taek shouted. ¡°That¡¯s why we should do it ourselves in secret. You¡¯re the two best scientists in the country right now, aren¡¯t you? How many biologists in Korea do you think have studied abroad and published papers in Nature? We are good enough. It¡¯s the country that doesn¡¯t recognize us and realize the importance of base research,¡± Ji Kwang-Man said. ¡°...¡± ¡°You all know that this country isn¡¯t capable of growing apany like A-Gen. The people and the government can¡¯t read the trends in science, and our universities are twenty years behind developed countries.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°But if we don¡¯t grow A-Gen now, the health of this country¡¯s people will be taken hostage by developed countries.¡± ¡°But... You don¡¯t know what kind of mass destruction an anthrax weapon will cause. In a way, it¡¯s more dangerous than a nuclear weapon,¡± Yoon Dae-Sung said. ¡°I know that.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a bacteria. It¡¯s one of humanity¡¯s enemies. What¡¯s the point of us advancing science while developing something like that?¡± ¡°... Doctor Yoon, no Dae-Sung, let¡¯s think of the children,¡± Ji Kwang-Man said. ¡°...¡± ¡°Speaking of bacteria, when I was at your house the other day, Bo-Hyun was ying a game called Bacterial War on theputer. That¡¯s exactly what we¡¯re doing right now,¡± Ji Kwang-Man said. ¡°By making one bold move right now, we can paint all our current crises as our assets.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I feel terrible that this is the only way, but we have no choice. Are you going to bankrupt thepany and live on the streets with your wife and Bo-Hyun?¡± ¡°Alright, I changed my mind. I¡¯m in,¡± said Kim Hyun-Taek. Yoon Dae-Sung stared at him in surprise. ¡°You¡¯re right about bacterial war. We have more than just a venturepany on our shoulders now: we have the health of the nation. We need a big pharma in Korea or at least the infrastructure to make replica drugs, because you know howpanies like Schumatix rip off underdeveloped countries. Anthrax should be fine with enough safety mechanisms, like splitting up the sexes.¡± ¡°...¡± Yoon Dae-Sung thought for a while, but he couldn¡¯t give them a definitive answer. ¡°I¡¯ll give you an answer by tomorrow.¡± * Yoon Dae-Sung, who headed back home, watched Yoon Bo-Hyun y the game. It was a pixel game where the yer ced their bacteria like Gomoku[1] , but the yer could make the opponent¡¯s bacteria into theirs if they blocked each end of the opponent¡¯s bacteria. Even if the yer had one bacteria on the board and the opponent had three, the yer could ce one of their bacteria on the other end and take all five; they could turn the situation around instantly. [LOSE] ¡°Hmph.¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun, who was eight years old, turned off theputer after he lost. He buried his face into Yoon Dae-Sung¡¯s arms, who was sitting behind him. ¡°Was it fun?¡± Yoon Dae-Sung asked. ¡°Not really. I just do it because I¡¯m bored,¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun grumbled. ¡°Dad, I heard from Mom that we might have to move.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°She said that I might not have my own room when we move. Is that true?¡± Yoon Dae-Sung stared into his son¡¯s eyes. ¡°You don¡¯t want to move?¡± Yoon Dae-Sung asked. ¡°No...¡± ¡°Did Mom say anything else?¡± ¡°She said that if we move, I might have to move schools...¡± ¡°Dad might have to go to a differentpany, too.¡± ¡°Why?¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun asked. ¡°People don¡¯t know how important Dad¡¯spany is right now.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know either.¡± Yoon Dae-Sung thought that hispany would grow sessfully after he finished studying abroad, became an elite scientist, and honed his research skills. ¡°The world is only interested in what¡¯s proven. They don¡¯t invest in potential.¡± Yoon Dae-Sung hugged his son tightly. ¡°And they only look at the money in front of them instead of what is really needed.¡± Yoon Bo-Hyun stared like he didn¡¯t understand. Yoon Dae-Sung chuckled. ¡°Bo-Hyun, no matter what you do, always show people how good you are so that people don¡¯t dare to doubt you or argue with you. Don¡¯t let people who are more foolish than you judge you and dictate your life.¡± ¡°...?¡± ¡°If anyone tries to take what¡¯s yours, fight them off and defend it with everything you have.¡± ¡°Okay...¡± ¡°And we¡¯re not moving,¡± Yoon Dae-Sung said with a bitter smile. * Yoon Dae-Sung took a sip of his tea. ¡°I saw your data that the WHO published. The information about the anthracis in Africa is all on there.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°And it¡¯s different from the one Director Kim and I developed.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Did you know that Bo-Hyun went to Director Kim¡¯s hospital room?¡± ¡°I do.¡± ¡°... He dropped a needle there, and I heard that the National Forensic Service is going to investigate it.¡± ¡°But there isn¡¯t going to be any anthracis DNA there. It¡¯s all been destroyed.¡± ¡°Do you think they will ask you to investigate it if they can¡¯t find out what it is?¡± ¡°Maybe.¡± ¡°And you can use new methods to detect anthracis there, right?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°...¡± Yoon Dae-Sung smiled. ¡°I see.¡± He took a sip of tea. ¡°Everything is my fault,¡± he said. ¡°Bo-Hyun ended up like that because I wasn¡¯t good enough. But I think it¡¯s all thanks to you that the stuff we made didn¡¯t hurt anyone.¡± ¡°That¡¯s because you sterilized it well.¡± ¡°Because it could have been med as the real terrorist weapon.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°And you saved Bo-Hyun from the hospital. I feel like we¡¯re always indebted to you.¡± ¡°When I was butting heads with Jamie Anderson at the conference in the U.S., you and Nichs came and supported me,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I¡¯m grateful for that.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°And I don¡¯t resent or hate you or Yoon Bo-Hyun, but...¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Research ethics is a different matter. Forgiveness and friendship aside, the development of that biological weapon is something that needs to be revealed. If the U.S. military is responsible, they should also be held ountable.¡± ¡°Like always, you are airtight.¡± Yoon Dae-Sung smiled. ¡°I think the goodwill you have extended to me has reached its limit. You¡¯ve waited so long,¡± Yoon Dae-Sung said. ¡°...¡± ¡°We owe you a lot,¡± Yoon Dae-sung said. ¡°Thank you, and I¡¯m sorry. I will put my faith in you and leave A-Gen. Bo-Hyun and I will receive our punishments.¡± ¡°... Thank you for your hard work.¡± Yoon Dae-Sung bid farewell to Young-Joon and stood up. His footsteps seemed to have regained some energy as he left. ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± said Nichs, who arrived at the front entrance a little after Yoon Dae-Sung and was waiting for him. He patted Yoon Dae-Sung on the shoulder. Kim Hyun-Taek and Ji Kwang-Man had disappeared, and his one and only son had copsed after taking a huge blow to his body and heart. Yoon Dae-Sung, who was getting into the limousine with Nichs, was rxed as he had made up his mind, but he also looked lonely. 1. Gomoku is where each yer takes turns to put their pieces on a board to form five-in-a-row ? Chapter 185: Micro-dust (1)

Chapter 185: Micro-dust (1)

After apany merger was approved by a shareholder meeting, there was a grace period. During this time, shareholders who opposed the merger could sell their shares to their respectivepanies. If there were too many shareholders who rejected the merger, or if thepany had problems buying the shares, the merger was canceled. Of course, there was no reason for shareholders to oppose the merger between A-Gen and A-Bio. The shareholders of A-Gen expected thebination of A-Bio and Young-Joon to boost the stock price and improve thepany. Yoon Dae-Sung, Nichs, and the six directors were good, but the shareholders were happy just thinking about what would happen if they put Young-Joon at the top. The shareholders of A-Bio felt the same way. Considering what Young-Joon had done at A-Bio, which was worth twenty billion won, imagine what he could do if he directed all the research at a hugepany like A-Gen? There were barely any shareholders who tried to sell their shares, and Yoon Dae-Sung did everything he had to do. The merger was finalized, and it was time to appoint a new CEO. Yoon Dae-Sung suddenly withdrew as a candidate and went to the police with Yoon Bo-Hyun. [Shocking confession from Yoon Dae-Sung, former A-Gen CEO: Development of the anthrax bioweapon.] [The criminal who tried to use the anthrax weapon was not Ryu Young-Joon, but Yoon Bo-Hyun, the person who condemned him.] The public¡¯s horrified reaction was directed at them. ¡ªThat bastard orchestrated the anthrax attack, but he used Ryu Young-Joon of developing it? ¡ªWhat an asshole. ¡ªIt¡¯s a relief that all the samples for development were destroyed. We don¡¯t know what would have happened. ©¸Nothing will happen. Our savior Ryu Young-Joon would have stopped that, too. ¡ªEven if it was a long time ago, the United States military also knew about this, right? What happens now? ¡ªThis could turn into a diplomatic issue... The Korean governmentunched an investigation, and the U.S. government expressed their regret. ¡ªThe development of the anthrax weapon was part of the Jupiter program that the United States Forces Korea began thirty-one years ago. The weapon was developed as a part of the development of a strategic n to counter biological warfare on the Korean Penins. ¡ªThe Korean government will investigate the officials who were present at the U.S. military base in Osan, Gyeonggi-do at the time about whether the anthrax weapon research process was illegal. The situation had alreadye to an end, but this issue evoked a strong reaction from the public. However, this was soon drowned out by another news item. ¡ªThis afternoon, the merger between A-Gen and A-Bio was finalized. Ryu Young-Joon, who was appointed as the CEO, changed thepany name to A-GenBio. ¡ªA-GenBio will integrate the management of the mergedpanies and reorganize existing roles and personnel. ¡°So this is it.¡± David, the head of Conson & Colson, was slightly nervous as he read the industry news. ¡°It¡¯s as expected,¡± said David¡¯s secretary. ¡°There won¡¯t be apany that canpete with them for the next one hundred years.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think so, either.¡± ¡°Conson & Colson was a little bit bigger than A-Gen and A-Bio, but not anymore. Now, they¡¯re the top predators in the pharmaceutical industry. A-Bio has done all kinds of adventurous research while supporting Ryu Young-Joons ingenuity. You can¡¯t ignore the skills and experience of those researchers. On top of that, if A-Bio got all the power of A-Gen...¡± ¡°And Ryu Young-Joon is the one who¡¯s running it.¡± ¡°Yeah. Conson & Colson will always be in second ce.¡± ¡°What are you going to do?¡± ¡°What can we do? Maybe there will be an opportunity to reim first ce someday. Let¡¯s just go with it for now. Besides all that...¡± David said. ¡°Send a gift to Doctor Ryu to congratte him on the merger. I¡¯ll write the letter.¡± * * * In the A-Bio CEO¡¯s office, Park Joo-Hyuk, who came to see Ryu Young-Joon, gasped at the sight of the office. ¡°Wow... What is all this?¡± An astonishing amount of flowers and presents filled the room. ¡°Things people sent me to congratte me.¡± ¡°Man, people are trying so hard to get on your good side.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk looked through the mountain of envelopes on Young-Joon¡¯s desk. ¡°Congressman Shim Sung-Yeol?¡± ¡°He sent something, too? What does it say?¡± Young-Joon asked with a frown. Park Joo-Hyuk opened the envelope. ¡°Talking about the weather... h h h... And... Doctor Ryu, thank you for your hard work. This is a travel voucher so that you can rx while you¡¯re so busy. This is a small token of my appreciation as a politician and as a citizen of South Korea,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡°He never stops, does he?¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°It¡¯s still a ticket to Hawaii,¡± said Park Joo-Hyuk as he read the voucher inside. ¡°You can have it.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°I¡¯m going to give these presents out to the employees. It¡¯s not like I can keep all of them.¡± ¡°Then can I have theptop?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk asked, pointing at theptop box beside him. ¡°Doctor Cheon already called dibs on that one. He¡¯s taking it with him to the U.S.'''' ¡°Why is he going?¡± ¡°Some business to do.¡± ¡°You¡¯re going to do something weird again.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk put the travel voucher that was in Shim Sung-Yeol¡¯s envelope in his pocket. ¡°Anyway, you¡¯re going to have a hard time organizing management for a while,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡°Yeah. I¡¯ll be really busy reorganizing the sixbs and integrating A-Gen into A-Bio¡¯s management system, so I need you to take care of the legal stuff.¡± ¡°What would you do without me?¡± ¡°I¡¯m really d you¡¯re my friend. Anyway, once thepany is stabilized, I¡¯m going to hire someone to run it, and I¡¯m going to stay on as the CTO and just do research since Nichs is leaving as well. It should be fine, right?¡± Young-Joon said as he leaned back in his chair. ¡°Of course. You¡¯re the owner, so you can do whatever you want,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡°I don¡¯t know about A-Bio, but I don¡¯t think I can run apany as big as A-Gen while doing research.¡± ¡°You have someone in mind?¡± ¡°No. You want to do it?¡± ¡°Are you crazy?¡± ¡°I¡¯m kidding.¡± The two looked at each other and smiled. Park Joo-Hyuk was a really good friend. Park Joo-Hyuk¡¯s asional pranks and jokes were a greatfort as Young-Joon busily ran thepany and did research. ¡°Young-Joon, you now have A-Gen, A-Bio, A-Gen Life, and the A-Bio Cancer Laboratory all lined up under you.¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°And if you leave the management of A-Gen to someone else, does that mean you¡¯re now the president of a business group?¡± ¡°Eek...¡± Young-Joon groaned like he disliked that title. ¡°That¡¯s horrible. President? That¡¯s so old-fashioned.¡± ¡°But you are the head of a group called A-GenBio.¡± ¡°To be honest, I¡¯m mostfortable with Doctor Ryu,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°You¡¯re going to move management and finance to A-Gen, right?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk asked. ¡°Yeah. And we¡¯re going to be moving a lot of research teams to each of the sixbs because A-Gen has better infrastructure than A-Bio. We¡¯ve been using Lab One or the Research Support Department, but now we¡¯ll be able to go there and do our experiments without having to go back and forth.¡± ¡°So what are you going to do with all the empty space in this building?¡± ¡°We¡¯re going to reform it as A-GenBio¡¯s seventhboratory, where we¡¯re going to do different kinds of research.¡± ¡°Different kinds of research?¡± ¡°Two kinds. One research is about rare diseases to give back to society,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°These diseases only affect a few thousand patients in the world, so it¡¯s economically unprofitable for pharmaceuticalpanies to develop a cure.¡± ¡°And you¡¯re going to just target those?¡± ¡°Yeah. And another one is...¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Environmental energy research.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk tilted his head like he was puzzled. ¡°Sounds a little far off from the pharmaceutical industry.¡± ¡°Dealing with Eb and anthrax has made me a little more concerned about environmental issues,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°If it¡¯s about environmental energy, is it like microorganisms that break down stic?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk asked. ¡°We can also develop that. Or, we can develop technology to capture micro-dust from China or ways to kill mosquitoes. We can also create bacteria that produce oil, or find new ways to maintain a cold chain.¡± ¡°What¡¯s a cold chain?¡± ¡°Some medical products need to be stored and transported at around four degrees. And if you go deep into Africa, half of those products get destroyed in transit. ¡°Because they can¡¯t stay at four degrees?¡± ¡°Yeah. There¡¯s no way to get electricity to lower the temperature, and the roads are a mess. Completing the transit route while keeping the temperature low is called a cold chain. The Gates Foundation once held a contest for a solution to this.¡± ¡°Hm.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk tapped his chin. ¡°I actually entered the contest when I was in university, but I failed.¡± ¡°What was your idea?¡¯ ¡°To generate electricity from sr energy and maintain a cold chain.¡± ¡°They said it won¡¯t work?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t win because they said it wasn''t realistic. And frankly, itcked strategy.¡± Now, Young-Joon was able to fill in the gaps to his strategy, but he didn¡¯t say anything. ¡°If you¡¯re expanding the business like that, we need a lot of manpower after we reorganize. You should post a job listing,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk advised. ¡°Yeah. I need to post a job listing and do some headhunting.¡± * * * Two men and one woman were having a meal together at a restaurant near Yongsan. It was Young-Joon, Song Ji-Hyun and Song Jong-Ho. They hade here because Song Jong-Ho wanted to treat Young-Joon to a meal because he had basically saved his life. Song Jong-Ho, who Young-Joon hadn¡¯t seen in three months, was almost apletely different person. He gained a jawline after losing a lot of weight, and he had clear skin. Most of all, his eyes were clear like Song Ji-Hyun¡¯s. Song Jong-Ho, who met Young-Joon, jumped up and down with excitement. ¡°I feel like I¡¯m living a new life thanks to you! I don¡¯t have any hallucinations anymore,¡± Song Jong-Ho shouted excitedly. ¡°It¡¯s all thanks to you, Doctor Ryu! Thank you so much. You¡¯re the best!¡± Song Jong-Ho kept bowing to Young-Joon with a smile on his face. ¡°He feels so good nowadays that he studies and works out, too,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°That¡¯s nice.¡± ¡°He¡¯s be so bright that I¡¯m worried he¡¯s in a state of mania.¡± ¡°Hahaha.¡± Soon, the server came out with their meal. They put a huge steak on the table. ¡°Do you eat meat now, Doctor Song?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°No, but this is cultured meat.¡± Song Ji-Hyun grinned and cut the steak. ¡°Doctor Ryu, I¡¯m going to go to university,¡± Song Jong-Ho said. ¡°Really?¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°Yes. It¡¯s a littlete... but my goal is biological engineering at Jungyoon University.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to tter myself, but it¡¯s a prestigious university. It might be difficult to get in with just a year of studying for the entrance exam.¡± ¡°And their cutoff drastically increased because of Doctor Ryu. Did you know that?¡± ¡°No... It¡¯s the first I¡¯m hearing of it.¡± ¡°It¡¯s an engineering major, but their cutoff is higher than medicine,¡± Song Jong-Ho said. ¡°But I¡¯m still going to do it. Then, I¡¯m going to graduate and go to A-GenBio.¡± ¡°You can¡¯t ask me for a job though.¡± ¡°Of course! I¡¯m going to join through the recruitment period!¡± Song Jong-Houghed. ¡°But depending on the person, I may be able to give a special offer. Someone like Doctor Song...¡± Young-Joon looked at Song Ji-Hyun. She tilted her head in confusion. ¡°Doctor Song, A-Bio is starting a lot of new projects as we merge with A-Gen, and we need a lot of people. Are you interested?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°I¡¯m not asking because we just need someone, but I¡¯m asking because you¡¯re a skilled scientist who is capable of developing an outstanding anticancer drug like Cellicure. I¡¯m scouting you because I want to work with you.¡± Chapter 186: Micro-dust (2)

Chapter 186: Micro-dust (2)

¡°Me?¡± Song Ji-Hyun¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°Yes. We worked together for Cellicure, right? From what I can tell, you¡¯re almost as good as scientists who received Nobel Prizes or have GSC membership,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°You were the one who developed Cellicure, and you proposed a lot of important ideas to upgrade it, right? On top of that, you were the one who thought of how to promote immune cells that bypass dendritic cells.¡± ¡°W-wait. There are some things I did, but...¡± Song Ji-Hyun blushed. ¡°Most of it was only possible because you helped me through it, Doctor Ryu. I¡¯m not that great. The dendritic cell technology was like a delusion at the time, but you realized it.¡± ¡°I think the most important quality in scientists is creativity, and you have that, Doctor Song. There are some famous scientists who don¡¯t have that.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°If youe to ourpany, I¡¯ll give you twice your sry and a stock option.¡± ¡°Hm.¡± Young-Joon was serious. Song Ji-Hyun put down her fork and calmly replied as respectfully and humbly as possible. ¡°I¡¯m so grateful, but I¡¯ll have to decline.¡± ¡°That¡¯s insane!¡± Song Jong-Ho shouted. ¡°Are you insane? Do you know howpetitive it will be when A-GenBio starts their recruitment?¡± Song Ji-Hyun covered her mouth and chuckled. ¡°Really? I thought you liked working with me, Doctor Song,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Of course I do. And it will definitely be a powerfulpany if you and A-Bio join apany as big as A-Gen. It¡¯s a ttering offer, and I¡¯m grateful, but...¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°I like mypany now.¡± ¡°You¡¯re crazy, seriously... Why do you want to stay at that smallpany?¡± Song Jong-Ho said grumpily. ¡°Ourpany is a nicepany. Although my sry and benefits aren¡¯t as good as a bigpany, we¡¯re all very passionate. I joined thepany because I liked that, and that¡¯s why I¡¯m still here,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°It seems like you¡¯re pretty attached to Cellijenner[1],¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Of course. And the executives are all good people. They were very amodating when I took a lot of time offst year.¡± ¡°... Then there¡¯s nothing I can do.¡± Young-Joon chuckled lightly. ¡°What kind of research is Cellijenner doing nowadays?¡± ¡°You¡¯ll be shocked if I tell you,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°Surprise me,¡± Young-Joon said. Young-Joon didn¡¯t expect much and was just curious about what they were doing, but it was actually shocking. ¡°We¡¯re doing research on getting rid of micro-dust.¡± ¡°Micro-dust?¡± ¡°Collecting and recycling micro-dust to be exact.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Our CEO has had a change of mind after working with A-Bio a few times.¡± ¡°How?¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu, you went outside of the traditional research methods in the pharmaceutical industry. That¡¯s what other scientists are saying about you,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°In the past, most drug development was chemical, but most of what you did was biological.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true.¡± ¡°Things like curing cancer through the dendritic cell bypass method, or curing a with stem cells. They both came from thinking outside the box and fusing new technologies together. Our CEO¡¯s mindset is to now do trend-setting science.¡± ¡°Hm... But I feel like micro-dust is way too far off from the pharmaceutical industry. Isn¡¯t that a little different from the purpose of yourpany?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not for Cellijenner,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said firmly. ¡°Cellijenner was named after Edward Jenner, the scientist who developed inoction.¡± Inoction was the first ever vine, and it was an invention that was critical to the eradication of smallpox. However, Edward Jenner didn¡¯t patent it. Even when the Royal Society of Medicine pressured him to receive royalties, he refused. He did this so that smallpox could be eradicated sooner and people could stay healthy. ¡°Other people mightugh if I tell them this, but we¡¯re serious. Sure, Cellijenner¡¯s goal is to make money, but it¡¯s actually to keep humanity healthy, that¡¯s all. And the easiest way to do that was pharmaceuticals,¡± Song Ji-Hyuk said. ¡°But now, we changed our minds after you, Doctor Ryu. Did you know that respiratory disease recently entered the top ten causes of death?¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Respiratory diseases used to be far down the list, but it suddenly entered the top ten...¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°Because of India and China. The development of industries in these two countries, which ount for a third of the world¡¯s poption, has produced a huge amount of micro-dust, which has caused serious adverse effects on the health of the people in these countries.¡± ¡°But the micro-dust from China hurts us too.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right!¡± Song Ji-Hyun eximed. ¡°That''s why we set that as our goal and began thinking about it like you. If micro-dust is the problem, we should stop wasting our energy on developing new drugs and just get rid of micro-dust itself.¡± Song Ji-Hyun went on. ¡°Like how the best-case scenario was to capture airborne anthracis with Thermosma and kill it although you developed an anthrax cure for emergency use.¡± Young-Joon smiled. ¡°So, is it going well?¡± ¡°To be honest, it¡¯s not going very well. The start of this idea was that micro-dust is mostly made up of sulfate, nitrate, and carbon, which are all great agricultural fertilizers,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°So just capturing and collecting the micro-dust in the air can create an item that can be used right away as a fertilizer.¡± ¡°It sounds usible.¡± ¡°There have been a lot of ideas for collecting it, and we¡¯re working on it with a lot of engineers, but... Well, it¡¯s not that easy.¡± Song scratched her head. ¡°Still, it¡¯s good to discover the solution to the problem. Recycling it as fertiliz... Ah!¡± Young-Joon flinched. ¡°What is it?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked. ¡°No, it¡¯s nothing.¡± It was because Rosaline popped out and jumped up onto the table. ¡ªWhat Doctor Song is interesting. ¡®Come down from the table. You shouldn¡¯t step on ces where people eat.¡¯ ¡ªI¡¯m an invisible cell anyway. ¡®But I can see you. You¡¯re stepping on my steak right now.¡¯ ¡ªHmph. Rosaline hopped down from the table. ¡®Is there a way to collect micro-dust?¡¯ ¡ªOf course there is. The fact that carbons can be used as fertilizer means that there are organisms that can feed off of it. Rosaline said. ¡ªNaturally, it¡¯s a matter that can be easily solved by coding for a few genes rted to enzymes involved in the breakdown of those substances. But the question is, which organisms? ¡®Let¡¯s think about it.¡¯ ¡ªBut if we do it, aren¡¯t we taking away Cellijenner¡¯s job? Doctor Song won¡¯t like that. ¡°What are you thinking?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked Young-Joon, who suddenly became quiet. ¡°Nothing, I was just thinking about something else.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not nning a micro-dust project right now, right...?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked, squinting her eyes. ¡°It won¡¯t be good if you be ourpetitor.¡± Young-Joon grinned. ¡°I told you we needed a lot of people. The reason for that was because we¡¯re reforming A-Bio¡¯s building into Lab Seven, which will deal with environment and energy problems.¡± ¡°Environmental problems?¡± Song Ji-Hyun froze a little. She seemed worried that she would have topete with Young-Joon in this field, too. ¡°Micro-dust is in our n, but we haven¡¯t fleshed out any projects in detail. We haven¡¯t even organized a team yet. And since I¡¯m not in a position to direct the research myself, it¡¯s difficult for us to do it at ourpany right now,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Besides, if we, a pharmaceuticalpany, say we¡¯re going to startbating environmental problems, some shareholders might be worried that we¡¯re not doing what we do best. Maybe we will be able to coborate with Cellijenner.¡± ¡°Are you saying you will support us?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked in surprise like she didn¡¯t expect this at all. ¡°It¡¯s more of a win-win deal than support. I would like to invest in Cellijenner¡¯s micro-dust removal project. In return, I would like to participate in the meeting.¡± Realistically, it was difficult to begin this project in A-Gen¡¯sbs, which were hectic with theunch of A-GenBio. But with Cellijenner¡¯s help, things could be different. Song Ji-Hyun¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°... I didn¡¯te see you to talk about work, but... I guess it¡¯se to this.¡± She yed with her hair like she was a little embarrassed. ¡°It¡¯s not up to me to decide, so I¡¯ll ask the CEO. Oh, and...¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°You said you needed a lot of people, right? There are pharmacists who are studying bio and trying to join the pharmaceutical industry.¡± ¡°Pharmacists?¡± ¡°Yes. For example, stem cell therapy is a therapy done at the hospital, not dispensed by a pharmacy like traditional medicine. Ever since you came along, traditional medicine has been shrinking, so pharmacists are trying to adapt to the new world.¡± ¡°Hm...¡¯ ¡°And I¡¯m pretty famous among them.¡± It made sense that Song Ji-Hyun was famous as she was a licensed pharmacist herself. The first time they met was in a pharmacy. She had also tried to use the power of the pharmacist¡¯s association back when A-Gen was trying to steal Cellijenner, meaning that she also knew how the pharmacistmunity worked. Also, she was a sessful biopharmaceutical scientist as she was the most famous young scientist in Korea after Young-Joon. ¡°I have a group of people who are studying biopharmaceuticals with me, and they¡¯re all pretty talented. I don¡¯t think they want to leave theirpanies because they''re all currently working atrge military shops, but I can try to convince them,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°I would be grateful if you did that. Even on a big project, having a couple of good scientists can make a big difference in the progress speed.¡± * * * ¡°You never stop, do you...¡± Park Joo-Hyuk, who heard the news, clicked his tongue. ¡°You¡¯re going to pay anotherpany to do more research in this situation? Are you some kind of worker bee from hell?¡± ¡°I¡¯m just funding them and participating in the asional meetings.¡± Young-Joon shook his hand in front of him like he was tired of Park Joo-Hyuk¡¯s nagging. ¡°The asional meeting? Do you know that the new rich who are willing to spend millions of won are contacting thepany to have lunch with you?¡± ¡°And you¡¯re turning them down, right?¡± ¡°Of course I am. But you¡¯re donating all that expensive time to a small business? Are you a charity organization?¡± ¡°Well, I¡¯m not doing environmental research to make money in the first ce. If I can help a small business grow while doing the research I want, that¡¯s great. And after it works out, I can use it for marketing, right? It¡¯s not like it¡¯s a loss or anything.¡± ¡°Erm...¡± Park Joo-Hyuk didn¡¯t seem to like it, but he agreed. Around that time, someone came to visit Young-Joon in his office. It was someone very unexpected. ¡°Doctor He Jiankui?¡± Young-Joon tilted his head in puzzlement as he received the call from his secretary, Yoo Song Mi. ¡ªShould I tell him to make an appointment ande back? Yoo Song-Mi asked over the phone. ¡°No, I¡¯m free right now, so please send him to my room,¡± Young-Joon said. * * * Park Joo-Hyuk left and He Jiankui came up to the office. He saw Young-Joon and smiled brightly. ¡°Nice to see you, Doctor Ryu,¡± he said. ¡°I thought you returned to China after the GSC conference.¡± ¡°I was going to, but something came up.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°Um... To be honest, the gically engineered baby was illegally funded by Yoon Bo-Hyun.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°The investigation into Yoon Bo-Hyun showed a record of him sending funds to a paperpany in China, and it seems like they requested the Chinese government to investigate it. Simply put, I¡¯m sort of in trouble.¡± He Jiankui chuckled. ¡°...¡± ¡°Haha, but hey, I¡¯m the GSC of China, so what is the Chinese government do, punish me? And Doctor Ryu, what¡¯s wrong with a scientist¡¯s curiosity, right? Isn¡¯t this the kind of thing that advances civilization? You should know since you¡¯re also a scientist,¡± He Jiankui said jokingly. Young-Joon put his hand on his forehead as if this was giving him a headache. ¡°You are wrong,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Let¡¯s make a deal. You said that the CCR5-edited baby might die early, so I want you to help me find a solution,¡± He Jiankui said. Young-Joon red at him in disappointment. ¡°I was going to do that myself, even if you didn¡¯t ask me to. I was nning on working on treatments for rare diseases here at A-Bio, and part of that was to clean up this mess you made.¡± ¡°Wow! You are a true scientist.¡± ¡°You said something about a deal. What are you going to give me if I do that?¡± ¡°You¡¯re probably not interested in money because you already have more than enough, right?¡± He Jiankui said. ¡°I will convince the Chinese government to stop the Chinese micro-dust from reaching Korea.¡± 1. It was previously called Celligener, but it has been changed to Cellijener from this chapter onwards. The reason for this change will beter on the chapter. ? Chapter 187: Micro-dust (3)

Chapter 187: Micro-dust (3)

¡°How?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°How are you going to catch micro-dust?¡± ¡°The dust collectors used in factories like thermal power nts used centrifugal force. If you spin the cylindrical filter quickly, the dust inside the collector separates out of the cylinder because of the centrifugal force.¡± ¡°So it¡¯s like a centrifuge.¡± ¡°Yes, it¡¯s simr to that machine in biology because they both centrifuge. In mechanical engineering, they call it a cyclone,¡± He Jiankui said. ¡°The reason why factories in China don¡¯t use this cyclone dust collector is because too much energy is lost. And the Chinese government doesn¡¯t really regte it because they need those factories to do well for tax revenue.¡± ¡°Probably.¡± ¡°But therge amount of micro-dust generated is not only damaging to Korea, but it¡¯s also heavily damaging maind China from a public health perspective. And it¡¯s a big headache for the Chinese government authorities,¡± He Jiankui said. ¡°So when China gets a red alert, which is equivalent to an unhealthy level in Korea, the government immediately issues emergency reduction measures, forcing civilians to use an alternate no-driving system[1] and restricting the operation of diesel trucks. ¡°Then, the Chinese government is already working to decrease it. What do you mean you¡¯re going to convince them?¡± ¡°The things that the Chinese government is doing don¡¯t really have much effect on reducing micro-dust emissions. For example, the government is advertising that Beijing¡¯s micro-dust concentration has decreased by forty percent, but does that mean that emissions have decreased?¡± He Jiankui waved his hand in denial. ¡°Absolutely not. Simply raising the stacks will reduce the micro-dust in the city where the factories are located. It¡¯s obvious. If micro-dust urs higher up in the sky, wouldn¡¯t it be more likely for it to be blown away by the wind before it reaches people?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Actually, Ennd and Sweden have had conflict because of micro-dust in the past. London advertised that they reduced a lot of their micro-dust emissions, but Swedish scientists were sessful in scientifically proving that the level of micro-dusting from Ennd hadn¡¯t changed,¡± He Jiankui said. ¡°Doctor Ryu, I believe the scientists of Korea areckingpared to Swedish scientists; they arecking patriotism, responsibility for conflicts in the internationalmunity, and aggressiveness. If Korean scientists had found all the evidence, they would have already filed an internationalwsuit against the Chinese government.¡± He Jiankui was not wrong, but it wasn¡¯t solely their fault either. The scientificmunity was usually uninterested in social issues, but why would they be indifferent to micro-dust, which caused inmmation in their respiratory systems? The reason for theck of evidence for an internationalwsuit or aint was a much simpler one: it was because most scientists weren¡¯t that rich, and research was expensive. They needed funding from somewhere, and for these kinds of problems, the government had to start a national program to provide the funding. It meant that instead of opening contests for ideas to reduce micro-dust, they should be funding brilliant scientists and asking them to create models, experiments, and data that could prove the effects of Chinese micro-dust. What scientist in the world would use their own money to prove all that and then hand over the data to the government so that they couldin to China? ¡°It¡¯s not just the scientists¡¯ fault,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°There are scientist-basedpanies who are passionate about solving the micro-dust problem, even though they don¡¯t have money.¡± ¡°They are great people,¡± He Jiankuiplimented. Young-Joon agreed with him. Cellijenner was extremely talented but also had a good mindset. ¡°Anyways, go on, Doctor He Jiankui. How are you going to convince the Chinese government?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°To be honest, regardless ofints and whatnot, the micro-dust problem in China remains unsolved. Even if the micro-dust levels are reduced by forty percent, it still means that sixty percent remains. The current policy is ineffective,¡± He Jiankui said. ¡°Eventually, we¡¯re going to have to put dust collectors on the smokestacks. We¡¯re going to have to attach cyclones to catch the dust. That¡¯s the surest way to do it.¡± ¡°So you¡¯re going to convince the Chinese government to do that?¡± ¡°Exactly,¡± He Jiankui said as he snapped his fingers. ¡°If we can prove that the graph of micro-dust damage in China exceeds the graph of energy loss from cyclone dust collectors, the Chinese government will mandate the instation of dust collectors.¡± ¡°But it won¡¯t be easy to quantify the damage to people¡¯s health caused by micro-dust. There are a lot of factors other than micro-dust that can affect respiratory diseases.¡± ¡°We¡¯re the GSC for a reason, aren¡¯t we?¡± He Jiankui said proudly. ¡°What do you think, Doctor Ryu? If I push for this, can you save the CCR5-engineered baby?¡± ¡°As I said before, I was already nning to protect the baby¡¯s health,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°But I have no intention of defending you in this matter, Doctor He Jiankui. It¡¯s true that you received illegal funding, ignored the regtions of the ethicsmittee, and recklessly conducted human experiments while infringing on my patent rights as the developer of Cas9.¡± ¡°Hm...¡± ¡°I will only protect the babies. Beyond that, you are on your own.¡± ¡°Haha... You¡¯re just like what I heard. Alright, Doctor Ryu. That is all I need,¡± He Jiankui said. ¡°I have no way to survive if those babies¡¯ health is at risk, but if they are healthy, I can defend against other problems to some extent.¡± HIV could be transmitted to the fetus, which meant that it was risky to have a baby if the mother had HIV. This was where He Jiankui could defend himself. ¡®The mother of the CCR5-engineered baby had HIV.¡¯ That¡¯s what He Jiankui was going to say. ¡®The modification of CCR5 was not just simply not just out of curiosity. This fulfilled a woman¡¯s wish to have a child. Who could infringe on her right to happiness? When everyone was cowering in fear of condemnation, I bravely sacrificed myself and saved her.¡¯ If He Jiankui targeted that well, the most severe punishment he would get would be probation as long as the baby was healthy. And since He Jiankui had GSC membership and was a valuable asset, the Chinese government wasn¡¯t going to punish him too harshly. ¡®But there¡¯s a new drug called a CCR5 Blocker.¡¯ Young-Joon thought for a while. This drug allowed mothers with HIV to give birth to healthy babies. This meant that gic engineering was not necessary, though it was controversial because there have been reports of the drug failing. ¡°Let¡¯s try it,¡± Young-Joon said. * * * Kim Soo-Chul, a scientist at Cellijenner, was tense. He used to always cut it close,ing into the office two minutes before his start time, but he showed up at eight thirty today. He couldn¡¯t sleep the day before, and his eyes just opened this morning. ¡°Good morning.¡± As Kim Soo Chul went into the office with a greeting, he saw that most people were already at work. ¡°Doctor Song?¡± Kim Soo-Chul was surprised when he saw Song Ji-Hyun. ¡°You usually wear sweats to work, but you have makeup on today...¡± ¡°We have a guest today, right?¡± Song Ji-Hyun replied, slightly embarrassed. ¡°Huh?¡± Kim Soo-Chul eximed as he walked past her. ¡°Wow, Doctor Song has perfume on today, too! I¡¯ve never seen you put perfume on.¡± ¡°I had perfume on when we had a booth at the IUBMB, too,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°Oh, I see.¡± ¡°Soo-Chul, you¡¯re more overdressed than her,¡± said Principal Scientist Lee Hyung-Min, who was tapping away at hisptop near the window. ¡°Why are you wearing a suit? Are you a salesperson? Are you going to run experiments in a suit?¡± ¡°Because he¡¯s a big name in our business. And I¡¯m meeting him for the first time, so I have to make a good first impression. You never know, maybe he¡¯ll hire me at A-GenBio.¡± ¡°Are you going to go if they ask?¡± asked Lead Scientist Kang Joo-Tae. ¡°Well, I don¡¯t know. I¡¯m not a big corporate guy, and I really like ourpany.¡± ¡°What if they offer you ten times your sry right now?¡± ¡°Ten times my sry is a bit tempting. But who¡¯s going to offer a mere Scientist ten times their sry?¡± ¡°Even if you get ten times more, the National Tax Service is going to take half of it,¡± Lee Hyung-Min said. ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Of course. It doesn¡¯t matter how much you make. If you make ten times, you¡¯ll probably actually only get five.¡± ¡°If it¡¯s five times, I¡¯m not going. I have a lot of shares in ourpany,¡± Kim Soo-Chul said, shaking his head. Choi Yeon-Ho, the CEO of Cellijenner, popped out from management¡¯s office. ¡°I¡¯m hearing something strange. Are you going to go to A-GenBio?¡± ¡°It¡¯s just wishful thinking. We were just talking about Soo-Chul going to A-GenBio and getting ten times his sry,¡± Kang Joo-Tae said. The scientists lightly chuckled. ¡°Even I¡¯m tempted by that,¡± Choi Yeon-Ho said jokingly. ¡°How can you be tempted, Mr. CEO?¡± ¡°I¡¯m kidding. We¡¯re not going to be tempted by money. People who are doing research to make money have already been sold out to Conson & Colson and military shops. All that¡¯s left here is the weirdos,¡± said Lee Hyung-Min. ¡°Yeah. We¡¯re not going to go just because of some sry negotiation. Maybe if Mr. Ryu gives us an offer himself, right, Doctor Song?¡± Kim Soo-Chul asked as he faced Song Ji-Hyun. Song Ji-Hyun, who had rejected the offer that Mr. Ryu gave her,ughed awkwardly. ¡°It¡¯s already past nine o¡¯clock while you guys have been chatting and joking around, so why don¡¯t we start working?¡± Choi Yeon-Ho said as he patted Kim Soo-Chul on the shoulder. ¡°Oh, I¡¯ll get started right now.¡± ¡°Even if Soo-Chules early, he still starts at the same time,¡± Kang Joo-Tae jokingly said. ¡°That¡¯s because I¡¯m consistent,¡± Kim Soo-Chul said, shrugging it off like it was nothing, and turned on hisputer. All forty scientists in theb were tapping away at theirputers. This was quite strange, since most of a scientist¡¯s work was done in theb, weaningb coats and gloves and touching pipettes. It was because what they were working on right now was the data that Young-Joon was going to see. There couldn¡¯t be a single typo. Everyone was reading and rereading their data. ¡®Doctor Ryu isn¡¯t that picky. They don¡¯t have to do that...¡¯ Song Ji-Hyun went to theb. It had been a while since she had worked alone in ab this big. They had weathered a lot of hard times, from when they were a small venturepany to themercialization of Cellicure. And now, everyone who had stayed were oddballs who had dedicated their lives to science. People like Kim Soo-Chul came to work on a weekend afternoon, saying that his house was too hot because the air conditioning unit was broken. Seeing theb, which was home to people like this, so empty, Song Ji-Hyun realized how big an event Young-Joon¡¯s visit was for them. Of course, it wasn¡¯t for her. She took the DNA she extracted yesterday, loaded it onto agarose gel to check the band size, then subcultured the cells. And when it was almost ten o¡¯clock, Young-Joon¡¯s car had arrived at the underground parking lot. Choi Yeon-Ho, who had gone to escort him in, calmed his nerves and shook his hand. He led Young-Joon to the conference room. ¡°Nice to meet you,¡± said Young-Joon. After exchanging greetings with the researchers, Young-Joon sat down in the chair that had been prepared in advance. * * * ¡°There are millions of tons of micro-dust in Korea each year. As eighty percent of it can be used as fertilizer, it is a very good resource,¡± Lee Hyung-Min began his presentation. ¡°We are nning to capture that micro-dust and recycle it as fertilizer, thus improving the environment and generating revenue.¡± The scientists listened to the presentation while secretly ncing at Young-Joon. Lee Hyung-Min¡¯s voice was a little shakier than usual. ¡°This is the diagram of our idea. We want to attach a micro-dust collection filter to cars and develop a running micro-dust reduction device,¡± he said as he went to the next slide. ¡°We will distribute the filters to the public for free, and we¡¯re going to buy back the filters from the vehicles that have driven a certain distance. The public will take the filters because it can help with their gas money.¡± ¡°And you¡¯re going to separate the micro-dust from those filters and recycle it as fertilizer?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°That¡¯s right. We are going to generate revenue, the environment will improve, and car owners will also make money. If a lot of cars in the city drive around with our filters, it can be a marketing tool for thepany. It¡¯s a win-win strategy in a number of ways,¡± Lee Hyung-Min said, concluding his presentation. ¡°But is it difficult to develop the running micro-dust reduction device?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°That¡¯s right. It costs about one million won to scrape the micro-dust from a thousand filters, and the value of the fertilizer from the removed micro-dust is about two thousand won. When you add in the cost of paying the driver for the filters, we have to adjust the unit price a lot more.¡± ¡°I see.¡± They were much further along than Young-Joon thought. It wasn¡¯t hard to find a way where there was a clear goal. ¡ªYou¡¯re going to turn on Synchronization Mode, right? Rosaline asked. 1. A system where odd and even license tes drive on different days. It is implemented when micro-dust levels are high. ? Chapter 188: Micro-dust (4)

Chapter 188: Micro-dust (4)

Young-Joon¡¯s mind was sinking into deep darkness. Rosaline¡¯s sight was diving deep underground, about three hundred fifty meters deep. In this underground world, there were not only minerals, but also oil, natural gas, methane, and other biomass. It was a harsh environment that seemed inhabitable, but the fascinating power of life evolved microorganisms even in this environment; they lived here by eating or producing various biomass. There was nitrate-reducing bacteria from the genus Pseudomonas and fermenters that descended from vobacterium. These were amazing organisms that broke down aromatic hydrocarbons and produced energy by utilizing nitric acid, chloric acid, and sulfate ions as electron eptors. They were now clearly visible to Young-Joon. These organisms had a small storage space in their cells called a vesicle. They regted the pH of this region to preserve nitrate or sulfate. ¡°Found it.¡± Young-Joon began to quickly scribble in his notebook. The scientists of Cellijenner, who were listening to Lee Hyung-Min¡¯s presentation, stared at him. Scribble... There was no sound in the room other than the scribbling of Young-Joon¡¯s pen. This time with Synchronization Mode, he didn¡¯t just look at a few genes, he looked through all the organelles of microorganisms. He had to quickly organize and write down the insight before the images in his head disappeared. ¡®... What the hell is he writing?¡¯ Kim Soo-Chul, who was sitting beside Young-Joon, nced at his notebook out of curiosity. ¡ªPseudomonas nitrolis ¡ªvobacterium sulfosis ¡ª4000 rpm centrifuge ¡ªCell lysis w/ CodonPlus-RIL buffer ¡ª7000 rpm centrifuge sup collect ¡ªFPLC ¡ªApply the vesicle to porous carbon paper. 37?C 50min. Invert. ¡®Woah. What is this?¡¯ It was ab protocol. The two names written above the protocol seemed to be the names of some microorganisms. However, the research was still in its nning phase; it wasn¡¯t the time to be nning specific experiments. ¡®What is this...¡¯ ¡°You can develop a filter like this,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°We can apply a microorganism-based vesicle on ordinary engineering porous carbon paper. Then, the vesicle will capture nitrate and sulfate without any other treatment. You¡¯ll be able to collect nitric acid and sulfuric acid by dipping it in water once.¡± He gave the note to Song Ji-Hyun, who was sitting across from him. ¡°...¡± Song Ji-Hyun read the note in surprise, then gave it to Choi Yeon-Ho. ¡°There¡¯s probably about three million sedans in Seoul, and one car will probably be able to have at least ten filters. Each filter will collect about one kilogram of nitrate and sulfate,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°The filter should collect about two kilograms if the car drives about one hundred kilometers. Then, one car driving one thousand kilometers should yield about twenty kilograms.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The problem is that twenty kilograms of fertilizer isn¡¯t worth much. No driver is going toe to Cellijenner to sell that,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°So, let¡¯s do this: let¡¯s send these filters to gas stations.¡± ¡°Gas stations?¡± Choi Yeon-Ho asked. ¡°All cars are bound to go to gas stations, so we distribute these filters to gas stations around the country. We make the gas stations our middle-man.¡± ¡°So the gas station employees will put the filters on the customers¡¯ cars as they get gas, and then they will buy the used filters and sell them to us?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked. ¡°That¡¯s right. All we have to do is dip those filters in water once to get the nitric and sulfuric acid, and then send them back to the gas station,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Carbon paper is thin and you can adjust the color, so it won¡¯t be very noticeable. It won¡¯t be a burden to the driver, and it will be a business that will make the air quality better and make a lot of money for the driver, the gas station, and Cellijenner.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Let¡¯s briefly model the revenue. The gas station buys twenty kilograms of filters at ten thousand won from the driver,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Since fifty liters of gas costs about eighty thousand won, getting a discount for ten thousand won is pretty big. Most people who are drowning in gas money will be happy to do it.¡± Young-Joon scribbled something in his notebook again and began calcting the revenue model. ¡°And let¡¯s say Cellijenner buys that for eleven thousand won. Assuming that a gas station gets around one thousand cars a day, that¡¯s an extra thirty million won in profit for the gas station each month.¡± ¡°Three million...!¡± ¡°Even for a gas station that doesn¡¯t get that many cars, they will still make a few hundred thousand won in profit at least. If we do this, it¡¯s likely that gas stations will take the initiative to promote it and offer discounts on gas for drivers who put the filter on. Then, we¡¯ll get a lot of publicity that will attract drivers without spending a dime,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Cellijenner can collect those filters, soak them in water to remove the nitrate and sulfate, and do a secondary purification and turn it into fertilizer. Twenty kilograms of fertilizer sells for about twenty thousand won on the market.¡± Young-Joon pulled out some data he had prepared in advance from his bag. ¡°And the estimated amount of micro-dust in Korea ranges from a few million tons to more than ten million tons per year, right? How much fertilizer do you think the entire domestic agriculture industry uses annually?¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°It¡¯s only half a million tons.¡± It wasn¡¯t that the agricultural industry was using too little, it was that there was too much micro-dust. Micro-dust was so fine that it couldn¡¯t be seen, but it added up to an unimaginable amount when it wasbined. ¡°The number of registered vehicles in Korea is about twenty-three million, and even if less than half of them are actually driven, Cellijenner alone will produce five hundred thousand tons, and you¡¯ll have to sell the rest overseas,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°If anything, we might have to watch out for a copse in the fertilizer market in agriculture or this business destroying itself because there¡¯s not enough micro-dust. We will have to consider the danger and curb the supply of the technology or the number of vehicles that benefit from the filter.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The revenue model I¡¯ve justid out for you is a simple calction, so you will have to consider this and take a safer approach.¡± Young-Joon finished talking and looked at the scientists. ¡°...¡± All the people from Cellijener were frozen in shock. Kim Soo-Chul was ecstatic. In his mind, Young-Joon had just created something from nothing. The driver would save more than ten percent on gas, gas stations would make tens of millions of won a year in additional revenue, and Celijenner would have an output that exceeded the existing market for agricultural fertilizer. When Choi Yeon-Ho first talked about the idea to collect micro-dust and make it into fertilizer, Kim Soo-Chul thought he was crazy. ¡®But we met someone who realized it, and the result is just something straight out of a fantasy novel...¡¯ Kim Soo-Chul was not the only one who was shocked. Song Ji-Hyun, who had worked with Young-Joon for a long time, was shocked, and so was Choi Yeon-Ho, the one who first proposed the idea. With a gulp, Choi Yeon-Ho asked Young-Joon, ¡°W... What are these two microorganisms here?¡± ¡°They are bacteria that use nitrate and sulfate. We¡¯re not using the bacteria, but just isting the organelle called the vesicle. The process of doing that is written on that note,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°If you soak it in water and then dry it, the carbon vesicle paper will go back to normal. It can be used almost semi-permanently, so it¡¯s not going to cost you a lot of money after the initial investment.¡± ¡°That... We haven¡¯t finalized the distribution of profits with A-GenBio yet...¡± said Choi Yeon-Ho. ¡°Is it okay for you to give us such an important item before signing a contract?¡± ¡°Well, it¡¯s not that much money for me since it¡¯s just fertilizer, and it¡¯s not like I did that much work here,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°You don¡¯t have to share the profits with A-Gen. Cellijenner should do this on their own.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not taking any profits?¡± Choi Yeon-Ho was shocked. The other scientists gasped as well. ¡°Think of it as my gift to a partnerpany that we¡¯ve worked with for so long. I¡¯ve gotten a lot of help from Cellijenner... Well, Doctor Song to be exact, and I will continue to do so. But let me add one thing,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I want you to put the logo of A-GenBio¡¯s Lab Seven on the filter.¡± ¡°Lab Seven? Does A-Gen have a seventhb?¡± ¡°No, we¡¯re going to make one. We don¡¯t even have a logo yet, but we¡¯ll make one soon and send it to you. You can use Cellijenner¡¯s logo as well,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I¡¯m going to use this business to promote theunch of Lab Seven. We¡¯re going to make a lot of world-changing items there.¡± * * * The production for a running micro-dust filter was not veryplicated. It was a protocol that could be easily aplished by a skilled scientist with experience. The process of building the filter at Cellijenner quickly came along. The prototype was ready in just a few days, and it was installed on a vehicle and tested on the road. In the meantime, Young-Joon was running a simple experiment in theb of A-Bio¡¯s old building. ¡®Our CEO is seriously a workaholic...¡¯ The scientists all shook their heads. It was a chaotic time due to the merger and the reorganization, as well as movingbs. Young-Joon had told scientists that it was okay if they didn''t publish any experimental progress for two weeks. This was to prevent problems such as missing data and loss of important experimental samples while moving to newbs and positions. But Young-Joon, who was the CEO of apany that was going through a merger, still found time in his busy day to do experiments. ¡°Don¡¯t mind me, it¡¯s a personal project.¡± Young-Joon told everyone he met in theb just in case they felt pressured to work. But everyone knew that his actions were not to pressure them to work. Young-Joon was the type of person who just directly told people what to do, as he would be toozy to beat around the bush and silently pressure them. But thispany was full of oddballs like Young-Joon. ¡°Oh, Jacob, you don¡¯t have to do any experiments this week,¡± Young-Joon said to Jacob, who was purifying DNA, while he was running the centrifuge. ¡°This is a personal project as well. There¡¯s an idea I want to try out.¡± ¡°...¡± As Young-Joon squinted in doubt, Jacob added, ¡°Really. You don¡¯t have to pay me for this. I did thisst weekend, too.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°And I¡¯m not the only one. Since it¡¯s low-stakes even if something goes wrong, other people are taking this opportunity to test out things they¡¯ve been curious about and things like that.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°Please forgive us for wasting some materials. But we¡¯re moving anyway, and we¡¯ll buy a lot of new supplies.¡± ¡ªYou and your employees are exactly the same. They say that birds of a feather flock together. Rosaline said. Young-Joon scratched his head and patted Jacob¡¯s shoulder. Then, he went back to his work. It was to find the solution to the gic engineering of CCR5. Bzzz. His phone buzzed. It was Park Joo-Hyuk. [This is the data you asked me for. It¡¯s an attached file. -Litigation material for the clinical failure of the CCR5 blocker drug-] Chapter 189: Micro-dust (5)

Chapter 189: Micro-dust (5)

There were two conditions under which He Jiankui¡¯s human experiment could be excused. One was that he didn¡¯t know the side effects of modifying CCR5 in an embryo, which was almost certain. CCR5 became famous for its role as the infection route of HIV, and there were already people who had natural mutations in CCR5. He Jiankui probably thought it was a rtively safe target as there were so many people born with that mutation. Plus, A-Bio was already treating AIDS through CCR5 maniption, though it wasn¡¯t in developing embryos. The other condition was that the CCR5 blockers on the market didn¡¯t work, meaning the other option for these gically engineered babies was difficult. ¡®I didn¡¯t really know this either.¡¯ Young-Joon opened the documents that Park Joo-Hyuk sent him in his office. There were a total of thirty-three documents rted to thewsuit. This case was about the clinical trials of a treatment called xoviroc, which was once sold by a Taiwanese pharmaceuticalpany called Atmox. It was believed that the HIV would not be transmitted from the mother to the fetus when this treatment was administered to the mother. The sess rate was reported to be one hundred percent, but there were recent cases of failure. Young-Joon slowly read through the documents, then called Park Joo-Hyuk as even Rosaline¡¯s powers couldn¡¯t interpretw terminology. ¡°This case is still in the Supreme Court. In the first trial, the court found Atmox negligent and ordered them to providepensation for damages, but it was overturned in the court of appeals,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk exined. ¡°The concentration and the number of administrations of xoviroc were different for this clinical trial, right?¡± Young-Joon asked. Park Joo-Hyuk nodded. ¡°Originally, it¡¯s supposed to be administered once a week starting from the fifth week of the pregnancy,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡°But in that clinical case trial, Atmox developed a new way of administering xoviroc, and they tested it on patients at a hospital owned by Atmox. Atmox ims that the patient¡¯s consent was fully obtained and they understood everything.¡± ¡°It¡¯s supposed to be given once every week, but they got consent and didn¡¯t use it at all. Instead, they administered a ten-fold dose once every week for thest three weeks?¡± ¡°Well, Atmox is iming that it was a properly conducted clinical trial. They predicted it would be sessful, but it just happened to fail.¡± Atmox was trying to change a drug that was traditionally administered continuously throughout the pregnancy to one that would only be administered near the delivery date. Young-Joon could understand this direction of research. The less number of administrations was always good for the patient as it meant fewer trips to the hospital and less chance of side effects. And a new drug always had a chance of failure. It was tragic that the new administration method of xoviroc failed, but that wasn¡¯t something that the pharmaceuticalpany should be med for. ¡°The question is whether the patient was aware of the old and safer administration method of xoviroc,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Yeah, and that¡¯s where the victim¡¯s and Atmox¡¯s statements differ. The victim says she wasn¡¯t told anything, saying what kind of crazy mother would intentionally take a chance when her child¡¯s life depended on it. Of course, Atmox says it was all exined.¡± ¡°Wasn¡¯t there an informed consent form?¡± ¡°The consent form was signed by the patient, but it was filled with all kinds of medical jargon that she couldn¡¯t understand. She says that when they exined it to her verbally, they didn¡¯t mention that there were other ways to administer it.¡± ¡°A clinical trial that the subjects don¡¯t understand is illegal,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°In principle, yes, but their opponent is a pretty big pharmaceuticalpany and they are powerless citizens. Just making the case go onto the Supreme Court is going to make every day a living hell for the victim.¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joon turned on hisputer. He typed ¡°P¡± into the search bar. Then, the web address of a website he visited often popped up. [https://.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/] It was a website called PubMed. It was run by the National Institute of Health. This website was a search engine for academic articles, and it had papers published from any journal around the world. Young-Joon searched for xoviroc on PubMed. If there was a new administration method, there must have been a paper published about it. He wanted to find out how much preclinical research they based this clinical trial on. ¡°Oh...¡± Young-Joon¡¯s hand came to a halt as he scrolled down to find the article. He found a paper published in a journal he had never seen before. [A new method of administration of the CCR5 blocker xoviroc may reduce the dose and the number of doses.] [Corresponding author: He Jiankui] ¡°...¡± Young-Joon pondered for a moment as he opened the paper. ¡®He Jiankui.¡¯ It could be a coincidence. He Jiankui was a scientist, not a businessman, and Young-Joon had never heard of him working for Atmox. But this paper was the result of research funded by Atmox. It didn¡¯t quite seem like a coincidence that the people involved in the HIV and the CCR5 blocker scandal were the same people. Young-Joon, who was tapping his chin, said to Park Joo-Hyuk, ¡°I need you to check one more thing.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°How Doctor He Jiankui and Atmox are rted.¡± * * * He Jiankui, who returned to Beijing, was being interrogated by the Chinese authorities. ¡°The government is in a tough position because of you, Doctor He Jiankui,¡± said the deputy minister of the Public Security Bureau. ¡°Haha, I¡¯m sorry, but this is what science is like, Mr. Deputy Minister. For a car to run, fuel must inevitably be burned and sacrificed, right?¡± ¡°I heard that the baby is in poor health. If it dies, you¡¯ll be criticized by the internationalmunity. And in that case, the Chinese government won¡¯t be able to protect you.¡± ¡°I know that.¡± ¡°If you say we authorized an experiment like that, China bes a ce for inhumane human experiments that use our own people. We will deny any involvement, and the whole matter will be chalked up as your personal aberration and illegal research.¡± ¡°But the bureau does far worse things than me, right?¡± Tap. The deputy minister pressed on He Jiankui¡¯s chin with his baton. ¡°Be careful of what you say.¡± ¡°Sir, it¡¯s not something that will go away if I keep my mouth shut,¡± He Jiankui said. ¡°I¡¯ll tell you a story that happened recently. My friend wanted to publish a paper in Nature, but there was a problem.¡± ¡°What was it?¡± ¡°That paper was a collection of medical information on the postoperative status and recovery of patients who underwent organ transnt surgery in China. The editors of Nature are wondering if they should publish it even though the data is amazing. The reason is...¡± He Jiankui said. ¡°Because they were unauthorized transnts from executed prisoners in China. There are a few people who are suspicious of that. Why don¡¯t you just tell me?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Execution dates for death row inmates, including political prisoners and democracy activists, always seem to coincide with organ transnt surgeries for important people in China.¡± ¡°...Nonsense...¡± ¡°You do a demand survey and study the possibility of organ rejection in advance, and then you reserve an operating room in a hospital close to the execution site. Then, you cut open their stomachs as soon as you execute them, take their organs, and then deliver it fresh to the operating room? That¡¯s the issue preventing the editors from publishing the paper.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Of course, it¡¯s because the editors at Nature are idiots. What¡¯s the crime in the data itself? My friend has nothing to do with that organ transnt, either. He was just tracking the health of the patients. We¡¯ll be advancing medicine if we share that with academia, and the executed inmates will probably be d since they were going to die anyway.¡± ¡°Who else knows about that?¡± ¡°Only a few people. They are hiding it well at Nature because a new paper is supposed to be secure. Of course, I heard about it because I am personally close with the author. But sooner orter, even the scientists at Science will hear about it, too. This industry is smaller than you think. Although, they will just be unconfirmed rumors,¡± He Jiankui said with a sly smile. ¡°But I don¡¯t care about ethics or anything like that. I¡¯m satisfied with being able to do research and finding out new things. At your rank, you should know. So, is it true or not? I was so curious. If it is, what I did is child¡¯s y.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°If it¡¯s true, can you give me some organs for research purposes?¡± ¡°What...!¡± The deputy minister was shocked. ¡°I¡¯m sure there are patients who aren¡¯t a match, right? I¡¯m sure there are spare organs from the inmates that aren¡¯t in demand. I have some research I want to do.¡± ¡°Are you crazy?!¡± the deputy minister shouted. ¡°We¡¯re being really amodating because you¡¯re in the GSC. Don¡¯t be arrogant! You¡¯re here to be investigated for illegal funding and research!¡± ¡°I promise you that the baby will be healthy since it¡¯s in the hands of a crazy smart scientist. If anyone criticizes the engineering, I can just say that it was the only way to stop HIV from being inherited. xiviroc failed recently, too.¡± ¡°xoviroc?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a drug that stops HIV from being inherited. Well, some say it¡¯s because of the difference in dosage, but who is going to dig into that?¡± He Jiankui said. ¡°...¡± ¡°The organ thing is a personal request, so please take your time with it. I won¡¯t let you down with thepensation. But can I go now? I have a meeting with the National Health Commission and the State Administration for Market Regtion,¡± He Jiankui said. ¡°About micro-dust.¡± ¡°Micro-dust?¡± ¡°It¡¯s for the respiratory health of our people.¡± With a smile, He Jiankui stood up. ¡°This is how hard I work to improve the health of my people.¡± * * * ¡°This doesn¡¯t make any sense...¡± Young-Joon was in shock as he read the paper. This data wasn''t good enough to be considered as preclinical data. Not enough animals were used, and the pharmacological mechanism, toxicity test, and the excretion test were all unclear. ¡®Someone like He Jiankui is doing experiments like this?¡¯ This was the kind of academic junk that scammers used in order to be able to im something as a scientific paper. It was impossible for the public to know which journal it was published, or whether it was actually peer-reviewed. As such, once that magic phrase was added, the credibility of all sorts of pseudoscience skyrocketed. ¡°Ms. Yoo,¡± Young-Joon called his secretary. ¡°Please arrange a visit to West China Hospital. And please arrange a Chinese interpreter.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± ¡°We are going to visit Mimi, the CCR5-engineered baby, and her guardian. Please give this message to the hospital and make ns with the guardian.¡± Chapter 190: Micro-dust (6)

Chapter 190: Micro-dust (6)

At West China Hospital, there was a newborn baby lying in the incubator. It was Mimi, the gically engineered baby; her nickname was the ¡°Cas9 baby.¡± Using a pseudonym for the baby¡¯s name was in consideration of protecting the subjects¡¯ identities, but it didn¡¯t do much good. It was because He Jiankui, the principal investigator, wasn¡¯t too keen on protecting the identity of his study subjects. Mimi became the most famous baby in the world, thanks to He Jiankui talking about her everywhere he went. She was the first gically engineered human being; the image that title gave was like something from a sci-fi dystopian movie, like Gattaca. But to her mother, Zhi Xuan, Mimi was just a normal baby. She was just worried about Mimi, who was weak. She stayed by the incubator all day, not even being able to care for her postpartum symptoms. ¡°...¡± Mimi, who was curled up and sleeping all day, scrunched her nose and smiled as if she was dreaming. Her angelic smile was the only relief in Zhi Xuan¡¯s life. Click. Zhang Haoyu, Mimi¡¯s doctor, basically showered in the disinfectant, entered the sterile room and checked her vitals. ¡°Doctor,¡± Zhi Xuan said to Zhang Haoyu. ¡°Doesn¡¯t she look better? Do you think she¡¯s getting better now?¡± ¡°... We don¡¯t know yet. She¡¯s gotten a little better, but we still have to see. Also, you have a guest from Korea.¡± ¡°A guest?¡± ¡°I mentioned it before, right? A doctor named Ryu Young-Joon ising from Korea. He¡¯s the developer of Cas9, the base technology for gic engineering. He is the most knowledgeable about this in the world.¡± Zhang Haoyu nced at the door. Young-Joon was here with Alice, the interpreter who had apanied him to the United States before. Alice was fluent in Chinese, but of course she didn¡¯t know anything about putting on sterile suits in the clean room and disinfecting herself. While Zhang Haoyu was checking the baby¡¯s vitals and condition, Young-Joon helped Alice and came into the room together. ¡°Hello. My name is Ryu Young-Joon.¡± ¡°Ni hao, we jiao Ryu Young-Joon,¡± Alice tranted fluently. After greeting them, Young-Joon turned to Mimi. Rosaline was already standing beside the incubator. ¡ªLet¡¯s go into Simtion Mode for this. I¡¯ll rey the events from when this baby was a zygote. ¡®Thanks.¡¯ [Simtion Mode Activated] With a message window, Young-Joon¡¯s sight became one with Rosaline¡¯s. The keen insight that was diving into the microworld looked through nearly twenty trillion cells that made up Mimi¡¯s body. All of these cells, which had differentiated from a single zygote, were missing CCR5: a mutation called Delta 32 had been artificially introduced. The mother had HIV, and she unfortunately did not benefit from the WHO¡¯s coboration with A-Bio in the fight against HIV. The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) that caused AIDS could move from the mother¡¯s blood vessels to the fetus. The imnted zygote would be attacked by the virus and divide in an infected state. This baby, however, was an embryo that He Jiankui cut the CCR5 gene out of. The Delta 32 mutation that resulted from it broke down the structure of CCR5, which was the pathway that HIV had to go through to infiltrate the zygote. As such, the virus was unable to enter the fetus¡¯ body, and the baby was born uninfected. However, CCR5 didn¡¯t just act as a pathway for the virus. Young-Joon began to see the actual role that the proteins made from the CCR5 gene yed. It was part of a coenzyme involved in telomerase activity. If telomerase didn¡¯t function properly, telomeres, which were repetitive DNA sequences that protect DNA degradation, wouldn¡¯t form correctly. This would result in a shorter life span and faster aging than the average person. However, this naturally differed between individuals, so it could be tolerated if it was taken care of. There was a bigger issue, and that was the reason why this baby was sick. That¡¯s what Young-Joon was observing. ¡®It¡¯s not just Delta 32...¡¯ His fingers trembled. This was a different mutant. He Jiankui made a mistake when he used the Cas9 scissors. There was another structural change containing Delta 32, and it was causing mutations in the immune system. This baby had a very poor immune system; it was like she had AIDS. ¡°Could I get a sample of the baby¡¯s oral epithelial cells or something? Blood is fine as well,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°We have some blood samples, so we¡¯ll give you that,¡± Zhang Haoyu said. * * * As Young-Joon left Mimi¡¯s room, Zhi Xuan quickly followed him out. ¡°Doctor!¡± She stopped Young-Joon. ¡°Doctor... Will our baby be okay?¡± She looked desperate. It seemed like Zhi Xuan thought that a genius scientist like Young-Joon would be able to take a quick look at Mimi and figure out the problem. ¡°We don¡¯t know yet,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°We won¡¯t know until we do a blood test.¡± ¡°...¡± Zhi Xuan looked disappointed. ¡°Doctor, the media is making our baby look like a monster,¡± she said. ¡°They¡¯re saying that a horrible future where gic engineering is practiced wille through my child...¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The news also mentioned that my baby was sick, and some people said that they want my baby to die so that they wouldn¡¯t do more gic engineering...¡± ¡°Don¡¯t pay attention to that. Your baby will be healthy soon,¡± Zhi Xuan said. ¡°It¡¯s because I got HIV.¡± She sighed. ¡°I¡¯m from Jieyang, Guangdong Province. I was born in a small vige in the mountains of that region, and we made blood money.¡± ¡°Blood money?¡±[1] Young-Joon frowned when he heard that, as it was an unfamiliar concept. Then, he looked at Alice, who also looked puzzled. ¡°Y¡ªYes... She said blood money,¡± Alice said, stammering, when Young-Joon looked at her. ¡°You mean selling blood?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Yes. There aren¡¯t any jobs there, and everyone is poor and unemployed, including me and my mom. I also sold blood there,¡± Zhi Xuan said. ¡°What... What are you talking about? There has to be some sort of blood donation regtion in China, right? Like you can¡¯t take more than four hundred units from one person, and it has to be six months apart...¡± ¡°The blood banks only check as a formality. A professional blood money organization makes you a fake ID and lobbies the blood banks so that they can distribute the blood. One time, I sold my blood sixteen times in a month.¡± ¡°Oh my...¡± Alice and Young-Joon froze in shock. Zhi Xuan¡¯s eyes filled with tears. ¡°That¡¯s when I got HIV. It was because the organization didn¡¯t sterilize the needles properly,¡± she said. Sterilization wasn¡¯t the problem; needles that went into blood vessels were disposable and had to be thrown away after one use. Zhi Xuan said, ¡°I found out about it after I left the vige and got married. My husband said it didn¡¯t matter because he was stronger than HIV, but my inws said they would kick me out if I didn¡¯t have a son.¡± In this situation, the problem shouldn¡¯t be that she couldn¡¯t have children, it should be that she could give her husband HIV. Kicking her out if she couldn¡¯t give birth to a son... All of this was just ridiculous to Young-Joon. ¡°This was the only option I had...¡± said Zhi Xuan to Young-Joon and Alice, who were both speechless. ¡°And then I found out that Professor He Jiankui at the University of Science and Technology of China was recruiting women with HIV who wanted to have children.¡± ¡°And then you volunteered for gic engineering?¡± ¡°What? No.¡± Zhi Xuan shook her head. ¡°I didn¡¯t even know it was gic engineering. I just heard that the child won¡¯t have HIV if I do in vitro fertilization and then they treat it with some chemical.¡± ¡°...¡± As Young-Joon stared at her, speechless, Zhi Xuan bit her lower lip and swallowed her tears. ¡°It¡¯s because I¡¯m an uneducated woman... Because I¡¯m a dirty bitch who never went to school and lived off of selling blood.¡± There was a moment of silence. In that silence, Alice looked at Young-Joon with a worried gaze. It was because he had a strange aura. ¡°You didn¡¯t know that it was gic maniption?¡± Young-Joon asked Zhi Xuan in a low voice. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°You didn¡¯t write some sort of consent form?¡± ¡°I did sign because they told me to sign it. I have a copy here.¡± Zhi Xuan quickly pulled out a piece of paper that was dirty around the edges. Alice, who took the paper from her, read through it and frowned. She whispered to Young-Joon, ¡°The information is about gic engineering, but... The signature that the patient wrote isn¡¯t Chinese.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°It¡¯s neither traditional nor simplified Chinese. Characters like this don¡¯t exist. Maybe she wrote whatever she wanted...¡± ¡®No...¡¯ Young-Joon¡¯s hand trembled. Then, Alice confirmed it with Zhi Xuan. ¡°Actually... I don¡¯t even know how to write my name... I couldn¡¯t read it because I don¡¯t know how to read...¡± Zhi Xuan said, blushing out of embarrassment. ¡°I said I would do it after asking my husband, but he said I wouldn¡¯t have a chance unless I sign it on the spot. I got scared, so I...¡± ¡°Then, you...¡± Alice, who was going to say something, flinched as she sensed the mes of anger beside her. The air was so tense that it could cut her. ¡°U¡ªUm... Sir?¡± Alice nced at Young-Joon. ¡°The use of Cas9 without the consent of the patent holder, and the deliberate misuse of it that caused a negative impact on the image of A-Bio,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Ourpany will file awsuit against He Jiankui for these charges. I will help you from now on, so please testify for us.¡± * * * ¡ªAtmox and He Jiankui do have a rtionship. Park Joo-Hyuk said over an international phone call. ¡ªHey, what time is it there? Are you able to call?¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine.¡± ¡ªWhy do you sound like that? Are you sick? ¡°No.¡± ¡ªDude, you sound like you¡¯re going to kill someone. ¡°... What¡¯s the rtionship between He Jiankui and Atmox?¡± ¡ªThe founder and now CEO of Atmox is an alumnus of He Jiankui. They seem very close. Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡ªAnd it seems like Atmox asked He Jiankui to test the new administration method of the CCR5 blocker. ¡°Why?¡± ¡ªI don¡¯t know, man. But you know what¡¯s funny? ¡°What?¡± ¡ªHe Jiankui said that he got funding from Yoon Bo-Hyun when he did the gic engineering, right? ¡°That¡¯s probably how he paid for the research.¡± ¡ªAtmox funded that, too. 1. Blood money has a different meaning, but it¡¯s being used this way to fit the context of the novel. ? Chapter 191: Micro-dust (7)

Chapter 191: Micro-dust (7)

¡°Atmox funded He Jiankui¡¯s gic engineering research?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡ªIf you look at what Yoon Bo-Hyun said while being investigated, he transferred five hundred million won to Atmox as funding for He Jiankui. Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡ªAnd Atmox gave He Jiankui two billion won as funding. ¡°What? Why? Just because the CEO is friends with He Jiankui?¡± ¡ªSo it¡¯s a bitplicated, and I don¡¯t have a clear picture of it yet. I¡¯m just saying that¡¯s what it looks like. Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡ªA-Gen had a smallpany in China in the past, and it was a paperpany. They separated the ownership to make it look like an unrtedpany and didn¡¯t even run it. I think it was used tounder money that they got from the U.S. military for the anthracis research. ¡°So?¡± ¡ªThatpany is basically Atmox. ¡°What? I thought it was a ghostpany?¡± Young-Joon asked, surprised. ¡ªIt was at first, but they couldn¡¯t keep it. After they got some money from developing the anthrax weapon, they probably wanted to get rid of the ghostpany and cut ties to it because it¡¯s a weakness. So, Yoon Dae-Sung sold the whole ghostpany to some rich Chinese guy for dirt cheap. Someone named Wang Wei. Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡ªIt was a ghostpany, but they had records of doing research with A-Gen on paper, so it was probably better than starting from scratch in terms of getting investments and stuff. I don¡¯t know the details. Anyway, that ghostpany is what became Atmox. ¡°...¡± ¡ªThen, Atmox began growing as an independent pharmaceuticalpany and became a promising small business after developing xoviroc, a CCR5 blocker. ¡°But why did they fund He Jiankui¡¯s research all of a sudden?¡± ¡ªAtmox had something to gain from that research, you know that? He Jiankui didn¡¯t start his CCR5 research after discovering that xoviroc could fail. Mimi and the HIV-infected baby, the result of xoviroc¡¯s failure, were only born two months apart from each other. ¡°Then... Wait,¡± Young-Joon paused. Everything was making sense in his head. All the events, which seemed like individual happenings, were all falling into ce. He Jiankui wanted to do gic engineering, but it was clear that he would be internationally condemned. As such, he needed to choose a gene target that was safe and justified. The safest was CCR5, which was already reported to have natural mutations and was being used by Young-Joon in stem cell treatment. There was enough evidence to im that it was safe. However, He Jiankui still needed an excuse to do the gic engineering; he needed the justification to create a fetus by modification instead of curing HIV in the patient. ¡®The failing of xoviroc.¡¯ The fact that HIV could be inherited from the mother to the child, and the clinical failure of the drug that was known to stop that provided enough justification. ¡®The mother would have to wait too long to be cured of HIV because it was expensive and there were too many people waiting. xoviroc also failed, so the only thing left to do was to modify the fetus¡¯ genes.¡¯ To have this justification, He Jiankui needed xoviroc to clinically fail. ¡®But why would Atmox, who owns xoviroc, fund that research? They are funding He Jiankui while destroying their own livelihood?¡¯ ¡°No...¡± Chills ran down Young-Joon¡¯s spine. ¡°It¡¯s not what I think it is, right?¡± ¡ªWhat are you thinking? ¡°Is xoviroc Atmox¡¯s only source of revenue?¡± ¡ªYeah. ¡°...¡± ¡ªAtmox is one of thepanies in danger of closing down because of your research. Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡ªYou drastically reduced the unit price of the HIV treatment, developed an HIV vine, and created a stem cell treatment that cures AIDS. You¡¯re also doing a project to eradicate HIV, which is pretty sessful. Atmox, a small business that lives off of xoviroc, probably felt threatened. Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡ªWe don¡¯t even have to go as far as eradicating the virus, since Cas9 alone can get rid of xoviroc. Even prior to Cas9, it was established that transnting hematopoietic cells with inactivated CCR5 could cure AIDS. ¡°So Atmox already predicted xoviroc¡¯s demise from the moment Cas9 appeared?¡± ¡ªOf course. Atmox¡¯s quarterly revenue has been plummeting after the HIV eradication project started. Their revenue is one-fifth of what it wasst year. They¡¯re drowning right now, and xoviroc will disappear in a few years. Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡ªAtmox decided to risk theirpany to find their next source of revenue, and that happened to be gic engineering. It¡¯s something that everyone knows about, and it¡¯s clear that this will have huge added value, but people are too scared to jump into it yet. ¡°And they¡¯re working with CCR5, so they will still have something to gain even if the gically modified baby fails?¡± ¡ªYeah. They could say that they modified CCR5 and the baby ended up in bad shape. They could stir the pot, saying CCR5 modification is dangerous and A-Bio should stop administering the AIDS cure. ¡°...¡± ¡ªBut that¡¯s the lesser of two evils. A huge pharmaceuticalpany like Schumatix almost got destroyed with the a treatment, right? A small business like Atmox probably doesn¡¯t want to take you head-on. Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡ªThat¡¯s why they are putting He Jiankui, a GSC scientist, as their fighter. They¡¯re making this into an academic battle instead of a corporate battle. And the best scenario is for that gically modified baby to grow healthily and thrive. This will usher in the era of embryonic gic engineering, at which He Jiankui will join Atmox. Then, Atmox will receive tons of funding from the government and wealthy Chinese people. If they do a good job, thispany that¡¯s on the verge of shutting down can be revived and be one of China¡¯s most promising ventures. ¡°And that¡¯s why they purposely changed the dosage of xoviroc?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°And the reason the preclinical study is bullshit is because it was just a formality. Atmox has something to gain whether it seeds or fails...¡± ¡ªIf it fails, they¡¯ll have an excuse to mess with CCR5 in He Jiankui¡¯s research, and if they seed, they¡¯ll be able to use xoviroc in a different way that¡¯s much less burdensome on patients. They¡¯ll be able to live off it for a little longer before HIV is fully eradicated. ¡°... Okay, Joo-Hyuk. I have something to ask you. Can you sue Atmox and He Jiankui?¡± ¡ªHey, I still have to tie up the loose ends from the A-Gen and A-Bio merger. Do you know how behind I am on paperwork? Park Joo-Hyukined. ¡°You can do it, right?¡± ¡ªUgh... Fine. Send me an email. * * * He Jiankui was having a meeting with the ministers of the National Health Commission and the State Administration for Market Regtion[1]. He Jiankui, who was sipping his coffee, rhythmically tapped his finger on the table. ¡°The Public Security Bureau is scary. I almost got my head bashed in,¡± said He Jiankui. ¡°Stop making trouble,¡± said the minister of the SAMR. ¡°I didn¡¯t cause trouble, sir. This is a major opportunity for China to seize the next phase of biology. The Anglo-Saxon region may have been the dominant force in medicine and biology, but that may not be the case in the future.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Gentlemen. There is one thing I am certain of, and it¡¯s that Northeast Asia will be the hub of life science and medicine in the future. I am sure of this. It will happen even if we don¡¯t do anything.¡± ¡°Because of Ryu Young-Joon?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. I met him in person this time, and he stopped a bioterrorist attack. Can you believe that? He stopped an anthrax gas attack by releasing a hot spring bacteria called Thermosma or something. He¡¯s on another level, it¡¯s ridiculous,¡± He Jiankui said. ¡°We need to get along with Ryu Young-Joon and South Korea from now on. And we can¡¯t let Ryu Young-Joon dominate South Korea alone.¡± ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± ¡°China can give Ryu Young-Joon a resource that the United States can¡¯t.¡± He Jiankui took out his notebook. Quickly scribbling on it, he said, ¡°Look. America has huge organizations called the National Cancer Institute and the National Center for Biotechnology Information. You could say that the biological resources they have is all the knowledge that humanity has umted in the modern age, and they can offer that to Ryu Young-Joon. But China? What can we offer them?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°We are the only superpower in the world that doesn¡¯t have to be scared of ruffling America¡¯s feathers, and along with our massive poption...¡± He Jiankui pointed at the minister of the SAMR. ¡°We have a dictatorship.¡± The minister frowned, but He Jiankui smiled. ¡°Don¡¯t be offended because I¡¯m saying that it¡¯s a strength. Imagine if the government in a country like the United States announced that they were going to do something like gically engineer embryos. What do you think will happen? Christian organizations and all sorts of civic organizations woulde out and protest, cause riots and throw Molotov cocktails. The opposing party would immediately condemn the government and criticize them. There will be a change in power, and the project will go up in smoke,¡± He Jiankui said. ¡°But China can push for that. No matter how radical the project is, we can see it through. We can offer Doctor Ryu Young-Joon the experiment itself.¡± ¡°Hm...¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu is very interested in developing artificial organs. Let¡¯s help him with that in a way no one else can,¡± He Jiankui said. ¡°Let¡¯s do an experiment with the organs of death row inmates. Let¡¯s let Doctor RYu know that China is the only ce in the world where he can do experiments with human organs. All experiments need aparison group, and the bestparison group to contrast the artificial organ¡¯s effectiveness and performance would be none other than an actual human organ.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°A trivial country like South Korea monopolizing a genius like him is a ridiculous luxury. It¡¯s casting pearls before swine. China must have him. He is the stepping stone for humanity to advance to the next step,¡± He Jiankui said. ¡°This is an opportunity for humanity, do you understand? Depending on how much current humanity supports Doctor Ryu, the lives of the next generation will change. He is that important, so of course China should use all its resources to nurture him. Science in China will progress immensely during that process as well.¡± He Jiankui clenched his fists. ¡°Thenguage of science will change from English to Chinese in the next twenty years. I just need you to have a little courage. Let¡¯s be aplices in the development of science together,¡± he said. ¡°Because the advancement of science is always righteous.¡± ¡°I heard you had a proposal when you asked to see us today,¡± the health minister asked. ¡°Ah, right. I didn¡¯t mention that. We need to implement a policy to reduce micro-dust emissions,¡± He Jiankui said. ¡°Micro-dust?¡± ¡°One of the things that Korea hates most about China is the micro-dust that we produce. Those trivial people think we are being a nuisance. Let us, the Chinese race, be kind and reduce it, and then we can work with Doctor Ryu. This is what I promised him.¡± The minister of the SAMR scratched his head like this was a difficult request. ¡°You are definitely one of the best intellectuals in China, and quite a lot of the policies we¡¯ve implemented with your advice have been sessful,¡± the minister said. ¡°But this proposal is a bit hard. A lot of new factories are being built in the eastern region right now.¡± ¡°In the eastern region?¡± ¡°Did you know that they have huge aluminum reserves? We¡¯re implementing a lot of regtions to reduce micro-dust emissions, but this is bound to increase micro-dust.¡± ¡°You can¡¯t.¡± He Jiankui shook his hand, rejecting the idea. ¡°We can¡¯t abandon Doctor Ryu to run a few factories,¡± he said. ¡°Sir, think about this on a country-level.¡± Knock knock knock! Someone knocked on the conference room door. It was one of the entourage of the SAMR Minister. ¡°Sir,¡± they said. ¡°Doctor Ryu Young-Joon is in China right now, and he wants to have a meeting.¡± ¡°We did it!¡± He Jiankui shouted happily. ¡°He caught on, too. He figured out what we can offer him!¡± ¡°What does he want to see us for?¡± the minister asked. ¡°Um... He said he wants to discuss the Asian tiger mosquito eradication project that¡¯s going to take ce in the eastern region of China,¡± they said. ¡°Asian tiger mosquito?¡± He Jiankui frowned. ¡°And he wants to discuss the punishment of Doctor He Jiankui.¡± He Jiankui froze. 1. abbreviated as SAMR ? Chapter 192: Micro-dust (8)

Chapter 192: Micro-dust (8)

¡°What are you talking about? My punishment?¡± He Jiankui asked like he couldn¡¯t believe it. ¡°Are you sure you heard him correctly? Why would Doctor Ryu talk about that with the minister?¡± ¡°I¡¯m just delivering what I heard. I don¡¯t know the details,¡± said the entourage. ¡°... Oh.¡± He Jiankui raised his finger like he had figured it out. ¡°I see. He¡¯s going to ask you to not punish me. Haha.¡± Frowning, the minister asked the entourage, ¡°When does he want to see me?¡± ¡°Anytime within his visa period, but he would like to see you as soon as possible.¡± The minister nced at his watch. ¡°It¡¯s eleven-thirty. What¡¯s my next schedule?¡± ¡°You are scheduled to have a luncheon with the President,¡± they replied. ¡°Contact Doctor Ryu right now and set up a time. If he says yes, please tell the President that I have an emergency and won¡¯t be able to make the luncheon today as politely as possible.¡± ¡°But it¡¯s the President¡¯s luncheon?¡± He Jiankui asked, shocked. ¡°I¡¯ve served him for thirty years. He¡¯ll understand. And it¡¯s not that important either,¡± the minister said. ¡°Besides, isn¡¯t it actually urgent that I meet Doctor Ryu right now? It sounds like that ingenious scientist who is on another level is pointing a knife at you.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I am on your side. You¡¯re one of the great human resources amongst 1.3 billion people, right?¡± said the minister. ¡°Anyways, I am trying to protect you, so stay put.¡± * * * Xin Mao, the minister of the State Administration for Market Regtion, was one of the most influential men in the State Council, and he was inws with the president. His responsibility in the administration right now was makingws and overseeing policies regarding industrial andmercial management. He practically had control over the domestic economy and was currently working on constructing a huge industrial zone along China¡¯s eastern coastline. He was also a supporter of He Jiankui. ¡°Hello.¡± Xin Mao greeted Young-Joon with a greasy smile. ¡°Nice to meet you,¡± Young-Joon replied. He shook his hand and sat down. ¡°I came here without an interpreter because it was such ast-minute request. Well, it¡¯s not like we¡¯re going to sign a contract or anything, right? It¡¯s just a simple discussion?¡± Xin Mao said. ¡°Yes. Don¡¯t worry because I have prepared an interpreter.¡± ¡°But are you ufortable? You don¡¯t look very well.¡± ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± Young-Joon had seen and heard so many disgusting things sinceing to China that he couldn¡¯t keep a straight face. He was struggling to control the anger that was bubbling up inside him. ¡°I heard there were two issues you wanted to discuss with me, is that right?¡± Xin Mao asked. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°Very well. Let¡¯s begin with the issue regarding mosquitoes. You said you were going to eradicate the Asian tiger mosquito?¡± ¡°It was on the agenda at thest GSC conference, and we¡¯ve already done quite a bit of research. Originally, we had promised to start this project in Shazai Ind and Dadaosha Ind in Guangdong Province as a pilot experiment,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Until it was canceled recently with a unteral notice from the Chinese government.¡± ¡°Well, there was talk about how the anthracis fence you set up in Africa caused biological problems.¡± ¡°I know, and I understand. But you also know that the truth has nowe out.¡± ¡°So are you asking me to reopen that project?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not asking you to do that,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°Mr. Minister, the Asian tiger mosquito exists around the world. Things are very different now after the anthracis fence was proven to work and we stopped the anthrax attack with the Thermosma spray.¡± Even the greatest GSC scientists were shocked and astonished by the prevention of the anthrax attack by spraying Thermosma. He Jiankuimented that Young-Joon was staggering and on another level. Governments around the world, who were gued by various acts of terrorism and worried about bioterror, also studied this case very carefully. And they came to one conclusion, which all the scientists already knew. ¡®Ryu Young-Joon has mastered ecology.¡¯ Young-Joon wasn¡¯t a scientist who was good at developing new drugs; contributing to the advancement of medicine was only part of his talents. How many people would pay attention to the fact that bacteria living in hot springs were found in two faraway regions? Even if Thermosma could fly in the air, it wasn¡¯t something huge; it was just a fascinating story about the kinds of creatures that existed in nature. But Young-Joon came up with the crazy idea to kill anthracis by attaching antibodies to the surface of the bacteria¡¯s cell wall. And in the midst of the chaos, he boldly put it into action; he actually prevented an anthrax attack by spraying it into the air. He used the fact that Thermosma, a microorganism that existed in hot springs, quickly died at room temperature, that the bacteria had no toxicity, that it would attach itself to anthracis and render it ineffective, and that it would swarm anthracis with its flying ability and hunt them. All the biological characteristics of both microorganisms and the ecological impact it would have were taken into ount. Young-Joon came up with the idea, executed it, and sessfully pulled it off in just a few weeks. As such, things were very different now. To Young-Joon, the eradication of mosquitoes was basically child¡¯s y, as it was something that had already been done in the past by countless scientists funded by the Gates Foundation. ¡°Right now, instead of avoiding being used as the testing ground, governments are asking to do it,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°They are asking to conduct it?¡± ¡°The average number of deaths in a year is four hundred seventy five thousand. This includes everything from manughter in small homes to international terrorism, civil wars, coups, and more,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°The number of deaths caused by mosquitoes in the same period is more than double that, about one million.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Mosquitoes cause infectious diseases in seven hundred million people every year, and one million of them die. That¡¯sparable to deaths caused by cancer, so eliminating a problem of this magnitude is a huge merit to public health. The sooner we can get rid of it, the better. And one more thing...¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°The scientists of those countries gain the experience of conducting an experiment like that, which bes a national asset. For example, scientists who conducted this project in China will be able to help a lot as advisors when they work on it in other countries.¡± ¡°You¡¯re saying that groups who lead this project have a lot to gain since this will be a global project, not one that will be limited to a small region?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. As such, I¡¯m not asking you to restart the project, but I¡¯m giving you an opportunity,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Even though the Chinese government unterally canceled it, I¡¯m giving you a chance to reap the benefits.¡± ¡°...¡± Xin Mao and Young-Joon stared at each other in silence. Alice wanted to go home. Xin Mao was one of the most influential people in a dictatorship that even the United States found difficult to deal with. ¡®Sir, don¡¯t you think you¡¯re pushing it...¡¯ Alice nudged Young-Joon. ¡°An opportunity...¡± Xin Mio contemted, stroking his chin. Young-Joon said, ¡°And because China is so big, the weather varies greatly by region, which changes the ecology of mosquitoes. As such, it would be difficult for Chinese scientists to do this project on their own without my help.¡± ¡°I understand what you mean, as well as the importance,¡± Xin Mao said. ¡°There were countries fighting over something as useless asnding on the moon. With something like eliminating a species that kills a million people a year, it¡¯s understandable that governments want to lead it. It would be great if we could do that, like you said.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°So what is it that you want in return, Doctor Ryu?¡± ¡°The Chinese scientificmunity will grow if they lead it. But I¡¯m someone who believes that ethics should be the foundation of technology in science,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I¡¯m going to announce an international moratorium on biomedical research ethics with the top biologists in the world. Please get the President to sign it and pass it as criminalw.¡± ¡°Ack...¡± Xin Mao looked bewildered. Young-Joon said, ¡°I will show you the items in the moratorium first. As a scientist, I cannot stand by and watch the hical research that is happening in China right now.¡± ¡°W¡ªWhat items are you going to put in?¡± ¡°The first will be about gene modification. I will put an ethicsmittee for gene editing research at A-Bio, which has full rights to Cas9. Anyone who wants to edit genes in human germ cells will have to be judged by themittee. If they fail, we will not give them the rights to use Cas9.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°But the moratorium is only a rmendation. If someone like Doctor He Jiankui does research without permission to use Cas9, all we can do is file a civilwsuit for copyright infringement. But I want a criminal penalty. Not just damages for copyright infringement, but I want that scientist to go to jail,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°So I¡¯m asking the Chinese government to legite that, so that we can give a strong sentence to someone like Doctor He Jiankui. It needs to have the name of the President so that no one can challenge it.¡± ¡°...¡± Xin Mao wiped the sweat on the back of his neck. ¡°Wait, wait. Doctor Ryu, let¡¯s calm down for a moment. It seems like you¡¯re a little angry at Doctor He Jiankui...¡± ¡°Not just a little,¡± Young-Joon said as he stared at Xin Mao. ¡°And to be honest, I think the Chinese government, the university director, and his fellow scientists are also to me for allowing this kind of research to go on.¡± ¡°... Doctor Ryu,¡± Xin Mao said in a soft voice to calm him down. ¡°Doctor He Jiankui is quite friendly towards you. Do you know what he said to me? He wanted me to reconsider the factories being built on the eastern coast, saying that we need to stop the micro-dust that¡¯s going to Korea.¡± ¡°Thank you, but you don¡¯t need to worry about that. Develop as much aluminum as you want. You can make more factories if you want,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Send all your micro-dust to Korea. I don¡¯t care.¡± Xin Mao was flustered again at Young-Joon¡¯s unexpected response. ¡°Um, and Doctor Ryu, Doctor He Jiankui told the Chinese government to support you a lot from now on. In fact, we can do things for you that you can¡¯t do in America...¡± ¡°I don¡¯t need that either,¡± Young-Joon said firmly. ¡°I have an idea of what that support is. It¡¯s obvious what a lunatic who treats his people likeb mice for his research woulde up with, especially if it¡¯s something the U.S can¡¯t offer me. Please don¡¯t be specific about it because the only thing I am outraged about right now is He Jiankui.¡± Chapter 193: Micro-dust (9)

Chapter 193: Micro-dust (9)

Alice stopped interpreting. ¡®He¡¯s only angry at He Jiankui right now.¡¯ Young-Joon was telling Xin Mao to be careful of what he says because he could include the Chinese government as his target. Alice stared at Young-Joon like she was asking if it was okay to interpret this. Even if Young-Joon was the head of a major pharmaceuticalpany and a genius scientist, he was just a civilian. On the other hand, Xin Mao was one of the policymakers in a superpower as powerful as the United States. ¡®If I interpret this, will we be able to go back alive?¡¯ Alice gulped. ¡°Please interpret it. It¡¯s okay, it won¡¯t be a problem,¡± Young-Joon said. Then, Alice interpreted it nervously. ¡°Phew...¡± Xin Mao let out a deep sigh. ¡°Doctor Ryu, don¡¯t be enemies with Doctor He Jiankui. China has to protect our best scientist.¡± ¡°If I were you, I¡¯d abandon him right away,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Soon, his reputation will be shattered, and the internationalmunity will condemn China. Before that happens, China should publish him first. Then, adopt and legite the moratorium I¡¯m going to announce. That¡¯s the only way to save the Chinese government from international humiliation.¡± ¡°...¡± Xin Mao stroked his forehead like he had a headache. ¡°Why do you say that? Is it because he did gene modification?¡± ¡°Do you know what happened before that? It¡¯s not just a research ethics vition.¡± Young-Joon pulled out a file from his bag. ¡°This is what I¡¯ve found so far. It¡¯s the whole story, starting with Atmox and xoviroc,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°It¡¯s also what will soon be reported by the world¡¯s major foreign news outlets.¡± ¡°...¡± The minister read the document slowly. Atmox, rmed by the plummeting sales of xoviroc, came to an agreement with He Jiankui. After using his GSC membership to receive approval for a clinical trial regarding a dosage change for xoviroc, He Jiankui conducted it shoddily at a small hospital. Now, it was very likely that HIV would be passed down from mother to child, who would die in a few months. People didn¡¯t care about specific changes in dosage; all they needed was the information and fear that xoviroc could fail, as a gically engineered baby would not be a paper to show scientists, but an event that would capture the attention of the world. He Jiankui needed to make the public his ally to win the tedious ethics debate that would follow. The public¡¯sck of understanding of science would naturally link the clinical failure of xoviroc and the modification of CCR5. Impatient to see the results, He Jiankui proceeded to conduct another clinical trial; he recruited HIV-infected mothers to give birth to gically engineered babies. However, the mothers were not given any exnation and were not even aware that it was gic modification. Additionally, although He Jiankui didn¡¯t know it, CCR5 maniption could lead to the decrease of telomeres in developing fetuses, resulting in a rtively short life span. ¡°Sigh...¡± Xin Mao let out a deep sigh. ¡®He Jiankui... If you were going to do something this bad, you should¡¯ve done it perfectly.¡¯ ¡°Doctor Ryu, do you want Doctor He Jiankui to be punished?¡± Xin Mao asked. ¡°Let¡¯s say that there was now against gic modification, but failure to exin the trial to experimental subjects and conducting a clinical trial on the dosage change of xoviroc based on inadequate preclinical data are clearly illegal,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°Soon, the world¡¯s major foreign media will be reporting on this. I have already secured the blood of the gically modified baby and sent it to A-GenBio, and we have gic analysis data.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure you know how important this issue of gically engineered babies is in the world right now and how many people are interested in it. I¡¯m sure you also know that the secrecy behind the research and the fact that a baby¡¯s life is in danger because a scientist of He Jiankui¡¯s caliber failed will draw a lot of attention,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Conservative organizations and religious groups who are against gic modification will happily condemn it, and the image of Chinese science will be seriously damaged.¡± Xin Mao chewed his lower lip. As if this wasn¡¯t bad enough, the issue of organ transnts from executed prisoners was about to rise to the surface, which He Jiankui and the minister of the National Health Commission warned him about. If an ident like this were to happen... ¡°Alright,¡± said Xin Mao. ¡°Doctor He Jiankui will be punished ording to thews of China¡¯s regtory authorities.¡± ¡°I look forward to your just enforcement of thew. Everyone will be watching.¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu,¡± Xin Mao said. ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°Do you have any intention ofing to China?¡± ¡°To China?¡± ¡°We think you¡¯re too important to stay in a small country like Korea. How can a whale live in a pond?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but all my research bases are in Korea.¡± ¡°We can build you a new facility with cutting edge technology,¡± Xin Mao said. Young-Joon shook his head. ¡°Even if you did that for me, realistically, it would be difficult to bring everyone at A-GenBio right now. And many of them are American. Even if they can put up with Instagram and Facebook not working, they will die of frustration if Google doesn¡¯t work and go home.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°And from what I hear from the Chinese scientists at mypany, they tell me they have to use proxy programs to redirect their IP address to read a paper because of the Inte regtions in China, especially among the younger and broke scientists.¡± ¡°Hm.¡± ¡°Reading papers is the most basic part of being a scientist. This is my personal advice, but you should lift those regtions,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Science is aboutmunication. Just reading other scientists¡¯ work for thirty minutes can cut out years of research. The unique power of China is the reason why you were able to make it so far on the international stage with such a huge penalty, but who knows what will happen in the future?¡± ¡°... I don¡¯t know what you think, but science has borders. You can say that so naively because you¡¯re a scientist. It¡¯s a different story when you¡¯re in charge of a country¡¯s business.¡± ¡°Before the merger with A-Gen, eighty percent of the scientists at A-Bio were foreigners. Not the ownership structure, but the human resource pool was that of a multinational corporation,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°The rapid growth of A-Bio wasn¡¯t a one-man show; it was possible because individuals from all over the world supported me. Mr. Minister, science has no borders.¡± Xin Mao looked even more worried. Young-Joon said, ¡°I don¡¯t know about someone like He Jiankui, who researches for personal enlightenment, but I think everyone who purely searches for the truth in a chaotic world and fights for a better future will agree with me.¡± Young-Joon stood up. ¡°I gave you the data and said everything I wanted to, so I think I¡¯d better get going.¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu,¡± Xin Mao said, stopping him. ¡°He Jiankui has given the Chinese government quite a bit of research policy advice over the years. There are a lot of people in politics and business who have connections with him.¡± ¡°I thought so, and I¡¯m sure that¡¯s why all those ridiculous clinical trials were approved. You should also punish those people as well.¡± ¡°You might be turning a lot of people in the Chinese government against you. I¡¯m only saying this out of concern, Doctor Ryu.¡± ¡°Thank you, but I will be fine,¡± Young-Joon declined firmly but softly. * * * ¡°He did what?!¡± He Jiankui shouted, shocked. ¡°It¡¯s exactly what I said. Doctor Ryu is going to announce an international moratorium on research ethics, and he wants us to sign it. He also wants us to punish you.¡± ¡°This crazy bastard!¡± He Jiankui shouted. ¡°There are only a few people who can touch me in China, but how dare a scientist from such a trivial country?¡± ¡°He¡¯s too big to be underestimated like that. You said so yourself that he¡¯s a scientist on another level.¡± ¡°He¡¯s smart, but is he also strong? He¡¯s still in China, right?¡± He Jiankui asked. ¡°I¡¯ll take care of him quietly.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t do anything crazy!¡± Xin Mao said in fear. ¡°Doctor Ryu has a whole security team, and they¡¯re all under the protection of the Public Security Bureau.¡± ¡°Why is the bureau protecting Korean civilians?¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu requested protection from the bureau himself, and so did the Korean government through the embassy. He would be treated as a state guest in any country, so it¡¯s not out of the ordinary. If something happens to Doctor Ryu right now, it¡¯ll be a diplomatic issue, and the bureau will get destroyed.¡± ¡°,,,¡± ¡°And you know that the deputy minister of the bureau doesn¡¯t like you, right?¡± ¡°Ugh...¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t I tell you to stop lobbying everywhere and overstepping thew? The deputy minister has been keeping a close eye on you, so he might make this into a big issue.¡± ¡°Damn it!¡± He Jiankui kicked the table. ¡°Build those smokestakcs high! Build more aluminum production factories near the coastline! This bastard...¡± ¡°I was going to continue with the aluminum factories no matter what you said. Anyways, I¡¯ll take care of that, but you need to mentally prepare.¡± ¡°You knew about it too, sir!¡± He Jiankui shouted. ¡°Didn¡¯t you also know that I was doing that research?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t know.¡± ¡°Liar! I wrote it in the clinical trial registry! At the University of Science and Technology, we¡¯re supposed to report all research expenditures. I¡¯m sure the SAMR got it, too!¡± ¡°There was nothing approved by me.¡± ¡°... You¡¯re going to abandon me?¡± ¡°Rx, Doctor He. I¡¯ll do everything I can,¡± Xin Mao. ¡°It¡¯s going to be a little bit of a struggle for you, but we¡¯ll prosecute you for now and get you out when things calm down. You¡¯ll have to hold out until then.¡± * * * However, Xin Mao was so shocked when he saw the newspaper the next morning that he was speechless. ¡°What is...¡± [A-GenBio, major pharmaceuticalpany, sues GSC member scientist He Jiankui and Atmox for damages] A-GenBio¡¯s legal team, led by Park Joo-Hyuk, filed awsuit for damages against Atmox and He Jiankui. It was only a week ago that A-Gen and A-Bio merged to be the world¡¯s top pharmaceuticalpany. It was now owned by Young-Joon, one of the most influential people in the world. People all over the world were watching with interest to see what would happen next as he directed the research. But their first step was awsuit, and the amount was staggering. [Thepany is suing for ten billion dors.] ¡°Ten billion!¡± Xin Mao read the article over and over again. [... This astronomical amount takes into ount the brakes that would be put on future research using Cas9 and the damage to thepany¡¯s image...] Shocked, Xin Mao flipped through the newspaper. On the next page, the moratorium was announced. [Ryu Young-Joon, CEO of A-GenBio, holds a symposium to dere an international biology moratorium at the St. Regis Hotel in Beijing, China.] Chapter 194: Micro-dust (10)

Chapter 194: Micro-dust (10)

Some reporters were so eager to interview Young-Joon that they immediately got a visa to travel to China. However, he declined any interview requests as he was too busy writing a statement for the moratorium and preparing for the symposium. Now, all the interview requests were directed at A-GenBio¡¯s legal and public rtions team. ¡®We¡¯re so busy here, geez...¡¯ Park Joo-Hyukined, but he somewhat enjoyed the situation. Now, it was time for someone to step up and offer an exnation about what was going on. ¡°Mr. Ryu instructed us about this when he left for China. Our legal team has gathered all the evidence rted to this case.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk agreed to be interviewed on behalf of thepany. He was the head of the legalpany at A-Bio, but now he worked in the legal team at A-Gen. Although he was not the leader, he agreed to an interview as the person who received Young-Joon¡¯s request directly. ¡ªI think everyone knows Doctor He Jiankui as the scientist who performed gic modification, but many people are unfamiliar with thepany Atmox. Could you tell us a little more about Atmox? The reporters asked. ¡°Atmox is a small pharmaceuticalpany headquartered in Taiwan. A-Gen set up, then sold a smallpany in China when developing the anthrax weapon that was recently an issue, which became the predecessor. They moved to Taiwan when they started Atmox,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡°And thatpany funded Doctor He Jiankui¡¯s research.¡± ¡ªI see. Now, I understand why you sued Atmox and Doctor He Jiankui for damages. How likely is it that you will win? ¡°To sue for damages, you first have to prove that the other party is at fault. You have to prove that the damages were caused by the other party¡¯s intentional or negligent behavior. I think this can be easily understood without any legal interpretation since the intention is clear,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡°You can¡¯t gically engineer an embryo by mistake, can you? On top of that, Doctor He Jiankui even exined the result of the experiment at the GSC International Conference, so there clearly was intentionality. Also, the damage caused to A-GenBio by this is clear, so the case can definitely be won. The question would be the amount.¡± ¡ªNow that you mention it, the damages im is staggering. I mean, it¡¯s almost as much as some medium-sizedpanies are worth. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡ªWhen SG Electronics and Infall in the United States were in a patent war, the damages im was only about two billion dors. Could you tell us how you came to this amount? ¡°In these ims, the scope of damages is divided into three categories: active losses, passive losses, andpensatory damages. active losses refer to the diminution of actual property or unnecessary expenses. If you get in a car ident and have to pay for medical bills and repairs, that¡¯s an active loss,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡°We intend to sue them for active losses as well, but most of the ten billion dors are for passive losses and somepensatory damages.¡± ¡ªI see. Could you please exin passive losses first? ¡°Well, as you can imagine, if someone gets in a car ident and bes hospitalized, making them unable to work, that person¡¯s wage is considered a passive loss.¡± ¡ªDid it be ten billion dors because it¡¯s Mr. Ryu¡¯s wage? ¡°In a way, yes. Our CEO was rtively positive about the gic modification of embryos. In fact, there were actually several projects in the works at A-Bio.¡± ¡ªMr. Ryu held a press conference and talked about gene modification before the anthrax terror, and he said that it is, to an extent, necessary for the advancement of medicine. ¡°That¡¯s right. It could be the only way for parents with gic disease genes, such as hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, to have healthy babies.¡± ¡ªAre you saying that all that research could be stopped? ¡°If they all stopped and we filed a im for that, there is no way it would only be ten billion dors.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk chuckled. ¡°A-GenBio¡¯s research will continue. But Cas9 is a technology that can correct almost any gic diseases, and there are a lot of gic diseases in the world. This meant that a lot of other universities andpanies besides A-GenBio were going to join the fight against gic diseases,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡°But now, they won¡¯t be able to do this research for a while, either because their funding is going to be cut off, or because they¡¯re going to be frowned upon., Mr. Ryu¡¯s moratorium statement is actually about making some regtions on their research, which could freeze Cas9 research as a whole and lead it into the Ice Age. This would then obviously reduce the amount of patent royalties that A-GenBio would receive from them.¡± ¡ªNow I understand. The estimated loss is ten billion dors? ¡°A-GenBio was working on a huge project to collect genomic data from one hundred million people. We have already secured a lot of data thanks to the cooperation of hospitals and universities from all over the world, and the increased voluntary participation of citizens as Mr. Ryu rose to stardom,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡°Although the resolution is low, we¡¯re now at a point where we can see the map and the big picture. I¡¯m not too knowledgeable since I¡¯m not a biologist, but ording to Mr. Ryu and his team, they¡¯ve found about one thousand three hundred disease-rted DNA locations.¡± ¡ªOne thousand three hundred? ¡°Yes. And from those, we¡¯ve picked out eighty-two diseases that have a heritability score of ny or higher, and from those, we¡¯ve picked out fifty-one diseases that don¡¯t have a way to stop it from being inherited. In other words...,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡°We are able to create a way to deliver a healthy baby for those fifty-one gic diseases that we previously couldn¡¯t do anything about.¡± ¡ªI see. But are you allowed to reveal information like this? The reporter asked with a chuckle. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Mr. Ryu gave us permission to talk about this,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡°And I mentioned earlier that the scope of damages also includespensatory damages in addition to active and passive losses. Corporations can also be victims of defamation and seekpensation.¡± ¡ªMany people think that corporations can only im damages to property and assets because they do not suffer emotional distress. ¡°Yes, but there are a number of precedents that have already recognized the damage to apany¡¯s brand value in these cases and awarded damages for intangible losses other than property.¡± ¡ªI see. ¡°Yes. Especially in the case of A-GenBio, our brand value is extremely high as the merger made us thergestpany in the world. Still, we were modest and wrote a pretty low amount forpensatory damages.¡± ¡ªHow much did you im? ¡°We imed one hundred million dors.¡± ¡ªIs that lower? It still seems like a huge amount. ¡°It¡¯s nothing when you consider the brand value of A-GenBio.¡± ¡ªThat makes sense. Do you think you will be awarded thepensation damages as well? ¡°Doctor He Jiankui probably knew how much ethical trouble the birth of a gically modified baby would cause. Anyone can predict that,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡°He also would have predicted the damage to A-GenBio¡¯s brand image that would result from his experiment. I think it will be possible to be awardedpensation because it is rtively within the other party¡¯s foreseeability, and it is reasonable.¡± * * * Wang Wei, the CEO of Atmox, was in incredible shock. ¡°Ten billion dors? Who has ten billion dors?¡± In response to the astronomical amount, Wang Wei immediately hired the bestw firm in Taiwan to fight back, but it wasn¡¯t easy. ¡°We might be able to negotiate the amount of the im to some extent, but ten billion dors is not that outrageous. The only way we would be able to negotiate is to use foreseeability, which is included in the scope of damages, and say that we didn¡¯t know the damages would be that big. But it¡¯s unlikely to work because A-GenBio¡¯s growth, their project to decode the genomic data of one hundred million people, and the capability of Cas9 to modify genes have already been reported and known for a long time. Atmox are biology experts, not ordinary citizens who don¡¯t know the field,¡± said thewyers advising Wang Wei. ¡°It might be better to drag out the fight into a tedious battle. If it goes on, apany like A-GenBio will lose more than they gain, so there¡¯s a higher chance that they will stop fighting and just focus on their work. But this will only happen when A-GenBio is letting Atmox go easy. If they try to keep fighting while draining resources, we¡¯ll get tired and copse first because they¡¯re so much bigger.¡± Wang Wei called He Jiankui countless times, but he couldn¡¯t reach him. The Chinese media was turned upside down, and the country¡¯s heroic scientist was condemned. The small constion for He Jiankui and Atmox was that there were some Chinese people rallying around He Jiankui and attacking Young-Joon. ¡ªLet¡¯s drive out Ryu Young-Joon with the power of our Chinese people. ¡ªChinese science belongs to Chinese scientists. ¡ªGic modification was necessary research. Conscious of the internationalmunity, the deputy minister of the Public Security Bureau decided to detain He Jiankui first. But as they were about to hit him, He Jiankui moved faster. He Jiankui went to the St. Regis Hotel in Beijing, where Young-Joon was preparing to invite internationally renowned biologists and hold a symposium. He held a press conference here. ¡°I will participate in the symposium being held for the deration of the moratorium,¡± He Jiankui said. ¡°I will refute what is going on right now in front of the world¡¯s top biologists because science is all about the facts. Let¡¯s put aside the bothersome stuff about the ten billionwsuit and a breach of research ethics. Let¡¯s just look at the scientific problem and only discuss that because that will clear up all the doubts. The point of this situation is that the modification of CCR5 is not harmful to humans and was necessary to prevent the spread of HIV!¡± He Jiankui shouted into the camera. ¡°I heard the gically modified baby is in very bad condition!¡± one of the reporters eximed. ¡°It¡¯s just a temporary problem. It¡¯s a normal illness that any baby can have, and the CCR5 modification itself is not a problem. The Delta-32 mutation introduced already exists in the natural world, and a lot of people already have it,¡± He Jiankui replied. ¡°How can you prove that this mutation negatively impacted the baby¡¯s health? The burden of proof is on Doctor Ryu. If he fails to do so, I want him to drop all charges.¡± As He Jiankui continued to speak, he noticed something and stopped. All the reporters turned in unison. It was because Young-Joon was walking out of the conference room where the symposium was going to be held. ¡°It¡¯s Ryu Young-Joon!¡± The reporters shouted. Young-Joon walked up next to He Jiankui. ¡°Ah...¡± He Jiankui stepped back. ¡°I just stopped by because my name was called. I don¡¯t intend to interrupt,¡± Young-Joon said as he picked up the microphone. ¡°I will do as Doctor He said right now: if I fail to prove it, I¡¯ll drop thewsuit.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°At the symposium, we¡¯ll be presenting the interim results of the Genome Project, where we are decoding the genome of one hundred million people, which is the genome sequencing data of about thirty-one million people. Among them, there were roughly one hundred six thousand people with Delta-32, a mutation in CCR5. We synthesized their disease and health data, and thenpared them to controls of the same race, age, and gender that didn¡¯t have Delta-32 using a technique called GWAS. This allows us to track whether there are adverse effects highly corrted with those with a congenital defect, and we will present the results.¡± ¡°...¡± Everyone at the press conference froze. ¡°Because like Doctor He Jiankui said, science is all about the facts,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°The symposium is open to non-scientists, so everyone is wee to participate.¡± Chapter 195: Micro-dust (11)

Chapter 195: Micro-dust (11)

After the press conference, He Jiankui chased after Young-Joon. He grabbed Young-Joon and went to the emergency staircase behind the conference room. ¡°Doctor Ryu, why are you doing this to me?¡± He Jiankui said to Young-Joon. ¡°Do what?¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t we make a deal? I do the micro-dust reduction n, and in exchange, you¡¯ll save me by keeping the CCR5-modified baby alive.¡± ¡°I said I would protect that baby, but I made no decisions about you. And the decision I made now is that you should be punished.¡± ¡°Damn it!¡± He Jiankui turned around. ¡°Damn it!¡± He swung his fists in the air out of frustration. ¡°Listen to me, Doctor Ryu. I thought you and I could be good friends. Genius scientists are who change the world, people like us. To be honest, small sacrifices are inevitable!¡± He Jiankui shouted. ¡°But in turn, people like you and me make a better future. I thought you were like me, Doctor Ryu. I thought you were a progressive who believed that the advancement of science was always good.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Doctor He Jiankui, I believe the advancement of science is always good, like you said.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°But in my case, the method and the results must be good as well.¡± ¡°Sigh... There¡¯s no getting through to you.¡± He Jiankui let out a sigh. ¡°Doctor He, do you know about eugenics?¡± ¡°Are you trying to lecture me with some old story from undergraduate textbooks?¡± ¡°Doctor Galton, the cousin of Darwin, who wrote the theory of evolution, came up with the idea of breeding humans based on Darwin¡¯s theory, like breeding cows or pigs. If you keep breeding individuals that produce more milk, you¡¯ll eventually get a breed of cows that produce more milk because they will get all those genes.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Galton thought he could improve the quality of humans by allowing only the best people to have offspring and limiting the reproduction of inferior people. And there was a man who was so impressed with his book that he personally wrote a letter to Doctor Galton, saying that he would make this book his second Bible. Do you know who that is?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°It was Adolf Hitler. The Nazismitted the Holocaust under the insanity of eugenics. They weren¡¯t just killing for strategic purposes to maintain their military regime; Hitler was an actual believer in eugenics. The first people they killed were the disabled people in Germany because in their minds, they were evolving the human race by exterminating inferior genes.¡± ¡°Stop it. What are youparing me to?¡± ¡°Science has to be as delicate as it is radical, otherwise you¡¯re going to get another monster like the Nazis. I¡¯m in favor of the gic modification of embryos, but biology that shakes us to the core has to be handled very carefully.¡± ¡°No, no, it doesn¡¯t, Doctor Ryu. Scientists just do what scientists can do. Philosophers are the ones who think about what humans should do,¡± He Jiankui said. ¡°Doctor Ryu, the only thing a scientist should worry about is what can be done, not what should be done.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think so. I think a scientist like Linus Pauling, who was at the forefront of the anti-war movement even though it disrupted his research and cost him the Nobel Prize, is someone who fulfilled the duties of a true intellectual.¡± He Jiankui gritted his teeth. ¡°Doctor Ryu, there arerge deposits of aluminum along the eastern coast of China, and the minister of the SAMR is promoting its development as an important national project,¡± He Jiankui said. ¡°A massive industrialplex will be built there, and given the magnitude and location, the amount of micro-dust that will blow into Korea will be iparable to before.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± ¡°Yes. When the westerlies blow into Korea, the amount of micro-dust is about one hundred micrograms per cubic meter, right? The government sends out an alert to refrain from long periods of outdoor activities with just that, right?¡± He Jiankui said. ¡°After that industrialplex is built, the amount of micro-dust will surpass one thousand micrograms per cubic meter. There¡¯s a possibility it will be as bad as old Beijing or New Delhi in India. I was going to stop that.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°But you burnt this bridge. The only scientist in China who could persuade the State Administration and Market Regtion was me, and you missed the opportunity.¡± Young-Joon shrugged. ¡°I guess we¡¯ll wear masks.¡± ¡°Remember when I told you that Korean scientistsck the ability to track down the source of micro-dust and use it as evidence to build a case like the Swedish scientists did? You can talk about Pauling and lecture me about eugenics because you have the skills, but most scientists in Korea don¡¯t. And it¡¯s not just Korea; I won¡¯t yield to all these lowly, greenhorn scientists talking about ethics and hindering the progress of science,¡± He Jiankui said. ¡°Doctor Ryu, I¡¯m giving you onest chance to take back your deal with me. The factories that are being built in the aluminum zone are already raising their smokestacks, and Korea isn¡¯t capable of dealing with the consequences. Are you really going to stand by and let this happen, which could pose the greatest risk to public health in Korea?¡± ¡°There¡¯s nothing I can do.¡± ¡°Damn it! Doctor Ryu, aren¡¯t you the national hero of Korea? Are you going to hold your people¡¯s lives hostage because of yourpany¡¯s damages?¡± ¡°You seem to be repeating the same thing over and over again, and frankly, I¡¯m getting a little tired of it. Is there anything else you want to say?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°...¡± ¡°You said you would participate in the moratorium, so I¡¯ll be expecting you there. Then, I¡¯ll be on my way.¡± * * * Most of the scientists who intended to participate in the moratorium were people who had made significant contributions to embryology, embryonic research, or the use of gic scissors. Due to their high standing in the academicmunity, most of them had extremely busy lives, and their schedules were always full. Additionally, Young-Joon¡¯s symposium was scheduled on such short notice. This made it difficult for participants to adjust their schedule. They didn¡¯t have a choice but to attend given the circumstances and Young-Joon¡¯s personal invitation. However, in order to go, they had to remove some activities or reschedule them. Young-Joon understood that, so he gave them about two weeks until the symposium started; it was the best and the least he could do. During those two weeks, the aluminum industrial zone along China¡¯s eastern coast was developing at a rapid pace. This was because He Jiankui had actually encouraged the SAMR to elerate the dredging. ¡°Build the stacks higher,¡± He Jiankui said to Xin Mao with a hint of madness in his eyes. ¡°Well, I was nning to do it no matter what you said because it was already being dredged, and it was a big capital investment,¡± Xin Mao replied with a dissatisfied look on his face. ¡°You were about to be arrested by the bureau, but they¡¯re temporarily reprieving you because of the moratorium, you know that? I¡¯ve assured them that you won¡¯t be a flight risk, so why don¡¯t you behave yourself for a while instead of poking around?¡± But He Jiankui didn¡¯t stop; he even encouraged Atmox to invest more. ¡°Will this really work?¡± Wang Wei asked He Jiankui nervously. If Atmox decided to go head-on against A-GenBio, it was obvious they were going to be absolutely destroyed. However, He Jiankui said he came up with a new way to beat them, and that was why he was encouraging Wang Wei to invest more money on the factories. For Wang Wei, who was already a well-known tycoon in China, establishing a factory zone was not a difficult task. ¡°Anyone would go bankrupt if they got hit with a ten billion-dor bomb, but if I can stop it by raising the smokestacks of some factories...¡± Wang Wei poured more money into the eastern coastline. As time went on, the date of the symposium became just around the corner. * * * ¡°Done.¡± Three scientists were doing an experiment in a small biologyb at West China Hospital. Two of them were American, and one of them was Chinese. They were scientists who came from A-GenBio for emergency assistance. They were masters of embryology and predicting protein folding. They were helping Young-Joon in developing a treatment for Mimi, the CCR5-modified baby. ¡°I can¡¯t believe I¡¯m doing research somewhere else again,¡± Jaob said in pain. ¡°But it¡¯s nice to travel to China. And besides, Doctor Ryu paid for all our travel expenses,¡± said y. ¡°Yeah, but it¡¯s no good because it¡¯s Sichuan, it¡¯s so dusty here. I went to Korea because of this,¡± said Wang Zhubing, a new doctor at A-GenBio from Sichuan. ¡°Speaking of dust...¡± y said. ¡°Mimi is in a sterile room, right? But can a Delta-32 mutation in CCR5 make someone like that? It¡¯s a mutation that exists in nature, like He Jiankui said.¡± ¡°True,¡± Wang Zhubing agreed. ¡°And I heard it¡¯s not even because she has a major disease. But they¡¯re keeping her in a sterile room because she¡¯s very susceptible to various pathogens,¡± Jacob said. They stared at him with wide eyes. ¡°What do you mean? She¡¯s a newborn baby?¡± Wang Zhubing asked. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°Newborn babies are born with antibodies from their mothers, so they have almost the same immunity as their mothers until those antibodies are depleted,¡± y pointed out. ¡°That¡¯s right. It¡¯s one of the basics of immunology,¡± Jacob said, nodding. ¡°But having to go into a sterile room means either the mother¡¯s immunity was that low, or there¡¯s something wrong with the genes involved in the baby¡¯s immunity...¡± Wang Zhubing paused. All three of them realized the same thing. What they¡¯ve developed now was a type of gic modification using Cas9; they were going to correct the target DNA in hematopoietic stem cells. It was simr to the gene surgery that bypassed dendritic cells. The target DNA was Delta-32, the mutated site in the CCR5 gene. Young-Joon had the three of them prepare the surgical procedure, which involved cutting the target location in the patient''s sample DNA using Cas9 and inserting normal CCR5. y nced down at the stic container he was holding. Though it wasn¡¯t visible, the fifty-microliter aqueous solution contained a fragment of the normal CCR5 gene. They were going to insert Cas9 and this DNA fragment into the baby¡¯s lymph nodes. This would spontaneously cause a break in the mutated DNA site in the cell, and then it would be repaired using the normal DNA fragment as a temte. It was like patching a torn-up pair of jeans. ¡°There¡¯s something other than Delta-32 at that site,¡± Jacob said. ¡°He Jiankui made a mistake while using Cas9, and another mutation exists near Delta-32. That¡¯s what destroyed the baby¡¯s immunity.¡± ¡°God... Doctor Ryu probably already knows, right?¡± Wang Zhubing asked. ¡°Of course. He already saw the baby¡¯s data from the DNA analysis machine at A-GenBio,¡± Jacob said. ¡°Our responsibility stays the same, which is to finish this treatment. Doctor Ryu will take care of the rest.¡± Chapter 196: Moratorium (1)

Chapter 196: Moratorium (1)

On the morning of the symposium, news outlets that were preparing an article about the attending participants were in a temporary state of shock after receiving some shocking news. It was that massive factories were being built on the eastern coastline of China, and that a huge amount of micro-dust from them was going to fly to Korea. Surprisingly, the source of this information was He Jiankui. He reported this to Korea news outlets himself along with an audio recording. It was a recording of him and Young-Joon¡¯s conversation that had been deceitfully manipted. ¡ª...Damn it! Doctor Ryu, aren¡¯t you the national hero of Korea? Are you going to hold your people¡¯s lives hostage because of yourpany¡¯s damages? ¡ªThere¡¯s nothing I can do. The audio recording basically sounded like HeJiankui warning Young-Joon about micro-dust and Young-Joonpletely ignoring that. [It is estimated that the amount of micro-dust in Korea after the construction of the factory zone will reach one thousand micrograms per cubic meter area. This is the same value as New Delhi, India.] [The leading cause of death in India is air pollution, which causes respiratory and vascr diseases from micro-dust. In India¡¯s poption of 1.35 billion, seventy-six percent of people are exposed to severe air pollution, and 12.5 percent of total deaths in India are fromplications resulting from air pollution. This means that one in eight people die from air pollution.] [This seems like Korea¡¯s future. ording to EPIC¡¯s analysis, the average lifespan of people living in India would have increased by ten years if New Delhi¡¯s atmosphere satisfied the WHO¡¯s safety standards.] [Korea will have toe up with a solution about the air quality CEO Ryu Young-Joon abandoned because of his obsession over thewsuit.] The reporters sighed with worried looks on their faces as they read He Jiankui¡¯s email. Everyone knew that A-GenBio was suing Atmox and He Jiankui as the symposium wasing up. ¡°What should we do about this, sir?¡± The reporters of Jooshin Ilbo[1] asked the director. ¡°Hm...¡± ¡°It seems like the article itself is going to be very controversial, but we¡¯re hesitant to write it because we¡¯re targeting Doctor Ryu.¡± ¡°Try to be as positive as you can be about Doctor Ryu. Even if we don¡¯t write this right now, other news outlets will. It¡¯ll blow up eventually.¡± * * * The St. Regis Hotel in Beijing, where the symposium was held, was filled with people from the Public Security Bureau to prevent any idents. The best scientists in the world, who were considered experts in their fields, rushed into the conference room. They felt a serious responsibility to the moratorium, but at the same time, they were curious about how Young-Joon and He Jiankui¡¯s conflict would y out. Even Jamie Anderson, a GSC member and one of the greatest experts in biology, was hit hard after going up against Young-Joon. They wondered how He Jiankui would end up; it made it even more interesting that it was happening in China, He Jiankui¡¯s homeground. The reporters, who had already entered the hotel after a strict bag inspection by the Public Security Bureau, crowded the hotel lobby and the conference room to take pictures of the attending scientists. ¡°It¡¯s He Jiankui!¡± someone shouted. He Jiankui walked in with a stern face. He red at Young-Joon, who was sitting at the back of the conference room. After some time, all the scientists took their seats. Young-Joon went up to the podium and grabbed the microphone as he was the presenter. ¡±Cas9, the gic scissors developed by A-GenBio, is the most advanced technology among all existing gic scissors. Cas9 can easily cut DNA unlike TALENs, which is more difficult,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°This allowed numerous scientists to easily jump into experiments using gic scissors. In fact, several scientists around the world are using Cas9 in lots of DNA work, including cloning. Furthermore, as we all know, we discovered that the gic modification of embryos using Cas9 was possible through Mimi, the very first gically modified baby who was first reported at the GSC International Conference.¡± The scientists nodded. Young-Joon held the microphone and stared at He Jiankui. ¡°However, the gic modification of embryos is too early for us, and it must be limited to only be used for the elimination of genes that are inevitably linked to disease development,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Following this, we are going to set up an ethicsmittee regarding the use of Cas9 and hire bioethics experts from all over the world. If anyone in the world tries to start embryonic research using Cas9, they must be evaluated by the ethicsmittee. If Cas9 is used in embryonic research without permission, A-GenBio will take legal action.¡± Young-Joon was basically saying that they would file a ten billion-dorwsuit. ¡°But I don¡¯t think this is enough. Regtions are just supportive programs, and the most important thing is for scientists to take serious responsibility for embryonic research. As such, I am here today, along with some of the best scientists in the world, to announce a moratorium to restrict ourselves from research on gically modified embryos.¡± The hotel employees at the symposium handed out a signature sheet for the moratorium deration. ¡°I will exin the information in the document that was just handed out,¡± Young-Joon said. The scientists slowly read the document while listening to Young-Joon exin it. ¡°First, the gic modification of human embryos using Cas9 is prohibited in principle. For the next ten years, the research on the gic modification of embryos must only be done with organisms except humans. Second, this research is permitted on a limited basis if the gic modification of a human embryo is the only way to stop the development of a specific gic disease. Third, if Cas9 is being used on human embryos, the scientist must be able to precisely pinpoint the disease-rted gene among three billion base pairs, and they must be able to ensure Cas9 can cut the desired target without causing side effects at other locations. Lastly, there must be sufficient cellr-level experiments that demonstrate that the gic modification works as expected, and they must prove that no side effects will exist after the modification with preclinical experiments.¡± ¡°Ha...¡± They were pretty tight regtions. The scientists read the document carefully, and some took out a pen and began signing it. It wasn¡¯tmon for scientists to impose restrictions on their own research that could hinder their progress, but in biology, this happened from time to time. This time, it was Young-Joon who was enforcing the moratorium. ¡°What a waste,¡± someone said. It was He Jiankui. He leaned back in his chair in an arrogant posture and crossed his legs. ¡°Why would you do something like this?¡± He stood up. ¡°Look, people. Are you really going to voluntarily sign these papers and put limitations on yourself?¡± said He Jiankui. ¡°We were given the responsibility of advancing human civilization. Do you know how much society pays to train a single PhD-level scientist? And what about GSC or professor-level scientists¡ªgifted people like us?¡± ¡°You¡¯re being stupid again. He Jinakui, this is all because of you!¡± Max Decani shouted. ¡°Because of me? No, it¡¯s because of Doctor Ryu,¡± He Jiankui said as he pointed at Young-Joon. ¡°My research was necessary, and it worked perfectly! The problem is that he made this into a problem.¡± ¡°It wasn¡¯t necessary. You could have stopped HIV from being inherited if you used xoviroc!¡± ¡°xoviroc can fail.¡± ¡°That¡¯s because of the dosage change. It wouldn¡¯t have failed if you stuck to the original dosage at the original concentration. It has a lot of clinical data.¡± ¡°That is also a hypothesis. Conversely, the fact that the conventional use of xoviroc doesn¡¯t cause any side effects is also an assumption, but that doesn¡¯t mean it¡¯s safe since the drug doesn¡¯t have decades of clinical data!¡± ¡°Well, it¡¯s safer than gic modification!¡± ¡°Safer than modification?! Stop talking nonsense! Delta-32 already exists in nature, so are all people with that mutation at risk?¡± The atmosphere was tense between them. ¡°That¡¯s not the point,¡± Young-Joon interrupted. ¡°I think you can consider CCR5 modification as an alternative to xoviroc. I partly agree with Doctor He Jiankui.¡± ¡°...¡± The scientists looked shocked at Young-Joon¡¯s unexpected reason. But...¡± Young-Joon went on. ¡°For that to happen, the details written in the paper I distributed right now had to have been kept. First, CCR5 maniption cannot cause any side effects, and no other mutations must arise other than correcting the target location in the DNA. Doctor He Jiankui conducted this research without enough base research, so you vited both. ¡°What are you talking about?¡± He Jiankui asked. ¡°At thest press conference, I said I would talk about the DNA information of thirty-one million people and the Delta-32 valiant. This was the result of our GWAS analysis. Take a look.¡± Young-Joon presented the data on the monitor. It was DNA data of thirty-one million people. They were divided into fifteen factors, including gender, age, obesity, ethnicity, and more. These would allbine to affect lifespan, disease incidence, and more. However, if there was enough of this data from tens of millions of people, they would be able to normalize and remove most of theseplex factors. This left only one variable¡ªthe effect that Delta-32 had on CCR5. The presentation was simr to Rosaline¡¯s Simtion Mode; this was the power of tens of millions of veryrge databases, statistics, and artificial intelligence programs. ¡ªIt¡¯s somewhat close to the answer. Rosaline thought nothing of it, but the scientists were absolutely astounded. ¡°No way...¡± they eximed. [Life expectancy: CCR5_WT: 88 years CCR5_Delta32: 61 years Compared to wild-type CCR5, the life expectancy of a person with the Delta-32 mutation is reduced by 27 years.] Even He Jiankui was speechless. ¡®What did A-GenBio make...?¡¯ Everyone was shocked at the astonishing data analysis. Understanding the effects of the Delta-32 mutation in CCR5 on humans would require an enormous amount of experimentation and research. However, they could find certain differences by gathering hundreds of thousands of people with and without the mutation andparing theserge poptions. This allowed them to find a corrtion between the mutation and health without having to doplicated experiments. ¡°Thisrge difference in life expectancy has yet to be interpreted biologically, but based on the results of several animal experiments conducted at A-GenBio, the CCR5 gene seems to be involved in telomere formation and immunity,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°This means that if this gene is not working properly during embryogenesis, people with this mutation may be more susceptible tomon colds and other illnesses, which leads to a shorter lifespan.¡± Young-Joon nced at He Jiankui. ¡°Simply put, Doctor He Jiankui inserted a life expectancy-reducing gene.¡± ¡°...¡± The conference room froze in silence. ¡°Originally, I was going to gically engineer embryos using Cas9 based on these GWAS and animal experimental data,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°In that case, I would have been removing Delta-32 in the embryo rather than inserting it because no parent would want to pass on a life-shortening gene to their baby.¡± Thud. He Jiankui copsed into his chair. He had heard that Young-Joon was going to present GWAS at the symposium, but he didn¡¯t realize it was this bad. It was airtight; it was statistically perfect data. However, his nightmare wasn¡¯t over. ¡°And in the case of Mimi, the gically engineered baby, there¡¯s a bigger problem. I said that Doctor He vited two points in the moratorium, right?¡± Young-Joon went to the next slide. ¡°Another mutation was introduced into Mimi besides Delta-32,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°This happened because someone who was inexperienced in working with Cas9 conducted this experiment without enough verification at the cellr level.¡± 1. Ilbo is Korea for ¡°Daily News.¡± ? Chapter 197: Moratorium (2)

Chapter 197: Moratorium (2)

The first test car was Choi Yeon-Ho¡¯s old Mercedes Benz. He installed the micro-dust filter on the grille, side skirt, and the bumper. Next, the filters were installed on employees¡¯ cars and threepany cars. For several weeks, all employees took turns driving the car during work hours, as Choi Yeon-Ho made driving along the Han River a part of their job. ¡°I had no idea I would be getting paid to drive,¡± Kim Soo-Chul said from the passenger¡¯s seat. ¡°Yeah. Oh, but Soo-Chul, please don¡¯t smoke before you get in my car. I hate the smell of cigarettes,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said as she pressed on the elerator. ¡°Do I smell like cigarettes?¡± ¡°No, but just in case.¡± ¡°Alright. But Doctor Song, you have a nice car. I guess you¡¯re the next best scientist after Doctor Ryu... How much did you make with Cellicure? You had a lot of stock in ourpany, so you probably made a lot. You bought this then, right?¡± ¡°Um...¡± She didn¡¯t actually buy this car. She got it as a sponsorship when her picture with Young-Joon was all over the media. Young-Joon was already too famous, so it was probably a strategy to capitalize on Song Ji-Hyun¡¯s fame as she was starting to rise as the next big thing. However, Song Ji-Hyun didn¡¯t say that out of embarrassment. ¡°How much dust do you think our filter caught?¡± Kim Soo-Chul asked. ¡°Mr. Choi changed the filter after driving for a week, so it¡¯ll need to be changed soon,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°Oh, Doctor Song, Mr. Choi is having a meeting with the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy today, right?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± Song Ji-Hyun nodded. ¡°The data is pretty sessful now, so it¡¯s going to be a national project along with the renewable energy policy that the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy is implementing. I think it¡¯ll happen, since this is such a good item.¡± ¡°Yeah. I wonder how much our stocks will skyrocket this time. Hehe,¡± Kim Soo-Chul chuckled. ¡ªNext... The news was on the radio. They didn¡¯t pay attention to any of it because they were chatting, but they froze the next moment. In the silence, the news anchor announced... ¡ªIn the midst of A-GenBio¡¯s legal battle with Atmox, Doctor He Jiankui has revealed shocking news about Mr. Ryu Young-Joon. ¡ªArge industrial area is being built along the eastern coastline of China, and it could potentially blow arge amount of micro-dust into Korea whenplete. Doctor He Jiankui warned Mr. Ryu Young-Joon about this, but he allegedly disregarded the public¡¯s health as he was focused on the legal battle. ¡ªThe documents Doctor He Jiankui sent revealed a detailed description about the scale of the facilities and factories being built. Experts warn that the amount of micro-dust in Seoul could exceed one thousand micrograms per cubic meter once the industrial zone ispleted. Next, an interview from Doctor Lee Yoon-Song, a professor of environmental engineering at Jungyoon University. ¡ªHello. The smokestacks in the industrial zone are all very high. They are also quiterge and mostlyposed of power nts for aluminum mining and processing. It seems like it will mostly use thermal power as there are a lot of coal reserves nearby and China has a well established route to transport coal to the eastern coastline. If so, there¡¯s a high chance that the Seoul metropolitan area is going to be covered in smog worse than the 70¡¯s. ¡ªThank you. Doctor He Jiankui warned South Korea citizens about this. At the same time, he used and condemned Mr. Ryu Young-Joon for neglecting his responsibility to protect the health of his people as a member of the GSC. ¡ªCitizens are showing mixed reactions. On one side, citizens do not believe that Mr. Ryu Young-Joon should not be held responsible for this as this should have been taken care of by the government, while others believe he should have at least warned the government considering his position in society. ¡ªSome have argued that the micro-dust will be a national diplomatic issue and affect thewsuit against Chinese GSC member Doctor He Jiankui. Furthermore, there are also conspiracy theories that Mr. Ryu Young-Joon deliberately did not inform the government and rushed thewsuit... ¡°Can you call Mr. Choi?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked. ¡°His meeting should be over. Let¡¯s hold a press conference with the ministry.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± Kim Soo-Chul picked up his phone. ¡°He¡¯s taking care of a merger between twopanies, a moratorium in China, and an internationalwsuit, so let¡¯s take care of this ourselves,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. * * * ¡°There¡¯s a different mutation other than Delta-32?¡± The conference room was filled with shock. Young-Joon exined the genomic data of Mimi that was on the screen. ¡°This is where the Delta-32 mutation urred in the CCR5 gene.¡± Young-Joon pointed to a part of the DNA sequence. ¡°But the DNA sequence after this should be TTTGG, and the DNA sequence we¡¯re seeing in this baby¡¯s blood begins with TGG, with the preceding TT missing. That¡¯s an error or two base pairs,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°This is a defect in the process of rbining the DNA temte after cutting the target with gene scissors. The deletion of two base pairs resulted in this. And as you all know, Mimi is in very poor condition; she is very susceptible to infections and is living in a sterile room.¡± Young-Joon slowly walked across the stage. ¡°Why is that?¡± he asked. ¡°As you all know, a newborn baby is born with the mother¡¯s antibodies. Then, they get additional antibodies¡ªantibodies that the baby¡¯s body doesn¡¯t yet produce¡ªas they feed on the mother¡¯s milk. This means that they have the same immunity as the mother, but why does Mimi have to live in a sterile room when her mother ispletely healthy?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°CCR5 is involved in immunity. It¡¯s something that the scientificmunity didn¡¯t know about until now. When someone has Delta-32, they have to be careful of infections at old age since it can reduce their lifespan if they don¡¯t. But this is what happens if the gene doesn¡¯t work at all,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°This baby has a congenital immune deficiency, a condition simr to AIDS, which is what Doctor He Jiankui wanted to prevent by introducing Delta-32.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Actually, you could even say it¡¯s worse than that, since HIV has a lot of treatments, but not gic mutations.¡± Young-Joon stared at He Jiankui after putting the microphone down. He Jiankui could feel Young-Joon¡¯s emotions even though he wasn¡¯t screaming in rage or berating him: it was a calm, but vast anger. For the first time in his life, He Jiankui was in fear. He Jiankui, who was born into a good family with a brilliant mind and received a good education, thought everyone in the world was at his feet. He was a superior human being; he thought there were only a few scientists in the world who could match him as a superior, more advanced human being. He put Young-Joon above him when he saw him stop the anthrax attack at the Grand Hyatt Hotel, but his ego was still strong. He thought their intellectual difference between him and Young-Joon was negligible, and he thought he was the only one who could be Young-Joon¡¯s friend and colleague. But not anymore. Young-Joon, this person was unrivaled. In front of his knowledge and genius, all other human beings were nothing but trivial animals, like ants. ¡°Everyone,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Before we have a second victim, please...¡± Young-Joon picked up the moratorium. ¡°Please sign this.¡± After a moment, the scratching of pens filled the room. He Jiankui couldn¡¯t say anything. ¡°A-GenBio developed a treatment for her,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°It¡¯s a tricky preclinical situation because it¡¯s a disease that doesn¡¯t exist, and there aren¡¯t even any simr animal models.¡± He went on to the next slide. A schematic of the treatment using Cas9 appeared. ¡°We have to do a difficult experimental treatment, which involves putting Cas9 and normal CCR5 into all her bone marrow and lymph nodes.¡± Cas9 would enter every cell in the baby¡¯s bone marrow and lymph nodes, and it would cut the DNA where the mutation was insured. Because a cut in the DNA would be lethal to the cell, it would automatically trigger a cellr system to repair it. If it had a normal piece of DNA nearby, there was a chance that the cell would repair the cut using the normal DNA fragment as a temte. This would remove the mutation and rece it with the normal gene. Making an excision, putting in some tes, and sewing it back up: they had to perform this molecr mechanism simr to surgery in all the baby¡¯s hematopoietic cells and lymph nodes. ¡°It¡¯s called homology directed repair, and this is how we will treat the patient in this clinical trial. If the DNA in all the hematopoietic cells and lymph nodes is reced with the normal gene, the immune cells produced from it will work normally, and the baby will be able to recover her immunity.¡± The scientists, who had finished signing, stared at Young-Joon. ¡°How are you going to introduce Cas9 and the normal DNA into the cell? The CCR5 fragment will quickly disappear since it¡¯s small, but it may survive in the cell if you use a viral protein for Cas9. We don¡¯t know what kind of side effects that might cause,¡± asked Doctor Craig. ¡°Doctor Ryu, you¡¯ve used dendritic cells to deliver Cas9 before, but that won¡¯t work this time, since hematopoietic cells are different from immune cells. Do you have another way?¡± ¡°That¡¯s why we''re putting the Cas9 as a purified polypeptide wrapped in a superfect exosome instead of in DNA form.¡± ¡°Does it have good efficiency?¡± ¡°We just have to control the purity and the amount of the polypeptide. The drug delivery part has already been proved experimentally.¡± ¡°Hm.¡± The reporters struggled to take notes on the medical jargon that was flying around so quickly, but the scientists here understood what was being said as they were all prominent in their field. The scientists all nodded. It was possible, but it was too big of a task. ¡°It would be great if we could do a preclinical study,¡± someone said. He Jiankui felt like the back of his head was burning. The reason they couldn¡¯t do a preclinical experiment was because He Jiankui was the one who created this new disease; there wasn¡¯t even an animal model because it didn¡¯t exist before. Some of the scientists clicked their tongue and red at He Jiankui. However, the solution to this worst-case scenario also came from the power of science. ¡°We¡¯re making a new animal model with Cas9,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°We gically modified a few mice during the embryonic stage and put the same mutation that Doctor He Jiankui made, which creates an animal model simr to Mimi. We n to do a preclinical experiment to correct it, but I don¡¯t know if we have time.¡± Young-Joon presented the current progress on the screen. ¡°If Mimi cannot make it this far and her health is at risk, we¡¯re prepared to skip the preclinical trial as well. We already have the mother¡¯s consent, and we just need the approval of the Ministry of Health.¡± Chapter 198: Moratorium (3)

Chapter 198: Moratorium (3)

At Seoul Central District Court, today was the first day of arguments in an important case: the ten billion dorwsuit between A-GenBio and Atmox. A-GenBio¡¯s defense team, including Park Joo-Hyuk, rushed inside. Only three defensewyers were actually participating in the hearing, with most of them listening from the audience. Atmox¡¯s CEO came, but he was also listening from the audience. The trial itself was being carried out by threewyers. Lee Chun-Myung, the judge, had just reread the opening statements from A-GenBio, the intiff, and Atmox, the defendant, beforeing into court. It was a very intimidating case as everyone in the world was focused on this case. On top of that, it was also a very difficult trial. ¡®Based on thewsuit itself, it¡¯s a no-brainer that Atmox should providepensation, but...¡¯ Lee Chun-Myung thought as he reviewed the preparatory documents. ¡®It¡¯s difficult to determine the amount ofpensation.¡¯ The intiffs were asking for a whopping ten billion dors. ¡®Twelve trillion won.¡¯ It was enough to buy you a medium-sizedpany. Lee Chun-Myung wondered whether it would be this much if he added up all the ims he¡¯d seen in the civilwsuits he had handled. He thought A-GenBio was crazy when he first heard the amount of the im, but it was a different story when he read theint and preparation documents in detail. It was just that A-GenBio was apany that was experiencing abnormal growth and explosive sales, and it was just that Cas9 was too powerful. ¡°This case is brought by defendants Atmox, a corporation, and Mr. He Jiankui, an individual. It is divided into two. Based on the representative selection system, I would like to inform you that Atmox was chosen as the representative. Mr. Wang Wei, the CEO of Atmox, will be representing the defendants,¡± said Lee Chun-Myung. The citizens and reporters, who filled the courtroom, were listening carefully to the judge or taking notes without missing anything. Lee Chun-Myung began the trial. ¡°Counsel for the intiff, please briefly exin your im.¡± ¡°Yes, I will state theint we submitted in advance.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk stood up. ¡°The defendant utilized the patented invention Cas9, for which A-GenBio has the exclusive right to use, without authorization, resulting in the birth of a gically engineered baby. As a result, the intiff has suffered a significant setback in its subsequent research using Cas9, and imspensation for the amount of damages.¡± ¡°Thank you. Defendant¡¯s counsel, please respond to the intiff¡¯s im,¡± Lee Chun-Myung said. ¡°Yes, Your Honor. The details are in the response we submitted,¡± Atmox¡¯swyer spoke. ¡°To summarize, the defendants admit to the infringement of property rights by using Cas9, a patented invention, but the intiff¡¯s im is absurdlyrge. The scope of the damages should be limited to the loss of property or reduction in thepany¡¯s revenue caused by the defendant¡¯s actions.¡± ¡°Yes, thank you,¡± Lee Chun-Myung said. ¡°The defendants have admitted to infringing on patent rights by using a patented invention without a license. Then, the issue of this case is going to be deciding the scope of damages. intiff, please submit evidence to support your im for damages.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Honor. Exhibit A, the patent specification for Cas9,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡°As a product and use patent, this specification exins how to use Cas9. The im twenty-two discusses the gic modification of a living cell with Cas9.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk picked up the specification. ¡°This means that gic modification of cells using Cas9 is the property of A-GenBio that is protected by registered patentws. But Atmox and He Jiankui have improperlymercialized it and profited from it, which constitutes an unjustified first-mover advantage to the market. This is an illegal act that has hindered the follow-up research that A-GenBio was preparing.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk submitted a second piece of evidence. ¡°Furthermore, A-GenBio is discovering the entire SNPs of genes involved in embryogenesis from the genome project.¡± Lee Chun-Myung read the preparatory documents again. This was the second reason why the case was difficult: scientific jargon was being thrown around. As Lee Chun-Myung had already studied the preparation documents closely, he just had to read his notes that he wrote on the documents. ¡®SNP (Single Nucleotide Polymorphism): Variation of a single base position in the DNA.¡¯ ¡°These SNP data are strongly associated with disease development, and as the sample size grows, we can use statistical techniques like GWAS to demonstrate corrtion with diseases. Through this data, A-GenBio wanted to identify target disease locations in embryonic genes and eliminate them to stop gic diseases. There have already been significant preclinical results,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡°For example, Delta-32, a mutation in the CCR5 gene that is in question right now, is associated with a risk of reduced lifespan. If A-GenBio conducted gic modification on this gene at the embryonic stage, we could have eliminated Delta-32 and helped improve human health.¡± Lee Chun-Myung gulped as he saw Park Joo-Hyuk speak. ¡®I just heard he was Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s close friend who had worked with him when he was back at A-Bio... But he¡¯s basically a biology expert.¡¯ Park Joo-Hyuk¡¯s exnation went on. ¡°However, Atmox skipped all scientific approaches and performed gic modification to insert Delta-32 into the CCR5 gene of an embryo, causing severe adverse effects on future research. Please take a look at the documents submitted as Exhibit C. It contains the media¡¯s reaction when Mimi, the gically modified baby, was presented at the GSC International Conference, and the change in funding for Cas9 research,¡± Park Joo-Hyun said. ¡°Numerous international journals and media outlets condemned the research and expressed concern about the future of human gic modification. Religious organizations held rallies in several countries. In fifty-two countries, including the United States, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and Canada, funding for Cas9 research dropped by as much as seventy percent. The resulting loss of revenue from royalties on A-GenBio¡¯s Cas9 patient is estimated at 1.3 billion dors annually.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk went on to exin the documents. ¡°Moreover, Mr. Ryu Young-Joon, the CEO of A-GenBio, personally dered a moratorium on the academic research regarding Cas9 to take responsibility for the situation. This tense atmosphere will be difficult to ease for a while, and the embryonic gene modification that A-GenBio was nning will also be restricted. It is clear that this will inevitably hinder themercialization of treatments for inherited gic diseases.¡± * * * The hearing went on for three hours, and it was adjourned to resume the next morning. The first hearing was basically Park Joo-Hyuk¡¯s one-man show. Working alongside Young-Joon, Park Joo-Hyuk had gained considerable knowledge about A-Gen¡¯s research. He also knew thew from studying for the bar exam, and he also knew patentws well as he worked with Patent Attorney Lee Hae-Won on the patent for the flu treatment. He was nervous, but hepletely crushed his opponent. ¡®Phew...¡¯ Wang Wei, Atmox¡¯s Ceo, sighed as he left the court. The trial went terribly. Hiswyers argued that the patentws did not grant the right to first-mover advantage and that although Atmox and He Jiankui¡¯s creation of a gically modified baby was an infringement of patented property, their right to jump into the market was separate. However, this logic was quickly broken in the face of research ethics. ¡°We call Ms. Zhi Xuan, the mother of the gically modified baby, as a witness,¡± said Park Joo-Hyuk. Atmox¡¯swyers froze as soon as they saw her as she was a powerful witness. Zhi Xuan¡¯s story, which was barely told through an interpreter, was so shocking that it left everyone in the courtroom, citizens and reporters alike, gasping in shock. ¡°I didn¡¯t know that the procedure was gic modification. None of the mothers there were given a detailed exnation.¡± ¡°Objection! The witness signed the consent form herself,¡± shouted Atmox¡¯s attorney. ¡°We submitted that consent form as evidence,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk argued back. ¡°Ms. Zhi Xuan didn¡¯t even graduate from elementary school and doesn¡¯t know how to read or write. The name she printed on the consent form isn¡¯t even in Chinese. Under these circumstances, we cannot assume that the witness understood the situation and signed the consent form.¡± ¡°Yes... Doctor He Jiankui said that I wouldn¡¯t have a chanceter on, and he told me to write something. So, I scribbled anything with the pen,¡± said Zhi Xuan. Park Joo-Hyuk approached Zhi Xuan with a piece of paper. ¡°This is a record of entrances from Atmox¡¯sbs that we received from the Public Security Bureau. ording to this, the witness signed and left theb in just fifteen minutes. Is that correct?¡± ¡°Yes... I waited for a while, and I left right after signing,¡± Zhi Xuan said in a scared voice. Then, Park Joo-Hyuk turned to the audience and asked, ¡°Suppose she didn¡¯t wait and had the experiment exined to her for the entire fifteen minutes. Would an illiterate, uneducated woman in her twenties have understood enough during that time to make a reasonable judgment about the logic behind the gic modification of embryos using Cas9, how it blocks the inheritance of HIV, and what the possible side effects might be? Has the witness received any additional graduate-level biology or medical training besides elementary education?¡± ¡°No...¡± ¡°This entire study is a vition of clinical trial regtions. Atmox did not legitimately take the first-mover advantage in the market of gically modified embryos as it was not a fairpetition.¡± Atmox was torn to shreds at the first hearing. * * * Wang Wei went on his phone in the car, trying to calm his mind. ¡®It¡¯s fine.¡¯ A-GenBio was a hugepany with a very high revenue. Hiswyers expected that they would let Atmox go if they stalled for time, as it would be more profitable for them to focus on their main business. And He Jiankui had shown him how to stall them. He Jiankui had already informed the Korean media that China was building arge industrial zone on the eastern coast, which would blow micro-dust to Korea. ¡®And he also exposed Doctor Ryu Young-Joon for not caring about the health of the Korean people.¡¯ Wang Wei took a deep breath. If they could tarnish Young-Joon¡¯s image, A-GenBio would care less about the trial, and if they stalled for time, it could all go up in smokes... ¡°What is this?¡± Wang Wei froze while scrolling on his phone. A news article from China¡¯s Beijing Daily popped up on his screen. [South Koreapany Cellijenner develops a running micro-dust reduction device based on joint research with A-GenBio.] Chapter 199: Moratorium (4)

Chapter 199: Moratorium (4)

Surprised, Wang Wei read the article closely. ¡ªSouth Koreanpany Cellijenner has coborated with A-GenBio to develop a filter that catches micro-dust. Based on carbon paper, the filter can absorb up to two kilograms of fine dust per sheet. It can be easily removed by soaking it in water, meaning that it can be reused semi-permanently. ¡ªChina has made great strides in reducing micro-dust in many ways, but the air quality is still far from good. Many people still die from respiratory diseases triggered by air pollution. China should import these filters from South Korea and implement policies to reduce micro-dust emissions. ¡ªIn addition, Korea is promoting a new project to collect micro-dust captured by these filters and recycle it as fertilizer, which is estimated to have a positive economic impact of hundreds of billions of won in Korea alone. ¡°...¡± Wang Wei wiped his face with both hands. It was wet with cold sweat. He quickly picked up his phone and called He Jiankui, but he didn¡¯t answer. * * * Breathing in micro-dust for a few days didn¡¯t immediately cause serious illnesses, so it was often taken rtively lightly or dismissed as an inconvenience. However, ording to the State of Global Air report from the Health Effects Institute (HEI), a U.S. nonprofit organization, micro-dust was the sixth leading risk factor for death among air pollutants. It ranked alongside powerful risk factors like smoking, high blood sugar, and obesity. More than ny-five percent of the world was exposed to micro-dust above the World Health Organization¡¯s threshold. In a sense, it could be the most dangerous disease factor to exist because it wasn¡¯t something that individuals could control, like smoking or obesity. ¡°This porous filter absorbs micro-dust and stores them in the vesicles embedded inside,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. While A-GenBio and Atmox were in trial, Cellijenner and the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy held a briefing session together. It was a presentation on the running micro-dust reduction device. Choi Yeon-Ho, the CEO of Cellijenner, and the minister assigned the presentation to Song Ji-Hyun because she was the scientist most familiar with the study. They were also relying on her fame, as she had already achieved stardom as a promising young scientist in Korea alongside Young-Joon. ¡°This micro-dust capture device absorbs dust when left in the air, but its effectiveness increases tenfold when it is installed in a car and driven at high speed,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°The main idea was provided by Mr. Ryu Young-Joon, the CEO of A-GenBio, and we developed it into a project andpleted a pilot test. A sedan with ten filters can collect about twenty kilograms of micro-dust after driving one thousand kilometers.¡± Song Ji-Hyun presented the data. ¡°ording to Statistics Korea, cars in Korea traveled a total of 327.1 billion kilometers. If we put filters on every car in Korea, we can remove 6.54 million tons of micro-dust every year just in terms of mileage,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°The total amount of micro-dust in Korea is estimated to range from a million to ten million tons a year, meaning that in theory, almost all the micro-dust in the atmosphere could be removed bymercializing the running micro-dust reduction device.¡± After Song Ji-Hyun exined the technical part, the minister and Choi Yeon-Ho, the CEO of Cellijenner, began exining the business aspect. ¡°We don¡¯t have a concrete policy n in ce yet, but the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy will fully support Cellijenner inmercializing this item. In the process, we will also prepare and implement variousplementary policies to ensure the survival rights of domestic fertilizer producers.¡± As the briefing came to an end, the reporters¡¯ questions began. ¡°You said that Mr. Ryu provided the main idea. What was it specifically?¡± ¡°He provided us with the development strategy of the filter paper,¡± Song JI-Hyun replied. ¡°And at Cellijenner, we followed that strategy to optimize the process of producing the filter paper, and we gathered data on how to attach it to the car along with how much micro-dust is captured during driving.¡± ¡°I have a question. It¡¯s been estimated that China is going to build arge industrial zone near their eastern coast this year, which will significantly increase the amount of micro-dusting to Korea. Do you think your product will be able to handle it?¡± ¡°It can be done by simply increasing the filter paper. It is estimated that a supact car can carry up to ten sheets of filter paper, and depending on the size of the vehicle, arge car like an SUV can carry up to thirty sheets,¡± Song Ji-Hyun answered again. As she was finishing up her response, the minister interrupted. ¡°Additionally, the mileage values from Statistics Korea we mentioned earlier only include private vehicles. At the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy, we are nning to install this micro-dust filter paper on public transportation, and that includes not only buses and taxis, but also trains, subways, and airnes.¡± ¡°Wow...¡± someone among the reporters eximed. The minister smiled. ¡°We are expecting trains like KTC to hold thousands of the filter paper.¡± One of the reporters asked, ¡°When this product isunched to the public, how are you splitting the profits with A-GenBio?¡± Song Ji-Hyun quickly jumped in. ¡°Cellijenner is keeping all the profits,¡± she said. ¡°Mr. Ryu Young-Joon provided us with all the methodology that was key to developing this technology during our research meetings, but he refused to take any of the profits.¡± ¡°Woah...¡± This was very unexpected. ¡°You¡¯re not splitting the profits at all?¡± When the reporters sounded puzzled, Song Ji-Hyun rified. ¡°That¡¯s right. Mr. Ryu told us that this was because none of A-GenBio¡¯s scientists or facilities were used, and because he helped the development of the filter paper alone. In other words, it was his personal project, not thepany¡¯s, and he said he has no intention of receiving profits from it.¡± ¡°I think it was part of his social contribution as the representative of argepany to foster small and medium-sized businesses. The only thing A-GenBio is receiving is a logo on the filter paper,¡± said Choi Yeon-Ho. ¡°What logo is it?¡± the reporters asked. ¡°It¡¯s the logo for Lab Seven, which A-GenBio is nning to create.¡± ¡°Lab Seven?¡± The reporters murmured amongst themselves. ¡°If I may, I¡¯d like to say...¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°I would like to rify that the conspiracy theories and rumors going around right now about the Chinese micro-dust at Mr. Ryu Young-Joon are false. He has been working with us on the micro-dust reduction project long before he left for China, and at that point, he had already promised to give us all the profits.¡± * * * ¡ªHe Jiankui, say that again. ¡ªRyu Young-Joon¡¯s obsession with thewsuit haspromised air quality. The Korean government must take action in ce of a GSC member who is not fulfilling his responsibilities sacrificing his people¡¯s health for money... said no one ever. ©¸loooool ©¸©¸It¡¯s actually so funny looking back. ¡ªAnd on the third day, he said, ¡°Let the skies be clear.¡± Then, micro-dust disappeared. ¡ªWeird. Micro-dust will be worth so much if they recycle it as fertilizer, but why are they putting all of that on the westerlies and donating it to us? ¡ªBut his skills are crazy. How could he just develop something like that and give it away to a smallpany? ¡ªSmall business, take the fertilizer market and grow~ ©¸loooool ¡ªThis is the attitude of a true CEO of a mega-corporation. This is what nobless oblige is. It¡¯s not about tricking small businesses, shing unit prices, and stealing manpower, but about giving back to society by providing ideas, technology, capital to projects from smallpanies. ¡ªHey He Jiankui, this is what you call a GSC member, alright? ¡ªCellijenner developed Cellicure when they were a start-up and grew fast, but now it looks like they¡¯re going to get really big. ¡ªIt¡¯s going to be huge if they export the filter paper overseas. ¡ªAmazing. The domestic fertilizer market itself may not be that big, but selling the filter paper alone would have been pretty profitable, too. Even if A-GenBio didn¡¯t participate in the development and Doctor Ryu provided the idea alone, the profits would have been tempting. It¡¯s amazing that he gave up on thatpletely. ¡ªHe¡¯s already proven to be smart and ethical, but this is crazy. He¡¯s helping a small business grow. ¡ªThe more I look at him, the more I can¡¯t believe he¡¯s from Korea, this hellhole. Ring! Young-Joon¡¯s phone rang as he was looking through the A-GenBiomunity page. ¡ªHey! You¡¯re crazy. Park Joo-Hyuk shouted as soon as Young-Joon picked up the phone. ¡°What?¡± ¡ªI came out of the trial with Atmox and saw the news that you made some micro-dust reduction device. ¡°Yeah, I heard. Cellijenner is working with the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Technology to make it a national policy andmercialize it.¡± ¡ªPeople are going crazy over here, it¡¯s insane. I think it¡¯s more than when you came up with the diagnostic kit. You¡¯re not a national hero anymore, you¡¯re a whole religion. Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡ªIt¡¯s more impactful because it happened after He Jiankui ndered you about micro-dust. On top of that, you didn¡¯t want the profits and gave it all away to a small business. People are saying there¡¯s no one like you in the world. ¡°Everything I¡¯ve done up until now has been about eliminating or diagnosing diseases, but this is about eliminating an everyday inconvenience.¡± ¡ªWhen you get back, you might literally get carried from Incheon Airport to A-GenBio. ¡°Shut up and tell me about how the trial went.¡± ¡ªWell, we crushed them. We had irrefutable evidence, so how could we have lost? ¡°Good job.¡± ¡ªWhen are youing back? ¡°In two weeks.¡± ¡ªAlright. I guess our times won¡¯t work. I¡¯m going to Taiwan at the end of this month. ¡°Taiwan? Why?¡± ¡ªOur case is based on patent rights, and patent rights are essentially applicable in one region. Even if we win in Korea, it might not be valid in Taiwan, things like that. It¡¯splicated. That¡¯s why SG Electronics and Inpaul did trials everywhere¡ªthe U.S., Germany, Seoul¡ªduring their patent war. Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡ªAnyway, this trial in Seoul is like a beta test, and now we¡¯re going to hold a series of trials in all the countries where Atmox is present. It¡¯s basically like a conquest. ¡°...¡± ¡ªWe¡¯re holding a trial in Taiwan at the end of this month, and next will be the United States. If we win all of them, the damages will be insane. They won¡¯t have that kind of money, and they have no choice other than bankruptcy. ¡°Were you always this scary?¡± ¡ªAnyway, I was going to go visit you after Taiwan, but I guess I can¡¯t if you¡¯re returning before then. ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡ªHow are things there? The moratorium going well? ¡°It went smoothly,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡ªWhat happened to He Jiankui? ¡°The Public Security Bureau took him. He had to be taken into custody anyways, but it was held off until the moratorium deration.¡± ¡ªBut he¡¯s the representative scientist of China, so he won¡¯t be punished severely, right? ¡°Um...¡± Young-Joon hesitated a little. ¡°To be honest, there¡¯s even talk of him being executed.¡± ¡ªExecuted?! Park Joo-Hyuk shouted in astonishment. ¡ªThey want to execute him? ¡°I don¡¯t think that¡¯s actually going to happen, but the things that were announced during the moratorium were really serious, and the research ethics vitions are almost all out in the open now,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°The internationalmunity has their eye on China¡¯s research ethics right now, so I guess they can¡¯t go easy on the punishment.¡± ¡ªMy god. But execution... ¡°It¡¯s just that they¡¯re discussing the possibility of giving him the maximum sentence. They¡¯re just conscious of the internationalmunity, so I don¡¯t think they¡¯re going to give him the death sentence. ¡ªBut his sentence is going to be pretty bad. ¡°Most likely,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡ªWell, alright. Cellijenner defended the attack from them, and you destroyed He Jiankui. All I have to do is crush Atmox, and we¡¯re done. You shoulde back soon. ¡°I can¡¯t.¡± ¡ªYou can¡¯t? ¡°It seems like everything is going well for us, but I¡¯m not satisfied. The victim is still there,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I¡¯ll go home after curing Mimi, the gically modified baby.¡± Chapter 200: Moratorium (5)

Chapter 200: Moratorium (5)

¡°I told you toy low, didn¡¯t I?¡± said Xin Mao, the minister of the State Administration for Market Regtion. He was visiting the Public Security Bureau to see He Jiankui, who had been detained. ¡°What¡¯s going to happen to me now?¡± He Jiankui asked. ¡°It¡¯s worse than you think. It¡¯s all your fault, so who can you me? Gic modification alone is enough to get you in trouble, but you also tantly disregarded clinical trial regtions, and you didn¡¯t give the victims an exnation. Plus, the baby you created is about to die.¡± Xin Mao clicked his tongue. ¡°The issue is gically modified babies. You said it yourself at the GSC conference that it¡¯s the dawn of a new era, didn¡¯t you? What can you do when there¡¯s a background like this behind a case that the entire world is watching?¡± ¡°I heard there was talk of the death penalty... Is it true?¡± He Jiankui asked in horror. ¡°It¡¯s true. Nature is investigating and reviewing the case of organ transnts from executed prisoners. What do you think will happen if that blows up?¡± Xin Mao said. ¡°Do you know what people are going to say? Their country sells the organs of executed prisoners and who knows what other unimaginably hical things are going on? They are going to say that¡¯s why a GSC scientist can vite clinical trial regtions and conduct a gic modification study on their own citizens without any real preclinical data. ¡®Look at our country; look at our dictator government that treats their people likeb rats. That¡¯s why...¡¯¡± Xin Mao clenched his jaw out of frustration. ¡°...¡¯that¡¯s why they won¡¯t even punish He Jiankui properly.¡¯¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°That¡¯s what people are going to say. I¡¯m saying we will be internationally condemned. Now do you understand why your punishment has to be severe?¡± ¡°It still... won¡¯t be the death penalty, is it?¡± ¡°I¡¯m trying to prevent that, but the deputy minister has disliked you for a long time because you act like you¡¯re above thew and do any research you want.¡± ¡°Science shouldn¡¯t be so tangled up in thew! All I did was take a bold risk for the betterment of humanity!¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu developed a filter that captures micro-dust from the air. They created a technology to put filters on cars and recycle it as fertilizer.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°I guess you haven¡¯t heard. Well, you won¡¯t get newspapers in here, so... Anyway, apparently Doctor Ryu just gave that away to a smallpany called Cellijenner.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°At least what¡¯s a challenge to you is routine or child¡¯s y to him.¡± ¡°That¡¯s because...¡± ¡°We tried to recruit Doctor Ryu once, but it didn¡¯t work. It was partly because his research base is all in Korea, but it was partly because of the closed-off research environment in China,¡± Xin Mao said. ¡°Maybe that restrictiveness was the real problem. And that¡¯s where monsters like you are born.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°All these years I¡¯ve been cleaning up after you, thinking it was my patriotic duty, for the betterment of this country, but now I feel differently.¡± ¡°Mr. Minister!¡± ¡°I¡¯ve approved your crazy research ns without asking, but that undisciplined system and theck of transparency in the process is what ultimately prevented us from recruiting Doctor Ryu,¡± Xin Mao said. ¡°And it¡¯s also what allowed an arrogant genius like you to rise.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°It¡¯s probably going to be more than a life sentence, so be prepared. There¡¯s nothing I can do anymore.¡± * * * ¡°Sir,¡± Jacob said to Young-Joon. ¡°Did you hear about the micro-dust thing? Korea is going crazy right now.¡± ¡°Attorney Park let me know yesterday,¡± Young-Joon replied bluntly. ¡°There¡¯s talk about executing He Jiankui after the moratorium.¡± ¡°I heard.¡± ¡°And it looks like we won the first trial. The Wall Street Journal said that Atmox was already in a groggy state after the first round.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Everyone is also talking about how you gave away all of the micro-dust reduction devices to Cellijenner. Not people in science, but people in economics, political science, and sociology.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°They¡¯re saying that it¡¯s the greatest move by the owner of a megapany. They¡¯re putting it on the headlines of every newspaper, and they are going to use it as a case study for a co-prosperity model between big and small businesses.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°But why are you doing an experiment here...¡± Jacob asked, frustrated and not understanding. ¡°Shouldn¡¯t you be doing business up on stage where all these crazy spotlights are on you? You haven¡¯t been sleeping because of the moratorium, so you should get some rest, too.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°We can do a protocol like this ourselves, so don¡¯t push yourself and go home.¡± ¡°Jacob, please be quiet for a moment,¡± Young-Joon said. Young-Joon had amplified some DNA from the blood of a mouse with a gically modified CCR5 gene and was doing an experiment called gel electrophoresis with it. ¡°A second-year student can do this as well... Just let us do it. You¡¯re the CEO of the best pharmaceuticalpany in the world...¡± ¡°I trust you and the other scientists, but we¡¯re working against the clock, and it¡¯s a unique treatment,¡± Young-Joon said. In drug development, in vivo[1] experiments were different from preclinical experiments. They both involved animals, but they had different purposes. The goal of in vivo experiments was to see if a drug candidate would work in an animal. This could be done rtively quickly with fewer samples and a smaller experimental group. All they had to do was prepare a disease model and normal mice, inject them with the drug or a cebo, and watch for changes in disease progression. However, preclinical studies were a little different. At this point, it was also important whether the drug was produced in a GMP facility, as the production method could have negative repercussions in the clinical trial. Additionally, the researchers had to decide on the concentration of the drug and how many times to administer the drug at what intervals. This process was simr to in vivo experiments, but preclinical studies were more rigorous. whereas animal testing was rtively casual. It was because the goal of preclinical studies was not to prove the efficacy of the drug, but rather to determine a safe concentration for the patient. In other words, if a concentration of one hundred worked the best in killing tumors in animal studies, that was it. They could get good data with that concentration, show efficacy, and publish a paper with that. However, in preclinical studies, toxicity was more of an issue than the efficacy at a concentration of one hundred. If a concentration of one hundred did some damage to the liver, it couldn¡¯t be used even if it killed all the tumors. If they did the experiment again and found that a concentration of fifty was less effective but significantly less toxic, the concentration would be set at fifty. Furthermore, they also had to determine how long the drug stayed in the animal¡¯s system and how long it took to be eliminated. The biggest difference between in vivo and preclinical studies in this aspect was the size of the animal. In vivo studies usually only used rats because they were the cheapest, had the most developed disease models, and could provide quick results. In preclinical studies, however, it wasn¡¯t umon to seerger animals, such as rabbits or beagles, in addition to mice. In general, the optimal dose of a drug was proportional to the subject¡¯s bodyweight, so results fromrger animals were naturally more urate in determining the physiology of a drug in humans. ¡°But we¡¯re only doing rat experiments. This shouldn¡¯t really be called a preclinical study,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°The preparation of the drug was also done here, not the GMP facility at A-GenBio. We actually shouldn¡¯t be able to use this.¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯m saying,¡± Jacob said in a dejected voice. ¡°The public doesn¡¯t know anything about this, sir. They won¡¯t be understanding of the fact that there¡¯s nothing we can do even if it fails. The public won¡¯t understand why we used rats, or the fact that it would be impossible to do the experiment with beagles or rabbits because it takes so long for them to be born with gic modifications.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I want you to be a scientist who doesn¡¯t fail, sir. So give the experiment to us...¡± ¡°I won¡¯t fail,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°The results from the gel electrophoresis are out. I tried cutting the CCR5 target location with an enzyme. The enzyme cut the gene in the control group, but not the experimental.¡± Young-Joon pointed at the picture on the monitor. ¡°...¡± Jacob¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°Jacob, the CCR5 gene in the experimental group wasn¡¯t cut because we repaired all the broken parts of the gene in cells of the mouse¡¯s lymph nodes and bone marrow, leading to a change in the DNA structure. The experiment was a sess, at least in vivo.¡± ¡°This is... definitely promising,¡± Jacob said. ¡°But it¡¯s not a preclinical...¡± ¡°It will work.¡± ¡°How are you going to determine the number, duration, and the concentration of doses, let alone validate the efficacy of the drug itself? ¡ªThree times a week. Rosaline intervened. ¡ªThe amount of Cas9 and the RNAplex is equal to 3.2 times the baby¡¯s weight. The units are milligrams, and it should be dissolved in five hundred microliters of distilled water for injection. The following solutions should be dissolved in order to match the conditions in the blood and to prevent structural modification of Cas9. ¡ªProcaine hydrochloride 10 mg ¡ªSodium citrate 2 mg ¡ª-Sodium hydroxide 3 mg ... As he read the messages in front of him, Young-Joon said, ¡°In a situation where we can¡¯t do a proper preclinical study, we have to go with our gut feeling and rely on in silico data and calctions.¡± In silico referred to virtual experiments thatbined biology andputer simtions. ¡°How is the baby doing?¡± Jacob asked. ¡°The hospital said she has a week at most. We really don¡¯t have much more time now. Let¡¯s check the purity for all the drugs we made today, and we¡¯ll administer them tomorrow. Imunicated this to the medical staff as well,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Who¡¯s doing the administration?¡± ¡°Professor Dong Weimin is doing it.¡± ¡°Dong Weimin?¡± ¡°This treatment is done via injection. It¡¯s a very difficult procedure that involves piercing the lymph nodes and bone marrow.¡± ¡°Hm...¡± ¡°It was very difficult to recruit him.¡± * * * Young-Joon was also a little uneasy about theck of preclinical data. He was a scientist as well, and he naturally felt more confident in the experimental data in front of him than what Rosaline had taught him. Mimi¡¯s treatment was administered while her mother, Zhi Xuan, Young-Joon, Jacob, and other scientists watched from outside the sterile operating room. Zhang Haoyu, Mimi¡¯s doctor, assisted Dong Weimin, one of China¡¯s most respected doctors, in administering the treatment. He was one of the leading experts on lymph node injection treatments. It was a technology called a sentinel node biopsy, which was usually used to treat breast cancer that had metastasized. But it was also Dong Weimin¡¯s first time piercing a needle into such a tiny lymph node on a newborn baby. ¡®I might fail.¡¯ At first, he had declined because of the pressure, but he had eventually agreed after the persistent arguments of Young-Joon and the minister of the State Administration for Market Regtions. Dong Weimin was determined. The patient was so small, there were more lymph nodes than normal, and they were in different positions. Although he was extremely concentrated on this, he was still nervous. The nape of his neck was damp with cold sweat. His fingertips trembled slightly. At that moment... ¡ªSir, it¡¯s a little bit above where your needle is right now. Dong Weimin heard Young-Joon¡¯s voice from the speaker attached to his surgical gown. ¡°... I see.¡± He had almost made a mistake. Dong Weimin gulped. As he adjusted the position of the needle, he was confused about how Young-Joon could know something like that. However, they had no idea that there was a shiny young girl in the operating room, besides the medical staff, guiding the needle of the old professor. Young-Joon was in Synchronization Mode, trying to match Rosaline¡¯s position with Dong Weimin¡¯s procedure. 1. In vivo is a term for procedures performed on whole living organisms ? Chapter 201: Moratorium (6)

Chapter 201: Moratorium (6)

Inside Synchronization Mode, Young-Joon was examining the body of Mimi, the Cas9 baby who was the very first gically modified baby in the world. Cas9 and RNA fragments wrapped in exosomes were gradually being injected into the lymph nodes and bone marrow in five hundred microliter volumes of injection fluid. There were going to be seventy-two injections over her entire body, and they had to do this again in two days. ¡®It¡¯s a lot for a newborn baby¡¯s body to take, but...¡¯ There was no better way. The only way to normalize the CCR5 gene in this baby with apromised immune system was this. Rosaline focused on the lymph nodes under her chest. The exosomes were binding to the membranes of the cells in the lymph nodes, injecting Cas9 and the RNAplex into the cell. ¡®Using exosomes was a good choice.¡¯ Exosomes were essentially a kind of writtenmunication between cells. They were particrlymon in cancer cells, and in this case, Young-Joon used them to safely introduce Cas9 into the cell without disrupting the structure. The Cas9, which was now inside the body, searched through all three billion bases of DNA as guided by the RNA and found CCR5 in a matter of seconds. Crackle! Phosphoric acid and sparks flew as the phosphate backbone of the DNA molecule broke. Now, Synchronization Mode allowed Young-Joon to see phenomena at the atomic level. The tearing of DNA was one of the most serious emergencies for a cell. As such, various intracellr substances began to move and set off rm bells. Numerous macromolecules such as ATM/ATR, MRE11, and Ku70/80 rushed to the site of the DNA break. They were called macromolecules, but DNA was muchrger than that. So from their perspective, looking at DNA breaks was like an architect analyzing a building. The macromolecules began determining the catastrophic cracks in the megastructure of DNA caused by Cas9. ¡°The break is in the CCR5 gene. The damage isn¡¯t too severe, but both strands of the DNA are broken.¡± They began exchanging signals. And now, they were debating. Some were arguing that they should destroy the building and rebuild it from scratch as the building was worthless now: these people were in charge of apoptosis. On the other hand, some argued that it could be repaired and used with a few extra things: these people were in charge of DNA repair. ¡°This cell is a hematopoietic cell, which ys an important role in making blood. There¡¯s also only one cut, so we shouldn¡¯t destroy it so recklessly. Let¡¯s fix it,¡± said p53, a gene. This gene was the macromolecule that had the final say in the cell¡¯s fate when DNA was destroyed. Here in the microworld, an order given by p53 was absolute. However, there was still a problem. They needed nucleotides, the building blocks of DNA, and a repair blueprint for the structure. Originally, they would have to look at the structure of another chromosome, which was very distant, and they would also have to bring in nucleotides from far away. But surprisingly, there were several pieces of DNA that were in perfect condition. ¡°They came in along with CCR5 when it was destroyed,¡± said nuclease, the macromolecule involved in the processing of DNA¡¯s terminal regions. ¡°We can take this and put it in,¡± said BRCA, the top expert in repairing DNA breaks. ¡°Let¡¯s repair it by homology-directed repair (HDR).¡± They ced the floating pieces of DNA on top of the break and sealed it together by gluing the phosphate backbone. It was fascinating to see everything fit perfectly in the break, like thest piece of the puzzle. The DNA, which went into the break like a recement for a broken part, had slightly different gic information than the original: Delta-32, along with a few other mutations, had disappeared. ¡®The Wildtype CCR5 fragment.¡¯ It was the treatment that Young-Joon had put in the exosome with Cas9. ¡°It worked.¡± The macromolecules in the DNA damage response center went away, satisfied with the results. The repair of the broken CCR5 wasn¡¯t just happening in one cell, but it was happening in all of Mimi¡¯s lymph nodes and bone marrow simultaneously. The same thing was urring in millions of cells. Some of those cells werepletely destroyed by p53, which had strict standards, but it was only a few. The immune cells were more than capable of cleaning up the mess. ¡®Ugh, I feel nauseous.¡¯ Young-Joon closed his eyes, feeling a little dizzy. Rosaline looked at Young-Joon. ¡ªYou¡¯ve been watching what¡¯s happening at the atomic level for too long. It was probably a bit too much to keep up with human cognition. ¡®True, this is the longest I¡¯ve done it.¡¯ ¡ªBut the treatment itself seems like a sess. ¡®She still needs a few more injections, but I think we¡¯ve put out the fire for now.¡¯ Young-Joon took a deep breath and rxed. * * * Mimi¡¯s condition improved dramatically. On the afternoon of the third day after the first injection, Young-Joon was at a meeting with the medical team, talking to the doctors. He had brought Alice with him to interpret just in case, but there was no room for her as everyone was speaking in English. Zhang Haoyu, Mimi¡¯s doctor, said, ¡°The amount of CD4 T-cells has almost reached normal levels...¡± It was one of the most representative indicators of checking for immunity, and until now, Mimi¡¯s body had less than one-tenth the amount of normal people. But after just one treatment injection, she had recovered up to almost ny-percent of a normal person¡¯s levels. Her overall production of immune cells had increased dramatically, and her antibodies were working properly. ¡°That¡¯s good to hear,¡± Young-Joon said calmly. There was silence among the medical staff, a mixture of bewilderment and shock. ¡°How did you decide on the drug¡¯s formtion?¡± Dong Weimin asked. Formtion referred to the form of a drug that was suitable for administration. ¡°To be honest, it wasn¡¯t strictly determined because there was no preclinical data. It was determined byparing the differences in human body weight and the immune system based on the data from the sessful rat experiments and finding estimated values in in silico experiments,¡± Young-Joon said. However, this exnation wasn¡¯t enough; the doctors were still in awe. ¡°Right now, the Chinese government is being criticized by the internationalmunity for Mimi¡¯s health problems,¡± said Dong Weimin. ¡°Doctor Ryu, if she is cured, the Chinese government is going to promote it heavily. ¡®We brought in Doctor Ryu Young-Joon and cured this baby, and she is healthy.¡¯ They¡¯re going to say that the government has done its part, making it sound like the Chinese government pushed for this.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Please announce it before they do, Doctor Ryu.¡± ¡°I will,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°It¡¯s not just a matter of self-praise, but this clinical trial showed a new milestone in the treatability of gic diseases, so of course we need to write a medical paper.¡± Dong Weimin smiled. ¡°That¡¯s a relief.¡± ¡°And I¡¯ll add both of your names when I write the paper,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Us?¡± Zhang Haoyu asked in surprise. ¡°The first authors will be Jacob and two other scientists, and they will be co-authors. I will be the corresponding author. But since you are the ones who conducted this trial, you should be recognized as authors.¡± ¡°... Thank you,¡± said Dong Weimin. ¡°It¡¯s an honor to be named in a paper like this, treating a gic disease that causes immune deficiency with Cas9,¡± Zhang Haoyu eximed. ¡°There¡¯s a second round of injections this afternoon,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Is it necessary?¡± Dong Weimin asked. ¡°It is. We can¡¯t cure her with one round of injections. The number of T cells will decrease with time.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± Dong Weimin said. ¡°Her immune system will be stabilized once we do the third round of treatment. Please keep up the good work until then.¡± ~ On the way out of the meeting, Young-Joon found Zhi Xuan in the hallway crouched. ¡°Hello.¡± As Young-Joon greeted her, she jumped to her feet and bowed. ¡°Hello, Doctor.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I didn¡¯t get a chance to greet you when you were doing the procedure before. Did you juste back from testifying at the trial in Korea?¡± She nodded as Alice tranted Young-Joon¡¯s words. ¡°Yes. I came here right after the trial. They said my baby was having surgery, so I wanted to see it...¡± ¡°Were you ufortable or anything when our employees brought you here?¡± ¡°Oh, no no. Attorney Park took good care of me...¡± Young-Joon grinned. ¡°That¡¯s a relief.¡± ¡°I heard my baby is getting better. Is that true?¡± Zhi Xuan asked. ¡°It¡¯s probably just as you heard. You can ask Professor Zhang Haoyu for more details.¡± ¡°Okay...¡± Zhi Xuan took a deep breath, her body trembling. ¡°Thank you,¡± she said. ¡°Thank you so much. My baby was so sick because I was stupid, but it¡¯s all thanks to you.¡± ¡°Ms. Zhi Xuan,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Are you taking Apanoctin?¡± ¡°Apanoctin?¡± ¡°It¡¯s an HIV suppressant.¡± Young-Joon bent over to where Zhi Xuan was sitting. What he picked up was a small pill bag. [Apanoctin] ¡°Yes... I am. Sorry, I¡¯ll throw it away.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not because of that.¡± Young-Joon picked up the wrapper and threw it in the trash. ¡°You should switch to Karampia. It has better efficacy, and it¡¯s easier on the body in the long run as well. Most importantly, it¡¯s very cheap because it¡¯s a treatment for the World Health Organization¡¯s HIV eradication project.¡± To be exact, it was cheap because Young-Joon had developed a production method and revolutionized the unit price. ¡°You can take that medication to manage your HIV, then if possible, you should cure it with stem cell therapy.¡± ¡°That¡¯s... I¡¯ve heard of that, but they say it¡¯s a very expensive procedure...¡± ¡°There should be a hospital in Beijing that¡¯s participating in the World Health Organization¡¯s project as well. If you go there, you¡¯ll get a big discount and be able to get the procedure at about six thousand yuan.¡± Six thousand yuan was equal to about a million won. ¡°...¡± Zhi Xuan hesitated, fiddling with her dirty skirt. Young-Joon figured out that she didn¡¯t have that kind of money. She could now cure her HIV, but she couldn¡¯t because she didn¡¯t have money. ¡°I¡ªI¡¯ll look into it. Thank you so much.¡± Zhi Xuan bowed. ¡°Come with me. Mimi is going to have her second round of injections soon,¡± Young-Joon said. * * * After the second treatment, Mimi¡¯s immune cell levels temporarily increased to one hundred ten percent. After that, it remained steady around normal levels. By dawn on Saturday morning, the numbers were starting to drop again, but Dong Weimin had goosebumps watching this. It was because it was around the time for the third injection. ¡°This is thest procedure. I¡¯ll be watching from outside through the monitor,¡± Young-Joon said. Dong Weimin, who was starting to feel more confident, began the procedure. He didn¡¯t make a single mistake. And when the procedure waspleted, around five in the evening, Zhi Xuan came to Zhang Haoyu¡¯s office. ¡°Come on in.¡± There were only two people in the room: Dong Weimin and Zhang Haoyu. ¡°The procedure went well, and she¡¯s stable for now,¡± Dong Weimin said. ¡°We did a tissue biopsy when we did the second procedure, and the CCR5 gene came back normal in most of the lymph nodes and bone marrow that we did the procedure on. The mutation rate was around five percent, and now that we¡¯ve done the third procedure, we¡¯re hoping to get it down to zero.¡± ¡°Then... She¡¯s all better now?¡± ¡°We¡¯ll observe her for about a week, then transfer her over from the sterile room to a regr room. We¡¯ll observe her for another month or so, and if everything is fine, we¡¯ll discharge her,¡± Zhang Haoyu said. ¡°Discharge...¡± It was like a dream. Zhi Xuan bit her lip as she was getting choked up. ¡°Where is Doctor Ryu now? I need to thank you.¡± ¡°You didn¡¯t see him earlier? I think he left Sichuan earlier today,¡± Zhang Haoyu said. ¡°He left?¡± ¡°He said that he didn¡¯t have much time until he had to return to Korea, and he had to have at least one meeting about the Asian tiger mosquito extinction before he left...¡± Thud! The chair was pushed back noisily as Zhi Xuan jumped to her feet. ¡°C¡ªCan I go after him now?¡± she asked. ¡°I don¡¯t know, but he left right after the procedure.¡± ¡°But...¡± ¡°Oh, speaking of which, we have something to give you,¡± said Zhang Haoyu. ¡°To me?¡± ¡°This.¡± He held out an envelope. ¡°A-GenBio is giving you this through the Chinese health authorities. It¡¯s for Mimi¡¯s participation in the clinical trial.¡± ¡°...¡± Zhi Xuan opened the envelope. It had two thousand yuan in it. ¡°...¡± ¡°This is the maximum amount the Chinese health authorities can give you for participation in a clinical trial. We would like to give you more given your situation, but thew... It could be ethically problematic if people involved in a clinical trial exchange gifts.¡± ¡°... Thank you.¡± Zhi Xuan took the envelope. ¡°And this is from an anonymous foreign scientist.¡± Dong Weimin held out another envelope. ¡°A foreign scientist? Doctor Ryu?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. It was anonymous.¡± Dong Weimin smiled and shrugged. Zhi Xuan¡¯s hands trembled a little as she took the envelope and opened. It contained a small card. [Special Organization of Beijing University International Hospital to Combat AIDS: Hematopoietic Cell Therapy Voucher] ¡°The World Health Organization has issued a voucher to receive the procedure to cure HIV before,¡± Dong Weimin said. ¡°The anonymous scientist got it from somewhere and gave it to you.¡± ¡°...¡± Chapter 202: Moratorium (7)

Chapter 202: Moratorium (7)

Mimi was transferred over to a regr hospital room. And on the second day... Nothing went wrong. Her breathing and heart rate was normal, and she ate and slept well. Zhi Xuan felt ted when she stared at Mimi¡¯s tiny face scrunching as she slept, just like she did in the sterile room. Zhi Xuan sat by the bedside and stared down at Mimi. The health of this mother and daughter was truly remarkable. The mother was a HIV patient, and the daughter had congenital immunodeficiency due to gic modifications. Immunodeficiency had caused this mother and daughter a great deal of suffering. ¡°It¡¯s nice to switch into a regr room, right?¡± asked Zhang Haoyu, Mimi¡¯s doctor, as he stepped into the room. ¡°Yes, it¡¯s really nice,¡± Zhi Xuan replied. She smiled and softly rubbed Mimi¡¯s forehead. ¡°It¡¯s been a long journey. Thank you for your hard work,¡± Zhang Haoyu said to Zhi Xuan. ¡°You, too.¡± Zhi Xuan bowed towards him. ¡°It¡¯s almost over now, so don¡¯t worry.¡± ¡°Doctor, I think I¡¯m going to get the HIV cure,¡± Zhi Xuan said. ¡°Are you going to go to Beijing?¡± ¡°Once Mimi is discharged. I have this coupon now.¡± Zhi Xuan held out and shook the envelope that the anonymous foreign scientist gave her. ¡°Take good care of it. It¡¯s expensive,¡± Zhang Haoyu said, chuckling. ¡°I¡¯ll take good care of it since it¡¯s a coupon worth six thousand yuan, which is a lot of money for me.¡± Zhi Xuan quickly put the envelope in her bag. ¡®If they knew who that originally belonged to, I¡¯m sure wealthy collectors would buy it for ten times that price.¡¯ However, Zhang Haoyu didn¡¯t feel the need to say what was on his mind. ¡°Mimi should be able to leave in about a month,¡± he said. ¡°A month...¡± ¡°She could just leave right now as well, but I think it would be better to observe her for a little longer.¡± ¡°Yes, we¡¯ll do as you say. Thank you so much.¡± ¡°What are you going to do after Mimi gets discharged and you cure your HIV?¡± ¡°I¡¯m going to breastfeed her,¡± Zhi Xuan replied instantly like it was already in her head. ¡°Great.¡± Zhang Haoyu nodded like he felt bad for her. Gic modification, which resulted from a desperate attempt to avoid passing on immunodeficiency, led to another type of immunodeficiency. And there was one more thing that pained Zhi Xuan, who was constantly ming herself for being ignorant and stupid: she had yet to breastfeed her own baby. ¡°Babies receive their antibodies from the mother through the umbilical cord. After birth, they receive antibodies from the mother through breastfeeding. A newborn baby¡¯s immunity is very low, and there are pathogens everywhere that are looking for an opportunity to get to the baby,¡± Zhang Haoyu said. ¡°If you think about it, Ms. Zhi Xuan, it¡¯s really fascinating. Since primitive times, mothers have not only protected their babies from external threats, but also from the invisible microworld¡ªfrom bacteria and viruses.¡± Hearing Zhang Haoyu, Zhi Xuan smiled bitterly. ¡°I¡¯ve heard of that as well, though I couldn¡¯t do that.¡± There were two reasons why she couldn¡¯t. The first was because Mimi was receiving nutrients intravenously to reduce the risk of infection as she was still immunpromised, and the second reason was because Zhi Xuan had HIV. In other words, HIV could be transmitted through breastfeeding. If they were both healthy, Zhi Xuan could have given her antibodies to Mimi to boost her immunity, giving Mimi¡¯s body the power to fight off the world¡¯s pathogens. But all she could give was HIV and only the virus. When she realized this, she was overwhelmed with a sense of guilt that made her whole world fall apart. It felt like the hand of the Devil was grabbing her ankle and dragging her to Hell, no matter how hard she tried to escape. A lifetime of poverty and disease: HIV, which had glomed onto her from Jieyang, the blood vige in Guangdong, was about to be passed down, like poverty. ¡°Doctor, I thought this was my fate,¡± Zhi Xuan said. ¡°I thought my fate was to live poor and sick, pass on my poverty and sickness to my children, then to die of old age.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°But I found out that maybe that won¡¯t happen¡ªthat some people are capable of stopping that... For me, it was like magic. It was really shocking... I don¡¯t know if it was because I¡¯m uneducated, but to me, it felt like they were God or an angel or something,¡± Zhi Xuan said. ¡°And it just disappeared so quickly as soon as it was cured, so it¡¯s like... It feels like a dream. Even thinking of it now, I don¡¯t think he was a human being...¡± ¡°I¡¯m a professor of medicine, and I¡¯ve studied quite a bit in my life, but I think that about Doctor Ryu, too,¡± Zhang Haoyu said with a chuckle. ¡°Really? I guess I¡¯m not the only one who feels that.¡± Zhi Xuan wiped her slightly wet eyes with her old shirt. ¡°When Mimi is older, I¡¯m going to send her to school. I didn¡¯t get to go, but I¡¯m going to let her study a lot, as much as she wants to. If I don¡¯t have enough money for her school, I¡¯ll even sell my blood again. There¡¯s nothing I can do if she doesn¡¯t want to when she grows up, but if it¡¯s possible...¡± she said. ¡°I want her to be a scientist.¡± Zhang Haoyu grinned. ¡°She will. She has experienced both extremes of science.¡± Zhang Haoyu came and sat beside Zhi Xuan. ¡°The media has been going crazy over this baby and hurting it, calling her a singrity or a cursed baby and whatnot, but I don¡¯t think that,¡± he said. ¡°As you also know, this baby was saved by the greatest scientist in the world with the best technology. What this baby has is a blessing.¡± * * * Jessie, an editor and reporter for Science, a prestigious academic journal, was interviewing some scientists in China. Originally, her reason for being here had nothing to do with Young-Joon; it was actually because she had heard that Nature had a scoop. She dug into it, and what she found was shocking. Rumors were slowly spreading that China was transnting organs from executed prisoners into patients without permission, which was what Jessie was originally here to investigate. But after she arrived, she realized that the scoop had changed. All of a sudden, He Jiankui announced the news of a gically modified baby at the GSC International Conference in Korea. There was also an anthrax attack, but Young-Joon stopped it and came to China. Then, the most unimaginable things began happening, one by one, in a short period of time. First, A-GenBio sued Atmox for ten billion dors and crushed them. Then, a few days ago, He Jiankui was sentenced to death. After that, West China Hospital in Sichuan announced a possible cure for Mimi, the gically modified baby. And today, a stunning paper was published on BioRxiv, the bio-archive. The papers¡¯ first authors were Jacob, y, Wang Zhubing, the second author was Zhang Haoyu, the third author was Dong Weimin, and the corresponding author was Young-Joon. Zhang Haoyu and Dong Weimin were from West China Hospital, but the rest of them were from A-GenBio. Jacob, y, and Wang Zhubig were young scientists in their twenties and thirties, but they had written an incredible paper. ¡®Although, I think they had a boost from the corresponding author.¡¯ Jessie was mused as she read the paper that was published in the bio-archive. The reason why Jacob submitted this paper to the bio-archive first before submitting it to Science was probably part of Young-Joon¡¯s n to get a jump on it before the Chinese government could use it politically. ¡®But I¡¯m a little disappointed that a paper of this magnitude wasn¡¯t first released by Science.¡¯ Actually, Jessie had tried incredibly hard to meet with Young-Joon in China, but all her attempts had failed. It was because Young-Joon was so busy, and he was jumping all over China, from Beijing to Sichuan. ¡®I contacted his secretary¡¯s office at A-GenBio to get his schedule, but even she didn¡¯t know his schedule.¡¯ Jessie recalled something that happened the other day. ¡ªWe don¡¯t know either... He¡¯s so busy in China that his ns change daily. He calls me on the day of to let me know of his schedule. That was what Jessie had heard from Secretary Yoo Song-Mi, who sounded like she was going to cry. Jessie could roughly figure out what was going on. It was understandable, as Young-Joon¡¯s insane schedule consisted of pushing for the death sentence as He Jiankui¡¯s punishment, destroying Atmox, and curing gically modified babies. ¡®But I got him now. I¡¯m finally at West China Hospital.¡¯ Jessie clenched her fists. ¡®The paper was released yesterday, and the announcement of possibly curing the baby came out the day before, so he must still be here, right?¡¯ ¡ªJessie! Samuel, the chief editor for Science, called her. ¡°Yes?¡± ¡ªWe got a hold of Doctor Ryu! He¡¯s going to do the interview, I talked to him myself. Go do the interview! Hurry! ¡°Ouch... My ears hurt. Talk slower.¡± ¡ªYou can¡¯t let Nature beat you! ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I¡¯m already at West China Hospital.¡± ¡ªWhy are you in Sichuan? ¡°Because Doctor Ryu was here until the other day. They said he was doing some research.¡± ¡ªHe¡¯s in Guangdong now. ¡°Ah, crap...¡± ¡ªHe¡¯s having a meeting about the mosquito extinction project. He¡¯s testing it on two inds in Guangdong. ¡°He really is roaming around China like a runaway train... The people in his office are going to cry.¡± ¡ªWhat? ¡°Nothing, never mind. Anyway, I have to go to Guangdong, right? ¡ªYeah. Get there as soon as possible. * * * A province in China was arge administrative division, roughly the size of a state in the United States. Guangdong Privoice was located in the southeastern part of maind China, and it was the most popted province with a whopping one hundred ten million people. The reason for this was because it was China¡¯srgest industrial area, and many people came here to find work. In addition, it was so humid and hot that it stayed around ten degrees Celsius even in the winter. Arge poption in such a climate: as one could imagine, it was a perfect breeding ground for mosquitoes. ¡°During the height of the dengue epidemic, thirty thousand people were infected here. It wasn¡¯t that the health authorities were slow or wrong in their response, but it still spread very quickly. It¡¯s just that this region itself is vulnerable to mosquitoes,¡± said China¡¯s health minister, who came to greet Young-Joon himself. ¡°Thirty thousand...¡± ¡°And this province has had the highest GDP in China for the past thirty years. It¡¯s about ten percent of China¡¯s total GDP, and it¡¯s close to Russia¡¯s total GDP as well.¡± ¡°That¡¯s impressive.¡± ¡°The health authorities are always keeping an eye on it because that¡¯s the kind of ce this is.¡± Guangdong was China¡¯s most important economic core. And with this poption and climate... Once a mosquito-borne disease broke out, it would spread like wildfire. If the health authorities hesitated in their response, even a little, it would spiral out of control. And because of its location, it would be a national disaster. ¡°I said that I was going to eradicate mosquitoes on the two inds in the east of Guangdong, right?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Yes, you did,¡± the minister replied. ¡°Why don¡¯t we target all of Guangdong?¡± Chapter 203: Laboratory Seven (1)

Chapter 203: Laboratory Seven (1)

¡°You want to do the project in all of Guangdong?¡± the minister asked, confused ¡°Yes. For a project like this, we have to do it based on the climate, terrain, the poption, and the poption density. Even if we do a pilot test in two inds and it works, we have to optimize it again if we want to do it in Guangdong. And if we don¡¯t do that, there¡¯s no point in doing it there in the first ce. Plue, that ind is already deserted, so there¡¯s no need to get rid of mosquitoes there.¡± ¡°...¡± Well, Young-Joon had a point. But the problem was whether they should be tampering with the ecosystem on such arge scale when they were just beginning, especially in an important economic hub like Guangdong. ¡°The governor of Guangdong might be against it,¡± the minister said. ¡°Then we have to convince them. Please help me,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°... Alright. The meeting with the governor is in two days in the afternoon, so I¡¯ll think about it. Please prepare some data as well,¡± the minister said. But before Young-Joon met the governor, he met a guest at the hotel on the morning of the meeting. ¡°Nice to meet you.¡± A sharp-looking man in a neat suit held out his business card and introduced himself. ¡°My name is Anthony, editor of Nature.¡± Young-Joon shook his hand. ¡°Nice to meet you.¡± ¡°It¡¯s really difficult to see you, Doctor Ryu. I¡¯m here to interview you about the gically modified baby.¡± ¡°Sure, since I requested it first.¡± Young-Joon had asked his secretary¡¯s office to contact Nature and Science as he wanted to do an interview on the treatment of the gically modified baby. When he asked, Samuel, the chief editor of Science, had picked up the phone himself. ¡°I¡¯ve reserved a small room over there, so should we do it there?¡± Anthony asked. ¡°Sure.¡± As Young-Joon was about to walk towards the room... Bang! The front door of the hotel burst open, and a woman with disheveled hair rushed in. ¡°Mr. Ryu!¡± She quickly found Young-Joon and walked over. It was Jessie, the editor of Science. ¡°Phew... I barely caught up with you. You asked us for an interview, right?¡± ¡°Yes. The editor from Nature is here as well, so should we do it together?¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Jessie let out a sigh of relief that she didn¡¯t miss him. Young-Joon and the two editors went to the small conference room. ¡°I could have gathered a bunch of reporters and made a big deal out of it, but I only asked the two academic journals because I didn¡¯t want it to be politicized,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°But at the same time, I want it to be known by the public. Nature and Science are the two greatest journals that have captured both the professionalism and poprity of science, and that¡¯s why I wanted to do an interview with you.¡± ¡°We¡¯re honored,¡± Anthony said. ¡°This interview will not just be about the gically modified baby. Today, I¡¯m going to talk about the future of A-GenBio along with the mosquito extinction project.¡± * * * At a gas station that was located just before the Hannam Bridge... ¡°Could I get a full tank?¡± Park Dong-Hyun asked the gas station employee. ¡°Babe, isn¡¯t it time for us to change cars? The kids are getting pretty big, too,¡± asked Park Dong-Hyun¡¯s wife. ¡°I want to, but we can¡¯t afford it now after the monthly mortgage payment on our apartment. Let¡¯s keep this one for a few more years.¡± ¡°Can¡¯t you just sell yourpany stocks? You said it¡¯s really high now, right? If you sell that, we could pay off our mortgage and get a new car.¡± ¡°No! It¡¯s the price of an apartment right now, but it could be worth an entire building in a few years,¡± Park Dong-Hyun said, shocked. ¡°You never know.¡± His wife pouted. ¡°One hundred percent. Look at what our CEO is doing. In ten years, he¡¯s going to be moving people to Mars.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s buy it when you get your bonus.¡± A-Bio has thrown a huge bonus party in the first half of its first year. It was a smallpany at the time and only had a few employees, but it had made a lot of money. Young-Joon gave everyone 1.5 times their annual sa;ary as a bonus. ¡°I haven¡¯t seen that kind of money since you went to the Life Creation Department,¡± said his wife. She chuckled as she thought back to Park Dong-Hyun¡¯s demotion to the LIfe Creation Department. ¡°Haha, good things will happen if you lead a good life.¡± Park Dong-Hyun was exiled to the Life Creation Department because he refused to go to strip clubs forpany dinners. He was confronted by his department people, saying that he was pretending to be righteous and made them look like the bad guys. It was Park Dong-Hyun¡¯s mistake to angrily challenge them. After a big fight, Park Dong-Hyun was disciplined and transferred to the Life Creation Department. He never got promoted and didn¡¯t make much money after that, but his wife neverined. She was actually proud of him. Even when he said he was going to a small venturepany called A-Bio, she listened to his exnation and supported him. ¡®Still, it must have been quite an anxious and difficult time.¡¯ Park Dong-Hyun¡¯s wife just didn¡¯t say anything because she was worried it would hurt his pride. The faded purse his wife was carrying caught his eye. Even when he first made a lot of money at A-Bio, she was defensive about buying her own clothes and bags. But now, she wanted to get a new car all of a sudden. ¡°We¡¯re going to use the car for the kids, and you also have to use it for going to work,¡± his wife said. ¡°...¡± Park Dong-Hyun suddenly felt a surge of gratitude for his wife. ¡°I¡¯ll get a big bonus for the second half ofst year. Let¡¯s buy it when I get it,¡± Park Dong-Hyun said. ¡°But there wasn¡¯t anything big that happened then, right? And it¡¯s also the new year.¡± his wife asked. ¡°The payment was dyed by two months because we were in the process of merging thepany. We decided to settle the payments after the merger was over,¡± Park Dong-Hyun exined. ¡°When we get that, let¡¯s get a new car, and some new clothes and purses for you.¡± ¡°Hm...¡± She stared at the side of his face. ¡°I¡¯ll buy you an expensive one.¡± ¡°Are you getting a lot?¡± she asked. ¡°The Life Creation Team is a founding member of A-GenBio. The other scientists have done a lot as well, but we¡¯re pretty special since we made a lot of progress in developing artificial organs and organoids.¡± ¡°I hope you get a lot.¡± ¡®I heard about it from Doctor Chun, so I have an idea of the amount, but I¡¯m sure it¡¯s far beyond your imagination.¡¯ However, Park Dong-Hyun stayed silent and swallowed his words. Meanwhile, Young-Joon¡¯s interview with Nature and Science was on the radio. ¡ªReconstructing targeted genes in lymph nodes and bone marrow using Cas9 showed us that we have the potential to treat gic diseases that ur after embryogenesis. ¡ªAlthough, we can only target gic diseases rted to immunity for now because there are a whopping thirty-seven trillion cells in the human body. If we expand the target to organs rted to specific diseases, we¡¯ll definitely be able to treat other types of diseases. ¡°Doctor Ryu is amazing. I don¡¯t know much about biology or medicine, but I can tell he¡¯s a great person,¡± said Park Dong-Hyun¡¯s wife. ¡°Yeah. That¡¯s why I¡¯m going to stay stuck to him,¡± said Park Joo-Hyuk, chuckling. ¡°He can move forward because he has someone like you to support him,¡± she said as she squeezed his hand. They looked outside the window at the pile of filters on one side of the gas station. The gas station had collected them, filled with micro-dust. The filters were stamped with the AB7 logo, which stood for A-GenBio Laboratory Seven. ¡°Would you like to change your filter?¡± asked the employee who was done refueling his car. ¡°Yes, thank you,¡± Park Dong-Hyun replied. It took about a minute to change the filter. Some gas stations, but not this one, had a separate employee who only changed the filter during refueling. It had been four days since the running micro-dust reduction project began. Thanks to the government¡¯s active promotion, seventy percent of the sedans in Seoul were equipped with the filter. Additionally, the concentration of micro-dust in the air had already decreased by thirty percent; the risk level of micro-dust, which was at dangerous levels four days ago, had gone down to moderate levels. Cellijenner set up a filter refining facility in the factory they bought in advance and hired a lot of employees. However, they couldn¡¯t keep up with the manpower required to collect the filters and refine it into fertilizer. Contracts had already been signed to export the filters to China, India, and Russia. They also ended up building several more factories. The Ministry of Environment was quick to use the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy¡¯s policy, stating that they would always keep the concentration of micro-dust in the air below ten micrograms per cubic meter. Honestly, the ministries weren¡¯t really doing anything; it was happening because of what Cellijenner was doing. And the man who made it happen was Young-Joon. ¡°The airport is going to be chaotic when he gets back,¡± said Park Dong-Hyun¡¯s wife. ¡°But why isn¡¯t Mr. Ryuing back yet? I thought he dered the moratorium and he¡¯s done treating the gically modified baby.¡± ¡°Because A-GenBio is no longer just a pharmaceuticalpany.¡± He had an idea of what Young-Joon was trying to do in China right now. ¡°I¡¯m never going to sell the shares I have,¡± he said. ¡ª...As such, A-GenBio is nning to build a seventhb. Young-Joon¡¯s interview was still ying on the radio. * * * ¡°Even though I put the brakes on the gic modification of embryos through this moratorium, the ultimate goal is to further advance science,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°To further advance science?¡± ¡°Stem cell technology and gic modification are both closely tied to bioethics, and there will continue to be friction in the future. If there are more people like Doctor He Jiankui who misuse science in this situation, the scientificmunity will face more resistance.¡± ¡°What kind of resistance?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s say, for example, that biology reaches an extreme level of advancement and bes capable of performing a procedure for eternal life. Considering A-GenBio¡¯s potential, it¡¯s not a far-fetched assumption,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°However, as with any new technology in the world, the unit price is bound to be high when it first appears. That price difference could transform the economic ss divide that exists in capitalist societies into a biological one, where longevity or youthfulness bes a ss that divides human status.¡± The two editors looked surprised. Young-Joon added, ¡°It may be a ss society that is much more direct, powerful, and dangerous than capitalism. Stem cells and Cas9 have brought that fantasy future rtively within reach. If we go past that technological singrity without enough preparation, people who reject that world will resist.¡± ¡°Something like that may definitely happen.¡± ¡°I am a scientist, and I am a believer in scientism. I think the advancement of science is always good. That is why we put a lot of ethical brakes on our research to prevent something like that from happening. Because A-GenBio will continue to research both items more deeply in the future, we mustn¡¯t make any more cases like He Jiankui.¡± After the interview, Young-Joon finally met Yang Gunyu, the governor of Guangdong Province. However, he quickly dismissed Young-Joon¡¯s project. ¡°You cannot eradicate mosquitoes in all of Guangdong. Approving the experiment in our two inds was the best we could do, so do your research there.¡± It was a stubborn and firm response. Surprised, the health minister quickly intervened. ¡°H¨CHey, Governor Yang. You know how lucky we are to have Doctor Ryu do this project himself...¡± ¡°Does Doctor Ryu know about the Great Leap Forward?¡± the governor asked. ¡°The Great Leap Forward?¡± As Young-Joon tilted his head, puzzled, the governor smiled. ¡°You probably don¡¯t know because you¡¯re young. In the 1950¡¯s, China implemented a variety of government policies to advance the country. One of the policies was the Four Pests campaign, which was to eradicate harmful insects. It was a good idea as it could improve sanitation and living conditions,¡± Yang Gunyu said. ¡°The problem was that one of the targets for extermination was sparrows. They were harmful, and they were the farmers¡¯ enemy because they ate a significant amount of crops. However, when two hundred million sparrows were killed in a year, locusts dominated and ended up eating all the crops.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Because of theck of food, forty million people starved to death. That¡¯sparable to the poption of South Korea right now.¡± ¡°Forty million...¡± ¡°The environment, the ecosystem, is not something to be tampered with, Doctor Ryu. No matter how much of a genius you are, as long as you¡¯re human, you can¡¯t keep up with the will of the heavens or nature.¡± Young-Joon rubbed his forehead as if he had a headache. ¡®It¡¯s not like I can tell him that there¡¯s someone here who¡¯s not human...¡¯ Chapter 204: Laboratory Seven (2)

Chapter 204: Laboratory Seven (2)

¡°Wait, wait,¡± the minister of health interrupted. He grabbed Governor Yang Gunyu and pulled him to the corner. After there was some distance between them at Young-Joon, the minister whispered to him, ¡°Aside from everything else, what you just said sounds like you¡¯re denying our party. Fortunately, the only people here are the three of us and that interpreter girl Doctor Ryu brought, but please be careful of what you say.¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter. And did I say something that was wrong?¡± Yang Gunyu snapped back. Then, he walked towards Young-Joon again. ¡°Former Chairman Mao Zedong was a great man who created modern China, Doctor Ryu. I respect and admire him as a Chinese person and a politician,¡± he said. ¡°During that period of upheaval, China was divided, and there were civil wars going on all the time. But it was definitely the work of the brilliant Former Chairman Mao Zedong that unified the country together to make China.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°However, Chinese media does not talk about things like Former Chairman¡¯s Mao¡¯s Great Leap Forward, even though the majority of Chinese people say that he did more harm than good.¡± ¡°Governor!¡± screamed the minister, who was standing behind him. Yang Gunyu waved his hand towards the minister like he was annoyed, then spoke to Young-Joon. ¡°Do you know why Former Chairman Mao Zedong experienced such a colossal failure even though he was a brilliant man?¡± ¡°Why?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°It was because he trusted experts too much.¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°At the time, there was a Chinese schr who had a professorship at Caltech. He was such a skilled scientist that he participated in the United States¡¯ nuclear weapon development. Scientists like him were rare in the world, and for China in the 1950¡¯s, he was a human resource even more precious than gold,¡± said Yang Gunyu. ¡°His name was Chen Shuxian.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Back then, he was a more famous scientist than He Jiankui is right now. Former Chairman Mao Zedong believed everything he said because they had to invest in science if China was to be rich and powerful, and Doctor Chen Shuxian was one of the best scientists in the world. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but you said he participated in the development of nuclear weapons. Then, was he a nuclear physicist?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°That¡¯s correct.¡± ¡°... If you¡¯re a nuclear physicist, I think it¡¯s obvious that you won¡¯t know anything about ecology.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Yang Gunyu said. Then, Rosaline intervened ¡ªWhat the hell is he talking about? ¡®I don¡¯t know.¡¯ Young-Joon scratched his head in confusion. Yang Gunyu went on. ¡°Nevertheless, Doctor Chen Shuxian developed a method of nting rice more densely based on mathematical calctions and submitted it to Former Chairman Mao. Naturally, it was a failure. Anyone can do the simple calction that more seeds per unit area will increase yields, but farmers knew from experience that it won¡¯t work.¡± ¡°So the crops failed?¡± ¡°It was a huge failure. Then, it turned into a huge famine as the Four Pests campaign began as well.¡± ¡°Hm...¡± ¡°It¡¯s not that Doctor Chen Shuxian was a bad person. In fact, he was humble, restrained, and honest, and he was well respected by the academicmunity and the Chinese people,¡± Yang Gunyu said. ¡°He lived his whole life in a tiny house that looked like a temple dormitory, refusing when people tried to build him a house. When he made hundreds of millions from his research, he donated it all. He was a true scientist, Doctor Ryu, perhaps even more than you.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°To be honest, I don¡¯t know much about science. I don¡¯t even know how different a nuclear physicist is from a biologist. But one thing I can tell you for sure is that even the most scientists can make mistakes, and when you tamper with ecosystems, the result of that mistake is fatal,¡± Yang Gunyu said. ¡°Doctor Ryu, I¡¯ll allow you to conduct the experiment in the two inds in Guangdong, but don¡¯t be greedy beyond that. I¡¯ve been against this project from the beginning.¡± Young-Joon could see the health minister swallowing his anger, shaking his fist in the air. There was a moment of tense silence. ¡°I see,¡± Young-Joon replied calmly. ¡°If it¡¯s a project you don¡¯t want to do, then I don¡¯t want to do it in Guangdong either. There¡¯s no need to use the inds here, and I¡¯ll just do it in another country. Thank you.¡± Young-Joon thanked the governor and stood up. As he walked out the door, the Minister of Health hastily grabbed Yang Gunyu¡¯s shoulders. ¡°What are you doing! Don¡¯t you know who he is?¡± ¡°Is there anyone in the world who doesn¡¯t know Doctor Young-Joon these days? Even my youngest son, who is ten years old, knows that I¡¯m meeting with Doctor Ryu today,¡± Yang Gunyu replied shrugged. ¡°Governor! It was the Chinese who asked us to carry out the mosquito eradication project in Guangdong Province. Don¡¯t you know how big a project this is? Don¡¯t you know what kind of economic impact it will have if we seed in piloting the experiment here first, the industrial and scientific ma of China?¡± the minister said in frustration. ¡°Governor Yang. When this project seeds here and then spreads to the rest of the world, do you think the people of Guangdong will stand by? Do you think the scientists who worked on this project and learned under Doctor Ryu will stand by idly? In a few years, Guangdong¡¯s youths and entrepreneurs will start new businesses in mosquito eradication and y on the world stage.¡± ¡°A-GenBio will be at the forefront anyway.¡± ¡°Of course they will be the best, but damn it, there¡¯s a lot of merit to being second! Is mosquito eradication! It¡¯s wiping out a whole bunch of mosquito-borne diseases that kill a million people each year!¡± ¡°I know, and I¡¯m only saying this because it¡¯s such a big deal, alright? I am a governor who has a duty to protect the citizens of Guangdong,¡± Yang Gunyu replied firmly. ¡°...¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The two red at each other for a moment. * * * Meanwhile, Young-Joon was getting ready to return home. The goal of today¡¯s meeting was to just check in to see where the project was headed, but there was no reason for him to stay here anymore now that he knew the governor didn¡¯t want the project at all. While he was packing his bags, he got a call from the Minister of Health. ¡ªDoctor Ryu, are you still at the hotel? ¡°Yes. I¡¯m getting ready to return home. I have three days until my flight, so I guess I¡¯ll travel for a bit.¡± ¡ª...I¡¯m really sorry, Doctor Ryu. This isn¡¯t supposed to happen... ¡°It¡¯s alright, and I haven¡¯t ruled out Guangdong yet. If I hear from you before I find a new country for the project, I might do it there.¡± ¡ªReally? ¡°Yes.¡± ¡ªUm... Is there a reason why you¡¯re so sympathetic to our situation? ¡°Guangdong is a very vulnerable area for mosquito-borne diseases. It has a veryrge poption, and if an epidemic breaks out, it will be very difficult to control.¡± ¡ª... It¡¯s for humanitarian reasons. ¡°That¡¯s right, but there¡¯s no reason to change A-GenBio¡¯s schedule in order to do it here. Once we decide on a new country, it¡¯ll be hard to change it. You don¡¯t have much time to convince the minister.¡± ¡ª... Phew. Alright, thank you. Young-Joon, who was done packing, sat down on the bed. His trip to China was over. He had sent He Jiankui to jail, fought awsuit against Atmox, cured a gically modified baby, and gathered the world¡¯s top biologists and dered a moratorium. It was hard to fathom how he¡¯d aplished so much in just a few short weeks. Rosaline bounced out of Young-Joon and flopped down on the bed. ¡ªAre we going home now? ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡ªThat¡¯s a relief. China isn¡¯t really for me. ¡°Really?¡± ¡ªDo you know that every country has a distinct smell? China has a very strong smell of some spices, and it¡¯s a bit... It¡¯s not for me. Young-Joon smiled. ¡°Good work. But I have something to ask you.¡± ¡ªWhat is it? ¡°We have to do it before we leave Guangdong. But it¡¯s a bit difficult.¡± ¡ªWhen do you not give me something that is difficult? Rosaline rolled her feet while lying on the bed. Knock knock! As Young-Joon was about to answer Rosaline, there was a knock at the door. When he opened, he saw Anthony, the editor for Nature, standing there. ¡°Hello, Doctor Ryu,¡± Anthony greeted Young-Joon, then looked around his room. ¡°If you don¡¯t have any guests, may Ie in?¡± ¡°Sure,e in.¡± Rosaline was lying on the bed, but she was invisible to Anthony. He walked inside, and they sat down at the table. ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡± ¡°I am a scientist before I am an editor for Nature or a reporter. Well, most of our editors probably feel the same way,¡± Anthony said. ¡°We were astonished at how you handled the research ethics scandal of gic modification in China.¡± ¡°It was a relief that we were able to correct it after the fact,¡± Young-Joon replied humbly. ¡°I am telling you this because of your sense of justice and the research ability and power of A-GenBio,¡± Anthony said. ¡°Recently, a paper was submitted to Nature.¡± A submission referred to a paper being sent to the journal: a scientist would write a manuscript in the journal¡¯s format and send it with a letter. ¡°What paper is it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a medical paper, and it¡¯s tracking data on rejection and more in patients who have received organ transnts in China.¡± ¡°There are a lot of papers like thating out of China. It¡¯s a big country, so there are a lot of people donating organs and getting transnts. It¡¯s rtively easy to get data...¡± ¡°There¡¯s talk about that being illegal harvesting of organs from executed prisoners,¡± Anthony said. Young-Joon flinched. ¡°What are you talking about?¡± ¡°When we were editing the paper that was submitted to Nature, we received a letter from a Doctor Ref.¡± ¡°Doctor Ref?¡± ¡°You know them?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°We actually don¡¯t know this person, but they told us that there was a serious research ethics vition in this Nature paper and that we should take a closer look at the data,¡± Anthony said. ¡°The Chinese government says there are about ten thousand organ transnts per year that are legally performed, but the Chinese medicalmunity says that they do anywhere from about sixty thousand to as many as one hundred thousand organ transnts per year.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°And we believe that the huge gap in those numbers may have been filled by the executions and organ harvesting of prisoners of conscience in China...¡± ¡°My god...¡± Prisoners of conscience referred to those who were imprisoned for their political or religious beliefs rather than because of crimes. In China, members of religious minorities, especially those part of the Falun Gong and Tibetan Buddhism, are imprisoned due to pressure from the government. ¡°This is confidential information at Nature. It¡¯s not supposed to be told, and only a few people know about it,¡± Anthony said. ¡°...¡± ¡°But you¡¯re the hope of the scientificmunity, and I¡¯m also a fan of yours.¡± Chapter 205: Laboratory Seven (3) Chapter 205: Laboratory Seven (3) ¡°Thank you for letting me know. It helped me a lot,¡± Young-Joon said. Anthony had a proud smile on his face. ¡°If we asked the Minister of Health directly, he''d probably say no, right?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Of course. We¡¯ve already checked this with the Chinese health authorities, and they dismissed it as a rumor.¡± ¡°Of course they did.¡± ¡°They said they could make up for those numbers even if only a tiny fraction of the critically ill people who die in China donate their organs.¡± ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll look into this on my own at A-GenBio, but could you let me know if you have any more information?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡±* * * Young-Joon had originally booked a return flight at Beijing, but he had canceled it as he was in Guangzhou when he was finished with his work. He didn¡¯t me anyone because it was his fault for roaming around. Anyway, his secretary¡¯s office had canceled the flight from Beijing and rebooked a flight directly from Guangzhou to Incheon. Young-Joon, who arrived at Guangzhou Baiyun Airport, met Yoo Song Mi. ¡°Hello,¡± greeted Yoo Song-Mi. ¡°You didn¡¯t have toe meet me here. I know you¡¯re busy with the merger,¡± Young-Joon said, still happy to see her. ¡°It¡¯s almost over, and I came to stop any more schedule changes. If I¡¯m not with you, you might cancel your returning flight and go to Tibet or Nepal or something.¡± ¡°Haha, I¡¯m sorry.¡± Yoo Song-Mi smiled as Young-Joon apologized. ¡°It was probably because it was that important. I know how busy you were from seeing your schedule in Korea,¡± Yoo Song-Mi said as she escorted Young-Joon to his first-ss seat. ¡°But next time you¡¯re away for such a long period of time, I think it would be a good idea for you to bring an entourage from the office.¡± ¡°But I¡¯mfortable traveling alone with just my bodyguards,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°That was fine when you were just running A-Bio, but not anymore. You¡¯re now the owner of one of thergestpanies in the world.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± ¡°There are only a fewpanies as big as A-GenBio, and most of their CEOs have a whole army of assistants.¡± ¡°I¡¯m going to hire a CEO soon. I¡¯m going to leave most of the management stuff to them and just focus on research,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I know you said you¡¯ll only focus on research, but you¡¯re going to fight if someone like He Jiankui shows up again, right?¡± ¡°Uh¡­ Of course. There¡¯s nothing I can do about that, right?¡± Yoo Song-Mi grinned. ¡°You are a scientist, inside and out. Honestly, the secretarial staff like me follow you because we like that side of you as much as your ingenuity.¡± Yoo Song-Mi nodded as if she had an idea of what Young-Joon would be like from now on. ¡°Even if you hire a professional CEO, it won¡¯t change your position as the board of directors will still revolve around you, thergest shareholder. Even if you hire someone, you¡¯ll just have one more employee to oversee the business side of things.¡± ¡°True.¡± ¡°You¡¯ll be just as busy, so I would like you to have assistants with you when you go somewhere from now on. It¡¯ll make your life a lot easier if we move with you and take care of things for you.¡± ¡°Alright. The office must have had a lot of trouble chasing me around. I¡¯ll be careful next time.¡± Young-Joon went to the reserved seat with Kim Chul-Kwon and the security team. ¡°I¡¯m sorry it¡¯s not a great seat. This was the best one avable on the flight from Guangzhou,¡± Yoo Song-Mi said. ¡°No, it¡¯s fine, thank you.¡± A little while after they took their seats, the ne began to move. ¡°It¡¯ll take about three hours, so it¡¯ll be around one o¡¯clock when we arrive at Incheon. There will probably be a bunch of reporters at the airport,¡± Yoo Song-Mi said. ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Of course, sir. There¡¯s been a lot of buzz about what you¡¯ve done in China.¡± ¡°Speaking of which, let¡¯s check in on what¡¯s going on right now. How is it all going?¡± ¡°First of all, wepleted the consolidation of our management headquarters while you were away. Most of the people from A-Gen¡¯s management came on board with their titles intact. We¡¯ve got a new secretarial staff as well, which is a relief for me since I have seven people to do the work I used to do alone.¡± ¡°Good. What about thebs?¡± ¡°Most of A-Bio¡¯s scientists have been reassigned to six of thebs ording to their suitable positions. And the people who will be part of Lab Seven are still waiting at A-Bio headquarters. We¡¯re in the process of setting up desks and creating departments.¡± ¡°What happened to thewsuit with Atmox?¡± ¡°We won the trial in South Korea. The finalized damages were a little more than ten billion dors, but Atmox has appealed. Our legal team will be holding a trial in Beijing soon,¡± Young-Joon nodded. ¡°And after you dered the moratorium, we¡¯ve seen follow-up derations from around the world. A total of seven hundred seventy two scientists have dered the moratorium in eleven countries, including Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, Sweden, Austria, Japan, Germany, and Switzend.¡± ¡°I¡¯m d.¡± ¡°And the micro-dust in Korea has remained at good levels every day even though it¡¯s springtime, when micro-dust usually increases.¡± ¡°Cellijenner will love that.¡± ¡°There¡¯s a frenzy in the stock market right now about Cellijenner being the next big thing. Their stocks have been up four days in a row, and it fell just a little on the fifth day,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Honestly, it¡¯s not that big of a deal,¡± Kim Chul-Kwon said. ¡°Alright, thank you for letting me know, Secretary Yoo,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Is there anything you would like me to go into detail about?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll see the rest for myself.¡± ¡°Could I also ask you something?¡± Yoo Song-Mi said. ¡°Sure.¡± ¡°What happened to the Asian tiger mosquito eradication project? Thetest news we have is that you told us you were having a meeting with the governor of Guangdong in Guangzhou.¡± ¡°Um¡­ It didn¡¯t go well,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°We might end up doing it somewhere other than Guangdong.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°He said he can¡¯t allow something that causes such a big change in the ecosystem because they don¡¯t know how it will end up.¡± ¡°Oh¡­¡± ¡°I have a way, so don¡¯t worry about that. But when I get back, could you and the office look into something else?¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°I have information that organs from executed prisoners of conscience in China have been harvested without authorization and transnted into patients. I¡¯d like to know more about that.¡± ¡°... Alright.¡± Yoo Song-Mi was a little surprised at the unexpected news, but she soon nodded. ¡°Hello.¡± A flight attendant walked up to them and greeted them. ¡°Excuse me, are you Mr. Ryu Young-Joon, the CEO of A-Bio?¡± ¡°Yes, well, the CEO of A-GenBio now.¡± ¡°Wow.¡± The flight attendant covered her mouth and smiled brightly. ¡°Sorry¡­ It¡¯s just that my nephew has something called homocystinosis or something.¡± ¡°Homocystinuria?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Yes! That¡¯s right.¡± The flight attendantughed awkwardly. ¡°My sister and brother-inw had a lot of trouble because of that.¡± ¡°It is a treatable disease though. Is he okay now?¡± ¡°Yeah. They¡¯ve been taking care of him since he was born, so he¡¯s still okay for now.¡± ¡°If he¡¯s still young, they¡¯ll have to keep taking care of it well.¡± ¡°Yes. But my sister and brother-inw were very impressed by what you did in China this time, treating a gically modified baby.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°It¡¯s at least a relief that it¡¯s a manageable disease, but they said it¡¯s sad that they have to give a little kid a bunch of pills every day and not be able to even give him a spoonful of stew without worrying. But they were excited that maybe this gic disease could be cured in the future.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°Yes. We¡¯re always rooting for you,¡± she said with a smile. * * * As soon as Young-Joonnded in Korea, he quickly caught up on a few things, then went to A-Bio¡¯s old headquarters before holding his first board meeting. There were about seven team leader-level scientists in the conference room. Young-Joon greeted them and took a seat. ¡°What about Doctor Cheon Ji-Myung?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°He left for the United States a few days ago on your instructions, so I came in his ce.¡± ¡°Oh, I remember now.¡± Cheon Ji-Myung said she would travel to the United States to contact Elsie himself. ¡°Let¡¯s start the meeting, then. You all know what the Seventh Laboratory that we¡¯re going to set up here is going to do,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Up until now, A-GenBio has been focusing on producing new drugs, but I think it¡¯s time for apany as capable as us to try and do more than that. Let¡¯s do things for public health, like create devices to reduce fine dust, not just develop drugs to treat specific diseases.¡± Young-Joon stood up and went to the next slide. ¡°There are nine hundred twenty-seven diseases on this page. You¡¯re probably not familiar with most of them because this is a list of rare diseases created by the Ministry of Health and Welfare. These diseases affect less than twenty thousand people, or so little that we can¡¯t even figure out the prevalence,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Most of them are immune system abnormalities or gic diseases. A small prevalence means that even if we develop a drug, it¡¯s not marketable, so no pharmaceuticalpany wants to develop a cure.¡± Young-Joon looked straight at the scientists, slightly raising his voice. ¡°But not us,¡± he said. ¡°Lab Seven¡¯s goal will be to conquer all these gic diseases in the next ten years.¡± ¡°Ten years¡­¡± The scientists were taken aback. ¡°It won¡¯t be difficult if we use Cas9, stem cells, and GWAS with one hundred million people¡¯s genomic data,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°And there is one more responsibility of Lab seven.¡± Young-Joon went to the next slide. On it was a Gantt chart and a strategy mockup of the mosquito extinction project. ¡°We¡¯re going to be dealing with environmental issues, and micro-dust is just the beginning. There are much bigger issues that threaten humanity, such as climate change and other things; this caused an unprecedented heat wave in Delhi, with the temperature hitting forty-eight degrees Celsius and killing people. Or the threat of radiation from a nuclear explosion.¡± ¡°W¡ªWait. Can we do something like radiation?¡± ¡°Of course,¡± Young-Joon said confidently. ¡°...¡± ¡°We¡¯re going to study and take measures against these environmental problems as well, and our first project will be the extinction of mosquitoes,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°And we¡¯re going toe up with a new system for that. It will be used along withrge-scale GWAS that we built based on decoding the genes of one hundred million people. We¡¯ll create artificial intelligence that predicts changes in the ecosystem.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°When we treated Mimi this time, the reason we were able to seed in predicting the conditions for the clinical trial without much preclinical data was because of in silico experiments.¡± In silico experiments were virtual experiments usingputers and biological information. ¡°We¡¯re thinking of inviting an in silico expert to join Lab Seven.¡± Chapter 206: Laboratory Seven (4) Chapter 206: Laboratory Seven (4) Once upon a time, biology was a discipline within natural history. Natural historians began with crude anatomy and taxonomy, looking for simrities and differences between nts and animals. Then, it went through glittering scientists like Robert Hooke, Darwin, and Mendel, ultimately bing modern biology that is based on cytology and gics. However, twenty-first-century biology was about to undergo another major transformation. ¡°There¡¯s been a movement towards the BIT industry for a while. However, it hasn¡¯t been easy to achieve because biology is soplex that it¡¯s hard to quantify and make it into a diagram,¡± Young-Joon said. BIT: it was a fusion of biology (B) and information technology (IT), a discipline called bioinformatics. The genomic data of a single human was about seven hundred thirty megabytes, calcted when each base was represented as about two bytes. If the three billion bases of genomic data was written down in a notepad, it would amount to seven hundred thirty megabytes. However, experimental data from a genome analysis showed that each letter in the DNA sequence was checked at least a thousand times. This redundancy allowed scientists to be confident in the genome data, even if there was an error ten times out of a thousand. In other words, one would have to process seven hundred thirty gigabytes of data to decode the entire genome of a patient like Mimi, the gically modified baby. ¡°From that point on, it¡¯s no longer biology, but it enters the field ofputation and data science,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°That¡¯s where biology and IT intersect. There aren¡¯t many experts who can run through seven hundred thirty gigabytes of big data and find disease-rted DNA. But what if you multiply that data by one hundred million? What if we¡¯re tracking disease sequences based on decoded genome data from one hundred million people, like the project we¡¯re doing?¡± ¡°That would be very difficult,¡± said Doctor Taylor. ¡°Right now, the genome data decoding team is doing a great job, but they were only able to do so because they are backed by the country¡¯s top experts inputer science,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°There are a few programmers who came to A-GenBio from SG Electronics. Coborative development with them resulted in the GWAS analysis, which had a lot of influence on our ten billion dorwsuit and the deration of the moratorium.¡± Young-Joon went on.¡°Our in silico experiments with them allowed us to skip preclinical studies for Mimi¡¯s treatment, which had only been used on a few mice, and use it clinically to cure her in time.¡± Technically, Rosaline was the one who came up with the clinical n, but Young-Joon also contacted Kim Young-Hoon, one of the board directors of A-GenBio, and conducted in silico experiments as well. He only did this so that he had an exnation, but the results were surprising. The data from the in silico experiments were more simr to Rosaline¡¯s simtions than he had expected. From then on, Young-Joon nned to start the project; it seemed like it had potential. Then, Bae Sun-Mi asked, ¡°So are we going to coborate with SG Electronics again, not with GWAS or in silico, but with artificial intelligence that predicts ecological changes¡­?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°And we will maintain our coborative research rtionship if possible.¡± * * * Young-Joon was chatting with a guest in his office, who he was happy to see. ¡°I apologize for asking to meet so suddenly before the board meeting,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°No worries, sir. Of course I shoulde if the CEO wants to see me,¡± replied the middle-aged man, who was sitting on the sofa. It was Kim Young-Hoon, a director of A-Gen and an executive who had worked at SG Electronics for over twenty years. ¡°By the way, Mr. RKim, how did you end up at A-Gen? Weren¡¯t you very sessful at SG Electronics?¡± ¡°Was that how I was evaluated? I¡¯m d,¡± Kim Young-Hoon replied, chuckling. ¡°Actually, it¡¯s a little different. Ipeted for the vice president position there, but I lost. I was actually going to retire after my executive term ended, but the president of SG Electronics convinced me toe to A-Gen.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°SG Electronics had invested a lot of money in A-Gen when it was still a smallpany, and investors always want to put their own people on the board of directors, not only to have a grasp on management, but also to make sure the money is well-spent. When I came in, A-Gen didn¡¯t have the power to decline,¡± Kim Young-Hoon said. ¡°SG Electronics and A-Gen were in very different industries, so it was a bold move at first, joining as an interlocking director. Although, things changed at SG Electronics over the years and I¡¯ve basically be part of A-Gen now.¡± ¡°If SG Electronics asked you toe back, would you go?¡± ¡°Maybe two years ago, but not now because A-GenBio is a much better and more promisingpany. And above all, I like your ethical leadership, Mr. Ryu. There was no one like that among the chaebols I¡¯ve seen.¡± ¡°Do you ever regreting to A-Gen?¡± ¡°Honestly, I thought it was a bit boring. The power of the Yoon family in the decision-making structure here was too strong. All sixb directors were close with Yoon Dae-Sung. Kim Hyun-Taek was loyal to him like a servant, and Ji Kwan-Man was basically family,¡± Kim Young-Hoon said. ¡°That¡¯s why I bet everything on you when you started rising like a star, because apany this big shouldn¡¯t be run by one person.¡± Kim Young-Hoon was right. He had gone to great lengths to ensure that Young-Joon, who had just be a director at the time, could participate in board meetings. He had also arranged the sale of Young-Joon¡¯s flu drug to SG Pharmaceuticals for twenty billion won. Additionally, he had also brought a motion to the board of directors so that Young-Joon could use that money to establish A-Bio. Kim Young-Hoon had been a supporter of Young-Joon from the moment he began showing his ambition for power. ¡°Do you still believe that no one person should have sole control over apany?¡± Young-Joon asked. Kim Young-Hoon smiled bitterly. ¡°I¡¯m sorry to say this, but yes. Luckily, you are ethical and intelligent, so I don¡¯t think you¡¯ll make a mistake, but there are a lot of variables. For example, what if something happens to your safety?¡± Kim Young-Hoon said. ¡°A-GenBio, the world¡¯s biggestpany, would be paralyzed in an instant, and the stocks would plummet. Apany this big shouldn¡¯t go all in on one person. For example, there should be a split between the CEO and the chairman of the board. That way, there can be transparent and democratic decision-making and operation. That doesn¡¯t really exist in Korean culture, but still.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°Because the owner of a joint-stockpany is not one person, but the shareholders as a whole. The National Pension Service also has arge stake in thispany as well, so you should think of it as apany that was created with the peoples¡¯ money.¡± ¡°Thank you for your important advice,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°There¡¯s something I want to ask you, Director Kim.¡± ¡°Yes, please go ahead.¡± ¡°I had your help back when I was developing the diagnostic kit. At the time, you connected me to SG Electronics when we were developing the smartphone integration program that went into it.¡± ¡°I did. I still use that diagnostic kit once a month,¡± Kim Young-Hoon said with a smile. Young-Joon said, ¡°That¡¯s when I realized how incredible the programmers at SG Electronics¡¯ Software Development Department were, and some of them came over to A-Gen and did a lot of work for us. And recently, they¡¯ve helped us with GWAS studies and in silico experiments.¡± ¡°I would like to do another project with them. But this time, it will be a bigger project, and I think we need to renew the contract we signed with SG Electronics,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°The contract will be written by our legal teams, but I was wondering if you would be willing to take care of this coborative project in the middle of bothpanies?¡± ¡°Um¡­ What is the project about?¡± ¡°We¡¯re going to create an ecosystem change prediction model program.¡± ¡°SG Electronics¡¯ Software Development Department has some of the best programmers in the country. But it¡¯s a bit¡­ We don¡¯t have the experience to do anything like that¡­¡± Kim Young-Hoon said. ¡°We are going to bring the best expert in that field to A-GenBio,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Who is it?¡± ¡°Tanya Manker.¡± ¡°Kek!¡± Kim Young-Hoon coughed. ¡°We used the artificial intelligence developed by Doctor Tanya Manker¡¯spany during the red mold disaster when we made cultured meat,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°We¡¯re going to bring her to A-GenBio.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t she the CEO of her own start-up?¡± ¡°I can¡¯t get her to join A-GenBio, but I can get her on board as an advisor,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°More importantly, there¡¯s no one in charge of this project that the threepanies are working on together.¡± ¡°You¡¯re asking me to take on that role?¡± ¡°Yes. You¡¯ve been a senior executive at SG Electronics, and you¡¯ve been a director at A-Gen for a long time. During that time, you studied biology and earned a degree as well. You¡¯re probably the only one who knows well about both fields,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I¡¯m only asking the most qualified person to do it.¡± Kim Young-Hoon smiled sheepishly. ¡°I¡¯m not that great of a person, but how could I refuse when you¡¯re asking me, Doctor Ryu? I¡¯ll push for the project.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± * * * Tanya Manker was stunned when Young-Joon contacted her. ¡ªYou¡¯re making what program? Doctor Ryu, you¡¯re a biologist, not a programmer, right? ¡°That¡¯s right. And that¡¯s why I¡¯m asking you. We need this item for several projects we¡¯re going to be working on in the future.¡± ¡ªOh my¡­ Doctor Ryu, this project isn¡¯t going to work. We have a great AI prediction technology, and we can model climate change. But an ecosystem adds one more giant variable, right? ¡°Ecosystems?¡± ¡ªLet¡¯s say the weather is getting warmer and more humid. You can draw out a crude sketch of the sess or failure of a particr crop from that, but it¡¯s not the same as, say, how that ecosystem is disturbed when you wipe out a mosquito. You have to figure out all the organisms in the food chain that are rted to that mosquito and input them as variables¡­ ¡°I have it figured out.¡± ¡ªWhat? ¡°I have it figured out. We just looked at Guangdong Province because we didn¡¯t know what was going to happen, but we have that big data. ¡ª... ¡°We know the poption and the ecological pyramid of every species in Guangdong, from a single ant to a bird.¡± Chapter 207: Laboratory Seven Chapter 207: Laboratory Seven ¡ªIs that actually possible? Tanya Manker sounded shocked over the phone. ¡ªYou statistically analyzed it, right? ¡°Of course. I can¡¯t count every single ant by myself.¡± ¡ªBut the fact that you¡¯re so confident in the numbers means that you think the statistics were urate. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡ªI guess you could get close if you divide the habitats that are representative of Guangdong into certain sizes, gather enough samples, and count the number of organisms to calcte an average. But even if you are rtively urate about the number of organisms in each unit, it¡¯s hard to count the actual number of habitats because there could be a number of smaller groups. It¡¯s not like insects have a distinct habitat in the first ce, which would drastically change the total number of organisms. Do your numbers take that into ount? ¡°Of course.¡± ¡ª...Still, I can¡¯t ept it. You said you took the insects into ount, but at that scale, there¡¯s going to be errors in a habitat that big no matter how hard you counted. You can¡¯t possibly find every single habitat for every single insect, can you?¡°It depends on how much background knowledge you have in biology.¡± ¡ªPardon? ¡°Back in the 1960¡¯s, when livestock farming was at its peak in Australia, they had a huge problem about the disposal of animal waste. But European countries with simr climates and simr farms didn¡¯t have that problem, even though they didn¡¯t have any treatment facilities,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°The reason was the difference in the distribution and species of beetles: European beetles lived off the dung of livestock, while the Australian beetles ate humus and dead leaves in the forest.¡± ¡ª... ¡°Australian ecologists solved the problem by bringing those beetles from Europe. They deeply studied the ecology of the beetles in Europe to predict the impact of the beetles on the Australian environment, but they learned another interesting fact in the process,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°The distribution of beetles was different betweennd with and without livestock farms, even on neighboring European farms with simr climate, soils, and weather. There weren¡¯t a lot of beetles on farms that mainly did agriculture; the samples they looked at showed the livestock farms had ten thousand to a hundred thousand times more beetles than agriculturalnd.¡± ¡ªBecause if they don¡¯t do livestock farming, there¡¯s no dung to feed those beetles? ¡°Exactly. There were basically no beetles in the agricultural areas, and at this point, you can treat agricultural areas as statistical noise when calcting beetle numbers in a country.¡± ¡ªIn that case, I guess it would give you a number that¡¯s very close to the answer. So, you¡¯re saying that you can find all the habitats if you track the livestock areas where there is a lot of animal waste? ¡°You only need to look at two things to figure out the habitat. The first and most important thing is prey; if you track that, you can identify the habitats, provided the other factors are average. If you draw the distribution of the food chain by species and find the habitat of a few species, you can quickly track the rest by drawing a rough sketch. This is the most popr method of biological resource survey used in insect ecology.¡± ¡ªHm¡­ ¡°The second thing to consider would be pollution. In Korea, it wasmon to see insects like dung beetles in the countryside, but they disappeared when we started feeding antibiotics to livestock, as those antibiotics remained in the dung and prevented the beetle from eating it. Now, dung beetles are almost extinct, and the Ministry of Environment even bought them from Mongolia a few years ago at one million won per insect to rebuild the environment.¡± ¡ª... ¡°Insects are usually short-lived, have quick generation turnover, and a rtively small radius of activity, which makes them very sensitive to changes in food avability or the environment. In other words, you can easily identify their habitats if you track that.¡± ¡ªBut what about the poption? Even if you can urately figure out the habitat, isn¡¯t it difficult to specify the number of organisms living in it? ¡°It¡¯s not difficult if you look at it from the perspective of biomass. No matter how many people you put in a four-seater, the maximum number would be about six people. The Spotted Ants only build their nests under a shrub called Citrus unshidrope, and the size of the shrub is always directly proportional to the size of the nest. The liquid that the tree exudes acidifies the surrounding soil, which is the most suitable environment for them to build their homes.¡± ¡ª... ¡°It¡¯s simr to how flies are attracted to grape skins and bacteria grow in a solution of LB broth. Just as the amount of broth determines the amount of bacteria that can grow, you can get an urate number of flies within a certain range, if you know your biology.¡± ¡ªBut even so, it¡¯s a statistic. You can never be one hundred percent sure. ¡°You can¡¯t be one hundred percent sure in most of biology,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I have a good idea. We use this data and AI to model the ecosystem in Guangdong, and then we manipte some variables to give it a test drive.¡± ¡ªAnd then you¡¯ll start the mosquito extinction project? ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°If you join us, we¡¯ll give you this data: the estimated poption and habitat distribution of thirty thousand species of insects and animals in Guangdong, and the structure of the biological pyramid.¡± * * * In reality, Young-Joon tracked the data a little differently. He asked the minister of the Ministry of Health to survey the ecological map of Guangdong, but he also used Rosaline¡¯s Simtion Mode. It was just after he met with the editor of Nature at the hotel before his return flight. Young-Joon asked Rosaline to use Simtion Mode. ¡ªAre you crazy? Rosaline was shocked. ¡ªAplete survey of the habitats and poptions of all creatures in Guangdong? ¡°Will it be difficult?¡± ¡ªSimtion Mode can track specific organisms on a regional scale, but there are too many species! I wouldn¡¯t have enough fitness to handle that many. ¡°Really?¡± ¡ªHow can I track trillions of species in one night? And it¡¯s tricky for me to tell you about some of them because 99.9 percent of them don¡¯t have a name since humanity hasn¡¯t discovered them yet. Should I call them Number One, Number Two, and so on? ¡°Wait, what do you mean by trillions?¡± ¡ªYou wanted me to survey every species, right? There was a mimunication. Chills ran down Young-Joon¡¯s neck. ¡°So¡­ By all species, you meant¡­¡± ¡ªI think there are about three thousand species in this room right now, especially the ones on your skin and in your gut¡­ It looks like there¡¯s about three hundred that don¡¯t have names. ¡°Ack! No. Exclude microorganisms,¡± Young-Joon eximed. ¡ªI shouldn¡¯t include microorganisms? ¡°Of course. I¡¯m sorry, you were thinking about this on apletely different scale. How about we start with insect species?¡± Rosaline tilted her head in confusion. ¡ªI don¡¯t think that would be proper ecology. Don¡¯t you want a database with all the ecological information of the area? ¡°Yeah, but including information about microorganisms will make it hard to research, and there won¡¯t be a way to publish it.¡± ¡ªUnnamed One, Unnamed Two, Unnamed Three¡­ ¡°... It¡¯s okay. Let¡¯s start with insects. And the scale of the microbiome is probably too big to affect the extinction of mosquitoes, so we won¡¯t have to consider it.¡± ¡ªAre you sure? ¡°Can it cause problems?¡± Young-Joon asked nervously. ¡ªNo. I¡¯m kidding. Rosaline smiled. ¡°You know, you¡¯re bing more human, making jokes like this.¡± ¡ªI¡¯ll take it as apliment. Rosaline¡¯s body emitted a white light, followed by a rise of steam; she was dividing her cells. Rosaline began to divide into hundreds of trillions of microscopic cells, and she scattered them everywhere. As they spread throughout Guangdong Province, an enormous amount of sensory information poured into Young-Joon¡¯s brain. ¡°Ack¡­¡± Young-Joon sat down on the sofa with a short groan. ¡ªHang in there. Rosaline said. * * * After ten days, Tanya Manker came to A-GenBio. However, Tanya Manker wasn¡¯t the only important guest at the newly renovated headquarters. There were also the director of the SGSW International Research Center and developers who were responsible for software development for SG Electronics. They had already worked with A-GenBio during the GWAS project. ¡°I heard that it was the same building as A-Gen, but somehow it feels much bigger,¡± said Min Byung-Jin, the director of SGSW, as he took the elevator with the developers. ¡°Well, they¡¯re now one of the biggestpanies in the world in terms of market capitalization. They¡¯re bigger than SG Electronics,¡± said Park Hyun, a developer. ¡°It was a godsend that we invested in A-Gen back in the day and kept our shares. There¡¯s nothing we can do about the management because Doctor Young-Joon owns most of the shares, but we can still participate to some extent.¡± Ding! The elevator stopped on the eighth floor. Tanya Manker and Kim Young-Hoon stepped inside. ¡°Long time no see, Mr. Kim,¡± said Min Byung-Jin as he held out his hand. ¡°It¡¯s been a while. How are you?¡± Kim Young-Hoon shook his hand, and then quickly introduced Tankya Manker to him. ¡°This is Tanya Manker, the developer and founder of GRO, an artificial intelligence program that predicts climate and crops.¡± ¡°Nice to meet you,¡± Tanya Manker said as she shook Min Byung-Min¡¯s hand. ¡°I heard about your program when the red mold disaster happened in the United States. We¡¯re also developing AI, but yours seems like it¡¯s on another level, to be able to predict something like that.¡± ¡°That was also the first time I knew my program could do that,¡± Tanya Manker said, chuckling. Soon, the elevator stopped on the fourteenth floor, and Kim Young-Hoon led the group to the conference room in Room 1408. Click! The door opened before they could enter. Secretary Yoo Song-Mi saw them as she opened the door and greeted them. ¡°Wee. Mr. Ryu is waiting inside.¡± ¡°Oh, are wete?¡± Kim Young-Hoon asked as he nced at his watch. ¡°No, he arrived three hours ago to organize the data,¡± Yoo Song-Mi said. ¡°And I¡¯m actually the one who¡¯ste¡­ I made a mistake because there was a mix-up because of thepany merger. I¡¯lle back with some refreshments.¡± She quickly ran towards the elevator. Kim Young-Hoon opened the door and went inside. ¡°My god¡­¡± Kim Young-Hoon¡¯s jaw dropped, as did the developers and Tanya Manker. There was a reason why Young-Joon chose this room, as twelverge screens lined the front and walls of the room. But it wasn¡¯t the screens that surprised them; it was the dense Excel data that was being presented. It was data on all of Guangdong¡¯s biological resources. ¡°Come in,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Let¡¯s get started.¡± Chapter 208: Laboratory Seven (6)

Chapter 208: Laboratory Seven (6)

There was another scientist in the room other than Young-Joon. There was also Doctor Legion, one of the top authorities in ecology and a GSC member, who was going to work with Young-Joon on the mosquito extinction project. ¡°I didn¡¯t know you were here, Doctor Legion. Nice to meet you.¡± Kim Young-Hoon shook hands with Doctor Legion. ¡°We need an ecologist on a project of this magnitude,¡± Doctor Legion said. ¡°But what is all this?¡± asked Min Byung-Jin, the director of the SGSW research center. He could barely speak as the screens surrounding him were too intimidating. ¡°It¡¯s information on the poption and habitat distribution of Guangdong¡¯s thirty thousand species of biological resources and the food chain pyramid,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°You really surprise people... I can¡¯t believe we¡¯re starting the meeting with such ridiculous data on disy...¡± The data was so vast that the Excel file, which they could flip through using the touchscreen, was neverending. ¡ªHagenomyia micans ¡ªOdontomachus bauri ¡ªOdontomachus brunneus ¡ªOdontomachus assiniensis ....... Tanya Manker gulped as she read the screen in front of her. She clicked on [Odontomachus bauri]. This name was a scientific name of the species, and it was a species of the trapper ant genus known domestically as trap-jaw ants. As she clicked on it, a map of Guangdong Province appeared along with a distribution map. The red curves indicated the poption, showing around thirty-eight million organisms in the Haizhou wends. The developers chattered, fascinated about how Young-Joon gathered all this data. But Tanya, who was knowledgeable in ecology, wasn¡¯t just fascinated¡ªthis was shocking data to her. Even if they studied the habitats like how Young-Joon described, it wouldn¡¯t have been easy to generate this kind of data. ¡®What kind of biology knowledge do you need to have in order to do this?¡¯ Young-Joon approached Tanya as she was deep in thought. ¡°What do you think, Ms. Manker?¡± he asked. ¡°Will it be possible to develop an AI that inputs these as variables? The best software developers in the country are here right now.¡± Young-Joon pointed to the programmers from SG Electronics.¡± ¡°... Yes, I think it will be possible.¡± ¡°Thank you. Then...¡± Click! Yoo Song-Mi entered the room, pushing a cart full of refreshments. ¡°Sorry I¡¯mte,¡± she said to Young-Joon as she set up the table. ¡°You have a phone call, sir.¡± ¡°I¡¯m busy right now, so I¡¯ll take itter. Where is it from?¡± ¡°It said it was from Doctor Messelson from the GSC.¡± ¡°Doctor Messelson?¡± Young-Joon squinted. ¡°What was he calling about?¡± Yoo Song-Mi nced at the people around her, including Tanya and Kim Young-Hoon. ¡°It¡¯s okay, just tell me. He¡¯s in Africa right now on a search mission.¡± ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right. He said he found one of the hideouts of the Palestine Liberation Front.¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joon thought for a moment. Before thest GSC conference, there were anthrax attacks in Africa along the anthracis fence. Messelson was working with the CIA and a coalition of African governments to track down the terrorist. ¡°Did he say whether it was sessful?¡± ¡°He said they obtained some top-secret documents and research facilities. He said the research data is so difficult that even he needs to study it to understand it.¡± ¡°There¡¯s no one in the world who knows more about anthrax weapons than Doctor Messelson. It must be different data about different research,¡± Young-Joon said. Then, Young-Joon spoke to the room. ¡°Everyone,¡± he said to Kim Young-Hoon and the developers. ¡°Mr. Kim here is well-versed in both biology andputer science, and he¡¯s used to coborations betweenpanies as he¡¯s been an executive at two majorpanies for a long time. Mr. Kim will take the lead on this project. I¡¯ll be back after a quick phone call.¡± Young-Joon introduced Kim Young-Hoon and walked out with Yoo Song-Mi. * * * Guangdong Province was bordered by the towering Nanling Mountains to the north and by the ocean to the south. With the river flowing in all directions and awork of waterways, the province boasted a natural ecological environment. The city was not only the economic heart of China, but also the lungs of the environment. The wends established around the city showcased the beautiful scenery of humans and nature living together symbiotically. ¡®You can¡¯t see this in most countries in the West, where the market economy has led them to develop recklessly.¡¯ It was so beautiful that the International Horticultural Expo organized a ¡°Guangdong Day¡± to promote its environment. Growing up in Guangdong, Yang Gunyu, the governor of Guangdong, loved the beauty of the city¡¯s environment, sometimes even more so than its economic power, which rivaled that of Russia at times. ¡°True riches lie in a clean environment,¡± Yang Gunyu murmured to himself as he walked along the Haizhou Wend. This was one of Guangdong¡¯s development ideologies in recent years. ¡°You don¡¯t want to tamper with an ecosystem like this. Who knows what will happen if you mess with something like mosquitoes.¡± Yang Gunyu walked the flocks of ducks floating in the water, submerging their heads for food, and the cranes flying away. ¡°Mr. Governor,¡± said his secretary. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°There¡¯s trouble. The protest in Maoming City against the opening of a paraxylene nt is turning into a riot.¡± ¡°What?¡± Yang Gunyu nced at his secretary. ¡°They¡¯ve risen up, demanding to know why we¡¯re suppressing a peaceful protest. They¡¯re throwing rocks and setting police vehicles on fire... Take a look at this.¡± His secretary held out their phone. It was a video on Weibo, China¡¯s social media, that showed fully armed police officers mercilessly beating citizens with batons. There were screams, blood, and mes everywhere, and citizens were fighting back by throwing rocks at them. ¡ªShut down polluting facilities! ¡ªGuarantee our right to survival! ¡°Those stupid bastards!¡± Yang Gunyu shouted as he listened to the citizens shouting. ¡°That factory zone doesn¡¯t cause any problems in environmental pollution or public health! I¡¯m responsible for it, and I¡¯ve consulted all kinds of experts. Those imbeciles don¡¯t know how fond I am of Guangdong¡¯s environment.¡± ¡°The situation isn¡¯t good, sir. They say there were at least fifteen casualties among the protestors during the crackdown.¡± ¡°Nonsense. Send more officers. I can¡¯t allow this to escte further. And announce that there were spies among the protestors who were encouraging violent protests,¡± Yang Gunyu said. Paraxylene was a petrochemical used as a raw material for a variety of things, such as stic bottles, films, and polyester clothing. However, it was a carcinogen that caused harm when it umted in the body. Because of this, citizens of Maoming, a city in Guangdong, were protesting the operation of the newly built paraxylene factories. ¡°No, wait,¡± Yang Gunyu said. ¡°The reason why citizens are protesting right now is because the paraxylene factory in Zhangzhou explodedst year.¡± In fact, there were no issues during the construction of the paraxylene factory in Maoming, but the atmosphere had changed after the explosion in Zhangzhou resulted in casualties and the release of paraxylene into the environment. ¡°They were especially shocked because the People¡¯s Daily reported that paraxylene is as safe as coffee right before the explosion,¡± the secretary said. ¡°That¡¯s why they are scared,¡± replied Yang Gunyu. ¡°Because those idiots couldn¡¯t take care of a factory... It¡¯s obviously highly mmable because it¡¯s a petrochemical. Of course the factory will explode if it catches on fire.¡± Yang Gunyu frowned as he thought. ¡°Perhaps there¡¯s no point in suppressing them by force. Most of the people who are protesting probably don¡¯t have much understanding of the environment or paraxylene. All they¡¯re thinking of is probably that it will explode like Zhangzhou, causing casualties and spraying dangerous carcinogens into the air,¡± Yang Gunyu said. ¡°Then simply cracking down on them might backfire. They might think their lives are in danger and be even more violent... We should actually coax them. Let¡¯s announce that we¡¯re going to talk to the residents and take things slow, no more crackdowns.¡± ¡°Then should we dy opening the factory? Xenopac won¡¯t stand for it.¡± Xenopac was China¡¯srgest oil production conglomerate. They were also the owners of the paraxylene factory zone. ¡°That¡¯s just what we¡¯re going to say. The area around the factory is all Xenopac¡¯s property anyway, and it¡¯s guarded by their security guards and our police. Tell them to keep the public out and run the factories in secret,¡± Yang Gunyu said. ¡°After about six months, tell the people that it has actually been running for six months. If you ask them if they have any health problems, they won¡¯t be able to organize this stupid protest again.¡± ¡°I see what you mean. We¡¯ll go ahead with that,¡± said the secretary. ¡°And Mr. Governor, there¡¯s something else.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s about Doctor Ryu Young-Joon from A-GenBio.¡± ¡°What about Doctor Ryu?¡± ¡°He¡¯d like to speak with you.¡± * * * ¡°Stop the paraxylene factories,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡ªWhat are you talking about? Are you sure you got the right number? Yang Gunyu sounded like he was irritated. ¡°Yes, I¡¯m sure,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°The footage of the riots and bloodshed that was uploaded on Weibo is all over the news, so I couldn¡¯t help but see it. I also saw the pollution treatment facilities and schematics released by Xenopac, saying the factories are safe,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡ªThen you must know that there¡¯s nothing wrong with the factory. We¡¯ve already consulted numerous wastewater treatment experts, including Doctor Crape, an expert in ecology. Yang Gunyu went on. ¡ªAnd you, the head of some trivialpany, have no right to interfere in internal affairs and tell me, the governor of Guangdong Province, what to do. Know your ce. The operation of the paraxylene factories is a matter for me to decide after consulting my residents. Yang Gunyu sounded adamant. ¡°Think of it as advice, not inference in your internal affairs,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°If you put that wastewater facility into operation, it will be devastating to the ecology of Guangdong¡¯s wends.¡± ¡ªYou¡¯re joking. Did you not just hear what I said? Doctor Ryu, you are an expert in biology and medicine, but are you saying you know a lot about wastewater treatment, too? ¡°You can understand the schematic of the treatment if you have some knowledge of organic chemistry. You¡¯re adding an oxidizer to the wastewater to drop the pH below 7.5, then adding ferric salt to five percent of the total volume of the wastewater to precipitate the waste, and then adding dithiocarbamate to filter it and discharge it into the sewage system, right?¡± ¡ª... Yang Gunyu was silent. ¡°It¡¯s definitely not biology, but chemical physics and organic chemistry. But there are some things I know because I¡¯m a biologist. I know that the waste will contain unfiltered polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), which will be fatal to the wends in Guangdong.¡± ¡ªDoctor Ryu, please excuse my insolence. Could you borate on that? ¡°The reason why a ce like Guangdong hasn¡¯t had a major mosquito-borne epidemic so far is because the wends are well-managed. It¡¯s hard for mosquitoes to reproduce in ss B water[1] because there are a lot of predators that prey on mosquitorvae. But it will bepletely different if you release that wastewater." 1. ss B is the second-best water quality ? Chapter 209: Laboratory Seven (7)

Chapter 209: Laboratory Seven (7)

Yang Gunyu was speaking with Young-Joon on the phone. ¡ªWhat happens if we release the wastewater? ¡°The wends there are home to an aquatic insect called Hydrochara caraboides. It¡¯s a type of beetle, and they are natural predators of mosquitorvae that eat one thousandrvae a day,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°If you release wastewater into the wends, it will change the acidity and the caraboids will be exterminated from the area.¡± ¡ªDoes that mean the number of mosquitoes will increase? ¡°Yes. It¡¯s not a problem if mosquitoes disappear because caraboids eat other insects as well, but it¡¯s apletely different story if the caraboids disappear. Other predators, like rice fish, also eat caraboids, but that¡¯s not enough...¡± ¡ªStop. Yang Gunyu cut Young-Joon off. ¡ªStop, Doctor Ryu. It was a mistake asking you. You¡¯re just saying this again because you want to do the mosquito project here, right? ¡°I think you¡¯re misunderstanding what I¡¯m saying. I told you that I am going to do the project somewhere else.¡± ¡ª... ¡°I am a little bit more interested in Guangdong, but that¡¯s purely because Guangdong is structurally very vulnerable to mosquito-borne diseases. I¡¯m just worried about the people there, and I have no reason to do it in Guangdong when you¡¯re against it,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°But if you discard that wastewater, it will be a bio-disaster that will be pretty difficult to deal with. You might see swarms of mosquitoes that you see in ska in Guangdong. And I¡¯m saying this because you seem to care about the environment in Guangdong.¡± Yang Gun-Yu interrupted Young-Joon as he was speaking. ¡ªI will take care of Guangdong¡¯s people and the environment myself. Thank you for your concern, but we will be fine. ¡°... Alright. Then can I ask you a personal question not regarding this?¡± ¡ªWhat? I don¡¯t like having constant friction with you either, so I¡¯ll answer it to the best of my abilities. ¡°Do you know anything about the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region? Have there been any incidents there recently or...¡± ¡ªNothing that I know of. And Guangzhou is a long way from Xinjiang Uygur. The distance from here to Uygur is ten times the size of Korea. I am busy enough with Guangdong¡¯s affairs, and I don¡¯t know what¡¯s going on in the far northwest. ¡°Alright,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡ªIs there anything else? ¡°No.¡± ¡ªThen I¡¯ll see you next time. The call ended. ¡°...¡± Young-Joon stared at his phone, a little surprised. Rosaline looked at him. ¡ªYou¡¯re not very liked. ¡°They¡¯re going to be in a lot of trouble if they run that factory.¡± ¡ªThey reap what they sow. But their announcement to the press today said that they¡¯re going to discuss it with the people. ¡°They¡¯re just buying time. They are going to start it because of how much money they spent on building it.¡± ¡ªThe mosquito infestation will reach disastrous levels soon, and they will call you for help. ¡°... What¡¯s the likelihood of a dengue or Zika epidemic happening? Only having mosquitoes would be a nuisance, but an epidemic could be quite dangerous.¡± ¡ªIt depends a lot on how well the Chinese health authorities defend themselves. It¡¯s a little hard to predict that with a simtion right now. Young-Joon thought for a moment. ¡ªJust abandon Guangdong. You did as much as you could. Rosaline interrupted. ¡°What¡¯s bothering me about Guangdong is that it includes Macau, Guangzhou, and even Hong Kong. Though, I guess Hong Kong has a separate border.¡± ¡ªBorders are meaningless to mosquitoes. ¡°Yes. There are also Koreanpanies in Guangdong as it¡¯s an economic hub with a lot of important cities. That¡¯s why I wanted to start the project as soon as possible, but... We don¡¯t have a choice.¡± ¡ªThere is one way to minimize the impact on civilians and businesses there. Rosaline piqued Young-Joon¡¯s interest. ¡°There¡¯s a way?¡± ¡ªSwarms of mosquitoes will appear after they throw away the wastewater, which will paralyze the economy and daily life for a while. There will be no point in using bug spray or repellent because they will swarm the moment you step out the door. Rosaline exined to Young-Joon. ¡°Probably. You¡¯re bound to get bitten since it¡¯s a game of probability and you can only repel them so much.¡± ¡ªLet¡¯s make a new, stronger mosquito repellent. ¡°How?¡± ¡ªI will tell you how the mosquito¡¯s olfactory neurons work. The mosquitoes find and attack you as the byproducts of sweat evaporating from your body attach to the CpA receptors in their olfactory cells. But if you add a toxic substance to those byproducts, they won¡¯t. [Synchronization Mode: Mosquito repellent.] ¡°Thanks,¡± Young-Joon said as he expanded the window for Synchronization Mode. ¡°I¡¯ll try to contact at least the Koreanpanies in Guangdong.¡± ¡ªAnd just do the mosquito project somewhere else. ¡°Yeah. I don¡¯t think someone as stubborn as Yang Gunyu is going to change. Anyway, I¡¯ll choose a different country for the project since we can just change the data and use it in another city once the AI is developed. Singapore contacted me, so I¡¯ll do it there.¡± And Young-Joon had a lot more to worry about, especially Xinjiang Uygur. ¡ªWhat¡¯s going on in that region? ¡°I have no idea.¡± * * * Young-Joon, who left the project meeting to Kim Young-Hoon and left the room, talked with Messelson on the phone. Doctor Messelson was having great difficulty understanding the research that was happening. Messelson was talking to Young-Joon on the phone. ¡ªIt doesn¡¯t seem like a biology experiment. I¡¯ve never seen these kinds of experiments before in my life. They were trying to develop an artificial membrane with an electron transport system with lipids. They took cytochromes from chlorosts in nt leaves and put them on the membrane. Messelsonined to Young-Joon. ¡ªWhat were they trying to do, recreate a primitive cell? ¡°...¡± Young-Joon nced over at Rosaline. ¡®This experiment is totally to make you.¡¯ Rosaline scoffed. ¡ªBut they won¡¯t be able to. The event of life creation in the natural world is not of aplexity that the human brain canprehend or predict, not even you, who has been heavily influenced by me. ¡®Okay.¡¯ Young-Joon went back to the call with Messelson, a little embarrassed. ¡°Was there anything else that was unusual?¡± ¡ªThey also made a virus. ¡°Anthracis is a bacteria, not a virus.¡± ¡ªYes, but there¡¯s data about developing a virus. It seems to be a lentivirus, but they inactivated it by maniption. I don¡¯t know what it¡¯s for. ¡°They would have used that for the GSC conference attack if it was more dangerous than anthrax.¡± ¡ªI was relieved at that point, but the CIA found other material. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡ªIt¡¯s in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous region. They sent the virus there. ¡°Really?¡± ¡ªI¡¯m telling you this because the CIA said I could tell you, but don¡¯t tell other people. ¡°... Alright.¡± ¡ªThe CIA is investigating Xinjiang Uygur right now to determine what this virus was for and what it was used for. ¡°Do you have a sample of that bacteria?¡± ¡ªI have one. ¡°Could you send it to me?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡ªSure. I will send it to you shortly. * * * Click. Young-Joon was chatting with Rosaline about the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region when someone walked into his office. It was Yoo Song-Mi, his secretary. ¡°Remember the illegal organ transnts in China that use organs from prisoners of conscience?¡± she asked. ¡°Yes, I asked you to look into it.¡± ¡°We haven¡¯t gathered much yet, and we can¡¯t ess most of it due to security reasons.¡± ¡°I think you could track down some medical papers.¡± ¡°Like you¡¯re saying, we¡¯ve been studying some Chinese organ transnt papers at the office.¡± ¡°Can the secretary¡¯s office do that, too?¡± ¡°Of course. We don¡¯t know the details like other scientists, but there are some things we can figure out as well,¡± Yoo Song-Mi said. ¡°A lot of organ transnt surgeries happened in Xinjiang Uygur recently.¡± ¡°What?¡± Young-Joon¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°Since about three years ago, there have been about thirty thousand organ transnt surgeries in their hospitals. Most of the data in the medical papers point there.¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joon took a moment to think. ¡®What is going on there?¡¯ * * * Anthony, an editor at Nature, also obtained simr information. He was currently in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. He was there to interview professors at the medical school. ¡°There have been a lot of organ transnts at Xinjiang University and affiliated hospitals nearby,¡± he said. ¡°I was wondering if I could see the relevant data or meet the medical staff who performed the surgeries?¡± ¡°We cannot reveal information regarding the transnt because of the donor and patient¡¯s privacy rights, and you must make an appointment to meet with the medical staff,¡± replied the receptionist at the counter. ¡°Then please schedule an appointment right now.¡± ¡°What is your name?¡± ¡°Anthony Perrison. I¡¯m British.¡± ¡°And the reason for your visit?¡± ¡°I¡¯m curious about the surgical process. I¡¯m not very well.¡± ¡°Can I see your ID?¡± ¡°Do you need an ID to schedule an appointment?¡± The receptionist just stared at Anthony instead of answering him. ¡°Here you go.¡± Anthony gave the receptionist his ID. He could see his staff ID for Nature, but he took out his passport instead. ¡°... The doctor who was in charge of the operations is on vacation and not avable,¡± said the receptionist as they typed. ¡°This ward alone had over five thousand surgeriesst year. You guys must have more than one doctor, right?¡± ¡°The doctor who specializes in your area of difort isn¡¯t in.¡± ¡°I haven¡¯t even said where I had difort.¡± ¡°Next.¡± The receptionist called on the person who was standing behind Anthony. He stepped to the side, baffled, and looked around the hospital. It looked suspicious. The hospital was full of important patients, and there were some elderly patients in wheelchairs with an entourage in suits. ¡°Hey.¡± Someone behind Anthony poked him in the shoulder. ¡°Ack!¡± Anthony looked back, startled. It was a tall man with a muscr physique. ¡°You looked British. I¡¯m Robert.¡± Robert, a CIA agent, introduced himself in a British ent. ¡°Oh, hello. Are you British?¡± ¡°My mother is. I¡¯m actually American. What¡¯s your name?¡± ¡°Anthony Perrison.¡± ¡°Can we have a chat?¡± Robert took Anthony outside to his car. ¡°You¡¯re a reporter, aren¡¯t you?¡± Robert asked. ¡°What?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t seem like you¡¯re very good at digging for information. Every media outlet is here, from Fox to CNN. The receptionist was just trying to check your ID, they weren¡¯t actually going to let you meet someone. You were yed.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°It was so naive of you to go to the hospital administration to make an appointment. Where are you from?¡± ¡°... I¡¯m an editor for Nature.¡± ¡°Haha, I see. I guess you don¡¯t have to pry for hidden information in the scientificmunity since they just tell you everything if you ask. It¡¯s pretty fascinating to see reporters from academic journals here.¡± ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± ¡°It¡¯s one of those things that¡¯s been known for a long time, but it¡¯s been hidden. There¡¯s a huge concentration camp in this area.¡± ¡°A concentration camp?¡± ¡°Xinjiang Uygur is a predominantly Muslim region with very strong anti-Chinese sentiment. There¡¯s been a lot of opposition to the Chinese government because of their religion, and there have been armed conflicts as well,¡± Robert said. ¡°The Chinese government suppressed them all with force and createdbor camps.¡± ¡°Labour camps?¡± ¡°It¡¯s called abor camp, but it¡¯s just a concentration camp that houses a million Muslim Uygurs.¡± ¡°... What...¡± Anthony froze. ¡°What were you originally investigating that brought you here?¡± Robert asked. ¡°T... The illegal organ transnts of executed prisoners of conscience...¡± ¡°I see. But now, it''s not something that should be handled by an academic journal. Worse things are going on than what I¡¯ve told you. I can¡¯t tell you much more than that. Stop traveling so naively in a dangerous ce and go home,¡± Robert said. ¡°But if... If what I think is happening is really happening, it¡¯s also a medical problem,¡± said Anthony, barely suppressing his fear. ¡°The academicmunity also has a right and duty to know...¡± Anthony spoke to Robert in a small voice. ¡°You will know sooner orter.¡± Chapter 210: Laboratory Seven (8) Chapter 210: Laboratory Seven (8) Young-Joon was on the phone with Jessie, the editor for Science. ¡°Are you still in Guangdong?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡ªYes, I am. There¡¯s something I want to look into. ¡°I guess Science isn¡¯t interested in the Xinjiang Uygur region? There were a lot of transnt surgeries there.¡± ¡ªOh¡­ Other reporters are there right now. I have something to do in Guangdong. ¡°Are you studying ecology?¡± ¡ªYes. I don¡¯t do research right now, but I was a pretty promising aquatic ecologist seven years ago. ¡°Hm¡­ Doctor Jessie, the aquatic ecologist. In your opinion, how are the wends in Guangdong Province?¡± ¡ªAlthough I can¡¯t disclose more information, but¡­ I will tell you, Doctor Ryu. The wends are in very good condition right now. It would be difficult to find a better-managed wend in the city.¡°What if the wastewater from paraxylene is disposed of there?¡± ¡ªThere¡¯s no telling what will happen. The n for the wastewater treatment was released, right? The editorial board of Science sent it to a professor at Duke University¡¯s chemistry department for consultation. ¡°What did they say?¡± ¡ªThey warned that the polychlorinated biphenyls (PBCs) could be unfiltered and go into the wends. ¡°I see.¡± ¡ªI¡¯m investigating the effect that PCBs have on the ecology of the wend. The researchers from Guangdong University are sponsoring me. But I don¡¯t have enough manpower or good equipment, so it¡¯s pretty difficult. Jessie expressed her concern. ¡ªWe need to look at the organisms that are most likely to be affected by the PCB leak, and it¡¯s a bit difficult to figure that out¡­ ¡°There¡¯s an aquatic beetle called Hydrocara caraboides that live in those wends. Why don¡¯t you look into those?¡± Young-Joon suggested. ¡ªCaraboides? ¡°Yes.¡± ¡ª... How did you know that? ¡°Because I stayed in Guangdongst time. I was taking a walk near a wend and saw it. It¡¯s a predator of mosquitorvae and has a pretty strong ecological impact, so you should check it out.¡± ¡ªThank you. Young-Joon hung up. Soon after, another guest visited his office. It was CIA agent Whittaker, and he was being escorted in by Yoo Song Mi. Of course, no one in the office knew who Whittaker was, including Yoo Song-Mi. Young-Joon and Whittaker began talking after Yoo Song-Mi left the room. ¡°I was ordered by the White House to share this information with you. This is what we¡¯ve found about Doctor Ref so far.¡± ¡°Thank you. Please brief me.¡± ¡°Doctor Ref, born in 1986, and her real name is Isaiah Franklin. She¡¯s American.¡± ¡°You found her pretty easily.¡± ¡°She left a lot of her personal information at the camp as if she was taunting us to find her.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°We still haven¡¯t figured out why she used the name ¡®Ref.¡¯ It seems like thest letter stands for ¡®Franklin.¡¯¡± However, Young-Joon already had an idea of what her name stood for. It was most likely for Rosalind Elsie Franklin. She was the biologist who made the most important contribution to the discovery of the double helix structure of DNA and a victim of sexism that was rampant in twentieth-century science. ¡®Though I don¡¯t know why she¡¯s so obsessed with that name.¡¯ ¡°Her mother is an American named Elsie Franklin, and there¡¯s no information about her father,¡± Whittaker said. ¡°There¡¯s no information?¡± ¡°Yes. There¡¯s no record of him even at the hospital Elsie Franklin had the baby in. Then, she took Isaiah with her to Palestine, where she raised her.¡± ¡°Why Palestine all of a sudden? I can¡¯t imagine an American woman going to the Middle East and raising her young daughter there by herself, especially in a country that¡¯s at war with Israel?¡± ¡°Her address is a conflict zone as well. I¡¯m assuming she had some rtives or connections there,¡± Whittaker said. ¡°I see.¡± ¡°And Isaiah Franklin was the genius of the century. She won all kinds of awards at international math and sciencepetitions in elementary school.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°She went to an institution for gifted children at Cambridge University in Ennd and received university-level education when she was in junior high.¡± Whittaker gave Young-Joon a bunch of documents. ¡°There is only one reason we are telling you this information,¡± Whittaker added. ¡°Doctor Ref has sent some kind of virus to the Xinjiang Uygur region that we don¡¯t know about, and we want you to find out what it is.¡± ¡°Did you bring the virus?¡± ¡°Doctor Messelson packaged it himself. He told me that you should take it to theb and open it in the hood, not the office.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine, just give it to me now.¡± Whittaker took out a styrofoam box from his bag. The box was full of liquid nitrogen, and at the bottom was an ice block wrapped with parafilm. When Young-Joon opened the ice box, he saw a small cryovial that was also wrapped in parafilm. Young-Joon stared at the vial. ¡°...¡± Young-Joon¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°Thank you. I¡¯ll look into it.¡± ¡°The Xinjiang Uygur Region has a lot of problems due to political conflict. We don¡¯t know what that lunatic terrorist who sent anthrax to the GSC International Conference has done,¡± Whittaker said. ¡°The White House is very concerned about this situation.¡± ¡°... Alright.¡± Sweat ran down Young-Joon¡¯s back. Now he was worried, too. *** ¡°I¡¯m really excited to have threepanies working on this project together,¡± said Kin Young-Hoon. ¡°A-GenBio has done a lot of great things, but this project will be especially big. I¡¯ve been working on the responsibilities of each team. First of all¡­¡± ¡°Wait.¡± Min Byung-Jin, theb director of SG Electronics, intervened. ¡°Like you said, this is a big project. But I feel that SG Electronics isn¡¯t getting enough. A-GenBio is providing the biological data, and Ms. Tanya Manker is providing GRO¡¯s algorithm, but the ones who are actually doing the coding are SG Electronics¡¯ software department, right?¡± ¡°I was under the impression that the legal teams of threepanies have already agreed on the division of profits and had it approved by the CEOs. We are to pay one hundred billion won to you, aren¡¯t we?¡± Kim Young-Hoon said. ¡°Give it to us in stocks, please,¡± said Min Byung-Jin. ¡°¡­¡± Kim Young-Hoon stared at him quietly. ¡±Do you want to write a new contract?¡± ¡±That¡¯s right. Wouldn¡¯t having stocks make SG Electronics more passionate about this project?¡± ¡±What about you, Ms. Manker?¡± Kim Young-Hoon asked Tanya. ¡°I¡¯m satisfied with thepensation now. And speaking as a scientist, not as the CEO of apany, I really want to do this project because I want to see if GRO can handle that much data. I would even do it for nopensation.¡± ¡°¡­ I will ask Mr. Ryu about your proposition, Director Min,¡± Kim Young-Hoon said. ¡°I thought he would be here today,¡± Min Byung-Jin said, ¡°He has more important things to do. I will be leading the project for a while.¡± The meeting proceeded swiftly. They were going to restructure the program ording to GRO¡¯s algorithm at SG Electronics¡¯ softwareb; GRO¡¯s environmental analysis algorithm was added to the thirty thousand species and habitats on the program. And about three hourster, during the break, Kim Young-Hoon took Min Byung-Jin to his office. ¡°Why are you interested in stocks?¡± he asked. ¡°Director Kim, A-GenBio is now the greatest pharmaceuticalpany in the world, and it¡¯s a huge gold mine. Of course, it¡¯s in SG Electronics¡¯ best interest to expand our influence in thispany.¡± ¡°You¡¯re expanding your influence?¡± ¡±Doctor Ryu is in charge of the research, right? But he doesn¡¯t have experience running argepany like this. A-Bio had a lot of money and was valuable, but it wasn¡¯t big.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°SG Electronics is nning to increase its share in thepany and take control of A-GenBio with you at the forefront.¡± ¡°Sigh¡­¡± Kim Young-Hoon let out a quiet sigh. ¡°What are you going to do after you take control?¡± he asked. ¡°What do you mean? There are countless things we can gain with apany this big¡­¡± ¡°Stop. That¡¯s enough. I am not interested in running thispany,¡± Kim Young-Hoon said. ¡°Director?¡± ¡°I have already benefited from A-Bio¡¯s technology. A-Bio¡¯s diagnostic kit and the pancreatic cancer treatment saved my mother¡¯s life, and my wife is on Amuc for her diabetes.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I know because I was an executive at SG Electronics who climbed pretty high on thedder but ended up getting kicked out. Director, let¡¯s not turn A-GenBio into another ordinary chaebol group,¡± Kim Young-Hoon said. ¡°Maybe it would have been okay if A-GenBio made cell phones or home appliances like SG Electronics, but the products developed here are directly rted to people¡¯s lives. I don¡¯t want to bully Mr. Ryu with capital when ites to management rights.¡± ¡°...¡± Min Byung-Jin scratched his head like he was a little embarrassed. Kim Young-Hoon added, ¡°If you are not satisfied with this, Director Min, or if you want SG Electronics to influence A-GenBio¡¯s management rights, then we can¡¯t work together. I¡¯ll find another development team, so tell me now.¡± ¡°No,¡± Min Byung-Jin said. ¡°Let¡¯s keep working together¡­ I¡¯ll deliver it to the superiors.¡± ¡°Thank you. Mr. Ryu¡¯s attention is focused on something right now. I don¡¯t know the details, but I don¡¯t want to bother him with something as trivial as this.¡± ¡®How can he call this trivial when SG Electronics is trying to gain control of apany like A-GenBio? What the hell is Doctor Ryu doing right now?¡¯ Min Byung-Jin gulped in uneasiness. * * * Young-Joon was away from the office for twenty-four hours every day. Instead, he was locked away in hisb at Lab Seven for the entire day. Even the executives who reported to him came to Lab Seven instead of the main office. ¡°What are you working on that you can¡¯te to the headquarters?¡± asked Yoo Song-Mi, who hade to deliver a report to Young-Joon, in frustration. ¡°Thebs in Lab Seven are the most familiar to me, and there are fewer people here than the otherbs, so it¡¯s easier to run the equipment,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Why don¡¯t you just have the researchers from Lab Seven do the work?¡± ¡°They¡¯re already working on their research. But they¡¯re mostly working on mosquito repellents¡­ I¡¯m working on something different.¡± ¡°Something different?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a cure for subacute necrotizing encephalomyelopathy.¡± ¡°Whatnguage is that?¡± Yoo Song-Mi asked. ¡°It¡¯s medicine. It¡¯s something that affects the central nervous system.¡± Chapter 211: Laboratory Seven (9)

Chapter 211: Laboratory Seven (9)

¡°That¡¯s a scary name,¡± Yoo Song-Mi said. ¡°It is actually terrifying. It¡¯s a rare gic disorder that¡¯s usually found in babies between the ages of three and twelve months, but it can also ur in adults.¡± Young-Joon began exining to Yoo Song-Mi, but paused. ¡°Do they die if they get it?¡± ¡°Ultimately, yes.¡± ¡°It is really scary.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a disorder that¡¯s caused by a mutation in the mitochondria. It usually starts with an inability to feed or hold their neck up, then they develop problems like vomiting, epilepsy, seizures, loss of muscle strength, and then an increase inctic acid in the cerebrospinal fluid. Then, their vision will deteriorate, their eye muscles will be paralyzed, and they will ultimately die from respiratory distress or loss of heart function.¡± ¡°...¡± Yoo Song-Mi gulped. ¡°Anyways, let¡¯s talkter since I¡¯m busy,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Thank you for bringing me the report.¡± * * * The development of the artificial intelligence quickly progressed under Kim Young-Hoon¡¯s leadership. The software developers from SG Electronics were definitely talented. Tanya Manker applied GRO¡¯s machine learning algorithms to ecosystems and helped the artificial intelligence program learn the poption of organisms, food chain pyramids, and terrain structures. But before they could enter the big data of thirty thousand species that Young-Joon provided, they had to first train it to understand ecosystems. ¡°For example, in order to train a machine to distinguish between cats and dogs, you have to show it tens of thousands of pictures of cats and dogs,¡± said Tanya Manker. ¡°Before entering the data of thirty thousand species, we have to show the program data about other organisms and examples of what happens when something happens in that data.¡± Doctor Legion was responsible for that practice data. ¡°Australia has the highest rate of extinction in the world, with fifty-four species of animals and twenty-eight native mammals going extinct in thest two hundred years,¡± said Doctor Legion. ¡°For this reason, ecology has long been an important branch of study in Australia, and I have a data set on ecosystem disturbance because I¡¯ve studied it for a long time. It¡¯s nothingpared to the thirty thousand species in Guangdong that Doctor Ryu brought, but the AI will be able to learn from it.¡± When Europeansnded in Australia in the eighteenth century, they brought with them livestock like cats, rabbits, red foxes, deer, buffalo, goats, and ostriches, as well as animals like donkeys and camels. These data were the best to learn about environmental changes caused by thepetition between native and invasive species. ¡°I will leave the entirety of the coding to SG Electronics,¡± Kim Young-Hoon said. The project¡¯s progress was extremely sessful, thanks to thebination of the climate-based AI algorithm and program, a data set of various organisms, and the best software developers in the world. The project progressed quickly as the task delegation of Kim Young-Hoon, who understood the various elements of this project, was exquisite. * * * About a monthter, a prototype of ABAI (A-GenBio Artificial Intelligence), A-GenBio¡¯s ecological environmental prediction program, was ready. Young-Joon left Laboratory Seven and traveled to the headquarters to see their progress. ¡°Director Min Byung-Jin will exin it to you,¡± Kim Young-Hoon said. ¡°The AI was developed based on the data set provided by Doctor Legion and the algorithm developed by Ms. Tanya Manker,¡± said Min Byung-Jin. ¡°In the context of native and invasive speciespeting, we introduced a species called the Cane Toad, which was originally intended to control beetles that eat sugarcane, but it failed,¡± Doctor Legion said. ¡°It was because the Australian sugarcane is tall, and the beetles cling to the top; the Cane Toad can¡¯t jump that high. Ultimately, it resulted in no positive impact on sugarcane cultivation but the elimination of other predators because of the toad¡¯s venom. The number of animals like quolls and goanna, which are native to Australia, plummeted. ¡°Let¡¯s test whether the AI can predict this event.¡± Min Byung-Jin activated the program. The program¡¯s name popped up, along with the AB7 logo, which stood for A-GenBio Laboratory Seven. [ABAI] It was short for ¡°A-GenBio Artificial Intelligence. Min Byung-Jin clicked on the sugarcane field in North Queennd, Australia. He selected the Cane Toad from the learned species data and adjusted the number to three hundred. [Release] He sped up the time after pressing the button. About a monthter in the AI, the number of quolls and goanna that lived in the area gradually decreased. After a while, the toads began to move westward at a rate of forty kilometers per year. ¡°It¡¯s because of the weather,¡± Tanya Manker said. ¡°This program mimics the GRO¡¯s climate prediction system. The area that is a bit west of where they were released is warmer and more humid, which is a more favorable environment for the toads to live in.¡± ¡°And the migration speed was calcted based on the radius of the toad¡¯s activity,¡± Park Hyun, a developer of SG Electronics, interjected. ¡°Let¡¯s elerate to 2009, thest time Doctor Legion checked the toad poption,¡± Min Byung-Jin said as he pressed the button to elerate the time. Now, the habitat had expanded two thousand kilometers from the released area. The poption had grown to more than ten thousand organisms. ¡°That¡¯s simr to thest time I checked the data,¡± Doctor Legion said. ¡°Good,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°It can¡¯t digest the data of thirty thousand species yet, right?¡± ¡°Yes, but it¡¯s developed enough now that we can slowly start to input that data, one by one,¡± said Tanya Manker. ¡°Thank you.¡± * * * Kim Young-Hoon came after Young-Joon, who left the room after the meeting. ¡°Mr. Ryu.¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°As long as our program is based on Tanya Manker¡¯s GRO algorithm, we will continue to pay a certain amount of royalties to GRO,¡± Kim Young-Hoon said. ¡°Yes, I am aware of that. I¡¯m sure that was the best solution that both legal teams came up with.¡± ¡°If you¡¯re going to use that program at Lab Seven in the future to deal with various environmental issues, why don¡¯t you just absorb GRO?¡± ¡°Absorb?¡± ¡°You can make it an affiliate of A-GenBio.¡± ¡°But I don¡¯t think Ms. Manker would do that. First of all, GRO is in the U.S., while Lab Seven is in Korea.¡± ¡°So, what if we tie it to the cancerb in the United States?¡± ¡°The cancerb?¡± ¡°We could exchange some equity with the A-GenBio Cancer Laboratory.¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joon thought for a moment. Kim Young-Hoon advised once more. ¡°If we improve the environment, we¡¯re going to be fighting a lot of carcinogens. I think there¡¯s a lot of synergy between A-GenBio Cancer Laboratory and GRO.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a good idea, since we¡¯ll have to keep using that program anyways. Can you talk to Ms. Manker about it?¡± ¡°Alright. Thank you.¡± As Kim Young-Hoon started to walk away, Young-Joon grabbed him again. ¡°By the way, Director Kim, were you always this passionate about work? I¡¯ve hardly ever seen you active at A-Gen except when you¡¯re helping me,¡± Young-Joon asked with a smile. ¡°I¡¯ve been thinking about retiring because I¡¯m getting older now, but I suddenly felt energized when I was given the opportunity to lead a big project like this,¡± Kim Young-Hoon replied, chuckling. * * * Another month had passed. It was now April, and mosquitoes were starting to appear in warmer areas like Guangdong. ¡°It is a little early.¡± Yang Gunyu, the governor of Guangdong, pondered after receiving a report that mosquitoes were starting to appear. It had already been two months since Young-Joon¡¯s warning. ¡°Ah, it¡¯ll be fine.¡± Young-Joon may be the world¡¯s best biologist, but unless he was God, he couldn¡¯t know everything. The wastewater treatment facilities at the paraxylene nt were perfect, and there wouldn¡¯t be any problems. But with a strange feeling of nervousness and anxiety, Yang Gunyu went online to A-GenBio¡¯s website. [A-GenBio, the world¡¯s leading biopharmaceuticalpany, opening up the future.] Then, something suddenly popped up. [ABAI Trial Launching by A-GenBio CEO Ryu Young-Joon_Live Streaming. View Now] Yang Gunyu¡¯s eyes narrowed. He pressed the video but turned off hisputer when the screen opened to YouTube. It was because YouTube was blocked in China, and he couldn¡¯t watch it. Instead, he essed the same web address on his cell phone, which had an IP bypass program installed. The link led to an official YouTube channel set up by A-GenBio, and Young-Joon was doing a live stream. * * * ¡°A-GenBio presents ABAI, an artificial intelligence program that predicts ecosystems, created in coboration with SG Electronics and GRO, a climate change prediction program,¡± Young-Joon said. He was running a supeputer at A-GenBio¡¯s headquarters. There was a crowd of scientists and developers watching the program in action. ¡°This program is based on GRO¡¯s artificial intelligence program that predicted the red mold epidemic in the United States. The GRO, which was able to analyze factors such as weather, temperature, humidity, and wind, can now analyze ecological systems as well.¡± Young-Joon used ABAI to call up Guangdong¡¯s data. ¡°This program contains the ecological information of around thirty thousand species in Guangdong, China. We will use this program to predict the ecosystem of the Pearl River Basin, the river that flows through southern China, including Guangdong.¡± ¡ªHe¡¯s doing something weird again. ¡ªYouTube all of a sudden? ¡ªIt¡¯s Red Mold Season Two, bastards. ¡ªI don¡¯t know about the ecosystem of the Pearl River Basin, but A-GenBio will be an invasive species on YouTube, like thergemouth bass. Young-Joon presented the map of Guangdong as he read the real-timements. Then, he clicked on a tributary of the Pearl River Basin. ¡°Now, I will release ten thousand mud carp into the river.¡± Young-Joon then entered the number of mud carp into the river. Then, as he elerated the time, the carp began to disappear. ¡°The reason why the mud carp are decreasing is because they have a strongpetitor in this river: tpia, a freshwater fish from North Africa. They were introduced to China for consumption because of its fast growth rate and disease resistance,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°However, over twenty years, this fish has driven China¡¯s native fish, the mud carp, to near extinction. So let¡¯s remove tpia from the region.¡± Young-Joon removed the tpia and then reintroduced the mud carp. This time, the number of carp remained stable instead of decreasing. ¡°This is a real phenomenon found in some cities in the upper reaches of the Pearl River Basin that are trying to remove tpia. In those regions, the mud carp numbers have recovered to some extent,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°This program developed by A-GenBio is an artificial intelligence that has been trained on a huge database of climate and species, and it can track the consequences of ecosystem changes with a fairly high degree of uracy.¡± Young-Joon moved back to theputer. ¡°Now, I¡¯ll show you what happens when we run a paraxylene nt, which has been in the news recently.¡± Chapter 212: Artificial Organs (1)

Chapter 212: Artificial Organs (1)

The untreated wastewater from the paraxylene nt polluted the river. Although it seemed like there was little change, the number of several species rapidly declined, including the caraboides. And as the weather became warmer with time, suddenly something strange began to happen. [Asian tiger mosquito: 0] [Asian tiger mosquito: 12] [Asian tiger mosquito: 847] [Asian tiger mosquito: 3400] [Asian tiger mosquito: 21 740] ¡ªWhat the fuck ¡ªThe number of mosquitoes just skyrocketed ¡ªThere¡¯s one more digit every week LOL ¡ªIt¡¯s increasing like bitcoin. Is there anyone who hasn¡¯t jumped on this mosquito-coin? People were fascinated, and the number of mosquitoes didn¡¯t stop. [Asian tiger mosquito: 821 740] [Asian tiger mosquito: 3 852 700] [Asian tiger mosquito: 8 149 100] [Asian tiger mosquito: 17 847 440] ¡ªWhat the hell? ¡ªIs the program broken? ¡ªThat¡¯s scary. Ten million mosquitos is gross. People¡¯s reactions started turning into fear. And when the summer heat reached its peak in the simtion... [Asian tiger mosquito: 27 872 552 000] At some point, people stopped responding. ¡°The cause of this phenomenon is the disappearance of an aquatic insect called caraboides. The filters in the paraxylene production nt cannot filter out PCbs, and the wastewater flows out directly into the wends, exposing the caraboides to the PCBs,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Normally, when the weather starts to get warmer and mosquitoes appear, the caraboides will reproduce, eating a thousand mosquitorvae a day. That will reduce the mosquito poption and keep it in bnce. But after the release of PCBs, the caraboides have been almost wiped out in these wends, and as a result, the mosquito poption will rapidly increase by the time summer arrives.¡± Reporters, who were watching the live stream, expecting something, quickly started drafting an article. The Korean government also began to investigate the impact of the mosquito outbreak on the country. ¡°Guangdong will have to prepare for this situation very carefully. If they have already released wastewater, it¡¯s not toote to stop and buy mosquito repellent from A-GenBio,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Laboratory Seven at A-GenBio has developed a powerful mosquito repellent, and it is now in the production stage. Hopefully, citizens and businesses in Guangdong will be able to avoid this biodisaster.¡± * * * ¡°This crazy bastard!¡± Yang Gunyu mmed his desk with his fist in anger. This was a clear challenge against him. Young-Joon gathered people¡¯s attention on Youtube, and he was openly picking apart the core of Guangdong¡¯s economy and environment. The operation of the paraxylene nt was so secret that even the Chinese president didn¡¯t know about it. ¡®There¡¯s no way that Ryu Young-Joon did this knowing about it.¡¯ But considering Young-Joon¡¯s fame and recognition, there were going to be people who wanted to investigate the paraxylene nt out of fear. Bzz! His phone rang. It was the minister of health. ¡°Damn it.¡± Yang Gunyu put his phone on silent and threw it on the sofa. Click! His secretary rushed in as the office door swung open. ¡°Mr. Yang! A-GenBio is...¡± she shouted. ¡°Damn it, I saw it, too!¡± ¡°What do we do now?¡± ¡°What do you mean? ...Tell them it¡¯s just ck propaganda that A-GenBio is using to sell their mosquito repellent. Tell them there won¡¯t be any problems.¡± ¡°... Yes, sir.¡± ¡°Wait.¡± The governor stopped the secretary, who was about to leave. ¡°Get the people under you to study the wends. See how many of those caraboides or whatever insects there are right now... Get me like five or six of them.¡± ¡°Yes, sir.¡± His secretary left. Yang Gunyu chewed his nails. On the other hand, countlesspanies and citizens in various cities of Guangdong began to hold emergency meetings or contact A-GenBio. A swarm of more than twenty billion mosquitoes were going to hit Guangdong. It was Young-Joon who predicted this event, which looked like something out of a mediocre disaster movie. Moreover, the program that predicted this was GRO, the artificial intelligence that predicted the red mold disaster. Koreanpanies, especially those who were infatuated with Young-Joon¡¯s legend, were rushing to contact A-GenBio. Among them, there was one more person who got goosebumps from Young-Joon¡¯s presentation. It was Jessie, an editor for Science. While surveying wends in Guangdong, she noticed that the concentration of PCBs was gradually increasing. She also looked at caraboides and found that their numbers were declining at an rming rate in the past month. Young-Joon¡¯s fears wereing to life. ¡®This is real.¡¯ Nothing Young-Joon had ever imed had been wrong, but this was a truth that she didn¡¯t want to believe. There were times when environmental changes or abnormally high temperatures causedrge swarms of mosquitoes, flies, and locusts that damaged homes, but this was the biggest yet. As Young-Joon said, the caraboides were going to eat a lot of mosquitoes; she knew this because she saw the number of caraboides increasing when she studied the wends. This was a natural phenomenon. The weather was getting warmer, and the mosquitoes wereying eggs. The biodisaster was just around the corner. Jessie immediately published a new article in Science based on her research. It was sent directly to the next week¡¯s issue without editing as she was an editor. ¡ªJessie, what is this? Shortly thereafter, Jessie got a call from Samuel, the editor-in-chief. ¡°We have to run that story. It might not be limited to Guangdong. It¡¯s going to cross central China. A swarm of twenty billion mosquitoes is going to take over this region. Doctor Ryu is right!¡± Jessie shouted into her phone. * * * Samuel, who was nning to run Young-Joon¡¯s YouTube broadcast as tomorrow¡¯s breaking news, included Jessie¡¯s article with it. This news quickly attracted global attention, and not just because of Guangdong¡¯s importance to China¡¯s economy, but because it was also an important economic hub for the rest of the world. China was building a Silicon Valley on the Southern tip of the province. It was called Yuegangao Dawanqu (Greater Bay Area), a high-tech urban cluster development n linking Hong Kong, Macau, and nine cities in Guangdong. Many foreignpanies had already moved into southern China, banks were being built, and financial products were being marketed with huge amounts of capital invested. ¡®And twenty-eight billion mosquitoes are going to swarm over a ce like that.¡¯ Young-Joon¡¯s simtion was enough to scare the investors, but there was stronger evidence to back it now. [More evidence in support of A-GenBio¡¯s simtion.] This data that Jessie made with scientists from Guangdong University was real data measured in the wends. And they confirmed thatrge amounts of PCBs were released. Soon, investments were pulled out of banks, and dozens of big contracts, which were being signed daily, were canceled. On top of that, the citizens in the area where the paraxylene nt was being built began to rally and march again. ¡°You promised to talk to the residents, but you secretly started the nt behind our backs, which is why PCBs have increased in the wends!¡± Citizensined in front of foreign reporters, who flocked to Guangdong. And in the midst of the rapidly descending chaos, Yang Gunyu, received the worst news of all. ¡°Mosquitorvae are swarming...¡± the secretary reported to Yang Gunyu. ¡°Is it true?¡± ¡°It didn¡¯t take long for me to look into it. There was already some research done at Guangdong University with a Science editor named Jessie.¡± ¡°Damn it! If that¡¯s the case, why wasn¡¯t it reported to me?¡± ¡°They said they were going to report it to you soon... But they were toote, since we announced that we were going to put the paraxylene nt on hold. They were looking for a reason for the increase in PCBs...¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°What should we do?¡± It was a dilemma. ¡°First, stop the factory. And we have to say that we¡¯ve never started the nt before.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think that¡¯s a good idea. No one will believe us.¡± ¡°We don¡¯t have a choice. Send out that announcement for now, and contact A-GenBio for all their mosquito repellent...¡± ¡°That is...¡± ¡°Is there another problem?¡± ¡°I already contacted them. They said they don¡¯t have any left...¡± ¡°They don¡¯t have any left?¡± ¡°Their facilities are running at full capacity, but they¡¯re still running out. All thepanies in Guangdong already bought all of their stockpile.¡± ¡°Damn it!¡± Yang Gunyu swung his fist in the air in frustration. ¡°Damn it... What do we do?¡± ¡°They said they would send it to us as soon as it¡¯s produced, but...¡± ¡°But?¡± ¡°Since the situation is like this, there will inevitably be an order of supply. A-GenBio said schools, hospitals, and health centers will be the first priority, followed by Koreanpanies.¡± * * * It first began in the small wend and nearby farms located at the end of the tributary to the Pearl River Basin. It was the most polluted area, as the PCBs that flowed through the currents were collected here. It was also the warmest area in Guangdong. At first, it was no different than every spring. The mosquitos appeared one by one as the weather warmed up, and the farmers sprayed repellent and burned mosquito coils. But in just a week or two, they began to multiply at an rming rate. Mosquitoes had four life stages: egg,rva, pupa, and adult. After reaching adulthood, female mosquitoes mated and thenid their eggs in the water. The eggs hatched intorvae two dayster, pupated, then became adults. One female mosquitoyed about one hundred fifty eggs each time. Normally, most of those eggs were eaten by predators during theirrval phase, but not this time. Basically, one female mosquito became one hundred fifty mosquitoes. ¡°Oh my god...¡± He Xueying, who took a break from working on the farm because of the raging mosquitoes, doubted his eyes as he looked out the window. He could literally see a swarm of mosquitoes. He could hear them buzzing and flying around. ¡°W¡ªWait...¡± Feeling dizzy at the unbelievable and shocking sight, he remembered something and ran outside in a panic. The barn right behind the house was made up of crude walls, pirs, and a roof; it had holes all around. The Asian tiger mosquito also bit animals; they even attacked birds. ¡°No!¡± When He Xueying arrived at the barn, he copsed onto the floor. Four of his goats were dead, covered in mosquitoes. The rest of the goats were also suffering from the mosquito attacks, frantically running around to get rid of them. Within a few days, something simr began to happen in the city. Only instead of livestock dying, it was businesses, shops, and banks that were being paralyzed. Chapter 213: Artificial Organs (2) Chapter 213: Artificial Organs (2) ¡°Wow¡­ This is terrifying,¡± said Manager Joo Hee-Jun. K-BIO, a Korean venture firm in Guangdong, was doing business as usual. Not only them but most Koreanpanies in the area weren¡¯t paralyzed at all. It was because they were quick to buy A-GenBio¡¯s mosquito repellent. ¡°It looks like a swarm of locusts from a novel about the Three Kingdoms or something,¡± CEO Choi Sung-Ho said. ¡°It¡¯s a relief that we prepared the repellent in advance,¡± Joo Hee-Jun said. ¡°I heard that A-GenBio supplied it to Koreanpanies first.¡± ¡°It¡¯s probably true since there were a lot ofpanies asking for help when there wasn¡¯t a lot of stock. He¡¯s just God at this point¡­¡± ¡°But I heard that health centers and hospitals are somehow managing to get by with some emergency supplies.¡± Click. A woman walked in as the front door opened.¡°Whew.¡± She shrudded in disgust. ¡°I thought I was going to die.¡± ¡°Wee, Joo-Young. Did you get bitten anywhere?¡± Choi Sung-Ho asked. ¡°No. That mosquito repellent is amazing. They don¡¯t get within three meters of me. The ones that get close just fall to the ground.¡± She took the broomstick near the front door and swept the front of the door. With each sweep, a pile of mosquito carcasses rolled away. A-Gen had biosynthesized ABcPa1, a vtilepound that was a perfect match for the mosquito¡¯s olfactory receptors, and thenced it with a cellr respiratory inhibitor. It didn¡¯t affectrge organisms like humans, but it was a fatal poison to small insects like mosquitoes. One could be a walking mosquito repellent if they applied the denselypressed ointment or the spray to the nape of their neck or their wrists. Or, they could apply it to the cracks in the window or the door to make a natural mosquito-free bunker, like K-BIO. ¡°It really feels like a disaster movie,¡± said Lee Joo-Young, who was cleaning up the mosquito carcasses. ¡°But I heard that Doctor Ryu ising to Guangzhou tomorrow.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°I heard it when I was delivering the goods earlier. The governor of Guangdong called him urgently, and he begged me to save him.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know about that, but I hope things get back to normal soon.¡± * * * Yang Gunyu, who was backed up into a corner, asked A-Gen for help. Although he was authoritarian, controlling, and arrogant, he still had a strong sense of responsibility to Guangdong. In a situation as serious as this, he could no longer afford to let his pride get in the way. ¡ªI will do anything. Please forgive me for my previous impertinence, and please produce a little more of that repellent. Yang Gunyu was talking to A-Gen on the phone. ¡°But we¡¯ve already concentrated most of the supply to Guangdong. This is not just a problem for Guangdong but for all the neighboring regions along the tributaries of the Pearl River Basin,¡± A-Gen replied. ¡°We are also supplying them the minimum as their government offices need to function properly as well.¡± ¡ªStill¡­ Is there any other way? ¡°Actually, we were expecting to run out of mosquito repellent, so we¡¯ve been working on other alternatives. I don¡¯t know if you¡¯ll like them, though.¡± ¡ªAnything is fine. Please, I beg you¡­ Yang Gunyu sounded like he was in pain. ¡°Hm.¡± A-Gen hesitated for a moment, then said, ¡°There aren¡¯t a lot of mosquitos in Guangdong yet.¡± ¡ªThere aren¡¯t a lot? ¡°The simtion predicted that it was going to increase to twenty-eight billion, which is two months from now. Right now, it¡¯s probably around one hundred million at best.¡± ¡ª... ¡°Do you remember the mosquito extinction project I told you about?¡± A-Gen asked. ¡ªYes, of course¡­ Yang Gunyu¡¯s voice was tense. ¡°That project uses a bacterium called Wolbachia. It destroys the sex ratio of mosquitoes by using male mosquitoes with modified seminal vesicles,¡± A-Gen said. ¡°Male mosquitoes are just regr insects that suck nectar from flowers; they do not bite humans. When you start disrupting the sex ratio with Wolbachia, it quickly tilts the bnce so that all the eggs are male.¡± ¡ªBut we can only do that when we have Wolbachia-infected male mosquitos, right? ¡°That¡¯s why I told you. We prepared it just in case because we expected to run out of the mosquito repellent.¡± ¡ª... ¡°I started preparing this when Jessie told me that the PCB concentration was rising. It was quick because it only takes two weeks to make the male mosquitoes.¡± Suddenly, Yang Gunyu felt small and humbled. ¡®I¡¯m embarrassed.¡¯ Yang Gunyu was like a child who refused to listen to his parents but ended up getting help from them. Despite his many rejections and push-backs, A-Gen had predicted this catastrophe and had prepared for it. ¡®How far is this guy thinking ahead? Is this possible for a human being?¡¯ ¡°I will proceed with this if you would like, or I will dispose of it. What would you like to do?¡± A-Gen asked. ¡ªPlease do it. Please. ¡°Alright.¡± ¡ªDoctor Ryu. ¡°Yes?¡± ¡ªI apologize. And thank you so much. ¡°I think it¡¯s a good idea for China to build Guangdong into a top economic hub in Asia,¡± A-Gen said. ¡°Asia should have something like that, too. I hope you handle this situation well.¡± * * * The Chinese Minister of Health couldn¡¯t afford to be distracted by the biological disaster in Guangdong because something far more serious was happening in China¡¯s upper ss. ¡°Foreign Minister Wang Shubin had facial paralysis this morning.¡± Reports kepting in from below. The State Councillor, the Vice Premier, the Minister of Commerce, the Minister of Transportation, seven directors of the Ministry of State Security, and the Chief Superintendent of the Public Security Bureau: these people were affected in just the administrative branch alone. Even the leaders of powerful privatepanies were falling live autumn leaves in the wind. They could not figure out how to control this inferno that was suddenly spreading like wildfire. ¡°I feel like a designated survivor.¡± The Minister of Health let out a deep sigh. ¡°You still don¡¯t know the cause?¡± He badgered his staff. ¡°The best doctors in China are analyzing the cause, but they¡¯re still not sure,¡± said one of his staff. ¡°ording to Professor Genfu at Peking University Hospital, it appears to be a disease called subacute necrotizing encephalomyelopathy.¡± ¡°What does that mean? What is that? What department is Professor Genfu from?¡± ¡°Um¡­ He¡¯s from the pediatrics department.¡± The Minister of Health frowned. ¡°Everyone who has copsed right now is old. How would a professor of pediatrics know?¡± ¡°But no other professors have given an opinion yet.¡± ¡°What¡¯s the disease?¡± the Minister asked. ¡°Apparently, it¡¯s caused by a mutation in the mitochondria. It¡¯s a gic disease, and most die when they are young.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°But the symptoms of this disease are almost exactly the same as what¡¯s happening right now. They feel nauseous, their vision decreases rapidly, they have eye muscle paralysis, and then they have a heart attack or breathing problems,¡± the staff member said. ¡°Professor Genfu said there are rare cases where children can grow up without any problems and then develop the disease as adults¡­¡± ¡°There are more than one hundred patients right now. All the highest-ranking people in China have this gic disease, and they all developed it at the same time in their fifties, like they made a promise? Do you think that makes sense?¡± the minister said. ¡°...¡± The staff stayed quiet. The Minister sighed in frustration. ¡°Sir!¡± One of his staff who was taking a call at the other end of the office jumped to his feet. ¡°Look at this. This is what the patients have inmon right now.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± the Minister asked, frowning. ¡°They all received organ transnts in Xinjiang Uygur six months ago.¡± ¡°In Xinjiang Uygur?¡± ¡°Perhaps that had something to do with it?¡± ¡°Get me a list of people who received organ transnts in Xinjiang Uygur.¡± ¡°I already put it together,¡± the staff member said, picking up a stack of printed documents. As the Minister of Health was about to take it¡­ ¡°Sir!¡± Another person shouted in horror from the desk on the other side of the office. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°I¡­ got a call, and¡­¡± they said, stammering. ¡°The President says he¡¯s feeling nauseous.¡± The Minister of Health froze. He picked up the Xinjiang Uygur organ transnt list. ¡°... The President is also on this list,¡± said the staff member who gave him the list. * * * Doctor Ref released the virus in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. It was a lentivirus that inserted its genes into human DNA. The virus spread rapidly among the one million inmates of Xinjiang Uygur. It first infected their respiratory tracts, then traveled in their blood to infect organs throughout the body. All eight transntable organs were infected: the heart, liver, kidneys, cornea, small intestine, pancreas, and lungs. The nucleases produced by the virus destroyed the existing mitochondria and triggered specific mutations. However, the Uygur prisoners¡¯ health was not affected, as this mutation only caused problems when cell division urred rapidly. This virus was not pathogenic to the organs of fully-grown adults. ¡°But it¡¯s a different story if they got organ transnts.¡± Doctor Ref, who finished tidying up the new camp for the Popr Front for the Liberation of Palestine, sipped her tea and read the calendar. It had been six months since she had released the virus. As organ transnt surgery involved removing and attaching healthy organs, it caused significant damage to the junction. In order to repair the damage, the organ, which was infected with the virus, would naturally undergo cell division. This was a special case of a disease that urred in newborns urring in adults. ¡°Doctor Ref,¡± said a man with a beard. ¡°Ryu Young-Joon went to Guangdong to solve the mosquito problem.¡± ¡°Mosquitoes aren¡¯t a problem to him. They¡¯re just bothersome,¡± Doctor Ref replied. ¡°He¡¯ll probably solve the Xinjiang Uygur problem, right?¡± ¡°Probably.¡± Doctor Ref nodded. ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter. It¡¯s fine if he solves it. The point is to get Rosaline to witness the shit that¡¯s going on in Uygur,¡± she said. ¡°I said that humans don¡¯t deserve science. People like Ryu Young-Joon are rare. There aren¡¯t many elites like him on Earth. She needs to realize that. She needs to give up hope in humanity.¡± The man nodded. Doctor Ref took another sip of tea. ¡°Rosaline is more advanced than any creature on Earth, on a different level than the descendants of a primitive cell. She can¡¯t just live as Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s vending machine for scientific technology,¡± she said. ¡°This is what we call eusociality, where humans are theborers of the material world, and Rosaline is the one who guides their actions in the right direction.¡± Doctor Ref thought of a blueprint for the future she had long envisioned. ¡°Rosaline must rule the world.¡± Chapter 214: Artificial Organs (3)

Chapter 214: Artificial Organs (3)

When Young-Joon flew to Guangdong, he brought three huge containers on the ne with him. ¡°Is this that...?¡± Yang Gunyu asked nervously. ¡°It¡¯s ten million male mosquitoes,¡± Young-Joon replied through an interpreter. ¡°...¡± Yang Gunyu gulped. He felt like he could hear their buzzing wings through the container. ¡°This really doesn¡¯t cause any problems in the environment, right...?¡± Yang Gunyu asked again. ¡°Yes, don¡¯t worry.¡± ¡°But destroying the sex ratio of mosquitoes isn¡¯t exactly natural, so...¡± Yang Gunyu seemed anxious. ¡°It wasn¡¯t natural for the PCBs to leak out either.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°And unequal sex ratios are natural,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°It¡¯s natural?¡± ¡°In the 1990¡¯s, there was a scientist named Richard Stouthammer. He found a colony of bees that were reproducing asexually. There were only females, and they were reproducing by self-replication. It turned out that it wasn¡¯t a trait of the bees, it was caused by a bacteria called Wolbachia that infected the bees.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°When we treated them with antibiotics to get rid of the bacteria, males suddenly appeared and started reproducing sexually.¡± ¡°What is that?¡± ¡°Wolbachia is a type of sexually transmitted bacteria that can only live in the sperm or eggs of insects. It¡¯s difficult for them to live in the sperm because it is extremely cramped andcking nutrients, but the egg is quite desirable since it has abundant cytosm and space,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°That¡¯s why the bacteria chose to eliminate males. Bees infected with Wolbachia only gave birth to females, and the females would self-replicate and produce females without reproducing with males.¡± ¡°Wow...¡± ¡°There are a lot more crazy things in the natural world than humans realize,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°And Wolbachia can infect mosquitoes, and with a little maniption of the Wolbachia¡¯s genes, they can be tricked into thinking that the sperm is a better living environment.¡± ¡°And these are the mosquitoes infected with the Wolbachia you tricked?¡± asked Yang Gunyu, pointing at the container. ¡°Yes,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Now, if we release these mosquitoes, this STI will spread rapidly among the mosquitoes. It won¡¯t take long since the weather is warm, it¡¯s a perfect area for them to mate andy eggs, and there are already over one hundred million of them flying around.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The male mosquitoes won¡¯t be affected by the repellent because they don¡¯t have the same olfactory nerves as female mosquitoes. You can still keep using the repellent, and please do so.¡± ¡°Can Wolbachia infect people?¡± ¡°Of course, not. Wolbachia is just a sexually transmitted infection of several species of insects,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°They are physiologically unable to touch humans, and even if a mosquito sticks its needle into another insect, it won¡¯t be transmitted. It¡¯s like how sexually transmitted infections like syphilis don¡¯t spread just because people eat stew from the same pot; STIs are transmitted through sex.¡± ¡°I see...¡± Yang Gunyu nodded slightly, as the concept of sexually transmitted infections in mosquitoes was foreign to him. ¡°Then, let¡¯s go.¡± Young-Joon loaded the three containers on a truck and moved to Guangzhou with Yang Gunyu. Guangzhou was filled with reporters, and there were mosquito carcasses all around them. It was because A-GenBio¡¯s mosquito repellent had been sprayed nearby. ¡°It¡¯s Ryu Young-Joon!¡± eximed one of the reporters when they saw him. Click! Click! Amotion erupted in an instant, with the reporters¡¯ cameras shing one after another. Yang Gunyu had brought in a solution from Korea to fix the terrible mosquito disaster that had hit Guangdong. He was the best biologist in the world, the scientist who predicted this event early on, and he was a GSC member who advocated for mosquito eradication at the GSC International Conference. ¡°After discussions with Governor Yang, A-GenBio has decided to release ten million gically engineered Wolbachia-infected male mosquitoes in Guangzhou, Maoming, and Jieyang cities to solve the situation,¡± Young-Joon said into the microphone. ¡°First, we will release four million mosquitoes here in Guangzhou.¡± Civil servants from Guangzhou nervously moved one of the containers. They carefully began to tear off the top of the steel te. The lid opened, but the mosquitoes inside remained motionless, glued to the wall. ¡°They¡¯re noting out?¡± The reporters, who were hoping to get a good shot of the swarm of mosquitoes, seemed disappointed. Young-Joon chuckled at their expressions. Crash! He lightly kicked the container once with his foot, and the surprised mosquitoes inside began to rise. ¡°Wow...¡± The reporters gasped and marveled at the unimaginable spectacle. It looked like a school of sardines in the ocean, migrating in tens of thousands. A huge, jet-ck mass shot up into the sky, emitting a fierce noise. * * * Lab Seven of A-GenBio simted the Mosquito Eradication Project with ABAI once again. This time, it was Director Kim Young-Hoon on YouTube instead of Young-Joon. ¡ªWhere is Ryu Young-Joon? ¡ªWho is this man? ¡ªMosquito eradication channel lol Looking at thements that wereing up, Kim Young-Hoon said, ¡°My name is Kim Young-Hoon, the project leader of ABAI development at A-GenBio Laboratory Seven. Nice to meet you.¡± He spoke as he started up ABAI. ¡°Mr. Ryu is in China and is running this simtion in real life right now. There will be articlesing soon.¡± He pulled up Guangdong Province on ABAI and released ten million mosquitoes infected with gically engineered Wolbachia in three cities: Guangzhou, Maoming, and Jieyang. The number of mosquitoes, which had soared past one hundred fifty million, began to decline at an rming rate over the next week. ¡°In the natural world, female mosquitoes usually mate once,¡± Kim Young-Hoon said. ¡°And they cany eggs up to seven times, but their lifespan is about a week at most.¡± He pointed to the number of mosquitoes decreasing exponentially in a week. ¡°In other words, even if there were one hundred fifty million mosquitoes in Guangdong right now, they would all die in a week or two,¡± Kim Young-Hoon said. ¡°We just need to be able to eliminate the new eggs theyy, and that¡¯s how we can control this mosquito outbreak.¡± * * * Kim Young-Hoon¡¯s simtion wasing to life in Guangdong. Young-Joon was sitting in the hotel room Yang Gunyu had arranged for him and watching it in Rosaline¡¯s Simtion Mode. ¡°No matter how good ABAI is, you¡¯re much better,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡ªOf course. I¡¯m no match for some machine artificial intelligence. In just a week, the swarm of mosquitoes that were taking overmercial centers and homes had noticeably reduced. The roadsides were littered with dead mosquitoes, and most of the male mosquitoes were going into the forest, except when they were mating. ¡ªThey are going down nicely. Rosaline watched the mosquitoes die. ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡ªAt this rate, there won¡¯t be any mosquitoes in Guangdong next summer. ¡°I think it¡¯s going to affect Southeast Asia as well.¡± ¡ªOf course. The Asian tiger mosquito will be wiped out in some countries. ¡°I kind of feel bad for them,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡ªReally? ¡°I don¡¯t think mosquitoes were born wanting to be like that. People are trying to save the African ck rhino from extinction, but mosquitoes carry diseases and suck blood, so we¡¯re trying to wipe them out...¡± ¡ªThere¡¯s nothing we can do. Rosaline intervened. ¡ªAnd a lot of creatures have gone extinct on Earth. It¡¯s not a problem if humans act selfishly for the sake of humans. ¡°Right?¡± ¡ªOf course. Humans are one of the descendants of the primordial soup. They have gone through billions of years of evolution, just like mosquitoes. So, humans arepetitors of mosquitoes. Young-Joon tilted his head in confusion. ¡ªThe only thing unfortunate for them is that I became an ally of humans. Rosaline added. ¡ªIt¡¯s like an adult intervening in a fight between children, so it¡¯s inevitable that one side will fall to their demise. ¡°... Oh...¡± ¡ªAnyway, why did you bring that box? Rosaline pointed at therge box in the corner near the bed. ¡°It¡¯s because of that virus,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡ªThe one that Doctor Ref released? It¡¯s no use. It¡¯s based on a lentivirus. It can¡¯t be transmitted to fetuses, and even if it did infect a newborn, it would be difficult to cause symptoms. Rosaline gave Young-Joon an exnation. ¡ªDeveloping babies have rapid cell division, but it¡¯s nothingpared to the fetus, which has to differentiate twenty trillion cells in ten months. Then, it differentiates into one hundred trillion cells over the course of twenty years, which is rtively slow. ¡°...¡± ¡ªEven if the virus affects children, it can¡¯t cause encephalomyelopathy. I think they were targeting children in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, but they made a mistake. ¡°But there were a lot of organ transnts in the Xinjiang Uygur region.¡± ¡ªYes. If that¡¯s the case, it¡¯s possible that cell division in the surgical region could be elerated and cause symptoms. But how many cases like that could there be? ¡°... ording to what Secretary Yoo told me, it¡¯s thirty thousand cases since three years ago.¡± ¡ªBut that¡¯s three years of data. ording to the data Whittaker brought us, Doctor Ref sent the virus rtively recently. Even if there have been people executed after that, how many could there have been, even if they are doing illegal transnts? ¡°I hope there aren¡¯t too many.¡± Knock knock! Someone was at Young-Joon¡¯s door. He could hear Yang Gunyu¡¯s voice. ¡°Jiaoshou? Shi wo Yang Gunyu.¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu? It¡¯s Governor Yang Gunyu.¡± A male interpreter tranted what Yang Gunyu was saying. And as Young-Joon reflexively turned towards the door, Rosaline shot up from the bed. ¡ªDon¡¯t go outside. Rosaline warned Young-Joon. Young-Joon, who was about to open the door, tilted his head in puzzlement and looked at her. ¡ªThere are three more people other than Yang Gunyu. And they have guns. ¡®Guns? Are they from the Public Security Bureau?¡¯ ¡ªNo... I don¡¯t know... Young-Joon gulped nervously. ¡ªI don¡¯t think they are trying to hurt you because they are all rxed. But you don¡¯t know what could happen. ¡°What is it?¡± Young-Joon asked over the inte. What Yang Gunyu and his people said was surprising. ¡°Please help us... The Minister of Health has asked us to escort you to Zhongnanhai.¡± ¡°Zhongnanhai? Where is that?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°... Um...¡± Yang Gunyu hesitated to answer, but the Chief of the Beijing Municipal Public Security Bureau replied instead. ¡°It¡¯s in Beijing. The President¡¯s office is there, and we¡¯ve been ordered to escort you there. We are not trying to kidnap you. Pleasee with us. China is in trouble.¡± Young-Joon sighed. He picked up the box he brought and opened the door. ¡°Lead the way,¡± he said. Yang Gunyu flinched. Young-Joon¡¯s aura was strangely different from before. No matter how disrespectful and reckless Yang Gunyu had been, from ignoring the mosquito extermination rmendations to disregarding the PCB warnings, Young-Joon had never lost his temper. But now, things were a little different. ¡°...¡± He was calm and collected, but he was somewhat tense. Chapter 215: Artificial Organs (4)

Chapter 215: Artificial Organs (4)

Young-Joon was escorted by the Public Security Bureau and flew to Beijing. Afternding at the airport, he got into a car and drove behind the Zijincheng[1], circling west. Soon, a hugeke appeared. The central and southern regions of thiske were collectively known as Zhongnanhai. This area was the heart of the Chinese Communist Party¡¯s power. It was home to the State Council, the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, and other major institutions. The essence of all of them was the Hall of Diligence. It was the office of Chen Shui, the leader of the Chinese Communist Party and the pinnacle of power in China. While the White House in the United States, aparable center of power, wasrgely open to the public, the Hall of Diligence was highly secretive. Not only was it off-limits to the public, even pictures weren¡¯t allowed. Even the website of the Zhongnanhai said very little about the Hall of Diligence. ¡°Doctor Ryu has to go in alone from here,¡± the Chief said to Kim Chul-Kwon, the head of K-Cops who was with Young-Joon. ¡°Please wait here for a moment,¡± Young-Joon told Kim Chul-Kwon and followed the officers inside. It was the moment Young-Joon stepped into the heart of power of the continent that was shrouded in a veil of secrecy. ¡°Are you Doctor Ryu Young-Joon?¡± After passing through the luxurious gates into the waiting room, a middle-aged man who had been waiting for him stood up. ¡°My name is Peng Kui, the chief of staff. Thank you foring. Please follow me.¡± Peng Kui bowed respectfully and walked in front of Young-Joon, leading the way. ¡°This is your first time in the Hall of Diligence, right? Have you ever been in the White House?¡± he asked. ¡°A few times,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°We take security of the Hall of Diligence very seriously, so we rarely open it to the public unless they are our own people. We are more careful if they are close with the United States. There¡¯s also only a small space allowed for foreign state guests who are invited into the Zijincheng,¡± Peng Kui said. ¡°Ever since President Chen Shui came to power, there have only been a few foreigners who have entered this hallway from the Hall of Diligence, and one of them is you, Doctor Ryu.¡± Keng Kui stepped outside at the end of the hallway. He walked around the small pond and entered the side door of the pce. ¡°This is the medical room inside the pce. It is equipped with excellent medical staff and facilities for surgery and treatment in the event of an emergency.: Peng Kui walked down the hall again, then stopped in front of thevish door at the far end of the hall. ¡°That¡¯s why the President¡¯s hospital room is located here as well.¡± Click. Peng Kui opened the door. Young-Joon, who stepped inside, was a little nervous. A dozen guards, who looked like they could stop a bullet with their bare hands, stared at Young-Joon with a piercing gaze. At the center of the room was a giant hospital bed. Two attending physicians, both of whom looked like they had been through all kinds of hardship, and some nurses stood beside the bed. On the bed, a man who looked to be in his early sixties was leaning back against the cushions with a frozen face. ¡°Wee, Doctor Ryu.¡± One of the physicians approached Young-Joon and shook his hand. ¡°I¡¯m Fen Mao, the attending physician of the Hall of Diligence .¡± ¡°I¡¯m Ryu Young-Joon from A-GenBio. Nice to meet you.¡± Young-Joon shook his hand. ¡°As you know, I¡¯m not a doctor, and I cannot examine the patient. The professors here are probably much better than me at diagnosing and prescribing medicine based on the patient¡¯s symptoms,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Nevertheless, I¡¯m sure there¡¯s a reason you brought me here. What is it?¡± ¡°Sigh...¡± The attendings let out a deep sigh. ¡°Doctor Ryu, everything you are seeing and hearing now are state secrets. We have brought you here because we trust you. You must not speak of this out of this room.¡± ¡°Yes,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°If we hear any strange rumors, we will assume they came from you.¡± ¡°Enough,¡± Chen Shui said, his pronunciation slightly slurred. ¡°How can we scare him when we brought him here? That¡¯s enough.¡± Chen Shui raised his right arm and gestured at Young-Joon. ¡°It¡¯s a little difficult for me to move right now, so could youe closer?¡± ¡°...¡± When Young-Joon approached him, he let out a small sigh. ¡°I apologize for the impertinence of my staff. It doesn¡¯t matter if you talk about this.¡± ¡°Sir!¡± Peng Kui shouted. ¡°The Chinese economy will suffer if word gets out that you have fallen sick. We must keep it hidden as long as we can.¡± ¡°Alright, alright.¡± Chen Shui waved his hand in annoyance. ¡°Doctor Ryu, as you can see, I cannot move much because my muscles and nerves have be paralyzed. I can¡¯t even speak properly because my facial muscles are also paralyzed.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°It¡¯s subacute necrotizing encephalomyelopathy,¡± said Fen Mao. ¡°It took a long time to confirm this diagnosis because it usually only affects babies.¡± Fen Mao picked up a medical chart from the table and held it out to Young-Joon. ¡°We¡¯ve already tranted it for you.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Young-Joon took the chart and skimmed through it. Fen Mao, who was watching him nervously, spoke up. ¡°Doctor Ryu, subacute necrotizing encephalomyelitis does not have a cure yet. There is nothing more that modern medicine can do, but Doctor Ryu, you have conquered incurable diseases many times,¡± he said in a desperate voice. ¡°Perhaps... there is something you can do?¡± ¡°There is,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°There is?¡± ¡°You do?¡± Fen Mao, Peng Kui, and Chen Shui all looked surprised. They had brought Young-Joon here with a glimmer of hope, but they honestly didn¡¯t think it would be possible. No matter how good he was, what could he do about an unusual case like this? Even Fen Mao, Chen Shui¡¯s attending physician, didn¡¯t know much about the disease, because it was a rare gic disease that usually only affected newborn babies. They were trying to find the answer to this peculiar case where the disease suddenly appeared in an adult in their sixties, but it seemed unlikely, even for Young-Joon. However, Young-Joon was one step ahead of them. ¡°Actually, I already have the cure.¡± Young-Joon took out a small, brown vial out of his bag. ¡°...¡± For a moment, Peng Kui wondered if Young-Joon had been hired by the CIA to poison the President; that was how abnormal the situation was. ¡°H-How did you know to prepare the treatment?¡± Fen Mao asked. ¡°We discovered a virus at the hideout of the Popr Front for the Liberation of Palestine, the organization that attacked thest GSC International Conference,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°A virus?¡± Fen Mao asked, frowning. ¡°I was asked to determine what it was. It was a lentivirus, and the DNA in it contained genes coding for a nuclease. Once inside the host¡¯s cell and expressed, it travels to the mitochondria and mutates the mitochondrial gene MTATP6, changing the eight thousand nine hundred ny-ninth theorenine to a glycine or cysteine.¡± ¡°...¡± Only Fen Mao could barely understand his exnation; the others were simply stunned. ¡°So... Wait, you¡¯re saying that a virus is in the President¡¯s body right now?¡± ¡°That mutation is the pathogen underlying the subacute necrotizing encephalomyelitis,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°However, being infected with that virus doesn¡¯t cause the disease in the adult body because cell division is not happening vigorously. When cell division is urring rapidly, the mitochondrial mutation produces arge amount ofctic acid that bes concentrated in the cerebrospinal fluid. This induces gangrenous disorders in the basal ganglia, thmus, brainstem, dentate nucleus, and the optic nerves.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°When the symptoms begin, the patient will first feel nauseous, followed by rapid paralysis of muscles and nerves, loss of vision, impairments in breathing or heart function, eventually resulting in death.¡± Young-Joon stared directly at Chen Shui. ¡°Mr. President,¡± he said. ¡°You received an organ transnt in Xinjiang Uygur, right?¡± ¡°...¡± Chen Shui gulped. The attendings and Peng Kui just nced at each other, not knowing what to do. ¡°Yes, I did,¡± Chen Shui said. ¡°I received a heart transnt.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve heard that there were thirty thousand organ transnt surgeries in Xinjiang Uygur in thest three years, and I¡¯ve also heard that there is a fairlyrge number of Muslim Ugyurs imprisoned there. Nature is investigating that with the suspicion that most of those organ transnts were unauthorized harvestings from prisoners of conscience,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°How much of this is true?¡± ¡°...¡± Silence filled the room once again. ¡°Um... Doctor Ryu, I don¡¯t know where you heard something like that from, but...¡± The moment that Peng Kui jumped in, trying to break the awkward silence before it became even longer... ¡°Most of it is true,¡± Chen Shui said, interrupting Peng Kui. ¡°S-Sir...¡± Peng Kui stared at Chen Shui, surprised. ¡°It¡¯s okay. Doctor Ryu will find out eventually. I¡¯m not the only one who did this.¡± Young-Joon clenched his jaw in anger. ¡°How many patients were there?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know, but there are quite a few, especially among the higher-ups.¡± ¡°You reap what you sow,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°What?¡± Peng Kui frowned and red at him. ¡°Am I wrong? The terrorists from the Popr Front for the Liberation of Palestine sent the virus to the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region and infected the Ugyur people there. You got subacute necrotizing encephalomyelitis from getting that organ transnted into you, right?¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu!¡± ¡°Hahaha.¡± Peng Kui was about to say something when suddenly Chen Shuiughed quietly. ¡°You really are brilliant. It wouldn¡¯t be easy for even the President of the United States to talk about something I don¡¯t like so openly.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°But Doctor Ryu, we didn¡¯t harvest the organs of prisoners of conscience without consent. They were all people who hadmitted great crimes, and we got consent for organ harvesting from the prisoners. We are not that evil.¡± ¡°What great crimes do citizens imprisoned for religious reasonsmit?¡± ¡°The conflict in that area is more nasty andplicated than you think. The Uygur people want independence, and there is no politician in the world who would allow themselves to lose their territory and people. I am President Mao Zedong¡¯s legitimate sessor, and I have a duty to maintain and lead a united China,¡± Chen Shui said. ¡°And of course, some of them have been sentenced to death, Doctor Ryu. It was a riot, bordering on a civil war, and many people were killed or injured during the suppression. But the entire process was legal, even the organ donation.¡± ¡°A Uygur citizen who rebelled for independence in Xinjiang Uygur and ended up being executed donated his heart to the President of China? Do you think that makes sense?¡± ¡°Again, it was legal.¡± ¡°...¡± What Chen Shui was saying had a strange nuance to it. There was a good chance that they made a deal with the prisoner, such as releasing their families or paying them, instead of them donating their organs out of pure humanitarianism. Any kind of external pressure was against medical ethics, but Young-Joon didn¡¯t know what thew was in China. It could have actually been legal here due to some clever wordy. ¡°Anyway, thank you for delivering the cure,¡± said Chen Shui, pointing at the brown bottle Young-Joon had set down. ¡°You can go now. My chief of staff will reward you generously.¡± It was over now. Peng Kui came over to escort Young-Joon out, but at that moment. Young-Joon uttered somethingpletely unexpected. ¡°You won¡¯t be cured with this.¡± ¡°What are you talking about?¡± Fen Mao asked, tilting his head in confusion. ¡°This treatment is for subacute necrotizing encephalomyelitis in infants. It racks down and destroys the virus-infected mitochondria and removes thectic acid from the cerebrospinal fluid.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t that it?¡± Chen Shui asked. At the same time, Fen Mao, who was standing next to him, looked concerned. ¡°Not in your case, Mr. President,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°If I destroy the virus-infected mitochondria, the cells at the heart junction will be necrotic, triggering an immune response near the heart, and the heart will lose its function.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°This treatment only buys you three months.¡± ¡°No... Is there any other way?¡± Fen Mao asked. ¡°There is. But there¡¯s a condition,¡± Young-Joon said. 1. the Forbidden City in China ? Chapter 216: Artificial Organs (5)

Chapter 216: Artificial Organs (5)

¡°Before I hear the treatment and the condition,¡± Chen Shui said. ¡°From what you¡¯re saying, Doctor Ryu, I¡¯m going to be in danger because my transnted heart won¡¯t be able to function. Then, what if I use the treatment and get another heart in three months? I think that will work,¡± Chen Shui said. Young-Joon was a little disgusted by his sordid way of thinking. ¡®It¡¯s not like switching the parts of a car...¡¯ Normally, when someone received an organ transnt from another person, the immune system recognized it as a foreign pathogenic substance and destroyed it: this was called a rejection. To solve this problem, modern medicine used three strategies: the first was to ensure aplete histpatibility antigen match between the donor and recipient, the second was to use non-specific immunosuppressive drugs, and thest was to induce immune tolerance. For the first strategy, doctors tested the blood type and antigens on the donor and recipient¡¯s white blood cells, called human leukocyte antigen testing (HLA testing), to determinepatibility. It was very rare for the recipient and donor to have a perfect match, so they usuallypromised with somewhat of a match. The reason for this, of course, was because there were only a few people who were willing to donate. When a critically ill patient who had agreed to a transnt died, there was a very low chance that their histpatibility antigens matched the donor¡¯s on a tolerable level. Therefore, if the survival rate was eptable, the transnt was simply performed, followed by a post-treatment of immunosuppressants and immune tolerance induction. Plus, there was no way the human immune system would recognize the Chinese president; the chances of a heart from a critically ill patient who would die within three months beingpatible with Chen Shui¡¯s body would be as low as any other patient. Still, it was a bit concerning that Chen Shui was so confident that they could just transnt another heart. It almost sounded like they would even take a heart from a living person with good histpatibility. However, this wasn¡¯t possible. ¡°As I told you, the treatment will cause the transnt junction of the heart to necrotize. This will cause immune cells to rush to it, triggering an immune response. Naturally, it will also be sensitive to the heart transnted afterwards,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°With the treatment I gave you, a second transnt will not be possible.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°You¡¯re saying that it won¡¯t work unless we find a heart with a one hundred percent histpatibility match,¡± Fen Mao said. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± It was no different than saying that Chen Shui was incurable. Concern dawned on the medical team¡¯s faces. ¡°Then what¡¯s your solution, Doctor Ryu?¡± Chen Shui asked. ¡°Make an artificial organ and transnt it,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°An artificial organ?¡± The medical team frowned. ¡°A-GenBio has been working on organoids and artificial organs for a long time. We¡¯ve already perfected the development of a few organs, including the small intestine, but we¡¯ve never transnted them into humans.¡± ¡°Are you saying that you¡¯re going to test thatpletely unproven nonsense on the President?¡± Peng Kui asked in disbelief. ¡°That¡¯s the only way, and I am confident.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Take the treatment and wait. I will bring you an artificial heart made from your own cells. Since it will be your own cells, it will be one hundred percent histpatible,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°...¡± Chen Shui thought for a moment, then sighed. ¡°That seems like the only way,¡± he said. ¡°I will do that, Doctor Ryu. And I have one question.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°How many of this cure and artificial organs can you make?¡± ¡°... There are other patients besides you. How many are there?¡± ¡°Our health authorities can¡¯t track that number. We¡¯ll have to go to Xinjiang Uygur and get the number from the hospital staff there, but what I do know is that there are quite a few bedridden people in Zhongnanhai right now, like me. They are all leading the country, and if even one of them is vacant, it could shake the country.¡± ¡°... I can provide as many treatments as you need, but artificial organs are a different story. There aren¡¯t many scientists at A-GenBio who can produce them, maybe twenty at most, and that will also depend on the type of organ.¡± ¡°... I see. Most of them will die. I will make a list of the people who must be saved.¡± ¡°Speaking of lists, I have another favor to ask,¡± Young-Joon added. ¡°Is it the condition you were talking about earlier? What is it?¡± ¡°Let me visit the camps in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not possible.¡± Chen Shui shut him down in distaste. However, Young-Joon didn¡¯t back down. ¡°I need to see how far the virus has spread there, and I need to know how many other patients there are besides you.¡± ¡°...That area is even harder to get into than the Hall of Diligence, Doctor Ryu,¡± Peng Kui intervened. ¡°Isn¡¯t that why I¡¯m asking the President?¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°...¡± Peng Kui sighed like they were in a bind. Chen Shui thought for a moment. ¡°Alright. But whatever you see and hear there, you must not talk about it outside.¡± ¡°Maybe. I¡¯ll think about it,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Look... Doctor Ryu,¡± Peng Kui said. ¡°Uygur is an internationally sensitive conflict area. If a speaker with your influence says the wrong thing, it will be...¡± ¡°I¡¯m not interested in politics, and it¡¯s not like I know much about the independence of the Uygur people. But as long as a deadly virus has entered the region, there may be information that needs to be shared with the public for the sake of public health.¡± ¡°Why are you so interested in the internal affairs of another country?¡± Peng Kui asked, a little offended. ¡°I don¡¯t care about internal affairs. But a virus that can cause subacute necrotizing encephalomyelopathy and organ transnts is a problem in the medicalmunity. We have to stop further damage, don''t we?¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°You said the prisoners gave their consent, and it was done legally. Various media outlets, led by Nature, will be asking questions soon enough, and I¡¯m just saying that we should answer truthfully, both you and me.¡± ¡°...¡± Chen Shui red at Young-Joon. ¡°Are you not going to do the artificial organ transnt if I don¡¯t do that? Even though you have always been dedicated to science and humanity?¡± ¡°...¡± The bodyguards in the room nced at Young-Joon. Peng Kui waited for his response nervously. The atmosphere was tense, and the heavy silence weighed down on Young-Joon. But he answered firmly. ¡°No, then I won¡¯t do it.¡± Peng Kui coughed and the bodyguards red, but no one could move easily. Young-Joon said, ¡°If it is true that you executed prisoners of conscience and harvested their organs without consent, Nature will not only reject the paper that they are editing now, but they are also thinking of retracting the existing papers as well.¡± He looked straight at Chen Shui. ¡°I think that is right. Data produced by lies or in hical ways is not what I think science should look like because it will only lead to bigger problems in the end. I don¡¯t want to get involved in any of that. If you want my help, you¡¯ll have to be transparent about all the medical practices that urred in Xinjiang Uygur first.¡± * * * In the hallway of an old apartment on the outskirts of San Diego, stood a middle-aged man and woman in front of the door to unit 1208, reuniting after about twenty-five years. To be exact, only Elsie happily greeted him; Cheon Ji-Myung was in a state of shock, unable to speak. Elsie had changed dramatically. She had lost everything¡ªher luscious hair, bright eyes, and her beautiful smile. She opened the door while smoking a weed cigarette and a bottle of vodka in her hand. Sbe has gained about fifty kilograms and aged significantly. Even considering that a long time had passed, she had changed too much. ¡°What happened...¡± In Cheon Ji-Myung¡¯s memories, Elsie was someone who spent every night with papers and experiments, saying that she was going to biosynthesize a living cell from organic material. She was a cute, lively person who nned unbelievable experiments and pitched two new project ideas every day. ¡°Come in,¡± Elsie said as she let out a long breath of smoke. ¡°...¡± Cheon Ji-Myung¡¯s path was filled with cigarette boxes, liquor bottles, pizza boxes, and empty bags of snacks. In serious shock, Cheon Ji-Myung barely opened his mouth. ¡°W... What happened over the years?¡± ¡°A lot of things happened.¡± Elsie led Cheon Ji-Myung to the table and showed him a few bottles of liquor. ¡°This is all I have because I only drink vodka. Would you like some?¡± ¡°No... I¡¯m okay.¡± ¡°Phoo... Alright. I knew that Doctor Ryu would send someone from A-GenBio, but I didn¡¯t think it would be you, Doctor Cheon.¡± Elsie took a big sip of vodka. ¡°Did youe because of Rosaline?¡± she asked. ¡°No... Um... Mr. Ryu said he really wants to meet you. So...¡± Elsie frowned. She thought for a moment. ¡®Cheon Ji-Myung doesn¡¯t know about Rosaline.¡¯ She took another sip of vodka. ¡°Are you here because of Doctor Ref?¡± she asked again. ¡°Doctor Ref? Oh, he did look for you when that crazy terrorist was targeting the GSC International Conference.¡± ¡°... Ha.¡± Elsie chuckled. ¡°That woman is not a crazy murderer. Her target was the GSC, not civilians.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°She probably carried out some attacks along the anthracis fence in Africa, but most of those ces were borders that soldiers from other countries used to loot Congo¡¯s resources. Recently, it seems like she¡¯s interested in Xinjiang Uygur, but that¡¯s probably...¡± Elsie suddenly stopped talking. ¡°No, just forget it. I¡¯m talking nonsense because I¡¯m drunk,¡± she said,ughing. ¡°Elsie, I have something I want to ask you,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung said. ¡°Why did you leave the Life Creation Department all of a sudden?¡± ¡°Because I felt a limit in my research,¡± Elsie said with a bitter smile. ¡°I was not capable of creating life. I realized that early on and gave up. After I came back to the United States, I kept trying to make someone who could do tha...¡± Bzz! Cheon Ji-Myung¡¯s phone buzzed. ¡°Sorry, just a moment.¡± Cheon Ji-Myung took the call. ¡ªDoctor Cheon! It was Lead Scientist Bae Sun-Mi. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡ªYou said you were returning in two days, right? ¡°Yes. I have two days off after that, so I¡¯ll be in next Monday.¡± ¡ªI¡¯m sorry, but you¡¯re going to have to cancel your vacation... ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡ªYou should be getting used to this cycle now. It¡¯s an urgent experiment, so we¡¯re stuck with an all-nighter. ¡°... What¡¯s it about?¡± ¡ªWe have to make artificial organs. a lot of them. We need as many technicians as we can get, and with your skills, you have to participate. ¡°Is it an order from Mr. Ryu?¡± ¡ªYes. He called us himself and asked for our help. * * * Young-Joon was driving into the university hospital in Xinjiang Uygur. He didn¡¯t believe Chen Shui in the first ce; there was no way something like this was legal. ¡ªI¡¯ll look for some data. Rosaline released thousands of her cells around the hospital and began searching. Even if it was a room with top-secret data guarded by the highest level of security, they couldn¡¯t stop a cell from slipping through the keyhole or door crack. Then, something caught Rosaline¡¯s eye as she was thoroughly searching the hospital. Chapter 217: Artificial Organs (6)

Chapter 217: Artificial Organs (6)

¡ªI found something strange. Rosaline shared her findings with Young-Joon. ¡®What is it?¡¯ ¡ªIt¡¯s a blueprint of the building. ¡®Why is that weird?¡¯ ¡ªThis building is only five stories underground, and the rest is a parking lot. ¡®The blueprint is different?¡¯ ¡ªIt looks like there¡¯s an extra basement level with sterile operating room equipment, including HEPA filters. There are also patient rooms. ¡®...¡¯ ¡ªAnd there is also a seventh and an eighth basement floor. Young-Joon sighed. ¡ªOther than that, I found a few contracts. ¡®Contracts?¡¯ ¡ªIt¡¯s about histpatibility tests for organ transnts. The contract says that this hospital will conduct the test. ¡®The hospital and who?¡¯ ¡ªIt¡¯s apany called Blood Tyrant Agency. Click. The car door opened. Three nervous-looking men greeted Young-Joon as he stepped out. ¡°Huanying.¡± ¡°Wee,¡± tranted the man who was getting out of the car after Young-Joon. This interpreter had been apanying Young-Joon ever since he met Chen SHui. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± The moment the interpreter pulled Young-Joon by the arm, Kim Chul-Kwon, the head of his security team, stepped in between them. ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± Kim Chul-Kwon said again. As he pushed the interpreter out of the way with his broad, muscr shoulders, his expression was nothing but casual. He knew instinctively that this ce could be dangerous. ¡°Please lead the way,¡± Young-Joon said. And inwardly, he spoke to Rosaline. ¡®Find me more data.¡¯ ¡ªI¡¯ll look for a way to go below the sixth floor of the basement. * * * Mei Weisun, the director of the university hospital in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, was a little nervous to meet Young-Joon. ¡ªRyu Young-Joon will go there. The Minister of Health informed her directly by phone two days ago. The superficial reason was for Young-Joon to thoroughly investigate the extent of the virus spread in Xinjiang Uygur. His first stop was going to be the University Hospital, which was entrusted with the healthcare of the training center¡ªor internment camps¡ªthat held a million people, to look at organ transnt charts and such. But given his personality, he likely wanted to investigate how organ transnts happened here. ¡ªYou must not show any appearance of impropriety. If Ryu Young-Joon finds out about the illegality of organ transnts here and returns to Korea, it could jeopardize the country. Initially, Mei Weisun was dumbfounded at the Minister¡¯s insistence. Young-Joon was so famous that even children living in rural areas knew his name, but he was just the leader of arge corporation at most. Even if they took into ount his obsession with bioethics, how could someone like him shake a powerful country like China? Mei Weisun tried asking about that, but the Minister only gave her stricter orders. ¡ªWe cannot afford to make a single mistake. This order is being given to you from a branch higher than the Politburo Standing Committee. If you make a mistake, Director Mei Weisun, it will cost you not only your life but also the lives of your family. ¡°Director,¡± Young-Joon said. Mei Weisun, momentarily recalling her memory of a few days ago, quickly raised her head to look at Young-Joon. ¡°Oh, b-bao qian... Ni shuo shenme?¡± Mei Weisun asked, stuttering. The interpreter who was standing behind Young-Joon frowned and shot a re at her. He was an interpreter from the State Council who had traveled here from Beijing. Actually, Mei Weisun couldn¡¯t tell if interpreting was his real job; she wondered if this man was just an employee of the Communist Party¡¯s intelligence department who learned Korean. ¡®He¡¯s keeping an eye on me to make sure I don¡¯t make any mistakes...¡¯ Mei Weisun gulped. The interpreter tranted what Mei Weisun said. ¡°My apologies. What did you say?¡± ¡°I want to see the chart for the organ transnt,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°T-The chart for the organ transnt... Give me a moment.¡±[ref]The conversation between Young-Joon and Mei Weisun has been tranted to English for better reading. Imagine that they are still talking through the interpreter./[ref] Mei Weisun¡¯s hands trembled. She took out the chart she had prepared in advance and gave it to Young-Joon. It only had one hundred twenty-four people on it. ¡°Is this the data from thest three years?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Y...es.¡± Mei Weisun propped up her sses with a nervous face. ¡°This is all you have? The Nature paper that is being edited says that thirty thousand people in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region have had organ transnt surgeries.¡± ¡°That is... That¡¯s probably the number for Xinjiang Uygur as a whole, and it¡¯s hard to keep track when medical records get jumbled up. It probably isn¡¯t three thousand. In Xinjiang Uygur, I think it¡¯s less than three thousand in thest three years at the most.¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joon slowly read the chart. ¡°It¡¯s in Korean.¡± ¡°We tranted it in advance because you wereing.¡± [... July 23rd. Donor: Lee Qinquin (27) Recipient: Chen Shui (65) After the left atrium was anastomosed, the superior and inferior vena cava were anastomosed separately. Basiliximab and Simulect were administered to induce immunosuppression. After thepletion of anastomosis, 500 mg of methylprednisolone was given through an intravenous infusion before the reperfusion of the heart. Tacrolimus, mycophente mofetil, and prednisolone were administered postoperatively to maintain immunosuppression. ¡ªProgress ...] ¡°I need the donor¡¯s information. Can I get some more?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Yes, here it is.¡± Mei Weisun handed him another stack of documents. ¡ªLee Qinqin ¡ª27 years old ¡ªHometown: 341-7 Jieyang, Guangdong Province. ¡°The donor is from Guangdong?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Guangdong is on the south end of China. Why did theye all the way to Xinjiang Uygur?¡± ¡°I... I don¡¯t know. There¡¯s no way for us to determine that.¡± ¡°I gue...¡± Young-Joon froze. In organ transntation, there was a very low chance that a donor and recipient would be histpatible. It was likely for people from Xinjiang Uygur, a region as far away from the center of China, to have ethnic differences, which would lead to biological differences. This meant that there may not have been a heart in Xinjiang Uygur with the right histpatibility to Chen Shui, a Han Chinese president. ¡®But would the Chinese Communist Party have given up on his life?¡¯ Young-Joon stared at the address on the document. Then, he felt a chill run down his spine. ¡®My god...¡¯ He thought he had heard of this neighborhood before, but he didn¡¯t want it to be true. ¡°I-I need a moment.¡± Young-Joon stood up from his seat. ¡°Doctor Ryu?¡± The interpreter and Mei Weisun both stood up as well, surprised. Young-Joon quickly ran outside, and the interpreter followed him. ¡°Sir?¡± Young-Joon quickly walked past Kim Chul-Kwon, who was staring at him from the doorway. ¡°Please let me be alone for a moment.¡± Young-Joon then went into the restroom and locked the door behind him. Click! ¡®Rosaline. Send a few of your cells outside and guard the door.¡¯ Then, Rosaline¡¯s cells floated around in the hallway in front of the washroom. The interpreter ran all the way to the door. ¡°No.¡± Kim Chul-Kwon stopped him as he approached the door. ¡°You cannot go in. Please wait.¡± ¡°I am the interpreter,¡± the interpreter replied. ¡°I know that,¡± Kim Chul-Kwon replied sternly, still firmly guarding the door. The interpreter seemed like he was suspicious, but he quietly backed away. ¡®It seems like I can trust Kim Chul-Kwon.¡¯ Young-Joon took out his phone and called Alice. ¡ªDoctor Ryu? Is something wrong? ¡°Sorry for calling you so suddenly, but could you please trante for me on the phone right now?¡± ¡ªYes... I¡¯m not busy right now. What¡¯s going on? ¡°I¡¯ll make a three-way call.¡± Then, Young-Joon put the call on hold and called someone else. He had their number already. [Zhi Xuan] She was the mother of the baby sacrificed for He Jiankui¡¯s gic maniption. ¡ªWei? ¡ªHello? Alice tranted Zhi Xuan¡¯s words. ¡°Ms. Zhi Xuan, it¡¯s me, Ryu Young-Joon. I¡¯m sorry, but there¡¯s something I want to ask you,¡± Young-Joon barely managed to ask while suppressing high extreme anxiety. ¡°Ms. Zhi Xuan... Your hometown is called Jieyang in Guangdong, right?¡± ¡ªYes. ¡°You said it was a vige that lived from selling blood, right?¡± ¡ªYes. It¡¯s a vige in the mountains of Jieyang. ¡®Selling and buying blood.¡¯ Once blood was obtained, gic testing could be used to determine histpatibility, as antibody information was in the blood. ¡°What is the name of that blood organization?¡± ¡ªThe Blood Tyrant Company. Young-Joon clenched his jaw. He thought for a moment, then asked again, ¡°Do you know someone named Lee Qinqin?¡± ¡ªNo, I¡¯ve never heard that name. Are they from my vige? ¡°Alright. Thank you.¡± Young-Joon hung up on Zhi Xuan. ¡ªWhat¡¯s the matter? What¡¯s the Blood Tyrant Company? Young-Joon remained on the call with Alice. Let me make one more call.¡± Young-Joon made a three-way call again. ¡ªWei? It was Yang Gunyu, the governor of Guangdong. ¡°Mr. Governor, it¡¯s Ryu Young-Joon. There¡¯s something I want to confirm with you. Do you know anyone named Lee Qinquin in Guangdong? ¡ªLee Qinqin? There are so many people in Guangdong, so how can I remember... Yang Gunyu answered Young-Joon sullenly. ¡°She lived in 341-7 in Jieyang. I want more information about them,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡ª... That information cannot be given to outsiders. ¡°It¡¯s important. It¡¯s rted to a huge infectious disease.¡± ¡ªAlright. I will tell you because we are indebted to you. Hold on for a moment. Yang Gunyu knew very little about the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. Plus, Yang Gunyu said something a little negative about Mao Zedong, even when the Minister of Health was listening. Yang Gunyu was a man of power with a slightly different path than the central government. He was a patriot who was loyal to the CCP, but he always said what had to be said. Although he was stubborn and arrogant, he was reasonable enough to put aside his pride when he asked for help. Plus, he knew nothing about the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. Yang Gunyu didn¡¯t really care about political battles or illegal businesses in such a faraway region, as they were focused on the development of Guangdong, the biggest industrial region of China. And thanks to that, Guangdong has be the most powerful economic hub in China; the provincial GDP was equivalent to the GDP of Russia as a whole. So, let¡¯s think about this from Chen Shui¡¯s perspective. If Young-Joon was right about his concerns, it was better for Chen Shui if less people knew about this. Would Chen Shui have shared this with a provincial power like Yang Gunyu? Probably not; there was a high chance that Yang Gunyu was telling Young-Joon as much as he knew. ¡ªUm... Yang Gunyu was going through hisputer. ¡ªI looked it up on myputer right now. ¡°What does it say?¡± ¡ªThat person went missing on the sixteenth of July, one year ago. ¡°...¡± That was only a week before the twenty-third of July, which was the date of the surgery in the chart. ¡ªBy the detailed address listed, they were probably very poor because that area is being redeveloped. ¡°Is there any chance that they could have been selling blood?¡± ¡ªUm... I¡¯m embarrassed to say this, but there are some viges in Guangdong that survive on blood money, many of them in Jieyang. So, it¡¯s likely. ¡°Do you know the Blood Tyrant Agency?¡± ¡ªThose scumbags. I spent years fighting to get rid of them. They¡¯re an illegal blood money organization. They keep moving from ce to ce, running shellpanies, but I¡¯m going to take them all down sooner orter. ¡°Could you tell me about them if you know anything?¡± Young-Joon asked. Chapter 218: Artificial Organs (7) ¡°I¡¯m finished.¡± Young-Joon came out of the washroom. ¡°What did you do in there? Who did you call?¡± the interpreter asked. ¡°I had to contact mypany to give an order. I¡¯m a scientist, but I¡¯m also the CEO of A-GenBio,¡± Young-Joon said without blinking an eye. The interpreter secretly red at Young-Joon. Young-Joon had obviously figured something out while reading the donor information and called someone. It was probably important, but the interpreter didn¡¯t know what it was. Just as they were thinking that they should check with the Public Security Bureau, Young-Joon spoke. ¡°Let¡¯s head back now. I have to look at the chart again.¡± Young-Joon led the way back to Mei Weisun¡¯s office. ¡°Where did you go?¡± Mei Weisun asked as she stood up. ¡°I had something to take care of.¡±Young-Joon sat down and picked up the organ transnt chart, which was tranted into Korean. ¡°May I take this?¡± ¡°Of course..¡± ¡°Thank you. We will prioritize the tracking of the one hundred twenty-four people listed here, because the virus can cause subacute necrotizing encephalomyelopathy,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡ªIt¡¯s forty-eight thousand people, not one hundred twenty-four. Rosaline sent Young-Joon a message. ¡ªThis is in the past year. ¡®Really?¡¯ ¡ªYes. I found the hard copies of the transnt records. ¡®I knew it.¡¯ Young-Joon thought to himself: would they have left these kinds of documents for illegal organ transnts? ¡®Of course, they would have.¡¯ Young-Joon was sure of it. That way, the hospital wouldn¡¯t have to take all the me if something went wrong. Also, in organ transntation, rejection was usually monitored for more than six months. Considering that all of their clients were heads ofrge corporations, high-ranking government officials, and their families, there was no way they wouldn¡¯t have followed up properly. And to follow up properly, they needed to have medical records of examination. ¡®The one hundred twenty-four people on this list must be a small subset of the rest. They probably have donor identities that are rtively safe to disclose.¡¯ In Chen Shui¡¯s case, however, they probably had to include him because Young-Joon already knew about him. ¡®Where are the data on the forty-eight thousand people?¡¯ ¡ªIn a secure document library on the sixth floor of the basement. ¡®Can I go down there?¡¯ ¡ªIf you go behind the cancer ward of this hospital, there¡¯s a research institute affiliated with the university hospital. It¡¯s called the Institute of Biomedical Research. You can take the elevator to the basement there. ¡®So, you¡¯re saying that I have to be able to enter that institute first.¡¯ ¡ªYes. ¡°Let¡¯s go to the training center,¡± Young-Joon said to Mei Weisun. ¡°I need to diagnose the extent of the virus spread there and do some experiments.¡± ¡°Experiments?¡± Mei Weisun asked, her eyes narrowed. ¡°Yes. Isn¡¯t it obvious? Experiments based on PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction) are fundamental in detecting and diagnosing viruses.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Speaking of which, I need to use theb here.¡± ¡°Um¡­¡± ¡°If it¡¯s because of research security, don¡¯t worry; you can just give me any spareb, just as long as I can get in and out of theb.¡± Mei Weisun hesitated. She lowered her head to avoid Young-Joon¡¯s gaze and thought for a while. The security was perfect anyway, and he wouldn¡¯t find a way to get in without a master key card and finger recognition. ¡°... Okay, I will provide you with ab,¡± Mei Weisun said. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡ªBut what are you going to do down there? Rosaline seemed curious. ¡®I¡¯m going to gather evidence and expose them.¡¯ Young-Joon stood up as he put the medical records in his bag. ¡°Let¡¯s get going.¡± ¡°Yes, let¡¯s go.¡± Mei Weisun also got up, propping up her sses with trembling fingers. Young-Joon led the way, opening the door and stepping outside first. He walked through the hallway and stood in front of the elevator to go to the underground parking lot. ¡°...¡± Young-Joon¡¯s body stiffened slightly. ¡°You¡¯re not going down?¡± Puzzled, the interpreter pressed the elevator button as he looked at Young-Joon. ¡°Oh, sorry,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°...¡± He clenched his fists slightly in his pockets. His hands were damp with sweat. Right now, Young-Joon was sharing his vision with Rosaline¡ªthe vision of Rosaline¡¯s 8427807th somatic cell. He could see hundreds of prisons. That¡¯s the only way he could describe it; prison was the only word he knew that could urately describe this. The tiny rooms were divided by solid concrete walls, which were excellent in soundproofing. The steel doors were firmly locked, and the rooms were filled with naked people. The hospital also had young clients, the children of the party leadership. As adult organs could not be transnted into children, there were also boys and girls in their early teens among the inmates. Rosaline read the namete of a boy who looked to be about ten years old. [B78494, Pulmonary Transntation, 17/Apr, Recipient: SB7031¡­] Pulmonary transntation referred to a lung transnt, and it was going to happen on the seventeenth of April, which was a few weeks away. The recipient¡¯s code name was ¡°SB7031.¡± The important thing was that the child who appeared to be the donor was not critically ill, but appeared to be very healthy. However, they were experiencing extreme anxiety. There were sounds of people walking outside the door. They weren¡¯t guards; physicians wearing gowns were visiting the rooms of the imprisoned donors, one by one. They measured the heart rate of the donors and drew some blood. ¡°Fuck¡­¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± The interpreter, who heard Young-Joon muttering, tilted his head in confusion. ¡°It¡¯s nothing,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Let¡¯s go to the training center. Quickly.¡± * * * The Xinjiang University Hospital was located in the central region of Payzewat prefecture. A short drive from here led to Tierimue Town, the northern part of the prefecture. The first thing that could be seen upon entering the town was a barren dirt ground, barely cleared fields, and an enormous wall. The gray wall was a boring rectangr shape that surrounded a huge area, taking up almost half of Tierimue Town. If this wall was in Seoul, it would enclose an entire district. It was also heavily guarded, with towering watchtowers at every gap in the wall and guards standing outside. Young-Joon was also a little nervous. ¡®We¡¯re finally here.¡¯ This was the training camp for Muslim Uygurs, the huge internment camp that has been photographed by many satellites from all over the world. The Chinese government said this was a type of educational institution that taught the Uygur people skills for employment, but the internationalmunity did not buy it. This ce was already receiving a lot of attention from the media and the leadership of various countries, and it was of great concern to international human rights organizations like Amnesty. The things that happened inside had never been revealed to the public, but now Young-Joon knew¡ªthe car he was in had entered the camp. ¡ªOh my god¡­ Rosaline froze a little. It was the first time she had been this surprised as she usually showed very little emotion. Perhaps it was because her vision was so much wider than humans, as humans couldn¡¯t see all the elements of a scene at once. ¡ªWhat are these people doing? Millions of Uygurs, all dressed alike with shaved heads, were moving like machines. Eight hundred thousand of them were working as ves in three hundredmodity factories inside the training camp. They stood in front of conveyor belts, assembling machine parts for twelve hours straight. At the other end, four hundred thousand of them were gathered in the living quarters, kneeling and singing songs of praise to the Communist Party. ¡°Glory to President Chen Shui!¡± ¡°Victory to the Communist Party!¡± ¡°China is one!¡± In the empty field beside them, two thousand Muslims were being trained to eat pork. They had starved for three days, and they were either eating pork, vomiting out the pork they ate, or they were being punished for refusing. It was abnormal¡ªnot violent or cruel but abnormal. This situation was so foreign and shocking to Rosaline, who was omnipotent in biology. It made sense to harvest organs ormit violence against someone because it was in their interest. It made sense for the strong to prey on the weak. Rosaline could understand making a few species go extinct because it was natural for creatures that were oupeted to go extinct. But molding four hundred thousand people into the same shape and forcing them to praise the ruling party on their knees? The absurdity of forcing starving people to eat pork and punishing them when they refuse? This inefficiency and this blindness to any logic was madness. This wasn¡¯t something that could be made in nature. This was something Rosaline couldn¡¯t imagine. She would consider mental illness if it were one or two cases, but the scale of this was¡­ ¡ªIt¡¯s not just a million people. It¡¯s a lot more. It¡¯s more like three million people. Rosaline observed them more closely in shock. The Uygur people¡¯s minds had been broken by endless indoctrination to deny the Muslim religion and praise sinocentrism. Their eyes were hollow, they had broken bones and bruises all over their bodies, and flies were flying into their flesh through scars caused by whips. Long years of abuse and torture had stripped them of any sense of defiance, and their identity as ves had be so strong that they flinched and cowered when a guard simply raised their hand. But the Uygur people working in the training centers were the meekest Muslims who were the most ¡°normal¡± and Sinocentric. It was because they were given an order yesterday to stop abusive behaviors in case Young-Joon visited. The remaining two million or so Muslim Uygurs who still had the strength and spirit to rebel were locked up in detention centers. They looked even worse. Many of them had lost their minds or were crippled. Rosaline saw everything at once. ¡ªWhy are they doing this? Rosaline was shocked. ¡ªThis violence doesn''t have a goal. I understand hurting or exploiting people for selfish motives. I don¡¯t find it offensive in the slightest because it¡¯s natural for living beings, but this is different. After sending Young-Joon a message, Rosaline took back the cells that were looking around the camp and returned to his side in the form of a little girl. Her face, which resembled Ryu Sae-Yi¡¯s, was filled with anxiety. ¡ªAre you really going to go in here? ¡®It¡¯s okay.¡¯ Young-Joon reassured Rosaline as he stared at her. ¡ªBut you have to stay by my side. Rosaline came closer to him. ¡ªYou are my priority. I am not angry at this situation, just shocked. But I don¡¯t know what will happen if you get hurt. So, I will store half of my cells and my fitness in your body as an emergency energy. That way, I can protect you in case of an emergency. Rosaline was being protective of Young-Joon; however, Rosaline was clinging tightly to the side of his leg, as if she wanted Young-Joon¡¯s protection rather than protecting him. Rosaline was secretly leaning on Young-Joon to release her anxiety. ¡®She has so much knowledge, but she really looks like a kid when she acts like this. She¡¯s just like Sae-Yi.¡¯ ¡ªPardon? ¡®No, don¡¯t worry. Everything will be fine.¡¯ Young-Joon reassured Rosaline. ¡®I¡¯m an expert in these kinds of things. No one will be able to touch us, I promise. I have a n.¡¯ ¡ª... Rosaline hesitated, then nodded. ¡ªOkay. Rosaline began calming down a little. Drrr. The vehicle stopped. ¡°We¡¯ve arrived. It¡¯s inside this building,¡± Mei Weisun said. Young-Joon got out of the car and walked toward the office of the facility manager. The interpreter, Mei Weisun, and Kim Chul-Kwon followed him. * * * ¡°Please collect blood samples from the people held here, and give me some drinking water. I need to test it all,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°There¡¯s quite a lot of them, can you test them all? Have you brought your scientists with you?¡± Mei Weisun asked. ¡°No, but we can collect the blood samples together and analyze them using drop sequencing. That will give us an idea of what percentage of the people here are infected. Finding out exactly who it is would be a matter of scaling up the experiment after that.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°You have drop-seq in theb, right?¡± ¡°Oh¡­ Of course,¡± Mei Weisun said. ¡°Please collect the sample. We¡¯ll be busy connecting experiments starting tonight,¡± Young-Joon said. But to be honest, Young-Joon didn¡¯t n on doing any experiments, as he already figured out the situation the moment he walked in. Rosaline traced all of the virus in the area, and the infection source was the drinking water. The virus was too small, and its shell was cleverly engineered to be absorbed through the gut. Then it entered the bloodstream and spread throughout the body in a matter of hours. In fact, all the inmates and guards were already infected. Perhaps Lee Qinqin had visited the hospital before his surgery, or perhaps he hade into contact with an infected person in the basement of the hospital, such as using the same drinking water. Chapter 219: Artificial Organs (8)

Chapter 219: Artificial Organs (8)

"How many people are in the camp here?" Young-Joon asked. "About 30,000 people,¡± the facility manager replied. "30 000 people... If we gather a lot of medical staff and work diligently, we should be able to finish collecting blood samples today. You can send them to the affiliatedboratory at Xinjiang University Hospital." "Oh, wait." The manager suddenly interrupted him. "Come to think of it, it''s a little more than 30 000..." "How many are there?" "Well, um... Anyway, we can¡¯t finish today.¡± "Then how long will it take?" "... We¡¯ll try to do it as fast as possible,¡± the facility manager replied hesitantly. "Alright. You can send it to the ce I just told you, and I''ll test the blood samples, drinking water, and anymon items that might be contaminated for the virus." Liu returned to his car and drove back to the Institute of Biomedical Research, which was affiliated with Xinjiang University Hospital. * * * ¡°It¡¯s going to be quite dangerous from here, Supervisor Kim,¡± Young-Joon said to Kim Chul-Kwon at the hotel. ¡°Although I¡¯m going to leave it to the experts instead of doing it myself, I still don¡¯t know how it¡¯s going to y out. I think it¡¯s best for you to return to Korea.¡± ¡°I cannot.¡± ¡°Worst case scenario, we might get arrested by the police. I know one of their weaknesses, so they won¡¯t be able to do anything to us even if that happens, but it¡¯s still dangerous. You should go back to Korea.¡± ¡°I cannot,¡± Kim Chul-Kwon refused again, bluntly. ¡°I am ordering you as your superior. Go back.¡± ¡°Then fire me. I¡¯ll just follow and guard you as a private individual.¡± ¡°...: Young-Joon was dumbfounded. Kim Chul-Kwon slightly bent down and whispered to him. ¡°Doctor Ryu, I have an idea of what¡¯s going on here, I¡¯m not stupid. You were suddenly summoned into the Hall of Diligence where the President lives, you suddenly came to Xinjiang to investigate organ transnts, and today, you came to see a camp that looks like a prison. Plus, you¡¯re being followed by an interpreter who clearly looks like an intelligence agent,¡± Kim Chul-Kwon said. ¡°I know that it¡¯s dangerous, and that¡¯s why I can¡¯t go back by myself, you know? I mean, your safety won¡¯t be secure because some private security is with you, but I can¡¯t leave. This is my job.¡± ¡°Hm...¡± ¡°Do you remember the first day I worked on your security team when we walked past Gwanghwamun after you were discharged from the hospital? A lot of people were rallying to put the person who tried to hurt you in jail because there are seven hundred thousand patients with rare diseases and a million cancer patients in Korea alone,¡± Kim Chul-Kwon said. ¡°You are a beacon in the medical world right now, that¡¯s what I¡¯ve concluded from watching from the sidelines. The world is very sick, and you have the ability to heal it. You should be more careful of your life, even if it means sacrificing someone like me by putting them in front of you like a shield.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Speaking of which, how dangerous are the things we¡¯re about to do?¡± ¡°We¡¯ll only be doing research here. The CIA will do anything beyond that.¡± ¡°The CIA?¡± ¡°They were the first to ask us to research this.¡± Ding! An email arrived on Young-Joon¡¯s cellphone. It was from Yanag Gunyu. It was a report of Guangdong¡¯s own investigation of the Blood Tyrant Agency. It also contained additional information of the people who had gone missing in Guangdong. Yang Gunyu suspected that this might be connected to that organization and finding Lee Qinqin, the missing person. ¡°Alright.¡± Young-Joon nodded. ¡°We got a weapon.¡± * * * The CIA had requested Young-Joon to analyze the identity of the virus through Agent Whittaker. They also knew that Young-Joon had traveled from Beijing to Xinjiang Uygur after stopping at the Hall of Diligence. Young-Joon must have gone there because he felt something serious was happening. The CIA was thinking of contacting him if Young-Joon didn¡¯t reach out first, but Young-Joon beat them to it. ¡ªThis is CIA Agent Whittacker. Young-Joon called the CIA headquarters and asked for Whittaker. ¡°This is Ryu Young-Joon. I¡¯ve determined the identity of the virus that Doctor Ref sent to Xinjiang Uygur.¡± ¡ªWhat is it? ¡°It¡¯s a virus that can cause subacute necrotizing encephalomyelitis. It does not cause illness in healthy adults, but when there is organ transntation, the disease develops in the recipient¡¯s body.¡± ¡ª... Subacute... What? ¡°I will report the detailed findingster. But first, I¡¯d like to pass on some important information about Xinjiang to you. Can you give me an email?¡± ¡ªI will give you the CIA¡¯s temporary email. I¡¯ll text it to you. Whittaker hung up and sent Young-Joon a text. Even as he was sending it, he was wondering what Young-Joon was going to send. The CIA, the world¡¯s best spy agency, had spent two weeks in Xinjiang and gotten absolutely nothing. What kind of secret information could someone who had just arrived in Xinjiang be able to send them? Ding! Whittaker received an email. His eyes widened as he read it. It was a drawing of the basement of Xinjiang University Hospital. Contrary to prior information that said it only had five basement floors, the blueprint showed three more basement floors and a huge facility as well. It also showed where the secret elevator was hidden, how many guards there were on the way down, what level of security clearance one needed, and the fact that iris and fingerprint recognition were required starting from the sixth basement floor. ¡°What...¡± That wasn¡¯t it. It detailed theyout of the Xinjiang Uygur internment camps and the three million Uygurs imprisoned there. But there was one piece of information that was even more serious: illegal organ harvesting. The sixth to eight floors of the basement were equipped with donor living quarters and operating rooms. It was odd that organ donors would need a ce to live because someone donating an organ like a heart would be in the intensive care unit until theory died. The information didn¡¯t stop there. There were records of investigation into the Blood Tyrant Agency, the blood-selling agency, and the fact that their blood could be tested for histpatibility. There was also a statement by Yang Gunyu, the governor of Guangdong, that poor people living on blood money often disappear in the middle of the night without anyone noticing. ¡°This is... Sounds like some urban legend or something...¡± Whittaker wouldn¡¯t have believed it at all if it weren¡¯t for the statistics and the fact that it was from the Guangdong Provincial Administration. That was how chilling the picture these data were painting. ¡°Why are there so many missing people from these blood viges...¡± Whittaker let out a deep sigh. He pulled out his phone and called his fellow CIA agent, Robert. * * * Anthony, an editor of Nature, was a bit taken aback by the two CIA agents who showed up in front of his door in the middle of the night. They were Whittaker and Robert; he had already met Robert once. ¡°I told you before that this is a dangerous ce and you should return home, but you haven¡¯t,¡± Robert said. ¡°I... It¡¯s my choice,¡± Anthony replied nervously. ¡°This is a ce where inclothes policemen keep an eye on foreigners, like the Gestapo did in the old days. Even people like us who are skilled at this kind of thing could be in danger. You¡¯re not even a war correspondent, just an academic journal editor. This is not something that you should be investigating,¡± Robert said. ¡°This is not a suggestion, this is a warning. It could be trouble if you¡¯re taken hostage. Go home. Many foreign journalists have already gone back.¡± ¡°... I don¡¯t want to.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t want to?¡± ¡°Nature has published a lot of papers analyzing medical data from organ transnt patients in China over the years, many of which I¡¯ve edited because I did my degree in organ transntation and immune response,¡± Anthony said. ¡°I¡¯m not a scientist anymore, but I¡¯m still working in the same field to advance the medicalmunity. I feel responsible for this situation!¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I¡¯m a fan of Doctor Ryu, but not just because he has a lot of brilliant research achievements. It¡¯s because he¡¯se this far without dodging or trying to save himself when confronted with hical behavior. I envy him for that. It¡¯s time for the scientificmunity to change, and I will be like him from now on.¡± ¡°Hm...¡± Whittaker gave Robert a clever smile and nced at Robert. ¡°You could die,¡± Robert said to Anthony. ¡°... I¡¯m still going to stay.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± Whittaker put down his stuff and sat beside Anthony. ¡°We need someone who has in-depth knowledge about biology or organ transnts to carry out our operation. Can you help us?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°We¡¯ll let you uncover the top-secret information that China is hiding in Xinjiang right now.¡± ¡°What are you trying to do?¡± ¡°We¡¯re going to infiltrate the secret operating rooms over there. Will you help us? Like I said, it could be life-threatening.¡± ¡°You¡¯re going to infiltrate a secret operating room?¡± Anthony¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Um... I¡¯m investigating this out of a sense of duty, but why is the CIA...¡± ¡°Haha. These things are a battle of power between countries. We¡¯ve had many of these with a country like China,¡± Whittaker said. ¡°The Xinjiang region is culturally and ethnically very different from maind China. And yet, the reason why the Chinese government has prevented the Muslims in that region from bing independent is because of the underground resources in Xinjiang.¡± ¡°Underground resources?¡± Anthony asked. ¡°The natural gas and coal reserves there are forty percent of the entire amount in China. They have thergest oil reserve in China as well,¡± Robert added. ¡°The United States is going to publicize this political scandal in the internationalmunity and push for Xinjiang¡¯s independence. Then, the U.S. influence in the region will be huge.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I could have thrown in all sorts of other causes, Doctor Anthony, but I¡¯m just being honest with you. But it¡¯s not that difficult. It¡¯s just about rescuing and bringing justice to those poor citizens who are being kidnapped and harvested for their organs. Anthony hesitated for a moment, then nodded with a determined expression. ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll go.¡± ¡°Good. Take a look at this.¡± Whittakerid the materials Young-Joon had sent him out on the table. Anthony¡¯s eyes widened at the incredible information in front of him. ¡°How did you get... Who gave you this information?¡± Anthony asked, stuttering because of the shock. ¡°The source is a secret, which is for your own good. But don¡¯t worry, it¡¯s a very reliable source. And now, we¡¯re going to start gathering evidence,¡± Whittaker said. ¡°Evidence?¡± ¡°Yes. Because even if we publish it right now and pressure the Chinese government, all they have to do is dismiss it as an urban legend,¡± Robert said. ¡°We have to raid the donor¡¯s living quarters down here in the basement. They have a ledger with the operations, so we¡¯re going to get that and bring those people over to Kyrgyzstan. Then, all we have to do is take the prepared n to the United States.¡± ¡°I-Is that possible?¡± ¡°We¡¯ve secured an escape route, so don¡¯t worry. If you do well, we should be able to disguise ourselves as scientists and get the people out without armed conflict.¡± * * * Young-Joon¡¯s virus research was smooth sailing. Three trucks from the camp in Xinjiang Uygur arrived at the research institute every day. The trucks contained dozens ofrge boxes, which contained one thousand blood samples each. However, Young-Joon didn¡¯t analyze them all. He randomly selected two thousand samples by date and conducted drop-seq on them. All of them were infected with Doctor Ref¡¯s virus. In the downtime, he was doing another experiment. He was trying to see what happened when an organ infected with this virus was transnted. He created a cardiac organoid and checked the progression of subacute necrotizing encephalomyelitis in an animal model. He sessfully reproduced what happened to Chen Shui, the president of China, in ten beagles. This was biological experimental evidence¡ªproof that high-ranking Chinese officials who were dying did receive organ transnts from Xinjiang Uygur camps. However, he needed proof that they were illegal transnts, which the CIA would provide. Young-Joon was going to release the data when they blew it up. He stalled for time, epting blood from the internment camps even though the experiment was almost over. ¡ªThey¡¯re in. Rosaline alerted Young-Joon. It was eleven o¡¯clock at night, and Robert, Whittaker, and Anthony appeared in the underground parking lot of the research institute. They didn¡¯t have a problem getting into the parking lot because it was open to the public, but getting down to the sixth floor involved a lot of security. ¡ªDo you think they¡¯ll do a good job? Rosaline seemed a little doubtful. ¡®Whittaker said he¡¯s confident. There¡¯s no agent in the CIA who won¡¯t be able to get into the basement when they have theplete blueprint and security ns.¡¯ Young-Joon assured Rosaline. ¡®Let¡¯s trust them.¡¯ Chapter 220: Artificial Organs (9)

Chapter 220: Artificial Organs (9)

¡°Are we going inside now?¡± Anthony asked Robert in a nervous voice. ¡°Wait here. There¡¯s someone we¡¯re going to meet here,¡± Robert said. ¡°Meet someone? The person who sent you the blueprint?¡± ¡°No, that information was a stroke of luck that we didn¡¯t expect, but we weren¡¯t sitting on our hands either.¡± ¡°You already have someone on the inside?¡± Robert nodded with a faint smile on his face. Ding! Soon, the elevator stopped at the fifth floor of the basement, and a middle-aged doctor stepped off. There were two unexpected things: one was that the doctor was a woman, and the other was that she was Chinese. ¡°Hey.¡± She came over and tapped Robert¡¯s shoulder like she was happy to see him. ¡°Is she Chinese?¡± Anthony asked in surprise. ¡°No, I¡¯m American,¡± said the woman as she held out her hand toward Anthony. Anthony shook her hand, a little surprised. ¡°But my parents are Chinese. I¡¯m Chinese-American. My name is Nancy Zhang.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°No, I¡¯m just so surprised. A doctor at the Xinjiang University Hospital in China is a CIA agent...¡± ¡°I used to work as a doctor in Beijing. I¡¯m pretty good, so I was the attending physician for some high-ranking people in China. Got some good information, too.¡± ¡°But why are you here now?¡± ¡°You¡¯re curious about a lot of things. You can¡¯t write these things in Nature, okay?¡± ¡°... Of course.¡± ¡°The internment camps in Xinjiang Uygur were set up a few years ago, and they were spotted by satellites. It¡¯s gotten a lot of attention recently, but intelligence agencies have been keeping an eye on the region for a long time before that. That¡¯s why I moved to Xinjiang University Hospital two years ago.¡± ¡°Then... Did you do any... transnts?¡± ¡°No.¡± Nancy shook her head. ¡°I was looking forward to it, but unfortunately, they didn¡¯t let me. It would have been so much easier to gather evidence if they¡¯d let me, even once.¡± ¡°Why not? I thought you attended to high-ranking people. Are you not a surgeon?¡± ¡°I¡¯m a hepatobiliary surgeon, but I don¡¯t have a lot of experience with surgeries like liver transnts. Some of the high-ranking officials who¡¯vee here over the years are people I used to treat, but they didn¡¯t ask me to do it,¡± Nancy said. ¡°Other than that, well... Some traditional Chinese dignitaries didn¡¯t want to let a female doctor lead their life-saving surgery. I also don¡¯t have a lot of experience, so they don¡¯t use me.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°For that reason, Anthony, from now on, you¡¯re going to be the doctor performing the liver transnt surgery on Fei Hung, one of the lieutenants in the Public Security Bureau. I¡¯m just there to assist you, okay?¡± ¡°Oh... Okay.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s go if you¡¯re done introducing yourselves. It¡¯s almost time,¡± Robert said. ¡°Time?¡± ¡°The time when all the underground guards are gone. The sixth floor and below are closed down, and two guards are on duty in front of the elevator. It¡¯s when there¡¯s the least security.¡± * * * Robert¡¯s team moved to a space behind pir J43 in the parking lot on the fifth level of the basement. It was the most secluded spot in therge parking lot. ¡°It¡¯s here.¡± Robert pulled out a small electronic device out of his bag and set it up behind the pir. ¡°What is that?¡± Anthony asked. ¡°It¡¯s an interference device. Security will radio for help when we go in.¡± Click. Robert activated the device and pushed on the side of a concrete wall. His fist slid in with the sound of stones grinding. Robert grabbed the wall and pushed it aside. Inside was arge elevator, a desk, and two guards. ¡°Who are you?¡± The two guards stared at them in surprise. ¡°Good evening, we have surgery scheduled for the patient here, code name ¡®SB7084.¡¯ This is the patient¡¯s attending physician who is here to perform the surgery.¡± Nancy introduced Anthony to the guards. ¡°... Oh... We weren¡¯t told anything. The basement is closed as a rule at this time,¡± said one of the security guards. ¡°It was an emergency. The patient¡¯s liver is getting more cirrhotic and fluid keeps building up, and that¡¯s why you weren¡¯t told beforehand. The patient¡¯s in stable condition for now, but they need a transnt urgently. They are in the emergency room right now, you can go check.¡± ¡°They are in the emergency room? Why didn¡¯t theye here to do the surgery?¡± ¡°They are in very critical condition, so they were taken care of in the emergency room. But we can¡¯t move them here now. Radio someone and check right now.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± The guard picked up the walkie-talkie on his desk and dialed a number. Pzzz... But all that came out was static. ¡°What¡¯s going on...¡± The two security guards turned it on and off a few times, but it didn¡¯t work. ¡°Is the radio not working?¡± Whittaker asked. ¡°...¡± ¡°Haha, small-town security guards. Can¡¯t even take care of their own equipment.¡± Robertughed. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Why? You got a problem with me?¡± Robert red at the guards with a frown. ¡°We¡¯re busy people. I¡¯m sorry, but we don¡¯t tend to take up time here. Move,¡± Robert said, showing them his Public Security Bureau ID. ¡°A foreigner is in the Public Security Bureau? And there¡¯s three of you? And we weren¡¯t told about this situation,¡± the guard said, ring. ¡°Is it weird that there are foreigners here? When we speak perfect Chinese?¡± Robert asked. ¡°...¡± Robert frowned terrifyingly. ¡°Listen, you two. The person who is waiting for surgery right now is a key member of the foreign intelligence gathering of the Ministry of Public Security. We are informants who have done covert operations in Western countries, going through life-and-death events together. We¡¯re the ones who brought his British doctor back here.¡± ¡°This... This is the doctor?¡± the guards asked, pointing at Anthony. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± Anthony nodded. ¡°Did you say you were from Britain? Then, you are not allowed inside because you are a foreigner.¡± ¡°Because you can¡¯t tell us that the donor is alive and well?¡± Anthony quickly rebutted. The guards looked surprised. ¡°It seems like you harvest the donor¡¯s organs and hand them over just to perform the surgery when external doctorse, but you don¡¯t have toplicate things for me. I¡¯ll do the harvesting myself, which will cut down on the time and minimize tissue damage.¡± ¡°Uhm...¡± As the guards panicked, Robert spoke. ¡°I brought him here because he¡¯s trustworthy. He¡¯s helped VIPs with their operations, and he has connections with the Public Security Bureau. Open the door.¡± ¡°B-But... We can¡¯t open the door without confirming your identity,¡± the guard said, stammering. ¡°The patient had hepatitis B since the first time I saw them,¡± said Anthony. ¡°They were jaundiced, had portal hypertension with a bleeding varicose vein, and he was in a critical condition. We kept losing time because we didn¡¯t have a histpatible donor. And now, they have severe ascites, and their blood albumin and fibrinogen are low. Now, they¡¯re in a hepatica.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Hepatica. Do you know what that means? Their liver function is so impaired that they are losing consciousness, and they are suffering behavioral and neurological damage. We need to operate on the patient right now because the clock is ticking.¡± ¡°Donor B78551. Right?¡± Robert asked. The guard opened an Excel sheet at his desk and checked the codenames. ¡°Y-Yes...¡± said the guard. ¡°We know this much top-secret information, and you can¡¯t trust us? Or fix that crappy radio or something. Run to the emergency room or security in the main hospital building.¡± ¡°... We can¡¯t leave our post, so...¡± ¡°What should we do?¡± As the guards hesitated, Whittaker interjected. ¡°How about this? We don¡¯t need you to open the door to the sixth floor. We have the top security card, and the only person who can issue them is Director Mei Weisun. How about that? Now, you have something you can trust.¡± ¡°You have a security card?¡± The guards looked surprised. ¡°The director gave it to us because she was worried that you guards would be alerted by three foreigners. Can we go in now?¡± ¡°...¡± The two guards nced at each other and then nodded. ¡°Then go inside. But we will report this once this gets fixed.¡± * * * ¡°That was nothing,¡± Robert said as they went down the elevator. ¡°What are you going to do about the security card?¡± Anthony asked. ¡°We don¡¯t have a security card. Even Nancy doesn¡¯t have a way of forging one.¡± ¡°Doesn¡¯t that mean we can¡¯t get into the sixth floor?¡± ¡°There are medical personnel who go in and out of the sixth floor regrly, and we recently kidnapped one of them.¡± ¡°Kidnapped them?¡± ¡°We timed it well and kidnapped them while they were on vacation, so the hospital doesn¡¯t know yet.¡± ¡°So you took his security card?¡± ¡°No, security cards are not allowed to leave the building,¡± Robert said. Anthonyined in frustration. ¡°Then what the hell did you do?¡± ¡°We don¡¯t have the card, but we do have a fingerprint.¡± Robert pulled something out of his bag. Anthony almost screamed in horror because it was a human finger. ¡°Y... You cut... You cut off a finger...¡± ¡°We were going to cut all ten, but he was crying and begging, so we only cut off his index finger,¡± Robert said. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I took care of it, so he won¡¯t die,¡± Nancy said. ¡°But he won¡¯t be able to hold a scalpel anymore, so he won¡¯t be able to harvest organs anymore.¡± Ding! The elevator arrived on the sixth floor of the basement. The four approached the door, and Robert put the finger on the scanner. Bleep! The door opened. ¡°Take out your camera now,¡± Robert said. ¡°You can¡¯t spend too much time. From now on, you¡¯ll go back to being a journalist and photograph everything in sight. I¡¯m going to rescue the donor.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll go with Agent Whittaker to the secure document library and get a hard copy of the organ transnt ledger and the coded customer data.¡± Nancy pulled Whittaker¡¯s arm as she walked toward the westbound corridor. ¡°O-Okay.¡± The four people moved quickly. Anthony felt sick to his stomach at the disgusting scene inside the sixth floor of the basement. The people were locked up, basically being treated like livestock. But Anthony was focused on his job as a journalist and focused his efforts on capturing their stories on his camera. He took several photos of the donors and the operating rooms. ¡°Please!¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry! Please help me!¡± ¡°I won¡¯t rebel at the camps now!¡± The sound of crying and begging was making Anthony dizzy. Meanwhile, Robert found the donor and rescued them. He gave them a short summary of the situation. As they were allpleting their assigned tasks, something unexpected happened. Bleep! ¡°We need iris recognition!¡± Nancy shouted in panic. ¡°Fxxk... I thought it was the fingerprint or the iris!¡± Whittaker let out a deep breath. ¡°It¡¯s because we opened the donor headquarters with this fingerprint. The security keys have to be different,¡± Nancy said. ¡°What a shitty security system.¡± ¡°What do we do?¡± ¡°What do you mean? We have to go back. Don¡¯t be greedy, Nancy. We have pictures of this ce, and we rescued the donor. That¡¯s enough for us.¡± ¡°Damn it. It was a nuclear weapon, but it just became dynamite.¡± ¡°... Nothing we can do.¡± It was when the two turned away in disappointment. Bleep! Click. The door to the secure document library opened. ¡°...¡± Whittaker and Nancy¡¯s eyes widened. The iris scanner was now open. ¡°What?¡± * * * ¡ªPhew... Rosaline covered her forehead like she was a little tired. ¡®Did it work?¡¯ Young-Joon was rolling his feet as he was sitting in theb. ¡ªYes. I temporarily recreated the iris pattern by clumping 3.8 million of my cells together. But I¡¯m very tired. ¡®... Good work. Let¡¯s go home and rest.¡¯ Young-Joon smiled. ¡ªBut will they let us leave? ¡®I was in theb all day, right? There¡¯s a record of my entry, and there¡¯s CCTV footage of me.¡¯ ¡ªBut they will cause trouble once they find out that the donor was stolen, as well as the important ledger. Even if you have an alibi, they won¡¯t let you leave. ¡®Let¡¯s see. They won¡¯t be able to do that.¡¯ Young-Joon grinned. Rosaline was right. The next morning, Mei Weisun was furious that Young-Joon expressed his intent to go home when the hospital had been turned upside down. ¡°W-Where do you think you¡¯re going? You can¡¯ leave now. Stay a little longer,¡± Mei Weisun said. ¡°The experiment is over. They are all infected with the virus.¡± ¡°... There is an urgent matter at the hospital right now, and you can¡¯t leave. I won¡¯t call the police, so please stay put.¡± ¡°Urgent matter? What is it?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°It¡¯s also urgent that I return home.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± asked Mei Weisun with a frown. Young-Joon showed her his phone. It was an artificial heart that the Life Creation Team had made. ¡°You know the President¡¯s situation, right?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°He doesn¡¯t have much time. I have to get back to A-GenBio right now, finalize the contract, and send the artificial heart.¡± ¡°B...ut...¡± ¡°Is that urgent matter more important than this? Exin it to me. I will help you if you need.¡± Chapter 221: Artificial Organs (10)

Chapter 221: Artificial Organs (10)

¡°...¡± Mei Weisun was speechless. ¡°Tell me. I will help you.¡± Young-Joon urged Mei Weisun, but she couldn¡¯t say anything. She had never revealed the secrets of Xinjiang University Hospital to Young-Joon. Young-Joon shouldn¡¯t know, and to be honest, she couldn¡¯t tell if he really didn¡¯t know anymore. ¡°... Important confidential documents were stolen from the hospital yesterday. We believe it was done by outsiders.¡± ¡°Really? If you have a suspect, I can do something like DNA profiling. Have you arrested a suspect yet?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Hm... What kind of documents are they?¡± ¡°I cannot disclose that information.¡± ¡°Where were they stolen?¡± ¡°... I cannot disclose that information either.¡± ¡°Then there¡¯s no way I can help you.¡± Young-Joon shrugged. ¡°...¡± ¡°As you know, I hardly left theb, and I don¡¯t see any reason for me to stay here. You can look at the CCTV footage or my ess card records and see,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°... You¡¯re right.¡± ¡°But there¡¯s a clear reason why I have to return to A-GenBio. This will be the first transnt of artificial hearts and organs ever created. I trust our scientists, but I need to confirm as the chief of thepany, so I can finalize the contract and perform the transnt on him.¡± ¡°You¡¯re right,¡± Mei Weisun said with a pained expression. ¡°Then, I¡¯ll be on my way.¡± Young-Joon picked up his bag and left. Kim Chul-Kwon followed him. ¡°I hope we can get home safely,¡± Kim Chul-Kwon said. ¡°We will be able to.¡± As soon as he finished, someone popped out from the end of the hallway. ¡°Doctor Ryu.¡± It was the Chinese interpreter that he had at the Hall of Diligence. There were two policemen from the Public Security Bureau standing behind him. They all looked more tense than usual. ¡°Yes, what is it?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Are you flying from the city of Urumqi?¡± the interpreter asked. ¡°Yes.¡± Urumqi was the capital city of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. Young-Joon was currently in the city of Kas, so he had to travel north by car. ¡° The Urumqi Airport is currently closed,¡± said the interpreter. ¡°Closed? Why?¡± ¡°I cannot tell you the reason,¡± he replied. ¡°Anyways, since you can¡¯t fly out from here, let¡¯s go to Qinghai Province instead. There¡¯s the Chaojibao Airport in Diwopu, a city in the suburbs of Xining. I have prepared a flight there.¡±[1] ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± Young-Joon confidently followed the interpreter. As he was walking, Kim Chul-Kwon poked him in the back. ¡ªThey¡¯re trying to buy time. Rosaline told Young-Joon. ¡®Probably. But it doesn¡¯t matter.¡¯ * * * In the car traveling to Qinghai Province, the interpreter said to Young-Joon, ¡°As you may have guessed, I¡¯m an intelligence agent with the Public Security Bureau.¡± ¡°Really? Are you allowed to disclose information like that?¡± ¡°... How much do you know about Xinjiang University Hospital?¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°About the secrets of this ce,¡± the interpreter said. ¡°Secrets? The fact that the virus got into the training center and infected everyone?¡± ¡°No, I¡¯m talking about the leak of important documents yesterday.¡± ¡°Director Mei Weisun told me about it, too.¡± ¡°The director let you go because he¡¯s soft, but not me,¡± the interpreter said. When Young-Joon nced at him, he bit his lip. The organ transnt business at Xinjiang University Hospital had never been revealed for years. But within a week of Young-Joon¡¯s arrival, everything was uncovered. It wasn¡¯t just a few pieces of information¡ªthey ransacked the donors¡¯ living quarters and the secure document library, and they stole the organ transnt chart and the codenames of all their VIP customers. They even managed to escape with a donor. How was this possible? The interpreter knew that the CIA and foreign journalists were roaming around, but hospital security was confident in their secrecy. Finding a secret elevator on the fifth floor of the basement would be impossible unless someone who actually uses the elevator leaked it. But the invaders picked the exact time of day when security was weakest and broke in, impersonating medical staff and reciting the codemanes of donors and recipients. All of this happened after Young-Joon arrived here. Was this a coincidence? ¡®There¡¯s definitely something...¡¯ The interpreter sighed. ¡°When you were talking to Director Mei Weisun before, you left in the middle of the conversation and took a call,¡± he said. ¡°Yes, I did,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°We checked with the telmunication base station and found your phone records. You had one international call, one to a woman named Zhi Xuan in Guangdong, and one to Governor Yang Gunyu.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°What did you talk about?¡± ¡°Ms. Zhi Xuan was a patient who contracted HIV from selling blood to Blood Tyrant Agency, an illegal blood-selling organization. The poor people in that area live off of selling blood, and the man who donated his heart to the president happened to have the same address.¡± ¡°...¡± The interpreter frowned. ¡°I don¡¯t know if you know this, Doctor Ryu, but an urban legend once circted on Baidu. It was that high-ranking government officials were using an illegal blood-selling organization to find poor people who were histpatible, kidnap them, and take their organs for transntation. You don¡¯t really believe in that, right?¡± Young-Joon smirked. ¡°Of course not,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°It¡¯s too horrible and evil to be true.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The reason I contacted Guangdong was just because I thought maybe the virus could have spread through the blood organization. I just wanted to check that possibility.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± The interpreter fiddled with his fingers. There was a short silence. ¡°I don¡¯t think we should send you back to Korea,¡± he said. ¡°Why?¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°You¡¯re obsessed with bioethics, and you¡¯re being too calm.¡± ¡°Are you saying there was an ethics vition?¡± ¡°Even though you haven¡¯t seen anything, I¡¯m sure you¡¯ve heard many rumors, like the urban legend I just talked about, or that Uygurs are being held in internment camps in Xinjiang,¡± the interpreter said. ¡°Honestly, these are things that everyone in the world knows about to some extent. There¡¯s no way they wouldn¡¯t have reached someone like you. And given your personality, you would have definitely tried to investigate them.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°And one more thing. Recently, Xinjiang has been infiltrated by foreign reporters and intelligence agents from all over the world. You¡¯ve been at ourb for quite some time now, and they haven¡¯t contacted you once during that time? That¡¯s ridiculous.¡± ¡°If there are any ethics vitions, tell me now. If you do, I won¡¯t go back, and I¡¯ll stay here to investigate, even if you ask me to go back to Korea,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°...¡± ¡°But if I were you, I would send me back to A-GenBio as soon as possible.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°From what you¡¯re saying, it seems like the secret documents that were stolen were very important and rted to bioethics. Depending on what it¡¯s about, I might not stay put.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°As you said, I obsess over ethics.¡± ¡°...¡± The interpreter frowned. ¡°Doctor Ryu, does that mean that you could threaten us with the president¡¯s life if the ssified documents were made public and the ethics vitions were severe?¡± ¡°Interpret it as you wish.¡± ¡°We will detain you at the Public Security Bureau.¡± ¡°Can you handle it? The lives of one hundred high-ranking officials, including the president, are in my hands right now. Their artificial organs can only be delivered to China with my signature.¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joon took out his phone. As he pressed a number, the interpreter asked, ¡°Who are you calling?¡± ¡°It¡¯s the main number for the Hall of Diligence.¡± A momentter, the chief of staff¡¯s office picked up the phone. Young-Joon held his phone out to the interpreter. ¡°Please connect me to the president.¡± ¡°... Damn it.¡± The interpreter cursed quietly and spoke into the phone. ¡°Is Mr. Peng Kui in the office?¡± ¡ªThis is Peng Kui. Peng Kui took over the phone. ¡°Doctor Ryu would like to speak to the president.¡± ¡ªPlease wait a moment. I will connect the call to the hospital room. There was a tone. Then, the medical staff in the room picked up, and the call was soon transferred to the President. ¡°Hello, this is Ryu Young-Joon,¡± he said to the interpreter. ¡°Please trante this.¡± The interpreter frowned ufortably and spoke into the phone. ¡°Ni hao. Wo shi Ryu Young-Joon.¡± ¡ªNice to see you, Doctor Ryu. They could hear the President¡¯s voice. ¡°How are you feeling?¡± ¡ªIt¡¯s not amercialized drug, but it works very well. Thank you. I¡¯m feeling much better now; I¡¯m not paralyzed anymore, and I can move around a bit. ¡°That¡¯s a relief. But it won¡¯tst very long,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°It¡¯s been about three weeks since I gave you the medicine. Your immune system will be disturbed soon, and the damage will start at the heart junction. You need to get an artificial heart as soon as possible.¡± ¡ªYou said you were developing it at A-GenBio, right? How far along are you? ¡°We¡¯ve already finished it. I¡¯ll send it to you after I go back to A-GenBio and finalize it. ¡ªThank you. ¡°But I heard that there was a leak of important ssified documents in Xinjiang, and that¡¯s why the Public Security Bureau doesn¡¯t want me to return to Korea. But I swear, I have no such documents and I never left theb,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Please allow me to return to Korea without any problems.¡± ¡ªI will give the order to the chief of the bureau. I wish you afortable journey home. ¡°Mr. President! Please wait,¡± the interpreter shouted urgently. ¡°We cannot let Doctor Ryu go like this. He definitely knows something about the underground business in the Xinjiang Region. He will expose it when he goes back to Korea.¡± ¡ªThen let him. The president didn¡¯t seem to care. ¡ªI don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about, but it doesn¡¯t concern me. ¡°... M-Mr. President?¡± The interpreter was confused. ¡ªI heard that they do illegal organ harvesting and surgery on Uygurs in training centers, so why don¡¯t you do some research on that? ¡°...¡± ¡ªThe heart I received did not belong to a Uygur, but to a young Han Chinese man who was critically ill. I¡¯m sorry that I didn¡¯t pay attention to the safety of the Uygur Autonomous Region, but I think the Public Security Bureau should investigate the area from now on. ¡°Mr. President...¡± ¡ªI¡¯ll forgive you for neglecting your duties so far, but send Doctor Ryu back to South Korea as soon as possible to work on the artificial heart, and you can start investigating the Xinjiang region. Arrest Director Mei Weisun first. ¡°...¡± The report had already been given. The president had given his orders, and he was telling them to punish Mei Weisun for everything and then cover it up. Fortunately, the president¡¯s heart belonged to a young Han man, so even if there was a record of the operation, he would not be used of sacrificing an Uygur prisoner. The president had already made up his mind. He was going to cut his ties with this region and get himself an artificial heart so that he could recover. ¡°Y... Yes, sir...¡± replied the interpreter in a weak voice. * * * ¡°Obviously, the Chinese are going to investigate this and publish it first to beat us to it. So we have to move fast,¡± Robert said. They were on a midnight flight from Kyrgyzstan back to the United States. ¡°Robert¡¯s right. We¡¯re going to hold a press conference as soon as we get to the U.S. and release most of the photos and videos that we have here. We¡¯re going to condemn the Chinese government directly from the White House,¡± Whittaker added. ¡°And we¡¯re going to interview the victim who was held as a donor right away.¡± ¡°Do you think it will be okay?¡± Nancy asked in a concerned voice, checking on B78551¡¯s condition. Donor B78551 was still a young girl who was only seventeen. When she was rescued in the middle of the night, she screamed and cried until she passed out, thinking it was time for her organs to be harvested. But when she woke up, she was in the car of the U.S. intelligence agency, and they drove across the border and got on an airne. But she was still not calm. It was difficult to imagine the horror of being taken and held for organ harvesting. The girl looked up at Nancy, trembling. ¡°Do you think you¡¯ll be able to testify?¡± Nancy asked in Chinese. ¡°... Yes...¡± she replied in a very quiet voice. ¡°You don¡¯t have to push yourself.¡± Nancy patted her on the shoulder with a smile. ¡°Whittaker, you said you were going to reveal most of the data, right? Why aren¡¯t you revealing it all at once?¡± Robert asked. ¡°Oh.¡± ¡°The Chinese government is obviously going to try and cut their ties, which is the nature of all politicians. It¡¯ll be ast ditch effort to stay in power. So, we¡¯re going to make sure that the people in the Hall of Diligence cut their ties and run away,¡± Whittaker said. ¡°And then what?¡± Anthony said. ¡°Doctor Ryu said to leave it to him.¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu?¡± ¡°Yes. he said he¡¯d take care of things like the records on the blood-selling organization and the statistics on the missing persons after he returned.¡± 1. Diwopu is actually a city in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, but imagine that it is in Xining. ? Chapter 222: Artificial Organs (11)

Chapter 222: Artificial Organs (11)

On the next morning, news organizations around the world were turned upside down. [Human rights vitions beyond imagination.] [Are China¡¯s organ harvesting horror stories true?] [48,000 organ transnts in Xinjiang alone.] [What¡¯s going on in thebor camps in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region?] [Breaking news: Photos of the basement of the Xinjiang University Hospital¡¯s affiliatedboratory.] [Prison-like facilities where organ harvesting donors are held confirmed.] Every news outlet covered this story, from local dailies that write about rumors to giants like the Guardian and The Washington post. Dozens of articles poured out every minute, each with shocking and disgusting facts. Anthony¡¯s videos and photos were released, and the videos quickly garnered ten million views on YouTube, and poprity quickly spiked. They were banging on the door, screaming for help. The windowless cells were tiny with helpless people trapped inside. The coldndscape of the operating room that led into the living quarters contrasted with the clean and cozy recovery rooms for surgical patients. The photos were stered all over the media. Nature ran the photos and videos on its front page, along with an interview, who had risked his life to cover the story. ¡°The Uygur victim rescued by the United States is now in psychiatric care and is resting. The victim has offered to testify about the camps and the basement, but the White House has decided to postpone it to ater date on the rmendation of her doctors.¡± Campbell, the president of the United States, immediately issued a statement. ¡°This is a human rights catastrophe that should bever have happened in the twenty-first century.¡± Even as he sent the CIA there and was briefed about the situation, Campbell understood this in a political context. Xinjiang was one of the world¡¯s richest regions in terms of underground resources. With this operation, they could drastically reduce the Chinese government¡¯s influence over thisnd, which had gas, coal, and oil flowing through it. It was the kind of scandal that, if the internationalmunity applied enough pressure and if they were lucky, could allow them to push for Xinjiang¡¯s independence. And if they seeded in making Xinjiang independent? The fragile new state would need aid and developmental assistance from the internationalmunity, and the United States would jump into that business. Xinjiang, that huge chunk of underground resources, would be a new ally for the United States: an American ally under American control at the western ends of China and Russia. But Campbell¡¯s mind, which was full of political strategies, went nk as soon as he saw what Anthony had brought him. The situation was so serious that he forgot all about the political context. ¡°Can... Can a human being do this?¡± They were like livestock. They were like chickens or pigs, helplessly confined in rows of cates, waiting to be ughtered. When the day came, they would be brought out, one by one, and ughtered on the operating table. And they all understood the situation. The way they howled in terror at Anthony was like something out of a horror movie. Suddenly, Campbell felt more human anger and anguish than political triumph. ¡°The White House is deeply concerned about the human rights abuse taking ce in China. The internationalmunity muste together to address this issue.¡± Following Campbell¡¯s announcement, the UN Security Council passed a resolution condemning the human rights abuse in Xinjiang. Even Russia, China¡¯s closest ally, was unable to speak out against the resolution. While the world was criticizing China, there was surprisingly someone in China who was taking shots at the party. * * * ¡ªGovernor Yang, are you insane? The Minister of Health shouted at Yang Gunyu over the phone. ¡ªTake back the statement you just made. ¡°Why? Did I say something wrong?¡± ¡ªIt¡¯s an aberration of an individual at the hospital. People in our party leadership didn¡¯t know the transnts were urring that way... ¡°Do you think that makes sense?!¡± Yang Gunyu shouted back. ¡°What kind of crazy hospital would leave their hospital¡¯s operating room and build one five floors below the underground parking lot of an affiliated research institute? Do you think they would go in there and have surgery, thinking that it¡¯s all legal? If that kind of idiot is in our party, that¡¯s also a problem! They even killed the donor and harvested their organs right next to the operating table!¡± ¡ªUm... ¡°I don¡¯t know who they are, but they should all be decapitated. Those bastards are insects who are eating away at the party. It¡¯s the only way China can weather the storm of the internationalmunity right now.¡± ¡ª... The Minister of Health was dumbfounded. Yang Gunyu had released a statement in the morning, expressing his deep regret that this happened in China. He also called for the medical staff who performed the transnts at Xinjiang University Hospital, Mei Weisun, the director, and high-ranking officials who were recipients of the transnts, to be prosecuted to the fullest extent of thew. The People¡¯s Daily covered the statement, and the situation in China began to take a serious turn. ¡ªDamn it... Governor Yang, do you know who this is connected to? ¡°I don¡¯t, but I don¡¯t want to know. I don¡¯t care if it¡¯s the President. Listen to me, Minister. My loyalty is to the party, not to a person,¡± Yang Gunyu shouted. ¡°And if we don¡¯t grab every single one of those insects and kill them now, they will create a big hole at the bottom of the ship, and China will sink.¡± ¡ª... ¡°Do you know what really pisses me off? When the mosquitos swept through Guangdong, it took out fifteen percent of the foreign investment capital because it was a huge bio-disaster that paralyzed everything! I brought in Doctor Ryu to make up for it, and now everything is stable,¡± Yang Gunyu said. ¡°There are still a lot of mosquitoes, but they¡¯re less than ten percent of what they were at the peak. But after the presidential statement yesterday in the United States and all the media frenzy...¡± Yang Gunyu became tense. ¡°We¡¯ve lost thirty percent of our capital. Thirty percent!¡± He mmed his fist down on his desk. ¡°Do you know what Guangdong is like? It¡¯s the biggest economic hub in China. It¡¯s home to all kinds of factories andpanies. And do you know where most of the coal and oil they use to run all those factorieses from?¡± Yang Gunyu said. ¡°It¡¯s from Xinjiang! Xinjiang! Because that¡¯s the treasure trove of China¡¯s underground resources! The foreign capitalists all knew what was going on! They all knew that the Chinese government may lose control of Xinjiang because of the shenanigans of a few bastards in the party!¡± ¡ªW-Wait, calm down for a moment... ¡°Do you think I can calm down in this situation?!¡± Yang Gunyu shouted. ¡°Do you know how many petitions andwsuits I am receiving frompanies?!¡± ¡ª... ¡°You¡¯re the Minister of Health. You would have known this stupid situation! Where the hell have you been all this time! You¡¯re lucky I didn¡¯t scream about cutting your head off in yesterday¡¯s statement!¡± ¡ªU... Uh... I¡¯m so sorry... But you shouldn¡¯t have made that statement now... ¡°That statement is the only thing that saved China¡¯s pride, so if you have nothing else to say other than your bullshit about retracting it, hang up. And if the Public Security Bureau doesn¡¯t handle this properly, I will do everything I can do to defend Guangdong.¡± Beep! Yang Gunyu hung up the phone. * * * The situation had now escted to the next step. The CIA had finally released the documents they had brought from the secure document library in the basement of the Institute of Biomedical Research. At the same time, they decoded all the encrypted code names of the donors and recipients of the surgery, revealing their real names. They also released medical records of the surgeries. People around the world were shocked as they read the names, anticipating the repercussions toe, and among them was Yang Gunyu. ¡°The president?¡± Yang Gunyu gulped. He had said that he didn¡¯t care if the president was involved when he put out the statement, but he didn¡¯t actually expect him to be involved. But this situation was incredibly serious. The image of the party leader was very important in China. It held more respect and prestige than the president in a democratic country like the United States. ¡®How do we move beyond this?¡¯ Yang Gunyu was worried about the situation out of pure patriotism. And the Chinese Communist Party immediately denied it, as if they were waiting for this to be revealed. ¡°The heart transnt the President received was entirely legal,¡± announced the spokesperson for the party. They purposely gathered foreign reporters to make this press conference a big deal. ¡°We believe that the documents revealed by the CIA were fabricated. It is true that the President underwent a heart transnt at Xinjiang University Hospital, but there was nothing illegal about the operation. The heart came from a person named Lee Qinqin, who was a young Han Chinese man. It is true that China has been setting up training centers and other strong measures to curb the terrorist threat in Xinjiang, but Lee Qinqin had nothing to do with that. He was in a car ident and died in the intensive care unit, and the heart transnt was based on a previously signed consent form from the patient himself,¡± said the spokesperson. ¡°We have both the medical chart and Mr. Lee¡¯s identity here, as well as the name of the surgeon who performed the heart transnt and the date of the procedure. This is the same material that was passed out. If you have any questions, please ask.¡± ¡°It says here that Mr. Lee Qinqin was born in Guangdong. But if the heart of a Han Chinese man from Guangdong is being transnted to the president in Beijing, why is the surgery being done in Xinjiang, which is so far away?¡± a CNN reporter asked. ¡°It¡¯s because Mr. Lee moved his residence to Xinjiang and lived there for five years. There is a record of the move in the registration system,¡± the spokesperson said as he referred to the document. It had been hastily fabricated in thest two days. Then, the reporter from Fox asked, ¡°Leaving aside the question of the surgery, is it really true that the President had no idea of what had been going on in Xinjiang all this time?¡± ¡°If he had known, he would have punished those involved immediately. In fact, before this announcement, he had already ordered an audit of Xinjiang University Hospital and the strict enforcement of thew.¡± ¡°It has been reported that some people in the party had received a transnt. How is it possible that the President didn¡¯t know about it?¡± ¡°Why not? The President is a very busy man, devoted to running the country. He works day and night, even getting a heart disease while working.¡± ¡°Why did Mr. Lee, a young Han Chinese man, go and live in Xinjiang?¡± ¡°As part of the policy to embrace Xinjiang as One China, the Chinese government has been supporting the relocation of Han Chinese to Xinjiang for some time now. It is confirmed that he moved there with the support of that program.¡± The spokesperson answered without stopping. While many Chinese citizens nodded their heads in agreement, one man watching the broadcast broke out in a cold sweat. It was Yang Gunyu. ¡®He stepped on the trap.¡¯ The CIA had backed them up into this corner. The party had made a mistake in their haste to counterattack. They had stepped on the CIA¡¯s trap as they backtracked. ¡°Doctor Ryu... What¡¯s Doctor Ryu doing right now?¡± Yang Gunyu asked his secretary. The famous biologist, who was at the top of the world and was a bioethics fanatic, had remained silent on this situation. Why? It was because he was going to be the one to put an end to the president when the party stepped on the trap. ¡®Lee Qinqin...¡¯ Yang Gunyu knew that he had heard this name before, and now he remembered. ¡°He¡¯s the person I sent Doctor Ryu the data about. The record of him going missing and selling blood...¡± Bzzz! Yang Gunyu¡¯s phone rang. He picked it up, and it was an intelligence agent from the Public Security Bureau. ¡ªGovernor Yang! The agent shouted into the phone. ¡ªI¡¯m the intelligence agent who worked as Doctor Ryu¡¯s interpreter. I¡¯m calling you now because of the party¡¯s announcement. I heard that Doctor Ryu asked you about the records of the Blood Tyrant Agency and about Jieyang. Is there anything you gave him? ¡°...¡± Yang Gunyu gulped. ¡°I gave him everything. The missing persons list and the record of selling blood...¡± ¡ª... Wait... Then, Doctor Ryu knows that what¡¯s being announced right now is a lie? He knows that Lee Qinqin didn¡¯t go and live in Xinjiang, but that he disappeared while selling blood? ¡°He does.¡± ¡ªHoly shit... ¡°Aren¡¯t you an official at the Public Security Bureau? If there is a possibility that Doctor Ryu knows, why didn¡¯t you prevent the party from making an announcement like that?¡± ¡ªHow would I have known that they would make an announcement like that? I¡¯m an intelligence agent at the bottom rung of thedder. And I was in Xinjiang because I was ordered to investigate it! ¡°... It¡¯s over,¡± Yang Gunyu said. ¡°The party fell into the trap.¡± Knock knock. His secretary knocked on his door. Yang Gunyu hung up and opened the door. ¡°Sir...¡± ¡°Has Doctor Ryu started something?¡± The secretary¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°Yes. He is holding a press conference.¡± ¡°Is he talking about the blood-selling organization?¡± ¡°Pardon? No, he¡¯s not.¡± The secretary shook their head. ¡°He¡¯s talking about the Xinjiang Region, and this disease called subacute necrotizing encephalomyelopathy. And... It¡¯s also about the development of artificial organs.¡± Yang Gunyu¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°What happened behind the scenes of this event that I don¡¯t understand a single thing you said right now?¡± Chapter 223: Artificial Organs (12) Young-Joon was holding a press conference. He was announcing some important information about the organ transnt scandal in the medicalmunity. Many prominent figures have spoken out about the scandal, but it was different because it was Young-Joon. The world¡¯s attention was immediately drawn to the name value of the presenter. They all wondered what he would be talking about. Within a day, everybody knew about Young-Joon¡¯s whereabouts: the fact that he went to Guangdong almost immediately after returning to Korea and then spent a few weeks in Xinjiang. ¡®He knows something.¡¯ Tensions didn¡¯t rise to this level even when the CIA and the U.S. president made their announcements. ¡®What bomb was Ryu Young-Joon going to set off?¡¯ Young-Joon appeared at the press conference, which was surrounded by foreign reporters, in front of arge screen. Then, he plugged a USB into hisputer. ¡°Today, I¡¯m going to talk about the virus in Xinjiang, subacute necrotizing encephalomyelopathy, and artificial organs,¡± Young-Joon said. The three keywords were all strange, and everyone looked curious as they didn¡¯t know how they were connected to the Xinjiang scandal. Young-Joon presented the data that was on the USB on the screen.¡°The terrorist group that attacked the GSC International Conference recently released a virus in thebor camps in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. It is a modified version of the lentivirus, and it was transmitted through drinking water.¡± The screen showed the virus¡¯ infection route and the molecr biology of its cellr entry. The reporters began to write down the presentation. ¡°The virus does not cause any symptoms in the body of an infected person. It works rapidly on dividing cells, causing an increase inctic acid in the cerebrospinal fluid. This results in paralysis, respiratory distress, loss of heart function, and ultimately, death. This disease only urs in infants undergoing rapid development; it doesn¡¯t even affect children because cells aren¡¯t dividing at a rapid rate. However¡­¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°This virus causes subacute necrotizing encephalomyelopathy in one case.¡± Young-Joon went to the next slide. [Organ transnt.] A schematic of how the virus amplified in transnted organs appeared. ¡°When an infected person¡¯s organs are transnted into another person, cell division urs at a very high rate to fill the small gaps where the organ was anastomosed, and eventually subacute necrotizing encephalomyelopathy develops in the recipient¡¯s body. Here¡¯s the animal experiment data on that. Please take a look.¡± Young-Joon showed the experimental data on the screen. The beagles that received virus-infected heart transnts developed subacute necrotizing encephalomyelopathy, and they all died in two weeks. ¡°I went to the Xinjiang Region of China to study the virus. It is believed that all the people in the Xinjiang Uygurbor camps are infected,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I developed a cure for subacute necrotizing encephalomyelopathy. This is being administered to Chinese leadership right now, and we have treated a lot of the symptoms by removing thectic acid in the cerebrospinal fluid. But there¡¯s still a problem.¡± Young-Joon went on to the next slide. Data on the immune response of the transnted organ and secondary transntation appeared. Basically, it was saying that retransntation wasn¡¯t possible after treatment. ¡°The treatment I made can treat encephalomyelopathy, but it will cause problems with the originally transnted organ. You have to transnt it again, but rejection will be very severe because the immune response is heightened. There are very few donors who are one hundred percent histpatible,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Fortunately, A-GenBio has been developing artificial organs for a long time, and we expect to be able to transnt some of them and cure one hundred patients. But¡­¡± Young-Joon then added a condition. ¡°The transnt surgery must be performed at A-GenBio¡¯s Next Generation Hospital.¡± ¡°...¡± The reporters¡¯ eyes widened. ¡°There are two reasons. The first is that it is very difficult to store the artificial organs outside of the body, so it¡¯s almost impossible to bring them to China. The second is that the doctors who know the most about artificial organs are in A-GenBio¡¯s Next Generation Hospital, so it¡¯s safest to be transnted in their hands.¡± They were trying to bring in people who received transnts in Xinjiang to A-GenBio. The reporters got chills when they read Young-Joon¡¯s intentions. ¡°Unlike some ces, we adhere to medical ethics. We do not disclose the identity of patients undergoing surgery¡­ At least not within the hospital,¡± Young-Joon said in a subtle voice. The reporter¡¯s eyes shone. ¡°...¡± As he studied the reporters¡¯ expressions, he said, ¡°So for the high-ranking officials who are visiting A-GenBio, please consider the current scandal in Xinjiang and be mindful about reporters at the airport along the transportation route.¡± Young-Joon was basically telling the reporters to check that the list of visiting Chinese dignitaries matched the list released by the CIA. The location of the surgery was even revealed: the A-GenBio Next Generation Hospital. All they had to do was camp outside the building. There were murmurs of admiration among the reporters. Now, there was one key question: did the president, the recipient of the Han Chinese man¡¯s heart, develop subacute necrotizing encephalomyelopathy? ¡°There is one more thing I must report about the virus,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°The virus that the terrorists synthesized is very stable in the air and cannot be destroyed by UV light. I looked at theyout of the illegal operating room in the basement of the research institute that the CIA released.¡± Young-Joon opened the blueprint of the operating room and the structure that was published by the CIA. ¡°Despite being a ce where many high-risk surgeries are performed, the number of air cirction cycles of the HEPA filter seems to be insufficient. As the daily volume of surgeries seems to berge, if my estimation is correct¡­¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°If the organ was harvested and transnted in that illegal operating room right away, those in the room could have been infected and cause illness even if the donor was not infected.¡± The reporters quickly began to write down Young-Joon¡¯s speech. His objective words, which were just urate medical terms, quickly turned into a provocative message. [President Chen Shui may have subacute necrotizing encephalomyelopathy if he received illegal surgery.] [Will Chen SHuie to receive an artificial organ transnt?] Young-Joon returned to A-GenBio after the press conference. ¡°I was getting anxious in ce of you,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡°You just targeted the Chinese president. Are you going to be okay?¡± ¡°It¡¯ll be fine,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Because I¡¯m going to make this scandal even bigger.¡± Bzz! Yoo Song-Mi¡¯s phone rang. ¡°It¡¯s a call from the secretary¡¯s office,¡± Yoo Song-Mi said. She handed the phone to Young-Joon. ¡°The Hall of Diligence in Zhongnanhai wants to speak to you¡­¡± Yoo Song-Mi said in a concerned voice. ¡°This is Ryu Young-Joon.¡± Young-Joon answered the phone bluntly. ¡ªDoctor Ryu, didn¡¯t you say that you would send the artificial organ to China when it was finished? Peng Kui, the chief of staff, sounded cold and threatening. The interpreter of the Zhongnanhai tranted his words in a nervous tone. ¡°That was the original n, but ns have changed due to safety concerns. Please have the Presidente to Korea,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°He should have recovered enough to move thanks to my treatment.¡± ¡ª... Peng Kui was silent for a moment. ¡ªDoctor Ryu. Peng Kui¡¯s voice was cold. ¡ªDo you think a mere businessman can go against China and survive? ¡°I don''t know what you¡¯re talking about. I just made the best medical decision.¡± ¡ªYou don¡¯t remember your lousy stunt at the press conference? Not only will everyone be watching the President in Korea, all eyes will be on him in China as well. The President has a lot of enemies right now. ¡°Do I need to worry about that?¡± ¡ª... Don¡¯t do anything stupid. Just send the organs quietly. ¡°I will do so if you would like.¡± ¡ªWhat? ¡°But I can¡¯t guarantee its safety when transnted. I will send it to you if you confirm that part on the clinical consent form.¡± ¡ª... Peng Kui realized that this battle was impossible. The president was being held hostage. Young-Joon was sitting back on his sofa in the A-GenBio office, holding the heart of the President in his hand. ¡°Mr. Peng, let¡¯s be honest with each other,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I already know that the procedure that the President went through was illegal. If it had been done in a proper operating room at a proper hospital with proper procedures, he wouldn¡¯t have developed the disease.¡± ¡ªIt¡¯s all just spection. That¡¯s just what you want to believe. ¡°Science is not about faith,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡ª... ¡°It¡¯s about understanding.¡± ¡ªDoctor Ryu, please stop¡­ ¡°Please tell the President¡­¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°That I¡¯ll spare his life.¡± Then, Young-Joon hung up the phone. Next to him, Park Joo-Hyuk looked shocked. ¡°Are you crazy¡­¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry. It¡¯s not just the President, but hundreds of his entourage are between life and death right now. A crisis like this is bound to reform the power structure, even in a dictatorial party,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I told you, I¡¯m going to blow this scandal up.¡± * * * Yang Gunyu¡¯s phone rang. Checking the caller, he let out a deep sigh. He took a sip of cold water and answered. ¡°Sigh¡­ This is Yang Gunyu.¡± ¡ªThis is Ryu Young-Joon. It¡¯s been a while, Governor Yang. ¡°You really are a terrifying person. An ordinary civilian trying to bring down the Chinese president¡­¡± Yang Gunyu said. He had already seen Young-Joon¡¯s announcement and understood what he was trying to do. ¡ªI have never turned a blind eye to the injustices that have urred in bioethics. If there is one consistent belief in my life, it¡¯s that. ¡°... I understand. This was definitely a huge wrong done by our party.¡± ¡ªI called you because I thought it would be better for you to put an end to your superiors than me. ¡°Sigh¡­¡± ¡ªYou know that I still have all the data you already sent me. ¡°I know.¡± ¡ªIf it¡¯s too much for you, just say so. I¡¯ll do it. ¡°No, please allow me to clean up the mess in China within China. Thank you for the opportunity.¡± ¡ªNo, thank you. After hanging up the phone, Mr. Yang massaged his temples. He took a long breath and stood up. ¡°Prepare a press conference,¡± Yang Gunyu said to his secretary. ¡°We¡¯re going to release all their records of the Blood Tyrant Agency, and we¡¯ll also release our official documents on Lee Qinqin¡¯s disappearance. We¡¯ll say that the records of Lee Qinqin¡¯s residential relocation that the government released were fabricated.¡± ¡°Sir, are you serious?!¡± ¡°If I don¡¯t do this now, China will really go under,¡± Yang Gunyu said. ¡°I am loyal to the party and China, not President Chen Shui. Doctor Ryu is ordering me to rece the Chen Shui regime right now.¡± Yang Gunyu clenched his fists. ¡°And I think that¡¯s the right thing to do.¡± * * * ¡°This is the percentage of missing persons by region in Guangdong,¡± Yang Gunyu announced at the press conference. The statistics, which were meticulouslypiled at the vige level, includedparisons between Jieyang, the blood-selling vige, and other poor viges. Even though they were equally poor, the rate of missing persons was thirty times higher in viges that sold blood. ¡°This abnormal difference suggests the possibility of some sort of connection between the blood-selling organizations and some group of people,¡± Yang Gunyu said. ¡°As the governor of Guangdong and a citizen of China, I am here to announce important information about Lee Qinqin, a citizen of Guangdong.¡± Chapter 224: Artificial Organs (13) Yang Gunyu¡¯s press conference didn¡¯t just draw reporters, there were also high-ranking officials from the Chinese Communist Party and the Public Security Bureau. Many of them were loyal to Chen Shui, the current president, but none of them could stop Yang Gunyu as he was the king of Guangdong. No matter what anyone said, Yang Gunyu was the man who had built Guangdong into the best economic hub in China; he was a politician who had shown remarkable skill in attracting foreign investment and building both industry and ecology. Additionally, Chen Shui was extremely weak right now. His name hade up in the documents the CIA revealed; if Chen Shui really did harvest organs illegally, it would be insane to go against Yang Gunyu right now. For this reason, high-ranking officials who were on Chen Shui¡¯s side did not dare to stop the press conference. Then, Yang Gunyu dropped a huge bomb. ¡°Everything that the Chinese Communist Party announced about Lee Qinqin is false.¡± The reporters¡¯ eyes widened. They began to mutter amongst themselves. ¡°Lee Qinqin was a citizen of Jieyang, Guangdong. As he was a citizen of Guangdong, I know about him better than the party,¡± Yang Gunyu said. ¡°Lee Qinqin went missing a few months ago!¡± ¡°Wow¡­¡± ¡°Went missing¡­¡± There were a few gasps of surprise in the crowd.¡°First of all, I will refute the statement of the party. First, they stated that Lee Qinqin had moved to Xinjiang and reported a change of residence, but this report could not be retrieved. It still cannot be retrieved,¡± Yang Gunyu said as he pointed to a search on the residence system in Guangdong. ¡°Second, Lee Qinqin had a child in Jieyang, and he was doing everything he could to provide for them. His love and responsibility towards his family were well-known in his hometown. There¡¯s no way that he wouldn¡¯t contact his family for months.¡± Yang Gunyu went on. ¡°Third, Lee Quinqin¡¯s address in Xinjiang is public housing, which requires fiercepetition to get into. The way to have an advantage in thatpetition is to have arge number of dependents. It is unreasonable for Lee Qinqin to abandon his family and suddenly travel thousands of kilometers alone to Xinjiang, where he has no connections, to get into public housing.¡± Yang Gunyu continued his statement. ¡°This is the strongest piece of evidence. Lastly, Lee Qinqin was reported missing five months ago. His family members filed the report, and there are records of the police in Guangdong investigating his whereabouts. If the change of address was true, it should have been retrieved when they investigated.¡± Yang Gunyu spoke with a firm voice. ¡°Again, Lee Qinqin is a missing person.¡± He met the eyes of the reporters and party officials one by one. ¡°I have another significant announcement. As I said, citizens of poor viges in Guangdong who sell blood have a very high chance of going missing. And Lee Qinqin¡­¡± Yang Gunyu said. ¡°He had been selling blood for three weeks before he went missing. What do you think this means?¡± There was an ominous tension in the press conference room. Everyone was specting on one conclusion, but no one could say anything. ¡°The police in Guangdong have been investigating the Blood Tyrant Agency, an illegal blood trafficking organization in Guangdong.¡± Yang Gunyu pulled up several photos and reports on the screen. ¡°This is one of the photos we obtained during our search of the Blood Tyrant Agency¡¯s temporary hideout.¡± Yang Gunyu pointed to a machine in one of the photos on the screen. ¡°This is a PCR machine. This equipment is used to amplify specific sections of DNA,¡± Yang Gunyu said. ¡°Why would a blood trafficking agency need this?¡± He asked the crowd a question. ¡°This is because the blood of the donors must be tested for histpatibility.¡± ¡°Oh¡­¡± ¡°Damn it¡­¡± eximed several of the party officials. ¡°Once again, Mr. Lee Qinqin went missing after the Blood Tyrant Agency obtained his blood. And his heart is now in President Chen Shui¡¯s chest,¡± Yang Gunyu said as he pointed hisser pointer at the PCR machine in the photo. * * * As Yang Gunyu¡¯s press conference went live, Weibo, a Chinese socialworking tform, was flooded with real-time reactions from Chinese citizens. ¡ªThis is ridiculous. ¡ªThe events in Xinjiang are also shocking, but doing that to Han Chinese people in Guangdong¡­ ¡ªHe said that there were a lot of missing people from those viges. ¡ªIs this a world where you get kidnapped and have your organs harvested if you¡¯re poor and powerless, even if you¡¯re Han Chinese? ¡ªDamn it, we¡¯re not like Xinjiang, begging the government to give us independence. We¡¯re good citizens who work hard and pay taxes/ ¡ªI guess we¡¯re nothing but stupid dogs to the government. Thements were filled with anger and reflected a sense of betrayal. China was a big country. It had arge poption and many ethnic groups. But ny-two percent of them were Han Chinese. ¡ªHan Chinese are the core of Sinocentrism. What was the basis for us to ask the ethnic minorities in the provinces to be Chinese? Wasn¡¯t it to unite China? Weren¡¯t Chinese people supposed to be equals? Unlike the West, where money creates a hierarchy, we are human-centered. Isn¡¯t that the basis of Sinocentrism? ¡ªDon¡¯t go to Korea, Chen Shui. if you go and get a heart transnt, you¡¯ll be dead forever. ¡ªLet¡¯s all go to Zhongnanhai and see who goes to Korea. ¡ªChinese people living in Korea should go to the Next Generation Hospital and see whoes. ¡ªFxxk, I still can¡¯t believe it. Uygurs aren¡¯t the only ones who had their organs harvested? If citizens of Guangdong are getting kidnapped, how is China safe? While everyone was reeling from the horror, donor B78551, the girl who miraculously escaped from Xinjiang, was ready to be interviewed. Oveing her fears, she stepped in front of the cameras of dozens of reporters and held the microphone. Surprisingly, her voice didn¡¯t tremble much. ¡°My name is Dileva Abdulkahim. My family and I were detained in the Xinjiang Uygurbor camp because we refused toply with the Chinese government¡¯s orders to change our names to Chinese,¡± she said. Forcing them to change their names was also a huge human rights issue, but the internationalmunity couldn¡¯t care about that right now, as there were too many other bombs going off. ¡°I lived there for five months. I had regr medical checkups, and one night, the security guards ordered me to follow them to the cargo parking lot.¡± Dileva fully understood the situation after listening to Nancy¡¯s exnation. She felt like she had a responsibility to show the world the horrors of Xinjiang. She spoke calmly, trying to convey as much information as truthfully as possible. ¡°There were doctors and people who looked like police there. They put me in a car and drove me to Xinjiang University Hospital. We took the elevator down from the underground parking lot.¡± Dileva¡¯s voice trembled a little. ¡°That was the organ harvesting room. I was locked in a room that was about ten square meters wide. I couldn¡¯t see other people¡¯s faces because the walls were concrete, but I could hear their voices. Most of them were Uygurs, but there were some people who spoke maind Chinese.¡± Dileva¡¯s experience made Weibo erupt in anger again. ¡ªDamn it. I told you. ¡ªThey killed Han Chinese there, too. She confirmed it. Dileva went on. ¡°The people called that ce the living quarters. The people in charge of the living quarters told us to sacrifice our lives for the leadership of the Chinese party¡­ They told us that this was being patriotic, and that we should consider ourselves lucky to have organs that were histpatible, saying that others couldn¡¯t do this even if they wanted to.¡± Dileva paused for a moment. No matter how determined she was, the trauma of being a teenage girl in prison and waiting for an organ transnt was not simple. The faces and voices of the living quarter managers came to her mind as she tried to describe the devastating situation there. She got goosebumps on her arms, and her heart began to pound loudly. Her eyes welled up with tears from the fear and sadness, but she swallowed hard to keep them from falling. She held her trembling arms and barely managed to speak through the tightness in her throat. ¡°... I was fed three times a day. If we refused to eat, we were beaten or tortured with electric shocks. We were told¡­ We were told that it was our job to stay healthy until the day of the surgery¡­¡± Now, tears were rolling down her face. Dileva wiped them away with her hand and continued speaking. ¡°Medical staff came and did blood tests and stuff. They didn¡¯t tell us the date of the surgery, but we all knew when it was time,¡± Dileva said. ¡°Because¡­ They didn¡¯t give us food the day before the surgery; you have to have an empty stomach to do the surgery. People who didn¡¯t get food in the morning cried and screamed like crazy people.¡± * * * [Even death row inmates get ast meal before their execution.] This was the headline of an editorial in the People¡¯s Daily the next day. The fact that a Chinese newspaper like the People¡¯s Daily, not a foreign newspaper, published such a bold editorial signaled a massive shift in power within the party. ¡®Just die for the Party¡¯s honor.¡¯ That was what some of the officials who were loyal to Chen Shui told him. The dignity of Chen Shui¡¯s followers had already copsed, but he still couldn¡¯t let go of his desire to live. He might have been able to go to A-GenBio¡¯s Next Generation Hospital under the radar when he was still in a position of great power, but it was different now; even his closest aides, who were supposed to help him, were now turning their backs on him. ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± Peng Kui said to Chen Shui. ¡°My political life will be over if I go there,¡± Chen Shui said. ¡°...¡± ¡°But I still want to live.¡± Peng Kui escorted Chen Shui out. Chen Shui wore shabby jeans, a shirt, and a cap to cover his face. They exited through the back entrance of the Hall of Diligence and got into a medium-sized sedan. This was all done so that they could stay out of the public eye as much as possible. They drove to the Beijing Capital Airport. It was an air base used by Chinese officials to fly overseas or receive state guests. ¡°We¡¯re going underground now,¡± Peng Kui said into the radio. Their car traveled along the outer perimeter of the airport. ¡°What?¡± Chen Shui¡¯s eyes narrowed as he looked out the window. In the distance, he could see the airport¡¯s outdoor parking lot filled with people. No civilian nesnded at Beijing Capital Airport, as almost everything on the airport¡¯s grounds, including the runway, was under security. The only thing that was open to the public was the airport¡¯s outdoor parking lot, which was created by recycling surplusnd. It was a civic service, much like how the parking lot of the local government office was open to the public on weekends. But even so, very few people parked their cars in the outdoor parking lot because they didn¡¯t want to go near an air base. As such, the parking lot was usually empty. Today, however, it was full of people. Everyone had terrifying gazes. ¡°They are all looking for you, sir,¡± Peng Kui said. ¡°Me?¡± ¡°They¡¯re trying to see if you¡¯re going to China. There are probably some reporters and politicians who are aligning themselves with Yang Gunyu.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Well, don¡¯t worry, we won¡¯t be going through there,¡± Peng Kui added. ¡°But when we¡¯re in Korea, it won¡¯t be easy to avoid all those people and get to A-GenBio¡¯s hospital.¡± Chapter 225: Artificial Organs (14)

Chapter 225: Artificial Organs (14)

Two days before Peng Kui and Chen Shui left for the airport, Peng Kui informed the South Korean government that Chen Shui was traveling to Seoul. This was a bit of a gamble on Chen Shui¡¯s part. If he could trulyplete his surgery in secret and return to China with the help of the Korean government, he could maintain his power. However, the Korean government would know a huge weakness of China. Still, it was the only way to avoid the worst-case scenario. As such, Peng Kui ryed this information to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Korea through the Chinese ambassador. Then, the Minister of Foreign Affairs came to see Young-Joon with the Chinese ambassador. ¡°Doctor Ryu, let¡¯s transport the President¡¯s heart and do the surgery quietly in another hospital outside the Next Generation Hospital. This will give South Korea a huge advantage diplomatically,¡± said the minister. ¡°...¡± Instead of replying, Young-Joon frowned and took a sip of his tea. ¡°Oh...¡± The Chinese ambassador, flustered by the look on Young-Joon¡¯s face, quickly spoke up. ¡°China will give you their full support if you help us just this once.¡± He fumbled for a stack of papers and held them out. ¡°L-Look at this. This is China¡¯s economic development n for the next five years. We¡¯re trying to turn Guangdong into the Silicon Valley of Asia, and the bioindustry is booming there right now. We¡¯ll help A-GenBio set up a branch there and get started.¡± ¡°A-GenBio is capable of branching out into Guangdong without President Chen Shui¡¯s help. We could even start right now,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°A-GenBio is quite popr in Guangdong because we stopped the mosquito crisis. And there¡¯s no country or city that wouldn¡¯t like us because it increases the size of their healthcare industry.¡± ¡°...¡± The minister stepped in to intervene as the ambassador was flustered. ¡°Doctor Ryu, it¡¯s very unusual for the Chinese party to humble themselves like this,¡± he said. ¡°And think about this, Doctor Ryu: if the President is able to receive treatment, return to China quietly, and stay in power, we¡¯d be the only ones to know about his surgery.¡± ¡°So?¡± ¡°In state rtions, information is power. We would be in exclusive possession of information that could shake the Chinese government to its core, and that would give us an advantage in diplomacy going forward. The diplomatic benefits would be enormous,¡± the minister said, looking at the ambassador. ¡°The Chinese government already knew this would happen. They asked us to cooperate even though they knew.¡± Young-Joon closed his eyes. He leaned back on the sofa, lost in thought. ¡°I realize that the Chinese party is being humble,¡± he said. ¡°But I cannot do that.¡± Young-Joon was firm. ¡°Doctor Ryu...¡± ¡°I can¡¯t,¡± Young-Joon said again, firmly. The minister and ambassador were speechless. ¡°The doctors at A-GenBio Next Generation Hospital are the best human resources in Korea. They see up to one hundred patients a day. They skip meals regrly because they don¡¯t have the time, and they sometimes run around with exam rooms open because opening doors is a waste of time. There are even some doctors who ride segways around the hospital.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°But if we take something that can be treated and operated there and move it to another hospital, we¡¯re going to have to move the entire medical team that¡¯s doing the surgery and the artificial heart toply with biosafety specimen transportationws,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°On top of that, the equipment set-up and contamination levels would have to be tested again because the operating room would have changed. I don¡¯t want to cause that much trouble to our hospital¡¯s medical staff.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°When I was a full-time scientist working at A-Gen with nothing, I saw a liver cancer drug called Cellicure disappear. A better drug was destroyed through patentw to keep thepany profitable,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°From that moment on, I decided that I would never let any falsehood or hical practice in biology and medicine fly by. Science should always be a search for the truth and a good force to create a better future, not a weapon to cover up the truth and set technology back to suit powerful people andpanies.¡± ¡°We can gain a permanent diplomatic advantage if we let it go just this once.¡± The minister pleaded once more. ¡°It¡¯s always about that one time,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°That one time is more important to me than those idealistic diplomatic gains.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I will forget about our meeting today. Please be careful to not expose your face to the public, Mr. Ambassador, as many eyes are watching. I¡¯m sure you don¡¯t want any unnecessary rumors to be made.¡± * * * Now that Young-Joon had refused, there was nothing the South Korean government could do about it. A-GenBio¡¯s Next Generation Hospital was a private hospital, not a state institution. There were also foreign reporters there, not domestic media; what could the government do about them? Even if they banned them and told them to leave, they could just say they were here for medical treatment; there was no legal basis for sanctioning them. Maybe they could do something in China, where Chen Shui could use his power, but the South Korean government couldn¡¯t unleash the military to control the hospital. When Chen Shui finally arrived at A-GenBio with Peng Kui and a few of his closest aides, he was too scared to get out of the car. At the entrance to the Next Generation Hospital, reporters and citizens were swarming everywhere, including the parking lot, the information desk, the lounge, and more. ¡°There are a lot of Chinese people...¡± Chen Shui said quietly. Chinese people working in Korea had alsoe to the hospital. ¡°We just need to get to the operating room. Let¡¯s go in quietly.¡± Like Peng Kui, Chen Shui pushed down his cap and walked toward the elevator. They got on the elevator when it was empty and pressed for the fourth floor, where the operating room was located. But just before the elevator doors closed... ¡°Excuse me.¡± Three Chinese men grabbed the elevator door and came inside. They were about to press the button for the fourth floor when they realized the button was already pressed. ¡°...¡± The three men silently gazed at the side of Chen Shui¡¯s face. ¡°Ni shi zongtong ma?¡± one of the men asked Chen Shui. They were asking if he was the president. ¡°N¨CNo,¡± quickly replied Peng Kui, embarrassed. ¡°Let¡¯s take the esctor.¡± Peng Kui grabbed his hand and got off the elevator hastily. As they walked toward the esctor, the three Chinese men shouted behind them. ¡°It¡¯s Chen Shui!¡± Everyone on the ground floor turned their heads toward the esctor. A few nimble reporters quickly took out their cameras and rushed towards them. ¡°Shit.¡± Peng Kui grabbed Chen Shui¡¯s arm and ran up the esctor. But reporters were also waiting for them at the top, holding their cameras. Some of them impatiently started running down the esctor, which was going up, with their microphones and cameras pointed at Chen Shui. Cameras were clicking from everywhere. ¡°Hey!¡± Security guards were running towards them from the second floor. * * * ¡ªThey must be struggling quite a bit right now. Rosaline stood up. ¡°There won¡¯t be any idents since there are security guards at the hospital, but they¡¯ll be humiliated. He won¡¯t be able to stay in power,¡± Young-Joon said as he clipped his fingernails. ¡ªI just don¡¯t understand. Rosaline hopped up onto Young-Joon¡¯s desk. ¡°What?¡± ¡ªWhy is he so obsessed with maintaining power? ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡ªThe biology of desiring power is simple: the more dominant you are in a group, the more opportunities you have to mate, and the more likely you are to spread your genes. But isn¡¯t Chen Shui already past that age? Young-Joon chuckled. ¡°You¡¯re right.¡± ¡ªHe wants to hold onto his position, even at the risk of constantly doing diplomatic damage to his country. Rosaline seemed puzzled. ¡ªThere are a lot of things about this world that are surprisingly hard for me to understand, like thatbor camp in Xinjiang where people were locked up. ¡°Because that¡¯s not biological,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡ªTo me, it looks like they all have mental illnesses. ¡°Do you think you can cure it?¡± ¡ªNo, it¡¯s not a biological illness like schizophrenia. ¡°A caveman wouldn¡¯t have the desire to lock up millions of people in camp. It¡¯s a madness that came from the development of human society.¡± ¡ªWhat do you think will happen to the people who were trapped in Xinjiang? ¡°I think the internationalmunity is going to put a lot of pressure on that region now. There are the things that China has done, they have evidence, and they have reason now, right? Deliva, was it? That girl will keep giving statements about thebor camps. Now, China has no choice but to get rid of them. ¡ªReally? ¡°Or the internationalmunity will try to break up Xinjiang and divide it into pieces, and there¡¯s only one way to stop that opinion from taking over the internationalmunity is to get rid of these camps. They¡¯ll say that there are no more human rights vitions in the region and that what happened before was a mistake of the previous president. They¡¯ll all act friendly to Xinjiang.¡± ¡ª-Do you think the internationalmunity would be that united and keep China in check? ¡°Absolutely. Xinjiang has coal, oil, and natural gas; it¡¯s full of treats. America¡¯s probably already got a napkin tied around its neck right now to eat it.¡± Rosaline frowned. ¡ªThey¡¯re not worried about the people imprisoned in those abnormal camps? ¡°Most people are probably worried, but there aren¡¯t many countries or organizations who are willing to fight arge country like China just because they are worried,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°If there is, maybe A-GenBio?¡± Knock knock! Someone was at Young-Joon¡¯s office. Mr. Ryu, Doctor Cheon is here with a guest.¡± Young-Joon could hear Yoo Song-Mi¡¯s voice. ¡°A guest?¡± Young-Joon asked as he opened the door. Cheon Ji-Myung was standing there with an overweight, middle-aged woman. ¡°Hello, Doctor Ryu.¡± The woman greeted him. ¡°I¡¯m Elsie. I used to work in the Life Creation Department.¡± Young-Joon was surprised. ¡°Oh! Yes, hello. Come in.¡± ¡ªHuh?! Rosaline looked flustered all of a sudden. ¡®What¡¯s wrong?¡¯ Young-Joon nced back and asked her in her head. ¡ªI know her. ¡®You know her?¡¯ ¡ªI remember. It¡¯s a faint memory from a long time ago, but... I¡¯ve felt this person¡¯s bioinformation before when I was in a sk. ¡®...¡¯ ¡°Looks like we have a lot to talk about/¡± Elsie walked in and sat down on the sofa. ¡°Thank you, Doctor Cheon. Could you let us talk alone for a moment?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Yes, I can¡¯t stay away from theb long anyway. The orders for artificial organs are stilling in at the moment.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry. Please keep up the good work,¡± said Young-Joon, patting Cheon Ji-Myung on the back. After Cheon Ji-Myung and Yoo Song-Mi left, Elsie took a deep breath. ¡°Should we start with Doctor Ref or Rosaline?¡± she asked. Chapter 226: Rosaline (1)

Chapter 226: Rosaline (1)

¡°You already know why I asked to see you, and you seem to know a lot about it,¡± Young-Joon said. He took a bottle of orange juice out of the fridge. ¡°Oh, I¡¯ll take a Coke.¡± ¡°I have Pepsi and Sprite. What would you like?¡± ¡°Oh, then Sprite.¡± Young-Joon handed her a can of Sprite and sat across from her. ¡°Originally, I didn¡¯t n oning to see you, Doctor Ryu, but seeing Doctor Cheon¡¯s face after all these years gave me some courage. Doctor Cheon kept on convincing me, so I thought I should tell you what I know.¡± ¡°What did he say to convince you?¡± ¡°He told me that you brought up wanting to see me after the terrorist attack at the GSC conference. He asked if I knew anything about the terrorists, and when I said yes, he squeezed my hand and convinced me that we have to save humanity together.¡± Elsie chuckled. ¡°But I might not be able to give you as much information as you¡¯re hoping for. As you can see, I¡¯m... pretty broken, and I¡¯ve been away from research for a while now.¡± Elsie shrugged. ¡°Doctor Ryu, look at how ruined a scientist gets when the project they¡¯ve worked on for their entire life fails.¡± ¡°What do you mean? You¡¯re not ruined, so don¡¯t say that.¡± ¡°I live off of alcohol and drugs. I¡¯m a failure. I failed to create Rosaline, and I failed to create Doctor Ref.¡± ¡°You created Doctor Ref?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Did you teach her?¡± ¡°No, I literally biologically created her,¡± Elsie said. ¡°What do you mean? Are you saying that she¡¯s an artificial human or something?¡± ¡°I was working at an embryologyb in the United States. We were using intracytosmic sperm injection[1], transfection reagents, and TALENs[2] to gically modify fertilized eggs. We were developing them and observing what happens,¡± Elsie said. ¡°And we made Doctor Ref. We took the best sperm from the sperm bank and fertilized my egg with it. We took the nucleus out, put the nucleus of my somatic cell inside, and engineered some genes. We imnted it in my uterus, and I gave birth to her.¡± ¡°... What?¡± Young-Joon¡¯s jaw dropped in shock. ¡°Since we used the nucleus of my somatic cells, she¡¯s sort of like a clone of me. But we manipted a lot of genes, and as a result, she has Anglosaxon facial features even though I¡¯m Jewish. She¡¯s probably around the same age as you in terms of her birth, but she¡¯s the same cellr age as me.¡± ¡°Are you crazy? How could you... What have you done?¡± Young-Joon shouted in shock. ¡°I know. It¡¯s hical, right?¡± ¡°It¡¯s worse than just being hical! You gically modified an embryo and gave birth to it yourself?¡± ¡°Haha!¡± Elsieughed a little. ¡°I knew you would scold me. It¡¯s one of the reasons I was worried abouting to see you.¡± ¡°Me nagging you isn¡¯t the problem right now. A research ethics vition of that magnitude should be...¡± ¡°Not at the time,¡± Elsie said. ¡°What?¡± ¡°It was in the middle of the Cold War. You may not know because you¡¯re young, but the United States and the Soviet Union were in the midst of a mad scientific race, Doctor Ryu. It was a time when nuclear weapons were being developed like crazy.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Ethics was very slow to react to biology, which had just been born. All sorts of ethical regtions were loose at the time, and it didn¡¯t even ur to people that they needed to make those regtions. People were still dealing with the aftermath of World War II, and they were terrified that a more destructive war would break out the longer the Cold War went on. It was a time when any research that could advance science was encouraged.¡± ¡°Sigh...¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu, research ethics changes with time.¡± ¡°But don¡¯t you have a conscience? Did you really have no hesitation about ying with human lives like that?¡± ¡°How could I not?¡± Elsie said. ¡°That¡¯s why I gave birth to her myself. Most of the other scientists discouraged it because I could have lost my life if the gic modification I made caused any problems in development. But I gave birth to her myself; that girl is my daughter and my clone. At the time, science was like an immature adolescent who had just gotten bigger. That¡¯s when I got on a boat with her. We crossed the Pacific together on a crappy boat.¡± ¡°It was a very risky and reckless experiment, but we believed we had seeded when she was born safe and sound. As a child, she stunned everyone in theb with her incredible intelligence,¡± Elsie said. ¡°But why did that happen?¡± ¡°... After I gave birth to her, she didn¡¯t feel like a research project anymore,¡± Elsie said. ¡°She was my daughter. I wanted her to be free, so I snuck her out and fled to the Middle East where my rtives live.¡± ¡°Your rtives?¡± ¡°I said I was Jewish, right?¡± Elsie said. ¡°Rosalind Elsie Franklin, the woman who was the biggest contributor to discovering the DNA double helix, was also Jewish. She was born in London and British, but she had a lot of rtives who settled in Palestine. One of my uncles was a highmissioner in Palestine, and the other was the prosecutor general. I was born in Palestine.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I grew up hearing about Rosalind Franklin. My mother always told me stories about her because she was the same age as my mother.¡± ¡°So that¡¯s why you named your artificial cell Rosaline.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. My name, Elsie, is also Rosalind Franklin¡¯s middle name.¡± Elsie took a sip of her Sprite. Rosalind Elsie Franklin: she was a female scientist who had the most unfortunate fate in scientific history. She was at the forefront of the scientificmunity as a woman during a time when sexism wasmon. Shepeted and coborated with the geniuses of her time, such as Jamie Anderson, and continued her research despite the discrimination she faced. Unsurprisingly, she was also very concerned with human rights and ethics. Rosalind Franklin was active inbor union organizations and the women¡¯s suffrage movement, and sheter became a member of the London County Council. She also helped resettle Jews fleeing Nazi tyranny. Then, she died of ovarian cancer at the young age of thirty-seven. ¡°The reason why she died was because she used a lot of X-rays to figure out the structure of DNA,¡± said Elsie. ¡°My family fiercely discouraged me when I first said I wanted to do science. My mother regretted telling me about Franklin.¡± ¡°Because she died early?¡± ¡°That¡¯s one of the reasons, but it¡¯s because, in the end, Franklin didn¡¯t get anything,¡± Elsie said. ¡°Doctor Ryu, some people think science belongs to men.¡± ¡°There are lots who see it that way.¡± ¡°They think women are emotional, delicate creatures, and men are logical, rational creatures. That¡¯s the gender stereotype that persists even in the twenty-first century. It¡¯smon even in Northern Europe, where gender equality is very much realized,¡± Elsie said. ¡°I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s true or not. Maybe it urred because of the Barnum effect, or maybe there are actual biological differences in logical ability, but scientists should be silent about what they can¡¯t say.¡± ¡°Because science does not ept anecdotal opinions that aren¡¯t backed by scientific evidence.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. But the scientificmunity, which is supposed to be so rigorous, is surprisingly full of sexism. It¡¯s within the scientificmunity, but it¡¯s worse when you¡¯re trying to enter it. Can you imagine? When I told my family that I was going to get a degree, the adults in my family said, ¡®That¡¯s not something a girl should do. What kind of girl would go into science and get a doctorate?¡¯¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Even an unusually brilliant female scientist like Franklin couldn¡¯t survive in that world because, by nature, women don¡¯t have scientific minds. Even if women ovee that penalty with their blood, sweat, and tears, all they end up with is ovarian cancer, not a Nobel Prize,¡± Elsie said. ¡°All those carcinogenic chemicals, viruses, and bacteria have a bigger impact on a woman¡¯s body because they are going to have babies one day.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I wanted to show them that they were wrong. I wanted to show them that I was really good at science.¡± ¡°That¡¯s why you created life?¡± ¡°Yes, because it was the most challenging field in biology. Even in this age, where they are conquering cancer, sending humans into space, and modifying genes...¡± Elsie said. ¡°The scientificmunity doesn¡¯t have a concept of what a living thing is.¡± Elsie was right. The scientificmunity had defined living things over a hundred times, but they were all wrong; all of them had exceptions. For example, if they defined the ability to absorb and digest something as the standard for living things, then fire could be a living thing as it digests firewood and oxygen by burning it. If they used the ability to bear offspring as the criteria, then infertile couples and animals like mules would be nonliving things. ¡°Viruses have gic material, but they are not cells because they¡¯re just a clump of proteins. They are also not biologically active until they infect a host,¡± Elsie said. ¡°So the biologicalmunity has still not decided whether viruses are living things or not.¡± ¡°I personally think viruses are living things,¡± Young-Joon said. Elsie smiled. ¡°How fitting for someone who used to be in the Life Creation Department. Everyone on our team thought so. But what about transposons? What about prions, which are capable of self-replication? Are they living things?¡± Elsie took another sip of her Sprite. ¡°The concept of life: the worst and greatest mystery on the that no one could figure out. I wanted to solve this and show the sess of a female scientist,¡± Elsie said. ¡°That¡¯s why I did the Rosaline Project, and I almost seeded a couple of times. That¡¯s when I realized that this isn¡¯t science but in the realm of God. Humans have a nasty habit of reducing things we don¡¯t understand scientifically to religion or mysticism, but the creation of life was truly mystical.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°It was ecstatic. I¡¯ve used Synchronization Mode a few times. I was able to observe all life forms that were created before Rosaline and lessplex than her. It was a miracle, although it was just for a moment because I barely had any fitness. It was probably a very simple imagepared to what you¡¯re using right now.¡± Elsie smiled bitterly. ¡°The Rosalines I made weren''t a living thing. It disappeared in a few hours. They weren¡¯t short-lived creatures like mayflies¡ªthey weren¡¯t living things to begin with.¡± ¡°Is that why you gave up on creating Rosaline and created Doctor Ref?¡± ¡°I hate saying unscientific things, but I think creating life is something that can only be done by certain people who were carefully selected by some unknown criteria. I thought that would be Doctor Ref,¡± Elsie said. ¡°The moment I heard about the sessful young scientist in the Life Creation Department, I realized that you had seeded in what Doctor Ref and I failed at.¡± ¡°I felt that Doctor Ref was obsessed with Rosaline. Is that why she is carrying out terrorist attacks?¡± ¡°She¡¯s a child who has been hurt a lot,¡± Elsie said. ¡°But she¡¯s not some mad scientist who wants to destroy the world with her pain. She wants to spread Rosaline around the world.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°We thought Rosaline was some kind of virus. Rosaline Syndrome: that¡¯s the name of the syndrome you¡¯ve been infected with and are suffering from.¡± 1. A process where a single sperm is injected directly into the egg ? 2. A type of restriction enzyme that is used for gic modification, like CRISPR ? Chapter 227: Rosaline (2)

Chapter 227: Rosaline (2)

¡°W... What are you talking about?¡± Young-Joon asked in confusion. ¡°Rosaline is a virus? Rosaline Syndrome? A disease like that doesn¡¯t exist.¡± ¡°I never said it was a disease. In medicine, a syndrome is defined as a set of symptoms that ur together, but gics defines it as anybination of gic expression,¡± Elsie said. ¡°Your intelligence grew to transcend human limits as Rosaline¡¯s intelligence genes were expressed, and you were able to look down on the biological world with her power. I named this phenomenon the Rosaline Syndrome, a name I arbitrarily chose when I first discovered her.¡± ¡°...¡± There was a moment of silence. Young-Joon nced at Rosaline, and she looked at Elsie, slightly surprised. ¡°Elsie, Rosaline is not a virus,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Well, notpared to the viruses we know. Rosaline is much moreplex than that,¡± Elsie said. ¡°But think about it, Doctor Ryu. An organism that can¡¯t survive outside of its host, uses its host¡¯s nutrition and energy sources for its reproduction, is smaller than a single cell, and is bordering between living and nonliving things: what kind of organisms fit these criteria?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°If we were to put Rosaline into the taxonomy of living things on Earth right now, the category she would fit in is viruses.¡± ¡°But you know she¡¯s not a virus.¡± ¡°Of course, not. What I¡¯m saying is that Rosaine has viral characteristics because she is the first organism of the next generation,¡± Elsie said. Humans were 99.9 percent simr to other humans in terms of DNA. They were ny-eight percent simr to chimpanzees and ny percent simr to cats. Humans were sixty percent simr to fruit flies and bananas, and they even shared genes with bacteria, which were ssified in apletely different kingdom. This was because all living things on Earth were rted. They weremon descendants of a primordial cell that first arose on Earth. They were distant rtives, having evolved differently over billions of years, but every living thing on Earth was a blood rtive. But Rosaline was different. She was the next generation of life¡ªapletely new, primordial cell. ¡°What the first cell¡ªthe first form of life¡ªlooked like has been a great mystery to many biologists,¡± Elsie said. ¡°Some people thought it was a peptide with self-replicating properties, others believed it was RNA. it was spected that the electron transport chain in the cell membrane might have acquired its biological properties as it naturally urred in hydrothermal vents in the deep ocean.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°But Doctor Ryu, some people think that the first life forms may have been viruses. As we all know, viruses are strange creatures that are in between living and nonliving things.¡± ¡°But a virus can only survive if it has a host, so the first life form can¡¯t be a virus because it requires a living host,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Perhaps there was one back when ourmon ancestor was first born.¡± ¡°...¡± Elsie took another sip of her Sprite. ¡°Doctor Ryu, you are infected with a next-generation life form¡ªa next-generation virus¡ª called Rosaline. And Rosaline is superior to humans in every way; she is not just better, but superior. Rosaline can look down on all life on Earth because she is a moreplex life form.¡¯ ¡°So, Doctor Ref believes we should give Rosaline to everyone?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a little different. It¡¯s not about people sharing Rosaline, it¡¯s about Rosaline monopolizing human science.¡± ¡°Rosaline monopolizing human science?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know if Rosaline is only able to survive in your body right now, but that¡¯s not how viruses work. Doctor Ref¡¯s idea is for her to infect every human on the and then watch what they do.¡± ¡°What...¡± ¡°Rosaline is like a god. Doctor Ref wants Rosaline to monopolize science and only give the necessary information to people like you, who are researching with good intentions while keeping the rest of science under control. She thinks she can keep humans from misusing science that way.¡± Elsie took a sip of her Sprite. ¡°That way, the problems that you¡¯ve witnessed before getting Rosaline won¡¯t happen again. People trying to get rid of Cellicure, people trying to grow a tumor in someone¡¯s eyeball to bury a a treatment, and people trying to harvest organs from living people for transntation: all of that can be prevented.¡± ¡°... Wiat, this doesn¡¯t make sense. Doctor Ref herself is a prime example of science being misused, right? Doctor Ref is the one who terrorized the GSC conference and released a virus in Xinjiang.¡± ¡°Is that a problem? What happened after she released the virus in Xinjiang? Did things get worse than it was before?¡± Elsie asked. ¡°...¡± ¡°Doctor Ref did the best she could with what she had, because one terrorist organization can¡¯t stop the Chinese president and the massive conspiracy in Xinjiang, which holds a million people.¡± ¡°Well, let¡¯s say that¡¯s true. What about the GSC?¡± ¡°The GSC is a dangerous enemy to Doctor Ref, Doctor Ryu. The GSC isn¡¯t that great of an organization, either, but you probably don¡¯t know that because you¡¯ve only been a member for a short period of time. Now that I think about it, who encouraged you to join the GSC?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Was he a good person?¡± ¡°It was Jamie Anderson.¡± ¡°Haha, look,¡± Elsie said,ughing. ¡°The GSC is a ce where someone like him is celebrated as the greatest biologist in the world, Doctor Ryu. And what about He Jiankui, a GSC member? Who do you think is misusing science more: He Jiankui or Doctor Ref?¡± Elsie asked. ¡°Sigh... Elsie, there¡¯s bound to be a bully in every neighborhood. Jamie Anderson and He Jiankui are certainly terrible people, but there are also great people like Doctor Messelson.¡± ¡°There are good people like you in the GSC, just like how a broken clock is right twice a day. But the GSC as an organization is dangerous.¡± ¡°The GSC is dangerous?¡± ¡°Yes, the very existence of such an organization is problematic.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°As you know, the GSC makes rmendations and organizes projects in underdeveloped countries, like water supply projects, vine projects, and nuclear power nt construction projects. They provide scientific advice.¡± ¡°I¡¯m aware of that.¡± ¡°But those projects aren¡¯t based on sufficient research and discussion, they¡¯re based on unteral rmendations from the GSC. Can you imagine the difference in the level of science between a poor country in Africa and the GSC?¡± ¡°So policymakers in underdeveloped countries don¡¯t adopt the policies because they fully understand, they just blindly trust the GSC?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. And a hierarchical rtionship like that isn¡¯t scientific. The GSC is a prime example of the appeal to authority facy in Western science. But the GSC is not omnipotent because humans are not perfect,¡± Elsie said. ¡°The only thing that is perfect is Rosaline.¡± ¡°...¡± After some thought, Young-Joon said, ¡°But Elsie, even so, I don¡¯t think the GSC is doing anything wrong. It¡¯s true they have more knowledge and science, and there¡¯s nothing wrong with giving it away to underdeveloped countries, who need it as soon as possible. Even if there are problems with the process, it¡¯s not a crime that they deserve to be terrorized and die for.¡± ¡°That would be correct if they were sharing it,¡± Elsie said. ¡°Then what?¡± ¡°What they¡¯re doing is a form of extortion against underdeveloped countries and poor people. Look at He Jiankui. He was taking lower-ss individuals in China and doing human experiments, right? Not that I¡¯m in a position to say anything, but...¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°For example, the GSC once wrote a business n to install water systems in poor cities in countries like Uganda. However, the technology was beyond what the country could afford, so a constructionpany run by GSC members came in and installed it. The cost was so high that it was beyond what an underdeveloped country could afford, so they did other things instead of taking the money.¡± Elsie went on. ¡°For example, they got ess to the biological resources of a certain jungle in Uganda, created an HIV drug from the extracts of bacteria and nts in the environment, did clinical trials in Uganda, and then sold it to them. But Uganda doesn¡¯t have money again, right? So this time, they take oil rights, then underground resources, and thennd. That¡¯s how they take everything.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I¡¯m not talking about the usual resource looting. I¡¯m talking about taking away the power of those underdeveloped countries to advance science and be technologically independent,¡± Elsie said. ¡°They¡¯re not going to spend the money to do research on water systems because they already have one, right? As a result, they are dependent on the GSC and live off the pieces of technology that the GSC gives them. They go find the GSC when they have a problem with the water system.¡± Elsie continued. ¡°Now, let¡¯s think from Doctor Ref¡¯s perspective. How dare the GSC¡¯s third-rate scientists, who are probably less intelligent than her, monopolize science and dictate the science of an underdeveloped country with such arrogance while iming to be the authority figure?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The appeal to authority facy is bound to cause an ident at some point. What He Jiankui did will look like child¡¯s y; it could lead to serious catastrophes, like a poorly designed nuclear power nt exploding,nd erosion, or desertification. Doctor Ref is trying to destroy the GSC and remove the person at the top of the hierarchy,¡± Elsie said. ¡°Because the only person who is fit for that kind of position isn¡¯t an organization of Western scientists like the GSC, but Rosaline, who is truly superior.¡± ¡°Phew...¡± Young-Joon stood up and walked over to the window. He had a bit of a headache. He pulled up the blinds and stared outside. ¡°What do you think, Elsie?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°What do I think?¡± ¡°Everything you just told me was from Doctor Ref¡¯s perspective. What do you think? Do you agree with Doctor Ref¡¯s perspective that the GSC should disappear and Rosaline should infect every human to monopolize science?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± Elsie shrugged. ¡°The reason I let everything go and lived on drugs was because I couldn¡¯t find the answer to that, and I don¡¯t want to,¡± she said. ¡°But I believe in you, Doctor Ryu.¡± Elsie stood up and walked over. ¡°I¡¯ve been watching you for the past year, and you¡¯ve been destroying every kind of hical behavior in the scientificmunity without any hesitation. You¡¯re like a runaway train that never stops. You¡¯vee this far, destroying all hical behavior in your path, even against the Chinese president, one of the most powerful men on Earth.¡± ¡°...¡¯ ¡°You have a bizarrely perfect obsession with bioethics, and you also have apassion for humanity,¡± Elsie said. ¡°Like I said, I think creating life is something that only certain people who were carefully selected by some unknown criteria can do, but maybe that¡¯s the criteria.¡± Elsie smiled. ¡°That¡¯s why I have faith in you. And in the end, you will resolve the conflict between Doctor Ref and the GSC wisely, because you are the only owner of Rosaline.¡± Chapter 228: Rosaline (3)

Chapter 228: Rosaline (3)

In a luxury apartment near Jungyoon University... Beep! The front door opened with a short beep from the door lock. Young-Joon took off his shoes and walked inside. It was almost his first time home since returning from China. He didn¡¯t even have the time toe home because he had to take care of his backlog of work. He usually ate and slept at a hotel near thepany or in his office. But today, the mental fatigue was too much to bear. ¡°I¡¯m home,¡± Young-Joon said as he walked to the living room. ¡°Ah!¡± Ryu Ji-Won, who was sitting on the sofa in the living room, stood up, startled. ¡°H-Hey, what are you doing here all of a sudden without any notice?¡± ¡°Do I have to tell you when I¡¯ming to my own house?¡± Young-Joon nced at the young man who was sitting beside Ryu Ji-Won. ¡°H-Hello.¡± Frozen, the young man greeted Young-Joon awkwardly. ¡°I recognize you... Who was it?¡± Young-Joon asked, looking a little puzzled ¡°I¡¯m Ji-Won¡¯s friend, Yang Dong-Wook. I came to help her move her stuff when she was moving...¡± ¡°Oh, right, I remember now. We introduced ourselves, then, right?¡± ¡°Yes!¡± ¡°You¡¯re hanging out with Ji-Won. Where¡¯s Mom and Dad?¡± Young-Joon asked Ryu Ji-Won. ¡°Um... They went on a trip not too long ago.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Young-Joon nodded. ¡°That¡¯s why Dong-Wook is here since they¡¯re away. How long have you been dating?¡± ¡°Ack, we¡¯re not!¡± ¡°We¡¯re not dating!¡± Both of them shook their heads frantically. ¡°It¡¯s not like I¡¯m going to scold you for dating or anything. Dong-Wook¡¯s lips are red because of your lipstick, Ji-Won.¡± ¡°... I¡¯m sorry...¡± Yang Dong-Wook said, wiping his lips. ¡°It¡¯s been a month now... Don¡¯t tell Dad, it¡¯s a secret,¡± Ryu Ji-Won said. Young-Joon chuckled. ¡°Alright. It¡¯s not like you¡¯re kids anymore, so I hope you guys are happy. I¡¯m a little tired, so I¡¯m going to get some sleep. Wake me up if you need anything.¡± Young-Joon went to his room, closed the door, and copsed on the bed. Ryu Ji-Won, who was watching him, nced at Yang Dong-Wook. ¡°I wonder why he looks so unenergetic?¡± Ryu Ji-Won said. ¡°You think?¡± ¡°Do you think something happened at work?¡± * Rosaline approached Young-Joon, who was lying down on his bed. ¡°What do you think about what Elsie said?¡± he asked. ¡ªI don¡¯t know. Rosalineid down beside him. It looked like a girl the size of Ryu Sae-Yi was lying down, but the bed didn¡¯t bounce because she was actually a cell. ¡ªBut I did see a lot of scientists who misused science in my time with you. ¡°...¡± ¡ªThere was Kim Hyun-Taek, who got rid of Cellicure, or Schumatix, whomitted medical malpractice to get rid of a a treatment. There was also Jamie Anderson who recklessly used a treatment that had a risk of hyperprogression for his Nobel Prize. Rosaline went on, exining everything she had seen. ¡ªI was a little shocked when I saw the facilities in Xinjiang where three million Uygurs were being held. It was extremely unnatural and inefficient. ¡°I¡¯ve never seen you that shocked.¡± ¡ªI think humans are imperfect and immature, and I¡¯ve always thought that. Humans are essentially impulsive and self-centered creatures, and that¡¯s why they make mistakes, like when Ji Kwang-Man tried to get his thugs to murder you. Rosaline continued. ¡ªAnd the higher the level of science, the greater the damage when you make a mistake. You could go from throwing a rock to pushing the button on a nuclear missile because you couldn¡¯t control your emotions in the heat of the moment. ¡°...¡± ¡ªMaybe human science should be controlled. If I could infect all of humanity, I could do that. It¡¯s kind of like how countries like the U.S. are trying to control guns. I¡¯ll evaluate intellect and morality, and I¡¯ll share science based on that. ¡°So you¡¯re going to stop schools from teaching science, too?¡± ¡ªI don¡¯t think anyone¡¯s going to want to study science if scientific knowledge that is difficult to gain, even with decades of studying, is given to a select few in a matter of seconds. Rosaline went on. ¡ªSchools would teach more about ethics and morality instead of science, and science would be led in a more constructive and safe direction by people like you who are moral enough. ¡°Do you agree with Elsie about the GSC?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡ªI don¡¯t hate humans, but I do agree that groups like the GSC have too much power and authority that they don¡¯t deserve. They¡¯re human, after all. It seems problematic to me that underdeveloped countries are epting their policies simply based on their name value. ¡°... So you want to monopolize and manage the science of humanity yourself?¡± ¡ªI don¡¯t know. Rosaline seemed hesitant. ¡ªWhat I¡¯ve been talking about is capability, which isn¡¯t the same thing as desire. In terms of capability, if I were to infect and dominate all of humanity as Doctor Ref said, I¡¯m confident I¡¯d do well. ¡°Probably.¡± ¡ªI told you how to wipe out the flu before, right? ¡°You said I should put the flu gene into the cold virus, which is less virulent, and spread it around the world.¡± ¡ªI¡¯m not going to choose a route that radical anymore. I¡¯m no longer seeking extreme efficiency. Rosaline exined to Young-Joon. ¡ªI learned bioethics from you. You do not treat anyone as a means or a sacrifice. That¡¯s the standard of your behavioral patterns that I¡¯ve analyzed. ¡°...¡± ¡ªYou only need to select people who have those principles and give them my science based on the situation. Rosaline was dry. She was only delivering objective facts without the slightest hint of emotion, and Young-Joon could see that as well. Rosaline was really that intelligent and knowledgeable. If she did what Doctor Ref said, she would do very well. ¡®Maybe she would do better than me.¡¯ ¡ªBut desire is a different matter. I don¡¯t have that kind of desire. Rosaline was certain. ¡°Really?¡± ¡ªI don¡¯t know about the future, but so far, yes. I desired your desires. Rosaline only raised her head from the bed and stared at Young-Joon. ¡ªWas I born that way? Was I born to have no desires? ¡°... You like ATP. Wanting ATP is also a desire.¡± ¡ªNot things like that. ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± ¡ªAnyway, Doctor Ref¡¯s idea that Elsie mentioned earlier was a little strange. ¡°Doctor Ref wants you to be independent from me. She wants you to be a powerful force that rules the world, not my personal scientific vending machine.¡± ¡ªBut I can¡¯t survive outside your body. ¡°...¡± In the past, Doctor Ref had criticized Rosaline, calling her an iplete organism with no desire to reproduce. She told Rosaline that she wouldplete her if she came to her. ¡ªI know what you¡¯re thinking right now. Rosaline stared at Young-Joon, her face right in front of his. ¡°If you think about it based on virology, infection is reproduction for a virus,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°If you could infect other people, that in itself is reproduction if you really are the first life form with viral characteristics.¡± ¡ªThat¡¯s right. Rosaline agreed with Young-Joon. ¡ªI don¡¯t have the ability to reproduce, nor do I have the desire to. ¡°...¡± Rosaline shrugged. ¡ªAm I really an organism? Rosaline wondered. ¡ªAn organism like me doesn¡¯t exist. Maybe I¡¯m less of an organism than a virus. I always thought I knew myself perfectly, but now I¡¯m not so sure. Rosaline signed. ¡ªA lot has changed, Ryu Young-Joon. Do you remember when I told you I wanted to sleep? ¡°I remember.¡± ¡ªI can barely tolerate it nowadays. I used a lot of fitness, especially when I replicated an iris in Xinjiang to open a door. I¡¯ve been tired ever since. Rosaline went on. ¡ªIf I really am iplete, there¡¯s one possible reason that I can think of. ¡°What is it?¡± Rosaline sat up from the bed. ¡ªDo you remember the pathogen that infected Director Kim Hyun-Taek and left him brain-dead? Young-Joon¡¯s eyes narrowed. At the time, it was right before A-Gen¡¯s past work on anthrax bioweapons was going to be revealed. Kim Hyun-Taek hade to Lab Six and copsed in the Life Creation Department, infected with an unknown pathogen. The pathogen looked Vantack in Rosaline¡¯s Simtion Mode, and it was a highly toxic substance that knocked HIV, anthrax, and Eb out of the park. Rosaline went inside Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s body to see what it was, but she unleashed perforin and destroyed the pathogen. ¡ªIt tried to attack me as if it were alive. When I destroyed it, some chemicals came out of it. ¡°Chemicals?¡± ¡ªThey were prednisolone and pentoxifylline. ¡°What is that? Why did thate out of it?¡± ¡ªYou don¡¯t know what this is? Young-Joon tilted his head in confusion. ¡°I¡¯ve never heard of it. Biologists don¡¯t know much about chemicals except how to use them. Rosaline snapped her fingers in front of Young-Joon¡¯s eyes. [Rosaline Lv. 22] ¡ªMetastatic Status: Heart (9%), Liver (47%), Brain (12%), Kidney (15%), Spinal Cord (9%) ¡ªSynchronization: 33% ¡ªCell Fitness: 20.5 Rosaline pressed the button below the status window to look at the message history. ¡ªActivate Synchronization Mode: Observe Artificial Organ ... The most recent messages popped up. Drrrr. Rosaline scrolled down quite a bit. ¡ªSimtion Mode: Mosquito Reproduction in Guangdong. ... ¡ªSimtion Mode: Medical Examination of Lee Yoon-Ah¡¯s Condition. ... ¡ªSynchronization Mode: Analyzing the Six Stages of Alzheimer¡¯s. Fitness consumption rate: 0.7/second ¡°Where are you scrolling to?¡± ¡ªWait a second. Rosaline kept scrolling. ... ¡ªThe current message and status window is created by the artificial cell manipting your cerebral cortex; it analyzes the memories in your hippocampus and presents information to you with the UI design most familiar to you. ¡ªI will remind you of the moment when you created life. ¡°This is the beginning, right?¡± ¡ªYes. We have to go all the way to the beginning. ¡°What...¡± Young-Joon, who was about to ask what she was looking for, froze. ¡ªThe artificial cell is beginning to break down the orally administered drug. ¡ªHas broken down 30 mg of Prednisolone. ¡ªHas broken down 400 mg of Pentoxifylline. ... ¡ªThe artificial cell has recovered your body. ¡°...¡± ¡ªThis is even before you named me: the point of my birth. You had hepatitis from alcoholism and you were taking medication for it. You had those substances in your blood... ¡°Oh my god. This is...¡± ¡ªEven when you pricked your finger on a piece of ss while observing a sample of Rosaline v4.87 and bled¡ªeven when I was being created by your ATP. Rosaline went on. ¡ªThat blood contained the hepatitis medicine. ¡°And those chemicals were in the pathogen that caused Kim Hyun-Taek to be brain-dead?¡± ¡ªThe hepatitis drugs were chemicals that don¡¯t ur in nature. Biology is chemical reactions in the microworld. If the hepatitis drugs interfered with the chemical reactions at the time of my birth in some way... Rosaline paused. ¡ªThat¡¯s where I could have divided from. Chapter 229: Rosaline (4)

Chapter 229: Rosaline (4)

¡°Wait, so you¡¯re saying that the reason you split with the pathogen that infected Kim Hyun-Taek was because of the hepatitis medication I was taking at the time?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡ªI¡¯m talking about a possibility. Even I don¡¯t know what happened then. Young-Joon thought for a moment. ¡°You¡¯ve grown a lot since then, right? If we go back to Kim Hyun-Taek, do you think we¡¯ll be able to learn more about the pathogen?¡± ¡ªMaybe. Young-Joon paused, then said, ¡°Now that I think of it... Rosaline, you once told me that Kim Hyun-Taek was so badly damaged that there was no way to recover him, right?¡± ¡ªYes. ¡°Do you think it¡¯s possible now?¡± ¡ªHm. Rosaline frowned slightly. ¡ªI¡¯ll have to see. Click. Young-Joon opened the door and walked out. ¡°Huh?¡± Ryu Ji-Won, who was hugging Yang Dong-Wook, pulled away in surprise. ¡°I-I thought you were sleeping.¡± ¡°I have something to do. I¡¯ll be back soon.¡± Young-Joon put on his jacket and ran out the front door. * ¡°What did you just say?¡± Park Dong-Hyun asked in disbelief. All the other members of the Life Creation Department looked baffled. ¡°Maybe we can bring Director Kim Hyun-Taek back to life?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked. Cellijenner regrly visited Lab Seven to conduct follow-up research after the development of the running microdust reduction device. Today, Song Ji-Hyun suddenly requested a meeting with the members of the Life Creation Department and made this outrageous statement. ¡°I¡¯ve seen the reports on the artificial organs you¡¯ve transnted into the Chinese officials: heart, liver, lungs, pancreas, and the small intestine. You¡¯ve made a lot of progress, right?¡± ¡°... So you¡¯re suggesting we put them in Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s body and try to save him?¡± Bae Sun-Mi asked. ¡°Doctor Song, the human body is not a doll...¡± Koh Soon-Yeol said, bewildered. ¡°No, I¡¯m not saying this as a joke,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said, blushing. ¡°But why do you want to save Kim Hyun-Taek?¡± Cheon Ji-Myung asked. ¡°I thought you really hated him, Doctor Song. He¡¯s the one who destroyed Cellicure.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t like him,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said, frowning. ¡°He¡¯s certainly guilty of many things: developing an anthrax bioweapon and deliberately destroying Cellicure. But it should be thew that punishes Director Kim Hyun-Taek, not some unknown pathogen.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I believe that only humans have the right to punish human wrongdoing. Some people believe that Kim Hyun-Taek has been punished by God, but a scientist shouldn¡¯t ept a punishment like that. Kim Hyun-Taek is bedridden because he contracted an unknown disease, and we have an obligation to explore it and try to cure him.¡± ¡°But Doctor Song, realistically, it¡¯s too difficult. Kim Hyun-Taek is brain-dead,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung said. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a bit difficult to revive a brain-dead person whose brain stem is dead, even with artificial organs.¡± Park Dong-Hyun scratched his head. ¡°To put it another way, all we need to do is revive the dead brainstem. The rest... Well, it feels a little wrong to put it this way, but...¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°We can get the rest of the parts from A-GenBio since you can make artificial organs.¡± The Life Creation Team thought for a moment. It was possible to do this if they removed somatic cells from Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s body, dedifferentiated them into stem cells and then differentiated them into individual organs. The problem was the brain. ¡°We haven¡¯t developed an artificial brain yet,¡± Park Dong-Hyun said. ¡°That¡¯s right, Doctor Song. Brain death is one of the conditions that people use to pronounce someone dead in modern medicine because there is no way to reverse theplete loss of brain function,¡± Bae Sun-Mi added. There were two criteria for pronouncing someone dead: it was the irreversible loss of cardiopulmonary function and the irreversible loss of function of the entire brain. If either of these two things happened, doctors dered patients dead. While few people questioned the first criterion, the second was still often debated. Those who viewed brain death as true death believed that the loss of the brain function, including the brainstem, was irreversible. There were some stories about peopleing back to life after brain death, but they believed that they were never brain dead in the first ce. Diagnosing brain death was a difficult task, and they just suspected that cases of brain death survival were due to misdiagnosis, where temporary abnormalities in functioning were mistakenly diagnosed as brain death. Conversely, those who did not consider brain death to be true death argued that brain death was a social consensus rather than the result of scientific evidence. Patients who were brain dead and on life support to maintain their cardiopulmonary function were costly for society to maintain. They argued that brain death was agreed upon as the criterion for death because they needed a reasonable definition of death for organ harvesting. This long-standing issue in medicine sparked a long and tedious war between many doctors and scientists; however, there were two things that both sides could agree on with certainty. The first was that a brain-dead patient was not dead if the damage could be reversed, and the second was that technology to reverse brain death currently did not exist. ¡°I have an idea for that part,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°You have an idea?¡± ¡°To recover the brainstem.¡± ¡°H... How?¡± ¡°Neural stem cells exist in two locations in the human brain: the subventricr zone (SVZ) and the subgranryer of the senate gyrus. We¡¯re going to focus on the SVZ,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°The subventricr zone has a few characteristics: it is responsible for the sharing of nutrients and signaling substances in the cerebrospinal fluid within the ventricles, and it is almost always hypoperfused. Why is that?¡± ¡°Wait, when did you be an expert in neuroscience... Switching your expertise like our CEO...¡± said Park Dong-Hyun, surprised. Song Ji-Hyun blushed slightly. ¡°... The reason hypoperfusion is maintained is to prevent the neural stem cells there from differentiating, a property called quiescence in stem cells,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°But as soon as there¡¯s a slight damage to the brainstem, the blood flow there immediately increases. The neural stem cells differentiate and regenerate the brainstem. People be brain-dead because there¡¯s nothing that can be done about major damage, but the body can repair minor damage.¡± ¡°I get the point,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung said. ¡°We inject our induced pluripotent stem cells into the subventricr zone and cause neural differentiation?¡± ¡°Our target is the subventricr zone below the fourth ventricle. It¡¯s a very small location, so it¡¯s going to be an incredibly delicate and difficult surgery,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°And we¡¯re going to use some vasodtors to increase the blood flow, and we¡¯re going to inject arge dose of dopamine,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°Dopamine?¡± ¡°It¡¯s the main neurotransmitter that works in the brain. It stimtes the neurons,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°How did you figure this out? I thought you worked on liver cancer,¡± Park Dong-Hyun said. ¡°Um...¡± Song Ji-Hyun shrugged, slightly embarrassed, and ran her hand through her hair. ¡°Actually, my brother has schizophrenia,¡± she said. ¡°Because of that, I¡¯ve actually been more interested in neuroscience and cancer drugs. I¡¯ve been active in the Neurological Society for a long time, and I¡¯ve read most of the clinical papers rted to the brain. I¡¯ve even done some research in that direction myself, although my brother ended up being treated by Doctor Ryu.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°With this strategy, Doctor Song, I don¡¯t think you had to ask us for help,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung said. ¡°Cellijenner could have done this from the preclinical stage. Our artificial organ production is already close to beingmercialized, and your idea for regenerating the brainstem makes a lot of sense. Why would you bring such an important idea to A-GenBio? Is it to repay us for the microdust reduction device?¡± ¡°Haha, of course not.¡± Song Ji-Hyun shook her hand. ¡°This research won¡¯t happen without a giantpany like A-GenBio and Mr. Ryu¡¯s name on it.¡± ¡°Why?¡± Jung Hae-Rim asked. ¡°Oh! I think I know.¡± Koh Soon-Yeol nodded. ¡°What is it?¡± Park Dong-Hyun asked. ¡°This won¡¯t start if it¡¯s not for the power of our CEO...¡± Song Ji-Hyun smiled bitterly at Koh Soon-Yeol¡¯sment. ¡°That¡¯s right. We can get it to the preclinical stage, but it won¡¯t be a clinical trial when ites to Kim Hyun-Taek.¡± ¡°What?¡± Park Dong-Hyun asked, frowning. ¡°Legally, clinical trials are for living people, but a brain-dead person is not a living person under currentw. It¡¯s been over six months already, so the doctors must have dered him dead.¡± ¡°... No, then...¡± ¡°This is illegal research. This project can only be started afterpletely changing thew,¡± ¡°This is crazy...¡± ¡°This is why people haven¡¯t been able to do clinical trials on brain-dead patients for a long time. Companies like BioCork in Phdelphia have jumped into this challenging field a few times, but it didn¡¯t go well. Most of the clinical research on brain death has been focused on restoring consciousness in brain-dead people.¡± ¡°If Doctor Song¡¯s idea works, it would really shock the world. It¡¯s literally bringing the dead back to life, right?¡± Bae Sun-Mi said. Song Ji-Hyun nodded. In a sense, this could be equivalent to conquering cancer. A recovery from an extreme condition that had previously been dered as death: all five people knew what that meant. ¡°How many brain-dead people in South Korea are still on life support?¡± Park Dong-Hyun asked Song Ji-Hyun. ¡°I don¡¯t think there¡¯s anyone who¡¯s been alive for more than six months other than Kim Hyun-Taek, and that¡¯s why we want to do it on Kim Hyun-Taek.¡± ¡°By the way, why is Kim Hyun-Taek still on a respirator? Don¡¯t people usually hold a funeral after doctors dere someone dead?¡± Park Dong-Hyun asked. ¡°I think his family is against it,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°They¡¯re against it?¡± ¡°They think Doctor Ryu will save him.¡± ¡°...¡± Park Dong-Hyun scratched his head. ¡°Those people... Wasn¡¯t that before artificial organs and stuff? But they just trusted our CEO and waited for him? They kept him on life support for half a year? No matter how good our CEO is, it¡¯s not like he¡¯s God... Besides, how could they be so shameless when they know about their rtionship...¡± ¡°It¡¯s not like that. Director Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s family are good people,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°You¡¯ve met them?¡± ¡°Yes. When the Cellicure incident was revealed, Director Kim¡¯s wife came to our office and apologized, saying her husband had caused trouble.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t believe it. Director Kim has a wife like that?¡± Park Dong-Hyun said in shock. ¡°I know Kim Hyun-Taek did a lot of bad things, but he must have been a family man at home.¡± * Young-Joon arrived at the intensive care unit at Yonsei University Hospital. After requesting to see Kim Hyun-Taek at the reception desk, a nurse escorted him to his room. ¡°Oh, Doctor Ryu, please convince his wife when you go inside... I can¡¯t stand seeing her in pain. We need to let him go,¡± the nurse said to Young-Joon. Click. Then, the nurse opened the door. ¡°Hello.¡± The nurse greeted Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s wife. ¡°M-Mr. Ryu?¡± Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s wife looked at Young-Joon in surprise. But Young-Joon was looking past her at Kim Hyun-Taek, who was lying in bed behind her. [Synchronization Mode Activated: Brain Death] A message window popped. Chapter 230: Rosaline (5)

Chapter 230: Rosaline (5)

¡°Uh... Oh my god.¡± Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s wife put down the towel and toothbrush she was carrying on the table. She hurried over to Young-Joon. ¡°Hello, Mr. Ryu. I¡¯m Lee Mi-Sook, Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s wife,¡± she said, bowing to Young-Joon. ¡°... Nice to meet you.¡± ¡°Then, I¡¯ll be on my way. Please call me if there¡¯s anything you need,¡± said the nurse, leaving the room. Lee Mi-Sook, who made sure the door was fully closed, cautiously spoke to Young-Joon. ¡°What brings you here? You¡¯re probably incredibly busy...¡± Young-Joon felt like he knew what she was expecting. ¡°If he¡¯s brain dead, he should have been dered dead already, but he¡¯s been on life support for nearly six months,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°... I know he did a lot of bad things, but he was a family man and a father,¡± Lee Mi-Sook said. ¡°He was afraid of being hated by his family, so he didn¡¯t talk much about his work at home. That¡¯s why I didn¡¯t know about the anthrax weapon and Cellicure untilter...¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°I visited Doctor Song once, and I apologized to her many times. I should have visited you as well.¡± Lee Mi-Sook bowed. ¡°I¡¯m so sorry, Mr. Ryu.¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s okay. You haven¡¯t done anything to me directly.¡± Young-Joon stared at Kim Hyun-Taek. ¡°He¡¯s been on life support for around six months now, right? How are the medical bills?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Uh... It¡¯s quite a lot, but we have some insurance.¡± Lee Mi-Sook smiled bitterly. ¡°We sold our house, and we had some money saved up for retirement. We¡¯re doing okay.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Oh my, you¡¯re a guest and I haven¡¯t gotten anything for you. I¡¯ll go to the convenience store downstairs and get you something to drink. Just sit right.¡± ¡°Oh, it¡¯s alright.¡± ¡°No, please. Give me a moment.¡± Lee Mi-Sook hastily left the room. Young-Joon stared at her for a moment, then pressed the button on the message window. [Synchronization Mode: Brain Death] ¡°Ack...¡± Young-Joon clutched his head. It felt like his whole soul was being sucked into the vastness of outer space. It was like someone was squeezing his brain in one hand. ¡°This is unbelievable...¡± The Synchronization Mode Rosaline was using right now was the mostplex she had ever used. In Young-Joon¡¯s eyes, whose sight waspletely merged with Rosaline¡¯s consciousness, Kim Hyun-Taek was being perceived as a robot. Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s liver, lungs, pancreas, and stomach were severely damaged. But it was his brain that was the most damaged. There were no electrical signalsing from his brain¡ªeverything waspletely dead, including the midbrain, pons, and the medu oblongata. The brainstem contained the hypothmus; it was the mostplex central nerve that controlled the movement of the internal organs and blood vessels, and it also controlled the autonomic nervous system and the endocrine system. As it was severely damaged, thermoregtion, endocrine metabolism, digestive activity, and cardiac function were all lost. The patient¡¯s pulse was maintained through life support, and homeostasis was maintained by fluids pumped into the bloodstream. The threeponents of the midbrain were still dead but had a chance of functioning, like how engine parts of a broken-down car could still be used. There were some salvageable efferent nerve bundles in the ventral area, but the neurons near the spinal cord were almost hopeless. Then, Rosaline stopped in the cerebellum, the space between the cerebrum and the medu oblongata. ¡ªThe fourth ventricle. A message popped up in front of Young-Joon¡¯s eyes. He could already see dead adult neurons in the subventricr zone. The blood flow in this space was very low, but if they injected neurons in here... ¡ªBleep! The bed that Kim Hyun-Taek was lying on appeared in front of Young-Joon¡¯s eyes. He exited the microscopic insight, where he was floating through each part of the brain. ¡ªSynchronization Mode ended. There was a message in front of his eyes. ¡°What?¡± Young-Joon opened his status window. [Fitness: 8.5] He still had a lot of fitness left. ¡°Rosaline?¡± Young-Joon scratched his head. He saw Rosaline standing across from him, with the bed in between them. ¡°Synchronization Mode turned off.¡± ¡ªI turned it off. ¡°Why?¡± ¡ªI found something interesting. ¡°Interesting?¡± ¡ª... Rosaline gathered her thoughts, looking a little confused. ¡ªAlright, Ryu Young-Joon. We need to talk before we do this. ¡°About what?¡± ¡ªI don¡¯t think Kim Hyun-Taek is qualified as a scientist. This person got rid of Cellicure and created an anthrax bioweapon to sell to the United States. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡ªIf we let this person live, he will do science again somewhere else. He may not be able toe back to A-Gen, but he¡¯ll leave and be a university professor in some other country. He¡¯s good enough for that. ¡°That¡¯s most likely after he¡¯s punished for what he¡¯s done. Even if he can¡¯t be a professor, he¡¯ll teach biology or write a book or something.¡± ¡ªDo you think that¡¯s right? Young-Joon smiled. ¡°Rosaline. You¡¯re puzzled because of Doctor Ref, right?¡± ¡ª...Honestly, yes ¡°But I¡¯m not a doctor, and I¡¯m not treating one person named Kim Hyun-Taek; I¡¯m a scientist who is trying to find a way to treat brain death. And that treatment can save countless other brain-dead patients, not just Kim Hyun-Taek.¡± ¡ªThat¡¯s the problem. Rosaline interfered. ¡ªYour science benefits everyone and gives everyone a chance. It allows people like Kim Hyun-Taek toe back to life and do science again. When you think about the problem that Doctor Ref raised, don¡¯t you think that we¡¯re missing some sort of safety mechanism? Young-Joon understood what Rosaline was thinking. ¡°We can¡¯t guarantee it, but we can¡¯t put off developing new technology because of that,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°If Kim Hyun-Taekes back and tries to do something bad again, it will be science that stops it.¡± Rosaline frowned. ¡ª... I don¡¯t know. Rosaline dropped her head. ¡ªWhen we developed the a treatment before, we used a mechanism where the stem cells injected into the eye would aggregate and self-destruct, remember? ¡°Of course.¡± ¡ªI think we need something simr to that: a technology that puts constraints on people who do hical things, like destroying Cellicure, trying to harvest organs from living people, or stealing someone else¡¯s research data. Young-Joon understood what Rosaline was talking about. Rosaline was different from humans; she was an extremely rational and logical creature. She would only be satisfied when she could calcte and control all possibilities herself. She didn¡¯t like to rely on vague hopes, like trusting people or hoping that betterws would be developed. ¡°... But realistically, something like that is difficult.¡± ¡ªThen I¡¯m a little skeptical about saving Kim Hyun-Taek. Rosaline seemed doubtful. ¡ªLike Elsie said, humanity¡¯s science was like an immature boy who just got bigger, and it still is. You don¡¯t know for sure that Kim Hyun-Taek won¡¯t make another mistake after he wakes up, and you have no device to prevent him from doing so. But you are sure that you want to bring him back to life? ¡°Yes.¡± Young-Joon was adamant. ¡°I see what you¡¯re pointing out, and it¡¯s a reasonable argument. It¡¯s also true that I don¡¯t have the answers to the questions Doctor Ref raised, but I¡¯m still going to bring Kim Hyun-Taek back to life because I know that¡¯s the right thing to do.¡± ¡ª... ¡°If Kim Hyun-Taek wakes up and does something bad again, it¡¯s because society didn¡¯t have a system in ce to stop him, not because we saved him. Do you understand what I mean?¡± Young-Joon stared at Rosaline. ¡°I¡¯m going to bring him back, and I¡¯m going to help his family, who sold their house to hold onto him for six months and keep him alive. And I¡¯m going to make sure that he gets the punishment he deserves in court for developing biological weapons and trying to destroy Cellicure,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I think that¡¯s the right thing to do.¡± ¡ª... Rosaline was quiet. They red at each other for a moment. ¡ªFine. Rosaline gave in. ¡ªHonestly, I don¡¯t understand it fully, but I get what you¡¯re talking about. I¡¯ll ept it. Rosaline stood beside Kim Hyun-Taek. ¡ªTo me, Ryu Young-Joon, science and ethics aren¡¯t all that important. The fact that three million people are being held in Xinjiang or that Kim Hyun-Taek destroyed Cellicure is not that big of a deal. The reason I cared about those things is because you cared about them. You are my world, and you are more important to me than all of humanity on this. [Synchronization Mode Activated] A message popped up. ¡ªSo, I will do as you please, as long as you don¡¯t get hurt or lose anything. Rosaline moved to the subventricr zone of the fourth ventricle in Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s brain. ¡ªI told you I found something interesting here earlier, right? ¡°What is it?¡± ¡ªIt¡¯s a fragment of the pathogen I destroyed. ¡°It¡¯s in there?¡± ¡ªIt¡¯spletely inactive. There¡¯s no movement. But it¡¯s difficult to say that it is dead. ¡°You said youpletely destroyed it?¡± ¡ªI did. But we¡¯re digging into the concept of death, right? We can¡¯t use it here if we don¡¯t even know what the word means. ¡°True.¡± ¡ªWe might be able to regenerate the brain stem if we inject stem cells here and promote differentiation. But we can¡¯t be sure how this fragment of the pathogen will react. * ¡°Is it possible that this will conflict with religious organizations?¡± Cheon Ji-Myung asked. ¡°Doctor Song, if a brain-dead patient is medically dead, it means that they areing back to life right?¡± ¡°It¡¯s the opposite. If we seed in bringing them back, Kim Hyun-Taek was never dead in the first ce,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°We dere brain death as death because there¡¯s no way to reverse it right now. But if we can, the criteria for death would be clearer.¡± ¡°Hm...¡± ¡°So reviving Kim Hyun-Taek could put a lot of psychological pressure on the doctors who used to remove the respiratory device from the brain-dead patients and harvest their organs, or the people who received those organs,¡± Jung Hae-Rim said. ¡°Honestly, I don¡¯t know...¡± ¡°Don¡¯t be afraid. We¡¯re doing the right thing. Science is not just a tool to be used for the development and convenience of civilization,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°Do you know this saying: ¡®Science allows us to understand the world urately. Science and everyday life cannot and should not be separated.¡¯ My favorite scientist said this.¡± ¡°Is it our CEO?¡± ¡°No!¡± Song Ji-Hyun shook her head, surprised. ¡°It¡¯s a scientist named Rosaline Franklin. She thought that science was not a tool for the development of civilization, but the process of human beings understanding the world correctly. Our understanding of death needs to be more urate as well if the brain-dead people are not actually dead by the intricacies of biology,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°No matter what kind of pressure and resistance there is, we have to do this research, because that¡¯s what science is.¡± Chapter 231: Rosaline (6)

Chapter 231: Rosaline (6)

Rosaline looked more closely at the fragments of the pathogen. ¡ªIt looked ck in the simtion before because it was highly toxic. Rosaline observed the pathogen. ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡ªIt¡¯s still ck, like what we saw in the simtion. It¡¯s the color of Vantack that absorbs all light. Rosaline carefully picked at the shards. ¡ªIt might be better to get rid of it now if we don¡¯t want it to get in the way when we inject the stem cells into the subventricr zone. ¡°Can you do that?¡± ¡ªAny unknown organism is eventually simr if you look at itsponents at the peter level. It¡¯s all just matter that can be understood at the atomic level. And the fragments of this pathogen areposed of proteins, lipids, and trace amounts of nucleic acids. [180% Overexpression of Ligase] [227% Overexpression of Protease] ¡ªThen I can turn on a couple of genes and destroy it by ejecting this from my membrane. Rosaline began overexpressing some genes. ¡ªI used perforin before to poke holes in it, but this time, we¡¯re going to throw it in a blender. The lipase and protease, which were created inside her, spewed out. They clung to the surface of the pathogen and began to create a chemical reaction, breaking it down into tiny monomers. ¡°Don¡¯t overdo it,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡ªDon¡¯t worry, it¡¯s going well... Pshh! -... Nucleic acid shot up from the destroyed pathogen and pierced Rosaline¡¯s cell membrane. It looked like a sharp needle puncturing a soap bubble. ¡°Rosaline!¡± ¡ªIt¡¯s okay. Rosaline reassured Young-Joon. She created an endosome, which gently wrapped around the pathogen¡¯s nucleic acid. The endosome moved slowly through the cell, then settled in a nook inside the nucleus. ¡ªI was a bit surprised by the unexpected movement, but I can control it. Rosaline calmed down. ¡ªI¡¯m going to store this nucleic acid in my cell. ¡°You¡¯re not going to destroy it?¡± ¡ªNucleic acid contains DNA. There¡¯s a bit of a risk, but it will be safer in my hands if it divided from me when I was created. There might be a use for it, too. Bzz! Young-Joon¡¯s phone rang. [Carpentier] ¡°Carpentier?¡± Young-Joon tilted his head, puzzled. [This is Carpentier. Could you give me a call when you have time? I think we¡¯ll be able to start an interesting project.] ¡®An interesting project...¡¯ As he was about to call Carpentier, he heard Lee Mi-Sook¡¯s voice from behind. ¡°Doctor Ryu!¡± She came into the hospital room with a bright smile on her face. ¡°Phew, you¡¯re still here, thank goodness. Have some of this, and we can chat for a little bit.¡± Lee Mi-Sook opened the gift drink set and handed Young-Joon some orange juice. ¡°Thank you.¡± Young-Joon took the juice from her. ¡°I wanted toe see you and apologize,¡± she said. ¡°But you were so busy, being overseas for two weeks at a time. Even when you were in Korea, you¡¯re not the kind of person you can just meet without making an appointment.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°But to make an appointment and apologize... I felt like I was bothering such a busy person, which was more of a nuisance.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have to feel bad about it.¡± ¡°Life is so strange, right?¡± Lee Mi-Sook said. ¡°I don¡¯t know much because I¡¯m a stay-at-home-mom, but I heard that my husband demoted you to the Life Creation Department or something after you argued with him for destroying Cellicure.¡± ¡°He did.¡± ¡°But now he¡¯s lying in a hospital bed, Cellicure became a sessful drug in the cancer market, and you became the CEO of A-Gen.¡± ¡°...¡± Lee Mi-Sook took a sip of the orange juice, then nced at Young-Joon. ¡°Honestly, the reason I haven¡¯t let him go yet is because of you, Doctor Ryu,¡± she said. ¡°But I think brain-dead people are still alive, and I believe that you will figure out how to bring them back one day.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Am I too cunning? I¡¯m hiding behind him so shamelessly, keeping him barely breathing... Still having hope that you will save his life when you¡¯ve suffered the most because of him...¡± Lee Mi-Sook smiled bitterly. ¡°But this is all I can do, Doctor Ryu. I know this man was a bad person, and I know that he was being punished by God when he copsed.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not like that,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°It¡¯s just a pathogen that medicine doesn¡¯t understand yet.¡± ¡°... I see.¡± Lee Mi-Sook took a few more sips of her drink and set it on the table. She hesitated, her lips trembling, and finally turned to Young-Joon. ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± she said. ¡°I also apologize for not apologizing sooner. I¡¯m really sorry. I¡¯m sorry for everything that happened... I¡¯m so sorry.¡± * * * ¡°Alright, let¡¯s do it,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung said. ¡°Doctor Song, nothing my team has ever done at A-GenBio has been normal, but this is a crazy idea. But we like that. Let¡¯s do it.¡± Song Ji-Hyun nodded with a smile on her face. ¡°It¡¯s been a while since A-GenBio seeded on the Alzheimer¡¯s drug, right? You¡¯ve gotten pretty good at regenerating neurons with stem cells, and you lead the market in this field, so I think it¡¯s worth a shot.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll draft a proposal, and the PI (principal investigator) will be Doctor Song.¡± ¡°There¡¯s someone else who will be the PI of this project,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°Who?¡± ¡°Carpent...¡± Bzzz. Song Ji-Hyun¡¯s phone rang. [Carpentier] ¡°Who is it?¡± Park Dong-Hyun asked. ¡°It¡¯s Doctor Carpentier. Speak of the devil, much.¡± ¡°He¡¯s part of Lab Seven, right?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°And you know Doctor Carpentier?¡± ¡°He¡¯s an advisor to the Neurological Society. I¡¯ve known him before A-Bio was created, and we¡¯ve met a few times as well.¡± ¡°Oh, I see.¡± Cheon Ji-Myung nodded in understanding. ¡°Doctor Carpentier was the greatest expert in regenerative medicine for the central nervous system.¡± ¡°Actually...¡± Song Ji-Hyun said, a little embarrassed. ¡°I told Doctor Carpentier about this project beforeing here. I asked if it would be possible to regenerate the brainstem with the method I talked about.¡± ¡°Did he say it would work?¡± ¡°He said we should try. He¡¯s going to draft the proposal for Mr. Ryu.¡± Song Ji-Hyun then picked up the phone. ¡ªDoctor Song, it¡¯s Carpentier. You asked for a quick meeting at the end of the day tomorrow, right? We could also meet today, since there¡¯s a chance that someone who is super busy might be able to join us today.¡± ¡°Someone busy?¡± ¡ªOur CEO. * * * Before Young-Joon invented induced pluripotent stem cells, Carpentier, who was a Nobel Prize recipient, was at the top of the regenerative medicine world. He was particrly focused on regenerating cranial nerves, and that was because of the woman he was engaged to. She had full body paralysis from a car ident. She had consciousness and could move her right eye, but she couldn¡¯t do anything besides that. It was locked-in syndrome, meaning that she was locked up in her own body. When Carpentier and Song Ji-Hyun first met at a conference, they shared a deep connection: they were both family members or fianc¨¦s of patients with severe neurological diseases. ¡°The motor area in the frontal lobe of the brain had died, so she lost the ability to control her voluntary movements and skeletal muscle contractions,¡± Carpentier said as he burned out his cigarette. ¡°There was no cure, so L suffered for a year before she died quietly. What I realized then is that out of all of the diseases that can happen to a human being, that¡¯s the worst. It¡¯s worse than cancer, and it¡¯s more evil than dementia. The pain of being locked up in your own body is beyond imagination.¡± Carpentier sighed. ¡°I wanted to regenerate the neurons and treat patients in locked-in syndrome or PVS (Persistent Vegetative State). That dream is already thirty years old.¡± Carpentier hade to A-GenBio as the dream, which he had almost given up on, suddenly seemed possible. And now, Carpentier was tackling something much bigger than locked-in syndrome, where the brain¡¯s motor area was dead, or PVS, where there was no consciousness. He was now targeting brain death, a near-death condition in which the entire brain ceased to function. ¡°What¡¯s with all the people?¡± Young-Joon asked, surprised. All he did was call Carpentier, but all the members of the Life Creation Team showed up, including Song Ji-Hyun. ¡°You said to call more people who could help, right?¡± Carpentier smiled. ¡°That¡¯s true. I asked Secretary Yoo to book a small conference room, but I should have gotten a bigger one.¡± ¡°It¡¯s alright.¡± Park Dong-Hyun said. ¡°Alright, then why don¡¯t we have a quick meeting?¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Ahem!¡± Song Ji-Hyun pulled up the research strategy on the screen. ¡°We will make induced pluripotent stem cells from the patient¡¯s somatic cells, transfect them with the gic material to differentiate them into neurons, and then inject them into the subventricr zone below the fourth ventricle.¡± ¡°The subventricr zone?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Yes.¡± Song Ji-Hyun nodded. ¡°Next, we¡¯ll dissolve ten milligrams of dopamine and norepinephrine and inject it.¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joon silently listened to the experiment with his chin resting on his hand. No one could see it, but Rosaline was floating beside him, listening to Song Ji-Hyun¡¯s presentation. ¡ªIncredible. Rosaline was surprised. ¡®It really is. I knew Doctor Song was smart, but I didn''t think she was this smart... This is almost exactly the same as your strategy, right?¡¯ Young-Joon¡¯s eyes were fixed on the monitor as he talked to Rosaline. ¡ªIt¡¯s a little different. It is possible that brain death could be cured with that method, but recovery will take longer. Rosaline began chattering with Young-Joon in his head. ¡ªAnd if you don¡¯t follow up well enough, they can get stuck in a vegetative state. ¡®But that¡¯s still a big deal. A brain-dead person is dead, but a vegetative person is alive.¡¯ ¡ªBy human standards. ¡®Even the old Rosaline couldn¡¯t analyze that cure, and she came up with it all on her own.¡¯ ¡ªI did fail once, but I would have seeded if we increased my fitness with drugs. I just didn¡¯t have the fitness to run the synchronization asplex enough. ¡®Does that hurt your ego?¡¯ Young-Joon asked yfully. ¡ªWhat really hurts my ego is you mentioning that when I¡¯mpeting against humans. ¡®I think Doctor Song is better than Doctor Ref.¡¯ ¡ªShe¡¯s even better than Rosaline used to be. Rosaline snapped back. ¡®Hey, don¡¯t pout. You¡¯re the best, you know that, right?¡¯ ¡ª... ¡®Rosaline?¡¯ Young-Joon turned to Rosaline when she didn¡¯t reply. ¡®Rosaline...?¡¯ Rosaline, who was just floating next to him, had disappeared. ¡®What? Where did you go? Rosaline? I was kidding. You¡¯re obviously better than Doctor Song, even me.¡¯ Young-Joon looked around, rolling his eyes, but Rosaline was nowhere to be seen. Chapter 232: Rosaline (7)

Chapter 232: Rosaline (7)

¡°W...Wait.¡± Young-Joon stood up. ¡°Let¡¯s take a five-minute break. Something urgent just came up.¡± Young-Joon quickly stopped the meeting and ran outside. He called out to Rosaline as he walked toward his office. ¡°Rosaline.¡± ¡ª... There was no response. The status window didn¡¯t even pop up. ¡®Damn it.¡¯ Young-Joon clutched his head as he entered his office. This was because of the pathogen; it must have caused something to go wrong. ¡®That¡¯s why I told her to just destroy it...¡¯ ¡ªI¡¯m not going to destroy it. Rosaline¡¯s message popped up. ¡°Rosaline!¡± Young-Joon shouted. ¡°Where did you go? Are you okay?¡± ¡ªI¡¯m fine. I¡¯m feeling a little nauseous, though. Rosaline popped out of Young-Joon¡¯s body. She changed into Ryu Sae-Yi and immediately flopped down on the couch. ¡ªI¡¯m really tired. Lying down, Rosaline rolled her feet on the bed. ¡ªDo you remember when I told you that I was bing more and more like you, and that I was getting tired and craving sleep? ¡°Of course.¡± ¡ªI¡¯m like that right now. Rosalineid on the bed. ¡ªIt¡¯s kind of like when you pass out into bed with a high fever when you catch a strong flu virus. ¡°Is it rted to the pathogen you absorbed?¡± ¡ªYes. Rosaline Rosaline was calmly lying on the bed. ¡ªI never knew I could get infected with pathogens. ¡°... Why don¡¯t you just spit out that gene?¡± ¡ªHm... Rosaline thought for a moment. It was hard to put it into words, but the gene fit Rosaline like the final piece of a puzzle; it was probably because it was always a part of her. ¡ªI think it will be better if I hold onto it. ¡°Really?¡± ¡ªI was able to grow tremendously by going through the trauma of Ryu Sae-Yi in your brain. ¡°That¡¯s when you were able to walk about outside of my body as Sae-Yi.¡± ¡ªI think I might be able to grow like that if this turns out well. Rosaline sounded confident. ¡ªGive me a little more time. I¡¯ll try to absorb this. ¡®...¡¯ ¡ªAnd I might fall asleep again, so don¡¯t be surprised if I do. Young-Joon stared at Rosaline with a slight frown on his face. ¡ªWhy are you looking at me like that? Rosaline looked up at Young-Joon. ¡°I¡¯m just a little worried.¡± ¡ªWhat? About me? ¡°What if you push yourself and get hurt...¡± ¡ªHaha, if I disappear, I guess it will be a major setback to your future research. But don¡¯t worry, you already think a lot differently than a normal human being; you¡¯ve developed an eye for reading the fundamentals of biology. ¡°That¡¯s not it,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°We¡¯ve used the same body for over a year now, and... You¡¯re my closest friend. Sometimes, you¡¯re like a kid, so I wonder if this is what it feels like to have a daughter. You look at Sae-Yi, so it sometimes feels like she¡¯se back alive; you¡¯re like my little sister. ¡ª... ¡°Don¡¯t push yourself. Please. And don¡¯t get hurt, kiddo.¡± Young-Joon chuckled and pretended to flick Rosaline on the head. Then, he went back to the conference room. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, something urgent came up, but I took care of it. Where were we?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°We were talking about how we need to amend thew on clinical trials,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°Oh, right.¡± Young-Joon nodded. ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll run it through our legal team.¡± The meeting was over in about two hours. ¡°We¡¯ll gather more data and meet again at this time next week,¡± said Young-Joon as he stood up. As he was about to leave, Song Ji-Hyun stopped him. ¡°Doctor Ryu, do you want to have dinner together?¡± she asked. Park Dong-Hyun, who heard them from behind, walked up to them. ¡°Oh, nice. We should... Ack!¡± Jung Hae-Rim pinched his shoulder and stopped him from talking. ¡°We have a team dinner nned, so...¡± Jung Hae-Rim dragged Park Dong-Hyun out with an awkwardugh. ¡°And you¡¯re not invited today, sir,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung said jokingly and followed them out. ¡°But Nobel Prize recipients are wee,¡± Bae Sun-Mi said, taking Carpentier out with them. Young-Joon shrugged his shoulders in disbelief as he watched them. ¡°Well, I guess they¡¯re off to dinner. Where should we go?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°There¡¯s a new Korean restaurant in front of here. Do you want to go there?¡± ¡°... You still live near Jungyoon University, right?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Then what about the izakaya we went to before?¡± ¡°Izakaya?¡± ¡°You know, the one we went to the first time we met. Late Night Kiyoi?¡± ¡°Oh!¡± Song Ji-Hyun nodded. ¡°Sure.¡± * * * When Young-Joon and Song Ji-Hyun had just met, they had a drink together in a private room at a bar near Jungyoon University. ¡°Is it the first time we¡¯ve had a drink together since then?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°No. We¡¯ve had wine while having dinner together before, and we had a drink at the celebration party after the A-Bio Cancer Laboratory waspleted,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°But you rarely drank.¡± ¡°Hm... I see. Actually, someone¡¯s always nagging me when I drink.¡± ¡°But are you drinking today?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked as Young-Joon raised his ss. Then, he shrugged. ¡°They¡¯re probably sleeping today.¡± ¡°Sleeping?¡± ¡°They got a stomach ache after eating something weird, so they took some medicine and fell asleep. I can probably drink today.¡± ¡ªI¡¯m not sleeping. Don¡¯t drink. Rosaline sent him a message. Young-Joon flinched. He quietly put down his ss. ¡°I should just stick to Coke.¡± ¡°I wonder who it is,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°The person who¡¯s nagging me?¡± ¡°Yes. Is it... your girlfriend?¡± ¡°Haha, no, of course not.¡± Young-Joon shook his hand in denial. Song Ji-Hyun was a little relieved. ¡°Did you take care of the urgent business that you had earlier?¡± she asked. ¡°Yes, it ended well. I didn¡¯t take up too much time, did I?¡± ¡°Yes. But I thought you were in trouble when you walked out because you werepletely pale. We were going to pack up because we thought the meeting was over, but we were surprised since you came back sooner than we expected. What happened?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked. ¡°I actually asked you to dinner because I was worried about that.¡± Young-Joon took a few sips of his Coke. He couldn¡¯t exin anything about Rosaline, not because he didn¡¯t trust her, but because he was worried about how crazy it sounded to have a biologically omniscient genius cell living inside his body. As such, Young-Joon deflected the conversation by asking another question. ¡°Doctor Song,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°What do you think about scientists who misuse science?¡± He was just trying to change the subject, but after asking, he became genuinely curious. Rosaline and he had been arguing about this, but they hadn¡¯te to a conclusion yet. ¡°A scientist who misuses science?¡± ¡°That¡¯s the dilemma I¡¯ve always felt while running A-GenBio. I¡¯m talking about people like President Chen Shue, for example,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°In the end, he got an artificial heart transnt at Next Generation Hospital, right? A regime change seems to be happening in China centered around Governor Yang Gunyu, but the president who did the crazy act of kidnapping and killing healthy people for organ harvesting is still alive.¡± ¡°Sure.¡± ¡°He¡¯s alive because of the technology I developed,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°You know the virus that went around in Xinjiang?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Some terrorists from the Middle East developed that, and they did a lot of gic engineering to create that virus. They probably used CRISPR-Cas9 for that, since it¡¯s the easiest and most convenient gic scissors,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°And as you know, I invented Cas9. And people like He Jiankui used those gic scissors to manipte human genes and give birth to immunodeficient babies.¡± ¡°Do you feel guilty?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked. ¡°No, not necessarily, but...¡± ¡°It makes you a little ufortable, right?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Song Ji-Hyun took a sip of her drink. ¡°The reason it makes you feel that way is because you¡¯re an ethical person, Doctor Ryu,¡± she said. ¡°It would be great if only people like you did science in the world, but that¡¯s not realistic.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°About ten years ago, a scientist who was the chief scientific advisor to the British government published something called the Universal Ethical Code for Scientists.¡± ¡°The Universal Ethical Code for Scientists?¡± ¡°It was announced because he thought scientists should also have something like the Hippocratic Oath for doctors, but it didn¡¯t have much of an impact. It wasn¡¯t well-known, either,¡± Song Ji-Hyun. ¡°Even you don¡¯t know it, and you¡¯re the most powerful ethical scientist in the world.¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joon¡¯s ears were flushed in embarrassment. ¡°It¡¯s because scientists don¡¯t really care about codes of ethics and things like that. And frankly, scientists are mostly arrogant in nature and kind of insensitive to ethics,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°But Doctor Ryu.¡± Song Ji-Hyun leaned into Young-Joon. ¡°The whole academicmunity was impacted when you held a conference in Beijing to announce the moratorium, did you know that? All the top scientists swarmed to the conference, and subsequent derations of the moratorium came from all over the world.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Even though it was a deration to slow down the pace of research, they all agreed based on bioethics and followed you, Doctor Ryu. You haven¡¯t just been making advances in technology,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°The academic world is changing. The battlefield that you¡¯ve been fighting isn¡¯t just about humanity and disease; it¡¯s also the battlefield of scientists and hicality. And I think you¡¯ve had a lot of victories there as well.¡± ¡°Do you think so...¡± ¡°Yes, so don¡¯t worry too much.¡± Song Ji-Hyun poured Young-Joon a ss of liquor. ¡°Shall we toast for the ethical and progressive future of science?¡± Song Ji-Hyun raised her own ss, then paused. ¡°Oh, you said you weren¡¯t going to drink. Right?¡± ¡ªOne ss. Rosaline sent a message. ¡ªI¡¯ll let you have one ss. ¡°I¡¯ll have just one ss, then.¡± Young-Joon chuckled and raised his ss. * * * ¡°You¡¯re really good at makingwyers suffer, you know that?¡± Park Dong-Hyunined to Young-Joon. ¡°This is the only pharmaceuticalpany in the world that asks the National Assembly to change thew so they can conduct clinical trials on cadavers.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry. Please keep up the good work,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Are you going to kidnap some aliens next year and ask me to help you do clinical trials on them?¡± ¡°I hadn¡¯t thought of that, but that¡¯s a really good idea.¡± ¡°Geez...¡± ¡°So, how¡¯s it going?¡± Young-Joon asked, leaning back against the desk. ¡°Well, we¡¯re first looking for people in the Assembly who can initiate and push for an amendment to the Pharmaceutical Affairs Act. A congresswoman named Yang Hye-Sook is going to propose the amendment for us.¡± ¡°Yang Hye-Sook?¡± ¡°Yeah. She used to teach biological engineering at Jungyoon University.¡± ¡°Wait, I think I know her.¡± Young-Joon¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°You probably do because it hasn¡¯t been long since she gave up her professorship and went into politics. She was probably there when you were doing your degree,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡°Oh... I should go see her.¡± Chapter 233: Rosaline (8)

Chapter 233: Rosaline (8)

¡°You¡¯re going to see Congresswoman Yang Hye-Sook?¡± Park Dong-Hyun asked. ¡°Yeah.¡± Young-Joon nodded. Park Joo-Hyul scratched his head like something was strange. ¡°It won¡¯t be hard to get the motion passed, and it won¡¯t take long. You don¡¯t have to meet the sponsor yourself.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not like that. I just want to meet her again.¡± ¡°Okay. I¡¯ll talk to her since I¡¯m talking to her already.¡± ¡°No, I¡¯ll contact her. It¡¯s personal. It¡¯ll be funny if you call and tell her that your CEO wants to meet her. I¡¯m her student.¡± ¡°Oh, okay. Do you have her contact information?¡± ¡°You¡¯ll have to give me that,¡± Young-Joon said. Yang Hye-Sook was one of the people Young-Joon was indebted to when he was in university. About ten years ago, Young-Joon, who was a freshman biomedical engineering student at Jungyoon University, was living in poverty. He was always on edge due to his victim mentality and low self-esteem. Half of the students who came to a prestigious university like Jungyoon University were from wealthy families. They were pampered with lots of love from their affluent families, received the best private education, and studied abroad. They were able to go shopping in department stores after lunch, swiping their credit cards like it was nothing. Young-Joon felt inferior to them. There were many times when he would slip away from his friend group who were going to get lunch, saying he had something to do, to hide in a convenience store and eat instant noodles. ¡®It was pretty hard back then.¡¯ Young-Joon reminisced back to about a decade ago. He worked two part-time jobs. Tuition and living expenses were awful, and just breathing cost him money. And the person who helped him then was Professor Yang Hye-Sook. It wasn¡¯t just constion or encouragement, but actual financial help. * * * ¡°I was going toe see you before graduation, but your number changed, and the office wouldn¡¯t tell me the new one. I also sent an email back then, but I thought you were busy since you didn¡¯t respond,¡± Young-Joon said. He was having dinner in a restaurant near Yang Hye-Sook¡¯s studio apartment. ¡°I was probably just entering politics at the time, so I was too busy for anything. I had told the office multiple times to not give out my personal information as well,¡± Yang Hye-Sook said. ¡°Because rumors coulde up if I was still connected to the university.¡± ¡°I see. Ipletely forgot about contacting you after I went to graduate school because I was so busy, but now, I¡¯m seeing you as a congresswoman. I was really surprised. You¡¯re like apletely different person.¡± ¡°Haha, speak for yourself,¡± Yang Hye-Sook said. ¡°A kid who had to work two part-time jobs and skip meals because he couldn¡¯t pay tuition shows up as the owner of one of thergestpanies in the world. You¡¯ve seeded so much I wouldn¡¯t even recognize you.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Young-Joon smiled. ¡°Why didn¡¯t I just give you a loan instead of giving you chicken feed. Then, I would have made a lot of money, right?¡± ¡°Chicken feed? What do you mean? That money helped me out a lot,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I was going to have to take a year off because I didn¡¯t have the tuition, but I was so surprised when the department office told me that I was enrolled. I still remember that day vividly.¡± ¡°When I teach students, I can see the ones who have difficult circumstances,¡± Yang Hye-Sook. ¡°You also came and talked to me.¡± Young-Joon slowly nodded. With Yang Hye-Sook¡¯s help, he was able to continue his studies without taking a year off andter graduated with a schrship. ¡°I wanted to join yourb when I graduated,¡± Young-Joon said. After graduation, Yang Hye-Sook hired Young-Joon as a research student and let him study while giving him a sry that was slightly better than a part-time job. She was basically giving him money for living expenses. ¡°I did. If you hade to work for me, we would have taken over Pfizer or Conson & Colson by now.¡± ¡°Haha!¡± ¡°You couldn¡¯t do it because you went to work for someone naive like Professor Ban Du-Il.¡± ¡°But Professor Ban Du-Il is a really great person. He helped me out a lot. There was someone from theb next door... Who was it... Oh, Professor Park Hyung-Bum! I had some friction with one of his graduate students, and it turned into a fight with him.¡± ¡°You fought with Professor Park?¡± Yang Hye-Sook was shocked. ¡°The situation wasplicated. That graduate student had reserved the only ultracentrifuge in the building before me, but he didn¡¯t take the sample out after using it and put a lock on the equipment. I obviously couldn¡¯t touch it because it wasn¡¯t mine, right?¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°So I called hisb, and they said he wasn¡¯t there. I asked where he was and it was crazy... I was so shocked that I still remember it. Do you know what he said?¡± ¡°What did they say?¡± ¡°He said that the student went to work as a valet because Professor Park¡¯s daughter was getting married.¡± ¡°Hahaha!¡± Yang Hye-Sook burst intoughter. ¡°No, it¡¯s not funny. I was shocked when I first heard it. All of his students went to that wedding. They took pictures and pped for them; they weren¡¯t just guests, but they were working for the venue for free. They couldn¡¯t refuse because their professor asked them to do it,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°This is why even people in the same industry talk crap about graduate school,¡± Yang Hye-Sook replied. ¡°They say that when people do wrong, they go to jail, but when university students do wrong, they go to graduate school.¡± ¡°Haha, yeah. Someone put that on the bulletin board in front of the school before.¡± ¡°The students were also dragged there all of a sudden, so they didn¡¯t even remember to return the equipment, let alone anything else. I was in a hurry to finish my experiment, so I got annoyed and argued with the student that he should have still taken out the samples, but Professor Park came into theb and asked what was going on...¡± ¡°So you argued with Professor Park as well?¡± ¡°Yes. It was huge. We were talking and then shouting... You know he has a temper, right? He was so angry that a greenhorn who was still doing his Master¡¯s was talking back to him that he angrily screamed, calling me arrogant and stuff. He almost punched me in the face.¡± ¡°Considering your personality, you probably would have reported him if,¡± ¡°Probably. Anyway, people were trying to stop us, when Professor Ban came in and cleared things up. I thought he was going to punish me because I still yelled at a professor, but he didn¡¯t say anything.¡± ¡°He defended you?¡± ¡°Yes. He firmly said that it was Professor Park¡¯s fault and that I didn¡¯t do anything wrong. I was so touched by that.¡± Yang Hye-Sook smiled, then nodded. ¡°Professor Ban is a good person, and he¡¯s by-the-book.¡± ¡°And Professor Park is insane. How could he call his own students, tell them toe to the ceremony, and make them work for the venue... The students there were always so tired that they walked around theb like zombies.¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you try looking out for the human rights of those poor graduate students?¡± Yang Hye-Sook said,ughing. ¡°Isn¡¯t that what you¡¯re supposed to do as a member of the National Assembly?¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Thews are slow and dull, so there¡¯s only so much it can do to catch professors who are ruling like kings in the little kingdom-likebs.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°Even if the research foundation creates aw to pay students research funding as a stipend, there are some professors who take that away.¡± ¡°That¡¯s extortion... Are there really people like that?¡± ¡°You just don¡¯t know any, but there are quite a few. There are some professors who are so bad that they make Professor Park, who makes his students work as a parking attendant, like a saint. And I¡¯m one of the people who decided to leave that.¡± ¡°... I should look into it. I don¡¯t know about other schools, but I don¡¯t want something like that happening in my alma mater and my juniors.¡± ¡°Good idea. I think someone in your position has an obligation to care about the students,¡± Yang Hye-Sook said. ¡°You¡¯re not just a businessman or scientist¡ªyou are this society¡¯s leader and intellectual.¡± ¡°Ah, I¡¯m not that big.¡± ¡°Anyways, enough about that. Young-Joon, does the research you¡¯re doing this time reverse brain death?¡± Yang Hye-Sook asked. ¡°That¡¯s what we¡¯re aiming for.¡± ¡°Hm...¡± Yang Hye-Sook cut a small piece of her steak and stared at Young-Joon while eating it. ¡°How much research have you done?¡± she asked. ¡°We¡¯re working with Cellijenner, and Doctor Song Ji-Hyun is working on it aggressively. Professor Carpentier and our team members are incredibly talented, so we¡¯re making a lot of progress,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°We¡¯ll probably be able to finish preclinical trials within a few weeks. Then, we¡¯ll move on to clinical trials in brain-dead patients.¡± ¡°I¡¯m pushing for an amendment to the bill as the primary sponsor,¡± Yang Hye-Sook said. ¡°But even if this amendment passes, you won¡¯t be able to conduct clinical trials on brain-dead people right away.¡± ¡°There is a brain-dead man named Kim Hyun-Taek. He¡¯s been on life support for six months now, and we have his family¡¯s consent.¡± ¡°They agreed because of your reputation,¡± Yang Hye-Sook pointed out. ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°But the fundamental rule of clinical trials is informed consent of the patient. You know that, right?¡± ¡°...¡± The principle of clinical trials was that the patients themselves must give their consent. If a patient was too cognitively impaired to understand and give consent, a proxy could give consent on their behalf. However, they still had to make sure that the subject understood as much information as much as their cognitive abilities allowed them to. And, if possible, they had the patient¡¯s signature and date in their own handwriting. ¡°But isn¡¯t the consent of the guardian enough to allow a patient in a persistent vegetative state to participate in a clinical trial?¡± ¡°Not quite. The types of clinical trials aimed at improving PVS (Persistent Vegetative State) are limited, and they are protected under the Clinical Trials Act as a living person. However, because brain-dead people are dead people under currentw, we have to take into ount the possibility that some scientists will use their freshly dead bodies to perform various cell biology experiments they want, potentiallypromising their dignity.¡± ¡°Wait, what is... You¡¯re saying that the patient¡¯s consent must be strictly obtained because it¡¯s a clinical trial, but the Clinical Trials Act doesn¡¯t apply because they¡¯re dead?¡± No. You still have to be strict about informed consent when dealing with a person who is living under the Clinical Trials Act, but thews be stricter about informed consent when dealing with a dead person who is not protected by the Clinical Trials Act.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t understand, If we¡¯re treating them as a dead person, it means that theyck life rather than ambiguous dignity. But you¡¯re saying that thew is stricter on that?¡± ¡°A human being who has just died has very high legal importance.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Because inheritancews are triggered at the point of death,¡± Yang Hye-Sook said. Chapter 234: Rosaline (9) ¡°Inheritancews?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Yes. For example, let¡¯s say a nouveau riche father became brain-dead from a car ident shortly after adopting a son. The son¡¯s inheritance rights won¡¯t kick in until a few dayster because the adoption process hasn¡¯t been fully processed by thewyer yet, but the biological son wants to kill his father as quickly as possible because he doesn¡¯t want to share the inheritance. Think about that,¡± Yang Hye-Sook said. ¡°...¡± ¡°Both the adopted son, who wants to dy the deration by a few days on life support and the biological son, who wants to dere his father¡¯s death as fast as possible, could consider a brain-death clinical trial. ¡°The adopted son would have justification to stop the deration of death as a clinical trial was going on. On the other hand, the biological son who wants death could use the trial to induce cardiopulmonary arrest. ¡°Once cardiopulmonary arrest urs, it¡¯s over; there is no room for doctors to adjust the deration of death by even a few days. That¡¯s why the patient¡¯s own consent is more important than the consent of their proxy.¡± ¡°Ha¡­ What kind of nonsense is that¡­¡± ¡°Something more dramatic than drama happens once in a while. That¡¯s why no matter how much you try to make thew more polished and tight, something always finds a loophole and slips through. Our job is to makews so that things like that don¡¯t happen, so we try to be as conservative as possible,¡± Yang Hye-Sook said. ¡°Then why don¡¯t we just dere brain-dead people as alive and include them in the Clinical Trials Act? Then, it¡¯s easier to protect them, right?¡± Young-Joon asked.¡°If we¡¯re to include them, we have to assume that brain-dead patients are living people, but that¡¯s still in the hypothesis stage, which is what you need to prove with this experiment.¡± ¡°Well, then, what can we do? We can¡¯t get consent from brain-dead people, right?¡± ¡°So the amended bill will most likely limit the scope to brain-dead patients who have given informed consent in advance to medical experimentation aimed at restoring the function of some central nervous system organs, such as the brainstem, in the brain-dead state,¡± Yang Hye-Sook said. ¡°In advance?¡± ¡°Organ donation is also advance consent.¡± Young-Joon frowned a little. ¡°But then it would take a long time for the bill to be publicized, there would need to be enough people who consent, and the people would have to be brain-dead without cardiopulmonary damage. Even if we¡¯re able to bring them back, there would be scientists who would argue whether they were really brain-dead in the first ce.¡± Yang Hye-Sook nodded. ¡°So, Young-Joon, I¡¯ve been thinking. Instead of pushing for an amendment to the bill, let¡¯s make this a specialw.¡± ¡°A specialw?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Yeah. You want to do a clinical trial on Kim Hyun-Taek, who¡¯s been brain-dead for six months, right? If you seed on him, it will be much easier to argue that brain death is not really death, but a treatable medical condition,¡± Yang Hye-Sook said. She was right. Bringing back a patient who became brain-dead two days earlier wasn¡¯t going to make the skepticism go away all at once. The umtion of many clinical trials would eventually make people believe, but they didn¡¯t have to take the long way around if they could prove it with one case. Kim Hyun-Taek had been brain-dead for over six months, and countless doctors had already checked his condition. Not many people have been on life support for this long, and since he had been brain-dead for so long, it was proven that his brain stem had permanently lost its function. Otherwise, he would have already shown signs of potential recovery in his electroencephalogram in those six months. ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Given the pace of the research and the likelihood of achieving results, Kim Hyun-Taek is the best choice, and I am confident.¡± ¡°Exactly, which is why you¡¯d want to conduct the test on an enemy like Kim Hyun-Taek.¡± Even if Young-Joon seeded, Kim Hyun-Taek was an enemy with aplicated history. If he failed, it was the first crack in the legend of Ryu Young-Joon. It would be better for him to pass the amendedw, and conduct the clinical trial on safe brain-dead patients who had consented beforehand. ¡°If we push for a specialw, will we be able to conduct the clinical trial on Kim Hyun-Taek with only his guardian¡¯s consent?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°A specialw is aw that goes beyond generalw. It is a limitedw that is bound to a specific person, situation, and context. I think it¡¯ll be possible,¡± Yang Hye-Sook said. ¡°Here¡¯s what I¡¯m thinking. First, you use the Kim Hyun-Taek Law to conduct clinical trials on designated brain-dead patients, including Kim Hyun-Taek, after obtaining their guardians¡¯ consent. The purpose of the trial is to restore the function of the brainstem in the body of a brain-dead patient. If you seed on just Kim Hyun-Taek, that¡¯s enough.¡± She snapped her fingers. ¡°If you give me the results of that trial, I¡¯ll use it to target a revision to the Medical Service Act, not the Clinical Trials Act. We can amend thew so that brain-dead people aren¡¯t considered dead at all.¡± ¡°So that automatically puts them within the boundaries of the Clinical Trials Act.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Of course, we¡¯ll have to create an additionalw to cover the procedures for conducting clinical trials on brain-dead individuals as a subset of the Clinical Trials Act.¡± ¡°Hm¡­¡± Young-Joon nodded. ¡°That sounds like a good idea. When will that specialw be proposed?¡± ¡°We can do it anytime. Another advantage of special legition is that it doesn¡¯t take long to get to the floor and pass like general legition,¡± Yang Hye-Sook said. ¡°It can be done in as fast as two weeks.¡± ¡°That¡¯s good.¡± ¡°But we have to convince the members during the plenary session to make it pass at once,¡± Yang Hye-Sook said. ¡°You¡¯ll probably have to attend the National Assembly for that.¡± ¡°The National Assembly?¡± Young-Joon asked, surprised. ¡°Of course. It¡¯s pretty rare for the subject of rights specified by specialws to be a particr business entity or organization,¡± Yang Hye-Sook said. ¡°And this is a monumental experiment that may turn the Medical Service Act upside down, and it¡¯s deeply intertwined with bioethics. There will definitely be public hearings, and a lot of experts will be invited to discuss it. You¡¯ll definitely need someone who represents yourpany to attend and exin the need for this bill and destroy arguments against it.¡± ¡°Alright,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°Please let me know when the date is finalized. I¡¯ll be there.¡± ¡°Good.¡± Yang Hye-Sook looked at him with a satisfied smile. ¡°I¡¯m so happy to see you all grown up like this,¡± she said. ¡°I was a little surprised to hear that you became a congresswoman, but now I think it¡¯s a relief that you did.¡± ¡°A relief.¡± ¡°Because I don¡¯t think it would have been possible to do it in this way without you.¡± Yang Hye-Sook took a sip of her wine.m ¡°The way I see it, scientists should do politics in the twenty-first century.¡± ¡°You think so?¡± ¡°They should be trained in hard science at the very least. The reason why our politics is so bad is because they don¡¯t know science. It¡¯s like this because they don¡¯t base their policies on statistics, logic, practicality, and empirical evidence,¡± Yang Hye-Sook said. ¡°Science has been ying in a league of its own for far too long. It¡¯s been relegated to a group of nerds that society doesn¡¯t understand, but it shouldn¡¯t be that way.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Science shouldn¡¯t just be building blocks for the elite. It should be more politically engaged and serve as a gateway for ordinary citizens to understand the world. Middle-aged women who work at restaurants or elderly people who pick up scrap paper should be able to recite the Central Dogma of biology or the periodic table.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t that a little far-fetched?¡± ¡°But think about it: a world where citizens can run a T-Test to test the credibility of a crazy statistic from an article. Imagine how well a society would function if it had politicians who specialized in scientific thinking.¡± ¡°Hm, I don¡¯t know. Isn¡¯t science considered boring unless they¡¯re geeks like us?¡± ¡°Haha, you¡¯ll see. I think we¡¯ll see a world where science bes democratized, thanks to my genius student. And I¡¯ll work harder to push for it in the National Assembly,¡± said Yang Hye-Sook. ¡°Anyway, keep up the good work until then. Do a good job at the public hearing in the National Assembly.¡± * * * The legal team at A-GenBio drafted a coborative research agreement with Cellijenner. All resources for the research would be provided by A-GenBio. In return, they would receive arger share of the patent rights and profits frommercialization. Cellr-level experiments would be conducted independently in eachpany¡¯sbs, and they would discuss them during weekly meetings. However, all animal testing was to be done at Lab Seven in A-GenBio. While Cellijenner had grown rapidly and now had fairlyrgeboratories, they were not yetparable to A-GenBio in terms of scale and sophistication of the equipment. Because the experiments were unimaginably difficult, they were in desperate need of advanced equipment and research support systems. ¡°The lights are still on?¡± Young-Joon, who came to visit Lab Sevente at night after meeting Yang Hye-Sook, stepped onto the elevator. Someone was sitting and reading an academic article in ab on the third floor. It was Song Ji-Hyun. ¡°Are you not going home?¡± Young-Joon asked as he stepped inside. ¡°Oh, hello.¡± Song Ji-Hyun put down the paper. ¡°People are going to think you work for A-GenBio. Staying here until this hour.¡± ¡°I¡¯m going to study for a little longer.¡± ¡°What¡¯s the paper about?¡± Young-Joon asked, approaching her. ¡°It¡¯s a paper that was published by Yalest year, where they isted the brains of ughtered pigs and managed to reactivate some of the neurons with drugs.¡± ¡°I think I¡¯ve read it before,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°But we need to restore tissue that can fully perform the function of the brainstem, not just some cells.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. That¡¯s why we¡¯re all working hard, but it¡¯s not easy.¡± Song Ji-Hyun smiled bitterly. ¡°What¡¯s the problem?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°The preclinical study. We injected stem cells into the subventricr zone next to the brainstem in rats and beagles, then injected dopamine and epinephrine with a microsyringe, but recovery isn¡¯t easy.¡± ¡°Are you experimenting right now?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Yes. I think we¡¯ll have to sacrifice the two beagles we used today.¡±[1] ¡°Let¡¯s take a look.¡± Young-Joon took Song Ji-Hyun and began walking. ¡°Oh, okay!¡± Song Ji-Hyun quickly followed him, although she was surprised at how enthusiastic he seemed. Young-Joon went to the animalb on the floor below. Tworge beagles were lying there, and they were attached to restraints and monitoring equipment. ¡°We removed a portion of the beagle¡¯s skull at the back of the head and injected drugs to shut down brain function,¡± she said. ¡°I see.¡± Young-Joon could see stickers stuck all over the beagle¡¯s head, and they were connected to some wires. They were beeping, but the signal on the monitor was silent. ¡°It¡¯s an electroencephalogram. It usually shows alpha and delta waves, but there aren¡¯t any signals right now because we made it brain-dead,¡± Song Ji-Hyun exined. ¡°I see.¡± Young-Joon pulled a syringe out of a drawer and a brown vial from the refrigerator. [ATP] ¡°That¡¯s¡­ Ah!¡± Surprised, Song Ji-Hyun let out a scream. After sucking three milliliters of the drug into the syringe, Young-Joon pierced it into the back of the beagle¡¯s head. 1. Sacrifice refers to stopping treatment/experimentation and dissecting them to check the efficacy of the drug. ? Chapter 235: Rosaline (10) ¡°What¡­¡± Song Ji-Hyun¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°What are you doing!¡± She rushed to the beagles, screaming. ¡°What are you injecting them with? ATP?¡± It was best to avoid adding new variables to a failed experiment because it made it difficult to trace causalityter. ¡°We were going to sacrifice those beagles. If we open its brain and find something unusual, we won¡¯t know if it¡¯s because of the original treatment or the massive injection of ATP¡­¡± Song Ji-Hyun paused. It was because a very weak signal showed up on the electroencephalogram. ¡°Your strategy was almost right, Doctor Song,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°However, the stem cells need a lot of energy to divide inrge enough numbers to repair the tissue as they differentiate into new tissue. ATP is a molecr energy source, a typical chemical used in cell biology. If we put glucose along with dopamine, they would have automatically and safely produced ATP through pyruvic acid. But the timing waste this time, so I injected ATP directly.¡±¡°...¡± ¡°The method I used right now isn¡¯t the best option because the residual ATP that is not absorbed into the cells may remain in the blood and tissue, creating an oxidative environment. Next time, we should add glucose at a concentration of one percent when injecting dopamine,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°No way¡­¡± The amplitude of the delta waves began to build up in cycles on the EEG monitor[1]. The pattern was simr to brain waves seen during deep sleep. The waves were still low in frequency and number, but they quickly stabilized. ¡°The reason it¡¯s less than a normal delta wave is because of the rate of cell division. By tomorrow afternoon, we should be able to remove the life support from the beagle¡¯s body. He¡¯ll go into s PVS, and he¡¯ll need a few follow-ups to restore cognitive function.¡± ¡°...¡± Song Ji-Hyun had just witnessed the miracle of the dead beagle¡¯s brain stem beginning to regenerate. But she was even more amazed at what Young-Joon had done. ¡®How is this possible? How can this person see through everything with just one look?¡¯ The amount of knowledge he had was incredible, but the speed at which he understood the problem was insane. He took one look at the beagle and listened to one exnation of the experimental method, which was enough for him to be so confident in the experiment that he stabbed a syringe into the back of the beagle¡¯s head. ¡°... Doctor Ryu.¡± Song Ji-Hyun could barely speak from the shock. ¡°You are incredible¡­ How could you think of this¡­¡± she said. ¡°Well, I did a lot of research on cellr-level differentiation and stem cells in the Life Creation Department, too.¡± Young-Joon smiled. ¡°... I was told that a scientist¡¯s sess doesn¡¯t depend on being good at something but on tolerating something you¡¯re bad at.¡± ¡°Because it¡¯s like searching for the exit in a dark room,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Yeah¡­ But sometimes, Doctor Ryu, you don¡¯t seem to fit into the context of traditional science at all.¡± She chuckled, but it felt dejected. ¡°To be honest, I feel inferior, and I¡¯m jealous.¡± ¡°...¡± Song Ji-Hyun shrugged. ¡°I¡¯ve been studying and researching this for a long time, so I thought I¡¯d be the one doing most of the problem-solving.¡± ¡ªWhat are you going to do? You killed her spirit. Rosaline sent him a message. ¡®I didn¡¯t know this would happen.¡¯ Young-Joon scratched his head. ¡°Well, so what. It worked out in the end, and it¡¯s okay if ordinary people who live in the same era as geniuses are disappointed,¡± said Song Ji-Hyun. ¡°It would have taken me weeks to find the cause if I had done it myself. Thank you, Doctor Ryu.¡± ¡°N-No, you did all the work, Doctor Song.¡± Song Ji-Hyun chuckled and yfully patted Young-Joon on the shoulder. ¡°Of course. I came up with the main idea and the base experiment, so I did do most of the work. First authorship is mine,¡± she said. ¡°I¡¯ll put you as an author since you helped me with the ATP part.¡± ¡°Wow, thank you so much,¡± Young-Joon said sarcastically. ¡°Oh, Doctor Song, do you mind if I use this experimental data in the public hearing?¡± ¡°A public hearing?¡± ¡°I think there¡¯s going to be one at the National Assembly.¡± * * * ¡°What the hell happenedst night?¡± It was six o¡¯clock in the morning. Koh Soon-Yeol, who came to work three hours early because he was so curious about the beagle¡¯s condition, looked shocked. The beagles that they thought had failed hade back to life. They showed no movement, but the brain waves from the brainstem were almost identical to those of a living beagle. Cerebral blood flow imaging with an fMRI[2] also confirmed that the brain had recovered. The brainstem and the subventricr zone had blood flow, and the neurons had neurological activity. From the perspective of modern medicine, these beagles had literallye back from the dead. ¡°Oh, you¡¯re here already.¡± Song Ji-Hyun entered theb with a toothbrush and toothpaste. ¡°Uh¡­ What? Did you sleep here¡­?¡± Koh Soon-Yeol asked in surprise. ¡°I stayed up all night to watch our beagles recover.¡± Song Ji-Hyun smiled as she looked at the electroencephalogram, which showed normal waves. Koh Soon-Yeol¡¯s jaw dropped. ¡°Oh my god¡­ Did we really seed?¡± ¡°Mr. Ryu came intest night and helped me out a bit.¡± Click. The door to theb opened, and Jung Hae-Rim walked in. ¡°Huh? Why are there two people already at this hour?¡± she asked, surprised. ¡°Come take a look at this.¡± Koh Soon-Yeol pointed to the EEG monitor. Jung Hae-Rim looked just as shocked as him. ¡°What happened? I thought things weren¡¯t going well yesterday. If I knew this was going to happen, I would¡¯ve stayed.¡± ¡°After we got off work, Doctor Ryu came and yed around with it,¡± Koh Soon-Yeol said. ¡°Wow. I didn¡¯t know he came to thepany thatte. I¡¯m getting goosebumps. Did he stay overnight at thepany, too?¡± ¡°No, he didn¡¯t. He left after that. I stayed up all night by myself,¡± Song Ji-Hyun. ¡°You really worked hard.¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay, I took my time collecting the data on brainwave recovery.¡± ¡°You didn¡¯t have to. You even organized the data,¡± Jung Hae-Rim said, looking at the stacks of files on herputer. ¡°Mr. Ryu wants to use it for the public hearing.¡± ¡°Public hearing?¡± * * * The public hearing for the National Assembly took ce about two weeks after the sessful experiment. So far, A-GenBio hadn''t announced any specific experimental strategy for the brainstem function recovery project in brain-dead patients. However, things started getting noisy with Young-Joon¡¯s appearance in the National Assembly. The name of the bill, the Ryu Young-Joon Special Act, was interesting in itself, but it was unusual that the type of bill was about the Clinical Trial Act, and they were even holding a public hearing at the National Assembly. This situation itself drew the attention of the media, so people wondered what it was for. [Ryu Young-Joon, now tackling bringing people back from the dead.] Sensational and provocative articles popped up everywhere, though they were in a slightly different direction from the actual experiment. In the midst of this, an unusual public hearing began, with many experts in biology and medicine participating. Ordinary citizens and reporters had the right to participate in National Assembly legitive public hearings. Only political reporters attended public hearings since people usually didn¡¯t care, but this time, it was filled with ordinary citizens. Among them were representatives from A-GenBio and Cellijenner. ¡°I¡¯m a little nervous,¡± Park Dong-Hyun said to Cheon Ji-Myung. ¡°He¡¯ll do well.¡± Cheon Ji-Myung pulled out a bag of potato chips from his bag. ¡°It¡¯s instead of popcorn. You want some?¡± ¡°... Are you here for a show or something?¡± ¡°It¡¯s kind of like the UFC.¡± ¡°Do you have some Coke?¡± Park Dong-Hyun asked. Due to the nature of the issue, the hearing was organized as a debate among experts on the issues. ¡°We will now hear from the opposition,¡± the speaker said. There were three experts on the opposing side of the debate: a neuroscientist and two ethicists who were concerned about the brain death recovery project. Doctor Hong Jung-Ho, a scientist well-versed in neuroscience and a professor of cardiothoracic surgery, took the microphone. ¡°The loss of brainstem function is synonymous with death,¡± he said. ¡°You say that someone appears to be alive if you put them on life support and maintain their cardiopulmonary function, but that¡¯s not medically true. Even if you put them on life support, they die within two weeks in most cases. There were rare cases where you seeded in keeping them alive for a long period of time, like in the case of Kim Hyun-Taek, the subject that A-GenBio chose, but none of them came back to life.¡± Hong Jung-Ho nced at Young-Joon, who was sitting across from him. He looked rxed and not the least bit nervous or worried. ¡°Let¡¯s talk about Giuliano Pinto, the man who did the first kick of the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. He waspletely paralyzed from the waist down, but how did he do the first kick?¡± Hong Jung-Ho asked. ¡°He wore a brainwave detector on his head and an exoskeleton on his lower body that was connected to it, and he used his brainwaves to move his legs. Then, he received electrical impulses back to his brain that told him he kicked the ball, so he was able to recognize that.¡± Hong Jung-Ho went on. ¡°But no one said that the motor nerves in his lower body had been recovered. The legs were still biologically paralyzed, and it was just a machine called an exoskeleton that moved them. This is exactly the same thing. ¡°A brain-dead person is biologically dead even though they are on life support. It¡¯s just a machine that keeps their blood pumping, injecting glucose and sodium to maintain their osmrity. They¡¯re doing this to sort of embalm the patient so their cells don¡¯t be damaged anymore. ¡°The stomach cannot digest food even if it is administered through a feeding tube, and they cannot breathe on their own. Over time, the cardiopulmonary function that is being maintained by the machine will eventually be paralyzed, and their body temperature will drop. That is painful to watch for both the doctors and the caregivers. ¡°That''s why we don¡¯t look at brain-dead individuals as requiring treatment or put them on life support. Unlike patients in a persistent vegetative state, brain-dead patients are clearly dead,¡± Hong Jung-Ho said. ¡°Attempting to revive someone who has passed is a clear vition of the Medical Service Act, and a deception of the dead. Additionally, granting exclusive permission to conduct this research to a certain individual for that purpose is a vition of the fairness of research. This special act should not be passed.¡± Camera shes went off one after another. Yang Hye-Sook smiled softly, then nodded to Young-Joon. Young-Joon picked up the microphone. ¡°First of all, this bill does not grant A-GenBio exclusive rights, but limits the clinical scope of A-GenBio¡¯s original research on the restoration of brainstem function in brain-dead individuals to a specific period of time and person,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Thank you for your opinion, Doctor Hong. It was known in conventional medicine that brain death is death and there is no way to reverse it. But humanity has never defined death in absolute terms because it is the most mysterious event at the root of life. We believe that there is still life in the brain-dead, though it is very faint.¡± ¡°How can you prove that?¡± Hong Jung-Ho asked. ¡°Let¡¯s start from a point where death is much more obvious,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°This experiment was conductedst year by a team led by Nenad Sestan, a brain scientist at Yale University. They isted the brains of ughtered pigs and then recovered some of their neurons.¡± ¡°Oh, that paper.¡± Song Ji-Hyun, who was sitting among Cellijenner¡¯s employees, was surprised. It was the paper she was reading the night of Young-Joon and her first sessful beagle experiment. ¡°They took one hundred to three hundred brains from pigs that had been ughtered at the ughterhouse for less than four hours, and they used an amazing technology to keep the blood circting in the brain to partially protect the cells from dying,¡± Young-Joon said. The scientists used a system called BrainEx, which consisted of a looped tube, a pump, and a small reservoir of red liquid. The tube was connected to the pump, which then pumped blood into the freshly extracted pig brains at aputer-calcted speed and pressure that mimicked the rhythm of the heart. ¡°As a result, they found healthy neural activity in billions of individual cells,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°An additional mysterious phenomenon was discovered here: some cells that were already thought to be dead managed to recover. And the brain cells barely died for a long time afterward.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The brain dies much more slowly than we think, especially if we manage it with life support machines.¡± Yang Hye-Sook¡¯s secretary turned on the screen to present evidence. ¡°Now, I¡¯m going to show you the preclinical results of A-Genbio and Cellijenner¡¯s work on how to restore brainstem function.¡± 1. electroencephalogram ? 2. functional MRI ? Chapter 236: Brain Death (1) The past two weeks of preclinical experiments were nothing but miraculous. ¡®This experiment is magnificent.¡¯ That was the thought Cheon Ji-Myung had on the day the beagle raised its head and grunted. The Life Creation Team who carried out the entire experiment themselves, Carpentier, Song Ji-Hyun, and the cell experiment experts at Cellijenner all knew that this wasn¡¯t just a remarkable achievement or an outstanding result; humanity was touching the line rted to the secret of life. ¡°We removed a part of the skull outside the ipital lobe, and then injected chloroform and ethanol with a microsyringe to wipe out all brain function. Then, we attached a cardiopulmonary support device to the beagle to restart the heart to keep it alive,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°We harvested the beagle¡¯s somatic cells and created induced pluripotent stem cells. We injected about one hundred thousand of them under the fourth ventricles and administered dopamine, epinephrine, ATP or glucose, to differentiate the stem cells. The fourth ventricle is the organ that is responsible for repairing damage to the brainstem, and the stem cells ced here will differentiate into the neurons that make up the brainstem." Young-Joon flipped through the slides. For thest two weeks, everything about the beagle was recorded on video. Not a second was missing. Young-Joon had also included the electroencephalogram and the fMRI data. He presented them on three separate screens.¡°An fMRI is maic resonance imaging that measures the amount of blood flow. When blood flow increases in the brain, the neurons in that region tend to get excited. As such, we used this device to detect the flow of blood in the brain.¡± The video now showed the blood flow in the lower part of the beagle¡¯s brain in red. ¡°The beagle¡¯s heart keeps beating through a life support system. The stem cells injected into the ventricle have differentiated due to dopamine and produced a K11 signal, which dtes the blood vessels. This allows the blood that flowed from the heart and through the cerebral artery to collect at the ventricle,¡± Young-Joon exined. ¡°And this is the result.¡± Young-Joon pointed at the electroencephalogram on the other screen. The amplitudes are small, but it has picked up delta waves, a type of brain wave. ¡°Now, I will speed up the video.¡± Young-Joon sped up the video to a thousand times its original speed. There was one thing that showed up too much in the video: even though the video was a thousand times its speed, Song Ji-Hyun and the Life Creation Team were constantly on the video. Everyone could feel that these scientists worked on this experiment day and night, basically having no personal lives. Click. Young-Joon paused the tape for a moment. ¡°The beagle is still unable to move, but a lot of things are happening on the fMRI. Can you see this?¡± Young-Joon pointed to the fMRI video. ¡°The blood flow to the medu was fluctuating, but it stabilized after six hours.¡± The medu was an extension of the spinal cord, located at the very bottom of the brain. It was also the most important part that was responsible for life. It contained all the ascending and descending nerve tracts that connected the brain and the spinal cord. Out of the twelve pairs of brain nerves, ten of the peripheral nerves, excluding the optic nerves, went through the medu. ¡°The reason the medu is important is because it contains the core of the autonomic nervous system that controls things like breathing, beating of the heart, and gastrointestinal activity. This means that living beings can breathe, beat their own heart, and digest food on their own. These functions are the basis of life, and they are thest to be lost before death,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°As such, we predicted the possibility of the medu recovering its function when blood began to rapidly flow there, and we injected two chemicals that dye cells to visualize whether the nerves were recovered. The red one is propidium iodide, which dyes dead cells, and the blue is live cell DAPI, which dyes living cells. They can both be observed with a fluorescent microscope. Now, I will show you the data.¡± Young-Joon yed the video that was taken forty-four hours after administering the due. There was a very small number of blue cells at the very bottom of the medu. But ny-nine percent of the medu was red. ¡°It is showing up as red because the medu of the beagle was already dead,¡± Young-Joon exined. But as time went on, the blue cells began to increase and expand into the upper region. The magnification of the microscope was very high, and they could even see the cytosol, the outer part of the nucleus, of the blue cells. Over the course of two days, the blue cells stretched out like string cheese. They expanded their power towards the upper region aggressively. ¡°Wow¡­¡± Not just the citizens, but even the experts who were invited to represent the opposition eximed in amazement. And when thirty-eight hours had passed¡­ Beep! One of the nerves in the medu began emitting a strong blue fluorescence. The broken engine had fired back up. The nucleus of one of the autonomic nerves in the growing medu had finally seeded in secreting adrenaline andmunicating with the sinoatrial node, a cluster of muscle cells in the heart. The sinoatrial node was like the heart¡¯s local government. They received messages from the brain and regted the heartbeat. The sinoatrial node hadn¡¯t been functioning properly because the medu, which was like the federal government, hadn¡¯t been working. The machine was just sending electrical signals to the heart to make it beat. But now, the new government established in the medu was connected to the local government of the heart. The node now received biological signals from the heart and began to manage it. Young-Joon reset the video¡¯s speed back to normal. Then, Carpentier slowly removed the beagle¡¯s pacemaker in the video. Beep. Beep. Beep. However, the electrocardiogram on the monitor still showed a steady heartbeat. ¡°Now, this beagle is entering a persistent vegetative state simr to humans,¡± Young-Joon said. [Brain death is not really death.] [We can now revive brain-dead individuals.] [A-GenBio seeds in recovering a brain-dead patient to a persistent vegetative state.] News articles were pouring in real time. The world was bing noisy, but the public hearing continued. Young-Joon started the video again and continued to exin the experiment. After the function of the medu was restored, things took off from there. Nerve cells that were dyed blue also grew in the pons and the midbrain, the other key organs that made up the brainstem. And the growth of these cells didn¡¯t stop there. Soon, they upied and connected the junction of the diencephalon at the top of the brainstem and the cerebellum at the back. Mysteriously, as the brainstem¡¯s function was restored, neural signals began to fire intensely to the frontal lobe of the brain. It was waking up sleeping brain cells in the cerebrum. And on the ninth day¡­ ¡°Wow!¡± An exmation of astonishment erupted from the audience. The beagle in the video had opened its eyes. The beagle hade back to life after suffering from a deadly condition caused by the loss of function of the brainstem. The poor animal let out a grunt and licked Cheon Ji-Hyum¡¯s fingertips. ¡°...¡± Hong Jung-Ho and other opposing experts were speechless at the unbelievable sight. ¡°Death is a much more elusive concept than we realize,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°For example, a patient with a problem in the sinoatrial node of the heart will die within minutes because the heart no longer beats, but modern medicine can save them by surgically imnting an artificial pacemaker under the left corbone.¡± Young-Joon pulled up a diagram of how a pacemaker worked and how it was operated. ¡°This machine has a built-in battery. Wires are connected to the heart to help it beat. It takes over the role of the failed sinoatrial node, and the pacemaker can be used for ten to fifteen years without having to be reced,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°In the past, the loss of function of the heart¡¯s sinoatrial node was understood to be a form of cardiopulmonary death. Because the technology didn¡¯t exist, patients with damaged nodes were considered dead because their hearts weren¡¯t beating. But not now.¡± Young-Joon closed the data pile. ¡°What point should be considered death depends on the level of technology and what science understands. If the definition of death changes and the concept of brain death is removed from death, it doesn¡¯t really change that much,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°It just allows us to understand humans and the world more precisely, and that¡¯s what science does. Now, let¡¯s watch thest point in the video.¡± Young-Joon fast-forwarded the recording again. By the thirteenth day, the beagle was off all life-support machines, even the intravenous fluids. On the fourteenth day, the beagle ate some kibble that was softened like porridge, though it still couldn¡¯t stand up. ¡°This is the end of my evidence. The same experiment was repeated on a total of seven beagles, and no adverse effects were observed.¡± Young-Joon finished his statement and sat down. Everyone mumbled for a while, and the media was rushing to report that the beagles hade back to life and were licking the food. Thewmakers seemed quite surprised by the unconventional hearing. The debate was full of biology jargon: although they didn¡¯t understand many of the details, they got the gist of what was going on. ¡°Opposition, please speak.¡± The speaker continued the debate. ¡°I¡­¡± Hong Jung-Ho, the expert from the opposition, hesitated to speak. ¡°I¡¯m not sure¡­¡± he said. ¡°I don¡¯t know how to take in something like this. Brain-dead individuals have been medically dered dead for a long time. We¡¯ve known that the heart just beats mechanically by life support, but the person is biologically dead¡­¡± He bit his lip. ¡°For years, surgeons stopped treating the brain-dead when their electrocardiograms peaked, their bodies were warm, and we were pumping their lungs with a respiratory device,¡± he said. Unlike cardiopulmonary death, which showed a straight line on an electrocardiogram with a long beep, the brain dead still had a signal when they were pronounced dead. From the outside, it really looked like they were just sleeping. There were no signs of death except that the brain was not generating any electrical signals. At that point, doctors would remove the respiratory machines and perform open surgery to remove their organs and transnt them to another patient. This kind of task was daunting, even for a doctor. The reason this was possible was because they were confident in their medical opinion that the brain-dead person was really dead. By the time the electrocardiogram eventually stopped after several weeks, the organs would already be damaged and have the possibility of causing problems in the transnt recipient. ¡°But if they were alive¡­¡± Horrendous thoughts were going through the doctors¡¯ heads. ¡°There¡¯s no need to me yourselves. It was true that there was no way to reverse brain death,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°There¡¯s a difference between being unable to treat and stopping treatment,¡± Hong Jung-Ho said. ¡°Doctors have been murdering¡­¡± He covered his mouth, feeling choked up. ¡°Medicine has only done its best to save those who could be saved.¡± Young-Joon summarized Hong Jung-Ho¡¯s remarks. ¡°And that best has now been extended a little further. We can provide artificial organs to the vast number of organ transnt recipients who are dying waiting for organs from brain-dead people. Now, it looks like we may be able to treat brain-dead patients as well,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°This is why we need this special act to pass. Please pass this bill.¡± Chapter 237: Brain Death (2)

Chapter 237: Brain Death (2)

The public hearing was over three dayster. The debate couldn¡¯t be conducted after Young-Joon¡¯s statement about the experimental result because there was nothing the opposition could say. ¡°Thank you for the amazing debate¡ªno, the amazing lecture.¡± The congresspeople rushed to him with big smiles on their faces. ¡°Shall we take a picture? Howmemorative is it that the genius of the century invented the technology of the century and that his first presentation was at the National Assembly?¡± The congresspeople wrapped their arms around Young-Joon¡¯s shoulders and gestured to their secretaries. ¡°Cameras, cameras. Arrange the reporters quickly.¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t we have a meal after this?¡± one of the congressmen asked. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but I have something scheduled after this...¡± The congresspeople quickly stopped Young-Joon, who was gently declining their offer. ¡°Aww, you¡¯re no fun. Don¡¯t worry, we can¡¯t eat anything expensive anyway because of the Kim Young-Ran Act[1]. And we can split the bill, too.¡± ¡°Maybe Doctor Ryu can exin more about this experiment while we eat.¡± ¡°Yes. I already have the votes ready to go, but we should know more. I¡¯m a humanities kid, and I saw a whole new world today. But I don¡¯t really understand it.¡± ¡°Hahaha!¡± Someone walked up to Young-Joon while the congresspeople were chattering. It was Yang Hye-Sook. She smiled and pulled Young-Joon away. ¡°Let¡¯s speak in my room for a bit.¡± Yang Hye-Sook took him to her office in the Legitive Office Building. Click. ¡°Woah!¡± When she opened the door, the interns, aides, and other staff in the office jumped up in surprise. They were all watching Young-Joon¡¯s public hearing on the inte. ¡°D-Doctor Ryu...¡± ¡°Rx,¡± Yang Hye-Sook said to them. Then, she took a drink out of the refrigerator and held it out to Young-Joon. ¡°Your experimental results were better than I thought they would be.¡± ¡°That¡¯s because our scientists and Cellijenner did a great job,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Hm.¡± Yang Hye-Sook nced at Young-Joon. ¡°I asked you toe here because there¡¯s someone I want to introduce you to.¡± ¡°You want to introduce me to someone?¡± ¡°They were in my room. I don¡¯t know where they went.¡± Yang Hye-Sook shrugged. ¡°The director just left, asking for the restroom. The other one went outside for a smoke break,¡± said the intern. ¡°Then, they¡¯ll be back soon.¡± Yang Hye-Sook nodded. ¡°Who is it?¡± As soon as Young-Joon asked, the door opened, and two men walked inside. It was Professor Ban Du-Il and Nichs Kim, the former CTO of A-Gen. ¡°Oh!¡± Young-Joon was surprised. ¡°How are the two of you...¡± ¡°Haha, it¡¯s been a while, Doctor Ryu.¡± ¡°How¡¯ve you been?¡± The two patted Young-Joon on the shoulder like they were d to see him. ¡°Yes, of course. What brings you here?¡± ¡°Well, I¡¯m going to be the director of the Office of Strategic R&D nning soon,¡± Nichs said. ¡°I haven¡¯t gotten the job yet, but I¡¯ve been thinking about what I¡¯m going to do when I start. That¡¯s what I¡¯m here for.¡± ¡°What are you going to do?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Your legendary sess has made Korea crazy about science. I don¡¯t know if you know this, but the word ¡®science¡¯ has long been used to promote unscientific products,¡± Nichs said. ¡°The credibility of a product skyrockets infinitely when words like ¡®scientific,¡¯ ¡®statistical,¡¯ ¡®clinical,¡¯ ¡®FDA-approved,¡¯ are used. But you¡¯re doing extremely advanced experiments with cutting-edge technology and bringing it back to the masses.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Thanks to you, words like ¡®Cas9¡¯ and ¡®induced pluripotent stem cells¡¯ are familiar to the public. Scientists are being invited to give tons of lectures, and there are all these events where scientists can interact with the public, like the humanities healing camps that used to be popr.¡± ¡°Hm...¡± ¡°Doctor Nichs, your preamble is too long.¡± Professor Ban Du-Ilughed. ¡°Oh, sorry. What I¡¯m saying is that we¡¯re about to have a science boom, and we need to be ready for it.¡± ¡°I told you, right? Even an old man who picks up paper should be able to memorize...¡± Yang Hye-Sook said, but the two quickly cut her off. ¡°No, that¡¯s too far.¡± ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s a little extreme.¡± Ban Du-Il shook his head. ¡°Anyways, Young-Joon, both these people are very interested in democratizing science and improving the level of scientific knowledge of the public as a congresswoman and a national CTO,¡± Ban Du-Il said. ¡°That¡¯s why they invited me, the person who raised the greatest intellectual in the history of humanity, Ryu Young-Joon, for a discussion.¡± ¡°... You have more joy than I remember, Professor.¡± ¡°My life is joyful these days because of you. You know, ourb was pretty niche in the department, right? But now, it¡¯s the most poprb in the whole university. I get a thrill every time I see the look of disdain on Professor Park¡¯s face.¡± ¡°Anyway, we¡¯re going to focus more on science education, and we¡¯re going to bring in more professors. We¡¯ll also have to cooperate with the Ministry of Education. Our final goal is...¡± Yang Hye-Sook said. ¡°... Is to nurture the next Cellijenner and provide talented individuals that fit the new wave of technology that a giant like A-GenBio is going to create.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°By the way, Young-Joon, the Department of Biotechnology at Jungyoon University has been raised to an undergraduate program, and they established a stem cell department within it,¡± Ban Du-ll said. ¡°Really?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Yeah. Don¡¯t you see the obvious angle here? The level of crazy technology you¡¯ve created is too advanced, and there aren¡¯t enough technicians to service it. We need to nurture talented individuals at the state level,¡± Ban Du-Il said. ¡°We¡¯re looking at increasing schrships and investing heavily at the government level,¡± Nichs added. ¡°Then A-GenBio will also fund the schrship program,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I still need to discuss this with the Ministry of Education, so I¡¯ll let you know when it¡¯s finalized. If I need your help, I¡¯ll ask for it then,¡± Yang Hye-Sook said. ¡°Anyway, from now on, we will take over this side and drive it. I want you to keep going straight without faltering, just like you¡¯ve been doing until now.¡± ¡°I¡¯m thinking that¡¯s why you sent me to be the national CTO,¡± Nichs said,ughing. ¡°Not really, but... Thank you all so much...¡± Young-Joon bowed to the three of them. ¡°I have a lot of really good teachers.¡± ¡°I¡¯m d you know that. You should go now, do your next research.¡± Ban Du-Il yfully patted him on the shoulder. * * * On the way out of the Legitive Office Building and through the front doors of the National Assembly... ¡°Oh...¡± Young-Joon saw a huge crowd rushing towards him at the entrance. He expected this, but it was more than he could have imagined. There was no way these people were just ordinary citizens who came to see the public hearing out of curiosity. They had been waiting here for a long time, even when Young-Joon was meeting with industry seniors in the Legitive Office Building. ¡°Doctor Ryu! Can you wake up someone in a persistent vegetative state?¡± ¡°My daughter is paralyzed from the waist down. If you can wake up a dead person, you can do this too, right?¡± ¡°My husband was in a car ident and injured his brain. He lost a lot of his memory and...¡± ¡°I have someone in my family who is in aa. Can you cure this, too?¡± They screamed and shouted, reaching out their hands, even as the guards formed a wall and kept people out. ¡°Wait! Doctor Ryu!¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu, just tell us one thing. Please!¡± In the meantime, some people were getting desperate and arguing with the guards. ¡°Don¡¯t block us! It¡¯s not like we¡¯re harming him or anything!¡± ¡°Just let us talk! Please! Doctor Ryu! It will only take a moment.¡± ¡°Can a fully paralyzed person recover? He got hurt while diving...¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joon stared at them like he was in a difficult situation. Young-Joon¡¯s brain death recovery experiment had caused quite a stir. This situation was nothingpared to what was going to happen; the entire world was paying attention to this shocking technology. Young-Joon had defeated powerful diseases like pancreatic cancer, Alzheimer¡¯s, and HIV before, but this was different. While they had previously just cured patients, this looked like they were bringing the dead back to life. From an omniscient perspective like Rosaline¡¯s, treating Alzheimer¡¯s and treating the brain-dead were essentially the same thing. The former focused on rebuilding neurons in the cerebral cortex and thetter in the brainstem, but the context was simr: the differentiation of neurons and the reorganization of tissues to perform specific functions. But in the eyes of the public, it was something else entirely; it was something miraculous, like bringing the dead back to life. It was somewhat natural, as this experiment was mysterious and fascinating to even the scientists who performed the experiments while knowing the principles. That¡¯s why they were asking him whether paraplegia could be cured. The spinal nerves and the autonomic nerves in the brainstem werepletely different tissues, but they were holding out hope for a technology that seemed to be able to bring back people from the dead. ¡°I think some will be possible with this technology, but some things are not,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Please, I beg you.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll do anything to make my daughter walk.¡± ¡°... I will try harder,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Let¡¯s go this way,¡± Kim Chul-Kwon said to Young-Joon. He led Young-Joon down the path he had secured beforehand. At the end of it, a limousine was waiting. Click. Secretary Yoo Song-Mi opened the back door for him. Young-Joon could see Carpentier and the Life Creation Team sitting inside, smiling. ¡°Phew.¡± Young-Joon, who got on the limousine, let out a small sigh. ¡°Good work,¡± Carpentier said. ¡°All I did was present the experiments you did.¡± ¡°We¡¯ve cleared all the major hurdles, so all we have left is the clinical trial.¡± ¡°The act hasn¡¯t been passed yet.¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t they say they were going to vote for the bill after dinnertime?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Given the climate right now, it will pass,¡± Carpentier said. He touched a locket of a ne he had taken out of his pocket with his left hand. The locket had a picture of a young woman inside. ¡°Who is that?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°She was going to be my wife.¡± Carpentier stared out the window, ncing at the numerous citizens. ¡°I would have been one of them if it was thirty years ago.¡± * * * Young-Joon returned home, and he ran into another unexpected visitor. ¡°Dong-Wook?¡± This time, he remembered his name. ¡°Hello...¡± Yang Dong-Wook greeted him hesitantly. ¡°Where¡¯s Ji-Won?¡± ¡°Uh... She went out to get something...¡± ¡°Is the house empty today, too?¡± ¡°Until now.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± Young-Joon chuckled and patted him on the shoulder. ¡°Have fun.¡± As he was about to go into his room, Yang Dong-Wook stopped him. ¡°Wait, sunbae!¡± Yang Dong-Wook shouted. ¡°Yeah?¡± ¡°I went into the stem cell department. I¡¯m doing a major there,¡± he said. ¡°And I¡¯m going to apply to A-GenBio after I graduate.¡± ¡°We only ept people with a Master¡¯s and above for research positions.¡± ¡°After I do my doctorate!¡± Yang Dong-Wook quickly added. Young-Joon slowly nodded. ¡°Our work is intense. Did you see the video of the fourteen-day experiment presented at the public hearing today?¡± ¡°Yes...¡± ¡°You won¡¯t have a personal life if you work here, so be prepared.¡± ¡°...¡± Yang Dong-Wook smiled shyly. The news of the public hearing was ying on TV. [Breaking news: Ryu Young-Joon Act passed by the National Assembly plenary session.] After seeing that, Young-Joon went into his room. Then, Rosaline popped out of his body. She scurried to the window-side, then stopped and turned to face Young-Joon. ¡ªIt was quite interesting today. ¡°What was?¡± ¡ªBecause you, Doctor Ref, Song Ji-Hyun, Congresswoman Yang Hye-Sook, Nichs, and Ban Du-Il all think differently about science. ¡°That¡¯s expected.¡± ¡ªTo be honest, this is more interesting to me than restoring the brainstems of brain-dead people. Humans are so variable. ¡°Really?¡± Young-Joon flopped down on the bed. ¡ªRyu Young-Joon. Rosaline jumped up and sat beside him. ¡ªI¡¯m going to insert the pathogen¡¯s DNA into my genome and absorb itpletely. ¡°...¡± Young-Joon looked ufortable. ¡°Are you sure? Is it safe?¡± ¡ªI don¡¯t know. ¡°You don¡¯t know?¡± Young-Joon was surprised. ¡°Then don¡¯t do it. Why would you do something dangerous?¡± ¡ªBecause I can¡¯t stay like this any longer. Rosaline seemed adamant. ¡°What?¡± Rosaline hesitated, then responded. ¨CDo you remember when I made the iris in Xinjiang? Rosaline gathered her cells together and formed a very thin, vinyl-like material in front of Young-Joon¡¯s eyes. It was the epidermal tissue of a million cells that resembled the iris pattern. ¡ªI¡¯ve always felt this while observing humans. Your efforts to save even a grand viin like Kim Hyun-Taek, people with different thoughts on science, your sense of responsibility, and Yang Dong-Wook¡¯s admiration for you, I felt them all. Rosaline went on. ¡ªDoctor Ref said that humans don¡¯t deserve science, but now I want to be more affirming of humans. ¡°...¡± ¡ªAnd I want to have a body. Then, Rosaline absorbed the iris cell mass that was in front of Young-Joon. 1. The Improper Solicitation and Graft Act ? Chapter 238: Brain Death (3)

Chapter 238: Brain Death (3)

¡°You want a body?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡ªYes. I think I will be able to understand humans better if I have the same vision as them. ¡°Is it possible?¡± ¡ªHumans don¡¯t know the boundary between living and nonliving organisms yet, right? That¡¯s why they are making such a fuss over the resurrection of the brain-dead. Rosaline paused for a moment. ¡ªBut I know the answer. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡ªLiving things have bodies. Not just a collection of atoms, but a body in the sense that it¡¯s a unique living space that cannot be interfered with by the outside world. Rosaline went on. ¡ªThe collection of all the spaces corresponding to the inside of a shell of skin or a face enclosed by a phospholipid byer, and the desire to eliminate external threats to that space. That¡¯s what it means to be a living thing. ¡ªI have a body at the cellr level as well, but it¡¯s an iplete thing that can¡¯t survive outside of your body. ¡ªThat¡¯s the reason why I have to absorb this pathogen. The hepatitis medication you were taking when I was created caused an organic chemical reaction. If that caused my DNA to break apart, the only way to make myself whole is to get it back and absorb it. Rosaline was firm. ¡ªI will be a living organism with aplete body. Young-Joon stroked his chin and thought for a moment. ¡°The pathogen is aggressive,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡ªI know what you are worried about. Rosaline assured Young-Joon. ¡ªYou¡¯re worried that I¡¯ll absorb the pathogen and then attack people, right? The emergence and flourishing of a superior species always meant the demise of the existing ones. What were the consequences of fish like the snakehead being introduced into American streams? With its high survivability, aggressiveness, and ravenous appetite, the snakehead nearly wiped out the native bass in the Potomac River in Washington. So, what if Rosaline, an extremely intelligent species, thrived on thisnd? If Rosaline was the snakehead, who was the bass in the stream of this Earth? ¡ªIt would be dangerous if that was my instinct from an ecological perspective. Rosaline exined. ¡ªBut don¡¯t worry. I¡¯m friendly to humans. I¡¯ve seen a lot of horrible things with you, but I¡¯ve also seen beautiful things. ¡°That¡¯s not what I¡¯m worried about,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I trust you. You sometimes have scary thoughts for the sake of efficacy, but you¡¯re not a monster who likes to hurt people.¡± ¡ª... ¡°And I¡¯m sure absorbing that pathogen won¡¯t make you more aggressive. You¡¯re excellent,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I¡¯m just worried you¡¯ll get hurt.¡± ¡ªMe? ¡°That pathogen infected Kim Hyun-Taek, quickly left him brain-dead and damaged many of his organs. You know that, right?¡± ¡ªYes. ¡°You¡¯ve lost your consciousness once just by keeping it in your cells. But what happens if you insert it in your genome...¡± ¡ª... Rosaline shrugged. ¡ªYou¡¯re like a young, inexperienced father overprotecting his child. ¡°This isn¡¯t overprotection. Anyone would be worried.¡± ¡ªI didn¡¯t mean it in a bad way. ¡°...¡± ¡ªBut it¡¯s really okay. I¡¯ll be able to control everything. Rosaline reassured Young-Joon. ¡ªDid you forget that I¡¯m an organism who is omniscient in biology? ¡°... You¡¯re not going to listen to me even if I tell you not to do it, right?¡± ¡ªYes. Rosalineughed like there was nothing she could do. ¡°How are you going to absorb that DNA?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡ªI¡¯m going to use a transposon. Transposons were pieces of human DNA. These pieces, which just seemed like ordinary genes from the outside, were surprisingly not originally human. Transposons were viral DNA. Some viruses could infect human cells and insert their own DNA into human DNA. Then, they lived there as if they were just part of the human DNA. It did nothing, and it just replicated when human somatic and reproductive cells divided. It was part of the virus, but it had just be a part of the human. ¡ªI¡¯m going to start now. Rosaline came off the bed and stood up straight. A white glow emanated from her body. The DNA work was being done while she was in her single-cell form, not Ryu Sae-Yi. Rosaline carefully picked up a fragment of the pathogen¡¯s DNA. It was about 1.2 million bp[1], so it wasn¡¯t very big. Rosaline bundled the pathogen DNA into a circle and attached a molecr structure called a TSD to each end. Then, she slowly moved it toward her DNA; this process was simr to a spaceship docking. She took out a biomolecule called transposase, and she tied it to the end of both DNA. Snap. The DNA of the pathogen became attached when one side of Rosaline¡¯s DNA was severed. Rosaline tied them together like sutures. ¡ªIt¡¯s done. ¡°You¡¯re done?¡± ¡ªYes. ¡°There aren¡¯t any changes.¡± ¡ª... Yeah. Rosaline looked down at her hands, tilting her head in puzzlement. * * * ¡ªAt noon today, A-GenBio will conduct a clinical trial to recover a brain-dead patient, Mr. Kim Hyun-Taek, at the Next Generation Hospital. The news was on TV, which Young-Joon was watching at the Next Generation Hospital. ¡ªBrain-dead patients are still considered dead, and the Clinical Trial Act is still restricted to conducting clinical trials on living people. As such, A-GenBio has pushed for the Ryu Young-Joon Special Act. The news anchor spoke into the camera. ¡ªWe are very excited about the results of this trial, given the remarkable results of the preclinical trials that Doctor Ryu Young-Joon showed at the public hearing. If the treatment is sessful, Mr. Kim will be the first case of a person who has been brought back from the dead under medicalw. ¡°He didn¡¯te back to life; he was alive to begin with,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± said Professor Miguel from the Department of Neurology. Miguel was a leading expert in neuroscience. ¡°I¡¯m not even a doctor at the Next Generation Hospital, just a visiting physician, and I never thought I¡¯d be asked to lead such an amazing experimental surgery.¡± ¡°We were so fortunate to have someone like you at the Next Generation Hospital at this time, Doctor Miguel,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I came here to study. I was originally nning to go back to Germany in the second half of next year.¡± ¡°A professor of your caliber has something to learn here?¡± ¡°Haha, don¡¯t be so humble. There is nowhere that can match A-GenBio in stem cell and neural regenerative medicine in Korea, even the United States,¡± Miguel said. Young-Joon grinned. ¡°Still, I¡¯m sure it¡¯s a lot of pressure with all the attention, but I appreciate your willingness to take it on,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I¡¯m studying here for free, so I should at least make it worth your while.¡± ¡°It was free?¡± ¡°The director of the hospital waived my tuition fee as a condition for me working here.¡± ¡°I see. Considering how much you¡¯re worth, the director made a good deal.¡± ¡ªMeanwhile, protests against A-GenBio¡¯s research have begun, saying it touches on the fundamental parts of life. The news anchor continued. ¡ªOn the morning of the ninth, a Christian group rallied in front of A-GenBio¡¯s headquarters. Let¡¯s take a look at the scene. The scene of the rally showed up on the news screen. A representative of the rally took the microphone and shouted. ¡ªLife is something that only God can give. Resurrecting the dead is something that cannot and should not be done. A-GenBio should stop performing evil magic to resurrect the dead and focus on its real business, curing the diseases of the living. ¡°I¡¯m not telling you, they¡¯re not dead...¡± Young-Joon shrugged. ¡°It will take a while for the public to digest this,¡± Miguel said. * * * The brainstem was the innermost part of the human brain, right in the center. If a straight, vertical line was drawn from the middle of the eyebrows to the back of the head and a straight horizontal line connected the temples, the intersection would be where the brainstem was.[2] The brainstem was surrounded by the cerebrum, cerebellum, and diencephalon, and the outside was covered with the skull. Simply put, it was in a difficult location to reach. They were able to remove part of the skull at the back of the head and inject the needle into the brain in a slightly crude way for the beagle experiment, but they had to be careful of using this method in humans. Originally, they were going to take a few more months to develop a drug delivery method, but they had Professor Miguel. ¡°Let¡¯s go with an intranasal injection,¡± said Miguel. They were having a meeting for the brainstem regeneration project. The human nose was one of the easiest passages to ess the brain. Miguel proposed a way to ess the brainstem, which was by sticking a very long, thin needle into the nostril. ¡°For a trial of this magnitude, we need to reduce the variables as much as possible. Because if it fails, we don¡¯t know if the drug delivery method was wrong, or if the stem cell therapy is inappropriate in the human brainstem,¡± Miguel said. ¡°But intranasal injection is already a widely recognized technique. The technique itself is difficult, so we won¡¯t be able tomercialize it as is, but it will be a major step in showing that brainstem regeneration with stem cells is possible and brain death is not death.¡± ¡°You¡¯re suggesting we take it step by step,¡± Carpentier said. ¡°That¡¯s right. Once we¡¯ve established that the brain-dead are alive and recoverable using a known method called intranasal injection, it will be much easier to develop drug-delivery methods because the patients will be included in the Clinical Trial Act.¡± Amid the beeps of the electrocardiogram graph and the sound of other machinery, one hundred thousand induced pluripotent stem cells arrived. With the help of the medical team, Miguel began to push the syringe needle up his nose while keeping an eye on the monitor. ¡®What do you think?¡¯ Young-Joon asked Rosalie in his mind. He was standing outside and watching the surgery from the gallery. ¡ªIt will be fine. Rosaline also watched them, standing beside Young-Joon. ¡®How are you feeling?¡¯ ¡ªMe? ¡®It¡¯s been almost two weeks since then, and nothing seems to be wrong so far. You don¡¯t seem to have changed much.¡¯ ¡ªYeah. Rosaline shrugged. [Synchronization Mode: Brain death] Rosaline activated Synchronization Mode. ¡ªLet¡¯s see if the surgery is going well. Young-Joon¡¯s vision zoomed in until he could see a single cell. Then, an enormous needle, which waspletely different from its name, a microneedle, appeared. It entered the nostril, and traveled through the squamous mucosa of the nasal cavity, closely adhering to the bridge of the nose. After a moment, it reached the superior nasal concha deep inside the nostrils. Miguel was pushing the needle in very slowly and carefully while watching the monitor. Above it was the olfactory epithelium. In terms of anatomical location, the needle was now closer to the eye than the nose. The needle paused right in front. ¡°Phew...¡± Sweat broke out on the nape of Miguel¡¯s neck. Now, he really had to be careful. A few millimeters above the needle was the cribriform te, which was a skeletal structure that was like a gateway to the brain. This region was covered with mucous membranes, which were packed with cell bodies of olfactory receptors. But between the mucous membranes, there was a very small gap between the bones. That was where the needle was going to go. This required control in increments smaller than millimeters. Miguel attached a micro-electric motor to the end of the syringe, then turned the coarse adjustment knob to push the needle up a few micrometers. They had to stop just before the olfactory bulb. This was where the olfactory receptors transmitted the signals they received to the brain. Cerebrospinal fluid flowed between the olfactory bulb and the cribriform te. Miguel took his hand off the coarse adjustment knob. ¡°I think we¡¯ve arrived,¡± Young-Joon said into the monitor. But it didn¡¯t end there. Miguel¡¯s syringe moved slowly along the tube through which cerebrospinal fluid flowed. It was only a few centimeters away, but it felt so far away. They were at the front of the fourth ventricle. ¡°I¡¯m going to inject it now.¡± Miguel pressed down on the syringe plunger. ¡®It¡¯s going in.¡¯ Young-Joon frowned while watching them. One hundred thousand induced pluripotent stem cells were flowing into the fourth ventricle. 1. base pairs; the unit for measuring DNA ? 2. This isn¡¯t actually the anatomical location of the brainstem ? Chapter 239: Brain Death (4)

Chapter 239: Brain Death (4)

¡ªWait... Rosaline flinched. ¡®Why?¡¯ ¡ªThe cerebrospinal fluid is refluxing as the needle goes in. We can¡¯t inject stem cells now. ¡®What?¡¯ Surprised, Young-Joon checked the monitor again. A machine called a dynamic digital radiography took pictures of his nose and upper eyes, sending those pictures to the monitor. It could zoom in on a very small area and take high-resolution images, even the space between the olfactory bulb and the cribriform te, but there was one problem: the flow of the liquid was not measured urately. Normally, the chances of something going wrong with such a tiny microneedle were very slim, but they hit the jackpot with extremely bad luck. ¡°Damn it.¡± Young-Joon took a closer look after Rosaline mentioned it, and now he could see it, too. In Synchronization Mode, he could see the cerebrospinal fluid flowing in the opposite direction at a very slow speed. ¡°Wait, stop!¡± Young-Joon shouted. If the stem cells were injected now, they were going to reflux and not travel to the subventricr zone. It didn¡¯t matter if they ended up in the wrong ce, as these stem cells had the same safety mechanism in ce as the a treatment, but failing the experiment was problematic in many ways. ¡°Stop?¡± Miguel stopped the injection and turned to Young-Joon. ¡°The volume of that needle might have caused the cerebrospinal fluid to reflux. It should return to normal in a moment. Let¡¯s wait for thirty seconds.¡± ¡ªWe can¡¯t. Rosaline intervened from the side. ¡®We can¡¯t?¡¯ ¡ªThere are only eighty thousand stem cells left in that syringe. ¡®...¡¯ ¡ªThere is a lot left because we stopped the injection quickly, but we need the twenty thousand we lost. The medu will be recovered with that amount, but the treatment will only get Kim Hyun-Taek into a vegetative state. We can¡¯t do that difficult procedure twice. Rosaline exined to Young-Joon. ¡®But...¡¯ ¡ªI¡¯ll go. Rosaline jumped up to the vent. ¡®Rosaline?¡¯ ¡ªDon¡¯t worry. She moved straight for the air filter connected to the operating room. Sterile HEPA filters used air dpression and airflow to prevent foreign particles from entering the operating room. The airflow was powerful enough to keep out most dust, bacteria, and viruses. But not to Rosaline. ¡ªThe wind is quite strong. ¡®It cycles over twenty times an hour, since it¡¯s a high-risk surgery that involves the brain. You can still stop ande back.¡¯ ¡ªIt¡¯s alright. Rosaline flew straight through the fierce gust of wind that rushed in from the front. Ironically, Rosaline had infiltrated the operating room through the air purification system designed to keep the outside out. ¡ªI¡¯m going into this man¡¯s body twice. Rosaline then entered Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s nostrils, crossed the squamous mucosa and the superior nasal concha, and reached the olfactory epithelium. ¡ªI¡¯ve arrived. She stuck her head through the gap between the cribriform te and checked the flow of the cerebrospinal fluid. It was flowing very slowly, like a sticky, viscous liquid, out of the subventricr zone in the opposite direction. It was full of induced pluripotent stem cells. Rosaline dived into the cerebrospinal fluid. It was a tiny amount of fluid flowing through the lymphatic vessels, barely visible to the human eye, but it was like a mighty river to the cells. Rosaline swam against the cerebrospinal fluid that was flowing in the opposite direction, dodging the stem cells floating around her. ¡ªThe cerebrospinal fluid is produced in the central cerebral aqueduct called the choroid plexus. It¡¯s a type of venous plexus in the fourth ventricle. Rosaline exined to Young-Joon. ¡ªAnd the choroid plexus also regtes the flow of cerebrospinal fluid. Since our destination is below the fourth ventricle, I¡¯m going to hit the ventricle. Rosaline was right in front of the choroid plexus. She ced her hand on the tissue and used her fitness. ¡ªOverexpression of CSFF1. ¡ªOverexpression of CSFF2/3. The triggered genes made several biopolymers, which burst out and mixed into the cerebrospinal fluid. They stuck to the lymphatic vessels, which the cerebrospinal fluid was flowing through, and began to regte it. Krrr... Rosaline could feel the wave of fluid rushing in her direction from the far end. ¡ªIt¡¯s done. Tell him to inject it again. Rosaline told Young-Joon. ¡°I think it¡¯s okay now. Let¡¯s do the injection again,¡± Young-Joon said. And in his head, Young-Joon spoke to Rosaline. ¡®But are you okay? You have to get out now.¡¯ ¡ªThe flow of the cerebrospinal fluid will get in the way, but I went through the HEPA filter Rosaline shrugged like it was nothing. She could feel tremendous biopressure from where the cerebrospinal fluid wasing from. Eighty thousand stem cells, injected by the microneedle, were being pushed this way by the flow of the fluid. ¡ªI¡¯m going back now. Rosaline tried to move back across the flow of cerebrospinal fluid, and at that moment... An ident that neither of them could have predicted opened. ¡ªOh... Rosaline halted. A massive surge of ATP was washing over her. The differentiation of stem cells to repair the brainstem relied onrge amounts of ATP. But this much this fast? ¡ªThis is... ¡®What?¡¯ Young-Joon could see Rosaline¡¯s fitness spiking through the status window. ¡ªI can¡¯t control the fitness. There¡¯s too much ATP that... Rosaline began cutting out. ¡ªRyu Young-Joon! Help me... Bleep! Boom! The message window disappeared. A rush of cerebrospinal fluid swept over Rosaline. ¡°We¡¯re done,¡± Miguel said. ¡°...¡± Young-Joon froze, speechless. ¡°Doctor Ryu?¡± Carpentier said, standing beside him. ¡°Yes,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Good work... Thank you, everyone. Let¡¯s clean up and get some rest.¡± * * * Rosaline sat in the subventricr zone and thought. She didn¡¯t expect the ATP to spike so quickly. Most of the tissue in the subventricr zone was already dead. When she looked at it in Synchronization Mode, she definitely thought she had plenty of time to escape. ¡®When exploring the root of life, can something happen that even I can¡¯t predict?¡¯ Rosaline looked at the rapidly growing stem cells. ¡®Or did something happen to my powers because I absorbed the pathogen¡¯s DNA?¡¯ Rosaline stood up and sent Young-Joon a message. ¡°Ryu Young-Joon!¡± But he didn¡¯t respond. It seemed like their connection was severed. Rosaline took a closer look at the pathogen¡¯s DNA. DNA was thenguage of molecr biology. Like the code of aputer program, it contained key information about the encoded genes. Rosaline turned on the genes inside the DNA, then dropped them outside the cell. ¡®Oh.¡¯ Rosaline understood the situation and nodded. ¡®I wasn¡¯t wrong.¡¯ The difference between a fertilized egg and a stem cell was that stem cells were pluripotent, meaning that they could differentiate into any type of cell. However, imnting a stem cell in a woman¡¯s uterus did not result in a baby; a fertilized egg had more power. A fertilized egg was totipotent, not pluripotent. It could produce stem cells that could differentiate into all human cells, and it could also produce a centa. The centa was attached to the wall of the uterus and collected the mother¡¯s nutrients to feed it through the umbilical cord. The power to suck nutrients from the world was totipotence, and the DNA of the pathogen had this power. ¡®No wonder Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s body was destroyed because of this.¡¯ This was not a disease-causing pathogen, like a virus or bacteria, but a rampaging force that was absorbing the world¡¯s energy to create new life. The huge amount of energy was stored in the pathogen as ATP, which reacted when Rosaline entered the body. ¡®Because this DNA and the energy it contains were mine.¡¯ Now that Rosaline knew why this happened, she knew how to get out. Rosaline triggered the pathogen¡¯s genes. * * * ¡°Doctor Ryu?¡± Song Ji-Hyun was surprised to see Young-Joon. He had shown up to the Next Generation Hospital at thiste hour. And he had a stern expression on his face. ¡°You didn¡¯t leave yet, Doctor Song?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Yes... Something might happen to Kim Hyun-Taek while I¡¯m gone.¡± ¡°Nothing will happen at least until the morning. We¡¯re using an fMRI to measure cerebral blood flow, so it¡¯ll be okay,¡± Young-Joon said ¡°The medical staff at the hospital all went home except for the people on-call, so you can go home now.¡± ¡°Sure, but a little bitter,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. The two sat down next to the hospital bed where Kim Hyun-Taek was lying and remained silent for a while. ¡°It¡¯s ironic, isn¡¯t it?¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°What is?¡± ¡°Your demotion and legendary sess started when Kim Hyun-Taek destroyed Cellicure, and I was the developer of Cellicure. I think we were probably the two people who hated Kim Hyun-Taek the most in the world.¡± Song Ji-Hyun chuckled. ¡°But now, we¡¯re sitting here side by side, watching Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s progress. I find this situation weird and strange.¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joon nodded. ¡°The department I was in was the Life Creation Department. At first, I thought it was a really nerdy name. Creating life? It¡¯s like building castles in the air.¡± ¡°It is something that sounds more like religion than science,¡± Song Ji-Hyun replied. ¡°Looking back on it now, it seems like one huge metaphor, life creation or brain death.¡± Young-Joon said, ¡°Kim Hyun-Taek was just one of many viins in this industry. Science has been the servant of the powerful, working to fool the public and protect vested interests.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Recently, one of my teachers told me that anything with the word ¡®scientific¡¯ in it bes more credible, and it¡¯s true. In any case, the development of new technology advances civilization, but it only distributes the technology, not the science. The world has been missing a few screws for a long time, and it wasn¡¯t safe.¡± Young-Joon let out a small sigh. ¡°Doctor Ryu, you may think I¡¯m too obsessed with research ethics, but I think science without ethics is akin to brain death.¡± ¡°Yes..¡± ¡°And we¡¯ve been resurrecting it in the scientificmunity for a while. Just like how I made stem cells in the Life Creation Department, A-Bio or Celijenner may be the stem cells that will bring the scientificmunity back to life.¡± ¡°That¡¯s very metaphorical.¡± ¡°There¡¯s nothing more literary than science.¡± Young-Joon grinned. ¡°And I lost that symbol today.¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°My favorite friend disappeared today.¡± ¡°They disappeared?¡± ¡°They¡¯re missing. They were a really good person.¡± ¡°Oh...¡± Song Ji-Hyun was flustered. ¡°You did look depressed when you came in earlier.¡± ¡°Did I?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°... Doctor Song, could you bring me a warm cup of water?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Of course. Just a minute.¡± When Doctor Song stepped outside, Young-Joon stood up. He pulled out a sterilized iron canister from his pocket. Click. He opened the lid, and there was a fine needle inside. It was just the pin part of the syringe. Young-Joon picked it up and walked over to Kim Hyun-Taek. [Activate Synchronization Mode] Rosaline didn¡¯t reply since she disappeared, but the feature was alive and well. All he needed to do was stick the pin he had into the subventricr zone. If Rosaline was stuck there, he could pull her back out with this. ¡°...¡± Young-Joon¡¯s hand trembled. ¡®Was this a really good idea? Was this okay? Would this hurt Kim Hyun-Taek? Will the treatment fail?¡¯ All sorts of worries went through his mind. Rosaline was his savior who had helped him devotedly, and Kim Hyun-Taek was the viin who had demoted him to exile. Did it make sense to hesitate in this situation because he was worried about Kim Hyun-Taek? Especially when he was basically a corpse? ¡°...¡± Young-Joon¡¯s fingers were sweaty. He breathed heavily as he stared at the analyzed subventricr zone and the route leading to it in Synchronization Mode. tter. He finally put the needle down. This was against bioethics. Tears formed in Young-Joon¡¯s eyes. ¡°Sigh...¡± He took a deep breath. ¡®Rosaline is in a difficult situation, and I can¡¯t even help her?¡¯ Young-Joon clenched his fists tightly. ¡°Who¡¯s helping who?¡± ¡°Ack!¡± Young-Joon screamed and fell to the floor when he heard a voice from behind him. Rosaline was sitting in the guardian¡¯s chair, smiling cutely. ¡°Why... Why are you naked?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Because the clothes I¡¯ve been wearing are remnants of what Ryu Sae-Yi was wearing in your trauma.¡± Rosaline jumped out of the chair. Thud! They could hear the sound of a nine-year-old child¡¯s foot hitting the floor of the hospital room. ¡°Ahh!¡± Rosaline shuddered at the feeling. ¡°...¡± For a moment, Young-Joon¡¯s brain stopped working. Chapter 240: Brain Death (5)

Chapter 240: Brain Death (5)

¡°Are you surprised?¡± Rosaline asked. ¡°W... What happened? Are you... You¡¯re not a hallucination that only I can see...? You¡¯re real...¡± Young-Joon asked, stuttering in amazement. ¡°This body is a multicellr system that currently exists in the physical world right now,¡± Rosaline said. ¡°What the hell happened? Where did you pop out from?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t just pop out. I flowed out of Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s body, became trillions of cells and minerals, and floated around this room.¡± ¡°Trillions?¡± Nine-year-old Ryu Sae-Yi¡¯s body was made up of about eight trillion cells. You can create a human body like this if you concentrate them in one area, but you can¡¯t distinguish them with the human eye if you scatter the minerals at the atomic level and take the individual cells apart,¡± Rosaline said. ¡°I was capable of making a body like this a long time ago, but I wanted to surprise you. So, I¡¯ve been watching you a bit, and I wondered what you were going to do.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I can¡¯t believe you gave up on me.¡± Rosaline scolded Young-Joon yfully. ¡°I didn¡¯t give up on you. I was going to try to find another way.¡± ¡°I wasn¡¯t disappointed. I thought you reacted like yourself,¡± Rosaline said. ¡°And just so you know, I gathered the cells and glued them together, so it¡¯s hard to take them apart again.¡± ¡°You really scared the hell out of me... You could have at least given me a hint or something. Do you know how worried I was?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Haha, I¡¯m sorry. But the mystery of life is really quite strange. I¡¯ve never gone that deep before, so I¡¯m learning things for the first time, too.¡± Rosaline poked and pinched her wrists and knees with her fingers. ¡°It¡¯s all so new and exhrating.¡± ¡°So you¡¯re going to live in that body now?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Unfortunately, this is only temporary.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°There was a huge amount of ATP stored in Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s body.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°And it wasn¡¯t because of the drugs we injected him with. Look. Kim Hyun-Taek is a semi-dead body now, but he used to be in pretty good shape, even though he was full of cigarettes and alcohol and had a bit of a fatty liver. He weighed close to eighty kilograms.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°But now, he¡¯s only fifty. What do you think happened to the other thirty kilograms?¡± ¡°No way...¡± ¡°Yes. About ten kilograms were dposed and diffused by thews of thermodynamics, and the remaining twenty kilograms were being fed to another dimension via the centa and umbilical cord that formed when life was born.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about.¡± ¡°Life creation is in God¡¯s domain. It won¡¯t be easy to understand with a human mind, because even I didn¡¯t know it at first,¡± Rosaline said. ¡°The ATP that carried me up to the subventricr zone was only a tiny fraction of the total energy source. If the umted energy was a water tank, the energy that swept me away was only a cup of water, and I took out all the water from the water tank in Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s subventricr zone. It was a huge amount of fitness, and that¡¯s how I recreated this twenty-kilogram boy of Ryu Sae-Yi.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I created cells and minerals and blew them out of Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s body one by one. Then, I collected them outside and glued them together.¡± ¡°But why is that body temporary?¡± ¡°That is...¡± Rosaline brushed her arms. ¡°But is this what being cold is? There¡¯s a tingling sensation, the hairs on the surface of my skin are contracting, and the hardness of my epidermal cells is increasing.¡± ¡°... Probably is. I¡¯m sorry. I was in such a shock right now that I didn¡¯t pay attention.¡± Young-Joon took off his coat and put it on Rosaline. ¡°Eek...¡± The feeling of the coat made Rosaline shiver again. ¡°It¡¯s so slippery...¡± Rosaline rubbed the coat¡¯s lining curiously. She looked exactly like Ryu Sae-Yi, who was only nine years old. Young-Joon¡¯s coat was very big on her, so the bottom of the coat dragged all over the floor. ¡°Anyway, the reason my body is temporary is because it¡¯s created by fitness, which was created by absorbing a lot of ATP, simr to doping.¡± ¡°And over time, that body will disappear, just like the ATP-induced fitness that disappears over time?¡± ¡°Exactly. But conversely, it means I might have a stable body if I gather the fitness myself!¡± Rosaline shouted with a bright smile. ¡°...¡± ¡°The limit for my fitness disappeared as I absorbed the pathogen¡¯s DNA.¡± ¡°Then, doesn¡¯t that mean you can build a body right away?¡± ¡°Unfortunately, my fitness is slow to recover.¡± ¡°But your fitness will recover if you don¡¯t use fitness and sleep for a few days, right?¡± ¡°Haha, it¡¯s not that simple. Would you like to open the status window? It should open now.¡± Young-Joon opened the status window, and a shocking status appeared in front of him. [Rosaline Lv. 35] ¡ªMetastatic Status: Heart (9%), Liver (47%), Brain (9%), Kidney (15%), Spinal Cord (8%) ¡ªSynchronization: 24% ¡ªCell Fitness: 80 197 447 (+80 197 432.6 due to ATP) ¡°This is a crazy amount of fitness...¡± Young-Joon barely stopped himself from screaming in disbelief. Thest time he looked, it was just over ten. Now, it was over eighty million. ¡°I won¡¯t be able to maintain this body without that ATP. I¡¯ll probably just scatter and disappear again, like dust,¡± Rosaline said. ¡°... What happens then?¡± ¡°It will be the same as before. I¡¯ll live in your body, and I¡¯ll keep collecting fitness, like a savings ount. But it will take a very long time.¡± ¡°Then, can you still use the message window?¡± Young-Joon asked. Rosaline smiled and tilted her head slightly. ¡ªLike this? A message window popped up in front of Young-Joon¡¯s eyes. ¡°It works well.¡± Young-Joon let out a sigh of relief. Click! The door opened, and Song Ji-Hyun walked inside. ¡°I brought hot cocoa instead of water. Is this...¡± She stopped in her tracks. ¡°Huh...?¡± Then, she looked like she had all kinds of questions. Young-Joon swallowed nervously. ¡°Who is it?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked. ¡°Um... She¡¯s a distant rtive,¡± Young-Joon said, scratching his head. ¡°I see. I was surprised to see a little kid wrapped up in your coat.¡± ¡°She said she was cold, so...¡± Young-Joon tightened the coat on Rosaline more carefully. Song Ji-Hyun set the cup of cocoa down on the table. ¡°She looks a lot like you, Doctor Ryu.¡± ¡°Haha... My family¡¯s genes are quite strong, but do we really look that simr?¡± Young-Joon asked Song Ji-Hyun, ncing at Rosaline. ¡°Of course. At first, I thought she was your secret daughter or something, but I¡¯m d she¡¯s not. What a relief.¡± ¡°A relief?¡± Rosaline asked. ¡°Oh, it¡¯s just that... Because the reporters might make a scandal out of it...¡± Song Ji-Hyuk said, brushing her hand through her hair. ¡°It¡¯s Doctor Song, right?¡± Rosaline asked. Song Ji-Hyun looked surprised again. ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s Song Ji-Hyun. What¡¯s your name?¡± ¡°It¡¯s Rosaline.¡± Rosaline held out her hand and shook hands with Song Ji-Hyun. As Rosaline shook her hand, she sent Young-Joon a message. ¡ªThis is how you do it, right? ¡®Yeah.¡¯ ¡ªThis is exhrating. I can¡¯t believe I¡¯m talking to Doctor Song myself. This is cool. Rosaline seemed excited. ¡°I¡¯ve heard a lot about you, Doctor Song. It¡¯s so nice to meet you in person. How have you been?¡± Rosaline¡¯s voice was full of confidence. Young-Joon, who was about to take a sip of the cocoa, almost burnt the roof of his mouth. ¡°Oh, you sound like a grown-up doing business. You speak so well.¡± Song Ji-Hyunughed in amusement. But it was difficult tough at what Rosaline said next. ¡°Of course, Doctor Song. you have less cross-linking of cogen molecules in the skin of your fingers than Ryu Young-Joon, so it feels more like the lining of this coat. And your hands are a little cold. I don¡¯t think it¡¯s an illness, but you could use a little more blood flow to your fingertips.¡± ¡°...¡± Song Ji-Hyun froze, and Young-Joon sighed inside, putting his hand on his forehead. ¡®No, that¡¯s not it...¡¯ Young-Joon said to Rosaline in his head. ¡ªWas it a little awkward? I thought it would be okay since Doctor Song is a scientist, too. As you know, I¡¯ve only ever had conversations like this. Rosaline shrugged with a smile on her face. ¡®Usually, kids your age don¡¯t talk like that. It probably looked really awkward.¡¯ ¡ªI don¡¯t have to be like kids, right? Just Song Ji-Hyun needs to understand what I¡¯m saying. Will there be a problem with the conversation if I don¡¯t sound like a kid? ¡®No, but... It¡¯s going to be difficult to exin about you to Doctor Song.¡¯ Young-Joon made up an excuse for Song Ji-Hyun, who was still flustered. ¡°She¡¯s very smart, haha. But she¡¯s just saying things she memorized from TV.¡± ¡°I see.¡± Song Ji-Hyun calmed herself down. ¡°Rosaline, how old are you?¡± Rosaline thought carefully about her answer. Right now, she was born less than two years ago, so she was technically one year old. However, Ryu Sae-Yi¡¯s body was about nine years old by human standards. Pointing to her body, Rosaline said, ¡°This body is nine years old right now.¡± She looked at Young-Joon like a puppy looking for praise, as if she was proud of her wise answer. But Song Ji-Hyun took the awkward sentence differently andughed. ¡°I see. Rosaline, you have the same name as my favorite scientist. Are you from overseas? You have a unique hair color,¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked. ¡°No.¡± ¡°She¡¯s from the United States...¡± Rosaline and Young-Joon answered simultaneously withpletely opposite answers. Young-Joon nced at Rosaline, then spoke quickly. ¡°Her father is American, and she was born in the United States. She lived there her entire life. It¡¯s a globalized world, right?¡± Young-Joon smiled awkwardly. ¡ªIs this okay? Rosaline intervened. ¡®Pretend you¡¯re not good at Korean, so I can cover up your mistakes,¡¯ Young-Joon said. ¡°I see.¡± Song Ji-Hyun grabbed a chair and sat in front of them. ¡°So, what brings her to the hospital at this hour?¡± ¡°Um...¡± After some hesitation, Young-Joon responded. ¡°I¡¯m watching her for a little bit. But there was no one at home to watch her, so I brought her here.¡± ¡°Then where was she when you came in here earlier...¡± ¡°Can I have this?¡± Rosaline interrupted, cutting Song Ji-Hyun off. Rosaline gestured to the cocoa. ¡°Oh...¡± Song Ji-Hyun nced at Young-Joon, flustered. Young-Joon nodded. ¡°Sure.¡± Young-Joon took a closer look at the cocoa once Young-Joon gave her permission. ¡°Oh my god. What vending machine is this from? They didn¡¯t change the filter. There are sugar impurities and bacteria in the solution...¡± ¡°Ack!¡± Young-Joon jumped up to his feet. ¡°I just remembered something urgent... I¡¯ll be on my way. You should get home, too, Doctor Song.¡± Young-Joon picked up Rosaline in his arms and opened the door. ¡ªWhat are you doing? ¡®Let¡¯s go home first.¡¯ Something was definitely going to happen if they stayed. Young-Joon was sure of it. Young-Joon waved goodbye to Song Ji-Hyun and hurried out. Song Ji-Hyun stared at Rosaline, who was being carried out by Young-Joon. ¡®What a strange girl.¡¯ Song Ji-Hyun wished she could have talked to them more, but she waved goodbye. ¡°Take care.¡± * * * Carpentier visited the hospital room early in the morning. He was with Professor Miguel. They checked the cerebral blood flow records from the fMRI, and there was a huge amount of blood flow in the medu. This was the same progression as the beagles from the preclinical experiments. ¡°I¡¯ll call Doctor Ryu. I think the cardiopulmonary function has returned,¡± Miguel said. Chapter 241: Brain Death (6)

Chapter 241: Brain Death (6)

Carpentier called Young-Joon, but he didn¡¯t answer. ¡°He¡¯s not picking up.¡± Carpentier scratched his head. ¡°It is pretty early. Maybe he hasn¡¯te to work yet,¡± Miguel said. ¡°Alright. In that case, let¡¯s save the data in the fMRI now and report back to Doctor Ryuter.¡± ¡°We have to be careful with removing the life support devices before we transnt the heart and lungs anyway,¡± Miguel said. ¡°Yes. A-GenBio is probably making the artificial heart and lungs right now. Once they¡¯re ready, we¡¯ll proceed ording to your clinical opinion. Let¡¯s report the fMRI data to Mr. Ryu first, get his approval, then...¡± Carpentier said. Creak. The door to the hospital room opened. Park Dong-Hyun and Jung Hae-Rim from the Life Creation Team walked inside. ¡°Oh, I didn¡¯t expect anyone else to be here,¡± Park Dong-Hyun said. ¡°You¡¯re here early,¡± Carpentier said, greeting them with a smile. ¡°Of course. We¡¯re here to check the fMRI. Soon-Yeol, Principal Cheon, and Lead Bae areing up right now.¡± ¡°So, we¡¯re waiting for Doctor Song and Mr. Ryu?¡± Carpentier asked. ¡°Doctor Song stayed up all night, so she went home to wash up. Mr. Ryu isn¡¯ting today,¡± Jung Hae-Rim said. ¡°He¡¯s noting?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± There was a moment of silence. Carpentier looked at the two of them like he didn¡¯t understand. ¡°Am I not understanding something because my Korean isn¡¯t good enough?¡± ¡°He¡¯s noting today,¡± Park Dong-Hyun said in English. ¡°Wait, why? Is something wrong?¡± Carpentier asked. ¡°Well, to my surprise, our CEO took the day off. Some of the executives are jokingly talking about making today apany anniversary¡± the Presidential Vacation Day...¡± ¡°At this time? When we¡¯re trying to bring a brain-dead person back to life?¡± ¡°I think he sent out an email this morning to the people working on this project. I think I saw your email address, too, Doctor Carpentier.¡± ¡°I should check my inbox.¡± ¡°He basically said to proceed independently in ordance with Doctor Miguel¡¯s opinion. He said that we don¡¯t have to check in with him since Doctor Carpentier is running this project. He also wrote us the clinical procedure afterwards. He says to do a heart and lung transnt first, then remove life support, which will put him in a vegetative state. And after that... Well, we wait.¡± Park Dong-Hyun shrugged. ¡°But howe our CEO used his day off? From what I remember, he worked on Christmas and Chuseok[1], too.¡± ¡°He¡¯s a workaholic and a real scientist obsessed with research. But today, I don¡¯t know...¡± Park Dong-Hyun tilted his head in confusion. ¡°He said something important came up and to not look for him today.¡± * ¡°Wake up.¡± Rosaline, who was standing beside Young-Joon, poked him in the shoulder. ¡°Ah... Um, just ten more minutes. I barely slept yesterday,¡± Young-Joon mumbled, half-asleep. Then, a message popped up in front of his eyes, even though they were closed. [280% Overexpression of Cortisol] ¡°It¡¯s a stimnt hormone released from the adrenal cortex. It activates the sympathetic nervous system and puts you in a state of alertness. It has very little effect on the body, and it¡¯s a wake-up pill that is secreted in the morning. You¡¯re not sleepy anymore, right?¡± Rosaline asked. ¡°You really are...¡± Slowly opening his eyes, Young-Joon chuckled as he saw Rosaline¡¯s cheeky smile. ¡°You act just like Sae-Yi.¡± He patted Rosaline¡¯s head. ¡°She also used toe to my bed on the weekends and wake me up with her chatter.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t have a lot of time,¡± Rosaline said. ¡°I know. I¡¯m sorry.¡± Young-Joon sat up. ¡°But it¡¯s because you bothered me so muchst night that I couldn¡¯t sleep.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± Young-Joon stretched and stood up. ¡°Let me get cleaned up, then we¡¯ll go out. You¡¯ll behave yourself today, right?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± The night had been hell. Even the ride home was not easy. Rosaline made a fuss about how her ears were plugged as they took the elevator down to the underground parking lot at A-GenBio. ¡°This is caused by the eardrum retracting inward as the increased pressure in the outer ear exerts a force against the middle ear, where the pressure is rtively low. The eustachian tube has to open to regte the pressure. The human body has such an interesting system.¡± ¡°Sure...¡± ¡°Can I push the elevator button?¡± Rosaline asked. ¡°I already pressed the button for the fifth floor of the basement. The car is parked there.¡± ¡°No, the other buttons.¡± ¡°... No.¡± Rosaline was a little disappointed, but she pushed the open button repeatedly when she got to the fifth floor of the basement. Then, she screamed when Young-Joon sat her down in the passenger seat. ¡°Ah!¡± she said. ¡°I think I¡¯ve mentioned this a couple of times in my messages before, but there are some organicpounds in this car that are a bit harmful to humans, like formaldehyde from the preservative-treated leather seats and ethyl benzene from the adhesives in the stic material and safety ss. You have to get this smell out.¡± ¡°Al... Alright...¡± ¡°I could do some simple chemistry myself to get it out, but I don¡¯t want to do it because I need to save my fitness. Do you mind if I open the window?¡± ¡°Sure.¡± Then, Rosaline opened the window. She stared at the window, which lowered with a mechanical sound as she pressed the button. ¡°Hehe.¡± Then, she began to y with the window, opening and closing it. ¡°Is it cool?¡± ¡°Well, not the window itself; that¡¯s kind of just an engineering thing, but it¡¯s fun,¡± Rosaline said. ¡°It¡¯s cool that my finger is pushing a button in this physical world to move a window.¡± ¡°Yeah?¡± ¡°If you could cruise around other gxies in a space probe the size of a, or get warm beside the Sun like it was a bonfire, you would do it all day.¡± Rosaline bucked and unbuckled her seatbelt about fifteen times, and she made a scratch in the leather seat with her fingernails and other tools. It was dawn when Young-Joon returned to his apartment after a whole lot of suffering. He first checked to see if anyone was home. His parents were still traveling, and Ryu Ji-Won was sleeping over at a friend¡¯s house. ¡®What a relief.¡¯ He didn¡¯t have the words or the strength to exin Ryu Sae-Yi, who had returned with red hair. ¡°I know my mom didn¡¯t throw Sae-Yi¡¯s clothes away. I think she takes them out sometimes.¡± Young-Joon pulled Ryu Sae-Yi¡¯s old clothes out of the closet. Rosaline¡¯s jaw dropped. ¡°Can I try them all on?¡± ¡°Yeah, but don¡¯t make a mess.¡± Young-Joon gave her the clothes and went into the bathroom to take a shower. That was the mistake. When he came back, the front of the closet was a warzone. ¡°Why did you take out Ji-Won¡¯s old swimsuit...¡± Even with all those clothes scattered on the floor, Rosaline was wearing nothing. She was naked, jumping on the bed like a trampoline. ¡°Whoo!¡± ¡°You...¡± Young-Joon felt a little dizzy. He brought Rosaline inside, teaching her that she had to wear at least some clothes, even inside the house. ¡°Fine,¡± Rosaline answered half-heartedly, then ran into the washroom. Then, she turned the dry washroom into a waterpark. ¡°Oh my god...¡± The hot water even burned Rosaline. ¡°I got a burn on my shoulder,¡± she said, pointing to her shoulder. ¡°I turned the faucet and the hot water just spilled out.¡± ¡°But why are you smiling so much?¡± ¡°It was so fun. The feeling of water sshing was... It¡¯s a whole new world.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not going to treat it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s only a first-degree burn anyway. It¡¯s red and aching a little, but it doesn¡¯t really hurt that much. In fact, I¡¯d like to keep feeling this pain.¡± ¡°... Then, let¡¯s get some ointment on it and stop the heat.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± Young-Joon brought some ointment and an ice bag and sat down beside Rosaline. ¡°It¡¯s going to be a bit cold.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± Rosaline¡¯s shoulder was petite and soft. ¡°Now that I see you, you¡¯re pretty skinny.¡± ¡°I copied Ryu Sae-Yi¡¯s body type.¡± ¡°Well, she was sick.¡± Young-Joon gently rubbed the ointment into Rosaline¡¯s shoulder. ¡°You like having a body?¡± ¡°I love it.¡± ¡°How long do you think it willst?¡± ¡°The ATP doping willst three days at most,¡± Rosaline said. ¡°It¡¯ll probably disappear without a trace by the end of this weekend.¡± ¡°Hm.¡± ¡°It will take a long time to build my next body, and even longer if I use Synchronization Mode or Simtion for new experiments. I won¡¯t tell you to save your fitness because you¡¯re important to me, too.¡± ¡°... What do you want to do most with that body?¡± ¡°Hm.¡± Rosaline thought for a moment. ¡°I want to go to school.¡± ¡°School?¡± ¡°I want to see how humans build and reproduce knowledge. And I¡¯m curious about what children this age study.¡± ¡°You¡¯ll be really bored if you take those sses. And what did the teacher teaching you science do wrong?¡± Young-Joon said,ughing. ¡°But I still want to go.¡± ¡°But there¡¯s no way you can go to school in three days, and... Is there anything you want to do this time in particr?¡± ¡°What do I want to do?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s spend the whole day tomorrow doing whatever you want to do.¡± Rosaline¡¯s head snapped toward him. ¡°Really? Tomorrow? What about Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s clinical trial?¡± ¡°Our scientists are not ordinary people. Even if I¡¯m not there for a day, they can handle a clinical trial that¡¯s quite far along in its trajectory. And thepany... I can ask Director Kim and Pak Joo-Hyuk to take care of it,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°As for the trial, I¡¯ll have to write them an email to let them know how to proceed.¡± ¡°Yay!¡± Rosaline eximed, jumping to her feet. ¡°So, where do you want to go?¡± ¡°Let me think about it!¡± ¡°We can go to two or three ces. I¡¯m going to use my vacation day tomorrow,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I¡¯ll help you write an email, and I¡¯ll send some cells to Kim Hyun-Taek right now to see how he¡¯s doing,¡± Rosaline said. * Carpentier read the mail slowly. Young-Joon was being a prophet again. ¡ªTo Doctor Carpentier. Around eight in the morning, the fMRI will show an increase in cerebral blood flow in the medu area, with the processing value of the BOLD (Blood Oxygenation Level Dependent Signal) exceeding 7.5. ¡®My god...¡¯ Carpentier clicked his tongue. Chills ran down his spine because Young-Joon was correct. ¡ªLife support can normally be removed at this point. However, in Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s case, I think it will be better if a heart and lung transnt is done first. ¡ªDoctor Hwang Yoon-Sung¡¯s physical examination indicates acute myocardial injury with a sharply elevated cTn. He also indicated acute ischemia, regional wall motion abnormalities, and coronary thrombosis. He also had pulmonary arterial hypertension and emphysema due to this, which is why he requires both a heart and lung transnt. Carpenter wrote back to Young-Joon. ¡ªThe team is currently de-differentiating Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s somatic cells and differentiating them into the heart and lungs. They¡¯ll probably be done tomorrow morning, at which point we¡¯ll perform the transnt, take him off life support, and monitor his progress. * ¡°He was already pronounced dead because his heart and lungs were on the verge of death and his whole brain function was gone,¡± Young-Joon said on the way out of the house. ¡°It must be a lot of pressure for Professor Carpentier to be the one in charge of bringing him back to life. All they have to do today is just a few simple treatments, but I still feel bad.¡± ¡°He¡¯ll do well, don¡¯t worry,¡± Rosaline said. ¡°Of course he will. Carpentier is a Nobel Prize recipient, and we have the best surgeon in the world, Professor Miguel. The Life Creation Team is the best at making artificial organs in the world, and we even have Doctor Song, who was better than the old Rosaline.¡± ¡°Exactly!¡± ¡°So where should we go?¡± ¡°I want to go to theb,¡± Rosaline said. 1. Chuseok is an autumn festival simr to Thanksgiving ? Chapter 242: Brain Death (7)

Chapter 242: Brain Death (7)

¡°Theb?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Yes,¡± Rosaline replied. ¡°... I thought you were going to say something like a zoo or an amusement park?¡± ¡°Well, I really want to go there, too. But I want to go to theb, hold a pipette, and do cell experiments myself,¡± Rosaline said. ¡°Since I¡¯ve only done experiments indirectly through you.¡± ¡°You¡¯ve had control of my hands, though.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t know what that feels like. It just feels like controlling a robot with a joystick, not actually controlling your own body,¡± Rosaline said. ¡°I controlled your body when you were unconscious from a car ident before, but I wasn¡¯t impressed.¡± ¡°I see.¡± Young-Joon nodded. ¡°And there¡¯s something I want to check in theb.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°Why did the creation of life only happen in your hands?¡± Rosaline said. ¡°Elsie and Doctor Ref said they failed, right? I thought life creation had something to do with your obsessive sense of ethics, and Elsie said something simr recently.¡± ¡°But...¡± ¡°No. Do you honestly think your obsession with bioethics is humanlyprehensible? You even tried to give me up instead of sticking a pin inside Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s nose.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t give up. I was just trying to find another way,¡± Young-Joon said apologetically. ¡°I¡¯m not ming you. I knew you would do that. Your obsession with morality, especially for bioethics, is almost pathological and certainly far above the norm for humans. If that has some sort of gic basis, and if that¡¯s what led to my creation, it exins everything.¡± ¡°Wait a minute.¡± Young-Joon cleared his throat. ¡°When you say gics, you mean there¡¯s like a morality gene or something?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± It had long been suggested that there were genes in the human body that regted morality. And certain research groups in biology had been studying it for a while. They took monks and other respected teachers from various religious groups to analyze their genes and find out what made them different from the average person. Unsurprisingly, these attempts were often criticized at the hypothesis stage. ¡°Morality is gic, it¡¯s social,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°For example, some viges in India think it¡¯s immoral for widows to eat fish. But in other parts of the world, it¡¯s not. Morality is a reflection of the culture of each region and time period.¡± ¡°Genes don¡¯t determine the details,¡± Rosaline said. ¡°But the propensity to choose a learned code of ethics over immediate gain in a moment of moral crisis leans heavily on gics.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Because it¡¯s our genes that mold much of our personality.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°There¡¯s a disease called Williams-Beuren Syndrome. People with this disease are overly friendly to other people and don¡¯t shy away from strangers at all. They¡¯re incredibly sociable, even though they have a slight decrease in intelligence and problems with their health and appearance,¡± Rosaline said. ¡°The cause of this disease lies in a mutation on chromosome seven.¡± ¡°Hm...¡± ¡°And empathy is also determined by how much GABA[1]is released by the SST inhibitory neurons in the anterior cingte cortex. If this doesn¡¯t work well, you be a psychopath. Conversely, if you fix it, a psychopath can gain empathy,¡± Rosaline said. ¡°Compassion, altruism, and the ability to self-reflect are all deeply rooted in genes. And morality, of course, is heavily influenced by that.¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joon thought for a moment, confused. ¡°Do you know the location of those genes in the DNA?¡± he asked. ¡°It¡¯s not caused by a single gene, but by the interaction of more than two hundred genes. It¡¯s soplicated that we¡¯ve never been able to find it with such little fitness, even in Synchronization Mode.¡± ¡°But now that your fitness is eighty million, you can find it?¡± ¡°No, then I¡¯ll be using too much fitness. I¡¯m going to save it, and that¡¯s why I want to experiment,¡± Rosaline said. * Young-Joon chose the Life Creation Department for Rosaline¡¯sb. It was for two reasons: one was that it was a meaningful ce to her because she was created there, and the other was that theb was still empty. He could walk around with Rosaline and not disturb people or draw attention. But still, there was nothing Young-Joon could do about drawing attention to himself at the entrance to theb. ¡®I¡¯m probably the only CEO who is crazy enough to go to thepany on his day off. I¡¯ll be bad-mouthed by my employees for this.¡¯ Young-Joon held Rosaline¡¯s hand and walked into theb. The employees at the entrance stared at him with wide eyes. Then, they began to approach him, one by one. ¡°Sir!¡± ¡°Sir?¡± ¡°I thought you weren¡¯ting in today...¡± ¡°Wait, you used your vacation day to not do your duties as the CEO ande to Lab Six instead?¡± The employees at Lab Six stared at him in disbelief. ¡°Haha... I just dropped by for a visit. Don¡¯t mind me, and continue with what you were doing.¡± The employees also took an interest in Rosaline. ¡°Who is she?¡± ¡°Is she your daughter? She looks just like you.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not married. She¡¯s a rtive from the United States.¡± Young-Joon smiled awkwardly and went inside, holding Rosaline¡¯s hand. ¡°Oh, Mr. Ryu!¡± shouted someone from above, rushing down the stairs. It was Gil Hyung-Joon, the director of Lab Six. ¡°What brings you here all of a sudden and without any notice... We didn¡¯t prepare anything to wee you.¡± Gil Hyung-Joon was very confused. Usually, he would go to the headquarters to meet with Young-Joon for theb director meeting. Young-Joon rarely came to theb, and when he did, he usually called ahead. In his head, Gil Hyung-Joon was quickly counting the number ofb safety vitions that were present right now. They were probably breaking small rules that were easy to break, such as not storing ss reagent bottles on high shelves. Normally, they would do a full inspection and hide or move things around when an audit came up, but they didn¡¯t have the time for that this time. Plus, Young-Joon was scarier than an audit. ¡°I-I heard you had a day off...¡± ¡°I did, but there¡¯s an experiment I want to do. It¡¯s a simple one. I was thinking about where to do it, and I thought that the oldb for the Life Creation Department would be empty. Can I use it?¡± ¡°Sure... Are you just going to be inside?¡± ¡°Yeah. Don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t look around theb or anything,¡± Young-Joon said with a smile. Gil Hyung-Joon was finally able to rx. ¡°But who¡¯s the kid beside you?¡± he asked. ¡°She¡¯s my niece. She wanted to look around thepany.¡± * Young-Joon came into the Life Creation Department¡¯sb with Rosaline. ¡°You don¡¯t know what this ce feels like to me,¡± Rosaline said as she heated up some cell culture medium. Most of the samples were discarded or transferred as the Life Creation Team moved to A-GenBio headquarters, but theb still had memories of that time. Thick data sheets rolled in the drawers, and unused cell lines sat idle in the deep freezer. ¡°Does it feel like home?¡± ¡°Kind of.¡± ¡°It¡¯s nice toe back.¡± This is where Young-Joon was transferred, where Rosaline was born, and where Kim Hyun-Taek copsed. ¡°We still have the liquid nitrogen. Do you want to see it? They¡¯re the cells that couldn¡¯t be you.¡± Young-Joon pulled out an iron rack out of the liquid nitrogen tank. Inside were sample boxes containing numerous Rosaline experiments. [Rosaline v1.1] [Rosaline v1.12] [Rosaline v1.2] ... ¡°It¡¯s weird seeing them like this,¡± Rosaline said. Then, she took out a small needle from the shelf. ¡°Shall we begin?¡± She nced at Young-Joon as she shook the needle. He held out his arm, and she drew some blood. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t believe a day hase where you¡¯re doing experiments on me, Rosaline.¡± ¡°My ancestors in the liquid nitrogen tank must be shocked.¡± Rosaline centrifuged the blood and carefully transferred and collected the blood cells that had settled to the bottom. ¡°A-GenBio is working on a genome sequencing project of one hundred million people, right?¡± Rosaline said. ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°If wepare the average from them with your morality genes, there will be a huge difference in expression and the pattern. You have a mutation in those genes,¡± Rosaline said. ¡°We¡¯ll be able to get a rough idea of where those genes are if we trace them.¡± She took some of her own cells and spread them on the bottom of a petri dish, set up a semi-permeable membrane, and ced Young-Joon¡¯s blood cells on top ¡®Transwell co-culture assay.¡¯ Young-Joon knew what Rosaline¡¯s experimental setup was. It¡¯s one of the experimental methods used to determine the rtionship between two cells. Under this setup, the substances secreted by Young-Joon were transferred to Rosaline¡¯s cells. ¡°I¡¯m going to manipte a small group of candidate morality genes in your cells that are isted at the top of this dish. They are loci that significantly differed from the average data of the genome project. If those genes are essential for my birth and survival, then messing with them will change the substance your cells release, which will make my cells worse.¡± ¡°Is it okay to use fitness to manipte genes?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Testing all two hundred genes in Simtion Mode would be a huge fitness drain, but setting up a real-world experiment like this and changing the expression of the genes slightly is fine,¡± Rosaline said. Then, she began to manipte groups of genes in Young-Joon¡¯s cells in small increments. * At the Next Generation Hospital on the next morning, a major operation that was rescuing the person who was closest to death was beginning. The members of the Life Creation Team brought the artificial heart and lungs. The standard of death was cardiopulmonary and brain death; they were going to rece both the heart and the lungs, the two key elements, and revive the dead brainstem. Ten people were involved in the transnt surgery, including nurses and two professors of cardiothoracic surgery. The medical team looked a little nervous. Young-Joon arrived at the operating room a littlete. He was watching the operation through a monitor outside. ¡®I can really use Synchronization Mode, right?¡¯ Young-Joon asked Rosaline. ¡ªOf course. Watching surgery for a couple of hours doesn¡¯t consume that much fitness. ¡®Don¡¯t cause any problems while I¡¯m gone.¡¯ Rosaline was in the hospital director¡¯s office right now. She didn¡¯t need anyone else¡¯s protection, but he couldn¡¯t leave her alone or bring her into the operating room. ¡ªBut I broke a nt pot. ¡®Oh...¡¯ ¡ªBut the director said it was okay. Don¡¯t worry. ¡®I don¡¯t think it¡¯s okay.¡¯ ¡°Let¡¯s begin,¡± said Professor Kang Sung-Guk, the surgeon leading the operation, from inside the operating room. Young-Joon turned on Synchronization Mode. 1. Gamma-aminobutyric acid is a type of neurotransmitter ? Chapter 243: Brain Death (8)

Chapter 243: Brain Death (8)

The scalpel made a cut through the chest, and they inserted a double-lumen endotracheal tube for independent venttion of both lungs. In a total pneumonectomy, it was important to be mindful of damaging the phrenic nerve and the glossopharyngeal nerve. Professor Kang Sung-Guk carefully cut the inferior pulmonary ligament. He felt confused in many ways, even while performing the surgery. Kim Hyun-Taek was not just medically and legally deceased; Kang Sung-Guk also thought of him as deceased. It felt like he was practicing on a cadaver with his students rather than opening up a person to treat them. ¡®Can he really be revived?¡¯ Kang Sung-Guk performed a total lung resection while maintaining lung venttion. He took out the artificial lung that A-GenBio made for transntation. These lungs, which were being stored in dry ice, were fresh, but not anymore. They had to work fast now that it was out of the styrofoam box. They positioned the artificial lung in the posterior chest cavity and anastomosed the bronchus using the intussusception method. Now, it was time to transnt the heart. The aorta, superior vena cava, and inferior vena cava were cannted and connected to the cardio-pulmonary bypass. The same arteries and veins were blocked to prevent blood supply to the heart. Then, the heart was harvested by cutting the superior vena cava, aorta, pulmonary artery, and then the inferior vena cava. The left atrium was left intact. This was because the procedure was an orthopedic heart transntation, where the artificial heart was transnted while anastomosing the left atrium. A-GenBio¡¯s artificial heart was ced in the cavity and each blood vessel was reopened. This difficult surgery took eight whole hours. Performing a heart-lung transnt simultaneously was not an easy task, even for experienced doctors. Even observing the operation for that long was difficult, so the stress and exhaustion of the medical staff performing the operation was unimaginable. Young-Joon could feel that everyone was getting tired toward the end of the surgery. Young-Joon could see these incredible tasks on a much smaller scale. ¡®They seeded.¡¯ ¡ªDid they? Rosaline read his thoughts and sent him a message. ¡®They don¡¯t know yet, but they did.¡¯ The sinoatrial node of the transnted right atrium received a message from the revived brainstem. The epinephrine that had been pumped into the vein the moment the blood vessel was opened had ordered the node to beat. ¡°We¡¯re done,¡± Kang Sung-Guk said. ¡°Let¡¯s keep him on intubation and the venttor. He still has an IABP (intra-aortic balloon pump), which we¡¯ll remove tomorrow.¡± His voice was filled with exhaustion. ¡°Good work,¡± Young-Joon said to Kang Sung-Guk and the medical staff who wereing out of the operating room. ¡°Well, thank you,¡± Kang Sung-Guk said. ¡°But Doctor Ryu, to be honest, I don¡¯t have much hope that he wille back to life.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°Well, we did our best, but... As a doctor, treating a patient feels different from dissecting a cadaver. And to be honest... this patient feels like thetter,¡± Kang Sung-Guk said. ¡°Of course, I¡¯m not saying this based on medical evidence; it¡¯s just my personal opinion from experience. Your reputation will take a hit if it fails, so you should brace yourself.¡± Young-Joon smiled faintly. ¡°Thank you for your concern,¡± he said. ¡°When are you thinking of removing the venttor?¡± ¡°That¡¯s for you to decide, Doctor Ryu. We¡¯ll remove the rest within two days, but the respiratory device is thest thing keeping the brain-dead patient¡¯s body alive.¡± ¡°Then let¡¯s remove the respiratory device on the second day as well,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Alright.¡± ¡°You and the medical staff¡¯s hard work today will be rewarded.¡± ¡°Rewarded?¡± Kang Sung-Guk scratched his head, puzzled. ¡°Doctor Ryu, I am a doctor at the Next Generation Hospital, and I get paid a sry. You don¡¯t have topensate me for the clinical trial.¡± ¡°Not a mary reward,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡° In six days from now, next Wednesday, that patient will regain consciousness.¡± * Lee In-Ju, the hospital director of the Next Generation Hospital, was having a bit of trouble because of the guest in her office: the child Young-Joon left here. ¡°She¡¯s my niece, but I don¡¯t have anyone to take care of her right now. Can she stay here until the surgery is over?¡± Young-Joon asked. Lee In-Ju wanted to decline because he wasn¡¯t confident in taking care of a kid, but this was Young-Joon, and he was the owner of the Next Generation Hospital. Young-Joon wasn¡¯t involved in running the hospital, and he didn¡¯t own any shares either. However, the hospital was established with donations from a public welfare foundation, and the owner of that foundation was A-GenBio. And since Young-Joon was the owner of A-GenBio, he was basically the owner of the Next Generation Hospital. Plus, the Next Generation Hospital was where the incredible new technologies pouring out from A-GenBio were first applied. Amazed by this, talented doctors from all over the world flocked to this hospital to train and share their knowledge. Eventually, the reputation of this hospital, which was armed with new technology, state-of-the-art equipment, and experienced medical professors, grew rapidly. Now that there was talk of bringing someone back from the dead, Lee In-Ju had too much leaning on Young-Joon as a business partner. ¡°Yes, of course! My grandchild is about her age. What¡¯s your name?¡± ¡°Rosaline,¡± Rosaline replied. ¡°You can stay with me until Doctor Ryu is done working, okay?¡± Lee In-Ju said with a friendly smile on his face. That was the beginning of unfortunate events. This pretty child broke a flower pot in the first ten minutes, and she was extremely distracted. She wanted to touch almost everything in the room. She even got her hands on Lee In-Ju¡¯s e-cigarette and lighter. ¡°Can you just sit still for a minute...?¡± Lee In-Ju pleaded as he took the lighter from Rosaline. ¡°I only made a mistake with the flower pot earlier because I didn¡¯tprehend the weight of it. Don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t vandalize your office anymore.¡± ¡°...¡± The words Rosaline used weren¡¯t normal for a nine-year-old, and she didn¡¯t sound like one either. She didn¡¯t shoot out scientific knowledge like a machine gun as Young-Joon had warned her beforehand, but that was the limit. It was difficult for Rosaline to portray the immaturity of a nine-year-old. ¡®I know Doctor Ryu said she was his niece, but where did he get this weirdo from?¡¯ Lee In-Ju sighed inside. But even in this distracting environment, he had to continue working. Knock knock! Someone came into his office with a knock. ¡°Hello, Doctor.¡± An exotic-looking man with a beard walked in. ¡°Hello, it¡¯s been a long time, Yassir.¡± Lee In-Ju greeted him like he was happy to see him. ¡°Even though ourpany has gotten much bigger, I¡¯m here again because there aren¡¯t many good English speakers,¡± said the man, stroking his beard. His name was Yassir, and he was a salesperson and scientist at Philistines, a pharmaceuticalpany in Egypt. He often came to the Next Generation Hospital to make some supply agreements for a few pharmaceuticals. He couldn¡¯t speak Korean, but it didn¡¯t matter as Lee In-Ju was fluent in English. ¡°It¡¯s been a while, like six months? But I see you have a guest,¡± Yassir said, ncing at Rosaline. ¡°She¡¯s very cute. Is she your granddaughter?¡± ¡°No, she¡¯s a rtive of Doctor Ryu. He asked me to babysit her for a little.¡± ¡°A rtive?¡± Yassir tilted his head in puzzlement. He stared at her quietly. ¡°You¡¯re here to make a supply agreement, right?¡± asked Lee In-Ju. ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right.¡± Yassir walked over to the sofa and sat down. ¡°It¡¯s time we renew the agreement for Medivoto, the botulinum toxin type A that we sell.¡± Yassir took out the documents from his bag. ¡°It must have been tiring toe all this way. How long did it take you to get here from Egypt?¡± Lee In-Ju asked as he read the documents. ¡°It took about eighteen hours to get here from Cairo, with ayover in Abu Dhabi,¡± Yassir replied. ¡°Thank you foring here. I wish A-GenBio could produce Medivoto as well,¡± Lee In-Ju said as he read the paperwork. ¡°Haha, don¡¯t say that. Then what¡¯s a small pharmaceuticalpany like us to do?¡± ¡°Such humble words,¡± Lee In-Ju said, chuckling. ¡°It was only four years ago that Allergon, the U.S. pharmaceuticalpany, controlled ny percent of the botulinum toxin market. But now it¡¯s down to less than half, thanks to Medivoto being produced in Egypt. You took their market shares.¡± ¡°We got lucky,¡± Yassir said, chuckling along. ¡°There aren¡¯t manypanies that have the technology to mass produce botulinum toxins type A and B at this level of purity. You¡¯ve only been in business for a short time, and you already have this much output, which means you have pretty impressive technology. Even if you do other things, yourpany... Um...¡± ¡°Philistine.¡± ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right, haha. I¡¯m getting forgetful these days because I¡¯m old. I¡¯m sure Philistine will seed in whatever they do now, like the next A-GenBio.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Yassir grinned widely. Lee In-Ju put his sses up on his head and began to read the contract carefully. In the meantime, Yassir nced at Rosaline. ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡± he asked. ¡°...¡± ¡°Oh, do you not speak English?¡± Yassir said, a little embarrassed, when Rosaline didn¡¯t respond. Lee In-Ju intervened while reading the document. ¡°Maybe. She¡¯s very fluent in Korean, and I haven¡¯t seen her speak English. I thought she would be good at English since she¡¯s from the United States.¡± ¡°She¡¯s from the United States?¡± Yassir asked. ¡°Yes, that¡¯s what Doctor Ryu said. Her hair is red, too. And she also has an English name. Rosaline, was it?¡± ¡°Rosaline?¡± Yassir was frightened. ¡°Yes. What is it?¡± ¡°Oh... Haha, it¡¯s nothing...¡± ¡°It¡¯s amon name.¡± ¡°Yes... It is.¡± ¡°Well, she could¡¯ve just learnt nothing but Korean there, so maybe she can¡¯t speak English. My nephew went to the United States to learn English when he was in university, but he didn¡¯t learn any English because he lived in Koreatown. He just wasted a bunch of money. I helped pay for it, too,¡± Lee In-Ju said. ¡°I¡¯m almost done with the paperwork, so it won¡¯t be too long.¡± ¡°...¡± Yassir silently stared at Rosaline. Then, he asked, ¡°If she¡¯s a rtive of Doctor Ryu, is she also smart like him?¡± ¡°She¡¯s a bit odd. She might have attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder. She was the one who broke the flower pot, haha.¡± Knock knock. Someone knocked on Lee In-Ju¡¯s door. ¡°Come in,¡± he said. ¡°I¡¯m back from the operation. Thank you for taking care of her,¡± Young-Joon said as he walked in. ¡°I see you have a visitor.¡± ¡°He¡¯s from a pharmaceuticalpany in Egypt called Philistine.¡± Lee In-Ju introduced Yassir to Young-Joon. ¡°Hello, Doctor Ryu. It¡¯s an honor to meet you.¡± Yassir jumped up to his feet and held out his hand in the most respectful way possible. Young-Joon shook his hand. ¡°Nice to meet you. I¡¯m Ryu Young-Joon.¡± ¡°I heard you¡¯re reviving brain-dead patients now.¡± ¡°We¡¯re still conducting the study. Has the word gotten out as far as Egypt?¡± Young-Joon replied with a chuckle. ¡°Everyone in the industry is watching with interest, and... I¡¯m a fan of yours, Doctor Ryu,¡± Yassir said. ¡°I¡¯m a member of your fan club. Things about your personal lifee up once in a while, but I¡¯ve never heard of a rtive of yours living in the United States.¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joon grinned. ¡°She¡¯s a distant rtive. I haven¡¯t spoken to her in a long time as well. She¡¯s heading back soon,¡± he said. ¡°Anyway, you¡¯re thepany that supplies Medivoto.¡± Young-Joon nced at the papers on the table. Lee In-Ju was keeping them as a record. ¡°That¡¯s right. It¡¯s our gship product.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a drug made by processing botulinum toxin, right?¡± ¡°Yes. It¡¯s type A,¡± Yassir replied. ¡°Botulinum toxin type H is the most deadly toxin known to man. Just two billionth of a gram is enough to kill an adult man,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Type A and B are less toxic and are used as a drug for neuroparalysis, but you should still be careful when handling them.¡± ¡°...¡± Yassir smiled faintly. ¡°Of course. We have it fully under control, so don¡¯t worry.¡± ¡°Would it be possible to look at one of your products right now?¡± Young-Joon asked. Chapter 244: Brain Death (9)

Chapter 244: Brain Death (9)

¡°Unfortunately, I¡¯m only here to renew the agreement today,¡± Yassir said. ¡°Doctor Lee can send you a bottle once the next shipmentes in. You can see it then.¡± ¡°... Alright,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°You¡¯re not trying to make a small business like us go out of business, right?¡± Yassir asked yfully. ¡°I was just curious,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Haha, that¡¯s a relief. The botulinum toxin market is nothingpared to the anticancer drug market. It¡¯s too small for a big shot like A-GenBio or you to enter.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Then, I¡¯ll be on my way. See you.¡± Yassir respectfully bowed to them, picked up his briefcase and headed out. ¡°He¡¯s an incredible person.¡± Lee In-Juplimented him. ¡°Yassir, he¡¯s not just a salesman, he¡¯s also a scientist. He did his PhD research in botulinum toxin at Stanford or something, and he and his colleagues started apany in Egypt.¡± ¡°So, they are co-founders?¡± ¡°Yeah, but he¡¯s not involved in the business aspect; he just handles the big contracts and the research, just like how you left the Next Generation Hospital in my hands, Doctor Ryu.¡± ¡°... What kind ofpany is Philistines?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°I think they¡¯re as good as Cellijenner in terms of innovation and growth, but not as good as A-GenBio,¡± Lee In-Ju replied. ¡°Really?¡± ¡°They¡¯ve only been around for a few years. They¡¯re a really youngpany, but they¡¯ve grown so fast in a short period of time. Now, they¡¯re a pretty prominentpany in the Middle East.¡± ¡°And Medivoto is their only product?¡± ¡°Yes. They said they¡¯re developing other drugs, but they have a long way to go because it¡¯s still in the discovery phase. But their technology for Medivoto is amazing. It¡¯s not easy to produce botulinum toxin in such purity and dosage at such a low cost, though I don¡¯t know much about drug production.¡± ¡°Director Lee, botulinum toxin is such a toxic substance that they don¡¯t give research permits to just anyone. It wouldn¡¯t have been easy for a start-uppany to take it on.¡± ¡°Maybe the regtions are different in Egypt,¡± Lee In-Ju said, not thinking much of it. ¡°Anyways, thepany is trying to take over the botulinum market in two years with Medivoto. It¡¯s really amazing that such an innovativepany hase out of Egypt. As you know, medicine is not just about the hard work of scientists.¡± ¡°You always need money,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°That¡¯s right. I didn¡¯t know that the Egyptian government invested so much in science. But seeing a venturepany boom like that, the rosy outlook about the Middle East or Africa is quite usible.¡± Lee In-Ju approached Ryu Young-Joon with a friendly chuckle. ¡°Anyway, did the surgery go well?¡± ¡°Yes... I think so,¡± Young-Joon replied dryly. * Botulinum toxin was extracted from a bacteria called Clostridium botulinum. It was the most powerful toxin in the world, almost a million times more potent than the infamous cyanide. Just nanograms of it could kill someone. It was fascinating that such an insane toxin could be used in medicine. Botulinum toxin could be diluted to a very low concentration and then injected to paralyze only certain nerves and localized tissues. Nowadays, it was used in dermatology or neurology for hyperhidrosis, chronic migraines, and pinched nerves, but the biggest market for it was anti-aging. ¡°Allergon was the firstpany to redevelop botulinum toxin into a pharmaceutical product, and it was called Botox,¡± Young-Joon said to Rosaline. Young-Joon took a separate car from his security team. Rosaline was in the passenger seat, and he was driving. On the way back, they were talking about Yassir and Philistines. ¡°Allergon worked really hard to make that drug since it¡¯s pretty revolutionary and high-quality. It seeded because the quality control was good enough to handle a poison like that safely,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°That¡¯s why Botox has reced the name of the original ingredient and be synonymous with botulinum toxin formtion even though it¡¯s just a single drug. It¡¯s like how Tylenol¡¯s image took over all acetaminophen-based painkillers. Botox¡¯s position in that market is crazy.¡± ¡°It¡¯s surprising that it lost half its market share in just a few years, though,¡± Rosaline said. ¡°Right? It¡¯s hard to push out apany that has already dominated the market, especially for drugs. This means that Philistines¡¯s technology is incredible in terms of quality and price... Am I overreacting? Why do I think that Doctor Ref might be behind their technology?¡± ¡°She might be. The methods for purifying botulinum toxin from bacteria are probably all pretty simr. The best that a pharmaceutical venturepany could do to revolutionize the technology would be to manipte the bacteria to increase the production itself. ¡°Considering the virus she released in the Xinjiang camps and the anthrax weapon she used at the GSC conference, Doctor Ref seems to be quite adept at genome engineering and metabolic engineering of microbes by human standards.¡± ¡°A new start-up pharmaceuticalpany in Egypt came out of nowhere and grew at an incredible pace, and the drug they¡¯re dealing with is one of the most potent toxins on the nt. On top of that, the conflict zone between Israel and Palestine is right beside Egypt. It¡¯s strange.¡± ¡°She might still try to use them even if she doesn¡¯t actually have anything to do with starting and growing thepany because they can mass-produce botulinum toxin.¡± ¡°... I need to see how Korea does QC[1] when importing pharmaceuticals,¡± Young-Joon said. * Young-Joon stopped by Lab Six on his way to A-GenBio. As people were slowly preparing to leave for the day, Young-Joon and Rosaline went to the Life Creationb. ¡°It¡¯s what I expected,¡± Rosaline said as she took out the culture tes. ¡°The gene set I manipted was correct. All my genes only died on this side of the te.¡± Rosaline felt a little strange. ¡°These two hundred morality genes are in all humans, but you have variants of them that have higher expression. That was the final key to creating me. Your obsession with ethics created me, and now it¡¯s biologically proven,¡± Rosaline said. ¡°Should we call this group of genes the Ryu Young-Joon genes?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t. It¡¯s embarrassing,¡± Young-Joon replied,ughing. ¡°...¡± Rosaline stared at the petri dish. Young-Joon stared at the side of her face. Rosaline had found the secret of her creation. She obtained the missing fragment of her DNA, and she got a body, although it was a temporary one. Young-Joon thought back to the time when Rosaline only sent him system messages because she didn¡¯t have a sense of self. Thinking about her now, she had changed and grown so much. She was transcendent yet human. She was omniscient and like science itself, yet still innocent. ¡°What do you want to do now?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Do what?¡± Rosaline replied. ¡°You still have about a day left, right?¡± ¡°I think it¡¯s going to wear out by next morning.¡± ¡°Is there anything you want to do?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know, let¡¯s see...¡± Rosaline shrugged. She was a genius that had the answers to everything but her own tastes and preferences. Young-Joon felt a little bad and sorry for her. ¡°Come here.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± Young-Joon pulled Rosaline and hugged her gently. ¡°Sae-Yi always used to say she wanted to go to the amusement park when she got better,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°In the end, she never left the hospital room and passed away, but...What about you? Do you want to go?¡± ¡°Can I?¡± Rosaline asked. ¡°Of course. It¡¯s the evening right now, so we can go to the night opening at Evend[2].¡± ¡°Hm... I do want to go, but I don¡¯t feel the thrill from roller coasters or anything, so...¡± ¡°Then let¡¯s just go. It¡¯ll be fun. What do you think?¡± Rosaline grinned. ¡°Alright.¡± Young-Joon took her and got back in the car. * They entered the amusement park during the night opening, but the sun hadn¡¯t set yet. Rosaline didn¡¯t seem too interested at first, but once they got to the park, she was jumping in joy. ¡°The T Express!¡±[3] Rosaline yanked Young-Joon in front of the roller coaster that was notorious for being the most terrifying one at the amusement park. ¡°Didn¡¯t you say you won¡¯t get much of a thrill from these rides?¡± ¡°That¡¯s why we have to ride the scariest one!¡± ¡°Wa... Wait. You can¡¯t ride it anyway because you¡¯re not tall enough.¡± ¡°I see. Give me a few seconds to rearrange my cells.¡± ¡°What are you doing?!¡± Rosaline took some of her fat and lengthened her legs and waist, making herself about five centimeters taller. Then, she took Young-Joon, who was frozen in shock, and ran towards the line. ¡®Damn it.¡¯ To be honest, Young-Joon didn¡¯t want to ride the T Express. After riding a few of the rides, Rosaline and Young-Joon walked towards the food court in the amusement park. ¡°I¡¯m hungry,¡± Rosaline said. ¡°You already had a hot dog, churros, and ice cream in the past two hours, didn¡¯t you?¡± ¡°But I can¡¯t eat starting tomorrow. Should we have that?¡± Rosaline pointed at the roasted turkey leg that was being sold in front of the dinosaur-themed escape room. [T-Rex Legs] Rosaline smirked at the name. ¡°They named it like that because it¡¯s dinosaur-themed. Well, the myofibrir cogen tissue of the Tyrannosaurus rex is simr to that of a chicken, so turkey, a close rtive, will also taste like T-Rex meat.¡± ¡°...¡± After a quick meal, they bought coffee and orange juice for dessert. With their drinks in their hands, they headed to the observation deck. There, something happened that made the Rosaline marvel. The fireworks had begun. ¡°Wow...¡± Rosaline watched the fireworks as if she was mesmerized by something mystical. ¡°I¡¯ve gone out a couple times before and watched the fireworks near the Han River, but this is what it looks like to the human eye.¡± ¡°You like it?¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joon nced over when Rosaline didn¡¯t answer, but saw that she waspletely absorbed in the fireworks. The clothes she was wearing looked a little thin for the cold night air. Young-Joon took off his coat and put it on Rosaline, just like the first time he saw her. ¡°It¡¯s really pretty,¡± Rosaline said without taking her eyes off the mes of the fireworks. ¡°Let¡¯se to ces like this more often when we collect enough ATP for you to be human,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Let¡¯se with Doctor Song, too.¡± ¡°Why Doctor Song?¡± ¡°Mom?¡± ¡°Are you crazy?¡± ¡°I¡¯m kidding. I was just afraid you might die old and lonely doing nothing but research. If I be a person and be independent...¡± Rosaline said yfully. Young-Joon ruffled her hair. * It was the next morning. Young-Joon woke up at the sound of his rm. It was the motel near the amusement park where he¡¯d checked in for the night. The bed next to him, which Rosaline was sleeping in, was now empty. Instead, Rosaline¡¯s clothes were lying in the shape of a person on Young-Joon¡¯s bed. ¡®Does she have separation anxiety...? She must have crawled into my bed in the middle of the night because she couldn¡¯t sleep alone.¡¯ Young-Joon thought in his head as he picked up the clothes. ¡ªIt¡¯s nice and warm andfy when I¡¯m snuggled up next to you. Rosaline sent him a message. ¡ªThe past three days were like a dream. I¡¯m going to diligently save my fitness from now on. ¡®Okay. I won¡¯t use fitness unless I have to.¡¯ ¡ªThank you. Bzz! Young-Joon¡¯s phone rang. It was Professor Miguel. ¡°Hello?¡± Young-Joon put the phone on speakerphone and took the call while getting dressed. ¡ªDoctor Ryu! Miguel was shouting in an excited voice. ¡ªWe seeded... It seeded! ¡°Did you remove the venttor? Today is the day, right?¡± ¡ªYes. We took him off all life support. And... Miguel paused. ¡ªHe is breathing on his own... The brain death has been reversed, and he is now in a persistent vegetative state. It¡¯s the same trend as the beagle from the preclinical trials! Miguel was shouting into the phone. ¡ªBrain death is not death anymore. We¡¯ve revived the first brain-dead patient! 1. quality control ? 2. Evend is one of the famous amusement parks in Korea ? 3. The T Express is a famous wooden roller coaster at Evend. ? Chapter 245: Brain Death (10)

Chapter 245: Brain Death (10)

Professor Kang Sung-Guk felt like all his previous medical knowledge was being turned upside down when he heard the news. ¡°He¡¯s awake?" He rushed to the intensive care unit after hearing the unbelievable news. When he found Kim Hyun-Taek, his jaw dropped. Kim Hyun-Taek was fully off all life support devices. He was digesting food from his feeding tube in his nostrils. He was breathing on his own without a venttor, and his heart was beating on its own. ¡°Is the brainstem working?¡± Kang Sung-Guk asked Miguel. ¡°Yes. The patient is now breathing alone and maintaining his heartbeat.¡± ¡°This can¡¯t be... What stage of consciousness is he in? Is he in aa? Or is he in a vegetative state?¡± ¡°Neither.¡± ¡°What?¡± There was one more shocking fact. ¡°You don¡¯t have sleep cycles in aa, but this patient has one. And someone in a vegetative state doesn¡¯t show any activity in the electroencephalogram, but this patient has activity,¡± Miguel said. ¡°The encephalogram has activity?¡± ¡°Yes. When someone talks to him or stimtes him to think of a scene, he responds by showing peaks in the EEG graph,¡± Miguel said, pointing to the monitor. ¡°Does he have cognitive function?¡± ¡°I wouldn¡¯t go that far.¡± Miguel shook his head. ¡°He¡¯s in MCS.¡± ¡°You mean he¡¯s in a minimally conscious state?¡± ¡°Yes. He doesn''t have the ability to make rational judgements or think. But he has a minimal level of awareness of his surroundings.¡± ¡°My god...¡± Kang Sung-Guk covered his face with his hands in surprise. Miguel said, ¡°The patient is more alive than in a persistent vegetative state. If the levels of recovery are brain death,a, and then a vegetative state, then MCS is the next level of recovery. After this is just waking up.¡± ¡°... So the legal status would be a lot different.¡± ¡°Yes, I don¡¯t know how it will be in Korea, but the legal status will bepletely different in my country,¡± Miguel said. ¡°In the case of a vegetative state, the medicalw values the opinion of the guardian. Life-sustaining treatment can be stopped at the request of the guardian for the sake of the family, who are suffering from the economic and psychological burden of the treatment.¡± ¡°But not MCS?¡± ¡°No, not for MCS,¡± Miguel said. ¡°The medicalw recognizes MCS as a person to be treated. They believe they are a patient that the hospital is obliged to do its best to treat. If the guardian asks for life-sustaining treatment to be withdrawn and the hospital epts, they are punished.¡± ¡°...¡± Kang Sung-Guk turned his gaze to Kim Hyun-Taek. It was as if he was sleeping peacefully. ¡®What the hell happened?¡¯ Kim Hyun-Taek had myocardial damage and pulmonary arterial hypertension, requiring a simultaneous heart-lung transnt. His entire brain, including the brain stem, had lost all activity, so he didn¡¯t show any brain waves. He felt like a cadaver when Kang Sung-Guk was cutting into his stomach. ¡®But he came back to life? Not even a persistent vegetative state, but a minimally conscious state? Where did his consciousness and awarenesse from?¡± ¡°This is... Then, this...¡± Kang Sung-Guk, who was stuttering to say something, stopped. It was because there was amotion outside the door. ¡ªPlease! A middle-aged woman was pleading to the medical staff. ¡ªPlease let me go inside just one time. You let me see him often before the clinical trial. ¡°I think the guardian is here,¡± Kang Sung-Guk said. They opened the door and stepped out into the hallway. In front of the door were three resident doctors, intern doctors, two nurses, and Lee Mi-Sook, Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s wife. ¡°H... Hello.¡± Lee Mi-Sook greeted them anxiously. ¡°You cane in. Visits have been limited because we¡¯re in the middle of the clinical trial and the patient just had a major operation, but... You cane inside and see him,¡± Kang Sung-Guk said. Lee Mi-Sook burst into tears as soon as she came inside. It was because she saw that Kim Hyun-Taek was off the venttor. ¡°Honey!¡± she shouted in a teary voice, running to his side. That was when the EEG graph suddenly spiked. Kim Hyun-Taek had responded to his wife¡¯s voice. He hadn¡¯t understood what she was saying because he was not fully awake and conscious. But one thing was clear: Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s brain had been revived enough to respond to familiar stimuli. ¡°...¡± Chills ran down Kang Sung-Guk¡¯s arms. Kim Hyun-Taek was alive. Perhaps he was always alive, or maybe he was brought back from the dead, but either way, it was clear that Kim Hyun-Taek was now alive. ¡®How far was Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s medicine going to go?¡¯ In the first year of founding A-Bio, he was able to conquer major incurable diseases like Alzheimer¡¯s, a, and pancreatic cancer. Now in the second year, he cured brain death. * Young-Joon arrived at the hospital in the afternoon. More than a dozen medical staff gathered, including Professor Miguel, the doctor in charge of the clinical trial, and Professor Kim Sung-Guk, the cardiopulmonary transnt surgeon. Carpentier, Song Ji-Hyun, principal scientists from Cellijenner, and the Life Creation Team were here as well. The hospital room was packed. Lee Mi-Sook nced at the scientists, afraid they might send her away, but they were too busy talking about Kim Hyun-Taek to care. ¡°The trial was sessful. It¡¯s clear the brain stem has recovered, and he is breathing and maintaining his heartbeat,¡± Carpentier said to Young-Joon. ¡°Good work. Doctor Song, you will be the first author of a monumental paper that will make a mark in the medical world. Congrattions,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Haha... There are so many other people who worked hard...¡± Song Ji-Hyun said in embarrassment. ¡°But the first author should be you, Doctor Song, because you came up with the method to inject stem cells into the subventricr zone, which is the key to brainstem repair, and performed the base experiments. After that, it¡¯ll probably have over a hundred authors, starting with the Life Creation Team and then the medical staff.¡± ¡°It makes sense because it was such a big experiment. You usually have a couple hundred authors for a huge paper like photographing a ck hole, right? This is of that magnitude,¡± Carpentier said. ¡°There will be at least four corresponding authors besides myself. There¡¯s Doctor Carpentier, the project leader, Professor Miguel, and the two surgeons who lead the cardiopulmonary transnt,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Will he recover more like what happened in the preclinical trial?¡± Miguel asked. Young-Joon looked at Kim Hyun-Taek in Synchronization Mode. ¡°You said he was minimally conscious, right?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°That¡¯s what it looks like.¡± Young-Joon stared at Kim Hyun-Taek, thinking. Aa, sema, minimally conscious state (MCS), persistent vegetative state (PVS), and locked-in syndrome all looked simr, but they were all medically different. These states were hard to distinguish in the past, but now they were starting to find subtle differences between them. In fact, there was a recent paper that suggested that about forty percent of individuals who were previously diagnosed to be in a vegetative state were found to be minimally conscious through an EEG. ¡°I once read a paper that the location and cause of brain lesions are important for the recovery of patients with severe disorders of consciousness,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°What do you think, Professor Miguel?¡± ¡°As Doctor Ryu said, it can improve or worsen depending on the location and cause of the lesion. But once it gets to the MCS, it¡¯s rtivelymon for the patient to recover. But in this patient¡¯s case, he has unusually recovered into a severe disorder of consciousness,¡± Miguel said. ¡°Before that, he was brain-dead, so it makes sense. We think that he may recover further if the stem cells injected into the subventricr zone continue to expand and repair the nerves.¡± Young-Joon grinned. ¡°I think he¡¯s already going past the MCS stage.¡± ¡°What?¡± Miguel¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°Because there¡¯s something suspicious about the fMRI from the preclinical trial.¡± ¡°What do you mean...¡± ¡°Shall we turn on the fMRI?¡± Young-Joon said. * An fMRI was a medical imaging device that captured blood flow in the brain. When specific neurons in the brain were activated, they required more energy, and blood naturally rushed to oxygenate the area. By measuring that, one could determine the active areas of the brain. After the fMRI was set up, Young-Joon approached Kim Hyun-Taek and spoke loudly in his ear. ¡°Kim Hyun-Taek.¡± The fMRI imaging showed blood flow in the brain. The auditory cortex on the left and right sides of the cerebrum turned red. The ¡°C¡± surged.[1] It was incredible. The fact that Kim Hyun-Taek responded to sound and that the auditory cortex, the processing center of auditory signals, was working showed that his cognition was alive. After some time, the two neural signals slowly subsided and returned to their resting state. ¡°A-Bio.¡± Young-Joon gave him another word. Kim Hyun-Taek responded simrly. ¡°Hospital Generation Next,¡± Young-Joon said. Most of the doctors, along with the scientists, scratched their heads, not understanding what he was saying. ¡°Did he just say Next Generation Hospital backward?¡± Park Dong-Hyun and Jung Hae-Rim murmured amongst each other. Meanwhile, there were two people who were stunned by what Young-Joon said: Carpentier and Miguel. ¡°No way...¡± The fMRI showed activity, like before. The auditory cortex responded and the EEG spiked. But this time, instead of dropping straight down, the EEG made a messy peak and stayed there for a few seconds. In addition to the auditory cortex, the fMRI showed blood flow to the hippocampus, and thmus, along with Broca¡¯s area and Wernicke¡¯s area of the left brain. ¡°It¡¯s just as I expected,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°What¡¯s different?¡± Park Dong-Hyun asked Cheon Ji-Myung. ¡°Doctor Ryu gave the patient an unfamiliar word on purpose,¡± Carpentier said. ¡°MCS patients have minimal cognitive abilities, so they respond to the sound itself, but they don¡¯t have the thinking skills to analyze the meaning of the sound,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°So, they react the same whether they hear familiar or unfamiliar words. But it looks different in a normal person¡¯s brain. In this case, the parts of the brain that controlnguage are activated to understand the meaning of the unfamiliar word.¡± ¡°...¡± Silence filled the room; everyone was too stunned to speak. Then, Lee Mi-Sook interrupted the silence. ¡°T... Then... Then are you saying that my husband is conscious?¡± ¡°Probably not at the level of a normal person because there are many levels of consciousness. Right now, his awareness is only a little better than the minimal level. But he can¡¯t move his body or make sounds because his motor skills have not recovered yet,¡± Young-Joon exined. ¡°You can think of him as having a slightly recovered consciousness from a vegetative state. When you¡¯re very drunk or high on drugs, your cognitive abilities drop drastically, right? In that state, your sentences don¡¯t make sense, and you can¡¯t understand what others are saying. It¡¯s kind of like that,¡± Young-Joon added. ¡°This state has never been reported in medicine,¡± Miguel said. ¡°It¡¯s simr to locked-in syndrome, but the consciousness level is lower, and...¡± ¡°It will be simr to locked-in syndrome by tomorrow,¡± Young-Joon said. Carpentier flinched. ¡°And he will wake up,¡± Young-Joon added. 1. The electrodes for the EEG are ced in specific areas of the brain. One of the electrodes is ced in the central area, or ¡°C.¡± This position represents EEG activity more typical of frontal, temporal, and some parietal-ipital activity. ? Chapter 246: Brain Death (11)

Chapter 246: Brain Death (11)

Six days after stem cells were injected into the subventricr zone, Kim Hyun-Taek saw the aurora borealis. ¡®I wanted to travel and see them when I retired.¡¯ Some people believed that as the scientific rity of something grew, the literary meaning of it faded. For example, the fact that the heart was just a mechanical tissue that beat steadily ording to signals from the brain and excitement in the nodules removed the heart¡¯s many literary qualities: love, passion, and other emotions that were believed to be contained in the heart. But some things remained mysterious and touching even when all the mechanisms were scientifically clear. A photoelectric phenomenon that urred when sma particles ejected to Earth by the sr wind collided with the maic field in the upperyers of the atmosphere to produce light. Even Kim Hyun-Taek, who knew exactly what the aurora borealis was, was touched when he saw it. As he watched it, he heard a familiar voice around him. The voice, which was growing clearer and clearer, belonged to his greatest nemesis in life. ¡°Can you hear me, Mr. Kim Hyun-Taek?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Please open your eyes if you can hear me. Your basal ganglia and part of your cerebellum has been recovered. The neurons that were originally dormant there have begun to be active.¡± Kim Hyun-Taek understood most of what Young-Joon was saying. ¡°We revived your brain stem, including your medu oblongata. The area closest to it, controlled by the closely connected basal ganglia and cereber nerves, is the eye. You have regained control of the levator palpebrae superioris, and the superior, inferior, and medial rectus,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Open your eyes.¡± The revived neurons in the deep cereber nuclei were excited, sending the electrical signals to the back of the eyelids. The levator palpebrae superioris contracted, pulling the eyelid open. It was like rescuing a man who was trapped deep inside a lightless well. Kim Hyun-Taek opened his eyes. Instead of the aurora borealis, he was looking at the fluorescent lights of a hospital room. ¡°You won¡¯t be able to move anything other than your eyes yet,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Do you want to see who else is here? If you want to say hello, give me one long blink.¡± Kim Hyun-Taek closed his eyes slowly. ¡®What happened? How much time has passed?¡¯ From the change in Young-Joon¡¯s clothes, it was clear that quite a bit of time had passed. Kim Hyun-Taek didn¡¯t feel anything while he was unconscious, but he could somehow feel the passage of time. ¡®Is my wife still with me?¡¯ Kim Hyun-Taek was afraid to open his eyes. ¡®Now that I think of it, once I close my eyes, I have no choice but to open them again. He¡¯s making me do that and taking it for a yes.¡¯ Kim Hyun-Taek slowly opened his eyes, feeling a sense of dread. Young-Joon grinned and raised the backrest of the hospital bed so he could see better. There were a lot of doctors he didn¡¯t recognize. There was also Carpentier, a Nobel Prize recipient, Song Ji-Hyun, and the members of the Life Creation Team. And next to them was his wife, her face a mess from all she had been through. She couldn¡¯t properly look him in the face. All she could do was wipe her face with her hands, tears pouring down her face like an open faucet. ¡°...¡± Kim Hyun-Taek wanted to say something, but it was impossible because he couldn¡¯t move anything other than his eyes. ¡°Recovery will continue slowly. Eventually, you will be able to move your body, though you¡¯ll need to do rehabilitation therapy for a long time,¡± Young-Joon said. * Reporters had already crowded the hospital, and they were being controlled by security. ¡°Please wait here. Doctor Ryu and the medical team wille down in a moment, and you can interview them then.¡± Among those sequestered in the waiting area for reporters, there were also reporters from academic journals. Jessie, the editor of Science, and Anthony, the editor of Nature, greeted each other nervously. There was tension in the air. ¡°It¡¯s been a while,¡± Jessie said. ¡°It seems like I always run into you when we cover Doctor Ryu, Jessie.¡± Science and Nature were international journals that represented the United States and Britain. They¡¯ve beenpeting for a long time, so editors and reporters often bumped into each other on the field and became friends. Jessie and Anthony had a simr rtionship. ¡°But I don¡¯t think you had toe, because this paper will eventually be published in Science,¡± Jessie said yfully. ¡°You never know,¡± Anthony replied. ¡°Well, when Doctor Ryu first developed stem cells and got into regenerative medicine, Science was the first to report it, right? This is the culmination of all that work, so isn¡¯t it only fitting for it to be reported in Science?¡± Jessie said. ¡°Haha, I don¡¯t know about that. Doctor Ryu didn¡¯t do this project alone. It was a huge coborative experiment with the Next Generation Hospital and Cellijenner. There are a bunch of corresponding authors, so I don¡¯t think Doctor Ryu can just send it to Science on his own.¡± ¡°But would anyone refuse if Doctor Ryu says he wants to send it to Science?¡± ¡°Probably not, but Doctor Ryu and I arerades who stayed in Xinjiang Uyghur together and risked our lives to research and report. I don¡¯t know if Doctor Ryu will still trust the journalism of the people who went back home with their tails between their legs because they were scared of China...¡± Anthony shrugged. ¡°Wait, what? Excuse me?¡± Jessie¡¯s eyes widened, bewildered. As the two of them were bickering in a friendly manner, someone suddenly intervened from the side. It was a tall,nky man with a stern face. ¡°I expected Science and Nature to be here.¡± ¡°rence?¡± Jessie and Anthony were both surprised. rence was the editor for Cell. Nature and Science were primarily about biology, but that wasn¡¯t all they covered: about twenty percent of the papers were about physics, chemistry, or astronomy. But Cell, like the name suggested, was one hundred percent focused on biology. Its recognition and expertise sometimes surpassed that of Nature or Science. ¡°We¡¯re not a popr science journal, we¡¯re a biology specialty journal. Science has had a monopoly on Doctor Ryu for a long time, but I think that¡¯s because Doctor Ryu wanted to choose a popr journal to poprize science. Now that the brain-dead areing back from the dead, he¡¯s going to have to choose a journal that has the expertise to match that.¡± ¡°Can CNS (Cell, Nature, Science) say anything about expertise?¡± A skinny woman behind rence interjected. The air was getting more tense. ¡°I know science magazines that are only fifth or sixth in IF (impact factor) have an eye on this, but this is clinical data. You need to leave this to the real experts.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, who are you?¡± Anthony asked. ¡°I¡¯m Amanda, the editor for the New Ennd Journal of Medicine (NEJM).¡± NEJM was the best journal of clinical medicine in terms of the average citation index of its articles. It was highly cited because doctors usually read it. Jessie scratched her head. These journals had tried to get Young-Joon to publish with them several times before, but Science had always been the one to publish his articles. But she missed out once when that lunatic Anthony pretended he was a war correspondent in Xinjiang Uyghur. But now, the clinical paper was being targeted by other journals that were not as nervous about the reputation of Science or Nature. ¡®I guess it¡¯s tempting.¡¯ The impact factor (IF) of a journal was the average of the number of citations of the articles in the journal. It was the number of times a journal¡¯s articles were cited by other papers divided by the number of articles in the journal. Science has been slowly building up their IF by publishing papers since Darwin¡¯s time. Young-Joon¡¯s paper was just one paper, but it could boost Science¡¯s IF the moment it was published. It was simr to how including Bill Gates could increase the GDP of the United States. That was how shocking this clinical experiment was. If other papers were fish, this paper was a whale. ¡°Oh? Is this where the journals are gathering?¡± A nerdy man joined them. They could tell that he was a real scientist from his tacky id shirt and sses. ¡°Haha, nice to meet you. I¡¯m Yevhenikov, the editor of Neuron.¡± Neuron was arguably the top journal in neuroscience. ¡°Phew...¡± Anthony turned away and sighed. ¡°Heree the main characters,¡± rence said. A group of people came down the esctor to the lobby of the hospital, including Song Ji-Hyun, Young-Joon, Carpentier, the Life Creation Team, and the medical team. Reporters and journal editors excitedly whipped out their cameras and tablets and began moving. However, Young-Joon declined their interview. ¡°You should interview the first author.¡± Young-Joon gently pushed Song Ji-Hyun, the members of the Life Creation Team, and the two professors forward and walked away. * As the paper was not yetplete, the academic journals wrote a calm article that was focused on the treatment. The media, however, ran with sensationalized headlines. [First brain-dead man medically revived.] [A-GenBio now revives the dead.] [National Assembly to consider bill to remove brain death from death criteria.] [Scientist challenges God¡¯s authority: Is this progress or disaster?] ¡°This cannot happen!¡± Several religious groups rallied, even holding marches on the street. ¡°Medically, legally, and philosophically, brain death is death. What Doctor Ryu is doing now is disturbing the order of nature by bringing the dead back to life. This arrogance of man trying to govern life and challenging the authority of God is what will bring judgment.¡± ¡°This technology must not be allowed!¡± shouted religious groups. Some religious groups and bioethicists actually liked this situation. ¡ªThis is also God¡¯s will. To me, Doctor Ryu is one of God¡¯s blessed warriors and apostles. Diseases are caused by evil demons, and Doctor Ryu is the one who is fighting against them. May God¡¯s glory and love be upon him... ¡ªIn the Middle Ages, human dignity was sought in God, and in pre-modern times, it was sought in reason. Modern times pointed to the brain as the source of reason, and modern medicine wanted to challenge theplexity and vitality of the brain while giving it a mystical meaning. What Doctor Ryu did shows us that humanity can fully understand the brain. Humanity is no longer dependent on mystical and obscure forces. We need a new standard of human dignity... Whoosh. Carpentier deleted the tab on his phone and turned off the news. ¡°Things are so chaotic right now,¡± Carpentier said. ¡°I expected it, but it¡¯s still surprising,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°It¡¯s a good thing that you left without doing an interview, because if you did, you might not have made it home,¡± Carpentier said. ¡°Haha, thank you for taking the interview requests for me.¡± Carpentier grinned and held out a book. [La Scaphandre et le Papillon] The title was French. ¡°What is this?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a book written by a man named Jean-Dominique Bauby, who was an editor of a French magazine. In Korean, it would trante to something like the Diving-Bell and the Butterfly.¡± ¡°The Diving-Bell and the Butterfly?¡± ¡°This person had locked-in syndrome, like myte fianc¨¦e.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Patients who have locked-in syndrome can move their eyes and have full consciousness. But that¡¯s it. Baubymunicated by blinking his eyes and picking out letters of the alphabet one by one. He wrote a whole book like that, and this is it.¡± ¡°Wow...¡± ¡°He¡¯s saying that he feels like a butterfly stuck in a diving bell. It¡¯s a heartbreaking title.¡± Carpentier let out a deep sigh. ¡°Doctor Ryu, we managed to bring Kim Hyun-Taek into locked-in syndrome. It¡¯s a miraculous feat, and everyone seems to be celebrating our sess. But Doctor Ryu... You know that I came to A-Bio to conquer locked-in syndrome, right?¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joon picked up the book that Carpentier gave him. ¡°Can I keep this?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Young-Joon stood up and put the book on his shelf. ¡°About how I came back without doing an interview...¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°It was because this project isn¡¯t over. In our preclinical experiment, the beagle regained its motor skills, right? That¡¯s what we need to aim for.¡± ¡°Right? You¡¯re going to continue, right?¡± Carpentier said. ¡°Of course. I am going to make Kim Hyun-Taek check out of the hospital and get in a police car on his own two feet.¡± Chapter 247: Brain Death (12) When Young-Joon¡¯s meeting with Carpentier was almost over, Director Kim Young-Hoon came to see him. ¡°I didn¡¯t know you already had a guest,¡± Kim Young-Hoon said, looking at Carpentier. ¡°I¡¯lle backter.¡± ¡°No, I was just leaving.¡± Carpentier stood up. ¡°We have to have a meeting with the people in charge of Kim Hyun-Taek''s care about treating his locked-in syndrome anyway, so I¡¯ll see you next time.¡± Carpentier bowed and walked out. Young-Joon then gestured for Kim Young-Hoon to sit down on the sofa. ¡°Nice to see you, Mr. Director.¡± Kim Young-Hoon pulled out some papers. It was a merger agreement.¡°We¡¯ve reached an agreement with Ms. Tanya Manker.¡± Laboratory Seven had developed ABAI, a bio-environmental artificial intelligence, when predicting the mosquito disaster in Guangdong. That artificial intelligence program used the algorithm from Tanya Manker¡¯s GRO Industry, and Kim Young-Hoon suggested that instead of paying royalties, thepany could absorb GRO. ¡°I¡¯ve pretty much been neglecting this side of things because I was so busy, but you¡¯ve done it all by yourself. Thank you,¡± Young-Joon said as he read the agreement. ¡°It worked out easily since Ms. Tanya is very friendly with you and she is very interested in the environment and public health,¡± Kim Young-Hoon exined. ¡°We couldn¡¯t bring the data scientists, statisticians, and programmers who are the core of GRO to Korea, so we decided to use the A-Bio Cancer Laboratory.¡± ¡°Right, you mentioned that,¡± Young-Joon said, nodding like he remembered. ¡°Soon, GRO will be acquired by the A-Bio Cancer Laboratory. Using ABAI, we will be able to track environmental pollution from various carcinogens and use that data to develop preventative or therapeutic treatments at theboratory.¡± ¡°This will really speed up research.¡± ¡°And GRO¡¯s shareholders were very excited about the idea of merging with the A-Bio Cancer Laboratory, so we were able to do it for rtively few shares.¡± Young-Joon read the documents carefully and signed them. ¡°Then we¡¯ll finalize the contract,¡± Kim Young-Hoon said. ¡°Thank you. By the way, Director Kim¡­¡± Young-Joon stopped Kim Young-Hoon as he was leaving. ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°Do you know about a pharmaceuticalpany called Philistines?¡± ¡°Of course. They¡¯re a famous venture that is revolutionizing biology in Egypt right now.¡± ¡°Can you tell me a little about how they do their research and development?¡± ¡°What is it for?¡± Kim Young-Hoon asked. ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°No matter how sessful Philistines is, it¡¯s a smallpany that A-GenBio can destroy with just one kick. And no matter how technologically advanced and progressive they are, they are no match for you. They are not ourpetitors, and we have nothing to learn from them. And most importantly, we¡¯re in a different industry since we don¡¯t develop botulinum toxin. So, I was sure that there are other reasons why you are interested in their research and development.¡± ¡°... There¡¯s a very talented scientist among the terrorists who attacked GSC in the past. She is called Doctor Ref among the terrorist groups, and her real name is Isaiah Franklin.¡± ¡°Isaiah Franklin.¡± ¡°There¡¯s a possibility that she¡¯s working at Philistines.¡± ¡°I see. I¡¯ll do a more thorough investigation, then.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± As Kim Young-Hoon was about to open the door and leave, he bumped into Yoo Song-Mi, who wasing in. ¡°Oh¡­ I¡¯m sorry,¡± Yoo Song-Mi said, rubbing her arm. ¡°What is it?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°We keep getting messages from people who want to volunteer for the brain death recovery trial.¡± ¡°... Turn them all down for now. We need to finish this trial before moving on to the next.¡± ¡°But among them is the prime minister of Israel¡­¡± ¡°Who?¡± ¡°The Beit Aghion in Jerusalem contacted us, asking for confidentiality.¡± ¡°Has the prime minister fallen?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think so, but they said they¡¯ll let us know the detailster.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I¡¯ll go meet them,¡± Kim Young-Hoon said. ¡°Maybe they¡¯ll know something about Philistines.¡± ¡°Alright. Thank you.¡± After sending off Kim Young-Hoon and Yoo Song-Mi, Young-Joon got ready to leave as well. He put on his jacket, then took it off. The daytime temperature had risen quite a lot now, so even his thin coat felt quite hot. He went downstairs to the basement and got into his car to drive to the Next Generation Hospital. * The stem cells that were injected into Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s fourth ventricle differentiated into neurons, pushing out the dead tissue of the brainstem that had previously upied the space and restoring the brain stem. However, there was still one ce where tissue differentiation was slow: it was the pons, the upper front part of the brain stem. This was where the motor neurons passed through. All locked-in syndrome patients had damage in this area due to stroke or other reasons. Most of them, like Kim Hyun-Taek, could open their eyes, and this was because the nerves that moved the eyes were in the midbrain, not the pons. The beagle experiment also showed that neural recovery in the pons was thest to ur. ¡°We administered acetylcholine (ACh),¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°Acetylcholine.¡± Young-Joon nodded. It was a type of neurotransmitter. ¡°When we were treating the beagle, we injected neurotransmitters like dopamine and epinephrine, but we changed it to acetylcholine when the patient recovered to locked-in syndrome to focus neural differentiation in the pons.¡± ¡°Do we have to inject more stem cells?¡± Miguel asked. ¡°Yes. If all one hundred thousand of them went into the subventricr zone, there should still be some stem cells that haven¡¯t differentiated yet, and they¡¯re probably still trying to establish themselves. It should be enough,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡ªSee? What would¡¯ve happened if I didn¡¯t go in there and put those regurgitating stem cells back in? ¡®Yeah, good work.¡¯ Young-Joonplimented Rosaline in his head. Song Ji-Hyun added, ¡°Of course, this is a clinical trial that hasn¡¯t been done before, so we can¡¯t be sure of anything.¡± ¡°That¡¯s one thing that makes this trial different from the beagle experiment,¡± Miguel said. ¡°The patient is now conscious and capable of expressing his wishes. He might refuse to continue the trial.¡± ¡°He might refuse?¡± Park Dong-Hyun asked. ¡°Of course. The patient didn¡¯t develop locked-in syndrome of an ident or something; they were brain-dead and slowly regained consciousness. He might just be thankful that he can see and think. He might be satisfied with having locked-in syndrome and stop with treatment.¡± ¡°No¡­ No way. He won¡¯t believe us after all we¡¯ve done and proven?¡± ¡°Kim Hyun-Taek is a scientist,¡± Carpentier said. ¡°He might have more doubts because he knows more. We don¡¯t believe anything unless it has been proven. Also, there haven¡¯t been any precedents, just a preclinical animal experiment, and he might not want to be the first and sacrifice himself.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. For Kim Hyun-Taek, it might be difficult to go ahead with an unprecedented trial that delivers acetylcholine to the pons when his condition is very stable right now. Even if he gets better like that, all he has left is prison and more prestige for Doctor Ryu,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°For Kim Hyun-Taek, instead of going to jail, he could spend some more time in the hospital and wait for other cases of locked-in syndrome to be cured. He doesn¡¯t have anything to lose if he gets treated after it¡¯s confirmed that delivering acetylcholine to the brain is safe.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°But the consent form clearly states that the trial includes recovery of the motor nerves, right?¡± Cheon Ji-Myung asked. ¡°The consent form was written by Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s wife. Legally, we have to exin the trial to the patient again,¡± Miguel said. ¡°Hm¡­¡± The scientists and the medical team were deep in thought. Would the maniptive and selfish Kim Hyun-Taek offer his body to Young-Joon for the experiment? Honestly, Song Ji-Hyun was skeptical. ¡°There¡¯s nothing for us to think about,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°If Kim Hyun-Taek refuses, we find another patient with locked-in syndrome. If he gives us his consent, we continue. There¡¯s no other way. As a clinical trial subject, he has the right to choose, and we¡¯re obligated to respect that.¡± ¡°Alright¡­¡± They all sounded a little defeated. ¡°Let¡¯s just stay on the right path, even if it¡¯s frustrating,¡± Young-Joon said. * ¡°The Cheonjiin[1]keyboard is really amazing,¡± Lee Mi-Sook said, holding up a card with nine keypads and pointing to each key with her finger. Kim Hyun-Taek blinked once, twice, or showed her a long blink to pick the cards Lee Mi-Sook was showing him and form words and sentences. [Yeah.] Lee Mi-Sook told Kim Hyun-Taek most of what happened while he was asleep. ¡°After you copsed, Doctor Ryu got yourb. After that, the whole anthrax weapon development was publicized, and¡­ CEO Yoon Dae-Sung turned himself in. He¡¯s in jail right now with his son, Yoon Bo-Hyun,¡± she said. ¡°A-Gen and A-Bio merged and are now called A-GenBio. Doctor Ryu is the solergest shareholder, there are more employees, and it has more capital.¡± [Is¡­] Kim Hyun-Taek moved his eyes and began to form a sentence. It was difficult, but Lee Mi-Sook was patient and helped him finish his sentence. [Is it over now?] ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s all over now. You don¡¯t have to fight anymore.¡± It was all over. It was less dramatic than Kim Hyun-Taek thought. Kim Hyun-Taek thought Young-Joon was dangerous from the moment he ran on to the stage at the year-end seminar. His eyes weren¡¯t glowing with intelligence, and they weren¡¯t filled with academic curiosity. Young-Joon¡¯s eyes were burning with ambition and vengeance. He was outraged by the research ethics vitionsmitted by Kim Hyun-Taek, and he seemed determined to destroy all corruption in the pharmaceutical industry. He wasn¡¯t the only one who sensed danger; Ji Kwang-Man had consistently warned that Young-Joon was trying to swallow up thispany. Pharmaceuticalpanies relied heavily on research and development, and Young-Joon¡¯s tremendous performance in that area made it seem possible. ¡®But even so, I didn¡¯t think that the Yoon Dae-Sung family would fall so easily.¡¯ Kim Hyun-Taek thought he had just fainted for a while, but it was all over once he woke up. It felt like a general anesthesia surgery. The feeling that came with futility was an unexpected sense of relief. Kim Hyun-Taek thought it would be painful to realize that thepany had been taken from him, but it actually felt like all his pain was being relieved. Perhaps it was because the pressure to hold off the genius of the century was too much. ¡°Doctor Ryu will continue to treat you. I think he¡¯s going to cure youpletely.¡± Lee Mi-Sook showed him the clinical trial consent form. She fixed it to the holder on the hospital bed so Kim Hyun-Taek could read it. ¡°They¡¯ll even make you able to move.¡± [It¡¯s scary.] Kim Hyun-Taek spelled it out with his eyes. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. He doesn¡¯t fail.¡± [...] But Kim Hyun-Taek looked anxious. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about after you¡¯re cured. If you go to jail, juste out after you pay for your crimes, and then we can just let go of everything. Even if everyone points their fingers at you, I¡¯m on your side.¡± Lee Mi-Sook patted Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s shoulder. [You should have let me di¡­] ¡°What are you talking about!¡± She hit him on the shoulder. ¡°When the news about you went out, someone in thements said they feel bad for Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s wife because even if he gets better, he¡¯ll be in jail for a long time.¡± [...] ¡°You were in bed for over six months, but you don¡¯t have any bedsores or UTIs because I¡¯ve been taking great care of you.¡± [...] ¡°A prison visit is nothingpared to all that trouble.¡± [I¡¯m sorry.] ¡°All you have to do is thank me. There¡¯s someone else you need to be sorry to.¡± Creak. The hospital door opened. The people Kim Hyun-Taek should be sorry to appeared. Young-Joon walked in with Song Ji-Hyun and the other scientists and medical staff. ¡°It¡¯s been a while, Director Kim.¡± Young-Joon took out the consent form from his pocket. ¡°Since you have regained consciousness, we have to exin everything about this trial to you before we can continue. This trial is¡­¡± ¡°Wait. He wants to say something.¡± Lee Mi-Sook, who saw that Kim Hyun-Taek wanted to say something, brought the letter cards. She lined them up in front of him and pointed to them one by one. With each blink, a consonant, stroke, and dot was added. Slowly, Kim Hyun-Taek formed a short, simple sentence. [I consent, so go ahead.] 1. Like the QWERTY keyboard, the Cheonjiin keyboard is a type of Korean keyboard that makes typing Korean more efficient. It consists of the consonants, and a vertical line, dot, a horizontal line for the vowels. ? Chapter 248: Brain Death (13) ¡°You agree?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked. [Yes] Kim Hyun-Taek put his response together with the letter cards. ¡°...¡± The doctors didn¡¯t show it, but they were secretly happy. As Kim Hyun-Taek was unable to sign the consent form, his guardian, Lee Mi-Sook was going to sign it for him. As she was about to¡­ ¡°I will exin the clinical trial in detail.¡± Young-Joon went and sat down beside Kim Hyun-Taek. His tone was business-like and dry. ¡°You¡¯ve had aplicated rtionship with the managers of the contract research organization. If you are consenting because you feel guilty about the things that happened before, I will not ept this consent form. You must be willing to be treated and fully understand and consent to the purpose and mechanism of the study.¡±[You¡¯rem¡­] Kim Hyun-Taek began forming a sentence. ¡°I¡¯mmitted?¡± [Yeah] ¡°Me?¡± [Yeah] Young-Joon chuckled. ¡°You knew I was like that. I¡¯ll exin this trial in detail, so justy back and listen. You should have no problem understanding it, Director Kim.¡± Young-Joon began to exin the clinical trial. He exined that they injected one hundred thousand induced differentiated stem cells in the fourth ventricle, allowed them to differentiate into neurons, and recovered the brainstem by injecting neurotransmitters like dopamine. He also exined that although the medu regained its function and he was now conscious, they had to inject acetylcholine to induce neuronal differentiation and restore the motor nerves leading to the pons. ¡°These pictures are data from the preclinical experiment we conducted on beagles.¡± Young-Joon showed Kim Hyun-Taek the pictures. [It¡¯s fine] ¡°Keep listening,¡± Young-Joon said as he flipped to the next picture. ¡°We were able to restore motor function in these beagles by injecting acetylcholine. Now, eighty percent of the subjects are able to do strenuous exercises such as running. Twenty percent are still in rehabilitation, but they can walk,¡± Young-Joon exined. ¡°But there¡¯s no guarantee that it will work the same way in your body as it did in the preclinical experiment. Acetylcholine is also used to slow the progression of dementia, and side effects that have been reported include decreased appetite, nausea, diarrhea, headache, weight loss, dizziness, and insomnia. If they do ur, they usually resolve their own after the initial four to six weeks. ¡°In patients with heart disease, vagus nerve stimtion can cause bradycardia and arrhythmias, but this isn¡¯t expected in your case, Director Kim.¡± Young-Joon¡¯s exnation went on for another twenty minutes. Young-Joon only got consent after he got Kim Hyun-Taek to understand everything. [Doctor Ryu] Kim Hyun-Taek called Young-Joon. ¡°Yes?¡± Kim Hyun-Taek thought for a moment. [It¡¯s nothing] Young-Joon bowed and left. * Acetylcholine was not able to cross the blood brain barrier. This meant that it couldn¡¯t travel from the blood vessels to the brain when given intravenously. ¡°Let¡¯s put it in as phosphatidylcholine,¡± said Miguel. ¡°It¡¯s amon method used when sending acetylcholine to the brain.¡± This experiment was easier as there was a standardized treatment. They injected phosphatidylcholine, which was produced by A-Gen in the past, into Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s veins. It would be absorbed by brain cells and then converted into acetylcholine. There were no concerns about using it because it was well-known that phosphatidylcholine was excreted without any side effects. ¡°How are you feeling?¡± Young-Joon asked an hour after the drug was administered. [I am fine] Kim Hyun-Taek replied using the cards. ¡°I brought an iris recognition system here. It¡¯s connected to a bell, and it will ring if you stare at it for more than three seconds, so just stare up. If you¡¯re not feeling well or need someone, you can use this to call for help.¡± Young-Joon ced the system at the top of Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s field of vision. ¡°I wille back tomorrow.¡± After he left, the medical team kept visiting him, checking on him and asking if he needed anything. Two dayster, in the morning, the muscles at the corners of Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s mouth moved. Young-Joon, who came to the hospital after hearing the news, analyzed the movement. The miracle came through the neuralwork of the pons. There was a ridge on the front of the pons called the pontine protuberance, and in the center of it was the pontine sulcus, through which the basr artery passed. The blood delivered from the capiries in the arteries carried phosphatidylcholine, which was taken up by the stem cells in the pons and converted into acetylcholine. The differentiation of the stem cells was stimted with the acetylcholine, and they were released from the front of the pons to cover the entire surface. The stem cells pushed out the existing cells that were dead and imed their ce. Not all the neurons were connected, but one of the growing bundles of nerves reached its target: it connected to the facial nerve, which was dormant. The cerebellopontine angle included the facial nerve and the vestibulocochlear nerve, and the facial nerve had been recovered. There were a few more battlefields where the stem cells made progress: the back of the pons¡ªthe area proximal to the floor of the fourth ventricle. This region was called the facial colliculus, and it served as a superficial reference point for the geniculum of the facial nerve and the abducens nucleus. This region was also recovered. ¡°It moved! Did you see that? His mouth is moving!¡± Lee Mi-Sook shouted in excitement. Young-Joon concentrated harder on observing Kim Hyun-Taek. This was the beginning; an enormous amount of nerves were going to extend from the pons and connect to parts of the limbs. The trigeminal nerve extended from the side of the pons. It wasposed of the sensory and motor nerves, but the sensory nerves formed the majority of it. The recovery was better on this side because some of Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s sensory nerves were already alive. ¡°You¡¯re recovering well, Director. Hang in there,¡± Young-Joon said. On the next morning, Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s right index finger moved. Scientists and the medical staff streamed in continuously to check out the big news. They all visited at different times due to their schedules, and because of that, what they saw was different. ¡°I¡¯m telling you, he was moving his fingers.¡± ¡°His fingers? When I went, he could lift up his arm.¡± ¡°He could also talk. His pronunciation was unclear, but his vocal ability ising back.¡± Amid all the shocking reports, the magic was in its final stages by the time Carpentier visited the hospital room at ten at night. Kim Hyun-Taek climbed down from the bed, his legs shaking. He couldn¡¯t stand up properly because the muscles and nerves, which he hadn¡¯t used in over six months, had lost all their strength. He could barely stand, holding on to one end of the bed with his wife¡¯s support. ¡°Oh my god¡­¡± Carpentier almost dropped his pen in shock. Even if he had expected this in theory and knew the mechanics, it was apletely different shock to actually see it. ¡°Heh¡­ tod me not to moe yet¡­¡± Kim Hyun-Taek said, slurring his words. ¡°He wanted to stand up so badly. Don¡¯t tell his doctor,¡± Lee Mi-Sook said, putting a finger to her lips. ¡°Honey, let¡¯sy back down, okay?¡± ¡°...¡± Kim Hyun-Taek slowly looked down at his legs. He felt like nothing. His past as the CTO candidate at a pharmaceutical giant like A-Gen seemed like a fairy tale. Now, all that was left was a Kim Hyun-Taek who could barely stand. Disease didn¡¯t discriminate based on power; it didn¡¯t judge whether one was a good guy or a bad guy. Young-Joon¡¯s science was the same: he did not judge someone¡¯s power, nor whether they were good or evil. This was the result. It wasn¡¯t a punishment from God, and it wasn¡¯t that the good would prevail in the end. It was just that disease destroyed a human, and science revived them. That was it. ¡°...¡± Kim Hyun-Taek slowly climbed onto the bed. * A week passed. Now, Kim Hyun-Taek had recovered enough to go to the washroom in his wheelchair. His pronunciation had gotten clearer, and he was eating more. ¡°How are you feeling?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°I¡¯m much better,¡± Kim Hyun-Taek replied. ¡°Doctor Song will being inter. Today is thest day of the clinical trial. We will still track your condition afterward, but we achieved all of our initial treatment goals.¡± ¡°...¡± Kim Hyun-Taek hesitated for a moment, then said to his wife, ¡°Could you give me the room so I can speak to Doctor Ryu alone?¡± ¡°Oh? Sure, okay. I¡¯ll be at the cafe downstairs.¡± Lee Mi-Sook quickly grabbed her phone and wallet and left the room. When Kim Hyun-Taek was left alone with Young-Joon, he said, ¡°... I have a question for you.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°What do you research for?¡± ¡°For what?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°... Well, I don¡¯t know,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°It depends. Sometimes it¡¯s to save someone, sometimes it¡¯s for my own satisfaction, and sometimes it¡¯s for the public¡­¡± ¡°I did it for myself and my family,¡± Kim Hyun-Taek said. ¡°...¡± ¡°The public doesn¡¯t really care about science. They think it¡¯splicated and boring, believing that it¡¯s only for weird nerds. I didn¡¯t think people like that deserve science,¡± Kim Hyun-Taek said. ¡°To me, science belonged to scientists. I thought that research ethics, which was made for the public, was honestly unnecessary.¡± ¡°But you don¡¯t think that anymore?¡± ¡°I still think that,¡± Kim Hyun-Taek said. ¡°But I won¡¯t do things like destroy Cellicure for that, not that I even could.¡± He smiled bitterly. ¡°Why did you change?¡± ¡°Hm¡­ I don¡¯t know. Maybe stem cells are also able to make a conscience.¡± Kim Hyun-Taek chuckled. ¡°One thing I know for sure is that the scientificmunity is more vibrant and healthy now than it was when I got rid of Cellicure. Maybe it¡¯s because this is all they¡¯ve ever learned, but all the journals are ted that they¡¯ve brought the brain-dead back to life. It¡¯s nice to see all the excitement.¡± ¡°Maybe that¡¯s what science is really about: just being like a kid who wants to look and do things they¡¯ve never done before, without any sense of self-interest or goals,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Like how a nine-year-old kid¡¯s curiosity spikes about everything they touch.¡± Young-Joon nced to the side. Rosaline, a cell that Kim Hyun-Taek couldn¡¯t see, was standing there. She chuckled at what Young-Joon said. ¡°You don¡¯t hate me, Doctor Ryu?¡± Kim Hyun-Taek asked. ¡°As a person?¡± ¡°Yes. I¡¯m the one who demoted you to the Life Creation Department, and I also destroyed Cellicure.¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joon thought for a moment. ¡°At first, I was very angry,¡± he said. ¡°But I¡¯ve forgiven you for everything.¡± ¡°... What about Doctor Song?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know how she feels. But she was the first person who brought up reviving you. And she was the most passionate about it.¡± Click. The door handle turned, and Song Ji-Hyun came inside. ¡°Speak of the devil,¡± Young-Joon said, greeting Song Ji-Hyun. ¡°What?¡± Song Ji-Hyun tilted her head, puzzled. ¡°We were just talking about you.¡± ¡°Hm. I¡¯m curious, but I won¡¯t ask because I need to hear about the patient¡¯s condition.¡± ¡°Doctor Song,¡± Kim Hyun-Taek said. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°And Doctor Song.¡± Kim Hyun-Taek got up from the bed, covering his face with his hands. His knees slowly bent and fell straight to the floor. He ced his tear-stained hands on top of them, and his head bowed towards the floor. ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± Kim Hyun-Taek. ¡°I¡¯m so sorry to both of you.¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joon looked down at him, then said, ¡°You can get¡­¡± ¡°I can¡¯t forgive you.¡± Song Ji-Hyun cut him off as Young-Joon was about to help him up. Young-Joon looked back at her in surprise. ¡°When you buried Cellicure, do you know how many liver cancer patients died during the time that it took Doctor Ryu to rediscover it? Cellicure could have treated those patients. The damage wasn¡¯t just to me, the developer, do you understand?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I¡¯m not the one who should forgive you. You need to ask them for forgiveness.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry¡­¡± ¡°When you get out of the hospital after some more rehabilitation, you will probably be summoned by the police,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I¡¯ve used the clinical trial as an excuse and stopped them froming to investigate a few times, because I trust that you will go voluntarily.¡± ¡°I will do that.¡± ¡°... But,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°It was really brave of you to ept treatment for your locked-in syndrome. I am really grateful for that.¡± ¡°... Yes.¡± Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s head dropped. Chapter 249: Cold Chain (1) ¡°So he walked to the police station himself?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk asked. ¡°Yeah.¡± Young-Joon nodded. ¡°What a strange life,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡°He was doing all kinds of bad things as a big pharma executive and was living his best life. Then one day, some monster appears out of nowhere and beats the crap out of him. He copses and bes brain dead, but gets treated andes back to life.¡± ¡°It¡¯s all over now.¡± ¡°But no one knows why Kim Hyun-Taek copsed like that, right?¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joon flinched. ¡°I remember the news talking about it being divine punishment because there were no signs of infection,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡°Yeah, but it¡¯s not divine punishment or anything.¡± ¡°Do you know something?¡± ¡°No, not really.¡± The reason why Kim Hyun-Taek copsed was that he had absorbed a fragment of Rosaline¡¯s DNA during his visit to the Life Creation Department¡¯sb. However, he avoided answering Park Joo-Hyuk because it was too difficult to exin convincingly. ¡°Now that I think of it, it¡¯s kind of weird,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡°What is?¡± ¡°No one really cares about what caused Kim Hyun-Taek¡¯s brain death, right? I haven¡¯t seen much news about it.¡± ¡°It just wasn¡¯t on the news. There was a lot of debate about it in the medicalmunity.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°There were a bunch of reports analyzing how his heart, lungs, and brain became extremely damaged in a short period of time andter copsed after he stopped by Lab Six.¡± ¡°And still no one knows about it?¡± ¡°Yeah¡­¡± ¡°Hm, well, biology is super mysterious. It¡¯s fascinating that there are still diseases that remain elusive, even in the age of reviving the brain-dead.¡± ¡°That¡¯s why we do so much research.¡± Young-Joon shrugged. ¡°Are you still working on research these days?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk asked. ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°There¡¯s a rumor that you brought some kid here to y.¡± ¡°Uh¡­¡± ¡°Do you have a hidden daughter or something? Be honest.¡± ¡°It¡¯s nothing like that. She was a rtive, but she went back.¡± ¡°You have a rtive I don¡¯t know about?¡± ¡°I do, man.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk nced at Young-Joon with a doubtful expression. ¡°By the way, what happened with hiring a professional CEO to run thepany so you can focus on research? Do you want me to look into some for you?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk asked. ¡°It¡¯s okay. I¡¯m thinking of asking Director Kim Young-Hoon to do it.¡± ¡°Director Kim?¡± ¡°Actually, he¡¯s already running a pretty big portion of thepany pretty well. He did a great job when I went to China, striking a deal with Tanya Manker and everything. He¡¯s in Africa right now, and¡­¡± Ring! Young-Joon¡¯s phone rang. It was Kim Young-Hoon. ¡°Yes, Mr. Director.¡± ¡ªDoctor Ryu, I arrived in Jerusalem now. I¡¯ll meet with the prime minister and hear about the patient, as well as ask about Philistines. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡ªMr. Ryu, there was a proposal I was working on before I got here, and it was to support biotechnology and stem cell research at ten universities in Korea. Could you please take care of it? I couldn¡¯t finish it before I came. ¡°Yes, of course.¡± ¡ªThank you. I¡¯ll call you once I¡¯m done. Kim Young-Hoon hung up. ¡°Director Kim is such a hard worker,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡°See that? He¡¯s giving me work to do,¡± Young-Joon said. * Kim Young-Hoon met Prime Minister Felus at a prearranged hotel. It was not a very nice hotel, and the prime minister arrived at night with a inclothes security team. He was wearing jeans, a jacket, and a hat. Kim Young-Hoon realized right away that it was a very private meeting. ¡°I wanted to meet Mr. Ryu in person, but I guess that was too difficult to arrange,¡± said Felus, the prime minister of Israel. ¡°Mr. Ryu is incredibly busy because of the brain death clinical trial project,¡± Kim Young-Hoon said. ¡°As you know, that clinical trial is not finished yet; it needs more follow-up and management, and he has to write a report on the results. Of course, Doctor Song Ji-Hyun, the first author, will do most of it, but Mr. Ryu needs to review it as the project manager.¡± ¡°I understand.¡± Felus nodded. ¡°Is your family or a head of state brain-dead right now?¡± Kim Young-Hoon asked. Felus was hesitant to answer. ¡°We can only help you if we know the details. Right now, recovering brain death is in clinical trials right now, and it hasn¡¯t beenmercialized. We can¡¯t give it to just anyone,¡± Kim Young-Hoon said. ¡°I will only report this to Mr. Ryu, and I promise to keep it strictly confidential.¡± ¡°... Yes, I understand. The brain-dead patient is my son,¡± Felus replied. Kim Young-Hoon nodded. Unlike Young-Joon, who was a pure scientist, he was a thorough businessman. He researched every detail about the other person beforeing to a meeting like this. That¡¯s why he understood why Felus was so secretive. ¡°Is a child born out of wedlock?¡± Kim Young-Hoon asked. He asked because Felus didn¡¯t officially have a son. ¡°He¡¯s an adopted son.¡± ¡°Adopted?¡± Kim Young-Hoon tilted his head in puzzlement. It was because it was the first time he had ever heard of Felus having an adopted son. ¡°Not on paper. No one knows I adopted him because¡­ because he is Palestinian.¡± ¡°...¡± The history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict was extremely old and deep. The Jewish people were driven out of Palestine by the Romans more than two thousand years ago, and the Arabs settled in their ce and have been living as Palestinians ever since. During World War I, the British promised the Palestinian Arabs independence in order to gain their military cooperation. At the same time, they promised the Jewish people the city of Jerusalem in Palestine to establish a Jewish state. The British made two contradictory derations at the same time. Eventually, in November of 1947, the United Nations allocated about fifty-six percent of Palestine to a Jewish state and forty-three percent to an Arab state. Naturally, the Arabs, who had lived there for over two thousand years, rejected the partition. However, the Jewish people entered Palestine and founded the state of Israel with Jerusalem as its capital. This was simr to the Japanese moving into Seoul and dering it an independent nation. Neighboring Arab countries were angry and attacked Israel, leading to war in the Middle East, which Israel continually won. This was because Israel had the United States backing them. As a result, Israel now upied most of the Palestinian territories. ¡°And the Palestinians who were driven out created the Palestinian Popr Liberation Front, which has been carrying out terrorism,¡± Felus said. ¡°Director Kim, I heard that the terrorists who attacked the GSC were key members of that organization. They must have had a lot of bottled-up anger at the destruction of Palestine while the West, including the United States, fully supports Israel.¡± ¡°Hm¡­¡± ¡°The conflict is still going on. I saw the Israeli army carrying out a massive bombing on civilians in Gaza. I found a Palestinian child who survived, and I secretly brought him with me.¡± ¡°You secretly brought him?¡± Kim Young-Hoon asked. ¡°I wasn¡¯t the prime minister at the time, but I was a powerful politician. For a politician to adopt a Palestinian child in that situation could only be interpreted as a political act, not a humanitarian one.¡± ¡°...¡± Felus looked quite exhausted. Then, he let out a long sigh. ¡°Do you have any idea what kind of attention would be drawn to him if he was my officially adopted son when I became the prime minister?¡± ¡°That¡¯s why you don¡¯t have a child on paper.¡± ¡°I wanted to raise my son independent of all the problems on thisnd, so I hid him in Af[1]instead of Jerusalem, and he grew up there.¡± ¡°I understand why you¡¯re sensitive about revealing his identity. Now, let¡¯s move on to the medical part: how did he end up brain-dead?¡± Kim Young-Hoon asked. ¡°It was a disease called progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML),¡± Felus replied. ¡°That¡¯s a difficult name.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve never heard about it either, and I never thought I¡¯d memorize it.¡± Felus smiled bitterly. ¡°PML is caused by a virus called polyomavirus. It is hard to treat, but it is still possible. There are good treatments for the symptoms, and recently, a drug that stops the infection itself was developed.¡± ¡°But how did it get to brain death?¡± ¡°The treatments couldn¡¯t be shipped to Af,¡± Felus said. ¡°They couldn¡¯t be shipped?¡± Kim Young-Hoon replied. ¡°Yes.¡± Felus nodded. ¡°PML is a rtively rare disease. And because the treatment had just been developed by Colson & Conson, the hospital didn¡¯t have any in stock, so we had to buy it directly from thepany. However, the drug was pretty unstable, so it had to be stored at or below minus seventy degrees before use. If the temperature goes up, it denatures.¡± ¡°Minus seventy degrees Celsius¡­¡± ¡°They said it would be too big of a loss for the manufacturer to transport drugs for one person from the U.S. to Af while maintaining that temperature. The shipping costs would be too high,¡± Felus said. He added, ¡°If it was shipped in bulk, we could have adjusted the unit price to some extent since the proportion of the drug costspared to shipping fees would increase, but this was difficult because the disease was rare. We were searching for a way to import it by sandwiching it among other drugs stored at ultra-low temperatures, but we lost too much time.¡± * Young-Joon visited Jungyoon University for the schrship and research grant agreement. Kim Young-Hoon was working on this project with Yang Hye-Sook and Ban Du-Il. A-GenBio was going to fund schrships and research grants to train biological technicians and scientists who could work with stem cells. ¡°Nice to see you again,¡± Young-Joon said, happily greeting Ban Du-Il. ¡°I heard that Congresswoman Yang Hye-Sook is pushing for an amendment to exclude brain death from the criteria for death, thanks to you,¡± Ban Du-Il said. ¡°That¡¯s great, since now we have a way to revive the brain-dead.¡± ¡°But it¡¯s not easy tomercialize such a difficult procedure that involves sticking a fine needle up the nose like you did with Kim Hyun-Taek. You know that, right?¡± ¡°I know.¡± Even Miguel, who was arguably the best doctor in the field of neuroscience, had problems with some of the stem cells regurgitating during the procedure. Obviously, they needed a more stable and easier method formercialization. ¡°I can develop that technology further. But even though we keep hiring scientists and doctors who can create artificial organs, and induce stem cell dedifferentiation and neuronal differentiation, there are never enough. The Next Generation Hospital is facing abor shortage as artificial organs are bingmercialized,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°It will stabilize in a few years because a lot of students are going in that direction.¡± Ban Du-Il walked with Young-Joon to the front of the engineering building. There was a huge banner hanging there. ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± Young-Joon nced. ¡°It looks like the electrical department is having some kind of seminar today.¡± Ban Du-Il shrugged. ¡°I don¡¯t know the details,¡± he added. Young-Joon read the banner. [Alternative Power Seminar: Focusing on Sr Energy] 1. a city in Israel ? Chapter 250: Cold Chain (2)

Chapter 250: Cold Chain (2)

¡°Sr energy...¡± Young-Joon stared at the banner that was hung on the building. ¡°Are you interested?¡± Ban Du-Il asked. ¡°I am. Do you remember that cold chain contest the Gates Foundation had back in the day?¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°Yeah, you applied for it. You said you were going to get research funding and a schrship, but...¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t even make it far enough to present.¡± ¡°The idea you wrote was to attach a sr generator to the transportation to keep the medicine or food cold as it traveled from the equator to the interior of Africa?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°Why didn¡¯t you get in?¡± ¡°They said that the cost of installing and maintaining sr-integrated panelsrge enough to provide that much power on a ship or vehicle was impractical.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°And you have to store the power when it¡¯s sunny to make up for theck of power during cloudy weather or at night, which they said would be difficult.¡± ¡°Who ended up winning that contest?¡± Ban Du-Il asked. ¡°No one did. There were no winners who had their ideasmercialized. They just gave a few recognition awards to creative ideas, and that was it,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°Do you want to listen to that seminar?¡± ¡°Can visitors listen to it? It¡¯s not even a seminar being held by our department, right?¡± ¡°If Ryu Young-Joon wants to go, they¡¯re definitely not going to stop you. Besides, it¡¯s a small seminar, so you can get a ticket at the door as well.¡± Young-Joon thought for a moment, then shook his head. ¡°Ah, never mind. I¡¯m just stopping by to deliver a schrship, and I have to get back anyway.¡± Atst, Ban Du-Il and Young-Joon went to the fourth floor of Jungyoon University¡¯s administration building to visit the president¡¯s office. They had to visit the president¡¯s office because the amount of funding, one hundred billion won, was too big for the faculty office to handle on their own. ¡°Oh, Doctor Ryu! Hello!¡± Yeom Joo-Pil, the president of Jungyoon University, was filling out paperwork. When he saw Young-Joon arrive, he jumped out of his seat. ¡°Wee! Haha, I should have greeted you downstairs. If you had let me know you were here at the front door, I would havee to escort you.¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s fine. It¡¯s my alma mater,¡± Young-Joon said, chuckling. ¡°I¡¯ve been here before when the students held a rally because the previous president embezzled money or something.¡± ¡°Ack...¡± Yeom Ju-Pil flinched. ¡°Haha... As you know, I was appointed after that...You know that, right?¡± ¡°Of course. I trust you will bepletely transparent with your budget.¡± ¡°Yes, we even disclose the breakdown of the costs.¡± Chuckling, Yeom Ju-Pil led Young-Joon to the sofa. ¡°I can¡¯t believe how lucky I am to have such a good alumnus. I heard today that the total amount of money you¡¯re giving out in schrships and research grants is over one hundred billion won.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°Wow. Our entire school brings in about two hundred billion won in tuition revenue, and you¡¯re investing almost half of that amount on one faculty.¡± ¡°Because modern science is a discipline that runs on money.¡± ¡°You are amazing, Mr. Ryu. Professor Ban Du-Il raised an incredible student.¡± The president nced at Ban Du-Il while he continued to praise Young-Joon. Then, Ban Du-Il intervened. ¡°Thanks to Young-Joon, our department will be able to buy a Next Generation Sequencing machine and an ultracentrifuge that we¡¯ve wanted to buy for a long time. Haha, they¡¯re both in the billions, so the department administration couldn¡¯t purchase them easily.¡± ¡°You should buy five or six of those because you¡¯ll be sharing them a lot,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°We should.¡± ¡°Oh, by the way, you know the Jungyoon Paper, right?¡± Yeom Ju-Pil asked. ¡°The school newspaper?¡± ¡°Yes. They asked us in advance if they could film you giving us the donation today. Could I let them?¡± ¡°Um...¡± Young-Joon wasn¡¯t too keen on the idea of doing something like this and taking pictures to publicize it. But because the journalists who run the school newspaper were also students, he felt like he shouldn¡¯t decline. ¡°I can¡¯t stay here long. Are the reporters here?¡± ¡°They just came out mid-ss right now.¡± ¡°Oh, I interrupted their ss.¡± Knock knock! Before Young-Joon could finish, someone knocked on the door. Four young students, two male and two female, who still looked like high school students, appeared. ¡°Hello!¡± ¡°We¡¯re from the Jungyoon Paper.¡± They approached Young-Joon and the president with cameras and a microphone. ¡°Could we get a short interview? Um... Ryu Young-Joon... sunbae...¡± One of the female students¡¯ voices trembled slightly as she handed the microphone to Young-Joon. ¡°Thank you for calling me sunbae. It¡¯s refreshing to be back in school,¡± Young-Joon said. The students smiled brightly. The female student who handed him the microphone, who also happened to be the student reporter, asked, ¡°We heard that you¡¯re donating a whopping one hundred billion won to the school today, is that right?¡± ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right. Not only Jungyoon University, but we¡¯re also going to invest in biological departments, medical schools, and anyb that works with stem cells regardless of their department in other universities across the country.¡± ¡°Thank you. I¡¯m in the electronic and electrical engineering department; do you n to give us any funding?¡± ¡°Haha, I¡¯m sorry. This funding ising frompany funds to provide quality education to students so we can produce future employees for A-GenBio or the Next Generation Hospital. As much as I¡¯d like to invest in other departments, I cannot,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°Haha, of course. It was just a joke to break the ice. I will transfer to bioengineering,¡± the student said yfully. ¡°You don¡¯t have to. Jungyoon University is my alma mater... I will also personally donate to the other departments. It will be enough to cover a semester¡¯s worth of tuition.¡± ¡°Wow...¡± ¡°Thank you so much!¡± The students shouted. ¡°Now, diving into the interview...¡± ¡°Before that, let me ask you a question. This is just out of curiosity, but you said you were in the electronic and electrical engineering department, right?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°On my way here, I saw that you are holding a sr energy seminar today.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right!¡± ¡°Is that a graduate school seminar? Are visitors also allowed to attend?¡± ¡°I thought you weren¡¯t going to attend,¡± Ban Du-Il asked. ¡°It turns out I¡¯m interested after all.¡± ¡°Visitors can also get a ticket at the door and attend,¡± said the students. ¡°We¡¯re also going to go there in the afternoon. Do you want us to take you there?¡± ¡°Sure, after the interview,¡± Young-Joon said. * Professor Kim Gwang-Myung received shocking news before the seminar began. Young-Joon, the greatest superstar of science right now, was visiting the school to donate one hundred billion won to his alma mater. ¡°I hope you guys seed and invest in our department, too,¡± Kim Gwang-Myung joked to the students. Then, just before he got on stage to give his lecture, he received even more shocking news. It was that Young-Joon had signed up for the alternative power seminar. ¡°Our seminar?¡± Kim Gwang-Myung asked the teaching assistant from the department office who delivered the news. ¡°A biologist is listening to our seminar? Why would he?¡± The teaching assistant shrugged. ¡°I don¡¯t know. He just contacted us to sign up, saying that he¡¯ll be here soon. He¡¯s only going to attend a few of the lectures.¡± ¡°Not mine, I hope. It¡¯s a little intimidating to have a superstar CEO like thate to your ss, even if he¡¯s in a different field...¡± Kim Gwang-Myung said, trailing off. Then, the conference host spoke into the microphone. ¡°The next session will be presented by Professor Kim Gwang-Myung from the electronic and electrical engineering department.¡± There was a round of apuse. As Kim Gwang-Myung walked onto the stage, he saw the door to the lecture hall opening. Young-Joon was walking in. ¡°Um... I will begin now.¡± Kim Gwang-Myung opened his presentation on hisputer. ¡°As you all know, electricity used to be supplied by oil or coal, which is extremely polluting to the air, leading to a search for alternative power sources. Hydropower and wind power were once popr, but they have not be a universal power source due to their limitation in location. ¡°Nuclear power has emerged as an important item, but it is not the best option because as seen in the Chernobyl Disaster or the Fukushima Incident, it causes serious damage that is difficult to repair,¡± Kim Gwang-Myung said. He added, ¡°Sr energy has the advantage that you can go anywhere on the and collect energy without being limited by location, it¡¯s almost pollution-free, and the energy source is almost inexhaustible. It¡¯s especially valid for underdeveloped countries in the equatorial regions, as it is not easy to build huge, advanced power nts like nuclear power nts there.¡± Kim Gwang-Myung nced at Young-Joon. He looked deep in thought. ¡°But there are two major obstacles to utilizing sr energy. One is the efficiency of power supply and demand. The efficiency of sr cells is around ten percent, which is very low. That means that if we get one hundred kilowatts of sr energy, we can only use ten of it for power, and the rest is lost to thermal energy. ¡°Considering the efficiency of nuclear or thermal power, which is about forty to fifty percent, or hydroelectric power, which is close to ny percent, it¡¯s a really poor value,¡± Kim Gwang-Myung exined. ¡°The second obstacle is the disadvantages of polysilicon, the raw material for sr cells. It requires a lot of money and power to process, which makes it uneconomical. It also has a rtively short lifespan, around twenty years, and various toxic substances are emitted during the production process, which raises the question of whether it is really eco-friendly.¡± Kim Gwang-Myung¡¯s lecture went on for another thirty minutes. Some of the students were growing bored, but Young-Joon was having a lot of discussions with Rosaline in his head. Atst, it was time for questions. A few visiting speakers, professors, and students asked questions. As Kim Gwang-Myung was about to wrap up his presentation... ¡°I have a question.¡± Young-Joon raised his hand. Kim Gwang-Myung gulped. The professors at the seminar waited with some nervousness to see what question Young-Joon would ask. ¡°Yes, go ahead, Doctor Ryu,¡± Kim Gwang-Myung replied. ¡°First of all, thank you for the lecture. I¡¯m asking this because I don¡¯t know much about the field. You mentioned the two big disadvantages of sr energy, so if we could change the material and increase the efficiency to one hundred percent, would it be possible to make a mobile giant freezer with sr power that can be self-powered?¡± ¡°A mobile freezer?¡± ¡°The cold chain is the biggest challenge when moving medicine or food to interior regions in equatorial countries like Africa. Some medicines need to be kept at temperatures as low as minus seventy degrees Celsius, which makes it impossible to deliver because of the weather and road conditions.¡± That was when Kim Gwang-Myung understood why Young-Joon had attended the seminar. ¡°It is possible, but you would need a device that can store energy so you can supply power during the night,¡± Kim Gwang-Myung said. ¡°Is there such a thing?¡± ¡°It¡¯s called an energy storage system, or ESS. It¡¯s a bunch of lithium cells connected together to make a really big battery. It¡¯s usually not suitable for a mobile vehicle, and it¡¯s usually built into a building.¡± ¡°Can you put an ESS on a car and do what you just described?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Haha, I don¡¯t know. You¡¯d have to factor in the weight and bulk of it, but if you could make a crazy sr cell that can provide close to one hundred percent of the power, it might work.¡± Kim Gwang-Myung shrugged. ¡°But it won¡¯t be easy, because that¡¯s what I and other professors have been working on for twenty years, and we still don¡¯t have an answer.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t it because silicon is not good at converting sr energy into electricity?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Yes, but that¡¯s the best we have. There¡¯s no other material in nature that absorbs sr energy as well as it does.¡± ¡°There is,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Pardon?¡± Young-Joon quietly pointed outside. He could see the branches swaying in the wind and the lush foliage. Three ornamental garden trees were nted outside the drab engineering building. ¡°If electricity is all about getting energy through the flow of electrons, then the exact same mechanism exists in nts at a very high efficiency,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°You can take the electron transport system from the thkoid membrane of the chlorosts in the leaves of nts or algae.¡± Chapter 251: Cold Chain (3)

Chapter 251: Cold Chain (3)

¡°Thyl... what?¡± Professor Kim Gwang-Myung frowned. ¡°Thkoids,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°Thkoids...¡± ¡°nt leaves and algae have an organelle called the chlorost. This organelle is green, which is why nt leaves and algae are green. There is a of tiny pie-like internal structures inside the chlorost, which are the thkoids,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°The membranes of the thkoids are actively engaged in taking sunlight and converting it into energy. nts and algae have been evolving this for 2.4 billion years, and it¡¯s an incredible level of efficiency.¡± ¡°... Haha.¡± Kim Gwang-Myung scratched his head. ¡°Um, what should I say... Doctor Ryu, sr cells that mimic nt leaves are called biosr cells. Not me, but many scientists have already tried that.¡± ¡°And they weren¡¯t very sessful?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°That¡¯s right. I don¡¯t know much about thkoids and whatnot, but trying to obtain electrons from the chlorost, which is a type of protein in a cell, and storing them... That¡¯s very difficult. It was almost impossible tobine a sr cell made up of inorganic materials with chlorophyll, which is aplex mass of organic matter,¡± Kim Gwang-Myung said. Then, one of the professors who was hosting the seminar intervened. ¡°To add, Doctor RYu, the photosynthetic efficiency of nt leaves isn¡¯t even that high. Myb studied that before, but we failed.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not very high?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°The photosynthetic efficiency of a nt leaf depends on the wavelength of light and the concentration of carbon dioxide. It¡¯s usually around five percent when measured experimentally, and the rest of the energy is either reflected or dissipated as heat.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true if you just use the chlorosts itself,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Chlorosts were originally a type of bacteria. They were living things before they got into nt leaves, so chlorosts have tons of genes and biological metabolisms inside, most of them having nothing to do with absorbing sr energy. The cell membrane of chlorosts and the cell wall of nt leaves reflect a lot of sunlight, so of course the absorption efficiency will be low.¡± ¡°Then what do you propose?¡± ¡°We only purify the chlorophyll molecules that cause electron transfer in the thkoid membrane, which is inside the chlorost,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I think it¡¯ll be a little difficult to do this in just any nt... We¡¯ll probably have to take some unusual algae from the deep ocean and get the chlorophyll from there if we want to get close to one hundred percent efficiency.¡± ¡°...¡± The professors were speechless for a moment. Breaking the silence, Kim Gwang-Myung asked, ¡°We¡¯ll have to try it to find out, but is what you¡¯re talking about even possible with current technology?¡± ¡°Maybe. There will be quite a lot of conditions to fulfill, starting with choosing the species of algae to purifying the chlorophyll, but... In other words, that¡¯s all we have to do,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Do any of the professors here want to give it a try with A-GenBio?¡± * * * Young-Joon, who came back to thepany, met Park Joo-Hyuk. ¡°So you went to school to deliver a schrship donation, but you ended up verbally signing a research coboration agreement?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk asked. ¡°Not even an agreement. All we talked about is how we could work together and that I would give them a call,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Wow, you really like working, don¡¯t you? You said you would be at Jungyoon University for thirty minutes to give your donation, and then youe out two hourster, saying that you¡¯re going to build sr cells that generate electricity?¡± ¡°Anyway, write me a contract for thatter. Also, did you hear anything from Director Kim about the Philistines?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°It¡¯s the first I¡¯m hearing of it.¡± ¡°Things like Philistines receiving funding for their research and development illegally, or acquiring strains illegally...¡± ¡°Nothing like that, but remember how you asked me to look into thew on how botulinum toxin is distributed in Korea?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡°Yeah. You got something?¡± ¡°I found something interesting. Korea is one of the best Botox markets in the world; it¡¯s the best Botox country in the world. How many Botox-rtedpanies do you think there are in Korea?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk asked. ¡°Hm, overseas, the United States, China, Germany, and France have one botulinum toxinpany each... Oh, and now one in Egypt. Anyway, there must be three or fourpanies in Korea,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I looked, and there¡¯s nine.¡± ¡°Nine?¡± Young-Joon was shocked. ¡°Yeah. There are fourpanies in Korea that havemercialized botulinum toxin, and there are fivepanies that have received permission to develop it.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a lot, considering there are more botulinum toxinpanies in Korea than all the foreign onesbined. Are the distribution and development processes being managed well?¡± ¡°About that part... There was a legal dispute between them recently,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡°A dispute?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Twopanies, called Woongdam Pharmaceuticals and LifeToxin, that were fighting over botulinum toxin.¡± Although they weren¡¯t like A-Gen or A-Bio, both were fairlyrge medium enterprises. They both had substantial drug pipelines, so it wasn¡¯t like their livelihood depended on botulinum toxin. ¡°They¡¯re pretty bigpanies. Did they fight about patented technology or something?¡± ¡°The very firstpany to have used botulinum toxin in Korea is LifeToxin. Woongdam Pharmaceuticals started after them. But botulinum toxin is a toxin purified from a strain called Clostridium botulinum or something, right?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°But they¡¯re fighting about where they got that strain. Woongdam Pharmaceuticals ims that it¡¯s their bacteria that they isted on their own, while LifeToxin is iming that they stole their strain...¡± ¡°Are you serious right now?! Young-Joon shouted all of a sudden. ¡°Shit, you scared me. What¡¯s the problem now? What part made you mad?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk asked. ¡°I don¡¯t care if LifeToxin is right or Woongdam Pharmaceuticals is right. Are you saying that the government can¡¯t control the storage, cultivation, and transportation of Clostridium botulinum, one of the worst bacterial strains alive?¡± ¡°That¡¯s the part you¡¯re mad about...¡± ¡°Well, the bacteria itself is prettymon, since you can find it in things like spoiled canned goods and sausages that were sealed without sterilization. I don¡¯t know how much of it exists in the country, but the wild-type strain is only in trace amounts and doesn''t pose much of a risk due to environmental conditions. But isting it, getting it as a cell line, feeding it and mass-producing it to produce botulinum toxin ispletely different.¡± ¡°Hm.¡± ¡°If Woongdam Pharmaceuticals had isted it from nature themselves, they would have filed a report with the KCDC when they obtained the cell line, so I don¡¯t see how they can get into a legal battle...¡± ¡°I saw the report, and it was just a piece of paper, very simple. All they wrote was that they obtained it, and that was it.¡± ¡°Oh my...¡± Young-Joon put his hand on his head, as if he had a headache. ¡°It¡¯s a new, extremely toxic strain, and they didn¡¯t use NGS (Next Generation Sequencing) to decode its entire genome or write up a management or disposal n?¡± ¡°That¡¯s pretty strict for organisms imported, but the regtions are veryx for domestic organisms,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡°And that¡¯s why LifeToxin is using and criticizing Woongdam Pharmaceuticals of not having the environment to iste botulinum, lying, and taking their strain.¡± ¡°That¡¯s also insane. If that¡¯s true, they were the ones who let out that toxic strain because they couldn¡¯t control it. They should be thinking about a solution.¡± ¡°You want me to set up a meeting with the KCDC?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll talk to the secretary¡¯s office and set it up. You don¡¯t have to worry about that, and thanks for letting me know. This is not the time for me to be worrying about Philistines.¡± Bzzz! Young-Joon¡¯s cell phone rang. It was Director Kim Young-Hoon. ¡°Yes, Mr. Director.¡± ¡ªI¡¯m on my way to Egypt right now. I spoke with Prime Minister Felus as you instructed before. ¡°Thank you for your hard work,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡ªYou don¡¯t sound well. Is something wrong? ¡°Um... No, I¡¯m fine.¡± ¡ªI made ast-minute appointment with Philistines yesterday, so I don¡¯t know how it¡¯s going to go. They¡¯re making a lot of money, and their production and sales are going well, so there¡¯s a chance that they might turn down our investment. ¡°Then tell them this.¡± ¡ªWhat should I tell them? ¡°Tell them that we can help them with distribution, not production,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Botulinum toxin needs to be stored below minus twenty degrees Celsius. Tell them we can make a cold chain for them.¡± * * * Kim Young-Hoon hung up the phone. He was in a car traveling to Cairo, Egypt. He thought back to his meeting with Felus the day before. ¡°Doctor Ryu said he¡¯d like to proceed with the clinical trial, since it makes sense to run a clinical trial with a diverse ethnic background,¡± Kim Young-Hoon said to Felus. ¡°But there¡¯s a problem. First, your son is brain-dead, and it will be difficult to fly long distances on life support. Second, even if we solve this problem, he is still dead under current medicalws. Bringing the body of a poor orphan boy from Palestine into Korea, having it transported to the Next Generation Hospital for the clinical trial would most likely expose your rtionship, Mr. Prime Minister.¡± ¡°... I would prefer that it would not be revealed,¡± Felus said. ¡°That¡¯s why our medical staff will being here.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°The problem is that Professor Miguel cannote here. He¡¯s not an employee of the Next Generation Hospital, just a visiting professor.¡± ¡°What¡¯s the difference if he can¡¯te?¡± ¡°It is impossible to do the procedure of using a microsyringe to inject stem cells into the subventricr zone through the nose. I don¡¯t know how many technicians in the world are skilled enough to do that.¡± ¡°Then...¡± ¡°The brain death recovery technology is still in the development stage. There are also easier drug delivery methods that we are working on as follow-up research at A-GenBio. If you agree, we will use one of them,¡± Kim Young-Hoon said. ¡°By the way, the CEO is confident.¡± ¡°...¡± Felus thought for a moment, then nodded. ¡°This is the best we can do. Okay.¡± Kim Young-Hoon, who was watching Felus sign the consent form, asked, ¡°By any chance, have you heard of apany called Philistines in Egypt?¡± ¡°Philistines?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t it a pharmaceuticalpany? They¡¯re doing so well that the news has made it all the way here. People were saying that they¡¯re riding the wave that A-GenBio created, and the Middle East is now getting high-tech science like the pharmaceutical industry...¡± ¡°Then have you heard of a scientist named Isaiah Franklin?¡± Kim Young-Hoon asked. ¡°I don¡¯t think so. Do they have something to do with Philistines?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve heard rumors that they have a connection with the Popr Front for the Liberation of Palestine. That terrorist organization has attacked the GSC before, and our CEO was there as well.¡± ¡°The Popr Front for the Liberation of Palestine...¡± Felus pondered the name again, which was born out of the tragedy between Israel and Palestine. ¡°Do you want Israeli intelligence to look into it?¡± Felus asked. Kim Young-Hoon nodded as if he had been waiting for it. ¡°Yes, thank you. I think it would help Israel¡¯s security as well.¡± ¡°Of course. Thank you for the information. I hope the clinical trial goes well.¡± Felus shook Kim Young-Hoon¡¯s hand. * * * ¡®Something¡¯s off.¡¯ Kim Young-Hoon¡¯s instincts were rarely wrong. Something about Philistines was fishy. Kim Young-Hoon finally arrived in Cairo. Chapter 252: Cold Chain (4)

Chapter 252: Cold Chain (4)

There was arge, modern building along Al Bustan Street in the downtown area of Cairo. It was smaller than the old A-Bio headquarters, but it was bright and lively. This was Philistines, the rising star of the Middle Eastern pharmaceutical industry and a symbol of high-tech in Africa. Even its location, Egypt, was significant. It was deeply involved in the conflict between Palestine and Israel, the neighboring countries, and the wars in the Middle East. At the same time, it was home to the remains of the very essence of ancient science. Perhaps Philistines was an important metaphor for the neighboring countries. This ce held hope for a scientific and peaceful world that could ovee all modern problems, both religious and political. ¡°Hello,¡± Yassir greeted Kim Young-Hoon. ¡°Nice to meet you.¡± Kim Young-Hoon shook Yassir¡¯s hand and went to the meeting room. ¡°Thank you for your willingness to meet with me on such short notice,¡± Kim Young-Hoon said. ¡°Well, of course. You¡¯re from none other than A-GenBio.¡± ¡°As I said before, our CEO wants to invest in Philistines.¡± ¡°Yes. I arranged this meeting because you wanted to discuss this in person, but as I told you over the phone, ourpany is not too hungry for investments right now,¡± Yassir said politely. ¡°You¡¯ve taken a significant chunk of Allergon¡¯s market share by creating a botulinum toxin. Did you make a lot of money?¡± Kim Young-Hoon asked. ¡°Enough to give all my employees a thousand percent bonus,¡± Yassir said with a grin on his face. ¡°Truly amazing. I wonder how you were able to create such revolutionary technology.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a trade secret.¡± Then, an employee entered the meeting room with two cups of tea. ¡°This is a drink called shay[1]. I think it is also called ck tea in other countries, but it¡¯s a little different,¡± Yassir said. ¡°Thank you. I was being rather unreasonableing here, but you¡¯re treating me so well, giving me tea.¡± ¡°Hospitality is one of the most basic ts of Im,¡± Yassir said. ¡°And shay is the basis of hospitality. Muslims don¡¯t drink alcohol, so this is what we offer. There is some sugar, mint, and milk, so feel free to drink it however you like.¡± Then, Yassir poured nine whole spoons of sugar into his teacup. Kim Young-Hoon wasn¡¯t sure if it would all dissolve. ¡°I have a sweet tooth,¡± Yassir said. ¡°I see,¡± Kim Young-Hoon said. ¡°Do you want to know something interesting? Do you know what body organ likes sugar the most?¡± Yassir asked. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s the brain. The brain only uses pure glucose as an energy source. It¡¯s a very picky eater, and it only eats what is easy to digest,¡± Yassir said. ¡°By using the powerful energy it gets from glucose, the brain is able to process vast amounts of information and use its imagination and reasoning power, which is unmatched by any other higher organisms, to create logic and advance science.¡± ¡°Interesting.¡± ¡°And there¡¯s another interesting fact. There is another tissue that loves glucose in the body,¡± Yassir said. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°It is cancer.¡± ¡°Cancer...¡± ¡°The mystery of life is so literary. The brain and cancer: two tissues using the same energy source, but one is exerting transcendent power to keep the organism alive, while the other is wiping out all the tissues around it to proliferate for its own selfish goals.¡± ¡°I see,¡± Kim Young-Hoon replied. ¡°I think science is simr. Some scientists are cancer. They disease the world and only multiply their wealth, like a tumor. And some scientists act as humanity¡¯s brain. They be the treasury of intellect, fighting for the public food and environment.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°It¡¯s just like how botulinum toxin is the most potent toxin in the world, but it is being used as a treatment for various diseases.¡± ¡°Speaking of which, botulinum toxin used to just be used for wrinkles and hyperhidrosis, but how it¡¯s bing a silver bullet.¡± Kim Young-Hoon attracted his attention. ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right. Nowadays, it¡¯s being used for incontinence or voice problems like puberphonia, spasmodic torticollis, teeth grinding, migraines, and lots of other fields,¡± Yassir replied. ¡°Since being able to kill nerves locally has a lot of medical applications.¡± ¡°Exactly. A-GenBio treats people by reviving nerves with stem cells, and we treat people by killing over-excitable nerves. Both directions of science are absolutely necessary.¡± ¡°Right. Speaking of, if we assume that botulinum toxin has as much potential as A-GenBio and if its uses are expanded, it might change some of the countries that Philistines sells botulinum toxin drugs to,¡± Kim Young-Hoon said. ¡°Countries?¡± Yassir answered. ¡°Right now, you¡¯re mostly promoting botulinum toxin for cosmetic purposes in developed countries, right? But if you use it for neurological treatment, wouldn¡¯t there be a significant demand in less developed countries as well?¡± ¡°Probably.¡± ¡°You could probably build a next-generation hospital like A-GenBio and grow a neurotherapy hub, and then you¡¯d have a medical hub in the Middle East. You would be apany that symbolizes healing and health in this powder keg of a region where so many people have been killed and injured.¡± ¡°That sounds appealing, but it¡¯s a little early for us. If that¡¯s what you¡¯re trying to propose investing towards, then...¡± ¡°It¡¯s not.¡± Kim Young-Hoon shook his head. ¡°We¡¯re looking to coborate on the cold chain aspect.¡± ¡°The cold chain aspect?¡± Yassir replied. ¡°A-GenBio is no longer just a biopharmaceuticalpany, but a multidisciplinary sciencepany that also addresses environmental and energy issues. One of the most important things in the distribution process of food or medicine is the cold chain, don¡¯t you think?¡± ¡°I live in Egypt, so I know how expensive distribution costs can be in equatorial underdeveloped countries.¡± ¡°So, if botulinum toxin is distributed in the countries in the region you mentioned, not just in developed countries, wouldn¡¯t maintaining the cold chain be an issue for Philistines?¡± Kim Young-Hoon said. ¡°I see your point. You¡¯re going to offer that cold chain maintenance technology, right? Is it developed? What is it?¡± Yassir asked. ¡°It¡¯s in the early stages of development.¡± ¡°Then, I¡¯m afraid we can¡¯t sign a contract or anything right away,¡± Yassir said. ¡°At A-GenBio, technology development happens in the blink of an eye. If we were finished, we would have just sold the product to Philistines, not offered to coborate,¡± Kim Young-Hoon replied. ¡°Since it¡¯s in the development stage, there¡¯s room for us to align our interests, is that it?¡± ¡°What do you think? You¡¯re free to evaluate it after we send you some data during our development stage,¡± Kim Young-Hoon asked. ¡°If you could do that, I will discuss it with our CEO and the board of directors,¡± Yassir replied. ¡°Thank you. In return...¡± Kim Young-Hoon added. ¡°You should also tell us about how you revolutionized botulinum toxin production at Philistines, such as what genome engineering led to this increase in production so that we can evaluate the rationality of our investment.¡± ¡°...¡± Yassir thought for a moment, then replied. ¡°Alright.¡± ¡°Thank you for the tea. Let¡¯s meet again.¡± Kim Young-Hoon left after shaking Yassir¡¯s hand. After making sure that hepletely left and the door was fully closed, Yassir took out a small microphone from his inner pocket. ¡°How was it, Franklin?¡± Yassir asked into the microphone. ¡ªIt¡¯s not bad. He could hear a young woman¡¯s voice. It was Isaiah Franklin, or Doctor Ref. She was the hidden owner who founded Philistines with Yassir and a few other scientists. ¡°Where are you now?¡± he asked. ¡ªI¡¯m with the soldiers from the Popr Front for the Liberation of Palestine. ¡°Come to thepanyter. Let¡¯s talk about this.¡± * * * Palmaria romata was a type of algae that belonged to the Palmaria genus. It was an unusual algae that lived in the ocean at depths of more than five hundred feet, but now it was swarming in front of Lab Seven at A-GenBio. ¡°Is this some kind of seafood market? What is all this?¡± Shocked, Park Dong-Hyun stopped on his way to the office. Lots of scientists hade down and were watching the scene. ¡°It¡¯s for Mr. Ryu,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung said. ¡°Is A-GenBio going into fish farming?¡± Park Dong-Hyun replied. ¡°Are you kidding? He said he¡¯s going to make sr cells out of this.¡± ¡°Sr cells? With this?¡± ¡°We can.¡± They could hear Young-Joon¡¯s voice from behind them. He stepped between them. ¡°And Dong-Hyun, this looks like seaweed, but it¡¯s pretty precious. It¡¯s tasteless and useless, so we don¡¯t farm it, and you won¡¯t find it at the seafood market. Though, maybe they¡¯ll have Palmaria palmata, its cousin.¡± ¡°You came to work here instead of going to the headquarters?¡± Cheon Ji-Myung asked. ¡°Yes. I left some work for Director Kim to do.¡± ¡°Last time you came to Lab Six for work... Is Lab One next?¡± Cheon Ji-Myung asked. ¡°Yes, I¡¯m going to tour thebs,¡± Young-Joon said yfully. ¡°Has Director Kim returned to Korea?¡± Park Dong-Hyun asked. ¡°Yesterday. I feel bad giving him work as soon as he arrived, but I wanted to do some research on sr cell development here,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I need to get this done quickly in order to move forward.¡± ¡°Are we going to be working on this project together?¡± asked Park Dong-Hyun. He looked somewhat anxious. ¡°We¡¯ve already given all the Chinese dignitaries their artificial organs, and we¡¯re going to set up a separate production line tomercialize the service now, so you don¡¯t need to worry about it.¡± ¡°But we¡¯ve never done anything like sr cell development before...¡± ¡°Who has at a pharmaceuticalpany? If the Life Creation Team can¡¯t do it, no one can. I¡¯ve invited an expert, so let¡¯s go,¡± Young-Joon said as he pushed a cart stacked with Palmaria romata. ¡°You¡¯re used to this repertoire, aren¡¯t you?¡± * * * Soon, the Life Creation Team gathered in theb. ¡°First, we have to finely blend the leaves of romata,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°It doesn¡¯t have to be strict since it¡¯s just a preliminary experiment. I brought my hand blender from home.¡± Young-Joon pulled out his hand blender from his bag. ¡°You¡¯re going to develop a sr cell with a mixer?¡± Bae Sun-Mi asked, puzzled. ¡°A craftsman never mes his tools...¡± Koh Soon-Yeol mumbled. ¡°All the nt research teams use something like this. We use a regr microwave to make agarose gel, right? It¡¯s the same thing.¡± Young-Joon turned on the blender and thoroughly ground five hundred grams of the leaves of the romata. It became a viscous liquid, but most of the cells were holding their circr shape. They had to destroy the cells to extract the chlorophyll inside. Young-Joon began to prepare the lysis buffer. He mixed three parts of Triton X-100 solution with seven parts of one hundred percent ethanol in a beaker, then added microbeads. After shaking the beaker well to suspend them, he poured five hundred milliliters of it into five hundred grams of the romata leaves. Young-Joon transferred the entire mixture into a ss beaker. He raised the temperature of the water bath to ny degrees and submerged the jar in the steaming hot water. He took it out every five minutes and vortexed it. The cell membranes, which were loosened by the heat, began to shatter as they hit the microbeads. After letting it react for thirty minutes, Young-Joon said, ¡°The cell membrane is now broken, and romata chlorophyll, a molecule that receives sunlight to pick up electrons from the thkoid¡¯s electron transport system, is floating in the solution.¡± Young-Joon brought amp and shone it on the solution. The chlorophyll was still active. [Activate Synchronization Mode] The light energy from themp headed to photosystem II, which wasposed of chlorophyll. The sunlight was destroying the water molecules, just as light refracted through a magnifying ss burned paper. As the microscopic molecule, made up of two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom, split, high-energy electrons jumped up. Pzz! To Young-Joon¡¯s vision in Synchronization Mode, it looked like a spark. 1. ?????, pronounced ¡°shay¡±, is a type of Arabic tea. ? Chapter 253: Cold Chain (5)

Chapter 253: Cold Chain (5)

The thkoid membranes were densely packed with structures called photosystems, which were filled with chlorophyll. Chlorophyll was a naturalpound that absorbed photon energy, and there was a huge variety of them. Two types of chlorophylls, called Pd1 and Pd2, formed a dimer, which was called P680. The number referred to the wavelength of light it absorbed: six hundred eighty nanometers. A lot of chlorophylls have evolved to absorb different wavelengths of light in different nts and algae. Then, what kind of species was Palmaria romata, the algae Young-Joon brought? Romata had evolved quite ravenously to absorb even the faintest light that barely reached the depth of the ocean. Romata had a huge variety of chlorophylls, so it could absorb light like a sponge, covering a wide range of wavelengths, from two hundred to three thousand nanometers. It basically covered ny-nine percent of the entire light energy spectrum. ¡°Silicon sr cells could only absorb sunlight with wavelengths between three hundred to one thousand one hundred nanometers, which is mainly in the visible light region,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Essentially, it only absorbs sixty percent of the entire sr energy and throws the rest away. But not the chlorophyllbination in this algae.¡± Now, they had to purify the chlorophyll. They spun it in a centrifuge at thirteen thousand rpm[1]for thirty minutes to separate the cell lysate by density. They carefully drew up the supernatant in the very topyer with a pipette and transferred it into a fifty-milliliter tube. ¡°We can stop here for today. Tomorrow, we are going to purify them by attaching biotin to the chlorophyll and capturing them with streptavidin. We will run FPLC to collect the chlorophylls in high purity, and then apply them to one side of a semi-permeable membrane,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Hae-Rim, could you help me since you¡¯re good at FPLC?¡± * * * The experiment went on the next day as well. The Life Creation members chatted while Jung Hae-Rim collected the chlorophyll and purified it with high purity. ¡°But is this power generation technology using chlorophyll safe?¡± Cheon Ji-Myung asked. ¡°Safe?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not the first time your new technology has caused friction with established markets, right? But this... This is nothing short of an energy revolution...¡± ¡°I haven¡¯t really paid much attention to that kind of thing since the time I was fighting with the Chinese president,¡± Young-Joon said, chuckling. ¡°Sometimes, I think you¡¯re researching with your life on the line.¡± ¡°But this time might not be a big deal. Right now, about fifty percent of existing power nts are thermal-powered using coal, and twenty percent of them use natural gas. The rest are hydro, nuclear, and wind. Sr power basically has no share in the market,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°If there is any friction with established markets, it will probably be with coal or natural gas producers, which ovep quite a bit. China will probably have a vested interest in protecting it given its overwhelming coal production,¡± Young-Joon added. ¡°Are we fighting with China again?¡± ¡°No. The coal in Chinaes from the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. China has currently lost half of its control over Xinjiang, which may be independent at any time. Providing an alternative energy source from coal could be something that China actually likes. We¡¯ll have to wait and see,¡± Young-Joon said. He added, ¡°And Yang Gunyu has worked with me before and is somewhat a reasonable man, so I don¡¯t think he will have his ws out for us. I¡¯m sure Director Kim will handle it well.¡± ¡°I guess it¡¯s not like we are making oil or anything,¡± Park Dong-Hyun said,ughing. ¡°Should we do that, too?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°No.¡± Park Dong-Hyun quickly shook his head. ¡°It¡¯s done.¡± Jung Hae-Rim came back with the FPLC results. ¡°Shall we get back to work then?¡± Young-Joon pulled out a very thin piece of stic out of his bag. ¡°I brought this from Lab Two. It¡¯s a semi-permeable membrane that is very simr inposition to the eggshell membrane inside the egg.¡± Young-Joon tightly packed the chlorophyll into a singleyer in a uniform orientation on one side of the membrane. Although the photosystems had been destroyed and there were no chlorosts or cells remaining, the mechanically arranged chlorophylls still retained all of their biological functions. They were going to now absorb vast amounts of light energy, including UV rays, and extract electrons from water. ¡°But ording to Professor Kim Gwang-Myung, just making electrons is not enough to generate power; we have to dissociate them to one side to create an anode and a cathode,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°To do that, we are going to attach stocyanin to the other side of the semi-permeable membrane with chlorophyll.¡± stocyanin was capable of attracting electrons, and this was why it acted as an electron eptor in the thkoid membrane. ¡°stocyanin is a biomolecule that is expressed by genes in the cells of the romata leaves. What we¡¯re going to do next is locally manipte some of those genes to slightly destroy their function.¡± ¡°Destroy them?¡± Park Dong-Hyun asked. ¡°We¡¯re going to change the eighty-fourth amino acid in stocyanin, cysteine, to an arginine. This will loosen the bond of the copper atoms in stocyanin, making it lose half of its ability to hold electrons,¡± Young-Joon said. He exined, ¡°It will pull the electrons to the other side of the membrane, and then it will drop them there. The high-energy electrons will be separated between the membrane, creating a huge potential difference, which will provide a current as it flows when the nodes are connected. Professor Kim Gwang-Myung will participate in development from this point onwards.¡± * * * As the experiment was going into its tenth day of development, Young-Joon had roughly finalized the important research and handed it over to the members of the Life Creation team. He was meeting with four guests in his office, along with Kim Young-Hoon and Park Joo-Hyuk. They were the representatives from the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, LifeToxin, and Woongdam Pharmaceuticals. The atmosphere was quite heavy. ¡°I saw the high-risk pathogen deration form that the KCDC requirespanies to fill out,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°All it requires is the name of the pathogen, the serotype, and the testing method. I think this is too little information.¡± ¡°Hm...¡± Ji Young-Soon, the representative from the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, was groaning painfully. ¡°Then how should we develop this...?¡± he asked. ¡°First, you should have data that sequences the entire genome of the pathogen with Next Generation Sequencing. That way, we can track it when it¡¯s leaked,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°And if we had that data right now, there would be no need for LifeToxin and Woongdam Pharmaceuticals to fight right now, as we could have justpared the DNA from the two strains.¡± ¡°True...¡± replied Ji Young-Soon in a dejected voice. ¡°And you need a n for how these high-risk pathogens are going to be stored and isted. They¡¯ll only be handled in ab with a high biosafety rating because it¡¯s so toxic, but something like a logbook for the liquid nitrogen tank where the bacterial specimens are stored needs to be created. You have to note down when and how much of the bacteria was taken out by who, how it was cultured, and how they were disposed of,¡± Young-Joon said. He added, ¡°Theck of such a manual is the reason this is happening. Especially since it¡¯s a bacterium that can cause mass death, shouldn¡¯t we be more careful in handling it?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry to interrupt, but I¡¯m here today because Mr. Ryu said he would shed light on the origin of the strain,¡± said Hong Myung-Woon, the representative of LifeToxin. ¡°It would be great if the regtions on microorganism control were stricter, but it wouldn¡¯t have been a problem if it weren¡¯t for unscrupulouspanies like Woongdam Pharmaceuticals.¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joon put his hand on his forehead as if he had a headache. ¡°How many nuclear weapons do you think it would take to kill half the poption of Seoul?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°They say a nuclear weapon as powerful as ten kilotons of TNT can kill about three hundred forty thousand people. Even a rough estimate shows that you¡¯ll need one hundred fifty kilotons, which means you need about fifteen atomic bombs used in the Third World. If you¡¯re using sarin nerve gas, you would need one thousand five hundred tons,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°How much botulinum toxin do you think you¡¯ll need?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°About four hundred grams. For anthracis, you would need about seventeen kilograms,¡± Young-Joon said. He added, ¡°Of course, this number is based on a lethal dose injected directly into the human body. Since you can¡¯t line up everyone and inject them, it wouldn¡¯t be this toxic. Even if it leaked, it wouldn¡¯t kill that many people because it would be airborne and diluted. That¡¯s why Botox, which is developed as a weaker form, is rtively simple to handle. ¡°But the release of the strain that produces it is apletely different matter. Imagine if someone engineered it so that it was capable of living in an aerobic environment and released it into the Han River. What do you think will happen?¡± ¡°No, who would do something like...¡± ¡°They might! It hasn¡¯t been long since the anthrax gas was released at the GSC conference!¡± Young-Joon shouted in frustration. ¡°...¡± ¡°How many scientists or producers culture and handle that strain in a day?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Um... I don¡¯t know, maybe a thousand people...?¡± ¡°You wouldn¡¯t have a thousand people a day looking at, touching, moving, and working on a nuclear weapon with an explosive power in the kilotons, right?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°If a nuclear weapon like that existed in Seoul, what kind of security would it be under?¡± ¡°It would be at the highest level of security at the national level,¡± said Ji Young-Soon. ¡°We¡¯re working with that kind of thing every day. A strain like that being leaked is not just some industrial spy stealing technology. And the fact that you can¡¯t even track it down and are in a legal battle for corporate profit...¡± Young-Joon let out a sigh. ¡°Ipletely agree. If it were us, we wouldn¡¯t even be able to show our faces because we would be so ashamed,¡± said Ji Hak-Gi, the representative of Woongdam Pharmaceuticals. ¡°What?!¡± Hong Myung-Woon shouted sharply. ¡°It¡¯s a fact that Woongdam Pharmaceuticals took our strain!¡± ¡°You keep ndering us with your ridiculous delusions,¡± Ji Hak-Gi said. ¡°As I¡¯ve said many times, Woongdamn Pharmaceuticals performed our own microbial identification from manure at a stable in Yongin, Gyeonggi-do, and that is where we isted our botulinum strain from. We searched almost all thend in Gyeonggi-do to find it and spent hundreds of millions of won to iste it.¡± ¡°I will figure that out for you,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°Stop fighting about who stole it with circumstantial evidence like CCTV footage, and just give me the strains. I will use NGS to cross-examine their whole genomes to analyze any genomic simrities.¡± ¡°Oh!¡± Ji Young-Soon smiled brightly. ¡°We would be grateful if you could do that for us. Both parties have been reluctant to trust verification from third parties, but... Doctor Ryu is one of the most ethical heroes in the scientificmunity, right?¡± he said. ¡°What do you think? Would you like to leave it to Doctor Ryu?¡± ¡°... Alright,¡± Hong Myung-Woon replied. ¡°We will submit it as court evidence as soon as we get the results.¡± ¡°Then you two can take care of the fight from there,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Mr. Commissioner, please just work on reorganizing the surveince system for high-risk organisms. I think it needs aplete update.¡± ¡°Oh, alright. I will make sure to take care of it.¡± ¡°Sir,¡± interrupted Kim Young-Hoon, who was on his phone. ¡°Yes?¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°Lab Seven just contacted me.¡± ¡°About what?¡± ¡°They are going to activate the chlorophyll sr cell for the first time.¡± 1. revolutions per minute ? Chapter 254: Cold Chain (6)

Chapter 254: Cold Chain (6)

The photosystem of the chlorost, which was in the thkoid membrane, was surrounded by a space called the lumen. This was what the chlorophyll sr cells mimicked. The semi-permeable membrane was densely packed with all types of chlorophyll and stocyanin on both sides, and ayer of electrolyte solution was ced on the side that corresponded to the lumen. Then, a metal te was attached to make itpletely airtight. Electrodes were ced on the metal te to receive the flow of electricity. The sr cell made of chlorophyll wasplete. The finished experimental sr cell was one meter squared, three centimeters thick, and around two kilograms. ¡°What is that?¡± Young-Joon asked as he walked into theb and saw the trash that was pushed to one corner. ¡°Why is there shattered ss rolling around? Did you break a beaker or something?¡± ¡°No,¡± Jung Hae-Rim replied. ¡°Soon-Yeol bought a small lightbulb to see if it would light up, but he dropped it and broke it.¡± ¡°What a waste. It was brand new,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°It wasn¡¯t new. It was broken,¡± Jung Hae-Rim replied, grinning. ¡°Why was it broken?¡± ¡°Because we managed to connect it to the sr battery before dropping it.¡± ¡°So?¡± ¡°Instead of lighting up, the fuse blew out.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Because of the overcurrent.¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu, you¡¯re here!¡± Professor Kim Gwang-Myung ran out from inside theb with a big smile on his face. ¡°Yes. I heard the sr battery was finished. I heard you were testing it, so I came to see the demonstration.¡± ¡°Haha, this is absolutely amazing, even better than the microdust reduction device. The whole world will be shocked. This will revolutionize energy, I mean it. The efficiency is incredible, it¡¯s sustainable, and it doesn¡¯t pollute the environment.¡± Kim Gwang-Myung was so excited that as soon as he saw Young-Joon, he started talking about how the experimental sr cell could be further upgraded. ¡°The voltage is a little high right now, but that¡¯s not always a good thing because sr cells should be able to run even when there is no sunlight. In a country where water is scarce, even if you can turn on the tap all the way, you should turn it a little and conserve it. Like that, I would change the type of cathode active material and also put a transformer on it to control the voltage,¡± Kim Gwang Myung said. He added, ¡°And we¡¯re currently using stocyanin to capture electrons at the anode, but I¡¯m not sure this is the best strategy. stocyanin is quiterge, so I think we need to use a smaller and lighter active material to increase the amount of electrons that can be stored in the anode. Also, it would be better to use an anode-active material that releases a lot of electrons at once rtive to its size. For example...¡± ¡°Haha, alright. We have room for improvement. Let¡¯s take a look at that one by one,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°But right now, I would like to see the little bit of sess we have at the intermediate stage. I¡¯m getting a little impatient. Let¡¯s see the finished product first.¡± Young-Joon and the members of the Life Creation team went to the back of theb. There was a balcony next to theb¡¯s deep freezer and the incubators. It was the staff lounge area, where the chlorophyll sr cells were installed. ¡°Here we go.¡± Cheon Ji-Myung connected the voltmeter to the sr cell. The voltmeter¡¯s indicator rose rapidly. It briefly swayed once at the end beforeing to a full stop. [310V] ¡°The voltage of a single conventional sr cell is about 0.5 volts,¡± Kim Gwang-Myung said. ¡°If you connect a hundred of them in series and parallel to make a one-meter square sr module, you get about fifty volts.¡± ¡°So that¡¯s about a six-fold increase in efficiency?¡± Park Dong-Hyun asked. ¡°We should be able to increase it more since this is still a prototype. I can¡¯t even imagine what the potential value of this could be. This could rece all the existing power nts.¡± Kim Gwang-Myung was so excited that he was jumping up and down. ¡°Mr. Ryu, you said that you¡¯re going to use this to make a huge mobile freezer and use it to secure the cold chain, right?¡± he asked. ¡°Yes,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°That¡¯s a piece of cake. Seriously, it¡¯ll be solved in no time,¡± Kim Gwang-Myung said. ¡°I¡¯ve found a distributionpany that¡¯s one of the biggest yers in international distribution who do a lot of work on maintaining the cold chain in Africa. Do you want me to give you their information? I think you could make a lot of money if you contact them and do business with them.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes! Ahhh! This is my research dream that I¡¯ve wanted to pursue my entire life sincepleting my degree!¡± Kim Gwang-Myung eximed, clenching his fists. ¡°...¡± A middle-aged professor who was over fifty years old was as excited as a child. ¡®He¡¯s acting like he won a patent or something.¡¯ Young-Joon felt a little happy for some reason. ¡°Could you tell me what that distributionpany is called?¡± Young-Joon asked Kim Gwang-Myung. ¡°It¡¯s called Asham.¡± ¡°Asham?¡± Young-Joon tilted his head in puzzlement. He felt like he had heard of the name somewhere. ¡°Asham... Asham...¡± ¡ªYou saw it at the Next Generation Hospital. Rosaline sent him a message. ¡ªYou know, the delivery trucks thate in and stand in the parking lot on the left side of the hospital, the ones with the blue containers. They¡¯re branded in English as Asham. ¡°What does thatpany deliver to Next Generation Hospital?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Well, they¡¯re a huge deliverypany, and they deliver a lot of medical products as well, so they might deliver to Next Generation Hospital, too.¡± ¡°... Hm, I see.¡± ¡°I think they are headquartered in Saudi Arabia.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll give them a call. Thank you.¡± * * * As Kim Gwang-Myung and the Life Creation team elerated the development of the sr cell module, Young-Joon sent over some instructions to Lab One. [Analyze and match theplete DNA sequence of the botulinum toxin strains used by LifeToxin and Woongdam Pharmaceuticals.] The One Hundred Million Genome Sequencing Project, which was initially handled by the Diagnostic Device Research Department, was transferred to a new, dedicated department at Lab One: the Genome Decoding Department. That¡¯s where Young-Joon¡¯s instructions were handled. ¡°Bacterial genomes are much smallerpared to the human genome, so it shouldn¡¯t take too long,¡± said Song Yu-Ra, the principal scientist. Then, the scientists sheared the bacterial genome with a sonicator, then ran NGS with it. As this was going on, Young-Joon was talking to Yang Hye-Sook on the phone. ¡°The reason why the government can¡¯t manage botulinum strains properly is because politicians who don¡¯t know the field have divided the responsible departments too roughly,¡± she said. She added, ¡°The botulinum strain and toxin is managed by the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention under the Infectious Disease Control and Prevention Act. ¡°But the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy tries to manage it through the Biological Weapons Prohibition Act and the Act on Prevention of Divulgence and Protection of Industrial Technology, and the Ministry of Agriculture, Food, and Rural Affairs with the Livestock Infectious Disease Prevention Act. ¡°Meanwhile, the pharmaceutical formtions produced from botulinum toxin are managed by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety and are subject to the Pharmaceutical Affairs Act.¡± ¡°It¡¯splicated.¡± ¡°So I¡¯m going to introduce an amendment to the bill that would unify the legal regtions a little bit and change the existingw, which only requires you to report a strain after discovering it, to a permit system.¡± ¡°A permit system?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Yeah. This is a field that deserves a higher barrier to entry; it¡¯s a dangerous substance.¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I think, too.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll let you know the results. Oh, by the way, I heard you¡¯re working on sr cells,¡± Yang Hye-Sook asked. ¡°Did that news make it to the National Assembly already?¡± ¡°News travels fast around here. Besides, I heard that you and Professor Ban Du-Il attended a seminar together at Jungyoon University and talked about developing sr cells during the question period, right? Of course, the news would reach me,¡± Yang Hye-Sook said. ¡°I see.¡± ¡°How far along is it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s almost finished.¡± ¡°Finished?¡± ¡°We¡¯ve improved its efficiency nine-fold. Now, it¡¯s powerful enough to rece the nts that use coal or nuclear power.¡± ¡°Shit...¡± ¡°You use that kind ofnguage, Professor?¡± ¡°I thought you were just an ecosystem destroyer of biology, but you¡¯ve moved on to that now?¡± ¡°What are you talking about? I¡¯m still a biologist,¡± Young-Joon said, chuckling. ¡°Well, it¡¯s going to be quite a shock. There¡¯s going to be some reorganization across the board in all sorts of industries. I¡¯ll have to let Kepco[1] know.¡± ¡°Professor, about Lifetoxin and Woongdam Pharmaceuticals fighting...¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°Who do you think is in the right?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°I know both of the CEOs personally, but neither of them are the kind of people to lie.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°There¡¯s probably another issue.¡± * * * [The genome of LifeToxin¡¯s and Woongdam Pharmaceutical¡¯s botulinum strains were analyzed and found to differ by 870,000 base pairs in the DNA sequence and have functional differences in 37 genes. The two strains appear to bepletely different species. Attached is the raw data in FASTq format and the results of the analysis with SAMtools.] Reading the email from the Genome Decoding Department, Young-Joon felt a little confused. The genomes were so different that it was hardly disputable. Young-Joon sent the results to the representatives of bothpanies. Hong Myung-Woon, the CEO of LifeToxin, was so shocked that he visited A-GenBio to see the data for himself. He let out a few deep sighs as he saw the genome analysis results. ¡°I have no choice but to believe it,¡± Hong Myung-Woon said. Young-Joon nodded. ¡°The phenotype was probably different, too. Woongdam Pharmaceuticals¡¯ botulinum strain probably has the ability to form spores, while the LifeToxin strain does not.¡± ¡°... Yes.¡± Hong Myung-Woon¡¯s head dropped. ¡°We were sure that Woongdam Pharmaceuticals stole it from us,¡± he said. ¡°It was exactly four years ago that Woongdam Pharmaceuticals entered the botulinum toxin business. And we lost one of the vials that contained the botulinum strain about five years ago.¡± ¡°You lost it?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Yes... The CCTV footage for that day was all destroyed, and the scientists didn¡¯t know much about what happened. There was a lot of turnover at that time¡ªsome people left thepany, and some people went to Woongdam Pharmaceuticals.¡± ¡°... So that¡¯s why you thought Woongdamn Pharmaceuticals stole your strain.¡± ¡°You can find botulinum in things like spoiled canned foods or sausages, but it¡¯s basically impossible to find a strain that produces a confirmed serotype A or B that can be used medicinally. I never believed that Woongdam Pharmaceuticals found it in Korea by digging around in the dirt in some stable in the countryside,¡± Hong Myung-Woon said. ¡°You can avoid Allergon¡¯s patent if you find your own strain, but you don¡¯t actually do that. It¡¯s too difficult, and it¡¯s like digging in dirt blindly to find a gene. What kind ofpany would waste resources on something like that, especially when starting a new business?¡± ¡°... I understand.¡± ¡°But I can¡¯t believe they actually did that. I waspletely wrong.¡± ¡°You still haven¡¯t found the missing vial, right?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Yes.¡± Ding! Young-Joon¡¯s phone rang. It was an email from Kim Young-Hoon. He was forwarding an email from Felus, the Israeli prime minister. [I looked into Philistines. I didn¡¯t find a lot of information, but ording to our intelligence, there is a young white woman who is not registered as an employee at Philistines, but is a frequent visitor.] ¡°...¡± ¡ªDoctor Ref? Rosaline sent him a message. ¡®Could be.¡¯ Young-Joon kept reading the email. [And I heard that Mr. Ryu is nning to develop a cold chain and take over the botulinum toxin distribution part of Philistines¡¯ business, so I¡¯ll share with you the information I got. Philistines is delivering its pharmaceutical products around the world through Asham, a pharmaceutical and food deliverypany based in Saudi Arabia.] Young-Joon flinched. ¡°Wait...¡± he said. ¡°Wait. Mr. Hong...¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°Does Ashame to LifeToxin to deliver or transport anything?¡± ¡°Almost every day. Theb, production nts, and the GMP facilities use a lot of reagents every day, and we have to transport the botulinum toxin that we produce to the hospital as well.¡± ¡°... Do you know Philistines by any chance?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Who doesn¡¯t? They are the Northern snakehead of our industry. They appeared out of nowhere, developed a strain in a few months, and grew rapidly...¡± ¡°Do you know how long they¡¯ve been in business for?¡± ¡°Probably around four years.¡± 1. Korea Electric Power Corporation ? Chapter 255: Cold Chain (7) ¡°So Philistines entered the botulinum toxin market simr to when Woongdam Pharmaceuticals did?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Are you suspicious of Philistines?¡± Hong Myung-Woon asked. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not them. We¡¯ve already looked into that.¡± ¡°How do you know it wasn¡¯t them?¡± ¡°Because there¡¯s no connection between us. Most of the employees there are Arab, and they only have a few people who speak English, even at this point,¡± Hong Myung-Woon said. ¡°When they first started out four years ago, they probably only had around ten employees. So to fly all the way from there to Korea ande to LifeToxin, one of the biggest pharma¡­¡± Hong Myung-Woon paused. He nced at Young-Joon timidly, then continued. ¡°Um¡­ A mid-sized pharmapany, and steal a stock of the botulinum strain? It¡¯s impossible. I admit that ourpany¡¯s security isn¡¯t that great, but it¡¯s notpletely wed.¡± ¡°You said Asham, the deliverypany, goes in and out of there?¡± Young-Joon asked.¡°No, Asham is¡­¡± Hong Myung-Woon opened his mouth to say something but stopped. Hesitantly, he said, ¡°It can¡¯t be. The head of Asham basically runs hispany almost as a hobby.¡± ¡°As a hobby?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°He¡¯s a Saudi prince. He wasn¡¯t just born with a silver spoon; he was born with a diamond spoon in his mouth¡­ That¡¯s who Abdul Asham, the CEO of Asham, is,¡± Hong Myung-Woon replied. ¡°I see.¡± ¡°There¡¯s no way someone like that would have ordered his employees to steal a strain from someone else¡¯spany in Korea.¡± ¡°Maybe the delivery person just stole it because they got money from Philistines.¡± ¡°No way. It¡¯s too big of a crime for an ordinary person tomit. Most of the delivery people are simple people who don¡¯t have a high school education and are just trying to feed their families by making deliveries. What would those people have to gain by doing something crazy like that? Philistines probably didn¡¯t have the money to do that when they founded thepany.¡± Hong Myung-Woon waved his hand in doubt. ¡°Was the strain that was stolen stored in liquid nitrogen?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°...¡± It definitely wasn¡¯t a crime that just anyone could pull off. It wasn¡¯t even about getting through security; it was difficult because they had to find and take out an extremely toxic bacterial strain in a liquid nitrogen tank, store it so that there was no infection or bacterial death, and then take it back to the Middle East. It definitely wasn''t something that an ordinary person could do, but it seemed pretty likely that the strain had made its way to Philistines. ¡®Then maybe¡­¡¯ ¡°Asham is an international transportpany, so they probably have a lot of different ethnicities, right?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Yes, they do,¡± Hong Myung-Woon said. Young-Joon nodded. ¡°Alright. Thank you, Mr. Hong.¡± ¡°But this strain¡¯s DNA data¡­ Did you send it to Woongdam Pharmaceuticals already?¡± Hong Myung-Woon asked. ¡°If you haven¡¯t, I would like to contact them now so that we can finalize thewsuit and wrap it up¡­¡± ¡°I already sent it.¡± ¡°... I see.¡± ¡°Yeah. It¡¯s going to break your bank a little, but there¡¯s nothing you can do about it.¡± * * * After Hong Myung-Woon left, Young-Joon received Prime Minister Felus¡¯ contact information from Kim Young-Hoon and called him himself. ¡ªHello? ¡°Hello, this is Ryu Young-Joon.¡± ¡ªMr. Ryu! ¡°I heard from Mr. Kim that he asked you to look into a scientist named Isaiah Franklin in and around Egypt.¡± ¡ªYes. ¡°Have you found anything?¡± ¡ªI couldn¡¯t find a link between her and Philistines. Isaiah Franklin joined the Popr Front for the Liberation of Palestine and engaged in terrorist activities, but it¡¯s hard to trace her from that point on. ¡°Is there any record of her before that?¡± ¡ªNot in Egypt, but¡­ Well, it might not matter, but there¡¯s a record of her working in Saudi before. ¡°In Saudi Arabia?¡± ¡ªShe worked at Asham, an international transportpany. ¡°Did you check her employment records?¡± ¡ªNo. We asked the employees at Asham headquarters if they knew about Isaiah Franklin, and they said they did. ¡°Really?¡± ¡ªIt¡¯s apany with a lot of foreigners, but it¡¯s rare to see a young, blond, white woman. It¡¯s a very male-dominated industry to begin with, so you don¡¯t see a lot of women working in transport and distribution. Isaiah Franklin worked there for a few months, and apparently, she was quite famous among the locals. ¡°Oh¡­¡± Young-Joon rubbed his forehead in thought. ¡ªAnd I¡¯m not sure about this, but I heard that Isaiah Franklin was very close with Abdul Asham, the owner of Asham. ¡°Really?¡± ¡ªYes. She used to ride around in his car, and Abdul pulled some strings to get her a job. It¡¯s not a publicly tradedpany, just an oil tycoon¡¯s hobby, so he could do whatever he wanted. ¡°Alright. Thank you, that was very helpful,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡ªUm¡­ When can we start the brain death clinical trial? ¡°I was told that the Next Generation Hospital is in the process of scheduling the traveling doctors. They will probably contact you by the end of the week with a confirmed date.¡± ¡ªThank you. ¡°And I think I will apany them,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡ªYou will alsoe? ¡°Yes. Professor Miguel is not here, so I am going because they will be using a different technology to inject stem cells into the subventricr zone.¡± ¡ªI see. Thank you. Young-Joon then hung up the phone. ¡ªYou¡¯re not going because of the stem cell injection but because of Philistines, right? Rosaline sent him a message. ¡°Yeah,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I¡¯m going to go and get Doctor Ref.¡± ¡ªBut she¡¯ll be hiding, and Philistines will pretend not to know. ¡°We¡¯ll turn Asham upside down,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I¡¯m going to get Doctor Ref there, and when I confirm that they took the strain, I¡¯m going to contact the CEO of LifeToxin and have him sue Philistines.¡± ¡ªSo the reward for Woongdam Pharmaceuticals wille out of Philistines¡¯ pocket. Young-Joon picked up the phone and called the secretary¡¯s office. ¡ªYes, this is Yoo Song-Mi. His secretary, Yoo Song-Mi, picked up the phone. ¡°Secretary Yoo, please contact the public rtions office right now and send them a press release saying that Lab Seven of A-GenBio has created an incredible item.¡± ¡ªAn incredible item? ¡°It¡¯s a next-generation power generation system that is sustainable, pollution-free, consumes lessnd area, and can be moved from region to region since it¡¯s easy to install and disassemble.¡± ¡ªPardon? ¡°Tell them we are revealing the chlorophyll sr cells,¡± Young-Joon said. * * * CERN, or the European Organization for Nuclear Research, was located on the border between Geneva, Switzend, and France. It was basically the heart of the physicsmunity, and it was thergest particle physicsboratory in the world. In mid-January of this year, Doctor Piviroba, a world-renowned nuclear physicist and a Nobelureate, received a letter from the Nobel Prizemittee asking him to nominate a candidate for the Nobel Prize in Physics. Piviroba nominated Young-Joon for the prize. ¡°He¡¯s a biologist, you idiot.¡± Harrington, his fellow scientist, scoffed at the absurdity of his rmendation. ¡°But there aren¡¯t any other good people, so there¡¯s nothing I can do,¡± Piviroba replied,ughing. ¡°What did you write as the reason for the nomination?¡± Harrington asked. ¡°For figuring out how to track glucose protons with the MRI.¡± It was the method Young-Joon used to find cancer cells that had metastasized in Lee Yoon-Ah, the liver cancer patient. ¡°Do you honestly think that¡¯s an item worthy of winning the Nobel Prize in Physics?¡± ¡°Not really, but¡­ Ah, I don¡¯t know. The neenth century was the age of physics, the twentieth century was the age of chemistry, and the twenty-first century is the age of biology. The Nobel Prize in Chemistry has already been taken over by biology a long time ago. It¡¯s time for physics to join forces with biology now,¡± Piviroba said. ¡°This could be the start of that. There aren¡¯t any other good candidates, do we?¡± This conversation was held on a snowy morning in January. Up until this point, Piviroba didn¡¯t think Young-Joon could actually win the Nobel Prize in Physics. His nomination was a yful rebellion and warning to the physicsmunity, which was slowly falling into a mannerism. But now, Piviroba didn¡¯t know anymore. Piviroba, who stopped by the coffee shop on the ground floor of CERN on his way to work in the morning, saw a shocking news report on the TV. [A-GenBio invents chlorophyll sr cells] ¡®Is that the chlorophyll I know?¡¯ Piviroba took out his phone, his eyes narrowed. His hands were trembling. He hadn¡¯t even taken a look at it properly, but he felt like he already knew what kind of crazy invention this was. The scientists in the break all had a look of horror on their faces. Piviroba checked the news on his phone. [CEO Ryu Young-Joon promises to make electricity a public good asmon as air.] [It will be possible to rece all power nts with sr cells if ESS systems are widely deployed and the generated power is stored.] [The power generation efficiency rtive tond consumption of chlorophyll sr cells is twelve times that of existing technology. At one hundred square meters per 1 MW, it is the highest efficiency of any power nt in existence.] [A-GenBio seeds in making chlorophyll, which reces silicon, lightweight so that it can be loaded into a vehicle and used as a mobile sr cell.] [Unlike conventional sr cells, it absorbs light at almost all wavelengths, with nearly one hundred percent energy conversion and no heat ind effect.] [It is highly likely that chlorophyll sr cells will permanently phase out fossil fuels from power nts.] [Once installed, they are semi-permanent, requiring no further expenditure¡­] ¡°... What the hell is this¡­?¡± Piviroba muttered, looking dumbfounded. ng! A sharp noise came from behind Piviroba. Harrington dropped the jar of jam he was holding to spread jam on his toast. He was also watching the news on his phone, which was in his hand. ¡°They made a sr cell? A pharmaceuticalpany? And the efficiency¡­ What is¡­¡± * * * Electricity generation was the backbone of many other industries. As such, it was often run directly by governments or managed by state-owned enterprises in most countries. A-GenBio mass-produced the chlorophyll sr cells and distributed them to governments around the world. It was a promotion for prototype testing targeting governments. Compared to thermal power nts, these sr cells produced zero pollution and required lessnd area;pared to hydro or wind power, it was less location-specific than hydro or wind power;pared to nuclear power, it waspletely risk-free. It had the highest energy conversion efficiency of any power nt; it was the cheapest to install and maintain; it was semi-permanent and required no additional resources; it could be installed, dismantled, and moved; it could be used on a smaller scale depending on the number of modules; it could be personalized; and it was lightweight and stable¡­ ¡°Simply put, it¡¯s superior in every way for every power nt.¡± David, the CEO of Conson & Colson, was astounded as he read the newspaper. ¡°Ha. Is he Pikachu or something? He just pulled electricity out of his pocket like it was nothing.¡± David folded the newspaper and threw it aside. ¡°Our neighborhood monster is taking over the neighborhood next door,¡± said Benter, the CTO. ¡°No. Doctor Ryu is focused on biology. This is going to be something medical,¡± David said. ¡°If he were to do something with this¡­¡± As a representative in the pharmaceutical industry, David knew what it meant to make sr cells lightweight and maximize their efficiency so they were portable. ¡°They¡¯ll probably use it to make a cold chain,¡± David said. ¡°Will he sell the sr cells to apany like Asham, or will they monopolize them and start their own cold chain transportation business¡­ I wonder how they will use their power.¡± Chapter 256: Cold Chain (8) Abdul Asham, the head of Asham, the international transportationpany, was meeting with his second eldest brother, Aziz Asham. He told Abdul the details of the shocking news of the energy revolution, as he was the head of the Saudi Electricity Company (SEC). ¡°Rumor was that it was part of the development of the cold chain,¡± Aziz said. ¡°The efficiency is absolutely incredible, so it seems like they¡¯re also going to use it to supply power in urban centers. But the biggest advantage is that the sr cells are mobile.¡± ¡°So, they are going to put a lot of them on transportation vehicles or ships and move them around as they generate their own power?¡± Abdul asked. ¡°It¡¯s possible. If they also install an ESS along with the sr cells, they¡¯re pretty much free from the constraints of day and night and climate.¡± ¡°ESS?¡± ¡°An energy storage system. There¡¯s also the possibility that they will further develop the sr cells into modules that arepatible with an ESS,¡± Aziz said. ¡°It might be used in the space or electric vehicle industry. There¡¯s no telling how big of an impact this technology will have.¡± ¡°They will be able to create a cold chain easily.¡± ¡°Of course,¡± Aziz said. ¡°So, Abdul, you need to contact A-GenBio and write an agreement with them. Doctor Ryu Young-Joon isn¡¯t someone who obsesses over business other than medicine.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡±¡°He established that insurancepany, A-Gen Life or whatever it was, but he doesn¡¯t touch the business side of it. Look at what he did with cultured meat, too. Doctor Ryu developed most of it, but A-GenBio isn¡¯t directly in that industry. Existing livestock farmers are changing industries, and A-GenBio indirectly makes money by supporting that,¡± Aziz said. ¡°Hm¡­¡± ¡°If you go to Doctor Ryu and offer to develop a cold chain by including the sr cells in Asham¡¯s distributionwork, he will probablypromise and sell the sr cells to you under reasonable terms.¡± ¡°That would be great. I¡¯ll see what I can do,¡± Abdul said. ¡°But Aziz, is there anything about those sr cells that could harm us?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± Aziz shrugged. ¡°Half of our country¡¯s power productiones from oil and the other half from natural gas. Oil is mainly used in cars and ships, and gas is used for temperature control and as an industrial raw material, right? We were going to start nuclear power development to save some of these underground resources anyway,¡± Aziz said. He added, ¡°Saudi Arabia is a growing country, and as the cities be more developed, they are going to need more power nts. Father and I thought that even if we have an abundance of oil and gas, we shouldn¡¯t just use it recklessly. ¡°For a country like ours, which is still underdeveloped and doesn¡¯t have the technology of A-GenBio, oil is our biggest weapon, right? So, we should save it if we can and use sr energy for power production, which will make our oil morepetitive internationally.¡± Aziz continued his exnation. ¡°And as you know, Saudi Arabia is a country with vast ins in the equatorial region, meaning we are also rich in sr energy. So, we will not just be rich in underground resources, but now we¡¯re also going to be rich in public resources.¡± Azizughed heartily. ¡°I¡¯m asking this because I¡¯m in the distribution business¡­¡± Abdul said. ¡°Didn¡¯t A-GenBio send the sr cell prototypes all over the world? Who distributed those? Did A-GenBio send someone out with the product?¡± ¡°No,¡± Aziz said, shaking his head. ¡°A-GenBio used different distributors for each country and region. They found a local distributor and had them transport it. Here, for example, they used¡­¡± Aziz looked up to the ceiling, racking his brain. ¡°Ah¡­ Where was it¡­ A-GenBio sent a scientist, and the sr cell came from some distributionpany I didn¡¯t recognize, but I didn¡¯t look too closely at the name, so I don¡¯t remember. It was apany I¡¯d never heard of before.¡± ¡°There¡¯s no way A-GenBio could have reached an agreement with them, is there?¡± Abdul asked. ¡°I don¡¯t know, so get to Mr. Ryu quickly. I think it was an Arabpany. Oh! I remember now. It was apany called Karpu,¡± Aziz replied. ¡°Karpu?¡± Abdul scratched his head. ¡°It¡¯s a distributor in our country, so it must be apany here. The people who came were almost all Arabs, too.¡± ¡°...¡± Abdul Asham felt a subtle sense of unease. As Saudi Arabia was a monarchy, members of the royal family were all involved in various prominent businesses. There was no other transportationpany in Saudi Arabia bigger than Asham, the one Abdul Asham managed. There weren¡¯t any other transportationpanies that couldpete, and he already knew of the few that existed. But Karpu was unfamiliar to him. The problem was that A-GenBio found thatpany, which Abdul couldn¡¯t even remember off the top of his head, and entrusted it with the transportation of the prototype. They also did it so quickly and quietly that Asham didn¡¯t even notice.¡± ¡®How does this make sense?¡¯ There was nothing wrong with it, but it felt somewhat ufortable. ¡°Right, about Mr. Ryu¡­¡± Aziz said. ¡°There¡¯s talk of himing to Jerusalem this week.¡± ¡°Jerusalem?¡± Abdul Asham¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°Why would he go there all of a sudden¡­¡± ¡°Well, I don¡¯t know. But isn¡¯t it better than going all the way to Korea?¡± * ¡°They¡¯re sloppier than I thought.¡± Robert, who was a CIA agent, received a midterm report in a deste, abandoned farm on the outskirts of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. He had used Karpu, which was a transportationpany that was operational for a short period a long time ago and now only existed on paper, tounder his identity. He was reusing what they had bought before, not creating something new for A-GenBio. The Arab-American operatives working for the CIA were posing as employees of Karpu,pletely disguised as Saudis. ¡°What about Asham?¡± Robert asked. ¡°Abdul Asham met with his brother, Aziz Asham, today. He probably heard the details about the sr cells and thought of the cold chain, so I think he will contact Mr. Ryuter today.¡± ¡°Mr. Ryu ising to Jerusalem this week,¡± Robert said. ¡°He will be in contact with Abdul Asham, so we have to be on our toes from then on. Tell him we¡¯re ready to go.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s make sure we get that terrorist who attacked the GSC.¡± * Young-Joon¡¯s visit to Jerusalem became a huge issue. Even though he hadn¡¯t promised to sign any contracts or do any business, his visit caused so much noise that it was as if something had already happened. The Korean government, on the other hand, tried to stop him from leaving the country. ¡ªYou¡¯re going to Israel after sessfullypleting huge projects like treating brain-dead patients and developing sr cells? Do you know how dangerous that country is? The Minister of Foreign Affairs himself called Young-Joon to stop him. ¡°Well, it¡¯s the root of the Middle East war, so there are probably a lot of acts of terrorism. It¡¯s dangerous, I know.¡± ¡ªWhy are you going somewhere like that? What business is it for? The Minister sounded worried. ¡ªDid they say they were going to invest in the sr cells or something? And Doctor Ryu, the terrorists who tried to kill the GSC were Palestinian soldiers, right? Do you think they¡¯re going to pass on this opportunity where you, who is basically the symbol of advanced medicine, are visiting? ¡°Prime Minister Felus has promised me extra security as a state guest. Don¡¯t worry.¡± ¡ªNo, but still¡­ What on earth are you going there for? What important business do you have there? ¡°I¡¯m doing a clinical trial.¡± ¡ªPardon? ¡°I¡¯m going to do a clinical trial. There¡¯s a slight change in the way the treatment is administered, and I think I should see it myself along with the medical team.¡± ¡ªDid their king fall or something? ¡°I can¡¯t disclose patient information.¡± ¡ª.... Ha¡­. ¡°I appreciate your concern, but I¡¯ll be fine. If you¡¯re really worried about me, our Ministry of Foreign Affairs can protect me, too.¡± ¡ªOf course, we will. We will work with the embassy. Please take care of yourself; there are a lot of people in that area who live like there¡¯s no tomorrow¡­ * Young-Joon arrived at Ben Gurion Airport, which was located on the central road in Tel Aviv. Police armed with automatic weapons patrolled everywhere. Young-Joon¡¯s visit to Israel was not on thepany¡¯s public schedule. Still, rumors had spread everywhere, and quite a lot of people had gathered at the airport to see Young-Joon. The police were controlling and dispersing them for safety reasons, but it wasn¡¯t that simple. Half of them were family members of patients with various diseases. But before they could say a word to Young-Joon, their voices were drowned out by a muchrgermotion. It was because there were also many businessmen here who saw Young-Joon¡¯s visit as a golden opportunity. ¡°Mr. Ryu, let¡¯s have a meeting.¡± ¡°We¡¯re going to build a next-generation hospital in the Middle East¡­¡± ¡°Wouldn¡¯t you like to be in the business of building sr farms in the Middle East?¡± ¡°Ourpany is thinking of creating a medical hub here¡­¡± The security team blocked them as they rushed in, shouting from all sides. ¡°You will have to make an appointment through the secretary¡¯s office. Step back.¡± ¡°We have a schedule! Please move out of the way.¡± ¡°Maintain order!¡± The police ran in front of the crowd, shouting. ¡°Whew¡­¡± The doctors from the Next Generation Hospital felt a little dizzy at the sight of people who had gathered like saury. ¡°No one will get hurt, I promise,¡± Young-Joon said. Men wearing suits and police officers approached Young-Joon and his security team. ¡°Doctor Ryu, this way, please.¡± They were from Prime Minister Felus¡¯ secretary''s office. They took Young-Joon and the medical staff from the Next Generation Hospital and quickly moved them to the emergency evacuation corridor at the back of the airport. It was a controlled area where no one could reach them. This was done to conceal Young-Joon¡¯s whereabouts from the airport. As they were moving, the staff from the secretary¡¯s office handed Young-Joon a coat and sunsses. After getting into a light disguise, Young-Joon and the medical team were escorted to a limousine, and inside was Prime Minister Felus in in clothes. ¡°Hello,¡± greeted Felus. Young-Joon shook his hand and stepped onto the limousine. They drove for two hours along Bensimon Road. ¡°How long has your son been brain-dead?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°For a while¡­¡± Felus replied weakly. ¡°The doctors said it was hopeless, that he would eventually die of cardiovascr death within three weeks even with life support. It¡¯s been two months, but he¡¯s still hanging on.¡± ¡°That must have been very difficult for you, Mr. Prime Minister.¡± ¡°About what you asked me about Philistines before¡­¡± Felus said. ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°Is it all settled?¡± ¡°No, not yet. But the clinical trial is more important.¡± Buzz! Kim Chul-Kwon¡¯s phone rang in his pocket. He checked the caller, and then handed over the call to Young-Joon. ¡°It¡¯s Asham,¡± Kim Chul-Kwon said. Young-Joon received the call. ¡°This is Ryu Young-Joon.¡± ¡ªAhn-nyeong-ha-sae-yo. Abdul greeted Young-Joon in Korean with an awkward pronunciation. From then on, the interpreter tranted what he was saying over the phone. ¡ªHaha, hello, Doctor Ryu. I¡¯m Abdul Asham, the CEO of the international transportationpany Asham. Are you avable for a call right now ¡°Sure.¡± ¡ªWe would like to purchase arge quantity of your sr cells. We would like to install them in our transportation vehicles or ships and to use the for cold chain or battery maintenance¡­ ¡°No,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡ªPardon? ¡°We are not going to make a deal with Asham. We are going to develop our own cold chain and create a supply chain all over the Middle East with Karpu.¡± ¡ªUm, w-wait, Mr. Ryu? Karpu is a very small venturepany with less than twenty employees. It¡¯s too small to be called a distributionpany in the Middle East, and¡­ ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter. I have to go now.¡± ¡ªWait! Let¡¯s not do this over the phone. We should meet. What is it that you want? Abdul Asham¡¯s voice became urgent. ¡°If I tell you what I want, can you give it to me?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡ª... Abdul Asham couldn¡¯t say anything. It was because he couldn¡¯t possibly imagine what this man was going to demand. Chapter 257: Cold Chain (9) ¡°It¡¯s not that difficult,¡± Young-Joon said into the phone. ¡°I just have something I want to ask you, Mr. Asham. I will ask for your cooperationter.¡± ¡ª... Alright¡­ Abdul Asham sounded confused. After ending the call, Young-Joon checked an email on his phone. It was some information that Director Kim Young-Hoon sent from A-GenBio headquarters. Kim Young-Hoon was in charge of the deal with Philistines. He shared with them the efficiency of their sr cells, the expected mobile power generation system, and the strategy of securing a cold chain distributionwork through Karpu. In return, Philistines sent him a description of its research facilities, a portion of the botulism strain¡¯s genomic data, and data on its production line. This was what Young-Joon was reading. As he was poring over the data, Rosaline suddenly appeared at his side. She burrowed into his arms and started looking at the cell phone together. ¡ªWhy is there a polyomavirus among the DNA inserted into the strain¡¯s genome? Rosaline interrupted from inside his arms. ¡°Polyomavirus?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡ªHere. Rosaline pointed to a part of the DNA data. [ATTGTGGCGAATT¡­¡­] It was a piece of DNA that was hard to interpret in any meaningful way for the human eye. ¡®This isn¡¯t a gene that encodes some biomolecule.¡¯ Young-Joon spoke to Rosaline in his head. ¡®This looks like some junk DNA.¡¯[1] ¡ªNo. This is the transcription factor for the gene used to rbine the polyomavirus¡¯ shell. It¡¯s a type of ribosome. ¡®Hm¡­¡¯ Young-Joon thought for a moment. ¡ªThe insertion of this piece of DNA is meaningful: it will help the bacteria grow. ¡®But the question is how Philistines, which researches botulinum toxin, could have this virus, know about this piece of DNA and use it ordingly.¡¯ Polyomavirus was not dangerous. It wasmon and easily infected people, but it didn¡¯t cause a disease in healthy adults. ¡®It shouldn¡¯t be a big deal since it¡¯s a rtively safe virus¡­¡¯ ¡ªIf you¡¯re immunpromised, it could infect the central nervous system and lead to major illnesses. Rosaline corrected Young-Joon. ¡°Oh!¡± Suddenly, Young-Joon raised his head. ¡ªWhat¡¯s wrong? ¡°You startled me. What¡¯s the matter?¡± Rosaline and the medical team stared at Young-Joon. Young-Joon asked Prime Minister Felus, ¡°You said your son had progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy, right?¡± ¡°Oh? Um, yes¡­ That¡¯s why he has be brain-dead.¡± ¡°Did you say the reason for that was polyomavirus?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± Felus replied. ¡°Normally, polyomavirus doesn¡¯t cause infections in healthy people. Did your son have an immunpromising disease, like AIDS?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°No, but¡­¡± Felus hesitated to answer. ¡°But?¡± ¡°That is¡­¡± Felus became somber. ¡°That child survived the bombing of Gaza by the Israeli army. And¡­ that bombing was¡­¡± Felus said. ¡°It was white phosphorus.¡± ¡°He was hit by white phosphorus munitions?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°... Yes¡­¡± Felus covered his face with his hands. ¡°We¡­ the Israeli army used white phosphorus on that region with civilians¡­¡± That bombing felt like the Devil¡¯s fireworks. Felus could still clearly see the shrapnel from the white phosphorus bombs, which looked like bright orange balls of me, raining down on the city like a. An infernal me that had a very low burning point, about sixty degrees Celsius, and could not be extinguished easily, even with tons of water. The bombing produced massive amounts of poisonous gas, which burned everything it touched into a sea of mes. It was the worst possible weapon, where the phosphorus caused chemical burns on the body even when the fire was extinguished. It was so brutal that its use against civilians was strictly banned by the Geneva Conventions. ¡ªDoctor Ref said she was bombed by that. Rosaline pointed out. ¡°Could the damage from that bombing have caused a disturbance in his immune system?¡± Young-Joon asked. The doctors from the Next Generation Hospital thought hard with their hands on their chin. ¡°There are no reported effects of white phosphorus on the immune system. I don¡¯t know, it could have caused damage.¡± ¡°Phosphorus is also used by the immune system, so if the polyomavirus, unfortunately, invaded the central nervous system while the inhtion of toxic gas disrupted the immune system¡­¡± All the doctors began to give their own opinions. ¡°At first, I thought he wouldn¡¯t live long,¡± Felus intervened. ¡°He was only a five-year-old child¡ªa civilian from an enemy state¡ªbut he was severely burned, and he lost his parents and family.¡± Felus went on. ¡°To him, I was a politician from an enemy state, a pretty good prime ministerial candidate at that. I was a politician who looked the other way and failed to stop the white phosphorus bombing of Gaza.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I may have just brought him back to lessen my guilt. I didn¡¯t think he would live long, so I thought I would take care of him just until he died, or something like that. I don¡¯t really know what I was thinking, why I brought him back, but¡­¡± Felus said. ¡°That little guy, he hung in there with amazing perseverance. He recovered so much that he was able to walk, even run¡­ He still hasn¡¯t forgiven me, but my son even knows how tough like a teenage boy now and then.¡± Felus let out a deep sigh as he wiped his tears. ¡°I can¡¯t exin in detail, but I feel like my son is the hope of thisnd, that he survived even after being hit with that hot white phosphorus and being burned¡­¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°But everything doesn¡¯t work out that easily. It¡¯s probably the after-effects of the white phosphorus. The doctors at my hospital told me that his white blood cell count is low¡­ But they don¡¯t know the exact cause.¡± ¡°Alright,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Doctor Ryu, if he dies, I think I will lose all hope that I can make peace in this country. I will do whatever you ask, even Philistines. Just please¡­¡± ¡°Let¡¯s go and see,¡± Young-Joon said. He looked calm, but his mind wasplicated. * After another twenty minutes on the road, the vehicle arrived at the Hamak General Hospital in Af. ¡°Af has a lot of hospitals for its size and number of residents. A lot of medical centers sprung up in the area as Hamak acted as andmark.¡± With about one thousand nine hundred medical staff and some of the best facilities in Israel, the hospital served about five hundred thousand people in the surrounding area. As they entered the hospital, they were greeted by a doctor who had been contacted in advance. ¡°This way.¡± He led Young-Joon, the medical staff from Next Generation Hospital, and Felus to the intensive care unit on the fifth floor. Felus¡¯ security team and the K-Cops team were on guard with tense looks on their faces. Once they arrived, Young-Joon found the skinny body of a teenage boy. [????] Young-Joon nced at the name written on the bed. ¡°Lagba!¡± Felus ran towards the bed, but the child was unresponsive. Young-Joon, too, stood still, like a stone statue. It was because he was in Synchronization Mode. The boy was connected to a pacemaker, but it was almost a miracle that his heart was still beating. Diphosphorus pentoxide, a gas produced by the oxidation of white phosphorus, had entered his lungs, striking a fatal blow to his alveoli and reacting with water molecules in his blood to set off a further chain reaction. White phosphorus directly hit his back, causing severe burns, and he most likely copsed from shock. The boy quickly recovered after Felus brought him in, but he was left with the side effects. The hematopoietic stem cells did not function normally in the boy¡¯s bone marrow. His lymphocyte levels were low, making him vulnerable to infection. The hospital prescribed gamma globulin to treat him. However, unless a bone marrow transnt was possible, there was no cure. All they could do was watch out for infections. And that¡¯s when the polyomavirus invaded. ¡ªThe invasion path was respiratory. A message popped up as Young-Joon was in Synchronization Mode. ¡®Does this virus usually enter through the respiratory tract?¡¯ Young-Joon asked ¡ªIt can, but it¡¯s rare because the virus itself doesn¡¯t have the ability to travel. Most of the time, it¡¯s through contaminated food. ¡®But this boy had a respiratory infection, right?¡¯ ¡ªYes. And gically, it¡¯s slightly different from the polyomavirus. This virus in this boy¡¯s body is much more infectious than the original virus. ¡®Can you use Simtion Mode by chance?¡¯ ¡ªEek. That costs a lot of fitness. ¡®Can you just look around this hospital?¡¯ ¡ªFine, but you can¡¯t use Synchronization Mode for two days. ¡®Okay.¡¯ Rosaline activated Simtion Mode. It was simr to the time she searched for the anthrax weapon at A-Gen, only this time she was searching for the polyomavirus. Rosaline scanned a one-kilometer radius around the hospital, and what Young-Joon found was shocking. ¡®They¡¯re all infected¡­¡¯ The virus hadn¡¯t caused any idents as it wasn¡¯t very virulent, but its infectivity was beyond imagination. ¡®The polyomavirus DNA that Philistines had earlier is the same as the one that infected the area, right?¡¯ Young-Joon sent Rosaline a message. ¡ªThat¡¯s right. ¡°...¡± Young-Joon only had circumstantial evidence, but it felt so strange. This virus was wild. It was possible that Philistines developed it and released it into the region to test its ability to infect. But why? What was the point of releasing a barely aggressive virus? All it did was knock out a poor immunpromised Palestinian boy; all the Israeli soldiers and police protecting this ce were fine¡­ ¡°Oh.¡± Young-Joon froze as he remembered something. The polyomavirus was highly infectious and rarely caused disease in healthy adults. That¡¯s why the medicalmunity had ignored it for so long. But Philistines had botulinum toxin. What if they put it in this virus and spread it? ¡°Doctor Ryu?¡± Felus called. ¡°Yes?¡± Young-Joon looked up at the sound of his voice. All the medical staff were staring at him. ¡°Um¡­ How will we do the treatment¡­¡± ¡°We¡¯ll proceed with the brainstem regeneration as nned, and we¡¯ll need to remove the polyomavirus from his body. It also looks like he¡¯ll need a bone marrow transnt,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I think Conson & Colson made an inhibitor for polyomavirus back in the day. I don¡¯t know if they still make it since there¡¯s very little demand for it¡­¡± ¡°Are you talking about Antipolyma?¡± Felus asked. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°They don¡¯t produce it anymore. They do have it in stock at Conson & Colson, though it is a very small amount. I was going to purchase that, but I couldn¡¯t because of transportation issues,¡± Felus said. Young-Joon looked back at the boy¡¯s doctor. ¡°Please purchase that drug as soon as possible and as much of it as possible.¡± ¡°But that drug needs to be kept at minus seventy degrees Celsius¡­¡± ¡°I will take care of the transportation,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°It will be different now because we have a cold chain.¡± Felus opened his mouth to say something but stopped. ¡®We have a cold chain.¡¯ That sentence felt strange. This was a hot country. The guns were hot, and so was the history. It was a ce where people withered away in the scorching heat, with burns on their bodies and minds. Even the medicine to heal those burns couldn¡¯t enter thisnd because it was too hot. For the first time, they wereying down a path to cool off the heat. ¡°... Thank you,¡± Felus said. The cold chain wasn¡¯t just a low-temperature transportation method. It was the way of life¡­ ¡°And I¡¯m sorry, but there¡¯s somewhere I have to go right now,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°What?¡± Felus, who had snapped out of his reverie, was startled. The doctors from the Next Generation Hospital and Hamak Hospital looked at Young-Joon in confusion. ¡°It will take a while to make a hundred thousand induced pluripotent stem cells anyway. I¡¯ll be back before we administer them.¡± Young-Joon began walking quickly. ¡°Wait, Doctor Ryu! Where are you going?¡± Felus asked, running after him. ¡°I¡¯m going to Saudi Arabia to see Asham.¡± ¡°Oh, for the cold chain development?¡± ¡°No?¡± Young-Joon looked at Felus like he didn¡¯t know what he was talking about. ¡°T-Then¡­¡± ¡°I¡¯ll see you in about a week.¡± Young-Joon walked out with Kim Chul-Kwon, the head of his security team. 1. Junk DNA refers to a sequence that has no relevant biological function. ? Chapter 258: Cold Chain (10) Ask any scientist what science was, and they¡¯d all give a different answer. To Kim Hyun-Taek, it was a weapon that could protect him and his family by bringing him wealth and honor. It was a shortcut to sess that smart and well-educated people could use. To scientists like Yang Hye-Sook, who were interested in society and politics, it was a force that moved the world. For Rosalind Franklin, a scientist of the past, science was a window that helped her gain a proper understanding of the world. Just as the microscope brought the microworld within the range of human perception, science was like a dictionary that told an individual exactly what the world was. ¡®They¡¯re all wrong.¡¯ The many understandings of science were all either fantasies, or they were soft, romanticized tales that only satisfied childish curiosity: that¡¯s what Doctor Ref thought. ¡°What are you thinking about?¡± Yassir asked. ¡°It¡¯s nothing.¡± Yassir poured some shay[1] into Doctor Ref¡¯s teacup.¡°...¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t it time for your medicine?¡± Yassir asked. ¡°Yeah. I¡¯ve been so busytely, I keep forgetting. Thank you. I never thought you¡¯d remember all this stuff.¡± Doctor Ref pulled out her medication from her bag and swallowed a pill. ¡°What happens if you don¡¯t have it? ¡°I copse. I could die,¡± said Doctor Ref. It was a condition she had lived with since she was born at the embryologyboratory in America as Isaiah Franklin. ¡°Did I tell you how I was born?¡± Doctor Ref asked Yassir. ¡°You said you were gically engineered by a scientist named Elsie or something, right?¡± ¡°During the Cold War, America was in a state of extreme fear. I mean, who wasn¡¯t in that era? Science went beyond human control from the time the atomic bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki,¡± Doctor Ref said. She added, ¡°They probably thought humanity needed to progress, too. That¡¯s why they needed a scientist who could develop technology powerful enough to stop nuclear weapons, or a leader who could take over the world with greater leadership than Hitler, or perhaps a thinker like Marx who could reshape the political leadership with revolutionary ideas¡­ That¡¯s what America needed.¡± ¡°I thought they wanted a scientist who could create life?¡± Yassir asked. ¡°That was my mother¡¯s delusion. She wasn¡¯t in agreement with the U.S. government. It was ridiculous because not just anyone can create life,¡± Doctor Ref said. ¡°Anyway, that¡¯s how I was born. Thanks to that, I have the same cellr age as my mother.¡± ¡°Is that why you take medication?¡± ¡°Yeah. My bone marrow function is a little off¡­¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you ask Ryu Young-Joon to fix it?¡± ¡°Are you crazy?¡± ¡°I¡¯m kidding.¡± Doctor Ref chuckled as she saw Yassir shake his head. ¡°How¡¯s the polyomavirusing along?¡± she asked. ¡°We¡¯re still producing it,¡± Yassir replied. ¡°How much is there now?¡± ¡°Enough to infect about three million people.¡± ¡°We still have a long way to go.¡± ¡°It¡¯s enough to infect only the people that are likely to be targets.¡± ¡°There can¡¯t be any civilian casualties. You know that, right?¡± Doctor Ref checked with Yassir to be absolutely sure. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Doctor. I will make sure it¡¯s done perfectly.¡± ¡°Thank you,¡± Doctor Ref said. ¡°There¡¯s not much time left in my life and our work.¡± ¡°How much time do you have left?¡± Yassir asked. ¡°I don¡¯t know. A few months at most.¡± ¡°... As an old friend, I¡¯ll listen if there¡¯s anything you want to say.¡± ¡°All of a sudden?¡± Doctor Refughed, a little baffled. ¡°We might not be able to meet again,¡± Yassir said. ¡°...¡± Doctor Ref, or Isaiah Franklin, was a scientist with one of the most unfortunate fates in science. She was born in the embryologyb of the Genome Institute at the Groom Lake Air Force Base in the United States. She was raised as if she were the next leader of the United States and given the finest education, but was abandoned at the age of five. ¡®Because the Cold War was over.¡¯ The era of pretending to be transparent, clean, and democratic had arrived. Isaiah Franklin¡¯s very existence was America¡¯s vulnerability. It was evidence of their fear in the conflict with the Soviet Union, and the epitome of all kinds of hical research. She was an anomaly who didn¡¯t belong in the era of a just and democratic Pax Americana. An order to terminate the project and dispose of the ¡°research material¡± was given from above. Instead ofplying, Elsie fled, taking Isaiah Franklin with her. She came to Palestine, her home, and went into hiding. ¡°My mother probably still thinks I didn¡¯t notice anything, but I knew that the people at theb were trying to kill me. I even wrote myst words.¡± Doctor Ref chuckled and took a sip of her tea. She had thought Elsie and her could be a normal mother and daughter back home in Palestine, but she was severely mistaken. Isaiah Franklin had an Anglo-Saxon appearance, with bright blond hair and blue eyes. On top of that, she had no father, and her mother, Elsie, had lived in America for many years but ended up fleeing here empty-handed with her child. The Jewishmunity and family back home did not ept them. ¡®The wench who went to America, behaved promiscuously, and came back with a white child.¡¯ Elsie was persecuted there as if she were an ethnic traitor. Elsie traveled between Palestine and Israel, holding Isaiah Franklin¡¯s tiny hands. ¡°It must have been hard,¡± Yassir said. ¡°It was crazy. It wasmon for us to be dragged away while buying food in the market and getting beaten,¡± Doctor Ref said. ¡°Did they hit you, too?¡± ¡°A few times, but it was less bad. My mother was beaten like crazy: stomped on, spat on, and beaten with a stick right in front of me,¡± Doctor Ref said. ¡°Are they still alive? Considering your personality, I feel like you would have killed them all.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t kill them.¡± Doctor Ref chuckled. ¡°The vige we lived in was in the middle of nowhere in Gaza. They had running water, but we couldn¡¯t use it. They had a really simple water system, and they didn¡¯t let us use it, acting like they had spent a lot of money on it,¡± she said. ¡°So, my mother and I had to fetch water from the river, which was ten kilometers away from the vige. When we came back, it was in mes.¡± ¡°mes?¡± ¡°The Israeli army dropped white phosphorus bombs there. Everything burned to death.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Funny, right?¡± Doctor Ref bursted intoughter. ¡°Iughed so hard at that sight. I think I used up all theughter I¡¯ll ever have in my life. Iughed so much to the point where my mom was surprised and asked me why I wasughing. But the situation was so ridiculous. These Arabs, who were so evil to us, were just fruit flies in front of these bigger predators. All I could do wasugh,¡± she said. ¡°And that¡¯s when I realized what science is: it¡¯s a way for the powerful to maintain order. Science being about seeing the world correctly is all bullshit. Advancing civilization is just an excuse.¡± ¡°...¡± Yassir was silent. ¡°Science is the power that makes the world revolve around America. End of story. There is not a more precise definition,¡± Doctor Ref said with conviction in her voice. ¡°Although it feels like it revolves around Ryu Young-Joon now.¡± ¡°...¡± Yassir nodded slowly. ¡°Phew¡­¡± Doctor Ref sighed and leaned back in her chair. ¡°We need to meet Rosaline. She¡¯s our only hope,¡± she said. ¡°Did I tell you that I met a little girl named Rosaline at the Next Generation Hospital?¡± Yassir asked. ¡°Yeah.¡± Doctor Ref stood up. She put on her cap and backpack. ¡°Where are you going?¡± Yassir asked. ¡°I¡¯m going to see Asham.¡± ¡°You¡¯re still seeing him?¡± ¡°That idiot is still our cash cow. We need to squeeze a little more out of him.¡± * Abdul Asham had been in a state of extreme fear for half an hour. He was more scared than the time he took his older brother¡¯s McLaren, which was one of ten worldwide, without his permission and trashed it. ¡°You have two chances remaining,¡± Young-Joon said. This crazy bastard walked into Asham and demanded that Abdul give him everything they knew about Doctor Ref. ¡°Doctor Ref? Who is that?¡± Of course, Abdul Asham reacted by pretending to not know anything at all, but Young-Joon smiled ominously and sat down across from him. ¡°Mr. Asham, she is the beautiful blond woman who used to ride in your supercar. Don¡¯t you know her? I heard she worked at Asham for a while.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Her real name is Isaiah Franklin. She looks like this.¡± Young-Joon showed him a photo of Doctor Ref. ¡°This woman is a high-risk terrorist who is now one of the most wanted international fugitives, and she is responsible for the biological attack on the GSC and Xinjiang Uygur.¡± ¡°A terrorist?¡± ¡°She most likely helped found apany called Philistines, and she infiltrated Asham and stole the botulinum strain from your distributionwork to supply them with the strain they¡¯re using now.¡± Abdul froze. His mind was racing with interpretations of this situation. ¡°I need you to be honest with me about your rtionship with Doctor Ref.¡± Abdul gulped. His father¡¯s words about being careful with women had never hit so hard. He shuddered thinking about what kind of disgrace it would bring to his royal family if he said he had no idea he was meeting with a terrorist, paying her, and providing her with a supply chain. ¡°... I don¡¯t know¡­ what you are talking about¡­ I don¡¯t know anyone like that.¡± Abdul maintained his attitude. ¡°Really?¡± ¡®Yes.¡± ¡°Mr. Asham, do you know what an fMRI is?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°An fMRI?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a machine that measures cerebral blood flow. It shows which parts of the brain are activated. When you lie, the blood supply to the frontal, temporal, and the parietal lobe increases, which is observed on an fMRI. In the United States,panies like NO LIE MRI use this to provide lie detection services.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°But actually, I have an uncanny ability to tell when people are lying without using an fMRI,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I¡¯ll only listen to two more lies of yours.¡± ¡°Well¡­ What are you going to do if I lie? No matter how great you are, you¡¯re just a civilian. I am a member of the royal family, Saudi¡¯s government. Are you saying you¡¯re going to go to war with the United States?¡± ¡°Of course not.¡± Young-Joon shook his head. ¡°Then are you going to threaten me with the cold chain? You¡¯re going to push ourpany out ofpetition by putting your cold chain in some third-rate shell corporation called Karpu or something? You think I will cower at that type of threat¡­¡± ¡°Most of the world¡¯s power nts run on coal or natural gas, not oil anyway,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°There¡¯s still a long way to go before electric vehicles benefit from sr cells because it¡¯s not about power generation efficiency but about ESS efficiency, like power loading and charging speed. Thus, you think you will still remainpetitive since oil will continue to be used in vehicles, ships, and the arms industry, right?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°It took me about three weeks to develop the sr cells. Do you want me to contact Te and offer to increase the power load and charging speed of their car batteries? As long as I have the sr cells, I can have that done in the next month.¡± ¡°That¡­ What?¡± ¡°And with a little touch to the metabolism of E. coli, I can turn glucose into gasoline. They¡¯re all carbonplexes anyway, right?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Mr. Asham,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°... Y-Yes?¡± ¡°I want to get Doctor Ref. Please cooperate.¡± ¡°H¡­ How?¡± ¡°Please bring her here.¡± ¡°... I don¡¯t have her contact information.¡± The parietal lobe was activated in Abdul¡¯s brain. ¡°You have one chance left. The next time, A-GenBio will produce oil and sell it to Saudi Arabia,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°...¡± 1. amon type of tea served in the Arab world ? Chapter 259: Cold Chain (11) ¡°Make oil¡­?¡± Abdul asked. ¡°Yes. All I have to do is split glucose with the correct process to make pyruvic acid, and then lengthen the carbon chain with a few dehydration reactions using transferases involved in post-trantional modification. It will be difficult to purify, but I have a way to solve that, too. ¡°Instead of separating gasoline, diesel, and asphalt residue from crude oil by fractional distition, we can develop a separate production process for each of them, which will increase the purification efficiency by reducing the cost of the fractional distition,¡± Young-Joon said. He added, ¡°Additionally, the gasoline that can be produced based on biosystems can be of much higher quality than the oil produced in Saudi Arabia. We can control the octane rating, allowing us to limit the production target to high-grade oil that is not prone to knocking.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Would you like us to do that?¡± ¡°T-There¡¯s a limit to how much you can threaten someone!¡± Abdul Asham jumped to his feet angrily. ¡°It¡­ It doesn¡¯t make sense,¡± he muttered in a trembling voice. ¡°If you really had such a technology, why haven¡¯t you been developing it all these years? It¡¯s the biggest cash cow!¡±¡°Because I didn¡¯t do science for the money,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°...¡± ¡°But I don¡¯t understand why you refuse to share information about Doctor Ref. It shouldn¡¯t be difficult for you to do so. Were you involved in the terrorist activities?¡± ¡°What are you talking about?!¡± Abdul shook his hands in disbelief. ¡°Absolutely not. I had nothing to do with that terrorist attack!¡± Abdul shouted. ¡°Then tell me.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Quickly.¡± ¡°... Alright. I will tell you everything I know and do as you say,¡± Abdul Asham said, sounding defeated. He had mostly let go of his pride as a prince by now. ¡°But I¡¯m warning you, Doctor Ryu, do you really think that you will be safe after telling the Saudi prince that you have that kind of technology and threatening him with it?¡± ¡°Are you threatening me?¡± ¡°This country¡¯s best and biggest asset is oil, and anyone who can make that dirt cheap is going to have a lot of enemies, even if it¡¯s not me. Somebody in Saudi Arabia could be after you.¡± ¡°Not now, at least. I¡¯m merely a biologist and the head of a privatepany. Surely, I¡¯m not going to do something like catching terrorists on my own.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Doctor Ref is an international terrorist who attacked the GSC. Of course, international intelligence agencies like the CIA are after her.¡± ¡°Are you saying that you¡¯re working with the CIA?¡± ¡°Wouldn¡¯t it be odd for them not to contact me? I¡¯m the one who stopped the GSC terrorist attack we just talked about.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The Saudis have good rtions with the United States, unlike many other countries in the Middle East. Don¡¯t create diplomatic friction and give the United States and other oil-greedy powerful countries an excuse to attack this country,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°How unfair would it be if the first country the internationalmunity attacks is Saudi Arabia, when the terrorist is from Palestine and her headquarters are in Egypt?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°What was your rtionship to Doctor Ref¡ªI mean, Isaiah Franklin?¡± ¡°Phew¡­ She was a woman I was briefly seeing,¡± said Abdul Asham. ¡°I swear I didn¡¯t know she was a terrorist. She said she had an international logistics business in the United States but fled here after her family went belly-up. She asked me to protect her. I¡¯m still a Saudi prince, and as a ruler, I couldn¡¯t just abandon someone in need, so I gave her a little bit of humanitarian aid to¡­¡± ¡°I said you had one chance left,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Damn it. She seduced me¡­ Alright, we slept together a bit, but that was when I had gotten divorced and was very lonely. I couldn¡¯t help but fall for it? And um¡­ I¡¯m a victim! I¡­ I thought it was love¡­¡± Abdul said, sounding ashamed. ¡°I didn¡¯t say anything.¡± ¡°But her family having gone belly-up was true. She asked me to help her put a venttor on her dying business, and she needed about twenty million dors. That was a lot of money for me to give out of my own pocket, so I took it out of Asham¡¯s funds.¡± ¡°About four years ago?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°How did you know?¡± Abdul Asham was surprised. ¡°Because that¡¯s when Philistines was founded. It was probably their start-up money.¡± ¡°Philistines?¡± Abdul asked. ¡°The founders of Philistines were all poor scientists, and they had no history of getting funding, so how could they have built a shiny building in Cairo and made a big business? They found that with the money out of your pocket,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°...¡± ¡°So, how did Doctor Refe to work here?¡± ¡°... There was some paperwork that had to be taken care of to give her the money, so I made her our employee for a while. I told her she could just do office work, but she insisted on doing the transport.¡± ¡°To Korea?¡± ¡°How did you know that?¡± Abdul was bewildered again. ¡°Doctor Ref was probably transporting to apany called LifeToxin in Korea at the time. She probably went into theirb to deliver something and stole the botulinum strain.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I have a picture of the situation now: apany like Allergon is too big and has too much security, so shees into South Korea, which is just now getting into the botulinum toxin business and has weak security.¡± ¡°No way¡­¡± ¡°It would have been too time-consuming to find the strain themselves¡­ Mr. Asham, are you still in contact with Doctor Ref?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± Abdul replied. ¡°Because I kept paying her some money and seeing her after that¡­¡± ¡°I see.¡± Young-Joon nodded. Seeing his face, Abdul asked, ¡°Do you think I¡¯m pathetic?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t say that, but honestly, yes.¡± ¡°And¡­ Philistines is selling botulinum toxin through our distributionwork,¡± Abdul said. ¡°Isaiah Franklin introduced us. She said she wanted to repay me by connecting me with a business partner¡­¡± ¡°There¡¯s a reason why Philistines grew so fast, since the youngest son of an oil tycoon poured money into it.¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu! I¡¯ll be in huge trouble if my brothers find out about this!¡± Suddenly, Abdul begged him with a face on the verge of tears. ¡°P-Please keep this a secret!¡± ¡°Cooperate with us to catch Doctor Ref, and I won¡¯t go spilling the details anywhere, so you can take care of your mess yourself,¡± Young-Joon said. * Young-Joon was now in Israel. It was all over the news a few years ago. The problem was that there was no reason for him to visit Israel at all. Another piece of bad news: it wasn¡¯t certain, but ording to her sources, a car with a group of people who appeared to be Prime Minister Felus and Young-Joon was heading to Af. ¡®That¡¯s where I released the polyomavirus.¡¯ Doctor Ref was deep in thought. She was in the middle of a journey to Tabuk, a city in Saudi Arabia. Egypt was located to the west of Israel, and Saudi Arabia to the southeast. Both countries were quiterge, but fortunately, Cairo and Tabuk were close, as Cairo was located in the northeast of Egypt and Tabuk was located in the north of Saudi Arabia. Though, it was a bit of a hassle that she had to take a boat across the Gulf of Aqaba. Yassir had insisted that she fly, saying that her fake ID was pretty good and that it would work. However, Doctor Ref didn¡¯t want to risk anything, since airnes were more strictly screened than ships in the Gulf of Aqaba. As such, Yassir drove her to the port of Nuweibaa, where she spent the night before taking a boat across the Saudi border and then a taxi. During all this, Doctor Ref had only one concern: why did Young-Joon go to Af? Did he know about the polyomavirus? If so, was there a possibility that the ns would change? ¡°Are you going on a date this early in the morning? You¡¯re dressed so nicely,¡± asked the taxi driver. ¡°What? Oh, yes,¡± replied Doctor Ref. She snapped out of her thoughts and smiled. ¡°We¡¯ve arrived,¡± said the taxi driver. ¡°Thank you.¡± Doctor Ref handed him the taxi fare with a bright smile and got off. It was six in the morning, and she had arrived at a small park between a mosque and a Middle Eastern restaurant on the outskirts of Karpu. ¡®I¡¯ll swindle him thisst time, and then I¡¯m done with him.¡¯ It was time to stop leeching off of Abdul Asham. ¡®Yassir told me to be careful. They¡¯re talking about the cold chain right now, and Ryu Young-Joon mighte into contact with Asham, so I might get caught.¡¯ But Young-Joon was supplying the cold chain to a small transportationpany called Karpu. Besides, she was in Af now, so it was unlikely she would be caught through Ahsam. ¡°Franklin!¡± Abdul Asham waved from across the street, smiling. ¡°Asham. How are you?¡± Doctor Ref waved back and started running towards him. But after a few meters, Doctor Ref stopped in her tracks, sensing the strange atmosphere. Asham was unusually nervous. His neck was wet with sweat, and this area was quieter than usual. Doctor Ref quickly scanned the faces of the people around her. In any city, half of the faces in a particr alley at six in the morning would be regr. But every face she saw now was unfamiliar. This was a controlled area. ¡®I¡¯m screwed.¡¯ Doctor Ref sensed danger. She turned around immediately and began running in the opposite direction. ¡°Get her!¡± Men who were disguised as citizens ran towards her from all sides. ¡°Damn it.¡± Were they intelligence agents or detectives? A guy who was reading his newspaper threw it away and began running. A couple on a date began running. A man walking his dog began running. Now, she realized that the dog was a military working dog. ¡®How can it be exactly the same as the plot of somemon spy movie, down to every single detail?¡¯ Doctor Ref, who was running for her life, bumped into someone as she turned the corner. It was Robert, the CIA agent. * ¡ªOperationplete. Robert¡¯s voice came through the walkie-talkie. ¡ªWe have secured the target. Young-Joon, who was watching from the situation control room with the other agents, stood up. ¡°Can I see her?¡± Young-Joon asked the CIA agents. ¡°Of course.¡± Young-Joon came down from the building and headed towards arge, ck van. A young woman in handcuffs was inside, along with a group of intelligence officers. ¡°I heard you went to Af. When did you coax Asham?¡± Doctor Ref smiled bitterly when she saw Young-Joon. ¡°I purposely exposed myself in Jerusalem, finished my business, and quietly traveled to Saudi Arabia with the agents here,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I think we have a lot to talk about. Shall we start with the polyomavirus?¡± Chapter 260: Cold Chain (12)

Chapter 260: Cold Chain (12)

¡°Polyomavirus?¡± Doctor Ref asked. ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to put the botulinum toxin inside that virus and use it for a terrorist attack?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°What?¡± Doctor Ref¡¯s eyes widened, and she suddenly burst outughing. ¡°Hahaha!¡± ¡°Why are youughing?¡± ¡°Because a genius¡¯ idea of terrorism is on a different level than mine. I could never have imagined that...¡± Doctor Ref barely calmed herughter, wiping away a tear. ¡°You¡¯re saying that¡¯s not what it¡¯s for?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°It¡¯s not.¡± ¡°Then what are you going to use that polyomavirus for?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a secret.¡± Young-Joon red at Doctor Ref silently. ¡ªIt¡¯s true that they don¡¯t intend to use it to carry the botulinum toxin. Rosaline, who was monitoring Doctor Ref¡¯s blood flow in the brain, sent a message. ¡°... You stole the botulinum strain from LifeToxin, right?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Yeah,¡± Doctor Ref replied. Her response was calm and short, as if she had given up. ¡°And you founded Philistines?¡± ¡°Yassir and his close associates founded it. However, it¡¯s true that I helped them financially and with the strain supply, among other things.¡± ¡°What are you going to use the botulinum toxin for?¡± ¡°What do you mean? It¡¯s a neuroparalytic drug. It¡¯s for medical purposes, of course.¡± ¡°A terrorist developing a medical cure?¡± ¡°Haven¡¯t you met Elsie, my mother?¡± Doctor Ref asked. ¡°I did.¡± ¡°Then didn¡¯t she tell you about me? I¡¯m not some crazy terrorist. I¡¯m different from the Palestine Liberation Army or IS, who are fighting to create an independent state of Arab culture,¡± Doctor Ref said. ¡°Those people are berserkers driven by their own religious ideology or nationalism. There are terrorists, there are rebels, and there are insurgents, but I¡¯m neither. Did my mother really not tell you about my goal?¡± ¡°She said you want to make a world where Rosaline rules over science,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°That¡¯s right. That¡¯s why I don¡¯t do things like harming civilians. A polyomavirus that carries botulinum toxin... It¡¯s horrifying and ridiculous just to hear about.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°And Ryu Young-Joon, you made a big mistake by arresting me,¡± Doctor Ref said. ¡°A mistake?¡± ¡°Because I¡¯m not your enemy. Think of me as your only ally who can pull you out when you fall into the grave that you¡¯ve dug.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about.¡± Young-Joon shrugged. ¡°For someone so smart, you¡¯re not very good at predicting things like this.¡± Doctor Ref let out a small sigh. ¡°For example...¡± she said. ¡°It¡¯s been a while since the world¡¯srgest oil producer changed from Saudi Arabia to the United States.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The United States made every effort to conserve its oil resources by invading Iraq and indirectly developing Saudi Arabia. As a result, they stockpiled a lot of those important underground resources,¡± Doctor Ref said. ¡°Now, since the scarcity of oil has risen significantly, they¡¯re probably thinking about selling it at a high price. And then imagine if, all of a sudden, Doctor Ryu, the omnipotent who can make sr cells and bring people back from the dead,es along and makes the production of biodiesel so efficient that he can make premium gasoline. Do you think the United States will look favorably upon that? You won¡¯t be ying with your CIA friends anymore.¡± ¡°...¡± Doctor Ref chuckled when Young-Joon didn¡¯t respond. ¡°Don¡¯t be scared. I¡¯m sure they won¡¯t hurt you over some oil. They¡¯ll leave you alone for a while, just like they are doing now, but I don¡¯t know what will happen afterward,¡± she said. ¡°Ryu Young-Joon, science in the twenty-first century is a manual for the powerful to dominate and exploit the weak. Scientists may be pure in their research, but politicians and entrepreneurs who use it are not. It¡¯s like a cult that recruits and exploits its devotees by cherry-picking and re-interpreting biblical passages. ¡°Science is taking the ce that religion had in the Middle Ages by using words like ¡®rational¡¯ and ¡®international journals¡¯, especially in underdeveloped countries like this one.¡± Doctor Ref was grimacing as if she was saying a disgusting word. ¡°The science you have developed so far has been to the taste of the most powerful country in the world, the United States, so they¡¯ve left you alone. You cured cancer and HIV and reduced microdust; everyone is living happily and making money.¡± Doctor Ref leaned closer to Young-Joon. ¡°But watch. Your science has advanced too fast. From brain death and sr cells, you¡¯re going to start bothering some people,¡± she said. ¡°I don¡¯t care about that,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°That¡¯s so like you.¡± Doctor Ref smiled. ¡°If anyone tries to stop the progress of science, I will destroy them head-on. I¡¯ve shed with the Prime Minister of China, too. Don¡¯t worry, nothing will happen,¡± Young-Joon said firmly. ¡°...¡± Doctor Ref stared into Young-Joon¡¯s eyes. ¡°It¡¯s probably nice being so resolute. Maybe you really will ovee all the pressures of the authoritative world on your own and achieve everything you want. Well, maybe this is why Rosaline was born. A third-rate scientist like me could never follow in your footsteps, not in a million years.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯te here to hear crap like that. Tell me what you were going to do with that damn polyomavirus,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°You can torture me, but I¡¯m not going to tell you, Ryu Young-Joon. What the hell are you doing in the Middle East?¡± ¡°Phew.¡± Young-Joon let out a sigh as Doctor Ref grinned and changed the subject. ¡°There¡¯s a clinical trial patient here,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Of course. That¡¯s what brought you all the way here. Is the patient in Af?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°It must be nice. Israel is a Jewishmunity and has a lot of money, so they can be treated by the famous Ryu Young-Joon even when they are brain-dead in the middle of the Middle East. The Palestine Liberation Army die of infections from minor wounds because they can¡¯t even get a prescription for some antibiotics.¡± ¡°You shouldn¡¯t be saying that,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°The brain-dead patient is like that because of the polyomavirus you spread, Franklin.¡± ¡°What are you talking about? The polyomavirus is not pathogenic. There are countless people in the world who live with it. I know that, and that¡¯s why I tested it,¡± Doctor Ref said, smiling. ¡°It can be deadly to those withpromised immune systems,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°What, like there was an AIDS patient there or something?¡± Doctor Ref scoffed but became silent at Young-Joon¡¯s next words. ¡°There was a child who was hit with white phosphorus. His lymphocyte count had dropped significantly because the gas poisoning destroyed his bone marrow.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°He was just a child. You were the one who left a kid barely in his teens brain-dead.¡± Doctor Ref closed her eyes. ¡°... Get it straight. It wasn¡¯t me who made him brain-dead; it was the Israeli army¡¯s white phosphorus bombs,¡± she said. ¡°If a boy around his age had side effects of a bombing, it must have been the most recent white phosphorus bombing of Gaza. He asked for it. Why would an Israeli Jew crawl into a neighborhood of Arabs, get bombed by his own government, and then go back to Af?¡± ¡°He¡¯s Palestinian.¡± ¡°What?¡± Young-Joon red at Doctor Ref silently. ¡°The victim is a Palestinian Arab. You think they¡¯re all Israeli citizens and Jews because they¡¯re in a hospital in Af? Contrary to what you think, medicine has no borders.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°What did that child do wrong? He doesn¡¯t know anything! He was bombed with white phosphorus by the Israeli army and terrorized with the polyomavirus by the Palestine Liberation Army. Now, he¡¯s brain-dead with horrible burns, and I¡¯m here to treat him. Do you understand?¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Isaiah Franklin.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I¡¯ll ask you onest time: why did you release the polyomavirus? Tell me the truth, and I¡¯ll consider sparing the lives of your friends in Philistines.¡± ¡°... That¡¯s...¡± Doctor Ref was about to say something, then stopped. She suddenly mped her mouth shut and began choking. ¡°Cough!¡± She began coughing violently. She clutched her chest and throat in pain. ¡°My bag... The meds...¡± She barely managed to squeeze out something like a groan. ¡°What?¡± A message window popped up in front of Young-Joon, who was startled. [Synchronization mode: Would you like to analyze myelodysstic syndrome? Fitness consumption rate: 3.5/second] ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± ¡°My meds...¡± Doctor Ref said in a dying voice. ¡°Please give me her belongings,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Hold on.¡± Robert went to the team that was examining the confiscated items and then came back. ¡°This was the vial that was in the bag. Is it this? I brought the bag with me just in case.¡± ¡°I think so.¡± Young-Joon turned to Doctor Ref as Robert handed him the vial. She nodded as she coughed up a handful of blood. After swallowing a pill, Doctor Ref calmed down a bit. She stared at Young-Joon while catching her breath. ¡°You had myelodysstic syndrome?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Yeah. Do you know how I was born?¡± ¡°I do.¡± ¡°Haha. I would¡¯ve been healthy if you handled my genome, but instead, I was born like this because of the tampering of Elsie, who¡¯s dumber than He Jiankui, and her idiot colleagues.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Ryu Young-Joon,¡± Doctor Ref said. ¡°Don¡¯t obsess over the polyomavirus. It¡¯s nothing.¡± ¡°Sigh...¡± Doctor Ref leaned into Young-Joon as he sighed. In a serious voice, she said, ¡°I swear. I¡¯m not making something that will harm people, but I can¡¯t tell you what it is. I know you can¡¯t trust me, but you have to.¡± ¡°What about the botulinum toxin?¡± ¡°That¡¯s not for any terrorist activities. Well, the Palestine Liberation Army might use it as a weapon to fight against the Israeli army, but they won¡¯t use it against random people,¡± Doctor Ref said. ¡°I can¡¯t tell you more than this, whether you kill Philistines or not.¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joon red at Doctor Ref. This woman¡¯s goal was to allow Rosaline to monopolize all science. Could the polyomavirus or botulinum toxin have anything to do with it? ¡°I¡¯ll give you an important piece of information instead,¡± Doctor Ref said. ¡°You said your clinical trial patient was in Af? You probably shouldn¡¯t go there again. The Palestine Liberation Army is after it.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Af is one of the biggest medical hubs in Israel, and it¡¯s where a lot of wounded Israeli soldiers are hospitalized and treated. Doesn¡¯t that make it an attractive target for the Palestine Liberation Army?¡± ¡°Damn it! They¡¯re going to hit a hospital?¡± ¡°Who are you cursing when the Israeli army blew up a civilian school built by the UN?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°They were after it for a while, but they¡¯re probably getting impatient now that word has gotten out that you¡¯ve been there. Don¡¯t go back.¡± ¡°There are doctors from my hospital there! They traveled all the way here to treat patients because I asked them to!¡± Young-Joon shouted. He mmed open the van¡¯s door. ¡°What are you going to do?¡± Doctor Ref asked from behind him. ¡°I have to stop that insane terrorist attack!¡± ¡°Even if you call them now, it might be toote. It takes forever to evacuate patients, you know that. They¡¯ll attack as soon as they catch a glimpse of evacuation.¡± ¡°If I can¡¯t stop them, I¡¯ll be there right after the attack to clean up the scene and treat the victims.¡± ¡°First aid at the scene would be important, but by that point, the facility will have been blown to smithereens and there won¡¯t be anything left. How are you going to treat them?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Ryu Young-Joon, no matter how brilliant a scientist is, he¡¯s a caveman with his bare hands.¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joon¡¯s fists trembled slightly. ¡ªIt¡¯s okay. That¡¯s when Rosaline intervened. ¡ªLet¡¯s go together. Chapter 261: Cold Chain (13) all the transmission towers and cut off the power. That alone should be fatal.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The emergency generations will kick in, but those hospitals don¡¯t have that much emergency power. The hospital will be paralyzed within hours,¡± Aziz said. ¡°Do you think we can do enough damage with that?¡± ¡°Absolutely. They¡¯ll try to restore the power system while the emergency generators are running, but we just have to disrupt it by intercepting them at those points.¡± * ¡°Robert, there¡¯s something I want to ask you,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°What is it?¡± asked Robert, pausing in his conversation with Prime Minister Felus. ¡°What happens if the terrorists destroy the transmission towers and cut off the power instead of hitting the hospital directly? Is the hospital prepared for that? Is there anything we can figure out right now, such as the number of patients at Af¡¯s medical center who are on respirators, how many medications are in stock that need to be refrigerated or frozen¡­¡±¡°Do you think the terrorists will cut off the power?¡± Robert asked. ¡°I¡¯m talking about the possibility. If I was the terrorist, I think that¡¯s what I would do if the security level was raised,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Except for very specialized buildings, hospitals have the highest average power consumption per unit area in a city by far, and they suffer the most when the power goes out. ¡°Some patients die immediately if the respirators don¡¯t work. If the freezer stops, drugs worth tens of millions of won be useless, and it can take weeks to import them from overseas to resupply them. Worst case scenario, we won¡¯t be able to treat even the treatable patients.¡± ¡°...¡± Robert¡¯s face darkened. He quickly pointed out to Felus that the terrorists might try to cut off the power supply. ¡ªDamn it. I¡¯ll get back to you in a moment. Felus¡¯ voice was full of fear as he hung up the phone. Robert thought for a moment, then smiled bitterly. ¡°I think you will be right, Doctor Ryu,¡± he said. ¡°Really?¡± ¡°In the past, Israel used to use nasty weapons like white phosphorus bombs when they were at war with Gaza. But after Prime Minister Felus came into power, they stopped using such aggressive methods. There were issues with international public opinion, but Prime Minister Felus was friendly to Palestine.¡± He went on. ¡°But the cease-fire agreement kept failing, so, as the prime minister of Israel, Felus needed to put pressure on the Hamas government in Gaza and Palestine. Power was what he used.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The impoverished Palestinian territory of Gaza only has one power nt. Even that doesn¡¯t work anymore because the bombing and war destroyed the fuel supply chain.¡± ¡°So they can¡¯t generate power?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°Then¡­ What do they do? Where do they get their electricity from?¡± ¡°Well, Israel didn¡¯t exist about eighty years ago, and all thatnd belonged to Palestine, right? So, Gaza is connected to a nearby power nt in Israel by a transmission system. They import power from there.¡± ¡°Gaza imports power from Israel?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°It¡¯s odd, but yes. When things got bad with the Hamas government, Prime Minister Felus started pressuring them by cutting off their electricity. Thanks to that, Gaza only has electricity for four hours a day. It¡¯s been like that for a few years now,¡± Robert said. ¡°What? How could they do that? Cutting off electricity for a prolonged time in a modern city is more than just an inconvenience. It can prevent emergency patients from having surgeries, and the risk it creates for mothers giving birth¡­¡± ¡°Of course, it¡¯s hard.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t that basically the same as holding civilians¡¯ lives and livelihoods hostage and threatening them? How is that any different from what the terrorists are doing now?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not something that we can judge by our standards, Doctor Ryu. Israel and the Palestinian government are at war.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The fact that they are selling electricity to an enemy country is ridiculous. Sometimes, Prime Minister Felus is pressured by right-winged powers in his country for this. ¡®Why are you selling electricity when they¡¯re using that energy to power factories that build bombs for terrorism?¡¯ ¡®Even four hours is a waste of electricity. Just cut it.¡¯ Things like that.¡± Robert added, ¡°The whole structure of this area is odd. The very existence of Israel is just wrong. Palestine is in a position where they cannot ept the existence of Israel, but at the same time they have to be cautious to stay alive.¡± ¡°... We will supply our sr cells to Gaza,¡± Young-Joon said. Robert gulped a little. ¡°You should think about that. It could make things worse. And the United States is Israel¡¯s friend, Doctor Ryu. I¡¯m an American intelligence agent.¡± ¡°How can they not use electricity in this day and age? Issues of war and territory should be resolved by the internationalmunity, not by threatening the power supply! Why should the civilians living there be deprived of the most basic level of civilization? What did they do to deserve that?¡± Robert smiled. ¡°You¡¯re going to win the Nobel Peace Prize, too. Are you going to take everything for yourself?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°To be honest, I agree with you, Doctor Ryu. All the civilians living here, who are exhausted by war and death and want peace, probably think the same way,¡± Robert said. ¡°Anyways, let¡¯s think about thatter and get back to the topic at hand. The Palestine Liberation Army probably knows the suffering of living without electricity better than anyone else in the modern world. They probably also know the damage that a power outage does to a hospital. With the heightened level of alert now, this is a strategy that they are very likely considering.¡± Robert went on. ¡°It seems they are nning to destroy the transmission towersing from the power nt in Af to cut off all the electricity.¡± ¡°Turn the car around,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°What?¡± ¡°I have to stop by Jerusalem first.¡± * Pzz. The lights went out. ¡°Ah, damn it!¡± Jennifer, an A-GenBio scientist who was working on making the induced pluripotent stem cells for the clinical trial, screamed. She quickly pulled out her hands from the biosafety cab (BSC) and pulled down the barrier. It was because the electricity to the bench had been cut, and the aeration had stopped. It was a system that flowed air from the inside to the outside to prevent bacteria or dust from entering and contaminating the interior. ¡°Crap¡­ What happened?¡± Jennifer looked anxiously at the petri dish where the stem cells were growing. ¡°It¡¯s probably fine, right? I removed it and closed it right away, so it¡¯s probably not contaminated, right?¡± She would have to culture the cells again if there was any contamination, and there was no telling if the brain-dead clinical patient, the little boy, would survive that. ¡°Please¡­¡± Jennifer anxiously tapped her foot. That was when¡­ Pzz! The lights turned back on. Then, an announcement came over the speaker system. ¡ªThere is currently a power outage in the hospital andbs. Emergency power has been activated. Scientists in theb: please ensure that all cold storage rooms, including the deep freezers and cold rooms, are operational. ¡°Jennifer!¡± Lim Cho-Yoon, her senior, came in from outside. ¡°Didn¡¯t you hear about the terrorist attack? Everyone who can evacuate needs to go right now.¡± ¡°Yes, I¡¯m almost done with the experiment. I just need to put it into the incubator,¡± said Jennifer. Chapter 262: Cold Chain (14) The one who controlled the defense line in Af was the military, not the police. This showed how seriously Prime Minister Felus was taking the issue. But despite his best efforts, there was nothing he could do about the anti-tank guns firing at the transmission towersing over the mountain from the power nt. The Palestine Liberation Army simultaneously struck key transmission towers throughout the city, causing a massive ckout in an instant. ¡°It¡¯s likely they are going to target the transmission towers crossing over Mount Givat Hamore Reserve,¡± Young-Joon said. He was sitting in Robert¡¯s car, with Google Maps and a schematic of the city¡¯s power grid open on his phone. He pinpointed the attack points with uncanny uracy, almost like a fortune teller, yet the Palestine Liberation Army was always slightly ahead of the Israeli forces in Af. ¡°We¡¯re doomed.¡± Lieutenant Colonel Kashin of the Israeli army sighed. This was after they had managed to eliminate a few members of the Palestinian Liberation Army on Mount Reserve and capture Abrahim and Major Aziz. The city¡¯s entire power supply waspletely destroyed. Felus canceled all his scheduled engagements and headed to Af at full speed.¡°It¡¯s dangerous!¡± ¡°We can serve as the control tower from Jerusalem!¡± ¡°There could still be more terrorists! You cannot go!¡± Everyone around him was shocked and tried to stop him, but Felus was no longer in a state to think clearly. The power waspletely cut off. Some major hospitals in developed countries had their own generators, but not in Af. The hospitals there were hastily built during the midte twentieth century due to the surge of war casualties from constant warfare. Their emergency power systems were not very reliable. Seven hours. After that time, the venttors at Hamak Hospital were going to stop. And his son, Lagba, who was in a brain-dead state, was never going to be able to recover. ¡°I¡­ I have to go¡­¡± Felus said. He seemed a bit dazed. The way he staggered out of his office, tears streaming down his face, didn¡¯t look prime ministerial at all. The directors at Jerusalem¡¯s disaster control tower were bewildered by his abnormal misery. ¡°You take over,¡± Felus asked Defense Minister Balli before heading outside. Felus left with just his chief of staff and two bodyguards. They got in a car and headed straight for Af. * ¡°I pitied Lagba,¡± Felus said, on his way to Af. ¡°And I thought if that boy, who has endured so much pain, could be treated and smile again, then perhaps the conflict between our country and Palestine could also be healed.¡± Felus wiped his face with both hands. ¡°But it¡¯s not like that,¡± he said. ¡°He wasn¡¯t a symbol of hope or peace for this country. He was just a lovely boy, not a pitiful one. Just an ordinary teenage boy.¡± Felus let out a long, damp sigh and repeatedly wiped his reddened eyes with his hands. ¡°He was just a kid. He resented me, worried me, tormented me for years, but also made meugh, just like any normal child. He grew up bravely, even while in hiding,¡± Felus said in anguish. ¡°I even brought Ryu Young-Joon. All that was left was the treatment. It was almost done¡­ That child doesn¡¯t know anything about the Middle East conflict. He did nothing wrong and knows nothing. But why does he have to suffer so horribly¡­¡± Felus began to sob. ¡°Your son hasn¡¯t passed away yet,¡± said the chief of staff. ¡°...¡± ¡°When we get to Af, let¡¯s ask the medical staff from the Next Generation Hospital to administer the stem cell treatment. Who knows, he might recover and be able to breathe on his own¡­¡± * Even though he knew it was hopeless, Felus had no other option. He went to the doctors from the Next Generation Hospital who had evacuated to the emergency bunker. ¡°Please administer the stem cells to Lagba¡­¡± he pleaded, even bowing his head. But what couldn¡¯t be done, couldn¡¯t be done. The medical staff refused, horrified. ¡°The stem cells are not yet fully developed, and we haven¡¯t even checked for contamination or quality! We can¡¯t administer them in their current state. We also don¡¯t have enough!¡± Song Min-Hyuk, who was in charge of the procedure, adamantly shook his head. ¡°But if we do nothing, my son will die. The venttor will run out of power in just a few hours.¡± ¡°... But¡­ Even so¡­¡± Song Min-Hyuk looked at Felus with pity but hesitated to proceed with the procedure. ¡°Right now, all the emergency power is being used to maintain venttors, ECMO, and EKG machines. Theb¡¯s power is only being used to keep essential items like stem cells preserved at the minimum required level,¡± Song Min-Hyuk exined. ¡°Even if we were to attempt the procedure with the unfinished stem cells, there isn¡¯t enough power to even light up the operating room.¡± ¡°...¡± Felus bit his lower lip. Song Min-Hyuk felt sorry for him, but there was no other way. Even the renowned Professor Miguel needed a radiation monitor when delivering stem cells to the subventricr zone through the nose. Although this procedure was much simpler than Miguel¡¯s method due to improved delivery techniques, it still involved nasal administration. If sessful, most neurosurgeons would be able to perform it, but a radiation monitor was still essential. ¡°Without power, it¡¯s impossible¡­¡± Felus momentarily had a horrifying thought and fell into self-loathing. The idea he had was to divert some of the remaining four hours of power from other critical patients to conduct the stem cell procedure. ¡°... What if we move him somewhere else? To Nazareth Hospital¡­?¡± asked Felus, grasping at straws. ¡°We¡¯ve already considered that¡­¡± Song Min-Hyuk began to reply, but a professor from Hamak Hospital interrupted. ¡°All avable vehicles were used to transport the highest prioritya patients first. And because brain-dead patients are legally considered deceased under current Israeliw¡­ They were not prioritized for emergency transport.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Nazareth is also affected by the transmission tower destruction and is not in a position to help. Only a few patients have been transported there¡­¡± said the professor from Hamak Hospital. ¡°... I see,¡± Felus replied in a heavy, sinking voice. He left the bunker. ¡°Mr. Prime Minister.¡± Felus stopped the chief of staff and the security team who were following him out. ¡°Please, let me be alone.¡± He went to Hamak Hospital. He walked up to the fifth floor, where the critical patients who couldn¡¯t be evacuated were. Arriving at Labga¡¯s bedside, Felus sank down next to him. There was nothing he could do. His son was neither deceased nor terminally ill. It was a treatable condition, and the doctors who could treat him and the scientists who could create the treatment were all here. They had even made the treatment. But there was nothing they could do. Even a country¡¯s prime minister could feel so powerless. The greatest cruelty of the power outage was that it set a fixed time of death. When a doctor gave a terminal prognosis to a cancer patient, they typically said something like ¡°about three weeks¡± or ¡°around four months,¡± leaving the timeframe somewhat ambiguous. Often, patients lived longer than expected. But Lagba was different. Hisst moment was when the power to the venttor and ECMO was cut off. It was a time of death scheduled down to the exact second. This fated death sentence dealt to his most beloved person who was treatable was too cruel and horrifying. Click. Suddenly, the door to the hospital room opened, and a young woman appeared. ¡°...¡± She didn¡¯t say anything, but Felus felt like he knew who she might be. The fact that she hade to this intensive care unit with tears streaming down her face meant that she was a family member of one of the critically ill patients lying here. She moved to the bedside by the window and approached a young soldier who had been on a venttor and in aa for weeks. It was probably her husband. She knelt down and took a tallit out of her bag, covering her head with it. ¡°Praise the Lord, our great God, Creator of Heaven and Earth. You are our shield and the shield of our ancestors. Blessed be the shield of Abraham.¡± Instead of crying, she prayed. ¡°You are mighty and strong. You are our protector who revives the dead and is eternal¡­¡± ¡®...¡¯ Felus watched her with a bitter smile. ¡®She¡¯s better than me,¡¯ he thought. It was better to pray than to be in despair. After a while, more rtives of the patients began to arrive. Nearly a hundred people filled the intensive care unit and even the hallway. They cried, screamed, held hands and prayed, cursed and swore at the Palestinian terrorists, and asionally fainted. The rapidly dwindling power was not just the lives of the patient but also the mental strength of their families. After three hellish hours, Felus, as the prime minister, was about to announce that the power was gone. Just as they were preparing themselves for the worst¡­ Thud! The door to the room swung open, and a doctor with swollen eyes stumbled in. ¡°T¡­ The power is back,¡± he said, stuttering. All the families in the intensive care unit stood up in unison, as if on cue. ¡°What?¡± asked the young woman who was praying. ¡°The power is back. We have a few more hours¡­¡± The miracle hade through the efforts of Conson & Colson to A-GenBio and Karpu, following the path of the cold chain. * ¡°Is this really what we¡¯re supposed to do?¡± Shin Wook-Jae, a first-year junior sales representative at A-GenBio, scratched his head at the absurd request while driving a truck from Karpu, the ghostpany. ¡°Yes, it¡¯s done now,¡± said the emergency power managers at Hamak Hospital with faces full of excitement. ¡°Ha, well, anyways, that¡¯s a relief.¡± Shin Wook-Jaeughed. About thirty minutes earlier, on his way here, Shim Jae-Wook had received a call from an unknown number. It turned out to be the CEO at the top of thedder of A-GenBio Group: the monster scientist who controlled seven A-GenBiobs, a cancer researchb in the United States, A-GenLife, and the Next Generation Hospital had called him directly. ¡ªWhere are you right now? ¡°I-I-I¡¯m currently at C-Conson & Colson with the polyomavirus inhibitor¡­¡± Shin Wook-Jae stammered several times, too shocked to speak properly. ¡ªYou brought the Antipolyma in the deep freezer, right? Where are you right now? ¡°I-I¡¯m almost at Af. No, I¡¯m here now.¡± ¡ªGreat. Go straight to the management office on the basement floor of Hamak Hospital, and tell them you¡¯re looking for the emergency power supply manager. If you mention that you¡¯ve brought sr cells, they should take care of it. How many cells do you have with you right now? ¡°S-Since they are still prototypes, I brought a lot just in case there are any malfunctions or damages. I have eight modules in my truck right now¡­¡± ¡ªAnd what about the ESS? ¡°I have two fully charged ones.¡± ¡ªOkay. Please head directly to Hamak Hospital. And it was exactly as Young-Joon said. The emergency power supply managers shed tears of joy as they quickly rearranged and reconnected the wires. And when they flipped the switch, the eight sr cell modules began supplying power with incredible efficiency. The two ESS units brought in to run the deep freezers at night were also full, and the hospital suddenly had plenty of power. ¡°But we¡¯ve only bought a little time. We distributed one ESS and six sr cells to other hospitals,¡± said the ICU[1] doctor at Hamak Hospital. ¡°We had no other choice because other hospitals also have many patients on venttors.¡± ¡°If we manage to buy more time here, can we sacrifice things likebs or drug storage freezers to power more venttors?¡± Felus asked. ¡°Well¡­ It¡¯s possible, but¡­¡± ¡°Sir! Mr. Prime Minister!¡± shouted someone in a booming voice. It was from the hallway. The chief of staff, who was extremely excited, ran to the intensive care unit. He eximed, ¡°Additional sr cells have arrived!¡± ¡°There¡¯s more?¡± asked Felus, quickly running out into the hallway. ¡°Check outside!¡± said the chief of staff. Those who responded to the chief of staff were the families of patients in the intensive care unit. Before Felus could do anything, they rushed outside and witnessed a shocking scene. About two hundred sr cell modules wereing in loaded on ten trucks. ¡°Send one truck to each hospital.¡± And in front of them was Young-Joon. It felt like a dream. ¡°What is¡­ Doctor Ryu?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but I brought back all the sr cells I donated to Israel to use as a prototype from Jerusalem,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°And I¡¯ve also requested emergency assistance from neighboring Middle Eastern governments, so please wait a bit.¡± 1. intensive care unit ? Chapter 263: Grand Slam (1)

Chapter 263: Grand m (1)

The Israel Electricity Corporation (IEC) had been sitting on a chunk of new technology gifted by A-GenBio for days. ¡°We took it because they gave it to us, but what are we supposed to do with this?¡± wondered Simon, the CEO of the IEC, as he looked at the two hundred sr cell modules that had arrived at thepany warehouse. Israel had recentlypleted the construction of a new four-hundred-megawattbined-cycle power nt in the Mishor Rotem area. The total cost amounted to two billion shekels, approximately six hundred million dors, which was a significant expense considering Israel¡¯s GDP. The huge power nt, which used fossil fuels, could produce more than enough power for the entire country. Now was the time to recoup the investment cost. However, it was at this time that A-GenBio publicly unveiled their sr cells and distributed prototypes worldwide. Now, as the future was set to change to a sr cell system globally, they couldn¡¯t ignore it. ¡®But if we switch back to sr cells, it would be like burning six hundred million dors of taxpayers¡¯ money on useless fossil fuel power nts, and we¡¯ll face massive bacsh from the public.¡¯ Simon decided not to ce any additional orders, as these were just prototypes, and he chose to try sr power generation with the two hundred units he had received. Just as he had reached this conclusion, Young-Joon appeared. ¡°Please give me all the sr cells. Af will soon have no power.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°The terrorists are going to destroy all the transmission towers in Af. Please give us all the sr cells and ESS units you have!¡± shouted Young-Joon. It was bizarre to give a gift, thene back the next day and demand it all back. However, Simon knew that if what Young-Joon was saying was true, it would be the biggest blow to him as the CEO of a powerpany. And Young-Joon was not the kind of person to lie. ¡°Take everything. I¡¯ll give you everything we have. Is there anything else I can assist you with?¡± Simon asked. * The timely arrival of sr cells and ESS units saved the hospitals and research facilities. In the meantime, most of the terrorists were arrested, killed, or fled, as Young-Joon almost precisely pinpointed the locations of the terrorists. ¡®We seeded in defending Af.¡¯ With seven hours of backup power, the medical hub in Af survived the night. The next day, technicians seeded in temporarily fixing a few transmission towers, and sr cells were sent in from Jordan, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia. Additionally, there was something quite astonishing: those countries also sent primary relief items such as food and medicine. It was a shocking gesture of support from the Arab League, which had historically been hostile to Israel. ¡°Even though we¡¯ve currently established peace agreements and diplomatic rtions, Egypt and Jordan have very poor rtions with our country. How did you manage to receive these sr cells?¡± asked Felus, looking at the additional items that had arrived. ¡°We have promised medical investments to the Arab League countries. We¡¯re going to work on several agreements here,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Agreements?¡± ¡°Yes. And I need some help from you for this, Mr. Prime Minister.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°We¡¯re going to build next-generation hospitals in sixteen major cities, including Af and sixteen major cities in the Arab League.¡± Felus¡¯ eyes widened. ¡°You¡¯re going to build next-generation hospitals?¡± ¡°After A-GenBio established the first Next Generation Hospital, developed countries have already built hundreds of them by either remodeling existing ones or establishing new hospitals,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°But there aren¡¯t any in the Middle East. Personally, I believe that next-generation hospitals are most urgently needed in this region.¡± ¡°Is that why you are building them here?¡± Felus asked. ¡°A-GenBio doesn¡¯t intend to make money from it, but we also don¡¯t intend to be a charity organization. You need to get funding from the Middle Eastern governments for the establishment costs,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°However, the next-generation hospitalsing into this region will be franchises of A-GenBio¡¯s Next Generation Hospital, unlike the imitations from other developed countries. Therefore, they will directly receive medical technology developed in our researchbs and be the most advanced and cutting-edge hospitals.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°It¡¯s not often that A-GenBio makes an investment of this magnitude,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°But there are conditions,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I am going to donate thend where the hospitals will be built to the United Nations to make them a part of it. As you know, UN agency offices are extraterritorial in any country in the world.¡± ¡°You mean you¡¯re going to create extraterritorial jurisdictions in the Middle East?¡± Felus asked. ¡°Yes. We¡¯re going to establish hospitals in sixteen cities in the Arab League and two cities in Israel, Af and Jerusalem. Of course, the Gaza Strip in Palestine is also included in the Arab League.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°And the hospitals will be run by A-GenBio. In ordance with international medicalw, it will receive and treat patients without discrimination, whether they are part of the Arab League or Israeli, Jewish or Arab.¡± ¡°... Alright.¡± ¡°Israel has bombed schools set up by the United Nations, hasn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°That must never happen again. If there is ever another conflict on thisnd, those hospitals must not be touched. I¡¯m saying that we should have at least one international agreed-upon, humanitarian, and fair safe zone following internationalw.¡± Felus smiled bitterly. ¡°It¡¯s a little embarrassing to see a civilian pushing for something that should be done by leaders of a country.¡± ¡°And I have one more request for you, Mr. Prime Minister.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°Please supply power to the Gaza Strip. I¡¯m going to send sr cells there.¡± ¡°... Alright.¡± ¡°I know that the Palestinian-Israeli conflict is too deeply entangled to unravel. I¡¯m neither a politician nor a revolutionary, so I don¡¯t know how to approach it. In fact, I actually don¡¯t want to,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°But science should be about liberating people, not persecuting them.¡± ¡°... I will keep that in mind.¡± ¡°The procedure to cure Lagba will be done in a week,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°A week? Wasn¡¯t it originally scheduled to be done four dayster?¡± ¡°There¡¯s a possibility that the stem cells were contaminated, so we have to remove that.¡± ¡°Contamination?¡± Felus¡¯ eyes widened/ ¡°Yes. But don¡¯t worry. Now that I¡¯m here, your son won¡¯t die,¡± Young-Joon said. There probably wasn¡¯t anyone else in the world who could make such a confident statement about reviving a brain-dead patient with a central nervous system infection. He only had one sessful clinical case, but Felus felt a great deal of confidence in Young-Joon¡¯s words. It would work if Young-Joon said so, and whatever Young-Joon wanted to do felt like something that had to be done. ¡°... Thank you so much,¡± Felus said. * Within days, the details of why Felus left Jerusalem to go to Af were revealed. There was no hiding it now, as Felus was in the intensive care unit with the other patients¡¯ families in tears. He just went through the legal formalities and officially adopted his son. [Prime Minister Felus adopts Palestinian boy.] [What happened to a boy after the Israeli bombing and Palestine¡¯s terrorist attack.] With the unfortunate story of the child, rumors about the founding of the Philistines and the polyomavirus also began to spread. ¡°Wow, those assholes!¡± eximed Hong Myung-Woon, the CEO of LifeToxin, when he received a call from Young-Joon. ¡ªAre you going to sue them? ¡°Of course! I¡¯m going to destroy Philistines and Asham. Watch me!¡± It was a good match for LifeToxin, whose ego and finances had taken a big hit from the fight with Woongdam Pharmaceuticals. Hong Myung-Woon immediately prepared for an internationalwsuit and went around iming Philistines¡¯ connection to terrorist organizations. At the same time, it became known throughout the Middle East how much Felus had done to protect the Palestinian child: how he had brought him from Gaza and took great care of him long before he became prime minister; how Felus raised him in Af, far from Jerusalem, instead of formally adopting him because he didn¡¯t want him to be politically framed; how he refused to give up on life-sustaining treatment even after he became brain-dead. And at the end of that sad story, an Asian man suddenly appeared as a savior. After stopping the terrorist attack in Af and defending against the city-wide ckout, and while Arab governments and the Israeli government were nning the establishment of hospitals that would be the cornerstone of Middle East peace, Lagba, who had garnered the world¡¯s attention, opened his eyes. It was the second week of treatment. In front of him stood Young-Joon, Felus, and the medical staff of A-GenBio. * ¡°He was a scientist, then he became a prophet, and now he¡¯s almost a messiah,¡± said Garfield, the CEO of rivate Analytics. ¡°What do you think?¡± A reporter from CNN hade to see Garfield to get what would be the most interesting piece of information about Young-Joon. rivate Analytics was famous for predicting Nobel Prize recipients. ¡°Today is the day that rivate¡¯s list of predictions for this year¡¯s Nobel Prizees out. How many ces does Doctor Ryu appear?¡± the reporter asked. ¡°You¡¯ll see when we make the official announcement.¡± ¡°I won¡¯t tell anyone,¡± the reporter said yfully. However, Garfield just shrugged. ¡°I¡¯ll give you a hint. To be nominated for the Nobel Prize this year, you have to have been nominatedst year,¡± Garfield said. ¡°So this year¡¯s work can be evaluated, but you can¡¯t nominate someone who¡¯s not on the list.¡± ¡°Oh, so you¡¯re saying that even if Doctor Ryu does something crazy in the Middle East, like building a peace zone centered around Next Generation Hospitals, he can¡¯t win the Nobel Peace Prize?¡± Garfield grinned. ¡°But you have to remember that Doctor Ryu made a tremendous contributionst year to the elimination of Kamathipura, the infamous HIV and human trafficking den in India.¡± ¡°Oh...¡± ¡°He would have been nominated one hundred percent. There¡¯s a statue of him in Kamathipura now. And if he had been nominated, think about it... What did he do this year?¡± ¡°In the Middle East...¡± ¡°Before that, he went into the Uyghur camps in Xinjiang, China, investigated an infectious virus, and developed artificial organs to pressure the Chinese president into a regime change. Ultimately, he liberated Xinjiang. The rumor that Doctor Ryu was the informant who helped the CIA find the organ harvesting sites is now a given. Thepetition is already over.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°But this time, he ran around in an area that was being attacked by terrorists, trying to end war in the Middle East. Who¡¯s going to win against him?¡± * [rivate Analytics¡¯ Nobel Prize Predictions] Shocking news came out. ¡°... As such, they announced that Doctor Ryu Young-Joon of A-GenBio is the most likely to win the Nobel Peace Prize among the fifteen candidates.¡± Korean news outlets excitedly repeated the information released by rivate. ¡°In addition, Doctor Ryu Young-Joon is also the most likely to win the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his discovery of Cas9, gene scissors, for developing a highly precise method of correcting the structure of DNA molecules and a rapid and urate diagnostic method,¡± the news anchor said. ¡°Additionally, the recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was predicted to be Doctor Ryu Young-Joon for developing a method of producing induced pluripotent stem cells and using them to treat various neurological diseases, including brain death.¡± But there was more. ¡°And based on the information that he was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Physicsst year, Doctor Ryu Young-Joon was ranked as the number one candidate for the Nobel Prize in Physics for his development of the chlorophyll sr cell, which can rece all power nts, and for his significant contributions to the distribution industry, space development, and environment improvement.¡± Chapter 264: Grand Slam (2) No matter who rivate nominated for the Nobel Prize, it was normal not to get too excited if the nominee wasn¡¯t from one¡¯s own country. After all, the actual award hadn¡¯t been given yet, and it wasn¡¯t even an announcement from the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, but a prediction from apletely unrted private institution. Despite this, rivate¡¯s announcement excited people around the world sitting in front of their TVs. ¡°Look, Sia.¡± Son Soo-Young, the first a patient to be cured and who wrote the first chapter of the Ryu Young-Joon legend, hugged her daughter and pointed to the TV. Blue, the baby who had pulmonary arterial hypertension, was now a two-year-old toddler named Sia. ¡°The doctor who saved us is getting a prize,¡± Son Soo-Young said. ¡°He¡¯s the one who cured Mommy¡¯s eyes and let you breathe, Sia.¡± ¡°Aah,¡± Sia babbled. She iled her arms, slipping out of Son Soo-Young¡¯s arms, and walked towards the TV. Thump! Thump! Son Soo-Young chuckled as Sia banged on the screen with a bright smile on her face. While others often said that raising a baby was really painful, such as theck of sleep and the hard work, she loved every moment of it. Happiness was rtive. Beep beep! Click!¡°I¡¯m home.¡± Son Soo-Young¡¯s husband was home from work. ¡°You¡¯re home early.¡± ¡°I have a foolproof excuse to get out ofpany dinners. No one can say anything because they know my situation. They know that our¡­ Agh.¡± With a groan, he picked up his daughter, who was crawling towards him. ¡°They know that our Sia and you were sick.¡± Son Soo-Young stared at him, then kissed him on the cheek. ¡°I got a job, too,¡± she said. ¡°Really?¡± He turned to her, surprised. ¡°Yeah. The ce I interviewed for before. It¡¯s a little smaller than the publisher I worked at before I got a, but the sry is simr, and it¡¯s closer.¡± ¡°Wow! Congrats!¡± Her husband hugged her tightly with one arm while holding their daughter in the other arm. ¡°But don¡¯t push yourself too hard, though. Okay?¡± ¡°Yeah, of course.¡± Son Soo-Young nodded. * At the same time, in a small logisticspany in Mumbai, India, employees were huddled around the TV, cheering. ¡°Wow! Four! They said four!¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu deserves it,¡± they shouted. This was apany founded by Ardip, the legendary patient who drove Schumatix, the multinational pharmaceutical giant, to ruin. Thepany was called Doctor Maitreya; they had added ¡°Doctor¡± to Maitreya, the Buddhist savior who was supposedly born in Varanasi, India. It didn¡¯t take a local to figure out who thepany name was in honor of. Doctor Maitreya¡¯s staff had an unusual gender ratio of ny-eight percent women, primarily because he still hired all his employees from Kamathipura. After the destruction of that living hell in the Sah¨¡ world[1]The women who managed to escape experienced the incredible fortune of being cured of AIDS. The women who had cared for Ardip then started apany with him and began working together. ¡°If he doesn¡¯t win the award, should we all go to Sweden to protest? How could someone like him not win the Nobel Peace Prize?¡± Ardip said. ¡°Ardip! The Peace Prize is given in Norway,¡± a woman replied. The other womenughed heartily. ¡°Then we¡¯ll go to Norway!¡± * ¡°Why is the Peace Prize awarded in Norway?¡± asked Professor Kakeguni,st year''s Nobel Prize recipient in Physiology or Medicine. ¡°Ha! Back when Nobel was still alive, Sweden and Norway had some sort of alliance or something. So, they probably decided to give one of the prizes to Norway,¡± replied Forsberg. He was an extraordinary patient who had terminal cancer and had been given one week to live with advanced technology, only to recover with even more advanced technology. He was also a symbolic figure in Swedish medicine and the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. ¡°You must be disappointed. You probably want to present all four yourself,¡± Kakeguni said. ¡°If I could, I would give him the Nobel Prize for Literature and Economics, too,¡± Forsberg said. ¡°But the Nobel Prize isn¡¯t something I can control. I¡¯m retired now.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true,¡± Kakeguni replied with a gentle smile and a nod. The two men had many points of connection¡ªa Nobel Prizemittee and winner, a doctor and medical doctor, and a professor of medicine and biotechnology. They had grown closer as Forsberg¡¯s health improved. ¡°I¡¯m really d I got to see such a marvelous genius before I died.¡± ¡°He was once my student, you know,¡± Kakeguni said with a shrug. ¡°What do you mean, ¡®your student¡¯? You only taught him for a year.¡± ¡°Still, a one-year student is still my student.¡± ¡°Well, aren¡¯t you so lucky to be on the bandwagon?¡± * rivate¡¯s prediction was still all over the news. Kang Hyuk-Soo was shaving at the time. ¡°Huh? Wait. Can you check the TV¡­?¡± he said. ¡°Don¡¯t talk and stay still, or you¡¯ll get cut. Try not to move your mouth while I¡¯m shaving you,¡± said Park Joo-Nam, who was trimming his beard. ¡°Why are you always so desperate to watch the TV in that little time you have before your taxi shift? You should be looking at my face,¡± she chided him. ¡°No, that¡¯s not..¡± ¡°What if I get Alzheimer¡¯s again? How much are you going to regret it then? Are you going to put me in the passenger seat and take me around to pick up customers again?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Sigh. When I think about that time¡­¡± ¡°You don¡¯t even remember.¡± ¡°I remember parts of it,¡± Park Joo-Nam said, holding the razor in front of Kang Hyuk-Soo¡¯s nose. ¡°Uh, hey, put the razor down before you talk.¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu is such an incredible person. Curing me of my dementia¡­¡± ¡°I think they¡¯re talking about Doctor Ryu now, so can you turn up the volume?¡± ¡°They¡¯re talking about Doctor Ryu?¡± Park Joo-Nam stopped shaving and turned to the TV, which was showing a report on rivate prediction. [Ryu Young-Joon predicted to be the most likely Nobel Prize recipient in four categories.] ¡°Oh my god! What is that?¡± She quickly ran toward the kitchen table and grabbed the remote. ¡°Oh, don¡¯t run! You¡¯ll fall!¡± Kang Hyuk-Soo nagged. ¡°Wait,¡± said Park Joo-Nam as she turned up the volume on the TV. * Tedros, the secretary-general of the WHO, was nning to expand the mosquito eradication project in Guangdong province to a global scale, along with health care services for people from thebor camps in Xinjiang Uyghur. ¡°It¡¯s strange,¡± Tedros said as he and his staff watched rivate¡¯s prediction on the tablet. ¡°Thanks to Doctor Ryu, medicine has advanced so much that we¡¯re doing things that we never dreamed of doing before, but somehow, I feel like I¡¯m a hundred times busier than I was before Doctor Ryu came along.¡± ¡°That¡¯s because huge projects keeping up thanks to Doctor Ryu,¡± a staff member replied. ¡°I¡¯m probably the busiest secretary-general of all time.¡± ¡°We feel the same way.¡± ¡°Shouldn¡¯t I get a Nobel Prize or something for all this work?¡± Tedros said yfully. ¡°Instead of that, why don¡¯t we establish a Ryu Young-Joon Award tomemorate achievements like mosquito eradication and AIDS eradication?¡± suggested another staff member. ¡°If it¡¯s an award for aplishing things like that, I don¡¯t think anyone besides Doctor Ryu would receive it,¡± Tedros said. ¡°Who knows? There are plenty of outstanding silver medalists out there.¡± ¡°Hm. The problem is that the gap between first ce and the rest is just too big.¡± * Song Ji-Hyun, the silver medalist behind Young-Joon, let out a sigh as soon as she saw him. ¡°Everyone is making such a big fuss,¡± she said. They were chatting over coffee at a small cafe in Yongsan-gu. Given the situation, they met quietly, both wearing sunsses and hats. ¡°Are they asking for interviews?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Yes!¡± she shouted. Song Ji-Hyun was nominated by rivate as the second most likely candidate to receive the Nobel Prize for Medicine. ¡°No matter how many times I tell people that I don¡¯t have a chance at winning it, how it belongs to you, and they just chose me because rivate has to pick fifteen nominees¡­¡± ¡°Don¡¯t say that. You deserve it too, Doctor Song,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°You¡¯re the first author on the brain death treatment paper, and you made Cellicure, an incredible liver cancer cure.¡± ¡°Still¡­¡± ¡°And you were also the first one toe up with dendritic cell bypass in Sweden.¡± ¡°No, you have to leave that out. It was a delusional idea, and it wouldn¡¯t have happened if it weren¡¯t for you, Doctor Ryu,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said, shaking her head. ¡°It¡¯s always those crazy ideas that drive science.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Hey!¡± Suddenly, someone intervened, leaning over the table. He was a tall and handsome young man, who looked like a model. They could feel the eyes of many people in the coffee shop turning towards them. Song Ji-Hyun and Young-Joon, who were startled, turned their heads in the opposite direction to avoid being seen. ¡°Hey, hey. Sit down, quietly,¡± said Song Ji-Hyun, gesturing to the man. ¡°Um, sorry, but who are you?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°It¡¯s me. We¡¯ve met before.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°It¡¯s my younger brother,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°What¡­¡± Young-Joon was momentarily speechless. He had met Song Jong-Ho, her younger brother, once more, about three months after his schizophrenia was cured. Even then, he thought he had changed a lot¡ªhe had lost a lot of weight, his skin was cleaner, and his eyes were brighter. But now, Song Jong-Ho looked like a celebrity. ¡°Come to think of it, you were famous for being handsome when you were in school, right?¡± ¡°That was a long time ago.¡± Song Jong-Ho scratched his head and sat down. ¡°Anyway, my sister said she was with you, so I stopped by on my way to the library to study because I wanted to see you. I¡¯ll leave soon.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry I didn¡¯t tell you beforehand. I didn¡¯t know he would actuallye,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said apologetically. ¡°It¡¯s alright. It¡¯s nice to see you after a long time.¡± Young-Joon shook hands with Song Jong-Ho. ¡°Doctor Ryu, you mentioned you have a younger sibling, right? I remember because you said they went to Jungyoon University. I¡¯m going to study hard and go there.¡± ¡°Yes. She¡¯s in her second year,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Doctor Ryu also has a niece,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°A niece?¡± ¡°She lives in the States, and Doctor Ryu took care of her when she came to Korea.¡± ¡°So she¡¯s Korean-American?¡± Song Jong-Ho asked. ¡°Yes, well¡­ Not exactly a niece, but a distant rtive¡­¡± ¡°She¡¯s really pretty,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°Really? I want to see her. Do you have any photos?¡± ¡°There¡¯s some on the fan club page,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°They¡¯re on the fan club page?¡± Young-Joon¡¯s eyes widened. He¡¯d never heard that before. ¡°Yes. You took your niece to the amusement park, right? Someone took a picture of you and posted it, asking if it was you. It almost became a huge issue, saying that she was your hidden daughter or something,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°... Why am I just hearing of this?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Um¡­¡± Song Ji-Hyun scratched her head. ¡°Because as soon as I saw that post, I immediatelymented that she was your niece¡­¡± she said. ¡°You¡¯re in the fan club, too?¡± Song Jong-Ho asked. Song Ji-Hyun avoided eye contact and just sipped her coffee. ¡°After that, the people at Lab Six told me that she was just a rtive. But it died down quickly because the fans knew that if they kept talking about it, reporters would pick it up and try to make a scandal out of it. It wasn¡¯t a big deal,¡± she said. ¡°I see.¡± Young-Joon nodded. ¡°But I think the post is still there.¡± Song Ji-Hyun scrolled through the old posts on her phone. ¡°A lot of them have been deleted, but there¡¯s one left. Do you want to see it, Doctor Ryu? The quality isn¡¯t great, so it wasn¡¯t newsworthy, but since you were secretly filmed¡­¡± Song Ji-Hyun pulled up the photo on her phone screen. Song Jong-Ho¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°I think I recognize this girl from somewhere¡­¡± ¡°What was her name again? Rosaline, right?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked Young-Joon. ¡°...¡± Young-Joon gulped. ¡°She¡¯s your niece?¡± Song Jong-Ho asked. Before treating Song Jong-Ho¡¯s schizophrenia, Rosaline went into his brain as a cell to find the cause of his schizophrenia. ¡°She¡¯s the girl I saw in my hallucinations,¡± Song Jong-Ho said. Song Jong-Ho, who had woken up from sleep after taking medication, saw Rosaline in the form of Ryu Sae-Yi and her status window for a few seconds in a state of dopamine overexpression. 1. in Buddhism, this refers to the mundane world other than nirvana. ? Chapter 265: Grand Slam (3)

Chapter 265: Grand m (3)

At the height of his schizophrenia, Song Jong-Ho had difficulty distinguishing between reality and delusion. This was the biggest obstacle to treating schizophrenia patients. Because they believed their delusions to be real, they refused to ept that they were hallucinating or hearing things. It¡¯s been said that admitting one had the illness was half the battle in treating schizophrenia. However, regrly taking dopamine antagonists helped control the symptoms to some extent and allowed the patient to differentiate between hallucinations and reality. And to Song Jong-Ho, who was cured, the fantasies of his delusional days have faded like old film camera photos. He could clearly recognize that they were not real. ¡°But when I saw her, it waspletely real. I saw some kind of holographic screen that said Rosaline...¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joon stared at Song Jong-Ho calmly, but inside, he was slightly panicking. ¡ªWhat are you going to do? ¡®What do you mean? Of course, I have to deny it.¡¯ Song Ji-Hyun was a trusted colleague, and he didn¡¯t think there would be any problems if she found out about Rosaline, but exining it would be too tricky. ¡°Especially this red hair...¡± Song Jong-Ho pointed to the photo. ¡°This was so impressive that I still remember it. She turned around to face me, snapped her fingers and disappeared...¡± ¡°But realistically, it doesn¡¯t make sense,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Perhaps you saw some unusual hallucinations as a side effect of the treatment and mistaking them for her?¡± ¡°...¡± Song Jong-Ho tilted his head in confusion. ¡°Have you seen her after that?¡± ¡°No... I haven¡¯t seen her since that.¡± ¡°Then, it¡¯s probably fine. Don¡¯t worry too much,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Okay.¡± Song Jong-Ho nodded. It was strange, but like Young-Joon said, it was realistically impossible. ¡°But why are you here with my sister, Doctor Ryu?¡± he asked. ¡°Um...¡± Song Ji-Hyun fiddled with her hair. ¡°I asked to meet for some advice,¡± she replied. ¡°What advice?¡± ¡°Operating the running microdust reduction device, Doctor Song¡¯spany, Cellijenner, became the most famouspany in environmental pollution issues right now, along with Laboratory Seven of A-GenBio,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°She wants to extend their microdust reduction device technology to develop a radiation removal technique.¡± ¡°Radiation?¡± Song Jong-Ho asked. ¡°Yeah. There was a massive radiation leak in Japan after the nuclear power nt in the Fukushima area exploded,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. This ident urred in 2011 in the Tohoku region of Fukushima, Japan. Thergest earthquake in Japanese history triggered a tsunami that reached ten meters in height, which took over the nuclear nt. The reason this disaster was man-made and not natural was that the emergency power system, which was supposed to shut down the reactors in preparation for the tsunami, was damaged by flooding. The nt lost power, and without electricity, the reactor cores could not be cooled, so the core temperature continued to rise. Eventually, three reactors suffered core meltdowns[1], and hydrogen gas was released from the fuel rods. ¡°C... Can you say it in Korean?¡± Song Jong-Ho said in pain as he listened to Song Ji-Hyun¡¯s exnation. ¡°Basically, the power was cut off at the nuclear power nt, so they couldn¡¯t run the cont. The internal temperature rose, and the fuel rods burned, releasing tons of hydrogen gas,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°And that hydrogen gas caused four buildings in the nuclear power nt to explode, sending radiation everywhere,¡± Young-Joon added. As they harmoniously chimed in with each other, Song Jong-Ho realized they were a really good match. ¡®They could probably spend all night talking about a paper.¡¯ ¡°Anyways,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°The radiation that leaked out after that nuclear explosion hasn¡¯t been removed yet. It¡¯s been diluted by flowing into the Pacific Ocean. But thend is still contaminated, and people who visit the Fukushima area are exposed to significant radiation.¡± ¡°But isn¡¯t that why people don¡¯t go there?¡± Song Jong-Ho asked. ¡°You won¡¯t get hurt if you don¡¯t go there,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°But you shouldn¡¯t leave something that can hurt you.¡± ¡°And it¡¯s a waste to leave thend so contaminated,¡± Song Ji-Hyun added. ¡°Wow... The two of you are true...¡± Song Jong-Ho stammered. ¡°I guess this is what it takes to be nominated for a Nobel Prize... You two are amazing.¡± ¡°It¡¯s our job to find paths where there are none,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°So do you have a way? Did you tell her about it?¡± ¡°I was the one learning, actually. Doctor Song already had an idea, and she was asking me what I thought of it.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± Song Jong-Ho asked. ¡°Have you heard of the Mir Space Station?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked. ¡°No.¡± ¡°It was a project carried out by Russia during the Cold War when they were in the race to the Moon. It was a huge, huge station that was made byunching a core module in 1986, and it waspleted by 1996 with a total of sevenunched modules,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°The U.S. space shuttles docked there, and they carried out missions together, signaling the end of the Cold War in space development. Many countries started working together to advance science, and it created a vision of unity and cooperation in space exploration... It was a famous space station in many ways, and it was widely used by civilians too.¡± The Mir Space Station, however, re-entered the atmosphere in March of 2001 and was permanently dmissioned. That¡¯s when an interesting conspiracy theory was born: the reason the Mir was dmissioned was that an incredibly toxic strain of bacteria had developed inside the spacecraft after prolonged exposure to cosmic radiation. To cover it up, the Russians allegedly disabled the Mir and buried it in the South Pacific. It was a crazy conspiracy theory, but there was always a kernel of truth to any conspiracy theory. Microbes did indeed grow inside the Mir. Crews visiting the Mir in 2000 found that the ss windows and enamel tes were covered in mold. There were a few mentions among scientists of the possibility that the fungi had mutated after being hit with cosmic radiation. But at some point, it became a conspiracy theory in the civilian world that the Mir was infested with evil bacteria capable of mass destruction. ¡°But that conspiracy theory isn¡¯t true?¡± Song Jong-Ho said. ¡°Of course not. It¡¯s not easy for bacteria like that to ur naturally. But that¡¯s when microbiologists started to pay a lot of attention to space microbes,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°Microorganisms on space stations are one of the most important issues. There are really unique microorganisms on Earth that live by chewing on stic, ss, or metal. They can attach themselves to the outer wall of the spacecraft, survive and thrive for years, and even reproduce in the vacuum of space at an altitude of four hundred thirty kilometers, all while being directly exposed to sr radiation,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Can you imagine the astronomical cost ofponent damage that those microorganisms might cause?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°That¡¯s why, in recent years, the space development industry has taken microbial sterilization as a very important task and is trying to perfect their systems, although nothing has been formalized yet,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I see,¡± Song Jong-Ho replied. ¡°And Doctor Song¡¯s idea was that if we examine the microorganisms living in the outlet where fuel waste is expelled from the outer wall of the International Space Station (ISS), they might provide the solution to getting rid of radioactive materials.¡± ¡°Aha.¡± Understanding now, Song Jong-Ho nodded. Then, Song Ji-Hyun intervened. ¡°And since it¡¯s so hard to obtain something like that, I wanted to discuss it with Doctor Ryu before we proceed...¡± ¡°I think it¡¯s possible,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I have another trip to the United Statesing up soon, so I¡¯ll check it out then.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°If you¡¯re free, Doctor Song, you shoulde with me. Since you¡¯re the one who¡¯s nning this project, it would be better for you to talk to NASA if we have a meeting.¡± Song Ji-Hyun nodded. ¡°I¡¯ll talk to mypany.¡± * ¡°You¡¯re offering me the position of CEO?¡± Kim Young-Hoon said, baffled. ¡°As you know, I¡¯m often away from thepany, traveling back and forth from one country to another. I¡¯m tired of dealing with mountains of paperwork every time Ie back...¡± ¡°But you¡¯re back now, right?¡± Kim Young-Hoon asked. ¡°I¡¯m going to the United States again next week or so.¡± ¡°... What are you going for this time?¡± ¡°I said before that we caught that famous terrorist in the Middle East, right? It¡¯s about that,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°And I¡¯m already too busy with just research... You know that. I¡¯ll be the CTO of thepany. I¡¯ll be the managing director and attend board meetings when I can, but you¡¯ll be in charge of the overall management tasks.¡± ¡°This is a promotion, but why am I not happy about it?¡± ¡°You had a tough time when I was in China and the Middle East, right?¡± ¡°It was crazy,¡± Kim Young-Hoon chuckled. ¡°But thanks to you, I was much morefortable. Before, people often called me about business matters even when I was overseas, but this time, there were fewer calls.¡± ¡°I tried to solve everything within my power because I knew you were busy.¡± ¡°And I really appreciated it. Please continue to do so in the future. I will provide you with the treatment andpensation befitting a CEO, so please bear with it a little longer.¡± ¡°Hm.¡± Kim Young-Hoon crossed his arms. ¡°Alright. With a business of this size and this many innovations, your hands will be full running the show. Leave it to me to support you behind the scenes.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°When are you leaving?¡± Kim Young-Hoon asked. ¡°Next Monday,¡± Young-Joon said. * Doctor Ref, or Isaiah Franklin, was the terrorist who attacked the GSC, created the anthrax weapon, the lentivirus that caused encephalomyelitis in organ transnts, and the highly infectious polyomavirus, and helped found the Philistines by stealing a botulinum strain from South Korea. After being captured in Saudi Arabia, she wasbeled as a level-one security risk and kept in an investigation room in the basement of the CIA headquarters in Virginia. The CIA investigators were having a lot of trouble for two reasons. One was that Isaiah Franklin was unwilling to talk about the use of the polyomavirus or the botulinum toxin. As this could easily lead to a terrorist attack with mass casualties, it was imperative that they quickly identified the purpose and the co-conspirators to defend against it. The second reason was that Isaiah Franklin didn¡¯t have long to live. They hadn¡¯t gotten any information from this wanted terrorist, who they barely managed to capture, and she was about to die. ¡°But you¡¯re not going to be able to die so easily,¡± said Robert, who was interrogating Doctor Ref. ¡°Criminals these days aren¡¯t allowed to die when they want.¡± ¡°You even revive the brain-dead ones,¡± Doctor Ref said. ¡°You¡¯re aware.¡± ¡°I know more about Ryu Young-Joon than anyone in the world.¡± She leaned back in her chair with a troubled expression. 1. The temperature inside the pressure vessel containing the reactor rising and melting the nuclear fuel rods at the core ? Chapter 266: Grand Slam (4)

Chapter 266: Grand m (4)

¡°Isaiah Franklin, I have a question unrted to the virus. Let me ask you something that I personally don¡¯t understand,¡± Robert asked. ¡°What?¡± Doctor Ref looked at Robert with disdain. ¡°We obtained your personal information during a raid on one of the secret hideouts of the Popr Front for the Liberation of Palestine in the Middle East. Everyone had already fled, and the ce was fairly tidied up,¡± Robert said. ¡°And Agent Whittaker found a lot of data about your identity here. That¡¯s where the name Isaiah Franklin also came up. It seemed like you had scattered it around on purpose.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Why didn¡¯t you destroy it? Even if you lived in the Middle East under the codename Doctor Ref, revealing your true identity would make you easier to track.¡± ¡°Because I wanted to be found,¡± said Doctor Ref. ¡°That¡¯s what I don¡¯t understand. Why did you do that? Did you hope someone would stop you?¡± Doctor Ref burst intoughter. ¡°You¡¯ve been watching too many cartoons. Do you think I¡¯m some kind of psychopath who can¡¯t stopmitting acts of terror and needs someone to stop me? I¡¯m not crazy.¡± ¡°Then?¡± ¡°... Based on the name Isaiah Franklin and the identity I left behind, how much did you find out about me?¡± ¡°We found your mother, Elsie Franklin, but we didn¡¯t get anything particrly helpful. All she said was that she lost you in the Middle East.¡± ¡°Of course, she did. Because her life would be at risk if she said anything.¡± ¡°Were you nning on also killing your mother if she told anyone about you?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not killing anyone. What are you talking about?¡± Doctor Ref snapped. ¡°I¡¯m not a crazy killer, though I do have an awkward rtionship with my mother now.¡± ¡°We¡¯ve been investigating your surroundings, but we haven''t been able to get a lot of information. Almost everything is shrouded in secrecy, there is no record of you at the hospital where you were supposedly born, and no record of you attending daycare in the United States,¡± said Robert. ¡°Where did you live right after you were born in the U.S.?¡± ¡°I¡¯m telling you now, don¡¯t ask my mother because she won¡¯t tell you, and I¡¯m not going to tell you either. I don¡¯t trust you. Get me Ryu Young-Joon,¡± Doctor Ref said. ¡°I¡¯m sick, right? And he¡¯s a saint that would heal the Devil if he was sick.¡± * After arriving in the United States, Young-Joon was thinking of going to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, or NASA, headquarters in Washington, D.C. with Song Ji-Hyun. They wanted to get a sample of the microorganisms on the outer wall of the space station. ¡°I¡¯m just providing a way for you to obtain the sample, and then it¡¯s up to you and Cellijenner to do everything else, from identifying the microorganisms to isting them and figuring out the mechanism of radioactive material removal,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Of course. I can¡¯t ask you for any more favors,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°Where do your rtives live?¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°You know, the family of your niece I saw at the hospital before.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± Young-Joon nodded. ¡°Um... Where was it...¡± As Young-Joon stood there, unable to answer, they heard a voice call out from the lobby of the hotel they had checked into. ¡°Doctor Ryu.¡± It was a familiar face that Young-Joon was d to see. ¡°It¡¯s been a while.¡± Young-Joon shook hands with James Holdren, the director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, or the OSTP. ¡°We¡¯ve never met, but I think I recognize you,¡± James said, ncing at Song Ji-Hyun. ¡°Hello.¡± The OSTP was effectively the agency that oversaw the United States¡¯ science and technology policies, and it was responsible for advising the president on these matters. And its director, James Holdren, had previously provided substantial funding to support the establishment of A-GenBio¡¯s cancer research institute. ¡°Is it alright for you toe see us? I know you¡¯re busy, and we could have visited you instead,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°The fourth floor of the Eisenhower Building is a bit hectic these days. I wanted to get some fresh air,¡± James replied with a smile. ¡°I heard that you want to request some bacteria from NASA. That¡¯s something I can do for you easily.¡± ¡°Thank you. That would make things much simpler,¡± Young-Joon responded. ¡°More than that, I need to have a meeting with you. There¡¯s something I need to discuss.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll step out for a moment so you can talk privately,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°Thank you,¡± replied James, nodding to her before leading Young-Joon to a small meeting room. ¡°I¡¯m stepping down as director soon,¡± James said as he sat down on the sofa. ¡°You¡¯re stepping down?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Is something going on?¡± ¡°It¡¯s nothing political. It¡¯s just that I¡¯m getting older and the position has be a bit physically demanding. I¡¯d like to retire soon.¡± ¡°I see... And who will be your sessor?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a scientist named Alphonse Lofair. Have you heard of him?¡± ¡°No,¡± Young-Joon replied, shaking his head. ¡°He¡¯s the head of the Kennedy Space Center at NASA right now. He was also the negotiator who reached the agreement to share the Mir Space Station when the Soviet Union dissolved,¡± James said. ¡°He became a symbol of peace in science as the United States and Russia, which had been in a tremendous race to develop space, reconciled.¡± ¡°He¡¯s a good man.¡± James just smiled without saying anything. It felt strange for some reason. ¡°You might run into him if you¡¯re trying to get microorganisms from the outer wall of the space station,¡± he said. ¡°Anyway, President Campbell is thinking of offering him the director position when I leave.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°You should look into the Lofair family.¡± ¡°Their family?¡± ¡°Alphonse Lofair is backed by the Lofair family. They are what you could call the true aristocracy of America,¡± James said. ¡°...¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu, I consider it a great aplishment and fortune that thest thing I would be doing before leaving is helping to establish andmark research facility called the A-GenBio Cancer Laboratory.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°And we put a lot of medical resources of the United States into that cancerb, and it has produced all kinds of new anti-cancer drugs based on dendritic cell bypass,¡± James said. ¡°We are good business partners and friends, right?¡± ¡°Of course,¡± Young-Joon said, nodding his head. ¡°That¡¯s why I¡¯m telling you this, Doctor Ryu. Go back to Korea.¡± ¡°Pardon me?¡± ¡°I will get you the microorganisms from the outer wall, but don¡¯t be in the United States right now. You¡¯re thinking of going to see Doctor Ref, right? Don¡¯t do that either.¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joon thought for a moment. ¡ªHe¡¯s saying this for your own good. Rosaline sent him a message. ¡ªBut I don¡¯t know why he¡¯s doing this. ¡°How much do you know about Doctor Ref, Doctor Ryu? Do you know about her childhood in America as Isaiah Franklin?¡± ¡°Yes, I do.¡± ¡°...¡± James wiped his forehead. ¡°You know dangerous information. How much of the details do you know? You need to tell me, because depending on the extent of that information, I may be able to help...¡± ¡°I know that Doctor Ref is a gically engineered human. She was born as the daughter of Elsie Franklin in a genomicsb at Groom Lake Air Force Base in the United States during the Cold War.¡± ¡°...¡± James looked a little surprised. ¡°Uh... You know too much.¡± He sighed. ¡°That is a huge vulnerability of the United States,¡± James said. ¡°And the people that drove the research when Doctor Ref was born still hold important positions in America. Don¡¯t conflict with those people. I¡¯m saying this for your sake, Doctor Ryu.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯te here to conflict with them. All I¡¯m here to do is treat Doctor Ref. I¡¯m sure the U.S. government will take care of the rest, whether it¡¯s interrogation or whatever.¡± ¡°... I hate to say it, but...¡± James hesitated like he was in a difficult situation. ¡°Just...¡± he said. ¡°Just let her die.¡± ¡°What?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Just let her die. That¡¯s what the higher-ups in America want.¡± ¡°Mr. Director...¡± ¡°She¡¯s a terrorist who deserves to die, isn¡¯t she? Before she dies, American intelligence will get the information they need by any means necessary. I¡¯m telling you not to go out of your way to venture into this dangerous spot.¡± ¡°Is the Lofair family, those true aristocrats or something, involved in Doctor Ref¡¯s birth? Did they gically engineer her and bring her into existence?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°So since Doctor Ref¡¯s very existence is a disgrace to the United States, they want her dead because she¡¯s an obstacle to the new director? Or is there something more that I don¡¯t know?¡± ¡°... That¡¯s hard to answer,¡± James said with a bitter smile. ¡°Doctor Ryu, I¡¯ve given you my best advice as a friend. From now on, I¡¯m going to go back to being a director at the White House and not divulge ssified information.¡± He rose slowly from his seat. ¡°Please choose wisely and return home safely, Doctor Ryu.¡± * ¡°We can¡¯t treat her?¡± Robert was a little surprised at the absurd order. ¡°The order came straight from the Director.¡± Whittaker crossed his arms and shook his legs nervously. ¡°Wait, didn¡¯t Doctor Ryu tell us that this was a curable disease? He said he would create a cure,¡± Robert said. ¡°Whittaker, we haven¡¯t gotten any information from Isaiah Franklin yet, and she doesn¡¯t have long to live. Doctor Ryu probably already came here with the treatment, and you¡¯re telling me we can¡¯t treat her?¡± ¡°That¡¯s what the order says,¡± Whittaker replied. ¡°That¡¯s what I don¡¯t understand. What if she dies before we get anything useful out of her?¡± ¡°They want us to let her die.¡± ¡°Sigh... Do the higher-ups ever think? If they realized how much trouble we went through to get her, they couldn¡¯t say that.¡± ¡°Of course, they¡¯re not telling us to just sacrifice her. They told us to get as much information as we can on what she was doing in the Middle East and why she created the polyomavirus before she dies.¡± ¡°How can we do that if she won¡¯t say anything? We need more time...¡± ¡°They said we¡¯re allowed to use whatever means allowed by the Enhanced Interrogation program to get information out of her until she dies.¡± ¡°You mean torture?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°They¡¯re crazy,¡± Robert said. ¡°Absolutely insane. Torture is not an effective way to gain information. And it¡¯spletely illegal...¡± ¡°Do you think we¡¯re interrogating some petty thief on the street? That woman is a terrorist! She almost killed all the scientists in the GSC, and she led the Palestine Liberation Army,¡± Whittaker shouted. ¡°And now, she¡¯s keeping her mouth shut about all the information she knows! Philistines has been shut down, and the Egyptian government is investigating, but what if the Palestinian rebels get ahold of what they were doing?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°How do we know what they¡¯re going to do with the polyomavirus or the botulinum toxin? We¡¯re in a race against the clock, and you think we¡¯re going to be able to get the information we need by gently urging her?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°That woman is a terrorist! And human rights are a luxury for terrorists! This is the best option!¡± Whittaker shouted. ¡°I also find the part about not treating her odd, but I agree with the interrogation method itself. We¡¯re in a hurry.¡± ¡°She said she¡¯ll speak to Doctor Ryu,¡± Robert said. ¡°Sigh... Robert,¡± Whittaker said incredulously. ¡°I know about the whole Nobel Prize grand m thing. He¡¯s an incredible person, but he¡¯s an outsider. He¡¯s worked with us a lot, but he¡¯s not someone to include in interrogating a terrorist like Isaiah Franklin. He¡¯s a foreigner and a civilian. Get a grip.¡± ¡°But...¡± ¡°Let¡¯s leave it at that. If you can¡¯t do it, I¡¯ll interrogate her,¡± Whittaker said. ¡°We work for the government, for the safety of the people of this country.¡± Chapter 267: Grand Slam (5) ¡ªI heard you asked the secretary¡¯s office to look into the Lofair family. Young-Joon was on the phone with Park Joo-Hyuk. It was an international callte at night. ¡°Yeah,¡± replied Young-Joon, who was lying in bed just before falling asleep. ¡ªWhy do you sound so dejected? ¡°It¡¯s nothing.¡± It was because Young-Joon wasn¡¯t able to meet Doctor Ref. ¡ªI can tell something¡¯s wrong. ¡°The CIA refused the interrogation,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡ªThe interrogation?¡°Meeting Doctor Ref. They told me not to worry about it because they have their own doctor for prisoners.¡± ¡ªThen just forget about it. ¡°...¡± Doctor Ref was suffering from myelodysstic syndrome. Not only were the blood cells produced by the bone marrow abnormal in shape, but the production efficiency was also low, resulting in pancytopenia, a condition in which the number of red blood cells, white blood cells, and telets was lower than normal. The disease itself was quite challenging, with a bone marrow transnt being the only treatment currently avable. Doctor Ref was taking a drug called Decitabine. It was one of the drugs that suppressed abnormal blood cell production. It couldn¡¯t cure the disease; it just managed the symptoms. But now, she was reaching a limit. A-GenBio¡¯s stem cell therapy could be a potential way for her to be cured, even if there wasn¡¯t a suitable bone marrow donor. But Doctor Ref hadn¡¯t used this method yet, even though she was more than capable of replicating Young-Joon¡¯s technique on her own. ¡®Because it doesn¡¯t work.¡¯ Doctor Ref¡¯s myelodysstic syndrome had a different mechanism than most patients. She was born through gic engineering, and while she was around Young-Joon¡¯s age from when she was born, her cellr biological age was equivalent to that of her mother, Elsie. This disparity would have created a fatal error in the pathogenesis. There was too much panic in Saudi Arabia for Young-Joon to take a closer look at her with Synchronization Mode. To seed in curing her, he would need to observe her in Synchronization Mode, but he couldn¡¯t meet her. ¡°The U.S. government is just going to kill her,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°The doctors can¡¯t cure her on their own with current medicine. They¡¯ll need other new technologies, but canceling my scheduled meeting means they don¡¯t want her to recover at all.¡± ¡ªAnd you think that¡¯s the Lofair family¡¯s doing? ¡°I¡¯m just suspicious, that¡¯s all. I don¡¯t know what happened. But how do you know what the secretary¡¯s office is doing?¡± ¡ªThey didn¡¯t tell me, but they consulted me on a couple ofwsuits that the family was involved in. I just knew that it was about you. Ryu Young-Joon is going to fight them. ¡°I don¡¯t know yet.¡± ¡ªDon¡¯t mess with Lofair. Park Joo-Hyuk gave Young-Joon a warning. ¡°Don¡¯t mess with them?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°They¡¯re too big of an enemy. They¡¯re just a family, but they have too much influence in American politics and business. ¡°I¡¯ve fought with the president of China, too.¡± ¡ªThat¡¯s the problem, stupid! You¡¯re the one who brought the president down. Park Joo-Hyuk seemed worried. ¡ªNow think of how tense and irritable other powerful figures will get when they get in a war of nerves with you. You¡¯re the one who changed the Chinese regime, and you show your ws at me? Only ethics radicals like you would want to deal with punishment based on facts and fairness; most of them will just be thinking about killing you. ¡°...¡± ¡ªI¡¯ll tell you what I know about the Lofair family. They¡¯re a family of financiers with roots in the Bank of Amsterdam. Park Joo-Hyuk began exining. The descendants of Meyer Lofair, who ran the Bank of Amsterdam, the first bank established by the government, exported Dutch-style finance to Ennd with King William III. This gave the British government so much credibility that it was able to borrow a lot of money at very low interest rates. That money provided the nation with the strength to build and maintainrge warships. And this power was what helped Britain win the war against Napoleon. It goes without saying that the Lofair family amassed enormous wealth and honor in the process. The Lofair family funded the East India Company and created numerous banks in Austria, Frankfurt, Sweden, and many other ces. They supported the American Revolution and the building of the Panama Canal, and they were able to expand into the United States. During World War I and World War II, the family shifted its base to the United States, supporting the businesses of oil magnate Rockefeller, steel magnate Carnegie, and Dupont, the founder of the chemicalpany DuPont. ¡°Who are these people? There¡¯s nothing they haven¡¯t touched,¡± Young-Joon asked, baffled. ¡ªSimr to you, right? ¡°...¡± ¡ªThey are the old guard among the privileged ss. They don¡¯t just have a lot of money; they are so powerful that it¡¯s impossible for anyone to catch up to them in terms of humanworks. They can probably sway the public opinion enough to get rid of the president. They¡¯re big enough to be called royalty in America, where there is no king. Park Joo-Hyuk went on. ¡ªRecently, a lot of new billionaires like Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg have emerged, and the IT industry and biology have advanced rapidly, right? But they are still no match. These people are all individuals, but Lofair is a group of financiers who control a lot of big businesses. ¡°Have they ever gotten into biology?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡ªOf course, they have. I think the financial firm that was thergest shareholder in Schumatix was owned by Lofair. ¡°... Then can we find out if they have any connection to the embryologyb at Groom Lake Air Force Base?¡± ¡ªHow should I know? ¡°I guess.¡± ¡ªBut why are you asking about that? ¡°Doctor Ref was born there experimentally, and the people who were involved in directing that research are now in high positions in the United States. My hunch tells me that some of them are members of the Lofair family, and that¡¯s why they want to kill her off and get rid of her.¡± ¡ªThen just let her die! There¡¯s no need to fight those monsters to save a terrorist. ¡°Well¡­ That¡¯s true, but¡­¡± ¡ªI know you¡¯ve been cracking down on hical behaviors and solving problems in Kamathipura in India, Xinjiang in China, and now conflict zones in the Middle East, but this is different. Don¡¯t try to get a grand m in this, too. Please. Knock knock! Someone knocked on Young-Joon¡¯s hotel room. ¡°Wait. I¡¯ll call you back.¡± Young-Joon hung up the phone and opened the door. A man wearing a mask, sunsses, and a hat was standing at the door. It was Robert, the CIA agent. He¡¯s been working with Young-Joon since Schumatix, and has worked with him the longest. Robert greeted Young-Joon and quickly walked into his room. ¡°There¡¯s something I need to apologize about and something I need to tell you about.¡± ¡°Are you also going to tell me to stop thinking about Doctor Ref and go back home?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°...¡± Robert sighed and sat on the sofa. ¡°No. I¡¯m here to ask for your help.¡± ¡°My help?¡± ¡°Isaiah Franklin needs medical attention now,¡± Robert said. ¡°Her doctor has given her a terminal prognosis. The doctor said she won¡¯t survive another month.¡± ¡°I think so as well. She seemed to be a tough case to treat with current medicine, which is why I was hoping to get a sample of the patient so I could customize a treatment strategy with stem cell therapy. I came all this way and didn¡¯t get to see her.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but there was nothing I could do about it. Doctor Ryu, I think she might die sooner than we expect.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Because our interrogation methods are a bit extreme.¡± ¡°Are you saying that you¡¯re torturing her?¡± ¡°I can¡¯t tell you myself, but at this rate, she¡¯s going to die before we get any information out of her; she¡¯s keeping her mouth shut. In my experience. harsh interrogation doesn¡¯t yield information in cases like this.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure everyone else knows that too, so why are they choosing to do that?¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I don¡¯t understand either.¡± ¡°Is it that you don¡¯t know? Or is it that you can¡¯t tell me?¡± ¡°...¡± Robert didn¡¯t answer. ¡°You¡¯re making all sorts of predictions, aren¡¯t you? Like maybe there are people who would like Isaiah Franklin to die.¡± ¡°Nothing is certain.¡± ¡°... How can I help?¡± ¡°Give me the treatment. We need to buy some time first; if we can extend Isaiah Franklin¡¯s life, it will give us another opportunity,¡± Robert said. ¡°Then, I¡¯ll need at least a sample of her blood.¡± ¡°I knew you would say that, so I brought one.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes. And when I mentioned this to Isaiah Franklin while drawing her blood, she said that even a genius would find it easier to create a treatment if they had a sample of the medication she was taking. So, I also brought a small amount of the medication she was taking.¡± Young-Joon flinched. ¡°Do you have an analysis of the ingredients in that medication?¡± Young-Joon didn¡¯t actually need that. But he also didn¡¯t need the medication the patient was originally taking to create a treatment. And Doctor Ref knew this, meaning that this medication was some kind of signal she was sending him. Even if Robert was going against orders to try to prolong Isaiah Franklin¡¯s life, it was for the purpose of interrogation and information. Of course, he wouldn¡¯t act as the carrier pigeon, delivering information secretly passed from Doctor Ref to Young-Joon without knowing the content. As such, this drug was a substance that the CIA had deemed safe for release. ¡°Of course, it was analyzed. Any drug thates in or goes out of our headquarters is analyzed,¡± Robert said. ¡°This drug was made by Isaiah Franklin herself, and it¡¯s called Decitabine. This is the data sheet that our analytical team created.¡± Robert handed Young-Joon a document. While reading it, Young-Joon realized something interesting. ¡°It¡¯s not very pure, is it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a drug that she made by herself in a messyb. Our team said that¡¯s why it¡¯s mixed with impurities, but they don¡¯t know exactly what they are. There are so many different kinds of impurities in trace amounts that they can¡¯t analyze them individually.¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joonughed inside. ¡®Isaiah Franklin¡­ What an amazing woman.¡¯ ¡°Thank you.¡± After Robert left, Young-Joon refrigerated the blood sample and began to look at Isaiah Franklin¡¯s medication in Synchronization Mode. There was DNA in it¡ªa tiny amount of DNA that was so diluted that it would not be observed experimentally if it was mixed in with other impurities. It was such a small amount that the analysis team probably didn¡¯t even know it was there, and there were probably so many other impurities that they didn¡¯t care. And usually, it was normal for it not to matter, since it was hard to urately analyze a DNA sequence that was less than ten bases long. But Rosaline could do it. As the most stable molecr structure in the natural world, DNA not only contained the information of life, it could also contain the alphabet if made artificially. DNA wasposed of four molecules called adenine (A), guanine (G), cytosine (C), and thymine (T), strung together like a pearl ne. They could be used to encrypt a sentence by putting them together in groups of three and assigning them an alphabet. For example, ACT represented the letter A, CAT represented the letter B, TCA represented the letter C, TAC represented the letter D, and so on. There have been many attempts to use DNA as an information storage device since the mid-twentieth century. Young-Joon read the first line of the enormous DNA molecule inside one of Doctor Ref¡¯s medication capsules. TACCTAACTCACAGCTACCACACGCACGACGAT [DearDrRyu] It was a message containing the life story of Isaiah Franklin, who was facing death, along with a significant usation. Chapter 268: Grand Slam (6)

Chapter 268: Grand m (6)

Groom Lake Air Force Base was owned by the United States but located in Nicaragua, Central America. As the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union continued, Nicaragua¡¯s Somoza government and themunist Sandinista rebels were in constant conflict. This air base that was established in this vtile country had a surprising secret: it was home to a highly advanced genomics research facility. And in the summer of 1986, the baby cried her first cry in the embryologyboratory. Alphonse Lofair, theb director, realized that thest eighteen years of incredible hardship were finally over. His brothers and father thought he was pathetic, as he was the geek who had chosen biology over the family business of finance, but that ended today. ¡°How is the baby?¡± Alphonse asked Doctor Carlos, who came into his office from the embryologyb for a debriefing. ¡°She seems healthy.¡± ¡°What did Doctor Elsie name it?¡± ¡°Isaiah.¡± ¡°Haha!¡± Alphonse burst intoughter. ¡°That¡¯s very Jewish of her,¡± he said. ¡°But she¡¯s not wrong. That baby is a prophet who will save humanity, which has grown weary of the Cold War.¡± The first gically engineered human¡ªa miracle child who was born normally, even with maniptions to hundreds and thousands of genes linked to intelligence. ¡°Everyoneughed at me, but I seeded. That child is destined to be a leader who will heal the world and end the Cold War. She could be an artist, a scientist, anything, but I¡¯m going to raise it to be the new human race and a revolutionary,¡± Alphonse said. ¡°Lead the way. I must see the baby.¡± He then proceeded to the maternity ward within the research facility. Surprisingly, the maternity ward in the institute was fully equipped with everything a normal hospital had: abor and delivery room, an operating room, rocking chairs, a postpartum unit, a prenatal examination room with imaging diagnostics including ultrasound and karyotyping, a nursing room, and an infant room. The hospitalization unit for mothers could amodate one hundred twenty patients at once, with numerous doctors and nurses bustling around. What did having such arge maternity ward mean? Eighteen years was an incredibly long time, but it still wasn¡¯t long enough for a gically engineered baby to be born. This meant that Doctor Ref was not the first gically engineered baby¡ªshe was just the first sess. There were many failures as well. ¡°I¡¯m a little nervous.¡± Alphonse walked toward the incubator, then stopped, wincing. ¡°Doctor Benjamin,¡± he said, pointing to the incubators on one side. ¡°I don¡¯t mean to disrespect life, but is it really necessary to put the future of our country beside the negative data that could die at any moment?¡± ¡°Sorry.¡± Doctor Benjamin quickly came to the incubator and scooped three newborn babies into his arms. One of them was barely breathing, one had a congenital malformation of the liver and stomach, and one was too premature. They were most likely going to die anyway. ¡°A sessful sample looks way more lively to begin with.¡± Alphonse caressed Isaiah Franklin¡¯s cheek. ¡°Sir!¡± Someone ran out, knocking his hand away and stepping in front of him. ¡°She¡¯s my baby. You can¡¯t touch her without my permission,¡± Elsie said, looking extremely exhausted from childbirth. ¡°Hm. Perhaps you need to think about the clinical consent form again, Doctor Elsie. As you know, this baby...¡± Alphonse said, pointing at the baby. ¡°Is the property of theb.¡± ¡°I know. But she¡¯s my daughter above anything else.¡± ¡°No. She is our property above being your daughter,¡± Alphonse pointed out. ¡°And daughter? I can¡¯t believe you¡¯d use such an unscientific term. This baby, who has three thousand manipted genes and was fertilized with your nucleus and sperm from some man you don¡¯t know, is your daughter?¡± Alphonse scoffed. ¡°Isn¡¯t it already biologically too different from the traditional definition of daughter?¡± ¡°She¡¯s still my daughter who I gave birth to.¡± ¡°Haha. You¡¯re still wrong, even with your emotional appeal. If you were going to im motherhood over this baby, you wouldn¡¯t have signed the consent form and given birth to it in a ce like this,¡± Alphonse said. ¡°Look at the women who give birth in our facility. They¡¯re ck, homeless, women who have been kicked out of their homes, or drug addicts.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Am I wrong? Aren¡¯t they selling their fertility to our clinical trials because they are broke and have nowhere else to go? You¡¯re aware that our ¡®legitimate business¡¯ here might have some ethical issues, right?¡± Alphonse said. ¡°But the reason this facility is allowed is because it¡¯s the American imperative to advance humanity.¡± There was a sense of desperation in Alphonse¡¯s voice. ¡°Elsie, the Soviets have invaded Afghanistan, and we¡¯ve put missileunchers in West Germany that can hit Moscow. It was only three years ago that a ne with our congressman was shot down in the western Soviet Union, killing over two hundred Americans. ¡°As ofst month, the Soviets have more than forty thousand nuclear weapons. And in the space race, theyunched the first module of a crazy space station called Mir. I¡¯m guessing this Cold War isn¡¯t going to end nicely.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°That¡¯s why everyone here is working with blood on our hands with a guilty conscience. You gave birth to this genius baby not to make a living, but for your own vain ambitions, and you dare to im ownership of it in my presence, using motherhood as a weapon?¡± Alphonse gave Elsie a bitter sneer. ¡°Stop being so shameless. From now on, this baby is the property of the genomicsboratory at Groom Lake Air Force Base. just like a patent on a work-invented idea belongs to thepany, this achievement of yours belongs to me,¡± he said. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. It¡¯s not like I¡¯m going to hurt it. I¡¯m going to raise it as best as I can. My family is known for raising the elite.¡± * ¡°Why did you fight with Spade?¡± asked Doctor Diana, a scientist in her mid-twenties. ¡°Because that kid is an idiot,¡± Isaiah replied. ¡°But Spade can solve calculus at thirty-six months old...?¡± ¡°I did that, too. You should be able to do that if you have these genes,¡± Isaiah Franklin said bluntly. ¡°Can you tell me why you fought?¡± ¡°Spade likes Doctor Alphonse, and he thinks Alphonse is his dad. It was frustrating, so I told him that he¡¯s going to kill us all soon. Then, he started screaming at me and trying to fight me. That little brat,¡± Isaiah said. ¡°You told him that Doctor Alphonse was going to kill all of you?¡± ¡°Yes. He¡¯s going to kill me and my siblings who were born in the embryologyb after 1986¡ªhe¡¯s going to kill Spade, and Clover and Redheart that you always kiss because they¡¯re so cute.¡± Isaiah Franklin, who was forty-nine months old, often baffled her teachers, but this time was different. ¡°W-What do you mean?¡± Isaiah burst outughing as Diana stuttered. ¡°Diana, you¡¯re not a good liar. You also heard about disposing of me, right?¡± Diana scratched her head. ¡°I really don¡¯t know what you''re talking about, really. Can you tell me why you thought that?¡± ¡°The Soviet Union will destroy itself,¡± Isaiah said. ¡°The United States and the Soviet Union were in the Cold War until 1986, when I was born. Even when Heagan and Gorbachev met to talk about reducing arms, they couldn¡¯t reach an agreement, so Alphonse probably believed that things were still going to be bad when I was born, but look.¡± Isaiah spread some newspapers in front of Diana. ¡°They seeded in a disarmament agreement in 1987, and the Soviet Union is pulling out of Afghanistan. And the decisive reason...¡± Isaiah said. ¡°Is the Chernobyl ident. This ident is unprecedented. It happened around the time I was born, right? The United States is busy exaggerating the damage while the Soviet Union is busy concealing it. But in my opinion, the scale of the ident¡¯s damage is even greater. ¡°And with the enormous amounts of money the Soviet Union invested in military expansion and the failure of the nned economy, they don¡¯t have the financial resources to handle it. They¡¯ve probably exhausted their budget.¡± ¡°R-Really?¡± Diana replied. ¡°The Soviet Union will fall. It¡¯s over, and you won¡¯t need me anymore. The biggest proof of this is that Alphonse is taking interest in NASA, using astrobiology as an excuse. He¡¯s looking for a new path because he knows this ce is a dud now,¡± Isaiah said. ¡°Once the panic passes and the madness wears off, you get embarrassed that you¡¯ve pissed yourself. Now, the U.S. government is going to be embarrassed of my existence and will try to cover it up.¡± ¡°What? No, they won¡¯t do that,¡± Diana said. ¡°Well, times have changed, and research ethics are pretty hot right now. But look, there¡¯s been one thousand two hundred ¡®failures¡¯ that have died in thisb in thest eighteen years, and over two hundred eighty women with no friends or family have died from the side effects,¡± Isaiah said. ¡°Where did you...¡± ¡°I¡¯ve been in thisb longer than you, Diana. I overheard it,¡± Isaiah said. ¡°And all the female scientists here were forced to be egg donors, remember? They were coerced into signing a consent form, injected with hormones, and then had their eggs taken out for the fertilization experiment. Didn¡¯t you do it, too?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Alphonse will do everything he can to destroy the evidence and keep people quiet, but he won¡¯t let me and the other kids live because our very existence is evidence.¡± * On thest day of December 1991, the Soviet Union was dissolved. The Cold War was over. That was one of the urgent signals within Groom Lake Air Force Base. As soon as Lieutenant General Salona, who was in charge of security at theb, heard the news on the radio, he called Alphonse Lofair. ¡°The Cold War is over. Shall we clear the research facility?¡± ¡ªYes, please proceed. Alphonse¡¯s reply was dry. Salona knew he was going to go to hell. The movements of the airbase soldiers were swift and precise. ording to public announcements, the attackers were Sandinista soldiers who were opposed to President Violeta Chamorro¡¯s leadership. Motivated by the dissolution of the Soviet Union, they attacked the Groom Lake Air Base to re-establish a socialist government. It was a usible story, but the truth was different. Genius or not, Isaiah Franklin was still a child, barely five years old. Gunshots and the metallic smell of blood, the acrid smoke and sirens¡ªit was one thing to be prepared for death, but it was entirely different to witness it firsthand. Isaiah¡¯s legs stiffened and froze. ¡°Spade...¡± A boy who looked of Hispanic descent was lying on the floor of the cafeteria with a gunshot wound. The other kids were probably dead, too. Some of the cafeteria workers and scientists had also died because they weren¡¯t contacted beforehand. They were probably weeded out to reduce the number of mouths to keep shut. Bodies were rolling around everywhere. Isaiah had escaped disaster once because she wasn¡¯t in her room, but she wouldn¡¯t get lucky another time. ¡°Diamond has been found.¡± One of the soldiers who had been killing everyone on sight¡ªscientists, janitors, and surrogates in the clinical trial¨Cspoke into his radio as he raised his gun. He was about to shoot Isaiah Franklin, but with a bang, a bullet flew out from behind her and pierced the soldier¡¯s forehead. ¡°Isaiah! Come here!¡± Elsie put the gun back into her pocket and pulled Isaiah into her arms. She was one of the people who were told to evacuate, but she hade back. Elsie was still proud of what she did here, thinking that it was the only good thing she had ever done as a heartless mother. Elsie took off, running with Isaiah Franklin in her arms. The back gate of theboratory was not yet closed, and Diana had said she would have a car waiting for them there. ¡°We just need to get to the back gate. Keep your eyes closed,¡± Elsie said. Chapter 269: Grand Slam (7)

Chapter 269: Grand m (7)

Bleep. [Synchronization Mode Off.] Young-Joon had almost finished reading Doctor Ref¡¯s DNA letter when he lost sight of the microworld. ¡°What happened?¡± Young-Joon asked Rosaline. ¡ªThere¡¯s a problem. ¡°A problem?¡± ¡ªThis is a strange situation. Fitness is flowing from Lagba¡¯s body into mine. ¡°Lagba?¡± Young-Joon scratched his head, puzzled. ¡ªThe adopted son of Israeli Prime Minister Felus. The one we brought back from brain death. ¡°I know that. But fitness ising from his body?¡± ¡ªYes. This is surprising. Now I know what Doctor Ref did with the polyomavirus. Rosaline burst intoughter. Young-Joon had been traveling the world like it was his backyard for the past year. Thanks to that, he left traces of himself in luxury hotels in the United States, Sweden, China, the Congo, Saudi Arabia, and many other countries. Philistines secretly hired hotel cleaners to collect Young-Joon¡¯s hair. There were plenty of creepy fans who were obsessed with celebrities¡¯ body hair and nails. While some of the more responsible hotel cleaners refused, others thought it wasn¡¯t a bad thing to collect a few hairs in exchange for some cash. Some of the collected hairs had a few hair root cells attached to them, which could be analyzed by single-cell RNA sequencing to determine which genes were highly expressed. Doctor Ref was trying to unlock the secret of Young-Joon¡¯s sess in creating life, starting with his DNA.[1] ¡ªThey would have identified a number of gene loci that differed in expression from the general poption, and one of them would have been your morality gene group, your trademark. Rosaline went on. ¡ªIt probably looked like a huge puzzle. They probably tried to create life by putting differentbinations of it into an artificial cell and manipting it, but it wouldn¡¯t have worked. ¡°Now that I think of it, when Agent Whittaker searched Doctor Ref¡¯s hideout, there was evidence of Doctor Ref conducting life-creation experiments. I just thought she hadn¡¯t given up hope, but maybe she had something to try out?¡± ¡ªYes. But it wouldn¡¯t have worked because life creation is a one-time event. So, Doctor Ref changed her tactics: she thought of me as a virus, and she wanted me to infect all humans. Rosaline exined. ¡ªThe polyomavirus contained a library of different genes. Even Doctor Ref couldn¡¯t analyze a billion pairs of DNA perfectly, so there were a lot of errors and inconsistencies. I didn¡¯t understand what it meant, but now that I think about it, it was just a bunch of your unique genes in differentbinations. ¡ªAnd a few of those sequences ovep with your morality genes. The virus didn¡¯t infect most people very severely, but in Lagba¡¯s case, it got into his central nervous system, remember? And the morality DNA from the virus settled in his medu oblongata when we revived his dead brain. During the power outage in Af, the stem cell therapy became contaminated with some bacteria. The medical staff removed it, and Young-Joon observed Lagba in Synchronization Mode during the brainstem repair procedure. That¡¯s when some of Rosaline¡¯s cells that went into Lagba¡¯s subventricr zone were left there. ¡ªI thought the couple cells left there would die without you, but they survived by holding onto your morality gene. They¡¯re absorbing fitness and sending it to me. ¡°Wait, so you¡¯re saying Lagba can also see in Synchronization Mode or the message window that I see?¡± RYK asked. ¡ªI don¡¯t think so. Rosaline shook his head. ¡ªIn my kingdom, you are the king, and your body is the pce. Lagba, to say, is... Rosaline searched for a suitable analogy. ¡ªSomething like an embassy in a foreign country? ¡°...¡± ¡ªOr a spy nted in a small city-state? That¡¯s what it feels like because he¡¯s not the one who aplished the achievement of creating life. It¡¯s just that fitness is trickling in from him. ¡°And there¡¯s nothing wrong with Lagba¡¯s body?¡± ¡ªThose cells are all under my control, so as long as I don¡¯t try to harm them, there won¡¯t be a problem. ¡°... I¡¯ll have to call Prime Minister Felus.¡± Young-Joon picked up the phone. ¡ªWhat are you going to say? ¡°I¡¯m going to ask how much Lagba has recovered, and...¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I just remembered that Prime Minister Felus is originally from the American financial sector. I need to reexamine Doctor Ref¡¯s story from a different perspective.¡± Young-Joon called Felus. ¡ªDoctor Ryu? ¡°Hello? How is your son?¡± ¡ªHe recovered enough to talk a little while ago! I¡¯m watching him right now and just stepped out into the hallway to take your call. ¡°That¡¯s a relief. Is he mentally unstable or anything?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡ªEverything is well. He¡¯s very stable, and it¡¯s all thanks to you. ¡°Mr. Prime Minister, you worked in finance in the United States, and then you went back to Israel and started politics, right?¡± ¡ªYes, that¡¯s right. ¡°Then do you know anything about the Lofair family? I heard they¡¯re an old, rich American financier family.¡± ¡ªThey are a very famous family that most people know about, even if they are not in finances. And they¡¯re originally a Jewish family. ¡°Really?¡± ¡ªYes. I¡¯ve met them quite often, so fortunately, I know a bit about them. I¡¯ll tell you what I can. Do you have any questions? ¡°I want to know about a man named Alphonse Lofair.¡± * Song Ji-Hyun met Alphonse Lofair in a conference room at the Goddard Space Flight Center in Washington, D.C. James Holdren had arranged the meeting. Alphonse was a tall, clean-shaven man with a white beard and a neatly buttoned suit. ¡°Nice to meet you, Doctor Song.¡± He shook Song Ji-Hyun¡¯s hand. ¡°I prefer to move around more than sit in a conference room after a meal. Would you like to go on a short walk?¡± Alphonse asked. ¡°Sure, sounds great.¡± Song Ji-Hyun followed him out of the conference room. Alphonse took her around the Goddard Space Flight Center. ¡°I heard you were at the Kennedy Space Center, so I was a little surprised that you asked me toe here,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°The Kennedy Space Center is in Florida. I know you¡¯re busy, so I couldn¡¯t make you travel all the way there, and I happened to have some business to do at Goddard. Director Holdren was arranging the meeting, so I took on this task myself,¡± Alphonse said. ¡°I thought I would be meeting with Doctor Ryu, but I see that he¡¯s not here?¡± ¡°Cellijenner is doing this project. Doctor Ryu has a lot of connections, like Director Holdren and the National Cancer Institute, so he just facilitated the meeting with you, the person in charge.¡± ¡°I see.¡± Alphonse seemed a little disappointed. In reality, he had volunteered to travel all the way to Washington to meet Young-Joon to see how much he knew about Isaiah Franklin. To be honest, it was hard to imagine that Young-Joon would know that Isaiah Franklin was born through gic modification at Groom Lake Air Force Base. However, Young-Joon had too much contact with Isaiah Franklin to ignore it, and if he did know something, Alphonse had to be prepared. There was no telling what might happen, given Young-Joon¡¯s fierce temperament that doesn¡¯t back down even against the Chinese president. ¡°How does it feel toe into NASA?¡± Alphonse asked Song Ji-Hyun. ¡°It certainly lives up to its reputation.¡± ¡°NASA is not just a space developmentb; it¡¯s also an intelligence agency and an iconic representation of America¡¯s scientific power,¡± Alphonse said. ¡°It was only thirty years ago that the Soviet Union was still standing, and the U.S. was fighting a proxy war with them by disying the superiority of our science through space development.¡± Alphonse clenched his fists. ¡°And we ended up winning the fight. The Soviets evenunched a huge space station called the Mir, but they ended up shooting themselves in the foot with that one. They couldn¡¯t maintain it after the Soviet Union dissolved, so they are sharing it with us until it is dismantled.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°NASA is now an institution of glory and peace¡ªa supreme scientific institution that no longer has any rivals, and a symbol of scientific unity after the Cold War,¡± Alphonse said. ¡°And thanks to you, a Nobel Prize candidate, we¡¯ll be able to clean up the remains of Soviet Union as well.¡± ¡°Are you talking about Chernobyl?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked. ¡°Yes. That was a huge mess left by the staggering Soviet Union. Simultaneously, it was also the worst disaster that cut off their dwindling breath,¡± Alphonse said, ¡°Doctor Song, you might be too young to remember, but the Soviet Union was a powerful country gued by chronic food shortages. That kind of efficiency is typical formunist countries, really. On top of that, farming was pretty much a joke in that cold, frozen Russiannd.¡± ¡°I heard that¡¯s why they sold a lot of weapons and bought food from the Middle East and Africa.¡± ¡°That¡¯s also true, but it wasn¡¯t a huge amount. A big part of the Soviet Union¡¯s food production was in what is now Ukraine, which was then part of the Soviet Union. A lot of that vastnd was fertilend that was perfect for farming,¡± Alphonse said. ¡°And that¡¯s where Chernobyl was.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Can you imagine? Three hundred thousand kilometers were contaminated, all the food in the area was discarded, and one hundred thousand cattle were disposed of. Gorbachev¡¯s head probably spun at the level of damage,¡± Alphonse said. ¡°But even after that, the Soviets couldn¡¯t just abandon thend because if they couldn¡¯t farm on it, they were screwed. So, they mobilized four hundred thousand people and spent tens of billions of rubles to decontaminate it. That¡¯s where they spent all their budget.¡± Many experts disagreed about whether the great Soviet Union would fall, but there was one kid who predicted at just five years old. Alphonse thought of Isaiah Franklin and took a deep breath. Song Ji-Hyun, on the other hand, was bing a bit bored. She found it a little frustrating that this old man was talking about the Cold War and the Soviet Union in their first meeting. Song Ji-Hyun, who was a true scientist, just wanted to talk about research. ¡°Sometimes when you¡¯re doing research and reading history, you feel that destiny exists. I think that¡¯s what today is,¡± Alphonse said. ¡°Doctor Song, let¡¯s work together to get rid of the radiation in Pripyat, where Chernobyl was, and Fukushima to make it habitable again.¡± Song Ji-Hyun nodded. ¡°Then let¡¯s get started. How soon will you be able to provide us with microbial samples from the space station?¡± she asked. ¡°It won¡¯t take long. There are some astronauts working there who areing in next week. We should be able to get some easily if we ask them,¡± Alphonse replied. ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes. We¡¯ll figure out how to share the equity in this study with NASA when I meet with Cellijenner¡¯s CEO. Will A-GenBio be participating in this study as well?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think so.¡± ¡°That¡¯s too bad. Are you getting a call?¡± Alphonse said, pointing to Song Ji-Hyun¡¯s bag, which was vibrating. ¡°You¡¯re right. It¡¯s Doctor Ryu.¡± Song Ji-Hyun epted the call. ¡°Hello?¡± Then, she blinked, slightly puzzled, and looked at Alphonse. ¡°Is something wrong?¡± he asked. ¡°No, nothing.¡± Song Ji-Hyun turned away from Alphonse and continued the call. Alphonse couldn¡¯t understand Korean, but he instinctively knew something was wrong. ¡ªDirector Holdren told me that Alphonse Lofair was in charge of this project. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡ªThen that project will be canceled, so don¡¯t waste your energy ande back. Give him some kind of excuse so he doesn¡¯t get suspicious. I have another way to get rid of the radioactivity. ¡°Uh...¡± ¡ªI¡¯m saying this because I¡¯m worried about you, and I feel responsible since I¡¯m the one who arranged it. ¡°But what do you mean it will be canceled?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked. ¡ªLofair has some issues. ¡°...¡± ¡ªNot many people know yet, but I think it¡¯s urate information, and I¡¯m not going to let it slide. 1. Fun fact: you don¡¯t actually need the hair root tissue to analyze DNA anymore! Keratin, the protein in the hair itself, can be used as a source of DNA as well! ? Chapter 270: Grand Slam (8)

Chapter 270: Grand m (8)

The Lofair family had spread across the globe over the past two hundred years, resulting in arge andplex family tree. But even in the absence of Judaism, there was always one adult in every family who had the biggest say because they held financial power. This position¡ªthe head of the family¡ªwas now held by Alphonse. He was the oldest in the Lofair family, and he was the owner of the Lofair mansion in Washington, D.C., which had been in his family since his great-great-grandfather. Though he wasn¡¯t an investor, Alphonse controlled the vast financial assets that dated back to the days when the family ran the Bank of Amsterdam. Of course, he hired professionals to manage those assets, and most of the important business was handled in consultation with his talented younger brothers. Today was no different. ¡°Is something bothering you?¡± asked Tate Lofair, the chairman of Chenover Financial Holding. Alphonse didn¡¯t answer. He was deep in thought, drinking a ss of wine. ¡°When Alphonse is frowning like that, it¡¯s either because you don¡¯t like the wine or something¡¯s wrong at work,¡± said Kimber Lofair. ¡°The wine is fine,¡± Alphonse said. ¡°Then it¡¯s work,¡± Tate said. ¡°Alphonse, you¡¯re going to go to the White House soon, right? You were bragging that you¡¯re going to pester President Campbell from right beside him.¡± ¡°Well, I was going to do an important project at NASA before I went. I was going to collect some microorganisms living on the outer walls of the spacecraft and give them to Doctor Ryu and Doctor Song to develop a new decontaminant for removing radioactivity.¡± Alphonse clicked his tongue. ¡°But why did she quit all of a sudden?¡± ¡°Quit?¡± Kimber asked. ¡°Doctor Song. We were about to sign the contract, but she suddenly backed out, saying she needed to talk to their CEO from here on out,¡± Alphonse said like he didn¡¯t understand. ¡°She¡¯s a Nobel Prize candidate. No one knows the name of the CEO of Cellijenner, but everyone knows Doctor Song Ji-Hyun. She¡¯s one of the up-anding young scientists whose reputation is rising alongside Doctor Ryu. But someone like her came all the way to the United States without a guideline on how to draft a contract? When she¡¯s meeting with me?¡± ¡°Well, it¡¯s strange, but should you be that worried?¡± Kimber asked. ¡°What bothers me is that it was right after she got a call from Ryu Young-Joon.¡± Alphonse massaged his head with his fingers. ¡°Come to think of it, I heard some news about Doctor Ryu through the reporters,¡± Tate said. ¡°What news?¡± ¡°Not much, just that there are teams working on neural therapy and tissue regeneration using stem cells at A-GenBio¡¯s Laboratory Seven. Apparently, they are creating a task force.¡± ¡°A task force?¡± Alphonse tilted his head, confused. ¡°A task force for what?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know the details. It¡¯s not like we nted spies at A-GenBio or anything. We don¡¯t even know what exactly Mr. Ryu¡¯s instructions were. They say it¡¯s a task force, but it¡¯s just reporters making up a story based on a rumor that a bunch of technicians are being volunteered and transferred from each department to redraw the organizational chart.¡± ¡°Hm.¡± Alphonse took a sip of his wine. ¡°Is Doctor Ryu still in Washington?¡± ¡°I think so, but he bought a ne ticket. I think he¡¯s leaving soon,¡± Kimber said. ¡°He bought a ne ticket?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°How do you know that?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve been looking into his whereabouts in advance because you were interested in him. As of yesterday, Ryu Young-Joon bought a ticket with Delta Airlines.¡± ¡°Where is he going?¡± Alphonse asked. ¡°Nicaragua.¡± ¡°Nicaragua!¡± Alphonse jumped out of his seat in surprise. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± ¡°...¡± Alphonse¡¯s fingers trembled. An overwhelming sense of anxiety washed over him. ¡°Alphonse,¡± Tate called. ¡°We know you have bad memories of that area, but what is Doctor Ryu going to do there? It was thirty years ago. Even if he sniffed something out now, he wouldn¡¯t be able to find any evidence. We¡¯ve destroyed everything.¡± ¡°...¡± Alphonse sat back in his seat. ¡°Keep an eye out for what A-GenBio announces. And if possible, try to find out first. I need to send someone to Nicaragua,¡± Alphonse said. ¡°I¡¯m telling you, you¡¯re overreacting.¡± ¡°Ryu Young-Joon covertly dug up the fact that the Chinese president received an illegal heart transnt and proved it in an unimaginable way,¡± he said. ¡°I need to know what A-GenBio¡¯s task force is.¡± * Thankfully, Alphonse¡¯s confusion and worry didn¡¯tst long as just four dayster, A-GenBio made an official announcement. [A-GenBio¡¯s Next Generation Hospital to provide stem cell therapy to the Nicaraguan government.] The news, which was abruptly announced, had a goal far beyond the public¡¯s imagination. [A medical business team of six hundred technicians and specialists will work on a huge medical project in Nicaragua in Latin America.] [The task force, formed under the cooperation of A-GenBio and the Next Generation Hospital, aims to control the Guiin-Barr¨¦ syndrome and Zika virus, which are currently on the rise in Latin America, as well as cure various gic and neurological disorders of chronically incurable patients living in Nicaragua.] Instead of Young-Joon, Kim Young-Hoon, the CEO in charge, was all over the news. ¡°A-GenBio and the Next Generation Hospital have always been willing to share our technology in the name of humanitarianism with doctors around the world. However, methods such as gene surgery and the injection of induced pluripotent stem cells into the subventricr zone were too difficult for other doctors to attempt,¡± Kim Young-Hoon said. ¡°Take a look at this data.¡± Kim Young-Hoon presented a chart on the screen. It listed the number of visiting professors from dozens of countries, the adoption of new technologies in their home hospitals, and the number of medical staff who could properly use that technology. ¡°If we score each of them and plot them on a graph, it looks like this.¡± Kim Young-Hoon went to the next slide. The scores on the graph showed a stark disparity. If A-GenBio and the first Next Generation Hospital in Korea were at one hundred, the next-generation hospitals in developed countries were around thirty, and underdeveloped countries were in single digits. ¡°This above graph was published by the WHO three months ago. As the development of A-GenBio¡¯s technology has elerated, the disparity in the above graph is widening rather than shrinking,¡± Kim Young-Hoon said, pointing to the screen. ¡°We have had prestigious doctors from various hospitals around the worlde to Korea and participate as visiting professors at A-GenBio, and they would spend months training and go back. Still, it is difficult to fill the gap, and the reason for that is simple,¡± he said. ¡°After Mr. Ryu founded A-GenBio, everyone realized that the basic technology of stem cells and Cas9 were the breakthroughs of future medicine. The top elites, who had won or were nominated for the Nobel Prize, swarmed to Korea and have joined A-GenBio,¡± Kim Young-Hoon said humbly. ¡°A-GenBio recognizes that our incredible growth and innovation over the past two years is due to the participation of talented people from all over the world. And to reciprocate, we believe that we need to conduct international academic exchanges in a more efficient way. ¡°As such, from now on, A-GenBio and the Next Generation Hospital would like to discuss with the government or local authorities and travel to the area to provide medical services. All necessary equipment and pharmaceuticals will be brought directly by A-GenBio using a cold chain, and we promise to cure more than eighty percent of the incurable patients in any area we visit.¡± Kim Young-Hoon¡¯s deration quickly spread around the world through various media outlets. ¡®A-GenBiomercialized treatment itself.¡¯ This was like a powerful mercenary group that went wherever it was called in the war against disease, bringing victory. Who could have imagined such a thing? They would negotiate with various countries in advance, visit them, stay for several months, and then leave afterpletely resolving all the region''s incurable diseases. ¡°This trip to Nicaragua will be the pilot test,¡± Kim Young-Hoon announced. The reporters began asking questions. ¡ªNicaragua is a little unfamiliar to Korea. Why did you choose Nicaragua? As if he¡¯d been waiting for this question, Kim Young-Hoon gave a quick answer, which hinted at other things. ¡°Nicaragua has arge number of patients with congenital deformities or gic neurological disease. It is seven times higher than Honduras, its neighbor,¡± Kim Young-Hoon said. ¡°Normally, with such a high incidence of gic disorders, we would expect to see significant radiation contamination. But Nicaragua is far away from the Nevada Test Site in the U.S., and it¡¯s quite a distance from New Mexico, where the Manhattan Project was conducted. It¡¯s also not like there¡¯s been a nuclear power nt ident or anything.¡± Kim Young-Hoon presented the symbol of A-GenBio¡¯s Laboratory Seven on the screen. ¡°A-GenBio is not just treating patients. We are also a healthcare and disease control organization that prevents diseases from urring in the first ce. As such, Nicaragua has a lot of research value to us.¡± * ¡°Why Nicaragua?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked on the way to the airport. ¡°You heard Director Kim¡¯s announcement,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I¡¯m asking because I thought you might know why Nicaragua has so many deformities and gic diseases.¡± Young-Joon nodded. ¡°I¡¯ll give you a hint. Most of these patients were born before 1986, and they are orphans. In Nicaragua, the U.S.-backed Somoza government and the Sandinista rebels kept fighting during the Cold War. After the regime change, the Sandinista government and the Contra rebels started fighting. It¡¯s understandable why there are so many orphans, but...¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Isn¡¯t it strange that the frequency of gic diseases is concentrated before 1986?¡± ¡°Did someone secretly conduct a nuclear test or something?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked with a serious expression. ¡°No. On paper, those babies were all born in hospitals in safe areas with no risk of radioactive contamination,¡± Young-Joon said. The embryologyboratory in the Groom Lake Air Force Base was creating gically engineered babies for eighteen years. Some babies have died in failed experiments, but others have survived with disabilities, which was the problem. They couldn¡¯t raise them in a facility like theb, but it was difficult to kill them. It didn¡¯t matter after the Cold War ended as the idea was to get rid of the institute itself, but not in the two decades before that. When Doctor Ref was born, Alphonse Lofair intended to make her elite, and for that to happen, theboratory at Groom Lake couldn¡¯t be an evil criminal organization. What if the scandal broke after Doctor Ref entered society? ¡°At that time, there was no such thing as research ethics, and we did these things out of patriotism. The children born with defects were raised in orphanages,¡± was vastly different from saying ¡°We killed all those babies.¡± The former was apse in research ethics and a tragedy born out of the Cold War, but thetter was a grave felony: infanticide. Burdened by this, Alphonse had buried the surviving failures of theb within the history of the Nicaraguan Civil War for eighteen years. It wasn¡¯t difficult to do this, as the mothers often died in most cases involving babies with severe gic disorders. No one noticed, and there was no evidence. All the documents were perfect. But when Young-Joon saw the number of people with gic disorders in Nicaragua, their age range, and themon denominator of an orphanage, he realized the situation at once. ¡°Doctor Song, you know...¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°DNA is the world¡¯s most powerful information storage device. One gram of DNA contains a petabyte of information.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°And if you do something to it, it always leaves behind evidence.¡± Chapter 271: Grand Slam (9)

Chapter 271: Grand m (9)

¡°Is that rted to Alphonse Lofair?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked. ¡°Don¡¯t try to find out. It could be dangerous. I¡¯ll help you get the decontamination microorganisms a little while after you get back home,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°You said before that even if I signed a contract with Alphonse, the project would end up being canceled. You said there¡¯s something wrong with him. By that, you meant that he¡¯s responsible for the gically diseased people in Nicaragua, right?¡± Song Ji-Hyun said worriedly. ¡°Don¡¯t tell anyone, okay? I called and stopped you then because you¡¯re a friend that I can trust.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°We¡¯re almost here,¡± said Kim Chul-Kwon. As soon as Young-Joon entered the airport, he quickly checked in and went through the departure process. ¡°You dropped your wallet!¡± Song Ji-Hyun shouted. She grabbed Young-Joon, who was walking hastily and handed him his wallet. ¡°Thanks. I¡¯m in a bit of a hurry right now. See you in Seoul.¡± Young-Joon took the wallet, put it in his pocket and went to catch his flight with the K-Cops security team. Song Ji-Hyun stared after him for a long time. She didn¡¯t have anything to do in the United States anymore, but she didn¡¯t go up to catch the flight to Seoul. She spent the rest of the time in the lounge thinking. She was anxious. Young-Joon was someone who had consistently stood up to big, hical powers. And he had always won. But this time, it felt different. Though she had only met him once, Alphonse Lofair didn¡¯t seem like an easy opponent. His background was also unusual. After the Cold War, he negotiated an agreement with Russia to share the Mir Space Station with NASA. This achievement helped him quickly rise through the ranks at NASA, getting him to where he was today. But he was originally a biologist¡ªan embryologist specializing in gics. ¡°...¡± What did Alphonse Lofair do in Nicaragua for Young-Joon to be so aggressive? Was it even possible to track down evidence left in DNA? Should she really return home, leaving Young-Joon here alone? ¡°Phew...¡± Song Ji-Hyun let out a sigh and walked to the vending machine. Her fingers froze as she was about to press the button for hot cocoa. She remembered the strange girl who had yelled about the bacteria floating on the cocoa because the filter hadn¡¯t been changed. ¡®Rosaline.¡¯ Song Jong-Ho said he had seen her in his hallucinations. Rosaline had appeared out of nowhere when Song Ji-Hyun stepped out of the hospital room at the Next Generation Hospital for a moment, but Young-Joon didn¡¯t exin where she came from. He also didn¡¯t tell her where she lived in the States when she asked. ¡°I don¡¯t understand...¡± ¡°Excuse me...¡± Someone called Song Ji-Hyun from behind. It was an Arab man with a handsome beard. ¡°Hello,¡± Song Ji-Hyun replied, a little wary. ¡°Nice to meet you, Doctor Song. May I speak with you for a moment?¡± ¡°Who are you?¡± ¡°I¡¯m Yassir, a founding member of Philistines, a botulinum toxin pharmaceuticalpany in Egypt.¡± ¡°Philistines?¡± Song Ji-Hyun¡¯s eyes widened. The events that happened in the Middle East had be quite publicized. What happened to Doctor Ref, the violent terrorist who was captured, wasn¡¯t covered, but it was revealed that she was connected to apany called Philistines, which the Egyptian government was investigating. ¡°... I thought your executives were being investigated by the Egyptian police right now,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°We¡¯ve already been investigated. It¡¯s mostly circumstantial evidence, and I guess there was nothing ¡®in Egypt¡¯ that would prohibit me from leaving the country.¡± Yassir shrugged. ¡°Well, we¡¯re only guilty of illegally importing botulinum toxin through a woman named Isaiah Franklin. We have been studying the polyomavirus, but it¡¯s just the CIA¡¯s im that we¡¯ve released it somewhere. Besides, even if we did, it¡¯s not a dangerous species in the first ce. It¡¯s a little... too much to ban someone from leaving the country just for smuggling some bacteria, right?¡± Yassir grinned. ¡°...¡± ¡°Oh, and we¡¯re an innocentpany with no ties to Palestinian rebels, although Isaiah Franklin might have had something to do with them.¡± ¡°Alright. I don¡¯t need to hear anymore. What do you want from me?¡± asked Song Ji-Hyun, cutting him off. ¡°You don¡¯t beat around the bush. Okay, I¡¯m here because I would like to work on something with you, Doctor Song. It won¡¯t be bad for you,¡± Yassir said. ¡°Doctor Ryu¡¯s current opponent is quite a big shot. Unlike the Chinese president, they have no weaknesses.¡± Yassir then tapped his chest. ¡°Perhaps we can be of some assistance.¡± * ¡°Doctor Ryu went where?¡± Campbell, the President of the United States, froze when he heard the shocking news. ¡°He went to Nicaragua. Apparently, he is doing a big healthcare project there,¡± his chief of staff replied. ¡°...¡± An indescribable feeling of unease washed over Campbell. ¡°Alright. I¡¯d like to be alone for a moment,¡± he said. After the chief of staff left, he bit his nails in worry. The entire country of Nicaragua was one huge scandal for the United States government. At the height of the Cold War, Nicaragua was ruled by a dictatorship known as the Somoza, who were puppets of the United States. Beginning with Anastasio Somoza Garc¨ªa¡¯s rise to the presidency, this nepotistic government monopolized wealth over three generations. The Somoza family ended up possessing forty percent of Nicaragua¡¯s entire GDP. Eventually, citizens organized a rebel army to overthrow the Somoza family and establish a democratic government. Naturally, they had strong anti-American sentiments, and the organization was named the Sandinistas after Augusto C¨¦sar Sandino, a legendary figure in the anti-American struggle. The Sandinistas sessfully staged a coup, ousting the Somoza government and establishing a democratic government. This was where the problem started. There was also an organization within Nicaragua called the Contra rebels who wanted to overthrow the Sandinista government, and the U.S. supported them. This was only natural¡ªwith an anti-American government established right under America¡¯s nose, it was obvious thatmunism would spread centered around Nicaragua. The problem was that the support was illegal. At the time, the U.S. Congress had passed the Bnd Amendment, which prohibited the U.S. government from supporting rebels in Latin America. In other words, the Heagan administration was illegally aiding the Contras without the knowledge of Congress. So where did the moneye from? Believe it or not, it came from illegal arms sales to Iran. At the time, Iran was at war with Iraq, a terrorist state and an enemy of the United States. The Heagan administration sold arms to a terrorist organization and an enemy state, then used the proceeds to support the Contra rebels in Nicaragua, viting the Bnd Amendment, to try to overthrow the regime. This was the Iran-Contra affair that brought Heagan to the brink of impeachment. ¡°It¡¯s one of the most embarrassing things the United States has ever done in Latin America.¡± Campbell bit his lip. But this was only one of the huge scandals involving Nicaragua. There were more shocking truths that came with being president and having ess to ssified information. ¡®The proceeds from the arms trafficking to Iran also went to Groom Lake Air Force Base.¡¯ Campbell sighed. ¡®Groom Lake Air Force Base, as well as the embryologyb within it, was a U.S. government-funded organization.¡¯ And many of the key yers in theb were part of American intelligence. Campbell also knew how thatb ended up. Now, A-GenBio had announced that it was going to study what environmental issues might have contributed to the birth of many of these gic disorders. ¡°Should I take this as a deration of war, or are we taking it as an usation when they¡¯re going purely to do research and treat patients?¡± Campbell paced back and forth in his office, unable to sit down. There were a lot of people who would go to jail if this blew up: the military officials who managed the Groom Lake facility, the Heagan administration who allowed it to happen, and the Lofair family. It was going to be a bloodbath. Thankfully, Campbell¡¯s administration had little to do with it, but there were no neutrals in a fight like this, and Lofair is a very scary man. Knock knock. Someone knocked on his door. It was James Holdren, the director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy. He came in with a bottle of vodka and two sses. ¡°Holdren?¡± ¡°I¡¯m retiring soon. How about having a drink with me?¡± ¡°...¡± James poured some vodka into the sses. ¡°You don¡¯t look so good.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve got a problem.¡± ¡°Is it Lofair?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°There¡¯s one unwritten rule for the President of the United States: don¡¯t mess with the Lofairs,¡± James said. ¡°The FRB, the central bank that produces our dors, is a private bank. It¡¯s basically owned by the Lofair family, and every president who has tried to nationalize it has been severely attacked, politically and physically.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°President Lincoln, who rejected the central banking system and implemented Greenback, and President Kennedy, who tried to give the power to print money to the Treasury, were both assassinated,¡± James said. ¡°President Andrew Jackson also rejected the central bank and suffered an assassination attempt.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not a democracy,¡± Campbell said bitterly. ¡°I was elected by the people, but there are too many people in this country to fear, of which Lofair is the scariest. This country is their kingdom.¡± ¡°What about Doctor Ryu?¡± James asked. ¡°I told Doctor Ryu to not mess with Lofair and go back home, but instead, he called in hundreds of medical personnel from South Korea and marched into Nicaragua.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Those people, who are immersed in Doctor Ryu¡¯s new technology and scientific revolution, are very loyal to him. You have to think of them as a very unique form of a private army. If they borrow a hospital from Nicaragua and just sit there, it bes a sacred sanctuary.¡± ¡°I suppose.¡± ¡°They open the eyes of the blind, make the paralyzed walk, and cure gic diseases. If he stays in such a ce, no one can harm Doctor Ryu. Moreover, all eyes will be on him since it¡¯s their first visit. In that situation, what do you think will happen if he brings up Groomke?¡± ¡°But they said they covered up all the evidence. No matter how much of a genius he is, what would he find there?¡± ¡°You never know. How could we understand the mind of a genius? But Mr. President, I¡¯m going to fulfill my duty as a friend who has served in your cab for a long time and as the advisor of science and technology policy to the White House,¡± Holdren said. ¡°Stand with Doctor Ryu.¡± James stared at Campbell. ¡°He never loses. Stand with Doctor Ryu and bring down Lofair.¡± * The Nicaraguan government weed Doctor Ryu and more than six hundred medical staff as a state guest. The treatments shipped by sea from A-GenBio using a cold chain seemed endless. ¡°Thank you so much.¡± Mistega, the president of Nicaragua, shook hands with Young-Joon. ¡°We have renovated several buildings in the Kukra Hill area and prepared them to be used as hospital wards. They are not yet fully equipped, but...¡± ¡°As you know, this is not just a visit by our doctors but an academic exchange. We need medical staff from Nicaragua to join us.¡± ¡°Our doctors and nurses have been very eager to participate. They¡¯re all waiting for you,¡± said Mistega. ¡°Thank you.¡± With an introduction from Mistega, Young-Joon led the A-GenBio and Next Generation Hospital staff to the medical center in Kukra Hill. There, local doctors were already seeing patients. The patients, who had heard that Young-Joon wasing, had lined up two days in advance. So, the doctors, who were already there setting up rooms and waiting, had begun to treat them. ¡°There¡¯s something I want to ask of you when doing blood tests for patients with gic diseases,¡± Young-Joon said to the professors of the Next Generation Hospital. ¡°When there is damage to the DNA, a few sequences are inserted or removed in the process of the body repairing it. These are called indels, and these marks are left behind when DNA is edited with gene scissors like TALENs or radiation. ¡°It¡¯s usually very difficult to analyze them because they¡¯re random, but A-GenBio can do it. Please extract the DNA from the blood sample and send it to the research team.¡± Chapter 272: Grand Slam (10) Jack the Ripper was a notorious serial killer who terrorized London, Ennd in thete neenth century. He became a huge issue because of his gruesome murders, where he cut open his victims¡¯ stomachs and removed all their organs. But there was a bigger reason for his notoriety: Jack the Ripper had provoked newspapers and watch groups by sending them letters. These were deranged letters in which he confessed his crimes or even enclosed a kidney he removed from a victim. It was the first ever theatrical crime. Even though Queen Victoria of Ennd, who was outraged at the crimes, personally ordered the police to catch Jack the Ripper, he was never found. The British police even asked Conan Doyle, the greatest mystery writer of his time, to solve the case, but they still couldn¡¯t catch him. There were a few suspects, but there wasn¡¯t enough evidence. But that was in the neenth century. Modern science could now uncover the secrets of even the most perfectly concealed crimes. DNA always left behind evidence. In 2014, scientists identified DNA from some semen found on a shawl that was around the neck of one of Jack the Ripper¡¯s murder victims. Theypared it to DNA from the descendants of the suspects identified in the past and distinguished a barber named Aaron Kosminski. Though still controversial, the DNA result was the strongest evidence avable and led many scientists and criminal profilers to believe Kosminski was the killer. ¡°In the old days, you wouldn¡¯t find anything at the crime scene if you got rid of the body and wiped the blood off, but we have luminol now.¡± Young-Joon put the iing DNA samples from the medical staff into a microtube rack. ¡ªThis is how they used to do gic maniption before Cas9 existed. Rosaline looked at the DNA with amusement. ¡°Back then, we had a technology called transcription activator-like effector nuclease (TALEN),¡± Young-Joon said. TALENs were gene scissors made up of a string of proteins that could read DNA and an endonuclease called Fokl attached to the end. These giant gene scissors recognized and attached to specific locations in the DNA, where Fokl would cut the target site. ¡°The synthesis of TALENs is reallyplicatedpared to Cas9, so it was very time-consuming andbor-intensive to manipte one site,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°But the result was still good enough to use it for a couple corrections.¡± At Groom Lake Air Force Base, theb used TALENs to gically modify fertilized eggs. Even though the sess rate was low, they would only select the eggs that were sessfully mutated, imnt them in a surrogate mother, then evaluate the baby¡¯s health and intelligence quotient when it was born. Then, this raised one question. DNA was in the nucleus of the cell, and so the TALENs would have to go inside the nucleus to cut the DNA. How could they have inserted these gene scissors into the nucleus nearly thirty years ago? Back then, the microscopes didn¡¯t have the magnification that exists today. As such, it wouldn¡¯t have been easy to insert TALENs directly into the cell using a microsyringe. Another option would have been to use electrical stimtion to slightly tear the cell membrane and shoot the gene scissors through the gap. However, the yield in this case would be very low, as most of the fertilized eggs would die from the electrical stimtion. It was unlikely that ab that has done so much gic maniption would have used this method. So, what was the best option? It was to use viruses. They could load the gene synthesizing TALENs into a virus and infect the fertilized egg. Viruses had a tendency to insert their DNA into the host DNA, so the DNA that synthesized TALENs would have entered the fertilized egg, just like how the polyomavirus inserted the morality genes into Lagba¡¯s central nervous system. That was where Young-Joon got the idea from. ¡°It¡¯s the kind of idea that criminals might use.¡± The embryologyb at Groom Lake modified target genes by using the TALENs created by the TALEN genes inserted into the nucleus of the fertilized egg. ¡®Then those scissors would still be inside the victim¡¯s DNA.¡¯ DNA¡¯s preservation ability was by far the best among natural polymers. Even after thirty years, the DNA must still be there. Young-Joon chose two of the DNA samples for preliminary testing. He used a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) machine to amplify the genes that synthesized TALEN. Then, he purified them with a PCR product purification kit. Unnecessary proteins and salts were removed, and then the product was drawn into water called nuclease-free water. The concentration was four hundred eighty ng/¦ÌL, which was a significant amount. If it was amplified this much, the sequence could be analyzed to prove that this DNA did indeed code for TALENs. Young-Joon first loaded the DNA on agarose gel and viewed it under a UVmp. The amplified DNA was clearly visible. ¡®I found the weapon,¡¯ Young-Joon thought. Now, it was time to find the victim¡¯s wound. It was a serious crisis for a cell when a cut urred in the DNA. Fortunately, there was a mechanism in the cell that repaired DNA breaks, but it added or removed a few DNA bases when it was activated¡ªthis was called an indel. This phenomenon couldn¡¯t be picked out of the DNA like how Young-Joon found the TALENs, as these indels were scattered across billions of base pairs in a randomized pattern that was hard to recognize. Ordinary scientists wouldn¡¯t be able to find them, but Rosaline could. ¡°I¡¯m going to use Synchronization Mode,¡± Young-Joon said, looking at the DNA. [Synchronization Mode: InDel Pattern Analysis. Fitness consumption: -0.5/second] Young-Joon looked up in surprise. ¡°The fitness consumption is negative?¡± ¡ªIt¡¯s because of Lagba. Rosaline intervened. ¡ªThe fitness increase per second increased so much that the fitness isn¡¯t consumed with just Synchronization Mode. ¡°...¡± Young-Joon was a little shocked, but he quickly adjusted. ¡°Alright. Let¡¯s find the wound now.¡± With Synchronization Mode activated, Young-Joon analyzed the indel patterns of the two DNA samples, one by one. With his right hand, he wrote the patterns on a piece of paper. [Sample 1 TAM A779del LOS1A15 T112M ¡­] He was recording the pattern of variants at the manipted position of the manipted genes. Young-Joon found a total of one hundred ny-four gene variants in two samples. Along with the weapon, he also found the patients¡¯ wounds caused by the weapon. ¡°It¡¯s highly unlikely that this many gic variants would ur naturally without DNA maniption,¡± Young-Joon said. But in case they argued that it was natural, it would be best to prove that the inserted TALENs caused these mutations. Young-Joon prepared to do ChiP sequencing. Nanometers of DNA were wrapped around a polymeric biomolecule called histones. When a cut urred in the DNA, the histones also underwent a slight modification, which were called epigic modifications. The changes in histones were the most direct evidence that DNA had been cut. Young-Joon began to analyze the identified wounds using ChiP sequencing. * When Young-Joon left theb, it was already past ten o¡¯clock at night. Extreme fatigue weighed on his shoulders, but he had collected a good amount of evidence from two patient samples. ¡°Now we just need to repeat this for all the patients with gic conditions that we have here,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Well, I¡¯m going to hand this off to the medical staff now, so¡­¡± The biggest medical center in Nicaragua that was built in Kukra Hill had been in full operation since the morning. The doctors from A-GenBio were moving around busily and examining people. That¡¯s when Young-Joon noticed something unusual. The atmosphere here didn¡¯t feel like a hospital. Whereas hospitals usually felt quite solemn, this ce was buzzing with liveliness. Laughter from doctors and patients could often be heard through the open doors of the examination rooms. Music could be heard from the end of the hallway. When Young-Joon walked past the administration desk and went down to the hospital lobby on the first floor, he saw an amazing sight. Music was ying, and people were dancing and singing. Young-Joon froze for a moment. Thousands of Nicaraguan medical workers had been arriving at Kukra Hill sincest month. Interpreters had also volunteered toe here and help bridge thenguage barrier between Nicaragua, where Spanish was the officialnguage, and A-GenBio. There were a lot of volunteers who were Nicaraguan citizens as well, and they hade to the hospital to help with this bizarre medical project by cleaning and preparing meals. Many of them were hanging out noisily in the hospital lobby. The outside garden and the entrance were decorated with flowers and colored paper like a Christmas tree. They even set up tents outside the building and shared fruit and food. Even in Korea, at ces like Severance Hospital, people often put on performances in the hospital lobby to cheer up patients, but this was more like a festival. ¡°...¡± It was a refreshing shock for Young-Joon, who had been overwhelmed by thebination of Lofair, Groom Lake Base, patients with gic conditions, and Doctor Ref. ¡°It¡¯s the Maypole Festival,¡± said Professor Koh In-Guk. ¡°The Caribbean coast has the least rain from February to April, and the wells dry up in the hignd, causing problems with their drinking water and farming. It¡¯s the hardest time of the year for them, but the raindrops be thicker in May, which is why they celebrate it.¡± ¡°It¡¯s already past May¡­¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°It¡¯s a country with a lot of pain,¡± Koh In-Guk said. ¡°Your reputation in this country is almost equal to Sandino right now, themander of Nicaragua who fought against the U.S. military upation with a peasant army. They say he defeated the Green Berets with his peasant army.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Of course they would like you; you¡¯re not just treating one or two patients, but providing treatments to an entire poption of patients with incurable diseases.¡± ¡°I see.¡± Young-Joon hadn¡¯t thought of that in the midst of everything. The people of Nicaragua were celebrating. ¡°In fact, the scientists from A-GenBio and the doctors from our hospital areing in on their breaks and enjoying the festivities. They were acting all dignified and unphased at first, but now they¡¯re letting loose¡­ That¡¯s Professor Hwang Sam-Jun dancing over there right now.¡± Koh In-Guk pointed to the medical professor who was dancing with the crowd. Young-Joon chuckled. ¡°You should have some fun, too. The staff were going to call you here, but they couldn¡¯t find you¡­¡± said Koh In-Guk. ¡°I¡¯ll just watch,¡± Young-Joon replied. He sat on a chair outside the festival and watched the people, deep in thought. ¡®It¡¯s about time for Lofair to make a move.¡¯ Young-Joon recalled his phone call with Prime Minister Felus. The real power in the Lofair family came from the Federal Reserve, the central bank of the United States. Chapter 273: FRB (1)

Chapter 273: FRB (1)

¡ªThe Federal Reserve Bank is the actual ruler of the United States. That¡¯s what Prime Minister Felus told Young-Joon over the phone. ¡ªThe United States is the symbol of capitalism, and it¡¯s the heart of finance. The Federal Reserve is the one that prints the dor. The dor is a key currency, meaning that the dor was the basis for payments and financial transactions between countries. This was possible because the U.S. had thergest gold reserves in the world, overwhelmingly developed and sophisticated financial markets, and very stable credit and prices. The power to print money was truly the royal seal of the capitalist era, capable of dictating markets. But what most people, including Americans, didn¡¯t realize is that the U.S. government doesn¡¯t have the power to print money. The U.S. government doesn¡¯t own a single share of stock in the Federal Reserve¡ªit was one hundred percent a private bank. And the majority of that private ownership was held by the big Wall Street banks, which were effectively controlled by the Lofair family. In other words, when the U.S. government needed dors, it borrowed them by selling bonds to the Federal Reserve and paying interest, rather than producing them directly. Of course, since the bonds were issued by the government, the debt and interest were paid off by the taxes of the people. This meant in order for the government to produce dors, it had to collect taxes and pay them back to the Lofair family. ¡°What kind of system is that?¡± Young-Joon asked in disbelief. In Korea, this would mean that the ¡®S¡¯ conglomerate owned the central bank, and the Korean government had to request and borrow from the ¡®S¡¯ conglomerate whenever it wanted to issue the won. ¡ªAnd the Federal Reserve has been very unproductive for a long time. The most obvious example is the Great Depression. The Federal Reserve already anticipated the probability of a Great Depression as early as 1928. Any expert could see that the stock market was overly inted. Felus went on. ¡ªIf the Federal Reserve had manipted the open market and bought government bonds at that time, interest rates would have fallen naturally, and the Great Depression could have been averted. If we abandoned the gold standardter, the vicious cycle of the depression wouldn¡¯t have be so severe. ¡°...¡± ¡ªIt was more like the Federal Reserve abandoned its role as the lender ofst resort. It took on no responsibility. ¡°Is this how non-majors feel when I talk about biology?¡± ¡°No, I¡¯m sure you¡¯re busy, but I¡¯ll look it up on Wikipedia or listen to a lecture.¡± ¡ªAnyway, to summarize, the Federal Reserve hasn¡¯t been doing its job as a central bank since the Great Depression. Felus went on. ¡ªAnd the profits that the Federal Reserve was making went to the Lofair family and the Jewishmunity. I was fed up with that, and that¡¯s why I left the financial sector. ¡°Then you went to Israel?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡ªYes. The founding of Israel itself is the power of the Jewishmunity. They controlled all the world¡¯s finances, and that¡¯s why they were able to get the British to do things like the Balfour Deration. ¡ªI always felt like a sinner when I was in finance, but I thought it would be a penance to work here to build peace. ¡°... Thank you.¡± ¡ªDoctor Ryu. ¡°Yes?¡± ¡ªDon¡¯t fight the Lofairs. You¡¯d be better off getting rid of the Chinese president two times. The Lofair family are the oldest guards of power. Felus warned Young-Joon. ¡ªThey¡¯ve colluded with the media, corporations, and politics and built a very solid fortress around money. Their hands extend into the CIA, which is directly under the president, and they¡¯re very good at assassinations, manipting public opinion, economic pressure, and all kinds of sabotage. Multiple American presidents have fallen because they couldn¡¯t ovee that family. ¡°Thank you for your advice,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡ªThen... ¡°But I have a bigger power behind me. Don¡¯t worry.¡± * After much consideration, Alphonse Lofair came to a conclusion. ¡®The medical project in Nicaragua isn¡¯t about the humanitarian act of treating patients or research, it¡¯s about pressuring me.¡¯ Alphonse thought about the evidence that Young-Joon could possibly find there. There was no pattern to the gic mutations, and even if he could find one, there was no way to link it to the Lofair family as all the evidence was destroyed. It was thirty years ago. Most of the people who weren¡¯t necessary at the time were killed, and many of the remaining people involved aged and passed away naturally. The people who were still alive were either silenced or from orphanages,pletely unaware that they were gically modified. The Groom Lake Air Force Base in Nicaragua didn¡¯t exist anymore, and other buildings were standing on its site. There was no way to dig down and find any remains. The Somoza government of Nicaragua didn¡¯t even know there was a genomicsb in the first ce; they just thought it was a U.S. air base called Groom Lake. When they left, they even wiped out all records of the base. Even after the Sandinista government was established, all information about the base was kept secret, and they never obtained any information about it. There was some information left in the CIA¡¯s database, but it required authorization at the director or the presidential level to ess it. ¡®There¡¯s no evidence left.¡¯ But Alphonse was someone who didn¡¯t tolerate enemies who challenged him. ¡°Alphonse?¡± Tate Lofair knocked on the door. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Everyone is waiting for you. Can youe down?¡± ¡°Sure, let¡¯s go.¡± Alphonse opened the door and went down the stairs. A small party was being held on the first floor of the Lofair mansion. Not a lot of people were invited, but their collective power could change the course of the United States presidential race. Key executives from the New York Times, USA Today, the New York Post, The Onion, and countless other media organizations were in attendance. ¡°I invited you all because it¡¯s been so long since I¡¯ve seen the speakers of America,¡± Alphonse said. Everyone here was on edge, all of them aware of the extent of Lofair¡¯s power. Getting on Lofair¡¯s bad side right now could result in a tax investigation by the government, or investors could start pressuring them to return their money. But if they get on Lofair¡¯s good side, some of the biggestpanies coulde to them for advertising, or the biggest Wall Street banks could offer their investment. Journalists could work with a sense of duty, but the press needed money to work, whether it was a left-wing or right-wing media outlet. ¡°I¡¯m going to give you a big news story,¡± Alphonse said. ¡°It¡¯s that Doctor Ryu Young-Joon has gone to Nicaragua to do a big medical project.¡± ¡°...¡± The hall was filled with silence. It was public knowledge that Young-Joon went to Nicaragua and opened a medical center to treat patients. As such, Alphonse¡¯s statement had an ulterior motive. ¡°Why did he go to Nicaragua, of all countries? As you know, the Sandinista government has been very anti-American and left-wing since the Cold War,¡± Alphonse said. ¡°The markets are always driven by the principle of efficiency, but governments are not. Governments can be corrupt, and often are when too much power is concentrated in the hands of a few people.¡± Alphonse raised his wine ss, and all the journalists in the room followed. ¡°I¡¯m d that¡¯s not the case in the United States. If there was too much power concentrated in the government, they could have secretly paid Doctor Ryu some kind ofpensation to get the medical project¡ªespecially the first target of the project that no one knew about,¡± Alphonse said. ¡°Here¡¯s to free markets and a free America.¡± Then, he drank his wine. Young-Joon was not going to be able to find any evidence. And even if he did find something, he couldn¡¯t connect it to Lofair. But in Lofair¡¯s perspective, Young-Joon had too many weaknesses¡ªa prophet with a powerful reputation could be destroyed with a single streak. The truth was irrelevant. They needed a rumor that Young-Joon, the head of A-GenBio, was taking a bribe and carrying out hispany project in Nicaragua. ¡®And one more thing.¡¯ Alphonse checked his email on his phone. It was from the chief operations officer at the CIA. [Instructions confirmed.] Alphonse was told that Isaiah Franklin, the most important witness, had a serious medical condition and didn¡¯t have much time left. It wouldn¡¯t be strange if she passed a few days earlier. * Ring! As Young-Joon was gathering his thoughts while watching the festivities at the Nicaraguan medical center, an email popped up on his phone. It was from the secretary¡¯s office at A-GenBio, who forwarded him a document from Harvard Medical School. [smid transport records from Professor George Thompson¡¯sb at Harvard Medical School.] Young-Joon opened the file. [1967: Three kinds of smids were donated for research purposes to Groom Lake Air Force Base located northeast of Siuna, Nicaragua.] A smid was a circr piece of DNA with a specific gene inserted into it. Young-Joon opened the data on the smid. ¡°This is a pretty big jackpot.¡± Then, he smiled with satisfaction. The smids were named ¡°Helper DNA¡± and ¡°pGT0818¡±, which were for virus production. A search for ¡°pGT0818¡± on the Addgene website showed George Thompson¡¯sb as the creator, and this smid contained TALEN DNA. The Lofair family was meticulous in erasing their records. They even removed any trace of transactions or royalty payments from Harvard¡¯s administrative offices. It was a prettyplete destruction of evidence, but they didn¡¯t take into ount the handwritten notes in George Thompson¡¯s privateb. The Lofair family probably didn¡¯t consider this, but professors often left notes. They did this because they could potentially n coborative research or take credit if someone used their DNA and obtained valuable data. Normally, human experimentation at an air base would lead to an investigation of the victims and suspects, but Young-Joon was tracking them at the DNA level to begin with. [Professor George Thompson has asked you to give a lecture at Harvard in exchange for the above material.] Young-Joon chuckled after reading the entire email. [Please tell him that I will schedule er. Thank you.] Young-Joon stood up after replying to the email. He had most of the cards now. * Robert was injecting something into Isaiah Franklin¡¯s arm with a needle. It had to be done quickly, out of the sight of other agents. ¡°What is this?¡± Isaiah Franklin asked. She was bruised and battered from a pretty grueling interrogation, but her eyes still had the fierceness of a wild dog. ¡°Doctor Ryu made this. He said it won¡¯t cure you, but it¡¯s a lot better than what you¡¯ve been taking. It hasn¡¯t gone through clinical trials or anything, but it¡¯s not like you have another choice.¡± ¡°Hmph.¡± ¡°He went to Nicaragua, but he said he¡¯ll cure you when he gets back.¡± ¡°What?¡± Isaiah Franklin¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°Doctor Ryu went to Nicaragua?¡± Chapter 274: FRB (2)

Chapter 274: FRB (2)

¡°Yeah, he went to Nicaragua,¡± Robert replied. Isaiah Franklin froze. ¡°Is Doctor Ryu investigating patients with gic conditions there?¡± she asked. ¡°How did you know?¡± Robert¡¯s eyes widened, and Isaiah Franklin clenched her teeth. ¡°He¡¯s crazy... Absolutely insane...¡± Young-Joon knew that Isaiah Franklin was a gically modified human and that she was from Groom Lake Air Force Base. But then, he decided to go to Nicaragua all of a sudden and examine individuals with gic conditions? He was obviously trying to catch the hical research that took ce at that facility. ¡°Is he crazy?!¡± Isaiah Franklin shouted. ¡°Why doesn¡¯t Ryu Young-Joon know how toy low? That bastard! Why is he doing that when he knows what kind of person he¡¯s up against?¡± ¡°W-What are you talking about?¡± Robert asked, flustered. ¡°Damn it... Robert, you seem to be the most sensible out of all the agents I¡¯ve met since I got here, and you seem friendly to Doctor Ryu, so I¡¯m going to ask you for a favor.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t. I¡¯m supposed to be interrogating you.¡± ¡°Protect Ryu Young-Joon,¡± she said. ¡°It might be toote already, but...¡± Thud. The door to the interrogation room opened. CIA Agent Whittaker walked in with the chief operations officer. At the top of thedder, there were three mainmanders. First, there was the director. The director was the most powerful person and had all authority over the CIA, but they rarely actually worked for the agency. This was because the director held a cab-level position and was primarily responsible to the DNI, the White House, and Congress. Second, there was the deputy director. They were effectively the administrative head of the CIA¡ªthey set internal policy and directed the agency¡¯s various operations. However, the director and deputy director were actually politicians appointed by the president to work at the CIA. What the CIA actually did dependedrgely on the discretion of the chief operations officer, who served as the bridge between the directors and the agency. The chief operations officer was not a politician, but a CIA operative who had worked for the CIA for a long time; the person who rose to the highest position among them was appointed as the chief. ¡°...¡± Robert became a little nervous. ¡°I heard that you haven¡¯t gotten any information so far,¡± said the chief operations officer. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, sir. We tried confession drugs, but they did not work,¡± Whittaker said. ¡°... The Director told you to do the best you can within thew only because he¡¯s a politician,¡± said the chief operations officer. ¡°As the operatives, we should be able to do things outside thew out of patriotism if necessary.¡± He briskly walked towards Isaiah Franklin and pulled out a gun. ¡°There are nine bullets loaded in this pistol,¡± he said to Isaiah Franklin. ¡°Seeing that you haven¡¯t said anything so far, I¡¯m guessing you¡¯re prepared to die anyways, so let¡¯s not drag this out. I¡¯ll interrogate you eight times and let you go.¡± Robert and Whittaker¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°Sir!¡± ¡°This is best for the country.¡± The chief pointed his pistol at Isaiah Franklin¡¯s arm. He moved so quickly that neither Robert nor Whittaker had time to stop him. Psh! Hot sparks flew from the silencer attached to the pistol. Isaiah Franklin groaned softly at the tearing pain in her muscles. ¡°Agh...¡± ¡°I¡¯ll give you ten minutes. If you change your mind, talk.¡± Pew! Pew! The chief fired two more bullets, alternating between her left and right arm. ¡°Sir, wait!¡± Robert and Whittaker, who hade to their senses, ran towards the chief operations officer and tried to restrain him. ¡°We¡¯re here to gain information, not kill her!¡± ¡°That¡¯s why she can keep her mouth shut,¡± said the chief. ¡°I¡¯m really going to kill her. I hear she¡¯s got some kind of illness and doesn¡¯t have long to live anyway.¡± He fired another bullet into her thigh. ¡°Tell me where the polyomavirus and botulinum toxin are going to be used.¡± As he pointed the pistol at the other thigh... Thud! The door to the interrogation room opened. Robert¡¯s knees almost gave out in surprise, as Director Harris of the CIA and President Campbell walked in. ¡°M-Mr. President? Mr. Director?¡± ¡°Step aside,¡± Campbell said. He approached Isaiah Franklin and examined her face. ¡°Did you torture her?¡± Campbell asked Harris. ¡°I told them to do the best they could within the limits of thew. But this...¡± Harris gulped, looking at the gunshot wound. ¡°I did it,¡± said the chief operations officer. ¡°Were you going to kill her?¡± Harris asked. ¡°I believed you were thinking the same thing, Mr. Director.¡± ¡°Stop making nonsense usations and leave.¡± Harris pointed at the lobby. ¡°...¡± The chief operations officer nced at Campbell. ¡°Sir, this is dangerous. Be careful.¡± His advice held weight. Click. Campbell let out a small sigh as the chief operations officer left. ¡°I don¡¯t know if he means to be careful of Lofair or this terrorist.¡± ¡°I¡¯m guessing the former,¡± Harris said. ¡°Aren¡¯t you afraid of Lofair?¡± ¡°I am, which is why I was going to eliminate Isaiah Franklin at first, but I work for the White House. I work for the president,¡± Harris said. ¡°... I can trust you, right?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°Wait, I can¡¯t follow what you are saying right now,¡± Whittaker intervened. ¡°What are you talking about?¡± Campbell and Harris nced at Whittaker and Robert, who seemed confused. ¡°Wait...¡± said Isaiah Franklin, who was groaning from pain. ¡°I don¡¯t think the president woulde all this way to personally interrogate a terrorist like me,¡± she said in a diminishing voice, ¡°You¡¯re talking about whether to be afraid of Lofair or not, so I¡¯m guessing you¡¯re betting on Ryu Young-Joon?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Campbell replied briefly and turned to Harris. ¡°Director Harris, the CIA is too dangerous. They have too many connections here. And since she can¡¯t testify or anything in this state, let¡¯s get her to safety and seek medical attention.¡± ¡°Understood.¡± ¡°Crazy bastards. We¡¯re going to have another presidential election,¡± Isaiah Franklin said. ¡°Look, I don¡¯t care if your government falls, I don¡¯t care if your president dies. I don¡¯t care if A-GenBio falls into the hands of Lofair, but Ryu Young-Joon can¡¯t die. The Lofairs will pull out all the stops. Keep him safe.¡± ¡°It¡¯s none of your business,¡± Harris said. Harris then nced at Robert and Whittaker, gesturing with his head. ¡°Let¡¯s take her outside. We need to keep her out of people¡¯s sight. There¡¯s a safe house out in Virgina and a doctor we can trust.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°We can trust them, too, right?¡± Campbell asked Harris. ¡°They are skilled officers, clean guys who have never taken sides. They still believe the CIA is an organization dedicated to serving the nation,¡± Harris said. Campbell chuckled. He led the men through a secret passage to a waiting vehicle. Isaiah Franklin, who was bandaged up to slightly stem the bleeding, was in critical condition. ¡°Just hold on a little longer,¡± Harris said. Isaiah Franklin, sitting weakly in the back seat, looked at Campbell. The car began moving. ¡°A long time ago, when the Federal Reserve Act was passed...¡± Campbell said. ¡°Senator Charles Lindbergh said, ¡®From the moment the President signed the bill intow, an invisible government of plutocracy was authorized in the United States. One day, the people will have to re-engage in an independence movement to free themselves from it.¡¯¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I already bet on the underdog in this game, and I think they¡¯re going to win.¡± * ¡°What?¡± eximed Director Kim Young-Hoon in surprise. The news from the CEO secretary¡¯s office was shocking. ¡°The American media is reporting on Mr. Ryu¡¯s alleged breach of trust,¡± Yoo Song-Mi said, her voice trembling. ¡°Mr. Ryu? Breach of trust? What the hell are you talking about?¡± ¡°Would you like to read it?¡± Yoo Song-Mi handed Kim Young-Hoon an article from the New York Post. [... A-GenBio¡¯s recent project is very sudden, considering that it is in coboration with the government of a country. It was decided without the approval of the board of directors, which was possible because CEO Ryu Young-Joon is in sole control of management. As such, it¡¯s questionable whether it was a reasonable decision-making process for a publicly tradedpany. [There is another problematic aspect. The pharmaceuticals that A-GenBio delivered to Nicaragua were valued at seven billion dors. Including the transportation costs and manpower, it would be worth tens of billions of dors. However, A-GenBio only received fifteen billion dors from the Nicaraguan government. [Considering that there are many governments in the developed world that would pay much more for A-GenBio¡¯s visiting healthcare project, thepany¡¯s decision to proceed with Nicaragua is puzzling. [Even if it was a humanitarian project to prioritize aid to underdeveloped countries, this project bes CEO Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s mistake, as a publicly tradedpany should function for the benefit of its shareholders, not for the public good. [In this context, rumors that CEO Ryu Young-Joon received a bribe from the Nicaraguan government...] ¡°What is this bullshit!¡± Kim Young-Hoon shouted in anger. ¡°Put out a press release immediately! There is no such thing, and the reason why A-GenBio chose Nicaragua as its first project is because the country has a poption of six million, which is a good sample size for a pilot experiment, and a significant percentage of them have gic conditions! ¡°And getting approval from the board of directors for a ten billion dor project at apany as big as ours? Ha! They don¡¯t even do that. Those crazy bastards...¡± Kim Young-Hoon trembled at this pointless and tant attack. ¡°Come to think of it, A-GenBio is apany that works for the benefit of its shareholders, not humanity! That¡¯s why the CEO himself went to Nicaragua to do more research in order to grow our share and increase shareholder profits!¡± ¡°Sir!¡± Someone barged into Kim Young-Hoon¡¯s office. It was the manager of the corporate nning division. ¡°What is it now?!¡± asked Kim Young-Hoon, trying to control his nerves. ¡°Chenover Financial Holdings in the United States have made a public announcement!¡± ¡°What announcement?¡± ¡°They announced that they own a five percent stake of A-GenBio!¡± ¡°What?¡± Holding a five percent stake required a public disclosure because having that much gave one the right to participate in management. Conversely, if someone owned less than that, they didn¡¯t have to disclose. Wall Street banks,rge corporations, and private individuals had bought A-GenBio shares in very small amounts. A-GenBio¡¯s management was aware of this, but it was such a small amount that they didn¡¯t pay much attention to it. But now, the small shares held by eighty-seven financial firms and banks around the world, and two hundred eleven wealthy individuals, had moved all at once. It all moved to Chenover Financial Holdings, leading to five percent, which was not a small amount. ¡°Wait, how is that possible? How could one institution buy all of that in one day, as if they promised?¡± asked Kim Young-Hoon, flustered. ¡°I need to get a call,¡± Yoo Song-Mi said, stepping out of the room. ¡°Who¡¯s the CEO of Chenover Financial Holdings?¡± Kim Young-Hoon asked the division manager. ¡°It¡¯s Tate Lofair.¡± ¡°Does he want to participate in our management?¡± Kim Young-Hoon asked. This was obviously a hostile investment. Of course, given the overwhelming equity Young-Joon had and friendly stakes, five percent was not enough to shake up the management. But it also wasn¡¯t a negligible value. ¡°Yes. They have called for a board meeting. The agenda shows that they want a full overview and breakdown of A-GenBio¡¯s project in Nicaragua...¡± ¡°What the fxxk is up with Nicaragua that the United States is making such a fuss over them? Did they bury gold there or something?¡± Kim Young-Hoon pulled on his hair in annoyance. ¡°Sir!¡± Yoo Song-Mi ran into his office again. ¡°What else? Please tell me it¡¯s good news this time.¡± ¡°It¡¯s Mr. Ryu on the phone.¡± She handed him her phone, which was connected to a call from the secretary¡¯s office. * ¡°You don¡¯t need to worry,¡± Young-Joon said in a calm voice. ¡ªYou¡¯ve hinted before that your project in Nicaragua might conflict with U.S. banks. Please tell me honestly: who exactly are you dealing with now, and what is it about? ¡°It¡¯s the Lofair family, a big yer in the financial world. The head of the family, Alphonse Lofair, conducted human experiments while running the National Institute of Health in Nicaragua,¡± Young-Joon exined. ¡ªMy god... Kim Young-Hoon took a deep breath. ¡ªNo wonder the attack was so strong. Now they¡¯ve demanded that the board of directors convene. What are you going to do... ¡°Don¡¯t worry. We¡¯ve already won,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡ªWhat? ¡°I have all the cards in my hand. I just need a little more time. Tell them I¡¯ll hold the A-GenBio board meeting in three weeks.¡± ¡ªThree weeks? ¡°Yes. The situation wille to an end in the meantime.¡± Then, Young-Joon hung up the phone. Evidence proving that the patients¡¯ DNA had been tampered with using TALENs was being collected on hisputer. Chapter 275: FRB (3)

Chapter 275: FRB (3)

Alphonse Lofair¡¯s breath stopped for a moment when he heard the news. ¡°President Campbell did what?¡± ¡°The President himself came into the interrogation room with Director Harris and took Isaiah Franklin.¡± ¡°What are you...¡± Alphonse frowned. ¡°It seems like Campbell is siding with Ryu Young-Joon,¡± said Tate Lofair. ¡°...¡± ¡°At this point, wouldn¡¯t it be safe to assume that Ryu Young-Joon has gathered some kind of evidence that he can use against us?¡± ¡°Evidence...¡± ¡°Campbell wouldn¡¯t have made such a reckless move if Ryu Young-Joon didn¡¯t have anything. Buying A-GenBio stock and running a news story was just to apply some light pressure, but I think we need to be a little more aggressive.¡± Alphonse thought for a moment, stroking his chin. ¡°Perhaps,¡± he said. ¡°Tate, Lincoln said something like this during the Civil War: ¡®I have two great enemies: one is the Confederate army, and the other is financial institutions. Thetter is more threatening, so I am more anxious than I was in the war.¡¯¡± ¡°...¡± Alphonse sighed. ¡°Some people suspect that my family assassinated Lincoln, but that was almost one hundred fifty years ago, so I don¡¯t know the truth. But one thing for sure is that we¡¯re not that cowardly now,¡± he said. ¡°For the most part.¡± Alhonse added, ¡°And Campbell has made a huge mistake. He¡¯s already ame duck with no power as the re-election approaches, and he¡¯s wasting his time on pointless things...¡± Then. Alphonse made a call. * Mistega, now in his third term as president of the Sandinista government, doubted his ears. ¡°What did you say?¡± ¡°Upon examining the patients, there was a very unexpected problem. Usually, people with gic conditions have mutations in two or three genes, but in Nicaragua, there were lots of people with mutations in hundreds and thousands of genes,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°If you look at the contract we wrote, it states that the fifteen billion dors includes medical services such as stem cell neural treatment for patients with incurable diseases that can be improved with chemical therapy, and customized artificial organ production services. However...¡± Young-Joon pointed at the contract. ¡°Gene correction requires a highly sophisticated gene surgery procedure using Cas9, and then it requires verification that the corrected stem cells are working properly. As such, up to one gene correction is included in the fifteen billion dor contract, but anything over that is an additional one hundred thousand dors per gene.¡± ¡°...¡± Mistega looked worried as he read the contract. ¡°So people with thousands of gic mutations...¡± ¡°It¡¯s going to cost a lot more than the initial contracted budget. Yes, it¡¯s very expensive, but considering the value of our technology, it¡¯s not an excessive charge.¡± ¡°But our government doesn¡¯t have that kind of budget. Is there an option of not doing the treatment or converting it into national debt?¡± ¡°It¡¯s possible, but the Nicaraguan government doesn¡¯t have to pay the astronomical cost,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°Charge the U.S. government. They are the reason your people have those gic mutations.¡± ¡°What are you talking about?¡± Mistega asked, confused. Young-Joon smiled and held out the data about TALENs he found¡ªthe Groom Lake Air Force Base, the TALENs used there, the viruses used for cellr delivery, and the hundreds and thousands of genes that were modified by the TALENs. Anothermon denominator among these patients was orphanages. Mistega¡¯s hands trembled as he read the documents. ¡°What is... Is this all real?¡± ¡°Yes, it is. And I was on the phone with President Campbell and Director Holdren the other day, and I think the U.S. government will probably concede if the Nicaraguan government sues them.¡± ¡°They will concede?¡± ¡°It is the U.S. government, but it¡¯s not the Campbell administration that will take the hit. It happened decades ago, and they are not at fault. If Nicaragua wins thiswsuit, the Campbell administration will gain a favorable precedent to bring down their political opponent,¡± Young-Joon said. Mistega had absolutely no idea what was going on. * ¡°Are you suggesting we propose a presidential impeachment?¡± Congressman Norton was on edge as he spoke to Alphonse Lofair on the phone. ¡ªYou may be in politics now because you were lucky enough to be included in President Bush¡¯s pardon, but won¡¯t you also suffer quite a bit if that scandal breaks out?¡± ¡°... Yes.¡± Norton sighed. He was one of the people involved in the Iran-Contra affair. At the time, he served as colonel in the military, and he was responsible for sending the proceeds from arms sales in Iran into the Groom Lake Air Force Base. After retiring, he moved into politics and became a powerful congressman in the House. ¡ªYou have a lot of influence in the House, and Campbell has a lot of issues, so it shouldn¡¯t be too difficult to blow one of them up and drag it into a prosecution. Alphonse went on. ¡ªIt doesn¡¯t matter if the impeachment doesn¡¯t actually happen, I just want that to be all what the American media talks about. The re-election ising up and since he¡¯s already ame duck, he won¡¯t be able to hold on. It won¡¯t be long before he copses. ¡°What specific issue do you suggest attacking?¡± ¡ªI don¡¯t know. In my opinion, going after the A-GenBio Cancer Laboratory would be a good move. Alphonse began exining his strategy. ¡ªIt¡¯s good timing because there are rumors using Ryu Young-Joon of breach of trust and taking money from the Nicaraguan government. So, attack whether the process of establishing the cancerb was reasonable. ¡°There are plenty of sessful biotech ventures in Silicon Valley, but giving A-GenBio, which hadn¡¯t been fully proven, a contract within just a few months and allowing them to establish a researchb in the U.S. was excessive favoritism. Is that the argument?¡± ¡ªEveryone has their dirtyundry. Something wille up if we create suspicion and get the prosecutors involved. ¡°I understand.¡± ¡ªWe just need to establish a connection between Campbell and Ryu Young-Joon. We have to attack first. ¡°But Mr. Lofair, if President Campbell has taken Isaiah Franklin, wouldn¡¯t revealing her be enough to pressure us?¡± ¡ªIt won¡¯t be easy because they don¡¯t have any other objective evidence. ¡°So a witness isn¡¯t enough?¡± ¡ªThat''s right. Isaiah was tortured by the CIA, an institution directly under the president. Isn''t it a bit odd for her testimony from the torture to be ''I was gically modified at Groom Lake Air Force Base'' rather than information about Palestinian rebel terrorist records? We could counterattack by questioning what kind of answer the CIA was trying to extract through torture. We could frame it as the president attacking us to seize financial power. ¡°I see.¡± ¡ªI¡¯m actually more bothered by Ryu Young-Joon. He¡¯s not the kind of guy to keep quiet. And A-GenBio¡¯s PR team put out a press release in response, and that¡¯s about it. Alphonse rubbed his chin. ¡ªWhat is he thinking? ¡°Anyway, I will go ahead and pressure President Campbell.¡± ¡ªYes. I¡¯ll make sure to contact the other congressmen. ¡°Thank you.¡± Norton ended the phone call and left his office. He asked his secretary¡¯s office to investigate how the U.S. government funded the creation of the A-GenBio Cancer Laboratory. ¡°If you see anything suspicious, tell me, no matter how small. Then, Norton went out for three hours to take care of business. On his way back to his office, he received shocking news. ¡ªSir! His secretary shouted over the phone. ¡°Did you find something?¡± Norton asked. ¡ªNo, but there¡¯s something you should know. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡ªThe Nicaraguan government has filed awsuit against our government. ¡°Awsuit?¡± ¡ªThey¡¯re iming damages for gic maniption at Groom Lake Air Force Base. ¡°...¡± Norton¡¯s mind went nk for a moment, and he almost hit the car in front of him. ¡ªSir? ¡°...¡± ¡ªSir, you¡¯ve been through the Iran-Contra affair before during the Heagan administration, so I wanted to let you know just in case... ¡°W-Wait, stop.¡± Norton felt his palms dampen with sweat. ¡°I have to make some calls, so call meter.¡± ¡ªWait. There¡¯s one more thing you should know. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡ªAn Arab man named Yassir is attracting media attention right now. ¡°Who¡¯s that?¡± ¡ªHe¡¯s an executive of apany called Philistines, and apparently he has something to testify about Isaiah Franklin, who was kidnapped by the CIA. ¡°Hugh!¡± Norton never knew that a person could make such a sound when truly shocked. ¡°O-Okay... Hang up for now...¡± Norton replied. He could barely talk through the breathtaking sensation. He quickly hung up and called Alphonse Lofair. * ¡°My name is Yassir, one of the executives of Philistines, a botulinum toxin manufacturer in Egypt,¡± Yassir said to the gathered reporters. ¡°I know it¡¯s been reported by the U.S. media, but ourpany imported a strain of botulinum from a Palestinian rebel terrorist named Isaiah Franklin when ourpany was starting up. We were unaware that she was a terrorist at the time and just thought she was an employee of Asham, the shippingpany.¡± Yassir added, ¡°Isaiah Franklin was a very intelligent and well-educated woman. She knew more about botulinum toxin than we did, and I became very close to her as I sought her out for research advice. I also heard many serious stories from her. I am here today to expose the important issues surrounding her birth.¡± Yassir finally revealed the bomb that had been hidden for the past thirty years. ¡°Isaiah Franklin is a gically engineered human being who was born from a human experiment conducted on a U.S. military base thirty years ago, during the Heagan administration,¡± he said. ¡°This is not a conspiracy theory or a sci-fi novel. She was actually born through gic engineering, and she is suffering from a severe condition called myelodysstic syndrome because of that. This is also why she doesn¡¯t have long to live.¡± Cameras shed all around Yassir. ¡°And Doctor Ryu Young-Joon has juste to the United States. As the media has revealed, he was instrumental in the arrest of Isaiah Franklin. He had the opportunity to meet her face-to-face in Saudi Arabia, and now he hase to the United States. Why do you think that is? It¡¯s to treat Isaiah Franklin!¡± Yassir shouted. ¡°It¡¯s understandable, given the humanitarian work Doctor Ryu has done while leading A-GenBio, and a cure could have been an important bargaining chip for a captured terrorist who is dying. But Doctor Ryu was turned away by the CIA.¡± ¡°Is that true?¡± ¡°How do you know?¡± The reporters began asking questions. ¡°Doctor Song here knows,¡± Yassir said, pointing to the seat next to him. Song Ji-Hyun flinched. She was a little confused as she sat facing the reporters¡¯ cannon-like cameras. She hade to the U.S. with a cute idea that was full of curiosity¡ªcollecting bacteria from the outer wall of the space station¡ªand now, she found herself in the middle of a war between big-shot monsters. But she wanted to protect him. She knew that this time, the opponent Young-Joon was fighting was not an easy target. ¡°I ovepped with Doctor Ryu almost everywhere in the United States. He also told me about Isaiah Franklin. He said it might take a few weeks of experimentation to treat her, saying that creating a treatment focused on prolonging life is simple but that his goal was to cure herpletely,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°Then, he left for Nicaragua in a matter of days, not weeks. He was dejected because the CIA refused to let him visit.¡± Then, Yassir intervened. ¡°I believe that the CIA refused to treat Isaiah Franklin because they wanted to deliberately kill her to cover up the secret of Groom Lake Air Force Base.¡± Chapter 276: FRB (4)

Chapter 276: FRB (4)

¡°They¡¯re taking the hit from everywhere,¡± said James Holdren. James Holdren and Director Harris were discussing their strategy in President Campbell¡¯s Oval Office. ¡°We didn¡¯t see thating,¡± Campbell said, chuckling as he watched Song Ji-Hyun and Yassir¡¯s announcement on a monitor. ¡°This makes things a little easier. The Nicaraguan government¡¯s attack started a fire, and these two are pouring oil on it. Now, we just have to pressure Heagan¡¯s cab members one by one.¡± ¡°And Lofair,¡± Holdren added. ¡°I¡¯m a little worried about the CIA, though...¡± Campbell said, ncing at Harris. ¡°It¡¯s alright. People will now realize that the power of financial authority has even reached the agencies directly under the President,¡± Harris said. ¡°You might be attacked,¡± Campbell said. ¡°It¡¯s fine. It¡¯s my fault. I was also going to kill Isaiah Franklin after getting some information from her. I didn¡¯t realize you would fight Lofair, sir.¡± Campbell nodded, looking apologetic. ¡°Harris. How is Isaiah Franklin doing?¡± ¡°She¡¯s out of the woods, but she¡¯s in no condition to testify,¡± Harris replied. ¡°And she¡¯s not cured yet, as Doctor Song and Yassir say, so we don¡¯t know when she¡¯s going to die?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°If Isaiah Franklin dies, it might change the dynamic of this fight,¡± Campbell said. ¡°Should we bring Doctor Ryu to the United States?¡± Harris asked. * ¡°I¡¯m going to go back to the U.S. for a bit, and then I might have to go to the Nethends,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°The Nethends?¡± Doctor Koo Yeon-Sung, the deputy director of the Next Generation Hospital, seemed a little taken aback by the unusual location. ¡°That¡¯s where the International Court of Justice is, so I will probably go there to testify for the Nicaraguan government,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I see.¡± Koo Yeon-Sung nodded. ¡°You are always such a busy man.¡± ¡°Well, everyone at ourpany and the Next Generation Hospital is busy, since we¡¯re pioneering the future of medicine.¡± ¡°Would you like to see some patients before you leave?¡± Koo Yeon-Sung asked. ¡°Patients?¡± ¡°There are some cured patients, some still undergoing treatment, some waiting... But they all want to see you, Mr. Ryu.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°You¡¯ve been doing research all this time, and you haven¡¯t met with patients, have you? This whole visiting hospital setup with six hundred doctors and an entire country is pretty novel. Wouldn¡¯t you like to take a look at it as the director?¡± ¡°Well, I am curious, but...¡± Young-Joon smiled a little embarrassedly and declined. ¡°It¡¯s alright. I didn¡¯t really do anything here. The Next Generation Hospital doctors were the ones who examined patients, and the A-GenBio scientists were the ones who designed the stem cells and Cas9.¡± Koo Yeon-Sung smiled. Young-Joon really was a humble person, as well as a principled man. ¡°It¡¯s doctors who see patients, not businessmen or scientists like me,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Alright. When are you leaving for the U.S.?¡± ¡°If everything goes well, probably the day after tomorrow.¡± Young-Joon returned to hisb. He organized all the data of the TALEN maniption and put it in his bag. ¡®I trust my doctors and staff, but I¡¯m just saying this out of unnecessary worry,¡¯ Young-Joon said to Rosaline. ¡®Can you scan the patients in this ward using Simtion Mode?¡¯ ¡ªYou want to see their prognosis? ¡®Since I¡¯ll be gone a while.¡¯ Rosaline popped out of Young-Joon¡¯s body and climbed up onto theb bench. She crouched and closed her eyes, and her red hair floated up. [Simtion Mode Activated.] There were around two hundred thousand people here, including the patients, volunteers, and the people who were enjoying the festival. Of those, twenty-three thousand two hundred ny-one of them were currently patients. Fourteen thousand five hundred fifty-nine of them were treated; most of them were hospitalized with a prescription for medication, while others were treated with A-GenBio¡¯s personalized therapies from various pipelines in order of urgency. Eight hundred forty-two patients with chronic neurological conditions received stem cell therapy. These patients suffered from a, carpal tunnel syndrome, Guiin-Barr¨¦ syndrome, diabetic neuropathy, Alzheimer¡¯s, schizophrenia, Huntington¡¯s, Parkinson¡¯s, spinal cord paralysis, and more. Some were cured, and most were fascinated by their progress. Artificial organs¡ªhearts, lungs, pancreata, livers, and kidneys¡ªwere designed and transnted into two hundred eleven patients. Some of them had gic conditions: for example, some of them suffered from congenital cirrhosis because they were born through gic engineering at Groom Lake. To create an artificial liver, the patient¡¯s own cells had to be de-differentiated and then differentiated into hepatocytes, which wasn¡¯t easy because all of the patient¡¯s cells already had the problematic mutation. In this situation, they had to take the patient¡¯s tissue, de-differentiate the cells into stem cells, correct the mutation using Cas9, gically test whether the corrections were made, and then induce differentiation into liver tissue. This would have been unthinkable just a few years ago, but now A-GenBio and the doctors at the Next Generation Hospital were able to do it quite easily. This was the concentration of cutting-edge technology. ¡ªThere¡¯s the polyomavirus. Rosaline observed through Simtion Mode. ¡°What?¡± Young-Joon¡¯s eyes widened.n ¡ªA significant portion of the patients here are infected with the polyomavirus. ¡°...¡± ¡ªCome to think of it, Yassir probably had a lot of time before he made that announcement, so he could have released it here beforehand since we were both too busy working on DNA research to pay attention to that. ¡°It¡¯s where most of the artificial organ transnts, stem cell therapy, and gene editing work are done, so if the virus was released here, it would easily prate deeply instead of staying near the respiratory tract. Did hee in disguised as a volunteer or a tourist and release the virus?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡ªI think so. And it¡¯s mostly a virus that carries morality genes. It¡¯s simr to the one that infected Lagba. ¡°Is it likely to cause any safety issues?¡± ¡ªIt¡¯s not a virus that normally causes disease. Lagba was a very, very unusual case. ¡°Yeah...¡± ¡ªSpeaking of which, I didn¡¯t know Yassir and Doctor Song would do that. Rosaline seemed surprised. ¡°Yassir probably did it to save Doctor Ref, but I was really surprised by Doctor Song. I thought she went home.¡± Young-Joon flinched. ¡°Wait. It¡¯s been weeks since I came to Nicaragua. If she hasn¡¯t gone back to Korea, what has she been doing?¡± * After she and Yassir made a major statement to the media, Song Ji-Hyun went to a small diner in suburban Washington by herself. She sat for a while until it was time. A fat woman walked into the restaurant and sat down across from Song Ji-Hyun. Her hat was pressed down, and she was wearing a mask and sses. ¡°Thank you foring forward, Doctor Elsie,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°I told you I wasn¡¯t going to do it, but things got interesting,¡± said Elsie after ordering an apple pie and a Coke. ¡°Doctor Elsie, are you going toe to the Nethends with me and testify?¡± ¡°I suppose so. The Lofair family¡¯s fortune began in the Bank of Amsterdam in the Nethends, and maybe it¡¯ll end there, too.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t do drugs anymore?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked. ¡°I quit.¡± ¡°You can just quit like that?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not like I liked it in the first ce.¡± Song Ji-Hyun began to reminisce about the first time she met Elsie. The unusual meeting between the two scientists was a few weeks back. * After seeing off Young-Joon at the airport for his flight to Nicaragua, Song Ji-Hyun listened to Yassir¡¯s eloquent persuasion. She was going to refuse, as Yassir seemed shady, and she didn¡¯t want to work with him. Then, Yassir changed his tactics and gave her Elsie¡¯s home address in America. ¡°This is Isaiah Franklin¡¯s biological mother and a former employee of A-GenBio¡¯s Life Creation Department. She¡¯s the one who recently met with Doctor Ryu in secret, and that¡¯s probably where Doctor Ryu heard about it and became interested in the scandal.¡± Song Ji-Hyun became very curious about Elsie. She felt a little uneasy after sending Young-Joon to Nicaragua alone, but it felt like meeting with Elsie would give her a clearer idea of what she needed to do. She went to the address Yassir had given her and opened the door, but what she saw inside shocked her. The house was almost like a garbage dump. Drugs and alcohol filled the room, and Elsie had gained a lot of weight and looked very haggard due to malnutrition and addiction. ¡°Doctor Song?¡± Elsie recognized Song Ji-Hyun¡¯s face and made a strange expression. It looked like a lot of things were on her mind. ¡°Are you here because of Rosaline? Or Doctor Ref?¡± ¡°... I want to help Doctor Ryu. Yassir told me toe here, and he said you would tell me about Isaiah Franklin.¡± ¡°Fine. I¡¯ll tell you about my daughter and Lofair. Come in.¡± Elsie cleaned her messy house a little and told Song Ji-Hyun about Groom Lake Air Force Base. Elsie knew everything. After hearing the story, Song Ji-Hyun had one question. Elsie Franklin was the biggest witness of the Groom Lake Air Force Base, the person who knew everything that happened, and the one who kept Isaiah Franklin alive. How was she, the only scientist who ever confronted Lofair, still alive? Why didn¡¯t Lofair kill her? Elsie¡¯s answers were more confusing and shocking than her family situation. ¡°Isaiah had been hanging out with Palestinian rebels since he was thirteen. She¡¯s won big prizes at international conferences and stuff, and she was offered a schrship at a university in Europe, but she declined it and joined the rebels,¡± Elsie said. ¡°Maybe that was for the best because who knows when she would have been killed if she stayed on the bright side. It¡¯s better if she¡¯s a Palestinian rebel who¡¯s atplete odds with the internationalmunity.¡± ¡°So you sent Isaiah there, and you went back to the U.S.?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked. ¡°Yes. I got a teaching job at New York University. I started doing research again, publishing papers and all that. I went back into academia,¡± Elsie said. ¡°At that point, I was thinking that Lofair could send someone to kill me at any moment. And I didn¡¯t care because I was tired of everything. But it was a drug dealer who came to me.¡± ¡°A drug dealer?¡± ¡°You think I became like this because of a failed career?¡± Elsie burst outughing and pointed to the drugs and alcohol bottles rolling around the room. ¡°Isaiah Franklin became Doctor Ref and joined the rebels, and if she was to attack someone, it would most likely be Lofair,¡± Elsie said. ¡°Lofair needed a hostage to stop Isaiah.¡± ¡°Then...¡± ¡°He needed me to threaten Isaiah without provoking her, but he wasn¡¯tfortable with letting me stay in academia since he would be in trouble if I built up a reputation and exposed him.¡± The gang that the drug dealer brought grabbed Elsie, who resisted, and forcibly injected her arm with drugs. They tied her up and then injected her at regr intervals for weeks, leaving her addicted. ¡°I was fired from the university, of course, and the funny thing is, the dealer paid me when I did the drugs they gave me. That was when I realized that I can¡¯t go back to academia now, and I started doing drugs partly because I wanted to and partly because they made me,¡± Elsie said. ¡°At this point, no one would listen to me even if I talked about Groom Lake because it would just be junkie bullshit.¡± * Crunch. Elsie took a bite of her apple pie. That sound brought Song Ji-Hyun back from reminiscence. ¡°Doctor Song,¡± Elsie said. ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t ask you before because I was out of it, but how much do you know about Rosaline?¡± ¡°Rosaline?¡± ¡°You know, did Doctor Ryu...¡± ¡°Oh! Doctor Ryu¡¯s niece?¡± Song Ji-Hyun said with a bright smile. ¡°Niece?¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you talking about Doctor Ryu¡¯s niece who lives in the U.S.? She¡¯s about this tall, smart, pretty, and she has red hair.¡± ¡°... What?¡± Elsie looked extremely confused. Chapter 277: FRB (5) ¡°Oh¡­ Are you talking about something else?¡± Song Ji-Hyunughed embarrassedly. ¡°I thought you were talking about Doctor Ryu¡¯s niece. Her name is also Rosaline.¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu has a niece who lives in the U.S.?¡± Elsie asked. Elsie had done quite a bit of research on Young-Joon¡¯s background because of her obsession with Rosaline, which was the beginning of a new life system and life creation. But she had never heard of him having rtives in the U.S. ¡°Yes. I¡¯ve met her, too. She looks a lot like Doctor Ryu, but her hair is red like she¡¯s mixed or something, and her Korean is a little awkward, too. But she can speak very well and smart,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°She talked about how the cocoa from a vending machine was full of bacteria.¡± She covered her mouth and giggled. ¡°... That¡¯s odd.¡± Elsie scratched her head. ¡°Who¡¯s the Rosaline you¡¯re talking about, Doctor Elsie? Is it someone else?¡± ¡°Uh¡­ That is¡­¡± Elsie hesitated a little, then said. ¡°Rosaline was the name I gave the artificial cell I was creating when I was in the Life Creation Department.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes. I took it from Rosaline Elside Franklin, who is¡­¡± ¡°The scientist who took the X-ray picture of the DNA double helix?¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°Yes. I see you know her,¡± Elsie replied. ¡°Of course. I¡¯m sure all female scientists in biology know her.¡± Song Ji-Hyun smiled innocently. It looked like she had no clue what history that name now had. For some reason, that innocence seemed to shine in Elsie¡¯s eyes. That¡¯s when she realized who she was talking to. Song Ji-Hyun was a woman, a scientist, and a top researcher who had developed a breakthrough liver cancer treatment called Cellicure. She published a series of monumental papers in Science and Nature with Young-Joon, and she was now next in line for the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. For Elsie, who started creating life because of the gender discrimination she faced when she entered the scientificmunity, Song Ji-Hyun was her ideal self. ¡°You¡­ are a candidate for the Nobel Prize. What does it feel like?¡± Elsie asked. ¡°Even if you ask me how it feels¡­ Well, it feels nice, but Doctor Ryu will probably get it anyway.¡± Song Ji-Hyun chuckled as she fiddled with her hair. ¡°Don¡¯t say that. You might get it, too,¡± Elsie said. ¡°Haha, maybe. But I never wanted the Nobel Prize in the first ce,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°Really?¡± Elsie replied, surprised. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Doctor Song, a total of six hundred seven people have won the Nobel Prize in Physiology, Chemistry, and Physics, but only twenty of them were women,¡± Elsie said. ¡°If you win the Nobel Prize, you be one of the rare female recipients. That doesn¡¯t make you want it?¡± ¡°Um, well. Not really.¡± Song Ji-Hyun shrugged. ¡°You must not have encountered much sexism in the scientificmunity. When I was doing my degree, there were plenty of people who madements about how women shouldn¡¯t go to graduate school and that women were not good at sciences because we were too emotional.¡± ¡°Of course, I did. I even had a pharmacy license, so my rtives would take turns nagging me about why a woman would go into research when it would be much morefortable to work in a pharmacy,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°But they all shut their mouths when I told them I was trying to cure my brother. He¡¯s schizophrenic. I think it¡¯s necessary to eliminate sexism in science, but I don¡¯t want to do science for that purpose.¡± Song Ji-Hyun took a sip of her coffee. ¡°Doctor Elsie, when Rosalind Franklin was studying science, she had a lot of conflicts with her father, who didn¡¯t like the idea of his daughter doing science.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. He said that female scientists were bound to fail¡­¡± ¡°But this is what Rosalind Franklin wrote to her father,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°¡®Science and everyday life cannot and should not be separated. Science allows me to understand life¡ªit gives me exnations based on facts, experience, and experimentation.¡¯¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°That¡¯s what science is to me. I¡¯m going to do science even if there¡¯s no reward. That¡¯s why the Nobel Prize is just like a bonus to me,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°Alright¡­¡± Elsie felt herself shrink in her seat for some reason. ¡°And I believe Doctor Ryu is the same as well. Sometimes, I get this strong science nerd vibe when I talk to him,¡± Song Ji-Hyun added with a chuckle. * ¡°What are you going to do?¡± asked Tate Lofair. ¡°ording to the chief operations officer, Director Harris and President Campbell took Isaiah Franklin to the suburbs of Washington, and no hospital in that direction received a patient like her,¡± said Alphonse Lofair. ¡°They probably called a doctor.¡± ¡°Probably. And since she¡¯s bleeding a lot and has myelodysstic syndrome or something, she won¡¯tst long even if they get the bullet out.¡± ¡°But the problem is Ryu Young-Joon.¡± ¡°Yeah. He¡¯s the problem with everything.¡± Alphonse stroked his chin. ¡°If the Nicaraguan government is suddenly suing the U.S. government, Ryu Young-Joon must have found something. But I have no idea what it is.¡± ¡°Whatever it is, he didn¡¯t find it by conventional means. It¡¯s probably another ridiculous mystery of biology or something,¡± Tate said. ¡°So Alphonse, if the evidence is too hard for the general public to understand anyways, we just have to stop him from exining it.¡± ¡°You want to kill Ryu Young-Joon?¡± Alphonse replied. ¡°If Ryu Young-Joon dies, Isaiah Franklin also dies if we drag out the trial.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Even if the Campbell administration admits that the Heagan administration ran Groom Lake based on CIA records, we have a pretty good shot if they don¡¯t have any other evidence.¡± ¡°Even if the Nicaraguan government wins, we can make it fizzle out. It won¡¯t be easy to appeal to the public, and the Campbell administration will have a hard time pressuring us.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°But killing Ryu Young-Joon is ast resort,¡± Alphonse said. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°He¡¯s too valuable to kill. Besides, if someone like him dies in the middle of awsuit like this, it will raise a lot of suspicions.¡± ¡°True, but¡­¡± ¡°Of course, in the worst case scenario, we¡¯ll have to kill Ryu Young-Joon since it¡¯s the surest way to go. But the best route is to have him avable to us to use while getting through this crisis unscathed.¡± ¡°Is that why you wanted me to look into his family?¡± Kimber asked as he came up the stairs. ¡°Yes,e here, Kimber,¡± Alphonse said, patting the sofa beside him. ¡°This is all of Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s family.¡± Kimber ced a photo of Young-Joon¡¯s parents and sister on the table. ¡°It won¡¯t be easy to pressure or bribe any of them, as Ryu Young-Joon is known to be very close to his family. His parents have bodyguards with them, and they¡¯re just staying home after returning from a recent trip.¡± Kimber pointed to the young woman in the picture. ¡°Ryu Ji-Won, his younger sister. She goes to Jungyoon University, and the apartment she and her family live in is right next to the back entrance of Jungyoon University. It will be difficult to do something as aggressive as kidnapping her in the university. We can¡¯t pressure her at work either.¡± ¡°...It¡¯s too tricky to go all the way to South Korea to get Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s family in the first ce. What are our other options?¡± ¡°Who¡¯s this?¡± Tate intervened and pointed to the photo of a girl who looked about nine years old. ¡°This is Ryu Sae-Yi, Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s youngest sister, but she¡¯s already dead.¡± ¡°I see¡­¡± Alphonse said. ¡°But there¡¯s something strange.¡± Kimber pulled out another photo. ¡°This picture was posted on Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s fan page a long time ago, but it was buried.¡± It was a photo of Young-Joon and Ryu Sae-Yi at an amusement park, only her hair was red. ¡°It was taken a few months ago,¡± Kimber said. ¡°What is this?¡± Alphonse frowned. ¡°Am I just not good at recognizing Asian faces? She looks exactly like the youngest sister who died. Who is this?¡± ¡°Apparently, she¡¯s a rtive who lives in the U.S.¡± ¡°Is she actually dead?¡± ¡°The youngest has been dead for a few years. Even if it¡¯s the same person, she should be older,¡± Kimber said. ¡°This girl, who is said to be his rtive, supposedly visited Ryu Young-Joon¡¯spany once. But after a few days of walking around here and there, she disappeared.¡± ¡°...¡± Alphonse felt a strong intuition. ¡®This is it. This is his weakness.¡¯ That was what all of Alphonse¡¯s senses were telling him as a sessful scientist, opportunist, and talented financier and businessman. The stabbing pain in his ears felt the same as when he¡¯d snagged the chance to research embryology in Nicaragua, a country torn between the U.S. and the Soviet Union, and then a deal to share the Mir Space Station at NASA. This was his chance. ¡°Find this girl,¡± he said. ¡°This girl is Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s weakness.¡± * The International Court of Justice, located in the Peace Pce in The Hague, Nethends, was the judicial branch of the United Nations, and one of its six main institutions. This institution had already dealt with a case between the United States and Nicaragua once before when the Iran-Contra affair broke out. The Nicaraguan government sued the United States for vitions of internationalw back then as well. The International Court of Justice ruled justly. ¡°The United States vited its obligations under internationalw not to use force against another state, not to interfere in the internal affairs of another state, and not to infringe on the sovereignty of another state.¡± The lengthy ruling, spanning sixteen points, included an order for the United States to pay reparations to Nicaragua. ¡°And the United States ignored it,¡± muttered Joanne Abraham, one of the fifteen judges of the International Court of Justice, to herself. Surprisingly, the U.S. had argued in its defense that it was exercising its right to collective self-defense at the request of El Salvador. But after losing the case, the U.S. shifted its attitude to not even recognising the judicial authority of the International Court of Justice. They simply ignored the trial altogether, even though there was an American judge on the bench. It was an abuse of power that only a losing country couldmit. Nicaragua took the issue back to the UN Security Council, but the United States, a permanent member of the Council, exercised its veto and dismissed it. Nicaragua then appealed to the UN General Assembly, and a resolution forpensation passed by an overwhelming vote of ny-four to three, but the U.S. government ignored it as well. ¡°What will be of that poor, unfortunate Latin American country¡¯s nightmare this time¡­¡± Joanne Abraham checked her calendar. This time next week, a trial that would remind them of a historical moment was going to be held. Chapter 278: FRB (6)

Chapter 278: FRB (6)

Young-Joon packed his bags early in the morning. It was still dark outside. It was time to leave the medical center in Kukra Hill. He walked out of his room and into the hallway, and Kim Chul-Kwon, the head of his security team, and his bodyguards were waiting for him. ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± Kim Chul-Kwon said. ¡°It might be dangerous when we go to the United States now. There¡¯s a powerful person targeting me. Do you think you¡¯ll be okay?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°I sometimes feel like I¡¯m going to die when I¡¯m with you, but I¡¯m used to it now. Don¡¯t worry,¡± Kim Chul-Kwon replied with a smile. ¡°After all, I¡¯m the one who kept you safe in China, right?¡± Kim Chul-Kwon tapped Young-Joon on the shoulder. There was something reassuring about his strong, muscr arm. ¡°Thank you,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Let¡¯s leave quietly so that we don¡¯t wake the patients.¡± Young-Joon walked down the hallway, protected by his security team. All but two fluorescent lights were off, and it was deserted. The quiet, chilly early morning air surrounded them. Young-Joon went down the stairs at the end of the hall and walked out the door. He was now on the first floor of the ward. It was where the administration front desk was, where the patients waited, and where the festival took ce. Then, Young-Joon saw an unexpected sight. ¡°Uh...¡± It was nearly four o¡¯clock in the morning, but hundreds of people filled the lobby. They were Nicaraguan patients, caregivers, and volunteers. ¡°Doctor Ryu!¡± The crowd swarmed around Young-Joon and quickly surrounded him and his security team. ¡°We heard you¡¯re going to the Nethends.¡± ¡°I heard you¡¯re going to fight the U.S. government.¡± ¡°...¡± Actually, Young-Joon wasn¡¯t going to the Nethends; he was going to the United States. He wasn¡¯t fighting the U.S. government; he was fighting the Lofair family, the financial authority. Young-Joon nodded along, even though it was somewhat untrue. ¡°That¡¯s right. I apologize for leaving first. But even if I go, the doctors and scientists from my hospital andpany will all stay here. They¡¯ll take care of you, so don¡¯t worry too much.¡± Young-Joon thought they hade to stop him from going, as it could be concerning that the head of the medical project was leaving. However, the people had gathered for a different reason. ¡°Please don¡¯t get hurt,¡± said the Spanish interpreter who came to volunteer. ¡°We all know that you are fighting the U.S. government for us.¡± ¡°Thank you, Doctor Ryu.¡± ¡°Thank you so much.¡± ¡°Please take care of yourself.¡± ¡°I wish you luck.¡± Everyone put their hands together and closed their eyes like they were praying, as they gave a short blessing to Young-Joon in English. ¡°I heard the reason you came to our country was to heal the patients who were victimized by the U.S. and getpensation for them...¡± said the interpreter. ¡°Thank you so much.¡± People were crying and praying. Suddenly, a middle-aged woman stepped in front of Young-Joon. ¡°Nacatamal. Nacatamal.¡±[1] A woman suddenly reached her hand over Kim Chul-Kwon¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Whoa!¡± Surprised, Kim Chul-Kwon blocked her. She flinched and took a step back, then carefully showed him her hand. In her palm, which was callused from working in a kitchen, was something that looked like a corn cake wrapped in banana leaf. It was a traditional food of Nicaragua. ¡°She told you to eat it on the ne,¡± said the interpreter. Young-Joon reached out above Kim Chul-Kwon¡¯s shoulder and took the food cautiously. ¡°Thank you.¡± Then, one by one, the citizens gained courage and came forward, sharing tokens of their gratitude. This was a very poor country, with only cow-drawn carts traveling through the streets. It was part of Spain after Columbus discovered it, and after independence, it suffered from armed intervention by the United States and vicious exploitation by a dictatorial military government. The Sandinistas¡¯ unity and persistent struggle finally led to the establishment of a democratic government, but times were still tough. They lived by harvesting sugar cane with scythes and no mechanized equipment. There were many thieves and robbers, and it was not safe. As hard as life was for most people, their gifts were modest, such as a bundle of sugar cubes, a jar of tea leaves, and a paper doll the size of one¡¯s palm. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but we¡¯re very busy right now. And we can¡¯t carry much, so we can¡¯t ept all of these.¡± Kim Chul-Kwon and Young-Joon¡¯s bodyguards began to block people and turn them away. ¡°Ocupado! Ocupado!¡±[2] Some people waved their hands to open a path in the crowd. ¡°Thank you.¡± Young-Joon thanked them and left with his security team. The crowd watched Young-Joon leave, and they remembered Augusto C¨¦sar Sandino, a symbol of the anti-American struggle in Latin America. They all put their hands together and prayed for his safety. * There were manyrge campgrounds near the Potomac River, which ran through northern Virginia. Recently, there have been some suspicious peopleing and going in the woods northeast of the intersection of MacArthur Boulevard and Brickyard Road. At first nce, they looked like local drunks who had lost their way or unemployed middle-aged men, but they were the official top brass of the United States. CIA Director Harris was raking leaves in the middle of the woods while wearing a simple disguise. After raking enough leaves, a door and a staircase leading to the basement appeared. It was Harris¡¯ personal safe house, and it was about fifteen pyeong.[3] There were six people inside: Robert, Isaiah Franklin, and a medical team from Johns Hopkins University. ¡°How¡¯s she doing?¡± Harris asked. ¡°She¡¯s really not doing well...¡± Albert, a professor of the Department of Surgery at Johns Hopkins University, was fighting for Isaiah Franklin¡¯s life in the safe house. Isaiah Franklin was in very poor health to begin with as she suffered from myelodysstic syndrome. In addition to being exhausted from the long interrogation, she had been shot in various ces and had lost a lot of blood. She lost consciousness during the car ride, so she had to receive some basic first aid at Bannockburn Memorial Hospital beforeing to the safe house since Lofair could track them if she was hospitalized. ¡°Shouldn¡¯t she still be hospitalized?¡± Robert asked. ¡°No. The chief operations officer searched all the big hospitals in the direction we traveled. They would have caught us in no time.¡± ¡°Even if they did, what are they going to do? There¡¯s us and Director Harris.¡± ¡°Haha, you¡¯re so naive.¡± Harrisughed. ¡°Do you really think the CIA is clean and that we only run on government tax dors and its budget? If so, why wouldn¡¯t we be able to release our budget?¡± Harris said. ¡°Half of the CIA¡¯s budgetes from Wall Street, which is why they have so much influence. The longer you stay in this organization, the more connected you be to them. The person appointed for the chief operations officer position is essentially one of Lofair¡¯s henchmen.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°If ordered, they will pretend to be crazy and shoot the president. Won¡¯t it be very easy to kill a terrorist who escaped from the CIA and walked into a civilian hospital on sight?¡± ¡°Enough chit-chat. This is an intensive care unit,¡± Albert said. Robert and Harris fell silent. ¡°And even if she was in the hospital, there¡¯s nothing we can really do since myelodysstic syndrome is a disease where blood isn¡¯t made properly. But I¡¯ve never seen anything like this before,¡± Albert said. ¡°This isn¡¯t something that can be treated with cutting-edge facilities or the doctor¡¯s expertise or techniques; it requires creativity.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Speaking of which, when is Doctor Ryuing?¡± Albert asked Harris. ¡°He should have arrived in Washington by now, and Agent Whittaker will be escorting him here.¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu will be safe, right?¡± Robert asked. ¡°We can¡¯t guarantee anyone¡¯s safety as long as we¡¯re fighting with the Lofairs. Even the president is putting his life on the line.¡± * Doctor Ref was dreaming. gued by terrible misfortune since birth, her life has been crushed by all the evils of science. She suffered from congenital myelodysstic syndrome because she was born gically engineered, and she witnessed a violent mass murder that killed all her siblings and friends at a young age. After moving to Palestine, she faced extreme discrimination¡ªshe suffered assaults, bullying, and white phosphorus bombings. She won prizes in internationalpetitions with her natural intelligence and hard work, and she was epted into gifted schools at European universities, but she had to leave everything behind. Isaiah could have been a scientist, an artist, or a politician, but she ended up in a Palestinian rebel organization. The path was hard, but not lonely, because the rebels were simr to her¡ªlife was a tediously twisted tragedy. And in it, Isaiah Franklin found a single ray of light. ¡®Rosaline.¡¯ She was the next generation of organisms, capable of recing all life on Earth. She was a being of great intelligence, capable of understanding the world at the atomic level. Rosaline¡¯s higher-level perspective seeked the utmost efficiency. A world controlled by Rosaline was one that could not be exploited by those in power. She understood humans as no more than mere creatures and did not discriminate based on gender, religion, or ability. Rosaline was the only just being¡ªa savior who could relieve all human suffering in the most efficient system of ruling. It seemed to be within Isaiah Franklin¡¯s grasp, but it kept slipping away. Rosaline always had Young-Joon by her side. Isaiah Franklin, who becamepletely exhausted from being tormented by envy, jealousy, and self-reproach, began leaving a trail for the CIA to find her. She wanted the world to know the secret of her birth before her life was over. But now, Isaiah Franklin realized she was wrong. She slowly began epting her death. It was a very boring, hard life¡ªit was a life she didn¡¯t want to live again. Buzz! An intense sh of light shed through Isaiah Franklin¡¯s head. ¡°Ugh...¡± She opened her eyes. ¡°Don¡¯t get up. Just lie still,¡± Young-Joon said. Albert was injecting her with something in her arm. ¡°You¡¯re right, Doctor Ryu. She woke up when we injected her with a high concentration of your cure,¡± Albert said, fascinated. ¡°It¡¯s regting the activity of the spleen to suppress blood cell destruction and increase stimtion, but it¡¯s only temporary,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°You said you wanted to talk to Isaiah Franklin. I¡¯ll give you the room.¡± Albert then left the room. After closing the door, Young-Joon sat beside her bed. ¡°What happened?¡± Isaiah Franklin asked. ¡°I came to cure you.¡± ¡°... That¡¯s so disappointing. Did you think I¡¯d be happy? Because of this, you put Rosaline in danger. Lofair¡¯s power is beyond imagination.¡± ¡°Think what you want, but the die is already cast. Isaiah Franklin, I will cure you with a bone marrow transnt.¡± ¡°... I won¡¯t be cured with a bone marrow transnt,¡± Isaiah Franklin said. ¡°Ryu Young-Joon, I can mimic the bone marrow transnt treatment developed by A-GenBio. But it doesn¡¯t work in my body. The problem in my body is the biological age of my cells.¡± ¡°That¡¯s what you think,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°...¡± ¡°We can cure you if Rosaline and I make hematopoietic stem cells.¡± Isaiah Franklin smirked. ¡°That cure is going to be super expensive.¡± ¡°You probably won¡¯t be able to pay for it. I won¡¯t charge you, but in return, you can testify in the Nethends,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°The Nethends?¡± ¡°The Nicaraguan government has filed an internationalwsuit against the U.S. government. It alleges illegal gic modification procedures being done at the Groom Lake Air Force Base embryologyb.¡± ¡°What?!¡± Isaiah Franklin was shocked. ¡°I gathered a bunch of evidence, and Yassir and Doctor Song made a big deal in the media as they mentioned the CIA and your name.¡± ¡°No...¡± ¡°And I¡¯ve also been contacted by your mother, Elsie. She wants to go to the Nethends with Doctor Song. This game has gotten pretty big already; either you¡¯re in or you¡¯re out.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°What do you think? I¡¯ll set the stage for you, and you can go rip Lofair into shreds,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Lofair...¡± ¡°You can pay for your terrorist attack afterward.¡± 1. Nacatamales is a Nicaraguan-style tamales. It consists of corn, meat, rice, vegetables, and bitter orange. ? 2. means ¡°busy¡± in Spanish ? 3. pyeong is the measurement for houses in Korea; it is about 50 square meters ? Chapter 279: FRB (7) ¡°Myelodysstic syndrome is usually a problem because the quality and amount of the patient¡¯s blood cells is very low,¡± said Professor Albert. ¡°The hematopoietic stem cells have dyssia, so the white blood cells, red blood cells, and telets from it can¡¯t function properly. That¡¯s why these patients have anemia and are susceptible to infections. If the white blood cells don¡¯t work properly, their immune system will be a mess. And because they have low telet counts, they bleed often, which doesn¡¯t stop well either.¡± ¡°That¡¯s why she bled so much from her arms and legs when she got shot,¡± Harris said. ¡°That¡¯s right. Patients who have myelodysstic syndrome can only have conservative, life-sustaining treatment by receiving normal blood, like how patients with renal failure receive dialysis,¡± Albert said. ¡°Even that doesn¡¯t work in thete stages. A significant portion of cases results in acute leukemia. The only solution is to be cured or anything like that is a bone marrow transnt.¡± ¡°Then, it¡¯s fine, right? A-GenBio developed a bone marrow transnt method using hematopoietic stem cells made from induced pluripotent stem cells. All that¡¯s left to do is for Doctor Ryu to treat her,¡± Harris said. ¡°But myelodysstic syndrome usually urs after the age of fifty. It¡¯s rare for it to ur at such a young age. Isaiah seemed to be born with it; it was bad when she was a newborn, then developed in infancy,¡± Albert exined, though he seemed a little doubtful. ¡°To be honest, we chose myelodysstic syndrome because it fits her symptoms the best, but we have to treat it as the first ever case to be reported since it¡¯s due to gic engineering. From a doctor¡¯s perspective, no matter how great Doctor Ryu is, I don¡¯t know what he can do about a disease he¡¯s never seen in a week¡­¡± ¡°But he was able to revive brain-dead people.¡± ¡°That¡¯s why I¡¯m still inclined to trust him.¡±Click. Young-Joon came out of Isaiah Franklin¡¯s room. ¡°It must be ufortable to use one of the two rooms in this small hideout as a hospital room,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Have you talked to Isaiah?¡± ¡°Yes. I¡¯m going to bring the clinical trial consent form tomorrow and exin it again.¡± ¡°Consent form¡­¡± ¡°I know time is of the essence, but we still have to do what¡¯s necessary.¡± * Isaiah Franklin was a cloned human being¡ªa human reconstructed from the nucleus of her mother, Elsie Franklin. As such, although Isaiah Franklin was born in 1986 and around the same age as Young-Joon, her cell biological age was simr to that of Elsie¡¯s, which was in thete fifties. ¡ªThat¡¯s where the problem arises. Rosaline intervened from the side. ¡°It reminds me of Dolly, the cloned sheep,¡± Young-Joon ¡ªThe sheep that was cloned from a mammary nd cell? ¡°Yeah. That¡¯s why the name¡­¡± Young-Joon suddenly paused. ¡ªWhy? ¡°Nothing.¡± ¡ªWhy did you stop all of a sudden? How did she get the name? Curious, Rosaline began nagging Young-Joon for a response. ¡°No, it¡¯s nothing. Dolly, the name of the cloned sheep, came from a pop star named Dolly Parton.¡± ¡ªWere the researchers fans of that pop star? ¡°...¡± Dolly Parton was a pop star famous for her voluptuous breasts. They named the sheep Dolly to honor that she originated from the mammary nds. Young-Joon nced beside him. Rosaline, who looked exactly like Ryu Sae-Yi, was staring at him with innocent eyes. ¡°Well¡­ Yeah, they were fans,¡± Young-Joon replied. Why couldn¡¯t this ridiculous and useless background knowledge get out of his head? ¡°Anyways, let¡¯s think of a strategy to treat Isaiah¡¯s bone marrow,¡± Young-Joon said, changing the subject. ¡ªYes. Ryu Young-Joon, do you know that cells can age, get old, and die? ¡°Are you talking about telomeres?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡ªYes. ¡°The theory that Dolly died prematurely because of them once swept the scientificmunity.¡± The lifespan of sheep was about eleven to twelve years. But Dolly, the cloned sheep, began aging at the age of three. By the time she was five, she was suffering from arthritis and other elderly diseases and eventually developed a serious lung disease. Eventually, Dolly, the first cloned organism and most famousb animal in history was euthanized at six and a half years old. Interestingly, the mother sheep that provided Dolly with her DNA was six years old when her mammary nd cells were harvested. In other words, the number of days lived by the mammary nd cell that Dolly originated from and the days Dolly lived was about twelve yearsbined, which was the normal lifespan for sheep. This fact intrigued many scientists. A baby born to a couple in their twenties didn¡¯t live longer than a baby born to a couple in their fifties. The conventional knowledge was that the biological clock started at zero. But Dolly, the cloned sheep, seemed to have been born with the age of the mammary nd cells from which she originated. Then, wouldn¡¯t scientists be able to find out one¡¯s true biological age by exploring something within their cells? Furthermore, could it even be manipted? Scientists have been exploring concepts like cellr lifespan and age for a while now, and this was a huge firestarter for the field. A lot of researchers started digging into the field, hoping to write a scientific paper. One of the most prominent findings was telomeres. ¡ªDolly the sheep probably died because of telomeres. Rosaline exined to Young-Joon. Telomeres were highly specialized bits of DNA at the end of chromosomes. As a cell aged, its telomeres became shorter and shorter. When it reached a certain point, the cell lost its ability to reproduce and was no longer able to divide, meaning telomeres were structures associated with cellr lifespan. However, cellr lifespan led to macroscopic aging and the lifespan of an organism. Further research revealed more surprising findings: organisms that lived longer had longer telomeres in their cells than organisms with short lifespans. The mammary nd cells that gave rise to Dolly the sheep had shortened telomeres, and Dolly started life with those short telomeres. Then in 2013, an even more shocking paper was published. It suggested that telomere length could increase lifespan and inhibit aging. Mice that had lengthened telomeres through gic maniption of the egg werepared to a control group. The mice with longer telomeres showed fewer signs of aging and lived twenty percent more on average. This sensational news quickly made its way over the walls of the scientificmunity. The public was turned upside down before the paper was even thoroughly reviewed by the scientificmunity. The media was buzzing, talking about how humans had reached the realm of immortality, and telomeres quickly became a keyword in the cosmetic and healthcare industries. ¡°But it¡¯s kind of faded away nowadays. The follow-up research is too difficult, and we can¡¯t manipte human telomeres in the same radical way as you can in mice. It¡¯s also hard to apply it in the clinic,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°But since we¡¯re talking about telomeres, does this mean that Isaiah Franklin¡¯s body has telomere problems?¡± ¡ªYes, especially in the bone marrow. Rosaline began exining. ¡ªThe blood cells produced by hematopoietic stem cells in the bone marrow that have shortened telomeres have a much shorter lifespan than normal. And because the other genes are also messed up, the blood cells quickly be nonfunctional. ¡°Then when we make the stem cells to be transnted into the bone marrow, we have to also fix the telomeres on top of fixing the genes?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡ªThat¡¯s right. Then the myelodysstic syndrome will be cured. Young-Joon thought for a moment, then asked, ¡°Will that cure her?¡± ¡ªAre you going to include aging as your target for treatment? ¡°...¡± ¡ªThe patients with gic conditions we saw at Kukra Hill weren¡¯t born like Isaiah Franklin. They didn¡¯t have their mother¡¯s nucleus, so their cell biological age was normal. Rosaline went on. ¡ªBut Isaiah Franklin was congenitally born with about thirty years¡¯ worth of aging. Isaiah¡¯s holding up okay right now as Elsie wasn¡¯t a senior or anything, but all of her organs will start to age rapidly in about ten years. ¡°Then what happens?¡± ¡ªShe will have geriatric disease when she¡¯s in her forties, and she will look like a grandma. However, humans haven¡¯t categorized aging as a pathological condition yet; they think it¡¯s natural. What do you think? ¡°Progeria syndrome is already a disease. It¡¯s already been ssified as a disease, no matter what I think of it.¡± ¡ªIf you want to cure it, there¡¯s a way. ¡°How?¡± ¡ªWhen you do the bone marrow transnt, put a slightly modified version of the telomerase gene into the hematopoietic stem cells. ¡°Telomerase?¡± Telomerase was a biomolecule that lengthened telomeres. It was discovered during the height of the telomere boom, and many scientists tried to use it to extend human life. However, despite the enormous amount of money andbor invested by many scientists to uncover clinical applications of telomerase, there was ultimately no progress. This was because while telomerase could extend telomeres, it could also cause cancer. It was like opposites attracting. Cells with extended telomeres could divide again and again beyond the limit of division. If controlled properly, they could be immortal by recing damaged cells, but they became tumors if they spiraled out of control. Eventually, scientists gave up because the technology was too difficult and dangerous to apply to humans, and the craze died down. ¡ªWe¡¯ll use blood cells as carriers of telomerase through bone marrow transntation. We need to send telomerase throughout Isaiah Franklin¡¯s body to extend the telomeres of approximately ten trillion cells, each for a specific duration, and then stop. ¡°Is that possible?¡± ¡ªI can. We just need to administer trace amounts of the inhibitor at specific times, either intravenously or through injections, while I look at it in Synchronization Mode. The problem is that you have no way of exining how you figured out those timings and injection locations. ¡°...¡± ¡ªOr you could just give up thirty years of aging that Isaiah Franklin was born with. It wouldn¡¯t cure her though. * Ryu Ji-Won came out of the library at seven in the evening. ¡°You guys go ahead. I have to eat at home today.¡± Ryu Ji-Won said goodbye to her friends and walked down the main street outside the campus. Today was a day of much pain for Ryu Ji-Won¡¯s family: it¡¯s the remembrance day of Ryu Sae-Yi, their youngest sister. ¡®What is Young-Joon doing¡­¡¯ Young-Joon always came home on this day, but at some point, he started traveling around the world with a superhuman schedule. He ended up calling today to say he wouldn¡¯t be able toe home. Ryu Ji-Won considered calling him out of concern, but she didn¡¯t. ¡®I¡¯m sure he¡¯s busy¡­¡¯ Ryu Ji-Won arrived at the entrance of their apartmentplex. As she was about to go inside¡­ ¡°Ms. Ryu Ji-Won?¡± A man suddenly came up to her. ¡°Who are you?¡± she asked. ¡°Do you know this person by any chance?¡± The man, with his hat pulled low over his face, held out a photo. It was a picture of Young-Joon and Rosaline taken at an amusement park. Chapter 280: FRB (8)

Chapter 280: FRB (8)

Ryu Ji-Won felt her mind go numb for a moment. Confusion shed across her face. ¡°Um...¡± The man asked again, fixing his hat. ¡°You don¡¯t know them?¡± ¡°... No,¡± Ryu Ji-Won replied. ¡°This person is my older brother, but I don¡¯t know who the kid next to him is. But who are you?¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu said this child is his niece, but you don¡¯t know her?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t,¡± Ryu Ji-Won replied, sounding slightly irritated. ¡°And tell me who you are first. Why would I want to talk to aplete stranger who suddenly approaches and is digging into my brother?¡± ¡°Excuse me. I¡¯ll give you my business card. Please let me know if you remember who that kid is.¡± The man took out a business card and held it out to Ryu Ji-Won. [Hong Yoo-Sung, Chenover Investments] ¡°Who¡¯s there?¡± Two young security guards popped out from inside the apartmentplex. About two months ago, Young-Joon changed the security in the apartmentplex. Trained security guards from K-Cops patrolled theplex every day, inside and out, and were sensitive to outsiders entering and leaving. The residents were happy as Young-Joon was paying for all the security out of his own pocket, but no one knew why. But now, Ryu Ji-Won felt like she knew why. ¡°Ms. Ryu, do you know him?¡± asked the security guard. ¡°No. He just came out of nowhere and started talking to me.¡± ¡°My business is finished, so I¡¯m leaving now.¡± Hong Yoo-Sung bowed to Ryu Ji-Won and quickly disappeared. ¡°...¡± The security guards watched him leave and nced at Ryu Ji-Won. ¡°We¡¯ll escort you home.¡± * Tate Lofair came to Alphonse¡¯s room. ¡°I used one of the financial firms in Korea and asked the family directly,¡± he said. ¡°I didn¡¯t want to do that, but we had no choice. What did they say?¡± ¡°They said they didn¡¯t know her.¡± ¡°...¡± Alphonse thought for a moment. When A-GenBio Cancer Laboratory was founded, James Holdren had been very enthusiastic about recruiting Young-Joon. If his rtive did live in the United States, wouldn¡¯t James Holdren have used her as a good bargaining chip? If so, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy should have information about the child, who was supposedly Young-Joon¡¯s rtive. However, Alphonse didn¡¯t find any information there. James Holdren himself acted like he had no idea what Alphonse was talking about. Alphonse had the police search every immigrant household in America, but he didn¡¯t find any answers there either. And now, even Young-Joon¡¯s family didn¡¯t know that rtive? What did this mean? Was that girl really Young-Joon¡¯s niece? ¡°We¡¯ve gotten nowhere since we didn¡¯t find out who she was,¡± Tate said with a sigh. ¡°No,¡± Alphonse replied, shaking his head. ¡°We got somewhere by not finding out who she is.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°You said that the death of Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s youngest sister inspired him to start science, right?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°And the reason he fought with Lab Director Kim Hyun-Taek and was demoted when he was at A-Gen was because Kim Hyun-Taek triggered his trauma about his sister.¡± ¡°Apparently, it happened because Kim Hyun-Taek tried to bury a treatment for liver cancer.¡± ¡°Ryu Young-Joon is now one of the most powerful men in the world, with Yang Gunyu, the Chinese presidential candidate, and U.S. President Campbell behind him. He¡¯s been given a knighthood in Sweden, and he¡¯s basically Jesus in the Third World, so he¡¯s fully capable of finding a kid who looks just like his younger sister.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°The guy is so obsessed with his youngest sister that he fought theb director when he was nothing but a powerless scientist. He found a mysterious kid who looks exactly like her and raised her secretly. Anyone can see that it¡¯s a shady situation,¡± Alphonse said. He added, ¡°The point is that this girl is unidentifiable¡ªshe¡¯s a mystery. If this gets reported, it will fuel people¡¯s imagination and deal a severe blow to his image. People will wonder where he found a girl who looks exactly like his deceased younger sister, who he lies about being his rtive from America. ¡°They¡¯ll suspect he might have bought her from one of the impoverished countries he frequently visited, wonder where he hides her most of the time, and question who her parents are. Those kinds of suspicions will arise.¡± ¡°You want me to ckmail him with that?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°She might really be a rtive that no one knew about. What if ckmailing doesn¡¯t work?¡± ¡°Then we have to use ourst resort.¡± Tate swallowed hard and then nodded. ¡°Alright. Alphonse, it¡¯s almost time for your flight.¡± ¡°Yeah. I¡¯d better get going.¡± ¡°But I don¡¯t understand why you¡¯re going when you could just let thewyers handle it.¡± ¡°I have to go myself. Keep an eye on the house while I¡¯m gone,¡± Alphonse said. * ¡°Are you insane?!¡± Isaiah Franklin shouted in shock. ¡°What technology are you making to just save me? Doing what to bone marrow with telomerase? Did Rosaline tell you to do that?¡± ¡°Lower your voice. Harris and Robert might hear you outside,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°That¡¯s not the problem. Ryu Young-Joon, telomerase extends telomeres, you know that, right?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°And you also know that countless scientists have tried to use it to extend the human lifespan, right?¡± ¡°Yeah. And I¡¯m well aware that they¡¯ve all failed. But if I do it to you, it will work.¡± ¡°Of course it will work! That¡¯s the problem. Curing my myelodysstic syndrome is good, but this is a cure for aging. You¡¯re not just creating a technology that doesn¡¯t exist. You¡¯re doing the impossible, something that no one else can do! Do you know what will...¡± ¡°Stop stating the obvious and just sign the clinical trial consent form. Your health is in such bad shape that there¡¯s no time for preclinical testing. Just trust Rosaline and sign it.¡± Then, Isaiah Franklin grabbed Young-Joon by the cor and pulled him towards her. ¡°Are you trying to make Rosaline public or something? You cannot do that,¡± she said. Bzz! Young-Joon¡¯s phone rang. He checked the text message and slightly froze. It was from Ryu Ji-Won. [A guy approached me in front of our apartmentplex and said his name was Hong Yoo-Sung from apany called Chenover Investments. He showed me a picture and asked me if I knew these people, and it was a picture of someone who looked like you and a girl who looked exactly like Sae-Yi at an amusement park.] [Who is it? It looks too much like you to be someone else. I heard that you said she is a rtive who lives in the U.S., but we don¡¯t have any rtives there. I said that I didn¡¯t know anything.] ¡°...¡± Chenover Investments was an international financialpany in Korea, and the chairman of Chenover Financial Holdings was Alphonse Lofair¡¯s brother, Tate Lofair. ¡°Going after my family...¡± ¡°What? What is it?¡± Isaiah Franklin asked, seeing the look on Young-Joon¡¯s face. ¡°It¡¯s nothing. And I¡¯m not going to reveal Rosaline to the public. Who knows what trouble will happen? I have something else in mind for that.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Let go and sign this.¡± Young-Joon pulled Isaiah Franklin¡¯s hand off of him and held out the consent form again. She looked doubtful, but meekly picked up the consent form and skimmed through it. Then, she signed the consent form. ¡°The first trial in the Nethends should be underway by now, and it will proceed based on the materials I provided and Elsie¡¯s testimony, but the decisive blow will be your testimony as the actual victim,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°So just think about getting better soon.¡± * ¡°This trial concerns thewsuit filed by the Nicaraguan government against the United States government. Since the trial is conducted under a special agreement between the two countries, the concepts of intiff and defendant do not apply.¡± Judge Crawford began the trial. The proceedings at the International Court of Justice could proceed smoothly only if both countries were willing to participate in the trial. While, in principle, UN member states could initiate proceedings unterally, trials rarely proceeded in this manner in practice. This was because there was nothing that could be done if powerful countries like the United States simply refused to participate because the trial was unfavorable to them. Therefore, the fact that the U.S. government agreed to a special agreement to participate in this trial was quite interesting. Furthermore, considering that the events in question urred between thirty to fifty years ago, the U.S. government could have legitimately nullified the trial with preliminary objections. They could have imed that the trial was impossible due to the death of most key figures from the Heagan administration. However, the Campbell administration¡¯s involvement suggested that they intended to expose and address the past wrongdoings of the Heagan administration. By doing so, Campbell would position himself at an advantage against the Republican Party, which seeded Heagan, in the next presidential election and potentially win. For that reason, Campbell would likely actively support a Nicaraguan victory. However, the International Court of Justice was not that easy. As the pinnacle of judicial power to resolve disputes between nations, it should be able to see beyond political maneuvers to clearly see the issues at hand and deliver a just verdict. There were no intiffs and defendants in this trial; the goal was to analyze the case urately. ¡°Would the Nicaraguan government please provide a brief summary of the ims?¡± Crawford said. Fifteen judges, one from each continent, looked at the Nicaraguan government¡¯s spokesperson and defense counsel with stern expressions. ¡°The United States government established Groom Lake Air Force Base in Nicaragua in 1958 and a genomicsboratory in 1968. There, gic maniption experiments were illegally conducted on Nicaraguan citizens. As a result, there are now approximately one thousand one hundred thirty-two patients in Nicaragua with gic conditions. We seekpensation for the damages they have suffered,¡± said the representative of the Nicaraguan defense counsel. ¡°The U.S. government, seeding the Heagan administration, ismitted to taking responsibility for this case and bringing the full truth to light,¡± said the defense counsel for the U.S. government. ¡°We will first proceed with the examination of the U.S. government¡¯s first witness,¡± said one of the judges. The first witness was Congressman Norton. He took the stand with an exhausted look on his face. ¡°You¡¯ve appeared once before the International Court of Justice in the case brought by the Nicaraguan government during the Iran-Contra affair. You were a colonel in the military during that time. Did you also deliver payments for arms to Iran to Groom Lake Air Force Base?¡± asked the American defense counsel. ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± replied Norton. It seemed like he had already given up. ¡°And that money could have been used at the genomicsb, right?¡± ¡°Probably.¡± ¡°Then I have a question for you,¡± asked the defense counsel for the U.S. government. ¡°At the time, the Heagan administration had so little money at its disposal that it had to traffic arms to Iran, an enemy country, to raise money to support the Contra rebels.¡± The defense attorney pulled out a yearbook and checked off the box for 1986. ¡°And the date of the arms sale was 1986. But the genomicsb at Groom Lake Air Force Base, as announced by the Nicaraguan government, was in 1968, and a lot of research was done there for about eighteen years after that,¡± said the attorney. ¡°Where did the moneye from to build the best-equipped hospital ward andboratory of its time, to take hundreds of mothers and conduct eighteen years of embryology research? You were employed at Groom Lake Air Force Base at the time, Congressman Norton. Do you know anything about this?¡± ¡°...¡± Congressman Norton bit his lower lip. ¡°Chenover Bank invested a lot of money in Groom Lake Air Force Base.¡± Trantor¡¯s thoughts: I honestly can¡¯t wait for Lofair¡¯s downfall!! I want them to crumble down and lose everything they have!! I want to see Lofair groveling at Young-Joon¡¯s feet, begging for his forgiveness. Chapter 281: FRB (9) ¡°Chenover Bank?¡± asked the defense counsel of the U.S. government. ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± replied Congressman Norton. The genomicsboratory at Groom Lake Air Force Base was founded by Chenover Bank. It was no secret that the owner of Chenover Financial Holdings was Lofair. ¡°I was told that they invested one hundred million dors in Groom Lake Air Force Base and used half of that money to build theb and get it running,¡± Norton said. ¡°I see. The owner and director of the genomicsboratory at Groom Lake Air Force Base was Doctor Alphonse Lofair, a very young scientist who was only twenty-nine years old. He wasn¡¯t very well-known in the academicmunity either,¡± said the defense counsel. ¡°And the reason he was appointed as director of theboratory could be because of the Chenover Bank, right? Do you know anything about that?¡± ¡°... I don¡¯t know the details. The funding is just something I heard about when I was stationed at Groom Lake Air Force Base. I don¡¯t have any documentation on it.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Norton sighed and stepped down. He recalled the meeting with the chief of staff of the Campbell administration beforeing here. ¡®After the Nicaraguan government wins at the International Court of Justice, we¡¯re going to use that to prosecute all of the individuals from the Heagan administration domestically.¡¯ That was what the chief of staff told him. ¡®That¡¯s why we are participating in this case. There¡¯s going to be a bloodbath in the country, so align yourself wisely. If you testify properly this time, there might be a slight chance you will be treated with leniency in future trials. We are one hundred percent confident in the Nicaraguan government¡¯s victory. We have gathered substantial evidence.¡¯ Ditching Lofair and following through with this threat was a bit of a gamble for Norton as well, but now he was d that he did. It was because the Nicaraguan government put a surprising person on the stand. ¡°I would like to call Elsie Franklin to the stand,¡± said the defense counsel representing the Nicaraguan government. Elsie looked around the room as she took the stand. Song Ji-Hyun was mouthing words of encouragement towards her. ¡°You worked at the genomicsboratory at Groom Lake Air Force Base. Please tell us about your experience there,¡± asked the defense counsel for the Nicaraguan government. Elsie took a deep breath and began to recount what she had seen and experienced as a talented young doctor in her twenties. ¡°There was a ward that could amodate hundreds of pregnant women. We hired impoverished women from the streets of Nicaragua and injected gically modified embryos into their wombs, allowing them to imnt and develop.¡± Elsie began her statement. The conditions at theb were worse than anyone imagined. Campbell, who waster briefed in writing at the White House, was shocked even though he knew about it. In China, Yang Gunyu scoffed when he read what had happened. This wasn¡¯t much different from the organ exploitation and human experimentation that Chen Shui was doing. ¡°No matter how many fertilized eggs we had, there were never enough for the experiments, so female researchers were coerced to receive hormone injections to induce ovtion, after which their eggs were harvested for donations,¡± Elsie said. ¡°The babies born there were mostly abandoned in orphanages or cremated after they died. It¡¯s estimated to be in the thousands.¡± ¡°I have a question for the witness,¡± asked Judge Bruno Spender. This American judge had already heard about Elsie¡¯s problems from an anonymous informant before entering the courtroom. ¡°I¡¯ve reviewed the past records submitted as evidence about theboratory, but the documentation is quite sparse, and we couldn¡¯t find employment records for the scientists. Do you have any materials that can support your im of having worked at theboratory?¡± ¡°No¡­¡± ¡°The witness has a history of psychiatric examination, and it hase to my attention that you have a severe addiction to hallucinogenic drugs. Are you still in treatment or using those substances?¡± ¡°Your Honor, that¡¯s irrelevant to what the witness is saying right now.¡± The defense counsel of the United States quickly jumped in. ¡°I think we need to explore various possibilities. Can you submit the witness¡¯ medical records?¡± Bruno Spender said with a smile. ¡°You may still testify, but please submit your medical records as well. ¡°... Yes.¡± Elsie had somewhat expected this. She finalized her testimony and stepped down. * Young-Joon borrowed an entireb room at the A-GenBio Cancer Laboratory. He took Isaiah Franklin¡¯s bone marrow to theb, where he made induced pluripotent stem cells from it. The process of growing them back to hematopoietic stem cells took about four days. Young-Joon corrected the genes using Cas9 and fixed the telomeres at the end using telomerases. Now, he had to confirm with NGS that all the DNA was corrected as intended, but there was no time for that. ¡°She won¡¯tst that long, right?¡± ¡ªHer survival rate will drop significantly with each day that passes. Beyond this point, organ damage may umte to the extent that a bone marrow transnt won¡¯t be enough; an artificial organ might be necessary. These were hematopoietic stem cells and gene correction that Young-Joon had done countless times before. Given the urgency of the situation, he had no other choice. Instead of going through NGS, he activated Synchronization Mode. ¡ªAll two thousand nine hundred eighty five mutations were corrected in 99.9 percent of the one hundred eighty million hematopoietic stem cells. Rosaline confirmed that the gene correction was sessful. ¡°What about the leftover 0.1 percent?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡ªThere are a couple that haven¡¯t been correct, but it shouldn¡¯t be a problem. ¡°Okay,¡± he said, ¡°Since we need to cure her and then take her to the Nethends for the second trial.¡± Young-Joon made up his mind, organized the treatment, and contacted Professor Albert of Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. As Young-Joon was sitting in his car, a man suddenly burst out of the main entrance of the cancerboratory and approached the back seat of the car where Young-Joon was sitting. Kim Chul-Kwon and his security team blocked the man standing in front of him. ¡°Step back,¡± Kim Chul-Kwon said. ¡°It¡¯s a call from Mr. Lofair. Please give it to him.¡± The man held out a phone. ¡°You can give it to me,¡± Young-Joon said, holding his hand out the window. It was a cell phone with no buttons and in-ear headphones connected to it. ¡°It¡¯s already connected. Go ahead.¡± The man smiled at Young-Joon from outside the vehicle and left. Young-Joon put the headphones into his ear. ¡°Hello?¡± ¡ªHello. This is Tate Lofair. I used this method to prevent being recorded, so I hope you understand. I¡¯m sure you don¡¯t want to see me right now. ¡°If you¡¯re talking about the board meeting, it¡¯s still a week away. I¡¯ll see you in Seoul,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡ªNo, it¡¯s not about that. Tate paused, then went on. ¡ªDoctor Ryu, we¡¯ve obtained some interesting information. It¡¯s about a red-haired girl who looks about nine years old¡ªa girl who looks just like your youngest sister. After doing some digging, we found out at the Next Generation Hospital that her name is Rosaline. ¡°Yes?¡± ¡ªWe know that she is not your niece. You don¡¯t have any rtives in the United States. You were first seen with that girl after you returned from China. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡ªWe went through all the records of all the ships and flights that came into South Korea during the three months following that point in time. There were a total of one hundred seventy thousand children of that age group, and eight hundred eighty-two of them were named Rosaline. ¡ªNone of them matched the face in the photo. In other words, she either didn¡¯t enter the country through conventional means, or she wasn¡¯t originally a U.S. citizen but was instead hidden and raised by you in Korea, without even your sibling knowing. Tate went on. ¡ªIt wouldn¡¯t be difficult for a man of your power to smuggle a person out of China. You lied about having a rtive in the U.S., but Doctor Ryu, you have no rtives there. It seems like you obtained that child through some shady means and are raising her like a doll, projecting your deceased younger sister onto her. If this is reported, many people will start digging into your family rtionships with suspicion¡­ ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but I don¡¯t want to hear this anymore. Just get to the point. I¡¯m a little busy right now,¡± Young-Joon said in an annoyed voice. ¡ª... Tate was a little taken aback. He thought Young-Joon would be quite surprised if he pressured him like this, but Young-Joon didn¡¯t seem bothered at all. ¡ª... Don¡¯t go to the Nethends. Tate warned Young-Joon. ¡ªDon¡¯t give any kind of testimony, and stay out of¡­ ¡°Excuse me,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°A few days ago, if Alphonse hade to me and begged me, I might have given him a chance to resolve this alone. But you went to my sister and harassed her, and now you¡¯re threatening me to back off?¡± ¡ª... ¡°She¡¯s not my niece? Did you really look into it?¡± ¡ªWhat? ¡°How pathetic. Stop wasting your energy on pointless things and start thinking about how you¡¯re going to pay for this. I¡¯m hanging up.¡± ¡ªWait! Young-Joon turned off the phone and threw it in the trash can in the back seat of his car. ¡°How far are we from Johns Hopkins University?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°We¡¯re almost there,¡± Kim Chul-Kwon said. * ¡°Everyone who was involved in running Groom Lake Air Force Base under the Heagan administration needs to be punished!¡± On the streets of Spring Valley, which was on the way to Johns Hopkins University, a group of citizens were rallying with a statement of condemnation. ¡°The United States must now be ountable now for what it did in Nicaragua in the past. We also demand that the CIA earnestly rify suspicions that it attempted to kill Isaiah Franklin, a victim of the Groom Lake genomicsboratory.¡± The citizens¡¯ chants went on. ¡°It was quiet even until the Nicaraguan government filed awsuit, but there have been rallies here and there after Doctor Song and Yassir made a statement to the press,¡± Kim Chul-Kwon exined. ¡°Are they talking about Chenover Bank of the Federal Reserve?¡± asked Young-Joon. ¡°The name has been mentioned after the first trial. There has been public opinion that thepensation amount imed by Nicaragua is excessive since the beginning of the trial, and now there are more people suggesting that Chenover Bank should pay for it.¡± ¡°Since the medical treatment is expensive,¡± Young-Joon said, nodding. After some time, Young-Joon arrived at Johns Hopkins University. At precisely the right timing, Albertpleted preparation for the bone marrow transnt procedure and waited for Isaiah Franklin, who entered the room around the same time as the CIA. With Isaiah Franklin lying on the hospital bed, Young-Joon briefly exined to Albert how to use the hematopoietic stem cells. ¡°... As such, no conditioning is required at this step,¡± Young-Joon said. Originally, bone marrow transnts involvedpletely eradicating the existing bone marrow cells with powerful chemotherapy and radiation, followed by transnting healthy hematopoietic stem cells. The process of removing the existing bone marrow cells was called conditioning. ¡°Because the hematopoietic stem cells in the body are already nearing the end of their lifespan?¡± Albert asked. ¡°Yes. They won¡¯t cause any problems even if we leave them there. In fact, it will make the recovery faster.¡± Young-Joon held out a styrofoam box. It contained liquid nitrogen, and inside were stic vials of frozen hematopoietic stem cells. ¡°I¡¯ll do a quick pretreatment ande back.¡± Albert took the box outside. Thud. The door closed behind him, leaving only Young-Joon and Isaiah Franklin in the room. ¡°Ryu Young-Joon,¡± she said. ¡°Why?¡± Young-Joon nced over at her. ¡°...¡± Isaiah Franklin was silent for a moment, then stared at Young-Joon. ¡°You¡¯re trying to nag me again about how I¡¯m trying so hard to treat you and what will happen if people find out about Rosaline, right?¡± he asked. ¡°... No, it¡¯s just¡­¡± Isaiah Franklin opened her mouth hesitantly. ¡°Thanks,¡± she said. ¡°I just wanted to say¡­ Thank you, I mean it.¡± Chapter 282: FRB (10) Professor Albert was still skeptical. The bone marrow transnt was understandable and fine, but the post-treatment process was not very convincing. Young-Joon was saying that he was going to administer the telomerase inhibitor intravenously. ¡°This bone marrow transnt includes telomerase.¡± ¡°Telomerase? Is that required to treat the manipted genes?¡± ¡°It¡¯s necessary to treat the progeria that urred in various tissues of her body,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°A-GenBio was developing a telomerase-enhancing bone marrow transntation treatment, and we want to use that technology here. However, this technology is iplete, so it needs some technique.¡± ¡°What should I do?¡± ¡°Telomerase will be secreted from the transnted hematopoietic stem cells and travel to each tissue. We need to administer an inhibitor to keep them from overreacting, but it¡¯s time and location-sensitive.¡± ¡°Time and location?¡± ¡°We have to time it by looking at the whites of the eye after the transnt to see the dtion of the capiries. You have to give a little bit of the inhibitor intravenously or inject it into a specific tissue at a specific time.¡± ¡°Is that a symptom I can easily recognize?¡±¡°Probably not. The dtion of the blood vessels is very subtle, so it might be hard to notice unless you have a very good eye,¡± Young-Joon said. When the bone marrow transnt was actuallypleted, Albert had no idea what had changed. While the patient¡¯s care was entirely in the hands of the doctor, it was fundamental to follow the developer¡¯s manual for a newly developed treatment. It was like a programmer reading the hardware engineer¡¯s manual when assembling aputer. ¡°You need to administer it now¡­¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°R-Really?¡± Albert nervously kept watching Isaiah¡¯s eyes. Young-Joon felt a little guilty. If only he had more time, he could havee up with a reasonable way to help Albert understand, but there was nothing he could do. Given Isaiah¡¯s extremely unstable condition and limited time, he had to do what was best for his patient. ¡°To be honest, I can¡¯t really tell. Should I call the ophthalmology department for help?¡± Albert asked, sounding worried. ¡°No.¡± Harris quickly stopped him. ¡°Albert, I can¡¯t put people in Isaiah¡¯s care unless they are doctors I can trust. I¡¯m not evenfortable being in this room. I came because I was told that the bone marrow transnt itself is simple since it¡¯s just an intravenous infusion, but¡­¡± ¡°But I don¡¯t see the capiry dtion in the whites like Doctor Ryu says.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I know I shouldn¡¯t say this, but it¡¯s a procedure I¡¯m not trained in, and I think Doctor Ryu, the developer, would know better than me. Do you think you could do it, Doctor Ryu? If we have the patient¡¯s consent¡­¡± Albert ended up backing down in fear. He looked at Isaiah with pleading eyes. ¡°I don¡¯t care if Ryu Young-Joon does it,¡± she said. But Young-Joon decided to look out for Albert¡¯s feelings as well. ¡°Let¡¯s do this.¡± Young-Joon approached the bed and sat down beside it. ¡°I¡¯ll instruct you from the side. When I tap my finger on the back of your hand, you inject the inhibitor, Doctor Albert. I¡¯ll let you know when you need to inject each tissue separately.¡± ¡°O-Okay.¡± Isaiah looked at Young-Joon and sighed. ¡°Let¡¯s get started.¡± The two started administering the inhibitor. They attached a hose to a vein, then hooked up a vial of fluid. Rosaline stood by Young-Joon¡¯s side, watching all ten trillion cells in Isaiah¡¯s entire body in Synchronization Mode. Then, she briefly took over control of his right hand. The telomerase inhibitor was injected into the vein, by the second and by the milliliter. His hand, which was tapping on the back of Albert¡¯s hand, moved as if he was sending Morse code. Sometimes, the inhibitor was injected at a steady rate for two seconds, then stopped. He alternated between injecting and resting in 0.5 second intervals, and sometimes he didn¡¯t inject it at all for several seconds. Beads of sweat formed on Albert¡¯s forehead. Even as he injected it, he wondered if he was doing the right thing. Was this really going to cure Isaiah Franklin? * ¡°The Nicaraguan government charged one hundred thousand dors to correct one gene in one patient,¡± a CNN reporter said while reporting on the Nicaraguan story. ¡°This is a very high price, and our reporter Jonathan took a look at how this was reached.¡± The broadcast cut to a description of A-GenBio¡¯s procedure for treating gic conditions. The process began with the collection of somatic cells from the patient. Single-cell RNA sequencing was used to examine the entirety of the expressed DNA, and from there, mutations were identified. The mutations were plugged into a huge database created from A-GenBio¡¯s genome project, and then corrted with the patient¡¯s condition. Normally, having a gene mutation didn¡¯t cause problems in every tissue in the body. However, if it was a gene that was important for alcohol detoxification, it was going to cause problems in the liver. The idea was to de-differentiate the patient¡¯s somatic cells, correct the genes, then culture it into an artificial liver for organ transntation. ¡°Thebor and time involved in this process, as well as the cost of the reagents, are very expensive,¡± said Jonathan, the reporter. ¡°However, this is the better option of treatment. If the corrected gene has the potential to trigger an immune response, hematopoietic stem cells would have to be extracted from the patient¡¯s bone marrow and corrected as well.¡± Gene therapies were quite expensive due to the inherent difficulty of the procedure. Once upon a time, a pharmaceuticalpany called Spark developed and released the first gene therapy called Luxterna. It worked by using a virus to inject an artificially synthesized copy of the RPE65 gene into the retinal cells of patients who have a gic condition in which the gene was nonfunctional. This simple procedure cost one million dors per eye. ¡°A-GenBio¡¯s treatment, which involves making stem cells and artificial organs by correcting the gene, is very inexpensive inparison. But the problem is the number of patients and mutations,¡± said the reporter. ¡°There are a total of two thousand patients in Nicaragua who carry disease-causing gene variants, eight hundred of whom have a couple naturally urring mutations. However, the other one thousand two hundred individuals are named as victims in thewsuit filed by the Nicaraguan government.¡± The reporter¡¯s voice quivered slightly. ¡°They have hundreds to thousands of gic mutations on average, meaning that treating all the patients will be astronomically expensive. The amount of damages imed by the Nicaraguan government is¡­¡± The reporter gulped. ¡°One hundred thirty-seven billion dors. There have been a lot of estimates made by the media and private financial institutions, but this amount was verified with the International Court of Justice by our reporter in the Nethends,¡± he said. This amount was more than ten percent of Apple¡¯s market capitalization and 2.5 percent of the United States¡¯ annual budget. It was equal to the total assets of Bill Gates, the most well-known millionaire. Now, it was a simr amount of money as the first quarter revenue of A-GenBio, thergestpany in the world. This shocking amount of money sent shockwaves across the United States. The street marches and rallies that had been popping up here and there began to grow more organized. The problem was that their anger had not found their way yet. * ¡°Campbell should look out for the American people, not the Nicaraguans!¡± ¡°Hold the Heagan administration ountable!¡± Most of the anger was directed at the U.S. government for epting the case, or at the Heagan administration for creating the problem. But Lofair¡¯s name began to pop up asionally. ¡°Theb was funded by the Chenover Bank, which Tate Lofair is the chairman of, and Alphonse Lofair was the director of theb.¡± These stories began circting on university campuses. Students, who were age sensitive to social justice, became frequently interested in investigating the Chenover Bank. Moreover, secrets that were only known in the industry began to trickle out from those in the financial industry. ¡ªThe Federal Reserve, the central bank of the United States, is owned by Lofair. The U.S. government does not hold even a one percent state in the Federal Reserve. This crucial truth, which was unknown to the majority of Americans, created a shocking logic as the situation unfolded. ¡°If the Nicaraguan government wins, the U.S. government will have to pay a staggering one hundred thirty-seven billion dors in reparations. Since there is no way the government has that amount of money left in its budget, it has two options: one is to ignore the jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice again, and the other is to print dors at the Federal Reserve. Thank God our dor is the reserve currency.¡± Professors were having the same heated debate in the ssrooms of many of America¡¯s most prestigious universities. ¡°The problem is that the U.S. government doesn¡¯t have the right to print money. That money is issued by the Federal Reserve and borrowed by the U.S. government,¡± the professors said. ¡°This bes the government¡¯s debt, and it has to be paid off with taxpayer money. And what happens to the exorbitant interest on that one hundred thirty-seven billion dor debt? It bes the Federal Reserve¡¯s earnings, and it goes into the pockets of Lofair, the owner of the Federal Reserve. He is the key person responsible for this, and he¡¯s not paying a penalty. He¡¯s actually making money.¡± ¡°Even the money that Chenover Bank spent to set up theb, one hundred million dors at the time, was a lot of money. If you trace it back to where it came from, it¡¯s probably the Federal Reserve. I don¡¯t think Chenover Bank could have gotten that kind of money and used it on its own at the time.¡± ¡°A private bank used the U.S. central bank as it pleased and made a huge mess. Now, they¡¯re shifting all the responsibility onto American citizens and then making money from it? How is this structure normal?¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t this outrageous? I walked into ss today, and all of my students went out to protest. Frankly, this is against the market order, and it¡¯s beyond what a private bank should be able to do. It¡¯s a clear overreach.¡± ¡°From a capitalist point of view, Chenover invested in Groom Lakeboratory and failed. But did they lose money? No, because they¡¯re about to make one hundred thirty-seven billion dors in earnings. How does this make any sense in a capitalist country?¡± Citizens ustomed to marketism, democracy, and liberalism were outraged by state affairs maniption. They could forgive Heagan selling arms to Iran and supporting the Contras rebels as a patriotic mistake during the Cold War, but destroying market order and privately monopolizing profits while controlling the Federal Reserve, the absolute financial power, was another story entirely. Talk about the Lofair family began to increase by the day. As that was happening, Alphonse Lofair appeared at the International Court of Justice. Young-Joon wasn¡¯t here yet, but Alphonse received an email from Tate along the way. [The President took off for the Nethends on his jet. All of the President¡¯s entourage was on it, including Harris and Ryu Young-Joon. There was also a young woman with her face covered.¡± ¡®Isaiah Franklin.¡¯ Chapter 283: FRB (11)

Chapter 283: FRB (11)

Ryu Young-Joon, Director Harris, and Isaiah Franklin were seated in the VIP section with other bodyguards and entourage. ¡°I have to be the only terrorist in the world who¡¯s flying on the presidential jet,¡± said Isaiah Franklin. ¡°If you testify well in the Nethends, the court will be more lenient. Be good.¡± ¡°This ne is safe, right? If it crashes, it¡¯s all over,¡± she asked. ¡°Air Force One being attacked is the same level of threat as the White House being attacked directly. No matter how powerful Lofair is, it won¡¯t be easy to attack Air Force One. This ne is extremely well-prepared for any kind of terrorism. The entourage here is a small group of trusted people.¡± ¡°But we need to be careful once we get off,¡± said Campbell as he came out of the presidential suite. ¡°Director Harris thinks there may already be snipers or terrorists in the Nethends waiting for us.¡± ¡°It makes sense. They¡¯re the same people who killed President Lincoln and Kennedy.¡± Harris nodded and agreed with Campbell. ¡°Apparently, things are rough in the financial district these days. Citizens have been holding a lot of rallies,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°That¡¯s right. Their chants are, ¡®Nationalize the FRB.¡¯ The atmosphere is shaping up to be what we originally nned. By the time public opinion boils over and the International Court of Justice makes its ruling, Congress will attack the Federal Bank,¡± Campbell said. ¡°It¡¯ll be difficult to nationalize the Federal Bank entirely, but I¡¯m thinking of amending the Federal Reserve Act to ensure that all of the Federal Bank¡¯s operating profits are attributed to the Treasury. Alternatively, we might transfer the authority to issue dors or set interest rates to the Treasury.¡± ¡°In any case, Lofair is going to y some rough, aggressive tricks, Doctor Ryu, because he¡¯s a dead end. We all need to be careful, which is why I¡¯ve been thinking...¡± Harris gestured to Young-Joon¡¯s arms. ¡°Are you sure you¡¯re okay with taking a child to the Nethends at this time?¡± A little red-haired girl was snuggled in Young-Joon¡¯sp and sleeping. After boarding Air Force One, she was so excited that she ran from the president¡¯s suite to the staff¡¯s economy seat at the back of the ne. Now, exhausted, she had fallen asleep in Young-Joon¡¯s arms, breathing softly. She asionally let out little murmurs as if she was ying around in her dreams as well. Rosaline was here with Young-Joon. Everyone was surprised when he brought this curious, energetic, and adorable child with him. It gave everyone in the Campbell administration a little something to smile about before the big fight, but they couldn¡¯t help but worry. ¡°It¡¯s alright,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Lofair is after this girl right now. Leaving her in the U.S. is more dangerous. I can only protect her when she¡¯s with me.¡± * Several weeks ago from now. It was the day Young-Joon stopped by Director Harris¡¯ hideout to see Isaiah Franklin for the first time. He administered drugs to help Isaiah regain consciousness even though there was neither a clinical consent form nor preparation to collect stem cells. There was another reason for his visit. Isaiah had other guests to meet. They were Elsie and Song Ji-Hyun: one was her biological mother, and the other was the scientist who, along with Yassir, had exposed CIA attempts to eliminate Isaiah in the media. Harris realized early on that their lives could be in danger and had sent agents to protect them in advance. ¡°I need to see my daughter before I go to the Nethends because I might never be able to see her again. If you don¡¯t, I¡¯m not going to testify,¡± Elsie told Harris. Eventually, before they left for the Nethends, they stopped by Harris¡¯ hideout to see Young-Joon and Isaiah. ¡°Hello,¡± Isaiah greeted them from her bed. ¡°Long time no see, Isaiah.¡± It had been a long time since Isaiah had run away from home after they had a big argument in the Middle East. Elsie was worried that it would be ufortable seeing her daughter after all this time, but when she saw her face, her first reaction was pity and remorse. ¡°Why do you look so bad? Have you eaten? How are you feeling?¡± ¡°What? It¡¯s not like you don¡¯t know me. You know I have myelodysstic syndrome.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Is this the famous Doctor Song?¡± Isaiah said, ncing at Song Ji-Hyun. ¡°My name is Song Ji-Hyun. Doctor Elsie has told me a lot about you.¡± ¡°Nice to meet you, Doctor Song. You didn¡¯t have to get involved in this fight. I appreciate your participation, but I¡¯m afraid you might get hurt.¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu has nothing to do with it either, but he¡¯s here risking his life for you.¡± ¡°No, Ryu Young-Joon has something to do with this. This actually started long before the three of us met,¡± Isaiah said, chuckling. ¡°...¡± Song Ji-Hyun red at Isaiah for a moment. She wanted to suppress her personal feelings and have a conversation with Isaiah Franklin, but it was hard. The nuance that the three of them were sharing a secret that only she didn¡¯t know annoyed her. ¡°Is that why you carried out a terrorist attack on the GSC? At the hotel where Doctor Ryu was?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked. Her anger towards Doctor Ref, the terrorist, burned like a slow fire and has remained with her ever since. She knew Isaiah was a victim who had suffered a lot of pain in Nicaragua and the Middle East, but she still couldn¡¯t forgive Isaiah. ¡°And that¡¯s why you tried to frame Doctor Ryu for using anthrax weapons in the Congo?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked. ¡°I didn¡¯t intend to kill him, and I thought he would clear his name quickly,¡± Isaiah replied. ¡°You don¡¯t feel the slightest bit guilty? You¡¯re so shameless.¡± ¡°Do you like Ryu Young-Joon or something? It¡¯s all in the past, and Doctor Ryu, who was attacked, isn¡¯t saying anything. I don¡¯t know why you are being so sensitive, Doctor Song?¡± ¡°What did you say?¡± The atmosphere between the two became slightly tense. ¡°Look, wait a minute. We¡¯re not here to fight. We¡¯re here to strategize for the trial in the Nethends,¡± Young-Joon interrupted. ¡°I would like Elsie and Doctor Song to do the first trial. I¡¯ll stay here and treat Isaiah, then go in for the second trial.¡± ¡°Whatever you decide is fine, but first, we need to talk,¡± Isaiah said to Young-Joon. ¡°Doctor Song, could you give us the room?¡± ¡°What is it?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked. ¡°Would you know if I told you? Have you heard anything about Rosaline?¡± Isaiah asked. ¡°Rosaline?¡± ¡°Doctor Song, I¡¯m sorry, but can I have a moment alone...¡± Young-Joon asked with an apologetic expression. ¡°...¡± Song Ji-Hyun gulped and stood up. ¡°Call me after you¡¯re done.¡± She walked out, looking slightly offended. When she stepped outside, Harris and Robert stared at her. ¡°Are you done talking?¡± ¡°The three of them have something to talk about.¡± Song Ji-Hyun sat on the chair, deep in thought. She was now a candidate for the Nobel Prize, but she was still an ordinary civilian. But instead of going home, she stayed in the United States, faced the media with Yassir, met Elsie, and decided to go to the Nethends. This needed quite a bit of courage to do. She thought this would help Young-Joon, and she thought she would be able to work alongside him. But to be in a worse position than a terrorist... ¡°Phew...¡± Song Ji-Hyun sighed andy down on her desk. ¡®What is Rosaline? What is it about her?¡¯ Song Ji-Hyun remembered Young-Joon¡¯s niece she¡¯d met at the Next Generation Hospital. That girl was a mysterious child in many ways. The girl hadn¡¯t been there before she left the hospital room to get cocoa, so it was strange that she appeared out of nowhere. She asked Young-Joon about Rosaline when they were in the United States, but he didn¡¯t respond clearly. Elsie had also asked if she knew about Rosaline, saying that it was an artificial cell she was growing at the Life Creation Department. ¡®Did they really create life or something? Why are they making such a fuss about that name?¡¯ Song Ji-Hyun passed the time idly, rolling a pen on the desk. In the meantime, in Isaiah Franklin¡¯s hospital room, the three people who knew Rosaline¡¯s identity were in discussion. ¡°You could tell Doctor Song,¡± Elsie said. ¡°The less people know, the better. Doctor Song seems to have a crush on Ryu Young-Joon, so who knows? If she gets rejected, she might go around exposing everything out of spite,¡± Isaiah said. ¡°Doctor Song wouldn¡¯t do that. Cut the crap and let¡¯s talk about Rosaline,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°When I was in Egypt, Yassir told me that a red-haired girl named Rosaline was ying in the hospital director¡¯s room at the Next Generation Hospital. He said that you brought her,¡± Isaiah said to Young-Joon. ¡°Doctor Song talked about that too. It bothered me a little... Doctor Ryu, is that girl really Rosaline?¡± Elsie said, intervening. ¡°... Yes,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Shit...¡± ¡°She can make a body... How many cells does that need? Her fitness is not what it was when we were developing her.¡± Isaiah and Elsie were amazed. ¡°Where is she now?¡± Isaiah asked. ¡°She can¡¯t maintain her body for long, so she is back in her cell state right now.¡± ¡°Can she form her body again?¡± Elsie asked. Young-Joon nced at Rosaline. ¡ªYes. Rosaline sent him a message. ¡ªMy fitness recovery speed couldn¡¯t keep up with the amount of fitness being used. She felt the fitness coursing through her. ¡ªBut not anymore. Thousands of people in Nicaragua have been infected with the virus that Yassir spread, and the DNA injected by the virus is active because most of them have undergone treatments like gene therapy or organ transnts. Proteins expressed in the central nervous system, like Lagba, or organs like the liver are being delivered to the brain. Rosaline went on. ¡ªNow, I can build a body the size of Ryu Sae-Yi anytime I want, and I can maintain it. I was going to do it when we go back to Korea since it might cause problems for you if I do it here. Young-Joon delivered this news to Elsie and Isaiah. ¡°Then is she listening to us as a cell?¡± Isaiah asked. ¡°Yeah. she¡¯s over there,¡± Young-Joon said, pointing to the chair beside the bed. Elsie and Isaiah¡¯s head followed his finger. They couldn¡¯t see it, but a cell was floating there. And Rosaline, who was in the form of Ryu Sae-Yi, was pacing. ¡°Okay. Ryu Young-Joon, when Lofair deals with someone as dangerous as you, they start with family. They¡¯re probably doing quite a bit of research on Rosaline, too,¡± Isaiah said. ¡°She absolutely cannot be revealed. If you¡¯re going to make her human, it has to be perfect.¡± ¡°Use my name,¡± Elsie said. ¡°What?¡± ¡°I haven¡¯t met anyone but drug dealers in over a decade. And do you know what the suburb of San Diego I was living in was like?¡± Elsie said. ¡°It¡¯s full of illegal immigrants from Mexico. Most of them are undocumented, and babies born from them are abandoned quite often, too.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Just say it¡¯s a kid that an old drug-addicted scientist of the Life Creation Department was keeping. And...¡± Elsie said. ¡°You can adopt her, Doctor Ryu.¡± Chapter 284: FRB (12) ¡®I gave Ryu Young-Joon plenty of chances, but he¡¯s the one who kicked them to the curb.¡¯ Alphonse Lofair was now plotting his attack on Young-Joon. And before he could do that, he needed to tarnish Young-Joon¡¯s reputation as much as possible as if there was an ident in the Nethends, everyone would be suspicious of Lofair. This meant that Young-Joon could not be a martyr of justice who died while healing the sick and fighting the powerful for the weak. When the incident urred¡ªwhen things would be unfavorable to Lofair¡ªit was necessary to have a perspective to muddy public opinion, saying that Young-Joon was also doing shady things. As such, Lofair manipted the media to produce a series of usations and nder against Young-Joon. [Ryu Young-Joon was presumably aware of the entire background of gic maniption and human experimentation in Nicaragua to begin with, which is why he approached the Nicaraguan government with the intention of billing them for the treatment. This is an overly calcted move, given his position as a medical professional, and one that is consistent with the practice of exploiting the suffering of a nation for profit¡­] However, these attacks were pretty much useless, as theirmentaries and editorials from just a few weeks ago told the exact opposite story. This made public opinion far worse for them. ¡ªJust two weeks ago, you assholes were the ones who said that the CEO of a publicly tradedpany should work for the profit of the shareholders. ¡ªYou were the ones who made a huge fuss about how it¡¯s wrong to go to Nicaragua to do something good for only fifteen billion dors. Seeing as the media is going crazy now, I guess the Lofair conspiracy theory is true. ¡ªI used to volunteer in Nicaragua. I don¡¯t know how you can use Ryu Young-Joon of being evil as a medical practitioner. He brought all those doctors from Korea to fix patients day and night at the lowest possible price. I don¡¯t think Nicaraguans would be celebrating in the hospital if it were like that. Watch what you say if you don¡¯t know the situation. ¡ªOf course, this is Lofair¡¯s doing behind the scenes. LOL they¡¯re trying so hard to keep Ryu Young-Joon in check. ¡ªStop spewing bullshit and change the Federal Bank to national assets, you bastards. We never gave you the right to print dors. Alphonse, who had already arrived in the Nethends, hesitated, but decided to use the weapon. After all, Young-Joon had rejected Tate¡¯s attempts at appeasement. Alphonse pulled out his made-up scenario about Rosaline and called Tate. ¡°I want you to attack Ryu Young-Joon by leaking the Rosaline story to the press. The more provocative, the better. Make it sound like Ryu Young-Joon bought the unidentified girl from the Third World, like human trafficking,¡± Alphonse said. However, Tate¡¯s response was shocking. ¡ªBut there¡¯s a problem, Alphonse. ¡°What?¡± ¡ªI think Ryu Young-Joon has filed for adoption. ¡°Adoption? Are you talking about that girl?¡± ¡ªYes. Not many people know yet. ¡°We just dug into all of Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s rtives in Korea the other day and there was no mention of adoption?¡± ¡ªAnd in Korea, single men aren¡¯t allowed to adopt girls. ¡°So it¡¯s not a problem, right?¡± ¡ªBut Ryu Young-Joon received knighthood in Sweden and was given honorary citizenship in that country. ¡°...¡± ¡ªHe requested the adoption directly through the Swedish royal family to the Korean government. ¡°Is adoption legal there?¡± ¡ªSweden allows same-sex couples to adopt, so they¡¯re pretty open-minded when ites to things like that. On top of that, Ryu Young-Joon is a recipient of the Royal Order of the Seraphim, which is only given to royalty of heads of state in Sweden, so they wouldn¡¯t have a problem with him adopting a child. ¡°Wait. If he¡¯s officially adopting that girl, it means that her identity is certain. How did they prove that?¡± ¡ªApparently, she¡¯s an orphan of an illegal immigrant family who was raised by Elsie Franklin for years, and that was why she wasn¡¯t registered as a citizen. ¡°Elsie? Elsie? Elsie Franklin?¡± Alphonse¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°That¡¯s aplete lie! If Elsie had a kid, we would have known about it! The local drug dealers were at her house twice a week!¡± ¡ªBut we can¡¯t talk about that. ¡°...¡± ¡ªWouldn¡¯t that be an admission that we¡¯ve been spying on Elsie and drugging her? It would be even worse for us. ¡°What if we im through the drug dealers that it had nothing to do with us?¡± ¡ªElsie hasn¡¯t worked for over a decade, has no assets, and is a drug addict. There¡¯s no exnation as to how she kept buying those drugs. In reality, we gave her the drugs and money to keep her alive as a hostage¡­ ¡°You¡¯re saying it¡¯s going to be hard to fabricate a crazy dealer who supplies drugs while giving her money.¡± ¡ªYes. Alphonse chewed his lip. ¡°Where is she now? Elsie has been in the Nethends for a while. Is she with Ryu Young-Joon?¡± ¡ªYes, and¡­ Tate paused. ¡ªUm¡­ There was a little girl in a hat among the entourage when they got off the ne in the Nethends a while ago. Maybe that¡¯s Rosaline¡­ ¡°They¡¯re in the Nethends?¡± ¡ªYes. ¡°I would try to do something if she was still in the U.S., but it¡¯s going to be hard to do anything here because there¡¯s not a lot of people I can move around.¡± ¡ªAnd I¡¯m sure she¡¯s under heavy security. But Alphonse¡­ Tate went on. ¡ªIt still doesn¡¯t exin how the kid got into the country. She¡¯s an orphan, born to an illegal immigrant family, so she doesn¡¯t have citizenship. Obviously, she wouldn¡¯t have been able to get out of the U.S., and there¡¯s no record of her entry to Korea, so it¡¯s smuggling. Why don¡¯t we attack that? ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter if she was smuggled in. Even we just found out that she came to the Nethends.¡± ¡ªThat¡¯s because she wasn¡¯t on amercial ne but a presidential ne. The White House can decide whether or not to release departure records. ¡°Yeah¡­ It¡¯s the same thing when she went to Korea. Ryu Young-Joon quietly brought the child into the country with the government¡¯s help to protect that girl from Elsie or us. All they have to say is that there are no records because it had to be done secretly to fight Lofair. No one will suspect Ryu Young-Joon over such a thing, even without a detailed exnation. The attack itself is too weak,¡± Alphonse said. ¡°On the contrary, something like a list of people who entered South Korea is a national record, and the fact that it was collected by foreign civilians like us could create a diplomatic problem and be used against us. If we don¡¯t reveal the source of the information, no one will believe us.¡± ¡ªSo what can we do? ¡°...¡± Honestly, there was no way. ¡°We have no choice. Don¡¯t publish anything about Rosaline,¡± Alphonse said. ¡°The second trial is in two days. It¡¯s toote to find a new ploy now. We just have to get rid of Ryu Young-Joon before he gets to the courtroom.¡± * ¡°It¡¯s harder to guard you now that you have a child with you,¡± Kim Chul-Kwon said. ¡°A child as little as her might get hurt ying alone or wander into the streets when no one¡¯s looking, but for Lofair to be after her¡­¡± He looked at Rosaline and gave her a worried look. Rosaline was watching the water boil in the hotel¡¯s electric kettle. ¡®Does Rosaline really need a bodyguard?¡¯ Young-Joon felt a little sorry for Kim Chul-Kwon. Unlike humans, who have developed from fertilized eggs into multicellr organisms ording to an evolutionarily programmed developmental scheme, Rosaline was still a cell. Her life force was contained uniformly in each and every one of her cells, especially those in Young-Joon¡¯s body. As such, no matter how much Rosaline¡¯s body, which looked like Ryu Sae-Yi, was injured¡ªeven if someone blew her head off¡ªRosaline wouldn¡¯t die. She would reattach herself to living tissues and repair her nerves. As a cellr organism and the next generation of life, death began at a much more fundamental level. ¡°Oh!¡± Rosaline was ying with the kettle when she spilled hot water and burned her hand. Seeing her startled, Young-Joon rushed over to her, surprised. As he examined the burn on her little finger, someone appeared at their hotel room door. It was Isaiah Franklin, and Kim Chul-Kwon was blocking her froming in. ¡°It¡¯s alright, she cane in for a minute. I need to talk to her.¡± Young-Joon let Isaiah into the room and locked the door. ¡°Thanks. Can I talk to Rosaline?¡± Isaiah asked. ¡°Yeah, but I¡¯m going to listen, too,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Okay.¡± Isaiah nodded and sat across from Rosaline. Rosaline stared at her curiously. ¡°Do you hate me?¡± Isaiah asked. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Because I tried to hurt Ryu Young-Joon.¡± ¡°If Ryu Young-Joon had been hurt, I would have focused all my energy on figuring out how to cure him. I don¡¯t feel human emotions like anger or sadness easily because I don¡¯t have them,¡± Rosaline replied. Young-Joon suddenly remembered the first time he met Rosaline. She was aplete psychopath. He still remembered her suggesting that it would be very profitable to sacrifice some elderly people and children with low immunity to eradicate the flu virus. She¡¯s gotten a lot more humanized since then, but still. Isaiah thought for a moment, then said, ¡°You know that I¡¯ve been trying to get you to rule the world, right?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Rosaline nodded. ¡°That¡¯s because no matter how amazing the science you and Ryu Young-Joon create, there are always people who misuse it. For example, do you know thepany named Celebite?¡± she asked. Rosaline shook her head. Young-Joon hadn¡¯t heard of it either. ¡°It¡¯s a bio-venture in Silicon Valley,¡± Isaiah exined. ¡°They make and sell meat using the cultured meat technology developed by A-GenBio, but it¡¯s human meat.¡± Young-Joon frowned. ¡°Human flesh?¡± ¡°They buy celebrities¡¯ somatic cells, then de-differentiate it to make cultured meat and sell it. Their catchphrase is, ¡®Taste the flesh of your favorite idol.¡¯¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°There are some people who think it¡¯s disgusting, but there are a lot of fans who like it. A lot of actors and singers scrape cells from the inside of their mouths and sell it off because they don¡¯t think it¡¯s a big deal,¡± Isaiah said. ¡°Cases like this are cute. The insane technologies created by A-GenBio will open the era of life extension and allow those with money and power to receive treatment and survive healthily even when their telomeres run out or they are in a brain-dead state. Meanwhile, those who are poor will simply die. Can Ryu Young-Jon handle the conflicts of that era, where the gap in wealth will deepen into a gap of life expectancy?¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joon quietly listened to Isaiah. ¡°Now, ethics can¡¯t handle the expansion of technology anymore. I think someone has to take control,¡± Isaiah said. ¡°If you, who can only live in Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s body, were to be able to live in all human bodies, you, who pursues extreme efficiency, would treat all those human bodies as an asset and carefully control them optimally. So, for you¡­¡± ¡°How interesting. You sound like Lofair right now.¡± ¡°Lofair?¡± ¡°Alphonse Lofair said he created you because there was no way to manage the Cold War with the growing number of nuclear weapons. He believed that technology was so advanced that it required a superior human being to control it.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°What you¡¯re trying to do to me is what Lofair expected of you. If I¡¯m useless, are you going to try to get rid of me?¡± Rosaline asked. ¡°No, I¡¯m not! I just¡­¡± ¡°And I¡¯m not very interested in ruling the world.¡± Rosaline smiled innocently. ¡°Okay¡­¡± Isaiah smiled bitterly. She somewhat expected this, but she was clearly rejected. Young-Joon, who was listening to them, said, ¡°If Rosaline were an intelligent virus that uses humans as hosts, she would do everything she could to preserve the human species. You might have considered entrusting her with humans with that idea, but she¡¯s not like that.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I am going to make Rosaline happy. A world messed up by adults should be cleaned up by adults. Why are you trying to get a kid to do that? Don¡¯t ask her to do the bothersome and difficult work. I won¡¯t stand for it.¡± ¡°...¡± Isaiah chuckled. She had worshiped Rosaline for her entire life and praised her like a savior, but Young-Joon treated her like a child to be protected, or a trusted friend. That disparity hit her hard. ¡°Okay. Sessful people have a different mindset. Okay. I¡¯ll give up now, no matter what,¡± Isaiah said. Young-Joon stared her silently, then said, ¡°Enough of this nonsense. We could be attacked on our way to court, and I want you to think of a n to defend it.¡± ¡°d you brought it up because I¡¯m on my way back from seeing President Campbell. This is really my specialty, so don¡¯t worry,¡± Isaiah said. ¡°I lived in the Palestinian conflict zone for over twenty years and worked with the rebels for over ten years. You think some third-rate guy who¡¯s lived in thefort of a financier family is a match for me?¡± Chapter 285: FRB (13)

Chapter 285: FRB (13)

The U.S. government officials stayed at the Hoofddorp Hotel near Schiphol International Airport, as did Young-Joon, Rosaline, and Isaiah. The hotel had perfect security, making it difficult for anyone to attack or break in. The U.S. government rented the entire hotel, and they asked for the cooperation of the Dutch government, which provided seven thousand police officers. The United States Secret Service had guards at key points within a one-hundred-meter radius and every building and mountain that could have snipers were searched and guarded. It would be difficult to get through this security and carry out an attack. The problem was getting to the International Court of Justice. It was located in The Hague, which was about a thirty-five-minute drive from the hotel. That was the problem. Young-Joon decided to take the same car as President Campbell and Isaiah, and they were going to travel in a motorcade with their entourage. A motorcade was when a local police officer led the way, followed by the president¡¯s vehicle, the vehicles of the entourage, including the ministers or staff, and the vehicles of the security team in one line. The idea was that the motorcade did not stop until it reached the final destination. As such, the roads needed to be controlled. The Dutch governmentpletely shut down traffic on the route from the hotel to the International Court of Justice four hours in advance. Isaiah had mapped out the best strategy for attacking the team from a terrorist¡¯s perspective, and the Dutch and U.S. governments prepared for all of it. They opened manhole covers and searched the sewers, and they even removed mailboxes along the route. Helicopters wereunched to monitor the route and suspicious movements of nearby citizens. ¡°Honestly, there¡¯s nothing for me to do,¡± Kim Chul-Kwon said. ¡°They¡¯re protecting the president of the United States, so it¡¯s probably bigger than a private security firm,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°The reason President Campbell is visiting the Nethends and going to the International Court of Justice is to provide this protection for you, Doctor Ryu.¡± ¡°Yes. President Campbell has put his life on the line for this fight now. Either he wins, securing the financial power in the United States, and gets re-elected, or he gets assassinated here with me,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°The Dutch government is in a pretty difficult situation because the President of the United States himself hase to provide state-level security due to the very real possibility of terrorism against me. If something goes wrong, it bes a diplomatic issue with the United States.¡± ¡°What do you suggest I do?¡± ¡°Just stay at the hotel. Please take care of Rosaline in the case of an emergency,¡± Young-Joon said. At eleven in the morning, Young-Joon had a light meal with Campbell¡¯s entourage and stepped into the presidential bulletproof vehicle. * The security was tighter than he thought, so Alphonse Lofair decided to adjust his strategy a little bit. It was n B now. The best option was to kill Young-Joon, but they didn¡¯t have to get hung up on that if that was too difficult. Once they got through this trial, they were going to have other options. Now that Campbell was here, this had to be thest trial. The judges here would make a decision by voting, and since the International Court of Justice was the only institution that handled disputes between nations and the highest judicial body, there was no concept of an appeal. In other words, its rulings were absolute and irreversible. So, by discouraging witnesses from appearing by stalling for time and rushing the judges for a verdict, Alphonse could get what he wanted. Then, how was he going to get the witnesses to fail to appear? After Campbell, Young-Joon, and Isaiah leave, Rosaline would be left alone at the hotel. This was because she needed to be identified in order to attend the hearing, but she hadn¡¯t received Swedish citizenship yet. They wouldn¡¯t let her out alone, so they were probably going to put her in the most secure hotel with the highest security. It didn¡¯t matter if that girl was really Elsie¡¯s daughter or not; the important thing was that Young-Joon cared for the child. Alphonse found one of the cleaners of the hotel, a poor African man who grew up in a refugee family. Through a broker, he gave that man, who had been cleaning for thirty years and was worried about sending his children to college, enough money to start a new life. ¡°No matter what you ask me to do, I won¡¯t do it.¡± The broker gave the scared and reluctant cleaner a very simple task. ¡°Set fire to an empty room. If there¡¯s an identter and the police investigate, you can get away with saying that a cigarette left behind by a guest set the bed sheets on fire, or something like that. I¡¯m not asking you to kill anyone, set off a bomb, or steal anything. I¡¯m just asking you to set fire to an empty room after the people are gone.¡± * The task was too easy in exchange for thepensation provided: enough money to buy a huge mansion and send his children to college. Atst, after the president¡¯s entourage, Young-Joon, and Isaiah left, the cleaner checked the time and set fire to the predesignated room. What he didn¡¯t know was that eight other hotel staff had been bribed in the same way. Although it wasn¡¯t a big fire, smoke and fire rmsing out of various rooms simultaneously caused chaos. As the security team scrambled to determine the scale and location of the fire, four fire trucks arrived at the scene. Although they had the Amsterdam Fire Department¡¯s mark, they were actually different people. Lofair arrived in the Nethends early, and during the first trial, he secretly smuggled in four unregistered vehicles from Turnhout, Belgium. He hid them in an abandoned factory in Amstelveen, converted them into fire trucks, and gave them to terrorists who had been trained for the attack. The situation quickly escted. With the president and his White House entourage gone, the security guards at the hotel became a little rxed. That¡¯s why the terrorists exploited that vulnerability. ¡°Aren¡¯t the president and his entourage already out now? The fire rms are ringing, and you want to search the firefighters? You want us to take off our fireproof suits, venttors, and oxygen tanks so that you can search us? Are you crazy? We¡¯re from the Amsterdam Fire Department! Look!¡± The terrorists, who were dressed like firefighters, showed the hotel security team their IDs and screamed at them. ¡°What if your stalling causes more fires or casualties? You don¡¯t even know the exact size or location of the fire, right?¡± ¡°Then, we¡¯ll be checking your movementster.¡± As the security team reluctantly agreed, the terrorists quickly moved inside the hotel. They had one mission: capture Rosaline. They were going to hold her hostage to lure Young-Joon here. Then, when they got the signal, they would drop all weapons and surrender to the police. Presumably, at that point, the judges of the International Court of Justice would be voting. * Alphonse received a text. [The Hoofddorp Hotel is on fire, and the fire rm has gone off.] ¡®It¡¯s done.¡¯ The defense counsel would probably ask for an adjournment if a witness waste. However, the International Court of Justice rarely adjourned for frivolous reasons, such as the failure of a witness to appear. It was a huge institution that dealt with disputes between nations. If the chief judge hesitated, Alphonse was going to use the judges who were close to him to pressure the chief judge to continue with the trial. The trial was ten minutes from starting. Campbell and Young-Joon still hadn¡¯t arrived. After some time, the news about the hotel spread. The defense counsel for the United States and Nicaragua looked nervous about the unexpected turn of events. This news also reached Elsie and Song Ji-Hyun, who had arrived first and were sitting in the audience. ¡°A fire?¡± Song Ji-Hyun was shocked. ¡°The President¡¯s car, security team, and witnesses have all left the hotel. Don¡¯t worry. Fire trucks have arrived at the scene as well,¡± said the White House staff who delivered the news to Song Ji-Hyun and Elsie. ¡°But...¡± Song Ji-Hyun gulped. She turned to Elsie with a worried look. ¡°I heard Doctor Ryu was bringing a girl that Doctor Elsie was taking care of... Rosaline, right?¡± said the staff. ¡°Yes... She should be at the hotel right now.¡± ¡°... They say it¡¯s not a big fire, so she should be okay, right?¡± ¡°... But a fire happening all of a sudden...¡± Alphonse smiled, watching their panic from afar. ¡®It¡¯s over.¡¯ Alphonse, who was also here as a witness, was confident he could obscure and overturn all the circumstances. Thud. The doors to the court opened. Campbell and his entourage emerged. They made their way to the audience and sat down. Then, Young-Joon and Isaiah appeared. ¡°Huh...¡± Alphonse stared at them in disbelief. He checked his phone again. [All members of the armed gang who entered the Hoofddorp Hotel disguised as firefighters were arrested.] [Firefighters putting out the fire at Hoofddorp Hotel.] The local live news feed was reporting the story. * ¡°That¡¯s why you guys aren¡¯t good at it, you morons.¡± That was what Isaiah told Director Harris a day before the second hearing. ¡°If you think terrorism is just about killing people, you¡¯re wrong. You think it¡¯s game over once you¡¯ve got the president under tight security? You have to put the focus on preventing the terrorists from getting what they want, not taking lives. There are other ways to attack, such as kidnapping Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s adopted daughter while pretending to attack us and threatening him with her. I also had an ulterior motive when I attacked the GSC.¡± Harris was getting a little tired of taking raw, unfiltered advice from this true terrorist. ¡°But outsiders can¡¯te into the hotel,¡± Harris said. ¡°If youe in as a citizen, sure. Poor Palestinian rebels would have to do a suicide bombing and shoot their way in, but Lofair¡¯s got a lot more money, so he¡¯ll probably do something more elegant, like disguising as a government official or public servant. The cops are already here, so posing as a cop would be difficult, so... Maybe a hotel janitor or firefighter?¡± Taking her advice, Harris ordered the Secret Service to be on higher alert than usual for government employees approaching the hotel and hotel staff. However, there was nothing for them to act on. Just as the terrorists pulled out their guns at the halfway point and were about to fight the security team that followed them... ¡°Agh...¡± One by one, all twenty of the terrorists suddenly clutched their heads in pain and fell to the ground. Theyy on the floor, vomiting and trying to catch their breath, before passing out one after another. Both the Secret Service officers and the K-Cops team were speechless at the ridiculous situation. Only Kim Chul-Kwon noticed something unusual: Rosaline had be very quiet. She was constantly talking to him and teasing him, but when she heard a noise outside, she climbed into bed andid down straight. She closed her eyes tightly as if she were asleep. ¡ªI lightly shook their brains to knock them out. Rosaline sent Young-Joon a message. ¡®Good job. Have some fun with Mr. Kim, but don¡¯t bother him too much.¡¯ Young-Joon smiled and replied to Rosaline in his head. ¡°We will begin the second trial. We will hear the evidence presented by the Nicaraguan government and the statements of witness Ryu Young-Joon. Mr. Ryu, pleasee up to the stand,¡± said the judge. Young-Joon walked up briskly. Alphonse caught a glimpse of him as he passed by. There was a hint of ridicule and cold anger in his expression. ¡°I will exin TALENs, a form of gene scissors.¡± Chapter 286: FRB (14)

Chapter 286: FRB (14)

¡°TALENs are gene scissors that were used before the development of Cas9. While investigating why patients in Nicaragua had such a high rate of gic mutations, I deduced that artificial gic mutations by TALENs had urred.¡± Young-Joon¡¯s attack was brutal. ¡°Naturally, DNA double-stranded break events ur at a much lower frequency than what was found in patients with gic conditions in Nicaragua. There were a minimum of one hundred eight double-stranded break events, 2117.6 events on average, and a maximum of three thousand two hundred forty-six events ¡°In cells, the frequency of DNA double-stranded break events is significantly low, but in the bodies of patients, these events urred at least one hundred eighty times at the embryonic stage, with an average of 2117.6 urrences. In the case of the patients with the most gic mutations, there were as many as three thousand two hundred forty-six breaks. This can be proven through indel pattern analysis.¡± Young-Joon began to literally bombard the courtroom with vast amounts of data. He tried to avoid technical jargon as much as possible, but there were some words that he couldn¡¯t trante or simplify, which required lengthy exnations. The judges had studied the written reports submitted extensively in advance for this trial, which was one of its kind. They had a fairly good understanding, but Young-Joon¡¯s exnation was still hard to digest. ¡°After the double strands of DNA are cut, a DNA break repair system called non-homologous end joining is triggered at that location. This system results in random insertions or deletions of DNA bases called indels. ¡°I traced all of those patterns and identified thousands of mutations that were all caused by double-stranded breaks in the DNA. I believe the Nicaraguan government submitted all the indel data as evidence. It is certainly not a natural event to have such a high concentration of indels in the embryo stage,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I believe that someone gically modified the patients when they were embryos, and I specte that TALENs were used to cut and manipte the double strand of DNA because it was the most effective gic scissors avable at the time. ¡°And if the DNA that expresses TALENs was introduced into the patient, I thought it could be extracted now. The Nicaraguan government would have submitted the TALEN DNA information extracted from each patient¡¯s blood sample.¡± Young-Joon exined the data regarding TALENs that was submitted. ¡°The DNA sequence that codes for TALENs is the entire motif that urs below the three hundredth base pair. The DNA sequence that precedes it is a promoter called pCMV, a sequence that is artificially put in to activate certain DNA sequences. This means that TALENs were artificially introduced into the embryo and used to manipte certain genes, resulting in thousands of mutations caused by the induced DNA breaks,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°But there¡¯s no evidence that the gene maniption by TALENs urred at Groom Lake!¡± Alphonse shouted from his seat, even though it wasn¡¯t his turn to speak. Cold sweat was trickling down his cheeks. ¡°Yes, there is,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°There were only a few biologybs in Nicaragua sophisticated enough to use TALENs, and they all had no record of purchasing it from outside sources. Groom Lake Air Force Base¡¯s purchases were all eliminated, but...¡± Young-Joon picked up a smid transportation record from Professor George Thompson¡¯sb. ¡°This data was sent to me by Professor George Thompson¡¯sb at Harvard Medical School. TALENs have only been sent to Nicaragua once, and it was personally donated by Professor Thompson. It says that he donated three types of smids for research purposes to Groom Lake Air Force Base in the northeastern part of Nicaragua. These smids are used to create TALENs and to package them into viruses.¡± Young-Joon went on. ¡°And this virus is used to infect animal cells. It works just as well on human embryos. If Groom Lake purchased TALENs, which is the only record of TALENsing into Nicaragua, and there are so many patients born in Nicaragua who were gically engineered by TALENs, is there any other possibility here besides the fact that Groom Lake engineered their genes?¡± ¡°...¡± Alphonse¡¯s expression hardened. ¡°If this was the UFC, the referee would have stopped him...¡± Campbell whispered to Harris. But Young-Joon¡¯s attack wasn''t done yet. ¡°Also, anothermon factor between these patients is that they are all orphans. Why? When the high concentrations of random gic maniption umte, the biomolecules released from their body during development act as antigens, posing a risk to their own health as well as their mothers. ¡°As Groom Lake would have wanted to obtain gically engineered humans for research purposes, they probably chose to kill the mother and spare the fetus, and then abandoned them in an orphanage.¡± ¡°That is ridiculous!¡± ¡°At Kukra Hill right now, about twenty percent of the Nicaraguan poption havee in to be examined or have sent their blood to be tested remotely. We¡¯vepared the number of short tandem repeats in their blood samples to trace back family rtionships and build a family tree with the orphaned patients.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I wasn¡¯t able to finish this work, but my colleagues notified me that they had finished it. Was this data also submitted by the Nicaraguan government?¡± ¡°It was received and admitted as evidence,¡± said Judge P¨¨ter. ¡°Thank you. If you look at that material, the patients are all children out of wedlock, and there are no records of obstetric care at the time the patients were born. But the fact that the patients were born and survived in such a critical situation means that someone provided the mothers with a fairly high level of medical care until the babies developed,¡± Young-Joon said. Then, the Nicaraguan defense counsel stepped forward. ¡°Our government located and spoke to the families of the deceased mothers, and we have confirmed that the mothers werest seen traveling to Groom Lake Air Force Base.¡± ¡°...¡± Alphonse now realized that it was impossible to safely remove himself from this fight. His only option was to at least acknowledge it. He had to retreat, appealing to the historical context of the Cold War and arguing that, at the very least, he didn¡¯t kill those babies but entrusted them to orphanages to be raised. The only way to reduce the punishment was to say they did everything they could to save the mothers, although it was inevitable, and that they were not brutal mass murderers. ¡°...¡± But when his thinking got to this, Alphonse realized that this was impossible, as he did be a brutal mass murderer in the end. Isaiah Franklin and her mother, who were the only people to escape theb, were here. ¡°I¡¯m one of the children born through gic engineering. I am not an orphan, and I¡¯m one of the few witnesses who remember the end of thatb,¡± said Isaiah on the stand. ¡°On the day the Cold War ended, soldiers from Groom Lake Air Force Base stormed theb, killed everyone left there, and burned the evidence to get rid of it.¡± ¡°This is a CIA document from that time. It¡¯s only partially written, and it¡¯s not very detailed, but it outlines the research at Groom Lake Air Force Base and describes the termination of the research,¡± said U.S. defense counsel. ¡°This is not just a medical scandal; it''s an actual murder. It was an organized act of murder carried out by the U.S. administration, which has a duty to protect its citizens, against its own people and the people of Nicaragua.¡± After being pummeled by Isaiah and the U.S. government¡¯s defense counsel, it was finally Alphonse¡¯s turn to speak. He barely made it to the witness stand after persuading the judges and coaxing the defense counsel. His original intention was to argue that Groom Lake had nothing to do with the gic maniption by TALENs and that he wasn¡¯t responsible. ¡°Mr. Lofair, you were the director of the genomicsb at Groom Lake Air Force Base. Please testify about the case,¡± said the judge. ¡°...¡± But Alphonse couldn¡¯t say anything. It was like his mind had gone nk. * While the trial was going on in the Nethends, there were two huge things that were going on in Washington. One was the U.S. prosecution indicting officials of the Heagan administration. Although not many of them were still alive, there were still quite a few key figures, such as Congressman Norton. The other was dealing with the President¡¯s proposed amendments to the Federal Reserve Act in Congress. There were three key issues. The first was to make all operating profits of the Federal Reserve a part of the Treasury Department; the second was for the board of directors of the Federal Reserve to serve a four-year term and be appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate; the third was to transfer the authority to set interest rates and issue dors, previously held by the Federal Reserve, to the Treasury Department. In effect, it stripped the Federal Bank of its power, essentially leaving them only the title. Lofair¡¯s banks, including Chenover Bank, still owned the Federal Bank, but they couldn¡¯t make any profits from it and had to go through Congress to participate in the management. There were a lot of politicians in both Congress and the Senate who Lofair had an influence on, but they were quickly aligning themselves up differently. They all knew what was happening in the Nethends. ¡®Alphonse is going to serve time.¡¯ It didn¡¯t matter if he was more powerful than the president; he wasn¡¯t going to be able to get out of this. He was a civilian and had no way to avoid responsibility. Chenover Bank, which funded most of the initial costs of creating and running Groom Lake Air Force Base, could be fined an astronomical amount. Lofair¡¯s power would be severely diminished, and if the Federal Bank was taken away from them, they were bound to fall. While the first trial was going on and Young-Joon was treating Isaiah, Campbell was busy meeting with congressmen. He appealed for financial independence, arguing that this was America¡¯s miraculous opportunity to be a capitalist democracy. Or, he ckmailed certain members of Congress for their association with the Heagan administration. The results of this were nowing to light. The amendment to the Federal Reserve Act was going to pass. Almost all the senators had sided with Campbell. * ¡°This grand m is amazing...¡± Park Joo-Hyuk eximed as he watched the news of the International Criminal Court¡¯s ruling on TV. ¡°I can¡¯t believe he got Lofair...¡± ¡°Mr. Park, why don¡¯t you stop watching TV and get to work?¡± said Kim In-Young, an attorney in A-GenBio¡¯s legal team. She held out a stack of papers. ¡°Oh, yes, I should, but I have something else to do.¡± Park Joo-Hyuk took out his phone and reread the text message. It was from Young-Joon in the morning. [I¡¯m adopting a kid. She¡¯s nine years old and will have Swedish citizenship. Can you find out how I can obtain a foreigner registration card and visa for her to live in Korea?] Chapter 287: An Ordinary Scientist (1)

Chapter 287: An Ordinary Scientist (1)

A unanimous vote of the fifteen judges found the United States government liable forpensation. The Dutch police were waiting outside the main entrance of the International Court of Justice, as the U.S. Department of Justice indicted Alphonse Lofair and requested the Dutch police to secure his custody in order to prevent any chance of escape. Campbell watched quietly as Alphonse, following instructions from Dutch police officers, got into the police car. ¡°Thank you for your help,¡± Campbell said to Young-Joon. ¡°It¡¯s nothing. It¡¯s not like I did it as a charity act,¡± he replied. Topletely bring down Alphonse and Chenover Bank, Campbell needed to actively leverage the verdict of the International Court of Justice. To do so, they had to recognize the jurisdiction of the court, and eventually, they would also have topensate the Nicaraguan government. Thispensation would then be funneled back to A-GenBio and the Next-Generation Hospital. It was an enormous amount of business profit. ¡°We wouldn¡¯t have been able to start any of this if it wasn¡¯t for you, Doctor Ryu. I¡¯m really fortunate to have a friend like you,¡± Campbell said. ¡°Well, I have to go now because I have ns, Doctor Ryu. It would be diplomatically impolite for me toe all the way here and go back without meeting the Dutch prime minister.¡± ¡°Yes, go ahead,¡± Young-Joon replied with a smile. ¡°Doctor Ryu, please don¡¯t go anywhere and stay at the hotel today, if possible. My security guards will apany you to the hotel. You should take care of yourself for a while after you return to Korea.¡± ¡°Thank you for your concern.¡± Campbell and Young-Joon shared a light professional hug. After he left, Young-Joon found Elsie and Isaiah who wereing out of the courtroom. The two of them also stepped into a Dutch police vehicle. Elsie had some history of involvement in the crime as she worked as a scientist at Groom Lake. Isaiah, even more so. Though, they might receive some leniency for participating in the trial. ¡°Doctor Ryu,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said to Young-Joon as she walked out of the courtroom. ¡°Hello. I¡¯ve been so busy that I¡¯m only now able to greet you,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°...¡± ¡°Would you like to have dinner together?¡± he asked. ¡°Doctor Ryu, I have a question.¡± ¡°Yes, go ahead.¡± ¡°What did the three of you talk about without me at Director Harris¡¯ hideout?¡± ¡°Um...¡± Young-Joon hesitated, choosing his words carefully. There were many ears listening here, and he didn¡¯t even know where to begin to exin things about Rosaline in a way that would make sense. However, Song Ji-Hyun understood it as him not wanting to talk about it. ¡°...¡± Disappointment was evident on her face. ¡°You don¡¯t have to tell me if it¡¯s too difficult to. I have ns today, so I¡¯ll see you around,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°There might still be some of Alphonse¡¯s people here, and they might be targeting you, Doctor Song. Unless you¡¯re going with security guards, you should stay in the hotel.¡± ¡°It¡¯s alright. If they are targeting someone, it would be you, Doctor Ryu. Who would go after an ordinary scientist like me?¡± Song Ji-Hyun refused with a smile. * About twenty minutes earlier, shortly after the trial ended, Song Ji-Hyun spoke to Elsie. ¡°If Doctor Ryu couldn¡¯te, I was going to exin the TALEN data,¡± she said with a bitter smile. ¡°But he¡¯s really perfect in every way. He¡¯s ahead of everything, knows everything...¡± ¡°Well, were you going to catch up to him or something?¡± Isaiah said with a smirk. Elsie nudged her with her elbow. ¡°...¡± Song Ji-Hyun looked a little dejected. ¡°I just wanted to be a colleague that Doctor Ryu could trust,¡± she said. ¡°There have been so many cases of research ethics vition in this industry, like publishing papers in Science with falsified data, or giving patients cancerous cells like HEK293T while telling them they were getting chondrocytes.¡± ¡°The arthritis drug Gic Tissue was testing five years ago? That was the craziest thing ever. Even the rebels were astounded at that,¡± Isaiah said. ¡°Honestly, there¡¯s no way a scientist who worked on that drug for ten years wouldn¡¯t have known about it, but they just pretended not to know. They kept their mouths shut to keep theirpany¡¯s stock from going down and to protect their position. That¡¯s what the scientificmunity has been doing, and Doctor Ryu has been fighting it alone,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°I wanted to do things like that with him, not just research. And I thought I could do it when I had the courage to gather the media in the United States.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°But he does so well on his own...¡± Song Ji-Hyun stared at Young-Joon, who was talking to Campbell at the entrance to the courtroom. ¡°That he doesn¡¯t need me.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t just stare at him from behind, follow him,¡± Elsie said to Song Ji-Hyun. ¡°Doctor Song, me and my daughter are failed scientists. But not you. Ryu Young-Joon is a heroic figure, but he didn¡¯t write the A-GenBio legend by himself.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°If it wasn¡¯t for Doctor Cheon Ji-Myung¡¯s team at the Life Creation Department who spent decades digging into what I was doing, none of this would have happened,¡± Elsie said, smiling. ¡°Doctor Ryu can only wield such monstrous power because there are ordinary scientists working at A-GenBio, Doctor Song.¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°I tried so hard topete with male scientists to be a sessful woman in science, but I don¡¯t want you to do that, Doctor Song. Don¡¯t feelpetitive with Ryu Young-Joon. Science is about coboration, notpetition.¡± ¡°...¡± * ¡®I never thought aboutpeting with him in the first ce, but there¡¯s no way to coborate either.¡¯ Song Ji-Hyun was lost in thought as she stirred her coffee with a teaspoon in a small cafe in Amsterdam. There was nothing Young-Jooncked or needed. She gave up collecting bacteria from the outer wall of the Mir Space Station because Young-Joon told her not to. But even then, he didn¡¯t exin why in detail; he just told her to go back to Korea because it was dangerous. It was only after Song Ji-Hyun met Yassir or Elsie that she heard the details. It was the same this time. There seemed to be something about that girl, Rosaline, but he wouldn''t tell her what it was. She was probably going to hear about it from a third party when it was all said and done. That was all that Song Ji-Hyun was, and that was what made her feel depressed. ¡®Why doesn¡¯t he just tell me? Even the terrorist who tried to kill him knows.¡¯ But it was even more embarrassing to be upset about something like this. Song Ji-Hyun felt like a child who was throwing a tantrum. ¡®I should have just said I would have dinner with him.¡¯ Song Ji-Hyun stopped stirring her coffee and took a sip. ¡°Doctor Song?¡± Someone came into the cafe and called her. It was Young-Joon. ¡°You were here.¡± ¡°How did you find me?¡± she asked. ¡°Um... Just a coincidence,¡± he said with a chuckle. ¡°Hello.¡± A little girl peeked out from behind Young-Joon. It was Rosaline. ¡°Hi,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. Young-Joon and Rosaline sat down at Song Ji-Hyun¡¯s table. ¡°You know, Doctor Ryu...¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°I came all the way to the United States and the Nethends using my vacation days, but I¡¯m going back home with nothing to show for it.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°Because getting Lofair and saving Nicaragua are your aplishments, not mine.¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joon stared at Song Ji-Hyun silently. ¡°Your brother said that he saw Rosaline during his schizophrenia treatment, right?¡± he said. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°What would you think if that were true and not a hallucination?¡± ¡°That¡¯s ridiculous. Then, we would have seen it, too.¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joon chuckled. ¡°That¡¯s true.¡± It was too hard to exin this to Song Ji-Hyun. The only way was for Rosaline to demonstrate her immense knowledge or miracles herself, and besides, he didn¡¯t want to ask Rosaline to do something like that. ¡°Doctor Song,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Nicaragua has a lot of volcanoes. There are forty volcanoes in an area about the size of South Korea, and many of them are active.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°And volcanoes contain radioactive materials such as uranium.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°So maybe some of the microorganisms that live inside the volcano are resistant to or can break down radioactive material. You don¡¯t have to scrape the outer walls of Mir,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I¡¯ve asked the Nicaraguan government to help us collect soil from thirteen volcanoes. They should be all gathered by now. I¡¯ll give it to you to take back to Korea. But you¡¯ll have to do all the microbial identification yourself.¡± ¡°Oh...¡± Song Ji-Hyun dropped her head. She felt a little apologetic toward Young-Joon. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°No, thank you,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Thank me? For what?¡± ¡°You made a statement in the United States that Alphonse Lofair and the CIA have some sort of connection. And now, Director Harris is going toe out and expose just how much Lofair has been involved in the administration. You were also the person who convinced Doctor Elsie toe to the Nethends.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Doctor Elsie told me that she wouldn¡¯t have had the courage toe forward if it wasn¡¯t for you, Doctor Song. It made things much easier for me. Consider the volcanic soil in Nicaragua a small token of gratitude.¡± ¡°...¡± Song Ji-Hyun just sipped her coffee, not knowing how to respond. ¡°You haven¡¯t had dinner, right?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Yes...¡± ¡°Would you like to have dinner with us?¡± he asked. Song Ji-Hyun slowly nodded. ¡°Sure.¡± * Japan was the Gal¨¢pagos of the scientificmunity. With such arge domestic market and sufficient technological capabilities, it has created its own ecosystem rather than exporting and exchanging technology overseas. The term ¡°Gal¨¢pagos syndrome¡± has mainly been used to describe the IT industry in Japan, but it was also severe in medicine as well. For example, the word ¡°myocardial infarction¡± was not understood by undergraduate medical students; they had to write it in kanji, ÐĽÈû, to understand the meaning. It was a different system than in Korea, where students were taught entirely in English. While it was an advantage to be able to study in one¡¯s ownnguage, there were some strange things that came with being in such a closed environment. For example, many strange and unique papers, such as how to stay healthy with less sleep, or the corrtion between finger length and sexual function, that the rest of the world didn¡¯t pay attention to havee out of Japan. So far, this hasn¡¯t been a disadvantage, as Japan has always been a country with a high level of science. They had quite a few Nobel Prize recipients as well. However, the atmosphere has changed now. ¡®A-GenBio has gotten too big.¡¯ The pace of progress they were making was so overwhelming that they would quickly be left behind if they didn¡¯t keep up. It seemed like the United States has already given up the title of being the greatest scientific superpower. Hishijima, the director of the Japan Science and Technology Agency, which was overseen by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, was looking at the revenue records ofrge Japanese hospitals. They were plummeting across the board. This was because Korea now had a huge medical facility, the Next Generation Hospital. It wasn¡¯t even halfway across the world; it was in their neighboring country. If one was diagnosed with a type of cancer with a high mortality rate, they would obviously choose to go to the Next Generation Hospital, and so would Hishijima. ¡°Phew...¡± He let out a deep sigh. From about six months ago, attendance at scientific consortiums and conferences held in Japan dropped dramatically, as everyone was too busy following Young-Joon. Even without him, A-GenBio¡¯s own promotional seminars were more popr than the molecr biology conferences held at Tokyo University. Amidst all this, there was an even more troublesome issue. ¡ªShut down the nuclear power nts. ¡ªBring in sr cells. Hishijima could hear people shouting outside. Japan had a horrible trauma with radiation and nuclear physics. This country had suffered greatly from nuclear weapons once, and now a nuclear explosion has caused many deaths and property damage. Naturally, there has been a constant call to eliminate nuclear power in Japan, but it was reignited by themercialization of A-GenBio¡¯s sr cells. ¡ªProvide a solution to the radiation in Fukushima. The people chanted again. Hishijima drew the blinds on the inside of his windows. Japan had never been beaten, not even by the United States, the former scientific superpower, but did they have to follow South Korea¡¯s lead now? Hishijima didn¡¯t think so. Japanese science could bounce back and catch up with A-GenBio. [Research on effective decontamination methods for radioactive contamination in Fukushima.] He opened the report from the Japan Atomic Energy Agency that was sent to him in the morning. Chapter 288: An Ordinary Scientist (2) ¡°Uh¡­¡± Ryu Ji-Won looked puzzled. ¡°Where¡¯s Mom and Dad?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°They went to Aunt¡¯s house for something. They¡¯ll be back tomorrow.¡± ¡°Hello,¡± Rosaline said to Ryu Ji-Won. ¡°H¡­ Hello,¡± responded Ryu Ji-Won reflexively in the midst of extreme confusion. ¡°I¡¯m Rosaline. Nice to meet you.¡± Rosaline walked over quickly and shook her hand. Then, she jumped on to the living room sofa, lied down, and began to shake her legs distractingly. ¡°Wait.¡± Ryu Ji-Won gestured over to Young-Joon and took him to another room. She locked the door. ¡°Who is she?¡± she asked. ¡°I adopted her. I brought her from the United States. She looks simr to Sae-Yi, right?¡± ¡°Not just simr to Sae-Yi, she looks exactly like her except for her hair color.¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°Is that why you adopted her? Because she reminds you of Sae-Yi?¡± ¡°No way. Rosaline was with Doctor Elsie before, but she can no longer take care of her now. She doesn¡¯t have a guardian, and she was going to be sent to an orphanage, so I said I would take her. I think she¡¯s a talent that needs support at the corporate or national level.¡± ¡°Is that the girl who was photographed with you in Korea?¡± ¡°Yeah. Doctor Elsie brought Rosaline with her when she came to Korea. Rosaline is from a Korean-American family.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Anyway, take care of her. I¡¯ll take her to live with me if you or our parents have any problems, but consider her family.¡± Ryu Ji-Won went outside and sat on the living room sofa. Rosaline was sitting on the sofa with her shaking legs propped up on the armrests. ¡°Uh¡­ Can I call you Rosaline?¡± Ryu Ji-Won asked. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°I¡¯m Ryu Ji-Won, Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s younger sister.¡± ¡°Yes, I heard from Ryu Young-Joon.¡± ¡°...¡± Ryu Ji-Won was confused. She thought Young-Joon and Rosaline were close because they went to amusement parks together and he adopted her so suddenly, but maybe they were awkward, as she didn¡¯t call him Dad. But she called him Ryu Young-Joon, not even Uncle or anything¡­ Was this the American way? ¡®Anyway, it doesn¡¯t seem like she¡¯s veryfortable with my brother, so I¡¯ll take care of her between the two of them,¡¯ Ryu Ji-Won thought to herself. ¡°Ji-Won, I¡¯m going to go to the grocery store for a minute,¡± Young-Joon said as he walked out the front door. Then, Rosaline suddenly jumped up from the sofa and shouted, ¡°Ryu Young-Joon! Get me some T-Rex Legs!¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joon peeked out from behind Ryu Ji-Won, who was standing in front of the door. ¡°They only sell that in amusement parks, not grocery stores.¡± ¡°Then what do they sell at grocery stores?¡± Rosaline asked. ¡°Ice cream?¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Then ice cream!¡± ¡°... Okay. Do you want something, Ji-Won?¡± ¡°No. I feel like I¡¯m going to get sick if I eat now.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± After Young-Joon left, Ryu Ji-Won calmed herself. ¡°Do you want to watch some TV?¡± she asked, turning the TV on. ¡®What do kids her age like?¡¯ Ryu Ji-Won flipped through the channels and stopped at a cartoon movie. ¡°Woah!¡± Rosaline was astounded. On the screen, a yellow rat was giving a million-volt electric shock to someone. She sat up straight and began to focus on the screen so much that it seemed like she was going to fall into the TV at any moment. Ryu Ji-Won chuckled as she watched Rosaline. ¡®She¡¯s still a kid.¡¯ Rosaline reminded her of Ryu Sae-Yi. Now that she took a good look at her, Rosaline was so pretty and cute. ¡°Do you know this cartoon?¡± she asked. ¡°No.¡± ¡°That rat¡¯s name is Pitachu. It zaps bad guys with a million volts of electricity¡­¡± ¡°The electric eel has its vital organs clustered in the head area, while their tails contain around six thousand cells in series, arranged in about one hundred forty parallel rows. These cells rapidly operate sodium-potassium pumps in their membrane, creating a high voltage difference inside and out of the membrane, which they use to generate a temporary high voltage of up to eight hundred volts,¡± Rosaline said. ¡°I don¡¯t know where that animal has a resistive instor to protect itself from its own voltage. Judging by the electricity sparking from its cheeks, it must have a high voltage difference on the red side of each cheek, but producing a million volts there is bound to damage the brain. Maybe it doesn¡¯t have a brain in its head, but in its belly or tail.¡± ¡°...¡± Ryu Ji-Won felt like she had brain damage. ¡®What is this girl saying?¡¯ Thud. ¡°I¡¯m home.¡± Young-Joon returned and held out the ice cream to Rosaline. ¡°Thank you.¡± Rosaline ripped the packaging, ate it in a sh, and then took another. ¡°Ah¡­ Rosaline, You¡¯re going to get a stomachache!¡± Ryu Ji-Won, whose brain was momentarily paralyzed, barely managed to stop Rosaline. ¡°A stomach ache? Stomach ache?¡± Rosaline said to her. ¡°Yeah¡­ The stomach flu.¡± Wondering if the Korean word was too difficult, Ryu Ji-Won told her again in English. However, Rosaline scratched her head. ¡°I¡¯ve never heard that word before. Do you mean gastroenteritis?¡± Rosaline asked. Ryu Ji-Won had to swallow her pride and look it up on Google. It was a medical term for inmmation in the stomach. ¡°Yeah, gastro¡­ That thing,¡± she said in a small voice. ¡°It¡¯s alright. Thank you for worrying about me,¡± said Rosaline, who had gulped down her second ice cream and was sucking her fingers. Ryu Ji-Won felt her stamina draining rapidly. ¡°Uh¡­ Okay¡­ Watch some TV.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± Ryu Ji-Won patted Rosaline¡¯s head and ran away to her room. ¡®What did my brother bring from the United States?¡¯ * ¡°You¡¯re energetic today for some reason,¡± Kim Soo-Chul asked. ¡°All I have now is research. That¡¯s all I¡¯m going to do from now on,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said as she unloaded the PCR product onto agarose gel. ¡°You were running around the U.S. and Nicaragua just recently. Did something happen?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Did you get dumped by Doctor Ryu?¡± ¡°Ugh, shut up. I¡¯m trying to focus.¡± ¡°It¡¯s true¡­¡± Kim Soo-Chul gave her a pitiful look. Song Ji-Hyun closed the lid on the agarose gel tray and applied voltage. She tossed the pipette tip into the trash irritatedly and looked back at Kim Soo-Chul. ¡°No, I didn¡¯t. I didn¡¯t confess or anything,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°But¡­ Well, I¡¯ve given up now. He doesn¡¯t seem interested in me. I don¡¯t want to put pressure on him, and I¡¯m tired of following him around.¡± ¡°You wish you¡¯d gone to A-GenBio when Doctor Ryu scouted you before, right? If you went, it would have been easier to get to know him and be acknowledged by him, since you¡¯d see him all the time.¡± ¡°No, what are you talking about? I don¡¯t regret that,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°I liked Doctor Ryu, not A-GenBio.¡± ¡°Really? I¡¯m kind of touched.¡± ¡°Maybe I would have been favored if I did what I was told well and got recognized, but I don¡¯t want that. I have my own research that I want to do, and ourpany supports that. If I go to A-GenBio, I have to do what Doctor Ryu is doing.¡± ¡°Wow. A strong research philosophy of your own. That¡¯s cool.¡± ¡°Stop teasing me and get back to work. We can do our research thanks to Doctor Ryu getting us some Nicaraguan soil.¡± ¡°About that.I think one of the bacteria you identified and picked out has the ability to reduce uranium, cesium, chromium, and tecium to stable metals.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Song Ji-Hyun was shocked. ¡°Which ones?¡± she asked. ¡°Number eight and eleven. The rest died when we irradiated them, but those two survived. Number eleven seems to just be resistant, but number eight seems to be multiplying and getting energy from removing the radiation.¡± ¡°Let me look at the data.¡± Song Ji-Hyun and Kim Soo-Chul went to theputer. The bacterial cultures were treated with five different concentrations of uranium, cesium, chromium, and tecium. As there were twenty experimental groups and three replicates for each, there was a statistical value for sixty data points. ¡°Oh my God! This is amazing!¡± Song Ji-Hyun smiled brightly. Only at the highest concentration of chromium did the amount of bacteria remain the same as the beginning, while it multiplied in all the other experimental groups. There were also tiny crystals at the bottom of the solution, which had formed as the radioactive substances reduced andbined with the metal ions added to the culture medium, transforming into a stable state. ¡°We¡¯ll have to analyze it further, but I think it worked. The mystery of microorganisms in extreme environments is really¡­ It¡¯s beyond imagination.¡± It was once believed that there were millions of microorganisms on Earth. But in 2016, Doctor Keh J. Locey and Doctor Jay T. Lennon used two statistical techniques to back-calcte and estimate that there were about one trillion microbial species on Earth. And about 99.999 percent of them were species that humans have yet to identify. The same went for microorganism number eight. ¡°What should we name it?¡± Kim Soo-Chul asked. ¡°Microcellijenner?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t want to put your name into it as the discoverer, Doctor Song?¡± ¡°That¡¯s so embarrassing. Why would I do that? And let¡¯s not get ahead of ourselves, since we need to check this a few more times.¡± ¡°You look the most excited right now,¡± Kim Soo-Chul said. Song Ji-Hyun turned to Kim Soo-Chul, barely holding in herughter. ¡°If it works well, see if we can bring this to Japan and use it in Fukushima,¡± she said. * ¡°Do you want to go to elementary school next year?¡± Young-Joon asked Rosaline. ¡°Elementary school?¡± ¡°I thought you wanted to go, right? You¡¯re registered as a nine-year-old, so you do have to go to school forpulsory education.¡± ¡°What will I learn there?¡± Young-Joon thought for a moment. They would show her seven pictures of rabbits and ask how many rabbits there were in total. ¡°... It might be a little shocking that you have to learn that sort of thing. It¡¯ll be too easy for you.¡± ¡°Really? I¡¯m more worried that I won¡¯t do well.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°I became much more human thanks to you, but I still don¡¯t have a few emotions,¡± Rosaline said. ¡°For example, I¡¯ve never felt sadness, and I¡¯ve never cried. To me, tears are just an aqueous solution containing proteins and salts secreted by thecrimal nds to control the dryness of the eyes.¡± ¡°Hm¡­¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure I¡¯ll mix in with people very well.¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay. You¡¯ll do well.¡± Young-Joon lightly hugged Rosaline. ¡°Let¡¯s get you some clothes.¡± ¡°Clothes?¡± ¡°This is all you have right now,¡± Young-Joon said as he lightly shook the hem of the t-shirt Rosaline was wearing. ¡°There are some clothes that Sae-Yi used to wear, right?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s buy new ones, not Sae-Yi¡¯s,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°When do I go to school?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have a record of attending school, so we¡¯ll have to enroll you. But it¡¯s still September, so we still have six months left. You¡¯ll start next March.¡± ¡°Hmph.¡± Rosaline fiddled with her hands in boredom. ¡°Until then, you can y with me,¡± Young-Joon said, tapping Rosaline on the nose. * October was just around the corner. The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences has been very busy, as it was Nobel Prize season again. But there was a problem. ¡°Four awards¡­¡± Doctor Fredrik from the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences fiddled with the list, staring at it in dismay. This amazing genius scientist had managed to dominate all four fields in which he was nominated. Marie Curie, Linus Pauling, John Bardeen, and Frederick Sanger were all renowned scientists famous for having won two Nobel Prizes, but even they never won two in the same year. But Young-Joon was set to receive four awards at the same time. This unprecedented situation created an unimaginable problem. The Nobel Prizes were announced one after another and awarded on the same day. However, the Nobel Prize in Physiology, Chemistry and Physics were awarded by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, and the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded by the Norwegian Parliament in Oslo. Since Young-Joon couldn¡¯t be in both ces at once, Fredrik had to coordinate with the Norwegian Nobel Peace Prize Committee to find a solution. However, because it was such a traditional and prestigious prize, it wasn¡¯t easy to change the established rules. Neither Sweden nor Norway was willing topromise on the location or time. Chapter 289: An Ordinary Scientist (3)

Chapter 289: An Ordinary Scientist (3)

¡°The award schedule cannot be changed. It can¡¯t be awarded in Norway first, nor can it be awarded in Sweden first. If we tell the Nobel Committee in the Norwegian Parliament toe to Sweden, they won¡¯t listen. The right to award the Nobel Peace Prize is something that the Norwegian government is very proud of,¡± Forsbeg said. ¡°Then what if we go to Norway?¡± asked Doctor Oskar of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. ¡°That doesn¡¯t make sense either,¡± objected Professor Markus. ¡°We have to award three prizes. Should we travel all the way to Norway and present them there?¡± ¡°This isn¡¯t something your national pride should be hurt by. We¡¯re giving a good prize to an outstanding person on a great day; the location doesn¡¯t really matter,¡± Oskar said. ¡°Doctor Markus, the people who give the Peace Prize are often very politically active and often give it to movements, so they might be more sensitive about moving the awarding to another country. But aren¡¯t we scientists? Science has no borders, right?¡± ¡°Still, we can¡¯t. Even if we don¡¯t care, the people will. We¡¯ll be criticized.¡± ¡°Then what if we go to Korea?¡± Princess Desideria asked after listening for a while. Everyone was thinking it, but they couldn¡¯t say it out loud. ¡°To Korea?¡± Oskar asked. ¡°We can go, and we can tell the Norwegian government to go to Korea as well. Doctor Ryu, the recipient, is in Korea, so we have a reason to, right?¡± ¡°Then, the problem is with the other recipient,¡± Markus said. ¡°Yes, your Royal Highness. The Nobel Prize in Literature isn¡¯t going to be awarded this year because of the MeToo scandal, so the problem is the Nobel Prize in Economics, and the recipient is not Korea,¡± Oskar said. ¡°It was a Japanese professor, right? Nobuhiro?¡± ¡°Yes. He published a paper in 1997 predicting the 2008 financial crisis in the United States. That crisis made him an instant star in the field.¡± ¡°Economics is not a science. There was no prize for economics in Alfred Nobel¡¯s will in the first ce. Those central banks made up one and attached it to the Nobel Prize¡¯s prestige,¡± Forsberg said. ¡°Economics is a social science. Don¡¯t be too harsh,¡± Markus said. ¡°Anyways, as Her Royal Highness mentioned, Japan is pretty close to Korea, so we can just tell him toe to Korea, too.¡± ¡°Right?¡± Desideria smiled. Forsberg scoffed, understanding the true motives of Desideria. ¡°Your Royal Highness wants to go to Korea,¡± he said. ¡°I am curious what it¡¯s like there now, having be the number onepany in the world in just a couple years,¡± Desideria admitted honestly. ¡°But still, it might be a bit disrespectful to Professor Nobuhiro if we asked him to travel to the country where the other recipient is, rather than the country where the award ceremony is held,¡± Oskar pointed out., ¡°Then let¡¯s ask for Professor Nobuhiro¡¯s opinion first, after the winners are announced. Is he busy these days? What¡¯s he working on?¡± ¡°Right now...¡± Markus said, hesitating. ¡°He¡¯s doing research on nuclear power nts.¡± ¡°Nuclear power nts?¡± Desideria¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°An economist working on nuclear power nts?¡± ¡°Well, he¡¯s probably not studying the nuclear reactor reactions or fusion power or anything like that. He¡¯s probably researching the cost-effectiveness of Japan¡¯s power industry and nuclear power nt maintenance. I don¡¯t know much about it, but recently, various issues rted to the Fukushima nuclear nt have resurfaced in Japan, and it¡¯s causing a lot of controversy,¡± Oskar said. ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes. And Professor Nobuhiro is advocating for the full recement of nuclear power nts with A-GenBio¡¯s sr cells. He¡¯s actively moving as the key speaker among anti-nuclear policy supporters.¡± ¡°I see. If he¡¯s that busy, it might actually be better this way. Going to Korea would be more convenient than traveling to Norway or Sweden, right? The only problem is that the rtionship between Korea and Japan isn¡¯t that great,¡± Desideria said. ¡°They don¡¯t have a good rtionship?¡± Forsbeg asked as if he was hearing this for the first time. ¡°But Doctor Ryu and Professor Kakeguni seem to get along well,¡± Oskar said, also quite confused. They were too much of a scientist to be interested in things like the history of a small country in Northeast Asia on the other side of the world. ¡°There¡¯s a lot of modern-day issues, and recently there¡¯s been a trade dispute when Japan removed Korea from its list of White Countries. There was a boycotting movement, too. It seems like they¡¯re not on good terms.¡± ¡°I see. Then, he might refuse to go to Korea. Should I contact Professor Nobuhiro and ask him in advance?¡± Oskar asked. ¡°No. The recipients are announced a week before the awards as a rule. We cannot spoil it for Professor Nobuhiro. Let¡¯s wait and see how things go, and only talk to Norway about going to Korea.¡± * The aftermath of the Fukushima nuclear disaster was still tormenting Japan. Fukushima Prefecture had the important advantage of being located at the southern end of the Tohoku region, making it the closest to Tokyo. Because of this geography, it has long been a junction of the ¨­sh¨± Kaid¨­, Yonezawa Kaido, and the Ush¨± Kaid¨­, developing as a transportation hub. It was also an important industrial area, and the city had invested heavily in nuclear power generation. 1. In residential areas and gardens, it was predicted thatrge amounts of radioactive material would be washed away by rainwater, so debris and rain gutters and drains were removed. 2. For roads and streets, it was predicted that radioactive material would be washed off the paved surfaces, so the surface soil at the edges of the road was removed. However, in highly contaminated parking lots and roads, the surface was scraped off. 3. In agricultural fields, the topsoil was removed and covered with fresh soil. 4. In the most heavily contaminated areas near the nuclear power nt, near surface disposal was used: the ground was dug about ten meters deep, concrete structures were built to bury solid waste, and then the area was covered with mortar. 5. For equipment, chemical substances such as oxalic acid and phosphoric acid were used to decontaminate every corner. Once this was done, the Japanese government began moving people back to Fukushima and restarting the nuclear power nts one by one. Nuclear power nts were once a key source of electricity, providing thirty percent of the country¡¯s power. It wasn¡¯t easy to let go of such critical facilities so easily. ¡°The problem is that the mortar is broken...¡± Hishijima clicked his tongue as he read the report. It showed that the cracks in the mortar surface were leaking radiation. But there was a bigger problem. The mortar was either solid waste or waste from the nt itself. However, there was still no way to treat the contaminated water from the decontamination process. At the time of the ident, Japan discharged much of the Fukushima wastewater into the ocean, which was heavily criticized by the internationalmunity. Even within the country, it was heavily criticized. As such, they changed their approach slightly. They built huge storage tanks near the nt to hold the contaminated water. But at some point, the volume of the contaminated water became unimaginable. By early 2019, it had exceeded 1.12 million tons. And because of the cost of treating this contaminated water, the entire cost of the Fukushima nuclear disaster was snowballing. [Projected to be about 81 trillion yen by 2050.] The report estimated a painful price: eight hundred ten trillion yen. It was a problem that would take almost a year of Japan¡¯s budget to solve. But this was the secret: fifty-one trillion yen was the cost of treating the polluted water; that was what it would cost to neutralize all the polluted water directly instead of releasing it into the ocean. If they diluted it and released it into the ocean, it would cost eleven trillion yen. If they released the water without any treatment, it could reduce the cost by as much as four trillion yen. The Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry has already decided to release all of this contaminated water into the ocean and atmosphere. ¡°They always create the mess and leave it to us to clean it up.¡± Hishijima sighed. It was like a design major drawing up a clever, magical mechanism and then telling the engineer to figure out how it worked. The Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology was responsible for predicting, solving, and taking responsibility for the environmental problems that would result from releasing this contaminated water. Hishijima resumed reading the file that was sent to him in the morning. [Research on Effective Decontamination Methods for Fukushima Radioactive Contamination] ¡°Sir!¡± Suzuki from the Nuclear Energy Division knocked roughly on the director¡¯s door. ¡°Apany called Cellijenner from Korea wants to do research on radiation decontamination.¡± ¡°Cellijenner?¡± Hishijima scratched his head. ¡°Isn¡¯t that the same pharmaceuticalpany that made Cellicure?¡± ¡°Yes, and they¡¯re also thepany that made the microdust reduction device.¡± ¡°... If they¡¯reing all the way out here to study radiation removal, that means they have an item that¡¯s somewhat effective. That¡¯s why they¡¯reing here to test if it works in the field, right?¡± ¡°I think so.¡± ¡°Okay. Tell them toe.¡± * ¡°It¡¯s been a while, Doctor Ryu.¡± Professor Kakeguni smiled brightly and hugged Young-Joon. ¡°How have you been?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°I¡¯ve been well, thanks for asking.¡± ¡°Then, this must be...?¡± Young-Joon nced at the old professor, who looked like he was in his sixties, standing next to Kakeguni. ¡°I¡¯m Nobuhiro. Nice to meet you.¡± Nobuhiro extended his hand to Young-Joon and shook his hand. ¡°Your Korean is very good!¡± ¡°That¡¯s all he memorized on the ne. Now, you¡¯ll have to speak English,¡± Kakeguni said, chuckling. ¡°I see. Let¡¯s go inside.¡± Young-Joon led them into his office. ¡°I¡¯m sure you already know why I¡¯m here,¡± Nobuhiro said. ¡°Yes, I heard you want to buy some sr cells?¡± ¡°Yes. I want to build a small power nt in Japan using sr cells and use it to attack the Japanese government¡¯s policy to reactivate the nuclear power nts.¡± ¡°Is the Japanese government starting to reactivate nuclear power nts?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°It¡¯s a very, very, very stupid idea,¡± Nobuhiro said. ¡°Japan is the country that has suffered the most from the nuclear disaster. Restarting the nuclear power nts will not only damage our international image, but if we release contaminated water in the process, we can¡¯t predict what might happen. Furthermore, with the development of sr cells, there is no longer any need for nuclear power nts. Restarting them now in this situation? That would be the worst possible move.¡± ¡°Hm...¡± With his arms crossed, Young-Joon listened to Nobuhiro. ¡°Why did the Japanese government make that choice?¡± he asked. ¡°Because of crony capitalism,¡± Nobuhiro said without a doubt. ¡°Crony capitalism?¡± ¡°The Fukushima incident was a man-made disaster that was preventable through technology. But we got greedy and wanted to keep the reactors alive just a little longer, and that¡¯s what ended up happening,¡± Nobuhiro said. ¡°Do you know what punishment the people responsible received as a result?¡± ¡°If you¡¯re saying that, it must have been a p on the wrist. Maybe two or three years?¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Hahaha,¡± Nobuhiroughed. ¡°How I wish they had gotten that much. They were all found innocent. Thepany cut their wages by thirty percent, and that was it.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The reason Prime Minister Atabe is restarting the reactors is because Japan¡¯s nuclear power industry has always been deeply intertwined with politics , and this connection became even stronger during nationalization.¡± Chapter 290: An Ordinary Scientist (4)

Chapter 290: An Ordinary Scientist (4)

The sr cells were developed less than two months ago. While many countries have been excited about their efficiency and vision for the future, they were still not ready to rece their entire infrastructure. That was why most countries had only purchased a small number of sr cells and were testing them out, even though they expected them to rece their entire electricity business one day. However, Professor Nobuhiro was proposing to build a small power nt using sr cells himself. ¡°I believe this will be a very important business for A-GenBio as well. This is the first time that sr cells, which have been used for the cold chain, small-scale emergency power, and reducing electricity bills, will be used as main power nts,¡± he said. ¡°That¡¯s right. But most of our business is being handled by our CEO, Mr. Kim Young-Hoon. If youplete the business n with him, I will go to Japan and help you n the power nt,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Thank you,¡± Nobuhiro replied. Then, he went up to the CEO¡¯s office to meet Kim Young-Hoon. Young-Joon stayed to talk to Kakeguni, a Nobel Prize recipient. Kakeguni hadn¡¯te all this way to just introduce a guest. ¡°Recently, there have been rumors in immunology and regenerative medicinemunities that you are developing a cure for aging...¡± said Kakeguni aftering to Young-Joon¡¯s office. ¡°A cure for aging?¡± ¡°That rumor seems to be spreading among Isaiah Franklin¡¯s doctors. Is it true?¡± ¡°...¡± Isaiah Franklin traveled all the way to the Nethends when she wasn¡¯t fully healed. After returning to the United States, she naturally went back to the hospital to recover from the aftermath of her gunshot wounds and to rest. While doing so, she also participated in several trials in the United States, most of which were rted to the tragedy at Groom Lake. In addition to her medical treatment, the hospital was entrusted with collecting evidence and conducting gic tests. Rumors started spreading among the doctors responsible for the tests. ¡®Her telomeres were extended.¡¯ The treatment Isaiah received from Young-Joon at the hideout was a procedure that had not been officially approved by the FDA. Isaiah¡¯s health was in such poor condition that there was no time for that, and submitting a report to the FDA risked exposing them to Lofair. Despite this, Young-Joon insisted on getting clinical consent, but that was it. Only a few people knew this. However, once rumors start spreading, conspiracy theories quickly follow to fill in the gap. There were reports from employees that Doctor Ryu visited the A-GenBio Cancer Laboratory and that he seemed to have conducted experiments for a while. There was talk about a patient at Johns Hopkins Hospital who had received a hematopoietic stem cell transnt derived from induced pluripotent stem cells, and that this patient was likely Isaiah. If Young-Joon was in charge of Isaiah¡¯s treatment, perhaps he really did extend her telomeres. But how? How did he extend telomeres, one of the direct causes of aging, and correct Isaiah Franklin¡¯s life span? In the midst of the confusion and rumors, Kakeguni wanted to know the truth. ¡°It¡¯s true,¡± Young-Joon replied bluntly. He didn¡¯t want to lie and cover up the truth. Kakeguni was shocked. ¡°You extended Isaiah Franklin¡¯s telomeres?¡± ¡°Isaiah¡¯s cellr biological age has beenpletely rewound, and over the next year or so, as most of the damaged cells are reced, her physical age will revert to her mid-twenties.¡± ¡°Mid-twenties...¡± ¡°She was young to begin with, so it won¡¯t be very noticeable, but it¡¯s scientifically true.¡± ¡°H... How can you do that? Did you publish it?¡± ¡°No,¡± Young-Joon said, shaking his head. ¡°I didn¡¯t have the time or resources to go through normal clinical procedures. Fortunately, the patient had the medical knowledge of a professor, so she was able to understand my exnation and sign a consent form. It wasn¡¯t FDA approved, but it was authorized by the White House. They told me it didn¡¯t matter legally because it was an emergency.¡± ¡°Ha, my god... A cure for aging,¡± Kakeguni eximed. ¡°That¡¯s also not entirely true,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°What?¡± ¡°I treated progeria, not aging.¡± ¡°...¡± They seemed like the same thing, but Kakeguni understood what Young-Joon meant. Young-Joon didn¡¯t view aging as a disease. He was willing to share his technology with special cases like Isaiah¡¯s to cure progeria, but he had no intention of helping people¡¯s normal aging. To be frank, it was because neither A-GenBio nor the internationalmunity had the energy to take on the aftermath ofmercializing a technology of that magnitude. ¡°This technology is still developing, and it doesn¡¯t have a paper or patent. Please try not to spread the news if possible,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°... Doctor Ryu, I don¡¯t have much attachment to my life, and I like the idea of aging gracefully. But this isn¡¯t something that¡¯s going to stay hidden by me being cautious with my words,¡± Kakeguni said worriedly. ¡°I don¡¯t know what will happen if this gets out. People will rush to you for life extension and aging treatment, and who knows what will happen to you if they get angry? You know the legend of Qin Shi Huang¡¯s search for immortality, right?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Even the powerful people who have everything don¡¯t have youth. If they are able to, they will do whatever it takes to get it.¡± ¡°I will be careful. Thank you for worrying about me,¡± Young-Joon said with a smile. * Young-Joon¡¯s parents returned home. The meeting with Rosaline wasn¡¯t very dramatic, as he had already told them a lot about Rosaline. ¡°Yeah. They say there¡¯s always one person in the world who looks like you.¡± Young-Joon¡¯s parents were too surprised when they saw Rosaline, who was a doppelganger of Ryu Sae-Yi. Instead, they began to worry about their young, promising son, who wasn¡¯t even married yet, suddenly bing a father. ¡°What if your wife doesn¡¯t like that when you get married?¡± said his mother. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I¡¯m already seeing someone, and it¡¯s not like I adopted Rosaline,¡± Young-Joon lied, trying to stop the ufortable conversation from happening. ¡°Doctor Song?¡± interrupted Ryu Ji-Won, who was listening to the conversation. ¡°No,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°You were with her in the Nethends, right? I thought you, Rosaline, and Doctor Song had dinner together?¡± ¡°Having dinner is not that big of a deal. There¡¯s nothing going on between us.¡± ¡°I thought things were going well with you and Doctor Song.¡± It wasn¡¯t, and things actually felt a little awkward now. Song Ji-Hyun had gone to Elsie¡¯s house before to meet her. She was with Elsie from that point on, but at no point did she get the impression that Elsie was raising a child. She pretended to believe the story about Rosaline being Elsie¡¯s child for now, but she suspected it wasn¡¯t true. ¡®From Doctor Song¡¯s perspective, she might feel a bit hurt.¡¯ Song Ji-Hyun probably thought they were close, but Young-Joon suddenly began to leave her out, adopt this mysterious kid, and then make secrets with a terrorist. No wonder things were awkward. But it was for the best. ¡°Doctor Song is really pretty and seems to have a good personality. It¡¯s not often you see someone like her follow you around. What a shame,¡± Ryu Ji-Won said, disappointed. ¡°What are you, a matchmaker? Mind your own love life, you little brat.¡± Young-Joon scoffed and tapped Ryu Ji-Won¡¯s forehead with his finger. ¡°Doctor Song has her path, and I have mine. Also, I¡¯m going to Japan next week,¡± he said. ¡°Japan? Why are you going to that radioactive country?¡± eximed Young-Joon¡¯s mother. ¡°As long as it¡¯s not Fukushima, it should be fine,¡± Ryu Ji-Won intervened, trying to sound knowledgeable. But Young-Joon gave an unexpected response. ¡°I¡¯m going to Fukushima.¡± ¡°Are you crazy?¡± Ryu Ji-Won shouted. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m not going into high-risk zones. I¡¯m going to measure the radiation as I go around. Anyway, take care of Rosaline for me next week,¡± he said. Young-Joon thought about taking Rosaline with him, but he was anxious. It was best to minimize her exposure to the outside world as much as possible. ¡ªDon¡¯t worry. I can still send messages and use Synchronization Mode from here. Rosaline sent him a message. * In Washington, United States, Alphonse Lofair, the man who ran a genomicsb at Groom Lake Air Force Base andmitted all kinds of crimes, was being held in a mansion. The fact that he escaped bars and was locked up in one of his own mansions was a testament to how powerful he was. But public opinion was still aggressive, and there were always protesters near the mansion. ¡°Alphonse must take responsibility!¡± ¡°Kick Lofair out and secure financial independence!¡± The slogans they shouted echoed through the room. ¡°You idiots. Your financial independence is under consideration by Congress, but it¡¯s actually already been finalized. There¡¯s no reason for you to yell there...¡± Alphonse hired the bestwyers for the trial, but there was no way they could prevent him from doing time. Chenover Bank was also in trouble, as its stock prices had plummeted due to the massivepensation it had to pay. Having lost everything, Alphonse had given up on most things. But he didn¡¯t care about that anymore, as Alphonse discovered that Isaiah Franklin, who was barely holding onto life, had been fully resurrected. ¡°How?¡± Director Harris¡¯ hideout where they hid Isaiah. The rumor that they made a quick stop at Johns Hopkins University to perform a stem cell transnt procedure. Rosaline, the little girl who seemed to have popped out of nowhere at that point. Elsie had set up the room with circumstantial evidence suggesting she had been raising the girl, but Alphonse knew better than anyone that Rosaline wasn¡¯t really with Elsie. Why did the terrorists entering the Hoofddorp Hotel suddenly copse? Who exactly was Rosaline, and why did Young-Joon suddenly adopt her? She wasn¡¯t just a girl who resembled Young-Joon¡¯s youngest sister. There was something about her. Although it was unclear and illogical, it could be connected to Young-Joon¡¯s secret or Isaiah¡¯s anti-aging treatment. Having lost all his power, Alphonse returned to being a scientist, filled only with curiosity. ¡°What is that girl? Who is she?¡± Knock knock. Someone knocked on the door. ¡°Your meal is here.¡± ¡°Come in.¡± A tall man entered, bringing food on a rolling table. Alphonse sliced a piece of steak and put it in his mouth. ¡°You can go now. I¡¯ll call for youter to take away the empty tes,¡± he said. ¡°Yes, sir.¡± The man bowed to Alphonse and left. * Young-Joon thought back to thest conversation he had with Isaiah Franklin on the flight to Japan. After all the business was concluded in the Nethends, Isaiah asked him something before she left for the United States. ¡°What are you going to do with Rosaline when you get back?¡± ¡°Rosaline wants to go to school,¡± Young-Joon replied. ¡°I feel bad for the teachers,¡± Isaiah said, scoffing. ¡°Maybe she¡¯ll go for a while and get bored and quit. In any case, I¡¯m going to let Rosaline do whatever she wants to do.¡± ¡°... Ryu Young-Joon.¡± With a pleading expression, Isaiah lowered her head toward Young-Joon and said, ¡°Rosaline must never be revealed.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°If even a hint of information about Rosaline gets out, there will be more than a few people who want her and your life.¡± ¡°You say that as if you have someone in mind. Who is it?¡± Young-Joon asked. A man popped into Isaiah¡¯s head: the scientist who hade to Egypt with a PhD in botulinum toxin research and founded the Philistines. ¡°Anyone,¡± she said. ¡°Ryu Young-Joon, you are a great scientist. You¡¯re not ordinary, and that¡¯s why you wouldn¡¯t covet Rosaline even if you didn¡¯t have her.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°But most scientists aren¡¯t like that.¡± ¡°I knew the risks of both curing you and bringing Rosaline as a person,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I¡¯m going to protect Rosaline because I am her guardian.¡± Chapter 291: An Ordinary Scientist (5)

Chapter 291: An Ordinary Scientist (5)

Young-Joon boarded a ne to Tokyo with Nobuhiro and Professor Kakeguni. ¡®Don¡¯t cause any trouble while I¡¯m gone.¡¯ Young-Joon was sending messages to Rosaline. ¡ªOkay. ¡®Are my parents home?¡¯ ¡ªYes. ¡®Don¡¯t tease them, okay?¡¯ ¡ªI¡¯m not going to tease anyone. ¡®Are you hungry?¡¯ ¡ªWe ate together before you left. And I can control hunger. ¡®Right.¡¯ ¡ªYou don¡¯t have to worry about me like I¡¯m a little kid. Have a safe trip. ¡®Well, true, but now that you¡¯re a person, I¡¯m getting a little anxious. Send me a message if anything happens.¡¯ ¡ªYes. ¡®If you¡¯re bored, ask Ryu Ji-Won to y with you. She wants to get to know you.¡¯ Rosaline suddenly turned her head and nced at Ryu Ji-Won, who was sitting beside her. Ryu Ji-Won, who was on her phone, was startled. ¡°Oh, um, why? Do you need something?¡± Ryu Ji-Won asked. It was always nerve wracking for her to talk to Rosaline. ¡®Maybe it¡¯ll get better once I get to know her more?¡¯ ¡°I want to go outside,¡± Rosaline said. ¡°You want to go? Outside?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Then let¡¯s go. Wait, let me change and make some eyebrows and lips.¡± ¡°Make some eyebrows and lips?¡± For a moment, Rosaline imagined the process of creating hair root tissue from epithelial cells, but that¡¯s not what happened. Instead, Ryu Ji-Won went into her room, changed, put on some simple makeup, and came out. She took Rosaline¡¯s hand and walked outside. It was a little chilly. ¡°Are you cold?¡± Ryu Ji-Won asked, closing Rosaline¡¯s coat. ¡°No, I¡¯m fine.¡± Rosaline held Ryu Ji-Won¡¯s hand tightly as she walked outside. ¡°You seem a little less energetic today. Is something wrong?¡± Ryu Ji-Won asked. ¡°I seem less energetic?¡± ¡°Is it because Young-Joon went to Japan?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°You just seem a little sad,¡± Ryu Ji-Won said. ¡°Sad...¡± Rosaline became lost in thought as she tried to figure out what that felt like. She had adjusted her levels of dopamine, serotonin, and mtonin to match the average for a healthy nine-year-old human. It wasn¡¯t depression. What did it feel like to be sad without having depression? ¡°You know, feeling weary and down, and craving sweets,¡± Ryu Ji-Won said as she saw Rosaline¡¯s troubled expression. ¡°I want something sweet,¡± Rosaline replied. ¡°Do you want to get some hot chocte over there?¡± Ryu Ji-Won pointed to the cafe at the intersection in front of Jungyoon University. ¡°Sure.¡± Ryu Ji-Won actually had another motive to go to that cafe. It was because her boyfriend, Yang Dong-Wook, was working part-time at the counter. ¡°There aren¡¯t any customers.¡± ¡°Right? How great is this?¡± Yang Dong-Wook smiled yfully. ¡°Who¡¯s this?¡± he asked Ryu Ji-Won. ¡°My niece.¡± ¡°You had a niece?¡± ¡°Yeah. Say hi. Her name is ROsaline.¡± ¡°Hi!¡± Yang Dong-Wook peeked his head over the counter and greeted Rosaline. ¡°Hello.¡± Ryu Ji-Won took a look at the menu, then ordered. ¡°One hot mocha, one hot chocte, and um... Rosaline, do you want cake?¡± ¡°Yeah, the carrot cheesecake,¡± Rosaline said, pointing at the cake in the disy. ¡°And that, too.¡± Ryu Ji-Won took out the card that Young-Joon gave her from her wallet. ¡®It¡¯s for his daughter, so I can probably use his card, right?¡¯ After they paid and sat down to wait, Yang Dong-Wook showed up with their drinks and cake. He sat down and began to chat with Ryu Ji-Won. In the meantime, Rosaline drank her hot chocte and thought about Young-Joon. Although she had the body of a nine-year-old child, Rosaline was born less than two years ago. Even though she could understand all the principles of the universe at the atomic level and had all the knowledge, this emotion was mysterious. This would be scientifically most simr to separation anxiety, but Rosaline couldn¡¯t imagine herself in that state, as her body was in perfect control. From the moment she was born, Rosaline spent every moment with Young-Joon. Except for a few hours during the trial in the Nethends, they were never apart. Perhaps that was why this distance felt so significant to her. ¡®Calm down.¡¯ Rosaline drank her hot chocte and soothed herself. She could send him messages, and if Young-Joon allowed, she could use some fitness and share his vision. But she wanted to wait; she had to get used to this body. ¡°Huh?¡± Rosaline suddenly stood up. Then, she stared out the window. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Ryu Ji-Won, who was chatting with Yang Dong-Wook for a while, turned to look at Rosaline. ¡°Doctor Song!¡± Rosaline said, pointing to the other side of the street. The owner of the historic Onnuri Pharmacy at the intersection of Jungyoon University was an elderly woman, who was also Song Ji-Hyun¡¯s aunt. Before leaving for Japan, Song Ji-Hyun had stopped by the pharmacy to pick up a few essentials. On her way out, she spotted Rosaline running out of a cafe across the street. ¡°Oh!¡± Song Ji-Hyun eximed in surprise. Ryu Ji-Won and Yang Dong-Wook came running out of the cafe at the same time after her. There were no cars on the street in front of Jungyoon University, as it was a car-free street on the weekends, but the two of them were a little panicked when Rosaline ran out excitedly by herself. And Rosaline, who was overjoyed to see someone she knew, suddenly copsed as she ran to Song Ji-Hyun. Shepletely cked out, as if she had been knocked out with an anesthetic. * ¡ªHm. Rosaline sent a message. Young-Joon, who had arrived in Tokyo and gone through immigration, sent a message as he left the airport. ¡®Did something happen?¡¯ ¡ªI didn¡¯t know either, but we have a problem. ¡®What problem?¡¯ ¡ªI guess it wasn¡¯t enough for me to structure my body like this. Can you stop for a moment and take five steps back the way you came? ¡°Wait a minute.¡± Young-Joon ran in the opposite direction, leaving Kakeguni and Nobuhiro behind. ¡®What¡¯s going on? What happened?¡¯ Young-Joon sent Rosaline a message anxiously. * ¡°Rosaline!¡± Ryu Ji-Won grabbed her and shook her. Song Ji-Hyun quickly turned Rosaline upright and ced her in a supine position. She checked Rosaline¡¯s pulse and turned on her phone shlight to check the light reflex in Rosaline¡¯s eyes. ¡°Ha!¡± Rosaline suddenly got up. The distance between her and Young-Joon was now within her tolerance threshold. She could feel her fitness being supplied. She caught her breath and checked her physical condition. Nothing was wrong. ¡°...¡± Rosaline had used her cells to form a body, but she could not be independent yet. She didn¡¯t know this either. Originally, her cells could not survive outside of Young-Joon¡±s body where the main body colony existed. This same principle applied to Rosaline, who was aplex of eight trillion cells in the form of Ryu Sae-Yi. The cells that sent her fitness in Israel or Nicaragua could survive alone, as they were in the nerves of a person infected with the polyomavirus. But not this body. Rosaline thought she¡¯d be fine since she had been okay for over a month, but it wasn¡¯t ¡®The fitness cut off for a moment.¡¯ When Young-Joon, who the main colony was inside, moved away, the eighty trillion cells began to die. ¡°We have to go to Japan,¡± Rosaline said. ¡°What?¡± Ryu Ji-Won¡¯s eyes widened, confused. * ¡ªIt is difficult for me to maintain this body if you are far away from me. Rosaline sent Young-Joon a message. ¡®No way... How are you feeling? Are you okay? What happened?¡¯ ¡ªThink of it like bluetooth. I was dead for around 40 seconds biologically, but I¡¯ve recovered now. ¡®Why was it okay in the Nethends?¡¯ ¡ªThe hotel and the courtroom was only thirty minutes by car, whereas this is across the East Sea. ¡®...¡¯ This was trouble. Young-Joon couldn¡¯t believe this was happening. If he went up to Fukushima, he could lose connection with Rosaline, but he couldn¡¯t go back to Korea. ¡®Do I have to bring Rosaline to Japan?¡¯ As Young-Joon was taking some time to think, his phone rang. It was Ryu Ji-Won. ¡°Hello?¡± ¡ªYoung-Joon? Rosaline just copsed... Ryu Ji-Won seemed quite surprised and frightened, but she tried to remain calm. ¡ªDoes she have some sort of condition? She¡¯s awake now, but should I take her to the hospital? ¡°No. Can you actually bring her to Japan?¡± ¡ªBring her to Japan? All of a sudden? ¡°She seems to have some separation anxiety, so I need to take care...¡± ¡ªBut she just copsed... How can you ask her to... Uh, wait a minute... There was some static, and then the voice changed. ¡ªDoctor Ryu? It¡¯s Song Ji-Hyun on the phone. ¡°Oh? Doctor Song, what are you doing there...¡± ¡ªI ran into them in front of Jungyoon University. Did you just ask her to bring Rosaline to Japan? ¡°... Yes.¡± ¡ªI¡¯ll take her. I have to do some business in Japan, so I¡¯m looking for a flight urgently. ¡°... Then, could I ask you to bring her?¡± ¡ªYes. But...¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡ªNever mind. I¡¯ll take her. * ¡°Doctor Ryu, we¡¯re going to Fukushima, noy Fukuoka...¡± Kakeguni said, a little confused. ¡°I know. I¡¯m going to Fukuoka to get my daughter,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Your daughter?¡± ¡°Yes. She¡¯sing to Fukuoka.¡± Fukuoka was the closest Japanese city to Korea. Young-Joon asked Song Ji-Hyun toe there. Young-Joon wanted to make sure that Rosaline would be safe on the way from Seoul to Incheon Airport, in case they disconnected again. It would be a huge problem if Rosaline copsed again while boarding, so Young-Joon wanted to be as close to Korea as possible. Young-Joon went back the same way he came out of the Tokyo airport and got back on a ne. * A few dayster, Song Ji-Hyun took Rosaline on a flight to Fukuoka. Rosaline seemed a bit excited at the thought of going to see Young-Joon, but fortunately, she didn¡¯t cause anymotion. Song Ji-Hyun ordered snacks and drinks and gave them to Rosaline. On the outside, Rosaline was just a pretty, cute-looking nine-year-old... But something was still off. When Rosaline lost consciousness, Song Ji-Hyun checked her pulse and pupiry reflex, but neither was detected¡ªher pupils had lost their light reflex, and there was no heartbeat. This meant that the brainstem had shut down. But just as they were about to call 119 and give her CPR, Rosaline woke up,pletely fine and healthy. How was this possible? What was this kid? ¡°Whoa!¡± Rosaline eximed as she ate a potato chip. ¡°It¡¯s so crunchy and delicious.¡± She held one out to Song Ji-Hyun. ¡°Do you want one, Doctor Song?¡± ¡°No, I¡¯m okay,¡± Song Ji-Hyun declined with a smile. She began thinking again. That wasn¡¯t the only strange thing. Since Rosaline was healthy now and Song Ji-Hyun was going to go to Japan anyways, they could have just gone to Tokyo, as both Young-Joon and her were nning to drive up to Fukushima from there. But it was strange that he asked them toe to Fukuoka, which was a long way away. In the end, Song Ji-Hyun sent her Cellijenner colleagues on a direct flight to Tokyo, while she took a flight with ayover in Fukuoka. The reason she did this was because she was curious about Rosaline. ¡®In exchange for taking Rosaline with me, tell me about her.¡¯ Song Ji-Hyun was about to say it, but she stopped herself. ¡®If he¡¯s not telling me, there¡¯s probably a reason why.¡¯ Song Ji-Hyun patted Rosaline¡¯s head. * Young-Joon, who was waiting for Song Ji-Hyun and Rosaline at the airport in Fukuoka, received an email. It was from his secretary¡¯s office. It was breaking news regarding a huge incident in the United States. [Alphonse Lofair dead.] Chapter 292: An Ordinary Scientist (6)

Chapter 292: An Ordinary Scientist (6)

[Alphonse Lofair, 81, who was recently under investigation for alleged gic maniption and human experimentation at a genomicsb at Groom Lake Air Force Base in Nicaragua, was found dead in his home, U.S. federal police said. The exact cause of death has not been determined, but federal police specte that the food may have been poisoned based on the fact that he died while eating and the victim vomited before his death.] ¡®Poison.¡¯ One particr substance popped into Young-Joon¡¯s head. The deadliest of all toxins on the. ¡®Botulinum toxin type H.¡¯ Young-Joon had asked Isaiah Franklin why she chose to develop botulinum toxin in the first ce. ¡ªIt¡¯s the worst poison in the world, but the notoriety is about type H. Other forms of botulinum toxin are also highly toxic, but not to the same extent. Plus, there isn¡¯t an antidote for type H. You only need trace amounts of it, so it¡¯s easy to transport, and it¡¯s undetectable at airports. There¡¯s no risk of spreading beyond the target, so it¡¯s perfect for killing a specific target. That was what Isaiah said. ¡ªWhen I met Yassir, who hade back to Palestine with a PhD in botulinum toxin research from Europe, we created a n to eliminate the arrogant leaders of the scientificmunity with botulinum toxin and increase Rosaline¡¯s reach with the polyomavirus. The serotype of botulinum toxin type H was not publicly avable because of the viciousness of its toxicity. Only the Food and Drug Administration in the United States, a few other food and drug regtory agencies around the world, and a fewboratories had that information exclusively. If so, how did Yassir and Isaiah get that information? Serotype information was not avable to the average scientist orpany that submits a business n for a botulinum toxin application. One had to be in the base field of studying botulinum toxin itself to have any chance at all. Yassir was one of those people. ¡ªWe obtained botulinum toxin type H, since Yassir was a pretty good scientist in that area. Isaiah told Young-Joon. Young-Joon mulled over her exnation as he read the article. [Alphonse Lofair, who had been away from his mansion for extended periods of time in recent years, did not know the mansion¡¯s caretakers well. Due to various recent misfortunes, there was a significant turnover among the staff, with many quitting or being newly hired. It is suspected that someone among the employees poisoned Alphonse Lofair¡¯s meal. [Federal police are considering the possibility that the perpetrator may be one of the victims of the Nicaraguan incident or an investor who suffered substantial losses from the drop in Chenover Bank¡¯s stock price...] That could be the case. Or, perhaps Alphonse was trying to squeeze out thest of his power and fake his death to escape. But Young-Joon wanted to explore all the possibilities. Philistines was effectively out of business, but not Yassir. He had already cut his connection to the Palestinian rebels and got out in advance, though it was unclear if it was relevant or not. Yassir was an executive of Philistines who worked with Isaiah, so he likely knew quite a bit about Rosaline and a lot about Elsie as well. And by now, he may have guessed that Rosaline, the girl Young-Joon adopted, was the Rosaline, the next-generation organism who was omnipotent in the mysteries of life. She was an unknown magic beyond the microscope, but now she existed in the physical world within reach in the form of a nine-year-old girl. ¡ªOrdinary scientists are bound to covet Rosaline. The warning Isaiah gave resurfaced in Young-Joon¡¯s mind. What if Yassir was targeting Rosaline in some way? Alphonse Lofair would know that Elsie didn¡¯t raise Rosaline, making him one of the people closest to the truth about her identity. From Yassir¡¯s perspective, wouldn¡¯t he see him as a rival and eliminate him preemptively? If that was the case, what could Yassir possibly do to Rosaline? ¡®...¡¯ There was nothing. How could anyoney a hand on this superpowered girl who could knock out twenty armed soldiers in seconds? But as Rosaline¡¯s guardian, Young-Joon needed to be prepared for any situation. Then... * ¡°Doctor Ryu.¡± ¡°Ryu Young-Joon!¡± Young-Joon saw Song Ji-Hyun on the other side of the airport terminal. And Rosaline was running toward him, arms wide open. ¡°You¡¯re going to fall.¡± Young-Joonughed and hugged her. ¡°It was a long flight, right?¡± Young-Joon said as he kissed Rosaline¡¯s forehead. ¡°You went through a lot of trouble to bring her here. Thank you so much,¡± Young-Joon thanked Song Ji-Hyun. Song Ji-Hyun stared at the two of them. ¡°Well, it¡¯s nothing. We¡¯ve helped each other a lot before,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°It¡¯s no big deal.¡± ¡°But what business do you have to do in Japan?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°We¡¯ve isted a bacterium that removes radioactive material from the volcanic soil in Nicaragua that you gave me,¡± she said. ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes. We¡¯re going to test it in Fukushima.¡± ¡°I see. I hope it goes well.¡± ¡°Me too. Bringing your daughter here is my way of thanking you for getting me the microbes from the Nicaraguan volcano, so don¡¯t worry about it,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°I have to go catch my next flight, so...¡± ¡°Wait,¡± Young-Joon said, stopping her for a moment. Song Ji-Hyun looked back at Young-Joon with a bit of anticipation. ¡°Do you happen to know where Yassir went after the press conference with you in Washington?¡± * Young-Joon flew to Tokyo with Rosaline and Song Ji-Hyun. It was a seven-hour train ride from Fukuoka to Tokyo, so taking a ne was faster. Young-Joon was worried that Song Ji-Hyun would be upset again because he hadn¡¯t exined about Rosaline, but it seemed like she had given up and didn¡¯t care anymore. When the three of them arrived, Kakeguni had already gone home, and Professor Nobuhiro was waiting for Young-Joon alone. A dozen scientists from Cellijenner were also waiting for Song Ji-Hyun. ¡°See you next time,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said before leaving. ¡°Bye. Good luck with your decontamination research,¡± Young-Joon replied. Song Ji-Hyun stepped out of the car and walked toward the hotel where her team was staying, then suddenly stopped. Young-Joon¡¯s car was still at the light and hadn¡¯t left. She hesitated for a moment, then walked over. ¡°Doctor Ryu.¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not as brilliant as you, but I think ordinary scientists can sometimes do what you do.¡± ¡°... Pardon?¡± ¡°It¡¯s just... If there¡¯s anything you need to talk about, you can talk to me,¡± she said. ¡°I¡¯m sure even you get overwhelmed sometimes, so ask for help. We¡¯re friends, right? This field is fiercelypetitive, but we also cooperate with each other a lot.¡± ¡°... Yes, thank you.¡± Young-Joon nodded. * ¡°Is this your daughter that summoned you to Fukuoka?¡± Nobuhiro asked. ¡°Hello,¡± Rosaline said in Korean. ¡°Is it okay if we take her with us? She gets very anxious when she¡¯s apart from me,¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Of course. Your daughter is very cute.¡± The nuclear power nt in question was located in Okuma, a seaside town in the far eastern region of Fukushima Prefecture. Song Ji-Hyun traveled there with the Cellijenner scientists on National Route Six, while Young-Joon traveled further west, toward Koriyama. Along the way, Nobuhiro gave Young-Joon an overview of the project. ¡°Recently, the antinuclear power movement in Japan has gained considerable momentum. The reasons vary, such as the cost of treating contaminated water from Fukushima, the acquittal of the TEPCO[1] executives, and the development of sr cells, but fundamentally, they all stem from the collision between politics and business,¡± Nobuhiro said. ¡°TEPCO is thergest electric powerpany in Asia and the fourthrgest in the world, and it got that big because it had a monopoly on supplying Japan¡¯s infrastructure, which was left in shambles after World War II. It practically took over the government¡¯s business and did it alone.¡± ¡°And that¡¯s why it developed strong links with the government?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°There are quite a few congressmen who are from TEPCO. They have a bigger voice than Toyota. And the Fukushima nt actually had many idents, big and small, from 1976 until it was damaged by this tsunami,¡± Nobuhiro said. He added, ¡°One in particr was called a criticality ident, which is a serious ident where the chain reaction of the nuclear fuel grows, causing damage to the facility and radiation exposure to the workers. ¡°It should have been a major incident that sparked public outcry due to the radiation victims and the risk to safety equipment, but no one knew about it. It was covered up. If you think about how such a significant ident could be concealed despite government audits, the answer bes clear.¡± ¡°Hm...¡± ¡°TEPCO has no intention of using sr cells right now; they have invested so much in nuclear power and need to recoup their capital. Moreover, their finances were devastated by the Fukushima incident, and half of theirpany has been nationalized,¡± Nobuhiro said. ¡°But electricity is privatized in Japan. So, wouldn¡¯t it be natural for neers to seize the opportunity and grow by focusing on sr cells while TEPCO is struggling?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°But the government isn¡¯t granting business permits. That¡¯s because Prime Minister Atabe supports TEPCO. The public is furious about this situation. As an economist, I am too. It¡¯s absurd that the government is blocking market order to somehow save TEPCO, apany that has caused international trouble and won consecutive awards from organizations like Greenpeace and Germany¡¯s Enecon for being an environmentally harmfulpany.¡± ¡°That¡¯s why you¡¯re nning to build a sr power nt yourself to demonstrate its feasibility.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. It¡¯s a research project done by the University of Tokyo, so we don¡¯t have a lot of capital.¡± That was why they chose a location in the mountainous area west of Koriyama for the power nt. Thend was cheap because it was in a suburban agricultural area, and it was close to Okuma and Tokyo, giving it political significance in the context of the anti-nuclear movement. ¡°After discussing with the other professors, we thought that the area could support a small power nt,¡± Nobuhiro said. ¡°Alright.¡± ¡°Oh, and one more thing. Many of the nuclear reactors operated by TEPCO are in bad shape right now, and the possibility of a nuclear explosion keepsing up in some ces.¡± ¡°The possibility of explosions?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°It¡¯s a little further north from here, a ce called the Tohoku Nuclear Power nt,¡± Nobuhiro said. ¡°There was a pretty strong earthquake there not long ago, and the ground where the nuclear nt is located sank about a meter.¡± ¡°My god...¡± ¡°TEPCO says there¡¯s no problem, but the people are anxious.¡± * ¡°Our nt will not blow up.¡± Masumoto, the chief executive officer of TEPCO, dismissed the news that had been circtingtely. He was sitting in the back of a luxury sedan, looking out the window at the protestors. There were certainly more protesters as they entered the Tohoku region, but Masumoto¡¯s perspective remained the same. ¡°Do they know who made that nt? It¡¯s never going to explode,¡± he said. ¡°But sir, the people are anxious. Don¡¯t you think it would be better to announce a more detailed investigation?¡± asked his driver. ¡°Aside from everything else, my mother¡¯s house is right next to Tohoku nuclear nt.¡± ¡°Really?¡± The driver was surprised. ¡°Yes. I¡¯ve taken multiple personal trips with you to the Tohoku nt. Why do you think I went there?¡± ¡°Haha... Well, I just take you wherever you need to go, sir. I didn¡¯t think much of it,¡± replied the driver, a little embarrassed. ¡°Hm. You must have suspected I was hiding a mistress somewhere, but no. My mother lives there alone.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°So Tohoku is safe. I would never let my mother die.¡± ¡°Of course, not, sir. You love your mother dearly.¡± ¡°My mother went through all kinds of hardships to raise me during the war when she was young.¡± Masumoto smiled bitterly. ¡°She¡¯s quite old now and has trouble getting around, but no matter how much we tell her toe live with us, she insists on living alone because she doesn¡¯t want to be a burden to her daughter-inw and grandchildren. Sigh...¡± Masumoto said, tapping his phone. ¡°But she must be happy that you visit so often. You¡¯re there almost twice a week. I don¡¯t think you would even meet your mistress that often.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s because she¡¯s getting older, but she¡¯s lonely and weak. I''m worried about her.¡± Masumoto kept fiddling with his phone. ¡°She was so full of energy when she was younger, but seeing things like this makes me realize how old she is...¡± Suddenly, he stopped. He had received an email from an anonymous person. He had gotten a lot of spam like this over the years, but the subject line of this one was a bit shocking. [To Mr. Masumoto, regarding Isaiah Franklin¡¯s possible cure for aging] 1. Tokyo Electric Power Company, thepany involved in the Fukushima incident ? Chapter 293: An Ordinary Scientist (7)

Chapter 293: An Ordinary Scientist (7)

Nobuhiro¡¯s colleagues had already arrived at the building site for the sr power nt in the mountains west of Koriyama. All of them were experts in architecture or sr energy. They were not only Nobuhiro¡¯s advisors, but also members of the team working on this project of building an anti-nuclear protest facility. ¡°I look forward to working with you,¡± Young-Joon said as he reached out to shake their hands. Sr power nts were not an unfamiliar concept. In Korea, there were quite a few small sr power nts in rural areas, including Jeonnam. However, it was a very small scale. It was not a national business model, but rather a financial investment by smart elders. They invested about one hundred million won to generate a small amount of electricity for ten households and sold it to Kepco. There have been many of these small, investment-type sr power nts in Japan, but A-GenBio¡¯s sr cells were going to be somethingpletely different. Nobuhiro, an economist, was confident in the business model. The mountainousnd west of Koriyama had a gentle slope of less than twenty-five degrees, with direct road ess to the surrounding countryside. The forests that covered this area were also easy to cut down. ¡°Our existing sr panels were able to generate about one hundred kilowatts of power on six hundred pyung ofnd. With A-GenBio¡¯s sr cells, it¡¯s exactly twelve times that,¡± Nobuhiro said. ¡°Plus, the light weight and the ease of instation, dismantling, and transportation cut down on maintenance costs considerably,¡± chimed in another professor. ¡°The Japanese government has imposed a lot of regtions on sr power generation, such as and-use change fee of forty percent of the publd value, and a development profit share of thirty percent of the increase innd value.¡± ¡°We¡¯ve managed to get a few business permits because we¡¯re installing it for research purposes, but the profitability regtions on the tax side are still a hurdle. However, even taking that into ount, we¡¯re going to show sr power nts can surpass nuclear power.¡± It was nice seeing old professors be as passionate as young, curious students. Young-Joon discussed with them the number of sr panels to be installed and the transportation n. ¡°Thend has already been prepared, so once the sr cells arrive, it should take less than a day to install them,¡± he said ¡°We¡¯re not doing this for profit, but to show the excellence of the sr power nt, so it doesn¡¯t matter if the sr cells are more expensive,¡± Nobuhiro said. ¡°I know that you give a small discount to retailers and electricitypanies, but please give us the original price without any discounts.¡± ¡°Sure.¡± After discussing the business overview with the professors, Young-Joon asked, ¡°There¡¯s been talk of a nuclear power nt exploding in the Tohoku region, right? Can I go take a look?¡± * ¡°What is this?¡± Kim Young-Hoon, the CEO of A-GenBio was baffled when he saw a report sent to him from A-GenBio¡¯s management. ¡°Masumoto, the CEO of TEPCO, wants to undergo the clinical trial for the aging treatment that A-GenBio is developing?¡± ¡°Apparently,¡± replied the manager who had sent him the report. ¡°Is there a technology being developed at ourpany that I don¡¯t know about?¡± Kim Young-Hoon said as he scratched his head. ¡°Besides that, is it even possible to cure aging? And is aging something that is treated? Do I not know about this because I didn¡¯t study medicine? How did this reporte to be?¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t seem like he got the information through normal means either. At first, he asked for a meeting with Mr. Ryu to discuss something personally, but the secretary¡¯s office cut him off.¡± ¡°Of course. It¡¯s not like they¡¯re the White House or something. Even thergest powerpany in Asia is nothingpared to A-GenBio. We don¡¯t even know who their CEO is, so how can we arrange a meeting with Mr. RYu for no reason?¡± Kim Young-Hoon said. ¡°Anyway, so their CEO is saying he somehow found out that we¡¯re developing a technology to treat aging, and he wants to participate in the clinical trial?¡± ¡°Yes. The secretary said that since she doesn¡¯t know all the details of the research and development, she¡¯ll have to get back to you through management.¡± ¡°Good.¡± ¡°Shall we arrange a meeting?¡± ¡°No. Honestly, I¡¯m surprised the person who contacted us is someone as high up as the head of a Japanese powerpany, but the idea of participating in a clinical trial for something as absurd as anti-aging treatment, a technology I, the CEO, don¡¯t know about, is insane.¡± ¡°So you¡¯re not going to arrange a meeting?¡± Kim Young-Hoon thought for a moment. Although he reacted as if he had never heard of it before, there was something bothering him. Unlike Young-Joon, who was more of a scientist than an entrepreneur, Kim Young-Hoon, the seasoned businessman, was always on the lookout for rumors. As such, he had already caught onto the rumor about Isaiah circting in the regenerative medicinemunity. He didn¡¯t know what happened exactly, but something must have happened at Harris¡¯ hideout or at Johns Hopkins Hospital. And the treatment Young-Joon was working on didn¡¯t go through the normal channels. If it was an FDA-approved clinical trial, there should have been a record of it in A-GenBio, but all that was on file was Isaiah¡¯s consent form. This may be Young-Joon¡¯s weakness. ¡°Mr. Ryu is a busy man, and we can¡¯t afford to waste a brain as valuable as his on things like this. Let¡¯s handle it on my end and just report it to him,¡± Kim Young-Hoon said. ¡°Alright. Then, I¡¯ll provide a response that we don¡¯t have any aging cure research going on.¡± ¡°Yes, thank you.¡± Kim Young-Hoon sat back in his chair and pondered the odd feeling. It was strange. He could understand if it came from an American medical school or a giantpany like Apple, but from TEPCO? Geographically, it was on the opposite side of the United States, and business-wise, it was far removed from the medical field, making it seem like they would be thest ce to hear rumors about Isaiah. Where did Masumoto get that kind of information? ¡®Mr. Ryu should know about this.¡¯ Kim Young-Hoon wrote to Young-Joon. * The Tohoku Nuclear Power nt was off-limits to outsiders, but an exception was made for the University of Tokyo¡¯s prestigious electrical engineering professors. They were allowed to visit, and so were Young-Joon and Rosaline. ¡°Is the child here also visiting?¡± asked the head of nuclear protection. ¡°Yes, this is my daughter. I¡¯ll be taking her around,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Please write your name and contact information on the ess card and change into your protective clothing.¡± Young-Joon and the professors followed the staff¡¯s instructions, put on the protective suit, and went into the nuclear nt. ¡°You¡¯ll need to plug the measuring device into your left pocket.¡± Young-Joon took the small device he was handed and plugged it into a pocket on his left chest pocket. ¡°Let me show you around.¡± The head of nuclear protection led the professors and Young-Joon around. The professors all assumed that there was a reason why Young-Joon wanted to see the nt, but all he was doing was quietly observing the inside of the nt without doing anything special. The passageways where workers walked through were kept at low radiation levels. After passing the nuclear fuel storage tanks, the reactor containment vessel appeared. ¡°Is this full of radiation?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Not necessarily. There are workers whoe in and out of there. There are ces inside that are as safe as this walkway, but there are also ces where you can be exposed to high levels of radiation, so not just anyone can go in there,¡± said the head of nuclear protection. ¡°The workers are only authorized to go in only when they need to, since there¡¯s real nuclear fuel running in there.¡± ¡°...¡± Young-Joon obviously couldn¡¯t go in, and he didn¡¯t even ask. About a thousand cells flew out of Rosaline¡¯s skin as she walked inside the power nt holding Young-Joon¡¯s hand. They had already entered the containment vessel. ¡®Isn¡¯t it a sealed space? How did you get in?¡¯ Young-Joon talked to Rosaline in his head. ¡ªI entered through the cooling water passage. ¡®How is it?¡¯ ¡ªI¡¯ll take a look. ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± Young-Joon said to the professors. The professors were all wondering what the point of this tour was, as they were just looking around the outside, but Young-Joon was getting a lot of information in real time. Rosaline, who could see the molecr structure of all living things at the atomic level, used her high magnification view to observe the reactor. ¡ªI can¡¯t go inside to the core. The radiation won¡¯t do any damage to me, but heat is dangerous. Rosaline sent him a message. ¡ªI can only look at the reactor from the outside to protect the membranes of my cells within my fitness tolerance. ¡®It¡¯s okay, just don¡¯t overdo it and check as much as you can see in cell form.¡¯ Instead of reading his email, Young-Joon synchronized his vision with Rosaline to look at the reactor. The deepest part of the Tohoku Nuclear Power nt, the reactor core. It was where nuclear fission urred,posed of nuclear fuel and a moderator, with cont flowing through it. The immense thermal energy generated by nuclear fission boiled the water, and the massive amount of steam produced drove the turbines to generate electricity. ¡ªIt¡¯s fine. Rosaline sent a message. ¡ªDid you say the ground sunk by a meter? It doesn¡¯t seem like a big deal. Everything¡¯s running fine. ¡®Really?¡¯ ¡ªBut it¡¯s not something that exists in the natural world, so I can¡¯t see through it like I can see inside a cell, although I can understand how it works by looking at the overall structure. Rosaline went on. ¡ªBut even considering that, I think it¡¯s fine. ¡®That¡¯s a relief.¡¯ Rosaline began to pull out the cells that had been observing the reactor. It was at that moment. ¡ªWait. A small, sharp crack caught Rosaline¡¯s eye. ¡ªThere¡¯s a very small crack in the pressurizer... ¡®The pressurizer?¡¯ In a nuclear reactor, a pressurizer was a device that kept the inside of the reactor at one hundred fifty atmospheres of pressure. Temperatures could reach up to two thousand degrees in an instant, and it was normal for the cont¡ªwater¡ªto boil. If all the cont boiled off, the cooling pump pipes could burst and the reactor could be destroyed. As such, it was important to keep the cont as a liquid, and the way to do that was to increase the pressure. Even things like LPG gas cylinders were pressurized to liquefy the gas in transportation. It was the same principle. ¡°Wait a minute.¡± Young-Joon stopped in his tracks. ¡°Did you also check the inside of the reactor after the earthquake, sir?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Of course,¡± replied the head of nuclear protection. ¡°The sound of the water flowing into the cont pump seems a bit off. Could you please check the pump or the pressurizer?¡± The head of nuclear protection frowned. Young-Joon could tell there was a problem with the pressurizer by the sound of the water flowing? ¡°I know it sounds a bit ridiculous, but I¡¯ve heard that pressurizers fail quite often in power nts. If it¡¯s not too difficult, couldn¡¯t you double-check it?¡± Young-Joon asked. * After taking a closer look at the pressurizers and pumps in the reactor, the head of nuclear protection reported directly to the nuclear nt director. The nt director then reported to the headquarters¡¯ facility safety management team. The manager of facility safety management reported this information to Masumoto. ¡°It¡¯s been rmended by an employee at the Tohoku Reactor One that it should be shut down.¡± ¡°Who?¡± Masumoto asked. ¡°The head of nuclear protection.¡± ¡°He¡¯s not even an engineer, right? Is this confirmed?¡± ¡°The opinion of the resident engineer at the nt is that there is a possibility of a pressurizer breakage, so it should be shut down immediately and inspected thoroughly.¡± ¡°...¡± Masumoto pondered for a moment. TEPCO had already inspected the Tohoku nt and dered that it was fine. Less than a week had passed since then. ¡°People have pride...¡± Halting operations at the Tohoku nuclear nt right now would only fuel the anti-nuclear movement spreading around Fukushima. Activists would im victory and intensify their attacks on the Fukushima contaminated water treatment issue. Prime Minister Atabe could only do so much to hold them off. ¡°Send technicians to recheck everything. But we cannot shut down the nuclear nt. Conduct the inspection quietly so it doesn¡¯t attract media attention,¡± Masumoto said. Chapter 294: An Ordinary Scientist (8)

Chapter 294: An Ordinary Scientist (8)

At the Westin Hotel in Tokyo, Young-Joon was preparing to return home. ¡°Of all the trips we¡¯ve taken, this was the lightest,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°It was just a meeting to build the sr nt,¡± Young-Joon said as he packed the bags. ¡°Still, this was the scariest trip I¡¯ve ever taken in my entire career. I was really surprised when you copsed.¡± ¡°Hehe.¡± Rosaline sat on the bed andughed embarrassedly. ¡°I didn¡¯t know I would copse like that either.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t believe there¡¯s something that Rosaline doesn¡¯t know.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°No, what are you talking about? Why are you sorry?¡± Young-Joon zipped up their bags and sat down next to Rosaline. ¡°It¡¯s okay, you didn¡¯t do anything wrong.¡± Young-Joon pulled Rosaline into his arms and gave her a light hug. ¡°Ryu Young-Joon,¡± Rosaline said. ¡°Do you remember what I said before? Like how the extinction of dinosaurs ushered in the age of mammals, I am a next-generation organism that could rece all life on Earth.¡± ¡°Yeah. In hindsight, I¡¯m kind of d that your genes split in the first ce.¡± ¡°Because everyone else is okay?¡± ¡°No, because I got to meet you.¡± Rosaline leaned her head on Young-Joon¡¯s shoulders. ¡°I like being human,¡± Rosaline said. She stretched out her hands and studied them. ¡°People are mysterious creatures. There are things about them that even I don¡¯t understand. This organism is more than just apound of oxygen, carbon, nitrogen, hydrogen, calcium, phosphorus, and potassium. When you went to Japan by yourself, Ryu Ji-Won told me I looked depressed.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes. And then I thought about it and realized that I was really feeling depressed, and it was really strange to feel that way. I thought about giving myself a little more serotonin, but then I stopped.¡± ¡°Are you okay now?¡± ¡°Yes, now that I have you.¡± ¡°I won¡¯t go anywhere alone now. I¡¯m sorry,¡± Young-Joon said as he patted Rosaline¡¯s shoulder. Bzz! His phone rang. It was from his secretary¡¯s office. ¡°Hello?¡± ¡ªHello, this is Yoo Song-Mi. There¡¯s a call from a ce called Tohoku Reactor One in Japan looking for you. ¡°Tohoku Reactor One?¡± ¡ªWhen I asked them what¡¯s going on, they told me that when you visited the nt, you noticed a crack in the pressurizer and informed them. The nt is now at risk of exploding, and they want to talk to you about shutting it down. ¡°I¡¯m not a nuclear power nt expert; I¡¯m a biologist. How can I consult them?¡± ¡ªThat¡¯s what I told them, and he said that he needed your help because a lot of people could die. They talked about a nuclear explosion, which sounded like a big deal, and he seemed desperate, so I called to check with you before giving them an answer. ¡°Hm.¡± Young-Joon thought he had done his job by simply informing the head of nuclear safety that the pressurizer was broken. The rest was up to TEPCO, and he had no right or reason to interfere. ¡°Who contacted me?¡± ¡ªSomeone named Hideo. He¡¯s the head of nuclear safety. ¡°Tell him he can meet me if hees to my hotel today. I¡¯m free in the afternoon.¡± ¡ªOkay. * As Baek Jun-Tae, a security guard of K-Cops, escorted guests through the hotel, he wondered if he was doing the right thing. Young-Joon had a wide variety of guests, but the groups of people he met at hospitals, conferences, and hotels were different. At the hospital, it was mostly patients and doctors, scientists at conferences, and entrepreneurs and politicians at hotels. But the man who entered the hotel now, Hideo, looked like an innocent, ordinary engineer. Instead of a suit, he wore a loose, worn out jacket, and he smelled of oil rather than cologne. He seemed a little bit intimidated by the glittering hotel, and his skin and hair looked ragged fromck of care. ¡°U... Um, will there be any record of my visit here?¡± Hideo asked. ¡°Only we will know,¡± Baek Jun-Tae replied. ¡°This is the conference room.¡± He opened the door to the small conference room they had booked in advance. Inside, Young-Joon was already seated and waiting. The little girl he had visited with was also there. ¡°Hello,¡± Young-Joon greeted. Looking slightly nervous, Hideo greeted him back and then sat down across from Young-Joon. ¡°I came to ask for your help,¡± Hideo said. ¡°My help?¡± ¡°You detected an issue with the pressurizer just by listening to the sound of the water before.¡± In actuality, Young-Joon had only made a random guess since he didn¡¯t know much about nuclear nts, but now, it seemed like this person regarded him as an expert on nuclear power. ¡°I¡¯m telling you this just in case you get the wrong idea, but that was just a coincidence. What I said out of worry happened to be right. I don¡¯t know much about nuclear power,¡± Young-Joon said, chuckling. ¡°Mr. Ryu, Tohoku Reactor One is in serious trouble right now. We have to shut it down immediately. The main cont pump has stopped. We¡¯re using the auxiliary cont pump, but ording to our technicians, it might explode if it runs for a few more days.¡± ¡°Then why don¡¯t you just stop it?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°We can¡¯t do that on our own at the nt. Technicians from headquarters have been dispatched,¡± Hideo replied. ¡°Then aren¡¯t they stopping it?¡± ¡°I thought they would, but they¡¯re not.¡± Hideo shook his head. ¡°Tohoku nuclear nt is in the middle of the anti-nuclear movement. TEPCO has already announced that it is fine, even though it has been criticized as the next Fukushima. If TEPCO shuts Tohoku down right now, it will ignite the anti-nuclear movement. There will be no way for Prime Minister Atabe to prevent other nts from being built, and TEPCO¡¯s stock prices will plummet as sr power nts pop up all over the ce.¡± ¡°What are you talking about? They¡¯re letting it blow up instead of shutting it down?¡± ¡°Of course, not. The headquarters wants to fix it somehow while the nt is running.¡± ¡°Is that possible?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not impossible, but it¡¯s extremely dangerous, and there¡¯s very little time because it might blow up before it¡¯s repaired. In that case, the technicians will be the first to die.¡± ¡°Wait, they are risking the lives of their own employees to make a repair?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a fact that nuclear nt technicians will lose their livelihood once sr cells be more widespread. They said we have no choice but to get through this crisis with our collective will and focus...¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°But I still think it should be stopped. It¡¯s really bad, and I¡¯ve got some internal reports on the explosion risk at the nt.¡± ¡°By giving me these, are you asking me to blow the whistle?¡± ¡°I want to do it myself, but honestly... I¡¯m too scared,¡± Hideo said. ¡°I¡¯m not a distinguished person like you, Doctor Ryu; I¡¯m just a typical nuclear power nt technician and nuclear physics major. I¡¯m just an ordinary scientist who¡¯s scared.¡± ¡°So, is that why you¡¯re asking me to blow this up>¡± ¡°Please. You were the one who figured out the problem just by listening to the sound of the cont flowing, right?¡± ¡°No, I¡¯m not a nuclear power expert...¡± Young-Joon scratched his head. He was in a predicament. Hideo bowed his head and said, ¡°Please. A lot of people could get hurt by this.¡± ¡°Um...¡± ¡°And if you announce this, and it ignites the anti-nuclear movement, it¡¯s good for you since you can export sr cells,¡± Hideo said. ¡°I hear what you¡¯re saying. I guess Japan isn¡¯t the only one who will suffer if the reactor blows up.¡± Young-Joon put the papers in his bag. * ¡°Where did you get this information?¡± Masumoto asked. ¡°It¡¯s a secret. The person who provided me with the information wanted to remain anonymous,¡± Young-Joon replied. In the CEO¡¯s office at TEPCO headquarters, Masumoto was facing a man hailed as one of the greatest minds in the history of science. He had brought shocking data and rmended shutting down the Tohoku nuclear nt. But the first thing that came to Masumoto¡¯s mind was the cure for aging. A-GenBio had denied it, but that was not true. The anonymous email detailed what had happened to Isaiah¡¯s body. When he personally checked the information, it seemed almost certain that this rumor was circting in the U.S. regenerative medicinemunity. And then, by a stroke of luck, the person responsible came to see him in person. ¡°Anyway, the consensus seems to be that the nt should be shut down, not only among the dispatched technicians, but also among the internal technicians there. Wouldn¡¯t it be better to shut it down?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°That would be nice for you, because then you can sell your sr cells.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not why I am telling you this, but I don¡¯t care what you think. If you do not shut down the nt, Mr. Masumoto, I¡¯ll release these documents to the press. Apart from the health of the Japanese people, it¡¯s a given that a nuclear explosion here will have a negative effect on Korea as well.¡± ¡°I will shut it down,¡± Masumoto said. ¡°In turn, I would like to ask you for something.¡± ¡°The aging cure?¡± Young-Joon asked. He had already heard about this from Kim Young-Hoon. ¡°You already know. My mother is quite old and has a difficult time moving around, and I would really like her to undergo that clinical trial.¡± ¡°No,¡± Young-Joon said firmly. ¡°Excuse me?¡± ¡°Isaiah Franklin¡¯s aging was not natural or normal; it was progeria caused by embryonic cloning and gic engineering. Treating it was highly experimental. There wasn¡¯t enough preclinical data, so I had to rely on my own existing knowledge and instincts while doing the treatment,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°That trial was an exceptional situation where the patient had a tremendous depth of understanding of the experimental treatment, and that was why I was able to proceed based on her consent alone. But I¡¯m not willing to run such an unprepared trial on someone else.¡± ¡°That¡¯s why I¡¯m asking you to do it. Nothing fails in your hands, right?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t have such blind faith. Science is about understanding knowledge, not trusting certain people.¡± ¡°...¡± Masumoto dropped his head. ¡°My father was working as a quartermaster when the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima in 1945 and died,¡± he said. ¡°I was just a baby, and I lived with my mother¡¯s family. From then on, I grew up as a fatherless son. My mother went through all kinds of hardships to raise me alone as a woman.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Some people tried to arrange a remarriage for her because she was still young, but she refused them all. She lived a tough life selling fruit, between married men trying to flirt with a widow living alone and old womening to grab her by the hair. Now she¡¯s ny years old. I don¡¯t know how many days she has left, but I don¡¯t want her to spend them helplessly, especially when she¡¯s having trouble getting around like she is now,¡± Masumoto pleaded. ¡°Please, I¡¯m begging you. Help me just once. I¡¯m not asking for her to be in her twenties or thirties; I just want her to be able to walk around. You can treat her, right? You can treat her, just like you did Isaiah Franklin.¡± ¡°Curing aging is not that simple. We don¡¯t have the experimental data to do it.¡± ¡°That¡¯s why I am personally asking you, Mr. Ryu. You have four Nobel Prizes.¡± ¡°I feel like I¡¯m repeating myself, but I can¡¯t,¡± Young-Joon said, his voice firm. ¡°...¡± Masumoto bit his lip. ¡°Then I¡¯ll do what I want with the Tohoku nuclear nt, Doctor Ryu,¡± he said. ¡°... Then I will release this to the media.¡± Young-Joon picked up the technical report of the Tohoku Nuclear Power nt. ¡°Do as you please. This country cannot be dictated by you, Doctor Ryu. You are a medical expert, not a nuclear power nt expert. The Tohoku nuclear nt will not blow up!¡± * The Asahi Shimbun[1], Yomiuri Shimbun, Sankei Shimbun, and others announced the news one after another.[2] [Possibility of Explosion at Tohoku Nuclear nt] Although this topic had been incessantly mentioned over the past two weeks, this time it was different. The whistleblower, who revealed insider information and targeted TEPCO, was someone predicted to be a candidate for four Nobel Prizes simultaneously. TEPCO¡¯s stock prices plummeted almost instantly, and Japanese public opinion began to heat up, bing sharply divided. ¡ªNo matter how talented Ryu Young-Joon is, how can a biologist know about nuclear power nts? He¡¯s overstopping. ¡ªHe said he happened to get insider information. ¡ªConsidering the Nicaragua incident, Ryu Young-Joon is a skilled businessman. I think this is another scheme to sell sr cells. ¡ªWhat would Ryu Young-Joon gain from selling sr cells in Japan? A-GenBio¡¯s main focus is new drugs, not sr cells. In the midst of this confusion, Masumoto directly attacked Young-Joon. [A-GenBio CEO Ryu Young-Joon criminally sued by TEPCO] [used of damaging corporate value by spreading false information.] 1. Japanese for newspaper ? 2. All three newspapers are famous newspapers in Japan. ? Chapter 295: An Ordinary Scientist (9)

Chapter 295: An Ordinary Scientist (9)

The nuclear explosion issue did not just affect TEPCO¡¯s stock prices. ¡ªThe nuclear power nt is going to explode. This message struck fear into the hearts of Japanese people who still remembered the nightmare of Fukushima. Immediately, a massive uproar erupted across Japan, centered in the Tohoku region. Tens of thousands of citizens began traveling to Aomori Prefecture to the north of the nt, Yamagata Prefecture to the west, and the Kanto region to the south. Hotels quickly ran out of rooms, and there were calls for the government to set up evacuation centers to house citizens. Foreign investors quickly pulled out their money. This was real. First of all, the person was Young-Joon. He has never been wrong in predicting this kind of disaster before. It may seem absurd for a biologist to predict a nuclear explosion, but he¡¯s also a Nobel Prize nominee in physics. Moreover, he didn¡¯t make his predictions out of his own delusions; he received data from an insider at the Tohoku nuclear nt. Those documents contained an evaluation by technicians. It was clear the pressurizer was broken at the Tohoku nuclear nt, and the cont pump and pipe needed evaluation. There was a clear risk of explosion if the nt continued to operate. The Nikkei and Topix indices, which represented Japanese stock prices, began to plummet in real time, and Japanese citizens began to buy instant food such as ramen noodles and canned goods, as well as bottled water. The entire economy was disrupted. Citizens who had been protesting in the Tohoku region and demanding shutdown of the nuclear nt ironically stopped rallying, as it was time to flee. ¡°The government will strictly monitor the risk of nuclear power nt operation, and if the risk level is high, we will shutdown the nt. We ask the public not to be agitated and to focus on their daily lives. The government will take full responsibility.¡± In the end, that was what Atabe announced to the public through a spokesperson. However, reporteres threw aggressive questions at the press conference. ¡°Not only the internal technicians, but also technicians dispatched from TEPCO headquarters have assessed that the nt must be shut down. Is it necessary for the government to make another assessment?¡± ¡°The government has said it will take responsibility, but if the nt explodes, is there any way it can take responsibility?¡± ¡°Hasn¡¯t the government yet to decontaminate the radiation in Fukushima?¡± ¡°I heard that the problem of releasing radioactive contaminated water requires money equivalent to Japan¡¯s one-year budget. Isn¡¯t it safer to shut down the reactors now?¡± The spokesperson felt like his ears were bleeding. He calmed his breathing, and said, ¡°The authenticity of the insider material published by Doctor Ryu Young-Joon has not been verified.¡± ¡°Are you saying Doctor Ryu lied?¡± ¡°That is why the government has dispatched technicians to the Tohoku Nuclear Power nt: to confirm it. Please wait for the results of the investigation.¡± ¡°Have you arrested Doctor Ryu?¡± shouted someone among the reporters. Suddenly, silence fell over the conference room. The question was from a reporter from the Yomiuri Shimbun. ¡°I heard that inclothes police officers went to the hotel where Doctor Ryu is staying and arrested him, and that he is now in custody. Is this true?¡± ¡°...¡± The spokesperson gulped. ¡°It¡¯s a legal procedure,¡± he said. ¡°Right now, the stock prices of the entire country are fluctuating and social order is being shaken. When there¡¯s a problem with public order of this magnitude, we can summon and investigate the disseminator, regardless of whether it was true or not. Furthermore, Doctor Ryu was about to leave the country, so we had to suspend his departure.¡± ¡°Oh!¡± ¡°Phew...¡± ¡°Wow...¡± There were exmations among the reporters. ¡°Are you saying that you arrested Doctor Ryu for pointing out the possibility of a meltdown at the Tohoku nuclear nt?¡± asked a reporter. ¡°The Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department is treating Doctor Ryu with the utmost respect and is only conducting a reference check. We are not resting him as a criminal.¡± * The announcement of a government-wide investigation came as a surprise to Hishijima, the director of the Japan Science and Technology Agency. ¡°This is insane.¡± Hishijima sighed in his office. It was one problem after another. Just yesterday, he was very pleased to receive a report from Cellijenner that the radiation decontamination experiment they conducted in some parts of Fukushima was sessful. But now, they were saying that the nuclear power nt in Tohoku was going to explode. ¡°Seriously, does TEPCO have some kind of problem with nuclear nts? Why are they doing this to me?¡± ¡°The government has ordered experts to be sent to investigate whether there¡¯s a risk of explosion at the nt,¡± said the manager of the nuclear power department. ¡°Do they really want us to investigate?¡± ¡°Probably not... Sir, Masumoto, the CEO of TEPCO and Prime Minister Atabe are almost like sworn brothers.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I¡¯ve spoken with the technicians at the Tohoku nuclear nt. We¡¯re alumni from the University of Tokyo.¡± ¡°What did they say?¡± ¡°The risk of explosion is high.¡± ¡°Sigh...¡± ¡°The pressurizer was working fine a week ago, but now it¡¯s not. The pressure inside the cont pipes has dropped a lot.¡± ¡°And?¡± ¡°Well, they increased the cont pump to full capacity to boost the cont cirction. They also inserted the shim control rods to significantly lower the reactor¡¯s output. The technicianspromised by reducing the output instead of shutting down the nt,¡± said the manager of the nuclear power department. ¡°But that doesn¡¯t cut off the power?¡± Hishijima asked. ¡°It doesn¡¯t seem to be at that level yet.¡± ¡°How long can they hold out like this?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t know?¡± ¡°That¡¯s the problem. They¡¯re trying to repair the pressurizer while holding out like that, but it¡¯s not easy. And since the pressurizer¡¯s functionality is gradually decreasing, they need to lower the output further with the control rods.¡± ¡°Wouldn¡¯t it be better to shut down the nt if they keep reducing the output like that?¡± Hishijima asked. ¡°Then we¡¯ll have to source the power that the Tohoku nt was supplying from elsewhere, and it will make the news that the reactor was shut down. That¡¯s what Masumoto wants to avoid.¡± ¡°What a ridiculous mess they¡¯re making.¡± ¡°The TEPCO headquarters said that they can control the explosion so that it doesn¡¯t happen, even in the worst case scenario,¡± said the manager. ¡°How?¡± ¡°The shim rods aren¡¯t the only control rods. If the reaction bes too fast and dangerous, they can insert output control rods to stabilize it. In the worst-case scenario, they can insert safety rods to stop the reactor in an emergency.¡± ¡°Then why are the technicians saying to shut it down?¡± asked Hishijima. ¡°In the event of a pressurizer failure, shutting down is the standard procedure. No matter how fast the safety rods respond, they are a braking system to prevent the worst-case scenario. If they have to use them, it¡¯s already a dangerous situation, and if the braking fails, it¡¯s over.¡± ¡°... So you think we should ignore Masumoto¡¯s opinion and shut down the reactor ording to the rules?¡± Hishijima asked. ¡°That is the manual. And there¡¯s another problem,¡± said the manager. ¡°What problem?¡± ¡°Current international opinion about us is not good.¡± ¡°Because we arrested Doctor Ryu?¡± ¡°Numerous civic groups and scientific journals are leading the charge in condemning the Japanese police. If the nuclear nt explodes now, it¡¯s really over. SIr, we need to shut down the Tohoku reactor.¡± ¡°... I¡¯ll meet with Masumoto.¡± * Hundreds of people had gathered at the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department to protest. The rally was to condemn the arrest of RYU. Tadayoshi, the head of the Detective Division, looked out the window and looked at the people, clicking his tongue. ¡°Of course, in a situation like this, it¡¯s right to call him in and investigate. Why are they doing all that like we did something bad...¡± ¡°And how hard would it have been to hold someone of Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s stature ountable if he went to Korea? Detaining him was the right decision, sir,¡± said the chief of the detective division. ¡°Investigation, not detainment,¡± Tadayoshi corrected. ¡°Oh, I apologize. Investigating the suspect...¡± ¡°Don¡¯t even use the term ¡®suspect.¡¯ Don¡¯t use words like detention or arrest, even by mistake. The phrasing matters; it doesn¡¯t sound good.¡± ¡°But legally, we have to release him in forty-eight hours. What should we do?¡± ¡°Then, we¡¯ll issue a detention warrant if necessary. Anyway, we can¡¯t send Doctor Ryu back to Korea right now. We need to hold him ountable for causing chaos in the Japanese economy after the nuclear nt issue is resolved. The police will do their job; it doesn¡¯t matter how famous the person is.¡± ¡°But someone hase to visit him.¡± ¡°Who? If it¡¯s family, let them meet.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not family, but... They¡¯re a scientist who came to Japan with Doctor Ryu. Since they came here together, I allowed them to meet during the investigation.¡± ¡°... Alright, good job. That¡¯s fine.¡± Tadayoshi nodded. That person was Song Ji-Hyun. Shocked by the news of Young-Joon¡¯s arrest, she immediately rushed to the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department from Fukushima, where she was working on decontamination research. ¡°Doctor Ryu! How... What happened?¡± She was too stunned to speak. ¡°Doctor Song, you¡¯re just on time,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°You told me before to tell you if I needed any help, right?¡± ¡°What? Oh, yes! Is there something I can help you with?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked. ¡°Of the bacteria you found in the volcanic soil in Nicaragua, how many species responded to radiation?¡± ¡°One ate the radiation, and one didn¡¯t die in high concentration of radiation.¡± ¡°Do you happen to have whole genome sequencing data for both species?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Yes. They were sequenced just before we came to Japan.¡± ¡°I know it¡¯s confidential data, but do you think you could show it to me right now?¡± Song Ji-Hyun pulled out herptop without hesitation. As a scientist, she was leaking the technology herpany was developing. It was a vition of confidentiality, but right now, Young-Joon and Song Ji-Hyun were looking at something more important. ¡°Here it is.¡± Song Ji-Hyun opened the WGS data of the two bacteria on herputer. It was a giant puzzle of strings of four letters, A, T, G, C. Young-Joon stared at it. ¡°Normally, it¡¯s impossible to figure out anything by looking at it like this. But you showed it to me because you thought I could figure something out, right?¡± Young-Joon asked as he read the data. ¡°Yes,¡± replied Song Ji-Hyun. ¡°The first bacterium is a species that you discovered first. It¡¯s excellent at removing radioactive materials,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°And the second is a close rtive of Deinocus radiodurans.¡± ¡°Deinocus radiodurans?¡± ¡°Do you think you could sell the second bacterium to A-GenBio for development?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not within my authority, but the CEO will agree. I¡¯ll tell him.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°By the way, Doctor Ryu, are you okay?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll be released soon. It¡¯s crazy that the Japanese government would do something like this, but they can¡¯t hold me for long,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Sir!¡± Baek Jun-taek from his security team approached Young-Joon. ¡°I was notified that Chief Kim Chul-Kwon, Attorney Park Joo-Hyuk, and forty-eight others have arrived at Tokyo airport.¡± ¡°Okay, Please tell Chief Kim and Attorney Park toe here.¡± Young-Joon then looked up someone¡¯s contact information on his phone. [Life Creation Team Head Cheon Ji-Myung] Chapter 296: An Ordinary Scientist (10)

Chapter 296: An Ordinary Scientist (10)

A few hours before Young-Joon¡¯s arrest, a temporary board meeting was held at A-GenBio. The meeting was called by Tate Lofair of Chenover Bank. A total of ten executives were present: the sevenb directors, the vice president of management, Kim Young-Hoon, and Tate Lofair. ¡°I don¡¯t see Mr. Ryu,¡± Tate said. ¡°Mr. Ryu is in Japan right now,¡± replied Kim Young-Hoon. ¡°Wasn¡¯t he supposed to return home today?¡± ¡°...¡± Tate was right; Young-Joon was supposed to return to Korea today, but he wasn¡¯t back and couldn¡¯t be reached. Kim Young-Hoon was a little worried because he wasn¡¯t the kind of person who would break a promise like this. ¡°The head of thispany can¡¯t even show up for a board meeting on time?¡± Tate said. ¡°But didn¡¯t you postpone the board meeting twice in the first ce because of all the problems in the Lofair household?¡± Kim Young-Hoon shot back. ¡°...¡± ¡°And the overview and debriefing of the project in Nicaragua, which is the main item on the agenda today¡ªare they really necessary?¡± As the CEO, Kim Young-Hoon needed to proceed with the board meeting so that people didn¡¯t feel Young-Joon¡¯s absence. ¡°Everyone should know how much operating profit A-GenBio made from this. Revealing and bringing justice to a horrendous actmitted in the United States greatly boosted ourpany image as well.¡± The directors chuckled as Kim Young-Hoon spoke. ¡°... I¡¯m not here to fight,¡± Tate said with a dejected look. As the current head of the family, he had to rebuild the Chenover Bank and the Lofair family back up from the shattered pieces. Alphonse Lofair had passed away in an unfortunate ident, and all rights to the Federal Bank had been taken by Campbell. Chenover Bank¡¯s stock prices had plummeted, leading to a severe financial crisis. Despite losing everything, there was still an opportunity: the stocks of A-GenBio. The n was to take the straightforward approach¡ªfrom now on, Tate was going to actively support Young-Joon and invest heavily in A-GenBio. Considering A-GenBio¡¯s growth potential, the future looked promising. Though it was quitete, getting on this bandwagon even now was an excellent choice for turning things around. ¡°Chenover Bank ns to put all its efforts into ensuring A-GenBio¡¯s future growth. So please, don¡¯t be too sarcastic...¡± ¡°Of course. That wasn¡¯t my intention,¡± Kim Young-Hoon said with a smile. Knock knock! Someone knocked on the door. Kim Young-Hoon¡¯s secretary opened the door and walked in, even when no one told him to. He quickly approached Kim Young-Hoon and whispered in his ear, ¡°We have a problem.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°Mr. Ryu warned the Japanese media of a possible explosion at the Tohoku nuclear nt a few hours ago.¡± ¡°An explosion?¡± ¡°I wasn¡¯t able to tell you earlier because you seemed busy preparing for the board meeting.¡± ¡°You still should have mentioned it earlier... Wait a minute. But bringing it up suddenly now, instead of back then...¡± ¡°He was originally supposed to return after that, but it got dyed, so we checked. It turns out that Mr. Ryu has been arrested.¡± ¡°What?¡± Shocked, Kim Young-Hoon stood up abruptly. ¡°Arrested?¡± ¡°Yes. The Japanese media doesn¡¯t seem to know yet, but it¡¯s not something that can be hidden for long. The rest of the world will find out soon.¡± ¡°... I will discuss this at this board meeting right now. Please exin it in detail. And, Director Lofair,¡± Kim Young-Hoon turned his head towards Tate. ¡°Your family can sway major American media outlets, right?¡± ¡°Swaying... Why would you put it like that...¡± Tate replied, looking embarrassed. ¡°It¡¯s alright. This is your opportunity to work for A-GenBio, Director Lofair.¡± * [Doctor Ryu Young-Joon has spoken about the possibility of an explosion at the Tohoku nuclear power nt in the Japanese media. This caused chaos, such as the Japanese stock market fluctuating dramatically and lots of people near the nt moving to other parts of the country. The Japanese government has arrested Doctor Ryu for causing this issue.] [Some say that Doctor Ryu made these incitements to promote the anti-nuclear movement in order tomercialize sr power nts. However, Doctor Ryu did not make this im without any evidence, and he has made his statements on reports from technicians at the Tohoku nuclear nt.] [Furthermore, there is little to no benefit to Doctor Ryu from predicting a nuclear explosion. Sr cells are a future that wille without his encouragement, and the core of A-GenBio¡¯s revenue is from pharmaceuticals. As such, this is a case of Doctor Ryu predicting the risk of a national disaster, something the government should be doing instead...] Media around the world, led by the U.S., began to unleash a wave of criticism. Sensitive reactions emerged from every corner where Young-Joon had made his mark: India and Congo, Sweden, China, Israel, Nicaragua, and, of course, the United States¡ªevery ce touched by A-GenBio¡¯s treatments and the advanced medical treatments of their next-generation hospitals. The first to speak out was the White House. President Capbell, who had achieved the monumental feat of mary independence, understood just how much the American people loved Young-Joon, and how sensitive they were to the possibility of a nuclear explosion, especially after Fukushima. ¡°The United States is currently monitoring the situation at the Tohoku nuclear nt in Japan. Japan has already experienced an explosion at the Fukushima nuclear power nt that released radiation and caused significant damage to the global environment. If the Japanese government has learnt anything from the past, another explosion at the Tohoku nuclear nt should easily be prevented.¡± Campbell began to press the Japanese government, publicly throwing out messages that would favor his re-election. ¡°Furthermore, freedom of expression that foreshadows such a national disaster must not be suppressed under any circumstances. The reports of technicians should be allowed to be quoted freely, and righteous people like Doctor Ryu should be able to speak to the media without difficulty. We express our deep regret at the decision to arrest Doctor Ryu.¡± In Sweden, Princess Desideria spoke on behalf of the royal family. ¡°It is deeply undemocratic to be arrested for predicting a disaster like a nuclear explosion. The Swedish Royal Family will use all means at its disposal to protect the rights of Doctor Ryu Young-Joon, an honorary citizen of Sweden.¡± In China, Governor Yang Gunyu spoke up. ¡°The Japanese government has already experienced a radiation leak once. In a situation like this, it is necessary to listen to the conscientious voices of scientists who point out the dangers. We express our strong concern that the Japanese government has made the decision to arrest Doctor Ryu.¡± Public opinion was leaning in Young-Joon¡¯s favor, and this sentiment was no different in Japan. The Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department¡¯s website was flooded with posts condemning the arrest, and the website even crashed briefly due to excessive traffic. ¡°Public opinion is much worse than we expected,¡± said the chief of staff to Prime Minister Atabe. ¡°Sir, why don¡¯t we release Doctor Ryu for now?¡± ¡°No.¡± Atabe shook his head. ¡°It¡¯s just this once. We just need to get through this one crisis. No matter how great Doctor Ryu is, nuclear power is not his specialty. Masumoto said the Tohoku nt is safe, and I believe him.¡± ¡°Sir! You know they are overdoing it, right?¡± ¡°You have to take a little risk to protect something important. They said that even in the worst case scenario, it won¡¯t explode if they put in the control rod. But until then, we have to do everything that we can. We¡¯vee this far, so we have to be right. We must sessfullyplete the repairs in secret, the nuclear nt must be fine, and Doctor Ryu must be seen as someone who spread false rumors,¡± said Atabe. And at the same time, Masumoto was saying something simr to Atabe in Chiyoda City, a ten minute drive from the Prime Minister¡¯s official residence. ¡°We can take on the risk until the end; we can control it. If we seed, the sr nt will be dyed, TEPCO will live, and so will Prime Minister Atabe. Then, we will be able to deal a blow to Ryu Young-Joon.¡± ¡°What are you talking about? What are you going to fight Doctor Ryu for?¡± Hishijima said in frustration. ¡°Director, he¡¯s not some great savior of medicine. I know him for what he is now: a cold-hearted man who does clinical trials without FDA approval when he needs to, and when he doesn¡¯t, he t-out refuses no matter how much they beg.¡± Mastumoto gritted his teeth. ¡°Sir, what are you talking about...¡± ¡°No. Director, do not try to convince me. Just listen. We¡¯re going to get the reactors back up and running as if nothing ever went wrong without ever shutting it down. The issue of the broken pressurizers will go away, and Doctor Ryu will be the evil prophet who messed up the Japanese economy.¡± ¡°Did something happen with Doctor Ryu?¡± Hishijima asked. ¡°You also thought it was wrong for Japan to be trailing behind Korean science, Director!¡± ¡°It¡¯s true that A-GenBio¡¯s rapid growth was regrettable in that aspect. But this is not the same thing. Are we really going to do this, risking the lives of our people?¡± ¡°... They are not just citizens unrted to me,¡± Masumoto said through his teeth. ¡°In any case, there will be no shutdown of the nuclear nt, Director. You can go back now.¡± * There was a small town just one kilometer from the Tohoku nuclear power nt. It was a peaceful neighborhood where most of the residents were working in agriculture. Many people had already packed up and moved towards Tokyo, nning to stay there for at least a month until the issue was resolved. However, there were people who stayed¡ªthe elderly, who were weak and had trouble getting around. They stayed there, where their lives were rooted, for different reasons: some had nowhere to go, some didn¡¯t have the energy to move, and some didn¡¯t have enough motivation to live. As the government had not yet issued an evacuation order, they could not request help from the fire department either. ¡°Grandma! Aren¡¯t you going to evacuate? They say the Tohoku nuclear nt might explode,¡± asked a middle-aged man in his forties. A white-haired grandma looked back at him. The man¡¯s name was Kyohei, Masumoto¡¯s son. ¡°Honey, I can¡¯t go,¡± said Harumi, Masumoto¡¯s mother. ¡°Because of Dad?¡± ¡°Yes. Your father said the nt won¡¯t explode,¡± Harumi said. ¡°You know how much your father loves me. He said that old age and mobility problems can be cured nowadays. He said he¡¯s going to get me in a clinical trial for that now that I¡¯m old and can¡¯t get around well.¡± Harumi squeezed her grandson¡¯s hand on the wooden bench. ¡°... Grandma, I think Dad is wrong this time. You have to leave. Come to Tokyo with me and stay for a month.¡± ¡°Ah, no,¡± Harumi said, shaking her head. ¡°My dear, I¡¯m over ny years old. I¡¯m sick and tired of it all now. What desires would I have left in this life to betray my son and trouble you in Tokyo?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°There¡¯s been a lot of reporters heretely. People know that I¡¯m Masumoto¡¯s mother. How embarrassing would it be for your father if I ran away?¡± ¡°Sigh...¡± Kyohei let out a sigh. ¡°If anything goes wrong, I¡¯lle get you, so stay safe. And if the government decides to order an evacuation, don¡¯t be stubborn and follow the firefighters, okay?¡± ¡°Alright, alright,¡± Harumi replied, trying to reassure Kyohei. * Kim Chul-Kwon, the head of Young-Joon¡¯s security team, and Park Joo-Hyuk arrived at the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department while the rest of Japan was in a frenzy. ¡°Hey, don¡¯t worry. This isn¡¯t something they should have arrested you for... These crazy bastards,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk said. ¡°A-GenBio will also file a im against the Japanese government for this, so don¡¯t worry, we¡¯ll beat the shit out of them.¡± ¡°Joo-Hyuk,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Yeah?¡± ¡°I think we¡¯re going to have to sign a contract with the Japanese government.¡± ¡°A contract?¡± ¡°The nuclear nt is going to explode,¡± said Young-Joon. ¡®It¡¯s not just the pressurizer.¡¯ Technicians couldn¡¯t check tens of thousands of pipes in such a short time, but Rosaline could. After Young-Joon met with Hideo, the head of nuclear safety, Rosaline sted out tens of thousands of cells to check everything inside the nt. The main cont pump was already broken, and they were using an auxiliary pump. Worse, the safety rods were likely to not work either. Maybe it was already toote. The situation at Tohoku was more serious than Masumoto realized. Soon, the cont pipes wouldn¡¯t be able to maintain pressure, causing the cont to boil, and the pipe joints would burst in various ces. Then, the situation would spiral out of control. ¡°The nt is going to explode?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk asked. ¡°Yeah. And by then, the engineers fixing the pressurizers inside the nt, and the residents who couldn¡¯t evacuate, will be exposed to radiation. I¡¯ve talked to the police here, but it¡¯s no use. Even if they believe me now, it may be toote.¡± Young-Joon pointed his chin at the officers working. ¡°Exposure to radiation shatters the DNA in the cells. There will be tissue necrosis all over the body, and the victims will die in great pain. We need to treat them.¡± ¡°... You¡¯re going to treat radiation exposure?¡± Confusion shed across Park Joo-Hyuk¡¯s face. ¡°I spoke to the Life Creation Team earlier. I¡¯ll leave the technology development to them, and you get ready to write a clinical trial contract with the Japanese government, just in case.¡± Thud! The door to the detective division opened. Three men burst inside. Running straight toward Young-Joon with a stern face was Hishijima, a director of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology. He was followed by the Minister of Health, Labor, and Welfare and the Director of the National Institute of Health Sciences, a private agency under the Ministry. ¡°Doctor Ryu... I apologize for everything that has happened,¡± Hishijima said. ¡°Please help us.¡± Chapter 297: An Ordinary Scientist (11)

Chapter 297: An Ordinary Scientist (11)

¡°You want me to help you?¡± Young-Joon asked Hishijima. ¡°Did the nt explode or something?¡± ¡°No, not yet, but it¡¯s very dangerous. We¡¯ve gathered more opinions from local technicians, and they say the reactor should have been shut down a month ago,¡± Hishijima said. ¡°Prime Minister Atabe is adamant, so I can¡¯t stop this on my own. We need to prepare for any possible situation. Mr. Ryu, scientists from Celljenner are currently in Japan working on radiation removal technology. We¡¯ve already contacted Doctor Song Ji-Hyun. But, perhaps...¡± Hishijima grasped Young-Joon¡¯s hand with a desperate look. ¡°Is there any chance that you might have a way to treat patients if there is a radiation leak or if someone gets exposed...?¡± * Rosaline was sitting alone in her hotel room. She was ovee with anxiety, depression and a slow-burning anger that was even more intense than when Young-Joon had traveled to Japan. This intensity was unfamiliar. Emotions had never been part of Rosaline¡¯s nature¡ªeven now, she rarely got surprised or angry. But then, when Young-Joon was arrested by the Tokyo police as he was packing his things to leave, she felt angry. It was the first time she truly understood what anger was. ¡ªIt¡¯s okay, Rosaline! Calm down! If it wasn¡¯t for Young-Joon, she might have attacked the police. She felt very confused and enraged, but she listened to Young-Joon and stopped herself. But the sight of his wrists being handcuffed stuck in Rosaline¡¯s mind. Sitting on the bed, Rosaline thought to herself, ¡®I think it¡¯s going to remain in my amygd.¡¯ The amygd was the almond-shaped tissue in the limbic system of the brain where the trauma of Ryu Sae-Yi, Young-Joon¡¯s youngest sister, was kept. This was where trauma was stored, and Rosaline could feel the scene of Young-Joon¡¯s arrest trying to imprint itself there. She quickly regted her neurons, but the anger and agitation did not die down easily. ¡ªI¡¯ll be back soon, Rosaline. I¡¯m sorry. Mr. Baek, please take care of her and extend our stay here for a few more days. Young-Joon gave a quick shout to Baek Jun-Tae and followed the police. Rosaline was left alone in the hotel room again until now. The more she thought about it, the more her blood boiled. This reminded her of an incident that happened a year and a half ago. Young-Joon had been attacked by thugs under Ji Kwang-Man¡¯smand. Young-Joon was hit by a car, sent flying, and even bled profusely. But back then, Rosaline wasn¡¯t really angry. Even if Young-Joon had lost a limb in that right, she wouldn¡¯t have been angry. But not now. Rosaline realized that she had changed too much. ¡°Phew...¡± She took a deep breath to steady her unsteady emotions. ¡®Now I don¡¯t know what I would do if someone hurt Ryu Young-Joon like that...¡¯ The fact that she couldn¡¯t be certain of her actions and her intense, uncontroble emotions was what made it more difficult. Rosaline held her trembling hands together and tried topose herself. That was when she heard amotion outside the room. She could hear Baek Jun-Tae shout something. Rosaline sent a few cells through the door, and she saw a very unexpected person standing there. ¡®Yassir!¡¯ Rosaline jumped to her feet and concentrated on the conversation between Yassir and Baek Jun-Tae in the hallway. ¡°I said you can¡¯t. I don¡¯t know why you are, but I can¡¯t let you in. Leave!¡± Back Jun-Taek red at Yassir menacingly. ¡°I¡¯m not speaking to you,¡± Yassir said. ¡°I¡¯m speaking to Rosaline right now. Rosaline, I¡¯m Yassir. We¡¯ve met before at the Next Generation Hospital, you remember, right? I¡¯m here to save Young-Joon. I know you checked in here, so I know you¡¯re inside.¡± ¡°What the hell are you talking about? How do you know Mr. Ryu and his daughter to look for them here?¡± Baek Jun-Tae said, pushing Yassir¡¯s shoulder. But Yassir was still shouting towards the room. ¡°I just need a moment. Rosaline, you¡¯re the one who took down the terrorists in the Nethends, right? Please, just this once...¡± ¡°Excuse me, stop talking to yourself and go...¡± Baek Jun-Tae suddenly paused. He first felt light-headed, then there was a sharp ringing in his head. Thud. His legs gave out, and he copsed. Then, the door gently opened. ¡°Come in,¡± Rosaline said. At that moment, Yassir realized who was in front of him: she was no longer the innocent child who was smiling brightly beside Young-Joon with ice cream in her hand. The ice-cold expression on her face said it all. ¡°I¡¯ve never been this angry before, so I don¡¯t know how to control this emotion,¡± Rosaline said as she pulled Yassir into the room. ¡°The whole world is upset about this, so you¡¯re probably even more so,¡± Yassir said. ¡°So how are you going to rescue Ryu Young-Joon?¡± Rosaline asked. ¡°... Before we talk about that, Rosaline, I want to know what you think.¡± ¡°What do I think?¡± ¡°Ryu Young-Joon has been fighting for two years to save the world, and you¡¯ve been using your power for the greater good, but the result of that is prison bars. What do you think about this situation?¡± ¡°...¡± Rosaline was silent. Yassir sat on the chair beside the bed. ¡°I¡¯m sure you have seen a lot by Doctor Ryu¡¯s side, whether it¡¯s Schumatix trying to create tumors in a patient¡¯s eye to stunt the growth of Ryu Young-Joon and A-Bio, anti-vaxxers blindly opposing the development of a cure for AIDS, terrorists trying to use anthracis and Eb as biological weapons, or powerful people kidnapping and forcibly harvesting their organs,¡± Yassir said. ¡°Or... corrupt political and business forces arresting and detaining Doctor Ryu, who is warning about a nuclear nt explosion.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Even if you could overlook everything else, can you forgive these idiots who arrested and detained Ryu Young-Joon without any sense of gratitude? Someone as brilliant as you, doesn¡¯t their stupidity frustrate you?¡± Yassir asked. ¡°I want to hear how you honestly feel, Rosaline. If you don¡¯t want to, I will let it go and give up. But do you think that it is okay for humans¡ªordinary scientists¡ªto study and possess science? What do you think, as someone who embodies science itself?¡± ¡°Isaiah Franklin asked me the same thing, and I told her that I had no interest in ruling over science.¡± ¡°Do you still feel that way?¡± ¡°... Tell me how to save Ryu Young-Joon.¡± Yassir nodded. ¡°Well, that¡¯s simple. I can make the Tohoku nt explode by disguising myself as a technician and tampering with a few control rods. Ryu Young-Joon would be released immediately.¡± ¡°No, you can¡¯t do that.¡± ¡°Why? Then what about a scientist like me, who is considering something like that, actually having the knowledge to do it? If I were to go and blow up the nt to rescue Ryu Young-Joon, would you stop me?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Rosaline, Ryu Young-Joon can¡¯t stop all the side effects that science makes,¡± Yassir said. ¡°There is a shortcut to making the ideal world he pictures. Come with me.¡± ¡°No.¡± A woman¡¯s voice echoed through the room. Startled, Yassir turned his head to the door. ¡°Doctor Song?¡± he said, eyes narrowing. ¡°What are you saying to a child? Come with you? Are you a kidnapper?¡± ¡°Wait...¡± ¡°Doctor Ryu told me from the police department toe here, saying he was worried about Rosaline and that Yassir mighte and try to lure her. I see it was true.¡± Yassir smirked. ¡°Did Doctor Ryu tell you what Rosaline was, Doctor Song?¡± he asked. ¡°No.¡± ¡°Well, I do, because I worked with Isaiah for a very long time. I also know quite a bit about Elsie, too. I can tell from Rosaline¡¯s strange emergence, her sudden adoption, and what happened at the Hoofddorp Hotel: she is...¡± ¡°Enough,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said, cutting Yassir off. ¡°Rosaline is just Rosaline. She¡¯s Doctor Ryu¡¯s daughter¡ªa smart, pretty nine-year-old girl who likes hot cocoa and can recite anything she watches on television.¡± Song Ji-Hyun walked towards them. ¡°You still think so? Seriously?¡± Yassir asked, chuckling. ¡°That¡¯s what I know. If there¡¯s more I need to know and something I should know, Doctor Ryu or Rosaline will tell me. I don¡¯t need your help.¡± Song Ji-Hyun stepped between Yassir and Rosaline, facing Yassir, and crossed her arms. ¡°Stop trying to lure her while she has no guardian. I¡¯ll protect her until Doctor Ryues out. That¡¯s what Doctor Ryu asked.¡± ¡°...¡± Song Ji-Hyun and Yassir red at each other for a moment. It was Rosaline who broke the silence. ¡°Ryu Young-Joon wille out on his own,¡± she said. ¡°And the nt will explode, even if you don¡¯t tamper with it.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Is that true?¡± In surprise, Yassir and Song Ji-Hyun both nced at Rosaline simultaneously. ¡°Yes. I only asked Yassir how he was going to rescue Ryu Young-Joon because I was curious. We don¡¯t need his help,¡± Rosaline said. ¡°... I see. But I still didn¡¯t get an answer for what I asked,¡± Yassir said to Rosaline. ¡°I¡¯ll think about it, so go for now.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± Yassir bowed toward Rosaline and left. After making sure he left, Song Ji-Hyun turned to Rosaline. ¡°Are you okay? Are you hurt anywhere?¡± ¡°No... I¡¯m okay,¡± Rosaline said. With a sad face, she buried her face in Song Ji-Hyun¡¯s arms. * ¡°Okay, that¡¯s it. It¡¯s the most overwhelmingly insane thing our CEO has ever done: treating exposure to radiation,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung said. Bae Sun-Mi, Park Dong-Hyun, Jung Hae-Rim, and Koh Soon-Yeol chuckled in disbelief. ¡°So, you¡¯re saying we have to finish the preclinical phase of that crazy task by next week?¡± ¡°Yeah. Mr. Choi Yeon-Ho from Cellijenner brought the bacteria himself this morning.¡± ¡°Because he also knows the situation is urgent...¡± Bae Sun-Mi nodded. ¡°Cellijenner has grown so much; they¡¯re now giving A-GenBio projects,¡± Park Dong-Hyun said. ¡°That¡¯s how it works in science,¡± Jung Hae-Rim replied. ¡°Anyways, that bacteria is a rtive of Deinocus radiodurans?¡± Park Joo-Hyuk asked. ¡°Yeah. It¡¯s a bacterium that¡¯s rted to the species that became famous at Chernobyl. And here¡¯s the PCR target that we need to amplify, given to us by the genius brain of our CEO.¡± Cheon Ji-Myung pointed to a single ORF[1] in the genomic sequence made of A, T, G, and C. ¡°It¡¯s about a thousand mer of DNA. It contains the information for an enzyme that has the remarkable ability to piece together fragmented DNA.¡± ¡°That¡¯s what Doctor Ryu is saying, right?¡± Park Dong-Hyun asked. ¡°The problem is we need to be able to send this to cells throughout the body.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t Doctor Ryu give you any ideas on that part?¡± Bae Sun-Mi asked. ¡°That¡¯s where he hung up because the police needed to investigate him.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Is there any way of contacting him again?¡± Jung Hae-Rim asked. ¡°I called, but I couldn¡¯t get through.¡± ¡°Should we keep trying?¡± Jung Hae-Rim said, picking up her phone. Park Dong-Hyun scratched his head. ¡°It¡¯s frustrating not knowing the local situation.¡± Cheon Ji-Myung frowned as he listened to them. ¡°What are you two talking about?¡± he said. ¡°You guys seem to have forgotten, but this is what science is supposed to be like. Are we a bunch of greenhorns who can¡¯t do anything without Doctor Ryu? Normal scientists have normal ways of doing things.¡± ¡°Then why don¡¯t we go back to the old-fashioned way and brainstorm?¡± Bae Sun-Mi asked. ¡°Personally, I don¡¯t think we have to send the treatment to all the cells in the body,¡± Koh Soon-Yeol started off the brainstorming session. ¡°Then?¡± ¡°Since it¡¯s a treatment for radiation exposure, we just have to send it to cells that were damaged by radiation.¡± ¡°How can we do that?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure.¡± ¡°Apoptosis[2] would be induced if the radiation damages the DNA,¡± Park Dong-Hyun chimed in. ¡°There are cytokines that are released by the cells when apoptosis urs. We can make antibodies that go after that and attach it to the treatment.¡± ¡°No. It will take too long to produce and attach those antibodies,¡± Jung Hae-Rim pointed out. ¡°There¡¯s another way. When apoptosis urs, caspases will be released. If we make it work by bing active when cut by caspases and inject it in high concentrations...¡± Bae Sun-Mi said. ¡°It could have an immune reaction,¡± Koh Soon-Yeol pointed out. ¡°We can use it with immunosuppressors.¡± ¡°Or what if we administer this protein in a bone marrow transnt? Then when apoptosis urs, immune cells will head there. We can ship the treatment through them,¡± Park Dong-Hyun pitched another idea. ¡°That would take too long. Patients with high levels of radiation exposure are likely to die before new immune cells can be made,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung replied. Knock knock. Someone knocked on the conference room. Koh Soon-Yeol opened the door. ¡°Hello. Is everything going well?¡± Carpentier, the director of Lab Seven, walked inside. ¡°Mr. Director?¡± ¡°Rumor has it that you¡¯re one of the main yers in the Ryu Young-Joon rescue team. Do you want to include a director?¡± Carpentier asked. ¡°Are you participating in this project, Mr. Director?¡± Park Dong-Hyun asked. ¡°Not just me, but all sevenbs. You can order whatever experiments you need. It was decided by the board this morning,¡± Carpentier said. ¡°Then let¡¯s just try all the ideas that havee up. We¡¯re running out of time,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung said. ¡°Alright. We have Mr. Ryu¡¯s back this time,¡± Carpentier said as he put ontex gloves. * Hideo, head of nuclear safety, noticed something strange on his way to work at the Tohoku Nuclear Power nt. The radiation levels were unusually highpared to yesterday. ¡°What is it?¡± He rubbed his eyes and checked his handheld meter again. [0.7 mSv][3] The value had doubled overnight. 1. open reading frame; an uninterrupted nucleotide sequence that is responsible for producing a protein ? 2. self-induced cell death ? 3. millisieverts ? Chapter 298: An Ordinary Scientist (12) ¡°Huh? What¡¯s wrong with this?¡± asked the chief engineer, who was taking a look at the pressurizer and pipes. Hideo could see the fear in the engineer¡¯s face as he examined the nuclear nt. ¡°...¡± Both of their hands trembled. ¡°It was 0.3 millisieverts just yesterday¡­¡± said the chief engineer. ¡°Rising this much overnight means¡­¡± Hideo held his head in distress. Just then, one of the lower engineers ran from the direction of the control room and shouted, ¡°Sir! The pressure of the cont pipe is strange!¡± ¡°The pressure?¡±The chief engineer¡¯s eyes glistened. ¡°How is it?¡± ¡°The pressurizerpletely broke thirty minutes ago, so we inserted the shim rod to stop the reactor. But that usually doesn¡¯t stop the reactor right away, right?¡± ¡°Probably. The nuclear reactor is already at very high temperatures, over two thousand degrees. We need to check the condition of the cont in the pipes; if it starts to boil, the pressure inside the pipes will rise.¡± ¡°It was rising at a tremendous rate, but it just stopped.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°It¡¯s rising steadily now¡­¡± The chief engineer froze like a statue for a few seconds. A simtion was ying out in his head. ¡°S-Safety rods¡­¡± he said, stuttering. ¡°The shim rod isn''t enough! Put in the safety rods!¡± The reason was simple: the radiation was leaking somewhere. There must have been a faulty valve somewhere in the thirty thousand valves. The cont began boiling as the pressurizer broke, leading to valve breakage and steam leakage. Radiation most likely leaked out with it, causing the reader to show 0.7 millisieverts. ¡°Put in the safety rod!¡± the chief engineer shouted into the walkie-talkie. And then, from the other side, came an answer that waspletely unimaginable, truly a bolt from the blue. ¡ªWe already tried it on the manager¡¯s orders before you asked, but¡­ ¡°What is it?¡± ¡ªIt doesn¡¯t work. ¡°What?¡± ¡ªIt¡¯s half-way in, but it won¡¯t move any further. ¡°... Wait, what are you talking about¡­¡± The chief engineer paused again. The cont was leaking, and it was being detected here on the handheld meter. As such, the broken pipe valve had to be on the turbine part of the building. If so, shouldn¡¯t they hear a pressure leak somewhere? No matter how loud the turbine was, shouldn''t the sound be picked up by an experienced technician? What if the valve was blown on the reactor containment? ¡°What¡¯s the pressure inside the reactor containment?¡± the chief engineer asked. ¡ªThree¡­ Three hundred seventy kilopascals. It¡¯s too high. ¡ªSir! The hydrogen removal system in the reactor containment has stopped! Another radio call came in. ¡°The hydrogen removal system stopped?¡± The chief engineer felt cold sweat run down his back. Behind him, Hideo was trembling in fear. * Before receiving the news, Masumoto was at the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology ¡°N-No! Sir! What are you doing!¡± ¡°Move!¡± Masumoto aggressively pushed the secretary, who was stopping him at the door, out of the way and stormed inside. He found a ridiculous situation before his eyes: Hishijima, the director of the Japan Science and Technology Agency, Young-Joon, Park Joo-Hyuk, Song Ji-Hyun, Minister Takeru of the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, and President Kento of the National Institute of Public Health, were all talking in Hishijima¡¯s office. The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare was a high-level agency that had the same role as South Korea¡¯s Ministry of Health and Welfare. The heads of government organizations representing the science and health of Japan were in a meeting with Young-Joon. In addition, behind Young-Joon stood three bodyguards and Kim Chul-Kwon, the head of his security team. It looked like Young-Joon was an advisor who was brought in for advice. ¡°I thought that Doctor Ryu was still under investigation by the police. Does the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology have the authority to bring in suspects arrested by the police?¡± Masumoto asked. ¡°Now is not the time for that, Mr. Masumoto. You were the one who refused my request. I already told you to shut down the nuclear power nt,¡± Hishijima said. ¡°You are too cowardly, Director. I doubt Prime Minister Atabe knows about this. Can you really handle this much overreach? You might have to step downter, you know.¡± ¡°It would be fortunate if it only ended with me stepping down. If the reactor explodes¡­¡± Hishijima said with a stern expression, but Masumoto immediately cut him off. ¡°The Tohoku reactor will not explode!¡± he shouted in frustration. ¡°How many times do I have to tell you?! It will not explode! I, the owner of the nt who has been working on nuclear power all my life, is telling you that it¡¯s not going to explode; why the hell are you listening to that crazy biologist?!¡± ¡°Masumoto!¡± ¡°Ever since I was given this position fromte CEO Yuuto, TEPCO has never experienced a man-made disaster!¡± ¡°Fukushima¡­¡± ¡°That was a natural disaster! It was not our fault! The trauma of Fukushima has driven everyone insane! You¡¯re having a meeting with a pseudoscientist who spreads rumors and is under investigation by Tokyo police as a suspect!¡± Masumoto shouted. ¡°Wait¡­¡± ¡°Director Hishijima! I will take this as a clear insult to me. You people will not be safe after our nuclear power nt is proven to be safe!¡± ¡°Mr. Masumoto, please calm down and¡­¡± said Kento, the president of the National Institute of Public Health. ¡°How can I calm down?! That bastard is a fraud who has disturbed the economy and order of Japan!¡± Masumoto shouted angrily, pointing at Young-Joon. As he was about to shout something else, someone tugged on Masumoto¡¯s shoulder from behind. It was his secretary. ¡°S¡­ Sir¡­¡± He held out his phone to Masomoto with a trembling hand. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°I¡­ I think you need¡­ to take this¡­¡± Masumoto put the phone to his ear. ¡ªIs this Mr. Masumoto? This is Daichi, the director of the Tohoku Nuclear Power nt. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± ¡ªI¡¯m sorry, the power nt has exploded¡­ ¡°What?¡± Masumoto¡¯s eyes widened. ¡ªThe safety rods were inserted for an emergency shutdown, but they failed to stop the nuclear fission in the reactor. As the pressure inside the containment vessel increased, a hydrogen explosion urred¡­ ¡°Director!¡± Someone was shouting from the emergency stairs on the fourth floor of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology. Panting, an employee ran past Masumoto and into Hishijima¡¯s office. ¡°It exploded!¡± Hishijima, Takeru, and Kento jumped to their feet at the same time. ¡°Exploded?!¡± ¡°The Tohoku nt exploded?¡± ¡°Masumoto! You said it won¡¯t blow up?!¡± Hishijima shouted. ¡°Wait¡­¡± ¡°Everyone rx,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Thanks to Mr. Hishijima¡¯s quick response, we were able to contact the hospital closest to the Tohoku nt. It¡¯s already toote, but we were able to prevent the worst case scenario. Please stay calm.¡± ¡°... Alright.¡± Hishijima gulped and sat back in his seat. ¡°Tell me again about the treatment for the exposed patients you were talking about earlier¡­¡± Kento said. * Masumoto drove the car like a crazy man. He told the driver to get out, then stepped on the gas himself. He frantically drove to the Tohoku region. The road was clear. There were tons of carsing out of that direction to Tokyo, but the only car that was driving into the radiation hell was Masumoto¡¯s Mercedes. ¡°No¡­ No¡­¡± Firetruck sirens rang from all over. The further Masumoto went in, the more he realized it was a disaster zone. At the end of the road, he could see the reactor aze. Starting from the alley five kilometers before the Tohoku reactor, chunks of concrete began to appear. These were pieces of the concrete outer wall that shattered and flew off when the reactor exploded. Some of these fragments had smashed through cars and streetlights, and one of them had destroyed the roof of a particrly small and old house with the debris falling into the master bedroom. ¡°...¡± Masumoto stepped out of his car with an intense feeling of anxiety. ¡°Uh¡­¡± He staggered like a zombie. Dust from the graphite moderator left a rough feeling in his mouth. Masumoto went into the house. Inside was his son, Kyohei. He was holding someone¡ªan elderly person whose legs were crushed in the concrete. ¡°She¡¯s passed away,¡± Kyohei said. N¡­ No. No¡­¡± Masumoto fell to his knees. ¡°No¡­¡± He pulled his mother into his arms and sobbed. Outside, firefighters were busily running around and transporting casualties, and three of them came this way as well. ¡°Get out of the way!¡± Wearing heat suits and air sets, the firefighters lifted the concrete and recovered the bodies. ¡°Are you family?¡± they asked. ¡°Yes,¡± Kyohei replied instead of Masumoto, who had almost lost his mind. ¡°Everyone who was here was exposed to radiation. Please move to the gym,¡± the firefighter said. ¡°They will be isting irradiated patients and treating them.¡± * ¡°There¡¯s a bacteria called Deinocus radiodurans,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°¡®Radiodurans¡¯ means ¡®radiation resistant.¡¯ These bacteria have been ridiculously resistant to radiation since they were first discovered.¡± Scientists examining the ecosystem in the Chernobyl disaster area found these oundish microorganisms thriving there. They were the most radiation-resistant of all life forms on Earth, and they were named ordingly. Humans exposed to radiation exceeding five sieverts almost always died. However, Deinocus radiodurans could withstand up to ten thousand sieverts without any issues. ¡°At first, scientists thought the cell wall of this microorganism contained a substance that blocked radiation, so they tried to study that,¡± said Young-Joon. ¡°But it turned out that wasn¡¯t the case. Deinocus radiodurans have the ability to reassemble DNA that¡¯s been shattered by radiation back to its original form.¡± The reason organisms died from radiation was that the DNA inside their cells got destroyed. After the vast amount of DNA equivalent to three billion letters were indiscriminately torn apart, there was no way to repair it. It was like randomly removing pieces from a three-billion-piece puzzle and trying to reassemble it. But what if there were two puzzle boards from the beginning? If one could use the intact parts from each board as the temte to fill in the gaps, wouldn¡¯t it be possible to restore both boards to their original state? That was what radiodurans were capable of. Two pairs of chromosomes that have been irradiated would stochastically break in different ces. Then, using the intact parts as a mold, the broken parts of the two chromosomes could be assembled one by one. ¡°Is that possible in the human body as well?¡± Hishijima asked. ¡°It¡¯s impossible. The DNA repair molecules radiodurans produce are toorge and induce an immune response, so they won¡¯t work in the bodies of higher organisms,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°But the species that A-GenBio and Cellijenner have is different. This one will work.¡± ¡°...¡± Park Joo-Hyuk interjected after a brief pause in the conversation. ¡°I¡¯ll warn you in advance, it¡¯s going to be pretty expensive. We¡¯re helping you out a lot, Mr. Ryu even getting arrested in the process. We have to have something to say to our shareholders. You know that, right?¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter how much¡­ I¡¯ll take all the responsibility and pay,¡± Hishijima said. Chapter 299: An Ordinary Scientist (13)

Chapter 299: An Ordinary Scientist (13)

About a fifteen-minute drive north of the small rural area in Tohoku was a residential neighborhood that was only slightly more developed. There was amunity center and Sendai Elementary and Junior High, which were right next to each other. There was also onerge gymnasium, which was amunity sports center used by students and residents. It was said it could be used as an evacuation space in case of an emergency, but none of the residents of Kagayashiki thought that it would ever be used for that purpose. ¡°There are quite a lot of people in the gym. Most of them are elderly people who didn¡¯t evacuate earlier and stayed in town,¡± said a first responder as they were driving toward the gymnasium. Masumoto and Kyohei sat on either side of the body in the emergency vehicle. ¡°We will give you time to say your goodbyes to the deceasedter, but for now, please go to the gym and get first aid. There will be hospital transport vehiclesing soon, which you can take to get checked out,¡± the first responder said. ¡°Your grandmother¡¯s body here will also have been exposed to quite a bit of radiation, so we will have to treat her separately.¡± ¡°Did she die because of the radiation?¡± Masumoto asked. ¡°... No. I¡¯m sorry.¡± The first responder dropped his head in guilt. ¡°Just before the nuclear nt exploded, a local evacuation order was issued. We were evacuating people, but the roads in this town were not well-maintained and were too narrow for rescue vehicles to pass through easily,¡± he said. ¡°We couldn¡¯t visit every house, so we put out an announcement from the vige hall asking the elderly to gather at the town hall. We rescued people there first, and then went to pick up those who hadn¡¯t made it yet, but...¡± ¡°You were toote.¡± ¡°Yes. I¡¯m sorry. Your mother was not there.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Perhaps... It was difficult for her to get here as she has limited mobility...¡± ¡°...¡± Masumoto covered his face with his hands. The first responder dropped his head again. ¡°A-GenBio says they can treat radiation exposure, so if she had managed to escape, she might have lived. It¡¯s our fault...¡± ¡°No,¡± Masumoto cut him off. ¡°No. This is because of Ryu Young-Joon.¡± ¡°What?¡± Kyohei nced at Masumoto in bewilderment. ¡°It¡¯s Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s fault. This wouldn¡¯t have happened if that bastard treated your grandma¡¯s aging. She could have lived.¡± ¡°What are you talking about? Treating aging?¡± ¡°Yeah. That bastard can treat aging. He could have made your grandma walk again.¡± Kyohei and the first responder stared at Masumoto in worry; they thought he had lost his mind. ¡°Father, the reason Grandma died was because the nt exploded. I told you that we had to take her out of here!¡± ¡°She¡¯s lived here all her life! Where would she have gone?!¡± Masumoto said angrily. ¡°Look, he said your grandmother didn¡¯t die because of radiation; she died because she was too old to evacuate to the town hall!¡± ¡°Wait...¡± ¡°He made a business out of a cure for radiation because he thought it would make money, but he gave up on aging because it¡¯s a lot of work and tricky to manage. That¡¯s the kind of person Ryu Young-Joon is. He¡¯s the one who killed your grandmother!¡± ¡°Father!¡± ¡°...¡± Masumoto trembled. He couldn¡¯t bear the thought of the nuclear nt he was so confident in exploding. He couldn¡¯t ept that it had killed his mother. ¡°Not... Not me. This is because of Ryu Young-Joon. I cannot forgive him.¡± ¡°Father, you know that¡¯s not true!¡± ¡°We¡¯ve arrived at the gym,¡± said the first responder. ¡°Please wait inside, and take good care of your father.¡± Then, he led Masumoto and Kyohei off the vehicle, but Masumoto didn¡¯t enter the gym. ¡°I have to go,¡± he said. ¡°Where are you going?¡± ¡°I have to go to that bastard, Ryu Young-Joon. I always pay back when I get hit.¡± ¡°Ha... Father. Do you know how hard he tried to prevent this disaster? Now he¡¯s even willing to treat radiation exposure. Please, just stop...¡± ¡°If you don¡¯t know anything, just stay put. I¡¯m going out for a while.¡± Masumoto left Kyohei behind and staggered back the way he came. * ¡°What do you mean you¡¯re not going to get the treatment?¡± Hishijima¡¯s jaw dropped in shock. ¡°I heard there are only about five hundred residents with severe radiation exposure,¡± said Atabe. ¡°But the medical expenses per person are significant. Director Hishijima, we already don¡¯t have enough money to clean up the contaminated water from Fukushima, but should we have to spend astronomical amounts of money cleaning up the Tohoku mess and treating people who were exposed to radiation?¡± ¡°We have to pay that and get the treatment! Do you really not know why it is so expensive? All of A-GenBio has been working on developing a treatment for radiation exposure for a week now! We wouldn¡¯t be in this situation if we had stopped the nt to begin with. Since we arrested Doctor Ryu, he had no choice but to take a step back and put all his energy into developing the treatment procedure!¡± Hishijima shouted. Atabe bit his lower lip and stared out the window. ¡°That¡¯s the problem.¡± he said. ¡°Just by predicting the nuclear explosion, Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s image has skyrocketed, and we¡¯ve be the big, bad viins. But if he also seeds in treating radiation exposure, imagine how the public will react. A foreigner stopping a disaster that the government couldn¡¯t prevent? It¡¯s ridiculous. What does that make us look like? If we can¡¯t do it, he can¡¯t do it either.¡± Hishijima¡¯s expression hardened in disbelief. ¡°No... Sir, are you serious?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a matter of trust in the government. If Ryu Young-Joon doesn¡¯t carry out the radiation treatment, our mistake is merely that we trusted TEPCO too much and didn¡¯t grasp the severity of the Tohoku nt during our investigation. We just need to take responsibility for that part,¡± Atabe said. ¡°But if we pay a massive amount of tax money to treat patients, we¡¯ll only draw more hatred. People aren¡¯t that heartbroken over a few hundred elderly people in viges dying, but if we let an easily preventable disaster grow and waste an enormous amount of tax money, they¡¯ll pour out criticism. Our cab¡¯s ipetence will be highlighted even more.¡± ¡°.. Honestly, it¡¯s true that we were ipetent,¡± Hishijima said with a sigh. ¡°Yes, I admit it too. But the government still needs the people¡¯s trust and respect. That¡¯s the only way we cane together and ovee the nuclear disaster that¡¯s happened now. If Ryu Young-Joon seeds in treating radiation dose, the Japanese people will no longer trust our cab.¡± ¡°But on what grounds do we have to refuse radiation treatment? Do you think the citizens will ept us giving up their lives to save money?¡± ¡°That¡¯s not what we¡¯ll say. Didn¡¯t they rush through the preclinical experiments anyway?¡± Atabe said. ¡°Announce that we will not allow A-GenBio to use our people as guinea pigs for research based on wed data.¡± ¡°Ryu Young-Joon¡¯s technology will be sessful...¡± Hishijima said. ¡°The preclinical data is not wed, either. In the past week, A-GenBio has sacrificed ten thousand rats and used six hundred beagles. Do you know that there are quite a few experimental groups that have been sessfully cured? It¡¯s a promising trial.¡± ¡°Yeah, it will seed if it¡¯s anything like the preclinical trials.¡± ¡°Sir, if we refuse the radiation treatment, and then A-GenBio shows that it works, we will be in even worse shape. ¡°But how can they show that?¡± Atabe asked. ¡°It¡¯s not like nuclear explosions are amon urrence. How can they show that the technology will seed if they don¡¯t have patients to test it on? This technology will die if we keep our mouths shut.¡± ¡°So we¡¯re going to let all the exposed technicians and citizens near the Tohoku nt die?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a necessary sacrifice for the country to move forward. And there aren¡¯t many of them, right?¡± Hishijima dropped his head, devastated. Atabe added, ¡°I want you to takemand of the site and help the patients pass away as peacefully as possible. I¡¯ll leave the field to you.¡± ¡°... Yes, sir,¡± Hishijima said. ¡°I¡¯ll do as you say.¡± * Around four hundred patients were receiving emergency treatment for radiation exposure at Tohoku General Hospital. However, the treatment mainly consisted of administering antihistamines or steroids to suppress inmmatory responses and decontaminating skin of radioactive materials. The DNA in their cells throughout their bodies was shattered into pieces, and they couldn¡¯t dissect each tiny, invisible cell and reassemble the broken DNA one by one. There was nothing they could do besides excise necrotic tissue, suppress inmmatory responses, and provide pain relief to reduce suffering. The four hundred patients, with skin splitting and oozing pus, coughing up blood as their tissues rotted, created a scene that resembled hell. Even veteran doctors found the sight chilling and nerve-wracking, so it was terrifying enough to make the rural doctors at Tohoku General Hospital want to run away. Takeru, the Minister of Health, Labor and Welfare had set up a control tower in the hospital director¡¯s office to manage the situation. Now, he was consulting with Young-Joon. ¡°Half of the patients are expected to die within two weeks, which is an overestimate,¡± Takeru said. ¡°We can treat them in that duration. Right now, the doctors and developers at the Next Generation Hospital who have done preclinical work are bringing the treatment, though there isn¡¯t much yet,: Young-Joon replied, ¡® ¡°But when are you going to give us clinical approval? We need that so we can prepare,¡± Park Joo-Hyuk asked. ¡°Normally, I could have given it to you on my own authority, but since the matter at hand is so great, the prime minister told me to report to him...¡± Takeru siad. ¡°But Director Hishijima went to report it, so he should be back soon.¡± Thud! Before he could finish, Hishijina burst into the room. He looked at Young-Joon and Park Joo-Hyuk with a look of mixed emotions. ¡°Did you get clearance for the clinical trial?¡± Takeru asked. ¡°...¡± Hishijima clenched his jaw and walked over to Young-Joon. ¡°Doctor Ryu...¡± A teardrop fell from his eyes. ¡°What is it? He told you that you can¡¯t do the clinical trial?¡± Young-Joon asked, rmed by the strange atmosphere. ¡°...¡± Hishijima clenched his fists and mmed the clinical trial consent form on the table. ¡°You can seed, right?¡± he asked Young-Joon. ¡°It will seed.¡± Hishijima pulled out a pen and left his signature on the form. ¡°I just authorized it. I¡¯m going to process it this evening, and it will bypass the Prime Minister. I am the legal approval authority for this clinical trial anyway; if I authorize it, the prime minister cannot do anything about it,¡± he said. ¡°This is not an overreach of power but is indeed insubordination. I might be dismissed at any moment, but I don¡¯t care. I will see this situation through and then resign with my own hands.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I am the Director of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology, the highest institution representing Japan¡¯s health and science education. If I misuse the budget, I will be seen as an ipetent politician. However, if I¡¯m going to be ipetent anyway, I would rather remain a scientist than a politician. So, Doctor Ryu...¡± Hishijima suddenly knelt down. He bowed his head to Young-Joon. ¡°Please help us. I beg you. I cannot give up like this.¡± * The key yers in the fight against incurable diseases in Nicaragua boarded a ne to Japan. They were the elite medical staff intensively trained at Next-Generation Hospital and A-GenBio. Along with them were the scientists who, in just ten days, hadpleted a significant portion of the preclinical experiments using a single DNA sequence sent by Young-Joon Any member of this peculiar organization could easily secure a professorship at any university, but yet at A-GenBio, they were considered ordinary scientists. ¡°We will begin the report on what we¡¯ve learned from the preclinical trials conducted by all sevenboratories.¡± Cheon Ji-Myung, the lead on this project, began the briefing in front of Young-Joon, theb directors, and the hospital''s chief physicians. ¡°We inserted a chromosomal rearrangement gene into universal T-cells in the form of a smid for transient expression. This isn¡¯t a personalized treatment but bes a widely applicable cell therapy. When the T-cells reach the patient¡¯s damaged tissues, they will be destroyed by the cytokine concentration, and the substances derived from Deinocus radiodurans within the cells will enter the patient¡¯s cells.¡± ¡°How will it be administered?¡± asked one of the doctors. ¡°It¡¯s diffusion ording to localization. In the early apoptosis stage, the patient¡¯s cell membranes be unstable and more permeable. Our drug diffuses into the cells due to a simple concentration gradient and does not enter healthy cells. We tested one hundred twenty drug delivery methods on animal models without cell experiments, and this was the most effective,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung said. ¡°For patients in the prodromal stage, depending on the radiation exposure, we administered 0.2 or 0.5 milliliters of the clinical drug AR-1 intravenously per kilogram of the patient¡¯s body weight, as shown in the table.¡± Cheon Ji-Myung flipped through the slides to show the preclinical data. ¡°At this point, we had a one hundred percent sess rate. For patients in thetent period, we increased the dose to one milliliter per kilogram, regardless of the exposure amount. But if there are signs that they¡¯ve reached the manifest stage, then we have to AR-2. Unlike AR-1, AR-2 contains steroids in addition to T-cells, and trace amounts of antibiotics to prevent infection.¡± ¡°Do you treat patients who have been internal exposed by breathing cont vapors the same way?¡± ¡°Yes. However, patients exposed to concentrations greater than five grays (Gy) should receive AR-3 by inhtion into the lungs while AR-2 is given intravenously,¡± Cheon Ji-Myung said. ¡°Finally, there may be cases where we are proceeding with a hematopoietic stem cell transnt. These are patients with doses over twelve grays, and we have to assume that their normal bone marrow cells have been wiped out. We have to proceed with induced differentiation and stem cell production from intact tissue.¡± ¡°The engineers who were working inside the nt must have received that much radiation,¡± said the director of Tohoku General Hospital. Young-Joon was awestruck as he listened to the presentation. The sevenbs hadbined their efforts to produce something that, although momentary, wereparable to Rosaline¡¯s achievements. He wondered just how many researchers had shed their blood, sweat, and tears and stayed up all night over the past ten days for this research. ¡°If the radiation dose is that high, they will die within just a few days,¡± said Young-Joon. ¡°Well, the treatment will work properly regardless. Let¡¯s proceed with the treatment quickly.¡± * Song Ji-Hyun checked into a hotel slightly away from the Tohoku disaster area. ¡°Is this the right ce?¡± she asked. ¡°Yes. I¡¯m supposed to meet Ryu Young-Joon here,¡± Rosaline replied. ¡°I need to head back to my meeting,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°Okay. Don¡¯t worry about me, Baek Jun-Tae is here too,¡± Rosaline reassured her. Baek Jun-Tae from the K-Cops security team was feeling particrly responsible because he had failed to stop a mysterious assant and had suddenly fainted. ¡°I owe you a lot, Doctor Song. This time, I will do my absolute best and protect her!¡± Baek Jun-Tae dered. ¡°Then, I¡¯ll leave it to you,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said as she greeted Baek Jun-Tae and waved to Rosaline. She got into her car and headed towards Tohoku nuclear power nt, checking her phone as she went. [To Doctor Song Ji-Hyun. We have already confirmed the details through the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology. As you suggested, our Tohoku Fire Department will deploy all personnel and resources for therge-scale decontamination of the eight million becquerels of radiation released by the nuclear explosion. We have prepared fifteen helicopters as you mentioned. Upon your arrival...] Song Ji-Hyun scrolled to the next message. It was a message from Cellijenner. [We¡¯ve finished transferring the metabolism gene group of the radiation-eating bacteria to the volcanium. It¡¯s supposed to work the same way Doctor Ryu used it to stop the terrorist attack at the GSC before: the volcanium will fly around and eat up the radiation leaked into the atmosphere, then die. Please send us a reply as soon as you can.] Chapter 300: Human, All Too Human (The End)

Chapter 300: Human, All Too Human (The End)

Fluid administered intravenously flowed through the blood vessels. This was A-GenBio¡¯s treatment for radiation exposure. Universal T-cells had no specific histpatibility and did not trigger an immune response. Short-lived T-cells circted within the blood vessels, being directed toward necrotic tissue. They tracked the DNA destroyed by radiation and the cytokines released from the resulting apoptosis. When they reached the target location, the T-cell membranes copsed due to the high concentration of cytokines, releasing the DNA reassembly molecules. These were originally produced by bacteria rted to Deinocus radiodurans, but the magic of cutting-edge biology had made them functional in the human body by loading them into T-cells. These substances diffused into irradiated cells following the simple principle of concentration gradient diffusion. Because these cells were in the process of apoptosis, their cell membranes were unstable and permeable. Once inside, the DNA reassembly molecules were guided into the nucleus by the cloned nuclear location signal (NLS). There, they recognized the remaining intact DNA sequences and initiated de novo assembly, reconstructing the entire genome of three billion base pairs. As these molecules originally worked in single-celled bacteria, they were effective on working on individual cells. Gradually, the apoptosis of individual cells ceased, and tissue necrosis halted. From a broader perspective, it meant the patient¡¯s bleeding stopped, or the ckened, decaying tissues had begun to regenerate. The searing pain and excruciating agony began to subside. ¡°...¡± Hideo, the head of nuclear safety, felt like he could finally see clearly. His entire body ached, but he instinctively knew. ¡®I¡¯m going to live.¡¯ He realized he had survived. After being exposed to twenty-two grays of radiation and experiencing inmmation throughout his body, Hideo¡¯s skin had peeled and cracked open, gushing blood. He would be the first person in human history to recover from such a state. Hideo had barelyprehended what had been happening since the nuclear nt explosion, but now one thing was clear: A-GenBio had arrived. The doctors and nurses treating the patients in front of him were mostly not Japanese. The diversity of races made it seem like Doctors Without Borders had arrived. As far as he knew, there was only one organization like that in the world. A doctor wearing radiation protective gear and a mask approached him and checked Hideo¡¯s vitals. ¡°A... Ano...¡±[1] Hideo cautiously spoke to the doctor in Japanese, but the doctor just shrugged and replied in a British ent, ¡°I don¡¯t speak Japanese well.¡± Hideo swallowed hard and began to ask hesitantly in broken English, ¡°Did... A-GenBio treat radiation?¡± ¡°Yes. Since you were unconscious, we obtained clinical consent from your guardian,¡± the doctor said. ¡°... Where is CEO Ryu?¡± * ¡°Thank you. Please continue to report on the patients¡¯ progress.¡± Young-Joon hung up the phone with the Next Generation Hospital¡¯s medical staff and turned back to face the conference table. ¡°You¡¯re incredibly busy,¡± Hishijima said. ¡°I don¡¯t even have the time to say that I¡¯m busy. Time is of the essence, so let¡¯s hurry.¡± ¡°... Yes. Currently, there are about four hundred people who have been exposed, but that¡¯s only including the engineers who were exposed inside the nt, and the people who were exposed in the neighboring towns. These people need immediate medical attention because of the high radiation exposure, but there are expected to be tens of thousands of small-scale exposures throughout the Tohoku region in the long run,¡± Hishijima exined the simtion data. ¡°These people will be followed-up and observed for a long period of time, but the most urgent issue right now is to stop the spread of plutonium, the most toxic substance,¡± Takeru said. ¡°It has probably spread quite a bit already, but it¡¯s not hopeless yet. Most of the plutonium is still near the nt. We need to catch it before it travels.¡± ¡°Yes, that¡¯s why Doctor Song has prepared a way to stop it,¡± Young-Joon said, ncing at Song Ji-Hyun. Song Ji-Hyun nervously plugged in a USB to herptop and began her presentation. ¡°A bacterium called Volcanium has the property of being able to fly through air,¡± she said. ¡°We¡¯ve cloned a gene from a bacterium Cellijenner has identified, called radioeater, into Volcanium.¡± Young-Joon smiled from the side. ¡®What a name...¡¯ Song Ji-Hyun felt like she could hear what he was saying, so she avoided his gaze and went on with the presentation. ¡°This rbinant Volcanium created like this has been confirmed to be able to track and eliminate radioactivity.¡± This method mimicked the techniques that Young-Joon used to stop the attack on GSC in the past. Song Ji-Hyun was not a genius like Young-Joon, something she was well aware of. But ordinary scientists had ordinary methods. Isaac Newton once said, ¡°If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulder of giants.¡± The giants were the science that other scientists had created. Song Ji-Hyun stood on the shoulders of giants as she followed in Young-Joon¡¯s footsteps. From that perspective, there were things that were visible to the average scientist¡ªthings like the idea and specific method of cloning radioeater into Volcanium. It was a little embarrassing for Song Ji-Hyun to be presenting this in front of Young-Joon, the inventor of the technology, but it was alright¡ªthis was how science was supposed to be. ¡°Was it effective?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Pardon? Oh, yes! The simtions show that when we spray the bacteria, it can track and eliminate radioactivity within around ten meters of it.¡± ¡°Good. How much bacteria do you have now?¡± ¡°About thirty kilograms of pellets. We¡¯re going to suspend it in water and spray it as an aerosol,¡± she said. ¡°Can we remove all the radioactivity? You said it can handle up to eight million becquerels, right?¡± Hishijima asked. ¡°Eight million becquerels is only a theoretical amount. In practice, it will be less than half of that as it was produced in a hurry and there isn¡¯t a lot of bacteria.¡± ¡°Hm...¡± Hishijima, Takeru, and Kento groaned lightly. ¡°Then what if we give up on stopping it from spreading to other areas and just focus on Tokyo?¡± Kento asked. ¡°That¡¯s where the most people are right now. We can issue an evacuation order for the other regions and...¡± ¡°No, we can get it all,¡± Young-Joon cut Kento off. ¡°Get it all? How?¡± Song Ji-Hyun asked. ¡°A single bacterium only weighs a couple picograms, so thirty kilograms of pellets should have quadrillions of bacteria in it, which should be enough.¡± ¡°That¡¯s why we said eight million becquerels was theoretically possible, but we can¡¯t assign one bacterium to one radioactive substance, right? Can we track and control the concentration at the molecr level?¡± she asked. ¡°We can do something simr,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°Since we have ABAI.¡± A-GenBio Artificial Intelligence, or ABAI, was the artificial intelligence ecological forecasting program that was developed by A-GenBio during the mosquito disaster in Guangdong. However, to be honest, Young-Joon wasn¡¯t serious. Even with ABAI running, it couldn¡¯t predict radiation with such uracy. It wasn¡¯t ABAI that Young-Joon believed in, but Rosaline. Sitting on the sofa in her hotel room, Rosaline closed her eyes while talking to Young-Joon. ¡ªTracking the radiation across Tohoku and keeping track of the Volcanium¡¯s movements is quite a fitness drain, even for me. Rosaline seemed worried. ¡®Help me as much as you can without overdoing it.¡¯ Young-Joon started ABAI on a server at the A-GenBio Cancer Laboratory in the United States, and the program began tracking the spread of the radiation. ¡°The spread of radiation changes in real time with the wind, so let¡¯s send helicopters from the fire department up first, then I¡¯ll point out the exact location again,¡± Young-Joon said. About fifteen helicopters flew in from all directors, all gathering at the Tohoku nuclear nt. They flew in directed movements, releasing a total of about forty thousand liters of Volcanium aerosol. Instead of pouring it all at once, like when fighting a forest fire, the water tanks had to be opened little by little to release small amounts. Young-Joon pretended to read the monitor, but he was actually reading Rosaline¡¯s simtion mode. ¡°Helicopter number seven: move two hundred meters southwest, then release forty-five liters while circling a thirty-meter radius.¡± Young-Joon gave the instructions as detailed as possible, as if he were handling a very sensitive machine. ¡°Helicopter eight: stay where you are; more radiation wille your way. On my signal, move straight and release fifty liters.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Helicopter one: move forty meters in the direction of Helicopter two, then ten meters northeast and release seventy liters. You¡¯ll follow Helicopter two now.¡± Young-Joon continued to give orders as he coordinated the movements of the fifteen helicopters. ¡°Helicopters nine through fifteen: form a V formation from northeast of Chubu toward the nuclear power nt and continue straight ahead, releasing one hundred liters as you go.¡± It was difficult for others to keep up with the speed of exining the knowledge gained from Simtion Mode. However, the effects were steadily umting, and soon, Hishijima received a radio transmission from the northeastern part of Tohoku. ¡ªThe radiation levels are dropping rapidly. It was a report from rescue workers on the ground. ¡°...¡± Hishijima was left speechless from the shock. How was this something a human being was capable of? ¡°Helicopter four: descend four meters and spray eighty liters evenly over Mizaki Forest.¡± Young-Joon¡¯s instructions didn¡¯t stop for hours, and a steady stream of firefighter helicopters flew over Tokyo¡¯s skies. Soon after, with the help of nearby fire departments, thirty additional firefighter helicopters were mobilized. Mixed into the water they poured out were tiny dust particles that looked like sand. These were the radioactive deposits expelled by the Volcanium after its hunt. It was reduced to stable metals, and these substances no longer emitted radiation and fell helplessly to the ground. Citizens held umbres because of this. Not many understood what was happening before them, but some engineers and paramedics were shedding tears here and there. They were watching the radiation levels drop in real-time. Quick-acting media outlets began to report on what was happening, one by one. ¡ªA-GenBio and Cellijenner have begun decontamination operations. ¡ªRadiation levels in northeastern Chubu have returned to normal. ¡ªThe sediment falling from the sky is said to be radioactive material that has been reduced to stable metals. ¡ªBreaking news: ny percent of the plutonium that had been drifting north of Tokyo has been removed. Citizens preparing to evacuate were watching this miracle as they packed up their belongings. The excited shouts of those who had gotten their hands on radiation detectors could be heard everywhere. * ¡°Helicopters fourteen to thirty-seven, release the rest of the bacteria solution in that region,¡± Young-Joon said. The remaining bacterial solution rained down from the helicopters. Very few stones were forming now, and most of the solution fell to the ground in the form of water as the radiation was almost gone. ¡°It¡¯s done.¡± ck. Young-Joon put down the walkie-talkie on the table with an exhausted face. The decontamination operation took about nine hours, and it sessfully decontaminated eight million becquerels of radiation spreading around the Tohoku region. ¡°...¡± ¡°I... I don¡¯t know what to say...¡± Hishijima and the ministers were speechless. ¡°¡®Thank you¡¯ doesn¡¯t even begin to express it,¡± Kento said. ¡°We owe you a tremendous debt, Doctor Ryu. We will find a way to repay it.¡± ¡°Doctor Song yed a big part in the decontamination, so repay Cellijenner,¡± Young-Joon said, standing up. He felt slightly dizzy from anemia for a moment. ¡°I¡¯m going to check on the patients,¡± Young-Joon said, draping his coat over his shoulders as he stepped outside. * Rosalineid down on her bed, exhausted. It was almost the same exhaustion that Young-Joon, a human being, was experiencing after nine hours of nonstop radio calls and checking on patients until dawn. Even Rosaline, the highest being in the universe, who had grasped all the mysteries of life, was exhausted after nine hours of running Simtion Mode, draining her huge reserve of fitness. ¡°Do you miss your dad?¡± asked Baek Jun-Tae, who was clueless. ¡°It¡¯s okay, be patient. Your father is very busy right now.¡± ¡°I was busy, too,¡± Rosaline said. ¡°All you¡¯ve been doing is lying in bed... I know it¡¯s boring, but hang in there. Do you want me to get you something to eat?¡± ¡°No,¡± Rosaline said, shaking her head. She smiled brightly, saying, ¡°I¡¯m going to have ate-night stack when Ryu Young-Joon gets back.¡± ¡°He¡¯ll be back soon. He said he¡¯s off to see some clinical patients. He¡¯ll be here any minute now.¡± ¡°I hope hees back soon,¡± Rosaline said. ¡°Ask him to get you something good,¡± Baek Jun-Tae said. ¡°After I ask him for a hug.¡± Rosaline hugged a pillow tightly instead of Young-Joon. ¡°Rosaline, can I ask you a question?¡± he asked. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°Are you close with Doctor Song?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°I was surprised to see Doctor Song here when I fainted. But when she said Mr. Ryu sent her... I don¡¯t know, it made me wonder if I wasn¡¯t good enough...¡± ¡°Pff.¡± Rosaline covered her mouth and burst outughing. ¡°Are youughing at me? Yeah, well, I did faint and I can¡¯t do anything about him not thinking I¡¯m good enough, but...¡± ¡°It¡¯s not that. It¡¯s just...¡± Rosaline said to Baek Jun-Tae, who seemed distressed. ¡°Doctor Song is a special person.¡± ¡°To Mr. Ryu?¡± ¡°And to me.¡± ¡°Ah... Oh, why?¡± Baek Jun-Tae stammered, imagining the rtionship between the three of them. Rosaline smirked. ¡°Because Doctor Song is an ordinary scientist.¡± * ¡°Mr. Ryu ising in. Clear it out.¡± It was three in the morning, and Kim Chul-Kwon, the head of the K-Cops security team, was speaking into the radio. The security guards moved quickly, securing a safe route from the hotel lobby to his room. Young-Joon, utterly exhausted, stepped out of the limousine along with Song Ji-Hyun, who seemed the same way. She had been running around for days for the radiation removal work, and now that the tension had lifted, her legs were trembling with fatigue. ¡°I need to wash up and get some sleep,¡± Song Ji-Hyun said. ¡°You¡¯ve worked hard,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°You had the hardest time, Doctor Ryu, with the detention and everything. You haven¡¯t even been able to shave, so you look quite haggard.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t help it.¡± ¡°You haven¡¯t eaten properly either, have you?¡± she asked. ¡°You didn¡¯t eat anything either,¡± Doctor Song. The two, engaged in a weary conversation, headed toward the hotel elevator. As they passed by the lobby stairs... ¡°Ryu Young-Joon!¡± Someone popped out of the stairs. It was Rosaline, who hadn¡¯t met Young-Joon since the arrest and was waiting the entire time. It had only been two years since she was born; despite knowing the truth of all things in the universe, this peculiar little girl didn¡¯t know what anger or tears were. ¡°I¡¯m back,¡± Young-Joon said with a smile. Rosaline¡¯s face lit up with pure joy and nothing else. She began to run down the stairs, her smile like a blossoming flower. In that moment, Young-Joon truly felt all his fatigue melt away. He realized what Rosaline meant to him. She wasn¡¯t just an encyclopedia of science; she was someone purer and more human than anyone else. ¡®Did you manipte serotonin in my brain?¡¯ Young-Joon asked, locking eyes with Rosaline. ¡ªNo. Rosaline ran and threw herself into his arms. And then, something happened in her head that she could never have imagined. The explosion of emotion that being in Young-Joon¡¯s arms created made her brain dere a state of emergency. The limbic system took over the entire brain as if staging a coup, and the neocortex lost the ability to make rational judgments. For young Rosaline, the stimuli was too strong, exploding like firecrackers in her head. The excitement in the limbic system sent electrical signals to the hypothmus, fueling the movement of the amygd and autonomic nerves. The control of her tear nds loosened, and consequently, arge amount of fluid poured from the secretory nds above her eyes. Tears, low in sodium and full of endorphins, dropped from Rosaline¡¯s eyes, like a tin man with a heart. ¡°What is...¡± Rosaline¡¯s chin quivered, and her eyes were red. ¡°What is going on?¡± She wiped her eyes. Tears streamed down like a faucet turned on. Although Rosaline knew everything about living organisms, at that moment, she couldn¡¯t understand her own body. She felt the loss of control over her tear nds. This unfamiliar sensation left her flustered, but she couldn¡¯t think of anything else. ¡°It¡¯s okay.¡± Young-Joon smiled as he hugged Rosaline tightly. ¡°You can cry. You waited so long, right? I¡¯m sorry.¡± He wiped the tears from her eyes. ¡°I brought ice cream. Do you want to go up and eat it together?¡± ¡°... Yes...¡± Rosaline nodded with a tearful face. Song Ji-Hyun watched them quietly. Young-Joon walked up the stairs with the two of them. * The radiation treatment was aplete sess. All of the patients who had been in critical condition were cured. Hishijima resigned as he blew the whistle, and Prime Minister Atabe faced his worst political crisis yet. There was a clear indication that the fifty-five-year dominance of the Liberal Democratic Party might change for the first time since 2009. Having achieved a great victory, A-GenBio, Young-Joon, Rosaline, and Song Ji-Hyun were heading to the airport to return to Korea. There, they encountered an unexpected person¡ªthe man currently wanted all over Japan, Masumoto. He was waiting for Young-Joon in a miserable state. ¡°...¡± Kim Chul-Kwon and the security team blocked his way. Masumoto red at Young-Joon intensely. ¡°Sir, please step back,¡± Kim Chul-Kwon said, pushing Young-Joon back. ¡°Wait a moment. It¡¯s alright,¡± Young-Joon said, squeezing between the security team. Young-Joon believed they could talk; Masumoto was calm. ¡°In Japan, you can own a gun if you have a permit,¡± Masumoto said. ¡°Is that so?¡± ¡°And I have that permit.¡± ¡°Then, do you have a gun?¡± ¡°...¡± Masumoto didn¡¯t answer. He chewed on his bottom lip for a long time. Tears ran down his face. It was different from Rosaline¡¯s tears. ¡°Mr. Masumoto,¡± Young-Joon said. ¡°I¡¯m sorry about your mother.¡± ¡°You...¡± Masumoto said. ¡°You should have treated her... Then I would have... I know I was wrong... But still...¡± ¡°A-GenBio will strive to include aging as part of the diseases we treat.¡± ¡°...¡± Masumoto sank to the ground. He took out a gun from his pocket and threw it aside. Then, he covered his face with his hands and sobbed. ¡°Call the police and have them take him,¡± Young-Joon said to Kim Chul-Kwon. * ¡°... So, Yassir told me to abandon Young-Joon ande with him,¡° Rosaline said, licking her ice cream. ¡±And that¡¯s when Doctor Song appeared like a girl crush and saved you?¡± Young-Joon asked. ¡°Yeah. She stood tall with a stern expression, saying things like, ¡®No,¡¯ ¡®Who are you? Are you a kidnapper?¡¯ ¡®Don¡¯t try to lure a kid. I¡¯m going to protect her.¡¯ Like that. She was so cool.¡± Young-Joon chuckled as Rosaline imitated Song Ji-Hyun. Meanwhile, Song Ji-Hyun blushed and nervously twisted her hair. ¡°The two of you make quite a pair,¡± she remarked. Rosaline pulled Song Ji-Hyun¡¯s arm into her¡¯s and turned back to Young-Joon. ¡°Ryu Young-Joon, I was curious about what Yassir had to say, so I listened to him, but it wasn¡¯t anything special.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Isaiah Franklin, Yassir, and many other scientists always paint an idealistic future. Isn¡¯t it interesting? They all talk about ¡®science this¡¯ and ¡®science that,¡¯ how science should be like this or like that, but that itself isn¡¯t scientific,¡± Rosaline said. ¡°Because science has no answer.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± ¡°I, the very essence of science, see the human element in their ideal envisioning of science.¡± ¡°Human elements?¡± ¡°Yes. Sometimes, it¡¯s incredibly human to the point where it¡¯s overwhelming. I think those are more precious.¡± Young-Joon smiled. There was a moment of silence. ¡°Doctor Ryu,¡± Song Ji-Hyun called, ncing down at her watch. ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°You¡¯re going to bete for the Nobel Prize ceremony. Shouldn¡¯t you be on your way?¡± ¡°Already?¡± he replied, checking the time on his phone. ¡°Let¡¯s go quickly,¡± Rosaline said. ¡°They¡¯ve brought the ceremony to Korea, and the main character can¡¯t bete.¡± Young-Joon stared at Rosaline. ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡± ¡°Nothing. I¡¯m just thankful.¡± ¡°All of a sudden?¡± Young-Joon smiled and picked up Rosaline. With one hand, he opened the office door. ¡°Let¡¯s go, shall we?¡± The giant¡¯s footsteps headed outside. 1. Ano is often used as an ¡®uhm¡¯. ? Author’s Note

Author¡¯s Note

Hello, this is Limido. BackI was an undergraduate student, I briefly learned about poetry. At that time, my professor who was a poet once said after watching a science documentary (most likely NGC): ¡°Science is truly literary.¡± As a science major who also loved literature and philosophy, it resonated with me a lot. From then on, I wanted to write a science fiction novel¡ªa story that retains the unique qualities of science fiction without disrupting the web novel format; a story that is reasonably professional, although it might fall shortpared to real scientific educational books and contain some errors for the sake of literary progression. I wanted to write a story that observed and affirmed the various attributes of humanity amidst the cold and rigid image of science. I thought I could write this novel well, but it turned out to be much more challenging than I expected. For a while, I felt like I was carrying a load beyond my capabilities. While there¡¯s a sense of relief in finallyying it down, the feelings of regret and sadness are much stronger. I learned a lot from this story. Following Ryu Young-Joon and Rosaline, I not only learned about the realm of fiction but also gained considerable knowledge in my field of study. It was demanding, but it was a rewarding and enjoyable journey. Because I gained so much from it, it was truly satisfying work, at least for me. I genuinely hope that the journey with Ryu Young-Joon and Rosaline was enjoyable for the readers as well, and I would like to thank everyone who read along until the end from the bottom of my heart. Special thanks to Mr. Im Hak-Du, who consulted on everything from the initial concept of this novel and deserves the position of second author if this were a research paper. Additionally, I would like to extend my special gratitude to my mother and girlfriend, who reviewed the manuscript¡¯s technical details from a non-expert¡¯s perspective and helped smooth out the story progression. Lastly, as befitting a science fiction novel, I¡¯d like to conclude this work by showing due respect to the great giant who provided me with an immense amount of inspiration and an endless supply of knowledge, allpletely free of charge. Thank you so much for supporting ¡°Super Genius DNA.¡± References 1. Verheijde, J. L. Rady, M. Y. & Potts, M. Neuroscience and Brain Death Controversies: The Elephant in the Room. J. Relig. Health 57, 1745¨C1763 (2018). 2. G?nger, S. & Schindowski, K. Tailoring formtions for intranasal nose-to-brain delivery: A review on architecture, physico-chemical characteristics and mucociliary clearance of the nasal olfactory mucosa. Pharmaceutics 10, (2018). 3. Kumar, A. & Chordia, N. Role of Microbes in Human Health. Appl. Microbiol. 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BMC Cancer 19, 1¨C9 (2019). The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!