In the hospital room of the Abu Dhabi royal palace, Taeho let out a deep sigh of relief as the youngest, Prince Ali, slept peacefully. All four princes had regained their lives.
Taeho calmly organized the final medical records.
At that moment, Rema’s voice rang in his ear.
-Kang Taeho, a special reward will be issued.
His heart began to pound. Saving all four princes at once was a greater achievement than any treatment he had performed so far. Naturally, he expected the reward to match it.
-Treatment of the four princes of the UAE royal family completed.
-Difficulty: S-rank.
-Special reward: +800 coins.
-Countdown in progress: D-341
-Current coins held······.
800 coins!
Taeho’s eyes flew open.
Now he would be able to reach Platinum rank. Once he became Platinum, not only Bio Vision but also his intuition would be upgraded another level, and there would be new rewards as well······.
But when he saw the number that appeared next, he froze.
-Current coins held: 19,998 coins.
Huh? 19,998 coins?
“Wait, Rema. Does that mean I’m not being upgraded to Platinum rank right now?”
-Correct. You are short by 2 coins of the 20,000 coins required to achieve Platinum rank.
For a moment, Taeho doubted his own ears. He had just saved four lives, and he was short by a measly 2 coins?
“2 coins? Really, 2 coins?”
His voice was tinged with disbelief.
A simple consultation usually earned him about 1 or 2 coins. An emergency situation gave 5 to 10 coins, and treating a rare disease ranged from 20 to 50 coins, sometimes even around 1,000. But he couldn’t exactly go searching for a patient right now just for 2 coins······.
-Do not be too impatient. Platinum rank is something you will attain when you are ready, Master.
“Ready? I saved four princes, and you’re saying that’s still not enough?”
Taeho shook his head.
It was disappointing, but what could he do?
He would probably rank up within a few days.
***
The grand banquet hall of the Abu Dhabi royal palace was decorated with golden chandeliers and Persian carpets.
The lavish dinner personally ordered by Prince Mansour was, on the surface, meant to celebrate the princes’ full recovery.
“Doctor Kang, welcome.”
Mansour greeted Taeho, dressed in a white kandura and a black bisht.
“Thank you for this honor.”
Taeho bowed politely and looked around the banquet hall. Important members of the royal family were seated on both sides of the long, broad table.
Mansour’s brothers, his white-haired uncles, and even royal advisers. All of them were watching the foreigner from the East.
According to rumors, he was a renowned doctor who had borrowed the hand of God, and also a genius who might appear only once in a century. More secret rumors claimed he was a spy who had infiltrated the palace as part of some conspiracy.
They watched Taeho’s expression and every single gesture, sometimes openly, sometimes subtly.
‘Every eye is focused on me.’
Maintaining a poker face, Taeho took his seat.
Today, Taeho’s place was the seat of honor to Mansour’s right.
Mansour rose and spoke.
“Everyone, today we have invited a special guest. This is Doctor Kang Taeho, the renowned physician from Korea who saved the lives of our princes.”
Applause broke out, but somehow, it felt formal.
Taeho’s intuition separated the friendly gazes from the eyes filled with suspicion and wariness.
Especially Prince Shakhbut, Mansour’s second uncle, seated closest to him.
Though called a prince, he was already an old man in his seventies, and he was glaring at Taeho with a cold expression.
When Taeho happened to meet Shakhbut’s eyes, he smiled awkwardly and gave a slight greeting.
Fortunately, once the guest of honor had been seated, the food began to arrive.
Sturdy men appeared one by one, carrying dishes on golden trays.
The first dish was mandi served on a huge silver platter. Mandi was a representative UAE dish of lamb seasoned with saffron and various spices, placed atop basmati rice. From the juicy meat wafted the rich scent of cardamom and cinnamon.
Next came harees. It was a traditional soup made by simmering wheat and lamb for a long time until thick, its creamy, soft texture whetting the appetite. Beside it came a fish dish called ruji, marinated in date syrup, along with fragrant machboos. Machboos was a dish of rice cooked with spices and topped with fish or chicken.
“Doctor, this is ozi. You may eat it with the caviar.”
Each time a new dish appeared, Prince Rayan, seated beside Taeho, explained it to him.
Prince Rayan was Mansour’s eldest son, fifteen years old this year. Believing that he owed his life to Taeho and that he could attend the banquet in good health thanks to him, he stayed close by Taeho’s side and told him all sorts of things.
Following Prince Rayan’s explanation, Taeho carefully took a bite of the small pancake-like food. A sweet yet savory flavor spread through his mouth.
The final course was dessert, luqaimat.
A plate was brought out, exquisitely decorated with warm doughnut-like pastries drizzled with date syrup, fresh dates, and figs.
Taeho enjoyed the aroma and colors of the food. It was a feast of exotic flavors he had never experienced in Korea.
As the dinner continued, a royal falcon trainer appeared in the center of the banquet hall. On his leather glove perched a dazzlingly beautiful peregrine falcon with golden feathers, sitting there in majestic splendor.
“You will now witness a performance by the falcons that are the pride of our royal family.”
The host introduced it proudly.
When the trainer blew a special whistle, the falcon spread its wings wide and soared into the air above the banquet hall. Like an arrow cutting through the wind, it circled over the hall with graceful yet swift movements.
When the trainer swung a feathered lure, the falcons dove like lightning, then rose again, repeating the maneuver.
The people could not help but marvel at their exquisite flying skills. Finally, the falcons landed perfectly on the trainer’s glove and lifted their heads proudly.
The royals applauded and cheered in unison.
“Doctor, what do you think?”
Mansour naturally addressed Taeho.
“It is fascinating. Thank you once again for inviting me.”
“You saved our princes. This much is only natural. But there is one thing I am curious about. How did you predict the princes’ illness so accurately? I heard you brought the treatment with you from Korea in advance······.”
Of course, Taeho could not reveal Rema’s existence. But neither could he say that he had planned it in advance in order to meet Amira.
Expecting such a question, he gave the answer he had prepared beforehand.
“I was tracking a biochemical terrorism case as a special investigator for the WHO.”
Taeho continued calmly.
“As I analyzed their past attack patterns, I judged that Middle Eastern royal families were highly likely to become major targets. In particular, signs of a customized virus targeting genetic traits had been found in several sets of data.”
“Interesting.”
At that moment, Prince Shakhbut, who had heard the words from close by, cut in with a cynical tone.
“Even so, is it not too much of a coincidence? Did you perhaps have some other purpose?”
Though he was old, his voice carried quite strongly.
All the nobles nearby stopped moving and looked back and forth between Taeho and Prince Shakhbut.
The tension heightened.
“Grandfather!”
Prince Rayan stood up. Though still young, he had the dignity befitting a prince ingrained in him.
“Grandfather. If not for this man, all of us brothers would have died. Did you not always tell me that one must not repay kindness with enmity? That such is the honor of our royal family.”
Seeing Prince Rayan’s emotional expression, Shakhbut’s face softened slightly.
“Rayan, what you say is also true. But for the safety of the royal family, this is something we must address······.”
It was at that very moment.
Kiiik!
A sharp falcon’s cry rang through the banquet hall. Everyone was startled and turned toward the source of the sound.
On one side of the hall, a falcon had fallen from the trainer’s glove and was flapping on the floor.
“Ah, Sahara!”
Mansour rose in alarm. Sahara was one of Mansour’s most cherished peregrine falcons.
After examining the falcon, the trainer reported in confusion.
“She suddenly staggered and fell, Your Highness.”
The falcon was dragging one wing and seemed to be in pain. Everyone in the royal family watched with worried expressions.
“Call the veterinarian!”
Mansour gave the order, but Taeho rose from his seat first.
“May I take a look?”
“Can you do that, Doctor?”
“The basic principles of medicine are the same.”
Taeho approached the falcon. When he activated Bio Vision, the falcon’s condition came into view at a glance.
A red warning color flashed strongly around the left wing. That was where the bone was broken. Around the falcon’s small head, a faint yellow light flickered.
A concussion?
The blood flow and nerve transmission were slightly disrupted, clearly revealed as a pattern of light rippling like an aurora.
“Your Highness, this falcon has a fracture in the left wing bone and is suffering from a concussion.”
Taeho carefully lifted the falcon as he gave his diagnosis.
“If we immobilize the fracture and let it rest, it will recover.”
“Is that truly so?”
Mansour asked, eyes wide.
Taeho calmly requested of the trainer.
“Could you bring me two thin wooden splints, bandages, and scissors?”
“Yes? Yes. Please wait a moment.”
While the materials were being prepared, he gently stroked the falcon’s head to calm it.
“Shh, it’s all right. I won’t let it hurt.”
Taeho’s voice was astonishingly soft. Once the materials arrived, he first adjusted the wooden splints to match the length of the falcon’s wing. Sahara tried to scratch Taeho’s hand with her sharp talons, but Taeho paid it no mind at all.
“Come on, just bear with it for a moment.”
With one hand, he steadied the falcon’s body, and with the other, he aligned the broken wing at a natural angle. The falcon cried out sharply and struggled, but Taeho’s touch was precise without the slightest tremor.
He placed the splint against the wing and began wrapping it with the bandage. If it was too loose, it would not hold; if it was too tight, it would interfere with blood circulation. Taeho wrapped the bandage with the skill of a veterinarian who had treated wild animals for decades.
“Check the blood circulation······.”
Taeho lightly pressed the tip of the falcon’s toe to check the capillary refill time. Confirming that the color returned within two seconds, he let out a breath of relief.
Sahara, who had struggled at first, gradually began to quiet down in Taeho’s arms. It was as if she was finding peace from the warmth of Taeho’s body and the steady beating of his heart.
Taeho did not realize it, but to everyone present, the sight was shocking.
Normally, injured birds of prey became extremely sensitive and rejected treatment. Even trainers who had built up affection with them over time found it difficult to approach an injured one.
And yet how could that doctor from the East treat the falcon so naturally?
Everyone watched the astonishing scene with expressions of disbelief.
At last, the treatment was finished.
Sahara sat calmly on Taeho’s forearm, one wing neatly immobilized. Then she tilted her head, looked up at Taeho, and let out a small, gentle cry.
“Thank you, Sahara.”
Taeho stroked the falcon’s head once more. Then he suddenly realized that the surroundings had become far too quiet.
“······.”
The banquet hall was wrapped in a suffocating silence.
“Allahu Akbar······.”
Suddenly, Grand Duke Tahnoun, the highest elder of the royal family, murmured.
The falcon was the symbol of the Abu Dhabi royal family and a sacred animal. Treating such a falcon went beyond a mere medical act and approached something with religious meaning.
The atmosphere changed completely. The people who had been looking at Taeho with suspicion moments ago now gazed at him with awe.
“Is this not a revelation from God?”
The other elders nodded as well.
“To heal the falcon that symbolizes our royal family······.”
“Our Sahara does not fear that foreign doctor in the slightest.”
“This must surely contain the will of Allah.”