"Who are you?"
"My name is General Choi Young, Woodalchi commander of the royal Goryeo army division." He bowed his head at the end of the introduction, still holding tightly to his sword. This was possibly the most embarrassing position he could have imagined for himself to make an introduction, but he was injured, so the matter could not be helped. He had to stay in bed. "I apologize, but you prohibited me from getting up, so I am unable to greet you properly, doctor."
That was a time when Eun Soo REALLY needed to seat down. She slowly lowered into the chair.
He looks normal and talks well, he honestly believes what he is saying; therefore, he must have a fixed delusion. If he believes that he is a historic figure, general Choi Young, then it explains his dress and the sword. Did he escape from a mental institution? OK. I have to be calm. He does not suspect me. If I act naturally, he won't hurt me.
Eun Soo smiled awkwardly. "Well, nice to meet you, sir. I have to get going, I have stuff to do. Your secret is safe with me." She averted her eyes and quickly got up.
The stranger managed to grab her hand, but her fingers were slipping away; he still tried to hold onto her at the tips, but she quickly withdrew her hand and headed for the door without turning back. His touch rattled her even more than what he said.
"You don't believe me, do you? You are not very good at lying. I could tell everything you said before was true. Why? Why all of a sudden you do not believe me? Was it something I said?" he screamed out.
Eun Soo ran out. She felt her heart jumping inside her chest, beating so loudly it echoed in her ears. She stopped and looked at her hand. When he touched her, she felt a light electrical current run through her fingertips. She still felt as if he was holding her hand. It was unsettling and wonderful.
How can I react like that to a simple touch? This strange man is obviously a mental patient, probably dangerous.
Why was she at loss about what to do? She pulled out her cell phone from the pocket and dialed the police.
"Hello, I would like to report. Forget it. Actually, I'm a doctor, I would like to know if there were any recent reports about an escaped mental patient carrying a sword. No, this is not a prank, I can call you directly from a hospital line. Don't you dare hang up on me! Let me speak to a supervisor! OK, I'll hold," she was frustrated at herself for doing this, but to hold onto her sanity, she needed something tangible, a proof. "Nothing. Thanks. No recent missing persons? Here is the description: a male, about 28 years old, 187 cm tall. Anybody?.. No… thanks."
Eun Soo's hand holding the phone, dropped. She stood in the middle of the hospital corridor confused and worried. She was worried about him!
She ran back into the room, trying to catch her breath, she struggled to talk, "I… don't… understand… I …...want ... to ….. believe…. you…."
The stranger smiled at her, "I knew I could trust you, Imja."
She approached him and explained sternly, "This does not mean anything yet. You have to convince me that you are not a danger to others or self. Although you sound crazy, I will give you a chance. If you prove that I can trust you, then, maybe, I will keep your secret. That's it."
"I'm not sure how to do that. If you have any questions, then ask."
Eun Soo pulled up a chair, placing it across the room from the bed, as if preparing for an interrogation. In fact, she did not trust herself to be in her right mind, if she was too close to him.
She sat, crossing her arms and legs, making sure she was looking tough and impenetrable.
"Let's start from the beginning. What is your name?"
"My name is Choi Young."
"How old are you?"
"I am 27 years of age."
"Where are you from?"
"I am from Goryeo."
"What do you do?"
"I'm a commander of the WooDalChi."
"Never heard of them!"
"It is an elite guard unit specifically appointed to protect the seating king of Goryeo."
"Fine, you know your history. Why are you lying to me?"
"I am being honest. I do not like to lie. It is too much trouble," he chuckled, " You do not seem to be fond of lying yourself."
"There is nothing I hate more than a man who lies."
"I'll keep that in mind. There is no benefit for me to anger you, is there?"
"OK. You have a point." Eun Soo ran out of questions to ask. All of his answers were the same, so, like she suspected, he completely believed in his own story.
"What are you doing here?"
"I was tracking an assassin and accidently entered Hwata's gate to Heavens, which led me to this world. I was outside chasing after the assassin, when the lights blinded me and something very heavy smashed into my side. I think I lost consciousness after that. I woke up in this room. I do not know anything else."
Eun Soo looked at him intently, "Are you telling me that you are from Goryeo? You realize, Goryeo has not existed for the last 700 hundred years. You are in Korea now. I do not know if it is the head trauma or what, but you better regain your memories quickly, because I do not have much leeway in dragging out your pretence."
The stranger's eyes reflected confusion, "Can you tell me where I am? What land is it?"
"It is the land of South Korea, the democratic republic of Korea, to be precise. It is located on the Korean peninsula along with North Korea next to China, and across the sea from Japan. This city is called Seoul. It was founded in 1392. Which you would not know since it did not exist during the time of Goryeo."
The man's eyes widened in a clear sign of shock. His face looked so lost, obviously shaken to the core.
She could tell he warred with himself not to react strongly, but he did not attempt to hide the look of severe distress and Eun Soo felt like holding his hand to comfort him.
Even if he is crazy, it must be shocking to hear that his world he believes is real has been long gone.
"What of Yuan?" his voice shaking.
"Gone."
"Are you telling me I'm in the future?"
"It would seem so."
"How do I get back?"
"How would I know?" she responded in a softer tone, worrying that it might have sounded cold, but it was the most sincere answer she could give him.
He looked completely stricken. The stranger tried to seat again. Angrily, he pulled off attached to him electrodes, causing the machines to go into an alert mode.
"Stop it, you'll have everybody on the floor come here!" Eun Soo quickly managed to turn off the alarms.
"Calm down. You will only hurt yourself," she put her hands on his shoulders, firmly pressing him down, "I won't let you ruin your recovery." He pushed her hands away and swung his legs down the side, rushing to get up. Eun Soo desperately tried to hold him down, but he easily outmaneuvered her and headed for the door.
"Great, now EVERYBODY will see you. Good luck hiding after that!" she yelled at his back.
He obviously heard her, because he stopped and turned around.
"Then what DO I do?" he exclaimed in desperation, "HOW DO I GO HOME?"