chapter 11

He place I arrived at, following my senior, was another section of the mansion. I'm not sure if the word "section" is appropriate to describe a house, but I couldn't think of a better word. It was big. Really big. As I walked behind my senior, a door appeared. The butler knocked on the massive door, and as we entered, a long dining table came into view. It wasn't just long—it was ridiculously long.

If I were to exaggerate, if you sat at one end, you wouldn't be able to have a conversation with someone at the other end. "Oh, so these are my son's friends?" As we entered, there was a man sitting there, clearly dressed in a suit, but it gave off the impression of leather armor. It felt like if Dr. Robert Liston were here, he'd shout, "Brothers!" or something. He wasn't particularly large, but he gave off that kind of vibe. I wondered what kind of life he must have lived to end up like that.

"Ah, yes. Hello, I'm Joseph Lister from Upton."

"I'm also from Upton, Taepyeong Kim. You can call me Pyeong."

"Joseph, Pyeong. Nice to meet you."

He laughed heartily and patted my shoulder. I'm not sure if he heard the whole story, but it seemed like he got the gist of it. His warrior-like eyes wandered between me and my senior before he continued speaking.

"So, you're from Joseon?"

"Ah, yes."

"Joseon, huh? I've never been there, but I've heard of it."

"Anyway... take a seat. I heard you treated my son's injury?"

"Yes."

It was the first time I'd met someone who knew about Joseon.

Since coming to England, I hadn't met many people, but even if I met more, I doubted that would change. At that time, Joseon was a remote corner of the world, visited only by a few missionaries.

'In the 21st century, we have... Squid Game, BTS... huh?'

Even if I said something like that now, I'd only be called crazy. So, I just quietly answered the questions.

"Well, thank you. I've also heard that many medical students... are dying. There might be a connection there. Alfred, follow this guy's lead for now."

Ah, come to think of it, I didn't even know my senior's name.

Alfred.

It sounded like a sidekick's name.

"How's the food?"

As I was nodding along, my senior's father asked about the food. What should I say?

'It's crap.'

But I couldn't say that, even though it seemed like they had put effort into cooking it. However, British food, which wasn't exactly renowned in the 21st century, couldn't possibly be better in the 19th century, right? It was a disaster. Even though I'm not exactly a food connoisseur, I was confident I could make something better with the same ingredients and enough time.

"Yes, it's really great."

Of course, I had maxed out my survival skills, so I could lie without changing my expression. I wondered how things would have been if my parents had followed the priest to France instead. But what could I do? I was in England now.

"I've also... never had such wonderful food before."

On the other hand, Joseph was genuinely impressed. Well, this poor guy almost passed out after eating the sushi I haphazardly made in Upton. If the Thames were just a bit cleaner, I might have tried fishing. But if I cast a fishing rod now, I'd probably catch some cosmic horror creature.

"Well, that's good. I'd love to chat more, but it's been a while since I've been in London... I have to go to a party, so instead, spend some time with my son."

"Yes, thank you."

My senior's father seemed like a very successful man. Living in a house like this, it was only natural, but it seemed like he had many visitors. He ate a bit and then headed out. My senior, Alfred, pointed in that direction with his thumb.

"He's got a lot of work to do. He's received a lot of investments... and every time he comes, there are many places he needs to report to."

"By the way, where are your brothers?"

Although his father was quite open-minded, I felt a bit uncomfortable around white men, so I only spoke up after he left.

"Ah, my brothers? They're either at sea or abroad. The trading business isn't an easy job."

"Ah..."

So they're all abroad. Does that mean my senior is the one managing the family's vast wealth?

'No... that can't be.'

It didn't seem likely. For one, he cut his hand while dissecting, which suggests he's a bit clumsy. Even if he didn't wear gloves, the knife handle was perfectly fine—how did he cut himself? Come to think of it, he does look a bit clumsy.

"Ah, I haven't shown you to your rooms yet. Follow me."

"Ah, yes."

Alfred led Joseph and me to another section of the mansion. There were guest rooms, but calling them guest rooms was an understatement—it was like a hotel. Everything from the furniture to the decor was top-notch.

'I'd love to live here.'

As I was thinking that, I called out to Alfred, who was about to leave after showing us around.

"..."

"Huh? What?"

"About the rubber earlier. Can I take a closer look at it?"

"Rubber? Ah, that. Well... I don't think there's any problem."

"Can you bring it to me?"

"Why don't you get it yourself?"

"The house is too big, I might get lost on the way."

Even though he's my senior, I felt like I was pushing it too much. But it was true—if I went out now, I'd definitely get lost. Alfred seemed to think the same, so he nodded and disappeared. Soon after, he returned with the rubber. It was different from the one I had picked up earlier.

"There's a lot of it in the house. This stuff is actually really cheap."

"Cheap? Why?"

"Well... there's not much use for it."

"Ah... is that so?"

"Yeah. What would you even use it for?"

As I listened to him, I thought about the rubber industry in the 21st century. Even just disposable gloves are used a lot, right? And where else is it used? It seems like it's used a lot... but I couldn't think of anything specific.

'Is it only used for gloves?'

Then my clumsy senior was right. He looked at me holding the rubber and said,

"You can take it."

"Ah, thank you."

"No, it's nothing..."

I must have looked a bit clueless because he gave me a pitying look before heading back to his room.

And so, I was left alone with the rubber.

'It's harder than I thought.'

I picked up the rubber and felt it. Compared to the rubber I was used to, like gloves, this was just...

'You could make armor out of this.'

It wasn't as good as leather, but it was incredibly stiff and sturdy. The biggest difference from leather was its waterproofness. I poured some water on it, and it just slid right off. If you could make it thinner, it could be used for gloves. It wasn't a groundbreaking discovery. After all, gloves are made of rubber.

'But how do you make it thinner?'

Method?

How would I know?

Even though doctors seem like scientists, and we consider ourselves scientists, we don't know anything about engineering. During research meetings, when engineering professors come, we just talk about dreams. They get so passionate, but in the end, they say it's impossible to make.

'What if we grind up an engineer?'

I stood up for a moment and looked out the window. The glass was surprisingly transparent, so even though it was night, I could see outside. Of course, it wasn't as bright as a 21st-century city, but I could still make things out. It was just the right level of brightness to organize my thoughts. So, I paced around, trying to think more. But nothing much came to mind.

The conclusion was that I needed an engineer. But did I have the money to hire one? If it weren't for Joseph, I would have starved to death.

'Hmm...'

No money, no knowledge. All I could do was talk. You might think, "Is that all you can do as a doctor?" But doctors actually have to talk a lot. Especially when trying to secure research funding, particularly national research funding, you need to be good at talking.

"What should I say?"

Even though I don't know much and don't have any money, I want to grind up someone's life to make this rubber thinner. Wow. Even I would shoot myself. But I had to think seriously. Above all, I needed gloves. I vaguely thought about becoming a surgeon, but I didn't realize I'd have to do practice and surgery without gloves.

'Could surgical gloves be profitable?'

Actually, if perceptions changed, it could be profitable.

"You must wear them!"

Wait, no.

'If you do one surgery a day, that's a lot... but how much money would that make?'

Even including practice, would they use 100 gloves a day in all of London? If you set up a factory, it would take decades just to recoup the cost of building the factory. No, it's questionable whether perceptions would even change. If you're walking around with a blood-stained knife, calling it experience, and then you tell people to wear gloves...

'What else can thin rubber be used for...?'

As long as you can make the rubber thin and soft, it doesn't have to be gloves. For gloves, you could just order them for me, Joseph... and my senior. The product could be something else. What else could it be?

'Hmm...'

As I continued to ponder, the few lights outside began to fade. Then, a strange sound came from a nearby building. It was a moan. Not the kind of moan someone makes when they're in pain.

"Ugh."

Even if you count my past life, I'm over 50 years old. But I didn't live that long in my past life, did I? Now is the time when hormones are raging. When I came to my senses, I was leaning out the window, straining to listen.

You pathetic jerk...

"Ugh?"

Feeling too pathetic, I lowered my head, only to see another head pop up. At the same time, something flashed through my mind.

Ah, this head is the one on top.

Anyway...

'Thin rubber?'

Soft, thin rubber...?

Condoms...?

'Isn't this a goldmine?'

Wait, do condoms already exist? If they do, that's good. We can use that technology to make gloves. Since they absolutely can't tear, the quality must be guaranteed.

You pathetic jerk...

Am I a genius?